Blog Title #1054a

Ya, since moving to blogger, coming up with daily titles gets old...

Anyway, I just put up an other tote bag on Etsy. Still no sales yet. I'm hoping that I'm not wasting time and money.

So anyway, let's talk about what I'm working on.

I have two projects that I'm on the second sleeve. Why can't I just get them done??? The crochet shrug/cardigan is well into the second sleeve and Matt's Because I Love You sweater is half way thru the increases on the second sleeve. Neither project has a lot of finishing after the sleeves are done... so why is it so hard to just focus on them??

Maybe 'cause I'm easily distracted. I ordered a couple of books from Amazon.jp yesterday and I pulled out one of my Japanese crochet books... to work on this shawl:

The thing I looove about Japanese crochet patterns? They're 100% charted. No written directions at all. I find written crochet directions extremely difficult. Okay, I just like pictures. It's easier for me to see where the stitches go when I have a graph than to explain to me verbally what I'm supposed to do.

So I made two motifs yesterday (well, actually 3, but my first one was too large, so I went down a few hook sizes). I'm using a beautiful hand dyed lace weight wool gifted to me. It might not have the same drape as the silk Japanese one, but the red is just stunning.

So while it's stunning, I must try to finish up one of these "almost" done projects. So off to concentrate on the crochet cardy sleeve!

Keep on Knittin'!

Some Info on the Japanese Books...

I got a comment yesterday from Sue asking me about how to order the books I got from the Amazon.jp site. It never showed up in my comments and I don't have an email address (since comments come from Blogger). So I'll answer here.

The Amazon.jp site is in Japanese, but you can set up some of the stuff to English and you can use a translator to sort of translate for you (like babelfish).

I found the New Styles in Heirloom Knitting by searching by ISBN, then once I was on that page, I found these other books by going thru their suggestions. You won't be able to search by using English words.

However, here's the info on the books: (and I linked to the Amazon.jp for ya... how's that for easy shopping!)

The Aran and Guernsey Book (ISBN: 4529041557)

Stitch Dictionary (ISBN: 4529041727)

Fair Isle, Nordic and Lopi Sweaters (ISBN: 4529041565)

Traditional Accessories (I'm making up some of these titles, btw) (ISBN: 4529041409)

Clear and Simple Knitting Symbols (ISBN: 452902413X)

Clear and Simple Crochet Symbols (ISBN: 4529024121)

Crochet Lace (ISBN: 4277261221)

It cost me about $101 US to get these books (with shipping) and it took about a week and a half to get here. Some truely lovely pattern books.

Well, still not knitting (or much of anything right now) and as a matter of fact, I've got to cut back on my computer time too (I think the typing is bothering me too). Before you ask, no I'm not going to go to a doctor. He'll ask me what I do, and I'll say, Oh I spend maybe 10 hours a day knitting, crocheting or playing video games, and he'll say, you need to take a break. So that's what I'm doing. So the heating pad on the shoulder, a little more stash clean up here and there, and I'll be good to go as soon as can be...

Happy Knitting!!!

Turning Japanese?

Well, after browsing thru the Amazon.jp site (which is where I ordered the New Styles in Heirloom Knitting), I decided that I needed some more Japanese knitting books. I put an order in on December 23 (Merry Christmas to me!) and the order came yesterday!

I got two "learn to" books. One for knitting and one for crochet. It has the symbols and directions on how to knit (or crochet) them. Great reference books, for sure:


Then I thought I would get the other book by the same author as the Heirloom knitting book (who is a musician that studied in Europe, and fell in love with the traditional knitting). This book is mostly gloves and mittens with a couple of hats and scarves. It's just as beautiful as his other book.



I thought I would give a crochet book a try, and I find them even easier to read than the knitting (crochet in symbol format makes so much more sense than written directions!)

Wanna see a couple of beauties?


The problem is going to be finding the beautiful yarn to make them (anyone know of a good silk crochet thread?)


I've heard great things about the stitch dictionaries, and I wasn't disappointed:

The lace patterns in the book are lovely!!!


Now for the two books that are just drop dead gorgeous!


The Aran book was basically bought site unseen. They didn't have a cover image and I bought it purely based on the poor translation thru Babelfish. It is by far the best purchase of the group!


So here I am full of new books to look thru, but I'm still taking a break from the knitting/crocheting/gaming... and now even the closet clean up. I've got to let this inflamation settle down and I think I've got to truely rest it. Good thing I've got some new books to drool over!!!

Oh, I almost forgot, I did start my new UFO/WIP... only 24 listed so far...

Happy Knitting!

Added: I've received all sorts of emails and comments about these books. For ordering info, please check the follow up blog entry. I've listed each book with a direct link to Amazon.jp for ordering.

How Fast Was That???

My books arrived from Japan. Even the DHL driver was surprised.
Click the image to be taken to the Amazon.jp website.

This book is gorgeous. A combo of lovely knitting and crochet patterns. Obviously the biggest issue with clothing from the Japanese books is sizing. I'm a wee bit fuller figured than their sizing (most are sized for about a 34 or 36" finished size). I'm not sure how much I would actually make, but I do think I can resize them to fit me. Right now I'm just enjoying looking at the patterns...

Click the image to be taken to the Amazon.jp website.

Now this book is drop dead gorgeous. Some absolutely stunning crochet lace shawls. No sizing issues with shawls!!

The best purchase tho?
Click the image to be taken to the Amazon.jp website.
A stunning collection of crochet stitches!

So lots to page thru and just look at. Eye Candy to be sure!

I did get a knitting tote done yesterday and I'll be putting it up later today on Etsy (still need photos of it).

I also finally got a second sleeve finished!!! Woo-hoo!!!
I'm actually hoping to finish this shrug/cardigan today. I know it won't get worn until spring/summer (if I like it... I'm still not 100% sure it's "me", but we'll give it a try!).

So hopefully that'll motivate me to finish up a few more projects.....

Have a super Superbowl weekend!!!

Keep on knittin'!!

Why yes, he IS freakishly small

I saw this book available on Etsy (which is much easier than ordering from Japan, FYI) and so I got it. It's written for men, sized M and L. Well, I had hoped that since the women's Japanese patterns are written so small, that the male versions would be too. So I didn't think I would have to worry about the sizing for Matt*. The mediums start around a 44" finished... so while these fit perfectly for me... they are too big for Matt.

No biggie, as the styling on the sweaters (and it's a great collection, by the way) is pretty straight forward so they should be easy to adjust.

I'm going to soley concentrate on Shoalwater today so I can finish up the last 5 rows. Then it's like 3 straight rows of garter (so theoritically, that's 8 rows to go) then the bind off (almost 600 stitches plus I'll be adding beads instead of picots). Then I've got figure out how I'm going to block this huge monster!!

*While cheering for Matt at the Iron Hill Twilight Criterium, some German spectators were standing behind me and asked me if I had someone in the race. I responded yes, my husband and they asked for me to point him out. If you've ever watched a cycling race live (especially a 30+ mph crit) you'll know that all the riders pretty much look alike. However, Matt stands out. I said, yes, he's the little rider with the beard. Works every time. Even if you've never seen Matt before... I bet you could pick him out of this lineup:
West Chester Cycling Club's Ride for Cancer

Slow Progress, but oh so worth it...

I spent most of yesterday working on the Shoalwater Shawl, getting the second repeat done:
click to enlarge
So two repeats done, making only 2 and a half more to go!!! Which sounds great, until you realize that each repeat adds 96 stitches... yikes! Oh, and let me also say that if I were doing it in a DK weight yarn, I would only have that half repeat to go. Let's not dwell on that. It's so worth it, as the lace is just lovely (the yarn is from Josyln's Fiber Farm in the plumes colorway (I think it's the angel hair yarn... don't remember).

However, let's face it, for me it's all about cables.
click to enlarge
The back is progressing. Actually quite quickly, as I didn't really work that much on it yesterday (spent most of the day with Shoalwater and the Jamaican drawstring purse). Let me reiterate how much I love this sweater. I still say that Janet Szabo has a lovely touch with cable combinations. (just a quick reminder: the pattern is the Son of A.R.A.N., aka: SOA, which Janet hosted as a knit along on the aran knitlist years ago. You can get the pattern here in chatty format, or you can buy the pattern in a traditional format, either by buying the first issue of Twists & Turns or from Black Water Abbey. I did do a lot of tweeking to get the pattern to work with the Cotton Ease.)

So anyhoo... I had to get back to knitting yesterday. If I don't knit, I browse patterns and magazines and plan on more projects, then I may just "accidently" swatch (usually the back) of a new project, 'cause we all know that swatching isn't "real" knitting (or we wouldn't all hate swatching so much, right?). Of course I read the Yarn Harlot yesterday and was all inspired by the project that she's obsessing over (note to Rowan: your delibrate attempt to make your designs look hideous in your magazines and books really hurts you. I think the focus should be on the sweater, not on the art direction or the model's distracting hair style... and guess what, you can have stylish art direction while still focusing on the sweater. Look at the Japanese knitting books). I admit that I don't usually bother with Rowan patterns, as I really don't like how they present them. However, I do think that Vanessa's version is absolutely stunning (and btw: she has super art direction. I am envious of her photography skills).

So anyway, I must ignore all desires to cast on something new so I can focus on Matt's gorgeous SOA sweater. Then I'll cast on something new. Of course, swatching does not count (remember that it's not "real" knitting, after all).

Today's plans? Hmmm.... a little SOA, perhaps? Some day baseball? Man, life is good!!!

Keep on Knittin'!!!

Progress Report

As usual, I'm just cycling thru a couple of projects right now. I should finish up the Minty Fresh Cardigan today, but I still want to see if I can dye it to get rid of the baby greenness of it. I'll do a quick swatch and test it.

However, since I can never just work on one thing...

This is a top down crochet cardigan inspired by my latest Japanese book and a stitch from a Lion Brand pattern:
It's took me a couple of attempts to get the neckline right, but I'm really happy with how this is turning out. I'll do a little border around the body, but I'm just going to do a little tie on the front for closure. I had originally planned on just a little cap sleeve, but I have a lot of yarn, so I may just go ahead and do full length sleeves on it. I'm using Elann's Sonata and I just love the color.

Of course I had to play with somethig from my Pittsburgh trip... and I chose the Brooks Fiber Farm yarn. I bought the last 2 skeins of this colorway, so I didn't have a lot of yarn (well, for me... since I prefer to make clothes). So I decided on a fun scarf:
The pattern can be found in Scarf Style and while it looks great in the book in a solid color, I love how it looks in the dyed yarn. I originally saw it in KnitDad's blog. So I've been looking for the right yarn for some time now to knit it up. The Brooks fiber yarn is a wool, silk blend. The colors are just yummy and it's going to have a lovely drape. The Brooks had several Clapoties done up in this yarn and they looked fab! I think the silk content is key for the drape.

So I'm really going to concentrate on getting the Minty Fresh Cardigan done today. Since, like a lot of the country, it's snowing like crazy (and expected to continue), seems like a good day to snuggle in with the pups, maybe put in some movies and see how much I can finish (since February is for Finishing!).

Keep on Knittin'!

Monday Misc

The back of my FLAK is at the armhole depth. So I get to put it aside until the next installment. I really like this process, as it lets me work on other things and keep my anticipation up.

I'm very happy with how it's turning out. I also think I've come along with my bobbles. They're nice and round and neat. We'll see if I still feel that way when I hit the "space/time continuum" at the body.


I'm still plugging along on the Spring Forward. I'm better than halfway to the armhole on the back.

Oh, and here's the new yarn I got yesterday at Knitty Knotty:


I already had the pattern so the yarn is perfect for it. The multicolor yarn is called Alpine Pearl from malabrigo and the purple yarn is from Steadfast Fibers. Both are hand dyed and just lovely to the touch.

So that's the current project line up. The FLAK can be put aside for the time being. I'll continue to plug away at my second Jaywalker sock and try to get the back of the Spring Forward to the armhole depth. I've already swatched up the new yarn (of course) and figured out how long to make the yarn lengths for the intarsia blocks).

I did get some other yarn over the weekend...

I ordered yarn from KnitPicks to make Sam the Ram (Matt got me the pattern for Christmas). I am very very tempted to make him for my Olympics Knitting rather than icky socks. Actually, it's just going to be fun to knit! We'll see. Socks would be more of a challenge (tho' there is a lot of shaping to pay attention to for Sam the Ram).

I also ordered a couple of weaving yarns (small cones... like about 300 yds) from Halcyon to try for the Japanese crochet book. The gemstone silk is crocheting like a dream! Perfect for the cover wrap.

So lot's of projects to play with! The silk will have to wait a bit for me to order enough for the shawl. I've got plenty here to play with, so it'll help me focus to get some things finished!!!

Have a great Monday! Happy Knitting!

Christmas is over...

I started taking down the Christmas stuff yesterday. Quite frankly, I need the space where our tree is so I can continue to clean out the UFO closets.

Doesn't everyone use their yarn swift to hank up their lights?



I played a bit with my new Japanese crochet book yesterday. I did one motif for the cover shawl in Zephyr wool/silk. It came out a little big, so I'll go down one or two hook sizes. The zephyr is a two ply yarn, which makes crocheting it on the small hooks a bit more of a challenge, but the drape is lovely! I'm also looking at some weaving yarns for a pure silk option.

I updated the UFO/WIP list yesterday, so I'm up to 33 43 projects so far, but I think I have about 5 that I'm going to abandon. If I add it to the list without being tempted to work just one row before I put it back, then I figure I'm not going to finish it. One closet is almost cleaned out... then the other closet (which has more yarn than projects right now).

So today I'll add a few more projects to the list, finish taking the Christmas stuff down and maybe work on a little knitting. I might have to take a break from the Lasso Gansey, tho' (boo-hoo). I think those size three needles might be too hard on my hands right now. Oh well, I've got lots of other projects to work on...

Happy Knitting!

18 and Counting

Even though I didn't get the front done on the Cable O's Vest, I was productive with my Christmas stuff yesterday. And had a fine time doing it!

Went out for lunch and did a little shopping with my dear friend Betty and finished up the gift calendars. Also got all the gifts that need to be mailed wrapped and boxed.

So I'm out of procrastination projects, and now I have no excuse for not finishing the Cable O's Vest... well, except I'm easily distracted:


That's the Am Kamin in Elann's Peruvian Wool on size 6 needles. Not bad. The good thing about using this yarn is I know I have enough of it. I bought this the first time Elann offered it thinking I would design my own aran sweater with it, so I got lots so I could do a lot of swatching. Well, this sorta counts, right? I mean I basically have to do everything but do the charts. All the math and swatching will still need to be done.

However I still think the Paton's Classic Wool has crisper stitch definition:


That's the discontinued aubergine color (hmmm, see a certain color palette here?). I used size 5 needles for that swatch, but it's a little too tight, even for me. I did start a swatch with size 6 and I'm liking it much better, so I'm going to do a much larger swatch to give it a try.

Just as an FYI: the Cascade Key Largo didn't work well. The twisted stitches got lost.

However, I really really don't want to start something new. Really. I've got Marilyn just sitting here and I'm itching to work in it (hmmm, I think I need to expand my colors. Really). Plus I have a little knitting to finish before Christmas.

I think I need to hide the Japanese knitting patterns from myself... and the new Twists & Turns or I'll swatch for the Audra's Redux.

I'll do them next month, as the January Challenge will be for "selfish" projects. I figure we've all been concentrating on gifts for others that we absolutely need a selfish challenge! The rules are easy: you must work on a project for you. No gifts, no obligations... It's All About You, Baby!!!

Okay, we've got 18 days....

Too Lazy for Pictures (but a long post anyway?)

My copy arrived yesterday and I love it. The book has some very inspirational projects it in... and they must be inspirational, as I cannot knit the patterns as written (and not just because it's in japanese). The sizing is small. Very small, so I'll use the charts and the pictures and do my own pattern.

The one that everyone is talking about (which is actually called "Am Kamin" in the book) is lovely, but that doesn't even begin to cover the beauty in this book. There is not a dud anywhere. When was the last time you bought a knitting book where EVERY SINGLE PROJECT IS KNITABLE????

Anyway, apart from the obvious cabled sweaters in the book (the cover sweater is a must do... but I'm thinking top down and as a cardigan), it's the entrelac sweaters that are fascinating me the most. There's a sweater called "Poeme" that has an entrelac yoke. The size of the squares is how the yoke shaping is done. Brilliant (oh, and the other entrelac sweater shapes the sleeve the same way).

However, I'm still trying to get some much loved projects done that I've already started. I'll have the front of the Cable O's Vest done today and hopefully even get it seamed. I also put Marilyn into my project rotation again. For several reasons: I love the pattern and I want to get it done. Oh, and Beth Brown-Reinsel left a tag on the KAL tagboard (I love when the designer jumps into help with the KAL's. Janet Szabo was a big help on the SCA KAL).

So I worked a bit on it over the weekend, and decided to pull back a few rows. I changed one of the cables a bit (well, I just decided instead of bobbles, to just put in a moss stitch for one of the cables), and I didn't like my ratio of turning (charts? you mean there are charts in the pattern booklet? huh. Probably should read those once in a while). So I'm back in the groove again with it. (I love the Black Water Abbey yarn).

I think part of the inspiration is the KAL being planned on the Aran Knitlist. The list has a lot of new cable knitters so there's been a lot of questions and a lot of excitement about the project. I'm just not sure I can start an other major cabled project right now. Any money on whether I start it or not? Yeah, I'm sure you're right.

However, that didn't keep me from swatching the Am Kamin (ie: lost in translation). It needs a very smooth yarn to show the twisted stitches, that's for sure. Mary's been swatching for it and it's been interesting to follow her progress. However, since I need a 46" finished size, I'm leaning more towards worsted weight rather than DK. I tried the Peruvian Highland from Elann and the yarn is way too soft for a crisp stitch definition. I did pull out some Paton's Classic Wool from stash and I'm leaning towards it. I did it on size 5 needles (I want those stitches to pop), but I think I'll go up a needle size. I'll have to do a really large swatch (basically half the pattern) to get a good idea on sizing.

So lots to play with, lots to finish and the good news is that apart from finishing Matt's vest, I'm all set for Christmas. Well, my calendars need to be finished and mailed, but apart from that, I'm set. We put up our tree yesterday and I think that's all I'll do for decorating. Since Matt bought his new road bike this year and he's going to get a time trial bike soon, I don't have to do much for him. So lot's of time to work on projects (and play video games!)

Have a great Monday!!!
20 Knitting Days Until Christmas!!!

Another Day Without Pictures

This is going to be a quick post (yet everytime I say that I end up writing an epic novel). Our Stitch n Bitch group is meeting here tonight and I need to get things in order... one last vacuum of dog hair (not that it really matters. I vacuum, she sheds).

The new cooktop works just fine, but the heating elements work at a slightly different ratio, so I just to get used to how it heats.

The dog sweater is in the "no man's land"... no matter how much I knit, it's still about the same length. I'll be working on it tonight.

Then it's back to Matt's Cable O's Vest.

In other knitting news. Yes, I ordered "the" pattern book (and it's all Mary's fault, btw). I ordered it from the Amazon Japan site. I think it's shipped. Well, I got an email from them, but it was in Japanese. I did have to set up an account with Amazon Japan, but that was no big deal.

However, 2006 will be geared to finishing, not starting. I have a bunch of sweaters that I'm dying to get back to. The Spring Forward Cardigan, Marilyn, the Lasso Gansey, the Skygge Jakke and let's not forget Mermaid! Plus other's that are sitting in my one of my UFO closets that I'm just itching to work on!! All the more reason to finish up the Cable O's Vest so I can get back to some of these other things!!!

Well, off to shower and get ready for a knitting party!!!
(24 Knitting Days Until Christmas!!!)