The Absurdity of Some Rules

I'm flying to Minneapolis tomorrow in the early-early AM to teach a workshop next weekend. As I checked in for my flight online today I discovered that it will cost me $15 to check a bag, even just one bag. I think this is absurd, of course. It means that like myself, all of my fellow passengers will be traveling with just carry-on luggage, and since it is human nature to push the boundaries of rules, and the limits of your luggage this means there will be aisles crowded with too many people, trying to cram their over-sized carry-on bags into the over-head compartments. The last time I flew home from Minneapolis someone was so over zealous in their efforts to make their over-sized bag fit that they broke the door of the overhead compartment. This delayed our departure by 45 minutes so that a maintenance team could come on board and mend the broken door with duck tape. (That is not a lie).

I will not push the boundaries of my luggage, I will pack light. Traveling with just my carry-on isn't a big deal really, and doesn't restrict me all that much. Except where sunscreen is concerned. Which is also slightly absurd. As most of you know, you can not pack more than 3 oz. of any liquid or gel in your carry-on, and 3 oz of sunscreen just isn't enough. If I have learned anything from living in Texas it is to both fear and loathe the sun. And I wear sunscreen. Always. I know they sell sunscreen in Minneapolis, and that I can just as easily buy some when I land. But that is not the point. The point is the absurdity of the rule which allows me to board an airplane with pointy metal knitting needles and a scissors, but limits my sunscreen to 3 oz.

I'm not a rule hater on principle. In fact I am mostly a rule follower, stickler even. But I can not help but be irritated by rules that seem both silly and even a little stupid.

Packing extra extra light means I'll be traveling with sock knitting - portable, compact, and pocket-able.

In other but somewhat related news; I have finished objects to share. Having deadlines - like the one to be prepared to teach my workshop - always puts me in "finisher mode". And so yesterday I finished my Waves of Lace Shell. Finally. It took me almost a year to finish - not because it was a difficult project, mostly I just didn't work on it that consistently, it sat for long stretches at a time. In fact as lace goes, it was fairly simple; easy to memorize repeats, and a beautifully written pattern.

I also finished yet another One Skein Wonder shrug. The first one I made over a year ago was so teeny-tiny I gave it to The Boyfriend's daughter. Then I made a second one for myself that fit, for awhile, but is now too big. A good problem to have I know. So I made a third. And it fits.


For those of you keeping score at home, this means my WIPs are down to three - The Waves of Lace Scarf, and the Branching Out Scarf, and socks. The lacy scarves will be sitting this trip out, they will stay home. I'll be off to Minneapolis tomorrow with a tiny carry-on, socks in my purse and on a mission to buy sunscreen when I land.

A Suitcase Full of Knitting

I'll be traveling next week to teach a workshop in Northern Minnesota. I'll also be visiting family, and making time to run Lake Nokomis. I grew up in Minneapolis - on the south side, right near Lake Nokomis, and it is still my most favorite run. Traveling also means knitting. This trip especially should offer ample time to knit. That's because I'll be staying with my Dad and his wife and they have a fantastic porch, and the kind of laid-back attitude that makes it easy to spend an entire day knitting.

As I prepare for the trip - making sure the dogs will be cared for, prepping materials for my workshop, making plans with friends, and providing easy-to-prepare food for The Boyfriend to eat while I'm gone - I'm also thinking about the knitting. Or more specifically, which knitting to bring along on my travels.

I've got plenty of WIPs right now - the Waves of Lace Scarf, the Branching Out Scarf, the Eyelet Rib Socks, the Urban Hens, and the One Skein Shrug. I have the yarn to start two new sweaters - The Slinky Rib from Wendy Bernard's book Custom Knits: Unleash Your Inner Designer with Top-Down and Improvisational Techniques, and the Empress Pullover from Knit Picks. And of course there is also socks, so so many socks.

Perhaps the best solution is bring it all. I clearly wouldn't finish it all, but then I'd have choices. And besides, other than my running shoes and shorts, and a couple of changes of clothes I don't need much else. Indeed, a suitcase full of knitting...

Knitting News: New Patterns, Socks, and On the Needles

I'm feeling in the mood to share and give updates. This post will therefore cover all the knitting news from my little world and it includes lots of photos and useful links.

First up, I have completed the writing, editing, and photo taking for two new patterns - Both are felted wool projects, and both are classic hats - The Felted Tam and The Felted Cloche.





Both are available in either my Etsy Shop, and on Ravelry. (Incidentally, the beautiful wood button shown on the Cloche was handcrafted by Ripple River Wood Turning.)

I finished the sock! The Shorty Socks worked out great, and they fit. And in accordance with the New House Rules I threw out a crappy pair of store bought socks. I actually threw out 4 pairs of crappy store bought socks - they were all the same socks and were purchased in a multi-pack, so they sort of count as one.



I'm going to continue with the sock knitting, of course. The sweet taste of success has only served to motivate me further. Next up is my first pair from a Sock Cocktail Kit I purchased through Knit Picks. I'll be knitting the shifting rib with a self striping yarn.

Also currently on the needles is this beautiful Waves of Lace Shell and matching Scarf Designed by Ilga Leja. Actually, the top is no longer on the needles - knitting is complete - all that's left is the blocking and seaming. I'm waiting for my new lace blocking wires to arrive. The scarf is in its infancy. Both are knit in Handmaiden's Flaxen - a silk and linen blend. I purchased the yarn and the pattern as a kit from One Planet Yarn and Fiber.


Also on in progress are the Knit Chickens from Blue Sky Alpacas. I would love,love, love to have a brood of hens, real hens, of the egg-laying variety. But since the current plan is to move a thousand miles in a year it doesn't seem practical. I'll wait to have hens until I'm settled in Portland. But in the meantime... I'll be knitting chickens. They are simply too cute to ignore, and the Blue Sky Dyed Cotton is probably my most favorite yarn.

And finally, to keep abreast of what I'm crafting in the kitchen and the garden you should follow my other blog - In the Kitchen and the Garden.

Cheers!

New House Rules!

New house rule: for every pair of hand knit socks I complete, a crappy store bought pair will be thrown in the trash.


Running socks, and my single pair of Smart Wool shorties are exempt from this rule. The Smart Wools were a gift, and I wear them all the time. I love them. As for the running socks, I have just enough pairs to run 6 days a week, wear a clean pair on each run, and not have to do laundry more than once a week.

I think it should be noted that I am a recovered pack rat, which means I don't like to have extra stuff around. It should be further noted that I define "extra" as "not used and/or having no sentimental value".

It has become perfectly clear to me that as I knit and accumulate hand knit socks, I will never ever wear the crappy store boughts, rendering them "not used". And since they have "no sentimental value" they will be "extra" and therefore trash.

The hand knit socks are far superior. And it is my house, and I make the rules.

Socks! Complete!

Do you see that? That is a pair of socks! A mated-for-life pair of socks. Yes, I am pleased to announce that with much sticktoitiveness I have successfully completed my first pair of socks.

They were pretty simple actually - no toes to graph, no heels to turn. They're yoga socks. I don't do yoga, but they will make my feet feel loved. And allow me to admire my summery pink toenail polish.

Upon completion I immediately started another pair - those shortie socks I said I'd get to. This time I'm using a slightly different pattern, in hopes of gaining a better understanding of the anatomy of a heel turn. Progress.



And then it will be on to an endless queue of handmade socks. Ambition.

My new found appetite for hand-knit socks has presented me with an unforeseen, but small, problem: I must now figure out how to take compelling photos of my own feet.

Suggestions...?

New Free Pattern

I posted a new free pattern to my Ravelry Designer page yesterday, and it's been amazingly popular - tons of downloads already. The pattern is for a "Wide Rib Cowl for Him".

This cowl was designed specifically to be masculine enough for him, but something that she’ll covet also. It's a very easy pattern and suitable for beginning knitters. It is shown knit in Malabrigo Kettled Dyed Merino Wool. The kettle dyed Merino Wool is amazingly soft and feels good against the skin. The subtle color variations characteristic of kettle dying, along with the ribbed texture add real depth to this cowl.


If you are on Ravelry you can get your free download and either print it or save it to your library.

If you're not on Ravelry, you really should be. It's a great resource - it's full of patterns, you can maintain a queue of projects you'd like to do, and share the projects you've completed.

But, I want to share this pattern with everyone who'd like it, whether they are on Ravelry or not. So, if you are interested you can either email me directly or leave a comment that includes your email address and I will send you a reply with PDF attachment.

Enjoy!

Affirmations of a Knitter

On Thursday of this past week I had the pleasure of attending a reading and reception with Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, better known to us knitters as the Yarn Harlot. The book store where it was held vastly underestimated both her popularity and the size of the local knitting community. The room was packed - beyond standing room only. And most of us were knitting, of course.

I expected the Yarn Harlot to be funny - as full of wit and clever insights as her writing, and I was not disappointed. I wasn't expecting, but was pleased to discover, that she was also inspirational. I left the event with a renewed love of being a knitter.

Since that evening my head has been swimming with personal declarations of what it means to be a knitter. Affirmations, really. Things I mostly already knew, and if you're a knitter you are likely to know them also. But I have not taken the time recently to consider them, neglecting to concentrate on why it is that I can not stop knitting.

I've been considering community - that standing room only crowd. Being a knitter means being a part of a larger community. A team player, so to speak, on an extremely diverse team of smart generous people. People I might otherwise ignore or avoid were it not for the one unifying fact that we all knit.

Being a knitter is healthy. A fact supported by science. It can lower your blood pressure and reduce your stress. In short, knitting has the ability to calm an over-active mind, and to settle a restless soul. Knitting allows me to be still.

Knitting is worthwhile. When I feel I don't have the energy to do much of anything, but can't justify doing nothing, I knit. When you are knitting you are doing something. Not nothing, something. You are knitting.

Knitting is good, and can do no harm. I'm unlikely to hurt myself while knitting. And knitting makes us generous and thoughtful. Whether we are knitting for ourselves or for others, it is an act of extreme kindness to give a hand knit article.

Since seeing the Yarn Harlot I've been thinking - knitting is healthy, worthwhile, and good. These affirmations have accompanied me during stolen moments with the yoga socks, and my precious uninterrupted hour of lace knitting. I'm pleased to be a part of the knitting team. A team that embraces the idea that something hand made will always be more beloved and fine than something that is not.

In Which I Will Not Be Defeated by Socks

In my last update on the sock saga I quoted The Boyfriend and his observations about the determination, and stubbornness I'm displaying when it comes to learning to knit socks. I'll quote him again - "I forgot to account for your stubborn streak".

Again, he's not wrong. I have such a streak. And I've stubbornly set my mind to becoming a sock knitter. Come hell or high water, as they say.

That stubborn streak has seen me through a couple of triathlons, and more recently a couple of half marathons. But it wasn't just the will that got me through these athletic endeavors. There was also the proper gear and a good amount of training.

And so it stands to reason, at least in my mind, that with the proper gear, and some training, and my willful ways, I can master the art of sock knitting.

That's been my current focus.

Yesterday the gear arrived in the form of a giant box of sock yarn and a sock cocktail kit from Knitpicks. The sock cocktail pattern is really more a mix and match recipe, giving instructions for different toes, cuffs, heels, and leg patterns. A great learning tool.

I also, by coincidence or providence, which ever suits your taste, received a free download of 5 sock patterns from Knitting Daily.

As for the training, I signed up for two classes being offered at my LYS. Two classes being taught by Cookie A. the sock designer and author of the new book Sock Innovation: Knitting Techniques & Patterns for One-of-a-Kind Socks
The classes are not until July, but that just gives me time to practice so I can make the most of this learning opportunity.


Meanwhile, since my last post, I've completed the make-it-up-as-you-go yoga sock I mentioned in the previous update, and I'm pleased to report it fits. And I like it. And I'll knit it's mate. Tonight perhaps.

Sock Update

This whole learning-to-knit-socks-thing is becoming larger than life. I know in my last update I said I would knit the shorty sock again, but smaller. And I will, just not right now.

I decided to try my hand at a yoga sock first - no heel and no toe, much simpler. I knit most of the first one before deciding it was too small. I frogged it and began again. This time going up a needle size.

Half way through, I decided this yoga sock would make more sense if it was knit from the toe up, instead of from the top down. So I'm re-working the idea and coming up with a new design.

For those of you counting along at home, that's four socks started, one large lonely floppy sock completed, and a pattern half written. Progress.

While walking one of the dogs and discussing said progress with The Boyfriend yesterday he made the comment "this just isn't like you." He refers of course to my usual and utter lack of patience and sticktoitiveness when things don't come out just right. He's not wrong. It isn't like me, but I said it before and I'll say it again - I won't give up on socks.

Back On Dry Land with One Sock

I'm safely back on dry land and I can say most definitely I will never cruise again. I'm just not a cruiser. I enjoyed the fresh salty air, and the down time to read and knit. I also had the pleasure of snorkeling, and a swim with sting rays in Grand Cayman. They were lovely - graceful and gentle and the softest silkiest creatures I've ever laid my hands on. But I didn't love being stuck on a boat with an excess of rowdy strangers. Live and learn I guess.

I did have ample time to knit and I finished a sock while stuck on that boat. My first official sock. I learned a lot from the single sock - the basic structure and anatomy of sock knitting, how to turn a heel, and how to properly graft a toe.

Unfortunately, it will never be a pair of socks. It is simply too big, and a little floppy. Enough so that I won't knit its mate. I can see no point in two socks that don't fit. Instead I'll move forward and onto the next pair.

I have already gone down two needle sizes, as I always do, to accommodate my loose knitting, and knit the lonely sock with a US 0. I'm going to try the same pattern again, but this time I will cast on fewer stitches and see if I can't knit a sock that fits. If I can I will knit its mate.