All Purpose

So not a lot going on right now. I have managed to get to the foot portion of my first monkey sock (pic hopefully to follow later), but have stalled out the last couple of days. I didn’t get any knitting done this past weekend and I’m sure that this weekend will be any better. I’m hoping to get back into my monkey groove tonight, I would like to finish these for my stepmom, maybe this weekend.

No Comments | In: gifts, knitting, life, work in progress | tags: gifts, knitting, socks, work in progress. | #

So I’m making some progress on the Monkey socks.

I’m liking the pattern, but I’m kind of bummed the colors are clumping up like they are. I have a lot of purple on one side and a lot of green on the other. It’s not terrible though, I mean I don’t care that much about pooling and flashing, I just wish the colors were more evenly distributed on both sides. but it could be worse.

It’s been another rough week. My oldest cat died this week and that has really upset me. I also got more bad news about my stepmom, so I’m not in a good place right now. I am going to Galveston this weekend to see some of my family, and hopefully that will be ok. I guess I don’t have much else to say. I’m knitting, it’s comforting, so hopefully I’ll have some good updates after the weekend.

No Comments | In: gifts, knitting, work in progress | tags: cats, gifts, grief, knitting, pets, socks, work in progress. | #

So wanted to do a real wrap up of the Jitterbug socks.

So here’s all the pics for the project, well all the good pics.

Pattern: Jitterbug Ballband Simple Sock Pattern (Colinette)
Yarn: Colinette Jitterbug in Tapis
Needles: US 1 40″ circular
Notes: Started off doing DPN’s, but decided against and frogged and did socks separate using Magic Loop Method. The pattern is pretty straightforward and I knit the first sock pretty easily (had to look up a few things like the heel turn since it was my first time), but I did goof on where to put the decreases for the toe on the first sock. The second sock was harder because I forgot the heel turn stuff and made it way too complicated before I realized my mistake, but one I got past that it was easy peasy AND I figured out the toe decreases correctly and my Kitchner was better on the second sock. A good first sock experience I’d say. Yay socks!

I will be casting on for my next sock project later today. I’m doing Monkeys in ShibuiKnits Sock for my stepmom, and then I’ll get on with M’s socks.

No Comments | In: finished object, gifts, knitting, work in progress | tags: ballband, finished object, jitterbug, kitchner, magic loop, monkeys, socks, work in progress. | #

Ok, really just one more. I finished my first ever socks! Woot. I finally realized that, yes “working one more stitch each row…” does mean row 1 is p5, row 2 is k6, row 3 is p7, etc. Sheesh. I guess I shouldn’t wait more than a week to cast on my second sock or else I’ll forget everything I figured out about the pattern. I also found that charting this out on graph paper was really helpful too. So socks are done and the second sock turned out GREAT, I figured out the weird toe thing from the Kitchner finish and I got the toe decreases in the right place this time. I don’t think I’ll re-do the first sock, since these were for me, and besides it’ll show my improvement as I move onward with sock knitting.

I got my buttons for Ovaltine AND I sewed them on, so Ovaltine is way done now. I have made a little progress with the trim for Ella’s blanket, but frankly I do not think that is going to get done this month. That trim is some slow ass knitting.

So I’m basically down to 3 WIP’s (ha more on the #3 later), go me. I actually did a gauge swatch for the $1.50 Cardigan last week, but it’s too small so I need to re-do with the prescribed needles. It’s odd because I automatically went down a needle size to do the swatch, but I guess the lace knitting is different. I think I’ll have to do the reverse stockinette in the smaller size though to make it work. Anyway, I’m going to try to swatch for that today.

I also started gauge swatches for 2 sock projects but had to abandon both. The first is for a pair of socks for M. I am using Cascade 220 though and my biggest sock needles are US 1 and I tried a few rows of that and it’s just too stiff. I think I only need to go up maybe 1 size though. I also tried to swatch for Jaywalkers but again my US 1′s are actually too big for this and my US 0′s are in my suitcase which I believe is in Dallas now. Perhaps I’ll get it back today.

So all this sock activity is based on my desire to be in a sock club. I really do see the appeal in socks now and would love to try a club sometime. The problem is that most clubs are closed or if they are about to reopen require payment now and I can’t do that because of my no spending rule. So I realized I had bought 3 skeins of sock yarn recently (before march!) plus I had the socks for M. to make with the gray Cascade I have, so 4 pairs of socks. So I decided to do my own sock club (I totally got this idea off of some Ravelry forum which I can’t remember now). Anyway, this weekend I picked patterns (free ones) for the yarns and printed them out and put each yarn in a bag with the pattern and put those in a little box.

M.’s is supposed to be first, but I’m trying to decide of purchasing new needles is ok on this no spending regime. I think he wants the socks asap, and I do think I can afford to buy them right now so I’m leaning toward yes it’s ok because I also know I’ll do his socks right away if I get the right needles. If I decide to hold off on his socks though I’ll have to wait until I recover my bag to start the Jaywalkers, either way it’ll probably be until at least Thursday before I seriously start either of these.

So back to those WIP’s I have. So Ella’s blanket I should be able to finish maybe in April if I have enough yarn for the trim. I’ve pretty much decided if I run of yarn to finish that’ll have to wait until after my no buying time is over. So if I run out of yarn it won’t be until June or July that I finish.

I’ve also got the Noro throw I’m working on (Cavendish) using Noro Silk Garden. That is a long term project that I have no deadline for and that I do a little at time on, so no rush there.

I also have this crocheted blanket that I just found hidden in my desk when I did a little cleaning last weekend. I should finish this and it might actually make a good Ella blanket too, but not until she’s a bit older maybe. At any rate I have to pull it out to see how much I have left to do, etc.

In other news, I’m doing a bit better than last week, but have not gotten back on track with my 365 project. Will try to start today again. I was supposed to be in Atlanta right now at a conference, but the crazy weather yesterday killed my plans so I’m in Austin waiting for my bag to return from DFW (I never made it to DFW, but the bag did).

Oh, and I’ll be adding pictures to this post later today…

No Comments | In: fever, finished object, gifts, knitting, ravelry, work in progress | tags: blanket, cardigan, finished object, gauge swatching, photos, ravelry, socks, travel, work in progress. | #

So I don’t have any pics, and I don’t really have too much knitting updating to do. I’m depressed, I’ve had a rough week. I have been totally slacking on my 365 project I skipped Sun-Wed of this week. I did manage to take a pic yesterday so if I can repeat that today I may be out of my slump there.

I have been working on my second Jitterbug sock. It is not going well. I have no idea how the first sock could have been so relatively easy and this one is so freakin hard. I think I knit and frogged the heel turn like 5-6 times before feeling like I did it right (maybe?) but when I went to pick up my stitches for the gusset (is that right?) I realized I had the whole thing on the needles all cattywonkas and I had seriously fucked something up. I was so pissed I just frogged the whole thing and started over. My reasoning was that I did make a change for the second sock: doing the small size so I should just redo the whole thing as a medium since that worked so much better last time.

I managed to get Ella’s blanket seamed yesterday and was able to measure that I have about 15″ to finish for my first trim piece.

I got my buttons for Ovaltine, but haven’t put them on yet. Maybe after work today, but maybe not since it’s supposed to be 90 (yes 90) degrees today.

M. came home last night (good) but I also got some bad news about my stepmom (bad). So now I’m trying to decide if I’m really want to go to the free shows at Auditorium Shores tonight with my neighbor/friend or if I want to bail because I’m bummed and don’t feel like dealing with the crowd, etc. I actually don’t feel like I should be out enjoying myself after what I heard last night. That’s probably the wrong attitude to take though.

2 Comments | In: gifts, knitting, work in progress | tags: blanket, depression, knitting, ovaltine, socks, sweater, sxsw, work in progress. | #

First things first: the hat situation…So I talked with my sis on Friday and she told me that if I made something handwash it wasn’t a big deal. She also said she didn’t think something covering her ears would be practical. I’m still making the Earhart hat anyway though-to give her options. I also made a crochet hat out of some of my Malabrigo Chunky and that was FAST, so it’s ready to go.

The Earhart hat is a little over halfway done (only have a pic of the start of it though).

I went to the sweater workshop yesterday and realized after seaming my shoulders and starting my collar that the neck BO is way too tight. I know I said I was going to fix that last week, but I didn’t and I should have. Ended up unseaming the shoulders and ripping back and redoing the bind off on the back and one side. I’ll do the other side tonight and reseam the shoulders and try the collar again. I’m really shooting to get this done pronto even though I have until March 30th. I really want to start a new sweater (the $1.50 Cardigan) that’s more for the spring. I might even join the Knit Along, we’ll see.

I also have to finish Linda’s hat and decide if I want to start her socks or finish mine first. I talked with my sweater teacher and she helped me figure out where I went wrong. She said for Magic Loop and using 2 circulars you basically do the decreases at the beginning and end of each half. I had them messed up because I was following the DPN instructions and so one of them was in the middle. Anyway, I’m going to rip back and try again I think. So I may finish my socks then start a pair for Linda. I’m, I guess, a little nervous that she won’t like the hats. It’s ridiculous really, but I figure I need to finish my socks anyway for the practice so that hers will be even better than mine. Maybe I could be ready to start her socks this weekend while we’re visiting, or maybe not considering how much else I need to do.

The one thing I have totally noticed since I started Ravelry is that my knitting is not only more organized but I really have started taking more of a project management approach to the whole thing. I feel like I definitely work on my knitting more, I definitely think about it more and I’m definitely finishing a lot more. I have even been planning some spring/summer project, which I have never done before. I just realized I could be working on tanks and socks this summer and I could make socks my present de l’année. So anyway, I’ve been combing back through my old mags for tank patterns and bought some newer Spring/Summer issues of IK that I was missing and now my queue is exploding with projects.

But I am not buying yarn (or anything else I don’t absolutely need) for the next 3 months. If I make it then I can buy myself a skein of Handmaiden Sea Silk for the Montego Bay scarf to test it. I love the idea of knitting that Cobweb wrap from the new IK in Sea Silk, but it would be very expensive (over $100 I think) so I’d want to try it out first I think.

No Comments | In: crochet, finished object, gifts, knitting, ravelry, work in progress | tags: binding off, cardigan, collar, crochet, gifts, hat, interweave knits, knitting, lace, ravelry, sea silk, shoulder seam, socks, sweater, wrap. | #

So I realized yesterday while I was working that even though my stepmom has been battling cancer for almost 2 years I have not made her anything. WTF? I don’t really understand how I didn’t think of this before (ok last year with the wedding it makes sense, but when she first started chemo in 2006?). I guess the diagnosis came very quickly and she did chemo really fast and then everything was ok for a while and by the time they found more tumors I was engaged and trying to plan a wedding.

In any case, she is starting yet another course of chemo (an old school kind I hear) in a couple of weeks and I’m going to see her beforehand next weekend, so I decided it would be nice to present her with some comfort items when I see her next weekend. I am going to make her the Amelia Earhart Earflap hat and a couple of pairs of socks. I looked around for some yarn ideas and found that most people say you should give something machine washable. So hard. So after backing and forthing over it I decided since these are gifts I could buy yarn for them. I went to HCW’s after work and found some great sock yarn that proclaims to be machine wash (gentle/cold).

But finding something for her hat was harder. I did end up picking up some Berroco Comfort, but while it is soft I don’t really like that it’s all non-natural fibers. I found a couple of other possibilities though, but wasn’t crazy about the colors they had, and I was just dithering because I wasn’t sure how well the allegedly machine washable stuff will really hold up, then again it’s not expensive (2 skeins/balls) so I could always make her the hat again if it fell apart. Will dad be doing the laundry? So freakin hard to make a decision.

Anyway, I got home and decided that I wanted to knit her something really great and I began doubting the Berroco purchase. I decided instead to start a hat using my last skein of Malabrigo worsted because it’s so soft I just want her to have it, even if dad ends up machine washing it and ruining it. But I’d still like to make her 1-2 more hats in a more practical, yet natural fiber, and since it’s already hit 90 and will be in the 70-80′s this weekend I wanted to do make the next hat in a lighter yarn, maybe try some bamboo. I’d also like to avoid cotton unless it’s organic since we all suspect that her exposure to cotton pesticides (cotton farming is basically what she grew up around) might be a BIG reason she has cancer. Plus, since the hat covers her whole head I wonder about colors.

So anyway, I bought yarn (about $50 worth) + 3 old Interweave Knits that I was missing. I think when I go for my Sweater Workshop on Sunday I’ll return the Berroco and get a different yarn or if I can find something online I might order it online. The Berroco was cheap (I think $3/ball) so really returning it is silly, but I need to get in the habit of returning thing I know I won’t use.

In other news, I finished the sleeves for my sweater on Wednesday night and ripped back the bad right front so it’s ready to fix. No more progress on my sock or Ella’s blanket, and I think that’ll be on hold until I finish the sweater and L’s gifts.

2 Comments | In: gifts, knitting, stash, work in progress | tags: cancer, chemo, cotton, farming, gift knitting, gifts, hat, knitting, natural fibers v. synthetic, pesticides. | #