Help me.

Here is the front of Allegra after having just done the tie-twist. Knitting the front took a lot of effort up to this point, and now that I'm at this point, I'm totally not into this piece anymore. After all that work, it just looks unsatisfyingly...weird. I've had so much stop and go with Allegra that now I'm thinking we just weren't meant to be, so though I loathe to do it, I'm dumping it. Sorry dude.

What do we think of this bolero jacket, from the new Debbie Bliss Simply Soft. I saw this last week at WEBS, didn't buy it, but have been thinking about it everyday. It uses the new Cashmerino Chunky, and I definitely want to have something in Cashmerino. This would be perfect for the chilly to really cold weather transition.

What I do not definitely want is to pay $16 for a so-so book with hard-to-read instructions for that one pattern I want. So um if anyone who has a copy of Simply Soft um wants to do a one-for-one pattern swap, like a copy of the bolero jacket for a copy of one pattern from whatever books I have, so that I don't have to buy the entire book, DO NOT (as in please DO) give me a shout.

Woo! I have a name!
And it's not Mona Lisa

Hey! I have ID'd the ubiquitous knit model. Aren't you excited, because now I can finally shut up about it. I found another blog that was wondering the same thing, and the answers were the same, different but funny to me, identical in the difference: she's Pam Allen's daughter, she's some relative, no she's a good friend, no her name is Christina Allen, no her name is Caitlin Fitzgerald. I had to find out once and for all.

So. I got caught in a sudden rainstorm while in Harvard Square on Friday, ducked into the bookstore and decided to do some sleuthing. In America Knits(aka Knitting in America, circa 1996), there is a contribution by Pam Allen, and her "daughter Caitlin" is modeling the piece. The girl looks about 10, 11 years old in the photo, sporting an open-mouthed smile. Ah, so it starts young. The grown-up Caitlin does only Mona Lisa smiles, and even though the hair looked exactly the same, you still couldn't be sure if it was the same girl.

I grabbed another book next to it, Weekend Knitting, and boo yah wouldn't you know it, there she was again. I think the editor was the same as for America Knits, and again Pam Allen had a few contributions. I flipped to the acknowledgment section in the front or back hoping to find names of the models used, and noticed one "Caitlin FitzGerald." It had to be her. Crikey does she have to model in everything her mother does? I'm starting to get a little annoyed/jealous at this point.

I took Scarf Style off the shelf, found the acknowledgments, and there was CF again.

Thus my super powerful skills of deduction leads me to positively say that the girl we see here and there and everywhere is Caitlin FitzGerald, daughter of Pam Allen. I'm guessing she's probably 20, 21, and does not color her hair. And that's the scoop. THE END.

Another reason to love summer besides ice cream is summer cocktails. We're big boozers here, and during the summer, the mint out back is flourishing (mint is scary aggressive like a weed, but a weed we're happy to have around). So in addition to the requisite glass of wine or pale ale at dinner, our livers are working overtime to break down the vast amounts of mojitos and mint juleps we're knocking back. Yeah!

The mighty mint julep

Growing up in the South I had always thought mint juleps, along with Coca-Cola, as one of them Refreshing Southern Drinks for Civilized Ladies, Particularly Those from the Civil War Era Who Wore Petticoats and Owned Slaves. I thought it was some special kind of lemonade. Excluding the slave part, everything about a mint julep screamed Southern gentility and charm.

That was until I actually had one. We were 19 and my friend and I drove to Louisiana JUST after they increased the drinking age from 18 to 21, but that didn't stop us from trying to get ourselves into any bar in the French Quarter. Eventually the popular Pat O' A Brien?slet us in without checking our ID's (suckers!). I ordered a mint julep and ah yes when it came, in a tall hurricane glass, stuffed with mint and icy condensation beading along the side, it looked delicious and refreshing and exactly how I had pictured a mint julep to be. I took a big long swig, and gagged. Coughed, choked, eyes watering, nearly died. Southern ladies drank THIS?! That liquid swirling like an oil slick in between the sprigs of mint was 110% straight up bourbon. In a decidedly non-genteel and suddenly vulgar HURRICANE glass. I kept at it anyway, hoping the more I drank the more I'd like it, when really the more I drank, the more my vision blurred, the more I felt like I had been conned. Mint julep, you were supposed to be dainty.

The back of Allegra. Underneath is my first attempt at the back, in the petite size that's still too large.

Back to knitting. I've finished the back of Allegra and am in the middle of the front. Pictures of the front to come. It's a very interesting construction. I had to read the instructions a million times to understand it. I like having a preview of the outcome in my head before I actually do it, but it turns out if I had just followed the instructions as written it would have all fallen into place.

The back piece has a little hole smack dab in the middle, of course. It was an errant yarn-over. I noticed it maybe only 5 rows after the hole was made, but did I rip back to do it over? No. Am I stupid? Yes. This hole is going to be SO noticeable when the piece is on and stretched. I will figure out a way to sew the hole shut later.

This weekend we were in western Mass for a birthday party. We stopped at WEBS, the most glorious discount yarn store on the East Coast, and ladies and gentlemen, I came out of there EMPTY HANDED.  I had loaded up my basket with some DB Cashmerino and Classic Elite Lush (it's not even on their website yet), but had nothing specific in mind for any of them. So, after wandering around asking myself Do I want or do I need? I put them all back.

Now matter how reluctant I was to walk out of there with nothing, at the end of the day I dislike stashing. It's a pretty recent discovery. I find myself getting stressed out about yarn that's just sitting there, continuing to be a yarn ball and not a sweater. And I know myself. Unless I will cast on within 5 minutes of bringing the yarn home, chances are, I won't use it. Chances are, I won't love it anymore. Then it becomes backup, or something you feel you need to get rid of, and I want to treat my yarn much more nicely than that.

It's weird the things that drive me nuts (yarn stash) and the things that don't (extra YO hole in sweater). I think most people are the exact opposite.

The pros about being a contractor are many: flexible hours, better pay, no office politics, no pressure of having to be on some "career track." The cons about being a contractor are too few to mention. I'm even ok with paying health care out-of-pocket.

But there is one con that has me a little sore. I didn't get to partake in the company summer outing which went something like this: catered seafood lunch; yachting in Newport, RI; clambake dinner; dj and dancing; hotel rooms for that one too many drink. I am shocked at the extravagance during a non-dotcom era that resembles more like a millionaire daughter's wedding than a corporate outing. Goddamn. I've always wanted to do a clambake!!! And I love sailing! I love Newport! And I love love love to drink free booze!

Also since I missed the outing I missed the announcement that went out telling everyone to stay at home the next day (today), so when I came into the office this morning I was all, "Bueller....Bueller...Bueller...?" Sigh. There is no love for the contractor.

With my sudden free time today I finished Harry Potter.

Blossom's OSW came in the mail yesterday. It was too small for her, she offered to give it away, and I kindly accepted the offer. I too however found that it was too small for me.

But it wasn't too small for a certain fiery-haired beauty...

And I'm breaking my No Knitting For Me, Only Knitting for You vow. I'm disappointed in myself but hardly surprised. I did start on a few baby pieces and they seem to be going pretty quickly, and since it's still blazing hot outside I thought, I could totally squeeze in one more summer piece before the season's over.

So Allegra, I'm comin' back for you and this time I mean to finish you up and finish you up good.

Comparing the width of Allegra to the width of my favorite perfect-fit tank. Look at that!

I started this back in May and have been starting/stalling on it ever since, because I had more than an inkling that it was going to be monster big on me, despite knitting it in the smallest size. But I was loathe to make any sizing adjustments. The pattern motif is too involved and I was too lazy to re-plot. So what does one do when one cannot make one's mind up? Keep on knitting, just keep on knitting! Yes it's too big but if you just Keep On Knitting the piece will magically shrink or you will magically grow to magically fit you perfectly!

Anyway I made my adjustments to the back and cut the width back by more than 3 inches. The adjustments to the front is going to be so so gross, but I'll think about it when I get there. The goal is to finish this within the month. And THEN I will concentrate on baby stuff only, yes. I will.

"I hate you."

Many thanks for all the positive comments left about Dianne! Maybe I should give it to one of you so she can be appreciated more. It's true we're our own worst critics, especially if we have it stuck in our minds that it's going to turn out a certain way. I do prefer my tops to be more fitted, the smaller the better, not because there's anything I'd like to show off, but because I don't have anything to show off. If it's loose, if there are one too many air pockets, then I'm walking around looking like a small leafless tree covered in burlap. I can't be wearing anything that looks more like it's wearing me than I'm wearing it, know what I mean?

Anyway I'm hoping my mom will appreciate it more, because that's where Dianne's going.

So here's what I got going on in the project queue:

"Allegra" aka Twist Top, from AV Spring 05
I started this several weeks ago and have only done several inches. The yarn I'm using is AV Allegra, which consists of cotton with a thread of shimmery nylon running through it. The elasticity the nylon gives is great.

I'm pretty sure the front of this pattern is going to make me wish I never chose to do it, even though it's the very reason why I am doing it.

"Coral Tank" aka Top with Lace Pattern, from Rebecca 29
I was in the mood for something lacy and started this on a whim. I'm using Cotton Fleece in terracotta, and hoping I will need only the 2 skeins I bought and no more. I'm making this one shorter.

This style I normally wouldn't bat two lashes at, but I've been seeing A LOT of open knits in all kinds of styles - shrugs, ballet wraps, cardigans, belts - and I guess the trend is growing on me. Plus lace is more interesting to knit. Plus it'll look cute with a visible and obvious camisole underneath. Unlike that model, I have nipples. But I'm squinting at the photo now and perhaps she's wearing a nude tube top...which is just as bad as showing your nipples because now you're inviting others to wonder if you are truly nippleless or if you're wearing a nude tube top and already way too much speculating has been done.