Photo collage

Playing with Picasa!
A collage of the month of July... playing golf on July 1st (my first time); the Current River runs next to the golf course; the front of Sizzle; Rock & Weave socks; a blue-tailed lizard that got in the house; baby bunny; swimming in Current River (the big splash was a rock the kids were trying to "skip"); Big Spring; a big brown bat (that's really the species name) that got into the house. 

Big Foot lives here

These are the finished Rock and Weave socks, in Socks that Rock mediumweight sock yarn; the color is Fairgrounds. This was the May club kit -- the new one is here, already -- arrived Saturday.
The sock blockers are new, too. They're made by Chappy, and sold through her ebay site, CHAPPYS-FIBER-ARTS-AND-CRAFTS. There are several other designs available, and 3 sizes. 

Nothing to see here, folks...

Aw, dadgummit, the Mars thing is 3 years old. My apologies for not checking it out. It never occurred to me that I needed to. Our eagle-eyed correspondant, Becky, pointed out the error. Thank you!
For more info, please check this link: Urban Legends Reference Pages: Mars Spectacular

And another thing...

There has been knitting, in a rather haphazard, short-attention-span style.

The color blox sox are done, and I made a little friend to go with them. Mini sock blocker from Felt-up designs.

I finished the front of Sizzle, and started the back. I chickened out on the deep V, and started it about the same time I started the armholes. See the hourglass shaping?


The yarn I ordered for the Bazaar Socks arrived, so I started those. They are kicking my backside. They start toe-up, with a short-row toe. No problem. But they also have a vertical stripe: 1 stitch of color A, 1 stitch of color B, repeat to end of row. I spent about 3 days knitting the toe, ripping it out, knitting it again, and finally just decided to go with the 7th or 8th version, and continue with the next band of pattern. It's not pretty.

In frustration, I started an easier sock, the Rock & Weave pattern from the Socks that Rock club's May shipment. They start with a sideways cuff in linen stitch, which is easy. I like the "wrong side" (picture on right) better than the "right side" (picture on left).










As long as I was winding the yarn for the Rock & Weave socks, I decided I might as well wind the yarn for Mystery Stole 2. It's dark brown laceweight from Handpaintedyarn.com. I haven't cast on yet, but at the rate I'm going, that'll happen soon.

Happy birthday, Mom!

We will never see this again in our lifetime...

...nor will the people of the next 50-to-1,000 Life Times!
Mars, the Red Planet, is about to be spectacular!

This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification...
Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.

Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.

By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.


NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN


This was an email I got from my dad, which came with some pictures that apparently only exist in the email. But I thought it was cool, and the 2 people who actually read my blog might want to know about it!

Starting to Sizzle!

OK, I went ahead and started Sizzle. I found some Tahki Cotton Classic in my stash, started with the front instead of the back, and I'm almost up to where I have to decide when to split for the deep V-neck. I really like the hourglass shaping on the piece; the back gets similar shaping. This yarn is on it's second go-round. It was once the Ripples Top from Cabin Fever , but after I wore it a couple of times, I decided it was too wide & too short, so it became yarn again.

I'm really tempted to go stash-diving again and come up with something to start Mystery Stole 2 . The first pattern was posted yesterday, and it looks gorgeous! Hurry and join if you're interested -- the group is closing next Friday, the 14th!

Not that I need to start yet another project... I count 5 projects within arm's reach of my chair, and there are several others stuffed behind the couch.

Ticker reset

I had to reset my "days since I bought yarn" ticker. Yesterday, in my fit of boredom, I purchased a ball of size 10 crochet cotton, to use in the creation of the Dutch sampler being recreated on the KnitalongSamplerM group.

And today, I got tired of waiting for an order I placed on May 29th and ordered some more Brown Sheep Cotton Fine to make some Bazaar Socks. But I still can't start the socks until I get some Cavern (black) or some other dark color. Apparently, there are a lot of people making these socks.

I did download a pattern today that I'm hoping will help use up stash: Sizzle, by Wendy Bernard.

I'm still here...

I have 2 finished items! The never-ending socks for my husband, from the Red Cross Kit , are finally done.

To the left is a big Booga Bag. Using Wendy's modifications, I enlarged the original pattern. I'm trying to decide whether to sew a lining for it. I didn't make an outside pocket, and the whole thing used just a bit more than 4 skeins of Noro Kureyon (color 92).

Current projects include the Mystery Shawl 4, which is a circular shawl, based on Elizabeth Zimmerman's Pi shawl, Leda's Dream for my mother (it's not going to be done for your birthday, Mom -- sorry!), and the Color Blox socks from the Six Sox KAL. I had developed a case of knitting ennui, and was working my way through it by alternating a round on the Mystery Shawl with 4 rows of Mom's stole, 10 rounds on the olive drab socks, 10 rounds on the Color Blox socks. Now that the olive socks are done and I am up to the gussets on the (toe-up) Color Blox, things are a bit more interesting. I actually considered either starting something new yesterday, or cramming all of the current projects behind the couch and digging out some other UFO (well, digging first and cramming second). I may not have to resort to such drastic measures after all.

The trouble with having to play catch-up...

...is trying to remember everything.

Sometime during that absence, I found out about Summer of Stash, and decided I needed to join. The goal is to go all summer, from Memorial Day to Labor Day, without buying yarn. Hence the new ticker at the top of the page.

Finished the Sixth Sense socks for the Six Sox KAL, just a day or two after the "deadline", then immediately started the new pattern, Color Blocks socks. I'm using Plymouth Sockotta, a cotton/wool blend that had already been a pair of socks, but I didn't like them and ripped them out. I like these -- they're toe-up, using a toe I hadn't tried before, then a heel I hadn't tried before, and ending with a garter stitch cuff that is knitted on sideways. First sock of this pair is done.


I got very little knitting done the week of June 5 - 9; I was immersed in teaching the 5th grade VBS class at church. I love 5th graders -- they're generally charming, funny, eager to please. I was told by one of the moms that her son appreciated not being treated like a little kid. Our theme was "Arctic Edge: Where Adventure Meets Courage". Memory verse: "Haven't I commanded you: be strong & courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." [Joshua 1:9] I find that to be a comforting, empowering thought.

Following VBS family night Sunday evening, the Princess & I drove to Springfield to do orientation & registration for the fall semester, spending Sunday & Monday nights in a dorm residence hall. An interesting experience. The parent portion of the program was not at all boring, as I was afraid it would be. I had my knitting with me, just in case, but never got it out -- I was too busy taking notes. We were done about mid-day on Tuesday, and did a little shopping before we headed home. I scouted out one of the yarn shops, went in & petted some yarn, and told the women I'd be back -- my daughter kept reminding me while we were in there that I wasn't buying any yarn until after Labor Day. (50 mile round trip to church; 332 mile round trip to Springfield)

Wednesday was a catching-up day at home (laundry, etc.). On Thursday, we had dentist appointments (50 mi. round trip) and an evening baseball game in a town about 46 miles away. (92 mile round trip)

Friday morning, my son & I were up early, headed to Branson for the Grand National Challenge of Champions clogging competition at the Welk Resort Theater. I was going to try to start the Leda's Dream stole for my mother's birthday, and instead found a Booga Bag that had been languishing behind the couch, which would be much easier to work on in the dim light of the theater. That was a good choice -- rounds of stockinette stitch allowed me to pay some attention to the dancers on stage, as well. The kids (the team he dances with) came home with several plaques for placing in their categories, but no cash prizes for overall points. Got home late Thursday evening -- it was a long day, with a 400 mile road trip.

Saturday, another baseball game, this time 41 miles away. And only 5 of the kids on the team showed up. So they borrowed kids from the other team, and the opponents' coaches played (with their own team), and they went at it for a couple of hours, anyway. I took that Booga Bag with me, and just about finished it. Total mileage for the week: something over 1000, as I'm not counting things like trips into town here, or within Springfield or Branson.

Since then, I finished knitting the Booga Bag, did an i-cord bind-off, and made about 6 feet of 5-stitch i-cord for the handle. I felted it yesterday; it took about 20 minutes (I checked it every 5 minutes, reset the washer to the beginning of the cycle, and set the kitchen timer for 5 minutes to check again; after the 3rd check, I reset the washer & let it run through the complete cycle). It's drying/blocking right now, then I have to attach the handles, and figure out whether I want to make a lining for it. It is a thing of beauty, though -- an ideal vehicle for Noro Kureyon's stripes (I used color 92).

I started Mom's stole (Leda's Dream) with KnitPicks Alpaca Cloud; Mist is the name of the color. Boy, is this stuff slippery. Not so slippery that knots slip out, however, as we had a bit of an incident in the ball-winding stage. My dear 14yo son was operating the ball winder, when the ball of yarn suddenly popped off and rolled across the room. I picked it up and noticed that the yarn seemed to be going up inside the ball from the bottom, which didn't look quite right. He finished hand-winding the rest of the hank onto the outside of the ball, and I thought, "We'll just rewind this one." So I pulled out the beginning of the yarn, set it into the ball winder's notches, and started to wind. Then I hit a snag, and the center of the ball came out in a clump. I tried to patiently loosen the yarn to continue winding, but it just got worse, and now we have this hideous mess. I was working on it the other day, and announced that I have just about decided to do something I've never done. My husband says, "Cut?" "No," I say, "throw it away!" [Gasp!] It's a $3.99 skein of yarn. I have ordered a replacement for it, hoping to get the same dye lot. Should I reset my ticker? Does this count? It's not yarn for a new project....

Oh, and there's a Mystery Stole 2 starting next month -- by the same designer who did Leda's Dream, which was the first Mystery Stole. I'll have to find some stash yarn to use, but I think I'll want to finish Mom's stole before I start the Mystery Stole. Um, and I'm also working on Mystery Shawl 4, a circular shawl this time, in Louet's Kidlin Pixie. I'm keeping up with this one so far, finished clue 2 on Monday, waiting for clue 3 to post on Friday.

Racing to the finish

I've been working on my Sixth Sense socks today, trying to get them done. (The yarn is Stahl Socka Color # 9193 -- it's several years old, so the color number will have changed if it's still available. It appears to be #2401, in the Fortissima Colori/Socka Color by Schoeller+Stahl.) I'm up to the heel on sock 2. I don't know whether I'll finish or not. The new sock pattern will be posted on the Six Sox Knitalong tomorrow, and I want to be ready. Let's ignore the fact that I still have to finish my husband's olive drab socks and that I do have several other projects in various stages of completion.

This has nothing to do with knitting, but I got this link from a friend -- it's a very funny video!
YouTube - Evolution of Dance

Still working on socks, but...

The kids are home from camp in Florida. They had a good time. The Princess turned 18 while they were at camp, and her brother turned 14 yesterday. We're sorta low-key on the birthday celebration scale. Steak & potato salad & chocolate cake with the family and one extra guest was the sum total of the party yesterday!

I got a pattern for a really cool bag, which I started knitting Sunday afternoon and ripped out yesterday morning. It was going to be huge, so I'll have to start again with fewer stitches. I'm using recycled sari silk.

I have been a part of the SiviaHardingKnits Yahoo group since before they started the Diamond Fantasy Shawl knitalong, but finally started working on mine today. It starts at the point, and I finished the first chart (35 rows) and stretched it out to look at it -- something's off right about in the middle. I thought I'd try taking that center stitch off the needles and letting it run down to the mistake, then knitting it back up. After struggling with that for awhile, I decided to just frog the whole thing and start over. Now it looks right. The yarn is HandMaiden Sea Silk, in the Glacier color.

Not quite right...

The bread was, shall we say, rather dense. Didn't rise at all. Maybe I should try using yeast (ya think?). The idea was to make authentic sourdough bread, with the starter as the rising agent. But I don't think I'm going to get too wrapped up in that. Next time, I'll use yeast.


Sixth Sense sock can stand up by itself, I kid you not. I'm doing the heel right now, just moving right along.

We had a little road trip today, and I worked on the olive drab socks from the Red Cross kit. I finished the (long, long) legs -- 3" of ribbing and 8" of stockinette, and started the heel flap before we got home.

Saving the best for last, finally a picture of my completely finished and blocked Mystery Shawl 3 (JaggerSpun Zephyr in Peacock)! Sorry about the disembodied hands. The dark area to the left of center is a clump of irises at the edge of the yard. Beyond that, we're growing hay.

I've got socks!

I finally finished the Cedar Creek socks yesterday! I made them toe-up, both at once on a 40" Addi turbo circular, size 1, which is 2.5 mm (my size 1 dpns are 2.25 mm, and I have a set of size 1.5 dpns that are 2.5 mm). My purpose in doing them toe-up was to make the legs as long as I wanted, instead of the 4.5 - 5 inches specified in the pattern. I finally quit when they were 7" long! I had estimated the amount of yarn needed to do the picot hem and butterflied it off, marking the start of those 8 yds with a safety pin through a slip knot. I started the hem before I got to that last 8 yards, though. After I got the knitting part done, I had to figure out how to attach the hem inside the sock. I had seen a suggestion on another blog about using a Kitchener stitch to sew the hem down. First, I slid the sock off the circular and onto 4 dpns. I tried to do the Kitchener sort of free-hand at first -- a bit of a disaster. So I found a use for my set of short (5") size 1 dpns -- on the inside of the sock, I picked up the top loop of the stitches I wanted to Kitchener the stitches on the needle to, and went from there. This method allowed me to see what I was picking up, making sure they were all on the same row. I was actually a row below the first row of the hem. Oh, and I picked up just 1/4 of the stitches at a time, so I wasn't dealing with such a porcupine of needles.


Next up: the Sixth Sense socks from Six Socks KAL. I have just under 2 weeks before the new pattern is posted on June 1st. I'm making these cuff-down, one at a time, on dpns. The yarn is Stahl Socka Color # 9193 -- I think it's old enough that the color number will have changed if it's still available. It appears to be #2401, in the Fortissima Colori/Socka Color by Schoeller+Stahl.


And in today's mail... the gorgeous new Fairgrounds colorway of STR, with an intriguing pattern for a sock with a sideways cuff done in Linen Stitch.

On the domestic front, I have attempted to make sourdough starter using only flour and water, left out on the counter for several days, fed every 24 hours with another 1/2 cup each of flour and water. It seemed bubbly and done after about 48 hours, but I fed it again. The next night, it wasn't as bubbly, but I decided to try making bread with it anyway. Maybe not such a good idea -- it's in the bread machine right now, and, well, it isn't risen... and it's up to the baking part of the cycle. So I have probably made a sourdough doorstop.

Yes, It's Been Awhile

I'm still here -- and doing a little bit of knitting. I'm up to the legs on the STR socks (yarn color: Rainforest Jasper; pattern: Cedar Creek from the STR club). I really want to get them done! But I'm having a hard time working on them for long stretches. I don't know whether it's just the fact that they've been on the needles so long that it seems like they should have been done a long time ago, and why am I still having to go round and round....
After I finished my Mystery Shawl 3, I went for a quick & easy project -- the Black Sheep bags Kristina Bag , which was also my first foray into Fair Isle, using the two-handed technique taught in the Philosopher's Wool video. Then it gets felted, so any weirdness is disguised. Turned out pretty well.

I have several other Fair Isle projects planned -- mittens, gloves, a bigger bag that doesn't get felted, the Sampler Hat from IK. I've also signed up for Ginger's Knitalong for the Bazaar Socks in the new IK -- and my yarn arrived yesterday! (Minus one color, which is on backorder. I looked at the pattern, and I can get as far as completing the toes before I have to quit and wait for the missing color. Another reason to get the STR socks finished -- so I can start these!)
Finally blocked my Mystery Shawl 3 yesterday. It looks like a whole different creature. (No picture yet.)
Last time I posted, I mentioned that I was cleaning the house for the impending arrival of overnight guests. With help from the other 3 members of the family, we got the place into reasonable shape, guests arrived, graduation ceremony was attended, everyone came back to the house, (more) pictures were taken, people ate & visited, slept, ate a big breakfast, went "shopping" in the yarn storage to find yarn for a shawl for Mom, didn't find anything that was the right color, went to a neighboring town to watch my son's clogging team perform, then came home (my parents and my aunt left headed the other way, to go home after the clogging). Really, the whirlwind hasn't stopped yet. The kids are preparing to leave for church camp next week. My son has baseball practice, baseball games, clogging practice, clogging performances, science fair. Daughter is still finishing the college classes she was taking. And so it goes....
Here's the graduate:

This child graduated 3rd in her class, with 33 college hours, and a scholarship which will pay her tuition at Missouri State (and is renewable -- she just needs to maintain a 3.5 GPA...). We're pretty proud of her!

Testing

This is a test post to see what happens when I post to my blog using email.

Theresa is right, I should be cleaning. My firstborn, the Princess, is graduating from high school next Friday, and there will be people here! And this house is way more than 15 minutes from being company-ready. There are piles of books, magazines, knitting patterns, yarn & roving everywhere. (Have I mentioned there's a spinning wheel that lives here, too? I got it in February of 2005, and I haven't gotten past making fairly bulky yarn yet. Actually, the plan was to spin enough natural-colored bulky yarn to make the "Great Garter Stitch Blanket" from the Winter '94-'95 Vogue Knitting. It's an Elizabeth Zimmerman pattern done with mitered corners and looks pretty cool. It requires about 4 lbs of yarn, so I have a lot of spinning to do!
Instead of cleaning, I am working on those STR socks in the Cedar Creek pattern. I have about 1 3/8" of foot to do before I make the (short-row) heel. Then I can knit the legs until I run out of yarn.
I also made a couple of gauge swatches for the Oregon Shawl in the lovely laceweight worsted-spun Cormo I got from Elsa Sheep & Wool Co.. I'm not planning to start this shawl right away, though. I was just... I'm waiting on some yarn I ordered to make the EZasPi Choose Your Own Adventure Mystery Pi Shawl. They've already posted 3 sets of clues! I'm hoping the yarn will be here today.

[So, what happens when you email your post is that it gets saved as a draft and you can go in and edit the html, and add pictures if you have any. There may be a way to do that part from the email program, too, but this works for me.]

Finally Finished!

I finished the last round of my Mystery Shawl 3 on Sunday afternoon, then promptly balked at the notion of using the recommended backstitch bindoff to get it off the needles. That means cutting the yarn (suggested length is 4 times your finished edge, or about 23 yards in this case) and threading a needle, and going purlwise through 2 stitches, knitwise through the first one, and taking that first one off the needle. Repeat until done. How do you manage that much yarn? What if I didn't cut it long enough? So I tried another bind-off that doesn't involve cutting the yarn ahead of time, and it was too tight. I spent hours perusing my knitting books, looking for an edging to knit on, then realized that not only would I have to find one that would go with the rest of the lace patterns, but also that would fit on the 188x4 stitches around the edge of the shawl. I just wasn't up for that much thinking.

I posted a message to the Yahoo group, asking what others had done, and I got several responses. I also looked at the bind-off instructions for the Leaf Lace shawl, which I completed in January, and this is what it says (though I don't remember doing this): k2, * slip those 2 sts back on the left needle and k2tog through the back loop, k1, repeat from * until done. So that's what I did. I wondered about the through the back loop business, until I realized it's actually a time saver -- if you put the tip of the left needle into the front of the 2 sts on the right needle, you're ready to k2tog through the back loop.

I took a picture this morning before my helpers left for school:

Blocking is going to have to wait until the a/c is turned on, or possibly if we have to build a fire in the woodstove. The outside temps are in the 60's, and the air is damp, so if I tried to block the shawl now, it would take forever to dry. It might be chilly enough to require a fire tonight and/or tomorrow, though -- then I would just have to make the dogs stay outside. I actually wore the poor little crumpled thing around the house most of the day, to ward off the chill. Could have just put on a sweatshirt, but where's the charm in that when you have a silk & wool lace shawl?

Not a stitch...

Really, I didn't even touch the knitting yesterday. My right wrist was sore -- I actually put Biofreeze on it before I went to bed Thursday. All better now. This morning, I finally finished the round I started 2 days ago, and then did the plain-knitting round that follows it. I don't know why I'm sitting in front of the computer. I need to get back to work on that shawl. Not to make it sound like I'm not enjoying it, because I am.

I didn't even get once around the shawl yesterday! I started a round, got interrupted, didn't pick it back up till much later, got interrupted again, then it was bedtime. I did spend too much time shopping for yarn online yesterday, but I was strong & didn't actually purchase anything. Whew!

I took my knitting with me (not the shawl, as I'm working from a cone of Zephyr, and cones are just not very portable) to the world's longest baseball game yesterday afternoon. It was a middle school game -- it took them over 3 hours to play 5 innings! But my son's team won, 15-14. It was not only their first win (they've played 7 games), but also their first time to score more than a couple of runs in a game. As long and potentially sleep-inducing as the game was, I did not get out my knitting. I just can't bring myself to do it -- people might think I'm weird, or something ;-)

Making little bits of progress

I have already done 6 rounds on my Mystery Shawl today, bringing me up to having completed round 152. I am on the final clue, which ends with round 182, so if I can keep up this blistering pace, I can have it done on Monday! I am just 2 rounds into the final clue, but it was nice to finish a chart and move on to the next one. On the final round of the previous chart, I knitted the shawl onto 4 circs in an attempt to be able to spread it out and take a picture. This is as good as it gets, as I didn't feel like looking for pins and really stretching it out.

This is prom week at our local high school, and the theme this year is Hollywood Nights, so they're featuring a different classic each day this week. Monday was the Wizard of Oz -- this is my daughter in a dress I made her 6 years ago for a Wizard-of-Oz themed dance (October 2000). This is the extent of my sewing -- I don't make "real" clothes. I guess I'd rather knit. And "Toto" is being played by Kai, even though she's not really right for the part.


My Cedar Creek socks have grown just a little -- the Socks That Rock yarn is wonderful! I actually took one sock off the Magic Loop and put it on dpns the other day (thinking I'd get one sock done, and it would be quicker & more portable that way). I knit one chart repeat, then did once through the chart on the other sock and put the first sock back on the circular needle. The dpns were those short 5" Brittany Birch size 1's, and they just don't feel good in my hands.

One sock done

Not much to see here. I finished one of the socks from the Red Cross kit. The leg is the same length as my husband's "real" Army socks. The yarn is quite nice; it seems to be fingering weight. The pattern gauge is 7 sts and 9 rows to the inch. I'm using US 1 needles, and I'm not getting gauge -- more like 7.5 sts and 10 rows to the inch. I wouldn't want to try a larger needle, as the sock would be too flimsy. I think the pattern must have been meant for a heavier yarn, like sport weight. In fact, one version of the pattern specifies 14/4 wool, and when I did a search for "14/4 yarn", everything that came up said sport weight. Strike two for the folks who put the kit together (the 3.75 mm needles, US size 5, that came with the kit being the first strike).
My Mystery Shawl 3 has progressed through row 134; 46 rows (rounds) to go. By my calculations, I've done 24 rounds in 10 days. Not too impressive. The EZasPi group posted the first clues to the Knit Your Own Adventure Mystery Pi shawl last night (um, I think I was up too late, actually, and I'm doing it again, still on the computer). I haven't even figured out which yarn I want to use, and the first clues shouldn't take too long to do, so I can catch up.