Cooling Off

What to do when it's too hot to knit? Do something impulsive: Jump in the car with some knitting buddies and head for the hills! So here we are, knitting in the cool shade of some obliging Sierra pines. Temperature in the mountains: 80 degrees. Temperature at home: 104. Good choice, huh?
We even managed some FOs! Here are my watermelon socks from Vicki Suan's yarn, and Cindi's first of two.
Emmy finished two scarves for her niece from yarn selected during Brittanie's visit last month.

Betsy finished the back of her cabled sweater and made great progress on the front.

Laura completed her fabulous Rogue cardigan -- and sewed on matching silver Celtic buttons. And the best part was -- it was cool enough to wear it!!

Needles just seem to knit faster at higher (and cooler) elevations.

The Sock Plot Thickens

Ya know, sometimes the only way to beat 'em is to just finish 'em up. So there they are, just in time for our 100+ degrees 4th of July weather!

And yes, that is a stitch marker knit right into the sock. I make coordinating stitch markers for each of my sock projects, just for fun. When you do toe up, you really don't need them, but I like to use a marker to mark the rounds during the toe increases. After that, they are just "knitting jewelry." When I'm nearly finished with the second sock, my faithful stitch marker, as a reward for stitcking out the whole project, gets knit in right above the ankle. Kinda like a sockish ankle charm. These socks are for me, hence the frog in the marker.

I also knit up a pair of socks for my daughter, who has an affinity for camelids -- alpacas and camels in particular. So here are her socks ---

And here is her special stitch marker. She didn't care if it was 100 degrees -- she pulled them right on and wore them in the house for her whole weekend visit. In fact, she was so grateful, she is probably going to get another pair of socks in the very near future! :)

The Amazing Lace Challenge 3: Poetry Obstacle

Pavlov’s Lace Knitter

She started this lace with the best of intention,
Working diligently day and night.
But distractions abound -- too many to mention,
And the lace? It’s now out of sight.

Cheeky little socks vie for attention
Their self-striping colors so bright.
What fun it is, this Faire Isle-ish invention!
So the lace? It’s now out of sight.

KADD, she claims with some pretension --
Knitting Attention Deficit Disorder –- yeah, right.
More like a lack of project retention,
Because the lace? It’s now out of sight.

So she finds herself in this knitters’ convention
“The Amazing Lace,” to be polite.
The spirit of challenge, the competitive tension --
And the lace? It now sees the light!

Amazing Lace Challenge 2: X-treme Distraxions

(K2, yo, k2tog)
OK, we're doing great! We're humming right along now, Peacock and I. We are definitely in sync and knitting well. Our rhythm is good, we're making great time. Concentrate, concentrate. Yeah, we can do this.
(Yo, k2tog, yo)

Here's the first hurdle: a half-knit sock trying to distract us from our goal. Typical "cheerleader" stuff. Won't work this time. No way.
(K2, k2tog, yo)

Next hurdle: a lovely skein of self-striping Fortissima in fabulous shades of pink. No. No. No. Do not look. Do NOT look. Keep knitting. Eyes on the lace.
(Yo, K2tog, yo)

Whoa. This is getting a lot harder: a skein of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock --- and Harry Potter Book 6 on CDs! Yow! M_u_s_t k_e_e_p f_o_c_u_s_e_d. Do not give in to temptation. Do not quit. Keep knitting. Keep knitting. Hang in there with me, Peacock! Don't give up!
(K2, yo, k2tog)

OH NO! Foul!! Foul!! No fair!! This is the worst distraction of all!!! It's Team Jane Austin with a stack of DVDs and a skein of purple Socks That Rock!!!! And Mr. Darcy, too! There's no way I can watch a DVD and knit lace! NOooooooooo! Oh, the humanity!
(k...?)

All rightie, then. Come on, Peacock. We can play hardball, too. Extreme times call for extreme measures: time to pull out our secret defensive knitting tactic: the bonnet! Must...keep...eyes...on...lace. Must...keep...eyes...on...lace. Come on, we can do it...we...must...we...must...we...must...
(K2...yo...k2tog)

World Wide Knitting In Public Day -- Sacramento Style