100

I've put off this post for a while, because it's my 100th post. And for some reason, I think that breaking into three digits should have a post that's in some way . . . extraordinary.

But I got nothin', so I'm going with a normal FO kind of post. Except--yipee! 100.

There has been some finishing:

The more-titling-than-waving socks, based on the Waving Lace pattern from IK's Favorite Socks, complete with my own incorporated screw up that we're calling a design element. US size 1.5 needles, from Knit Picks, magic looped. The yarn is a very yummy Sundara sock yarn in Electric Pear, which I scored on the Ravelry ISO/Destash forum.

Overall, this was a pretty easy knit. I like the mods I made, albeit unintentionally, but if I were to do it again, I'd either go down a needle size, or stick with the original patter--these are a little loose.

And a second FO: Meet Ollie.



Ollie is a super cute elephant, made using Susan Anderson's free Elefante pattern (scroll down; it's on the sidebar). I love this pattern--I'm very happy with the way it came out. He was a very big hit at the baby shower I made him for.

This was my first real attempt at crochet, so the ears took me much longer than I think they should have, but since they're adorable, I"m not going to complain. Next time it won't take nearly as long--and there will definitely be a next time. Maybe soon. Maybe nephew #2 needs an elefante. Maybe in green.

This is my favorite shot of him, looking all shy and adorable:

Startitus

Ramona: Re-started to fix the scallopping at the bottom of the center seam. Since I managed to snip the wrong thread, I ripped back a few rows and added another inch to the length. The knitting's been done for at least a week, but I can't seem to manage to sew the hem down and reseam. Which is too bad, since I'd really like to wear it again before the weather's too warm for angora. Blue socks-that-come-up-to-his-knees for T. One is almost done, and I've cast on for the second, but I haven't had a lot of car knitting time lately.

Cabled baby blanket for the new, not-quite-here-yet nephew. The only problem is I'm not in a cabling kind of mood. But SIL really wanted a cabled blanket, so I'm pushing through a couple of rows a day.

And once I manage that, I turn to my new love:

Swallowtail Shawl, from Interweave Knits Fall 2006 by the oh-so-amazing Evelyn Clark. The yarn is Fearless Fibers superwash sock merino, in Brick House, and the colors are wonderful. Very subtle and interesting. I think it will look wonderful when it's blocked. The yarn was a gift from my sock pal, and I've been saving it to find something that would show off the colors.

I started it on Tuesday, 2/5; I'm done with the first border chart already. So another three days or so and I should be ready to block it. The nupps aren't too bad; I'm using size 6 KnitPicks Harmony needles, and I've been nupp-ing loosely, so the p5tog are going relatively well. (What does "nupp" stand for, anyway? Why nupp? Why not nipp? or nup?)

I started it in part because, having just mailed off my dissertation in its penultimate form, I needed something a little complicated to distract me. I'm thinking about giving it to my (female) head advisor after my defense; I'm not sure if that means I need to knit something for each of my committee members, though. I've got another skein of Fearless Fibers sock yarn, although it's not the superwash version, so the skein has less yardage. Maybe another Swallowtail? Or something slightly less complicated (or at least, less-complicated looking) for my third reader (also female), and a scarf for my second reader (male)?

I'm hoping to schedule the defense for my spring break, which is the first week in March; it would be easier to go down if I don't have to juggle classes at the same time. We'll see what the committee says, though. But at the rate this shawl is moving, I should be able to finish another couple of gifts before then.

December Goals

It's been a busy month--too much time spent grading and not enough knitting or blogging. My last day of classes is this Tuesday; I've had several rounds of papers to grade this month. All of my classes are writing classes and on the last day I ask my students to give me a portfolio with all their work, along with a (new) reflective essay--which is nice, because it means most of the grading is done before the end of the semester, but it also means a lot of grading around Thanksgiving.

Teaching would be so much more fun if it weren't for all the grading. :)

I've also got a cold that won't go away--I lost my voice for a few days (much to the amusement of my nephew over Thanksgiving!) and now just have a persistent cough.

I have been doing some knitting, though--no sweater for November, but the pressure to finish my brother's Christmas present in time for Christmas will just add to the fun.

The goals round up:

November goals:

1. Finish the Stripes and Torchon scarf--or at least, finish up all the yarn I have and, if I run out, work on finding more. almost there--stay on target! I've got about a repeat of the border left; Somehow (even though I've followed the pattern!) the border has wound up not working out exactly, and--since there are 34 rows--it's a little harder to fudge and make it wind up looking even than I'd have imagined. But I should be done with it today or tomorrow, and then I'll cast on for
   
2. Start and finish the Brother sweater. Not even close. So not even close I haven't even finished the maths for it, although I swatched. Two months ago, so maybe I should swatch again?
   
3. Knit socks for T, who saw me knitting them and said he'd like a pair. Of course, he's three, so he may not remember, but I do. And he's got little feet, so they shouldn't take too long. Done, mailed, but not photographed. I was working on another pair of socks over Thanksgiving, and he asked me again about his socks; I showed him the yarn I had with me and he decided he liked the leftovers from my red Aracaunia Ranco socks and wanted red socks. He kept bringing me the yarn and asking about them--a totally adorable, if somewhat unrealistic, expectation of how long it would take to knit a pair of socks. The enthusiasm was nice, though! I didn't have enough yarn, even though I made the cuffs fairly short--he got red socks with blue toes.
   
4. Start a chevron scarf and see if the colors I have will work. I'm saving this as a treat, since I can't wait to use the yarn. Done, here, but not successfully. I"m rethinking the colors, and what to do with my lovely Posh yarn.
   
5. Learn a new technique. I'm not sure what--maybe cabling without a cable needle, since I'd also like to No new techniques, but I'm getting better with the magic loop.
   
6. Knit at least one pair of Fetching mitts. One down, one to go--does the thumb gusset count as a new technique?

Stash acquisitions: Blocking wires from Joann.com, which I would link to, but they don't seem to have them in stock right now. But with a 50% off coupon, they wound up being around $20 including shipping. I haven't used them yet--the Stripes and Torchon scarf will be my first project using them. I also bought some Claudia's handpainted in Blue Terra Cotta in a Ravelry Swap, along with the Sundara sock yarn.

Actual November knitting:

1. Most of the Stripes and Torchon scarf
2. Socks for the nephew
3. Red socks for me
4. Cast on for Waving lace socks from IK's Favorite Socks; they're too big, though, and I need to start over with a smaller needle size
5. Cast on for a pair of basic socks with the Claudia's handpainted

December Goals:

1. Finish Stripes and Torchon
2. Start and finish the Brother sweater--third time's a charm? And, damn it, if I don't, I have to come up with another present idea.
   
3. Finish the second Fetching mitt--they're a present for my aunt for Christmas
   

I'm limiting myself to those three. I'm sure that at least the basic socks will get a fair amount of knitting, as well--the more I knit, the more I like to have a mindless portable project that travels well.

Since the semester is almost over, and the bulk of my grading is already done, I think I can manage those three. If I get them done early, I may aim for a hat or two, and rethink the scarf for myself, as my new winter coat is a basic black wool coat that comes down to my knees, so a new colorful scarf to go with it would be great

Proof that there has been knitting

Even though there hasn't been any blogging:

Exhibit 1:

One finished Snicket Sock. I ran out of yarn on the toe, so I used some leftover blue. I've started the second one, but I've only got about 10 rows done, so it's not very interesting to look at.













Exhibit 2:


Progress has been made on the Stripes & Torchon lace shawl. The border is a 34 row, 20-30 stitch repeat, filled with double yo's and slip one, knit 2tog, psso's, which is making it hard to memorize. Also making it hard to memorize is the fact that I work a repeat and then put it down for four days, 'cause I'd rather be working on something else. I'm not lovin' the lace at the moment--I want nice, easy knitting. I'm done with 8 border repeats so far. I'm a little afraid to count how many are left!


The change in color is strange, since it's from the same skein of Malabrigo laceweight. There was a knot in the skein, so when I was making balls out of the yarn, I started a new ball when I found the knot. I couldn't believe how different the colors are! But I've decided that such is the way of handknits, and that I'm not going to worry about it.

Exibit 3:

Not actual knitting, but proof of another trip to Webs. Last weekend my DH told me to pick a destination, so I picked Quabbin Reservoir. Which was absolutely gorgeous; I think another trip out when the leaves are turning is in order.

And since we were so close to Northampton, we made a short stop at Webs, where I got some sock yarn in appropriately manly colors for husband socks, yarn for a sweater for him (pictured below), and the 25th Anniversary edition of Vogue Knitting. I don't normally get VK--I like the patterns in IK better--but I bought it for the articles, I swear. :)






Exhibit 4:

Cascade 220 in a loverly heathery green, called lichen, and approved of by DH before purchase. When we started talking about a sweater for him, he said he wanted green--a lichen or moss green. We picked this out, and when I looked it up online later, I realized that even the name was perfect! He liked Webs--they have a nice lounge area with magazines and comfy chairs, suitable for knitting or for waiting for spouses.

I've started an EPS sweater with it--I haven't decided on a style yet, although I'm leaning toward a seamless hybrid. As I've only turned the hem and knit about 4 inches of the body, I've got some time to decide, though.

There is no Exhibit 5, because I'm too lazy to get the camera, but my parents came up for a visit, and bought me a ball winder for my birthday. We went to Fabric Place--my mom wanted to get some Patons Canadiana for a baby blanket, and I had a 25% off total purchase coupon. They also had ball winders (and I had a 40% off a single item coupon, too!)--I've never seen them there before--and so it came home with me. And my birthday's not for another month!

I also had a chance to visit with a cousin I rarely see--he grew up in Colorado to my NJ, and lives in the midwest, but was out for a professional conference. So he, DH and I went to Jasper White's Summer Shack for dinner on Monday night (must take out-of-towners for seafood! and we love Summer Shack), and then picked him up for dinner chez nous Thursday with my parents, whom he also rarely sees.

On top of everything else, my summer class ended on August 16, and grades were due on August 23. Right now I'm trying to get a few of my own things done before the fall semester starts after Labor Day, including coming up with course calendars! Fortunately, both classes I'm teaching I've done before, so I'll probably go with readings that I've used in the past, which makes it a little quicker to put together.

Christmas in July

My mom has a thing for Santas. (No, not that kind of a thing. A collecting kind of a thing.)

She must have 300 of them, and every year at Christmas, they come out. And every January, they get wrapped back up and put away until the following year.

At least, that was the routine until G and I took our first trip to Russia 6 years ago, when we came back with a carved St. Nicholas statue--maybe 6 inches high. It stayed on the mantel year-round.

Since then, we've been back to Russia once (and brought back 2 more St. Nicks), and G found one in Poland. So she had 3 tall-ish (10 inches, maybe?) and 1 shorter statue. They reside in a place of honor on the mantel, all year round.

But she kept telling me that they didn't balance--3 tall and 1 short, there was no way to arrange them on the mantel.

When a friend of ours went to Russia last month, you can guess what we asked her to bring back:


Two more St. Nicholas statues--one tall, one short.

I was going to wait, and give them to her in December, but I couldn't wait.

She was absolutely delighted--and now the mantel balances perfectly.

I am, however, waiting to hear her next reason for why we should go to Russian and buy more St. Nicks. :)

A journey of a thousand rows . . .

Begins with a single stitch.

Three evenings of work on the border for the Stripes and Torchon shawl, from Victorian Lace Today. The pattern is pretty--I do like this border--but it's full of SK2P and double yarn-overs, and it's 34 rows long, so I've got no shot at memorizing it. Three repeats down, and who knows how many (30+, I think) more to go.

Fortunately, it's a Christmas present (I know. I'm pretty astonished myself, that I could be working on a Christmas present in July. Of course, at the rate I'm going, I'll still be working on it in December, if I'm not careful!). So there's time.


And a shot of my orchid, which has been blooming continuously since I got it at the end of last August.

For some people, that may not be a huge accomplishment, but I can actually kill mint. And bamboo--I've done it. So the fact that my orchid is not only still alive, but actually thriving? Blows me away.

110 down, 10 to go

120 diamonds in the center panel of the Stripes and Torchon scarf I'm making for my SIL for Christmas.


110 down.

10 more to go.

Plus the border, of course, but I'm ignoring that for the moment.

ETA: the knitting maths, they kill me every time. 110+10=120, not 130. *sigh*