Knits

My life has been incredibly crazy the last week. Not the usual too much work sort of crazy, but having to do everything I was going to have to do over the next six weeks got compressed into a week or less.

I’ve let many people know already, but there’s a few out there who don’t know why my life has become a Ricky Martin song (except his song is about fun crazy times and my life is not about fun crazy times right now).

Five and a half years ago at the age of 25 my sister was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. It’s been a big battle the last five and a half years. Much of why I took up knitting was to provide her with an assortment of hats to cover her head. My initial efforts were pretty awful — too big, too small, came undone — but she wore them anyway and a few of them she has worn constantly and gets compliments. In fact the modified Kittyville hat I made her was complimented on by a woman who sells knitted items at the weekly farmer’s market. My sister replied that I made it for her and the woman refused to believe it. She insisted that it was machine made. Cow. I’ve improved and provided her with more hats over the last couple of years.

Anyway, she’s losing the battle now. She is terminally ill and I am returning to the US to be with her for a couple of weeks or longer. It’s been a very tough week dealing with this news and having to also get the following done:

• Retrieve my passport from the Home Office which was sent off the same day I found out I needed to return home (stupid time zones)
• Barring the above didn’t happen, I prepared to go to London to the US Embassy to get an emergency passport
• Pack my entire flat (note I am usually incredibly anal retentive about packing making lists of box contents and carefully labelling and numbering boxes)
• Arrange for my items to be moved into storage and then, at some point, moved north
• Oh yeah, find a place to live up north
• Get quotes and hope the movers could do the job ASAP
• Try and not leave my work totally in the lurch as they are an amazing group of people — I am so fortunate to have landed where I have in my employment
• Arrange for my cat to be taken care of while I’m gone
• Book airline tickets
• Gather a variety of paperwork proving I have a life here in the UK should I have to leave on an emergency passport (they’ll get you out of some place, but not necessarily back in)
• Get more boxes in
• Letting the estate agents come and show off the flat to prospective renters (I had tidied it all up for the first viewing and then got the news so it then turned into a box warehouse)

I’m sure there’s plenty I’ve forgotten. The first few days (and even a bit now) I was forgetting to actually fully take of myself - I wasn’t eating enough even when I could feel the hunger pains because there was just too much to do.

This is one of those times in life where I’ve got so much on my plate right now and somehow I am managing to get it done. I’ll look back at this time both as one of complete sadness at what is happening in my family right now and with awe at how well I’m actually handling things. When life throws you this much shit at once, you just have to suck it up and get it done.

So that’s where I am right now. Even though I have suddenly had to shell out an enormous amount of money in a very short amount of time, I did order some a single set of those ugly ass Harmony DPNs since I don’t have any wooden needles in the size I need for the airplane. I wish they’d make a non-ugly set because I do like the length and pointiness of the KP DPNs.

I have one request from all of you. Okay actually I have two. First if you can spare any strength for me and my family, I’d appreciate if you sent it our way; this is really, really tough. The second is, is there someone out there willing to knit my sister a Kittyville hat minus the ear muffs/tassles (so essentially a stockinette cap w/ ears) in either a grey or lime green colour? She asked me for one, but I don’t have the yarn to do it. It feels like cheating, but I know she’d love one.

* I am not actually listening to Ricky Martin nor have I heard him in dogs years although I am not opposed to listening to that song although Shake your Bon Bon or whatever it was is just too much.

I think this is the first time in a long time that I actually really like something in Knitty.

Yosemite

Not only is it named after one of my favourite places ever, but it’s very nice looking. Now I wonder if I’ll ever get around to knitting it… I’d definitely lengthen the sleeves, maybe not necessarily to full-length but cap sleeves and my rather (un)muscular upper arms are not friends. Maybe it would work if I walked around w/ my arms sort of behind me all the time like the model. Haha. I even like the soft shawl collar.

The Lace Ribbon scarf is also rather nice.

Jaden is nice from the front, but those ties around the arms? Er, no. Not that any pattern isn’t adjustable to one’s style and needs, but lucky this pattern makes them optional from the start.

Oh and Brighton… maybe one day I’ll become a handbag sort of girl instead of a backpack/child’s purse sort of girl.

There are a couple of others that look nice, but aren’t my bag, baby.

I haven’t seen anyone else mention this, but there’s a new online knitting magazine about to make it’s debut. It’s called knotions magazine and being headed up by Jodi of savannahchik. It will have the free patterns come August, but the first issue will be published in April and be articles focussing on techniques and other ways to be a smarter knitter. Read her page for a better description of what she hopes this new endeavour will be.

And since I’ve nothing else to show you, here’s a meme first spotted on TwoBlackSheep. It’s Six Unimportant Things about me.

1. It sort of makes me crazy when the toilet paper roll has the paper hanging towards the wall instead of at the front.
2. I sleep on my side yet I cannot stand it when my knees touch; they’re too bony.
3. I have a lot of spoons and pretty much eat using a spoon and bowl whenever possible; I need more spoons.
4. I’m really disorganised for a librarian. Seriously. Maybe it’s organised chaos.
5. When I was a kid I used to go through two volumes of a children’s encyclopedia set cover-to-cover every summer - the one on puzzles (logic and math mostly) and the one on arts & crafts (each volume was a different theme/topic). I’d always get stuck somewhere, especially with the puzzles one, and would start again the next summer, advancing a bit more. One summer recently I thought I’d do the same with a math book hahaha
6. For some weird reason whenever I imagine myself somewhere being hip and cosmopolitan, I’m smoking. I’ve never smoked in my life and think it is an absolutely vile habit.

That was fun.

I cannot believe how long it has taken me to knit this ONE sock. I have worked on nothing else this week. Last weekend I was convinced I would get it done, or at least very close to it, since the foot flew by. No luck there. If I was able to continue knitting on 64 stitches (or close to it) that probably would’ve been a reality. However, I ended up knitting on NINETY, NINE-ZERO, 90, stitches for a few inches before reducing down to 72 stitches. That reduction of 18 stitches definitely made a difference in the speed I could knit. It was still too many hours for one sock. I know the second sock will take almost as long, but at least I’ve now got the maths bit worked out.

For the second sock I won’t change anything other than doing fewer heel wraps as this one was a little too narrow. In future though, I will actually not start the pattern so soon after finishing the toe increases as it is just too short (doing this now would mess up all the maths I’ve worked out).

Oh and can you see how the pattern seems to twist around the cuff? Can someone explain this to me? The pattern is not one that shifts, the YOs are stacked one on top of the other, I kept the same stitches on the same needles the whole time, yet there is this very visible twist. As I’ve only put the sock on briefly, I don’t know if it will continue twisting around while it’s on my foot. Can this be due to the twist of the yarn itself?

As much as I’d like to try out that Arcade Fire yarn and the accompanying pattern, I’m going to cast on for the second sock as I don’t need yet another solo sock.

The other week you may recall that I posted a couple of bad photos of some pink silk and pink/yellow/orange/ sock yarn and claimed how it was okay that I bought yarn because it wasn’t really for me. Well, that is all true, because after those pictures I put them right back in the post and they took a trip across the ocean and landed in Ava’s mailbox. She took much nicer pictures. It’s always fun to surprise people.

I’m off the next two days. I was going to go up north, but I just don’t have the time to do that so I’ve put another offer in on an apartment I’ve not seen in person for a shorter lease (6-month). It’s in a good location, good price, and looks nice (it’s new). If it turns out to be a good thing, then I’ll extend the lease, if not well then it will at least be easier for me to see places! No, the next two days are about me beginning to pack and actually have a mental break from work right now as it’s getting even crazier since people are really beginning to panic about my departure and I might snap if I don’t take this time right now. I might sneak some knitting in. ;)

Yes, more yarn arrived this week. This is the second instalment of the Socktopus Sock Club. It’s Shelridge Farms Soft Touch Handpainted Ultra (that’s a mouthful) in a specially dyed colourway called Arcade Fire (yes, after the band). It came along with a pattern designed by Erqsome called Neighbourhood Tunnels (Ravelry link, but seen on her blog too) inspired by a song of the same name. Those who splurged on more than the Essentials package (yarn and pattern) also got a copy of a specially printed Arcade Fire CD which has a cool story behind it.

The colourway is orange. And red. And pink. And turquoise. And purple. It is definitely not a yarn I would be drawn to if it were up to me. It’s part of participating in something like a sock club where you don’t really know what you’ll get other than yarn and a pattern. You could love it or you could hate it. I am going to actually try this yarn with the pattern and see how I get on. I admit that the first instalment I wasn’t taken with the yellow/gold yarn and then I started knitting it and thought how much I’d like a whole bunch of it ’cause it’s so pretty so my mind may be changed with this yarn too.

And I am actually expecting one more bunch of yarn this week… but I didn’t buy it! I traded it so it’s okay right?

I’ve been listening to My Neighborhood in Last.fm and have heard some very good things, but also some very bad things like Fall Out Boy and Eric Clapton (I don’t care if he is a Legend, I don’t like him).

Last night I turned the heel on my sock. Then this morning I ripped it out and did it again. *shrug* I slept badly last night and have been wanting to go take a nap for awhile now, but I just can’t put the damn sock down. I am progressing very quickly on this sock for me and my tortoise-like knitting speed. However, I have now reached a point where I am in a dilemma.

My gauge in stockinette is 9.5 stitches/inch (we won’t talk about row gauge). After I did my toe, I increased to 64 stitches and used the centre 30 for the 5-stitch repeat pattern. The foot fits great — snug, but not tight. I turned the heel, picked up a bunch of stitches and have been decreasing down. I knew I would decrease down to perhaps 70 stitches or so and not the original 64 since things always end up too tight around my ankle. Right now there are the 30 stitches in pattern and another 56 in stockinette. I tried on the sock. It fits, but it seems crazy to have TWENTY TWO more stitches in the cuff than the foot. I feel like I should decrease a bit more, another 6 stitches or so to 80 (even though that still seems crazy).

The sock is essentially 4×2 rib and I’m getting about 16 stitches/inch unstretched (12 or so stretched) so if I do go down to 80 (still 16 stitches more than the foot) is that going to be too big and slide down my leg? I’ve never knit any great length of ribbing ’cause I hate it so I have no experience here. I am obviously trying to avoid doing extraneous amounts of knitting that then needs ripping. Hints? The measurement at the skinniest bit of my ankle is 8″ (shut up). The maths says that I would need 96 stitches (that’s the stretched stitches) to fit my ankle which means I’m actually four shy of that right now. What to do? What to do?

I’m going for that nap while you all solve my dilemma.

Last night the rest of my daffodils opened.

This week has been a rollercoaster of a week. I am glad it is over.

Today I managed to sleep in, something I desperately needed, and do a load of laundry although I’ve yet to manage to get it hung up to dry. I also cleaned my oven! It needs another cleaning though which tells you that it might not have been all that clean. Other than that, I’ve done a bit of knitting on a new sock even though I currently have two other socks in progress and one I’ve sort of pushed aside ’cause it bores me (I do like the look so I will eventually finish it).

I think I’ll get the heel turned on new sock tonight. I want to be able to do short row heels, but my high instep doesn’t like these — anyone else with a high instep find success with a short row heel? What’s the secret?

New sock is from Sensational Knitted Socks — it’s the Laburnum sock (Ravelry link). Even though the pattern is obscured because of the variegated yarn, I like that the yarn is still visible and the pattern gives it some texture versus plain ol’ stockinette. I am beginning to think that while there are some variegated yarns I drawn to because of the combination of colours, most patterns look shit in them.

The pattern moves pretty quickly, but the k3tog does slow me down. I start my socks toe up on a very long Addi Turbo and have found that I like to actually knit the foot the whole way with magic loop (I haven’t sat down and figured out how the heck you do the heel turn if you have to do a heel flap like I’ve been doing using magic loop), but because of the k3tog I had to change right over to the very pointy Knit Picks DPNs. I tried to find a suitable substitute for k3tog, but no joy. Suggestions?

Oh I am (finally) beginning to catch up on putting together the finished object pages. And I didn’t get the place I wanted up north so I am going up again in a week to look at a handful of places. Hopefully one will suit my needs and that will be sorted because time is moving along very swiftly.

Hmm, no I’m not going to Vienna, nor have I been recently (ever), and I have nothing to say about the sausages…

Anyway…

I’ve spent the last two days at home, occasionally checking my work email and replying or doing things as needed. I’ve been laid up with some serious migraines. I spent the majority of yesterday in bed with earplugs and a pillow on my face — one of those buckwheat filled ones ’cause I like the weight of it on my face (note, however, that I do not like the weight of my cat on my back when I am in a horizontal position). The only reason I got out of the bed was due to hunger and the fact that my body was beginning to ache. I tried to do some knitting, but ending up ripping said knitting out no less than three times because it was too big, too wonky, and then it turned out the pattern really wasn’t showing up like I expected.

Which leads me to slip stitch patterns like the Eye of Partridge (EoP just because I can) heel that can look oh so nice on socks. Essentially that is what the Aquaphobia sock is w/ a little cable up either side. I thought my Claudia Handpainted would look fantastic, but the pattern just wasn’t showing up. The two times I have done an EoP heel, they’ve looked, well not so great as in I didn’t think the patterning popped like I’d seen it on so many others. Is there something to my technique? I’m slipping a stitch and knitting it the next round, how hard can this be? I’m slipping purlwise, maybe I should slip knitwise, but I don’t want twisted stitches. Is it just me?

In other news, I’m still homeless for my move in roughly five weeks (sweet Jesus that’s approaching fast). Other things are falling into place although I’ve been met with a bit of a surprise regarding my work permit. Nothing big, just thought it was something I could put off until the summer. I’ve also had more trips to the post office in the last week than I’d generally like to make. That said, for the most part it was painless which was nice for once. My doorstep has also been busy with the receiving of great things (including the above picture of the Zen Garden Sock Club instalment 2 — colour Aubergine):

 
Both from Natural Dye Studio: BFL DK sock yarn in Ruby Fire — Ariel lace weigh silk flamme in Sweetness

I know, it’s a lot of pink goin’ on for someone who doesn’t like pink really (I have a pink t-shirt). The Zen Garden is a pretty dusty coloured pinky/purple and I quite like it. The other two lots of yarn aren’t really for me so it’s fine, right? The BFL sock yarn I had a really hard time photographing — it’s pretty much a wholly unrepresentative picture hahaha.

However, the Thin Mints? ALL FOR ME. I have already eaten a sleeve of them. I am a pig.

Ava is a goddess. Not only did she sent me TWO boxes of Thin Mints at my request, she’s a knitter so she had to include something knitterly. You might recall that last year she gave me a sock book she was going to toss and two beautiful skeins of yarn (in exchange I sent her a bunch of chocolate bars and uh, lip gloss). Well this time she sent me a supercute cardigan pattern - the Rockstar Jacket from Alchemy Yarns. So cute! Now I’ll have to find yarn for that. Hmmm…

It’s time for another headache tablet and a lie down. Fun times.

PS There was an earthquake in the north of England early this morning. I didn’t feel it. I’m slightly sad about this, but then the news stories do provide a lot of really amusing quotes from English people who are always being very decent and stumbling out of their homes in their dressing gowns.

Dudes, seriously. I was pretty happy with this project when I was all done with it last night. And then this morning when I snapped the pictures I had to then dash off to work before I could see how they came out. So I got home and downloaded the pics and they came out pretty good and just looking at the project I’m even happier with it than I was last night.

This was the first project I’ve done that involved cabling for a significant portion of the project; and while the cables aren’t big, chunky, complex things, the number of crosses and complexity was new to me. I just love this and I think my sister will too. She picked this hat out a couple years ago, but I just wasn’t ready to do it (even though I did try).

I need to practice my cabling in general as I do want to eventually make Rogue or something with cable work. I think the heavier gauge yarns do lend themselves to tidier cables, but practice is still needed.

I took the opportunity this weekend to be incredibly lazy. The weather was dry up until a few minutes ago, but it was overcast and cold so I managed to sleep in, have naps, do minimal amounts of household chores, finish Shedir, and listen to a lot music.

I have always loved music. I was far more likely to be found in my room listening to music, making mix tapes for myself or friends, or recording music videos in the wee hours of the morning (we didn’t have cable) than I was to be watching TV. Most of those series that define my teenage years? Never seen ‘em. And the only reason I saw some of them was because I went away to University and lived w/ people obsessed with things like Beverly Hills 90210 and Melrose Place.

Anyway, I’ve gone through phases in adulthood where I listen to music obsessively — looking for “new” bands and buying things up; a lot of this is due to expendable income although with the ease of obtaining music via illicit means these days, well… So this weekend I did download a number of albums (most of which I actually plan to buy because I like them THAT MUCH) of bands I’ve heard a song or two of and wanted to hear more.

Here’s a sampling of the bands/songs I am absolutely obsessed with right now (no particular order):

These are only the “new” bands and not old things I’ve rediscovered. (How come I bought the Pete Yorn album musicforthemorningafter when it was released, listened to it often, and now, I can’t even remember listening to a single song? So weird as I loved it when it was released and it’s still a good album.) Outside of The Fray, I’m not sure how much of the other bands are known outside the UK, but if you are a fan of Joy Division, then listen to Editors ’cause I think Tom Smith might be Ian Curtis incarnate. Also, hello cute.

Pictures of Shedir forthcoming.