What I do when it snows.

The snowstorm came and went, leaving a lot of snow in its wake. I haven't actually been out of my apartment since Friday night, so it didn't affect me that much. Saturday morning I cleaned and did a new (to me) exercise video, which seriously kicked my butt. I took a nap in the afternoon, watched junk on the computer, and knit on my seasilk clapotis. The snow stopped late afternoon, but I wasn't that motivated to get out and go. Sunday I woke up to beautiful weather. It was gorgeous, and I should have been up and about, except for the fact that I was (for 3 days) so sore from the video that movement was challenging.

Now we're in the throes of another snowstorm, and the view from my window looks like this:

Sorry for the blur - my camera isn't that great for nighttime photos taken through a dirty window. Everything appears to be closed for tomorrow, but I'll be walking in to the lab regardless, as I have some things to do. Luckily, it's not a difficult walk, just a mile, but it will be kind of messy out there. I don't have to stay too long, and then I think I will be back home to enjoy some quiet time to myself. My neighbors all seem to be very excited about their unexpected day off, and are up late and being really loud, which I'm not excited about. I probably would be if I was staying home too, frankly.

Knitting has been sporadic, as usual, and I'm fighting the urge to cast on for about 10 new things. Tonight I took advantage of not having as many urgent tasks to deal with and updated my stash page on Ravelry. Over the weekend, I finished my first two knits of the year - one that had been languishing, the other was a quick and new knit.

The oldie was finishing my striped Opal socks started back in November when I was evidently looking for a simple mindless knit. I don't typically knit with the self-striping yarn, but it does seem to go faster. I was also quite amused that my socks ended up almost identical without my trying. I think they are about a row off. I now have only 3 pairs of socks left to go, and hopefully I will have less trouble with second sock syndrome.


The quick knit was a replacement for my sadly misplaced hat. I found this pattern, the Star Crossed Slouchy Beret on Ravelry, thought it was cute, and whipped up a hat while watching a movie on Sunday night. I like the hat better than I liked the movie (Notting Hill). I'm not sure it's entirely successful - the cables make an interesting texture, but I don't think it reads that well in this hat. It is, however, cute, and I think the slouchy berets are kind of flattering. I used about a skein and a half of Tahki Yarns Tweedy Alpaca, which is also a nice yarn. The tweedy bits aren't very tightly incorporated into the yarn, so they will fall out, but the stuff was soft, pleasant to work with, and not bad elasticity. I knit the brim with a twisted rib so that it would hold shape better. This is one thing I have learned from making this kind of beret a few times.


I don't have photos of either of them, but I also put some time into my clapotis and into a lace scarf that I have been working on since March of 2008. I think that scarf is on the top of my list of things I want to finish. It's a simple pattern, just a matter of plowing through it and getting it done. I'm not doing any Knitting Olympics, and I'm not making any promises regarding my knitting promiscuity, but I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by the number of ongoing projects, so I'm trying to wrap a few up before I start anything new.

Like Minions. Or Endpaper Mitts. Or a chevron hat. Or another beret. Of course I'm not looking at patterns. Really.

Must be a blue moon, because I'm blogging...

and there are pictures.

I got through the first week back from my vacation. Things are slowly picking up again - there's a bit of a lag from things shutting down, and I'll be back up to full speed in another 2 weeks. During the slow time, I'm working on a grant submission and we're cleaning and rearranging in the lab. I'm trying to readjust to being back here.

One of the strange things is that winter at my house looks a lot like this:



When I left my apartment, there was snow. (No complaint here - just strange to go from the ground covered with white stuff to the ground covered with leaves.)

Over break I worked on a few things, including some Gentleman's Fancy Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks.



It's a straightforward pattern, but with the usual nice little touches that Nancy Bush puts into her designs. Very clean, very clever refinements that no one would ever notice. Of course, I ran out of room in my suitcase and had to leave this behind. Hopefully it will be shipped back to me soon.

And for New Year's, I cast on for a new pair of socks. Neither the yarn nor the pattern is new to me, but the combination was novel. (Sanguine Gryphon Eidos, and of course Monkey.) I love this green.



Knitting? There's tons of that going on. At least the starting part. I'm doing a KAL with my local group, and yes, I'm knitting a Clapotis again, this time out of orange sea silk. When I cleaned up my apartment, I found a scandalous number of things that are in progress, and if I get more organized, I might blog about them or even actually finish them... But I'm still working under the constraint of having little time for knitting. This isn't getting better any time soon, either. I'm still working long hours, plus I'm really trying to cook more meals for myself, and find time to read. Plus, my sister and I are having a bit of a competition - we have a pretty healthy sense of sibling rivalry, and we're trying to use that for good. Both of us have some weight to lose, and so we're competing - not for number of pounds lost, but for consistent weekly losses. There's money at stake too, but I think bragging rights are the key. In my case, that means I'm now trying to find time to exercise daily (in addition to walking to work.) Stuff will get finished, but it would be great if I could find a way to comfortably combine reading and knitting in the evening.

Hello 2010.

I'm not going to do much of a yearly wrap-up, but I'm stealing a meme from Kim since I think it will make a nice summary. Over the next couple weeks, I'm going to attempt to find some time to reorganize things over here a bit as well.

1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?

1. Went to Rhinebeck
2. Moved to Pennsylvania
3. Learned a whole bunch of new science stuff.

2. Did you keep your 2009 resolutions, and will you make more this year?
These were my resolutions:

1. Run a half marathon. - No.
2. Eat out less and cook more. - Sort of, as I cooked more.
3. Read more books. - Yes!
4. Find a new job. - Yes!
5. Travel to a new city. - Yes!
6. Go camping. - No.
7. Learn a new skill. - I learned new science techniques, which I think counts.
8. Write a paper. - Sadly, no.
9. Knit more than I did in 2008. - Nope.
10. Go shelling on the beach.- Yes!

So that makes for about 50% success rate. Not terrible.

This year's resolutions/goals are similar:

1. Run a half marathon.
2. Cook.
3. Read books.
4. Go camping/hiking.
5. Write 2 papers and a book chapter.
6. Knit.
7. Go shelling on the beach.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Not close friends, but I know some people who had babies.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Thankfully, last year no.

5. What countries did you visit?
No travel outside the US for me.

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
Publications. My immediate family in one state.

7. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Finding a new, and good, job.

8. What was your biggest failure?
Giving too much notice on my previous job.

9. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing physical. ;)

10. What was the best thing you bought?
iPod Touch.

11. Where did most of your money go?
Bills.

12. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer?
Happier, slightly thinner, better off in many ways.

13. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Sleep. I don't do that enough. Running. Relaxing and enjoying myself.

14. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Worrying, stressing out, and having insomnia.

15. What was the best new book you read?
Nothing's really standing out - I enjoyed several things I read, but nothing was that memorable.

16. What was your favorite new TV show of the year?
Glee, I guess.

17. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
Being unhappy isn't always your fault. Sometimes walking away can be the best solution.

And with that, let's not speak of 2009 any more. Today's my last day with the family, and I think I have convinced the larger and smaller boy that a trip to the beach might be nice. A run is in my plans for the afternoon (it's not running that hurts, it's not consistently running that hurts.) I have some knitting to do - I cast on for a pair of Monkeys in some Sanguine Gryphon yarn which I haven't been able to match a pattern to well, and I have another pair of husband socks on the needles. I also want to pack up a box of stuff to ship back to my apartment, as I want to make sure I'm really traveling light for my return. There are a few photos on my camera to post when I return, but for now, I'm going to enjoy the family time I have left.

Persisting despite it all.

You know how instructions for circular knitting always say "join, making sure to not twist?"

Yeah. I finally managed to get a twist in my knitting, and I've been persisting, regardless of the mistake. I'm knitting a self-fringing scarf, so it will be cut open at the end anyhow, and I figured, oh, what the heck.

It's a lot easier to knit when it's not twisted, but at this point, I'm Committed.

Speaking of which, I just jumped into another project, thanks to the ladies I met today for a KIP in the park. I may have found a group to hang out with. They're knitting mitered squares for a sock yarn blanket, and swapping yarns. Of course, this sounded like a fantastic idea to me because it's really pretty, on tiny needles, and is going to take up an insane amount of time. And we all know how quickly I knit things these days.

While sitting outside, I worked on my Charade sock. Pretty. See?


One slight problem:

It's too big. So, I'm going to have to think about what I want to do to make these work. The patterned section isn't as stretchy as the rest of the foot. Going down a needle size for the foot isn't going to work, because I don't want to compress this yarn any more. I might just use the gauge for the plain section, rip back to the heel, decrease faster for the gusset and knit the rest of the sock plain. Haven't decided yet.

I'm itching to start new things, but I really want to get some of the old projects to go away. I've now completed 12 pattern repeats of the Trellis scarf, out of a total of 23. Which means I'm now feeling motivated to try to knit one repeat a day, which would get me a pretty lace scarf, and a clear needle in 2 weeks. I have a second sock for my husband - finished decreases, so plain knitting to the toe. That's not more than a week of knitting (I dislike the yarn.) My Badia still needs seaming, as does the Cutaway cardigan. Tangled Yoke is still waiting for the arms to be joined to the body, and I only have a yoke to knit. I'm also about 50% and 75% done with 2 other laceweight scarves, because I'm nuts and seem to not knit with anything thicker than fingering weight right now. I'm craving sweaters and a new shawl, and I have an afghan that requires seaming (but we aren't talking about that today.)

I think it might be fall, finally.

Ehhhhh....

Ok, I just sewed in the ends of Ishbel. It's pretty. It feels nice. It looks really stupid on me. Worn with the point in back, I look dumpy. Worn like a bandana, it adds a huge amount of weight to my front, where I'm already topheavy. Not a good look. Kind of slung to the side, it looks like I'm trying too hard.

I finished a pair of socks tonight. They're a full inch too short. Knit top down, after repeatedly trying them on. How did I miss that? Plus, they're more red than orange, and I really wanted orange.

I ripped out a lace scarf tonight. I just wasn't liking the project, it had stalled, and I decided it needed to go.

I was about to start another pair of socks, and I'm not sure I like the yarn.

I'm on a roll. Maybe I should just give up and go to bed.

Might as well finish the post with a photo of the black widow spider who took up residence near my back door a few weeks ago. She's gone now, as it wasn't a good place for her to be. The little spiders nearby I think are males. Click on over to see it bigger, if you like. (Or run away, if you don't like spiders!) I thought she was a beautiful spider, but it just wasn't safe to let her hang out too close to us.

Still here.

Things picked up for a while, and now are slowing down a little bit, at least temporarily. I've found an apartment to rent, my application has been accepted, and a small deposit to hold the apartment is winging its way to its destination as I write.

The usual stresses and difficulties haven't changed, but this week should be a little easier as a) it's shorter, and b) my biggest source of stress and difficulty is out this week. This leaves me more able to go about things according to my own schedule, which helps a great deal.

I seem to be off to a slow start this morning - we got back in town from a mini-vacation with the inlaws yesterday afternoon. I started to get the house picked up from some work we had done - wallpaper removal, popcorn ceiling removal, painting - messy stuff that has left a residue of dust everywhere. I'm trying to look at it as an opportunity to get rid of some of the clutter as I put rooms back together. Yesterday, I poked around in the bookshelves, and pulled some books out to give away, and moved unread books that had gotten lost in the shuffle to more visible locations. Now it's easier to shop the bookcases again, find just the right reading material.

I'll post some fun travel photos tomorrow, and update the knitting news. I'm in sock mode, which means about 3 being worked simultaneously, but hopefully at least one of those will be finished up shortly. Trying to resist the call of the new and finish up some of the lingering projects. Small and portable is winning right now, thanks to the current decluttering efforts.

Saturday

Time to move that last post down the page. We finally have beautiful, sunny weather, great for being outside, or taking photos of things I've been knitting. Of course, now that the weather is good, the wee beastie is down with another bug. Holding steady with a fever just under 102, cheerful, but too tired and sick to do much of anything. Unfortunate, because it's gorgeous.

At the same time, I'm really behind on little tasks and cleaning, so I can catch up on those things. I'm trying to do some meal planning for the week, and stockpile some meals for those nights when there's just no time. I'm trying to eat more healthily, and not spend as much on takeout, but the last couple of weeks have knocked me for a loop.

I've noticed that the more I have going on, them more small projects I tend to accumulate. The latest evidence:

I knit a Last Minute Purled Beret (pdf download) from a skein of Manos I had been hoarding. It's okay, but I think I probably should have knit a smaller size. I just washed it a few moments ago, and it's drying on a plate. I may need to figure out something to tighten up the ribbing, or find a large-headed friend to gift it to. It's okay. I loved Manos when I first found it. The colors are very pretty, and it's soft, but I feel like this hat screams "handknit," and not in a good way. I may feel better about it once it's dried, but I'm thinking that I might put a pink ribbon in right above the ribbing, knit a quick flower, and gift it to my niece. This is hot off the needles, but still.



In the same stash-busting urge, I started a pair of Dashings. The Cascade 220 was a nice contrast to the Manos - I feel a lot better seeing even stitches. These are good for tv or movie knitting. No, I don't really need fingerless mitts, and I probably won't wear them, but I figure someone will like them. Besides, I can't make a hat out of this color. I'm really pale, and this color would look incredibly BAD on me. Wearing a hat out of this color would make me look like a zombie on a good day.


Husband is overdue for socks. I've had this yarn in stash for him for a long time, and I'm slowly knitting these up. I was speeding along for a while - the pattern is easy to remember, and since he likes short socks, they're a relatively quick knit. The hardest part is getting him to try the sock on for size, and I'm rapidly approaching the point where I need to start the toe. (An inch or so.)
I have another pair on the needles for him, but I'm contemplating ripping them back slightly. I realized I liked the purl side a lot better than the knit side, and then proceeded to work them inside out. However, the sock is a lot slower going in all purl, and I have a harder time remembering whether or not I've done my decreases. It might be a lot faster if I rip back and just knit the dumb things and turn them inside out at the very end. I was concerned about the gusset, where I pick up stitches, but this time it look just as good on the inside as the outside. Since I don't love this yarn, I'd almost rather just get it over with, and take the time to undo it so the knitting will go faster.

Finally there's Juno. I love this pattern, but right now, it's an object lesson in why it's a bad idea to try to knit from a chart when you're sick. In other words, although it's not a hard knit, or a hard pattern to follow, it's in time out for a while.


Enough for now, I suppose. I keep getting interrupted, and I can't remember what else I was going to say. Sick one is feeling bouncy, and is demanding attention.

Finished

I decided these had to be Milford socks when I realized how well the socks blended in with the rug in my front room. If you know the show, you got the reference, otherwise, I strongly recommend watching Arrested Development.

More detail on Ravelry. Pattern is Mockery Sock by Katie Grady. Yarn is Araucania Ranco Multy. A new yarn for me - it's nice, but not remarkable. Knit on size 1 needles, but I wish I had used 0s, or dropped some pattern repeats. I'm really happiest with 64 stitches on a size 1 needle, going up to 72 is really too big for my foot. So there's a decent chance these will make their way to my sister, who has feet about a size and a half larger than mine. I am very likely to use this pattern again. I like the texture a great deal, and it's quick, attractive, and easily memorized.

Now, back to a very simple sock while I read way too many threads in the Rav forums. Just fascinating.

Proof

I do still knit. Just not much. The green sock (Miss Babs Yummy Sock in Rock Wall) got ripped a few times until I could decide the number of stitches and needle size I was happiest with. This particular combination (64 stitches on size 1 dpns) seems to work pretty reliably for me. I like my socks to be densely knit, and without a lot of ease. So the green grows, sporadically.

Below it is the start of a new sock, or rather a cuff, knit in twisted k1p1 ribbing. That is slow slow going for me. Not the most practical ribbing, but it's pretty. I'm hoping this will grow up to be a pair of Bavarian Twisted Stitch socks, from Cat Bordhi's Socks Soar on 2 Circular Needles. This isn't my favorite knitting technique, but the pattern is interesting and different. The pattern instructions are not the clearest things I've ever read, and the socks require attention, which I'm sadly short on.

Why yes, I did hang out with Julie.

And she instructed me to inform you all that she really does play nice on her blog. She does. I sat with the woman while she looked through the latest Vogue Knitting. Go poke her until she posts. It should be a good one.

In the meantime, I'm still sort of missing my mojo. I found some sock yarn I wanted to knit, and well, it wants to be a boring, zen knitting kind of sock. I tried a pattern, but the color pools too much, and fought with the texture. I thought I might be able to get away with it as it was a forced movement sort of thing, but it was too much. When the sock is a little bigger, I'll post it, but right now it's still very small and could be frogged at any minute.

Feeling a little off this morning, sorry. It's a year since I lost someone to cancer today. Life goes on, but I feel the loss still. Today it's a little more acute. Take care of yourselves.

Because Bells wants photos...

The socks.



These will look much better on a foot than on my hand. But Bells wanted photos, so she gets photos. Even if they are taken in the dark.

So for now, a little more knitting, a little Dance Dance Revolution, and some Wii Fit. Maybe tomorrow I will go for a run. It's nice to be home.

I should feel guilty.

And I sort of do. I spent most of the time I was awake on Saturday working in the lab. I started an experiment so I can have something to talk about for my individual progress meeting on Wednesday. But I did sleep half the day, went book shopping after work, and spent the evening watching a movie. I finally got around to seeing Pan's Labyrinth. I'm rather behind on movie watching. It was a good movie - I'm glad I saw it, but I can't say that I liked it. I'm wimpy, and the violence in the movie was a bit intense for me, and more gruesome than I honestly care for.

Today was not a productive one. I did a lot of laundry, hung out with my family, knit, and read. I don't have a photo, because I am a bad blogger. I'm working on Go With the Flow Socks (ravelry link) from Interweave Knits, published within the past couple years in the magazine and also in Favorite Socks. It's not a quick knit for me, and I don't know why. The stitch pattern is dead simple, and even I have it memorized. I have been creeping along on these, and finally managed to turn the heel and almost finish the gusset decreases after some prolonged knitting. I read The Alchemist's Daughter. It was okay. Since I picked it up on sale, I think I got my entertainment dollars out of what I paid for it, but I wasn't that impressed. I needed some escapist reading today, and I got that much out of it.

Spent part of the evening getting some desperately needed exercise, and have put in a bit of time on working on reviewing a manuscript. I don't think it's ready for publication, but sometimes it's harder than you might think to put your criticism on paper. I'm almost done, but need to commit some more time tomorrow. To which point, my boss has already e-mailed me tonight and asked me if I had intended to provide feedback. Sigh. I can't win. And really, I don't want to go back tomorrow. It's become far more aversive than I want to admit lately, and I wish I could stay home more and more each day.

Summer of Socks, first sock

Home sick today. Either my allergies are on high alert, or I've picked up a cold. Whichever way, I'm not feeling so great today. The nice thing is that it did give me time to finish a sock as I sat on the couch feeling lousy and watching bad television.

Lo, a completed pair:



The details - Whitby sock from Knitting on the Road by Nancy Bush. Y'all probably know that already. It's a good pattern, after all, Nancy Bush includes lovely little details so I feel like I'm learning something every time I knit one of her designs. The heel on this sock is a little different. It's not the best fit for me, as I need something a little wider (yeah, I should have photos, but it's hard to take photos of your own feet) but it's pretty. She extends the usual slip-stitch heel flap pattern for the turned part of the heel.

The yarn is Dream in Color Smooshy Sock, color Happy Forest. I have to admit that the name of the yarn kind of irritates me, but the color is great. I'm happy to have a quickly completed pair of socks, but I really do prefer a thinner yarn for footwear. There was some bleeding onto the needles I used, so I'm curious as to how much dye is going to come out when I wash these. The yardage is very generous, and there's plenty left over for a pair of kids socks, or a hat or something fun. However, despite the fact that I really love the color, and I like the sock - I'm not running out to get more. (Ok, part of that is related to my feeling I have enough yarn and not enough time to knit, but that's another story.) I would definitely consider trying their aran or lace weight yarn sometime.

Now off to be warped by Cat Bordhi. I have some swatching to do.

Tired.

Some days it's harder to blog than others. Right now, I'm overwhelmingly tired. More than anything else I can think of, I'd like to take a day off to sleep in late, do some light cleaning, and have some quiet time to regroup. Probably not going to happen, but it sounds really good right now.

SOS began on Saturday, and I cast on for Whitby (Nancy Bush, Socks on the Road) in some Dream in Color Smooshy Sock that I had picked up a while back. The color is great, and since it's a thicker yarn, I managed to finish the first sock last night. If today were my dream day, I'd go back to sleep for a few hours and then cast on the second sock. As it is, I'll probably get to it tonight. Whitby is a pattern that I've tried before, and stopped multiple times. I had issues with gauge, not purchasing enough yarn to knit the sock, incompatible yarn choices - you name it. It's nice to be able to cross this off my list of things I want to knit, but it's oddly anticlimactic. I bought SOTR before I learned how to knit socks. I liked so many of the patterns, but they seemed so hard, and I kept putting off making the attempt. Really, it wasn't a big deal after all. I suppose there's a lesson in that. Anyhow, I'm hoping to finish off both of the Whitby socks by the end of the weekend. I don't have a whole lot planned, and these are very quick. The biggest drawback to them is the pattern down the front of the foot. I don't think the cables would be very comfortable with shoes.

I've been scanning books to figure out what I want to knit next, and I keep looking at a sock in the new Cat Bordhi book. I'm torn between 2 socks. One I really like, but is not easily adjustable to my size based on the stitch pattern, but I might be able to play around a little bit with gauge and get it to my specifications (it's really not that hard - I need 7.5 st/inch instead of 8, or to find something I can knit at 8.5 st/inch) The other pattern I like is easily calculated to size. Either way, I admit that I'm intrigued by the construction, and I'll probably attempt both in the near future. I've already picked out the yarn I'm using next, and wound it into a cake, so the motivation is there. Plus it's also thicker stuff. I forgot how quickly socks can be made on size 2 needles compared to 0s. (Secretly, I prefer the thinner socks, but I'm finding the display of rapid progress to be really gratifying.)

In my increasingly escapist pursuits, I bought Dance Dance Revolution this weekend after spending an afternoon at a friend's house playing video games, including Rockband. Much more fun than I had imagined. It got very hot and humid here, and despite the fact that it tends to rain every night at 8, I haven't seemed to grasp the fact that if I want to run, I have to get up early instead of running after work. Sometimes it takes me a long time to get clued in. Hopping around in my living room is at least helping me take the edge off my stress.

Speaking of which, my minor meltdown on Friday was followed by a rotten weekend, a temper tantrum on Monday, and my finally realizing I've had enough on Tuesday. I'm taking steps to improve the situation I'm in at work, and considering my options. I really really like what I do, but I'm not happy where I am. That's a tough combination, especially as I realize that my tolerance for an unpleasant work environment is pretty high, because really, that's part of how the training works. It's a messed up system, which I could go on and on about. Instead, I should probably take a quick shower and get a move on.

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...

Huh.

Evidently, it now takes me 2 months to finish a pair of socks. I think that breaks down into roughly 1-2 weeks to knit one sock, followed by a long hiatus, then finally knitting the other sock.

The details:



Pattern: Cross Stitch Blocks from More Sensational Knitted Socks by Charlene Schurch.
Needle: Size 1.5 Crystal Palace bamboo dpns (2.5mm)
Yarn: Fleece Artist Sea Wool, color Origin

Lots of unintentional design elements in these, but I'm not going to point them out. I like the pattern a lot, enjoyed the yarn. It's relatively inelastic thanks to the silk, but very pleasant to the touch and has a pretty shine. Somewhat splitty, too. I knit these to fit closely, as I expect them to stretch out a lot. They're dense, warm socks. The color is fantastic in person, and I don't think my photos really do them justice.

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.

You spin me round round

So this was my first attempt at spinning. It's a thick single, which I don't plan on plying, ever. I'm reasonably happy with this, even though it's not as even as would be idea. Considering how confused I was trying to use the spindle, I don't think this is terrible, although if I told you it was underspun, I'd be lying through my teeth.
And yes, I lost the information on this, but I bought it from the Three Fates Collective, at SAFF, which includes Sanguine Gryphon, Dragonfly Yarns, and another woman (I'm sorry my mind is failing me!) Really pretty stuff, and nice folks too.


Take 2 is really just more of the same, but a different color. I figured a few things out since then, but I would like to remember what I did to the roving so that I could spin this. It's just as overspun as the green stuff, but I washed and weighted the green yarn in order to try to set the twist. The blue still needs the same treatment. Also from SAFF, and I can't find my card. Big lovely balls of carded top, I think. Soft and lovely, and I wish I had purchased a lot more.

Now on the spindle is this:


Thinner, but you can see that I still get a lot of variation in the thickness. This stuff is BFL, and I can find the label, but it's not next to me.

Bought a copy of Spin to Knit last time I was at the bookstore, as I couldn't find any other books on spinning and I wanted a reference NOW. I'm understanding that a lot of spinning is really about the fiber preparation, and that's making this make much more sense. At some point in the nearish future, I'll buy more fiber to play with. I would like to be able to spin enough wool to knit a pair of socks. I just think it would be fun.

Speaking of which, still knitting. Green sock is incrementally closer to being done, but at the stage where it feels like you're knitting the foot forever. And suddenly, it's 9:15 and I'm exhausted from my day. At least it's a good weekend for knitting.

Quiet Saturday

Clearly, I am not the most skilled blogger at photographing my own feet.

I've spent most of the morning updating my Ravelry information, adding photos of old FOs, shots of things in progress, basic tinkering. Doing a little bit of knitting, mostly working on a new sock for the husband. This is the Undulating Rib sock from Favorite Socks. It's pretty dull, but since it's done on big needles (3s and 4s) it will be done quickly. Sometimes I do have an urge to knit up the stash, as well as to crank out a quick knit. His feet aren't hugely large, but I'm used to knitting for my own feet. This is definitely a man sock colorway. It's drab.

He's getting a new pair of socks as I never finished a pair I promised him. They were more mosaic knitting, and ended up looking rotten and I didn't like them enough to frog and re-knit. Plus he just managed to full the other pair I made him. He says they still fit, but we had a brief discussion about how he should not assume the socks I knit are machine washable.

Speaking of socks, I wanted to show these briefly before they're finished:

Dragonfly Yarns, Skinny Sock. I wish I had knit them a little tighter. Tons of yardage, and I'll be knitting a pair of kid socks out of the leftovers, I think.

Interestingly, I've noted that I have a tendency to stall on socks after I turn the heel.

I'm a little tense these days, heading out of town in the next couple weeks to be with family for a major surgery. Lots of knitting, lots of casting stuff on, but not a whole lot of finishing. If you're on Ravelry, you can go check it out, but I'm not going to detail it all right now. You can look at it as being very undisciplined, but really, it's more a matter of me trying to find the right things to give me some comfort.

Speaking of which, I've been on a mystery binge. Dark Tort by Dianne Mott Davidson, Cherry Cheesecake Murder by Joanne Fluke, and Murder Most Frothy by Cleo Coyle. If you're wondering, my murder mysteries sometimes don't involve food, but lately not so often.

Back soonish, and hopefully I'll be slightly more interesting....

Still here...

What do you blog about when you're in the middle of several projects that are just taking a long time? Especially if a progress shot, or comments on progress would be along the lines of "look - it's the same as the last time, just a little longer."

Since my last post, I washed and wore my cardigan. To work, even, and 2 people said they liked it, and were shocked that it was something I knit. That pleased me to no end. After washing it, the button bands behaved nicely, but I did notice the neck stretching out a bit more than I wanted by the end of the day. I might crochet a reinforcing line of stitches, just as Yarn Harlot blogged about a while back, or just file that tidbit away for the next time I knit a cardigan. The key question - did I take pictures? Of course not. I completely forgot.

I think I might have finished a sock, but it was fairly unremarkable, and when it comes to unremarkable socks, I'd like to at least have a pair to blog about. I'm still knitting what seems to be miles of a 2-line lace pattern for Juno Regina. My thoughts at the moment are that I really like the pattern, really like the yarn, really hate the color. I think the reds and purples are great, but the blue is too contrasting for my taste. I'm going to finish knitting this, then add it to a gift pile. It seems like I can find homes for my knits, so I'm not going to be upset about it. At some point I'm going to have to purchase a LBD for events around here, and I can actually wear a stole or lace shawl. I will knit one for myself, but this isn't it.

I really have nothing much interesting to blog. I've been spending lots and lots of time at work, trying to get ahead before I have to leave town at an unspecified time to be present for a family member's surgery. Which will take an unspecified length of time. As you might anticipate, I've been doing anxiety knitting, which in my case means casting on a whole bunch of things and seeing what sticks. Lots of easy and mindless knitting, until it bores me or I think I need distraction.

But enough pity party. I have more work to do tonight before I go back to knitting and stalking the MCY thread on Ravelry. It's a sick obsession of mine - but it's fascinating...