Two Black Sheep

Imma Be

It's hard for me to get enthusiastic about garter stitch. I know, I know . . . some people love it (Lola, for one) and create whole garments centered around the humble stitch, but me . . . meh. I could take it or leave it. However, I loved Lola's Rambling Rows that she made for Tuck and decided that when my co-worker at school announced she was pregnant, I would make her a Rambling Rows.

Two small problems: she wasn't finding out the sex of the baby and I hate garter stitch. At first, they didn't seem like much of a problem, but try picking gender neutral colors and you are left with icky pastels or bright primary colors. Both kind of make me want to puke. I was almost ready to say, "You know what color really needs a fashionable baby resurgence . . . gray!" until Joanne found some shades that I could live with. I knit and knit and knit on this baby blanket until I felt like my knuckles will most likely in twenty years when arthritis sets in. And still, it seemed like I was only on block 14 of 55. Through every snowstorm (and three seasons of Battlestar Galactica on DVD), I knit. This blanket has taught me many things:

1. How to tension my yarn properly around my index finger - yup, never quite did that before. Only problem . . . can't get the swing of it whilst purling.
2. How to weave in my ends as I go - I would still be weaving them in with a tapestry needle had I not done this each and every time I switched colors.
3. How much garter still blows - I don't get it. Really . . . it's soft and squishy, but blah.
4. How much I hate Dalegarn Falk - the yarn splits, it catches on my hands (but some how manages to look and feel amazing). 
5. How piss poor my crochet skills are - still have to use the "I Can't Believe I Can Crochet" booklet to produce a single crochet (and I added a three stitch picot border on top of the single crochet border in a shade of yellow that will haunt me in my dreams many years from now).

So, amidst the epic Olympic failure that were the Johnny Rotten mittens and every conceivable project that inspired lust in my eyes, I created a pretty lovely little baby blanket for the baby of pretty lovely parents one of whom will be missed sorely as I teach without her for the next quarter.

That leaves me with a wide open knitting agenda, which has already been filled with the February Lady Sweater. Once more with enthusiasm, but this time with superwash . . . because I learn from my mistakes.

Enjoy the weekend and the holiday!

Ava

Sunshine Day

I haven't had that desire to knit lately.  I do, but I think it's just to keep my hands busy.  Still plugging away on my sidebar items.  But nothing has really grabbed my attention.  That attention sucker Flickr is still really strong.  Sorry knitting.

Then to make matters worse, Crochet struts into the bar.  I saw this & knew I was going to give the Granny Square one more try.  And with all my Cascade 220 scraps sitting in the basement, this is going to be a fantastic stash buster (remember this sentence, friends).  Last night, I bought & started crochet.  I stumbled.  Then I fell on my face.  But this afternoon, I found the right track.  I made my practice Granny out of some cotton.  Why?  Everyone knows I hate cotton & it just looked like shit.  I went downstairs & grabbed some tiny balls of wool.  Ta da!  One good lookin' square.  I love the all-over tan look of the original, so I had buy two skeins of yarn.  I went downstairs to look through my Cascade 220 stash.  Guess what?  It isn't there!  Two weeks ago, I took all of my tiny tiny skeins to Goodwill.  That's my luck.  My fiber juices are finally going & I've got only a few colors.  Ava, can you help your sister? 

Columbus is getting hit with another snow storm.  So I'm hoping to finish a couple squares while the boys & I keep warm.  I hope your winter is cozy too.

Lola

I Get it In

I need to start a post to keep in the sidebar.  It will be titled, "Things I Promise to Never Ever Knit Again."  The blanket's size & garter almost sent me to the Knitter's Loony Bin.  I love the ladies at MDK.  Have you seen all the garter love going on right now!?  Must not get sucked in.  Must not get sucked in.  Whenever I crack the spine of the first book, feelings of happiness spill over me.  I think that it's the first time that I felt like a real knitter.  But I will make a solemn vow to never ever knit the Moderne Log Cabin again.  This is the second one in the past 2 years and that's enough for this knitter. 

I need that warning in my sidebar, because I'm afraid that I'll be suckered into another blanket.  It appeals to me on so many levels.  The garter stitch is calming.  The color combos are endless.  The construction is easy and it lives up to its name.  A modern baby blanket if I've ever seen one.  However the title "baby blanket" is a stretch.  I think that it's more like a Toddler blanket.  It measures 57x44.  I guess the babe will grow into it.  I knew that my yarn choice would yield a larger blanket.  Not an issue, but it did become difficult to maneuver towards the end.  The size is the reason for my modification.  The final two blocks were suppose to have 54 garter ridges.  I had to stop at 37 ridges, but I don't think the baby will notice.

I used Vanna's Choice.  I wanted washable since the Mother is a clean freak.  I also can't deny that I bought it because of Vanna.  I miss Wheel of Fortune.  Not the newer version where they pick your final letters, but the old one.  You guys know it & probably love it.  Remember when the winner got to pick their prizes from the rotating rooms?  There was always a stone Dalmatian in the living room that sold for around $350.  I loved the winner's head as it floated around the staged room.  We'd watch it whenever we visited my Grandparents & one would think that I'd become a good speller.  Nope.

Anyone else love to see the amount of leftover ends?  I weave my ends while I'm knitting & always wait until the end to snip them.  I just love that little pile of leftovers.

I need to make one more baby blanket.  I was going to make another Rambling Rows, but I'm leaning towards Poffertjes.  With my friend's first baby, they waited to find out the sex.  She wants the same thing with Baby #2, but the husband wants to know.  I'm on his team!  I need to get started, so I think this might be the perfect project.  I could knit all the circles & add colors later.  It looks like the circles are knit separately.  Maybe I'm wrong.  For now, I'm working on Celite.

L

She's my Girl

I have a Noro problem.  It's complex, but aren't all my problems?  I don't understand how knitters can knit sweaters or socks out of this yarn.  I just don't get it.  It's way too "earthy" for me.  But on the flip side, I love Noro!  I get almost giddy when the color is about to change.  How's the green going to look next to the pink?  How will that pink look next to the peach?  But what do I do with all my bottled up Noro love?  Make blankets, I guess.

I finished Lizard Ridge a long time ago and it quenched my Noro thirst. Still it isn't the blanket that I rushed to cuddle under. For a long time, it was purely for show.  One night Gus' blanket was in the wash & he needed an extra layer.  I threw Lizard Ridge over him and that's where you'll find the blanket.  Not the cheapest kid blanket or the most practical when we're still dealing with Pull-Ups.  But he calls it the sweater blanket and that warms my heart.  It has softened a little with use, but you don't buy Noro to touch.  You buy it for drama. 

This hat ignited my Noro love again, but I knew it was pointless.  How does one pull that onto their forehead?  How!?  But that love is so hard to ignore.  When I get that itch, something's gonna give and it usually turns into a large on-going project.  I needed a plan to scratch my Noro hive.   I'd knit the middle size Rambling Rows out of Kureyon.  This decision also solves another problem of mine.  I hate leaving a locally owned store without purchasing a thing.  I feel guilty when I leave with nothing.  I usually buy sock yarn, but I'm sick of loading the stash with yarn that doesn't get used.  Now I can pick up a ball here in Ohio and more the next time I'm on the road.  Before you know it, I'll have a beautiful afghan.  Noro lends itself to be knit in one sitting.  What's that blue going to look like next to the tan?  I'll keep knitting just to find out.  Problem solved and everyone is more than happy.

I also decided that I needed a new sweater project.  Say "Hello" to Diminishing Ribs.  Excellent kid-friendly knit.  Not that I really need a kid-friendly knit.  Garter is the friendliest of all the stitch patterns and Moderne Log Cabin should be my go-to kid knit.  Since my one repeat on Celite is finished, the Log Cabin will be fished out of the closet.  I've got a month to finish it.  The blanket is so large that it becomes difficult to turn and I'm also afraid that grubby little fingers will attack it.  Rib is found while the kids are playing.

I finished Childhood Unbound.  A decent parenting book for parents with children a little older than Gus.  It was nice to see what's coming, but I think that we're still about two years away from many of the issues that were discussed. I found that it had more explanation of why we're seeing certain kid attitudes more than how to discipline.  Which was really refreshing.  It was also nice to see that many of his tips were common sense to me.  Frank discussions, boundaries/limits, respect to both child and parent, and building a community around the family.  It was an easy read and not condescending or frightening.

I've also been thinking about reading a Chapter book to Gus each night.  I think that he's probably old enough to begin this routine, but I'm not sure which book to grab.  I'm guessing the book should be short and something without violence.  Duh, right?  Any suggestions?

L

Nasty Dan*

*Check your libraries for a copy of Johnny Cash's Children album.  Fantastic!  I can't get the first song out of my head.

It's about time I pull myself together & get a post out.  All weekend, I was sucked into the blackhole called Facebook.  I spent a lot of my time reading friend's "25 Things you Don't Know About Me."  Ava & I thought it'd be funny to put:

19.  For the past 3.5 years, my sister & I have kept a secret knitting blog.

We didn't.

Lately I've been quite the accessory whore.  I keep spitting them out & not blogging about a single one.  I quit one & start another the same night.  I feel like a frat boy stalking the dorms on orientation week.  It began with a Felicity (Rav link) & some Dashings.  Dashings are being used & I'll photograph them at some point.  Excellent for buckling a baby into their carseat.  The Felicity wasn't as floppy as I wanted, so I needed a replacement.  While looking for the perfect hat, I finished a Thorpe for Gus, an Elfin for Tuck, & another Thorpe for SK.  I'll blog about the Thorpe soon.  I think that it deserves it's own post.  There's been some Thorpe drama in the house so it's only right to give it some blog time.  I think that I'm going to have to rummage the stash & start another one tonight.  I've been commissioned by a certain 3 year-old.  "No brown & green.  Just green.  Like Daddy's."

Since I got my haircut shorter than usually, I felt like I needed something more than my usual beanie.  Berets don't work on my big ass head.  They just look silly & pretentious.  I thought the Felcity would cover my requirements, but I needed more flop.  I've been stalking Alabone (another Rav link) for quite some time.  I love the loose fit & floppiness in the back.  A week ago, it was time to give Alabone needle time.  I had some Silk Garden leftover from my Lady Eleanor.  It was a quick knit & the yarn makes it so satisfying.  I really do love the final product.  It's a little more flashy than my normal choices, but I love it!  I finished it with a ball & about 10 ounces from a second.  I'm thinking about making a tiny version for the boys.

I think that I'm so attracted to accessories because of my current baby blanket.  The Modern Log Cabin is one of my favorite baby blanket patterns, but knitting this much garter can kill a girl's spirit.  The baby is coming at the end of May & I feel like I need to work on this project as much as my fingers can take.  I'm currently on the largest blocks of the blanket.  I just want it done so I can move onto other projects.  Hello Garter Stitch & Ceilte can you hear me?

During the Super Bowl, I didn't feel like attaching more of the brown yarn or doing more garter.  I reached for a pair of socks that needed a heel flap & some gusset action.  This is another project that has suffered.  Can someone please remind me to only knit plain socks?  I've learned this about my knitting self.  I like my socks plain & boring.  In the end, I know that I'll enjoy the finish product but I need simple for sock knitting.  Socks are my distraction & even a little bit of detail annoys me.

Whhheew!  That feels much better.  Showing you a little of my WIP basket gets me motivated. I need this blanket done.  Now. 

I'll work on some Thorpe insights & maybe share some info from the book in the picture.  Anyone get tired of telling your parents "Kids are different these days"?

-Lola

Ice Ice Baby

I feel like a crazy woman that has been living in the woods.  Well, it's time to leave the trees & walk into the shiny city below.  I needed to completely decompress after the holidays.  Even trying to put together a post is difficult & I've got things to show.  The holidays were good to us, but they were also exhausting.  Tuck got another ear infection the week of Christmas & then had flu like symptom on New Year's Eve.  There's been lots of carrying & a bunch of filthy diapers.  I think he's back to normal, so it's about time that I return to normal.

Let's look at the first FO of 2009.

I love knitting blankets.  I think that it's in my genes.  I can remember my parents' house so cold that you could see you breathe.  "Put a blanket on," mom would say.  At our maternal grandparents' house, they would hang big wool quilts in the doorways to lock in the heat.  I just think that it's important to have something that keeps you wrapped in warmth.  The knitter in me loves making blankets because there's never a fit issue.  I never have to make a swatch.  And I get to play with color.  And while I knit the blanket, I start thinking about what the baby will look like.  Or how the parents will react to the first time they get peed on.  You know the normal baby stuff.

I started this blanket for a friend.  I'm a cautious person.  But I let my excitement get the best of me & started it as soon as she called with the news.  They had been trying for the past year & I was ready to make her second baby blanket.  Soon after, she called with horrible news.  I kept knitting the blanket.  Should I give it to her when she does have a second baby?  Would that be improper?  I just kept knitting.  The same time that she called, we also found out that another friend was pregnant.  I still wasn't sure what to do with the blanket when I bound off the final stitch.  The blanket was for another babe.  I now realize I get really attached to my knits.  I showed SK & he said, "You have to give that to XYZ!  They'll love it."  And I'm pretty sure that they will.

This was a easy pattern with an obvious flaw.  With every round, knitting gets longer & longer.  The final triangles took 2 hours to complete.  That's 4 hours of knitting one round.  I love a huge blanket!  Even for the littlest of beings, I want a huge blanket!  But this blanket kicked my ass.  I could not bring myself to knit one more round on this blanket. The final blanket measures 37 X 37.  Should be okay for a baby.  

Curve of Pursuit
Needles: Denise Needles 7
Yarn: 3 balls of each Wool-Ease color.
Extra info: The 52 inch cable was necessary for this project!  Short-row by wrap & turn, not how they describe in the pattern.  It's a cleaner finish.

Oh, I got more FO.  I've been knitting for sanity, People!  I'll post as soon as I can get pictures.  This one was hard enough.  We're full of ice & no sun.

L

For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)

This is how my morning began.

Very yummy indeed.  I brewed some coffee since Tuck was awake at 7 a.m.  It was our first morning alone.  Usually Gus joins the crowd after the morning nursing.  This morning, he decided to sleep until almost 9 a.m.  I loved the early mornings with Gus, so it was very nice to have had one with Tuck.  We an adventurous game of hide 'n seek & then he played with some blocks long enough for me to knit a couple of rounds.  My first breakfast was a couple of cookies.  The daycare has a cookie fund-raiser every year.  You get a tub of dough for $11.  It makes about 6 dozen & we eat every scrap of it.  The cookies in the picture are Double Chocolate Chunk & are probably the best cookies I've ever had the pleasure of devouring.  Not to sweet, but an overload of chocolate!  If some little munchkin comes knocking with a form in hand, load up!  The stuff lasts forever & freezes beautifully.

And here's how my afternoon began.

Game day requires an easy knit project, wings & beer.  During the first half of the game, I had finished the bind off on my Square.  I decided to knit it with a different yarn than I had planned.  I had plenty of Buckeye Blast leftover & felt it was only fitting to send off a Buckeye square to Pennsylvania.  All I have to do is block it & clean up the wing mess.  I promise there is no sauce on the square!

Mr Rogers sweater is done.  Just needs to be tossed in the washer & a zipper added.  I need to start Tuck's stocking, but certain publications are making it difficult.  I'm actually sort of excited about the Interweave Preview.  I keep checking the Knotions website everyday.  I've got the yarn & needles waiting for the Vortical Socks.  And let's not even talk about Twist Collective!  Ok, let's.  I wish that they would bundle some of the patterns. Or give you a discount if you buy 3.  I'm absolutely crazy about a couple of the patterns.  So crazy that it's making me think dirty thoughts.  I'm going to say it...  Something I never thought I'd say again.  Here goes, it's almost making me want to felt again.  But I won't because $150 for a jacket isn't worth my time.  I've got limits.  I also keep coming back to this one. I'm not sure why because it doesn't look really flattering, but there's something about it.  Maybe it's like a boy that's Dirty Hot.  Go back to "flattering", please.  How about this one?   I'm thinking in a coca or charcoal.  Stop it, Lola!  You've got a stocking to make!

L

p.s. Ava & I have been talking photos since I read this post.  Click over the Flickr group & get lost in the photos.  I'm wondering if presets/actions are only for "real" photographers.  Would it make a difference with any ole photo?  Anybody have any experience they want to share?

Henry Nearly Killed Me (It's a Shame)

Tons of tags on this one, but really it boils down to this: with knitting, I seem to pick projects that are either a) sweaters knit in one piece or b) really, really big rectangles or c) afghans that will never be finished. Look closely at the photos, and you might see why that is.

Take for example the Spirit Sweater. Granted, it's really the February Lady Sweater but I just can't bring myself to call it that . . . probably because I'm no lady. I knit a row and feel exhausted. Over and over again, I remind myself that I am knitting the whole thing at one time (except for those sleeves), but it doesn't do any good. You've got to love EZ and her simplicity but maybe this is why she had the pattern for a baby. Even Liz might have found knitting for a 52 inch chest in the gull lace pattern a bit daunting (probably not, but it gets me through the day). The Big Fat Girl Crush? Long rectangle. Check back with me in a year and we'll see if I've made any progress. It's not a matter of purchasing all that Noro Silk Garden since I have had all the yarn for two years. The afghans? Good lord . . . three and none of them will keep me warm this year unless I pile the pieces strategically around me.

Maybe that's why I like socks . . . they're quicker, more portable, and seem to be a smaller project. In reality, the only thing they have going for them is the portability aspect. Even that will most likely change in the coming months as I teach myself knitting two at a time so that I can teach a class at the shop.

Enter Interweave's Holiday Knits issue. I was looking for something fast like last year's home run Koolhaas. No such luck this time around. Granted, it was replete with gorgeous (and I would have put periods between all the letters but am too lazy) hand knits, but there was nothing that seemed like it would go quickly that truly interested me. The one that piqued my interest was the Frost Flowers Stole (long rectangle? I'm your bitch). I bought the last copy at the knit shop - there were more coming, lest you think I got greedy - specifically for that pattern until the reality of casting on 992 stitches sunk in. Let me repeat that 992 stitches. The next sentence in the directions is: Casting on a large number of stitches can be a challenge (really? Thanks for the heads up IK) so you might want to put stitch markers every 20 stitches and make the tail of the 100s longer. Again, you are so insightful IK editors. I never - NEVER - would have thought to put stitch markers every 20 stitches. Then again, I never will need to since I would be knitting this. If anyone knits this, let me know . . . I would like to tip my hat!

The girls received their SAT results and we were all very thrilled with the results. Now? We wait to see which colleges say, "Come on down" and which ones say, "Thanks." I don't really remember it being this nerve wracking when I was the senior, but it probably was. I have a meeting to attend today about the girls, and I'm dreading it. Suffice it to say, the mama bear in me is coming out and it usually isn't a pretty sight even when I am trying to control the tone of my voice. Veronica says that tone is worse than being yelled at. I'll post about it later.

Have a lovely weekend . . . and stay warm! It's freezing on the East coast and the wool clogs are coming in very handy.

Ava

PS - the Winter Knotions Preview is up . . . some very tempting items in that one, especially the knee socks. See what I mean? Even the socks are getting longer - UGH!

Details in the Fabric

Ah the sweet memories of a FO.  Even sweeter because it's was for my little Tuck.    Weren't those the days?  One baby to shuffle around.  I still hadn't gotten to my lumber-jack phase.  Who am I kidding, I was approaching Lumber-Jack size at 4 months.  Tuck wasn't yet sitting at the lowest point of my uterus.  People didn't look at me with pity as I tried to walk.  I could walk at a normal pace.  Oh the days!  I would just sit & stare at the blanket admiring the simplicity of the pattern, the nice mix of colors, & hope that a hand-knit blanket would finally be loved (Gus doesn't like his hand-knit blankets). 

How quickly things change?  As beautiful & easy (compared to Gus) as Tuck was the first couple months, we still forgot about the hellish nights.  I'd go through 4 t-shirts a day because I'd leak through bra & pads.  Gus asked when Tuck was going to go his house.  Teething (another thing we forgot about)!  Didn't my baby used to sleep through the night?  Humph.  Back to sleeping, but now my boobs are chew toys.  Hard & stinky poops now that we're eating more than just milk.  Oh really, you don't like peas today?  Gus please don't hit your brother on the head.  No, he didn't ask you to do that.  And remember my blanket that served as Hope?  Here's what I found in my dryer the other day:

The picture really doesn't show the destruction.  I've washed it a number of times before.  This never happened.  Ever.  The blue, red & cream blocks are fully felted.  I could deal with the pilling.  A little shaving & we've got a blanket that just looks loved.  But felted?  This is Superwash!  And when I read Superwash, I think it's ok to be in the dryer.  Call me an idiot & let's be done with this disaster.  I guess that means little Tucky needs a new blanket. 

I did start the Curve of Pursuit & am making good progress.  With any short-row project or anything that is increased from the beginning, I'm at the point where I'm thinking "What the hell am I going to do on the next round?  I'll be in my 40s by the time I'm another 3 rounds in."  Look at those bumps towards the center square?  I am a little mad at myself.  I really don't consider myself an experienced knitter, and that's a nasty mistake.  I should be able to read a pattern & realize that there's a better way to do something.  The short-rows in the pattern aren't wrapped, but slipped.  In the pattern it states that if you slip them you won't be able to see the row.  Bull-shit.  After a couple of rounds, I went to the tried & true wrapping method.  Look at the differences? 

Nice wrapped rows!

Bad slipped short-rows!

I should always trust my Knitter's Gut.  I'm still planning this blanket for a friend, but I'm thinking about making one for Tuck out of some Tatamy Tweed.  Big bold colors!  Pow!  Zap!  We'll see how my will is after the next 3 rounds.  I might just throw this one at Tuck & buy my friend a Moby Wrap.  That's a good gift too.

p.s.  For the Flyer.  You bring the Bloody Mary mix and I'll pray that these taste good.  But vodka can make anything taste good.

Chasing Pavements

Tuck's expression is how our family is feeling right now.  In this picture, I believe that he's really pissed because I put him in the chair.  These became popular right after Gus was too big for them.  I was thrilled that the bandwagon drove right on by our little family.  I swore that I would never buy one, but our mother passed one along.  We slip Tuck into the chair so we can get a good laugh.  He doesn't seem to find it funny.  Anyway back to our family's feelings, we're getting pissier and pissier as each day passes.  Bro is changing wedding dates at a rapid speed.  Fine.  But the dates are getting closer not farther in the year.  We're patiently waiting for a final date.  And on that date, you'll have a fabulous drunk/bitter post from Two Black Sheep.

Gust is coming along.  I think that I'm going to make some length adjustments to the pattern.  The final measurement is 45 inches.  That's a little short for my taste.  Before blocking, the pattern says that it should measure 35 inches.  So it grows 10 inches in the final blocking process.  That makes my adjusting easy!  Knit until it's 10 inches shorter than I'd like.  Unfortunatly that means I've got to knit another 30 inches.  Damn, Lola.  When Ava came to visit, I made the most important change with this project.  I swapped my Knitpick metal needles for some bamboo.  Usually, I hate bamboo.  It has made the entire project tolerable.  And so I'll keep truckin'.

I picked up the afghan again.  I really have to focus when I get to the ends.  If I don't, I'm adding hexagons which fucks up the border and adds width.  I've also decided that I don't need to stick with four separate colors for each hexagon.  I still love these little motifs, but I do need to write the pattern down.  I struggled a little when I grabbed the project.  Who knows when it will be done.  I might be working on this one in the Nursing Home.

Gus' Big Boy quilt is finished and is in the wash.  I'll post on that soon.  I finished the binding last night and had a celebratory glass of wine.   I folded it and put it on the other side of the room so I wouldn't accidentally spill Merlot all over it.  I looked at it lovingly and proudly during the AI finals.  Big post once I've got it in its final resting place.  I think I'm going to squeak out a pillow or two with the scraps.

L

p.s. Tuck's expression is not a reflection of his attitude.  I can't tell you enough what a fabulous baby he is!  He just laughs and smiles all day.  He goes to bed well and wakes up even better.

p.p.s Wheat Bread from the book turned out well.  Instead of 4 loaves, I got 2 out of the recipe.  The only thing I wasn't thrilled about was the size.  Not great for sandwiches, but incredibly tastey.  I took the rest of the dough and made a larger loaf hoping for a higher loaf.  But the taste is so good.  I think that it has a lot to do with using All-Purpose instead of actual bread flour.  I also think that the bread lasts a little longer than bread machine dough.  Start baking people!