Entries tagged with “Knitting” from LJL Spins and Knits

For the past couple months or so, ever since I finished my mother's shawl, this is what I've been working on. It's pretty much the only thing I'm working on right now (and I'm itching to get back to my spinning wheel!). I do love it, though, because the yarn feels really great to work with, and it's a lot of fun to watch it emerging.

PrairieHarpy wants to know more about knitting, as do others. So, let's start off with this . . . ask any questions you want about it in the comments section, and I'll work up responses to your questions. I'll even expound on one of my favorite techniques - steeking, and why it's nothing to be afraid of. How about it? Fire away!

Yeah, I know I'm about 3 months late, and I've had this sitting in ecto waiting to go out on the blog for the greater part of a month or so. Just when I was ready to expound on my Maryland State Fair entry, Life intervened in the form of a Red Light Runner who pushed my Saturn Astra into another car and thus rendered it all but inoperable. Grrrrrr. I escaped with barely a scratch to my knee. But hey, I'll get to bask in that New Car Smell very soon!

So. About this shawl. Mother wanted a handspun shawl, so I looked for a pattern that would do nicely. I love, love, love Ann Hanson's work, and when I saw her Maplewing pattern, I fell in love with it. I should warn you that if you plan to use it, you better use stitch markers to divide up the pattern repeat. And you will be knitting straight, with no decreases, for the first 15 rows or so, 522 stitches if you chose the smaller size.

But it's well worth it, as you can see.

Here's another view for your eyes to feast on, pinned out . . .

Oh, yes, Mother loves it!

For many of us, this is the official start of summer. We're not going to the beach (too many people), we're not going elsewhere (no $$). But later on today, we're going over to a friend's home for a small, "last-minute" cookout.

I'd like to thank all the soldiers who have died to protect us, including those who don't like the military. And, I'd like to say thank you to current soldiers who have sacrificed so much, like that guy profiled in this week's Washington Post Magazine who came back only to find it rough going to getting a job, with the chances that he may be sent off again back to the same region. May their sacrifices be not made in vain.

  And now, on to my knitting. I've been working on the Maplewing Shawl for the past two months ago or so. I'm using my handspun alpaca-wool yarn. It's taken me like 6 weeks to do the hem. Slow going, to be sure. But worth it. I have to say that I love this pattern, and it's one that I'd knit again in the future. As always, Anne Handson puts out great patterns, not only shawls but also socks, and she's now branching out to sweaters. And her paterns are very well-written and edited. She's quick to put out edits if mistakes were discovered. Can't recommend her enough. And oh, yeah, I got to meet her at MDSWF! Wish I'd had more time to talk with her. Perhaps next time . . .

Inertia. When I look this up in Dictionary.app, I see:

1 a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged : the bureaucratic inertia of government.

That is what I've been feeling for the past month or so. Of course, the fact that it was holiday season didn't help either. Oh, of course, there were some holiday stuff that had to be done (family get-togethers), plus the enthronement of our new Metropolitan Jonah, who is indeed someone we greatly need after the financial scandal that has affected OCA for the past few year. I will be blogging about His Beatitude as events warrant throughout the year.

Rather, it's that my work life has been at a standstill for far, far too long. So, I need to make a major push to change that. I need to be more, a lot more aggressive about it. I've got to be a pain in the butt, prodding folks into giving me useful job leads that will lead to actual job offers (and not depending too much on recruiters). I've got a LinkedIn account, so I need to really mine it.

  My knitting life is not quite at a sandstill. I had to make another Mr. Greenjeans cardigan, this time with Patons Wool which doesn't pill as much. I even have enough leftover yarn to make a cap, one which I did make but which doesn't cover my ear completely. So I'm making another one, going up one more size in needle. And I'm finally getting back to my other knitting projects, and of course, I need to get back to my spinning wheels. Need to take pictures which of course is a challenge with the kind of lighting that we get during the winter.

And, I've been giving my sewing machine a workout. I made Finn a car seat organizer. Those of you who have babies well know that there are times when you've got to change the diaper in the car, which can be tricky depending on how big your car is, whether there are lots of stuff, or the diaper bag is waaayyy over there. With this organizer, you can just strap it on to the back of the car, all filled with a couple of diapers, rash cream, wipes, a bottle, terry cloth, and maybe a favorite small stuffed toy. And you can fold it up and take it with you. Neat, eh?

I have an organizer for Kai as well. Speaking of which, I really need to get it finished off this week. Time to kick Inertia to the curb!

I fell in love with the Girasole Shawl, created by brooklyn tweed. So, I went through my stash and found a bag full of Jamieson Spindrift yarn that I had gotten when Yarns International closed their storefront location. I started the shawl Sunday and right now, I'm very near the end of Chart C. That's how easy this patter is. It looks complicated, but it's not, really. The trickiest moment is when I had to knit 4 together. I'm using plain old Addi Turbo circs, so the tips aren't too pointy. That is only one row, in Chart 13, though, so it's no big deal. I'm pretty sure I'll get it finished before end of next week.

I'm still alive, despite my 3rd cold of the season (people, stop giving me your cold!). I haven't had anything truly blogworthy that didn't involve whining. So, I thought it better to step back for a while.

But don't think I haven't been knitting! I made another Mr. Greenjeans cardigan - this time I went up a size and made it a it longer. I still need to give it a proper wash and block but it's so warm and comfy it's hard to let go. I used Patons Classic. And, I started a lace shawl - Girasole Shawl by brooklyntweed. I'm using Shetland Spindrift, port wine. I will have way more than enough yarn to complete this one. I'm on Chart B and progressing very nicely. Maybe I'll finish it before the end of the month?

Pictures going up later today - hopefully. The short and sunless days make for challenging photography.

Yup, still practicing project monogamy and hating it. The end's near in sight, though. I have only about 2 1/2 more inches on the back and then it's done, done, done. Oh, but not so fast . . . back to the sleeves. Sigh. I'm so ready to move on.

I haven't registered for Stitches East because I still don't have disposable funds large enough (arrrrgggghh). But the Market is open, and there will be some freebie classes, so I'm going to tag along with hubby to work and spend the day hanging out at the Market and sniffing and petting yarn, and gawking at people's knitwear. Which means I need to get on with finishing my Backpack 2.0.

I've come across Knitting Scholar and it's a great source for book reviews. This is going to really help me to make decisions on which books to buy. Now if only there were more intermediate and advanced knitting books . . .

And the Mendocino cardigan is a real thorn in my hiney. As it turns out, ahem, the rate of the sleeve increases was way, way off and if I'd continued , the top would have been very, very wide. I had to have Genia take a look at my original sleeve to see what the actual increase rates were (I'd had to do some modifications to the pattern). Moral: always write down the rates.

I finally got a chance to take a picture of what I picked up in San Francisco. I didn't go hog wild, but made sure that these would be unique items. The book, "Seven Things that can "Make or Break" a Sweater", is more of a technique book, although there are some pattern in the back. She covers cast-ons, the fact that increasing and decreasing stitches have left or right directions that can be very noticeable, blocking, and so forth. Some of the facts are very eye-opening, illustrated with photos accenting her points.

I picked this book up at Imagiknits, I also picked up a nice skein of Prism Yarn lace wool. I haven't decided what shawl pattern to use with this skein. To round out the purchase, I picked up a mall cone of Habu wool stainless steel yarn in laceweight. Yes, you read that correctly. It's an interesting yarn, and you can bend the strand every which way. Perhap a little doily pattern for this cone.

Of course, being in San Francisco, I just had to visit Britex Fabrics. This is a fabulous fabric store, with luxury fabric, heirloom lace, and even a little bit of yarn. See that scrap of fabric in the middle? I found this really nice 3-yard remnant of this 56" cotton bolt on the 4th floor, where they have remnants. I was looking for tapestry fabric, but couldn't find anything of that kind, s I settled for this one. I should be able to get some nice bags and accessories out of this. I also picked up two grab bags of buttons.

I'e heard quite a bit about Artfibers Yarn, so naturally, since it was downtown near the cable turnaround (well, within 4 or 5 blocks), I had to check them out. I'm not too fond of novelty yarn, but there was some interesting yarn there, so I picked up two yarntasting samplers. And I added to my growing stitch marker collection.

This is what I've been spinning up. A lovely coopworth/alpaca blend. I have two skeins plied up so far, and I have some more on the bobbin that I've got to ply up. i don't think it's going to be quite enough for a good-sized shawl, so I'm going to have to spin up another batch of coopworth/alpaca blend that is dark gray in color. Hopefully I can free up the bobbins this weekend so I can get started on another batch.

I've been plugging away, here and there. Working on Tundra Rib Sock siamese twin - I really must replenish my handknit sock stash before the cold weather is here. In fact, it's nibbling at my heels now. This week is going to be on the cool side. And I'm certainly going to need these in a special place soon. Yes, I get to tag along with hubby to one of those destination places where millions of tourists visit every year. It will be nice to have a mini-vacation and I'm so looking forward to it.

I have an upcoming project Lacewing Shawl by Ann Hanson. I'm supposed to make a shawl for my mother. So, I've been spinning up some nice coopworth-alpaca roving. I need 1300 yards - I hope I have enough roving to accomplish that goal. I also hope to get the spinning done before we go to that special place. Which means I'll have to get up when hubby gets up so I can spend some time with the spinning wheel. Why do I do stuff like this that end up with me getting run down ragged?

I finally have not one, but two FO to show for August. Mr. Greenjeans was actually finished over a week ago. I simply washed and laid it out on the living room floor. I only needed to stretch out the sleeves a bit so that these would hit my wrists. I really loved knitting this cardigan, even if I did have problems with the sleeves. I wish that I'd made it just a bit bigger, and may do so with my next Mr. Greenjeans (yes, planning to do so). All that is left to be done is to put on a button. I don't have the perfect button yet. But maybe I'll find just the right one at Britex Fabrics.

Yes, dear readers, yours truly will be going to San Francisco at the end of the month. Hubby's company wants him to take a 3-day workshop to be held there. So, I get to tag along and I just have to find things to do to amuse myself while hubby's in class. Yippee! The plan is to fly in early enough that hubby and I will have one whole day to explore, and spend time with his sister Sally and her family and his brother Rick; they all live in Sacramento. It'll be great to see them.

Of course, I'll be taking my laptop and I need to remember to pack my camera cable so I can upload photo. (Don't forget to get started on that trip list. - Ed. Yes, ma'am.)

I don't usually get too political here. But, I'm really shocked by sexism in the media. And dare I say, sexism from the very folks who should theoretically be the least sexist. Nobody is perfect, not even me.

I now return y'all to regular programming - "Let's All Decide What to Knit Next . . . So Many Choices, So Little Time", now playing at your local station, Batman time.

I've been pretty much quiet during July, because I've been working on these socks, and working on my garden. Once again, the squash and cucumbers have taken over the garden and I'm having to find ways to use these.

I finally finished the Purple Clog socks. This turned out nicely enough. I did get a bit irritated with the yarn a at one point the strand broke apart while i was knitting. It'll be interesting to see how it stand up under wear. I've now started on another pair of socks - Blue Arch-Shaped sock. I wanted to try out a differently-shaped pattern before leaping into Cat Bordhi' patterns. (You're intimidated by her, aren't you? - Ed. Err . . . yes, I am. Tsk, tsk, tsk! - Ed.)

So, now it's August. Which means Fall can't be too far behind. And it's looking to be a very good one in terms of knitting. Lots of good books coming out. The Fall issues. Vogue Knitting Fall issue actually looks quite decent, for a change. And yes, it means that I must turn my attention to the languishing projects so I can clear off the WIP queue. So here goes the run-down of almost completed projects . . .

Lola's Mr. Greenjeans Cardigan. Third attempt at the sleeves. The sleeve is too skinny and keep in mind that I will be wearing this over one or two layers of top clothes. I like to have some room in my sleeves so I don't feel like I'm bound up like a mummy.

Purple Polo Pullover. Need to finish attaching the sleeves. I need to redo this, redistribute the attach points more evenly.

Lola's Green Raglan Sweater. I need to sew the bottom back to the main body. I'm thinking about just picking up and knitting down to the bottom. I'm afraid the sewn stitches won't be as even in tension.

Green Mendocino Cardigan. Gong to have to redo the sleeves. This time, I'll knit both at the same time, to take care of the tension issues. Back has yet to be started. Shouldn't be a problem - I hope.

Lola's Roscalie Vest. Got a nice, honking hole at the top. Sigh. Not sure what to do about this.

I won't bother to run down the others since these are in such early stages that I won't complete these before September 21st.

Yes, I know this is a bit fuzzy and too dark, but hey, I gotta show y'all that I'm alive and knitting. Pattern is Dawn Brocco's Cable Clog sock and it's one of my favorite pattern. A good amount of twisted knit pattern, and yet enough sockinette knitting not to bore you to tears. I'm using Cestari Sock yarn - my first time with it. Appearance is on the rustic side. I'm eager to see how well it holds up under hard wear. I think I might have enough to make a triplet set, but we'll see.

I decided to go ahead and get the Schacht Ladybug Wheel because I want one that is portable, and besides, the church bazaar is coming up in just a few months and I need time to get familiar with it so I can be more at ease with demonstrating and answering questions. And I think I've finally found a nice home for the Majacraft Little Gem. I'll have to thank Knitting Banter in part for changing the think process regarding the MJ Little Gem. Now I need to apply this to my job search . . .

This is what I've been working on for the past couple weeks - Mr. Greenjeans from Knitty. I'd had this in my RavQueue for quite a while. I wanted a new cardigan to take place of my red cardigan that I currently use. This is a great pattern and knits up quickly. I'm using Brown Sheep NatureSpun and the color is Plumberry. It's a truly lovely color. So far, I've used up one entire skein and a half of the second skein, an I'm getting ready to knit up the first sleeve. I'm surprised at how little yardage this pattern requires. I figure that by the time I'm finished I will have used 3, maybe 4 skeins.

Meanwhile, work at The Nursery is making me tired. You have no idea how heavy hoses with water turned on can be until you've spent several day moving it around from place to place. But, at least, I've gotten quite a few plants from the nursery - the usual, tomatoes, beans, etc. I've got most of the squash and zucchinis in the ground. This year we're going to try something new - growing some of the tomatoes upside down. We're planning to do more work this weekend, especially since it won't rain. [Did the endless days of heavy rain put a damper into your gardening plans? - Ed. Yup . . . sure did, along with the fact that my favorite time to work on the garden is now taken up by working at the nursery]

I need to get on with my job search. This time I'm going to try something new - going through my LinkedIn connections. I've built up enough contacts that I can now go through their contacts to see what's out there. Hopefully this will cut out the recruiters, who seem to be my main obstacle. [Please make an exception for recruiters who work at companies that do direct hires. - Ed. That's a really good point] I found a good article on how to use LinkedIn for job searches along with links to other resouces.

Finally . . . here's a message for a certain candidate - if you insist on sending your spouse out to campaign for you, anything your spouse says is fair game. No exceptions. So stop whining and grow a thicker skin. After all . . . your spouse could get the itch and desire to become POTUS down the road.

So . . . the good news is - I finished the Rosemarkie vest. The bad news is . . . I'm going to be a bit busy for the next couple days and won't be able to get a picture up. I haven't even had a chance to wash and block it.

Oh, and my car is probably headed for the junkyard. Bruce and I went to the car dealer yesterday, and they tried to screw us over. Uggghhhh. We told them that we'd get back to them next week if we decided to get the car. Want to bet you that when we call, they'll say it's been sold to someone else and that we'll find ourselves back at square one?

I've been running around like crazy for the past two weeks, because the job at The Nursery. Don't get too excited - it's just a temporary, part-time job lasting two months at the latest and will not lead to a permanent job. Let's just say, it's one of those "go into work, keep your mouth shut, and leave on the dot" job. At least I have time in the afternoon to work at my other job, job hunting. I wish I could quit that job already.

I've got the Little Gem up for sale, because we just don't get along and I ReallyReallyReally want that Schacht Ladybug wheel. Yes, I've advertised on Ravelry, on Craigslist. No takers - I'm surprised. Anyway, here's the blurb that goes with this ad:

I've had this wheel for over five years, but we've just never gotten along well, so I feel it's time to find it a new home and get me a Schacht Ladybug. So, I'm putting up my barely-used Majacraft Little Gem (NOT Little Gem II) wheel for sale.

I had the wheel replaced because of cracks in the original wheel, and the metal shaft had to be replaced. Included is a Woolee Winder and a bobbin. And, 8 Majacraft plastic bobbins, and the delta flyer.

I would like to have this sold before Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival. I can deliver locally in the DC Metro area (my preference), at the festival, or ship if you pay for shipping and insurance. At this point this will for sale as a complete package; I want everything out of the house before I can pay for the Schacht Ladybug.

All for $700. Cash, certified check, or PayPal only. First come, first serve. Thanks!

Please help me get this off my hand - if you know anyone who's looking for a nice spinning wheel, pass this along to them!

Oh, yeah, tomorrow's Pascha and as usual I'm doing stuff at the last minute. This includes finishing the edge of the vest (only 4 more rows to go and no buttonholes). Must remember to take a good nap tomorrow . . .

Pattern: Russian Prime Vest

Source: "Meg Swansen's Knitting: 30 Designs for Hand Knitting" by Meg Swansen (oop); Russian Prime DVD from Schoolhouse Press

Size: Too small for me

Materials: Québécoise from Schoolhouse Press

Needles: US7/4.5mm Addi Turbo Circulars, I think

Started: March 2001

Finished: April 9, 2008

I can't believe this took me 7 years to finish. But I can understand it because this has happened to every knitter. You're knitting merrily along when you discover that it's way too small for you. And so you rip it out. I would have done that . . . except that I had already cut the steeks. Oops. So, I resigned myself to finishing it and giving away to someone. The pattern calls for sleeves, and two i-cords around the neck area. I just couldn't bring myself to get started on the sleeves, as this would just prolong the agony. So, I decided to just finish off the armholes an the neck area with an i-cord. This will eventually go to some lucky Russian girl, if I can find a way to deliver this to one of my contacts without having to go through the postal service.

Next up: the Rosemarkie Vest. I'm putting on the finishing touches, and have it done before end of month. Before end of this weekend if I push it! Oh, yeah, must get on with the Purple Polo Pullover. it's only three weeks before MDSW and I'd like to enter it in the competition . . .

I can guarantee you that this will definitely be done before the end of the month. Because that's when Orthodox Easter is, and I got to have something new to celebrate. I could actually have had this done before now, but I wanted to wait till the Thursday meeting at Barnes & Noble so that the ladies could see me cut it all up. Usually I do this alone, but it was nice to have an audience for this performance.

The corrugated ribbings shouldn't take so long, as I'm only going to do half the width of the bottom ribbing. I'm debating whether to put in buttonholes or not. Most of the time I wear my vests open. And I'd kinda like to get this finished soon.

As I'm getting ready to usher this out of the door, I'm gearing up on my Glass Beach Cardigan. I already have the vest version, and I have enough yarn for the cardigan version. Okay, well, I might have to buy more Jamieson's Spindrift Maroon (which is just the same as St*m*re Campion Ruby). This version will be zippered, as inspired by this Oregon cardigan by Susan of The Rainey Sisters. I'm thinking about having this v-necked, or whether it will go straight up to the neck. I'm also thinking about having set-in sleeves. Going to be a royal pain to tweak the pattern around for this. I think I may need to study what Eunny did with her lovely Autumn Rose Sweater.

Yes, still working on the Purple Polo Pullover. I've decided to keep the ridges because these are so striking. i'll need to redo the bind-off, though, because when I got further down on the other side, I realized I was going to have more sleeve stitches than body stitches to attach. So I'll need to count the body rows, and then determine the ratio. Math - ugh.

This is what happens when you let a project go for years and years without looking at it.

I've got the steeks cut open now, and next up is attaching the sleeves to the body. I've trying to figure out how to accomplish this. The sleeve stitches are live on the needle, and I checked my reference books for inspiration. Finally, I hit on this solution - do a 3-stitch bindoff, where I pick up a stitch off a whole body stitch, every two stitches, and bind off the previous stitch with the picked up stitch.

What do you think of the ridge? Does it stand out too much? Or just right? The yarn is on the dense side, so I'm thinking it's not going to matter much. If you click on the larger image, you'll see that the neck decrease stitches also stand out a bit. I've also asked folks in the Ravelry Zimmermaniacs group for their opinions, as well as on my Flickr account. I'm going to let this mull for a couple days before deciding whether to continue or start over again. I'd love to get this pullover finished before the end of this month, so please weigh in!