September 24, 2005

Still Knitting Away!

Well, I've made some more progress on Alison's poncho this week, and here it is:

Boy, do I have a loooong way to go! I think the center panel will need to be at least three feet long for it to be a good length for Alison, who is quite tall. Hopefully she'll get to wear it sometime this season!

I had quite a discussion with someone on the KnitList about my increases. The person kept telling me that the increases on the left side looked like they were done a couple of stitches out from the center, and I kept insisting that that couldn't be. Then she said the increases were just not symmetrical, but that my recipient probably might not notice unless I mention it. Here's a closeup of the increases:

I used the method of doing mirrored increases described on Kate Gilbert's website: http://www.kategilbert.com/blog/archives/2004/10/progress_every.html, and I am putting the increases on either side of the panel, not one or two stitches out on one side. But if they do somehow look asymmetrical, I'd like to know what I'm doing wrong. It's WAAAAY too late to fix the problem, if there is one, because correcting it now, without frogging the whole thing, would look even weirder. But, if there is anything I could do to make it look better, maybe someone could enlighten me? What am I missing?

In the mail this week: 7 more balls of Den M Knit from Elann, as the 20 balls didn't seem like enough for a long poncho for not-so-skinny me. Also some more 40" cords for my Denise needles. Now that I have all that yarn, I'm not sure yet that another really long poncho is what I want to do. Yet, I LOVE the look and feel of denim, I wear it year-round, and I am DYING to give this yarn a go!

Thoughts and prayers to anyone and everyone in Rita's path...

September 17, 2005

Lotsa Knittin' Goin' On!

Well, this week I have been working away on Alison's poncho. Can you tell?

Ok so I had a day off this week that included about 7 hours in the car, which accounts for the significant progress this week. Plus four hours in the car today, up to Lancaster County, PA. So I've been knitting and knitting and knitting!! And the poncho is getting wider and wider! There are now more than 100 stitches between each of the center bands. It is amazing how quickly it is getting so large! I keep having this feeling that it might actually end up being too wide, but all of the poncho patterns I have ever seen do the increases in this exact way. So they must all know something, I guess! We shall see.

Diana's First Knitting

Well, after Diana's first knitting lesson last week, I wasn't sure that the knitting bug would bite. She tired quickly and I think was somewhat frustrated that it did not come naturally to her. But then last night we watched a movie and knitted togetehr for a while, and she knitted some on our car trip to PA today. And, she is pleased to share her progress on her very first project!

Diana even took this photo herself, with no flash, and did a great job of holding the camera steady! Genia told us not to worry so much about making mistakes or having holes in our first project; that we will learn how to fix mistakes later. For now, she suggested finding some funky buttons to add to our hip, skinny scarf, and they will hide the mistakes and be a design element, too! I like that idea. This way, we don't have to be stressed about making mistakes for now and can just concentrate on the rhythm of knitting. That's great! I love Genia's teaching style.

I Got Da Blues... Oh Yea-ah...

This week I added to my stash with 20 balls of Den M Knit from Elann. I think this will be a poncho for ME someday, but the balls themselves are soooooo teeny! I've already written to them asking whether there are additional balls in that lot remaining. I think I'd feel more secure with 5 or 7 more. I've never knit with this yarn before and given that it is cotton I wonder how it will submit to being put into cables or having something else interesting done to it. I guess time will tell when I finally get to it... it will probably actually be some time before I use it, but I wanted to have it in my stash. Sigh...

So there was lots of knitting news this week. Sorry for throwing it on all at once but it's the end of the fiscal year in the world of government work and I haven't had a chance to write all week. Be well, everyone...

September 11, 2005

Diana Knits!

Today Diana and I met Genia from the KnitList, who kindly offered to show Diana how to knit. Diana picked it up right away, but still doesn't quite feel comfortable yet so tires quickly. Genia very kindly presented Diana with her very own "Learn to Knit Kit," which consisted of some handmade wooden needles, and some thick, light-colored yarn. Diana was excited to learn that the clay on the ends of the needles glows in the dark! How cool is that?

After practicing a bit with Genia's yarn, Diana switched to her own pink yarn and cast on for her very first scarf. The yarn is two different colors of pink and she is being brave enough to try holding both strands together at the same time. We decided that the scarf is going to be a lovely bubblegum color.

The funny thing is that the reason why I wanted someone other than me to work with Diana is that I tend to knit rather, um, unconventionally, and I wanted her to know what some of the different ways of holding yarn are. I knit without carrying the yarn in either hand, due to my limited dexterity, which is a slow way to go and certainly more stressful on the hands. But hey, it's the only way I can do it. So Genia showed Diana how to "pick" while holding the yarn in her left hand, and "throw" while holding the yarn in her right, and what did Diana do? She decided to not hold the yarn at all, just like mommy! That's fine with me, haha... whatever works for now.(In this photo, Genia shows Diana how to make sure she still has all of her stitches on the needle at the end of a row.)

September 10, 2005

Poncho Progress

Well, I've been making slow but steady progress on my poncho for Alison; today I just started the third ball of the olive band and am now wondering how far my 13 balls will go! I guess time will tell on that! I am loving the yarn, which is Cashmere Luxury Chunky, sold at AC Moore stores. (It's a close relative of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky, I'm convinced.) Feels SO yummy and I am loving working with it. The pattern is my own compilation and someday I will write it all down and share it here, so keep checking back!

Wrap Style

I just got the book,Wrap Style : Innovative to Traditional, 24 Inspirational Shawls, Ponchos, and Capelets to Knit and Crochet by Pam Allen and Ann Budd, and I LOVE it!! There are so many beautiful designs that I hardly know which ones to do first. Of course I need to finish the poncho I'm working on first, but I love the designs in this book and can't wait to start. There's also already a Wrap Style Knitalong on Yahoo! Groups and my membership is already pending. It's run by the same girl who did the Clapotis Knitalong group this year. (Oh, my poor neglected Clapotis! Someday I will finish you!) If you loved the Scarf Style book, you'll love Wrap Style as well. It's Yummy!

September 5, 2005

Modular Knitting???

Tired of knitting back and forth? I am! I saw this book -- Modular Knits : New Techniques for Today's Knitters -- mentioned on the KnitList the other day and so decided to give it a try. I ordered the book from Amazon on Tuesday and it was here by Friday, so that was pretty fast! I am especially curious about the scarf on Page 31 of the book. The author suggests starting at the beginning and working ahead from there, but I might just have to cheat a little. :-)

The author also hosts a group on Yahoo! called multidirectional, and if you join the group and introduce yourself, she will send a free scarf pattern! She's also around to help in case you get stuck with a pattern and need further assistance. I like that, but be warned! The group is VERY active for now and I just recently went on digest so I can keep up with the group without clogging my inbox! Poor Iris! It's hard work being the mother of a fad!

Enjoy the book; I know I will!

September 1, 2005

And Then She Was Jealous...

If you read my blog yesterday you saw I finally broke down and included a photo of my cat, Zöe. Well, then Tegan would not hear the end of it! So, here she is, in all her glory:

My darling Diana, age 9, felt sorry for Tegan being left out of Zöe's instant celebrity, and so snapped the photo before heading off for school this morning. Tegan, as you can see, isn't about to let stardom go to her head.

Next post... knitting! I promise.