Category Archives: knitting

not finished yet…

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But look! Progress!

thuja-1

I cast on for Thuja today, two days before Christmas. I was planning to concede that I just can’t get it all done, and wrap up the yarn and some measuring instructions for my dad, but this morning I decided to throw that plan out the window and try to get at least one sock ready to wrap. I’ve been knitting most of the day, and I’m going to kitchener this bitch tonight. (Apologies if that offends. It’s late, and it is how I feel!) Here’s one more shot:

thuja-2

Remember those mittens I mentioned yesterday? The ones in Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Cotton? Was I crazy? Cabling AND knitting a super dense fabric out of cotton? My hands did not like me very much last night, and I wasn’t happy with the fit as I made progress on the first mitten, though the cabling did look lovely. I frogged that, and then my mother, in a totally unplanned JoAnn’s encounter (we were looking for denim patches), picked out some polyester/acrylic blend Lion Brand Homespun, and requested a scarf. I was skeptical, being that I detest acrylic, but this isn’t looking too hideous, and she is really happy with it.

homespun-scarf1

I’m just improvising here with something super basic, and I’m pretty happy with it. I’d actually like to make some variation of this scarf, with alternating blocks of garter and stockinette, in a super-luxurious tweedy yarn.  This doesn’t need to be finished in time for Christmas — I just wanted to have something in progress to tuck into the gorgeous Namaste bag I’m giving my (mostly non-knitting) mother.

Alright, time to crawl into bed and kitchener before drifting off to sleep.

still knitting…

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First off, the boy seemed quite pleased with the socks and mittens. He tried everything on immediately on Friday night, and was showing off the mittens at the Saturday farmers’ market. He’s a bit camera shy, so I have no modeled pictures to share. Onto holiday knitting:

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There’s a wireless signal in my bedroom at my parents’ house. I’m not sure if this is good or bad for my holiday knitting. Either way, it is good for blogging. Today, about twenty minutes before my brother arrived, I finished Turn A Square, and to echo everyone who has already made one (or twenty), I love this pattern. I want one, and I will definitely be making a bunch more. What a nice hat to add to the knits-for-boys arsenal. Take a look:

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Also, I started another pair of Cruiser mittens for my mom, in Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Cotton. (My mom has a wool sensitivity/allergy, which makes knitting for her tough.) I’m giving her a Namaste bag for Christmas, but I wanted to tuck something warm and handknit inside, so I’m hoping I can squeak two mittens out of one skein…

cruiser-2

I’m making the smallest size, because this yarn is a bit thicker than the Malabrigo I used on the first pair, and because it is cotton, and I want the cuff to be snug.

I’ll leave you with a winter shot of a cardinal at the feeder in my parents’ yard. I’ll be back when I have more progress to report!

cardinal

too ambitious?

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blocking-mittens

Maybe not. Yesterday I managed to knit mitten number two, and now the pair is blocking. The outsides are dry, but the insides may still be a bit damp when I gift these later today. I have them on the heater, and if they magically dry in the next few hours, they will be immediately useful.

I wanted to post a picture I snapped two minutes ago of the snow falling outside, but wordpress says I can’t upload any images at this moment. I guess that means the other project I started yesterday will also remain a mystery for now…

Back to knitting!

cruisering.

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That’s right. The act of knitting cruiser.

first-mitten-dark

first-mitten-2

I knit this mitten 1.5 times because I misread the pattern and put the thumb at a weird place, and even with the extra knitting, I started this mitten on Tuesday night and knit the thumb Wedneday night after hosting an impromptu dinner party. Cruiser is the right name for these mittens! (Details: Malabrigo in Olive, size 6 dpns.) I’m hoping these will also be for the boy, particularly becuase I’m not sure how well the socks will wear, and these will definitely do some solid warming work this winter. I’m knitting the largest size, but as I don’t have any hand measurements to go on, and these fit me pretty well, I’m worried. I’m going to block them aggressively once I knit mitten numbah 2, and see what happens. I do think I’m due for some malabrigo mittens…

How about more food pictures from week #2 of paper-writing?

food-mill-in-action

Food mill in action.

applesauce

Tada! Smooth applesauce!

sushi

Tofu, avocado and brown rice sushi. Delicious.

Alright, time to go cast on for the second mitten! I imagine I’ll be posting more about my holiday knitting decisions soon, mostly because I’m still deciding…

almost…

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write

I’m in the homestretch: writing my last paper of my first semester of grad school. Oh, what’s that I’m wearing?

action

More knits in action: thanksgiving day mitts, clapotis and le slouch. It’s cold in my apartment! Also, someone has earned his socks, though he won’t get them til next week:

m-bread

Fact: fresh bread makes paper writing ever-so-much more bearable.

Hope you’re well. I’ll be posting more knitting progress when I actually get to pick up my needes again — there is a looming pile of holiday knits waiting for me once I’m done writing…

action shots.

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action-shot1

close-up

Brrr! It’s cold outside! (And inside, in my apartment, often mid-day, when the heat takes a break.) That means it is time to bundle up and take Boh out for a stroll. Nothing much to report over here — today was an uber-productive day. My long paper is half written, I have a better sense of where the paper is going, the boy came over and made dinner/impressed me with his crossword skillz, and I’m currently listening to Neil Young croon, “Baby mellow my miiiiind…” (Okay, so I’ve been listening to that song on repeat.) If I can read and summarize an additional book for class tomorrow, I get to do a bit of knitting before bed.

Hope you all had restful holidays — good luck getting back into your Monday routines tomorrow!

leftovers.

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No, not that kind. (Though my mother did send me home with multiple Tupperware containers of turkey soup.) I’ve finished the hiking socks for the boy, and I can’t wait for him to wear them. I like to give gifts on non-holidays, and I may end up giving him his socks a bit early, particularly because of the very kind praise my family lavished upon them on Thanksgiving. Requests for socks were voiced, and my cousin pronounced that they looked like “real socks”. I did, however, come up with a way to slow myself down: I don’t quite know how they’ll wear, as they aren’t made of sock yarn, and I’ve never made anything out of Cascade 220 superwash. Thus, I present the first half of a pair:

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Same, but different. These are for me. Test socks, if you will. I had 2 balls of yarn for the boy socks, and started each sock with a new ball, as I didn’t want to have to join new yarn at an inopportune moment. The leftovers looked like enough for one girl sock from each ball — and on this first sock, it was close: 44 stitches around (which is a tad loose on me, but 40 st with this yarn is too snug), stockinette, heel flap, and not quite a full toe — ran out of yarn at 10 st on each needle.

You’ll notice that I’m ridiculously verbose today — seems I can do that everywhere but in the paper I’m writing. Tomorrow’s a new day, and I’ll be aiming for uber-productivity in the land of schoolwork, punctuated with knitting breaks to work on sock #2.

___ tired.

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sleep1

sleep21

We’re nearing the end of the semester, and we both feel this way. Luckily, we’ve had a little bit of this:

snow

crazy

It is time to really dig into the papers I have to write in order to finish out the semester, and I’m having a hard time locating my motivation to get into these particular projects. I realized this weekend that this is okay, and that the progress I’ve made this semester has required a lot of energy and effort, and it is beginning to catch up to me. I’m looking forward to the change of scenery my parents’ house will provide later on this week. I’ll certainly be bringing a pile o’ books with me, but I haven’t been home for Thanksgiving in several years, and I’m anticipating a whole lot of laughter and some personal battery recharging. I’ll also be bringing some knitting…

socks-near-door

But probably not these! They just need to be kitchenered. I deceived the boy, and asked him to try them on because it is a new pattern and I wanted to be sure that they’d fit my father — the boy and my dad have similarly sized feet. Sock #1 fit perfectly! I am seriously considering gifting these now, just because.

Eek: two full days’ worth of work between me and turkey preparation. Must get back to it!

half a pair…

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boy-sock-1

All I can say is worsted weight. It makes socks fly! (Also, knitting is often more fun than reading for class.) I did some bargaining with myself when I got home from class this afternoon: if I let myself finish the first sock, I need to read 100 pages of the next book before bed. Time to go hold up my end of the deal!

spooky forests and superwash socks.

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spooky-forest

Friday afternoon, we went frolicking slightly further afield. We hopped in the car and headed south to a nearby state forest to stretch our muscles and allow our minds to unwind a bit from a busy week. If you’ve been reading, you know I’ve been looking for good boy sock patterns, and the hang-up I’ve been facing has to do with how “fancy” sock patterns and sock yarn can be. I’ve settled on some socks made out of good, old-fashioned Cascade 220 superwash, as the feet they are intended for spend most of their time in hiking boots, romping through the woods.

socks-for-m

Here’s what I’ve got so far — I’m using size 5 needles, and keeping my fingers crossed that the fabric is dense enough to support the amount of use I hope these get. Should I be thinking about carrying nylon thread along with the yarn for the heel? I should be reading right now, but I’d so much rather be working on these socks — or better still, off in the woods with boy and dog.

Here’s a picture of my reading companion. If only he’d start pulling his weight around here…

who-me

Back to the books. Have a great Sunday!