A Little Yarn On The Side

We Now Have Napkins

2012-02-12T10:06:00.000-08:00

Though I can't think of any of the 12s they fit into, so they're just an "extra." Bummer. However, there is hope on the horizon for another 12:

The sleeves for the new sweater are in progress and ALL stockinette! I don't know why--perhaps just because they're usually what I do last--but sleeves are always my least favorite part of a sweater. So I'm doing those now and saving the front, and since they'll go pretty quickly, I think I'll stay motivated to finish this by the end of the month. Whoo hoo!

Did I mention that I was not buying any fabric this year? Well,

.....ahem....there might have been a moment of weakness brought on my a bit of self-pity. I hope my hip improves soon--if for no other reason than for the sake of the space in the sewing room. I'm thinking either knitting bag (like I need more of them) or a jacket. At least I'm hoping it will re-motivate me in the sewing department.....or maybe being able to sit will help with that.

I am holding strong on my latest resolution: buying no new crafting books or magazines this year. Between the space issue and how far behind on my project queue, this really shouldn't be that difficult, but I'll admit to feeling a tiny twinge of weakening over this:

I have borrowed it from the library, and normally I have no interest in books that have one pattern with a bunch of variations (probably from my experience with Debbie Bliss's books which repeat sweaters from book to book with only color pattern changes), but the ornaments are cool and as always, as soon as I say I'm not going to buy something, everything becomes tempting. I have promised myself that I can photocopy 2 charts to knit before returning it to the library, and if I actually knit the darn things before the end of the year, I might give myself permission to buy the book next year. Honestly, how do you live with a child when it's yourself?

Being February 10...

2012-02-10T19:34:00.000-08:00

...and Valentine's Day being just 4 days away, it was time to revisit the place mats.

I like the idea of whimsical swirls and hearts to secure the batting, but I decided not to sew them by hand as that never seems as secure as machine stitching, and my capacity to sit is not improving much after last weekend's choir escapade, so...

concentric hearts it is. I put a piece of masking tape on the throat to use as a guide (the sewing machine's, not mine) to do the first stitch, then added more seams in different colors:

I was hurrying to get all 6 done, so there are a few wonky bits that need to be ripped out and done over, but I was hurrying to get them done before I ran out of ability to sit, so if all else fails, all 6 are ready to be used if I don't get time to clean the seams up. Theo was on-hand to help with the sewing,

though he's still displeased over the new table height. For a while he had taken to sleeping on the floor near the sewing room table, but that is A. undignified, B. probably dangerous in the sewing room, and C. could mean there would be sewn items without cat hair, which, of course, would be a kitty tragedy. So this is the new approach.

Aside from back issues, this week I've also caught a cold, so have been doing a lot of resting, which actually makes the back issues worse rather than better, but at least it helps with the 12 sweaters issue. The new blue sweater's back is to the armhole decrease

which is where it's going to stay for a while. The sweater has raglan sleeves, and the pattern says to sew the pieces together, but aside from the fact that it's totally stupid to sew more seams than one absolutely has to do, I don't ever get the seams to look quite right on the few times I've been foolish enough to attempt sewing raglans together, so I'll finish the next pieces to the armholes and just knit them all together from armhole up. I could, of course, have knit the entire body in one piece, but that would have meant passing up on one big block of plain, mindless, stockinette stitch in a non-splitty yarn, which is totally fun with a squishy yarn AND probably a lot safer while on cold medication.

This all sounds like I'm completely falling apart over here, but aside from not being able to sit and being banished from walking outdoors, my back is light years better than it has been, and even getting a cold isn't really a big deal since I always get at least one cold during the winter--usually several--and I spent all of December being terrified of catching a cold or anything that could involve coughing or sneezing. Now, sneezing doesn't hurt a bit, so I'm just really relieved I didn't catch any colds in the last two months. AND, when one is feeling under the weather and one has a built in excuse for almost any sort of self indulgence....

is a perfect time for a new Foreign Correspondent scarf! Sweaters? What sweaters.................?

Catching Up

2012-02-06T08:58:00.000-08:00

Saturday I attended a gospel singing workshop. I'm not a religious person, but I do sing and I was really excited to do ANYTHING that didn't involve home, the gym, or physical therapy, and I thought it would be one of the better choices as I assumed we would be standing rather than sitting. Who sings while sitting?

Apparently, gospel choirs. Even with the strongest pain medication I'm allowed, I had to duck out early and take part of a Valium to even get myself home, and Theo and I spent Saturday night and Sunday pretty much like this:

except I'm not quite that cute when I do it. Nor, thank heavens, that furry.

I did get a little work done on the new sweater,

but most of the time was spent finishing up the socks I started for my birthday:

which are now FINISHED!!!!! Since they were in progress before the start of the year, I'm counting them for one of my 12 WIPs since they MUST count for something on my list, and I have used up one of my "precious" yarns! I've had this yarn for a few years, and since the color was promptly discontinued, I have hung onto this yarn like a fiend, because if I knit it up I wouldn't have the yarn any longer. Of course, I now have socks, but that doesn't seem to matter nearly as much. If I weren't desperately trying to increase my "all used up" tab to be larger than my "still in stash" tab, I'm not sure if I could have convinced myself to have used it. To make it even sillier, this yarn was in a Project of the Month bag for a while (never mind that it took me 4 months to make these socks), so I hadn't even SEEN the yarn for a long time and now that it's been knit into socks, I'll see it every single day when I open my sock drawer. And yet, part of me is still a bit sad that I don't have the yarn any longer.......

It gets easier and easier to understand my humongous stash, doesn't it?????

Since It's Friday...

2012-02-03T17:08:00.000-08:00

....what I would like to be showing you is an actual finished project.

What I actually could be showing you is the pool at my gym where I spent an hour and a half this morning. After yesterday's physical therapy appointment, I really, REALLY didn't want to go to the gym today, so I made myself go anyway and increased my workout time to an hour and 15 minutes (up from 1 hour)--both to prove to myself that I wasn't going to wimp out and because I am an idiot.

What I could also be showing you is my sorry knitterly self laying on the bed because my leg muscles are just exhausted and sitting still hurts. Or my pajamas--which I will be crawling into in just a few short minutes. Or myself unconscious....which should be in about 5 minutes..................

WIP Wednesday?

2012-02-01T12:15:00.000-08:00

Wednesdays are not generally my day for crafting, but this week I've really worn myself out and thought it best to take a rest day before physical therapy tomorrow. So, I decided to work on the Valentine place mats, and I'm very pleased with how they are turning out,

but I need to do something to tack down the batting in them and can't decide if I should do a couple concentric hearts in maybe purple or pink or if I should do something more whimsical--like swirls or dots? What do you think?

Fastest 880 yards EVER

2012-01-31T08:28:00.000-08:00

The shawl is no longer with us.

I thought about trying to fix it, but this is not the first problem I've had with breakage in this particular yarn. In fact, the current ball was actually wound into a ball instead of using the swift and ball winder because it's the only yarn I've had that broke repeatedly when wound with the swift. So, since the shawl was intended to be a gift and I would just be freaked out all the time that the yarn would keep breaking and popping holes all over the place, I decided to cut my losses and move on.

Being of thick, wonderfully soft yarn, the balaclava got a lot of attention yesterday,

and I am just loving this thing. The yarn is Elann's Limited Edition Rossini and I adore this stuff. It's unbelievably soft, and I'm actually sorry that I have now used up the first of the three balls I own. Knitting World, please go buy up the rest of their stock so I will not be tempted by it. Literally, I want to live in this yarn. Do you think anyone ever knits pajamas???

There was also a new sweater started yesterday,

as this is the Year of Sweaters and I was still feeling really depressed from Sunday. It's not often that I can be depressed for more than one day (if ever), so I was not sure what to do with myself yesterday. The hip/back thing had finally really gotten to me and the shawl was just icing on the cake as it were. Between not being able to sit for very long and throwing my hip out when I try to walk, I think I was both frustrated and feeling caged and angry, but thankfully I'm back to normal today. Luckily, I caused myself no new injuries in the pool, and have added new exercises to my routine. Because of the physical therapy, I have made one of my non-knitting 12s to do 12 workout videos, so yesterday I did the New York City Ballet Complete Workout (except for the jumping stuff). Let's just say it's been about 15 years since I did ANY ballet at all, so there may have been some swearing and a few not-so-nice things said to the narrator, but I was pleased to see that I was able to do as much as I could. And ballet is much easier when one is still on pain killers. Good to know........

The Knitting Gods Have a Rival

2012-01-29T12:55:00.000-08:00

I think amongst the knitting world, the Knitting Gods are known to a cruel and vindictive lot. Boast even the teensiest amount about one's own cleverness or how well a project is going and SMACK--the knitter's needles or yarn or BOTH are bound to break, or a wave of moths are about to descend. They're a cantankerous lot at best.

However, I think they might have met their equals in the Physical Therapy Gods.

Remember me saying that I had to walk so slowly on Friday that I didn't even boost my circulation? Yeah--big mistake. That slow walk actually threw my hip back out. I thought maybe it was just sore, but by Saturday night--it was definite. Luckily, I have been shown how to force my hip back into place with my new toy

Unluckily, the very concept of having to move bones about is generally enough to make me want to hurl, but it turns out that pain is an excellent motivator and Valium can take my mind off anything--even consciousness.

So, I was having a rather lousy weekend anyway, but was at least showing some crafting dedication. I had decided to add a bonus "12" to my list and do 12 threads (half threads, really, if those long strands count as one thread) on that silly cross stitch this year. Not too much, but it would set a recent record on the amount of attention the cross stitch has received. So,

I am now up 2 threads for the year--whoo-flippin'-hoo! That gives me a whole inch of progress. Stand back world!

Then I had spent considerable time finishing up one side of the current shawl WIP, picking up the second side, and thought it time to put a picture of it on the blog:

and was just about to pick it back up when I noticed an odd little spot on the bottom.....

ARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! It has a hole!!!!! A big stupid freakin' hole!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGHHHH!!

(Say what you want about cats' indifference--Theo knowns a knitting scream when he hears it and came running,

though whether it was to protect me or the knitting is anybody's guess)

Maybe those Knitting Gods don't like competition. I don't even know what could have happened--it's been in knitting bags and a dresser drawer and we don't have moths. I'm not sure if I have the patience or talent to actually fix this thing, and I've been a bit unhappy with this yarn's tendency to felt anyway (Knitpicks Bare in laceweight), so I'm not sure what I'll do. There would be a lot of knitting left to finish the darn thing and it would always bother me that it has a damn hole, or I could just chuck the whole thing, destash about 1600 yards of a yarn I'm angry with, and be out $12. OR I could put it away until I'm having a less rotten day (which won't really isn't a very high bar) and go play with some new yarn....and a white chocolate martini..........

Three Days Left In the First Month....

2012-01-28T14:05:00.000-08:00

....and I might be a little bit behind.

Theoretically, if I want to finish 12 sweaters/shawls in 12 months I would be really close to finishing something right now. On Friday Theo helped me with the fronts of the mohair sweater and we did make great progress,

but that still leaves those pesky sleeve things to be done. And I don't know about Theo, but I need breaks from working with mohair. So, I've been working on one of the shawl WIPS, and I am on the final part of one side of the cream shawl,

but then there will still be a second side to finish, which even strikes ME as a lot of knitting to do in 3 days. Especially when

there is a balaclava getting some knitting action. I went for my first walk outside yesterday, and since I have firm instructions from the therapist to walk slowly and gently, this also means I'm walking WAY too slow to get the circulation moving enough to not freeze while walking. I'm thinking the balaclava will do a much better job keeping my face warm if I knit the thing rather than just talking about it.

I'm pretty clever about these things sometimes.............

Real Life Is Interfering With My Knitting

2012-01-25T07:23:00.000-08:00

Yesterday started off with a trip to the dentist. It was just a cleaning, and I really like my dentist, but I still don't think a REALLY good day starts off with a visit to ANYONE in the medical profession. Then I ran some errands, came home, hauled bags in, then headed to the gym to swim for 30 minutes and walk laps for 30 minutes, then intended to come home and make soup. That was the intention. I was so tired by then that I seriously considered crawling into bed, even though it was barely after 4:00 PM. I didn't even have the energy to do my physical therapy exercises. This health thing is really a full-time job some days.............

Rats

2012-01-23T11:47:00.000-08:00

So, I think I've decided to frog the vest

and start over. In order for the current stitch count to work, I need it to stay at the same gauge as the ribbing with the smaller needles, and that seems unlikely. I think taking out one of the 18-stitch repeats will make it work, especially since patterns tend to loosen rather than tighten upon washing. So, this poor little ball of yarn is going to be knit for the THIRD time, and since I try to use the yardage tally to accurately represent what has been taken out of the stash, I won't get to count it AGAIN.

Maybe I need to start keeping a "frustration tally...."

SOME Of Us Had A Good Day Yesterday...

2012-01-22T09:13:00.000-08:00

Bright and early, Andy made me some new table legs:

There's a wooden dowel inside the pipes to give it some additional strength. The table is now 36 inches tall, and I love it! It's a bit less stable than it was before, but not much. So I spent much of the day straightening the sewing room, getting the final place mat and the batting cut out, and even got a bit of sewing done.

I think I'll do some sort of decorative stitching to keep the batting in place, but I think they'll be quite fun. I even tried the coasters:

and after figuring out that a half-inch seam allowance was more appropriate for making a small heart ornament, I think I got everything figured out.

I had the good day.

Theo, on the other hand, had a rather bad day. The sewing room table is one of his favorite spots to hang out, and where I keep his water glass:

He has a water bowl, of course, but only uncultured kitties drink out of a bowl, and giving him his own glass was the only way I have come up with to prevent unwittingly sharing my own water with Theo.

I'm not positive if Theo can't actually jump all the way onto the table now, or if he just happened to jump and catch the place mats rather than the table, but last night I heard a crash and found a very indignant kitty and some half-done place mats on the sewing room floor. Wanting to make amends, I lifted him onto the table and had a little grovel-petting time. I think all would have been fine, but he decided to get a drink. Apparently the impact of the kitty meeting table was enough to splash water out of his glass. This wouldn't have been a problem if there hadn't been some leftover water-soluble stabilizer near the glass. As I've only seen it in solid form or washed away, I hadn't yet encountered the in-between stage, which is a gummy-sticky mess which sticks to cat fur really well. Thankfully, it only reached his front paws, but Theo got to round off his night with the indignity of having his paws washed in the sink until all the stabilizer washed away. The poor little guy. Needless to say, Theo did not sleep with me last night. I think there's a bit more groveling to be done.......

I Bought Legal Yarn!

2012-01-20T09:14:00.000-08:00

We're trying to interest one of my nieces in knitting, so I picked out some yarn that I thought might be most interesting to her without being the knitting horror that so much novelty yarn really is. Her favorite color is pink followed by purple, so I thought this would make a nice combination.

It's not quite as satisfactory as buying yarn for oneself, but it takes up less room, involves far less guilt, and fits in nicely with my plans to convert the rest of the world to the yarn arts. World domination--just a few garter-stitch scarves away..........

Well, How Dumb Am I????

2012-01-19T15:26:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Boise got its first real snowfall of the year--dumping around 6 inches in one day. I hurt my back two months ago. A smart person might have though this would be a good way to get out of shoveling snow. And what did I do? Check with my spine doctor ahead of time to make sure it would be okay for me to shovel snow when and if we ever got any.

WHAT WAS I THINKING???????????????????????????????

Even better, remember the balaclava I bought yarn for in my self-pity order in November--the one I was going to make because my face gets so cold when shoveling snow? Not even started. Maybe I should round off all this idiotic behavior by casting on something involving size 0 needles and cobweb yarn for my 12 sweaters in 12 months challenge--wouldn't that just be the final touch?

And This Is Why I Always Have Friends Smarter Than Me

2012-01-18T06:42:00.000-08:00

After reading my post yesterday about needing a taller cutting table, RobinH sent me this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/xixstar/2557752709/

Now how clever is that? And that's even the EXACT table I have, so we know the PVC pipe extensions will work for it. Now I just need to do enough excavation in the sewing room to find the legs and let Andy take care of the rest.

We Have Hit A Snag

2012-01-17T08:31:00.000-08:00

For the green vest, I selected this pattern

for an overall cable and rib look. I decided since there was some variety to the cables, I didn't need other patterns involved.

Since I'm making this up as I go along, I diligently swatched, and got 4.5 stitches per inch with the size 8 needles I'm using for the body. I thought I'd aim for a 43-inch circumference, as the future recipient might be just a shade larger than Andy, and Andy's last sweater I made for a 42-inch circumference. 4.5 x 43 = 193.5 stitches. Adding a 10% ease for a cabled pattern and working into the 18-stitch pattern requirement, I originally decided to cast on 216 stitches. THEN I started measuring and second-guessing myself, and thought that maybe 10% wasn't enough ease for such a scrunchy pattern, so I then decided to cast on 234. In the ribbed part, the gauge is 6 stitches per inch. That made me a bit nervous as 234 divided by 6 = 39 inches in circumference. Hmmmmm. So I decided to add another 18 stitches, and now have 252 stitches:

Did anyone else scoff ever so slightly at Elizabeth Zimmermann's suggestion to make a swatch cap when they first read it? The Knitting Gods do not like those who scoff at EZ, the goddess of knitting. I actually don't think I have enough yarn to have made a cap and a vest, but now I think my only option is to keep going now that I've started the actual pattern, then slide the stitches onto a thread in a couple inches and measure. This could be anything between 56 and 42 inches in the round, but I'm thinking I have done something to land in the middle, and should have left that final 18 stitches off.

So.....

when the going gets tough, the tough get a new project. Meet the Valentine's Day place mats. I think with a half-inch seam they will be generally place mat-size. I was tempted to make them rectangular so I could get two sets out of the fabric, but the hearts are such fun and I'm cutting out smaller hearts to make coasters for gifts, so I'll still have a few gifts. It will be slow going with the back, and one of my resolutions this year is to get a taller cutting table for the sewing room. I haven't quite resolved on what sort of table--folding, storage underneath, moveable, not moveable--but maybe after we get the permanent shelving on one wall, I'll have a better idea what I want. And, of course, if the stash were smaller.........

Details, Details...............

2012-01-14T17:26:00.000-08:00

Just in case you haven't tried it, walking in a pool for an hour is exhausting. Or it is if you've spent the majority of the last 7 weeks laying on heating pads. I think, though, that it is helping my back, so I have been able to do another small sewing project:

Music coasters. I've made two sets of 6--one for us to keep and one to go in the gift bin. They aren't very elaborate, and I could only sit long enough to sew one set at a time, but somebody was very happy:

I think he might have enjoyed "get well kitty" status, but nothing compares with sewing.

Taking advantage of a day without any need for even the smallest bit of Valium, I finally did the math and laid out the plans for the Valentine's basket vest,

and have almost completed the ribbing. I've decided on a pattern that will have the ribbing stretching into a ribbing and cable pattern, so I think only two inches of ribbing with the smaller needles will be necessary. I haven't gotten to all the details--like when to insert the armholes and divide for the neck--but who needs to worry about such tiny details just yet? Hmmmmm, I wonder how long that Valium stuff stays in the body.......?

A Woman Who Knows "Moderation" Wouldn't Have This Stash

2012-01-12T20:12:00.000-08:00

So, if you had injured yourself about 6 weeks ago, had undergone physical therapy for the past month, and your therapist told you that getting stronger through exercise would really help your progress, what would you do? Start slowly? Remember that your injury might still be healing and act accordingly? Or go hog-wild with a week of Pilates, walking, hill-climbing on the treadmill, weight-lifting and the elliptical trainer? Anyone want to take a guess which was my approach?

The spine doctor was concerned about the other hip turning, but thinks that I probably overdid (me?) and that the treadmill was too much impact for my hips at this stage, so I have been given permission to 1. swim, 2. weight lift with only low weights and large numbers of repetition, 3. do beginning Pilates. NOTHING else. And have earned myself 4 more weeks of physical therapy for my misbehavior.

The funny thing is, I did know I would be relatively dangerous to myself when I started feeling good and could start trying to regain some sort of "normal" activity level, but I guess a lot of things about my life are explained when I say I thought I was taking it easy. I was walking on the treadmill--not running--just like the doctor said, but I guess the part that we failed to clarify is that setting the silly thing on an incline at a pretty fast clip no longer counts as "no impact" in the physical therapy world. Whoops.

Frustrated AND impatient is probably when I am at my most idiotic, so I took myself to the pool this afternoon and spent an hour swimming and walking laps in the water to rebuild strength with no possible way of causing further injury to myself (I think). While I'm not sure he actually had that much exercise in mind, I don't think he would disapprove, and now I feel like I have exactly one month to get these turning hips to permanently stay where they're supposed to while I have a therapist to get me back into alignment if I need it. And if I'm feeling under pressure, how likely am I to be able to do anything in moderation? When have I been able to manage it when I'm NOT under pressure??? I may have to increase that pool time to two hours...................

I Have Discovered A New Category of Knitting

2012-01-12T08:00:00.000-08:00

Meet "the sulks" knitting:

Yesterday--after waking up two mornings in a row with painful back spasms, which hasn't happened in at least a month or more--I had my last physical therapy appointment, only to discover that the other hip had turned slightly, and was causing the same problems on the other side of my back. I see the spine specialist today, but how the other side has gotten turned is anyone's guess, because the physical therapy exercises have worked both sides equally, and I've grown so strong that some of the exercises have had to be made more difficult. I came home depressed, to say the least, and curled up with my self pity and knitting.

The yarn is Knit Picks Decadence, which was discontinued quite a while ago, and as the balls were leftover from a sweater I made, I hadn't bothered to add them to Ravelry, but since I still have quite a bit left now

I have added it. I think I can get a second hat out of this, so perhaps it won't be in stash long. Of course, I obviously think that about all yarn--otherwise I wouldn't have so very much of it.

Speaking of yarn that probably wasn't in the stash, I started this scarf yesterday

with a partial ball of yarn that I don't think was on my stash. This colorway--one of my favorites ever--was discontinued a few years ago, so I scooped up a frightful amount of it on Ravelry, but I don't think this little 3/4 of a hank had made it on there. For my own sanity--since this seems to be such an ongoing pattern this year--I have decided to embrace my stash this year rather than be so overwhelmed by it. I have options, I have some great yarn. I may even find MORE options as the year goes on, and I will enjoy knitting every darn ball of it. I will even try to focus more on the wonderful finished objects I end up with than the yardage I use up, though I can't give up tracking it......:)

Which Is Why....

2012-01-10T09:11:00.000-08:00

I really, really was working on the mohair sweater yesterday. I promise. However, it turns out that when I take a drink of coffee and end up with a mouth full of coffee grounds, my natural impulse is to spit it back into the cup. Not exactly worthy of Ms. Manners, but perhaps understandable. This probably works with normal coffee mugs, but when one is drinking out of a travel mug complete with lid, the coffee's natural impulse is then to splash off of the lid and onto the nearest, whitest object. Which explains why this

spent yesterday being rinsed and dried, and why there is now a second birthday sock in progress

which also was not in my Valentine's basket. I was at first a bit concerned that the socks won't get to count for anything on my 12 12s list, but as they were in progress before the start of the year, I'll count them as one of my 12 WIPs. I may regret that later, as I'm hoping the need for finished WIPs will eventually drive me to examine the Sewing Project Time-Out Basket, but as there is still no indication when I'll be able to sit long enough to sew, this may work out for the best.

The projectile-coffee fiasco did have one perk. As long as one is washing one knitted item,

one might as well wash a second. The lace scarf is now clean and blocked, and as soon as I get the ends woven in, will be ready for the gift bin. I am so pleased with how it turned out that I actually had another hank of this yarn dug out of the gift bin before I remembered that I was trying to knit sweaters this year. At least I'm being distracted by yarn I already own. That's a fairly new occurrence for me........

It's Hard Not To Need A Little Instant Gratification

2012-01-09T14:05:00.000-08:00

After two years of frantically completing as many projects as possible, it's still odd to be working on something as large as a sweater--which might explain this:

Another men's mock aran hat! At least this time it was actually from yarn that was already in my Valentine's stashdash basket, but it did leave the mohair jacket neglected and alone all day yesterday. I have determined, however, to not be seduced by any more hats for at least a week, which should give me time to finish the back and start the fronts of the jacket. If it takes me an entire month to finish a sweater in bulky yarn, I am indeed in trouble this year!

I Have Been Brave

2012-01-08T13:08:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I decided to face the worst and finally check the inventory of my lace weight bin, and can now say that there were at one point 7 hanks of the green laceweight,

but the first hank used on dem fischer sin fru seems to be too old to be frogged and is coming off in small bits and pieces, so there are now officially six hanks. It's the Knitpicks Alpaca Cloud, which is really one of my favorite yarns and I really love the color, so I'm not sorry to have a lot of this yarn--though I might be slightly glad to have not discovered 8 or 9 unaccounted for hanks. I am happy to report that I did not discover any more 1375-yard hanks of forgotten cobweb lace yarn. One should not find more than one of those hanks per month. I do admit that I did not choose to explore any more yarn tubs. I think I'd like to see a bit more yarn on my "knit up for the year" tab before I find myself blindsided by some mystery yarn of which I have no recollection or thought. Perhaps I'll feel braver in February.............

Well, I AM Being Monogamous...

2012-01-05T18:44:00.000-08:00

....but not to anything in my basket. Actually, I'm probably not being "monogamous" as that probably means only one project and I am working on two, but announcing that I am being a bigamist just doesn't sound right. But it is sort of like progress to be keeping myself committed to just two projects. It's somewhat easier to not be seduced by anything else in the stash, as I don't think the stash is playing nicely today. Remember this?

The 1375-yard hank of cobweb yarn that wasn't on my Ravelry stash? It has a friend. At least one. I had finally steeled myself to dig in the laceweight bin to see how much of the green yarn from dem fischer sin fru I really had, and ran into a second 1375-yard hank of yarn that isn't on Ravelry. It must be breeding. I decided that perhaps I didn't really want to play with the laceweight after all if THAT was the sort of behavior I could expect.

As a consequence, the mohair jacket has armholes

and the lace scarf has gained quite a bit of length

I'll get a better picture tomorrow. I had physical therapy again this afternoon, and while getting to change to therapy once a week does mean one is improving, it seems possible that it also means that the therapist might think you need a week to recover after each session. I am SOOOOOOOOO tired tonight. In all fairness, we have now moved on to exercises and stretching that would have worn me out even before I hurt my back, so I think is a good thing. We'll see what I think in the morning......

Possibly A New Record For Me....

2012-01-03T10:32:00.000-08:00

The Valentine's Stash Dash challenge, which I am leading, kicked off on January 1. In less than 24 hours, I was cheating on my basket:

I think that might be a new personal record. I'm not sure if I just wasn't in the mood to design a vest, or if I'm just in a selfish mood and wanted to make something for myself, or if I was seduced by the idea of making a sweater in bulky yarn so my sad little "used up" tally could actually have some numbers on it, but whatever the case, this seems to be helping me get past the "must finish as many projects as possible" mindset and transition to "sweater" mindset. At least it has for the past 24 hours, but that obviously means nothing. If I have cast on a new shawl by this time tomorrow, then I think there might need to be a bit more transitioning....

I'm making the Maggie Rennard Jacket from Knitting Today's Classics, but there's an odd pocket detail which would be (from what I understand) right over the side seam. Perhaps it's just me, but I would no sooner add padding around my waist than I would around my rear end, so I will be skipping this part. Not that I don't like things to have pockets--I actually really like them--but most of the time I would be using a pocket to hold my car keys. Just for fun, let's all take a moment to think about the pure fun that could be experienced by having a key ring meet mohair, shall we??? Doesn't that just sound like a lovely time?
Right up there with velcro on knitting bags for sheer knitterly delight......

A Little "Progress" Check

2012-01-02T08:47:00.000-08:00

Admittedly, part way through the year, my one-thread-per-month-on-the-dang-cross-stitch resolve fell apart--probably when canning season kicked in, which is what did in everything else. BUT, it probably got more attention this year than it has in the previous 4 years combined, so I thought it was time to check the progress.

What it looked like at the beginning of 2011:

What it looks like at the beginning of 2012:

Hm....maybe I stopped sooner than I thought.............

And We're Off!

2012-01-01T14:04:00.000-08:00

So I did manage to finish up the second sock last night, but that left me with total yardage of 15,835.55--short of 16,000 yards but not by too much. (And I'm not sure if I really thought this was going to work, but I did start this

last night "just in case.") It was still my second-best yardage year ever. Not to mention, it allowed me to end the year with 117 projects--exactly the number I made last year. How weird is that?

Now, on to 2012 and the "12 12s." To jump-start the year, I'm leading another basket stashdash on Ravelry--this time back to the fill-the-basket and knit only from it, and this "dash" ends Valentine's day at midnight. That's a month and a half, so I need a sweater and a half--or a sweater and half a shawl. Or,

I could finish this poor, neglected Pi shawl so I can finally see how the darn thing looks, and have shawl/sweater #1 done without too much effort, then I can start on number two,

which will actually be a cabled vest for a good friend for Christmas. You might remember this yarn from the earlier attempt at a vest which was so far off gauge that I could have skipped rope with the ribbing. I'll be designing this one myself. Also in my basket, I'm adding yarn for the 1 and a half washcloths I'll need to make:

yarn for two hats (who makes half a hat?)

The green to make another men's mock aran hat to go in the gift bin, and the pink to make another Bernat beret--though I'm afraid that the yarn is probably not listed in my stash because it's leftover from a sweater, so no stash-reduction on Ravelry. And speaking of stash reduction on Ravelry...............

my dem fischer sin fru shawl is nearing it's 4th birthday--and without making much progress. It isn't that I don't love the design--it's quite nice, really--but it really isn't ME. Nor do I seem to like it well enough to finish it to give it as a gift. I do love the yarn, so after several deep breaths--I have started frogging this monster.

Now the thing about old projects is that they might predate whatever methods or systems one has decided to use to track stash or stash progress. Not only did this shawl involve a LOT of knitting--it involves a LOT of yarn. How much yarn? I don't know exactly. I have at least one hank wound but not started

and I know there's at least one more hank in the lace yarn bin. The thing is--none of it is on Ravelry.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It isn't that my stash ACTUALLY grew overnight--but it feels like it. Wanting to face the worst, I decided to look it up on the spreadsheet I was using to keep track of stash before discovering Ravelry, and found I had 7.5 hanks listed. 7 and a half?????? Since I'm pretty sure Knitpicks has never sold half hanks, I am thinking this means I didn't add it to the spreadsheet until I was already using it. The question is--does that mean I had already started this shawl? Did I make something else? Was I more than half a hank into this shawl? Could there have been more than 8 hanks of this stuff at some point? There's nothing in my project pictures on Ravelry, but there are a lot of earlier projects that have no picture and no record, so I guess I will have to finish frogging this thing, count how many individual hanks turn up, and check the laceweight bin to see what else is in there. Just to be on the safe side, I have listed it as 5 hanks on my stash now. The fact that there were at some point more than 7 is a bit unnerving, but at least it's a color I really like. However, I think I'll put a stop to the rummaging around in the sewing room--if there's STILL more yarn not listed, I can happily live another year without knowing about it. Really, REALLY happily.

And---drum roll please---I have sewn something!!!!!!

Sitting is still very hard on my back, so this actually took 3 whole days to do, but
I finished one gift bag on Friday and two more today, so I have now used up my first 1/2 yard of fabric for the year, and get to count 2 of these for the 12 bags on my list. This should be a very interesting year. 2 down--142 to go!!!!

I GOT CHRISTMAS YARN!!!!

2011-12-30T11:30:00.000-08:00

This arrived in a Christmas package yesterday:

YAY!!!!!!! The maroon is a lovely wool/angora blend, and the pinks are merino/silk/cashmere blends. I'm just going to pet them for the next few weeks. They're amazing. And since they are a gift, they are guilt free new amazing yarn! Totally made my day.

And, there is one more skein of yarn used up for the year,

and in one last mad attempt to make it to use up one more ball of yarn before the year is over,

the second sock is now in progress. Admittedly, it's a really stupid choice as it's fingering weight yarn AND size one needles AND 253-yards rather than a more intelligent 100-yard skein in worsted might be, but I am nothing if not completely delusional in these matters. I think it's because some teensy, tiny completely insane part of me really thinks I could still make it over 16,000 yards knit for the year, and the sock is moving rather quickly as it's just rounds of knitting, but 450 yards in 2 days does perhaps seem a bit.........insane. But if I finish the socks, I will also start 2012 with one less WIP, one less ball of yarn, and 253 yards less yarn. And I AM just 15 rounds from the heel shaping.................

Only 1000 To Go!

2011-12-28T07:49:00.000-08:00

The mohair scarf is done!!!!!

It's the longest scarf I've ever made, but with the European scarf-tying look being so popular right now, I thought long might be best, though I'm now worried I made it too long. Maybe I'll block it a bit wider to shrink the length just a bit. BUT, 245 yards of yarn from my recent yarn order have been used up and won't have to be accounted for on my start-of-year yarn tally that I am going to make myself do. Another 1000 yards by the end of the year, and it will be like that 1375-yard hank never happened............

I started to cast on the second sock for this pair

because it's the closest to being a Finished Project in my huge pile of WIPS, but then I remembered: I made it to 111 finished projects already. Now I'm after yardage for the year. (Knit just for fun? What???) So, I have dug out my birthday socks, because if you look really closely:

this sock is really close to being done, and when it IS, I get to count another 230 yards. Never mind that I will then have 2 single socks and no pairs--with 3 days left in the year, this is not the time to bother me with rationality.......

(Side note: RobinH had asked about the wonderful hat pattern for the orange beret. It's a free pattern from Bernat, which you might be able to get to here. Their website is a bit hard to negotiate because you have to log in to see patterns, so the Ravelry link is here. It's a VERY cute hat in bulky-weight yarn, so it's a great fast knit and not very difficult.)

So Now I Can Show You These

2011-12-26T06:21:00.000-08:00

Andy and I generally pick "themes" to do for Christmas gifts, but after all the fun we had last year with gifts for each others' hobbies, we decided to do it again this year.

For a while I had been planning to make Andy some fleece pajamas--probably more for lounging than sleeping, but something comfy and warm to change into after work, and since he started playing the mandolin this year....

I put a mandolin on them. The design is a bit heavy for fleece, and his mandolin is actually a slightly different shape, but I did match the colors to his mandolin exactly, which was fun.

And this,

is the first project I made with my new yarn--I think the day after the yarn arrived. I love to work with lace weight, but one does have to appreciate how fast bulky yarn can be knit up. It's not exactly this vivid of a color, and it reports being happy in its new home--especially since there's a coat that matches it nicely.

Now, on to those 2012 presents!!!!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T09:55:00.000-08:00

Season'sGreetings from Château Sutton-Goar!

Incase--after the year of the cat in a cast, the year of the brokentoe, the year of bronchitis, or the year of the pantry moths--youwere beginning to think that the holiday season is a bit eventfulhere at the Château, I can only say, "Why break such a perfectrecord?" Thus we are enjoying the holidays here during the Yearof the Injured Back.. And let me just say, being rescued from thefloor of the bathroom clad in crossword puzzle pajamas by eightparamedics reallykicks off the holidays nicely. Since they brought along theambulance AND the firetruck, it actually was a lot like our ownpersonal Macy's parade. What could be more "holiday" thanthat? We are happy to report that the patient and her dignity arerecovering nicely.

SquareFoot Gardening

This yearwe decided to try the square-foot gardening method instead ofwhatever one would call my regular "shove plants in anywhere"method. It really maximizes our limited garden space, which providedeven MORE opportunities for me to lose the squash wars. I plantedspaghetti squash and got zucchini. I planted patty-pan and gotacorn. I planted yellow zucchini and actually GOT yellow zucchini,but a squadron of squash bugs arrived to remedy the situationimmediately, lest I start to think I had successfully masteredsomething in the squash family. As if.

Music

Thisspring, some good friends invited us to be part of a monthly musicclub. People sing, bring instruments, or both, and we have a reallyfun evening and occasionally perform at little "house concerts"held by members. Since so many people in the group are learninginstruments, it has been the perfect time for Andy to learn themandolin I gave him for his birthday about 4 years ago, and he hasprogressed so much that his flute/mandolin trio just played whatmight have been the world's fastest "Carol of the Bells"rendition ever. Everyone enjoyed the song so much that after theflutist was given oxygen, they played a slower version as an encore.

Yearof Free Events

As wealways enjoy new yearly challenges, this year we decided to explorethe many free events Boise has to offer by attending something neweach week. We attended films, art exhibits, clubs, lectures and booksales for several months, but finally had to desist when we becametoo busy.

ExploringEastern Oregon

Tocelebrate Andy's birthday, my cousin Dustin joined us on a 4-dayweekend exploration of Eastern Oregon. We caught the Walla WallaOnion Festival, Baker City's Miner's Jubilee, a street fair inPendleton, a chainsaw carving contest in Milton-Freewater, enjoyedsome fantastic museums as well as the old Union Hotel, though I thinkwe'd all agree that the highlight of the trip was the PendletonUnderground Tour and the ability to spend the night at the oldbrothel the Tour runs as a hotel. Andy still enjoys telling everyonethat his wife booked him a night in a brothel for his birthday. Whenhe's feeling a bit less mischievous, he includes the part about it nolonger being in operation.

Thisyear I have learned.....

Trying to downplay the level of pain to the paramedics is silly--they have good drugs and they are willing to share.
If the ER nurse fails to listen to you when you mention you are getting dizzy, fainting in the wheel chair will make her MUCH more attentive
Apparently in medical paperwork terms, getting one's tail kicked by a turkey doesn't count as an "accident."
There are times in life when putting one's own socks on can make one's entire day
Being thankful to have lots of homemade soup available while one is unable to cook because of a back injury when canning the dang soup helped contribute TO the back injury is a lot like living in an O. Henry story.
When the doctor prescribes Valium for after physical therapy appointments, it's best not to dwell too much on why he thinks you might want to be unconscious after them. You'll find out soon enough
A fast way to add a bit of mystery to one's gardening is to label seedlings with permanent marker on masking tape, which is only permanent when it isn't exposed to sunlight.
I was only willing to try the "humane" route the first time we had moles attack the garden. I am now in the "death through smoke bombs" camp
I can kill any plant that someone says is really, really hard to kill, though in my defense, I will also have plants normally considered non-invasive try to take over the entire yard.
Even in Idaho, it is possible to harvest fewer potatoes than you planted
Finding out that the old electric guitar that you've had for 25 years and dropped on the gym floor at least once is suddenly a pretty valuable, much sought-after "vintage" instrument is a lot like finding out that your grandfather is actually a rock star.
It's really helpful to have at least one sedentary hobby, like knitting, that one can do while recovering from a back injury, but if pain pills are involved, one does risk ending up with a hat large enough to fit a walrus
Camping with friends is indeed a lot of fun, but I'm still really glad to return to plumbing
When canning recipes say silly things like "cook until reduced by one-third," it would be wise to prepare several more jars than the recipe suggests. No matter how hard I try, I cannot do fractions in cooked mustard.
Theo, my little side-kick kitty, takes his role as get-well kitty very, VERY seriously and does not appreciate being laughed at when he flops down on his back beside me as I'm doing my physical therapy exercises.
All the smugness of being smart enough to buy a restaurant-sized stockpot to use for canning season will be completely obliterated when one realizes one forgot to buy a spoon with a restaurant length handle.
When you have to check the dates to verify that it is already your 5th wedding anniversary, things are going well.

Wishingyou a wonderful holiday and a healthy 2012,

Toni and Andy

That Makes It All Better

2011-12-23T09:09:00.000-08:00

Even in my fantasy knitting world, having just discovered an additional 1375 yards of yarn, it didn't seem likely that I could knit up an additional 1375 yards by the end of the year to even things out, but I could knit up an additional skein of yarn, so....

Actually, this Mock Men's Aran hat used just about 130 yards, so I'm scaring myself with the mental discussion that if I could already have knit up one-tenth the amount of yarn I found, am I positive I couldn't knit up maybe half? Two-thirds? The entire stupid amount? I am nothing if not stupidly optimistic. So,

meet the new scarf. It's on size 8 needles, fairly simple design, and in some of the new mohair yarn. If I get it done by perhaps the 27th, that will be another 245 yards, then I would only need 1000 yards in the last 4 days of the year to reach 1375, which seems completely reasonable to me as I'm currently on my third cup of coffee this morning. What could possibly go wrong.......?

WAHHHHHHHHHHH!

2011-12-22T07:10:00.000-08:00

So, I had the brilliant idea to get the rest of my yarn photographed so everything would have pictures. None of the first laceweight yarn I bought had been photographed, so a little rummaging turned up this

so I took a picture, pulled up my stash on Ravelry, and..........

It wasn't on there!

This 1375-yard hank of cobweb yarn wasn't in my stash! I have MORE yarn than I thought, and I'm not altogether positive there isn't another hank of this color somewhere. I actually really like this yarn, and my very first shawl was made from this exact yarn, but my stash added 1375 yards and I didn't get the fun of buying anything!!!

Dang! Maybe cleaning the sewing room isn't such a great idea after all........

She Knits!

2011-12-21T13:02:00.000-08:00

Some days I just defeat myself with my own optimism. For the last THREE days I have been waiting to update the blog because I was just positive that this

was going to really be finished any minute, and then I could brag about using up another ball of yarn for the year. That fingering weight yarn and size ONE needles could still strike me as "almost done" shortly after turning the heel probably explains a great deal. SO, three days later, I have now used up almost 15,000 yards of yarn this year, making it my second-best year ever with 10 days left to go.

So, it of course made sense to find a really, REALLY large ball of yarn that I can't possibly knit up in 10 days,

and start on a toddler sweater that also can't be finished in 10 days. In my defense, there is a bit of a baby boom happening around us, and my newest "honorary" nephew has already outgrown the sweater I thought I would be giving him for Christmas, and will be receiving a 4-year-old sized sweater at the ripe old age of 5 months because nothing else I have made is the right sex and probable right size at the right time. This is a 2-year-old sized sweater, which will hopefully be an appropriate size for him at some point while it's cold enough for a sweater if I get it ready for Christmas 2012. I can understand why more people make baby blankets than baby sweaters--one doesn't have to try to correctly predict the size at appropriate sweater-temperature times of the year. Throw Global Warming in there, and I might never get a baby sweater size right again........

Of Course

2011-12-17T11:20:00.000-08:00

So, I figured out what to do about the mohair, decided how to adapt the monster hat to work with my yarn, and...

am working on the socks instead. Part of it has been because I had a bit of a setback with back/hip problem after Tuesday's physical therapy and I don't care how experienced you may be at knitting--if you're taking pain pills or muscle relaxers, stockinette is your friend. I'm happy to say that I have been yanked back into position and now just ache rather than hurt. This is progress.

Speaking of progress, want to see how the musical stockings look now that they're up and being filled?

I love how it all turned out! Well, except for the part where the cool "washable" music ribbon I found to make the stocking loops with faded almost completely when the stockings were washed. That part irritates me to no end. But the overall effect is still nice. And I have learned to not waste my money on printed ribbon ever again, so there is that.

Problem Solved!

2011-12-15T08:08:00.000-08:00

The yarn that matches beads I already have,

gets to be beaded scarves. Those that don't get to be hats. See how easy decisions are when one has spent their allowance on yarn?
I wish I had some brilliant amount of knitting to show off, but I do not. Yesterday I wrapped gifts and even got a few sent off. I'm still not entirely off pain medication--but generally down to one Aleve every 24 hours, instead of 4--but I'm slow and I get worn out pretty fast, and I think I was asleep by 9:00 last night. So, not much knitting. BUT, there have been two new ideas:

1. Get the remainder of my stash photographed for Ravelry. I think it's all on there, but there is a lot of yarn that didn't have photographs, and it's really easy to not pay attention to those yarns. So, every time I'm ready to add photos to the blog, I go photograph a few missing yarns. Interestingly, one of my friends on Ravelry wanted to know if I had robbed a yarn store, as I guess in the "friends' activity" setting, yarn is only "stashed" when a picture is added, so I have gleefully been stashing quite an insane amount of yarn this month. As Lead Cold Sheeper, I can certainly understand her concern. Not that there wasn't a bribing-myself-through-the-back-pain purchase, but it wasn't THAT bad. If it were, I think I'd need to get that Valium prescription looked at........

2. Keep a Projects To Do notebook. The knitting projects are fine because I have my queue on Ravelry, but I have a lot of sewing or other ideas that can't be added, and if I don't write them down somewhere, I get sidetracked. I think I'll make it a real paper-and-ink sort of journal, and maybe even attach fabric or pictures if appropriate. I have an account on Pinterest, but that only works if I go look at my page, which so far I don't really do. So, I'm hoping this idea might help me stay organized. Ahem.....GET organized.

I Think We Need A Vote

2011-12-14T07:24:00.000-08:00

So, the big monster beret was supposed to look like this, or rather "sort of" as I'm using a totally different yarn because no matter how tempting the idea of angora was, I just couldn't see giving everyone hats in baby pink or baby blue. With a slight bit of editing, I think I can make the pattern work with the mohair, or I could make mohair scarves. Idahoans don't wear hats as often as they do on the east coast, I think, as we really don't walk anywhere in the winter. Maybe one more hat and then some scarves?

Do you guys get more use out of hats or scarves? And, I'm thinking of adding beads to the scarves, which I don't think I can do to the hats.

Sometimes, One Really Needs An Open Mind

2011-12-11T17:18:00.001-08:00

The mohair hat ended up, well....

really freakin' huge. And did I check gauge? Of course not, because I am a slow, slow learner. It still works as a hat, but it's now a beret rather than the tam I was hoping for. As it's mohair, it's easier to change expectations than change the hat, but I think in future hats, I will be casting on far fewer stitches for the band.

My back continues to improve, though instead of leaving Friday's physical therapy session full of spunk and energy like I did on Monday, I was so exhausted that I actually came home and fell asleep--then slept another 10 hours that night, and might have made it to 12 if Theo had thought that appropriate. I have been resting a lot this weekend, which has resulted in

the long-promised new sweater finally being cast on and currently resembles some sort of purple ramen-noodley mess that will hopefully be straightened out with some very severe blocking, and because I seem to love frustration,

this is what I think is now my third or 4th attempt at the free bow tie pattern on Knit Picks (which I do NOT recommend, by the way). The pattern suggests casting on 40 stitches and knitting them in double knitting, but I don't think there is a needle small enough to get a gauge with fingering yarn that would NOT ensure that the wearer could lift off in strong winds. I tried 30 stitches, and finally tracked down a free sewing pattern for a non-mutant bow tie, and found I can maybe make the pattern work with 26 stitches and basically working from the outline and deleting the Knit Picks pattern entirely from my computer.

Probably because of my natural tendency to get insane ideas when frustrated, I have decided to try knitting a mitten ornament for each niece and nephew this year. Thus today's mitten output:

As we have 8, this could be doable--though I admit I have been giving them away as gifts faster than I have been making them. These were new ideas that I had. Theoretically, the blue one (which somehow ended up with 2 extra stitches) has a snowflake on it (which it doesn't really resemble) and I got the eyelet and ribbon idea for the white one without getting the accompanying idea to figure out whether I needed an odd or even number of eyelets for the ribbon to work as intended.

After so much unsatisfactory knitting, I felt the need of a quiet, easy project--sort of the knitting project equivalent of a hug, so I have started another toe-up sock:

Some days monotonous knitting is JUST what I need.

The New Plan

2011-12-06T09:07:00.001-08:00

The new bribery plan: I only get to play with the new yarn if I behave myself and don't "overdo"

The GOOD news is: I feel a lot better after only one physical therapy session

The BAD news is: Being me, and having been severely restricted in movement for over two weeks now......well, it was probably just a foregone conclusion that I would be a complete idiot at the first sign of recovery. I'm probably lucky I didn't do anything completely insane, like cartwheels through the house.

I don't think I did anything that would involve a set-back or the need to take those darn Valium pills, but I will be resting for a while and behaving myself for the rest of the day. And if I DO behave myself, I get to play with this:

This is one of the new gift hats I ordered yarn for. I'm thinking that I might end up getting two hats per ball instead of one...which means I have a LOT more knitting ahead of me than I thought. I'm enjoying it, though you can tell where I was knitting when the Valium kicked in last night. The pattern is off a bit in one spot, though I don't think it's noticeable. In any other yarn, I would rip it back and fix it, but mohair really hates to be tinked or frogged, and I can only find the problem because I know it's there, so there it shall remain.

The box of new yarn is here on the bed beside me for inspiration/bribery purposes. As I order new yarn so rarely, I am totally milking this for all it is worth. When it first arrived, I was so overwhelmed by possibilities that my first project was

Yep--more mittens! I got some get-well sparkly white to go with the sparkly blue, and so far the blue mitten ornaments have been the most popular, so I thought a few more wouldn't hurt. The white one is mistakenly missing two rows, which is why it looks so stubby. But as long as it isn't near the normal mittens, it will probably look fine. Project 112 for the year--can you believe it?

I have not yet cast on a big sweater or shawl. I got a bit overwhelmed by possibilities and then decided to work on some extra Christmas gifts. AND, I am currently at just under 15,000 yards of yarn and 83 balls of yarn knitted up for the year. It's certainly not a personal best, but it is already my second best yardage year since I've been tracking, so I'm hoping to make it to 16,000 or 17,000 yards by the end of the year. This probably helps explain why I didn't immediately cast on the fingering-weight sweater I have been lusting after. :)

I am nothing if not a maniac...........

I'm There!!!!

2011-12-03T16:48:00.001-08:00

Meet finished project number 111:

which is what ALL the fashionable oatmeal containers are wearing this season. What about project 110, you ask? Shhhh--it's a secret. It is Christmas, after all.

I have finished 111 projects!!!!

I am not yet willing to concede that there is anything good about throwing one's back out, but I will admit that it gives one lots of knitting time. And speaking of, guess what arrived yesterday?

And the timing couldn't have been better. Between the pain, the pain pills and all their side effects, Thursday's set-back, and the fact that I can never accept that things don't just heal quickly because I want them to, I have been a bit low the last couple days. Being able to bribe myself with new yarn is helping--especially since it will be a while before I'll be able to sit enough to sew again. I'm sure I'll be much more cheerful Monday evening once I've been to physical therapy and have learned what I can do to help my back heal, but in the meantime hitting my goal AND having new yarn to play with helps.

ON TO A SWEATER! OR SHAWL! OR ANYTHING THAT ISN'T SMALL!!!!!!!

Catching Up

2011-12-02T07:48:00.001-08:00

This has been my view much of the last 2 weeks:

Theo has been quite a good get-well kitty, though I think he's a bit relieved to see me making enough progress that he feels he can leave my side--or my chest--for a while. And I'm quite relieved that Andy headed him off with the live mouse get-well gift he found the other day. Kitty nursing has a few drawbacks.

I had a bit of a set back yesterday so there were pain pills AND valium (though not at the same time, obviously), but after they wore off a bit I was able to finish project number 109:

and of course, I have immediately cast on another project. This

will be a new hat with a doubled-over band, which explains the teal yarn used as waste yarn. I'm almost there!

And some pictures of past projects that haven't been on here yet. The latest chemo cap:

and the red hat:

It's really a pretty cute hat, especially for a free pattern.

I saw the spine specialist yesterday, and was thrilled to find out my treatment will be physical therapy. To me, that means I'll be able to control this through whatever it is they have me do, and I'll never have to go through this again. I was really unnerved when the doctor was surprised that the pain hadn't dropped me to my knees as soon as it happened or anytime since. Obviously, that means there's a worse version, so I will be the most highly motivated patient the physical therapists have ever seen!

I PUT SOCKS ON ALL BY MYSELF TODAY!!!!

2011-11-29T07:09:00.001-08:00

Seriously, this just makes my day!

In other exciting news, I have finished the red hat and I think I know where I left my camera, so will share soon. THREE more projects to go for the year!!!

And--now this is big--I have been able to function for the last 24 hours on just Aleve--no scary pain meds. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can now knit something besides stockinette!!!!

Progress!

2011-11-27T08:42:00.001-08:00

Thanks everyone! I am happy to report that I can mostly function with just the over-the-counter pain medication the doctor recommended (Aleve, I believe is the non-generic name--I can't pronounce the actual name on the label), though if I'm moving around much I have to resort to the stronger pain killers, which make it hard to read, type, or do much of anything EXCEPT move around, but this is huge progress! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously, earlier this week even with the pain pills AND resting it still hurt, so this is big.

I have finished the first plain-Jane sock, and am on to the second one, and I have started a hat for my more lucid moments. I have been SO tempted to cast on a new sweater for Andy since he's been such a champ taking care of me this week, but I thought if I attempted to figure out gauge right now, the sweater would either be large enough for Andy and three of his closest friends OR just the right size to fit Theo. So, I'll stick with the socks and hat for right now..............

Update

2011-11-25T09:10:00.001-08:00

There has been knitting, but mostly very, very simple knitting. The pain pills I'm on make me drowsy AND hurt my stomach, if I try to not take them the pain makes me dizzy and faint if it gets too bad, and when the muscles start having spasms (which usually happens when trying to stay off the pain pills), then I have to take the Valium, which makes me absolutely stupid. I had been able to get away with just taking an over the counter pain med they suggested at night since it lasts 12 hours, but last night it failed me and I woke up in serious pain TWICE and once had to wake Andy to help me. So........I'm having a relatively rotten week. Poor Theo is just beside himself. He leaves my side for about 2 hours a day, and it seems that sleeping on my chest is his version of nursing. Considering everything I went through on Monday, I like his version much better even if it might not be very effective.

So, I had originally decided to not do a "reward" yarn purchase for getting through another year of cold sheeping, but earlier this week I decided that if I could get through this week, I would get my $100 to spend for the year. The thought has really helped me through some of the pain and (I am sorry to say) a bit of self-pity. I will be stretching my goal to 175 in the "all used up" category to compensate, but under such extreme circumstances, even I can lighten up once in a while. I'm actually amazed at how much mileage I have gotten out of the very idea, but after such a terrible night last night I finally placed an order this morning. I ordered one more ball of the yarn I've been using for chemo caps to remind myself there are much, MUCH worse things to go through, and a very soft yarn to finally make the balaclava I wanted to make a couple years ago when our temperatures dropped to zero for a week but ended up not being able to make as I didn't have anything warm that was soft enough to be against one's face. I also picked out a yarn for a project for a good friend that I've wanted to make for some time but didn't have the right color (I think this might be a screwy sentence, but I'm on Valium right now, so bear with me), and actually REMOVED several things from my cart before ordering--which may be a first for me. I did have my doubts about being turned loose with a credit card on a yarn website while heavily medicated, but I think I did much better than I expected. And now I have the thought of new yarn to help me through this. Beats valium ANY day................

The Day You Realize You Might Be Getting Older.....

2011-11-22T12:06:00.001-08:00

* Wake up at 7:00 after a long Nyquil-induced night which you hoped would relieve the back pain from having thrown your back out the day before.

* Make your way to the bathroom, only to realize you are about to pass out.

* With as much grace and speed as one can muster with a sore back, get down to the floor before actually passing out.

* Realize now that you're on the floor, you can't get back up

* Have husband hand you 3 Advil tablets to see if you can numb the pain enough to get off the floor, which you now wish you had swept over the weekend.

* After a while and repeated examinations by both cats, realize it's rather hopeless. Consider spending the entire day on the floor. Wish part of the bathroom was carpeted.

* Admit defeat and allow husband to call for paramedics.

* Give the neighbors plenty to talk about as both an ambulance AND a fire truck pull up outside your house.

* Surrender any last trace of dignity you were pretending you might have had when you great 8 strange men while you're laying on the floor in your crossword puzzle pajamas.

* When two young men have helped you to your knees, scare them by fainting from the pain. It's best not to have warned them that you tend to get dizzy if you want to achieve the full effect.

* Come to on the bathroom rug in time to hear the paramedics discussing how to carry you down the stairs. Try not to think about how often the furniture got bumped when it was being brought up.

* Scream loudly in pain each time they move you a bit to get you strapped onto a very cold metal frame--this will help them appreciate what growing old is like.

* Pray none of the neighbors are around to see you being wheeled out of your home on a stretcher.

* Enjoy a long ride in the ambulance as it strives to hit every single bump and pothole on the way to the emergency room and wonder why ambulances are constructed without shocks.

* Realize that trying to downplay how much you are hurting is stupid as A) the paramedic has pain medications he is willing to share, B) he can see you flinching in pain, and C) you have already totally parted company with your dignity anyway

* Scream repeatedly in pain as the doctor examines you, which will result in you finding out that the number one thing people show up in the emergency room for is indeed back pain, and that there is little they can do except give you prescriptions for drugs.

* When the nurse tries to move you to a wheel chair to discharge you, warn her you're feeling dizzy. When she doesn't really take you seriously, faint in the wheelchair.

* Wake up back in the bed with an I.V. now in the opposite arm, and many new wires attached to you.

* Enjoy a full battery of tests that go on for several hours, only to be told that the body's response to pain is often to slow down the heart beating, which is probably an okay response except when one already has a naturally slow heartbeat.

* Take several hours before you can get into the wheelchair without fainting. This time the nurses leave the I.V. in until they're sure they will be able to get rid of you, as you have run out of arms.

* Make it home with very funky drugs and where you finally get food almost 24 hours after your last meal.

* Enjoy a drug-induced sleep, interspersed with wake-up head bumps by a very worried kitty.

* Find out that the drugs might limit your consciousness, but certainly help with the pain as well. Wish you'd taken a few less spills on your horse as a child--especially the ones involving splatting into the pole arena fence.

* Decide aging might beat the alternative, but that is still stinks all the same.......

FIVE!!!!!!!!!!

2011-11-20T08:38:00.001-08:00

Seriously, now that I'm this close to hitting my goal for the year, ever time I log onto my blog to update it, the theme from Rocky keeps running through my head. Not that it's a bad song, but then it's stuck in my head the rest of the day, and by the third hour of the darn thing I start to get a bit cranky. However, it DOES make me want to knit faster, so I guess in some way it's helping.

The chemo cap is done (da da DAAAAAAAAAA, da da daaaaaaaaa), so I just need FIVE more projects (da da DAAAAAAAAAA, da da daaaaaaaaaaaa) to hit my goal for the year. (da da da da da DAAA, da da da da da DAAAA da da...)

THEN I hope to work on something--anything--big and without a darn theme song.....

da da DAAAAAAAAAAAAAA, da da daaaaaaaaaaa........

Finishing Friday

2011-11-19T08:59:00.001-08:00

As I get closer and closer to 111, I'm fantasizing more and more about quilts and sweaters and big lace shawls. After 2 years of mostly small projects, I am really ready for some bigger projects.

Yesterday I started the day by finishing up the new set of mitten ornaments:

then cranked up Jeeves for a couple more towels,

partly because it's a fast way to get a finished project, but mostly because I am totally in love with this design. I bought several musical embroidery designs from Embroidery Library, so then it was just a matter of finding a quote to go with it. I've always loved this one from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, even if it is uttered by Orsinio, whom I have always considered to be one of Shakespeare's biggest drips. Still, it makes a nice towel AND finished project number 105.

For project 106 I thought it might make a nice change to make something that isn't "one of two," so

I'm making another chemo cap. I've almost used up my entire stash of this yarn, so there probably won't be any more of them for a while. I think I have one ball left after this. I like having them available to give to friends dealing with cancer, but I'm even happier to say that MOST of the finished caps are still in my possession. I hope the current supply will last me several years.

SIX more projects to go!!!

Eek! 44 Days Left!

2011-11-17T07:04:00.001-08:00

With only 8 projects left to finish to meet my goal, I'm actually a bit ahead, but today I am still a bit freaked out. Only 44 days left in the year--YIKES!

For a few days last month, I was knitting a little mitten ornament every morning over coffee, which was fun but it got derailed when I decided to knit the Christmas stockings for my friends. But now that the stockings are both done AND delivered, I thought it would be a good time to revive "Mitten Mornings,"

though this poor little guy has been in progress for two days now. In my defense, yesterday (thanks to Theo) I was up at 5:00 and making breakfast and canning and cleaning and vacuuming and doing laundry--so I wasn't really slacking.

I have also started a birthday present for next year,

as so many of the Christmas basket stash-dash projects are coming out of the basket as gifts almost as fast as they go in, so these babies are for a February birthday and can stay in the darn basket for a while. Obviously, I didn't think this challenge through very well.

8 more projects and THEN I will be free to tackle some of my bigger projects again. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There may be hope for dem fischer sin fru after all.....

103

2011-11-14T08:28:00.001-08:00

Normally, I've counted small things like ornaments as 1/2 a project, but for this one there won't be a second, so meet finished object number 103:

It's cute enough, but as you can see from the grid, it's too big for a Christmas ornament and too small for anything else..........and I might be just a bit soured on it as the pattern called for grafting on both the toe AND the heel after suffering through colorwork on DPNs which is always a bit of a challenge if you don't want any tension problems. The pattern calls for some duplicate stitch red berries on the holly leaves which I may or may not get to. I think just for the sheer "crankiness" factor, this gets to count as an entire project.

8 more to go!!!!

Closing In!

2011-11-13T13:51:00.001-08:00

With the help of Jeeves, I have now completed 4 towels with this design:

though the first two were made with the weird plastic-type water-soluble stabilizer which never really works and are now "keepers" as one has a hole and knot where the "s" should be, and one has it where the "b" should be. Yep, it did actually take me two towels to remember not to use the stuff. In my defense, I didn't have Jeeves for the majority of an entire year, and apparently have to relearn just about everything about embroidery. Or I'm just an idiot. Or a combination of both.

The November Project of the Month bag contained enough yarn for a third washcloth,

and by finishing this one this morning

I can now count them as a finished object, so I am down to 9 projects left to finish for the year. I started a little mini stocking ornament,

and will probably try for another set of towels today. With all these little projects, I am of course just dying to do something big like a sweater or shawl. 12 sweaters in one year is just sounding better and better..........

100

2011-11-12T07:54:00.001-08:00

I finished another towel last night, and am hoping to finish up a set of wash cloths today, so I'm now at 100 and closing in on 101..................but there are some stupid red tomatoes that will need my attention shortly. Darn real life chores--they keep interfering with my crafting.

Thinking more about the "Twelve twelves" idea in 2012, my current list idea:

1. 12 sweaters and/or shawls
2. 12 finished sewn apparel items
3. 12 decorations
4. 12 Christmas ornaments
5. 12 hats
6. 12 bags
7. 12 pen sleeves
8. 12 washcloths
9. 12 embroidered towels
10. 12 placemats
11. 12 WIPS (any craft)
12. 12 gifts

Of course, with 6 weeks left in the year, this list might change as well, but I am already excited about knitting sweaters after two years of little items. I think if I have a few fairly loose categories--gifts, wips, decorations, I won't feel too limited for the year. And I think I could finish up the 12 pen sleeves in one day. They're a bit of a pain, so it helps to have an incentive to make them, and I am such a Type A that being able to check something off a list is a huge incentive for me. Of course, for maximum stash reduction, I don't get to overlap items, so a sweater WIP can count as either a sweater or a WIP, but not both.

Obviously, I should never think up new challenges while riding the emotional high of being close to finishing a previous insane challenge........

99!

2011-11-11T16:36:00.001-08:00

The new Christmas stockings are DONE!

And there is a finished towel that needs to be removed from Jeeves,

and if I can get a second one done before having to call it a night, I could have project 100 done today as well!

111 projects might not be so insane after all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

97 And Closing In On 98

2011-11-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

They're done!!!!!!

And fortunately the picture doesn't show that all the white of the "Allan" stocking except the very last 2 rows are a tiny bit more of an off-white than the other stocking or stripe that one can see in natural light on the bottom of the stocking. DANG! If I had the remotest idea what the yarn dye lot was or if this weren't a discontinued yarn I would have fixed the bottom rows, but as it stands, I would have to knit the entire stocking over which I'm not sure I have enough yarn for.......so I'm just going to hope that my friends are very forgiving or can't distinguish shades of white. Rats.

And the first Project of the Month washcloth is done:

and since I'm counting 2 as a finished project, I'm halfway to having project 98 done. Then I think I need to think about a few hats or caps to pad out my project numbers. 54 days isn't very many...................

I Could Totally Get Into This

2011-11-06T11:39:00.000-08:00

95 And 96

2011-11-04T16:23:00.000-07:00

Today has only been half a Finishing Friday, as my morning was taken up with canning (again!), but I have managed to finish one ornament that I'm happy with

finished the one I'm not overly thrilled with, but which can hang on the back of the tree,

and made one that counts as a whole Finished Object by itself because it was such a blasted pain in the neck:

It's less in a state of "finished" than "in the Ornament Protection Program for its own safety." I think I will be spending the evening with something less irritating.......which could be anything really..

Twelve Twelves?

2011-11-03T07:51:00.000-07:00

So, today on Ravelry there was a discussion in the Stashdown group about what challenges we're going to have next year, and one of our REALLY optimistic members suggested finishing 12 12s in 2012. I should not encounter such wild ideas while having morning coffee, because after having convinced myself that 12 sweaters would be totally doable, it isn't too much of a stretch for me to make it exponentially harder. Just in theory (sort of), what if I did:

1. 12 sweaters
2. 12 Christmas ornaments
3. 12 embroidered towels
4. 12 hats
5. 12 place mats
6. 12 gift bags
7. 12 pen sleeves
8. 12 washcloths
9. 12 sewing WIPS
10. 12 chair covers/decorations
11. 12 coasters
12.

One more category....sewing would be a good idea, or maybe 12 scarves, some of which could be sewing?

Too crazy? By which I of course mean, too crazy for ME even?

Yikes!

2011-11-02T16:06:00.000-07:00

There are 59 days left in the year.
The holiday season is coming.
Canning season is still going.
I need to finish 17 more projects by the end of the year.

Okay, now might be the time to start panicking...........

It's November!

2011-11-01T09:04:00.000-07:00

And time for a new Project of the Month bag:

Cotton washcloths! That works out nicely, because it fits in with the Christmas basket stashdash AND the fact that there are 60 days left in the year and 17 projects to go, and I am starting to freak out just a bit. So, the new washcloth is already cast on:

and I'm thinking I can get two washcloths and a tribble out of this, so that would be 1 1/2 projects, leaving me with 15 and a half to go. Still "yikes."

The Christmas stockings are moving along,

but I thought I was about to have a major issue on the second heel flap: I ran out of red yarn. I'm moving about more, but I still can't really sit, so I was contemplating how to send Andy around town looking for a yarn that I knew the make of but not the colorway, and decided to simplify things by looking on the internet....................only to find the darn stuff (Bernat Berella) has been discontinued. Who discontinues acrylic afghan yarn?????????????

Luckily, a rummage through the sewing room turned up most of another skein of red, so the stockings and my sanity have been saved, but I do hate moments like that because it gives me one good justification for ~~hoarding~~ stashing yarn: I might not be able to find it later. This is a very bad thing for my Cold Sheeping resolve. I think I'll need to spend some major time in the sewing room this week, and perhaps let a bag or two of yarn fall on my head to strengthen my resolve.....

I Have Found The Camera!

2011-10-31T08:32:00.000-07:00

Have you ever noticed that technology gets all sorts of features that you don't need, but never the one that you do need? I can change the sound effects my camera makes when I turn it on, take a picture, turn it off, and probably all sorts of other things, but what it doesn't do and the one sound option that I would frankly care about is if it had a little "find me" feature like cordless phones, so when I set the stupid thing down somewhere I would have some help finding it later. Really, wouldn't that be a helpful feature?

At any rate, since I have the camera, the new finished BSJ:

and lest there be any interruptions in the projects-in-progress-but-not-finished status here, immediately cast on a new scarf:

and even some progress on the new socks for me:

So the recuperation is at least sort of productive, even if I am getting a bit stir crazy. The hip is improving, but I keep tensing up and aggravating my back, which makes me tense up even MORE, so I still can't sit, but I was getting pretty impatient yesterday, so I decided to try a craft I could STAND while doing. In a book from the library, they had wonderful pictures of ornaments created by gluing fabric onto Styrofoam balls, then adding trim by using a glue gun. This seamed like a great idea to me, and one hour and a general coating of Styrofoam flakes and glue later:

I hate it. "Smooth the edges down" it said. "Create big stupid puckers everywhere" is what I actually did. The trim neither covers up all the puckers NOR the big glue spots I created with the glue gun. I haven't decided if I'm going to finish it or just rip it apart and start over, but I did decide that the next one could be sewn together,

which involved sitting, which I forgot I was trying not to do, so this is as far as it got. Still, even deflated I think it's quite an improvement over the first one. I got a few more shapes cut out,

and I think they will be pretty cute. And far easier than the ball-from-hell, even if I do have to wait until I can sew them.........or figure out where to put the sewing machine so I can stand while doing it.

Hadn't Thought Of THAT

2011-10-30T07:14:00.000-07:00

So, when faced with an overwhelming amount of canning to be done, one option open to an intrepid knitter is to do something so spectacularly stupid that she ends up with a massively bruised hip and strained back, so she has no CHOICE but to rest for a few days--mostly in a completely flat position. As it turns out, this works pretty well, and the BSJ is now finished and sewn together, and the second Christmas stocking is now at the trees. And when I figure out where I put my camera, there will be proof of all of this.........except the bruising. This isn't that sort of blog.........

There Has Been No Knitting....

2011-10-25T17:59:00.000-07:00

......but the garden was finally killed off by frost last night, so while there is a crazy amount of canning happening NOW, the end is finally in sight. Whew! Though one good thing about our new weather pattern is that I'm canning much, much later in the year now than even 3 years ago, and it's a lot cooler. Today it was probably as pleasant as standing over a hot stove could ever be as the rest of the house was rather chilly much of the day. Not that I'm crazy enough to keep this up all winter......

Just A Warning.......

2011-10-23T15:39:00.001-07:00

If you do not see me on this blog for the next weeks, you can be certain that the green tomatoes got me.

Frost comes on Tuesday night........finally!

Halfway!

2011-10-21T09:11:00.000-07:00

One down, one to go! My sidekick has agreed to hang out while I knit,

but judging from the muffled growling and twitching, it seems to be giving him nightmares. Guess I'm not the one who hates colorwork most in the house after all...............