Skein reopens!

I stopped by the new Skein shop today to help put away yarns and see what I could do to help get ready for tomorrow's reopening. There were people already coming in just to look around. Lots of phone calls for directions and lots of chaos and confusion.

It's too soon to take pictures but I have to say I was very pleased with the way the new shop is coming together. We're going to need more shelving and a couple of tables. There's less storage than in the old space so almost everything will have to be on the salesfloor. Right now a lot of it literally is.

There were some questions about parking, mostly from people who don't live in Pasadena. Parking in Pasadena is a major problem. If you live here you're used to it. We will have a small parking lot soon. The contractor's people where out there today moving dirt and rocks. Probably next week there'll be four or five spaces. Not much but that's more than a lot of small businesses in the area have. There is street parking a block north and some more a block east.

I started the new socks last night. There are some mechanical problems with the pattern. It's designed to be worked on circular needles but I don't have any that are short enough so I'm using double points which make the decreases in the pattern split between two needles. So I'm going to switch to three instead of four and reposition the stitches. Should make it go a lot faster. I don't usually work with three needles because I get ladders when I do. With the Fixation yarn though ladders don't occur. It's very stretchy!

And I have five more pattern repeats on the current scarf. I plan to get that done tonight if I can stay awake.

Not much really to report. I didn't quite finish the new scarf today. I was interrupted for a couple of hours by a visit from a lady who used to live in our building. So even though the pattern is pretty easy to follow I decided to just sit and listen. And then I needed a nap. And then Patrick and I cleaned the refrigerator. He's a big help.

Tonight I think I'll start a new pair of socks. Not that I've finished the ones I'm currently working on but I want to try a new pattern and some of the Cascade Fixation I got on sale a couple of weeks ago.

We're in a cooling trend now. Yesterday it was 99 in Monrovia where Carol lives. It was only 93 in Pasadena. Down to 89 today and maybe 81 by Friday. I broke down and got a fan out last night. I thought Patrick might freak but he just ignored it.

One of the benefits of working at Skein is meeting people and becoming friends with them. People from lots of different places around the world. Yesterday I had lunch with two of the people I've come to know and love. One is from Indonesia and the other from Malaysia. We went to an authentic Malaysian place called Penang. I have to take their word for the authenticity but believe me it was good. I like curry and highly seasoned food so this was a treat. I didn't try the century eggs though. I thought they were figs, and I don't care much for figs.

None of us had anything planned for the rest of the day so we decided to do an impromtu yarn shop hop. We went to Alamitos Bay Yarn Company first. It's right on the marina in Long Beach. It was crowded and hot. I overheard someone saying it was 91 degrees. I can believe it. I didn't buy anything but there were so many tempting things. It's a great shop.

Then we went to Velona's. Seems like I've been there almost every week for the past couple of months. There's so much yarn there that it doesn't matter. There's always something I didn't see before or that has come in while I was away for a week. I did get a couple of sock yarns for my collection. They had cashmere on sale so one of the friends picked up enough to do a shawl.

After we got back to Arcadia, where we had left our cars, we stopped in at Skein. Ann Mary was busy packing for the move today. It's still scheduled to take place even though the new space isn't completely ready. And a couple of things like telephone and charge card connections are not done. So we'll probably not reopen until Thursday. I'm getting one additional day off. I'm planning to go in for a while on Wednesday and help with restocking the shelves. I hope the air conditioning has been reconnected by then. The contractor cut the line to the air conditioner for some unknown reason. The parking lot hasn't been started. So it's all going to be a bit ragged for a while.

Meanwhile, I've been working on a new scarf.


The pattern is from Nancie Wiseman's Knitted Shawls, Stoles & Scarves. The yarn is from Grignasco, 100% silk. Shangai. I got it about ten or twelve years ago when Mariposa was still in Pasadena. (Mariposa is a now defunct shop where I used to hang out and work.) I started going through some of my old stash and this was in the very first box I opened, along with several other yarns that I don't remember buying.

So I didn't make much progress on destashing. Got side tracked by all the stuff I found just in this one box. I think that's the main reason I didn't buy much yesterday. I wonder how many other things there are in there that I've forgotten. The mind reels.

What's up



I got a pattern leaflet from Vogue Knitting a few days ago. It came in the subscription solicitation along with a letter inviting me to resubscribe. Which I didn't. Anyway, the pattern called for one skein of Noro Kureyon, color 102, which I had. I changed the pattern to be worked in the round. It's kinda cute but I'm not sure about that funky looking "tassel" sticking out the top.



I had a skein of the #102 left over from making this scarf. This is not the same scarf I showed a couple of weeks ago. That was #126. Of course the color is off in both photos. But they're both very orange/red so you can kinda get the idea. Lisa is coming over tonight so she'll be taking these home with her.

It's probably getting too warm for these, at least in the daytime. But it's still cold after the sun goes down.

Being on vacation, even a short, stay at home one is nice. I've been emulating Pat the Cat and taking lots of naps. He's much better at it than I am. And I've been looking through pattern books and stash trying to get them to align in some kind of logical way. I suppose I should be cleaning house but I'm on vacation.

Still set to go

It looks like the move will take place on Monday. The plan is to open on Tuesday but I think that may be a little more than ambitious.

Since most of our customers thought we were going to be closed for the end of this week it was pretty quiet today. So Ann Mary said I should take the rest of the week, and the weekend, off. So I'll have some extra hours to maybe get a few things finished and start some others.

I'm pretty excited about the move. There'll be more room for one thing. And the table where the classes are held will not be in the middle of everything. There's room for a separate table in case we want to have more than one class at a time. Maybe some sock knitting classes and anything else I can think of that would be good as a group activity.

And then you won't, part 2

So, I arrived at Skein a couple of hours earlier than usual so I could help with the packing for the big move. Most of the stock room had already been done and the sales floor was filled with bags. So I'm thinking "Great, this won't take too long." The first thing I did was move all the bags back into the stockroom since we won't be moving on Thursday after all. Some delays, blamed on the weather by the contractor, have set the move date back to Monday of next week. We could have moved on Saturday but the movers do not work weekends.

So it was business as usual. It did feel a little like I was at a garage sale. And I never realized how often we referred to the shop samples which were already packed and not available.

No knitting to report. I'm fighting off a bad case of startitis.

First you say you will, and then you won't

That's how it is with the Skein move. We've been telling people that the move will take place on Wednesday and we'll reopen on Friday. Well, Saturday night I went with Ann Mary and KC to look at the progress on the new space and we all felt that it wasn't going to be possible for the necessary work to be completed in time for this week.

However. The contractor has assured Ann Mary that all will be done in time for her to move in this week, on Thursday as it stands now. So we're still planning to move or not, as the work progresses. I just want it to be over. I'm so tired of hearing about it.

Not much new on the knitting front. I did get a few more skeins of Cascade Fixation and a couple of other things, just because it was there. I finished the latest multidirectional scarf and have started another one. I think this will be the last one, at least for a while. I'm still intrigued by the pattern but I'm really getting tired of the Noro Kureyon. The colors are terrific but the vagaries of the spinning are tiresome. Sewing thread thin to rope thick is less than five inches is a little extreme. Who would have believed that poor quality control could be marketed as desirable?

No more yarn!

Not in the immediate future anyway. I was sort of thinking, planning on, going back to Temple City Knits today just to pick up a few more 50% off skeins of Cascade Fixation. But thanks to the generosity of a couple of the ladies who knit I don't need to. Almost the whole group of Thursday night knitters has been to TCK this week. I'm glad I don't have to design strategies for getting yarn inside without letting a spouse or other SO know what I'm up to. Patrick doesn't care. In fact he rather enjoys playing in the empty bags.

On the other hand, I may just drive by, since it's sort of on my way, just to see if they have anything really interesting left. I'd like some Cotton Classic just in case I ever get around to making that one decent top in the new Knitters.

If all goes well Skein will move to Pasadena next week. Will have to wait and see.

We had rain! That should be RAIN!. I don't know how many hours it kept up but it was a long time, six or seven hours non-stop. That may not be much to people living in Seattle or Florida but this just doesn't happen in So Cal. Well, not often anyway. I was all set to write last night but I couldn't get SBCYahoo to let me in. I finally managed to check my email a little before midnight. And things are pretty water logged this morning. Several sites seem to have been washed completely away. And anyone using Typepad has had their page completely refigured. Or I think that's what caused the sudden disarray. And everything was loading much slower than I've come to expect.

So, since I couldn't work on the computer last night I sat and finished the first of the Denim Socks. Will try to get started on the second one today while I'm at Skein. I do have a couple of sock knittings beginners coming in so that seems like appropriate. And tonight is our Knit Together. I'll work on the red shawl.

The concert on Tuesday was an adventure. I took the new Gold Line downtown and met my friend at Union Station. The train ride was nice and easy. I just work myself up into a frenzy when I have to try something new. So I was crazy by the time I actually got on the train. But all went well. We heard the Calder Quartet, a new string quartet of recent USC graduates. And there was Mozart and Mendelsohn. Much more traditional music than we usually hear. Not a brilliant performance but still very nice.

Two bags full!

So here's what happened. I went to Temple City Knits and everything was, indeed, 50% off. So I got some sock yarn, enough for seven pair. And some other stuff. Two cones of Berroco Glace, twelve skeins of Berroco Soft Twist, thirteen skeins of Patons Grace, four balls of Jaeger Winter Ribbon and nine skeins of Trendsetter Solaris. Enough to fill two large bags. I thought I got some Cotton Twist but I must have put it back. It's not on the invoice or in the bags.

On the way home I stopped at A Stitch In Time, a needlepoint store. They're now carrying knitting yarn so I wanted to see what they have. Reynolds, S.R. Kertzer and Artful Yarns. And it's a beautiful shop. Very spacious and elegant. Oh, and very expensive.

So I was feeling nearly euphoric when I got home. And it got even better. USPS had delivered my book order from Overstock.com. Knitting in the Old Way, Knitting On The Road by Nancy Bush and The Green Mountain Spinnery Knitting Book by Margaret Klein Wilson. Someone, I don't recall who it was, wrote about these books on her blog and I got a terrible case of envy so I ordered them for myself. I've only had a little time to look through them but I can tell already that I like them, especially the Nancy Bush book. Socks rule!

I spent the rest of the day knitting. I worked about an inch on the current sock and then almost finished the multidirectional scarf. I ran out of yarn but I think Mendy had a partial skein left over from her scarf. She's checking for me as I write. And then I did a couple of rows on the Mexican Wave shawl. I'm going to a concert tonight so I won't have much knitting time today.

What to do?

For the first time in a long time I have a whole day that has nothing planned. I can work on any project I want to.



The Mexican Wave shawl. I've just started the third skein and have about 260 stitches on the current row. This project would be perfect if I were watching a movie. Which I might do later today.



The current sock project. JaWoll yarn. I'm started on the foot of the first sock. The light is good today so this one will see some action. Probably.



Or I could finish the current multidirectional scarf. I only have one skein to go.



Or I could just start another one. I have four skeins in this color way. We still have a little cold weather to go so this would be nice. Or maybe save it for next Christmas.



But then I have this Koigu, and some Cherry Tree Hill and one skein of Noro. I could start a scarf, another pair of socks or a hat. Probably won't. Just wanted to show it off.

And speaking of showing off.




This is ten skeins of Noro Shinano. Mendy found a bunch of this on eBay and decided I should share. No idea what I'm going to do with it yet. But I love having it.

Now that I've frittered away most of my morning taking pictures and showing off I have to decide what to do with the rest of the day. I think I'll go see if Temple City Knits is still in business. I heard last week that they had closed but later in the week I heard they were still open and everything was 50% off. I can always use some more sock yarn.

Pleased

For the second day in a row I've made it through reading all the dailies without my computer freezing up. I don't know why it does this but I suspect is has something to do with my browzer. Is that possible? My DSL connection is via SBCYahoo. This freezing up problem is a fairly new phenomenon but it's making me crazy.

We had rain and hail yesterday. It came down so hard that car alarms were set off in the parking lot next door. Foothill Blvd. was filled from side to side in a matter of minutes. It was very exciting and I'm glad I was safely inside. The cars, but mostly the trucks, driving past the shop were making huge splashes that looked for all the world like a speedboat race. And all the rain brought out the crowds. We were swamped. It's supposed to continue raining for the next few days. Wish I could stay home and mind my own knitting.

Instead I'm teaching socks today. And one brand new knitter is supposed to come in for a class. Who knows what else will happen? I picked up the gusset stitches on my current sock project while I was at Skein yesterday. That's all I could get done but I got to the foot last night. So I'm not going to finish this pair before the week is out. I'm still on the first sock. Oh well. It was an arbitrary deadline anyway.

Pointless

I was all ready to pick up the gusset stitches on my current sock project. I really like how the sock looks and was looking forward to making lots of progress on the foot portion while I was at Skein yesterday. Except I was missing on of my needles. I thought I had them all when I stuffed the sock into my knitting projects I can work on at Skein bag. I searched the bag thoroughly, counted the needles a few times and finally gave up. I could have used the other size 2 needles I had with me but I'm using my Crystal Palace 8" needles and they're just perfect for the JaWoll yarn.

I didn't get home until after 11 last night because it was Thursday night knit together. I really fretted the whole day wondering what I was going to do. The needle was on the table by my favorite knitting chair. I'm so relieved. These are my favorite sock needles.

So I didn't get any sock knitting in yesterday. At least not on my own project. I have a number of students who are making socks and one of them was in yesterday. I don't know how responsible I should feel for her success. It bothers me somewhat that she's just not getting it. This is not her first attempt. But in an effort to find something positive to say, at least she hasn't given up.

Since I couldn't work on my socks I spent most of the day and last night working on the Mexican Wave shawl. That's turning out to be a popular project with students and customers. I'm almost at the end of the second skein so it's beginning to look like something.

We finally got some more Cascade Fixation so I'll be teaching sock knitting this weekend using that stretchy yarn. I think I'd better get started on the second sock of the pair I started last year.

It doesn't take much to make me happy and restore my sense of equilibrium.

A checkbook that balances even though I haven't checked it in two months;
Waking up before the cat so he doesn't jump all over me;
Getting the laundry done is only two days and not losing one single sock;
Finishing a sock with yarn left over, even it it's only about five inches.

Life is good and we are getting some rain. I don't have to be at Skein until one today so there's plenty of time to stop for lunch at Shakey's Pizza. I'm working on the ribbed denim socks (formerly known as the JaWoll socks) and it's going well. I need to make the second sock of a pair I started last summer. We've been using the single sock as a sample at Skein but since the yarn is gone and we're not getting any more I'll bring it home and make its mate. I already know these socks won't fit Lisa but they'll probably fit her Mom. So, like I said, life is good.

Yesterday's yarn shop tour was a huge success. We got to Velona's shortly after they opened and spent about an hour there. I exchanged the sock yarn for some Lana Grossa Meilenweit Multieffeckt and picked up two skeins of Big Mexico for Mendy. Renee found the Big Kureyon she needed as well as a couple of skeins of regular Kureyon she needed.

We got to Yarn Lady just as Sally Melville's class broke for lunch. I'm not sure what the class was but it sounded like it was about selecting and combining colors. We hung around there for a while and then went for lunch at a bakery/cafe next door. Neither of us bought anything at Yarn Lady's, just enjoyed the displays and checked out the Cascade. (Skein will be carrying the Cascade 220 now. Some of it arrived today.)

Then it was on to Phebie's in Montclair. This is the third time I've been to this shop and I really enjoy it. The front part is filled with beads and Brazilian embroidery fibers plus needlepoint supplies. All the yarn is in the back half of the shop. It's mostly basic stuff like Encore but they also have lots of novelty yarns. And some hand dyed skeins. I got some Schaeffer Anne sock yarn in a dark burgundy combination and a couple of skeins of a nubby yarn called Lime that I'll use for a quick scarf.

So it was a good day and not too expensive considering. Today I finished the second sock of the pair I've been making for Mendy. I plan to continue with the JaWoll socks and see if I can get them out of the way by the end of the week. I want to get back to the Mexican Wave shawl but I'm sort of in the mood to finish some of the small projects that have been accumulating.

Here we go again!

A new week. I'm up so early this morning that most of the blogs I read have not been updated.

I'm off on a repeat yarn shop hopping trip with my friend Renee. She's the mother of my faux grandson. We were on a yarn shop tour last year at about this time when she got the call from the agency she was working with that they had a child available for adoption. She hasn't had a chance to go on a yarn shop tour since that exciting day. Partly because she also had to have some pretty serious surgery that has made getting around pretty difficult and slow. So we're both excited to get out and compare yarn stores.

I'm in the middle of the heel flap on the second sock of the pair I'm making for Mendy. This is about as fast as I can remember ever making a sock. I'd really like to get them done before the Thursday night get together but I have very little time available this week. Nothing special. Just stuff to do. Anyway, I'm going to try.

Patrick got stoned on catnip drops yesterday. I'm not sure if catnip is a good thing for him. But he did get a lot of exercise which I guess is what he needs if he's going to lose some weight. He's a little cranky and pitiful this morning.

Post-birthday post


Well, it was certainly a busy week. Started on Saturday night with dinner at Taix, a pseudo-French restaurant in Downtown LA that is celebrating its 75th year, with friends Bill and Ed. Sunday was dinner with Lisa at Fuji. On Monday Mendy took me yarn shop hopping with lunch at Surf and Sand in Laguna Beach. Tuesday Ann Mary and KC took me to Foo Sheng for classic Chinese. Wednesday was a bye. Thursday was the knitting get together at Mendy's, and Friday dinner at Fanara's with one of my students and her husband. Last night I stayed home and played with the cat and finished the first sock of the pair I'm making for Mendy.



I was supposed to go to dinner at Robert's tonight but he had to cancel due to a family event. There's one more event to go but it's not until the end of the month.

I've been pretty busy at Skein as well. I have a couple of brand new knitters plus some returnees. I've been working with a couple of ladies who want to make socks for everyone on their Christmas list. It's a good thing they're starting early. And I've made quite a bit of progress on the new shawl.

Up there in the top photo you can see not only my first attempts at weaving but also the flowers Anita brought me for my birthday and the rock engraved "Thank You". There's also the candles from my cake and the card Mendy made. You can't read the fine print but it says that The Ladies Who Knit have combined to provide me with room and board at the Knitters' Retreat next November. Thanks Anita, Carol, Lammia, Mendy, Rena and Renee. What a great bunch!

And the sock. It's one of the yarns I got at Velona's. I thought I wasn't going to have enough yarn to finish so I picked up another skein when I was there last Monday. Actually I had about five inches left so I'm planning to return the extra skein when I go back there tomorrow. I sure hope the second skein I bought originally will have at least the same yardage as the first one.

A few days ago, Stephanie posted a couple of pictures of her favorite shawl. When I saw them I remembered that I had some of the Mexican Wave yarn that she used. I liked the look of her shawls and decided that the sweater I had started a couple of years ago should be transformed into something that was more likely going to be finished. So instead of working on the other current projects (three pair of socks, a multidirectional scarf, Robert's sweater, a fruit hat and a heart patterned scarf) I started a shawl.



I'm using a size 7US instead of the size 5 specified on the label. And it's all garter stitch except the yarn overs. It's nearly impossible to see in the photo but there's a gradual shift from a warm, yellow red to a cool, blue red stripe going on. Actually that change doesn't show all that well in the real thing. Maybe when it gets bigger. Meanwhile, I've got some size 7 circulars around here somewhere but I can't find them right now. I don't think I'll need them right away but, just in case, I'll pick up some new ones at Skein today.

Shark fin soup and other esoteric stuff

We went to Foo Sheng last night for dinner. I had shark fin soup for the first time ever and was left wondering what the fuss was all about. Tastes the same as egg drop soup to me except for the crunchy little strings that are the cartilage of the shark's fins. A little bit of sweet vinegar does make it more interesting though. I asked KC why this delicacy is so sought after. His explanation was that it's because of the difficulty of obtaining the material and the complexity of extracting the little bits that are used. Kind of "because it's there".

I've been looking at a lot of different knitting technique books lately. I treated myself yesterday to Simple Socks by Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts. Well, it was my birthday after all. And I've been trying to read it at Skein but it's kind of hard to follow sometimes, especially when the shop is busy. So I thought I'd better just get it so I could try to follow what she's talking about and try to reproduce her different cast-ons. So far it's a little like shark fin soup.

Ann Mary told me she ordered a lot of Koigu when she was at TNNA. Now that's some esoteric stuff I can get behind. I don't know when it's supposed to arrive but I've heard some grumblings from other shop owners that the Koigu people are very slow with the deliveries. I suspect it's because everything they can produce is going to Indiana and we out here in La La Land just get the leftovers. If there are any. But I'm hoping we get some soon!

It's the big one!

Today, at approximately 4:20 PM, Central Time, I'll reach that landmark known as 65. It's been a long time coming. But like all birthdays I've ever had, it's just one more.

It's nice to have a fuss made over me. I could do without the references to canes and wheelchairs though. I'll be at Skein today, same as always. Passing along the wisdom of the ages, knitting-wise. Should that be aged? And then Ann Mary and her husband are taking me to dinner at one of their favorite mandarin restaurants. And tomorrow everything will be back to usual. Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes. It really does feel good to be so loved.

Who has time to knit?

Imagine a warm sunny day. It's probably in the mid 70s outside. Our table is by the window overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Catalina Island is in clear view. Lunch at the Surf and Sand in Laguna Beach. The menu is slightly nouvelle and the service is attentive. And we have one more yarn store to visit before we head back to Pasadena.

Mendy picked me up this morning and took me yarn shop hopping for my birthday. We stopped first at Velona's in Anaheim Hills. It's normally about an hour's drive but today took a little longer due to traffic. But it's one of my favorite destinations. I picked up some sock yarn that I needed to finish a pair of socks I started a few weeks ago and several other things that I'll show when I have time to take pictures.

After that we went to The Yarn Lady in Laguna Hills. This is their new location which I hadn't seen yet. It was wonderful! They had lots and lots of neat samples as well as a wide selection of colors in lots of different yarns. The shop is large and spacious. There was a table of knitters taking a class as well as spot teaching going on all over the place. I didn't buy anything as I thought I had already spent enough and we still had one more shop to go.

After lunch we went to Strands and Stitches in Laguna Beach. A small, charming shop right on the Coast Highway. I found some Kureyon and some Koigu that I thought I ought to have. And that's it! Strands and Stitches was Mendy's first yarn shop so she enjoys going back there to visit. We didn't stay very long as it was getting late and the traffic was going to be even worse than it was in the morning.

Lisa came over last night to celebrate. We had a great time. I now have a couple of new sweat suits and will retire my old ones to the dust cloth bin in the very near future. We had a great time playing with the cat and the went for sushi. Well, she had the sushi. I prefer cooked food.

Anyway, I've only had a few minutes here and there to do any knitting. I'll be home tonight and hope to finish the current scarf and spend some time on Robert's sweater. After seeing all the samples at the shops today I'm really ready to start a bunch of new things. Be patient. I'll get over it soon.

Just so you know

I'm still here. There hasn't been much new to write about. I'm at the end of the second skein of Kureyon on the Multidirectional scarf. I got two or three new people started on it in the past day or so. I've been pretty busy this week with new students as well as a few continuing ones.

I'm going to meet Ann Mary and KC tomorrow morning at the new shop. This will be the first time I've seen the inside. I never went to Poobah's, the shop that was there before. I'm curious to see how it looks before it's converted. If I don't forget my camera I'll try to get at least some exterior photos.

I managed to get all the yarn I had been stashing in the living room moved into the primary holding area, aka, the den. I didn't get any plastic boxes yet so everything is still in bags and stacked precipitously on top of the stuff that was already in there. So now there's just Robert's sweater and my current sock and scarf projects in the living room. That's where I knit most of the time. There's no room in the den.

And then I started this

I just can't get into anything very serious lately. There are lots of challenging, time-taking projects on my list of things I really want to knit. Someday when I'm feeling motivated.



I like the multidirectional diagonal scarf. A lot. I have several students started on them. If you've made one you know how addictive, and fun, they are to knit. So here's my current one. Kureyon #126 on size 9, 35 stitches. I have three skeins but I think I'm going to get one more. I'm still working on the JaWoll socks that I started on Tuesday but I couldn't quit thinking about this yarn.

Is that all?

Not much happened since yesterday, at least on my knitting. A little progress here, a little progress there. Nothing completed. I did break down and start a pair of socks using one of the blue JaWoll yarns that I showed a couple of days ago.

Most of my at home time has been devoted to sorting through my stash. The part that's stacked up in the living room, in a corner behind a chair. Patrick was fascinated by the additional running room he has. I'm hoping to get some more plastic storage boxes soon so I can add this stuff to the pile in the den. And I got all the books and magazines put back where they belong.

I got to see the Mango Moon recycled silk today. I didn't know the company was so close to here. It's in Laguna Beach, not right next door but close enough. Unfortunately they no longer do retail. We should be having some of this soon. I think I'm going to like it. A lot! I already know it's softer than the Sari Silk I got last month. Will have to wait until I can work with it to see if it's spun any better. I only saw a couple of skeins and there was no color card. I understand they sort it into only two colorways, jewel and earth. And it is heavy so will probably work best as a bag or vest but they do have some patterns for pullovers and cardigans, even a throw.

Deep in the heart of texture

If you like texture, especially if it's the yarn that does it, you'll like this sweater. This is the lower part of the back of Robert's raglan.



I knew it wouldn't be easy to photograph and that it would be a boring picture. But it's really good looking in the flesh. The yarn is called Monnalisa and is from Lanas Stop, a Spanish company. It's cotton, linen, acrylic, nylon, polyester and some rayon. I've had some problem maintaining gauge as the yarn is quite stretchy. I may need to rip back some as I think it's going to be too long as knit. I might have lost track of how many rows I'd knit. So I'm doing one of the sleeves to see if the pattern is correct or if my gauge is off.

The stuff that dreams are made of

Patrick likes to wake me up early to watch him eat. He can be quite insistent. He not only walks all over me but butts me with his head and meows in a most pitiful way until I finally give in and get up. I don't know why he wants me to stand beside him while he eats.

This morning, after only about four hours of sleep, he began his tromping and nudging routine thereby interrupting my dream of knitting socks with Tahki's Cotton Classic. Not that I would actually even try it, but in the dream it seemed quite possible. And for some unexplained reason I had sample skeins in all their colors. That would be nice IRL. Anyway, in the dream I was able to knit socks at an incredible rate and rip out and start over in the most effortless way. Would that it were so.

No knitting yesterday. Lunch and dinner engagements plus too many students to knit while I was at Skein. Maybe today since I'm home the whole day with nothing to do except laundry. I need to rip back a little on my current sock project as I didn't start the toe shaping soon enough. Maybe I can get that done and start the second sock. Dream on!

Rabbit! Rabbit!

Brrr! It's cold in here. I should turn on the heat but it'll be warmer soon. I hope. It's Swap Meet Sunday and the people next door are having a moving/yard sale so there are lots of people to-ing and fro-ing on my street. It's not raining and it's generally a pretty day. Good way to begin another month.

I'll be getting older in a few days. In fact, I'll be officially old. But that's okay because my cost of medical insurance will radically decrease. When I was in my twenties I thought it would be fabulous if I could just make it to sixty. That way I'd get to write 2000 as the year and I'd be in a new millineum. Well, I'm here to tell you, that is not enough. There's still a lot of stuff I haven't tried not to mention my yarn stash that needs to be used up. And there's lots of yarn I haven't bought any of as yet.



Here's some stuff I got last Friday when I went to Phebie's. It's Classic Elite Fame. I'm not sure if this yarn is even still available. They only had five skeins but it should be enough for a skippy top, or very long scarf. Our trip was a lot of fun and my student nearly ODd.

I woke up this morning from a dream about knitting socks. Toe-up, with fair isle patterns on the the top, black yarn with red and green flowers. Too much. I think I've read too many sock knitting books lately.

A gift from Lammia. Nice stuff. I haven't tried this brand as yet. But I'm sort of in a blue mood, colorwise, so this is quite timely.

Just got home from the Thursday night group. Two new attendees tonight so it was a little more crowded and diffuse. Both are regular customers at Skein so everyone almost knew everyone. It was a little strange having different conversations going on simultaneously but it was enjoyable.

Tomorrow I'm going with one of my students to another yarn shop. She's been wanting to see what else is out there. So we'll go to Phebie's and then have lunch before I go in to work. Phebie's has a good selection of Noro Kureyon and Silk Garden so I'm planning on picking up another colorway.

I had another two new students this morning almost as soon as I walked in the door. One had knit a long time ago. She's originally from Mexico and learned to knit continental. Fortunately it came back pretty quickly. I'm really bad when it comes to continental. Not that I can't do it, but I don't look my best at it. The other student moved here from Venezuela. She'd never knit before but has done a lot of crochet. I ended up teaching her to knit continental since she kept trying to throw the yarn with her left hand. She wanted to make a hat but decided she'd better practice more before she started.

Then the sock knitters from Wednesday came back. They didn't quite finish the gusset decreases so they'll be back tomorrow. The daughter is really getting it. And she was very good at helping her mother. And there were several other drop-ins that kept me busy for the entire day. I did manage a couple of rounds on the socks and did about eight or ten rows on Robert's sweater. Falling behind faster and faster.

Another cat picture



Some friends came by on Sunday and while they were here they took this picture. I thought I could "fix" the red-eyed cat but haven't figured that out yet. But I did find this fancy framing feature. Patrick was definitely not amused by the whole process. He is just about to leap on my shoulder and claw his way to freedom. He sulked a long time after my friends left.

It seemed like I had a lot to write about when I was reading this morning. I had lots of time, I thought. Then I remembered an appointment and had to rush off before I'd even finished my daily reads. It does seem like everyone is buried in snow, at least the blogs I read. Well, there are some that aren't but a lot are. It's mostly been in the mid 70s here down to the 40s at night. We did have a little rain last night. But that's about as exciting as it's been. If I had a weather pixie you wouldn't have to be reading this stuff.

Anyway, I had three new students today. One was an absolute tabula rasa, not even any crochet experience. So that was a bit uphill. She'll come back in a couple of days for the purl part. The other two were a mother/daughter combo. The daughter has only been knitting for a few weeks, the mother for years. They wanted to make Lynn H.'s Fast Florida Footies. We had a lot of fun. The daughter really caught on quickly, the mother not so quickly. They're coming back on Friday to pick up where we left off. At the gusset. (Get it?)

And I got some more yarn from the person who gave me the partial skein last week. This time it's two skeins of Lion Brand Fun Fur and one of Plymouth Eros Glitz. I was pretty sure when she showed me what she had purchased that she wouldn't be able to work with it. I think she lasted less than five minutes. The last time she tried similar yarns the same thing happened. I made her a scarf that time but I'm not going to do it this time. I'm not sure what I'll do with it. I'll show it to Lisa and if she likes it I'll make her a scarf. Otherwise it's going to the Thursday night group to see if anyone there can use it.

It looks like I may not get to go to TNNA this weekend. I was hoping to go on Monday so I could meet Clara and catch up with some of the yarn reps I've known over the years. But some scheduling conflicts have occured and I may not be able to go unless we go early on Sunday so I can get back in time to cover the floor at Skein. (Weeping, moaning and gnashing of teeth.)

Worms, and not the chenille kind

I've received two suspicious emails in the last twenty four hours. The first one I wasn't suspicious of until after I read the news about the new worm that is currently flooding the internet. I hope my Norton Anit-virus program caught it and kept it from infecting my computer but I'm not absolutely sure. I talked with my friend Bill who is usually very up on these things and computer stuff in general. He has assured me that I'm probably safe. But I'm not 100% convinced. So far everything seems to be normal but I'm hesitant to send emails for the time being. I'm not even sure if it's safe to leave comments on blogs. I hope so because I left a couple this morning before I thought about it.

I've never lost a post before. I've read lots of other blogs where this has happened. Well, this morning something happened and the post I had been working on just "froze" and I couldn't do anything but reboot. I hope this event isn't connected with the stuff in paragraph one. It may be because I tried to use Blogger's spell check. At least that's when it happened.

I got my car back and it's running better than it ever has. For $1100 it should be, don't you think? I'd love to get a new car but that's just not realistic right now. For that kind of money I could update my kitchen, which it sorely needs.

Anyway, about knitting. I made a lot of progress on Robert's sweater. I'd guess I'm more than 10% done since I finished the first 163 yard skein and according to Sweater Wizard I'm going to use around 1300 yards. I also knit a single wrist warmer. One of my students had a small amount of yarn left over from a scarf. She was too bored to use up all the yarn. She gave it to me and I told her I'd make her a wrist warmer. I thought we were just kidding. She keeps asking me where it is. So I did that last night.

Minimal knitting content

I've done some dumb things in my life but this has got to be one of the dumbest. Patrick the cat has a most needy sort of thing going on. He will only eat if I go stand by him long enough for him to get started. So that's not so bad except he likes to eat at about 6:30 every morning. It doesn't seem to matter how much food is in his bowl. He just needs to have someone standing beside him. I talked with his former provider yesterday and she confirmed that he has always been this way. Now I know why she wanted to find him a new home.

Well, the car repair people just called. Seems I might need a new fuel pump. I've already replaced the battery, the temperature sending unit, the shocks and several other items and still the car is acting like it doesn't want to do its job. Maybe I should just have it washed and trade it in. By the time I get through this round of repairs I will have dished out over $3000 in less than six months. Oops! Just got another call and it's going to be even more. I think I'm going to be depressed later on today.

Now for the minimal knitting content. I spent Saturday night swatching for the sweater I'm making for my friend Robert. So I got started with the actual knitting yesterday when I got home from Skein. I worked for five or six hours and finished the ribbing and a couple of inches of the body. The yarn is very textured and is nearly impossible to photograph. I'll try when I have more done. The sweater is a simple raglan pullover but there are a lot of stitches in an extra large sweater.

I didn't quite finish the first sock and made very little progress on the chenille scarf so my goals for last week were not met, except for the swatches for the sweater. But there was some progress. No new goals for this week.

Coming up short

Last night's knit together was the usual barrel of fun. Actually it's the most relaxing time I have all week. And the whole group was there. I tried a new-to-me short row shaping for the current pair of socks. It was more than a minor disaster. It's been ripped and the heel will be the same ol' square heel that I usually do.

I've been on a search for a short row heel that doesn't look like a botched surgical incision. One of these days I will find it and I'll be happy. I haven't tried toe-up socks so I don't know if a short row heel coming from the other direction would be any better looking. I'll have to get a lot more desperate for a short row heel before I try a toe-up sock. But I'm moving in that direction, by default.

I've been so busy with students this week that I've made almost no progress on my goals for the week. At this point it looks like I'll have to settle for not going in the hole. I've had very little at-home time and most of that has been taken up by playing with Patrick and keeping up with all the blogs. It's a tough life sometimes.

Some photos

Just a couple of things to show right now.



These socks are the ones I finished last Saturday night. Knit with Regia 4 on size 2 dpns, 56 stitches, top down with a standard S1, K1 heel.



The multidirectional diagonal scarf was knit with Brown Sheep Kaleidoscope hand painted cotton. Not sure if it's still available. There's no color card for it in our book at Skein. I used 35 stitches on a size 7US needle. It measures 5" x 72". I used just a little over 3 skeins. I'm going to try a matching hat with the remaining one and a half skeins.

Patrick's vet says Patrick is too fat. You can see why.



He's sleeping and I think he looks like a large turkey waiting to be plucked. So I have cut back on the amount of food he gets everyday. He gives me very pitiful looks. So far though he hasn't eaten everything so he's not starving.

And for the last time!



I had to agree to cropping the photo in order to get one of her wearing it. I'm very pleased with how it looks and she loves it. She wore it to dinner last night and felt it was easy to drive in and was nice and warm. So now I'm truly done with the poncho.

I didn't quite make it to the end of my list of goals for last week. I did finish a pair of socks and one scarf. Was just too busy with students and stuff to get any knitting done at Skein. I think I need to be more realistic about what is possible given the number of hours I'm working. So this week I'm only planning to finish the remaining scarf and the new socks I started this morning. And I'll start some swatches for Robert's sweater.

Moving right along

No pictures yet but I've almost made my goal for the week. One scarf is done, the second sock is nearly there and the second scarf is about half way. I've given myself a deadline and I'm stressing about whether I'm going to make it. I know that several people use their blogs to keep track of their progress and to keep themselves "honest" about getting things done. I think it's a pretty good idea. I've never tried it before. It's working for me but do I really need this stress? I think I can use this as a tool but I need to set some more realistic goals.

I've had fewer students this week than I've been having but I'm expecting a goodly number tomorrow. I had a few folks today that were more or less touching base to see if they're doing okay. And several friends came to just sit and knit. Maybe that's the reason I didn't get as much done today as I thought I would. And I spent a lot of time playing with Pat the cat when I got home.

I've never done any felting so I don't have any hands-on experience with it. Only know what I've read. Anyway, I was asked if a high efficiency washer would provide enough agitation to make the process work. Does anyone know, or at least have an opinion? And what is the most critical element of the felting process?

It's hard to type with a twelve pound cat sitting in your lap.

Same-oh, same-oh

There's a real scarcity of stuff to blog about. I've finished the first of a pair of socks and am about a quarter of the way through the second one. This is the pair I'm determined to finish this week. The two scarves are also moving along at what I hope is a rate fast enough to get them off the needles by the weekend. I'm starting the "bind off" segment of the multi-directional scarf and I am about half way through the chenille diagonal scarf that I started last month. I'll have some photos when these are done.

If I have time I'll do the gauge swatch and work up the pattern for Robert's sweater. I keep putting this off for some reason, probably because I know it's going to be a long but boring knit. Now that everyone else has been the scarf route I'm finding myself drawn to them. I don't even wear scarves and I don't think Lisa does either, or not often.

At any rate, once I finish this week's projects I'll start another pair of socks. I've been re-reading Folk Socks by Nancy Bush. There are several pairs that I fantasize making but I don't seem to get started. And I like this pattern too. I even have the yarn. I think the main reason I don't knit any of the more intricate socks is that I have so much of the self patterning yarn in my stash. I haven't counted recently but I think I have enough sock stash that I could knit a pair every two weeks for a year. Not that I could stick to that schedule.

And I still have a couple of sweaters that I started for myself early last year, or maybe the year before, that I ought to finish. I like them well enough. I just get side tracked. And there's also the Wave and Shell Shawl that Mendy and I are planning to make as a knit-a-long. We didn't get motivated in time to sign up for Rachael's group.

I really should make a list.

Kvetch

Do you remember this yarn?



It's the Sari Silk I bought a few weeks ago. Today I got around to putting it into a ball. What a mess! It is so over twisted that I couldn't use my ball winder. There are plenty of knots and some very thin spots. At $19.00 per skein I expected better quality. I realize it's made from silk leftovers but it looks like they took no pains at all to make it "nice". My feeling is that if you want to break into the US economy you'd better have a good product.

I purchased a kit about three years ago from a company called Himalaya Yarn. It contained yarn made from the floor sweepings in the carpet factories of I think Nepal. It was very crudely made and kept breaking every few feet. So I never bought any more and warned anyone who expressed an interest in it about the poor quality.

I haven't knit with the Sari Silk as yet but I'm not looking forward to it. I'll probably have to let the yarn untwist about every five feet or so. I'm going back to the shop where I bought it next week. I'll see if they've had similar complaints. Oh well, the cat likes it.

I spent part of today ripping nine skeins of Berroco Furz. This was from a super long scarf that one of our customers didn't want. She tried to rip it but didn't have the requisite patience. It wasn't really all that difficult. Somewhat like ripping mohair but no where as tedious. Now I just have to put it away until I decide what to do with it. I'm sort of thinking about this pattern that Rob has been talking about. Not sure if I can get the gauge but it would be easy enough to recalculate.

Poncho plenty!



Here, at long last, is a photo of the completed poncho I started last October. It's been finished for a few weeks but I just got around to having it cleaned and blocked. I tried, very unsuccessfully, last night to get some pictures. They just came out all yellow and sickly looking. This one's too blue but I'm done trying.



This one is a more accurate depiction of the color. I used some 100% Icelandic wool that I've had in stash for at least seven years. I have ten skeins each of the same wool in two other brown tones. I don't think they're gonna become ponchos. Right now I consider myself done with the poncho-a-long and will notify Alison just as soon as I finish this post.

Lisa has seen the poncho in progress and is excited to finally get it. Not that it's really very cold here, and this poncho is very warm! I'll try to get a pic of her wearing it when she comes over next weekend.

Not much else that's news. Still busy and running way behind on most of my projects. Well, technically, I'm not behind since nothing has a deadline other than what exists in my own mind. I will finish two scarves and a pair of socks this week, or else.

I finished the two scarves last night and took them to work today. Now I'm back to working on my own things. I made a lot of progress on the multidirectional scarf tonight while I was at the Thursday night knit together. Two of us were working on them and one person was just trying to get started when we broke up. The fourth is getting ready, just has to find the yarn.

There's not a whole lot to say about today. Just another day in knitting nirvana.

Scarf it up!

It's not as if I had no projects of my own. I have plenty both in the works and in the planning stages. So what am I doing? I'm reknitting a plain ol' scarf for one of my students. It's not plain looking but it's still garter stitch. One strand of Trendsetter Eyelash and one of their Sorbert. She's been working on this scarf since last winter and has made a number of errors both of omission and commission. She had dropped an edge stitch and marked it to be picked up later even though the scarf narrowed noticeably at that point.

I asked her to rip it back and pick up the stitch which she half-heartedly agreed to do. Unfortunately she didn't rip whole rows. So some of the edge stitches were still attached and the yarns were getting almost hopelessly entangled. I couldn't stand it so I took it from her and told her I would fix it. It took a couple of hours over a couple of days to undo the Gordian knot she had created. I actually ended up cutting the yarn off the scarf and straighening it out. Then I ripped maybe seven or eight rows before I found one that looked reasonably correct. I've reknit those and am finishing the scarf with the salvaged yarn. I hope she doesn't have any more yarn at home that she's planning to use. I think I'd better just leave enough yarn to bind off and check with her before I do it. It's a potentially beautiful scarf that's big enough to use as a shawl and I know she has at least $100 tied up in yarn. I don't want her to get discouraged and not finish it as she has with other projects.

When I get this one done I have at least one scarf to knit for my bi-polar student. She got distressed with some yarn she had to have and gave it to me. She's always very generous to me so I will knit the scarf and return it to her. She gave me some more yarn today, two skeins of Trendsetter Vintage, that's she thinks is a jinx to her. This one I'll probably keep for my gift stash. Maybe not.

I'm still working intermittently on the multi-directional scarf. It's so much fun to show it off. I'm about 80% finished with this one and have enough yarn to do one more in the same color way. And there's still the chenille diagonal stitch one that I started a few weeks ago. And the heart motif one from Fiber Trends that I've done one repeat of since I started in back in October.

Patrick, my new pet, seems to be adjusting to his new surroundings. We're getting along very well. I got him some toys today and he played with them this evening, at least until I got tired of retrieving the ball from some place he couldn't reach. His favorite thing to do though is wrestle a bath towel. Still no interest in the yarn or needles. Like a kid, he prefers the bags that things come in.

Mail call

I got a genuine, handwritten card a couple of days ago from Clara Parks of Knitters' Review letting me know that someone, a secret friend, is contributing to my trip to the Knitters' Retreat this year. I'm still not sure who the secret friend is, but I've got a pretty good idea. I'm still amazed at what can happen when you put something out "to the universe" and see it materialize. So just as soon as I know who it is, I'll let you know, provided it's okay with my secret friend. Did I tell you how excited I am to be going to this event?

And then, today, I got a package from Bron that contained a clever row counter she created for use with circular needles. I'm not sure if she's marketing these or not but maybe if you asked she could tell you how to get one. So much better than trying to keep track with one of those Katcha-Katcha thingies or ye olde pencil and paper. Thanks, Bron!

I postponed my dental appointment for today so I could go into Skein earlier than usual. The rep from Rowan/Jaeger, Tahki/Stacey Charles was coming in and Ann Mary wanted me to cover the floor while she looked at the new yarns. That was the plan anyway. All she would have to do was go ring up anything I sold. She spent most of the morning ringing up sales. Such a crowd of yarn hungry shoppers. And I had a couple, make that three, students who came in looking for some reassurance and problem solving. Anyway, Ann Mary got to see most of the yarns but it was pretty hurry-up the whole time. Fortunately the TNNA trade show is coming up at the end of the month so she'll have another opportunity to see what's out there. Did you know that pink was supposed to be big this spring?

I had half a lunch at about 2:30 and Ann Mary had hers right after that. We were both a little delirious by then. Things calmed down for a short while after that and then picked up again around 4:30. There were still a couple of shoppers there when I left at a quarter after 6. Business it booming! Who knows how long this knitting craze will continue. You should have seen the "How do you make a scarf" dance routine that the yarn rep did. One of the reps from a different company is predicting no end to the craze. Personally, I think it will last another year or so. I do think we've created a lot of new knitters. And some of them will continue and become more and more expert. I hope so anyway. So long as "fashion" promotes the look knitting will remain a hot item. After that, we'll just have to wait out the cycle.

Pat, the cat. Or, pet the cat.



Meet Patrick, my new cat. I've been thinking about getting a pet and when one of my students said she needed to find a home for her cat I decided to go ahead. He's about a year and half old, has blue eyes, incredibly soft fur and is very big. He weighed 11.8 lbs. at his last physical, a week ago. He's a lilac point ragdoll. He likes to be petted a lot, especially around 3 in the morning. It's also difficult to get him to pose. (I changed his name from Pickles to Patrick. I'm sure he will like it a lot better.)

Now, about the knitting. I'm still working on the two scarves and have a pair of socks started. I also need to start a sweater for my friend Robert. I gave him the yarn last night when we finally got together for Christmas. He's decided he'd like a raglan pullover, just plain. So I'll do a gauge later today and plug it into Sweater Wizard and get started.

What a difference

a tripod makes. Lisa gave me a tripod for Christmas. I can't get over how much better my indoor photos are. It's very overcast here today so about the only light available was the overhead and the flash. I did use "sharpen" on these photos but I think they would have read pretty well without it.



This is the current multidirectional diagonal scarf. The yarn is Brown Sheep Kaleidoscope that Mendy gave me. I love the yarn and I love making this scarf. The color is actually pretty dark and the color transistions are softer but still a pretty good representation of what the scarf looks like, in progress.



This is a hand dyed yarn from a new company named Steadfast Yarns. I don't know anything about the company except they're in Idaho. The yarn itself is Brown Sheep worsted that they buy and then dye. I got this when I went ot Phebie's last Monday. I think it'll have to be scarves since I only got two of each color.




And this is Sari Silk from Muench Yarns. I got two skeins of this. The other one is a different colorway and I gave it to Mendy. There's 111 yards per skein so this will also become a scarf. The sample they had going at Phebie's was garter stitch on size 17 needles. Felt pretty soft. At $19.00 per hank it's a little pricey. But once in a while it's just the right thing to do. And Lisa will love the color.

I really need to go finish cleaning house and getting ready for work. And if there's time I'll work a little on the scarf. Need to start another project soon but haven't decided what it will be.

Here we go again!

Another Rose Parade has come and gone. I watched a little of it from my bedroom window but it's better on TV. So I just ignored it for the most part. The streets are covered with debris. I guess the city will start cleaning up tomorrow. It's times like these that I really get discouraged with the human race.

So I had a pretty quiet day. I worked on the multidirectional scarf and looked through some knitting magazines. And took a couple of naps. Not really much to report. I just wanted to get the year started.

Year's end

Well, chalk up another one. One more day to get all the things done that I said I was going to get done. Actually, I don't think I have any serious unfinished business. My dentist postponed my final appointment until next week. Most of my holiday shopping got done. I need to clean house, as always. My stash has grown pretty much of its own accord. So this year is ending pretty much like the last one did.

Except. I will stay home this year. I usually leave town to avoid the Rose Parade crowd and all the noise and trash that goes along with it. This year, however, I'll stay home and listen to the radio and do some knitting. Robert, where I usually go for the night, still has the flu and I don't want to take a chance on getting it myself even though he said he was getting well. We'll celebrate Christmas next Sunday, I think.

Phebie's (not Phoebe's) was a fun trip. I got some new yarns and a couple of Rebecca magazines that I didn't have. I'll try to get some photos tomorrow when I have more time. I got a tripod for Christmas, thanks Lisa, so maybe my indoor shots will be better.

Just got home from my weekly knit together. Just three of us tonight but we managed to have a good time. I started another multidirectional scarf using some Brown Sheep handpaint cotton (Kaleidoscope) that is looking pretty cute. Pics to come. We pretty much wiped out a pound of See's candy and two pots of coffee.

The big year end news is that Skein is moving. Probably around the middle of February we'll be in Pasadena. Close enough to where I live that I'll be able to walk there. The property where the shop is currently located has been sold and will become a huge Walgren's shopping center. Or that's what supposed to happen. For anyone familiar with Pasadena the new shop will be at the corner of Walnut and Wilson where Poobah's is at present. Ann Mary likes the little house and she thinks it will look good as a yarn store. I agree that it's a cute building but I'm not so sure about the location. Parking will be a problem, I think, and there are two auto repair shops on two of the other corners. There's a Chabad site on the fourth corner plus some other small businesses. An upholsterer and something that I don't recall.

I've known for a few weeks that Skein was going to move but I didn't know until today where it was going. I'm trying to see the good points of the new location but I'm having some problems. I could say "I just work here" and let it go at that but now Ann Mary is asking me what I think. A little late in the game. I like the house. It's a little funky but that could be a good thing. Except Ann Mary doesn't really understand funky. She planning on removing some sheds and the garage which will create a few parking spaces. Maybe four or five. But she'll need one of those for herself. The area is very easy to get to. It's primarily residential except for the main street. I don't think a muffler repair shop and a transmission replacement center are quite what I'd expect if I were looking for a yarn shop.

So with that, Happy New Year!

Final Sunday of the year

Another busy day but only for three hours! I have a couple of new students, one is six and one is seven. It's a little hard to find the right level in talking with them. I don't want to go over their heads but at the same time I don't want to treat them like they're too young to get it.

The seven year old taught herself the basics from a book so I don't think she's going to be a problem. The six year old is the daughter of one of my regulars. I think she understood the sequence but had a little hand/eye coordination problem. I didn't have enough time with her to really get her going but her mom says she's persistent and is content to sit quietly working at this kind of thing.

Carol and I are planning a trip to Phoebe's tomorrow. That's a needlecraft shop in Montclair, a suburb of the suburbs. (No site that I could find.) I saw their exhibit at the LA County Fair last September. I'm not expecting it to be too much different from all the other shops Carol and I have visited but it will be new to both of us. Carol is on vacation from the school where she works and we try to fit in at least one yarn shop expedition any time she has a week or two off. I'm not looking for anything in particular but if they have some Kureyon in bright colors I could be tempted.

What day is it anyway?

I feel like I've just had two Sundays in a row, and it hasn't even been Sunday yet. Christmas falling on a Thursday just seems weird. I'm still recovering and trying to get reoriented.

Friday at Skein was extremely busy and we weren't even having a sale. Ann Mary doesn't believe in sales or bargain baskets or whatever you call it when there's a basket or bin of one or two leftover skeins. We do get a lot of people asking. One of my cheap thrills is to be able to sell something from the odd lots bins even if it is full price. Anyway, today was a little slower. I had a couple of students and spent some time working on the second half of a pair of socks. Almost done.

I'm not planning to make any New Year's resolutions. Not any new ones. I'm still working on the ones from last year. The one that says I'm going to get organized and get all my WIPs done before I start anything else.

And the other perennial one. The one that says I'm going to start a regular exercise program and be more careful about my diet. Of course, I have to finish all the holiday goodies before I can start that. So far I've had three boxes of cookies and some cheese and crackers. And trying to finish the huge slices of birthday cake that we had for Carol's birthday. Only one piece of that to go. I don't think I'll finish the case of wine and the miscellaneous bottles that I got though.

I got a couple of Vogue Knitting on the Go books. Scarves Two and Bags and Backpacks. The scarves book is quite interesting, more than the first one. There are a number of things in there that would be fun to make. And I could see making some things from the Bag book. Mostly I just enjoy reading the patterns. I'll have to see if there's anything Lisa would like.

One of the last minute gifts I got for Lisa was the Acorn Hat pattern from Fiber Trends and the yarn to make it. I'll need to start that pretty soon as she has a thing going for acorns right now. I have no idea why.

My sorta odd Christmas

I had a quiet Christmas, as in I slept most of it away. I did get down to Lisa's for the morning part just as we had planned. But dinner with Robert was postponed due to his flu. I slept several hours throughout the rest of the day. I'm not getting the flu but I think I'm getting something. Might be a throat or ear infection. Too soon to tell. It just randomly hurts, mostly when I swallow. So anyway I think the extra sleep will do me good.

It was also strange because it rained today. That should be in caps. I don't remember when it last rained on Christmas. It has stopped now but I hear there's a danger of flooding up in the mountains where there were so many forest fires this year. And mud slides!

And then, Lisa's friend John, who always joins us for Christmas morning, was not there today. He's in the hospital for a few days for some tests. So that made it seem like we were short handed.

In spite of the odd things about the day it was still a wonderful holiday. I got a stack of new knitting books that I wanted. So I have plenty of reading and dreaming to do between now and the beginning of the year. Lisa loved the fruit hats that I made for her, especially the strawberry and the grape. They took pictures so maybe I'll have some to post in the near future. Her mom really liked the multidirectional scarf and the hat, both in Kureyon, and the one sock I got done.

I just brought the gifts into the house. It was raining too hard earlier today. So I'm off to leaf through the books. I've been working on a diagonal stitch scarf while waiting for the rain to stop, or at least slow down. And listening to Bach's Christmas Oratorio.

'Tis the season

Flu season, that is. I just had a call that Robert has the flu and will be unable to celebrate Christmas tomorrow. There is an outside chance that he will recover quickly but I kind of doubt it. I'm supposed to get a call tomorrow afternoon to let me know. Robert is not the kind of person who would get a flu shot but we won't talk about that.

I'll still be going to Lisa's for Christmas morning. I'll be taking some quick breads that I made as well as the hastily wrapped gifts.

Skein was busy right up to the last minute. Lots of kids home for the holidays as well as people leaving for ski trips who wanted something to knit on long car rides. I didn't finish the last holiday project. I didn't like how it looked so I've started over and will present it sometime next month.

It's nice to feel completely relaxed and be working on a project that doesn't have a deadline. Not sure what I'll do for dinner tomorrow night but I'll have a good day no matter what.

Merry Christmas!

Guess who's going to Knitters' Retreat next November? I can't begin to tell you how excited I am. I don't know all the details yet but when I do I'll be writing about it. One thing I do know though is this is one very special Christmas gift.

I need to get some more facts before I can really explain how this came about but I do know that a couple of bloggers were involved in making it happen. I'm not naming names just yet but you know who you are. And the person who gave it to me, well, she's more special than I can begin to tell you.

I'm too jazzed to even think about anything else.

I'm just not going to talk about it anymore. I'm done with feeling panic about being ready for Christmas. It is what it is. If people get their gifts in brown paper bags from Trader Joe's that is perfectly all right. I will not put myself through this again, ever. I'm starting my holiday knitting on Christmas day. Well, some of it is for this Christmas.

And, speaking of knitting, I worked on project number six yesterday while I "did my blogs". But that's all I had time for. I still think I can finish. I have a few hours before I have to be at the dentist and then I can also work on it at Skein and tonight at Mendy's. I'm supposed to be fringing the poncho but in a world of shifting priorities that's just not going to happen.

Done, more or less

All I have left to do is wrap everything. Not that I got everything done that I meant to, but enough. There's still a couple of things due in from Amazon but there's still a couple of days to go.

The earthquake this morning was a none too gentle reminder of how subject to change everything is. No damage around here so far as I know, beyond the shattered nerves. We're constantly being warned that "the big one" could come at any time. So even a small quake is enough to trigger a flight response. I didn't actually flee but I did move out from under the chandelier.

Guess I'd better get started on the wrapping. Plus I need to see if the laundry room is available. Since I'm already depressed I might as well pay bills too.

The storm after the lull

Saturday and Sunday were both incredibly busy. There were lines at the register most of the day and I had two tables full of students. As far as I could tell everyone got pretty much what they came for and went away merry. We still have plenty of yarn but a lot of the flashy, glitzy stuff is pretty picked over. And there are a few holes in the needle board, mostly the 13s through 17s. We're out of black in almost everything.

I finished Christmas project number five and have cast on for number six. I should be done with this one tonight or tomorrow. There's still shopping and wrapping to be done and a little more baking. And I need a birthday present for my friend Carol, a Christmas baby, a long time ago. And a dentist appointment on Tuesday. I'm making myself very nervous.

Lull

It was a quiet and slow day at Skein yesterday. So weird after the frantic day on Wednesday. Well, it did allow me time to totally finish holiday gift number four and to knit a few rows on the socks that I may finish in time for another gift.

Looking forward to the days when I'm not under a deadline. I've been reading Nancie Wiseman's Knitted Shawls, Stoles, and Scarves which is a book I got for Christmas last year. My fantasy is to make everything in the book, even the ones that I'm not too crazy about. And maybe not the Autumn Leaves shawl. Way too much intarsia in that one. I've already made the Shoulder Warmer shawl using some stash mohair.

There are a few things in the book that I've never tried. Entrelac and mitered squares, for example. I've done short rowing and lace and slip stitches but I could use more practice. One of the scarves, the Chenille Diagonal Lace scarf, is already on my needles. Just a coincidence. The only difference is the number of stitches.

I'll try to use yarn from my stash as much as possible. It should be easy enough to modify the patterns to fit the yarn available. Anyway, I'm just thinking about it during this lull in the action. Who knows if it'll actually happen?

Oy! my aching hands!

I don't think short circular needles are good for me. Much of my holiday knitting involves the use of some size 7, 16" circulars and my hands are hurting like never before. This may not be the fault of the needles but instead the fault of trying to make too many small, round things. But I am going to power through it and I will reach my goal, if I can stay awake long enough.

We had our Thursday night knit together on Wednesday this week due to a scheduling conflict on the part of the hostess. Not that she didn't try to get it changed but she was outvoted. Anyway, it was fun and relaxing as always. I didn't do the fringing I had planned to do because I think I need to steam the yarn first so the fringe doesn't look like a band of dried out spaghetti. Instead, I worked on one of the above mentioned round things. (Next week we'll have Thursday on Tuesday.)

When I got home, after checking what had happened during the day, I started number five project and tried to stay awake long enough to listen to all of Judas Maccabeus but was only able to get through about half of it. I do like my local classical station but I wish they'd start these long pieces a little earlier than midnight. Tonight it's going to be The Chanukah Story narrated by Leonard Nemoy (instead of Theodore Bickel) so that will be neat. And it's starting at eight.

I had more students than you could shake a needle at yesterday. Most everything was easy to demonstrate and everyone went away with progress. But, oh, it was crowded and noisy. I guess it was all the chocolate combined with all the last minute frenzy of holiday knitting. I think it makes Ann Mary nervous when people start having too much fun. Must be the high school principal syndrome she carries.

Fretting

Most of the time I drive myself right up a tree with fretting about stuff. It makes me crazy if I'm going to be late for an appointment or if I forget to do something I've promised to do. I think I inherited this from my mother who was an all time high level worrier over things that nothing can be done about. She's not here anymore so I think it's my duty to pick up where she left off.

I had an appointment with my dentist this morning. I've had this appointment for two weeks. All my plans for today are predicated on getting there early so there won't be any snags with other things I have planned for today.

Last night, on the way home from Skein, I realized that I would have to take my car to the mechanic today as something wacky was going on with the engine temperature gauge. So I spent most of last night trying to decide how to get the car dealt with so I'd still be able to keep my appointment with the dentist. So I finally decided that I'd just have to cancel my appointment with the dentist and take care of the car first.

I still haven't heard from the mechanic but I called the dentist and apologized for having to cancel with no notice. "You don't have an appointment. I don't see you." I hate it when I spend all that time worrying and have it come to nothing. Now I wonder when the mechanic will call and if I'll be able to get to Skein on time.

You may have noticed that there's no knitting content. Again. Well, there is some. I finished knitting the poncho last night about 12:30. I still have to weave in the ends and attach the fringe and figure out how to block it so it doesn't look so home made.

Anthropologie

Do you have an Anthropologie in your neighborhood? I didn't know they had opened a shop in Pasadena until one of our customers mentioned it last week. Actually she was going to try to duplicate one of the trees they have in their window.

I've been saving a trip there until Lisa could go with me. I went scouting yesterday but couldn't find it. I thought it should be with all the other new shops that have opened over by the Macy's (the one that used to be Bullock's) but it wasn't there. I did check out the Orvis shop and liked it a lot. Anyway, I checked Erica's blog for a link and found the store location page to get the address. So last night it was shopper's nirvana.

It's been a long time since I have been so excited about a store. This place is not to be believed. Not just because of the merchandise although that's pretty amazing. The seasonal decorations are just plain clever. It's enough to make me want a tree of my own. I didn't buy anything but I will. Even if it's just a lot of different soaps and candles.

So, it's not about knitting. While I waited for Lisa to arrive yesterday I knit a few more rounds on the poncho. I think I have about 8 more rounds and then casting off and fringing it. I was getting concerned that I wouldn't have enough yarn so I did some math to see how much I'd need just for the fringe. Barring some unintentional math error I should have about half a skein left.

The way I figure it I have two more days in which to get Christmas under control. So I'm off to see what kind of inspiration I can find for those hard to buy for people on my list. Actually, there are only two of those so it should be easy to come up with something. What do you get for someone who has everything? I mean, that you can afford.

Still in the throes of knitting socks, poncho and other things that need to be done before Christmas. I worked on one of the projects at Skein yesterday even though I was surrounded by students. And I'll get some more done this afternoon after I get back from prowling the mall.

Lisa is coming over tonight. She was supposed to come last night but spaced out and didn't make it. You never get over being a parent.

I finished another holiday present last night and have cast on for the next one. I also brought home the yarn for what I hope is the last one. Now I just have to keep plugging away. I'm not doing anything difficult but it still takes time.

I'm going to lunch with some friends today and Lisa is coming over this evening so I won't be getting much knitting done. I should be able to work on Lisa's poncho while she's here since she already knows about that.

I came home last night with a couple of boxes of candy and some cookies. Thank you gifts from customers. I feel really special. And I'll enjoy all the goodies. Especially the truffles that Ann Mary's sister made. I'm not even thinking about calories until after the first of the year at which point it may be too late.

All the people who didn't show up on Thursday and Friday decided to come into Skein yesterday. We were close to swamped all day! I had a new knitter first thing in the morning and a few quick questions throughout the day but mostly it was getting yarn into people's hands and getting them in line at the register. Some of the glitzy yarns are sold out or almost. Time to get really creative.

A scarf a day

Scarves continue to save the day. There was very little traffic today and what there was, well, scarves are still the thing. I only had one student today and she was there for five hours. At least I had someone to talk to. Ann Mary took the afternoon off, or most of it, and went for a perm. Her husband filled in for her on the register. All in all it was a long day.

Getting started on the holiday baking tonight. Some applesauce and more spiced pumpkin bread. I think that's about it for now.

One sock is done and the second has ribbing. That's about it for today's production. Except that I worked on the poncho tonight at Mendy's and am almost 80% done. It's even colder now than it was last week. I'm pretty sure that I'll be done by this time next week, except maybe for the fringe.

I'm really anxious to start some new projects. But I still have the Mt. Hood socks to complete and the Hearts scarf. They're both so barely started that they will be like new projects when I pick them up. Somehow that's not the same.

Knit together was fun and relaxing as always. We all seem to be working on the same projects we were on last week. It was just so good to be with people who share so much, not just knitting. I took some of Mendy's stash that I've been storing so she could show it off. And we decided what needs to go back to the store.

I spent most of my time at Skein working with the bipolar student. We're on to a new scarf that is actually more challenging than anything she's done before. So far it's going quite well. I think she's making good progress overall. She still has moments when she forgets what she's doing but we have a good enough rapport that she is comfortable letting me know. And she's beginning to recognize mistakes and is learning how to fix them. Being able to really focus on her knitting seems to help her calm down when she's stressed about something else that's going on in her life.

Even more decorative than I thought. The Christmas cactus is loaded with blossoms. I've never had one of these before and I must say I'm pretty impressed.

I took the shawl in today and showed it off. Ann Mary is very pleased so that's a good thing. We don't have a holiday window display as yet but when we do the shawl will probably go in it.

It was pretty quiet today considering how busy we've been recently. I managed a few rows on the socks but that was about it. I did have one student who required my attention most of the afternoon. She had made two right fronts for the baby sweater and they were both equally short compared to the back. So we got that fixed and then I showed her how to do a three needle bind off. That took a couple of tries since she dropped stitches and didn't notice it until she was finished, twice.

Renee came in with her niece and my faux grandson Nicholas. The kid's a riot. So we had a chance to play a little but he doesn't know me very well so he's a little apprehensive. He'll be ten months old on Christmas day.

I really need to do some shopping. So I'll probably be on-line a lot tonight.

Seems like there's some problem over at Blogger. Trying to log on for a couple of hours. Oh, well.





Finally, I'm finished with the shop shawl sample. The top photo shows a detail of the yarns, well sort of. It's Prism Popcorn and something fuzzy, also from Prism. The lower photo shows how the poppies are distributed across the shawl. The black background is Bouton d'Or's Organdi. Not what the pattern called for but we didn't have the Trendsetter Dulcino in stock.

I'm glad it's done even if I don't care for it very much. I've been trying to only work on it while I'm at Skein but decided to just finish it at home tonight. Now I can concentrate on holiday stuff.

It was insane again this afternoon for about an hour. One person commented that it was like the day before Thanksgiving at the supermarket. I'm not sure if Ann Mary ever got to have lunch. When I left tonight about twenty minutes after the store closed there was still one customer trying to make up her mind.

I just finished writing a pattern for Lina using the Sweater Wizard program. We're doing a bell sleeve. I guess SW doesn't know how to do decreases on the lower part of a sleeve. It did show the stitch count but didn't have any text explaining when to do the decreases. I like Sweater Wizard but you still have to do a lot of the work yourself, sometimes.

Dim Sum

What a delightful way to break up the day! I just got home from dim sum with Lina and Irene, two of my students. They assure me the place we went is the best dim sum restaurant in Los Angeles County. Judging from the crowd I'd say they're probably right. I can't describe all we had because I don't know what everything was but it was all delicious and I have enough left overs for the next couple of days. I never knew it was possible to do so many things with rice, or taro or daikon.

So now it's back to the mundane. Laundry and working on the poncho. I have managed a few more rows as well as some progress on the socks. I'm also swatching some Georges Picaud yarn that I got last year when Carol and I went yarn shop stalking.

Georges Picaud has been out of business for at least ten years, maybe more. I can't find anything specific about the company but there are some sites, mostly in French, that mention their yarns. I'm working with one called Scarlett. It's 75% viscose and 25% cotton, variegated red, pink, salmon and plum. I tried it on a US6 and am now trying a US4. It's pretty but I don't want to spend that much time making a shell. I think it will be a good carry along for some other stuff from my stash.

It's been a dark and gloomy day. And it's been drizzling rain most of the afternoon. But that didn't keep people away from Skein. I had five people for various levels of help this afternoon including one brand new knitter. And there was a pretty steady stream of customers, mostly scarves. Between helps I worked on the crocheted fringe for the shop sample shawl. That's been about it for my knitting lately.

I have spent a couple of hours on a pair of socks and the holiday gifts. I have a shawl to rip for one of the students. She got too frustrated to deal with the Furz as she tried to rip it. So she's donated it to whomever wants it. I tried several times to show her how to handle the yarn so it wouldn't get gnarled but I guess she just wasn't patient enough and kept getting it knotted. So I'll undo the thing and have enough for a lap robe.


There's a homeless person trying to take up residence in the laundry room of my building. Most of the people who live here are not owners and don't really pay much attention to the rules and regulations, one of which is to lock the laundry room when it's not in use. So this person comes every night and if the room is locked goes to sleep in front of one of the cars in the carport area. We don't have a security gate so there's no way to keep people out. I'm not sure what to do about this, if anything.

I'm almost excited. The shop sample shawl only needs eight more garter stitch rows and it will be off the needle. Then I get to do the finishing, tedious but easier than working with all those mixed breed fibers that wind around each other and refuse to budge unless they're carefully and gently unwound one strand at a time while trying to keep the stitches from sliding off the unmonitored ends of the needle. Today for sure.

Knit together last night was fun per usual. Mendy had a couple of house guests so our head count was temporaily elevated. I put some stitches back on the needle for Mendy's cousin, 56 stitches on size US2 in a dark multi-color yarn. I'm still not sure how the stitches got off the needle but it was pretty easy to pick them up. We had lots of things chocolate and were all sent home with bags of fresh cherries. Plus I got some bagel dogs. Not sure what those are but I've been assured they are addictive. Just what I need.

What does it mean when a pattern says "increase purlways"? I haven't found an explanation in any of the standard knitting books. The increase was done in the ribbing so I just purled and then knit into the front of the stitch. I have no idea if this is correct but it looked okay. I don't much care for Sirdar patterns and this just reconfirms my distaste.

Christmas Tree

I think this will be my Christmas tree this year.



My sister, who is always ahead of the game when it comes to sending gifts, sent me this Christmas cactus. It's loaded with blossoms and buds. I don't know why I'm so lousy at picture taking. Four new batteries and sixteen frames and this is the best one.

There's no knitting content here. Maybe tomorrow.

Well, that was the plan

I had to be two places at one time today and it was really difficult. I had students coming at eleven and a dentist appointment at ten. I thought I could make it work but the dentist won. So I called Skein and left a message. The student arrived on time, bought some yarn and came back later. So it all worked out. But I hate it when I mix up my schedule like that. I should carry a day planner but then I'd have to remember to use it.

It was a strange, slow day today. Hardly any customers but I did have a few drop in students this afternoon. Mostly chit chat. I'm very close to finishing the shop sample shawl and will be able to get a pic maybe by the weekend. It's too scrunched up on the needle right now to make any sense of it. After it's off the needle I'll still have to do a crochet fringe on two sides. And weave in all those loose ends. Generally I don't mind intarsia but when the yarn is several different sizes and one of them has lumps like popcorn it's tedious.

After receiving several good suggestions about giving IOUs for Christmas I'm thinking that's a great way to go. I wonder what the cut off date would be before a gift was in default. Just kidding. Surely I'll be done by the end of Janurary. Or February at the latest.

Thwarted

Yesterday, in an effort to jump-start my holiday spirit, I took Lisa to lunch and then set out to do some browsing at various boutiques. They were all closed. Why do shops close on Monday? Lots of restaurants used to do this but now they all seem to be open everyday.

So we went to the local antiques mall to look around. I used to love going there and all the other shops in the area. Don't know what has happened over the years that I haven't been going there but the whole area just seemed drab and dreary. Must be me though. They still had piles of the same old old-stuff that I used to lust after. Maybe I'm just over stuffed!

But on the upside. I got to see some of the socks I've knitted being worn. They looked good and didn't fall down. Lisa bought some special sandal shoes to show them off. So now I'm feeling excited about making some more.

I did manage a couple of rounds on the poncho and a little work on the holiday gifts. Today should be better since I don't have all those pesky chores to do. I'm expecting a couple of students at Skein today. This should put my cash flow back into a more positive direction.

Rabbit! Rabbit!

It's beginning to look...

like I'll make my holiday gift knitting quota. But that's a flexible number. I won't be spending much time on them today. Lisa is coming over for lunch and then we're going browsing in some of the clever little boutiques that have opened since last year. But first I have to do a little more house keeping.

I received a lot of interesting suggestions for things to do with pumpkin. Thanks for all the help. Pumpkin ravioli is definitely on the list. Thanks, John. I didn't get to try any of the spiced pumpkin bread that I made but I hear it's good so I'll have to try that one again.

I've been having this curious winding-down feeling lately. I don't feel much like trying anything new in my knitting. I seem to be satisfied with making socks and hats. Even those are pretty simple. At the same time I'm fantasizing about things to start using yarn from my stash. I'm not enjoying my current shawl project for Skein and will avoid working on it as much as I can. I'm going to try to finish it this week and then not take on any more shop projects for a while.

The poncho is progressing, but very slowly. It takes an hour to knit two and a half rounds. I'm almost 70% done. The nights have been very cold so I'm sure it will get lots of use. Even though it's not a Christmas present I hope to have it done by then.

How would you feel if you got and IOU for Christmas?