Pictures and Strangers February 17, 2009

Yesterday it was sunny.  And not just the brighter-than-normal that we normally call sunny in Seattle.  Downright sunny.  I went out and took some (by which I mean about 50) pictures of a pair of socks that I’m going to submit to Knotions.  That means I can’t show you the pictures that I took, but I can show you the park where I was.

 

 

Nice, huh?  That’s Mount Si there in the background.  The lighting was great for photos… except that I really only have me to take pictures in the middle of the day.  So, taking “in use” shots of socks involves a good deal of running, diving, and contorting.  See, I set up the camera on the tripod and try to find a good marker in the frame that I can stand in front of.  Then, I set the camera to the self-timer.  Then, I dash to the spot, kick off the shoes I was wearing to protect the socks and strike a pose before the shutter trips in ten seconds.  Then I put the shoes back on, head back to the camera and look at the photo to see that I didn’t kick the shoes far enough away and they’re positioned just right to ruin the picture, even after cropping.

 

Ok, set the timer back up (because the camera doesn’t remember that setting from picture to picture) and run back over to the spot, kick shoes really far away this time, and strike pose.  Go back to camera, see that the picture is really good, except for that wrinkle by the toe… Try to replicate photo in ten second bursts, ending up with twenty-five terribly similar photographs.

 

As you can imagine, I looked like a right fool doing this.  And this being a public (and beautiful) park and not my backyard, people were there to see.

 

One older couple walked by as I was looking at a picture I just took.  To them, it looked like I was pointing the camera at the ground and intently staring at a piece of pavement.  The man walked over to me and asked, “So, what are you interested in here today?” clearly confused about what in the world was so interesting about that piece of pavement.

 

I told them I was photographing the pair of socks that I had knitted so that I could publish the pattern.  The woman immediately perked up.  “Oh, are those merino?” she asked excitedly.

 

“Actually, they’re a merino/bamboo blend, that’s why they’re so shiny,” I said.  She came over and felt them (which was slightly hard for me, because I stood on one leg to bring the sock up higher.)  We chatted a little about the softness of the socks and the fibers involved.  They went on their way and I went back to dashing between my camera and my spot.

 

I love how knitting brings people together in totally unexpected ways.

Playing Hooky February 11, 2009

This was supposed to be a post about one of my favorite fibers.  But instead I’m going to go see the Lion King (the stage show, not the movie) in a few minutes. Tomorrow will be a post about one of my favorite fibers.

 

The sweater/cardigan is coming along nicely after our rocky beginning.  I really should have cast on flat and knit until the possibility of twisting was gone and then join in the round.  I mean, I’m going to slice the thing open anyway… Oh well.  I’m almost done with the first section of cabling and am about to decrease some stitches (how many is still to be determined) and then start the long slog on on the body.  More pictures soon!

Honeymoon Over February 6, 2009

Well, that lasted a long time.

 

  

 

Seriously, cardigan?  Just ten rounds in?  That’s when you want to start fighting? 

 

Here’s what happened.  I cast on 301 stitches.  And I joined in the round, being very, very careful not to twist.  I checked three times.  No twist at any time.  Happy and content, I proceeded to work my way around.  Now, keep in mind that there was no twist in the cast on row, I swear.  However, after Round Ten, I noticed a distinct turn and a half in my knitting.  You can imagine my shock, especially having been so careful as to check multiple times before and after joining in the round.

 

There was nothing for it.  I had to rip the whole thing out.  Oh, it was mad about it.  It threw a hissy-fit about being frogged; tangling, sticking together, trying to grow extra ends to confuse me.  It took me almost an hour to untangle and re-ball that yarn.  Grrrrr.

 

 

This does not bode particularly well for the rest of the project.  Especially since when I cast on again and knit a few rows, I had another twist!  What is going on here?!  Is there no way to join without twisting in this mixed up world?  How many times do I have to check the cast on to make sure that it’s not twisted? 

 

I’m warning you, cardigan.  You’d better start knitting straight or I’ll felt you into nothingness, superwash or not.

Honeymoon February 3, 2009

 

That, my friends, is the first seven rows of my not-so-beginner-friendly cardigan.  I can’t believe I’ve knit 7 rows already!  I’m a small knitter at heart; I knit socks and mittens and cat toys.  Even hats sometimes seem like too much of a commitment.  “I have to cast on how many stitches?!”  I always ask.  I’ve developed a strong dislike for the process of casting on.  It’s strange, because I remember that casting on was my favorite part as a kid.  Of course, back then I was using the backwards loop method instead of the long-tail cast on.  I loved the rhythm of casting on; I felt so capable and smart as the stitches flew onto my needle, lickety-quick.  But now it just seems like an annoying hurdle to jump over before the real fun can begin.

 

I think that my dislike of casting on stems from my sheer unadulterated hatred of chaining in crochet.  I like to crochet, but I could never count the chains accurately.  After having to rip out a chain of thirty, seventy, or one hundred stitches because I was 5 stitches short after the first row became really, really annoying.  I always seek out projects with very few chains at the beginning.

 

That, honestly, is one of the things that has kept me from starting a sweater or cardigan before now.  The thought of casting on two hundred to three hundred stitches for a sweater knit in the round was highly unappealing.  I have persevered, though, and as you can see below, I successfully cast on three hundred and one stitches last night.  So far, the cardigan and I are having a very nice honeymoon after the chore of casting on.  Things are moving along as fast as can be expected, the yarn is nice, and the needles are sharp.  And I haven’t miscrossed a cable, which is always a bonus.

 

 

Of course, it’s too warm outside to wear a light jacket, let alone a wool cardigan, but I’m in complete denial about that.  It’s February, it must be cold, right?