Manos in mostly sage green, with a few hanks of black, one olive green, and a variegated with black, shades of green, and brown. Hopefully, if I can ever manage to find some bobbins, this will turn into a sweater. I've designed the pattern myself, but have never knitted off of bobbins before, so this should be interesting. As a matter of fact, the only real color work I've ever done is that felted handbag in the previous post.

I've also casted on and ripped back the Counterpane Carpet Bag about 3 times. I don't know why, but my stitch count is always off on row 8 and I can't figure out why. Maybe I should refrain from knitting this on the train. That way, I'll be forced to start another pair of socks or something. Oh, twist my arm. Anyway, hopefully I'll have it done in time for Mother's Day. If I can get a whole repeat done, I'll post pics. Probably not tomorrow, though. Tomorrow we'll be working on restoring my Grandpa's truck, which I inherited and my husband wants to restore to it's former glory.

In other news, The Husband and I went to our first Aikido class last night. It was great! I'm sore, but very excited to go back. It's great to learn something new together, and we took in so much information that I can't imagine learning this without someone to practice with in between classes. And he won't go easy on me either - he's the type of competitor that wants to bring out the best in his opponent. Only one more thing that I respect about him. He always inspires me to do my best.

A handbag for my mother-in-law.

The yarn is Ella Rae Classic in 5 different colors:
Ecru, Dark Brown, Camel Brown, Pastel Pink, and Rosey-Mauve (those may not be the actual color names on the label)

Knitted on a US 7 circ.

This knitted up very quickly and was pretty much my first time really changing colors so often on something that would be so noticeable.
I'm not crazy about how you can see where the seam is, but overall I'm very happy with it. I put in a cute fabric liner with a pocket, but I didn't like it when it was finished so I pulled it out.

Bubble Lace Scarf inspired by this book.
It's actually a pattern for a curtain, but I thought it would look great in some lightweight alpaca I had laying around. It's perfect for this time of year when it's still so cool in the mornings (I commute on public transportation so I do a lot of standing around outside before and after work.)

The yarn I bought at Alpacapalooza last year. The post can be found here. If I remember correctly, it was in a bundle of 3 smaller hanks from Sunbreak Alpacas in Auburn. I think it was knitted on US 5's or 6's. I can't remember.

The scarf itself is beautifully colored; hand-dyed purple with a little hint of coral pink here and there, and the variegation is incredible. The bubbles thin out toward the middle where the scarf lays around my neck so that the knit is more consistent for warmth, but then they pick up again at the other end. I love it.

Trekking socks, knitted on US 2 dpn's

Took forever, knitting at night and on the bus to and from work.
I thought I'd have a hard time finishing the pair, since after you finish the first one you realize you're only half way done. But it truly didn't bother me. I can't wait to cast on a pair for myself!

He loves them, but finds them hot and itchy. I'm trying to decide what fiber content to use for his next pair.

Well, hello there! I can't believe this thing still exists. Pretty cool. No pics, as my camera is in a box somewhere, but hopefully I'll find the time this weekend to unpack something. In between trips to the craft store and library, of course. Having just moved, I do have my priorities.

The general topic for this blog will still be crafty (heh heh. would you expect any less of me?) but this is also going to become a method of keeping in touch with loved ones moving overseas, and maybe some old friends or even new friends that I just don't get to see often enough. But rest assured, there will always be knitting here. And sewing (brand new Singer for Christmas '06!). And baking and birdwatching and gardening. Stay tuned for pics! That new Singer has been broken in by way of lounge pants, which my dear brother said looked like I had bought at a store. The ultimate compliment! And my first sewing project EVER! Man, I gotta go look for that camera...

Success!
I decided to go with a Flat Toe from Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks. As it turns out, that is exactly what the original pattern called for, without the Title. The instructions were just written out, but they pretty much matched. Whatever it is, I hate it.

The grafting turned out pretty well, considering. There is a little bump there on the side, but that was from a looser stitch a row or two down and I figured after a wash and wear it should all even out. There are really no noticeable ladders so I'm pretty pleased.



Luckily, my husband's feet are considered narrow so this should be fine. The shape, however, is not fine. I can't stand the way it comes down to such a narrow opening before the grafting (which I'm pretty sure is the same thing as "Kitchener Stitch," which is what the book called for). Had I known it was going to look like this, I would have done something different.


Oh well, it doesn't matter what I think. It only matters what he thinks, and he hasn't seen it yet. Don't get me wrong, I'm very proud of my effort and I thnk that for my first attempt it turned out really well. I'm glad I started this and I'm excited to cast on for it's mate. But if he were to try this on and tell me (which he never would, for fear of hurting my feelings, unless I let on that I don't like it either) that he doesn't like the fit or the pattern or what ever, and that he can't see himself wearing them, I would be perfectly content to rip it back and start over. But I truly hope he likes them.

And I truly hope to be inspired next weekend while I'm here. The dancing is amazing, and the vendors always have the most beautiful jewelry and woven blankets and shawls. The traditional hand-made crafts move me, and I'm excited for the opportunity to support the native community.

Grandma's old Singer (it was made in 1948 in Elizabeth, NJ, for those of you who may be curious). I've had a burning desire to fire this thing up, especially since she passed, but I don't know the first thing about sewing. Apparently I'm missing a bobbin and some other stuff that probably attaches to the top. But I'm having a lot of difficulty finding a model type or pictures of very similar machines online. I found one manual for a model that looks almost identical to this one, but it wasn't in it's own stand, it was a table-top model, and it didn't have the tacking/back-up feature that I think this one has. Anyway, I plugged it in and it definitely works. I'm going to see if my mom remembers enough to get me started. I feel a great sense of regret when I think about my grandmother as an untapped domestic/handi-craft resource, and even if it does take my mom and I a while to get it going, the experience of having my mom teach me on my grandma's machine is priceless. At this point, though, I'm afraid to even clean it. It seems to be in great condition, and it really isn't that dirty considering it's almost 60 years old, but I don't want to lose any more of that gold leaf.

And I have about 2 inches left to knit on The Sock before I decrease for the toe. I realized last night that it has taken me about 6 weeks to knit this much of one sock. That is so...pathetically...sad. I don't know why it has taken me so long. If I had knitted even a few rows each day I could have finished it in no time, and he would probably have a whole pair by now. I think I just lacked inspiration. That was easily rectified by a trip to the library where I found, on-hand (I usually have to place a hold or request a specific book from another branch), about 10 knitting books that I had been yearning to get my hands on, including Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush. I was going to just graft the toe, since I've never done that before and I think grafting looks like an invaluable skill. But now I'm thinking I may try the star toe instead. It just looks so neat and professional! I'm itching for a challenge. Maybe after the felted handbag I'll try knitting from a chart or some texture like cables or eyelets.

And after felting for 3 hot cycles (2 agitation only, 1 full):
Scroll down for the "before" pics of the swatch.

Was I supposed to use some kind of special detergent for wool? Because I used just a touch of my regular stuff, and this swatch came out stinky. That was a few days ago, so hopefully the stench has waned. It wasn't so bad, you could only smell it when you got close, but that is definitely something I want to remedy before I gift the handbag. All I need to do now is find something to block on that is close enough to the size and shape I want--I figure it'll be easier to adjust the number of rows or stitches before I start than to find something to fit in the handbag perfectly after it's felted. We have company coming in to town to stay with us this weekend, so between the holiday and getting my habitat ready for outsiders, I really don't see myself getting started on this until next week, or even weekend. We will not talk about the poor neglected sock that has been tossed aside (I knew I shouldn't have started another project--I am a master of procrastination as it is).

Oh, and may I brag about my knight in shining armor? He recently informed me of some great overtime he's getting at work which, according to him, directly translates to more yarn! He so spoils me.

I went to Renaissance Yarns in downtown Kent today. I was happy to find that they had a much different variety of yarn than the other shop I go to. The woman that helped me was very friendly and made me feel very at ease, since she is a fairly new knitter as well. My very first experience in a specialty yarn store (as opposed to a general craft store, which is where I bought the materials to teach myself), once the woman found out I was a novice and had come in there without a pattern in mind for the yarn I was asking for, was Pretty Woman-esque (you know, when Julia Roberts goes to shop on Rodeo Drive but she's still in her "work" clothes? And the uppity shop ladies tell her, "I don't think we have anything that will fit you.") and I have since felt a little uncomfortable, overwhelmed, and unworthy when I cross the threshold of any yarn store without aisles. But not today. Today topped even my first trip to my other LYS. They have lots and lots of classes which look like fun, and they also had some Ella Rae Classic 100% wool in exactly the colors I've been imagining for a felted handbag. So I came home with this.






That's my test swatch for gauge and felting to see how much shrinkage I get. I've never done this before, so I'm excited to try it. The pink that I bought is truest in the first picture, but the second one better represents the cream and camel colors. I can't decide what kind of closure I want. I know I want hard handles, like the D-shaped bamboo ones. I think I want a button like this, but I'm not sure. I can't wait to get started! Hopefully this won't distract me too much from the socks.