That my life would depend on the morning sun...
SO MUCH to tell you. Look out, pictures a 'coming your way.
I'm FLOORED.
LOOK what the punster sent me! I mean, look at how cute this is! I'm so touched, I can't wait for Tiny McGoo to wear it! Thank you, Elspeth. Gorgeous knitting, too.
She gets it from her mother.
You know what's more exciting than a new tennis ball? And also more anxiety-producing?
Having NEW people PAINT in your own HOUSE. Fun + anxious = pacing. all. day.
We had an exciting day, let me tell you. Watching all the new people do things with ladders, which make us VERY NERVOUS, makes us exhausted:
Best to respond by napping.
Oh, yeah. I finished Loll.
LOOKIE!
Unfortunately, I can't model it for you, although usually I really like to get a picture of a sweater on a person, because I think it shows it better. But, uh, there is no fitting. I do feel decent that the sleeves still fit, and the back fits, with the side seams at my real sides. It's just the front bit - the belly and boobs bit - that's a NO GO. No way no how. Ain't gonna happen.
Gotta get it to the shop, though, it's a store sample and long overdue. So you'll have to do with the hanger shots.
You can see lots about Loll here - including the very important PATTERN MISTAKES. Click it if you knit it.
Update: Just for fun, here's two close-up pictures for you:
Paul, we need a little mailbag music: Andrea (blogless, I think) sent a picture of her Loll!
She used Cascade Pima Melange to make it. Thanks, Andrea! We should have a mailbag entry everyday around here!
I was never much good at goodbye...
No, I'm not going anywhere. That's Night Ranger. What's funny about that song is, I was listening to a Pandora station and that song came up, and I swear I hadn't heard it for YEARS. But all those lyrics? Right there, baby. Stored in some useless Night Ranger Neuron. That means I probably have a whole Duran Duran gray matter section, somewhere in the left parietal cortex, I imagine. Next to the Culture Club gyrus.
I'm on to something.
A heartfelt thank you.
You people ROCK. Thanks again so much for all your excitement and well wishes about our little news. It means so much that all of you have been pulling for us. Knitting blogs rule. No doubt about it.
I can ALMOST taste victory.
Loll nears completion. I stayed up WAY too late last night in a finishing frenzy.
We're pretty happy with how the collar came out. And pretty happy, too, with that shoulder seam. Let me tell you somezingh. Seaming a fitted sleeve in reverse stockinette stitch is HARD. And I consulted all my books (Vogue Knitting, Buss, Montse Stanley, Nancy Wiseman), NOTHING on how to do this. Way to leave me high and dry, ladies. No paddle. Not even arm floaties.
I just had to make it up. But I think it's okay.
I seamed a sleeve too, and the picture isn't purposefully blurry, I promise.
If all is well maybe Thursday it'll be done??? We can only hope.
What's it gonna take to make a dream survive?
Who's got the touch to calm the storm inside?
Don't say goodbye
Don't say goodbye
In the final seconds who's gonna save you?
That's right kids, I'm still a-live and kick-iiiiiiing....*
Welcome back to HEK! Sorry I have been gone so very long. I have been really under the weather since I got back from my trip, combined with a new job task and an old job task that made June way too busy.
I really sat around and rested, and did almost NO knitting. SO WEIRD. Just did not have the energy. Also no energy to read blogs, so I'm sorry for anything I've missed out on. Thank you to those of you who emailed! I am ok, and feeling better, so here we are!
And just to prove it.
Here we have Loll, the update.
On our trip, much knitting was done and two fronts were finished.
Trip knitting in New Mexico sunshine = GOOD.
And finally, with more energy now, I have completed the following sleeve!
It's done now. No, really.
And here's everybody blocking. One more sleeve to go!!!
Click here to see the bigness!
So, I have a few fringe rows left on the final sleeve and I will be able to get on the damn rescue plane and leave Sleeve Island. Ok, one more Mai Tai before I go. Just one.
Some important things about Loll you should know.
If you ever plan to knit this sweater, know the following:
1) There is a GIANT typo in the cardigan pattern. I emailed Rowan, and they responded quickly and agreed and promised to publish the mistake. It's crucial to keeping the ribbing intact.
Where the pattern says for the BACK:
"Counting in from both ends of last row, place markers on 26th (26th: 30th: 30th: 34th) sts."
And for Left Front:
"Counting in from end of last row, place markers on 26th (26th: 30th: 30th: 34th) st."
And for Right Front:
"Counting in from beg of last row, place markers on 26th (26th: 30th: 30th: 34th) st."
The numbers are WRONG and should read:
"... place markers on 23rd (26th: 29th: 28th: 31st) st (s)."
2) The fringe takes forever to make. I mention this because a new knitter might find it way too tiresome and overwhelming. It's worth it if you love how it looks. Just be aware...
What else?
1) I won a cool prize in Cara's fundraiser!!! Yay!!!!
2) High Energy Johnny made a new duct tape wallet:
Oh yes, he uses it.
3) Carrie is updating my blog design and I can't wait for you to see it! I've been fiddling with it for like a year, but I really just don't have time, and she's so good at it. If you are interested in affordable blog redesign, or any website building, she's your girl. Her business site is Identity Web and Photo. She is GOOD.
4) In my recent stupor I watched the final seasons of Alias and Queer as Folk. Two of my favorite shows of all time, over. Forever. Sniff. When I finish Six Feet Under the world might as well end. Someone will have to throw me a TV life preserver.
Hmmm. Might have to watch Season Two of Lost, on that note...
*Simple Minds. You know you love it.
and I want to drive it ALL NIGHT LONG...
Hey there, kids. So busy around here, not much to say. Too busy to knit much, if you can imagine it. The purple vintage knits sweater is SO CLOSE...
BUT will have to wait until after my trip. What trip, you ask?
We'll be hanging out the "Gone Fishin'" sign, as the High Energies are off to New Mexico and Colorado for 11 days.
For the record - I have only two bags packed - for ELEVEN DAYS.
This:
And this:
That MIGHT be a HEJ record. I'm not a light packer.
Whatchoo gonna knit?
For knitting, Loll is all bagged up and ready to go:
Cause it's time I got her done. Only knitting one thing will be good for me.
So, we'll see you in a couple weeks. Don't you forget about us. In fact, while I'm gone, take a little quiz about me. It's hard, people. My hubbie only got 80%. (He'd have gotten 90% if he could count.) It's a stumper!
I'm out of time... but I'm out of my head when you're not around...
Hello there. Some Hall and Oates for you. Sorry we have been away from around here, but things have been so busy in the HE Household.
First and foremost - High Energy John and Jenny are in the midst of a crazy fertility-test-tube-hopefully-not-alien-baby-making situation. Wish us luck for tomorrow, as the crazyness starts to go down in the am. We'll keep you posted.
Unless you're giving birth to knitting we don't care.
In that case, here is one finished Sockapaloooza sock. ROCK ON.
Click here to biggiesize it.
These are Mountain Colors Bearfoot, in color "Obsidian", and the pattern is "Openwork Rib" from Sensational Knitted Socks.
People, I have all but ONE TOE left. If I didn't have to get up early, they'd be done. They will be finished before the deadline. All of you can breathe a sigh of relief. You know you need to. You were worried, just a little bit. Admit it.
Whatever.
And here's the back of Loll:
Looks about the same. Not too exciting, my dears. But I do have that back bound off now, and I have also began the left front. For the SECOND TIME.
Why did I have to start over? Because I forgot the fringe is on size 8's and the rest on size 10s. The fringe looks too open and floppy on the bigger size. Frogging that fringe was no picnic. Loll has been set aside, just briefly, so it can think about what it has done. It can come out when it realizes it's error.
Sad bit here.
Also, as we are approaching Maryland Sheep and Wool, I must tell you that I will not be going. I am really sad about this, as it was so much fun last year, and since then I've met even more people I want to meet in person! And I will miss seeing the new friends I met in 2005.
But, in order to be off work for fertility treatments, I have to work the weekend of the 6th and 7th of May. Bummer. You guys, fondle some fiber for me, okay?
To keep my mind off missing you all, I have recently treated myself to sock yarn:
The plant is a Shamrock that belonged to my late father-in-law, Richard. I of-the-black-thumb am very proud it is doing so well. Richard would be pleased.
The two most lefthand yarns are from Spunky Eclectic, the middle and next to the right are from Dicentra Designs, and the bright yellow goodness is from the fabulous Mama-E. Handpainted, every one. Be still my heart.
Is like the sun going down onnnn meeee....
I think I love the version best where George Michael sings with Elton. Also, I think Roger Daltry of the Who sings this on the Lost Boys soundtrack - remember that movie? Both Coreys (Haim and Feldman) were in that movie. Good soundtrack though.
Sockapal-issues.
As you know, I am participating in Sockapaloooza, and had the ghastly realization that my socks are due on like MAY 2ND. Not good. I thought I had more time. As you can imagine, the panic has ensued.
And the problem was twofold. I picked out that pretty color of Artyarns, and when I knitted it, it was way too pink. She wanted "deep jewel tones", and I did not think the following qualified.
I'm telling you, there was no damn pink in this yarn before I started to knit it.
And, she didn't want a lacey pattern, which was, as you can see, what was happening.
I sucked on all sock fronts. And heels.
Don't keep us in suspense.
So, I started over. If Mohammed will not come to the mountain... or... anyway, I went to my Mecca, and came home with three colors of Mountain Colors Bearfoot, and have chosen the following:
I'm much happier with it, and I hope my pal likes it. The pattern is from Sensational Knitted Socks, by Charlene Schurch, which is truly one of the best knitting books I have read. It really helps you create a sock on your own, and has techniques you may not have tried. It will free you from sock yarn patterns, if you feel chained to them, or at least make you feel confident in them. Trust me. It's a great book.
Loll
And here's a Loll update, just for fun. I was surprised, truly, by how many of you said you'd never knit with Rowan Calmer again. I'm in love with this yarn.
And lastly.
Found these in a Hancock Fabrics. HOW UNFORTUNATE.
What is happening here??? What you need more than a little ugly novelty yarn, apparently, is a whole SHITload of it. Good Grief. Someone stop them.
so you understand less as the pages turn...*
[SKIP TO THE BOTTOM if you just want knittin']
I rarely do memes, as you know, but I saw this one on Cara's and at Lolly's and it interested me. The directions are to take the list of books below and mark them as such:
"Bold the ones you've read, italicize the ones you might read, cross out the ones you won't, underline the ones on your book shelf, and place parentheses around the ones you've never even heard of"
The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy - Douglas Adams
The Great Gatsby - F.Scott Fitzgerald
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J. K. Rowling
Life of Pi - Yann Martel
Animal Farm: A Fairy Story - George Orwell
Catch-22 - Joseph Heller
The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
Lord of the Flies - William Golding
Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
1984 - George Orwell
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J. K. Rowling
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden - Currently Reading.
The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
Slaughterhouse 5 - Kurt Vonnegut
The Secret History - Donna Tartt
Wuthering Heights - Emily Brönte
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - C. S. Lewis
Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides (I hated this book.)
(Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell)
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
(Atonement - Ian McEwan)
The Shadow Of The Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon - Currently Reading
The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
Dune - Frank Herbert
I consider myself someone who doesn't read popular fiction, so it's interesting I've read so many of those books. Some of my favorites are on that list. Weird, eh?
Loll
So as mentioned, I am lucky lucky and get to knit a store sweater for Main Street Yarns in Rowan Calmer, the dreamiest of yarns.
I knit my Audrey sweater from Rowan 35 in Calmer, and had a bear of a time getting gauge. In general I struggled with the yarn, but I loved it.
Here's a lesson for you.
The thing is, when I knit that sweater I FINALLY had success in the gauge on US 8's (5mm). This new sweater, Loll, has the SAME gauge, same yarn, so I should be good to go on an 8, right?
Wrong. Just to be safe I swatched, and I need a 10. A 10!! 6mm!! Just a lesson for all of us. Trust no one. Mulder was right.
Start me up
So here's a beginning picture of the fringe and the sweater itself:
Initially I was unsure about this fringe, but now, I think it's gonna be good. Here's an update with the waist shaping:
The pattern is WRONG for sizes 1, 3, 4, and 5. I'm making the 3rd size (medium, I guess) and had to re-figure the stitch count. I will post about this in more detail next time for you, and I have written the people at Rowan so I can show them the error. Kim Hargreaves probably knit the second size, then she or someone else extrapolated, wrongly, I can tell you.
But that's why I'm here, right? ;-)
Hi Ho Hi Ho it's off to work I go.
*The Shins. Love them.