Spring Posies!

Here is the first (unblocked) in a series of Cotton Chenille Washcloths I am making for Mother’s Day presents:



That is, of course, supposed to be a flower a la Weekend Knits pattern, but unblocked as it is, it reminds me of a starfish. The blocked washcloths will be packed up in pretty ceramic flowerpots along with the goods I scored at the Bath and Body Shop. I know I need to get moving on these to have them done by Mother’s Day, but a spanner has just been thrown into my works in that my mother-in-law is now going to be spending A Lot of time with us this weekend. I’ve considered sneaking around and working on them when she’s not around, and also just working on them in front of her without her knowing she will receive some. Either way, they Will Be Done.

Other news: started a new Mitered sock last night. And the Cubs won. Coincidence? I don’t think so.

I was tired last night when I posted, and I didn’t realize until later I had omitted the Juicy Details.

The Sueet Suede pattern is, of course, from the Current Knitty. I used the Berroco Suede yarn that was a recommended sub for the GGH Velour used in the sample, because it was in all my catalogues (practically) and because I had been thinking of using it for a big project later and I wanted to try it. The fabric it makes is very nice -- Suede is certainly the right name for it. Looking at the finished piece, though, I really wonder if it will worm like chenille. There are a few of those “kinky” stitches that often grow into worms.

I think the color of Suede I used is called Maverick. (They gave the colors really random names.) It is Sage not Teal as I think my photo suggests. The shading effect pictured is true, though -- it’s pretty. Also I used my scanner to get the illustration of the lining fabric and the color isn’t right in it either: it is not ecru but very light green.

Also after I posted last night, found a somewhat-satisfactory snap (a bit too small) and sewed in the lining. I wish my hand-sewing skills were better. I always think my linings look sloppy. Probably no one notices this but me. Very few other people poke their noses in my bags.

Now, this morning, I wound up 18 balls of yarn. My swift was SMOKIN’: 5 Crystal Palace Cotton Chenilles, 7 Cascade Sierras the Monk’s Satchel, 3 Koigus for the Diamond Patch Socks and 3 Brown Sheep Cotton Fleeces for a Far Off Project (I was on a roll.) The Koigu is P541, shaded greens from yellow-green to grass to moss to olive and so on and on. GORGEOUS. It’s from my stash. My sock yarn stash that is. Unlike Some Cousins I don’t have a Koigu Stash. (But I think I probably need one.)

My Sueet Suede super-cute bag is semi-complete:



I say “semi-complete” because I have yet to sew in the lining. The lining IS constructed -- I just need to find a snap and put on it before I can stitch it in. Also some cardboard for the bottom. My mom gave me some cool fabric glue the other day -- the kind of stuff to “fix a hem in a snap,” etc., and I’m going to try that to apply the lining fabric to the cardboard. I think it will work.

Here’s my lining material:



Neat, huh? I dug it out of the remnant bin at Wal-Mart. I had another piece that was a Possible, but I think this one was better match to the “feel” of the bag.

I would upday my percentage complete on the Lacey Tee, but I have no idea what it is! Still no word on my sock problem. The ripping will commence as soon as I finish my Mother's Day present knitting.

Here’s a word that gets stuck in your head:

MITRE

MITRE MITRE MITRE

Sergio Mitre is, of course, the Genuine Cubs Farm Boy called up to replace our Cutie-Pie (unibrow? What unibrow?) Ace Pitcher Mark Prior while he is on the Disabled List. Since he arrived, very time I look up and see Mitre (he says it “Mee-tray”) standing on the mound with That Word on his back I think, naturally, about Mitered Squares. Specifically, SOCKS with Mitered Squares. Once the idea was planted in my brain, it grew and grew until I had NO CHOICE but to knit some mitered square socks.

Here is what I have so far:



That is the beginning of the Domino Square Socks from the Vogue Socks Two book. It is a simple idea: one big mitered square forms the top of the foot, pick up 36 stitches along the top edge of said square, work a short-row toe (my first with wraps -- woo hoo) and then come out on the bottom of the toes with 36 stitches ready to do the bottom of the foot. I was excited about this because I could see I’d be working the bottom and joining it to the square as I went and I had always wanted to do this.

EXCEPT, now there is trouble. I have my 36 stitches, right? This is what it says to do next: p to last st, p last st tog with 1 st from side edge of mitered square, then, right side, k to last st, k last tog with 1 st from mitered square, and “cont to work sole in this way until all sts are joined to mitered square.”

Then you do the heel flap on 36 sts. Am I stupid? Because that does not make sense to me. I have been communicating with Vogue for three days now trying to get an answer about whether an errata sheet for this book even EXISTS and, if it does, it might not help. Maybe it is just me not understanding.

I sent another letter to Vogue a bit ago. If I don’t get a clue on this project soon, I’m going to skip (rip) these and go straight to either the Knitter’s magazine Swatch Your Step pattern or the Heartland Knits Diamond Patch Socks (Koigu! Koigu! Koigu!) I have some time to wait -- my Berroco Suede arrived Monday in the mail and I have been working on my Sueet Suede bag. Should have pictures in a couple days.

(Sorry no interesting progress to report on the Lacey Tee -- the front is EXACTLY like the back right up to the neck edge. That is why I am running around starting new things BTW, just so I’ll have something to blog about. You believe me, don’t you?”)

From this:



To this:



I did a bit of Rip It Rip It today. You may recall the Dresser Scarf Socks? I was working on this pattern from the Spring 2003 Interweave Knits about this time last year. After I got the first one done, I realized I couldn’t do the second one. It wasn’t even that I lost interest in Sock #2, it was that I hated the pattern So Much, I Could Not Bear to make the second sock. It is too bad, too, because I love the socks themselves, they are so pretty. The pain was in the making. And I do mean PAIN. My hands and wrists hurt so much while I was working that sock, I was miserable.

So, it is now No More. With my newly frogged Fixation yarn (plus three more just ordered from Threadbear,) I am going make the crocheted “tankini” from the current Vogue KI, illustrated in the above pic. Naturally, I don’t intend to wear THAT to work -- it’s for weekend wear.

Extra ball of Reed Linen Drape arrived yesterday, but I confess I haven’t been giving the Lacey Tee as much attention as I’d like. I’ve been TIRED. Don’t know why.

Along with the yarn came the new Jaeger book #25, which I bought because I LOVE this:



That is “Peggy” and I Want It A Lot. I have no idea how I will fit it into my schedule. Something may have to be bumped.

I’ve also been thinking about Christmas. I would really like to make some things for people for Christmas this year, which I almost never do, because I end up with the Frazzled December Mean Reds. I thought a couple weeks ago, “Maybe if I start right now….” So I’ve started buying yarn to make gifts for people. That’s something, right?

I put this top on Friday, looked in the mirror, and thought, "I wonder…."



Sure enough, when I measured it, it turned out to be an exact match to the finished measurements of the Vintage Knits Lacey Tee Blouse. Eeeck. I like my belly, but I feel certain everyone at the Courthouse Annex doesn’t want to be looking at it all day. With that in mind, I called Woodland Woolworks and finally (that’s what you’re thinking, right -- FINALLY) ordered another ball of the light green Linen Drape. They even still had stock of my dye lot -- Hooray! (I also ordered the new Jaeger Aqua book, but we can talk about that later.)

Progress report: Back of the Lacey Tee is finished, but will be ripped and another inch added at a later date. One sleeve complete and the front is begun.

Yesterday I bought the June Knit ’N Style, which featured some cute summer tanks along side the usual Scary Psuedo-trendy Things, and the book Knitter’s Stash. I had seen this book in catalogues, but when I looked inside it was not at all what I expected. I guess I thought from the title that it would be along the lines of Sally Melville’s Styles, featuring projects to use up your odd bits of yarn. It is not that AT ALL, and I wonder what the title means, anyway, considering what it IS: profiles of dozens of different yarn shop owners across America and their designs. How does that equal "Knitter’s Stash?" Is it just me? Anyway, I like this book. There are lots of patterns in it that interest me.

There is a drive-in restaurant here in town, complete with carhops and everything. When I drove by there today, I saw on the curb sign they are offering fried pickles for $1.50. Fried Pickles. I just don’t know what to think about that.

This is not the best photo I took of the completed Lacey Tee back. It IS the only one The Cat Amelia chose to be in, and I’ve been concerned that I have been a Negligent Knit Blogger in that I’ve had pictures here for days and days now and not yet post a Cat Photo.



Preliminary notes on the Lacey Ribbed Tee:

I’m a tad bugged by the fact that the pattern isn’t centered. It is an eight-stitch pattern repeat based on 2x2 rib with eyelets, but the designer didn’t add the extra two stitches it would have taken to make the end match the beginning. Thus, when the seams are joined, at the point of the first increase, an eyelet column is going to be sewn to a plain column.

Also, the selvedge is a k1, p2 at the beginning and a p2, k1 at the end. Again, when the seam is joined, for the whole waistband and first rows, there is going to be a column of 4 purls. And then comes the aforementioned Unmatching Increases. Another seaming concern I have is what is going to become of the eyelets right next to the selvedge. I went ahead and worked them. My seams may look holey.

I ended the back with just a dab of yarn left on ball three. I had also a bit left from the point of the KNOT at the end of ball two. I think I’m going to have enough yarn, but I’m pretty sure it is only going to be Just Enough.

Some notes about The Cat Amelia:

Amelia came to live with us almost two years ago from the Humane Society. Her name was “Tiger” then, which seemed a tad prosaic, so I re-named her Amelia after the Intrepid Victorian Female Archeologist Amelia Peabody Emerson. After we got to know each other a lot better, I realized the name was not suited to her personality. I think I should have given her a Regency Princess name, like Eugenie. Or a Fifties Debutante name, like Belinda.

Amelia is not interested in knitting, although she has, on very rare occasions, expressed appreciation of the smell (I presume) of wool. She only looked at the Tee back because I laid it on the floor. Then she was gone. Mostly, she does not seem aware the knitting or the yarn exists at all. What is she interested in? The couch, the bed, the blue chair, the upstairs bed, the corner of the Book Room, and the rug under the dining room table. Also Iams cat food, Friskie cat treats (ONLY the ones in the pink bag,) looking out the window, and grooming herself. And she likes my husband. She also likes me, but if she had to choose, she would choose him.

How fun! Alison e-mailed me yesterday that Supurlfluous is hosting a Vintage Knits Along! I sent her my name this morning.

Progress Report:



That represents progress up to last night. For some reason, the waist ribbing took me a while. All the Allergy Medication Naps didn’t help. That photo also represents, along with my swatch, the first ball of Linen Drape. I have eight balls and you can see (or not) by my Amusing Vintage Churngold Butter Ruler (“For the Ladies Workbasket”) that I got to just over five and a half inches. The full back is going to be eighteen and a half inches, the front a little less and the sleeves are short. Am I going to have enough yarn? I admit I’m worried. (Buying an extra ball of yarn for a project is another Lesson I Can’t Seem to Learn.)

I got more done today while perusing e-bay, and then the spring issue of Knitty. I’ll bet you knew I’d be all over THIS. Side note: Bad Penny would be a good title for one of those ubiquitous “chick lit” novels.