. daily life : wool obsession : bibliomania : living on purpose .
I’ve been working on making mittens for Gabe and his folks lately (1 of 3 so far!) and as I wrote about earlier, I made a huge leap in my mitten making. I won’t go into it again in this post, but you can read about it here. Instead of trying to explain what I did, let me refer to you the indispensable Knitting Help article with videos on Knitting Increases. I used the third method down on the chart, M1R and M1L. Why I didn’t think of using this method for increasing on thumb gussets before? Anyhow, I’m using them now and that’s all that matters.
I was unable to get some good pictures to share for a few days as the lighting in the apartment hasn’t been the best, and it’s been too cold to go outside and get pictures in my favorite local park. I have some now, though! Here they are:
Mitten one and mitten two on the needles.
See what I mean about holes? When I stopped correcting the twist, I stopped making holes.
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In response to my attempt at making her recipe, Chocolate-Covered Katie wrote in the comments:
Oh you are TOO sweet!!
Seeing this post just made my day. Your blog is adorable!
Well, thank you, Katie! I love your blog, too! I hope I can do your recipe justice soon!
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On the original mitten post, Mittens: A Knitter’s Journey, TK wrote in the comments:
I love making mittens. My favorite part is the thumb gusset–I always use the M1 or lifted increase, unless I’m following a pattern with a different style of thumb. For some reason my ease is always off and my mittens are very snug. Except the thumb, which is nearly always perfect.
I see what you mean, TK! This is such an efficient and beautiful way of making increases.
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In an email to me, Jennifer R. wrote:
Thanks for updating me! I hadn’t read your blog before and just read your latest post on mittens. I don’t normally read text posts all the way through, but this was a very heartwarming story. 🙂 You’ve just given me such a great idea of knitting hats for charity – I just learned how to make hats and it seems like the perfect useful gift for someone!
Thank you, Jennifer R., for your kind words! It means a lot that you had such a great experience reading the post. It reminded me, as well, that I haven’t done as much charity knitting as I used to and would like to. You’ve inspired me to make that a greater part of my day!
After finishing Robert’s Scott Pilgrim hat, I had a skein of blue and brown wool left. I woke up Saturday morning and had a burst of inspiration for charity knitting! I’ll be posting a colorwork chart for baby and kid hats soon! Stay tuned!
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Did you know that February is for Finishing? As stated in the rules, I must have a complete list of UFOs (unfinished objects) by February 1. I know what I’ll be doing this afternoon. (March is for making mates for all those mittens and socks!)
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Tea-for-one pot, bone china cup, and citrus to fight off a cold with beauty and VitC
I’m nursing the cold I wrote about yesterday with ginger, thyme, lemon, and honey tea. Little things, like pretty tea-for-one pots and pretty bone china cups, make cold season more tolerable.
Pretty tea pot!
Gabe gave me a set of four for my birthday. He's a keeper, for sure!
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Stay warm! Enjoy your Tuesday!
Two huge weeks have passed and I am facing an easy week of a holiday and a half-day. Not bad. I go to school tomorrow, show movies because the students are not going to be paying attention because the following day is a holiday and the day after is the half-day, and I get to come home and knit some more.
I did so much knitting this weekend. It was wonderful.
I finished (finally!) my first Snapdragon sock with the purple, lime green, and orange stripes and am half-way through the second. It’ll be done by lunch time tomorrow guranteed with all the movie induced knitting time tomorrow. And I finished (finally!!) my father-in-law’s first sock in the lozenge pattern and have the second cast on. I’ll have photos of all these fine projects as soon as I remember to recharge my camera’s batteries. I am so glad to have made some knitting progress as it seems like eons ago that I started these projects.
The last two weeks have been awful and so this weekend of knitting and election day celebrations was much needed.
I had five nights (W-Th, and then M-T) straddling the close of the first marking period chock full of 3-hour SAT Prep training sessions, complete with homework, and grading. It was lovely, I tell you, lovely. I nearly called it quits on this profession. But I didn’t. Not every school springs SAT training on its staff, just mine. Luckily, my new colleague in the English department was right by my side to commiserate with. We had a helluva time those long days.
The long days and little sunshine exposure has been getting to me. I have a therapy light but I get up so early as it is to get to school that I haven’t been using it regularly. To use it consistently, I’d have to get up at 4:30 each morning! Yikes. That’s not happening.
I realized after grumping around, knitting, and watching movies today, that part of the reason for my recent bouts of melancholy has been the feeling of displacement. I realized that a year ago this weekend I moved from Orono to Winthrop to take the job in Monmouth and I’ve been nomadic ever since with weekend trips to Orono, moving in May, and then moving again in July. No wonder I’ve been feeling agitated. I haven’t had a chance to get my bearings! I’ve been uprooted for nearly 27 years and I’m ready for my hobbit house, but it’s not time for it yet.
I’m in my second year of my career and Allan has to finish his master’s program. When he does, we’ll be looking for a new job near a college that offers a good MA English for me and a teaching certification program for Allan, which means another move. None of the schools within striking distance of our area offer decent programs, if at all, for either. We’re looking at another 1-2 years before we can even consider buying a house and settling down for 3-5 years or longer. And with this, the possibility of high-maitenance pets (dogs) and children are on hold, too.
No wonder why I feel stressed out so much lately; I feel like I’m just getting going and my entire settled domestic life is still on hold. I crave a house of my own, a garden of my own, a puppy or two, and children so much but it’s not to be for a year or so at very least.
We’ve definitely considered settling down in the area we’re in but we can’t afford the property values on one beginning teacher’s salary. In order for us to buy property in this area we’d have to take out a ridiculous mortgage or buy a fixer-upper, which we’re not enthusiastic about. In order for us to purchase a home in this area, both of us would have to have a teacher’s salary, at very least, and then we’d still be scraping by.
Sigh. At least I like where we are right now. The rest of our life will figure itself out. I’m working on being content in the here and now.
Beyond all this, I’m pleased to say that Patty over at Fibreholic has given me my first blog award! I’m thrilled and honored! Thank you, Patty!
I first started blogging back in 2004 but it never amounted to much. I was pretty self absorbed as a young twenty-something still. It wasn’t until about two or three years ago that I matured enough to realize that nodding to the reader is a must when writing in public like this. I’m pleased that I’ve reached the wide audience that I have and that people have found something worthwhile here. Again, thank you, Patty!
The acceptance rules for this award are as follows: (1) the winner may put the award on his/her blog, (2) add a link to the person who nominated you if you don’t have one already, (3) nominate at least 5 other websites or blogs, (4) provide links to the nominated websites or blogs, and (5) send the nominees a message letting them know.
I’d like to give this award to the following bloggers:
1 – My dear friend Amy of The Lawsons Did Dallas is one of the funniest bloggers I’ve come across. She’s been blogging since she moved to Texas and she’s been keeping me and her vast audience rolling for about two years now. She recently had the unfortunate life experience of having a miscarraige and so her normal humor was set aside while she related this life-changing experience. She has since reclaimed her humor but her depth and breadth of writing prowess has been demonstrated fully due to these fluctuations.
2 – I’d like to nominate Amber of Berlin’s Whimsy next. I’ve been reading Amber’s blog for a year solid now and there has never been a day when I didn’t feel better for stopping by her space. She, too, has been through many life experiences which offer depth and heart to her writing. Her crafting and photography are nothing short of inspirational.
3 – Next, I’d like to nominate Laurie at Everything in Blue, also the owner of the Ouou shop on Etsy (is it open yet, Laurie?). I first found Laurie through Etsy via her brilliant art and then followed along to her blog where she posts her art in progress and life experiences. I’ve been honored to blog on Laurie’s behalf over the last year.
4 – My dear friend since middle school out in Utah has been blogging about her family and adventures and it’s been a great way for me to keep in the loop. Leanne, you, too, deserve an award.
5 – Last, but not least, I’d like to offer this award to my dear friend Holly. Holly and I have been friends since grade school and have only recently reconnected at my second wedding reception. I’ve really enjoyed keeping up-to-date on your family through your blog!
Phew. This is a long post. I think I’ll call it a night!
The cowl is done! Now for the bands around the armholes and blocking. It fits perfectly and looks great. And it is oh-so-warm!
Next up for non-sock project (NSP) is the lace watch cap in Knit Picks Elegance in Raisin with the scarf to follow. The two sock projects are slowly but surely getting there.
Alright. One week down. I’m not going to count how many left because that’s pessimistic and I’m aiming to be positive!
Good things from the first week of school:
Things that need improving from the first week of school:
So that’s school stuff.
In my own news, I’ve felt awful the last week from allergies. My ears are plugged and my sinuses are dripping. And my meds are not keeping up. I feel worn out and dehydrated all day long despite napping and drinking 3 or more 32 oz. bottles of water. Blargh. This is the only part of this time of year I don’t like. Well, no, that’s not quite true.
There’s one other thing that I don’t like and that’s not having cool enough weather to wear my woolens! I pulled out all the cold weather gear and got it washed up over the last two weeks to get it ready and I haven’t been able to use it. Not that I expected it, but it’s a tradition of mine (new this year!) to pull out and wash the woolens when the first leaves turn orange and fall. I’m going to like this tradition.
I’ve been plodding away on the lozenge socks for my FIL and have finally made it past the heel and gusset. Once I get past that it’s just a few sittings to done. For some reason, the leg takes forever. Especially for men with big feet. It takes more stitches to get the length and it takes foreeeevvvveeeer to make progress. But it’s nearly done now and I’ll be on to sock number two before SSS kicks in. Luckily now that I’m back in school I’ll make more consistent progress by bringing in knitting to work on during my 40 minute lunch break. Lucky me! I eat in about 15 minutes and then knit for 25. I like it. It’s a good stress reliever during the day.
I still have to finish the button bands on Abby’s cardigan. I’ll tackle that this coming weekend. Further, I have Justin’s hat and scarf set that I started last winter when we were visiting for the holidays that I have to finish, my cowl-neck vest, and a few other projects. I’m going to try and move through as many of these before casting on new projects. Let’s see how long that lasts.
That’s it in my neck of the woods. I’d have pictures but I lost my camera. It’s got to be around here somewhere…
I cast on for Abby’s cardi last night and am making major progress. I’m loving this cardi! I’m keeping this pattern around for future projects for sure.
One thing I failed to take into consideration until after I got past the lace-bit is that I’m knitting with a cotton-blend and not wool as the pattern calls for. I nearly panicked, but then remembered the vast and wonderful resources available through Ravelry. Within two minutes I had my problem resolved!
What I did is instead of ripping out my work and starting over, I simply switched over to US size 4 needles after the lace which was done in US size 6. The fabric is more firmly knit which will decrease the cotton-droop. Speaking of the cotton, I’m really enjoying working with the Lion Brand Cotton-Ease. When I began knitting “real” projects and made the commitment to only knit with good yarns, I mentally crossed Lion Brand, and most stuff found at chain craft stores, off the list. Out of the feeling of urgency I went to Michaels and purchased the Cotton-Ease. And well, I actually like it, so far. We’ll see if this holds true after washing and blocking the sweater.
Further, this sweater represents my first successful lace knitting! My previous attempts were during the days of twisting my purl stitches and not doing yarn overs correctly. I now feel brave enough to tackle a few lace projects that I’ve attempted but put aside in the last few years.
Specifically, about four years ago I attempted the Lace Watch Cap and Scarf designed by Karen Braun found in Handspun Handknit Caps, Socks, Mittens & Gloves. I tried and tried for months to get it to come out right. Now I understand that it was simply because of the twisted purls and incorrect YOs. I pulled the book out, read the pattern over, and I now know that I am ready to revisit this project.
In celebration, I took some of the wedding gift money, with Allan’s permission of course, and ordered some yarn to knit it with. I ordered Elegance Yarn in Raisin. I can’t wait to cast on for this again!
But, this project will have to wait as I have a backlog of projects. Let’s list it to see how deep it is (as of now, I’m not sure until I write it down…).
These are all things that are on the needles or need some finishing:
Okay, not too bad. Now for the things that I purchased yarn for that I either started or put off:
And now for the yarn that I’ve purchased with intentions of using hopefully before this coming spring:
I have a lot of knitting to do this fall and winter! Yay! I’m going to create a page on my blog to keep this list and update it.
So, I’m off to knit!
At my reception, I found out that my cousin Tracy’s baby is being baptized on Sunday. You know what that means, baby knitting!
I scoured Ravelry for patterns, and found a bajillion I love. The winners for this project are:
From Woolly Butts: The Chiara Cardigan (rav link)
Photo Courtesy of Woolly Butts
This cardigan will be knit in Lion Brand Cotton-Ease in colorway 149 Stone and, for accents, colorway 112 Berry. The edgings and the stripe in the middle will be in the berry color.
I’m also going to knit up some Better-than-Booties Baby Socks by Ann Budd.
Photo Courtesy of Interweave Knits
Beyond knitting for baby, I’ve been making progress on the Gentleman’s Socks with Lozenge Pattern for my father-in-law. I had to rip them out and start over because I goofed on the lozenge pattern during graduation – I thought I had the pattern memorized. Oh well. It’s coming along well.
Gentleman's Socks with Lozenge Pattern
I’m also making progress on my cowl-neck vest. In a few more centimeters I’ll be ready to graft the shoulders together and start on the cowl. After I get knitting for baby done, I’ll finish up the socks and vest. Maybe another 2-3 weeks on these?
I also have a bunch of projects I can’t wait to start. And I also have a ton that have been on the back burner for a while. Such is the way of knitting, though. Too many interesting projects and not enough time to get them all done.
For one, I can’t wait to get going on some Cap’n Crunches. I’m going to use my Mission Falls wool to make some of these (the striped socks just were not working – this is a much better use of the wool!).
photo from Ravelry's Cap' Crunch pattern information page
I better get knitting…
I certainly have been a busy little bee these last few months. I haven’t been posting very often, which is kind of how I expected things to go, so much of my news is new. I’m going to run down the list of what I’ve been up to and then I’ll go from there:
Phew. I’m tired just typing what I’ve been up to this summer. I’m glad I didn’t add teaching summer school to the mix.
And it’s really no wonder I’ve done very little pleasure reading and very little knitting over the last two months. I’ve been too exhausted to devote mental or physical energy to it.
But now that I’m settled again, I’m back to both. For pleasure reading, I picked up Jeanette Winterson’s book Lighthousekeeping (2004). I have enjoyed Winterson’s work since I read The World and Other Places for literary analysis course in college back in 2001 and this book is no less thrilling, enchanting, moving, and haunting than the others. This novel tells the story of a young orphan, Silver, and her dog, DogJim. After her mother dies, she goes to stay with the lighthousekeeper on the coast of Scotland. There she is raised to appreciate, create, and tell stories. At one point, the lighthousekeeper, Pew, says to Silver: “I can teach you — yes, anybody — what the instruments are for, and the light will flash once every four seconds as it always does, but I must teach you to keep the light. Do you know what that means?” I didn’t. “The stories. That’s what you must learn. The ones I know and the ones I don’t know.” “How can I learn the ones you don’t know?” “Tell them yourself.” This entire novel is truly about the power of storytelling in people’s lives. I haven’t been enchanted by a book like this in a long time.
In knitting news, I picked up the cowl-neck braided-cable vest again a few days ago and made incredible progress. I’m finishing up the back and shoulders and then all that’s left is the cowl and the arm holes. It fits very well. Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos since it’s been dark and rainy the last several weeks, including today.
I’ve also picked up the gift socks again. I had to rip it out, though, as I lost track of where I was and the last three rows had glaring errors. It’s a good thing I’m a process not a product knitter! 🙂
Now, the big project I’ve been working on is planning the Wedding! It’s been forever since I even mentioned it on the blog. I’m getting married Friday evening (Aug. 8th) at my home and the reception is in a neighboring town at a bed and breakfast. A local baker is making our cake, complete with sheep cake toppers and basket-weave designs in the frosting. And, on top of this, the baker is also making sheep chocolates for all of the place settings! The reception will be for brunch, like I’ve been wanting all these months. And as far as the dress goes, I went for the green one I posted so long ago.
So that’s what I’ve been up to. I’ve barely been running but I plan to get back into the habit now that I’m settled and my schedule is starting to get back to normal.
That’s it for now!
I’ve been noticing some knitting bloggers mention not knitting as much during the summer, mostly because of the heat. I don’t blame them, however, summer time is when I make the most progress on knitting; it’s when I have the most free time to focus on intricate and long-term projects.
Here are some of the ones I’m working on currently:
Braided-Cable Cowl-Neck Vest
I started this project June 30 and have made significant progress on it. It’s not apparent in the photo, but it’s close to one-third complete. I have never knit braided cables before, but I love them and will seek them out! This project has been very satisfying to work on as it is quick, lovely, and I can see how it is going by holding it up against my body. There’s something wonderful about being able to readily see progress on a project like this.
The above image is a detail of the cable. Isn’t it wonderful! And below is the pattern book image of the project. I’m making mine about 10-12 inches shorter than the model.
Ken’s Gentleman’s Socks with Lozenge Pattern
These socks are my future father-in-law’s 50th birthday present. They are made out of Zitron Trekking XXL. I love this yarn! I’m pleased that Fiberphilia in Orono is stocking Trekking now, too! I really enjoy the pattern as it is easy to work on without keeping the pattern right at hand. Once you establish the pattern you can use it to guide the following rows.
I haven’t worked on this sock much in the last few days because the heat has been making me a little foggy headed, though. I hope that when I head to camp tomorrow, I’ll be able to work on it with the breeze coming off the lake and fresh-squeezed lemonade keeping me cool.
Cheap Therapy Scarf
I mentioned this project but didn’t really explain it. I bought the yarn, Lion Brand Wool-Ease in Guava, at a yard sale for a dollar each. This scarf is a two dollar scarf! Although I generally shy away from mostly-synthetic yarns, Wool-Ease isn’t that bad. And for two dollars one can’t complain too loudly. I’m knitting this in a simple seed stitch.
The Filatura di Crosa Fisherman 2 Icelandic Wool:
I mentioned this two posts ago but didn’t have any photos ready. Well, prepare to ooo and ahh!
That’s about all I’ve been working on lately. I hope to have the braided-cable cowl-neck vest done in the next week or two, as well as the lozenge pattern socks. We’ll see how that goes.
It’s been about ten days since I last posted. Again, it’s not for lack of content, but rather, lack of dedication and time. I’ve been so unbelievably tired these last few weeks. The year is winding down with four weeks to go but the work is winding up. I have a pile of grading as tall as my Norton Anthology of literature is. I also have two more units to plan and execute, finals to administer then grade, a supply order to place after taking inventory of my room, and all the normal work-day stuff.
I have not knit a stitch in the last 10 days, either. My second sockotta sock is halfway done and I was so excited about finishing it off and then I saw this:
You may not be able to see what is going on here readily, so here’s the scoop. The pattern is a k3, p1, k1, p1. On one section, I had been purling the middle knit stitch. And I didn’t realize it until it was time to make the heel flap. The above image is after I started running the stitches so I could make them knit stitches. That’s all done now. It’s just a matter of getting the momentum going on this sock again.
I’ve been bringing my Noro garter stitch scarf to school to work on at lunch. It’s getting pretty long quickly despite the fact that I’ve frogged the scarf at least four times and put on various numbers of stitches on various size needles. Currently it’s 18 stitches on size 15 needles. Ever try going between size 1 and size 15 before? It’s interesting to say the least.
Allan is down my way permanently now. It’s been really nice to cut the weekend commute, either his or mine, out of the agenda. We’ve spent the last few days with the Lawsons. Allan has been learning to fly fish with Jared, and I’ve been running and commiserating with Amy. And James has been James. Allan and I put in tomatoes at the Lawson Garden today. It’s the first of many vegetables to go in over there.
Speaking of running, I never posted about my race results! I ran the whole race about 8 minutes faster than my training times, at about 32 minutes, roughly 10 minute miles, versus about 40 minutes at about 12 minute miles. I didn’t hurt until the day after the race. I was sore for about 2 days. I’ve run twice since the race.
And that, as they say, is that. I’ll try to be better about posting more frequently.
Setting aside the fear of losing my dear readers due to jealousy: who wouldn’t love to come home from work to hand-dipped chocolate covered strawberries! I have the best beau in all the world. I couldn’t keep from bragging especially after the photo came out so well. 🙂
Furthermore, I will not fear the pound put on by eating all that chocolate in one sitting because Amy and I are going to run a 5k on May 10. She messaged me earlier today to inform me of the fact. It’s the annual Mothers’ Day run in Augusta, Maine. It’s a good thing I’m mostly there! The date is in a week and a half! This is my first road race ever. Yes, you heard me right: first ever. I’ll post pictures of sweaty and tired me afterwards.
I also don’t fear the seated time it’ll take to finish my WIPs. I can never finish project sooner than I start new ones. I currently have the following items in progress:
Phew. I love knitting, and I love to finish things, but I’ve learned that I’m much more of a process knitter than a completion knitter. I have no problem ripping a project out and starting all over again if it doesn’t come out just right. Although I say this and I have my Peace Fleece cardigan haunting me: I fear it is too small so I’ve been putting off the button bands so I don’t have to face the fact that it is probably not going to fit. This is my first ever sweater and I didn’t do the gauge swatch correctly. Erm, okay, I didn’t do a gauge swatch at all.
See, I had this idea in my head that because I was using the same size yarn and same size needle as called for that I’d have the perfect sweater roll off my needles without doing a gauge swatch. I also didn’t realize at the time that although I have a 38″ bra band that a 38″ bust wouldn’t fit. I should have at *least* knit the 40″, if not the 42″. Live and learn, I guess. Instead of being an oversized comfy cardigan, it’s going to be a fitted cropped jacket.
Anyhow, more pictures!
The Sockotta socks:
Knit Picks Simple Stripes sock:
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a girl and her boy 