Knotty Knickers

Shiny Silver Yarn

I am in a cranky mood.  No one reason.  We could blaim PMS, and I think that is certainly part of it, but that alone is not the cause.

Whatever the cause is, today we DID STUFF to get it done.  One of my things was to make earrings with the charms I found at work.  Charms in a yarn shop didn't seem a sensible thing.  Yarn charm earrings in a yarn shop totally does. 

It was nice that for a half hour I could listen to the newest iMake podcast and focus on making something.  Something simple and repetitive.  Something that was taking up a bit of space in my world, if only the smallest bit of space, getting completed and moved out of the house is great. 

Now I'm going to sit back down with some Sunshine Classic Sock yarn and the smallest size I've worked out for a hat design - after an inch more of pattern I should be ready to attempt the decreases which stumped me last time.  And if the increases do indeed work, I think I'll be a brave thing and offer it up for testing, eek!

Sometimes knitting doesn't offer such a clear example of lining things up, but with the earrings spurring me on, I think I can navigate the more fluid current of sticks and strings with a better attitude than I've had.

FO Friday: Gloves for Mongolia Once Again

These are not lovely looking. 

However, they should fit; heaven knows I tried them on her enough times.

And they will be very warm in a place that requires it. 

Finished just in the nick of time - we have a family dinner tonight and Alex's parents leave tomorrow afternoon for Mongolia for seven months.  I spent last night weaving in ends with Alex's help - it was easiest to weave the ends into the fabric with the gloves on my hands but the small task of threading the darning needle was near on impossible with them on so every so often Alex got a glove shoved into his face. 

Pattern: my own invention

Yarn: Naturally Karamea, something you should snap up if you see it as it is one more to add to the 'nice yarn, too bad they discontinued it' list. 

Swap Things on a Saturday

I've been feeling pretty crap in the head this past week.  Nearly everyday I've had the edges of a migraine.  Last night I went to sleep with it, as per usual, and awoke to a much more intensified experience.  Sumatriptan, coedine, and my antinausea pills + some avogolemono soup = a bearable person responding to the name 'Jesse'.  

But then Alex came up to me holding a box.  And my heart and hands lept up - SWAP PACKAGE!

I let it sit while finishing my soup and then slowly opened it up.

A swap package from my own corner of the USA, no less!  Here's the proof:

Do you know, I am pondering the best way to attempt getting Rainier cherries to NZ?  Oh yes.  I miss them!  Plus - Market Spice tea!  hehehehehe  Such a small thing to make me miss Seattle and the Pike Place Market.  

Would you like to squeal with me at the yarn goodness?  Okay...

Cupcake wrappers with sock yarn for my blanket?  AMAZING!

Beautious Woolen Horse Yarns?  FANTASTIC!

Those, plus a faeire tale book to read, pretty page flags (what book will be worthy of these?), stunning green face cloth I'm eager to spa with, a delicate wee knit rose, and the most lovely bag of floral prints that will surely cheer the winter to come... 

Totally spoiled.  Thankfully spoiled.  Confoundedly spoiled.  

You have a heap of my love, Becky, and I'm so looking forward to getting together in the autumn for some book and yarn rummaging around Puget Sound!

FO Friday: Cornwall Park Shrug & Rosabell

Last weekend I cast off and blocked (ever so gently) the shrug I knit for my niece.  I hope she likes it.   And that someone sends me a photo of her in it that's better than this bollucky image:



Seriously, it looked fine when I took the shot.

At any rate, it was posted off and away last Monday, or Tuesday...?  Waiting for it to land any day now.

Pattern: Cornwall Park Shrug

Yarn: Malabrigo Rios in Purple Mystery (as close to the requested 'Crayola purple' as I could manage, and pretty good if you ask me or Alex, who had to weigh in, naturally.

And that there above - ROSABELL IS OFF THE NEEDLES!

I cast off at knitting last night, making me the final person to get up from the dining room table at Wendy's sometime after 10pm.  I hope that the edging blocks nicely.  I rather liked the looks of the ones that had the lace squared instead of fanning, so I have a lot of t-pins in as well as blocking wires.  It looks rubbish laid on the floor, I'm consistently not good at that.  But when I tried it on after the last blocking it fit fine, and I expect it to suffer this go even better.  I mean, it's 100% now! 

Started on my birthday, October 6th, and finished March 14th - making it one of the quickest cardigan knits I've ever done.  Go me!

You'll have to just deal with the detail images for now, next week I'll try and get a photo or two of it on.  Hehehehehehe, I'm squuuuuuueally happy about it.

Pattern: Rosabell by Cecily Glowick MacDonald  (Ravelry links both.)

Yarn: Vintage Purls Sock in 'Perrault' for the body and 'Love at First Sight' for the edging. 

I feel so accomplished having two completed knits for this week's Finished Object Friday!

WIP Wednesday: A Day Late (Least in NZ)

This is my current pile of works in progress.  There are others, in a basket, or hiding in a bag, but these are the four things I've picked up and stitches have been added to this week.

The Seagrass cardi from Cecily Glowik McDonald has steadily progressed down from the top, sleeves have been separated, and the second of four balls is nearing it's end.  Another inch and I'll drop a needle size for some ribbing and then move into the lower lace section.  I think I'm knitting fast on this one to outdistance my fear of not enough yarn.

Rosabel got blocked!  I was petrified that it had grown and would be too big (I think my Goodale's a bit larger than preferable) but after a day drying I slipped it on and all was well.  (For those of you counting, that's three Cecily Glowik McDonald patterns I've mentioned in two paragraphs.  I like her designs.)

The lace band around the fronts and neck was picked up as a 'treat' to myself for doing my two daily rows on the next WIP.  It wasn't really a treat as there was math and redoing of picking up an entire front section and then more math.  But I got to a number that the repeat works within and since it's easy as lace I should be able to kick it out once I can devote attention to it.

Lenore carries on, evermore.  I am unwilling to count the number of stitches I'm working on at this point.  Also a bit worried that I've mucked up - pattern says to knit even, so I am, but I worry, occasionally, that I was supposed to keep on with the right side increases.  Still thinking about how to make the sleeves less bell like and more streamlined without loosing the angle detail.

Last, and certainly not the least, Alex's mum wanted a pair of gloves for Mongolia in the same yarn as I made his dad's back in 2010.  Those have held up wonderfully.  So of course the yarn is being discontinued.  Rarh! 

This is glove number one and the pair is required by the 30th of March when, we think, they will be flying out again.  Tickets are not in existence yet.  Still, I'm taking notes and knitting with attention and urgency.  Making up the fingers on this first one has me a little worried so I'm going slowly, but once it's finished and fits, all will be well and I'll zip through the second.  That's what I tell myself anyway.

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