Festival

Festival

Originally uploaded by efbq

Had a wonderful time at the Sheep and Wool Festival. Before I was seriously overloaded with all the sights and sounds and people I took two wonderful classes. One was an introduction to spinning, taught by Bonnie Butler. She taught the true beginners method of using a drop spindle, which involves holdiing it steady rather than actually dropping it. I became addicted fairly quickly and now that I’ve had a few more days to fiddle with it I’m beginning to add the ‘drop’ part on my own.

The other class I took was Sally Melville’s “Knit to Flatter and Fit”, which not only covered how to alter patterns, but why. Now I just have to get some of her books to add to my library!

Not only that, but I saw Alpaca and tasted lamb and had the opportunity to do a lot more, if I’d been up to tackling crowds and rain. I will definitely go again next year.

Carpet Bag

My Mother-in-Law picked up some old upholstery fabric samples at a flea market a while ago. They just screamed ‘carpet bag’ to me, but I set them aside.

A couple of days ago I whipped them together into the bag. Definitely needs some work, but the concept is good and the bag is sturdy, at least. Might do this again some time.

It’s big enough for my ‘Me Bag’ and a smallish WIP (here shown with the ’stray thought’ wristwarmers.

Two Fisted Knitting

So I’ve been working on Eunny Jang’s Endpaper Mitts.  It’s a pretty involved two color project, worked in the round, and I’m doing both at once on two circs (see the picture below).

"A Stray Thought"

Since nothing is ever complicated enough, I’ve decided to use this opportunity to try a new technique.

I have a vague suspicion that when I first started knitting (ages ago) I learned English style (holding the working yarn in the right hand, along with the front needle).  Like many people, I re-taught myself as an adult, and at that time I learned Continental style (holding the working yarn in the left hand and the front needle in the right).   It cuts down the number of movements per stitch and goes faster.

As you can guess from the names of the two styles, each is associated with a particular region and history.  According to Elizabeth Zimmerman there have been class prejudices associated with the styles, and she describes having been chided for knitting Continental style as a child, in a way I’d find hard to believe if not for some experiences with my daughter’s elementary school teachers. (No, you do NOT have to master phonics in kindergarten, just trust me on this one).

Anyway, Zimmerman, and a lot of other people, have recommended knitting both at once for two color work, so I’ve been using this as a practice project for that.  Knitting Help has videos for both methods, which I’ve found pretty useful.  So far I’m getting a lot out of it.

I can haz yarn?

Two things.

First of all, I’ve uploaded my first picture to icanhascheeseburger.

That’s Comet, who sort of adopted us on New Years Day.  I’ve got some of Captain (his brother from another mother) which I’ll probably upload some time.  There are not quite a dozen alternate captions have come up yet, but give it time.

So, yay that.  I’ve also registered for two classes at this year’s Sheep and Wool Festival.  This is actually kind of exciting, since they apparently sell out fast, but I’ll be in a knit to fit workshop and an intro to spinning class.  I have a drop spindle and a bag of Alpaca roving which have been sitting in my stash box for well over a year now, stubbornly refusing to become yarn.  I’m looking forward to the classes, and the festival, very much.  I’ve been wanting to go for a long time now, and I really have no excuse since it’s actually in county.

This just rocks on toast.

2009 Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival

“A Stray Thought”

Tubular cast on for endpaper mits

Originally uploaded by efbq

I’m currently working on Eunny Jang’s “Endpaper Mits” using Poems and Pace sock yarns. The yarn weights are slightly different, but when worked about 50/50 they give gauge. I double checked and the Poems (which is lighter) still works for the ribbing.  Went with a different version of the tubular cast on than Eunny suggests, since I just couldn’t make hers work.  (Good old Zimmerman)

I’m really loving the look and feel of this one.

Now to get back to writing.

The REAL Time Sink

The REAL time sink, of course, has been the writing.

Yay!  I’m writing again.   About 40K words since the end of February.  Will post more later. 

So, it’s been four months, what’s new?

Not a huge amount, actually, but I’ll run through it here.

Competitive Knitting

I’ve joined SockWars.  For those of you who live under rocks and don’t know about such things, Sock Wars is a very specialized knitting swap.  Everyone gets the pattern and a target at the same time.  Once the sock is done, the warrior sends it to her target.  If the target receives a pair of  Sock Wars socks in the mail, to pattern and gauge, then she (usually) is  DEAD.  She sends her socks-in-progress back to her killer, who then completes them and sends them on to her target, and so on.

The last knitter standing is a winner.  So is the knitter who kills the most targets.  There may be a few other random victories in the process.

My Warrior name is MeanGreenCuffinMachine.  I’m on Team Fett.

My KnitPicks sock yarn is on order, and my needles are just itchin’ to get gauge.  Now all I need is a victim and the pattern…

Blog Contests

I entered Sunset Cat’s St. Brigid contemplations comment drawing, and won the cutest set of stitch markers.  Definitely check these out, they’re adorable!

I’m enterinig MommaCrafter’s SockWars Weapons Bag drawing. Take a look at the contest.  While you’re at it, check out her Etsy shop.

Ending the World

By the way, I’ve summoned the Great God Cthulhu and will be sending him on a tour of destruction around the world.  He’ll start in Washington DC sometime soon.  No, really.  Watch this blog for future updates.

Be afraid.  Be very afraid.

…and _loving_ it!

The cleo clutch has made me realize a simple truth.  I don’t hold myself to the same standard when I’m working on a project for myself as I do when it’s for someone else.

The more I mess up the cables, the more I knit myself into a corner and have to improvise (by, for example, running out of purple and adding more colors) the more I’m liking this project…  even realizing that, if it comes out right and I get the wallet I’ll be carrying it everywhere with me.   I’m enjoying the heck out of it, errors and all.

Just as long as it felts OK and the size is right, I’ll be happy with it.

This One’s For Me.

The perfect ‘wallet’ would be big enough to hold my checkbook, pocket calendar, cel phone and an altoids box full of ID and various cards, but still small enough to fit into a handbag.  The one I have would be perfect if it didn’t have a zipper (really, it’s just that much too small to slip my check book into easily), so I’ve decided to make a new one.

I found a beautiful pattern, the ‘Cleo Clutch‘, which is gorgeous but may be too big.  May not be (it’s felted, so who can tell for sure?)

Of course, I can never leave a good thing alone, so I’m working a pocket into it, for bills.   I’ve altered the pattern after the two garter stitch rows.

After the first eight stitches on the next (RS) row I placed a marker, then took my second color and cast on one stitch, then with the second ball of yarn in back I worked a stitch in purple, then cast on another teal stitch (with purple yarn held in front) and so on.  Eight stitches from the end I placed another marker and worked the rest of the row, in purple, as per the pattern.

So each row I ‘double knit’, holding the non-working yarn in front or in back (depending on whether it’s an even or odd row), and just do both at once.  I make sure to ‘wrap’ the teal and purple, as though working intarsia, twice on each row, once before the first and once after the last teal stitch.

The cabling is a bit tricky. I actually work without a cable needle, but you could do the same thing with one.  For a C4B (for example) I knit the last teal stitch before the cable, then slip four purple and three teal stitches off the left hand needle.  I slip the second ‘free’ purple stitch onto the left hand needle, holding it in front of the third and fourth (just as I usually would for a cable in front) then I swing the left hand needle around in back and slip the third teal stitch onto it, then back in front of the work and slip the first purple onto it, then in back and get the second teal stitch, then the fourth purple, first teal, third purple.  Now I’ve got my cable all set up and ready to go and I work it as per normal.

I hope this makes sense.  I’ve got some WIP pictures here.  If anyone wants more info on the cabling please leave a comment.

Not a Hat Yet.

I just finished crochetting a fedora, and am about to start the felting process.  It is a rather shapeless lump at this point, more of a floppy bag than a hat.
I’ve wobbled the pattern a bit, based on some comments from others on Ravelry who have made it.  I dropped two inches off of the height.  You can’t see it in the picture, but there is actually a hint of a brim which is supposed to become clearer once it felts.

I’ll probably felt it over the next several days, as more jeans and towels need to be washed.  I’ll try to photograph the blocking process if I can.