Knitting Tales to Tell

Well my friends I continue to knit my little fingers off. At this rate I will have to buy more yarn, oh bother. I am using some of my knitting time to catch up my sadly neglected knitting journal. It was only a year and a half behind when I started working on it. When you get busy it is more important to blog than write in a journal only you will read. Still important but wow the catching up is taking me for a walk down memory lane. For instance I just logged this yarn in as a Rhinebeck purchase from last year.  

Fiber Optic Foot Notes in Prism Break

Yay that means I am only a year behind now. Anyways I don't love how it is working up but I've got more than a half of sock done... and I am strongly resisting the urge to cast something else on. I've only got two socks on the needles and I think it may be getting to me.

I ordered some yarn for a new sweater for D and was anxiously awaited its arrival. Just as I was about to email the company to inquire when it would be shipped, just like that it had been sent off. Anyone in the midwest want to wave to my yarny plane?

While I was picking out the yarn I showed it to D and he was amazed at the price. He thought all my yarn was as valuable as my fancy sock yarn. But hey I can economize and knit a sweater for under fifty too, and I get all the fun of playing with the yarn for a month or so. Ooo and he can claim to have another bespoke sweater. Quite a value.

In other knitting news D spotted a knitter in the wild for me and we had a lovely conversation. D and I were attending a talk at the library when he pointed out a cute bag covered in sheep. Turns out the bag contained a sweater in progress. We had a lovely chat after I showed of my sock in progress and the socks we were both wearing. We may have even convinced the knitter to knit some pink socks for her hubby. She claimed that he should not wear "girlie" colors. Good thing my hubby is confident enough to wear anything I knit for him. I will however hold off pink sweaters for the time being. 

And you all know Burt wants to make an appearance on the blog. This was from a while ago. The first time he joined me for making dinner. That cute little kitty cutout behind him says The only self cleaning thing in the house is the cat. I bought it years ago and now I have the matching cat!

The astute among you will recognize My Favorite Sheep mug which always makes my tea taste better.

I think I smell the bread I am baking, such a lovely smell, if you'll excuse me.

Blah

Dang you winter you got me again. Instead of staying home, knitting and making bread I had to go to work. I know what a bummer. Thank God I have a job, it certainly comes in handy when I want to do some stash enhancement.

My knitting is in a bit of a winter hum-drum too. I find when I am hum-drum I usually find nothing all that attention grabbing so I usually have lots of things on the needles. Sorry no current pictures because my lighting is still having its winter feelings too.

First I am working on a sock that I started in September 2010 but dropped off the knitting radar for a couple of months. Then because it kept mocking me when I went on Ravelry, I picked it up. Embossed Leaves sock in Knitpicks Stroll in Forest Heather color. I managed to finish the first sock and have the cuff finished on the second one, but my fingers are faltering.

My second subconscious avoidance project is my CPH sweater. I am just not seeing how this one is going to come together and have hit the wall of 'what if it does not work?' The simple time proven solution is that I will reknit it and I will eventually make it work but I do not seem to be to the 'just do it the first time and make your mistakes' phase. Since I have class next week I will need to get my bum in gear and just get it done.

My third problem child is my wavy cables socks, I am of the firm opinion that the current project will not work for me and I need to frog and start over with bigger needles. Why can't I just make it work the way it does in my head? Alas

Fourth is my 'hmm I wonder what this yarn will look like knit up?' phase of desperation. Now the yarn is pooling funny and I don't think it is going to work. Off to the send it back pile with you.

Fifth is working for me as I have one completed sock but the colors are not what I imagined them to be. So even though the colors are bright enough to bring me out of my funk, I am just not going along with the ride.

See what I mean I am in a winter blah. Soon spring will have sprung and my knitting and I will be in love again. Ah renewed love, come visit me soon OK?

Off Probation

So I sometimes write posts in my head, usually when I'm bored or doing a task that does not need my full attention (knitting on a plain sock). I think I have written this post in various stages several times now. Who knows how many times I am going to need to edit it.

So let me fill you in on my blogging experiences. I am what is commonly known as a lurker. I read blogs but I do not interact with the blogger by commenting or attempting to contact the person. I always thought "What can I add ?" Plus you know that whole antisocial thing plays in here too. I mean why would someone who has never met me care what I think of their posts.

Well, it turns out that is one way that you can tell people are reading your blog. Sometimes, some thing just strikes a chord within you and you feel the need to say "Hey I feel that way too." Or "My goodness I'm glad I was alone when I read that, because I fell out of my chair laughing, now I have a puncture wound from where I fell on my knitting needle and I need to come up with a story my husband will believe."

Started to expand my reading and found this blog: Adriene's Couch - Come and sit a while!

A place to relax, take off your shoes and pick up your needles and hooks. This is a place of comfort!

I was intrigued. Come and sit a while? Me? How kind. Then I read this post If its got cake in the name it must be good. What? I think I just found my yarn cake soulmate. She understands.

I love cake and when you combine that word with yarn it is still love for me. The weird thing was the timing of this post as I had just received a ball winder for my birthday. I was fighting the urge to continually wind up yarn into cakes over and over. I think I wound up or rewound 80% of the yarns that I own. Still I could not comment about that post, because I had commented on a post about a month prior and I did not want to look like a weird internet stalker.

How was it that Adriene could say so well what I was thinking? I had been composing a post about yarn cakes in my head but she was just so much more eloquent. She said what I wanted to say and more.

So I continued to read and laugh a her posts, then it happened one day she commented on my blog! Oh happy day!

This is the email I sent D:
Hey,
Someone, who's blog I read, but don't know commented on my blog. I feel super cool right now.

This is what he wrote back to me:
You are now sufficiently cool that I deem your knitting probationary period has ended and permission to knit unsupervised is hereby granted.

You just got to love a man with that sense of humor! Although I have my doubts about a non-knitter being able to grant me that status. Don't you think it should come from another knitter? Or is that what he was saying another knitter granted me that status?

So we will see if this is up to her specs.

Ramblings

I tried out the knitting group at the library the other night. Seems to be a nice group so far. As you know I'm anti-social so this was a big thing for me. Well not big, but I did have to talk myself back into it several times.

When I get home after a day of work I really don't want to leave the house again. For food, fun or even money. Well now that last one has not been tested, I've never accepted a bribe, mostly because it has not been attempted, but that is another story.

So one of the ways I forced myself to go was to finish the audio book I was listening to in the car. turns out I really don't like the radio that much anymore so I really needed a new book. Guess where they have books....the library!

I used my knitting group time to weave in the ends of D's sweater. Yep the sweater that would not end is finally done. (I think, you never know how shifty a sweater can be till you wash it.) Pictures will be posted shortly. He seems to like it so that is good news.

I discovered an interesting side effect to having startitis. (The urge to start as many projects as you can in a short amount of time, regardless of what projects are currently on the needles.) I had a wicked case of I-want-this-doneitis. (The urge to finish something, anything so you can have a feeling of accomplishment.) When you start all your projects at the same time, none of them get your full attention and thus all seem to be with you for a longer time. This feeling sometimes actually heightens the feelings of startitis. If you can not finish anything you might as well start something else for the simple change of view it affords you. Stop messing with me startitis, you know they're working on a pill for you!

Well that is all the knitting theory I have in me tonight. Where are my needles I need to lock them up for the night.

How it is going in my world

My knitting hands are itching, not in an allergic way just in anticipation. I recieved some wonderful knitterly items for Christmas. Unfortunately for me I am not able to touch and feel all my great gifts. They had to be left in SD to be shipped later. My wonderful Father in Law is sending them to us.

This year turned out to be a scandinavian knitting year. I receive three books on Norwegian knitting. So you should expect to see some fantastic colorwork mittens in the future.

I'm still working on the same three projects I've been working on. D's sweater, my Christmas socks, and the Selbu mittens. The mittens have not been touched in weeks. I have come to the decision I need to frog them since the thumb gusset is not working for me. I just do not have the time or guts to face that frogging session.

I bet they would have been useful during our recent trip too. Well at least they should be done before the spring comes, at least I hope they will be done by then. Note to self always start mittens in the fall rather than in the winter.

D's sweater has 1/2 to 3/4 of a sleeve. He is still waiting for the other sleeve and collar. I wold say I 'm working as fast as I can but that does not seem to be quick enough for either of us. He is being patient but I don't think I am.

The good news is that my socks are moving right along. Turns out when you're stuck in a snow bound state with only one project to knit on it gets knit up.

This lovely shot is my second sock enjoying a good sit down in the airport before boarding the plane home. But first it had to have the heel flap finished and the heel turned too. It is quickly working it's way to being a real sock like its partner already is. It is looking forward to taking a dip in the washing machine when it is finished. The funny thing is I had to frog a bit of the first one when I was talking to my Mother in Law I forgot to cross one of the cables. I tried to drop stitches and just twist the cable and knit that small section back up, but that is a skill I have not yet learned. Maybe I just need more practice. Hey but that is not something that I want to be practicing all the time.

I did have time to look over the books that D's family gave me for Christmas. I had them on my wish list and they are as good as I hoped they would be. So my fingers are itching to start something new.

Oh knitting my knitting

What the Hell? I thought we had a deal knitting, I love you and you love me. I'm starting to believe that we're not on the same page so to speak. I am looking at all three of you current projects. You have been knit and reknit and reknit. I'm starting to think you have separation anxiety. I will still spend time with you after you're knit up. Yes, it will be different but I will love you more for your warmth. It is OK for you to reach your full potential.

I am at the same point on D's sweater I was a week ago except now I am wiser. Why is it wisdom always comes with a price tag attached? At least my inner knitter saved me some trouble. She whispered to me that I should not completely bind off the bottom cuff till I tried the sweater on D. It is just too bad that she let me get so far with the sleeve before we tried it on him. The wisdom I obtained from the sleeve was: yes it is possible to make a weird hybrid puffy pirate sleeve while knitting a sweater. Turns out if you decrease to quickly on a sleeve it makes the sleeve look "poofy". Yep poofy, just how D described the sweater to me. "Hey honey can you make me a poofy sweater?" Yep, honey I sure can just let me try to make a normal sweater and it will come out that way. Sweater knitting this is your official warning. I will put you in time out if you poof on me again. I know I did not listen to inner knitter but this is the fifth time I've made something like you I should understand the process by now. Remember sweater I'm watching you.

Don't worry I still think you're pretty, in a manly way.

Sock knitting you're on my naughty list too. Ok you're right I expected this of you. I cast you on not really knowing what I was going to do with you. I told you we were just trying things out. It was OK if I had to rip back. But then I decided what to do with you after the third ripping. What you did not get that memo? Sorry sock knitting. Are we good now? I really think you're lovely. I like you just the way you're working up. No don't say those things about sweater, it's not "stupid", that is not going to get you more time with me. There is enough of me to go around.

Shhh don't tell the other knitting but I think your colors are especially Christmasy.

Mittens oh mittens. Just because you're my first "real" colorwork project does not mean you should try to make me grow by leaps and bounds. We can save some of my learning for the next project. Right mitten, I've been thinking about it and I'm afraid I don't understand you like I should. You know what that means right? Yep I am going to rework you yet again. I'm sorry that is just the way it has to be. You know you're not like socks people will see you more and notice that left you and right you don't quite match. They will judge you harshly for this. They will say things like "home made" and "knit wrong", and they will not mean it in a good way.

Never fear mittens I will not allow that to happen. I want you to hear only good words like "beautiful" and "wow". I promise to stop thinking of you as "bad wool", I promise to see deeper than that, you're just "misunderstood wool".

I will endeavor to try harder with all of you. You did teach me yet again that I should not knit Christmas presents. We're both way to fickle to have such a large deadline.

So knitting do we have an understanding? Are we good? Don't make me knit something else because you know I will.

I'm a selfish knitter

There I've said it, I feel so much better. When people find out you knit there is usually one of two reactions: "Oh?", backing away slightly while looking for an exit door because I might attack them with a horrible sweater that they must wear, or "Oh crap now I have to pretend I care."

We knitters, we're a relatively smart lot. We get that just because we like it you may not like it. It does not mean that we will force you to wear a scarf that only a third grader on crack would appreciate. We might be artsy or crafty but it does not mean that we're looking to give it all away.

I started off knitting a couple of things for others and quickly learned that my time and friends are too valuable to waste disappointing both of us. Most people use the words home made and cheap interchangeably. If you make it yourself it must be because it is cheaper. I can not tell you how many times people have smiled at me and said why do you make socks is it cheaper? NO, it is not cheaper, only about a gazillion times better. I pay for my socks what some people pay for dinner out on the town. It is not cheap but way more entertaining. I spend a lot of time with my socks before I even get to wear them.

Yep, that is what I call a gratuitous socks shot. What store could I go and buy socks that actually fit my little 2X4 wooden block shaped feet? I knit because I love it. I can create something that fits, is warm and the color I like. You think I am going to go out of my way to knit you something you don't like when I know what to make for me? I don't think so.

First thing my husband asked for was a sweater, I told him no! He did not own a sweater and I don't think I've ever seen him in a sweater. Why would I spend all that time and effort on something that would sit in his closet? Well as you can tell he has proved himself sweater worthy. Once I proved to myself I could make a sweater that did not look homemade, I knit one for him. He wears it, he likes it and he tells me so. That is how you earn another sweater in my house.

I received a stellar compliment from a non-knitter last weekend. While attending a friendly get together, one of D's bike buddies asked me what I had made recently. I was wearing this sweater.

Disregard blanket background, please. So I said I made this sweater. His reply was "You did not!" I did my standard twirl and said yes I did. He even came back to the topic later and said he would have never known, it looked store bought. It was a big compliment for me.

That is why I'm a selfish knitter, I know what I like and I knit what I want. D, you're my other half so I knit for you too. Hope you still like it.

MITTEN!!!!

I ran into my first what the heck is wrong with me and this pattern? After 15 minutes of me making frustrated noises D says "Maybe the pattern is wrong. " Which would be a brilliant solution if I was not knitting from the corrected pattern at that moment. I'm knitting Selbu mittens from Folk Mittens.

I knit the left mitten up where I will start the decreases to close the mitten, then I froze. I read the directions that stated something about doing a "flat" decrease. What am I to do? Should I go buy a can of soda and leave it open around the mitten while I knit decreases?

So I start to worry and fret for a bit and a voice says, put this one on hold and start the second mitten. That way when you figure it out you can do both together. Brilliant! That way I will not forget what I did in the process of knitting the second one.

I cast on the second mitten yesterday I merrily knit the single colored cuff up. I start the color part and get a round in and the color changes for the last stitches don't work. I count, yep right number of stitches. I look at how it is set up and see I've moved the start of the knitting by one stitch. I rip back to the cuff. (I'm not totally stupid just inexperienced.) I move the stitches to proper needles and start again with the colorwork.

Again the last few stitches don't work out. I go a couple of rounds to see if magically it will all be correct. It was not. Sigh. So I do what I think is best and put the knitting away for the night. Nothing like a little "Time Out" to show your knitting who the boss is.

Yep, you guessed it, it is still not working. I ripped back tonight and restarted the two color part. Same results. So here is my plan, I'm mentally moving over a stitch in the palm color work section. If I know what I need, why not make it work? Anybody else see a massive knitting related cursing session coming? Don't worry I will try to keep it down, and use less offensive words like SUGAR and FIDDLESTICKS. But I am not promising anything.

When I finally finish these mittens, how long will it take D to pry them off my hands? I think I will want to wear them all the time everywhere. Friends do not let friends wear wool knit wear in June (unless they live in the southern hemisphere).

You ask about D's sweater? How it that coming? Will it be ready for Christmas? I don't know either. I better have it done before January 1 2010 or else he is liable to throw me out in the snow and keep a half finished sweater. Oh we got snow! Snow, snow, fabulous snow.

Little bit of this, little bit of that

I hate sitting down to the computer getting ready to post and as soon as the screen pops up my brain empties. Happens more than I am willing to admit. What have I not talked about in a while?

Books! I finished Agatha Christie's The Mysterious Mr. Quin a while back. Loved it! I love books that have mysterious benevolent characters in them. This one is a collection of short stories that feature the same two main characters. I was pleasantly surprised in the stories. I'm not a huge fan of short stories. In this case I was not able to figure out who and why but I enjoyed the story telling.

I'm one of those people that try to figure out the endings. My Mother trained me to pick up the clues. Well, trained is not how it started, she continually frustrated me by knowing the ending all the time. How could she do that? So I begged to be let in on the secret and finally she started pointing out little clues. I'm pretty good at it now, not as good as the original but still good. Sometimes it leads to my husband's frustration so I try to be quiet. Other times I let him in on the clues too, but only if he asks. Not many things in this life are as frustrating as living with a know it all.

On a totally unrelated note I use pictures of my yarn purchases as my desktop at work. You know looking at yarn all day is a good thing for me. I find I am calmer if I can sneak a yarnie peek. The bad thing is I constantly have the urge to cast on projects at work.

I think I found a pattern for a shawl for the grey alpaca yarn I bought at Saratoga Fiber Festival this year. It is in The Knitter's Book of Wool. I wonder if the yarn will be too dark to show the pattern. It is a lovely charcoal grey. I had to ball up the yarn the other day because Gus tried to bring it to me in my sleep again. Do you think he's trying to tell me to knit faster? But he sort of mangled the yarn a bit while dragging it out of the bag. Not enough to hurt it but enough to make me go argh. So now it is all neat and tidy and ready to knit from. I currently have three projects on the needles so I don't think I will be casting on any time soon. But you know how the yarn and needles like to gang up on me.

D's sweater is moving right along. I had him try it on the other day to make sure what I had so far would work. His comment about the sweater that at this stage resembles a very short football jersey, "I think it needs to be longer". Really honey? Ya think! You know it made me laugh when he said that even though I knew something was coming.

I think it will be ready by Christmas but I don't think it will meet the record set by his first sweater. I had that one done in a month. Can you see how proud of that I am?

I will just keep on knitting, it is bound to be long enough one of these days.

I have a Padawan

I am teaching someone to knit. D came up with renaming her my Padawan, which is an apprentice from the Star Wars movie series.

Sorry about the blurry picture, those hands must have been moving faster than I thought, or could focus. She is already exhibiting signs of a true yarn convert. Where do I get yarn, how do you make cables, what did I do here and when are you free for another lesson?

My proudest moment to date is that she brought knitting to work. I actually heard the phrase "It's in the car" come out of a formerly non-knitter's mouth. OK I will admit I teared up a bit at that one. I am so proud.

She is a visual person so she picked it up very quickly. Her work had very few mistakes. Yes I am a wee bit jealous.

So our next lesson will include how to pick up a dropped stitch, cables and how to pick out yarn for a project.

I'm trying very hard not to pass on any of my preferences. Well that is not totally true, I'm trying not to discourage any of her new-by urges. I talk about wool a lot but that does not mean she can't look at cotton. (Please not cotton)

I'm trying to let her make her own mistakes and choices. I think you learn more from seeing the consequences than just being told something without an explanation. And really why can't you choose what you want to do? Maybe you don't have the skills for that yet but maybe you do, who am I to say?

I'm just happy passing on the knitting love to someone else.

Rhinebeck 2009 The First Installment

This is D at his first sheep and wool festival. Notice the look of contented curiosity. We had been through one building and I had made one purchase at this point. I had forced him to make a purchase though, hot apple cider, very enjoyable on a cold day.

This is a morning shot of one of the vendor buildings. Oddly enough this is the only shot of booths I took. I think I was too excited to really think about pictures much. This was the second to last building we hit. By 1 p.m. we could hardly make it through, so many people!

D perked up quite a bit when we went to look at the animals. I turn back into Farm Girl and that seems to amuse him quite a bit. Mohair goats first then followed by a few sheep friends.

I think I had to sweet talk this one a bit before she would strike a pose. Turns out talking to sheep is not a "skill" that I give up easily. I talked to them all telling them they are beautiful. Horses rank at the top for me because they are so elegant and powerful, sheep rank really high for opposite reasons. They are comforting and cute.

I can not remember what breed of sheep we had on the farm, or even if it was a specific breed. I remember lambing season and shearing season. I remember crawling into the huge burlap bags to run around and pack the wool down in them. I wonder now why we did not keep some of the wool and spin it. I guess it was hard enough to eak out a living, and cloth was cheaper pre-made.

We found roving that reminded us of food. It was called peaches. Even when I know I don't want to learn how to spin yarn, fibers colored like this make me wonder what the finished product would look like. Looks tasty as is.

D caught me stashing a purchase away. Is it just me or does it look like I'm just a bit high on wool fumes? I remembered my shawl! I kept pretty toasty while poor D went wool less and was chilled. The power of wool, will not be denied. I received a compliment on my shawl/scarf while waiting for the ladies room. Only at a wooly event is that acceptable.

We stopped to watch an auction. I know it made my Daddy proud. The first ewe went for $600. D looked at me like WOW! Yeah, I don't think we had sheep that would sell for $600 a piece. To answer a question I heard many times while standing there, yes people go to school to learn how to do the auctioneer's chant. I had to explain to the lady standing next to me what was going on, what the current bid was and what bid they were looking for. I'm not sure I got it all right but I sounded good, if I do say so myself.

We were smart and stopped for lunch early. Then headed back to the car for a bit of a warm up with a thermos of hot tea. There are few things in this world as comforting to me as tea from a thermos. Portable heat what is not to love?

This is a shot of the afternoon Ravelry meet up. I finally have a pin! You'll see it at the end. I have wanted one for so long now. I think it means I am part of the group now, part of the yarnhood if you will. We saw a couple of ladies from Beauknits. One of my local yarn shops. I was chastised for not coming to knit night recently. Sometimes life moves too quickly, you don't get to see the people you want to. Good thing D and I live together!

The moment I've been waiting a year for, my new Rhinebeck 2009 yarn haul. Starting bottom left going counter clockwise.

One skein Socks that Rock in Puck's mischief, one skein Decadent Fibers Savory Sock yarn, Creatively Dyed Calypso sock yarn in Street, one skein Luster Sox in Pine and one Comfy Sox in Red red wine, both from Dye Dreams, two skeins from Ellen's 1/2 Pint Farm, and four skeins of unmarked cream colored fingering yarn from Mees and Ewes.

The top one is my new Celtic shawl pin from Ram's Horn, and my super cool Ravelry name pin.

The funny stories will have to come in installment 2. With all my new lovely yarn I'm fighting startitis pretty bad. I finished my sweater the other day so now I have to wash it and get it ready for its inaugural wearing. Hmm that means I have to go to the yarn shop to get yarn for D's sweater. Poor me

One foot in front of the other.

I am still plugging along on my sweater. I finished the body using a baby cable rib I found in my Custom Knits book. It came out looking better than I had hoped for, sometimes even I am a pessimist. I'm working on a sleeve and have managed a few rounds but that is about it.

I can feel the seasons change and see it even more. It is starting to stay darker longer in the morning. So my normal reaction to this is to sleep later and later. I make it to work in the morning but my breakfast and knitting margin have shrunk down to 5-10 minutes, which really means I have time for breakfast. The leaves are starting to change and I am determined to get pictures this year. Every year I meant to take a camera to work with me because I can stop on my way home and find some lovely trees. Every year it is December before I blink and all the leaves are sitting in an unattractive pile in my yard. They are leaves it is what they do!

I managed to finish a pair of socks this weekend but did not get pictures of them. Soon my pretties soon.

You know how I love lists, right? Well I listed all the immediate projects I wanted to start and came up with 15-20 projects. I still have 2 on the needles I'm trying to finish. I would like to have my sweater done by October first, I don't think that is going to happen. Maybe it needs to start following me around, so I would work on it. Of course that plan has not worked for the second sock of D's pair. I told myself I needed a time when I could concentrate to turn the heel since I was trying an unfamiliar method but I turned the heel 2 weeks ago and has been riding around in my purse since then. Poor sock it wants to be on his feet so badly.

One of the projects I want to start is mittens for D. One of his favorite animals are squirrels, don't ask me why maybe it is the tail. I found these mittens and thought of him. I thought they would be too funky for him to wear in public but I have been given the go ahead. I hope they look as good as they do in theory in my head.

I think I will save the rest of the list for another time. You can be sure D's sweater is right up there at the top. I have to deck him out in knitted wear while the decking is good. Sort of the knitters version of strike while the iron is hot.

I did it!

I talked D into going to NY Sheep and Wool festival with me in October! I am sad to say that I used the bike as bait. I told him he could bring her along and go for a ride if he got bored or did not want to look at anymore yarn. I know, strange thought who does not enjoy looking at yarn?

He did put the stipulation out there that I do not ask "Do you like this one or this one", "Which color do you like" or any other opinion related questions. Hmm I wonder why? You so know I am going to find a crazy yarn and ask "Does this make my butt look big?" Hey someone has to do it, it might as well be me.

I am looking for some specific things this year. Sock yarn, when am I not looking for sock yarn? This time I think I am going to try to find some lesser know brands, vendors or content mixes. I have been wanting to try bamboo yarn for a while, but I love wool so much that I can not resist its charms. Wait a minute did I just say that I want to try to find bamboo yarn at a wool festival? What is wrong with me?

I want to see some of the vendors that I always seem to miss. Can't think of them now but I hope to before we get there. I am buying a sweatshirt early this year and not waiting till they're all sold out. You can never have too many sweatshirts with sheep on the front. They make people notice you, and read writing on your bosom. Yeah that last part is uncomfortable. Not as uncomfortable as having someone point out (touch) light houses that they have been to on a shirt that your wearing! That conversation ended really quickly!

I have made a couple of sweaters now, so in theory I should feel comfortable buying for that now. I would like to get some yarn for the Hubby's sweater but I think I would cross over into the "questions not to be asked" zone. I will let you know how that all turns out. We know I'm going to screw up and ask at some point during the day. Think I worry too much?

Part of the fun going to these things is people watching, knit wear watching. You get to see stuff that other knitters have knit. The first year I went was sort of a bust for me. It was warmer than usual and I was a sock knitter only at that time, do you know how hard it is to show off knit socks walking around outside in October in upstate New York, I do it is very hard. The second year was cooler but I forgot my Fetching mitts at home and my first sweater was in the wash. So it occured to me that I need to find something to wear this year that will show my progression as a knitter. Yeah it is to late to knit something now. I started to think, well I can take one of my pairs of Fetching that I missed last year, Hmmm I could wear my grey cable sweater.

Not bad but I think it is rather plain. Does it look like I have a column of arrows pointing to my face? Oh it does, good *cough*I planned it that way, design element?

Then I remembered my first project that made me feel like I'm a good knitter. I give you The Christmas Party Shawl.

My first multi month project. I learned lessons making this. I learned how to knit when I don't want to. I learned how to plan out a project and make it work. I learned that I really like red and Alpaca is warm. I learned about project deadlines. I learned that deadlines take away joy from me. I learned that I can do something that I thought I could not do. I learned that I love the book Victorian Lace Today. I also learned that I want to make more shawls but I need to bask in the glory of the first one for a time. It has been almost a year now maybe I should pull that book back out.

So I guess you might be able to identify me at Rhinebeck if you're going this year. I know I am and I will have a date, unless the bike woos him away. Just make sure you leave the keys with me honey I will be loading yarn into the Escape throughout the day. NO really I need the keys....

I am still looking

Quick update I have not ordered any thing and I am still working on the same three projects. I think I am still enjoying them but who knows? I will enjoy them more when I am done with them and have things to wear. What can I say I am a product girl!

I drooled over a catalog at lunch, but managed to fulfill my yarnie urges with writing up a list. I am amazed how much I am enjoying the planning stage this time.

I am an odd person. Oh yeah I tried to replicate yesterdays knitting time trials and I could not reproduce my results. Does that mean I am not as fast as I think I am?

Time is on my side, yes it is.

I did something odd today, I mean even odd for me. I timed my knitting pace today at lunch. I knit 44 stitches in a minute on this sock's partner.

That equated to half of a round. Which means I can knit 2 rounds every 5 minutes. Now I don't think that makes me a speed demon, but it is nice to know what I can do. I always wondered at lunch time if I had enough time to get to a certain point, say finish a row. Well now I have an estimate.

I felt sort of strange doing it and luckily I ate outside so there was no one to witness my foolishness. At least I did not see anyone watching me. You think there is someone blogging about how they saw a crazy lady timing her knitting rate today.

In other knitting news I turned the heel on D's sock that I stopped working on to start my sweater. Shh don't tell D that is what I did. Of course the quicker I get my sweater done the quicker I start working on his sweater. I would like to give him a new sweater for his birthday but I really don't think that is going to happen.

Right now I am in a serious planitis phase, you know when all you see is projects that you want to knit and you keep visualizing how you would knit it. I have three on the needles now, with another ten in the one and two slots of next to be knitted list. I am fighting the urge to buy things like yarn(always), books(most of the time) and knitting tools(only when I need them). The knitting tools urge is confusing me, if I have lived without a tool for this long in my knitting career why do I "need" anything new now? Really I don't need anything, but I would like to try some new things. And lets face it I am fairly fiscally conservative, I might just have learned to live without tools that would help me but are not an absolute must have.

I am putting together a mental order from knitpicks now, even though I have 3 socks worth of yarn still not knit up from my initial order. Does this mean that I just need to learn to knit faster or that I finally found my mojo that was missing earlier in the summer. Or does it mean the a winter is around the corner and my body knows it.

My sweater has hit sort of a boring part. It was great when we were camping and I sat and knit on it in the dark in front of the campfire. I am still thinking about that project too. I don't want to do plain ribbing for the hem, cuffs and collar. I think I found what I want to do in Custom Knits. I like a small cable twist in the ribbing, so I am thinking of trying it out. I will let you know how it turns out. Just promise me that you will not tell me if it looks funny. I am not sure I can take honesty in my knitting yet. No that is not right I would rather someone told me it looked funny, rather than wear it for 10 years and have people think I look more of a dork than I normally do. Seriously I wonder that all the time, does this make me look more dorky?

Well I think I have rambled on enough about knitting for one evening, I will try to think of more for tomorrow.

So you never know

You never know how an evening will turn out. Tonight I took a risk and stepped out of my antisocial box.

I've been wanting to learn how to make kilt hose since before I knew how to knit. I think that is why I took to socks so quickly. It just made sense that you would put wooly goodness on your feet.

Tonight in our local book store I went to check out the knitting books and saw a woman knitting, not just knitting but knitting kilt hose. Now I know divine intervention when I feel it. When would I ever come across a situation like that again. Someone I could talk directly to and see what she was working on at the same time right in front of me. Now as you know normally I do not talk to strangers and I barely talk to friends. The hand of God walked me over to her and forced me to ask what pattern was she using. Sadly it was her own pattern but she offered to show me how she does it.

Now the truly lovely thing is she is from Ireland. So all the instructions were given in a lovely Irish accent. I love accents! She discussed various things with me and D. Irish history and food, doctors without borders and knitting. We played a game of I'll show you mine if you show me yours. Magical is how I would describe it. I have her cell phone number, can locate her on Ravelry and have a crazy story of how I can come out of my shell if knitting is involved.

So I am one happy knittin' kitten. Or at least I will be when I make my first pair of kilt hose.

My weekend

This is the unusual harmony I walked in on this weekend. Granted they are sleeping instead of fighting but I think that is my point. Jack, black and white, usually pushes Gus, grey, out to get a warm spot but I think Gus was unwilling to give up the spot he had worked on all day.

I have new yarn!

 

The first is Berroco Ultra Alpaca in a heathered army green color. It called my name and I brought it home. The second is a new sock yarn I found last weekend but forgot to buy in all the new sweater yarn excitement. It is Wisdom yarns Poems sock yarn. It is sort of a plumish/grey color. It looks like it fades from one color to another instead of definite stripes. I will keep you posted as to how that one is working out since I have been dreaming of this coloring method of sock yarn for a while now. I hope it looks as good in reality as it does in my head now.

Next up is my current knitting project and how it rolls around the house with me. My new sweater in progress.

  

The yarn is my first foray into Cascade 220 the so called work horse yarn of many knitters. They claim its qualities to be: inexpensive, consistent quality, great colors and softness. I figure this sweater cost me around $50 to $60. Not bad when you figure in a month's worth of knitting entertainment for me, to boot.

Did you notice the sign of my husband's love for me in the second picture. My super bright knitting bag that he earned for me by riding 50 miles in the Diabetes Tour de Cure this last June. He was gracious enough to let me have it when I started eyeballing it and saying it would make a great everyday knitting bag. It is not something I would have thought of myself but once I picked it up I knew my yarn would love it. The only problem is that Jack thinks it makes an ideal napping surface. A smooth crinkle bag filled with insulating wool, why would that be such an attraction to a cat? Because it comes with its own side car of a knitter?

My Hubby, the sacrifices he makes for us. Although I do pay him back with tea and scones. And eventually another sweater for him to love. That is my current problem trying to choose a yarn for his sweater. We sat down tonight and discussed somethings to see if I am really understanding what he likes or just putting my own spin on things. I think if I can keep it in the family of colors he likes I will be OK. The hard thing for me was nailing down what he likes. I think it can be condensed down into; wine, pine and chocolate. If I can find a yarn in one of those colors it will be good.

I think I am figuring out some of the questions I need to ask in order to understand people better. Specific questions are good as long as you keep them to a minimum. What do you like about that color versus this color. I guess I learn by comparison. Why do you like this and not that? To me they are very similar but one could be just a touch on the pink side of the spectrum.

I try to ask myself the same type of questions at times. Usually when I find myself drawn to something out of the norm for me. I don't like orange and yellow, but I find myself drawn to a burnt orange color. So orange with a hint of dark brown is good for me. I still have not found a yellow that I can live with. These are the types of things I am learning to ask about if I want to eventually knit for other people. Because if I knit for others I am going to want them to like it and want to use it, not just bury it in the back of the closet.

And now I am off to see if I can entice a cat off a half finished sweater.

The invasion has begun

Apparently I really needed a yarn fix so I shuffled myself to a local yarn store on Saturday. I've been getting twitchy as I said so I had lots to look for and at. I started off looking at sock yarn , because it will always be my first yarn love. They had a couple that I was really interested in. I drooled and petted for a time then asked for help with choosing a new sweater pattern.

The three sweaters I've knit have all been from the same pattern with some changes to each one. I believe in approaching knitting patterns the way I approach recipes. Follow the directions as listed in the pattern/recipe the first time. It gives you a basis for knowing what your working with and if you like it. Anything after that is free game, I can add or subtract pattern elements/spices or fruits as I wish because I know the general way it is made.

So I knit the first sweater the way the pattern was written only allowing for factors such as my particular measurements like arm length. The second time I knit it for D but changed all the edges to ribbing. The third time I kept the edges from D's sweater but added a cable panel down the front. I used the same brand and weight of yarn for all three but changed up the colors.

For my next sweater I wanted something a little more challenging but not off the scale. I'm not sure I got that but I did get something a little different. I did leap in to the realm of new yarn. I am trying out Cascade 220 yarn for the first time. I am also mixing up the color just a bit. I am so hoping I like it. Oh and for some reason I got the urge to start a wool sweater on the hottest day of the year so far. I think I just might be a tad wacky.

I bought something I hope to turn into a gift for a friend also. I don't generally knit for other people because I don't want to see that "Oh how long do I have to keep this before I can throw it out" look in their eyes. I know what I like, I like to knit, so therefore I knit for myself. You can tell how true that is based on my previous post of my knit socks versus D's knit socks ratio. I had what, 29 pairs to his 2 pair. Poor D.

I was disappointed that I could not find solid color sock yarns, or many of them for that matter. Considering that I've been knitting for 3-4 years now and I have 2 plain color sock pairs you would think that many people get wooed a way by all the multi colored yarns out there. Oddly enough my two plain socks are both dark grey. Apparently when I don't want multi color I don't want any color. So that means my cycling socks have been put on hold till I can decide what will work for me. I am fighting the urge to buy grey yarn. I'm mulling options right now, and I seem to be happy with that.

The second half of my yarn invasion will be coming in the mail. Sunday night I talked myself into ordering some yarn online I had been wanting to try. Resistance is futile. It is plain color not crazy hand painted stuff so I am calling it an experiment/test stage for the cycling socks. I think it is partly because I was so happy to decide on sweater yarn that I forgot to get the sock yarn I first looked at in the local store, so you see I had to get the yarn on Sunday night. Think D will buy that story? Ah he knows how conservative I am with our money, He won't worry about a few things of yarn that ultimately turn into clothing anyways. Love you D

How to know if you're out of your league

The local bike shop puts on a beginners bike ride. We finally made the time to try it out. I grew up in the country so I am not yet comfortable riding in traffic, but I am better now and I thought what the heck.

Turns out I needed the 'before you even think about being a beginner' riding group. There were at least three clues I was out of my league before we even started.

1 Mine was the only non road bike there. I have been told road bikes take less effort to ride, so I'm already going to be working harder than anyone else.

2 I was the only one without a biking jersey. So great now I even look more like I'm not part of the crowd, like I should be a spectator. There were two jerseys modeled after Tour de France team jerseys. I get it I'm not part of the "in" crowd. At least I had bike shorts on.

3 They all had clip in shoes. These clip into the bike pedal and allow you to use the whole stroke, not just the down stroke. Yet more biking attire that proves how much of a 'dig it' I am not. Sigh.

So we start off and everyone is super polite and says after you. No one wanted to start after the leader so I think what the heck and start off after him. It is like when you were in school and no one wanted to be the first to give their oral report. Always volunteer to go first. You get bonus points for going first and they have no one to compare you to. You can not look that bad and by the time everyone else finishes they all forgot how you stumbled over the pronunciation of some silly word. What? It works try it the next time.

We go for about a couple of miles (give or take) and I'm still doing better than I thought I would. We're going through city streets and I have not balked at making a left turn yet. I am feeling confident with my new group status. That is right Miss Antisocial is part of a biking group.

The person leading the group drops back to check on how everyone is doing and says to me..."Just ride at your own pace". Dude I am.

Then a long slow hill hits me. Those kind of hills just take all the wind out of my sails. They kill me. I keep looking up thinking I am going to do this. I shift down a gear, same thought I am going to do this, shift down, I am going to do this, shift down, I don't want to do this any more, shift down, no thought just blood throbbing in my head, shift down, keep pedaling and wonder if people ever stroke out while on a bike.

I do make it to the top of the saddest little incline ever. You see I called it a hill but in reality it was a slight rise over a stretch of road.

So I start to think at this point maybe I am not a beginner after all. Maybe I am three steps before beginner. I look at the Hubby and say I don't think I can do this. He says how about down this hill? Yeah I can go down just don't ask me to go up. Guess what happens when you go down? That's right you have to go up. I start shifting down again and think pffffftt. I get off the bike and start walking up.

We get to the top of the hill (yeah that one was a hill) and start discussing options with the leader guy who has dropped back for me. He says something like there are escape routes all along the route we're on. I am looking for a hatch get me out, now. We were five miles into a 15 mile ride I know I don't have that in me. I send Hubby on his way to catch up to the group. I turn off to go make the 5 mile return trip back to the car.

Funny thing was it was not that bad. I never worried about what could happen. I didn't think that I would not make it. I did think at one point in time I need to brake, I'm going pretty fast and the cars next to me are also. But other than that the return ride was actually enjoyable.

Is it wrong that now I want a road bike also? I am definitely set on being the SAG car operator if Hubby does want to any type of cross country ride. I don't want to be the person looking for an escape hatch five miles into a 100 mile ride.

I even managed to get my bike into the car after the ride by myself. Now aren't you proud of me? I know I was. Oh yeah and what is a failed biker/successful knitter to do with her waiting for the rest of the group to arrive time? You guessed it.

I knit on a sock in the car. I think it was the only reason D agreed to finish the ride was because I told him I would be fine I had knitting in the car.

What type of knitter am I?

People use many ways to define or identify themselves. Interests can narrow us down even further. A reader can be defined by what genre they read, mystery vs romance. Music preferences carve out other identities, country, rock pop, rap and reggae, to name a few. When D played the guitar the differences were electric/acoustic, with in acoustic there are classical vs folk. Now with his biking love the biggest divider I see is: road vs mountain. Road biking is what they do during the Tour de France. I'm still annoyed that his obsession has leaked into me. I am actually excited to see the Tour de France this year. I caught part of the Swiss tour the other day on TV and realized I had tuned in and stayed that way while he was not even in the house to request the channel hold.

In knitting there are subsets like any other grouping. Since it is my hobby/obsession I know more break downs of knitterly definition.

Yarns - acrylic vs natural or hand painted vs kettle dyed.

Tools - material make up - wood vs metal vs plastic vs anything else you can think of.

Technique - straight needles vs circulars, double pointed needles(DPN) vs magic loop, top down vs bottom up.

What you like to knit - socks, scarves, sweaters, mittens, cozies

Motivation - enjoy the process of knitting or the end result

Defining what type of knitter you are ranks up there with using your Starbucks order to define yourself. Grande, half caf, skim, light, cappicino vs Tall caramel latte. (Thank you "You've got mail" for that analogy.) Personally the way I like my coffee to have a hint of coffee flavor over the milk and sugar. Yeah I gave up sugar in my tea I will not sacrifice sugar in my coffee.

I am a top down, bamboo DPN wielding, wool sock knitting machine. I enjoy the process but love the results. I knit because I will have something to show for it in the end.

Hi my name is Yarnkettle, I'm a knitter. Just hand me some sticks and string and no one will get hurt.

That is part of the way I define myself.