Category: Blog

The beautiful shawl I have been working on for five months is finally finished.
The pattern is from Mason Dixon Knitting, with a few modifications of my own. I choose to use a sport weight yarn in colors Melon, Pink, Light Pink and White. I love the entrancing gradiating stripes. The finished length with the ruffle is almost five feet (your “wingspan” is the same as your height; most shawls are made to wingspan).Nina is like a friend to me. She has been with me on the bus everyday for the entire spring semester. She represents five months of my life: five months of studying, reading, writing, worrying, praying, waiting. She marks the end of my junior year and the beginning of my senior year in college. Nina also represents a new mark in my knitting. This is the most complicated color piece I have knitted to date. The pattern itself isn’t complicated, which allowed me to use a more difficult color scheme.I have decided that for my senior year, I am going to make a lace shawl. Not an easy, beginner lace. No. I want to do a complicated, kick my bum, crying-because-I-have-no-idea-what-to-do lace with charts and fancy stuff. Why would I want to take on this task my senior year, the year when I have to be getting ready for my future and making sure that everything goes right? Because I want something that I can look back on and say, “I made that my senior year in college. When I thought things were getting tough in my classes, I picked up that shawl and started knitting. That helped keep my perspective in check.”

So in a couple of months when I am screaming in a fit of rage and declaring that I am stupid for setting out on such a task, remind me that I asked for it.

I don’t know what it is about knitters, but we tend to gravitate towards pets with fur, especially fur that we hope could be made into yarn. I keep asking my mom if I can get a sheep or a llama, but she frowns on these suggestions. I don’t think a sheep would like the summer here in Phoenix nor would the neighbors like to listen to a sheep in the backyard all the time. So we have bunnies. I’ve never tried to harvest their fur because I don’t have the equipment to spin yarn (college or spinning wheel: tough decision). Rest assured, like sheep, bunnies’ fur is harvested through non-harmful means. All you have to do is brush them. Unfortunately, I don’t think these bunnies would like to be brushed.Bert is mostly black (first picture) and Ernie is mostly white with black speckles (above). These pictures were taken when they were only a couple weeks old. They are about twice the size now and they are growing into their “adult” bunny looks. They like it when I pet them, but they don’t realize that I’m thinking “ooh, this fur would be a lovely lace shawl.” I just wish I could use all this fur they shed for something besides a nice layer of carpet fluff.

For Mother’s Day, it was just us girls at home. My dad is in Malaysia for business, so the four of us went out for some fun yesterday. First, the traditional lunch at Peter Piper Pizza, then back home for gifts. I got my mom two light-up crochet hooks and some metal tapestry needles. These gifts may seem strange to the non-yarner, but she really liked them.

Then we went to the nail place cause my sis Wendy got Mom a free fill for her nails. Being the oddball of the family, I of course did not get a manicure or pedicure, so I decided to take the knitting out for a good time. I just got my book “Charmed Knits for Fans of Harry Potter” so I have been making bookscarves (aka bookmarks; very ingenious idea, my compliments to the designer). While everyone else was getting their nails done, I was using my hands to knit. Since there was a camera just lying around, the knitting asked if it could have its picture taken. Knitting can be very outgoing and pushy and expectant of pictures.

After the nails, we did what most women do on an afternoon out: went to the mall. I headed for the bookstore to pick up a book I had been wanting, “Stephanie Pearl-McPhee Casts Off.” Wendy finds me odd to buy books about knitting, not full of knitting patterns but actually written about knitting itself. Of course I didn’t help my case by laughing out loud while I was reading it in the car. Non-yarners just don’t understand. We ended our Mother’s Day at Chili’s for dinner. I had the chicken pita and then a chocolate mud-pie for dessert.The knitting was not happy to be left out in the car while I was eating this treat, but I assured it that chocolate and yarn are not good together.

Well, I have taken a break from knitting for a while to crochet a bit, even thought the new knitting method is going well. I’m going to stick with continental knitting (see previous post for more details). I decided to start a ripple afghan for myself after making one for a friend of mine (pictures are still stuck in my camera; I’ll have them up soon), which took me exactly one week and one day to make. I used a size K crochet hook and used the Soft Waves pattern from Jan Eaton’s 200 Ripple Stitches, so it went really fast. I decided to use the Pink Ripple pattern from the same book, which still uses the double crochet, but varies the stitch a bit. I love the colors I picked: pink, blue, yellow, white, and a variegated yarn that has all of the other four colors. My mom got a new camera, so she took a picture of me working on my afghan. She’s kind of mad that I am using the same color scheme for my blanket that she used to make an adorable granny square blanket, but that’s what happens when you shop together. (Love you, mom! See, I said your blanket was adorable.)

So I guess you could say I’m addicted to ripples right now. I understand why it was my grandma’s favorite type of blanket to make. There is something mesmerizing about making a ripple; the soft rise and fall of the pattern is like watching the waves of the ocean on a calm day, slowly increasing and decreasing, washing across the sand in a different pattern each time. Crocheting is like watching the ocean.

I’m also crocheting some squares to donate to a yarn shop in Virginia that is putting together blankets for the families affected by the Virginia Tech tragedy. Since ASU’s colors are maroon and gold, I already had some maroon yarn lying around. I need to make squares in black, white, and maroon (the other school color for VT is orange, but I don’t stock orange. I’m not sure why cause I love orange). I have been making simple 8×8 granny squares. The granny square is timeless, classic, and heart-warming. It comes from a timeless tradition of grannies making squares, which gives it grandmotherly warmth. Since the squares will be interspersed amongst fancier squares knitted/crocheted by other people, my squares will be the subdued, yet comforting squares on the blankets. I have 9 squares and I plan on making at least 12-15 to send off by the end of May.

Oh yeah, I have my last final tomorrow. Of course I have been doing all of this crocheting to take my mind off of it: procrastiknitting. It’s an essay final, so there really is no way to prepare for it. I hate essay finals; they are so unpredictable and I hate that. Oh well, almost done.

No, this isn’t a history lesson (although I have nothing against history). This is a knitting lesson. Due to the fact that I have been knitting like crazy lately (there is no such thing as knitting too much, just too crazy), my right arm has decided to protest by aching. My right hand has joined in the protest and they think that they can rally together to somehow stop me from holding the needle. Wrong.

I usually knit using the American method, also know as the “throw” method. This means that I hold the yarn loosely with my right hand and “throw” it around the needle to knit. It’s a more common technique and a bit easier–a bit more modern. The other technique, Continental or “pick,” means that you hold the yarn wrapped around your fingers in your left hand and you “pick” the yarn with the needle. This method is more traditional (also I think more European/Canadian, but don’t quote me on that). Granted, everyone knits differently, but it is usually a variation of one or the other.

The Continental method is actually more like the way that I hold the yarn to crochet, so it’s surprising that I didn’t use this method from the beginning. No. I have to be different. So for two years, I have been a “throw” knitter. Today I became a “pick” knitter. To counterprotest against my arm’s protest, I switched to the Continental method. In fact, I think I am going to knit this way from now on. I have been working on Nina, and I found that using the “pick” made my stitches much smoother and more even. I also relieved the stress on my right arm and fell into a good rhythm since it is so much closer to the way I crochet.

I am almost finished for the semester, except for those pesky finals. I’m an English major, I shouldn’t have finals, but never mind about that. I have survived my first year at ASU and I am a senior in college now! I have a few weeks of rest before summer classes start, so it’s time to catch up on all my yarning projects.

The Nina shawl is still a black hole. I have yet to finish it. I keep knitting, though.

I also started a new project–my own design that I’m working on to submit to Knitty for the fall. I can’t reveal the project (due to their copyright stuff), but I will show snippets. Right now, I can say that the project is looking excellent and I’m really excited about the design. I have finished some parts, which are now blocking on a towel in my room. (Blocking: the process of pinning an item straight, then spraying with a spray bottle until the piece is moist, then letting it dry overnight in order to flatten, straighten and make the piece look pretty.)

I have more time to blog, so hopefully I will have more frequent posts.

So now I am down to the last day of classes and my two finals. As a good college student, naturally what would I do? You guessed it: procrastinate. Or as I say, procrasti”knit.” I have an 8-page paper that I need to write, a 1-page intense paper to write, and two portfolios to put together. Yes, I have worked on these four thing a little bit, but I find it more enjoyable to knit. At the beginning of the semester, I started the “Nina” shawl from the book, Mason Dixon Knitting. Since I am a good knitter and always have a variety of projects going on at once, the Nina shawl was only knitted during the commute on the bus. If a project had a higher priority to be finished, the shawl was put on hold. So, it seems like the shawl has become never-ending. I seem to work and work on the beautiful three-shade pink gradiateng stripes and see little progress, an ailment referred to as the knitting “black hole.” Of course, since I have a lot of work to do at the end of the term, what do I do? Try to move out of the black hole. I worked on writing some stuff this afternoon for two hours, then I have spent the rest of the time knitting my shawl. It seems that the knitting black hole has gone away.
Now I’m stuck in the writing black hole.
Two more weeks and I will officially have 90 college credits and be starting my senior year. 30 credits (or approximately 10 classes) to go. I can’t believe that three years have gone by so fast. It seems like only a short time ago that I was walking to school everyday at Mesa Community College, and now I am stuck riding the bus everyday to ASU. I am taking two summer classes to help ease my senior year and I am looking forward to my classes this fall. And my new yarning projects that will accompany me to class. I don’t think I could survive college if it wasn’t for my knit and crochet. How would I get any work done if I did procrastiknit?

So when I first started crocheting, I didn’t realize that there was a whole fiber world out there. I clung to my acrylic, thinking it was the only type of yarn to use. I have just recently emerged as a well-informed yarner and I find myself drawn towards fibers. I will always use acrylic, no matter how much people lament against it, because it was the choice yarn of my grandma, so there is a certain history/attachment/obsession for this kind of yarn. Also, I am one of those people that finds nothing wrong with using acrylic. Yarn is yarn, and as long as there is yarn to be used, I will use it. I will say, though, I am not a novelty-yarn person; I don’t like using eyelash, fun fur, or other yarns of the like. But I like Red Heart, Caron, Lion Brand, etc. and will cling to my “comfort” yarn.

Okay, so back to what I was saying. I bought my first couple of skeins of cotton and found that I don’t like it as well. Due to a condition that makes my hands perspire excessively (don’t ask), cotton is a hard fiber to use because it doesn’t have the same elasticity of other yarns and tends to ball-up in my hands. Definitely not a good choice during the summer. I used cotton for a project that I can’t reveal at the moment, but I will have pictures in mid-June.
Next, I bought my first hank of wool about a month ago. I went to my LYS (local yarn store), Tempe Yarn and Fiber, and fell in love with a fuchsia hank of wool and decided it must be made into a unicorn. (Side note: A skein is when the yarn is wrapped in order to pull from the inside, which is the way most acrylic yarn is packaged. A hank is when the yarn is wrapped into a big loop, then twisted to keep together.)
So here is a pic of my new love, in it’s unaltered form (I haven’t been able to start my unicorn yet). The picture cannot possibly capture the softness of the wool, the wonderful texture and feel. When I first brought it home, all I could do was stroke the yarn. Yes, call me crazy, I am a self-proclaimed yarn-addict! I was so proud of myself for buying wool. Since I haven’t worked with it yet, I can’t say for sure that I am a wool-lover, but I have a good feeling that I like wool a lot. I mean a lot, A LOT. A realization that may be bad for a college-student’s budget.

Here is a close-up of the gingham granny afghan that my mom and I crocheted together:I am so proud of this creation, not only because Mom and I worked on it together, but also because the pattern took the simple granny square and turned it into a beautiful heirloom. Each square is only 3 inches by 3 inches, which means if we didn’t already have the pattern for the granny square memorized already, we would by the end of the afghan. Also, I taught Mom how I make granny squares, which is different from the traditional way. Instead of finishing off each round and joining in a corner chain, I use a half-double crochet to join, and then work into the joining as a chain space. (If you don’t crochet, you won’t understand what I just said, but don’t feel bad. If you want to know more of this crazy language, learn to crochet–I can teach you.) So far, I haven’t been able to find a granny square pattern that uses this method, but I know I learned it from somewhere.

Anyway, I taught my mom my method, and now she uses it too. Whenever I learn something new, I change it to fit my style. I have my own tricks and quirks when it comes to yarning (aka knitting and crocheting: describes the combined crafts). I guess that’s why I like creating patterns. It’s so much fun!

Yarning is a lot like writing; once you learn the basics, you learn to follow your own style. I think that’s why when I have a problem with my writing, I pick up my project and start working with my hands. It allows me to think with both sides of my brain because I’m using both hands, and it calms me down enough to think about my problem. Just recently I have been having terrible writer’s block and I haven’t been able to write poetry. Yesterday, I spent the whole day knitting on my sweater, and when I went to bed, I broke through my block, even though I wasn’t thrilled that it occurred at a time that I should have been sleeping. I sat in the hallway at 1 AM by the nightlight, writing out a new poem. I couldn’t see what I was writing, just enough of the page to know that I wasn’t writing in the same spot over and over again. I just kept my hand moving, writing down the first thing that came to mind and not allowing my critical side take over. It was wonderful and the poem is going to be wonderful with some revision.

Unfortunately I couldn’t fall asleep for an hour afterwards because I was still on my writing-high, but it didn’t matter because I broke through my block. And I know that it was because of my knitting. Yarning is essential to my life.

First time knitting a sweater, that is. I have been reading knitting books and I have been inspired to keep trying new things. So since I don’t have enough projects going right now, I decided to start knitting my first sweater. Actually, it’s probably classified as a cardigan, but whatever. I picked my pattern two days ago (after searching for two days) and started on the back. It’s a simple four by two rib pattern that helps prevent boredom. I’m almost finished with the back–I survived shaping the armholes, which was easier than I expected. Actually, the whole sweater-knitting thing is surprisingly easy, especially since I measured and checked gauge. I adjusted the pattern to fit me, instead of just following blindly.

In fact, I don’t think I have knit or crocheted something in which I didn’t adjust the pattern. I’m constantly changing, tweaking, adjusting to fit my own personal style, or because I know a better way to knit/crochet it, or I just don’t like the original instructions. This need to alter has lead to my fondness for designing. I love the idea of creating my own patterns, and I have already created several, one of which was published, a second that won a contest, and a third that is in queue for acceptance. 

I need to get back to my sweater. Next I start the front pieces, which includes v-neck shaping.