Yesterday, over lunch, I picked up the Clapotis scarf (such as it was) to try on the Addi circs and see if the knitting went any easier. Nope. I discovered a few things on the way.
1. Stitch markers made of rubber tend to hang up on the needles.
This pattern makes use of umpteen markers and, being made out of soft rubber, they do have a tendency to "stick" to the needles. The markers are larger than the needles, so it's by no means either an interference or even a close slip fit. (For a definition of mechanical fits, you can go here. Yes, this is my Engineering background coming through.) Basically, it's just friction doing it's humble job. What that translates to is me having to constantly push the yarn around on the needles, which, when using this non-stretchy cotton fiber, leads to inconsistent gauge. Uck.
2. The size 8 (5.0mm) needles are too big.
Originally written for a worsted weight fiber, the Posh is closer to a DK weight and I should have just gone down a couple sizes. Yes, I know, I should have swatched. Arguably, the TWO TIMES that I restarted this pattern counts as swatching. :-)
3. I need to pay closer attention.
On both starts, I ended up with the wrong number of stitches at the end of a row - specifically, one too many. In the increase section, you add a stitch at the end of each row, with the purl being the "evening-off" row. That means, you have an odd number at the end of a knit row and an even number at the end of a purl row. For whatever reason, I kept getting an even number at the end of a knit row as I was placing the next pair of markers. Crazy! I could have just worked past it (skip the kfb and just knit both) but that would have been wrong. I am sure I'm just not counting correctly. That's fixable.
4. Lace needles are likely better than standard Addis.
I've got a set of #6 lace needles on the way, so there's no reason why I can't just leave the ball of Posh where it is and wait for them to show up. That's why I'm back at zero on the Clapotis.
What that ALSO allows me to do is restart on my Grasshoppers! I'm going down a size and will likely use the new Addi lace needle on the instep to see if it makes a difference. That'll be a problem for the leg, but there it is. Mmm. Socks.
Oh, Happy Tuesday!
I go away for the weekend and good things happen.
First of all, some dear friends from my college days came out to visit us at our cabin in the Sierra for the long Memorial Day weekend. They brought both kids along - Anke, who is the cutest little girl and their newly adopted son, Soren. Anke is in first grade (which would make her 7, I think - man, I should know this) and Soren is 14 months old. He's just starting to walk as the people running the orphanage in Russia didn't think much about ensuring he got enough exercise. Anyway, we spent a wonderful weekend exploring the Big Trees, the annual Arnold Flea Market and also cooking up wonderful meals. Menu for the weekend:
Friday Dinner:
Saturday Dinner
And of course, leftover pizza and sammies for lunch, and hubby's WorldFamousWaffles for breakfast on Sunday morning! It was so nice to spend a weekend cooking - that's one of the best parts of our weekends away. Give me a stove and a market and the food will follow!
Later on Sunday, while everyone else was at the Flea Market, I wandered over to the LYS up in the mountains, known as Ewe-phoric Yarns, since they were having their annual sidewalk sale. Everything 20% - 50% off ... how could I resist? Picked up some wonderful Claudia Handpaints (40% off) as well as a skein of a lovely wool/bamboo blend from a local dyer (30% off). They also had a copy of Victorian Lace Today (20% off) and they even had the new Addi Turbo Lace Needles in stock! I'm going to try them out on my next STR shipment in June so stay tuned on that one. I picked up a size 8 Addi Turbo to try on my Clapotis scarf since the bamboo straights just aren't making me as happy as I'd like.
Coming back on Monday was the usual traffic fight - plus with towing the trailer, it makes driving just a bit more stressful. Regardless, made it home in the early afternoon and I could sit down and finish my Monkey Socks! The Koigu is wonderfully squishy on my feet and my toes are toasty warm. (almost too warm!) Regardless, that's pair four for me since February ... maybe this is a 12 pair year.
Finally, this afternoon, I headed over to the Knitters Coffee Swap site and lo and behold - my care package made it to Jenni! From her post, it looks like she's happy with it. :-) Thanks to knittymama for matching us up and I'm just so happy that the package made it unmolested and that I managed to guess correctly on a special treat.
Happy Tuesday.
First of all, some dear friends from my college days came out to visit us at our cabin in the Sierra for the long Memorial Day weekend. They brought both kids along - Anke, who is the cutest little girl and their newly adopted son, Soren. Anke is in first grade (which would make her 7, I think - man, I should know this) and Soren is 14 months old. He's just starting to walk as the people running the orphanage in Russia didn't think much about ensuring he got enough exercise. Anyway, we spent a wonderful weekend exploring the Big Trees, the annual Arnold Flea Market and also cooking up wonderful meals. Menu for the weekend:
Friday Dinner:
- Homemade Pizza - Margherita on one pie and veggies + smart ground on the other
- Green Salad w/tomatoes, mushrooms, carrots and a vinegarette dressing
- Pumpkin Pie - w/sous chef Anke making the filling!
Saturday Dinner
- Smoked Pork Roast - hubby's still working to get the timing right
- Potato Salad - mom's secret recipe, but without onions 'cause Al's allergic ...
- Green Salad w/tomatoes, mushrooms, carrots, avocado and a vinegarette dressing
- Apple Crisp - w/oatmeal crisp topping and Braeburn apples!
And of course, leftover pizza and sammies for lunch, and hubby's WorldFamousWaffles for breakfast on Sunday morning! It was so nice to spend a weekend cooking - that's one of the best parts of our weekends away. Give me a stove and a market and the food will follow!
Later on Sunday, while everyone else was at the Flea Market, I wandered over to the LYS up in the mountains, known as Ewe-phoric Yarns, since they were having their annual sidewalk sale. Everything 20% - 50% off ... how could I resist? Picked up some wonderful Claudia Handpaints (40% off) as well as a skein of a lovely wool/bamboo blend from a local dyer (30% off). They also had a copy of Victorian Lace Today (20% off) and they even had the new Addi Turbo Lace Needles in stock! I'm going to try them out on my next STR shipment in June so stay tuned on that one. I picked up a size 8 Addi Turbo to try on my Clapotis scarf since the bamboo straights just aren't making me as happy as I'd like.
Coming back on Monday was the usual traffic fight - plus with towing the trailer, it makes driving just a bit more stressful. Regardless, made it home in the early afternoon and I could sit down and finish my Monkey Socks! The Koigu is wonderfully squishy on my feet and my toes are toasty warm. (almost too warm!) Regardless, that's pair four for me since February ... maybe this is a 12 pair year.
Finally, this afternoon, I headed over to the Knitters Coffee Swap site and lo and behold - my care package made it to Jenni! From her post, it looks like she's happy with it. :-) Thanks to knittymama for matching us up and I'm just so happy that the package made it unmolested and that I managed to guess correctly on a special treat.
Happy Tuesday.
Oh, Happy Tuesday!
I go away for the weekend and good things happen.
First of all, some dear friends from my college days came out to visit us at our cabin in the Sierra for the long Memorial Day weekend. They brought both kids along - Anke, who is the cutest little girl and their newly adopted son, Soren. Anke is in first grade (which would make her 7, I think - man, I should know this) and Soren is 14 months old. He's just starting to walk as they didn't think much about ensuring he got enough exercise when he was still in the orphanage in Russia. Anyway, we spent a wonderful weekend exploring the Big Trees, the annual Arnold Flea Market and also cooking up wonderful meals. Menu for the weekend:
Friday Dinner:
Saturday Dinner
Smoked Pork Roast - still working to get the timing right
Potato Salad
Apple Crisp (w/oatmeal crisp topping)
And of course, leftover pizza and sammies for lunch, cereal and oatmeal for breakfast, and green salads until we ate all the veggies!
Sunday, while everyone else was at the Flea Market, I wandered over to the LYS up in the mountains, known as Ewe-phoric Yarns, since they were having their annual sidewalk sale. Everything 20% - 50% off ... how could I resist? Picked up some wonderful Claudia Handpaints (40% off) as well as a skein of a lovely wool/bamboo blend from a local dyer (30% off). They also had a copy of Victorian Lace Today (20% off) and they even had the new Addi Turbo Lace Needles in stock! I'm going to try them out on my next STR shipment in June so stay tuned on that one. I picked up a size 8 Addi Turbo to try on my Clapotis scarf since the bamboo straights just aren't making me as happy as I'd like.
Coming back on Monday was the usual traffic fight - plus with towing the trailer, it makes driving just a bit more stressful. Regardless, made it home in the early afternoon and I could sit down and finish my Monkey Socks! The Koigu is wonderfully squishy on my feet and my toes are toasty warm. (almost too warm!) Regardless, that's pair four for me since February ... maybe this is a 12 pair year.
Finally, this afternoon, I headed over to the Knitters Coffee Swap site and lo and behold - my care package made it to Jenni! From her post, it looks like she's happy with it. :-) Thanks to knittymama for matching us up and I'm just so happy that the package made it unmolested and that I managed to guess correctly on a special treat.
Happy Tuesday.
First of all, some dear friends from my college days came out to visit us at our cabin in the Sierra for the long Memorial Day weekend. They brought both kids along - Anke, who is the cutest little girl and their newly adopted son, Soren. Anke is in first grade (which would make her 7, I think - man, I should know this) and Soren is 14 months old. He's just starting to walk as they didn't think much about ensuring he got enough exercise when he was still in the orphanage in Russia. Anyway, we spent a wonderful weekend exploring the Big Trees, the annual Arnold Flea Market and also cooking up wonderful meals. Menu for the weekend:
Friday Dinner:
- Homemade Pizza - Margherita on one pie and veggies + smart ground on the other
- Green Salad w/tomatoes, mushrooms, carrots and a vinegarette dressing
- Pumpkin Pie - w/sous chef Anke making the filling!
Saturday Dinner
Smoked Pork Roast - still working to get the timing right
Potato Salad
Apple Crisp (w/oatmeal crisp topping)
And of course, leftover pizza and sammies for lunch, cereal and oatmeal for breakfast, and green salads until we ate all the veggies!
Sunday, while everyone else was at the Flea Market, I wandered over to the LYS up in the mountains, known as Ewe-phoric Yarns, since they were having their annual sidewalk sale. Everything 20% - 50% off ... how could I resist? Picked up some wonderful Claudia Handpaints (40% off) as well as a skein of a lovely wool/bamboo blend from a local dyer (30% off). They also had a copy of Victorian Lace Today (20% off) and they even had the new Addi Turbo Lace Needles in stock! I'm going to try them out on my next STR shipment in June so stay tuned on that one. I picked up a size 8 Addi Turbo to try on my Clapotis scarf since the bamboo straights just aren't making me as happy as I'd like.
Coming back on Monday was the usual traffic fight - plus with towing the trailer, it makes driving just a bit more stressful. Regardless, made it home in the early afternoon and I could sit down and finish my Monkey Socks! The Koigu is wonderfully squishy on my feet and my toes are toasty warm. (almost too warm!) Regardless, that's pair four for me since February ... maybe this is a 12 pair year.
Finally, this afternoon, I headed over to the Knitters Coffee Swap site and lo and behold - my care package made it to Jenni! From her post, it looks like she's happy with it. :-) Thanks to knittymama for matching us up and I'm just so happy that the package made it unmolested and that I managed to guess correctly on a special treat.
Happy Tuesday.
I'm weak.
I said I wouldn't touch it.
I said I'd finish the socks first.
I said I'd have leftovers for dinner. (well - at least I got one right!)
Here's that amazing skein of the cotton/rayon blend that I was gushing about yesterday. Remember how *in love* I was with it? Those gorgeous colors - amazing hues - just crying out to become a Clapotis?
It looks so innocent there, doesn't it? Foey. I have never, ever, EVER had such a nightmare winding a ball of yarn in my long and checkered life! Great googley moogley, Batman - it just kept snagging and knotting and twisting and generally making my life hell. The only up side is that the cats stayed off the table (I think my negative energy got to them) and the ball winder did as well as could be expected. The yarn cake is HUGE (the skein is 1/2 a pound, after all) but it's not complete. I got to about the last 30 yards or so and that part of the skein is a hopeless rats nest. I even started winding from the back to try and slow down the madness - but to no avail. I had scissors on my mind, folks ... SCISSORS!!! Nevertheless, I resisted, and I managed to coax the mini ball and the disaster into a plastic bag for a future untanglement session. I suspect my hubbie will get roped in to the business.
Secretly, I hope that the scarf will not consume the entire yarn cake and I can just ignore that little slice of hell for the next decade.
Wow. I haven't been that angry in a while. Maybe I need to go for a run. :-)
Oh, and I did cast on last night and was struggling a bit with pattern until I had knitted a large enough piece to get some flexibility in the knitting. I can see why stitching with a yarn that has some elasticity might be preferable to what I'm using. The colors are GORGEOUS - and I this will be beautiful when it's done; it's just that cotton yarns require a different knitting discipline (more focus on tension and gauge) than the simplicity of wool ... and I have to remember that. I've gotten through the setup and two repeats of the increase section. Five more to go and then it's just mindless knitting. (so much for saying that I can't start this until the socks are done)
No updates until next week - it's Memorial Day weekend and I'm off to the mountains. Woo hoo! Vacation! Gosh ... I sure hope my Coffee Swap package doesn't come on Saturday. That'd stink. I should be able to finish the Monkey socks and (maybe) cast on the Grasshoppers this weekend so that I'm not a total loser at the Sock Club Knitting Night on Thursday. Then again, I might be having too much other fun to knit. Wouldn't that be a shocker? ;-)
I said I'd finish the socks first.
I said I'd have leftovers for dinner. (well - at least I got one right!)
Here's that amazing skein of the cotton/rayon blend that I was gushing about yesterday. Remember how *in love* I was with it? Those gorgeous colors - amazing hues - just crying out to become a Clapotis?
It looks so innocent there, doesn't it? Foey. I have never, ever, EVER had such a nightmare winding a ball of yarn in my long and checkered life! Great googley moogley, Batman - it just kept snagging and knotting and twisting and generally making my life hell. The only up side is that the cats stayed off the table (I think my negative energy got to them) and the ball winder did as well as could be expected. The yarn cake is HUGE (the skein is 1/2 a pound, after all) but it's not complete. I got to about the last 30 yards or so and that part of the skein is a hopeless rats nest. I even started winding from the back to try and slow down the madness - but to no avail. I had scissors on my mind, folks ... SCISSORS!!! Nevertheless, I resisted, and I managed to coax the mini ball and the disaster into a plastic bag for a future untanglement session. I suspect my hubbie will get roped in to the business.
Secretly, I hope that the scarf will not consume the entire yarn cake and I can just ignore that little slice of hell for the next decade.
Wow. I haven't been that angry in a while. Maybe I need to go for a run. :-)
Oh, and I did cast on last night and was struggling a bit with pattern until I had knitted a large enough piece to get some flexibility in the knitting. I can see why stitching with a yarn that has some elasticity might be preferable to what I'm using. The colors are GORGEOUS - and I this will be beautiful when it's done; it's just that cotton yarns require a different knitting discipline (more focus on tension and gauge) than the simplicity of wool ... and I have to remember that. I've gotten through the setup and two repeats of the increase section. Five more to go and then it's just mindless knitting. (so much for saying that I can't start this until the socks are done)
No updates until next week - it's Memorial Day weekend and I'm off to the mountains. Woo hoo! Vacation! Gosh ... I sure hope my Coffee Swap package doesn't come on Saturday. That'd stink. I should be able to finish the Monkey socks and (maybe) cast on the Grasshoppers this weekend so that I'm not a total loser at the Sock Club Knitting Night on Thursday. Then again, I might be having too much other fun to knit. Wouldn't that be a shocker? ;-)
Cooking and running and knitting and running ....
Last week I made a promise to myself that I would try and eat better - and that was mainly in the form of cooking real food rather than just opening jars and combining pre-made ingredients. Given that this is "Week 1" of the experiment, I'd say I'm doing ok on the deal.
After a longer than planned day at work on Monday, I swung by the local Trader Joe's with an idea of making a spicy green lentil and feta salad that I like. It's a very simple cold salad that would also result in multiple lunches for the rest of the week. It's got a bit of a "nose" due to the feta and red onions (I do try and think about my co-workers a bit) but I didn't care at the time since it's just a yummy thing.
TJ's is not known for having "just the right thing" at any given time - but they always have "just the thing right NOW". (sound familiar?) On Monday, rather than having green lentils and red onions, I found a Harvest Grain Blend that contained Israeli Couscous, yellow lentils, baby garbanzos (huh?) and baby red quinoa. Cooks in 10 minutes - SOLD. No red onions either, but the organic yellow onions were on sale and were summarily tossed in my basket. Add to that the pre-crumbled feta (what happened to the yummy imported stuff from Israel?) and some tomatoes and I was set. Ok, maybe not set, but I did have a plan.
Cook the grains per the directions (except add some white wine instead of all water) and then toss in to a bowl containing one chopped onion, three chopped medium tomatoes, about 3T of chiffonaded basil (leftover from the weekend), white balsamic vinegar, the feta, salt, cayenne pepper and olive oil. Toss, salt/pepper to taste, and voila! Dinner. Oh, and it was lunch yesterday, too. Check.
As for the running bit, I did go for a short run in my FAVORITE park yesterday over lunch. Not too hot yet, but definitely getting to the point where morning or evening runs will be mandatory. Needed to do that 'cause I met up w/some friends last night for beer and pub food (no, those french fries are NOT healty eating) and got suckered in to co-leading another run next week. Did I mention that I sprained my ankle last Tuesday doing the same thing? And it HURT?!? (and it still DOES!) Ah well - c'est la vie.
So, today - rather than running over lunch, I bought some yarn instead. Maybe the sock overload is starting to hit (though I've got the Monkeys on the needles, need to start the Grashoppers over again and there's more yarn on the way) but I want to knit some lace. Simple lace. I'm doing the Knitty Clapotis. I saw the picture and spent a ton of time looking for the wool/silk blend called for in the pattern but with little success. So, I threw my hands up and went to a new LYS to see if they could help. Could they? COULD THEY!?!? Geez - they recognized the print out of the pattern for cripes sake! :-) "Oh, you're doing a Clapotis. Hey - she wants to do a Clapotis. Whaddya think?" I was overwhelmed. That had acres of wonderful yarn that could work and all of them had knit this at least once before. They vicarious dreams of additional scarves were piled on me and I ended up with a skein of Blue Moon Posh (cotton/rayon blend) in Lunasea. For whatever reason, the Posh yarn doesn't show up on their web site - but it's got this amazing shimmer to it. It wasn't the color I set out to get (I wanted something brighter) but this colorway spoke to me. It spoke LONGINGLY to me. It's out in the car. :-)
How long can I resist before casting on? Monkey on my back needs to be done ... but some mindless knitting for the long weekend would be nice ... what to do what to do what to do ...
Oh, and leftovers for dinner again tonight - after I go running in the hills to figure out what to do for next week. How many hours in a day?
After a longer than planned day at work on Monday, I swung by the local Trader Joe's with an idea of making a spicy green lentil and feta salad that I like. It's a very simple cold salad that would also result in multiple lunches for the rest of the week. It's got a bit of a "nose" due to the feta and red onions (I do try and think about my co-workers a bit) but I didn't care at the time since it's just a yummy thing.
TJ's is not known for having "just the right thing" at any given time - but they always have "just the thing right NOW". (sound familiar?) On Monday, rather than having green lentils and red onions, I found a Harvest Grain Blend that contained Israeli Couscous, yellow lentils, baby garbanzos (huh?) and baby red quinoa. Cooks in 10 minutes - SOLD. No red onions either, but the organic yellow onions were on sale and were summarily tossed in my basket. Add to that the pre-crumbled feta (what happened to the yummy imported stuff from Israel?) and some tomatoes and I was set. Ok, maybe not set, but I did have a plan.
Cook the grains per the directions (except add some white wine instead of all water) and then toss in to a bowl containing one chopped onion, three chopped medium tomatoes, about 3T of chiffonaded basil (leftover from the weekend), white balsamic vinegar, the feta, salt, cayenne pepper and olive oil. Toss, salt/pepper to taste, and voila! Dinner. Oh, and it was lunch yesterday, too. Check.
As for the running bit, I did go for a short run in my FAVORITE park yesterday over lunch. Not too hot yet, but definitely getting to the point where morning or evening runs will be mandatory. Needed to do that 'cause I met up w/some friends last night for beer and pub food (no, those french fries are NOT healty eating) and got suckered in to co-leading another run next week. Did I mention that I sprained my ankle last Tuesday doing the same thing? And it HURT?!? (and it still DOES!) Ah well - c'est la vie.
So, today - rather than running over lunch, I bought some yarn instead. Maybe the sock overload is starting to hit (though I've got the Monkeys on the needles, need to start the Grashoppers over again and there's more yarn on the way) but I want to knit some lace. Simple lace. I'm doing the Knitty Clapotis. I saw the picture and spent a ton of time looking for the wool/silk blend called for in the pattern but with little success. So, I threw my hands up and went to a new LYS to see if they could help. Could they? COULD THEY!?!? Geez - they recognized the print out of the pattern for cripes sake! :-) "Oh, you're doing a Clapotis. Hey - she wants to do a Clapotis. Whaddya think?" I was overwhelmed. That had acres of wonderful yarn that could work and all of them had knit this at least once before. They vicarious dreams of additional scarves were piled on me and I ended up with a skein of Blue Moon Posh (cotton/rayon blend) in Lunasea. For whatever reason, the Posh yarn doesn't show up on their web site - but it's got this amazing shimmer to it. It wasn't the color I set out to get (I wanted something brighter) but this colorway spoke to me. It spoke LONGINGLY to me. It's out in the car. :-)
How long can I resist before casting on? Monkey on my back needs to be done ... but some mindless knitting for the long weekend would be nice ... what to do what to do what to do ...
Oh, and leftovers for dinner again tonight - after I go running in the hills to figure out what to do for next week. How many hours in a day?
Success!
I finally did it - I dyed some wool.
I've been voraciously reading all sorts of books and web sites and magazines about how to dye yarn. They went on about food color, acid dyes, protein fibers, plant fibers, dye strengths, steaming, boiling, soaking, washing - to the point where I realized that I now knew waaaaaay to much (or nothing at all) and needed to just go out and do it.
So I did.
Step 1: Yarn
I'd been trying to get my hands on some real wool at discount prices, but it just wasn't working out. That became procrastination so ... I got some el-cheapo wool/acrylic blend from my LYS. Two skeins at $4 each. Definitely not a big investment so it's fine if I screw it up. Wind the balls into a pair of skeins on the dining room table, stick in a pot of water to soak. Check.
Step 2: Dye
This is where things got crazy. I visited a semi-local establishment, Dharma Trading Company, well known for being a great place to buy dyes. Unfortunately, I did this before I had anything to dye, so I simply looked at dyes, read books, wandered about, bought nothing. After more reading, I found the PieKints blog that talks about dying with Wilton's Icing Dye. It's a highly-concentrated food color specially made for frosting. A variety of colors and totally non-toxic. Off to the local craft store - six different colors secured. Check.
Step 3: Method
I love sock yarn. The kind that changes colors and does cool things. If you read this blog at all, you know that. Ok, that means I am NOT doing the simple immersion method (too simple, after all) and I'm heading right to the "cold pour" method. Once again, it's Knitty to the rescue with a great article about food color dying here. I cleared off the dining room table, put down two big lengths of plastic wrap and I was on my way. I did a mostly blue with a quick transition to yellow. No, I didn't take pictures of anything (idiot) but then again, I had food color all over my hands and thought that would NOT go well with my digital camera. Pix at the end. I poured the dye, squished it in, rolled it up, covered with foil and baked for about 3h in a 250F oven. Open it up (oops, some of the blue leaked on the pan), rinse it out and hang in the shower to dry over night.
Step 4: Now what?
First, it became two hanks. And it looks like this:
You can see where the blue and the yellow mixed to make green. That was deliberate, actually. I knew I wasn't going to be able to keep them separate and so it made sense to force the issue by muddling the dyes. Common sense said it would become green - and it's nice to see logic in practice. I'm also happy that the dye "calmed down". I suspect that's mainly because of the high acrylic content of this yarn - and it could also be because I didn't add enough vinegar, or bake it long enough. Heck, I don't know. However, I am happy with the end result.
Better still, my winder showed up today and I made my first yarn cake - and now my two hand-dyed skeins look like this:
Will I do this again? YES!!! With what yarn? No idea. Food color definitely does NOT work on plant fibers (the cotton yarn I used to tie the skein is still crisp and white) so I'll need to stick to wool for the time being. I also need to perfect my rolling/wrapping technique so that the dye doesn't leak so much. There are droppers to buy, jars to fill and color palettes to think about. Oh, and at least one pair of socks to knit from these lovely little balls. What a cool thing - and to all of you that do this regularly ... I am amazed at the beauty of what you do. This is truly an art!
Step 5: Knit Something
I have a thought that this will be a pair of socks suitable for wearing with my thong sandals. I've only got 50g per skein of this yarn and therefore it's unlikely to go far. I like the Tropicana pattern over at Magknits. If I combine that with the toe for the Lickety Split socks from Knitty, I could be on to something. Regardless - it needs to be easy, and I need to do it soon! Thank goodness this is a holiday weekend. :-)
I've been voraciously reading all sorts of books and web sites and magazines about how to dye yarn. They went on about food color, acid dyes, protein fibers, plant fibers, dye strengths, steaming, boiling, soaking, washing - to the point where I realized that I now knew waaaaaay to much (or nothing at all) and needed to just go out and do it.
So I did.
Step 1: Yarn
I'd been trying to get my hands on some real wool at discount prices, but it just wasn't working out. That became procrastination so ... I got some el-cheapo wool/acrylic blend from my LYS. Two skeins at $4 each. Definitely not a big investment so it's fine if I screw it up. Wind the balls into a pair of skeins on the dining room table, stick in a pot of water to soak. Check.
Step 2: Dye
This is where things got crazy. I visited a semi-local establishment, Dharma Trading Company, well known for being a great place to buy dyes. Unfortunately, I did this before I had anything to dye, so I simply looked at dyes, read books, wandered about, bought nothing. After more reading, I found the PieKints blog that talks about dying with Wilton's Icing Dye. It's a highly-concentrated food color specially made for frosting. A variety of colors and totally non-toxic. Off to the local craft store - six different colors secured. Check.
Step 3: Method
I love sock yarn. The kind that changes colors and does cool things. If you read this blog at all, you know that. Ok, that means I am NOT doing the simple immersion method (too simple, after all) and I'm heading right to the "cold pour" method. Once again, it's Knitty to the rescue with a great article about food color dying here. I cleared off the dining room table, put down two big lengths of plastic wrap and I was on my way. I did a mostly blue with a quick transition to yellow. No, I didn't take pictures of anything (idiot) but then again, I had food color all over my hands and thought that would NOT go well with my digital camera. Pix at the end. I poured the dye, squished it in, rolled it up, covered with foil and baked for about 3h in a 250F oven. Open it up (oops, some of the blue leaked on the pan), rinse it out and hang in the shower to dry over night.
Step 4: Now what?
First, it became two hanks. And it looks like this:
You can see where the blue and the yellow mixed to make green. That was deliberate, actually. I knew I wasn't going to be able to keep them separate and so it made sense to force the issue by muddling the dyes. Common sense said it would become green - and it's nice to see logic in practice. I'm also happy that the dye "calmed down". I suspect that's mainly because of the high acrylic content of this yarn - and it could also be because I didn't add enough vinegar, or bake it long enough. Heck, I don't know. However, I am happy with the end result.
Better still, my winder showed up today and I made my first yarn cake - and now my two hand-dyed skeins look like this:
Will I do this again? YES!!! With what yarn? No idea. Food color definitely does NOT work on plant fibers (the cotton yarn I used to tie the skein is still crisp and white) so I'll need to stick to wool for the time being. I also need to perfect my rolling/wrapping technique so that the dye doesn't leak so much. There are droppers to buy, jars to fill and color palettes to think about. Oh, and at least one pair of socks to knit from these lovely little balls. What a cool thing - and to all of you that do this regularly ... I am amazed at the beauty of what you do. This is truly an art!
Step 5: Knit Something
I have a thought that this will be a pair of socks suitable for wearing with my thong sandals. I've only got 50g per skein of this yarn and therefore it's unlikely to go far. I like the Tropicana pattern over at Magknits. If I combine that with the toe for the Lickety Split socks from Knitty, I could be on to something. Regardless - it needs to be easy, and I need to do it soon! Thank goodness this is a holiday weekend. :-)
Monkey business ...
My first Monkey Sock is done - and boy oh boy was that ever a near thing! Before I get to that, here's some pictures of the original ball and second skein - as well as a little bit of knitting:
As mentioned last time, the wool is from Koigu and I am just amazed at how wonderfully this knits up. It's exceptionally springy and while that made for a heavier sock than I had planned, I'm still quite satisfied with it.
You can see that the twisted rib really shows the torquing that comes with knitting in the round - but that sorts itself out when worn and I also expect a good chunk of it will go away when I wash it. The twist in the wool makes the stitches really stand out - definitely a plus when working this pattern!
Very evident here - both in the heel and the gusset. As always, there's a GREAT Knitty article that talks about the types of twists in yarns and how that affects the way stitches show up in the final fabric. Based on this article, I'll say that the Koigu has a "Z-twist" and that's what gives that strong verticality to the stitching.
Now, about me running out of yarn (almost). I was up late on Friday knitting away as I knew I was very close to finishing. I had one last repeat of the lace pattern before starting the toe decreases and had been keeping an "eagle eye" on the remainder of the ball. About two or three rows in to the decreases, I squeezed the ball. PANIC!!!! There was NOT much LEFT! I've got sixteen more rows to knit and there's a real likelihood that I'll run out! I knit and knit and knit - and when I still had about 8 rows to go, I stopped. I couldn't take it at midnight on a Friday. I put down the sock and came back to it on Saturday. Here's the result:
For reference, that's an 8 1/2" x 11" piece of paper. That mini skein has, AT MOST, 2 yards of yarn. Holy cow. I've never been this close to running out before and I sure hope I don't get this close on the next one! Certainly makes a case for knitting both at the same time - but I'll also likely be knitting a little tighter on the second sock.
Regardless - progress on the Monkeys is at 60% as I've cast on the second sock and make it through the first two repeats. It looks remarkably like the topmost photo in this post. :-)
As mentioned last time, the wool is from Koigu and I am just amazed at how wonderfully this knits up. It's exceptionally springy and while that made for a heavier sock than I had planned, I'm still quite satisfied with it.
You can see that the twisted rib really shows the torquing that comes with knitting in the round - but that sorts itself out when worn and I also expect a good chunk of it will go away when I wash it. The twist in the wool makes the stitches really stand out - definitely a plus when working this pattern!
Very evident here - both in the heel and the gusset. As always, there's a GREAT Knitty article that talks about the types of twists in yarns and how that affects the way stitches show up in the final fabric. Based on this article, I'll say that the Koigu has a "Z-twist" and that's what gives that strong verticality to the stitching.
Now, about me running out of yarn (almost). I was up late on Friday knitting away as I knew I was very close to finishing. I had one last repeat of the lace pattern before starting the toe decreases and had been keeping an "eagle eye" on the remainder of the ball. About two or three rows in to the decreases, I squeezed the ball. PANIC!!!! There was NOT much LEFT! I've got sixteen more rows to knit and there's a real likelihood that I'll run out! I knit and knit and knit - and when I still had about 8 rows to go, I stopped. I couldn't take it at midnight on a Friday. I put down the sock and came back to it on Saturday. Here's the result:
For reference, that's an 8 1/2" x 11" piece of paper. That mini skein has, AT MOST, 2 yards of yarn. Holy cow. I've never been this close to running out before and I sure hope I don't get this close on the next one! Certainly makes a case for knitting both at the same time - but I'll also likely be knitting a little tighter on the second sock.
Regardless - progress on the Monkeys is at 60% as I've cast on the second sock and make it through the first two repeats. It looks remarkably like the topmost photo in this post. :-)
What about all that other stuff?
This blog has been very knitty lately. That's a good thing - knitting has done wonders for keeping my head straight and generally keeping me "calm". Given that I've been under the weather and recently rolled my ankle while running, my #1 stress-relieving activity (running) has been severely curtailed.
Then again, there are other things I love to do - namely, cook! When I took two weeks off between jobs, I had every intention of getting back in to the kitchen and making not only yummy meals for myself during the day, but also nice, healthy dinners for my hubby when he came home from work. Did I do that? No. Why? Good question. Rather than line up a bunch of excuses, it's time to remember that the kitchen is my friend and I NEED to get reacquainted.
Summer is nearly here in California (it's felt like it for at least a month!) and the Farmers Market is back in my home town. Which idiot scheduled it for Thursday nights I have no idea, but there it is. Generally, I have something to do EVERY Thursday - namely, run with my running club. This basically puts me in the difficult position of either skipping a fun activity with my close friends to get my favorite bread, or skipping physical activity to eat. Having spent a good chunk of my childhood severely overweight, not exercising in favor of eating is almost horrifying.
Ok, 'nuff said. I hereby resolve to cook dinner AT LEAST twice a week on weekdays (and that does NOT mean boil dried pasta and open a jar of red sauce) and for certain at least one weekend day (if we're home). I think this would be good for both hubby and me - we eat better when I cook and I certainly don't mind taking leftovers in to work.
Time to crack open the cookbooks and visit some of my favorite foodie sites. I've added a few links in the sidebar - and I'll also make sure to share the fun!
Then again, there are other things I love to do - namely, cook! When I took two weeks off between jobs, I had every intention of getting back in to the kitchen and making not only yummy meals for myself during the day, but also nice, healthy dinners for my hubby when he came home from work. Did I do that? No. Why? Good question. Rather than line up a bunch of excuses, it's time to remember that the kitchen is my friend and I NEED to get reacquainted.
Summer is nearly here in California (it's felt like it for at least a month!) and the Farmers Market is back in my home town. Which idiot scheduled it for Thursday nights I have no idea, but there it is. Generally, I have something to do EVERY Thursday - namely, run with my running club. This basically puts me in the difficult position of either skipping a fun activity with my close friends to get my favorite bread, or skipping physical activity to eat. Having spent a good chunk of my childhood severely overweight, not exercising in favor of eating is almost horrifying.
Ok, 'nuff said. I hereby resolve to cook dinner AT LEAST twice a week on weekdays (and that does NOT mean boil dried pasta and open a jar of red sauce) and for certain at least one weekend day (if we're home). I think this would be good for both hubby and me - we eat better when I cook and I certainly don't mind taking leftovers in to work.
Time to crack open the cookbooks and visit some of my favorite foodie sites. I've added a few links in the sidebar - and I'll also make sure to share the fun!
Mission (im)possible!
Why is mail so complicated?
Today's mission is to finish up the contents of my Knitters Coffee Swap care package and see if I can't get it in the mail by the end of the week. At a minimum, I'm reserving at least one lunch hour and possibly a late morning to deal with the folks as the USPS to make sure that it gets to Scotland.
I spent a good 2 hours reading up on VAT, customs, declaration forms, postal rates (all of which change today!) and various and sundry to see if I could make heads or tails of what's really supposed to happen. I was shocked to find that Global Priority may actually be CHEAPER than standard parcel post - but then again, it's unlikely that I was reading stuff right.
I'll just go to the counter, throw myself on the mercy of the Men in Blue and see how it goes. I'm thrilled with what I've managed to find and hopefully my partner will be as well!
Separately, the Monkey Socks are moving along nicely and I'm ready to turn the heel on the first sock. The yarn is SO SPRINGY and has been wonderful to use. I'm not sure that the sizing is "right on", but so what. Took lots of pix of everything - I just need to sit down (stop knitting, that is) and get stuff up.
Maybe I'll be able to get back to my Grasshopper Socks by the end of next week ...
Today's mission is to finish up the contents of my Knitters Coffee Swap care package and see if I can't get it in the mail by the end of the week. At a minimum, I'm reserving at least one lunch hour and possibly a late morning to deal with the folks as the USPS to make sure that it gets to Scotland.
I spent a good 2 hours reading up on VAT, customs, declaration forms, postal rates (all of which change today!) and various and sundry to see if I could make heads or tails of what's really supposed to happen. I was shocked to find that Global Priority may actually be CHEAPER than standard parcel post - but then again, it's unlikely that I was reading stuff right.
I'll just go to the counter, throw myself on the mercy of the Men in Blue and see how it goes. I'm thrilled with what I've managed to find and hopefully my partner will be as well!
Separately, the Monkey Socks are moving along nicely and I'm ready to turn the heel on the first sock. The yarn is SO SPRINGY and has been wonderful to use. I'm not sure that the sizing is "right on", but so what. Took lots of pix of everything - I just need to sit down (stop knitting, that is) and get stuff up.
Maybe I'll be able to get back to my Grasshopper Socks by the end of next week ...
More Procrastinating ....
Ok, so I ripped out the Grasshopper Socks and am back to two (well, four actually) balls of STR Silkie yarn. There'd been a lot of commentary about how the yarn doesn't like to be frogged and then reknitted and that it tends to get all "fuzzy". It's true. There's a bit of a nap on the yarn that has been frogged back and I'm hoping it doesn't translate too strongly to the socks themselves. I took pictures of the socks before the "Great Pulling" began - posting likely tomorrow when I have more time.
In the mean time, so that I'm less heartbroken about it, I've casted on a Monkey Sock, courtesy of Knitty. I'd been eyeballing this sock for a long time (just like the rest of the sock knitting community) and it's time for something relatively simple in a truly wonderful yarn.
One of my local yarn stores stocks Koigu yarn - the most amazing superwash merino made by a mother and daughter of Eastern European descent up in Canada. It's a blue/purple handpainted colorway and I think it'll work wonderfully for this pattern. It's soft, springy and generally a joy to knit with. It's going on the Size 1 Addi's, as usual, and I need to move along quickly so that I can either get back to the Grasshoppers or be clear for the next Six Sox pair. Pattern arrives for that one on June 1.
Today is a quality knitting day - it's the annual AGM/Spring Clinic for my chapter NISOA, the college soccer referee association. They day was also supposed to include a fitness exam, but the head cold/sinus infection I've been denying all week has absolutely floored me. No running since Tuesday and even stairs are "hard". I got my hall pass and so expect to just knit away quietly in the back of the auditorium.
Time to be off ... man, I've got pictures to post/upload/share ... more time more time more time!!!!
In the mean time, so that I'm less heartbroken about it, I've casted on a Monkey Sock, courtesy of Knitty. I'd been eyeballing this sock for a long time (just like the rest of the sock knitting community) and it's time for something relatively simple in a truly wonderful yarn.
One of my local yarn stores stocks Koigu yarn - the most amazing superwash merino made by a mother and daughter of Eastern European descent up in Canada. It's a blue/purple handpainted colorway and I think it'll work wonderfully for this pattern. It's soft, springy and generally a joy to knit with. It's going on the Size 1 Addi's, as usual, and I need to move along quickly so that I can either get back to the Grasshoppers or be clear for the next Six Sox pair. Pattern arrives for that one on June 1.
Today is a quality knitting day - it's the annual AGM/Spring Clinic for my chapter NISOA, the college soccer referee association. They day was also supposed to include a fitness exam, but the head cold/sinus infection I've been denying all week has absolutely floored me. No running since Tuesday and even stairs are "hard". I got my hall pass and so expect to just knit away quietly in the back of the auditorium.
Time to be off ... man, I've got pictures to post/upload/share ... more time more time more time!!!!
Decision Made
I'm gonna rip 'em out. It breaks my heart to do it, but I'm gonna do it. And it's gonna happen this weekend.
I've been reading over at the Rockin' Sock Club that the socks are very stretchy and that they even get a bit "saggy" when worn for a while. I've had the same problem with my Six Sox Horcrux socks and I'd really hate to do that to that WONDERFUL yarn.
I'm gonna take some pictures of what I have since I suspect that all that amazing "pooling" is gonna be out the window when I downsize. I'm going to also use the figure-eight cast on rather than the wierd backwards loop thingy that was so fiddly the first time around.
Sigh.
The only up side is that the progress bar is gonna show a solid 30% for at least a few more days. :-)
I've been reading over at the Rockin' Sock Club that the socks are very stretchy and that they even get a bit "saggy" when worn for a while. I've had the same problem with my Six Sox Horcrux socks and I'd really hate to do that to that WONDERFUL yarn.
I'm gonna take some pictures of what I have since I suspect that all that amazing "pooling" is gonna be out the window when I downsize. I'm going to also use the figure-eight cast on rather than the wierd backwards loop thingy that was so fiddly the first time around.
Sigh.
The only up side is that the progress bar is gonna show a solid 30% for at least a few more days. :-)
Treason!
Ok, I'll admit it. My wrist is still sore but I've started knitting again - and it's not a pair of socks! Oh, the shame.
Seems like I'm enamoured with the idea of "clubs" rather than just "socks". In my hunt for new and exciting hand-painted/dyed yarns this past spring, I happened upon an wonderful eStore called The Yarn Grove. When I purchased my two skeins of a beautiful natural dyed yarn I also joined their new knitting club - the UnderCover club. Over the course of the next year, we'll all be knitting a patchwork afghan using (gulp) size 10 needles! Can you believe it?!?!
Anyway, I received my package yesterday and I immediately (well, almost immediately) cast on and started working the first pattern. The yarn is O-Wool in a very "interesting" pumpkin color. Not sure I'm in love with this color and I'm also not sure that I'm going to be getting different colors throughout the year. I'm having visions of fuscia+orange+teal+chartreuse. Thank goodness the cabin is always in need of new and warm blankets.
It took me a good 20 minutes to find my size 10's and it was also a bit awkward to be using two separate needles again. I'm so trained to be using two doubles to knit anything that trying to grip a full needle felt "wierd". Regardless, this pattern knit up quickly and is quite nice. I think it's similar to the Lozenge pattern in Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks which, of course, is making me think of more socks.
Maybe that's the real allure of this new knitting club - it's a chance for me to try new patterns and see if I can turn them in to luscious socks. Ah HA! :-)
Seems like I'm enamoured with the idea of "clubs" rather than just "socks". In my hunt for new and exciting hand-painted/dyed yarns this past spring, I happened upon an wonderful eStore called The Yarn Grove. When I purchased my two skeins of a beautiful natural dyed yarn I also joined their new knitting club - the UnderCover club. Over the course of the next year, we'll all be knitting a patchwork afghan using (gulp) size 10 needles! Can you believe it?!?!
Anyway, I received my package yesterday and I immediately (well, almost immediately) cast on and started working the first pattern. The yarn is O-Wool in a very "interesting" pumpkin color. Not sure I'm in love with this color and I'm also not sure that I'm going to be getting different colors throughout the year. I'm having visions of fuscia+orange+teal+chartreuse. Thank goodness the cabin is always in need of new and warm blankets.
It took me a good 20 minutes to find my size 10's and it was also a bit awkward to be using two separate needles again. I'm so trained to be using two doubles to knit anything that trying to grip a full needle felt "wierd". Regardless, this pattern knit up quickly and is quite nice. I think it's similar to the Lozenge pattern in Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks which, of course, is making me think of more socks.
Maybe that's the real allure of this new knitting club - it's a chance for me to try new patterns and see if I can turn them in to luscious socks. Ah HA! :-)
What to do, what to do ...
During my week of enforced non-knitting, I've been thinking a lot about my latest Rockin' Sock Club socks.
Currently, I've gotten far enough along on the pair that I'm ready to start working the heel part of the pattern. However - here's the bad news: they're "loose" on my foot. Yes, I know that lace patterns can be very stretchy and I thought I took that in to account by going for the "medium" size on the pattern, but I'm just not sure what I want to do. The pattern takes quite a bit of work to get just right and is rather "finicky" in the early stages. I'm totally in a groove with working it and I'm not sure my heart can take frogging it all away.
This is, absolutely, a complete "do over" if I decide to go that direction. Now, is that what I want?
Definitely something for me to think about as I'm running all over Northern California this weekend. It's time for the annual Relay from Calistoga to Santa Cruz with 11 of my closest friends. We always have a great time - nothing like being, sore, stiff and sleep-deprived.
Check back early next week to hear what I decide to do ...
Currently, I've gotten far enough along on the pair that I'm ready to start working the heel part of the pattern. However - here's the bad news: they're "loose" on my foot. Yes, I know that lace patterns can be very stretchy and I thought I took that in to account by going for the "medium" size on the pattern, but I'm just not sure what I want to do. The pattern takes quite a bit of work to get just right and is rather "finicky" in the early stages. I'm totally in a groove with working it and I'm not sure my heart can take frogging it all away.
This is, absolutely, a complete "do over" if I decide to go that direction. Now, is that what I want?
Definitely something for me to think about as I'm running all over Northern California this weekend. It's time for the annual Relay from Calistoga to Santa Cruz with 11 of my closest friends. We always have a great time - nothing like being, sore, stiff and sleep-deprived.
Check back early next week to hear what I decide to do ...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)