Forward Motion

Obsession is a 4 letter word

And those 4 letters are N-O-R-O.

I bought 2 different skeins of the Noro sock yarn from The Loopy Ewe. 

I'd heard some negative buzz about the yarn.  Things like: it is very rough, you might find twigs and leaves in the yarn, the yarn has knots, there's thick and thin spots to the yarn, and the color repeats are so long that it's very difficult to make matching socks. 

So why was I so eager to have some of this yarn?  Why do so many other people want it that The Loopy Ewe sold out their stock?

Look at Faith's socks.  The colors are so cheerful!  If you are on Ravelry, just LOOK at all the amazing Noro sock yarn projects.

I picked color #92, the skein on the right, and starting pulling some yarn out.  I really wanted to make the colors match up on both socks, so I figured I'd have to patiently stretch out the yarn, find the color repeats, and divide the skein so that I could begin in the same place.  I had visions of my bedroom draped in Noro strands in my quest for matching socks. 

As I cranked the ball winder, the madness began.  A knot.  Another knot.  Another knot and another knot and another knot.  4 knots were in the first 1/2 of the skein. Some of the knots were tied to the same color, but some of them began a whole different color.  There was no way I was ever going to get identical socks for my big feet out of this skein.  In fact, with all the breaks in color, I didn't think I wanted to use the skein at all.

(Now I have to point out, The Loopy Ewe has great customer service and I feel sure that if I'd complained about all the knots, they would have made it right somehow.)

I looked at the other skein.  2 skeins of Noro.  Hmmmm....what if....?  Jared at Brooklyn Tweed has a scarf pattern that uses different Noro colorways together.

You can guess where this is going, right? 

I cast on late Saturday afternoon and immediately became obsessed.  Two rows from one skein.  Two rows from the next.  Watching the colors change and intersect was addicting.  Things got ugly there, mid cuff, though.  Both skeins went to a yucky blackish tan that looked to go on for quite a while.  Not wanting 3 inches of blech striped with blech, I had to do a little stripe manipulation.  It's not ideal, but 1/2 an inch of blech is better than all of this would have been.

Blech.

If I'd known that I was going to make stripey socks, I would have ordered two color ways that were as different as possible.  Definitely I would have made sure that they both didn't have black in them.  In the beginning, I tried a few methods to avoid the color change jog, but none of them were smooth enough.  I decided that I kind of liked the jog and maybe sometime I'll knit a pair and put the jog right up the middle of the sock.

So. Totally.  Fascinating.

I bound off this morning and cast on the 2nd sock without a pause.  I hadn't even gone through the entire color repeat for the first sock and I'd been thinking that maybe I could make these socks match, since I had double the yarn to work with.  But I didn't want to have the blech issue again, so I just kept going where I'd left off.  The toe of the 2nd sock is purple just beginning to stripe with pink.  They won't be identical, but they'll be interesting.

Yes, the yarn is a bit rough.  It's weird that it feels rough in the skein, but the sock feels just fine.  I mean, it's not cashmere by any means, but it feels as comfy as other socks.  I personally love the thick and thin parts of the yarn.  The stuff does twist and tangle and stick to itself to the point you won't pull out any more than you need for the next row.  No matter how badly you want to see when the next color is going to come up.

If anyone is looking for me, just follow the Noro.  I won't be able to think of knitting anything else until these socks are done.   

B is for Becca can't pick just one thing

Blue - Now that I'm past the heel on the slipped stitch rib socks, I can begin another pair.  Thus far, my sock inventory consists of one brown pair, one purplish pair, one green pair, one green/black pair, one pastel-y pair, and one greenish/blue pair.  I wear blue jeans most of the time and I don't have any blue or mostly blue socks.  I decided my next socks should be blue.  After stash diving, I realized that I do not have very much blue sock yarn.  There's some, but it all seems to have too teal or purple accent.  I also realized that I have a lot of yarn and I ought not to buy any more, even to correct this severe color unbalance. 

On the one hand, I feel like I should do some destashing before we move.  But then I ask, how much space in a box does sock yarn take, really?  I'm not the one going to pack it.  (Although, I will be closely supervising the person who packs the yarn.  He/She will hate me before the last box is taped up.)  It weighs very little, so it's not like a few skeins are going to put us over our weight limit.  I will probably only destash yarns that I really don't think I'm going to use.

Bummer - My bedroom TV, my knitting TV, my exercise TV has died.  I was watching Project Runway and not really giving it my visual attention because I was working on the Anatolian mitten and needed to look at the chart.  The audio was fine and when I finally looked up at the screen, the picture was crazy lines flipping around.  I couldn't even see Heidi Klum.  It wouldn't turn off either.  We bought that TV when Alex was a baby so I guess it just gave out.  I had DH bring in the little TV that went in our old van.

Thankfully, I still have some Christmas money, so we're going to find a new TV tomorrow.  I just want a regular TV and they are getting hard to find among all the LCD, HD, flat, plasma, and who knows maybe bionic TVs.

Books - I adore knitting stitch dictionaries.  I devour them and have no impulse control purchasing them.  I can sit and read them for half of an afternoon, just letting my brain drift into "Ooohhh, look at that one.  I wonder what I could use that for."  With a quick mental count, I think I own at least 10 types of stitch books, but there might be another few I am forgetting. 

I can't remember how I found myself on Overstock.com looking at knitting books, but today a box came with 3 more books for my overstuffed shelves.

Knitting Without Tears is one I've checked out so many times from the library that I decided I need to own it.  I love Elizabeth Zimmermann and eventually I hope to own every last thing she's ever written.

The Harmony Guide Vol. 3 was the only "old" volume sold on Overstock.  The buzz on the forums is that the old guides are better than the news ones.  I don't like that it has no charts, but you can see by my little tags that I've found plenty of stitches that ring my bell.

The Field Guild for Knitting is going to be returned for several reasons.  Mostly, because I already have more than one pocket-sized knitting technique books.  There aren't very many stitch patterns in this and all the photos are squished in the middle of the book.  I want to see the photo of the swatch next to the instructions for it, so I'm not flipping back and forth.  The stitch patterns aren't that unique either.  If you only wanted a few different patterns and something small to tuck in your knitting bag, this wouldn't be a bad choice.

The clearest indicator that I have totally lost my mind regarding stitch dictionaries is the package that I'm expecting in a few weeks.  A Japanese stitch dictionary.  Written in Japanese.  I'm helpless to resist this.

Maybe it's a bowling alley!

It's a Major Award! 

If you immediately think of "Fra-gi-le.  That must be Italian!", then you are my kind of person.  Tammy is my kind of person, too.  She buys the socks yarns that I love, she knits the patterns I want to knit, and she's raising her boys right.  At least one of them is a "House" fan.  Tammy gave me this award:

The You Make My Day Award.  Thanks, Tammy!

Apparently there are some strings attached, though.

"So here's the deal, inspiration and make you feel happy about blogland. Let them know by posting a comment on their blog so they can pass it on. Beware you may get the award several times." 

At the moment, I have 211 feeds on Bloglines, so choosing 10 is tricky.  But out of all those blogs there are a few that when I see there's a new post, I can't wait to read it.  I've also tried to pick blogs that maybe every doesn't already know about.  Sure, I look forward to every Yarn Harlot post, but you have probably heard of her plenty. 

So I hereby award the following blogs the You Make My Day Award:

Yes! Suna Knits!

Knittywhipped

VeryPink

Backyard Academy

The A.D.D. Knitter

Eat My Oxygen

Unafraid to Lead the Freak Parade (although she needs to blog more!)

Lost a Sock

So the thing is....blog

Uberstrickenfrau

And of course, back atcha, Tammy!  And not all of them are knit-centric blogs, so have fun with some new reading.

I did get some buttons for the sweater and the hat.  I think I am happy with the sweater button, but I've found several better buttons online for the hat.  I used Red Heart Soft yarn and this is really my favorite acrylic yarn.  You just can't beat it.  In fact, I'll spend more for the button I like than I did for the yarn.  I slapped this big wooden button on it for the time being.  The hat's a bit roomy, but it will fit perfectly on those all too frequent days when I scrape my static-y hair into a ponytail.  I was going to take a photo of myself wearing the hat, but it's been a sweatpants kind of day and I'd just gotten up from a little snooze and wooo...you did not want to see that.

It occured to me that I can't probably block Mr. GreenJeans until Friday.  I don't have anyway to lay it out that it won't get bothered during the week.  I can use the classroom floor on the weekends, so it will have to wait.  And I remembered to buy distilled water and everything.  But you guys said you wanted to see it, some of you rather emphatically, so here's a photo. 

I'll model it for you once it's blocked and I'm wearing proper pants.  As a result of not really having any idea what size I am anymore, I think I knit one size too large.  There's a lot of fabric around my torso.  I also wish that I had not gone down a needle size for the cable ribbing, like the directions state.  Hopefully, that part will open up more with blocking.  In spite of the horror that was the picking up of stitches, I loved not having to seam anything.  I'm all about projects that are done with the last bindoff.  All in all, I do love it.

(Yesterday I got a box with yarn for my next project.) 

No offense to my Aunt Toots, rest her soul

It's done!  It's done!  It's done!  It's done!

Join hands with me and let's skip around together!

Mr. GreenJeans is finished.

I've tried it on and while there's certainly a short list of "if I had a magic wand knitting needle, I'd fix that so it wasn't so this", it's wonderful.  Warm, cuddly, and well, it just looks like a lovely hand-knitted item, not some crazy thing that Aunt Toots made after her eyes started to go. 

My first sweater.

I'm going button hunting today, but if I don't find the right one, I'll use whatever I can find just so I can photograph it for you all.

Frozen

We had our morning all planned out.  DH has the day off, but needed a haircut.  The barber shop is all the way near post, so we'd all go with and do a little shopping at the PX.  Then we'd go out to lunch, since DH has a busy week ahead and we won't see him much.  I bought a long sleeved nightgown at the PX before Christmas and it's become my favorite sleepwear, so I was hoping to find another.

DH turned on the water for his shower and....nothing.  The hot water pipes had frozen.  Yay!  I don't have to do the laundry!  I mean...oh dear, we have no hot water.  He eventually had to go up into the cold attic with an extension cord and my hair dryer to get the water going.  By then, he wasn't in the mood to spend the day running around.  Luckily, I was still in my Mutts PJs and bathrobe, so I took that as a sign that today was for slopping around, avoiding the world outside our doors, even forsaking a comfy new nightie.

In a glorious moment yesterday, I picked up the last stitch for the Mr. Green Jeans button band.  Holy crap, that took me forever.  I have already knit 8 rows of the band in one morning and it took me over a week to pick up the same amount of stitches in just one row.  I'm hoping to finish the knitting today (wow, it will be finished!)and sew in the few ends.  Tomorrow I'll get some distilled water for my steam thingy so I can block it. 

Then it will just be an issue of a button for this sweater.  I'm thinking a wooden or a reddish button, something that blends in with the yarn.  I also need a button for my finished Republic hat.  I'm very happy with how it turned out, but it definitely needs a large, crazy button.  I don't know if Hancock Fabrics or Hobby Lobby will have the buttons I want, but I don't recall seeing very many big, funky buttons there.  I may have to explore the world of online button buying. 

I've started the gusset on the 2nd slip stitch rib sock, so I'm very close to meeting my self-imposed restriction against starting a new sock.  Because none of my current projects are good for traveling/mindless knitting, I think I'll start two pairs.  Hah...take that, soul-sucking, mojo-stealing, booooring slip stitch rib socks!

Oh, and no.  I'm definitely not going to my 20 year reunion.  For many, many reasons, not the least of which it is being held about 3 weeks before we move.  But thanks to many of you for reliving the days of shoulder pads and stirrup pants with me.  That was back when The Limited was my favorite store.  I have long legs, so stirrup pants were really a bad choice for me, digging into my instep and dragging the crotch of the pants southward in what must have been a  very unnatural look.

And the computer problems are fixed.  The Gmail thing just sort of magically fixed itself, making it impossible for me to know what to do if it ever happens again.  I emailed the Wordsplay game creator and it turns out that the new version of the game doesn't like Norton Security.  I'm in complete agreement there, I don't like it either.  I bet Norton Security wears slip stitch rib socks.

Time - it flies

- I just got the notice for my 20 year high school reunion.  Let me assure you, I do not feel any where near old enough to be having a 20 year reunion.  Also, the reunion committee members were three girls that I really couldn't stand back in high school.  You'd think after 20 years I wouldn't care, but I still remember listening to their annoying yapping in English class.  While wearing my sweater with the shoulder pads and my stirrup pants.

- My son turned 12 yesterday.  I wanted to post some photos of him over the years, but I would have gotten sucked into a deep vortex of sentimentality.  Weeks from now, I'd still be sitting with the photos album on my lap murmuring, "...and he had such soft, fuzzy hair."

- We have begun our 8th year of home schooling.  It doesn't seem like that long ago that I had the thought, "Welll, I'm not sending him to the public school and we can't afford private, so I guess we could give this home schooling thing a try for a year or so."

&*!#*% computers

I am having a very frustrating computer day.  For no apparent reason, my computer just won't cooperate on something.  Both my laptop and the desktop are just flat out not behaving.  What did I do to them?  Why are they picking on me?

My favorite time waster is Wordsplay and it was recently improved and updated.  Every evening after dinner is done and the kids are showering, I sit down and play Wordsplay for a little while.  By that time of day I am just done talking and cleaning and it's good to sit down and kick a little Wordsplay butt.  I can't log in on the laptop (I like to play on the laptop because the rest of the family might think that I'm working and if I play on the desktop it's obvious to everyone that I'm goofing off.)  It works fine on the desktop and the new version is great, but I want to play in my cozy little office on my laptop.  I'm missing my daily dose and I'm feeling twitchy.  I have tried clearing my cookies, I have tried restarting the computer, I've tried disabling the debugger, and after I try and log in, all I get is the "logging in" page just spinning.  It's making me sad and hostile.

And now the desktop!  For some reason, my Gmail inbox page won't load.  I get a blank page with a concise little "done" at the bottom.  Again, I cleared the cookies, restarted, disabled the debugger, checked for updates...blah blah blah.  If I go to my Google iHome page and sign out, then I can get the Gmail sign in page, re-sign in, and then I can see my inbox.  But if I open up a new window and try to get to my inbox, I'm back with a blank page.  Even though my inbox is working in the other window right next to it.  I feel like smashing something.

I don't even know who I would call to get help for this.  It's not my internet provider's issue.  The Dell people will be happy to lead me through 2 hours of pointless commands for an hourly fee.  Unless I'm lucky enough to get a Canadian, I probably won't understand the politely scripted help anyway.

Why do computer problems, even little ones, make me feel like the world just hates me and I'm the stupidest person alive?  I feel certain there's some quick and simple fix to both these problems, but the technology god is just toying with me.  I don't think I'm a computer dummy, I know a thing or two.  But I can't figure this out.

At least this rant has made me feel a little better.  Sometimes you just have to let it out.

You know what this means.  If I can't play Wordsplay, I really have no excuse for not sitting down with Mr. Green Jeans and finishing that button band.  I only have the left front remaining to pick up those stitches.  I'm so close to being done.  I'm just not sure I'm calm enough to fiddle with sharp, pointy objects at the moment.

A is for Ave Maria Sangria

Wow...I'm feeling a little woozy.  The Loopy Ewe did one of their famous Sneak Ups tonight and there was a restocking of the famed and much sought after Wollmeise sock yarn.  I put 3 skeins in my shopping cart within 10 minutes of the update and by the time I got checked out, only 1 was left.  Still, one is more than most people got and I'll finally see what the fuss is all about.  The site crashed several times while I was trying to check out.  Craziness.  Sock yarn craziness.

Remember the skein of yarn that was so beautiful I was afraid to knit it?

It made a very bright, floppy hat.  If it looks nutty on me, don't tell me or I'll get a complex.

Pattern:  Bloomsbury Cloche Hat from Hats, Mittens, & Scarves by Andrea Tung

Yarn: Urban Gypz Twisted in colorway Ave Maria Sangria

Modifications:  I used the recommended size 6 needles for the brim, but when I started the stockinette section, my gauge was way huge (because I did not swatch because swatching is boring and I wanted to make a hat, not knit a little square.)  I redid the stockinette section on size 3 needles, which made for a better fabric, but I think it might have been just right if I'd used size 4.  I also had to add about an inch and a half of length to the crown prior to decreasing.  I had it all done and plopped it on my head where it sat like a water lily on a blond pond.  Ripped it out, added length, and now it's more like a hat.

Another view:

I curled my hair for you all.  I had a good 14 inches of static afro when I brushed it out.

It's not a cuddly warm ski cap, but I kind of like it.  It certainly avoids the egg head effect that most hats give me and it even keeps the sun out of my eyes a bit.  The biggest problem is that is just sort of rests on my head and I'm afraid a good breeze would lift it right off.  But I think that's just the way this style of hat is.  Here's what the orignal pattern looks like:

It doesn't look like it fits her much differently.  I'm not sure what I could do to keep it on my head short of a chin strap.

The yarn is listed as DK weight, but I'd say it's more like sport.  I love the way the colors spiraled around the brim and you will certainly be able to spot me in a crowd when I wear it.  Subdued, it is not.

Stilllllll picking up stitches on Mr. GreenJeans.  Still hating picking up stitches.  I keep thinking "This is the last part.  Once I pick these up, knit a few inches of band, then I'm done!"  I've even sewed most of the ends in already.  I have no idea why I'm finding this so painful, usually picking up stitches isn't this horrid.

All that is left on the needles is the 2nd Anatolian mitten and the 2nd slip stitch rib sock.  I'm starting to hate those socks.  I had a good 2 inches of toe done when suddenly I realized that I was knitting in pattern on both the instep and the sole.  What makes me realize mistakes like that all of a sudden?  And why can't I recognize them much sooner?  I'm forcing myself not to cast on any more socks right now, or else these will never get finished.  Once I get past the heel, then I'll start a new pair. 

But that isn't going to keep me from starting another hat.   

Wednesday

I have that song stuck in my head, "Unwritten", the one that they had in the promos for that Diane Keaton movie.  I don't like this song too much and the satellite radio has been playing it frequently.  Over and over and over I keep singing to myself,

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find.

And then I think, "Good grief, just clean the window already."

I have finished the second sleeve on Mr. GreenJeans.  Now I am picking up stitches for the button band and I've discovered that I dislike picking up stitches - particularly with this loosely plied yarn - even more than I dislike casting on a whole whack of stitches.

Here's some yarn I bought a few weeks ago.

It's Araucania Multi in Mountain Sunset.  I must admit, I think it's fairly hideous.  But it might look great when it's knitted up.

What do you think?  It's ugly, right? 

A Test of Style

Do you ever have yarn so beautiful that you feel it might be ruined if you dared to knit something out of it? 

I need a hat, but I've sworn off fitted hats.  I feel like a Qtip when I wear them.  It's been cold and all I have is my Calorimetry that is too wide and slips off my ears.  I've been planning on starting the Lady Detective hat with the Noro, but I cannot find the pattern anywhere.  Plus, it uses this double moss stitch pattern that involves some tedious needle shenanigans, so even if I could find the pattern, I'm not sure I feel like wrestling with the yarn. The set of patterns that my brother gave me has what appears to be a simple, floppy brim hat in DK weight yarn.

I totally need more DK weight yarn in my stash.  It seems like everything I want to make lately calls for DK.  Then I have this Urban Gypz Twisted yarn in Ave Maria Sangria that is sooooooo gorgeous and happens to be DK weight.  But it's too lovely to use on a hat that might make me look ridiculous, right?

I took a deep breath and told myself that #1, it's just yarn.  #2, if you don't like that hat, you can rip it out and reuse the yarn.  #3 the Loopy Ewe has more of this yarn and you could buy another skein.  And I cast on.  240 stitches I cast on.

I kind of hate casting on, especially more than about 40 stitches.  I thought about reversing the pattern and doing it top down, but didn't really want to think that hard about it.  Once I finally got them all cast on, the next thing is to knit 22 rounds of 1 x 1 ribbing.  Bleh.  1 x 1 ribbing seems so sloooow to me.  Being a English style throwing knitter, I have to move the yarn between the needles with every stitch.  I figured this was the perfect time to use my Continental knitting skills.  I can knit Continental pretty well, but I definitely dislike it.  Holding my index finger up and picking at the yarn....ick.  It does have the advantage of not having to move the yarn back and forth, though.

I knit about 7 rounds Continental style, picking and levering.  I kind of like the Continental purl stitch, it's the knit stitch that bugs me.  But I think that 7 x 240 = 1680 stitches is certainly giving it a fair try.  I'd gotten into my 1 x 1 Continental groove when I started wondering how much faster this style really was.  Because there did seem to be an economy of movement what with not changing the yarn back & forth.  Did you know iPods have stopwatches on them?

I did 14 time trials, evenly divided between styles.  8 times I tested how long it took me to knit 20 stitches in rib.  6 times I tested how many stitches I knit in rib in one minute.  On average, I knit more than 5 stitches per minute faster English style.  Hmmpph!!  Apparently it's not taking me that much time to move the yarn back & forth.  I do think it's my knit stitch that slows me a little, but even with much more practice, I don't think I'm ever going to be as quick Continental style.  Also, I don't have to look at my work when I knit English style.

So that's the last time I tell myself that I really ought to switch to Continental style because "everyone" says it's so much faster & easier.  There's something to be said for just doing what works for yourself.