Calendar Blur

I think someone has stolen some pages from my calendar. The last couple of months have been a blur. Well, *December* was a blur. January was Recovery Month fog.

December started out in a fun sparkling whirl of last minute shopping, knitting, parties, dinners, happy Christmas preparations, and welcoming houseguests. It ended with sad and dreary holidays spent in various emergency rooms and hospitals with said houseguests. After the houseguests were recovered enough to return to their homes, I became ill. Thus Recovery January.

But let's focus on the fun part!

There was a train trip with Debbie Stoller from Sacramento to San Francisco. Debbie was promoting her newest book, "Son of Stitch 'n Bitch." She had all the projects from the book with her to pass around. As beautiful as the book photography is, it can't begin to convey the tactile experience of handling and examining the actual items. There were only a few of us on the train that day, so she decided to hang out with us for a while. She is truly delightful.

We window-shopped around Union Square, had tea at the St. Francis (and rode the glass elevator to the top of the hotel for the most magnificent view of the city).
We also visited Nieman-Marcus to crane our necks and gaze straight up at the beautiful tree that stretches 3 stories up to the stained glass ceiling. When this site -- the former location of the old City of Paris department store -- was rebuilt, the rotunda and stained glass ceiling were largely preserved and restored in the new building design. Neiman Marcus also preserves the tradition of the giant tree at Christmas.


I also managed to complete a surprising number of knitting projects in November & December. It seemed as though my knitting needles were permanent extensions of my fingers! Here are my November socks. The yarn is Synchopation in the colorway Zoot Suit from sKNITches.

This may be the only time you will see me knit with brown yarn. But that's what the military decrees for personnel in Iraq, so that's what I knit with.

Here are some of my knit projects that went into one the Christmas packages I sent to my daughter. Gloves, fingerless gloves, mitts, and socks. Yup -- she was the recipient of the October Corn Monkey socks. (OK, I cheated a bit on the brown here!) I also sent her a fresh wreath, which arrived in great shape (!) and which she hung on her trailer door -- a patch of green cheer in a blah land.

I also managed to complete my December socks. These were one of the projects I knit while hospital visiting between December 23 and January 3.
The yarn is Lana Grossa Meilenweit: Mega Boots Stretch Color 716. The knit-in marker is made up of Swarovski crystals and a pewter cat with a red glass bead middle.

The last *completed* 2007 knitting project is a wonderfully soft pair of gloves that I knitted for myself from Andean baby alpaca in a yummy marled purple. This yarn bloomed beautifully when I washed it, and they keep my fingers toasty warm on icy mornings.

The last *uncompleted* 2007 project is an Aran cardigan by request from my son. This is how much I had done when we got around to celebrating Christmas in January. I am happy to report that I am now half-way done with the sleeves. Then there's the front band, and 2007 will be officially complete. :)


Next time: January socks!!

Catching Up

For the record, Franklin Habit is a very personable, very gentle, and amazingly bright man. He genuinely cares about knitting, knitters, and all things yarn; but his areas of interest and his range of knowledge are vast. He was a delightful and appreciative visitor. I am so glad the Stockin'ettes were able to sponsor his visit and ensure Sacramento's participation in the 1000 Knitters project. Thank you to all of the guild members and non-members —and new members! — who came out last Saturday to make the day such a success. And thank you, Franklin, for being everything we hoped you would be — and so much more.

The September Sock and the Great Cast-On Discovery

And now for some catching up. Somehow, September and October zoomed right by without me blogging my socks for those months. So here's the September sock:

This is Yarntini in "Strawberry Daquiri," although it reminded me much more of a strawberry soda. The knitted-in charm is a little martini glass, which is the closest I could find to a daquiri. :)


The pattern is my favorite Wendy's Generic Toe-Up sock, but what really made me happy about these socks is the cast-on. I used Judy's Magic Cast-On for the toe, and I just *love* it! I've tried several different toe-up cast-on techniques, but this one is by far and away my favorite. It takes a bit of practice to get the gauge to match the rest of the knitting, but not a lot. And once it's done, it is absolutely invisible. (See the next pair of socks for an attempt to photograph it.)

October Corn Monkeys

I remember being fascinated when I discovered bamboo yarn a few years ago, and since then, it seems that almost anything that can be processed and twisted into a sizeable thread is fair game for knitting. So I wasn't really surprised when I found Maizy yarn at Jimmy Beans in Reno. But I was curious about it, and really liked the feel of it. It's 82% corn fiber and 18% elastic nylon. (Kind of like Fixation — soft and springy.) And absolutely perfect for Cookie A's wonderful Monkey Socks.

If these socks look a bit different than other Monkey socks you may have seen, just stand on your head and look again. See? Cookie knitted her socks top-down; I knitted these toe-up, so the pattern is up-side down. I like it! And yes, the toe is Judy's Magic Cast-On. Told ya. I'm gonna be using it for a long, long time.

Can you see the cast on?

The knitted-in marker features a glass cat's head. Yes, I know it isn't a monkey. I just liked the look of it with the yarn. The color, by the way, is "Menswear." Go figure. Who comes up with these names??

Prelude to a Visitation: Sacramento Airport

Can you guess who we are waiting for?

Here's a hint.

:)

A Weekend With Annie

It's always so much fun when a well-known knitting teacher and designer comes to town! Last weekend, the Sacramento Knitting Guild -- aka the Stockin'ettes -- played host to Annie Modesitt. Annie taught 4 classes over two days: Embellishments & Beading on Saturday, and Cables & Lace on Sunday.

I think my favorite was the embellishments portion, but I definitely picked up *a lot* of useful tips from all the sessions. In my opinion, no matter how good a knitter you are or how long you've been knitting, there are always wonderful new and different things to learn.

For instance, it is truly mind-boggling how many different cast-on and cast-off methods there are. My mom knit for 60+ years and always used the same methods. Those were the ones she used when she first learned to knit, and they were the same ones she was using when she put down her needles for the last time. (And here's a really sad thing: other than me, Mom never had another friend who knit. Pretty incredible thought today, huh?) I definitely credit the Internet for spreading new ideas, inspiring and publicizing new books, forming knitterly communities and helping new designers, teachers, and authors gain market traction. Look at the explosion of knitting/fiber-related shows and conferences. And the yarn! Well, the wild proliferation of yarns and patterns available to today's knitters just couldn't have happened without Internet buzz.

What do you think?

Anyway, Annie was a lot of fun. Her teaching method is very personable and she has lots of knitting-related stories and jokes to tell. We all had a good time and laughed while we learned.

This is Annie & me joking around with the pictures in her new book, Romantic Knits. Annie donated a full set of her books to the guild library. Thanks, Annie! We look forward to your next visit!

Great Balls o' Fire!

Here's the latest in my Summer of Magical Socks series -- the Chinese Fireball Dragon socks. The yarn is from Sunshine yarns, and for once, I don't mind the pooling and flashing in this colorway, because, after all -- it is supposed to be dragonish.

I used the "Small Capitals" stitch pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks, but did them toe-up with an inch of ribbing to finish up the leg. The stitch marker is a sterling silver dragon charm.

The dragon picture in the picture with the socks is created using a Japanese needlework method called bunka. It is done with a small hollow punch needle and a fine raveled-silk thread. I started this piece when I lived in Okinawa as a teenager, and finished it when I was in my early 20's. I never liked all the "beginner" bunka pictures with flowers and birds -- I liked the advanced ones with tsurus, tigers, and dragons. :) I made several bunka pieces while in Okinawa, and gave them to friends and relatives. I kept this dragon, but this is the first time I have ever hung it on a wall in my house. I like it. I think it will stay for a while. :)