Na Na Na Na, Hey Hey, Goodbye....

...but not to the finches, not yet anyway. Look what happened yesterday:




Check out the hungry lil mouth in the lower left-hand corner of the bottom picture! So sweet.

Ever have a yarn that you loved but it just didn't love you back? That's how it's been with me and Classic Elite Inca Alpaca. I bought a bunch over a year ago to make a gorgeous rectangular wrap from VK. So soft, and I loved the color. A few inches in though, the yarn just...didn't work, somehow. It didn't look quite right. So, I frogged it.

Next, I cast on for Wandering Aran Fields. The ribbing was okay, and most of the first part of the cables, but a few twists and turns in and I realized the problem: The yarn has no body whatsoever. Now, I know that alpaca, soft as it is, tends to be a little bit floppy, but this stuff is really, really floppy. Really floppy yarn makes for droopy, saggy cables. So, a-frogged it shall be.

I guess I knew in my heart it wasn't going well but I was in a bit of denial about the possibilities for this particular yarn. I really liked the yarn, so I tried to force it into patterns I really liked too. And, um, it didn't work. Let this be a lesson to us all: laceweight really doesn't want to be an afghan, and no matter how much you want 'chunky' to turn out 'drapey,' it ain't gonna happen.

I have also had a bunch of Manos hanging around waiting to be made into an Einstein coat. I realized after I bought it that Manos is really only thick enough for Ms Melville's lighter-weight jacket, not the Einstein. In a fit of denial (are you noticing a pattern here?) I continued swatching with different sized needles. The ugly truth is,you can't make 4" out of 3-1/4" no matter how hard you pull and regardless of whether you squint.

The happy ending to the story is that together, the Manos and the Inca have found their purpose in life:



The Einstein coat, gauge=spot-on on size 10-1/2 bamboo circs. (Unless maybe I'm in denial about that too...I hope not.) Watch this space for updates.

In other knitting news, I have finally joined the warshrag set! Check out this coffee cup dishcloth:



This cute little thang took no time at all, and now I am hooked! Great passenger seat knitting. I think my next one will be a Mason-Dixon Ball Band cloth like these ones by ADD; aren't the colors fabulous?

Real, Actual Knitting Content!

Remember this?



I didn't, until I found it - or the first few rounds anyway - shoved into a bag on a chair in my office. (I really should clean that room every once in a while...) I just sat down in the grass with it and knitted away until it was done. Gotta love two strands held together, know what I mean? Now for some straps and a date with the washing machine and it will be the bag that was supposed to be my niece's Christmas gift last year. (Hello birthday gift! Hurray Barbie colors!)

Also this:



LOVE this! Loveitloveitloveit!! I was going to go a little longer but the SWS is too warm for two wraps around my neck, I think. Closeup:



Yum! Best of all, purple pilgrim hat hearts it too:



Sigh!

And now, for today's gratuitous chihuahua shot. Look out, Cujo, here's one muy macho tough guy. Named, um, Frisky.



Happy weekend!

My name is Jennifer, and I am a Nerd

I bought this:



And if the purchase itself is not enough proof of my nerdosity, consider this: I've actually spent time pondering just how many Errols and House socks I can knit before the big July 21st midnight Book 7 release party. Please help me.

Also, in addition to being a nerd I am a total pushover. A small mob of purple finches has taken over my home and I have done nothing to stop them. Inside this once-beautiful but now raggedy geranium basket....




...is this little treasure:




Apparently it takes a village to raise a purple finch because we have not only the mama and papa but also aunts, uncles, grandparents, and concerned others defending the incubator. From me and my family.

It's not easy to make "peep peep peep peep!" sound angry but they do a good job. They have also pooped on my windows. Not to mention ravaging the poor geranium.

We have been - in my opinion - very gracious, coming and going through the garage instead of the front door, using the Slip 'N Slide out back instead of out front, and averting our eyes when we pass (making eye contact makes mama fly out of the nest - !) Also giving them a little birdbath and a special feeder:




But really, enough is enough.

I've looked into this thing and if my calculations are correct we should have some little peepers tomorrow or Monday (14 days to hatch, I think they moved in while I was at the Cape) and they will be out of here 13 days after that (13 days to launch.) By then, my geranium should be nice and dead.

Oh well, on the plus side my first attempt at putting annuals in the ground instead of boxes and planters seems to be going well. Here is some early summer eye candy:





Now if I could just do something about the psychotic kildeers defending their nest in my aborvitae...

Dramatic Chipmunk

And now for something totally ridiculous...click on the picture below:




Thanks, abby :)

Watch this space for a very funky scarf - coming soon!

SWS Magic

I've been uber-busy just lately, so not much knitting has been done. I have been working on a Patons SWS copy of the Noro 1x1 manually striped scarf I've been reading about here (definitely the most beautifully photographed version) and elsewhere.

Unfortunately, SWS comes in just a handful of colors, but I think that these two are working together in a really interesting way:





This is such a fun and fast knit, I can't seem to put it down! The SWS is soft and dense, and has a cushy but firm texture. It's fun to see what color combinations come up as you work. I can't imagine doing this is a really luxurious yarn like Silk Garden; I wouldn't be able to get anything else done ;)

Other than that, I'm still plugging away on the little guy's Jitterbug socks. Slow going, those little things. I think maybe it's the stockinette getting a bit boring - the next pair will be these, for sure. For me :)

I did escape this weekend with the dh, sans kids, to Cape Cod:





It was a lovely and relaxing weekend, and long overdue!

Field Trip Frenzy

Last week I was lucky enough to go on a few really good field trips:

Wednesday: The Yarn Harlot in Northampton:

Martinis and shopping please.



I loved Northampton Wools (am I spelling that right? I feel like I'm missing an H.) and a little stationery/other fun stuff shop called Essentials. Also, my appletini and 3-for-$3 tacos at the Toasted Owl.

Here's the Calvin Theater (this is just a little bitty-bit of the actual line.) There were 600+ people in the audience.



Here is my lame picture of Stephanie speaking. Webs' owners were fantastic. Stephanie was very funny. The event was incredibly well-coordinated, with time slots for the book signing and little cups of ice water while we waited in line. The store is huge!



Lynne, Lucia, Jena and I had a blast. Thanks, Lynne, for getting us around. Next road trip: Boston yarn crawl, I think ;)

Thursday: 2nd Grade Trip to the Zoo



Amazing animals and cute little people. What else can I say?

Saturday: School Trip to New York





The trip was limited to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, and a good thing because that took up the whole day :) The kids learned so much about both sites (and so did I.) We have a great school and some terrific friends, and that was one crazy-long bus ride! This was definitely a trip to remember.

Malabrigo IHS Done!

Finally wrapped up some unfinished business:





This was supposed to be a Christmas gift! Now it is soaking in a Eucalan bath and will go into the gift pile for this Christmas. See, I wasn't late, I was early ;) ...

I still love this pattern. I made one out of Paton's Classic Merino in brown and my husband wore it every cold day this winter. It still looks great. (For $5 per 100 g, that yarn rocks.) This year I might make one for myself in purple...in Malabrigo though,it is so heavenly!

Hoping to get a few more items knocked off the WIP list soon, maybe at SnB this weekend. Maybe this will be a knitting-in-the-park weekend at last?

Pilgrim's Progress

It's done! Ye olde 17th century Pilgrim cap from the pattern I bought at Plimouth Plantation. Yarn (also bought at PP) is Harrisville Highland wool, color=purple haze, made right here in New England.

Here's a closeup of the cuff, uncuffed:



The cuff design is very cool-looking and was fun to knit. It's not showing up very well here but it definitely pops. The yarn is fantastic, it feels very durable and the heathery tones of lavender with a bit of pink and grey are gorgeous.

More shots. I have never made a hat with this kind of shape at the top, but I really like it. The nubby little i-cord bump in the center is something I added because it just needed a lil something up there.





DH wants one now, in the same yarn but in a manly man color - of course. Since this one fits me pretty snugly I'll have to figure out how to accomodate his even bigger cranium; the cuff pattern is a multiple of 12 but I think adding 12 more stitches would make this too big. I'll probably try going up a needle size (used size 3s this time) instead.

Today's gratuitous chihuahua shot shows Frisky in love overload mode. Frisky's day: Morning: Sleep. One pm: Beg to go for a walk. (Don't take no for an answer.) Afternoon through evening: Get someone to throw ball endlessly for fetching, and to take outside for more walks. If unsuccessful, follow Mom constantly, staying as close as possible. Follow at her heels as she runs around the house. Sit on her whenever feasible, but if she's working, sit on sofa perpendicular to her desk and stare her down with misty eyes of love.



"I am silently willing you to snuggle with me, NOW. And while you're up, I could use a Greenie please."

Random meme

I've been tagged by Kat! Hey, Kat.

(I have to post this first:)
Here's how to play...
1. Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged write a blog post about their own 8 random things and post these rules.
3. At the end of your blog you need to tag 8 people and post their names.

Hmm...8 random things.

1. When I was an undergrad I used to zone out from studying/knitting/partying by reading Archie Comic Digests. Yes, as in Archie and Jughead. I still have a slew of them dating back to 1984.

2. I am a Chinese film and novel junkie. If I had time to pursue another language it would be Chinese.

3. Sour candy totally rocks, especially Sour Patch kids, Jelly Belly sour jelly beans, and Quench gum.

4. Symmetry is very important to me. As in, things on one side of my mantel need to be exactly the same as the things on the other side. Most of my house is like this. I don't want to think about what that says about me.

5. When I'm stressed out I play Louis Prima cds and sing along real loud. Usually I do this in my minivan.

6. I tell people I miss my SUV and the minivan was just a necessary evil, but secretly, I love that minivan.

7. When I eat out, my first choice is sushi. Second choice is Lebanese.

8. I was born in Canada. This bugs my kids because it means I can never run for president :) I kind of like it, actually.

Now I am supposed to tag, so witchypoo, Patrice, Lora, Kathy, Kristi, the crazed weasel, consider yourself tagged if you haven't already been.

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day! After a breakfast in bed of peanut butter toast and diet raspberry lemonade courtesy of the boys, I spent my day at Plimouth Plantation. My mother just finished reading this book and was eager to go chat up some Pilgrims, so off we went. The weather was perfect. This is always my favorite view, from the top of the hill by the watchtower:



We took my little one, who talked me into buying quills and ink at ye olde gifte shoppe. (Who knew the Pilgrims took MasterCard?) And I couldn't resist this Mother's Day gift for myself:




Because I so needed another project :)

Email to DH

OMG - I AM OFFICIALLY REGISTERED FOR THE YARN HARLOT.

Including: book signing, Q and A, shopping until the last knitter leaves, hors d'oeuvres AND cash bar. Be advised - I will be rolling out of town early in the day with a bag full of credit cards and pointy sticks and not coming back until very, very late.

Webs gift certificate (http://www.yarn.com) requested as Mother's Day gift please.

Love you :)
Jen

Wandering Aran Fields

I LOVE this pattern!



It is designed by Norah Gaughan and featured in the book Wrap Style. I'm knitting it in the larger size and the only modification I've made so far is to knit the button bands along with the body as I go rather than knitting them separately and sewing them on. (Here's hoping there wasn't some "special reason" Ms. Gaughan spec'd it out that way...but nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? And oh, how I hate to sew.)

Here's a long shot of my progress:



The process was so much easier once I transferred the 300+ stitches from my 24" addi circs to a set of 40"s. (Geez, you think???) Close-up:



Really, it's not quite as wonky as it looks in the photo.

Also greatly assisting me in my efforts is this baby:



Yes, you there in the middle. I have been searching for just such a stubby little cable needle but wasn't sure one existed until I combed my LYS the other day. It is making swift work of those cable crosses, fer sure. The birch feels so much nicer than the metal one I was using.

That's about all that's happening on the knitting front. Kids are *still* whooping it up on school vacation, but at Nana's for today. I am *supposed* to be using this time to work, so of course here I sit, chronicling my knitting foibles and follies...

Hope! And Lots of Droning about Other Stuff...

There might still be hope for Webs! Stay tuned! I will say this - the owners are really trying to accomodate. Regardless of the outcome I am really happy with their response to the groupie dilemma.

Now I'll have to buy even MORE yarn when I get out there! You know, just to show appreciation and all ;)

I am loving Aran Fields. It's going faster than I expected and I love working with alpaca, it's sooo soft. I'll try to post a picture later this weekend.

Not only is it officially spring (according to the calendar and the weather) but my house is now sparkling from a thorough spring cleaning! It smells so good in here. I even did those cleaning things I never do, like polish the marble on the fireplace surround and dust the chair rail in the dining room. It's nice to have some time to feel like a person again! And a husband who is fresh from a weeklong conference/golf-fest at Disney and ready to "help out" with the cleaning (grr). And ALL the windows open, hooray!

No one was safe from the cleaning frenzy today, even Boy #2 who would prefer almost anything to cleaning. Now all we have to do is the basement, which we'll probably accomplish while watching a movie to distract us from the tedium of sorting a bazillion legos back into their bins and putting cds back into their cases. (Lest you think I am a maniacal neat freak, it is not I who insist on keeping the legos sorted. The boys took a robotics class last year and were so impressed with the way the place had all the legos sorted into drawers by color and function that they asked for drawers and spent a whole day sorting. So now they are the maniacal neat freaks. The apples don't fall far from the tree though, lol.)

God, this is a boring post. Hopefully, though, my feelings of euphoria at the glorious spring weather, clean house, alpaca + fun pattern, and hopes of seeing the Harlot will spread a little joy into the blogosphere! (Or maybe it's just the fumes from all those cleaning supplies...?)

Hope you're having a great day too!

A Little Dark Cloud...

I just found out the Webs venue is already filled :( Apparently in my old age I have lost some of my groupie mojo as it never even occurred to me that there would be preregistration...

This takes me back to 1977, when my mom finally gave in to my whining and interrupted our trek to Cape Cod to stop at a music store (Strawberries? In Dedham, I think) so I could see my heartthrob, Leif Garrett. I made it into the roped line of lucky, lucky pre-teens well before they closed it off. But then, hours later when my Tiger Beat hero finally arrived, all of the teenie boppers broke and made a run for it. Besides nearly getting trampled I lost my place in line. So then, in addition to postponing the start of my family's vacation I tortured them by crying all the way there. (I was SUCH a dork.)

Oh well. I'm still kind of a dork, but I'll survive. Only if I can still go to Webs and load up though :)

Happy Days are Here Again!

The sun is shining, the semester is almost over, and I've just sent off a ginormous paper to my committee. Whee! I feel giddy, especially about the sun.

Also, for all my fellow New Englanders, the Yarn Harlot tour is coming to (near?) Webs in Northampton, MA on May 30. Webs is a giant yarn warehouse-type store that I've been dying to get to. What a perfect excuse. I am so there, along with a few knitting buds, and ready to break the bank on impulse purchases (and some pre-meditated ones) ;)

About the only knitting this week has been a teensy bit of progress on the ribbing for Aran Fields, and a teensy sample of cable knitting for Boy #1's genealogy project at school. (Sure 'n the DH has a bit o' the Irish in him. I just do the knitting.) But with the semester nearly over I can forsee a lot more knitting in the very near future. Yay, knitting! Go, me!

Today's gratuitous chihuahua shot features my nephew's Flat Stanley,who recently mailed himself here for a visit. (Mailing ones' self around is apparently one of the advantages of being flat.) Those of you who've recently had or known a 2nd grader will probably recognize him. Hoo-boy is he having some wild times here. There will be a lot to write in his journal, let me tell you:

Sunday is for F-U-N

First of all, a shot of my backyard, April 15, 2007. No explanation necessary:



Too much of this being cooped up indoors makes the boys a little crazy. Lots of potentially disastrous light saber action,



and laughing, seemingly at nothing, for long stretches of time. (Often until someone begins choking on something.) Or singing the same song over and over until someone (me) gets annoyed. Today it's been the White Stripes' "We're Going to Be Friends."

Boys. I just don't get 'em.

And now for some hard-core knitting. I made it through the miserable weather and luckily for me two other hardy and fun-lovin' knitting buds showed up at SnB. Aye mateys, we are made from good tough knittin' stock we are. My output, all 344 stitches (wide) of it:



Yes, that's the same poor alpaca that was frogged, then reknit, as the VK wrap. I frogged it again. Gorgeous, gorgeous wrap, but I finally had to admit that the pattern was boring me to tears. Goodbye VK, hello Aran Fields. We'll see how this one goes.

Here's the beginning of a swatch for the crocheted T in Cotton Fleece. It has to be in this yarn, I've decided. Love. It.



So, I've started a few new projects and put Prudence on the back burner. I'm too burned out on the V-neck issue to make a good choice right now, so into the closet it goes.

Me: It's not you, Prudence, it's me. I can't handle our problems right now. I just need a little space.
Prudence:
Me: Stop looking at me like that!

It feels good to be knitting again. Crochet is a fun side trip every once in a while but there's nothing quite like the rhythm of knitting. Or the rhythm of the music my kids' endless singing has left in my head:

"And when I wake tomorrow I'll bet
that you and I will walk together again.
Cause I can tell that we're going to be friends."

Frazzled!

As the end of the semester approaches I am busy wrapping up the courses I teach. I am also trying to give birth (metaphorically speaking of course) to a particularly stubborn and unwieldy paper that is resisting all of my efforts to complete it and send it out into the world. Ever have a project like that? Just when you think you are done, something jumps out needing to be resolved. It is like intellectual Whack-a-Mole. Or something. The Paper That Would Not Be Done.

Prudence is turning out to be a lot like that. The picking up of stitches around the deep V neckline has turned out to be nearly impossible - it looks like I've stapled the damn ribbing on! After ripping out and consulting EZ (Knitting Without Tears) I've concluded that I messed up by including the end stitches in the decreases instead of leaving a regular stitch at each end of the decrease rows. Sigh. Looks like I'll be doing some more R-I-Ppin' unless anyone has a clever fix for this problem.

And look Ms/Mr/Dr Berrocco, would it have been so difficult to just include that little gem of wisdom in your pattern? I know the pattern was free and all. And technically I didn't actually use your yarn to make it. And clearly you assume I have a basic knowledge of knitting and stuff. But Still...

Thank goodness exasperating things happen from time to time or I'd have no reason to blog! Because there surely is not much knitting going on around here.

On a brighter note, I've been having so much fun with the ripple afghan that I'm contemplating upping the crochet vibe a little. I love the green T-shirt on the cover of this book:



I would totally wear this. Unfortunately, I'm having a little trouble getting gauge with the Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece the pattern calls for. I am also swatching with Cotton-Ease, but after working with Cotton Fleece...seriously fabulous, soft and nicely drape-y (yes, even in crochet) with a hit of a sheen...the Cotton-Ease leaves a bit to be desired. Cotton-Ease does create a nice rope-y matte texture though, I think it'd be a great look for summerwear.

We'll see who wins the swatch-out, I guess :) BTW The book also has cute patterns for a little beaded shell top and a wrap to go with...

A Few Words about Gauge

When I was a brand-new knitter I was bold and adventuresome. My first project? Why a sweater, of course. I bought the pattern, the size 3 and size 5 needles, and a whole mess o' yarn. Acrylic, heavy worsted yarn from the 5 and 10. On size 3s and size 5s.

"To save time, check gauge."

Gauge? What's that? Did I care? Ha! I cared not. For that would mean Not Beginning Immediately, and damnit, I had a sweater to make.

20 years later, that sweater looks just as bad, and weighs just as much, as it did the day it was finished. I keep it as a testament to the importance of Gauge. (Not to mention common sense, but that's a whole other issue.) Behold and fear ye the awesome power of GAUGE!!





Can you say, "1985?"

In other news, yesterday's snow day was followed by today's "staffing issue" day, which means an unexpected 4-day weekend for my kids. Yikes! I love having them home, but they are so not conducive to me getting work done. However, knitting is something that can happen, and so it has:



Front of Prudence blocking comfortably in the living room. (Measured, patted into place, remeasured, and pinned.) I patted as best I could but it's still about 1/2" too long in the body and 1/4" too long in the armhole. I can live with a wee bit too long, though.



Back of Prudence is back OTN, an inch longer, and ready for the shoulder shaping. (Will you look at those Addis sparkle!)

Now for some bread machine pizza and several thousand hands of rummy, with perhaps a game of Sorry thrown in. Is it Monday yet??

Crazytown, USA

Okay, people, it's April 4th already:



Enough with the snow.

No knitting. Tiny amounts of ripple crochet. Much stressing and working. Thank God for chocolate. And for this:



Chihuahua salt and pepper shakers with magnets in their noses that make them kiss. Hehe. Only my mother knows where to find such things.