...yet another knitting blog
I’m tired tonight, but I wanted to pop in quickly and show you what my blasted crocheted circle is growing up to be:
Hat in Progress
I’m so happy so far. I love the shape, and I love that I made it big enough and deep enough to go down over my ears. I’m working on the brim now, and hope to be done by the end of the week. I am determined that 2012 is going to be a good year for finished projects. And I’m almost there with 2012 No. 1!
See you soon.
crocheted circle in progress
Sadly, not long after this, I stopped crocheting in favor of knitting. I had hurt my hands badly with the twisting motion of crochet, and learned to knit instead. But for some reason, the desire to crochet has never left me. I’ve been trying multiple styles of “ergonomic” crochet hooks, and I’m finding that I can crochet, as long as I only do it in short bursts and take frequent breaks. So, yay for that!
The original hat starts with a circle. Easy enough, right? Apparently that part of crochet wasn’t coming back to me so easily. I don’t know how many times I started this project, over and over, but the counts were wrong. Now, they’re finally on track. So, I think I’m on my way!
The other thing about the original hat was that it was made from cheap acrylic yarn, held doubled, on a hook much smaller than usually required for that thickness of yarn. This is critical for the hat to keep it’s well-defined shape. So I’m using a worsted acrylic, double-stranded, on a size G hook. This hat will be able to stand up on its own.
So, what you’re seeing here is just a beginning. But, I think I’m on my way. Hopefully this won’t take long! I want to wear this hat THIS winter. Wish me luck!
Yesterday I went out and got my nails done. i consider this to be a major accomplishment, given that I was coming down off of what was an unusually sucky New Year’s weekend. Not that we ever do anything too exciting, but the friends that we had planned to have over for a quiet celebration had all pooped out on us, and I was bummed. So I picked an unusually intense shade of purple, kind of a dark, gothy shade. It’s one that I’m sure I’m supposed to be too old to wear. But dangit, I like it. So there.
On my way back to the car from the nail salon, I popped into the bookstore, intent on having my last gingerbread-latte-hurrah of the season. Of course, rather than making a beeline for the coffee counter, I snaked my way through the magazine rack. And, ooh-boy, am I ever glad I did. Look what I found!
Knit Simple Knits Plus magazine
It’s the Knit Simple Knits Plus: Great Fit, Great Style! “Bookazine.” It features 50 patterns in larger sizes, and there are quite a few things in there that I’d consider knitting. It’s great to have so many patterns to choose from all in one place.
While I’m talking about cool new stuff, I have to mention the Kindle Fire
I think this is going to be a good tablet solution for me. The iPad is just a bit big and heavy for me to handle, plus I never get to use ours very often because the kids are always on it. Plus I’ve already added some PDF files of knitting patterns I’m working on, so now they’re always handy. I’m looking for other ways to use my Kindle for knitting… so if you’re out there and you’ve figured this out already, let me know.
So I’ll be in my little corner, knitting and reading, and knitting some more. I’ll try to poke my head out and say hi once in a while.
Well, now. I have no excuses for why it’s been so long since I’ve blogged. I have no excuse, other than the fact that this is a (mostly) knitting blog, and for the last several months, I’ve felt as if everything about my knitting has been anything but steady. My knit group had struggled over the last several months about our meeting place, and I’d been working on several projects that my heart hasn’t been in, so I rarely, if ever knit at all. In fact, over the last several months there would sometimes be weeks and weeks where no knitting took place at all.
So a new year is about to start, and our knit group is settling down in a new place (I hope) and I’ve decided to go back to what makes me happy. This means I only completed one charity scarf this year, and I am returning to my shawl, which I had set aside while trying in vain to be successful at charitable knitting. I think I’ve realized that charity knitting is not for me. It’s great for the people who can crank out so much knitting that giving away some of it only seems fair. I, on the other hand, have realized that I spend so little time knitting, that it’s becoming a miracle if I can complete more than one or two projects in a year. So, in order for knitting to make me happy, I have to knit what makes me happy. Does that make sense? So, back to the shawl it is. I hope that none of you get bored with me talking about it, because, well, it’s gonna be a while before it’s done.
There’s also been a lot going on that I haven’t blogged about. Like in November, when I went on my first-ever cruise, and Rick Springfield and Beeb Birtles happened to be there. i should really write about that, maybe, except that probably for most of the folks who know me, that whole story is old news by now. But, if you read this, and still want me to write about it, let me know, ok? And I will.
And then last week, there was a Christmastime tour of The White House. I once went to the White House when I was about 7 years old, but I barely remember it. Though, I do remember that it was at Christmas time, because I have a distinct memory of the Christmas Tree in the Blue Room. I was in Brownies then, only I was in a troop of all girls with disabilities, because the disabled girls were not permitted to join the other girl scout troop at our school. (Yes it was really like that in those days.) So, I think since we were a troop of all “special girls” the leader called ahead and arranged a meeting with the First Lady for us. (It was Mrs. Nixon; I’m getting old.) Other than the Blue Room I have almost no memory of this day, except that Mrs. Nixon gave us all gold pens with her name on them. So it was fun for me to go there, and I have pictures of that, too… perhaps I’ll post them here, though they are on my Facebook Page, if you want to peek.
But other than those events, my life has been fairly uninteresting and work has been fairly stressful, and so knitting has been stalled, thus, so has this blog. So, my resolution for 2012? To rediscover the joy of knitting, and to make it worth writing about. Are you with me? I hope so.
Garter stitch scarf underway
Other than what you see here? Not much else to say about this project. It’s garter stitch. It’s a scarf. ‘Nuff said.
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