Twisted Glenesk. When I switched to the larger needle size for the body of the sweater, I also started using a longer cable and what I found was horrifying. After a knitted cast on of 351 stitches, knitting 10 rows of chart c (351 stitches x 10) and a plain knit row with 6 increases (357) stitches and the first 4 rows of the body of the cardigan (357 x 4) I found the fabric was TWISTED. I had to rip out the entire sweater. I knit 5,646 stitches for 0 (naught).
Good I took a few nights off knitting or I would have been even further along, with even less done. I am on row 8 of the hem again, no twists, no turns, no naughts.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Bag 3 Front and Center
I completed the front panel, side welt and first 5 rows of Sipalu Bag 3 - cool green palette. I was so focused on finishing the front panel that I ignored the rest of my knitting this weekend. I think this is my favorite one of the three. I have marked bag 2 as finished, I used my little tool for the iCord and all I need to do is block and line that one. I need to rip out the iCord on the first bag so I can make machine iCord and mark it done also.
Sorry, Sheila, I can't make a video how to on using the machine. I can tell you that the first time I used it the first foot of my cord was useless because I did not have control of the weight. Once I clipped that on and let it hang, it was smooth going. Also, the first two turns should be complete before dropping the weight. I know that is not what the instructions say, but it works for me.
1. feed your yarn through until it comes out of the bottom
2. attach the weight to the yarn coming out of the bottom, I leave the weight on the desk at this point
3. slowly turn the handle until the yarn is caught under all four hooks. Here is where I veered from the given instructions
4. make two turns until you see the yarn actually twisting and knitting on the four hooks
5. let the weight drop and keep turning
The cord looks really thin at this point but as soon as you remove the weight it puffs right out and looks like a normal 3 stitch iCord.
6. make sure you move the weight up the finished cord about every 6 inches.
7. when you have the length you want and you cut the yarn don't pull it through like the instructions say, let it drop through. It is much easier to thread the yarn through the four end stitches if you have not pulled on the cord.
Hope that helps.
I am not sure when I will be posting pictures, again - less computer time equals more finished knitting projects.
Sorry, Sheila, I can't make a video how to on using the machine. I can tell you that the first time I used it the first foot of my cord was useless because I did not have control of the weight. Once I clipped that on and let it hang, it was smooth going. Also, the first two turns should be complete before dropping the weight. I know that is not what the instructions say, but it works for me.
1. feed your yarn through until it comes out of the bottom
2. attach the weight to the yarn coming out of the bottom, I leave the weight on the desk at this point
3. slowly turn the handle until the yarn is caught under all four hooks. Here is where I veered from the given instructions
4. make two turns until you see the yarn actually twisting and knitting on the four hooks
5. let the weight drop and keep turning
The cord looks really thin at this point but as soon as you remove the weight it puffs right out and looks like a normal 3 stitch iCord.
6. make sure you move the weight up the finished cord about every 6 inches.
7. when you have the length you want and you cut the yarn don't pull it through like the instructions say, let it drop through. It is much easier to thread the yarn through the four end stitches if you have not pulled on the cord.
Hope that helps.
I am not sure when I will be posting pictures, again - less computer time equals more finished knitting projects.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
myCord
Yay, my iCord maker came from Walmart. I can finish my Sipalu bags. I had not planned to work on them during my 4 day staycation, but I cannot resist finishing and blocking them. My sweater is coming along, it is so pretty. The Hebridean is gorgeous yarn. I only have the toe decreases and toe to finish on my second sock. I will finish those tonight. It's going to be a Fair Isle weekend!!! I have to go to DMV in the morning to renew my California ID and I have informed my roomies that they are not allowed to have any company this weekend. I do not want to be bothered.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Wip Update
My third Sipalu bag in the Cool Palette, featuring the greens. I like this one a lot so far. I finished the first welt and a couple of rows. I am carrying my yarns consistently and I can see the difference in the pattern definition. I am so glad I learned that important technique before starting my sweater.
I finished the first sock in the Hot Socks Jeweltone colorway. The photo does not show the colors very well. The red is actually a ruby red, the greens are emerald and jade greens, the blue is sapphire blue. I immediately cast on the second sock. I was watching the Masters and there is nothing better than sock knitting while watching golf.
This is the infamous Glenesk Swatch. I am so pleased I got gauge. I cast on the sweater yesterday and knit the first 6 rounds of the hem. It takes about 30 minutes to knit each round at 351 stitches per round. I love the colors. The yarn is a little hard on my hands, but I have lots of oil-free lotion to use during and after knitting.
The Aguona Laptop bag in the blue colorway is coming along nicely. The back makes me a little dizzy but I truly love the front. It is a bit large for my new laptop though. I may end up using it as a tote bag instead of a laptop bag. It is very sturdy, and I think it would be perfect as my cruise bag.
More shots of the above in Flickr, just click the link in the sidebar.
I finished the first sock in the Hot Socks Jeweltone colorway. The photo does not show the colors very well. The red is actually a ruby red, the greens are emerald and jade greens, the blue is sapphire blue. I immediately cast on the second sock. I was watching the Masters and there is nothing better than sock knitting while watching golf.
This is the infamous Glenesk Swatch. I am so pleased I got gauge. I cast on the sweater yesterday and knit the first 6 rounds of the hem. It takes about 30 minutes to knit each round at 351 stitches per round. I love the colors. The yarn is a little hard on my hands, but I have lots of oil-free lotion to use during and after knitting.
The Aguona Laptop bag in the blue colorway is coming along nicely. The back makes me a little dizzy but I truly love the front. It is a bit large for my new laptop though. I may end up using it as a tote bag instead of a laptop bag. It is very sturdy, and I think it would be perfect as my cruise bag.
More shots of the above in Flickr, just click the link in the sidebar.Tuesday, April 07, 2009
WIP Illusion
Do you ever go into your WIPs and pull out a project and wonder where it has gone? I could have sworn the last time I worked on the The Candle Flame Scarf, I squeezed the ball of Wollmeise and it was hollow and very squishy. I pulled it out the other day and it feels like MORE THAN HALF of the skein is left. I worked on the Aguona Bag last night, when I first pulled it out I thought I had about 20 more rounds to knit on the body - NOPE, I have 30 rounds to go. What happened? WIP Illusions is what I must chalk this up to. When you are anxious for a WIP to become a FO you mis-remember where you are on the project(s). I started the gauge swatch for Glenesk with the thought in mind that I could finish those two projects off quickly - NOT SO. They will have to join those unfinished shawls on the sidebar. This Glenesk is too enticing. The yarns are gorgeous and they look much different knit up together than they do in the balls. The swatch is taking longer than I thought it would because you break off the yarn at the end of each row and start new yarn at the beginning of each row - tedious. I wish I was knitting the sweater already, but I won't give in. I also spend and inordinate amount of time admiring the little swatch. The sweater is going to be beautiful.
Monday, April 06, 2009
Swatching
I started the Glenesk Sweater swatch. I am holding the darker colors in my left hand-yarn underneath. I think I can get more pop if I hold the lighter colors in my left. I wanted the dark rich blues and greens to dominate, but I also want to see all of the pattern. I am going to do a second swatch before I decide.
I turned the heel of my Hot Sock Socks.
I finished the first welt and knit the first two rounds on my third Sipalu Bag.
I read the entire Tudor Roses book, such interesting historical summaries. The other three sweaters I wish to knit from that book are of course all marked as the most difficult. Requiring Intermediate-Advanced knitting skills and expert finishing. That's never stopped me before. I will most likely attempt one of them when I finish Glenesk, Henry, Leo and Lismore.
I turned the heel of my Hot Sock Socks.
I finished the first welt and knit the first two rounds on my third Sipalu Bag.
I read the entire Tudor Roses book, such interesting historical summaries. The other three sweaters I wish to knit from that book are of course all marked as the most difficult. Requiring Intermediate-Advanced knitting skills and expert finishing. That's never stopped me before. I will most likely attempt one of them when I finish Glenesk, Henry, Leo and Lismore.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Mystery Solved
I am flabbergasted. I have had a little mystery going on that has finally been solved. I received Alice Starmore's book Road Movies about a week ago. I was confused, I had ordered and received Jade Starmore's book A Collector's Item . No other books were in my checkout basket. I posted to the Ravelry group to see if possibly this was a know phenomenon. I knew I did not win the Website drawing, and the book was not one of the prizes. Today I got an e-mail from the one and only Mairi Macleod. Alice sent me the book because on page 247 she has an entry about driving Eastbound out of Antioch. This is truly a small world. Alice Starmore saw my kits ready to be shipped to Antioch and sent me her book so I could read about her experience when she was here. I am speechless. What a thoughtful and cool thing to do!! Yep I am totally fan-girling!!!! Alice ROCKS!!!
April Foolish
I am almost finished with the side panel on the third Sipalu bag. I finished my color chart squares for the Glenesk Sweater kit, but I did not start the swatch chart yet. I think it will have to wait until the weekend now. Not feeling too good, I have been going to bed early. I finished reading The Blue Nowhere - OMG that is the best cyberbook I have read in a long time. My Fed tax refund has been direct deposited. I will probably get an IOU from the state of California so I am not even looking for that one. I want to start the Leo Scarf kit along with the swatch for the Glenesk Sweater. I have too many UFO's going on, but hey it's my knitting and I can do what I want!! I have joined a Henry VIII knitalong which starts in September. I would love to have a couple of these Starmore kits knit before it starts. I have already decided to only knit two lion repeats across on the Leo Scarf. The modeled scarf is just huge, I don't think it would be comfortable for me.
Happy Birthday Theresa Renee Van Dyke wherever you are!!
Happy Birthday Theresa Renee Van Dyke wherever you are!!
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Always Learning
I watched Lucy Neatby's Gems 2 DVD about colorwork and I was amazed at how she broke down the process. I have been making a huge carrying and stranding mistake. I tried her way as soon as I finished the DVD and the difference was astounding. I have not been stranding and carrying my yarn consistently. I finished the Warm Sipalu bag - all but the strap. I am telling you iCord is not my friend. I have only knit half of the strap on the first bag, knitting iCord makes my nose bleed - I hate it. Anyway, I digress, the simple step of always keeping your background colors to the right or top and you dominant colors to the left or bottom makes the finished product a thousand times better than stranding willy nilly. So I could not wait to start another bag, handling the yarn correctly. I cast on a Sipalu bag in the Main color selection/charts in the Cool palette. I am so anxious to see the bag knit "correctly" I cannot wait to finish the side panel and first welt. As advised, I wrote on the pattern and charts which would be the dominant colors and which would be the background colors.
I made myself put the bag down for a couple hours while I work the Glenesk swatch. I made center pull balls out of each color in the kit. There are a couple of colors that are so close that a strand taped to my color chart is not enough to see the difference with the naked eye. I am going to knit small 6 row x 10 stitch squares of each color in the kit for the chart. Then I will knit the Chart B Swatch using the "correct" carrying and stranding method. For this record, I want the dark colors - the blues and greens to be dominant so I will make those my left hand yarns. I want the reds, oranges and golds to be the background colors so I will carry those in my right hand. I will wrap every third stitch when stranding four or more stitches in a single color.
In other news - I finished the cuff of my sock and 20 rows of the leg, and I knit another section of the Aguona Laptop bag. I finished The Face by Dean Koontz, not very good, not a title I would recommend. I finished listening to Phantom Prey audiobook, again, not one I would recommend. Richard Ferrone absolutely cannot do female voices and more than half the characters were women. I was ready to tear my hair out by the time the last track played. OMG, never again will I buy an audiobook read by him. I finished Dexter Season 1, Serial Killers of America, and watched Deadliest Catch Season 1 AGAIN. I am currently reading one of the best books I have read in a while The Blue Nowhere by Jeffery Deaver. I have always LOVED computers but I was unfortunately born about 10 years too late. Personal computers were not released to the public until a year after I graduated from college. This book is quite old, I wish I had discovered it sooner - I have read many of Deaver's books, I don't know how I missed this one. To age it - the computers still used floppy disks. But I am loving the hacker talk and the acronyms and the Silicon Valley locals. It is hard for me to pay attention to the serial killer they are tracking, I am so into the geek speak. Awwww, to speak DOS and UNIX again!!
I made myself put the bag down for a couple hours while I work the Glenesk swatch. I made center pull balls out of each color in the kit. There are a couple of colors that are so close that a strand taped to my color chart is not enough to see the difference with the naked eye. I am going to knit small 6 row x 10 stitch squares of each color in the kit for the chart. Then I will knit the Chart B Swatch using the "correct" carrying and stranding method. For this record, I want the dark colors - the blues and greens to be dominant so I will make those my left hand yarns. I want the reds, oranges and golds to be the background colors so I will carry those in my right hand. I will wrap every third stitch when stranding four or more stitches in a single color.
In other news - I finished the cuff of my sock and 20 rows of the leg, and I knit another section of the Aguona Laptop bag. I finished The Face by Dean Koontz, not very good, not a title I would recommend. I finished listening to Phantom Prey audiobook, again, not one I would recommend. Richard Ferrone absolutely cannot do female voices and more than half the characters were women. I was ready to tear my hair out by the time the last track played. OMG, never again will I buy an audiobook read by him. I finished Dexter Season 1, Serial Killers of America, and watched Deadliest Catch Season 1 AGAIN. I am currently reading one of the best books I have read in a while The Blue Nowhere by Jeffery Deaver. I have always LOVED computers but I was unfortunately born about 10 years too late. Personal computers were not released to the public until a year after I graduated from college. This book is quite old, I wish I had discovered it sooner - I have read many of Deaver's books, I don't know how I missed this one. To age it - the computers still used floppy disks. But I am loving the hacker talk and the acronyms and the Silicon Valley locals. It is hard for me to pay attention to the serial killer they are tracking, I am so into the geek speak. Awwww, to speak DOS and UNIX again!!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Almost Done
My four day weekend is coming to a close. I got through most of my TO DO list. I did my taxes and e-filed them. I reorganized and cleaned out my closet, my desk and my cabinet. I did my filing. I finished the Sipalu bag in the warm color palette, except the strap. I knit through row 60 of 91 on the Blue Aguona Laptop bag. I cast on some self striping socks. I am currently working on the Candle Flame Scarf in Wollmeise, I knit 26 rows last night. I logged all of my yarn from the Starmore Kits into Ravelry. I spent some quality time with my pup. I cut all of the cardboard boxes up for recycling. I went through half a dozen Quilter's magazines and cut out my inspiration photos and put the rest into recycling. I finished David Baldacci's The Hour Game audiobook, and I am half way through John Sandford's Phantom Prey. I downloaded several free books to my Kindle2. I feel surprisingly rested, probably just because I was sleeping until 7:30 instead of getting up at 4:45. Although I did win $10 on a Scratcher ticket, I did not hit the Lottery so back to work tomorrow.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Tick Tock
I am a clock watcher now. I am so disconnected from my work, that all day I am looking at the time. Waiting impatiently for 4:00 to roll around. I watch the calendar too - always looking forward to Friday. I don't hate my job, most of it is not even annoying. But I am a knitter now. I find my job a waste of really good knitting time. When I was a crocheter I did not have this problem. I would go through the day, commute on home and hook several rows before bed. The irony of it - the Chicks With Sticks group I joined here at work are responsible. They insisted I pick up knitting again, after all one high school scarf to go with my letter girl uniform could hardly count as knitting. They brought patterns upon patterns, e-mailed links to online sources, we took a field trip to the yarn store. It was a plot and I did not see it coming. They made me one of them, a knitter. I have passed the virus on, I have taught another to knit. Why are people worried about pod people and aliens, we have been invaded by knitters.
I received a partial order from Virtual Yarns, my Henry VIII small/petite sweater kit and my Lismore Sweater kit box 2 of 2. I am thinking they may need bigger boxes so they don't have to send so many. I am hoping the other boxes don't come today, my roomie is going to be in and out all day. I have slightly revised my Starmore Sweater knitting plans. Henry VIII is the ultimate so I will knit that one first, making sure I have enough of all the yarn colors. Then I will knit the Glenesk Cardigan and last I will knit the Lismore. The folks on Ravelry have me paranoid about yarn kit amounts. I bought the zip lock bags with the zipper tab and white label on the front so I can keep each colorway separate and marked. There being only one yarn tag per several skein group means I need to do the labeling myself. I believe one of the knitters who complained about running out actually mixed up two of the colors. Several of them are very very close, that is why the blending works so perfectly. I am also cutting the Leo Scarf in half. Even if the model on the pattern card is a mere waif, that scarf is huge. I am only going to do 4 pattern repeats instead of 8. Oh, and I got the bags with the zipper so I can unzip a corner and work with the yarns directly from the bags, tangle free. I found making a hole in a bag smooth enough for lots of yarn pulling is not all that easy.
I finished the welt and the first 3 rounds of the back panel on the Warm Sipalu bag. I will get as far as I can on it tonight. Tomorrow night I will get as far as I can on the Blue Aguona laptop bag. I am going to frog the STR Leafling socks, I don't even know why I am trying to force myself to knit those. I still haven't frogged the Kenobi Jacket - not sure why; I meant to weeks ago. This four day staycation I am going to reorganize my closet. My yarn bins need to be checked, I killed two moths last weekend. I have fresh lavendar so I am going to hang new sachets. The rest of the time I plan to finish the Wollmeise Candle Flame Scarf and the Sundara Tiger Eye Scarf. Sunday we are having company, our dear friend who lost her Mom last week is coming over for dinner, and my Sister and Brother-in-Law are coming. My Sister is picking up her new computer. I did not open or check it - don't want to risk computer envy.
I better get to work, since I don't have any knitting with me - and it's not even 9 o'clock yet. Sigh. . . .
I received a partial order from Virtual Yarns, my Henry VIII small/petite sweater kit and my Lismore Sweater kit box 2 of 2. I am thinking they may need bigger boxes so they don't have to send so many. I am hoping the other boxes don't come today, my roomie is going to be in and out all day. I have slightly revised my Starmore Sweater knitting plans. Henry VIII is the ultimate so I will knit that one first, making sure I have enough of all the yarn colors. Then I will knit the Glenesk Cardigan and last I will knit the Lismore. The folks on Ravelry have me paranoid about yarn kit amounts. I bought the zip lock bags with the zipper tab and white label on the front so I can keep each colorway separate and marked. There being only one yarn tag per several skein group means I need to do the labeling myself. I believe one of the knitters who complained about running out actually mixed up two of the colors. Several of them are very very close, that is why the blending works so perfectly. I am also cutting the Leo Scarf in half. Even if the model on the pattern card is a mere waif, that scarf is huge. I am only going to do 4 pattern repeats instead of 8. Oh, and I got the bags with the zipper so I can unzip a corner and work with the yarns directly from the bags, tangle free. I found making a hole in a bag smooth enough for lots of yarn pulling is not all that easy.
I finished the welt and the first 3 rounds of the back panel on the Warm Sipalu bag. I will get as far as I can on it tonight. Tomorrow night I will get as far as I can on the Blue Aguona laptop bag. I am going to frog the STR Leafling socks, I don't even know why I am trying to force myself to knit those. I still haven't frogged the Kenobi Jacket - not sure why; I meant to weeks ago. This four day staycation I am going to reorganize my closet. My yarn bins need to be checked, I killed two moths last weekend. I have fresh lavendar so I am going to hang new sachets. The rest of the time I plan to finish the Wollmeise Candle Flame Scarf and the Sundara Tiger Eye Scarf. Sunday we are having company, our dear friend who lost her Mom last week is coming over for dinner, and my Sister and Brother-in-Law are coming. My Sister is picking up her new computer. I did not open or check it - don't want to risk computer envy.
I better get to work, since I don't have any knitting with me - and it's not even 9 o'clock yet. Sigh. . . .
Monday, March 16, 2009
Tragedy
I totally forgot to snap a picture of the Aguona Laptop bag. I hurriedly tried to find something to stretch it across so I could quickly take and upload a picture. I BROKE MY NEEDLES, just as I was getting the left edge of the bag over the box I heard a snap. I now need new US Size 4 Harmony tips. Geez, I tell ya . . .
I tried to replace the broken tip with the Options tips, but the screws on the cable I was using were too big. I don't know if others have experienced that or not, but some of the cable screws are larger than others. I try to keep them matched up with the tips that have unscrewed from other cables. You can actually see the difference in size - so it is just a matter of using the right combination. Unfortunately the only cable I had available that fit the Options tips is 47" long, I will have to magic loop it until my new tips come.
I tried to replace the broken tip with the Options tips, but the screws on the cable I was using were too big. I don't know if others have experienced that or not, but some of the cable screws are larger than others. I try to keep them matched up with the tips that have unscrewed from other cables. You can actually see the difference in size - so it is just a matter of using the right combination. Unfortunately the only cable I had available that fit the Options tips is 47" long, I will have to magic loop it until my new tips come.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Picture Day
Warm Sipalu Bag (front)
Cool Strapless (so far) Sipalu Bag
Starmore ~ Virtual Yarns
Leo Scarf Kit, Patterns and Books
Glenesk Sweater Kit
Knit Picks Kits: Red Aguona Laptop Bag and Andean Chulla Hat
& New KP Tools
Wollmeise Sock Club
My Kindle 2
Cool Strapless (so far) Sipalu Bag
Starmore ~ Virtual Yarns
Leo Scarf Kit, Patterns and Books
Glenesk Sweater Kit
Knit Picks Kits: Red Aguona Laptop Bag and Andean Chulla Hat
& New KP Tools
Wollmeise Sock Club
My Kindle 2
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Ups and Down
Life has so many peaks and valleys. Monday was a very deep valley. Three women who are all like sisters to me each lost members of their families. A Mother An Aunt and A Cousin. Every four hours I was receiving news of their loss. It was a very hard day and evening. My best friend was losing her third Aunt this year - devastating.
Most of us crafters make things for different reasons, many of us find great comfort in the sound of knitting needles clicking, the fluid motion of chains sliding off and on a hook, the satisfaction of centering wordart just right on a page, finally finishing the top of a quilt. None of the ladies I spoke of above are crafters or have the types of hobbies or pasttimes that offer comfort. So me, my Mom and my Sister are here to listen to hug and to bring food and prayers.
On the up side, it was Sister's and Girlfriends day and I sent the usual chain-email and got lots of them back. The snail mail I have received this week has been outstanding and mostly International. I received copies of Tudor Roses and Scandinavian Knitwear. My Wollmeise Sock Club Spring package came. My first Virtual Yarns order came, the yarns for the Leo scarf are gorgeous. The book, The Collector's Item is comparable to Tudor Roses. The photography and patterns are stunning. Apparently the rumors are true, several colorways of the 2 ply yarns offered by Virtual Yarns and the kits that contain them are being discontinued in the very near future. Some colors have already been depleted. Whew, no buyers/knitters remorse this time. I ordered what I really loved before it was gone forever.
Life is too short. . .
I bought a Kindle 2 solely because it can read the book to me when I need to stop reading the text myself. I can try new authors without having their books sitting on my shelf if I end up not liking them. And, lets face it I am out of space for books, DVDS and yarn - go figure. SO being able to have 20,000 books on a single little handheld works for me.
I have had to stop reading some, actually most of the forums on Ravelry. There is so much drama going on in some of them I think folks have completely forgotten it's a KNITTING and CROCHETING community. I miss the days when it first started and all we ever talked about was YARN and patterns, and knitting and crocheting. Now it's just too much off topic chatter and personal information. Many have forsaken their blogs and put all their business on Ravelry. So since I go there to obsess with others about needlecrafting ONLY, I have just removed all but four of the forums from my list. This is my forum for the personal stuff, with lots of the needlecrafting obsession thrown in.
Most of us crafters make things for different reasons, many of us find great comfort in the sound of knitting needles clicking, the fluid motion of chains sliding off and on a hook, the satisfaction of centering wordart just right on a page, finally finishing the top of a quilt. None of the ladies I spoke of above are crafters or have the types of hobbies or pasttimes that offer comfort. So me, my Mom and my Sister are here to listen to hug and to bring food and prayers.
On the up side, it was Sister's and Girlfriends day and I sent the usual chain-email and got lots of them back. The snail mail I have received this week has been outstanding and mostly International. I received copies of Tudor Roses and Scandinavian Knitwear. My Wollmeise Sock Club Spring package came. My first Virtual Yarns order came, the yarns for the Leo scarf are gorgeous. The book, The Collector's Item is comparable to Tudor Roses. The photography and patterns are stunning. Apparently the rumors are true, several colorways of the 2 ply yarns offered by Virtual Yarns and the kits that contain them are being discontinued in the very near future. Some colors have already been depleted. Whew, no buyers/knitters remorse this time. I ordered what I really loved before it was gone forever.
Life is too short. . .
I bought a Kindle 2 solely because it can read the book to me when I need to stop reading the text myself. I can try new authors without having their books sitting on my shelf if I end up not liking them. And, lets face it I am out of space for books, DVDS and yarn - go figure. SO being able to have 20,000 books on a single little handheld works for me.
I have had to stop reading some, actually most of the forums on Ravelry. There is so much drama going on in some of them I think folks have completely forgotten it's a KNITTING and CROCHETING community. I miss the days when it first started and all we ever talked about was YARN and patterns, and knitting and crocheting. Now it's just too much off topic chatter and personal information. Many have forsaken their blogs and put all their business on Ravelry. So since I go there to obsess with others about needlecrafting ONLY, I have just removed all but four of the forums from my list. This is my forum for the personal stuff, with lots of the needlecrafting obsession thrown in.
Sunday, March 08, 2009
Almost There
I have completed the Sipalu bag in the cool color palette (alternate charts). I have to knit the I cord strap then block it. I am going to do the linings when I finish all 4 bags in the set. I cast on and knit the side panel, welting and first round of the first bag in the warm color palette. There are some really interesting colors in this sampler. The side panel pattern is more distinctive, it has more contrast. The welting is starting to really bother my wrist. Holding the two needles together to knit a stitch from each, without any other stitches falling off is - well frankly, a pain. The end result is worth it though.
I am almost ready to start my Glenesk Sweater swatch; Chart B 6x6". I did all of the preparation for starting the sweater. I reproduced the charts in excel so I could color code them and made up a color sample chart, with bits of each yarn. Once I started winding the yarn into balls I realized that there are some colors that are very close so I will need to be extra careful when starting a new ball. There has been a lot of talk on Ravelry about the non-tagged hanks of yarn. I used my electric ball winder and wound up a ball of each color. I weighed each ball on a digital scale. I am keeping track of how many grams I have of each colorway. Several people ran out of yarn from their kits. I tackled this problem in a couple of different ways. I created the chart to track colors by weight. I ordered more kits with similar colors in them. There will be some overlapping, hopefully it will all even out and I won't run short on any of my projects.
Starmore acquisitions:
I bit the bullet and bought a copy of Tudor Roses and Scandinavian Knitwear by Alice Starmore.
I bought the yarn kit from Virtual Yarns to make the Lismore sweater in the Celtic Collection.
I ordered the Leo Scarf kit, and Jade Starmore's book A Collector's Item.
I ordered the Seaweed Wrap in Crotal mostly to be entered into the contest on the web site.
I ordered the Henry VIII kit in small and x-large because there is very little ease in the finished sweater and it is a pullover. For some reason their designs taper down to a narrow waist. My mid section goes out not in - so I know I will need to adjust the pattern. This is the kit I was most worried about not have enough yarn for so I just ordered two. The pattern is in Tudor Roses and errata and an update is included with the kit. This pattern exemplifies why I am endeavoring to be a skilled Fair Isle Knitter. It looks like fine Tapestry. It does not look like something a mere mortal can knit. I must have one and so far I have not found any volunteers to knit it for me. :D
What prompted this flurry of buying, RUMORS!!! There is a buzz going around that many Starmore kits and colorways are going to be discontinued very soon on the Virtual Yarns site. Also, the exchange rate is pretty good right now.
I ordered two books by Toshiyuki Shimada from the YesAsia.com site; Knit Concerto and New Style of Heirloom Knitting. His patterns are amazing, although they are only available in Japanese. There are many screen shots of the photos inside the books and the charts on various websites, I feel confident I can get through the patterns. I have a Cousin who has spoken fluent Japanese since Junior High - I can enlist her aid if needed. There are photos of finished items on Ravelry that made my mouth water. Marsha White, The Needle Arts Book Shop has a superb article available online titled For the Adventurous Knitter Interpreting Japanese Knitting Patterns. It is excellent. I have learned a little German during Knit Alongs, maybe now I can pick up some Gaelic and Japanese.
What else did I buy? A car for my Mom a Honda Accord EX 2006 and a Dell Slim Tower Desktop Computer for my Sister. Why - because I love them and they needed them. I paid the balance on our June Birthday Cruise. If you know of any cozy used bookstores or yarn shops in any of these ports please send me an e-mail. Ooo, and I also love crab and lobster, so any restaurants for lunch would be great too.
Baltimore, Maryland (06/19 & 06/27)
Rockland, Maine (06/21)
Saint John, New Brunswick (06/22)
Halifax, Nova Scotia (06/23)
Bar Harbor, Maine (06/24)
Boston, Massachusetts (06/25)
It is too late and dark to take pictures. . . . coming soon.
I am almost ready to start my Glenesk Sweater swatch; Chart B 6x6". I did all of the preparation for starting the sweater. I reproduced the charts in excel so I could color code them and made up a color sample chart, with bits of each yarn. Once I started winding the yarn into balls I realized that there are some colors that are very close so I will need to be extra careful when starting a new ball. There has been a lot of talk on Ravelry about the non-tagged hanks of yarn. I used my electric ball winder and wound up a ball of each color. I weighed each ball on a digital scale. I am keeping track of how many grams I have of each colorway. Several people ran out of yarn from their kits. I tackled this problem in a couple of different ways. I created the chart to track colors by weight. I ordered more kits with similar colors in them. There will be some overlapping, hopefully it will all even out and I won't run short on any of my projects.
Starmore acquisitions:
I bit the bullet and bought a copy of Tudor Roses and Scandinavian Knitwear by Alice Starmore.
I bought the yarn kit from Virtual Yarns to make the Lismore sweater in the Celtic Collection.
I ordered the Leo Scarf kit, and Jade Starmore's book A Collector's Item.
I ordered the Seaweed Wrap in Crotal mostly to be entered into the contest on the web site.
I ordered the Henry VIII kit in small and x-large because there is very little ease in the finished sweater and it is a pullover. For some reason their designs taper down to a narrow waist. My mid section goes out not in - so I know I will need to adjust the pattern. This is the kit I was most worried about not have enough yarn for so I just ordered two. The pattern is in Tudor Roses and errata and an update is included with the kit. This pattern exemplifies why I am endeavoring to be a skilled Fair Isle Knitter. It looks like fine Tapestry. It does not look like something a mere mortal can knit. I must have one and so far I have not found any volunteers to knit it for me. :D
What prompted this flurry of buying, RUMORS!!! There is a buzz going around that many Starmore kits and colorways are going to be discontinued very soon on the Virtual Yarns site. Also, the exchange rate is pretty good right now.
I ordered two books by Toshiyuki Shimada from the YesAsia.com site; Knit Concerto and New Style of Heirloom Knitting. His patterns are amazing, although they are only available in Japanese. There are many screen shots of the photos inside the books and the charts on various websites, I feel confident I can get through the patterns. I have a Cousin who has spoken fluent Japanese since Junior High - I can enlist her aid if needed. There are photos of finished items on Ravelry that made my mouth water. Marsha White, The Needle Arts Book Shop has a superb article available online titled For the Adventurous Knitter Interpreting Japanese Knitting Patterns. It is excellent. I have learned a little German during Knit Alongs, maybe now I can pick up some Gaelic and Japanese.
What else did I buy? A car for my Mom a Honda Accord EX 2006 and a Dell Slim Tower Desktop Computer for my Sister. Why - because I love them and they needed them. I paid the balance on our June Birthday Cruise. If you know of any cozy used bookstores or yarn shops in any of these ports please send me an e-mail. Ooo, and I also love crab and lobster, so any restaurants for lunch would be great too.
Baltimore, Maryland (06/19 & 06/27)
Rockland, Maine (06/21)
Saint John, New Brunswick (06/22)
Halifax, Nova Scotia (06/23)
Bar Harbor, Maine (06/24)
Boston, Massachusetts (06/25)
It is too late and dark to take pictures. . . . coming soon.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
Troop 1390
On My Honor I will try to do my duty to God and my country to help other people at all times and obey the Girl Scout laws. It's amazing what I store in memory. Every Thursday at 2 pm at St. Peter's on 19th Avenue my Troop #1390 met. I won a trip to camp for selling the most cookies when I was 10 years old. And I have 26 girl scout badges on my sash.
How many boxes of Girl Scout Cookies did you buy this year? I bought two, Shortbreads and Samoa's. I stayed away from the Thin Mints because I just inhale those. Unfortunately, it's true what everyone says, they are not good anymore.
How many boxes of Girl Scout Cookies did you buy this year? I bought two, Shortbreads and Samoa's. I stayed away from the Thin Mints because I just inhale those. Unfortunately, it's true what everyone says, they are not good anymore.
They don't taste anything like the cookies I sold, you get two rows less for $2.00 more. Sad turn of events. The skills and sense of community I got from Girl Scouts is priceless though. My Troop leaders were CREATIVE. Mrs. Brotten took us to a Hockey game. Mrs. Salens taught us acrylic, watercolor and oil painting. Mrs. Baer (Mother of the President of the SF Giants, Larry Baer) took us to the Circus at the Cow Palace. We also had camping trips to learn to swim, start fires, ride horses and make smores. Our troop was active and well run. I hope the Brownie I bought my cookies from gets half as much out of her experience as I did. I can be counted on to be prepared, I always have a safety pin, bandaid, vaseline, alcohol, aspirin, water, kleenex, small flashlight, swiss army knife, emery board, bobby pins and rubberbands. I have replaced personal time with charitable donations though. My Parents taught me to be honest, trustworthy and dependable, which also helped me be a good Girl Scout.
I think I'll buy a box of Thin Mints, just to check the current quality.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Finished Bag Back
I completed the back of the Sipalu Bag last night. This bag has an old world tapestry charm. That is one of the the things that has always attracted me to Fair Isle Knitting, it looks like something from another century if done well. I recently purchased a couple of colorwork/stranded knitting books and was disappointed that there were no fair isle patterns. Real fair isle blends your colors and there is a background and forground pattern. The patterns in the books I bought are almost mosaic. There are two colors per row, but no blending rows. I am going to cast on a Sipalu Bag in the Warm Palette after I pick up the 320 stitches around the top of the bag tonight. Luckily I received my replacement 47 inch 3mm/US 2.5 needles from Knit Picks yesterday. Those folks are so wonderful. I don't know if I mentioned that one of my new needles had a broken tip. One e-mail and a new one was rushed out to me - and I don't think it has anything to do with the fact that I spend 10% of my paycheck with them every month ;D They are nice to everybody!
I cannot wait to work with the warm palette colors and see how they blend. Kerin wrote a magnificent pattern for the yarn samplers. I am going to knit the primary pattern this time. Eventually I will knit all four bags. The Aguona laptop bag is very bright. I don't think I was expecting the white to be so dominant. It felt more blue in the photos. It is a little strange switching between the two projects. Knitting with Telemark on size US 4 after working with Palette on size US 2.5 takes some adjusting.
The Kenobi Jacket is still on the needles, I have not frogged it yet.
I watched The Sorcerer's Stone while finishing the back of the bag last night. I kind of miss Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys. If any of you know of another series of books like HP that I might enjoy please leave a comment.
I cannot wait to work with the warm palette colors and see how they blend. Kerin wrote a magnificent pattern for the yarn samplers. I am going to knit the primary pattern this time. Eventually I will knit all four bags. The Aguona laptop bag is very bright. I don't think I was expecting the white to be so dominant. It felt more blue in the photos. It is a little strange switching between the two projects. Knitting with Telemark on size US 4 after working with Palette on size US 2.5 takes some adjusting.
The Kenobi Jacket is still on the needles, I have not frogged it yet.
I watched The Sorcerer's Stone while finishing the back of the bag last night. I kind of miss Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys. If any of you know of another series of books like HP that I might enjoy please leave a comment.
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Aguona Laptop Bag
I cast on and knit the first 16 rounds of the Aguona Laptop Bag. I still cannot visualize where the steeking will come in. I have not purchased the zipper yet, but since there are over 70 rounds left to knit, I will worry about that later. This is another stranded colorwork practice project. I am aiming at April 1st as the cast on date for my Starmore Glenesk Sweater. I think my floats are pretty even now and I am definitely in the groove reading the charts.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Loving It
I finished the front panel of the Sipalu Bag in the Cool (Alternate) Color Palette. OMG I absolutely love it. I will upload pictures when I get home. I just had to pick up the 240 provisionally cast on stitches last night and knit a row. I will complete the welt tonight and get started on the back panel. The coolest thing is that each row is shorter than the last so just as you start seeing the pattern develop the knitting goes faster and faster. Before you know it you are finished. There are very few ends to weave in because you only join new colors in one place, about every 6th row - there are only 40 rows in the panel. It has only taken me a few days to knit this bag - just think if I had not had to rip out 10 rows and pick up that 240 stitches again . . . . . moving on. I cannot wait to cast on another bag. I am not sure if I want to stick with the Cool Palette and knit the primary charts or if I want to switch to the Warm Palette. The biggest question is what the heck am I going to do with all this yarn? This bag uses very little yarn, I have not made a dent in it. Maybe I will cast on the laptop bag too. My poor WIP projects, they are being neglected again. I have scheduled another 4 day weekend in March, I will have to focus on my socks and scarves that weekend. I am also flirting with the idea of frogging the Kenobi Jacket. Hmm, we'll see.
Jade Starmore Glenesk Sweater kit. I have a new Ravelry friend who is also planning on knitting this sweater. She has some WIPS to finish and she wants to do a couple of practice projects too before casting on the sweater. We should be starting at just about the same time. I don't know about her, but I spent a small fortune on the kit and I wanted to make sure my stranding was near-to-perfect before delving into my Hebridean yarns.
There should be a Wollmeise Sock Club shipment on the horizon. I wonder what the colors will be. I am designing something in the gorgeous blue yarns I bought from the other German based dyer, Kristen. I cannot wait to see what her yarn looks like knit up.
I'd rather be knitting
Jade Starmore Glenesk Sweater kit. I have a new Ravelry friend who is also planning on knitting this sweater. She has some WIPS to finish and she wants to do a couple of practice projects too before casting on the sweater. We should be starting at just about the same time. I don't know about her, but I spent a small fortune on the kit and I wanted to make sure my stranding was near-to-perfect before delving into my Hebridean yarns.
There should be a Wollmeise Sock Club shipment on the horizon. I wonder what the colors will be. I am designing something in the gorgeous blue yarns I bought from the other German based dyer, Kristen. I cannot wait to see what her yarn looks like knit up.
I'd rather be knitting
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