Mikknit

Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes! I had a fantastic day, despite threats of rain we only had a little bit of sprinkling and then the sun came out. Most of my family was going to be in town for my grandma’s memorial service, so I decided I should have a big party and invite them all. In my book, years ending in a 5 or a 0 are deserving of large parties, and it had been 5 years since the last one Extra points for the kids, who played on the playground for the entire time, pretty much leaving me alone to socialize. Their grandmas and one of my cousins kept them occupied, too, but they mostly just played and played and played.

Sunday wasn’t quite so fun, though all family gatherings turn into parties. We gathered at the MN Landscape Arboretum for the memorial service and to visit the bench that had been donated in memory of my grandparents. It’s on the Bog Trail, right near a bunch of trilliums, ladyslippers, and jack-in-the-pulpits, some of my Grandma’s favorite flowers. I only cried a little bit looking at those flowers. I cried a lot more looking at the picture slideshows that had been set up - seeing the old pictures of my grandparents was great, but seeing the ones as they got older and frailer just tore me up. I still have the image of them running their golf course - my grandma behind the bar and my grandpa out on the tractor, mowing the fairways. Grace asked about my grandma today, why she died. I’ve explained this so many times and I still have a hard time believing she’s gone. *Sigh*

Being stuck here wtih my thoughts is letting me get some knitting done, at least. I’ve started the Shapely Tee from White Lies Designs. I picked up some Silky Wool at Borealis’ sale this past weekend and it’s a touch lighter-weight than what’s called for in the pattern. Luckily, I’ve figured out that I can follow the numbers for the largest size and it’ll come out exactly in my size - great since I was struggling over which size to make, as one is 2″ smaller than my bust measurement and one 2″ too big. If only the boobs were smaller… I’ve made it a few inches into the sweater between last night and today - I should be ready to start the waist shaping decreases soon. I was a little worried that this’d drag on due to the fine gauge, but I think it’ll be okay as long as I have Tivo and Netflix to keep me going.

I’m also working on some pink cabled socks for myself - I started one last week and finished it on Monday, then started sock #2 that evening. I think these’ll be on hold for a bit, as I am planning on wearing the Shapely Tee to my sister’s wedding on July 7. That’s a lot of knitting in <6 weeks and not much time for socks. Sad, as I am truly hooked on sock-knitting. Will have to sneak in a few rounds here and there, I think.

I finished a new sweater for Grace last week (or maybe the week before), as well. Borealis is clearancing out the Ella Rae Classic Print yarn (love it!) and I picked up a few skeins in a colorway she'd like, as well as some for Arlo. I got started on her sweater right away, since I was procrastinating on finishing up something else. I think it maybe took 8 days at the most to finish. Something about variegated yarns just keeps me going. I certainly don't know any adults who could pull this off, though:

She looks so old in this picture, it just blows me away.

She doesn’t love the sweater, but it *is* the end of May (how the hell did that happen?) and it’ll be put away for fall. I’m sure she’ll appreciate it more when the weather cools off, though this is one warm-blooded kid. I think it turned out fine, I used the top-down raglan method from Barbara Walker’s Knitting From the Top. I lost track of where I was on the neckline increases, so it’s a little odd-shaped. I’m sure it’ll work out with wearing, and if not, oh well.

And now, since I am spending precious knitting time typing, I will sign off. I hope you all have a lovely Friday and a great weekend! I get to go to a baby shower, which should be great. I should probably figure out what sort of gift I’m taking, huh?

I’ve been tagged by at least 2 people, there may have been a third that I forgot, so maybe I’ll do this one. I usually pass over the memes because I don’t really have a need to read that stuff (plus I’ve seen most of them on LJ over the years), and I doubt anyone really needs to read that about me.

But here we go:

1. I studied chemistry and then culinary arts but did not receive a degree in either discipline (or any discipline, for that matter). I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up.

2. I grew up in a small town. I hated living there at the time, but it has changed so much in the last 10 years and now I’d love to move back there. My parents have 70+ acres, we could *so* build a home out there…

3. I was the third-place finisher in the Wisconsin State Spelling Bee in 1991. I got out on “unisonous”, a word I will be able to spell correctly for the rest of my life. Incidentally, the girl who won that spelling bee went on to win the National Spelling Bee that year.

4. I didn’t start drinking coffee until about 3 years ago. Now my day doesn’t really feel ready to begin unless I’ve had my coffee. Breakfast isn’t my big thing, though - I don’t usually feel much like eating first thing in the morning.

5. I love to spin but I rarely knit with my handspun. If it’s not sock yarn or in sufficient quantity to become a sweater, I usually can’t figure out what to make it into. Doesn’t stop me from spinning, though! Process, not product, I guess.

6. While I may be a process spinner, I am definitely a product knitter - hence my fondness for knitting socks.

7. I used to constantly have my nose in a book, but since I had kids I don’t have the concentration to get into a book anymore. I don’t think I’ve read more than 20 books (kids’ books excluded, of course) in the last 4 years. Sad, I know. My only reading time anymore is in the bathroom, so there’s usually a good stash of magazines in there.

I forget if there were 7 or 8 of these… so this is a bonus if there were only 7:

8. I really miss driving a stick shift. I wish you could still get minivans with them, but for whatever reason they don’t do that anymore.

I tag NOBODY!

If you’re up for a birthday party on Saturday, May 26 and I haven’t already emailed you, please comment here. Make sure you leave your correct email address so I can get back to you!

Oh, I had so much fun at Shepherd’s Harvest this year! I took a class, I got to see lots of friends and meet new people, and of course there was the fiber orgy. Oh my, the fiber orgy.

First things first: I took my first class this year - Creative Drum Carding with Carol Wagner from Hidden Valley Farm & Woolen Mill. It was great - I definitely gained a lot of confidence in using the drum carder, specifically in blending colors and fibers. We learned some blending techniques using different colors - making a heathered color by blending two colors, then making a layered batt with 3 (or more) colors. My friend Jen from knitting group was in my class and there were a couple other friends with classes in the same area who we got to see. Also in my class was Tonyia, who blended up some great colors. Looks like she bought some nice stuff, too

In addition to Jen and Tonyia, I saw Lara, Shelley, Tracey, Tess, Aubrey, Leslie, someone whose name I can’t remember now (bad Jess) (hey you guys, if any of you has a blog let me know!), Catherine, Kerry, Deb, Amy, Beadslut, Vicki, and June, who was wearing her fantastic new shawl. It seems like I must have seen more friends but I’m blanking on them now. Anyone?

While I was socializing, there was also a little shopping going on. Imagine that. So here’s what came home with me:

Coopworth fleece from Hidden Valley Farm & Woolen Mill. It’s already been washed once and is probablyl ready for another wash by now - still very full of lanolin.

Spinner’s Web from South Dakota Natural Colored Wool Studio (the picture is a little on the blue side - that purple is much brighter IRL)

Wool/silk laceweight from Blackberry Ridge

Merino yarn (it’s heathered green with Packers colors, how could I not?) from Stonehedge Fiber Mill. This is SO LOVELY, words cannot describe it. Luscious.

I also bought some more Lip Blam! and Tropical Shampoo Bar from Shepherd’s Choice, but didn’t bother photographing it. It’s not all that exciting And of course a big bag of kettle corn, but that’s long gone. Yummy.

Let’s hope the kids go to bed easily tonight - I’ve got a fiber blending project that I want to work on. Hopefully I can share that with you soon - it’s very pretty and really fun.

Have a great day, everyone!

After some consternation when we couldn’t find the cable for my mom’s camera, I found a suitable substitute in with Chris’s computer stuff. So without further ado, I bring you the mystery project:

Peace Shawl, designed by Evelyn Clark for Fiber Trends. Knit in Skacel Merino Lace on various needles.

Another view of the shawl, modeled by my mom.

This was probably a more complicated lace project than I should’ve chosen for my first shawl, but it was well worth the time it took to knit. I started this in late February 2004 and finished it on May 2, 2007. I’m thrilled with how it turned out, though I don’t think I understood just how ethereal it is - it was really difficult to photograph. I wish I’d gotten a picture of it while it was blocking, as the different patterns showed up a lot better against the black background that was the blocking board (interlocking foam floor mats).

As I mentioned yesterday, I will be wearing the shawl to Shepherd’s Harvest tomorrow. I can’t wait to see everyone! And shop, too, of course.

Now there are wild animals children running rampant under the clothesline and trying to pull the clothes down. I should probably put this away and intervene, in the interest of not having to re-wash everything.

I still haven’t found the camera. I want to cry. I can’t figure out where it could possibly be - I have checked every. single. place. it could possibly be and several places where it has no business being. Predictably, it was not in any of those places. Even a reward of chocolate wasn’t enough to make the kids help me find it!

I’m going to have to borrow my mom’s camera for this weekend, I think. Being without access to a camera is really cramping my style, not to mention making for poor blog fodder.

Also cramping my style is the fact that my hands are in a ton of pain lately. I have no idea what’s causing it, but since it hurts to knit I am not able to resort to my favorite stress-reliever for more than a few minutes at a time. So not cool. I bought some worsted-weight wool at Borealis the other day and will be starting on a pullover for Grace, hopefully it’s just fatigue from working with small yarn and small needles, or small yarn and not-so-small needles (i.e. lace).

In the meantime, this weekend is Shepherd’s Harvest and I’m taking the Creative Drum Carding class on Saturday. I’m really excited about this, as well as the opportunity to shop and hang out with friends. There’s going to be a space set up for spinners and knitters to hang out and work/socialize in Building D, so maybe do people want to meet there around 2 or so? I saw that more than a few of the MN knitbloggers were planning to attend and it’d be great to see you all.

I’ll be wearing my mystery project, which I should be able to share with you tomorrow. Either my camera will appear as if by magic, or I’ll borrow my mom’s.

Still no camera, I have absolutely no idea where it could’ve gone.

And now I found out something incredibly stupid I did: When I finished the mystery project, I was itching to cast on a new lace project. I’d bought yarn for the Swallowtail Shawl from the Fall 2006 Interweave Knits, and after seeing a shop model of the shawl at Borealis, I decided to cast it on. I breezed through the first sections of the pattern, the snowdrop lace parts, and on to the lily of the valley chart. I have been struggling with the nupps, so my progress has slowed significantly. Tonight while putting Arlo to bed, I realized that I’ve been *knitting* my wrong side rows instead of *purling* them. Oh good lord - I have so much work to rip out! I’d been wondering why it didn’t look like the shawl in the picture (which I like better, by the way), and couldn’t quite chalk it up to the fact I was knitting it at a looser gauge. Well, that revelation just hit me like a ton of bricks, I tell you. I am kind of angry with myself and mortified as well - I like to think I’m a pretty advanced knitter and to have missed such an obvious thing in the chart is a pretty big mistake.

I’m not sure I can rip this out myself - I may have to get help. And alcohol.

I can’t find the bloody camera! It’s a lovely day outside and I have time to take a picture and make a post but I can’t find the danged camera anywhere. I am NOT amused.

Send “go to bed easily” thoughts for Arlo tonight - I have some magic to perform!