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.

A novel has been born

My mc (main character) Aggie has gone to camp, gotten lost on a mountain, survived an encounter with a bear, made friends with a lifelong enemy and been rescued. We'll leave her safely at camp contemplating how to accomplish at least one thing on her list - kissing a boy.

All of this in 50,000 words written 30 hours before deadline! :)

Thank you for your encouragement! It really helps to have friends in the cheering section!

I feel like I've climbed the world's tallest mountain - okay, maybe not the tallest one - that would be actually publishing and getting on the NYTs' best seller list - but at least a very tall mountain.

Of course the work isn't over - basically what I have is a roughly formed slab of marble awaiting loads of careful carving and editing to turn it into an engaging, delightful and unforgettable story.

Now, however, it's time to start getting ready for Christmas! A ridiculously long list of knitting projects has been forming in the back of my brain. A couple of hats, a pair of socks, maybe a sweater, a doll or two? And on and on. After all, Christmas is so far away, right? I've learned my lesson in the past - I'm not going to stress. If I have time, great. If not, the shops are open until midnight these days.

Important conversation

A friend of mine who runs a major hospital in Boston has asked me to spread the word about a campaign to encourage dscussions ab--out one of the most difficult topics in the world - How do you want the end of your life to be handled. No one wants to talk about, but it's going to happen and this is a gift you can give to those who will be with you when it does. If they know what you want, then they can feel at peace knowing they are making the right decisions on your behalf. You can read more in the text to the left of this post.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

progress

31,023 words.

Our heroine has hoisted on her backpack and is headed up to the mountians with her fellow campers for four days and three nights to test their survival training.

Among the lessons that the leaders forgot - how to identify poison ivy, what to do in a lightening storm and what to do when you see a bear.

And did you know that water hemlock is the most toxic plant in North America?

On a knitting note - I knitted a baby hat for a friend and the other day she said it's getting too small and couldn't I please make her a new one? I could hardly be more tickled. I've cast on for those moments of the day when I need to be occupied but don't have access to a computer.

I hope all your Thanksgiving preparations are going well. I don't have to host, so I'm off the hook, but my thoughts are with all of you who are furiously cleaning and cooking or planning to cook. May all your efforts be rewarded with a great celebration.

Writer needs inspiration

I'm past the 20,000 word mark on the 50,000 word novel. Although I have more than half to go, I feel I have crossed over the top of the mountain. Still a few peaks to go, however, and I need some help.

I need some inspiration. My story is about a 10 year old girl at typical camp in New Hampshire. Mountains on one side, lake on the other. An out of control fire on the first night consumed the high ropes course so now the campers are going to have survival training and overnight camping trips in the mountains. She also likes a boy who has been hanging around with her arch enemy - a snooty rich girl who never has to wash the toilets like the other campers do.

Anyway, I want to add some realism so I'm looking for memories. If you've ever been to summer camp, please share with me your best or worst memories of it. I'm looking for specific events as well as generalities such as how you were dismissed from the campfire or how the day was structured. I'd also be interested in hearing about any odd personalities you encountered. You can leave them in the message section or email me at jennifer.news@gmail.com. In exchange, I will send you a copy of the novel when it has been edited. If it is ever published, I will also send you a signed copy.


On a totally unrelated note - there is a great website called futureme.org where you can write a note to yourself to be delivered at a later date. I've done it twice. It is wild to hear from yourself about where you hope you will be.

Happy Socks

I received the nicest compliment today. I wore my new stripey socks to a business meeting. My client not only noticed them, she told our designer that my socks made her happy!

I guess it was worth the months that it took me to make them. I could have gotten them done faster, but they were mainly a take along project. I'm very happy with the short row heels - this was my best attempt ever. The method that I used called for using markers rather than relying on counting - much better. I also took the trouble to make sure the stripes match. I totally support knitters who don't need to bother with that step, but for me personally, I'm happier with matching stripes.

I usually like ankle socks, but now that I'm wearing them, I think maybe longer is better for hand knit socks. Next pair - which I will cast on in December.

I'm at 18,651 words on my novel - behind, but still within hope of finishing by the end of November. It is really hard in the evening when I have just a couple of hours before bed and I have to choose writing over knitting. The reality is, this novel will never come to be if I don't and I have some characters who are demanding that their story be told.

Winter Knits

Something happened when the weather started to turn colder - I suddenly felt compelled to knit warm things. All summer I kept thinking I should make some mittens or a couple of thick scarves to get ready, but I couldn't find the motivation. Then suddenly there was this primal urge to cast on wool. First there was the hat with the lace edge and now matching half mittens. I adapted the edging pattern and then turned it into ribbing. The whole time, I kept looking at the dwindling ball of yarn making plans for what I would do if I ran out. I made two at a time using the magic loop method so at least I would run out in the same place. I had just barely enough. I'm sure there is a more scientific way to figure out if there is enough yarn for a certain project, but I haven't figured it out yet.

Next up is the calorimetry from Knitty 2006. I've had my eye on the pattern for many months, but always had something else to do first. I have been wearing my hair up lately and every day for the last month I've grumbled to myself as I pull on my hat that it's time to get to this pattern.

Yesterday, I finally did.

I highly recommend the pattern. It's a fun knit with short rows for shaping. And it's quick - I finished it in a day thanks to the NE Patriots pushing their game into overtime ( it would have been nice if they could also have won, but at least they showed up). I was cutting it close on the yardage for this one as well. I was going to do stripes at one end if I ran out, which I think would have looked nice. As it was, I had enough with about three yards left over. Hmmm... is that enough to at least start a pair of half mits? The yarn is Lamb's pride worsted - a totally dream to knit with.

My gauge is loose however, despite having knit 2 needle sizes down. It could be me, but I choose to blame the yarn.

And finally, I'm sharing my latest kitchen adventure. These are cinnamon rolls using a recipe from the Penzey spice site. I discovered why the directions say to cook them in a muffin pan. Apparently, they are not supposed to spread out into a sort of pancake like shape. Still, they were absolutely delicious due to the vibrant taste of the cinnamon.

The reason I was making cinnamon rolls was to try out the cinnamon, which came in a surprise box of spices from my good friend Bonnie who sews great things and knows I like to think I can cook. She has some great recipes on her site if you're looking for something new to try.

And yet another project

It's November. For thousands of writers that means it is time to write a 50,000 word novel. Not necessarily a good one. Not necessarily one that anyone will ever read. The most important thing is to finish it by the end of the month. Then you can go back and turn it into a masterpiece.

The idea is to blast through writers block, overcome your inner editor and free the story teller.

I really don't have time to do this. And yet here I am for a second year, stuffing writing into the thinnest cracks of time in my hectic life.

I'm a writing about Aggie, a ten-year-old who has left her bustling city life behind for two blissful weeks in the forests of New Hampshire at summer camp. She's planning to finally pass the swim test so she can go to the dock in the middle of the lake, climb to the top of the camp's tall pole and kiss a boy for the first time. She's headed for way more adventure than she expected as her cabin heads up to the mountains for an extended hike.

I thought about having aliens land in the middle of camp but decided that was just a little too far out. I'm a journalist so any sort of fiction writing is a stretch for me. I have a hard time straying away from the things that could actually happen. Maybe next time.

For the record, I did not go back and edit the novel I wrote last year. I still plan to. I don't know if it's good enough to sell or if anyone else would be interested in it. I had fun writing it and I really like my main character.

What I really like about Nanowrimo (National Novel Writers Month) is the challenge to do something beyond the ordinary. It's a chance to push myself in a way that I don't get to do very often. There are times I would rather just watch television, but inevitably, once I start writing I get totally lost in the story and hours pass by.

I'm already behind - to keep the pace, you have to write 1,666 words a day. I'm at 10,591. I think I can catch up, however.

I felt like I needed to declare publically that I've taken up the challenge again. That way, I am more accountable. Hopefully, someone will be watching to see if I make it and that will make me try harder.

Movie Review High School Musical 3

The story is simplistic and completely predictable. The songs sound about the same as the ones in the last High School Musical movies. On the other hand, there is no swearing, the dancers are fully clad and the choreography is fantastic. Another bonus: The movie absolutely mesmerized three 6-year-olds and sent the 3yo dancing in the aisle, which alone was worth the price of admission.

There are, however, few yarn items of interest - a floppy hat made of what looked to be tiny granny squares and a crocheted rainbow skull cap. Not a single scarf or sweater throughout.

Verdict? Okay if you need to entertain someone under 12; best to go with another adult so you can exchange comments a la Mystery Theater 2000 to make it interesting.

Movie Review

Dh and I finally got a chance to sneak away for a movie! With all the kids and all their activities that is a rare occurance.

We were looking for something funny and not too intellectually demanding. Zack and Miri Make a Porno was the closest we could find. There were no worries about it being too intellectualy demanding but it was only so-so funny. At least there were some fabulous hand knit and crocheted items to hold my attention. The characters wore several scarves and hats throughout the movie so it became like a game - is that crocheted or knit? Most of them were made with bulky yarn. They appeared to be handcrafted, but no one in the movie was shown making them. Too bad - that would have made the movie interesting!

As it was, it's disappointingly predictable. Not worth the price of admission.

Halloween Happiness

The costume indecision lasted right up until the night before Halloween! In the end, the 6yo rediscovered her old witches hat and decided that it would be perfect. Due to the earlier costume plans, she ended up being a witch with pink-tipped hair.

The littlest one had multiple parties so she was a

cowgirl, a cheerleader and for the actual day, a butterfly princess - she was supposed to be just a butterfly, but was upset because people kept saying she was such a lovely princess. The easiest remedy was to change the label of her costume and shove a candybar in her mouth! Cause in the end, it doesn't matter what the costume is - the candy tastes the same.

You can only imagine my surprise when I heard said 6yo rummaging in her candy bin the next morning at 6 a.m.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"My homework," she said as if I should have known.

Her assignment was to count all of her Halloween loot, sort it and make patterns. It was amazing how interested she was in school work when it involved candy. She got 72 pieces while trick-or-treating. That doesn't include the stash she grabbed while walking down in the center of town.

She wants to be catwoman next year, she told me today. I'm tempted given the sales, but then again - I'd have to remember where I put it and then there's the fact that she changed her mind 60 times or so this year!

I can knit that scarf in three days or less

Maybe. Our aunt's surprise birthday party is Saturday. On Thursday morning dh asked what we should get her. Suddenly it occurred to me that I should have knit her something. Maybe it's not too late - the felted bowls are fast, I can make a hat in a day, maybe a scarf? There's no time to shop so I am limited to what's in the stash - not much that isn't already committed. My rational minds screams at me - you're on deadline, your mother is coming in to town, it's Halloween tomorrow - DO THE MATH - there aren't enough hours between now and the party. But, just a quick lace scarf? NO! Just one felted bowl? Maybe, not really. But I know I can finish a wash cloth in two hours.

In the end, I decide my rational mind is right - I must finish the articles that are due. I don't need the distraction and pressure of slamming to finish a project when I should be enjoying Halloween. And I want to give mom lots of attention since I don't get to see her very often.

Thankfully, everyone else in the family is kicking in to hire the birthday lady a personal trainer. I'm off the hook. Christmas, however, is just a few weeks away...

Can you measure the severity of the coming winter by the number of hats a knitter feels compelled to knit in the fall? The leaves are turning, the air is crisp and I am driven by some inexplicable force to knit hats. It started with the little hats for the Innocent people then I knit the hat I'd been contemplating for my husband for months. There's was another for my secret pal and then one for Cori and one for me. And I've got a hankering to make more!

This one for the 3yo is by far the most fun of the whole batch. She designed it herself. She picked out the pink yarn from the store and then she went stash diving. It was fun to watch - she knew exactly which ones she wanted and which ones she didn't. Then we had to settle on the design. She turned down so many that I thought she didn't really know what she wanted. Finally, I drew out every possible shape and brim combination I could imagine. Right away she pointed to one. I showed her the drawing three more times, just to make sure. By the last time I think she thought I was totally scatter brained to not be able to remember which one she wanted! The only problem is that I almost don't want her to wear it because I'm so afraid she'll lose it. She has a habit of taking her hats off and walking away.

Mine is a lace edged cap with beads added for a little extra glamour.

I learned something about hat decreases - I didn't follow the patterns since I didn't have it with me. Instead, I decided to just wing it. I had 84 stitches, which meant starting the decrease with 6 groups of 14 stitches or 14 groups of 6 stitches. I chose the latter. I should have chosen the former. My top is okay but it's a tad bumpy because of having so many sections.

The yarn is Ella Rae, which I bought a long time ago to make a felted bowl that I never got around to making. I'm glad, because I love it for the hat. It's soft and comfy. A joy to knit with and to wear - I think it will be anyway. Ironically after my hat knitting flurry, it hasn't been cold enough for hats!

Soon enough, I'm sure.