Swatch You Talkin' About Willis?

It is a universal knitting truth: Swatches lie.

Sometimes, though, swatches tell the cold, hard, inconvenient truth. Swatches say things like

"700 miles of stockinette in this color will make you look like a blotapatomus."

or

"This is not an appropriate yarn for a man's sweater."

or

"All the hard work of your beautiful cables will mean nothing after one wash."

or

"Surely you are not contemplating a knitted skirt for your rather amble hind end."

All sad, painful truths, none of which (thankfully) were uttered at my house this weekend.

In the case of this hemp swatch
the truth telling went something like this: "Dude, we are talking yarn investment here. Are you really prepared to make a $135 baby blanket?"

The hemp yarn is very nice. All the things I said about it before are true. When it comes right down to it, though, I am not prepared at the moment to make such a significant commitment of the yarn budget.

So I turned to the stash.

Cascade 220? Right out. (A [non-knitting] mother operating under "new baby" conditions cannot be trusted to insure the baby blanket doesn't felt.)

Dishcloth cotton? Nope, not this time. (Though there are baby bibs to make....)

Brown and black eyelash? Nope. Destined to be a hedgehog.

In the end, I knit several swatches and returned to a yarn that I have loved from the very first moment I held it in my hands. Yarn that, indeed, I knew I would love even before we met.Misti Alpaca's Pima Cotton Silk. So soft. So cushy. So full of good mojo from Kim and the International Scarf Exchange 3. So doesn't require a $135 investment. My only concern (and it is a minor concern) is that it wants to shed a little when I am knitting with it. I noticed that before, too, when I was making Kim's scarf but one good trip through the wash seemed to remedy that so I'm not going to worry about it.

I have decided to stick with the plan to do the Moderne Baby Blanket from Mason-Dixon Knitting. Of course, this yarn knits to a very different gauge and on larger needles than the pattern calls for and will thus be a version of the Moderne Baby Blanket, but the adjustments should be pretty straight forward. I am very happy with this plan.

All that remains is making a decision on the palette. They are having a baby girl but I have decided against the pales and the pinks. I've decided springy and warm and still feminine. (I've borrowed these color pictures from the Misti Alpaca site.)

Option 1: Black, Lavender, Eggplant, Buttercream

Option 2: Black, Kiwi, Buttercream, EggplantWhat do you think?

Before anyone asks, yes, I have already made up my mind about the black. I know conventional wisdom and tradition dictate that a baby blanket should be black-free but I am throwing caution to the wind here. (And, yes, I realize how that statement reflects the absence of much excitement in my life.)

Today's Quote:

“Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before.” Edgar Allan Poe

The Missionary Position

A man we work with had a heart attack on Wednesday and has been in the hospital ever since. Heaven only knows how long he will be in the hospital. His girlfriend, who also works with us, came to work this morning to stay busy for a little while and to "avoid sitting at home crying". (Ya'll know: I sympathize with the tears.) She told me this morning that she has been trying to read a book while sitting with him at the hospital but realized she was reading the same paragraph over and over and not comprehending any of it.

I'm sure ya'll know where this is going.

I told her I had just the thing for her. I explained to her the peaceful repetition of bedside knitting. I told her that knitting is a happy medium on the how-focused-you-have-to-be scale. I explained about the comfort of keeping your hands busy and your mind occupied enough that you don't sit there dwelling on the endless "oh no, what if?" possibilities. I told her that watching someone sleep is a whole lot less gut-wrenching when your hands are being not just busy but productive. (In retrospect, she is probably thinking that I am may not well in the head....)

Luckily, I had some Lion Cotton in my car and some needles. I did the cast on for her and knit the first few rows. (I don't want to hear about it if you think this is cheating. I didn't want to scare her off.) Since the cotton was handy, I set her up to make a dishcloth. Of course, everyone I have ever taught to knit, I've started them on a dishcloth. Probably because that is what I was started on. I told her, if the hospital stay is longer than a dishcloth, it can be a dish towel.

Q&A: I'll Bring the Q's, You Bring the A's

All of which leads me to my questions, dear knitters. I want to know: How do you do it?

Do you have a preferred "first project" that you use when sharing the good news with the masses?

A go-to yarn/needle combo for the knitting converts?

And (now this is the closest we get to "controversial topics" here at Ok! What Next??) have you ever "helped" someone learn to knit who had not expressed a desire to learn? Is it morally reprehensible to force our craft on the unsuspecting?


Today's Quote:

"If a friend is in trouble, don't annoy him by asking if there is anything you can do. Think up something appropriate and do it." ~Edgar Watson Howe

&@#$*%^#

Is there anything quite so frustrating to an evening - or even a stolen hour - of knitting time than a tangled pile of yarn? I've only done it a couple of times - mangled a perfectly good skein of yarn.

Let me back up. A couple of weeks back, I wound up the white hemp and knitted a swatch. I wanted to see how the yarn would feel all knit up and washed. After a good fondling, a trip through the wash, then another good fondling, I ripped out the swatch and tidily (is that even a word? spell check says yes) wound the yarn back into a ball. Only then did it occur to me that I hadn't measured the freakin' stinkin' stupid swatch. Damn. So, tonight I was t-h-i-s c-l-o-s-e to winding the blue Hemp into a ball when it slipped off the swift. (Stupid swift. I hate that thing.) So while there was no swatching or knitting of any kind accomplished at my house today, there was lots of cursing and grouching and heavy sighing. And I still haven't finished untangling the mess I made. Stupid yarn. I hate yarn.

A Stroke of Inspiration

On a lighter note, I think I've made a decision on the baby blanket. It occurred to me while I was playing nurse maid to the Mr. and his migraine tonight. Since I like the hemp and I've pretty much made up my mind to use this for the baby blanket and the decision to go with the baby blanket over the baby sweater was solidified by Mason-Dixon Ann's story about her son David's baby blanket, why not make this baby blanket from a Mason-Dixon Knitting pattern? So that's that: Melanie and Bryan's baby is getting a Moderne (Log Cabin) Baby Blanket it the hippest hemp.

That is, if I ever manage to unmake this mess...Is it unreasonable to just toss the whole ridiculous, stupid, horrible business into the garbage can? I mean really, it is only $10 worth of yarn. I don't even like blue. Stupid, bitchy yarn.


Today's Quote:
(As a reminder to me)

"All that is necessary to break the spell of inertia and frustration is this: Act as if it were impossible to fail. That is the talisman, the formula, the command of right about face which turns us from failure to success." - Dorthea Brande

Please Deposit Your Two Cents Here

As you may or may not recall, I recently purchased these two skeins of Hemp for Knitting. If you've never held this yarn in your hands, let me humbly suggest that you really must. It is not like any other yarn I've ever known. I don't know exactly how to describe it. It is very soft, but not squishy or springy. It has a structure and coolness similar to linen but it is soft and airy, like a really lovely cashmere. It has great stitch definition and washes well, not just maintaining its softness but actually getting softer after washing.

My friend Melanie is pregnant with baby number two. When baby number one was born in October of 2005, I made this blanket.Now that baby number two is on the way, I have been contemplating a sweaterbut I am a sucker for sentimentality. Babies outgrow sweaters. Blankets seem to last so much longer. I think I have put aside the sweater plan (for now...maybe when the baby is a little older, because this sweater really is completely precious) and have decided on a blanket. I am fairly certain that Ann over at Mason-Dixon Knitting tipped the scales with this post about her son David and his handknit blanket.

Melanie and her husband Bryan are very cool. (Melanie and I went to high school together and though I've never met Bryan, from what I know of him, he is cool. He has to be, to be married to her.) I want to make something special for them and their baby. Something they won't get from anyone else and something they aren't likely to find in a store.

I have been contemplating the Pinwheel Blanket for quite some time. (In fact, I considered it for baby number one but shied away.) Melanie and Bryan live in southern Arkansas. The baby is due in May. There will be little, if any, call for a warm woolen blanket during the first several months of this baby's life. That's why I think maybe the Hemp Yarn and the Pinwheel Blanket will be an excellent marriage. The shape is of course unique and the blanket would be a nice weight for a crib or stroller blanket. (This is my line of thinking...)

So! Now for your two cents: What do ya'll think? Would the Hemp for Knitting make a nice baby blanket? And if I do decide to go this route, how many skeins of the All Hemp 6 do you think I would need? These are the specs, per the info provided on Yarn Market.

Weight: 90g
Yardage: 150 yds.
Texture: Plied Yarn
Weight: DK
Gauge: 22(Stitches per 4.0 inches/10cm.)
Needle Sizes: 5 U.S. (3.75mm)
Care: Machine or Hand Wash & Dry Flat

The Pinwheel pattern doesn't give even an estimate on yarn yardage. And yes, I suppose I could do a swatch - and I probably will - but I have never had much luck with swatching to determine yarn requirements.

Today's Quote:

"It is the nature of babies to be in bliss." - Deepak Chopra

Secret Pal 10

or: The Novelization of the Questionnaire

I got the sweetest e-card from my Secret Pal 10 hostess. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy about this exchange and it hasn't even really started. (As a side note, it hasn't really started yet and somehow I am already behind...)

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
Likes: I like lots of yarns. (Don't we all?) My very favorite yarn of all time is wool blend sock yarns. The Misti Alpaca Pima Cotton Silk, too, ranks high on my list of yarns that are pure joy to knit. Oh and speaking of Alpaca…I have been looking longingly at the Blue Sky Alpaca & Silk ever since Ann over at Mason-Dixon Knitting pointed out there enchanting line of colors.
Dislikes: I don't like itchy. I've met a few "high end" acrylics and acrylic blends that I like but as a general rule, I am not a fan of acrylic.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? The majority of them are in two large glasses vases with decorative rocks on top of the entertainment center. Lots of them, though, are scattered about the house in various places. This stems from both my inability to keep things like that organized and from the idea that, if I actually put all of the needles all together in one visible location, someone (Mr.) might realize just exactly how many needles I have. Oh and the KnitPicks Options are all neat and tidy in their little case.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Three years? Five years? I can’t remember exactly. I learned on a rain day either on or near my birthday (it is a vague memory) and it was just sort of on a whim. A friend of mine taught me the basics and since then I have been learning mostly from books and from a great deal of trial and error and from help from strangers on the internet (i.e. how I learned to knit socks).
Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I guess I would consider myself an advanced intermediate. I feel pretty confident doing most techniques and I have developed my “reading my knitting” skills but I also know enough to know that there is still SO MUCH I don’t know about knitting.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? No, but I really should, huh?

5. What's your favorite scent? I like lots of scents…vanilla, baking cookies, coconut, berry smells, lime, pineapple…I must be hungry. I really really don’t like the incense and musky smells.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? I don’t particularly have a sweet tooth. I prefer salt snacks usually but my favorite candies are Snickers bars, Smarties, apple Sour Straws white chocolate.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? I do origami and I like other paper crafts – like making cards, etc. – but I do very little of those things since I learned to knit. I’ve recently fallen into the black pit of despair otherwise known as beading. I have not yet admitted that I may actually love the beads but I have recently come to terms with the fact that I am going to need to come up with a better storage system for the beads than the system I am currently using.
Do you spin? No, but I dream of learning some day.

8. What kind of music do you like? Mostly I listen to country music. My favorite songs are mostly 80’s country and some 70’s. I also like 60s/70s/80s pop. I do not listen to current pop or rock really at all. I have an inexplicable fondness for Anne Murray and Marty Robbins.
Can your computer/stereo play MP3s?Yes

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? My favorite colors are autumn colors: deep red, terra cotta, browns, dark greens, lavender and plums...I like rich, saturated color. I also like creams and white and dark blues and some very dark pinks. I don't like mousy colors. I like mustardy yellow but I can't wear yellows or oranges so I largely stay away from them.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I am married, no kids. We have two pets, both dogs – a boxer/rottweiler mix named Zena and a miniature dachshund named Sally.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
Scarves: Yes, occasionally.
Hats: Not where anyone can see me.
Mittens: Theoretically, yes, but my life doesn’t include much call for mittens. Maybe once in a while if we go to someplace cold or snowy.
Ponchos: No. Perhaps I might one day if someone holds a gun to my head and threatens severe bodily injury to me or mine. But really, it would have to be a big gun and some serious threatening.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? They aren’t really my favorite but I have knitted a lot of felted creatures. I don’t particular want any animals for myself but there are people in my life who like felted animals and they are interesting to knit so that is good. I love knitting cables but I am not overly fond of the way cables look. I love to knit little, precious baby things but I don’t have a baby – nor any plans to have one – so I make do with making stuff for other people’s babies. I have recently fallen in love with knitting socks and this is something I might actually knit for myself so maybe socks are my favorite.

13. What are you knitting right now? Socks, actively, and a herd of hedgehogs for my mother, neglectfully. I also have a baby sweater I need to get started and, um, finished...

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Yes!!!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? As a general rule, I prefer circular needles but for socks, nothing beats the dpns.
Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Metal needles. I occasionally use bamboo but my heart really belongs to the metal needles.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? Yes! I got a swift for Christmas. I heart my swift! (and the ball winder, too, but there is something kind of magical about the swift.)

17. How old is your oldest UFO? A sweater I have been working on for my mother for well on two years now. I really really must finish this but since she requested her hedgehog herd after Christmas.

18. What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving.

19. Is there anything that you collect? Does yarn count? Or dust bunnies? I guess the only thing I really collect is books (quote books and old books) and I like old/antique teacups but I am not a very motivated collector. The books are a hit or miss proposition and I only have like 6 or 8 teacups… If I am out and about and find one of these that I like, I will get it, if it doesn’t damage the yarn budget too much. I guess this isn’t a very good answer to this question.

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? This is an exceptionally open ended question!

Books:

Elizabeth Zimmermann’s Knitter’s Almanac

Nancy Bush’s Knitting Vintage Socks

Melissa Leapman’s Cables Untangled: An Exploration of Cable Knitting

Yarns:

The Blue Sky Alpaca & Silk I mentioned above

Rowan Kid Silk Haze

Or the Kid Silk Spray

And of course, one of these days I vow I will splurge and gets some qiviut and make something all musk ox fabulous.

Patterns:
The only one that particularly comes to mind. . . I have been contemplating the Safari Friends from Knitting at Knoon

What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? I don't have any knitting magazine subscriptions

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? I-Cord bind off. I’ve seen it used on several patterns and I tried once but couldn’t figure it out and I’ve never gone back and tried again.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Yes. I wear a size 8 or 8.5 women’s shoe. I don’t know what my “foot measurements” are. Heck, I don’t even know how I would determine my foot measurements. (If someone wants to tell me, I will measure them!)

23. When is your birthday? February 1

Today's Quote: "It is still not enough for language to have clarity and content... it must also have a goal and an imperative. Otherwise from language we descend to chatter, from chatter to babble and from babble to confusion." Rene Daumal

Where Do the Days Go?

I mean really. Time flies. Sometimes I am a bad friend to my blog. I get so busy working and sewing up and having the stupid flu and working (this week I'm starting a shorthand course) and oh yeah - and walking in my boot without crutches! Yes, the days have been wild and crazy here since my last post. So wild and crazy is in the eye of the beholder but in the eye of this beholder, it has been hectic.

I haven't been knitting much. Sadly. I miss my knitting when I don't knit for several days. I have turned the heel on the first of the Black Cherry Kool-Aid socks. I'm happy with the looks of it so far. Just wish it was, you know, more done! Ahh well.

As for my crutchless state...I know it sounds sort of ungrateful but the walking is really not as much fun as I remembered it being. I'm glad to be rid of the crutches - I've been carrying all sorts of stuff around, which is super-duper fabulous. It is just kind of tender. I am not rushing it. I am not overexerting. I am being careful and walking only in the boot. I am not risking it. I see the doc later this week so hopefully it will be a stunning example of ankle health.

Other than that, nothing much going on here. I've joined the Secret Pal 10. I've never done the Secret Pal gig and I'm really looking forward to it. I need to get the questionarre posted in the next couple of days. Yippee...we have that exciting post to look forward to. :)

Today's Quote:

"Affliction comes to us, not to make us sad but sober; not to make us sorry but wise." - H.G. Wells