Second Sock Syndrome Isn't That Bad

I’ve never suffered from second sock syndrome. I’m the most rare of creatures, both a process knitter and a end product knitter. I love the knitting, but I also look forward to wearing the socks. I have no solitary socks pining for their mates.

But I follow the Drunk Knitter on Instagram and watch her YouTube channel. So, I bought her book. And even bought yarn specifically for the socks. I actually accidentally bought the book twice and gifted the second one to my best-friend Audrey.

The process of knitting one long tube with provisional rows and lifelines feels innovative. I think Safiyyah aka the Drunk Knitter might be a genius. But sadly, along with the music of Bob Dylan, most modern art, and anime, the genius is wasted on me. I didn’t get it.

I think I underestimated how much I hate tearing out waste yarn to free the live stitches waiting to be knitted. And I did not read the pattern carefully enough to reverse the process when I was knitting the second sock. They are not matching. They’re like a couple that broke up but remained best friends. They should be together, but something just doesn’t work.

My first instinct was to put the book in my giveaway pile. Someone’s life will the changed for the better by discovering it. But on second thought, I feel like I’m not done with it. I might want to try again now that I have confidence and understand the process. But even though I ended up a bit disappointed, I heartily recommend the book.

Adventures in Crochet

I have been crafting with a vengeance lately. Although I’ve obviously always enjoyed making things. I’ve been on a different level the last six months. When I get teased about it I explain that someday when I am super duper old, I will encounter a troubled young person.

“Hey, Youth. I know that you think it is impossible that anyone has ever felt as sad, broken, and hopeless as you do right now. But trust me. I’ve been there. And I couldn’t fix it. I just had to make it through the days. And then eventually I felt differently, But unfortunately, my health didn’t allow me to drink, fornicate, or exercise vigorously. So I made stuff”

I kept seeing Woobles on Instagram. And I am ready to confess an interesting shortcoming…I am very bad at crochet. I’m an expert knitter. My hobbies are chess, embroidery, hobby engineering, and reading big fat books. But I couldn’t really crochet.

I learned when I was a kid. And somehow the knowledge fell out of my brain. Oh well…I don’t have to know how to do everything. But…ummm…I need to know how to do most things. So I bought a couple Woobles kits.

I recommend WOOBLES!!!!!

• The instructions are step by step. There is no assumed knowledge in the how-to videos,

• The materials are quality and reasonably priced,

• The kits are cute and playful.

• The time commitment is 8 hours maximum per Wooble.

The woman who demos the projects has a seriously soothing voice. And the final step is to direct you back to the website so you can buy another kit. And I fell for it. Good marketing of a good product must be rewarded.

I doubt I’ll become as passionate about crochet as I am about knitting. But I was having a hard week and feeling a bit down, and making these Woobles lifted my mood and focused my mind.

Practicing Monogamous Knitting

I am not one of those knitters with an incalculable number of knitting projects on the needles. I make it a habit to have no more than three.

1) Something complicated and challenging.

2) A portable one for on the go knitting.

3) And an instant gratification project so I’ll always have something to show off on the Gram.

But for some reason although I have those other projects to turn to I am only interested in knitting this sweater, Tuileries Pullover by Julie Knits Paris. When I put it down and try to work on something else it calls to me. When I am busy, I crave time to knit on it. I am in love with the pattern and the 100% cashmere yarn I bought for it from Nordic Yarn. They say you can’t make a “Ho a Housewife. But this project has tamed me.

Having said that…If anything can break the spell this sweater has on me, it is the sleeves. I am so tire d of knitting the seemingly endless ribbing of the sleeves. I have always been privileged enough to have two arms but knitting all this ribbing makes me jealous of amputees.

Like most of my knitting projects I am filled with fantasies about what I will be doing while wearing my sweater. Soon it will be fall and I will be glamorous in my white cashmere sweater. It will give me confidence. Or…I’ll simply be me, but warm. All I know is I can’t quit this sweater. It is true love.

Recovering Yarn Hoarder

We take a certain winking pride in the knitting community when it comes to our stashes. We know that we potentially spend too much money on yarn. And that we may never have the time to finish all the projects we have planned. But we just keep buying. The fantasy makes us happy. The daydreams about challenges faced and conquered fill our hours. But the “treat yo’self” attitude that can come with buying yarn isn’t always healthy. Is it really a treat if we do it all the time? And unless you, unlike me are independently wealthy, money is always some level of concern for each of us. So does it make sense to have hundreds, oh who am I kidding, in most cases a thousand dollars or more just sitting in a closet. That money could be in a 401k. It could pay bills. It could be converted into singles and we could make it rain on a deserving loved one. Admittedly, as a Catholic, a native of the Midwest, and someone a single generation removed from poverty, I am especially prone to both guilt and fiscal responsibility. But I don’t think there is anything wrong with taking a look at our yarn buying habits, and at whether our healthy knitting habits have turned into a dangerous but delicious hoarding habit.

I live in an adorable but small apartment with limited space so I have to consider not just the cost of yarn but the need for storage. In order to make sure I’m not buying more than I can knit I invented a Stash Management System in which I always have something to knit, but I also am actually knitting the yarns I buy.

THE GREAT PURGE: A few years ago before I moved I got really into the Marie Kondo KonMari method. This resulted in me throwing away any yarn that was ratty and cheap that I knew I would never use. I also gave away anything I didn’t love but that someone else might. We don’t knit with yarn we don’t like, so why keep it? I gave away a large trash bag full of yarn to a friend who was new to knitting and didn’t have her own stash. This reduced my yarn collection down to one large Rubbermaid tote.

FLIRTATION, COURTSHIP, CONSUMMATION: Last year I read Slow Knitting by Hannah Thiessen. It is a very good book that caused me to think about where my yarn comes from, what it takes to create it, and how I am participating in the global economy. It also reversed my thinking when it comes to buying yarn. I used to decide I wanted to make a project and then I would go out and buy the yarn for it. Now I fall in love with yarn. And I decide that I want to work with it. An example of this is the Goldfish Mighty sock from The Lemonade shoppe. I loved it when I saw it on Etsy. But I didn’t rush to buy it. I thought about it. I let myself wonder what I would make out of it. And then one day it came to me. KNEE SOCKS. I love knee socks. I want Knee socks. I want Knee socks out of that Goldfish yarn I saw. I found a pattern. Bought the yarn and the socks were completed in a month. Maybe it would’ve played out the same way if I’d been perusing patterns, decided I wanted to make that specific pair of socks, and then went shopping for the right yarn. But I don’t think so. I was in love with the project. And I only wanted to be with it. I looked forward to when my next chance to knit would come.

COMMITMENT: In order to keep myself from falling in love and buying all the yarn in the world. I only buy yarn when I have been knitting enough that I know that it isn’t about cheap thrills and one night stands. So I use my Stash Management System. I set a goal number. Usually 1000 points for a sweater quantity of yarn. 500 points for a new project. And when I get enough points the debit card comes out.

I don’t know if this combination of discipline and hippie dippy yarn love would work for most knitters. But is has kept me from buying so much yarn that I don’t have room for clothes, food, or friends. And I am knitting up a storm. Since I am excited about every single skein and ball of yarn I have, I can hardly wait to work with it. If any of you try it, please let me know.

Yarn Stash Management

10 pts Cast on project

50 pts Give Away Yarn

100 pts Sell yarn

75 pts Finish a project

25 pts Trade yarn instead of buying

250 pts Finish a project gestating more than 2 years

150 pts Use yarn bought more than 5 years ago

The stash before I got to work.

Thrummed Mittens. Never Again.

Adults who wear mittens have to endure a fair amount of teasing. I don’t know exactly what the socially acceptable age cutoff for mittens is, but I feel like it is as young as 10.  And this is unfair. Mittens keep your hands so toasty. And the excuse that you need to be able to use your fingers doesn’t hold up. We take our gloves off anyway. Most cellphones have touch screens that require bare hands. Knit  or leather gloves don’t have the grip of human hands so you’re still limited in what you can do. Gloves thinly knit and form-fitting enough to not make doing things awkward don’t keep the hands warm. So I maintain that it just as easy to pop off a mitten to text your friend as it is a glove. I love mittens and will defend them until the sun explodes and engulfs this planet.

These thrummed mittens are my latest work of art. And I pray I never lose them because I will NEVER, EVER, EVER knit anything with thrums again. It wasn’t hard per se, although it was far from easy since nothing about thrums feels natural to me. First it is making the thrums themselves. It was boring and the roving sucked all the moisture from my hands. It felt like I was twisting and rolling steel wool. And I was never able to make them a uniform size. Some were as big around as my pinky. Others were so wispy they almost blew away. Felting was a constant fear. And then there was trying to tighten them into the cute “v” after knitting. Often one side of it would disappear or start to show friction. Every thrum row was an exercise in frustration and acceptance. I tend to knit to take myself out of my daily struggles, I don’t want new ones.

So if I wasn’t having a good time, why didn’t I stop? That’s a good question without a great answer. I think it was the challenge of something new. I’ve been knitting for 16 years.  I don’t get to learn new skills all that often. And this was new. I didn’t even know that thrummed mittens were a thing until I saw them on pinterest. And there was a certain desire for the finished project. I walk a mile to and from the train to work everyday. My hands get cold in the winter. And apparently thrummed mittens were inspired by Europeans stuffing their mittens with pieces of wool to help stay warm. I love it when need creates craft. I wanted to be a part of that. And it gives me a chance to share my knitting. The mittens are big and colorful, they will get comments. And I will get a chance to talk about my knitting. That always makes me happy. A different project could’ve given me all that, but I pressed on with this one. I

 bought both the yarn and the roving from my favorite yarn store The Needlepoint Joint in Ogden, UT. It is a bit of a trek abut always worth it. I didn’t really follow any kind of pattern when it came to placing the different colors of roving. I just went by feel. If I felt an area needed some purple it got some purple. And any opportunity to use teal was leapt upon.

If you’re interested in learning thrumming I found this video very helpful.

Yarn: Rowan Pure Wool Worsted

Needles: Size 6 dpn

Pattern: Thrummed Mittens by Tanis Lavallee

Bowl of pre-made thrums

When Will I Wear That? (Originally published 10/08/2013)

Sometimes I knit things without knowing when and wear I'll wear them. I bought an issue of Knitting Today because it had this pattern for a felted rose purse. It took a sweater quantity of Cascade 220, a yarn I've used a lot because the price is usually right, but that I've never really liked. But the yarn was in the perfect red and I couldn't resist.

The pattern was so poorly written that I can see why the magazine isn't published anymore. I don't know if they employed incompetent editors and test knitters or none at all. Another knitter in the Ravelry community had to email the designer for a clarification on the wrap and turns. And the pattern insists you make the puzzling choice to sew the purse all the way around and then cut it open after felting. I ended up essentially mangling one side of the rose.

But the pattern and all the frustration was worth it when I finished. It turned out so awesome. But I have only carried it three times. It picks up lint from my clothes and pills. It doesn't hold very much. And it just isn't my style. But I can't stand the thought of giving it away.

So what do you do when you didn't have the common sense to ask yourself, "When will I wear that?" before you knit something? No. Seriously. That isn't a rhetorical question I need guidance. What do you do?

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Sentiment Shawl

Entirely too many knitting websites have my email address: Knit-Purl.com, nobleknits.com, knitpicks.com, yarn.com, just to name the big ones. Consequently, with that barrage of stylized photographs and sales that always seem to be ending soon, but never end, I make impulsive purchases. But this shawl pattern wasn’t even an impulse buy. I saw it and it was a full two weeks later before I bought it. I had time to talk myself out of it. Time to realize that I have breasts and shoulders and a mass greater than a French model. Needless to say, that didn't happen.
 
I actually forgot many basic truths when it comes to my knitting:

• Bulky knits make bulky gals look even bulkier. And this was SUPER bulky yarn
• Lace patters have to be blocked beyond what feels sane in order to show up in SUPER bulky
• I hate green and purple together. Why do I buy yarns with those two colors? I am not the Joker. I cannot carry off that color combo.
• Math is important. I should always look at the dimensions of an item and then compare them to my dimensions.

 It is a gorgeous shawl and I did beautiful work. So what do I do with it? Give it away to a petite woman? Frog it? Put it in the closet and hope to someday be small enough to wear it? 

She looks so warm and mildly seductive

Project Details:

Pattern: Sentiment by Andrea Rangel

Needles: Size 15 bamboo

Yarn: Malabrigo Rasta in Zarzamora

Criticism of Manos del Uruguay Yarn

I had high hopes for this yarn when I purchased it. I awoke one Saturday morning in a fever to knit a long infinity scarf. I chose the pattern Textured Circle Scarf by Kate Smalley. I went through my yarn stash and was shocked and perturbed to learn that I didn't own any worsted weight yarn. I cheered up moments later when I realized this provided me with an opportunity to go yarn shopping. I rode the train to the Needlepoint Joint in Ogden, UT. A startlingly pretty and very hippy-ish young woman helped me choose the Manos del Uruguay-Maxima. Allow me to list my complaints:

Notice the unwanted marbling and color change

• I bought 4 balls, all of the same dye lot but, there was a marked difference in the color. I had two that were a pearl grey and two that were smoky. I did what any resourceful knitter would, and alternated the skeins to create a pattern.
• The yarn is kettle dyed and one of my skeins was dyed with a band too tight so the middle of that skein was almost pure white. Therefore, I ended up with another color detail I didn't ask for...white specks throughout the scarf. 
• The friction of just my hands and some rosewood needles caused the yarn to look like it was beginning to pill.
• I lost instead of gained stitch definition when I blocked the scarf.
• The scarf was only in rotation for two weeks before I noticed pilling. I'm a large woman with many friction points but my neck isn't one of them.

I will say that the yarn was very soft and it was far and away the most consistent single-ply yarn I've ever worked with. There were no thick and thin spots. And the color is beautiful. It is hard to get a compliment on anything grey and I received many while I was both knitting with the yarn it and when I wore the scarf.

My low opinion of this yarn is not one I could find shared among the knitting community. To the point that I am questioning whether I'm the only knitter not on the Manos del Uruguay payroll. This makes me think that I owe it one more chance. I have a skein left. I will make a hat and see if that turns out any better.

Project Details:

Pattern: Textured Circle Scarf by Kate Smalley

Yarn: Manos del Uruguay Maxima in Slate

Needles: Size 6 rosewood    

Cardiff Cashmere

Even the tags are pretty

I have only ever bought cashmere blend yarn. Frugality has its place. While luxury has a more exalted one, at least in my heart.  Woman can not live by acrylic and Peruvian wool alone. 

I regularly receive emails form Knit-Purl.com and each one fills me with longing. But I have a long standing policy of not having too large of a stash. Currently all my yarn fits in one Rubbermaid tote. This is aided by my inexplicable habit of only buying lace weight and fingering weight yarn, although I haven't knitted anything out of lace weight yarn in almost 2 years. A few months ago I was dying to make an infinity scarf and I didn't have any worsted weight yarn. Once I recovered from the shock I went yarn shopping. I finished the  scarf . I again have no worsted weight yarn. The Cardiff Cashmere is a dk weight. 

I saw this yarn and wanted it but  I also wanted to find a project that I could knit for less than $100. I rarely get a better laugh than when a non-knitter says "Oh. Making your own stuff must save you so much money," I did the math and casual drug use would cost only 20% more than my knitting habit. 

I initially thought I would make the same cowl that my friend recently cast-on. But when I started the cowl with it's honeycomb pattern I wasn't pleased. It was too complicated for the yarn. The slight halo to the yarn was lost and it no longer had the drape that is a hallmark of cashmere.

So I cast-on a cowl of my own creation and I am pleased with how it is progressing. The yarn is plied and this results in me splitting stitches sometimes if I'm not keeping tension with the yarn. But I also think the plies give the yarn a smoother profile. I find myself a bit nervous knitting with a white yarn. I wash my hands before I pick it up and make sure I haven't recently applied hand lotion. We're having a particularly cold and snowy winter this year and my hands are starting to take on a lizard-like appearance, so skipping lotion is a sacrifice. But this yarn slides easily through my hands and isn't drying them out. So far this a wonderful first experience knitting with 100% cashmere yarn.

Cardiff Cashmere comes in small balls of only 120 yards. My previously stated budget concerns meant I could only buy 4 balls. This would be enough for the cowl I initially had in mind but I wasn't sure it would be enough for the one I had decided on. I began to worry as the ball got smaller and smaller and only an inch or so had been knitted. I even got out my food scale and weighed the left over yarn to determine how many grams I had left to give me an idea of how far I would get with it. As the ball of yarn became no bigger than a pound of soap after a good days wash I just surrendered to the fact that I was going to have to buy another ball. But low and behold after I had finished the first ball I was a little more than a fourth of the way to the desired size of the cowl. I won't attempt to describe my elation but I assure you it involved a little dance and a little song made up on the spot. 

I haven't finished the cowl but I expect to keep loving it and will likely buy this yarn  again from knit-purl.com. I'd been dreaming about a white cashmere cowl for months, but this yarn aslso comes in some very beautiful colors. 

When a fling becomes something MORE

I love it when an easy stitch looks fancy

I hate buying things online because I am an impatient person. If I give you money I struggle to understand why all you have given me is an email saying "Thanks". So when I realized I'd finished all my knitting projects but my new yarn wasn't arriving from Knit-Purl.com for several business days I needed a new project to distract me. 

I did what I always do when I need project inspiration, I checked my Pinterest and Instagram. And one of my favorite Instagram pages is the one for  PurlSoho a knitting, weaving, and needlework store in NYC. They have great taste. They also have high prices. I have actually to my recollection never purchased anything from them. Which as I write this makes me feel like I am somehow mistreating them since I have knit at least five of their free knitting patterns. (sneaks away to make a guilt purchase she will blog about at a later date) 

I don't feel like they were featuring this pattern well enough. Shifting Angles Scarf in a dull dusky light brown or straw color? I like muted colors as much as the next gal but BLERGH. Give me a little of the razzle dazzle. So I'm knitting mine out of a wonderful navy that I specifically bought to knit a scarf out of because I love Sherlock on the BBC and he wears a navy scarf. Plus Knitpicks,com had the yarn on a steep discount I assume because they were discontinuing the color. Because it wasn't like the yarn was going to go bad. 

I expected to lose interest in this scarf when my luxury yarns arrived but I haven't. I can't convince myself to knit anything else. I am supposed to be working on some patterns I've been writing for my book. But nope. The moment my bum meets seat I find myself picking it out of the basket. I suspect this will not be so for much longer. The scarf is getting a bit long for knitting on the go. I'll cast on something portable and my attentions will be spread more evenly. But for the time being I am still enraptured and I only want to be with the Shifting Angles Scarf. 

Project Details:

Pattern: Shifting Angles Scarf  

Yarn: Capretta from Knitpicks (fingering weight/80% wool, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon

Needles: Size 3 bamboo

I'm a Lousy Photographer

I am nearly always proud of my knitting. But alas I take awful pictures so it isn't always obvious why. When people see my projects in real life I get oohs and ahhs. While my photos get squints and "Oh. Yeah. That looks nice." No. It isn't nice. It is the result of a master knitter plying her craft. See what I did there? Plying my craft. Gee, I love yarn puns.  I am not much for the marriage thing but I find myself considering trolling dating websites for a photographer who will make my stuff look as good as it is for the bargain price of a few home-cooked meals and the occasional sex. 

I present to you my latest frustration. A beautiful baby sweater I knitted for the daughter of my oldest friend in the world. I worked on it for months. Every stitch is perfect. I spent 6 hours just seaming it together. It made me want to get pregnant and keep it for myself. But in pictures it practically looks like an old washrag. Sigh. 

Project Details

1. Pattern: Twiggy from Baby Botanicals by Alana Dakos
2. Yarn: Malabrigo Mechita
3. Needles: Size 3 bamboo