The Knitting Gods aka Mira

I love knitting (duh!) and I read last night in Free Range Knitter about knitter confidence. I like to think that I have a healthy dose of that. But I also know the sorrows of getting penisy. There are moments when you proudly exclaim that you have knitted up something wonderful and beautiful and … what the HECK is that?!?!

It’s the tummy flopping moment when you realize that you have messed up 5 rows back and Helen Keller could see this mistake coming from a mile away. So, you have no choice to rip back. Now, admittedly this usually happens with a lace piece that has so many yarn overs and decreases that you can’t rip back and you spend about twice as long tinking back.

I call this the knitting gods. The knitting gods are not jealous. They want you to knit well. They even want you to create masterpieces of knits and purls and yarn overs. They want you to succeed. However, the knitting gods hate it when you get all penisy. They want you to be humble. They would like you to nod demurely, looking up through your eyelashes like a proper coquette when someone compliments your knitting. They do not want you to make a huge fuss. (Which of course being human, vain, and self-proud, we do… and do so often.)

Knitting is a feat. It is a test of your will over the yarns sometimes. On occasion it is so much work that one row of 31 stitches confounds you so that you feel as if you have just completed a sprint after each row. Each row feels like a victory. (I’m looking at you Branching Out scarf!) You can’t help but to finish and exclaim: AHA! I have defeated you. I have knit you with expensive silk and wool. I have made you beautiful. I am one heckuva Knitter!!! But the knitting gods hate that and thus when you go to count to 31…. There are only 28 stitches! How did you get 28??!?! That’s when you know you are getting penisy and the gods are forcing you to tink back to the first 4 stitches.

Now, all bets are off after you have bound off, weaved the ends in, hand washed and blocked the piece. Then, you can get knitting penisy. Just don’t hold your work near a candle or anything sharp when you do.

 

Ps. I call my knitting goddess Mira.

Yarn is for Lovers

I’ll openly admit I don’t need new yarn. I have been knitting for several months now and I have a stash that is worthy of a seasoned knitter. I do have a ton of cotton yarn (Christmas presents… really) that needs to be knit up. I have sock yarn for socks I haven’t gotten around to yet. (I’m just knitting my first pair.) I have nice yarns that are longing to be something beautiful. Heck, I adore Manos and I have 2 skeins that I am JUST starting to use. So, why am I buying more? Because I knit and I want my friends to knit and my friend needed yarn.

So, we decided to buckle up and do a group order from knitpicks that we could each have some yarn without having to spend $50 each. I have to admit this is one of Jen’s smarter ideas.  I can’t actually take the credit for the genius of this one. I’d love to, but I’d be lying and Jen can read this. I digress.

So, of course since I was the one placing the order for the six of us (yes, it is pretty awesome that I work with 6 knitters) that I should probably buy something.

My husband wants the WWII watch cap and mittens. Well, I have Blue Sky alpaca for the mittens. So, I picked up some wonderful complimentary yarn for that. And then I saw this sock yarn. I’m not sure why a grown woman who is nearing 30 needs socks knit from teal, pink, and violet yarn… but darn it… I do!!

I need My Little Pony colored socks. I really do. I mean… don’t you?

Sand/Sea

I am an ambitious knitter. I started knitting in January and immediately decided I wanted to knit all of my family something for Christmas. It didn’t have to be much, but something. I decided on dishcloths for those that would use them, a scarf for my mom and the Mister’s grandma, something for my cousins’ babies, socks for my sister in law, and it wouldn’t be that hard… right?!?!

Well, to be honest, it hasn’t been too bad. I’m almost done knitting up the dishcloths in various designs. I’ve knitted up the perfect baby bib. I’m finishing my sister in law’s second sock as I write this (well, not right now since typing and knitting are not complementary tasks). I have very few Christmas projects left on my plate. It’s going well.

Where I got nervous was with the scarf for my Grandma in Law. The Mister chose a lovely yarn (Manos del Uruguay in Adobe) in soft blues, navy, black, suede brown, and rich cream. I chose a nice pattern to complement the colors. I decided to knit a “My So Called Scarf” for her. It would be my first of that pattern. I liked the look of the stitches. I liked the way the colors came through on the stitch pattern. I loved the denseness of the fabric. However, I didn’t love the repetition of the pattern. I also didn’t like the needles I was knitting on (apparently, since when I switched needles I zoomed along). So, I started the blasted thing in January and it was almost October and that darn thing was still only a foot long. So I decided to buckle down and just knit up the thing.

When I finally got the scarf to the right length (about 5 feet, since she wanted a shorter scarf), I decided to add fringe to the ends to help keep the rolling at a minimum. This was the first time I’ve added fringe to a scarf. It’s really easy. I washed and blocked it. And it was lovely. A pain in the butt to knit, but lovely at any rate!

            

 

*The second picture with the project on the needles was in early September! The third is modeled by the Mister.

Sunny Happy Baby

It seems like life flows in predictable stages. When we first moved to NC, the mister and I attended wedding after wedding. We probably went to 50 weddings and we still have 2 to go to this within the month. But there has been a shift, now we get calls almost daily it seems like from a friend or family member who is pregnant. There is a rash of pregnancy going around. (I keep avoiding drinking the same water these girls are drinking.) New babies mean knitting small tiny things. I am pretty excited about this adventure. Admittedly, I won’t be knitting for all the people that are having children like bunnies. I am selective about who I knit for in general.*

All that aside, I will knit for my cousin Natasha who recently found out she is pregnant. She is so newly pregnant, she doesn’t know the gender of her little one yet. So, I am content to knit brightly colored baby things for her. (I don’t like to knit in “baby” colors or in “baby” yarn. Or acrylic in general.)

Having never, knit for a baby before I thought I would start with something completely simple. I turned to the girls of Mason Dixon knitting and made their version of the baby bib. It was a simple garter stitch pattern. It could be spiced up in any number of ways. So, I cast on merrily in a beautiful, happy cotton yarn in yellows and oranges. I loved the way the yarn was pooling. I loved the neat, tidy rows.

As I was knitting those tidy rows, I started to contemplate what I should adorn the bib with. (A wise knitter friend [who is also a mother of a toddler I might add] advised me to not adorn it too much, snaps are better, and to make it big.) So, I decided to do a quartet of small bright yellow vintage buttons on the bottom corner. I made the bib larger than the pattern called for and alas I didn’t add snaps. Buttonholes are much easier to knit and at the moment I pretty much suck at sewing. The overall effect was a precious, happy, cheery bib for her wee one on the way.

 

      

 

*(I won’t knit for other knitters. I won’t knit for people who won’t appreciate the sentiment and time I have put into a project. I won’t knit for people I don’t know who aren’t paying me out the bum. I won’t knit for people who are so picky that they drive me up the wall or people with bad taste.)

WKC (late)

Over the weekend, I finished my first scarf. Admittedly, it was 41 inches long (but that was like 410 rows). It was for baby Kinsley. I wanted to make it bright happy colors, but also pretty girly since most of her clothes have pink in it. Her momma loved it more than she did. But she’s 8 months old.

I also finished two dishrags! It takes me only about 2 hours to make a dishrag, so I like those kinds of projects.

At knitting club last night, I learned how to purl. So, I officially know the two stitched to knitting now. Purling is the complete opposite of what you would expect. It’s awkward to do at first, but it was okay. I am going to practice with it some more over the weekend.

 

I also bought some new yarn. It’s the most wonderful mix of superfine merino wool and silk. It’s lovely dyed and so soft and wonderful. I am using it for a project for my mom (that hasn’t been started yet). I can’t wait to see what it looks like all knitted up.

 

I also meant to ask my knitting sensei if we could knit, something simple like this picture I found on Home Sweet Home or Chasing Pavements (see my sidebar for links). I think this would be fun to make a few of these for a friend who is getting married.

  

 

So, what are you knitting?

*all other photos are author’s own collection.

WKC (Wednesday Knitting Club)

Tonight is Wednesday Knitting Club. I am pretty excited. I am going to finish up my first project ever and my first dish rag. Last knitting club, Jennifer taught me how to do a yarn over and how to increase. We are going to learn how to decrease next and hopefully, I can finish this up fast enough so that she can show me how to bind off!

I really want to learn to purl next. I am pretty sure I could knit my way through anything if I knew how to purl. I have gotten really good at knitting. I’m not afraid of frogging anymore. I have dropped and picked up stitches. I have stopped and started all over. I have progressed from cheap yarn, to merino wool.

 

I have also been working pretty hard on this sweet scarf for my cousin (a sweet little almost 1 year old darling). I have about 30 inches left to go. Then, Ms. Kinsley will be able to wear her new scarf. I really love working on this one.

 

I have also found out that I have a signed copy of Yarn Harlot by Stephanie Pearl-Mcphee. I was pretty excited when I discovered my second hand book in brand new condition was signed and I paid a whole $2 for it.

Anyway, adventures in knitting as always continues!

Off to Florida

This week I am heading to Florida for a conference for work. I’m a little freaked out. It’s my first business trip. It’s also my first trip truly alone.  It’s scary and exciting at the same time. I’ll be preparing for that and probably won’t be around. I know I haven’t been keeping a good schedule anyway.

But I thought I would share a knitting project I am working on. It’s a dish rag. Doesn’t it look so happy? I think washing dishes with it would be super happy instead of dreary.

I have rather a few knitting projects going on. I am working on 3 scarves.

I’m super excited to be heading away from the rain and dreariness that is happening in the mountains now and spend a few days on the beach in the warm and sun, soak up some wonderful vitamin D. Perhaps, it can pull me out of sinking sand of blah moods.

I also need to finish up my application to grad school. *cringe* It’s coming together. It’s coming slowly, but it is coming together.