I bet you think I haven't been knitting

Well you're wrong :) He he

I've been making the Monthly Dishcloth KAL patterns and only missed the April one.



I made mittens for Ása Sóley



I started them at the end of February, just before we moved from Concord, CA to Athens, OH. I used leftover yarn, the brown was a little thinner than the green so I used it doubled. The left mitten looks bigger - it isn't. I had kept them one inside of the other and it stretched the left one out a little.

I only finished them couple of weeks ago. Ása Sóley wasn't terribly interested in using them (until she saw how interested Kamilla (big sister) was in them) and I was focusing on other projects. We had a cold spell and they came in handy.

They are knit with two circular (3.5 mm) using a pattern from Lopi 25.
__________________________________________________________________________________

So what do you think I do with all the leftovers from the dishcloths?

Well, mitered squares of course.



I made all of these before we moved from Concord. So that's in February. Only one more and I have a towel for the kitchen.

Last week I finally soaked my dishcloths in water and vinegar to set the color. This yarn has very bright colors, but it bleeds like crazy. So I can finally use them.

Plötulopi

I'm still knitting the plötulopi. I only knit it in one strand, but usually it's knit in 2-3 strands held together. This yarn is very much alive. It's unspun, so there is nothing holding it back. It has surprised me that it hasn't been breaking as much as I thought it would. Those sturdy Icelandic fibers are really doing a good job holding the thread together. I want to take a picture of the WIP and the lopi. I'm not up to much these days. I have an earache and at first it lead to my teeth and I thought I had a bad tooth. The pain was throbbing. Now it's mostly in the ear itself, which is a relieve. I can't bend down or lay on my right side, but this is so much more manageable. I don't use pain killers that often and when I do I only do one at a time but on Thursday I took 2 ibuprofen every 2 hours, that's how much it hurt.

BTW If you were wondering, the Secret KAL was this: Quickie Baby Sweater.

Most people made it through, while other had a slight mishap. I'm one of those. There is a section of increases that I could not get right. Once I fixed one row it was time for another row of increases and I messed up again. I've ripped back about 4 times and probably have to do it once more at least. But it is a quick knit so it´s not hard to rip back and knit again.

I started a French Market Bag a way back, thinking it would be a perfect travelling project. It is, but couple of days before our trip I lost it! I lost the project. All I remember was that I put it in a good place. How typical.

Our trip was a roadtrip to Lake Erie, where we spent couple of nights at a cabin. We drove through Amish country (I managed to find some antique quilts). We visited Put-in-Bay, on an Island in the Lake and on the way back we went through Cleveland and Akron. We live in South-East Ohio, so it´s a quite a big distance away. My dad and stepmom are visiting us and it was a great opportunity for them to see the country side and the state of Ohio (and for us too). Two days was really too short time to visit that area, but since the tourist season hasn't started yet and things are pretty much closed (including Cedar Point) it worked out fine.

So before I left I had to find a project to take with me on the trip. I needed something where I didn't need a computer (most patterns I work from are in the computer and I don´t have a printer) so none of the projects I was currently working on fit. I ended up starting the EZ baby sweater with the plötulopi that my stepmom brought me. It is in the most beautiful light green color. Plötulopi is unspun wool and it breaks quite easily but it's as easy to put it back together (wet the ends and roll them together). The fiber is fragile but the knitted fabric is very sturdy and strong. I don´t think I can rip it back though if I needed but I can unknit it, go back few stitches without problems.

Now work - later yarn shops in Columbus.

Samprjon dagur5

Næsta umf. Endurtaka 8 umf.

Næsta umf. Endurtaka 9 umf.




Næstu 4 umferðir slétt (slétt á réttu og brugðið á röngu)




Næsta umf. Prjóna 3 l.sl. *Taka 2 lykkjur saman, bregða garni yfir prjóninn, endurtaka frá* enda á að bregða garni yfir og prjóna 4 l.sl.

Næstu 3 umferðir slétt (slétt á réttu og brugðið á röngu)

Fellið af og notið endan á garninu til að falda stroffið (picot)

Samprjón1 dagur4

Endurtaka síðustu þrjár línur (frá því í gær) fyrir 22 l. hinum megin á stykkinu.

Byrjið að prjóna hægra megin af stykkinu og prjóna þvert yfir [83 l.]
Prjónið slétt (skiptast á sléttri röð og brugni) í 12 umf. með fyrstu og síðustu þrjár lykkjur í garðaprjóni.

Samprjón1 dagur3

Næsta umf. Prjóna 18 l.sl., auka út í næstu lykkju og setja merki, auka út í næstu lykku, prjóna 14 l. sl., auka út, setja merki, auka út í næstu lykkju, prjóna 31 l., auka út, setja merki, auka út, prjóna 14 l., auka út, setja merki, auka út, prjóna 18 l. [111 l.]


Næsta umf. Eins og umf. 5.
Næsta umf. er prjónuð með útaukningu fyrir og eftir hvert merki. [119 l.]
Næsta umf. eins og umf. 5
Næsta umf. er prjónuð með útaukningu fyrir og eftir hvert merki. [127 l.]
Næsta umf. eins og umf. 5

Næsta umf. Prjóna 22 l. og setja þær á sér prjón (lykkjuhaldara!), prjóna 22 l., setja restina af lykkjunum á lykkjuhaldara (hvað heitir þetta?) eða sérprjón.

Næst: Prjóna slétt fram og tilbaka 16 sinnum (skiptast á slétt röð og brugðin). [22 l.]
Næsta umferð: Prjóna 2 lykkjur saman, *1 l.br., 1 l.sl., 1 l.br., tvær l. saman, endurtaka frá* [17 l.]
Næst: Prjóna stroff (1 l.sl., 1 l.br.) í 5 umf. Fellið af.

Samprjón1 dagur2

Næsta umf. prjóna 4 l. sl., *prjóna tvisvar í næstu lykkju, 3 l.sl, endurtaka frá* enda í útaukningu og 4 l.sl. [75]
Næsta umf: Eins og umf. 5
Næsta umf: eins og umf. 8 [41 l.]
Næsta umf. eins og umf. 9 [75 l.]

Næsta umf. Prjóna 4 l., *prjóna tvisvar í næstu lykkju, 4 l.sl. endurtaka frá*, enda í útaukningu, 5 l.sl. [89 l.]
Næsta umf: Eins og umf. 5
Næsta umf: eins og umf. 8 [48 l.]
Næsta umf. eins og umf. 9 [89 l.]

Næsta umf. Prjóna 5 l., *prjóna tvisvar í næstu lykkju, 5 l.sl. endurtaka frá*, enda í útaukningu, 5 l.sl. [103 l.]
Næsta umf: Eins og umf. 5
Næsta umf: eins og umf. 8 [55 l.]
Næsta umf. eins og umf. 9 [103 l.]

Samprjón1 dagur1

Let me know if you want this in English.

Hérna er fyrsti skammtur í Samprjóni. Spyrjið endilega ef það er eitthvað óljóst í textanum. Ekki giska í grúbbuna hvað þetta er heldur senda mér póst prívat rajnos hjá gmail.com. Sú fyrsta sem getur uppá hvað við erum að prjóna fer þau verðlaun að vera fyrst og hún fær að velja næsta samprjóna. Miðum við að hafa ca. 1 í mánuði. Ég get útbúið munstrið sjálf eða verðlaunahafinn sjálfur, annaðhvort. Í þetta sinn þarf ekki að finna sjálft mynstrið á netinu - en aukabónus ef það er gert.


Athugið að halda opinu í útaukningum. þ.e. ekki prjóna í snúna lykkju. Mynstrið kemur betur út ef það er opið.


l. = lykkja

x l. sl. = prjóna x lykkjur slétt



Fitja upp 34 l.


Prjóna tvær umferðir slétt (þ.e. einu sinni fram og einu sinni til baka).

3. umf.: Prjóna 3 l. sl., *taka tvær lykkjur saman brugðið, bregða garni yfir prjón, endurtaka frá * enda á að taka tvær lykkjur saman brugðið og prjóna 3 l. sl. [33 l.]

Prjóna eina umf.

5. umf.: Prjóna 3 l. sl., prjóna brugðið þar til 3 l. eru eftir og prjóna þær slétt.

Næsta umf.: Prjóna 3 l.sl., *prjóna tvisvar í næstu lykkju (framan og aftan í hana), prjóna 1. l.sl., endurtaka frá* enda á útaukningu og prjóna 3 l.sl. [47 l.]

Næsta umf. er eins og 5. umf.

Næsta umf.(8.umf.): Prjóna 3 l.sl. *prjóna 2 l. saman, endurtaka frá * enda á 4 l.sl. [27 l.]

Næsta umf(9.umf.): Prjóna 3 l.sl. *prjóna 1 l.sl., taka upp band á milli lykkja og prjóna í það, endurtaka frá * enda í 4 l.sl. [47 l]


Næsta umf : Prjóna 3 l. *prjóna tvisvar í næstu lykkju, 2 l.sl., endurtaka frá* enda í útaukningu og 4 l.sl. [61 l.]

Næsta umf: Eins og umf. 5

Næsta umf: eins og umf. 8 [34 l.]

Næsta umf. eins og umf. 9 [61 l.]


Næsti skammtur kemur svo á morgun.


Góða skemmtun.

Hatdisaster Easter - just because it rhymes, sort of

It was way too big. It was even too big for my husband. This is how it looks:



And here is how big it is:



So it's either felting or back to the drawing board. When I was knitting it I was trying it on and I did pass the point of thinking 'It'll probably fit very snuggly now' and kept on knitting. I also had 104 sts. on 5.5 mm needles. Which sounded kind off big.

The hat experiment

I found another blue portion of the yarn. Can you see it? After I stopped increasing, I had 104 stitches and the rows changed color every row. So I had an idea that the yarn would look good in pearl stitch. Which it does. But now the hat is too wide so I have to rip out the beautiful pearl part and add a tighter border, probably a k1p1 ribbing.

Samprjon changes

The pattern I had picked out for the first Samprjon was Sheldon from Knitty. I'd heard that it was a fast knit, but as I was reviewing the pattern I realized that the shell would be hard to knit without seeing the photo of the finished project.

I had a back-up project I was going to use as the second project. This is the one I'll be posting on Friday. It requires 100 gr of worsted weight yarn. It is a yarn that typically uses 4.5-5 mm needles, but in this project we use 6 mm needles, either straight or circular. So it is going to be a fast knit, estimating about 4-5 hours.

I'm sorry about the changes and forgetting to post it here. I did post the changes in Garnaflaekja, my online Icelandic knitting club.

I hope you will pick up your pointy sticks and knit with us starting Friday. Those of you living in Iceland will have Easter vacation so there is no excuse not to participate :)

Apology

Regarding last post, I wasn't upset about no one commenting as I was upset about Stephanie's comment on her blog. Who doesn't like to have comments? So my apologies for my faithful readers. I do mostly blog for myself, so I'm thankful anyone reads this at all!

Here is a photo of the start of the hat.



Can you see the peculiarity? There is a blue stripe in the beginning of the hat but the skein doesn't show any blue at all! This is very curious and I'm anxiously knitting and wondering if there will be another blue stripe. But this does explain why the colorway is called Natural Navy! The yarn is Patons SWS, which has 30% soy content. This is the first time I've knitted with soy yarn and now I know why it's sometimes called soy silk. It has the most beautiful sheen (shine?) and it's soft too.

That book you see in the upper left corner is Victorian Lace Today and I love it, love, love love. It's beautiful and has a lot of history. The patterns are very varied and there are not just three cornered shawls, which usually dominate shawl knitting.

Linda asked to see a picture of all the County Houses. Since I (or rather Ása) woke up early this morning I snapped a picture, not in daylight but it turned out pretty good regardless.



I love how different they are, but yet so similar. You can click the picture to see it larger.

French Market Bag

No one even guessed what my new project is :( Stephanie at And she knits too can't understand why anyone would blog and not get comments. I guess you can't make people comment. It's not like I don't want comments!

The project was the start of the French Market Bag. What would we do without Knitty? I think it is fun how it starts at the center of the bottom and is worked up from there. While I was knitting it I saw it would make a neat hat. My problem with hats is to know how many stitches to cast on and how far to go before you start decreasing. By knitting them top-down you eliminate these problems all together. Why didn't I think of this before. My head exploded with hat ideas, different weight yarns, different patterns, different increases. Before I knew I had cast on a hat and I can't wait how it turns out.

April's first post

On Friday there was Final Friday in Nelsonville, just north of us. It was great. The weather was great and the galleries where great. The people were nice and there was a knitting store! Yeah. Now I know where there is a knitting store around here. Apparently the only one in SE Ohio. AND they also have stitching supplies - double yeah. They carry a lot of Plymouth, which I'm not very familiar with but it seems to be nice. They also had Manos de Uruguay and Dale Babyull (yes!) and this and that. A lady was demonstrating chair weaving. Very nice. The fibre comes from a special plant growing in Malaysia.

I finished the March segment on Maryse's SAL:



I finished it yesterday, on the last day of the month. Just in time.

I was also tired of only stitching (this and the SecretSAL take up all of my craft time), so I started this:




Any ideas what it is supposed to be? I started this few times before but never got the hang of it. Now I used a stitch marker and that did the trick. Funny how a simple little thing like that can make so much difference. It's also quite a popular free online pattern.

Samprjón

In my internet knitting group, Garnaflækja, we've been having couple of games within the group. One time we knit washrags for each other and another time we knit mittens.

I'm starting a new game which is called Samprjón. Samprjón is an Icelandic translation of the phrase knit-a-long (KAL).

I will select a free, online pattern and post parts of it everyday. Participants knit the rows I post every day and try to guess which pattern it is (but no spoilers, if you know what pattern it is send me an email to rajnos @ gmail . com (without spaces).

The game starts Friday the 6th and I will post the first lines then. This game is in Icelandic (whether or not the pattern is in English or other language), but if you want to participate and prefer a pattern in English let me know (use the above mentioned email or leave a comment).

The first pattern is knit with a soft cotton/synthetic blend with gauge about 25sts/1'', although the gauge isn't crucial. The pattern is knit on size 3 (US) needles (sock needles) and is knit rather tightly (keep that in mind while selecting yarn). You can use other materials, even wool, but try to use a soft and durable yarn.

There are two colors. The main color is light green and the secondary color is dark green. You can use other colors, or even two different colors (e.g. yellow and green). You need one skein of each but will only use about half a skein of the secondary color. You can also knit this pattern with a thicker yarn, just make sure to use one size smaller needle than the yarn calls for and you'll probably need more yarn (at least two skeins of the main color).

Get your yarn and needles ready. You have two weeks until the game starts.

So close ...

This was written last night (20th), but the Internet wasn't working so I couldn't post it.

As you might remember from my second to last post about a month ago that my Lopapeysa cardigan was finished, the knitting portion anyways. I couldn't finish it all the way because I didn't have an access to a "good" enough sewing machine (one that could handle the bulkiness of the sweater).

Fast forward to last week. Lady at work is a new knitter and her friend that taught her knitting lives in Florida so she asks me if I could help her with her knitting (she saw me looking at knitting blogs and was delighted to find out I knit). Then couple of days later I thought that maybe she could help me with the sewing part of the cardigan. Lo and behold, today she brought a traveling Janome machine to work for me to borrow.

So tonight I managed to sew up the front where the two purl stitches were and cut down the middle (steeking I guess). I'm not to confident with sewing so I wanted to find out more (and boy did I, check out this fantastic tutorial). Plus, I needed thread that matched my cardigan better (better than the arbitrary one I used for the steeking which is burgundy colored - vínrauður).

I was going through the tutorial and checking out the zipper vis-a-vis the cardigan when I noticed THE THING. The thing is that the zipper is too small! A little small would be ok, but it is at least 2" too small! How could that happen? I measured the cardigan again and again to make sure it was indeed 22".

I bet that by the time I finish it, it'll be too warm to wear it. I did place an order at Joann's for the larger size (24") zipper, and couple of other things while I was at it, e.g. Wonder Tape to facilitate the putting-the-zipper-in process (a tip from the tutorial).

February's over and done with

I can't believe I haven't posted in a month! Sorry about that. Now I have so much to say, I'm a little overwhelmed. I'm just going to start with the here and now.

I'm basically only knitting monthly dishcloths at the moment. I couldn't resist buying 4 more skeins of Peaches and Creme cotton at Walmart. They were only $1.48 and in nice colors. Which brought my stash of kitchen cotton up to 20 skeins, but I'm down to 18 now. I haven't taken pictures of the last two ones.

I'm stitching more now than knitting, thanks to my two SALs. I'm up to date with the SecretSAL from Allt í kross. But I'll not be posting pictures of that. I'm also stitching Maryse's 'Maisons de Campagne' and just finished February.



As I finished this picture, I also finished listening to 'Age of Innocence'. What an ending. I recommend it. It's very interesting because it describes the lives of 19th century New York aristocracy.

A sure sign of us moving

I'm finishing up a few things. One reason is because we're moving, but not less pressing is the fact that couple of my friends are having babies with the due date in sight. So I have to hurry up and send couple of stuff to them. Then there is Clint's relative, who is due at the end of May.

I'm pretty sure at least one of the recipients or possibly two read this blog. At least they'll be surprised of what they get and not all of it is necessarily in this post anyways.

Clint's relative is actually his cousin's girlfriend (their older kid is in Paula's (my MIL-tengdó) daycare), and she is certain to have a girl (the other two are undecided, may fall either way). So I'm giving the kimono to her. I can't really see a boy in a kimono, which is a shame. Why can't boys wear something cute?



The other things I've finished are couple of bibs. The pedal bib only needed a little blocking but the denim bib needed a button and an appliqué.



You can read more about them on flickr - which makes this an short and uninteresting blog :o

My Lopapeysa is all ready to be sewn up. I bought the zipper yesterday, jacket zipper even. I mean, it's a jacket rather than a cardigan anyways. It's bulky (by that I mean knit out of bulky yarn) so it needs a serious zipper, right?

I was going to tackle this tonight, but came up against a small problem. My MIL's (tengdó) sewing machine is a Singer, who is over 50 years old. (Oh boy, I hope I don't get any hate mail from Baby Boomer singers!). It's not so likely that it can handle the thick fabric of the sweater/jacket.

I'm going to go to JoAnn's tomorrow and see if they will do it for me. I could pretend I was in the market for a sewing machine. Well, technically I am. I will buy a sewing machine, but not until after I've moved. Perhaps not until we've finally settled down (the Ohio University job is a temporary job).



Since you'll have to wait a little longer to see the finished piece I give you this preview. Well, I also wanted to show you (my faithful readers) how the colors come out. I still think each one of the colors are beautiful and both the complementary colors go well with the base color - but the yellow is too bright and completely drowns the green. It looks better in daylight. I suspect that part of my problem is that I've only worked on it (especially the color part) at night, with artificial light.

p.s. we're leaving next Tuesday (27th).

Toasty Toes

One thing I don't have to worry about is cold feet. I finished my Monkey socks.



Here is another view of the pattern.



Better make the best of the good weather we are having and take an outside shot of them in the sun.

The pattern is easily memorized and hard to forget - which came in handy since it took so long to finish them.

The yarn Hjertegarn sock yarn, needles 2,5 mm circular.

This is what I wrote on flickr about them: "It was designed for variegated yarn, but I was looking for a pattern with texture for this yarn. When I saw this pattern I thought it was perfect for the yarn and I started right away. I only finished it now though (about 2 months later?)."

February Dishcloth

February Dishcloth
Originally uploaded by rajnos.

I finally took a picture yesterday. Today the mid-month KAL starts. I finished todays lines and it looks like an interesting pattern. It's a lace pattern. I'm doing the 1st of the month cloths in solid colors (because they have purl-patterns) and the mid-month cloths in variegated (because they have texture). I have about 17 skeins (plus leftover yarn) of kitchen cotton and the majority is variegated. I also have a cone of white yarn and I might knit another one (of the mid-February cloth) in white if the pattern doesn't show up well with the variegated.

The February cloth (in the photo) only had one stitch of garter stitch on the edges and that is not enough. Not for me anyways. Maybe it'll be different after it's washed?

It's about time!

So I finally finished this ornament. I made it the summer that Ása was born (2005), but then I didn't have the right needles to sew it shut. Once I got the needles, I was busy with other things, and never finished it. All I had left was to close it up and sew the cord around it. I'm not to experienced in this kind of thing so that held me back a little.

It's the level 5-2 piece from Victoria Samler Beyond Cross Stitch series.

It's my first (and only) hardanger piece and I stitched it with Rósa Bjarna (we each did our own but pretty much at the same time). It was enjoy to stitch it and a lot of fun to try hardanger.

Here is the post with Rósa's piece, if you want to see it in more details.

Update on the zipped Lopapeysa

So, I went ahead and knit it with the yellow. The good thing is that I love the yellow color. It's a very beautiful color and it fits well with the dark-brown. The bad thing is that it's way to bright compared to the green, and much brighter than the pictures on the internet indicated (manufacturer and store). So the two colors are in two different tones and the yellow stands out too much. Oh, well. I do really like the dark-brown, moss-green, yellow combo.

I'm knitting the collar and is almost done. I have to finish the sweater before we move (in 2 weeks), both because I need a sewing machine and because I need to wear it in Ohio. I

Mid-January Dishcloth

Mid-January Dishcloth
Originally uploaded by rajnos.

Made from 'Sugar'n'cream' as Mid January Dishcloth in the Monthly Dishcloth KAL.

The cables are really clever. The dishcloth would have looked like a swatch if it had been made with the traditional purl stitches around the cables. The garter detail makes this design really special. Some people mind that it doesn't have straight edges but I don't care. I mean, it's a dishcloth!

Janvier

Janvier
Originally uploaded by rajnos.

I finished it last weekend. On Sunday, when I should have been going to the Library Knitting group. This was the last meeting for me since I'm moving and I'd been looking forward to go. But then I just forgot! I can't believe it. They only meet once a month :( I didn't even get to say goodbye.

I am stitching the piece on 28 ct. cotton khaki colored evenweave with DMC colors. The SAL can be found on Maryse's blog.

Stitching blogger's questions

I made a new blog with SBQ post exclusively. These are interesting questions and it's nice to see what other stitcher do and especially how they do things differently than you. You can tap into the stitching community.

To be or not to be Yellow, that's the question!

I finished the January SAL from Maryse. I finished it on Sunday. That's the 4th, a little late, but I think I did pretty good considering I didn't start it until around the 20th!

The photo is stuck in my camera, among other photos.

I'm making a good progress on the lopapeysa (Lopi-sweater). I've joined the sleeves with the body and am about to start the pattern. Only problem is that I don't like one of the color. It's a yellow color and I thought it would be lighter. Now I'd rather want a white one. The store had a pretty strict return policy and I decided it wasn't worth it for one skein. It would have cost me more than to buy a new one. Besides, this yarn (Lamb's pride bulky) is good for felting (so it's nice to have it). But. And it's a big but. No-one sells this yarn around here! There are no yarn stores in Concord only stores like Jo-ann and Beverly's, Micheal's in next city over. They sell yarn, sure. But they basically only sell acrylic yarn or acrylic yarn mixes. This has been changing, as Lion Brand (and others) is going more into wool and exotic fibers. Now Patons even has a soy silk yarn!

I looked at some yarn store that are the closest, but none seem to carry Lamb's pride (I didn't call, just checked their website).

I'm thinking about trying the yellow color. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad? Maybe I can just call order that one skein? I know a store in Oakland that sells it.

The Year of A-Longs

There seems to be a theme to this year (2007). Stitch-a-longs and knit-a-longs or 'A-longs'.

I started doing the Monthly Dishcloth KAL, beginning í Jan. They have KALs, starting the 1. and the 16. of the month. Right now we're on the second day of the Feb. KAL, my third one.

I'm also doing the 'Petite Maison de Campagne' (eng. 'Little Country House') SAL over at Grille de Maryse. I'm still doing the January bit. I thought I was going to have it finished before Feb. rolled around but I haven't been as productive stitcher as I hoped for.

My stitching group, Allt í kross, is having a Secret SAL. I prepared for it weeks ago (about 2 weeks) and the first part comes today. Not that I will be doing any stitching tonight. It's our anniversary. Five years and counting.

Ohio, here we come

Ohio, prepare, the Anderson-Richter* family is coming.

All the more reason to get going on my wool sweater and socks. Plus, Kamilla could need a wool sweater. Instead, the wool sweater is going backwards. I had just about finished the first sleeve, when I ripped it all out. It was too tight. It's supposed to be snug, but it was too much. It was quite wide around the wrist though. I did the smaller size sleeve and it seems I have to start the sleeve like the smaller size (due to small wrists) but then increase a little more frequently for the rest of my arm.

But I haven't really been working on the sweater. I've been making mitered squares (a la Mason-Dixon). I finally found something to do with my leftover cotton from making washrags/dishcloths. I'm will then join them to make a kitchen towel.

Why are we going to Ohio? I got a post-doc position at University of Ohio. We'll be living in a small University town of Athens, OH. And we're leaving in about 2 weeks :o




*In Iceland, women don't change their last name when they get married, simply because Icelanders normally don't have last names. I have one, but that's just because my father's, father's father (or something like that) was German.

FO overload

I got some photos loaded up:



This is the first dishcloth from the Monthly Dishcloth group (which reminds me, the Mid January KAL started today).



This is the crocheted ornament I got in my Christmas 'card' from Garnstudio. It's quick to make and I'm happy I made an ornament at all. See previous post. The thread is a white nylon (or some kind of plastic) with glitter. Very festive ;)



This is a front part of a pillow I'm making. It's made up of crochet solid granny squares. I like these (the solid) better than the regular version. This is inspired by Mustaa Villaa's pot holders and the granny square blanket-wannabe I made (see next picture). It's made out of leftover cotton yarn (Mandarin Classic) and cotton/polyester blended yarn from Europris. I recommend the blended cotton for a pillow since it's softer, but the regular cotton (mercerized) is fine as well.

I was going to use fabric for the back but am leaning towards knitted back.



Here are the girls modeling with the granny square blanket. I made the granny squares, but gave up on the blanket and ended up using the rest of the yarn (I only bought half the yarn required) for the Log Cabin blanket (see next photo) plus other yarn. My stepmom sewed the squares together with the ingenious method of machine sewing (zigzaging) them together. It's looks really good and you can't even tell it's machine sewed. She then sent us the blanket for Christmas.



I finished 8 rounds of the Log Cabin. I still have yarn for at least one more round, but I decided to weave in the remaining ends and use as is for a while and give the project a little rest. Kamilla loves the blanket and thinks it's for her. In reality it's for me but don't tell her ;)

Winter knitting

It's getting to be a more like winter here. Freezing temperatures and whatnot. I wish I'd already finished couple of things that are on my needles.

• Monkey - Knit with green Hjertegarn sock yarn (Danish), which I bought in Álafoss, factory outlet for Icelandic wool. I'm not knitting it with variegated like it's designed for, but it seems to be fine nonetheless. I wanted a textured sock with this yarn and this pattern sure is textured.
  
  I'm knitting them with two circular needles (what else) and the project has been in my purse. Problem is I don't go anywhere and if I do I have 1-2 toddlers with me so I have my hands full anyways. So I have upgraded this project to an around-the-house project.
  
  
• Rennd lopapeysa. This was all the rave couple of years ago. I had no interest in it until I moved here. I knitted the torso already and have started one of the sleeve. It's knit with Lamb's pride bulky, very soft (15% mohair). I just wished it was finished already.
  
  

Then I have a cross stitch project I've been working every day (basically) and a crochet project, that is finished (the crochet part). But the finishing is not done yet. I'll show you the crochet one as soon as I get the photos uploaded from my camera.

Monthly Dishcloth

I completely forgot one project in yesterday's post. I'm knitting the January dishcloth from the Monthly Dishcloth group. I get 10 lines of the pattern a day until it's completed. It's so much fun. The January dishcloth was a star (this is not mine). This will help me use up my kitchen cotton inventory from last summer :) I love it. The group is also very active. Too active if anything. I'm having problems keeping up ;)

There is a KAL (knit-a-long) the first and the 16th of each month. Nice.

Happy New Year

Hi again. I was a little sick. Nothing serious, thank God. But it still required a trip to the emergency room on Jan 2nd. I had an inner ear virus infections and had severe vertigo. The virus is gone and so is the dizziness. All I had to do is wait it out (took about 2-3 days) and to take motion sickness tablets. The worst part was not being able to knit/crochet/stitch (I'm doing a mix of all of the methods these days). No, that's not true. The worst part was hanging on to consciousness during the dizzy spells.

I'm working on different projects right now. The cross stitching picture is still going strong. I'm probably past the 50% point on the crosses, but the backstitch is going to be a drag. I've been working on my Lopapeysa, the modern design but out of Lamb's Pride, which resembles Sandnes Alfa (for the Scandinavian readers). I'm still working on the body. It's a good mindless knitting while I'm watching TV and I've actually been watching a lot of TV lately. Actually I've been watching Comcast On Demand - which is a cable service, where I can get variety of shows and movies. And that's just what I've been doing. I watched the first season of Six Feet Under, which a friend of mine liked. I can see why.

Then I watched Dexter. It's the best TV series I've seen in a long time. Even better than Arrested Development. The actor that plays David on Six Feet Under plays Dexter as well. He's so great. It was hard going back to Six Feet Under (the first 6 shows of Season 2 came On Demand). His role in Dexter is just so much better. The other one (David) was good. Don't get me wrong. But Dexter is so complicated and has so many, different sides to him. For those not in USA, Dexter is a serial killer who kills only killers that the law cannot get to. Serial killer by night, forensic analyst and a loving boyfriend by day. You sympathize with him and you root for him and then you have to explain to yourself how you can sympathize with a serial killer.

This is not a TV blog (although I have to add that yesterday I watched 'Casablanca' for the first time. It's great. But I bet you already knew that.

Ok, ok. Back to crafts. I've also been working on the Log-Cabin Blanket. I've done 8 rounds on it so far. It's going slowly at this point, but it is nice to have in my lap on cold winter nights. Well, it's not that cold. But the blanket is nice and warm anyways. I've been thinking about a border and now I'm leaning towards no border at all.

I've been doing some crocheting. I can't wait to show it on the blog, but I have no pictures of it so far. It deserves a big post on it's own anyways.

Finally I have a sock projects for when I'm on the go. Since I'm never on the go these days, or chasing after toddlers when I do go anywhere, the project is going slowly. I might just have to take it out of the purse ;) But not until I finish some of those other projects I have at the moment.

Julehilse

I got a Christmas greeting (julehilse) from Garnstudio. In the greeting was a pattern for crochet Christmas ornament. I had glittered white crochet thread, which came in handy. That same night (same day as I got the greeting), Ása Sóley wouldn't go to sleep, which is very unusual for her. I took her back outside and did this ornament in about 45 min and then took her back inside to sleep. I think it would only take me 30 min if I did it again, since it is in Danish, so I had to figure out the names of the stitches, and that included treble, which I've never done before. So I actually made a Christmas ornament. I'm very proud of myself.

I tried to finish another ornament. It's a stitched ornament. I did the stitching long time ago. Then I was almost done finishing it up but I needed small pointed needles so I put it aside. I didn't even take it back out after I got the right needles. I almost finished it this Christmas, but I had trouble putting the cord around the edges. Maybe next Christmas then?

Post Christmas Stress Disorder

No, not really. I had the most relaxing Christmas ever. Chistmas in Iceland are just so much more big of a deal. More formal and more serious. Which is not a bad thing. It was nice, nontheless, to experience relaxing and laid back Christmas.

So what do you do on Christmas, when you've finished all your Christmas knitting? Why of course you start a Christmas stitching project. About time I did some stitching. This should be ready for next Christmas. I can't be more timely - 365 days for finishing IT.




IT is a Christmas Stocking kit from Bucilla, which I got in a birthday game in my cross stitching group last year (note - not this year). So I've had it for a while and I thought it was a good time to start on it. It's nice to get back in the stitching gear. I've been doing a little bit of stitching, maybe a month or so ago, although I didn't share it on the blog. I like this design because it only covers the cuff of the stocking, and not the entire stocking. So there is actually a possibility that I'll finish it eventually. It is also a simple design and I'm not used to stitch designs that have so large areas of the same color. I does make it fast though. I'm making a big progress already since I'm sticking to the large areas. I'm not getting bored either, since I cleverly listen to a audiotape while I'm stitching. I'm also remembering how exciting it is to see the design unravel on the canvas/cloth.

I still can't upload photos from my camera and the photo above is the only one I found online of this design. I hope you can see it at all.

Þorláksmessa

The title of refers to the name of this day in Icelandic. No skate for me today. Wouldn't mind it though.

I finished the Christmas knitting today and wrapped it save for couple of pairs of wristwarmers I wanted to press first. The iron is missing though so I don't know if I will be able to press it at all. So now I can knit whatever I want.

I finished a ballband dishcloth from Mason Dixon. This one has been lingering in my knitting bag (or one of my knitting bags) for over 2 months (since October). I'm glad to have it finished. I even sew in the ends. So what's next, the log-cabin or my sweater, hmm...

Christmas blog

Christmas is right around the corner. Wednesday I had another job interview, a repeating interview, where I had to prepare a 30 min presentation. So I didn't really spend a lot of time thinking about Christmas until now.

I'm making Xmas presents. They should be ready in time, if I work on them ;)

Rebecca had this nice little (or not so little) meme. I just couldn't resist.

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? One Christmas, me, Clint and couple of friends came together and made real alcaholic egg nog. It was nice and tasty. I don't think I've ever had non-alcaholic egg nog so I can't really tell if I like that or not. I've never associated Christmas and hot chocolate - perhaps jólaglögg (juleglögg?). Jólaglögg is pretty tasty - I think I'd pick jólaglögg over egg nog.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? I don't know how this Santa character operates.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? I like blue personally. But it depends. White are festive and tasteful. Red are good too. I think I like one color better than mixing of colors.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? No
5. When do you put your decorations up? Hopefully around Dec. 1st. This year we don't have any decorations though. Left them in Iceland.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Rjúpa (Ptarmigan) og skata (skate) but I don't like hamborgarahryggur (smoked pork back), unless it's lightly smoked lamb's back.
7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Meeting my cousins on Christmas day at a Christmas party at our Grandmother/Grandfather's house and playing with each others christmas presents.
8 . When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I was suspicious and then I notice my mom put candy in my shoe and not the julelad (see here: http://www.icelandweatherreport.com)
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We've always opened all of our presents on Christmas Eve. That's just how we do things in Iceland. First Service, then Christmas dinner, then dishwashing and then presents.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? Just regular christmas decorations.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? White Christmas is nice.
12. Can you ice skate? Yeah.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? No
14. What's your favorite thing(s) about the holidays? In Icelandi it was all the lights.
15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Möndlugrautur - is there another one?
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? University really screwed Christmas for me since I had exams until Dec. 21st. I'm not back on track yet.
17. What tops your tree? See nr. 5.
18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Giving, especially if I can give a handmade gift.
19. What is your favorite Christmas song? Gloria, that latin one.
20. What is your favorite holiday book? There are holiday books?
21. Candy canes yuck or yum? They make for nice decoration and those little ones are nice for eating.
21. What's number one on your Christmas list this year? World peace, yarn (not necessarily in this order). No, just kidding. I'll be glad to get anything at all this year.

I'm going to try to post this through Google Docs. I didn't succeed doing that for my diary blog, hopefully it'll work here.

I'm even going to try to attach some photos. My camera still wouldn't connect to the computer. I fear the connection is broken.



Here above you can see another pedal bib from One Skein (the book). This time I knit it using Rowan Handknit Cotton. I like the colour and I like the heaviness of the cotton for the bib. I made the previous pedal bib from a acrylic blended cotton. It was soft but not sturdy enough. My little niece got it and her mom likes it. It'll be fine for drools.

Ása Sóley is trying to grab the bib through the grid. I just managed to take the photo before she confiscated the bib ;)



Here you can see one of the Mason-Dixon washcloths all wrapped up and ready to be gifted. I gave this to a nice lady that found and returned my wallet few months back. I don't think I ever shared this photo.

Now, let's see if I can publish this on my blog.

Christmas knitting

I couldn't resist knitting for Christmas. I'm in the process of knitting 2 pairs of Fetching for my sisters-in-law. It's a fun little pattern. It's a quick knit but at the same time it's interesting. I even learnet a new technique - cable cast-on, which gives the mittens a nice edge and at the top there is a picot bind-off, another first for me, also a nice finishing. All I have left is the thumb for the last one. Weave in ends for two of them and block.

I am going to make 3 more pairs of wristwarmers/gauntlets/fingerless mitts / whatever you call'em for our Nieces and nephew. I'm waiting for the yarn and it should come on Monday (Rowan Felted Tweed). It's a pattern I thought of myself, and I'm very excited about it. It's quite clever, if I do say so myself. I'm going to try to submit it to an online magazine so I don't want to talk about it too much. I made a prototype of them in kitchen cotton. Even in cotton the mittens are quite warm. I will, however, have to change the pattern when I make them in the Rowan yarn, since it has a smaller gauge. That shouldn't be too hard.

Strings

Strings
Originally uploaded by rajnos.

I felt like sewing in the ends of my Log Cabin blanket and ended up with this mountain of strings. In the background is my podcas running, probably Cast-on (cast-on.com).

I started an Icelandic zipped up sweater in Lamb's pride bulky. I love the yarn. It's so soft and it knits up in the same gauge as Lopi (for me at least). I just don't feel like knitting it. I just wanted to continue with the blanket tonight.

Ása's Socks in Use

Ása's Socks in Use
Originally uploaded by rajnos.

Off the needles and on the foot!

Not much knitting done this weekend. We had a rental car and made the most out of it, so I wasn't home (and no I can't knit in a car, I get carsick).

I had a job interview on Friday. It went well. Friday night I met with some Icelandic women, so it was a long day. I left at a 6 AM and wasn't home until 12 PM. Saturday we went for a drive after the kids woke up from their nap (gave me time to finish the socks) and on Sunday we went to meet my husband's great grandmother. She's 96 and a very nice lady. She lives in her own home and is very agile for her age. She even played the organ for us.

Nice weekend, despide the little knitting that took place, he he.

Asa Soley's socks

I took a photo of Ása's socks as well [Edited - The socks are now finished.]. The first one is done at the moment. The yarn is thicker and I'm using 3 mm needles instead of the 2.5 mm. I'm actually following Cat Bordhi's basic sock pattern to the T. It wasn't what I started out with. The top part (ribbing) is acutally about inch shorter (3.5" vs. 4.5") than in her pattern because I just knit one repeat of the yarn (blue to start of blue). I knit the heel flap k1s1. I didn't do it with Kamilla's sock and I found the heel flap too wide compaired to the ribbing. After I turned the heel I desided to continue the ribbing and then it accured to me that I had in fact followed her pattern all the way through). It's a good pattern.

Kamilla's socks

Kamilla's socks
Originally uploaded by rajnos.

I finally just took a photo on my cellphone. I sent it to flickr and I can blog through them.

These are Kamilla's socks and she loves them. I'm so happy about that because kids usually don't like what you make for them and you have to love them in spite of it. he he But it does give you a lesson in not expecting the recipient to love your knitting as much as you do. But that's not the case now.

Moving on

I'm over the felting failure. The reason (beside the time that has passed) is that I rediscovered sock knitting. I've knit couple of pairs of socks, actually two for me and two pairs of toddler size socks. It's never really fascinated me.

I was intrigued by knitting socks on two circulars. I came across this idea some time ago, but it seemed so complicated. This summer I acquired Cat Bordhi's book on the subject, which has been sitting and waiting for me to be ready to try it. I've been giving this some thought and I decided I wanted to make plain socks but in interesting pattern. I needed wool socks for my kids, so it was the perfect opportunity. I got some discountinued sock yarn on knitpicks.com (~$2.50) and got started. At first I thought, why just knit one sock. Why not do both? Let alone that the only experience I had with two circulars was knitting the top of my Odessa hat.



Well I started it that way, but it was very complicated. Not so much the knitting part but I had a big problem with the yarn tangling up, since I only had one skein and I had to knit from both ends, plus that would mean that the socks wouldn't match. Eventually I took one of them of the needles. Oh, boy. Oh, boy. It was amazing. I just love it. I've fallen in love with sock knitting, head over heel. It is so much fun.



It's so much faster because you have fewer junctions and only 2 needles instead of 5. The knitting is more even because I used to have a big problem with ladders. I just couldn't stop the gap that formed where the needles joined. I don't yank needles of the stitches and I don't have to worry about loosing the working needle when I lay my project down.

I remember the toddler size socks I did before. The top part of them (the ribbing) seemed endless and to take forever. This time, it was over before I knew. I already finished the pair and all that is left is the crafting of the toe on the second one. I can't do that with out the instructions in the computer. So I couldn't do that last night. Even that part seems easier now for some reason. I've never been able to master it before but now it seems so much simpler.

The socks were knit on 2.5 mm needles. These are old metal needles from my mom. The knitting would have been even smoother and easier with newer needles, either Addi Turbo or KnitPicks. The pattern is kind of a mix and match. I looked at my original toddler sock pattern from a Sandnes Christmas collection, but the stitch count seemed a little high and Kamilla's old socks were always too loose on top (they were just put over the trousers instead of under). I looked at Knitting Rules!, online patterns as well as Cat Bordhi's book. The stitch count varied from 44 to 50 sitches. I ended up casting on 48 stitches. I did k2 p2 ribbing. The heel flap and the rest of the sock is knit in stockinette and follows Cat Bordhi's basic sock pattern (except I didn't continue the ripping on the instep like her pattern does).

While I was knitting the first one I kept trying it on Kamilla. She loved it and even asked to try them on. The second one was easier since I just followed the color pattern on the first one. The color changes are perfect. I wish I could show you pictures of the finished product but I'm having an uploading problem with my camera.

Felting gone wrong

It's been a while since I meant to write this post but lots of things are going on. I have a cold that just wouldn't go away and I have to prepare a presentation for a job interview.

So, the story goes like this:

When I was in Iceland last June, I meant to buy yarn for another pair of slippers for my husband. He wore the other ones down and he really likes them and asked me to make another pair. When I was in Europris I found a yarn that looked perfect for felting so I got that instead of the recommended yarn. It was cheaper and it saved me an extra trip to Hagkaup to buy Fritidsgarn. I bought a bunch of the yarn so I could make more pairs. It turned out the yarn was a little thicker then Fritidsgarn but I proceeded making the slippers just using bigger needles on a smaller size. I also made a bowl from the book 'One Skein' and when the slippers were done I make a box from Mason-Dixon knitting out of some more of the yarn. I loved the box. I liked the colors and it basically stood up by itself. (It was knit double stranded (tvöfalt garn) ).



Things just went downhill from there. I washed the stuff and realized that this yarn doesn't felt well. Earlier I had washed the bowl, it didn't felt well but I thought that might be because it is a toploader (the washer) and because I just put it in a normal full load. It turned out that wasn't the case at all. The slippers didn't shrink at all and the box grew if anything :( and it became softer and doesn't hold up as well.



Buh hu hu ;(

Kinda Lost

I'm kind of lost right now, knitting wise. I've finished the bulk of the little projects I have and the others are not calling me. I have a crochet project, but I lost the hook. I have a washrag, but that's more of a travelling project and in-between project (I have actually been using it a bit lately). I have the log-cabin blanket, but the yarn is now in my bedroom and everytime I need it the bedroom contains a sleeping baby. Finally I have a shawl, Swallowtail shawl from Interweave Knits Fall 06, but I was knitting it while listening to the Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman and now, when I pick it up and start knitting I feel that I miss the book and I can't stop thinking about it. It's not often that books have this effect on me. So I become a little sad. Plus, the pattern is not easy (or least not for me for some reason) so I tend to make mistakes and then spending a long time to try to fix them.

I ordered yarn on Ebay for couple of christmas presents. It never showed up. The seller is going to send me more in different color. It's weird how the yarn just disappeared.

Well. I have to go now. Being harassed by Kamilla :) he he. Next post will continue in the same depressing manner, when I talk about my recent adventures in felting.

Odessa in pictures

Isn't she georgeous?

And my Log Cabin blanket. It's growing, slowly but getting there. Just started round 7.



I couldn't help but put one of Ása in an alert state. She's wearing the Magknits sweater I made for her and what's more - she loves it! It's so great when your kids want to wear what you make them.

Knitting HD - Odessa

In the online cross stitching world, finishing a piece is called Happy Dance (HD). Usually pieces take so long to make that you are really happy when they are finally finished. Or least that's the understanding I have of that term.

Tonight I finished the Odessa hat. Happy Happy.

There is a knitting group that meets at my library first Sunday of the month. Last Sunday the theme was beaded knitting and the month's project was a beaded scarf. I wasn't terribly interested in the scarf but I was interested in beaded knitting so I was inspired to make Odessa instead. I started last Saturday (one week since now) and I just finished it. It should have been a much faster project. Partly I was working on other things (finally finished the knitting part of my husband's slippers) and partly the needle I had slowed me down. For the most part of the knitting you use 16" (40cm) 4 mm (US6) needle and my needle that fits that size is cheap and horrible. The joint is as un-smooth as can be, there is actually a little ball of plastic where a smooth joint should be. I also have a longer 4 mm needle from the same company and that has a bad joint as well. I got these two needles because I was going to knit a sweater with them and I got them at the same place where I got the yarn (and it was the only kind they had). I was happy that the needles were cheap but now I can't knit the sweater :(

When it came to decreasing and I had to switch to dpn (sokkprjónar) I realized that I had no dpn in 4mm. I didn't feel it was worth it getting these needles just to knit few rounds at a top of a hat, plus it meant I had to go out to get them. Lately I've been wanting to knit socks with 2 circular needles instead of 5 sock needles (dpn) and I thought perhaps I can knit the top of the hat with 2 circulars. I got out my KnitPicks Options (which didn't come with 16" cable so I couldn't use it in the first place) and got a 4mm needle together. It was great using this method. Much easier then I thought it would be. I already have Cat Bordhi's book and it came in handy too. I can't wait using this method to make socks. It seems a lot faster that with dpns.

I have found couple of new problems with the Options. It doesn't come with 16" cables :( The other problem is perhaps my fault. It's called 'forskrúfa' in Icelandic and it means that I can't tighted the needle on the cable because it will just turn and turn. This has happened with one (out of 2) 24" and one (out of 2) 32" cable that came with the set. I do however still love to knit with these needles. And they where much much better than the other crappy 4 mm needle I had been using. Much faster.

Back to Odessa. I did make one kind of big mistake. I read the pattern wrong and put beads every 6th row instead of every 4th. I didn't realize this until I was starting the decreases. I briefly considered starting over but I liked the beading and didn't think it would be any better if it was denser. So I stuck with it.

I knit it in the suggested yarn, Rowan Cashsoft DK, which is buttery soft. It only takes one skein and there is a bundle left over. This hat is kind of short. You can see it in the model hat (the top most one) and I find this a little uncomfortable. If I would knit this hat again I would make it a little longer, perhaps a centimeter or half an inch. There seems to be enough yarn for it. I got the beads at a local bead store 'Just Bead It'. I love the name.

It's too late for photos now. Hopefully tomorrow.

Future Knitters

I just found these pictures I took about a month ago (yeah, that's how much I orginize my photos - don't ask about developing).



At least they are showing interest.

Instead of blogging about yesterday's knitting

Very fitting, don't you think?

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The new needle set

Ok, I figured it out. There is a little hole that goes through the cable part on both sides. I remember there being a little metal object in the set (along with some stuff I wasn't going to use anyways, some stoppers. That little object fits perfectly in the little hole and the needles tighten up nicely and I have no more problems with the needles loosening up. I wish they had a directions to go with the set. I was having problems also with figuring out the pouches. What goes into what. They had cables and needles but then 3 different sizes of pouches. I guess you can have it any way you want but it would be nice to know what the pouches were intented for.

What's going on?

I have startitis. I just can't stop starting new projects. I started two more on Monday and I haven't even finished the other two I started the other day.

I've been trying the new needles. I love how they are fast and pointy. The only problem I've been having is that the needles tend to un-screw. Does anyone know how to avoid that?

Needles!

I got my birthday present from my mom in the mail today. It was KnitPicks Options. I'm so excited about this and glad. I had to cancel at least one project because the needles I got were bad quality (the yarn snagged too much) and now I have fast, sharp-pointed needles for about everything I need and if I do need different needle sizes it is cheap to get them.

Log-ing on

My 60" Addi Turbo came in the mail yesterday so I revisited the Log Cabin blanket. I hadn't worked on it for about a week or ever since it became as long as my needle. It's nice working on the Log Cabin.

I haven't been doing much this week actually. The other day I even went to sleep before Kamilla (age 3 - she was not alone, just if anyone is wondering). The day before that I had actually been working on photos and not knitting/stitching. I've also been revisiting cross stitchin/embroidery projects at bit but I've been lacy with the camera.

I did put a lot of cross stitch photos on my flickr. My dad got me a pro flickr account for my birthday, he he. What a great idea. I mean, I'm all the way on the other side of the world. It's not as if he could have wrapped something in and sent it. My mom also got me something that is still on it's way - knitting related. It's sooooooo cooooool. I can't wait to share it with you guys. I just don't want to jinx it and talk about it before it comes.

Projects multiplying

Yesterday (Monday) I started two projects. They are both small. That's all I have to say for myself. He he. One is the petal bib from One Skein. I got some Rowan Handknit Cotton in San Francisco on Sunday and it knits up beautifully for this pattern.

As I was knitting it I decided to make a market bag for my mother-in-law. She goes to the farmer's market any change she gets so I hope she can use it. I'm planning to make this a christmas present. The bag is crocheted and comes on a Sugar'n'cream ballband. The pattern is also available on their website, all you have to do is to register (it's free).

That's not all because on Sunday I started a project as well. I also finished one so I don't know if it counts, he he. I had only a little bit left on the 10th Mason Dixon ballband washrag and I finished it on the train to San Francisco (I went to celebrate my birthay - without kids, I wrote about it on my weblog/diary but in Icelandic, I went to couple of museums (Exploratorium and de Young) and the Greenwich yarn store, met up with a friend, had the best burrito in town and went back home, almost got kicked out of the train - but otherwise an quiet day) and started a new one.

The log cabin blanket is on a unscheduled leave. I order 60" (150 cm) circular needle in order to continue and it is on it's way.

Logging on

I'm finishing the 5th round of the log cabin. I love to knit this. Now I know why people become so obsessed with log-cabin knitting. It's instant gratifications since you finish each patch relatively quickly (although it takes longer each round) and then you get to choose a new color so it is creative all the way (not just in the beginning).

I'm comming up against one problem. I'm running out of space on my needles. I figure I have perhaps one round left until I have to get longer needles. I'm using 32" circular (80cm) and I have to find longer ones. I saw 40" (100 cm) needles online. Maybe they will do. I don't know how big the blanket is going to end up. I think they have bigger ones. I'll have to find out.

Log cabin, part II

.. in which I hope to be able to show you my progress photo.

I better start with the photo.



This photo was taken couple of days ago and I've already done bunch more. I've knit 4 rounds but in the photo I had only knit 3.

I have been stitching a little. I actually finished Woodland Grace. See:



I can't believe I actually finished a stitching project! This little piece took a loooonnnng time to finish.

Last Sunday (it's already Saturday - this is how slow of a blogger I am) I went to a knitting meeting at the library. I forgot all about it but fortunately I saved it in my phone so it reminded me. It was a lot of fun. I haven't seen other knitters at all since I came here. We were making doilies/dish rags but I didn't bring the correct yarn. For some reasons I brought wool! I was in a hurry going there so I just grabed anything. I have a drawer full of kitchen cotton and I grab the wool! Crikey! (yes I am a Steve Irwin fan)

Log cabin

At last I started the log cabin. The weather is getting colder so now I can start knitting with wool again. In the summer it was just too hot. I remember when Brenda started doing her series of sense of place. I didn't really know what she meant. I thought she meant designing influenced from the landscape around you. But now I'm slowly going through these episodes and I can see that she meant how what we knit is influenced by where we are.

This became obvious for me this summer. I'm used to knitting with wool and nothing but wool but in 40°C+ it is not possible, not even at night. So I started knitting small pieces in cotton. Now I can knit with wool again and I started a log cabin blanket. I can see why people love it so much and become obsessed. I reckon it will be more tiresome as the blanket gets bigger but at the moment I'm just enjoying it tremendously. It is a project that you can work on without having to think too much. You just knit. This makes it a perfect project to grab when you get some time to knit but can't really sit down and concentrate on it. I take it outside while I'm watching the kids in the backyard or if they are quiet for a while.

I knew I couldn't finish. I'll post this now and post the picture later.