What have I been doing?

Working and making merry, mostly. But also knitting.

Apparently after my last post (from mid-November, sheesh, what have I been doing?) I was about to bind-off and block my Kiri shawlette. Well, here she is, unblocked:
Drying on the blocking board:

And finished!You may want to note that the decorations changed from fall finery in the first pic to Christmas greenery in the last. I have nothing to say about that.

Work proceeds slowly on the Rugged Vest. I have to say, I'm not really loving working with this wool. And I love wool. But this is some crunchy wool. It ought to be a handsome vest, though, if I ever knit more than an inch per week.

And here are my Nana's anklets. This project really should have taken 2 weeks, 3 at the most. But really. I hit a snag and immediately the project goes on the back burner. The snag, in this case, is that I'm trying to get a pair of anklets out of one skein of Koigu. So in my eagerness to save yarn, I started the toe of the first a little early. Nana and I have about the same size feet, even so, when I tried it on and it was a tad uncomfortable in the toe area, I thought, "It's very possible that her feet are, in fact, smaller than mine by just enough for this to feel okay for her." I clung to that until she tried it on herself and confirmed that yes, it was too small. Then it sat in my knitting bag until I finally, weeks later, picked out the grafting and ripped back the toe to just before the increases started. First toe is now being re-knit on dpns, second sock (on magic loop) is currently just past the heel turn. Please, please, please the yarn will last until both socks are done.

These, however, were a quick and delightful little knit. A little-girl-sized version of the Easy Legwarmers from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, a Christmas gift for my niece.

This is a beret for my mom, kind of a gag gift since I intend to put a pom-pom on top. I'm going to knit one for Rose, too.For some reason, Mom and Rose have a running joke about pom-poms. I can't explain it, because I don't understand it.

And last but not least, Baby Mine by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. A sweet little lace baby cardigan for a new girl, soon to be born to a dear friend. I love this sweater, and the pattern is very well written. I'm not crazy about the yarn. It's a cotton and acrylic blend, so it's quite inelastic, and it also happens to be very splitty. However, it's knitting up nicely, and the fabric feels good, and it's machine washable and dryable, so that is also a good thing.

So that's what I've been doing, knitting-wise! I hope I've learned my lesson: if I post more often, I won't have to upload umpteen pics and write and edit for an hour!

Flummoxed

I am this close to finishing my Kiri shawl/shawlette. Yesterday I knit the last two pattern rows. I was getting very close to the end of the yarn, but I knew I had some more Kidsilk Haze in the closet, so I wasn't very worried. I checked out how much remaining yarn there was before I worked the last row, then checked it again after I finished it. Less than half, so I don't have enough for the bind-off. I can't tell you how many times this has happened to me. But, ha ha, knitting fates, I know I have two partial balls of that color left over from my fuzzy legwarmers, so there!

Except...

I came downstairs this morning and went to the closet where I keep my yarn. I have my "leftovers" in a very specific place. Dug through it all, emptied it. No Kidsilk Haze, except for the green KH I used for my sister's legwarmers. The shawl is grey. Went through the new yarn. Nada. The only place I haven't looked is in the basket of sock yarn, but I can't imagine I would have put it in there. Now where on earth could that yarn have gotten to? I could have been done with this shawl by now, it could be soaking in a nice tepid bath, getting ready to be blocked, but no!

All I have to do is freaking bind off, but I can't do it without the extra yarn. I may cry. Guess I better start talking to St. Anthony.

Update (3 hours later): Found it. It was with the acrylic yarns. Don't ask me why I put a silk/kid mohair blend in with the acrylics; I don't know. But I found it. *sigh of relief* Now to bind off!

Nuala's commentary on my WIP

Yarn, what yarn? Oh, were you working on something? I'll help you. Ooh, soft... What do you mean, you can't knit if I'm pressing on the ball like this? Well, goodnight, then...

Remember me?

Hi all. I'm here. It's been an interesting few weeks here at our house. I've been quite busy with church stuff and family stuff and I just haven't been at the computer the way I used to. And I'm finding that I actually don't need to be at the computer the way I used to. But I have missed sharing through this blog, so now that I've got a bit of time to myself, I'm going to use it to post.

Anyone remember this?

No? I didn't think so. It's the Kiri Shawl. I started it in June of 2007 and it's been hibernating since probably October or November of 2007. I really like it. It's not a difficult lace pattern, and the yarn is Madil Kid Seta, which is pretty lovely. I just was getting to a point (pregnant, sick, exhausted) where I couldn't face how long the rows were getting, then I was worn out by a newborn and a preschooler, and now that I might like to work on it again, I just can't seem to find a chunk of time long enough to complete a row, let alone a pattern repeat.

Plus I was getting antsy to make a pair of legwarmers for myself like I made for my sister, and as I had the Kid Seta on hand (intended for the shawl), all I needed was some worsted wool to get started, and so... This one is already finished. I'll get started on the second one today. Yes, I know spring seems to be here. Yes, I realize I probably won't get to wear these until November. But if I don't do it now, I'm afraid it won't get done before I need it. Also, I live in Michigan. We could have a gorgeous warm day followed immediately by a blizzard the next. We don't trust the weather in Michigan, and we like it that way.

Now, you may be wondering, if that Kid Seta was intended for the shawl, and I've used it up in a pair of legwarmers, what am I going to do about Kiri? Well, I've decided I'm just going to finish the Kiri with the yarn I have remaining and make it a mini-Kiri! I can wear it as a jaunty neckwarmer, or maybe a lacy headscarf. The possibilities are endless! Now I just have to find the time to actually work on it.

Feelin' the Monkey love

I have to say, when I started blogging, I never would have imagined typing the title above. Ahem.

But I SO am!Why does an interesting pattern seem to fly off the needles, while a similar length of stockinette feels like it takes days? In the meantime, here is Kiri with four repeats of the second chart. This will likely be the last picture I'll be able to take of this shawl all spread out, unless I buy a longer cable for my Options.

Our new tub (under its blankie) and walls. Tile should be going up soon -- I'm starting to get excited!

A new gadget

Something came in the mail last week.

It's not a strange new hair elastic for Rose. It's a nifty little dpn holder.I really, really like it. It was mentioned in the current issue of Knitty, in the Cool Stuff column (scroll way down), and I ordered one as soon as I saw it. I've been looking and looking for something to keep my needles under control, and this is it. Now I won't poke any more holes in my tote bag.

I've also begun Kiri.

This is the first chart completed. The yarn, Kid Seta, is not the easiest I've ever worked with, but the resulting fabric is just heavenly: light and fluffy, like knitting up a cloud.You can really see the leaf shapes coming out. I'm afraid that after blocking, the leaves end up losing their teardrop shape and start looking more like diamonds. At least, the photos of finished Kiris I've seen make it seem that way. Perhaps if I don't stretch it too much during blocking, I can keep the leaves looking like leaves. We'll see. I've got a lot more knitting to go before I start thinking about blocking.

My DH Andrew is home for summer vacation, so I'm looking forward to lots of knitting time as he and Rose spend the days playing together. I love being married to a teacher!

When I'm done with the toe-up socks (soon, please, soon!), I think I may start a pair of Monkeys. Cara at January One has been crazy about them lately, and I dreamed one night that I was knitting a pair. They're very cute.

I've finished the waist shaping on Green Gable and am just going around and around and around to finish it. That's my mindless, too tired to think, don't have to look at it knitting.

As regards the "mall hair," I'm going to scan a couple of the best pictures to share as soon as I get over to my mom's house to do it. I need to buy a scanner.