Not So Fancy Nancy

Outside the Box Wall Quilt, Knitting WIPs & a Girl's Twirl Skirt

Boring title, but accurate.

As a birthday/Father's Day gift I made a quilt for behind my husband's desk at work. I've told him it'll give his employees something to groove on while he's droning on talking without being so obvious as staring out the window (I was joking, but he said there are sure to be a few who agree). Seriously, I thought it would add some vibrancy to his otherwise austere office. It's only propped up on a bookshelf here - it is straight and flat. I thought I'd leave the background junk for scale.

Outside the Box from The Modern Quilt Workshop
45" x 45"
Loni Rossi prints plus Micheal Miller Fairy Frost and black, water-spotted batik
King Tut quilting multi-colored thread

Played around a bit with the quilting. Meandered in the background, squiggled in the blocks and followed the lines in the floating squares. Much more heavily quilted than my usual style. I wasn't sure at first, but after washing I really like the way the texture looks in life as you move around it. Couldn't really capture that in a single photo, but here's a quilting detail:

I didn't want to buy more batting with so many large scraps around so I finally tried zig-zagging them together. Easy as pie and it works perfectly. You just feed them through abutting each other with a wide zigzag stitch and you've got what works like a single piece.

Lizard Ridge is coming along. Just finishing the 10th block. Let's just ignore that pesky seaming for now and call it halfway. Still in love with the Noro colorways, which is what keeps this project interesting.

Summer of Lace is underway and I've got two projects on the needles so far. Going to keep this post short so I can go and knit right now. Somehow all that "slow summertime knitting" has not come about yet, but I think we're getting our groove now. It's only week two, so I have hope.

Icarus in Misti Alpaca Handpaint Lace. Triangular shawls just don't look like much on the needles, especially straights, but I think this will be beautiful.

Hanami Stole in Filatura Di Crosa Superior cashmere and silk laceweight that's so incredibly soft. I love the beaded edge.

We presented the Kindergarten teacher's quilt at the end of the year picnic and I was thrilled to see the kids so excited about finding and showing their blocks to the teacher. She says she'll hang it for next year. This scene made the work worthwhile.

A party needs a skirt. Emily likes a touch of glam.

 

That dangling middle tooth finally fell out! We were all getting pretty tired of seeing her push it out between her lips (she's got a good dose of boyness when it comes to gross behavior). Now I've got a classic gappy 6-yr-old. She was pretty excited about school letting out. Can you tell?

Off to do something rather than think about what I might do. ACTION is my goal this summer!

Belle of Kaffe's Parade - new quilt top

OK, totally cheesy title, but I couldn't quiet resist. Sue me. But the quilt is certainly not cheesy. I think it's more annatto ... "slightly peppery with a hint of nutmeg."

Pattern:  Kaffe Fassett's Parade from Quilts in the Sun
Fabric:  Amy Butler's Belle plus Kaffe's shot cotton for the sashing

This is pure stash-busting goodness; nothing new was purchased in the making of this quilt! Two weekends ago I was digging around my AB fabrics, musing about a patchwork tote bag, when this quilt just demanded to be made. Picked the fabrics quickly and started working last Monday. Thought I'd include the following photos because I know I like to get a peek into other people's creative process. This sounds a little silly after saying that, but I've struggled with sharing my own process on this blog. We all have our ways and I generally don't ask for input while I'm working. I often don't show my interim renditions even to family because, to be honest, I'm not taking votes. I like to let things percolate in a vacuum. So many self-deprecating places I could go with the vacuum/brain metaphor, but basically, I don't want to be influenced while I'm creating. And after, well, it's done so nothing to be gained from sharing options that were dismissed. Yep, I HATED group projects in school and still avoid committees like the plague. I'm not being at all snarky or sarcastic when I say I'm very thankful that many people are good in groups so I don't have to be.

Anyway, my creative process generally starts small with me kneeling on the floor with a couple of fabrics placed to one side while I dig for more. My fabric hiding place storage is in the armoire on the right. When the mood is right ideas start flowing and soon I'm tossing fabrics left and right to test the combinations. I often start "safe", then go looking for interesting outliers that will move it beyond matchy-matchy. I'm not so perverse that I eschew coordinating fabrics, but one goal is to keep it from feeling so balanced that it's bland. This quilt is going on our bed and that room needs some good, strong colors to dominate the room.

My fabric is sorted by general vibe and color, so I didn't realize the fabrics I ended up with were almost all from Amy's Belle group until I opened the fabric and started cutting. I'm perfectly willing to mix and match designers and lines, but this one just worked this way. I wanted big, loud, dramatic prints, very little white, minimal negative space, and this strong color mix of orange, blue, chartreuse and olive. That orange peacock fabric framed by a striped fabric was used in the book as the center of another pattern, but I wanted to use the Parade pattern because I've been thinking about a quilt with large prints and solid sashing, so I combined the two. Tested several colors of Kaffe's shot cotton, but this one took the lead immediately. What's interesting is that the cinnamon color is not actually matched in a single one of the fabrics I ended up using, but I think it holds the orangey, brighter fabrics together with the darker, earthier tones. Not too dark, not too light ... just right. I am well aware this is not a palette to everyone's taste, but boy is makes me happy.

Started cutting last Monday morning. Took a little planning because the pattern calls for a bunch of 5/8ths cuts and I only had 1/2 yard or less of most fabrics. Analyzed the pattern to get a feel for the weighting of the prints - how many big and small blocks of each fabric are used. Because I used more fabrics I was on my own from there, so after getting the measurements I didn't use the pattern again. By the end of the week I had this first version:

When we rearranged the living room I lost my mantel-as-design-wall, but it turns out I like this set up even better. Laundry pins clip the batting to the tops of the window cornices to make a workable, if temporary, quilt design wall. I've said this before, but it really is so much easier to design vertically.

I was pretty set on this layout, even to the point of taking it down in sewing order, but the next morning I looked at this photo and just didn't like the blue geometric pattern just below the right corner of the center medallion. It technically has the right colors and even had the cinnamon of the sashing, but it just stuck out as too sharp to me. Once I took it out, it's sister (bottom row, second from right) had to go too. Went back to my rejects and decided to jack up the yellow side of things by adding the blue/yellow eyelash fabric. For the other new blocks I sorted through my remaining scraps to pull in certain colors for balance. Rather than struggle to keep the layout with so many color changes I started over. You easily can see some of the additions in the photo below because I didn't add the sashing until I was sure about the changes. Took this photo at the end of the night then slept on it.

This is an example of a point when I don't ask for input, even from family. The fabric I took out was safe and the quilt would have been just fine with it. The one I put in is kind of loud and probably doesn't appeal to many people, but I like it. I wanted to brighten the overall design and provide a little tonic to the bigger motifs. Photographs flatten colors, but in person everything moves and blends nicely. In the morning I still liked it, so I cut more sashing and started joining the blocks.

Finished the quilt top over the weekend (OK, 12:15 AM on Monday) but I'm not ready for quilting yet. This baby is large - about 90" x 90", so I'm having to piece the back from several fabrics. The pattern's worked out but I'm still cutting and sewing. Planning simple stitch-in-the-ditch quilting with some free-motion in the middle.

When I have the free-motion foot on the machine I'll quilt the story block (upper right) I missed on the Funky Monkey quilt, but otherwise it's done. The chenille-it behaved as advertised and after washing fluffed up nicely. This is the third time I've tried to photograph this. Finally found some good spots for quilts that are big enough with bright, indirect light. I have to stand tiptoe on the edge of our squishy mattress to get the best angle, so if I fall and crack my knees it will be in the service of this blog.

Of course I still have my helpers, who waited until I was perfectly situated on a step stool before running in from stage right like sword fighters in a Shakespearean comedy to literally tear up the scenery.

Here's a quick update on a few other active projects:

Yo yo's are multiplying like tribbles (if only!) ...

Blocks are tumbling...

The geraniums are finally potted ...

 

Those poor geraniums sat neglected in nursery pots for months and months. Man those plants are tough! There's "limelight" licorice in there with them that will tumble down the sides in a few months. I've been grooving on the lime/chartreuse and red combo every time I go out the door.

Orchid fever has struck again! The tell me this guy, paphiopedilum pinocchio, is ever-blooming. Bought him back in February with one bloom and the other developed a week or two later. Apparently when the oldest one drops another will come on and you can already see another bud on the right stem.

Put it in this very cool pot weighted with beach stones, but I still fear for it's life between cats and kids.

The best light for it is also in the highest traffic spot in our house, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I will not be that nutcase crafty mom I will not be that nutcase crafty mom ...

So, I'm sitting in a teeny tiny chair that's putting my bottom to sleep when the Kindergarten teacher (who's in an adult chair, no wonder she's still smiling while running overtime) tells us that each day for the next thirteen days will be a special color day. The kids will do work revolving around that color theme, so it would be great if they wore something with that color each day. Maybe it was the chair cutting off my circulation. Maybe it was the lack of adequate coffee, but I started thinking Hey, red's first and that skirt I just made has a red tier. Perfect. Red covered. But what about orange? I tuned back in and she was talking about lunchtime procedures or some such (don't think I'm horrible folks, this happens when you've been through school orientations for six years running) ... hum, back to mentally browsing my stash... Oh, I've got those orange dots!

Emily's Russian and she's loves her matryoshka dolls, so this fabric was calling out to be a skirt for her. I really like the strong, graphic dots with the whimsical, folksy dolls. That's a pink silky ruffle around the bottom 'cause my girl loves silky things and pink is always good. The shirt's a bit "ruffled" too, but we were running just-in-time and I knew this wouldn't come home any neater. Finished after midnight (oh so typical), so no ironing for me.

Found this ruffle as a ready-made with the ribbon attached at JoAnns. Seemed like an expeditious choice, but now I know better. The silky fabric was not well trimmed behind the ribbon and would have stuck out all around the top, so fussy clipping was required - at least by obsessives like me. Then I discovered that I didn't leave my self enough wiggle room, so I had to re-seam right through the middle in places to catch gaps on the back side. You can see that in this close-up, but thankfully the rayon thread I had on hand matches the ribbon well so it disappears a foot away. It's moments like that (somehow always at 11:59) that I chant to myself Remember your audience until sanity forces me to put down the seam ripper.

Day three:  Yellow

The skirt is even and her shirt covered a good three inches, but she did a perfect model hip thrust and subtly lifted the shirt to show the skirt without instruction from me. Is this stuff hard-wired? The frilly bottom thing has become de rigeur and this daughter loves a touch of glam. She couldn't wear the shoes to school, but I noticed they went right on when we got home.

It twirls too. I love how this has a flapper look. Ems would have definitely been a flapper!

Technical notes:  I wanted to make the most of the large sunflowers, so I made the top and bottom tiers much shorter and that middle tier longer. The bottom is not netting, but a much softer sheer from JoAnns. I cut it 4.5 or so inches wide and then folded it over wrong sides together so there was no bottom edge. It was surprisingly easy to ruffle and sew. It runs 54" wide (or so), so I decided to use just one cut and not to ruffle it as much so that this skirt would have a different look. Still, I wish there had been an extra eight inches or so to do a quilt binding finish. I was left with a measly 2 inches and rigged an overlap, closed with Steam-a-Seam Lite. Of course after steaming that seam I realized I could have cut it down to 1/2" or less. You can see it in the top photo. But it was 10 PM, and I was going to bed! Say it with me: Remember your audience. Repeat as necessary.

Day four was green, but it was also school t-shirt day, so green capris did the job. Next week:  blue and purple, then on to white, black, brown, gray, pink, gold and silver. Will likely skip gray and may try to come up with multi-use color combos, but there will be at least two more. Yep, I am that nutcase crafty mom.

All this joking about my mental status aside, I am practicing to make a skirt for myself, so this is my homework. I'm very happy with my general seaming - all the quilting has paid off! - and when I join the tiers my side seams align beautifully - that's all the tote bags behind me. I now feel better about hemming and waist bands, but it's the little detail work that's still tripping me up. Still, I'm feeling braver with each twirl, so after the Kindergarten color wheel stops spinning it's my turn.

Next time... What will the magical blocking wires reveal?

Funky Monkey & Daizez Quilts, Mason Dixon strikes again and Birch gets drunk

I'm going to reveal a little something ... you will either see yourself or think I'm a nutcase. When I log on to typepad and look at the date of my last post I wonder what happened. I think of things to post all the time while driving, doing the dishes, sewing, knitting or any other activity that engages the body while leaving the mind to wander its own labyrinth. Of course these posts are witty, engaging, informative ... etc etc. Don't be nice and suggest I carry a notebook or some such thing - I'd never use it. I've decided my brain uses "Hey, write this in the blog ..." as its internal dialog starter. You are all my imaginary friends and I talk to you about inter-connectivity in the universe and quarter inch seams. Not to imply in the least that you're not real individuals with real lives of your own, but in my little dialogs, no, make that monologues, you're just a quiet, rapt audience. I just realized ... I miss Spalding Gray. Wow, that man could tell a story.

OK, some photos to share. I took these yesterday, but am only now sitting down at 9 PM the next day. Today I cleaned the entire garage. Not just tidied. Rearranged. Sorted. Organized. Vacuumed. CLEANED. We had some mice out there recently. Enough said if you've ever cleaned up after mice. The lengths I will go to to get my husband to put up one of those mop/broom handle bracket thingies. He claimed it was not required - that it was just too messy out there. I require it darnit and I deserve it. I am tired. Yes, I know I could put it up myself, but that would disrupt the powerful tool-use separation force in this household. I get the washer, dryer and sewing machine. He gets the power drill and all PCs (fixing, not using). I'll hammer nails with abandon, but I don't do drywall anchors or operating systems.

First, a quilt top. Two or three years ago I bought four one-yard pieces of tumbling sock monkey fabric in red, orange, lime green and white. I was young and stupid. I didn't know that not much in the way of quilting can be done with four yards of the same print. Then the sock monkey line was no where to be found and those lonely monkeys were hidden deep in my stash. This spring Moda revived Funky Monkeys. Oh joy! Bought a fat quarter pack and a story panel. Problem is that they went pastel on me. The lime became minty. The orange got soft. They introduced baby blue, yellow, pink and lavender. I pieced it anyway. This is a square Turning Twenty. The story blocks plugged right into that formula so it was very fast to piece. Just today I received some Chenille-it ribbon to join the story blocks. Will try it tomorrow and share.

Earlier in the week I'd leafed through Mason Dixon Knitting for a light diversion after a long day. Didn't really walk away with anything concrete, but that was ok. The book is so fun. So funny. You all have it, so you know what I mean. If you don't have it, go buy it now. Anyway, yesterday morning I cleaned out some of my stash closet. Yeah, some weird cleaning urge has come over me - I have to honor it because it will go away soon and may not return for many moons. Spent some time coming up with a stash recycling plan (more on that next post) and was moving along nicely when this chenille stopped me. You know those yarns you've never gotten rid of because they're so pretty, or soft, or expensive? Or pretty, soft and expensive? Bought four colors of Blue Heron Yarns handpainted chunky chenille way back when. Not to abuse my naive stupidity excuse, but I, with my new knitter zeal, thought an 8 oz hank of each would be enough to make a sweater. I mean, they looked so big. And those stripes wouldn't make my butt look huge, right? And cotton chenille worked tightly enough for a sweater wouldn't break my hands would it? So now I have four colors and not enough to do anything ... or maybe ... Log Cabin Knitting saves the day! Thank you Kay and Ann. And in the middle of the block? A vacation purchase of three hanks of recycled silk. I wasn't a naive knitter by then, but like I said, I was on vacation. We all know how that can happen.

My field of flowers is growing too. A little slowly, but surely.

 

The bias sewing was kicking my ass. That big blue one in the first row was the worst but I'm starting to get the hang of it.

Cool thing with these Daizez is that bad is still good. Ok with me. There's a great moment at the end where this whacked up bunch of strips gets squared off and suddenly ... blooms. (couldn't resist)

I will make a non-kid quilt. Really. But I've needed this sewing 101. 1/4" seams, joins, bias stretch ... I'm getting there. In the meantime my kids are reaping the benefits.

Have been thinking blue. Still can't decide on a pattern though.

Birch is kind of blue. Does that count? I've been knitting poolside while the kids play, but found out last Friday evening that Stoli, lemonade, Limoncello and lace don't mix. Well, those first three do quite nicely, but the lace gets all mucked up. Spent Saturday AM dance class undoing what vodka did.

Love the difference in to colors of these two photos taken just seconds and a puff of breeze apart.

Have a great weekend everyone.

In which our Wench learns the True Meaning of Swatch

I've always swatched. Always. It's easy:  Knit about 5-10 rows, stretch it out on the circular cord, take a measure (give or take a stitch), then knit. Learned this technique at my mother's knee. Love ya Mom, but you know that's what you do!

Could this possibly, maybe be the reason I've knit about 4-5 inches of so many sweater backs, only to get that icky feeling that the thing is waaaay off? We all know the answer to this question, and some of us even act accordingly. Some of us. That group never included me until now.

This:

is becoming this:

Aren't they lovely? Not washed or blocked yet, but I feel like such a responsible citizen of the knitting community. I'm doing the full Knitter's Review thing here. Starting with a cast on of 6-8 stitches more than the expected count and garter stitching the borders. Trying multiple needle sizes where needed. Will wash, block, remeasure and note changes.

What brought about this sudden leap to knitterly maturity? Well, of course it's been in the back of my mind every time I make a half-assed swatch ... "Should do this correctly shouldn't I? ... Humm ... Oh well ... next time ..." You can see several of those dink swatches in that basket above. Yep, I'm so bad. I knit a couple of inches, take out the needles and throw it all back in the bag, so very sure that I'll remember what needles I used and what project I had in mind. (Actually, I do remember projects, but the details go out the window.)

This bad habit has been brought to an end by the convergence of desire and market forces. I want to make Kepler (PDF pattern link) and I'm probably toying with SABLE (Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy) even though I plan to live a long life! OK, maybe not SABLE, but certainly enough for the 05/06 winter season. I know it's just plain wrong to buy yarn unless I establish as fact that I don't have anything to gauge. (Loop-hole Queen am I)

And what about all those other just-a-gleam-in-this-knitter's-eye projects? All that yarn was purchased for something. And this is only about 1/2 of it. Swatching on a large scale is required.

Finally, this week has been very upsetting. My heart goes out to these people. Far too much time watching TV (deepening my distaste for TV journalism, although I admire most of the ground crews), so I've had time to knit. I didn't want to knit anything I would wear. Every piece of my knitting represents my life to me. It's time trapped in stitches. I don't want a Hurricane Katrina sweater. Swatching has worked for me.

Finished the bags. Very cute if I'm allowed to brag ... isn't that what blogs are for? Yes, the kid and the bags. I'd staged a still shot, but Miss Emmy wanted to model. Gotta love the shoes! Sorry the pic is a little dark. The sun was going down, but she really wanted to help. We've been together 24/7 for three weeks now and she's quite certain of her role as my helper.

The pink bag doesn't have it's firm-bottom insert yet (Where can I find one of those? Don't comment "the gym" or I will come find you), but otherwise they're done. They're pretty big, so my girls can fit all the necessary items for a sleepover or trip to Grandma's. On each bag there's another 6" or so of striped fabric above the circle print, which is gathered with ties, but they're both sunken down in this photo.

The sewing machine's in the shop now, so that's the last of sewing for a bit. The timing went off on the last button holes and caused great distress and much seam ripping. Just like knitting huh?

Oh, to those of you who think I sew neatly. No.

That last post only looked neat because I'd had to clean everything for the weekend. This how it looked while finishing.

Note the two completely unnecessary knitting baskets taking up prime real estate that I just kept working over and around. And the pile of scraps falling to the floor. You can't see the huge pile of snipped threads and loose pins to the machine's right. Actually, this looks pretty neat for me.

Thanks for the very nice comments on my last post. Sorry, but I dropped off in answering emails over these last weeks since I've had Emily home all day, every day. And Rachel's still "adjusting" to homework. I've adjusted her to no TV or friends over Monday -Thursday, but still the adjustment continues. For such a smart child she's a slow learner sometimes. Given all this mothering, I haven't had PC time. Next week pre-school starts and hopefully I will regain some balance.

I'll close the two things that have provided escape and refreshment this month:  The Outlander Series and Bubble Tea

Nice Sweet Bunny Sweater

Finished! Learned a lot. It's cute. And, most importantly, the recipient loves it. It fits now, but with a little grow room. Crossing my fingers for more wear next year.

Still going to try for the white dress shot, but it just had to be worn immediately for a trip to Costco. Took the 101 home (avoiding the I-5 parking lot) and watched a perfect sunset flash on the waves as we drove. Of course no camera to catch Emily and Bunnies in the best light of the day. Still, very nice way to start the weekend.

The collar has since been pulled into proper shape - this was bound off and literally thrown on going out the door to drop big sis at a playdate (one kid doing the Costco beg-a-thon is enough). I had wisely woven in every last loose thread before finishing the collar. Know thyself. I loose all interest after that last bind off stitch is pulled through! Poor Klara still has a yarn end dangling between my breasts, tickling me periodically like it's trying to remind me to sew it up. I'm am such a lazy housekeeper. Anyway, I'll take my cheap thrills where I can get em.

This has made me think of something my mom told me years ago. Her mom called dust bunnies slut bunnies because ... "only sluts would have dust under their beds". You'd have to know my Grandma to appreciate that completely, but I still get a kick out of it. It's a very good thing Grandma never got to look under my beds. Makes me blush knowing the kind of knitting dust that interface is hiding - slut bunnies indeed!

The collar is done exactly to pattern , but if I had it to do again I would do fewer increases at the points. I think a little steaming will completely resolve the extreme pointy issues. We headed straight out into the garden when we got home for these photos, but it was already getting dark. The last photo below (on the table) shows the positive effects of a bit of tugging and shaping - it's about right now.

Yesterday afternoon I ripped the left side buttonband about 1/2 way, spliced yarn, knitted the needed six rows, spliced sewing yarn, then reattached. It just had to be done and I'm proud of myself for biting the bullet and doing it right. Was stupid to cut the tails before really assessing it, so I had to own up and fix it. Did the buttonhole band last night - oh what fun. Did figure out a neat little trick for keeping the yet-to-be-sewn buttons where I want them - double stick tape works like a charm.

Learned how to do a moss stitch bind off:  following pattern, bind off K or P wise after that type of stitch -- Thanks Debbie/Stitch and Bitch. My mom and I agree she does a good job simplifying things that should be just that.

I have to share this...  the Knitting Goddess was smiling on me (maybe she was pleased about the buttonband) - I got the 77 neckline stitches picked up the very first time! Really. Actually, it was even better - I got 78, so it was perfectly even, but moss needs an odd number, so I chose that forever loosey goosey spot at the left shoulder/back join to tighten up with a K2tog. Probably never to be repeated in my knitting life, so I must rejoice. Who would be the knitting goddess anyway - Hera?

Here's the collar closer to what it should look like. A thought for those of you new to sweater construction:  When increasing on the the sleeves, do the right increase (beginning of a right side row) by knitting into the front and back one stitch after the selvage stitch, but do the left side (end of the right side row) two stitches before the selvage stitch. This makes the little "fashioned" bumps even on each side of the seam. Did it for the first time on this sweater and I really like the way it looks. Oh, and did you notice the lovely UN-puckered buttonband? ;) Gotta close, my arm's starting to get sore from patting myself on the back.

btw, if any of you were wondering why that whole evil bunny thing popped into my mind... think Monty Python's Holy Grail. The rabbit looked cute, but .... Laughed so hard I cried first time I saw it. Hum, must rent that soon.

The Curse of the Evil Bunny Sweater

OK folks, I had a nice long post that took all afternoon between the kids making me crazy beyond measure. It was going to be my one measure of success in a day of appointments, leaky roof, ants in my pantry, back pain, rushing, waiting, catnip all over the house, playdates and a three year old testing every boundary. Going to be... Hit the wrong button and now I have no successes to mark this day. And dinner's not even thought of and it's 6:30.

Here's the early draft with photos. Imagine something wittier, more descriptive.

**************************

"Do a kid's sweater, they're easy" my patoot - this sweater just goes on and on. Fair Isle, intarsia (with evil fraying cotton), cables, moss stitch, sewn on button bands and little bitty fiddly sawtooth borders ... the fun never stops.

Here it is sans collar and buttonhole band. The sawtooth border is discussed below.

Yeah, it's cute. Yeah, I'm happy to have made it. Yeah yeah yeah. Honestly, all whinging aside, it's been very educational, which I guess is the purpose of a sampler sweater. And better to learn on a kid's sweater than one I plan to wear for years. Because this one, lets be honest, will look good for about a week at best and there after be found on the floorboards of the van or stuffed in the bottom of Em's backpack after pre-school. But I did buy a white dress to go under it the other day (Hope and mother's dreams spring eternal), so final photos will be forthcoming.

That buttonband is too tight, but tough. It was too loose at first, so I undid it and redid it and it's done, so there. First mistake was to sew while on perma-hold with insurance company over a claim from last June (yes!). I waited them out and they agreed to pay just to get rid of me. So this will be forever the too-tight buttonband that's all Aetna's fault! (Real mistake was to declare it done and cut the yarn, but that I can't blame on Aetna).

Was very worried about the evil bunnies being pulled apart, so I blew $0.60 on iron-on interfacing (and another $6 on a feather boa to keep the lucky recipient of this sweater occupied in the fabric store while I waited to have my sixty cents of interfacing cut). It does add a little stiffness, but I choose a woven, lightweight one that's not too bad. Trust me, the bunnies look 10X better even if a bit of drape is lost. Anyway, now she'll have to worry that off before she can get to the million loose ends below.  My 2 cents -- intarsia is much better in WOOL. And yes, I would typically weave in the ends, but this yarn frays apart and floats out of position.

Had a long description of this sawtooth fiasco. Guess a photo tells the story anyway. Just why did it take SIX repeats to think to change the dec? Why? Thought it would iron out. Insert Pope quote again. The offending teeth will be pulled out shortly.

There is a bright light on my knitting horizon. I won't even let myself get out the winder until the evil bunnies are done, but I know it's there, waiting for me! Bet some of you can guess what it's going to be. Yeah, I've always been late to parties, but I have fun anyway.

The Bunny Sweater returns

My SIL jolted me into awareness that Easter is early this year and only weeks away. NOW is the time to finish this sweater for Emily. This is the photo from Zoe Mellor's Animal Knits, my version is below. I wanted to call this post Chasing Tail since that does describe the bunnies in this pattern, but then thought of the Google hits and decided I don't need that kind of audience! Knitters only are just fine with me. But, I must tell you a story to remind us all to write as if your mother, your mother's workmates at the library, or your favorite high school teacher are reading because they might just be. Of course I know my mom - the wonderful knitter who got me started - reads this. I also knew she shares it with with fellow knitters at work. What I never expected was an email from my high school history and psychology teacher. Not really sure why I used his full name in my 100 list - guess it was just the natural impulse to give a person you're honoring their due (the opposite of a "who shall remain unnamed" slam). Someone saw it and forwarded it to him (google hits again I suspect). We traded a couple of emails where I was able to clarify my appreciation. I cannot tell you the incredible satisfaction I've had in being able to say thank you 22 years later. Sometimes the net is just plain wonderful.

Yesterday, after six straight days of rain (we're now at the 3rd wettest year on record for San Diego County) I decided it was time to jump in the frog pond. We actually do have frogs in our backyard, which entertains cats and kids to no end. Ripped Rocktorp. Packed up Lara. And dealt with Rogue. Ah Rogue. So glad I put it aside. Knew something was wrong, but on the circs the extent of the issue was not clear. Off the needles it was downright funny. Had to take this Slim Fast photo to show just how far off I was. Excuse the 14-year-old pleated peg-leg pants - these babies were cheapies from the Limited in 1991 and they will not die! They've been my house sweats for 12 years and I've found nothing can hurt this space-age fabric. Took gauge (again), made notes and frogged it all. Very sad to frog cables and that beautiful knitted hem, but there was no saving this. Especially since I'm at my hippiest from not being able to exercise for 1 1/2 years! Good part is that I get to reduce it by 40 stitches so it will go that much faster next time. Still want Rogue and still want it in this yarn. Next year.

Regarding my back... only 10 days until my percutaneous discectomy! Yippee! Just trying not to hurt myself until then. I've had debilitating sciatica since Oct 03 and during the worst episode last year I was hospitalized because I was unable to move. That sucked. I'll mention it again right before, but I won't be posting for a week or two after March 7th because sitting will be restricted during the initial healing time.

Klaralund has not been forgotten. Got pretty lucky with the sleeve cast ons since these yarns matched right out of the balls. I am changing the sleeves a little with some bell shaping rather than the unshaped kimono sleeves of the pattern. Since I shaped the body I hope it works. Feeling brave and hope to not be feeling stupid. We'll see. Want to finish this soon while they're still predicting more rain. Btw, we're not in any way negatively affected by rain. Our back slope is heavily planted and the retaining wall deeply and solidly footed. That cost us big bucks, but now feels like money well spent.

Also ripped the Gloria swatch. Thought of making another larger swatch since I'm still uncertain about these yarns together, but since I'd gotten gauge that seemed silly. Started a sleeve instead since it uses the alternating garter pattern. I don't think I've ever been this uncertain about yarns. I love both yarns:  the colors, the textures, and the weights. But I keep questioning if they belong in the same sweater. Thought of switching out the Bliss to another color, but nothing else moved me like this periwinkle. It's just such a beautiful shade for spring. Held up next to my face the colors together look good on me, so that's a big positive. It will certainly be unique!

Finally, back to the bunnies:

Started this in spring of '03 before we adopted Emily. Last year it was way too big for her so I left it in stash. It's just her size now and all I have left are the two front panels and trim. Using Brown Sheep's Cotton Fleece. Not bad, but it splits very easily and isn't really the best for intarsia, cables or fair isle as you can see. Too late now though! I was hoping two years of additional knitting experience would help, but after picking it up again this morning I can attest that the spliting and lack of stickiness is inherently frustrating. Regardless, Ems is pretty excited about it and woke up telling her Daddy all about her bunny sweater, which confused the heck out of the poor man since he's never seen it. There's a whole lot of estrogen under this roof so he'd better get used to clothes talk. Actually, he can handle that, but he's not looking forward to the boy talk!

Our relationships with knitting

The theme that pops out at me as I cruise knigblogs is how so often our feelings about our knitting projects are so easily compared to human relationships. If my intellect was sharper I'd have a good paper here. Let's not go there - no need to examine my mental dullness too closely. Anyway, Anne-Caroline was comparing her yarn lust to her wanton teen years - I loved that correlation. Today, I'm in the fading relationship. You know, ya like him, he's a good guy and you had fun, but that cute guy over there is looking so much more interesting. Luckily, this is a memory for me at this point (DH and all that), but oh I know the feeling. Clapotis is just going on and on. At least I finally got my brain wrapped around the fact that "repeat 12 more times" means there are 13 repeats total - duh. Thankfully I came to that golden understanding just stitches before starting the decreases one repeat too soon. No wonder I kept asking if it was going to be too short. Anyway, I'm including this pic so you can see that yes, I'm almost done. Sorry the photo is a bit off, trying to hold the shade shut and keep Emily off the sofa while holding the camera steady and shooting with one hand - something had to give.

To take a break Emily and I wound yarn, which she finds endlessly entertaining. Helps that the sweater is for her. Sooo bright, but she's in love with the colors. And yes, that's the Berroco Plush throw in the background. Will sew some today too. Making this pattern from Paintbox Knits again and this time I think I'll do sleeve shaping - whadda ya think? Isn't that hilarious. Really don't know what I did. How I gained 4" in diameter is a mystery too. And just why did I CO the biggest size but only knit the length and sleeves to the shortest measurments? This was the first pattern I ever followed (badly it seems) - my first two sweaters were made without patterns. Think about that - the hubris is beyond words. But it was worn then, and is now being worn by the little one. But since she swims in it I thought I'd make one that fits. With shaping even!

btw, the opposite of hubris is arête, "which implies a constant striving for perfection and self-improvement combined with a humble awareness that such perfection cannot be reached." My experience with fiber has definitely led me to a state of humble awareness. Very humble. Hum, guess the second paper could be on the religion of knitting? Yeah, I know, others have been there. It's wicked hard to find fresh topics.

Poncho Rivalry (2)

You would think by this point in life I'd know better than to rush finishing something. You would think - but I didn't. I got so determined to finish this poncho yesterday before dinner so I could start something new that I cast off after only three rounds of garter and on the same size needles. I was at the end of the ball, so I rationalized it. Bad move. The edges roll and it bugs me to death. Some part of my knitting brain (the smart sensible part) knew this when the last stitch was off the needles. When I slipped it over my child's head I even said something like "hummm, shouldn't I change this before I cut the yarn?" to which she answered "Oh no mom, it's perfect perfect perfect - cut it off - I want to wear it right new!" Silly me. I will fix it soon - the knitter in me just can't let this be worn out in public.

So, what's the rivalry? Well, it was intended for Emily and she knows that. But when I cast off Rachel quickly assessed that it fit her better. It does, though I think it's a tad too short on the arms. But she swears she loves it just like it is. It will have to start with Rachel and be handed down to Ems. Which of course means I still need to make something for Emily. Life of a knitting mom.