Where Have I Been?

I can't believe a whole month has slipped by since I last blogged. I've been off my feet and off my feed. Noro socks have been flying off my needles during this period. Check this out:

Remember the pair of socks that brought out the OCD in me because they didn't match? I've made them into two pairs, matching pairs. This pair:

And the pair on the right:All is right with the world. I'm currently working on another Noro sock which I am determined will have a matching mate. I have a Noro sock yarn stash. I'm in a Noro sock yarn frenzy.

I also finished the throw I started last winter, a Knit Picks pattern the Abundance Throw, soothing garter stitch of from Knit Picks. I love the sand and sea colors of it and the soft comfy feel. I'm saving it until the garage conversion to "my studio" is complete. Hopefully that will occur before summer is over. I have plans to move my hobbies, which have taken over the living area in this little house, into their own domain. The Abundance Throw will be my security blanket when I work in my new room next winter. I can see it all now . . . the room might get a little chilly and I will hunker down in a comfy chair with my feet up and knit to my heart's content with audio books or TV as company, my yarn stash as insulation, my comfort of dolls for company. Neither dogs nor spouse will find my studio comfortable for long periods of time, no bed or comfy sofa.

During my confinement I did quite a bit of Internet shopping. More yarn, more patterns and a Hanne Falkenberg kit, the Mermaid Jacket in shades of orange.

What was I thinking?!!! Actually I was thinking more easy, soothing garter stitch. However, this is not your grandmother's garter stitch. Start with an I-cord border. Pick up stitches in color A. Or was that B? Knit. Short row. Keep going and in the meantime shape neckline. What?!!!

My knitting Guru, The Scarlet Knitter, is going to hold my hand through this. She's the one who got me all gung-ho to do this particular Hanne Falkenberg knit. "It's easy," she says. I cannot lay too much blame at her feet. I am very impressionable when it comes to hobbies. Just mention something to me and I'm off and running.

Which brings me to another activity I've been engaging in during my down time, . . . Ravelry! Oh boy do I love looking at the projects and people in Ravelry! I end up finding people who, in addition to knitting, have other interests similar to mine. Cross stitch comes to mind. I went through a cross stitch period some years ago. It was right after my needlepoint phase. Needlepoint . . . hmmm, but I digress. I find myself being tempted to whip out a little cross stitch project just to see if I remember how. So many hobbies, so little time.

I really do wonder if there are any needlepointing knitters. I think I'll go check Ravelry now . . .

Bona Fide Knitter

Noro Sock Fraternal Twins

I'm not so sure about these Noro Kureyon socks. They were a pleasure to knit, therapeutic and tendon-healing. However, they are not identical. Okay for twin siblings, but not for twin socks that I will wear. They bring out the Monk in me. I think if they were less close to being identical I could tolerate them better. Since I knew they would not match, I should have made sure they were far from matching. As they are, they look like a mistake. No? Maybe it's just me . . . and Monk. I guess one reason I'm so bummed out about them is that I could have made them identical. I thought that the long color runs would make it impossible, but I had well over two color pattern repeats in the skein, more than enough to make two identical socks in my size using my own basic sock pattern and Magic Loop method.

Anyway, the boring, mindless, resorative knitting was just what I needed. In fact I think I need some more. Just as well because I'm going to knit another pair of Noro socks in the same colorway and see if I can get two pairs of matching socks. God forbid I should end up with four mismatching socks. Or maybe that's the answer! I'll make sure the next two are far from matching each other or either of the first two, giving me four different socks with just the same colors, two pairs of really fraternal twins! I've already purchased another skein of each of the Noro colorways in my stash. I could be knitting Noro fraternal and identical twins well into spring.

Now about those Blueberry Waffles . . .

This is where I left off when tendonitis reared its ugly head and my mind had turned to mush. Yum, yum, blueberry waffles--NOT! My waffles stayed in the waffle iron too long in some places. Looking back on my work I can see my brain was in turmoil and knitting these socks did not put me in the zone. Look closely:

See where the waffles waffled a bit on two rounds? See where the 2 x 2 ribbing decided to be 1 x 1 instead? Those are brain blips. This sock is a picture of my mental turmoil at the time. Now of course nobody will see that when I wear the socks because, quite frankly, anybody up my pants leg (I only wear socks with pants.) and that close to my calf should be my spouse and he never notices anything. However, Monk and I will know those brain blips are there. To frog or not to frog? That is the question. Maybe I'll start the second sock and see if my state of mind has improved. I could compare the two and then decide.

But right now I have a Noro Kureyon Sock marathon looming. Boring stockinette stitch in the round with a heel turn thrown in for excitement at the halfway point. I love it!

Bona Fide Knitter (aka The Sock Lady)

I Like to Knit

Yes, I like to knit. Before you accuse me of stating the obvious since I have blog about knitting, let me 'splain. I like to knit. I mean I like to KNIT. I like to do the knit stitch, over and over, ad infinitum. Purling is okay. I have nothing against purling and I do it well. It's just that I like to knit. Knit and knit and knit. Borrrr-rrrring! I know. But what can I tell you? I like it.

I am a thrower. English or American as opposed to Continental. I've learned Continental and do it with color work, but otherwise I'm a thrower. Continental is said to be faster, less arm movement. I don't care. I like throwing. I also like using circular needles exclusively. They really make the method faster. With the yarn in my right hand, wraped around my little finger, under my ring and middle fingers, over my index finger, I've become a pretty fast thrower. Especially when I'm knitting what I like and get into a zone. When the stitches are at the right place near the tip of the needles I need only flick my index finger to throw the yarn. I go into Zen mode. I can do it with my eyes closed. I can do it in my sleep.

I am a sock knitter. I like to knit socks. Socks, socks, socks and more socks, in the round, on a 32 inch Knit Picks circular needle, usually size US 1 (2.5 mm) and using sock weight yarn. I know what I like. I used to be strictly an Addis girl until Knit Picks came along. I still like Addis, but my Knit Picks cables are more pliable more consistantly. That is because my Addi needle collection contains some Addis purchased during a period of producing stiff cables the company went through a few years ago.

I am a plain knitter. I like knitting plain socks. I'm happy without waffles, jaywalkers, cables, ribbing and the like. I do succumb to 1 x 1 ribbing for the cuffs and will even resort to knitting, slipping and purling for a heel flap. Sometimes I go so far as an Eye of Partridge heel flap. Wooohooo! I never have Second Sock Syndrome. I like starting the second sock so that I can watch the same miracle happen again, preferably identically. Turning a heel turns me on. What can I tell you? I'm easy.

You probably wonder why I ever consider knitting anything else. So do I.

Bona Fide KNITter

We're Waiting . . .

The projects are waiting, all lined up, for me to get back into the swing of things.





In the meantime the therapeutic sock knitting is going well. I took a few days off from knitting, totally off, and spent a few days knitting a few hours. The Noro sock is coming along nicely. You will not believe how much just plain stockinette knitting in the round (all knit stitches) soothes my soul. Some say it bores them to tears. For me it stops the tears, the pain, the mental turmoil, or whatever else I'm going through. I reach my Zen.

Before I slip completely into the raptures of the knit stitch, let me tell you about Noro Sock. I like it . . . I think . . . with qualifications. The colorways are lovely per Noro fame. The hand is a little scratchy, there are some barnyard elements here and there (dried grass bits or something--not excrement!) and so far I have not come to a knot that I did not put there myself. Which brings me to trying to wind Noro Kureyon Sock onto a cardboard cone for my sock machines using an electric cone winder. It was a nightmare!! The yarn sticks to itself. It tangles unmercifully. I had to break it many times and tie knots. There was no way I would run that knotted cone through a sock machine and try to catch all those knots before they knitted up. So handknit it is for the first of four skeins of Noro Kureyon Sock.




So far the knots have not posed a problem handknitting. I just make spit splices (my own version) eliminating the knots and breaks and keep on knitting. The twist of the yarn varies from tight, tight thinnest lace-like to puffy, fuzzy untwisted roving-like slubs. I don't think any of the four skeins I've purchased will be machine knit. Even rewinding the coned yarn into a yarn cake on the manual ball winder was a test of my patience, I who have the patience of Job . . . so they say.




The yarn is not soft. From the reports of others who have washed it, it does soften up a bit, but does not become an Opal or Lorna's by any stretch of the imagination. However, the wearing is said to feel just fine. My next step is to buy two of my remaining three colorways over again so that I might make socks that match. Remember, I have this aversion to fraternal twins. The socks I'm working on, colorway S92, will look like two completely different socks having the same colors in them. I will wear them though. Heck, if I can wear shoes painted that way on purpose, wearing the socks should be a breeze. However, most of any other pairs of Noro socks I make will be identical. I only wear socks with pants and mainly clogs. I want my heels to match! So sue me.





No Super Bowl for me on Sunday. My husband will sleep through it and I will watch reality show reruns while I compete in my own personal Sock Bowl--a pair of machine socks and more hand knitting on the Noros.




Bona Fide Knitter

Too Much T and A

That's Tendonitis and Agitation for those of you with other thoughts.

Both my wrists, hands and thumbs are giving me trouble. Two years ago I ended up in a wrist brace on the right and getting a needle in my left palm for "trigger finger." Knitting needs to be classified as a sport. I keep getting these sports injuries from it. I had a second needle in my left palm a year later. The doctor says next time it will be "snip, snip, cured." Another year has passed and the trouble is beginning again. I say no "snip, snip" for me!


Anyway, I've been at my wits end even without the tendonitis. I'm agitated. I'm fairly vibrating with agitation and don't know why. My houses must not be in the right order. There is a full moon. Maybe that's it. My house I live in is quite a mess of clutter and disorganization. Maybe that's it. Whatever, I'm not knitting for a few days, my own prescription for my hands and wrists. I've bought two new support gloves with wrist bands to wear a few hours every day. Blueberry Waffles (socks), Flirty Skirt (lace), Rose Hearts Shawl (lace) and Basics, Basics, Basics (TKGA) are on hold.

For the agitation, I'm chillin'. I'm freeing my mind and making lists. Lists always bring order and calm. However, not knitting brings an increase to my agitation level so I am starting some calming knitting, easy on the tendons, my fave--plain stockinette socks! I hate it when my spouse doesn't follow doctor's orders and here I am already going against the prescribed few days rest from knitting. Hey, wait a minute! I prescribed that. I'm not a doctor--I'm a knitter! So I will just cut back on the knitting for a few days and wear the support gloves for some therapeutic knitting.

The therapeutic knitting will be done using the new Noro Sock recently added to my stash. I'd wound one ball onto a cone for knitting on my Circular Sock Machine (CSM) and it was such a bad language inducing process resulting in many breaks in the yarn, I've decided to hand knit it. That way I can manage the breaks and there will be no knots in the socks. It would be an ordeal trying to knit on the CSM with yarn knotted at all those breaks. I wouldn't catch them all and the socks would end up with one or two knots in them. I hate when that happens!

No pictures today. My hands hurt! Let the plain stockinette knitting begin.

Bona Fide Knitter

Pottstown Knit Out--Not

I didn't go. I paid my money and I didn't go. I have no excuse. I just didn't go. There will be no pictures of the alpaca for my blog this year. For flavor, check my blog archive for last year's festivities, January 20, 2007. Oh well, maybe next year.

However, the good news is I have been given special dispensation by the guru of the Rule of Three to expand to a Rule of Four and start the Rose Hearts Shawl. Now if only I could settle on a yarn.

You saw the dark red. I started the KAL yesterday (on time) with the dark red. Let me tell you right here and now that the provisional cast on is not my friend! I had to do one once before for double knitting--disaster! This pattern calls for a crochet cast on with waste yarn and knitting into the back of two out of four chains. I did it, but it was not my friend. Undaunted I completed the first 10 rows and decided I'm not too happy with the yarn. Even though I'm using the rather pointy KnitPicks needles, I'm getting split stitches if I'm not really careful.

Wonder of wonders another Knit Picks order arrived in the afternoon and it contained some lace weight yarn (I'm working with sport weight.) in PURPLE. Hmmmm, . . . maybe I'll go down a needle size and start over. Okay, you know it. I've already frogged the 10 rows I did and am winding purple yarn cakes.

Bona Fide Knitter

Fish or Cut Bait

I am floundering. Which goes well with the title of this post. I got a KnitPick order the other day and can't for the life of me remember what the dark red yarn was for.

I took the picture on the floor in a little ray of sunshine hoping it would light a bulb in my head. The yarn is Andean Treasure, 100% Baby Alpaca. The color is Embers. I vaguely remember wondering would four balls be enough for the pattern. It's sport weight and four balls give me 440 yards. Could it be for the Rose Hearts Shawl KAL? But I already bought yarn for that in lace weight. But I was considering doing it first in DK weight knowing my penchant for a short attention span when it comes to pattern knitting. Talking this out here on my blog I have come up with the answer to the dark red yarn question I'm afraid. Afraid because why in the world did I want this color for the shawl?!!!

And how much more red am I going to buy? I have two huge cones--one for socks and one for a lace top--and a bag of 10 worsted weight wool bought from Webs at Stitches East 2006 for goodness sake! They are various shades of red, but red nonetheless. Am I channeling my guru the Scalett Knitter? If so I wish I could channel her productivity. I really need to fish. I've already cut too much bait.

I've taken the white lace socks off my project list in Ravelry. I just do not enjoy doing those socks. Is it the yarn? Wildfoote splits like crazy using 000 needles. That must be it because the pattern was not giving me any trouble. I moved on to the Blueberry Waffle socks which are coming along, but require more concentration on my part than they should. Ach du liber himmel! What is wrong with me? I am floundering.

On Saturday I am signed up to attend the Pottstown Knit Out. I am hoping for the shot in the arm I need. I'm not where I had planned to be in my projects. The Flirty Skirt was supposed to be finished by now so that after my class in shadow knitting in Pottstown I could comfortably start the Vivian Hoxbro jacket.

It is not to be. Vivian Hoxbro will have to wait. I will stick to my modified Rule of Threes. Uh-oh! The Rose Hearts Shawl KAL starts January 18. What to do? What to do?

Answer: Fish and stop floundering!

Observation: My bait (stash) runneth over!

Bona Fide Knitter