Olympic Knitting

Yes, I'm on the bandwagon.  I'm going to attempt to finish an entire adult sweater in two weeks.  I've chosen Seneca (rav link)

Those look like olympic rings right?  I figure it is the right amount of challenge in the sideways cable with lots of straight stockinette thrown in for plenty of mindless knitting.  I'm not a huge fan of angora, but wanted to make sure the sweater was soft and drapey with a fuzzy halo, so I chose Cascade Eco Alpaca in natural.  The yarn is very soft and I got gauge on size 7 needles--I'm a bit concerned that the cables don't look as "solid" as I would like, but I think blocking will help them plump up.  I will admit that I did not block my swatch (I know, I know) but I used the first sleeve as my unofficial swatch.  Having used this yarn before, I have a feel for how much it grows with blocking and I am taking that into account as I choose my size.


Progress so far:

Day 1: Could not cast on during the opening ceremonies as we were out to dinner so I spent Saturday catching up. Finished the cable section and about 7” of the first sleeve. Goal is to finish the second sleeve by tomorrow night, so I have most of the games to do the body.

Day 2: First sleeve finished! It’s 10:30pm, I’m very sleepy but halfway through the second sleeve cables. Can I get them done tonight? That would set up a straight shot of stockinette to get to the goal of finishing the sleeves by tomorrow.

ETA: Powered through cables, finished at around 11:30, thanks to some mistakes that needed fixing. Not unlike the “penalty” lap in biathlon.

Winter Light

I got this in the mail today.  Not a bad way to start the year.

It's Madelinetosh Pashmina in the "Alabaster" colorway, bought from Eat, Sleep Knit.   It is a lot less yellow and a bit more peach than it looks on the website and it's gorgeous.  It's the color of 3pm on a sunny day in the wintertime--that little bit of warmth when it's cold outside.  I'm planning on making the Lightweight Pullover out of it just as soon as I wrap up some existing projects.

Planning for 39

After my family, the greatest blessing in my life is a tight-knit group of 12 women who are my lifetime friends.  We met at Princeton in the early 90s and have remained close--supporting each other through heartbreak and achievement, marriages, babies, the death of parents, job traumas and all the other stuff that life brings.  We try to get the whole group together at least once a year--no small task since we are scattered from Boston to San Francisco.  Often, it happens naturally--someone getting married, major year Reunions, etc.  But when it doesn't, we put a trip together.

In the days after Christmas, one of the California ladies was on the East Coast so the NY/NJ/PA contingent gathered in Brooklyn for the afternoon.  And that's where the plotting began--we need a ski trip.  On the phone a few days later with Ms. Boston, we came up with the idea for a 39th Birthday Bash--a weeklong trip in the winter of 2011 to celebrate our collective 39th birthdays.

What does this have to do with knitting? Glad you asked.  In the next few weeks, I'm going to plan my Ski Trousseau.  By the time the Great 39th rolls around, I want to have a pile of awesome handknits to take to Vail or Aspen or Park City or wherever we decide to go.  I anticipate needing 5 or so sweaters, about 6 pairs of socks, 2-3 pairs of mittens, a couple of hats, a few cowls and maybe even some leg warmers.  Now the fun begins--picking out the patterns and yarn for this year-long project.  On hiatus will be knits for the Ungrateful Children (who alternate between never wearing my handiwork, or beating the crap out of a given sweater).  This will be a year devoted to selfish knitting.

Already on my list are:
Seneca and Huron by Brooklyn Tweed
Lightweight Pullover by Hannah Fetig
Hedge Fence Pullover by Elinor Brown

Not being much of a sock knitter, I will stick to straightforward patterns like Thuja.  I love this pair I made for Ms. SF-Toronto last year out of STR heavyweight in the Gingerbread Man colorway.  Truth be told, the only other sock pattern I've successfully completed is Spring Forward.  But maybe I will challenge myself by trying something like Monkey.

What would you take with you on a fabulous ski vacation?

HC SVNT DRACONES

Here Be Dragons

I know all about girls. My first child was a daughter, I have a sister, girl cousins--but no male relatives my age, and no real male friends until I was an adult. In other words, no experience with *boys*. So, around 4 years ago, when I found out I was going to have a boy, I was scared and excited, but mostly, I knew I was venturing into the unknown.

When the mapmakers reached the edge of the known world, they wrote, "Beyond here be dragons..." What lay ahead was scary and fraught with peril. And I have to be honest, raising this boy has challenged me more than, well, just about anything. I'm a verbal person--he is not. I'm not a patient person, and he requires patience above all else. There have also been many adorable, sweet moments--but I think the most incredible thing is the glimpses I am getting of a life with a son. That I get to witness the process of a boy growing into a man. And he's a reminder to me that we are all of us, works in progress.

And for me, the experience is nothing short of transformational.

So, I am pondering all of this as I knit Ryuu-Ko, by Daniela Nii from the most recent issue of Petit Purls.

Here's what I've got so far--knit in Cascade 220:

3..2...1... CLEAR!

Whew, that was close.  For all of you who thought the blog was dead, I'm here to tell you that it has been successfully revived.   The good news is that I have  a lot of finished FOs to show, though I had better pace myself.   There has been sock knitting, sweater knitting, baby knitting, and lots of fun fun yarn buying.

Easing into things--here's a quickie--Spring Forward socks in Hazel Knits Artisan Sock.  

Love this yarn--she has gorgeous colors and it has such a nice sproingy twist.  This is a great pattern for when you've lost your knitting mojo.  It's easy, it's fun, it's fast and the results are adorable. 

Across the finish line

And just in time too. The Diamonds in Relief sweater is finished and delivered--school auction is in two days.

Diamond in Relief (size 31")

Interweave Knits Holiday 2008

O-Wool Classic: 3 skeins in Willow

For the first time, I actually had "fun" finishing/seaming up the sweater. I don't know why, but for some reason, the rhythm of mattress stitch just clicked.

Decisions, decisions

I'm going to knit a sweater for my daughter's school auction. The idea is, I'll knit a sample, people will bid and they can either take the sample or commission a new one in a different size/color. So, it's got to be basic, but not too basic, gender-neutral and run in sizes from K-8 graders.

I finally decided on this pattern, "Diamonds in Relief" from this past year's Interweave Knits.

Now, the question is, what yarn and which color? Gauge is 4st/inch so the possibilities are endless...

I've narrowed it down to:

Cascade Eco+ in blue, red, orange or green

Beaverslide McTaggart Tweed in Big Sky Blue

O-Wool Classic in Slate, Willow or Evergreen

Event is fast approaching...