knitting

Happy New Year!
I'll spare you the excuses for why I've been so absent from this blog and from commenting on others.
At least I can start 2007 off right by posting a finished project.

They don't come much simpler than this. It's just a simple, garter stitch on the bias scarf, with a row or two or three of eyelets thrown in here and there. I had tried using this yarn for the .

The yarn had a bit too much going on for that pattern and I decided to rip it out. The sparkle factor of the yarn was calling to me this Christmas season so I decided to go with . It's not the sort of knitting project that you can find much to post about, but I like how it turned out.

1. I am practicing to become a 14-year-old YouTube girl.
2.

I have a lazy eye like Paris Hilton.
3. I am the Phantom of the Opera.

4. I am curious (yellow).
5.

Blog absence was necessary due to Extreme Makeover gone awry.
I'm not so good at keeping secrets, so a Certain Special Someone has long known I was knitting him this project. He had feigned interest quite some time ago while I babbled about this from Dale, so I decided to use it to knit him a cap.

Those clever Norwegians -- making wool even more sensible for outdoor gear! It's not the softest yarn in the world, but I wouldn't say it's disagreeably scratchy. I'm sure it will get even softer once I wash it.

It seems like it will make a great cap to wear on a wet winter's day. Of course I don't think everyone was as enamored with this idea as I am, because I believe the yarn is now discontinued.
The pattern I used is a .

I enjoyed knitting from a pattern that hundreds of women and men had used before. I changed it up a bit and added some decreases, because the first time I finished it, the pleated effect was more of a popover effect.
It turned out pretty well (better in real life than in the photo below).

I hope my fella likes it!
- Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you and yours have a wonderful day.

My family is going to dine on (avert your eyes vegetarians) this year. It should be yummy. This year I am thankful for just having a day off of work (among many other things of course).

Because all of that thankfulness can get a little tedious, [ ].
- I've been playing a sad amount of lately, so it's sort of a moment to see these crafty pop up [via and ].
- looks like a fun place to live, but perhaps you'd prefer .

- , ( ) pointed me to the project. Spread the love.
- It's probably impolitic to admit it, but maintaining the had made me a little burnt out about .

However, UK-based stands out. The and 50p from each be-hatted smoothie goes to , the UK's largest charity working with and for older people.
- Too bad I didn't see before I was off my crutches.

I might have been inspired to knit some !
- I am in love with [ ]. I'd like to link directly to my favorites, but it's another one of those .

- If you're so inclined, you could buy a . Or, you could knit your own based on .
- !

A
This is what over seven feet of soft, fluffy, ruffled alpaca looks like draped around my neck. Yes, that came in, and I was able to finish my ooh-la-la scarf.
The project has morphed a bit since I first started.

It was originally going to have a rather subtle, undulating edge, sort of like this . Then I saw all those and knew I had to go with a ruffle.
It's a whole lot of scarf, but I love it!

Well, I expected to have a finished project to post for you today, but it seems I am a few yards short of a scarf (and, no, that's not a euphemism). It's frustrating to run out of yarn mid-cast-off. However, I assure you that I didn't swear as much as [ ].

I could have gone back and ripped out a row, but it seemed like a giant pain to try to put all 1600 gazillion stitches back on the needle. Much easier to just order another .
Finished project and various and sundry links coming soon!

Cue "Fanfare for the Common Man", because project #33 is finished!

So, is there a prize for what surely must be last place in the ? Yes, the so-called is FINALLY FINISHED!

!!
Despite the lengthy delay, I'm quite pleased with myself for taking this project on.

It was a lot of fun to come up with a design and then execute it with the expert guidance of Barbara Walker's .
Next time I do a top-down sweater, I'll go a little easier on the raglan increases. I was nervous about making it too small, so I ended up with a bit too much bulk under the arms.

Despite this minor issue, the sweater is still cute (if I do say so myself), comfortable and very warm.
I'm not sure what else to say, other than WOO HOO!
October 27 - December 17, 2006
UW-Madison News - October 17 2006

All knitters seem to agree: Knitting is so much more than the dropping of stitches.

Molly Greenfield learned to knit from her mother. Now a master's candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the history of costume and textiles, Greenfield says that a long broad swath of American history can be seen through this craft.
"Knitting was and is a pervasive form of creative expression for women, and also an area in which women could be designers.

This exhibition is not only about the history of knitting, craft and design, but also about women's history, the rise of the women's movement in the United States, the history of immigration in America and the migration of highly educated Europeans to America during and after World War II," she says.
The exhibition to which Greenfield refers is the one she is curating on the doyenne of American knitting, Wisconsinite Elizabeth Zimmermann.
[.

..]"New School Knitting," composed of about 35 pieces, plus a selection of videos and other materials, will run through Sunday, Dec.

17, in the School of Human Ecology's Gallery of Design on Linden Drive. Swansen will attend the opening reception at 1 p.m.

on Sunday, Oct. 29, at the gallery. Greenfield will speak at 2 p.

m., followed by a question-and-answer session with [Meg] Swansen. [ ]

- - Even Metafilter appreciates Elizabeth Zimmerman.

- ? - "As you may know there has been some malicious rumours circulating in the USA suggesting that my cashmerino qualities contain no cashmere at all.On hearing about the rumours my distributors in the UK, Designer Yarns , who buy the yarn from a leading Italian manufacturer immediately started extensive retesting of all my cashmerino ranges in the UK and Italy,including DNA`tests.

All conclusively confirmed the presence of cashmere in these yarns."
It's hard to know what to believe with this whole situation.
It's not likely to put an end to the controversy, but .

Socktoberfest 2006! New project #38 - Playing for England Socks

My radiators are making that, ever so delightful, clank, clunk, hiss sound that indicates Autumn is nearly over and winter is on its way. Fall is my favorite season, and it's killing me that my stupid broken foot has made me miss it!

I do believe a little feelling sorry for myself is in order. You would think I would get loads of knitting done during this enforced sloth, but I have not.
Perhaps will get me going again.

I'll skip the interesting , because, well, , and it wouldn't exactly be enlightening to anyone.
Yes, Socktoberfest is nearly over. And, likely as not, I will not finish them in time, but I've started a new pair.

This time I'm using the Team England* colorway from . I'm not exactly stretching my skills by going with another simple ribbed sock pattern, but I think the bright red and blue would be a lot too much with anything else (not that I'm likely to wear these outside the house anyway).
If you haven't knit socks yet, but want to learn, do get the book.

I was really worried that the turning of the heel and all of that would be horribly confusing, but there was never a moment of befuddlement while knitting my first pair. Nancy Bush's directions are clear and concise. I'm sure I'll have a similar experience with these.

*I'm not sure why the colors are red and blue, rather than red and white, but I like them. Here is the part where I'm supposed to issue all sorts of disclaimers about my feelings about the English Football team. I'll admit that I'm not exactly a supporter, but I'm also not a .

Yes, they did rather poorly in the World Cup, and, yes I'm not supposed to like both Scotland and England, but I do. Perhaps this affinity has been brought on by my sad fractured metatarsal, but shockingly enough, I don't even hate David Beckham. So there.

- The is . What a sleazy affair. I have often wondered if any pay per post-type things are going on in the knit blogs.

Anyone have any gossip? Please? (Not that I want to encourage the undercurrent of bitchiness that seems to lurk beneath the shiny, we all love each other, veneer that surfaces the knitting world)
- was on last night.

There was a great bit with the costume curators from Kensington Palace. I love fashion and textiles exhibitions. It's not as good as visiting in person, but I'm happy the web gives us online resources to view these collections.

Here are a few I've enjoyed recently.
- I like the site, but I absolutely have to find a way to get to London to see this one in person before it closes!
- Project Runway's is one of those women who is going to age into an excellent broad (a high compliment from me).

I just love her. Her clothes are pretty too, and you may be able to make your own at home, if her comments from comes true.
[.

..]I'm even thinking I should offer women patterns, so that even if they can't afford to sort of upgrade their life through their clothing and their personal appearance in the time that they take to care for themselves that there are other ways to do it, there are patterns available and maybe you can make your own dresses like I did.

- - the first creative living publication that includes a delightful gift and thoughtful ideas in each issue. Cute!
- .

Cuter!
- . Cuterest!

October 16, 2006 in , , |

Sockudrama - Project #37 is finished!

I'm dipping my toe back into blogging with a wee finished project post.
I assure you there are two completed lichen ribbed socks in this photo.

One is just obscured by that unstylish bit of footwear known as an . Unfortunately, I had a stupid accident and broke my foot two weeks ago. I unintentionally stayed with the soccer/football theme of this World Cup sock yarn and broke (5th metatarsal).

I'll guess have to save the photo for my next pair.
The lichen ribbed sock pattern was quite easy to knit, though next time around, I think I'll knit a different toe. Those p3togs were a nightmare!

It's a good thing the sock knitting went well, because I have a feeling I'll be confined to sensible, sock requiring footwear for quite some time.
Things are going swimmingly with . Even the previously daunting and mysterious act of turning the heel went just fine.

My biggest worry now is the dreaded second sock syndrome.
- - Laura and Almanzo were married 121 years ago this month. of their marriage were brutal, so I'm especially glad they had another .

- Who's up for a [ ]? A short stay at seems awfully appealing, though a return visit to also appeals.
- [ ] - It's good to listen to aggressively perky music, especially when you think you are more in the mood for .

- I'm a big fan of , but , seems to be equally incredible.
- Yum. I do believe this would more than satisfy my eternal hankering for [ ].

- I scratched off of my places to visit list after betrayed us. I think the may force me to reverse this decision.
- - I'm dreaded the coming avalanche of political television commercials, but this is an interesting resource.

- After watching her mediocre performance in the , I'm even more appalled that . Don't even get me started about Natalie Portman as Anne Boleyn.
- (yes, I am 12)
- Hmm.

.. (scroll to bottom of page)?

I have now learned that it is best not to make vows about my knitting. At one point I made a solemn promise that I would never, ever, be one of those people that knit socks. Somehow I've gone back on my word.

's persistent ways began to weaken my resolve, but it was the special that finally did it.
Yes, I'm now a sock knitter.
It's going fine, but of course, I haven't got to the complicated part.

A bit of handholding may be required when I need to start the heel.
They were not my favorite team, but I'm using some crazy, obnoxious yarn for this first pair. The colors are truly wacky, so I'm quite sure they won't be worn out of the house.

Lest my Brazilian-themed photo shoot ideas get out of control, I decided to take an in-progress shot of my new socks in their native habitat, a .
Various and Sundry Links - August 10 2006 - Special, abbreviated, I lost track of time and am now totally late for work edition!
- - I love the president's living room.

[ ]
- Some people are trying to [ ]. I hope they take to heart.
August 10, 2006 in , , | The fact that Angela was still on Project Runway after last week's Jubilee Jumbles left me a bit concerned about the taste level of the Project Runway producers.

Surely she and her 80's in a bad way, stage costume reject designs were still on the show because they are trying to set her up as this season's Wendy Pepper. Last night's win(!), a la Wendy Pepper's BR bridesmaid dress, cemented that opinion in my mind.

At least we got to see . Good riddance. I was a bit worried about there at the end, because his outfit was pretty , but was glad they kept him and dear, wacky Bradley around to entertain us next week.

In knitting, or actually, not knitting news...

I haven't been knitting much so am afraid I don't have anything to post about or show here that would pertain to what is purported to be the original purpose of this blog. Soon, I hope! I just ordered a few pairs of sock knitting needles, and have joined new , which should prove inspirational.

Also on Flickr...

Evidence that though I haven't been knitting, I have been enjoying a fun summer. I recently went on a , onetime home to Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family, as well as the setting of TV's . Of course I had to buy a (you won't find any photographic evidence of this).

I reread the Little House books each summer, so it was a lot of fun to wear the bonnet while walking along the banks of Plum Creek where Laura once played and see the spot where their dugout home once stood.
- I'm still disappointed that Katherine Gerdes got booted from Project Runway. At least it will be fun to see her deseign-a-long with the rest of the series in .

- There's not much to say about . Just watch. [via my fabulous, yet blogless, brother]
- [Old news I know, but I meant to link to it ages ago and had lost track of the handy dandy archived link.

]
- Now I'm going to post a mild complaint about Knit.1. They about how it isn't to be used for communicating with them about errata, subscriptions, or anything of the sort.

Firstly, it's not a personal blog, it's a blog for a business. Customers will want to use it to communicate with you. Don't they realize what good PR it would be if they were more open with their readers?

I'd love to see a knitting publication use a blog to communicate more transparently about patterns and the problems that other readers have found.
- - I love the almost sinister photographs of the collection. [ ]
I felt bad for poor and , but I had a great time watching beat last night.

[Likely not as great a time as this fellow I snapped a photo of, but I did my fair share of celebrating.]
- is still going strong. .

- . I feel like I may have jinxed and by ordering the yarn in their team colors, but what can I say, I liked their colors the best.
- Don't want to knit world cup socks?

How about ?
- - The Chain is a genius combination of agency created and user submitted video. (Unfortunately, it won't let me link directly.

Boo!)
- I've watched a lot of the World Cup on television, but I never tire of the (They also make it impossible to link directly, so click on Impossible Team.)
One of the unfortunate side effects of using this public space as a knitting journal is that I sometimes feel guilty about not posting that many finished projects.

I need to remind myself that it isn't a contest (or at least not one that I choose to participate in) and that I'm supposed to be doing this for fun.
Even though I don't generally post that much about it, I do knit. There is a new project I'm working on using some of the lurvely I picked up from .

It's just a basic scarf, that's still in the swatching stage, but I think I'm going to be quite pleased with it. I'll post a photo once I've cast on for the real thing.
- Do you think it would be frowned upon if I started doing at work whenever anyone did anything stupid [ ]?

- How to . Filing this one away for (hopefully) infrequent use.
- The has now joined the as one of those wished for toys that I'm never going to be able to get my hands on.

It just wouldn't be a typical knitting project here at , unless it included some dorky mishap. Things were just peachy with my luftig and leicht cardie until I counted my stitches to make sure things were on track after some decreasing. I counted once, counted again, and then a third time, because it didn't seem to make any sense that after all the decreasing, there would be nearly as many stitches still on the needle as should have been there when I cast on.

Argh!
Yes, I cast on for the wrong size. I must be smoking the wrong brand of crack.

I now have the proper number of stitches on my needles and am nearly where I was when I discovered the fatal error. No photo, because, well, a grey rectangular piece of stockinette isn't that exciting.
As I mentioned, it was suffocatingly hot last weekend.

I live in one of those apartments that features "old world charm" (meaning it lacks modern creature comforts like central air). There wasn't much one could do but sit still in the direct path of a fan.
I really felt like knitting, but was disgusted by the idea of handling my wool sweater.

This cotton/acrylic yarn seemed the perfect thing. It's one of my favorite colors and a heavier gauge than anything else I am working on. The pattern had been calling to me since I picked up the magazine, so I hurriedly swatched and got started.

My initial plans were to convert the pattern to knit it in the round, but I decided to leave it be to keep it more portable. Wrangling a whole sweater, sleeves and all, on the bus is just not that fun. I've also decided to knit it all in grey and leave off the embroidery.

The entertained me while I knitted away at the stockinette stitch back. It's a corny show, but I love it. Gidget, LaRue and the Great Kahuna were amusing companions.

!
- - A belated link to some lovely photos.
- , including a useful one for bobbles.

- Hello Kitty told me I get stressed out too easily. [ ]
It was this past weekend to blog about my knitting.
I'll be back soon!

As some of you have noticed, I have set up as the domain name for this blog. I'm not planning on leaving TypePad anytime soon, but could you lovely folks who link to me from your sidebar or blogroll be so kind as to update your links? The RSS feed links will remain the same, so no worries about updating your subscription in Bloglines or any other news reader.

Thank you!
If I were to actually knit all of the cardigans I currently have on my to knit wish list, I'd have to follow the Kaiser's advice and wear them layered, as with .
This cute cropped cardie, in a -friendly shade of green, is from the .

I love the shape, and the chunky ribbing adds a lot of interest. It also has ribbed side panels that aren't visible in the photo, but .
I haven't started searching out yarn substitutions.

That's ok, because I think it will be quite some time until I get to this one. My new schedule is proving difficult for me to find time to knit. I'm sure that will get better as I get adjusted to it.

- If the and the aren't compelling enough, perhaps the will get you to plan a trip to Texas.
- . I admit that , but I still miss the old one.

- . How much of the would it take you to get drunk enough to dress up like these ?
- .

You would think Gwen Stefani would get her harajuku girls to sew her samples for her.
May 21, 2006 in , , | I recently purchased a couple bags of Rowan Cotton Glace and have been playing around with what to make with them. I can't believe I broke my no cotton rule so easily!

This swatch isn't necessarily going to be the next project that I knit, but I think I'll be using the blood orange yarn to make a variation of the fitted cardie from the book.

I may have to get a bit "fancy" and throw in a simple stitch pattern to change things up. We'll see what happens.
I have noticed something funny with my swatching.

I had to go down 3 sizes to get the recommended tension, and a fabric that I liked. Does anyone else have this trouble with glace?
- I was excited to see hit the bag blog bigtime the other day, with a post about it on .

- Let's start a rumble between knitters and ! Maybe we could have a rumble a la (a la ).
- If I ever get married I am forcing my BMs to wear .

KAWAII!!!

- The will be getting out of bed today!
- "Season One winner Jay McCarroll will auction off original design illustrations featured on the PR spin off ‘Project Jay’ which premiered on Bravo in February. A percentage of the proceeds will be donated to The Humane Society of the United States in support of their fashion campaign that urges consumers to wear clothing that is fur-free.

"
There's been a flurry of job search-related activity here which necessitated a longer than intended hiatus from knitting. Things turned out really well and I am now able to finally relax enough to pick up my sweater again.
I'm on the ribbing part of sleeve #2.

Then I'll probably go back and rip out the body and try to make it a bit more close-fitting. I should finish it soon-ish (at least that's the plan). I have a few new project ideas floating around, but I really want to clear the decks before I start anything new.

- . In typical Minneapolis fashion, this will then be ripped down.
- A few weeks back, pointed out that has .

Even more interestingly, the yarn used is also by Twinkle. Anyone know where you'll be able to buy this new line?
- Don't you love ?

The ? Not so much. [ ]
- .

Another reason to love Japan -- karaoke television.
- starts soon. C'mon fellow Americans, it's time to [ ].

- Woo hoo! .
- I love films.

Her on-screen wardrobe plays more than a small part in that.

project #7: sweater with frills is finally finished!

Fetch your smelling salts -- it's been two years in the making, but the frilled Rebecca sweater is finally finished!

*
It's more than a little difficult to come up with anything interesting to say about a project so long in the making. I'm really please to have finished it, though it's a bit anticlimactic because it's completely unwearable. All along I've been paranoid that it would be too small.

Unfortunately, it's quite the opposite. Unless I can borrow Katie Holmes' stunt bump and also sign up for some boob jobbery, this will never fit me. There's just way too much roomy material in the bust and tummy.

This project was started only a couple of months after I started knitting and I just didn't know about the benefits of such wonderful things as negative ease. I guess I'll tuck it into the back of my dresser drawer and save it in case I should ever be great with child.
It's difficult to keep a secret, so I'm happy that of her .

I'm thrilled for her, and now I can blab about it all I want.
In addition to , she's currently carrying yarn from and . She also has recycled silk and a house line of hand dyed bamboo.

Make sure you buy lots of Amy, my namesake colorway!
Of course there are also cool patterns, knitting bags and more. (and no, she isn't giving me a kickback for posting this)!

April 11, 2006 in , , | I thought I'd post a status update to show that despite a paucity of FOs, I am still knitting.
This is one of the first knitting projects I ever started. Not quite sure what my hang-up with it is, but it's been ready to be seamed for a very long time.

Certain friends are pressuring me to get it off my in progress list, so maybe I'll finish it in the near future. I'm not in any great hurry to finish this project. I pick it up from time to time and knit a few rows.

This is the only project I've really been working on. Version 2 is going well, though it is still a bit bigger than it probably should be. I'm working on the second sleeve while I wait for my new needles (to use for the ribbing on the body) to arrive.

It should be finished soon.
- Flaunt your hand knit socks. to those of which many knitters are inexplicably fond.

- [ ] - , but I had no idea there were 27 of them.
It's time for me to admit to myself that knit-alongs, or variations thereof, do not agree with me. Therefore I think I should recuse myself from delightful .

I've thought of a few projects, but the crafty ones thus far have been cursed with failure or lack of effort.
Anyway, it's not as though I'm suffering from lack of projects. I'm still at work on my performance enhancing sweater.

The needles I want to switch to for the ribbing haven't arrived, so I've switched to working on the sleeves. I know my affliction is an unusual one, but can I just say that I really enjoy knitting with DPNs?
And, thanks to a gift certificate from my parents, I've recently purchased . It's fun to flip through the various combinations of bodies and sleeves.

Rather like ! Some good projects will certainly come of this book.

To assuage my guilt over not completing a proper Project Spectrum project, here's a photo inspired by .

To keep it simple, I decided to trim it down to red and pink books from my etiquette, hygiene and advice collection.
There's a fun assortment pictured here. From top to bottom:
Is there anything more boring than an in progress photo of a black raglan sweater?

Oh well.
Since restarting after , I've made good progress on take 2 of the . The fit is even better this time around.

I'm now working on the bottom ribbing section, but I think the needles I'm using are going to kill me. I'm hoping I can find bamboo ones when I go to the LYS tonight.
I know a few of you are sick of the kvetching about the , but I wanted to point the rest of you to this list of fun examples of that I found via .

HUEY NEWTON’S widow is trademarking the phrase “Burn, Baby, Burn” for use as a BBQ sauce slogan.
FOR INCLUDING a 60-second piece of silence on their album, the Planets were threatened with a lawsuit by the estate of composer John Cage, which said they’d ripped off his silent work 4’33”. The Planets countered that the estate failed to specify which 60 of the 273 seconds in Cage’s piece had been pilfered.

efforts to control all usage of the age old phrase should make them a strong candidate for inclusion in this hall of lame.
Some of you were clamoring for a photo of the in action. For some reason, my lovely sister thought that she looked a bit haggish not her best in this photo and demanded that I blur out her face.

The end result is rather creepy in a sort of way, but it should give you a better idea of how the cowl looks when worn.
In other knitting news, I had a bit of trauma with my . At some point I accidentally knit a couple of inches with a rogue black yarn, which created an odd stripe.

Of course I did not notice this until many inches later. It's now been ripped out and I started over from scratch. I probably should have just ripped back to the error, but I discovered it at 10 PM at night and tore the whole thing out in a fit of pique.

It's now back on the needles. I'll post a photo update soon.
- I've been reading about the some people have to .

Perhaps the knitting accident above can also be blamed on the wonder drug. Let the class action lawsuit begin! Failing a financial settlement, insomniacs should at least get their own hymn (turn your volume up!

) [ ].
- [ ]

The Council of Fashion Designers of America is meeting with members of Congress tomorrow to gather support for a bill to offer copyrightlike protection to clothing designs. While European Union law already contains similar provisions, the CFDA proposal would be a substantial change to the existing American framework.

The proposed bill would, for the first time, prevent anyone from copying an original clothing design in the United States and give designers the exclusive right to make, import, distribute, and sell clothes based on their designs.

Seems idiotic to me, especially having read about a few weeks back.
- When I was a kid, my garage sale fanatic mom bought me at least one of by Helen Wells (also the author of the books, another favorite of mine).

I was pretty fascinated by the stewardesses, in part because of their gorgeous uniforms. However, I'm not a uniform freak like . [ ].

I love the hat on the ( ). The incredibly exhaustive collection even includes numerous photos of . , including the Braniff Barbie that I highly covet.

- , at least according to . When I play with the site using my photo I get an odd assortment of results: Sammi Cheng, Jessica Alba and Virginia Mayo. I don't think I resemble any of these people, but I'd trust the results more if the site didn't also identify the tile roof in the background behind me as and Margaret Thatcher.

- - A good discussion in the post and comments on the whole concept of knitting and ease.
March 17, 2006 in , , | -- right around the time I learned to knit. It seems appropriate that the finished project I am flaunting today is going to .

Molly is working on her graduate degree and just completed her student teaching. She deserves a gift in recognition of all of that effort.
The is a simple and elegant knit.

It would be easy for a pastel color like this pink to look a bit twee, but the ridged reverse stockinette pattern gives it a modern architectural feel. You can wear the cowl slouched around your neck or pulled up like a hood. If you haven't yet knit in the round, this would be a great first project.

I'd recommend doing as I did, and knit it inside out, so as to spend more time knitting and less time purling.
The yarn I used is the by future . I didn't have much experience with alpaca, but was seduced by the description.

The yarn itself is a bit less elastic than I'm used to with wool, but the fiber knits up to an incredibly soft fabric with a gorgeous halo. It's also very warm.
You'll be able to purchase this yarn online from , a shop that is opening very soon now open.

They shipped my test order quickly and the yarn was packaged very nicely. I have a feeling this store will be a big hit.
Full disclosure: I'm a bit biased because the proprietress is one of my favorite knitters.

No, I did not get a discount to say this. She has impeccable taste and I'm confident you guys will be as big a fan of her shop as I am.
- is up to .

I'm rather frustrated with Yahoo and the way they let these idiots harass their customers.
- I visited yesterday. The building is gorgeous and the collection was amazing.

There's also the obligatory , which sold and these .
- Libby Dole is a real class act. It's always good to send people .

- and though I was disappointed that lost, was a deserving winner. What surprised me is that I thought was the best of the lot. or you could .

- I want to go back to Scotland and live in this !
" (April 16, 1746), was the last military clash in mainland Britain, between the forces of the Jacobites (headed up by ) and the British Army. It ended the 1745 Jacobite Rising, and was a massive defeat for the Jacobites".

The naturally also featured a lot of knitwear, including the cabled stockings shown here.
Since this is supposed to be a knit blog, I'll point you to a few knitwear highlights:
I don't doubt that this collection will prove to be useful fodder for the knitting patterns that show up in next winter's magazines.
- I've had a terrible cold for the past week, so it was interesting to see .

Yum!
- . I must recreate this one for myself.

- I hate American Airlines. We had a shockingly rude flight attendant on our way back from Nagoya last year. At least we didn't have an experience like .

- Yeah, I'm a dork. That's why I think this is really cool. [ ]
- .

It should be interesting -- even for you Lily Chin haters out there. Here are some details from :

The show is billed as a rare behind-the-scenes look at how knitting is used in the fashion industry. “You’ll see how Oscar de la Renta designs his knitwear line.

” She says. And she says we’ll watch Adina Klein of Vogue put together a photo shoot. “The show is not about me.

I’ll introduce the segments and talk a bit between stories.” Lily says the first show will also include a profile of one of my favorite designers, James Coviello.

March 05, 2006 in , , | I've been on a bit of a yarn shopping spree lately.

During one of my online shopping expeditions I was lucky enough to be one of the first people to test out a new online yarn store called . You guys are going to like this shop (opening soon! It is now open, so !

). Just three days later I received a gorgeous little bundle of pink and brown tissue paper containing a yarn I've been really interested in trying, . [pdf link] is incredible!

I don't believe I've ever touched a yarn so soft.
It's a well established fact that I have no self control when it comes to starting new knitting projects, so I cast on last night for the , a pattern designed by the yarn line's founder, .
(The pic below looks a little different than what is shown in the pattern because I'm knitting it inside out.

)

The March 2006 has an interesting article about the women who knit and crochet for knitwear designers. As far as I can tell it's not available online, so pick up a copy at your local bookstore.

When you're looking for a fashion tip: Grandma knows best.

Just ask a new generation of cutting-edge European knitwear designers who are employing a far-flung network of grannies. Equipped with skillful fingers and age-old knitting know-how, these venerable ladies are tackling designs that exude more contemporary cool than tea-cozy appeal. Take actress-cum-novice crochet designer Anat Fritz, 32, from Berlin.

She used to sell so many of her handmade "Oliver Twist-meets-hip hop" hats to strangers right off her own head that she decided to go into production – of a sort. "I put ads in the paper and found a bunch of old ladies who had been crocheting all of their lives," says the Romanian-born Fritz.

It's nice to see these artisans get a bit of recognition, though I must admit to a bit of discomfort with one part of the article.

But if there's one common thread linking today's knitwear pioneers, it's an ethical, or as Fritz says, "fair trade," relationship with their employees. Fritz says she pays her knitters anywhere from $7 to $12 to make a hat that retails for about $110 in wool and $280 in cashmere. They receive $120 for more involved items like a swimsuit, which can take up to 15 hours to knit, and which retails for about $365.

$120 for 15 hours of knitting comes to $8/hour. This seems a little low for hand knitting.
While the knit police were searching the residences early Sunday morning, the International Knitting Olympic Committee also conducted unannounced, out-of-competition drug tests on one Team Sweater athlete.

"We were concerned something might be going on with And Knitting after we found empty bottles near knitting needles and swatches'' authorities said. A spokesman said later Sunday morning that "..

.at the moment, nothing of significance has emerged, as the bottles appeared to have contained only performance dehancing substances like prosecco and beer, and that no one had been placed under investigation".
"I am very angry,'' said And Knitting's Amy.

"While I admit to , I've never consumed performance enhancing substances like some other knitters whose names I'll leave unsaid. Right now, if you want to cheat, you can. You do what all those guys do".

The Knitting Olympics feature the most rigorous drug testing in competitive knitting history. Earlier in the week, a suspiciously productive knitlete was expelled from the Olympics after testing positive for an illegal stimulant.
- -- !

Confidential to
SAN BLOGOSPHERE, Interweb (Reuters) -- And Knitting's Amy raced through the pain barrier in Wednesday's Team First Sweater event.
Discharged from her angsty ways only the previous day, the 33-year-old American knitter returned to the comfortable sofa where she failed so agonisingly in Sunday's training run.
Remarkably, she's finished 11 raglan increases and is just a few inches adrift of her personal progress best.

"The only thing that would have stopped me was if I physically couldn't do it," Amy told reporters. "Pain was something that I was going to take, no matter what. It was just a matter of whether my body could physically withstand the forces of my knitting.

"
Amy had no regrets, falling back on her inner strength to confound medical experts and ignore the complaints from a bruised ego and aching wrist.
And Knitting's Amy listened to her body, and it told her no.
Amy, 33, said she was "a little stiff" when she took to the needles, which she attributed to having spent too many hours at work on her laptop prior to the start of the Knitting Olympics' opening ceremony.

And if her sore wrist continues to hamper her as much as it did yesterday, when she was driven to the verge of tears before cutting short her first Olympics knitting session, Amy said she would consider withdrawing from the Knitting Olympics.
"Dropping out is not something I want to do, but I have to listen to what my feelings are," Amy - a relative newcomer to the world of knitting - said after botching two cast on attempts. The only stitch she performed cleanly was a k3 p2 rib.

"That's what's so frustrating about having an injury," she added. "It's not something that just goes away.
"Physically, if I'm not able to knit, I would give my spot up.

"
(I'm mostly being silly, but we'll see how this week goes.)
It seemed like a good idea to do a quick status update on my current knitting projects before the hoopla of the Knitting Olympics begins.
My nemesis, the , is now in the finishing stages.

This was one of the first knitting projects I started. So nearly two years later, it is good to finally be so close to completing it. I've also picked up the once again.

This project hasn't received the attention it deserves, but I'm sure I'll be able to wrap it up once the Olympics knitting frenzy is over.
In news, I'm still finalizing my sweater pattern. I may have to ceremoniously cast on one stitch tonight, and then really work at it tomorrow.

If you have a chance, take a look at the . This favorite of Vogue Knitting is one to watch if you need inspiration for future knitting projects.
As usual, designer Wenlan Chia's knits were on the chunky side.

My favorite was a short sleeved, scoop necked sweater with a ribbed empire waist. It seems a bit more wearable than the giant, bobble-y turtleneck.
She used a lot of interesting prints and often featured them with a cardie or a big loopy scarf.

Many of these were also paired with those cute and ubiquitous mini leggings. I really loved the jewelry too.
I wonder if any of the knit designs will make it to the pattern pages of Vogue Knitting.

I actually liked that ended up on the cover of VK, but I know it was not exactly a favored pattern in the knit blog world.
In more personal knitting news, I swatched for my Knitting Olympics project last night. That went well, but reminded me that I'm still not signed up with any team.

Which team is going to have the best ?
- The has now hit the mainstream media in . You do get to read how SFSE owner Elissa Meyrich "feels hurt by the heat she is taking from the knitting community".

Oh that poor, poor dear.
- Project Runway's Diana Eng showed off her mathematical knits as part of the . (If you are reading this Diana, please add an RSS feed) gives a bit more detail about her pieces.

There's .
- Woo hoo, .
It always feels a bit anticlimactic to finish a project that I had previously completed and ripped out.

This time around, I reduced the number of increases I did per row and was more diligent about trying it on as I went. I was going for a fit similar to and am happy with how it turned out.
Now I need to start training for the .

I'll be working on a sweater of my own design (let's not get into that argument about design vs. pattern making).
- I've long wished for a way to keep track of where I've left comments, so was pleased to find out about [ ].

I'm looking forward to playing around with it.
- The is this afternoon. I'm especially looking forward to her knitwear designs.

(IE only, unfortunately). A couple of the fashion blogs have been and from the tents. They even .

I've enjoyed their reportage, though I don't quite get why .
-

Each weekday in February, the Magazine [BBC] is featuring a classic public information film from the past 60 years, concluding with a vote on your favourite of all the films.

The mystery project was never much of a secret, but for those of you who didn't guess, it can now be revealed as the Big Bad Baby Blanket.

This pattern is quite simple, but it was an enjoyable knit and the end result is gorgeous. I can see why it's been such a popular pattern. I'll soon be giving it to the cute little guy I knit it for (I'll update this post with an "action" shot).

- , one of my favorite films from last year, was nominated for a whole passel of . George Clooney has certainly come a long way since his days in . was .

I really don't understand the complaints that it was confusing.
- [ ]. Perhaps an Oscar gown is in his future.

- with Extreme Breastfeeding and The Perfect P****. I'm not at all disappointed that these aren't showing in the US.
- Two great posts on - and [ ]

Bush on Tuesday night is going to pretend to tell the nation how his government is working in the beginning of his sixth year in office.

The history of Bush's state of the union speeches tells us his version is going to be an Olympic class con job delivered with relentless sincerity.

One would think my organizational supply fetish would mean that my yarn and knitting supplies were all tidily stowed away. Unfortunately that was not the case.

However, I finally decided to do something about it and since I could not buy , ordered a bunch of . It's so nice to finally have all of my yarn sorted out and easily accessible. [No, I'm not going to post photos of my stash, because well, that would be almost as boring as, um, this post.

]
Speaking of stashes, my finished made me look like a knitter of the Rastafarian persuasion. Seeing as I'm not a member of the Jamaican Bobsled Knitting Team, it had to go. I'll try again -- this time with two less increase rows.

- - I'm glad our government is working so hard to protect us from vegan terrorists.
- [ ]. They really don't get it.

There's just a bit of ribbing left to do, and then the hat DUH lux will be done. I'm hoping that it is suitably slouchy, but it may just be so big that I could fit a head full of dredlocks inside. We'll see what the verdict is when I finish it up this weekend.

The poster in the background is a reproduction that I picked up at the Imperial War Museum in London. That place has the best gift shop (if you are a history dork like me).
- OK, I know that Frey did an awful thing by forging his memoir, but .

- [via some knit blog, but I don't remember which one]
- - The recent Yahoo Group shutdowns make this pertinent to the knit community. Also, if you've joined a new Yahoo Group, you may want to [ ].
- ?

- Woo hoo! !
- Santino redeemed himself a bit during the last episode of Project Runway.

No, I did not like his dress, but he was hilarious. . (one of the most played songs in my iTunes).

- [ ]. I wonder what the butler cafe equivalent of those permed guys who stand in front of the hostess bars will be?

• I made a total dork of myself on the bus again today by laughing out loud while listening to the (and was rewarded for my embarassing behavior by having my ipod abruptly shut off, not to be turned back on).

  is especially brilliant. Is the of our generation?

• More on the - A has been posted, complete with a


• Consumerist had .

  I love Gregg Schultz's entry, Clash of the Titans.



• - wacky and LOUD [ ]!


• Better than Q-Tips?

  The



• , who "counts as her highest honors that the Minneapolis police force named its mascot pig after her," says [ ]


• - Wusses! ]


• . It's almost as cool as the robot bartender my sister bought for some friends that says (in Japanese), "Let's drink beer and talk about work"!


I have long coveted the Rowan Soft Lux yarn and finally succumbed when Knit Happens had their inventory sale. At first I considered making something cabley, but decided I'd rather go for the fringe. The color and texture will go quite nicely with one of my winter coats.

I'm hoping I have enough yarn to make some sort of hat too.
I can't be bothered to translate the actual name of the pattern so have dubbed it the scarf DUH lux, based on the fact that it is completely mindless (stockinette and garter). The pattern that inspired me came from a Knit Cafe book I purchased from .


Kitty-Craft specializes in Japanese fabric, notions and zakka. It's a really cute shop. I also bought some for a future project.

I don't have any affiliation with the shop, I just like it and I'm sure I'll be ordering more from them in the future.
Coincidentally, I also received a brochure for Camp Stitches today that features a class on . Too bad it is already sold out!


You might recall the uproar from last spring, when . They went further recently by .
As reported most excellently by (the knit blog world's de facto legal expert), .

The basis for cancelling, Stoller argues, is the sheer descriptiveness of “stitch and bitch” to describe crafty gatherings. As the services of SFSE for their trademark are essentially a virtual version of such a gathering, the mark is too descriptive to be registered.

.


I hope SFSE loses their trademark for 'Stitch Bitch Cafe', but I'm personally not too keen on seeing anyone own the trademark for Stitch 'n Bitch. As the phrase coined by a group of crafters says, .
I'm changing my mind on this a bit based on .

It does make sense to me now that Debbie Stoller should be given a trademark for stitch 'n bitch to be used for books, etc.
In other bitch news, [ ]. The article says she'll be "confiding the dissolution of her marriage to Jay McCarroll" in his upcoming show.


Yes, will be back on television with a Bravo special scheduled for February 22nd (during the Project Runway time slot). He sent out an email yesterday that included this bit of news:

"project jay" is a one hour doumentary special that chronicles my life post-project runway. its like an hour of project runway.

..but just about me.

there are some appearances by your favorite project runway cast members and some very funny and compelling moments. hopefully, most of your unanswered questions will be answered on "project jay".

He also mentioned that he is working on his next collection.

I can't wait!
As far as lat night's show goes, I was very disappointed to see go. Yeah, his outfit was frumpy, but it was not as bad as that horror designed by Rasputin.

At least it sounds like he is doing well outside of the context of the show.
I'll obviously never get to the Olympics as an athlete, but it would be really amazing to attend in some other official capacity. I'm a bit disappointed in myself for not pursuing a job working on .

It would have been incredible to have such an interesting, all consuming Olympics experience. Perhaps I will have to go for it in .
At least I can coddle my obsession during the games of the current Olympiad by joining the amusing cooked up by the .

Eligibility: Any knitter who, embracing the "Citius, Alitius Fortius" ideal, would like to challenge themselves while embracing the Olympic spirit, and is just whacked enough to play along with me.
Concept: You must cast on a project during the Opening Ceremonies of the Winter Olympics (Feb 10)- and finish before the Olympic flame goes out (Feb 26). That's 16 days.


...

While this is intended to be somewhat difficult (like the Olympics) it is not intended to ruin your life. Don't set yourself up for failure. (Olympic athletes may cry, but they do not whine pitifully, sob and threaten members of their family with pointed sticks because they haven't slept in five days.

) This is intended to (like the Olympics) require some measure of sacrifice, and be difficult, but it should be possible to attain.


I'm not sure though that I have the fortitude to start and finish a new challenging project in that time period without whining pitifully. I mean, who wants to be known as the of the knit blog world?

I also already have way too many projects in progress. Perhaps is more up my alley.
Thanks to some quality knitting time during * yesterday, and ** today, I'm happy to say I've cast off of the mystery knitting project.

No guessing what it is (though many of you likely already have it figured out). I'm really looking forward to weaving in the ends, blocking it and finally giving it to the wee little man.
[Sorry about the poor lighting in the photo.

]
*Memoirs of a Geisha was, as I expected, pretty cheesy and bad. The visuals were nice, though I wish they would have tried to be more accurate with the makeup and costumes. Here's .


**I am quite a Bond fan, so although For Your Eyes Only is also ridiculously cheesy, I do like it (except for that figure skating chick).


To keep things somewhat interesting, here are some random links for today (not knit-related)..

.

Life has interfered with my knitting as of late. Here are some random links until I can put together a real post.

..

• The now has a robotic friend, the !

  Make sure you watch the . (Yes, this is a duplicate of what I just posted at ) [ ]



• I totally wanted when I was a kid. It would have been just the thing to wear while roller skating around the cul de sac in my baby blue tracksuit.



• A new knitting show is coming to television -- Stitchcraft.



• "Within a large concrete room, hewn out of a mountain on a freezing-cold island just 1000 kilometres from the North Pole, could lie the future of humanity. The room is a 'doomsday vault' designed to hold around 2 million seeds, representing all known varieties of the world's crops.

  It is being built to safeguard the world's food supply against nuclear war, climate change, terrorism, rising sea levels, earthquakes and the ensuing collapse of electricity supplies."




gift wrap up, new year's knit failure, and random links

sent me the most adorable little cards to give out with any hand knits that I gift.
sent me a sweet card and some .

I had long admired this yarn and can't wait to make something with it.
From my sister -- (which I think is identical to Vintage Style) and a Cram Cream Wallet (OK, the wallet isn't knit-related, but it's too cute not to include). There are so many amazing patterns in this book!

I fear my to knit list has now grown to be infinitely too long.
I also received many wonderful non-knit gifts this year. Two that stand out are my and .

It rather scares me that I'm so excited about appliances. Luckily my brother got me the DVD to save me from my impending dotage.
that I would FINALLY finish the before the end of the year.

The pieces are nearly complete, but yesterday's cleaning frenzy, which led to a mini , rather cut into my knitting time. I'm still a bit skeptical about how this sweater is going to turn out. The gauge seems spot on, but the pieces are shaped very strangely.

I know this is due to the gathered frill, but it still seems too long.
is coming along splendidly, but it too won't be finished this year. I figure that I'm golden if I get it done by the original due date!


It will be a relief when I finish these two projects, so I can get going with the sweater I'm designing for myself. The first swatches were a bit disappointing, so I decided to upgrade the yarn. I got a great deal on a bag of Rowan Cashsoft DK off eBay.

Woo hoo!



Here are some random links that I've been hoarding. It's been too long since I've done this and I'll probably keep adding to these throughout the day, so don't get freaked out if this post seems to reappear in your feed reader.

• A Bryn Mawr student gets caught at an airport with condoms filled with flour. She and her dorm mates made them as gag squeeze-toy stress relievers during finals. A field test -- conducted twice -- indicates that the condoms are filled with opium, cocaine, and amphetamines.

  The girl spends the next three weeks in jail on drug charges that could bring 20 years in prison.

  
  
• [ ]

  I came across a great way of using Google's GMail to create disposable/sortable email addresses that let you duck spam and find out who is sharing your address and with whom.



• !

  Now, , but this is a bit much!



• [video] - This little songstress rivals my previous favorite, in the battle for cutest kid ever.


• [ ] - The best quotations of 2005.



• Does anyone know anything about the ? I have seen other modernist churches, but this one is incredible!


• I wish these CDs were real.

  - Music for your Beer Commercial and - and other feminine hygiene tunes. [ ]




• When Star Trek (original series) first began, the USS Enterprise set out on a five-year mission. However, NBC cut the mission short cancelling the series after only three years (seasons).

  
  Now a crew of Star Trek evangelists ranging from an urologist to an Elvis Presley impersonator are resurrecting the original series and completing the mission by filming new episodes playing off the original timeline. Yep … these extreme Star Trek evangelists are filming new episodes under the name STAR TREK NEW VOYAGES. They've filmed two episodes and the third episode is to be released in the Summer of 2006.

  I have to try downloading these!


• [ ]

  I am a Fashion Design student in my final year. This blog records the development of my graduate collection.

  I am manufacturing Final Fashion on a small scale and it will be available Summer 2006.



• [ ]

Minnesota Timberwolves fans are drinking an all-new cup of beer at the Target Center.
The Timberwolves stopped using oil-based plastic drink cups this weekend and began using cups made from biodegradable corn.


The cups are environmentally friendly, using 68 percent fewer fossil fuel resources than oil-based cups.


It's that time of the year again, when all publishers look for a lazy way to get some content out there before the new year. I am no different, so I bring you my year in review.

Yeah, this is somewhat redundant with what I posted in response to . Oh well.
Now I know where to send !

Sadly the appears to be dead, but you get the idea.
The ( ). I loved loved loved knitting this project, and I actually wear it.


I'm going to have to go with the . Who knows what my problem is? I like the yarn, the pattern isn't difficu I just can't seem to finish it.


The . Luckily I found it on the clearance rack at yesterday.
Knitting with double pointed needles.

I'm very glad of these, because it's really fun to knit mittens. Will 2006 be the year I decide to go against my earlier vow to never knit socks?
As I said in that meme, it would be (worsted).

The colors are great and the price is right.
I know a lot of people love their yarn, but I have to say . I just don't think this yarn feels that nice.

If I'm going to spend a lot of time knitting something I want to use a yarn that really appeals to me. This just isn't it.
This is a tie between and .

They both ship amazingly fast and have great product selections.
Can't say I have one. There are a couple of stores near me that I frequent, but they both leave a lot to be desired in terms of their staff and ambience.

I honestly have to say that I never look forward to a trip to the LYS.
. I haven't knit anything from it yet, but there are at least a couple projects from it on my to knit list.


is great to visit when you need to refresh your memory about a knitting technique. I especially like the and pages.
I quite like Japanese knitting and crafting books and Crafting Japanese lets you see what is inside before you buy.

Or, you can just use it for a vicarious shopping thrill like I do.
How did I keep up with everyone before ? I suppose I was using these before this year, but 2005 was the year that almost all knit bloggers seemed to enable them.


overcame some of the and has become incredibly useful to my knit blog browsing. Their and they have some (though unfortunately, the tag for knitting no longer seems to appear in the latter. Perhaps that is because knit bloggers linking and tagging habits seem to be quite different from that of the rest of the blog world).


1. Stop being angsty about learning new techniques.
2.

Knit .
I guess that's it for now because I have to go finish my Christmas shopping. Happy Holidays everyone!


Last week's outage was frustrating to many, myself included. Some cheerleaders have compared Typepad's problems to those of , and , and implied that users have their expectations set too high. I don't like that comparison because though practically essential to me, I don't yet pay a fee for those sites.

With Typepad I do expect that it will work because I pay for it and at least some of the subscription fees should go toward improving the infrastructure.
That said, Bloglines is a tool that I use quite heavily* and I'm hoping that their maintenance today will fix some of the issues with missing and slow updates. If it doesn't, I am going to follow and switch using .


12/20/2005 Update: Woo hoo! Bloglines and del.icio.

us are back. Here's a good post on .
*Yes, I know I probably should have switched long ago.

Blame it on inertia.
blew me away today with the package she sent me in exchange for some lamb's pride worsted I sent to her. I knew she was going to send me some Christmas Crackers and Jaffa cakes, but she also sent a bunch of other goodies (the crisps are already in my tummy), including some Rowan Polar in a gorgeous color.

Most notably, she also sent me a beautiful, chunky scarf. I'm overwhelmed by her generosity.
Laura, thank you very much!


You all know this, but one of the most useful things about the knit blog scene is the ability to read about other knitter's experiences with a pattern. For example, I often search for a pattern name and "sucks" when I'm trying to decide on a new project, just to avoid any hellish knitting experiences. Whether you are looking for errata, a yarn substitution or an explanation of something confusing, it's quite likely that someone has already blogged about it.

The trick is finding the posts.
Luckily there are now search engines optimized specifically for blog content. I'm sure this isn't new information to a lot of you, but in this post I'm going to give a mini review of three of the blog search tools I use: , and .


In each case I searched for knitty AND nameofpattern (I used quotes around the pattern names that contained more than word) and recorded the number of posts I found in each search engine.
Here's a chart of the results (click it to enlarge) I found this morning. [Lest ye think I'm a total dork with too much time on my hands, this silly chart took just a few minutes and relates to something else I'm working on.

]
On average, it looks like Technorati returns the most posts, with Google having a slight edge over IceRocket. However, the number of posts found doesn't necessarily mean the best results, because there are certainly posts that show up that may have contained those keywords in a context other than the Knitty pattern.
All of the search engines give you the ability to do more advanced searches so you can do things like exclude certain words.

For example, if you are searching for people posting about new pattern , you might end up with a bunch of knitters posting about a blizzard heading in their direction. To avoid this you can use advanced search options to make sure you are . Each search engine gives you additional tools to refine your results further to make them more relevant to you.


In , you can restrict your search to blogs that have tagged themselves as being about knitting, rather than the entire blogosphere. They also let you quickly paste in and (you can do this in other search engines, but it's often not as intuitive). And, if you create an account, you can easily add a search to a so you can keep an eye on new, relevant posts as they are published.


makes it really simple to refine your search to a specific timeframe by giving you links for "Today Only", " ", "Past Month" and "Custom". This is especially useful when a pattern has just been released and you know that any older posts using those keywords are likely using them in a different context. .


offers the . It's in beta right now, so who knows what extra enhancements they might add to it.