Thread Theory

Great Pad!

Thanks, Pal, for the cool knitting magnet pad and the nifty card, too! I love list pads - they appeal to the part of me that hopes to be an organized person...

My Pals Are The Best!

I got TWO packages from my two secret pals! My One Skein pal sent a beautiful skein of Peace Fleece (coincidentally the same yarn I've sent my One Skein pal! shhhh)
And my SP8 Pal is SPOILING me with chocolate, knitted goods, soap, yarn.... (Notice what I mentioned first!)
I have had an elaborate photo shoot and will document all of this once I figure out how to get the photos on my brand spankin' new computer. Yes, I've moved off the Power Book and onto a fancy Apple Desk Top - I would've thought the iPhoto worked the same, but no.
SO THANK YOU PALS!!! EVERYTHING IS PERFECT!!

Only secret knitting

Thanks to my secret pals for the fun e-cards!
I'm afraid I have been neglecting my blog of late. I'm bogged down with freelance writing work. I'm knitting when I can, but my projects at the moment are SECRET. One is a little something for my SP8 pal. Another is a bigger something for a certain someone who I believe checks out my blog from time to time and has a birthday approaching.... Both projects will be posted in due time.
I am in two secret pal swaps - SP8 and One Skein - and am having a blast shopping & knitting for two virtual strangers, one of whom is on the other side of the world.

And now for a little about me...

SP8 opens the door to self-indulgent musing.
1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? I'm a fiber junkie and am willing to try just about anything once. I usually stick to natural fibers, and I'm always fondling the handspun stuff, But I often use acrylic fleece-like yarn for baby presents. I can't say I'm fond of other acrylics. I'm not big on the novelty yarns with eyelashes, fur, confetti or other things popping out.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? Frequently-used straight needles are in a vase on my desk (where they taunt me as I do "real" work); I've got a dedicated drawer for other needles and hooks; on the road, I've got a canvas needle holder for straight needles that I sewed and a very ugly Addi Turbo vinyl circular needle holder. Some day I'm going to sew something more attractive to replace it. (If this makes me sound organized, don't believe it. I'm always searching for missing needles in the bottom of old plastic yarn shop bags.)

3. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I learned to knit 10 years ago. Im a permanent intermediate knitter. (Also a permanent intermediate skier, by the way - I'm sensing a reluctance to PUSH myself!)

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? There's one on there, but it is out of date and full of things my husband and daughter want and is not to be relied upon.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.) Lavender. Balsam. Mint. Eucalyptus. Anything, really, but licorice!

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? Yes! Chocolate. Mint. Caramel. Ginger. Did I mention chocolate? Again, anything but licorice!

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? Sadly, I dont spin. I sew. I try to embroider and quilt but never get to it.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I like folk, bluegrass, Americana-country, rock, jazz, classical, I love accordian ... anything but heavy metal. Yes to MP3s.

9. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand? I like black; lately I like blue-green mixes and pink-red-orange mixes, various blue mixes ... anything but maroon and rust, really.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
One husband, one 9-year-old daughter. Two dogs. One cat.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
Yes, yes, yes, no. (Note: Im tall and skinny; My head is BIG; my fingers are LONG; my feet are HUGE; my arms are LONG; this must be why I took up knitting -- so things fit!)

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
Sweaters, baby stuff for gifts, getting into blankets. I just knit a One Skein cupcake and want to try more fun sculptural stuff. Im just about to knit a cat toy.

13. What are you knitting right now?
Not much for me! On my needles: One baby sweater (no rush; baby due in July); one Irish Hiking Scarf (my travel/waiting room project); one summer T; one log cabin blanket just begun; an abandoned pair of socks. (Plus one super secret project I can't post until its done.) I've been fooling around swatching with leather cord and also some wire ala Alter Knits it's not headed anywhere yet.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
Yes! (Honestly, if you don't, I don't want to know you.)

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
Straight & circular, bamboo & aluminum; not usually plastic but I've used 'em in a pinch. I like Swallow Casein needles for certain yarn, too.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
Yes to a winder, no to a swift.

17. How did you learn to knit?
Jil Eaton (of MinnowKnits fame) taught me. I was pregnant and nesting. What perfect timing to meet Jil, who got me excited to knit up a storm for my impending daughter.

18. How old is your oldest UFO?
Two years ago I taught myself to fair isle knit on a cross-country drive; Im not quite sure what to do with the object, which remains on a big circular needle. Maybe a pillow?
Last winter I knit Blossom, a cardigan that you can see on my blog. It's all knit and I just never assembled it; the yarn is gorgeous but very, very bulky; it's knit on 35 needles. The pieces are so heavy. Even in Maine, I can tell I am going to broil in it. It sits in a basket and mocks me. This summer I will sew it together for a fall jacket. Really.

19. What is your favorite holiday?
Christmas, for all sorts of reasons.

20. Is there anything that you collect?
Yarn, don't you?
Other than that, no real collections come to mind. I'm a sucker for blank books/notebooks and I have huge piles of unread New Yorkers next to the bed but I'd hate to say I "collect" them!

21. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
I dont subscribe to any of the magazines, but I run out and buy every issue of InterWeave Knits, Knitters Magazine and Vogue Knitting. This summer I'd like to learn one of the alternative sock methods or lace knitting; this will bring on a whole new level of yarn lust, I'm sure.

22. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? I have to learn either the Magic Loop or knitting socks on two circular needles or something. So far the magic of sock knitting (at least on four little double points) has eluded me!
Also, I'm going to learn to knit lace very soon. Really. I keep buying lightweight scarves/shawls - which is ridiculous for a knitter, isn't it?

23. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Nope. Not yet. Big, as in really, really big. Size 10.

24. When is your birthday? 01/06

My old eyes

No pictures, no WIP updates, but this really has enormous knitting implications. I had an eye exam this morning and said to the eye doctor, "I can't knit and watch TV at the same time!" (This is a big problem, as one of the big benefits of knitting for me is it makes TV/movie watching time productive.) The problem is that I need my glasses to see the TV, but I can no longer see up close with my distance glasses on. I've chosen to look at my knitting and have the TV be a blur.
The eye doc prescribed BI-FOCALS - transitional lenses, actually. I could find this a depressing sign of growing old. But actually I can't wait to get the things so I can once again knit and actually see Law & Order (or The Sopranos or The L Word or whatever I'm amusing myself with as an excuse to knit).

Aargh!

How'd that happen? I'm knittin' along, finally having found a little time to devote to my summer T, doing the easiest stitch in the world - no cables, no colorwork, just mindless stockinette, when I notice several rows back a dropped stitch! I was half asleep (that's how it happened, I guess), so I set it aside to repair another day. I had just transferred this project to a faster set of needles. It was dragging on my Crystal Palace bamboos, so I went out yesterday afternoon and bought some slippery Addi Turbos. Once I pick up that dropped stitch, I predict this T will be quick work.

Olympic Sweater Gets a Workout

I love seeing my knitted gifts actually being *worn* by their recipients. I'm told that my Olympic Knitting project is getting plenty of wear. (Good thing, as it won't fit much longer, I'm sure!) How about that for a cute baby!

Yummy!

My friend Melissa turns 50 today, so I used this momentous occasion to knit a birthday cupcake. The pattern is in Leigh Radford's One Skein I added an I-Cord candle and some sparkly pink and red beads from my daughter's bead stash.
Happy Birthday, Melissa!

I love presents!

Even when I buy them myself! The mailman delivered a package from Knit Picks today. You can see a baker's dozen skeins of Shine sportweight cotton yarn that is destined to be a summer T for me. That gold and maroon wool will be a scarf for my Harry Potter-fan daughter, who has decided to knit it herself. I also bought Leigh Radford's book One Skein, which I've been fondling.
Here's a bonus: One of the nice parts about knitting for myself is that I can make sweaters that actually fit - as in the sleeves are long enough for my very long arms and body long enough for my extra long waist. I realized after putting in my yarn order that I had not ordered any extra yarn to accommodate these on-the-fly alterations. I put in another order for two more skeins of Shine and figured that since the T has facing that if the dye lot is different, I'd figure it out. But the dye lot is the same, so no figuring is necessary.
Actually, plenty of figuring is necessary. I'm using a pattern designed for merino at 5.5 st/inch - this yarn looks great at 5 st/inch. (I've done about six gauge swatches with the two extra skeins that arrived first.)
I'm so tempted to dive into this project or pull a skein out of my stash and whip up something from One Skein, but I have so much work to do - writing projects due all over. If I get enough done by the time I put H. to bed, I will sit in bed and play with my new yarn.

MS Walk

My daughter, Harriet, and I walked in the MS Walk yesterday. Harriet raised $810 for the National MS Society. For her ninth birthday party (see post below) she asked her friends to sponsor her in the MS Walk instead of bringing presents. She then hit up friends and relations by e-mail and compiled this impressive amount. For her efforts she got a medal, some t-shirts, a water bottle, tote bag and other MS and drug company swag. I'm very proud of her. Here she is on our back porch after the walk.