Knitting Resumes

I'm back on it! I've made Elliott a hat and a scarf for myself and now I'm working on a Christmas gift-- yahoo! Nice to love knitting again. :)

Knausea

Hello, all. I am sorry it's been so long. I have been on knitting hiatus as I wait for "morning" sickness to pass. We are expecting our second child (Yay! Yay! Yay!) in April, and for some reason, when I'm not feeling well, knitting is the last thing I want to do. I have no idea why.

But we should be finding out whether it's a boy or a girl in the next few weeks, and I think that once I know which it is there should be a flurry of new knitting going on.

If you've been checking in all this time, thank you for sticking with me. I'll try to be more regular about it now that I've broken the seal.

Be with you again soon.

For My Little Dude

Boys can wear lavender. They can. Mine will. He loves it.

Cute, fun, easy pattern. I'm sure I'll make another.

Another Cake

This one I did not bake. It was picked up at a bakery as a blank white cake, and I did this to it:



It's for my cousin's fiance's bridal shower and is based on some graphics from the invitation. I'm fairly happy with it.

Misgivings

Well, I retried the Buttercup with a few more inches completed, and I wonder how this is going to look on me when it's finished. The design is intended to stand away from the body in a baby-dollish manner, and that does appear to be the effect I am achieving.

So what's the problem? I think it's a lapse in judgement (again) regarding what looks good on me and what doesn't. I get so distracted by the loveliness of the willowy model's figure and how the sweater drapes on her... and I get what I'm calling "Skinny Inside Syndrome". Since I am, after all, a skinny person on the inside, I identify with the model and see myself in the sweater the way she looks...

And then I try on the half-knit item, and I remember... The inside and the outside are a TEEEENY bit different.

We'll see. There is the intention of a second pregnancy in the offing. Perhaps this can be a belly-friendly knit.

As Suggested

Commenter Anne Marie suggested that I try this on and make sure I'm on the right track. I'd say, "So far, so good." And I'm very relieved. I would hate to have to start this one over again when I'm already almost two balls of yarn in.

Thanks, Anne Marie, for peace of mind.

Curse You Small Gauge Sweater!!!

I am still trying to knit myself the perfect sweater. The sweater that I will want to wear every day. Recently I decided that perhaps the solution to the problem is gauge related. Finer gauge, more perfect sweater? I know there are lots of you who love the chunky sweater look, as do I, but being of a larger gauge myself, I think chunky yarn contributes to my body image issues. So fingering/sport weight it is.

I selected the Buttercup as my first attempt. It's knit top down, which means I am now working on the bodice and have just reached the lace panel... and there about a THOUSAND STITCHES on the needles. I can't wait to separate the sleeve stitches!

Just keep knitting, just keep knitting, just keep knitting knitting knitting...

Want to hear something extra demented? I'm planning to knit Senor a fine gauge sweater next. Eeesh!

Secret Gifted Knitting

I worked on this for most of May and the beginning of June, but it was a gift that wasn't given until last Sunday. Now that it's safely with it's owner-to-be, I can share it with you.

This is a Pinwheel Blanket made for my nephew-to-be Mason, due in about 6 weeks. I made it with Twist Cotton from Twist Yarns of Intrigue, my favorite LYS. The yarn is soft and the colors are brilliant. You should get some, too!!!

I can't wait to see the little baby Mason wrapped up in this vibrant stripey softness. Okay, I can't wait to see him no matter what he's wrapped in.

Reboot

Something finished with which to restart things.


This is the Nikau Hoodie, but I swapped the palm motif for the cable motif from the Gathered Pullover. Thus the Gathered Nikau.

Hey, boy, watch where you're going!!

It's plenty large this time, so Elliott should be able to wear it for a while, possibly a couple of years. The sleeves are much too long, so they'll accomodate significant growth. We shall see how well the Handmaiden Casbah really holds up!

He Did It!!!

http://outside-blog.away.com/blog/everest/

American Jordan Romero just became the youngest person ever to summit Mt. Everest! He did it this morning (don't ask me to calculate the time difference... no idea.) HE'S 13 YEARS OLD!!!! Dang. You know what I was still working on at 13? Holding hands with a boy.

Apparently there are some exciting stories to come, but as of now, Jordan's sleeping it off safely at Camp 2, which is still really effing high up there.

I'm so excited!

Need a Plan

As with the lotion, I am feeling bogged down by many multiples in my house. Things tend to linger, and the longer they linger the less I see them and thus the more likely they are to linger (there have been hoarders in my lineage). These things turn into visual noise, which causes a feeling of anxiety and distraction, which leads me into a never-ending cycle of trying to solve the problem. Thus: many lotions, many knitting projects, many books being read simultaneously, many lipsticks, many many many. I long for a simpler way of being. I'd love to have a favorite lotion, a favorite lipstick, a singe work-in-progress, a "the book" I'm reading...

So the question is: to finish the multiples until there is only one left or to discard those that I'm just not sold on?

Some issues will go one way and some the other.

Today I'll address knitting. I'd like to destash. I'd like to produce many beautiful items. I want out from under the list of plans, the pile of wish-I-coulds. I can't do them right now, so I extend the list so far out into someday that by the time I get to start a new project I don't want to make those projects anymore. I need to discard my somedays and focus on what I am making now so that when I am done with the current project I can choose a new someday for that day.

Does this make sense? The fact that I can't explain it better is a symptom of the problem. Distraction. Noise. Guilt. Regret. Why go about a hobby that I love in such a way that it makes me unhappy? But how to fix it?

A destash plan. A knitting monogamy plan.

1. Mason's present: Mason is my nephew-to-be. He will be in August, but his shower is in June. Which is soon. So I need to finish his item. I will keep it out so that it gets worked on in free moments. I plan to finish it by the end of May.

2. Linen scarf: I finally gave in to the urge to get some Louet linen yarn. It's not cheap, but it is wonderful (opinion based on a washed swatch at the shop), and I've had a hankering for a summer scarf. I did not give in to that hankering while at the Gap this week so that I could instead knit myself a summer scarf from the linen I'd been wanting. So far, so good. I finished the first ball of yarn and went on to the second... I'll wait until I get to end of this ball before deciding if I'll need a third. It's just stockinette, which usually bores me to tears... but I've been enjoying it this time. Perhaps because I can read while I work on it...

I'm reading Into Thin Air, which I am loving. I already read The Climb, which chronicles the same incident on Mt. Everest, but it's really interesting to read another side of the story. I'm actually considering reading a third account written by one of the women on the tragic expedition of May 10, 1996. Or perhaps a book about some other expedition. At the moment, my interest in Everest seems fairly limitless. If you think you might be interested, I highly recommend both of the books I mentioned. And if you're interested in what's going on on Everest right now, check out The Outside Blog. There's a 13-year-old American kid up there right now and he's currently near the beginning of his summit bid. Go check it out!

I digressed. Here's to simplification!

Destash of a Different Kind

I should be the most moist person in the world.



Look at this stash of lotion!!! How does this happen?

I can tell you. When I'm having a bad day or feeling not quite as good about myself as I would like, I go looking for a solution. For some reason I like to look at Riteaid... and for some reason, being more moisturized or more tan or more firm or more wrinkle-free always seems like it would make me feel better. But then the lotions float around all over the house, and while they don't get used regularly enough to have their proposed effect, they each get used a little at a time and thus never get used up.

Well, no more. One body lotion, one hand lotion, one face lotion and one foot lotion. That seems like a lot, but I'm putting the rest in a box and out of sight until I finish one.

Fewer bottles = Less guilt.

And then once they're all used up then I can shop for something that I'll really love to smear on myself and not feel obligated to all of the other unguents hanging around the house. I will be moist!

PS. I hate the word "moist". Hate. It.

Another Cake

This time for our anniversary. Number 4!!




The lighting is not great, so the colors aren't quite right. The fondant was a very subtle off-white, the moon was silver, and the flowers were more coral than this photo would indicate. It was a small cake, only about 6 inches across. I looked into ways to make the cake more firm in order to build it up better. It worked. More eggs, less water. Next time I'm going to try the suggestion to add instant pudding mix to the batter. Time to try to make a cake in the shape of... something... maybe one of those purse cakes?

Our wedding cake was a bare white cake with bare branches on it. Now you can see our trees have bloomed.

Head Injury

I hit my head on a wallhanging and ended up with three staples in my head. Good times!

So I'm knitting myself a new hat. :) (that's the Ravelry link)

Here's some knitting

SUCCESSFUL!!!

Selbu Modern
The grey yarn is Smooshy in the Cloud Jungle colorway.
The purple is Shibui sock-- don't know the name of the color, but I love it.

This is for my Aunt Claudia

(p.s. There is some Lorna's Laces in Mineshaft thrown in around the crown to stretch the last of the cloud jungle. You can tell by the light areas, but otherwise it's a pretty seamless joining to two wildly different yarns. Nice call.)

So it turns out...

... I might be an extraordinarily slow knitter.

Two rounds of a Jaywalker take me 8 minutes... ??? That's only 168 stitches. How can that be?!

Granted, it's not slow in terms of new knitter speeds, but I've been knitting for about 6 years. Every day. This sock is going to take me FOREVER! In fact, I'm so slow that my brain hasn't realized that I'm actually still working on my first Jaywalker, which is weird because I gave those to my mom years ago, and she doesn't know either that she's wearing socks that don't actually exist.

So far I've knit for over 3hrs 45min and my sock is only 3 or 4 inches long.

I am ashamed.

I'd like to try knitting 168 stitches of something else and see how long it takes me, because 8 minutes can not not not be my empirical time for 168 stitches. It can't even be close.

Age-Old Question

How long does it take to knit a sock?

Much like how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop, this answer varies for most people, and very few, if any, bother to find out the real answer. But I get asked all the time how long it takes me to knit a sock...

So I am going to find out. For the second sock of a pair of Jaywalkers I am going to keep track of how long I spend. I am as curious as you are to know.

Which begs the question (right, Senor), are you curious to know?

Happy Easter

This is how we'll be celebrating tomorrow:



Cake #2: Chocolate cake with strawberry whipped cream filling. Yum!

The Cake

Last week I spent 9 hours making this cake for Elliott's first birthday. With the help of my mom and my friend Nicki, we baked the cake, made the fondant, and assembled this beauty. I even drove it home safely in the trunk of my car-- I was so worried about it.

Once home, I showed it to Senor and he said innocently, "Is there a reason you guys put the 1 on backwards?"

Nope. We just didn't notice. I didn't. My mom didn't. My dad didn't. And Elliott doesn't know his numbers yet, so he was no help.

At least there was no way to fix it...

What I've Been Doing

My own design.



So far so good. Needs hemming and neck ribbing.

And some little stripey pants to go with it.

I'm kinda enjoying this. :)