The Walk of Shame? I think not...

T-minus 5.5 lap quilts on 1 Dec? Didja make it? Didja? DIDJA?

Nope, didn't make it by a long shot. But by tomorrow I'll have 3 of the 5.5 completed since 1 Dec. The accomplishment in that is that those quilts got completed in the face of this list of overwhelming odds against getting them done:

Christmas shopping for husband and kids, fabric shopping for my Kringle's lap quilt, food shopping for the family Christmas party, watching a 2 year old, cleaning for the family Christmas party, baking for mail off Christmas gifts and the Christmas party, cooking for the family Christmas party, decorating for Christmas and the Christmas party, watching a 2 year old, hosting the Christmas party, standing in line at the post office to send off gifts, watching a 2 year old, attending an out of town Christmas party while watching the 2 year old, planning Christmas dinner (we're starting a new tradition: Italian on Christmas Day), miscalculating yardages for the 3rd quilt, choosing new fabrics because what I'd chosen is no longer available, watching a 2 year old, dodging husband so I can wrap his presents, dodging 2 year old so I can wrap his presents. Oy! Busy, busy, busy...  Did I mention watching a 2 year old?

I count it an earth shattering accomplishment to have an empty sink for the first time in 10 days. And it's not over yet.

I know I'm not the only one, what's going on in your holiday plans?

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Holy schnikes! It's almost Christmas

I can't be the only crafter who has let Christmas sneak up on them...again.

Can I?

T-minus 5.5 quilts

Think I'll make it?

Trimming visual clutter

I'm still the newbie quilter and with less than perfect vision. Glasses can only correct so much. And my frustration level isn't one of those correctable things. You may be like me in that aspect, so a little help is always a good thing.

What inspired todays post: half triangle squares. Specifically trimming the little buggers up square. Goodnight Avery only has 36 of them, and I'm not complaining about that.  20 2½" and 16 3½" squares to be exact.

Non-quilter FYI: 36 half-triangle squares in a quilt top is only a few, and about as easy as it gets.

UGH! Too many lines!

I love my rotary cutter and mat. I also love quilting rulers. Individually, they outslice sliced bread for awesomeness. BUT, and there is always a but, using them at the same time makes me crosseyed from visual clutter. So much so that I welcomed stopping my first Goodnight Avery quilt to let my phone charge and my eyes rest while I write this post. My phone is my camera, and as they say, seeing is believing.

What got my eyes hurting after trimming only 10 squares today was eyestrain from cutting them to size while keeping them square.

Busy, busy, busy!

The fix came to me in these stages:

Tip 1: Mark the half inch square corner with X's on the diagonal line of the ruler.

I was tired of trying to visually line up x.5" squares on the diagonal. Quilting rulers are marked in ⅛" increments. To put it mildly, that's a lot of tiny squares in a very little space. Following them visually with old, tired, and poor eyes is a recipe for not just for eyestrain but cutting errors. Goodnight Avery only has 36 half triangle squares, but some quilts can have hundreds. I don't know about you, but fabric is too expensive to potentially screw up 100+ of these little, er, suckers in a larger quilt. OUCH, indeed.

Wee blue crosshairs are larger than they appear in the picture

Tip 2: Trim the squares en pointe.

In combination with tip 1, "standing" the square on a point for cutting lets you easily measure from the inside of the ruler to the outside of it, and make any needed cuts along 2 sides.

Look Ma, just 2 quick cuts!

Tip 3: Use the back of the cutting mat.

Here's where I had my V-8 moment: I noticed that I could see my X's on my ruler more easily on my sewing table because it's solid white and the ruler is clear (DUH!). Turning my mat over and cutting en pointe on the solid green side means I only see the fabric or the solid green through the ruler and no distracting gridlines or angle lines. AHHHH! Now that's easy on the eyes!

Sometimes less is more....

Once I hit on this process trimming up squarely was quick and easy peasy. My knitting hero, Elizabeth Zimmermann, called rediscovered knitting techniques, stitch patterns, and tips such as these unventions.  Therefore I unvented a highly workable process today. Hooray for me!

What about you happy crafters? What have you unvented?

Wait for it... wait for it...

This chilly morning, I toast the completion of the mentalpause project with a cuppa lukewarm joe. This was to be my daughter's high school graduation gift: nice, right? Well, that graduation was in 2008.  Now to wash and block it, then have it matted and framed for her kitchen. Good thing her college graduation gift was a graduation party, yes?

A 7 year wait isn't too long, is it?

I'll admit, I'm a bit slow on the uptake. Having taken 7 years to complete the mentalpause needlepoint, any needlework project advertised as "quickpoint" would be a welcome change of pace. I chose some cute Penguins and started the next color by number with yarn. For some goofy reason I thought Quickpoint would be a basketweave needlepoint project, but it's really cross stitch on a very large mesh (4.5 stitches/inch) with worsted yarn. At least I don't have to count stitches... It's quite sizable (16 inches square) but when you compare stitch counts it's far far less work. There's only a few stitches over 5100 in the whole thing compared to the 28200 plus of mentalpause in only a 14 x 14 space.

Maybe quick point means this one
will only take 3 years to complete?

And I did cut out a quilt after finishing mentalpause and the office-to-sewing room reorganization. Actually I got much farther than cutting it out. Quilting is about to commence so that my favorite West Virginia fan has a Christmas present. Really, that's WVU blue and gold, not LSU purple and gold. LSU Purple is a color not allowed in my household.  The pattern is Donna Robertson's 'Friendship Star' from her book 3 Yard Quilts. I think this one is my favorite pattern in the whole book.

Eek! Excuse my kitchen floor, please?

But I'm still not brave enough to tackle my closets... yet. The closets may hold things that have never seen the light of day. Sticking my hands in there will require the fortitude of a, nay several, steaming cuppas Irish coffee. With whisky, thankyouverymuch. There be beasties in there.

What about you?

Next quilts up:

One each Vicki Bellino's Goodnight Avery's in little boy construction prints and little girl critter prints 

Several Stella Table Mats in Christmas fabrics

In Mentalpause

What was I thinking???? Reorganize the office into a craft room during vacation? Easy peasy? Riiight... It's not hard but it is tiring. Everything takes longer to do in a wrist brace.  Wanting my kitchen table to be junk free as I move sewing machines and sewing supplies (a quilt top isn't junk, but I like eating on a solid surface and clean quilts) means no quilting or sewing until the room is setup.  Just a few more pieces to go... and then I'll cut another quilt top and tackle my closets. UGH! That's for the closets, not the quilt top.

And because I'm not as young as I used to be: I get too tired to think after dragging all that crap around but still want to work on something in the evenings ... my paint by numbers with yarn is almost complete. Another needlepoint is already queued up in the wings for when this beauty is completed.

Next quilts up:

Vicki Bellino's Goodnight Avery in little boy construction prints 

Donna Robertson's Byzantine Door in New Orleans Saints fabrics

I LOVE easy peasy microwave fabric bowls

Yes, I said I love these. They're easy to make, easy to use, and easy to clean. Does anything kitchen related get any better than that?

How often are we disappointed by kitchen gadgets that seem awesome? More often than we'd care to admit, I'd wager.

I've not been this excited about a kitchen item since Crock Pot Liners were introduced. They will always be the #1 of kitchen sexy...

Tired of burning your hands and dipping hot pads into the contents of microwaved bowls? Make an easy peasy microwave fabric bowl!

These lovely little quilted fabric bowls are made with 100% cotton fabric and sewn with 100% cotton thread, quilted with 100% cotton batting. (No poly or metallic anything, please. They'll burn or arc, or both.)

Fill your bowl with whatever you're reheating/cooking/eating, put the bowl of food into the fabric bowl. Toss it all in the microwave or eat - voila! No burnt hands, ma!

I just have to share the love... Link to one of many tutorials to make these great little gadgets below:

http://tamarackshack.blogspot.com/2012/11/microwaveable-fabric-bowl-tutorial.html

I'll quote one of my favorite comics, Bill Engvall: Yes ma'am, you are welcome.

Biomechanics + Wedding Prep + Technology = Life caught me by the short hairs

It's been a little over two months now since I checked in with y'all. Here goes:

To Count or Not to Count Update

I did resolve my inability to count beyond two, however I haven't got much knitting done.  A carpal tunnel diagnosis pretty much put the kibosh on knitting until I can have surgery to fix it. After the wedding, that is.

%$!* Wrist

Which lead to not only no knitting these past two months, but little to no typing. A splinted wrist can only do so much, and no more.  I can type right now because a cortisone injection in my wrist has finally kicked in enough to remove the splint for a very little while. But I did sew a great deal during the blog interregnum for myself, the holidays, my daughter and her wedding, because it's one of the few things I could do with my good hand in a wrist splint. 

Gift for a Friend

First of two Christmas gifts

45" x 45" 9 Patch for grandbaby

45" x 60" Simple Strips quilt for my daughter

Wedding Prep

I never assume others think like I do, but I do assume the world would be a better and more financially solvent place if more people thought like me. But, for the moment, lets assume you do think like me and have no problems with a DIY wedding.

Dear Daughter chose burlap and lace for her decorating scheme. Being an odd combination of Depression Era "If you can make it cheaper than you can buy it, always make it," and a recovering southern belle of the Emily Post variety, nonplussed is a polite way to describe my opinion of burlap at a wedding. That said, it's not my wedding and we all know what is said about opinions. As much as I hate to admit it, I am not exempt from the opinion rule. Mine stink too. But I will give her selection a substantial plus: burlap and lace can be reused in the newlywed's home as part of a shabby chic decor.

Anyway, in discussions of "burlap this," "burlap that, " and "burlap the other," I realized there were substantial pecuniary savings to be had in making some of the burlap decorations for the wedding and reception instead of purchasing everything. Neither Emily Post nor my Depression Era grandparents were opposed to saving money. Nor am I. 

Rule number 1: Preferentially buy everything but the food on clearance where you can. Shop around to do this, and start early.You may love a particular item or look, but if you can get something really close to it on clearance, do it. For fellow cheapskates this is preaching to the choir. For you newbies to getting the best bang for your buck, it works if and only if you do it.

Rule number 2: If it's cheaper to make it than it is to buy it, always make it. Yes, factor in your time to make it against the cost, and start early. Your time matters. For instance, I was going to make the favor bags, until I found a lower cost supplier at which to buy them. The time I'm saving will go towards cooking the food for the reception and making other decorations.

Many bemoan the early Christmas store layouts, but not I. We crafter cheapskates know the number one rule of crafting for Christmas: Start early.  A crafter cannot start early if there is no seasonal merchandise to be had. Enough said.

And there are other benefits to early seasonal displays. In the Christmas section of a national hobby and craft store, I saw adorable burlap bows edged with cheapie lace, perfect for the wedding & reception decorations, save for the cost. $10 each, for cheap lace & burlap, of all things? Cheeky little retailers! 

With a little thought (I made my own bow pattern) and prescient purchasing decisions (yards of burlap bought on sale, yards & yards of lace bought on clearance), my dear daughter now has beautiful bows with nice lace at a material cost of $1 each.   Good for the wedding, reception, Christmas, Thanksgiving...  useful in the future and a gift to carry forward for the new couple. I could make more like this in the same manner, add my time and sell them on etsy for half of what the retailers charge and still make bank.  (Future enterprise for me! )

Burlap Bow (The first of many)

24" x 60" Burlap and Lace Table Runner
(to have a 12" diameter centerpiece)

Burlap and organza wired ribbon floral arrangements for the reception tables can be reused in the home as desired. They're much less expensive than real flowers. See parenthetical ending of previous paragraph.

Guestbook Table arrangement

Consider fancying up the food service at the reception with carefully purchased pieces of white serving plate. The newlyweds can have it for their new home. Give it to them after the honeymoon of course! No pics yet, still in the pick up as I find it stage.

Technology

Other sewing & quilting or wedding projects are either completed or underway, but until I figure out how to get the pics from the new phone to the 'puter they're photos non grata. It'll wait. Not like I don't have anything else to do. 

Are you the make it yourself, if it's cheaper type too? Chime in a comment and let me know...

Back to bow making...

First down & 10

The first of my comfortable summer blouses is complete. After the pattern pieces fiasco, I wrote the pattern maker to let them know about the missing pieces, and they graciously offered to replace the pattern. Thank you Simplicity!!! But not wanting to wait for it to arrive by mail to make my blouse, I bought another copy and made the blouse. I love it so much that I'll use the replacement to make the dress!

The blouse from Simplicity 2660 is one of those that you wouldn't look at once, much less twice on the hanger. But as soon as you put it on and see how flattering the fit is, it becomes your new favorite and a keeper!

It's a hawaiian shirt that I made for a party, but I'll be making more of these!

 Next quilt top: Simple Strips, a free pattern from AllPeopleQuilt.com

One of THOSE Months

Knit one, frog two, leads to a knitting hiatus

When you knit, frogging is inevitable. The beast took 4 rows forward, and 10 rows back. I can't stand to look at her right now because she is my penultimate reminder that I CAN'T COUNT my knitting past 2, by two's. Really, it is that bad.

Because I can't seem to count beyond 2, all knitting is on hold. My knitting confidence is so shaken that I can't even care right now that Lolly is nekkid.  'Tis bad, which means it's time for a break.

Measure twice, cut once 

My grandmother taught me to sew, and as a child I wrought stitched havoc for her on 2 of her 3 of her sewing machines. Well I was young, probably too young to be trusted to use such machinery, even under her bird-dog eye.  

Happily, after successfully using an inexpensive portable sewing machine of my own over the years, I no longer wrought stitched havoc on anyone. I could and did sew, rather well, if I don't say so myself.  That made my grandmother so happy that I inherited her third sewing machine. 

So having nothing to do but practice my housework avoidance skills, I'm revisiting sewing. Finding comfort and busy hands again in making patchwork baby quilts, something I've never done before, is a boon to my bruised confidence. Pictures to come...

Comfortable summer clothing for myself is also on my sewing to do list, perhaps a hawaiian shirt or two for Husband ( they're his new fancy, and he rarely takes a fancy to anything ) once I learn how to use my buttonhole foot. Don't know if I can still turn nice buttonholes by hand like I used to.

Anyway...

I have insufficient quilt batting to start another baby quilt. So I started trimming up the pattern pieces for a blouse and pants set, only to learn that a whole sheet of pattern pieces that I need for my outfit is missing. This is the first time I've ever had this happen, and I've been buying patterns since 1983.

Anyone who has pulled a new set of bed linens out of their little plastic zippered bag has some idea of what unfolding a pattern is like. You remove the sheets and start unrolling, not knowing if the pillowcases are really in there until you finish unrolling the neat little cake of sheets and shake them.  And no matter how hard you try, you can't refold the sheets small enough to put back in their neat little zippered plastic bag. Fun times, eh?

It's pretty much the same with clothes patterns. Only the pattern pieces are printed on half twin sheet sized pieces of super thin tissue paper, that are folded in on themselves more tightly than a katana and if you shake them out like sheets  to see if all are there you'll tear them to shreds. BUT, just like the sheets, you can't refold the patterns afterwards. So I typically write up a list of the pieces I need and cut as I unpeel the individual sheets of tissue from each other. 

Where this is going is that I can't just refold the pattern and return it. I have to buy another. 

Sigh, no clothes making for a little while.  Not confidence boosting but neither is it enough to shake what little I've gained from the quilts in the past few days. Now I have to go get another pattern... yes, it's been one of THOSE months...

Lolly waits for clothes

I wanted to share her before now, but burning my fingertips while cooking put the kibosh on both typing and knitting.

Lolly now has 2 arms, 2 legs, and a tail. All stuffed and sewed where they belong. There's not much odder looking than an elephant in panties and Mary Janes, but she did come out cute.

Her dress is now in progress, when that's done I can scratch off the first completed knitted WIP from my list.

More WIP elimination updates

And the Beast is up to 105 rows of 228, I think it is.

Having only an inch-ish knitted up, I'm thinking about frogging the Japanese Waves shawl.  I'm considering casting on Grace Akhrem's Crashing Waves shawl as replacement for Japanese Waves in the queue. A beautiful, simple knit and I don't need a pattern until the lace edging. It doesn't get much more simple than that.

Paved with good intentions, or round washcloth mania

I got turned onto the Lacy Picot Swirl washcloth on the KnittingHelp forum, and it's as addictive as the Almost Lost Washcloth. As if I need another to go project...

Living in a WIP wonderland

This Spring incited a cleaning frenzy in me, the likes of which I last experienced while nesting in preparation for the birth of my now 24 year old child. Yes, crazy cleaning... I can't help but wonder how much storage space, and ease of mind, I could free up if I finished my WIPs. They really need to go live somewhere else so that I can go on to new projects with a clean conscience and, more importantly, have space for new yarns. My best friend can stop snickering right now over the notion that I can have a clean conscience. Right. Now.

I have home-based projects, travel projects, and always an idiot project. Home based projects have the following in common: They are large, or complicated, or charted, or have beaucoup pieces and therefore can't travel well. Conversely, my travel projects are all small, uncomplicated, and either stockinette or an easily memorized & recalled pattern stitch. Idiot projects require very little attention, very little thinking, or very little of both.

WIP Mania Begins

I'm a compulsive list maker so here goes. Can't scratch off completed items without a list... The only one in the correct place order is #1. The order of importance of the rest is TBD:

1. Daughter's wedding shawl a.k.a The Beast: Cobweb lace yarn and complicated pattern necessitates 2 & 3 on the list. Must complete by 10/14. This is non-negotiable as I want to keep my daughter on good terms with me. Undisputed #1. 
2. Red afghan: large Beast relief project. 20% done.
3. Lolly Fant : small Beast relief project.1 ⅞ arm, a tail, and a dress to go.
4. my socks: oldest travel project I have. It's so old it dates back to when I couldn't knit without a pattern in front of me. Half a sock leg to go.
5. husbands socks: youngest travel project. ⅞  a sock leg to go. Once I find it.
6. heirloom baby sweater: My oldest knitting WIP, about 40% done. I'll tell you the story when I start work on it again.
7. feather & fan scarf : old travel project. 30% done.
8. blue dishcloth: needs a couple of rows frogged so I can correctly reestablish the pattern stitch. A DUH! mistake that needs fixin'. ⅔ done.
9. japanese waves shawl: old lace project. barely started when DD announced her impending nuptials.
10. big ol' sun & moon needlepoint: my dinosaur of WIPs. Older than dirt, and my go to for what I call idiot-work. It's what I do when I can't think & can't count but need something to do with my hands. It's paint by number with yarn. Do I really need to be in a hurry to finish this one? Yes, the canvas is so old (2008) that the design is starting to wear off. And you want a matted, framed FO out of it.

I think that's all, though I may find more when I go in search of husband's other sock. My idol and knitting goddess, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, would likely find my list of WIPs laughably short. But, in my itty bitty house, they and their materiel take up floor & storage space. Speaking of storage, it's time to put away the 4 bags of DK...

Working off a large collection of WIPs, is like working off large debt. You set a schedule, then as WIPs complete, you reallocate the knitting time until they're all done. The Beast will take until October to finish, unless the knitting gods take pity on me (unlikely). She gets at least 2 rows a day until completed, more as I and my fingers can stand it. Lolly is almost done, so she'll be first up as front for Beast relief. I've decided that my socks will be the first of the travel projects slated for completion ASAP (travel not included). And my poor needlepoint will be front from time to time.

Even better than the upcoming batch of FOs is that I get to stop cleaning to work on them. Really, can I please stop cleaning now??

Spuds is spuds

I'm such a spud today. Not that this is different from any other day. But I am more aware of my spud-dom than usual. Somehow I made progress on Lolly despite my resemblance to Ms. Potato Head. What should have taken 5 minutes took me all afternoon.

Why all of this self-recrimination? My spud self gave Lolly black shoes, and I sewed the little buggers up this afternoon.

Mattress stitching black worsted knit up on size 4 needles gets me nominated for queen knitting spud of the year. And a monumental case of eye strain. I fear the award for being crowned queen will be speedy and incapicitating blindness as soon as the winning vote is cast.

Grouse, whine, kvetch

Other than finding those hard to see bars in the shoe stitches (What WAS I thinking? Black shoes??) the gauge made my fingers ache unbelievably. In worsted, Lolly knit up at 5.25 sts/inch on those size 4s o'mine. For me that's a dense fabric. The given pattern gauge is 6 sts/inch so I don't know why I'm complaining. I got the look I want and a toy sized just right for a little one to love on, or to sit on the shelf and look absolutely adorable.

Do what you have to do, knit how you have to do it, to get the look you want or need. That's all that matters. How you go about knitting is such an "I say po-tay-toe, you say po-tah-toe" enterprise. But in the long run, spuds is spuds, y'all.

And as a friend of mine says, I like taters.

Lolly's Yarn Debacle Continues

The DK arrived today and yep, the DK is about the size of Caron's Simply Soft.

Sigh.

I've decided to keep all 4 bags. Skooshy yarn will always, ALWAYS, have a home with me.

Can't use this for elephant clothes.  Time to go digging through sock yarn so Lolly is not permanently en déshabillé. 

She remains partially knitted/assembled because lucky me  found the knitting equivalent of Lay's Potato Chips.  Oy!

Betcha can't make just one. 

I know I can't. It's all Julie Tarsha's fault.  I found her Almost Lost Washcloth on Ravelry, and it was all downhill from there. Sweet little short rows make up the most fun you can have with garter stitch in public. Slowpoke me has managed to crank out 3 in as many evenings (maybe 3 hours each cloth). I only have photos of the last two. When your 20-something daughter looks at something knitted and says "Ma, that's neat," and takes it as soon as its offered, you know you have a hit on your hands.

I happen to like the "spotted" cotton yarns for this cloth instead of variegated where the color striping can pool in wonky ways because of the short rows. But that's me. YMMV.

The recipe doesn't give much direction on finishing. If you're a new knitter: I finished knitting  on the CO 4 row of the 14th point, then grafted those 14 live stitches to the 14 cast on stitches.

You're killing me, Smalls...

And I actually worked on the Beast this afternoon without ripping anything out. Shhhhh, don't say it loud. She's on row 103. Yes, she really exists, and no I haven't started smoking again. I've though about it, but I haven't done it.

Talk about a love-hate relationship... start, stop, start over, frog, quit smoking, *knit more, feed the frog again. Repeat from * for a few months, and you get it.

What was I thinking???

A most excellent question.

Yes, I'm old fashioned. I confess that I believe little girls should look like little girls. Not like tomboys and certainly not dressed like Miley Cyrus. Neon is for orange traffic cones and side of the road safety striping, not clothing. Black is for mourning, not babies. But I digress.

So when I set out to make Lolly, I had a couple of inspired ideas. Namely, Lolly would be dressed like Buffy from Family Affair, wearing a short dress, black Mary Janes, white anklet socks, and white ruffled rumba panties. (Of course Lolly will have more than one dress! She's a southern girl.) These flashes of brilliance required advance planning in the form of a black worsted yarn purchase and scrounging through my stashed yarn oddments for white yarn.

Needless to say, Lolly now has a body with white panties (ruffles to be crocheted on after the tail is attached), and she has black shoes and white socks. Oy! Mattress stitching the heels of these shoes is going to be one sticky wicket, but so far so good. So why am I questioning my judgment?

The other Sticky Yarn Wicket or, 

Why I need to avoid online yarn stores, or 

Which DK do I need?

My point to ponder over chocolate or wine will be whether or not I will return the beaucoup skeins of 4 colors of clearance DK I bought just because the colors work for the clothes for Lolly and her eventual beau. Extra yarn is never a bad thing... but I'm not sure if this is too much of a good thing.

I found this toy  pattern on Ravelry and it was love at first sight. Then I looked at the recommended yarn; No suggested yarn, but the suggested yarn weight is DK. So I order my 3.2 lb. box o' squishilicious yarn goodness in worsted weight yarn. Enough to make critters and clothes for each. Took me awhile to figure out that DK yarn in the UK is virtually the same as worsted yarn in the US, but hey, I can learn... or so I think.

Then, I buy the pattern, and see 4 ply yarn is needed for the clothing. What is this 4 ply of which you speak? Hmm, it looks smaller than DK... so I promptly look it up. And botch my yarn comparisons. Easy enough to do when DK yarn is one size in the UK, and another in the US. Having only one limping brain cell doesn't help much either.

 4 ply = fingering (or close enough for government math)

Continuing my warped logic:

4 ply is next size smaller than DK

I'm using worsted for Lolly so I need the next smaller size down: US DK!

I have no US weighted DK yarn, and OMG I need 4 colors between 2 animals.  Whatever will I do????

Further continuing the insanity, I'm so pleased with figuring that out that I reward myself with a little yarn shopping. 

Hmmm, Little Knits has the perfect super wash wool DK yarns on clearance! I only need small amounts for the clothes and I don't want to get stuck with teensy bits of a yarn weight that I'll never be able to use because I have no matching DK weight yarn in stash. So I get the brilliant idea to order 4 bags - 1 of each needed color - so that I'll be able to make something out of the leftover yarn oddments. Full bags of the DK are even more heavily discounted by percentage than the individual skeins. Yes, someone at Little Knits saw me coming...

Now, just you wait, this will be the worsted equivalent DK when it gets here... And I'll wind up making Lolly's dress out of some sock yarn I have on hand... No more yarn shopping for you!

What WAS I thinking???

Roll Tide meets Ole Miss

Ms. Lolly Fant is now in the house.  Well her head is. The rest of her is in progress.

I cast on Julie Williams adorable little Girl elephant in a fronds frock. And let me tell you, once you see the sample knit by Ms. Williams on the Ravelry pattern page, you'll agree that this toy is more Southern than sweet tea and mimosas in the Grove. When completed, the wee beastie looks like the Alabama mascot dressed in her sleeveless A-line frock for Sorority Rush week at Ole Miss.

You can tell I'm jonesing for some SEC football... only about 16 more weeks to go.

It's one of those days

Where the only smart thing to do is cut your losses.

This decision came about earlier today when a cake I was baking either mysteriously fell or didn't rise. Functionally it doesn't matter which is the reason behind the flub.  When I pulled the cake pans from the oven, each was shaking it's finger at me and imitating the Soup Guy: "No coconut cake for you!"

Okay Cake Guy, so I'll cut my losses and have a coconut pudding torte instead of cake. Let's just hope my homemade cooked pudding turns out better than the cake did. This remains to be seen...

Failure at anything sends me running back to the one thing I know I can do reasonably well. So I turned my attention back to knitting. The BSJ is gifted out as of noon, so I need another spot of easy knitting. Hmmm, do I start something new or grab an easy mindless WIP?  Do I even have an easy mindless WIP hidden away somewhere?

What's in the closet?

The question caused me to dig out this old WIP of mine, and ask myself if I can finally finish this thing or cut my losses.  There's not much in knitting that's as mindless as feather and fan... I reached the difficult, but necessary, terminus on this WIP I've had since 2011. I love the pattern, I love the colors I chose, but I. HATE. THIS. YARN.

Even though the blanket is halfway completed, I know I'll never finish it because I can't stand touching the yarn. It's so tough to knit with that I can't say in mixed company the words I said the last time I gave the project a go. I've looked for other projects and uses for this yarn, but can't find one redeemable quality about it. That I still have this WIP after 3 years speaks to the hold yarn has on my heart. I can't even bear to throw crappy yarn away.

The yarn is hard, stiff and in work, feels like I'm knitting with mooring line. I'm sure that if I gave it to someone to rip and reuse they'd hate it - and me, for giving it to them - so much that they'd hang me with the yarn as an offering to the Grand Poobah of Knitting Imps. Said offering would then be rejected by said entity as unworthy. It's that bad, or these colorways are that bad, and life is way too short to knit with crappy yarn. 

 I know many of you use this yarn and may love it. If you are one of those knitters, what follows is just my opinion and worth what you paid for it.

I agree with Stephanie Pearl - McPhee that RH Super Saver yarn, along with cockroaches, will survive the apocalypse. I also happen to believe that until the apocalypse occurs, this yarn should also have a use by: date stamped on it. Much like toothpaste in a sink, RH Super Saver hardens over time. 

The blanket and remaining yarn is going into file 13 where I should have put it years ago.  So I cast on  one of the toy patterns I bought last week. Remember, I have Complicated Startitis? 

I feel pretty good that my Knitting Imp is shaking his finger at me and shouting, "No baby blanket for you!"

Notes to Self, or reflections on a finished project

Just had to share while I bask in the glory of a finished project! My baby is drying as we chat. No buttons are sewn on, I just want to see if I like how these buttons look on the sweater.

Note to self: 

Next time Self, wait until your project is complete before buying buttons, and take it with you to make sure you buy what you need. Your button collection is almost as extensive as your yarn stash.

Continuing on to my next reflection: Gauge matters. I heard what you muttered under your breath when you read that one little word!  It's probably the same thing I mutter: $#@!!! gauge again. I wish I'd have taken a gauge photo before blocking but I didn't.

I do solemnly swear on my yarn stash that my unblocked gauge was 6 stitches per inch, which is EZs gauge to fit an infant who wears clothes no larger than 6 months. However, wet blocking WILL expose your real gauge. Take a look:

Yikes! 9.5 stitches over 2 inches... for an average of 4.75 stitches per inch. Over a much larger garment calling for a 6 sts/inch gauge those extra 2.5 stitches/inch would add up to some serious knitting real estate. Conversely, I know that I can use this yarn and needle size (Cascade 220 Sport Superwash on a size 6 needle, for those interested parties) for a 4.5 st/inch garter stitch garment. 

But I digress. My point here is that while bébé lives in the deep south and will not need a sweater until about November, the extra inches on this sweater are a very good thing indeed because he can't wear it now. Were this a sweater  pattern to be knitted at 6 sts/inch for an adult, I'd be in some seriously deep sneakers! Gauge matters.

Note to self:

Self, when you finally commit to making a sweater for anyone who has stopped growing, make and block the damned gauge swatch!

In the meantime, to block the BSJ I used the process in this awesome blog post from the knitting goddess Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. I'm all about passing along useful info.

Will I indulge my complicated startitis now that I have yarn and patterns? Hmmm, could be... What about you?

Must fondle yarn.... must fondle yarn....

I have the BSJ soaking so it can be blocked, and couldn't resist. So much for adult responsibilities...

Christmas in... April???

Is there anything better to find at your front door than this? 3.2 pounds of worsted yarny goodness for 2 elephants, 2 rabbits, plus clothes for each!

Amazingly enough, this luscious box o' goodies sits unopened in my office, awaiting the completion of some adult responsibilities ( yes, I have those too) and the last 6 ridges of garter stitch on the BSJ collar. I'm drooling every time I look at the box. Unfondled yarn is unhappy yarn, y'know? 

Complicated Startitis

The knitting goddess, Stephanie Pearl - McPhee, calls the uncontrollable urge to cast on a new project  despite the oh, 15 or 20, or more, projects already in a state of forgotten deshabille "startitis". And I've had it bad for awhile now. Now that spring has sprung, I have it even worse than before.

Since the end of December I've cast on a lace shawl, an afghan, a wee mousie, a Presto Chango baby sweater, a Knubbelchen doll, and a Baby Surprise Jacket. Only the mouse and Presto Chango sweater are completed as of now, with the BSJ approaching completion.

I have developed complicated startitis, which adds "stashitis" to the preexisting condition.  You can't start what you don't have supplies for in the yarn closets or pattern books. In 24 hours I found patterns for four stuffed toys, 2 pair of socks, and a to die for baby sweater. I passed the sock patterns for consideration to a dear knitting friendamine (see, I do have a modicum of self-control), bought the 4 toy patterns plus yarn to make all, then bought the baby sweater pattern. Even though I have a nice color of washable wool in stash that I can use for the sweater, I'm contemplating buying a tonal yarn for the sweater, but so far I can't find one that speaks to me. What???  

Appearances are deceiving

My knit to quit BSJ looks really nice, and I told Husband over coffee that I should have it completed this morning for his coworker.

I pulled out my pattern to find out where I was starting for the day. Then I looked at my sweater. Unhappily, where I'm starting turns out to be ripping back several inches of beautifully even striped garter stitch. Another offering to the Frog Prince of Knitting, who routinely sucks up yards of my yarn as quickly as Lady and the Tramp suck up their spaghetti.

At first glance, nothing seems wrong, which must be why it got this far. But a closer look shows there's no neck opening for the poor little bèbè to stick his adorable little head through. The cast off neck stitches also add inches to the width of the sweater. Oy! Munchkin sweater indeed... How did I flub this badly and not know it?

Knowing better rarely means doing better

We all know this story. Most of us have done the same thing, more than once. We knit merrily away on a pattern we know well, or think we know well. The knitting is just peachy and then something looks a bit off.  For me it was this: I'm almost to the 158 stitch count, but don't have anywhere near the 90 stitches needed between the stitch markers. To ignore this little something in the middle is to court knitting disaster, so I stop, count the complete number of stitches on my needle, quickly compare against the pattern, find the total is correct, shrug my shoulders then trust that my little something in the middle will resolve itself, much like a Who trusts that Christmas is coming all the same.

What I didn't catch was that I missed the instruction to cast off 5 stitches, keep working even until I hit 158 stitches. I can hear my great-grandmother saying "Aie!Yi!Yi! chère. You know better." as she shakes her head at me. Heaven knows I heard THAT all through my childhood. Heaven knows I say it to myself at least once in every knitting project, shaking head and all.

A bad move, nay, a stunningly bad move on my part. The only explanation I can think of is that I was seriously decaffeinated at the time, yeah that's it. So now I get to frog those lovely, lovely stripes and do them again, remembering to cast off for the neck stitches so that a) baby will have a place to rest it's precious head  and b) the sweater will be large enough to fit a real human child.

Of course, it's a recoverable error, but it's one that forces me to eat crow yet again, because Husband has likely told his co-worker that I'm almost done.

When you eat crow, does it taste like humble pie?  Why, yes it does.

What to do when you can't knit...

Can't think, can't count, can't smoke; what to do? Ahhh, needlepoint, a.k.a. color-by-number with yarn.... soothing, very soothing...

What about you?

Knit to Quit makes my house a Beast Free BSJ Zone

Yes, yes, yes, I know. October and my daughter's wedding are quietly creeping up on me. Danger! Danger! Danger! The shawl is woefully behind schedule.  But, the beast is on hiatus for good reason. (Yes, like hurricanes and ships, the beast is a 'she.') This knitter's brain is more hopelessly stuffed with fluff than Pooh Bear's head. Cutting out the nicotine will do that to a person.

However, the beast has little forgiveness for the dumb and dumber mental fuzzies that come with quitting smoking. She's a jealous little wench who wants all of you. And right now all of me is a few attention spans shy of her mark.

Knit to Quit?

Having learned to knit, I can believe that learning to knit pushes one towards a cigarette, not away from them.  I hear that lots of people take up knitting to quit a bad habit like smoking.  Having joined the tobacco repentant crowd for the fourth time in my adult life, I can see the boon of having something to do with your hands instead of reaching for a smoke. But, in my befuddled tobacco free state of mind, the most complicated thing to which I can attend is garter stitch. Thank heavens for the BSJ I cast on for beast relief!

6 days ago

Here's my BSJ before I quit ( I finally figured out how to get pictures up here!):

Today

My BSJ 6 days into my quitfest (ye gods!):

Cute little origami sweater, right? 100% garter stitch is perfect for the quitfest.  What you can't see to the left of the BSJ is my newest quit smoking aid - a drinking straw. After 6 days at ye olde feedbag, it's time to find another way around my oral fixation than food. Drinking whatever floats your boat through a straw tricks your mouth into thinking its smoking when it's not - a handy way to steer clear of the dietary shoals that most of us face at quitting time. And it keeps potato chip crumbs off of my BSJ...

Have you used knitting to quit a bad habit?

A Beast relief expedition: It's a BSJ day or two

I promise I'll figure out a way to get photos up here. Until then, let's chat shall we?

Back in December I cast on my first big project, Susan Pandorf's In Dreams  shawl for my daughter so that I had plenty of time to complete it for her wedding in October. It has come to lovingly be nicknamed "the Beast," for a few reasons. It is my first expedition into knitted lace (brilliant of me, eh?) and has 9 charts, and 2 are always worked at the same time. I love the beast, but it's a big honkin' thing worked in cobweb silk with a bad attitude.

So to maintain my sanity, I go on beast relief expeditions.  Simple projects in larger yarns with at most one chart.  One is another big project, Totally Autumn by Anne Hanson, a gorgeous lacy, leafy afghan in bulky yarn. But I get the "completion urge"  monkey on my back from time to time, so until the Beast is completed I'll always have a third much smaller project going. Which brings us to the BSJ day or two.

I just love Elizabeth Zimmermann's Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ).  It's an origami baby sweater and a beloved marvel of knitted engineering by the baby knitting brigade.  All garter stitch and only two seams for those of us who'd rather have a root canal than sew up an itty bitty baby sweater. Definitely an attraction for me... the two seams, not the root canal.

The BSJ was my first EZ pattern to knit up. After I saw it for the very first time, it became my very first "I MUST knit this" project for my great nephew. During the knitting, I became convinced it was a trick project she pulled from a topography textbook. You know, that geometry stuff where spheres are really donuts? All I could think as I worked was "How will this turn into a baby sweater?" and "If the knitting gods are kind, they'll turn this sweater-thing into a donut, I can't drink wine and knit at the same time."

But, it turned out to be the smartest pattern decision I ever made. From the shaping, I learned much about just what can really be done with knitting. And the sky and your imagination are the limit to what can be done. From Elizabeth herself - and I paraphrase her here, it may look odd but press on - I learned to TRUST THE PATTERN.

I so fell in love with the BSJ that I made two for my grand nephew, and I just cast on #3 for one of Husband's co-workers who is expecting his 6th child.

What's your favorite go-to pattern for your beast relief expeditions?

Portuguese Knitting

I learned to knit English. And yes, I was grateful to be able to do it, still am. Tortuous, slow, and limiting as it was for me. Knowing that I could do English led me on a search of other ways for me to knit faster and easier. Continental was out (and yes, I tried) because I can't manipulate my right fingers or feed stitches down my right needle. So I kept looking, and am I ever happy that I found Andrea Wong's Knitting Daily TV spot on YouTube. If you're willing to explore new ways of knitting, take a gander at it and give it a go. I think you'll be more than pleasantly surprised.

I sing Andrea's praises to all who will listen.  Visit her at andreawongknits.com for more information. She's a really nice lady. Thank you Andrea!

Lions and Tigers and Knitting Gauge, Oh My!

The gauge swatch, speaking frankly, is the bane of new and not so new knitters everywhere. We knitters chat incessantly over making gauge, not making gauge, whether or not we have to make a swatch. I hear groans from new knitters already - UGH! Do I REALLY have to do that? Can't I just start knitting? 

Well, yes... there are no Knitting Police. But I generally recommend that you start knitting your project with knitting that swatch. Especially if you're new to knitting. Few of us are Elizabeth Zimmermann's, though many of us (myself included) are EZ wannabe's. 

Gauge really does matter

Knowing your knitting gauge (usually quoted in patterns as X sts and Y rows per 4" or X stitches per inch) can answer a multitude of questions that likely never come to mind until you cast on and start working. Until you've worked with a yarn enough to have a feel for how many stitches per inch you'll likely get with a certain size needle as EZ did, a gauge swatch is your playbook for your project. Want to know:

How many stitches should I cast on?
How wide will my project will be? 
How many rows need to be knitted? 
Can I skip that repeat? 
Can I use a variegated yarn to make this?
Will the sweater fit?
How much yarn should I buy? 
Do I even like working this pattern stitch? 

Your gauge swatch gives you these answers. And for a new knitter, the swatch gives you more time on task, and therefore more experience knitting. More time on task and the above list are the pro's of the gauge swatch. The biggest con is that a gauge swatch isn't really usable for anything other than that project, and who wants a bunch of little 4" squares all over the place? Even if you can make a blanket out of them, how many blankets do you really need anyway? The other con is that for slower knitters, knitting gauge swatches to try and make gauge takes time away from your project.

I've picked up a couple of helpful hints over the years to get around the cons that I'll share.

Cotton is King!

To answer the "do I even like working this pattern stitch?"and "how will a variegated look?" questions:

Work your swatch in cotton yarn and make a dishcloth out of it. A ball of cotton worsted is much less expensive to try out a new stitch pattern. If you like how that comes out, the sweater you planned using the stitch pattern will be an enjoyable knit even in a different weight yarn. And you have a nice twofer freebie in the dishcloth.

I will add one caveat here. The colors in variegated yarns pool, sometimes in odd ways. Unless you're using the same cotton yarn for your project and swatch, do your swatch in the yarn for the project. You can always rip it out and reuse it, especially if the yarn is expensive.

Garment pieces can be a gauge swatch

If you're committed to the 'I just HAVE to make this!' sweater, use your sleeves as your gauge swatch. (Thanks, EZ! You were a smart, smart lady...) No little 4" squares cluttering up your place. This works especially well for baby garments, which are small. For larger garments, it can be fairly easy to quickly see if you're even approximating the stitch count per inch you need. In that case, its much less to rip back and start again.

Should I or Shouldn't I swatch?

My general rule of thumb is that there is a difference between having to make gauge and having to know my gauge for a project.

Making Gauge

To knit fitted garments such as socks, sweaters, gloves, mittens, for example from a pattern and have it fit correctly, I have to match the designer's gauge, or "make gauge." If I have to make gauge I always swatch. If I can't make gauge, and still want to do the project, I'll have to break out the calculator and adjust the pattern.  That's an UGH! for another day.

Knowing Gauge

Most other items, such as dishcloths, scarves, hats, afghans, and toys for example, have more leeway. They don't have to be a particular size to be used and loved. For these projects, I measure my gauge in the project pieces themselves, if I even bother.  Sometimes it really doesn't matter. Knowing my gauge is useful if I want to change the dimensions of a project such as making a blanket longer/shorter,  narrowing a scarf, or adding more ribbing to the cuff of a sock. And that can give me enough idea of whether or not I need to buy more yarn, and if so how much.

'Nuff said on gauge. I have some knitting to do today. You probably do too. As EZ said, "Knit on, with confidence and hope, through all crises." Words to live by.