Holidazed on Holiday

Finally - I share with you FO #2

"Holidazed"

Details:

Pattern: "Holidazed" by Anne Hanson

Source: Rockin' Sock Club 2009

Yarn: BMFA Lightweight "Muddy Autumn Rainbow"

Method: Magic Loop

Mods: Toe up over 56 stitches rather than cuff down. Worked well except the Diagonal Twill Rib stitch count did not work evenly over 28 stitches per needle. So.... I just added a purl & knit stitches on either side of the 24 stitch pattern.

"Toe Pic"

Time Frame: Well.... Sock #1 was completed during our Thanksgiving Holiday to Hawaii last year. I started sock #2 while we were there, but then returned home, lost my sock mojo & the sock languished in a sock bag until our 2010 summer road trip. I think I actually finished sock #2 somewhere on I-80 in Pennsylvania.

Of course, I neglected to bring the sock pattern with me & didn't have the mental capacity to figure out where I was. So - my wonderful BKFF was also a member of RSC 2009, so she was able to email me the Diagonal Twill Rib pattern. I couldn't remember where I had left off last November (write it down - what a novel idea!), so just had to make my best guess. I don't think I guessed correctly, but oh well - I doubt anyone could really tell unless you were up close and personal. And.... if you're that up close & personal....

Diagonal Twill Rib Pattern Detail

Since this is supposed to be a blog about knitting and traveling, I hope I've upheld the knitting end with this little tidbit. While I'm posting this as FO #2, I think it's actually the 3rd FO completed on the road trip. I still have 2 more to share - as soon as they have their respective photo shoots. And when it's 90°F+, it's hard to put on wool & stand in the sun without looking like a wilted flower. Perhaps I'll suck it up before we drive off.

Until then - Ciao & Happy Travels!

Lickety Split FO

One pair off the needles means another pair on (not counting the TTL Mystery socks, of course). I wanted to start a pair of socks that I could easily work on during staff meetings and while riding in the car across town to soccer games & soccer practice. Little did I know that my car project would take such a hold of me that I would work on them outside of riding in the car...

Presenting:

Van Dyke Socks by Wendy D. Johnson

Yarn: STR Mediumweight
Colorway: River Rocked
Needles: Knit Picks 2.75mm
Size: 52 stitches - 5 repeats on the foot before gusset increases, 6 pattern repeats on the leg

Neato-Bandito trick: Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off. It is slick & makes a nice stretchy cuff, perfect for toe-up socks! You can find the how-to in the Fall issue of Knitty.

Cast on: Sunday afternoon, October 11, 2009
Finished: Saturday afternoon, October 17, 2009

These were such a blast to knit. I was inspired after reading the Rockin' Sock Club forum on Ravelry & saw another knitter had used her Sept. yarn for a pair of socks other than the intended pattern. I felt like I had been given permission to deviate from the club shipment. I loved the yarn - such pretty fall colors!, but the pattern did not interest me that much. So - I followed her lead & knit the Van Dyke socks - a pattern from "Socks From the Toe-Up" by Wendy D. Johnson of Wendy Knits! Fantastic, fun, quick pattern. It certainly didn't hurt that the yarn was a heavier weight than what I've been knitting with lately & that every other row of the 10 row repeat was a knit row.

True, instant gratification knitting. Now to find another project that will be easy to work on while in the car....

Happy Knitting! Ciao~

Socktober is for Socks!

Nothing like a witty name for the month of October to get me inspired to finish languishing pairs of socks!


Details:

Pattern: Shur'tugal

Yarn: BMFA Socks That Rock Lightweight

Colorway: Star Sapphire

Size: Medium (64 stitch count)

Needle: Knit Picks 2.25mm

Cast On: March 28, 2009
Cast Off: October 11, 2009

These were started for the Socks That Rawk Ravelry group's Q2 KAL. I finished the 1st sock in a reasonable amount of time (for me) & then let it sit, and sit, and sit. Fortunately I left it on my dresser so I'd have to look at its lonely face every day. Finally I'd had enough & in my flurry of finishing of late, decided to finally knit up its mate once and for all.

So glad I did - this is a great pattern & the socks fit fine. I really love how the pattern flows into the heel:


Expect a couple more pairs over the coming months. I've finished clue #2 for the TTL Mystery Sock KAL and cast-on a pair using a pattern from Wendy Knits' Socks From the Toe Up book.

Happy Knitting & Happy Fall!

Ciao~

In Season

As promised, another FO to show:

Details:

Pattern: In Season by Melissa Morgan-Oakes the July kit for the 2009 BMFA Rockin' Sock Club.

Yarn: BMFA Lightweight in Garden Daze colorway. Tina's notes said the color reminded her of heirloom tomatoes. Since I'm not a fan of tomatoes (much to my Grandfather's dismay), I didn't really see it. Other knitters thought the colors reminded them of bell peppers - yup - that I agree with more.

Size: The Medium (64 stitch). I think these will fit someone w/a size 8.5 - 9 foot.

Needles: Knit Picks US 1.5

Dates: Cast on: August 11, 2009
Finished: September 24, 2009

Modifications: None really to the pattern other than I decided to knit these toe-up. I'm a big fan of Judy's Magic Cast on & thought the foot was incredibly easy (1 x 1 rib), that toe-up might be more fun. I used Wendy Knits instructions for a heel-flap & should have followed the instructions for the smaller size as the heel flap is just a tad too wide. I also knit 2 more pattern repeats than the pattern called for. These are relatively short socks, so I'm glad I went with 2 more pattern repeats. I could have done more - plenty of yarn left over. I'd heard about Judy's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off (thanks Michele!!) and decided to give that a go (after the tubular bind-off wouldn't work due to my lack of smaller dpns). JSSBO is fantastic & so easy to execute. You can find the instructions in the latest issue of Knitty.

Intended Recipient: Someone at my children's school fall auction.

A bit blurry, but that's the best I have of the pattern detail.

Feeling good about the progress made with knitting projects this week. As mentioned before, I have a finishing class next Tuesday (mostly for socializing with friends & getting wee bits of assistance) where I hope to get a head start on seaming up my Hey, Teach. I have another project for the school auction that is just about finished & I picked up the 2nd sock of a pair started 5 months ago. It would be nice to finish these up before the September installment of the 2009 RSC arrives & Socktoberfest's Mystery Sock begins.


Must be the drop in temperatures & snow on the mountain tops that has kicked my knitting into high gear. Now I need to think about holiday knitting - maybe hats for the boys' teachers. What about you - what are your holiday knitting plans?

Ciao~

Summer's Over...

Summer, for teachers and students is over. While teachers returned to work last Thursday, summer's end didn't feel official until today. Today students returned to the classroom. Some teachers think today is the easiest day to plan for: hand out textbooks, go over class rules/expectations, etc. Not me. I think it's one of the most difficult, as I see today as the one day where I can really make an impression on whether or not a student is going to enjoy being in my class. So, I agonize over what I'm going to do. How is my class going to be different, more memorable, even perhaps, more enjoyable than the ones experienced earlier in the day, or yet to come. So - in chemistry I don my tie-dye lab coat, put on the goggles & sing "We Dig Chemistry" loudly and proudly. Some students joined in & others sat in bewilderment, wondering what on earth they were in for during this school year. I figure if I can take a risk and put myself out there, so can they. Success follows risk taking. I certainly find it's more fun than going over rules - I figure I can go over those later & incorporate my philosophies and expectations by examples by what we do in class. "Hi Johnny, Welcome to class - oh, back row, huh? Don't you think you'd rather sit closer to the front in the "learning zone"?" Sure enough - Johnny moves & realizes I mean business. It's all good. Hands on demos & an inquiry based lab & before we know it, class is over & I've taught (and learned) some, the students learned some, and we had fun. Not a bad days' work.

You can see from the photo above that my boys also headed back to school. My big 4th (gasp!) grader is on the left, my 2nd grader on the right. Where does the time go? These photos were a bit impromptu & quick as I'd almost forgotten to take the annual first day of school photos. I usually do this in front of our fireplace, but today - a quick jump in the front yard had to do. My kids are in combo classes (1/2 and 3/4), and loop with their teachers, so both were able to slide right back into school as if an entire summer's worth of fun hadn't taken place. I'm so impressed with how independent they've become and easily settle into the expected educational routine. Very nice and comforting to know they'll do well and be fine as I zip off to do my educational gig.

On the knitting front, I have an FO to show:

Details:

Pattern: Orion Sock (The official sock of Sock Summit '09). No longer available to download from the site, but I did notice at Sock Summit that Blue Moon Fiber Arts was selling hard copies of the pattern - perhaps you could order directly from them.

Yarn: Koigu (dark blue) and Shibui (light blue = "River Rapids") One ball each. I had to dip into a second skein of the Koigu just for the ribbing of sock #2. Can you say, Stash Busting! :0)

Needle: Mostly a US 1 (2.25mm). However, after the fair isle on sock #1, I decided to move up a needle size to a 2.50mm for the fair isle on sock #2. This made it much easier to put sock #2 on over my heel.

Project Dates: Cast on during July & knit part of the foot of sock #1. Working on sock during our Lower 48 vacation & finished up on the plane ride home from Sock Summit on Aug. 9th. Overall a very quick knit. I'd certainly knit this again.

Even though school has commenced, I plan to keep knitting away & hope to share more FOs very soon.

OTN: "Hey Teach" = only 1 sleeve left to knit & then seaming.; Jeanne shawl = edging left, In Season (July RSC kit) = finished foot of sock #1, February Lady Sweater = finishing garter portion (once needles are free from Hey, Teach, I'll be ready to pick this up again.

Enjoy the remainder of your summer & knit on!

Ciao!

2-Fer

I interrupt this 3-week vacation to present not 1, but TWO FOs:

"Rainbow Sherbet Socks"

Details:

Pattern: Tessuto Socks - The July Knit/Purl Sock Club installment

Yarn: Knitted Wit in "Saturday Market" colorway

Needles: US 2 (2.75 mm)

Comments: A great, toe-up, slipped stitch pattern. Very easy & relatively fast to knit. I really like the texture the slipped-stitch creates. The texture plus the colorway reminds me of rainbow sherbet. I'm not crazy about the short-row garter stitch heel - but I think that's more a function of my ability with the short row heel rather than the pattern. For some reason I've lost my heel mojo - I need to go & inspect earlier projects to recreate acceptable SRH. My only real issue with the socks is that they are a bit looser than I'd like. I think either a smaller stitch count, or a smaller needle size would take care of this. Otherwise, a great sock to take (and finish!) on vacation. I cast these on after we took off from Anchorage & finished the foot by the time we landed in LAX.

Next....


Details:

Pattern(s): Just in case you've been out of touch with the knitting world, it's the infamous Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ) designed by Elizabeth Zimmerman. This baby sweater pattern is the work of a knitting genius (EZ, not me!). Again, I'd forgotten to take a photo of the sweater before I'd seamed up the arms - it really looks like an amoeba!

The booties are the Saartje's Bootees. These are just the right accessory for this sweater & helps to use up most of the skein of yarn.

Yarn: BMFA Socks That Rock, Mediumweight - "Typhoon Tina" colorway.

Needles: US 4 KPH (Knit Pick Harmony)

Recipient: My dear friend, Hilarey's baby "David Matthew" (at least that's what I've named him until further notice). I hope the weather in San Diego gets cool enough after he's born (he's due in Nov) so he can actually wear a knitted wool garment.

So I guess that's actually 3 FOs! Wow - however, most of the knitting of the BSJ was completed back in May, and the booties were finished during our June Alaska road trip (gee - I still need to post about that!) Only the socks were truly cast on & finished during our recent vacation.

Less than one week of vacation left, but plenty of fun to be had. Sock Summit begins this week! Here's what I'm working on:

Pattern: "Orion's Sock" - the official sock of Sock Summit 09. This was a pattern available through the Sock Summit swag shop. Rumor has it that it's no longer available to download. Perhaps it'll resurface during SS09. Most of the sock (gusset to ribbed cuff) was completed during our 10 hour drive from Las Vegas to Sacramento.

Off to cast on sock #2. Hope to bring the blog up to speed on San Diego, Las Vegas, and Sock Summit.

Ciao!

May Flowers

April showers bring May flowers!!

Details:

Pattern: Rogue Roses by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (aka The Yarn Harlot)
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock, Medium weight
Colorway: Gertrude Skein
Needles: KnitPicks 1.5
Dates: April 25 - May 8, 2009 (I knit the 1st sock in 2 days!!)
Size: Medium
Modifications: None really, other than not continuing the pattern all the way to the toe. I stopped after 5 repeats on the foot & then knit a standard wedge toe.

Recipient: My friend Julie in honor of her impending motherhood

These were such fun to knit. Lots of stockinette to let the sock fly by, but plenty of other things to keep you from getting bored. Making the little rose buds turned out to be pretty fun. Although -somewhere along sock #2 a rosebud 'fell off'. Oops - noticed that as I was knitting the foot; no way in hell I was ripping back. Rosebuds fall of bushes all of the time, right? Knitting with the medium weight also allows the socks to fly off the needles.

My friend inadvertently saw these socks before the planned unveiling at her baby shower next week. Fortunately, she doesn't know they are for her & her reaction with oohs and aahs lets me know she will like them. :0) Now to finish the baby sweater for her little bump.

The photo makes the yarn look very orange-y. I think that's because I rushed out to take photos this morning (around 7:40am) as the sun was just above the mountains. Here's another to show the detail & the color:

Enjoy the weekend! I know I will - the sun is shining & the snow is gone! :0)

Ciao ~

One Trick Pony

Yup - it seems that if I have a finished object to share, it's going to be a pair of socks. After losing my sock mojo last fall, it's back in full force. Socks are a relatively fast knit (especially when you compare how long it takes me to knit a sweater), so it provides the sense of accomplishment.

These are Cleopatra's Stockings, the RSC 2008 kit from last July. You may recall I shared a bit of this project while we were gallivanting around the lower 48 in our Eurovan. While I love the yarn, the fit, and the construction (toe-up), the process of knitting these things wasn't nearly as enjoyable. Lots of traveling crossed stitches which normally don't cause any issue. However, the my normal needles of choice back then weren't pointy enough to do the job, so I struggled with these for so long. Finally, after staring at 1 finished sock and 3/4 of its mate for the past 6 months, I finally decided to bit the bullet and finish them. I only had the cuff to finish - sad, I know.
Of course, when I picked them back up, I couldn't remember where I'd left off, so the cuffs do not totally match. After 6 months, I can live with this. The instructor of my finishing class say historically eastern knitters rarely had matching socks as they could only knit with available materials, so.... in keeping with history, and all - my cuffs don't match, and I don't care. They will be hiding under my pants for the most part anyhoo.

Close enough, huh?

Wait... that's not all....
I've also finished the RSC 2009 January kit - Queen of Beads by Sivia Harding. Please excuse this crappy photo - I was wearing my slippers outside (where there is still snow, uggh) & just wanted to capture something to upload.

Glad these are done. After the beads were finished, these socks flew from the needles. My regret is that I didn't knit these on a smaller needle. I used a US 2 (2.75mm) and should have used a US 1.5 - they are a bit loose & feel a bit slouchy.
I only made a slight mod to how I knit the left twisted stitch. After finishing the first sock, I kept looking at the left twisted stitches and just didn't like how they looked. They didn't seem to match the right twisted stitches. So - after a little google-fu, I ran across this tutorial & used it for the 2nd sock. Go figure - now the left twisted stitches have a bit more 'pop'.

I hope to have something different to share with you next time. I have cast on another sock (just can't be without a sock project; oh wait - I still have 2 other sock projects on the needles - whoops) for the Ravelry KAL while I'm waiting for the RSC March kit to arrive. (The kit's been sent, but with Mt. Redoubt blowing it's top again and again, the kits arrival might be delayed due to flight cancellations.)

Happy Knitting! Ciao!

A Day Late....

Well - I had hoped to have a finished project in time for my blogiversary, but nursing duty for my DH (he had ACL/Meniscus surgery on Tuesday) prevailed over knitting. Anyhoooooo - may I finally present:

Leyburns Pair #2!

Leyburn Pair #2, originally uploaded by Arctic Knitter.

Details:

Yarn: Socks That Rock Lightweight
Colorway: Carbon Dating
Stitch Count: 56 Stitches on Foot, 60 Stitches on Leg, 64 Stitches on Cuff
Construction: Toe-Up using Judy's Magic Cast On w/gusset & heel flam a la WendyKnits!
Now to decide what pair of Shoes to wear w/my new favorite socks:

My New Keens

My Fave, and Tried & True Danskos

My New Merrells

Zappos is a dangerous place!! (Go on, click! I know you want to!!!)

Ciao!

Leyburns - Finito!

Whoot! - Another finished object squeaked in before the end of January!

Details:

Pattern: Leyburns (toe-up)
Yarn: Socks That Rock - Lightweight
Colorway: Pink Granite
Needles: US 1.5 (2.75mm) - Knit Picks
Stitch count: 56 on foot, 67 on leg

Modifications: Picot edge at top. Of course I didn't photograph that detail. Duh... I think I was in such a hurry to get outside & into natural light that I forgot to focus on details of the sock.

I participated in Ravelry's Leyburn KAL. The idea was for ravelers to knit this pattern in as many colorways of STR as possible. Pink Granite was fun - certainly not very pink - more brownish hues, if you ask me. The pattern is a quick & painless knit. It calls for a short row heel & instructs you to 'use your favorite short-row heel'. Of course it's been a while since I've knit one, that I'm not exactly pleased with the outcome. I did reknit the heels a couple of times - oh well. The heels will be in shoes & as my friend Winston's Mom reminds me - if the 'lady on the horse' can't see it, don't stress over it. :0)

I think I'll knit this again as I think this pair is destined as a donation to my children's school's Art Night. Families are encouraged to donate hand made items to put up for auction. All proceeds will be sent to their sister school in Malawi. I've yet to donate anything I've made, so I figure - why not? The next pair will be for me & I think I'll use a gusset/heel flap construction. The gusset/heel flap on the Cleopatra's (which are still not finished, argh) are pretty cool & I think would look great with this pattern. Besides being relatively quick to knit, the pattern lends itself well to handpainted/busy yarns. Perhaps I'll donate the All The Water mittens as well - that way I have an excuse to knit another pair. :0)

Can't believe January is already over - where does the time go???

Dang...

Whoa - it's been almost 3 weeks since my last post?!? I'm such a slacker... Rest assured dear reader(s) that I while I've sadly neglected my blog, knitting has been fast & furious. Let me fill you in on the past three weeks:

1) Elka - my Icelandic sweater. I *think* I mentioned I was taking an Icelandic sweater class. It's been fabulous - we've met twice thus far. At class #1 I learned to swatch in the round by knitting back & forth & not joining in the round. Weird, but accurate. Gauge was close enough to use size 10.5" needles for the Lopi yarn. Yes - size 10.5" + bulky Lopi = fast, fast knitting. Our instructor wanted us to finish the body of the sweater (knit in the round w/steek stitches added in) by class #2. Being the type A, overachiever that everyone accuses me of (okay - guilty as charged), I finished the body & sleeves by class #2. At class #2 I learned how to attach the sleeves to the body so I can knit the yoke. Slick as roads at 32°F. So - after some tricky math (how embarrassing since I taught Advanced Algebra for years) & help from another knitting teacher, I finished the decreases & am ready for tomorrow's class #3 and STEEKING!!! Ahh - I'm going to actually cut through my knitting. You know that's worthy blog fodder. Here's what it looks like so far:

It might be a bit snug on me (I kept thinking I was knitting the medium when I looked at the pattern in the wrong spot & ended up knitting the small size) so, I might be able to cross off another Christmas gift from 'the list'.

2) The Central Park Hoodie from the 2006 Fall edition of Knit Scene. I've had yarn in the stash for this project for months. So - cast on a couple of weeks ago & as of this evening, I've finished the back, learned how to add short rows to the back rather than binding off, knit the left front w/short rows at the shoulder, three needle bind off left front to back, and cast on & knit about 8 inches for right front. Not too bad... I'm trying to get all pieces knit & blocked (this will take some serious 'Frankenblocking' since the cables pull in a lot) before my next finishing class (November 3). I'm hoping my finishing class teacher can show me the correct way to sew in sleeves - I kind of winged my way through the last two sweaters. Here's the evidence so far:

3) October is time for Socktoberfest which means I felt the need to try to knit a pair of socks. I've really fallen off the sock bandwagon lately. I still have about an inch left of the RSC Cleopatra socks to finish - I just haven't found the impetus to pick it up & finish. Luckily, those clever knitters over on Ravelry kicked off a Socktoberfest KAL. Kirsten of Through The Loops wrote a mystery sock pattern. I was hooked! Each Wednesday she posts a new clue for the sock - I started a week late, but was able to catch up w/both socks by today's release of clue #4 (the foot of the sock). It's been a lot of fun - here's where I finished before clue #4.

The yarn is from a purchase I made during our road trip: Dream in Color - Smooshy. The color is Lipstick Lava - fun name. Clue #3 was the heel which turned out to be an Eye of Partridge heel - I've never knit one, and it was pretty cool.

And of course, because three projects (that are getting attention) can't be enough, I told Iain that I would *make* his Halloween costume this year. He and Orion are going to be:

Calvin & Hobbes!! What a sad day it was when Bill Watterson stopped creating this masterpiece of humor. Orion will be Calvin (easy, peasy - red shirt w/black stripes, black shorts - done). Iain will be Hobbes. This costume is not quite so easy - it will involve sewing. Yup - the things I do for my children.

Here's the costume so far:


Yeah - still lots of work to do. It won't be ready for this weekend's school carnival, but should be done by the actual date for Halloween. Wish me luck....

No sewing tonight, as I need to get to bed so I can get up before God so I can be at school tomorrow at 5:45 to kick off our Mole Day celebration. More blog fodder! :0)

So I hope you see why I've been away so long. Shouldn't be such a long hiatus before my next post.

By the way, please go visit OneMoreRow and wish my great blog friend a happy birthday!!

Ciao~

Red Ribbon Day!

Sock Award, originally uploaded by Arctic Knitter.

Holy Schnikey! Check this out - on a whim & inspired by Winston's Mom & fellow blogger of One More Row - I entered a sock in the Knitted Sock division of the AK State Fair.

Who'da thunk - the things actually won a prize - a pretty red 2nd place no less! Now don't get me wrong - I'm thrilled with these socks & very proud. I just love how the color (STR - Oregon Red Honey) complements the pattern (Celtic Braid Socks) - I'm just surprised they actually won something! Having said that - I really wonder about the judging criteria for the socks. Yes - I love my socks & think they're worthy of recognition, however after looking at the plain stockinette pair of socks that earned the 1st place/Division champion (read - Big, pretty Purple Ribbon) - I wonder how those were better than mine. Also - saw a beautiful pair of blue socks on display w/nary an honorable mention - what's up with that? Perhaps the AK State Fair judges attended the same judging school as those of the Olympic gymnastics? Just a thought...

Our other reason for trudging out to the AK State Money Pit, oops I mean state fair - was to admire Winston's Mom's beautiful Fair Isle Cardigan she made for her mom:

Isn't it gorgeous? I can't believe it didn't place higher. Now - the 2nd place sweater was another beautiful fair isle - well done, beautiful design & colors. However - the first place? A monochromatic cable sweater. Hmmmm - again, I question the judging. Don't get me wrong, cables are beautiful - in fact I'm knitting two projects involving cables right now. However - it just didn't stand out & say "Wow - Look at Me, Aren't I Gorgeous?" I dunno - perhaps I'm just a tad bit biased since this sweater was knit by a dear friend of mine. I also think (since I'm already on my soap box, why get off now...) - the folks who put up the knitting displays could have done a much better job in showing off this fantastic piece of craftsman(woman)ship. Folded, albeit neatly, just does not do this sweater justice. Two honorable mention sweaters were nicely displayed on forms (is that the correct name for those armless, headless things?) - don't you think a sweater that placed higher would deserve a more prominent display? Just another thought.... (okay, climbing down from said soap box)

So - a great day for Anchorage, East High, and SWS knitters at the AK State Fair. Booyah!

So - here's a glimpse on my latest impulse cast-on project:

Any guesses?

I leave you with this - a photo that warms my heart:

"Can't Play Wii Right Now - This Book Is Too Good!"

~Ciao

Best Laid Plans...

Okay - today's post was supposed to read something like this:

"Yeah - rack up an 'A' for me on SAM5 - the Jacobean's are all done - Whoot Whoot!" Then I would give you all of the glorious details on the yarn, needle size, etc. Well - that was the plan.

Let's go back about 24 hours shall we... "Yeah - almost finished... only 13 rows of ribbing to do - no worries, I can knock that out in a short amount of time. Yeah boy - I'm gonna finish another pair of socks. Oh yeah - right on track, blah blah blah" There may have even been some celebratory dancing.

Then the 'little voice' starts speaking. If only I could just tell that voice to SHUT UP!!

Little Voice: "Hey - this sock is a wee bit smaller than the other sock"

Me: "Nope - I can stretch it out when I block it. The recipient's foot is smaller than mine. No worries..."

Little Voice: "Nope - I think something's seriously wrong..."

Me: "Nope - just a tighter gauge here for some odd reason..." Knit on, Knit on - blindly knitting away...

Then - I decided to check & compare this sock to sock #1. Hmmm - fits tightly on the sock blocker. Hmmmm - leg is going to be much longer than sock #1 - how can that be? I still have ribbing yet to do. Houston - we have a problem.

Then it hits me like a wet salmon - I started the short row heel one pattern repeat too early. ARGHHHH. So - rip, rip, rip I went. Back to repeat #3.... Only 3 more repeats (of 20 rows), a heel, and 2" of cuff + ribbing to do.

Sure I'll finish before April's over. NOT. Part of me wanted to continue and ignore the gross oversight just so I could receive April credit - how sad... So, I must have progressed as a knitter because I did the knitterly right thing to do - ripped back & will continue anew. Just not today. The pain is still too raw.

On the bright side - the 22" (yes - the 16" I reported earlier was a gross under estimate) of snow is melting away quite nicely & the sun is shining.

Here - look at Raja:
So much for knitting on the sweater today.

Ciao~

Ridiculous

Okay - this is absolutely ridiculous. I apologize in advance for what may seem as a continuation of my last post. IT SNOWED AGAIN!!!!!! Just when we thought spring was finally here, a storm "stalled" over the south central region of Alaska. Umm... stalled? Where were the other weather systems? Don't you know when you see someone stalled that it is polite and kind to help get them moving along? Hello - other weather systems? Where were you?

Anchorage received over a foot of snow. I can only provide accurate accounts for the east side of Anchorage - we received over 16 inches - IN LESS THAN 12 HOURS!! WTF?? (Why that's fantastic) The photo to the left is what I had to scape at the end of the school day. Actually - it's what I had to scrape after about 2.5 hours - I'd already scraped once, moved my car, went to coach my JV soccer game (at an indoor facility thankfully), and then returned to school.
Yes - Adidas Sambas (indoor, flat soccer shoes) are not meant for walking through deep snow. I didn't pack boots into the car (they are a permanent fixture there in the winter for safety reasons) as the weather forecast predicted rain mixed with some snow and (now get this) no accumulation expected. HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

Here's what the railing of our back deck looked like:
Now I know many of you might be thinking - "Hey, you chose to live in Alaska, deal with it". Some may also think I'm just making this crap up & using pictures taken back in December. There is no way I'm creative enough to make this up. Yes, we did choose to live in Alaska - actually chose to return here after 5 years of college in sunny San Diego of all places. Its a beautiful state & I do love & enjoy winter & the snow. So many fun things to do. But come on - April 25th? For crying out loud - enough is enough. It think it's fate laughing at my decision to return to coaching soccer. Have I mentioned we have yet to hold an outdoor practice? I've been trying to train 18 girls to play soccer in our high school gym. It's very difficult to teach positioning and space when you don't have any. What a shock when we play at the indoor facility. We were fortunate enough to play one outdoor game - last Wednesday - in sunny 60° weather!! Luckily they're a great, fun, good-natured bunch and are able to go with the flow.

Okay - enough of my whining. I have been doing some knitting - just no blogging. Don't know what it is (besides the crazy busy schedule), but I haven't felt like plugging in the camera, uploading photos, and sitting down to blog. So sorry - here take a look at knitting - it always makes me feel better.

Progress on the pair of Jacobean socks I'm knitting for the SKP 2008. These will be a gift. They are toe-ups (I'm liking that!!) where I used the figure-8 cast on (so cool). The yarn is Spring Thaw (now that's ironic) from Shibui knits. It is fab yarn - mostly solid with just a hint of light striping.

A little shot of the stitch pattern...

Have I mentioned how much I love the short row heel? It is so cool & fits so well.

Okay - here's what I had to do before I could knit more today. The temps are lots warmer - so the snow is wet & heavy. However, it also helps the driveway to dry more quickly.

And... I might actually finish an adult sized sweater! Hazaah! This is the front of the "Not Your Basic Sweatshirt, Take Two" from The Yarn Girls - Beyond the Basics book. I'm at the point where I can decrease for the armholes & then separate for the v-neck. Yeah - I think I might have to ask for local knitter help when I need to seam this thing together - any takers?

Well - battery is running low & I only have a few more days to finish the Jacobeans for the April credit for SAM5.

Happy Winter, uh, I mean Spring.

Ciao ~

Did I oversleep?

Okay - please correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it APRIL???? Did I sleep through the summer (and if I did - was it fun? Are we totally broke from spending all of our money on gas? Were the RUSH concerts fun? How about the family reunion in Wisconsin - how'd that go?) The reason I ask is that Anchorage & the surroundings have received over a foot of new snow over the past few days? I mean "WTF?!?" - (For those who don't know that totally means "Why, That's Fantastic!")

I knew we were premature in thinking spring had actually arrived in Anchorage. All throughout March I kept thinking, even as the ice was melting and the grass was emerging "just wait - more is on the way." It never fails; Ma nature lures us into a false sense of security thinking it's safe to put away the parkas, take the studded tires off the vehicles, and time to rake the lawn. - Then WHAMO! Sometime in the middle of March we're hit with a late season snowstorm that blankets Anchorage. Never fails. Until this year - Anchorage residents were believing more and more that yes, Global Warming is real. Snow was melting - lawns were visible and we were thinking that in no time - we'd be able to have soccer games outside - as they were intended.

Not so fast.... Saturday morning, April 5th, the weather forecast in the paper predicted 3 - 6 inches of snow. Yeah, right. But - lo' and behold, the snow was falling & sho' nuff - we had an accumulation around 6 inches. But.... the sun started to peek from around the clouds and the mercury was on the rise. The snow left behind after my shovel job quickly melted away - streets were clear and dry by the evening. Okay - just a little last minute hic-cup. I can live with that.

Well - Mother Nature wasn't through yet; spring forward to this morning, April 9th when my father calls at 6:15am. He was supposed to come into Anchorage (he lives about 45 minutes North) to pick up something from me at school. He'd call to say he wasn't going to come in because he'd heard Anchorage was expecting 6 - 12 more inches of snow! What?!? As I looked out the window, I thought he was smokin' crack since there was nary a snowflake to be seen falling from the sky. That didn't last for long. As my husband was headed out the door, he came in to tell me that yes - the weather forecasters were right - snow was falling and with a vengeance.

Roads were slicker than snot & it took me over an hour to take the boys to school & then get to work. Along the way there were several ditch divers and scores of cars fish tailing as they turning. Due to the hazardous road conditions - all after school activities were cancelled & outdoor soccer games are cancelled until Monday. Arghhhh

Please wake me when it's spring....

PS - The few nice things about the snow are everything is very clean looking and I feel a renewed need to knit. I'm past the heel of my Jacobean toe-up socks - more to report later... (including pictures - I just needed to vent...)

Madrona = Husband of the Year

Wow - what a great long weekend! I have to dedicate this post to my fantabulous hubby. In case I hadn't mentioned it earlier, (yeah, right), I spent the last 5 (yes, 5) days down in Tacoma, WA. My fab-friend, Winston's Mom & I headed south to visit Sandy & attend the Madrona Winter Retreat. This wouldn't have been possible if DH hadn't been so cooperative & understanding about my desire to spend a long weekend & Valentine's Day away from home & knitting. Now, he's pretty darned cool about these things (considering I've been to Europe twice for 3 weeks each while he stayed home w/the boys), but this weekend he truly went above and beyond. You see, President's Day weekend is the final weekend he and his Robotics Team have to finish their F.I.R.S.T. robot. They spend hours (and I do mean hours - I dub myself the "Robot Widow" during this time) putting on the finishing touches to their robot. So, to have me go & leave him to single parent-hood for 5 days speaks volumes about what an incredible husband he is. Please remember not only was he busy w/robots, but he also had to get the boys up & ready for school, make sure they were fed, and get them to their various activities (Jr. Nordic, Youth Soccer, & a birthday party). Wow...

On to Madrona. One Word - WOW! My head is full. It was incredible - to be among such creative and talented people! I'm constantly amazed at how someone can come up with some of the most incredible and creative ideas. Here's the run down:

Thursday, Feb. 14th, 2008

• Took an all day class entitled "Art Socks" with Sue Ewens. Fantastic. Essentially I learned how to do Intarsia for a sock. Pretty darned cool. Sue was an incredible teacher with tons of energy and enthusiasm. I was most impressed when asked about her favorite sock/knitting books she replied she really didn't have one since relying on a book might stifle her creative side. Me - I totally need the books & patterns. One day I'd love to learn how to design, but I don't think I'm quite there, yet. I understand the construction of a sock, but haven't felt the need to dabble in designing my own sock. However, after this class I have a better idea about how to use all my extra sock yarn! Here's a photo of my day's efforts:

Can you say, "end management"? Holy Schnikey - them's a lot of ends to weave in.... Sue didn't want us to weave as we went since we were just learning a new technique. However, in the future - in order to maintain my sanity (????) I think weaving as I go is the safest choice.

After dinner at the bar at Sea Grill (we kinda forgot it was Valentine's Day & that getting in for dinner might be a tad bit difficult), we returned to the hotel for a presentation about knitting & charity. Stephanie spoke about Doctors Without Borders / Medicines Sans Frontiers, Ruth Sorenson spoke about how the internet links knitters together, Melinda and friends (sorry, forgot their names) discussed a project to save a culture knitting on the Shetland Islands, and another woman discussed her efforts to use fiber arts in raising awareness over the war in Iraq, specifically about the number of women (over 2,000) killed while serving our country. Pretty intense. We were asked to give to any of the charities - knitters tend to be generous folks.

Ruth is also the designer of "Ruth's Cardigan" which uses Kauni yarn and was an internet hit after Stephanie and Melinda posted about this fabulous sweater on there blogs. So, as expected , several knitters showed up wearing 'the sweater.'

Back Row (L to R): Unknown knitter, Ruth, Naomi, Melinda.
Front Row (L to R): Unknown knitter, Stephanie, Unknown knitter.

Friday, Feb. 15, 2008

• No Classes for Me today. The registration for Madrona was such a technological cluster, that I wasn't able to enroll in a class I wanted for this day. So, while Margaret & Sandy were busy with their morning classes, I took the time to stroll down to the local Starbucks for coffee, and then spent time knitting and shopping at the Yarn Market. OMG - man, I was like a kid in a candy store. I went into shock after I arrived home & realized how much $$ I actually spent. But, I kept in mind that what I purchased isn't readily available here in Anchorage (internet not withstanding. Check out the loot:

The infamous Kauni Yarn in colorways EF & EZ.

This is a close-up of the innards of EF. I'll need to rewind it before I knit it. As someone in my Sunday afternoon class said, the way it's wound now, you'd need a Speculum in order to see the colors. Needless to say, a class full of women thought that was pretty darned funny. For you male readers (okay - male reader - Hi, Ron!), I've provided a link to Wikipedia in case you aren't familar with this object.

This isn't some sort of towel - this is sock yarn!!! It's the "NEW concept in sock knitting" created by Conjoined Creations, llc. Essentially - the yarn has been machine knit and then hand dyed. All I need to do is remove the waste yarn, CO and knit a sock. When I get to the middle, I remove the other waste yarn (shown behind tag) and knit sock #2. No need to wind a ball of yarn. No tangles! See what I mean? Clever knitters!

Blue Moon was present, so of course I couldn't leave without a few more skeins of STR. Star Saphire in the middle, Bleeding Hearts on the right. The colorway on the far left is:

As a science teacher, I just couldn't pass it up! :0)

Margaret & I spent the afternoon going to see Juno. If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend it. So funny!!! I think I need to go & see it again. We also stumbled into "Hello Cupcake" this very cute shop that sells only yummy cupcakes.

Margaret with the goods. Turns out we were so busy, that we didn't get a chance to eat all of the cupcakes before we came home.

Yum!

Saturday, Feb. 16, 2008

• This morning was spend with Margaret Radcliff, of Maggie's Rags learning about variegated yarns & how to make the most of them. I learned so much & came away with ideas on how to avoid pooling & wierd stripes. Remember the "Funky Monkey's" from September? Yeah - this class would have been a great help. Here is what I have to show for 3 hours of work:

A little play with slipped stitches, alternating purl stitches, mixing it up w/two colors of yarn alternating between rows, knitting two yarns at once, etc. Pretty cool. Margaret was inspired by her swatch & purchased yarn to begin a sweater. I think I'll use my creation as a bookmark. Right now it's hanging in my classroom. My students just got a kick out the fact I went away for a long weekend to knit. Kids...

After lunch, I spent more time knitting & then perusing the Yarn Market. While visiting the Knit/Purl (lovely store w/lovely people!) booth, I met Sarah of Blue Garter. I recognized her by the "Blue Thistle"jacket. I just love that sweater & would love to make something similar. I was such a dork. Sarah was very sweet & kindly overlooked my dorkiness as I gushed about her sweater & meeting her in person. Geez...

The evening was spent dining at the banquet. We had Salmon - the non-vegetarian option. It was good, but of course, not like we make here at home. The vegetarian option looked very yummy & in hindsight, I wish I had made that choice. (Didn't know it was going to be salmon until we arrived). During the evening, we spotted a Kaffe Fawcett "Foolish Virgins" sweater in person! Holy Intarsia, batman! The woman (sorry, we were so intranced with the sweater, I forgot to ask) said it took her only a month to finish. Take a look:

Wow.

Ummm.. Wow...

After the banquet I finished these:
Details:

Pattern: Dublin Bay Socks
Yarn: Socks That Rock Lightweight - Lagoon
Needles: Addi Turbo Size 1
Modfications: Tons - reduced the number of stitches from 72 to 64 & knit a short row heel.

Sunday, Feb. 17, 2008

This is the post that will never end... After a free morning to drink coffee & enjoy ice-less streets & warm sunshine in February, I had the pleasure of taking a class from Ruth Sorenson. The class was about making hats using the Kauni yarn. The skill of making the hat was nothing new, but learning how the yarn works was fantastic. Learning how to match the colors, or stagger the color repeats was very interesting.

This is the cuff of the hat. The hat is knit very similar to those I knit from "Hat's On" (see Dec/Jan posts)

So far, so good. Ruth was an incredible teacher. She is so nice & down to earth. If you happen to be in the Portland area, she's teaching this class at Knit/Purl this coming weekend. Give them a call - you'll love learning how to use the yarn.

Wow - it's getting late & I have to head back into the blustery weather (it's 40°F and blowing like crazy). Our program is having our open house this evening.

If you've read all the way through - well done! Needless to say anymore, the long weekend was glorious. So much to knit, so little time! You can see why my husband deserves Husband of the Year! I know I've left something out. I'll have to fill in the holes later.

Ciao!