Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Well. Summer's officially over. I've given up hope of having those final few days of unexpected, uncomfortable heat before I started pulling out the sweaters - I HATE pulling out the sweaters - but it looks like it's not to be. Haven't seen the sun in days, and tomorrow October comes. Already! As much as I like wearing my handknit socks, I choose you, flip-flops. I choose you.
Here is one last homage to summer, when we let Bunny out on the roof, supervised. His pink rabbit nose went into overdrive smelling all those outdoorsy city scents. I think he had a nice time up there. As did I.
Filed Under: Cats | Life
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
I recently finished up my Red Socks, just in time to wear during the post-season.
I used the always scrumptious Sundara Sock Yarn in colorway called Claret over Scarlet. Love.
I made up the pattern as I went along. I cast some stitches with the red yarn, did a corrugated rib with the white yarn, and then did some form of ribbing with the red yarn, and then I when I came to the heel I used the white yarn, but then red for the foot, and then last but not least, went back to white with the toes. Et voila, Red Socks! How's that for a description?
They are slightly too large. I am wearing them now and even as I sit here in front of the computer, unmoving for the last 10 hours straight, they are sliding down and bunching around the ankles. I should have used a purl gutter rather than a garter so that the fabric pulls in more. Other than that, these socks kick ass.
Filed Under: Completed Projects | Socks | Red Sox
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Bunny wears the scarf I made using Sundara Yarn Fingering Silky Merino in Winter Skies.
For the first time in known history, he was not a very cooperative model. The photoshoot disintegrated very quickly.
 
Bunny is so mad that even from this blurry shot you can tell that green fire is shooting out of his eyes.
I'll get you next time, you wascally wabbit!
Filed Under: Cats | Completed Projects
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Pattern: Rambling Rose Cardigan by Laura Zukaite, from Interweave Knits Winter 2006
Started: January 2008
Yarn: 2 skeins Socks That Rock heavyweight each in Haida and Pond Scum (with plenty yardage leftover)
Needles: US 5 circulars
I wore RR out in public last night! And I got a million compliments! OK all of them came from Duck. In response to my repeated questioning. It's been ages since I've worn a handknit out in public - so sad - so I was feeling a little self-conscious, or something. That and the fact that Pond Scum is so very grellow, which I was totally into. I mean I still am. But when I stepped outside it became all RAR I'M GRELLOW RAR! and I got a little scared brandishing the grellowness about out in public so blatantly. It is very grellow right? That's sort of a hard color to wear.
But don't listen to me, because at the end of the day I love my RR and am thrilled with the way it turned out. It fits me to a T. I went down a needle size which I always do. The biggest modification was to make it longer, and to omit the intarsia scallop ribs from the body and the sleeves. I found the scallops to be a little much. Also, I was too lazy to knit them.
Of course there is that huge mistake of knitting a leaf motif repeat extra on the left front that on the right front, and seaming it all up before I realized what happened. I cried for about ten minutes and then I didn't care. Because unless you're looking for it, you won't notice anything's amiss. I did remove the 3rd button from the bottom, so that when I button up the entire cardigan, I could just sort of tuck the extra fabric underneath the button band, and there would be no extra buttons dangling by itself. There are some other mistakes I made here and there when knitting the intarsia but again, it's not there if you don't see it. (But from the photos below you probably will!)
Knitting the yoke in intarsia I will say was a pain in the freaking ass. I wouldn't do it again. Knitting in the yoke as written avoids having to seam, sure fine. But this is a cardigan, so you'd only have to seams the sleeves onto the body anyways. And having to seam raglan sleeves (which is what they are), the easiest of all sleeves to seam, is 10000% easier than having to manage 9 separate bobbins of yarn while you knit 200+ stitches back and forth. Then when you finally make it out alive, there are all the ends to weave in. I did not enjoy that process one bit, and if was done all to avoid seaming, then the yoking wasn't worth it for me. Otherwise, as first-time intarsia knitter, knitting intarsia was easy and a lot of fun.
So that's it! My first finished sweater of the year - better late than never! So thanks for sticking around to hear the end of the long and bumpy tale of the Rambling Rose...
THE END
Filed Under: Completed Projects | Rambling Rose
Monday, September 08, 2008
I spotted my first real-life praying mantis yesterday while talking to my mom on the phone. It was walking across the fire escape outside the kitchen window. I hung up on her so I could take a photo. I made the "ts! ts! ts!" sound that I do with the cats to get their attention, and it apparently works for bugs too. It swiveled its head a perfect 90 degrees in a slow, fluid motion and looked me straight in the eyes.
HEEBIE JEEBIES!
Filed Under:
Friday, September 05, 2008
Thank you everyone for your kind condolences regarding my pinheaded mistake of knitting Rambling Rose in different lengths. Thank you. It lessened the pain. And then my non-perfectionist tendencies lessened it more. Or maybe it was laziness. Pragmatic laziness, though. I could have fixed it but then, life is too short to worry about asymmetry, you know? I'm asymmetric by design anyways - my right foot is slighter longer than my left, fingers on right hand longer than those on the left, right eye more myopic than the left eye, etc. It's all good.
As soon as the weather cools I'll do some proper model shots. I've got it all figured out. It needs to be a layered look. But it's so hot for that right now! I love it! Go summer go! Just a little bit longer please...
In the meantime I started a pair of Red Sox for myself. I made a pair a couple of years ago for a family member - and posted about them exactly two years ago, huh! - but I'm doing it a little differently this time by adding corrugated ribbing for the cuff so it looks more closely like the socks on the official logo. I made up the pattern as I went along, nothing crazy.
The yarn is Sundara Yarn in a beeeeyooootiful color called Claret over Garnet (.or maybe it's the other way around? Can't remember) and some undyed yarn for the heel/toe. I have this feeling these socks will only be drycleaned, or not cleaned at all. Once the cuffs turn pink they can no longer be deemed Red Sox. And I would cry.
Filed Under: Rambling Rose | Socks | Red Sox
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Yeah that's right! I knit one leaf repeat too many on one side, and am only discovering it NOW when I buttoned the whole FRACKING thing up. Through all the blocking and seaming, I DIDN'T CATCH IT. Up until this very belated realization, I was convinced I had just completed the most flattering, perfect-fitting garment ever known to me. I was about to hand myself a medal. Mouth the words to the national anthem. And then while at the top of my game, retire.
@#$%!*&^%@*&%!!
Filed Under: Rambling Rose
Monday, August 25, 2008
After a 5-month hiatus (FIVE?!) from Rambling Rose, I have finally laid aside my irrational anger towards reknitting the buttonbands.
Rico...Suave...
I've only knitted the left-side buttonband, but considering how LITTLE TIME it took for me to get it done, and to get it done right, I am ashamed of myself and quite embarrassed for waiting this long to do it. Rambling Rose laid crunched up in a plastic bag for all this time, beautiful beautful Rambling Rose please forgive me.
Based on the very helpful comments from this post, I was able to pick up the correct number of stitches for the band. I had a slipped-stitch selvege for the front right and left panels, and had picked up and knit each of those slipped sts for the buttonband. It resulted in major puckering and pulling in of the fabric; clearly my ratio of 1:2 was short; I cried; I swore; I threw it aside in disgust. When all I really had to do was go for a ratio of 2:3 by picking up every slipped stitch, and knitting through the front and back of every other stitch as well (I usually pick up all stitches first, and then knit them. I find the mechanics to be much easier this way).
Worked like a charm! Happy happy joy joy. So the plan is to finish the other buttonband after work today, block tonight, head to the DMV tomorrow in Chinatown to get my license renewed and re-registered to vote (IMPORTANT!), and then stop by Windsor Buttons for the perfect set of buttons, which I will then immediately sew on as soon as I return home. And Rambling Rose at long last will be finished done complete, wheeeee!
Filed Under: Rambling Rose
Thursday, August 21, 2008
I have very little knitting to talk about. I have been day and night dreaming about escaping to Europe. It is a perennial ritual I like to do. It is a little like torture.
Here are some photos from our trip last year to southern France. Who wouldn't want to live nestled at the end of a cobblestoned courtyard? You'd be crazy not to covet a little bit of this.
Ancient town of Les Arcs
How about an evening concert in an ancient amphitheater?
Ancient town of Arles
Or an afternoon at a very nice beach, with a waiter coming around with more pastis?
Ancient town of Nice
Ah me. Always wanting what I don't have.
Filed Under: Thursday is for Favorite Places | Travel
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