Letting It Go

Just in case anyone is following--Tuesday rode the same negative wave as Monday. Time to spin this around.
The following is what is on my mind and my way of releasing it so I can move on. No knitting content.

A large chunk of crap causing frustration in my world are people who can't move forward when they don't get their way. They pick and pick at the same old work/life histories. I've observed once they get their way their celebration is brief because they have another personal item lined up to gnaw on until everyone around says, "alright already, have it your way. I'm sick of listening to it." These people suck the life out of me. I don't like being around them. They may be perfectly amiable at the onset or in a non-work related arena. That makes it harder. They are so focused on their mission. There's nothing wrong with being focused as long as in this line of work the focus is for the  betterment of all concerned. But then, that's what these people think isn't it? Their personal agenda, their pet peeve is not everyones but they can't understand why not and will berate those constantly with their reasoning and "you know what I mean?" repeated over and over until the person being talked at cries "Uncle!. Yes, I hear you but I don't happen to agree with you", which invites them to continue to try and convince you. (Go Away. I'm not talking to you anymore. I don't care that you have a personal grudge against another employee and want them fired when all they have done by all evidence is THEIR JOB.)
This has been going on for years and my tolerance left along time ago. If you like your job you shouldn't hate going to work. You shouldn't have to work in what you perceive as a hostile environment day after day when the hostility has nothing to do with you. You shouldn't have to accept their behavior; nor should you have to, after trying to discuss your feelings with this person (people) to stop the behavior be told by that person, "that's just the way I am so deal with it." How about you respect and deal with the way I am and leave me out of it? Better yet, grow up and deal with your issues with those that can help you solve them and let the rest of us come to work, do our jobs and go home without feeling like we've been interrogated all day to support your....personal garbage. Please.
Compounding the problem is A member of Administration (there are several with the title of Administration in this arena) that feels those with "passionate views" need to be heard by all members of staff whether it is any of their concern or not. I asked why they felt this was progressive and received an unsatisfactory answer that everyone should be able to put in their opinion on the subject. I voiced my opinion that it was exactly the opposite to my way of thinking and a waste of  time and money. Again, gather the parties involved with the parties that can resolve it and MOVE ON. I agreed to disagree. Done. Moving on. They, did not and want me to see it their way.

And I get up the next day and do it again. I work on removing myself from this environment. Thank goodness for knitting.

After a rather unpleasant weekend I was hoping the work week would be happier, brighter, dare I say...fun? Alas, if Monday (today) is any judge it ain't gonna happen.
It's been snowing all day. Today. First day of spring. That's just wrong on so many levels. On the bright side, none of it is sticking to the ground. Made for some nasty driving in the hill towns if the police scanner in my office is any indication. It would have been better to stay home and knit.
Ack, there's the rub. Staying home with a furnace that refused to work starting Saturday afternoon. The repairman couldn't fix it until this morning. That meant starting and stopping the furnace via the emergency switch on an hourly schedule. That meant no sleeping for more than an hour at night if I wanted to keep the house above 60 degrees.Tired is an understatement. I'm thinking of going to bed when I get home from work around 5pm.
I did get a good chunk of my aran sweater done while bundled up on the couch over the weekend. I'm designing the sleeves to be fitted to the arm by using a cable and stitch combination that really ends up being a ribbing. I'm doing so because I don't like standard aran sleeves which tend to be bulky. On the needles the my combination looks downright silly. The sleeve looks like it belongs on some other project. A long skinny tube attached to a heavily cabled body design. On my arm it looks fine. The way the weather has turned back to winter I may get to wear it before the shorts and flip flops become necessary.
I'm hoping for a better Tuesday.

Reading My Mind

Just the other day I was thinking to myself, how does heather yarn come to be? How do they do that? Well, as if he was hanging out in my brain, Jared Flood of Brooklyn Tweed is posting a 5 part series on just the subject. Jared, please disregard anything else you may have stumbled upon in my cranium. Cluttered mess that it is.
Heathers are what I gravitate to as I enter any yarn shop. I like the non-solidness. It adds another interest to my work. What may look like a green sweater upon closer observation has flecks of yellow, blue and fuchsia. A deep red is actually a bright red but flecks of black or charcoal gives the color more depth.

The photos don't readily show the gray interspersed. 

I like the visual dimension whether there are knitted textures or plain vanilla stockinette stitch. So, thank you Jared. Thanks for taking the time to run through the process step by step so I can appreciate the work that goes into my favorite type of fiber.

I hear we're in for another dousing of rain that will have nowhere to go but...in my cellar. Ah, spring is arriving. For the first time in six months I did not throw on a wool sweater for work this morning. Lovely old building that it is, it is not the most air tight but they're working on it. As with any municipal building it takes years of meetings to decide where the money is coming from to put weather stripping on the doors to keep the breezies out. All in good time.

Every Day Like Sunday

Ah Sundays. I get up just in time to watch Sunday Morning. That's 90 minutes of knitting time. The cats hit their preferred sleeping spots and lounge around with me.

I wish everyday were like Sunday. Alas, the bills must be paid and money doesn't come rolling in while I'm glued to the couch surrounded by balls of yarn, knitting needles, tape measures and sleeping cats.

Works in Process

This 12 month size pullover is created out of the scratchiest sock yarn and you may ask yourself why I bothered. Well, it was, um, cheeep and I wanted to work out a pattern of my own brain without sacrificing my better stock. It's Patons and though the color variation is lovely the fibers are short and were in my eyes, up my nose and very irritating. I ripped it apart a couple times; the wool held up to the abuse so it suited my purpose.
I mentioned my sister scored alpaca at a Chinese auction. A gorgeous red 2-ply worsted from Plymouth yarn.


I'm not sure whether to wear it when I finish or just have it around to pick up and squish. More on this after a good blocking.

The Done Stuff

The Aran Vine.
Just as a reminder I fashioned this after a tree in my back yard that has ivy vine choking it. I have a new favorite cable. The braid on the arm is fun to do and works quickly.


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Da Orange One
This started out in design to be a cardigan but as usual, the designer changed her mind and left the steek in and called it a pullover.

Set in sleeves and corrugated rib. All sweaters constructed top-down/seamless.

I had to do a plain rib on the neckline so my fat head could get through. Corrugated rib is not as flexible and as it was supposed to be a cardigan I joined the front sooner than I would a pullover. Of course, since I designed it -can't be wrong.

There are pairs of socks (in yummy soft, non scratchy sock yarn) too numerous to photo. As the end of February approaches thoughts of lighter spring knits are on my mind. So much to knit, so little room left to store it.

Brain Numb

Be it snowstorms, meetings, cancellations, more meetings, the bottom line- I've reached my limit. Pooped. I love winter but not enjoying it. I would like, and I'm asking nicely, to have a long weekend where I am not moving snow or making up time at work. I would like to go to sleep at night and not wonder if my garage roof is about to collapse from the load of snow or if the icicles hanging from the sides of my house roof are a precursor to interior damage. This winter has been worrisome. I don't mind the snow, really. It's pretty and being the "house plant" that I am,  "stuck" indoors is not a hardship to me. I'm trying to spin this into a positive but my brain has gone numb. I hope it's a temporary condition.

 I'm still able to turn a heel. Other projects include an open sweater in alpaca yarn my sister scored at a Chinese Auction. Baby Alpaca, mmmmmmm. I have another alpaca project in my bag that I've been ignoring. Still trying to decide on a design for body of the sweater because my first idea isn't going to work. If it were worsted I'd just do SOMETHING and rip it out if I didn't like it but this is lace weight on 2's so I want to be happy after I spend hours and hours with tiny thread and needles. That's it, I just want to be happy.

 This sight gets me every. time. This and when a thin layer of ice has formed on branches and sparkles when the sun hits it.

 Look at that roof. EEsh.Hold in there baby! I'd remove it myself but there's not a roof rake to be found. I've lived in New England all my life and have owned this house over 20 years and kick myself in the butt every winter for not ponying up the $40 for a roof rake. BEFORE it snows.

 This little guy makes an appearance every morning to grab a snack and chatter. He doesn't like it when I scrape my windshield before going to work. I imagine he thinks I'm after the thistle seed. I've never tried thistle seed so he may have a right to be concerned.

Icicles are so beautiful and so destructive. I love how the sky goes from purple to gray to blue with a yellowish cloud. All that color of light reflecting on the snow and in the ice, I stand there and stare at it. Yes, the neighbors think I'm odd. But after 20 years, better the nuts you know than the nuts you don't.

Beau looks so sweet. So angelic. Those of you who have a ginger tabby know this to be false most of the time. He's like a two year old on caffeine. After he tears around the house, crossing furniture he has been told not to lay a paw on, tosses all the "toys" in the basket, he crashes into a deep sleep, recharges his battery for the next session. His brother Andrew takes a lot of his abuse and though Andrew outweighs him by 5 pounds I do have to step in once in a while and end the torture. Andrew could toss HIM across the room but he's such a gentle guy he's never done it. In my line of sight anyway. No, Beau is my challenge and I love him to pieces. I've got two of the best cats ever.

Stating the Obvious

Oh Gee! It's snowing. Again.

Time Flies When You're Shoveling

Seems all I do these days is shovel. Shovel and knit. Knit and shovel. I like to knit much more than shovel but what is a New Englander to do?

My actual knitting  has slowed considerably due to adjustments needed on  recently finished objects. Hems were flipping up. Necklines curling back. Fussy stuff. All is where it should be now.

The last project I mentioned, the Vined Aran, required serious blocking. Who designed this thing? Whacking out all those cables and surrounding them with seed stitch? Cables pull in, seed stitch spreads out. It was an upper body workout on the blocking table. As soon as I get the buttons on I'll break out the camera for show and tell.

After finishing the Vined Aran I was very depressed. I knew there was nothing left in my stash. Well, until I decided to clean it out and sort yarns by weight. Let me back up. My yarn is stored in rolling plastic file bins. In the beginning they were somewhat organized. Time has changed that and they are in need of a reorg. Four of the bins are white. Off to the right I have a shorter black version. Guess what I found? More Cascade 220 just waiting to be knit in the little black bin! The day was saved and the sorting will wait until I've pillaged the black bin. By that time I will be ready to make my Scrap Sweaters. I'll have lots of little bits of this and that. For some reason I can't make myself knit scrappish versions using full banded hanks. Doesn't seem right. I know, that's silly. What are you going to do? I would like to change the description-scrap doesn't sound creative or positive. It makes me envision food scraps. Bleh. I'll work on a better description.

I"ll think about it while I'm shoveling.

Christmas has passed. The first major snowstorm arrived. It was quite a weekend.

 

I have no idea where I took this shot but the sky was remarkable. 

I was gazing out my back door and found myself staring at the maple that holds the other end of my clothesline. The vine pattern is interesting. Well, interesting to me in that it is asymmetrical where most things in nature a symmetrical. That got me thinking.

 

What if I applied the same willy-nilly design to an aran style sweater?

 
So I did.

And I have to say I found it more difficult than when I create a symmetrical pattern. On this I studied every row deciding where I wanted twists or baubles. Normally I would crank it out like a machine. On the other hand, it can't be wrong. I didn't mark down where I twisted so I'll never be making the same exact sweater again.




I'll be ready for something plain after this.
And now for the cute portion of the blog....

 I can't decide if he's praying or hiding.

I Want An iPhone

I have one of those pay-as-you-go kind of cell phones. Cheap. I can talk, text, set alarms, voice activate contacts in my address book, get on the internet (the 1x1" screen really doesn't cut it). It is a phone that works for me and my budget. I should probably add that I hate talking on the phone so the invention of texting made me giddy. I still don't use it. Not a great communicator. I do however love gadgets. I want an iPad. I want wireless internet. I want an iPhone for texting.

I want an iPhone for the autocorrect feature that has me in hysterics. If any of you have ventured out to Damn You, Auto Correct you know of what I speak. It's a total waste of time but waste time first thing in the morning is what I do. It gets the blood flowing, the tears rolling and the abs get a workout trying to control the laughing so my co-workers don't hear me. The mascara gets smeared. It's the best 10 minutes of the day.

The thought of my phone entertaining me by merely changing what I put in--wait, that would get annoying after awhile--but funny! It would be a conundrum.

I ran into another gadget I knew nothing about until the cd changer bit the dust. An internet radio. You need HiSpeed internet, which I don't have, but you can pull in stations from all over the globe in whatever genre you want. 1960's music from Britain-brilliant! It doesn't play my CD's but I want. Of course the budget raises its eyebrow like your mom did when you wanted to do something stupid. Not only am I down a cd changer (15 years old, owed me nothing) but now my boombox cd player is acting kerphlooey (20 years old). Yes, I said boombox because that's what it is. I don't  have a iPod. I've never wanted an iPod. To me it's a rerun of 1950/60's transistor radio complete with the earplugs. Wouldn't it be cooler if the iPod were as small and worn like BlueTooth phone negating the need for the dangly earbud cable? Apple, are you reading this? You'll have to work out the specifics for that stereo sound in BOTH ears.

I need new toys. I want new toys. Must get income to support this foolishness. After all, I am an American.

I'm A Renaissance Soul?

I've always been the type of person that masters an interest, gets bored and moves on. I recently learned this makes me a Renaissance soul. It's not  an attention deficit disorder, quite the contrary, I just don't understand how anyone can do the same thing all their lives and not want to check out other venues. I've always said, "you get one ticket for this E-ride, fit what you can into it. There are no mulligans." Now, when friends and family ask, "what do you WANT to do?" instead of saying "I don't know." I'm going to reply, "Everything!" At this stage of the game I know what I don't like and I know my limitations. There is a book and a website by Margaret Lobenstine on the subject. Didn't tell me anything I didn't already know but somehow made me feel better about it. Social standards poo-poo the renaissance mentality as a rule and that makes it harder to tell yourself its okay. Well, I'm telling myself its okay now. Time to move on. By the way, Ben Franklin was a renaissance soul; he did alright.

More Elastic Cord Please!

 Speaking of finding new venues. I found myself getting a teensy bit bored with my knitting. After 50+ sweaters and mittens, hats, scarves etc. it was getting dull. But knitting is my therapy, therefore I look forward to it everyday. Well!  Since I purchased Modern Top Down Knitting my mind is just a whirrrr with new possibilities. Could this be the end of my association with ribbing for finishing? No more drawstrings? Just integrate a row of single crochet with elastic cord, block, and your sleeves don't roll, the baggy cinch is a thing of the past. Here's a close up of the cord at the high waist. 

 Sorry about the lighting. I don't get home before the sun sets. I kinda cut the sleeve off the picture below but the crochet and elastic worked like a charm. I've crocheted finished edges before but this really keeps things in place.

I'm putting snaps on the band for closure. I applied sheer ribbon to match around the inside edges of the body to give it a nice finish and hide the steek. Markers are for snap placement but could work for buttons I suppose. NOT.

The lines are crocheted for decoration. I may add more before I call this done. Nice touch from Ms. McGowan's book Modern Top Down Knitting. I recommend.

"I like the elastic too, it's chewy."

Hello? Why Yes, I'm Still Knitting

 I'm still here, knitting away. Kristina McGowan has INSPIRED me! I'm putting elastic cord in everything I do.  I have found that the textile houses around here, chain or otherwise, do not carry elastic ribbon, nor do they carry a vast amount of velvet ribbon. I'm also on the hunt for pipe cleaners of all colors. I'd rather buy local but may have to rely on the interwebs to bring closure to my creative ideas.

The upcoming holidays are cutting into production but the lights are in the windows, the tree is up and 99% decorated. The cats have played in all the boxes and taken a few swings at low hanging decorations. As there is no place like home for the holiday and it looks like we may ACTUALLY STAY HOME, I need to Christmas shop and ship early. I can't believe it's actually going to happen. It's a Christmas Miracle.

Barbara Walker/Kristina McGowen/Knitting Top Down

I am a top-down knitter. I wasn’t always. I grew up knitting pieces and mattress stitching them together and Hating. Every. Minute. Of. It.

One day, I stumbled upon a blue workbook by Sidna Farley. Sidna introduced me to Elizabeth Zimmerman’s method of seamless knitting. Well, I had to learn more about this Elizabeth Zimmerman. When I purchased “Knitting Without Tears” I also bought “Knitting from the Top” by Barbara Walker the same day. I hit the ground running with EZ. I loved her wit. I thumbed through “Knitting from the Top”, read the passages and could not wrap my brain around the concept. I loved Barbara’s wit and wisdom also and though I wasn’t grasping her technique I liked reading her book.

In a period of a year or so I read "Knitting From The Top" over and over. Finally, I picked up the book, needles and yarn and dove in. I never looked back. I knew EZ wouldn’t mind too much because she is quoted on the back of Knitting From The Top that Barbara was a genius. I have designed everything from sweaters to suits. And I wear what I make. One thing that has annoyed me over the years is the comment that Barbara’s book is “dated”. The designs are dated. My response is, anyone using the technique and worth their salt in knitting after using this book has the ability to adjust the style to current fashion dictations. Even better, after learning this technique those of you that adore “retro” fashion will have no problem figuring that out on your own. “Knitting from the Top” is still the best basic instructional top down knitting book out there. If you can’t handle the dated cover, tear it off. Better yet, maybe Schoolhouse Publishing could reprint it with a “fashionable” cover. When it was originally published the cover was in fashion. I guess the saying “don’t judge a book by its cover” is apropos here if you get hung up on that sort of thing.

 My path to Barbara Walker is very similar to Kristina McGowen’s as stated in the beginning of her book entitled “Modern Top-Down Knitting”. In fact, it's so similar its kinda spooky. I purchased Kristina’s book because she knits the way I do. Kristina does state that the styles in Barbara’s book are dated. But wait, because she has learned the technique she’s figured out how to adjust and update. How about that? She has some nifty finishing techniques using elastic cord and pipe cleaners. Brilliant! Her focus is the sleeveless or set-in sleeve technique featured in BW’s book. I love this style except for the working with 2 balls at once but I get over it. I prefer the simultaneous set-in sleeve method as opposed to picking up the stitches around the armhole and short-rowing the cap. She incorporates crochet into her designs. For me knitting and crochet go hand in hand. A crocheted edge is sturdier where you need it. Her designs are very up-to-date.

 What will knitters say about Kristina’s book 30 years from now? The same as folks are saying about “Knitting from the Top” today. There will be someone else to come along to update the look but the fact is, we’re all still using the same out-dated, out of print book and whacking out great stuff.  We’re free from commercial patterns. Thank you Barbara. And thank you Kristina for bringing it forward with your techniques.

Allllllrighty Then.

Camera is now operational. Too bad I haven't snapped any works in process...(doink, doink, doink)Instead, I'll insert life around me. Hang on!

A trip back up Mt. Sugarloaf in South Deerfield, MA to take in the fall foliage. The Connecticut River in all its glory.

 To the west 

 To the east

 South.

Then there was a stop at Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory, again in South Deerfield.

 Little birds live there too.

 Quail

First week in November and we're still sporting some color.

 Ah, the beauty that is Western Massachusetts.

 But all fun must come to an end...leaves, leaves everywhere.

 To the left...

 To the right...

 A crunchy yellow blanket.

 And a gnome drowning in the middle.

Looking forward to a large wind blowing these into my neighbors yard. Okay, okay, I'll mulch them stop tsk, tsking me. It's sad, my favorite time of year coming to a close and I haven't repaired the snowthrower. Who's fault is that? I'm thinking of blaming my yarn supplier. Every time I get the urge to do something home-owner-y they have a sale to distract me. Yeah, lame but that's what I'm going with.

:-(

My camera won't upload.

A week, no, make that two weeks worth of knitting and no visual? Bah.

Bulky ragg wool pullover on the drying rack-done. Lace-weight Style To Be Determined has made it to the separation of the sleeves and body. Frankly, this one has me thinking, What Was I Thinking? To keep what's left of what little sanity I have I threw another cotton/silk turtleneck pullover design on the needles and that has the shaping of the body half done and a partial sleeve. There's one sock done and another past the heel.

Much leaf peeping has been done and now the leaves are.....leaving. It snowed briefly on the 23rd of October so by my calculations we will have 23 more snowfalls for the season. This is also how I calculate Thunderstorm Season. The date of the first one of the new year is the amount we will have. It has all the accuracy of my trick knee.


I need pictures. *sigh*

Loooooonnnnnggggg Weekend

A Friday through Monday weekend with very little knitting. But....

 Mini "Seriously Simple Shawl" originated by Wendy Johnson and modified by me. You're all in shock, I know.

 Get a good look at it because it will NEVER happen again. Wendy's pattern is great, I just get ADHD knitting lacy objects. I'm still in fear that I goofed up the thing as the two sides are not identical. Are they supposed to be? Sorry Wendy but apparently seriously simple lace is beyond me. Thank goodness there are so many fantastic lace knitters out there.

Now, non-knitting time was spent here at the Amherst Woman's club in Amherst, MA. Lovely house all decked in period furnishings. Attended a wedding reception/clambake on a most gorgeous day.

This tree was interesting;have no idea what flavor it is.  It stood on the front of the club's lawn. 

We couldn't have asked for better weather.
I did manage to start a lighter-than-fingering-weight set-in sleeve project using ultra fine alpaca (Berrocco). This is going to be a long project so I also grabbed the bulky weight (see, I told you I needed to finish the shawl so I could use the size 10 needles!) and cast on for another set-in sleeve project. Notice I said project and not given them a specific description. Yes, I'm learning. I change my mind designs so often in the middle I just have to wait with the rest of you to see how it turns out. And with that, I leave you to go back to surfing the interwebs.