Smitten

For my first post of 2011, here is my last FO of 2010.  Sprig Mittens by Eli Stubenrauch in Lamb's Pride Bulky.  (Details and more photos available on my Ravelry page.)  I finished knitting these just in time for the weather to warm up a bit, but I've been wearing them anyway.  They are really warm, and the LPB yarn is totally snuggly.  Spring is still a long way off, so these will be keeping my hands toasty for awhile.  (If the current forecast is right, I may get to see how well they do in the snow this weekend.)

I had a couple dog product reviews to share but stupid Blogger is not cooperating, so they'll have to wait until next time.

Saved!

Mild panic yesterday afternoon when I handwashed my pinwheel blanket and blue dye bled all over the yellow and white sections. Ugh. The weird part is that the blue yarn comes from a cone I've had for, like, a year and used in other projects with not problem at all.

So, anyway, not knowing what else to do, I spot cleaned the stains, rinsed, and got most of the dye stains out. But then I started thinking that there was no way I could gift a baby blanket that wasn't washable. So, I held my breath and put the blanket through a wash cycle. This time, no blue dye stains, but a lot of blue lint which--fortunately--is not a project-ruining outcome. A spin in the dryer on low produced no additional problems.

Phew.

Project details are on my Ravelry page.

Knits from the WIP pile (!) and why dogs are so cool (not related)

I'm on a mission this summer to get control of my WIPs. A long time ago, I knit several pairs of this Easy Mittern pattern (by Sue Dial and available in Judith Durant's One-Skein Wonders). At the time, I had just discovered the wonderfulness that is Kraemer's Alpaca Yarn, and I was looking for reasons to knit with it. So I tried knitting the smaller size on US 9s. With a few pattern mods, I ended up with a mitten that was only slightly too big, and rather than frog, I decided to set it aside, knit a second slightly bigger mitten later, and either add a lining or felt them. "Later" turned out to be, like, three years later but fortunately I'd kept good notes, and I was able to complete the second mitten. Okay, well maybe not perfect notes, because mitten two was just a teensy bit bigger than mitten one--which confirmed for me that felting (lightly) was the way to downsize. (It also underscored the wisdom of GK's advice to always knit two mittens or socks at once.) I now have two, same-sized mittens for my Christmas 2010 gift stash. I confess that I did have a pang of regret when I tossed these into the washing machine. This yarn (on US 9s at least) knits up into such a lovely, drapey fabric,and it's kind of a shame to felt. But considering that the alternative was frogging both mittens, in the end I think felting was the best option.

Okay, I don't have a good segue here to my next topic, so here's a gratuitous Katie pic. Friends will recognize her are-you-gonna-give-me-that-biscuit face.

So, speaking of dogs, here's a cool thing that happened last week with clients whose dog, let's call him Rex, wasn't responding to "sit" but who, I noticed, was offering me a lovely sit as we were all standing there chatting. I decided to see what would happen if I tossed a treat far enough for him to have to get up to eat it. Would he come back to me and offer another sit? So I tossed a piece of lunch meat and waited. He looked a little surprised, but went for the treat. Then he looked at me again, thought about things for a minute, and went back to his spot in front of me and offered a down. Okay, so not a sit, BUT since Rex needed to learn the down command as well, I reinforced with another treat and then repeated the sequence again. Toss a treat so he has to move, wait to see what he does next. Again, he offered a down. And after a few more repeats, he offered a sit. The point here is that he was offering stuff, and what gets me every time I see this kind of thing is that moment when the dog stops to think about what's going on. Who knows what goes on in their doggie brains, but something clicks and they understand how the game works. And, because Rex's people are smart, they noticed this moment as well and were really impressed with their dog. After a few more reps, they took over, and we started saying "sit" or "down" as he did one or the other and following with a tasty treat. What I also appreciate is that Rex didn't just figure out the game, he also changed up the rules a bit and we ended up playing on his terms. I expected him to offer me a sit after the first toss because (1) that's what most dogs do and (2) that's what he had just been doing. But alternating downs and sits turned out to be more his style. And really, when you think about it, isn't that a more interesting game? Rex learns that offering sits and downs makes good things come his way. And the owners end up having to observe Rex very closely in order to correctly name the behavior as he offers it.

The weather could have been warmer for Mother's Day

We're still having frost warnings here in eastern PA. :( Normally, we wait to plant warm weather stuff until after Mother's Day, but temps might dip below freezing tonight. We just finished bringing in plants in from the porch.

Even so, bright and early tomorrow morning I'm meeting H. at Leiser's to rent a tiller and then head out to the garden. Classes ended last week, and I'm taking ONE day off for gardening before I turn my attention to grading and all the other things that demand my attention at the end of term. It might be too cold to do much planting, but we can at least get the ground ready. We do have some things up already including asparagus and lettuce.

In spite of the chilly temps, I was able to pick these lovely bunches of parsley and mint from my herb garden at home.

I used them to make some Tabouli, which I brought to my in-laws for dinner. My MIL really likes handknitted cotton dishcloths, so I made her this one to add to her collection.

Dogs and Frogs

Happy birthday to Katie, who turned eight this past week! We had a fabulous bday party in The Dog Course, complete with balloons, presents and, of course, cupcakes.

I was kind of short on time, so these are just from a box mix. They tasted ok. They're all human grade, but the ones with the biscuits were for the dogs. After Katie ate her cupcake, she snagged the paper off the table and ate that too. (More bday photos on my Flickr page.) Personally, my favorite thing about the cupcakes was transporting them in the nifty carrier I bought especially for the occasion. I may go on a cupcake-making binge just so that I have more excuses to use it.

I am far LESS enthusiastic about the gloves I've been knitting for A. The pattern is unnecessarily complicated at times. And the sizing is weird between the thumb gusset, which seems to be sized for a smallish hand, and then the hand and fingers, which are ginormous. I spent the morning fiddling with the fingers which, as written, were at least an inch too long. I guess part of the problem could be that I'm not using the yarn called for in the pattern, but I am using another worsted weight yarn (Cascade 220 Heathers, which I really like), so I shouldn't be that off, right?

Why.

Sometimes I learn from my knitting mistakes. Sometimes they just make me want to cry. For reasons I don't understand, my second Bird-in-Hand mitten is about a quarter of an inch smaller all the way around. It's the same yarn, same size needles, and same me. WHY is this happening? This is my second try on the second mitten, so I can only assume that the bigness of the first one is a fluke and the second one is more likely my usual gage. So I guess I'll be frogging mitten one.

Nuts!

Kindle Love and Other Things

Last month I treated myself to a Kindle. I blame CMR and some other friends who kept talking about how much they loved theirs. And I have to say, now that I have one, I see what they mean. In case you're admiring my Kindle case, you can buy your own on Etsy from Janine King Designs. In addition to the terrific construction and cool fabric, I'm loving the extra zipper pocket on the front.

I had a bit of a delay with my BIH mittens. As I was working on mitten #2, I broke a fav pair of Knit Picks circs. :( But an email to Customer Service got me a brand new set. Thanks Knit Picks. You rock! :)

New Year, New Mittens (What WIPs?)

I allowed myself to start a new mitten project because, well, I have no will power. I think I'm in denial about my WIP pile... But since the holiday rush is over, I decided to start a pattern I'd been saving for when-I-had-more-time. Which I don't, actually. But I'm pretending. Like I said--my WIPs, denial, like that.

Also, I turned out some really nice Christmas knits (like these gloves and this little piggy), so basically you could argue I pretty much deserve to impulsively start a new project.

I'm just saying.

Enter: Bird in Hand Mittens. Ahhhhh. These are just as lovely as the other 644 Ravelers who've knit them say they are. I knitted the cuff of the first mitten and a couple rows of the hand. I'm knitting with stash yarn (points for that, no?): the blue is Lamb's Pride Nature Spun and the white is some Cascade 220. The dark blue with the bright white turns out to be really striking.

And after I finish these, and maybe a WIP or two, I can maybe try these mittens, which a very nice friend gifted to me on Ravelry. :)

New Project

Because I didn't have enough WIPs and hadn't finished the actual work I'd planned to do yesterday or made much progress on Christmas knitting, I started a new project: Alexandra Tinsley's EDI ("Everybody's Doing It") Cowl (available here). I'm using Lamb's Pride Bulky, which, I know, some people (GK) find "too itchy," but which I find really toasty for scarves, especially when I'm bundling up in the wee hours of a cold winter morning to walk the dog. And--bonus: no scarf ENDS to dangle and possibly touch (ugh) the dog poo when I bend over to pick it up. I've knitted my way through one skein and I expect to use most of another before it's long enough.

I am trying to be disciplined about the Christmas knits, and I'm making some progress. I can't show everything here, but as I was knitting another finger of Welig this afternoon, I noticed how gloves IP look kind of alien--in an ET-phone-home sort of way.

(Source: http://www.free-wallpaper-download.com/movie/ET/slides/ET.wallpaper.htm)

Happy Halloween

Rice Crispy Ghosts from Recipezaar

So I finished the the second of my Falling Leaves socks and, for some bizarre reason, it's bigger than the first sock. I cannot figure out what went wrong. Same needles, same yarn, same me, bigger sock. It's a Halloween mystery. I've already frogged sock #2. I'm going to try again on smaller needles, but if that doesn't work, I'm not sure what I'll do--probably just frog the whole project. Sometimes, knitting is hard.

Knitting!

I haven't done much knitting lately, but we've had had two days of rainy, unseasonably cool weather, and (after a day of writing) knitting some mittens seemed like the right thing to do. So I pulled out these flip-top mittens that I'd started at the beginning of the summer, and this morning I completed the first one (except for the sewing up), and then CO for the second (to avoid SMS). This is SUCH a nice pattern, and I love working with Lamb's Pride Worsted. These were planned for my gift stash but I may keep them for myself. Their mohair, cable-y goodness is hard to resist.

Embossed Leaves

This photo was taken with my iPhone and then enhanced using the CameraBag app. Cool, no?

I finished the above Embossed Leaves sock this morning, and then just to ensure it will have a mate, I CO and knit the first two rows of sock #2. I would have finished these sooner, except that I got distracted by these coasters (one set for me, one gifted), this quilt and these mittens.

Now that we've had more sun, our vegetable garden has perked up. On Monday, we picked the rest of the radishes and in their place planted brussel sprouts. We also weeded and thinned out the corn, and added a nifty stepping stone path. Re the War against Weeds, er, Wild Plants--I can't say enough good things about our stirrup hoe. It's unbelievably efficient. Worth every penny. Srsly.

Deep Freeze

Like much of the country, here in eastern PA it's pretty darn cold. This morning we woke up to a light dusting of snow (which, it turns out, is a nice break from all the ice we've had lately). A good day to stay home and knit. I've been working on another pair of Newfoundland mittens, mostly because I like how these two yarns looked together.

The white is Lion Brand Wool Ease which I had in my stash from a long-abandoned learning-to-crochet project. The blue is some gorgeous (but itchy!) Rowan Scottish Tweed that I'd been trying to find a good use for. As I was trying out colors for another project, these two landed next to one another, and I liked the combo.


I made another pair of these mittens (Ravelry link) about a year ago, and since then I've been wanting to try the pattern again with some other colors and yarns. Plus, this weather is making me want to knit things to keep my hands warm. And the RST yarn is REALLY warm. The warm outweighs the itch.

But this morning as I was working on the second thumb, I noticed that it was a little different than the first. Here's a closer look:


See how the thumb on the left has that nice row of white purl bumps underneath and the right one doesn't? I'm pretty sure the one on the right is wrong, and even though it's not a huge mistake, it's going to bug me, so I think I'm going to frog.

Ribbit.

ETA 1/16/09. Turns out? the one on the LEFT is wrong. Should have read the pattern again BEFORE I frogged. Oh well. I don't think it much matters in the end. At least now the two thumbs will look the same.

Iron Man Cowl

Another great gift pattern--Christina Walls' Birthday Cake Cowl (available on her blog)--most of which I knit last night while watching Iron Man.

ETA: I was wrong--pattern is available to Ravelry members. There's a link from her blog, but you can only get to the pattern if you belong to Ravelry.

Addicted

Finished one pair of Mosaic Mitts...

...and started another.

Love. This. Pattern.

Random Stuff

It's dark and rainy here--just the kind of day to stay inside and knit. And read Harry Potter (which I'm teaching this week in Intro to Children's Lit). Before the rain started this morning, a flock of sparrows was gathered by the back door where I'd tossed out some birdseed. In their midst was a little chipmunk. Kate, an unrepentant chipmunk chaser, couldn't tear herself away from this little scene.

In between the usual insanity that increases as the end of term approaches, I've been trying to fit in my Christmas gift knitting. Which, of course, kind of limits what I can show here. But here's a peek at one project:

I've been itching to try these Mosaic Mitts (from IK), and now, having nearly finished the first one, I can heartily recommend them to anyone looking for a quick gift knit. This pattern is a good stash buster (although I admit I did buy some new yarn for these). And it's fun to try different color combinations.

Also IP are these Monkey Socks, which I started a couple weeks ago. These are for me because, well, I heart the colors of this Trekking yarn too much to part with them. Unfortunately it's hard to get a good photo today because it's so dark outside.

11/10/08 ETA: Mitts are worked on my new Knit Picks Harmony DPS--which, can I just say?--are totally fab.

Socktober Reading

Happy Socktober everyone!

This week, my Intro to Children's Lit class has been reading Alcott's Little Women. As I was re-reading the book (for, uh, the zillionth time), I came across a passage I thought was especially appropriate for the month of Socktober. The passage is in the voice of the narrator, but from Laurie's point of view. He's just spied the March girls leaving their house for what he suspects is an expedition to which he hasn't been invited. So he follows them (bad boy), and comes upon this scene:

It was rather a pretty little picture: for the sisters sat together in the shady nook, with sun and shadow flickering over them,--the aromatic wind lifting their hair and cooling their hot cheeks,--and all the little wood-people going on with their affairs as if these were no strangers, but old friends. Meg sat upon her cushion, sewing daintily with her white hands, and looking as fresh and sweet as a rose, in her pink dress, among the green. Beth was sorting the cones that lay thick under the hemlock near by, for she made pretty things of them. Amy was sketching a group of ferns, and Jo was knitting as she read aloud. A shadow passed over the boy's face as he watched them, feeling that he ought to go, because uninvited; yet lingering because home seemed very lonely, and this quiet party in the woods most attractive to his restless spirit. He stood so still, that a squirrel, busy with its harvesting, ran down a pine close beside him, saw him suddenly, and skipped back, scolding so shrilly that Beth looked up, espied the wistful face behind the birches, and beckoned with a reassuring smile.

"May I come in, please? or shall I be a bother?" he asked, advancing slowly.

Meg lifted her eyebrows, but Jo scowled at her defiantly, and said, at once, "Of course you may. We should have asked you before, only we thought you wouldn't care for such a girl's game as this."

"I always like your games; but if Meg don't want me, I'll go away."

"I've no objection, if you do something; it's against the rule to be idle here," replied Meg, gravely, but graciously.

"Much obliged; I'll do anything if you'll let me stop a bit, for it's as dull as the desert of Sahara down there. Shall I sew, read, cone, draw, or do all at once? Bring on your bears; I'm ready," and Laurie sat down with a submissive expression delightful to behold.
"Finish this story while I set my heel," said Jo, handing him the book.

"Yes'm," was the meek answer, as he began, doing his best to prove his gratitude for the favor of an admission into the "Busy Bee Society." (115-16)

(The Busy Bee Society is the girls' attempt to avoid idleness over the summer holidays--in a previous chapter, the girls take a week "off" from their chores, with Marmee's approval, and must deal with the disasterous consequences). LW includes lots of descriptions of women's domestic work, but I guess I hadn't paid special attention to this particular one until I learned to knit socks.

Beach Dog

Just returned from a week at the beach where, it turns out, Kate discovered her inner water dog. (Kate's half collie, and we suspect the other half is some kind of retriever--she looks a lot like a flat-coated retriever.) Up until last week Kate showed zero interest in the water, but something about the ocean made her curious, and, after giving me a heartattack by suddenly plunging in--and UNDER--her little head popped back up, she paddled to shore, shook off, and was ready to go back in. Fortunately, we stayed at a dog-friendly hotel, so dragging a wet dog back and forth to the room wasn't a problem, even when Katie decided to "dry off" on the carpet in the lobby.

On our way to the beach, we had a great visit with CMR and EO. Here's Katie enjoying the view from their back porch. Among many other treats, we enjoyed a dessert of homemade ice-cream from C's new ice-cream maker. C and E are the epitome of dog people, and Katie took every advantage of that fact.

I didn't do as much knitting as I expected to while we were away, but I did knit most of the second waving lace sock, which I finally finished this morning. This is an excellent pattern and, if we weren't having such pleasant summer weather (good rain, not too hot), I might wish for wool-sock-wearing temps.

Since we've been home, Kate's been spending a lot of time doing this--
Since the spring, several new puppies have moved into the neighborhood, and this is what she looks like after playing with them.

Garden Notes: Memorial Day Weekend Edition

We've had so much rain lately that everything is green and growing like crazy. I know it won't last, but I sure am enjoying it now. We spent most of the holiday weekend working in the yard, but I did have some time for knitting, including--taDAAAAA!--rescuing these Broadripples from my WIP pile. I started these over a year ago, shortly after learning to knit socks. I don't remember why I put them down, exactly. Probably I just got interested in something else. Anyway, I thought I had only the toe of the second sock to go, but discovered a small mistake. So I ripped the foot back, re-knit, and finished them this morning. Yay! I wish I'd knit the foot a little longer, but it's not a big deal since Cascade Fixation is so stretchy. I love the springy colors and how they kind of go with the colors that are appearing in the back yard as various perennials begin to bloom. Like these peonies.
Even before the flowers open, the buds provide little balls of color. And lots of ants--which might have attracted this guy,

although I suspect he was more interested in all the worms I unearthed as I was working. I don't know if it was the SAME robin following me around all day. All I can say is that every time I looked around A robin wasn't far off, and he had a beak full of worms. We seem to have lots of earthworms this year, and I'm taking that as a sign that our efforts to improve the soil are working.

Katie doesn't bother birds foraging around in the grass (maybe because she's used to our parakeets Rocky and Gino). But she's definitely interested in our resident chipmunk. He's way too fast for her, but that doesn't stop her from trying.

The Knit Knack

Photos from yesterday's visit to The Knit Knack in Maplewood New Jersey with Chawne. One last fiber fling to mark the end of our sabbatical year. You can see how much fun we had--just look at the expression on Chawne's face.
Of course, surrounded by all of that beautiful yarn, who couldn't help but smile?It was cold and rainy outside, but warm and cozy inside the shop, which now has a table in the center where you can work. This time, we also got to meet Loki, official shop dog and all-around handsome boy.
[Kiss!]


Chawne showed a bit more restraint than I by picking up this lovely apple-y green Rowan Felted Tweed, which was on sale. But since most of my yarn was for gift knitting I didn't feel too guilty. Well, okay, except for that one skein of Misti Alpaca sock yarn. But I couldn't resist. Really, I blame Meera for showing it to me in the first place. :)

After a nice visit with Meera, Glen and Loki, we had a yummy lunch at a cafe down the street. The hour-long drive back home in the pouring rain would have been gloomy except that we had all that yarn to cheer us up.