I believe in...

Driving around town today, I started to make a mental list of things that I feel quite strongly about. This was prompted by the guy driving in front of me who flicked his cigarette butt out his window. I always have to suppress an urge to honk my horn in disgust and berate such poor feebleminded folk. Hellooooo, ashtray not just for coins, stoopid. Even former chain smokers like myself know that...

My list:

I believe in corporal punishment for litterbugs. And public flogging for aforementioned litterbutts. Bring back the pillory and stocks!

I believe that most songs are better sung in languages other than English. Case in point: 99 Luftballons. Exception: anything by Bruce Springsteen.

I believe that dogs are not necessarily smarter than us - just more spiritually advanced. Exception: that dumb dog on the first floor of my apartment buliding that barks at everything that moves.

I believe that certain words/phrases are sorely underused: please, thank you, and foosball being top on my list.

I believe that there is just too much crap in this world. And by crap I mean mass produced mountains of stuff. Maybe you feel the same way. And maybe you've heard of The Story of Stuff. We live in a disposable society. And while I appreciate affordable and not so-affordable things just as much as the next person, there's something to be said for a few well-crafted made-by-hand items. I believe that we would all be much more loathe to throw our stuff away if we made it ourselves. Or if someone made it for us. Anyway, I'm going to jump on the Buy Handmade bandwagon. For one year I'm going to either make or buy only handmade items to give as gifts. Knitted items for everyone!

Hope no one minds that their birthday gifts will be at least one month late.

Lovely Leaf Lace Skirt

Pattern: Lovely Leaf Lace Skirt by Celeste at Lanaknits available at hemp for knitting's website
Date finished: July 10, 2008
Needles: US 3 to get the recommended gauge of 6 sts/inch in stockinette
Yarn: Hemp for Knitting AllHemp 6 in color 21
I used approximately 4.5 skeins (760 yards?)

The only modification I made was in length - I wanted more of a pencil skirt silhouette, i.e., I wanted it to hit just below the knee. Since it is knit in the round from the bottom up, I just slipped it on after I was done with the waist decreases and kept knitting until I hit it right.

The Yarn - this was my first time knitting with hemp. Yes, it is stiff stuff but man, is it worth it. The end result is amazing. After I blocked it, it softened right up. And the drape of the resulting material is perfect for a skirt. Enough give to be comfortable but not so much that it droops around the derriere. Hemp for Knitting does a nice job with this yarn - I did not come across a single knot in all 5 skeins. My only complaint was the dye was slightly uneven in one skein despite all the skeins being from the same dye lot. This resulted in a small horizontal line near the lace part of the skirt. I only noticed it after I'd finished the lace hem and it was not enough to make me want to rip back. You can see it faintly in this picture. Despite this little glitch, this yarn made me very happy and I would gladly knit with it again.

The Pattern - kudos to Celeste. This is a gorgeous pattern. The lace hem is fun to do and I really like the end result. The pattern is written so that the lace continues up along the sides of the skirt. Which looks great but I always find that my skirts don’t behave and by the end of the day the front of the skirt is covering my bottom. So I debated about just doing a straight hem but in the end decided to just follow the pattern. After wearing it a few times, I'm glad I did. Since the i-cord drawstring sits up front, there is very little sliding around on the hips.

Pre blocking: puckered mess







Post blocking: nice, well-behaved knitted lacy thing. By the way, this skirt is only see-through when the wearer leans over to photograph the hem while standing in front of a sunny window. Fear not, intrepid knitter for this skirt is quite respectable when worn in the usual manner and does not require a fussy slip to protect anyone's modesty.

Aesthetics aside, this is also an incredibly well-written and comprehensive pattern. Celeste actually tells you what bind off to use and explains how to make an i-cord. Unlike some other pattern writers (ahem, Debbie Bliss) there was not a single head-scratching puzzling moment on the user end. Something this particular user really appreciates. Well-written pattern for lovely garment makes for happy knitter.

As Celeste mentions in the pattern, this garment stretches when wet. I ended up making the small (even though I'm more of a medium these days) and just blocked it to what I needed. Like denim, the skirt tightens up after a trip through the washer and dryer and eases a bit with wear. The small fits me fine - for now anyway.

And the Yarn Widower seems to like it. Va-va voom, he said when he saw me wear it for the first time. Or maybe those weren't his exact words but something along those lines. ;)

Photodocumentation of Knitted Gifty Thingy

Like most knitters, I want my knitted garments to be cherished and adored. And if not that, then at least it should be worn. Once.

So along with my knitted gift, I often ask for photodocumentation of recipient modeling hand-crafted gift. Especially from those who live far away and I can't personally stalk them and pounce all paparazzi-like on them. Miss Aniston, you look stunning! Who are you wearing?

So the other day, I got a lovely email with some surprise photos. Here is my sweet friend Ella and her feisty daughter Ida. And what's that I see? A scarf knitted by little ole me? Aww, how nice.

OMG! Annie Modesitt!

I met Annie Modesitt yesterday. Not only did I meet her but she complimented my knitting! I'm usually a very modest person and don't go about tooting any horns but for this, I must make an exception.

Annie Modesitt said my stitches were beautiful!!!!

I just about fell apart with gratitude and adoration. Thankfully I was able to hold it together and pay attention for the rest of the classes that she taught at Stitch DC yesterday - Combination Knitting and a tutorial for her Cocoon Twisted Float Shrug that was on the cover of Vogue a few years ago. The Combination Knitting class was a revelation for me - I've always been vaguely annoyed by my purl stitches and now I know why. Most people's purl stitches are looser than the knits. That's because most of us Westerners use just a tiny bit more yarn in our purl stitches. Combination Knitting refers to the melding of Eastern and Western knitting traditions so that the same amount of yarn is used for both the knits and purls. East meets West. How beautiful is that?

The second class was great for imparting some tips and techniques on a very unusual stitch pattern. I don't know how Ms. Modesitt does it, but she may be a genius. The shrug is something that I probably would have never tried on my own. But having been talked through most of it by the designer herself, it feels much less daunting now.

Annie is a fantastic teacher - she is one of those rare people who can translate relatively complex ideas into elegantly simple terms. Her instruction was always clear and she took the time to make sure that we understood - a challenge in a room of almost twenty people. She came around to each of us and inspected our swatches not once but multiple times. She joked around, told stories and imparted a great amount of knitting wisdom in a relatively short period of time. By the end of the day, I was mentally pooped.

One more thing about Annie - she does not suffer fools lightly. Her voice was hoarse and at the very beginning of the class she asked that there be no talking except her own. And she had the balls to enforce it. This is something I appreciated greatly. Especially with the noisome woman at my table who felt her witticisms were too precious to be kept to herself alone. Annie can tell a good joke but she's dead serious about keeping to her lesson plan and woe be to the foolish knitter who dares interrupt.

Overall, it was a great experience for me. And not just because Annie Modesitt complimented my knitting. It was fun to learn new things and to come together with a group of fellow fiber enthusiasts and spend the day knitting. It was great to learn at the feet of a true master - someone who not only knows her shit but also how to impart her know-how with grace and humor. This morning, I registered for classes at Stitches East in Baltimore - bring on the knitting gurus for they are worth their weight in cashmere!

By the way, did I tell you what Annie Modesitt said about my knitting?

LYS Rave! Loop in Philadelphia

I went to a yarn shop today and it was like I'd died and woke up in heaven - if heaven was a yarn store (and I'd actually behaved in this lifetime to warrant something better than purgatory).
But I digress...

Loop
www.loopyarn.com
1914 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19146

215 893 9939 | 877 893 9939

This impeccably neat, organized and visually stunning shop was manned by the owner Craig Rosenfeld. And even though a caravan of yarnies flooded the store shortly after I arrived, he still managed to check on me and make some helpful suggestions.

First off, they have a wall of Koigu - well, more like two columns of shelves but still, a really nice selection. Plenty of my favorite smaller yarn companies: Neighborhood Fiber, Be Sweet, Aslan Trends. And some bigger names: Sublime, Debbie Bliss, Big Sky Alpaca. Great color selection in almost every yarn and all beautifully displayed - Craig obviously has a designer's eye for color as every yarn complements its neighbors in aesthetically pleasing combinations. In fact, the whole store is aesthetically pleasing. It's roomy but very well stocked. Lots of notions, needles, patterns and books. And sale yarns are scattered throughout the store - I got some Hemp for Knitting fingering weight for a generous 40% off.

But what I think I really appreciated about Loop was its abundance of weather-appropriate fibers: lots of cottons and cotton blends. Seeing as it's a muggy 90 degrees outside, I don't really want to work with wool right now. Maybe other knitters don't necessarily feel this way but now is the time of year that I really appreciate cotton, linen, bamboo and hemp. Warm and fuzzy in a few months maybe but right now I want only cool, slick and breathable.

Thus, my other yarn purchase was Montoya Beach - an incredibly lustrous and uncharacteristically soft laceweight linen from Punta del Este yarns. Maybe perfect for the Hanami stole? Must. Not. Cast On. Yet. Have too many WIPs right now.

Overall, Loop is a definite must-visit as far as fiber stores in Philly are concerned. And as an added bonus, there's a lovely fabric store right next door - Spool. I got a really great Amy Butler pattern and was sorely tempted by lots of other stuff.

I know, I know. You're thinking, where are the pictures? Sadly, I forgot my camera at home - I've been misplacing it a lot lately and frankly I think it's a subconscious ploy to accidentally lose it so I can get another one. Like a Canon Rebel SLR (you reading this, Yarn Widower?) But had I had the clunky thing, I would have been too shy to start snapping away anyway. It's too LYS stalkerish. And I don't want to freak anyone out. And I really am kinda shy - in a bloggerish I'll share my soul with anyone on the internets kind of way.

Go visit the store. You'll like it. Tell'em the Yarn Widower sent ya.

Whipsawed by the WIPs

Lack of finished objects. That's my latest excuse for lack of posting.

I have 8 UFO's on my ravelry project page. (UFO's are Unfinished Effing Objects for you non-knitterly types). Ravelry denotes them more politely as WIPs (Works in Progress).

I am whipsawed by my WIPs.

According to the Free Dictionary, one interpretation of "whipsaw" is " To cause to move or alternate rapidly in contrasting directions." Frankly, I find this describes my current condition quite adequately as I float from one project to another. But it's getting a little ridiculous. I mean, I need a website to keep track of them all. Sheesh.

Actually I did finish something recently - a dress for my niece's first birthday. But I'm waiting for her to model the garment for me before I actually post about it. Gotta get some good pictures first. Just as a teaser, it got back to me that the Yarn Widower actually complimented my knitting. He was describing the dress and said, "Yeah, you should see it. It's pretty awesome."

Now don't that beat all.

Plain Grey Socks - not boring

The men in my life like simple, dark knits. Nothing fancy, they warn me. No stripes, no cables, no crazy stuff. Just plain. Some would say boring. But hey, as long as the sock gets worn, I say!

Despite the obvious lack of crazy, these socks took some time. I finished them just last week about 2 months after my brother's birthday. However, the recipient was quite gracious about the whole thing. Although he very kindly reminded me that as it is now May, wool socks are not really appropriate. "And what's the deal with buying socks for me anyway?" Zoinks!

So I, in turn, very graciously told him that they are actually a nice cotton/wool blend and I didn't buy them, I made them. At this, his eyes lit up and he slipped them on his bare feet and proclaimed that they were so comfortable! Needless to say, I was bursting with joy. Nothing like an appreciative audience for my knitting efforts. Makes my little knitterly heart all pitter patter.

Later in the day, we decided to venture outdoors. My brother still had his socks on and was reluctant to take them off. Here he is imitating a German tourist.