tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-133682852009-12-22T08:03:39.145-05:00Knitting, spinning and moreAlisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.comBlogger423125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-28522460135753608652009-11-16T07:41:00.003-05:002009-11-16T17:21:36.383-05:00

I've actually made a bit of progress on the strap. I'm nearly done with the short row section. I'll be glad of that because my tension still isn't as good as in the round. I think it's okay enough though to work itself mostly out in the blocking process. Only about three more short rows though and I can go back to working in the round. I'm also hoping to get some sewing done this week. I

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-44247511770841399282009-11-13T06:59:00.004-05:002009-11-13T08:38:15.810-05:00

It's occurred to me that I may own quite a number of books. They range in subject matter from history, trashy romance, Learning Ancient Greek, Mark Twain, Jane Austen, and more. In that library of books, I also happen to own quite a few crafting books. These books also cover all interests - Temari, sewing, beading, weaving, spinning, and, of course, knitting. I also own a few cookbooks.

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-21833031359952501502009-11-09T08:11:00.002-05:002009-11-09T08:45:16.920-05:00

I'll tell why there's no knitting to show in a moment. Meanwhile, there are pictures of fluffy animals taken at the zoo yesterday.First of all we have a fluffy animal that could bite your head off.Isn't he cute trying to get his ball out of the water? These little guys are always so pretty.So why am I distracting you with no knitting pictures? Because I had to frog some more. The short row

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-76204609724488301592009-11-05T07:07:00.003-05:002009-11-05T07:28:36.422-05:00

The color change for the center short-row section of the strap seems rather, um, abrupt, don't you think?The pictures of the finished bag on Knitpicks seem to bring all the colors together though, so I'm going to continue on.As you can see I'm a bit past where I was when I had to frog and now getting spot-on gauge (yay!), so I made the right decision, and it's moving right along. Colorwork in

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-74412544761159852672009-11-03T06:45:00.004-05:002009-11-03T08:28:44.244-05:00

Someday, I'll learn to make a darn swatch, especially when 450 stitches are involved! I'm a tight knitter, so I knew I should have moved up a needle size or two to begin with, but I decided to go with the called-for size 1. It's a purse, if it's a little off, it won't matter much. If it's significantly off, however...Well, last night, after I'd shown everyone what I was working on at my guild

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-14188324630700337852009-11-02T09:48:00.004-05:002009-11-02T10:06:53.358-05:00

I'm really enjoying the East Meets West Bag so far. I think I may have FINALLY figured out how to keep a fairly even tension in Fair Isle. I've always used two hands to hold the yarns, but it's never really given me results I'm overly happy with. So, I tried to hold both yarns in one hand and I'm much happier with the results. Here's a little bit of the first five rounds (keeping in mind that

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-66955842562654321272009-10-31T10:33:00.004-04:002009-10-31T10:48:32.382-04:00

I keep meaning to blog, but there's really been nothing to blog about since there hasn't been much knitting going on here. October's always a low-knitting month due to the whole Halloween costume thing. I make the kids' costumes most years (basically, the years I can't convince them to wear last years'). So, anyway, they're finally done and I've finally cast on for a new project. No, really,

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-40163169393670207222009-10-06T07:42:00.005-04:002009-10-06T08:31:35.978-04:00

I don't know if I've posted these socks that I started a while back. They're Bex from Cookie A's book. Well, I discovered that they aren't exactly good social knitting a couple of weeks ago when I found that I'd somehow dropped a stitch and couldn't find it. I ended up frogging about half an inch, which for complicated cable socks is quite a bit. So, I started a nice simple stockinette pair

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-26606427438988092312009-10-01T09:20:00.003-04:002009-10-01T09:32:13.606-04:00

How motionless! - not frozen seasMore motionless; and then,What joy awaits you when the breezeHath found you out among the trees, And calls you forth again!part of the poem "To a Butterfly" by William WordsworthLast night was terrible; we had an overflowed washer and had a small flood to clean up, but sometimes life sends you a little reminder that everything is all right. This morning, my

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-12963322455658264242009-09-24T12:27:00.003-04:002009-09-24T12:41:15.889-04:00

My tension is much better on the ribbing now. Now, I've moved on to obsessing about my selvedges. There's just no getting around it. Selvedges are ugly anyway, but mine need a little tension work.I've also realized something else. Of all the knitting books I own (and I own quite a few), there is not a single general knitting reference book. Lots of pattern books, lots of stitch dictionaries,

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-89632243093587124282009-09-22T07:47:00.006-04:002009-09-23T10:07:51.154-04:00

Less than 24 hours after having received my TKGA packet that perhaps someone with obsessive compulsive issues in their knitting shouldn't sign up for something like Masters Knitting. It may make me even more obsessive about my knitting, something I didn't think was possible. Perhaps, you've forgotten just how obsessive I can be, so take a look at the socks I just finished.Okay, the picture's a

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-84377331246351351762009-09-16T09:24:00.002-04:002009-09-16T09:58:00.498-04:00

Well, if I have any readers left, I have a finished project to show.Pattern: Delpine from French Girl KnitsYarn: KP Shine Sport in CherryNeedles: Honestly, I don't remember; it's been nearly a month since this was actually finished and I'm just now getting around to posting it.I just don't seem to have much time to blog any more. I homeschool, so it seems like a good portion of my time is

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-38306132961318126752009-08-03T08:40:00.002-04:002009-08-03T08:48:32.310-04:00

I was hoping to have Delphine finished by my guild meeting tonight, but it's not looking likely. Almost there, but not quite. So, I'll be able to show off the Kimono Top and hopefully I'll be able to show Delphine on the blog sometime in the next couple of days. I also have a new project already picked out and I'll also show that soon. Meanwhile, here's a picture of Sam:Look at that face. It

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-53486207772341086782009-07-29T08:30:00.004-04:002009-07-29T09:35:27.469-04:00

Someday, I'll get back to posting regularly and checking other people's blogs as well. For now, I've actually finished a project or two. I've finally finished the Kimono Top:I'm extremely happy with the finished product, not so much with the finished pictures. (You may recognize the pin. It's from Designs by Romi. Her stuff is so beautiful.)The specs:Pattern: Kimono Top from Knit so FineYarn

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-34267622607736486472009-06-07T11:00:00.001-04:002009-06-10T16:17:00.464-04:00

You know you haven't blogged in a while when your husband, who has often in the past told you that you spend too much time blogging, tells you that you really need to update your blog. I realize I still haven't posted goodies from the Sheep and Wool festival and I got some neat stuff, pretty new spindles and pretty new fiber. I'll try and get around and take some more photos, but for now,

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-79526160086944400762009-04-22T07:23:00.005-04:002009-04-22T07:35:27.630-04:00

It is pretty hard to keep a knitting blog when there hasn't been a lot of knitting going on. I have done about 2 rows on my Kimono Top in the last week and a few rounds on the Longbourn socks, both done at the weekly knitting get-together.So what have I been doing besides knitting? I've been walking a lot more. Big dogs are really good exercise programs. I've been working on a cross-stitch

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-23317092427482352702009-04-06T09:45:00.003-04:002009-04-06T09:54:24.011-04:00

The back of the Kimono Top is pretty much finished. Since it's a three-needle bind-off, it's still on a cord with the yarn still attached, so I have the option of adding a little more to the length if needed. I'm casting on for the fronts and plan to work on them simultaneously. (I know it's a pretty lousy picture, but you try getting a decent picture with a very exuberant 20-pound puppy who

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-91614576727499326002009-03-31T11:08:00.004-04:002009-03-31T11:26:40.937-04:00

We went to the local gardening center this weekend for gardening supplies. Gardening supplies only, mind you. I have some tomato seeds coming soon and I want to get them started as soon as they arrive, so I had to have some potting soil and peat moss, etc.Well, you know how fairs and such occasionally have adoption tables set up? Our center was having an open house complete with beekeepers and

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-67299073120896240142009-03-25T07:21:00.003-04:002009-03-25T07:29:40.075-04:00

I've made a bit of progress on the Longbourn socks:I really like how the colors are working together. I've had the mauve yarn for a while now and just couldn't figure out what to do with it. As for the denim, I already had a pair of socks in that exact color and didn't want another one, but with the mauve it really makes the denim look different. And it look like the cuff fits just about

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-34818357092000449052009-03-23T10:31:00.005-04:002009-03-23T11:24:11.646-04:00

Note to self: don't have eyes dilated on bright sunny day. Two pairs of sunglasses stacked on top of one another only help slightly. I've seen the "personal sock clubs" floating around on blogs for a few months now. Honestly, I don't know where they started, but they are a brilliant idea. The basic premise is you pick yarn from your stash, a pattern, throw it into a paper bag. You do several

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-80554479700608870822009-03-09T08:23:00.003-04:002009-03-09T08:58:26.123-04:00

I finally got some spinning done. I've been working on a Grafton batt (just scroll down to "C" for "Corriedale") I got a couple of years ago at the Maryland Sheep and Wool (only two more months until this year's!). So, I got around to plying some of it. There's a dime there to show how thin. (You can click on the picture to make bigger.)It's definitely a laceweight and had turned out very

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-30995075498848162722009-03-05T09:47:00.004-05:002009-03-05T09:58:34.553-05:00

I've made a little progress on the Kimono Top:And as if I didn't already have enough stuff in the works, I got a project that had been on backorder since October when I ordered my loom:This is for two scarves. The middle variegated is the warp (goes longways) and the pink and blue are for the weft in two different scarves (the pattern). You can click on the picture for a closer view. Of course

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-74885052537290077832009-03-02T07:55:00.000-05:002009-03-02T08:03:17.410-05:00

This happens:At least five inches and still coming down. That'll teach me to brag about my 60 degree weather.

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-10888757249319996692009-02-27T08:53:00.004-05:002009-02-27T09:17:00.859-05:00

Okay, folks, you know you're having a bad photography week when you have to resort to the "least crappy" photo. This shawl is beautiful, but apparently she's not very photogenic. At least not in the lighting that has been available to me the last few days. I'll keep trying to get better photos, but I really want to show her off. (I love the way NB names her shawls. "Greta" sounds so graceful

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13368285.post-39345774644604001732009-02-25T09:21:00.004-05:002009-02-25T09:47:03.618-05:00

Greta is finished. Unfortunately, no pictures yet. I did try, but the pictures just wouldn't turn out well on the blocking board. Not enough light in the library right now, so I'll try again this afternoon when the lighting is better or maybe I'll wait until it's off the board. It is very pretty and blocking really pops out those nupps. Since Greta is done, I don't feel all that guilty about

Alisonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17455960552860567288noreply@blogger.com4