TwinKnit

All New, All the time!

2007-02-12T13:15:00.000-05:00

Wondering where I've been? Well, inspired by others in the blogosphere, I've gone blogger-free.

Come check me out here: www.twin-knit.com

Hurrah!

One

2007-02-06T13:44:00.000-05:00

If there was ever any doubt, it has now been confirmed that I suffer from second-sock-itis. I just can't seem to get excited about finishing any of these. It's not that I don't want the FO, because i do (especially now that Minty has stolen my mojo... I just need an FO to get it back. Just. one. F.O!). I just feel... well, bored while knitting them. And this photo doesn't even count the in-progress socks (my Hawaii socks and Melissa's Christmas socks). All of these socks have an in-progress mate:

New England sock, on hold for months now.

Sara's socks.

and the all-familiar Pomatomus (sorry about the uninspiring photography and weird angles. It was cold out).

With the last two socks, I even cast on for the second immediately after finishing the first, which usually prevents the horror that was the New England sock's second-sock-itis (remember when I finished the first one? Yep. Back in June). I know I've got to plug along and finish -- especially the New England, which is on my list of UFOs for the UFO Challenge. But I can't get motivated. The upside? You can see the photos that it is snowing here. We're actually supposed to get 3-5 inches, which might not be alot for many parts of the world, but here 3-5 inches makes it a challenge to get around (especially now that the 4-wheel drive on my car is broken. Another story for another time). I was supposed to go to KY tonight, but it's looking like I'll get to stay in. The downside (at least in terms of second-sock-itis)? Last night, I cast on this:

(Yep, that's Misti Alpaca worsted. I'm loving Misti Alpaca right now) Yummy. Those socks might be single a while longer...

Rambling

2007-02-04T22:59:00.000-05:00

Thank you all for your lovely comments on my last post. Some of them made me tear up a little (but maybe I'm just feeling a little emotional these days).

This weekend took me across the central mountains on some before-I-leave-Appalachia adventures. On Friday, I headed out to the Hindman Settlement School in Hindman, Kentucky for a meeting of the Mountain Music Teachers Association. Although I'm not really a member, it was interesting for fieldwork and, more importantly (to some), there was a good jam that night.

When my fingers crapped out on me (I'm not used to playing guitar -- man, it kills your fingers if you don't have the right calluses! And I'm a wickedly bad fiddle player, so...), I knit. Pomatomus #2 also enjoyed the music (that's my friend James on the fiddle. I put his picture here because he laughed when I told him I had a knitting blog. Little does he know...).

And (for those of you who lamented the loss of beautiful mountain scenery that will be caused by my northern migration) when I woke up in Hindman in the morning, there was a lovely coating of sparkling snow.

Later Saturday afternoon, my friends Julie, Bethany, and James all headed down to North Carolina to hear the Red Stick Ramblers play at the Boone Saloon. A very, very good time was had by all, although I two-stepped so much that last night my knees were cracking like an old lady's and this morning my body hurt so much I could barely get up. A lot of time in the car, but well worth the drive. More knitting tomorrow.

Absence makes the heart...

2007-02-01T15:24:00.000-05:00

Sometimes, there's so much to say I don't want to say anything at all. That pretty much sums up the month of January -- posting irratically, going weeks without saying anything at all, not mentioning important things, missing anniversaries (my blogiversary was the 24th). But it's a new month, and I'm tired of putting off blogging because I have too much to write. So I'll begin with the news I've not been writing for the last two months.

I'm moving back to Philly.

This probably doesn't come as much of a surprise, given the number of trips I've made up there recently, although those trips have very little to do with my ultimate decision. This was an incredibly difficult decision for me to make, and one that even after I made it, I still didn't tell people about for months. I was ready to stay down here in the mountains for the long haul (y'all might remember), but the inherent isolation of dissertation-writing, combined with my physical isolation from friends and family, really took its toll this winter. Add to all of that the difficulty of writing what is turning out to be a fairly theory-heavy dissertation while three hours from a major research library, and... well... it's a recipe for slow writing. I'm ready to finish my dissertation and I'm ready to get on with my life. I love living here, and the thought of moving away makes me want to sit down and cry. But at the same time, I know now is the time to go. I've got to go back to Philly, a city I once loved with all my being, and face the ghosts that remain there. I've got amazing friends up there, a wonderful community, and now a terrific apartment waiting for me. It's just time. And if I wait until spring? Well, I'll never be able to go. It's just too damn pretty here in the spring. So... that's my news.

Despite not blogging, I've been knitting quite a bit. I have lots to post. First, and most proud, I learned to darn. Remember these?

I returned them to my mom looking like this:

Not beautiful, but wearable. And I felt so old timey and resourceful while doing it. The first new skill of 2007... Thanks Theresa for your tutorial!

In other knitting news, I'm on the toe of the first pomatomus (please note gratuitous photos), I'm almost done with the first "batman sock," and while in Philly, I broke my no-yarn rule (hey, I was depressed from the apartment hunt -- I deserved it!) and bought myself some beautiful Cascade 220 for an Elizabeth Zimmerman seamless hyrbid (that I think I'm gonna steek into a cardigan... we'll see if I have the guts to do it). I'm already through the waist decreases for that. But, my patient friend Shane asked ages ago for a pair of "manly mitts" and mentioned recently (in woeful tones) that he's seen no progress pictures on the blog and did I forget about him? So Shane, this is for you (just a hint, and the shade of green is sooo much nicer than I could capture here):

Dum dee dum dee dum...

2007-01-27T23:04:00.000-05:00

I swear, I haven't dropped off the face of the planet. I'm in Philly. Again. I feel like I've been out of town more than in town these last few months, and it's led to some erratic blogging. But -- there will be knitting, news, and photos when I return to the mountains this coming week. Your pomatomus sock questions will be answered (although they are not yet finished), hopefully there will be some endpaper mitts to display, and a new project to show off. See you soon!

Pomotamus revived

2007-01-17T16:51:00.000-05:00

I would like to say, for the record, that ripping back an inch of the foot of the Pomotamus was the most hair-raising, terrifying experience of my brief knitting career. I hope never to have to rip something like that again. All I can say is THANK GOD for that US 000 needles. They were a life saver.

Now off to the knit-night I've organized with some friends in Kentucky (where I will be working on a much more soothing project!)

Check it!

2007-01-16T21:50:00.000-05:00

Oh yeah!

So I treated myself to knitting on Pomotamus while watching Fog of War, which I netflixed ages ago and never had a chance to watch (can I interrupt myself to note that "to netflix" now seems like a completely acceptable verb? My how things have changed!). I was all set to post about the P-sock tonight -- how I first knit one a year ago, how hard it seemed, how I couldn't follow the pattern and how badly the sock turned out (so badly I actually didn't knit the second. This rarely happens). This time around, I flew through the first chart, all the way down the ankle, and turned the heel without even a second thought. It was, to me, a testament to how much I've grown as a knitter in the last year. I had all of these back-patting thoughts planned for my post -- introspective musings about the measuring of progress, adult learning curves and such. But alas! It seems I don't always learn as fast as I think. Because half way through (of so I thought) the second foot chart, I take a moment to actually consult the chart. And lo! I effed up. Damn. I effed up in a way that can't be easily fixed. I was so frustrated, I had to set it aside. I'll figure out how to rip back a sock full of twisted stitches tomorrow.

But I'm worried... could this be a sign of the times to come? So far, everything I've knit in 2007 has had to be at least partially frogged. Like the Spindle-socks-that-aren't. Or the Endpaper mitt disaster, where I repeated two extra rows of the chart, but didn't realize until I was well on my way up the thumb, had to add an after-thought lifeline, rip back and knit again. Sheesh.

Here's to hoping for either more brain power or fewer mistakes the rest of the year! And now, back to the endpaper...

In other news...

2007-01-15T18:51:00.000-05:00

I'm plugging along on the Pomotamus sock. More information soon...

In other news, I'm so close to being done with this grant, I can taste it. This has nudged a little into my knitting time, but when I'm done, I should have a good thirty pages of a chapter finished, and that's uplifting.

Recently, I've noticed that some folks have been posting about creative interests beyond knitting (too many to link to here, but seriously -- everyone's button collections make me want to start collecting buttons. I've got a weakness for collecting). I find it inspiring to see what catches other peoples fancies. So I thought I'd let you guys in on my dirty little secret. I collect saucers.

I love them -- their usefulness, versatility, tiny beauty. It's so much fun to dig through junk shops and antique stores looking for beauties that meet the rules (yes, as with most collections, there are rules -- Well, one rule really -- each saucer in my collection is an "orphan." That is, it doesn't have an accompanying cup, nor did I find it in a store with others like it. They must be lonely saucers, in search of a good home. This keeps me from bringing home every beautiful saucer I see). The above photo is a selection of my current favs from my collection. There is the saucer that inspired the saucer obsession:

A little wedgewood number that I snagged at an antique store in Staunton, Virginia. I love it.

Then there is this puppy:

I got this one in Memphis when I visited last February. It's a store sample, and the little polka dots make even the dullest day chipper.

And this one? Well, the reason why I love it should be obvious :)

You'll notice that my idea of saucer does not necessarily mean that it once had a corresponding tea cup (which, coincidentally, I'd also collect if I weren't, as my dad constantly reminds me, mobile. I'd collect tea pots too... god, I can't wait until I have my own home!). I've included small plates in my "saucer" collection. Like the blue depression glass -- That plate is also the only plate that has violated the "orphan" rule. But I maintain that it was, indeed, technically orphaned, since Jenfee bought all the others and it would have been orhpaned if I hadn't lovingly bought it. So there.

What do you all collect?

Hip-Hop-Happening Saturday Night

2007-01-13T19:01:00.000-05:00

I realized today that I haven't left my house (other than to walk up the lane to the mailbox and back) in a week. No wonder I'm depressed. But I'm almost -- ALMOST -- done with my last major grant (three more days. Just three more days and I'm done).

My Saturday night?

[that would be a copy of my dissertation half-chapter that needs revision and the in progress ankle of an all-too-famous sock pattern. More on that tomorrow]

My hot date?

Oh yeah. That's right folks. It's either a sign that I'm a grown up or a hopeless dork, but this baby was one of my favorite Christmas presents. Cat hair dust bunnies don't stand a chance in the presence of the Turquoise Wonder. Ha HA!

Have a good weekend, all!

More things to cure all ills

2007-01-11T15:45:00.000-05:00

Thanks for all of your comments on the Swallowtail! I'm so pleased with how it turned out, and I think it's made me a lace convert -- I keep finding all these new patterns I want to make. So get ready for more lace to come.

So here and there over the last few days, I've been working on small new projects. I'm in the throes of my last major grant application and have had to lay down the law when it comes to knitting (something, I suppose, I should do more often) -- no knitting until I've written at least three pages (or whatever my daily goal happens to be. Today, for example, it is to finish the nasty draft of this proposal). So in the evenings, while trying to think of how to say something, or deciding where I want to go next in this chapter, or generally giving my brain a break, I've been craving small things to knit -- things that can be knit in pieces (and, of course, from the stash, since I'm dead-set on not buying yarn until March). This little guy is a product of this craving. [This picture does him no justice...]

Pattern: Elephant loveable toy, from Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: less than 1 skein of Malabrigo (Frost Gray), Misti Alpaca Worsted (in pink) for the nose, scraps of Knitpicks Gloss for the eyes, and Sundara Merino Sport for the snazzy Kerchief.
Needles: Clover bamboo dpns, 4.25 mm US 6

Modifications: Well, other than yarn selection, I knit the whole thing on dpns -- The pattern calls for this very complicated process of knitting from the legs up the body on two circulars. Bah! I knit the legs flat, and then rearranged them on dpns with half the leg stitches on each of four dpns. Worked fine. If I had it to do again, I'd knit the arms on slightly smaller needles. My gauge knitting in the round is considerably tighter than it is knitting/purling stocking flat (knitting socks is beginning to take it's toll... my purl tension is considerably looser than my knit. doh!) and it's noticeable. I sewed the ears on a little wonky, but i think that's part of the little elephant's charm. I stuffed him with yarn scraps, so not a thing was wasted in the process. What a fun and rewarding (and adorable!) knit. Any name ideas?

I just finished brewing coffee. This will be the first cup of coffee I've had in almost a week. I decided to cut back this year, after I found myself going through almost a pot a day in November. Coffee is my treat to myself today.

[and for those of you who think I seem to be churning out a lot of projects these days (Minty), I don't really knit that fast. I've had a lot of things languishing around, half finished, that I've suddenly motivated to complete. Also, keep in mind I live in a town of 78, about three hours from a reasonable sized city (and movie theaters. and restaurants. and FRIENDS) and I have no day job. Things can get pretty dull chez Twinknit in the winter, and knitting has proven to be an excellent way to pass my evenings).

Cure All

2007-01-09T15:27:00.000-05:00

I was having a really down day. That is, until I unpinned this:

Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl, from Interweave Fall 2006
Yarn: Drops Alpaca 2 skeins (plus some Misti Alpaca laceweight in black...I ran out of yarn)
Needles: Addi Natura circulars, 4.5 mm, US 7

Thoughts: There are no words for the joy this shawl makes me feel. This is my first completed and blocked lace, and I'm hooked. I ran out of yarn at the end which was frustrating, but in the end, I just decided to use black for the last border, just like the tail of the Swallow bird:

(I didn't really put that much thought into it at the time, but I like the argument).

I'm wearing it now... maybe it will help me write this grant application quicker. If not, then at least it made me feel better! Lace and fresh bread will cure al ills...

Plays well with others, but...

2007-01-08T14:19:00.000-05:00

Cannot follow directions. Case in point -- my first FO of 2007 (Let's home this isn't a sign of things to come!)

Pattern: Well, it was supposed to be the Spindle Socks, but I can't follow directions, so I guess it's really my own.
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, 2 skeins, in color #340002 (a beautiful pale green)
Needles: Clover bamboo dpns, 2.75 mm (US 2)

Thoughts/Modifications: Well, like I said, I can't follow directions. I misread the pattern and didn't notice that there was a 2 purl column between each set of three cables (when the cable change direction). I didn't notice this until I'd done all the ribbing and started the first set of cables. But I was on a time constraint (I was desperately trying to finish socks for my girlfriends from college before we all met up in Boston. I didn't succeed. But I'm much farther along than last year, when I finished the last pair in July!). So I fudged the pattern a little and got it to work out so there were still six cables (three in each direction) across the front. It wasn't until I reached the toe of the first sock that I noticed this:

See it? When I picked up stitches along the heel flap and began knitting in the round again, I inadvertently switched the direction of the cables. All of them. Again, no time to rip back. So I just repeated all of my mistakes on the second sock. Oh well. They are still delicious socks -- great color (can you tell I'm craving spring?), I love this cable, and the cashermino is so squishy and decadent on the feet. Anna's pattern is wonderful too -- very easy to cable with out a cable needle (thanks to the slipped stitches in those cables) and knits up quickly. They're blocking now, and then they're off in the mail to Mel. I might have to make myself a pair (following the directions, of course).

In other news, I joined the 2007 UFO Resurrection. I'm gonna get my WIPs under control (this is one of my New Years Yarn Resolutions -- along with only knitting from stash for the months of January and February... possibly even March!). My list of UFOs so far (and I know there'll be more)?

1. Swallowtail shawl
2. New England Socks
3. TSALP (still)
4. Mom's Faroese shawl (frog pond)
5. Union Square Market (frog pond)
6. Spitey's Sweater (frog pond, when I feel capable)
7. Kitty Pi
8. Anthropologie Sweater (frog pond, I think...)
9. Orangina

I've gotten a head start on #1 (and, indirectly, #5)... I put it down months ago when I realized I was going to run out of yarn. I couldn't find more on my last trip to Philly and the poor thing has been sitting around 15 rows from completion. So this weekend, I finally picked it back up and re-evaluated the yarn situation. I thought that perhaps the yarn still attached to my unfrogged beginning of the Union Market Sweater might do the trick. So I painstakingly ripped it out (and believe me, this was no fun -- alpaca is sticky!),

rewound it, and am now plugging away (after doing my very first spit-felted join... I'm never weaving in ends again!). I hope to have the thing blocking by midweek. Hurrah!

2006 in Review

2007-01-07T08:13:00.000-05:00

I'm back from my east coast rambles and cozily, if sleepily, installed back in my little mountain home. I'm still in the process of catching up on my blog reading, but it seems as though everyone had lovely holidays. I have a lot to post about, but I'm going to follow Rachel's lead, and stagger my posts. This saves y'all from a monster post and gives me fodder for posting all week while I try and pull together a grant application (nothing like starting a new year with grant writing. Woo hoo!).

I had a plan to post pictures -- like my last FO of 2006, etc. But I woke up this morning and, well, it's "froggy". See?

Bad light for new-photo-taking. So instead, I present you (a little belatedly) with 2006 in Review. It's been a big year. According to my files, in 2006, I knit:

1 sweater
1 shrug
13 pairs of socks
8 pairs of fingerless gloves
2 hats
1 scarf
1 pair of mittens
5 miscellaneous

Of these, 9 were for me (the shrug, 3 pairs of socks, 1 pair of fingerless gloves, the mittens, the hat, and the wrist rest) and the rest were gifts of "commissions" (i.e. "Hey, can you make me one of those?").

I still have 9 projects OTN, incomplete.

My goal for the beginning of 2007? To start getting some of these off the needle. Then I can make room for some new projects! More on my Knitting resolutions tomorrow!

HOliday

2006-12-29T20:30:00.000-05:00

Back again...

First, and most importantly, thank you all for your kind words re: my knitting and (more importantly) the mid-winter blues. I know there's lots of 'debate' out there about the line between knitting and the personal, and I appreciate all your support. It's nice being home and tomorrow, I head to Boston for my annual new-years-meet-up with my five best gal-pals from college. I think that will do wonders to refresh my spirit. The last few weeks have caused me to think, quite a bit, and for now I'll say that the new year promises some substantial changes. More on that as things settle themselves.

In the meantime, my holiday knitting is still slowly finding its way to recipients.

I knit this scarf for my brother (who, to my amazement, patiently posed for pictures on Christmas night).

Pattern: My own (sand stitch with a slip-stitch border -- it looks so tidy!)
Yarn: Knit picks Merino Style in "Nutmeg" (or, as Theresa says, whatever they're calling beige these days)
Needles: Lantern Moon, US 8 straights

And speaking of holiday knits, when we were babies, my mom knit these (monster) stockings for us. Santa still struggles to fill them every year (lots of underwear, oranges, and toothpaste over the years!).

More knitting to come as gifts are given... I hope you all had wonderful holidays and, if you don't hear from me before then, a wonderful New Year!

Radio Silence

2006-12-22T20:54:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the long absence. Thanks all for your suggestions on the posting problem. I haven't remedied it, although I think I'm gonna follow Meg's example and switch over to haloscan for my comments. I'm starting to think the new year might bring a blogger-free blog... but let's not get ahead of ourselves here.

LOOK! I knit something!

One Endpaper Mitt, at long last (sorry about the flashiness of this photo... nighttime pics suck).

The outside looks depressingly amateurish, pre-blocking. But the inside? I love the inside.

I also love the way you can see where I switched which color I held in my left hand (I knit continental).

Other things to love? Tubular cast on. HUGE pain in the ass to do, but damn, it looks good. And so stretchy.

In life, there are things that make me wonder -- like those mushrooms that will kill you if you cook them for 30 minutes, but won't if you cook them for 45. Or those fish that are part poisonous and part edible. After these mushrooms and fish killed one person, who decided to try again, but cook it longer? And coconuts. Who was the first person who tried to get into a coconut to see if there was something worth eating in there? I feel the same way about the tubular bind off. What sick mind thought that trying that combination of weaving and stitching might turn into a good bind off? It mystifies me. But I love it, despite its finicky-ness. It looks pretty.

So, moral of the story -- the first mit is... well... a bit of an ugly duckling. But I learned a bit. And maybe blocking will help. And perhaps, just perhaps, the second will be lovelier.

I also frogged the fingerless mitts from the last post and reknit them. They were gifted today, along with the "hippie hat" I knit over the summer, and were well received. I forgot my camera, but Julie promised me a photoshoot after the holidays.

On a more personal note, thanks for your patience with the sporadic blogging and e-mail-returning. I've been having a rough go of it this winter and my enthusiasm for knitting (and, right now, everything else) is waning (the lack of knitting mojo isn't helping). I'm facing the reality of another dark winter alone here. I didn't mind so much last year -- I was distracted by a heartwrenching breakup, a need for serious life re-evaluation, and a new place. But this year... I guess this year, it's getting to me. And dissertation writing is a hard thing to do when your closest support network is an hour's drive away. I've got some decisions to make, and I'm finding it a bit rough at the moment. I usually love this time of year and the mid-winter blues don't normally set in until the end of January. Apparently, my blues are a bit precocious this year. I'm trying to knit through it and am teasing myself with a sweater's worth of malabrigo that I bought a few months ago and will turn into a cozy sweater for me (once I've finished my gift knitting). Going home for Christmas (tomorrow) should help too.

I close with a photo from the hike I took last week. I've got to enjoy this 60 degree weather while it lasts!

Blogger Question

2006-12-18T09:50:00.000-05:00

I've got a question for those of you out there still using Blogger. I switched this weekend to Beta-Blogger. I've been having a few problems with it. The biggest and most annoying is the comments -- I have comments forwarded to my e-mail so that I can respond to you lovely people. For some reason, now that I've switched over, for the life of me, I can't figure out how to get e-mails ATTATCHED to comments... they always come up as no-comment@blogger.com, even if you're signed into a blogger account. I like being able to reply to people's comments... it makes me feel in touch. Does anyone know how to fix this (other than finally getting off my butt and switching from blogger... just can't do that right now)?

Thanks! Knitting to come. And hopefully a pattern for the blue socks.

Searching for Mojo...

2006-12-16T11:53:00.000-05:00

It's not that I haven't been knitting, or even having some FOs. It's just that I'm not excited about the quality of my knitting. My mojo? It's gone. For example, my Koigu Monkey socks. Gauge off, recently frogged. Or these:

Fingerless gloves for a friend. I ran out of yarn. Again. I just don't have the strength to frog two things in one day.

You'd think an FO would make me feel better.

Pattern: My own (losely based on Minty's Anastasia socks)
Yarn: Knitpicks Gloss in "dusk"
Needles: Inox US 1.5 (2.5 mm) dpns

Thoughts: Well... I love the idea of these socks. I'm not loving the Gloss so much right now. It shows every. single. mistake. Really. It makes me feel like I can't knit to save my life. (see the uneveness below? Yeah. That's on the TOP of one foot. After blocking. Ugh).

But the pattern? I knit the first of these on the flight to Hawaii. Despite a minor setback, I finished the second several days ago. I love that the mirror each other. I love the continuation of the eyelet spiral onto the heel flap (this was Jenfee's suggestion... she's smart). I think they're sexy (well, sexy as far as handknit socks go).

Here's to hoping my mojo comes back soon. I've got a week to get a lot of Christmas knitting done. Not to mention that thing they call a dissertation...

p.s.

2006-12-15T15:19:00.000-05:00

you asked for it -- for those of you who can handle it/want to learn, I posted a slide show from the hog killing (with descriptive titles) on my flickr page. You can check it out here.

Frustration and Beauty

2006-12-15T12:07:00.000-05:00

Frustration: a sock that is too big.

No matter how I try to talk myself out of it, I'm acknowledging that this sock is just too big -- I took gauge again and again and again, and I was spot on. And now that I've turned the heel and tried it on, it's too big and suddenly I'm getting 7 st/in instead of 8. Grrrr... I can't believe I have to rip it out, but I do. sigh.

Beauty: Koigu. This is my first Koigu experience. I may never knit with another sock yarn again. It's so silky. It flows through my fingers. And the colors? There's no sunlight today to do the subtle variation, the flecks of color, justice.

Frustration: At times like this, when I go on large shopping adventures and suddenly become a consumer for the sake of perfect gift giving, I am always reminded of the people who don't have this luxury. This has particularly been an issue the last two holiday seasons, as I live in a very economically depressed region. Reading the Yarn Harlot today (and I know most of us do, so pardon me if I'm being redundant), I was further reminded how even the most disadvantaged Americans (and Canadians) are often so much better off than those who live elsewhere... it's sobering.

Beauty: Yet another lovely thing that comes from Canada (like Koigu, that is), Harlot has put out a challenge to the knitting community -- her goal? To double the amount donated to Doctors Without Borders by the knitting community. She expresses this goal in ways infinitely more articulate than my own. If you've not been over there to read her blog entry for today, you should. And then donate. I did. I'll be buying no yarn in the month of January (goodness knows, I've got enough) and donated what I spend the average month. It's just a good thing to do.

2006-12-14T18:07:00.000-05:00

Wow. I can't believe it's been a week since I last posted. Where did the time go? Plenty of knitting has been happening over here which will be revealed soon enough. In the meantime, I'll distract you with a small FO and some pretty pictures.

Pattern: My own, if you want to call it a pattern
Yarn: Knitpicks Andean Treasure in "Sunset"
Needles: Bryspun US 5 dpns

Thoughts: Andean Treasure. Yum.

The reason I've been MIA for a while is that last weekend, my friends Julie, Shawn and Mia killed the two hogs they've been raising for the last six or seven months. For the veggies out there, I'm sorry for the brutality of that sentence, but this is a way of life down here. I went out to Kentucky early on Friday to help out and stayed the whole weekend. I took a TON of pictures... it was a really incredible experience and one that I was infinitely glad to have been a part of. I have so much respect for the way of life here, and feel that now that I've participated in this process, I can eat meat (or at least pork) with a sense of responsibility. I want to put a slideshow up on Flickr with descriptions for people who are interested in how it works, but I'm still trying to find a way to do that without grossing out people who don't want to be grossed out. Some of the photos are, admittedly, pretty hard to look at. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this:

This is the sun, finally coming over the mountains (around 9:30 or 10 a.m.) on Saturday morning, filtering through the trees and the smoke from the fire under the water barrels (you need A LOT of hot water). It was really cold Saturday morning. When we got up at 6 to start the fires, it was 5 degrees. By the time the sun hit, it was only around 25. But it was a beautiful morning (handknit socks came in very handy... I wore two pairs!).

Darning Help

2006-12-08T16:26:00.000-05:00

Last Christmas, I made my mom a pair of socks. You might remember them:

Evidently, they were a big hit, because they were worn. A lot.

I took them back from mom when I was home for Thanksgiving in the hopes that I could repair them, but I have no idea how to go about doing this. Any advice? These were knit with a regular heel flap, and although the flap itself is in great shape (as are the toes and the rest of the sole), the bottom of the heel is a complete disaster. I have plenty of yarn leftover from both socks... Is there a way to repair this? I've never really understood how darning worked, but I wonder if that is a remedy for this situation or if the holes are just too big. Can I snip the old yarn where I turned the heel (keeping the heel flap and somehow preserving those stitches) and knit a new heel? Help!

Hurrah!

2006-12-07T14:36:00.000-05:00

Sorry to post twice in one day, but my friend Jennifer (in the middle there) has, after much harrassing, poking and prodding, finally started her own knitting blog today. Y'all should go check it out.

And for those of you who remember the picture of the cutest lamb ever, that photo was taken by my friend Greg, on the left. This photo is, obviously, from Hawaii. One of the best parts of the trip was hanging out with the two of them. They're two of my best friends and we all live so far apart these days (Greg's still in Chile, Jenfee just moved back to Philly, and I'm still here in the mountains). Have I mentioned recently how much I love the internet?

Stranded

2006-12-07T13:06:00.000-05:00

If you recall, earlier this fall, I declared 2007 the year of color-work. I got a head start this fall with the Huron socks and yesterday, better late than never, I joined Stranded. Over at Stranded, they ask:

Is this your first colorwork project? If it isn't, what was your first, and has it survived the test of time?

I've worked in color before. In fact, my very first sweater, completed in late winter of 2005, was a fairisle sweater (I'm nothing if not ambitious). I'm proud to say that my first sweater is not only wearable, it's actually quite a nice sweater. Don't get me wrong, there are things I'd change (like have more than one inch of ribbing at the bottom, add an inch or so to the sleeves -- I have monkey long arms! -- and knit another decrease or two in the yoke so the collar is closer). But all in all, it's a great sweater. In fact, I'm wearing it today (please notice the snow in this picture -- it's our first this year and I'm pretty excited about it!)

What are your projects for this knitalong?

Well, I've already started Eunny's Endpaper Mitts.

I also plan on making these (I've bought the pattern and I've got a box of Knitpicks Palette on the way!).

You may recall, I was once tempted by the Telemark Ski sweater, but now that I've seen other pictures of it, I'm not sure. I also have a love/hate relationship with Telemark (is anyone happy with how that's wearing? It seems so harsh).

I'm also pretty sure there's at least another pair of fairisle socks in my future... We'll see.

Countdown

2006-12-06T16:19:00.000-05:00

It's been hard to post lately. Though I've been doing a lot of knitting, most of it has been for the holidays, and I haven't quite figured out how to post about this knitting while keeping it a surprise. Some of it, I can post about freely. Such as these (which you've seen before):

Pattern: modified Fetchings
Yarn: Knitpicks Swish, in "wisteria"
Needles: Brittany, US 5 dpns

And this:

A tiny booty, with leftover yarn. The pattern is from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I thought I would give it a go, although there are no newborn babies in my life right now (and no promise of newborn babies in the near future -- I'm sure I just jinxed something or someone by saying that). Conclusion -- it's so cute, it makes me crave babies. And the double knitting for the foot is absolute genius.

If you are not related to me, nor think you're gonna get a handknitted gift from me this Christmas, you can click on the photo for another recent FO.

I also to post a "thank you" for this, my new wallet.

Some of you might recall that on my September trip to Philly, my purse (and wallet. and iPod) was stolen. I've been using a hand-me-down wallet from my mom since then, in the hopes that I could replace the wallet I had lost. In October, my friend Julie went out to Portland for an old time music gathering and while there, she replaced my wallet for me. It's made by Queen Bee Creations (the same people who made my old wallet) and I love it.

Lastly, the sky was pretty incredible when I went out to take pictures today. It smells and looks like snow, but it's not cold enough.

And, icing on the cake, my Christmas cactus is blooming.

Conwy socks (2 down, 13 to go)

2006-12-04T15:24:00.000-05:00

Pattern: Conwy socks, from Knitting on the Road
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock, in "watercolor"
Needles: Knitpicks dpns, US 0
Started:
Completed: 3 December 2006

Thoughts: Well, I messed up the pattern from the get-go by using US 0s. Too small to make a substantial sock. So I modified the number of decreases and the heel gusset so they weren't too small (although I had originally intended them for me, I am now gifting them to a smaller footed friend. Me: 1, Christmas: 0). I love the pattern -- looks complicated, knits up easily. And the yarn? Well, the striping obscures the pattern a leetle bit, but I love the colors, love the yarn, especially love the fabric it makes (so dry, almost crunchy-squishy -- that's a good thing). That said, it's gonna be a while before I use 0s again. My hands hurt.

In other news, I feeling very proud of myself. I used to just let mistakes go -- I was a spur-of-the-moment, fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants knitter. I'm not sure what happened in the last few weeks, but something's changed. Yesterday, I was using lifelines. Today, I did this:

I spent half an hour tediously ripping down eight rows to correct a mistake I made doing a seedstitch panel. Not only did I do it once, I did it four times (in seedstitch, you mess up one stitch, you mess up all that follow. sheesh). Honestly, the mistake was barely noticeable. But the second I noticed it, I couldn't let it go. It looks so much better.

I leave you with a gratuituous kitten shot:

This is Phoebe (and the first picture I've gotten of her since she was a kitten that really looks like her, and not generic black cat), literally wrapped up in her favorite toy. It's a feather bob with a bell attatched with elastic string to a plastic stick. She loves it. She loves it when I shake it and run around with it, and she loves to just carry it around in her mouth, dragging the stick after her. It's really cute.

One word

2006-12-04T01:22:00.000-05:00

I stole/borrowed this meme and filled it out without letting myself think too hard about my answers. It's a quick and dirty way to get to know people, and I like it.

It’s Only Words

You.
Can.
Only.
Type.
One.
Word.

No.
Explanations.

1. Yourself: crazy
2. Your boyfriend/girlfriend (spouse): nonexistant
3. Your hair: curly
4. Your mother: organized
5. Your father: keeperofanswers
6. Your favorite item: moomoo
7. Your dream last night: forgotten
8. Your favorite drink: coffeewhiskey (that's one word, right?)
9. Your dream car: '63mustangconvertible
10. The room you are in: study
11. Your ex: loved
12. Your fear: falling
13. What you want to be in 10 years? happy
14. Who you hung out with last night? hankandphoebe
15. What you’re not? patient
16. Muffins: blueberry
17. One of Your Wish List Items: winderandswift
18. Time: ablessing
19. The last thing you did: sneeze
20. What you are wearing: pjs
21. Your favorite weather: crisp
22. Your favorite book: atreegrowsinbrooklyn
23. The last thing you ate: nutella
24. Your life: good
25. Your mood: sleepy
26. Your best friend: thoughtful
27. What are you thinking about right now? inoneword?!?
28. Your car: green
29. What are you doing at the moment? this (duh)
30. Your summer: musical
31. Your relationship status: lonely
32. What is on your TV? nothing
33. What is the weather like? cold
34. When is the last time you laughed? tonight

Squirrel and Oak

2006-12-03T23:10:00.000-05:00

An FO, a frustration, a confusion, and some growth.

FO:

Pattern: Squirrel and Oak Mittens, from Hello Yarn
Yarn: Knitpicks Wool of the Andes, in Chocolate and Fern (I think)
Needles: Brittany dpns, US 5
Begun: uhhh..... not sure (some time during the grant-writing-hell)
Completed: 2 December 2006

Thoughts: I really enjoyed this pattern, although they are a little small (I should have measured my row gauge) and I could not, for the life of me, do the thumb in the fair isle pattern. You'll see that I "cheated" and made solid color thumbs.

These things don't really bother me. I intended these to be an exercise in stranded knitting, and I learned a lot. My tension is a little wonky -- blocking might fix that, but it got cold here suddenly and I just decided to wear them with out blocking. I modified the date at the top -- 2007, baby. I like the idea of imbedding the mittens in time, even if they aren't necessarily of heirloom quality. All in all, I'm pleased with them. I like knitting mittens. I see many more in my future.

FRUSTRATION:

I've been working on a pair of Christmas socks that are of my own invention. I took sketchy notes on the first sock, which I finished on the plane to Hawaii. Today, after finishing my Conwy socks (to be debuted tomorrow, when they are dry), I sat down to plug out the second of these new beauties. I knit six inches down the ankle to the heel flap when I noticed something was wrong. Yep. I forgot that I did ankle decreases on the first sock. I have to rip out everything I did today, plus some of the knitting I did before, to add these decreases. The frustration is overwhelming. I fought the urge to scream, folded them quietly, and put them out of sight. I'll return to them later this week.

CONFUSION:

The poor bush outside my front door. It was so confused by the warm weather we've been having that it's started to bloom. I bet those buds are not happy with the 35 degree weather that arrived with me from the North!

GROWTH:

Look closely at this picture. See those dark threads hanging down the front of my knitting? Guess what that is? A lifeline. Yep, I finally learned my lesson and used a lifeline. I'm making up a pattern, and I wasn't sure if my "experiment" was gonna work. So I ran a lifeline through figuring I could rip back if I failed. Glad I did. The experiment did indeed fail. Frustration-free, I ripped back and kept right on knitting. Hurrah!

return

2006-12-02T20:43:00.000-05:00

My god, I've been gone for a long time. I should have tons of knitting to show you, but tonight is not the night. It's dark and cold and I'm too lazy to rig up some sort of light system. Besides, I have embarassingly little knitting to show for the fifteen (!) days I've been gone, even with two 8 hour plane rides. So, I'll ease myself back into blogging with the following thoughts:

- my paper went extremely, extremely well. I felt very confident and comfortable reading it, I felt strong in my ideas and my arguments and, as a result, it was very well received. Thank you to all of you who asked!

- Hawaii is a truly incredibly place. I took almost 400 pictures while there and won't bore/tease you with them. There are some up on flickr though. The weather was beautiful, the water crystal clear, the flowers obscenely pink... it was paradise. I'm glad my friends and I got out of Honolulu though. We rented a car and drove around the coast of Oahu. That was my favorite part of the whole trip. Well, that and snorkling. It was a much, much needed vacation and I have returned feeling very sane (for me).

- Being able to justify yarn purchases because of Christmas? Priceless. I finally invested in some Koigu for a Christmas present. I can't wait to knit with it.

- Lots of days on vacation does not mean lots of knitting, apparenlty. I couldn't even manage to get a full pair of socks completed for November's Sock-a-Month. Damn.

- Hopefully tomorrow, I'll have FOs to post. Squirrel and Oak mittens are done (I wore them today on a long walk... cozy!), I finished a sock of my own design on the plane and need to get the second one OTN. Conwy's will hopefully soon be complete, as well as a scarf for a prof who wrote me a last minute recommendation. Stay tuned for more.

I feel weird about blogging, it's been so long. I'm very out of touch with everyone else, as I didn't read blogs the whole time I was away. But hopefully I'll be caught up soon. I hope everyone ate too much this Thanksgiving and is buckling down for winter. Seems like it's coming with a vengeance this year!

Aloha

2006-11-17T19:06:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the long silence. I'd write, but I'm here:

More photos, stories and knitting (thank god for 10 hour flights!) when I get back. Mahalo!

Vote!

2006-11-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

I've managed (for someone with some crazy politics) to stay pretty politically neutral on this blog. But I did just want t send out a reminder -- no matter your politics, don't forget to vote today. Change starts at home, real action takes place locally. Make a difference and make yourself heard.

Today I start my trip north. No knitting content today, but I will leave you with another anniversary. A year ago, I found these cute fuzzies in the middle of the road (weren't they so tiny?). Can't imagine life with out them.

Happy Acquiriversary, Hank and Phoebe!

Three blind mice

2006-11-06T18:58:00.000-05:00

It has been pointed out that perhaps my stress might be causing stress in others. I would hate for that to happen, and since I have nothing else to share right now, I leave you with my mice:

Pattern: from knitwhits (thanks mom!)
Yarn: Scraps of Manos and Lambs Pride
Needles: Lantern Moon US 8 straight needles, and Clover Bamboo US 7 dpns (for the i cord)
Notions: Cat Nip (thanks Sprite!)
Begun: 6 November 2006
Completed: 6 November 2006

Thoughts: Woo hoo! You can meet them all (yes, they are named)

Name: Harriet
Yarn: Manos del Uruguay, in a beautiful shade of purple

Name: Edgar
Yarn: Lambs Pride and a smidge of pink Manos
Note: Edgar is a gift for Spitey's cat, Flea. Spitey tells me that Flea lost his tail today at the Vet, and I thought he might need a pick-me-up. Since I'll be in Philly this week, I can hand deliver it.

Name(s): Abigail (on the left) and Amelia (on the right)
Yarn: scraps of Manos for all
Note: Neither of the As have been stuffed yet. They just came out of the washer today, but I couldn't resist the cuteness of Amelia's little multi-colored ears!

And lastly,

Name: Silas
Yarn: Manos

Silas belongs to my little kitties. They loved him right away. He doesn't stand a chance.

Absent Minded Professor (or why I knit mice)

2006-11-05T18:51:00.000-05:00

Folks, I'm turning into my worst nightmare. Today, I have lost my tea (lost my TEA!) five times. I set it down, I do something else, and then I have to spend five minutes figuring out where I set it down. I heated up some lunch, and then forgot I had heated it up, worked for another hour, realized I was hungry, and found it (cold) in the microwave. I can't concentrate on a single knitting pattern that doesn't invovle needles larger than 5s and straight knitting and purling. No patterns. No colorwork. No decorative edges (this is why I still have a sock incomplete, a mitten almost finished, and two fingerless gloves that only need decorative stitching). The only thing I can knit right now? Mice. Knitted mice. See? Here's one (pre-felting):

They take half an hour to knit, then I have to felt them up, stuff them, and voila! Happy cats. I made three today. They are a compulsion (and a good way to use up the scraps of manos that I can't bear to throw away).

Proof that I'm nuts? My best friend from college, Melissa, is getting married on Thursday (Nov. 9). This is a kind of sudden thing... it's a city hall wedding (no, she's not knocked-up; just impulsive) taking place in New York conveniently the same week I'll be in Philly (I'll be in Philly from Nov. 8 - Nov. 13... these dates are important). Unfortunately, I can't go even though I'll only be two hours away because I have to give a colloquium at my University. But a few days ago (Nov. 2), she sent out an e-mail to all of us girlie friends asking about the possibility of doing a "bachelorette" party on Saturday. This is what she wrote in her e-mail -- "on Saturday." And I'm thinking, "Hot Damn! That works out perfectly! I'll be in Philly... I can just hop on the train and be in the city and even if I miss the wedding, I'll make the bachelorette party). Anyone catch the flaw in logic here? I spoke to Melissa yesterday, early evening, and told her my plans to come to NYC on Nov. 11th. She seemed a little confused and then said something I didn't understand about how we could have dinner and drinks with another friend of ours that night. I figured "Ah, Melissa! Crazy and loveable. She's so distracted with wedding stuff, she didn't process that her bachelorette party will be that saturday." Yeah. It wasn't until my mom pointed out tonight how strange it was for Melissa to have her bachelorette party AFTER her wedding that I realized that I'm totally insane. Her bachelorette party was yesterday. Sigh.

If you stuck with me through that ramble, you're too kind. I'm a little off my rocker. These grant applications are killing me. If I have to sit in my cage, oops, I mean office, one more day I'm gonna scream. And I have to sit in my office for two more days. I keep trying to remind myself that in a week, I'll be on a plane to Hawaii. But there is just too much to be done between now and then (insert sound of head being hit against desk here).

Thank you all for your kind words on yesterday's post. It means a lot to me to know there are people out there willing to listen to me ramble and offer advice on all things knitting and personal.

P.S. I made a dinner that comes out of a bag and says "just add water" (about as complicated as I feel like I can handle) and I burned it. Oh god, I better finish these applications before I burn the whole house down!

One Year

2006-11-04T10:40:00.000-05:00

One year ago today, I packed up everything I own into a U-haul, said goodbye to the city I love, the friends I love, and the boy I love and headed south to face the unknown in Virginia. Not for a moment, not even in the long, dark, cold, and incredibly lonely first few months I lived here, have I ever regretted this decision. This year has been one of incredible growth for me. I’ve learned so much – about music, about other people, about life, and about myself – since I moved here. I’ve learned to be alone, sometimes for days at a time, and love it. I have gained an appreciation for solitude and silence. Which, in turn, has given me an appreciation for the appropriately timed loud, late, and irresponsible ruckus. I’ve become an infinitely better musician, dancer, and scholar. I’ve gathered a vast body of knowledge about things natural. I’m a better cook. I read more. Thanks to a distraction-free lifestyle, I knit more. And thanks to this blog and the friends I have made through it, I have become a much more knowledgeable knitter.

All year, I have tried to look forward, to appreciate the present and focus on the future. So, it’s strange to be sitting on the other side of this year, finally looking backward. Part of me is so excited, because I live here now. I went from being a visitor, an outsider, to a community member. My priorities have changed and I’m independent now. I feel stronger, alone. But then part of me feels so sad – I still feel longing for the life I left behind. It has been so challenging every time I’ve returned to Philly. I’m reminded of what is gone, what I had to sacrifice for this growth -- the friends who have moved on, the love I lost, the coffee-shops and bookstores and bars that I used to frequent… I don’t know. I can’t help but be nostalgic. In the end, I’m not sure I’ve found my place in the world yet. But maybe I’ve learned how to be patient and wait.

Anyway, what with the stress of finishing grant applications and getting ready to go out of town for a month, I've been all about the comfort. I made chicken soup from scratch earlier this week (is it weird that I love deboning a whole chicken?) and made the comfort dinner of all comfort dinners last night:

That's steamed cabbage and sweet potatoes topped with onions and wine-sap apples caramalized in bacon fat. A weird mix of nouveau German and Irish cuisine (made even weirder when I drank it with an English style American stout, but whatever...) but hot damn! it was good.

Then there's academic comfort:

Nothing makes me feel better than knowing this puppy is backed up.

And lastly, knitted comfort. Despite the fact thtat I have five projects so close to being done, I could probably finish them in an evening, I can't seem to concentrate on anything that isn't really simple. So instead, I made this:

Pattern: My own (if you can call it a pattern -- its just sand stitch with "hidden" decreases)
Yarn: Manos del Uruguay, color #113
Needles: Clover bamboo dpns, US 7

Thoughts/Meditations: Two years ago, this skein of Manos was the reason I started knitting again. I went with my roomate to Sophie's to hear Debbie Stoller speak on her book tour for Stitch and Bitch Nation. Afterward, I walked around the store, looking at things, touching things, and then I saw this skein of Manos and NEEDED it. I bought it, some size 8 dpns and that evening relearned everything I had known as a kid (and then some). The next day, I experienced my first morning of compulsive knitting, sitting on my bed for hours, listening to NPR (I do this all the time now). Within three days, I had my first hat. I loved it, but it was too big. I tried to wear it around, and then finally acknowledged it wasn't very useful. A year later, I ripped it out. I've not been able to use the yarn for anything else... it's too special. Two days ago, I went out to get my mail and realized that over night winter had hit. It's COLD now. So I pulled out the yarn, sized down my needles, decreased the number of stitiches and knit another hat. Guess what? It's a little big :) I think that's because it's stretchy. I LOVE it. All my hair fits in it. It's alternately a little hippy (totally, totally not my style) and a little 1930's (totally my style). Most importantly, it keeps my head warm. I also think it has magical brain power... I wear it at my desk while writing, and I feel smarter.

What do you think?

2006-11-02T11:18:00.000-05:00

Remember my frustration from the other night? Here's my solution:

I used a little bit of complimentary Lorna's Laces to bind off. I did it on both gloves. It solved one problem which was bothering me -- the bulky bind off got in the way when I tried to play banjo with them on. But... I don't know. Does the color variation look weird?

Here's the inside of the hand (I got both gloves to look the same).

That crumb in the photo drives me crazy -- what I get for eating cookies at my desk.

Should I use a little of the same yarn to create a similar effect on the bottom of the glove? I'm feeling a little ambivalent. If these weren't commissioned, it wouldn't bother me so much. But she bought the yarn and everything. Hmmm...

Tiny

2006-11-02T01:05:00.000-05:00

I interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you this:

The cutest tiny baby lamb EVER.

My friend Greg (known to those who love him as "Jellybean" or sometimes, just "Jelly" for short -- don't kill me, Greg!) is doing fieldwork/living in Chilean Patagonia. If you think it's pretty where I live, you should see where he lives. Really. You should. He's a kick ass photographer (and a funny guy, to boot).

Voyage from afar

2006-11-01T18:53:00.000-05:00

** Disclaimer** for those of you who hate yarn-gift-related "bragging", you might want to skip this post. I don't mean it to be a "lookee what I got?" post, but rather more of a "amazed at the insane generosity of (almost) strangers" post. Take it as you will.

To make up for yesterday's frustration, today I was greeted by a welcome visitor: Leif Erikson stopped by on his adventures in the new world. I'll admit -- I knew he was coming. Kirstin was worried that I would be off in warmer climates when he arrived, so she double checked (through Amanda) before shipping him off. But this knowledge made the anticipation almost unbearable. And when he arrived, it totally made my day.

First of all, I want to say that I'm so psyched that I got the Leif Erikson box. I have always had a soft spot for good ol' Leif, ever since I was wee and my dad told me that he was actually the first to discover the so-called New World. I loved it that his name was Leif (probably because, at the time, I thought it was "Leaf". How hippie of me). I loved it that he was the underdog of explorers. Why doesn't he get his own holiday? Well, today we celebrated Leif.

Kirstin was TOO kind. The box was so full, it was bursting (no kidding! When I pulled it out of the USPS packaging, things were falling out. She had to use rubber bands to shut it), and full of all kinds of goodness. I am not to embarassed to admit that I actually teared up while opening it. How can someone who has never met me know me so well?

There were delicious things (K, I already ate two of those cookies... hot damn! They are something else! And oatmeal raisin is totally my fav):

There were musical things: (Those CDs are awesome and the magazine? Well, let's just say it's been so long since I've been in touch with the popular music scene that I've been a little confused when all y'all in the blogosphere start talking about the Decemberists. Who are these people? Well. Now I know).

Most importantly,there was yarn. Beautiful, beautiful yarn (Woolarina superwash sock yarn):

And yarn related goodies (those little pins are the cutest!):

Check out the way those stitch markers match my yarn:

I just want to say that Kirstin hit the nail on the head. I own no stitch markers. I always use random rings or earrings. Sometimes rubberbands (that's some hillbilly ingenuity). I love these. I started a project just so I could use them (don't worry, it's Christmas related). And the Yarn Harlot book? God, I've wanted one for ages and couldn't justify buying one because I've got so much work-related reading to do. This is gonna be one rockin' plane ride to Hawaii.

This was my first yarn exchange/gifting/secret pal type thing, and I'm just floored. Thank you so much!

And thank you from the kitties, who despite never expressing an interest in catnip before, went totally crazy over the stuff you sent. Phoebe was sniffing out the box minutes after I brought it in the house. When I tried to take the bag away from her after snapping this picture, she actually grabbed my hand. Sweet things.

Stay tuned to check out Leif's adventures in the mountains before he heads off to his next port.

Exercise(s) in Frustration

2006-10-31T21:53:00.001-05:00

I came so close to having two FOs in one day. And then, disaster struck. I knew it was coming, I was just in denial. I watched that skein of yarn get smaller and smaller, and the voice in the back of my head said "There isn't enough. You're going to run out." And yet, I ignored it. I kept knitting. And now, two rows from finishing -- two measly rows (one cable and one bind off, that's it!) -- and I am essentially out of yarn.

(And yes, that is a glass of whiskey next to my knitting. You'll understand why by the end of this post).

There is nothing to salvage -- no ends to use from the first glove (they seem to have disappeared, though I have cut off tails from every other project I have ever undertaken in a jar on my desk). Now what? Do I wait and order another skein from Knit picks? Do I bind off (shudder) in another color? These aren't for me. They're a commission from a friend. They need to look good. My knitting "reputation" (such as it is) is on the line. I'm frustrated.

Add that to the fact that I was knitting these as a break from the frustration of grant applications. I'm down to the wire getting these completed before I hop on down to Hawaii (let's not even talk about the fact that I haven't written my conference paper yet). I used to think that word limitations were frustratingly nitpicky (when I first wrote that, I typed "knitpicky"). My new nemesis? Character limitations. As in, describe your dissertation in 800 characters (including spaces). Do you have any idea how little space that is? To give you an idea, here is my 800 character summary:

This dissertation focuses on the relationship between music and place in the Central Appalachian coalfields. I explore ways in which the contemporary performance of bluegrass and old-time music is tied to social and cultural politics (stereotype, tourism, coal mining, and protest) and ways in which the construction of place (through migration, personal narrative, history, and tradition) shapes musical performance. Unlike historical studies of Appalachian music, this dissertation studies the impact of social, political, and environmental challenges on musical performance. I consider the range of meanings attached to this music, examining the tension between the musical and the political, the dimensions of revivalism and activism, and the connection between place, music, and power.

That's not a lot of space to describe what I suspect is going to be a close-to-300-page dissertation. Sheesh. It's driven me so batty that when I first started typing this post, I was editing for characters (do I really need two spaces at the beginning of that sentence? If I reword that, I can cut a few characters... Are commas really necessary there).

AAACK.

Things that are not frustrating? The joys of knitting with Malabrigo. Oh heaven, it's like knitting with clouds.

This was the beginning of a sleeve, used (Elizabeth Zimmerman style, since we're all crazy about Zimmerman) as a way to check gauge. I was gonna knit myself a hourglass, but now I'm not sure. This will get ripped out while I enjoy just thinking... toying... scheming for post-christmas personal knits.

And thank you all for your kind words about the Huron Mountain Socks. I'm pretty pleased, all in all. High maintenance socks that were totally worth it.

Back to counting characters... Happy Halloween to everyone!

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-31T09:26:00.000-05:00

It is a glorious morning. A glorious morning to top a stack of glorious days. The sun is so bright, crisp and clean in the morning post-daylight savings... It almost makes up for the fact that it's dark as pitch at 6:30 p.m. This morning it's warm. It's so warm I could take my FO pictures outside without a coat at 8:00 a.m.

Pattern: Huron Mountain Socks, from Nancy Bush's Knitting on the Road
Yarn: Knit picks Gloss, in "Cocoa" (2 skeins) and "Woodland Sage" (1 skein)
Needles: inox dpns, US size 1.5 (not quite a 2, not quite a 1)
Begun: Oh, I don't remember... 22 August?
Finished: 30 October 2006

Modifications and Thoughts: Well, the only modification I made was to add the two color stripe to the bottom. This turned out to be the biggest pain, because I had to carry the "sage" behind the brown across the top three out of every four rows. But I love the way it looks:

Total payoff. And they are so comfortable. And so warm. I highly recommend "gloss." It's a dream to work with, especially for colorwork (it's very forgiving post-blocking). I'm a little apprehensive about how it's going to wear -- I'm worried about pilling. But in the meantime, they make an attractive (if a little ... bright?) pair of warm winter socks.

Home in the Hills

2006-10-26T23:03:00.000-05:00

Dickenson County

This is the view as you come over Dante Mountain*, the mountain the separates Russell from Dickenson Counties. I drive over this mountain pretty often and every time I remark to myself, "God, that's beautiful! One of these days, I'm gonna stop and take a picture." But I never do. Today, as I drove over, the view was magnificent (those mountains in the distance form the Pine Mountain range, which marks the border between Virginia and Kentucky and initiates the Cumberland Plateau) and the light was perfect. And this time, I did stop. Of course, I had to drive half way down the mountain to find a good place to turn around and, as is the way with these things here, in the minutes it took me to turn around and come back up, the light was gone. I took the picture anyway. It just feels like home.

This is the home I came from. I love how, no matter where you take the picture, all photos of "The Lawn" at UVa look like college brochure photos. I took this from the steps of Cabel Hall, the music building, looking up toward the rotunda. I love the Lawn in the fall... all of those trees turn bright yellow. It reminds me of my best friend from high school, but happy memories.

Knitting has been accomplished. One down, one to go. These are a modified "Fetching," altered to accomodate music-making (the thumb really gets in the way) and will be gifted to a friend (who I think I'm going to see this weekend, thus the rush).

I'm almost done with Huron #2 and, you can see in the background there, I'm making my way down the ankle of Conwy #2. TCB.**

* For all y'all yankees, that's pronounced "D-ain't." There's the saying, "If you say 'Dahn-tay' then you ain't from Dante!"

** For all of you not well versed in Elvis-lore, that means "Taking Care of Business." Oh yeah. TCB.

Desperately Seeking a Cardigan

2006-10-24T08:50:00.000-05:00

Still in Charlottesville... I can't resist the call of the coffee shop. It's so much nicer than working in my home-office (as nice as my home office is). And at home, no one wakes me up in the morning the way my dad wakes me up at home -- "Jennie! The coffee's ready!". Sigh. I need to get an automated coffee maker. Because I can't stay at home forever.

Yesterday, I went browsing at my LYS. It's hard to browse yarn. I walked slowly through the whole store, touching everything, comparing colors, thinking. But I left my wallet at home (probably a good thing?) and so I didn't buy anything. But I got ideas... Ideas like: the Katia Mississippi 3 cotton/wool yarn is awesome. And comes in the best baby colors ever (things like green, and deep burnt orange, and things other than pastel pink and blue)... I wonder if it would make good socks?; or, Baby Cashmerino is soooo much more decadent than I remember it being...; or, Claudia's Handpainted yarn is so squishy, but do I really need more sock yarn; or, Cascade 220 feels really soft and comes in the most beautiful shade of heathered red.

Most importantly, however, I realized that I need to knit something other than socks and mittens -- something that doesn't come in pairs and that covers a part of my body other than the extremities. In short, I want to knit a sweater -- a cardigan, to be specific. I have knit sweaters before, but never anything in pieces. I crave a pretty cardigan, something young and flirty, a little vintage looking, with shape, pretty buttons, and cables. I want cables. And a shawl collar (I love shawl collars). So I'm asking for pattern suggestions. I've been trying to scan the blogosphere for ideas, but haven't found anything. Anyone seen anything out there that is pretty and a 'must knit'?

I hear rumors that it snowed in Kentucky last night, but here in Charlottesville it's just cold, cold cold. I'm rushing to finish the Huron socks... I wore the finished one around the house while I knit the second last night. It's surprisingly warm.

Stepping back from the ledge

2006-10-22T09:29:00.000-05:00

It's been a while. A week ago, I left the mountains to go to my parents house for what was supposed to be a short trip to use the library. The short trip has been extended to a trip of indefinite length because I forgot how useful it is to have a library in the same place you are when you're writing a chapter. I've been going a little crazy -- I leave for Philadelphia (where I will go before I leave for Hawaii) in two and a half weeks. Between now and then I have to write my paper for the Hawaii conference AND I have grant applications due right before I get on the plane, one of which requires part of a finished chapter. I was not ready to write a chapter quite so soon and this has caused several anxiety-induced panic attacks in the last few days because now I'm getting down to the wire. While I generally work well under pressure, and while I have no doubt that somehow I will get all the work done, I think I don't need to explain how un-fun all this has been.

Anway... all that is to explain why I haven't written, although I have been knitting. Stress knitting is an amazing thing. Last night, I hit the breaking point with my draft. Everything I wrote seemed like utter crap, even the stuff I thought was good two days ago. I couldn't figure out how to make my point, and the whole thing seemed like chaos. I called my friend Jennifer, freaked out a little, e-mailed her the draft, and then decided that what I needed was a break. So turned off the computer screen, poured myself a glass of wine, and watched "A Few Good Men" on Bravo while knitting a sock. Nothing like knitting in a circle to calm the wild beast of my mind. By the time Jennifer called me back with comments on my draft (surprise, surprise -- it was no where near as bad as I thought it was), I was relaxed and ready to work again.

I've done no yarn shopping here in Charlottesville, but I have acquired a lot of new yarn. I went through some old trunks with my mom, looking for a good dress to wear to the Masquerade Ball at the Appalshop next weekend. What I found instead was my mom's old yarn stash. Some of the yarn was acrylic, which we're gifting away (I'm a yarn snob... no 100% acrylic yarn for me!), but some of it was some really nice wool, and some of it might make some warm socks this winter. I know that I have spoken about the skill of my grandmother's knitting, but I didn't know until this week how gifted my mom was as a knitter. She doesn't knit anymore, but there were pieces of sweaters and half finished projects in the trunk that were beautiful. I've inherited them all (some without patterns!) and intend to finish them (have you seen my list of WIPs? At this rate, I'll finish them when I'm sixty!). I'll try and post pictures later today.

And hopefully, I'll have several FOs to show you by the time I get back to the mountains. Fingers crossed that I make no more mistakes on the Swallowtail! In the meantime, I leave you with a picture of the fingerless gloves that Jennifer made one evening last week (she's writing her dissertation, too. Can you tell? We both take pictures of our knitting with our computers). I keep telling her she needs to get her own blog, but she resists. I think these are awesome. I'll get some info from her on yarn/needles/etc.

mmmmmmmmmh.....

2006-10-15T09:50:00.000-05:00

Dear Coffee,

I don't know what to do. I know you're no good for me. My friends keep telling me you're bad for me, that I can do better. Somedays, you're there for me. You're perfect -- not bitter, but warm and energizing. But you're inconsistent and don't always treat me right. Too much of you and you make me jittery and my stomach hurts. When I go without you, I feel depressed and don't want to get out of bed. I know the obsession is unhealthy. I know that tea treats me the way I deserve to be treated -- gentle, soothing, concerned for my needs.** But I just can't kick you, Coffee. You're like a habit to me. This last week without you has been hell. Please take me back. I can't live without you.

love,
Jennie

** For those of you equally addicted to Grey's Anatomy -- I know, I know, I follow trends. I had to buy the season pass from iTunes just so I could stay in the loop -- does this make tea my Finn and coffee my McDreamy? If so, that would explain why I still looooove McDreamy (Sorry Theresa. I know you and the Anatomy Lab girls love Finn and hate McDreamy, but Finn was a total fop. Then again, I've never really liked nice guys all that much. That might explain why I'm single...).

Stupid, stupid...

2006-10-14T22:50:00.000-05:00

There are a few arenas in which, as a knitter, I am stubborn and persist in willfully ignorant idiocy. For example, I never swatch. Ever. It was only after a million pairs of socks that were slightly too big or slightly too small that I started measuring my gauge before I'd turned the heel and realized they didn't fit. Today's idiocy? My refusal to use (or even really learn what it is) a lifeline while knitting lace. I understand, from other people's intelligence, that a lifeline saves your ass when you make a mistake knitting a garment that includes a million holes, such as, for example, the Swallowtail shawl. Maybe if I had sucked it up and learned, I wouldn't be in the predicament I'm in now, which is noticing three rows too late that the nubs are off on the left side of my shawl. Now how do I fix this? Can I tink back without making a bigger mess of it? Can I emotionally handle having to redo all those nubs? Can I flub it? It seems like it might be flubbable. What do you think?

the way things should look:

the mistaken nub (click on the picture for comments):

Edited to say that blogging has it's rewards -- I posted those pictures, then looked at them for a minute, looked back at my shawl, and realized I had made the mistake in the row I was knitting, NOT three rows back. So there... do you think I'm using a lifeline now? Ha! That would be smart!

But, I'll leave you with something sweet:

Nothing tastes better than local honey.

Frost

2006-10-13T19:58:00.000-05:00

When I woke up this morning, I felt snuffly and achey and knew that I needed tea. In order to make tea, I had to go out to the car to get the gallons of water I was too lazy to bring in yesterday. I stepped onto the porch and was greeted with frost -- our first this year.

Everything was so beautiful and sparkly... As soon as the sun hit it, though, it was gone.

Looks like the sickness did a little "fake-out." I felt good yesterday, but it's back with a vengance today. I've been through three pots of tea already. But finally --finally -- I got some writing done on my dissertation that I think I might keep. Fingers crossed that this is a sign of things to come -- I want to have a draft of this "mini-chapter" by Friday.

I got some knitting done in between writing stretches. I'm up the wrist and into the oak leaf pattern on mitten #2, made it to the first decrease on the second Conwy sock, and did my first round of "nubs" (a.k.a. p5tog) on the Swallowtail shawl. Hmmm. Let's just say that addi naturas do not make for good 'nub making' needles. I used the size 0 dpn from the socks to pull that purl stitch through. Tedious, but worth it in the end. I love the little pearl of yarn it creates.

One

2006-10-12T17:10:00.000-05:00

One lonely sock

One lonely squirrel mitten (my first, by the way)

One more repeat of the budding lace chart before the blue blob gets to try K5tog

One attempt at a knit scarf (my first. I've never been a big fan of knitted scarves. I dislike that they aren't reversible -- even the beautiful patterns. I prefer woven ones, but I fell so in love with the sand stitch from my wrist rest that I had to try it)

One very cold hand from

One very stupid photographer who decided to take photos outside in the cold while sick and who got sick while attending

the last one of the Fiddler's Conventions of the year, where she

won (close enough) another second place ribbon (and $50 this time!)

The Morehead Convention was so much fun. Beautiful fall weather, a full moon, pickin' around camp fires, moonshine, dancing, good eats and, of course, a perfect opportunity to wear my old lady night gown in public (you can't tell, but I'm also wearing hand knit socks... the canal du midi socks came in very handy this last weekend).

Woo hoo!

Hopefully soon I'll have two of something!

Socktoberfest Questionnaire

2006-10-06T09:21:00.000-05:00

Better late than never, I joined Socktoberfest today. How could I not? I love knitting socks. I have considered recently just not worrying about knitting anything but socks (have you noticed that my output of late consists of many small things, made in twos?). I haven't knit a sweater in ages and ages...

When did you first start making socks? Did you teach yourself or were you taught by a friend or relative? or in a class?

My first pair of socks were this lovely green pair, which I made in December of 2004. I bought the yarn at Rosie's because I was in love with the color (I love green... unfortunately, I can't wear it anywhere near my face -- it makes me look sick. So my feet seemed like a good place to put it). I pulled a pattern off the internet (I was new to internet knitting... I have no idea where I got it) and ploughed away all on my own. I was pretty new to dpns too, so it's amazing I managed it at all. I had to do the first heel flap twice because I didn't understand the instructions for turning the heel. I also remember the revelatory moment when I realized what it meant to "pick up" stitches. When I finished these, I was so proud. I remember looking at them and saying, over and over, "I made these. I made them. Socks. I made socks." I still get a twinge of that wonder every time I finish a pair.

What was your first pair? How have they "held up" over time?
These green ones were my first pair, and they have held up badly! Check out those toes! I also wore them to death, crammed into my boots and such. That probably didn't help. Ditto that the yarn was not made for socks (although for the life of me, I can't remember what it is!)

What would you have done differently?
Well, for starters, I would have checked gauge (does this sound familiar? I still don't check gauge with my socks!). But I don't think I understood gauge all that well at the time. They are too big. I wear them all the time anyway. I also probably would have taken the time to weave the ends in. Maybe.

What yarns have you particularly enjoyed?
I love Lorna's Laces. I love the way it knits up. I also like STR, although I've had serious piling problems with it (anyone else had this problem?). I haven't tried a whole lot outside of these two, other than Knit Picks, but I'm starting to branch out. Nature's Palette sock yarn was a delight to knit with... so squishy.

Do you crochet your socks? or knit them on DPNs, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method?
Crocheted socks? (can you write "crocheted?) I prefer DPNs. I keep trying Magic Loop, because it seems like a good idea, but then I do it and remember that I hate it. Oh well. I really just love using dpns and use them whenever possible. When I relearned how to knit, I started using dpns right away and have never really taken to using circulars for small knitting.

Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?)
I've only ever made two short-row heels, and it was awkward both times. I want to get the hang of it, but when it comes down to it, I prefer the heel flap. I like the way it looks too.

How many pairs have you made?
Let's see... 7 pairs for me(one of which I can't wear!), 2 pairs for my mom, 3 pairs for friends... so 12 in total. I still have four OTN (at least one of which is a gift).

What made me happiest today? I'm heading out to the last fiddler's convention of the weekend today and Julie and I have been calling to coordinate the packing. This morning, she called me to ask if I had any size 6 straight needles she could borrow. I almost cried. I spend a lot of time with Julie and the whole time I've known her, she's never knit a stitch. The idea that we could knit while hanging out is almost too much! I know this is dorky...but it makes me happy.

Speaking of dorky, one more anecdote and then I leave you. Last weekend, I went with Julie to Morehead Kentucky for a square dance (she was calling). While there, I was talking to a girl named Sarah, who I have just recently met. I think she knew that I was a knitter, but when she saw me working on my Road to Oslo socks (I knit in public all the time), she pulled out a sock she was working on (her first) and asked me if I could help her fix a mistake she had made. I took a look at the socks and realized there was no fixing the boo-boo. I also realized I recognized the sock she was making.

Jennie: "Hey, did this sock pattern come from a book?"
Sarah: "Yes, it's --"
Jennie: "Is it the Gentleman's Fancy Sock from Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks?" (keep in mind that I don't even own this book)

Silence. Both Julie and Sarah look at me like I'm crazy.

Sarah: "Um. Yes."

Silence.

Jennie: "Was that too dorky for you guys?"
Julie: "Just a little bit."

Then we all laughed. So... yeah. Big sock dork.

P.S. I just spell checked this and found that "knitters" is not in the blogger spell check. grrr....

Flatfooting (knitting to come)

2006-10-05T14:48:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time, Laura asked if I could post some flatfooting footage up here, so y'all would know what I was talking about with these competitions, etc. I have no footage from competitions this summer, but I did have my friend Mindy video a performance I was in at the Clear Creek Festival in Berea, KY this summer. My friend Julie and I have a flatfooting duo we call the Linefork Girls. We teach flatfooting and clogging workshops, do demonstrations, give lectures, etc. We are also part of a group we call Hell or Highwater, which is the ensemble that performed in this video. It's not the greatest performance -- we all mess up a few times, and my friend Carla couldn't find her shoes... but you get the idea. If you're not interested in my non-knitting life -- I apologize. I've been knitting, but haven't been posting much about it recently. I'm hoping for an FO soon, though so...

(p.s. I'm the one in the red skirt and pink top. I love that red skirt... it's from Anthropologie, a few seasons ago -- a birthday gift from my mom).

Who'll Rock the Cradle?*

2006-10-03T15:11:00.000-05:00

Apparently, Hank will rock himself. He's taken to curling up in the afternoon in my rocking chair in the backroom (it gets a lot of sun in the afternoon). Unfortunately, that's also my favorite place to curl up in the afternoon too! Sweet kitty.

Question: When making dishcloths, can one use any kind of cotton? Just curious...

*The title references one of my favorite "old time" songs -- Red Rocking Chair:

Who'll rock the cradle?
Who'll rock the cradle and who'll sing the song?
Who'll rock the cradle when you're gone?
Who'll rock that cradle when you're gone?
I'll rock the cradle.
I'll rock the cradle and I'll sing the song.
I'll rock that cradle when you're gone.
I'll rock that cradle when you're gone.

Molasses = Autumn

2006-10-02T17:07:00.000-05:00

I have no knitting to show today. This doesn't mean I haven't been knitting -- I did almost a whole pattern repeat on the New England Socks and have done several rows on the Swallow Tail shawl, but neither make for very exciting posting or picture showing. I did, however, go to a Molasses-making down in North Carolina yesterday, and took some fancy photos I thought I'd share.

Molasses, for those of you who don't know, comes from cane,

which is crushed through rollers in a crusher,

and emptied into barrels.

When the barrels are full, gravity carries the juice through a hose from the crushing area (uphill) down to a large boiler (the size of a bathtub),

which is set up over a fire, where it boils for hours until it turns thick and brown.

During the boil, the chlorophil rises to the top and needs to be skimmed off, so people take turns constantly skimming the green sludge off the top of the boiling cane juice.

While it boils, everyone took turns working, chatting, whittling paddles (to use to scrape the molasses out of the bottom of the boiler at the end -- good eats!), and playing music.

I love how much music is a part of daily life here. It's not about performance as much as it is about community, time with friends and neighbors, and work. We all waited, skimmed, crushed more cane, ate lunch (soup beans and cornbread - yum!), skimmed, waited some more. When it was ready, the men lifted the huge boiler (it's the size of a bathtub) off the fire and onto sawhorses,

where it was scooped through a cheesecloth bag (to filter out an impurities) and into a bucket with a spigot, which filled the jars.

It's a pretty amazing process and I was really excited to be a part of it. In the end, I got myself a big jar of molasses for baking and eating over biscuits this winter. (If, for some crazy reason, these photos aren't enough, there are more posted on flickr).

My non-knitting work is coming slowly. I think there is nothing more frustrating and depressing than beginning to write a dissertation. I'm so excited about my material, but completely overwhelmed by even approaching writing it down. Where do I start? I don't know enough! How will I do this? I want to quit. Etc. etc. There are good days, when it is so exhilirating and there are bad days where I spend the whole day starting at the screen and have nothing to show for it. Today was a bad day. I have yet to produce my one-daily-page-(crap-or-not) goal that I've set for myself. Which would make this, I guess, procrastination.

That said, I think I'm going to follow Theresa's example of posting every other day. That way, I don't go weeks without posting, but I won't always have these monster posts. Manageable for all of us.

Norway

2006-09-30T23:07:00.000-05:00

FO #2 this week...

Pattern: The Road to Oslo, from Knitting on the Road
Yarn: One skein of super old yarn I picked up for $0.50 at an antique store, and part of one skein of green wool I bought in Austria six years ago, long before I knew how to knit for real

Needles: US 3 and US 4 dpns, wood
Begun: 26 September 2006
Finished: 30 September 2006
Notes: The world's quickest knit. Really. I knit the first one in one day. I loved the idea of wearing these folded down over the top of winter boots to keep out the snow (the original design for the socks in Norway). I love colorwork. I love that the yarn I used was all OLD. They need to be blocked, but I wanted to get them up at the end of the month.

One down...

2006-09-29T09:25:00.000-05:00

... many more to go.

Pattern: My own
Yarn: less that one skein of Misti Alpaca Bulky (can't find the tag for the colorway)
Needles: Ebony Lantern Moon, US 8 (my glorious decadence needles)
Notions: Some navy beans, plastic sandwich bags (for the beans), three antique buttons from my button stash (yes, I have a button stash)
Begun: 28 September 2006
Finished: 28 September 2006

Thoughts: Fun, quick, easy, usefull. This might be the world's most decadenc wrist-rest (I keep wanting to type wrist wrest) ever. Misti Alapca is like heaven in a yarn, especially once it's knit up. I'm a total convert (and remember my insane love for alpaca). I almost stitched the whole thing together, but decided in the last minute to make it button closed, just in case the beans need replacing or I want to change the amount of stuffing in it (I only stuffed with beans -- I might want to add some yarn-scrap padding to the top, but I thought I'd try using it for a while and see if the height was right, etc.) Right now, my evaluation is that it needs some top stuffing -- the beans shift under the weight of my hands and now there are two indentations where my wrists go. I'll fix it this afternoon. But all in all, I love it. And it is definitely one of the most usefull things I've knit to date (and the first household item I've made -- on to dishcloths!)

100th Post (State of the Union)

2006-09-28T16:22:00.000-05:00

I've been planning this post all week without even knowing it was my hundredth post. But it seems somehow appropriate to time these two events simultaneously, so I will use this blog moment to evaluate the state of my (knitting) union these days.

Folks, it's not looking good. There are a lot of WIPS, especially long-time WIPS that I'm tired of working on. There are a lot of "one sock wonders" floating around my house. There are projects I once loved but the spark is gone. There are things I can't bear to frog. There are things I should just suck it up and finish. Here is a (hopefully not too lengthy) evaluation of knitting chez Jennie.

Unfinished Socks:

Pomatomus socks

I started these before I started blogging, last December, as a Christmas gift. I made one, hated the way the yarn and the pattern coincided, hated the fact that my gauge was off and it was too big, threw it in my scraps box and tried to stop thinking about it. A few weeks ago, I pulled out the second skein of yarn and needles and cast on for sock #2. Lo and Behold, my knitting has improved tremendously since last December. Not only can I accurately read a lace chart, but my gague is much, much tighter. Now what? Can't decide whether to finish sock #2, the frog and reknit the first sock, see if I have enough yarn to knit three all together, or throw in the towel, use sock #1 as a christmas stocking and gift the yarn.

Mystery Sock (i.e. Piece of crap obstacle sock)

I hate this sock. Hate it. It's too small, the pattern is weird, the gauge is too tight. Hate. It. Must rip it out. Can't stand to even look at it. It lurks in the scraps box for now.

Huron Sock

I love this sock. I loved knitting it until I got to the foot. The foot was a pain (carrying the yarn in the back for the three rows where there was no "lice" pattern on the top of the foot was tremendously tedious). I want to knit the second, but need to build up some stamina.

New England Sock

I made the first one. Then my life got complicated. I started the second one last week. Those needles sure are tiny.

"Thinking Socks"

I forgot I hated magic loop...

The Road To Oslo

When Nancy Bush says that socks are a quick knit, she's not joking. These will be an FO tomorrow. Note: I love the part when you turn it inside out and keep knitting so that you can fold the cuff down. Why is that so much fun?

Wraps and Shawls

T-SALP

O woe is T-SALP, other wise known as the top secret amazing lace project that I didn't complete for the Amazing Lace which I pretty much washed out of after week one. Yeah. The yarn for this shawl is beautiful. I'm making it for my mommy, who I love. But the pattern I chose is so. damn. boring. to. knit. Really. It looks so beautiful that I can't rip what I've done and do something else -- I know it will be worth it in the end. But I can't bear to knit it. I know it's just gonna take stamina and some kind of strategy. Slow and steady wins the race...

Clapotis

I feel ambivalent, and the ambivalence has made me stop knitting. I love dropping stitches. But I'm not sure I even really like it. The yarn is awesome (I love the sheen of Schaefer Anne!), but maybe better suited for something else? I'm not sure yet.

Swallow Tail

I have never been a fan of small shawls (or shawls at all for that matter), but I think they are gonna be my new accessory. I started this shawl on Tuesday. I'm almost done with the Budding Lace portion. I'm knitting it with some Drops Alpaca -- so it's thicker than lace weight. Love it. Hope to be done with it (if my fingers cooperate. More in this later).

Afraid...

Orangina

I've attatched the two pieces, I'm an inch or so down the ribbing. I'm terrified it is too big. And so I stopped knitting.

Anthropologie Sweater

I love everything about this except that the whole thing scares me. I hate short sweaters -- I never wear them. Why would I knit one, using a whole lot of beautiful aplaca? It just seemed right. I can't figure out how long to make it, though, or how long the arms should be. So I knit a row here and there and think about it. I might love it short. I thought shrugs were stupid, and now I wear my "arms" all the time.

Lazy

New Advisor Socks

I need to rip out the bind off on one ankle and re-do it. I'm too lazy. Idiot.

Too Sad

Spitey's Sweater

This is proof (?) that the boyfriend sweater thing is not a myth. I've never been a very superstitious person and a year and a half ago, for Spitey's 31st Birthday, I offered to knit him a sweater. He'd been asking, I thought it was sweet, I loved the yarn he picked, the total cost of it was exactly $31 -- It seemed fated. And yet... we broke up when I moved here. I worked on it some in vain during the long, lonley, and incredibly sad first few months I was here, and managed to finish the body (up to the armpits), one sleeve, and part of the second. Then I relegated it to the bottom of one of my WIP boxes so I wouldn't have to confront it. This sweater reminds me of him. It's just one of those things -- I'm still in love him and hate thinking about it. He was my best friend. Ripping out this sweater is like... erasing something? I don't know. There you have it. TMI.

Brand New WIP

Wrist cushion

I started this today. Because my hands HURT. I've been typing a lot (transcribing interviews, working on proposals, etc) and knitting a lot and the two are not mixing. I don't think there is anything seriously wrong (I think my hands are just out of shape from not typing much this last year -- I touch type and type fast. It's a workout, especially for the last two fingers on my left hand) but I'd like to keep it that way. So I'm knitting one of those ergonomic wrist rests to go in front of the keyboard. I'm using Misti Alpaca bulky, a skein that I've had lying around since I fell in love with it at Vagabond -- a yarn shop and boutique in Philly -- over a year ago. I've never know what to do with it (one skein doesn't go all that far). But this is perfect -- it feels sooo good on my wrists. I'm using "sand" stitch, but I can't decide which side I like better. What do you think?

Or

And that ends the summary... It was long, I know. And there are other little things I've not included that I know I'll rip eventually or that I know I won't finish. I have to say, I thought I was worse off than this. With a little effort, I could get most of these done (fingers crossed).

And now, speaking of fingers... off to give them a rest.

Wednesday's Happiness on Thursday

2006-09-21T08:35:00.000-05:00

I could have sworn I posted yesterday, but apparently I didn't. Oops.

Well, we've all been talking about it, but I thought I'd share that autumn has hit the Appalachian mountains too. As soon as I got back from Philly, I knew the weather here had turned. There was that crispness to the air, even when it wasn't chilly. And although the leaves are still green, here and there I'll notice an edge of red, a few leaves falling over the road, the inclination for spectacular color. This will be my first full autumn here in the mountains... I've been so many years in the city, where fall seems to come and go and I've barely had time to notice it. I can't wait to bask in two full months of glorious color, sweaters, crisp hikes, mornings when you can see your breath, apple pies, and fall festivals. I love it.

So, in celebration of autumn, I'm doing my Wednesday "favorite things" today:

1) My new desk.

While in Philly, I took a trip to Ikea, which was supposed to yield a new desk (because nothing makes a girl more excited about writing her dissertation than the excuse to buy new organizational materials. At least, not when the girl is me!) They were sold out of everything - damn undergrads - and I ended up just buying a set of "saw horses" to prop up a butcher block that belonged to my dad from waaaay back, before I was even born. This butcher block was hand crafted especially for my dad (he traded some jewelry for it -- dad used to be a silversmith) and it was a part of my household for as long as I can remember. Last summer, my parents moved to a brand new house and didn't need it anymore. So I took it. All year, it's been serving as a neglected knitting table (when do I ever knit at my knitting table? I knit at my desk, on the couch, in bed, standing in the kitchen, in the car...). So this week, it was reincarnated, combined with my old desk to make an L, and I'm in "office heaven." I love it.

2) Coffee.

Does coffee make the list every time? My mommy bought me that mug. I love it (although I'm trying to abandon my (inherited, I might add) pack rat qualities).

3) My new "thinking socks".

These might look like procrastination to you -- after all, I have two pairs of socks half finished and several other projects either OTK or seriously belated. But -- I love to write, and I'm pretty good at it, if I do say so myself, but I have a very, very hard time in the early stages of writing getting my thoughts on to paper. I had the same problem last summer when I was trying to write my dissertation proposal. What saved me were the cable and rib socks from Interweave Fall '05. They were my first serious pair of socks (I'd invented a pattern the previous winter... sometime, I'll show you pictures) and I knit them with a beautiful shade of Trekking (long before I'd even read a knit-blog and knew how popular the yarn was). Whenever I got stuck, or didn't know how to say something, I'd sit down and knit. Something about the repetative activity, engaging, but not so engaging that I couldn't think, freed my mind to be creative. And after only a few rows, I'd find a solution to my writing block. So... yesterday, I started new thinking socks. These are knit with the impossibly loud shade of Knit Picks memories "Hawaii" (for obvious reasons) and are destined to become my second pair of toe-up, two-at-once socks and my very first pair of plain-jane stockinette socks. We'll see if I get bored. I just wanted something easy that I didn't have to concentrate on.

4) The fact that I'm wearing a sweater this morning.

See that plaid sleeve under the sweater? Oh yeah. I'm not embarassed to admit that is my ankle length, long sleeve, plaid flannel nightgown. Did I mention I'm single (and 75, apparently)? But seriously, I love these L.L. Bean flannel night gowns that look like they come straight from a turn of the century farm house. Maybe it's the part of me that never grew up, that loves 'playing pretend'. But as soon as it gets cold out, I put this nightgown on at night, snuggle down in my cold bed, and imagine I'm living in the Big Woods.

5) The reason I can wear a sweater?

That's the thermostat inside my house. It's 55 outside. It was 55 all day yesterday. Want to see what I wore yesterday? Because it's also on my list:

6) This sweater.

My mom just gave me this sweater. She bought it in Greece when she visited there over 25 years ago. This sweater is not just amazing because I LOVE the fit. My mom told me that when she bought it, she went to a store, picked out the pattern she wanted, got sized for it, and then cavorted around Greece and came back in a few days (a few days!) to pick it up, completed. Folks, they knit it while she waited and it's hand knit!

Edited to say that my mom writes the following:
"I love the pictures etc. on your blog. So much fun to read. The sweater, by the way, was purchased in Mykonos, that picture-perfect island with all the little white churches. And it wasn't really a "store" since I don't recall they had any stores there in 1968 (yup -- I'm really old -- it was the summer I went to Israel and worked picking grapefruit on a kibbutz one year after the War of '67). It was more like someone's house. But you got everything else right."

There are a million more things that make me happy -- like soup (really, I love anything that comes in a bowl and can be eaten with a spoon. Try me), the fact that Julie is coming to hang out at my house tonight (I live forty five minutes from all my friends... they never come here to play), the prospect of possibly finishing my five page proposal (rough draft) this week. But, I'll stop at six. Besides, those are the most photogenic six anyway.

Happy Autumn!

back

2006-09-19T14:23:00.000-05:00

Ahem.

Sorry about the long absense. The trip to Philly was good and bad. I missed it there so much I wanted to cry and never leave, and I hated it there so much I wanted to cry and couldn't wait to leave. I did amazing things I never get to do (like see a Czech New Wave film from 1970 scored with live music) and things I hope never to do again (like wait in the Spring Garden police station for an hour and a half at midnight because someone smashed the passenger side window of the car I left unattended for a total of two minutes to steal my purse and my iPod. I don't want to talk about it). Generally, it was completely overwhelming and I got not a single, solitary stitch of knitting done. I didn't even set foot in any of the yarn stores I love so much. No yarn, the whole time. I did get a truly fantabulous pair of new cowboy boots (this was, obviously, before my wallet and iPod were stolen). They look like this:

Love. Them.

Right now, I'm drowning in the beginning of what promises to be an insane autumn. I'll try to post regularly, but I'm in the throes of dissertation writing now -- I have grant applications up the whazoo due in November, and a lot of writing (including most of my first chapter) to get done for them. Bare with me.

But... it's good to be back and there will hopefully be some knitting progress soon. In the meantime, I have a lot of blog-reading to catch up on!

In the morning of a big day

2006-08-29T08:31:00.000-05:00

I had a great time this weekend (as you can see -- that's Julie, me, and Shawn, a.k.a. Chippy, eating in what turned out to be the worst diner ever), and although I didn't place in the flatfoot competition in Laurel Bloomery, Julie got third and our friend John got first, so all in all, it was a satisfying weekend. Laura asked if I could post some flatfooting footage to YouTube so she could see what it looked like. I'm working on this...

I did see some funny things on this trip. I've got a real weakness for funny signs, and although I've tried to keep my posting of these pictures to a mininmum on the blog, I just couldn't resist. I saw these two this weekend -- the "creamer" at the worst diner ever and the Burger King sign in Berea, KY.

I feel a little overwhelmed this morning. You see, I leave for a two week trip to Philadelphia tomorrow and I have to get everything in order before I leave. This includes several loads of laundry (can't leave the house with dirty laundry. ditto dishes.), cleaning out the fridge, vacuuming the whole house, cleaning my office. It also includes packing (haven't done that yet. I hate packing for two weeks when I have no idea what I'm going to want to wear in said two weeks) -- not just clothes, but the books and work-related stuff I think I might need, as well as two weeks worth of knitting. I also need to clean out Lil' Betsy (my car) who is carrying around the accumulated dirt of a summer's worth of festivals and fiddler's conventions. This might wait, because I'm going to a bluegrass festival in New Jersey this coming weekend (it was my first bluegrass festival, years ago, and I feel a certain nostalgia for it. I timed my trip to Philly so I could go to it). Add to all of that the fact that Hank is a chirper (he loves to talk and walks around gurgling like a bird) and last night, at four in the morning, was feeling particularly conversational. I tried shutting him out of the bedroom, but then he spent hours scratching on the door, meowing loudly. Not much sleep.

Why, you might ask, am I doing all of the preparations for my trip now when I'm not leaving until tomorrow afternoon? No, it's not because I'm a girl blessed with amazing forethought. It's because tonight, I'm driving to Prestonsburg, KY for a concert -- my first non-bluegrass or oldtime concert since I saw Devo in Atlantic City this time last year. Tonight, at the Mountain Arts Center, I get to see Dwight Yoakam in concert for the very first time. There are no words for how excited I am about this concert. I heart Dwight Yoakam. Which is funny to me, because although I harbor a great deal of love for old, classic country (give me Hank Williams, Lefty Frizzel, or Kitty Wells anyday), I have always professed an intense dislike for all modern country. But Dee-wight is a totally different thing. He's what Hank Williams would be if he hadn't died and were a lot younger. He's the cat's pajamas. And I hear he puts on a great show. I can't wait.

As for knitting, I finally finished Fair Isle sock #1. I blocked it (a first) and it's drying. Maybe a finished shot later, maybe not. I think I'm going to wait a while before I make it's parnter. I'm a little underwhelmed by the color combination and the tedium of carring the lice color all the way around the foot. Maybe I'll follow Grumerina's lead and make a fraternal twin for the second sock. In the meantime, I cast on for my second New England sock (long waiting). And look what I got in the mail:

A few weeks ago, I mentioned being interested in learning how to use a drop spindle to spin some wool I got from a friend who sheared his sheep.

I got an e-mail from Meg mentioning that she had a spindle hanging out in her basement somewhere in West Virginia, and that she would put her dad on the task of finding it, if I wanted it. Well -- yesterday, it arrived! Thanks Meg, and thanks Meg's dad for finding it and mailing it -- with instructions! I can't wait to give it a whirl (no pun intended).

And I'm off (again)

2006-08-25T13:48:00.000-05:00

Remember last week, when I said that Fries was my last fiddler's convention until my friends' convention in October? Well... I lied. I knew I'd be going away this weekend -- Julie and I are scheduled to dance on Sunday at the Clear Creek Festival in Berea Kentucky (scroll down to the bottom -- see on Sunday at 2 p.m. when "Hell or High Water" is scheduled? Yeah. That's us). But yesterday, Julie called me up and convinced me that on the way to Berea, we should stop by Laurel Bloomery, TN and spend one night at their fiddler's convention. Just enough time to dance in their flatfoot competition, stay up all night dancing and making a rukus, and then drive off to Berea to hang out with more friends and dance our exhibition dance on Sunday. It didn't take much arm twisting.

So... not much knitting to show (the foot of that sock is killing me!), but I have been getting some prep work done for my fall knitting... swatching, a little designing, and a lot of hanking, washing, and rewinding cone yarn I ordered from Webs. Ugh, it's so disgusting on the cone. I hope it will soften a lot with a good wash or three. But it's a beautiful color, and I've got some nice projects in mind...

Oh, and for those of you (mom) who mighte worried that I'm not getting work done -- don't. The dissertation writing preparation is coming along nicely. I leave next week for a two week trip to Philly to meet with my advisors, take advantage of the library (and Trader Joe's!), and generally get ready to what I expect to be a marathon fall. Yes, this is the time when I start to write the dreaded dissertation (and I'm not even done researching yet!). But I have grant applications due this fall that require a completed chapter (just writing that makes my heart start racing), not to menion the paper for the hawaii conference... So, I'm in training for the "getting down to business" that must happen come September. These next two weekends are like my last hurrah until winter break. I plan to live it up!

More when I get back from Kentucky...

Living in color

2006-08-23T18:41:00.000-05:00

The title is not, in any way, to imply that I think I've been doing any sort of black-and-white living, not daily nor in my knitting (actually, looking back over the last years-worth of knitting, I seem to gravitate toward wildly colorful yarn. So there!). Rather... if anyone other than Chris made it through the monster of a meme/questionnaire that I self-indulgently filled out last week, you would have noticed that I declared 2007 (and, I guess, the rest of 2006) the year of color-work knitting. That's right -- I want to "master" the art of fair isle. So... two nights ago, I decided to start this. I didn't go to bed until I had gotten to the heel, that's how addictive I found it.

This is a slightly modified version of the Huron Sock from knitting on the road. I really wanted to wait until it was finished, but the foot has slowed me down significantly, and I'm too impatient to wait any longer. I changed the colors (obviously). I'm not wild about the two of these together in a pattern like this. There's not enough contrast and it's a little... wild? In a strangely conservative way. I added stripes to the foot, rather than continuing the "lice" design, which seemed genius to me at the time (reinforces the foot, makes a nice, cushioned bed, etc.). It was only when I got to the first round after the lice row that I realized I was gonna have to either a) carry the blue behind the brown across the whole top of the foot for three out of every four rows to continue the striping on the bottom, or b) weave in a s**t load of ends if I snipped every round except the lice round. I tried it both ways -- carrying the yarn behind won out. It is slowing me down. A lot. Meaning, it will take me three instead of two days to finish the sock. But... I'm in love. And this is all technical prep so I can make this:

Ah, winter sweaters...

Soggy Fries

2006-08-21T12:25:00.000-05:00

So, despite the "chronic" fatigue, I went away this weekend to the Fiddler's Convention in Fries (pronounced like "freeze"), Virginia. It's my last fiddler's convention of the season, until my friends' convention in Morehead, Kentucky in October, so I felt like I couldn't miss it. And despite torrential downpours and getting kicked out of the park due to the rain, I had a really great time. No knitting accomplished, but my new brown "Fetchings" got some action:

Pattern: "Fetching" from Knitty fall 2006
Yarn: Knitpicks Wool of the Andes, in "Chocolate" (just a hair more than one skein...)
Needles: Brittany, US 5 dpns
Started: 15 August 2006
Finished: 16 August, 2006

Notes: I added an extra cable repeat at the bottom and the top (and remember to flip the cables so they are mirror images). I also made the thumb a hair longer. I like them better this way.

While in Fries, I saw the biggest, weirdest, ugliest bug (Julie got bit by it! It is, I have since learned, a Dobson fly. This is a female Dobson fly. The male ones have longer pincers):

And I won fifth place in the dance competition. This doesn't sound like the big deal that it was -- it's really hard to place in these dance competitions down on the Va/NC border... I dance verydifferently than they do there. As you can tell, I'm pretty excited (and pretty drenched). This was right before they made us leave the park. Julie and I were practically giddy (the band Julie played in placed first!). We couldn't hold still for a picture.

We spent the night with some friends in North Carolina. They have the sweetest German Shorthair (named Callie). She snuggles like a cat.

All in all, good times were had.

Question for spinners

2006-08-17T22:47:00.000-05:00

I've got a question for any and all of you who spin. I'm acquiring some fleece from friends who have shorn their sheep. I'm interested in learning how to spin, but obviously this needs to be a low cost endeavor (given the whole dissertating-student-going-to-hawaii thing). So I've been thinking about drop spindle spinning. But I know next to nothing about it. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions on what kind of spindle to get (both design and make)? Ditto that for carders. Any help (or internet resources that are good, too) would be much appreciated!

Thanks.

While waiting...

2006-08-16T14:56:00.000-05:00

A gauge of how much time I spent in the doctor's office yesterday and today trying to figure out what's wrong with me. I cast on yesterday afternoon when I arrived at the clinic. We still don't know what's wrong (extreme fatigue and tightness in my chest), but I'm an afternoon's knit away from warm winter hands (all for me!)

Ready for winter

2006-08-13T16:06:00.000-05:00

Pattern: Fetching, from Knitty Summer '06
Yarn: Knitpicks Swish Superwash, in "Red Pepper"
Needles: Bryspun dpns, US 5
Begun: 11 August 2006
Finished: 13 August 2006

Notes: Well to start, I used this project as a test for one of the new Knitpicks Yarns, Swish. When I ordered my needles the other day, I decided that I would buy a skein or two of a few of their new yarns, just to see what I thought. My reports on Swish? Well, at first, I was kinda disappointed. The yarn seemed kind of... acrylic-y (?). It wasn't particularly soft or anything, and something about the bright red on the skein made it seem cheap. But once you knit with it, man oh man! It's great! The yarn is a little splitty (and very uncooperative with cable-needle-free cabling) but it creates a tight, soft, squishy fabric with great stitch definition. I'm really pleased with it. And a superwash wool for gloves, hats, and mittens seems like a great idea. I would definitely use it again.

The pattern is a really quick knit. I would have finished both on Friday, if I hadn't been feeling so bad and if I hadn't had to get to Galax yesterday. The only modifications: 1. I sized the gloves down (they are a gift for a friend with remarkably small hands [and feet] -- if she's reading this now, she knows who she is!); 2. I started the second glove while at Galax, didn't consult the pattern and forgot that the cables are supposed to switch direction on the second glove. So they are symmetrical instead of mirror-images. I figure, that's ok. 3. I ditched the cable bind off. Couldn't figure it out, it looked sloppy, and a regular bind off worked fine. If I were to do it again, I would add an extra cable repeat at the top to make it grip the hand a little more (I have fingerless gloves with floppy tops). But all in all, great pattern which makes a great looking glove.

distracting questionnaire...

2006-08-13T12:48:00.000-05:00

I just returned from the Galax Old Fiddler's Convention (where I did not place in the dance competition -- I dance so differently from the way they do down there, and like the Sparta convention, they seem to favor their own styles). I had a great time, though the weather was freakishly cold. After the last two weeks of hot hot hot, I never in a million years thought the temperature would stay below 60 all day yesterday. I drove down in the morning, pretty early, with my friend Julie, and it wasn't that cold up here. But by the time we arrived in Galax, I was already wearing all of the warm clothes I'd brought and it wasn't even noon. I usually carry a scarf, fingerless gloves, and a down vest in the car for "emergencies" (i.e. cold nights at festivals), but just took them out to wash them and didn't bother to replace them. I was kicking myself for that last night. I could see my breath, it was so cold. And dancing up a storm will only help that for so long. Hopefully, this exhaustion isn't a bout of sickness 2.1.

Anyway, I have pictures and FOs but I'm too tired to dig the camera out of my bag (not ready to unpack the muddy mess that is my festival gear -- Galax got a lot of rain Friday night). In the meantime, I leave you with this. I ganked this from Laura's site. Although I don't often do these questionnaire things, I liked this one... food for thought.

The Knit-Geek Questionnaire (unrelated to any swaps or secret pal exchanges)

1. What's your worst habit relating to your knitting?
I have really bad posture. I sit hunched over my needles with my shoulders pulled forward. I think this might be because I rarely wear my glasses when I knit, but even when I do, I still crouch over the knitting. I also always forget to cut the nails on my right hand (I keep my left well trimmed for banjo playing) and then they cut into my hand. See:

(ignore that cut -- I droped a picture frame and sliced my hand a few weeks ago).

2. In what specific ways does your knitting make you a better person?
I think it has made me more generous -- I love knitting for other people and I'm always planning projects for them. It definitely has made me more thoughtful, in general and specifically with regard to the handcrafts of others. I feel like I have a greater appreciation for how things are made and the time and thought that goes into it.

3. How might you or your life be different if you were suddenly unable to knit?
Wow. I'd have a lot of free time. And more money. But I think I'd be bored. I'd probably have found another (less portable) craft or art to serve as a creative outlet and a meditative force. Or else I'd be crazy and (as Laura said) more than likely a little depressed.

4. If money were no object, what one yarn, and what one tool or gadget would you run out and buy first?
Oh! I'd definitely get myself a pair of hardwood dpn sock needles (does lantern moon make dpns? in ebony or something? That's what I'd want!). And a blocking board. Wait, no! Scrap that. The very first thing I'd buy is a yarn winder and swift. I'm so tired of hand-winding yarn. Then I'd get that other stuff, and only then would I invest in something truly decadent, like enough cashmere yarn to make myself the world's greatest sweater vest (I dream of knitting a sweater vest out of hipknits cashmere sock yarn. Am I crazy?)

5. What knitting technique or project type are you most afraid of (if any)? What, specifically, do you fear will happen when you try it?
Fair Isle. For sure. I am confronting this fear as hopefully the year of the sock with turn into the year of colorwork. I don't know what I'm afraid of... I've tried it before and my tension was all wonky and I've never tried it again. I feel like I'm a stronger knitter now, and I've learned some technique, so maybe that will help.

6. Who is/are your knitting hero(es), and why?
Well, I'm not sure I've "heroes" in knitting, but I greatly admire the work of Eunny -- such detail, precision, and care! I also have always admired my grandmother's knitting. But you all know that.

7. Do you consider knitting, for you personally, a mostly social activity, or a mostly solitary activity?
I really prefer to knit alone. I do enjoy sitting with other people...But I've never really spent time at any kind of stitch-n-bitch and I find that talking while I knit is distracting. I like to listen to talk radio while I knit or, when I have the opportunity, watch TV.

8. Is there a particular regional tradition in knitting that you feel strongly drawn toward (e.g., Fair Isle, Scandinavian, Celtic, Orenburg lace)? Any theories as to why it calls to you?
Oooohhhh... I don't know. I do always feel drawn toward all sorts of Eastern European designs. Maybe because I'm of Ukrainian/German descent? I have no idea. But I love the patterns (this is connected to 2007 - the year of colorwork) and the combination of warmth and function with absolute beauty.

9. If you were a yarn, which yarn would you be?
Hmmm... I'd love to be something soft, beautiful and a joy to knit with (like the Noro Lily -- my favorite yarn right now, though I've never had a chance to knit it. It just seems sooo lovely). But I'm probably something way more practical, pretty but not the first thing you run to when you walk in a yarn store. Maybe a little bit of a pain in the ass to knit with, but totally serviceable.

10. Some statistics:
(a) How many years have passed since you FIRST learned to knit?
Nineteen (wow)
(b) How many total years have you been actively, regularly knitting (i.e., they don't have to have been in a row)?
two
(c) how many people have you taught to knit?
four
(d) Roughly what percentage of your FOs do you give away (to anyone besides yourself, i.e., including your immediate family)
Oh, wow. I'd say close to 80 -85 %. Most of them. It's fun to knit for other people.

11. How often do you KIP (knit in public)? i.e., once a week, once a month, etc. Where do you do it?
All the time. I knit at festivals a lot. Concerts. While waiting for people, anywhere. Any time I get a chance.

12. If a genie granted you one hour to stitch-n-bitch with any one knitter, living or dead, who would you choose and why?
Definitely, definitely my grandmother. (Not including all the other stuff I'd like to talk to her about, seeing as I never met her...) I'd really want to get lessons -- learn how she learned to knit, what techniques she used, did she ever knit socks?, figure out how to line a sweater the way she did, find out if she used patterns or created her own, see when she learned how to knit and who taught her, what her inspiraitons were, and, well, basically ask all the same questions that are here. I want to know my "knitting genes".

13. What aspect or task in knitting makes you most impatient?
Weaving in ends. Period.

14. What is it about knitting that never lets you get bored with it?
I love to watch the project develop in my hands. With variegated yarn, I love to watch the colors shift. I love the feel of (most) yarn in my hands, the sense that I am creating something.

15. Describe how and where you most often do your knitting - where do you sit, what is going on around you, what tools do you use and how are they (dis)organized?
I most often sit at either my computer or on the couch. When I still had television, there was an indentation in my couch where I sat in the middle and watched/listened to the TV while I knit. Now I sit mostly at my desk. So I'm mostly surrounded by work and then whatever project I'm working on at the time. The desk is convenient because it's hard for the little kitties to eat the yarn I'm working with. I have a yarn table where I keep whatever I'm not working on. My yarn is pretty organized, but my WIPS and needles are always kind of a mess on top.

16. Which one person is the recipient of more of your knitting than any other?
My mommy... or she will be as soon as I finish T-SALP and mail her that last pair of socks (it's coming mom, i promise!)

17. What's the oddest thing about your knitting, or yourself as a knitter?
Hmmm.... I don't know. You mean, outside of my general oddities? I guess that I'm not a very patient person in other aspects of my life, yet I can sit for hours and work on a sock on size 0 needles.

18. What do you see yourself knitting - if anything - twenty years from now?
God, hopefully something other than socks! I'd really like to knit a beautiful, fair isle cardigan. Sometime warm, delicate, and with beautiful colors, embellished silver buttons, some shape, that definitely manages not to look even remotely frumpy (something with a nice 1930's flair).

19. If you were stranded on a deserted island and could have only ONE SKEIN of yarn, which yarn would it be and what would you do with it?
Practicality aside (length of said skein, durability, machine washability, or practicality in terms of the weather on a desert island), if I were stuck knitting one thing for the rest of my life, I'd have to say that I'd knit Blue Sky alpaca until my days were through. wow. what a lovely yarn.

20. If you were allowed to own only one knitting-related book, which would it be? (you'd be free to browse others, but you couldn't keep them)
You know, I just don't use knitting books all that much. I consult for patterns and stuff, but I never had a "knitting bible" that I've consulted for stitches or techniques. I've always wanted one, but never gotten it, so... I do without.

21. Is knitting the new yoga? Why or why not?
Man, I don't know. Maybe it's the "trend-bucker" in me that hates how popular knitting is (I feel like it encourages the use of eyelash and other novelty yarns that I hate. I'm soooo snobby). I do find it relaxing and frequently use it to focus and redirect my thoughts, but... It isn't necessarily good for your body, and I never feel taller, stretchier, or healthier when I finish. I usually feel cramped and disoriented (like I said, I have bad knitting posture).

22. What important thing are you trying to put off doing whenever you knit?
Transcribing. Always transcribing. Sometimes reading. Occasionally writing or making phone calls. But transcribing is definitely #1.

Satisfaction

2006-08-11T18:59:00.000-05:00

Thank you all for your guesses/responses to my "sneak peek" last night. Here they are, completed:

Pattern: Really? the infamous Jaywalkers (pair number 4 for me)
Yarn: Socks that Rock, in a colorway they unfortunately no longer carry - Fire on the Mountain
Needles: Those same Inox dpns, US size 1/2 (they fall kinda in between)
Started: Oh god, so long ago, I can't even remember
Completed: 11 August 2006

Notes: So much to say, and nothing to say at the same time. I raced to finish them before daylight disappeared... This shouldn't have been a problem -- I was more than halfway down the foot when I posted my sneak peek, but then I house-sat for a friend last night with two kittens who have not yet been introduced the wonders of yarn and poof! My plans to knit all night were thwarted. I did finish in time this afternoon, thanks to some old episodes of Project Runway and a very productive (work-wise) morning. I started these socks so long ago, there might still have been snow on the ground. I need to the ankle of one sock, got tired and didn't touch them until this last weekend. In the last six days, I have knit the heel and foot of one sock and the entire second sock. I thank Clifftop and my new-found urge to finish all these old WIPS for getting me through it.

I'm not sure why I stopped. For a long time, I thought about ripping out the ankle I had knit on the one sock and starting over. Now I'm SO glad I didn't because I love them. I love the way the colors look in the pattern, I don't mind the huge swatches of pooling pink (though I wish it was the green pool instead). I don't even mind all that much the fraternal quality of them, though can someone explain to me why they don't pool similarly? I think my initial frustration was due to the fact that I knit the first half of the first sock using magic loop. I don't like magic loop. I'm all about dpns.

The one thing I don't like? I tried a new toe-technique. That is, I waited too long to start decreasing the toe, so I didn't it pretty fast, creating a rounded toe. I like the looks of it on, except that with this pattern, I think there is something strangely alien about the toe. Does anyone else get this? Maybe I'm crazy...

And, you might remember, I once said the sign of a good pair of socks was how they look with your favorite shoes? Well, here you go:

These are obviously not boot socks -- too bright. But they do look great with my favorite pair of Doc Martens (ignore the safety pin holding the strap on -- these babies are 12 years old!). Oh yeah, fall socks! All ready to be worn with a skirt and a cute little sweater (to be knit, of course!)

In other news, today I felted for the first time. And it wasn't on purpose either. Remember these?

Well, they are now these:

The world's warmest, felted socks.

Yeah. Oops. In my defense, they were already felting a little as a result of being worn with my boots and being a little too big. So I figured, "What the hell? I'm throw them in the wash!" (I'd heard that some knit picks "hand wash" yarns held up to a delicate wash). No go. Out came felted socks.

I also think I'm going to join Sock Wars. Although I think my sock knitting patience is wearing thin (I crave a sweater -- a whole sweater!), I can't resist the call of competitive knitting. I've also joing Sock-a-Month II. Yeah... 2006, the year of the sock.

** Editor's Note: Who I am kidding? I'm going to be writing my dissertation this fall. I don't have time for competitive sock knitting... though it sounds like so much fun... sigh.

Sneak Peek

2006-08-10T16:58:00.000-05:00

Itching...

2006-08-09T23:56:00.000-05:00

It's so late. I just got off the phone with my good friend Jennifer and I am so tired I want to just collapse on the couch and not bother to turn off any of the lights, wash my face, brush my teeth, or get in bed. But there is a part of me -- a teeny tiny and loudly screaming part -- that itching to knit. Knit up a storm. Finish all these projects and finish the now so I can plan my fall knitting.

It's been a long time since my fingers have craved knitting when my mind says no. This is a good sign the dry spell will soon be over.

But for now? Bed.

Good night.

River Rapids

2006-08-08T14:45:00.000-05:00

Tada!

I finished these a few days ago, but didn't have good light/tapestry needles for weaving in the ends. They are totally fininshed now (and yes, mom, I'm gonna send them off in the mail tomorrow).

The details:

Pattern: River Rapids socks from Sock Bug
Yarn: Nature's Palette sock yarn, 2 skeins in "medium indigo"
Needles: Inox dpns, US 0
Started: 20 June 2006
Completed: 2 August 2006

Thoughts: I love these socks. The only problem I had was the sock-yarn-needlesize didn't cooperate. I ended up having to knit the socks on size 0 needles to get closer to gauge, but the yarn really deserves a looser, more breatheable knit. It was so lush and cushy knit on size 1s (my first attempt), but was waaay too big. Rather than do the math to size down the pattern, I just dropped down a needle size. As a result, the socks are a little tight on me (the intended recipient) and so now my mom gets them (which she deserves, since I am several gifts behind in my knitting for her). But... I have nothing but good things to say about both the yarn and the pattern. LOVE this yarn. love it. Everyone should go out and get some. It put quite a strain on the needles -- I bent my first pair so severely that my mom's LYS actually replaced them. But that is due more to my iron fist and knitting under the recommended needle size than anything else.

I'm "home sick" today. I put that in quotes because I'm always home (I work from home), but I "called in sick". I've not been sick in ages and ages, so I don't feel too bad about it. I did a little work this morning and I'll do some more tonight, but this afternoon, I've been drinking tea, watching movies, and knitting. My new Knitpicks circular came today, so I'm going to try it out on TSALP. I'll let y'all know how it goes.

I leave you with this:

What is that, far off in the distance? Why it's the Gauley Bridge, over the New River in West Virginia (when first told the name of this bridge, I thought they meant "Golly!" because... well, it's a sight to be seen). I guess it's the tallest bridge in the world, or something like that. It's tall. How tall is it?

It's also phenomenally beautiful.

But I really like things like bridges. Julie and I stopped here on our way to Clifftop, where I had a terrific time. I pretty much spent the weekend doing this:

Except usually there were instruments other than fiddles (this is an awfully fiddle-heavy photo) and I was usually dancing. All day, and almost all night. So much fun (and probably why I feel under the weather today). And I get to do it again this weekend, this time in Galax, Virginia. I've got a pretty cool "job".

Ok. back to being sick.

p.s.

2006-08-02T14:29:00.000-05:00

addendum:

Thank God for iced coffee. Really. Who ever thought of it is a pure genius. Hopefully, it will enable me to show you a new pair of socks before I leave for (yet another) fiddler's convention tomorrow morning (this one is in Clifftop, West Virginia). We'll see...

melting...

2006-08-02T09:43:00.000-05:00

Air conditioning broken.

too. hot. to. knit.

Randomness

2006-07-29T07:44:00.000-05:00

1. Thank you all for your needle suggestions. I fear the Knitpicks needles... I've heard such mixed things about them. I'm going home for a visit tomorrow (my grandmother will be in town -- she's 90. I like to see her when a get a chance). I think I'll pop into the LYS and check out some addi turbos.

2. I had a dream last night that I finished Orangina. I wonder if that's some kind of subconscious suggestion? In my dream, it had all kinds of problems (on one side the lace was much more open than the other -- as though I had knit them on two drastically different sized needles). It doesn't have these problems in real life. Hmmm....

3. I joined a new KAL. Two, actually. Before the deadline closed, I joined Yarn Aboard II. I'm pretty excited about it... yarn exchanges make a girl happy. I was just pleased that I didn't miss the deadline. Then, this morning, I joined the Mystery Sock KAL. I'm pretty excited about the whole premise for this project -- knitting these free sock patterns off the internet that none of us want to knit because there are no pictures of the socks. It's a surprise how it will really turn out and it's a service to knitters in the future. And, we all know, I love to knit socks.

Off to teach a flatfooting/clogging workshop. More knitting to come.

Question

2006-07-27T22:24:00.000-05:00

Feeling inspired, I sat down to do some work on T-SALP. I've been using addi naturas, US 2 with a silk lace yarn. Tonight I almost threw the whole thing down in frustration because it took me 20 minutes (TWENTY!) to pull the yarn-over row over both joins (from cord to metal and metal to bamboo) to do the purl row. I cannot keep doing this -- it's why the damn thing is taking so long.

So -- does anyone have any suggestions for good US 2 needles that might not have joins at all, or if they do, have really, really smooth joins? I don't have a lot of money to spend, so cheaper is better. But I can't keep tearing up the yarn trying to pull it over these deep joins, so I'll consider all options.

Thanks!

WIP

2006-07-27T15:00:00.000-05:00

Another birthday come and gone... I spent the day in Lexington, Kentucky eating good food, shopping at Wild Oates (what does it say about me that I was just so excited to go grocery shopping on my birthday? But I got organic meat! And Annie's Mac and Cheese! And Braggs!), browsing in a book store, and most importantly -- dancing. It was a good time, following an even better weekend. I did not place at the Sparta Fiddler's Convention, but made up for it having a rip-roaring time, dancing and drinking until the very wee hours. All in all, a weekend that made up for all the sh*%t going on recently.

Also in non-knitting news -- I will be presenting a paper at the Society for American Music's conference (to be held in Pittsburg this coming March). I wasn't expecting to hear for weeks, so when I got the e-mail yesterday it took me by complete surprise. Now I just have to write the damn thing...

I have been knitting -- finishing the heel to the second sock for my mom, working away on T-SALP (which may never be finished... I haven't posted pictures in ages), considering starting the second potamomus sock, and this:

Yeah, that's what you think it is. I caved -- I'm knitting my very own, lace-weight clapotis. We'll see if I like it. I haven't gotten to my first dropped stitch yet, but already I'm feeling ambivalent and thinking about ripping it out. I wanted something mindless to work on over the weekend and this is what happened.... we'll see.

I'm melting

2006-07-20T23:49:00.000-05:00

I'm also crazy. Today, which might be one of the hottest days I've experienced here in the mountains (and in my house... I think my AC is broken!), I did a crazy thing. I knit a winter hat. I think I've been feeling a little over-socked recently, and wanted a project I could finish in an evening (while watching Season 2 of Project Runway. Curses to MintyFresh for pointing out that I could download these through iTunes...

This afternoon, I received an early birthday present from one of my good friends. Jennifer, also a (blogless) knitter, knows that when a girl can't buy herself yarn, it's an ideal time to gift it. So she sent me two beautiful, dusty pink skeins of Misti Alpaca worsted and two skeins of a very, very interesting merino -- Laines Du Nord Korall Fancy.

The Korall Fancy is basically a 3 ply, with each ply DK weight and a different color.

Jennfie knows my love for "ropey" yarn, and sent me the skeins to see what I thought. I love it. What started as a test swatch turned into this (don't mind the bad picture... better ones will be posted soon after blocking and in decent light).

It's the "shocking pink coif" from Knitty Spring '03. I've been wanting to make something along these lines for a while -- I have curly hair, which makes hat wearing in the winter a disaster. Once I put the hat on, I can't take it off again without the worst case of hat-hair ever. I usually go hatless in the winter unless I'm participating in winter sports. But now -- beautiful coif stays intact while my ears remain warm. Woo Hoo! The yarn is beautiful knit up, like moss. And I got to use my new Lantern Moon needles -- knit a little under-gauge, but it's warmer that way. The second skein is either going to become mittens or fingerless gloves... not sure yet.

In the meantime, I've survived today on sweet tea (mint and sencha green mixed, sweetened with brown sugar -- I highly recommend it. Light, perfect for days this humid and hot), fresh bread I baked this afternoon, with lemon curd (mmm... lemon curd), and Maker's Mark pulled directly from the freezer (I hate ice in my whiskey-- waters it down -- but make the whiskey cold? A dream).

Tomorrow, I head to another fiddler's convention. Fingers crossed I'll get another ribbon...

Not knitting related

2006-07-20T15:05:00.000-05:00

I've never been much of a shoe person. Don't get me wrong, I like shoes. But I'm not easily swayed by style or what I see in the stores. I usually envision a pair of shoes that I want -- a particular style or idea -- and then spend months shopping until I find them. So my shoe collection is pretty small.

While Spitey was here (and yes, thanks for asking, we had a great time -- it was so nice to have such a good friend here. I really needed it and feel much refreshed from his visit), we were looking at boots online. He's worn a hole in the bottom of his and needs a new pair. This boot shopping was a dangerous and stupid thing for me to do. I've spent the past few days since he left looking at boots online. You'll remember how much I love my boots. They are doing well -- they need to be resoled pretty badly, but they are wearing nicely and I love them. The problem is that they have rubber soles. I loved this when I bought them -- makes them better for winter wear. I've gone hiking in them. They seem more durable. But they aren't the world's dressiest boots (remember, I wear boots all the time) and rubber soles are terrible for dancing. At these competitions, you aren't allowed to wear taps, so I dance in my boots. But leather soles are really a necessity for flatfooting and I don't own any. Thus, the boot search. My birthday is on Tuesday. I thought maybe, just maybe, I could justify the purchase (still working on that). That is, until I saw these boots:

I am absolutely in love with these boots. I need them. Aren't they the most perfect thing you've ever seen?

All other boots pale in comparison. They are beauty itself. Unfortunately, they are also $475. I have never spent this much on anything except for rent, my car, and my computer. So alas, they will not be mine. But, oh! A girl can dream...

Three things...

2006-07-16T17:22:00.000-05:00

... that make me happy today:

Second prize in the flatfoot competition at the Tazewell Fiddler's Convention (Julie, my "teacher" got first!)

Beautiful Ebony Lantern Moon needles, which I ordered months ago, before the moratorium on all purchases having to do with yarn. They were backordered and just got here today -- good timing. I needed a pick-me-up. They are so smooth and beautiful and... decadent!

The third thing has no photo. Any minute now, there will be a knock on my door. It will be Spitey, one of my bestest friends in the whole world (to be remembered from the month-hole sweater). He is making an impromptu trip to see me. I couldn't be more excited... the company of a friend who knows me like he does is soooo needed right now. So... I'll be back in a few days.

Dancing (and Banjo-pickin') in the rain

2006-07-15T08:40:00.000-05:00

Guess what I found? My battery charger!

Pattern: Jaywalkers, of course -- though I call these the "Batman socks"
Yarn: Knit Picks Sock Garden in "Pansy"
Needles: Metal dpns, size 1
Begun: (this is embarassing...) 7 February 2006
Completed: 10 July 2006
Thoughts: These took me long enough! But... I'm really happy with them. For some reason, the pooling in these socks was almost identical. I could have made them more similar (when choosing where to put the heel) but decided that I liked the almost-mirror image of them. I call them Batman socks for two reasons -- my friend Sara (for whom these are a very, belated Christmas gift) has had, since our sophomore year of college, the nickname Batman. All of my friends still call her that: "Have you talked to the Bat lately?" or "Hey Batman, can you pass me that bottle of wine?" or "Bat, awesome green car!". Yeah. I mentioned back in February that this name has stuck so much that her mom is referred to as "The Batmom." All because she dressed up as Batman for halloween that year (strange, that our friend Amy who dressed as Robin was never once referred to as Robin after that day). I also call these Batman socks because the colors seem very Batmanish, which makes up for the fact that they are nowhere near as purple (the Bat's favorite color) as I had wanted. I hope she likes them...

I also finished the first of the River Rapids socks for my mom, in the Nature's Palette (yummy, yummy, yummy) that I got from Pure Knits.

I cast on for the second last night... hopefully an FO by next week.

Today, I'm on my way to the Fiddler's Convention in Tazewell, Virginia, where I will be competing in my first flatfooting competition. I'm nervous and excited about it... I've never even seen a flatfooting contest before, so I'm not sure what I'm in for. A lot of these old guys are amazing dancers, and I don't know what the folks up in Tazewell like (there are different styles of flatfooting, ranging from flashy to really understated). I also only have rubber-soled boots (leather would be better) and I'm worried I won't make enough noise... We'll see. Motivated by my goal to place and get a ribbon this weekend, I did this last night:

That's a registration form for the Galax Old Fiddler's Convention.

I'm officially registered (or will be, once they receive it!) for their dance contest too. The Galax Fiddler's Convention is an old time, big deal. It's a week long, it's been happening forever (71 years) and it's pretty well known. Eeesh! Maybe I need to make myself a pair of "dancing socks" for luck :)

Education

2006-07-13T22:01:00.000-05:00

I still can't find the damn charger for my camera. This is very annoying. I have pretty FOs to show you!

Tonight was the second week some friends of mine and I have gotten together to have a little impromptu knitting circle. More specifically, for the second night, I have tried to teach two friends to knit. I thought I was pretty good at this. Right before I left Philly, I sucessfully taught two friends how to work the wool and sticks -- I even had one of them doing cables by the end of her first lesson (she was really ambitious and unusually dextrous). But today was a totally different beast. It might be because I was unprepared -- I woke up at 6:30 this morning to go running over in Kentucky and spent the day out there, dealing with various elements of the personal problems I mentioned in the last post. Not the best mental space to approach teaching. I didn't have my usual array of needles and yarn (to teach them weight and appropriate needle size) or gauge swatches that can teach how to recognize knits and purls, twisted stitches, yarn overs, and dropped stitches. I only had one piece of my own knitting with me, and it was a particularly complicated pair of socks on size 0 dpns. Not the best teaching tool. I might have struggled because one woman was using a kinky purple almost-novelty yarn (not a good first yarn -- too hard to see your stitches, too hard to keep an even tension, too hard to run smoothly through your fingers). I struggled to articulate what I was trying to say -- how do you explain the long-tail cast-on to someone in words? For some reason, watching me and repeating wasn't working. I completely failed at reminding another friend how to purl because she knits American and I have always knitted continental (at least as long as I can remember). I have no idea how American knitting works, and I had no books to consult. I feel a little discouraged. I guess what's important is that they aren't, but...

Most importantly, I found the whole experience educational -- It made me realize how far I've come in the last year and a half and how much of knitting is personal discovery. I've developed a whole new understanding of fiber, color, and texture in the last year, just from messing around on my own. I've figured out what techniques work for me and what don't, what kind of needles I like, what happens when you use needles too small and too big, how to pick up dropped stitches, and how to fix mistakes without frogging, all without guidance. So much of the process of knitting, I'm coming to realize, is intuitive and can't be taught. For some reason, today, this amazed me.

Also amazing -- earlier in the afternoon, I went over to a friend's house and had a few beers on her porch. The sun was shining and I could hear the wind rustling the leaves down in the holler. At least I thought it was leaves, until I looked up and realized that it was a wall of rain. I sat and watched the rain come up the valley until it hit the house, a torrential downpour. All the while the sun shone, and there was an enormous, if faint, rainbow. It was an incredible thing -- much like watching the weather roll in across the plains out west. But here I was, in the middle of a dense patch of mountains. So unexpected and so beautiful.

I'm giving myself a few more days, and then I'll find some sort of alternative to digital photos, because lets be honest -- photoless posts stink.

P.S. Yesterday, in a fit of craving, I made bagels. Real, honest-to-god bagels. I was skeptical about whether it would all work -- I'm very, very picky about my bagels, which is why I've not had one since I moved here. But I was incredibly impressed with this recipe and pretty pleased with myself. They had the perfect crunchy outside, chewy (but not cakey, doughy, or bready) insides... delicious. With a longer rise nexttime, they might be pretty damn close to perfection (for bagels made by hand on an electric stove in a kitchen in central Appalachia, that is).

Falling...

2006-07-12T12:39:00.000-05:00

I swear. I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. There's just been a lot going on. Some of it is work-related, which is only moderately interesting to post about (it's not been festival or star-sighting related work, otherwise I would). Some of it has been personal, which means I won't really post about it. Some knitting has been accomplished though (I will say that having access to sharp, pointy sticks when very angry is not always a good thing).

In desperate need of a change of scenery, I took a spontaneous trip to visit my parents this last weekend, which meant a trip to their LYS. My mom had to go to the dentist, so I figured I'd kill time in the yarn store until she was done. Conveniently, her appointment ran half an hour late, just enough time to wear down my defenses. I bought yarn. Even though I'm not supposed to buy anymore yarn until after Hawaii. But I had self control and bought two beautiful skeins of Lorna's Laces, and that's it. I figured, given all that's been going on, I deserved a beautiful pair of socks for myself. That's right -- deserved. Hee hee.

As soon as I can put my hands on my battery charger, there will be pictures some FO's and some yarn. I'm on a mad mission to finish up old projects. I've been frogging and reknitting and ploughing away on old things to make room for some new stuff that will make me happy. It's all part of an attempt to reorganize and re-prioritize my life. We'll see how this all goes...

karma?

2006-07-03T16:44:00.000-05:00

I'm having a bad knitting week. Bad. Last night, plugging away on a pair of socks, I realized that ten rows back, I had flipped the lace pattern and done a repeat backwards (don't ask). So now I have to rip it back (size 0 needles!) and reknit.

A few days before, I picked up Orangina, on a kick to finish, and realized that five rows back, I had messed up and the pattern was off. So I have to rip back.

I'm knitting another, simple pair of socks. I've turned the heel and I knitting the foot and I think I used a needle size too large and the socks look to holey. I might need to rip it back.

And just now, working on T-SALP, I realized that I didn't leave myself a note that I was in a middle row on the pattern repeat, picked up in the wrong place, and knit an extra row. So now I need to rip back. Lace. I need to rip back lace.

I give up. I just want something that doesn't need to be ripped back.

I'm so tired...

2006-06-30T06:58:00.000-05:00

I'm still alive, I promise. Just spending the week at banjo camp. I've been getting home so late, and I have blisters the size of texas on the major typing fingers of my left hand. owie. Not condusive to blogging. But, there will be knitting updates. Just let me recover first...

Pride

2006-06-21T16:29:00.000-05:00

FO's of a different sort. Look what I did today:

The red is strawberry jam. The yellow is peach mango (with hint of lime -- ran out of lemon juice).

The real test will be tomorrow, once they've set.

Contest Winner!

2006-06-21T14:21:00.000-05:00

At long last, the results of the mini-contest.

As I said earlier, part of my motivation for the mini-contest was selfish -- I was curious to know how many, if any, people could identify Jean Ritchie by sight (yes, it was Jean Ritchie). This was not a very scientific process. Clearly, people who didn't know didn't guess (where's the fun in that?). But, I was pleased to see that three of y'all got it right.

Congrats Bitterknitter, Trek, and Kat. You guys have good taste :)

For those of you who don't know much about Jean Ritchie, check this out. She's pretty amazing.

And now, for the contest winner... also a very (un)scientific process. While I was tempted to give all three of you prizes (sheesh, it's only three!), I stuck to my guns and picked one winner. Drawing a name out of a hat seemed a pretty ho-hum way to pick a winner (besides, when there are only three names, that seemed a little unnecessary). Instead, I wrote each of the names on a piece of paper (a post-it note, to be precise)

And let the kitties decide.

First, they inspected the paper.

Then, after I threw them in the air, they kicked them around a bit.

Hank made the final selection, picking up the piece of paper he liked the best, carrying it across the room, and snuggling with it (these days, Hank loves to snuggle-fight with paper. Strange cat).

And the winner is:

Trek, send me an e-mail with your address and I'll try and get that prize in the mail tomorrow. Congratulations!

I'm hoping for some FO's tonight. I've been a viscious frogger this week, taking out a lot of knitting that wasn't working (including the first few inches of my second New England sock and this:

which wasn't knitting to gauge and was huge - if squishy and beautiful).

And, for fear that I will be accused again by friends of mine that I love Hank more than Phoebe (how is this possible? She is so sweet and little and she gurgles when she's happy to see me!), some photos. Look where I found her yesterday afternoon -- she was in hot pursuit of a fly:

Blue Socks!

2006-06-19T18:39:00.000-05:00

Pattern: My own (loosely based on the Conwy socks from Knitting on the Road)
Yarn: Knit Picks Memories in "Yukon"
Needles: metal dpns US 1
Begun: March 20th (ish)
Finished: June 19, 2006 (with a loooooong break in the middle!)

Thoughts: Well, if you remember back in March, when I finished sock 1, I was feeling frustrated with variegated yarn. I wanted to make the Conwy socks (evidence of which can be seen at the top of sock 1) but the pattern was lost. In the end, I love these socks. They are soft and cushy, and I really, really like the fraternal dark-light patterning between the two socks. Now I have to wait until fall to wear them (it was almost too hot to sit through the photo-shoot tonight, and it's almost 8 p.m.!)

In honor of the completion of the blue socks, I leave you with this:

My friend's cat had kittens, none of which I thought were gonna make it. I gave them all temporary names (my friend is out of town right now -- she should probably name her own cats!) I was calling this one "Blue" because, well, when he was littler (and even a little now), everything about him was tinted blue -- his eyes, his fur, etc.

Mini-contest

2006-06-16T20:40:00.000-05:00

So tired, off to bed to read. But first...

For fun, and for my own self-indulgent reasons, I'm having a little no-occasion contest. I'll send a prize to one person (drawn at random) who posts or e-mails to tell me what famous musician I giddily met last night. I am pictured with her (and her husband) here:

(pardon the greasy hair and shiny face -- I'd just been sqaure dancing.)

Obviously, and this goes without saying, Mom, Dad, and who ever attended the concert with me last night -- you're all disqualified (sorry). My plan is for this to be a knitting related gift, but if (by some chance) you happen not to be a knitter, the prize will be modified accordingly. You have until Monday at midnight to make a guess.

Good luck.

P.S. Look for updated Steel sash window pictures tomorrow, as well as my Amazing Lace update.

Windows and Winners

2006-06-14T22:41:00.000-05:00

Not in much of a mood to post. I've had an emotionally draining few days, and today just kicked my ass. But I thought you would all appreciate some steel-window pics, to back up yesterday's post. And if not, at least my parents now know what I've been up to. Doesn't the light look beautiful?

This is what the windows looked like before:
They were all painted over and the steel was covered with paint and glazing that was chipping off. It was awful and dark.

This is the outside once we started working (see how many there are? There are four more on the other side!):
We removed the glass from those three windows, chiseled all the old glazing out, and sanded until we were down to metal and it was all smooth. This took FOREVER.

Then we painted the steel. See how pretty and red:
Tomorrow, we'll put the glass back in.

And just for kicks, this is what I looked like all day today:

I made a brief stop tonight to a party some friends hosted, before I realized that my thin veil of feeling like partying was quickly fading, and left. I received this as a "party favor."

It says "winner."

To be honest, I'm feeling like the opposite today.

Just think -- tomorrow is another day (one that hopefully will contain some knitting content).

Windows, Baking, and other miscellany

2006-06-13T21:08:00.000-05:00

[before I get started, I'd like to mention that 'miscellany' is one of my favorite words. Really. Along with 'marginalia' -- both for its meaning and for the way something so innocent can sound so dirty -- and chaos. I have recently added, by suggestion, eleemosynary to this list. Now that's a kick-ass word. Is it weird that I have a list of favorite words? I didn't think so. Anyway...]

What was I thinking when I decided tonight that I wanted to bake not one but two different deserts, both for no reason. Under normal circumstances, this would be no big deal. I like to bake. I do it frequently. Despite the fact that I'm not big on sweets, I enjoy baking sweet things for others, especially for no reason. But today... today was a lethal combination.

I spent the better part of my day in Whitesburg learning how to restore early 20th century steel sashed windows [photos to come]. There are no words for how much fun manual labor is when you've been in graduate school for what seems like an eternity. Not to mention the fact that I love to restore things and have a great amount of respect for history (this is the only thing that can explain why I argued to save from destruction a set of painted-over windows -- not original windows, I might add, but ones that were probably put in sometime in the last thirty years that would have cost us only $2 or so to replace -- with the cry "But what price do you pay for the patina of history?" Yep. I love old things. And I don't think that there is an age at which something isn't worth preserving. Well... ok, maybe some of that energy-crisis, 1970s architecture. And some of the fugly stuff from the '60s. But still, that's a time in our history we don't want to lose, and some of it is valuable for kitsch factor alone... but I digress). I returned to Virginia around 6:00, happy and exhausted, with a dead right arm and a fine dusting of caulk-dust and glass from head to foot. After a shower, dinner, work, and finishing my book (Unquiet Earth, but Denise Giardina. Sequel to Storming Heaven, a must read), it was still light out and I had nothing to do. I was bored. So I decided to bake cookies. Drei Augen cookies (you know, those double layer cookies with the raspberry jam in the middle). I've never made them before, but new recipies have never stopped me. I like an adventure in the kitchen. After setting the (what seemed like suspiciously crumbly) dough in the fridge to cool, I made the fatal decision to make a cake, on top of the high maintenance cookies. The recipie for honey cake appealed to me -- what with the entrance of bees onto my radar, I think a lot more about honey these days. Just in case any of you were wondering, it's incredibly messy to bake with honey. And this cake calls for about 2 cups of it. After spilling honey everywhere (and I mean everywhere) I finally got the cake into the oven. The dough tastes a little bit like graham crackers, but really, really, really good graham crakers.

2 hours later, the cookie dough is ready and I'm regretting the decision to bake in the first place. I'm tired. My arms hurt. All I want to do is get in bed, work on T-SALP and go to sleep so I can get up early and sand, paint, and glaze steel sashed windows. But no -- I have the dough for 36 cookies waiting in the fridge. Grudgingly, I pull it out and am greeted with a cold, crumbling, buttery mess. The cookies won't cut. They fall apart all over the counter, the floor the cookie sheet. What few I manage to cut won't take holes for the jam. The whole thing is a disaster. Now what?

Well, I just decided. Oven off. Crumbly buttery dough in trash. Jennie with glass of wine.

sigh.

As for knitting related things, I covet this sweater.

I bought the pattern. But it seems silly to get wool yarn to make it in June. I won't be able to knit it until October. Not to mention the fact that I think I have enough projects on my plate right now. But... I think I like it so much because it reminds me of this sweater:

My grandmother made this sweater too. I would wear it every day if I could. I was thinking the other day that I might try and duplicate it, just to see how she made it. The seaming on it is almost completely invisible. It's amazing. Some more photos, because I have them:

Sock progress and Amazing Lace posts are coming soon, I promise. Just as soon as I get my right arm back in working condition!

Monday, monday

2006-06-12T09:35:00.000-05:00

Back again, after what feels like a long absence. I started a post yesterday, but it was high energy and cranky and I'm still working on it. In the meantime...

I had a terrific, if exhausting time, and the Seedtime festival. Lots of good music, lots of good fun, and a watermelon eating/seedspitting/and hollering contest (I got to be an official watermelon rind inspector... might be the best job I've ever had). I met a fellow knitter on Saturday, working away on socks at the Kentuckians for the Commonwealth booth (sorry -- camera was unavailable at the time!). He (Erik) informed me that Saturday was World Wide Knit In Public day. Can you believe it -- all the times I knit in public and I can't manage even a stitch on World Wide Knit in Public Day. I felt like a sorry excuse for a knitter. But I didn't have time -- I was too busying carrying watermelons.

I did get a chance to do some knitting before the festival kicked in. I started the second New England sock while waiting for my car to get inspected. The guys in the garage didn't say a word about it, and I loved them for it.

No progress pictures, though, because I was cocky and over-confident and knit the first two inches without the pattern in front of me. You guessed it. I messed up. I messed up in a way that absolutely cannot be fixed without frogging back a few rows. And right now, I just don't have the stamina to do it.

In the meantime, I've been plugging away on T-SALP (progress report to come later on my Amazing Lace page)... right pattern + right yarn = enjoyable knitting. I got a bunch done yesterday, but was thwarted by the second monster thunderstorm in the last two days. The power went out for several hours and the kitties and I were thrust into pitch darkness. I picked up blue sock #2 (remember blue sock?) and worked a few inches by candlelight. No mistakes, at least not that I can see now.

Lastly, I've been a week remiss in posting about this package (sorry about the horrible light, but it's pretty dark here today and the photos without a flash are just awful)... I ordered some yarn from Yahaira at Pure Knits and, like everyone else, was completely blown away by the service. In addition to getting some beautiful yarn (Nature's Palette sock yarn and Habu Alpaca Lace), the "presentation" was lovely. And a personal note! AND she sent me samples of some yarn that I covet -- fable alpaca and hipknits silk. Mmmmmm. She sure knows how to enable a yarn addict (and interest a kitty -- Hank was very excited about both the ribbon and the Fable alpaca)! I'm trying to be very rigid about this sock yarn -- I am absolutely not allowed to cast on for another pair of socks until I finish at least two of the pairs I have on the needles right now. So... second New England and second Blue sock and then I can start a sock with the Nature's Palette. It's a sock-lovers yarn, folks, I can tell you that much without ever having knit a stitch. It's got such softness and squish and the color has a lot of depth without being in-your-face. Finally, a good yarn for patterns. We'll see what it becomes...

One down...

2006-06-06T23:34:00.000-05:00

It's late. I need to get up early and have a BIG weekend ahead (for those of you in the SW Virginia/East Kentucky area -- come to Seedtime on the Cumberland this weekend!), but I felt the need to post these insanely dark and senseless photos. A teaser of what is to come...

New England #1

[The beekeeper's report? "I like it that it shows skin." He'll be converted to lace knitting yet!]

Let's Talk Dirty In...

2006-06-05T18:08:00.000-05:00

Guess who's gonna be sunning herself (and reading a paper about coal mining and music revivalism in Central Appalchia) in sunny, beautiful Honolulu in November? Oh yeah.

[And for those of you who don't get the title, check out this John Prine song. The infamous Jellybean introduced me to it and I've had it going through my head ever since I heard about the conference. I'm just so damn excited.]

Knitting content to come tomorrow.

Summer

2006-06-02T10:43:00.000-05:00

Today is just one of those days that I woke up happy... tired, disoriented, and in dire need of coffee (as I am these days when I wake up to an alarm -- a rare occurence), but happy. It's summer, and the kind of summer where something about the heaviness of the air conjures up memories of digging up onion grass and playing in the yard as a kid, early morning trips to the pool, hanging out with my older brother and his friends on people's porches, running down the natural stone steps the dock at the house on Lake George -- a flood of memories all wrapped up in the smell and taste and weight of summer in Virginia. I love it. There are times now when I drive with the windows rolled down and I can feel my childhood... it's hard to explain in words. But it feels good. I feel peaceful and motivated and... happy. And I can only experience this in the summer.

And because I've been griping about it, I'll share that I heard back from SEM -- they'll be telling us about our abstract submissions on June 5th. So... I guess I should consider this a lesson learned. And I've stopped holding my breath, because now I've gotten all of the worry out of the way.

I'm away from my camera right now, but I've got progress to show. Remember when I threatened to throw down my needles for good? Well, instead of throwing them down, I'm to the heel flap on my first New England sock. Wow, these puppies knit up quick. And so beautiful... Hopefully there will be pictures this weekend.

Still waiting...

2006-05-31T12:44:00.000-05:00

Yep. Despite the fact that I was promised information by May 30th, it is now May 31st and I still haven't heard about the status of my abstract. Now, I don't want to be whiney, but I want to know. I hate waiting and the fact that the date has passed with not a word makes me assume the worst. But I'd rather know, than assume.

My newest FOs are not helping.

Pattern: My own
Yarn: Lorna's Laces, Shepherd Sock in "Black Purl", one skein
Needles: Inox metal dpns, US 0
Started: May 3, 2006
Completed: May 29, 2006

Thoughts: Well... I knit them from the toe up, which is nice when you only have one skein and aren't sure how far it will go. I love the yarn. There aren't words enough for it. So smooth, easy to knit, beautiful colors... The pattern was easy (though if I had it to do again, I'd increase a few more stitches at the toe before knitting the foot. I'm getting a little better at the short-row heel, though if you look closely (which you are not allowed to), you can see they are a little ragged. Why am I not pleased? Well... notice that I'm only wearing one in that photo? Can you guess why?

Remember a few days ago, I wrote asking about looser bind-offs for toe-up socks? Many of you wrote with helpful suggestions, including the sewn bind-0ff, which I used successfully on sock #2 (shown on my foot in the picture). I was so pleased with it, I immediately ripped out the bind-off of sock #2 (which worked, albeit very tightly), used the sewn bind-0ff, and immediately wove the end in and snipped it, all without trying it on. Foolish me. Because what worked so beautifully for sock #2 was an absolute disaster for sock #1. I have no idea why, but now I can't even get the damn thing on. I'm so frustrated and disappointed that I can't even bear to look at it. They are now stashed away, under some other stuff, and someday, I'm sure I'll take the time to try and re-do it. But why? Why did this happen? Any ideas?

Between this and the problems with T-SALP, my confidence in my knitting skills has been pretty thoroughly drained.

Not drained enough, though, to prevent me from casting on for New England. Let's hope this goes better... otherwise, I might throw down the needles for good.

waiting...

2006-05-29T08:55:00.000-05:00

So remember way back in March, I submitted an abstract for the annual ethnomusicology conference? In Hawaii? Yeah. I find out whether I've been accepted tomorrow. Explain to me, then, why I am compuslively checking my e-mail today, as though the internet gods (and the people at SEM) are going to send me the 'results' a day early, not to mention on a national holiday? I'm crazy. And holding my breath...

Amazing Lace

2006-05-28T17:44:00.000-05:00

I've posted about T-SALP and Amazing Lace here. So check that out. The end of this post is the same as the end of that post. I'll just add that there will most definitely be so FO's this week, so keep your eyes peeled.

What does that really mean anyway? :)

In the meantime, Orangina and I travelled to the Ralph Stanely Hills of Home Memorial Music Festival, which is up the mountain from my house. It was pretty fun, though it poured like the second flood on Friday and the sun shone like we were in the desert yesterday (I have nice pink arms and a cap-sleeve-tan-line to show for it). Here is Orangina with Ralph:

You can't really tell it's her, but trust me, it is. (By the way, for those of you who liked that O Brother Where Art Thou thing, he happens to be singing "O Death" in this photo).

And here is Ralph and the Clinch Mountain Boys singing in the rain. And when I say rain, I mean RAIN, which you can kinda see in this picture.

Overall, I had a great time, though it was really nice to come home last night, take a shower, and drink so good, strong coffee this morning.

Wednesday's Happy Things

2006-05-24T12:08:00.000-05:00

It's been a few weeks since I've done this, but it's Wednesday, so here are some things that are making me smile:

1. Coffee and the Last of the Cadbury Eggs

I wonder how many times coffee will make this list? Honestly, it makes me happy every day.
(Pardon the Cadbury Egg's absence. My camera was out of batteries and I just couldn't wait for them to charge before eating it -- Thanks Mom!!).

2. Freshly cut grass

Yep, yesterday I participated in the spring/summer ritual practiced by most people, but absent from my life for over a decade -- Cutting grass. I've lived on a college campus or in a major city for the last almost ten years. I forgot about cutting grass. But when the grass at my house here got about knee high, and my next door neighbor told me he was wondering if I'd moved out, I decided it was time to cut the grass. My landlord came by and weedwacked the stuff to a manageable height (and bought me a lawn mower!!!!) and yesterday, in a fit of warm-weather induced frenzy, I cut the whole thing (and I only had t call my dad once to figure out how to turn the thing on!). Now I understand why people have "yard goats." My front yard is an absolute bitch to mow -- up the mountain, right the road. I bruised the palms of my hands pushing the mower up the hill and look what a crappy job I did!

But I did a nice job on the backyard and it looks so pretty and neat and smells so good. I finished sweaty, grassy, hot and feeling more accomplished than I have in a looooong time.

3. Home

Man, it feels good to be at home. I love my space, my stuff, my kitties, my time. I've been reading (The Nation and Confederates in the Attic), knitting (Anthropologie Sweater and T-SALP), and listening to the radio (WMMT - Voice of the Hillbilly Nation). Oh, and don't worry, I've been

4. Working, too.

Yep. Work made it onto the list of things making me happy. How lucky am I? I spent a bunch of time yesterday transcribing an interview I did a week and a half ago. It's an amazing interview and typing it up has been a pleasure. Tomorrow, I'm going up to the Ralph Stanley Memorial Hills of Home Festival, which is just up the mountain from my house. This is my job. I thank my lucky stars.

5. Orangina

I love orangina. What a pleasurable knit. I'm generally frustrated with T-SALP (gauge issues, needle issues, yarn issues), but Orangina makes me smile every time I pick her up.

Oh, and I've done an Amazing Lace post -- so check it out!

Back Home in the Blue Ridge Mountains...

2006-05-21T14:18:00.000-05:00

I feel like I owe the four people who read my blog regularly an apology. I stink. I've not had a substantive post in well over a week, and virtually no photos. But, to my credit, summer is a crazy time for my research -- I've been bouncing from one festival to the next, home for two nights at a time and then running out again to another. This weekend is festival-free, but I'm home in Charlottesville, visiting with my parents, tagging along while my friend attends her sister's UVa Law graduation. It's nice to be home, and I've (finally) been getting some knitting done. When I get back to my part of the world, I'll have photos, I promise. The "new advisor" footies are coming along well. I finished one this afternoon and am casting on right now for the second in the hopes that I'll actually finish this pair (it's been almost two months since I finished a pair of socks, despite the fact that I have five in progress right now. sheesh!). Question -- Does anyone have any suggestions for a good elastic cast off for socks? I knit these footies toe-up and a regular cast off makes for a really tight ankle. I can squeeze my foot in, but it's really not comfortable.

I hope for an Amazing Lace update/introduction on Tuesday over on my Amazing Lace page. I've been making good progress on Orangina and feel optomistic that I'll be able to finish her by next week (fingers crossed). I'm thinking of her as a sort of warm-up teamate for the Amazing Lace, though I'm not sure she'll really help prepare me for the T-SALP. I will continue to post links to that page here and probably most of the content except for the T-SALP. Mom has been very respectful of the secret page. We all like surprises...

If I were a different person..

2006-05-16T22:08:00.000-05:00

[warning -- there is no knitting content in the following post]

You know how there are those times in life that call for the perfect comeback, but you don't think of it until three hours later, when it's waaaay too late? I had one of these today. I was sitting around the appalshop, waiting to go help out on a film shoot. I struck up a conversation with one of the nice, young interns about coffee (one of my first serious loves). I was telling her how I used to regularly get three or four hours of sleep a night when I was in college (keep in mind, she's a sophomore in college now). She nodded. I then said that I stopped being able to do that when I reached twenty four or twenty five. Her eyes got wide and she asked me "How old are you?" I said that I would be twenty seven in July (because I will be). Her response? "Wow. Twenty Seven. What does it feel like?" I kid you not. I think this is the first time I have ever felt old. Or almost felt old, because how can you feel old when you're not?

This was at lunch. At five o'clock today, I came up with the perfect response to this question. What does it feel like to be twenty seven? It feels just like twenty, but much, much smarter.

Seriously, I thought it was spring!

2006-05-14T21:24:00.000-05:00

It feels minorly ridiculous to be working on lace when it is 54 degrees outside. What happened to spring? We had a brief teaser and now it's back to winter for us for another week. People down here call this "blackberry winter", "redbud winter" (which makes no sense, since the redbuds have long ago stopped blooming), "dogwood winter" (ditto the last one) or "indian winter" which is funny, because I've only ever heard of "indian summer." In any event, it's cold.

I've added an additional teammate to my Amazing Lace adventure -- well, not a "new teammate" per se, but rather one that tugged on my sleeve and said "Why not me too?" So, Orangina has begged her way onto Team Twinknit. She and top secret Amazing Lace Project (from here on out T-SALP) took a trip to the Breaks Interstate Park on Friday night for the first Crooked Road Music Festival. My friends' band had a gig there and I got to dance a little. It was pretty fun, but a long drive from east Kentucky. I got another inch or so worked on the front of Orangina. I'd post pictures, but, as I've said, an inch or two added looks pretty much the same as it did before, and besides I'm using dial up right now and it's too slow to wait to download pictures.

I'm almost done making Macaroni and Cheese. I'm embarassed to post this for a few reasons. 1) my previous and confidently expressed disdain for just-add-water-type food (see my rant about cake mix), and 2) the fact that I just finished reading this book, "Julie/Julia" about this woman who cooks her way through all of the recipites in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, vol 1 (a book which I feel 99.99% positive is on my parent's cookbook shelf). But the Mac and Cheese I'm eating now is Kraft. Yep, it's "Disgusting but good macaroni and Cheese Product". Mmmmmm...

But, before I go, a few of you asked on the page I created for T-SALP whether the name "Twinknit" has anything to do with me being a twin. As a matter of fact, it does I've got a twin brother, named Adam. We're fraternal twins. This may seem like an obvious thing to say (if he's a boy and I'm a girl, there is no way we can be identical. Duh.) but I had a doctor ask me this once during a check-up. Needless to say, this made me feel a little wary her skills as a medical professional. When picking a name for my blog (and not being clever enough to come up with one that makes a pun about knitting) Twin-Knit seemed like a good fit. It's also got this nice almost (well, okay, not at all) pallendromic quality to it. So yes, I do have a twin, and no, I haven't knit him anything yet (he's not one for wool). More on that later... my Mac and Cheese is getting cold.

A solution...

2006-05-12T10:48:00.000-05:00

I've been frustrated with my inability to post about my Amazing Lace project, and this morning I came up with a solution. First, some beans to spill:

Mom, my Amazing Lace project is for you. I'm sure this is not a surprise. So for the next few weeks (months?), I'm going to be posting about this project elsewhere, and linking to this blog. Please, if you want to be surprised, don't click on the links. If you don't care about the surprise, let me know, and I'll just start posting here. I love you. Happy Mother's Day (a little early). Thanks.

So, for the first installment of the Amazing Lace update, click here. (again, Mommy, not for you).

In other news, I did not finish the orange blob last night because I was too busy winding yarn. For hours, I wound (and wound and wound). Lace weight is kind of a pain, huh? Hopefully more progress today.

A Walk in the Woods

2006-05-11T20:30:00.000-05:00

Oh Oh Oh! I got my Amazing Lace (yarn) in the mail today. It has taken every single ounce of self control I have not to post pictures of it all over this blog, I love it so much. But it's a gift and I'm trying to make it at least a bitty bit of a surprise. But... it's a Sundara yarn and it crunches like freshly fallen snow in the middle of winter (my favorite sound, by the way, next to the sound of the screen door at my grandparent's house on Lake George slapping against its frame -- now that's the sound of joy). And someday, I'll find a way to post pictures where the gift recipient can't find them.

In the meantime, a knitting update -- This

orange blob is on it's way to becoming a modified version of Peony's Anthropologie Sweater. I'm messing around with it a little -- longer sleeves, slightly longer body. We'll see how it turns out. I'm hoping I'll finish it tonight.

I've been working slowly on my Lorna's Laces "Freedom" socks (with yarn I bought to celebrate my new advising situation). No pictures yet. They're coming very slowly. When I finish one, I'll post.

In the meantime, my friend Jennifer from Memphis is visiting with her husband. She and I took the afternoon off, after the rainstorm passed, and went hiking to Bad Branch Falls, on the Kentucky/Virginia border. Since folks have remarked that they like the "scenery" photos, I took a couple on our hike today.

Kentucky is beautiful. This is a view from the top of Pine Mountain.

We saw lots of small, beautiful flowers on the trail, like this woods violet:

and this blackberry flower.

There were also a lot of really interesting mushrooms.

The falls were beautiful as always, but the highlight was the walk there. The trail to Bad Branch is damp and dark, with bits of woods peeking through the dense, tree-like canopy of rodedendron. I love it.

We also saw a lot of wildlife, like this snail:

and, the highlight (literally and figuratively):

this little, fluorescent orange newt. He was very patient and photogenic, though my camera kind of freaked out about his color (notice, not in focus).

I love spending time in the woods, particularly after it rains. I've grown to love it here, and feel so connected to this place, it's hard to imagine leaving. I made the deicison, after my last trip to Philadelphia, to spend more time here. Originally, I had planned to return to Philadelphia this fall. Now I think I'll stay through the winter (and lets be honest, who could leave here in the spring when it is so beauatiful), and write here, stretch my legs a little, get some chickens, and see how long-term rural life treats me. I feel really good about this decision. I just don't feel ready to leave...

Thoughts related to the Amazing Lace,

2006-05-09T10:19:00.000-05:00

or (One Reason) Why I Knit

Since I've signed up for the Amazing Lace, I've been thinking all things lace. Since my project for the Amazing Lace is, for now, top secret, and since my progress on other knitting projects isn't exactly page turning (how many pictures of the back of orangina, slowly inching along to look exactly like the front, do you really want to see?), I thought I would post a little differently about lace. This is a post I've been promising for about three months, but now I have an excuse, because it starts with lace. It also seems appropriate, considering that sunday is Mother's Day. So...

This is a sweater made by my maternal grandmother. She was born in the Ukraine, moved to Germany as a child, and then to New York as a teenager, where she met and married my grandfather and raised my mom and my aunt. I never met my grandmother -- she died when my mom was in high school. But when I think back on my childhood, I feel like she was always a presence. My grandmother was amazing with her hands -- she was an artist and an amazing seamstress. I wore dresses my grandmother made my mom to several dances in high school and I remember what a treat it was to go into the attic and carefully pull them, one by one, out of the trunk in which they were stored. My grandmother was also an incredibly gifted knitter. We have pictures of some sweaters she knit for herself and, as an adult, I have come into possession of two of them. This pink mohair sweater is one.

My mom taught me to knit when I was little (10 or 11, maybe). I'd been sewing for years (like my grandmother, my mom also sewed a lot of my clothes when I was a kid, and I can't remember a time when I wasn't putzing around with a needle and thread, inventing patterns for my dolls and making little quilts for my dollhouse), but had never tried to knit. Like my grandmother, my mom knits in the continental way, and this is how she taught me. At the time, I had a friend, Gretchen, who knit what I always understood to be the "American" way (holding the yarn in her right hand and wrapping each stitch). As is the way with 11 year olds, I decided to knit the way Gretchen did. Although I don't remember the details of the conversation, I have a vivid memory of sitting on the stairs in my old house, talking to my dad through the rungs in the banister. I remember that he explained to me the importance of carrying on family traditions, and how meaningful it would be to learn to knit in the same method as my mother and grandmother. Although I don't remember knitting much after this (I made a couple of mangled attempts at knitting in middle school, and again a long, ugly salmon pink scarf in high school), but this conversation made an impression on me. I don't know if this was the beginning of my obsession with family and tradition, or if it just fueled a pre-existing fire. But when I picked up knitting again after college, I made a point of proudly learning continental method, and teaching it to several of my friends. When I knit this way, I always think of my grandmother and my mom.

After I started getting serious about knitting, I pulled out this sweater (I'm too afraid to wear it) and started looking at it more carefully. It is one of the most amazing knitted garments I've ever seen. My grandmother's attention to detail is mind-boggling. It is an incredibly delicate cardigan -- the entire sweater is beautiful, perfect, even cables.

It is perfectly pieced, with no "wonkiness" in the shoulders or side seams. She even made buttons to match.

And then, what seems to me the most amazing thing, she sewed and set a lining in the entire sweater.

Sometimes, like now, when I look at this sweater, I feel overwhelmed by the amount of care and detail that my grandmother put into its construction. It makes me feel sloppy and lazy about my own work, and reminds me that there is a Craft to knitting and a great deal of value in creating heirloom quality pieces. This is the love and dedication that I strive for, to make something that can be passed on, that my granddaughter can wear and admire and that will hopefully inspire her to knit too. It is this sweater that makes me take a deep breath and rip out inches of knitting when I make a mistake. And this sweater (and my mom, and the sense of tradition and continuity that I feel when I pick up my needles) is one of many important reasons why I knit.

oh!

2006-05-08T16:25:00.000-05:00

Look at this! I want it...