Hard times....checking in

Hi knitters, just checking in again. Life has been difficult lately to say the least. My dad passed away on Friday, May 30, and his funeral was this past Tuesday. He had been ill for some time and was in a nursing home, so it wasn't totally unexpected yet we did not expect it just then. It went very fast. My 3 sisters and I were all there with him when he died. We were also all with my mom last July when she died. I never would have thought I would watch both my parents die in less than a year. I'm so thankful I got to be there with both of them though. My mom was 79 and would have been 80 last September, and my dad was also 79 and would have been 80 in November. They were the BEST parents ever and I miss them both so much! I am truly blessed to be their daughter.

I have managed to do a little knitting in the midst of everything, no pics right now though. I'm about 2/3 done with the Icord handle for my messenger bag then that will be done except for felting. I started an iPod cozy, simple garter stitch, which I will also felt. My Sophie bag is also awaiting felting. Ack! I'm about 2/3 done with that. I also on a whim decided I wanted to knit some stuffed animals so I bought the booklet Jean Greenhowe's Knitted Animals. I received that, then ordered some Paton's Astra yarn which hasn't arrived yet. I plan to make both my girls the puppy and I also want to make the frog. I got enough yarn to make all of that. I'm also wanting to start a new pair of socks with my Dyeabolical Neapolitan yarn soon. I just have to roll the yarn into a center pull ball. I think I'm going to try the Jaywalker pattern. I think I will be happiest being a monogamous knitter, so why am I starting all these new projects? :-)

My sweet daughter Lindsey turned 5 last Sunday. The day before we also celebrated the 4th anniversary of the day we first met her in China. Joy in the midst of sorow.



Here's to happier days ahead...

Sigh

Back to your regularly scheduled knitting....

I'm so disappointed that the Packers lost last night. Sadness in Packerland this morning. Hats off to the Giants though who deserved to win, and I hope they crush the Patriots in the Super Bowl. What a horrible game. They couldn't move the ball and they couldn't stop the Giants. Except for the 90 yard TD by Driver the whole game was miserable. But, life goes on. We didn't expect this season to go the way it did, we had a blast, it was a great ride. Too bad it didn't end better but what can you do.

So, what am I working on right now? I actually didn't knit at all this weekend. I had my nephew's birthday party on Saturday and then my sister watched my kids so my husband and I could go out for awhile. After all that I was too tired to knit. Yesterday I didn't get a chance while Allison was napping and then last night was the game. I can't knit during a Packer game especially one like that. :-) Other than that though I think I've knitted every single day this year so I'm still keeping up my resolution to knit at least 5 days a week. Of course it's only January 21 but hey. :-)

I'll be working on my second sock hopefully tonight. I ran out of yarn after a few rounds of the foot. I knew I would since I had to use some of the second ball for the first sock. Then Knit Picks was out of that yarn for awhile. I got another ball last week. Obviously it's not the same dye lot but it looks about the same, and the sock will either be in a shoe or just worn around the house so if it doesn't match exactly that's okay.

I'm almost done with my felted purse. I just have to bind off, do Icord for the handles, and then felt it.

I'm working on a gift for a friend. I don't think she reads this blog but just in case I'm not going to say what it is. Just something small.

I also have a ballband dishcloth that's been in progress for over a month now. I really don't like working with cotton yarn, even using bamboo needles as some have suggested.

I bought a ball of Tofutsies from my LYS to make another pair of socks, and I also have some sock yarn coming from Etsy for another pair. Not sure which yarn I'm going to use first, or which pattern I'll be doing. I haven't decided yet. I just bought some Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted Weight yarn also from my LYS to make a pair of Fuzzy Feet. Haven't started any of that yet.

So that's about it! Pictures hopefully in my next post. Happy knitting!

Sock Woes

I can't even begin to detail all my frustrations trying to knit my first pair of socks. But I'll tell you a little bit about it. :-)

First of all, huge thanks to Brandy who helped me move past the leg to the heel flap, at the last Knit Night I went to (a week ago yesterday, didn't make it last night because we went to our city's annual Christmas Parade, a tradition!). Finished the heel flap, went on to the next step, screwed up almost immediately. Due to not knowing how to fix it, and fatigue and frustration, I ripped out the whole heel flap and started over. And again, and again. Noticed a hole at the end of the leg I didn't notice before (the lifeline knot was in the way). At this point I'm not going back, I'll sew up the hole later when the socks are done. :-)

I'm pretty sure something was messed up before I started to turn the heel, but I pressed on anyway just in case it was okay. :-) Finished that, I get the concept of that no problem, it looks *almost* like it's supposed to, but something doesn't look quite right. So I think I may have messed something up, not sure! Now I have no idea how to pick up stitches along the side. I looked at various tutorials online but I still don't get it. I need someone to show me.

Here's my problem now. I have people who could help me. I have my new friends in my local knitting group. BUT, I fear there is just too much for someone to help me during Knit Night. I need to sit down with someone for, oh, probably 2 or more hours. I don't really have 2 hours to do that (I am swamped and Christmas coming doesn't help matters) AND I sure don't want to ask someone to take a few hours out of their own busy day to help me.

I feel stuck. There's nothing I can do right now. I think the socks might have to sit for awhile - weeks or months - and that BUMS ME OUT! I want so bad to figure this out and learn how to knit socks. I really think I am going to LOVE it once I know what I'm doing.

I do have some projects to work on while I wait to resume my sock knitting. I still haven't finished Lindsey's scarf (OY!) but I'm almost there. I started a ballband dishcloth a few weeks ago that has just been sitting. I also have yarn to make 2 different small felted purses (another new thing for me, can't wait to try it!) but I'm waiting on the needles I need to come from Knit Picks. Then there's the crocheted slippers I started last summer. I really don't want to abandon crocheting completely while I'm learning to knit. However knitting is priority for me right now.

So if you've made it this far, thanks for listening to my lament! I WILL get this, it just may be awhile.

Good night, Happy Thanksgiving, and......

GO PACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My socks!

I'm so sorry, I've been wanting to write a post about making my first pair of socks since I started them, but I've been either too tired or too unmotivated to write whenever I sit down at the computer!

I started them on Monday night, October 29 when the Packers played the Broncos (and of course the Packers won, woo hoo!). NOT such a good time to start my first pair of socks. First of all I found when knitting my gauge swatch and figuring out the Magic Loop method, and when I first started the socks, that it seems to me that the whole thing looks like one big mess until an inch or so of the sock is completed. And let me back up to say (and this may be dumb but what can I say) I was SO nervous to start these socks! AND I was not just nervous about starting the socks but as is typical for me, I was so nervous about the game! So my hands were shaking and I had this mess going on, and I didn't actually get much done that first night.

Since then I've worked on the socks for about 1/2 hour almost every night after the kids go to bed and I have about 40 rounds, and 6 inches of the leg done. I need to get about 1 more inch done before moving on to the next step. I've gotten comfortable knitting the leg (K3, P1 rib) but as I get closer to the heel I'm getting nervous again. I have no idea if I'll be able to figure it out or if the sock will fit or if I'll make a mistake I can't correct or whatever. I know, reminding myself what the Yarn Harlot said:

"Be afraid of skydiving. Be afraid of wild boar. Be fearless with knitting."

Here's a picture taken a few days ago. I've gotten a few more inches done since I took this pic. I'll post another picture once I move on to the heel.



I am still working on Lindsey's scarf! I don't work on it much. I could probably end it now, it's probably long enough. But I have it in my head I want it to be 50 inches and I'm about 6 or 7 inches short of that yet. I think it was such a good first project, just to get comfortable with knitting and purling, and not having to worry about mistakes. I've made a few, just kept going and didn't undo them, why bother. Who knows if she'll even wear it! It's really scratchy. I'm making it out of Red Heart Kids. Funny that almost all my crocheting was done with Red Heart yarn and I didn't mind it (I didn't really know about better yarns) but now that I'm knitting and I'm using a non-acrylic yarn for the socks, I realize how scratchy the RH is. I think it has it's place and I'm certainly no "yarn snob" but I don't think I'll be using it much anymore. Neither can I afford anything super expensive though!

Coming soon: More about my knitting podcast obsession, what I'm waiting on in the mail, and dreaming of future projects!

Ready, set, go!

I am done swatching - I switched from size 6 needles to size 7 and my gauge went from 7 stitches per inch to 6 stitches per inch, so I am going to make the 6 Stitches Per Inch socks from Getting Started Knitting Socks by Ann Budd. Even though the recommended yarn weight for this pattern is sportweight or DK weight, I'll be using my Knit Picks Swish Superwash worsted weight. I don't have time during the day today to start but I don't care how tired I am, I am going to cast on as soon as the girls go to bed tonight. I'll be up late watching the Packers play (and hopefully BEAT*) the Broncos. I doubt I'll knit the whole game but I will for awhile. Wish me luck!

Question: Since I played around with the yarn quite a bit, swatched twice, etc., can I still use it to knit my socks or did I totally stretch it out? I guess I only bought 2 balls so I have to use it, will hope for the best!

NEXT PROJECT: I am already itching to get the supplies to start something else. I probably won't start anything until my socks are well underway, but I'm going to start researching what to make next in the meantime. Some things I am interested in are a felted bag, felted iPod or cell phone holder, toddler sweater or poncho ..... any other ideas??? I know that is totally up to me, but just throw some suggestions out there - novice patterns please! But they don't have to be all garter stitch or anything like that. I think I can purl okay and I like to purl. I'd also love to make something using my new circs. But I don't have to either. So just something not too hard, but it doesn't have to be a garter stitch scarf. LOL In fact, NO SCARVES! I still haven't finished Lindsey's. :-)


*It's sad but I still hold a major grudge against the Broncos for beating my Packers in Super Bowl XXXII - GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!! My 4 most hated teams, in this order, are the Vikings, the Bears, the Patriots, and the Broncos.