A Brief Distraction

Full Disclosure

I couldn't find my camera cord the other night when I was posting (of course, I didn't try too hard to find it, either) and so I wasn't able to show ya'll the sad photo of the unknitting of my scarf exchange scarf. Here it is:

(I promise that one day I will again show you pictures not taken on my laptop. One day.)

After rewinding that mess you see above, me and the scarf forged ahead. And here we are this morning:
Not the most revealing picture but it shows the progress. There is more scarf hanging over the back of the monitor. The little bundle there on the right is what is left of the first skein. Current length: 28". I am aiming for 70" or so. I know that I can block the sides and calm that little roll under thing that is going on but I'm not sure this pattern/yarn combination is going to lend itself to aggressive blocking in regards to length. I'll keep you posted.

I Felt the Need

I was glad to hear that so many have had good experiences with the Fiber Trends patterns. I was really hoping that was the case. I did decide to go ahead and get the FT pattern for the felted lambs. Aren't they cute? I am planning to do at least one white sheep and one black sheep. After that, we'll see if I want to make anymore.

Did ya'll watch the season premiere of Grey's Anatomy this week?

I really should be knitting on my scarf...

You Win Some, You Lose Some

Ladies & Gentlemen, I am sad to report that my wandering mind has gotten the upper hand. Last night I had to rip out three and a half repeats of my scarf. Slightly less than half of what I had completed. I am sad about this. (LOSE category) I love this scarf pattern and I love this yarn and I am really enjoying watching it grow but it is, as always, disheartening to have to undo so much work. Ya'll, I can't tell you how much I really like my pal. She is a sweetheart and I can't wait to finish this scarf and get it in the mail to her. And of course, I am also anxious to know if she likes it as much as I do. (I am contemplating sending her some separate yarn in the final package in case she hates it and wants to knit herself something else!)

Things are moving right along over at the Grandmother Purl blog. We have had (at last tally) 160 people sign up to knit squares. Now I am just hanging out, working on my scarf, trying to keep up with all the wonderful comments/emails and waiting to start receiving squares! Stop by some time. This is definitely in the WIN Category.

My ankle is still on the mend. I'm only going to have a very small scar (I will spare ya'll a picture.) Theoretically, four more weeks of zero weight bearing but only two weeks from my next check up, with x-rays and decision making and all that business. So we will see. I am secretly daydreaming that he will decide then that I should be walking. Keep your fingers crossed.

Have any of you used any of the Fiber Trends patterns? I found the pattern for these felted sheep at Mielkes Farm. I have never used a Fiber Trends patterns. Are they worth ordering? I have had a wild hair to knit and felt something and I am really thinking maybe this is it.

Scarfin' Around

And Now Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Program

My picture taking skills are somewhat lacking these days. Not that I haven't been taking pictures, just that I haven't been very successful at it. I'm not afraid to share my less-than perfect pictures, though, lucky for you. ha

I briefly mentioned in yesterday's post that part of my yarn has arrived. Want to see?




Here is the Misti Alpaca Pima Cotton Silk in Mediterranean Blue. (Thank you, Lori, for lending me your new purse for a backdrop.)








Here it is on the ball winder. (This is one of those less than stellar picture taking moments I mentioned before.) And yes, that is my ball winder clamped to the closet door. Me and my still-on-the-mend ankle can't manuever to its usual locale.








This is the stitch pattern I finally decided on. It is a slightly modified version of the August 22 stitch pattern from this perpetual calendar.










I swatched and ripped. I debated and discussed. I looked at so many options and so many scarf patterns and nothing really stood out in my mind. Three times I was sure that I had made up my mind but then I saw this. August 22 jumped off the page at me and really stuck. The pima cotton/silk is pretty soft and somewhat lighter than the yarn in the sample so I wasn't sure if this yarn would take to it. What do ya'll think?

This is 9" worth of scarf (it is approximately 5.25" wide) for my dear, sweet exchange pal. She (the scarf) isn't the most photogenic but I am very happy with it. This is my first real foray into cables other than a slew of sample swatches and other various practicing. It is a pleasant, satisfying knit...an easy-to-memorize 12 row pattern repeat. I have heard at least one other ISE knitter bemoaning the amount of yarn that cables seem to consume.




This leads me to my next dilemna.

When I originally ordered yarn a week ago Friday, I had decided on the Farrow Rib Scarf. I was certain. The Farrow Rib would have required about 380 yards of yarn for a 70" scarf. Since I had it in mind to make a slightly longer scarf (72" to 75"), and a skein of PCS is 191 yards, I ordered 4 skeins. I wanted to make sure I didn't scrimp on yarn. So I ordered two skeins of black and two skeins of papaya. Then I got squimish. I was afraid the papaya might show up a little orange and I didn't want this scarf to turn out even a little Halloween-ish. By the time I had this moment of clarity, Web's had already shipped my order via UPS. So I ordered the two skeins of the Mediterranean Blue. The blue got here (via mail) first and I, of course, couldn't wait to start knitting (as pictured above). I don't have enough of the blue to make the scarf as long as I would like and I am not ordering more yarn.

I'm happy with the decision to do the black and blue together but I can't decide in what configuration. What do ya'll think of four 20" segments, blue-black-blue-black. Or maybe five 15" segments blue-black-blue-black-blue. Umm. I love this stitch pattern and I want to make it just right. What do ya'll think?

GRANDMOTHER PURL'S BLOG

Thank you, thank you, thank you! The response so far as been really amazing for people interested in knitting squares for Laurie's grandmother. I don't want to miss anyone or let this overwhelm me...so in order to keep better track of all those interested in participated, I* set up a new blog home for this project. (*when I say I, I really mean WE...endless, endless, endless thanks go out to my sister Cindi for doing all of the set up work and teaching me about things like Mr. Linky. All I've done is try to boss her around and write a couple of posts.) Also, Cindi is setting up a PayPal button for us. I've had several comments and emails from non-knitters who want to contribute. There's more about that over at the new blog, too.

From now on, please visit www.grandmotherpurl.blogspot.com for the guidelines, suggestions and latest info on the blanket for Laurie's grandmother. Of course, you are always welcome to visit me here anytime and I will make a note on this blog whenever I post something new over there. If you are a knitter that blogs, it would be great if you could mention this project in a post and send more knitters this way. The more squares the merrier.

By the way, I've been so busy talking about the Grandmother Purl blanket that I've forgotten to share my exciting news: the first of the yarn I ordered for my ISE3 Scarf arrived yesterday. The Pima Cotton Silk is so amazingly crazy soft. I am so unendingly happy with my choice. This yarn is super duper fabu. Of course, the other color is coming in a separate shipment (that's a whole story of its own) so I can't make a whole lot of progress but I am still glad to have my yarn in my hot little hands. And hey, if I have some yarn left over, I can use it to knit an 8" square!!!

Laurie's Grandmother

Ya'll all know Crazy Aunt Purl, right? Well, that's the Laurie I'm talking about. And Laurie's grandmother has been having a bit of a hard go of it lately. (Read about it here.) She is in a convalescent hospital and Laurie is making the long drive back and forth to see her. (What a good granddaughter!)

So I was thinking, what's the point of all this warm-and-fuzzy online knitting community if not to do something nice for someone who needs and would most certainly appreciate it? I've seen so many successful blanket projects where a bunch of different knitters have each knitted a square or two and then they've all been sewed together by someone (in this case, that'd be me) and they've all turned out so so beautiful. I think we should knit a blanket for Laurie's grandmother. What do ya'll think?

Nursing homes, in all of their various forms, aren't really known for being the most warm and cozy places. I think a knitted blanket would warm her both inside and out. I know from my experience working in a nursing home that any little treasure that shows up is dearly loved - and the stories behind those treasures are loved at least as much if not more. I sorely regret that I didn't knit when my grandfather was still alive and in a nursing home.

I'm still figuring out the details (8" squares? 9" squares? 7" squares? Cotton? Wool? Blends?) So please bear with me. If you'd like to participate, please leave me a comment or an email and I'll do my best in the next day or so to post the criteria.

Rambling

ISE Scarf (Revisited)

I think I have changed my mind again about what scarf pattern to use for my secret pal. (Yes, I know. This is a familiar song.) Damn slow shipping. I ordered yarn last Friday and per the UPS tracking, it will not be here until next Monday. That gives me all sorts of time to discover other patterns. Other patterns that do nothing for the yarn I purchased. Other patterns that are not warm, comforting soup patterns but in fact, fussy frilly vichyssoise and lobster bisque patterns. And frankly, I am feeling a little delusional these days and I have a hankering to knit these instead. What the hell is my problem? Once I cast on and actually start knitting with the actual yarn for this project, I will be fine. It is knitter’s anxiety I guess.

I like this quote, which I had heard before but came across again last night in The Yarn Harlot’s book At Knit’s End.

“And isn’t sanity really just a one-trick pony, anyway? I mean, all you get is one trick: rational thinking. But when you are good and crazy, ooh ooh ooh – the sky’s the limit!” The Tick (Ben Edlund)

Once again, I have no actually knitting to report. Last night I swatched for a new possible scarf pattern. It is kind of lacy so I am not certain how it would look with the Pima Cotton Silk I bought so I’ll let you know. We’ll see. I pretty much shot my yarn shopping wad on the PCS so that is what I am going to have to use. There is no possibility of changing the yarn to suit a different pattern. I’ll let you know next Monday, I guess.

On Another Note

I have spoken here before about my sister-in-law Lori. She is not a knitter but she is a lover of knitters. She pretends to care. She acknowledges knitting as a spectator sport. She holds the soft yarn and nods and smiles when appropriate. She says, “Uhh, cable, yes, I know.” And other equally profound things but in reality, she is not a knitter. Furthermore, before this week, she wasn’t a blogger either. Now she is. Please take a minute and stop by her little corner of the WWW and say hello. Welcome to Blogland, Lori! Later we can all gang up on her and encourage her to take up the needles.