Monday, August 30, 2004

You are loved...

Yes, you are...this post is mostly in appreciation of those that stop in to read my ramblings and support my love of knitting by offering up advise, hints, and encouragement. And patiently watch from the sidelines while I struggle through my knitting endeavors. Whether you make yourself known or prefer to read(and hopefully, enjoy) from the sidelines, know that I tremendously appreciate every moment you spend here.

Okay, so 'nuff of the mush and on to a wee bit of knitting. As you may or may not know, I started classes and was promoted at work all in one week. Which means I now have less time to knit. I am still working on the Oli tank and liking it so much. I can't help but feel happy when knitting with such happy colors!

I have also started swatching for the Tea Cozy Cottage. I am using the worsted weight Peace Fleece in Negotiation Grey for the sides of the cottage. And will be using Grassroots for the roof, doors, and windows. I will also felt the swatch and once done with that I will try some silk ribbon emroidery on it. I'm using dpn's because once I'm done with the felting and embroidery I plan to make a little gift bag from it. I saw something like this done in Felted Knits. A good way to utilize felted swatches. I love the way this is turning out. This yarn has a real rustic look to it. Almost primitive. I can't wait to see how it felts...




BTW...see those little red pins in the photo? They are for you! Email me(see my profile for email link...sorry, it's the one thing I haven't figured out how to do is link to my email) and let me know in which language(s) you would prefer. The I am loved pins come in Japanese, Italian, French, Hebrew, and Spanish. I have a bunch and they are just my little way of saying thanks. If you'd like to know more about these buttons, click here(they are free for the asking!). I ordered them to pass out at peace rallies and many of my friends wear them. And now I want to share its message with all of you...


Monday, August 23, 2004

Multi-tasking...

Or just plain ol' short attention span. Fall semester starts for me tomorrow. So to get into the swing of things I began reading an anthropology text I had on a bookshelf. In the midst of reading about the collapse of Easter Island, the Oli tank beckoned to be worked on. That's when I thought what better time than now to check out my new dvd of The Royal Tenenbaums.

Tahki Cotton Classic II

This is a closeup of the moss stitch edging on the tank bottom. I am making up the stripe pattern as I go along and making sure I am taking better notes this time around. It's stockinette stitch all the way to the straps which will be done in moss stitch.

Kathi-fied moss stitch

I've also been practicing some silk ribbon embroidery. I want to use it for a project I found in a book called Knitter's Stash. It's the Cottage Tea Cozy...the sides of the cottage are felted while the roof, door, and shutters are knit in double seed stitch. The embroidery is used to decorate the cottage with flowers and insects. I'm thinking a romantic country cottage...



I don't need a tea cozy, but I have some Peace Fleece I can use for felting the little cottage. And it was a good excuse to continue practicing my silk ribbon embroidery.

I think that's enough for one day. You may not hear from me the rest of this week unless I finish the Oli tank. Wish me luck with my first day of school! I'm taking a religion class called Understanding Buddhism and one for sociology called Sociology of the Family. With single parenting and working full-time, two classes are about all I can handle.

I wonder if my professors will let me knit while they lecture...

Saturday, August 21, 2004

Another WIP done...

This one is the Beanie For A Friend. I was knitting this one up sans pattern and since I wasn't quite sure how to start the decrease, BFAF has been sitting in a bag since February. It was suggested to me on Tuesday by fellow Honolulu SNB'er, Michelle, that I might find some use from Ann Budd's book, The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns. It's also very much the same beanie as the Hot Head I finished earlier this summer. So I don't know why I was hung up for so long.

Luckily, I found a copy at a nearby bookstore that evening. I haven't had a chance to look through the rest of the book but I was able to figure out how to decrease the beanie by using the charts provided. And here is the result as modeled by my daughter...

k2 p2 rib mystery yarn

It feels so great to finish a project. It's definitely motivation to go through my baskets(yes, that is more than one basket) and get to binding off other WIP's, including some of my crocheted items. I have no plans to cast-on for anything new until after the first week of September. Except for helping out Larissa with the Massive Meathead Knitup. It will be fun and I can't wait to see her end results. Check it out... and join in.

Next in queue for finishing is Oli's tank. I'm using this as inspiration...

Tuesday, August 17, 2004

Done?!!

Done!!!

Proof is in the pictures. As taken by my eight year old and through the heat of the Hawaiian sun...
Obligatory headless photo

Phew...it's been a long journey. There were moments when I wanted to dive into the frog pond and forget about this whole trip! But I persevered. Yes, there were a couple of times that I was not quite sure what was going on and it was sort of sink or swim, learn it or frog it. And the slacker in me wanted to give up. Then I would have to give myself a sort of pep talk..."Come on, if you give up now, ya ain't a knitter, just do it, finish it! Finish. It."

Eww, icky back shot!

Uh, huh. Learned a few lessons, too. For one, take better notes along the way. Yep, especially when I got to the part that says "reverse shaping". There's no holding my hand along the way here, no step by step instructions, just "reverse shaping"...I was on my own. In this case it would have been nice to have a much clearer roadmap of my knitting. I also would have been less impulsive about yarn choice. Not that I dislike the Portofino Soufle. If I had been more patient, I would have waited for something that showed more stitch definition. I should have also been more careful with sizing. I chose to go with 34 inches. And although I stayed on gauge throughout, the cami is a bit baggy.

Overall? I love it...I've been wanting to knit Honeymoon since I first saw it in Knitty and will most likely try it again. In the smaller size with a different yarn.

Now I must decide on a new project. But according to astrology, Mercury is retrograde from August through mid-September, which means it's not a good time to start anything new. It is supposed to be a great time to finish things. So I will attempt to turn my WIP's into FO's. I'm eagerly waiting for the Rowan Vintage Style due out in October. There are a few projects in there I would love to knit.

Here are those beaded stitch markers that have been waiting in the wings...

I used some Bali sterling silver with various Czech beads. And also my newly acquired wire-wrapping skills I learned at "Beadmania". If you live on the Leeward side of Oahu, this is a great little shop with a wonderfully warm staff. Look them up...

Well, the Honeymoon is over! And I couldn't be happier...

***A very big "Thank You" goes to Missa at Midnight Knitter for the new look.

Friday, August 13, 2004

A quickie...

The usual crazy busy-ness going on here...apologies for the sparse posting. Will have photos and updates in a couple of days. I'm almost done with Honeymoon. I think I'm finally getting the garment construction thing down!

And I have some beaded stitch markers ready for their photoshoot!

Happy Friday the 13th...

Friday, August 06, 2004

Update!


Here is Honeymoon with the back right armhole and v-neck shaping done. I've decided to keep the straps a bit wider than the three stitches called for in the pattern. Pretty smooth going, as I've learned to read the pattern through than read each sequence again before proceeding with each part...itty-bitty baby steps.

Now I'm at the front right and I am stuck. I'm trying to figure out how to reverse the instructions for the front. I'm positive that once I have the time to sit down and think about reversing the pattern, I'll be okay. I started the front by purling a row than knit the next right side row. I did the 4 stitch bind off for the armhole, when I realized that would not work. I was left with a stitch all by its lonesome. It was a "Duh!" moment.

I've been focusing all my knitting energy on finishing this cami. So not much else going on knit-wise. I will be extremely happy when I'm done with this project. I'm sure y'all wouldn't mind seeing some finished objects either.

Until then, take a look at this Gallery of Honeymoons. Very impressive! Julia is the very talented designer of the Honeymoon cami. Mind of Winter is her wonderfully informative site.

Monday, August 02, 2004

Knitter's block...some crochet...

It's been a really busy week with my daughter starting the 4th grade and a head honcho at work visiting the island stores last week. Thus, free time has been next to nil. I'm still working on Honeymoon...I'm still going through the "shape bust" section. So knitting update is minimal. I'd post a photo but it still looks like a lumpy, purple blob.

After feeling guilt at not keeping up with the knitting Jones', a comment by Rabbitch put things in perspective for me. She mentioned that there is no such thing as too fast or too slow. Learning to knit faster won't make me happy. After all, didn't I promise myself to enjoy the journey more and not worry so much about crossing the finish line?

That said, some embellishments have been added to a crochet project...

Crochet it...

I had posted earlier photos in the Finished Objects portion of my photo album. This is a pattern my mother has been crocheting for over 30 years. It's a very quick project and can be adapted to many different sizes. I may actually try to write down a formal pattern for this, as it's been handed down through word of mouth. Since my Japanese mother speaks "broken-English" and I have no idea how to read crochet patterns, I'm not even sure her crochet terminalogy is correct. It will be an interesting challenge!

Here, some pantaloons have been added. Afterall, a doll can't go out without her pants...


As much as crochet is fun and I enjoy it for small projects, I still prefer my knitting needles...
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