Sonnet Stitches

I guess I've been in an orangey kind of mood:



The socks are flying by: I'm using huge needles (well, relatively - they're a US 1) and easy 4-row-repeat lace. I've been into toe-up heel flaps and incorporating designs into gussets lately. If I ever took pictures of WIP, you'd know that.

The hat was done in about a day, too. It's the leftovers from my Retro Redux shrug and it's my standard too-lazy-to-swatch hat: top down with raglan increases. I used a brick pattern that merged into the ribbing, and then I just kept knitting until I ran out of yarn. That made the cuff reach almost to my chin, so I doubled it under and tacked it down. Hooray for warm ears. This also is the first and, I expect, the last, pom pom you will probably see on my blog. Again: the goal was to run out of yarn.

The UFO pile is getting ridiculous again. Once I finish the orange socks I've got a mohair shawl and a shrug I'm making myself finish before I cast on for the next sweater. This will power business is not what it's cracked up to be, my friends.

I was knitting the orange socks last week while walking one of our myriad suburban wooded trails. Nobody on the trail said anything to me or even looked at me cross-eyed. They just biked, jogged, and walked their dogs right past me, which I thought was interesting (I mean, come on, if you didn't knit and you saw someone walking, chewing gum, AND knitting with 5 dpns at the same time, wouldn't YOU stare?). When I was off the trail and back on the sidewalk heading toward my car, however, I got a lot of stares from older women at stoplights. Several of them rubbernecked with impunity as their spouses sped obliviously past.

Let's see... in other news, men with jackhammers have been tearing apart my patio for two days. I have moderately high hopes that, by the weekend, there will be a new patio in its place. My furniture is still in "storage," however, so any outdoor patio knitting chez sonnetstitches will be in kum ba ya sitting on the ground in a circle fashion for now. (The "storage" is in quotes because my parents exercised their right to use any furniture their children "store" in their garage, and a squirrel decided the chair stuffing would make excellent nest material.)

Also, speaking of furniture, there is actually a place to SIT in my stash room basement, and the cats are digging it.

Only one of them, however, seems to really have the concept down.

We're working on Ella.

Labels: hat, knitting, socks

A long time ago - maybe three years ago - a former coworker mentioned that she was freezing to death, her hands were turning blue, she could barely type, and this is not helpful to one's productivity when one makes one's living as a writer.

So we discussed the value of a good pair of fingerless gloves when one has to type large volumes in an office whose thermostat has two settings: Antarctica & Gehenna.

It figures I would finally get around to making her a pair when it is 100 degrees outside:



These were extremely basic... provisional cast-on, garter-stitch cuff sideways until it fit around my wrist, grafted together seamlessly, stitches picked up at one end of the tube an applied I-cord hiding the raw edge at the other end:



This of course was leftover yarn from this project. I love all the subtle orange and yellow streaks in what is actually a very bright green yarn, and the purple flecks in the "blood orange" colorway. I was excited to get an excuse to knit with the pretty yarn again, but it was also a shame, because the first draft had a very interesting mosaic pattern on Glove #1. Unfortunately, that did not leave enough yarn for Glove #2, so I actually ripped back and was knitting green on Glove #2 as I was unravelling Glove #1. I should have taken a picture, but this was Saturday and I was kid-sitting (kind of hard to call it babysitting when they're 12) for Teri and not in proximity to my camera. That's also why the fingers are so short. I am not exaggerating that I have about three or four scraps of yarn about an inch long, and maybe one scrap about 3 inches long, and that's IT. I was proud of myself that I actually got a pair of somewhat matching fingerless gloves out of it. At any rate, sorry, K - your gloves were originally intended to be a lot more visually interesting...



The thing I'm least pleased about is how yucky a job I did picking up stitches from the cuff. I did half of a pair of fingerless gloves (in a much smaller gauge) for Joumana that I'm now redrawing because I figured out how to make them better after I completely finished one, and the garter stitch cuff on those was absolutely killer. These, not so much. But I'm including a note that if they are unsatisfactory, too big (K is a tall girl, but I modeled the gloves on my Hagrid-sized hands, so I fear they may be overkill), or she doesn't like the color, she is to pass them one desk forward to the sweet and probably also-freezing guy that sits in front of her and send me specs for a new pair.

I must say, after the marathon baby blanket, it's quite satisfying to have my next project done in less than a week, and have stash-busted leftover yarn to boot.

So... cheers, K - keep warm and I'm sorry it took me three years to knit a project that took less than six hours. :)

Labels: finished objects, friends, gloves, knitting

I've never joined a KAL before, because I never stick to patterns. BUT. Stefanie Japel's book is so fabulous (and I've had a heyday modifying her already fabulous patterns in the past) that I couldn't resist.

So, look for me here (unless you're one of my local gang, and you've probably already joined it).

I have two projects to finish before I can justify breaking out my FK-specific yarn to start my first project. Expect a sweater and a pair of socks to pop up in this space with a big "done!" checkmark before the end of the week.

When it's fall, baby, I'm going to be dressed to the 9s.

Had a great weekend -- hung out at The Weasley House and knit all day, after I went on an emergency koigu-matching mission with Jo. We'd had our day scheduled around the fact that we were supposed to go to Carmen's house, since she does live in closer proximity to the Land of the Koigu. But, alas, she first uninvited us from her house, and then, even after getting the triple smackdown from Gwen, Jo, and myself, she told us she'd come over and then totally ditched us for a boy. Hmmph.

But, because there was koigu involved, we drove out of our way and went shopping anyway. Jo survived my driving and everybody was happy. Shots of the koigu-matching expedition can be found here, and do not adjust your screen, the koigu I bought was actually that color of pink.

In other news, Jennifer Weiner is coming! Yay. :) Not only that, I know this because my husband found out from somebody in his book club who pointed him here.

How fun is that! Anybody want to come with?

Also - note to self, must collaborate with local crowd tomorrow night about who is driving to Stich N Pitch at the Royals game, and how many parking permits we'll need, because the deadline for tickets is May 7. Huzzah! Knitting in public. My fave.

Labels: friends, knitting, stitch n pitch, tuesday night

Since I forgot to post it, this is Amber, who hates purling, wearing the outlandishly long Tonalita scarf I designed and knit just for her. (Isn't she gorgeous? Even in a dark coffee shop with red-eye, she looks like she belongs on a magazine cover)

I wish I'd gotten scarf pics in better light before I gave it to her, but alas, I forgot.

Labels: finished objects, friends, knitting

I made a pair of girly gloves to fit my giant man hands, because such a thing does not otherwise exist:

Basic glove calculations based on my giant hand size and a 4-year-old issue from Interweave Knits, with embellishments courtesy of Nicky Epstein and some Edgy Thing or other (like I can keep track). They have cute names like "ribbon candy" and "bubble wrap," and they make people poke my cuffs and squeal. Wool alpaca blend dk, the green has flecks of rust and the rust has flecks of violet, and is aptly named "blood orange." I wish I'd finished them (or started them) a month ago, but as this winter is NEVER going to end, I'll get plenty of wear out of them for this year.
I uploaded some pictures of our house and will post those in the next day or two. They're from Christmas. I'm a slacker. You know how it goes. :)

Labels: gloves, knitting, winter