I missed Pi-Day!

I wanted to thank you all for your comments on my "Frost Flower" post. I was "under the weather", or "out for the count" over the weekend, flu like symptoms, but I'm O.K. again. I usually respond to your comments individually, but was not able to do so this time.

****

Saturday, March 14th, was Pi-Day! I'm no math-nerd, but thanks to Elizabeth Zimmermann, I'm familiar with a very practical use for Pi - her Pi-shawl.

I wanted to knit this shawl for quite some time now, and during some "in between projects" time, while I was looking through my stash, this left over (from my Queen Anne's shawl ) yarn cake fell into my hands. I love this colorway so much, and was delighted to see it's natural occurrence in Kathy's picture:

picture used with permission

Since this was just left over yarn, not a full skein, I knew it would not really make a shawl, but I wanted it to be a center piece for our dining room table anyways. It turned out exactly the way I wanted it, that's to say, I'm very pleased with it. Since this was a small project, I think I'll knit the pi-shawl again in the future. There are many variations out there, but I like the simplicity of it. I did my usual crochet bind off for the border. It's easy and I like it.

specifics:

pattern: by Elizabeth Zimmermann

yarn: Evilla Artyarn 8/2, color A-8

needle: 4mm circular, DP at first

size after blocking: 28" in diameter (blocking it into a circle was really hard, and I didn't do a good job, it's a little oblong)

start-finish: February 21 - 24

Handspun Friday - Frost Flowers

I'm really glad I found out about sweetgeorgia yarns fiber club in time to sign up. The first ever installment was February 2009.



fiber: Wensleydale: it's a longwool sheep with curly wool; it's the finest lustre long wool in the world (according to http://www.sheep101.com/); it can be spun into fine laceweight, fingering weight for sturdy sock yarn, or even bulky, for glossy, weighty skeins.
I prefer the sock yarn variety. I can't imagine having this fiber near my skein, other than my feet.



It was not the first time I've spun Wensleydale. As it is, I've spun a bobbin full of it, just before this shipment arrived. It's the one I dyed myself. I still have another bobbin to fill, and ply before it is ready to be shown here.


weight: 4oz
colorway: Frost Flowers

yardage: ~ 311yds

way of plying: navajo

WPI: 22
With the short color changes, navajo plying would not come to mind at first. One reasoning why I did it anyway was, that I would NOT want lace around my shoulders in this fuzzy fiber, and as mentioned above, only socks would do (for me). I love how this skein came out. The colores are fabulous, and the skein, while taking a hot bath, did not bleed out at all. I like it, when color does not come off, on hands, or in the bath afterwards.

I'm looking forward to the next installment.

Isn't it time for a tea party?

"I'm the first to pitch about DST, not because I have trouble getting up, but because of the whole idea! Anyway, it was snowing yesterday, covering up all the mud and ugliness in the backyard and around the house. It wont stay for long. Cleanup is such a mess, I think I don't like March." End of whining.

To cheer me up, I made my tea pot a dress. O.K. it's ugly, so ugly like an ugly child only a mother can love it, but it's doing a terrific job! Some time ago, Claudia put the idea into my head, and suddenly, one day, it became very clear - I NEEDED a tea cosy really bad. Watch out, pots and pans, I'll cover you all over time. I'm afraid as time goes by, my house, and it's contense will be covered in knit wear eventually. Somebody help me, please! :o)



So, the tea pot cosy is actually called "tea mitten" by Elisabeth Kleven, and it appealed the most to me, when I searched for a pattern. I liked the name too.

Not every tea pot is built equally, as I had to find out the hard way. I picked the leftover yarn, hm why exactly? I guess I wanted to see how it looked knit up, and I wanted to knit with my handspun yarn, and as a leftover thingy it shouldn't disappear in the big black hole of a handspun yarn holding bin. Not that I really need a reason for picking any of my handspun, but I always think, the REAL handspun yarn, the one I intended to look like it does, is meant for something grand, something special, and this tea mitten is destined for everyday life, nothing glamorous about it at all. Since it's been finished and used for some time now, I can tell you it does a terrific job in keeping my tea warm longer. I didn't expect it to work, never used a tea cosy before. It's a positive thing, I like it. Maybe some day my tea pot will get a new Sunday dress, in real nice yarn - maybe.

It should have been easy and quick to knit this mitten, but it was not. I had big trouble with gauge. Who would knit a swatch for a tea mitten? I was stumped by row 9, asked for help, got it, but couldn't wait for it, so I did my own thing, which turned out to be right anyway. I knit on very enthusiastically, only to discover, that I ran out of yarn about 10 rows before the finish line. With a sigh, I put it aside, to rip it out the next day. It was late, I wanted to take a picture to show you a failed project for once (you don't get to see all the ones I cast on and rip out again, and there are many).
Next day, I had a light bulb moment. I took the almost finished mitten and put it on my tea pot. Wouldn't you know it, it was WAY to BIG! What did that tell me? I did indeed have enough yarn to make this tea mitten, because I had to custom fit and knit it. Yeah! I ripped it out, without taking a picture, who needs it, it will be O.K. after all!

Well, to make a long story short, it was much easier to knit it the second time, and even easier to make modifications to fit the pot. Only I forgot to pay attention to the snout of the pot. The gusset is a bit wide for it, but I didn't care at that point. Everything else fit's like a - mitten.
After finishing it, I washed it, and put it on the tea pot wet, so it could dry form fitting, and it did. It slides off an on so perfectly. I'm glad I made it, just wished I had used nicer yarn. A word about the yarn. When I spun this yarn, I had a 4-ply in mind, and as you might remember it turned out very well. But there are always left over singles, which when enough, I navajo ply most of the time. So this yarn was the product of such a situation. It would have striped nicer if knit entirely in the round, as the first few rounds, and the last several rounds as well, but the main part was knit back and forth, and that's the reason why it did what it did. Oh well.
Well, enough of the tea mitten, lets get the tea poured already! Ah, it's hot, hot, hot!




specifics:
pattern: Tea mitten by Elisabeth Kleven, ravelry link (I don't think you can get it anywhere else)
yarn: handspun Santa & Candy Cane leftover, navajo plied, 87yds
needles: 3.5mm DP
notes: cast on 72 sts., made some mods to fit my pot
start-finish: February 15-16

Handspun Friday - Newspaper

fiber source: Spritely Goods
fiber: 2 x 2oz merino/bamboo blend
colorway: Newspaper
yardage: 241 yds
plying: 2-ply
notes: left over singles made into navajo plied yarn
I find spinning batts is hard for me. As much as I like how batts look, I don't think I'll be buying any more in the future. That said, I still have several in my fiber stash. Maybe with practice I'll get better spinning batts. But spinning is supposed to be fun, and with this fiber, it was not much fun.
The fiber itself was a dream, so soft, and I liked the red color. The finished yarn has a shine to it and is very soft. To knit someting with it, it's possible to wear around the neck, even for me (Mimosa is my middle name). But knitting this up is not on top of my to-do list.




***
I guess these are the last snow pictures of Biko and Sam this winter. Spring is as good as here.

Princess Biko

you can click on the pics and look at them in the original size on flickr

Sam

I like both of these pictures a lot, especially Sam's, he looks so great in this one.

WIP's

As promised here are some (all of my) WIP's I wanted to show you, before some of them get to be FO's. I'll start with the oldest one. I'm still knitting away on my 10-stitch blanket. I'm working on it, whenever I've finished something, and can't decide what to do next. (happens a lot lately) I think this blanket will take forever! I'm maybe halfway through the yarn, it's about 30" square right now, getting warm on the lap and heavy. One thing's for sure, after I've used up all my Patons SWS, I'll never buy this yarn again. I don't like working with it.


This is the Vernal Equinox shawl. I've joined this KAL and actually am on top of it. That's how it looks finished up to clue 5. I've done clue 6a, and am waiting for the next clue, which will be out around March 6th. Keep your fingers crossed that I've got enough yarn left to finish it. It's going to be a huge shawl.


Yes, another shawl. I could NOT decide what to do next, after I finished something else (blog about it soon), which would have been another WIP last week, but now it's not anymore. I have, as every knitter does, a long list of projects I want to knit one day. But even if you are open to something new, it doesn't mean it's the right time for any of them. I don't like this time in between.
Even though I have the most exquisite yarn in my stash, I felt the need to play with SOCK YARN LEFTOVERS! There are many ways to get rid of your sock yarn leftovers. Many opt for the mitered squares blanket (I thought about that too), but when I saw Martina's shawl, I liked her idea instantly. I first thought, no way, am I going to cast on for another shawl, but in the end (after several attempts casting on for something else), I gave in last night. And it's so much fun! I love how it looks and there are so many possibilities to play with!

Well, that's it for WIP's. Besides all that, I'm spinning too, so keep tuned to Handspun Friday! :o)

PS: Thanks for your comments on my Venus family! They are all well loved. If you want to try them yourself, you can get the pattern as an instant ravelry download .

Handspun Friday and Venus of Willendorf

Tell me, how could I NOT knit this girl ( Venus of Willendorf Images ), after I found this pattern? The original Venus of Willendorf was found 1908 in Austria, and was made of limestone. You can read more about her here.



I really wanted for my Venus to look like stone, and I wanted to use rustic looking handspun for her, to make her extra special. I had some light grey Coopworth in my fiber stash, it must have been one of the first fiber packages I ever bought in 2007. Nasty stuff, as it turned out. Not well prepared at all, but I got enough yarn out of it, to knit my giant Big Momma Venus! I modified her head a little, to look more like the real one.





pattern: Venus de Merino by Lara Breese of Dark Twist. or as Ravelry instant download

yarn: Coopworth handspun, ~ 80yds (including what you need for sewing)

needle: 3.25mm DP (I used smaller needles, than the yarn would call for, to get a tight knit fabric)

size : of Big Momma Venus: 9.25" high 8" wide - yes she's bigger than the real one

start-finish: Feb. 17-18

***



yarn: handspun "Silver Dollar", 3-ply, (spun this about a year ago, and had it left over from my dad's birthday scarf;

needles: 2.75mm DP

size: of the little ones: 6" high, 4.5" wide

start-finish: Feb. 19-20 (was kind of obsessed and made 3 in two days)

***



The little ones are meant as "Good Luck" charms for my family. :o) I'm keeping the big one for myself.

Fiber: Gemini Fibers, bought in 2007, my first fiber bought for spinning, I was looking for the cheapest fiber so I could practice spinning on my spindle; thankfully I didn't bother with it too much and moved on to better fiber, because I would not have continued spinning, and given up on it, because it was so frustrating to spin. A lot of veggetable matter and nibs. I think this fiber, prepared better would not be so bad at all.

Content: light grey Coopworth

Weight: 200g

yardage: I wanted to spin it thicker as normal for me, and filled one bobbin; it was a disaster, kept it as singles; tried again and made 2 skeins 71yds each

WPI: 11

Ply: navajo plied

***

Surprise - for moi?

Originally I wanted to show you my WIP's today, but a FO is much better, even if it's not made by me.
After shoveling the driveway the umptiest time this winter, I just had enough strength left to get the mail. Usually it's not worth the bother, but today I found a package which was addressed to me. Angelika did it again! She made these felted ballerina slippers for me, and included this cute notebook, stitch markers and this very delicate crochet book mark! Thank you so much, Angelika! It's marvelous to receive a gift, such as yours, for no reason at all! I appreciate the time and effort you put into it.



I think it's funny how small my size 11 feet look in this picture. I called Sam so he could be the "background" for this picture. I love his expression - my little stoner puppy! The socks I'm wearing here, were made by my Aunt Gisela (for my dad), but landed somehow on MY feet. :o)



Sam was really quite bored, and yawned, while I tried to get some good shots.



And because he's so cute, one more picture. Here he's looking pretty for the camera, and as Thank you, he got some treats.



It's a wonderful feeling to get a knit gift. Sure we could make it ourself any time, or not. As a knitter one values gifts like that even more.
Aren't you glad you didn't get to see boring lace WIP's?

Handspun Friday - Real Fresh

This was the first fiber I spun after a longer spinning break. The singles were seriously overspun, and I didn't touch them for a while, afraid what they would do while plying. I absolutely adore this color! It's so many shades of green, just beautiful.



fiber: superwash Merino

colorway: Real Fresh by Dyed in the Wool Handmade (Hi Maggie!) :o)

weight: 2 x 4oz.

finished yarn: navajo plied (boy that was a struggle)

yardage: 1. skein ~ 252yds, 2. skein ~ 183yds

WPI: ~ 20 (I finally looked for and found my WPI measuring device)

The fiber was a pleasure to spin. I should have waited until I got better into it again, practice makes perfect, oh well, can't do anything about that now.

And just because I think she's cute: Biko very uncomfortable on the living room sofa. She's only up there, because I told her to, contrary to Sam who think's the sofa is his.

Hannah's Owl Pullover

I know in the past, owls were thought of as bad omen, but I'm choosing a more positive symbolism for the sweater I made for my daughter Hannah:

The animal symbolism of owl deals with:
Wisdom
Mystery
Transition
Messages
Intelligence
Mysticism
Protection
Secrets

That being said, I find it funny, that Hannah took the pictures in a cemetery.

pattern: free Owl Pullover at Needled by Kate Davies
yarn: Bernat Alpaca, 70% acrylic, 30% alpaca, color Ebony, 4 balls, 5th ball for about 1 inch at the collar, ~ 500yds total
size: S 34" bust
needles: 6mm
start-finish: Jan. 26-28

How is it possible to knit a sweater in 3 days? If you are slightly obsessed with it, and use 6mm needles, that's how.

From the first moment I saw this sweater, I wanted to knit it. Thank goodness, Hannah wanted it too! I wish I could have used better yarn, but it had to be easy care for her, and this way it was cheaper too. What I forgot to think about before I started, was, that I needed 34 buttons for owly eyes. Where do you get so many buttons of the same kind?

At first I thought I'll use 3 different kinds, but in the end (after sewing on about 4 buttons) I asked Hannah, if she would be O.K. with only the front 6 owls having eyes, and she was. Good girl!

This sweater was knit in the round from the bottom edge up. It's got decreases and increases in the back for better (close) fit. For some reason the sleeves took me the longest. Did I ever mention I don't like knitting sleeves? Argh!


I wished to God, that it would fit Hannah, and as you can see in the pictures, it does! I LOVE the one where you can see the back, not just because of the sweater, but the whole picture does it for me. :o) Thanks Honey, for the gorgeous photos!

owlsweater7[1] src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3444/3287983477_e78681fac7.jpg" width=500>

Knitting for Good, ready to be passed along!

For those interested, go here to leave a comment on Yvonne's blog, and get another chance.

I'll be back tomorrow with some knitting news. :o)

Happy Valentin's Day!

Beautiful flowers from DH.

Painted heart in snow.

Dinner by myself, thinking of DH. That's my Valentine's Day, how was yours?

"Amor Fati - Love Your Fate", which is in fact your life."

-Friedrich Nietzsche

Happy Valentin's Day to all of you!

and

Have a wonderful weekend!

500th post!!!

Can you believe it? This is my 500th post. But it's still Handspun Friday here!

Back in December I ordered Santa Claus to come in form of fiber, and bring some Candy Cane's too! :o)

It's not a secret that I can't spin thick yarn. (I just tried it again yesterday, and it was a disaster.) What else can you do, so you don't end up with lace-or sock yarn all the time? I think 4-ply is fun! Too bad, that I spun one bobbin slightly thicker than all the others, so I ran out early on that one, which left me with singles on 3 bobbins. After some head scratching, I decided to navajo ply the rest. It makes a huge difference, don't you think?

fiber: Finn, colorway Santa and Candy Cane, 4oz each by SockPixie (I really don't like giving you this link, because if I could I would buy ALL her colorways myself) She's got not only fiber, but yarn as well. You should visit her blog to read up on all the wonderful colorways you've missed. I like her inspired way of dyeing yarn and now fiber too.

yarn: big skein - 4-ply, 163yds, little skein - 87yds navajo plied; I like how both of them look.

I haven't done the WPI thing, don't want to undo the skeins, but the 4-ply is either heavy worsted, or chunky weight, and the navajo plied skein is worsted weight yarn.

Knit One Below - or Inside-Outside Scarf

Once again I feel overwhelmed with the amount of available knitting patterns. It's starting to get on my nerves. I see one thing I really like, and before I can even think of casting on for that, there's already something else catching my eyes. I blame ravelry, or should I blame all those prolific knitters out there? My head is spinning, and it needs to STOP! Should I bury my head in the sand? I don't know why I even bother buying more knitting magazines or books, because there's plenty free stuff out there. Anyway, one example of free stuff it this Inside-Outside scarf.

Last time at my LYS this book caught my eyes. This is a new (to me) technique and I find it very interesting and fun to knit. With this technique even I can make color work projects, without the infuriating muddle of strands, and without tears.

Free pattern: Inside-Outside scarf by Elise Duvekot

yarn: Katia Mexico, color # 5853
Gedifra Fashion Trend color # 4533 (the same as my first Thorpe hat)

needle: 6mm DP, important to use DP needles with this technique (or circs)

size after blocking: 7" x 90", the edges curled terrible, but blocking took care of that

start-finish: Jan. 22-24 (I was so obsessed, that it almost flew off my needles)

I even find the wrong side attractive. The fun here is, that you can choose different weight yarns, and it still looks good, but you don't have to. Katia Mexico is slightly thinner as Gedifra Fashion Trend, but not very much noticeable. I'd like to try totally different yarns together some time. The edges are not very pretty, don't know if it's just me. I'd love to knit another scarf, but I think I'll try some socks first, or something else from the book, but a small project for sure. (I just finished a second sweater for Hannah, pictures comming soon).

PS: My dogs like oranges. Whenever I want to eat ONE orange, I have to peel TWO oranges. Just saying.

Knitting the Threads of Time by Nora Murphy - A Book Review

“Knitting the Threads of Time: Casting Back to the Heart of Our Craft” by Nora Murphy

A Book Review:

Life works in mysterious ways. I know this sounds cliche, but it’s also true. At a moment, where I was struggling with a sweater, for my daughter Hannah, a book was given to me, in which the author describes her struggle knitting a sweater for her son. Why should we care about that?



Because to my surprise it turned out to be much more than that. It’s not just about the sweater, but the author reminded me, that what we as knitters, or crafters in general are doing, is nothing but continuing, what women before us, have done throughout time. Nora Murphy, as a mother, and beginning knitter grabbed my attention with her personal stories, while guiding me through history, and traditions from all over the world. We are not the first knitters, and hopefully will not be the last ones, which she makes clear with a tangible link to our past.

Although it might not be important to many, as a visual person, I find the cover (design by Tracy Pitts) speaks strongly to me. Before I started reading it, I had the book lying around, waiting to be read, and as I walked by I would brush my fingers over it.

Knitting the Threads of Time
by Nora Murphy

A woman sits in her comfy chair. Two needles and a ball of yarn keep her company. She’s knitting away at something. Maybe a scarf? Socks? She enjoys the sound of her needles beating like a soft drum. She inhales the smell of the waxy yarn. She exhales the satisfaction of watching a single strand transform into an object of beauty. She is perfectly present, in perfect bliss.

This is not a revolutionary act. It is not a moment to record in the history books. All the same, this woman is a revolutionary. She, and millions of women around the globe like her, are making history in their homes. They are creating clothing for loved ones. They are the grandmother who knits a Christmas stocking for her grandchild, the young mother who stitches a star quilt to honor an elder, the two seventh graders who crochet a baby blanket for a teacher’s newborn.

Their craft often has to be wedged into the harried schedules and nonstop demands of modern life. The grandmother knits in the hospital waiting room while she awaits the results of her husband’s surgery, his third. The young mother penny-pinches time and money to piece together the dozens of diamonds that will become a star. The preteens’ work competes with homework, pimples, and text messages from boys they haven’t yet kissed.

What these modern artists often don’t see are the remnants of an ancient lineage to which they belong. The grandmother, the young mother, and the girls are all descendants of the women around the globe who have transformed fibers into clothing to protect their families for tens of thousands of years. They are the heirs to goddesses who understood that human survival depends on the cloth. These ancients — from China to Egypt, from Peru to the Pacific Northwest — understood that clothing contains the power of creation. The modern knitter is no different. She too, replicates the act of creation; she too keeps the child, the clan, the community alive.

In North America, most of today’s needle artists don’t have to worry that our children will go cold if we don’t finish the sock, the quilt, or the blanket. We have the luxury of buying most of our clothes at big chain stores at the local mall. - continued -
We choose freely to make garments. Yet by this choice, contemporary crafters keep the ancient tradition going — a tradition that reminds us of our primal existence on this precious earth, that reminds us where we’ve come from and who we are.

Inside a stitch, just a single knitted stitch, lies the paradox of the ordinary, everyday textile hero. Her simple stitch helps keep the story of humanity alive; her work casts on stitches for the next generation.

I am a modern-day knitter, though I admit this hesitantly. The domestic sciences have never been my strong suit. I nearly flunked home economics in high school. We started with cooking, but my assignments resulted in burned objects destined more often for the trash can than the table. I didn’t fare much better when we started sewing. I loved the idea of making my own clothes, but I couldn’t figure out how to thread the bobbin without swearing or slicing my finger. I couldn’t cut fabric on the bias. Lacking domestic skills didn’t much matter until I had children of my own — children who need three meals a day, every day, who need clothes to keep them warm in the long winter months.
Despite my domestic demerits, I’m the one in charge of my household, which includes middle schooler Andrew, first grader Evan, and my partner and the boys’ good friend, Diego. Everyone pitches in: Evan takes out the recycling, Andrew cleans the downstairs bathroom, Diego folds the laundry. Still, under my management, the house is often cluttered, and dinner rarely gets four stars. There’s just one domestic art that doesn’t stump me — knitting. It’s not that I’m very good at it. It just doesn’t scare me the way cooking and cleaning do.

Last winter I managed to make wool socks for Evan and Andrew. It had been years since I had knit. I was surprised that none of the basic dance steps with the yarn and two knitting needles had left me. I remembered how to cast on, knit, purl, and bind off without having to think — a bicycle kind of thing. Plus knitting, unlike sewing, has no bias. Knitting welcomes everyone, and the yarn goes any direction you tell it to.


Nora Murphy is a freelance writer who specializes in writing for nonprofit organizations in the urban communities in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Her stories and essays have appeared in such places as the anthology Twelve Branches (Coffee House Press, 2003). She holds an MFA degree in writing from Hamline University. She lives in St. Paul.

From the book, Knitting the Threads of Time © Copyright 2009 by Nora Murphy. Reprinted with permission from New World Library. http://www.newworldlibrary.com/ or 800-972-6657 ext. 52

Contact: Monique Muhlenkamp
New World Library
800-972-6657 ext. 15
Monique@newworldlibrary.com

Handspun Friday - Black Purl

I think I'm going to adopt Shannon's hand spun Friday posts. Otherwise I'll be all over the place. Structure is good.

fiber: super wash 60% wool, 25%mohair, 15%nylon, 15%

colorway: Black Pearl by Vines come get entangled

weight: 2.75oz

yardage: 280yds

plying: Navajo plied

This fiber blend is my favorite for sock yarn. It's such a pity, that there was not more fiber. When I was finished spinning, I had my doubts about this colorway, but after I plied it, and wound the skein, I loved it! Phew! (swipe sweat off forehead). I think I'll spin some solid color to go with it, so I can still use this yarn for socks.

When you click for a close up look, you can see the fuzziness of the mohair. I just love that.

"Knitting For Good" is moving on!

Here's another chance of getting the book "Knitting for Good". Ann blogged about it, and you can leave a comment if you would like your name in the game.

I've finished Li's scarf from the book, and besides the pooling of the yarn, I like it!


It definitely needs blocking, since the stitch pattern draws it together. It grew a lot with blocking, especially lengthwise. I wanted to use both hanks of this yarn, but it would have been too long in the end.

The colors made funny things on this scarf. I don't like pooling, but what can you do? There's glitter in the yarn, can you see it sparkling (besides the ubiquitous dog hairs)?



pattern: Herringbone Rib Scarf by Li (either from the book "Knitting for Good" by Betsy Greer, or if you ask for it in a comment on her blog)
yarn: Cherry Tree Hill Super Glitz, superwash merino plied with a strand of glitter, DK weight, colorway: Gypsy Rose, 4oz hand , 325yds (I used 1.5 hanks)
needles: 4mm
size after blocking: 7" x 90"
start-finish: Jan. 09-16

This was a fun knit! Thank you Li!