Monday, April 28, 2014

YOP #43 or Fruits of Being Productive

This has managed to be a surprisingly productive week. This past Saturday was an event called Yarnover, which I have been debating about going to since about February. When I didn't get a job that I had applied for (I was in the top 3 though!), I knew it would be realistic for me to go to this except there was a show at work that day. At my job, there are some things I know I have to work and the only way to get out of them is a funeral (or getting married, but that was a show that I enjoy working but my boss insisted I take a full weekend since I was getting married). There are some shows that I think I don't have to work, which end up being more complicate and I have to work (I only pout a little) and then there are the shows that I know I can get out of working. The show this past Saturday fell right into that category. It's not that I don't like working choir concerts. It's just that I prefer to not work choir concerts. With the day off, I approached Husband about the prospect of my going to spend the day knitting. Our house, like all houses I believe, needs a lot of work done to it. Husband got a little down seeing as how I had spent the weekend two weeks previous out with my mom going to 17 yarn shops. He didn't say I couldn't go but he did seem down about it. I countered with the idea that I could stay home and we could work on a massive house project together. He cheered up with that suggestion so we spent Saturday cleaning the basement. My reward was a hot bath in an attempt to melt the spider webs off my body.

I also made some amazing progress in the knitting world.

Friday night, at my church small group gathering, I cast on a baby sock. It's an attempt at a pattern I dreamed about after seeing a pair of socks that belongs to one of the group leaders. She showed me a pair that had been hers when she was an infant and she wanted to know if I could figure out how they had been made.

The original sock.
 I eventually found a similar pattern but one night I actually dreamed about the sock and I think I know how to make them. I worked on them during our Bible study (knitting helps me think sometimes) and while there has been progress and I'm pretty sure they will work, I need to go down a couple of needle sizes. The knitted fabric isn't tight enough to be socks.

My first attempt at the sock pattern.
 The exciting thing about this project is that one of the classes I had wanted to take on Saturday was on backwards knitting. When I first saw the class description, I got excited because of sock heels. I don't always like the flipping back and forth when working on heels especially if I'm doing two at a time. It just becomes a mess. Knitting backwards would keep it from becoming a mess. It also is apparently a neat party trick. I had gone to the link I posted to see what it was like and I've been thinking about it since then. As we were socializing before the study, I decided to see if I could do it. I started by flipping the work and purling and then flipping back over to knit the stitch, watching how the yarn moved. It's still a little shaky and on my Vanilla eyelet socks it's still hard to do, but I can do it!

Speaking of the Vanilla eyelets (which may need a different name), I'm almost done with the first one. I've gotten to the toe, which I'm doing the "No Kitchener Stitch" version. I kept thinking I would have that done by this week but...yeah. I got distracted with work. And the rain made it hard to knit and walk at the same time. I'm talented but I can't knit and hold an umbrella at the same time.

The sock so far.
 The most exciting part about this week was in regards to the TARDIS shawl. The first section is finished!!! I keep forgetting how much I don't like picking up stitches. I've currently got 161 of 311 stitches picked up for the TARDIS section. The middle bonus kid asked why it is called a TARDIS shawl since it looks nothing like the TARDIS. I had to explain that this is the vortex section. She and I (and possibly one of her friends) will be going to Comic Con this weekend to see Matt Smith. I'm still debating about going Saturday as well. It's fun when you go between being an extrovert and an introvert. I'm not sure how much time I want to spend around that many people but it would be fun to go to some of the panels on Saturday.



Finished Objects

Works in Progress

Monday, April 21, 2014

YOP #42 or The Answer

In case it hasn't been apparent, I'm a bit of a geek hence the Douglas Adams reference in the title of this post. It does have me thinking that if this is my 42nd week (I can't say post as I've missed quite a few) of the Year of Projects blog-along, then there are only 10 weeks left. Suddenly I feel like I'm back in school and that I need to cram to get all my studying in before finals are due. As a theatre and music double major in college, most of my finals were final projects or performances. Thankfully some saner part of my mind poked me and reminded me that I'm not competing with anyone here except maybe myself. It's about challenging myself at times, but, more importantly, it's about having fun and sharing it. The bigger challenge for me might actually be the blogging part of it. I've been pretty good at the knitting part though I haven't reached some deadlines that I had set for myself. While some (including myself) would be discouraged by this, I'm trying to keep in a positive mindset and see how much more I've accomplished in the last year. Heck, I wasn't even knitting in July 2012 so I'm way ahead of myself.

Onto the projects!

Currently there are only two projects that I'm working on, which feels a little odd.  I do need to start the 3rd dog but I've really been focused on these two projects.

The TARDIS shawl is in being decreased. More accurately, the first section of it is being decreased. It's amazing how knitting 24 rows only decreases 6 overall stitches. I'm hoping that this is the most tedious part of the project. It's the same stitch pattern with a slight shift between rows but if I don't pay close attention, I have managed to screw it up a few times. Hopefully next week I'll be posting a picture of the second section having been started.

In a world in which I don't sleep or work and only eat through an IV, I would have this finished by May 2nd so that I could wear it at the Minneapolis Comic Con. I wouldn't be sane enough to go to it but it would be finished. I would probably also look like an evil minion.

My travel project is a pair of socks. It's my pattern. As in, I'm making up the design. I'm using a sheet that Ann Budd handed out at the class I took from her to get the base numbers but the leg and foot pattern is my own. Currently, the design is called Vanilla Eyelets because it's mostly a vanilla sock pattern with this little eyelet pattern added in to keep it interesting.


This is a "radio static" yarn (as Husband refers to yarn that doesn't stripe nicely and loses intricate patterns with the colour). I've somehow managed to get the colour to sort of stripe or at least clump together. My understanding is that this is pooling but I'm honestly not sure. Husband does like how it looks much better than every other pattern I've attempted with this yarn (two Cookie A patterns which kept getting lost). The simply eyelet pattern seems to be just enough to make it more than just a "boring" sock. I'm hoping to eventually write it up and have it tested before releasing it out into the world.

Finished Objects

Works in Progress

Thursday, April 17, 2014

YOP #40-41 or One more down and pictures speak louder


I finished another item this past week. The second dog of three. I managed to drop off the first two while I start on the 3rd one. I may have misplaced a needle.... It has been found though. As celebration, I took a lot of pictures of things I've finished since the start of 2014 to show off.

Here Fishy, Fishy the Second


Grandma Tam: Blocking and Post Blocking









Matching Neck Hugger
 

Alpaca Tam: At an auction



Trip



Gilligan



There are currently only 2 WIPs in my midst. I'm actually making progress on the TARDIS shawl. I'm nearly done with the heel for the pair of socks I'm working on, which is my first sock design (and really, my first knitting design). Now if only spring would come....

Finished Objects

Works in Progress