Resolution

1. The state or quality of being resolute; firm determination.

2. A resolving to do something.

3. A course of action determined or decided on.

I am so very sorry to any of you guys who regularly read! I disappeared for a month, I know. School got really hectic and the holidays are always more stressful than they need to be. But I have made a resolution (see? I can title things cleverly!) to not do that again. Hopefully I will be able to post at least once a week from now on.

So, as far as school goes (not the focus, I know, but I feel like rambling), I finished last semester with 4As and 2 A minuses. Pretty good, and my GPA is now 3.88. Could be .02 higher (no matter what Boyfriend tells me about how it's 'close enough,' I want that 3.9!), but I am overall pleased about how it shook out, considering I had a very, very stressful semester. I finished scheduling classes for this semester. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, I will be taking six courses again. It's a large load, but I'm doing it so that I can take less credits next semester when I am doing my observations (go and observe/talk to a teacher in an actual school environment), to give myself more time to soak in the experience. Anywho, I'll be taking (as I know you are so interested): Survey of English Literature I, Beg-1660, Survey of English Literature II, 1660-1900 (yes, concurrently, I am an English BAMF), Intro to Inclusive Education, Mosaic II (a general Humanities course), The Universe as We Know It (fills my science requirement) and Myth and Symbol. My schedule is sort of full, but not unmanageable. And better than last semester, when I caught the train at 7 AM and got home at 9 PM on Mondays. My longest day is Thursday, where I'll be taking the 1 o clock train and getting home around 9 PM. And I don't have to get up at 6 AM at any time this semester! Wooo! The earliest class I have is one at 10 AM.

Xmas went alright. I spent Christmas Eve with my family and brought Boyfriend along. First, every year, we go to my grandmother's house. She passed years ago, but two of my dad's brothers still live there. We played pool and horsed around. My uncle Calvin gave me a really neat wicker box that stores my sock yarn and half-balls and bits and bobs admirably. Then we went to my aunt (mother's sister)'s house, where I hid and pretended I wasn't related to these people. Christmas I spent with Boyfriend's family. Boyfriend's cousin (my friend, my ex, yadda yadda)'s mother got me a piggybank shaped like balls of yarn that says "Knitting Money" on it. It combines my love of knitting, money, and really kitschy shit, so it was a great success. On Boxing Day Uncle Calvin, Boyfriend and I went to go see the Nutcracker (ballet). It was a fun day. If it hadn't been raining, we might have paid Loop a visit, but alas, it was not to be.

Knitting! That is what this blog is about, isn't it? You wouldn't know by my rambling thus far, I suppose. I have not finished a project since I saw you all last. Shameful, I know! I've started a few, though!

First is my first garment. I decided on St. James and set to work, my heart ablaze with zeal and expectation. I was knitting a sweater! I was doing it! On I knitted, through not one, but two versions of Jane Eyre, watched in the wee hours of the morning. On I knitted, through Pan's Labyrinth. I tried it on, I made adjustments (one more waist decrease, for example), and hoped that everything would work right. It didn't. When the actual body knitting was done, there was far too much fabric in between the neckline and boobs. While I was able to add a decrease in the waist and shorten the waist-hips section, I somehow did not realize that the area from neck-topofboobs was petite as well. Enter crushing disappointment. Enter asking for Rav help. Enter snipping a stitch in my sweater. On Christmas Eve, no less. That was a horrible idea. The idea was to ravel upwards and re-knit the top from the top down again. I could not get it to unravel right. As hard as I tried. Eventually I got it unravelled, but as great yarn expense. Also, I was lazy and didn't want to graft stitches all around a sweater, so I just started from my live stitches and knit up. Since it was just seed stitch, I reasoned, it wouldn't show. Stop and think about it. I knit a top down raglan upwards. Instead of increasing, I decreased. Of course, decreasing is enough of a pain in the arse in seed stitch without the added "must get this the right length" bits. I had to decrease more quickly, and to be honest, my sweater looks a little messy as a result. I half-assed it and it shows. I don't have a good picture, hard to do without natural light, but you can sort of see it in the one I chose. However, I have decided that it is good enough. Most people aren't knitters, and will just be impressed I knit it myself. I think I can camouflage the goofs well enough. I've decided to do elbow length sleeves and have about a sleeve and a half to go. I just ran out of steam on this one.

After that debacle, I wanted something easy and fluffy. So I cast on a hat in Mal in Azul Bolita. I chose the Columbia Beret because it is simple enough to let the yarn shine but has a little bit of detail to it. I'm leaving off the top doohickey. Haven't finished that yet. But look at the gorgeous color of the Malabrigo. Had a little project photoshoot today with a mirror, and I'm fond of the way that that one came out. Capturing the color of the yarn is very difficult, since I wasn't working with natural light. This came the closest. The color is about that saturated, but a little more purple and a little more dark. I'm working on it, but put it down for a bit because I have knitting ADD lately, it seems.


My last real current project is a felted bag, using the Not Your Grandma's Carpet Bag pattern. I'm knitting it in that green/navy yarn last seen in little brother's garish earflap hat. I'm hoping that felting will make the colors more palatable. If this works, it will be my first felted project. I haven't picked up any handles yet, but I hope to soon. I'm hoping to find some at Michael's or AC Moore. Sort of ugly, isn't it? I sort of love ugly things, though, as the size ten lime green zebra striped pumps in my closet can attest to. ...I wear a size 7.5.


Besides all of that, I've taught myself the Norwegian purl, which is awesome and really interesting, and cast on a pair of socks using my 9 inch size 0 Hiya Hiyas. I'm finding them difficult to use, but I think I'll acclimate. I pretty much picked them up for shits and giggles anyway. I also have some more yarn giveaways to share. At Alaskan Purl, Allison is giving away a skein of Kangaroo Dyer's Merino/Alpaca/Silk yarn in the Caliph's Sunset colorway. This DK weight yarn looks gorgeous! Thanks Allison! Jeff at Yarnstasher is also starting off the New Year on the right foot with a massive giveaway. Check it out; you won't regret it, I promise. Thanks, Jeff! Finally, again, sorry for simply disappearing, but here's to a more productive and bloggy 2010!

A Boyfriend's Hat

Hi everyone!

Lessee, since my last post I have actually gotten some knitting done! I finished my green beret/slouchy hat, and I love it. I was unsure if I could pull off the slouchy style, but it seems like I can. With great gusto. I like it because it keeps my hair in check (the wind whips it around something fierce) and my head warm. I didn't expect it to be a particularly warm hat, but it is! My guess is that the extra space in the hat traps heat from my head and makes a little warm pocket. Whatever the case, I hope that the slouchy hat trend is here to stay for a while. It's flattering, warm, and exceedingly fun to knit and block.

And a silly one. I was playing around with photoshop (Paint.net, actually) and this happened:

Pattern: Meret by Woolly Wormhead.
Gauge: About 5 spi
Yarn: Ella Rae Classic Superwash, colorway 21
Needle size: 7
Notes: Cast on the large size to compensate for tighter gauge. The ribbing could have been tighter, so I'd probably use a smaller needle for it next time. For the slouchy part, followed the instructions for the medium size with one extra repeat for slouch, not two extra repeats for extra slouch. Fantastic pattern, I loved it.

I also started and finished a hat for the ever-knitworthy Boyfriend. Actually, while we're on the subject, quick aside to say that on the 3rd, we celebrated two years together! We didn't do anything because we're both  dead tired and swamped with work during the week more often than not. That and broke. So, anyway, bless him for gracefully handling my transition from normal person to crazy knitting lady. He deserves all the handknit hats in the world! (Not a sweater, because we know how that always ends.) More after the jump:

Procrastination Station

I don't want to do my work at the moment. It's the last day of Thanksgiving break and I am not looking forward to going back and doing that extremely stressful school thing. I have homework, but let us focus on more pleasant things.

Like yarn. Guess whose uncle took her to Loop yesterday? This lady, right here. He said that it was a "special birthday" and told me to go wild. Now, I find that sort of impossible to do (because if we're being honest here, I do have a bit of a guilt issue with spending lots of money, especially if it is other people's), but I think I got a good haul. Let's check it out!

Item #1: 4 skeins of Berrocco Vintage, which is 50% Acrylic, 40% Wool, 10% Nylon. It's destined to become my first knitted garment (that is, not a hat, scarf, or socks). I was thinking about doing St. James, which is the garment pictured on the right (photo from the project page on Ravelry, copyright belongs to Raveller thshizknit). I like the idea of this shirt because it's got good waist shaping, and if I don't have waist shaping I look like a giant blob in between my boobs and my hips. Trying to clothes shop can be a nightmare, because things have to have room for my rack and also be small enough to fit. I am not a tiny human, but small enough that finding clothing in the Women's section is a trial. And of course, junior's doesn't have ample boob n' hip room. Besides being bespangled with sparkly shit. No, I don't want pants that say "Princess" on the ass in rhinestones. Thanks. Well, to recover from my tangent, I'm not sure if I'd do the tie, although it is cute. I'm just not sure if it's me. One option might be to do it after the shirt is done and keep it detachable.

Second up is a skein of Blue Sky Alpacas Dyed Cotton:

My dear uncle who took me liked it and so asked me to get a skein to knit him a hat. I prefer to knit in wool, but uncle is vegan and eschews animal products when possible. He also liked that it's an organic cotton. He wasn't feeling acrylic, so this is it. It's really soft, though.

Next, we have two skeins of Ella Rae Classic Superwash:

The one here is tan, and not so yellowy as the photo makes it seem. It's for a colorwork portion of a hat I intend to knit for Boyfriend. The color was his choice. He wanted a tan color for some reason or another.


The other is a bright teal that Little Brother picked out. Yes, his color taste is not the most sophisticated (if you'll remember, he's the same one who wanted the orange hat with red snowflakes. I couldn't get him to agree to at least try and match this color to that monstrosity.) but hey, I like the color in a vaccuum, even if it is a bit "minty fresh." He wants gloves. The yarn is good for this because it's superwash and no 16 year old boy wants to handwash his gloves. The yarn is ok, although it's a tad rough on my tensioning finger. It's the same stuff I'm knitting my Meret in right now.

Next up is a skein of Madeline Tosh tosh worsted. It's a bit spendy, but the color! I die!

Now you look at that and tell me that you wouldn't have done the same thing. The colorway is "Nikko Blue" aka "Freaking Gorgeous Blue." I'm thinking a cowl, hat, or something else worn close to the face. That blue will not be ignored.

Next (why yes, there is even more!) is three skeins of Malabrigo. I wanted one or two going in, but threw on a third on a whim.

 

The colors got a little wonked out between shopping this up and uploading it, but it's a decent approximation. From left to right we have Azul Bolita, Burgundy, and Orchid. Burgundy is for Boyfriend's hat (along with the tan from earlier), while Azul Bolita and Orchid are ALL MINE! MWAHAHAHA.

Or not. I mean, they are for me, but I don't know if you could do many nefarious things with Malabrigo. I'm thinking another hat for the Azul, maybe mixed in with some Orchid. Can you guess which one was thrown in on a whim? If you guessed Orchid, you'd be correct. It's so pretty.

I also got a set of size seven DPNs (Crystal Palace, bamboo), a 26 inch size eight circ (also Crystal Palace, also bamboo) and a 26 inch size 10.5 circ (ditto). I got a 9 inch Hiya Hiya size zero, too, for shits and giggles. I thought this might be the time to try it out. And that's a lot of bamboo, but it was that or plastic, if I didn't want to spend a billion dollars on needles. The rest are rosewood and Addis (which, speaking frankly, I think are a rip-off. No way are they worth that much. It's ridiculous), which are not what I want. I successfully resisted some gorgeous Lorna's Laces Shepard Worsted. It was is the Winona colorway, and it looked like a sunrise. I also resisted Mal Sock, because I don't even like knitting socks that much. It was beautiful, but impractical. I have plenty of sock yarn for the time being. So it was a good day.

I'll leave you with a bonus photo of the Kypria that Lina from photo.knit.dog sent me:

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hi everyone! I hope all you Americans out there had a fantastic Thanksgiving!

I did. I ate with Boyfriend's aunt and uncle, and his aunt's family. Boyfriend's aunt and I go way back, though. I dated his cousin before I dated him, so I've known Boyfriend's aunt for a longer time than I've known Boyfriend. (Calm down! There was a year between the dating of Boyfriend's Cousin and the dating of Boyfriend. Also, Boyfriend's Cousin and I are still good friends.) She is a fabulous lady, the one who gave me her mother's needles when I was a fledgling knitter. The food and company could not have been better. Also, Boyfriend's Cousin's birthday is tomorrow, so we sang Happy Birthday. But after they sang happy birthday to him, they took the 1 from the 21 off the cake, replaced it with a 0 and sang to me! It was very sweet and unexpected. And yes, I am the big 2-0 today. I don't feel much different. But hey, I'm not a teen anymore! I've been waiting for this since I turned 13.

Knitting wise, there is not much of interest to be said. I took a break from Boyfriend's socks to knit a little extra something for a Secret Santa and am now working on a beret. Meret, to be exact. I was going to do it in Noro, but decided that it would be too hippie-ish. I don't have a problem with hippies, but I don't want to look like I reek of patchouli and am following the Dead around the country, you know? So I'm doing it in Ella Rae Classic Superwash in a dark green. A little too dark, if we're going to be honest, but I like it. I didn't realize that the lace pattern was the same as my Crofter's Cowl until I had already started, but that's ok. As usual I get a crappy photo with indoor lighting, but I'll subject you to it anyway. It's a darker green than that, but whatever. At least this photo had some visual interest. I'll post a better one when it's finished. I'm still looking for a good hat for my Noro skein.

And hopefully I shall be gracing the halls of Loop again soon. My uncle figured that that would be a good place to go for a birthday treat. I'm not about to argue. I love Loop, and I'll be picking up some Malabrigo, at least. Enough for hats for Boyfriend and I. I'd like a bright blue (Azul Profundo or Azul Bolita maybe?) and he is all about neutrals, frustratingly enough. He would look so nice in a red, but no. It's all dark blues and greens. Men, am I right?

Oh, and I send my thanks out to Lina at Photo. Knit. Dog. for her generous giveaway. I won 8th place, and so am getting a skein of Kypria sock yarn. It's 70%  merino, 20% bamboo, 10% nylon and 100% smooshy if Ravelry is to be believed. Go and check it out at the Sanguine Gryphon. Thanks again, Lina!

Oh Crap

Yep, another nice ten day stretch of nothingness between posts. Go me.

See, I'm the red bird, looking all adorable and goofy in an attempt to distract you from the fact that I haven't posted in over a week.

But nothing terribly interesting has been going on, knitting wise. I'm working on knitted tops for my Converse, firstly. My chucks are torn up beyond recognition, so I'm thinking this could be a neat way to put them back into action. The pattern tells you to sew the new tops onto a strip of fabric left on the bottom for that purpose. Here, let me scrounge up a visual...*shuffles papers*

See the red line? You're supposed to cut the canvas there and leave a little bit of canvas to sew the knitted top on to. This is all well and good, unless you're actually trying to refurbish a pair of beat-up Chucks. The most common ripping is the canvas from the sole on the outside of the shoe. Of course, since they're now "fashionable" you hardly see an old beat up Chuck anywhere. Which is sad. But anyway, I have no canvas to stitch the knit top to. Thus, I am punching a needle through the rubber sole. Unpleasant work, that. I have one done, but they're on the backburner at the moment. Because...

I'm knitting another pair of socks! I have knit one pair before, but I got the yen to do another, for some reason. They're not for me, they're for Boyfriend. But I think they're going decently. I finished the first one and now have to fight the dreaded Second Sock Syndrome and cast on for #2. Have I ever mentioned how much I hate casting on? I hate doing the first bit of a project for some reason. Bores the everloving crap out of me. Anywho, I do have a photo of the first sock.

Look to the right, there. I think it's going pretty well, but like I said, let's see if I can avoid the dreaded SSS. This is prior to blocking, by the by. My stitches look straight-up nasty. Crooked and all that. Which is strange, considering the one thing I can usually get right is even gauge. Tight gauge'll do that to ya. The yarn is Lion Brand Wool-Ease (he wanted something machine washable) in ranch red and black. This is the first time I've done a sock in more than one color, and it looks alright, although I think my method could use some work. In addition, I bungled the toe decreases somehow and the grafting is a fucking mess. Never again shall I attempt to graft a toe without the instructions right in front of me. Boyfriend likes it, though, and that's all that really matters. The pattern is Thuja from Knitty Winter 05. I like it; it's easy enough to do in class but interesting enough to keep me from falling asleep. And yes, that is my foot, not Boyfriend's. His foot is much bigger than that.

I've also been poking around for a hat pattern to knit with my skein of Noro. I have recently decided that I can pull off a slouchy hat, so I'm looking.

So that's all that's really going on. No new giveaways to report, really. Yeah, it's been pretty boring around here.

Bad Blogger, Bad!

Sorry... no one. Anyone who reads this blog on a regular basis. All three of you.

School's been hectic and most of my knitting has been sort of put by the wayside. I started a pair of gloves (Knotty Gloves), but I had to rip back. It was my first time reading a cable chart and I buggered it up big time. So I have to rip back about 5-6 rows to the ribbing. It always takes me forever to put something I've ripped back on the needles, though. It's so tedious. Boring, boring, boring.

My main project at the moment is one that I just cast off yesterday: another cowl for me. The first time I just cast off the normal way, and it was too tight to fit over a human head. Well, I could get it on, but let's just say you haven't felt forehead pain until you've tried to shimmy a too-small cowl off of your head. Ouch. Or more appropriately, a quiet ow ow ow ow, trying not to alert anyone to your dumbassery. So, I undid it (teeeeeedious, so tedious) and re-bound off with Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind Off. That worked fairly well, although I do need to block. Oh, and the pattern and the yarn and zee photos, of course! Please excuse the horrible quality, Myspace-y look, and end hanging out (klassy):

I know that I take an awful photo, no need to remind me.  And that I look like some sort of misguided yarn gangsta on the right. But a friend of mine said it showed the knitting better, so you all get to see my mug not once, but twice. Take it in, because I am usually fairly reticent to post my photo online. I don't photograph well, no matter how nice I may look in real life. Also, by the time I get home, it's dark, so I'm working by myself by the light of one dim lamp. A sad portrait of our stalwart blogger, huh?

The yarn is Malabrigo Worsted in Stone Blue (photo left is a better representation of the color) and the pattern is Crofter's Cowl by Gudrun Johnston. It is available on her blog, here: http://shetlandtrader.blogspot.com/. Look in the right column, you'll find it. The pattern is originally supposed to be done in two parts and grafted together to create a mirror image. Always the lazy knitter, I just did five or six repeats and called it a day. The lace pattern ended up moving around for no reason a few times. I think I missed yo's or did a single decrease instead of a double or something. It's certainly not the pattern's fault. But I wore it today (miserable weather here in Philly, just awful. Rain and wind and cold and sadness) and it was so warm and soft that I forgive it any mistakes. My neck was thanking me the whole day.

My other main project is for a Secret Santa, so I can't post about it here. Shh!

And contests. There is one for one of eight skeins of yarn over at Photo. Knit. Dog. Last day to enter is today, so hurry up!  Knittin Brit in WI is having a very generous giveaway as well. I won't ruin the surprise for you. Last day is Saturday for that one. Darcy's Knotty Knitter is having a Sari Silk giveaway, which expires tomorrow at midnight. As always, thanks for your generosity, giveaway people! It is always much apreciated.

Hats! Hats! Hats!

Hello everybody! (Hello Dr. Nick!) How is everyone lately?

I have finished my hat trio. Mom decided she didn't want one after all (and good bloody riddance, I say; she's always finding some snide comment or other to make), so the Norwegian Star Hat odyssey is complete. The pattern is very, very well written and easy as cake to follow. I have two gripes about it, though. One, it is too big. Too deep, I mean. I had to mod the decreases on each of the three hats, and if I hadn't, they'd all be covering our noses. Second, I prefer it when sizing is done by different stitch counts as opposed to gauge. I have one, count it, one 16 inch circ, so I couldn't exactly go to my needle closet and hand select the one that would give me *angelic choir* Perfect Gauge. But that's a personal thing, not the designer's fault at all. But the pattern is fabulous, mostly, and I would suggest it to anyone who wants to learn colorwork or just wants a nice hat. Hell, the fact that it appealed not only to me, a 19 year old woman, but also to my 17 and 16 year old little brothers (a hard crowd to please, am I right?) says something about the design. I'm very pleased with the finished products I got, although the colors that Kevin and Chris chose are not really to my... taste. *ahem ahem* Well, I think I'll wrap this little trio up with some photos and facts.

Hat #1:

Recipient: Me
Recipient's Head Size: 21.5 inches around
Gauge: 5.5 spi
Yarn: Malabrigo Merino Worsted (purple) and Universal Deluxe Yarn Worsted Tones (blue)
Needle Size: 7 (4.5 mm)
Comments: Fits well, modded the top decreases as detailed in an earlier post.

Hat #2:

Recipient: Kevin
Recipient's Head Size: 22.5 inches around
Gauge: 6 spi
Yarn: Universal Deluxe Yarn Worsted Tones (blue), Bare Sheep Yarn Company Abby (green&blue) and Caron Dazzle Sport (pink)
Needle Size: 7 (4.5 mm)
Comments: Added a repeat to make up for tighter gauge/room for Frampton-esque hair. Turned out too big but recipient liked it. That flippy brim bit is his doing; probably did it during blocking. Top decreases modded in the same way as Hat #1.

Hat #3:

Recipient: Christopher
Recipient's Head Size: 21.75 inches around
Gauge: 5 spi
Yarn:Sheep Shop Yarn Company Sheep 1 Yarn (orange) and Lion Brand Wool-Ease (red)
Needle Size: 7 (4.5 mm)
Comments: A little too big, but he prefers it that way. The Sheep Shop yarn is an aran, and there was just a little too much difference in weight between it and the Wool-Ease for me to be entirely comfortable. Also, put too many rows before the start of the colorwork. Should have done less like in the other two. To compensate, decreased faster.

Overall, I am thrilled with how the hats came out and I'm really glad I did them. The one ply yarns (Mal and Sheep Shop) worked better, I think, than the plied one, but that could be just personal preference. I'd recommend the pattern to anyone looking to try colorwork and is already familiar with circular knitting and making hats. And I know, the little brothers; hide your daughters, right? They've turned into handsome young men while I wasn't looking. I want to get a picture of them together in their matching hats one of these days.

Next on the docket is glommits for the Boyfriend, he of the long, thin hands. I'm hoping to get gauge with the one set of non-sock DPNs I have, because there's no way I could Magic Loop a whole project. So fiddly. Then, I have to find something to do with the other half skein of Malabrigo I have. I understand that it pills like a sonofabitch when knit into gloves/mittens, so I'm thinking a short cowl or neckwarmer, if I could eke it out of a half a skein.

Otherwise, I've been watching Heroes, Season one, which is fantastic. I don't plan on watching the other seasons, though, because my understanding it that the show went entirely downhill. I don't think even the utter hotness of Zach Quinto could save me.

That's panty-melting good, even when he's being evil and is covered in blood. Gay? Not in my world. Nuh uh, not. at. all. Of course, this is the Quinto I fell in love with, much to the dismay and creeped out-ed ness of Boyfriend, the lifelong Trekkie:

...*slumps in a dead faint*

Ahem, so where were we? Right, Heroes. First Season: Awesome.

Of course, I do realize that I should be talking about books, considering that it's in the name of the blog, but I didn't realize that knitting would preclude reading, so, that's that. It's my blog and I'll talk about what I want. Nyah!

Okay, I'm done talking about what I want. At least for today.

More Hats and Not Much Else

Hi everyone out there in blog-land!

I've temporarily lost an internet connection at home, so I'm coming to you from sunny (not so much, really) University campus in Philadelphia! It's been rainy and yucky and all around unpleasant here the past few days. But there is always the internet.

So, I don't have any new photos, but my current project is a doozy. Remember how Little Bro #1 wanted a hat like the one I just finished? And in horribly clashy and garish colors? Well, he's got it. I don't have a photo, but suffice it to say that it is this color:


With this color for the snowflakes:

And will have this color tassels and pompom:
I almost feel like knitting this hat is an affront to my dignity, not to mention my eyes, but he wanted an ugly hat (his words), so by Jove he's going to get one. If you can't tell, the pink there is sparkly pink acrylic from a friend's grandmother's old stash. I've got nothing against acrylic, but this is 80s acrylic. An entirely different breed.

It's been interesting, because my gauge is off. These hats are the first time I've bothered, because the gauge really obviously affects the size of the hat (all the sizing is done by changing gauge). I know gauge affects the size of anything anyway, but this made me actually pay attention. Plus, you can use an ear flap as a swatch. So I actually went and measured my gauge, and it was 6 stitches to the inch, half a stitch smaller than the gauge for the smallest size, which is 20 and a third inches around. I think the blue yarn (Which is Deluxe Worsted Tones by Universal: Yarndex link) is more of a light worsted. Then again, I do usually have pretty tight gauge. Anyway, I figured that I had to add stitches, because this wasn't going to fit my little brother's 22.5 inch noggin and hair. This kid has got a fro that would make 70s era Peter Frampton jealous. Kindly look on the right, and imagine it more voluminous. It's like a giant triangle of hair. He gets it from my mom, who has really curly hair. Both of my little brothers got it, but I managed to get the thin, limp head of hair typical of my dad's side. Boo. So anyway, I had to make accommodations for his fro. In addition, I thought the earflaps were a titch too narrow on my hat, so I increased until I hit 25 stitches instead of 21. I ended up doing the math (22.5X6 = 135) and then realized that a hat is supposed to be smaller than the head it's for, not the same size. Usually you'd cast on 112 stitches, so I realized that the easiest thing to do would be to add another repeat's worth of stitches, so I ended up with a cast on edge of 128. I tried to keep the front-back proportions the same as the original, but made the back a little longer and the front a little shorter by a stitch or two. I was not, by the way, pleased that I had to do math. As an English major, it affronted my sensibilities. I could write a paper on gauge and knitting, or knitting's history, but math? Pah!

The hat seems to fit well so far. I'm almost done the actual knitting knitting bit and after that it's just i-cord, tassels and a pompom in Old Mrs. Proulx's sparkly acrylic.

Also, I've been looking at colorwork patterns like mad since I found out that yes, I could do it. Mittens, mostly. I lack any DPNs between a size one and a size I'mnotsurereallya5or6, but I'm still looking at some fingering weight ones. I have a size 3 nine inch circ which could be useful for this. I've got my eye on Endpaper Mitts. A really popular pattern, but so pretty.

Also, there's an interesting discussion over on Rav right now about the pronunciation of skein. I say skayne. It's also got a little bit of hank vs skein vs ball in it. For me, a hank is a twisty thing that you need to wind to use. A skein is an oblong center pull thing, like most big-box put ups, and a ball is usually something I've wound myself (I don't own a swift or ball winder). A cake is something wound by a winder. What do you all out in blog-land call these things?

Finished! And New Yarn!

HI. I'm a little jazzed today because there are some good things going on in my knitterly world.

First, I finished my hat! And I absolutely adore it. I've made a lot of things (relatively; 25ish projects in less than a year of knitting) and I don't think I've loved anything quite as much as I love this hat. It's something I will actually wear, and it doesn't look especially homemade, at least I don't think. There's a picture on the right. Sorry about the longness, but I wanted to get the super-awesome tassels in, too. And yeah, there's an un-weaved in end there, but that's been remedied by now. I would get a modelled shot, but the model would have to be camera-shy me. Plus I have a giant zit right now, so it was more work than it was worth. Maybe someday. So, I learned a few things in the course of this project. First, and most obviously, colorwork. Up until this project, I had never done any, not even stripes. So I dived into the pool all at once, so to say. And I am so damn glad I did, because it was fun. Second would be English knitting. I did the two handed method, and my right hand was noticeably better by the end of the chart. Which brings us to: chart reading. This was my first project with a chart. It was a lot easier than the other charts I've seen, mostly because it was colors, I think. There were no weird symbols involved, no slanty lines. I've never been a visual learner, really. I also made tassels for the first time. They aren't perfect, but they're nice enough. It took two times to get these, and I think they're good enough. And last, pompoms! I wasn't sure if I wanted to put one on top (thought it might be too cutesy) but the top was wonky and it would cover the hole that you always get. Plus, a friend of mine said, quote, "That hat is screaming for a pompom." So I decided to stick it on there. I didn't do it the "right" way because I am too lazy to cut out cardboard circles. I wrapped the yarn around 3 fingers and did it that way. Simple. I modded the top decreases: Did two rows of decreases in a row, then a knit row, and on until I hit 28 stitches. Then I k2tog for two rounds. Simply put:

*k14, k2tog* around
*k13, k2tog* around
Knit
*k12, k2tog* around
*k11, k2tog* around
Knit

And so on, until you have 28 stitches left, and then do two rounds of k2tog.

My little brother, age 17, pronounced that the pompom made the hat sexy and that he would be a sex machine if he had one like it. He offered to buy it off of me (how strange!) and I told him I'd knit him one. Why he didn't just ask I will never know. So yeah, the hat is done, and I adore it. Both little brothers and my mother want one like it now. Usually I'd refuse, but I really liked knitting it, so I will. I also know that they would all walk around exclaiming about how their sister/daughter knitted it and isn't it cool, so I'll do it, surely. Kevin (little brother numero uno, seventeen years, eighteen in February) wants it in garish and clashing colors and a sparkly pink pompom. Silly boy. Chris (little brother numero dos, sixteen years) wants an orange one with black snowflakes. It's going to be Halloween all year, I guess. Mom hasn't decided on a color, so I'll probably just use some half-skeins I have lying around for her.

Okay, so now I've effectively written a damned novel on a hat, we'll move on. Went with the Little Brothers, the Boyfriend and the Uncle to the city yesterday. Uncle Cal and us have a long standing tradition of going to the city or somewhere else and have a little shopping spree. Uncle Cal isn't married, and has no kids, so he likes to spoil us a little sometimes. He is really awesome, both as a uncle and as a person, so we all absolutely adore spending time with him. Anywho, so we were on South Street, as is our wont, and of course I had to stop at a yarn shop. Loop would have been my preference, but it's very out of the way from the main of South Street, and I wasn't about to have everyone trudge down the street for 30-45 minutes in the rain. So we went to Nangellini. Don't get me wrong, I like Nangellini, I just sort of wanted to get a workhorse yarn, and Loop is better at "normal" yarns in solid colors. But I wasn't about to let that stop me. I got three skeins/hanks/thingies of yarn. First was a skein of Frabjous Fibers recycled sari silk. This is not normally the kind of yarn that I would purchase, but Uncle Cal was very intrigued by both the idea and the execution. He really liked the fact that it was spun by a woman's cooperative. Did I mention that he's a bit of a hippie? So, he heartily approved the splurge it was. The color is just beautiful. I can't really capture it with the camera. It's very saturated and just extremely beautiful. The second was a hank of fingering weight merino. It's from Kraemer yarns, in a 450 yard put up. The label just says "Superwash Merino Wool," so I think it's their Lesley yarn, as opposed to Jeannie. The 450 yard put up seems to be unusual, though. It's from their undeyed collection, and I'm looking forward to trying my hand and Kool-Aid dyeing. It's lovely and soft. And last, I picked up some Noro Kureyon. I know it's sort of a yarn du jour, well trodden path, etc. But a lot of times, things are popular for a reason. I know to expect that it's scratchy, but the color is just so lovely. I got colorway 40, "aqua teal." I'm thinking of using it in some colorwork with a solid. It will both look lovely and stretch the one skein farther. It is, in a word, gorgeous. I love the color. Mix it with a white or a black, maybe? It would look lovely against a neutral like that.

Oh, and my Aunt Grace gave me some of her old needles. They're all straight needles, and seem to be 14 inchers. 9 pairs of bamboo, different sizes, and two pair of metal ones. They're certainly more than a few years old but should serve me well.

*ahem* So, as you can see, there's been a lot of knitterly activity here. Or, maybe not a lot of activity, but there's sure as hell a lot of enthusiasm. I've also been listening to Florence + The Machine on repeat since last night, and am enjoying the crap out of it. If you got this far, congradu-freaking-lations, and thanks. I don't think I would read my own verbal diarrhea if I were someone else. Sometimes I just get a little over enthusiastic.

Fetching

So, Flamingo Swing is currently on a bit of a hiatus. I think I needed to make something with good old fashioned worsted weight to get back into the swing of things. I tell you, I don't see how lace knitters use laceweight all the time. It would drive me bonkers. So, I've started a pair of Fetching. I know, I know, everyone and their cat has knit it, but I finally found a use for fingerless gloves; when I go back to school, (which, when I put it that way, sounds like a long way off, but it's really Monday), I'll be in the computer lab at least some part of the day, taking notes in some part of the day, and fumbling with my iPod the rest of it. All activities that require more dexterity than mittens provide. So, a pair of fingerless mitts it is. Looking through the project pages, most of them looked too chunky, even those knit in a DK weight. Fetching looked appropriately delicate, though. See, I have small hands and skinny wrists. I didn't want something giant and chunky, because that just doesn't work for me. So I decided on Fetching even though I hate to go with what everyone else has knit already. You know, sometimes things are popular for a reason. Also, the cabling should look nice with the Dean Street hat and mittens I've done already.

The write up on Knitty made me laugh a little, though. And I quote: "If you have never tried knitting cables before, this would be an excellent project to start with. The cable pattern is simple, and if you make a mistake and end up having to rip out some rows, it shouldn't take you long to catch up." Seems reasonable, until you realize that this pattern is in the round. It's like, hey, if 4 needles aren't enough for you, try 5! It's been a bit of a pisser with all that, but I have found a decent way to do it. See, the Yarnstorming people (a group who send out yarn and whatnot to those who can't really afford it) sent me three DPNs. First, only three. Second, I have no clue what size they are because I don't own a gauge. (Not that I'm not super grateful for their generosity, don't get me wrong.) So, I'm knitting Fetching on three DPNs of unknown size and one size six circular that I'm using as a fourth DPN. Who knows if they'll fit, because as we all know:

The neat thing about this arrangement, though, is that I can use the other end of the circular as a cabling needle. It makes things a bit easier, but I still maintain that cabling in the round is a giant pain in the ass and any first time cabler attempting it might be scared off forever.

The yarn I'm using is Ella Rae Classic Superwash. It's a nice, moderately soft, moderately plied worsted weight. I've already made a hat and mittens with it, so I suppose everything will coordinate. The important thing here is superwash, though. The minute I proudly don these mitts is also the day I decide to get coffee. And we all know what happens with coffee; it loves to spill. Add this to the fact that I have the dexterity and grace of a drunken toddler, and superwash becomes deathly important.

In other news, I've downloaded the first season of Star Trek: Voyager, and watched the first two episodes last night. I missed Trek the first time around, but it ain't gonna happen again! I like the crew of this one, (save that tart, Seven of Nine. Not that it's her fault, you know, being FANSERVICE and all) so it oughta be fun.

Why Do I Suck So Much?

So, the extra bit of stockinette on the Flomit socks was annoying the crap out of me, so I frogged them. In other words, both of my WIPs, gone. In a day. I've really been batting a thousand lately, haven't I? Well, I wasn't really enamored of the pattern anymore either, so maybe it was for the best.

So, I trolled Ravelry for good sock patterns and decided on the Sunday Swing socks. The only problem is that these are sized socks. So, first, I had to find a photo that demonstrated how far the socks came up, and then measured around that part of the leg. I've always been awful with guessing distance and other spatial trivialities, so this was actually pretty hard for me, not to mention a gigantic pain in the ass. This done, I found that I should be making a large. ...A large? Me? Now, you don't know me, but I've never been a large in anything, ever. Clothes have always been too big on me. (By the way, don't read this as a knock on people larger than me. It's totally not; I'm just trying to better illustrate my absolute confusion. I think sizeism is a big problem in our society.) So, anyway, I start looking at my leg, and realize that my calves are quite plump. Okay, doesn't bother me. The only problem is that I have tiny chicken ankles! So, will they fit? Stay tuned to find out.

The Sunday Swing pattern is one made specifically for variegated sock yarns. It was written by Kristel Nyberg and featured in the Summer 09 issue of Knitty. By the by, I love Knitty. If you don't know about it, it's a free online pattern mag. Besides the patterns being free, they usually also come in a variety of sizes, which is important, considering women both big and small need stylish clothing and patterns. It warms my cold little heart. Also, the fact that a pattern is even in Knitty serves as a sort of quality control. If it's in there, it's probably good and relatively free of errors. Anyway, here's a photo of the socks from the magazine, on the right:
Nice, right? I think they look pretty good, and should look good in the pink. I'm hoping for a pair of socks that look nice with flats. (I hate to not wear socks with flats if I'm in long pants. Chalk it up to a personal neurosis.) The pattern is charted, and this is my first time working from a chart. Let's hope it goes well!

In other, not knit related news, today I mourn the passing of Senator Ted Kennedy. Of course, I started a Rav thread when I heard about it, and it's already a shitstorm It's got the little "heated discussion" guy at the top. You know, many people make mistakes, grave mistakes, awful mistakes in their lives. I'd wager Ted did much more to atone himself than others. What I find funny about this is that the people badmouthing him benefited from legislation he wrote or pushed for. Like, lady, don't you see what he did for you? It's ridiculous. But, I'll miss Senator Kennedy. Paraphrasing a friend here: He was a man of privilege who chose to be a man of the people. And for that, he has my admiration. RIP.

Wisp and Sock the Second

So, right now I'm working on my first lace project, a Wisp for my friend's mother, Mrs. F. It's looking alright. A shitty picture for your perusal on the left. Yeah, I'm too lazy to go outside and take a nice one. Probably a bad way to start a blog, right? I'm sure that I'll do better from now on. I've christened this project Lucy Snowe because I've recently finished Villette by Charlotte Brontë and have been thinking it over. What a depressing book, right? After poor Lucy finally finds love, her love SPOILER drowns at sea. I mean, how sad is that? I also loved the book for it's look into a woman's role at the time. It reminded me a little bit of Jane Eyre, understandably, but infinitely more depressing. At least Jane finally marries and finds happiness. Lucy is alone. But, I suppose you could make an argument that she finally discovers her own self worth, which brings its own kind of happiness. For a woman of the time, though, spinsterhood seems like an awful fate. Anyway, the pink of this mohair (why yes, PINK MOHAIR; it's Louet Kid Mohair, a 70% mohair 30% nylon blend) reminds me of Lucy's pink dress that she wears to the theatre. I'm finding the knitting easy, mostly, but also annoying. My needles aren't too pointy and it's a pain in the ass with the laceweight. I'm also ending up with 44 stitches instead of 46, but I'm too lazy to rip back. If it wants to be 44, it'll be 44 then.

My second project on the needles is a pair of screaming pink socks, affectionately named the Flomit socks. Flomit=flamingo vomit. My little brother helpfully suggested that a flamingo's vomit would be more of an orange color, but I like my portmanteau too much to change it now. It's hardly sophistictated, but we don't need to be so stately and dignified all the time, do we? Check out this pink action ---------->
Hot, right? The pattern is Tidepool Socks by Mary-Heather Cogar and the yarn is Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in the Flamingo colorway. By the way, I adore Lorna's Laces. I knit my only other pair of socks with it, and god it is great. Makes a comfortable sock with beautiful colorways. Some people say it's not stretchy enough, but I learned on cotton dishcloths. Stretchy enough for me!

So, that's what's on the needles right now. What are you knitting, reading, eating, verbing at the moment?