I'm back! I think...

The past year leapt away from me and I never was able to grab hold of it again. I think the last post I made almost a year ago followed by 10 months of silence pretty much says it all. But lately I've been having random thoughts about blog posts, things that need more than a facebook status update to delve into. I may or may not stick with it, but the first step is doing it. So far it feels pretty good :)

One of my problems blogging is that the ones I enjoy always have tons of pictures to make the stories more interesting, and I tended to fall down on that front. Or else I'd be looking for meaningful or interesting topics to blog about, rather than the random ramblings that really make up who I am. I'm not sure where this will go, if I'll get overwhelmed by work again and retreat into doing nothing, or what. Here's your invitation to join me on this trip, however long it lasts.

 And to start us off, here's the super cool year-long knitting project I'm working on.

It's a scarf that records the daily temperature. Each color spans 5 degrees, and every day I check the recorded high and knit a row in the corresponding color.

I've decided to use the local temp. wherever I am, but if I'm traveling I'll work the first couple stitches of the row differently so there's a subtle mark that tells me it wasn't just an unseasonable day. Today is my first row of dark grey, which is a 30 degree jump from the spring green line last week. I've always liked the weather, but this scarf it turning me into a weather nerd.

Must share - shopping other ppl's stashes

I just stumbled upon a fantastic feature in Ravelry that is going to save me tons of money. People list yarn from their stashes to sell, and you can search directly within that group for stuff that's a great deal! I needed 2 skeins of a certain brand and color, and found someone selling exactly what I needed for about 40% less than list price. Now I also know what to do with some of my impulse purchases I'll never use.

From the homepage I clicked the search icon (magnifying glass). Then chose to search stashes. There's a click box on the left to select For Sale or Trade. Then you can search for specific names, colors, fibers, yarn weights, etc. Woo hoo!

Gotta run, there's stash mining to be done!

Epiphany

Almost from the beginning, I've always been a sock knitter. I learned to knit on a scarf , then made a pair of ribbed mittens, then I was on to socks. I was such a new knitter I knotted the yarn together on the sole of my first pair! Socks have been my thing for well over a decade. It's always socks.

Then something happened this past year. I just got tired of socks. I couldn't bear the thought of knitting another one. I stopped looking at sock patterns, passed by sock yarn in the store. I unraveled the one I was working on - that's how little I cared about finishing it. Admittedly I've gotten a lot of knitting done since then, but still it's made me pause wondering what happened to my love of socks?

A recent KnitPicks podcast included asking someone how they got started knitting. I turned off the radio and started answering it as if they had asked me. Which turned into a delightfully time-filling interview driving down the interstate. And it uncovered why I abandoned socks - they abandoned me first.

Rundown of my socktastrophe: Last year I knit a pair for my Emah that were mirror images. Only I kept messing up and essentially knit almost 5 full socks to get two that matched. I excitedly started a complex fairisle pair, only I could never get it right - the fabric was always too unstretchy to slip over my heel. The next pair I knit for Emah was a pattern I'd recently used before, but somehow I picked up the wrong needles for the second sock and ended up knitting 3 full socks to get a matched set. Then there was the fiddly modular pair that if I put down for more than a few days I'd have to re-teach myself how to do the pattern - unraveled! Then the final pair - lovely cashmere and wool yarn from an indie dyer, bought on my trip to Vancouver. Easy to knit pattern, but somehow I just couldn't get through it.

At the time I didn't think of all the work that was for naught, but looking back it was a bad year for sock knitting. I think my total lack of interest now, and amazing ability to finish things lately, really stems from a deep discouragement that socks are a finishable project. But that gives me hope, as I think one day I'll dismiss my discouragement and be back to my socks again. Which is good, I have way too much sock yarn to really give it up.

Highly productive (and no that doesn't mean I have bronchitis)

It means I've been knitting (and finishing things) like a maniac! Normally I'm terrible about finishing projects. I get to the 3/4 mark and completely lose interest in the project. I develop an overwhelming desire to knit something else and it's a chore to trudge through the last bit. But I never care since I'm a process knitter not a product knitter. But lately when I get to the 3/4 mark I can wait to get the item finished to see what it's like. Which has resulted in a huge number of finished items lately.

 

The teal sweater was started at the end of March. I have a photo from that insane Maine-DC-Dallas trip the first weekend of April that has the first few inches of the sweater sitting on my lap in the plane. This was my very first successful sweater - which means I've accomplished something that was on my lifetime goals list! The button I used I've had for about 6 years. It's the butt end of an antler, all squiggly and unmistakably natural.

The pink Candy Floss Cowl just came out of nowhere. I can't explain why I bought the yarn, or why I knit this piece. But I like it now, and it came together pretty quickly. It's got a lot of versatility, so may end up being a good item to wear this winter.

The purple sweater is an Anthropologie knock-off. It only took 250 yards to knit! The entire time I was knitting I kept saying No effin' way can you make a sweater with only 250 yards of yarn. And when it was done and I realized not only can you make a sweater with that little yarn, and an ANTHROPOLOGIE sweater at that, but that it's super cute and a great end to a weekend of knitting...uh, I'm not sure how to end this sentence, I think it surpassed run-on into some irretrievably bad-grammar point. But you know what I mean.

This sweater needs a clasp to close, which means I finally get the chance to use my vintage brooch collection!

The final piece is a scarf I knit as a thank you for someone. She really helped me make one of the more difficult decisions I've had to deal with this past year or so, and what better way to say thank you than with knitted goods? I've had this pattern favorited on Ravelry for ages so was glad for the excuse to knit it up.

There are actually a couple other things I've finished but I'm less spectacularly thrilled with them, so I'm leaving 'em off this blog roll. But if you're dying to see them check out Rattlefox on Ravelry.

Knittin' Opinion Needed

I'm almost finished with my sweater - just the shoulder shaping on one sleeve, then blocking and seaming and wearing, just in time for fall! So naturally my mind is wandering over what to knit next. I want to knit a scarf for someone - no it's not you, why would I post about it for you to read?? It's for someone who always comments on my knitting and makes 'jokes' about me knitting socks for her. Well, I'm too bored with socks lately and figured a scarf would be a good choice. I asked a mutual friend what style she might like and gave her a list of adjectives like lacy, cozy, stripey, cabled, avant guarde, etc. She suggested cozy and avant guarde. After pouring through Ravelry I've come down to 3-5 ideas and want your opinion which I should knit:

Just Enough Ruffles - worsted, so fast to knit. Asymmetric with ruffles down one edge

Palindrome - Knit and purl panels cause interesting pleating. 

Larisa's Bark - Mega huge cables make a stunning unusual texture

Rill Scarf - Very modern looking, lace down one edge and a slight ruffle on the other.

Cinder - From Jared Flood, so you know it's classic. Definitely cozy, but I don't think avant guarde. Also, it's in bulky yarn, which I think will make a too voluminous scarf for someone barely 5' tall. But isn't it lovely? Can't you imagine it in one of those squishy bulky yarns that you want to plop your face into right in the yarn shop? Can you imagine a scarf made of such yarn where the texture enhances the "come cuddle in me" qualities? Maybe with a touch of cashmere? Oh, if I were Blanche Devereaux I'd have to go fan myself off now.

You'll notice these are all pretty simple nearly mindless patterns. I think knitting an entire sweater in stockinette has shown me the pleasure of straight knitting, as opposed to the crazy lace and colorwork patterns I so often do! 

So, which do you think I should make? Or do you have a suggestion for something even better? I'm open to all opinions, so ask your friends and husbands too. Well, only if they're the kind who care enough to look at knitting patterns and provide helpful commentary ;) Thanks for the help, you know my license plate doesn't say INDCISV for nothing!

Upcoming holidays = mania

Let me start out by saying that I don't *have* to knit presents for the holidays. It would be nice to have some finished, but it's not like I'm depending on them. But for some reason as soon as the air turns chill (finally happened like last week), and the holiday decorations go up around the neighborhood (don't look at my house, we still haven't cleaned up the leaves from the yard), I get attacked by the knitting bug. No, this isn't just a bug, it's more like a swarm of africanized killer knitting bugs. I NEED to knit, I have tons of things I want to knit, I have new yarn I bought on recent trips I can knit with. I am almost done with my second Koolhaas hat, the first one being way too small for some reason. I'm almost to the heel on the second sock of a pair (actually the third, but we won't go there), and will hopefully get it done next week on my next flight. These are intended as presents. All well and good, with more than enough time to finish them.

But that's not where the mania starts. I want to knit myself a tam. Now that I work from my slightly-too-chilly home I can indulge in oddities like wearing tams during the day. I know which tam I want to knit, and even have the yarn ready.  But I have something I want to knit for D, and I never make him stuff so I'd really like to do it. But Knitpicks is conspiring against me and their website was so bogged down by cyber monday I couldn't order more yarn, and now won't have it in time to get it finished. And I feel the need to knit another pair of socks for our grandad, except I have to knit them in extra-honkin' huge size, so it's more like knitting sweater sleeves. And lets not forget the Clapotis shawl I have almost halfway done. But I also want to knit a warm shawl out of handspun to wear. And and and... So I'm definitely going to finish the hat and socks. And try to make D's item. And not worry about the rest. But I'm in that manic mood right now where I'd be happy sitting with a pile of DVDs knitting all day long. Alas! Hmm...maybe I can squeeze in a few more rows before bedtime.

Timestream

Time keeps passing and passing.  I'm being carried downstream not by my own power.  Thankfully I am safely afloat, worried more about holding on to the flotsam of pending tasks than scurrying around looking for a paddle.    As I swift my way along each day I see others casually tubing in the shallows.  Bumbling along, knowing they'll reach their destination without really caring how long it takes or if they end up weighted down by rocks.  I was a tuber until recently.  Amazing how quickly your attitude shifts once you step into the rapid current and the deeper part of the stream.  At least I'm not getting too drenched yet.

I have several items finished I need to post to Ravelry, but that means getting the photos off my Droid and onto my computer.  Hmm...hadn't thought to try posting directly from the droid, we'll have to see if Ravelry can handle it.  That would save one step at least.  I unravelled my extra big sock and need to try knitting it again.  I also cast on for a Koolhaas hat, which isn't so bad once you get used to the 2-st. cables.  Hmm...I wonder if the twist stitch trick would work for that so I don't have to take stitches off the needles for the cable.  But of course I can't stop knitting on my Clapotis right now.  Thankfully I can knit in meetings and no one is the wiser.  This morning's meeting was so long I also painted my toenails and fingernails.  I'd like to have some photos of things for you to see, but that goes back to having the time to take some and post them.  Soon hopefully!

What did we do without Ravelry?

I have a ball of Zauberball laceweight I got at MDSW that has been calling my name.  Purple, fuscia, orange - so not my normal colors!  It's 800m, which means it's not quite enough to go charging blindly down the lace shawl avenue without careful checking of required yardage.  I've been searching through my favorited shawls, trying to imagine what they'd look like with the long color repeat of the zauberball.  I also searched all projects made with this yarn, and lo and behold one of my top shawl contestants was made in the exact colorway I have!  And it looks terrible!  No offense to the creator, the knitting is lovely, but the color changing just doesn't work for me.  I had been imagining a triangular or semi-circular shawl, and after reviewing all the projects, I know I want something long and rectangular, to stretch the color blocks as far as possible.  Never in a million years would I have chosen this route left to my own devices.  I'm thinking about making a Clapotis.  It fits my shape requirements and I figure 16000 other knitters can't be wrong!  I just checked and it has been made more than any other pattern online - even higher than the baby surprise or Jaywalker socks.  Woah.

Sockonundrum

Dangit!  The purple and green turned out to be too similar in tone (or is it value?) when knit in the Lizard Sock leg pattern.  The chain pattern was totally lost.  So I went to the LYS since I know they have a small selection of Claudia's HandPaints yarn, hoping they would have something contrasting yet complimentary to use.  Actually I wanted 2 skeins of yarn to work with both the purple & green, so I would still have enough for pairs of socks.  ARGH!  I hate the LYS here!  They look like they have a lot, but when you dig in you realize how little selection they have.  Not much that would work at all :(  I finally whipped out my droid and opened Ravelry to scan through the completed projects to see what color combinations worked well.  I ended up with a soft silvery white to pair with the purple - I think it'll be purple lizard on silver background, unless I want to go for the moonlit lizard on a dark purple base.  Hmmm...I like the sound of that.  Or maybe do one of each for a negative effect?  The green was harder to match, knowing how variable the colors of it are.  I finally chose Ink, a dark dark warm color not quite black.  The green will obviously be the lizard.  I'm going to do the purple and silver ones first, and see how I feel when the project is done.

Sizing Note for all you with Lizard Socks in your queue:  The sizing for Europe vs. US doesn't match.  I wear a 40-41 Eur (9.5-10 US).  I decided to go with european sizing since the pattern is German.  I chose the Med. size but when I knit a swatch it wouldn't fit over my heel.  So maybe the US sizing is right (I would have knit a Large if going by US).  But it's worth the time to swatch for this one, since these socks have no stretch to them. 

Sock opinion needed!

I'm ready for yet another pair of socks.  They are going to be 2 color, variegated purple and variegated lime green from Claudia's Handpaint - the photo doesn't do it justice, the colors look really great together.  I have 3 patterns I'm trying to decide between, and need YOUR opinion!  Two of them are fairisle, something I'm happy knitting but have avoided in socks.  I was always concerned about the stretchiness of them, but there are so many stranded sock patterns it must be ok.  The third, Bolts, is fairisle only on top of the foot where the pattern is.  The yarn is carried inside the sock across the pattern area to the beginning of each round and twisted in, just like knitting a circular swatch flat.  If I do the bolts pattern I think I may flip the colors for the 2 socks.  The other 2 patterns will be purple background and green colorwork. Here are the 3 pics, and the Ravelry links with the name:

Meeresrauschen


















Bolts Socks

Lizard Socks












So what do you think?  Bolts was my original intention, but I favorited the other two also, and think they could be really cool.  Plus being fairisle they may not wear out and need darning quite as quickly.  But I really like all 3.  So, please let me know what you think, ask other people nearby which they like.  Also any opinions or tips about fairisle socks are welcome!

Excitement, then disappointment...then hope?

I fell in love with this yarn from Steam Valley at a fiber show this past fall. It was at the very first booth I went to, and I spent a good chunk of money on it without caring that I might find other things later on I wished to buy. Now anyone who's attended a show knows you don't just go crazy buying the first thing you see. But this yarn refused to let me walk by. It's almost 500 yards of fingering weight superwash, and the photo does not do the colors justice.

I wanted to knit myself a pair of armwarmers from it. I found a pattern I liked with a chevron of ribbing down the arm. I swatched and my gauge matched PERFECTLY. Like, 7 1/4 sts/" on the button. Who gets that kind of accuracy -- or is it precision? No, I think it's accuracy -- on the first swatch with a different yarn and needle size than the pattern calls for? Call it serendipity, fortuitous, what-have-you. I was just thrilled for everything to be falling into place. Until I started knitting the project. The color repeats are much shorter than I thought, only about 4-6" which means they don't form stripes or even pools of color. They blend into a muddy palette that dulls the beauty of the skein of yarn. Very disappointing. I'd post a photo but I already unraveled it.

So, I still have the yarn begging to be knit, but no idea what to make it into. The color repeats just don't seem like it'll work for socks, yet that's what this yarn is intended for. I thought of something with short rows to keep the colors pooled, maybe entrelac, but they'd be really small squares. I might try the Swirl Shawl since I have the pattern, but don't know that I want to embark on a piecemeal project. Any suggestions or favorite patterns for this type of yarn?

Plus, and here's the craftastrophe part, I don't have a knitting project right now. I ordered yarn from Knitpicks to make a pair of hot pepper elf shoes but it hasn't shipped yet. This is not normal. I think all of us being snowed in has caused a wave of orders at KP that they can't keep up with. I need a portable pattern that I don't have to look at to work on in the carpool. I can't just let all that free time riding in the car to go to waste. I still like that armwarmer pattern, but don't have any appropriate yarn. I could dye some, but that won't help me NOW. I could knit them in white and dye them afterwards in a gradation or something. That's an idea...

The socks that never die

So remember that pair of socks I was knitting and FROGGING, and just couldn't get the size right? I bought new, slightly thicker yarn and it was all working beautifully. Knit down to the foot on the left sock, then cast on the right sock for a long car trip. Yes, these socks have definite left & right feet, which are mirror images of each other. After I knit the entire right sock I realize oops! I used the left sock's pattern by mistake. FROGGING! (Unravelling, for you non-knitters) Go back to the Left sock, and decide I should've used a slightly smaller needle (2.5 instead of 2.75) since the sock is slightly too big. Cast on the right sock again using the smaller needle to see how it looks and like it. Guess what my next task is? FROGGING the left sock completely! And restarting AGAIN!!! Astoundingly, I'm still liking the pattern and not minding that I could've knit 4 socks with the number of stitches I've wasted on this pair. In fact, these are going to have to be known as my Tetra-Socks now. Keeping figers crossed they don't turn into Penta-socks.

That pesky 1/2"

I normally make up my own sock patterns, so they are always the correct size. I'm delving into published patterns and twice encountered a problem I'm not sure how to address. My foot circumference is 8.5". One pattern I want to use give sizes for 8" or 9.25", nothing in between. I started the Maelstrom pattern in the 8" size and after a while tried it on to see how it fit. I couldn't stretch it over my heel! I assume that means it's too small, and try the large size, but it's way too big (I feel a bit like Goldilocks now). My gauge is correct, so that's not the answer. I love Cookie A's spiralling asymmetric patterns, but I think it's important to be able to knit the sock in a fitting size, rather than catering to odd sizing just to fit a pattern repeat. Ok, then I decide to knit the Holidazed pattern, which does give multiple sizes, but they are all whole inch sizes, so do I try 8" or 9"? I'm using knitpicks superwash sock yarn rather than the med. weight yarn called for, so I'm going to have use the largest listed pattern size since my gauge is so much finer.

So my foot (like my entire body) is apparently between 2 sizes. The 2-row striped socks were knit on 68 sts. (8.5") fit great. But I also have a pair of stockinette based socks knit on 64 sts. that also fit. I really like Maelstrom and WANT to knit it. But it's not very stretchy, and the 64 sts. for the pattern couldn't fit over my heel. What's the deal? The pattern repeat is 13sts, and it'd be impossible to break that up. But I might be able to tuck a few extra stitches in the pattern by making the 2st ribs into 3 st ribs. It would add 2 sts. per repeat, which would be 10 sts. overall. But that'll obviously change the look of the sock. Hmm...

I can't be the only person with this problem. What do you do? Make socks that are too big and may slouch? Fudge the numbers to make the size right? Skip patterns that don't give correct sizing? Grr! Whine!

Dr. Update, Moving & Crafting

I saw my oncologist for my 6 month checkup. Everything was good and very stable. He said I could change to annual visits now! It's a small thing, but means that he has total confidence in my health. So my next scheduled appointment is in June 2010. Wow! I'm glad too that I feel comfortable with this change. A few years ago I would have fretted not seeing him more frequently. But now I'm like "Hell yeah, check me out!"

As I've been boxing up my craft stuff, I've been rethinking some things. Oh, did I really say I would throw away all my nearly-finished projects that I didn't finish in time to move? Can I retract that? Yes, there was some wasted time in the evenings I could have been finishing projects, but really the time flew by faster than I anticipated. I DID finish a pair of harem pants that just needed hemming and a waistband--in time for a street festival performance, too. And I did "throw away" my handspun cinnamon bark sweater that had the front almost finished. When you unravel a large item, we say you're frogging it (rip-it, rip-it). I brought it along to our grandad's on the Solstice to work on, but when I held it up to myself I just knew it wouldn't be as long as the photo and that I'd never be happy. So in front of their shocked faces, I pulled out the needles and started frogging. Making a handspun sweater and wearing it is STILL on my list of things I want to do one day.

Speaking of frogging things, I'm about half done with my second rainbow 2x2 knee sock and I think I might stop at a crew sock length and rip the finished one back to match. The sock is stretched to its max around my calf and I hate the look of stretched knit stitches. Besides, I already have more socks I have to knit as presents before winter, and I'm dying to cast on a lace shawl I recently got the yarn for.

Socks socks socks... and chocolate

You ever have those days where you really want something chocolatey, but just can't figure out exactly what you're craving? Candy? Cookie? Brownie? Ice cream? High quality dark chocolate bar? Nope, nothing is calling out as the exact right item. That's how people end up drinking mexican hot chocolate and eating dark chocolate covered dried plums. Oddly, it seems to be satisfying the craving. Hooray!

Ok, I'm not really talking about chocolate, I just wanted to set the stage for my real post. SOCKS! Last month I dyed a sock blank with my SIL. In case you're asking what the hell a sock blank is--I used a knitting machine to knit up yarn into a big chunk of fabric, then we dyed it, then I unraveled it and used the yarn to knit a pair of socks. Ridiculous? Just wait till you see the final product! Dyeing the yarn this way allows for color gradations that wouldn't be possible if dyeing the yarn in a skein. And for some magical reason using this yarn and pattern makes the sock knitting go twice as fast as normal. I had these done in about a week! Holy speed knitting batman! Here's the awesome socks I knit for my mom's birthday present. Dang, I sure hope she doesn't see this post before her party. And best of all there's enough dyed yarn left for a pair of knee socks for me!

Second sock-related item: I've been trying hard to keep up with the laundry and not doing a very good job at that. But how can I be totally to blame when the Sock Monster is hard at work disrupting my sock matching? Sure, I can accept having one or two mismatched socks in the middle of a laundry day, but this is just ridiculous: I know in this photo they look like matched pairs, well maybe not the knee socks, but in reality they are all different sock patterns. I really don't know where all the sockmates are, I hope they turn up in the next load, or things are going to start looking silly. Because handknit rainbow stripe socks aren't silly at all.

No catchy title, just good fun

My sister-in-law just came for a visit (well, my brother was there too, but she & I went off on our own). We had a delightful time starting at the local wine shop for their weekly tasting and buying some rare & unusual wines with my brother. He met up with an old friend there and we went our separate ways. Our next stop was to the local donut shop (a request from my bro) to pick up some stunningly fabulous donuts. Not even sure how to accurately describe how wonderful they are - small batch, freshly made, soft inside with a crisp tooth on the outside, worth breaking any diet for.

Then on to the local yarn store, where we sat on the floor pulling together colors for our next 2-row projects. We unconsciously were holding the potential yarn balls the same way, and laughed when we saw the result. I think she got the one on her thumb in the end. I found a perfect colorway combination, but the yarn was just a bit crispier than I'd like so I talked myself out of it in the end. The women are not very welcoming at this shop, so we left and went next door to Starbucks (stopping by the car to pick up a donut) to knit and chat. I think we spent a couple hours there. The conversation was great and it was neat that we were working on essentially the same project in different colorways-you can see my scarf below. When are they going to invent teleporters so we can get together on a regular basis for craft-chatting?We got the crazy idea to go back home and dye some self-striping yarn ourselves, since I didn't get any at the shop. I do this regularly so it's not that crazy, just the spontenaity (good god that doesn't look spelled right) that made it seem so. We haul out my warped warping board and begin winding the yarn to prep for dyeing. She was an extremely helpful assistant during the winding process. After we finished we talked about what colors we wanted, and neither of us were definite about anything. So we bundled it all away for future use and went out to dinner with the guys. We already have too many plans for the next time we see each other (in a few weeks!).

Crafty Doppelganger

My awesome sister-in-law and I had a great time at our family xmas party. She's also a knitter and spinner, and we had a crazy time drinking wine and fiber geeking. We have a lot in common, to the point that when I saw her nailpolish I had to rip my sock off to show I had the exact same color on my toes.We also share a happily similar taste in knitting projects and yarns. The first time I met her she was knitting socks with kool-aid dyed yarn. I grinned and pulled out my own kool-aid socks project. It seems every time we visit it ends in pattern swaps for what the other person is knitting. She's also incredibly enthusiastic, moreso even than me if you can believe it. It rubs off when we're together, which is yet another reason I wish we lived closer together. I might actually get some projects finished with her encouragement.

For a good part of the evening we sat together on the couch knitting and talking. I told her to knit on my 2-row Noro scarf (no it's not Noro yarn) a bit - a touchy thing since most knitters have subtle variations in knitting styles. So now when I look at my scarf I can see the inch she knit, too subtle of a difference for anyone else to notice, but a happy reminder of the evening. Things got a bit silly later in the evening, including some dangerous online shopping, and hilarity over my inability to match dye lots. Hey! When you dye your own yarn without measuring these things happen. Cool sock pattern, though. On a slightly unrelated note, I think yarn shops would be well served to hold wine tastings in the store. My local shop had a book signing party w/ wine one night and I think the owner made a killing off of tipsy yarn purchases. It's only extreme self control that keeps us all from going bonkers in yarn shops. A glass or 2 of wine destroys that, as my splurge on the current scarf yarn shows. She (and my brother) are coming for a visit in a couple weeks as a result of the online shopping that night. I can't wait to geek out with her again.

Freakin' pattern idiots

There's a good reason I never use knitting patterns, and why I have yet to successfully knit a sweater for myself. Because most knitting patterns SUCK! I'm sorry, but if you're using a pattern published in Knitter's Magazine, the highest rated knitting mag in the US, it should not have so many errors that even an experienced knitter (with the full backing of the Ravelry community) can't follow it. Huge glaring errors, like telling you to start a design element at one spot, then several inches later (hours of knitting time) realizing there is no way that's correct. Yep, look at the photo right next to the pattern text and there is NO WAY AT ALL it is correct as written. Ravelers agree, and one even wrote the magazine for a list of errata without success.

So now I'm torn. I really really like this sweater and want to make and wear it. I have the perfect handspun yarn for it, and except for the chunks of errors it is relatively easy to knit. BUT, I'm already pissed and I'm only 1/3 through the front left piece, and the Ravelers warned the back is where all the frustrating problems are. I can keep working through it, hoping to avoid most errors by carefully reading, and tearing out hours of work when I do find yet another pattern mistake that's not visible immediately. Does not sound like fun. But it took me forever to find this pattern and I haven't seen any others that were as attractive to me. I'm pretty sure I definitely want something asymmetric or angled. Preferably a cardigan. My yarn is sport weight (size 3 needles) and fairly dark - so complex cables or such would be lost. Le sigh. I will frog this current craptastrophe back to the last correct row, then try again altering the pattern to match the photo. If I hit another major error after this one in the next couple days I probably will say something unladylike and find a new sweater to knit. Wish me luck.

Nature + Knitting = Inspiring blog

I've been following KnittingIris's blog for a while now. I wish I knew her in person, or at least could spend time in the same places she's always posting pics of. She does the coolest most inspiring thing - she takes a gorgeous photo of nature and then miraculously knits a pair of socks that perfectly reflect the colors of the photo. Her latest set was a photo of an old graying barn set against the mountains in a field of dried grass - and striped socks that pull all those elements together, even the blackness of the barn door opening. Looking at the 2 side by side, it really elevates knitting into the realm of art. Plus she has all sorts of cool nature crafts, like dried autumn leaves dipped in beeswax and hung in a window, or chestnut critters. So, if you're a knitter who likes nature (and I know a couple of you are) I hereby recommend her blog.

Prepping for travel -- knitting, that is

As some of you know, deciding what knitting project to bring on a trip is of the utmost importance. It has to be small but long-lasting, entertaining but not attention-requiring, and easy to drop and pick up at a moment's notice. Socks fit this perfectly. These socks kept me company on a prior trip, and I'm almost done with them. I knit them both separately, then put them on the needles together so they could be exactly the same length with no wasted yarn.

Thanks to Windy for holding the needles down so I could take this picture. She didn't want her photo taken but was willing to suffer for my picture. I have to get them finished very soon so I can use the needles for the next pair.



So on to the next sock project! A fabulous sock addicted friend who travels a lot herself hooked me up with the COOLEST sock pattern I've ever seen. It looks like a tree growing up around your foot and leg. It inspired me to dye some yarn for the socks, and I'm ready and excited to get traveling so I can start knitting them.

I like to protect my yarn ball so it doesn't get all smooshed and ravely being stuffed in bags and such. But the normal "yarn bra" always ends up compressing the ball in a messy way towards the end. Well, I had an epiphany, and put the bra on sideways and threaded the yarn through a hole in the mesh. The yarn is much more secure and I think will work very well. Here's the yarn I dyed for my next socks in the sideways yarn bra.