Sheep Shoes and Shower Gifts

Are these cool or what? I'm a Birkenstock girl. I love my Birks! They're great for wearing knit socks. When I saw these I wanted them in the worst way. What fiber fanatic wouldn't? But think about it. How often would I wear a pair of red shoes with a cartoon sheep on them, whose right doesn't match its left? The style, Boston, isn't one of my favorites. I prefer open toes, sandals. I already have too many Birks. Other than Stitches East and MD Sheep and Wool Festival, where would I wear them? I needed rationalization. Well, I could wear them yarn shopping, but I do most of that online these days. I could wear them to sock machine meet ups, but how often do those occur. Then it got near Christmas and I found them new on eBay for "Best Offer." I was a goner. A Christmas present from me to me. That always works as a rationalizer. It would be like buying myself an ugly tie.

They still look new because they are. I haven't worn them yet, although I even have a red shoulder bag to complete the look and have attended two knitting events.

I didn't think to wear them! Oh well, any day now.

My baby shower knitting has been nonexistent for days now. I'm not sure I'm crazy about the Bernat Cottontots. Although I've been careful with it, working with a lap protector, the beginning is starting to look worn, which makes me wonder how it will wash and hold up for a baby. I now wish I had ordered Sugar 'n Creme weeks ago. I knew I wasn't satisfied and a week ago I did the next best thing, ordered a great gift from the baby register. Now any knitted thing I give, whether meeting my high standards or not, will just be icing on the baby shower cake.

Last night I was looking for a recent Knit Picks catalog to see what yarn they might have suitable for baby things. I couldn't find the latest (because it was right next to me! forest/trees syndrome) and the old ones I looked through left me clueless. Today I received the new Knit Picks catalog and guess what is featured. Yep, you guessed it, BABY THINGS!!! Is that a sign or what? This catalog was written for me! The two biggest spreads are on baby things and socks. Can you believe it?!!!

I will complete the kimono in Bernat Cottontots and make my final determination on the yarn then. My decluttering instructions do not allow me to bring anything else in the house until something leaves so Peaches & Creme can not come here . . . yet. I have four pairs of knitted socks almost out the door.

Bona Fide Knitter

Tax Time = Mindless Knitting

It's that time again. Being in decluttering mode, I decided to get the three tax returns I have to prepare every year done and over with. And I did. Today. That way I could file the records and go on with my life. Unfortunately there is the signing and copies and mailing to be accomplished, but the worst is over.

I've been in a blue funk for a few days and mindless knitting seems to be all I can accomplish. The Abundance Afghan is enjoying the resulting growth spurt.

I have four pairs of sock machine socks needing Kitchenering. (I just love making up words with the Kitchener root!) Since they are machine socks with 60 stitches, that means I have 30 + 30 stitches to Kitchener. My attention span can't handle that during American Idol. Maybe tomorrow evening during Survivor.

I am reading a wonderful book that is fitting right in with my mood, The Knitting Circle, by Ann Hood.

Okay so it's another book about how knitting can help you out of a bad place, save your sanity, bring quietude where there is angst. We know that, right? However, the story has more depth than the Blossom Street tales, in my humble opinion, or maybe it's just the right story for me at the right time. Mothers, daughters, husbands, and others. Work, home, Providence, RI. It's all there.

Back to mindless . . . knitting.

Bona Fide Knitter

Cold Weather, Warm Socks

Baby, it's cold outside! I keep putting off the many errands I have. All I want to do is stay indoors warm and comfy in my flannel PJs and knit nice warm socks. I have the Auto Knitter purring with only an occasional cough from a hair ball. I give it a good drink of machine oil and the socks crank out without a hitch . . . almost . . . knock on wood.

Antique sock machines like things a certain way, at least my Auto Knitter does. I have an electric cone winder because the AK likes the yarn to flow smoothly from a cone. Yarn from a center-pull ball just won't do. Yesterday I wound many center pull balls onto cones. And I'll tell you this, a lot of those balls have little hitches in the center. You don't notice it so much when knitting by hand, but any machine will let you know in a hurry! And don't you just hate it when you can't find the end down in the ball? What's up with that? Sometimes it's as easy as pie and sometimes you get a big wad of tangled yarn from the center without an end in sight. I hate when that happens!

I think tonight will be Kitchener time. What do you think?

Maybe I'll add a few more to the pile before tonight, maybe even some knee socks. You can do that, knit a few pairs of socks a day, with a sock machine.

Bona Fide Knitter keeping warm

Sock It to Me

I'm sick of self'-striping yarn for socks. There! I've said it. Yes, indeedy, I'm ready for some tweeds and some solids. Whatever happened to solids? Handpaints, stripetity-stripes! Give me some subtle tweeds, some handpainted solids with subtle variegation. Do I have to dye my own?!!!

Okay, with that little rant off my chest I feel better. However, I am not feeling so good when I look at these socks that don't rock. The yarn, Socks That Rock from Blue Moon Fiber Arts, is 100% superwash merino feels good and strong. The colorway Yosemite, is not my cup of tea.

This sock-and-a-half is suffering from quite a few maladies, the first of which is that my Auto Knitter sock machine was trying to be boss again and you can see the evidence in the ribbing of the top sock. Secondly the color, which looks better in the picture(less bright) than it does for real, is more suitable for Wicked Witch socks sticking out from under a house in Oz. And it looked so good in hank form! (Pay no attention to the neon orange. That's just the waste yarn-- starting and ending yarn.) I didn't complete either sock. They are my take on swatching. On the sock machine I make an actual sock as a swatch. What the H, one sock takes only half an hour! So I ended up with dropped-stitched, ugly sock and part of sock. Today I will frog them back to a cone then wind them into a ball for some other use. Maybe a hand knit doll sweater would do the colors justice. Or maybe hand knit socks in a pattern would do the trick.

Below are some socks made on another of my sock machines, the Legare 400.

L - R: (1) 1x1 ribbed, fold-down cuff, stockinette leg and foot; (2) 1x1 ribbed cuff, 3x1 ribbed leg and instep; (3) 1x1 cuff, 3x1 leg, stockinette foot


In contrast here are some lighter colors.




The center pair was knit on the Legare 400 circular sock machine. The others are hand knit. This is as much as I know about the yarns: L - R (1) Trekking; (2) Handpaint from an eBay seller (3) Opal Petticoat. The three heels are different.



Heels: L - R (1) machine knit short row; (2) hand knit Dutch heel with Eye of Partridge flap; (3) hand knit Dutch heel with normal k1, sl 1 flap


And if you're tired of socks, here are gauntlets from Sally Melville's The Purl Stitch hand knit shorter to accommodate the amount of Koigu in my stash.




That's what I'm talking about! I love Koigu. Not stripes, not tweed, just right.

Bona Fide Knitter

A Valentine Surprise!

Happy Valentine's Day

Love Bite #14 (the last one!) - Love is friendship

as proven by this snapshot of my friend, The Scarlet Knitter, and me outside the American Girl Place in New York City. She is my knitting guru of the Three Project Rule. This Valentine Surprise is for her.
Quite a few years ago, (the year 2000 give or take) I received a surprise in the mail. It was during the time I decided to step gently back into knitting by knitting doll clothes. My friend sent me Holiday Wear, Knits for Dolls and Children, by Judith Shangold. I chose Valentine's Day because it was the next holiday. I immediately ordered Plymouth Encore D.K. yarn from Patternworks and went to work. Last night, February 13, 2007, I finished. Another UFO bites the dust!

When I tried the sweater on my fit model, American Girl Addy, it was way too big! So Cloudland Ida Mae Humphrey jumped in and saved the day.

Actually Ida Mae is a taller doll with very long arms and was able to wear it very well even though her torso is rather narrow.

So what happened to gauge? I was sure I had it spot on at the time. What happened in blocking? What happened in general? I knitted all the pieces right away. I, in my infinite lack of wisdom, decided the sweater was very short and wide so I added some rows for length. Not a problem . . . until I was just about out of red yarn for the button bands. I ordered more. So there were the pieces all knitted, just sort of hanging around, for years. Early last February I decided to surprise my friend with pictures of the finished project on Valentine's Day. Back in the beginning I had knitted only one collar piece. It was such a challenge to my memory I hadn't done the second piece. Last year it was a challenge to get it to come out like the first piece. I was on my last try before doing both pieces over again when I decided enough is enough.

I blocked the sweater, and blocked it, and blocked it . . . until this January! What can I tell you? Finishing is not my strong suit. However, now that I have been declared a BFK (by my other knitting guru), I knew I could get it done for this Valentine's Day. And I did!

You will notice there are no pictures of the inside. I would not reveal to the world my sorry first attempt at intarsia. The floats are long enough to sail to China. I know better now. As for the knitting, the year of being pinned to the blocking board, another steaming and drying, manipulating stitches with my fingernail, nothing could make the knitting beautiful. It looks so amateurish to what I do now. Thank God I improved!

Anyway, Laura, this one's for you, my friend.

Bona Fide Knitter

It Ain't Over 'Til It's Finished

Love Bite #13 - Unlucky in love? Try sticking with 'like' longer.

Today's the day I finish getting that Valentine surprise ready for unveiling tomorrow. I love the last minute. I need that push.

During the Decluttering of the Century (DOTC) I have unearthed some UFOs never mentioned here and which will remain nameless a little while longer. Suffice it to say the 'F' in UFO is a double threat for me. My objects sometimes get finished except the finishing, if you know what I mean. What I mean is, I can get the knitting done to perfection, but the sewing together leaves a lot to be desired, if I ever attempt it at all. That's another reason to love knitting socks. When they're done, they're done. Well, except for weaving the toe together. I have become a Kitchenerer Extraordinaire through socks knit by hand and especially those knit by machine which can have from 54 to 100 stitches to join together.

I guess I could learn to finish sweaters just as well given the right instructions and practice. I guess I have to make more sweaters and less side-to-side no-sewing-together-necessary garments. I'm already planning to take only finishing classes this year at Stitches East.

Bona Fide Knitter

Auto Knitter 2, Bona Fide Knitter 1!

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

Yaaaay! After numerous attempts and two days I have knit a pair of Opal socks on my Auto Knitter Sock Machine. I had to use a lot of weight, five weights on the stem. I can get no tighter gauge than nine rounds per inch. The fabric is still rather thin, but they are socks, perfect in stitches, perfect in size. They were made for a man. The yarn is Opal (75% wool/25% nylon), Shadows, Color 1282.


Since I couldn't get the gauge as tight as I wanted I thought the machine would like some slightly heavier fingering yarn. Not to be. It threw it up. I hate when that happens! I was using Silja, an inexpensive sock yarn, 80% wool, 20% nylon. You can see in the picture below where the stitches in the ribbing and the leg were happening hit or miss. I aborted the mission.



Although the fabric density is good, Silja does not feel good. It's harsh to the hand. Maybe it softens up with washing. Otherwise I think Silja will not be one of my favorites for sock knitting. I will try some other sock yarns of varying degrees of thickness. (All sock yarns are not created equal.) Maybe Lorna's Laces or some Merino like Koigu will be fluffier than Opal and softer than Silja and be just the diet this machine likes. There must be some yarn in my stash that will give me the density I want using this machine. I will not be defeated!

Bona Fide Knitter