Getting Ready to Teach!

I am getting excited to teach my summer classes. I am working up the Homage design in another yarn to test and refine the directions, and its going well. The other yarn is called Bonsai from Berocco. It is a bamboo ribbon with a tiny, shiny strand of rayon wrapped around it. Luscious, with a little bit of just-right glitz. Lovely texture, but the stitches don't get totally lost. Photos to come. I have the Homeward Bound socks just about done and the pattern writing is coming along. I am still working through old projects and am just about finished with a square poncho called a pelerine and a prayer shawl. I am absolutely exhilerated by all this finishing I'm doing. Next in the queue is a Philospher's Wool kit to prepare for fall's Philosopher's Phinishing Phrolic class at Cloverhill. After that, I will get to my Magnum Opus--the Alice Starmore Rona jacket with 20 exquisite colors that make me happy just looking at the 6 inches of it I've done over the last 6 years or so. I will wear that jacket this fall and you are my witnesses!

Preview of my Summer Tee Shirt design for this summer's class at Cloverhill

Here is my latest design: "Homage". It is designed around the concepts Elizabeth Zimmermann used for her designs, principally the percentage system. It is indeed an homage to Elizabeth herself, because it is from her writings that I gained the confidence to design. In that spirit, it is knit in the round all the way to the underarms, the sleeves are joined and it continues in one piece using EZ's brilliant shaping to give the look of set in sleeves, which for me is more flattering than a raglan. It continues in the round to the neck bind off, then after the neck is started it remains one piece, but is knit flat for a few inches, then a few short rows are added to the shoulders, the shoulders are bound off together, the underarms woven and voila! It is ready to wear. I chose not to steek the neck because of the cotton/acrylic yarn, and that presented some interesting engineering challenges, but I loved the process of figuring it out and can't wait to share what I learned with my students. Best of all, I genuinely like the sweater-it fits perfectly.

This is my Summer Tee Shirt design for the class I'll be teaching this summer at the shop. These pictures are me, with no special effects, so this is what it looks like on a real, 40-year-old body (size 10-12) with a real tummy and upper arms that, shall we say, reflect my age. I like the way the elbow length sleeves are cool enough for spring or summer, but are much more flattering than a short or cap sleeve that falls right in the middle of that aforementioned area that, shall we say, reflects my age.

Apple Blossom Moebius Scarf

Back from Seattle with Two, count 'em, TWO finished projects!

I finished the erstwhile Rainbow Jacket by Vivian Hoxbro! I think I hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing "Halleluja!"

The photos show how nicely the shadow effect shows up. I started this three(?) years ago to support a class and was in sight of finishing when I had to take out half of it and start that half from scratch. I was bogged down with other things, sick of the tiny stitches and slightly boring knitting, and so it sat. But now, it is done and well worth it. I wore it everywhere on my trip to Seattle and got many compliments on it. It's a brilliant design. It fits well, is a perfect weight, and goes with lots of things or jazzes up plain black trousers and a black top very nicely. I found a beaded necklace and earring set in a craft consignment shop in Port Townsend, WA that picks up all the colors.

I also finished the Lacy Moebius out of Mama E laceweight. It is very pretty. Here is a little taste of the lovely bit of delicacy that I ended up with.

Because I finished the two projects I had room to bring, I indulged in some Artyarns merino and started the Homeward Bound socks on the plane. I got this far already. I am totally designing on the fly, just a couple of cryptic notes and charts, and I really like them so far.

Finished Blanket

Here are some shots of the blanket I made for Christa, Jeff's ex-girlfriend. She is still a friend of the family and I had started this for her high school graduation almost 2 years ago. I hang my head in shame. Anyway, I finished it, sent it off and she likes it. It is made with three strands of Wool in the Woods yarns. I love the way they shimmer. The colors remind me of Monet's garden maybe or a wisteria bush in bloom.

Summer Tee and Moebius experiments

Photos to come...
but I am working hard on my two big projects for spring classes-an original summer shell based on the work of Elizabeth Zimmermann and a lace moebius made of Mama E yarn. More on that later. My blogging life has been put on hold lately, but I'm ready to get back in the habit. I have tons of photos of FO's and other things, so stay tuned.

Sweet Skills

I plan on petitioning the TKGA for a special dispensation of the Master Knitter recognition after tonight's lesson. No, just kidding. I am pretty proud of myself, though. I sucessfully taught a left handed knitter who knits from left to right (the opposite direction that I knit) the Armenian/Philosopher's Wool/Extreme Trapping method of two color knitting tonight. I was able visualize the whole process in reverse, get her going and completely mirror image the usual way of doing it. It was, I just have to say, a pretty scha-weet experience for a total knitting geek like me.

Everyone else she has approached has told her she knits wrong and to change. I can understand that, and I have no criticism for her other teachers because not everyone can reverse their knitting. I can. Don't know why I can, but I can. Not bragging, just stating the facts. Anyway, she was creating a lot of twisted knitting and was very frustrated. She taught herself to knit the typical way, but it never felt comfortable. She has taken to the mirror image knitting like a duck to water. Even the motions to trap the yarn in tonight's lesson made sense to her. When the hard-wiring of the brain is respected, the student attains flow. They gain confidence and start to feel like a Knitter. I salute my student for sticking with it and not settling for less than satisfying knitting. You go, girl.

So, do you think I could convince the TKGA??

Spinning Report and FO's

The Journey to Yarn:

Above is the hand-dyed top from Interlacements. Top is a very thick rope of prepared fiber. It is pretty much impossible to spin from unless you spin from the fold, but I am not experienced enough yet and have not tried that. So, I split the top into halves or even thirds or fourths and then I....

Pre-draft. Above you can see that the colors have softened a bit, and the strand of fiber is thinner. This is now spinnable. Just for comparison...

Above is a section of the top with its sister section pre-drafted. I doubled up the pre-drafted fiber to match the color changes in the original top so you can see how much longer it gets. Sort of. Next comes....

Singles. Here is the pre-drafted fiber spun into singles. I was really going for a softer, thicker yarn this time around. I got better at the softer, thicker thing as I went along, and here is what I came up with after plying:

It reminds me of Colinette Prism-a thick-thin hand-dyed confection that combines a very thin binder yarn with a softly spun core yarn. I am happy with it, even though the other yarn I've spun from this top is totally different. I'll combine it somehow and it will be great fun.

As for FO's, I finished the dead-easy Transitions jacket this past weekend at the cabin. The yarn does the talking, and I've already gotten tons of complements on it, but for the dinero that yarn set me back, I don't know if I'm happy enough with the finished item. I am actually considering ripping it out and doing it over at a smaller gauge or making a smaller size. I have finished 3 blocks for Erin and Michelle's project, and I've pulled out all my "circus colors" for Afghans for Afghans. Click on the link to see what their latest need is. I teach Big Easy on Wednesday. I decided to leave that where it is so I can show people how it will look when it is divided for the fronts and backs. I also finished the scarf I started for my stash project. I am very excited. So far the stash count for balls of yarn used in appropriate and beautiful ways: 3!

Here are the completed matching hat and mittens that I sent to the mitten tree at the elementary school They were soft and really fun to do. Mittens have become like socks for me-must be from all those arm-covers I did-and I can knit them up without a pattern or anything. That is definitely the most enjoyable kind of knitting for me. Big Easy is coming along. I may actually finish it before class starts next Wednesday. I have tons of great notes, though and I am entering the 21st century by using my blog to post tidbits for my students. We'll see how it goes.

Works in Progress

Here is my first ever experience knitting with unspun yarn. This is not icelandic, like the kit I have waiting for me upstairs to make Meg Swansen's superlative Icelandic coat. This is Fingerlakes Woolen Mill Unspun. Soft and yummy it is. The wool comes as a big flat "cake". For this project, which was gifted to me by a friend at church who inherited it from her Grandma's stash, 4 strands are used, so the "cake" is divided into two sections by lifting out the center few inches, then using the inner and outer strands of each remaining spiral of yarn. It is going pretty smoothly and has been a nice break from all the frenzied deadline knitting. This will be a fitted helmet-type hat called Betty's Well-Shaped Hood. It is a classic pattern from Patternworks from many years ago.

Here is the Nicky Epstein Felted Bag from the current issue of VK. Gail and I are teaching it as a class together. This is obviously not felted yet. The version in the magazine is in lovely soft berry colors. Gail is doing something like that, but we thought it would be fun to show the different effect of doing the same pattern in neutrals. I like the way it is turning out.

Below is the Big Easy by Beth Brown-Reinsel. It is an easy circular pullover that features Gansey-like elements. I am enjoying the knitting very much. The patterning keeps the rows just flying by. The yarn is Wool Pack 10 ply, and it is showing off the stitchwork nicely. I swatched with 3 other yarns. One can understand why traditional ganseys are done with a very tightly twisted yarn. Anything with texture or even a heathered color just swallowed up the subtle knit-purl patterns.

Holiday Cheer and Class Reports

The holiday ornament class went really well last week. Everyone one in the class was a familiar face and I just love that. I got the Sophia Hat and wristwarmer pattern published for Chris. She just got in a bunch of that yarn and I had done the hat a few years ago. It is a luscious wool/llama blend dyed in yummy soft colors by those fabulous Wool in the Woods girls-Missy and Anita. The hat turned out well and I hope it will appeal to folks as a nice last minute gift-hat on size 9 needles-quick, quick, quick!
The last session of Chinese Lantern went well,too. It is such a thrill to see everyone have success and finish. One student made hers into a circular vest and one made the center chart into an intarsia contrast panel. One did hers in Karabella Aurora 8 and I was so enthralled with it that I've ripped mine out in the Naturespun sport and am going to redo it in the KA8. I don't know which color yet. There were a couple done in Galway which shows off the stitches beautifully-and those two were looking fantastic. All in all, it was a parade of masterpieces in the making. Go Girls!

Einstein

Okay, so maybe I don't feel like a genius, like Sally Melville promises, but I am glad to have my einstein finished. It is quite unique in the touch me. Once again, blogger's issues with the Mac platform are making it hard for me to put up photos, but I'll get them up. The fabric of the washed and dried Touch Me really does beg to be fondled, as the name implies. It drapes and slinks like nothing I've ever knitted before. The downside of that is that it is already growing longer with each wearing and I have to do some research to find out if I can rewash it or block it somehow to refresh it between wearings. I found some awesome buttons, and overall, I am really happy with it. Some of the students in the class are pretty much done as well. A couple are going to add collars so they will stop by the shop and see me. I love keeping those contacts alive. Students are the best. Sometimes I like teaching better than the actual knitting!

All My Projects

So, Stitches was GREAT! I took no photos, but I found out that my face is in the new flyer for Stitches West in two places. if you go here you can download a pdf of the brouchure and check me out. How funny is that? It is especially funny that it is the same photo in two places. Actually, the art director at XRX is a superb lady and she did a great job, it is just so wierd to see one's face in such a context. I am also featured in the video clips of teachers. Tee hee.

Anyway, here is a non-exhaustive list of everything in active production right now:
Einstein-chocolate Touch Me Almost DONE!
5-color challenge-hat and scarf
Landscape shawl-still perking along-am up to the reeeaaallly long rows now
Truly Tasha shawl started about 6 years ago-nothing left but about 2 feet of the edging!
Socks that Rock-done but no longer for Sara-she likes shorty socks-now I know
Chinese Lantern-sleeves and finishing are all that it lacks
3 pairs of orphaned socks in yarns I can't remember-well one is Cestari wool and cotton-the others are various hand-dyed boutique yarns
Whew. I will get all this done because I am excited to! I have been really good about not buying new stuff because I keep thinking of the embarrasment of riches I have in my own closets and under my beds and in the basement, and...well, you know...

Stitches East

Stitches is coming! The big expo starts tomorrow. I am experiencing my normal butterflies but preparing has become much easier as I've standardized my handouts and samples for each class. I basically just have to print the handouts and pick up my tote for that particular class. All my classes sold out (!) which just amazes me. I look forward to meeting and interacting with the students and doing my best to field their questions. I learn so much from them and the act of helping them discover their strengths. Well, I'm off to wind yarn samples. I will take some pictures of my classes and post them on Monday. Have a great weekend everyone!

Crazy Spinning

So, what do you do when you have about 4 deadlines, you've had a sucky couple of days and you're in the mood to get rid of some stress? You drop everything and spin, of course! Especially if you haven't used a spinning wheel in about 4 years (I use my handspindle all the time, but the wheel's been gathering dust). Well, it was a good spinning week. I was first inspired by meeting THE Mama-E whose fabulous yarn and fiber have become favorites at the shop. She has even created a Cloverhill Exclusive Colourway in Chris's favorites of purple and green. So, when I got home after meeting the lovely and talented Erin, I looked through my sock yarn and found to my delight a braid of her hand-dyed fiber in a beautiful color called Pink Flamingo. So, I got busy and got most of it spun Wednesday evening then finished Thursday morning. I plied it Thursday afternoon and took it in to show all my dear shop-pals. They were so sweet as I pranced around like a little kid showing off--"Lookee lookee its my first EVER handspun yarn!"
I've been playing around with spinning for years and have miles and miles of singles on bobbins and in sandwich bags and on handspindles, but this, this luscious pink stuff is my first completed yarn. I was simply inspired! I am so excited! I have rediscovered spinning to be a wonderful foil to knitting. Calming to the mind, tactile, rhythmic, colorful, etc, but in a totally different way than knitting. So, I am off on a totally new fiber adventure that so far is meshing perfectly with the knitting. I have already started spinning the Interlacements merino top I bought a while back and am about halfway done. I am trying out a lendrum wheel and so far I like it a lot. There are a few things I like better about my used Ashford Traditional, but I am actually spinning more consistently on the lendrum. I've had fewer screw-ups. Whether that's just the sudden extra practice or something about the wheel I haven't figured out. The biggest advantage of the lendrum is that it is a traveling wheel. I can pack it up easily and take it to spin-ins, classes, etc. So, we'll see. Just because I'm silly and so very proud, here's another photo of my pink-flamingo before it becomes hat for Sara:

Very Little to do with Socks

It was one of those days. You know the kind I mean. Everything went wrong. No one could find socks, everyone needed something ironed at the last minute in spite of my pleading the night before to get things ready. My patience unraveled completely. I found myself locked in one of those arguments with my teenaged son. You know the kind I mean. I was actually shouting at him about controlling his temper. Yeah. The world had gone crazy. I got everyone where they needed to go and even got them home again, but I was still out of sorts. There was nothing for it. I put myself in time-out and went to my room.

The weather was beautiful-all bright blue skies with flaming foliage below, but my still-thin skin was used to the humid summer air that is as fat and plump as a down comforter. This thin, clear stuff left me chilly on days like this one. The heat was not on yet, so in addition to everything else, when I went to my room, I was cold and achy all the way to my bones.

I stood in my closet to change my clothes. I was drawn irresistibly to my knitted things. I have lots of fleecy sweatshirts and running jackets, but they were too high-tech and put-together for today. I needed something comfortingly imperfect that would accept me in my utterly unreasonable grumpy state. Something with pills and maybe a moth hole. So, I looked over my sweaters and chose the oldest and most worn. It was my first real, original design and as it slipped over my head and settled into its place on my body, I felt somehow better. LIke an old friend was embracing me, but one who didn't need to hear words to understand how I felt. My breathing eased for the first time that day. From there I went to my dresser and chose socks in the colors of the forest, so I could hide out a while. I also chose leg warmers that were unbelievably boring to knit but I couldn't resist the beautiful yarn, so I finished them. They made me feel like a survivor instead of a victim. Thus ensconced and feeling not only warmer but somehow more myself, I took refuge under my covers and had a lovely good cry and a nap.

When I woke up, the earth was quietly spinning again, whirring along on its old axis and the air felt fresh and clean, not cold and menacing. I fingered the stitches on my knitted companions, grateful for their friendly familiarity. I have always found comfort in the act of knitting, and in the act of giving my knitting to others, but today, my knitting literally comforted me. I was able to remember that with a vision, a little knowledge, and the endurance to do the same thing 50 or 60 thousand times, something beautiful and lasting can be created. The dropped stitches can be picked up, a new ball of yarn can be added, and the stitches will hold if the needle falls out.

I got out of bed, folded up my cozy treasures and went to do some knitting of another kind.

Socktoberfest

Well, Soctoberfest is off to a good start for me. I joined this knitalong to finish up a bunch of unfinished socks. So far I have another pair of charity socks complete. When Afghans for Afghans needs socks, I'll be ready! I'm 3/4 of the way to finishing Sara's Socks that Rock from Blue Moon Fiber Arts.





I also have my New Valentina (Silk City's coned version of Touch Me) Einstein Jacket on the needles and am making good progress for class. The chinese lantern is nearly finished and the 5-color challenge has been a lot of fun. I have swatches for a hat and scarf. I think I know who I'll give the whole ensemble to. Knitting for someone in particular has its own kind of fun.

Oh yes, I can't forget my toe-up explorations for Stitches East. I think I finally have an introductory toe-up sock that I can teach in an hour with decent results. I am going to test it on a couple of friends who are beginning knitters. I will post a tutorial when I get it perfected. It was a good experience to try and simplify and look at the experience from the eyes of someone who was a complete beginner. I'll keep you posted on how the class goes. Stitches is month away, so my preparations are in earnest now.

I am knitting a ton right now and so far my handa are holding up all right. Shew. I am still experimenting with two-dimensional knitted birds for the ATC (artist trading card) exchange my pal Kristin is moderating. I am using a leaf design as a starting point, and it is working pretty well.

I posted a comment on the Socktoberfest site, but something I forgot to mention is that for me, socks are still a little bit magical. Every single time I finish a heel turn, I have to put it down and smooth it out and just admire my creation for a minute. It is absolutely the coolest thing ever! I would estimate I've made 50 pairs of socks and it still pleases me afresh every time.

The 5-Color Challenge

In an effort to stretch myself as a designer, I looked around my house and found 5 colors of Galway that I love. My goal is to design as many items as I can with these 5 colors. This is the first successful endeavor: The "Good Day, Sunshine Slipper Socks" They were done on size 5 needles and I am so tickled with the way these colors are interacting. I think I will call the whole series Good Day, Sunshine because the colors are so happy. I am picturing a scarf, a hat and some mittens or gloves in the same stripey rib. These pics are not great because I can't get the white balance on my little camera to do much, but I will take more pictures as the project progresses.

In other knitting news, I have Randi's armwarmers almost done and the chinese lantern sweater is coming along swimmingly. I've chosen yarn for the Big Easy Gansey by Beth Brown-Reinsel. It is Plymouth's new tweedy worsted yarn. I can't remember the name at the moment. It is a beautiful leafy green, though. Gail wants my class proposals for winter classes by Friday, so I am starting on that. So far I have decided on my core classes and I think I've decided on the project classes. Stay tuned!

New York, but no yarn stores

I was able this week to go to New Jersey and New York with a very special friend. It was a wonderful time. I got to meet her oldest and dearest friend from girlhood as well as get reaquainted with another of G's friends from around here. We did the two-day New York Blitz tour. We did not go to any yarn stores because I was the only knitter in the group. K was game but we had plenty of other fun stuff to do. We drove past one of the well known shops but I can't remember the name. We were in SoHo (which, I found out, means South of Houston street), so I am sure I was within spitting distance of Purl SoHo, but I was too busy having iced hotchocolate at MarieBelle. Oh Yum. I finished Randi's first armwarmer on her birthday and have the second well in hand. They are worsted weight, so they are going like lightning. Other knitting news includes the fact that I joined Soctoberfest through Missy's blog (my former secret one-skein pal). Now that the computer is fixed, I am catching up on photo organization and emails. I got a sweet email from Kristin, my other secret pal and I AM going to reply. Things are finally settling down into a routine and I have a day pretty much to myself tomorrow.

The Son Arrives Safely

Here is a picture we got via email of Jeff in Panama with the Duffins, who are in charge of him while he's there. They are a combination of spiritual leaders, chaperones, and dorm parents. Jeff has been assigned a companion, but I don't know yet what city he'll be serving in. He will not be living with the Duffins but instead will be in an apartment somewhere in Panama with his companion. We will be able to get emails from him as long as he can find an internet access site like a library or a cafe.

We are going camping in PA for the long weekend-Blue Knob State Park. Fortunately there are individual family cabins and a lodge/kitchen/messhall that we share with about 20 other families. This is a long standing tradition and the other families are all dear friends, so even a weekend in the rain will be fun. I am taking a prayer shawl to finish for a friend and the Chinese Lantern for when I get too bored with the prayer shawl.

I still can't get photos off my camera, but soon I'll upload photos of the chinese lantern, my secret pal scarf, the socks I just finished and, yep, more handwarmers.