I swear, I haven’t dropped off the face of the planet. I’m in Philly. Again. I feel like I’ve been out of town more than in town these last few months, and it’s led to some erratic blogging. But — there will be knitting, news, and photos when I return to the mountains this coming week. Your pomatomus sock questions will be answered (although they are not yet finished), hopefully there will be some endpaper mitts to display, and a new project to show off. See you soon!
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you asked for it — for those of you who can handle it/want to learn, I posted a slide show from the hog killing (with descriptive titles) on my flickr page. You can check it out here.
Frustration: a sock that is too big.
No matter how I try to talk myself out of it, I’m acknowledging that this sock is just too big — I took gauge again and again and again, and I was spot on. And now that I’ve turned the heel and tried it on, it’s too big and suddenly I’m getting 7 st/in instead of 8. Grrrr… I can’t believe I have to rip it out, but I do. sigh.
Beauty: Koigu. This is my first Koigu experience. I may never knit with another sock yarn again. It’s so silky. It flows through my fingers. And the colors? There’s no sunlight today to do the subtle variation, the flecks of color, justice.
Frustration: At times like this, when I go on large shopping adventures and suddenly become a consumer for the sake of perfect gift giving, I am always reminded of the people who don’t have this luxury. This has particularly been an issue the last two holiday seasons, as I live in a very economically depressed region. Reading the Yarn Harlot today (and I know most of us do, so pardon me if I’m being redundant), I was further reminded how even the most disadvantaged Americans (and Canadians) are often so much better off than those who live elsewhere… it’s sobering.
Beauty: Yet another lovely thing that comes from Canada (like Koigu, that is), Harlot has put out a challenge to the knitting community — her goal? To double the amount donated to Doctors Without Borders by the knitting community. She expresses this goal in ways infinitely more articulate than my own. If you’ve not been over there to read her blog entry for today, you should. And then donate. I did. I’ll be buying no yarn in the month of January (goodness knows, I’ve got enough) and donated what I spend the average month. It’s just a good thing to do.
Wow. I can’t believe it’s been a week since I last…
Published 14 December 2006 Uncategorized 3 CommentsWow. I can’t believe it’s been a week since I last posted. Where did the time go? Plenty of knitting has been happening over here which will be revealed soon enough. In the meantime, I’ll distract you with a small FO and some pretty pictures.
Pattern: My own, if you want to call it a pattern
Yarn: Knitpicks Andean Treasure in “Sunset”
Needles: Bryspun US 5 dpns
Thoughts: Andean Treasure. Yum.
The reason I’ve been MIA for a while is that last weekend, my friends Julie, Shawn and Mia killed the two hogs they’ve been raising for the last six or seven months. For the veggies out there, I’m sorry for the brutality of that sentence, but this is a way of life down here. I went out to Kentucky early on Friday to help out and stayed the whole weekend. I took a TON of pictures… it was a really incredible experience and one that I was infinitely glad to have been a part of. I have so much respect for the way of life here, and feel that now that I’ve participated in this process, I can eat meat (or at least pork) with a sense of responsibility. I want to put a slideshow up on Flickr with descriptions for people who are interested in how it works, but I’m still trying to find a way to do that without grossing out people who don’t want to be grossed out. Some of the photos are, admittedly, pretty hard to look at. In the meantime, I’ll leave you with this:
This is the sun, finally coming over the mountains (around 9:30 or 10 a.m.) on Saturday morning, filtering through the trees and the smoke from the fire under the water barrels (you need A LOT of hot water). It was really cold Saturday morning. When we got up at 6 to start the fires, it was 5 degrees. By the time the sun hit, it was only around 25. But it was a beautiful morning (handknit socks came in very handy… I wore two pairs!).
Last Christmas, I made my mom a pair of socks. You might remember them:
Evidently, they were a big hit, because they were worn. A lot.
I took them back from mom when I was home for Thanksgiving in the hopes that I could repair them, but I have no idea how to go about doing this. Any advice? These were knit with a regular heel flap, and although the flap itself is in great shape (as are the toes and the rest of the sole), the bottom of the heel is a complete disaster. I have plenty of yarn leftover from both socks… Is there a way to repair this? I’ve never really understood how darning worked, but I wonder if that is a remedy for this situation or if the holes are just too big. Can I snip the old yarn where I turned the heel (keeping the heel flap and somehow preserving those stitches) and knit a new heel? Help!
Sorry to post twice in one day, but my friend Jennifer (in the middle there) has, after much harrassing, poking and prodding, finally started her own knitting blog today. Y’all should go check it out.
And for those of you who remember the picture of the cutest lamb ever, that photo was taken by my friend Greg, on the left. This photo is, obviously, from Hawaii. One of the best parts of the trip was hanging out with the two of them. They’re two of my best friends and we all live so far apart these days (Greg’s still in Chile, Jenfee just moved back to Philly, and I’m still here in the mountains). Have I mentioned recently how much I love the internet?
If you recall, earlier this fall, I declared 2007 the year of color-work. I got a head start this fall with the Huron socks and yesterday, better late than never, I joined Stranded. Over at Stranded, they ask:
Is this your first colorwork project? If it isn’t, what was your first, and has it survived the test of time?
I’ve worked in color before. In fact, my very first sweater, completed in late winter of 2005, was a fairisle sweater (I’m nothing if not ambitious). I’m proud to say that my first sweater is not only wearable, it’s actually quite a nice sweater. Don’t get me wrong, there are things I’d change (like have more than one inch of ribbing at the bottom, add an inch or so to the sleeves — I have monkey long arms! — and knit another decrease or two in the yoke so the collar is closer). But all in all, it’s a great sweater. In fact, I’m wearing it today (please notice the snow in this picture — it’s our first this year and I’m pretty excited about it!)
What are your projects for this knitalong?
Well, I’ve already started Eunny’s Endpaper Mitts.
I also plan on making these (I’ve bought the pattern and I’ve got a box of Knitpicks Palette on the way!).
You may recall, I was once tempted by the Telemark Ski sweater, but now that I’ve seen other pictures of it, I’m not sure. I also have a love/hate relationship with Telemark (is anyone happy with how that’s wearing? It seems so harsh).
I’m also pretty sure there’s at least another pair of fairisle socks in my future… We’ll see.
It’s been hard to post lately. Though I’ve been doing a lot of knitting, most of it has been for the holidays, and I haven’t quite figured out how to post about this knitting while keeping it a surprise. Some of it, I can post about freely. Such as these (which you’ve seen before):
Pattern: modified Fetchings
Yarn: Knitpicks Swish, in “wisteria”
Needles: Brittany, US 5 dpns
And this:
A tiny booty, with leftover yarn. The pattern is from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I thought I would give it a go, although there are no newborn babies in my life right now (and no promise of newborn babies in the near future — I’m sure I just jinxed something or someone by saying that). Conclusion — it’s so cute, it makes me crave babies. And the double knitting for the foot is absolute genius.
If you are not related to me, nor think you’re gonna get a handknitted gift from me this Christmas, you can click on the photo for another recent FO.
I also to post a “thank you” for this, my new wallet.
Some of you might recall that on my September trip to Philly, my purse (and wallet. and iPod) was stolen. I’ve been using a hand-me-down wallet from my mom since then, in the hopes that I could replace the wallet I had lost. In October, my friend Julie went out to Portland for an old time music gathering and while there, she replaced my wallet for me. It’s made by Queen Bee Creations (the same people who made my old wallet) and I love it.
Lastly, the sky was pretty incredible when I went out to take pictures today. It smells and looks like snow, but it’s not cold enough.
And, icing on the cake, my Christmas cactus is blooming.
Pattern: Conwy socks, from Knitting on the Road
Yarn: Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock, in “watercolor”
Needles: Knitpicks dpns, US 0
Started:
Completed: 3 December 2006
Thoughts: Well, I messed up the pattern from the get-go by using US 0s. Too small to make a substantial sock. So I modified the number of decreases and the heel gusset so they weren’t too small (although I had originally intended them for me, I am now gifting them to a smaller footed friend. Me: 1, Christmas: 0). I love the pattern — looks complicated, knits up easily. And the yarn? Well, the striping obscures the pattern a leetle bit, but I love the colors, love the yarn, especially love the fabric it makes (so dry, almost crunchy-squishy — that’s a good thing). That said, it’s gonna be a while before I use 0s again. My hands hurt.
In other news, I feeling very proud of myself. I used to just let mistakes go — I was a spur-of-the-moment, fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants knitter. I’m not sure what happened in the last few weeks, but something’s changed. Yesterday, I was using lifelines. Today, I did this:
I spent half an hour tediously ripping down eight rows to correct a mistake I made doing a seedstitch panel. Not only did I do it once, I did it four times (in seedstitch, you mess up one stitch, you mess up all that follow. sheesh). Honestly, the mistake was barely noticeable. But the second I noticed it, I couldn’t let it go. It looks so much better.
I leave you with a gratuituous kitten shot:
This is Phoebe (and the first picture I’ve gotten of her since she was a kitten that really looks like her, and not generic black cat), literally wrapped up in her favorite toy. It’s a feather bob with a bell attatched with elastic string to a plastic stick. She loves it. She loves it when I shake it and run around with it, and she loves to just carry it around in her mouth, dragging the stick after her. It’s really cute.
I stole/borrowed this meme and filled it out without letting myself think too hard about my answers. It’s a quick and dirty way to get to know people, and I like it.
It’s Only Words
You.
Can.
Only.
Type.
One.
Word.
No.
Explanations.
1. Yourself: crazy
2. Your boyfriend/girlfriend (spouse): nonexistant
3. Your hair: curly
4. Your mother: organized
5. Your father: keeperofanswers
6. Your favorite item: moomoo
7. Your dream last night: forgotten
8. Your favorite drink: coffeewhiskey (that’s one word, right?)
9. Your dream car: ‘63mustangconvertible
10. The room you are in: study
11. Your ex: loved
12. Your fear: falling
13. What you want to be in 10 years? happy
14. Who you hung out with last night? hankandphoebe
15. What you’re not? patient
16. Muffins: blueberry
17. One of Your Wish List Items: winderandswift
18. Time: ablessing
19. The last thing you did: sneeze
20. What you are wearing: pjs
21. Your favorite weather: crisp
22. Your favorite book: atreegrowsinbrooklyn
23. The last thing you ate: nutella
24. Your life: good
25. Your mood: sleepy
26. Your best friend: thoughtful
27. What are you thinking about right now? inoneword?!?
28. Your car: green
29. What are you doing at the moment? this (duh)
30. Your summer: musical
31. Your relationship status: lonely
32. What is on your TV? nothing
33. What is the weather like? cold
34. When is the last time you laughed? tonight
