Baby hats

This is my new niece. Isn't she lovely? Isn't she wearing a darling hat? Did I make that hat? No, I did not. Some other very talented knitter made that hat and a gorgeous matching dress, which she is also wearing in this picture, underneat the "I love my big brother" bib. If you are thinking of knitting a dress for a baby - go ahead, babies looking darling in knitted dresses, especially if there is a matching hat.

This is the hat that I made for her. It might fit her in a year or two!

Happy Kitchen, Clean kitchen

DH's departure for the Congo left me with extra jobs like grocery shopping, which is a bad thing for many reasons. I am not as good of a bargain hunter as he is and I'm too suseptible to packaging. What can I say, I like to try new things?

The other problem is that I'm just not that good at following the list and sure enough, I found I was missing bunches of items when we got home - chief among them was covers for the Swiffer. Somehow I remembered to get the spray stuff - but that's really of no use without something to push it around on the floor with!

But I'm a knitter - we knitters knit things - things like Swiffer covers. :)

I have a well respected knitting friend who questions why would someone go to the trouble of making something to replace something that is disposable. I totally respect and appreciate this perspective, and really all things being equal, I prefer to toss than to create more laundry. I'm also not convinced - given how dirty our floors are - that by the end of the job the knitted cover isn't just pushing around the dirt (we usually go through 2 or 3 disposable covers -I know, ewwww, but I've got 5 kids, a dog and a muddy back yard).

Anyway, I have lots of cotton and the covers are a quick knit. And the colorful cover makes the kitchen feel happier somehow. Still, mine may end up being just for display - DH is back now and back in charge of the shopping.

headband heart ache

For Valentine's Day, DH left town, headed for the Congo. As consolation, he left me a gift certificate to the yarn shop. I splurged on some lovely pink angora - soft, soft, soft - just like I've been dreaming about.

I started with a head band. Since it was VDay, I made one from the One Skein Wonders book that had the XO cable and with hearts on the inside. It just happened to be made out of the exact yarn I bought.

I will say that this is quite possibly the most confusing pattern I have ever encountered. It's made in one, wide piece and then folded in half. On one side is the cable pattern, which is over 16 rows and the other is the hearts, which is over 12 rows. Fortunately, they're both pretty easy to memorize so it wasn't too bad after several repeats. The color is perfect. The head band is warm. But here's the problem:

It slips down over my eyes. I am almost constantly having to push it back up again!

It's not that it's too loose. It might be that it's too tight, but not by much if that's the problem. It might be that the yarn is too slippery. I don't know what to do. I really like it, but I can't stand having to fuss with it. I could pick up stitches and turn it into a hat. I could frog and try a different pattern (I certainly had to frog plenty of times while knitting).

This had kind of stymied my progress on other projects with this yarn. I'm thinking of a scarf or maybe just a neck gaitor - have I mentioned how soft it is? I just want to have it right near my

face.

I made the headband in part because my hair had gotten so long and scraggly that I was forced

to wear it in a pony tail that didn't look good with a hat. But I can say good by to the pony tails for awhile - I have a new short and sassy do! :)

The Queen of Yarn

I've decided to claim the title of Queen of Yarn or Yarn Queen for short. Not that I've done anything in particular to deserve it. I'm a good knitter, but not especially great when compared to those who really are. But I do love to knit and I don't believe anyone else has laid claim to the title. Of course, I haven't actually gone to the trouble of even doing a Google search to be sure.

What does being the Queen of Yarn entitle me to? Well, I get to rule over all the yarn in my house of course. I can make anything of it that I want. To the extent that I am actually capable of doing that, which is not always as much as I would like.

Maybe someday I'll be good enough to extend my rule beyond the borders of my four (or so since the house isn't a square) walls and rein over yarn in other places.

I will be a benevolent queen sharing freely what I learn - sometimes whether people want me to or not, although I try to refrain from giving advice not given.

In claiming this title, I in no way am declaring that I am a knitting expert or implying that I am better than anyone else. I just want an excuse to wear a tiara. Now I suppose I should go knit one, right?

Stressing My Friends

I started to log in last night to post a comment about my latest unprogress on my complicated Secrets of the Stole project but I was so stressed by a disagreement with one of my lovely teens that I couldn't even think to get the password straight.

I opted instead to sit in bed and read Newsweek. Ironically, the cover article was about how stress can be a good thing - if so, I've got it made. The most interesting part was buried deep in the article about how men and women respond differently to stress. Both genders experience stress as a rise in adrenaline and coritsol. What's different is our reaction. Women are more likely to turn to their social networks, which prompts the release of oxytocin, which mutes the stress systems. If we are surrounded by loved ones when a stressor arises, there some evidence that we don't even show as much of the initial hormonal response, which means less risk of long-term harm to the brain.

It's a scientific explanation of what I have gathered by instinct - turning to friends helps my cope with the challenges (I prefer to think of the issues I face as challenges rather than problems) both big and small that make my life interesting.

Through the benefits of modern technology, I have an extended social network that is available to me even when I can't get out of the house. For you all, I am extremely grateful. I hope in response that I am able to at times relieve the risk of long term harm to your brain.

Speaking of stress - I managed four rows of the extremely complicated pattern only to find I had two stitches too few. I could have just faked it, but why bother with all the work that's already gone into this? It's not going to get done anytime soon anyway so I figured it might as well get done right. I tried tinking back and ended up with two extra stitches!?! So frogged. I am beginning to understand the zen of knitting - in knitting, it's not always about advancing and adding rows, it's about getting it right. If you've gotten no further than you were, but the project looks like it's supposed to, then your time hasn't been wasted. Tinking and frogging bring opportunities to learn more about the craft, to understand how the loops fit together, to see how the pattern forms.

Another article in the Newsweek talked about a Navy training program in which the trainees hands and feet are bound and they are thrown into a pool. Those who struggle and thrash about inevitably fail and have to be rescued. In order to succeed, you have to let yourself sink and then push yourself off the bottom up to the surface where you can get a gasp of air before sinking and doing that again. Sometimes that is how it is in knitting - relax, do the opposite of what your mind says - go back instead of forward - and then you can move ahead. Sometimes that is how it is in life. Not always. Sometimes it is perfectly appropriate to run screaming from the room.

Congo socks

The socks arrived in the Congo and they fit! Yeah!

The yarn is self striping - the pattern got a bit lost in the ribbing, but it still looks good. They were based primarily on measurements and patterns in Sensational Knitted Socks - which is the book to have if you want to knit socks. It has charts to make socks in any size depending on your gauge plus patterns to try. It has instructions for top down, toe up, as well as short row heels and flap heels in both directions. I prefer short row heels, although I still struggle with them. I find it hard to concentrate and so I'm constantly losing my place. I liked the book's explanation, but I tried another way, the Lifestyle Toe Up, that I found on the web; there's even a video demonstration. It doesn't use wraps and instead has you knit an extra stitch. It was easy to follow and came out reasonably well. Any troubles were user error.

I love magic loop two at a time. I can't imagine making socks one at a time in part because I'm sure I'd lose count of the rows and because it's too easy to not make the second one. If you haven't tried it, it's not as hard as it looks.

Another reason to knit

It turns out there is a very good reason to knit other than to make really great things - it helps delay the onset of dimentia, according to a recent study. Watching television, however, may speed up memory loss.

There's two ways of looking at that for those of us who knit while watching television - one is that you are cancelling out the benefits of knitting by watching the box. I prefer, however, to regard it as balancing the negative of watching television with the goodness of knitting!

I've heard from DH that the luggage arrived! Whew. The socks fit. Whew. He even took pictures as requested, but the computer failed to cooperate with him and erased the pictures (or so he says, hmmmm...)

Dh says he's hearing some heart breaking stories from the victims of the violence in the Congo. He also met two soldiers who believe they are made of water and therefore can not be killed in battle. The city is devastated and yet life continues with children in uniforms going to school. In contrast, our ordinary life of school vacation, trips to the store and stops at MacDonalds feels so priveleged. Dishwashers, washing machines, stoves ... I don't think I appreciate them enough because I don't really know what it's like to live without them. Even beyond that, the relative peace in which we live - it's an amazing blessing.

Socks away

I finished dh's socks with just hours to spare. I cast off at 1:15 a.m. and he got on a taxi at 4 a.m. I stuffed the socks in the front of his suitcase along with the Valentine's Day cards from the children. I figured he's going to the other side of the world - he won't get there until Valentine's Day and it will be a nice surprise.

I next heard from him when he was on the runway on Ethopian Airlines. Somehow, his suitcase hadn't made it. He's thinking about all the stuff he may not have when he arrives. Of course I'm thinking about the socks! I should have stuffed them in his carryon bag!

Maybe I'll be able to post a picture soon...fingers crossed.

Fast and fabulous

Does it ever happen to you that a project just gets stuck in your head? Last year I made a scarf for a well-deserving friend of mine. It was a beautiful lace scarf in an oh-so-soft light green yarn. I was happy to hear that she was thrilled with it. But, she lives in Wisconsin. It is cold there. Very cold. The scarf I made was pretty and it was probably warmish, but it wasn't a wrap- around-your-face-to-keep-out-the-north-wind sort of warm. And thus I had one of those projects that lives in your head nagging to be completed. It took almost a full year. My plan for the original scarf was to have it done for Valentine's Day of last year. That proved impossible since I picked a way-complicated pattern. Somehow, it seemed appropriate then to shoot for this Valentine's Day. I found a gorgeous well endowed Laines du Nord yarn - big yarn makes for quick knitting on 10.5 needles. I made it in mistake rib on 31 stitches. After it was finished, at both ends, I picked up the stitches using some stashed navy blue yarn and knit a modified ruffle - instead of knitting f&B of every stitch, I knit f&b of ever fourth stitch.

Once the scarf was done, I realized I still had a whole lot of yarn - there was 350 yards on the skein. So, a matching hat was in order. Inspired by one recently made by the Yarn Harlot for her daughter. She was inspired by this hat - which now that I look at is what I had in my head when I knit mine. I knit a band in garter stitch, slipping the first stitch of every row, until it wrapped around my head. I tapered off the end and sewed it together with the ends overlapping. Next, I picked up stitches along one row through the back loop (to leave a ridge). On the first row I added a few stitches since the gauge of the two yarns didn't match perfectly. I wasn't sure at first that I would get it done on time to send with the scarf for Vday. But again, big yarn = wicked fast knit. I had the band done during one Scrubs episode and half of the top during the news. I finished all but the decreases during a phone meeting (really, I concentrate better when I knit!) The best part is that I'm confident it will fit. This is a great way to knit a hat if you don't want to bother with swatching.

It's interesting to note (at least to me) that I knit the scarf on 10.5s and it made for a great, light, fluffy fabric. I knit the hat on 9s, however. The fabric was a little more dense, but just right for a more structured object.

I mailed them off today even though I have enough yarn for half mitts. :) I need to move onto my other Valentine's Day project - socks for dh who is heading off to the Congo on Friday. He's going to write about some Harvard research there.

Knitting popular cultural reference

Here is a sign of how much knitting has penetrated popular culture. Note this passage from an article in the January 2009 Scientific American issue all about evolution. The article is about how some medical problems we have are due to how our bodies evolved from fish:

"The major bones in human knees, backs and wrists arose in aquatic creatures hundreds of millions of years ago. Is it any surprise, then, that we tear cartrilage in our knees and suffer carpal tunnel syndrome as we type, knit or write? Our fish and amphibian ancestors did not do these things."

This leads me to wonder - does the author knit? Is he married to a knitter? Are there other knitters in his life? Do they suffer from carpal tunnel?

What would a fish knit if a fish could knit? There is a children's story about a hand knit sock that goes missing and ends up being used as a sleeping bag for a fish.

Momma's Dolls

My mom is great. She loves me and I love to knit, so she learned how to knit again. That's great

cause now we can do knitting things together. When she was here awhile ago, we hunted down a yarn store in Salem and found this adorable kit for something called a Kuku Doll. There sure are some imaginative, creative people out there! These dolls are just darling. Initially, we were disciplined and left the store with just yarn for a new scarf. But we couldn't stop thinking about these winsome dolls and their sweet smiles. The bodies are felted and the faces are made with needle felting. Mom says it's really not that hard to do. The yellow-haired doll is George. He lives with mom now. The other one she made for a new baby boy. The scarf is done and now she's making a matching hat. Go mom!

Cost Effective Knitting

Early on in my knitting career I learned to think not just about the price per skein but also the price per yard. A $20 skein with 350 yards is a better deal than a $10 skein with just 90 yards, for instance. Now I have another way to measure cost - the price per project.

In shopping recently for yarn for a baby hat for my new niece, I found four irrisistable colors in a yarn that wasn't so cheap. I was looking at a price tag of $40 for one hat! But after I finished with that one, I kept on knitting (it was too big and ended up being snapped up by the 3yo anyway) and made two more plus a doll. She is based on the pattern in the Weekend Knitting book, which I highly recommend. She is knit in pieces and then sewn up. After botching the seams badly, I am thinking and thinking about how to make her in the round.

The hats are based on a combination of patterns.

Both of the little hats are made with 72 stitches knit in the round. On the ruffled edge, I cast on 144 stitches, knit one round and k2tog around to get the ruffle. I then did a single stitch rib for 4 rounds. I had hoped that would bring in the hat a little to make it fit tighter and stay on better. I'm not sure if it worked out, but it looks okay. I didn't realize that ribbing stands out from stockinette stitch. I thought it would pull it in and make that part of the hat tighter.

The yarn is Debbie Bliss Rialto - it's a superwash merino. It is a dream to knit with. That's part of the reason I made so many things - I just couldn't stop. It's soft and springy. It is, however, very splitty. It's not the sort of yarn that holds up well to being frogged multiple times (unfortunatley, I know this from personal experience).

Now that I am all done, DSIL has requested a white crocheted hat with a crocheted flower for the baby girl. That's fine - I don't mind having another project. But, I realized that as I have been organizing and sending unused items off to bless others that I blessed her with all my crochet books! Silly me. Thankfully there are so many patterns available on line.

Smitten with Smitten

We discovered recently a fabulous book at our local library called Smitten. It's about a mateless mitten that teams up with mateless sock. The best part is when the mitten becomes unraveled and the sock high tails it to a knitting shop where he finds a knitting how-to book and puts his friend back together.

It's a delightful story that appeals to both boys and girls ( I say this from direct experience) and even the teens.

Filosofical Friday

Springer hunting for tennis ball:

Filosofical Friday

(Pardon the spelling - I'm practising (sic) wat (sic) my six year old is lerning (sic) in skool.(sic) )

A couple of years ago when dashing with my minions through the airport, a book caught my eye:
Creating A Charmed Life; Sensible Spiritual Secrets Every Busy Woman Should Know. It's not usually my type of book , but this time I couldn't resist on the off chance that there was actually some secret to life that I've missed.

Despite my initial skepticism, the book actually does have some good bits of wisdom. There are short chapters each centered around a thought about a different way to approach life. I read one a day when I can. After having read through it once, I would have to say my life is a little more charmed. Or more importantly, my eyes have been opened to all the ways it was charmed that I didn't recognize before.

Recently, as I worked through the book a second time, I came across a thought that has leaped out at me being both relevant to my knitting life as well as the rest of it. It's the concept of living with unsolved problems - or unknit patterns or unknit skeins of yarn.

"The ability to coexist with the unresolved has immense practical value. Without it, we can function at our best only when everything is perfect (in other words, never). Even solvable problems seldom have instant answers. Until these problems are worked through, we share space with them."

The author points to small things such as finding a problem with your bank statement on Friday night and having to live with it until the bank opens on Monday.. Or big problems like your best friend not speaking to you and refusing to take your phone calls.

This is not to say that I think of patterns or yarn as problems - but they are unresolved things in my life.

How do you deal with them? Fences, the author says. You build fences to separate them from the rest of your life.

"Dilemmas need fences to prevent them from migrating. Fencing in an obstacle means keeping it contained so it doesn't affect the rest of your life....When you have well-tended fences, one or two or a dozen things going wrong won't negate the 147 that are going right."

When it comes to my knitting, I envision a white rail fence on a farm with beautiful horses running behind it. I can enjoy looking at them even though I can ride only one at a time. There's no need to stress, or feel pressure about those that are waiting.

On a life note, it's a revelation to realize that I can mentally separate the issues. I've never been good at living with unresolved things. I'm a journalist - write it today and move on to the next thing. And now I have five unresolved problems (ie children) and a business filled with long-term projects, so it's more important than ever to be able to consciously set aside things I can't fix immediately to give my attention to what I can.

As a Christian, this is important because it means praying and then trusting that God is working on the things even when I can't. I'm okay with the praying part, it's the trusting part I'm not so good at.

The pics are from our recent snow day. It's since all turned to ice, but we had fun for awhile.

Beware of Three-year-olds with cameras

You Can't Have Your Yarn and Knit It Too

Thank you for the comments about yarn collection vs. pattern collection (see previous post and feel free to add to the discussion). Your comments have helped me figure out how I feel - I love to have yarn on hand so that if I come across a pattern I like, I can get started right away. It's hard for me to find time to shop and I don't have a lot of patience when it comes to waiting to get to a store - I'm more of the instant gratification sort (thus all the quick projects). That being said, I realized that I feel pressure to knit the yarn I have on hand and since I can't knit it all right away, I've been sort of feeling guilty. I feel now that I can relax and just enjoy having the yarn. It's beautiful to look at and I'm giving myself permission to enjoy just having it around.

Which brings me to my latest project. For Christmas last year, my cousins gave me two giant balls of yarn - the biggest balls of yarn I've ever seen. For 12 months, I gazed at them, pondered them, wondered what they should become. I wasn't sure how much was there and so I hesitated. I didn't want to get through 90 percent of a project only to find out I didn't have quite enough. On the other hand, I knew there was a lot so I didn't want to use just a little on a small project and then not have enough for something bigger.

Then the cold spell came and I had a hankering for a wide, cabled scarf. My budget was busted and I couldn't get to a shop anyway. So I took the plunge with the big ball. I found a great reversible cable pattern and have fallen head over heels in love with cables. By the end, I'd even mastered cableing without a cable needle.

As I knitted, the ball got smaller and smaller and smaller. That made me a little sad. Not to get too philosophical on you - but it's that way with the children only in reverse. I love what they're becoming, but I miss what they were.

So here is my ball now, next to the remaining big one for context.

Here is what we have instead of a giant ball of yarn - I will say this much, it is a lot warmer! As you can see - it is as long as I am tall. I'm told this is a good length for a scarf. I must agree.

Now, the question is - do I keep the balls intact or do I move ahead with plans for a matching hat and mittens? Hmmm......

Found it

How do you locate a pattern for which you have been searching for hours and ranting about ad naseum? Decide to make a different pattern, of course.

I finally decided that the baby hat patter for which I was searching (see below) was gone for good, probably lost in an organizational purge. I settled for being inspired by one of the other patterns I had found - a wide striped hat with a touch of Fair Isle. After casting on and knitting a couple of inches, I paged through the magazine to find my chosen pattern and there - yes, you can see what's coming - was the pattern for which I had been searching - in the same gosh darned magazine! It's the rastafarian hat, which can, I believe, also be found in Itty Bitty knits - or see it here on site of author Susan B. Anderson.

This event has left me pondering the question - is it better to amass a large stash of yarn you love and search for the perfect pattern or to collect patterns and wait to find the perfect yarn? Please share your thoughts on your subject and pass the question around - I'm curious to hear what other knitters think.

Knitter's Frustration

My story starts, as most do, rather simply. I have a new niece. I saw in the store an adorable blanket and sleeper in lovely pink and brown combo. It was on sale. I figured I'll make a little hat to match. Easy enough, right?

We go to the store, the 3yo and I. We find parking right out front (an amazing feat given the lack of parking in Cambridge). We walk in and the very first yarn we pick up is perfect - it's the exact colors we need and it's superwash -- perfect for a busy mom who doesn't have time to hand wash baby hats.

It's a little on the pricey side, but it's so soft and so pretty and I had a gift certificate from Christmas. The only problem is we (I)can't choose from among the four perfect-colored skeins. We (I) decide to get all four and make two hats. (The 3yo brings over to me a $65 skein of pure Cashmere, and says, "How about this one?" Boy, does she have great taste! Yikes.)

Then I get home. Then it hits me - Now that I have four fabulous yarns, I need to have an equally fabulous pattern to match. I remember seeing one in a magazine that might be a good one - but which magazine!? I have stacks and stacks of them. I've been through all of them and I can't find it again. Aaarrrrrggghhhhhhhh! I've found about 202 other patterns I want to make (and consequently feel entirely deprived since I can't begin knitting all of them immediately). Why do I keep all these magazines? Are they treasured sources of inspiration or anchors weighing down my creativity and cluttering up my work space?

I did come across some nice baby hat patterns - but not the one I was thinking of and none of them quite special enough. I've found some other patterns on the web but in the wrong size (I know I can convert, I was just hoping to not have to.) The problem, of course, is that every hour this baby is getting bigger - I have to knit quick so she can wear it at least a day before it's too small. (Maybe I should buy her a doll that can where the hat when she grows out of it.)

On a side note - for hat knitters: in doing research for this project, I came across a purl of wisdom from the Yarn Harlot - when knitting a rolled-brim hat, it will fit better if you drop down a needle size or two for the rolled part. That explains part of my hat sizing problem.

Knitting Dreams

True Dream:

I walk into a consignment shop that has many rooms on two levels. The toothless, wild-haired woman at the front desk takes one look at me and says they have a great package of yarn in the room down the stairs to the right, but I had better hurry. My heart both races because I really wasn't expecting to find any yarn but then my stomach tightens because I don't have much money to spend so I'm worried I might find something I actually want to buy. The whole place is filled floor to ceiling with interesting looking pieces of furniture and knick knacks.

I make my way to the room she is talking about and it is piled high with textiles. Toward the back on a table there is a single bag of yarn with a sign that says "Entire contents $30. Will not be sold individually. Value over $150." I pull out a bunch of skeins of yarn when one catches my eye - silk and some other rare fiber in a lace weight. It is the softest yarn I have ever touched but it is bright red, white and blue - vivid colors as in the American Flag - not my usual palette. I sit their fondling it trying to figure out if I could dye it, knit it for someone else or even whether it's worth the money. I think it's probably value, but I don't really even have the $30 to spend. Maybe if it were $10...I wonder if I should scrimp on groceries, I could afford it - the yarn is so unbelievably soft. And just then the 3yo, who has been running a fever, sits bolt upright and says "I don't feel well."

I am no longer dreaming - I am grabbing her and making a run for the bathroom. We made it just in time. (Later DH remarked on her impressive grammar: I don't feel well vs. I don't feel good.)

After a relatively sleepless night, I'm left pondering the meaning of my dream - do I crave softer yarns? Am I feeling deprived? Should I be stash-building? Is it a sign that I should be more budget conscious?

Coincidentally, a nearby yarn shop is starting its winter sale today...hmmm.....

Humiliated by the Claw

We went this morning on what was supposed to be an innocent trip to the Monster Golf - this is (for the unitiated) indoor, glow-in-the dark miniature golf set in a maze decorated with images of various monsters moving to the beat of Rockin' 80s music. Maybe they figure that's a way to keep the parents mezmerized while their children play.

Next to the golf course are various video games that allow you to earn tickets that you can trade in for trinkets destined tobe be jetsom (or flotsam?) in the clutter of a child's room. The wise parent stays on the sidelines, handing out the quarters, smiling at the wins and comforting the losses. The foolheardy venture to join in the fun.

Of all the games, the one I have asiduously avoided and thus far been able to steer my children away from is the claw. I know that is the money muncher of all games. It looks so tantalizingly easy - move the claw, push a button and it drops down to grab a prize - a cheaply made stuffed animal that will end up gathering dust but at the moment looks heartstoppingly cute. You can't win, I tell my children. It's a rip-off. But today is a holiday, so I decide it's time they learn this lesson for themselves.

The 6 yo stepped up to the plate. No luck on the first try - 50 cents, plooop down the drain. Let me try just one more time? she begs. It's your money, I tell her. And what do you know? She drops the claw over a coveted pink pony and up it comes! She did it! Knock me down with a feather - she got the very one she wanted and on just the second try. Maybe this isn't so hard afterall. (Can you see where this is headed?)

Now the 3yo wants a try. Mommy figures if the 6 yo can do it.... I carefully position the claw over the desired fish. Drop, drop, drop...right to the fish. the claws close in. Yes! We've got it. But no. The fish is round and slips right out of the side of the claw! Now it's in a really good spot. We have to try again. Drop, drop, drop...right to the fish. Same as last time - bloop it slips between the claws. Lets try for another one? Again, the claw is positioned perfectly. It grabs around the animal, but the slippery animal slides right off the claw. After way too much money was wasted, I finally tore myself away. I just couldn't stay away, however. So close! Thankfully, by the time we went back, the machine was busted. It wouldn't take in anymore quarters. I was saved from myself. After that, we concentrated on the games that spit out at least a few tickets no matter how poorly you performed.

In the end, we had a grand total of 128 points between the three of us. This was enough to get
1 pink monster finger puppet
1 Chinese finger trap
1 tiny Pirate spy glass
2 glow plastic bracelets
3 "poppers" (very tiny pieces of stiff rubber in a cup shape)

Honestly, these silly little toys made the girls as happy as any stuffed animal from the machine would have.

Me? I think I've learned my lesson....send dad to the arcade.

In Praise of Pecans

My momma came for Christmas. She brought Pecans. I'm not sure why - maybe for cookies that we never got around to making. What I didn't know is how much I was missing by not having pecans in the cupboard! I just passed over recipes with pecans without a second thought, but suddenly, I was free to include them in my contemplation of what to cook! And wow, what a wonderful addition!

We started with the cinnamon roles that I made before without pecans. They were okay, but with the pecans, they were out of this world fantabulous. The recipes calls for them to be cooked in muffin tins. Last time, I skipped that step and ended up with flat, spread-out rolls that the kids wouldn't touch. This time, I put the in a 13x9 pan, which kept them together and allowed them to properly rise. Thankfully, the kids loved them and saved me from myself!

Next was the nutbread with a struessel topping. You can make a streussel topping without pecans, but it doesn't really compare.

And finally, came the salmon with a pecan glaze. DH of a dozen or so years said it was quite possibly the best recipe I've ever made!

Here it is:
Spread 1 cup of pecans on a flat pan and place in a 375 degree oven for 10 minutes.
Melt 1/2 stick of butter in a small sauce pan. Add 1/3 cup of honey, 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard and the pecans. Let cook for ten minutes. (You could add a little extra dijon mustard to taste)

Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil and 3 tablespoons of butter in a frying pan. Season salmon with pepper and salt and cook until flaky - about 5 minutes per side. Top with pecan glaze, serve and enjoy the compliments.

Shameless bragging

Please indulge me in some gushing. After years of talking about wantint to write a book, DH actually did. I've mentioned it before, because I just can't stop talking about it. I'm so proud of him and I want it to do well. Plus I think it's a great book. But, of course, I'm totally biased. Here's proof that it's not just me:

This is a review of the Race to Save the World's Rarest Bird, by Alvin Powell
available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

A race that couldn't be won

By Mike Leidemann Special to the Star-Bulletin

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Jan 11, 2009 I missed my bus stop. Even though this book starts by telling you the ending -- the bird, the po'ouli, is going to go extinct -- somehow I got so engrossed in the story that I kept right on going through downtown Honolulu on the No. 56 bus when I was supposed to get off near Fort Street Mall.

Powell, who lives and works in Massachusetts, says he was inspired to write this chronicle of a Hawaii bird that was discovered and lost in the last 30 years after reading a short newspaper article.

"There's something wrong with this," he thought. "Surely, we humans must acknowledge the passing with something more than just a couple of paragraphs."

Maybe in Hawaii we do take such passings too lightly. After all, there are more endangered and threatened species here than anywhere else in the country. But we hear little about the heroic work that is being done to change the situation. Great efforts are being made, millions of dollars are being spent and heroic (and sometimes mundane) battles are being fought every year to change this tide of extinction. But how much do we even hear about these struggles going on in our rain forests or even our own back yards?

Powell's gift to Hawaii is to trace the story of the po'ouli, which was first discovered in the 1970s in some of the wettest, most remote parts of eastern Maui.

Full review

More knitting coming - this cold spell me hankering to knit very warm things as fast as I possibly can!

Obscure knitting reference in pop culture

Have you heard about Arthur? He's walking talking animated critter (an aardvark I think) who teaches children about good, ethical behavior. We usually skip him in favor of Curious George or the Power Puff Girls. But today he appealed to the 3yo.

In today's show, he was referred to a great musician for piano lessons. A friend was warning him how hard the teacher was on students and ended with an ominous mention of the knitting needles.

The teacher ended up "firing" Arthur because he wasn't working hard enough. Arthur was at first elated and then he missed playing so he practiced real hard and tried to get back into the teacher's good graces. After playing his piece and making many mistakes, he saw the teacher get out the knitting needles. Arthur had a terrified look on his face and we were on the edge of our seats waiting to find out what diabolical use the teacher intended. Then he reached in the basket and pulled out - you'll never guess - a pair of fingerless gloves!
"I like to have my students keep their fingers warm," he said, handing them to Arthur.

Now that's what I call a great lesson!

photo fun

Bonnie had a very good point - no photos! I was too busy knitting (and unknitting). I am very happy to report that I am back on track-ish.


Meanwhile, the snow is good for something...

Knitting with cobwebs

I don't remember why I thought it would be a good idea to knit a giant scarf with yarn as thin as a cobweb. And not just any giant scarf - an intricate one with a delicate pattern and beads. This is the Secret of the Stole 2 (set up by the nautical knitter) I started well over a year ago. I'm 85 percent done. I was 90 percent done just two days ago, but after several weeks of ignoring it, when I went to pick it up I discovered I'd done something wrong somewhere and just couldn't fake it. So I went back a few rows. And then a few more... and then a few more!!! How distressingly easy it is to undo hours and hours of work! Zip Zoop Zut done (that's a tribute to the Froggy books, those of you with children might recognize). The reason the stole is still undone is that every row is agonizingly complicated and I know it's hours and hours from being finished. I keep setting aside for simpler projects that can be done quickly - like hats that can be done in a day :)

I'm left wondering if I am cut out to be a lace knitter. I wonder if there are just some things that some knitters aren't meant to knit. Should I just accept who I am and stick to hats and chunky scarves?

Here is what I don't like about this project:

1. There are 99 stitches in a row and every row (except for the purls) is different so there is an incredible chance for error.
2. There are 99 tiny stitches so each row takes an eternity, which means I can only get 10 (20 if you count the purls) done during an hour long show, if I don't mess up and have to tink back.
3. You have to make gosh darn sure you really love the yarn you've chosen because you're going to be spending a gosh darn long time with it. It would be tragic if half way through you start to think maybe it's not quite as pretty as you thought it was when you started.
4. The pattern is so complicated that when you mess up, it's nearly impossible to get back on track without going way back.
5. I'm still working on it more than a year after I started.

On the other hand - there is a good reason I haven't given it up - a bunch of them actually:

So here is what I love about this project:

1. It is drop dead gorgeous. I am unabashedly stunned at how pretty it is.
2. I discovered that adding beads to a project isn't that difficult and it really adds a lot of vavoom.
3. I have learned to read my knitting better.
4. I have gained patience with going backwards.
5. There is great satisfaction at reaching the end of row without error. I feel a little victory every time I get to the end with exactly as many stitches as I am supposed to have.
6. When I am finally done, I will have a wonderful, beautiful stole that will draw many comments and compliments.

I'm torn because there are so many projects I want to try that I tend to pick only things I can finish quickly. On the other hand, there is so much you miss out on if you don't take up longer projects. The problem for me is that unfinished projects hang over my head like a weight about ready to drop and I feel sort of frantic about needing to get them out of the way and not being able to. Maybe what I really need is a change in attitude. I need to accept that there are some things that are meant to just be worked on from time to time. They'll get done when they get done.

Here's my first draft of a serenity prayer for knitters:
Help me to finish the projects I should finish, give me the strength to give up on those that aren't worthy of my time and give me the wisdom to know the difference.

Knitting in the New Year

I had a wonderful Christmas, so this should in no way be seen as a complaint, but there was no yarn in my stocking. Not exactly, anyway. Well, not exactly - dh got my a gift certificate for a yarn shop. The bonus is that it's near where he works so I can have lunch with him when I use it.

But from a practical standpoint, I had no new yarn on Christmas. When everyone else was playing with their new toys, I had just empty needles. It's little like getting a new toy but having no batteries for it!

To fill the void, I dug into the stash and pulled out a lovely ball of purple that was a gift for last Christmas. I have spent a year gazing at it wondering what it was supposed to be. It refused to talk. Not even a hint. But on that day it screamed at me: I AM A HAT. MAKE ME A HAT! And so I did that very night. Thick thin yarn. Big needles. Quick knitting. Even the teens approve, which is a lot coming from them. The 6yo likes it so much she wears it whenever I'm not!

Then shortly after Christmas, I got yarn. Not just any yarn. Silk and merino yarn. From California. From my great friend Allison who knows that I'm not grooving on the cold and snow of New England. The name of the yarn - absolutely true - is Summer Dreaming. It's as lovely to touch as to look at. We had no problems with communication this yarn and I. It told me right away that it wanted to be a scarf. I found the perfect pattern - a lace variation of a bias pattern that I've knit before. It was tricky to get started, but just engaging enough once I figured it out. I finished on New Year's Eve, pretty much as the ball dropped in Times Square. To celebrate the new year, I made a hat to match the scarf. I wasn't quite sure if there would be enough yarn since Santa didn't bring my the yarn meter I requested (again not a complaint - just a statement of fact). It felt like enough and I figured it was worth the risk. As it turned out, I had enough with just a tiny bit left over.

This brings me to another New Year's resolution, however. I am determined to improve my hat sizing abilities. Most of mine are too big - even my nice thick brioche hat, which should be toasty but lets the wind in. those that aren't too big are too small. I'm like Goldilocks searching for the "just right." I do swatch, but it doesn't seem to help. Action: keep track of needle sizes and stitch counts to get a better sense of what is happening. Hopefully this will help me "head off" any problems in the future (lol)

Here is why I really appreciate the name of the yarn - Winter in New England is beautiful but bone chilling and now they say another storm is heading our way - one that might (gasp) force the schools to close just two days after they opened!

Happy New Year

I generally find myself being somewhat contemplative around the end of the year. Actually, I'm like that most of the time but at the end of the year, I have a better excuse. I like to start by looking back and noting how things went. I certainly learned a lot - like when the directions say to knit 5 inches before starting the decrease and you've knit 6 inches - you really should frog an inch even if you're on a serious knitting deadline for Christmas. You can see there results if you don't - a silly gnome-like top. So instead of frogging an inch, I had to frog the whole top! Silly knitter. The result was worth it - a nice rounded top that delighted the recipient.

Thankfully, I remembered a lesson from years past and didn't put too many things on the "must knit" list. There were just the two hats. The pink one was finished on the ride to the party where it was handed over, but it was handed over complete. (Unlike the year I gave my dad a hat with the needles still in the top - I explained that I wanted to get the fit just right).

I also tried something new this year - taking a quick inventory of my favorite projects for the year. I highly recommend that. I found the retrospective made me appreciate the projects even more. My short list includes:
green lace scarf for a friend

felted pink purse for cousin

ruffly baby hat for friend

little itty bitty hats for charity

My other big lesson for the year is that it is okay to frog a UFO. Not everything that is cast on is meant to be finished. It's like taking a ribbon off a kite and letting it fly higher.

Along with contemplation of the previous year comes contemplation of the coming year. Resolutions! My expert tells me they should be lofty but grounded. They should be defined with actions. So here are my knitting goals:

This is the year of cables. I have dabbled in them but now I want to embrace them. I want to understand them and be able to create with them freely.

Action: make at least three items with cables.

Stash collection: I wouldn't call it stash busting since I believe yarn should be collected as much as it should be knit. But I do want to free the yarns that would be better used by someone else to make room for ones I love. This is challenging for a natural-born collector such as myself. I cling to possessions - even useless ones. On some level I think it makes me feel comforted to have an abundance, but it gets to the point of choking me and holding me back.

Action: Donate unloved yarns to good cause.

Sweaters. I have yarn from Italy that is intended for a sweater. I knit a sweater once. It took forever and came out only okay. I have been unable to motivate myself to make another one since. My excuse with this yarn is that I have been unable to find the right pattern. I think I have it now.

Action: Knit the Sweater!

Organization. I have wonderful supplies scattered about the house. I can usually find what I need or I make do with what I can find. Wouldn't it be wonderful to know exactly where everything is?
Action: Clean up messy knitting drawers (again)

I'd love to hear about your lessons and resolutions!

May the coming year bring you many great knitting discoveries and joys along with enduring happiness in the rest of your life.

Merry Christmas

My shopping saga has ended - it was long and drawn out. There were times I was in near tears, but overall, I would have to say I had fun. Not the least bit because I was out of the house while someone else had to deal with the nuttiness that is my family. In the end, there were two crucial presents that won't show up until after the big day. But, the good news is that I was able to find replacements for both for less money!

Now, my fingers must fly - I have one last gift on the needles. Will I be knitting on the ride to the party? Quite likely since tonight will be devoted largely to wrapping all those presents I brought.

I hope your holidays are going well and that your knitting is brining you more peace than angst.

mail order snail order

I thought I would be clever this year and order most of my Christmas gifts on line. Skip the traffic, skip the congested parking lots, skip the crowded malls. It seemed like a good strategy.

But - you know how they say you have two of days to order to take advantage of the super saver rate and have your stuff arrive before Christmas? Turns out, that's not quite right. Of the 18 items I had planned to order, only 1 was expected to arrive by Christmas. My other option was to pay a gazillion dollars for two day or overnight shipping, which pretty much negated any savings I would have had from going to the store. Even to save time and money, I can't pay more for shipping than I would for the item in question!

So much for trying to be organized and on top of the game - I will be out there this weekend with the desperate procrastinators fighting for parking spaces. I can only hope that retailers' desire to dump stock will trump the consideration that shoppers are now desperate and will likely be willing to fork over more dough just to get what they need in time for Christmas! (You don't have to feel sorry for me - I really like to shop so I'm not horribly upset - just hopeful that I can find what I want at a decent price)

I did order one thing that I don't think I will find in the store. The expected delivery dates are Dec. 24th - 30th. This is for the 6yo. Do I:

A) take a chance that it will arrive but prepare a just-in-case note from Santa explaining that he couldn't fit all the toys on the sleigh and one is coming in the mail? or

B) buy an alternate present that I can return if the original arrives in the mail?

I never expected Christmas to become such a high stakes game!

Brioche God Bless You

Is it Green or is it Blue?

My friend Allison mentioned that she was making a brioche scarf and it was like someone had said the secret word that set off a program inside of me: "must knit brioche." I'd looked at the hat in Weekend Knitter any number of times but it always seemed too complicated. Suddenly, it seemed doable. I won't lie - it wasn't easy. I had to start over several times until I finally got the hang of it. But once I got it, it was like the break through when I first got the hang of knitting. It was soothing and exhilarating all at the same time. And then it came time for the crown. I put up an honest fight, but it kicked my but! Once, twice, three times - still not looking right. I was ready to give up and knit in one color but something in me urged one more try. It was like when you look at those magic paintings where you have to cross your eyes to see the 3D image. It just made sense. The big problem, of course, was me and my inability to actually read and follow a pattern.

Now that I'm standing on top of the mountain, I will whole heartily say it was worth it. This is a fun hat to knit and it's warm - which is good since cold weather is headed our way.

The wonders of photo shop

The downside to having five children is that it is nearly impossible to gather them all into one room at the same time to take a Christmas card photo. It's gotten even harder as my older ones turned into teenagers who think it's lame, which is how they feel about most of what I do. I trapped them this year by taking them out to a restaurant to celebrate a birthday. After they'd ordered, but before the food arrived, I popped out the camera. There were a few groans but general cooperation - perhaps they knew the food might never arrive if they didn't comply. Getting them together was difficult, getting them to smile all at the same time proved impossible.

Thankfully, someone invented Photo Shop. And thankfully, I have a wonderful designer friend who knows how to use it way better than I do. And so we have, a nice family photo. Now for the part that I used to think was hard - getting the cards into the mail!

Knitter Spotted

This may be obscure for anyone without children, but others might recognize the show:
Fetch, Ruff Ruffman. It's a bizarre half animated/half real children's show on PBS. A cartoon dog sends real children out on missions during which they learn about the world. My children love it and I don't feel guilty letting them watch it.

So here's the knitting reference - Ruff Ruffman's grandmother was accused of sending her grandson (Ruff's naughty brother Scruffy who is in jail) a cake with a file in it.

Two children were assigned to work with the defense, two with the prosecution and two with the forensics lab.

Meanwhile, grandma knit her way through the show culminating with the miraculous act of knitting a sweater without needles when she was declared innocent.

Now, if they would haver Ruff take up knitting, that would really be something!

Tada

Aside from the fact that it might just be too small for the intended recipient, don't you think this hat is awfully cute? The best part is I had enough yarn! Yeah! There was even a little extra for the tassles! Yeah!

I do like the fun fur stripe - especially because it uses up a left over that I didn't have the heart to throw away but couldn't quite figure out what to do with. Here is what I learned from this project: I decided to do the fun fur accent in knit stitch with a garter stitch border on the top and bottom. It looks better with one extra row of knitting in the main color before changing to garter stitch.

I've already had requests for two more, but they're from the 3 and 6yo who pretty much want just about anything I knit.

The yarn is Knit Picks superwash - very soft and scooshy. Just keep in mind there's only around 100 yards on a skein, so you might need more than you realize.

hats off

Little baby hat = quick project, right?

Not so much, it turns out. This one is supposed to be pretty basic -knit two ear flaps, cast on stitches, knit away. Except that I decided I wanted to garter stitch the earflaps and first inch of the hat. It took way too many tries to figure out how to smoothly transition from knitting the ear flaps on straight needles to knitting the entire hat in the round.

And you know that little voice in the back of your head that whispers, this doesn't look right, it looks to small (or large)? Certainly you've heard that before. I ignored that little voice for far too many rows before reading the directions. I had cast on half of the stitchest I needed!

Then I decided it would be fun to add fun fur for a few rows. It was fun the first time, not so much the second or the third as I settled out which rows should be knit and which purled.

Finally, I'm cruising along. The brim looks great, the ear flaps match and...
(I'm sure you can see what's coming) I'm running out of yarn! It was such a little hat and it was a new ball of yarn so I didn't think to actually check the label and figure out how many yards I needed.

Tonight I will decide to a) order more yarn b) keep knitting and see if I make it or c) add in another color.

At the top of my Christmas wish list is a yarn measurer! I sent the link for one to dh so he wouldn't get confused. It worked with the swift and ball winder.