All work and no play

I have to be away. I have a work event, another work-related event, and some company. It won't be ALL work and no play, but I just can't play in this park for a little bit.

There will be some knitting though, if the trains and buses are chilly enough in this heat. I'm back to being car free. I am not excited about car shopping.

But is it bad that I bought little teensy bit of yarn in the town where the car died? After all, I will be taking public transport for awhile, and public transport means good knitting!

Back to the blog in a week or so!

Petit Pacquet

Such a lovely phrase - petit pacquet - a gift from my fine Knitty SP7 secret pal.


Beautiful chocolate. Will be holding off on this until Monday, by which time I'll be in some desperate need.


From New Zealand, Merino & Fur - some NZ possum! The yarn is amazingly soft. This will need to become something warm and snuggly.

Colourmart Cashmere - and I'm having trouble loading the photo of yarn beauty. This was a grey day, so until repairs, imagine what a wonderful teal the kingfisher cashmere is - because it is. This will become a lovely knitted accent - scarf, lace, something. Knitters with a mission may pooh-pooh the scarf, but I WEAR them. It is a signature accessory and a necessary indulgence, in my mind. (More on that another day.)


Little cinnamon sweeties from Greece. There were five, but one dodged the camera and hid in my mouth.


This is a wonderful set of indulgences. What a thoughtful and wonderful secret pal. My goodness!

What's in the knitting bag?

Still alternating socks in the little sock bag:

Big knitting bag is sharing its knitting storage territory with a big ceramic bowl in my dining room/studio/storage room. This sweater is hanging out in the bowl and I've been making some fair but slow progress on it.

The brown is creating a slip stitch dash that alternates with dashes of brown garter stitch. The multi alternates in longer stripes.

This is the high contrast photo of the side-ways knit slip-stitch sweater.

I was drawn to a garment I'd seen which had a less dramatic contrast than the photo. I'm liking the fabric. It's heavy on the garter ridge, but there's that little bit of something. Bought the yarn without a clue as to whether I'd find the pattern or have the right amount. I did find. I might have enough. We'll see how it goes!

What about that mistake?

There's the s-curve mistake on the cable.
My niece was right. I'll let it go.

Seed stitch swatch for a sweater

Actually, it's a double seed stitch - or double moss.

Working back towards making myself a sort of traditional aran knit with the blue wool pictured here. May actually use the vintage Brunswick cardigan pictured here.


Just want to find the Vogue Knitting issue(s) which had varied approaches to knitting selvages. I don't mind flat knitting, but I'm not much interested in making seams happen where the bumps and lumps of the aran textures aren't accounted for and prepared for.

That was a lousy sentence, but I'll be clearer another day.

Oops.

Here I finished the huge fuzzy feet, all delightfully pink and maroon, and I went and sealed up the envelope Friday before I had a chance to take a photo.

They weren't that glamorous, but it's not on that account that I won't open up the envelope. I'm just not keen on looking for more tape.

Meanwhile, I will upgrade my sock count. They count, even if they were fast. And wow, were they fast. That's a curious thing about knitting in the summer. Done is good. Just not in the mood for lots of detail.

You know, some time I'm going to have to take back the knitting reins. I used to cable a fair bit. I have two sweaters with varied sizes of cables upon them. One of them I wore even past the comical "why did I make the sweater out of THIS" point. That one is now officially destined for a new life. I'll get around to that story one of these days.

Oh, Gracie, look at the time! I have to go.

Big Hit, Little Mistakes, and Huge Feet

Item One:
The niece hat was a big hit. Imagine a huge pre-teen smile and multiple sets of huggy thank yous. She wore it the next day and the day after that, taking it off only when it got to be too, too hot.

Item Two:
I seem to be talking too much when I knit and visit. I found some interesting sets of mistakes in my socks. In the first Hedera sock I did something odd with picking up stitches, so the nice ridged line is a bit bumpy. I'm over it. It's in the heel. In the finished Jaywalkers, I neglected to read the part about slipping a stitch along the gusset, so I didn't do it on the first. On the second sock, upon discovery of my powers of selective reading, I experimented. I tried some with, I tried some without. Interesting. Didn't care.

And now I discovered, in the Nancy Bush Rib and Cable sock I'm doing, that I twisted a cable the wrong way. My niece, bless her, said no one would see it down there. She also said it looked cool. I did not rip back.

Item Three:
I needed a quick knit on large needles. I'm also desperate to whittle down some of that funny pink ombre, from which I made a knitted and stuffed glove for the knitablog. I'm making Fuzzy Feet for a friend who has been having a rough time. She also has a cold house, when it's not now and hot everywhere in the northern hemisphere. Boy that's fast. I started late last night. This morning I had the heel turned and the gusset about done before I ran out of that half of the hank.

I'd wound up the hank into two balls, using one and some of the second for the glove. This yarn came in one of those floppy skeins / loose hanks with a skein wrapper around the middle, and curiously it winds up into two separate balls of equal size. Wonder if that was for the convenience of the producer or for the knitter. It would certainly make it easier to mix up the striping/pooling that way, that is, IF I were actually worried about that with this yarn. It would be ideal for sock knitting. Look ma, no scale, no guessing.

I'll be winding up the next skein / hank this evening and womp along on the fuzzy feet. She has large feet. She hates pink - this is something that goes back to her high school days. I hope she'll laugh. If she really hates pink fuzzy feet, her daughter with even larger feet will get them.

They'll be doing the shrinking. I'd told her about the possibility. I may have hinted at the pink.

Those fuzzy feet are huge.

Time to drink some water. Everyone stay cool! (Eek. Sounds like a note in a high school yearbook.)

Cambio, for a Change

I haven't forgotten about this sweater. I have resumed beading. This is, however, a now & again knit.

I have to be very deliberate and knit at my desk, ideally early in the day while there is full daylight streaming in. Clearly it was getting too late in the day for decent photos or good beading, here.



I have a bit more beading to prepare before I can cast for sleeves which should look like this peplum.

Summer time blogging and knitting

Summer brings an odd assortment of knitting whims and a lot less computer time. Both are definably Good Things, Martha. Yesterday I dumped a bunch of photos on le blog, planning to come back and identify properly later. At the time there WAS no time for scrapbooking. I had to go knit and have a margarita.

Friday's edits to the thumbnails (click on through)include labels and some forms of sentences. First up is the yarn art: beautiful seasilk from my kind knitty sp7 secret pal. I think she worried about this package arriving and suiting. It is JUST BEAUTIFUL, I gush again.
  

I started a hat for my niece, who had brought with her a great orange bag when she last visited. When I learned that this was the new fav color, I pulled out a lone hank of sale mercerized cotton. She thought a hat would be fine.
  

I moved along quite nicely on that hat and finished it within days.

  

I did finish and block the Steel Penny amalgamated sweater. I took a tacky mirror shot, but the light makes the abdomen unflatteringly poochier than I care to view it. It may BE that poochy, but I prefer to live in denial. (I'll take another walk tonight, in an effort to give some reality to that fantasy life.) Now I just need the right weather for the sweater. Just warm enough but not too warm. There is some wool in that sweater.

  

I also finished the jaywalkers. At last. Won't block them, as they're for wearing and not for gifting. I'm ready for more pattern experiments. Can't say I want to knit that pattern over and over. Will know more once I've seen how the sock wears.
Still, I was tickled by the oohs and ahs the socks in progress attracted. It IS a nice looking knit.
  

Did I mention that when I was on a road trip I took care to pick up a little Ben Franklin cotton for "just-in-case" knitting. This, too, was a good thing. It was just the knitting I needed when we took breaks from helping a family member pack.

  

Meanwhile, Amidst the Towering Textiles . . .

There has been sewing and knitting and not much blogging or photography. I'll be taking the camera home for a few days. We'll see what is documentable.

Tonight's a night for finishing. I've finished knitting the second jaywalker, but I need to graft the toe. I still haven't woven in the ends of Steel Penny, the combo-sweater, nor have I blocked it. I have two pairs of twill trousers that are long overdue for a machine hem. Yes, I've worn them trailing on the ground, rolled up at the waist, or temporarily safety pinned. Before the condition of the hem worsens, I must prove myself capable of taking care of my wardrobe. Hem, I say. And when I was about to wash and put away my peace fleece sweater, I found a few ends I'd neglected to weave in.

I had needed to get some things tackled and cleared before I had surface space for drying sweaters. And of course, once I had all that space, I really needed to sew. I have finished sewing a pair of pants that I started last summer. I made myself a summer skirt, all marbley polka dots. I even knit up a couple dish cloths, I did, while I did some traveling amongst the family. (Another reason why there are no photos. I'm a great one for NOT taking cameras on roadtrips.) Started two sweaters, but I'm having a debate, naturally, about one of them. Don't want to frog if I'm not sure.

Sounds like a good night for some finishing. Maybe I'll finish up the last of the wheatberry chili I pulled from the freezer. No cooking, just me and the needles.

Greens that aren't

There's a paradox. Two greens that aren't green. One is a delectable deep brown indulgence of Green & Blacks dark chocolate with orange and spice. The other is an AbsBloomiNutely BeYooTiful hank of Handmaiden Sea Silk. Not your average bit of sea greenery, that.

I took a pathetic picture because I had the camera in the same place as the package from my wonderful knitty sp7 pal - and all of this was in the same location as the computer - and I was going to have to have a bit of that chocolate or Know the Reason Why.



The color in this photo, as it appears on my screen, looks completely wrong. Too much colorific camera enhancement. It's beautifully subtle and rich, the real thing. Greys and silvers and plums and lavenders. I'll take a better photo at home, but this was the moment to be spontaneous, so here we are.

I feel delightfully indulged. What a treasure. And my pal mentioned that it smelled like the beach. She's right. Intriguing. What a fine mailbox find!

Proof I'm a Peasant

I ate radishes for breakfast this morning.

(That's it. Can't post more. Must finish a paper of sorts.)

Some Weekend Knitting

I live excitement. Here are some photos of a weekend of Steel Penny. They are small for ease of loading, but you should be able to click through for a clearer view.


Maybe it's because I was focused a bit on whether there would be enough yarn.


I was fascinated with the changing nature of the balls of yarn.


Worked on the neck and arm trim so I'd be sure that I'd know how much I'd have for length when I got to the hem.


I-cord bind-off - first try.


Used up all of this, save about a yard or two.



Switched to smaller needle for the Bad Penny contrasting hem. Ribbing looked big on the original size, so I frogged back and switched needles. Now of course, it looks like it comes in a little too much for my taste. I'm sure I can cure that with blocking, though.


This is the end of the charcoal. I'm not yet good at estimating yardage needed for I-cord bind-offs. Fingers crossed.

Enjoy what you have

I'd hoarded this jar of Branston Pickle for too long, I decided, so I opened it up some weeks ago and have been enjoying it steadily. Let's have no pantry hoarding, I say. Not safe, not thrifty, and not fun.


The jar is now in the recycling, but for its celebratory photo I plunked it onto a clean but well-used knitted item from a standard pattern you might recognize. This particular dishcloth was from last summer - leftovers from niece ponchos and a string bag I made for thomasina. Was amused earlier this spring when my mom caught sight of a knitted dishcloth near my sink. "You made that, right? And diagonal - very you." She was rather taken by the idea of my bothering to do something stylish with something so pedestrian. Isn't it great when you can be this old and your mom still thinks you do things with flair?

But you know, I'm a bit taken with the whole thing myself. I'm impressed with all the pedestrian and artful dishcloths and washrags and swiffer covers and everything else being knitted out there. Every day works and every day works of art are ways to do more than use what we have - we can enjoy what we use.

Big Cheater

So Thursday, when I kept myself away from all things work, I cheated on my socks.


Stash yarns. Sale yarns. Lana Gatto Feelings. Pretty indulgent, so thank goodness for shop closeouts. Three of the light, one of the dark, the latter purchased one year later, even. In the spirit of a little of this and a little of that, I give you a little bit Piccovoli and a little bit Bad Penny.

I'm calling it Steel Penny. I had one of those in my coin collection, you know.

And already I'm further than this. Very comfortable knit, this yarn.
(I'm not going to say anything about how I hope to win the yardage race. Not a thing.)

Little Victories

June brings normalcy to my sleep patterns. I go to bed at decent hours and sleep well, getting up in the mornings to do the simple homefront things that many other people do all the time. Thursday morning I enjoyed a few minor little victories on the homefront.

Put together the oats & sour milk starter for a small batch of scones for Saturday or Monday.

Made blueberry pancakes with the last of the milk and the last of last season's frozen blueberries. No food photo here. Pancakes weren't up to food-stylist standards, but they were up to eating standards. I ate a portion and cooked up the rest for the fridge, taking a cue from a friend who cooks up all the pancakes, even if they're not all eaten at the moment. Leftover pancakes aren't always that desirable, but as my mother said, leftover pancake batter REALLY isn't that desirable.



I was out of coffee filters, but I found the cotton filter. I don't use it much in my current residence. It takes forever to dry and shake out all the grounds, and this kitchen has no sink disposal for rinsing away the last bits. However, during the summer I'll use it. I started drinking more tea last summer, and I don't need to make coffee everyday, so the filter will have a couple days to dry out. I make a full pot when I do and chill the rest for iced coffee.

Dishes were washed, and I tended to some little bits of mending. Actually got this button back on within the correct cycle. (Worn, button came off, laundered, button's back on.)



While I was at it, I learned a bit more about this camera's exposure and capturing black textiles.

I had such a good morning, I stayed away from work all day. Even better.

And no, I won't lose my job. Technically, I'm on a partial year contract.
Career-soul, though, not clock-puncher, I'm working a bit every week.
Be assured, though, I'm taking a lot of time off.

One of these things is not like the other

One finished, two not.
One Hedera, two Jaywalker.
One without heel and gusset, two with.

AND BESIDES which, I give you a view so far of the fraternal dyelot skeins.

When a yarn company includes the statement "Due to the unique process....color variations may occur within dyelots." - they're not just making idle noise.

Curious, no? I can't believe I ONLY examined the labels for a match. I should have examined the yarn a bit more carefully. I could have seen this difference if I'd been paying attention. I blame the haste of that particular shopping trip.

Then again, a sock lesson isn't the worst lesson. Reminders all round about alternating skeins in other garments, hm?

Nothing ventured, nothing gained?

I tried to carve out some me time this weekend. There was graduation, after all, so that sucks up a fair bit of time and energy.

"Me time" seemed to become time for the unabashedly boring tasks of laundry, laundry folding, laundry putting away, cleaning of cat paraphenalia, vacuuming, pitching the science projects in the veg/fruit crispers, etc. Spring hasn't afforded much spare time for making screen window adjustments. The weekend's heatwave meant a quick catch-up there, and the payoff was great. Suddenly there was breeze and fresh air everywhere.

I did at least go for an errand walk of an hour and a half on Monday morning. I left right after I heard the NPR morning host utter some quip questioning any listener's choice to be up that early on a holiday Monday.

No new knitting ventures. I continued to work on the Hedera, and I switched needle sizes on a swatch I was pondering.

There were a few modest, gains, though. I found, in the depths of a couch and a chair, two pens, eleven cents, and a size 8 knitting needle. And I found a table surface that had been a sacrificial catchall for the past few months. I'm happy the sewing machine can now come out to play. Time for some summer skirts, I'm thinking.

Oh Yes. Socks.

Hedera is past the heel turn and onto the gusset.
Enjoyable knit. Enjoyable yarn.

The Jaywalker trudges along. Discovered (or discovered, forgot, discovered again, and remembered) that two skeins of Wildfoote in the same colorway and dye lot are definitely fraternal skeins. The overall brightness of colors and specifically the little sparkle of green between dye sections are missing from the second skein. I'm now extra glad that I used the end of the first skein for the top of the second sock. It will help me get over the fact that the rest of the sock will look a lot different.

Then again, who knows what will happen to the colors after a wash...

Wasn't I going to go home? Good thing the camera is not here. Otherwise I'd have duped myself into staying accidentally longer.
I'm going home.
Socks, shelves, or something Saturday-like.

Off the Shelves

I gathered up books to drop off at the library (overdue by a day), a couple of which were knitting books which I will check out again. Still, I don't know that I need to own them. Thinking about the one. The other was a fun read, but I'll hold off the shopping.

I've never listed en-blog my knitting library.
A knitter's catablogue? (Sorry.)

Thought I'd start with the books which are currently off the shelves, as I'd been looking at them.
Vogue Knitting Stitchionary
The Knitter's Book of Finishing Techniques, Nancie M. Wiseman
Knitting Vintage Socks, Nancy Bush

I'll add titles as whim suits me.

Perhaps the listing will get me to identify for myself which books might have a better life with someone else. Until then, though, I'll keep them.

If I'm inclined I might make some kind of link in the sidebar. I'd have to figure that out, and right now I'd rather go home and knit - or go home and take another book off the shelves for a nice Saturday afternoon read.