sock progress

We have had an unexpectedly nice day here. I was expecting clouds and possibly rain, but instead the sun was out and it was mostly warm, a bit over 60 degrees. We spent quite a bit of the weekend outside and were surprised to see tints of sunburn on our necks and foreheads. With snow less than a week ago, it just seems too soon for sunscreen, don't you think?

One thing we did over the weekend was sprinkle grass seed over part of the back yard, which is rather balding and pathetic. Daniel made a couple of signs, "Please keep off (heart) (heart)", and I really wish I had a better picture:



And I'm making good progress on these jelly beans socks. I had to rip the whole thing when I discovered I was doing the stitch pattern wrong (one minor detail makes a big difference, as it turns out) but now I'm cruising:



I think I'm really going to like these, but I haven't decided yet if I am going to keep them!

lousy smarch weather

Snow in April makes me cranky, yo.



It's not just snow, either. It's wind and thunder and ice pellets hammering down so hard it feels like a shotgun from the sky. What's worse, this is spring break for Daniel's preschool (yes, they have two spring breaks), and since we're not going out of town for this one, I was really hoping to spend the week having picnics and visiting the zoo and working in the garden. Obviously, that's not happening.

Last evening I was digging through the stash in the shed for some sock yarn. I am eager to have my yarn back in the warm, clean house, but at least it's been safe and dry out there. Anyway, I went out to the shed with no particular pattern or yarn in mind, just the intention to pick something out for socks. I came back with this:



Gloomy and gray, this yarn is the color of Wisconsin skies in mid-April. It's lovely yarn, though, some Dream in Color Smooshy leftover from my dad's birthday socks from a couple years back. You can see the color variations are subtle enough for a fancy stitch pattern, but I didn't want anything too complicated. Something about those shades of gray call for a pattern with texture, yet simplicity. I started flipping through pattern books and soon found just the thing: Jelly Beans Socks from 99 Yarns and Counting (though if you click on the first link you can buy the individual pattern online). The stitch pattern is so simple I don't really have to think about it, but there's a garter stitch short-row heel and ribbing on the bottom of the foot, all of which should keep things interesting.

finished! zip up for stuart

Yesterday, I finally finished Stuart's birthday sweater.



His birthday was March 12.



I also got him a bottle of scotch for his birthday, so I didn't hear much complaining that his sweater wasn't done. (No, that's not scotch in his cup. It's coffee.)



He might have refrained from complaining about not having a new sweater because he was afraid it would be a flop.



It wasn't a flop. It actually worked out rather well! Though I did sweat over it a good deal. First, I thought it wouldn't be long enough, so I added a couple inches to everything. Then it turned out everything was a couple inches too long, and I had to do surgery on every piece to fix it. Then the sleeves didn't fit into the armholes and I had to pick out the seams and rip back a little bit to add length to the armholes. In the end, everything worked out, but for a little while there I was worried that all the work would be for naught and I'd have to donate the sweater to charity.



I love this goofy GQ pose:



There's only one teeny tiny problem: the zipper is a little short. I didn't think my husband would want to zip it up all the way, but it turns out he does, so I'll have to pull it out and sew in a longer one. This kind of makes me want to cry because sewing in a zipper is a lot of work, but it's better to fix the detail that annoys him. These finishing details really are what make or break a sweater, I think. If I could do it over, I would probably add a little more to the collar, too, and as long as I'm re-doing the zipper, I may go ahead and do that. But I'm still calling this finished for today!



Patterns: Zip up cardigan, by Hannah Fettig
Yarn: Cascade 128 superwash, about 9 hanks in dark navy blue
Sticks: Size 9 for ribbing, size 10.5 for everything else. I used KP Zephyr interchangables. (I like them. The see-through aspect of the needle tips didn't bother me.)
Mods: None, as it turned out, though I thought I had to adjust the length.
Comments: This is a lovely design. The fact that it's a man's sweater that my husband likes and will wear says a LOT, since he is incredibly picky about his clothes (re: the plainer the better). I'm not sold on the superwash yarn, though. It's very soft and lovely, but it stretches like all get-out when you wash it. I had to stick the whole thing in the dryer for at least 30 minutes to get it back into shape, which worked, but doing this a lot will wear out the sweater pretty quickly. It's also expensive. The only reason I bought this instead of non-superwash was that I couldn't find enough of any other bulky yarn in the right color!

All in all, I'm pleased - and relieved - with how this sweater turned out, but I'm ready to knit something small now. Like maybe socks. I think it's time for more socks.

wordless wednesday

mama said there'd be days like this

Now that one kid is finally getting over his ear infection, the other came down with one last night. Another trip to urgent care, another 'scrip for antibiotics, another batch of yogurt, another beautiful day spent inside in front of the TV. As for me, I'm doing just fine except for the sleep deprivation, and even that wouldn't be so bad except that we're having major plumbing work done today so the water is off and I can't make any coffee. Let me tell you, I could really use a cup of coffee right now.

Then there's the matter of Stuart's sweater. I had the length issue taken care of, but when I sewed the sleeve caps into the armholes, it just wasn't working. There is a good inch extra sleeve cap over the top of the armhole and after much measuring and staring and head-scratching, I still can't figure out what went wrong. I even checked my row gauge, and it's spot on with the pattern. No one else on Ravelry who has made this sweater (there aren't many, maybe a dozen) has had this problem, so it must be me. I'm going to try making the armholes a little deeper to accommodate the sleeve cap, and if that doesn't fit him right I'm going to cry a little, drink a glass of wine, and give the thing to charity (after it's finished of course). Then I'll find a new pattern and start over.

I'm so mad at that sweater that I'm stepping away from it for the moment. Maybe I'll tackle the armholes later tonight, I don't know. But in the meantime, I do have one project that is going all right. Remember the lightweight pullover? I finished the main body of it yesterday (while I was stewing about Stuart's failed sweater) and tried it on:



So far, so good.

sweater surgeon

I've been knitting this sweater for Stuart. I never posted any progress pictures on the blog because, well, it was mostly just a growing blob of navy blue and not very interesting.



Last night it appeared I was finally on the home stretch, so I partially sewed up the pieces and held it up to Stuart to see how it's going to fit. The good news: taking his measurements paid off and I chose the right size. The bad news: every dang piece is about 2" too long. It's ironic because I intentionally lengthened every piece - the back, the fronts (it's a zippered cardigan) and sleeves - by about 2". I had measured one of Stuart's favorite shirts and adjusted the length of the sweater to match it. When I held it up to him, though, the body hung too long like a tunic and the sleeves covered his hands up to the knuckles.

It turns out my husband is NOT, after all, an orangutan. I didn't want to re-knit the entire sweater, so I decided on the next best thing: surgery.

This is major surgery, actually, as it affects every piece I've knitted. First I threaded a long circular needle (currently using KP Zephyrs, which I like quite a lot) through the row of stitching where I want the new ribbing to start.



And then, I cut, snipping two rows below where the needle was threaded. After cleaning up the bits of yarn (which were everywhere), I took the amputated bit of knitting and unraveled it, using that to knit on the new ribbing.



Carrying this out on a sweater already about 25% sewed up is awkward, to say the least, but it's worth the trouble. If all goes well, Stuart will have a new sweater in a few days!

Now, how about I make up for those lousy photos with a couple of cute kid pictures? We had a bizarrely warm day today, and spent most of it outside. (Poor Daniel is fighting off his second ear infection in as many weeks, but he wanted to be outside with us; I fear we let him overdo it a bit.)

Day 7

Day seven: Your knitting and crochet time.
Write about your typical crafting time. When it is that you are likely to craft – alone or in more social environments, when watching TV or whilst taking bus journeys. What items do you like to surround yourself with whilst you twirl your hook like a majorette’s baton or work those needles like a skilled set of samurai swords. Do you always have snacks to hand, or are you a strictly ‘no crumbs near my yarn!’ kind of knitter.

I don't often knit in groups. I have a couple of knitting friends (we used to be a "group" but several moved out of state, and we're down to just three), and we try to meet a few times per month, but I almost always have Daniel and Anya with me, which means, ironically, that I can't knit when I'm with my knitting friends. I've also been involved in trying to revive a knitting group with the church I am a part of, but we've kind of derailed the last couple of months because everybody has been so preoccupied with protests and the political situation here. (I feel like I can't emphasize enough the impact of this on daily life in Madison, at least for those of us who pay attention to such things. And the people at my church - knitters and otherwise - do pay a lot of attention.)

Most of my knitting is done in the evening in front of the TV, usually with Stuart, though sometimes he gets involved with a programming project and I just watch whatever's on PBS, or sometimes trashy crime shows when I really want to zone out. When it gets gross I just look down at my knitting. Sometimes if the kids are playing nicely without demanding my attention, I can sneak in a few rows or rounds during the day, but these opportunities are rare. I'm still waiting to be the mom who can sit on the park bench and knit while the kids run around on the playground, but there seems to be no end to the demands to play tag or push the swing or watch while Someone Climbs a Tree.

I do knit in the car, and long road trips are an excellent opportunity for this, since Stuart generally prefers to do the driving.

I often wish I had more time to knit, but I find it nearly impossible to just sit and knit. I need to have something else going on, even if it's just listening to NPR, or having a conversation with someone. Those rare moments when I have the house to myself, I usually spend that time doing housework because knitting just feels like wasting the opportunity. Isn't that sad?

Day 6

Day six: Something to aspire to.
Is there a pattern or skill that you don’t yet feel ready to tackle but which you hope to (or think you can only dream of) tackling in the future, near or distant? Is there a skill or project that makes your mind boggle at the sheer time, dedication and mastery of the craft? Maybe the skill or pattern is one that you don’t even personally want to make but can stand back and admire those that do. Maybe it is something you think you will never be bothered to actually make but can admire the result of those that have.

In knitting, as with music, and come to think of it many other aspects of life, I don't think you can ever get to a point where there is nothing left to learn. I'm a fairly experienced knitter and by this point I think I can figure just about anything out on my own with a decent set of written instructions. There are a few techniques I haven't tried yet, though:

1. Entrelac. Mostly, this is from lack of interest. I have yet to see an entrelac sweater design that didn't look lumpy and awful (Spring '11 IK, I'm talking to YOU). It's okay for bags, but I never knit bags. Maybe one of these days I'll try it in a scarf or something.

2. Steeking. I admit I'm a little nervous about steeking, but I'm determined to try it. I'd like to try a steeking project this year, maybe a sweater for Anya (I've been wanting to do a little girl-sized Rockaway in shades of lavender and purple since the pattern came out!) or the Frost Tapestry neckwarmer from Twist Collective.

3. One-row buttonholes, a la EZ. I've tried these before using Zimmerman's instructions, but they don't turn out right. Next time I knit a cardigan calling for one-row buttonholes I may need to find a video tutorial or consult an actual knitting expert!

I'm sure there are more than these three gaps in my knitting knowledge, but that's what I can think of for right now.

Knitting and Crochet blog week, day 5

Day Five: And now for something completely different.
This is an experimental blogging day to try and push your creativity in blogging to the same level that you perhaps push your creativity in the items you create.

Uh, yeah. I don't have the energy tonight to "push my creativity" on the blog, but I think haiku and limericks are always fun, even when they suck, so here we go.

My daughter loves yarn.
She cuts it up and spreads it
all over the floor.

I learned the hard way
don't leave knitting and scissors
near a three-year-old.

There once was a knitter named Sue
who made a sweater for her darlin' Stu
The fair-isling was sloppy
and the sleeves were too floppy
(At least now she has more of a clue.)

There once was a sock from Nantucket...

(Hey, just be glad I didn't decide to do a whole post of knitting puns. That would have been baaaaad.)

Day Four: Where are they now?
Whatever happened to your __________?
Write about the fate of a past knitting project. Whether it be something that you crocheted or knitted for yourself or to give to another person. An item that lives with you or something which you sent off to charity.

One project from the past that turned out well at first and seemed so promising ended up a big, fat disappointment: my Popped! socks .



They were beautiful (note the past tense there). The yarn is a subtle hand-dye in shades of lavender by a local dyer. The socks were a fun challenge to knit, though all the twisted knit stitches grew tedious near the end.

Alas, the socks did not hold up at all in the wash. The yarn was labeled 100% superwash, but after the first laundering, they looked a little fuzzy and felt a little tight. In fact, I only wore the socks a few times before they had gradually felted to the point where they were completely unwearable. The last time I tried to wear them I had to lie down and tug hard with both hands just to get one sock over my foot, and I gave up. It was really disappointing. The yarn was, shall we say, appropriately priced considering it was hand-dyed locally (in other words, not cheap), and the pattern was a lot of work to knit.

Even though those socks are no longer intended to be worn, I couldn't just give them up. I stuck them in the wash a few more times and put them in the dryer to felt them on purpose, which sort of worked, and now I have them stashed in a bag of thrift-store sweaters intended to be made into felted potholders or other fun recycling-friendly projects. We'll see when I get around to that!

Knitting and Crochet Blogging Week, Day 3

Day Three: Tidy mind, tidy stitches.

How do you keep your yarn wrangling organised? It seems like an easy to answer question at first, but in fact organisation exists on many levels. Maybe you are truly not organised at all, in which case I am personally daring you to try and photograph your stash in whatever locations you can find the individual skeins. However, if you are organised, blog about an aspect of that organisation process, whether that be a particularly neat and tidy knitting bag, a decorative display of your crochet hooks, your organised stash or your project and stash pages on Ravelry.

Well, you're not going to see any pictures of my stash, not here and not on Ravelry. It's too big for me to own up to publicly and most of it is currently stored in the back yard shed during our ongoing basement work. I have large plastic tubs that are more or less organized by type of project the yarn is intended for. I've got a stash of yarn for kids' sweaters, a small stash of sock yarn, a tub full of single or double skeins for accessory projects,a whole bunch of worsted weight wool in various colors for colorwork projects, and a substantial collection of yarn for sweaters because in my heart, that's what I am: a sweater knitter.

As for needles and other supplies, I tend to be anal retentive about putting things away and keeping things organized, and I still find myself tearing apart the house looking for this or that particular needle while everyone is waiting in the car for me. I have a roll-up fabric holder I sewed long ago that holds smaller DPNs, a larger roll-up needle holder a friend gave me for Christmas, a hanging fabric holder for some of my circular needles, some interchangeable sets that came with their own cases, and an old video box to hold all the other odds and ends like pom-pom makers and T-pins. I have probably a half dozen measuring tapes. I put one in every knitting bag and on every bookshelf, and I can never find one when I need it. I think evil elves steal them in the night. Or possibly my children. They love playing with measuring tapes, especially the retractable kind.

I would love to say that when the basement is done I'll have a lovely craft area to call my own, but alas, it's probably not going to happen. I'll make due with stacking my plastic tubs in the unfinished closet area underneath the stairs and I'll do my best to use up the yarn faster than I accumulate it. Really, in the grand scheme of things, it's not so bad.

Knitting and Crochet Blogging Week, Day 2

Look back over your last year of projects and compare where you are in terms of skill and knowledge of your craft to this time last year. Have you learned any new skills or forms of knitting/crochet (can you crochet cable stitches now where you didn’t even know such things existed last year? Have you recently put a foot in the tiled world of entrelac? Had you even picked up a pair of needles or crochet hook this time last year?

I learned to knit when I was about 8, and while I never quit being a knitter, I picked it back up with serious fervor nearly a decade ago. The big revolution for me was when my friend taught me how to knit in the round on DPNs to make socks. It was like a mystery revealed, a door unlocked. Fortunately, this was also a time when knitting was becoming more popular in general, so there was an explosion of books being published and the beginnings of patterns, instructions and tutorials available online as well.

I've known how to knit almost as long as I've been playing the piano (I started lessons in Kindergarten). While these two things play entirely different roles in my life (one is a hobby I try not to spend too much money on, the other is something I have worked long and hard to become professional at and could theoretically earn me money if it weren't for the whole "taking care of my kids" thing!), they are both skill sets that I have been developing and studying since childhood, and they are both subjects with infinite possibilities for learning.

So what have I learned about knitting in the past year? I haven't had any major revelations, to be honest, though I've picked up a few new techniques here and there.

The Cedar Leaf Shawlette (which I still wear all the time and still get lots of compliments on) was my first time doing a knitted-on edging.


I learned the sewn bind-off when I made my first Ptarmigan:


I greatly improved knitting with two hands when I made MJ's Tremblant mittens for Christmas:


Same with the Polar Chullo, plus I did my first applied i-cord edging on this hat:


And last, but not least, I took a gander at using charting software to write up a pattern for Anya's bobbly hat:

(That was particularly fun. I need to do more of it!)