Scarf Style

I’ve been enjoying looking through Scarf Style ever since I got it from the library. I’ve started the Misty Garden with Filatura Di Crosa Ultralight yarn.

This is a very simple lace pattern, no need to look at the chart after the first couple of rows. It’s the perfect project to bring with me to Rhinebeck today. I hope it won’t be too soggy of a weekend. I’ll post details when I get back.

Finished Prjoect: Branching Out Scarf

Project Specs:
Pattern: Branching Out scarf by Susan Pierce Lawrence from Knitty.com
Yarn: Filatura Di Crosa Ultralight
Needles: US 4 straight bamboo needles on the ends and US 6 straight bamboo needles on the rest
Size: 6 inches x 56 inches
This fuzzy yarn does not rip out easily, making it difficult to unknit mistakes, which there were many. Once blocked, the skinny ends evened out with the rest of the scarf (you can’t even tell I knit the ends two needle sizes smaller) and the yarn softened. Blocking rules. I do love the leaf pattern, but I could not get the lace pattern in my head and had to constantly refer to the chart. Next time I would make this scarf in a lovely non-fuzzy green yarn. Check out the knitalong for this pattern.

My Blog Links: More Frogging Than Knitting, Update on Projects, Not Enough Yarn

Finished Project: Big Wool Scarf

Project Specs:
Pattern: 2×2 rib
Yarn: two skeins of Rowan Big Wool in Pistachio
Needles: size 12 mm
Size: CO 16 sts, 70 inches long

This scarf is warm and soft and matches my winter coat too. I’m amazed I love my first knitted garment this much. I’m hooked.

My Blog Links: My New Obsession

Roger Ebert Great Movies

Ella and I are working our way through watching all of Roger Ebert’s Great Movies. Some of these we have already seen before, but will be rewatching together. As he adds to his Great Movies list every few weeks, we have a lot of work to get through the list before Ella graduates from high school. We might not be able to do it, but it will be fun to try.

Watched

 

Unwatched

I’ve Been Torn

It’s been almost five months since my last post. I started this blog to keep track of my knitting projects. But with Ravelry, and now Facebook, posting on the blog just hasn’t made it to the top of the list. But I’m ready to give it another shot.

So a super quick update of projects. This is what I’ve finished since the iSock (which I still love).

See, I haven’t just been sitting around doing nothing. Sure I hope to post more complete posts for each project. But with the holidays around the corner, I don’t see a lot of free time coming my way.

Finished Project: Blithe Wrap

Project Specs:
Pattern: Classic Elite Yarns “Blithe” Wrap/Large Scarf
Yarn: Blithe from Classic Elite in color 10468 wine
Needles: US 13
Size: 76″ x 16″

Another store garment. This was an easy pattern to memorize. But all of the p2tog combined with double stranding the yarn made it a bit of a challenging knit. But it was so nice working with this yarn I didn’t mind. So soft. I’d love to make one to keep. I really like Blithe. Who knew camel yarn could be so great?

Finished Square: #5

Diagonal Ribbing

Here’s an easy pattern to memorize. It’s quite simple, yet I love this diagonal ribbing more that a regular 2×2 ribbing. I wish I took a photo of the square before blocking. That’s when I really loved the fabric. This would knit up into a lovely scarf similar to the Inspiration Scarf. But it would be easier to knit and reversible to boot!

Yarn Harlot in New York

OK, so I’m not the most timely blogger out there. But here’s a rundown of our trip to New York.

THURSDAY Well we made it down to New York in crazy good time. But we left really late. Bill dropped me and the kids off in Central Park 15 minutes late. And the big sock photo had already been taken. But we got to sign the big banner that Guido organized and then chat with a few folks. Ella, the social butterfly she is, enjoyed showing off her knitting to everyone.

Then the three of us spent most of the rest of the day at the American Museum of Natural History. We arrived right during lunch time when there were hoards of school groups there. Very overwhelming. It’s all I could do to figure out where to purchase tickets and which doorway to enter. This museum isn’t really my kind of thing. But the kids loved it. We had no map, so the kids led the way for the next three hours. Bill met us later at the museum, and we all checked out the dinosaur exhibit. Perfect for a family with two dinosaur fanatics.

Then we caught a cab south, dropped Bill and the kids off in Times Square and I continued to FIT to catch the Yarn Harlot event. I arrived just as they were letting folks into the building. It was tons of fun. Not quite full, but many, many people. I’m not good at estimating crowd numbers, but probably about 600 knitters. I actually didn’t recognize anyone other than the Harlot and Guido. But I had fun chatting with new people just the same.

In everyone’s seat was a bag with a ball of yarn, a pair of needles, and pattern instructions to make a 7″x11″ square. The Harlot asked us all to knit/crochet a square during the event to be collected afterwards. All the squares would be put together at the end to create potentially 15 afghans for Warm Up America. Pretty cool. I got my square done with plenty of time left over for some sock knitting. The event went till about 8:30. I bought her new book on the way out and walked back in the warm rain to the hotel. Sometimes I really miss living in a big city.

Despite all of the knitters that came to the event, I didn’t really see many elsewhere in the city. So I don’t know if we really flooded New York with knitters. But it was a great time just the same.

FRIDAY I got to sleep in a bit while Bill and the kids went to breakfast. Very nice! Thanks Bill. Once back, we packed up everything, tossed it in the van, and took the subway to the Museum of Arts and Design to see the Radical Lace, Subversive Knitting exhibit. It did not disappoint, though the definition for lace was a bit broad. I enjoyed the gown knit out of money, the porcelain lace pieces, the knitted lead bear, giant knitted American flag (It was knit with telephone poles!), and the very very tiny knitted sweaters and gloves. They were even smaller than I expected them to be. Holy crap! It was so much fun being there with the kids. They were asking really interesting questions.

On the way to lunch we stopped by a nearby knitting store, Stitches East. The store was small and had lots of novelty yarn, and absolutely nothing that interested me. No need to ever come back. After lunch we unsuccessfully looked for Habu Textiles and School Products. Maybe next visit. Off to Audra’s house to unpack our things and visit. Her whole family was so welcoming and nice. That evening we went to Lloyd’s birthday party not far from Audra’s house. It was a lovely evening, though we left just as the rest of the Dees were arriving. Life with kids.

SATURDAY We went back into the city to catch the Justin Roberts’ show. We hadn’t seen him play before with the full band. It was a good time, though Ella seemed huge compared to the rest of the toddlers there. I prefer seeing him at a small venue like Iota where you can get a beer and a juice box at the bar.

That afternoon while the rest of the family rested, and went to Brooklyn General Store, just a couple blocks from Audra’s house. I loved this store. And I could not help but think of Cirilia the whole time I was there. They had some awesome vintage fabric. I nearly bought some but then remembered I haven’t used the vintage fabric I bought from Crafty Planet yet. But I did nearly buy Sew U, and I’m a sewing hater. I think I’ve been inspired by Cirilia. Curses! What I did leave with were some cool tights (for me), leaf magnets (a gift), and some Euroflax since I’ve always wanted to try it and WEBS doesn’t carry it. Maybe they’ll become some lovely washcloths? This store rocks. I’ll be back.

Once I got my yarn fix, we went over to Jalopy to see Audra’s kids play, Toxic Muffin.

Aren’t 11-year old rockers cute? After them another area kids band played, Tiny Masters of Today.

Then the giant Hootananny began. It was such an incredible evening. And there’s so much to say, but go over to Spare the Rock if you want more details. Here are a few highlights of the evening.

Marty Beller (from They Might Be Giants) and Jen and Audra from Audrarox doing “D Is for Drums” with the kids.

This is for you Amy. No Steve hasn’t really let himself go. But he is wearing underwear on his head. I love the photo of Ella chatting it up with Steve Burns. She was really working the crowd that night.

Thank god Liam fell asleep before the end. It went well past midnight. Ella kept going strong the whole night. She really gets her energy from people, not like her mother.

What an evening. Bill was recording the whole show for the radio show. Hopefully he’ll have it all edited down by next weekend.

SUNDAY Sleeping in REALLY late. We were all exhausted. We made a leisurely trip back home, stopping at Flying Fingers. I’ve been wanting to check it out. It was a nice shop with great customer service. But there wasn’t a lot there that interested me. I did end up getting a skein of laceweight merino/cashmere yarn in a soft green. But the best part was that Liam wanted me to get him his first pair of needles. He’s ready for me to teach him to knit. Hurray! We haven’t sat down yet to do so, but soon.

It was all such a great trip. And great to get away from work for a bit. I’m looking forward to more weekend trips with the family.

(Thanks to Molly, Amy, and JP for some of the photos.)

2006 Favorite Projects

Here are my five favorite finished objects of 2006. (in order of completion)

Pink Picot Hat: Still the only hat that I’ve made for myself. Since I felted it down to my size, I love this hat even more. The Malabrigo is utterly soft.

Midwest Moonlight: Unfortunately this scarf was for a knitting exchange, so I will never see it again. But I fell in love with Silky Wool and now have 23 skeins in my stash.

Purple Maze Messenger Bag: I haven’t seen it since I dropped it off at the store. But I’ll be making another one for my sister-in-law as soon as she chooses the colors. And I’ll have another chance to work with Amherst again. Such a nice yarn.

Inspiration Scarf: Between the soft cashmere goodness of the yarn, and the wonderful drape, I almost wish I kept the scarf for myself. But it sounds like my dad loves it so I’m glad I sent it.

Log Cabin Socks: These socks felt so good when I tried them on (again before sending them off). And I have plenty of Berroco Pleasure left in my stash. I can make a few more pairs and maybe keep one for me. But next time I think I may reinforce the heels. I have a pair of socks I made a year ago that already need some mending.

Amazingly, I only finished two projects for myself this year. Between knitting gifts and things for the store, there wasn’t much time for me. I also ended the year with far too many unfinished projects. I’d love to spend January finishing up a lot of these projects. And for the rest of 2007, I hope to do more sweater knitting.

Time to Control the Stash

I’ve been lusting after the Voyager for a couple of months now and have decided that I would like to buy the loom by the summer. To make some space and help save up for the loom, I’m joining the Knit from Your Stash 2007. Here are my guidelines.

I will knit from my stash starting today until I can save up for the loom — hopefully within 6 months.

I will not buy any yarn during this period, with the following exceptions:

• If I’m knitting something and run out of yarn, I may purchase enough to complete the project.

• I get one “Get Out of Jail Free” card — I’m allowed to fall off the wagon one time.

• If I’m making a 2007 gift for someone that I really and truly do not have the yarn, or an adequate substitute for, I may buy only enough yarn to knit that gift.

• Yarn purchased out of state while traveling does not count. That’s souvenir yarn, that’s what it is, and it’s safe.

• I am allowed to buy yarn if I join a Knit Along with a specific time goal for project completion.

• I’m allowed to purchase yarn that is required for a class.

• I’m allowed to purchase the scarf yarn that I’ve already ordered when it arrives.

Here is my stash. This does not include yarn for the projects that I’ve already started. But it does include the yarn of projects that I will never complete. Hopefully in six months, the stash will be greatly reduced.

I see the future of many knitted things, some sweaters, knitted toys, shawls, pillows, socks, bags, slippers, hats, mittens, scarves and who knows what else. I’ll be plenty busy. I don’t think I’ll run out of yarn. Kind of scary seeing it all out like that. Time to put it away.

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