Lace Class - Block & Starch

I attended my 4th lace class last night. We are graduating from swatches to doilies. Calling it a doily doesn't change the fact that I'm still knitting a swatch. A swatch with a purpose, but still a swatch.

We did actually do something last night with the lesson samples we've been knitting other than file them away for future reference. I blocked and starched my first piece of lace.

I need some practice with the blocking.



But I'm really good at the starch.

The Look

Blogger is being stupid! Either that or it has developed allergies to uploading photos.

I wanted to show the progress I have made on the Aran Tweed. One because Marji asked so nicely, and two because that is why you are here. I am not so silly as to think that you are attracted to my great use of punctuation. Here is where I hope that the mom half of my mother is reading and not the english teacher half.

I was able to knit most of the way to and from Bristol because Hubby drove the whole time. I had to stop every so often because I was cabling without a needle and my left hand would start to cramp. Lest you think that the weekend was uneventful, there is more to the story. See, my husband loves my knitting. . . in private. Public knitting is - gasp - embarrassing.

When attending a Nascar event, most of the day is spent waiting for the cars to start going round and the rest is spent watching the cars go round. As I packed the knitting to go to the track with me, I got the look. You know, the look that says no - way - you - are - taking - your - yarn - in - public - because - then - I - have - to - dig - a - hole - and - lay - down - to - die - an - embarrassing - death look from my husband. I responded in kind. I gave him the no - way - you - are - denying - me - several - valuable - hours - of - useful - knitting - time - because - you - don't - want - to - be - seen - next - to - a - ball - of - wool look. I almost never win in these staring matches. I think this time it occurred to him that I would be more cranky than it was worth if my hands were left idle that long. So I won and I got to knit in public. Given the incredibly cold day, there was one person who asked if I could knit faster and could I make mittens instead of my sweater.

If blogger was working here would be my Aran Sweater - still cabled, tweedy, and red. It would measure about 15 inches long. It would be closer to 20 inches if I hadn't had to rip back one cable twist to fix a backwards cable.


There would also be pictures of my Ogee Lace swatch along with week 3's homework - grapevine lace.


Maybe tomorrow if Blogger wants to play nice.

No Place Like Home

I'm home! Friday, we drove to Cincinnati, OH and then to Bristol, TN on Saturday. Hubby and I didn't realize how long a drive it was until yesterday. We drove the whole route home in one day - over 12 hours in the car. Today, I can't sit still for more than a few minutes. Hmmm, I wonder why?

Arriving home, I was greeted with two packages. The first was from Donni. It was the lace weight yarn she had dyed. She might not love it, but I do! (Isn't that the cool part of swapping?) She also sent along two lovely stitch markers sized for smaller needles. Perfect for when I my lace class moves from swatches to projects. Thank you so much Donni!
I was so tired last night that I was confused with the second package. I thought to myself that I didn't know any Lisa and why would a Lisa be sending me mail? Hubby leaned over my shoulder, glanced at the address and laughed. He said my SP was from Georgia and perhaps it was my reveal package. I must have been really out of it that my husband was more clued in to the knitting blog world than I at that moment. :)
My Secret Pal is indeed Lisa. Boy, oh boy, does she know how to spoil a person. Inside my reveal package was four luscious skeins of Inca Print. It is approx 50 grams each of 100% Alpaca in a lovely purple, red, and brown. I have been carrying the yarn around all day today. I can't let it go - it is that soft!! She also included my favorite needles - Lantern Moon in size US9. Many many thanks to you Lisa! You have been a great secret pal!


Now, if you'll excuse me I have to unpack from my trip and play with my new yarn!

Knitting Withdrawal

In the headlines today, a woman was found wandering aimlessly in the metro area. When approached she was heard mumbling, "Need yarn, need to knit, 5 stitches to the inch, need yarn....." She was carrying a single US6 straight knitting needle and a severely knotted skein of Koigu KPPPM. Emergency personnel responding to the scene, determined that the woman was suffering from knitter's withdrawal. Immediate treatment of yarn petting was administered.

Medical experts have issued a statement confirming that the woman has been deprived of knitting time for more than 5 days. Investigators, speaking with her husband, discovered that she has been spending several extra hours a day work. Apparently the couple was preparing for a long weekend away when she suddenly snapped.

Doctors have prescribed two vacation days from work. They have also recommended that her husband be the sole driver of the 12 hour drive to Bristol, TN and back. This treatment will allow the woman to knit to her heart's content. Doctors believe she will resume normal behavior after a few days.

Adding A Little Color

Everyone had their task. Sis-in-Law was in charge of documenting the mess fun. I ran the microwave and the steam pot on the stove. Niece had the hardest job of all - deciding color combos for the stripes, solid, or variegated effects she wanted.



It's a good thing my husband brought all this corning ware into our marriage. It came in handy for the soaking and the dyeing. Especially this particular dish with a separator for striped yarn.

Her hands were soooo red! I kept thinking her mom would never let her visit again.


Mixing up a new batch for more stripey colored yarn.


She wanted to try variegated dyeing. It was almost like dyeing Easter eggs, if one used a turkey baster to dye eggs.


Hanging the skeins to dry. My very own yarn chandelier. I'm sure by this time next year, it will be all the rage.


The final product - Orange/Ice Blue Raspberry Lemonade, Grape Illusion (I know it's more red-orange than purple, but that must be the illusion part), Lemonade/Soarin Strawberry Lemonade, Variegated Lemonade/Orange/Strawberry/Grape/Blue Raspberry/Lemon-Lime, and Grape/Lemon-Lime.

We didn't use the Arctic Green Apple to dye with but it made for good thirst quenching. I think it would have made a pale bright green and I still have a few packs left for future adventures.

I haven't had this much fun making a mess! We didn't really follow the rules since we weren't aiming for a specific color. It was more about the process. However, we should have listened to the part about wearing gloves. My nails are a nice grape color with a hint of strawberry.

Niece said she plans on using these skeins to knit scarves for her friends and herself. Her grandmother taught her to knit a few months ago and she has become quite the knit-addict. So I'm off to wind them into cakes for her to use.

Oh, yeaaaaah!

Guess what my husband's niece and I have been up to! : )

Clockwise from top left: Grape, Lemonade, Arctic Green Apple, Grape Illusion, Strawberry, Soarin' Strawberry Lemonade, Orange, Ice Blue Raspberry, Lemon-Lime

Time Flies

Has it been since Tuesday that I last posted? I finally had Blogger's cooperation to upload the photos in the last post. For those of you still pretending, you can compare your imagination to the real thing.

I have been swamped at work. Some weeks designing plastic car parts can be a real drain on the knitting time. As a result, this is how far along the hat has come. I would be much further along, if I could have convinced my boss that knitting during meetings is directly proportional to my ability to stay awake retain information.

Game of Pretend

I believe I promised knitting news. Of course, I promised it for Sunday. In my defense . . . all right, I confess - I don't have an excuse. I hope you'll forgive me and play along. Whatever you do, please don't call my mom and tell her I don't know my days of the week.

As promised, here are Sunday's Tuesday's knitting updates.

- Silkroad Aran -
Since you've graciously agreed to pretend that Sunday and Tuesday are the same day, I hope you'll go a little farther and pretend that there is picture here. There will be as soon as Blogger agrees to cooperate and accept the uploaded picture. Until then - the knitting is red, tweedy, cabled, and three times longer than the link below. You know, to help with the pretending.


The last post about Silkroad was over a month ago. It didn't get much attention for most of February. However, all of Saturday's knitting was primarily dedicated to this sweater. It's a fun knit, but requires concentration on the wrong side rows. More than once, my seed stitch turned to ribbing.

- Lace Homework -
Love / Hate with the Ogee lace. I've become a real pro at making yarn overs where I missed adding one. Also, I have learned to move yarn overs when I've misplaced them in the row. This is usually caused by my attempts to simultaneously knit lace and watch TV. Unlike some of the other patterns I've had to do for the class, I have not been able to memorize the chart. Thus, it also requires a great deal of concentration.

- Hat With Earflaps -
Since, the Silkroad and the lace have a lot of paying-attention-requirements, I'm about to cast on for a hat. Not just any hat, but a hat with earflaps. Apparently, the two other hats I've knitted for my husband are no longer warm enough, because they don't have earflaps. I did point out that a hat with or without earflaps would not be required if he chose to fish when the weather was above 0 degree F. In typical style, he became selectively deaf to that piece of information. In the end, I caved. After all how can I turn down an excuse to cast on.

Please imagine that there is a picture of brick red Mission Falls 1824 Wool skeins. There are three of them along with a small swatch of 5 stitches to the inch knit with US size 6 needles.


- Cleo, the Camera Hog
This would be the picture of Cleo demanding my attention while I was photographing the aforementioned Mission Falls. She is a pear shaped, short-haired, calico with a sweet disposition - usually. If you need help with the pretending, Cleo can also be seen here.

The Color's In The Mail

I saw Donni's "ad" for Lynne's Project Colorswap. I love giving and getting. Plus, the creative challenge of a color themed package seems like a lot of fun. Of course, I signed on. She's limiting it to 40 people. So, if you are interested, let her know in the comments.

Time Markers

I know I said I was going to use the weekend to knit but I got distracted by yard work. I strive for low maintenance landscaping. However, with spring on its way the beds around my house demand my attention. It has been a pleasant morning and I thought that now was as good as any.

I've trimmed the decorative grasses back to the recommended 4 inch height and tackled my clematises (or is clematisii?). I planted my first clematis, a jackmanii shortly after I purchased the house. The first summer it never poked it's head above ground and I thought it a lost cause. The second summer it made it to a height of 6 inches before some rabbit, deer, or other creature made a light snack of it. However, the third year was it's year to shine. One lone vine grew a whopping 7 feet with a multitude of blooms. By the fourth year several vines were growing strong. Every spring since, I have the task of selecting which vines to cut back to ground and which to leave.

I love the hour or so I spend every spring tending to my vines. It allows me an opportunity to reflect on the moments that have occurred in my life since it's planting. It is also creates an overwhelming sense of pride. I am unable to keep a plant of any sort alive for longer than a year or so. Even a cactus should fear me. This vine though is going to see it's eighth summer.

Two years ago, using the confidence that my success with the jackmanii provided, I chose to plant another clematis. It is a Nelly Moser. That planting marks the year my husband and I got married. Just like us in our first year, it struggled to adapt. And just like us, it survived and began to flourish. This year I pruned two vines and I see the beginning of a third that will grow as well.

Without realizing it, I have used these flowering vines to mark the time that passes. Just like stitch markers that identify beginnings and endings of pattern repeats or rounds of knitting, my clematises (or clematisii) mark the distinct changes in my life's journey.

Dash of This, Pinch of That

This has been a crazy week at work. Which means I have accomplished almost no knitting. I did however manage at least one home cooked meal using the guess and taste method.

Veal Scallopini with Lemon Caper Sauce

1/2 lb veal scallopini
1 egg
Enough breadcrumbs to coat veal mixed with a palmful of lemon pepper spice
Coat veal with egg and then breadcrumb-spice mix.
Enough olive oil to keep veal from sticking to frying pan on medium-high heat.
Brown veal 2-3 minutes on both sides and remove from pan.
About 1 cup of chicken broth to deglaze pan. (I know this because that was how much was in the can)
Enough dry white wine to add some sweetness
Juice from 1/2 a lemon give or take
Enough capers to add the right amount of salt to offset the lemon.
Enough water and corn starch to thicken the whole thing up.

Serve sauce over veal.

I'm sure somewhere there is a recipe that would have clued me in to all the amounts required, but seriously, where is the fun in that? Besides, we have pizza delivery on speed dial incase my concoctions are less than edible. I also firmly rely on the belief that any slapped together at the last minute recipe involving wine in the sauce cannot taste bad.

I have a schedule free weekend and I plan to put it to good knitting use. Maybe with a good book and a bottle of wine added for good measure. Soon I hope to have something knitworthy to say.

Until then have a good weekend and eat well.

Lace Is For the Birds

I have fallen in love with this after seeing it here.

The end goal of my four month lace class is to design and knit my own lace shawl, scarf, table linen, or whatever-my-heart-desires. Our instructor is very good in not limiting our creativity or enthusiasm. As a class we have lots of that in abundance, though our ability is still in infancy.

As part of the homework for our second class, we had to pick a sampler pattern to chart and knit that we would consider using for our project. My instructor indicated I should choose a feather like pattern given my current love affair. I choose Ogee from Treasury of Knitting Patterns. Even then she didn't discourage me.

I was so excited when I managed to chart the ten rows on page 233 without incident. I started to cast on and she calmly showed me page 234. Eighteen more rows to go.

I know she was laughing on the inside.

The Light Is On And Somebody's Home

I had an Aha! moment today. You know, that moment when the light goes on above your head, an audible click is heard, and your vision clears up.

I was closing the toe of the second BYOB sock. I was also cursing praising the genius who invented the Kitchner stitch. While begging the yarn gods, the sock gods, the knitting gods and whatever other gods I could think of for help, my pleas were answered - by accident. (Or perhaps not, those yarn gods are a sneaky bunch!) I mistakenly let a stitch drop before I meant to but the result was perfection.

I had closed the first sock with some struggle. I think it worked out more by chance than by understanding, but closing the mate brought enlightenment. I feel all smart inside. I love those moments when the difficult becomes incredibly easy.

Now if only I could figure out how to photograph my own toes without needing yoga poses.

Deception

Monday came and went with no mail. No bills, no adds, no unsolicited credit card applications. So I thought.

Apparently my father sent a package that was too large for our mailbox. Since the mailman is friends with my husband, he tends to go out of his way for us. Instead of a note telling us to pick up our mail at the post office, like he would for most on his route, he just wedged it between our storm door and the front door of our house. That would have been a wonderful gesture, except that door is rarely used this time of year. Dad called last night asking if we got his package, which sent us looking for Monday's mail.

Not only did we find Dad's missing mail, but an offer from American Express, coupons for Pizza Hut, and a cute hand made card from my Secret Pal.

Sorry for the scare, SP! I love the details and the spring-like accents. This time of year is so dreary. The snow is going, if not gone. The ground is brown and bare. No leaves or flowers to brighten the landscape. Your card was a wonderful surprise!

Continuing along with the theme of deceptive activity, see this scrap of lace. It took me three hours to knit 240 stitches for my homework. Three. Hours.

At my first class I was told that lace is nothing more than a combination of knits, purls, yarn overs, and decreases. Sounds simple, right? Someone should put a warning label on lace patterns. "Objects may be more difficult than they appear". I'd forget a yarn over and have to tink back a row or two. I'd lose my place on the chart and skip a row or knit a row twice. Tink some more.

I'm off for my second class. I really need it. I am definitely not ready for something as large as a dishcloth a shawl.

New Beginnings

Thank you so much for the positive feedback on my new header. I'll put together a how-to later this week when my work slows down a bit (crossing my fingers and hoping I didn't just jinx myself).

My job is starting what we call the "launch phase". What this means is that I'm traveling more, getting less done, and my to do list both professional and personal is growing. Yet today is one of my favorite days of the year. In spite of all the busy and bustle around me, it is a day of reflection. It is Ash Wednesday. Around the world there are people taking a moment to ponder the meaningful things in their life. Some do it because the leader of their faith says they should, some do so for profoundly personal reasons unrelated to any religious belief.

I suppose I could make resolutions at New Years like most folks, but I don't. I wait for this time of year. Signals of spring's arrival have begun to appear. Outside it is still cold, but there is more green & brown, than white & grey. For me, the changes occurring now with Mother Nature are more inspirational for making new beginnings than the cold, bleak, middle of winter weather of January.

So I resolve to plan more. Wishing, hoping, wanting without action causes only stress and disappointment. I will plan for my wishes and when I don't, I will acknowledge that perhaps it's not such an important want.

I resolve to choose important over urgent. This will be a tough one for me. My job is all about hurry up and wait. I live in an area that is materially better off than many in the world. In general there is fostered an atmosphere and attitude of keeping up with the Joneses. I have to remind myself that today's impulse will be forgotten next week. There is a bigger picture, a more important picture in the long run.

I resolve to relax. It is just a (insert object/activity of the moment). Any frustration that I am experiencing with said item is okay. It is okay to walk away and try again tomorrow. It is okay if it isn't right the first time. If I'm honest, and that is a big part of today, this is applicable to the people I interact with as well.

I resolve to forgive. As I have gotten older, I find that my tolerance has gotten shorter. I always thought that behavior belonged to my parents, but never me. :) Ideals are great and important to have, but not if they replace reality. Ideals should act as guides not rules for the person I am. Sometimes the effort truly is more important than the results.

For many, the next forty days are about sacrifice and discipline. For myself, it is about starting over, trying again, and ending better than I began.