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Continuing the FO parade…

In April, I finished two large projects. One: my dissertation (all 252 pages of it).

The other: my Tangled Yoke Cardigan.

Now I know I’m the gazzillionth person to finish this sweater (according to Ravelry, there are 816 people who have knit it. And that’s just on Ravelry). But I don’t care. I love it. I love everything about it. I love it so much that I’ve been wearing it (at least until the heatwave hit) without buttons for almost two months because I can’t bear the idea of having to wait to wear it until I find appropriate buttons. And no, with all this wear, I *still* haven’t managed to take decent FO shots of it. And now it’s too damn hot. But you know what it looks like, and mine really isn’t all that different.

Pattern: Tangled Yoke Cardigan, Interweave, Fall 2007 (Rav link)

Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed in “Rust”

Needles: US 2 (!)

Thoughts: There isn’t a whole lot to be said about this sweater that hasn’t already been said. But here’s my two cents on the thing:

This sweater fits like a dream. I took the time to measure my favorite cardigan and make adjustments to the TY pattern to match (although there were few: I added two inches to the body length and two inches to the arms. I kinda wish I’d added another inch to the arms, as I apparently have *very* long arms. But no big deal). I had to drop down to size 2 needles to get gauge, but everything was completely spot on once I did. While the body got a little tedious (all that stockinette) the cables were a ton of fun (a word to the wise — read the set up row directions VERY carefully. And trust your gut. I had to redo mine three times because I was knitting while tired) and I learned a lot about cable construction while doing them. In fact, many new skills were acquired in the knitting of this sweater, including (but not limited to): picking up button bands so they don’t pucker; creating button holes; constructing a short row collar that looks good; and the wonders and joys of blocking (those puckers around the cables? They DO block out!). In the end, I love this sweater muchly, and wear it with great pride. I think it has converted me to sweater knitting — as soon as I finished this one, I went out and bought yarn for another sweater! So keep your eyes peeled for bigger and better projects to come. Tomorrow, the FO parade continues…

The back story:

Many of you may have guessed from the title of the blog that I’m a twin (I’ve talked about this before). I have twin brother named Adam (the lovely blonde in the photo at the top of this page. For better or for worse, I have always been a brunette). I could blame my own status as fraternal twin for my love of all things fraternal (yes, I did freak out about these socks when they came out. I will be knitting them. I will!).

I also lived in Vienna for a year about eight years ago (this was when I was an opera singer. Another story for another time). I *loved* Vienna — the music, the culture, the coffee, the art–and you can’t live in and love Vienna without having an opinion on one of her native artists, Freidensreich Hundertwasser. I love Hundertwasser (who couldn’t love a guy who changed his first name to mean “Peace land”?). I love his use of color (quilting inspiration? I think so) and his wacky approach to all things conventional (he was an architect, but used no right angles in his buildings. Rumor has it they are a pain in the ass to live in). So when my mom found the Zwerger Opal sock yarns inspired by Hundertwasser paintings, she knew I would love it and bought me one.

The result:

Pattern: My own, toe-up, basic stockinette

Yarn: Zwerger Opal Hunderwasser Cotton, in “Blaue Monde”

Needles: US 1 dpns

Thoughts: I always had mixed feelings when it came to self-patterning yarn. But these were wonderful and completely addictive. Part of this might be due to the fact that they don’t really self-pattern in a way that makes them look like fairisle (which I can do myself, thank you very much). They just look interesting. The colors had a wonderful depth and really subtle variation that made them an addictive knit. I think they are actually my favorite pair of socks to date. Now I want to go out and try all the colors. Fraternals, all around!

I met my best friend Julie while I was living in the mountains. The first time I was introduced to her, I thought she was too cool for school. She has loooong red-auburn hair, and she wears shit-kicker cowboy boots pretty much every day (you can thank her for my final conversion to pointy boots, having previously only been a fan of round toe “work boots”). When I met her, it was like middle school — I took one look at her coordinated eyeshadow (she knows how to put on *make up*? Shit), her hip tee shirt, and the non-chalant way she smoked a cigarette, and I knew she was too good for me. Forunately, I can be a terrible judge of character, and within only a few weeks, she became one of my closest friends.

Julie was a salve for the extreme loneliness I experienced in the moutains. She made me laugh and she really got me. She taught me how to play banjo and how to flatfoot, and she taught me an incredible amount about the mountains (hopefully I’ve taught her some things too). We took many, many long road trips together, we shared beds, beer, and many meals. She has been strong for me when I’ve really needed someone to lean on and she has never been afraid to tell me when she thinks I’m full of shit (these are qualities I value in a friend).

All of this is to say that when I found out she was officially engaged to her charming and talented boyfriend, I knew immediately that I would be knitting her a wedding shawl. Julie values tradition and appreciates craft, and I knew that the beauty and effort of a handmade gift would not be lost on her. I sent her tons of patterns and yarn suggestions until I had a sense of what she liked, and then I set to knitting.

I tried my hardest, while knitting this shawl, to think of Julie while I worked on it. I thought of the fun we had together for the last two years. I wanted to knit every stitch with the love that I feel for her, in the hopes that (as cheesy as it might sound) the shawl would keep her warm inside and out. I couldn’t be more pleased with how it turned out (and she loved it).

Pattern: Wing of the Moth (on Ravelry)

Yarn: Zephyr Laceweight Wool-Silk in “Sage” (the bottom photo is the most color-accurate)

Needles: US 4, 3.5mm

Thoughts: This was, for the most part, a truly enjoyable knit. It got a little hairy at the end, mostly because the final push to finish my dissertation cut significantly into my planned knitting time. I had to pull a few *long* days of knitting at the end, but still found it a pleasurable experience. The last few lace charts were a read blast, and I loved watching the thing grow. I made one major mistake — the kind of mistake that is stupid and due entirely to lazily reading a chart and completely and utterly unfixable. Megan was there when it happened. I cursed a lot. In the end, I found a fairly organic way to fix it (fortunately, my mistake involved adding unanticipated pattern repeats, so it generally blends in). Megan might be able to find it, but no one else can, so I’m keeping my lips shut (FYI: It is not in any of the photos. Ah, the wonders of the internet, allowing us to edit our lives into perfection!). In the end, think this definitely takes top standing as “nicest thing I’ve ever made with my own two hands.” I’m pretty pleased. And so was Julie (which is all that matters).

Keep your eyes peeled on this here blog. My several weeks of bloggy silence has not been matched with knitting “silence;” I’ve made a lot of things lately. FO posts to come.

A sign of things to come…

I promised y’all photos from San Antonio.  Alas, I got back to Philly over a week ago, and no photos.

San Antonio was beautiful–warm, sunny, and professionally rewarding.  Unfortunately, my trip to San Antonio was also the calm before a completely unexpected disaster of a storm.  I’m in over my head right now, and I think an official hiatus from the blog is necessary.  It should only be a month–and who knows, maybe I’ll keep on posting anyway.  But I need a release from feeling guilty (or feeling like I might lose you all) if I don’t.  Trust me, I’ll be back.  I’ve been knitting with a vengeance lately, and I hope to have a Tangled Yoke to show you in not too much time.  You can keep up with me over on flickr.  I’ll be reading my bloglines, so keep entertaining me (as always) with the fibery and non-fibery adventures of your lives.  And I will still be updating and lurking on Ravelry.  But for the meantime, I’m gonna let the blog fall silent.

Happy Spring!  I’ll see you whent this is all over!

… ’cause I’m leaving town tomorrow for a conference and am frantically trying to finish my conference paper (I know, I know. But this one totally snuck up on me!).

Yeah. So I’m leaving tomorrow for a conference in San Antonio. Things have been stressful (and grumpy) lately, and I thought that it wouldn’t hurt to reward myself for my good behavior with a leeetle bit of souvenier yarn. Afterall, I’ve never been to Texas, and a nice pair of socks or something to commemorate the trip seems totally appropriate. Right? This is where you guys come in. See, like I said, I’ve never been to Texas. And I was wondering, with all of your wisdom about things yarny, if anyone know of any good yarn stores in San Antonio (preferably a place I can get to without renting a car). Any and all crafty suggestions welcome. In return, I promise sunny photos from a place that is almost twice-the-degrees warmer than it has been in Philly lately.

Also — thanks all for your warm, helpful comments after my last post. I’m sorry I haven’t gotten back to most of you. I’ve been a little swamped. But things will hopefully clear up soon, and then I can show you the knitting I’ve been doing!

I had a dream the other day that I was done with my dissertation.  I was at graduation, walking down the pedestrian walk-way at my school in a haze of sunshine.  The only lasting impression from this dream that was able to I carry with me into waking was a sense of overwhelming elation, of joy, of complete peace of mind.  Secretly, I was hoping that this would motivate me and add some pleasure to the increasingly unpleasant level of stress, anxiety, and downright apathy I’m feeling toward all things work related.  Unfortunately, it didn’t.  I’m grumpy.  I’m impatient.  And, honestly, I’m feeling more than a little depressed.

So this weekend I took some time to try and remedy this.  I can’t afford yarn therapy right now, but I did dig out my stash from the pile of still-packed boxes in my office and found some particularly yummy yarns that I thought might improve my (admittedly limited) spare time.

Two of these are on their way to becoming Nancy Bush creations (my, it’s been a while since I’ve done a heel flap!).  I also have *two* FOs to show you, but (as of yet) no time to photograph them.  Soon, my pretties, soon.

Thanks, friends, for hanging in there with me!

These took way, way, way longer than they should have. I cast on as a quick project in December and (sigh) two months later, here they are:

Pattern: Dashing (from Knitty, Spring 2007)

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted Delight, in “Frost Gray” (under a skein… this stuff has wonder-yardage)

Needles: US 5 and US 4 dpns

Thoughts: Well… other than the fact that they took inordinantly long for me to knit (all due to my own mistakes), this is a lovely pattern and works extremely well with Malabrigo. Really, it was a pleasing knit, even with my complete and utter inability to read the simplest directions. As a result, there are some modifications, both accidental and incidental. Accidental: I knit the part above the thumb 6 rows longer than required. I find the extra long hand to be rather pleasing actually. They can be worn up to warm the fingers, or rolled down to facilitate finger-function. They are also rather longer below the cables due to a similar inability to read. But this makes no difference — they just act as arm warmers as well. Incidental: I only had US 4s in short dpns, which make thumb knitting much easier than the longer dpns. So I used them. They resulted in a snugger thumb, which I find pleasing and not one ounce restricting. I’d do it again. All in all, a terrific knit that I’d probably do again–this time, I’d pay better attention. They are a gift, so I hope the recipient feels the same.

Anyway — Phoebe likes them!

’cause sometimes, I need a treat.

Shibui sock, 100% superwash, for some wild colorwork goodness in my future.

From the Loopy Ewe.

Today is the perfect first day of February — gloomy, dark, rainy, and generally kind of miserable. A day to foreshadow what will inevitably be the weather for the rest of the month. But because we’ve only had cold-and-incredibly-sunny lately, and it’s only the first of february so I haven’t had time to get tired of it yet, this weather seems like a nice change of pace. Aside from running down the street to get some half-and-half this morning, I’ve been contentedly seated at the dining room table (office doubles as a guest room, and we’ve had a house guest for nearly two weeks), working on my chapter and knitting.

For once, I have a parade of FOs to show, some new and some old. But due to light issues, camera troubles, and a general lack of will power and organization on my part, you’ll have to wait to see most of them. Today, I give you this:

Pattern: Garter Stitch Mitts, from the lovely and talented Ysolda Teague

Yarn: Dream in Color Classy, in “Happy Forest” leftover from Bainbridge

Needles: my lovely Lantern Moon Rosewoods, in US 8

Thoughts: This was pure, quick, pleasure knitting for me. They make a nicely fitted fingerless mitt, and I’m loving garter stitch right now, for some reason. I effed up on the second mitt because I was watching Mansfield Park on Youtube while knitting, but didn’t notice until I was halfway through the senselessly-tedious kitchner seam and decided I didn’t care enough to rip back. As a result, what was supposed to be a gift now belongs to me (YAY!). I justify it by saying that I needed new mitts, since I left my old ones at a club by accident (shedding a tear for my lovely Fetchings, now in the hands of some indie rocker).

Also find it funny that Pam and I seemed to knit the same project at the same time — A Bainbridge with accompanying mitts. I love her tab/slot and button idea. Might have to make myself one now…