FOcused on the Positive

This has been one of those days...with Little Baby eating through the night, Slim up at 6am, Slim napping for only 45 minutes in the stroller, to everyone finally falling asleep at 8:30pm. In the meantime, I'm center-stage as Child Entertainer Extraordinaire.

So let's FO-cus on the positive, right?

I have been incredibly remiss in posting two crafty gifts we are loving. First is a non-knitted object gifted by my cousin, Elizabeth.

Liz gave me my first baby knit, a stroller blanket for Slim when he was born. I was in awe of it, but unaware at the time how much it meant to be able to give a hand-crafted gift to a new baby. Now it is one of my treasures that I hope Slim will still have to hand down to his kids.

So when her baby came along, I had to gift a knit. I used up some rainbow-colored Lorna's Laces in the stash to make a wild baby hat. I still haven't finished up the blanket I originally started. (shhh!)

When Mom told me Liz had something for Little Baby, I expected another fantastically cool handknit. But when I opened the package, my mind was blown.

Y'all. She quilts.

Aaaauughh! Now I have to learn another craft. I mean, how cute are these little pirates??

But I admit, the pirate quilt is so cute, I've been shy about using it alot. But I think I will take it along with us as a play blanket for the Little Baby while Slim is running around at the park.

There is another (not my) FO that we have been using nonstop. A certain Crafty Caroline made a visit to D.C. recently with some guy (kidding, Scott!) and gifted the Little Baby with a gorgeous organic cotton baby blanket. Every time I think to take a picture of it, Little Baby is already wrapped and covered for bed.

It's funny...Caroline and I met through our hubbies and hung out, but we really bonded through our blogs and shared love of knitting. Go congratulate her on the new house and leave your thoughts about what spinning wheel she should pick up! (And her mom met the Harlot! Squee!)

Did I ever share KnittinSis's cute little baby booties?

She used the same yarn as I did for Little Baby's kimono sweater. He is so incredibly yummy in the pair.
What else? Oh! Yarn pr0n!

Not that Lady Knitterly had anything else to do (leave behind the Met, knit socks, pack, move across country, start a new job), but she gifted me with an A-M-A-Z-I-N-G package of yarny goodness in trade for a couple skeins of Black Purl Lorna's Laces I traded her.

We're talking Trekking in colors that would have been my absolute first choice if every colorway of Trekking had been laid out in front of me.

We're talking baby alpaca that almost jumped right onto the Options needles for a lacy sumpin-sumpin. Nevermind I have no idea how to knit lace.

And then the laceweight mohair...ooh. The. Laceweight. Mohair. I want to use it right now.

Oh my God. There are so many projects, so little time. I already have more WIPs than is reasonable, and even less time than before to work on them.

But I'll wait until the next post to run through the WIP list and share a FO of my own.

Knittin' Mama

Okay, so this knitting update starts pre-Baby Dos' arrival. Goodness, almost a month ago now.

When KnittinSis came to town with Uncle Ben, we couldn't miss my LYS's Daylight Savings Savings yarn sale. Since Uncle Ben was along as Slim's babysitter, KnittinSis and I waddled (okay, that was just me) through the store fondling yarn and debating patterns.

I did acquire some Claudia's in February for my new Jaywalkers (still OTN), but that had been my only stash enhancement since December. And with 20 percent off storewide, I had a hard time resisting, especially one of my favorite yarns.

And Now...

An Ode to Worsted Weight Yarn Made By Noro

Kureyon, how I love thee.
Let me count the ways...
You keep my sanity
in late night knitting/feeding sessions.
You fascinate me
with your color changes.
Purple,
green,
pink,
magenta,
navy,
black.
All hail the power of entrelac blocks.
And the speed of knitting
with worsted weight yarn.

Ever since the Cap'n gave me his first knitting-related present (two Hannukahs ago) of Scarf Style, I have ogled the Lady Eleanor stole, both in the book and at the KAL. Mostly, I fell in love with the name and the description at first. The entrelac? Eh.

But coming across Kureyon on sale was too tempting to resist. I knew it would look beautiful in the stole pattern. So it came home with me from Stitch. All mumbletwelvemumble balls. KnittinSis walked out with some stash enhancement too, but I'll let her comment on it, since I can't remember all of it. Plus I think some of it is maybe for a surprise present??

In that first week home from the hospital with Little Baby, I cast on for Lady Eleanor one night around 2am. I was the only one awake, feeding Little Baby and staring longingly at my knitting bookshelf across from the couch. All I had to work on were the Jaywalkers and a laceweight scarf in a Feather and Fan pattern. I needed something big, and I needed something fast.

That first tier of half triangles looked like ass. No joke. I had swatched on both the US10.5 needles called for in the pattern and with US11s. I went with the 11s because it got me better gauge. But in that first row, the fabric on US11s was really loose. It really didn't start looking like something until the second full tier.

I am really happy with my choice of needles, though. The Knitpicks Options set made it really easy to switch out the needle size on the swatch, and I've really enjoyed working with them.

And this project has forced me to learn a new skill: knitting backwards. Actually, I mastered purling backwards first, and only now, at Tier 10 out of 35 have I got the knitting backwards thing down. I checked out this tutorial and this Knitty advice beforehand. My difficulty in picking up the knitting backwards trick is because I purl Combination style and had trouble figuring out how to wrap the yarn coming backwards.

But if you've made it this far, you deserve a picture of the Lady Eleanor progress so far. A row here and there over about a month adds up! I'm almost done with ball 3, and am more than 1/4 of the way through the tiers of entrelac blocks.

So that's the belated knitting update. I am chugging along with my knitting, and while I still look longingly at my other pattern books while nursing and reading Dr. Seuss for the nth time, Lady Eleanor is a satisfying way to keep my sanity from sneaking off the way the dog does from Slim.

I also am belated in thanking Maryse for a beautiful skein of Schaeffer Anne that I won as an entrant in her mismatched sock-shoe contest. It brightened my day on one of those difficult first days home with the new baby and Slim while we were all adjusting to each other.

There are still those days, but the three of us got out of the house this morning in our great green rocketship, aka the new Phil and Ted stroller for the boys. I love its maneuverability and lightness, and I'm even able to still make my grocery runs with both boys.

I'm also contemplating starting a new blog with daily updates of pics and baby news, but that's just in my head so far. I'll let you know if something comes of it. I'm thinking of calling it the D Boys blog, but check out the urban definition. Maybe not.

And hopefully we'll have a house update by next week. More searching tomorrow...

It never stops at Chez Muthaknitter.

Making Progress

So the big Stash Reorganization of 2007 has yielded the perfect hat for my 23-inch head.

I often have trouble finding something that fits my melon. It's where the kid inherits his 18.5-inch head from. It took me 5 tries to get his right, but with the good karma of an organized stash behind me, I was able to make my hat work on the first try. For the most part...but more on that soon.

(Picture of 37.5-week belly and messy kitchen thrown in gratis. You're welcome.)

Random question: Magnets/pictures on the fridge or no? What's your style? Every place we move, the Cap'n swears he'll have nothing on the fridge, which lasts for a month, until one little reminder goes up. Then the rest of my magnet collection jumps out of the box it was packed away in and makes itself at home. Funny that.

Here are the hat stats:

The Pattern: Santa Cruz from Magknits

The Yarn: Malabrigo 100% merino wool

Colorway: Oro y Vino from the orange-y skein left over from My So-Called Scarf (The other skein had more coral oro in it. You can tell when the scarf and hat are close to each other.)

Needles: Clover Takumi US8 bamboo and Brittany US6 birch

Time: Started Thursday, February 22, and finished Friday, February 23

Modifications: Well....

First, let me confess that I could not resist casting on something new while I was playing HYS. Even with an honest tally of the projects OTN, I wanted something fun to do, and when I was packing away the leftover partial skein from My So-Called Scarf, I succumbed. I figured, how long could a hat take?

And in this case, I was actually right. I think this is the quickest thing I've ever made, and a very nice break from the US2 (3.0mm) needles of my recently finished socks and the in-progress baby sweater.

I have been meaning to make a matching hat to my scarf since I finished it. The scarf was the first thing I made and kept for myself, and that was a year after I first learned to knit. This pattern did not jump out at me when I first saw it in Magknits, but I loved the one Mary made. However, she said it turned out small enough to fit her daughter, so I read the pattern closely (wha????) and noted that its finished circumference is 19 inches.

Hello: Meet my son, the kid with the 18.5-head at age 20 months.

So following the worsted weight recipe, I added two extra lace repeats to bring it to a 96-stitch circumference and another 4 inches around. Problem with my brilliant solution? I didn't exactly think through the rate of decreases for the crown.

I was chatting with KnittinSis on the phone while working on the hat, and she re-awakened my fear of a Conehead Hat. That was one of the problems with Version 3.0 of Slim's hat saga. So I fudged the decreases, but when I cinched it off, it turned out a little on the short side. I like my hats to cover part of my ears, and mine just ended at the ears.

In truth, if I had read the pattern *that* closely, I would have added more than just the 3 k1-p1 ribbing rounds that it calls for. It just wasn't enough ribbing to stay tight on my big head. So in a fit of brilliance the next morning (yes, most of the hat was finished in a day), I picked up 96 stitches at the cast-on edge with the US6 needles and started knitting down with more k1-p1 ribbing.

I decided that I wanted the extra ribbing to turn up, so I knit one plain row in what I thought was roughly the middle of how far I could go with the yarn. I kept knitting until I got anxious about how much yarn I had remaining. I actually have about 5 yards of the Malabrigo left -- certainly enough for a few more rounds of ribbing -- but at the time, I was knitting knervous, so I bound off.

I love how the Malabrigo feels and how warm it is, particularly with the cold weather coming back. The yarn pills like crazy in the scarf, but I think it's from the frequent friction of tying and untying it. I think it will stay more defined in the scarf.

KnittinSis thinks the hat has a crochet look, and I would agree with her. But it's a simple pattern, and with directions in every weight of yarn (sock, sport, worsted, and bulky), you really can't go wrong. It was the perfect stashbuster!

I have made some progress also on the baby sweater, but not much since the Cap'n has returned. I'm hoping to work on it some more tonight. Luckily, KnittinSis is coming to the rescue with a perfectly matched lemon hat and possibly some booties. If I have time, I want to tackle the leggings in Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitters Almanac. What a well-dressed baby this will be!

I also made another bit of progress on reducing the stash. Lady Knitterly has been coveting the Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Black Purl, and I just happen (ahem) to have some in my cough17paircough sock stash. So my sock yarn is winging its way to NYC, and if some trade yarn happens to fly down to DC, well, that will have to be counted in the next stash reorganization, won't it?

Burst of Knitting Energy

They say that right before you give birth, you get a burst of energy and an urge to clean house (so to speak, not literally, in my case) to get ready for the babe to be born.

In my case, I do need to clean the house before the Cap'n's return from Iraq tomorrow evening. He's safely in Amman, Jordan, now enjoying the Four Seasons Hotel spa. But my burst of energy has so far been directed to my knitting and stash.

First, a longstanding WIP is off the needles! Let me introduce you to my Child's First Sock in Shell Pattern. Here at the stats:

The Pattern: Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks Child's First Sock in Shell Pattern
The Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock
Colorway: Brick (extremely like the color of the sample socks in the book)
Needles: Addi Natura US2 (3.0mm)
Time: Started in November? December? Yeesh. Finished February 21
Modifications: Only 6 pattern repeats in the leg and slightly larger gauge for my size 10 feet

I really can't gush enough about Nancy Bush's patterns. I mean, even Grumperina feels the same. Grumperina! This pattern was clearly written and easily memorized. The socks turned out just perfect. They make my feet feel pretty.

BUT...these socks are now my deal with the universe. The deal is: If my midwife delivers me (the same midwife who this week commented that she has not been able to get warm this record cold February), these socks will be my thank you gift to her. She's a knitter, so she'll get it.

See, I knew from the beginning that my two midwives were only on call 50 percent of the time. The other times, the doctors in their practice take the call. But they catch 80 percent of their patients' babies. So I felt like I had pretty good odds. And because I've had an easy pregnancy, I never saw any of the 5 doctors.

But last week, with the ridiculous (ha!) amount of snow and ice we had (more like people's utter stupidity in clearing it, but anyway...) one of my midwives broke her arm. So it's down to one to deliver. I'm a little anxious about it...but she's supposed to be on the weekend I'm due, so we're going to do our best to hit the nail on the head.

So if Marsha catches Baby Dos, the most beautiful pair of socks I've made so far will be hers. She's seen me knitting them at visits and I think she will like them. But if some random doctor catches Baby, those are the socks I'm wearing home from the hospital.

Anyway, to randomly change the subject, I wanted to share my new DPN holders that I discovered while KnittinSis and I were at the Michaels in NC. I had never seen these before, and I think they are supposed to be used to keep DPN sets together when they are not in use, but they work great to keep the sock from sliding off the needles while it's in my nifty little pouch. I highly recommend them.

I managed to resist stash enhancement, though I did see two yarns that I had not before: Lion Brand Wool and Patons SWS soy yarn. The Lion Brand Wool looks like it will give Patons Classic Merino a run for its money, and the SWS had some great color combos. I will probably try them at some point.

However, I neglected to fill you in on my SEX at the LYS while Indy Grampy was in town watching Slim. This picture does no justice to the deep jewel tones of the purples in this yummy, yummy yarn cake. It's "Purple Earth" by Claudia's Handpainted. I'm thinking about trying to just whip this up in some plain stockinette socks, and try to get done by D-Day. I could use some grounding to the earth while laboring.

Although...I totally want to try Cookie's Monkey socks in this yarn. I think it would be fabulous. And have you seen the other sock designs on her blog? Oh. My. God. Wow. It makes me sorry to miss Stitches West. There was nothing so amazing here in Baltimore back in the fall.

I'm really proud of myself that this yarn is my first stash enhancement in 3 months. The last yarn I purchased was December 1 for the Cap'n's felted mittens. If I can keep up this kind of restraint (which probably won't be that difficult considering I'll have 2 under 2 to deal with), I will be proud of myself.

And I think I will earn these two books: More Sensational Knitted Socks by Charlene Schurch and Favorite Socks - 25 Timeless Designs. I reeeeeaaaallly want these.

They will come in mucho handy, even with the sock books I already own, considering what I just did to the stash. I mentioned a while back that I was inspired by Brenda's big reorganization that she talked about on Cast On. So taking advantage of the Cap'n being halfway around the world and not being able to find out how much is really in the stash, I unloaded everything out onto the couch.

Umm. Wow.

No. Really.

Wow.

I have pictures. I sent one to KnittinSis, and while I realize it is blackmail material, I will also gain access to her stash and start photographing if I have to. I know she's working hard on accumulating too.

So I organized everything by project type and put the wool yarns in my cedar lined bags to protect them. I have a list of number and type of projects doable with my stash now, and I thought about posting it on here. But then again...I think that would give the Cap'n a good idea about the size of the stash. If there is general clamouring for full admission, or if I feel guilty enough to be held publicly accountable, I may change my mind and post the list.

Let's just say for now that I have plenty to keep me busy...for example, there are 6 possible baby sweaters, and I will be lucky to finish those before the kids grow out of the amount of yarn I have. I'm just not that fast a knitter.

The other productive part of the stash reorg was creating a spreadsheet to keep track of my needles. I don't have "that" many, but I did just get the KnitPicks Options set at Christmas, and I don't like having repeats. It keeps me from casting on more projects than I'll likely finish.

It felt so refreshing to have the stash organized and tallied. It made me excited to play Home Yarn Store and rediscover project ideas that I originally was so enthusiastic about. It made me giddy anticipating casting on...

Perhaps a little too giddy. I'll have more to post about tomorrow...