Trish Knits.com

Category: blog

  • Weekend Knitting

    Another weekend where I had hoped to get a ton of knitting done, and yet, there has been only a small amount of progress. I’m still working on this:

    E.B. in progress
    E.B. in progress

    which, I am convinced, has now been in progress since at least the dawn of time and is, as far as I can tell, about a month and a half behind schedule. I am about to change colors yet again… to do another small stripe of the brown and then back to the cream color. I do enjoy knitting it, but its one main fault is that I cast on to make it TOO BIG, too wide, exactly, so it takes far longer to complete a row than I wish it would. On the other hand, by virtue of its enormousness, it will not be quickly outgrown, and, I hope, will become a much-loved thing. At least I can hope, right? I know it is the dream of every knitter that his or her knitted object would be the one thing that the recipient uses most often and cannot live without, when in fact, the opposite is most likely true. Most recipients wind up under-using their gift for fear of “ruining” such a special thing. If you’re reading this, and you’ve been gifted with a handmade thing? USE IT! The person who made it for you will want to know that you love it and use it well. And, if it gets worn out? So what? A good excuse to ask for another knitted thing.

    So, I do not know what will become of this project when it is gifted. I hope that it will be used and loved, but I am resigned to the fact that I have no control over what becomes of it. So, for me, it is the loving of the making that motivates me, not what the recipient will do. It has to be that way. Or, let’s face it. I’d lose what’s left of my mind.

    In the “Knitting Day is a Good Day” category, yesterday at knit group, everyone was excited about a new (to us) knit book. And here’s why we were excited:

    This knitting book was on sale for $2.99!
    This knitting book was on sale for $2.99!
    Get a load of that price tag! I must admit that I never met a knitting book in the bargain bin before. For the right price, I’ll buy anything! Haha. I think thanks to our group, there was not one copy left behind yesterday. And, well, upon getting it home, I think I can see why it was in the bargain bin. This book is no Handknit Holidays, which, I thought, was an exquisite collection of patterns.

    I do like that the book offers some “quick knit” type gifts, and I guess they are well suited to a beginner (mostly). The thing is? They look like it. Is there such a thing as a simple knit that doesn’t look like it was a simple knit? I can’t put my finger on it, but a lot of the things in this book just looked, well, sloppy. Oddly-shaped Christmas stockings (more than one!) and a sweater that I wouldn’t be caught dead doing anything other than housework in. Then there’s the just plain odd: a baby hat with a pocket, yes a pocket, they say, for tucking a small toy in. A toy in a pocket on your head. Ok, what baby isn’t going to find that annoying?

    Perhaps I’m being far too critical. I’m usually not like this; I always find something to like about every book I buy. But this one? So far the only thing I loved about it was–the price. Dear bookstore, please keep putting your overstocked knitting books in the bargain bin and yes, even if they’re weird, you know I’ll buy them There’s a sucker born every minute.

  • Not Exactly Like Riding a Bike

    Long before I was a knitter, I was a crocheter. I think I have always loved yarn. But, back in 2003, when my niece was born, I crocheted an afghan for her and was in so much pain when I was done, that I pretty much decided that my crocheting days were over. Except maybe for a little bit of trim here and there, maybe, I was done.

    Of course it didn’t take me long to figure out that I missed playing with yarn. So I became determined to learn to knit, and by 2004 I was already starting to blog about it.

    But then last week, someone asked me to contribute a couple of afghan squares to a project. I could, of course, have knitted them, but the squares are in memory of an avid crocheter. So, in this case, it didn’t seem right to knit.

    I had recently purchased the Soft Touch Crochet Hook Gift Set from Knit Picks, because I figured that of all the crochet hooks in the world, these would be easiest for me to handle. I’m still not planning to ever crochet an entire bedspread or cabled and bobbled baby blanket, but every knitter needs a set of crochet hooks handy, right?

    So, I thought, squares are small enough, I can probably do them without causing too much stress on the hand. So, I picked up a hook and some yarn, made a slip knot, and chained and joined to make a circle, then began. I got to the end of the first round, and froze. I couldn’t remember how to join and keep going, in a way that wasn’t making my square look lop-sided. Luckily, I found this video:

    And even with this, I had to watch three times, and then bring my yarn to the computer and crochet along with the demonstration to get it right. But, I think I finally did! And look:

    my little crocheted square
    my little crocheted square

    I think I’m going to insert occasional rounds of a contrasting color in single crochet, just so it’s not too boring, and then the other one will be more girlie, and maybe I’ll even knit that one, or at least partially. I’m thinking of trying my hand with double knitting, and doing hearts. Or maybe I’ll make a quick heart a la Elizabeth Zimmermann and apply it to a square. I don’t know yet. Wish me luck with the deciding!

    Ciao for now… and let’s hope this is finally a return to more regular blogging.

    (Happy Birthday, Dad. I miss you.)

    Of course, I have another project in progress, the “secret project,” which is still progressing, albeit slowly. I promise a photo of that later this week. For now, I have a couple of squares to finish. Wish me luck.

  • Back from Under the Fog

    closeup of knitted cable patterns
    closeup of knitted cable patterns
    Well, hello. Yes, it’s been a while. Just when I had been complaining on Ravelry in one of my blogging groups that I was in a blogging slump, and needed to take some decisive action to rectify the problem, last week, I fell sick with what I think was the worst cold I have ever had in my life. I’ve never felt so stupid for being sick for so long over something which, on the surface, didn’t seem like such a bad thing.

    Except that it was. Truly awful. Most nights I did not sleep at all, and no manner of allergy medicines or traditional cold elixers would do anything to put a dent in my misery. I was full-on sick by last Thursday a week ago, and am only just now coming up for air.

    I haven’t knit a stitch in 10 days, despite all of my dreaming of a good lousy cold and a few sick days with endless knitting, just for myself. Ok, so that was the stupidest fantasy ever. Lesson learned.

    I’m looking forward to knitting again. Looking forward to getting some cooking done again. Looking forward to sleeping without feeling as if I am going to drown just as I start to nod off. Looking around me, though, I see that there is a lot of digging out that I have to do first. I definitely can’t claim that I live in a clutter-free zone, but the clutter level is something far beyond whatever passes for usual. I think maybe tonight I’ll head to bed early for a change, to fortify myself for tomorrow, when I have to get up and start moving and restore some semblance of order to the chaos that is currently my home. Wish me luck. I’m going to need it.

  • Friday Nights are for Blogging (Apparently)

    E.B. in progress. Looking good, eh?
    E.B. in progress. Looking good, eh?
    Another Friday night, another night knitting by the pool, and another blog post. I hope I don’t have the makings of a rut here! It’s winding down to the end of summer. It was a blissfully cool evening by the pool, which is a sure sign that fall is coming. It was the first week of school for my children, which also signaled major change for my daughter, who has started high school.

    There will be only one more Friday night before the pool closes for the season. And yes, I do feel a bit cheated of summer still. But at the same time I am looking forward to chilly fall evenings with steaming stew pots and comfy sweaters. I have to remind myself that except for when it is senselessly, bitterly cold, there are good things about every sort of weather, so I shouldn’t really look upon this time as a sad thing. There are many good things yet to come.

    So once again, my DH’s camera provided the photo for this entry, as it did last week. But I realize now that I didn’t say why. My camera broke. My beloved, new camera that I just got for my birthday last month. The LCD screen somehow got damaged from the inside, and of course, Canon decided that such damage is not covered under their warranty, so my brand new camera just had a $150 repair, despite being less than two months old. Sigh… I hope I continue to get lots of use out of it and love it as I had so far. It has turned out to be one very expensive camera.

    And so I’m knitting. I’m making it a point to knit some on the mystery project every day. But now, I’m getting sorely tempted to take a break and knit at least one pair of funky, wonderful socks. Why? Because I feel like I’ve hit a knitting jackpot, that’s why. I saw an ad recently on Ravelry that Lucy Neatby, yes THE Lucy Neatby, is coming to a shop about an hour from my house for an entire weekend to teach a series of knitting workshops. I had to jump at the chance. So, ok, what did I do? I signed up for a 6-hour sock workshop, so I can learn from the master. “But, wait,” I hear you saying, “You don’t knit socks.” You’ve said it at least a thousand times, right here, on this very blog. What gives?”

    Well, I have knit socks, but generally I find them intimidating. So, it’s confession time. I have never felt confident enough to knit socks. So, I am hoping that learning from Lucy Neatby will inspire my courage and inspire me to become a true sock knitter. I have a whole bin full of crazy sock yarns just waiting to be knit up. All I need is a little inspiration and a lot of courage. I can do it. And what better way to get started?

    Of course, as luck would have it, this once-in-a-lifetime knitting-Nirvana experience would have to fall on my 18th wedding anniversary. But, I’ll deal with that little issue way later. Right now, I’ve got to keep knitting.

  • Friday Night Knitting Club of One

    What a week this has been. I have been so busy and unable to post yet again. And here we are at the end of the summer, I spent this Friday night at the pool, doing what I usually do on Friday nights at the pool.

    Trish Knits at the swim club
    Trish Knits at the swim club

    Knitting.

    Except that I haven’t even done much of it this summer, knitting by the pool, and now the summer is drawing to a close. Too quickly. I am finding myself to be grouchy and said about this. It’s been mostly the weather, this hot, disgusting summer. I feel robbed of summer, and angry that this pleasant evening which was at last not too hot, is one of the few memories I will have of enjoying these last few months.

    But, this evening was one of the finest. I got several rows done while listening to a Nora Roberts romance novel from her “Chesapeake Bay” series. It was great. And tomorrow is knit group, and then an evening at the pool again. It’s going to be a good knitting weekend.

    The Smithsonian Community Reef

    Annette Carr's Toxic Coral
    Annette Carr’s Toxic Coral
    This week at work our workplace knit and crochet group was treated by a visit from a lady with the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef project’s Community Reef at the Smithsonian. The Worldwide project is making a stop at the Museum of Natural History starting in October, and they are working toward having a community reef as part of the exhibit. I’m late in really understanding the project, and now I am fascinated. The project was started by two sisters in Australia who, when one of them crocheted a bunch of hyperbolic shapes and then they decided that as a collection they looked like a coral reef. Living near the Great Barrier Reef they thought that maybe they could call awareness to the health of our environments and the reefs through their love of fiber.

    So the exhibit has now been all over the world and is coming to Washington. My co-worker Annette has gotten excited about the project and has begun making pieces for the reef. The Community Reef will showcase three types of reef: Healthy Reef, Bleached Reef (unhealthy) and Toxic Reef, which is reef that has grown up and around trash and other found objects that lurk in our oceans. Annette’s pieces, which I have photographed here, are examples of toxic reef. Water bottles, credit cards, used auto parts… these are all things which ocean animals must contend with and try to survive in spite of. I’m betting Annette’s piece made with the used auto air filter is going to find a prominent place in the exhibit. It’s a strange beauty.

    So, if you’d like to participate in the project, and there’s still a little time, you can join the Ravelry Group or by e-mailing the project coordinator at sicommunityreef@yahoo.com for more information. I’m of course busy on my mystery project that I must remain loyal to until it’s done but I’m wondering how I can squeeze at least a couple of corals in. I think I want to be part of it. You should, too.

  • August Knitting

    I can’t believe that summer is almost over. I’ve been busy, but doing what? I don’t know. I’ve been making time for knitting every day, though, and my mystery project is coming right along:

    Mystery Project in Progress
    Mystery Project in Progress

    I hadn’t decided how to do the color changes until I actually got to them. But, rather than continuing right along with the cable and double moss stitch pattern, I put in a “transition band” of reverse stockinettte with the chocolate color, and then am continuing with the blue. Then before I go back to the cream again I will put in another band of chocolate. Then at the moment I am thinking of an applied garter stitch edge or maybe an i-cord edge. Something simple, not lacy, given that I want the attention to be focused on the stitching in the main bands. I feel like I’ve made lots of progress while at the same time I have miles to go!

    I can’t believe it’s the middle of August already and that summer is almost over. By now usually I’d have been to the pool lots and have been caught up on listening to podcasts and done lots of knitting by the picnic tables. But not this year. We’ve had a ridiculous, relentless heatwave all summer that has made us not want to spend much time outside. Every week we were sure that it would be over the next week, but it just went on and on, and now here we are. I feel like I have lots of summer to make up for in just a week! The kids go back to school on the 23rd and 25th this year. I know we started going back to school before Labor Day even back when I was in school, but I never thought it was right and I still don’t. It’s still summer, dangit, and I’m not ready for it to be done.

    Thankfully, today is a nice day and so we’re meeting family at the pool for the afternoon. I’ve got my knitting ready, and some trashy romance novels on my Kindle. It’s going to be a good day.