Smitten!

On Tuesday I read an email by my knitting guru, The Scarlet Knitter, describing her Stitches West experience. True to form I hung on her every word and went directly to the link she provided when describing the work of a particular designer. Stop the presses! Hold your horses! All bets are off! I was . . . "smitten" is the word that comes to mind. My dictionary provides the following definitions:

1. struck, as with a hard blow

2. grievously or disastrously stricken or afflicted

3. very much in love

Yes, I was and still am all three. After following that first link, I went to Ravelry and followed any related links and their related links to many places. I ordered the pattern book later on Tuesday and it arrived on Thursday. I reset my agenda, my priorities. UFOs be damned. USOs will remain so. I picked the cover pattern (I intend to knit them all eventually) and ordered the yarn on Friday. I stalked Ravelry for more people, more blogs referencing more patterns and followed them to the ultimate. I carry the book around with me, even to bed. I read it like a novel. I am definitely smitten!!!

This link will lead you into the depths: The Fine Line. Enter at your own risk.

Bona Fide Knitter

In Marches March

Although the remnants of our snowy winter remain on the ground, March came in like a tamed lion. That is, not as gentle as a lamb and not as ferocious as a lion in the wild. However, we all know of tamed lions who have turned ferocious.

Anyway, as I look back at February and the "snowmageddon," blizzards and nor'easters I can say I got a lot accomplished in the studio while snowed in. Three 3' shawlettes and one 7' shawl woven, one shawlette and one cowl hand knit, the studio made fit for human occupancy and organization, organization, organization.

With the extra boost I got from listening to Jasmin (The Knitmore Girls Podcast), who is finishing up UFOs in 2010, during my studio organization I came across two sweaters all finished except for the finishing. You know what I mean. All the knitting is done and I need to block them and sew them together, another failing of mine. What can I tell you, I'm a process knitter! That's why I like knitting socks. When they're done, they're done . . . well, except for weaving the toe together, at which I am expert. Call me Kitchener Queen! Sock machine socks have given me plenty of practice . . . but I digress. One sweater is a navy blue, cotton pullover which was made so long ago I was a size (or two) smaller at the time. I'd still like to do the finishing on it though. I plan to be that size again one day in the not-too-distant future. The other is a SWTC Tofut-Tee from Stitches East 2008 knit in one piece with only side seams to join and still a stumbling block. Never mind that I took a finishing class at Stitches East one year and bought a book on finishing.

UFO talk is causing me angst. Time to change the subject. Speaking of The Knitmore Girls, they are starting a KAL today, Mondo Cable Pulli or Cardi. There is limited finishing to do. I would have chosen the cardigan. Thank goodness I didn't get the urge to join in before it was too late to get the pattern and acquire the yarn by today. (Please, nobody write to tell me it's not too late!) I am determined to stick to knitting what I already have although right now I am between projects, having just completed the black cowl. Swallowtail Shawl or Sally's Favorite Summer Sweater anyone? They are next on my agenda.

Enough for this first day of March. I am invited to a virtual birthday party. I've already shopped online for the gifts for me in honor of the honoree. Time to go get the Chinese take-out and champagne.

Happy birthday Dorisanne!

Bona Fide Knitter

Love Bites Redux

Happy Valentine's Day

My window rabbit checks out some of my red stash.

I am no longer snowed in; however, the snow piles linger on and the temperature hovers around freezing or lower. I am content to stay inside until I absolutely have to venture out. Tomorrow is soon enough.

This being Valentine's Day and all, I thought I'd go back to previous years and see what I was up to. I went back to 2007 and found a very interesting February beginning. I won't rehash the details, but I'd like to bring back an oldie I think is a goodie. For the first 14 days I blogged what I called "Love Bites," a take on sound bites, one in every post for 14 days. Here they are again, all original and all under copyright:

Love Bites (originally posted February 1 - 14, 2007)

#1 Be your own best friend.

#2 Knitting is love.

#3 Find something that you really love to do and lose yourself in it.

#4 When love is losing, leave the game.

#5 Love is light and airy . . . tingly and touchy . . . heavy and humid . . . in turns.

#6 Left the love game earlier? Live life. Love later.

#7 Love isn't in the cards? Deal a new hand.

#8 Unconditional love? It depends on the conditions.

#9 Love is more than a one-day-a-year, heart-shaped box of chocolates.

#10 When the love bug bites, really think about the particular bug before you bite back. It might be a better idea to use calamine lotion and get rid of the itch.

#11 You can love a place. I love Cape Cod.

#12 Love can be like chocolate: semi-sweet, bittersweet, dark.

#13 Unlucky in love? Try "like" longer.

#14 Love is friendship.

Hmmm, now that I read them all at once, it seems there might have been a subliminal message running through there. Ya think?

Did you get the significance of yesterday's ending picture of snow falling at night? Look again. Tell me what you see.

Time to get my knit on,

Bona Fide Knitter

Oh Christmas Tree . . .

The pine tree photographed from my bedroom window as a barometer of our snowfall suffered limb damage during the last storm. It was my baby, a tree we used to decorate with lights for the holidays . . . until the six foot ladder was to short to reach the top. It towers to the rooftop now and always had wide-spaced branches. Now that many are on the ground it looks quite threadbare.

The view from my bedroom window now:

There were many photo ops during the storm. It was truly a winter wonderland. Still is:

And while it snowed I wove. My second project came off the loom and was mailed away to Melissa who has since called to tell me it arrived and she loves it . . . Hmmm, was that "love" or "like"? Anyway, she was wearing it as we spoke, she said.

And while Melissa and I spoke I beaded woven project #3 and discovered a mistake. Why do I find the last lingering mistake after I have fringed and started to bead?!!! Melissa's had one as well. To fix or not to fix? I have decided that as before it will remain a design feature. As Melissa reminded me, great artists intentionally make a mistake and leave it in their work, sort of a signature mistake. I guess I am a great artist. I'm leaving it. Perfectionist tendencies/OCD be damned!

In the bright sunny day that followed the latest storm the LWDs could hardly been seen as they ran through their shoveled maze looking for good pee-pee/poop-poop spots. Can you see the LWDs in their snow trough?

Can I have a little privacy, please?

And this one seems especially appropriate as we turn the page to Valentine's Day 2010. Can you tell me why?

Off to the tri-loom,

Bona Fide Knitter

Snow Sandwich

We're in the middle of a snow sandwich. We had the bottom slice of bread (if you will) last night into this morning. Now we are into the snow/rain/sleet filling for the sandwich. Later this morning and into the evening we've been promised the top slice of bread--snow falling at possibly three inches an hour. A cold and cripling sandwich to be sure. The schools are closed. They closed the government in Washington, DC. These are snow days of record breaking proportions for the Mid-Atlantic region.

Again the LWDs headed for the back door this morning. They did go out this time, but the snow was too high and wet for them to make the leap of faith off the step. They did wipe their paws coming back in.




Like on Sunday, we then headed for the front door instead and yellow snow was made at the first bush.





The picture from my bedroom window this morning shows the tree laden down with heavy, wet snow. One branch has broken off already.

Enough about the weather! The local TV stations have pre-empted the network shows once again for "live coverage of our winter storm"and are talking weather nonstop. Sunday it was "snowmageddon" today it's "nor'easter" or "blizzard." They talk weather ad nauseum and now I'm doing the same thing! There's weaving to do . . . after one last picture.

The view from my bedroom window just before dawn

I was out to replenish provisions yesterday. I bought milk, champagne and yarn. I have my priorities straight, don't I! And now I'm set for another day or two snowed in, weaving, knitting, having a Mimosa with breakfast.

Cozy and warm in my studio wearing Vera Bradley corduroy PJs, with a movie streamed to the TV screen and loom awaiting, all's right with my little world.

Bona Fide Knitter

Snowmageddon!

In case there is anybody left that doesn't already know, we had a big snowstorm here in the City of Brotherly Love Friday night into Saturday afternoon, the second in as many months. This one they claim to be our second biggest in recorded history. Who's doing the measuring? And where?

I was so excited to be snowed in I couldn't sleep the night before. I popped up from bed every other hour to check the landscape for snowfall. It was like Christmas Eve in days of yore (when I was a child) when I popped up from bed to see if the landscape around the Christmas tree had changed, in other words, had Santa been there yet.

From my bedroom window:



I was up before daylight with the LWDs (Little White Dogs) for our potty time. When I opened the back door they use, the snow bank was taller than they are.














Two feet high!

They stopped in their tracks, looked up at me and said (with their eyes) "Are you kidding?!!!"











"Wipe Your Paws"

So off we went down to the front door. They are hesitant to step out the front door without being hooked up to leashes. It's a no-no under usual circumstances. I gave them the okay and they stepped out. The shelter of the porch kept the snow accumulation low and they were able to do pee-pees at the first bush.

They finished and ran back into the house shaking every trace of moisture off their newly coiffed coats. They had just been groomed two days before.

So, I had the whole day to weave, knit and look at movies streamed to my TV. Our local stations broadcast the weather all day long for goodness sake! It was like nobody ever saw snow before. The talking heads were in their element. Puh-leeze!

It was the kind of day to "put on a pot." Hearty meals were called for. Ham hocks and butter beans simmering away in my kitchen. After all there would be a whole lot of shoveling to do--NOT!!! We are past the shoveling age. We had our guy come with a snowblower and clear things out after the snow stopped. However, we did do the hearty eating. One must keep ones strength up. We (at least I) had to check the weather from all windows. You need strength for that. It was also a good time to call friends who are usually out and about. Everybody would be home. All that chatting takes strength too!

A work table I ordered had been delivered the evening before and I spent the time between meals, telephoning and looking out windows putting the table together. The table is actually a computer desk, but just the right size not to make too big a footprint in the studio. It also matches the TV table (coffee table) and side table, inexpensive things from Target that fill the bill. Actually I have filled the bill to capacity. The seven-foot loom and its tripod take up a lot of space when I'm weaving. When its free of weaving the loom is dismantled into three sticks and the tripod folds. The whole thing fits nicely into a corner. But while it has weaving on it, quite a bit of the room is taken up. Thus the need for small scale furniture . . . except for the large dog bed in front of the TV.

While I got no knitting or weaving done on Saturday I more than made up for it on Sunday. Lots of weaving, knitting and movie watching was accomplished. Judy, Janis and Melissa provided plenty of talk time as well. It was another wonderful snowed in day.

My studio is cozy and warm and calls to me. Time to start my third consecutive snowed in day.



Bona Fide Knitter

I'm Seeing Red!

Well, it's February. That's why I'm seeing red. Valentine's Day is this month. Hearts. Red. Get it? But let me backtrack a moment. I am getting the studio set up and ready to rumble. Most fiber arts are boxed, shelved, but not quite as sorted as I would like. While trying to come up with a sort method for this sock-yarn-heavy stash of mine, I had many projects and yarns to revisit, fondle and decide where to file. When did it get to be so much?!!!


So now I've seen all the yarn, the kits and projects started (read UFOs) and unstarted I actually have. There is way too much, actually an overwhelming amount. But I have a new plan of action. Many of my UFOs and some FOs as well will never be all they can be because there is something about them that I didn't like, a mistake, an ugly color, started before my skill level matched the project, some finished and never worn, whatever. I am going to be doing a lot of frogging! I am going to be doing a lot of repurposing of frogged yarn and also of new yarn which will be recatagorized from knitting to weaving and from sock yarn to sweater, shawl or afghan yarn. I am finally going to focus. I am also going to shop my stash this year and as Tim Gunn says, "Make it work!"

I must confess that yesterday I bought yarn. It was Patternworks' fault! I had to buy yarn to get the free pattern for a cowl I cannot live without. I bought three balls of black yarn to make the cowl. And last night, just before the red month started, I went back to a mouldering KnitPicks cart that still contained handpaint Merino yarn in reds I've been hemming and hawing over and bought it. That's it! I'm done! Well, except for some Lion Brand Homespun I need to go with some I already have that isn't enough for the two shawls I want to weave. I am limited to buying only yarn needed to match some I have that isn't enough for the project in mind.

And then I checked out some of my red stash . . . My plan is to frog a red afghan I started some months (a year? longer?) ago that has a mistake that is driving me crazy. I'm not even two inches into it. I should have frogged and started over long ago knowing my OCD tendencies! So today it gets frogged and sometime this month I will restart it. After all, this is the red month.


Bona Fide Knitter