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There’s one love that we all share: yarn. Blog about a particular yarn you have used in the past or own in your stash, or perhaps one that you covet from afar.

Yarn . . . such a plain, utilitarian word, and the thing itself is so varied and wonderous. It has provided me an adventure of discovery all its own through the years.

First came the yarns of the 60s. Yarns that served a purpose, that worked hard, were easy to care for and came in a rainbow of solid colors and a few ombres and variegations. I made lots of toys and household goodies with that yarn — so many that my mom and I started selling knit, crochet and sewn treasures at the holiday bazaars. I even crocheted a beautiful wool ski sweater for my brother, which he loved. And one of my favorites was a toilet roll cover — an old man in a derby hat taking a bath in a barrel.

Then I discovered fiber in the 70s — raw wool and alpaca — and started making my own yarn. That was short-lived, with 2 children I felt like spinning was too much of a luxury for my time, so my beloved spinning wheel went to a new home.

The next change came when my wrists gave out and I switched from crochet to knitting. This changed the way I look at yarn. Knitting gives a whole different look and feel to the finished projects, so I began to make new things. It even seemed to go in phases. There was the dishcloth phase — great for learning new techniques and stitches. And yarn gave way to tulle netting for the scrubbers my mom loves.

Next came the hat phase, which is really on-going as I make hats for chemo patients for my Caps for a Cure group. The Shedir hat took me to the heights of challenges with all its crossing cables. The yarn — Rowan’s Calmer — is still one of my favorites.

Then it was on to making anything that caught my fancy: socks, sweaters, simple shawls, mittens.  And the yarn collection grew. Just when I thought my closet could hold no more, I returned to spinning, this time really learning (and continuing to learn!) the right way to spin, rather than just teaching myself like I did in the 70s.

Now fiber spills out of the closet along with the yarn. And sometimes the fiber becomes new yarn. Today I’m plying some orange Romney wool that is destined to be another hat for the hat-loving husband.(I still need practice with the plying.) The yarn on top of the wheel is the biggest usable batch of yarn I’ve spun so far, giving me almost 700 yards of DK weight Cotswold/Merino/Alpaca goodness. I’m still searching for just the right pattern for this lot.

I could go on and on about yarn, but it’s time to bring this to a close. I’ve really enjoyed this week of blogging and hope it gives me the kick in the pants I’ve needed to get back to a once weekly schedule. As the old saying goes, I still have yarns to spin.

To learn more about this event, visit Eskimimi Knits.
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Revisit a past F/O
Bring the fortune and life of a past finished project up to the present. Document the current state and use of an object you have knitted or crocheted, whether it is the hat your sister wears to school almost every day, or a pair of socks you wore until they were full of hole. Or maybe that jumper that your did just didn’t like that much…

One of my knitting projects has come back to haunt me. It’s actually rather funny, but makes me cringe just a little, too.

Two years ago my son loaned me a copy of the Firefly TV series and the Serenity movie.
I really enjoyed them and thought it would be fun and appropriate to knit a Jayne hat after seeing the movie, so I made my Shiny Hat. Actually, I made two. One for a young friend who is a fan of Firefly and was undergoing radiation treatment, so she needed a hat. The first one came out too big, so I made a smaller one for her.

As soon as the bigger hat came off the needles, the dear husband declared it was his. He loves orange and he loves his Shiny Hat. How could I say no to such an eager recipient of my knitting?

Now, I don’t mind that he wears it around the yard, like he did today, but when he takes it on the road — and he will wear that hat anywhere! — it can be a bit embarrassing. I mean, in the movie the hat is the symbol of all the funky, weird things that a mother makes and that a good son wears because he loves his mum. Our friends shake their heads when he shows up in this hat, but we all can’t help but chuckle. The hat really shows his inner child, well, his child is not so much inner as perpetual.  And today he reminded me of his youthful spirit as he worked around the yard with that pom pom bouncing around on his head.

To learn more about this event, visit Eskimimi Knits.
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Day 3 of Knit and Crochet Blog Week and I’m hanging in there — and enjoying it! Here’s the topic of the day:

Write about a knitter whose work (whether because of project choice, photography, styling, scale of projects, stash, etc) you enjoy. If they have an enjoyable blog, you might find it a good opportunity to send a smile their way.

Knitting is no longer something we do alone at home. The internet, knitting conferences, local stitch-n-bitches, all bring knitting out where everyone can enjoy it. And the people to admire! Like Cat Bordhi’s curiousity, Jared Flood’s photography, Franklin Habit’s humor — the list is huge!

But I want to mention someone who has inspired me and who makes me think, “I want to be like her,” and it’s totally possible. She’s one of the first bloggers I met, not long after I started knitting seriously. Her tastes and interests are so similar to mine, and she pursues them vigorously.

Her name is Rebecca, like mine, and her blog is called Socks for Mum. Over the last few years, she has worked hard to become an accomplished photographer. She challenges herself with new techniques and stimulating patterns.

She shares cool things like the Knit Buddy app, that I put on my iTouch and use for all my projects now. I learned to knit socks from the toe up from Rebecca’s My First Toe Ups KAL a few years ago.

I don’t know Rebecca in person, and I only leave an occasional comment on her blog, but she has added a good measure of enjoyment to my knitting life — and I guess it is time she knew!

Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means. –Albert Einstein

To learn more about this event, visit Eskimimi Knits.
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My next post for Knitting and Crochet Blog Week 2010 follows this topic:

Blog about a pattern or project which you aspire to. Whether it happens to be because the skills needed are ones which you have not yet acquired, or just because it seems like a huge undertaking of time and dedication, most people feel they still have something to aspire to in their craft. If you don’t feel like you have any left of the mountain of learning yet to climb, say so!

There are so many wonderful patterns I’d love to do, but one rather small project that is on my “someday” list is special to me. It’s the Swedish Fish Socks pattern by Spilly Jane Knits.  The reason these are special?  Well, my heritage is mostly Swedish, along with the Welsh contribution on the other side. I share an affinity for that heritage with my Dad. One of my favorite memories was of him talking like the Swedish Chef from the Muppets. He also ate lots of sweets — one favorite being Swedish fish, which was a good gift idea through the years. Unfortunately, I share his love of sweets, too, but have been working on minimizing my sweet consumption lately.

I plan to make these socks someday, but colorwork and socks! That’s a lot in a pattern for me. Even though I’ve made several pairs of socks, they still stress me out. I worry about the heel the whole time I make the cuff, then I worry about the length of the foot and making the toe. I’ve always said that worrying is my favorite hobby, and socks really bring it out for me. I just need to jump in and do it!  Not right now — but maybe before the year is over. Maybe they could be my first knit of 2011?

This brings up my recent knitting project. Recent . . . as in, I’ve been working on my Nordic Sock Sweater since June of 2008. Maybe I can finish it by the time it is two years old. Right now, I’m held up in one of those “worries”.  It looks to me that the overlap for the buttons is too wide when I match up the sleeve seams. I was really pushing this one, but am once again stalled on it.  There’s about two inches of each side that overlap — I’m thinking that using larger buttons will make that okay.  If not, I’m thinking of frogging it and weaving a blanket with the yarn.

I really like this sweater pattern (Drops Design 107-3) but I didn’t realize that garter stitch sucks up so much yarn. Combine that with a huge sweater using sock yarn, and it is a daunting task. I’m actually quite pleased at the progress I’ve  made — if I can just get past my worries and finish it!

Photo of Swedish Fish Socks copyrighted by SpillyJane. Used by Permission

To learn more about this event, visit Eskimimi Knits. knitcroblog2

This week has been declared Knit and Crochet Blog week.  And I have the crazy notion that I’d like to try this out. Maybe it will get me back on a weekly schedule of blogging.  And here we go!  The topic of the week is:

How and when did you begin knitting/crocheting? was it a skill passed down through generations of your family, or something you learned from Knitting For Dummies? What or who made you pick up the needles/hook for the first time? Was it the celebrity knitting ‘trend’ or your great aunt Hilda?

 It’s hard to remember the 60s –  because I was so young! — but sometime in that decade my mother taught me how to knit and crochet. I was probably around eight years old.  I don’t remember much about it, but I do remember the tears and fits when she taught me to sew in a zipper, so I’m sure the lessons were short and painful. I really had a low tolerance for frustration, so I’m surprised I learned to knit and crochet at all.

I suppose that frustration level was what lead me to take up crochet as my preferred craft. It is just so much simpler! My mother made afghans and sweaters and dabbled in other crafts, so I had a great example for all kinds of craftiness.

My great grandmother made beautiful multicolored doilies, and when my sister and I admired them, she made each of us one. See how bright they were! (She also told Mom to leave me with her for a summer and she’d have me married off in no time!  I was seventeen at the time and shocked at the notion.) I still have an old-fashioned fondness for doilies.

I crocheted when the mood hit, but don’t have any of my projects to show for it. When my grandmother died several years ago, I did find an old ripple afghan that I’d made from a kit in high school. I also took a “creative stitchery” class in high school, it was an easy “A” kind of class in my junior or senior year, when my boyfriend was more important than schoolwork.  I learned to do broomstick crochet and hairpin lace in that class; we picked our own projects and pretty much taught ourselves.  I made a baby blanket in each technique and gave them to my boyfriend’s cousin who had a baby two days before graduation. Ah, the memories!

To learn more about this event, visit Eskimimi Knits.   Tag:  knitcroblo1

On a side note:  I really, really want to know what this bush is so I can plant some in my yard. Anyone? Big dog included for scale.

Well, there aren’t any alligators here, just lots of fibery goodness. Where did all this come from? And why won’t it fit into the closet anymore?! We’re in the middle of switching rooms around and I am having serious trouble stuffing my fleece and yarn into the available closet space. I’ve been giving myself quite a scolding about it, but I’m not really sure that I’m listening.

Ah well, it will be settled soon and then we are off for a few days to Earth Dance, a music and peace festival that we work at most years. It will be a welcome break from the chaos here at home. My plan is to walk and read and take pictures whenever I’m not working. Relaxing . . . .

In the meantime, I’ve been knitting little things.  There’s a vest I want to start, but I think life is too cluttered right now, so it is waiting in the wings.  I managed to finish a cat-ear hat for a woman starting chemo this week. And I’ve been working on leaves. The owner of our LYS is doing an art project for the window and has asked everyone to make leaves. I’ve done a few and that might be all I manage. Maybe I’ll remember to take a picture of the finished display?

Oh, and Hey, Teach! is an official part of my wardrobe now.  I’ve been wearing it out quite a bit and enjoying it. It fits great and is a very satisfying finished project.  I added a bit to the length , otherwise it is knit to pattern as best as I could manage.  I love it!

The details:

• Pattern:  Hey! Teach by Helene Rush for Knitty.com
• Yarn:  Queensland Kathmandu Aran in Beige, about 9 skeins
• Needles:  Size 8

And before I leave town > > >  it’s time to announce the winners of the my blog anniversary contest.

I’ve been checking out some new blogs this week and noticed many that have been neglected for months. It got me thinking  about whether to keep this blog going, just a routine checking in with where it fits in with my life. I decided that this blog still serves a definite purpose for me.  Besides the great people I have met through it, I have a reminder of where I’ve been. Sometimes it’s rather sporadic, but at least there’s a bit of a trail to look back at as I wander. It seems like something I need, so it will continue for now.

Oh, what’s that?  The contest winners?  Yes, of course!  As usual, the random number generator pulled out the winning numbers.  Congratulations to the winners:    Sarah,   Karen,    Carrie K,    and   Knitnana.

There’s more work for the winners, though.  Each of you will need to pick your prize and email me with your choice. First claim gets it.  The choices are:  Two skeins of Peace Fleece in lavender and coral, a skein of STR club yarn in Dragon Dance, a skein of STR club yarn in Goody Goody, a skein of Dream in Color Smooshy in Nightwatch,  or two Ravelry mugs that change from  “disagree” to “agree” when filled with your favorite hot drink.

Follow the links to see Rav pics, so you can actually see what these look like.  If there’s nothing here to your liking, just say “surprise me” and I’ll do just that.   I will be leaving town Thursday afternoon, so don’t worry if you don’t hear from me right away.

Thanks to all of you for reading my sporadic blog. Until next time . . . .

In a couple weeks it will be this blog’s four year anniversary, so I figured it would be good to say a few words, especially since it has been a month since my last post. Sheesh!  I really would like to post more, so I’ll try to do just that.  In the meantime . . . .

Let’s have an anniversary give-away.  All you have to do is leave a comment. You can answer the question at the end of this post or any other comment.  It’s that easy. In a couple weeks I’ll award four prizes — for my four years of blogging.

Now I’ll show you what I’ve been up to lately. Actually, this has been going on for quite some time. I took another weaving class in the spring and didn’t get very far with my project, so I am back at it. I’m using a countermarche loom so I can learn the tie-ups that are like my own loom, which sits waiting. Threading the warp took a long time on this big loom since I had to sit inside the loom to do it. It was crowded in there! The project is a blanket in shadow weave, which is quite complex, and I’m using all eight shafts. I never knew it would be such a long proces just to get the loom ready to weave. The picture is my view for the last two sessions, while I laid on the floor beneath the loom threading and attaching these chains.

Okay, enough whining, because here’s the loom now. The weaving has begun.  I’ve gone a bit further than  in the photo, doing the practice weaving. It looks like I threaded it correctly and the design is coming out lovely. The shed (the space to put the shuttle through) is not very big, which is a mystery since this type of loom is supposed to have a great shed, but this will do if I work slowly and carefully.  Heh.  Slowly is my best-est way.

My weaving instructor, Linda Hartshorn, has been very patient with me and helped me at each stage, even though the class has been over for a long time. I’m really excited to be actually making the blanket now.

There’s something else that has me nearly dancing in circles. I finished Hey, Teach!  I just hunkered down, hardly going out over the Labor Day Weekend, and knit, knit, knit.  The motivation?  I want to cast on a vest, but wouldn’t let myself do it until this was done. Ha.

This is my first cardigan. Never have done a button band before. This one wasn’t hard. Whew!

This is blocking and waiting for its buttons.  And that’s where you can help me. I found these wooden buttons in my button bag that will work. The husband says they are great — but he always says that. (Secretly, I think he was raised by Tony the Tiger of Frosted Flakes cereal fame  — Grrrreat!  I wish I was that optimistic.)

Anyway, should I go button shopping or use the stash buttons?  What say you?  The yarn is soft, but tweedy and nubby and  I’d like it to have just-right buttons.  I’ll write up the official finishing post after I sew on the buttons and try to get a decent modeled shot. It fit very nicely before washing and blocking, so I hope it’s the same after.

Make sure you leave a comment for the contest.  I’m looking forward to a better-blogging year ahead.

So, I’ve been waiting for things to get less hectic, for inspiration, for some sense of where to pick up on this blog again . . . .  It’s like Waiting for Godot,  just never gonna happen.  But here I am, no more waiting. I’ve decided that sporadic posts are better than none, so I will quit trying to post weekly or bi-weekly and just drop in when the stars align.  I hope you’ll join me on occasion.

After working a lot for the past two years, I decided that this year would be rejuvenation and pursuing my interests. (I also decided that more of that pursuit would be in “real life” rather than computerized, and that has definitely been the case.) Well, my goal is right on course, so it has been busy and rewarding; however, my blogging absence has not been due to classes and fiber pursuits.

About two months ago, my aunt had a stroke that severely limited her speech and communication abilities. Circumstances dictated that her recovery period would be spent in my home, so things have been a bit topsy-turvy since then. It seems we are headed back to some form of normal, so I hope to be back to sharing some of my creative endeavors again.

Where to begin?  I think the present is best, and I’ll throw in some past along the way, too, so I’m going with socks.  Socks.  Two pairs!  Now, up until this year I’ve averaged two pairs of socks a year. I always get stuck on the heels. By “get stuck” I mean the socks get put aside until I work up the courage to make the heels. That’s exactly what happened with the husband’s latest socks — toe, foot . . .  oh no! the heel!

I finally got past it and finished these bad boys. It has taken ten months of fits and froggings to get them done — four months from the last incarnation.  The man chose the left over Lorna’s Laces worsted from my socks, so I needed fillers. He also wanted the Sunrise Socks (Rav link) from Cat Bhordi’s book, so the contrasts were built-in.  These are the sidestream archetecture, so all the increases  are on one side — probably not the side my dear one is showing here. (He is quite the experienced model, yes?! He took this pose without coaching. At the end of the photo session he asked, “I can wear these now, right?”)

I started the toes with some mystery gray that I swapped for, then needed something heavier for the heel, so added some Celestari Blue Denim Heather sock yarn, then used that alone for the top ribbing. They fit great.

There was a slight detour in the middle of the gray section of the ribbing (which is 3 inches long to make them very tall boot socks, as requested.)  I laid these down on the arm of my chair, helped myself up and broke a Knitpicks needle tip.  Now, you might think this would be a traumatic event, but au contraire, my immediate thought was — Yeah! Now I can start on my socks while I wait for the needle.  And that’s just what I did. 

I grabbed some yarn I had dyed and got to work on the Basic Socks from The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook (another Rav link.)  They started toe-up so I could make the most use of whatever yardage there was and this pattern called for a provisional cast-on with a kitchener closing at the end.

After a couple inches, I realized this was not what I wanted. I thought it was like my other handpainted yarn that would make wide stripes. Clearly it is not. And I don’t really like flashing or pooling. Pooh!  I couldn’t bear the thought of another stalled pair of socks, so I made a quick decision. These would be my Fast Sox. I would use them as an exercise to power through and end the cycle of taking forever to finish a pair of socks.  Then the heel happened. It was a disaster. Stall — but no! — I ripped and powered through. Another heel from a different pattern. Whew!  Onward I went.  I started another sweater — yikes! — then the new needle arrived. I laid aside the Fast Sox and finished the Hubs long-awaited socks. Then back to the goal. A class with an unfinished project, another class with an unfinished project, but I kept pushing the socks toward the finish.

And here is a fast photo of the Fast Sox.  Eighteen days, with interruptions!   They aren’t my favorite socks, but they fit well. I like the short row heel, the kitchener toe and the ribbed leg that can be folded down. They can be worn inside shoes and boots with no desire to show them off.  They are sport-weight wool, so they will be good for winter weather. And they are done!

Now it is time to pick a pattern to make a special pair of socks. Some I will love to make and love to wear. I’m not in a big hurry, but don’t want to stall out again, either. I hope the curse of the stalled sock has ended for good! (And the stalled blog. It’s good to be back!)

Time for a little pause in this busy season, lest this blog falls further into the category of  “things neglected.”  Yesterday I took a moment to water my withering plants and — surprise! — my amaryllis that I’d given up on ever blooming had three beautiful blooms, stuffed in the corner behind some other plants. I set it next to my spinning wheel to show how stunted it is this year. It’s usually taller than my wheel, but it pushed through and shared its wonder just in time for Christmas. Last time it bloomed in July, after I had set it outside to die. Now it sits happily on the kitchen table as I get started on the cookie baking.

So, besides the unmentionable gift knitting, I did spend a night out at the spinners and weavers guild for our art night. There were five of us demonstrating spinning: two men, three women, four wheels, and one spindle. It was a fun and relaxing time, though the traffic to our part of town seemed a bit less than last year.

I started the night out spinning the undyed merino top that was on my wheel, patting myself on the back (and encouraging my friend to do the same) for the thinner, more even yarn that I am spinning now. Then I grew restless with the undyed roving, casting longing looks at the blues and greens and browns the other spinners were enjoying.  So I popped a new bobbin on the wheel and started spinning a colorful braid that I had swapped for some undyed roving. That’s the pink and blue merino that is on my wheel now. It perked me up instantly.

As I looked around at the spinners, I noticed that two of them were wearing handmade socks that matched the yarn being spun. It struck my fancy in some odd way, so I took pictures. Me?  I was wearing my bright purple and green socks, so they were handknit, but did not match my spinning. One of the men who was spindle-spinning assured me that his socks were white, just like his heavenly cormo fiber.

My pretty pink and blue spinning will sit neglected now while I finish gift knitting and baking. I look forward to getting back to it. Our guild will have a get-together for St. Distaff Day on January 4th, so I will wait until then.

I do have a couple other things I’ve neglected to share here. Hats, of course! I’ve made three children’s hats to send off for Caps for a Cure. The first was a pretty blue and green ribbed hat that went to a young boy my friend knew who had leukemia.  Another one was a little topknot hat. I played with the little I-cord top to make it stand up. It’s made with Elann Esprit, an elasticized yarn.

The little pink tassled hat on the right was fun to make. I copied a hat made by Adrienne because I thought hers was cute. I made this one with a scrap of Lorna’s Laces worsted and some Cascade 220. I’ve set aside a few scrap combinations to make more of these.  I used it for simple travel knitting and it is perfect. I can still help my dear huz drive while I knit. For some strange reason he likes the complex knits for traveling. Hmmm . . . maybe he’d like me to neglect my backseat driving more.

I also decided to frog the  Foliage Hat that matched my Branching Out scarf. I re-knit it into a Muse Hat that better suits our climate and feels better on my head. I ad-libbed the top, decreasing while still keeping the openwork pattern going. I didn’t want the solid top. My decreases aren’t perfect, but I like it.

For my fellow Neil Gaiman fans, there’s a new interactive website for the book, soon-to-be-movie, Coraline.  It’s a fun site, with posters to download and a knitting pattern for Coraline’s sweater. You have to hunt for it!  There’s also a place to “button” your eyes. Here’s mine.

Coraline is a child’s story, but it is dark and twisted. Gaiman’s most recent book is also a children’s book, The Graveyard Book.  I “read” the audiobook and loved it. It was not as morbid as I feared it might be.

Well, that’s enough neglecting of my baking and housecleaning and wrapping, etc.

Wishing you all a warm and wonderful winter!  Until next time . . . .

Wow . . .  I can’t believe it has been two months since my last post, but it is time to get back to it. It’s time to get back to knitting and spinning and weaving, too, which have also been absent in my life. I feel at loose ends, kind of flapping in the breeze with no direction. I know starting some new projects will help ground me and give me something to capture my focus. I’m ready!

I do want to share a couple things with you, though.  This is our big baby. It’s a smallish pumpkin — just over 32 pounds. There was a later one that was about half this size that we left behind, but it only had a couple stripes of orange with most of it still green. I don’t think it ever ripened, although I will get to see it in a couple days and still hold out a faint hope.

The next step is cutting up this big fruit and cooking it. I’m not really looking forward to the process, but there are calls for pie that cannot be ignored.  The last pumpkin I cut up and cooked was grown by my son when he was 10 years old. It weighed 108 pounds. This one will be much easier than that one!

The other thing I accomplished was plying the yarn I spun for Le Tour de Fleece back in July. It is so lustrous and soft!  It’s a Corriedale cross fiber and I love it.  I just have to decide whether to dye it or leave it natural — leaning toward natural at this point since it is such a nice white– and what to make with it.  I have 228 yards of it. The amazing thing was that the two skeins ended up exactly the same length. I just have to find a pattern that would look good in some very uneven yarn. Any ideas? I guess it could be used as just a part of a project, too.

AudioBook Blurb

I’ve been listening to On the Road: The Original Scroll by Jack Kerouak lately. It’s the rough draft of the book with all the real names of the people in the book.  It’s an amazing look at the Beat generation.  I have to say, though, that at my age it seems so decadent and wasteful, this crazy, wild lifestyle. Even so, it continues to hold my attention with its honest, often crude, look at an intriguing time in history.

It makes me wonder if there will be another time like that in the next decade. I feel like our culture could use a good shaking up. I hope to see it happen.

That’s all I have for now, but I’ll be back to posting regularly again. Thanks for hanging in there with me!