Category: Blog

I came to the conclusion today that some things just don’t work out.

For instance, a sweater I’ve been working on for two days in chunky yarn did not turn out at all. The shoulders were too big, the button band didn’t meet in the front in the right places, the seed stitch pattern done on size 19 needles made me look tubby (which I am not, thank you very much), and to top it all off, I ran out of yarn. So I stuffed it back in the bag and decided to ignore it for a while until I can make time to frog it. I didn’t feel like ripping it back right now, so it can linger in its ugliness.

Sweaters are wonderful when they work out, but awful when they don’t (obviously…just thought I’d point that out). All the other sweaters I’ve made have always been fine, albeit not exactly how I imagined, but what thing that I make ever is? However, this sweater attempt did not work out, and I think I know why:

I don’t like to follow patterns exactly. I’m a little bit of a know-it-all sometimes, and sometimes, I just think I know a better way of doing things than what the designer of the pattern suggests. This quality is great to possess–most of the time–because it means I can improvise, improve, adapt. It makes my work original and unique and wonderfully mine. The downside, though, is that sometimes my changes are not always for the better (obviously, as in this most recent case).

So for now, my failure shall sit in a bag until I can face it again and change it (sometimes I wish this approach worked in life). I still think the yarn will be used for a sweater, just a different one (obviously, again).

And the lesson in all of this would be: when all else fails, go crochet some granny squares.

I am on Day 55 of my yarn ban. I had been doing so well. I had only purchased yarn twice, one time to finish a project, and another time for a customer request. I had seen so much yarn I wanted to buy and resisted each and every time. Until…

I guess I can’t call it a “moment” of weakness, since it was more like this: I saw the yarn sitting on the clearance shelf. I realized that it was the exact yarn I had previously purchased and used for a project that ended in disaster a couple of months ago (my first disaster ever, detailed in this post). I had been so sad to throw away the used up yarn, sad because I had purchased it from a different store on clearance and had no hope of ever finding it again. Then, here I was, standing face to face with the same yarn, on clearance again, waiting to be purchased.

Eight skeins sat huddled on the shelf–forlorn, forgotten. All of them had bright red clearance tags smeared across the fronts of their labels, a badge of shame. I reached down and picked up one skein. Determined not to buy this yarn, I placed it back with the others. I turned to walk away, but I just couldn’t; it was destiny that I was finding this yarn again.

I NEEDED this yarn.

I had to prove that I could remake this project the right way and here was the same yarn I needed in order to accomplish that. I looked around to make sure no one was watching, as if the “Yarn Ban Police” were waiting around the corner to come arrest me as soon as they saw me pick up the yarn with the intention of purchasing (“Ma’am, you have the right to remain silent. Any wool you have in your possession can and will be used against you in a court of law…”). I reached down and picked up all eight skeins. I turned over the label to see how much yardage was in each one, realizing that I only truly needed four. I put back the other four skeins and swiftly walked away, not wanting to totally abandon all self-control. I clutched these precious four skeins to myself, not wanting to let go.

So what if it broke the rules of my self-imposed yarn ban? So what if I already had other projects in progress needing my attention? So what if I didn’t really have a place to stash this new yarn? My emotional and mental well-being depended on rescuing these four skeins of yarn. Seriously! Honestly!

And anyway, this yarn is “technically” not illegal, since it is “technically” for finishing a project previously started (even though the first one was “technically” thrown away), so “technically” it doesn’t violate my yarn ban. Right? RIGHT?!?

As punishment, the yarn sits in the corner now.

This is just a quick post to say that I am officially more than halfway through my 100-day yarn ban. Yay me! I have only had one moment of weakness, which I will post about later. Other than that, I’m doing so well with not buying yarn that I think I may extend the ban for even longer, but we’ll see how it goes. I’m not halfway through my project list yet, so that means 100-days probably wasn’t enough. But November has been a better month for projects so far, so maybe I’ll catch up.

It’s finally cooled down enough here in Arizona to actually feel like Fall, so I’m happily working on hats, scarves and gloves at the moment. I really want to make a couple of sweaters, but I’m trying not to get too many projects on the needles right now.

I’m steadily working through my stash and it feels great.

I kinda want October to be over already because it has not been a prolific knit/crochet month for me. I mean, it’s been a good month for other things, but not for yarn. I haven’t finished nearly the amount of stuff that I normally do, probably because I’m not spending as much time with my projects as in weeks previous. I don’t know, I’m just in a weird mood. Maybe it’s the proliferation of orange everywhere that’s throwing me off?
I did get new glasses though. My prescription changed slightly (I’m pretty much as blind as a bat; sorry, I had to say it being what it is today) so I’m still getting adjusted to my new lenses. But, the good news is that I can see more clearly. Yay!

I’m on Day 37 of my 100-day yarn ban. Maybe it’s the yarn ban that has me in a weird-I-don’t-want-to-knit-or-crochet-mood? Couldn’t possibly be that.

Here’s hoping November brings busier fingers.

Um, so I didn’t get my shop updated with any new stuff last week like I said I would. I ended up working on some blankets, so I didn’t have time to devote to other stuff. I’ve also been doing a lot of writing lately, which has been weird and unplanned but good, very good. So since I wasn’t good on my word, here’s some pics to distract you; they are finished objects from last month that used up a bunch of stash yarn:
The Purple Ripple Blanket (pattern: Pink Ripple from Jan Eaton’s “200 Ripple Stitch Patterns”) made for a nurse assistant that helped my sister in the hospital. This makes my second time with this stitch pattern and I really like it. I had originally planned this as a baby blanket, but after about five or ten color repeats, I realized it was too wide for a baby, so it ended up going to someone rather on the petite side. I think my favorite part is the white edging set in contrast to the purple waves.
This one is the Starbucks Throw, named so because the recipient (Nurse Erin) loves Starbucks so much that most of her house color scheme is based off those colors. For this blanket I used my own modified, fixed version of Gary’s Ripple from Jan Eaton’s “200 Ripple Stitch Patterns.” This blanket went really fast; I think it took me less than a week to make and used up a bunch of stash yarn. Yay!
Finally, here are two hats I made as a birthday present for my sister’s best friend who moved to a colder climate and has little hair on his head, so he really needed them, I’m sure. (I love making stuff that is functional!) The green one is my own version of Mistake Rib in the round. The great thing about this hat for a guy is that it’s reversible, so no worries about which side to where the hat on. Plus, in combination with the yarn, it’s kind of a “rugged” looking pattern (not that Mistake rib can’t be used for girl stuff, but it just seems rugged to me, and this hat just seems to say, “I climb things outside”). I’ll probably use this pattern to use up some stash yarn to sell “guy” hats on my shop. (I know, I know, one more thing). The striped hat is just a basic beanie with a 2×2 ribbing border and then stockinette stitch the rest of the way. I had to use two colors cause I didn’t have enough brown, but I liked how it turned out anyway.

In other news, I officially made it through the first month of my 100-day yarn ban following the rules, and I am now on Day 33. I’ve almost completely lost the urge to buy yarn…ok, I can’t fool anybody, I’m such a liar (seriously, I’m a really bad liar. Anybody that knows me knows I’m a terrible liar. That’s just one reason why I’m not a professional poker player). Let me just say that the urge to buy yarn is somewhat buried beneath my willpower to resist. And so far the temptation to buy yarn only occurs every time I see it in the store, but other than that, I’m doing great with this whole not buying yarn for unnecessary reasons thing. Wait, why did I do that again? Oh yeah, too much yarn, not enough time. And this was voluntary?

No, not yarn. These:

Two new books. I’ve been interested lately in more complicated knitting techniques, hence the obsession with lace. Earlier this year, I received a pair of beautifully hand-knit Selbuvotter –Norwegian Mittens– from my secret pal in Norway. Although I have yet to wear them outside in cold weather, I fell in love with these mittens.

I was so excited to receive a pair of traditional “selbu” mittens from an authentic Norwegian knitter that I wore them around the house for at least a few minutes before my balmy palms couldn’t take it anymore. The detail of the pattern, the precision of the knitting, the neatness of the wrong side are so absolutely gorgeous that, even as a knitter myself, I’m in awe of these mittens.

So when I came across the book “Selbuvotter: Biography of a Knitting Tradition,” I knew I had to have this book so I could make my own pair of mittens or gloves. (Yes, I know I live in Arizona where mittens are not a life-threatening necessity, but I’m a knitter and knitters like gloves, and it can get chilly enough here to require handwear, and I’m a wimp anyway, so I need them). And since I have these beautiful mittens, I’ve decided that I should make a pair of gloves. I already have the perfect yarn for this project in my stash and the precious skeins have been waiting patiently for this book to arrive.

And since I’m making a pair of pretty, colorwork gloves, I thought I should make a pretty, colorwork hat to go along with them, hence the purchase of the “Knitted Tams” book. I love hats, especially berets, and tams are pretty much the same as berets (the construction is just a bit different, but practically the same). I’m probably going to use the yarn in my stash that I had planned for a poncho, so I’m probably going to end up with enough yarn to make a pretty, colorwork scarf as well, and then I will have a whole matching winter set to wear to whatever winter events I may participate in this winter.

You can find these books on Knit Picks (that’s where I got mine, but I’m sure you could find them on other online retailers). Stay tuned for more complicated knitting.

It’s finished! My beautiful Laminaria, which I call the “Mango Snapple Shawl” because the color reminds me of a favorite snapple drink growing up. Isn’t it pretty?
I’m so proud of this piece of knitting. Not that I’m not proud of other things I’ve made, but I’m especially proud of this because it is lace, and lace is no easy thing. Even easy lace patterns are hard compared to plain knitting, but well worth the effort, in my opinion.

I really enjoyed the Laminaria pattern. I struggled with the charts in the beginning just because I was a little confused about the repeats within a row, but after searching through finished projects on Ravelry for self-assurance, it was smooth sailing the rest of the way. I only had 450 yards of yummy mango alpaca yarn, so I did the smaller version of this shawl and it turned out just the right size for me. Luckily, it also only took me four days of knitting to complete and an extra day for blocking, so five days from start to finish–less than a week for a lace project.

Here’s a picture of what it looked like after I cast-off. The lace pattern isn’t noticeable and the shawl looks all jumbled and wrinkly. I originally thought I would be able to use my blocking set I won from a blog contest for the first time.But after taking a ten minute soak in a Woolite bath, the shawl ended up being too big to fit on the blocking boards, so I went with my usual method of towels. The soak really loosened up the fibers by an extra 6 or 7 inches wide I would say.
Unfortunately, I used the ugly plaid towels to block it, so not a flattering picture.
As soon as I pinned out the shawl as far as it could stretch, the lace detail just went *POP* “Here I Am.” It took all my self-control to let it completely dry before I unpinned it.

Not only did I discover a new passion for lace knitting, I also discovered the self-timer on my camera…
I ended up with just enough yarn leftover to make a mini lace cross bookmark for my Bible (I couldn’t throw away a bit of this leftover yarn). I wore my Mango Shawl to church on Sunday and it was cozy warm around my neck and shoulders, just in time for the first Fall cool-down (it got down to a chilly 75 degrees here in Arizona over the weekend).

Now I’m having lace withdrawals. Luckily, my stash contains yarn for four other lace projects, so I can satisfy my craving without breaking my 100 day ban (currently on Day 19, ugh).

This is just going to be a small, pictureless post/confession. (It seems like all my blog posts lately have been confessions, doesn’t it?)

Yes, I bought yarn yesterday, and yes, it was following the rules of my yarn ban. Remember, I said I could buy yarn if I needed it to finish a project? Well, I needed it to finish a project that I can’t talk about right now because it is for someone and will also eventually be a pattern in my shop. In fact, I have two patterns that I need to get ready for my shop, now that I’m almost finished with the projects that initiated the patterns to begin with! Hopefully by the end of this month I will have some new stuff up in my shop.

BTW>I’ve fallen in love with lace. I’m obsessed with it right now. I’m working on a really great lace pattern, Laminaria from Knitty, using my precious Classic Elite Alpaca Sox yarn that will be a small shawl instead of socks. I’ve recently been becoming more aware of my natural fibers and slowing morphing into, shall I say it, a fiber snob, but I still just cannot see myself putting Alpaca yarn on my feet, especially when that yarn probably cost at least $20 for a single skein (it was a gift, so I don’t know the cost for sure. I do know, however, that I wouldn’t have bought it for myself, even though I really love the yarn).

I really love this yarn and I really love this pattern, and I really can’t wait to finish so I can block the shawl and see how beautiful it really is. That’s the only downfall of lace: you can’t really tell how beautiful it is when you’re making it, because it looks like a really big blob of knitting. It’s the blocking that brings out the pattern, and since it’s my first full-blown lace pattern, we shall see how it turns out. Really!

PS>I’m on Day 13 of 100, in case you were wondering. 87 to go.

Happy October! I totally forgot it was October already when I made my last post. I’m so happy because it actually is starting to feel like fall here in Arizona. The temperatures have dropped out of the triple digits and the clouds have settled in the last couple of days. I think it’s actually supposed to rain over the weekend and get down into the eighties. Oh, cold weather, I can’t wait for you.

In anticipation of fall, I helped my friend Anna at Mochimochi Land with a test knit of this little fella:
This is Yahtzee. He is a bat who loves to be snuggled up in his own wings.

I really enjoyed this test knit because it was so fast to make up. I literally cast on in the evening and was done a few short hours later, before I went to bed. The pattern calls for wool, but I used acrylic since it was the only thing I had in the colors I wanted. The only problem this presented was the wings, since they are in stockinette stitch, which rolls too much and can’t really be fixed in acrylic. To help this problem, I used a slip stitch at the beginning of each knit row on the wings. After I was finished, I used a mildly warm iron to purposely “kill” the acrylic so it would lay flatter (You’re not really supposed to iron acrylic, because any time you do, it basically “kills” or ruins the knitted piece. I did mine on purpose, though, with mild heat so I could control how much I was “killing” my knitted piece. I had to be carefully not to get it too hot or iron it too much, otherwise it would have been extremely floppy and unmanageable.)

This was also my first project with safety eyes, and I really liked how they turned out. But my absolute favorite part of this project is his feet. So great.
Yet another great design from Anna. “Boo” is now available for sale over in her shop here, so everyone can have their own bat buddy to hang out on their knitting needles.

Day 10 of the 100-Day Ban, and I’m a tenth of the way done.

So I’m on Day 8 of the 100-day Ban and still holding strong. I’ve noticed a bad trend that I follow when I’m on a yarn ban…I compensate my lack of yarn purchases with book/pattern purchases. Now, in most cases this wouldn’t be a problem, but in my case, I have more books than skeins of yarn (I’m just guessing here…but it’s a pretty good guess).

My room is lovingly referred to as “The Library” by my family. My sisters keep teasing me that I could sell library cards, and when they bring friends over, they have to show them “The Library” because they think I’m weird (I am, I know it). I have wall to wall bookshelves crammed full with books: English textbooks that I spent a fortune on and will probably never throw away no matter how out-of-date they become; old kids books from elementary school and new kids books cause I never kicked the habit; Classics, of course, all of the essentials (Austen, Dickens, Tolstoy, Shakespeare, etc); and last but not least, knitting/crocheting books. I actually have a whole bookshelf devoted to my pattern books, which is rather full and overflowing.
Two books came in the mail yesterday that I preordered and have been waiting anxiously for: The new Mason-Dixon “Knitting Outside the Lines” and the Yarn Harlot “Free-Range Knitter.”
I was so excited for the new Mason Dixon book, because I love the first one so much. When I first opened it to peruse the patterns, I was a bit let down. It didn’t seem to have the same charm as the first one, that is, until I actually read it. Wow. Good one. I completely changed my mind and fell in love with this book. Then I remembered that the same thing happened with the first book: letdown at first, then after reading, Love. The charm of Mason Dixon is really the whole package. You can’t just look at the patterns without the witticisms, and you couldn’t read just the witticisms without having the patterns. It has to be taken as a whole to achieve the whole charming knitting effect. I noticed other people have criticized the second book a lot for not having the same charm as the first, to which I ask them: Did you actually take the time to read the whole thing? Hmmm?

I’ve just noticed that I seem to be making some shameful confessions about my habits. Yes, I’m a squirrel, storing books for the winter (since I can’t store yarn). I only have so much self-control; I can only handle one ban at a time.

PS> I just found out today that I’m going to be an auntie to a little girl! Time to get the pink baby projects started.