green.ketzle.net: knitting

the first plan is to finish the red scarf. i found something quite lovely for my mama for christmas and so the scarf was relegated to the back burner. it still may end up in her hands or it may not; the color does seem to be growing on me.

the second plan is to block the bacon shawl and kerchief, the shawl which i finished christmas eve night. the shawl that i was knitting furiously upon, head down, eyes on the prize, only to realize that there didn't seem to be too much yarn left. "you might want to start those garter stitch rows now", i thought. and after one, "there's maybe just enough to bind off, isn't there?" so it is a little curly on the edges but it's bacon, right? bacon curls...

the third plan is to knit this yarn, madeleinetosh in creme de menthe and moorland, into a shawl for my sister. she sent me a gift certificate for the loopy ewe as a consolation gift when the christmas present she ordered for me did not arrive in time. as the gift will arrive at some point, it seems only fair to use the yarn for her, especially as she is rather in love with my whippoorwill and is in need of more shawls for her extremely air-conditioned office.

the fourth plan? maybe socks. most of my handknit socks have holes, and while i can and will darn them, i think it is time for a new, hole-free pair.

11 december 2011 false start

i decided to knit at least three rows every week night, figuring that coupled with a few weekend knitting marathons, it would get me where i needed to be. i developed a bit of a rhythm, using my left hand for both yarns, instead of one right and one left; my speed started to pick up.

and i made it this far.

and then i started looking at it, really looking at it. i put my hand on top of it and then wept. what with worrying so much about knitting too tightly and trying desperately to avoid buckling, i was knitting so loosely, so against my normal gauge, that i was three stitches per inch off. these would have been mittens that fit shaquille o'neal.

so i ripped and rewound and put it far, far away until such time as i get two circular needles with which i will give it another shot, another day, under less christmas pressure. maybe i'll knit mittens in may, which would be perfect. but for now, i grabbed the skein of wollmeise i received for finishing all three months of camp loopy and started what will hopefully be a quick knit garter scarf.

the mama can always use another cheery scarf, right?

04 december 2011 it's a start

aware of how fast the rest of this year has flown by, i figured i had better get my knit on if there were to be mittens.

the cuff, obviously, caused me no grief. but once i hit the two color areas it took me several rounds to find any sort of rhythm. and even with that very tenuous rhythm, it has been slow slow slow. and while the tension is not bad, it is not perect either. i know a good soak and block will help that, and there doesn't seem to be much buckling, but the perfectionist in me so wants to rip it out and start over.

but i won't. i think.

in other news, i finished the cowl which also works rather nicely as an ear-warming headband.

if i wear this with the matching mittens, i shall be properly stylish and deliciously warm. if only it would get good and cold for a few days, so i could wear the set without sweltering.

green.girl knitting: commentary