A Week To Go!

I can't believe the festival starts a week from tomorrow! I am so excited! I'm starting to compile my lists of vendors I want to see, projects to shop for and things to do. To actually do some "social" knitting stuff, I plan on heading over to the Knitbloggers Ball coordinated by Mama-E. It should be a blast! Lolly and I are also planning a more "relaxed" meet up on Monday night at a local Panera (yum!). I am looking forward to a busy but at the same time relaxing and fiber filled weekend!

I got a few inches done on the TDLPR (Top Down Linen Print Raglan - have to find a better name for that thing!) and I think the gauge and "holeyness" will work well with a cami or long sleeve tshirt underneath (which is what I was aiming for). I didn't want to do too much to aggravate my wrist, so I just did a little.

On the needle front, I am always amazed by the speed and response of this knitblog community. I posted an "in search of" topic on the forums over at Knitters Review and within a few hours, I had people willing to sell me both sizes of needles! How unbelievable is that! It is just crazy that someone out there was willing to get rid of exactly the size I was looking for! So, 40" #0 and 32" #1 Addi's are streaming my way as we speak. I'm anxious to try them out on the Lorna's that has been sadly sitting and staring at me since I got it......

Someone (it was a no-response, so I couldn't respond! One frustrating thing about blogger....)posted a comment about the cone of Henry's Attic I got - I haven't divided it up yet, but I plan on making it into 4 4oz skeins. The yarn is heavier than most fingerings (it looks pretty big compared to Lorna's) - you can see a great comparison here. She has so many sock yarns, it was great to see them side by side. I got the cone through a co-op run by this yahoo group. I don't think they are taking new members, but you could get on the waiting list I think. Anyway, I plan on doing some semi solids and maybe some varigated - haven't really decided. I have to buy some dye. I plan on using the "real" stuff this time to get some nice, rich, true color. Another thing to add to the Maryland list!

Knitter Down

My wrist has really been bothering me the past few days. It was a sudden onset, not while I was doing anything, but any kind of pinching or gripping activity really bothers it. So, I have not done any (gasp!) knitting the past few nights. I did manage to capture a shot of the progress so far on Clapotis:

The colors are really pretty, and you can't even tell when I started the 2nd ball of yarn. The ridges it creates by using the pearl stitches as "markers" are neat (almost makes me want to keep it this way!)
The yarn tends to stick to the needles a bit, so I wasn't even going to tempt fate and try to knit a little on it. I still have the 6 increase rows to do after my 5 full sets. I'm wondering if I have to do those...I'll broswe the boards and see if I can come up with an answer.

The Linen Print Top Down Raglan (LPTDR) has actually gotten to the swatch stage! I tried it on 10.5's, 11's and 13's. The 13's were just too lacy. So, the 11's it was. I'm getting about 16/4" (how they got 12/4 I have no idea - even on 13's I was still at 14/4 and it was really holey), so I started the fun part (seriously - I love math and calculations and diagrams - scary, huh?) I have my basic plan. I'm using the Raglan Sweater Pattern from Knitting from the Top and tweaking it just a little. It uses double increases instead of the Kfb, slip marker, Kfb. I have always liked the look of the Kfb increases, and I think the prettyness of the double increases she lists in the book (all 10 of them!) will be lost on my chunky, printed yarn. I'll have to try and see.

I'm browsing my sock books to find a pattern for hubby other than K3P1 rib. He is begging for another pair, and he says he will wear any pair I make him, no matter what color or pattern. Being nice, I figure the orangey CTH potluck I got will work just fine. I plan on getting some more "manly" colors in Maryland next week. (oh my gosh! It's next week!!!!!!) I know I need a bunch of solid colors as well (or almost solids) as there are lots of beautiful stitch patterns out there waiting to be made! Aija has posted so many skeins of new sock yarn she's acquired in the past month she has made my head spin! (just look at her past few entries!) All the colors and brands - she has given me lots to look for when I'm down in Maryland.......I can't wait!!!

Clap On!

(Stupid Blogger!! After trying to publish this weenie little post for a while now, it looks like it may have finally worked!)

I made some decent progress on Clapotis this weekend. I think I may only do 4 of the 6 repeats for the increase rows - I will never wear it as a wrap/shawl, and I only have about 425 yds of yarn. Then I can make it nice and long. The yarn is a bit of a pain - it is very splitty and has a ton of plies, so I have to be careful not to split the yarn. Other than that, it is pretty mindless knitting at this point.

I think I am going to make the plunge and order some Addi circulars from this Ebay seller. He has rave reviews from both the folks at KR and Knitty. He only has 32", but that is the length I used to make my Jawyalkers, and it seemed just fine for me. The 40" I just used for my dad's socks seemed like a lot of extra cord. I plan on getting a #0 and #1 while I'm there - may as well. They are kind of "inbetween" US sizes, so this way I can find what works for the yarn I have. I know the Lorna's Laces I got needs at least a #1 if not a #0. I'm anxious to compare the cords to circulars I've used before.

Any suggestions for Lorna's Jungle Stripe yarn? It makes skinny stripes (as seen here) so I'm not sure what kind of pattern (if any) would distract or show it off. The thought of pure stockinette socks kind of makes me shudder with boredom. Something like these maybe? I absolutely love the purple and green together!

I did a ton of training with the dogs this weekend. It was great. Tucker is getting more and more excited to run the courses, and Otis is learning to turn tighter and collect himself up to get more control. I can't wait until our next trial in May!

PS - What the heck happened to spring? It was about 70 last week, and the high today is supposed to be 45!!! New England strikes again!

Did I miss it??

A shocker, I know, but I actually sat down and started something last night! I'm still waiting for a few books to come in from the library to get my Linen Print pullover started (Knitting from the Top and Knitting in the Round) so I needed something to do in the meantime. Enter Clapotis.....

I grabbed the hand dyed lambswool/angora blend that came from the frogged thrift store yarn. Perfect! I got out my needles and did a little swatch to see how the colors would knit up.
Liking the result, I forged forward. Until I hit section 2, that is. It says to "knit to last marker". Am I supposed to have more than one?? I know I have seen pictures of Clapotis' in progress and have seen many a marker in place. In section 1 of the directions, it only instructs you to place a marker once. I totally feel like I missed something in this pattern that has been done probalby a trillion times by everyone but me.

Being that it was getting late, I figured I'd find the answers I needed in a good nights sleep and a browse of the 'net the next day versus combing over the directions another fifty times. So, here I am. Any help from previous Clapotis makers out there? Did I just forget to read something? I think I am a pretty smart knitter - I figured out cables, intarsia, socks and fair isle. No pattern scares me. Except this one......

Edited to add: Yes, I did miss it. A good nights sleep and several more reads through the pattern caused my eyes to glance upon the little "pm" on row 14 of the first section. Sigh. Now I can move on.

Feeling a little lost

The toe up socks for dad are done!

My first toe up socks, and the first short row toes and heels that worked!

I will be making this pattern again - it is very versatile, and easy!

At this point, I have nothing on the needles at all! I feel like I'm wandering without a destination in sight. I have my new sock yarn, but I don't have a needle small enough to use on them (my smallest right now is a #2). I may have to just bite the bullet and get one before Maryland. The LYS is waaaaaay on the other side of the city from where I work, and there is no good way of getting there. I'll see if I have any spare time - but I doubt it. Or, maybe I can get hubby to stop there on his way home from classes tomorrow.

In desperation of having something to do, I swatched the Linen Print that I have in the very pretty "Crush" colorway. I started on size 10's, knowing the recommended gauge was 12 sts/4" on a #11, and I usually have to go down a needle size anyway. I got a whopping 16 sts/4"! So, I grabbed the #11 Denises (they felt so amazingly huge after doing socks!) and did a swatch with those - I got down to 14 sts/4". Sigh. I really, really do not want to use #13's. They are just too big. Plus, the fabric off of the #11's was pretty drapey/lacy already, so I don't want to go any bigger. I think I will try the 11's again and see what happens. I am planning an extremely simple, in the round, V-Neck sweater with hopefully 3/4 or long sleeves for spring. On 11's it should get done pretty quick. I have 13 balls, (about 780 yards) so there isn't a lot I can do with it, but my original idea was Anna - very simple, and I had enough yarn. I'm not sure I like the ribbing at the bottom and on the cuffs, but that is simple enough to remedy! But, getting gauge will be a challenge. I may just have to adjust the pattern if I come close. I may take the base of Anna, and throw in a form of the Cloud V-Neck. Probably not with the ribbing though - just a simple one with maybe crochet edging or something.

So, more swatching today, and hopefully I can start this thing!

Another knitless weekend

How frustrating. Another whole weeekend gone in the blink of an eye, with no knitting done at all. I was so busy travelling and working that by the time I got home at night, I could barely keep my eyes open. I did bring the sock with me to work today, and hope to get a good hour in at lunch. This is getting ridiculous!

I joined a new web ring that was set up for all those Nancy Bush fans. There are several KAL's out there for each of her books - Knitting on the Road, Folk Socks and Knitting Vintage Socks. This will hopefully be a nice way to unite them all and see tons of great socks!

Looking towards the Future (and Maryland!)

So, with my recent slump in the sweater knitting department (seems like I'm not the only one) I took a look at the list of sock patterns I'd like to make, or ones that struck my fancy. There were quite a few......

Here's the list, from top to bottom, left to right:
Potamus
River Rapids
Springgrass
Straight Laced
Mata Hari
Love me Knot
Mock Crocs
Lava Flow
Holly's Lace
Broken Cable Rib (IK Subscriber only pattern)
Crooked Cable
Falling Leaves
Broadripple
Wyvern
Yukon Leaves
Pretty Comfy Socks
Ocean Socks
More Fun Than Cables
Errant Ankles Lace Socks
Unst
Norwegian Stockings
Latvian Socks
Gentlemans Fancy Sock
Conwy
Childs First Sock
Canal Du Midi
Gentlemans Sock with Lozenge Pattern
Bed Socks
Hedera
Country Socks

Not too shabby for a seemingly new sock knitter! I do think I need some nice solid sock yarn to show off some of those great patterns in the mosaic.

Yes, I did swatch and come up with gauge for Mariah, but I'm just not feeling the sweater love right now. Maybe it's the warmer weather today, maybe it's my current distaste for all my clothes in general right now - either way, I just think it's not the smartest move to start a sweater (especially one like Mariah that will need both my enthusiasm and attention) when the mojo isn't there. I'd be asking for trouble and future frogging.

So, I will stick to the things that I feel happy about and want to work on. Socks, a hat out of my hand dyed yarn from a few weeks back (ooh - maybe with earflaps!) and looking forward to Maryland in 4 weeks. There is no need to think I have to have a sweater or large knitting project on the needles at all. Granted, since I started knitting one year and three months ago, I thought I'd always want to work on sweaters and larger items, I've changed, my knitting has changed, my amount of free time has changed. So, my knitting has adapted and evolved into smaller, more portable things. I like that I am now comfortable with a short row heel and toe (the Wendy one, anyway!) and want to venture into some lace sock knitting.

Knitting skills can expand without expanding the size of your project!

I still have to get a picture of the boys with their first little ribbons. We have some things to work on for the next trial we are entering in May. Weave poles and rear crosses are tops on the practice list right now!

Back to Reality

We got back last night from our first trial in New York. Both boys did really well - I am so proud of them! I didn't end up knitting a stitch even though I brought dad's sock along. It was just too busy, and the trial was in an indoor riding arena, so it was a bit dusty and dirty. I plan on getting back in the swing of things tonight after I tackle all the laundry!

Back to work today. It is supposed to be really nice weather this week, so that at least makes it not as painful to begin another week of work.

Excited and Nervous!

Not too much knitting going on the past few days. I've been trying to squeeze in a few last training sessions with the boys before we are off to our first sanctioned agility trial! They both got baths yesterday, and we have one last training session today before we pack up way too much stuff and head to New York later this afternoon.

Wish us luck! Results and a recap on Monday....

Yes, More Sock Stuff!

I finished toe up sock #1!!

I just kind of winged it and did the length until I thought it was good, then added about an inch of K1P1 ribbing. It is a touch big on me, so it should fit Dad perfectly! I cast on for sock #2 right away - didn't want the temptation of my new sock yarn drawing me in!

More goodies came in the mail yesterday!

A 1 pound cone of Henry's Attic Kona Superwash! It is so soft! Now, I only have to figure out how to divide it up and colors to dye it! I'm hoping I can get three pairs of socks out of it - it is 1120 yards, so about 374 yards each, and a little over 5 ounces. I'll have to query some boards and see what they say. I may wait to dye it until after Maryland Sheep and Wool (have you seen the new logo - too cute!) as we are thinking of getting some dyes there.

On to sock #2!

McButton!

Found this over on Amy's blog, Good To Be Girl:


Glad to see I'm not the only one!

All socks, all the time!

(can you tell my recent trend?)

Thanks for all the great comments on the stash! It was fun taking it all out and seeing what I had - now I just have to come up with the motivation and ideas to use it all! I also cruised around and checked out some other people's stashes - my jaw dropped at some of them. The sheer size and range of yarns/colors was amazing! I really liked doing this, and still have quite a few blogs left to check out!

I made some great progress on Dad's toe up socks - I am just about to the ribbing on the leg of the first one, then I can start #2.


I really like how the ribbing looks (K3P1)

and my short row heel!

I also added to the sock stash (which was non-existent) thanks to Leanne over at Happyfroggyknits. I grabbed some sock yarn I've been drooling over for quite some time!

from l to r: Cherry Tree Hill potluck brights, Lorna's Jungle Stripe and Lorna's Daffodil

Everyone is so right. They are all buttery soft and spun nice and firmly. I can't wait to start knitting with them! I do need a pair of #1 circ's before I can start. The smallest I have is #2's and I don't think they'll produce a tight enough fabric with these yarns. Now I have to decide on patterns!
And, since the weather was soooooo nice this weekend I got to do some agility training outside. It was nice to be able to be out in the sun playing with the boys! I really think spring is finally here! (the boys gleefully agree!)