Finished.

Finally done. I like it - it's not inspired knitting, but it makes a pretty scarf. Now, according to my Ravelry page, I started this about 6 months ago. Technically, I finished knitting this back in June. Braiding the fringe took forever and a day, and weaving in all the leftover ends took me about an hour this afternoon. The pattern instructions call for ironing this to flatten things out after dropping all the stitches, but my scarf sat around so long that this wasn't necessary. (Which leads further credence to my theory that things that need ironing just need to sit around long enough for the problem to take care of itself.)

Would I make it again? Maybe. I would definitely knit twisted stitches before the dropped stitch sections. I think this would actually be a fun way to use yarn with sequins or beads, show off a ribbon yarn or a variegated silk. I didn't have a problem with the cast on row, and I can't remember how I did it at this point.

Will I wear it? Yes. It's striking, and I'll probably wear it to dress up a white button-down shirt and slacks or jeans when I go out in the evening for post-conference events this fall. It won't add much warmth, but it's a good accessory. Plus, it does feel nice. The bamboo yarn has a pleasant heft and silkiness to it. I wouldn't knit a garment out of it - it would be too heavy, but I think this makes good use of the yarn. Even if braiding and weaving in those ends was dull beyond words.

Intrigued

I found this sweater in the J.Jill catalog (link provided so you can go check out the details) and I'm finding myself intrigued by the construction. At first, I thought it was just another raglan sweater, but now I'm not so sure how this was made. In any case, I think the look is sort of cute, and since I'm always cold here, but the weather is hot, I'm actually contemplating knitting something like this.

I'm considering Wren (non Ravelry link here.) I'm trying to actually work through some of my stash, and use up some of the yarns I purchased for other projects that I have since rejected as they aren't really going to work on me.

Of course, it would be nice if I actually finished something for a change. Which I am in the process of doing - I picked up Badia again and should be able to finish it this week, perhaps. I also might actually weave in the ends of the Phiaro scarf and iron it, so I can finally call that done. Someday I'll do some seaming and finish up other things, but it's really hard to find a time and place for that. And of course, I might have started another project and bought yarn for another sweater, but we won't talk about that. At least not today. I will tell you that I'm off socks for a while, and I really don't feel like knitting them right now.

In the meantime, I'm off to make a grocery list. Ground turkey meatballs and spaghetti for dinner tonight, and I have no idea what else for the rest of the week. Suggestions welcome - seriously!

And everyone, please read this. Consider it a very tiny rant on my part.

On the knitting front

In the words of Dr. Nick - Hi everybody! I thought about posting yesterday, but Father's Day was a little rough this year. I sent a card, but I wasn't able to talk to my dad. Chemo and radiation will be done this week, which is good, but he's been unable to speak for a while now. Hopefully the recovery will be quick.

So I have been knitting, although slowly. It's just that what I've been working on, or finishing, hasn't been really exciting enough to warrant posts of their own.

For instance:

Not much I can really say. They're socks. Basic knit socks, my generic recipe for mindless knitting. Trekking XXL, more information on Ravelry of course. They're okay. I don't love them, but I will wear them when I resume wearing socks once it's cooler.

Slightly more interesting is this:

Brainmonster, which I found on Ravelry while looking for a cute hat. I didn't knit the ear flaps as well, it's hot here, and I don't think they're really needed here. My son likes it, it was cute, and it amuses me. I might add more teeth, but I'm more likely to buy some catnip and make some Feline Dim Sum as holiday presents this winter.

Oh, and I added another hat to my collection: The Fountain Hat, which was a free download from Knitting Daily. (Because when it's 90 degrees outside, I'm thinking that I need a wool hat.) It's cute enough, although I still don't entirely understand the upper lace pattern. I somewhat wonder if there's an error, but I'm not too concerned about it. I knit this mostly because I gave up on some Shibui sock yarn. I love the mulberry color, but I didn't like the way the two tones pooled. It worked better in hat form for me. I need to take a photo of it, but it's too dark right now.

I still haven't finished Sheldon the turtle, although I think I understand what I need to do to finish it. I'm not enthusiastic about the process, as it's going to be fiddly and I need patience. Which is the same problem I have with the Phiaro Scarf, which is done except for braiding fringe and weaving in way too many ends. I've been braiding that thing forever and a day, and it's still not done.

Summer of Socks begins in a few days. You can probably expect to see some socks from me. But then again, you never know around here...

A weird photo of a hat

So I knit a hat. A beret, specifically. I used the Purl Bee Beret pattern, which was popular a while back. I have no idea why. It's too big around the crown, and the color isn't particularly flattering; as you can see, it sort of blends in with my neck. (This is a photo of the back of my head - the hat is oversized, but not that oversized.)

I have no idea what I'm going to do with it. But it's done, and it was satisfying to knit. I'll probably make another one, in fact. Just because I can.

I seem to be in the mood to do nothing more than knit in a circle. Socks are too complicated. I have regressed to tubes. I'm on the 3rd skein of Oasis for the Phiaro Scarf. It's still a green tube. A larger green tube, but a green tube nonetheless. I rather like the yarn. It's too heavy to make a garment out of, but it has a pleasant feel to it, even if it is environmentally suspect.

I also started a cowl out of some leftover alpaca and silk. Because one always needs a cowl in the summer in the south. It is a very pale pink and will look horrible next to my face as I am extremely pale. I also don't wear cowls. Regardless - I seem to be knitting tubes.

Today was a rotten day. A really really bad one. I'm not going to vent much about it, only to say that it's no fun at all to work with people who have such negative attitudes about everything that you actually feel ill when they come into a room. All the joy gets sucked out by their crappiness. Even an iPod couldn't save me today.

But all is not lost. There's still this out there:


And one of these days, I'm going to go sit on that bench and knit a tube.

Little bits of nothing much.

It's lovely and quiet at my house, and I am going to stay here and work on a manuscript today.

When most of your knitting has been this:

there really isn't a whole lot you can say.


I still have a love affair with Fleece Artist and Handmaiden yarns.


Comments, please. I think it might be really garish. Your thoughts?

Evidently I don't have a whole lot of words today. Maybe later.

Saturday Night

Doctor Who. Torchwood.
Harney and Sons Hot Cinnamon Spice tea.
Crunch 'n Munch.
Mindless knitting (scroll to the Phiaro scarf).

Ahh. Good to be home.