novamade

back with a bang

I had a fabulous time in Virginia, in case you were wondering.  I learned so much I thought my head would explode, made new friends, saw old ones, good times.  Now, onto what you are really interested in, the knitting.  Did I knit while in Virginia?  You know it.

Amongst my other wips, I managed to finish my Sockapalooza Socks.

A few people have knitted this sock out there on the internets with great success.  And though the socks are fairly easy, I had some thoughts about the pattern, the yarn, etcetera, so I am going to share them.  Feel free to throw tomatoes later.

The pattern (Laburnum) was really easy; easy to memorize, easy to execute.  And because it is basically a cabled rib pattern there is a lot (A LOT!!) of stretch in the sock, which is what I was going for.  My sock pal said she had big feet (but I am going to disagree, I don't think a size 10 foot is big at all--says she sporting the size 9 foot).  In any case, the Sock Pal is convinced that her feet are large, so I am nothing if not accommodating.  So, stretchy sock, check.

The pattern is knit from the toe up.  To prep my self for this toe-up excursion, I gave Wendy's Plain Toe-Up Sock a go, I finished one and loved the method.  Her directions are also flawless and quite detailed.  So in doing one sock, I felt pretty confident.

So I tend to like to do things as written, because that is just me being Type A, I should have gone with my gut and done the toe that I liked from Wendy's sock.  Why argue with genius, right?  The toe on this sock is "easy toe" as spelled out by Charlene Schurch.  It was easy, I guess, but I just didn't love it.  Also, I think I would have extended the stockinette in the toe a bit more, but that is just me.

The heel is a reverse short row heel.  I don't like it.  There was too much wrapping of stitches to be reasonable, and the look of the heel (in comparison to the heel produced with Wendy's pattern) didn't meet my aesthetic expectation, but it's functional, and it looks okay.

As as much as Charlene Schurch likes to give you avenues for success in sock making, she doesn't really offer much in the way of finishing the sock off (for toe ups).  So after doing some searching for good ways to finish the cuff of a toe up sock, I was led again to Wendy and her suggestion for a modified Russian Bind Off.  I just knit it all.  Looks fine to me and it's stretchy as all get out.

The four row pattern was pretty easy, I think the variegation of the yarn obscures the pattern somewhat; but some people are into that sort of thing.  Also, I was pretty sure the Sock Pal was a lover of variegated yarns.  She also requested bright colors, "the brighter the better."  Now all of you who know me and love me, you know that this is something difficult for me to work with.  So I was going to go with Pomatomus in the yellow Koigu for the sock pal.  Sock Pal does not like yellow (predominantly or alone).  Huh.  She does however like other colors with yellow, especially pink.  Huh.

I have to admit, I was at a loss.  During a trip to sorta local yarn shop (Knit Wits, Westerly, RI), I saw this yarn sitting there.  The colorway is called "Brights."  Well, how can you go wrong with that, right? Super bright yarn, check.

The short of it folks, is this: easy pattern, quick to knit, happy results.  I hope my Sockapalooza pal likes them.

Laburnum Socks

Pattern:  from Sensational Knitted Socks by Charlene Schurch

Yarn:  Cherry Tree Hill Supersock in Brights

Needles: US 2 bamboo dpns

Modifications: None

A note about the yarn, the dyes bled a little during the wash before the blocking stage, but the brightness was still retained.

And the yardage is pretty amazing.  I had a ton of yarn leftover at second sock's end.  I think the leftovers might make interesting baby socks.  Maybe? 

And totally unrelated to socks, Sockapalooza or anything having to do with knitting whatsoever,  during our recent trip to Virginia, Little Sir discovered his love for crayons and this picture makes me so happy.  Maybe it will make you happy too. 

Happy Monday all!

the state of the single sock

There is something to be said for the instant gratification of completing a sock (I won't go into too much detail here as it has been well-covered by others in the know).  Sure the accomplishment when finishing a pair of socks that can be worn together is incomparable, but finishing one is pretty good. 

After finishing my first toe-up, I obviously had to cast on for another toe-up, just not a matching one, that wouldn't be sporting.  Having given the toe-up sock a go, I think I am ready to knit up a sock for my Sockapalooza pal.  I think I have come to the same conclusion as Kristy, the pattern is somewhat secondary to the selection of yarn.  My pal said she liked any kind of socks, and that she loved bright colors.  So I have the yarn and the start of a toe, I am still unsure about the pattern, but I have narrowed it down to a few selections.  I am sure something will come to me in a flash of brilliance tonight.

I am fairly certain that I will have to knit the mate to this sock sooner rather than later however.  There is a deadline, afterall.  And though starting the socks at the onset of Summer of Socks is notable.  I doubt that single sock counts are the true goal of Summer of Socks...but what do I know?  I am just a girl counting down the minutes till her vacation.

That's right, vacation!  I am in the process of planning my packing.  What projects to take?  What projects to leave?  Should I start new projects?  All very fun things to consider, but due to space issues, I am going to have to be sensible with the project packing.  The last time we went out of town on a long trip, I took way too many projects and only worked on two.  But you never know...it could rain, right?

post-chevy obsessiveness

I was so dedicated to finishing the second Chevron scarf that I let some other projects fall by the wayside.  I don't have as many works in progress as some, but there is at least one sweater for Little Sir that I would like to wrap up.  And then there is this, my newest obsessive knit:

I started this ages ago, but because of my inability to read the pattern properly, I had to rip and start over (if you are doing a left twist --at least for Trellis-- don't forget to knit in the backs of the loops when knitting two together...just some advice from me to you).  This is a gift for a friend of mine.  I have till the 16th of June to finish it.  If I was a monogamous knitter that would be possible--easy even; but monogamy in crafts has never worked for me...especially with stuff like this lying around:

How am I to resist the call of Koigu?  Koigu is so obsession inducing, I can't fight the power.  And this Koigu is so Project Spectrum.  I was tempted to knit simple but fun toe-up socks, but I wonder if I have enough yardage to do these...

And then there is my newest addiction.  Do you remember that "learn to spin" kit a got at MDSW?  Well, I worked through the freebie roving in the bag

While it may not be all glamorous and beautiful to you, I am ridiculously giddy and impressed with myself.  Special K was really impressed too (I think he was more impressed with my make-shift lazy Kate--which we are now calling the "Lazy Nova"  which is so extraordinarily appropriate, it's a little sad).

So yes, this spindling thing, in case you didn't know, it's as addicting as knitting. I just ordered a new featherweight spindle from the Goldings (I love them, go order a spindle and give them some of your money so I don't feel compelled to give them all of mine) to try spinning some lace weight that I will try and knit a shawl from for the Spun Stitches KAL, I figured it would be a nice summer challenge for myself; because as lazy as I am, I still like a challenge. 

It's a little scary how one obsession ends and another or others begin.  Scary; but fun.  What about you, obsess much?

chevy nova 2.0, se

The second chevy is done.  I understand that there was, not just a little, obsessiveness involved in the production of this scarf.  I didn't want to be a copycat, but I also wanted to produce a scarf that I liked.  Kirsten used the same colorways to do her Chevron Mitts (which are ingenious, by the way, if you haven't seen them, go check them out). 

I wanted all the brightness and all the color of the first chevy nova minus the pink, because--as you know-- I am just not into pink.

Clearly, I am not the only fan of this new iteration of the chevy.

Do you want the book model shot?  You know you do.

 

He was such a fan, I just couldn't resist.

I love this new scarf and can't wait until chilly temperatures necessitate the need for a flashy good- time scarf.

Chevy Nova 2.0, SE
Pattern: Chevron Scarf in Last Minute Knitted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson
Yarn:  Socks that Rock Mediumweight in Lemongrass and Farmhouse
Needles: US 5 straights
Modifications: Yarn substitution (which makes for a considerable heavier--read warmer--scarf) and I switched up the yarn pattern sequence for the first 4 and last 4 rows.  I also ended at 65 inches of scarf and not the suggested 72 inches (or whenever you run out of yarn, there is plenty of yarn left...enough to make booties even).

I am sufficiently happy with this scarf.  And since I am so happy with the end result, I don't feel the need to ever knit this scarf again.  Not ever.

Hey, Lolly I am ready for Chicago, how 'bout you?

not the jet set

I had such great hopes for this yarn.

I thought these skeins were going to be perfect for their intended purpose, especially after I wound them up.

 

But no.

So now I am trying to figure out other options.

Decisions, decisions...similar; but different.

And lest you think that all I do is think about Chevron Scarves, let me show you this little piece of wonderfulness.

And there are a pair of socks, that are as good as done, to be finished up this weekend.  I don't have anything planned for this weekend besides a haircut (badly needed) and rediscovering my domestic side (in regards to the cleanliness of my home--also badly needed), so I should have time to get some toe grafting done, at the very least.  I hope your weekends allow for knitting, quilting, or whatever other happiness you have planned.
 

being green

It's not that easy being green
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves
When I think it could be nicer being red, or yellow or gold
Or something much more colorful like that

It's not easy being green
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things
And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're
Not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water
Or stars in the sky

But green's the color of Spring
And green can be cool and friendly-like
And green can be big like an ocean, or important
Like a mountain, or tall like a tree

When green is all there is to be
It could make you wonder why, but why wonder why
Wonder, I am green and it'll do fine, it's beautiful
And I think it's what I want to be

Sheldon aka Poke

Pattern: Sheldon from knitty winter 2006

Yarn: Knit Picks Shine 1 skein each Green Apple and Grass

Needles: Bates  US3 dpns, US4 straights and a crochet hook

Modifications: Embroidered eyes instead of using acrylic safety eyes

So I can't embroider worth anything; but, the turtle has eyes and a baby won't choke on them.  I am not sure why it took me so long to finish this, it's not a hard knit and once you get to the shell, it's actually sort of fun.  The use of i-cord to attach the shell to the shell attachment was an interesting experience which seemed to take forever, but it wasn't so bad.  I enjoyed knitting this, and it's kinda of cute, I think. 

There was a little crocheting to be done, I really need to consult a book on crocheting, mostly I just winged it, it seemed to work out okay.

I originally started knitting this for some friends who had a baby 2 months ago.  I am not sure, but I think the elapse of 2 months is too long to send this to them (especially since we saw them in California last month).  So, I think this will temporarily reside in the "archives" as another Christmas gift.  There are lots of pregnant people around these parts and many impending showers, but Poke is pretty cute and I want him to go to someone special, so I'll have to think on it a while.

i like you

I have been puzzling over the mechanics of how I happened to catch a mini-plague while Little Sir eked out the weekend none the sicker.  I have gotten in the habit of blaming my sicknesses on Little Sir and daycare (for the most part, rightly so); but, it seems now I only have myself (or my own petri dish) to blame.  I have done some calculations and I have not been healthy since Thanksgiving, now if that's not a bummer I don't know what is. 

I wish I could say that I spent the weekend of my sickness knitting, but not so much.  I went to a regional archivists meeting/conference in Chelmsford, Massachusetts (and probably got some archivists sick, sorry) where I met a blog reader that I did not previously know (I tried not to get her sick, she seemed so nice). As interesting as the meeting/conference was, I would say that I enjoyed listening to Amy Sedaris read her book I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence on audio CD (I think having her read her book adds a little something to the consumption of the work) on my drive to and from the conference more than the conference itself.  And the other part of my weekend (when I wasn't asleep) was spent untangling this mess...

This was actually after 24 hours of untangling--what you see here took another 6 hours.  It took way too long than is reasonable to solve this situation.

This is Sundara sock yarn (second installment of the current round of the Petals Collection) in Bird of Paradise-perfect for the second installment of Project Spectrum, no?  I am not really sure what happened with the whole skein winding catastrophe.  Given my love of winding, you would think that this sort of thing would never happen to me, apparently you (and I) would be wrong.

I didn't love the colorway of this yarn, to be honest.  I liked the green and the yellow is fun; but the pink...I sort of found it offensive.  I am just not a lover of pink,  occasionally I force myself to tolerate it. But hot pink?  A stretch, truly.  In any case, after trying all of the Koigu I purchased (which arrived super speedy style) I tried all sorts of Koigu iterations for my Chevron Scarf with no success, the colors were a little too "matchy matchy" for my taste.  Then I remembered the sock yarn that I had no idea what to do with and thought, "well, maybe I will give that a try."  I am still not in love with the hot pink, but it has been downgraded from offensive to simply bothersome, and it might be completely inert by the time I finish the scarf. And really, it is sort of starting to grow on me.

So after a weekend of ire and utterances of anger and hate concerning yarn and anything scarf-related, I was able to achieve a happy note and say to my scarf (because I will completely own up to talking to my knitting and all sorts of other inanimate objects), "I like you."

inertia

Now that Little Sir's party is over, and the thank yous done, I feel at a loss for a "big project."  So obviously I thought, "well, let's get back to the knitting."  It seemed like a good idea; and then I pulled out all of my projects, all of my knitting "in progress", which really isn't in progress at all.  Yes, knitting at rest stays at rest.

Inert.

I was really excited about these mittens until I wasn't.  Mitten knitting mojo gone, poof.

Stagnant.

Remember this?  I was going to finish it and wear it on snowy days...  Well, not so much.  Monogamous knitting, indeed.

Dormant.

This was supposed to be a quick knit.  I was supposed to give it to a baby when I went to California (3 weeks ago!).  I just lost interest.  Knitted toys?  Ho-hum.

Incomplete.

I started this sock in California and have worked on it here and there, but not in the excited way I thought I would attack these socks with the STR yarn.  Sock knitting mojo, where art thou? 

Unfinished.

Unifinished is totally inaccurate, this project is barely begun.  That is the start of a baby sweater, can't you tell?!

So inert it was forgotten.

I started this blanket/shawl thing two weeks before Little Sir's due date.  I would have finished it, had I not been surprised by the necessity of a C-section due to the bigness of Little Sir.  It got buried under piles of unfinished knitting and new yarn aquisitions.  I honestly forgot about it.

I think that I might have gotten blue-d and white-d out during the first cycle of Project Spectrum.  I had good intentions (in hindsight, I would say "unreasonable," there, I said it); but clearly, I need to mix things up a bit.  The fact that there is so much green and a little yellow to work on in my inert knitting pile for the next cycle does not completely comfort me either.  I think I need more color in my life.  I need to think outside the box of my own comfort zone and even the parameters of Project Spectrum (which I joined because I wanted the challenge of working with and exploring more colors). 

When it comes to color, I am not the most exciting or daring person.  I see colorful things on others and I usually think, "oh, that is all well and good for him/her, but no, just give me my plain old monchromatics, lets focus on the browns, greys and blacks please."  Should I want to be daring, I will throw in a little red (with a hint of burgandy or a tad bit of maroon, if you please).  As you can imagine my wardrobe isn't exactly an ambassodor for Roy G. Biv. 

And then I saw this and this and these.  But this one won me over completely.  So then I went here and bought this and this and this, oh and this too.  And all of a sudden, I am excited about the knitting again, even the unfinished stuff waiting in piles.  Oh what a little color can do (and charging your card for Koigu purchases, same difference).

Besides talking about color and my new found love for it, I also wanted to say thanks.  Thanks for sharing bits and bobs of your childhoods (or the childhoods of others).  I enjoyed reading the birthday memories.  Birthdays are big in my book (anniversaries too!) and I think it's important to celebrate them.  Thanks for celebrating Little Sir's with me!

the fine art of knitting for one’s self

There is no shortage of Anemoi Mittens in the knitblogging community.  I have seen many pairs in various states of production.  My Anemois are done, and I couldn’t be happier.

Like many who have knitted this pattern, I too love it.  I love the pattern (and though I don’t actually know her personally, I think I might love Eunny for writing the pattern), I love the yarn I used, and I love the finished mittens.

Lest you think that I should have titled this post “mitten love,” I will tell you one more thing I love about these mittens:  I love that they are mine.  I have been a knitter for a little over two years now and since I picked up the sticks I have never knit a thing for myself.  No, nothing.   Maybe you are sitting there thinking, “what a crock, what about your first project?!”  No.  My first project was a garter stitch scarf made on size 19 needles with LB Homespun, you know the one, the pattern is on the ball band; I was so impressed with how it came out, I obviously couldn’t keep it for myself, it had to be given away.  At least the person I gave it to still wears it, all the time as a matter of fact—I need to knit her something else so she can graduate up to some wool or something, but that’s another post for another time. 

As I was saying, no knitting goods for me…you see, the idea never occurred to me.  Sure, I marked patterns and made mental notes of the things that I wouldn’t mind knitting for my own personal use or wear, but if it was an accessory or something-of-the-like it went to someone else if it came out half way decent (and trust me, when “half-way decent” is your benchmark, you can achieve success quite easily).  In truth, to combat this giving away of the goods I started knitting a sweater for myself (Arwen, what?) thinking, “well, if it’s made with my measurements in mind, then obviously I will keep it…” and then I let knitting for others get in the way of my finishing it, because “it’s just for me, I can wait…”  But then there were these mittens, these Anemois mittens with beautifully curved scrolls reminiscent of Kelmscottian design. 

The special collections librarian in me that deals with rare books, of course, loves that detail.  So I got the pattern thinking that this would be the knit, for me, that I would get around to some day.  Perhaps it was Project Spectrum, or maybe it was my tiring of the cables in Arwen, but “some day” happened a lot sooner than I expected.  And I must say, this knitting for one’s self, it’s the cat’s pajamas (yes, I really do say cat's pajamas--yes, I know).

There are a some who dub knitting for one’s self as “selfish knitting,”  I never thought of it this way when I was doing all that knitting for others, or “gift knitting” if you wish, it just never really occurred to me to knit something for myself at the time.  But now, I have all sorts of crazy plans…but there will still be the knitting for others, because I am a giver (it gives me some sort of weird high,  I really like doing things for other people, it's a compulsion).  But, really a knitter knitting for the sake of producing personal goods, that’s not selfish at all.

I think there is a certain art to knitting for one’s self.  Pattern selection, is perhaps, the key to success, maybe this doesn’t apply to small things or accoutrement; but, with sweaters, it’s nice to know in advance that just because it looks good on that red head in Interweave Knits, there’s no guarantee it will look half as good on you.   So maybe that’s what scared me off of Arwen, because honestly, I am having my doubts about how it’s going to fit me, but mittens, they are a safe bet.  And well, these mittens?  Well, of course they will look good, and of course they are totally worth the effort, and of course I should keep them.

Another part of the “art” involved in knitting goodness for me was not obsessing over small details.  When I knit for others I usually obsess about the knitting (because to be truthful, I obsess over things in general), while knitting these mittens, I made it a point to enjoy the knitting, every moment of it.  I enjoyed knitting the Anemois so much when I noticed mistakes two are three rows back (as I did many times) I had no problems ripping back and re-knitting.  “Oh, rip back and have the opportunity to prolong the knitting of this Koigu fabulousness in this gorgeous pattern?  Yes, please.”  There are a few things that could have been improved, there is a “wobbly” stitch here and there; but, I can see the forest from the trees—I just don’t care.  And if I don’t care, then no one else should.

The last “art” I am going to mention is that of use.  Some of you may think that there is no art to using knit items, but I think there is art in all sorts of things, my friends.  For me it would be very easy to not use these mittens because of the work I put into them and the possibility that I could lose one (because, as you may remember, I love them).  And then there is the very likely possibility of getting them dirty…with things like baby drool …

But if they don’t get used, they wouldn't live up to their functional purpose, and what possible good would that serve?  And though I don’t like to draw attention to myself, for the most part (I mean, I do have a blog after all), I want people to see my mittens and tell me how great they are, because I LOVE them, and the recognition of their greatness gives my mitten love all sorts of validity.

So if you aren’t already doing so, go knit something for yourself.  You know you’re worth it.

Anemoi Mittens

Pattern: by Eunny Jang

Yarn:Koigu (love), 1 skein each of off-white (0000) and medium blue (sorry, I have no idea about the color code/dye lot)

Needles: Aluminum US 2s, Bates?  Boyes?  I have no idea, they were fast and smooth.

Modifications:  Just one, I knit the cuffs on 2s instead of the prescribed 0s.  With the 0s I kept getting a cuff that Special K “thought was the start of a baby sock…” 

in repose

As always, there is knitting going on; but it's happening in a rather slow unhurried manner.  I take great pleasure in knitting anything; but, these mittens have taken me to a new plane of knitting bliss, seriously. 

I am enjoying every second of knitting on these mittens.  I have had to rip back and re-knit a few rows because of my inability to keep track of which row I am knitting every now and then, no matter.  I have found that with Koigu even tinking and ripping can be somewhat pleasant.  I am actually drawing out the process to further my enjoyment I think, because these mittens could, in fact, be a very quick knit.

I hope there are good weekends all around, particularly for those with long weekends (lucky you!).  Little Sir will get to experience the wonder of aquatic life for the first time tomorrow.  It will either freak him out royally, or leave him awestruck.  I am hoping for the latter as the former might involve screeching.  Happy weekend!