Just Sit Back & Knit

Four Week Long Post Eight Weeks Overdue

I've been meaning to write this post for sometime, however, I'm still not very proficient at one-handed typing, and I generally only have one hand free when I'm in front of the computer. But, I'm going to try.

I'm pretty happy with the fact that I managed to start and complete five projects in the eleven weeks* since my daughter was born. Yes, two of those were washcloths, but hey, they count any way. And two were pairs of socks, which, if I counted per sock, ups my total to seven. But the project I'm most proud of is Junah's Easter top.

In late March I posted about wanting to recreate this outfit for Junah. I'm not so good at the sewing thing, but fortunately, my sister Jesse excels at it.

While I was at the fabric store buying the pattern for the pants, I spied some beautiful fabric that I thought would be perfect. However, since I was still messed up on postpartum hormones, I didn't buy the fabric but just wrote down what it was, thinking I would send Jesse in to get it and confirm that it was as perfect as I believed it to be. Mistake. She loved the fabric, and was able to see a skirt the fabric store has made out of it as a model, but there was none left. None of our local fabric stores had it in stock. I ended up ordering it from The Heart of Dixie in Alabama. Along with some coordinating fabric, for the heck of it, and some Elvis fabric, because my Nana loves Elvis and I'm hoping to make her a tote bag for her birthday (in July). She might get a kick out of it. Or she'll think it's too silly. We'll see.

For the top, the knitted part of the outfit, I purchased three balls of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino in a beautiful light green color. I was able to get the book for the top, Debbie Bliss' Baby Knits for Beginners through my library. The pattern is actually for a "Dress with Eyelets" calling for Wool Cotton (which has the same gauge as the Baby Cashmerino). Since I wanted the dress to look like a long shirt instead of pants I decided to shorten it. Knowing that math would be involved in that, and still being loopy from the hormones, I delayed casting on because I was worried about trying to figure out how to shorten it and convert it to an in the round pattern. Eventually I just went for it, figuring that where the pattern said "knit until piece measures so-many-inches" I would just reduce the called for number of inches. Not the best way, since the dress is knit from the bottom up I should have, I realized later, cast on a fewer number of stitches and done fewer decreases on the skirt portion. Oh well, another lesson learned.

It seemed like a couple weeks went by and, despite my best efforts, the dress didn't get any bigger. A round here, a round there, made no difference. I didn't think I would finish. About a week and a half before Easter I decided I really needed to get going and spent a lot of time knitting while my daughter napped on my lap. Things went well, and more quickly, as the number of stitches decreased as I reached the eyelet row and neared the armholes.

I worked the back first, and noticed, and corrected for, the yarnover for the buttonhole seemed one stitch too close to the edge. Instead of binding off at the shoulders I held the stitches on stitch holders to be grafted with the front stitches later. The front was a bit trickier since each shoulder strap had decreases on the armhole side and neckhole side and I was trying to get it to match the back which I had fudged a little in order that the entire shirt be the length I wanted. But, I persisted, and early in the Easter week, kitchenered the shoulder stitches. I then wove in all the ends--there were a lot since each side of the neckhole, on both the front and the back, is worked by itself. Once I had done all the nasty end weaving in work I picked up stitches for, and knit, the edging for the neck band. Feeling ever so accomplished, I held up the piece, complete except for the armhole edging, and smiled. And stopped smiling. The neckhole had about a six inch circumference for my daughter's fourteen and a haf inch head (at birth) to fit through.

In a panic I ripped back the neck edging and cursed my stupid efficiency. No way I was going to unpick all those woven in ends. In a brief moment of wisdom I put the thing away and went to bed. Tomorrow is a brighter day and all that.
The next morning I got out my sewing shears and hacked into the top after picking up a row of stitches on a US #1 DPN. Have I ever mentioned how useful I find my #1 double points? I use them often, mostly for picking up stitches after I've had to rip back, or for casting on for a toe up sock. They're great for these things. I think the fact that they're bamboo is crucial, since my metal pair would just slide right out. I usually keep at least two of the needles in my little knitting tools bag, along with my tiny scizzors, stitch holders and markers, tape measure, etc.
Anyway. I did a little math and some quick measurements on Junah, and figured out that if I left out the decreases on the armholes and just did the neckhole decreases, adding a few decreases to end up with the required number of stitches, the darn thing had a chance of going over her head. And you know, it worked. Just barely. I did have to gingerly ease the top over her ears.

A handpainted wooden button that cost me five dollars (since it came in a pack of ten or so buttons, but I just had to have it) and a purple ribbon, along with the super-cute pants super-busy Aunt Jesse stayed up late the night before Easter making, completed the ensemble. And I, of course, forgot to get good pictures of her in the outfit the day of, and so I dressed her up in it again a week (or three, I can't remember) later.

I did get this picture, however, of our sleeping girl starting out on her first Easter egg hunt, in her daddy's arms. In our family all of the kids line up inside after the (hundreds) of eggs are hidden and the youngest goes first.

And since Nana loves to see pictures of all the great-grands together on Easter, Junah was literally taken from my breast after cries of "Junah! Junah!" (think "Encore! Encore!") made me laugh and give her up for this photo. Of course, she needed a little help, hence Aunt Maddie, not a great-grand, just a grand, is in the photo too.

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As I finally finish this post I hear my daughter, who is fifteen weeks old today, waking up.

Inspiration for this outfit came from SouleMama, a blog I discovered around the time Junah was born. It is wonderful and maybe a large part of the reason my diningroom has turned into a sewing room recently.

A Few Finished Objects

I've got several posts (and pictures to go with them) I keep meaning to write, but somehow, I never get around to them. This isn't one of them. I'm writing this post clean up shop, so to speak. I've finished several objects in the past few months that I've not posted about, some I haven't taken pictures of, and none of these is going to get its own post at this point. So here goes...

Felted Balls from Knitting for Baby by Melanie Falick in Knitpicks Wool of the Andes. I made these at the beginning of the summer for a friend's babyshower. I put a kitten jingle-bell toy in one, a squeaker from a dog's toy in another and just stuffed the last one.

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I've made two more pairs of slippers from the Fiber Trend's Felt Clogs pattern. I really need to order the children's version of this pattern--the whole pattern is done in short rows so I don't feel confident trying to reduce the sizes.

Here is the pair I made for my mom for her birthday, pre-felting (I forgot post-felting picks):

Here is the pair I made for my brother for his birthday, post-felting (I forgot pre-felting picks):

my dainty size 8.5 - 9 foot shown for scale

I also made my mother-in-law a pair of slightly modified Basic Socks from Knit Socks! by Betsy McCarthy out of Cascade 220 Quatro in a pink blend. I didn't make the toes and heels contrasting and used every single bit of yarn. They were my first, and so far only, pair of socks knit from the cuff down. I knew I was cutting it close on the yarn quantity so I worked both socks simultaneously on different sets of needles, one from the inside of the ball and one from the outside. It was still such a stress inducing experience that I much prefer the toe up patterns. Alas, I did most of the knitting in the car on the way to and from Oakland that I never took a single picture.

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A couple of weeks ago, on a Friday night, one of my husband's good friends suggested that I A) Abandon the idea of having the baby while squatting behind the couch (he's worried about us having a homebirth) and B) make him a hat for his birthday (which was that Sunday). He didn't think it was likely that I would take him up on either suggestion. So I whipped up this Hot Head Hat from Stitch N Bitch with my in the round modifications in exactly two hours. Cast-on began at 12:21 PM on Saturday afternoon and finishing ended at 2:21 PM. The yarn is Noro Iro held single strand throughout. I think I cast on for the largest size but didn't swatch or check my gauge (just used my husband's head a few times to check the length before beginning to decrease).

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And finally, a failure and a learning experience all in one. Remember the Misti Alpaca Chunky scarf I was working on? Well, I finished it (just the one skein) and took some crappy pictures of it before (on the left) and during blocking (on the right), and loved it. Until I decided to wear it to work. I put it on and immediate itchiness attacked my neck. I'm not kidding this stuff is brutal. Is it all alpaca? Don't try to tell me it isn't, I think I'm scared off of Alpaca (although maybe I would try felting it) for quite awhile. It will be frogged. Someday.

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And finally, a knitting project that isn't one of mine. Well, it is now, it was a gift made for my little one-in-waiting by Sara (fletchersmama). These are from one of Little Turtle Knit's wool soaker patterns and they are so darn cute! I love them. Thanks Sara!

oops I did it again

So, maybe I am just afraid to start a sweater for myself?  I bought some Crystal Palace Merino Frappe on sale awhile back thinking it would be perfect for the sweater I want to make from weekend knitting:

This is the same sweater I bought Berroco Foliage for over a year ago and decided it wouldn't work.
Now, this won't work.  It is acctually the wrong gauge and I has taken my a few months to put two and two together!

I really love the color and feel of this Frappe, it's called Cinnamon, I don't want to waste it.  I found another sweater I have looked at before that calls for Frappe, but of coarse I don't have enough.  Uhg.

Whats a girl to do.

Two months later and I am still searching for a pattern for this yarn.  I think I want to make some type of openwork wrap, but have not found the perfect fit.  I have been working some on coming up with my own pattern, no luck so far.

On to other more promising things.........

I Love Three Day Weekends

I had a lovely, busy weekend. Saturday afternoon Sara (aka fletchersmama) hosted a great barbecue at her ever-so-cute house (that has the most wonderful knitting/craft room). We had a lot of fun despite the fact some horses tried to eat me and several small children. Don't worry, we're all safe. My husband, brother and dad laughed at my frantic gathering of children and cries of, "Move, move! Drop the frogs! The horses are coming!" but also helped to calm said horses and kept them otherwise occupied as I and several teary eyed (they wanted to continue gathering frogs from the pond) youngsters slipped out the gate. Then everyone including the kids laughed at me as I shook and said, "Dad, they really were going to get us weren't they? They were scary, right?" And I even ate a hot dog which is generally not on my list of acceptable foods.

Sock Update:
In knitting news, the socks are complete! Or they were. Here they are after I spent the time it takes to watch six movies finishing them:

And these feet have never been happier:

Jason wore the socks from the time I handed them over on Sunday until he took his shower Monday morning. He struggled a bit getting one of the socks off over his heel and ripped right through the bound off edge. I didn't have the stomach to snap a picture of the unravelling upper edge, so no picture of the tragedy yet. I just can't believe that I have more work to do on these things!

Weekend Cast-Ons:
I've finally ordered the Cash Iroha #8 for the Hourglass Sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. As reported previously, I bought one skein of the beautiful yarn at my local yarn shop a couple of weeks ago, and this weekend finally allowed myself to begin swatching (I made myself wait until the socks were finished--this swatch was worked during the sixteen hours in which they were finished). Since this sweater is knit in the round, I cast on for a sleeve as my swatch. I also wanted to see how the hem worked and to decide whether or not to knit the part that gets turned under on smaller needles (yes). This yarn is beautiful, soft and wonderful to work with. Love it. Here's what I've got so far:

In less promising starts, I worked on the Craftster Circular Shrug (pattern available in pdf form at Peony Knits) that I thought I wanted to make for myself. And I still may, however, I bought the wrong yarn. I bought Frog Tree Sportweight Alpaca (color 000) which is a beautiful, luscious, soft, amazing yarn. But. It does not want to be a Circular Shrug. It has told me so. It tried to tell me while I swatched different patterns for the center section. It tried to tell me again as I swatched for the seed stitch I settled on. And, finally, it began screaming at me as I stubbornly worked nearly six inches of ribbing on the actual shrug. What? You didn't think yarn could talk? Then you haven't read Maggie Righetti's Sweater Design in Plain English (or maybe she talks about it in Knitting in Plain English). Yarn WILL tell you what it wants to be, or at least what it absolutely DOESN'T want to be. You just have to listen. Well, I'm listening. And hoping my local yarn store will let me exchange the six balls of unused yarn for something else**. And this, well, this will be FROGGED (hmmm...is there something in the name? Frog Tree?):

The only other knitting I did this weekend was on a new dishcloth; it's nearly complete but I haven't taken any pictures yet. I am making it from Sugar 'N Cream (I think, no ball band on it--all the 100% cotton yarn I have was purchased years ago) in a pale yellow and it's in my new favorite stitch--seed stitch. A really good one for a dishcloth too, I think.

A word about dishcloths. I don't have a dishwasher. A mechanical one anyway. What I do have is my own two hands. I hadn't made myself knitted dishcloths in years, until the recent green one (and another more recent green one that is so similar to the first I never posted about it). I can't believe how different it is using these as compared to store bought dishcloths. Somehow, I forgot what it was like. Now I know. Heaven. Dishwashing heaven. If you have to do dishes by hand and have never had a knitted dishcloth you are missing out. Seriously. And I recommend using kind of large needles for the yarn (US #9 or #10 in my case). The resulting fabric is great for washing dishes and dries quickly if you wring it out and stretch it a little. Trust me, they are worth it. Wow, I'm passionate about dishcloths! Go figure.

I also managed to put my garden in this weekend and was going to blog about it in this post, but as this post seems long enough already, I'll save that for another one.

** Normally I would just add this yarn to my stash, but seeing as how I I've already spent my entire yarn budget for this month (and next) and have a baby shower gift to make, I'll make the switch. I'll keep two balls of the Frog Tree--the one I started with and the one Ted got a hold of and carried around in his stinky dogbreath mouth.

Cotton Tubey

Remember my Unfinished Business? That "monstrous, cotton, HEAVY (as Nana pointed out) project" of the "six-million ends?"

Well it's been gifted so I can reveal more about it...

I made a Tubey. My first sweater ever! I wish I felt great, happy and ecstatic about this, uh, accomplishment. However, you may notice that the title says "Cotton" Tubey. And I'm sure there is a more accomplished knitter out there that chuckled at my title and doesn't even have to read this post to know the pitfalls of knitting a Cotton Tubey. In my defense I'll say again, first sweater! And to add to my defense I'll tell you that this was a birthday gift for my younger sister who just turned EIGHTEEN and we live where it is soon going to be hot enough that sweaters won't even be part of the local vocabulary for a few months. I'm going to have to call my sister and wake her up at, say, three in the morning when it MIGHT be cool enough for a cotton sweater and say, "Hey put your sweater on -- you've got a whole five minutes until it starts heating up again." So why a sweater at all then? Yeah, yeah, anyways.

It's not 100% cotton. I used Knit Pick's Main Line (75% cotton, 25% merino wool) hoping that the wool would add the bit of stretch and softness I needed for this sweater to work out. The softness--got that. The stretch? Not so much.

It's a pretty sweater. Beautiful even. Beautiful, but with issues. Like the bunching at the back of the armpits. Like the fact that if my sister leans forward (even a little) the top flops away from her (I did offer to make the neck smaller but she said it's fine, she wouldn't wear it without a shirt/tanktop underneath it anyway--so at least I'm not exposing her to the world:) The sleeves have shortened up a whole lot even though I thought I made them a little extra long.

So, you want to see it?

Here it is, wrapped in tissue paper since it would not dry &
I had to give it away while it was still slightly damp:

And here is one arm as it was getting passed
around the party after Maddie opened it:

And here is a picture taken just after Maddie opened it...
doesn't really show the sweater any better than the other
pictures but I had to show it. Check Nana out!

And slightly (ever so slightly) better...

And that's all you get. I didn't take more pictures while I was making it because I wasn't blogging about it because it was a surprise. I forgot to take pictures of it before I gave it away (because I just wanted to be done with it!). I actually went to my parents house this weekend to take pictures of it. But I forgot the battery to my camera was charging at home. Perhaps another day.

So this is my first sweater attempt but I'm not so happy with it. I feel ready to make another sweater. One for me. I bought Last Minute Knitted Gifts for the Hourglass Sweater. I want to make that sweater. I want to make it out of Noro Cash Iroha #8. So pretty. So expensive (even at Wool Needle Work's great prices. According to Purl's website(yarn store owned by the book's author) many people have reported running out of yarn when using the amount listed in the book. I'll need about thirteen skeins to feel comfortable starting. Maybe fourteen. If you remember way back to my discussion of my preparation problem I have to be over prepared. That means I buy twice as much yarn for a small project. That's how much I don't want to run out. And for big projects, well, a third maybe? A quarter? I like having my stash grow and would much rather need to figure out what to do with three extra skeins of yarn than what to do about dye lots (yeah, I've heard about that whole switching back and forth every few rounds thing--exactly why I over purchase yarn). I've decided that this time around I will stick to the directions--get the right yarn and swatch, swatch, swatch until I get the gauge right. And I have plenty of time to work on this sweater--the weather won't permit me to wear it comfortably until October or November.

My Husband Just Doesn't Get It

It's not his fault. I don't blame him one bit. It is possible that no non-knitter, or at least no non-crafter, would get it. Last night when I showed him my SKP in progress, the one with all the cotton/wool blend yarn (that I picked despite that nagging part of my brain that told me it wasn't a good idea to substitute in a cotton yarn...) and all the ends that need to be woven in, and all the places where I have woven in the yarn and it's not staying woven in properly but popping through the rightside and generally making bumpy, ugly stitches, you know, that one? I showed it to him and said, "Don't tell me it will be fine, just look at this." And he looked and he said, "It will be fine. It's homemade."

Yes, BUT! I know what he means. It's homemade with love and attention and the best of intentions and no one should expect it to be perfect and the recipient will love it anyway. Okay, I get that. BUT. I want it to be known for being "Hand-Knit" not "Home-Made." This isn't kindergarten where everything is lovely because it's finger-painted with gusto. A better comparison, in my mind, is home-cooked food. What do you hear about home-cookin'? That it's great, it's wonderful, it's better than a restaurant, it's better than the freezer aisle offerings at the grocery store. No one (except my husband) ever says it's home-cookin', made with love, doesn't matter that it doesn't taste that good. You know? I'm going for great home-cookin' here! I don't want my quaint, finger-painted offering to be adored because I tried so hard!

So, two lessons learned the hard way here...DON'T use cotton yarn (even when it's 25% merino wool) for your first major project unless the pattern calls for it. If you don't heed lesson one at least remember lesson two, defy the pattern and make sure your yarn ends end up in place that doesn't matter, rather than the part of the piece that people will notice first!

Oh, and one more thing? Let your loved one's know that you are working on a hand-knit project, not a home-made project. They might not know the difference, but you will.

A Knitting Saga...part I

I had a knitting epiphany this past weekend and it only cost me $85.32. 

I am no longer a timid, fearful, insecure knitter who only likes to knit what feels safe and easy (hats, scarves, some more scarves and a washcloth or two). And I have my two blogging, knitting gurus to thank, in part for this wonderful evolution that is taking place in me.

Let me tell you a little story.  I knit as meditation, relaxation and haven't ever wanted to think too hard while sitting with my yarn and needles.  I also had this mental block that anything other that learning how to knit and purl was beyond me, too complicated and would take the fun out of the process.  Many months ago, though, I decided I wanted to knit and felt myself a purse.  I thought and planned and perused many a skein, hank and ball of yarn to find the perfect fit, something fun, yet practical...something stylish and funky, yet timeless...the perfect yarn.  I also sought out every purse pattern possible, because I would settle for nothing less than the grooviest, though usable style.  Here's what happened...I bought no yarn, found no pattern and felt anxious every time I considered investing in "THE PURSE".  It began to feel as if this project was the end all, be all and I was too afraid  I would screw it up or buy some expensive yarn that I hated and make a lumpy, poorly shaped bag that would gather dog hair and dust on the floor of my closet.

All the while I have been reading this blog daily, unable to spend the time and energy participating with my own posts, because all of my spare energy was focused on "THE PURSE"...the creation that would define me as a knitter and maybe as a person!  What I realized as I read your stories was that you have to take a leap....a leap of faith that the yarn will work out (or not), that the pattern will turn out (or not), that there is always another project (and I could just buy a damn purse).

I have enjoyed reading about your struggles and tribulations with the project you have embarked on.  Barbara with your fearlessness in the face of frogging and Sara with your determination to make the best out of any mistake.  You both have such creativity, fortitude and passion about your knitting and your lives; it is wonderful to get to know you both in this new way.

I found my yarn (Noro Kureyon # 164) and made my own pattern...with help from the both of you.  For the first time I knitted a swatch and measured my gauge (though I was semi-forced, I thank you much for the encouragement and insistence that it was the best way to go...you were right and now I have a cute little felted dollhouse rug).  I knitted and I frogged and knitted and frogged again, then I knitted in the round like crazy and couldn't seem to get enough...my bag went everywhere with me and as it striped and grew, I doubted that it was what I wanted and thought maybe it was not going to work and as it grew more, I fell in love with the way the colors changed subtly, but the stripes appeared boldly and distinctly.  I fashioned the strap instinctively, deciding to throw caution to the wind and go for it, without measuring a thing.  I wove in the edges and embarked on my felting.

"THE PURSE"  is still in process...it needs some more felting, the shape is not quite what I planned on and the strap is too long.  I want to line it and add a zipper or some other closure before it will be done and ready for official use.  So it isn't perfect or the ultimate, but I absolutely love it and decided to go ahead and try it out, unofficially this past week.  I have received many compliments and feel happy with my big old bag over my shoulder. 

I walked into the yarn store (where I bought the #164 because there was a hat knitted in the same yarn and I loved the colors, browns, ochre, teal and green...very earthy) this past weekend with my purse by my side and felt excited and proud and eager to begin my next project, eager to enhance my skill and try new things...play with new yarns, learn intarsia and make a Clapotnik (I know it is really a clapotis).  I feel freed from my anxiety and my worry about wasting money on something that may not turn out...not wanting put in the effort when the return may disappoint. 

For the first time I walked into the yarn store and didn't feel overwhelmed or intimidated, frozen by the number of choices and insecure about my KQ (think IQ, except with knitting). Instead I felt excited about the possibilities that lay before me...I felt the potential that exists in each hank and skein and I picked up many of them, bought quite a few and have begun my very own stash!  I have some projects in mind for some of the yarn and nothing in mind for the others.  I am excited and relieved and much poorer than I was a few days ago...I am on a journey with needles and will weave my story as I go.

I think I am ready

To grow up as a knitter!  I may just put away that lazy knitter label and get serious (well, a little bit).

I started a guitar shaped pillow for Fletch the other day (from New Knits on the Block - full of unusual and pure fun stuff for kids), it's to be purple, green and pink - Real Punk Rock!  So, along I go and get about halfway up the back of the guitar and it's looking a bit smaller than I expected.  Strange.  That little girl in the picture looks at least as tall as Fletch if not a bit taller, there is no way her guitar is this small.  What's wrong here?  Is the picture misleading?  Is the pattern wrong? 
This is how far I will go to avoid the extra work I need to do.  This is bad.
Finally I pull out my handy metal gauge-swatch-checker.  OOOOOOOOh.  OK.  Well forget that, Fletcher will have a smaller guitar!  He won't know.  (I knit about six more rows)  It's bugging me.  Check the gauge again.  Yes, for sure where the guage should be 18 sts = 4 inches I've got at least 22 or 23!  So, Fletch won't know, but I will.  Every time I look at that pillow, I will know it should have, and could have been just a bit bigger (and a bit better).
So I'm gonna do it, I'm gonna face that FROGAPHOBIA head on and get this damn pillow done right!

Moving on in this painful process, my tea cozy has suffered the same fate.  The pattern calls for two skeins of Noro Keyreon, I ran out well before the end of the pattern.  It took me a good week to check the gauge there.  I just wanted to felt that cozy and warm up my tea!!!!!!!  I started frogging it last night.  It wasn't too painful.  With every wrap around my center-pull ball, and every rip of another row I pictured a tea cozy that FITS.

So now instead of knitting actual projects I have at least four gauge swatches (socks, diaper cover, guitar) on needles and three more(tea cozy, basket, scarf) I need to work on!  It's frustrating, but  it's got to be done.

I do have good/semi good news:

Fletch loves his slippers!
We have to put them up when he's not wearing them, Turbo loves them too, and will chew on them if given the chance!  The reason these beauties are only semi good news is that I, or rather the old me - lazy me, followed directions for the small slippers, instead of the medium!  I guess I am in denial about Fletch's growth.  So I had to stop felting early, to make them fit and they are not as tight as I would have liked, you can still really see the stitches.

Another Lesson Learned the HardWay I am happy with:

So, I knit another bowl of my own design.  I wanted to make a big one, and while knitting I realized I might run out of the yarn I was using, so I started to decrease.  I think I decrease too fast, because my "bowl" was flat.  Not only flat, but it had RUFFLES.  This being pre-frogging, I went ahead and felted to see what might happen.  It came out flat.  Surprise, surprise!  I was disappointed.  I tried forming it over a bowl, that did not work.  I was ready to cut it up for felted fabric, Fletch and I were playing around with it when I started turning those ruffles into pleats!  Funny, cause I can't stand pleats.  I used to wear pleated pants in grade school and swore off all pleats long ago.  WELL, hello pleats, you've saved my bowl:
   
I pinned it to dry.

inside drying with Fletcher's slippers.  Now that it's dry I am sewing those fabulous pleats!  I will post a picture when done.

Barb,
Can't wait to see you pictures from your trip, whenever your computer helps you out in that department.  Your Silk Garden Scaf is beautiful!

Public Apology & Other Things

Public Apology
I just want to publicly apologize for claiming that computers hate me. Apparently, they don't. Itty-bity 5 port 10Base-T Hubs on the other hand.... Well, they cause problems. Week long problems that a person with an Associates Degree in Computer Network Administration (for cryin' outloud!) should be able to figure out. In my defense, I think we had other issues going on also and I got those straightened out along with (finally!) figuring out the real problem. So, Computers, now that I've fessed up won't you all help me out with my little "Image Not Available" problem? Hmmm?? Please? Or maybe you think I should be able to take care of that one on my own too, huh?

Scarfy Progress (warning! bad-cellphone pictures ahead!)
My "My Computer Sucks But At Least I Can Knit Scarf"

is coming along well (sorry, Computers, about the name, whoops!) I've used up one whole skein/hank/ball of Noro Silk Garden. I actually really like this yarn--the colors I mean. I guess it just wasn't meant to be for my Clapotis (SKP #1) but I like it for this scarf. Too bad I've already decided that this will be a gift...now that I'm liking it so much I want to keep it...but those are always the best gifts, right? The ones you want for yourself. I'm going to send it to Aunt Michele...she's so teeny though and this scarf is kind of wide.... My one problem is how to handle the Noro striping. I attached my second ball so the color pattern will be the same as the first ball, but that means that the two scarf ends won't match. Does that matter? I'm thinking I will use all or part of a third ball anyway, should I reverse that one? I'll post pictures soon (hopefully) and maybe that will illustrate my problem more clearly, but until then...

New Secret Knitting Project!
Yup, yup I'm planning a new one. The yarn should arrive via UPS today (along with Fletchersmama's set of Denise needles...Yippee, we'll all be in the Interchangeable Club!) This SKP is secret out of necessity, someone who may read this blog will hopefully be getting a this SKP as a gift (keep your fingers crossed that this SKP goes better than my last one!). But it may stay a total SKP for fun....

Sockies!
Fletchersmama, how are the socks going? I wanted to let you know that The Knitting Fiend has great patterns & instructions for socks--they actually calculate different sizes (I'm using the Sockulator II for my dad's socks--they're knit toe-up and have short row heels!! Short Rows! Love!).

Yup and about those short row heels? Well, I worked the short row decreases for the first heel last night. Except I was also watching Law & Order SVU and mistakenly added a stitch somewhere and so my short rows weren't working out so well. So tonight I'll have to FROG back to where I started them and pay more attention this time.

One thing about knitting toe-up socks (at least those that use the "backward loop" cast-on) is that I can't cast-on the way the pattern says to. Even with the great instructions by Denise Powell (that I read after casting on the 6th time & realizing that no, I wasn't going to suddenly get it!) I still can't manage to cast-on properly. My problem is this...I'm supposed to cast-on 12 stitches in the backward-loop method (all on one needle)...that I can do. Then I'm supposed to knit across (got it) and twist the tail over and behind (umm...okay) turn the needle upside down so the bottoms (where the loops are) of the stitches are sticking up (that's easy) and then pick up 6 stitches/loops on each of two more needles. This is where I run into problems...I can only ever find 11 of the 12 loops. No matter what. So after many more agonizing cast-ons I finally decided to cast on 13, (so I could find 12 loops later) and then not increase one of the stitches on the first row of the first needle. Does this make sense? Well, maybe that's part of my problem too!

Hot Head Hat in the Round, How to Avoid Making the Dreaded I-Cord & More

I actually started a post a while ago about making the Stitch N Bitch Hot Head Hat in the round but hadn't gotten around to finishing it. Now that FletchersMama posted our first ever comment (yipee!) asking about it, here goes.

Drum roll please...Hot Head Hat in the Round
First off, I bought some new sixteen inch Crystal Palace circular needles (#10.5 & #11) because I've been making so many hats lately that, even though I have the wonderful Denise Interchangeable Knitting Needles, I decided having a couple sets of dedicated hat needles was worth the expense (and I love, love, love knitting with Crystal Palace needles!). Anyway, I have perused a lot of hat patterns and those knit in the round seem to always call for sixteen inch needles, which of course, makes sense because you want a needle that is slightly smaller in diameter than the diameter of the finished product. In addition, you'll need a set of dpns in the same size (or close to it, I used 10.5 circ & 10 dpns) (unless you want to use two circs instead, in which case, have fun with that! you're on your own there). As you can see in the pictures of my post about Steven's hat, I used four of the five dpns that come in a Crystal Palace set.

So, basically follow the pattern with the exception that you need to join in a circle after you cast on. Make the majority of the hat as described in the pattern (k2, p2 ribbing around and around and around...). When you get to the decrease rows transfer to your dpns after the first or second decrease row. Even if you've never transfered to dpns from a circ (and if you're smarter than I am) you might realize that the easiest way to transfer to dpns is to just work a prescribed round with one dpn after the other acting as your working needle, rather than with the other end of the circ (if on the other hand, you're like me, you might not think of that until after you painstakingly transfer each little stitch to a dpn in between working rounds.)

Shaping the Crown:
The "Shape the Crown" section of the pattern is where the difference is between flat and in the round knitting. I didn't do this properly with Steven's hat so the very center of the crown of his hat looks stockinette stiched rather than ribbed (but I figure the guys I am making hats for are so tall no one will see the top but everyone would see a messy side seam!). I forgot to use double-reverse math* (my term) on the "flat" directions to make them "in the round" directions (I used "single-reverse math" by accident instead). So here goes, this should work...

Knit the first row as instructed (k2tog, p2). On the second row, however, you need to reverse the knits and purls twice so you'll k1, p2tog across (rather than k2tog, p1). For row three just follow the pattern (k1, p1 across). Row four is the tricky one because the directions in the book for row four are exactly the same as for row three which shouldn't work for flat knitting (that row has always bothered me and I've never done it as prescribed). So I would do round four exactly as the book describes it because to my mind it is already reversed. Make sense? I thought not. Rows five and six I've never liked either because they would create a garter stitch in flat knitting. So five and six in the round would be (k2tog, p2tog) around. Yipee skippy, you're done! Almost...

Finishing:
Break the yarn off and with a tapestry needle draw the remaining stitches off the dpns and pull tightly to close the hole and weave in end (blah, blah, blah we know all this right?)
Then look back at the end where you first started. If you knit like I do (or maybe this just happens to anyone knitting in the round) you'll have a one stitch gap in the first round where you joined. Just weave your cast on tail through it to close it. Presto! A lot easier than mattress-stitching (sixteen times because you (I) can never get it right the first time!) an entire seam closed!

And now, in the second half of our regularly scheduled program, we'll move on to a segment I like to call...

How to Avoid Making the Dreaded I-Cord
No, I have never made an I-Cord. I started to once...cast-on 4 stitches okay, slide to other end of dpn, okay, pull
yarn across blah, blah, blah, okayokayokay...I managed about 4 rows before I knew that I was crazy enough without trying to finish the damn I-cord.

Fortunately for me, the pattern (Stay-On Baby Booties from Knitting for Baby by Melanie Falick and Kristin Nicholas--I love this book!) I was working from provided options other than the dreaded I-Cord (I'm guessing Melanie and Kristin know how some people feel about I-Cords).

How to avoid making an I-Cord (by Barbara, adapted (in part) from the above mentioned pattern):

• have someone else make it for you (good luck there!)
• Cast on six-gazillion stitches then bind them all off (what I like to call the Magic-Tie-No-I-Cord-Cord). This is the method I used for the bootie ties (I cast on 100 sts & then bound them off). The ties were a lot smoother than the bumpy I-Cord I never finished. The problem with this method is, if you need a big cord (like a purse handle anyone??) you would practically have to make a small scarf, especially if you're planning on felting.
• Crochet. Yes, I said it, crochet. If you are going to felt it no one will know the difference! Chain that gazillion stitches then do a few single/half-double/double or triple crochet rows and you're done!
• make something called a Monk's Cord that I read about in Knitting in Plain English that requires three times the amount of yarn as the length of whatever you want to make, a pencil (or a hand held egg beater), a book and a doorknob. This one I can't help you with. I read the instructions. They require you to walk back and forth across a room three times. I kept expecting to read something about a cauldron or bats or lizard tongues. And try as I might I could not grasp the pencil/book/doorknob contraption that was supposed to make the whole cord magically appear once you get the torque right.
• and finally, knit things that don't require I-Cords (this is the plan I'm following).

And finally, in closing, since another SKP has met the same fate as mine...I'll reveal the nature of my SKP: It's a SCARF...it's a WRAP...IT'S A CLAPOTIS! (clap-o-tee) by Kate Gilbert. This pattern won the Knitter's Review 2005 Design of the Year Award (even though it was published in 2004) because EVERYONE in the knitting/blogging world made/ismaking/wantstomake one (with some exceptions, of course). With my recent addiction to all things knit I kept tripping over this pattern (so to speak) when reading knit blogs. So I had to try it myself. Poor, poor Clapotis...perhaps I'll try to make another one someday...