Cute As a Bug in a…

Isn’t it adorable? I got this little corder from Noreen Crone Findlay at http://www.crone-findlay.com. I don’t know why but I have a thing for do-dads that make i-cords. Sure, I can just knit them myself, and I usually do. Or, I crank them out with one of any number of the crank style that I already own. But someone posted this link on the KnitList last week and I couldn’t resist. I even got a couple of idea books that show how to make animals and dolls out of i-cord. I’d never seen a 2-peg corder before, and the lady who makes these does them all so cute, I just had to have one! It was actually pretty hard to decide.

This weekend started out with a knitting disaster. For some reason, the stitches around my second buttonhole started to unravel. No photos to show of the event, but I estimated that I had about three days worth of knitting that I lost. Not that I typically knit a lot in one day, but I hate having to rip out. I tried to avoid the ripping, but since I couldn’t really see the problem, fixing it was not possible. So I ripped to below the buttonhole and re-picked up the stitches. And I knit, and I knit, and I knit. It was a marathon knitting weekend. And you know what? I managed to knit past the point of my mistake. Still, visually, it doesn’t look much different than the picture I took the other day so I’ll spare you another one for now.

My friend Steve was over for supper yesterday too, and he wound the rest of the yarn that I had bought. So now all the balls of yarn are just ready and waiting to be knit. I have no more logistical issues that will keep me from progressing on this project.

Alas, it is a work week again, so time for knitting will be sparse. But I have a renewed commitment to knit at least a little, every single day. What’s that I hear? An audible gasp from the readership? Yes, it’s true. There are days, especially lately, that I have not knit at all. Sometimes for two or three days in a row. And yet, I wonder why it can take me three months to finish a hat. Well, no more. I have no illusions that this sweater won’t take at least half a year, but hopefully it won’t be because I simply don’t knit. If I ever expect to get anything done, I just have to keep on knitting.

And on that note, I’m off to bed. Ciao for now!

My Mailbox Runneth Over!

Today was a good mailbox day. A really good one.

Today I got this in the mail:

It’s the New Traditions Afghan Kit by Knit Picks. I saw this on their website for the first time last week, and I knew immediately that I must have one. The bright colors are certainly a huge attraction. But, what really got me was the quilt design, knit modularly, in what looks like all garter stitch. (I haven’t yet taken the pattern out of the bag for wanting to keep the yarn all together.) Once I get the technique down, can you IMAGINE the creative possibilities, and all of the quilting designs? I am practically glowing from excitement at the thought of it all!

The other thing that came in the mail was this:

This is the Fall 1997 issue of Interweave Knits magazine. It’s a very early issue. Thumbing through the pages I quickly realized that one of two things must be true: either it’s that truly classic, beautiful designs never really go out of style, or perhaps I am hopelessly behind the times and unfashionable. This fabulous issue contains a top-down Aran by Beth Brown-Reinsel, with not only a pattern, but also a detailed article about its construction. And there’s the article about Alice Starmore, and a pattern by Alice Starmore. Cool!

Those of you who have been knitting forever might already have this magazine in the rack on your shelf, and you’re probably chuckling at my glee. Or, maybe you’re quietly nodding, because you totally get it. You understand. Either way, this magazine is a treasure to me. And, out of style or not, I don’t care. I’m going to get up the guts and knit something from this puppy.

Someday.

Gray Monday Afternoon Ramblings at the Kitchen Table

I finally scored a copy of Interweave Knits Weekend. Wasn’t it supposed to be coming out on September 15? I had pretty much assumed that it must have come and gone from my local bookstores, as I had been diligently scouring the bookstores in town for weeks. Then yesterday I pop into Barnes&Noble on a whim, and there it is.

It’s full of casual, relaxed clothing that is comfortable and wearable. And not only that, most of the projects are the sort of knits that have just enough challenge to keep your interest, but not so much that your brain explodes. (This is a major plus in my book.)

My favorite pattern is the Autumn Vines Cardigan (here’s a Ravelry link for you.) It’s a sweater with sort of loose, billowy fronts, with cables. Also I love the Provence cloche. Unfortunately, it’s probably not a good style for my bowling-ball head so I’ll have to find someone skinny to knit it for.

Knitting has been slow around here. I haven’t really touched my elephant project except for a few more rows on the trunk. It’s about done now, I think—only one more row, then it will be time to pick up stitches on the body. For some reason I’m stalled at this point. I’m starting to wonder if I have a subconscious fear of this next step. I’m not aware that I’m afraid, and yet, I haven’t done it yet.

I’ve done a few more rows on my Lifestyle Top Down Hat, and have begun what will be a fairly large ribbed section. Then that one will be finally done. Then I have Jennifer’s pink scarf to get done .The weather must be getting chilly in Michigan by now .I should hurry up and finish it! Then I need to hurry up and get going on some boot toppers for me .It’s fall now and I haven’t made any for myself yet. I do have a bunch of different shades of Cascade 220 yarn just for this purpose, plus a super-cute pair of Dr. Marten’s ankle boots. Now I just need to find myself the perfect Aran sweater to go with my fantasy fall ensemble. (Sigh… I don’t think traditional cabled knits are “in” this year. I’ve been looking, and they’re hard to find. Especially in my size. Maybe I should get the hint?)

Fall is definitely in the air here now. It’s gray and chilly outside, and today was truly the first day that I didn’t feel too hot for wearing a sweatshirt. I had not intended to cook dinner tonight and instead opt for something along the “eat leftovers or make yourself a sandwich” genre, but then the urge hit me for spaghetti sauce. A nice, steamy pot in the house on a gray, chilly fall day. Ahhh… that’s good..

It Just Keeps Following Me Home!

Stuff from Knit Picks, that is. I’m becoming a slut for Knit Picks Kits. It’s true. Why, yesterday, these three babies found their way to my door:

They are the Maeve Hat and Mittens Kit, The Knitter’s Tool Bag Kit (in purple, of course!), and the Line By Line Mittens to Gloves Kit. I can hardly decide which to knit first! This is the year I am going to master the mitten. These patterns, I hope, will get me well on my way. The Knitter’s tote kit, by the way? It comes with the fabric to line the bag with. Way cool.

I don’t have an extra Rubbermaid tub yet but I do have an empty DVD bin on my side of the entertainment center, so all my kits are going in there. Wait! What’s this?

For some reason, my cat loves to lick plastic bags, and there’s no shortage of plastic containing the knit kits in this drawer. I caught her in there the other day and so snapped this picture. My cat doesn’t love my yarn, she only cares about the bags it comes in.

So all week I’ve been working on this:

It’s a simple top-down hat made out of Noro Kureyon yarn, and I think I’m going to love it! I finally increased it to the size I want at the top and will knit for a couple of inches before decreasing to the size of my actual head. The end result, I hope, will be something sort of beret-shaped. Stay tuned on that!

Oh, and I wound yarn for a new project tonight. But it’s late, so I’ll have to talk about that tomorrow.

OMG Have You SEEN This Kid?

And if you liked that one, you GOTTA see this!

That’s all for now; I’m off to bed at a decent hour for once this week. What? It’s not a decent hour? Well poop. I’ll try again tomorrow.

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Knit Happy!

It’s late, especially today, but I just wanted to share this before bed:

I got this adorable mug from Knitting Today earlier this week. In fact, I got several of them. They come in six colors, and of course I picked purple to show you. I don’t plan on using the mug for tea; I plan on keeping one on my desk at home, one on my desk at work, and giving the other three as gifts. The little sheep is adorable, and I love the saying on the front, “Knit Happy.”

The ironic thing is that I don’t feel like I’ve been knitting happy at all lately. I’m surrounded by yarn and a plethora of patterns and books, and everything is all neat and organized and I can actually see what I’ve got now. Except that now that it’s all neatly put away it’s like I don’t want to touch it. I wish I could just dump all my yarn out all around me and go diving for something fun. While I’m great at making the kind of mess something like that would involve, I’m not so good at putting it all away without help. So in the boxes it stays, and at times I think I forget what I have.

Maybe I should bite the bullet and go to my trusty box of Cascade 220, and ball up some yarn and knit a hat. Hats used to make me knit happy. But you know what? I haven’t made a hat in a looong time. Maybe that’s the cure. The hat I’m dying to make most is Vivian, by Lisa Cruse. The showier, the better. Big hat, huge flowers.

Or, cables? I have a fabulous pattern for a cabled scarf that came with some cashmere I bought at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. The cable pattern looks pretty complex, so I told myself I should practice it on something else before tackling the cashmere.

Or, Girasole? I know I mention that project a lot. But one advantage to that one is that the alpaca yarn I have for it is right behind me in my active projects bin, waiting. Maybe I should just cast on for that.

Tomorrow is an interim meeting of my knitting group. Our official meeting isn’t until September 12, but lots of folks have been itching to get together and knit. I’m going, and I guess I better decide by tomorrow what I’m going to knit.

Wish me luck deciding! I’ll check back in tomorrow.

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