General Musings

After several months of computer woes, I am again able to keep track of my knitting. I've been to Medrith's Knitting Camp - great knitting, not great accomodations, learned to darn socks from Emily Ocker and saw some of her original lace work, picked Medrith's brain about short rows, Fair Isle evenness of gauge, the need to eliminate mistakes as soon as they are found, and a new kind of sweater construction - the Ginny cardigan. I've also been to the Ashland retreat with the Ample Knitters at the Ashland Springs Hotel - great accomodations and people, lots of fun but costly. Not only did we spend lots of time and money at Web*sters but I got a speeding ticket driving up with Sheila.

The new desk/drawer/shelf combo was designed today for both work and stash and knitting books; final decisions still need to be made (can we afford doors? Can we stand to have the work station not covered up?) but I should be able to fit all my stash in one room and closet. Pictures of the before to come soon; installation will probably be at least a month away.

Something finished, something started

Here is Jim's SF Giants sweater - finished just as the season was finished. Jo Sharp DK wool with black borders of Gems Merino. The diamond pattern is the same as on myLaurel sweater.
I added 3 pairs of short rows across the back shoulders and two 1 inch. gussets at the sides. I'm pleased with how it hangs straight across in front and back. The short rows are nearly invisible, as is the gusset as long as he keeps his arms down! Jim seems to like it too, and maybe next year it will bring the team a better season than this was.

And, just so my needles don't get cold - I swatched and started a new sweater for me. The yarns are 1 strand of Lacey Lamb (from Article Pract, in Oakland) a lace weight merino in my favorite color of teal, and 1 strand of hand dyed silk/merino fingering weight, from Ellen at her 1/2 Pint Farm in Vermont, which we visited a couple of years ago. The hand dyed is nicely aged and pairs well with the brand new Lacey Lamb. The chevron pattern is from "Latte" in Knitters' Summer 2006 page 57. I had to change the shape somewhat, to make it a-line, and redid the shoulders so they actually sit on my shoulders, and I'm going to think about doing the sleeves top down, and full length, but otherwise it's the same sweater. I will use the crochet edging by the designer, Robyn Diliberto.


I'm getting ready to head up to the Sierra's for five days of knitting with Medrith Glover, from October 8 through 12. The biggest question, of course, is how many projects to take, and whether to take a full selection of needles. The needles don't take up much room, so they'll all go. Maybe 5 projects - 2 mindless knitting (Anna's Ameilie sweater, Jim's current black silk Regia socks) one total concentration (Medrith's Seaweed vest - I need to decide if the cast on is acceptable. Can it be reined in enough to be a decent looking bottom edge? I hope so - I've got about 4 inches done and it is - v e r y s l o w knitting) and a couple of projects I can work on if there is something going on but I am not actively involved - an "in between concentration level" - my Malabrigo which will have the tavelling cables down the front to create an illusion of a waist, and maybe this new chevron sweater, and Sheila's Alberta Shawl. That should be enough - and if not, we visit Medrith's Woolroom on Tuesday. Just in case I get bored with what I bring. The spinning wheel might come too, if it fits in the car with all the yarn I'm bringing to give away, a small suitcase of clothes for each of us, and Jim's golf clubs. Jim will head out to Reno, for some wine and food, cars and visiting his sister Janet. For me, it'll be five days with no internet access, possibly without phone access, and knitting all day every day.

The other question is whether to go on the horseback ride. Not having been on a horse since I was about 18, I don't know if my back/bottom/legs can take it, and just think about the poor horse who'll have to carry me. I'll see what the other knitters are doing, and whether Jim wants to go that way.

A permanent UFO and a new project

This is going to be a pemanent UFO. It is about 2/3 of the back of a sweater designed by Kaffe Fassett on size 2 needles - Rowan wool and cotton and a variety of other Rowan yarns. Intarsia. You can see some of the strings that would have to be woven in on the back side if it were ever to be finished. I started this a very long time ago, never could get the gauge even, hate all the ends, and finally decided I would not start it. I'm not going to frog it, but maybe, as was suggested by Sandy, a knitting buddy, make it into a pillow. Or a bag. Just not something that requires more knitting. I don't mind size 2 needles, and now have gotten to the point where I can control my tension better, but I am DONE WITH INTARSIA. On yarn this fine, weaveing in the ends shows; and it would take longer to weave them in when it is finished than knitting the thing. I have enough of the yarn left to make at least a short sleeve sweater - maybe even a long-sleeved one, in stripes perhaps knit cuff to cuff. Sort of the same shape as Vivian Hoxbro's Kimono? Oh, maybe someday.

I did just start a new shawl for my friend Sheila - it's Alberta from Stahman's Shawls and Seaman's Scarves. Sheila bought the yarn on our trip with Jean Moss to England and Scotland in 2004; dyed mohair, from a women's collective in the very north of England. The yarn is sort of scratchy and stiff but softens up considerably when washed. Here's the start: the yarn is about fingering weight and I would normally knit it on a size 3 but for the shawl I'm using size 6 circulars from Knitpicks Options set.

Hoxbro shawl is finished! Anna turns 21

Here is a picture of the Laurel sweater on - I think it fits weel but is a bit more see-through than anticipated - worsted weight cotton and it will need a camisole of something underneath.






And - another FO - the Wing Shawl I knit as a sample for Carolina Homespun. The pattern is from Vivian Hoxbro and the yarn is Harrisville New England Highand. I used a size 7 needle. The pattern calls for fingering weight shetland but we wanted a larger shawl. Hard to see in the pictures, but it is shadow knit - both sides are the same colors but one has garnet ridges and yellow valleys and the other side has the colors reversed. Have to be careful that the back stripe hangs straight - very odd looking if it curves!

While in Baltimore the weekend of September 9 we celebrated Anna's 21st birthday. Here she is, all grown up, with her boyfriend Ken Levin, and a couple of photos of her with Jim and me:

A new start

Yesterday I started again on the Malabrigo yarn - after frogging the front that was done entirely in twisted rib I am now doing it in stockinette, with a single twisted rib that will be like princess seams down the front and the back. I'm going to try some waist shaping - or rather, a-line shaping on either side of the twisted rib so it will look like waist shaping. This is the first sweater I'm going to knit from Barbara Walker's Knitting from the Top Down and doing all the calculations myself. Math, ugh. This is the upper part of the back with short-rowed shoulders - the very best short rows I've ever done and the pickups are just about invisible. Neatly done, if I do say so myself! I hope to keep this a log on the sweater so if it fits I could use the pattern again.

So here goes: I'm using a circular H&S size 4.5 mm needle and getting 4.75 sts nad 6.5 rows to the inch. I provisionally cast on 76 sts, worked 3 rows and started short rowing. I'll work down to the top of where the armhole shaping starts but I haven't figure that out yet - that will probably have to wait until next week.

Here is where you can't see the short rows:

Anna's Home! and I visit the frog lake

Anna's Home! Back from Baltimore - Excited and scared about going to France; being on her own (more or less- she'll have a family there) for five months with visits from me and Jim, and Ken the boyfriend and other friends. She'll be here only 9 days, but bettern' nothin'.

She released me from the dreaded beaded sweater. Beading in knitting takes more patience than I have, especially when there are six other things waiting for attention all of which I enjoy working on. On Thursday last, I took Ora, an old friend (both in time and years) to Nine Rubies in San Mateo http://www.ninerubies.com/ . She didn't need yarn (who does) but wanted something new. She loved the shop - open, well-lit, spacious, sales people who knew when to help and when to step back. She ended up getting some Amelie by GGH- 100% nylon "eyelash" yarn (see it here: (look under yarn manufacturers - GGH, then by name, Amelie)
http://www.jimmybeanswool.com
It's strange stuff - solid core, with lots of fuzzies that don't fall off or shed. Soft as angora. So I showed the sample to Anna and she loved its look and feel and so now a bunch of it is on its way to me. I checked the LYS to see if they had the color she wanted (teal) and they didn't so I ordered it from Jimmy Beans Wool, which is in Truckee and a lovely store. My first all nylon sweater.

So still on the needles:
the Hoxbro shawl for Carolina Homespun - about 65% done
Jim's orange and black diamond pullover - one sleeve done, body cast on
my Diamond Patch - in the third row of diamonds
my Hoxbro kimono - about 90% of the first half done
Jim's Mermaid vest - it would be finished if he needed a 5 inch side seam length!

So that's two things off the needles - both frogged - the Malabrigo, which is going to become a top down pullover with some kind of openwork& cable down the front; and Anna's beaded Cotton Fleece. Deciding something is going to be frogged and not finished is very freeing, almost as good as being finished with it! Now the question is what to do with all that cotton fleece! Maybe a baby blanket, to be had at the ready.

The Diamond Patch goes quickly but I'm not at all sure it will look good when finished. My gauge is right on to what I figured but each new patch pulls the last one sideways so that it is now too wide and probably not long enough. I'm onto the third row of diamonds and have gone down 2 needle sizes. After this row, the rest will be on US size 8. It's cotton ribbon so I'm not sure how it will hold blocking, but it might stretch the right way when hung. My first modular garment - I enjoy the process and hope the best for the project.

Projects, finished and in progress and AK list withdrawal

First up: the finished Laurel. I name sweaters by the kind of yarn, or the pattern or possibly by the recipient. But when I'm knitting for me I use just the name of the yarn. So this sweater is knit in Laurel, mercerized, multi-color cotton from Shaeffer Yarns. Not great to knit; it's got little give and is hard on the hands but it is a joy to wear. Pattern was done using Sweater Wizard and is A-line, knit in pieces from the bottom up, v-neck, with set in sleeves. The stitch pattern is from Basically Brilliant Knits.

Of course there are the exceptions: This is the Diamond Patch, pattern by Jill Vosberg at Just One More Row.









And this orange and black is Jim's SF Giants sweater - DK wool from Jo Sharp, same stitch pattern as in my Laurel above.



And next up is Anna's diamond beaded sweater, pattern from Rowan's Classic Knits for Real Women. One sleeve and one front is done; I re-wrote the pattern for Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece and reshaped it a bit. The beads make the front very heavy. I washed the swatch in the machine and it shrunk up a bit in length only; the pattern as I did it allows for the shrinkage. What looks like yo lace is actually clear crystal beads.

I've been spending more time on the internet dealing with Shelda Eggers' retirement of the Ample Knitters list than knitting. She is taking a well deserved rest from running this list. There are two lists trying to fill her shoes, neither is doing a perfect job but since we can't have the original they'll have to do. I knew I would miss the list and Shelda and all the regulars but I had no idea how much. It's like a friendship ended too soon for one of the friends. But I will continue knitting through this crisis as Elizabeth Zimmermann said we should. If I could toast I would toast SE and EZ who together taught me that I could do it if I really tried.

Front entrance changes

We had some new plantings on the front entrance to the house. Looks much neater, no overgrown and leggy plants, trees that are planted in the dirt instead of inside their intact plastic posts, and new colors.

One FO and one New WIP

Finished Sherlock: I'm very pleased with this sweater! It fits nicely, and I think it looks okay if I may say so. I used Carol Hurt's method of ampling - a needle one size larger for the bottom. Didn't interupt the pattern at all. This was designed using Sweater Wizard, top down raglan style. I did the front bands twice. The first time the button holes were not even and looked awful; but I had to cut the band off because I sewed the buttons on so tightly that I couldn't get them off any other way. The final button hole was a simple YO, k2tog. because the buttons are tiny.

And one new project: The Diamond Patch sweater designed by Jill Vosberg (Just One More Row). The yarn is a cotton knitted ribbon from Blue Heron Yarns. The pattern gives lots of options for construction (it's modular knitting) and sizing. I'm using a 46 st. diamond, horizontal method, and 6 diamonds around. The bottom row will be on size 8 mm. and the middle row on 7 mm.; the bodice and sleeves on 5.5 mm. You can see the difference one mm. makes in the picture here:

I'm going to make at least 3/4 length sleeves, maybe full length if I have enough yarn. It's on the bottom of the list of projects, though, because there are so many things in front of it on the queue.

Needles According to Nina

My Definitive Needle Analysis

Disclaimer: my opinion and my opinion only!

First Choice: Holz and Stein "children's" needles: 10 in. length, ebony with rosewood knob or rosewood with ebony knob. Smooth, warm, beautiful, sharp points for lace, hard to come by and smaller sizes are somewhat delicate. Useful for small projects or small parts of large projects because the back of a sweater to fit me or Jim or Anna won't fit on them. Sleeves and/or fronts, bands, collars, flat knit scarves and hats do fine. Available from Susanne in Germany at www.dasstrickforum.de and maybe from http://www.catherineknits.com in Brooklyn.

Okay Substitute: hand turned 10-12 in. rosewood needles with short tapered point and minimal decorative turning on the non-working end. I got one set at TKGA in Oakland in April, 2006 and available through Carolina Homespun. These were very expensive and don't come any smaller than US 8.

Also okay substitute: Lantern Moon 10-11 in. straights, from Viet Nam in beautiful woods, but not available in anything smaller than a US size 5. The taper on the points is a little shorter than H&S but the points are nice and sharp for cables and lace. Also expensive.

First choice (and only choice for me) for socks: Double points from Crystal Palace. Bamboo, impregnated with some kind of resin so they don't snap and take a long time to be bent to my hand. Mostly I use US sizes 0, 1, 1.5, and 2 and occasionally 2.5.

Second Choice: H&S circular needles. Same wonderfully sharp points and perfect taper, smooth wam, and beautiful in my hands and lovely to look at. The joins are smooth but not perfect; I imagine joining wood and plastic is difficult. The cables are flexible, smooth and very thin. I had the entire front band of my Sherlock sweater on a 24 in. needle - that's 408 stitches. I use the circulars for everything that doesn't fit on my children's length needles unless the yarn needs a blunter point or is very sticky and needs the slickness of metal needles.

Third choice for specific yarn: WAS Addi Turbos for yarn that is too stickly for the H&S joins, but now that I have my Knit Picks interechangeable set I prefer these. The Addis' point is much too thick for lace that requires a lot of K2tog. or K3tog. At the moment I am using a size 3 mm for my Fair Isle vest using Harrisville Shetland wool that is 2 ply, splits a bit, and is somewhat sticky. The points on the Knit Picks set is sharp and these babies are slick. The taper is a bit long, requiring moving some stitches off by finger push, and the working end could be another half-inch long. And, the cables are purple! I like them sufficiently that I'm selling my Denise set. (See below)

Third choice for other yarns: Brittany Birch 12 inch straights - lovely points, warm in the hands. not as smooth or as beautiful as the rosewood/ebony of H&S. For circulars, Clover bamboo - ok join but not as smooth as H&S, points are midway between blunt and sharp, and readily availableif I need a specific size and my H&S are busy on another project.

Needles I have and won't use:

Pony pearl straights - these sit in a Yarn Angel vase; look pretty but are unpleasently heavy with blunt points and no discernible advantages
Hand turned walnut needles with a full 2 1/2 inch decorative end. Why lug the extra weight? They look lovely in the Yarn Angel vase.
Balene dps and straights: I've given these away. They bend in my hand, which makes for very slow knitting, the points have a nib on the end that sent a little shock wave up my wrist with every stitch.
Inox: I have at least 2 full sets, 1 marked in British imperial sizes that I bought years ago at Harrods, and another set in American sizes. I used these until I discovered first birch, then bamboo, then ebony. The 14 in onces I can't use at all because the weight of a project spread out over the length is too much for my previously damaged and somewhat fragile right elbow.
Colonial Rosewood straights with very blunt points that I have tried unsuccesfully to sharpen; the wood is not smooth and catches lots of kinds of yarn.
Suzanne's rosewood circulars: a poor imitation of H&S. The joins are rough with a metal piece that snags yarns. Some of the joins are better than others but your have to check each individual needle before purchase. They are expensive and not worth the price.
Crystal Palace bamboo circulars: these have a plastic nib between the cable and the metal piece that holds the bamboo in place. Each stitch has to be slid over the nib individually which is both a pain and very time consuming.

Which brings me to the Denise interchangeable set which I just sold. The points are blunt, the cable is as thick as the size 7 needle tips and it's sticky to boot. Moving stitches along on this thing is like moving a yarn over a finger that has adhesive left from a BandAid. The smallest size is supposed to be a US 5 but actually measures a 6. Can't wait to be rid of these! They were useful as a stitch holder for an entire sweater knit in the round to let it be tried on, or for a shawl to check the width but that's about it.

Needles I don't have: those with decorative knobs made of glass, ceramic, pearls and other precious stones, or polymer clay. They put weight on the wrong end. Glass needles. I can bend and break wood needles, can you imagine what would happen if I snapped a glass one in my hand? And Boye Needle Master interchangeable - way too expensive for aluminum.

I am very glad we knitters have so many choices; each of us is bound to find some needles that are perfect for the kind of project we are working on!

Frog pond visit

I do have a life other than knitting - and here's proof. DH Jim, wiht our brand new Lancer Evo MR. It replaces our beloved white Integra Type R, stolen a month ago from a public parking garage in Oakland. 0-60 in 4.3 seconds, once we get the turbo broken in. And our two kitties, on their window perches, Eleanor in front and Frosty (the white one) in back.

And on the left we have a picture of the Sherlock raglan knit from the top down and 2 button choices. So I picked the smaller diamond shaped black and gold (colors of the sweater are way off on my monitor - it's mostly dark purple and black). Got the band all picked up and knit and it doesn't pucker or pull, the fronts are even, the pick up is looking fine. Get the buttons sewn on. Try it on. Look in the mirror to figure out why it's so hard to button. The button holes are on the wrong side AND they are way too uneven. I was so pleased with the bands and the way they fit I finished off the ends and sewed on the buttons so well THEY WOULD NEVER COME OFF. I had to cut most of the band and then unravel back to the pick up row.

I hereby promise myself and the knitting Goddess that I will always stop when knitting bands to count and use the proper math formula to determine the distance between button holes. I will always try on the thing before I sew buttons or finish the ends so well they can't be found with a magnifying glass. I will pat attention to what I'm doing no matter how much I want the blasted sweater done NOW.

And next we have some sock toes that were worn through by the toes of the same DH seen above with the car. I cut the toes off and picked up stitches and reknit the toes, using stranded knitting which made them look a bit weird - the stranding pulls in about 1/2 inch from the non-stranded part - but the double yarn might help them wear a little longer. I'm going to use a size 0 needle for the next toes, and I will never knit him toe up socks! Frogging the right way is bad enough after the socks have been worn and worn and washed and washed, but to try to re-knit socks that were started at the toe? No thanks.

Knitting in Salinas

On UFO night (Monday) I was down here in Salinas, CA for work. But being a dutiful knitting I brought with me two, well, okay four, projects one of which definitely qualifies as a UFO in my definition. It's the second Vivial Hoxbro kimono. Love the yarn, love the pattern, want to wear it ...but I've done it already. I have definitely learned my lesson: do not plan or attempt to knit the same thing twice. I got about 10 rows done last night and realize that it will take me forever on size 2.5 US needles. I have one sleeve done and I'm working on the part wehre both front and back and shoulder are on the needles. There must be a gazillion stitches on this poor 24 inch roundneedle. But I will slog through it so I can wear it maybe next year to Stitches.

I spend most of Sunday trying to figure out what kind of buttonband and collar to put on the Sherlock. Toyed with lots of ideas, from a classic shawl collar (it has a v-neck) to a ruffle. Pulled out all the refrence books and lots of magazines and pattern books and swatched a coupld of things. Finally decided that I'm not the ruffle type. (Does this surprise me? Have I ever worn ruffles since the age of 2?) Shawl collar will limit it's use I think and I don't want to knit that much more on this yarn which splits. So I settled on a plain 2 in. seed stitch band. I added a couple of short rows at teh back of the neck to accomodate a lovely bit of excess there and hope that this will help the back hang straight. I might end up sewing the fronts together, with buttons on a fake button hole band - have to wait and see how it fits when the blocking is done.

The other things I brought with me: the Laurel. Jim wants his SF Giants orange pullover in the same stitch pattern. But mine is variegated cotton; his is plain orange Jo Sharp wool; mine is knit in pieces; his will be in the round, I have set in sleeves, his will have saddled shoulders. I hope this will be enough difference so I don't think of it as the same thing over again.

And lastly, 2 pairs of socks. One in leftover sock yarn for me (I've got little feet and like short socks) and some sposrt weight fingle for Jim.

When I get home maybe I'll add some pictures here.

We have to face buying a new car soon. Jim's white type R was stolen 3 weeks ago from a parking garage in Oakland CA; the insurance company is about to settle with us. The decision to be made is what to replace it with. Something fast and unruly or something sedate and boring but cheap. Decisions don't come easily to us on such things.

Reorganizing

Today was time for reorganizing. I took all of my projects, each in its own bag, emptied every bag, and looked at it all. Make 3 small zippered pouches of tools and implements - markers, tape measures, stitch holders, sewing needles etc. and put them in 3 bags. Then realized that 7 on-going projects is too many. And, almost all of them are blue/black/green/purple or some slight variation.
So I decided I have to realign my priorities, and stick to the list or nothing will ever get done.
1. My Sherlock sweater - only 1 sleeve left to do from the armhole down, front bands, and then figure out what to do about a collar.
2. Jim's Seaweed vest -in case I get into Knitting Camp I want to have it almost done so I can secure the steek and cut it there. I got 8 rows done in about an hour, slow but steady and lots of fun. I decided that, unlike Medrith, I like being able to memorize the pattern so I am not offsetting the strands of seaweed .
3. Anna's beaded sweater from Classic Knits For Real Women. I strung about half the 2500 beads. We're talking real tedium here. And then I got the first sleeve done to the armhole. It's in Brown Sheep cotton fleece, and trying to keep the knitting even is hard because even the slightest variation in tension shows. I love the look of the cotton fleece and know it will be great to wear but I don't care for working on it.
4. Laurel - the back and one sleeve is done, the front is about 5 inches up. Again, I love the way it looks but the cotton is hard on my hands. I want to wear it this summer so I better get moving on it.
5. Malabrigo - 2 sleeves (not matching) are done. One with Joan Schrouder's idea of the decreases down the outside looks great, the other will have to visit the frog pond. One front panel is almost done and now I'm not sure I like the twisted rib stright up the front. It's heavy and very dense. Maybe I'll try again with some plain ribs in between the twisted ones.
6. Socks, more for Jim and some for me, (actually, mine aren't on the needles yet but the needles are ready with the yarn to start)
7. My second Hoxbro Kimono - knit cuff to cuff I'm at the middle of the first shoulder. I like working on this but I'm afraid at this point it's a UFO. Never gets picked up.

So that's the list and here's the plan. I'll alternate a cotton project with a wool one, one day cotton, one day wool, until at least 3 are done.

Poor Frosty, his leg got torn on something outside during his five minute stalk through the back yard, a week ago. He has stitches on his leg and he is shaved in 3 places. Sitches come out Monday or Tuesday. He's getting a lot of extra lap time and for the first 6 days we followed him around to prevent him from chewing off the stitches. He hated the little plastic collar the vet gave us to keep him from licking the stitches and he couldn't navigate in it. Bumped into things and couldn't eat or drink so we mostly kept it off.

Well, that's all for now.

WIPS May 12, 2006

Feeling overwhelmed by the number of things occupying needle space I have decided to cataglogue everything in progress, and try to prioritize/organize what I work on. So, in order of closest to being finished first I have:

Jim's mystery socks-mystery fiber - from the Adella for whom Adella's yarn shop is named. I'm about to turn the heel on the second sock. Part of his holiday present, these are the May socks. On the right - Body of my Sherlock cardigan and a closeup of the pattern. I'm using Carol Hurt's a-lining system of using a larger needle for a-lining the bottom. The bottom finishing is an open question - hem? I-cord? The pattern is a k3 p1 diagonal rib - I thought that no additional bottom treatment would be needed but this curls as if it were all stockinette.

And the next group: On the left, 2 pictures of my Laurel which has become a pullover. The back and a closeup of the pattern. Back and 1 sleeve are done, front is started. And on the right, a neck scarf pattern from Hand Jive Knits in camel, hand spun and hand dyed by a collective in Mongolia. This is another sample for Carolina Homespun. Size 8 needles, the largest in a while!











Next up, a cardigan in Malabrigo, kettle dyed merino from Uruguay. Softest wool I've ever work on. The color is actually deep blues with some blud/grey. I'm doing the sleeve increases in the middle of the sleeve and not at the seam line - a decorative twisted rib up the middle. Joan Schrouder's idea, really, to have the sleeve curve at the outside where the arm it will cover curves. My first time trying this, and I'll keep you posted on how it goes. This is the project I pick up when my hands get tired or sore; working on this spectacular yarn is soothing and calming physically and mentally.


This is the beginning of the Mermaid vest, a Medrith Glover design in Sweaters from Camp. The yarn is Jamieson and Smith, actual Shetland yarn. I think I'm postponing working on this because the rib is easy in comparison to the body. The plan was to have this done to bring to show and tell at Meg Swansen's knitting camp in July but now that I'm on the waiting list the incentive to get it done isn't as great. Once I get into the pattern it will be closed door knitting.


And the last WIP is the Bead Trellis Jacket for daughter Anna. The pattern is from Classic Knits for Real Women. Changed the pattern, of course, to a smaller gauge yarn (Brown Sheep Cotton Classic) and reworked it so the shoulders are narrower. The beads are sort of clear/irridescent, 1000s of them. The first sleeve is close to being done, and this I think I'm putting off because it means I have to start stringing the beads for the fronts and back.

I also have one UFO. The poor Kimono jacket from Vivian Hoxbro. A picture of this is on an earlier blog; it doesn't get much attention, probably because it is the second one I'm making and I have learned from this that I don't like to do the same pattern twice.

Finally, the next project up: (right afater I said I don't like to do the same pattern twice) is the stitch pattern from my Laurel sweater in Jo Sharp orange classic wool in a knit-in-the-round pullover for Jim. I'm justifying this because
1. I have the yarn and it's different than the cotton Laurel I'm using in my sweater;
2. It is in SF Giants' colors for the first Pitch and Stitch day at Willie Mays Field (correct name: AT&T Park);
3. this one will be done in the round.
So there you have it. TOO MANY PROJECTS!

THe joy of wearing Alka

Here is what my lovely Alka shawl looks like on me. This one I'm keeping, for sure.

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Awesome Alka

Alka is done; she's washed and stretched on the blocking board (with wires and pins) and looks like this:



The yarn is Maritona, a cabled merino wool no longer available. Knit on size 6 needles, when stretched, it measures about 38 inches from the back of the neck to the bottom and the wingspan is about 65 inches. The pattern is from Myrna Stahman's Faroese Shaped Shawls . I ampled it a bit by adding an extra set of center back panel increases and an extra set of side panel increases as Myrna suggested in the book. The yarn split a lot while being knit but that may be because most of it had a previous life as a partially knit and frogged cabled cardigan. Reskeining and washing helped with the crimp but it still was split-happy. The color is a little hard to see - it's taupe, a grayish beige. Should look okay over black, which I insist on wearing despite having a white kitty who sheds constantly. My last post showed the shawl before blocking, and I must say I had my doubts but after being stretched I'm pleased with how it looks.
And while I had the camera out I took a picture of the king-size bed quilt, a sampler I made about 22 years ago while taking a brief break from knitting.

Combination knitting decreases and some more FOs

This is why I love to start lots of things atabout the same time - lots of finished objects at the same time. The black merino topdown raglan for Morgan (designed with Sweater Wizard) is done, well;almost. The zipper is just basted but I'm waiting for the sweater to dry on the blocking board before I sew it in. Waiting to be blocked is my Alka shawl from Myrna Stahman's Faroese Shawls and Seaman's Scarves - tiny before blocking and kind of blobby looking, but hopefully with some serious blocking to show the lace it will be fine and ample enough. Now that I see it I could have done another row of diamonds before the lace edging, but frankly I had enough of those diamonds. Someday soon I'll have to do a lace weight shawl - that will take me months and months of intense knitting but I will do it, soon . . . Here's the black raglan done, and the Alka before blocking.









In case there is any interest here is how I manage left and right slanted and centered double decreases when doing the combination purl. Description and a video about how to do this simple and quick purl stitch can be found at: http://www.anniemodesitt.com/purl.html

When using the combination purl with the knit stitches mounted so the back leg is the leading leg to get a:

Left slanted decrease - knit 2 tog. through the back loop

Right slanted decrease – slip the 1^st st. off the needle and twist it so the leading leg is in the front and replace on left hand needle. Then knit 2 tog. through the front loop . (this is what non-combination knitters do to get a left slant – it’s called SSP, only our way you only have to slip the first st. and not both of them)

Centered double decrease: slip first st. off left hand needle, and replace it on the left hand needle twisting so the leading leg is in front; then slip 1^st 2 sts. (as if to knit the noncombination way) back to the right hand needle. Then knit the 3^rd st. and pass the 2 slipped sts. over the knit stitch.

Okay, now I'm off to finish the birthday socks and a couple of sweaters before starting on the Seaweed vest.

FINISHED OBJECTS! The Cascading Hearts shawl from Jackie at www.heartstringsfiberarts.com as a sample for Morgaine Wilder of Carolina Homespun, who models it here. I used 6 skeins of Malabrigo, kettle-dyed merino in a heavy worsted weight on a US size 9 - the whole thing weighs only 21 oz. The yarn is a joy to work with and very very soft - I can wear very little wool but this I can wear next to my skin. The pattern is well written and easy to follow. The scarf, also a sample, is of merino twist and mohair dyed by Morgaine in a ruching pattern. Patterns and yarn available from www.carolinahomespun.com

Having finished two projects for samples I decided it was time to start something complicated again. Not fussing around, I ordered and promptly received Jamieson and Smith Shetland jumperweight from Medrith Glover's Woolroom in Quincy, CA for her Seaweed vest from Sweaters from Camp. The colors are glorious and the yarn easy to work with. It's naturally sticky so the steeks won't be as scary as cutting smooth wool would be. My husband will get to wear this, not like the pink Susan shawl he modeled! I did a circular swatch on US size 3 but thought it was a bit dense, so then did a "quick swatch" using the method suggested by Meg Swansen in the book on size 4. After steaming it was limp as a wet dishrag and the swatch on size 3 was lovely and held its shape nicely. So size 3 it is, but it didn't photograph well so the photo is of the size 4 swatch. I thought while reading the pattern I would be able to use the figures Medrith worked up but forgot to compare them to my husband's measurements, and I have to re-work the entire pattern fitting in the seaweed fronds. Silly me to even think of knitting something in a pattern without changes. Actual casting on will have to wait until I finish Cheryl's birthday socks (Lorna's laces sport weight; they will be fraternal twins), and the lace edging on the Alka shawl for me.

Now that baseball is upon us I also have to work on a couple of projects that don't require great attention so I can, um, "watch" baseball with Jim. Can't really complain; he is going to go to knitting camp with me if I get in, and puts up with my draping the stairwell with yarn and leaving knitting bags next to every chair in the house and telling him things like: I don't care if you'll wear it, I'm knitting it. SO I'll get some time to finish the diagonal knit in Sherlock, and the Laurel sweater that I already posted the first sleeve. Ok enough blabbing, now to the needles.