New Yarn

Panda Cotton, bamboo, cotton and elastic.

Cascade Fixation, cotton and elastic.
Sockina Cotton, Cotton, acrylic and nylon.

I could stop right there at the pictures, but you know me, always something to talk about.

My sister commented yesterday about looking for yarn. She has asked me to make an afghan for her. She wants to choose the yarns, and patterns, and I can't wait to see what she comes up with. Since she is where I was some months ago, I will tell her what I have learned about the modern world of yarn shopping.

There are some great places online, though there is an ever improving stock of really nice yarns at places like Micheal's, and there are seriously fine yarns at local LYS where you live.

For your project, wool is going to be best overall. Superwash wool (it will always say if it is) will be even better. Worsted or aran weight yarns are your best choices.

There are dozens of great brands. Knitpicks has some really great prices, like Wool of the Andes 1.99 for 110 yards in all sorts of colours. Webs, the store yesterdays purchases were from, has a bigger range than anybody else I know of. Valley Yarns has an all wool yarn, called Northhampton, 247 yds for 4.99. Patons Classic Wool is available at Micheals for about 7.00 and at Ram Wool for 5.99 (with a discount if you buy 5)for 223 yds on a skein. Your local yarn store has Cascade 220 or something very like it, for about 8.00 for 220 yds in a skein.

Check out weavers yarns, and see what they have to offer. Webs Weavers line includes Harrisville Designs Highland yarn. The cones are half pound cones, 450 yds to a cone for 16 dollars. GD who is waaaaaaaaay better at math than I am, will already see that the cone will cost about the same as most of the above yarns. Halcyon Yarns is another really great place with a wonderful selection. (I've looked but not shopped)

Some places will have a house brand and a stock of many other kinds of yarns. Some will carry only their house brands . Some online places are niche places, Like Red Bird Knits , which is largely fingering and lighter weights or Simply Socks, which, well you know.

No matter what you work on you usually do consider cost. There just are not a lot of times, where price is no option. There have only been two times in my life where cost was not considered, one was for the shawl in fuzzy brown yarn, which cost about 75 dollars and that linen I spoke of above. 7 or 8 yards of beautiful linen at 30 dollars a yard, 25% off, in about 1990. For every other purchase, I have considered, sometimes wrongly, but mostly right the cost into the decision to buy.

Best cost may not always be the cheapest. While basic acrylic from a big box store like Walmart may be cheap, for a big bed sized afghan it will cost you about 35 dollars. You size that afghan a little smaller, (and more reasonably - you know some of the behemoths I have made) and you can easily look at wools, lovely scrumptious wools. Wools in the same price range as all but the lowest grade acrylics, with a thousand times better feel and wear are possible.

Cost is not always tangible. Best cost often is supporting your local yarn store. Tell the owner what you are making, feel the yarn, and look over her offerings. You may pay a little more, but what she can tell you about the yarn you desire, is often worth it. She can suggest the right substitions of yarn from her stock for project you are planning.

For most of us, and certainly those of us who are just wandering into this world of yarn, and the vast numbers of kinds and sorts and properties of the various yarns fibres, yarn blends, yarn qualities, a good LYS is a must. Check out her stock, price it out and do consider the full value of what your LYS is really selling you.

If you are a crocheter, and the LYS you walked into makes you feel crochet is an art for people too stupid to knit? You turn right out and move along to the next yarn shop. This is not a good LYS. A good LYS will just want to lead you into the wild world of yarn, and possibilites. A good LYS will always have time for anyone interested in yarn purchasing. I am of the strong opinion that while they personally may only knit (uni- craftual, - like uniligual only sadder), they will glady enable your trip to the world of modern yarn even if all you are doing is making cans wound in yarn as a kindergarden project for an art class.

Cause let me tell you, a good LYS owner knows as absolutely as I do (having been recently introduced to Misti Alpaca at River City Yarns), a person who has once felt a bulky alpaca yarn, is going to find a reason to have some. And some more after that.

Now if my dear sister, should you be interested in purchasing Misti Alpaca which costs 11-14 dollars for a hundred metres, and which for an afghan is way pricey, but would be heaven to sit under, well, I'd work it.

Of course, I'd be sending you to the looney bin for spending that on a blankie, but at least you'd have some Misti with you.

Yarns and what to do with them.

On the weekend, I knit up a swatch of the Rowan Bamboo Tape , and this morning, just for fun, I crocheted a swatch (sorry I forgot to take a picture). Both worked up really, really well, but I think the knitting better displays how absolutely gorgeous this yarn is. Crochet somehow did not show off the softness as well. The many spaces between the crocheted yarns just could not match the knitted sample for touch and feel. Too bad you can't feel it. The search for patterns continues, but it has to be light and lacy in case I am short of yarn.

Mail, I have mail!! I have a parcel to pick up today that I hope will be filled with cotton yarns. I'm having a little trouble finding non wool sock yarn locally, but did finally order some from Simply Socks. I'm sure there is some round here, but in the rush before the holidays, I did not find any. Now I have to wonder what my rush was. Oh right, it was the need just to contemplate future yarn. Well I think I took care of that yesterday.

I took care of that with some of this yarn in banana, ordered yesterday. Yarn Harlot made her sunrise circle jacket out of this in a different colour, IIRC, so I know it is a fine yarn. I ordered 4 pounds. I also ordered some of this, 2 or 3 pounds in birch (I was a little lightheaded, I forget), and they have a fairly decent sale on this too.

This was NOT an impulse buy, I considered it long and hard. I considered what I would do with it, what if I didn't like the colour, what if if I didn't care for it's feel, what I would do if I hated everything about it (OK the last is simply NOT possible). I've also considered what I will do if I adore this yarn. I thought about that more than anything.

Along with considering those things, I did consider this. My poor work bag is starting to show its age. I have used it for 2 years, but since spring I've carried it every day. It can't take the pressure and the weight of all that I tote with me.
I mean really, I considered this bag my signature. It showed my goofy side, I loved its wide open middle. I loved that no matter how much was in it, I could still fit in more (I think that part comes from its roots as a beer bag).

Replacing it is a constant thought in my mind. I'm going to do one up from the book I received for Christmas, with the nice yarn the kids gave me, but I also think I'd like to felt a larger version, wider too. I have thought long and hard about what I want the lining sections to be.

On the knitting side, I want a place for my water bottle dpn case. I want a place for the bits of knitting, the tape measures, the little calculator, the scissors. I want a sectioned area for at least 3 different projects, one big project, and two sock sized things. I need an area for the book or pattern, and I need an area for at least one reference book or novel (hey I do read more than knitting and crochet books. Really I do).

A really sensible bag should be big enough to function as my purse too. I need a place for my wallet, for receipts, and my cell phone, and maybe my camera too. I'm feeling a little daunted by the idea of the lining sections, but I'm sure I'll figure it out.

To get to this next project, I'm going to have to bust my buns. I'd like the scarf out of the way first. Once that is done, I'll start bag version 1, and see what I come up with.

Very Good Things

The other evening, I was sitting in my study, with a fresh cup of coffee, and '84 Charing Cross Road', one of my favourite movies, was about to begin. My shawl and I were suffering from a little too much familiarity. I'd worked on it on and off since 4 in the morning and I was feeling a little bored. With one other knitting WIP on needles, and only 2 real WIPs (as opposed to UFOs) on linens, and 2 languishing crochet projects, you'd think I'd have found something to work on, but watching this movie needed something different.

I was given a skein of Patons Classic, in Forest (go to the bottom) by a friend and it just kept sitting there at the edge of my mind saying, 'knit me, crochet me, do something'. Its a wonderful mix of a really dark browns, tans, and soft rich greens that end up in a bright apple green.

The Classic at 204 metres (223 yds) didn't seem like enough to make a scarf with. I dug into the depths of the stash. I knew there were 2 balls of a brown from Lana Grosso. What I have seems to be discontinued, but I will update the link if I find it later. What I have is a merino, on the light side of a double knitting weight and 160 metres (175 yds) per ball. I picked it up in case I ran out of yarn for a different project, and since it is now unlikely that I will need it, I felt comfortable using it here. I don't get the opportunity to work with brown a lot since it's a colour I don't wear, and leaving such nice yarn sitting there with no idea of what I was going to do with it seemed wrong.

I'm alternating the yarns, 2 rows Classic, 2 rows doubled brown, then 4 rows Classic, 2 rows brown...

I knew instantly that everything about this was right. Pretty, isn't it?

The yarns felt lush, scrumptious, rich and smooth. I love the sqishiness of both of these wools. The way it looked with its bright green balancing the dark greens and tans, fitting sublimely with the warm browns of the lighter weight yarn was breathtaking. It might only be a scarf but it was as close to perfect as I've ever seen on my needles. It sang to me, and for one moment I was almost in tears at how good it all was. I felt just a bit irrational.

It had nothing to do with the fact that the movie makes me tear up, that I had uncountable cups of coffee through the day, that it was no 11 p.m. and way past my bedtime. No. It was the knitting.

Knitting can make you just a little irrational, but in a good way.

Friday File

For several years, I sent my brother and sisters and my mom and dad an email each Friday morning. The general trend in emails went something like this:

'Mr. Needles has been....this week. He is out doing...... this weekend.'

The whole thing of repeated itself for me, detailing whatever mundane thing I had planned.

I was contemplating this kind of daily stuff that takes up ones life this morning while knitting on my shawl. That I was contemplating mundane should be no surprise, this is a garter stitch shawl after all and the interest is going to be the lacy bit way at the end of the project. The fact that I have restarted it over in a bigger gauge ceased to be exciting after the 12th row, and now that I am almost caught up to where I was when I ripped...

See, there is the exciting bit. After very little time, with needles one size up, with a spiffy sharp points, I've already knit up almost all of the yarn from round one. I've got about an hour left, maybe 2 but before I go to bed tonite, I intend to be where I was earlier this week (in terms of yarn usage). I'm pretty proud of that, but it isn't me at all.

It's the needles.

Addi Turbo Lace needles, I am developing a serious fondness for these. I can do things with my hands with these needles that I never dreamed I could do. I am maintaining my gauge and evenness with very little stress on my wrists and fingers. I can see my knitting go faster each row. Speed shouldn't matter - unless you are in the middle of a garter stitch shawl.

I have 2 projects lined up for winter besides the shawl, two sweaters, one in some lush Rowan Bamboo Tape And the other in Cascade 220

in a deep earthy loden green. These will both be swatched. I have lots of the Cascade, 1500 yards - plenty for a great sweater, but I have only 820 yards of the Bamboo. Enough, I hope for a nice light lacy top for a very tiny woman. I'll swatch it and then I'll have to use it. I have a feeling that every inch of it will matter.

Between the mundane bits of a weekends chores, I manage to fit in a lot of excitment. Something so simple as swatching and the prospects of working on a garter stitch shawl might not excite an ordinary person, but my boys are always saying "yeah mom, but this is you we are talking about".

I feel like a kid who has been given 5 bucks and is going to the penny candy store. Can't hardly sit still in my chair.

On a Thursday morning

On a Thursday morning one can be swamped at work, and so one will have to do work. Will post later.

Updated: Well, that was done at about 8 this morning, and this is indeed later. 5:15 p.m. local time. Muuuuuuuuuuuch later.

After thinking about it yesterday watching the gauge change and disintegrate into several different ranges as I worked with my new Addi Turbos on my shawl, I decided to rip it.

The yarn was lovely and soft but it just seemed too tight, and I don't want a wall of fabric when it is complete, I want a nice flowing cuddly shawl. I ripped out the entire thing, and began again with 4 mm Addi Turbo lace circulars. Its working up much faster, and the fabric just feels right. I will remember this feeling.

This is how it looked on 3mm needles(It does look like a thong)

And this is how it looks on the 4 mm needles now.

Note how it has much more drape....

Pictures just don't show it. You'll just have to trust me.

Vogue Knitting

In the absence of knitting on anything other than the shawl, I picked up my new book, Vogue Knitting, the Ultimate Knitting Book. Time for a book review! I went through the whole book last evening, reading much of it, and scanning all the technical stuff.

It's a heck of a book. Easily readable, Really good clear drawings, great photography of details. It has the finest section on the history of knitting in a book of this kind that I have read with photos and samples of ancient works. It details the types of tools and the basics of yarns. It gives the fundamentals of knitting, it goes through all kinds of basic techniques, it details all sorts of finishing techniques, blocking styles of knitting and a really neat section on collars of all kinds to help you adapt basic design to make it your own. It is without a doubt a good book filled with all kinds of great technical information for those of us looking for a solid reference book about knitting.

With one huge flaw. It says there are only 2 kinds of knitting, Western and Continental. It details the differences of those two styles and does well enough, but to be honest, to a combined knitter like me, and to anyone else who knits just a little different, this book feel like a slap in the face. Books with that narrow perspective are the kind of thing that kept me from knitting for decades.

Had I not given up entirely on knitting, (to the point that I gave away my lone knitting book, a really good copy of the old format of the Harmony Guides, which I wish I had back) reading Vogue Knitting would have made me quit. It would have convinced me with that first section that I was a dunce, and a person entirely short of the brains required to knit. Nothing in the book, not the pictures, not the language, not the narrow focus would have identified why I could make every flat piece of knitting in the darn book, but that every single time I decreased or increased, why each time I tried anything other than knitting and purling, everything would have ended up looking wrong.

I think this version of Vogue Knitting falls short of the mark. All it really needs is a chapter discussing the different ways of knitting, a few pictures showing the orientation of the stitch and the way the needle enters the stitch would have made a huge difference to knitters like me.

It pains me to feel this way about this otherwise pretty solid book. Reading it with the understanding I now have, it will be a very valuable reference. I expect to go back to it many times over the course of my knitting life.

Feeling the way I do, all I can give Vogue Knitting the Ultimate Knitting Book is a Single Crochet.

If you know a little about knitting and have been taught by someone who knit Western, this is a good book for you. If you have been taught by a knitter of another style, keep looking.

We have to SAVE these people.

Spinning at 4:30 in the morning is not recommended. I tried it and lost fingers that I still have not been able to find. There is a very good possibility that if this was the time of mankind where people spun the yarn for the cloth for their clothing, I would be the naked guy standing in the middle of the street.

Since my hands did not wake with the rest of me this morning, I read several chapters in "Knitting in the Old Way" this morning. I tried learning the long tail cast on from her directions, and still it is a no go. There are several other books in the bunch with multiple casts on in them and maybe one of them will make me see the light. But so far so fair. "Knitting in the Old Way" is a very interesting read, and I foresee very good things about it being an interesting knit.

Since the cast on did not progress, I played with a piece of knitted fabric, born of the yarn from the first Calorimetry (and because I was so proud of both of these, here is the second Calorimetry midway down). I knit up some of the Patons Classic, and a couple rows of the Zitron Loft and felted a swatch just for fun. That swatch has been on the table sitting at the base of the lamp and I've been looking at it for months wondering now what do I do with it. I turned it into this.

My little needle sizer and gauge measure is in it at the moment though that might not be its best end use. Its probably going to end up holding a pen and some pencils. Kind of like a knitter's little pocket protector. (And they think Knitters are odd )

Well, after following some of those links, there is just nothing left to say. I feel so normal. But we should probably save these people and knit some (felting optional).

Wonderful

Wonderful is a simple word. It has been part of the English language since the 12th century. The word makes me think of and old commercial for a Wunderbar candy bar. Big burly Vikings landed on the shore dragging treasure chests, opened them, and found them full of the chocolate bars, and commenced dancing around shouting 'vunderbar'.

My weekend was wonderful. I opened boxes and bags of treasures, and I felt like dancing around shouting 'vunderbar' too.

My Christmas present arrived. 4 very good books.

Knitting From the Top Down

Vogue Knitting's The Ultimate Knitting Book

Knitting in the Old Way

Knitter's Book of Finishing Techniques

I feel like I barely glanced at them, even though I spent all of Friday evening reading them, looking at them, and pondering them. The big debate for purchasing was stitch treasuries and dictionaries or reference books. As you see the reference books won out. They all look like good solid picks.

On the knitting front, I worked a long time on the Truly Tasha's Shawl. I can tell this is going to be a long project. The very good part is that in my foray to my LYS, I picked up some Addi Turbo circulars, one set with lace tips and one with regular. The regular tips are in use for the shawl and I really like them, but I can see that the sharper tip could easily become a personal favourite. The yarn slips smoothly along the shafts of the needle and they have the most amazingly flexible and strong cable. They are lovely tools to work with, but still I hope that somewhere out there, a manufacturer makes circs with a longer shaft.

I'm impressed with the yarn - Jaggerspun Heather - indeed this whole project. The pattern is just what I need, the stitch is great for the yarn, and it's to the size where I can feel the warmth of it as I knit. I really am enjoying it even if the shawl is at the point where it isn't growing no matter how much I knit.

And I completed these. Lucy Neatby Cat's Pajamas yarn (truly random striping), a basic sock adapted from the Yarn Harlot's recipe, toe up, using Maia's Toe up Gusseted Heel. I'm wearing them right now. This yarn is nice and squishy. It feels like heaven on my feet and the only shame is that this isn't the season to be wearing clamdiggers to show them off.

Mr. Needles gave me this lovely flower for my birthday. I've never had an Orchid as a houseplant before, so this lovely flower is going to be a real treat to learn with. We don't have a lot of places that the cat can't get at plants, so for now its in the bathroom which is lit with a small skylight. I'll probably have to bring it out to the kitchen, but I have to find a safe place first.

I did do some spinning. No, no, that seems to imply that I accomplished something. That I attempted some spinning is the truth. I have a leeeetle teeny tiny problem.

I've got 2 fingers and 8 thumbs. I'm going to look for my proper hands tonight.

Its going to be a lovely morning.

Its going to be a lovely morning. Now that it's light out, I can see there is a ceiling of clouds but it still has that 'nice' morning feel.

The feeling probably comes from the lovely birthday things I received, and my Christmas present arrived. I also had a small accident at my LYS, but nothing fatal. No yarn and only the needles I really, really needed. what happened was sort of like stubbing my toe though. It hurt but only at the checkout, and not that much at all, its just that all I really meant was to get some needles.

I fell for a spindle. And a book about spinning. And wool nicely ready and carded and just waiting for a newbie like me. Its 08 and time for a new obsession... Part of me is shouting wait, I didn't finish knitting yet and the rest of me is saying yeah, but just wait, maybe you can knit your own yarn.

I want it all, somehow. I'm greedy to know. If I never got beyond that, it would still be OK, just so long as I know.

Anyway, time to get that coffee and do a little more than pretend that my house is clean and that the laundry mountain is a 'small pile'. There is Christmas to put away, and rooms to restore. There is birthday cake to eat (not mine, but my niece's precious little girls)and Son1 and SS to pick up at the airport. Busy day ahead but I will squeeze some knitting in there somewhere. I've a wild sock to finish to ease a severe sock shortage.

I will post about my presents and my books and any new obsessions shortly. I haven't had this much blog fodder sitting waiting for quite a while.

Contemplating the number 5

I feel a bit like Ernie from Sesame Street this morning. But I am contemplating the number 5.

Five is a good number. Solid. Upstanding. It is right there in the middle of the numbers we first learn to count. When you are small and learning, counting to 5 is big (counting to 10 is bigger but for the purposes of this story way less important).

5 is the third prime number. In mathematics, a prime number (or a prime) is a natural number which has exactly two distinct natural number divisors: 1 and itself. Apparently this matters. It at least gives rise to this interesting article. OK, it would be interesting if I was still in school with an agile mind and an interest in math.

Back to 5. When you are little, 5 is a very important number. 5 is when you get to go to school for the first time. Maybe this extreme pleasure of childhood has been diluted somewhat by preschools and pre- kindergartens, but I still have never met a 4 year old who didn't know 5 was a very big number in a kids life.

The 5th element on the Periodic Table of Elements is Boron, which has the most versatile name. Who has not occasionally thought ' what a boron that guy is' while driving and seeing someone in front of you do something really stupid.

The Fifth Element was also a movie I really enjoyed. Pure stupid escapism with a really memorable Diva scene and a song that must be one of the all time best Sci-fi movie songs.

The first time the number 5 shows up in the calendar this year is a Saturday, one of the all time great days of the week.

And this year for the first time in my life, 5 is at the front of the digits which state my age, rather than its usual position in the second slot. Yup. The big 50.

I'm not bothered by the number of my age at all. Its kind of neat because I remember the year my mom turned 50(I probably forgot to wish her a happy birthday). I remember thinking whoa, 50. It was hard to believe that was her age (she was then and still is younger than springtime to me), and now I am there.

And you know what? I still feel the same. Whoa. How did this happen? WHEN did this happen? Did I miss anything? If I did, I'd have probably forgotten it by now anyway. There is some comfort in that.

The fact that I was 30 never bothered me, or 40, and not 50. What bothers me far more is that my little sister will be 40 this year. I'd have talked to my mother about that 40 years ago, if I'd have known my baby sister would, like, get old. It's just so wrong.

As for me, I intend to rush through my work a bit today and see if I can't get out of here by 3. I'd like to go over to my LYS, and see what they have in stock for needles before I buy. And maybe some birthday yarn. Or a ball winder. They may be picked over a little from all the heavy holiday shopping, but I am sure that they will have something I absolutely must have once I get there.

My friend Mostlylurking said in the comments yesterday "I've gotten to the point where I can resist the yarn, but I walk out the door with $30 worth of needles. So much better than what I was used to!" I feel exactly the same, only I'm not strong enough to resist the yarn yet.

Which totally explains how stopping at Micheal's to look for one measly kind of small needle meant I went home with a cookbook and 3 skeins of Kroy in what I think is the Crayon Jacquard and nary a needle in the bag.

I am getting myself a birthday present of some of those Signature Needles, but only if I get out of my LYS without having a yarn accident.

Needles and Knitting messes

I play with strings for two very different reasons. First and most importantly, I enjoy them. I like how threads feel running past my fingers. I love squsihy wools, fluffy acrylics, silk like cool bamboos, soft cashmeres, dainty mercerised cotton, soft linen floss. I just love how they play across my hands and go through some small implement and magic happens right there in front of me.

The other reason is to escape into quiet contemplation, into a place where I can hide where the world cannot follow, where I can focus outside of myself and just see something very interesting happen no matter what my day was like.

On rare occasions the world intrudes into my focus, and there is less of an escape there. When that happens I go intense. Hyperfocus even. Or I try. Somedays it takes hours to work off the stress. Yesterday was just such a day.

In the space of an hour I knit 6 inches on socks and then I picked up the shawl and knit on that for several hours. Even with my slow pace here to keep my tension as close to perfect as possible, the Tasha's shawl rapidly grew past what I was comfortable working on the straights with. So back to the sock. I then realized that I could no longer focus on anything. Time to put the needles down. No way was I ready for sleep. I would have watched TV but the blurry part was a problem. Reading was not an option so I started tidying my knitting needle container. Old circs and and old needle holders wound up inside the container were causing problems.

As soon as I picked up the wine gift box that I use as a needle holder, I realized that my hands were no longer gripping anything well. This happened. Sigh.

It looked a lot like my day. I realized that in this mess, I had a 2.75 ciruclar needle and it was nice and long. I thought I'd give it a try to see if I could maintain my gauge on the shawl. Close. Very close.

It looks ok, and it seems to be holding, but the problem is this.

Do you know anyone who knits a light worsted weight yarn with a 2.75mm? That just seems wrong and I'm doubting if the whole project will be too stiff (Swatch? What swatch? ) Its going back on the 3 mm straights, and I am going to get some proper needles.

Serious needles investigation is at hand. This knitting is pretty intense, and since I'm positive I will be doing it for quite some time, I'm going to get some really decent needles. I'll be checking reviews on some of these.

Denise Interchangable Needles

Signature Needles (dreaming of these)

KnitPicks (I'll link to this one later, they are down, but they have wonderful things)

Boye Needle Master

Addi Turbos

Plus the usual crowd of Susan Bates and others.

Shopping anyone?

Back to our regularly scheduled programming

First off, TBG, your comment made my morning. Sent coffee snorting all over the place. I'm thinking my keyboard needs a hairdryer.

Ahem, as I said back to our regularly scheduled stuff. Back to work, no more knitting the afternoons away, no more reading while it's light outside, no more seeing the sun (I have no windows near my desk). But there will be intense work on knitting, and intense trying to figure out my little 'Anne' shawl problem. This figuring threatens to consume me. I played with that as much as I played with my new shawl.

The new shawl is nice and safe. I need that at this time of year. Something comfortable to come home to after dealing with the busy after the break workload. Something which isn't too demanding. Something which gives so much in return. Its the perfect project for my winter hibernation.

The only problem I see is that I can't bring this to work with me till I get some different needles. The needles don't fit into my workbag. These long straights will be close to capacity by the end of the day anyway and circulars are going to become an urgent need. In fact I am going to be doing some investigation into how I can custom make some longer needled circulars to finish this project. Every time I work with circs, I find my gauge and tension go right out the window and I really don't want that to happen with this. I think its the short needles in my hands because I do see the same thing when I knit with short dpns.

As I sat knitting in the early hours this morning, I realized that I had not tried on my Lucy Neatby yarn sock. Usually a completed sock goes on my toes immediately it comes off the needles. That way I know if I have to make a change before I start the second. So I cleaned out the unbelievably cluttered workbag to find the sock (all those bits a pieces from holiday knitting) and tried it on. Its fits my pudgy feet to perfection, and the wider calf is perfect. I'm going to have to take a few notes on the calf increases though. Shoulda woulda coulda me didn't write a darn thing down and now I am regretting it. These delicious socks are going to be my workplace knitting for the next few days, and I expect to be wearing their cushy soft brilliance shortly.

I must now slip away to do my actual work, though I hate do. Yarny things are much more fun. Bring on the lunch hour, where I can sit and knit and regain an aura of sanity.

Knitting D Day

Knitting D day came and went with nary a whimper. The plan I had should work, but I'm not understanding enough yet about lacey things to know why it isn't. I suspect it is a matter of where I am putting the increases and decreases. Its bulbing out in the center, where the increases are, and yet the decreases cannot be near them, they must be on sections with a full count of stitches.

I have 2 choices for the Anne yarn. I can use it for a well established idiot proof pattern where there is no counting, or I can put it aside in all its loveliness and wait to use it till I do understand lace better. I'm putting it aside for now. I'll think about it a bit, and play on some of the leftover yarn I have to see if I can figure out what I am doing wrong. Anyway, logic is telling me my plan will work, I just have to figure it out.

As befitting a New Year, I started something entirely different.

I came across this on Ravelry. Nancy Bush's Truly Tasha's Shawl. The simple warmth and goodness of this shawl appeals to me in my chilly study. I'm hoping I can continue to work this on my really long new straights - nice metal needles chosen because of their relatively sharp tips - my gauge is so much more stable on straights. I may yet have to find some really long cabled circulars, though, and it may be that Mr. Needles may have to manufacture some with really long straight sections (but don't tell him that). The yarn is from a cone of Jaggerspun Heather in a 3/8 weight, with plenty on one cone for a sweater for an average sized person. It is a medium grade wool, so it may not be right for something to be worn next to the skin, but for a cardigan, vest, or shawl, I think this is going to be a great yarn. A good solid knit to start the New Year.

The last two years have been an odyssey for me. 2006 brought me the previously mystifying art of tatting, and 2007 has brought me to knitting. I intended to learn both properly so long ago - I have a tatting shuttle and needles older than half the people on the planet - but just never made the time and never found the persistence to work through my problems with each skill. Its just so darn nice to know how. Small pleasures bring great rewards and 2008 surely will be a year of rewards.

Happy New Year.

A very busy week

of travel means I have socks! The first socks are made from KnitPicks Palette in Marine Blue. This all wool yarn was really nice to work with. The price is the thing though. $1.99 (plus a very small shipping fee for my large order) and this pair of shortie socks used just a bit more than one ball of yarn for my pudgy toes. I will get a second set from the remainder of the yarn if I work the toes up in some leftover cream or white wool. So two pair of socks for under 5 bucks. Not too shabby and feels very good on my feet to boot. This second pair isn't finished. Its one of the two skeins of Lucy Neatby 'Cats Pajamas' colourways I received for Christmas. The yellow seems a bit stronger at the top of the completed sock, and the toe is looking quite yellow on the second sock while the yarn left on the ball is getting more and more blue. I should probably start from the other end of the ball for this second sock. A good knitter would. Me? I'll think about it.

Besides these projects, I worked up the smallest bag from 'Trendsetting Totes' in some basic kitchen cotton. I was thinking this might make a good bag for carrying a small project along to work while walking. I'd like to give that a try when I am walking outside next summer. It will be just right for those times when carrying my beer bag is not socially acceptable.

This bag is going to get a bit of blue cotton lining from the fabric stockpile (volume way, way, way beyond stash), and I already see myself making more. Patons Brilliant and some wonderful blue satin lining that simply demands the fine sparkle of that yarn to reach perfection. Its a nice quick project to work up, and would make a great bag for gift giving for next year.

Not that I am thinking that far ahead.

Along with this success, I faced the music. I ripped the shawl back to the point where my counting mistake was made. The mistake was way back. About 2/3 of the way back. I decided that since 'it' hated me, I might as well start over.

I worried about having too little yarn way back when, so I alternated rows of green and the Anne colourway. Then I realized I really only wanted a small shawl to wear in my chilly office, so I took out the green and worked with just the Anne. While ripping back today, I realized that I no longer had to make it small for a chilly office (since that office is getting a new inmate), so I decided to go full bore and work the green back in. I'm playing with increases and decreases, and I hope it works out because if it does, its is going to look really really sharp. No pictures just yet, but maybe at days end tomorrow.

Tomorrow will be the D Day of knitting this shawl. I will succeed wonderfully, or I will fail utterly and will lose the war with this Anne yarn. How many times can a yarn be knit before you just have to put it away? I know in my heart of hearts I will not give up. This classy earthy colourway wants to be a shawl, even if it kills me to do it.

Ahhh, that's better

Friday was the last non rushed day till yesterday, Christmas Day. Saturday was all about getting the gifts ready packed, wrapped, and ummm... finished. Yes, I still had a ton of knitting to do on Saturday. Gift Knitting was fun, but exhausting. Saturday, I was still inventing something for Son 3, for whom I have never knit anything. His lovely wife is an animal lover so I have been searching out good non animal fibre sock yarn. I've been checking out the blogs and finally found some but not in time for the holidays.
Thus, the TV sock came into being. All acrylic, more of a slipper than a sock, these slightly large, blue shortie socks came into being. He'll get his cotton socks as soon as the yarn arrives in the New Year.

And then final shots of a few gift items. The in laws gifts, and mom's scarf. Dad, sorry, but yours are still most determinedly in skein phase yet. I'll work on those this week.

And then, I have been given a wealth of gifts for Christmas, shown here piled all together, and still to arrive in the mail just into the New Year. Mr. Needles gave me some books - he let me chose which, from Needle Arts Book Shop. From son 1 and girlfriend, I got these. Drops Alpaca, in a soft white, and a wonderful blue. First thing I thought of was the Arctic Lace book from Mostlylurking. There is a head cover that this alpaca would look lovely done up in. Or a mobeius scarf. Wouldn't that look great in something lacy soft in this?

From Son 2, these wonderfully brilliant Lucy Neatby Yarns. These are going to make me wild socks. Absolutely wild colours, and you know, my life is ready for some wild. Sock wild has to be the best kind of wild. Small, almost hidden but there it is, showing off anyhow, if only people choose to see. I can't wait.

And from Son3 and wife a whole basket of treats. Yarn, booklets, Dolly mamas all beautifully put together, in that gorgeous basket, so well wrapped that even though it was some of that clear basket wrap, I could not see what the heck was in there (Trust me I tried. On the sly. When no one was looking) But, oh when I opened it, I felt rich. I immediately pulled out the Dolly Mama. I love these. And the one they choose, well, I'm still giggling over. It says 'I used up all my sick days, so I'm calling in dead' (the Dolly Mama site is really interesting!).

There was a booklet, Trendsetting Totes. How did you know I needed the bag book? I really do. I'm at the beer bag limit. I need something with divided sections so things don't get tangled up, and these patterns for crocheted bags are so right on target. I probably looked distracted and I don't know if you understood but I wasn't there in the room anymore.

I was making bags of the tweedy yarn, and the black and red yarn. I could see that in a couple of the bags from the book and my mind was already designing the insides, and figuring the beads. The tweedy yarn is going to make a wonderful small tote (the blue bag on the cover)... and that black and red? One of the bags shown in black on the cover with the lines of beads, I think. Or maybe the one shown in purple with the flap, or the yellow one. Too early to really decide for sure. I'll make the tweedy bag, and see how that size finishes up and then I'll know which pattern will be the size I'm looking for. Or maybe... well I'll leave that for another day.

And linings. Just think of the possibilities these colours give me for linings!!

My kids, if you doubt how much I love these gifts, know this. I wasn't really there. Ask me what I remember of your gifts to each other. Ask me how I almost missed that Son3s gift was still under the tree, and how you had to pull me back to figure out what I had wrapped up for him. I wasn't there in that room at all. I was dreaming. Yarn is dreams and possibilities, from the simple acrylic in its steadfast and solid self, to the finest Alpaca lace weight, and all the things in between. They have a place and a home here in my little corner of the world.

The gift you really gave, each and every one of you, was dreams. The gift was imagination. The gift is permission to waste my time wisely.

There are no better gifts than that.

And now, the Needles' are off to points far away to visit parents. We are abadoning Son1 to live off of cold turkey leftovers and candy, while we laugh and talk and work with some of the many others so very important to us.

Friday rushy rushy

I can be laid back this afternoon. Right now I will be very, very busy. Fridays before a holiday are always loose ends day.

Which is really neat because tonite might very well be loose ends night with all the projects. Some are already wending on their way as presents, one has already been given, and loved.

SS loved the Soft green of the Misti Alpaca, and the warmers and Calorimetry were perfect fits. I really enjoy when people like the things I make them. I take as much pleasure in their enjoyment as I do in the making.

Anyway, I'll probably have some pictures on the morrow, after the loose ends are worked, and I do have about another 10 inches or so to do on the scarf, and then there is a pair of socks. Its all very do-able...

if only I don't clean my house. Our worst was the year we were still painting on Christmas Eve. We already set a low standard and a tradition, so this year will be just part of the routine Holdiay spirit! What the heck, who says you can't do Christmas in a messy house?

Knit, knit

Knit, knit, knit. Sleep, work, knit.

This is what is going on at my house. Just another evening on the cashmere scarf, and then I have to decide about socks. One more pair of socks.

I will have a lot of cashmere left. The scarf is only a shortie, the kind of thing you wear under your coat to keep the chill off your neck. The giftee is, I believe a tucker. A good thing too. I'm thinking of making some gloves with what is left. But no way will those be done for Christmas.

I have one pattern at home for gloves in a copy of Interweave Knits, but they are made of cotton. I'll have to search the net for some freebie glove patterns.

I only discovered knitting on the Internet in spring, so I am at least 10,000 light years behind everyone else. The good free pattern sites that I know of so far are:

Crochet Pattern Central

Knitting Pattern Central

Knitty.com

MagKnits

Crochet Me (of course Gina, what was I thinking)

Knitting Wisdom (Thanks mostlylurking, it looks very interesting)

If you know of more, let me know, but free sites like these, which either have, or link to free patterns are one of the nicest things I've discovered in my journey to knitting.

Feeling Christmas

Our gift list is small. Long ago my brothers and sisters and I stopped gift giving between our kids. There are just too many of them, and its not always possible to get them all together on the same day. There is our charitable giving, and there are gifts for our parents and our kids, but not too much else beyond that. If you don't have a lot of shopping to do, it's easy to start seeing all that shopping in a very different light.

Giving gifts during this season has roots in the giving of St. Nicholas. His legacy, be it real or mythical was that he gave. Period. Somewhere along the way we lost that part.

Too often we give because we should. We fall into the 'what would people think' trap. We give because we are pretty sure others will give us a gift and it feels wrong to receive without giving in return. We want to give, we enjoy giving, but we worry is it going to be all right, are they going to like it. We ask for a list of things they might like, but pretty soon, the list starts feeling like demands, and unrealistic ones at that. Those kinds of feelings mean that our Christmases are tarnished, and we feel a lot more like Scrooge than we ought.

Ever feel that the most precious gift was not what you received, but what you gave to someone else? I had that chance this year.

I have a group of imaginary friends over at the Achenblog. Its a group of people who read the writer, Joel Achenbach's Washington Post blog pretty much daily. On most blogs there is the writer and the reader. Seldom do readers connect in significant ways, through comments. Achenblog, from its inception was different. The writer graciously accepted the commenters talking among themselves, responding back and forth, occasionally squabbling, but mostly sharing very civil commentary. Along the way we have become friends. There have been highs and Rovestorm like lows, but it has become an Internet home. I share coffee with them everyday at my desk. These people of all walks of life, of every background, of many beliefs, from every social strata, are my very best imaginary (and not so imaginary) friends. For all our differences we are equal on the big friendly Achenblog porch.

I gave a small token as part of a group gift to one of our members this year. Gifting to her was something I was not required to do, something no one asked me for. Rather, gifting her was something I was offered, something I was given the opportunity to do.

Giving to her was a gift I was given by a whole lot of really nice people. Giving one small thing to her, I got back 10,000 tiny pieces of joy which seem to break open, **pop** and little sparkles sprinkle through moments of my day. I owe my entire season and all the simple contented joy I'm finding in small silly things, to the glow of those little sparkly bits illuminating every corner of my world.

I wish all of you that this year. I hope that you get the gift of one small opportunity and that whatever you do because of that opportunity will light up your world.

Cashmere

I've been working with strings, yarns,needles and scissors for decades. Its how this grownup plays, but until I took up knitting, I never played much with fine yarns. I played with silks, but only a little, I certainly played with the good quality floss, I have some really great quality linens, but fine yarn was not something I played with a lot. I played tons with adequate acrylic, and happened upon really great acrylics on rare occasions. (There was some Eaton's store brand acrylic circa 1976, that still ranks as one of the finest yarns I ever worked with it. I'll post about that one day)But until knitting my work was usually just done in mundane yarn.

The Misti Alpaca was one of those really great yarns. Working with it felt like my hands were jumping into downy warmth. I hope there will be more of that down the road.

Handmaiden Cashmere is so wonderful is one too. This is a 2 ply silk and cashmere blend that they don't appear to be making right now, though they do carry a 4 ply. This yarn is so light and airy that it almost isn't there as I work with it. It magically appears as stitches and rows below the needles making a fabric that is soft and buttery, and oh so very smooth against my hands. Its going to make a wonderful gift.

This is the third incarnation of working with this yarn. The colourway did not adapt well to the stitch I choose to crochet, nor to the second one, so it seemed knitting would be it. I did think about trying something from Arctic Lace, but at this point, I'm going with the lace that I could remember. I still am going to have to boogie to get this one and one last pair of socks done. It's only 2 small projects. No problemo right?

A close up, which displays exactly how good a knitter I am not. My decreases are not at all decent. (I am going searching for help on that after the holidays) I am not a master, I'm not even a journey man. I'm not sure I could even put me in the apprentice category. Nah, I'm really just like the guy who fixes things in the backyard. It works but it isn't going to look like new.

With string I can be fearless, and if I fail, well it is only string after all. I jump in, eyes closed to everything else and just enjoy the trip. In my wake I leave behind a few nice things and a a trail of tiny little strings on the floor.

Excellent work

There is nothing so fine to a needle person as a piece of work well done. This probably was my finest weekend ever. I faced a challenge with the wrist warmers. I worked them through a dozen times - or so it seems - and I won in the epic battle between vision and possibilities of a yarn.I worked the main part through a couple more attempts. I tried working the lace in the round on the hand, but found my brain was not capable. I tried working it again, but still lost track of the pattern. I decided to finish knitting and then join the palm as part of the finishing. The loops for the tie are crocheted chain 3s, and a single crochet, and the across the palm, there are several rows of back and front loop single crochet. I opted for a crocheted tie with beaded ends ( Knitting i-cord was taking way too long for this time of year). I put beads on and took them off, I tried beads in several places, along the tops, along waves of the pattern, and each time the beads distracted the eye. The silver beads overwhelmed the silver threads running though the fabric. The project needed the smoky black glass beads lined with silver rather than the simple silver beads I had.

If you look hard enough the tops of the wrist warmers, they seem a little loose. My hand model, the redoubtable SS (you recall her from this post ), has tiny dainty hands (which probably morph) and very fine arms, but if I recall correctly the giftee also has fine hands. If needed, I can do quick and easy adjustments. I can narrow the width of the palm of the hand, and shorten the chain loops for the ties if needed to get to a perfect fit.

I will try to get better pictures from the giftee, but for now these will have to suffice. They are far far nicer than the pictures show and there is nothing yet in knitting that has pleased me so well. They are stunning and I am so glad I made the attempt and did not give up.

The weekend was so much more. Sunday morning I did these in that nice thick quick to work up chunky weight Misti Alpaca I picked up the other day. Calorimetry, for a second time (I like this pattern and this giftee likes wearing it), and a set of wrist warmers from the leftover bits. I may make these a bit longer in the arms, I do have a bit of wool left, but I will wait and see if they meet the needs of the giftee first.

Tthe swift that Mr Needles made saw action. The Handmaiden is wound. I worked with the yarn for a bit, but I can't say I'm content with the pattern I've chosen. That is today's goal. Find a pattern more suited to display the lovely colours of this yarn, and then knit my buns of before Christmas.

I know I said if I finished it, I finished it, that I wouldn't stress about it, but there still is the wish to finish just one more gift for one more person. I'll have plenty of time to knit over the holidays. Thankfully our office closes down from the 21st to the 2nd of January, and we will be doing a lot of traveling, and I will be sitting with my mother in law for a couple or three days. These things will give me long stretches of work time, so if someone doesn't get something right at Christmas, they will get it just after. There is also my shawl to finish and some non-holiday socks, for me in the bag, begging for time.

I'm looking forward to January, when I can begin the project for my daughter in law, of the soft and luscious Rowan Bamboo tape. And that green Cascade 220 will turn into something lovely for SS. And then there is all that other nice yarn, the new green lace alpaca yarn and that delicious Arctic Lace book, and some Zephyr lace, and well, a bunch of stuff in the stash.

I really am going to finish some other work too. My hardanger pillow keeps calling to me, and there are some other pillow designs I mean to make for the reading nook in my study. I'm thinking a knitted lace, in a pure and unsullied white, with a soft blue lining, maybe a knitted ruffle...

I'm getting myself into trouble just thinking about it. A little of this sort of trouble is very good for the soul.

Fairy Tales for Grumpy Sorts

If I were a grumpy sort, I'd leave everything up that I posted first thing this morning. But I am not and its the holidays, and I'm tired of being grumpy. Besides after a wee bit of knitting while I was waiting for reports, the 3rd go round of the hand warmers is going to be just right.

And so far better than my earlier post, here is a treat for you.

Late Breaking Fairy Tales:

The knitter awoke before dawn and heard faint cries. The knitter could not make out what the sound was, but she thought it must be a soft winter breeze stirring blowing warm air her way. The voices started very faint, soft. She kept listening and the calls grew stronger. Finally just before lunch, the voices were a bit louder and the knitter heard what the voices said. 'Free me' said one voice. 'Help me' said another. The calls were so urgent and so sorrowful that knitter knew she had to go. The knitter followed the soft but urgent cries, down the path, across the river to a small but very friendly looking sort of shop.

The knitter kept going, wandering around, following the voices. Finally she thought she found the voice calling softly 'free me'. She saw it was poor lonely slightly handled hank of Handmaiden 2 ply Silk Cashmere from the high hangers in the sock yarn corner. It cried out for release. It told the knitter that it had just one wish in life. It just wanted the chance to be made into something for someone special, for someone who would love it and care for it for always. The knitter knew she could do this for the yarn. She knew there was a special someone out there that would treasure this yarn and what would be made from it.

The knitter still heard the voice saying 'Help me', so she kept looking. The Handmaiden softly whispered 'lower, far down'.

There on the bottom tray of the sweet little yarn rack in a basket was the last of its kind.One sad lonely skein of Lang Mille Colori. Mille was afraid it was going to be tossed into the bin of ends, in the dark back of the shop where it would perish among the bin of single skeins of sock yarn. It was worried. It begged the knitter, 'take me with you, help me find something I can be with'.

There in the back corner among all the fancy yarns, the silks and the laces, sat a big soft sage Misti Alpaca Chunky. It was surrounded by friends and family, Misti's of all sizes and twists, Alpacas of many brands, but it turned and saw the little orphan skein of Mille Colori. It jumped up and gave the Mille a big hug, and said 'I'll be your friend'. It didn't care one bit that it was 100 % baby alpaca, and Mille was a 50% wool- 50% acrylic mix. It felt that all yarns were really the same inside. The wise Misti knew that yarns all just wanted to be something warm and soft.
So the Knitter, Handmaiden, Misti and Mille, all went to the counter to take care of the bill. Misti and Mille found a tidy corner where they are right this very minute having a good getting to know you chat about their hopes and dreams. Handmaiden is right there with them, but she busy just now checking out the needles in the comfy work bag they are sitting in, and the knitter is dreaming of just what comes next.

And more decorations!

Delicate, dainty and lacy. That is what my tree is. There are no things like it anywhere else in my home. I'm not really into lace. No lace curtains, no lace bed covers, and only a few touches awaiting use in closets and corners. I've strong opinions on lace, and how it is used, and you can have too much, particularly in a house of males such as I have lived with for the past almost 30 years.

My tree though, is touches of lace and I really enjoy its delicacy.

The Snowflakes but for one are from 99 Snowflakes. All the red ball covers come from a book of covers for ornaments that I have had and shared with my mother in law for years. The patterns all use pearl headed pins to hold all the tips in place on the old fashioned satin balls. In fact if anyone knows a source for cheap red satin balls, please tell me. There are none being sold here anymore even after an exhaustive search of dollar stores. The third ornament is one of 3 made for me by my mother in law, almost 25 years ago.

The angels and a few other little snowflakes are tatted.

I learned to tat last fall after having a tatting shuttle in my work bag since 1974. It too was just something I could not quite understand. Once given the basics, I felt like a duck in water, and love the little rings of its dainty nature. My teacher was a master tatter. It was she who told me about Nordic Needles online as a great source for tatting. Its a superior source for all kinds of neat things.

I have some ball cover patterns in tatting on the to do list, but knitting got in the way. I planned for a few more snowflakes, but knitting got in the way. I have dozens of incomplete things that I mean to finish, but, well, knitting seems to have consumed me. There is so much to learn, and I have tons more still to experience, but soon, there will be much work on some of these other things. I love them just as well. Now if I can just stop coming up with interesting things to knit!

I got a good start on the hand warmers this morning. They will have the same lac pattern as the scarf, best displayed here. Annie Modesitt's pattern from her lace class (the black and silver doesn't take good photos).Because the set of scarf and hand warmers are of man made yarns, I've had to think through how I was going to fit these to her tiny hands. Remember my little black lace thing from long ago? My plan there was to use a ribbon to close up the arm part of the wristlet. I saw a pattern on Ravelry that did the same thing up the whole of the warmer, and that will work here. The laces will compensate for the lack of stretchiness in the yarn. Doing it the whole way up the warmer might just solve my long standing problem with the lacy black wristlet. When I realized that yesterday, my hope for the project that was and now once again is the reason I learned to knit, is reborn.

So I'm going to work a bunch over the next two days to get these wristlets knit up, and then I will decide if the over part that Curlerchik uses so well, will look right. I still like the idea, but I'm a little concerned that the lacing will be to much fussiness with the over skirt. The lacing is a feature all on its own, and two big design features on one small hand seems to much.

Beads? Well I can see beads running up the edges, alternating silver and black (I found the right size beads!!!) in a bit of a wave to echo the lace. Or maybe all along the lacy waves. I'm going to knit i-cord with one of those funny little i-cord knitting things, of crochet cotton, to use for lacing. I'll bead the last inch of that too.

You know what? As I write this, I realize how very clearly my direction forward is. What was just a thought from yesterday, an informal start to a plan, is a picture in my head complete and lovely on her hand. I really hope she likes these.

No knitting, crocheting or

any other hand work last night. I confess, I was just plain old reading. But it was about knitting so I figure I'm still good with the powers that be in the mists of knitting.

I am absolutely enchanted by Arctic Lace. I'm not ready to review it yet, there is just too much there for a morning review. Saturday I'll sit down and really write about the book. The insta-meter rating is Treble, verging on Double Treble.

While I'm busy being enchanted by the book, I'll let you be enchanted by these. Snowflakes that you never have to shovel and others.

In a lot of the pictures, you see the garland I posted about before.

You will see that the lacy bits on the garland are definitely not starched, not even ironed. Most distressingly, several pictures display the dainty tips which hint at icicles, pointing up.

Sometimes things are just better not mentioned to ones garlander and light person. Well not at my house anyway.

What a garland such as this really needs is a good stiff blocking, perhaps some spray starch (though I don't like how that coats the beads) and then it really needs to be hung on branches from an ornament hanger. Maybe next year. I'll aim for starched next year. Or maybe ironed.

But don't hold me to it.