I'm delighted to have finished my first (1 of 2) toe-up sock, Lacey Ribs by Wendy Johnson. This was a wonderful exercise in firsts with few frustrations. Thanks to Wendy's instructions,
Knitty.com, and the exquisite teachings of Cat Bordhi via
YouTube, I was able to learn and execute the Figure-8 Cast On and Jenny's Super Stretchy Bind Off without a hitch, not to mention doing it all on two circulars. In fact, the only "hitch" was
unbinding off after figuring last night that I could do a regular loose bind off and be happy with it. Nope.
Note to self: Don't make decisions like this late at night. It almost always ends in a clearer head prevailing the next day and having to undo what you've done to take the more challenging but satisfying route.
I base this success on the accessibility of information both from Wendy's book and from the Internet. Granted, I would far have preferred the joy of being able to sit down with a learned friend or neighbor to reap the benefits of their experiences, but in today's world I sadly find those opportunities few and far between. So, Wendy, Cat and all the rest of you experienced knitters in cyberville... I'm glad to be your neighbor.
Last night I started my first toe-up sock on two circular needles using the
Figure 8 Cast-On. Very neat how it works out. This method was easy to master, so next time I will try
Judy Becker's Magic Cast-On. I'm using the Lacy Ribs pattern from Wendy Johnson's
Socks from the Toe Up book. This is a perfect pattern for nearly mindless knitting sessions while watching TV or for picking up when presented with a bit of knitting time whereever you happen to be in the world.
I am using Shibui sock yarn from
ShibuiKnits in the jewel colorway. The company's "mulberry", "wisteria", "emerald" and "wasabi" color descriptions sound as luscious as this yarn looks. I am quite taken with this 100% ultrawash merino wool fiber, enjoy working with it, and love the silky feel and look to it on my needles. I am quite sure my feet will agree.
NOTE TO SELF: No matter how easy the pattern,
put the knitting needles down upon accepting a second glass of wine. I will have one row of back-tracking to do tonight as a result of last night's second serving.
Labels:
book,
cast-on,
circular,
Figure 8,
Judy Becker,
kniting,
lace,
Magic Cast-On,
merino,
mindless,
needles,
pattern,
ribbed,
Shibui,
ShibuiKnits,
sock,
toe-up,
ultrawash,
Wendy Johnson,
yarn
|
If you have a cat, perhaps you have observed how felines tend to corral their favorite things into one safe place. Case in point: My
Birman boy, Taz, assumes ownership of all yarn remnants once I finish a knitting project. (If he had his way he would own it all from the start, but I am a mean mom.) My husband and I will often see small balls of yarn all over the house, sometimes unraveled into what looks like a laser beam circuit of geometric lines encompassing every leg of furniture in sight – all Taz’s handiwork. What is interesting is that Taz will periodically corral his balls of yarn into one place – in and around his dry food dish, as if to announce to the world that these most cherished items are HIS and he maintains a constant inventory. Taz and I were MFEO (made for each other), if for no other reason than our mutual love of yarn.
Like Taz, I began to feel the need to corral some of my most cherished items this weekend. Combining my love of fishing with my goal of organizing my knitting sundries, I convinced my husband to make a stop at
Cabela’s on Saturday (not difficult to do), where he helped me choose the perfect little double-sided tackle box in which to keep the smallest of knitting notions. Let us review the fruits of this organizational effort:
- Cute little box full of stitch markers, stitch holders, needles, pins, repair hook, needle holders, etc.: CHECK
- Retractable tape measure: CHECK
- Two sizes of waste yarn: CHECK
- Mini scissors: CHECK
- Needle size gauge: CHECK
- Hair pin to maintain my place on written instructions: CHECK
- Mini magnifyer in case, even with eyeglasses, I need help with the finest of print: CHECK
- Cable hooks: CHECK
- Norweigan knitting thimble to aid in two-color Fair Isle knitting: CHECK (Do these things work?)
- Last, but not least: a wine bottle key – because one never knows when one will need to pop a cork: CHECK!
So there you have it: All of my favorite knitting-related things corralled into a freebie cosmetics tote being put to far better use than its original purpose. Other than my night vision head lamp that goes in my knitting bag and the
Knit Counter,
iKnit Needle Sizer, and
Knit Gauge programs on my iPhone, I’m ready to roll!
Labels:
Birman,
Cabelas,
cat,
handiwork,
iKnit Needle Sizer,
inventory,
iPhone,
Knit Counter,
Knit Gauge,
knitting,
organization,
project,
tackle box,
Taz,
unravel,
yarn
|
.JPG)
.JPG)
