Dishcloth Weekend

Summer holidays are without a doubt the best way to unwind and recharge the batteries. They give me a chance to get things done I wouldn't do otherwise. Like reorganize entire bedrooms, go through piles of clothes that no-one wears anymore and KNIT!

We went out to the lake this last weekend and it was wonderful! Not super hot, by any stretch, kind of drizzly and overcast, but great weather for just sitting around and relaxing. The kids were busy riding the quads, with helmets and a pre-determined speed limit set by us, AND within viewing distance. Our boy is very responsible on a quad and doesn't grumble with our rules.

Anyway, I managed to knit up 4 dishcloths during our 4 days out. It was perfect!

The first one is a simple but pretty lacy pattern that
Dorothy left for me in a comment she posted on my blog. Thanks Dorothy! I chose to break up the pattern with stockinette between each panel and really like the way it turned out. I did have some trouble with it though, each panel of lace is just a bit different. Hard to tell until you really scrutinize it, but all in all, its a nice big piece (about 8x10).


--




The second and third are variants of Granny's Fav and the DW cloth. This one was tons of fun! Especially when I did the second one and figured out when to start the pattern closer to the edge so that the whole thing is in the DW pattern.
The picture however is super bad so I'll have to take another of that one.


Then, just for funsies, I did a Granny's fav. Would you believe this is only the second one I've ever done.. With so many great dishcloth patterns out there, I've never really thought of doing more of these. This I think I knit up in about an hour and a half.



PLUS, still on one set of needles is the Mock Lacy Cloth from my Monthly Dishcloth Group's KAL. I really need to finish this one even though, (I know I'll be making another) I debated frogging it as there's a couple of boo-boos in the repeats.

Dude - Where's My Car?!

So. I tickered when my new Caliber should be arriving. Like an expectant mommy waiting for the stork. 40 Days, 30 Days, 20 Days, 10 Days.... I phoned today. TWO OR THREE MORE WEEKS MINIMUM!

OMG!

I'm now on holidays ...without reliable transportation... This bites, sucks and blows. I know that's not nice to say but, here's the kicker. I booked my holidays off, thinking that when I did so I'd have my new car to bond with. Take my son on road trips around Alberta. See all the sights... The Giant Egg in Vegreville . The UFO landing pad in St. Paul. The Giant Mundare Sausage in Mundare... PLus a couple others I just can't remember them right now. We did it one summer with my family and as cheesy as it sounds, I enjoyed it! It was an Alberta Bound Road-trip.

Anyway. Now. I just don't know... End of rant.

I'm a Cablerina... dance cables, dance!

Get it? Cablerinas... Ballerinas.... OK. I'm just really excited about this one, so sue me! LOL

I'm having a blast Conquering Cables! (Insert really big smile here.) I've always "adored" cables and envied every big and beautiful one I've ever seen! In fact, my absolutely most favorite sweater was an aran cable in "ivory" cotton that I literally wore out. Could not be saved! Holes in the "girl-zone", if ya get my drift. I'd wear camis under it so I could wear it in public... BTW, I'm not exactly a size "2". I didn't care! The sweater begged to be worn and I wore it out!...

Anyway, I've started my Irish Hiking Scarf (which by the way, I've downloaded the pattern onto every computer I've touched since I started knitting in January...) in Red Heart Cozy Wool Paprika on No. 11 bamboo needles (bulky 5, 70% acrylic, 30% wool). I've frogged it twice now. The first time out, I did it on No. 8 Bamboos, and mucked up the 3rd repeat of cables in my excitement of doing the first two right! It was so pretty... I just couldn't stop! Anyway, after I frogged the first one, I restarted on the larger needles, but didn't like how loose it was. Got grumpy and in a fit of "over-perfectionist" rage, frogged it all after my first repeat of 8 rows...

That's when I had an Epiphany! I'm going cable at row 6 instead of 8, AND, instead of repeating the pattern 3 times, because of my bulky weight yarn and big fat needles, I'll do the cable repeat twice. The Extra 2 rows aren't really helping me any, other than making me tired as I'm really trying to watch my tension and "tighten up".. By row 8, it was looking holey and sloppy with big baggy ladders... Anyway, tonight I've done 5 sets of 6 rows and its freakin awesome!!!

You'll have to take me word on it though as my hubby and son took my camera with them on their "father/son" holiday. When they get home Thursday, tho, I will take plenty o'pictures!...

Faith and Blarney! I love this Irish Hiking Scarf!

From Too Busy, To Can't Stop Knitting!

Well, it seems that my lack of blogging lately has contributed nicely to my excessive knitting these days.

I've done 3 cloths in 4 days. All of which I can't show just yet as they are gifts and I don't want to ruin the surprise for their intended recipients. Let me just say this, though... I have been having such a good time doing this cloths, they're patterns I'm just learning but they're fairly easy to memorize! Makes for a fast knit!

Once I figure who gets what, plus I think I still need to do about 4 more before my gifting session is finished, I will post photos of all my hard work!

My son, (who turns 10 in Oct.) bless his heart, asked me to teach him how to knit! I grabbed some big needles, some cotton yarn, cast on a dozen stitches and we went at it. In no time, he had a rhythm down and was knitting like a pro! He even made himself a wristband... I'll share the photo once I download them to my computer. It was a blast!

Oh yeah!... I've also joined a Beginner Cable KAL called Conquering Cables. Its going to be great! I need to see if there's anything in my stash that will work for the Irish Hiking Scarf I'll be doing... Cables are so beautiful and I'm hoping that I won't get too frustrated learning. Patience, young jedi.

Enjoy your weekend, everyone, if I don't get a chance to post again this week...

TooBusyToKnit

I have been so busy lately I haven't had any time to do any knitting... Apparently, I need a new keyboard at home, too.... (the space bar doesn't work-I'm editing this now from the office) Wowthisisgoingtobehardtoread!

What have I been doing? Preparing my old car (a 1990 Honda Civic) for its new owners. A brother and sister are buying it. Teenagers, so I want to make sure that all is good before they drive away in it. I remember my first "real car" and what a hunk of junk it was! A 76 Vega. I owned it for 6 months and drove it for 2... Anyway, I don't want them to be disappointed with their purchase so I'm trying to go the extra mile. Cleaning and fixing little things that I had planned to eventually do but didn't seem to be essential... Painting the wiper arms, replacing a couple of burned out bulbs, making sure the glove box opens and closes properly... Yesterday I took it in for its insurance inspection and all was good. I'm excited for them. These little Hondas are great for a young person. They usually take them and "sup" them up with fancy rims, fancy paintjobs, kickin' stereos. I can't wait to see what they do to it (if they do anything).

Then I Wait (not so patiently) for my new car...
a bright shiny new Dodge Caliber


6 weeks to go... I think I might add a ticker to my blog.

DPN Hell

Okay... So am I the only person on the face of the planet who can't seem to knit with DPNs?!!! Holy "insert colourful metaphor here"!

My son, after watching me knit my armwarmers, has asked me to knit him some. He thought "they are so cool!" he wanted a pair. Sure, buddy! But I'll do them different. Your arms aren't as big as mine. The circs I'm doing mine on wouldn't be a good size to do yours on". Thinking in the back of my not so logical mind I'll do his on DPNs instead. Its a tube thing. I find it fun to knit tubes. Socks for everyone, maybe. I think its all stems of my instant gratification issue.

So anyway last week he picked out this "yarn" from the dollar store. That alone was a mistake. Then, this Saturday, before we head out to his ball tourney he tells me, "Don't watch me play, just knit my armwarmers." OK! My son is an alien. The original 9yr. old showman is letting me, nay, ordering me to do something instead of watching him during his "time"! I can't argue, I grab the knitting go.

So, his first time up to bat and he hits it! First base.... My husband pokes me in the ribs and says, I think he wants you to knit. Here's our son, standing there, doing the hand motions. Up and down, up and down. Go on, he mouths... OK! I giggle and say, well guess that's all the ball I'm watching today!

I cast on to one needle. Start doing a x2 ribbing. Do three rows and then divide onto three needles. 9 Stitches a needle. When I start kintting, I put my spare needle in and give'er. When I got to the end of the third needle I, for whatever reason, was lost... OK! How do I join them now. I know I'm jsut supposed to knit them together, but if I do I'll end up with only three needles instead of four! I fought and fought with how the heck I was supposed to get this blasted thing together for the rest game. I suck, but they won the game.

After we came home and I said I needed to consult "the experts" to my hubby. Got on the computer and surfed till my fingers hurt from clicking and my eyes from not blinking. I thought I had it.

The rest of the day was pretty much the same. Two more games and I was still fighting good and evil. For some odd reason, the left side of my brain is fighting the right side and there doesn't seem to be a definite winner! His last game was at 6:00 and we got home by 9:00. I was a spent penny. There was nothing in the tank anymore. I said screw it! Tomorrows another day.

Today...I washed and detailed my car.

Finally!!! Some Photo Updates!

I've finally taken some photos off my camera to update my blog.

Here's my Girlie Scarf. Its lovely and very, very long. Almost too long actually. I have to wrap it around my neck twice to get it to hang just below my waist. But, I still love it...


Also, off the needles is my mid-month KAL from my Dishcloth Group. Its a lovely red-dress, embelished with a heart. A Reminder of how common heart disease is in women and a how important it is to have proper diet and excercise... Something I know I've been neglecting.


I'm also working on a pair of full length armwarmers. Our office is cold in the mornings, but too warm for a jacket... I were alot of short sleeved shirts because by mid-afternoon, our office feels like a bakery.. Very, very toasty. Its amazing how 5 computers can pump out the heat. This way I have something small that'll warm up my chilly parts without alot of bulk. Besides, I love the way the arm length armwarmers look and it gave me an excuse to knit them. (Like I need an excuse...)


When my hubby was having surgery to remove screws from his leg, (he broke his tibia nd fibia almost two years ago,) I was able to get alot done on my first one. All I need to finish now is the ribbing.

Lace Filet Pattern

I'm going to have to try this one, too. Also from woolworks.org (which just might be my new favorite website of the day.)

A couple of days ago I mentioned a stitch which I apparently invented,
one which resembles filet crochet--which is to say that even though it's
worked with yarn-overs, the holes are perfectly square. Sally Pecor
mentioned something similar in one of the Mary Thomas books, but it's not
constructed the way mine is. So I guess maybe I really, actually and truly
invented something. And now, of course, I will share it with you. Do try
it; it looks really nice and is probably the most open lace you'll ever
see.

Before I can give you the pattern I have to explain the technique that
makes it work. I call it "knit-through". To work this, insert the RH needle
into the first stitch on the LH needle _purlwise_; then knit the second
stitch on the needle as you normally would, pull the newly knit stitch
through the first stitch, and let both stitches fall off the LH needle. As
you can see, this is very similar to a slip one-knit one-pass slipped
stitch over decrease, but with an important difference; since you didn't
slip the stitch but instead worked inside it, there's no float in back of
the "slipped" stitch. This permits the rows to stretch open without being
bound up by the floats. It's also much faster to work than a sl1-k1-psso
decrease.

Okay. The filet pattern is as follows:

Over an odd number of stitches;

Row 1 (RS): K2, *yarn over, knit-through*; work between *s to last st, K1.
Row 2 (WS): Purl.

That's the whole thing. Remember that it opens up enormously, so you
must either cast on _very_ loosely or cast on twice as many stitches as you
need and then P2tog loosely across the row before you begin working the
pattern; otherwise, the cast-on edge will bind unattractively. Block this
very big and don't work it on over-large needles or the columns of knit
stitches will look gappy. It would make a very good summer pullover made in
two large rectangles with garter-stitch welts at the waist and armholes,
and it's so open that you could make it in a few days. Summer's not over
yet.

as posted by Robert Matthews (1995)
jimbob@itchy.mi.net
from www.woolworks.org

Dishcloth Patterns - 5 Sep 06

There are so many great free patterns out there in cyberspace. Maybe some day I'll knit them all..........
Here's some I came across for cloths from www.woolworks.org. When I get them done, I'll upload photos.

STAGGERED STRIPES CLOTH (...TRIED IT-DIDN'T ENJOY IT... COULDN'T SEE THE PATTERN CLEARLY )

Materials needed
1 ball Cotton Yarn, any color (varigated looks kind of neat)
#10 knitting needles

Cast on 44 stitches.
Row 1: k4, p4, k4, p4 across.
Row 2: p4, k4, p4, k4 across.
Row 3: repeat row 1.
Row 4: repeat row 2.

Row 5: k2, p4, k4, p4, k4 across, end k2.
Row 6: p2, k4, p4, k4, p4 across, end p2.
Row 7: repeat row 5.
Row 8: repeat row 6.

Row 9: p4, k4, p4, k4 across.
Row 10: k4, p4, k4, p4 across.
Row 11: repeat row 9.
Row 12: repeat row 10.

Row 13: p2, k4, p4, k4, p4 across, end p2.
Row 14: k2, p4, k4, p4, k4 across, end k2
Row 15: repeat row 13.
Row 16: repeat row 14.

Repeat rows 1 - 16 until piece is square or as long as you want it.
(Once the pattern starts taking shape, you'll be able to figure it
out!)

*********************

ZIGZAG LACE FACECLOTH (I HAVE DONE THIS ONE AND ITS QUITE NICE-NEED TO POST THE PIC)

This delicate cloth is a great gift. The lace is
easy to do and you'll have the pattern memorized
very quickly. The garter stitch border helps keep
the pattern from stretching out too much.

Note: For a neater garter stitch edging, always slip
the first stitch of every row and knit through the back
loop of the last stitch of every row. If you find you're
having problems with the left facing lace (rows 8, 10,
and 12), it is probably because you're forgetting to
do the last yarn over before the garter stitch edging.

Materials: Size 5 (US) needles, one skein cotton

Cast on 44 stitches. Knit two rows.

Row 1 and all uneven numbered rows: K2, Purl
all stitches, end K2. (wrong side)

Rows 2, 4, and 6: K2, *YO, K2tog*, repeat between
*s, end K2 (right side, right facing lace)

Rows 8,10, and 12: K2, *Slip 1, K1, Pass Slipped
Stitch Over, YO*, end K2 (right side, left facing lace)

Continue until desired length. Knit two rows and bind off.

*********************

TINY CABLES DISHCLOTH

Also used a dpn variation of this pattern for socks.
It uses a method of doing the cables
while still on the needle.

Size 8 needles in Sugar 'n Cream for the washcloth

Cast on a multiple of 5 stitches

Row 1 - *K1, P1, K2, P1* repeat from * (Right Side)
Row 2 - *K1, P2, K1, P1* repeat from *
Row 3 - *K1, P1, Knit in back of 2nd stitch on
left hand needle, knit the first stitch on needle,
take off both stitches, P1, repeat from *
Row 4 - Same as row 2

Repeat this 4 row pattern until washcloth is desired
length.

*********************

BASKET WEAVE STITCH

Cast 30 st.
Multiple of 10 sts

Row 1: Knit

Rows 2, 4 & 6: K6, P4

Rows 3 & 5: K4, P6

Row 7: Knit

Rows 8, 10 & 12: P4, K6

Rows 9 & 11: P6, K4

Repeat rows 1-12 for pattern. Repeat these two Rows till 7" long.

****************

BOX STITCH

Cast 32 st.

Row 1: k2 p2 repeat across

Row 2: k2 p2 repeat across.

Row 3: p2 k2 repeat across.

Row 4: p2 k2 repeat across.

Repeat until 7' long.

***************

MOSS STITCH

Cast 32 stitches

Row 1 & 2: k1 p1 repeat across.

Row 3 & 4: p1 k1 repeat across.

Work until 7; long.

*********************

RICE STITCH

Cast 32 stitches

Row 1: k1 p1 repeat across.

Row 2: Knit across.

Repeat until 7' long.

***************

DOUBLE SEED STITCH

Cast 32

Row 1; k2 p2 repeat across.

Row 2; p2 k2 repeat across.

Work until 7' long.

*********************

SCATTERED OATS

Worsted Weight Yarn, Size 6 needles
Cast on 33 sts.

Row 1 (right side): - K2, *(keeping yarn to back of work) sl 1 as to purl, K3; repeat from * 7 times more, ending last rep by working K2 instead of K3.

Row 2 : - P2, *(keeping yarn to front of work) sl 1 as to purl, P3; repeat from * 7 times more, ending last rep by working P2 instead of P3.

Row 3: - *Sl next 2 stitches onto cable needle and hold at Back of work; knit next st (sl st), then K2 from cable needle, K1; repeat from * 7 times more, ending last rep by working K2 instead of K1.

Row 4 ; - Purl

Row 5 : - Rep Row 1

Row 6: - Rep Row 2

Row 7: - K1, *K1, sl next st (sl st) onto cable needle and hold at FRONT of work; knit next 2 sts, then K1 from cable needle; rep from * 7 times more.

Row 8 : - Purl

Repeat Rows 1 through 8 for pattern.

**********************

SHELL PATTERN

4.5 (7 needles ) Worsted Wt

Cast on 32 .

K 3 Rows

4th Row; K3.* yfwd.k8.yfwd.k1. Rep from* to last 2 sts. k2

5th Row; k4 *p8.k3.Rep from* to last st k1

6th Row; K4.*yfwd k8.yfwd k3. Rep from* to last st. k1

7th Row; K5 *P8.K5. Rep from* to last 5sts. K5

8th Row; K5. *yfwd k8. yfwd k5. Rep from* to last 5sts. K5

9th Row; K6 **p8. k7. Rep from* to last 6sts. K6

10th Row; K6; * k4togtbl. k4tog. k7. Rep from* to last 6sts. k6

11thRow ; K

Rep Rows 4-11 ,5 times more .

Do 2 Rows garter st . Cast off.

**************************************

The Long (S)Hawl

So its like day 102 (or so it feels) of my knit-along-shawl. I'm still waiting for my miracle AddiTurbos that I ordered in from my LYS. I'm sure they are in I just haven't had a chance to run by there and check. I'm sure they will call me though when the do come in. I'll pop in there Saturday when I take the boy to baseball practice.

My shawl in the beginning on needles. I promised myself to post a photo or two so here they are....


This was the progress I made on straight needles before feeling crowded and moving it to my "Thrift Store Circs"....












Those circs were surprisingly long and they straightened out pretty easy. At the time, they were a great deal.













And this is it, just after I discovered I'm not a circ-virgin anymore... Now I wait for my new AddiTurbos to come in before I pick it up again.












I miss working on it... Hopefully soon, I'll be able to finish this bloody thing and get on with my life. I love knitting. I love hating that somethings not done yet. Is that wierd? I actually will be sad when it is done, I know that.