Knit Tenacity

Project Runway goes stash diving

2008-07-23T21:35:00.006-04:00

My interpretation of this week's challenge is that if the designers were knitters, they would be forced to create something out of yarn found only in their stash. On PR, the designers didn't have any control over the fabric they'd have to use to create a cocktail dress, because the models went shopping for it.

And that's how my stash can feel - like someone else went shopping for it, not me. And really, since I got most of it a few years ago, it was someone else: the me that I was, a less-experienced knitter, and not the me that I am.

Yet I've been enjoying my stash diving, so much so that I have wondered what I would do without stash. There's limitations and obstacles to knitting something that I'll like out of what I have. I can tend to have too many ideas and want to go too many directions, so the stash's limitations seem to help focus me.

Who am I kidding? Wandering through any yarn store of new not-yet-mine yarns is inspiration enough for me!

Besides as much as stash yarn helps to focus me, it can also be overwhelming and frustrating. Hey, if my rationalizations help me to be grateful - ignore my state of denial, and move on, 'kay? Heh.

There was a "wha...?!" moment tonight when one of the designers asked, "Who's Darth Vader?" Ironic that Natalie Portman was the guest judge. Good catch, show editors.

Korto and Suede did the most interesting things with their fabric, and definitely took risks.

But my favorites were Joe, Daniel, Kenley, Terri, and yes, Stella.

So this week's guess for the final 3? I'm thinking Daniel's taste-level (heh, borrowing from Nina's vocab) will put him on top. And Kenley. And finally Joe - but I'm not sure my picking him is entirely rational :) He's turning out to be a personal favorite that I'm rooting for.

I'm putting Terri and Emily on the honorable mention block. But I know there's going to be a Wendy Pepper or a Santino that I can't see yet - will it be Suede? Stella? Blayne?! I haven't noticed Keith at all, so that may say something. Show editors seem to ignore the winners in the first few shows.

Check out this week's runway. P.S. As of post-show time, Wednesday night, they've erroneously switched Jennifer's and Jerrell's dresses.

Bella blue

2008-07-22T18:11:00.018-04:00

Next on the list of tops I'm knitting is the Bella Blouse by Norah Gaughan (previously published by Interweave Knits but not currently available).

And much like the Tahki vest, this top's story starts with a ripping of an old FO that I knit when I first jumped back into it a few years ago.

I had mentioned it quickly during the Steelers Superbowl-winning season (nice to see that my photographing skills have gotten better! this blog entry's color is clearly more accurate) - the yarn is cotton and half of it is yellow, the other half off-white. This yarn was stash from 10-15 years ago, bought at Leeward's, on sale for $1 a skein. And I thought, there isn't enough of one color for a top, so why not alternate the colors at every stitch so that it comes out looking like one color, not two?

Crazee. I knit this whole thing by pulling the next color under and over the current yarn. So I twisted the yarns every. single. stitch.

And not just when knitting on the right side - also when purling on the WS. And I seamed this, too. What a crazy kid I was back then!

And yet it kind of turned out cool - you can see that it made a herringbone patterned fabric. Sometimes not knowing better can produce interesting results.

But I'll NEVER wear it as is, so ripped it I did, and am using the off-white cotton for the Bella Blouse trim.

At the time I made the above weighs-a-ton cotton tank, I also found online knitting shops and went a little nuts on elann.com. I bought 14 skeins of a blue ribbon yarn, Katia Idea. Never knew what to do with it. (Did consider it for a Berroco pattern but never committed.)

Until now. I love the color!

But funny thing about a gauge swatch - no matter how strange the on-the-needles piece looks, one should follow the gauge swatch measurements.

But that's so hard to do, isn't it? So I'm going to block it otn, to make sure it's coming out okay. More later!

PR 5, episode 1

2008-07-20T12:05:00.003-04:00

Are you watching Project Runway Season 5? If you don't get the Bravo channel, don't worry, next season it's moving to the Lifetime channel...

And then I'll be worrying enough for the both of us. Sigh.

I looked back at my prediction here during Season 2 and was entertained at how on - and off - I was, so I thought I'd choose my picks each week and see how I do by the end of this season. (See the runway designs here.)

After my first viewing, I loved Detroit Joe's design the best. If only he'd put the pasta on something else other than the muslin, I think he'd have been in the top 3.

Kelli - absolutely was the most creative from the look to the details. Could she be too cerebral though? The coffee filters weren't flattering in my opinion.

Korto - the construction of her dress was great - I loved the belt and hem details. The others with tablecloth dresses pasted on details afterwards, but didn't work as many details into the paper, imho. I liked the scrunchiness Keith did, but Korto's looked more complicated.

Daniel - if I hadn't seen the behind-the-scenes, I would have been really impressed with his work with cups. But I have a feeling he prepared for this kind of challenge. Did he really think of this on the fly? It's funny - his preconception works against him in my mind, and yet I can't believe Suede wasn't prepared for this kind of challenge! I'm being too critical. Genius.

And generally liked the designs by: Kenley, Terri, Emily, Jennifer; Keith and Wesley - honorable mentions.

Final 3? Based on first episode and yes, commercials: Daniel (seems really smart, and come on, if a Daniel doesn't leave right away, a Daniel must go to the top), Emily/Kenley (they seem calmer than others and so able to handle the stress)...and I hope Detroit Joe makes it towards the top, but I don't think he'll make it all the way. I hope I'm wrong.

P.S. About the Singapore Airlines comment, here's how I saw it: Someone who goes on and on about how great an airline is, loses some credibility if they've only experienced first class. Or at least their approbation does. Because generally, how well first class is treated isn't a good meter of how well everyone will be treated. But I'm glad to hear that the Singapore Airlines is good to everyone - a nice exception ;)

Top of tops list

2008-07-15T17:56:00.015-04:00

I mentioned in my last post that there’s been a lot of knitting along with the tv watching. Today I’ll start the intro to all the projects I’m working on and thinking about. Put on your seatbelts.

I’m pretty sure it was spring when I looked in my closet and realized the yarn took up more space in there than my clothing did. And I was sorely in need of clothes. But how could I spend money on clothes, when all that yarn (money already invested) was waiting to be knit up?

That’s when I started my latest obsession with knitting tops. Yes, this has affected my Summer of Socks momentum (meaning I have none) but I’ll get to that.

My first need was a spring/summer cardigan in white, one that could be worn with everything, brought everywhere, and work-wearable. It’s humid and hot here in the summer, but the AC indoors is unpredictable and can make it feel like you’re in a refrigerator.

And why not purge some stash while I’m at it? So I pillaged white Cotton Ease from this sweater:

I’m fond of this sweater because it was my first or maybe 2nd project after my knitting mojo came back a few years ago. Check out the sleeve detail and the collar.

Without knowing how to do a shawl collar, I just figured it out without doing any research so it came out very narrow and unfoldable. The trickiest part though was the collar stitch pattern that had to be done upside down. What was I thinking?! But I did it. And yet I’ll never wear it, so it must be purged.

I chose the Garter-Stitch Side-to-Side Vest pattern in the pattern book, "Terra Collection by Tahki Yarns Spring/Summer 2008," and used the Cotton Ease from above, doubled. I never checked gauge but used the same needle size recommended in the pattern and went for the largest size based on the schematic.

I like its side-to-side construction of knitting it all in one piece, leaving only the collar to knit on afterwards.

But can you tell that half looks whiter than the other half?

I think some of the Cotton Ease yarn yellowed since I got it. I vaguely remember digging through a discount bin in Hancock Fabrics before the Cotton Ease drought of 2006. The bin was in front of a big window, so maybe it was "tarnished" by the sun? Oh well. I'm going to try to wash it out, or if I like this sweater enough, bleach it.

I’m not too sure how this will fit, but it was an enjoyable knit, used disposable stash, and taught me a new sweater construction method. A-okay in my book and worth the time and effort.

When it’s entirely finished, I’ll post a pic with it modeled. Unless I look very disgusting and/or disturbing in it. Must reserve the right to not look stupid.

Next time: I’m using very old stash and ribbon yarn for the Bella Blouse – and so far, it’s my favorite project to work on.

[Sorry, but it looks like the Bella Blouse pattern by Norah Gaughan is currently unavailable. Hopefully, Interweave Knits is working on making this available some time in the future. Keep your eyes on www.knittingdaily.com.]

P.S. Hey, Burn Notice fans, what did you think of the premiere? Anyone else bummed that Fiona broke it off? I guess a first episode can’t help it, but I felt like it was very anticlimactic after the great ending last season. I hope it doesn't suffer the 2nd season blues like Heroes did. Thankfully, The Closer was great last night!

I know, I know, this is a knitting blog. But until I can knit and play handball (disclaimer: have never played handball, but there's a small chance I could) at the same time, tv can be nice background noise (cough) to the knitting.

A little off

2008-07-10T22:02:00.003-04:00

Hey, have you seen Craig Ferguson? He's the host/comedian of the Late Late Show? I've decided that if I could have any celebrity/known personality living or dead over for dinner - it would be him.

Oh yeah, I've been off of work and these are the life questions I ponder over in my spare time.

But seriously, I think Craig's today's Johnny Carson. And I love that after a guest went off on how great Singapore Airlines was, he asked if she had tried their coach class.

What clinched it - the other day Craig said, "you know what rips my knitting?" And he's from Scotland so I'm betting he knows something about knitting. Yup, a great dinner guest, no doubt.

So you might have guessed I've been watching some tv during my time off. And with tv, must come knitting. Yeah, but there's time for that later.

It's much more important that I mention, next week? is Project Runway Season 5! Woo-hoo! And who knows, with the lawsuit pending over Runway's move to Lifetime, this could be the last season for a while * sniff *

Okey-dokey, time to go enjoy my new favorite show, Burn Notice. Lots of knitting to come. And what's going on...or not going on with the Summer of Socks.

Cheers!

P.S. Days off in the middle of the week are so great. Psychologically I tell myself that everyone else in the world is working except me. So of course I don't need to spend time doing errands, it's free time to do whatever I want. Ahhh, soooo nice...

Bug independence

2008-07-03T18:43:00.012-04:00

Happy July 4th everyone! As a public service, I am reminding all of you to apply bug spray before you go outside to picnic and/or watch the fireworks at that bewitching mosquito hour. Last weekend (and into this week really) I suffered 34 bug bites on my legs. I thought about taking pictures for this blog, but honestly, this is July 4th, not Halloween.

Consider yourself warned.

On this holiday, I'm going to hearken back to that knitting holiday, Worldwide Knit in Public Day. Maybe on Labor Day, I’ll hearken back to today – but hey, I’ve got projects, yes, projectS, to talk about and WKiPD is a good starting point for the first one.

WKiPD wasn’t much of a stretch for me. A car problem on the Thursday before brought me to the dealer on WKiPD so knitting in the waiting room was a no-brainer. One woman asked me what I was knitting, but other than that, I'm not sure anyone else noticed or even thought anything of it.

Boring right? Unless you're me and have a children's sweater to finish for a friend visiting that weekend. And unless that sweater looked like this:

Oh yes, indeedy. The cardigan was finished, but I didn't like the waistline, so I cut the yarn near the beginning of 6 rows, and unraveled them all. Without taking off the buttonband.

Ahem. Go ahead. I've heard it before. Don't worry, I won't get hurt.

I am insane. Clearly.

And then again...

Yes, that's the sweater AFTER I'd knit the 6 rows back up and grafted the top row with the last row of the top of the sweater. It's not perfect. But it's not bad.

I know I've mentioned Margaret Fisher before, but if it weren't for her Alterations class, I'd never have the audacity to try this.

Too bad the sweater turned out to be too small for the intended recipient.

Dagnabit.

The surreal knit life (Knitscene Fall 2008)

2008-07-01T13:55:00.005-04:00

The preview for the Fall 2008 Knitscene is up.

And I’m a bit flummoxed as to what I should feel, think – and say.

One of my goals this year was to learn how to make a knit pattern submission and then actually make one. I knew that after going through the steps from beginning to end, and only after that, I would fully understand what’s involved.

I had no expectations, especially after chasing the FedEx truck to get my submission to Knitscene in time. I was just happy I had submitted something. It was a learning experience, I told myself.

Then Knitscene accepted one of the two I sent in. I knit the sample and wrote the pattern. Last week an e-mail informed me that my project made the cover.

I’m stuck between being annoyingly over-the-moon and cautiously stoic. This is the first submission I’ve ever sent to a magazine and for it to be accepted and then put on the cover…I know, I’m treading in annoying territory, especially for those who are waiting for their first acceptance.

Please forgive me, and if it helps, who knows, this may be beginner’s luck, and I could be destined for one-knit wonderland. My lifetime’s 15 minutes are now used up and it’s all downhill from here.

But dagnabit, what a glorious moment nonetheless! A crazy, unbelievable, wonderful moment!

Okay, now that I’ve got that out of my system (but I’m making no promises), I hope there’ll be a few people who’ll like the scarf enough to want to knit it.

I designed the scarf with an adventurous beginner in mind. It’s knit entirely in the round, on one set of circular needles. The lace pattern is simple enough for someone’s first lace, and fair isle in the round is definitely the best way to start with color-stranded work. And don’t worry if your fair-isling is knit too tight – in this pattern, it won’t matter and the scarf will still look good.

The scarf is drapey so it folds and encircles the neck easily – making a lace scarf cozy and warm enough for cold weather.

I can’t wait to see this project in ravelry or out here in the wild. Happy knitting!

Classes

2008-06-23T18:42:00.003-04:00

Today’s opening day for Stitches East registration and I’m so excited! Already got my picks in so hopefully I’ll get the classes I want. I’m taking a full schedule which is insane, but I don’t usually see these classes in the LYSes around me and the price of gas and travel have made all other 2008 conferences prohibitive.

So I’m going to OD on this one.

I took a full schedule at a summer Knit & Crochet Show once – if you’re close to that conference (or not but can still make it), go take Nancy Nehring’s classes, she’s wonderful! – and Sunday classes were tough. The instructor would ask for questions and we students would just gaze at him/her without a thought to offer. I don’t envy those who teach on a conference’s last day.

I looked back on all of the classes I’ve taken, and realized I never mentioned Brandon Mably’s class at last year’s Stitches East. It was wonderful – or at least I realized how wonderful it was at the end. Because the class was wonderfully challenging to a right- (or is it left-?) brained knitter like me.

Brandon introduced himself, said a couple things about color, and then had us knitting for 4 hours. He’d suggest color changes or indicate what might not be working to each person, but that was it. At one point I wondered why I was there, and I saw another knitter just stop knitting an hour before the end. But at the very end of class, I realized I’d been given a day to work on color, to be inspired by color, to experiment with color, and see what I ended up with when I didn’t know where I was going. I’m not sure what I learned about color, but I learned a great deal about myself and to trust my instincts more. I rarely give myself the time to knit without a plan and it turned out to be a very memorable class!

Brandon Mably with the swatches done by the class participants

I could be dead wrong but I’m betting that more than a few of the Stitches East color classes will be similar to Mably’s. If you’re like me and want to take one of these, I encourage you - but don’t leave early, stay to the end so that you can learn something just by making the journey.

I’ve also taken classes with Margaret Fisher – the best was how to alter my knits. The class made me so confident that I went spectacularly out on a limb to alter one of my recent projects rather than frog – but you know what happens every time I dive in the deep end like this. Ah, but I’m saving this story for later. Don’t worry, I have pictures.

Edie Eckman, I’d recommend her, too. I’m going to try her “Crocheting for Knitters” class this time. Fortunately it’s on a Saturday so I should have a few brain cells left for learning. I have high hopes that one day I’ll do more than crochet a provisional cast-on, and I’m so hoping this class is that day.

And all of this is very odd because until the last 2 years, all of my knit learning was through books and I was convinced it was the best way for me. Of course 2 years ago there wasn't a ravelry.com (isn't that crazy?! seems like it's always been there) and I didn't realize how much I could learn from sharing the knitting experience with others.

Pfft, and some say knitting's just a hobby.

Knit weather report

2008-06-10T18:11:00.018-04:00

It’s been 3 weeks since I started taking public transportation. The first week torrential rains accompanied me on my walk home. After the first rainy evening without an umbrella, I figured out that taking an umbrella to work is non-negotiable. I’m so quick.

The second week began with a heat wave that pushed the heat index to over 100 degrees. I had to dress in layers and carry most of them so that I could survive both inside and out. It was time for a tote.

Pink cat included for scale. Sigh. No, haven’t bought new camera yet.

I got this one at Target. It was the only tote with more than one compartment – thought it might be nice to keep my papers separate from the cold soda pop cans sweating in the heat – that wasn’t luggage. If I had my preference, the tote wouldn't be red. Some days it clashes with my outfit. Not a huge deal to me except when I’m wearing green. I love Christmas but I’m not so happy that it’s made it odd to wear red and green in summertime.

Ah well. I have bigger things to worry about - like buying walking shoes that I know will be comfortable after 2 weeks of wear. This whole dressing for the weather adds another level to my shopping and pocketbook. Although…

...in winter time I will actually need to wear scarves, mittens, and maybe even hats. Oooo, silver lining!

So I don’t regret one bit my decision to take public transportation. Well, okay, I regretted it when I walked home in the rain without an umbrella and when I arrived at work so drained by the heat I needed an hour to recover.

But it’s all worth it because I’ve discovered podcasts! I know, you discovered them years ago, but humor me, I'm finally off of dial-up.

First, I listened to interviews with bloggers I read:

Knitpicks interview with Laurie Perry aka Crazy Aunt Purl
Sticks and String interview with Franklin Habit, blogger of The Panopticon
Y Knit's interview with Stephanie Pearl McPhee aka Yarn Harlot

And who knew? They’re even more delightful in audio.

Since then I've been jumping around because podcasts are an entirely different animal, aren't they? I’ll read almost any knitting blog. I can gloss over what doesn’t interest me and find what does. There's always something to interest me in a knitting blog. This makes me a forgiving reader and I don't get bugged by much. Thank goodness, because those in glass houses, you know?

With podcasts, I can’t fast forward through a discussion to hear the part I like. I can't gloss over a podcasts' minor flaws by barely hearing them because each word or sound is given to me in sequence, and missing a part means I miss the whole. I can't get the general gist of it, and decide to skip to paragraph 17 minutes, 32 seconds.

I suppose I could listen half-heartedly to an entire podcast and then rewind to parts, just like I skim entire blog pages and go back for details. Who am I kidding, that would take too much time. And I wouldn't listen half-heartedly the first time around.

I guess that for now, I'll remain a fickle podcast listener. I’ll try to give every podcaster a chance. The ones I like will surely run out. It’s still a new world. We’ll see.

But there's no doubt that in addition to my umbrella, my ipod is on this commuter's list of non-negotiables.

Ripped but not defeated

2008-06-04T18:33:00.015-04:00

No big surprise that I ripped back on the Pure Silk Cardigan, right? And it was a good decision because I've been able to fix all the things that bothered me, and again, this project is back on the hopeful-I'll-wear-this-in-public list.

I ripped all the way back to the increases before the ribbing so that I could set up the k1's and p1's to match up with the bodice pattern. Now the center stitch inside and between the diamonds starts with a purl stitch. The moving stitches start with knit stitches in the ribbing.

Can you tell? I can and like it so much better now, so if you're on the picky side and you want to knit up this pattern, decide whether you'll start your rib rows with purls or knits (depending on where in the diamond pattern you start).

And here's the underarm area. Much better, no? I don't need the pattern to line up. The pattern was centered in the front and the back so it wasn't going to line up at the sides, but at least the whole area now looks patterned.

But there's something else here that might look weird to you but is fully intentioned. That underarm "seam" of purl stitches is not centered, is it? No, it isn't. It's something I'm trying out. (Cue suspenseful music.)

I've measured myself in detail and found out that my front half, from the bust all the way down to the hips, takes proportionately more than half of my circumference in all three regions. So if I want a side seam that doesn't sit too far forward, and if I want shaping increases and decreases to be where they're supposed to, I need to use one measurement for the "back" piece and another one for the "front." Yes, even if I'm knitting in the round.

The kicker is that at the shoulders - I'm the same in front as I am in the back. Actually, I'm a little less from shoulder to shoulder in the front, but that's something to consider another day.

I need to decrease much more at the front underarm than I do at the back so that I end up with the same number of stitches. The easiest way to accomplish this? On the first underarm bindoff row, I bound off more stitches from the front piece. With this pattern, I ended up with the same row decreases for the front and back. Note: I am developing my own set-in sleeve calculations and won't be following the pattern for underarm or sleeve cap shaping. Shocker.

Making these changes to the underarm decreases makes me wonder if I also need to offset the arm's sleeve cap. My arms don't come out proportionately more from the front of my shoulders. Hm. Although we do, in general, carry our arms towards the front of our bodies rather than the back, don't we?

I'm envisioning Winnie-the-Pooh tapping his forehead with his paw and saying, "think, think, think!" That's me until next time.

Or at least will be once I'm back to the underarm decreases. Yup, after these pictures were taken, I had to rip again. I started the underarm decreases too early.

*But I am NOT defeated; repeat from * to end of sentence until convinced.

Cardigan pulled over

2008-05-30T18:22:00.020-04:00

Here’s some knitting I’ve been working on:

It’s the Printed Silk Cardigan from the Spring 2008 Interweave Knits. Check out the KnittingDaily fitting galleries on this pattern.

True to form, I’m not following the pattern. Entirely. And I’m okay with that. Mostly. For now. Here are the changes I’m making:

1. The cardigan is going to be a pullover, so I’m knitting it in the round up to the armhole bindoffs, which is where I am in the above pic (ready to BO for armholes, that is). I’ll also need to start the neckline decreases later since I won’t be wearing anything underneath this, and a free show just isn't me.

2. I read in a ravelry forum that someone substituted successfully the pattern’s yarn with Knitpicks Shine Sport and got gauge. I need to remember that I’m a tight knitter because after the hem, I realized, hey! This is way too wide.

Instead of ripping back, I continued – gotta finish something! – by figuring out my new gauge and calculating the new decrease rate to the waist. The bottom will fold and pleat more than the original, but I’m thinking that’s a good thing. Mostly. For now. I could always cut off the bottom, pick up stitches under the waist ribbing, and reknit down according to more accurate measurements.

3. Then there’s the increase row before the ribbing. Although this is not mentioned in the pattern, there is a trick to making the increases disappear into the rib. I learned this in Margaret Fisher’s class. Basically with a knit 1 front & back increase on the RS, you want the “back” increase to become a purl stitch on the RS. I unraveled this row at least 4 times before I got it right…

4. ….which I was so proud of until I realized that I liked the twisted stitch pattern lined up with the ribbing like this:

(the knit sts of the ribbing become the moving line of stitches in the pattern; the center knit st of the diamond starts with a purl)

but they only line up like that on the back. On the front, they do this:

(the moving line of stitches in the diamond pattern are right above the purl sts of the ribbing; the center knit st does flow nicely out of the knit st of the ribbing, but I prefer the first option)

This isn’t mentioned in the pattern, probably because magazine space is tight and it’s not essential. But I have to say that my perfectionist self took a blow. But it’s all good, I got back up, and I’m keeping on keeping on.

5. A few rows ago, anticipating with excitement the armhole bindoffs and decreasing, I looked at the underarm area. Then I looked at the cable chart. And I realized that this trick was included in the pattern - the designer specified where to start partial patterns for all sizes so that the pattern could continue to the seam’s edge. This was something else I hadn’t thought of.

And this one might kill me. And kill me no matter what I do.

It’s under the arm and my arm isn’t skinny-minny so who’s going to see it? Although if I do rip, the right-leaning twist stitches? No problem.

The question is, can I live with this imperfection, wondering each time I lift my arm if it looks "home-made" rather than "hand-made?" But if I do rip, can I deal with all those left-leaning twist stitches?

The left-leaning are a pain. From another ravelry tip, in order to make the left twist the exact counter to the pattern’s right twist, you need to knit in the back of the second stitch, and then knit 2 tog through the back of the first and second stitches. And my needles seem to hate (the needles, that's right, not me) to go through the backs of these, every single time.

Will I finish this garment If I have to knit this whole section again? But then again, if I don’t?

Four days ago I decided I would not rip back. And I haven’t touched it since. Something’s telling me I’m not going to be satisfied with it this way. Argh!!!!

Knit transit

2008-05-29T19:05:00.004-04:00

After an illness 4 years ago, I started to drive to work – then I got better but I never stopped driving. It’s too easy to get used to the convenience of driving, isn’t it? even if the pedestrians and other cars drive me crazy.

But this week, I’ve gone back to public transportation. It’s a bit of a shock. I guess I don’t have to deal with the crazy driving around here anymore (DC drivers are the worst! And seem to be captains of the random u-turn whether on bridge or busy boulevard) or at least not from a driver’s point of view.

Now I get to be the pedestrian who ticks off the drivers by gauging badly when I should run between the racing cars to get to the other side because I don’t want to wait for the walk sign appearing in 30 seconds.

I’ve been a really patient pedestrian so far. But you know the cliché – I’m starting to love clichés because they’re clichés for a reason, aren’t they? – to understand where someone else is coming from (turns out “literally”), one has to walk in the other’s shoes.

And I desperately need some walking shoes. Dress shoes sure aren’t cutting it! Then there’s my bag, which isn’t big enough to carry the umbrella, lunch, cheaper-than-vending pop cans, and dress shoes I need for my work days.

But I can't complain. Not only will I be saving gas money, I’m going to try knitting in transit. I already listened to my first knitting podcast this morning. I'm starting with Cast On as it seems to be the one everyone listens to.

Blog starts with a yarn question

2008-05-27T23:46:00.002-04:00

Anyone out there from Greece? or have bought yarn in Greece? Sorry, ravelry, but I did a preliminary search on the mystery yarn and you did not come through. But don't worry, my love for you remains undiminished.

Curious? Check out the brand new blog, Mom and Bag Knit, and make a guess on the fingering weight yarn Kangaroo pictured there. Can't wait to see what's made with it!

It looks...linen-y to me. Or at least the color does. Don't you think? Although don't press me too hard on what color "linen" is. I'm more definite on the color "suede" - a yellow on the mustard side that's soft which of course has a lot to do with the medium I see the color on. I would never want yellow walls but some of my walls are "suede" and I like how warm they make the space.

But then there's "khaki." I thought for years it was an olive green, but I think now it might be beige. Gotta buy a contemporary box of crayons and re-learn my colors! Are kids coloring with khaki crayons these days?

Part II: Which comes first - the camera or the photo quality I need?

2008-05-25T13:12:00.027-04:00

Way back in spring - it's Memorial Day weekend, so traditionally, it's summer now, right? - I was caught up in the degradation a digital photo undergoes from its creation in-camera to when it gets posted on this blog. You didn't get all that from this post? Okay, maybe my brain's been percolating since then to fine tune exactly what my questions are. And where to start. And how to communicate it. Effectively.

But now effectiveness must give way to necessity...always risky, but here you go.

To ensure a blog photo is as close to the reality first captured, I need to pick the optimal camera setting, use photo software cautiously, and learn (which I did recently) that blogger messes with the photo when I use its easy upload function (user-friendly means out of my control) so I need to consider hosting photos and linking to them instead of uploading.

A lot of steps to consider! But in the end, a monitor or tv screen only has so many pixels for display. All my efforts to retain the 50-billion pixels of reality recorded by my camera is for nought if over a 3" x 5" rectangle, the display will only show 1 thousand of them.

But wait. Let's figure out what's optimal first and then figure out what I can get away with. Gotta know the rules before I can know where to fudge them.

That's what I thought, at least, until this happened:

Cool effects, hm? Except they're not effects, that's my camera going on the blink. Twenty minutes later, the camera readjusted itself somehow and turned out this one:

Isn't he adorable? Like he's posing just for me, awww...

Photos since then have been unpredictable. The pink-ness has disappeared from the bottom half and now shows up at the sides. And parts of the photo look like thin horizontal lines of reality have been snuffed out.

Time for a new camera! The good news: there are lots of Memorial Day sales going on. The bad news: I'm not sure what I can get away with yet, and a top-of-the-line camera is sooo within my budget...hack*cough

After much internet surfing - where did the term "surfing" first start? I've never surfed in my life. How do I know if I'm really "surfing" the internet like people do on water? In fact it seems like it has nothing to do with it at all. Maybe I should say I've been internet "hiking." That makes sense to me. Or maybe internet "hitchhiking?" Oh wait, I've never done that either.

Where was I?

BTW the fact that I get distracted has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I'm researching today for sales tomorrow while the camera went blinky weeks ago.

Anyway, here's what I do know.

The ability to take RAW photos is a great option. But when this setting is chosen, none of the other camera settings will work - compensating for tungsten light, for example, a setting I use a lot. So to take RAW photos (the optimal capturing-reality choice) I'd need to get really good really fast at taking photos and/or using photo software. Hm. It looks like the RAW option on a new camera isn't my first consideration.

According to Kodak, a 2-3 megapixel camera would be fine for general picture-taking. Sorry, Kodak, but could I have a little more info, please? I haven't had time to work out how low I can go. Is there any reason why I would pay more for more megapixels?

Here's an indirect answer guaranteed to muddy up the question. According to Australian Buy-N-Shoot.com, it's not the megapixels that matter but the sensor size. Sensor size affects sensitivity to light and depth of field. For yarn and knitting project photos, I certainly want natural light, and narrow depth of field photos (those with a small area of focus so that most of the photo is blurred). So I need to keep in mind that for those kinds of photos, a smaller megapixel DSLR camera will do better than a larger megapixel compact camera. I'm not sure that the size - or cost! - of DSLR's work for me, but it's something to keep in mind.

But that wasn't too helpful, was it? What if I throw some more chip considerations into the mix and figure out if I want a CMOS, CCD, or FOVEON chip? Clearly if I had a firm grasp of camera technology, I would make my decision based on these considerations. Do knitters and crocheters out there take all this into consideration? Is it necessary? I'm not talking about brooklyntweed, of course, because I'm guessing he does know these things and take them into consideration, being a professional photographer and all.

Hm, could that be why his pics are so good?

But what I do know is that I crop a lot. I don't pay attention to the outer edges of my photos when I'm taking them. So afterwards, in Photoshop, I do a lot of cropping. Which means if I want my cropped photos to have a large pixel density (which translates to sharpness and detail in the photo), I'm going to have to start with a many-pixelled original. Okay, so like everyone else, now I want as many megapixels as I can afford. Sigh. Onward.

For most of the pics I take, like holding a camera close to knitting stitches, I want a short depth of field. For this, it's also important to consider zoom and lenses. According to yahoo, optical zoom is a true zoom and won't cause any loss in pixel density. A digital zoom is equivalent to cropping and works by using only a part of an original photo and enlarging it. A 3" x 5" digital zoomed photo will have less pixels than a 3" x 5" regular digital photo. Okay, optical zoom = good; digital zoom = bad. Pay attention to the optical zoom numbers, gotcha.

Lenses? A fixed-focus lens will have a wide, rather than narrow (which is what I want) depth of field. A macro mode will switch it to close-up focusing with a narrower depth of field. This is what I had on my last camera and it did well. But maybe if the sale is good enough, I can get a point and shoot with lens adapters? Why is that good again?

I have so much research to do on what's actually out there! Good luck, sale buyers! May we find what we need without paying an arm and a leg and without paying the other arm and leg in gas. Am I shopping online? You bet your sweet bippy I am! What in the world is a bippy btw? Do I want to know? oops, no distractions, right, gotta go...

I'm over it

2008-05-16T21:18:00.000-04:00

I’m finally over the rectangular tunic top. I know you'll miss my gut-wrenching, aggravating, and frustrating adventures with this knit, but you'll just have to deal with it.

Now “over it” doesn’t mean finished, so here’s where I am.

Yes, I did change the neckline AGAIN, but I’m really happy with this one. It keeps the lines and designer’s intentions while adding the illusion of a neckline. I also like how I garter stitched the short rows and that it compliments the illusion v-neck.

Did I go into why this was so important to me? Those with a bust line larger than their frame, will just emphasize the largeness of the area with a boat neck. Having a scoop or v-neck (even if it’s just an illusion) breaks up that area, so that there’s a neck AND bust, not just a bust with a head sticking out on top.

So anyone with this same issue, I encourage you to try this. I used a stitch marker that I moved down one stitch every other row, and then after the midway point, up one stitch the same way. Above the stitch marker, I made up a different garter stitch pattern from the one on the bottom. To preserve the contrast, I always made sure that if I purled (RS) or knit (WS) in one section, I did the opposite in the other.

Back to the “over it” – I’ve decided I won’t wear this sweater for many reasons, but I’ve learned so much by knitting it, that I don’t regret spending the time on it.

First, I finally kicked the yarn-over short rowing into submission. It’s now firmly in my can-do skill set. I was never sure if my short-row sock heels were right, and whether my WS really did mirror the RS, but now, I’m sure.

Second (and maybe 3rd, 4th, and 5th), I learned a lot about the big picture of sweater making and designing. (More in a later post.) Or I learned how much I didn’t know.

In my knitting, I laugh at rules. I flaunt my disdain for limitations. Follow a pattern?! Puh-lease.

But…oh my…can I say it? Sigh…Virginia, there might be some rationality behind those choices. What seemed to me pure personal preference (or marketing) on the part of the designer or knitters out there, might actually be informed decision-making. And I need to get in on it.

One of my goals was to respect the talents of others by knitting patterns and seeing what I could learn from them. I had no idea how much I had to learn!

Slippin' Stripin' socks pattern

2008-05-14T18:23:00.026-04:00

“…a sweater for the foot…a very light and cushy sock...”
- Hillary (Celeryknits on ravelry), Sock Madness organizer

Free Slippin' Stripin' socks pattern for men or women makes its public debut! This pattern was part of Sock Madness II.

Click here to download a free pdf of the pattern.
I've moved all of my patterns to ravelry.com and have been assured that you don't need to be a member to download them. Please let me know if you have any issues.

I've modified it to include 5 sizes. And with the predictable number sequences throughout the pattern, you could customize this pattern for a number of sizes.

Bust your stash of lace leftovers - this pattern calls for knitting with 2 strands of lace weight yarn held together throughout. When the pattern calls for a color change, one of the strands is replaced with another color, and knitting continues with 2 strands. The slip stitching eases the stripe transitions so there's no "jogless joins" needed here.

You can also knit these socks with fingering weight yarn. Just use only 1 strand throughout.

Yarn used
Knit Picks Shadow [100% merino wool; laceweight; 400 yd per 50 gram hank]
Colors: Campfire 23659 (heathered orange), 1 hank; Sunset 23661 (heathered red), 1 hank;
OR
2 colors of any lace weight yarn, at least 400 yards of each

Needle size
US 2 / 2.75mm needles

Gauge
35 sts/53 rnds over 4” in (s1, k3) sl st patt worked in the round
40 sts/53 rnds over 4” in (s1, k1) sl st patt (used for the sole of the foot) worked in the round

Check gauge carefully and in the round.

Size of completed sock
With a 68 st cast-on: 7 1/2" foot circumference, unstretched, and 8 1/2" long from back of heel to tip of toe.
My socks fit a woman's U.S. shoe size 8 1/2, snugly.

Note: The pattern's ribbing and color sequence are not the same ones you see in my photo.

I knit my socks with a k1/p3 ribbing, but the ribbing rolled under so I changed it. Also, the pattern's color sequence splits the use of the 2 colors more evenly than mine did.

But feel free to experiment! Try this with 1 solid colored strand and 1 variegated strand. Use as many colors as you like and change them out as often as you feel like it.

Check out some of these Sock Madness II knitters to see the socks this pattern makes.

Ravelry names but they link to blog entries on these socks:
raspberry
knitknot
chrispindle
yarnmagnet
celeryknits

and check out the super-cool fingerless gloves Cornflake created! Sorry, but I could find these only on ravelry.com.

If you're curious about my inspiration for these socks, go here.

MDS&W

2008-05-09T13:32:00.014-04:00

Yarn Harlot mentioned recently that she spent nearly 2 hours on one blog post. She said it in passing, but I made note of it, because 2 hours?! Granted she had tons of photos and linkety-links, but I'm thinking it's also because she's a writer and no doubt edits and re-edits before she's happy with it.

Something else to aspire to. But for now, I'm happy just because it's actually a blog entry! It doesn't matter how long I took to write it - it's written and will be out there today! Ah the little things...

So I went to MDS&W (Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival) like so many others out there. I'm losing count, but I think it's my 4th. And for the first time, I recognized most of the vendors. Do you remember when you started to know your way around your neighborhood mall? When you knew which store was next to which? That's where I am and MDS&W is so much more manageable this way.

I did not trek up to see the sheepdogs herding the sheep, but apparently many many others did - here's them coming back down.

(BTW while taking this photo, about 4 or 5 others decided to take one, too. I'm not claiming any originality but humans are interesting aren't we? Ever seen someone on a street looking upwards? Don't you look upwards, too?)

With all those people, yarn booths like this one were shoulder to shoulder all day on Saturday.

But I did make it to the ravelry meeting with my gyro lunch spilling white sauce all over my t-shirt. When it started to drip, I remembered having this happen to me last year. Next year, it'll be easy to find me. I'll be the one wearing a bib.

So here's the meeting.

I sat on the wall most of the time, but surprisingly got a button, although no sticker. I talked to a couple people but from what I've read on ravelry, everyone was intimidated by the crowd and having to look at everyone else's chest to see if a ravatar was familiar. Don't you hate that junior-high-school-dance feeling? Amazing that as adults we still get that shy every now and then. (Please notice I said "we.")

Here's a couple of my goodies.

The handspun yarn was my only impulse buy (there were other buys but those things have projects planned for them), but it's so gorgeous! I got it from Coughlin's Homespun Yarns. I haven't found a Web site for Coughlin's, but have found them mentioned on a number of other sites. They're located in Halifax, Pennsylvania.

So other than sore feet and a light sunburn on my face, it was a wonderful day. I highly recommend it!

(Hm, about 20-25 minutes for this. Not bad. I'm sure a re-edit or two is needed but other things are a-calling.)

Light at the end of the tunic top tunnel

2008-04-30T20:07:00.001-04:00

Is it possible? Maybe. I'm hopeful.

I've finished the front...again. I've stopped counting how many times I've ripped and redone this. Or at least I don't want to know the exact number.

This time I followed the pattern almost exactly (why do I have to be beaten in submission, wimpering and depressed before I try this option?! I'm tenacious...and perhaps a little stubborn, I'll admit) except for the neckline.

I seed-stitched the "collar" or triangles that will fall forward because of the binding off and casting on I did to create a neck slit.

It definitely changes the sleek look of the original. And I might stitch them down inside.

But I'm more hopeful now than I've ever been that it will fit and can at least be used for a quick trip to the grocery store.

I have hiiigh hopes for this one, don't I?

Can I mention that it might thunderstorm at the Maryland Sheep & Wool festival on Saturday? And still be 80 degrees? Cotton sweater weather? No? How fast can I knit up a windbreaker?

Strike 2, ball 1? Or Strike 3?

2008-04-28T17:56:00.001-04:00

When I was younger, I went to a batting range on a date. But I was so paralyzed with the fear of messing up that I hit nothing (yup, that’s why). My self-consciousness also prevented me from putting it together until much later that he hadn’t hit anything either – and was probably just as nervous and self-conscious as I was.

Years later and I've finally figured out that mistakes can’t be avoided. Better to try to learn from them.

So is that why I continue to torture myself with this rectangular tunic top?!

See the 5” ruler? Have any idea what I did wrong this time?

First I picked up stitches across the top of this piece and then the back. I stitched the shoulders together, the inside of the shoulder seams starting on either side of the v-neck. All done, I tried it on.

You don’t get to see the seamed pieces because I ripped open the seams and pulled out the picked up stitches as soon as I finished.

I knew right away what I’d done wrong. And Nancy Nehring would be ashamed of me.

I’ve done a lot of measuring recently of neck widths on sweaters I own and sweaters I tried on in clothing stores. They varied between 5” and 6”, and sometimes 7” wide.

This tunic top sweater had a boat neck. I don’t like boat necks on me, so I was determined to figure out how to make it dip down in front, even just a little. I decided to make a small v of approximately 5 ½” wide. I decided on 5 1/2" because in the original pattern, the neck opening seemed too wide and I didn't want it to slip off my shoulders. I also eliminated the shoulder short rows because I didn't want the front to gap, but instead to lie flat.

Sounds perfectly fine, right? So what did I forget?

The primary purpose of a neckline is to enable a sweater to fit over the head. A neck 5-6” wide is okay – only if it comes down deep enough in the front to create a large enough opening for the head to fit. Mine did not.

My fist went through the opening, but that was it. How much frustration can one person take before the heart and brain starts to suffer?!

I always thought that sweaters were just big dishcloths. And dishcloths are easy, aren't they? Ha. I'm sure my next dishcloth is waiting to prove me wrong and ridiculous.

Last year at the Knit and Crochet show, I took every class that Nancy Nehring offered – and she’s teaching again at this year's Knit and Crochet show in Manchester, New Hampshire. If you can afford the gas and/or are close by, I’d highly recommend taking her classes. I almost skipped the first class in her Design series, "Just Rectangles," but I'm so glad I didn't.

In that first class, she taught me about leaving enough room for the head in a neck opening. And I had forgotten.

I guess mistakes aren’t just good for learning, but also relearning and making it stick. I don’t think I’ll be making that same mistake again.

But am I trying the tunic top again? It’s less than a week before the Maryland Sheep & Wool, and I don't have anything knitted that I can take with me or wear. What will I do, and will I stay sane? Stay tuned.

What WON’T you knit

2008-04-24T15:51:00.002-04:00

Since it’s Earth week (was it only a day? I’m not complaining but I’ve been seeing things for Earth Day all week – therefore I’m not late with this blog entry, no sirree), I’ve been thinking about knitting a grocery bag…

Everlasting Bagstopper

Saturday Market Bag (used to be on Magknits, June 2006)

Elisa’s Nest Tote

Turkish Stitch String Bag

The String Bag

or check yarn company sites - they all seem to have their own version.

…and wondering if there’s anything I wouldn’t knit.

You know how they always say, don’t stretch before warming up your muscles? Well, there’s a reason, and that reason has made me think of knitting a lumbar pillow (love this pillow) for my work chair.

Also we’re going to have to carry security cards in my new workplace, so I’ve thought about knitting an i-cord – in Noro Silk Garden, so I have thought about this for longer than a minute – to hang the card around my neck.

Terribly knit-geeky, no? But I’ve always been proud to say that I would never knit a toilet paper roll cozy. My mother crocheted these for every bathroom in the house, and somehow we never used the roll in the cozy. Instead of removing the one in the cozy and then replacing it with one from under the sink, we’d go directly to the ones under the sink. (Lazy or efficient? Discuss.)

So to me, the cozy is an occasionally dusty ornament with an old toilet paper roll inside.

Ew.

I know it’s not as “pretty,” but I prefer to get my toilet paper straight from its plastic packaging.

Then I saw a felted purple modern-art type of toilet roll cover. I’m still not knitting one, but I did consider it for a moment.

Please, PLEASE, no one knit a really beautiful bikini or I’ll have no self-respect left.

Tunic Top Take Two

2008-04-18T16:58:00.007-04:00

The Maryland Sheep & Wool festival is in 2 weeks, and if I can get it together, I’d like to wear something I knit.

This will be my 4th MDS&W. At the first one, it didn’t occur to me to wear anything I knitted. At the second, I was scared to show my knitted items in case it caused anyone to keel over in fits of laughter. But last year, I just didn’t think of it in time.

But I’ve thought of it this year - and there's a ravelry meetup in the Rabbit Building between 11:30 and 1:00 on Saturday.

I have 2 weeks. There is a slim chance I’ll get something done and wearable by then. But there's a chance. And it’s either going to be the tunic top or the white sweater.

Picking up the tunic top is an unusual move for me since most of my projects-that-frustrate languish for months, even years, in the “can’t deal with it” pile.

The white sweater just needs sleeves, but I have to figure them out, write it up, knit and seam them. So I decided on the tunic top. The white sweater's set-in sleeve is more complicated than the tunic top.

Or at least it was.

Yes, I did it again. I messed with the pattern. What can I say? The bottom trim on the original was going to enhance a part of me that I didn't want enhanced. It had to be changed.

The plan now is this: I'm knitting the bust and shoulders, top and front, separately. The front has short rows. Then I'll knit the original bottom trim for my waistline. The bottom third will cover my hips and mimic the top in pattern.

Make any sense? Well, you'll see. Here's my progress so far.

Comments commentary

2008-04-18T16:51:00.002-04:00

Thank you for your kind comments on the Slippin’ Stripin’ socks! I paid close attention to the ravelry.com threads, and was very happy to see that the pattern didn’t confuse anyone. And I’m glad that so many enjoyed it.

It’s really fun to see all the different versions out there – I like writing patterns (seriously!) but seeing my pattern knit up and made personal through color choice, etc. is the best.

BTW thanks also to those who suggested they might like a pattern write-up of my white sweater, too. I was thinking about writing it up, but haven’t decided.

Stay tuned for the Slippin’ Stripin’ Socks pattern and to see if I like my white sweater "after sleeves" enough to write up a pattern for it.

Regarding comments, I hope you all know that I read every one. I’ve set it up so that comments are sent to my e-mail address. Even comments made on one of my 2-year-old blog entries will get to me so that I can read them.

But I can’t figure out a good way to respond to them. The e-mails don’t forward your e-mail or url to me, so I can’t reply to them. The only thing I get to see is a commenter’s blogger profile, if they have one.

Someday I’ll move this blog to a place where I’ll have the capability of responding directly to comments.

But until then, just thought I’d let you know that they’re read and appreciated.

Sock Madness returns

2008-04-10T20:45:00.000-04:00

My pattern's been sent so I can finally talk about it! What pattern? sent? to whom? Well...

Sock Madness is back for its second year. Based on the men's college basketball March Madness, this sock knitting competition has its own rounds and brackets - one free new sock pattern goes out to all participants at the beginning of all “rounds.” Although all participants receive the patterns, only the fastest knitters survive to compete in the following rounds. Winners receive yarny prizes!

I would never make it in a timed knitting competition, I don’t knit that fast, but I went out on a limb and sent in my first-ever patterns to Sock Madness last year. They used two: Mad Color Weave socks and Mad for Fair Isle Batik Style socks.

This year they accepted one of my patterns, and it's just been sent to all the Sock Madness knitters! And here it is:

Because part of the competition is keeping the patterns secret until the round starts, participants get gauge, yarn, and needle specs but don’t know anything else about the socks until they get the pattern.

When everyone read that one of the sock patterns would use laceweight yarn, you cannot believe the amount of discussion! I wished I could have jumped in and reassured them. But hopefully they'll see now that it's a pretty easy pattern once they get the hang of knitting and slipping 2 strands at once.

Trekking XXL sock yarn was my inspiration.

I love my Trekking socks and loved the color changes while making them.

But then I thought: how can I get that look and have some control over the stripe widths and colors? I’m not a spinner, so that wasn't an option.

Sock Madness competitors are lucky I didn't have any cobweb lace because I wanted to try it with 3 strands. But two strands of regular laceweight worked just fine and the double strand knit up to a fingering weight gauge, perfect for socks.

I used KnitPicks Shadow in orange and red, put in slip stitches to ease the stripe transitions, and used heel stitch on the heel flap and sole to reinforce the sock.

Originally, I used a k1, p3 ribbing on top to match the slip-stitch pattern of the leg.

But the ribbing curled under annoyingly when I wore these socks. I changed it to a k1, p1 rib.

Last night, I cast on a new pair so that I could play with more colors.

Some of the Sock Madness participants are using one strand of solid and one strand of variegated. I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with!

So good luck, Sock Madness knitters! and remember to take care of your wrists :)

NOTE: When Sock Madness ends, this pattern will be made available for free in extended sizes.

Part I: The “digital" in photography

2008-04-09T16:33:00.017-04:00

There’s a world to explore in photography from how to stand and hold the camera still to lighting, focus, and subject matter. A world I dip my toe into now and then only to think, how do I remember all this when I grab the camera and shoot someone blowing out the candles?!

At least I know that sometimes I need a flash.

But taking photos in this day and age requires something that I’ve completely ignored until now and ignoring it is almost as bad as leaving the lens cap on.

I use a digital camera, upload my photos onto a computer, and display some of them here on my blog. I’m thinking it’s about time I tackle the whole “digital” part.

First, my camera has file settings that control…well, I’m trying to figure that out. Then when I plug my camera into my computer, software takes the photo files from the camera and saves them as…something else I’m trying to understand. Then when I want to display them here, blogger takes the file and does something else to it which isn’t very clear to me either.

Would anyone write a novel on paper that makes it unreadable? I’m not a novelist but I’d guess no. Granted my shots of yarn aren’t in the same realm as these, but if I can get a handle on the digital aspect, I’d have more time to perfect my photo-taking ability.

That’s what I tell myself.

So in an attempt to get it straight, I thought why not post what I find out and force myself to be coherent? Then my notes will make sense when I need them in the future.

Let's start with the camera. Although there’s lots of ways to mess up a photo there has to be some reason why everyone runs out to replace their 5 megapixel camera with the latest 100 megapixel one. (No, no, don’t go looking for 100 megapixel cameras, they don’t exist...yet.)

The way I understand it, when I focus the camera on a rectangle of reality, if I have a 5 megapixel camera, that reality will be split up into 5,000 discrete pieces. So why wouldn’t I want to split that same rectangle of reality into 6 or 10,000 discrete pieces? The more pieces I have, the more accurately those pieces will imitate reality when brought together.

For example, let’s say that this photo is our rectangle of reality:

Split up into large pieces, it doesn’t look much like the old photo:

But split up into smaller pieces, it does:

But does that mean a 5 megapixel or even a 1 megapixel camera is useless? What if 1 is all you have and there's just no room in the budget for a 10? It depends on what you will do with the photos.

A 1 megapixel camera is just fine for some uses. Camera makers wouldn't have sold the 1 megapixel to consumers if it created unrecognizable photos.

Just don't try to enlarge photos made by a low-megapixel camera.

It may look fine at a small size:

But when enlarged could look like this (effect simulated):

Because the 1,000 pixels need to stretch out over more area, each "pixel" needs to be bigger, and the picture looks "pixelated."

Great. All that made sense until I realized there were settings on my camera to determine the dimensions of my photos in pixels. So maybe my 5 megapixel camera isn't really splitting up the reality rectangle into 5,000 parts? but maybe only into 1,000 parts? Could that be why my photos are blurrier than they should be?

It's probably not the cause of my photo blur but hey, if I can get the most out of the megapixels my camera has, it can't hurt, right?

For an examination of camera settings and their effect on my yarn photos, stay tuned for Part II.

caveat: I'm no photo or digital photo expert - I'm just playing one here...

The sky is falling!

2008-04-08T18:33:00.006-04:00

First, MagKnits has closed down its site.

I hadn't printed out the Rainbow Socks pattern yet, but I googled for it, and hit the "cache" link. There it was, phew!

Second, Project Runway is moving to Lifetime.

Lifetime has signed contracts with Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn for its Project Runway, but hasn't signed on Nina Garcia or Michael Kors. Will the "femme-centric" channel change PR?! Although the channel does host Carson Kressley's new show in its line up.

But I feel utterly dismayed.

In one day?! It's unsettling!

...that free patterns disappear and a television show might change format?

Okay, maybe my life isn't ending.

But it definitely warrants some chocolate.