Magic

Look! It's a loop! It's magic!
So, I attempted the magic loop method of knitting socks. I actually took one of the baby socks I was knitting, but it on a 32 inch circular needle, and futzed with it until I figured it out. (I got my KnitPicks Options needle set, and it is really really great. I also order some circs in small sizes expressely for sock knitting. The cables are really soft and flexible, more so even than Addi Turbos, I think). I'm not one of those that hates dpns--I like working with them fine, and they're quite useful--but it was nice to have a different way to knit socks. Just for variety.
These socks are done now, actually. Will post pictures soon.
Okay! I've started Owen's birthday sweater. I actually have much much more of it done, because this weekend I went to see both Snakes on a Plane and Idlewild. Learning to knit in the dark was the smartest thing I ever did.

I mentioned, last week I think, that I had four projects on needles. I am now down to three!

1. Mom's present: FINISHED.

2. Felted bag for me: coming along. Still working on the body of the bag:


3. Socks for Anna's daughter: One sock down! One to go.

4. Felted placemats: Yeah, I haven't actually done anything on these yet. They sit in the corner gathering dust and cat hair. I'll get to them, maybe someday when I need something to knit in the dark. Or to knit while reading--that's a possibility. Classes start in a month or so.

Knitting class: It went great! I had three ladies show up, which was a manageable number. In one hour's time they were all able to master the knitting-on cast-on method, and two were able to move on to actual knitting. We'll see how it goes next week!

I've been thinking. I have this trifecta of birthdays in late October--Mom, Owen, and Dad all in a span of two weeks. I'm making Owen and Mom birthday presents, I should really make Dad one as well. He deserves it, having introduced me to Deadwood, my new DVD addiction. I'm thinking socks. (I can say that because I'm pretty sure he doesn't read this blog). I've always been a fan of toe-up socks, and I've always used the figure-8 cast-on, but I was reading about the short-row toe, and I think I'll give it a try. It sounds so easy! I can do short-row heels already! And the figure-8 cast-on, as much as I love it, does leave some loose stitches to fix. So now I somehow need to figure out how big my father's feet are without alerting him to my purpose.

Kinky yarn

This is that bad, kinky yarn I was talking about last week. I washed it and hung it up to dry and it unkinked beautifully! It kind of smells minty now too. I have like 1600 yards of this stuff!

I'll have a progress report on other projects later on this week--maybe later on today. Right now I'm getting ready to go teach my first every knitting class (at work). I'm . . . apprehensive.

Weekend Progress Report

Mom's birthday present is done!!! (Barring a little finishing and blocking). Because it's a secret, I'll have to post pictures later. Right now, I'm just enjoying the feeling of accomplishment.

Also, this weekend I knitted in a new location--on the beach! (The grassy part, not the sandy part). It was nice. It's a terrible, terrible shame that I live within walking distance of Lake Michicagan and I don't visit it more often.

The list.

Now I'm thinking I should make this or this out of that Cherry Tree Hill Silken Mohair stuff I frogged. Sounds good? But not until I finish the four projects I'm working on now, plus the sweatervest for Drew. And I still need to find a pattern for the big baggy sweater my boss has requested. It's on the list.

Pandora is playing some sad, sad music this morning.

Here is some Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum graffiti from the building across from my el stop.

Finish something, already!

I have way too many projects on needles right now. See:

1. Mom's secret birthday present.
2. Those (to be) felted WOTA placements.
3. Socks for AM's daughter (Happy Birthday, Mariah!).
4. A felted bag (see pic) based on the Satchel pattern of the men's stuff issue of Knitty. See, a while ago I made a satchel for Marcos. The pattern calls for two strands of worsted yarn held together, but I made his out of bulky-weight Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride. We chose some pretty awesome colors: two shades of orange and a bronze. The bag came out great--weird and extra fuzzy because that's just how Lamb's Pride is. Marcos says he gets compliments on it everywhere he goes. (I lost my pics of it when my old computer died). At the same time, Jessica made a bag from the same pattern for Chance. She used doubled-up WOTA, and I think it felted better than mine did, although it didn't have the same exuberant fuzziness, and Chance's color choices were a little conservative for me. So, I've been on this quest to use up yarn, and I still have a *lot* of WOTA, so I decided to make a felted satchel for myself. I'm using a stand of green yarn and a strand of blue, and I'm very curious to see how it looks once it felts.

I also have once project now off the needles--Tubey. My father gave me Cherry Tree Hill's Silken Mohair for Christmas, and it is fancy--so fancy, really, that I don't know what do with it. I started Tubey, but I'm just not feeling it, and it's been sitting and kinking up for some months now. So I frogged it, and I'm going to try to remove the kinks by bathing it and hanging it up to dry. Then I have to figure out what do with this awesome yarn. A sweater, of some sort. Not clapotis, because you can have too much of a good thing.

In other news, I love Pandora.com. It's playing The Polyphonice Spree for me right now.

Lorna's Laces Shepard Sport

Isn't it pretty?

Knitting near smokers

So, I was working on Mom's secret present last night at Marcos and Chance's while watching Project Runway (best reality show ever, at least of the three that I've seen [the other two being American Idol on YouTube and Temptation Island back when I still watched TV in my own house]). Marcos's parents are visiting from Brazil, so I got to meet them for the first time, which was cool. His mom doesn't really speak English but she fussed over my knitting. I was really exciting to crash in front of the TV and knit while hoping to see Angela ousted, but I didn't take into consideration that a) Drew would be there smoking a stogie, and b) Marcos's parents had brought with them a case of some really, really strong Brazilian cigarettes, for Marcos and for themselves. The apartment became a very smoky place.

This morning my knitting gave off the distinct smell of cigar, with just a touch of Brazilian cigarette smoke. It seems to be airing out okay, but thank goodness this yarn is washable! My mother is more sensitive to smoke than anyone I know.

Loopy Yarns is having some big crazy sale event next Friday, and I think Jessica and I will go. I'll have very little money to spend there, but it's right by my office and I think they're doing a little wine and cheesy type thing.

Setting goals

It's been hot, but I've been happily knitting away on air-conditioned el cars, and in other people's air-conditioned apartments. My apartment? I can barely remember what it looks like. I stop by every once in a while to check on the cat and sleep. The heat is supposed to break tonight (fingers crossed).

I'm working on some autumn birthday presents. My mother, father, and brother all have birthdays in late October, so I'm thinking ahead for once. I'm currently working on an undisclosed something for my mother, about which I will say this: it's made out of Lorna's Laces Shepard Sport in the "Irving Park" colorway, and it is awesome. Owen has requested Hello Yarn's Cycling Aran, only "without all that fancy stuff on the front", so, although it's kind of killing me, I'm going to just do a plain ribbed front. I think it will work out okay, because his chest measurements are just a little bigger than what the sweater is designed to fit as it is. I'm thinking of using the new KnitPicks Wool of the Andes Bulky for this . . . we will see. My goal is to be finished with Mom's gift in two weeks and ready to start on his sweater.

Other projects in the wings: socks for my coworker's daughter, who just turned one, my felted placemats, and what was going to be a Tubey for me but may now need to become something else. Oh, I'm also trying to see if I can come up with a sort of manly version of Clapotis--at least manly enough for an international electro-pop superstar.