It's not much

but it's all I've got. I've been working on these socks off and on for about a month. I'm anxious to finish them, just to have something finished. I took them with me yesterday to work on while I visited with my friend Susan. I ripped most of what I knit since I had introduced an extra yarn over five rows back. I'm on track now and just might get them done today.

I should be working on my shop sample project but I need a break. Maybe later today, if I do finish the socks and don't find something else to distract me.

It's supposed to be Spring

but you can't tell by the weather. I know that in some parts of the world 48 degrees (9C) would seem warm. My brother in Utah thinks I'm a wimp because I think that is cold.

Yesterday was the big Pasadena marathon. The one that replaced the one that was canceled last fall due to bad air from all the brush fires. They didn't cancel it this time even though there was a huge rain storm that passed through just as the race was getting underway. I've never seen so many soaking wet people at one time, except maybe at the beach. I was pretty soaked myself by the time I got half way through my walk so I cut it short and came home to un-chill out.

And to work on the sock. I'm using my Signature dpns that I got for my birthday. They're ideal for working all the left and right twists in this stitch pattern. I do think I'm going to rip the heel and re-do it using short rows. And I'll probably change the reverse stockinette on the sole to stockinette.

I'm using Socks That Rock in the Xmas Rock colorway. It's a lot more intense than the photo shows. Had to use a flash since there was next to no sun when we took the picture yesterday.

What's new?

I don't mean to gloat but I am so happy with my new yarn. I went on a yarn field trip last Saturday and brought this home with me.

A = Handmaiden Casbah in Blackberry; 81% merino, 9% cashmere, 10% nylon.
B = Dream in Color Smooshy in Gothic Rose; superfine merino 100%
C = Pagewood Farm in Mississippi Mud; merino and nylon. No percentages given.

I can't tell you where I got it. I've been ordered to keep it a secret to protect our sources. It's a long way from here though. I'll be going back, if there's anything left after I do my taxes.

Meanwhile, I've been knitting on this:



Araucania Ruca Multy, 100% sugar cane. It's a wonderful yarn. I thought it would be hard to work with, but it's not. No splitting and I haven't found a single knot. It feels good in my hands. Very pleasant.



I'm making a shop sample but it's also sized to fit the shop owner. The pattern is from the latest Verena magazine and I'm making some adjustments here and there. It looks like it's going to be very pretty.

Face what?

So, now I'm on facebook but I don't know what that's supposed to do for me. And I can't make much sense of the emails I'm getting. Where am I supposed to go to find all the details of how to use this to enhance my on-line life? Is there a tutorial or am I supposed to just intuit how it works? Is this really going to improve the quality of my everyday life?

Meanwhile, I've been buying some new yarns and as soon as we have some decent sunshine I'll be taking and posting some pictures.

I've said it before, I'll say it again

Orange you glad?

I'm not all that crazy about crochet but I do know how to do it. It's not something I talk about very often and I definitely don't want to teach it. But once in a while I see something that I like. Like this shawl from Knottie by Nature. It's called My Blue Jeans Shawl.

I had some Cascade 220 in stash that I thought would work and I thought I had enough. The pattern doesn't have precise information but I was pretty sure I could make it with what I had. It didn't turn out that way.



I was about half a skein short of what I needed. I couldn't find any in any of the shops around here but L to the rescue. She had a whole skein in her Cascade leftovers. It was a different dye lot but I can't see any difference.

Be there, be square

So, it's daylight savings time again. That doesn't particularly bother me since I live my life on cat time. I either got up at 3AM or 4AM this morning. I'm already thinking about when I can go to bed tonight. But anyway that's not what the picture is about, except I had to use a flash since it's still pretty dark. Plus it's overcast.

I got some more dpns. Square ones from Kollage. I've started yet another pair of socks. This time in Cherry Tree Hill sock yarn. I like the needles partly because I could get them in a 7" length. I don't like them as much as the Signature ones I got for my birthday. These I purchased with my own dwindling supply of hard earned cash. I don't notice the squareness when I'm knitting with them unless I consciously try to. The stitches stay securely on the needles. I think I'm getting back into metal needles, especially for socks. I have some trouble with K2tog when I'm working at sock gauge and am always apprehensive that I'll break one of the bamboo needles. I haven't yet but I feel like I have to be extra careful. The new Signature and these Kollage are strong enough that I don't think I have to worry.

Something else new. The New Knitting Stitch Library by Lesley Stanfield. I'd never heard of this book until I saw a reference in one of Charlene Schurch's sock books. Anyway, it's been on my wish list for a couple of years and I finally got it for my birthday. I haven't spent much time with it as yet but it looks pretty good so far.

My Signature

Another birthday present. A gift certificate for a set of Signature dpns. (Thanks L&H) They are amazing! I wasn't sure if I'd like the metal. But I sure wanted those stiletto points.

I've used a lot of different kinds of needles in my day. Casein, bamboo, aluminum, plastic. You name it. I don't know what the metal is in these needles but it's very light. There is a coating on the shank of the needle that keeps the stitches securely in place and yet allows the work to move easily to the tip of the needle. I haven't had one single needle fall out. They're as secure as bamboo, perhaps even more so.

My first project on these dpns is some socks using Zauberball sock yarn. I got the needles in a US2. My most frequently used size. I think the yarn is a bit thin for this size so I'll be ripping and going down to a smaller size. I'm getting ladders that I don't usually get. The Zauberball doesn't have much give and it really needs to be knit plain so I can't get away with ladders. I got the yarn in a couple of different colorways.

Sampling

I went on a quick yarn shop hop with a friend last Saturday. One of our stops was at Itza Knitterie in Glendale. And I bought my first ever Great Adirondacks yarn, Silky Sock. I can't find a link to their site. Anyway. this is some pretty slinky stuff. 70% superwash wool, 20% silk and 10% nylon. The color is a bit washed out, as usual, but it's a perfect blend of neutral. My favorite combo.



We had already been to Unwind in Burbank. That's where I got a couple of skeins of Noro Chirimen. I didn't remember having seen this yarn before, although I was assured by my friend that I had. This is a newish yarn from Noro and is 60% cotton, 24% silk and 16% wool. I think I'll use this for some Maine Morning Mitts. (Download the pdf.) The holidays are coming!



And one last thing. I got this at A Stitch in Time where I work. I'd never heard of this yarn before except for an ad I had seen in a magazine. It's 100% superwash wool in a sock weight. Fibra Natura Yummy is made in Turkey but designed in the US. I'm excited to see how this will knit up.

So, yes. I'm still buying yarn.

It's new

Some of you may remember that I had a huge pot of amaryllis on my balcony. That pot has gone to live elsewhere. But, thanks to a kind friend, I have a new one. This one was supposed to bloom at Christmas but it was a bit late. And the blooms have gone now but I'm hoping that next year it'll come back and maybe start to multiply.


Also new. Namaste knitting bag. A birthday gift from L&H (of L&H fame). It's brown corduroy and has lots of suitable pockets. No hazardous velcro or anything that would snag the knitting. The only zipper is on the outside of the flap. I really like this bag.

It has some neat striped fabric lining the flaps. It's not all that blurry in real life.

I'm still working my way through all the birthday comments. There are a few folks that I don't have links for so I'll say thank you here. I was really happy to hear from so many people. Does this old heart good!

It's been a while

What with being seventy and the general malaise that goes with that, I just haven't been focused enough to get around to posting. I'm getting over myself though.

I don't have anything in the way of a finished project. Maybe next week. I just didn't want to let a whole month go by without saying something.

And if you're one of the few people who still check out my blog, thanks for bearing with me.

Done. The back balcony anyway.

Cats, even older cats, can move pretty fast when they've a mind to. My cat never goes outside. He doesn't have any natural defense instincts other than to run. He's a rag doll and the attack instinct has been bred out of that breed.

But what I was meaning to tell you is that Patrick went outside this morning. I opened the slider to the balcony so I could take a picture. The cat came up to see what was going on and before I could grab him he was out on the balcony.



No. I didn't get a picture of him. I was too busy trying to get him back inside before he decided he could maybe jump off the balcony. Fortunately, he's also easily frightened by sudden noises. I think my neighbor must have seen him and rattled her slider. That was enough to cause him to run back inside.

I don't know what he was looking for, if anything. It might have been just the chance to try something new. Or he might have been wondering where the workers were. He hid from them the first couple of days they were here but by the third day he was watching them from the safety of the den. In any event, he's not happy that he can't go outside and has been giving me some very accusatory looks. And he think he might be cursing me as well.

Work on the front balcony starts this week. I don't think it's going to be as traumatic as the first one. And there's no window for Patrick to look out. I guess he'll just be scared of the noise for a couple of days.

Knitting? Haven't been doing much. Still working on the same two scarves. I took yesterday off and read a book.

In process

I knew you'd want to know. Here's the current status of the balcony repair. Any time now there should be some guys here to begin applying the new water-proofing stuff. Three or four more days and it will all be done. And better than it was when it was new forty years ago.



Meanwhile, I'm working on a scarf. And playing FreeCell. There's another scarf in the works but I didn't get a picture yet. Maybe tomorrow or the next day.

So far

There's a hole in my balcony. The cat broke a lamp. How's your New Year going?

I've started two scarves so far but haven't finished anything. I have lots of stuff left over from last year that may get done this month. Or maybe I'll just continue starting new projects.

Einstein had it right, more or less

It's cold here. 36F this morning when I went for my walk. I know that if you're in Chicago, for example, that will not seem cold. Just remember that a couple of weeks ago we were having temperatures in the 90s. It was so cold last night that the lady who usually sleeps in front of the local post office had moved into the lobby. I think I woke her up when I went in to drop off some letters.

I don't have any photos today. Everything I have knit recently is for someone's Christmas gift and I'm not sure which people might be reading this. I should be able to post a couple of things by Monday though.

Are you ready? I am. Relatively speaking, of course. I'm still waiting for one package from Amazon and then I'll get the balance of the gifts wrapped. It's been a little more difficult this year to figure out what folks wanted. I think most of us are a bit leery of spending a whole lot plus no one seems to have much in the way of wish lists. And what lists there are seem to be oriented toward the practical.

It was a strange feeling yesterday when I realized that I had finished everything, including the gift wrapping and the addressing of cards. I suddenly had several hours ahead of me where I didn't have to be doing anything. Made me feel sort of useless. I suppose I could have picked up an old project to work on but I just didn't seem to have any focus left. But it's party time today so I'm feeling relatively better.

The joy and woes of too much stash

I got all the boxes of yarn moved to make room for the construction people. I'm glad it's done but it sure takes a lot of effort to re-stack all those bins. I'm definitely looking forward to our next yarn sale.

One of the things I've discovered about my stash is that it rarely has a yarn that works for what I'm wanting to make. Or if it does, I can't find it. I think yarn has a fashion life just like clothing and cars.

But sometimes I find something that I've forgotten about and it's a real joy. This scarf for example. I don't remember buying this yarn and I only had two skeins. Judging from the label I'd say I got it at Unwind. It's Plymouth Patches, a mixture of three different yarns wrapped around a common core. It's whimsical enough for a quick neck scarf and it worked up really fast.

Closer and closer

This is my almost final project for holiday knitting. I'm calling it "the not quite enough ruffle scarf". I used three skeins of Filatura di Crosa Porto Cervo cotton that I got at Skein last summer. It's just a garter stitch worked on the diagonal with an improvised ruffle along one side. A short scarf that can be folded and wrapped closely around the neck. I would have tried the ruffle again if I'd had time and more yarn. I was envisioning a bit more swirliness along that edge.

If I have enough time I will make something similar for another friend or to have as a backup in case there's someone I have forgotten. But first I have to rearrange my furniture. As if there weren't enough going on at this time of year, I have some construction/repair work that needs to be done and it's supposed to start on Monday. The contractor said he would have to go through my condo to get to the balcony and will have to haul all the debris back through. All four of the balconies in my building will be repaired and everyone has to go through the same mess since none of the balconies are accessible from the ground level.

It's not a lot of work really to move stuff around. It's just inconvenient. And, since we're supposed to get some more rain on Monday in addition to what we're getting today, I'm not sure if the repair work will actually begin on Monday. But my part will be done.

Anyway, I'm getting closer and closer to being ready for Christmas. We had our shop Christmas dinner last night and we'll be having a luncheon on Friday for the knitting group, and anyone else who happens to be there. I'm looking forward to it.

Holiday decor

My holiday decorating is done. It takes less than five minutes. Every year I think about putting up a tree at least one more time. I go look at trees. I consider the price and the likelihood of my cat resisting the temptation to play with the ornaments and realize that I don't really want to go to the trouble. So I go find this needlepoint pillow that I did a few years ago. I plump it up a bit and pick off any cat hairs that I missed when I put it away. And I'm done.

I have only one more ruffle to knit on the edge of a scarf and my holiday knitting will be done. I have the bags and tissue. So I'm planning on being done by this evening. I still haven't bought cards. I'm not sure that's going to happen. But maybe. I still need some ideas for my non-knitting friends and relations but most everything is done in that category too. Just waiting for delivery. I wonder what I'm forgetting.

We're having a nice old-fashioned rain today. Nothing fancy. Just plenty of it. It's been a while. It sort of messes with the outdoor decorations and causes all kinds of havoc on the freeways. But hey! We're not sitting here with no heat or electricity like the folks in the northeast. And it's probably all going to be over by tonight.

Crunch time

Only 24 days (and nights) to get it all done. I finished one pair of socks and discovered a very serious mistake in another over the weekend. That pair will be re-knit but not until after Christmas.

Going through my stash I found a shawl I had started a year ago. That might get done although the yarn is like knitting rocks. A few rows of that and I had to switch to something else. So I started a hat using some vintage yarn. I think the hat might end up on my head.

Fortunately I have been finishing things throughout the year. Just have to decide who gets what. I may be adding a scarf or two and a pair of fingerless gloves. Otherwise I'm feeling fairly confident. I do have some yarn that some people have been lusting after.

But I still have to knit those remaining things and get it all wrapped. I think I might have to make a list.

Ugh! The day after

I'm sitting here trying to convince myself that today is Friday, not Monday. I almost never go to Robert's on any day other than Sunday. But since Thanksgiving always falls on Thursday I went over there, had way too much rich food, and got home late. Just like when I go over there on Sunday.

My usual feeding habits are by no means spartan. I try to keep things within a range that doesn't do me too much harm. Thanksgiving can be a killer, almost literally. I will be paying for all that butter and sugar for several days. I did have both the pumpkin and the pecan. By that time though it was anti-climactic. It felt good to go for my walk this morning. Slim-Fast is today's choice.

I'm in the middle of holiday knitting. Socks mostly. Several pairs at different points of almost done-ness. I went through some of my sock yarn stash yesterday. It was overwhelming so I just jammed it all back on the shelves. There are several colorways of Koigu that I had forgotten. And lots of Cherry Tree Hill sock weight. I'm going to do another two person KAL with L (of L&H fame). This time it's a huge circular shawl. Cast on 1300 (or 1800 if you're making the larger size)and join in the round and knit for months.

Thankful for

so many things. Great friends and family, color, wool and time to knit. And for the rain we've had for the past couple of days.

It's Thanksgiving Day here in the US. Like so many of you, I will be sitting down to a turkey dinner later today. I'm looking forward to it. My diabetes dietitian said it would be okay to have a slice of pumpkin pie. I wonder if I could substitute pecan. Little does she know that I'm not all that strict with my diet. I just had the bank of glucose tests and I don't see much change from the last time. For which I'm also thankful.

I have no plans to go shopping tomorrow. I'll be working at A Stitch in Time. Several of my Friday morning students are away for the holiday so I don't know how busy I'll be. We're not opening early for Black Friday but we do have a sale that's starting. And I've heard from a couple of friends that they'll be in. So it'll be a good day.

Thanks for reading.