January 2011 Archives

#

Having knit for oh, about 7 years now, I've accumulated lots of knitting material. Admittedly more magazines than books, really, because I'm looking for a certain style that is *me*. I pick my books and magazines the way I used to pick CDs, back before iTunes came into our lives: there had to be 3 great songs in a CD before I put down my money. So, in terms of knitting I've got about a dozen books and probably 4 times that many magazines. Only about a fifth of them are American; the rest are foreign language. So a few days ago when I was lazily looking through my stacks (I did a purge; some knitter at Goodwill is *really* happy right now) I decided that 2011 would be my year of international knitting.

Yes, you poor, long-ignored Phildars, Dale of Norways, Rebeccas, and Japanese magazines, you will have your turn in the sun! Even you, Rowan! No, the Queen's English is technically not a foreign language but you're British and I need an excuse to include you here! I will pick up (stash) yarn and needles and I will doggedly read through all manner of instructions and the garment I will create will be beautiful! Yes, Norwegian and Japanese are not exactly easy languages to translate, but there are online resources that can help! I will not be alone!

Speaking of biting off more than I can chew... I was hasty in my reading Twist Collective's Finish Fest. I had misread "Finish for February" as "Finish *in* February", thinking I had a complete 4 weeks to do a few projects. Easy, yeah?

#

Easy, no. January 31 is fast approaching! Antalya 5's grafting will take up an hour, I can do that anytime. It was my cardi I needed to take care of. In a rush, I picked up my languishing Girl Friday, placed it back on a circular needle, and knit about 4 rows before I discovered, I don't know what needles I used. I don't know my gauge. Where are my notes? Were they inserted between some pages of a random magazine?? Did I toss them in the same bag as the Goodwill donations??? Suffice it to say that yesterday evening I frogged a considerable amount of yarn, reknit a gauge swatch and didn't get gauge, revised the pattern for my gauge and needle size, found sufficient yarn to make it with, and started knitting (Continental, mind you). And look! I have 8 inches of knitting! Ignore the uneven ribbing, be proud of me!

That's the state of my knitting to date. Beyond that, I've started to process my Amsterdam pictures. When I think of Amsterdam I think of bicycles! And so, dear reader, I have bicycles for you. Have a good Thursday!

#

#

ETA: Wtf, FaceBook?

#

Some weeks ago, Holly of Knitted Thoughts gave me a Stylish Blog Award. Thank you, Holly! Yummy Yarn, stylish? Who'd've thought?

One of the prerequisites to this award is sharing seven things about myself, and to make this more specific, I made it seven stylistic things:

1. My wardrobe is primarily California casual (jeans, soft tee, flats, gold hoops) but when working onsite I tend to wear all black. It makes matching in the dark easy!
2. I try to onsight my routes and boulder problems, as much as possible.
3. I adore mid-century modern furniture. My best find was a coffee table abandoned on the sidewalk. Score!
4. This may stem from years of presenting to clients, leading creative teams, and giving and receiving constructive criticism. And why I've been called an enabler. It's a good rule to follow: One catches more flies with honey than with vinegar.
5. Louise Fili, Rebeca Mendez, Paul Rand, Stefan Sagmeister, Paula Scher, Erik Spiekermann, Gael Towey, and Massimo Vignelli.
6. I like the Impressionist and Renaissance artists over the contemporary ones. But I make an exception for Anselm Kiefer.
7. Electronica and classical music rotate continuously on my iTunes. With the odd Britney Spears song (yes, just like you)!

On to knitting. Here's my current project at 5, then 9 repeats of pattern. It's calming knitting, something to help wind the day down. This past week was quite busy!

#

#

It also helps that I know Antalya like the back of my hand. Every stitch, every short row turn, every loop picked up, all executed from memory. All that remains is grafting, and I'll probably wait until Shannon has finished the knitting part on hers; then we can have ourselves a little grafting par-tay!

I also signed up for Twist Collective's February Finish Fest, because I do need a little prodding with my knits. While I have an endless list of projects lined up in the coming months, a bit of reminding and egging on by the group should help, hopefully, with finishing the ones already on my needles. Care to join?

#

Last December when I got together with my knitty girls, Amiee mentioned how she loved my Twist Collective design, Antalya. We chatted about it, purchased yarn along with Nonnahs, and gradually a knitalong was born. Would you like to join us?

This will be my fifth Antalya, and I've decided to make it in light grey. (Amiee's hat, in a deep burgundy, looks beautiful.) I've also decided on some subtle mods, such as lengthening the brim, and changing the cables and cable placement. The pattern lends itself nicely to customization, and, now that I finally cracked the sideways cable configuration, I'm looking forward to further exploring cable techniques and combinations!

Who knows, I may eventually make one in every color of Valley Yarns Amherst! Four colors down, fifteen to go....

#

#

Where words are ineffectual, touch succeeds.

#

Distance and time and schedules separate us from seeing each other more than a handful of times each year. That's life, isn't it? :-) Life is lemons and lemonade. Some get more of one than the other.

So I thought I'd send Kat a hug.

A simple, featherweight, luxuriously warm, vibrantly colorful hug. Colors of warmth and strength. Indulgent cashmere and silk because a hug is comforting in so many ways. I think it's quite appropriate, too, that it comes from the hands of Felicia to the mother of Felix.

May fortune and happiness mark your 2011!

#

#

Yarn: SweetGeorgia Yarns Cashsilk Lace (45% Cashmere, 55% Silk; 400 yards, 50g) in Masala. This was a custom order.
Needles: US7
Elsewhere: Flickr, Ravelry

2011.

I don't really believe in resolutions, especially those made under the influence of alcohol, double-dog-dares, or as a spur-of-the-moment pronunciation in the middle of a game of Hedbanz (the kid version, which I'm frightfully terrible at). Resolutions depend so much on willpower. Nowadays, my willpower extends to reaching for yet another tissue, my body racked by coughing. So for me, there are no concrete resolutions. Just two simple things:

To try something new. To improve on the old.

On the knitting front, they can encompass so many things: yarn, needles, crochet(!), weaving(!), techniques, and so on. 2011 will be a year of discovery and improvement.

#

My first knit of the year is a simple 1x1 twisted rib hat for a toddler. It's reversible to standard 1x1 rib, and employs a k2tog-tbl (knit two together through back loops) as the decrease. It took me three days, quite a long time actually, but I knit this all in Continental. I usually knit English; I had mastered the knit stitch in Continental while working on a Moderne Baby Blanket. I thought it would be a great idea to try twisted stitches, purl stitches, *and* decreases on this small project.

Oh! Three days. That should sum it up. Granted, my stitches could be more even, along with my gauge, and I need to work on switching from knit to purl. Marnie taught me her 1x1 technique a while back, and *if* and *when* I ever do another 1x1 rib hat (twisted stitch optional) (when pigs fly)(under duress from adoring niece, predictably)(in "peeenk", naturally), I will definitely use it.

#

I hope this gets much loved, much mussed, much dirtied and sat upon and chewed up! From an auntie to her nephew.

Finished size: 13" circumference x 6.5" long.
Yarn: Lana Grossa Basics Tip 120 (60% Superwash Wool, 40% Acrylic; 50g; 120m) in 262 Olive Green. This yarn has been discontinued.
Needles: US6
Elsewhere: Ravelry, Flickr