Birthday Presents.

Today, I want to show you cool stuff that I DID NOT MAKE!!!!
My birthday was a month and a half ago, but I'm only now getting around to posting pics of the really cool stuff my friends gave me!!

My friend Robin made me this beautiful pin cushion!! It is velvet and beaded and so pretty. I didn't want to put pins in it!!

Thank you Robin!!! I love it.

My friend Julie gave me these note cards (so cool!):


And this pendant:

which, I realized as I was looking at it one day, sort of matches my eye (apologies if pictures of someone's eye grosses you out)

Thank you so much Julie!!


And, my friend Cobi gave me this needle holder (formerly a paint brush holder!) that she stamped:

Thank you so much Cobi!!!

More Christmas Knitting. With Zebras! And Giraffes!

Well, to be truthful, it's ONE Zebra and ONE Giraffe.

So, the secret Christmas sweater has been given and received and I have pictures finally!! I had the idea to knit a hoodie for one of my best friends, Cobi. I wanted it to be cabled somewhat, but couldn't find a pattern that I liked. So, I found a pattern for a plain stocking stitch hoodie and added cables and ribbing.

Pattern: sort of made up, sort of based on a hoodie from Vogue Knitting Summer 04
Yarn: Patons Decor (way softer than I thought it would be!!)

BTW: Cobi, love ya, but seriously, in the middle of this massive amount of cabling, which wasn't hard but just a little time-consuming, somewhere there in the middle i started to wonder if it was worth it. Not a reflection on you, or on our friendship. Just a reflection on the never ending rows of cabling. love ya!!



I completely forgot to take a picture in the daylight on the weekend. You may be able to just make out the cabling. I did a cable rib for the bottom bands and the sleeves and then the cables grew out of the ribbing to form the twisted lattice of the body of the sweater.


Cobi did the thing that makes a knitter's heart rejoice. First she was so excited about the sweater, but then... (you will all be jealous and want my friend to give knit things to) but then, she noticed the cables on the hood AND she commented on them excitedly. Having a non-knitter notice something like the fact that your cables match up on the top of a hood is a wonderful thing.

(It is slightly possible that i'm a bit loopy today. it's been an up and down and up and down kind of day. forgive me if i become too saccharine or melodramatic.)


A rather dim picture, but you can see how happy she looks in her hoodie!! When I got back to work (we did our gift exchange on my lunch break) Cobi emailed me wondering about whether she could get away with wearing it all the time, you know, smell-wise (sorry Cobi. It was just too funny).

Next up: Toques for Cobi's kids.
Not as much fun as the toques from last year (i posted them on craftster here) but they seem to fit okay.



Pattern: Brioche Helmet from IWK Fall 05
Yarn: really soft acrylic, but I can't remember the name of it right now.
I really like this pattern, which uses short rows to shape the ear flaps, but frankly, the decreases at the crown made me swear a lot. The yarn is doubled, plus in the brioche stitch you are doing yarn overs and then knitting the yarn over with it's companion slipped stitch so on the decrease (k3tog) you ended up having 10 strands of yarn to try and work your way through (2 slipped stitches with companion yarn overs and one knit stitch).

I got Melman the Giraffe to pose for me. She was busy chomping on an orange, but she was very happy and kept thanking me.


Marty the Zebra was less enthusiastic about posing for pictures, but everyone knows that zebras are shier than giraffes, so it was to be expected. I did get him, toque on head, with his mom in the hoodie that she may never take off (although it warms my knitterly heart that she would say that, I really really hope she changes her mind there).

Christmas Knitting! For real this time! With Pictures and Everything!!

Alternate Title: Blocking: You Can Do It!!

Christmas Knitting Completed #1
Every year my family picks names among the "grown-ups" for Christmas. I have mixed feelings about this, as it sometimes feels more like it becomes an obligation for my family rather than a chance to give generously or joyously to our loved ones. However, that said, I understand the reason behind it.

So, this year I picked my sister-in-law's name. I was happy about this for several reasons:
1. I knew she would appreciate and, possibly, love a hand made gift.
2. She had asked me to knit her a sweater, way back in September.
3. She picked out a pattern she really liked once when going through my knitting magazines.
4. The pattern she picked out called for chunky weight yarn and US10/6mm needles!!
Yay.

Yarn: Patons Shetland Chunky in a steel grey (I can't find the ball band right now)
Pattern: Cabled Jacket from Vogue Knitting Winter 04/05

Before I show you the sweater, I have a few things to show you:
1. With about 8 rows left in the last sleeve, this is what the yarn did:

There was this really strange over-twisted and then un-twisted and then over-twisted section. I thought I could just knit through it, but it was noticeable. I hate it when there is a really noticeable flaw in the yarn like that! If it had been 100% wool, or handspun I would totally have understood. But this stuff is 75% acrylic!! argh. But I knit on (after joining a new end to this spot. Luckily there was enough left to do this).

Then I began to block. Now, I have a tendency to look for the laziest most expedient way to do things. I should have soaked and pinned the pieces, but this is Christmas time people!! There isn't time!! So, the magic of the steam iron was called upon. And Magic it is.

The 2 sleeves. I think I'm glad I made myself block it!


And the finished jacket. I won't get to see her open it, they aren't able to be with us for Christmas. So, at this point I'm in "I hope she likes it. I hope it fits. I hope this is really what she wanted" mode. I really like seeing people open gifts and I will miss that.


And one final oops to show you:

Can you see the difference between the collar and the jacket? I knew I had one ball from a different dyelot, but it didn't look as noticeable in the store!! I saved it for the collar b/c I figured if it did turn out to be noticeable, it would be less strange on the collar than on a sleeve.

Christmas Knitting Completed #2

So, a few posts ago, I told you about a sweater I had completed for my friend, Julie. Actually, I probably didn't say that it was for Julie. It was. Where was I? Oh, yeah. As I neared completion on the Hourglass Sweater I was knitting Julie for Christmas (in NOVEMBER!! I was WAY ahead!!) I realized that it was a tad small. Like possibly 4 inches less in circumference than it should have been. You know: "a tad". ehem

I kept knitting, finishing the sweater, hoping that maybe it would just magically grow into the size/shape it needed to be. (It was really small. On me, it fit sort of like how a baby-Tshirt fits. Not the look you're going for in the Hourglass sweater!!) I put it aside while I finished my other Christmas knitting. I was mentally preparing myself to frog and re-knit the whole thing. I warned Julie that her gift may be late due to another Christmas Knitting Brain Fart (last year her gift sweater turned out to be a disaster and I ended up knitting a different sweater which she received in the end of January).

So, as I was blocking my sister-in-law's sweater, feeling like I had some sort of blocking magic working for me, I decided to try blocking Julie's hourglass sweater. I had already tried soaking/stretching it, but to no avail. Why did I think that steaming it would work? Well, I didn't. But, I already had the iron steaming and the ironing pad was out and I had nothing to lose as far as the teeny-tiny Hourglass was concerned.


The tape is showing you the width of the sweater at the narrow part of the hourglass shape of the body. It reads "16" As in: 16 inches across. As in: 32 inches around.


Post steam blocking: "18" as in 18 inches across. As in: 36 inches around.
I don't know how I did it. This yarn is 100% acrylic. I have NEVER had acrylic block like this. Maybe it's the yarn, it's not very tightly twisted (my spinning vocabulary is not so expansive). Maybe I had some sort of blocking mojo working for me. Maybe it's a Festivus Miracle!** Either way, it worked. The sweater that was minutes away from a frogging suddenly was wearable and exactly the size I thought it should be!!

And, given my excitement to give the gifts and to see the receiver open the gift, I was really really happy when Julie's response was so enthusiastic. She loved it. It looks really good on her and the colors suit her perfectly (and go well in her dining room!)


So, I thought I had one whole sweater left to do for Christmas knitting but now, the score is:
Total Christmas Sweaters planned: 3
Christmas Sweaters left to knit: 0 (yes: ZERO) (okay, I still need to put in a zipper on one, but that is SO NOT KNITTING!)
Assorted other Christmas knitting planned: 2 toques, 1 scarf, 1 pair mitts/gloves,
Assorted other Christmas knitting completed: 1 1/2 toques, 1/4 scarf
Days until Christmas: 5
BUT: the scarf and mitts are for a friend I won't see until after Christmas. I totally have time.

Now to complete a toque and knit on a sock (sock? oh, yeah, I have Birthday Knitting to do.) and watch some hockey and/or football. Where is Picture-in-Picture TV when you need it??

**I almost forgot: For those among you who have NOT seen every Seinfeld episode a dozen times: Festivus was the holiday that George Costanza's dad invented. In the Festivus episode Kramer yells out "It's a Festivus Miracle!" It's funny. Although, reading it, not so funny. Maybe you had to see it.

Christmas Stockings

My header refers to crafts, as in not-just-knitting, but it seems that i spend far more time knitting than anything else. I do really enjoy other crafting things, like, for example, SEWING!!!

So, I present, SEWING!!! With PICTURES!!!

A couple of years ago, when I first got my sewing machine, I had this sudden idea to make stockings for my nieces and nephews (5 of them at the time) using pieces cut from my Dad's old shirts and/or jeans. It hadn't been a year yet since he had passed away, and it was the first Christmas without him. They were a big hit with everyone, and my younger brother and his wife, who didn't have kids at the time, were hoping that when they did have kids I would make one for them too. I didn't tell them at the time, but I had set aside enough fabric squares to make at least 2 more.

So, now that they had the boys, I wanted to make them stockings too. I kind of wanted to surprise them, but my brother had asked about the stockings back in September...

I pieced the fabric squares together, trying to get a mix of the different patterns. Most of the fabric is from shirts/jeans from my dad, but there are a few squares cut from a scarf of my mom's too.


I stitched the squares together and cut out my template (which I had saved from the first 5 stockings, thankfully!). I was using thin batting which a backing of scrap fabric for the front "quilted" piece, and some solid colored fabric for the back and the cuff.


It took a couple of days after they had been assembled before I had time to finish them. I had them lying on my floor where I would admire them and think about Christmas, my Dad and the babies. I was feeling proud of myself and my craftiness, when I noticed this:

Yes. That is a large, gaping spot where I failed to get the top sewn together properly. Yes, I only noticed it 3 days after I sewed the back to the quilted front. Yes, I was very very relieved that I noticed it BEFORE I sewed on the cuffs. Yes, this does nothing to curb my tendency to procrastinate and be distracted by other projects, because I wouldn't have noticed it if I hadn't procrastinated/been distracted by other projects.

So, crisis averted, I managed to get the top fixed with a minimum of swearing, it is Christmastime, after-all, and I continued on my merry way.


the letters for their names are out of fimo-type clay

So, now they are boxed up and on their way to my brother & sister-in-law's, hopefully will arrive before Christmas... Go Canada Post Go!!

Knitting! With Pictures!!

Okay, so I've not been posting much. The projects I've been working on have mostly been Christmas knits, so I haven't shown you just in case the intended recipients happen to come by here. But, today, I have REAL KNITTING PICS to show you!!

**in my head there's crazy cheering and applause.

1. Green sweater. From recycled yarn from previously turtlenecked green sweater. (that reminds me of what I told my aunt when we were at the Yarn Lady's house. The Yarn Lady made me put on slippers that she had in the closet. When my aunt came around the corner I told her I had been "Slippered".)
Where was I? Oh yeah. Green Sweater.
Fibre content: some weird mix of wool, rabbit fur, and acrylic.
Pattern: um... I had something as a jumping off point somewhere along the line, but no real pattern.

best (only) compliment I've received on this sweater: My friend Cobi and her kids took me to lunch for my birthday. I was wearing this sweater. When I took off my jacket, Cobi's little girl stopped what she was saying and said "That's a really pretty green... um... shirt Lori" awwwww (she's 3 1/2. awwww)

2. Cabled Zipped Jacket for my sister-in-law from Vogue Knitting 04/05
Yarn: Patons Shetland Chunky
This is my sister-in-law's Christmas present. They are moving this week and I don't think she would see this before I get it to her, so I'm posting pics!!

The other front and most of one sleeve are done. Yay Chunky weight knits on US10/6mm needles!!

3. Cabled Secret Sweater for my friend Cobi.
COBI: You are NOT allowed to look at this. (although, if your name happens to be Cobi and you don't know me or have any reason to suspect I may give you a Christmas gift, go ahead, look)
Yarn: Patons Decor. Suprisingly soft and holds the cables really well.

HA! Cobi I knew you'd look, so I didn't show the whole thing!!

I need to block it, weave in a few ends and put int the zipper, but otherwise the score is:
Christmas presents completed: 1(ish)
Christmas presents in progress: 3 (i don't have pics of the toques, sorry)(oh, yeah, i'm working on 2 toques for un-named kids of an un-named friend)(shh)
Christmas presents completed and messed up and needing to be frogged but being avoided because of the soul-sucking realization that i'll never get it re-knit in time for Christmas: 1
Christmas presents yet to be started: 2. maybe 3 or 4. I haven't decided yet.
Days until Christmas: 12
Chance that I will get it all done BEFORE Christmas while continuing to work 10 hour days: slim
Migraines and assorted aches and pains causing me to take a half sick-day: 1
Time spent during my half sick-day feeling like I should be working or knitting: 3 hours.

I'm off to go in to work. Merry Christmas Knitting all... And to all a good FO.

Like a kid in a candy store (or: Prepare to be Jealous)

Thursday night, my aunt Pat (you remember, i'm sure i told you about Pat: not really my aunt, but she is my mom's cousin/closest friend from when they were kids, and she might as well be a sister to my mom and therefore my aunt and so I think of her as my aunt Pat. whew) met up with me at her friend's house. Her friend, a lovely woman, used to own a yarn store.

(I heard you gasp. wait. there's more)

And, not only did she formerly own a yarn store, but she still has stock from that time that she is getting rid of.

(I know!)

And, not only that, but she LET ME WADE THROUGH the PILES of yarn. Rowan. Alpaca. Cottons. Filatura di Crosa. Anny Blatt. Did I mention the Rowan and Alpaca??

(yes. maybe I should have told you to sit down)

I felt like a kid let loose in Toys R Us after closing. "Go ahead kid," the Toys R Us people would say. "Play with ANY toy you'd like. Then, when you're done, you can take some home with you for crazy cheap prices."

(did i mention that she is trying to get rid of the stock and is therefore selling it very cheap??)

I've never had the opportunity to knit with really nice (read: expensive) yarns, so this is like giving a kid ice cream for supper. sigh.

So, in the spirit of sharing my finds with you, and not at all intended to induce envy or coveteousness among my fellow knitters, I present your daily dose of ehem... (yes, i'm going to say it again. it makes me laugh. maybe i'm 12 years old) yarn porn!

Odd balls of Rowan Magpie: probably enough for a crazy-stripey v-neck (of course) sweater, or maybe a ton of hats and mittens. My internet research tells me this yarn is discontinued.



Rowan Designer Collection DK: enough for a sweater (i hope). I couldn't find ANYTHING about this yarn online, which makes me think that it has been discontinued for years!! Also, you may notice (if you are obsessive like me) that the top 2 balls are a slightly different shade. The yarn was all packaged up together and it seemed that it was all one dye lot. It wasn't. I'm not sure if there will be enough for the sweater I had in mind, so I'll be looking for different ideas. There are 7 balls of one dyelot and 2 of another.


More Rowan Designer Collection DK. The color of the lighter green was the subject of much debate at the Yarn Lady's house. We finally settled on the description: Seafoam Green. The darker green is a really nice dark forest-y green.

for some reason the colors refused to photograph true. dunno what's up with that.

A big (BIG) skein of beige/natural thick and thin wool. I have plans to dye this.


I tried to un-skein it (i.e. to wind it) and ran into this:

the width of that skein is probably about 4 1/2 to 5 feet. let's just say that i got a good leg stretch while unravelling it.


the cross-over middle section. whee

After much frustration, I realized that it was wrapped in a figure eight pattern, so I was actually able to unwind it without tears. It took a long time, but I'm happy that it's done. Hopefully it won't tangle when I want to dye it. (note to self: cross fingers. knock on wood. etc.)

Finally, the yarn that I wanted to squish all evening. I wanted to hold it like a teddy bear at night. I can't wait to make something out of this:
Indiecita Alpaca. Un-dyed. Crazy soft and squooshy. sigh.


The labels on this yarn are so cool. I love the little cartoon llamas


But, the BEST part of the label is this drawing:

I can't tell if she's scared of the llama or what the deal is, but it's pretty funny. Does the llama want the yarn back? Is the llama resentful of the use of it's fibres in this manner? Is the llama trying to be helpful??

(i realize that the animal depicted is most likely an Alpaca, not a Llama, hence the term "Alpaca" yarn, but I like the word Llama better. Extraneous letters crack me up. Plus, there's that llama llama duck thing that went around for a while.)(you want to know what the llama llama duck thing is? are you sure? It'll get in your head like a chigger.)(don't say i didn't warn you: The Llama Song:)

I'm still here

I haven't gone anywhere... I'm just still working 10 hour days and almost every Saturday. I'm exhausted, but the overtime is REALLY nice!!! (cha)(ching)

So, I have a couple of pics of birthday gifts I received, which I haven't been able to take the time to pull off the camera. I have knitting to take pictures of, but I can't post those yet because they are (shhh... it's a secret) presents for friends. So, the blog hasn't had much excitement of late. Sorry.

There is snow on the ground, so the drive home today should be fun. I may have some ranting "stupid driver" stories to share...

I completed one (shhh....) christmas present which is evidence that my brain has not been functioning lately. I seem to have knit the entire project using the WRONG SIZE on the pattern. It's really small. The intended recipient is by no means large, but it would be VERY fitted and I'm sure that's not what she would want. So... a frogging we shall go.

Another (shh....) christmas present is progressing well, but it's at that point where I have to bribe myself to get through a row. Not good.

I think I'll do a small project to get my head back in the Christmas present knitting game... toques. mittens. Something smallish. I think I'll have people to give those away to so it will be like I'm working on Christmas stuff, right??

Oh how we rationalize when we have long rows to knit.

Anyway, if you're still out there, thanks for comin' by. I promise I'll try to be more interesting soon...

One final thing. My aunt (well, she's not technically my aunt. She's my mom's cousin/best friend from when they were kids/good friend. it's just easier to call her my aunt) said that she couldn't picture what my apartment looked like (after reading what I wrote about idiosyncrasies) so... (feel free to avert your eyes)

I give you: one corner of my living room:

It's sort of like an I Spy book. See what you can find!!

The big 3-5 and yarn

So, I turn 35 this week. Yes. 35. It feels like every other day/year, but when you say it out loud or write it out it seems like it should hold some significance. I am not overly bothered about turning 35, but there are definately areas of my life that aren't all that I thought they would be at this point (job, social life etc). Mostly, it's not that big a deal for me. Mostly.

To that end, I have been thinking. About a year ago, this girl I know was telling me that she and her group of friends used to always make lists for each other of "New Things" that they had to do over the course of the coming year. I have a tendency to stay in my hermit cave and not get out and do anything. So, I am asking you, my blog-reading friends, for suggestions.** New things. Things that will stretch me. Things I might never have thought of.

**keep in mind this is a family show. I reserve the right to pick and choose.

Nextly, (is that a word?) I have knitting pics.

First: the only WIP that I can show you and TELL you what it is. A v-neck for me. Out of recycled yarn (was a turtleneck I never wore b/c i can't deal with turtlenecks).


The measuring tape is there to show that I am being careful this time about the length of the sweater. I kept measuring, then knitting 5 rounds, then measuring again. It was ALWAYS the same length. Then, suddenly, it jumped 3 inches and I was good.

we won't mention the slightly panic-y feeling that I have that I might not have enough yarn. we won't mention the number of times during this quick knit that I have reassured myself that I HAVE enough yarn and it was a sweater that fit me before and it had a turtleneck then and it was at a smaller gauge...

Second: You may want to sit down for this one. In the MIDDLE of a really long row on *cough*Cobi's secret Christmas present sweater*cough* I BROKE MY DENISE CORD!!!!


Much cussing and panic as I tried to keep stitches from falling off. grr.

Third:
(and I wish I knew how to track traffic to my blog for this one. the word must be used, it's appropriate and it's common usage among knit-bloggers. I just wonder how many people end up at your blog by accident when you use it.)

Third: Yarn Porn

I'm not going to tell you what these items are, the people who may or may not receive them for Christmas may or may not read the blog. I just wanted to show you. Pretty, but gratuitous shots of knitting and yarn.

I was tagged (again! Yay!)

I finally finished (sort of) the massive project I was working on at work, so I finally am done working 10 hour days (hopefully) although I will miss the nice overtime paychecks.

Which means, I finally have time/energy to post again. However, I don't have any knitting/crafting pics to post.

I was tagged by Steph at craftoholic and I've been trying to get around to answering... so, here goes:

What is your all time favorite yarn to knit with?
Um, well, I don't know! I haven't knit with any of the really great yarns that I drool over, since I am a bit of a cheap-skate and tend to talk myself out of splurging on yarn (when the yarn I want to use is priced at $17 for a skein). I have made a few projects with LionBrand Wool-Ease (I know! I'm sorry! It's cheap! and washable!) which I have enjoyed, but I think it's a case of not having used better yarns so I don't know any better. I have used Alafoss Lopi for a number of felting projects, which I love and would like to use for something more significant and not felted, but haven't attempted yet. I have developed a bit of an addiction to sock yarns, but haven't settled on a favorite yet.

Your favorite needles?
I knit almost everything on circular needles, so those. I have one pair of bamboo needles that I really enjoyed. I like the way they feel and they seemed to grip the yarn just enough so I wasn't fighting to keep stitches in place, but the yarn slid nicely on them too. Don't know how that happens. I have a set of Denise Interchangeables which I enjoy, but at the moment EVERY SINGLE CORD** is in use. How did that happen?

**with the exception of one which at the moment has caused me great heartache and I'll tell you about it later when I have a pic to post

The worst thing you've ever knit?
Um... Back when I was first getting back into knitting, I wasn't really paying any attention to appropriate yarn for the project and/or gauge and I knit (and frogged quickly thereafter) a monsterous sweater out of some sort of cotton. The gauge was WAY WAY WAY off and it was gigantic, and really fugly. (also, the yarn may not have been all of one dye lot. noticeably so)

That or the poncho (what was I thinking) that I made myself. On some people I can see the poncho working, but how did I get sucked into the craze? I live in CALGARY for crying out loud. There are approximately 2.3 days a year where a poncho would be a useful garment. Plus, this one was fuzzy (not fun-furry, just strangely fuzzy) and just wrong. I haven't frogged it, because, frankly, it's impossible to frog. I have only ever worn it in the apartment when I was cold but didn't want to bother with an afghan. I guess it has its uses.

Your most favorite knit pattern? (maybe you don't like wearing it but it was the most fun to knit)
Hmm... I don't know if I can choose just one...
The hourglass sweater, ChicKnits Ribbi Cardis (as evidenced by the multiple examples I own), the intarsia duck and giraffe sweaters I made my friend's kids, the Booga bag ... um... socks...

Most valuable knitting technique?
Short row toes and heels for socks (learned from wendy's toe-up sock pattern and grafting and spit splicing (an explanation with pictures is here: which is not where I learned it from, but it explains it pretty well)

Best book or magazine?
I have a slight addiction to knitting magazines, (Interweave Knits, Vogue Knitting, Family Circle Easy Knitting etc) and I love my Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I love the craziness and possibilities of Loop-d-Loop, but I haven't really made anything from it (yet).

Your favorite knit-along?
I've never done one.

Your favorite knit-blogs?
Um... I don't know where to start here. I hate making lists like this, b/c I always forget someone or the second I post I'll think of another one. Can I cop out on this one? Please? (I will try to make a list someday...)

Your favorite knitwear designer?
Um, I don't know... I never pay that much attention to who the designer is... um... Teva Durham is really interesting, even though a lot of her stuff is a little, um, out-there and possibly unwearable (for me anyway). I like some of the patterns Veronik Avery has had in Interweave Knits. Um...

The knit item you wear the most? (how about a picture of it?)
Probably one of my Ribbi Cardis (you've seen the pics of these), or, now that it's winter, my bright turquoise mittens (from a recycled sweater) (no pic of them at the moment) or my socks...

I'll try to think of who's next... Right now, it's an accomplishment that my brain functioned long enough for this. I have the day off today and I'm NOT GOING TO WORK TOMORROW (I've worked the last couple of Saturdays). I'm trying to talk myself into cleaning today so tomorrow will be a relaxing Saturday. Possiblity of that happening (the cleaning)? Slim to nil.

Christmas Present Extravaganza!!

in which only one potential Christmas Present will be viewed because the future recipients of other Christmas Presents occasionally read the blog on which this Extravaganza!! is being posted

First of all, I started this post last weekend (!!) and am only now, one week later, finding the time/energy/will to sit at the computer when I get home from work. So, when I started this post, last Saturday, this afghan was potentially a Christmas present for my mom, but I didn't get her name (in our family we pick names among the adults) so, it's still for her, but it will be a late housewarming gift rather than a Christmas gift.

(I'm still not gonna show you the other presents I've been working on, so don't get your hopes up) (COBI. I mean you) (I may still decide to keep your present for myself - you'll never know, right?) (no I won't) (maybe)

So, the first strip of the sampler afghan. I'm working from a pattern in the 2004 Knit It! (why the exclamation mark, I do not understand. Is it a very emphatic command?) but I'm substituting at least one of the blocks for one of my own. The blocks are approximately 9x12". I haven't worked on it for a week or so, but it was going quickly when I was. I'm knitting the blocks in a long strip, rather than binding off individual blocks.




the blocks are all the same measurements, that green one just looks a little wonky. also, the colors don't look quite right, but you get the general idea

The above 4 blocks are from the pattern. The one below is my own. I tried to find a pattern for a stalk of wheat (farm kid, my mom was a farm wife, it was harvest time when I started this... ) to put on one of the blocks. I couldn't find one that I liked or that looked enough like wheat (to me) so I came up with my own (handy dandy graph paper). I was first just thinking a background of reverse stocking stitch and to do the wheat in stocking stitch. As I started it, I remembered a block I had seen elsewhere for a tree done with cabling type stitches, which made the branches look connected and it really popped from the knitting. So, I decided to try crossing some of the stitches, as though I was cabling. It worked! (although I have no idea if I'll remember what I did for the next one...)


i'm choosing to not notice things about this block that I'm not completely happy with (the wheat should taper more at the top etc) and just be happy that it worked

And now, since I can't show you the pictures of the 3 sweaters mystery Christmas present projects I have going right now, you will just have to take my word for it that I've been working on them all. Not getting distracted by little things like discovering that Lewiscraft still exists (I had heard that they closed) and not only exists but carries Patons Kroy and Scheepjes sock yarn (along with other non-fun-fur yarns!!). They don't have a huge selection, but they have some. I never seem to be able to get to the LYS so I was EXTREMELY angry disappointed a couple of weeks ago to discover that Michael's in Calgary...

Actually, maybe you should sit down for this. You may remember my little rant concern over the masses of "fun" "fur" being foisted on an unsuspecting new-knitter population. Imagine, then, my dismay upon discovering that Michaels (in Calgary anyway) no longer carries Wool-Ease (by my friends at Lionbrand) or Patons Kroy Sock yarn!!!! They have Wool-Ease Thick & Quick, which is great if I want to make a really really bulky and really quick something, and they still (for now anyway) carry Patons Classic Merino Wool, but I needed some Wool-Ease and I wanted some Patons Kroy!!

Okay, where was I? Oh, yeah, Lewiscraft. Lewiscraft carries Patons yarns, and more importantly (for me, since that was what I wanted) they carry Kroy Sock yarn. Not that I bought any. I have all those Christmas presents to knit. I have discipline and self control and I wouldn't do that.



Okay, fine. You caught me. But it's not necessarily for me. I might need extra Christmas gifts or birthday presents for someone. I will still keep working on the projects on the needles. Honest. I won't cast on for a sock.



Okay, fine, you got me again. I'm sorry. I couldn't resist. It was so pretty. I haven't knit with variegated sock yarn and I wanted to see what it looked like. This could be a present for someone, you never know. But I wouldn't knit more than this. I just wanted to see what it looked like, honest.



actual time lapsed between casting on and the bottom picture: one Sunday late afternoon and evening's worth of football, talking on the phone, and Sunday evening TV. I don't know how that happened. Apparently a) I knit faster than I think I do, especially if the pattern/yarn have some element of mystery (as in "how is this going to turn out") and b) I have no self-control and I'm rationalizing