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Tag: noro kureyon

Lonely… and Totally Square

Noro Kureyon squares in progress
I’ve got the blues. The “when the hell’s this winter gonna be over?” blues. And, the “I really wish I didn’t have to work ever again and could just sit and knit all day” blues. Sigh.

Good thing I’m into color, because this blanket in all its weirdness is the bright spot in my days lately. I’m loving the simplicty of the garter stitch and the constant surprises as the colors unfold. Each time I start a new square I have to contain myself from squealing with glee, practically, even though most of the time, no one is listening.

The cool thing about Noro Kureyon is that the color runs are so long that I can switch off from one end of the ball to the other, thereby doubling my color choices. It’s like a wonderful game for the easily entertained. And that, my friends, would be me.

But I must stop. I have about three more hours of work to do before bed, thanks to a tragic brain fart I had while saving an HTML document preparing an HTML e-mail newsletter. I’ve got lots of code to strip before bed and I hate that I haven’t been able to face it all evening, so I’ll be up late again. Ah well, at least I can knit again before breakfast, which will be sometime after the customary three-hour’s nap that I’ve been calling an excuse for a night’s sleep lately.

Do I sound grumpy? You Betcha.

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March 5, 2009
Hip to be Squares

third square in progress on the blanket

fourth square done

As you can see, I’ve been busy with the knitting! Over the last several days I’ve completed the third and fourth squares on my Noro Kureyon Babette. I was feeling all accomplished-like, until Her Highness the Tween pointed out to me just how many squares I have left to do! I think, though, in a similar way that people say entrelac is never boring, neither will these squares be, despite the miles and miles of garter stitch. Watching the strips of knitting magically become squares as the center double decreases are made, is just enough entertainment for a simple girl like me. I can’t wait to be showing this project off as it grows and grows.

I Bought a Skein of WHAT?

vitreous humor eyeball yarn
So, do you think I’m crazy that I actually WANTED this yarn? Would you believe me if I told you I’ve been wanting and waiting for it for TWO years? (The waiting was some small amount of self control on my part.) Yes, I’ve always loved things that would make people look twice, and the first time I saw this yarn I knew that one day it would be mine. Of course, the classic line I’m telling people is that it’s perfect for my standard witchy Halloween costume, but the truth is, I don’t think I’ll need to wait for Halloween to wear something made from this baby!

For those of you who haven’t seen this yarn before, it is Vitreous Humor, by Insubordinknit, a.k.a., the wonderful Jacey Boggs. Grossness aside, this is a lovely work of artistic handspun. It is beautiful and soft, and the felted eyeballs? Well they do give the yarn that certain something! The whole thing is a work of art. It is all at once beautiful, and a pile of sadistic muppet roadkill. That makes me love it all the more! Perhaps I will knit it up in time to wear it to Maryland Sheep and Wool. That is, if my friend Steve will be seen with me while I am wearing bloody eyeballs around my neck.

We’ll see.

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March 3, 2009
Trish–1, Yarn Ball–0

mitered square made with Noro Kureyon yarn
I declare victory! I finally finished my first square of my Noro Mitered Squares Babette (Ravelry link), after two false starts and frogging due to totally inept counting on my part. Sheesh! Now at long last I can move on to the second square. I think I’m probably going to take years to finish this project, because it can be something I just pick up between projects and add a square here or there, or maybe add one each time I come across a new Kureyon colorway that excites me.

You know? There’s something to be said for easy-peasy garter stitch. It seems to be the perfect antidote to stress. It’s calming to be able to knit the same thing over and over, to be able to knit without looking or thinking, or to get into a calming rhythm. I know there are people out there who really don’t love doing garter stitch, because the monotony of it drives them batty. But the thing is that I don’t think I am one of those people.

Check Out This Blog!

Susan B. Anderson’s Itty Bitty Blog
My knit buddy Rhoda sent me a link yesterday for an adorable stash-busting little animal called Elefante, which turned out to be on the blog of Susan B. Anderson, author of one of my favorite books, Itty-Bitty Hats: cute and cuddly caps to knit for babies and toddlers. Why oh why have I not paid attention to this site before? Susan’s books are among my most favorite because the patterns are just a-DORABLE, and this site is like an extension of the books. The photographs are beautiful, and there is a plethora of free and for-sale projects to choose from. I’ve already found several things I’d like to make, including the bunny and chick seen in the screenshot. If you like making cutie pie kid things, definitely check this site out!

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February 26, 2009
Mine Enemy the Yarn

I am just about fed up with knitting right now. Do you see this yarn? It mocks me. I’ve been trying to make a mitered square a la Vivian Høxbro, and for some reason, no matter how easy it seems, I’m always messing up. Somehow one leg of my square is always bigger than the other. They’re supposed to be, well, square, which would, of course, imply that the sides must be the same size. Why, oh why can’t I seem to count?

I have this goofy idea of making a mitered square knitted version of the Babette Blanket, where, instead of crocheting individual squares, I’ll be knitting mitered squares and knitting them onto each other as I go. I’ll use the basic layout of the Babette blanket as my guide, and various colors of Noro Kureyon yarn. I can see it in my head. But this first square is going to be the death of me. I’ve started it, and ripped it out completely, twice now. I’d love to see this idea starting to take shape, but here I am, months into the project, and I still only have this yarn ball to show. Can you hear its maniacal laughter? Dr. Demento is running through my head right now. (“They’re coming to take me away, ha ha, ho ho, hee hee, they’re coming to take me away.”) Shut up. You know you hear it. Stop laughing at me.

My daughter, on the other hand, is having much better luck with her knitting. Tonight Diana knitted two more little hearts! Only this time, she got my huge bag of polyfill out of the closet (we call it, “monkey butt,” in honor of the Blue Moon Fiber Arts Sock Monkeys that I hope to knit and stuff their butts with it someday… ok, don’t ask). So she made this teeny little heart pillow as practice, because she wants to make a bigger one. I think she’s getting the idea of the heart shape down. Cool, huh? My daughter is a knitter!

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February 23, 2009
The Yet-Another-Hat Update

front view of almost finished hat

side view of almost finished hat

For some reason the daughter insisted tonight that I give you a hat update, so here it is! Hedda Hat-Rack is modeling for you my almost completed purple and olive Noro Kureyon hat. I think her head is a bit smaller than mine; the hat doesn’t come down nearly as far on my own head so I do have a bit left to do. I’m down to just feet of yarn left on the first ball, and will be attaching the second ball probably tomorrow. This is my third hat this month and I think I’m finally getting it right! This one is going to be cute. I’ll have to get a couple more balls of this colorway because I feel an acute need for matching mittens coming on!

It’s Here! It’s Here!

I got home from work today and saw the box from Amazon on my porch that contained the long-awaited new book from Stephanie Pearl McPhee: Free Range Knitter: The Yarn Harlot Writes Again. I’ve been hearing folks complain that the book is on backorder and they’re still waiting. I can’t imagine that the folks at Amazon weren’t communicating with the publisher on the amount of pre-orders, which if I know my knitting community, was probably pretty high. On the other hand I was also hearing that some who were told by Amazon that shipping would be delayed received it anyway, so I guess we’ll see how it all pans out.

I’ve been in end of fiscal year hell at work, so I doubt I will have chunks of time to sit and read over the next couple of weeks. And I still haven’t perfected a technique for reading and knitting at the same time. I can’t walk and chew gum at the same time, either. (Oh wait… I can’t walk. I forgot.) So, I’m looking forward to a good snow day or a long weekend or something where I can switch back and forth between the knitting and the reading. Can’t wait. Really.

September 29, 2008
Family Hat-along

Oh I am so excited I could jump up and down! (If I could jump up and down, that is!) Today I would be pleased and oh so proud to share with you, THIS:

daughter knitting top down hat with magic loop

My DD, age 12, saw me knitting with Noro Kureyon a couple of weeks ago and all of a sudden just had, had, HAD to have a ball I had leftover with blues and purples in it. I was saving my leftovers for a blanket project I have planned, but the DD learning some new knitting skills was well worth the sacrifice! She has been watching me make hats over the last several weeks and was determined that that was what she wanted to do.

Now, this is a kid who can do basic garter stitch, a little bit of stockinette, and anything rectangular. Blankets, iPod covers and amulet bags are her specialty. But this time, she really wanted to learn to knit a hat. A HAT! Yes, she’s my kid! So we had to conquer increasing, knitting in the round and magic loop all at once! And you know what? She got it. Totally got it. And she’s doing a really great job.

Speaking of hats, here’s the update on my latest:

olive and purple hat in progress

I can’t think of a funny name for this one! That’s because, I think, it’s going to be lovely. I can hardly wait to be done so I can wear it!

Homework Tip #1: Write What You Know

first grader finishes spelling homework

See Steven. See Steven spell. See Steven write. Sentences. In the first month of first grade.

Problem is, Steven can think of at least forty-eleventy things he’d rather do besides homework. We’ve had some colossal battles over the last few weeks, some lasting hours. Steven reads and writes above grade level so when he was coming home with words like “hat,” “rat,” and “on,” to make sentences with, he rebelled. Big time. Huge tantrums. I didn’t think we’d survive one or two of them, but somehow we did.

Steven is a bit of a clown and often likes to express his humor at times when frankly, we wish he wouldn’t. But, why not be expressive with his spelling words? We drew the line the other night when he wanted to put the word “butt” into just about every sentence. But then there was tonight’s writing creation, and we just had to let it go. The teacher will just have to deal.

Word: Sock.

Steven’s sentence? “I have a smelly sock. P-U.”

Seriously. It was a keeper.

September 24, 2008