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Sunday, January 29, 2006
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Lace and alpaca are friends.
It was time to start something new today. All of my projects as of late have been those that had been percolating for awhile. Although it's satisfying to cross them off my list, it's nice to have a little unexpected thing creep in here and there.
Since I found the lace books the other day, they were to provide inspiration. First Book of Modern Lace Knitting has the "Azalea" Design Luncheon Set. Why not take the placemat and make it shawl-sized? The pattern repeat, once you get past the center, is only 6 lines long (with every other line knit stitches). Although the other patterns, such as those for tablecloths, are attractive, I worried about making them a) the right size and b) something that didn't remind me of a tablecloth every time I looked at it. Besides, easy lace is nice to have around; it makes for nice, portable knitting.
Here's how it looks after a couple of hours' worth of stitching. I'm unsure as to whether the pattern is showing enough; I expect that after another repeat or two it will be more well defined, and blocking should help. The book suggests cotton yarn, so the patterns are very crisp (as you can see); alpaca just isn't quite the same, although it's delicious. (I'm using Misti Alpaca Lace in color 7120.)
My A.V. v-neck is almost complete; the pieces are blocking and I'm praying the wet-wool-loving cat doesn't figure out how to break into the craft room. I hope everything is long enough. I'll just have to seam and knit the collar and then another one has bit the dust.
Thanks to Yarnzilla (where I bought the alpaca), I have another sweater on the brain: the first pattern in Vogue Knitting Fall '05, "eyelet pullover with peplum," as they call it. The shop sample wowed me. Although I'd love to use the alpaca yarn they used, I think I'll be cheap and order some Sierra from Knitpicks; I'll be getting red, because I don't have enough of it in my closet.
All that talk of me going to the Smitten Kitten for knitting with other people while talking about things was just talk. I've only been the once. I think that my Sunday morning time is too valuable to spend with other people; it's my most valuable me-time. Really, any free time I have is rapidly converted to me-time, because I don't get nearly enough of it. (I should remember that the next time I feel like popping out some spawn.)
Tipper @ 9:05 PM * link
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Friday, January 27, 2006
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Calling all Twin Cities-area knitters!
For those of you wondering what happened to the Yahoo-group-that-shall-not-be-named-lest-*I*-get-sued (you all know to what I refer), to for those of you who had no idea such a group existed and want to join the new mailing list anyway:
TCKnit.
If you've got a blog, or friends who are wondering where the heck the group went, spread the word.
(This is what I kept forgetting to say.)
Tipper @ 9:36 PM * link
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Thursday, January 26, 2006
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Randomness ensues.
Crichton sweater yarn update: J&S quickly emailed me in response to my yarn tragedy; they'll be sending the remaining balls postage free. I really dig their service (and their prices) and don't even mind not getting everything in one shot.
What the hell are you knitting, anyway?: I'm still working on that v-neck pullover, which is not much to photograph. I hope to finish it by the end of the month. I may consider myself a total failure if I don't because, really, it's simple and I'm using size 9 needles, for crying out loud.
Ah, lace: I found two books in Matthew's grandma's collection that are incredible, and lucky for y'all, they're still in print: First/Second Book of Modern Lace Knitting. Beautiful stuff. Really, the lace book(s) I've been looking for.
Anything else fit to print: Since I feel the need to start a blog for everything, I've created Adventures in Vegetarian Cuisine. There's even a feed, for those so inclined. (Pun not really intended, but not avoided, either.)
I swear there was more, but true to form, I forgot.
Tipper @ 8:20 PM * link
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Monday, January 23, 2006
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We Call Them Finished Pirates
See? He gets it. He did the "top of hat" shot without any prompting from the photographer!
Pattern: We Call Them Pirates from Hello Yarn
Yarn: Harrisville Shetland, one skein each of two colors*, size 3 U.S. needles
Modification: I think the knitted liner is a little silly, so I opted for an inch of ribbing instead. Because my stitch gauge was wayyy different, thanks to the skinny yarn, I added one whole section. No extra length besides than the ribbing was needed.
I got my Crichton yarn... sort of.
I can't believe how quickly Jamieson & Smith shipped my yarn. I might've even swatched today, had all of the yarn I needed been included. Unfortunately, the two colors listed on the next page of the pattern weren't included. Why in the world did Schoolhouse Press design a book like that? I missed those two colors the first few times I looked at the pattern, and J&S missed them, too. I should've gotten exact confirmation of what they were sending, of course, but I didn't really think of it.
I emailed them; I hope they still have my info on file so I get the remaining yarn quickly. I could still swatch (with non-exact colors) and get the first several inches started, but I kind of want to wait until I have everything.
A different kind of fiber.
I tried out my first two recipes from World Vegetarian: Moroccan chickpea stew with six vegetables and Moroccan bread.
Oh, my lord, was it good. Sweet, spicy, hearty, deep. The bread was incredible, too; chewy and a tad yeasty, just how I like it. The bread's quite interesting in that it uses half white and half semolina flour. I didn't make the chili sauce that traditionally accompanies the stew, but just added some crushed red pepper flakes instead.
*Something like half of each skein. I could tell you more if my wonderful, darling dog didn't get into my knitting basket (one with a lid, mind you) and shred half of the yarn. She also destroyed my size 9 Crystal Palace bamboo circulars (luckily, she didn't kill the sweater they were knitting). This dog owes me a LOT of money. Matthew told her, "You have to be at least 10 times more cute to pay for this."
Tipper @ 10:34 PM * link
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Sunday, January 22, 2006
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Jazzy!
Fair Isle Jazz from Scarf Style, made from Elann Peruvian Highland Wool (five balls of Deep Blue Sea, one ball of the other colors), size 6 needles.
I was officially finished with this awhile ago, but wanted to wet block before posting a picture. Since I still haven't gotten around to that, you'll have to live with the steam-blocked version.
The Highland Wool is really nice, and I highly recommend it. It's reasonably soft, holds cables well, and is just a good yarn in general.
Tipper @ 3:36 PM * link
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Saturday, January 21, 2006
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Adventures in dullness.
My week, I think, was a taste of what is yet to come. We're gradually entering the busy season where I work, a season that brings about lots of overtime (I keep telling myself "yarn money.") and very little knitting (except on the bus when I manage to stay awake).
My Pirates hat has a grand total of two more rows. My A.V. v-neck's back is a few rows into the raglan shaping.
The exciting news is that Matthew and I finally started cleaning out the basement (our house used to be his grandparents', and we're charged with cleaning everything out). One room is a craft room, as Matthew's grandma was way into the fiber arts. Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of really cool knitting stuff, but there's the occasional gem. Cleaning out the room, I found myself wishing I could've met her; we would've gotten along well. Now I've moved in my crafting stuff and started settling in a bit; it will be nice to have everything organized.
I dinked around with Movable Type for the past two hours; I wasn't successful. I'm getting a 500 error, but I've verified and re-verified that everything was uploaded as ASCII and has the correct permissions. I give up. Blogger is just fine for me; really, all I want is comments emailed to me, and I can get that by paying Haloscan a few bucks. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?
Have you seen the Spring IK preview? I'm underwhelmed, as I was with the Winter issue. My underwhelmth shows with my lack of renewed subscription (I keep meaning to renew, really, but I'm not finding much reason to). My favorites from the preview are the lace pullover and the fair isle jacket. Though I'm sure Bobby'll hate me for it, I'm more keen on Vogue's Winter issue, especially this must-knit. See, I expect Vogue to be a little on the wild and unwearable side, so seeing wild and unwearable stuff from it doesn't turn me off. The last several issues have had several incredible designs, which make them entirely worth the price.
My cardigan yarn shan't be too long in coming!
Tipper @ 7:43 PM * link
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Monday, January 16, 2006
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What do we call them? PIRATES! When do we want them? NOW!
Too bad I didn't knit and this pattern didn't exist when I was in high school. I would've been, like, the most spirited ever. It'd have to be maroon and gold instead of green-and-green like this one, though.
It's hard to stop knitting this. The above is the result of two late-evenings of progress. Not bad, considering my gauge is much, much tinier than the original; I had to add a whole extra panel.
Tomorrow I should be receiving Handknit Holidays. Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian, and Simply Socks via UPS; I'm excited! I've loved Handknit Holidays ever since I first laid eyes on it. The sock book was inspired by Nona; she's knit some gorgeous socks, and some of the most gorgeous are from that book. The vegetarian one is because - *gasp!* - I've become a vegetarian. I had been a vegetarian in the past, though it was when I was younger so I didn't really do it well. For health reasons, we're cooking exclusively vegetarian at home (though with the occasional fish thrown in), and I'm not eating meat at all (except for aforementioned fish). It's going well so far; to my surprise, we're eating more interesting and delicious food than we were before. Who knew?
J&S has shipped my Crichton yarn; I can hardly wait for it to get here! If I were crazy, I'd use it as my knitting Olympics event.
The A.V. v-neck is now bus knitting. I'd love to finish both that sweater and Matthew's pirates hat by the end of the month; both goals are certainly doable.
The sock I cast on for the other day is some sort of demon from hell. The colors are knitting up evenly, but no stitch pattern shows up whatsoever. I'm considering slipped stitches, or plain ol' boring stockinette. Funny how instant gratification knitting can turn against you in an instant. Maybe it has rabies.
And now, I leave you with an adorable picture:
Reggie and Sophie are friends. They like to wrestle and nap together, and both enjoy a good gnaw (Sophie gnaws Reggie's head; Reggie gnaws Sophie's legs).
Tipper @ 9:44 PM * link
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Saturday, January 14, 2006
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My new love.
I tell you, I am obsessed with this sweater:
Crichton Cardigan from Sweaters from Camp
Designer: Sally Wall
Photo: Meg Swanson
(shown here with permission from Meg Swanson; thanks to Rebekkah for providing the photo of the photo!)
It's gorgeous, all purple and blue and pretty. (Yes, I am aware that I keep knitting/wanting to knit purple sweaters. I don't understand it, either.)
I started some socks using my Claudia Handpainted yarn, but I'm at a loss. Sportweight yarn, 225-ish yards, size 3 needles. I'm nervous about yardage, even though I know with my history of always, always using too little yarn, I shouldn't worry. I'm also at a loss for a pattern. My current idea is to do some zig-zagging cables (originally the idea was to do randomly spaced mock cable ribbing, but I cast on a weird number and couldn't really do what I wanted to do). The yarn is knitting up very evenly, without any pooling. I'd do plain socks, but that's boring.
Currently considering a visit to Yarnzilla tomorrow. Not that I need more yarn (though I'll want to buy some if I go), but I'd like to sit around and knit. I wonder if there will be anyone to knit with.
Also, I'm a rockstar. I fixed my laptop keyboard in about 10 minutes (with help from Matthew for those tough-to-unscrew screws). Total cost: $22.50, thanks to eBay. Most people would've called Dell and paid $300 or some ungodly sum to get it fixed. *pats self on back*
Tipper @ 12:01 AM * link
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Thursday, January 12, 2006
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Two's better than one.
Two sleeves:
Two Jaywalkers:
Yarn is Trekking XXL, colorway 100.
Heck, make that two pairs of socks:
Can you believe these have been sitting around with ends to be woven in for about five months now?
One thing I can tell you: grafting is an interesting experience when you keep nodding off. There was much swearing involved, along with much "What am I doing here again, now? Is this a sock in my hand? Why do I have a knitting needle in my mouth?"
Tipper @ 9:35 PM * link
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Wednesday, January 11, 2006
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I'm so excited!
Today I ordered my Crichton yarn; as much as I wanted to order from Schoolhouse Press, the fact that the yarn costs half as much when ordered directly from Jamieson & Smith made me choose that outfit. That and I like to get packages from overseas.
Two sleeves of my A.V. v-neck are done. I hope I'm in the mood for some boring stockinette soon.
Jaywalker #2 will be complete by this weekend.
I'd like to grow at least one more set of hands. I've got a million projects* that I want to make at once. I will have to pace myself, though, and make up some sort of plan. Oh, how I do like to plan!
*I keep coming up with more, too, such as, "Maybe I should do a wee sweater to learn steeking," etc.
Tipper @ 9:52 PM * link
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Monday, January 09, 2006
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The state of the Jaywalker.
I'm some sort of knitting idiot savant. Twice in the past two days, I've said, "Hey, I should stop here. It's getting to the point where I have to do something and I need to make sure it matches the first one," and I've stopped at exactly the right spot. I swear, they'll make a movie out of me.
Here is Jaywalker sock #1:
And Jaywalker sock #1 and his fraternal twin:
(Please forgive any mess/unsuitable background. Not that I ever have a really good background for my knitting - although I'm partial to my awesome couch - I feel the need to explain that it looks like a junk monster exploded over the house, and there aren't many surfaces that are a) flat and b) clean enough to pose some knitting. Also, I fear for my knitting's life whenever it gets to dog- and cat-level, which limits my choices.)
They don't match, but who needs matching when you can have wild 'n' crazy?
Mucho coolness.
The We Call Them Pirates hat now has matching mittens: check 'em out! (Now I don't have to come up with a pattern myself.) Visit the main free pattern page for something even cooler: a generic Norwegian mitten chart. Imagine the possibilities!
I have spent all day in a slight state of giddiness because I decided to knit that fancy ol' sweater. I could be the hugest geek in the world.
Tipper @ 10:33 PM * link
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A New Year's resolution
One of the things I wanted to do this year was do a complicated knitting project. Looking back on last year's knitting (remind me to do the meme Kelle tagged me with!), the point was driven home: I'm a boring knitter.
To help remedy this, I'm joining the Sweaters From Camp Knitalong, hosted by the lovely Rebekkah. Matthew purchased the book for me (!) yesterday at Borealis Yarns (that store gets better ever time I go in, and I always run into people I know, which makes me feel not so alone in this big, harsh world *violins*), and I have chosen the Crichton Cardigan by Sally Wall as my masterpiece. I'd show you a picture, but no one on Earth (or the internets, at least) has knit this sweater yet. Heck, there isn't even a mention of it online until now. Schoolhouse Press doesn't even list it as one of the sweaters in the book!
I've contacted Jamieson & Smith for a pricelist; I'm willing to wait for shipping if I get to save a significant amount of dough, because, man, beauty ain't cheap.
Etc.
Although I initially and optimistically placed the finish of my second Jaywalker at last Friday, due to my inability to stay awake on the bus ride home, this has not happened. I'm not even done with the cuff. It's shameful.
I started the Adrienne Vitadinni deep v-neck sweater. My gauge has allowed me to knit the small size. I welcome having fewer stitches on the needle, especialy when we're talking miles of stockinette. If I had been smart, I would've knit this in the round, but noooooo. I didn't even realize I could do that until I was almost done with a sleeve. (At this point, I have 1.5 sleeves. It's fast.)
In other news, I am still lamenting my lack of knitting time. What I should do is go to a stitch 'n' bitch regularly, and it should probably be the one at The Smitten Kitten (you might not want to click there if you're at work). They're good people. I went to their grand re-opening party on Saturday, and there was even someone knitting.
Tipper @ 5:22 AM * link
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Monday, January 02, 2006
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A tale of woe
I didn't quite finish my sister's convertible mittens before I saw her on New Year's Eve. I had the fingers of the second finished, and was confident that I could weave in the ends and add a flap before we parted ways.
And what do you know - I did it!
Then my sister said, "You made two of the same hand," and then this happened:
I took a scissors to it, I did. In my fury, I snipped the wrong line of stitches and cut the glove right through its middle. But the picture above doesn't tell the whole story: I had to rip apart the glove, leaving me with some fingers and a fingerless glove section, all on double-pointed needles. Let me tell you, I am some sort of grafting rockstar at this point. I can kitchener like no other!
So, the story has a happy ending: they're done, even if they're imperfect. Knowing my sister's track record with things I knit her, she'll lose them within a few days anyway. (One of the first items I knitted - a ribbed hat - was a gift to her, and she lost it within hours.)
...and other stories
I'm not so sure that the sweater I made my sister will fit her, unfortunately. I shouldn't have decided on anything cropped, just because it's hard to gauge the proper length. But I had to chuckle a bit: one of my aunts was wearing a sweater she knit 20 years ago, and it was almost exactly the same as the one I knit for my sister.
I spent some of the New Year's Eve family gathering talking to another one of my aunts about knitting. She's supposed to stop into this-here blog and say hi.
Today I spent the entire day in my pajamas, with knitting in my hands (except for those periods spent cooking, doing the dishes, and waving in the air - angrily - towards the dog, who is a psycho today). I finished one Jaywalker sock, wove in Larch's ends, seamed up and added most of the tassels to my Fair Isle Jazz scarf, and finished my sister's convertible mittens. I'd say that's a successful day. Pictures to come after everything's given a little bit more blocking*.
*I bought a small steaming iron at Target the other day, and it does amazing things with blocking. However, I am tempted to buy a bigger steamer with the remaining gift card money I have for Kohl's. Matthew doesn't understand why I might need another one already. "But it has constant steam!" I said. Shouldn't that be reason enough?
Tipper @ 10:05 PM * link
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