Psyched 2 Knit

Luxurious Sweater - FINISHED

2009-04-10T21:13:00.004-04:00

I finished this sweater about 2 weeks ago. I really like how it turned out. I had to shorten the arms because they were about 8 inches too long. I also spent a lot of time concentrating on setting in the sleeves and sewing the seams. I think my diligence really paid off, though, because I don't have any parts of the sweater that are really stiff, or that make me wince when I look at them.

The yarn was the "Whale of a Skein" that I got at Purl Soho a couple of summers ago. I'm glad I used it because the yarn is really too expensive to sit in my stash for a long time.

I don't know if this happens to others, but as you can tell, I don't finish sweaters for myself that often. From my behavior, I would say that I don't like doing it. When it came time to start sewing it up, it took me days to pick up the project again. It wasn't that I minded the sewing so much, but I just think that I missed the routine of sitting down at night and just knitting. Then the for a few nights after the sweater was finished, I read. I didn't want to knit anything - which is so not like me, that I didn't even recognize myself.

I realized that finishing a sweater is kind of a let down. I still really enjoy wearing it, but I am not as excited about the sweater as I was when I bought the yarn, or discovered the "perfect pattern." I felt like I was in heaven once I started using this gorgeous yarn, and I even enjoyed the painstaking attention that I paid to the finishing - so once the sweater was done, it now just becomes an article of clothing in my wardrobe, as opposed to my "friend" that was with me during the planning and most nights for the past few months.

So now it is on the my next friend. I feel a little disloyal, but I'm working on a pair of socks - kind of like a rebound project. Fun, sexy (it has a little lace in it) but I don't think I will feel so lonely when I finish them.

Happy spring.

Go Red Sox!

P2K

Another Day, another hat

2009-01-24T18:41:00.004-05:00

I don't know if you noticed, but the hat that I made last weekend, was way too small. I didn't realize this until my daughter tried it on, and I thought that it looked pretty good on her. (This is a picture of my 2 year old in the hat, but the 6 year old inherited it.)

It was good that the 6 year old got the hat, because that h oo ded sweater that I made for her was put in the laundry by my lovely husband, and now the sweater fits my little one. (There were lots of tears, and an order for another sweater.)

Anyway..... So, I loved the fact that the green hat had a brim that was doubled, so that my ears would stay warm - which is a definite priority these days. I found my malabrigo and whipped up this hat, using Ann Budd's book of patterns. I love the way it feels.

Hats are super satisfying because they are so quick!

Stay warm and knit with yarn you love,

P2K

Brrrr it's cold. Time for a new hat

2009-01-18T13:47:00.006-05:00

It's another cold wave in Boston, so it was time for another hat. I liked the last one, but it was loose - so here is the "Cable Hat" from Island Yarn. There were a couple of problems with the pattern, but once I figured it out, the hat took no time. I made it with Mirasol Sulka which is a really beautiful yarn. The recommended needle size was 10.5, but I didn't have those, so I used 10 dpns. Unfortunately it is smaller than I would have liked, but I used the left over yarn for the pom pom. One of these days I will make the perfect hat. Fortunately, they don't take long to make.

For Christmas, I also finished the sweater for my neice. I liked the way it came out, but making 4 row stripes on a baby sweater is WAY too much yarn changing. It was a pain. I can't wait to see her in the sweater.

I hope wherever you are, you are enjoying the season. Personally, I like the excuse of slowing down and being inside - at least for now.

P2K

Almost vacation!

2008-12-13T22:19:00.008-05:00

I am SOOOO excited about the upcoming vacation. Let's face it, vacations are always terrific and I always feel like I'm trudging through the desert to get there -- but this time, I REALLY need it! My husband has been working like a crazy person since the middle of October, and so that leaves a lot of child duties and house duties to me (in addition to my full time job.) Can we say T-I-R-E-D?

People have asked what I am working on these days, and I am not a monogamous knitter. So here are pictures and labels:

A sweater for my niece.

A blanket for my nephew.

Super cardigan for me.

and a mindless in the round yoke sweater with Jamie Harmon yarn.

Hopefully the new year will be full of F.O.'s for all of us!

Happy Winter Solstice

P2K

Instant gratification

2008-11-24T23:30:00.004-05:00

I have been working on a lot of knitting -- a sweater for me, a sweater for my niece that was born in October, a blanket for my nephew (born last April) and my Clessidra socks. So of course, you know, I was totally fantasizing about a new hat. Actually, that isn't exactly true. It was FREEZING here last week, and I hated the hats that I had, so I made a new one.

This is made of Jamie Harmon yarn, and is so soft and incredibly warm. I really love it -- and it is reversible. (It is basically a tube, as you can see.)

I met Jamie at Rhinebeck this year, and I ordered a sweater's worth of yarn that she is plying for me. Her yarn is so soft!!!!!!!! It is 50% merino and 50% angora. Definitely a luxury - but if we didn't want this really special stuff, we would just buy all of our sweaters and hats!

Happy Thanksgiving.

P2K

Popping the liberal bubble

2008-11-16T13:13:00.007-05:00

During the past few weeks I have been feeling so proud that I live in a country where people care about civil rights and are able to elect the strongest candidate for president regardless of his race and that all types of people, all over this country, have rallied in support of gay marriage. People have shown that they believe that all law abiding citizens are entitled to the same rights and privileges.

I live in one of the more liberal cities in one of the most liberal states, and I am proud of this fact and grateful to live here. I am also a Jew and my city has a sizable Jewish population. I became complacent. Living in my liberal bubble, I believed that racism, bigotry and antisemitism happened in other (less enlightened) places, but not here -- Not here in Newton, where the public schools are closed for the Jewish holidays and not here where we give truckloads of food to food pantries and knit mittens and hats for the homeless.

But despite the open minded values and world healing actions of my synagogue, some person decided to spray paint a Swastika to the entry sign of my synagogue.

Let this be a reminder to all of us that we should never take our freedoms for granted. All over this nation we need to continue to fight hate and denial of civil rights, because if we are threatened here in this liberal bubble of Newton, MA, we know that the rights and freedoms of all are at risk in this country.

P2K

I'm still alive - and still knitting

2008-10-26T20:24:00.007-04:00

It has been quite a while. This summer just sped by, and it seems that I just got caught up in all of the traveling, relaxing and having fun with the family. Before I knew it, I was back in school and going 75 mph. It is a crazy life we live. I always think that I will be able to get the mess in my house under control if I just clean 20 - 30 minutes a day - and that is true. The thing that I forget is that I am exhausted at the end of the day and have NO desire to clean at all - thus the incredible mess in the house!

I discovered "Facebook" this summer. I had been on it for a while, but many of my high school and college friends are now on it, so it has been fabulous hearing from those people again. I've gotten together with some, have talked baseball with others and generally caught up on the past 15 -20 years. That has been TOTALLY AWESOME. (Is my '80's culture showing?)

I finally finished this sweater for my daughter. She LOVES it. It took me about a year and a half, which is really embarrassing, but I found it really boring to make. Every time I would pick it up, I would kind of snooze after a couple of rows. I'm glad I finished it, and also glad that she is so happy. (even though she has goofy smiles in these pictures.)

Hope life is good wherever you are.

P2K

Teacher's Swap

2008-08-09T18:48:00.002-04:00

QuiteCool (aka Amanda) on Ravelry was my swap partner in the Teachers who knit swap. I got some great goodies. I love the knitting needle bracelet, and I can't wait to make the "Amanda" hat. How thoughtful! I also love the teapot cloth. Amanda called it a rag, but I don't think I can use it for something where it will get so dirty!

Thank you so much Amanda!

Wednesday night friends

2008-07-10T11:21:00.003-04:00

For a few years now I have been knitting with friends on Wednesday nights. We have met at coffee shops and lately at the Watertown Library. It has been fantastic! It is an eclectic group of (mostly) women, and so nice to sit and knit and not have to worry about the stuff that usually consumes my thoughts. It may be one of the things that always keeps me knitting on a regular basis - the excuse to keep connected with these people and also connected with all of the people that I have virtually met through the internet and Ravelry in particular.

Last night, though, I used my "evening off" (from the family) to have dinner with an old friend. She uses the same day care that I do, so I run into her a couple of times a week, and we get to chat for a minute or two. But last night, it was just the two of us -- no husbands, no kids, no special event - just us. Can I tell you, it was so TOTALLY fantastic. She was one of the people that I did things with on a regular basis when we were both single (the mid to late 90's) and we realized that we hadn't gotten together, just the two of us since my first daughter was born in 2002.

The thing that was so great was that we were talking at a deeper level immediately. Not heavy, just honest - it probably helps that we see each other so regularly, but it was just so great to just dive into things without background info.

Life gets so busy for everyone. Between work, kids, family and trying to not let my house fall down around my ears (a losing battle), I feel like I have lost touch with some important people in my life. Luckily I do have the knitting group to have the socialization on a regular basis - but those non-knitting friends are really special too!

P2K

Summer

2008-06-30T13:47:00.005-04:00

The summer has finally started, and really there is no better time for a teacher. Sure I love teaching, and I really enjoy my students, but I REALLY enjoy the summer!

We started things right this year by going to Westport, MA for a week. We usually go to the beach there, but it is an hour and a half from our house. So, my husband had a great idea to rent a place (see picture) which was such a fabulous idea. It was a lazy vacation with trips to the beach, zoo and plenty of time to enjoy the backyard. The kids flew a kite and balsa wood airplanes, and we had a chance to enjoy the local strawberries (unbelievably good!) and LOBSTER!

I got to do a lot of knitting. 2 interesting observations for you:
1) I am knitting my Clessidra socks (almost done with the 1st) out of blue moon fiber arts yarn. Westport was really humid and everything was slightly damp. The interesting thing was that it brought out the vinegar smell in the yarn. I don't know about you, but vinegar always reminds me that the yarn is hand dyed, and you feel even more decadent using it.

2) I also did more work on a sweater for my daughter that has been sleeping for about a year. (luckily she doesn't grow too quickly!) Anyway, I think I haven't worked on it for so long because it is all stockinette. That is CRAZY boring! I feel like I have some strange knitting tick as I knit and watch television. I think I probably slept and knit the sweater at the same time. I have another sleeve, a pocket and an i-cord to go. I am going to have to watch something REALLY exciting and finish this silly sweater. So to answer the question of "Do you knit complicated things so that people will be impressed?" The answer is, NO! I do it, so I will finish the projects!

My goal for the summer is to write more. Hopefully I'll stick to it.

Wear your sunscreen.

P2K

still chugging along

2008-06-10T01:01:00.002-04:00

Well another week, and I still have been faithful to the same 2 projects. Am I maturing? I doubt it! I am almost finished with another skein for the blanket, and the first sock.

I read a horrible book over the weekend - actually, I didn't finish it. I figured that life was too short to read bad books - ESPECIALLY when they are my entertainment. I can try to get through some important literary work - but this was DEFINITELY not one of those, and it was just bad. The author did a great job of having you feel how aimless the main character was, but it did not keep me reading. The protagonist was always sleeping around, and so I thought of my knitting - I know a strange hop - but it related to my inability to commit. I have started LOTS of projects, but my finishing rate is about 1 for ever 4 or 5 I start, which is frustrating. So then I think that I won't start anything new until I finish everything - and that is just unrealistic (and as my husband says, knitting is my hobby, so there aren't any rules - he's such an enabler! - one of the many reasons why I married him!!!!) But I do think I should have some rules about starting and finishing - any thoughts are welcome.

Sorry no pictures!

P2K

I missed May!

2008-06-01T16:24:00.003-04:00

Happy June! I hope all is well with everyone (if anyone even reads this any more!) I have been busy with life - working, cleaning and just the usual things that go on around here. Work has been crazy - my seniors finished up, but they also had to take their AP Psychology tests in the middle of May. I think they did well. They sounded very positive about the test which can be a good sign.

We also got our class assignments for next year, and at the moment I will be above the union maximum, which has had me in quite a tizzy. The response from my director when I pointed this out to him was, "you shouldn't be so good." Hmmmm - how does one respond to this? Isn't that always the way - if you do a good job then usually you are rewarded with more work. In general I don't know how to deal with this. I have an easier time if people don't feel like they can depend on me, but...... I feel worse about myself. Or.... I try hard and get rewarded with more work. It is a strange world in which we live.

The Red Sox are back, and I have been doing a lot of knitting. I have been faithful to 2 projects - my nephew's blanket and my Clessedra socks (pictured above). They are the perfect balance of ease and difficulty. Knitting wise, I feel satisfied, and my eyes are not wandering to other projects.

Summer is coming, and I can hardly wait.

P2K

Wow has it really been this long!

2008-04-27T21:10:00.009-04:00

Spring has sprung!! Many times people have said to me, "You have a blog? When do you find the time?" Well now you know - I don't!
What a crazy month April has been. It has all been great, but it has kept us busy. Note to self, prepare better for April next year.
We started the month with both of my daughters' birthdays. They are now 2 and 6. This meant family get togethers and a party for my oldest. The highlight was the clothes that I got at Good Will for dress up time - Very fun!
The next day my nephew was born (mom and son are doing great) and the week ended with a passover Seder which meant 2 days of cooking and cleaning and polishing silver. My parents and out-of-town sister (not the mother of my nephew) were here because of the new grandchild and it was really terrific to have the whole family together for Passover. It had been a LONG time. It really was a dream come true.
I have done some knitting. I've been working on my nephew's baby blanket. After a false start, with yarn that looked much darker knitted up, I started on one in more "baby" colors, and am thrilled with the results.

I hope all is well with you, and I am sure I will be a more regular writer until next April.

All the best.

P2K

Red Sox Swap

2008-04-02T23:12:00.003-04:00

Lot's of goodies - don't you think? I'm so excited I was in the "Red Sox Swap" on Ravelry. My partner was Kniterati. She got me EXACTLY right. Great sweet treats, GORGEOUS yarn - Fabulous tea, absolutely adorable baseball stitch markers and reading material. I shouldn't forget the tattoos, because I will definitely wear them on Tuesday - Home opener day. (I'm a teacher, so I can get away with that.)

If you're on Ravelry, and you like the Red Sox, you have to sign up for the Sox Knitters Group. It really is a lot of fun, and really informative. It is really one of my favorite things on Ravelry.

Thanks again Kniterati!

Go Sox,
P2K

Baby hat

2008-03-21T23:19:00.005-04:00

(This baby does look weird because it is a doll)

I just finished this baby hat the other day. It is made for a baby that has been having a rough time, but hopefully has gotten through the worst of it. I thought she needed something pretty and soft. I'm pretty happy with it, and I hope the parents love seeing their daughter in it, and the baby wears it in the best of health.
This is the first knit that I have designed and finished. I've seen similar hats before, but I didn't make this one from an existing pattern. It is made out of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, on size 4's. I originally cast on 356 stitches, knitted 5 rows, and then knit 3 together all around to make the ruffle. Then I continued and made a regular hat. The cranberry stripe was added later with duplicate stitch.
It was so nice to finish something. My house seems to be full of UFO's, but these days I'm so beat, I hardly care. To give you just an idea of how crazy life is at our house, today I took my daughter to day care, but didn't realize until I took her out of the car that she wasn't wearing shoes. You just have to laugh!

Happy Spring!
P2k

It's been a while

2008-03-18T20:32:00.003-04:00

Sorry it has been so long. Part of the reason is that I am running around like a loon most of the time, and the other problem is that things have not been all that exciting for me lately. Although, I have to say, this past weekend was pretty good. We went with my husband's family to a house up in Vermont. It is definitely the beginning of mud season, so we didn't ski, but his aunt and I went to a sweet yarn shop called Six Loose Ladies. I tried to resist buying yarn, but of course I couldn't. The woman knew her customer, and she showed me all of the stuff by local artisans. So I bought a silk wool blend, and then I went over to feel the handspun alpaca. I put it in my hand and it felt so good, so I kept holding it. By the time I was ready to leave the store the yarn had become a part of me and I just had to have it. I'm glad that I did. I also bought the fiber trends pattern for felted slippers. One day I will make them in my free time. (HA HA HA)

Peace to all,
P2K

I'm still 40

2008-03-02T17:27:00.002-05:00

I had a great birthday weekend! The party was terrific. Like all parties it was definitely the people who were there that made it so great, and I really had a great group that came. I feel so lucky. After such a terrific weekend it was really hard to get back into the swing of reality on Monday. I'm sure most kids and teachers in Massachusetts were feeling like last week took forever!
I started a new project. This one I don't feel guilty about starting because it is for my sister's child that will be born in April. It is a modular square baby blanket. I am thrilled with this project. It is so satisfying.
As you can tell, I've got a LONG way to go!
My other big news is that on Friday I started my first lease on a car. I pick up the car on Wednesday, and I am thrilled.
Hope all is well wherever you are.

P2K

P.S. I forgot to write that the bag in the photo was made for me by one of my friends in my Knitting group - It is such a sweet little bag that I wanted to show it off!

OMG - I'm going to be 40!!!!

2008-02-22T12:30:00.003-05:00

So tomorrow is the big day. Yep, I'm turning 40! I can't believe it. 40 seems so adult, and really if you talk to many people who know me, I am not that mature. No, really - My reading is "chick lit", my favorite type of humor is potty humor (a good gas joke gets me every time) and I'd rather spend my days playing with my toys. The toys these days are knitting and needlepoint, but they are the same things that I was playing with when I was 12. Fortunately for me there are a lot of other people playing with yarn and needles and I'm not the only one any more! (by the way, you did read that right, I have been cheating on my knitting a little bit with needlepoint, but I'm having fun, and that is the point. I think I needed a mental break from knitting for a little bit.)
Yes, there is a big celebration planned. Tomorrow, my birthday, my sisters, mother and I are going to have a "spa day," and lunch in downtown Boston, and then tomorrow night I am having a PARTY. I am so excited. My parents, sisters and their husbands will be there. My cousins and in-laws are coming. Friends from college and grad school, co-workers, fellow knitters and parents of my daughters' friends will also be there I am so excited. So today I bought wine, beer and stuff to make coffee drinks and all of those great appetizers that you love to eat at parties and never eat anywhere else.
So wherever you are, enjoy Feb. 23rd. I think everyone should be happy on my birthday!

Love,
P2K

Va-ca-tion

2008-02-15T10:35:00.003-05:00

Why is it that whenever I think of vacation I can't get the Go-Go's out of my mind? Perhaps because their song just states how I feel at this moment, "Va-ca-tion, all I ever wanted. Vacation, have to get away...." It just doesn't get better than that.

Yep, here comes one of the perks of being a teacher in Massachusetts - February vacation!!!! I just ordered my tea from Upton Teas (I HIGHLY recommend them) , now I'm going to plan my knitting - and I am going to relax for a week.

Ding Dong, I'm dead!!!

2008-02-10T22:31:00.000-05:00

As predicted, I did not last long in the "Hat Attack."
At 2:30 today, my husband and I had just sat down to lunch and the doorbell rang. "Who's that?" he asked. "I bet it's my hat - I'm dead." With that I ran upstairs to throw on some clothes, because I did not want to die in my nightgown. (Hey, I had been knitting and cleaning all morning, and the kids were with my mother-in-law, so yes, I was still undressed!) I was right, it was Ana of How to wash a shower curtain. I have to give credit to my dog, who tried her best to kill Ana with kindness before I received the hat. Here is my daughter modeling the very cute instrument of death.
Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to photograph the hat that I was working on. However, I do feel better that there is a reason that I didn't get to finish that project!
I have to say, that besides being "alive" in the contest for only about 29 hours, I had a really good time. I got to meet another great knitter, who is also a fabulous cartoonist, and had a great time fretting about our impending doom with my friend who also was assassinated in person around the same time today. It is amazing how much being a part of the knitting community is enriching my life. So though I am "dead," I feel incredibly lucky.

P2K

I know you haven't heard from me in a while but .............

2008-02-08T10:48:00.000-05:00

The contest begins tomorrow. I have to admit, I am feeling the butterflies. The person that I'm making a hat for lives in Nevada, and the person who is assigned to assassinate me lives 15 minutes away! (The person knitting for her lives in N.C.) Needless to say, I believe I will be "dead" on Monday! (If not sooner!) Oh well.
So you may be wondering why I haven't blogged in a while. It seems to be symbolic of my life right now. I haven't been "producing" much. The vest that I talked about in the last post is in the same condition it was in, and then I have been "working" on knits from my Rockin' Sock Club, and the Webs skein of the month club. For the socks, I have started them about 6 times. The last time I got to the part where you turn the heal, and then I decided that I really should make the small size. For the Webs yarn, the pattern was really difficult to start (for me, at least) and that took me two nights to do.
I will berate myself, to my husband, about my lack of drive to finish my projects and he just says that it is a hobby, and I should be enjoying myself. He does have a point - but boy, what an enabler he is! Am I a lucky girl, or what?!!!

Happy knitting,
P2K

Avoidance

2008-01-25T20:54:00.000-05:00

A defense mechanism is something that we use to protect ourselves from anything that we believe (unconsciously, of course) will hurt our egos. Well I believe that I have been using the defense mechanism, Avoidance. For the past couple of weeks I have avoiding finishing this vest. I decide that I want to read, or have to clean or am too tired, or can't find the directions. It is weird, because I usually knit two or three hours every night, and lately I've hardly been knitting at all.
I realized I was doing this, because sometimes finishing is tough because when you start a project you think it is going to be fabulous, and then once you have really gotten to know the project, and spent so much time with it - like any relationship, you see the flaws. However, if the project is never finished, you never have to show those flaws to the public. That perfect piece that everyone wants to see is "not quite ready yet."
So I decided to finish this vest and I did, but then the right shoulder looked awful - it poked out like I had kept in on a hanger. I tried re-blocking, sewing stitches together and then just realized that I had not spaced my picked up stitches well, and tore the arm band out.
I'll finish this vest soon - but not tonight, I think I going to organize my stash!

All the best,
P2K

Central Park Hoodie

2008-01-13T17:34:00.000-05:00

This is a swatch. People who know me, know that I am not the most patient of people, so swatching is not something I regularly do. I know that it is a GOOD thing to do, but I always want to jump right into the project. But I have been listen to a bunch of podcasts that all recommend swatching (as if the Bold recommendation in patterns is not enough) and while I was in the Dominican Republic I finally felt like I had the time to do this. As you can tell, I feel very pleased with myself. Swatches take time. This one is 30 stitches by 30 rows, and took me about 2 hours to do. I am glad that I did that though.
The yarn is Cascade's Quatro - which I am totally loving. But I get 5 stitches to the inch, and the CPH has a gauge of 17 sts for 4 inches. Luckily the pattern is written for the amount of sts that I need to get my size.
I'm loving the pattern, and the yarn. The yardage (220 yds) is amazing. I am almost done with my first skein, and there is 4 inches of ribbing on this thing.
We're bracing ourselves for a snow storm around these parts - can I just say, the grocery store was CRAZY today.

Stay warm.
P2K

Happy New Year!

2008-01-03T20:28:00.000-05:00

I am sorry that it has been so long since I have posted. We were away for the holidays, and life is just beginning to get back to normal. My parents, sisters and their families and us, all went down to Punta Cana Dominican Republic, for a wonderfully, warm and relaxing week in the sun. It was really nice. It is so rare that you have time to just hang out with your family let alone parents and sisters, so this was just great. My kids got to play with their cousin, and I got to go for a week without making dinner or cleaning!
I got some good knitting time, got to watch the Pats go 16-0 and got to catch up on my silly reading. Totally a great thing.

I'll write more knitting news next time.

Happy New Year.
P2K

Christmas in NYC

2007-12-16T23:13:00.000-05:00

I just came back from a 24 hour trip to NYC to celebrate my baby sister's 30th birthday. I gave her this scarf that she is modeling for me. It is made from "Blossom" by Schaeffer yarns. It is in the Eleanor Roosevelt colorway. I love this yarn, and it makes such a great scarf. Here is a picture of the same scarf that I made for myself 3 years ago in the Georgia O'Keefe colorway. The yarn is a bit pricey, but it is warm, soft and wears very well.

So.... NYC at Christmas is magical. We went to see the windows at Bloomingdale's, Saks
and Tiffany's and then went to see "the TREE." It was packed. It was also really nice to act like tourists. One of the best things for me was seeing both of my sisters wearing scarves that I had made for them. The sister that I made the silk scarf for commented that she loved the fact that the scarf was so warm and so light weight and not bulky. Something to consider when making my next scarf.
Then at night we went out for dinner, drinks and then dancing. It was so great to hang out with so many of my sister and brother-in-law's friends and family. We got to eat great food, and just get to know people in a relaxed way. Fortunately I talk to my sister a lot, but it is really great to meet so many of the people face to face.

I hope you are keeping warm. Luckily it is "sweater weather."

P2K

Rhinebeck vest

2007-12-09T01:01:00.000-05:00

It has been very busy around here lately. Doesn't that always seem to be the way. I've been doing a lot of work on my vest. The yarn and the pattern are from Brooks Farm Yarn and I got them at Rhinebeck. I'm really excited about the yarn. It is really soft and has a great sheen to it. The vest is being worked side to side, so that dip that you see in the center is actually an arm hole. Hopefully it will be finished by the end of the week.
Happy Holidays,
P2K

I miss baseball!

2007-12-02T01:23:00.000-05:00

Now that baseball is over, I'm lost as far as what I should watch on T.V. (The writers' strike doesn't help either.) During baseball season, I'll get 3 or more good hours of good knitting time. Baseball is really perfect for that. You're listening and sort of watching and if something great happens, they always show the replay. Don and Remy (the Red Sox announcers) are pretty entertaining as well.
So tonight I turned to The Cutting Edge - Going for the Gold, which is a "sequel" to The Cutting Edge. The first one was cheesy, but it felt honest, and the actors had great chemistry. I've watched it dozens of times. It is a silly, fun movie. This new one is AWFUL. Anyone who knows me, knows that I will tolerate a lot from my stupid movies. I easily lose myself in them and love to cry whenever Hollywood would like for me to - and I LOVE it. So for me to say that a romantic comedy is bad - it is REALLY bad. The best that I can tell you is that I am halfway finished with a vest that I am making from some of the yarn that I got at Rhinebeck. I'll post pictures of that soon.
P2K

What a great weekend

2007-11-27T12:36:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend. We had a busy time filled with family and FOOD! I'm ready not to eat again. We did Thanksgiving at a cousin's house, and then our "Christmas" on Saturday with my family. We had our exchange and dinner at my sister's which was really nice. She and her family moved at the end of August, and really have a lovely spacious home.
I gave my homemade gifts. The beaded scarf went to my mom. She loved it! I highly recommend this scarf for the "WOW" factor. It is easy to make, and it really looks very impressive. (Of the 3 things, it really was the easiest project.)
My oldest sister (who is younger than me by 3 and a half years) got this scarf. It is a combination of silk (the pink) and merino, and I think she really liked it. I loved the way this felt when I put it on. The silk is really warm and really soft. Both yarns are from artyarns.Finally I gave my little sister her own pair of Fetching. When I made them this time, I added rows before and after the final cable. I think they came out nicely, and I hope that she likes them. I think she was confused by them because she wasn't familiar, but I bet she will enjoy them once she uses them. I would recommend never using black for cable work. You really can't appreciate the cables. I actually think little sis was a little disappointed, and I probably would have done better with a scarf. My husband pointed out that knitters really appreciate these because they are different, but non-knitters aren't looking for different. I will keep that in mind. Luckily I can redeem myself soon because her birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks.

Hope all is well.
P2K

Modified drop shoulder

2007-11-21T20:19:00.001-05:00

This was the first (and only) sweater that I made for my husband. I made it in 2006. After being married for 8 and a 1/2 years, I figured it was safe to make him something. It is made out of Noro silk garden and it is from Ann Budd's Handy Sweater Patterns for Knitters. It may seem superstitious to some that it took me so long to make something for my DH, but I had been burned by the "Boyfriend Sweater" before.
In early '92 I made this sweater for my boyfriend at the time.

I made the sweater in about 6 weeks. I was unemployed at the time, and spent 4-5 hours a day knitting this sweater. I liked it because the pattern changed often enough to keep me engaged, but not so much that it was impossible. (Actually it is all knit and purls.) I think, however, this is the danger of making a sweater for your lover - they never seem to appreciate it as much as you need them to appreciate it. I had spent over 100 hours on the sweater, and I needed to be thanked or perhaps loved that much. The boyfriend could never live up to what I needed, so I broke up with him soon after I gave it to him. I am actually glad that I made the sweater for the boyfriend, because other wise I might have married him - and that would not have been good! Trust me, life always works out for the best.
The sweater for my husband was different. First of all, I made the sweater because I wanted to. Not that I didn't want to make a sweater for my husband, but I really was more interested in trying out a pattern from Ann Budd's book. I also hadn't made anything with Noro Silk Garden, and I thought the color way was very cool. I also was in my last trimester of pregnancy, and needed a sweater to give me a purpose. I did not, however, make the sweater for my husband so that he would love me more. I actually think this is the biggest difference. I was very happy to give it to DH, and he has only worn it occasionally. In fact, it is really too warm for him to wear often, and this is o.k. with me. This sweater has had no effect on our marriage. I enjoy seeing DH wear the sweater, but only because I like the way that it turned out, and it is nice to sit across from him and admire my handiwork.
So I leave you with these words of wisdom from a woman 3 months shy of 40........When making a gift for someone else, make it selfishly. Meaning, you should want to have the experience of crafting, more than you want to see their reaction.

Happy Thanksgiving. I hope everyone has lots to be thankful for. I know that I do.

P2K

Grading, Grading, Grading!!!

2007-11-15T20:15:00.000-05:00

It's been a while, and I apologize. I've been under a pile of papers. Grades are due tomorrow, and every year I vow to keep up with the enormous amount of paperwork that I amass, and every year I am racing to the finish line. No one goes into teaching because they love grading, but some have a really good system of keeping up with it. I am not one of those people. (If you are, and have any helpful time management tricks for me, please let me know. I really could use all the help I could get.) So I finally finished most everything that I needed to do this afternoon. I still need to put comments on the report cards. My students seem to fall into 3 categories. The first is the brilliant ones. They probably could do everything with just the book. I am there for entertainment purposes. Every year I have about 10 - 15 of these. These are the kids who challenge my mind. Then I have the majority, who are doing fine. If they study they get A's, if they don't they get B's and C's. I was one of these kids - and finally is the bottom of the barrel group. They either don't get it, or don't care. They keep me challenged as a teacher and I enjoy these kids a lot. I love helping them, and seeing their grades rise. Over the years I have realized that there are some who I'm not going to reach, and though that is tough, I don't take it personally any more.
Needless to say there isn't much to report on the knitting front. I have decided to buy many more Christmas gifts then I originally thought. I was getting frustrated not having the time to knit for myself. So I finished a few gifts, and all of the rest of my family will get lovely things from the store. I think all will be happy. (This whole statement is purposely vague, because I believe I have a friendly lurker who should not have any information!)
If any one knows Mike Lowell, tell him he should come back to Boston!

P2K

Halloween is an EVIL holiday!

2007-11-05T20:38:00.000-05:00

Remember this?

Well I turned it into this:

Yep, it is the ultra soft, cashmere/silk blend and I love it. I still have about a half a ball left and I want to make it into a headband, I think.
So, yes, I do believe that Halloween is EVIL. Not because of all of the ghosts and goblins, but because of all of the candy that is hanging around. For some reason we had very few trick or treaters this year (last year 4 bags wasn't enough - this year, we didn't finish the first bag!!) So needless to say we have an absolute ton of candy hanging around here, and people at work have felt the same way, and brought their candy into work. It is pure EVIL. I have been riding a sugar roller coaster for about a week now, and I should know better because of my risk for diabetes. Oh well, I'll be better tomorrow. Right?

P2K

Christmas Gift #2

2007-11-01T11:29:00.001-04:00

I finished the scarf for my mother. I'm very excited about it. The beads make it look very complicated and fancy, and really it was very easy to do. I also used 2 different yarns together - a metalic and a mohair. I am pleased with the way that it turned out, and I think that my mother will like it too. It is different, and a little funky, and Mom is into that. I deserve no praise for completing a Christmas gift this early. My family does our Christmas exchange at Thanksgiving (When you are Jewish, Santa can come at any time) so I'm right on time. I'm hoping to complete a few more hats and scarves for Christmas. I've never made gifts for people, but I'm thinking that it is a good idea. In my family it is overwhelming how much we all get, and this way my presents will be meaningful, and I think people will appreciate them. In a way I feel like I'm saving money, because I already had the yarn - but I'm not! I am having a nice time doing small achievable projects, too!
Life around here is getting back to normal after winning the World Series. I am excited for that (I had to go to a therapist after the last World Series win so that I could learn how to go to bed at a decent hour - I had totally lost that skill!!) I have been very busy with school. I can't believe that the first term is almost over - the year is FLYING by. I am sure I will get into the swing of things in April, when they are almost finished. Isn't that always the way!
P2K

The Red Sox win

2007-10-29T01:34:00.000-04:00

Whoooo Hooooo the Red Sox win! (I'll write more, and post current projects once I have caught up on some sleep!) Lots of love to all of you out there in Red Sox Nation!

P2K

R-H-I-N-E-B-E-C-K

2007-10-22T21:34:00.000-04:00

I just looked at my comments, and V was asking if I had something to say about the Sox and Rhinebeck. Yes I do: I'M SO TIRED!!!!! (But in a really good way.)
So about the Sox, We're off to the World Series. I'm going to bed early tonight and tomorrow so that I can "save myself" for the late nights that are coming. I'm totally psyched, and went into work today wearing my Red Sox hat and Red Sox wind breaker, while carrying my Red Sox mug and my keys on my Red Sox key chain. (On opening day the schools around here had "wear your Red Sox stuff" day - and my husband begged me not to wear my RS underwear because he knew that I would be tempted to show it off - he was SOOOOO right. People commented on the enormous amount of paraphernalia I had on, and I told them all about my husband's underwear ban. I married a VERY smart man!)
Now on to Rhinebeck. OH MY GOD! It was so incredibly, totally and insanely phenomenal! I had been hearing that it was totally fabulous and let me tell you it is all true. I went with Yarn Safar is - Fantastic Fieldtrips for Fiber Fanatics. In August my friend from my knitting group and I, signed up for Peta's (the owner of Yarn Safaris) day trip to Rhinebeck. She ended up getting 100 people, (2 coach bus loads) to sign up. I was so incredibly pumped up for this! I told everyone, and got a lot of grief from most people. My co-workers kept telling me that there were going to be a bunch of blue hairs on the bus, and that I was crashing some senior citizens outing. I just looked at them and said, "I can't even respond, you are SOOO off base!" (We can talk to each other like this, because we're teachers and have been working together for almost a decade).
When I called my husband to see how he was doing with the girls I could hear the tentativeness in his voice when he asked, "Is it as good as you thought it would be?" (I know that he was thinking that I was going to be greatly disappointed because I had built it up so much in my mind.) So, when I responded, "It is, it really is!" He was very pleased.
I had been to state fairs before, but this one is so classy. There are stalls and stalls of fine yarn vendors. There was also a lot of spinning fiber, which I am going to put off for now. (I have a hard enough time going from yarn to product, I can imagine having to go from roving to yarn to garment, or even before that.)
I ran into some people that I knew from Boston, and met some other really fantastic people on our bus (I would say the average age was 35, thank you very much!) My friend that I went with was a fantastic travel buddy. We would separate for an hour or so, get together and eat, check in or have coffee and then go our own ways again.
I totally fell in love with Brooks Farm Yarns from Lancaster Texas. I also got some yarn from Oak Grove Yarns and Blue Ridge Yarn s. This was just an amazing day, and I am actually pleased that I showed some restraint. It was an expensive day. Definitely not a day for saving money, but so totally worth it.
So now, I am extremely exhausted, VERY happy, and very pleased to go into work today and before even saying hello to my beloved co-worker (and she really is) I just looked at her and said, "You were SOOOO wrong!"

P2K

Look what I started!

2007-10-14T20:35:00.000-04:00

Last night I stayed up very late to watch the Red Sox get beaten by the Indians - not fun! I think by the time I went to bed it was 2:30 in the morning. My husband was smarter than me and went to bed around 11:00. When he went to bed he knew that I had only 2 more buttons to sew on the baby sweater that has been giving me fits. However, it had to be done last night because we had plans to go to visit the happy family today.
So I finished my task in about 15 minutes, and then started on this awesome scarf. I'm having such a good time with it. It is pretty easy, and looks so fancy! Anyway, my comment to my husband this morning was, "Honey, let me show you what I started!" and his response was, "Aren't you supposed to say, 'let me show you what I finished'? I think this statement says a lot about you!" He's totally right.
Here are the pictures of the baby sweater. The parents loved it, which is the important thing - but next time I am definitely going solid!
P2K

Tea 1 Knit 2 Swap

2007-10-04T19:42:00.000-04:00

Boy am I a lucky girl! I just opened the best package! My swap partner Shawnee just gave me the best gift. First you see the necessary accessories for a tea party - modeled by my 5 year old.

Then she gave me a great assortment of teas, a tea tin, biscotti, chocolates, honey sticks and terrific yarn.

and finally my favorite stuff, a tea cozy and tea strainer.

I can't thank Shawnee enough! This weekend, while my husband has the girls, I am going to have a little tea party and enjoy my new tea, and fabulous treats! I am sooooo excited! THANK YOU!

P2K

Boston Wins the East!

2007-09-29T11:25:00.000-04:00

I realize that many people reading this are not baseball fans, but being a knitter in Boston, it is very easy to root for the hometown team! How else do you get 3 hours of knitting time a night? I am totally thrilled because the Sox clinched the AL East title this year. There are hopefully many more celebrations to come, but today I am wearing my 2004 Champions shirt, and just have a perma-smile on my face. By the way, thanks for everyone's support on my bad day. It was exactly what I needed. Now LET'S GO SOX!
P2K

ARGHHHHH!!!!

2007-09-26T23:16:00.000-04:00

Some days you just want the world to know that you are angry. SO HEY WORLD, I'M ANGRY. That's all.

P2K

OMG

2007-09-24T10:25:00.000-04:00

Just a quick note to say that V. at Spells with....... just bought the yarn store that is around the corner from her, and about .75 miles from me. I am over the moon happy for her - and for me!

P2K

Stuck on the sweater

2007-09-23T20:20:00.000-04:00

I wish I had some eye candy for you, or even that I had something fabulous to report, but I have just been working on the never ending baby sweater. That makes it sound like I have been working on the thing non-stop, but really, nothing could be further from the truth. I have one more sleeve left to go, and then the finishing, but I am still working on it, exclusively. Unfortunately, I have been avoiding knitting because of it. I think I have only sat down to knit twice in the past week. Really, that isn't like me. I do, however, have an active knitting fantasy life.
Because of Ravelry, I have become reacquainted with my stash and fallen back in love with this:

One skein of 4 ply silk Cashmere (55%silk 45% cashmere 170m) by Hand Maiden in the Jester colorway. I keep thinking about what I want to make with it. I have been thinking about a headband - which may be nice and also Fetching (actually, I may be able to do both.) Any other suggestions are definitely welcome.

The other interesting thing about the stash function on Ravelry, is that I only have about half of my stash in there (or less) and that is WAY more than I see for other people. I have been listening to Stash and Burn and Lime and Violet and I thought my stash was a normal size - NOOOOO its not. I think the psychology term for this would be cognitive dissonance - except for the fact that I don't feel uncomfortable!

The other good thing about Ravelry, is that my stash has now all come out of hiding and has totally taken over my study, which has led my husband to be totally frustrated with the state of the house. This is amazing because his tolerance for mess is WAY higher than mine. (I always say we have a fabulous marriage, but a somewhat dysfunctional life, because we are BOTH messy!) Anyway, I floated the idea that he take the girls down to my mother-in-law's Cape (Cape Cod for those of you not from New England) house for Columbus Day weekend so that I can get a handle on the mess, and he thought it was a fabulous idea - So THANK YOU Ravelry!

Hope all is well in knitting land. Say hi to me on Ravelry. As my students say - "Friend me."

P2K

Ravelry hangover

2007-09-16T15:07:00.000-04:00

Yes, I have been bitten. I found my camera, and I stayed up until 4:00am last night inputting about half of my stash. I spent today photographing the other half (Half is a relative term. This is the half of the stash that is in its right place - God knows how much more yarn is scattered throughout the house!) I'm really enjoying the message boards and looking at all the talented people's works out there. Some people really create such phenomenal stuff!
Speaking of knitting, I am on my last sleeve of my baby sweater. Is it bad luck to give a baby a sweater that you loathe? I am really hating this thing. I think it is too busy, and of course there is that dye lot issue. I won't tell the parents the heartache with the sweater, I'll just finish it, hand it over and coo over the baby - No one has to know.
Gorgeous weather around here, I hope all New Englanders are enjoying their last taste of summer.
P2K

Ravelry

2007-09-14T00:44:00.000-04:00

I just got my Ravelry invite last night - YAY - of course you can find me there at Psyched2Knit. However, you won't find much there because I CAN'T FIND MY CAMERA. How frustrating is that?! I have been watching my place in line go down from 6,000 something, and fantasizing all summer about posting all of my projects and stash, and now I have been beaten by my messy house! ARGH!!!!

On a lighter note, I celebrated Rosh Hashanah today. It was just my oldest daughter and I during the day, and we went to the children's service, and planted some mums and cooked. It was really nice spending time with her. She enjoyed everything except for the service. She told me it was boring. I hated to tell her that it was supposed to be - but what can you do?- she was bound to find out sooner or later.

School is going well - I think. I now have a ton of papers to grade, I can't use the technology to goes with my book, and I have a 9th grade history class, that is covering topics that I don't know anything about - Yep, sounds like school has offically begun!

P2K

Dying to go back to school

2007-09-05T22:51:00.001-04:00

I dyed some yarn over the summer. The green and the blue are the Cascade Eco Wool dyed with Easter Egg dye, and the skein in the front is wool (miscellaneous Aran wool from the early '90's) dyed with beet juice. The eco wool is really soft, and was fun to dye. I think I am going to dye another skein of it with beet juice, to make a striped sweater. The blue and green together need a little something to break up the sweetness of the two colors.

School started for me yesterday with meetings. It was o.k. as far as first days go. Our principal is pretty good about getting out information without a lot of extra discussion. This is SUCH an improvement over the last guy who spent a year's worth of faculty meetings to discuss the attendance policy. That was SOOO tedious. Today I met with my freshmen. I haven't taught freshmen since I was a student teacher, so this is a nice change for me. My seniors come in tomorrow. I don't know if it ever goes away, but I am nervous! I'm also bummed that summer is over. :( Oh well, now it is time for some good sweater knitting.

P2K

Back from Vacation

2007-08-30T00:28:00.000-04:00

After visiting my parents in Virginia for a week, we went to Cape Cod to stay with my mother-in-law for a few days, and then went to Denver for a wedding. The Cape was nice, although the weather was kind of cold, and on Thursday afternoon we left for the Providence airport to fly to Denver on SouthWest. I HATE SOUTHWEST AIRLINES. I didn't really have a thought about them before, but I will NEVER take them again!

There was pretty bad weather in Chicago last Thursday, and that was the city that we were connecting through. But... instead of cancelling the flight, or re-routing us through another city, they held us in Providence for about 2 hours and then let us take off. Of course the weather was still bad in Chicago, so we landed in Cleveland for 3 hours. Finally, Midway airport was open again and they loaded us on the plane and tried to get us into Chicago. However, all of the other flights that had been detoured also were trying to get in at the same time, so we circled for a while, and then had to land in Milwaukee for emergency fueling. By this time it was 2:00 in the morning East Coast time. We waited for a while in Milwaukee, and then landed in Chicago, but they didn't have a gate for us, so we sat on the tarmac for a while. We ended up getting off of the plane at 3:24 am Chicago time.

Lots of us had connections that we missed, so they sent us ALL to the ticket counter (along with all of the other people who were in this predicament.) My husband and I (Thank God we had left the girls with their grandmother) stood in line until 7:00 in the morning, and just barely made our flight. Of course, since we had re-booked a one way flight at the last minute, we were HIGHLY searched at security. By the time we arrived in Denver it was almost 11:00 in the morning Denver time - which meant that we had been travelling for 24 hours.

All that being said, our weekend was FABULOUS. We had a great time at the wedding, got to see a little of Colorado, and found the people in Denver to be incredibly FANTASTIC! People always say that folks in New England are rude, and I always thought that they were full of it, but honestly, we are not THAT nice.

I did get to knit a bit. First, I finished a scarf that I am making for my sister. It is silk (the pink) and merino. It took me much longer than I thought it would, but I think that she will like it. It is either for her birthday, or for Christmas, depending on whether or not I can finish other Christmas gifts.

I also worked on a baby sweater. I don't know if you can tell by the picture, but I have been burned by not checking the dye lot! This picture shows the 2 fronts of the cardigan, and the right front is so much more muted than the left. It is so bad, that I don't think I will be able to get away with it. I finished the back, as well, in the muted tone, and I think that will be fine, but I am going to have to re-knit the right front in the more vibrant yarn (since I have more of that.) I'm bummed. Other than that, all is well.

P2K

a break in vacation

2007-08-20T20:29:00.000-04:00

I'm home for a day before we go on our next vacation. We spent last week visiting my parents in South Western Virginia. The town is Martinsville (of Nascar fame) which is a very quiet town - needless to say, it was VERY relaxing. It was nice to spend time with my parents. They haven't gotten one on one time with the kids since last summer, so I think it was really nice for them to reconnect. My oldest daughter really bonded to my mother when she came up a year and a half ago when the youngest was born, so it was really great to see them foster that relationship. One day "Grammy" took my eldest on a "date" to buy school clothes, that ended with a trip to "Build a bear." I don't know who had more fun.

I've been working on a couple of things. A baby sweater for some great friends who had a baby at the beginning of the month (it isn't like I didn't know that this child was coming - you would think that I would have started on this earlier). I've also been working on a hooded sweatshirt type sweater for my oldest daughter, and a scarf for my sister. The scarf is made of silk and merino (both by artyarns) and I think it is going to be hard for me to part with this scarf! As you can see, I'm starting on my Christmas knitting - I am hopeful! I'll write again in a week, and maybe by that time I will find my camera, and take some pictures!
P2K

a quickie

2007-08-09T01:35:00.000-04:00

I have been busy nursing a sick baby. Let's just say it has been gross, and any of you with kids out there know exactly what I mean! I saw this on the internet, and it made me giggle.

P2K

Knitting Virtual Vacation Swap

2007-08-06T14:35:00.000-04:00

Ariel was my Secret Pal. She's from Southern California, and gave me such a FABULOUS package. I'm so excited. I also checked out her blog, and she makes some beautiful things. The envelope at the top of the package gave great information about the jam, olives and candy. I'm really excited about trying the olives! I also got great smelling incense (which I am enjoying right now) candy and a mug from Disney world (which I know I will have to hide from my 5 year old!) and a terrific romance novel by Janet Evanovich, which I already started reading. I don't know if Ariel realized it, but the book is set in Boston, and I love that! I also got a cinnamon/sage candle and some Cascade fixation, which I have heard a lot about. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! It is all so exciting!

P2K

Knit 1 Tea 2 Color Swap Questionnaire

2007-08-04T21:27:00.000-04:00

Do you like loose tea or bags, or both – something you want to try? I prefer loose tea
What is your favorite kind of tea (Brand, flavor, variety, etc)? I like the darker teas like Assaam, Keemam, and even Ceylon
Favorite color in regards to tea or one you would like to try? (black, green, red, and white) (keeping in mind that this is how this swap is set up). My favorite type of tea is Black, but I wouldn't mind trying red.
Would you say you were a tea pot kind of person or just a hot water heater kind? Totally a teapot type of gal.
What tea accessories would you like but have never purchases for yourself? Is this a trick question? I love different strainers, though, and haven't bought one in a while.
How do you prefer to be pampered? (examples: mani/pedi, bubble bath, yummy treat, etc). I like to be pampered with bath products, paper stuff (stationary, etc) candles and of course treats.
If you were a kind of yarn what would you be and why? I would be Merino Wool. I am sturdy, dependable, and special.
If you had to knit/crochet baby booties, a fun fur scarf, or a fair isle sweater, which would you choose and why? I would knit a fair isle sweater because of the challenge. The booties wouldn't take enough time, and the fun fur scarf would be boring.
What other event would make you skip a tea party? (A garden party? A book club meeting? A yoga class? Opening night for a new action thriller? etc?) Not much would make me skip a tea party, but I love romantic comedies. I guess I would only miss the tea party for a family event.
What treat would you consider essential at your tea party? (Sweet? Salty? Scones? Those petite pastry trays with a couple of all sorts of things? Little crust less sandwiches?) Scones with lemon curd.
When buying yarn for a project how do you choose - do you buy the one called for or do you substitute? A lot of times I substitute.
What do you carry your knitting/crocheting in when on the go? A bag. I have a lot of them and I love them all.
Favorite movie to watch while knitting/crocheting? Love and Basketball, 2 weeks notice, the Mirror has Two faces, Something New, and any other romantic comedy!
Are you a traditional tea cup kind of person or a mug type of person? Do you care if they match? I love tea cups, and no, they don't have to match
Favorite childhood birthday party? One that I did arts and crafts at.
Favorite type of scone and jam? Blueberry scone and lemon curd
If you use candles, what is your favorite scent? Rose, Green tea and Geranium also Bergamont
If you could choose 3 people to have 'tea' with, who would they be and why? (famous or not, living or dead). Tom Hanks, because he just seems like such a nice guy, Emma Thompson because she just seems like the type of person you would want to have tea with, and finally, Mike Lowell, the 3rd baseman of the Boston Red Sox because he also seems like a terrific guy.
You've been invited to a tea party, what 'props' will you wear (formal or casual)? I would love to be a lady to wear a fancy hat and gloves - Of course I would have to buy this fancy hat and gloves!!!
Any allergies/preferences you have or are willing to admit to? I'm allergic to soy
Anything we missed that you want your pal to know?I don't like fruity teas, and I HATE Earl Grey tea - sorry.

Driving Miss Wusie

2007-08-03T00:55:00.000-04:00

The other day I was whining to my husband about feeling like my summer was almost over, and he volunteered to pick up the girls so that I could go to the beach. The beach that I like to go to is about an hour and 15 minutes from here, and I used to go all the time. Then we had kids, and now we just go as a family - but I really love my "me" time at the beach. The only problem is that I very rarely drive on the highway now. I'll be married for 10 years at the end of the month, and since we have been married, my husband does most of the driving. It makes sense because I get knitting time, and he isn't bored. The only problem is that now I am very afraid of driving on the highway.

Well I was very proud of myself for getting to the beach. I only stopped 3 times, and I hardly hyper-ventilated at all. The problem was on the way home. It was getting dark, and the closer you get to Boston, the more traffic there is. Needless to say I ended up at one of those highway gas stations/Burger King/Dunkin Donuts places (I didn't even think I would get that far) and called my husband while I sobbed hysterically. My sister-in-law stayed with the kids while my brother-in-law drove my husband to come get me and the car. It was so embarrassing. If anyone has any helpful advice about things to do for panic attacks, I'm all ears.

The beach itself was fantastic - I read magazines, did needlepoint (I felt like I was cheating on my knitting) and listened to the Red Sox beat the Orioles. It was all good. I just wish I could have made it all of the way home on my own steam.

P2K

Non-knitting and whining

2007-08-01T00:25:00.000-04:00

I just found out that "Big Love" started back up again months ago. I am obviously way out of the loop. But the good thing about this situation is that I can have my own little "Big Love" marathon. That show just sucks me in. Plural marriage is a very weird thing! I definitely like the story lines and the characters, but in some ways it is like watching a train wreck. I vacillate between being fascinated and disgusted. There must be a ton of people who agree with me, because it did come back for another season. I work in a town that has a lot of Mormon families, and one of my students expressed her anger at the show for bringing this topic up. She knows that plural marriage was a part of her faith's history, but the practice stopped over 100 years ago. I was very proud of her for stating her opinion because she rarely got angry so it was good to see the fire in her. Anyway, I just mention that, because I know that the show deeply upsets some people.

My own blah feeling right now comes from the fact that I am going to have to move classrooms for one of my classes next year. Of course it is the only one that I haven't taught before. Next year will be my 9th year at the school and the first time that I have had to move. It SUCKS! I know that in the scheme of things this is really no big deal, but on a personal level, it is causing a lot of anxiety. - I am sure that my fellow teachers understand.

My knitting is fine!

P2K

Pictures

2007-07-26T12:25:00.001-04:00

Here are the pictures of the goodies that I bought in NYC. I would have done this sooner, but the battery for my camera won't hold a charge!

This is what I got at Purl Soho - New Seagrass from Lobster Pot yarns - 740 yds each of 80%Lambswool 10% dehaired angora and 10% Cashmere - To die for!

These are from Downtown Yarns and by the Fibre Company - they are "Terra" in Chamomile and Beet. 60% Merino 20% Baby Albaca and 20% Silk 100 yds each

This last one is also from Downtown yarns - it is made by Jamie Harmon 50%merino 50% angora 75 yds each.

You can see it was a GREAT trip!

P2K

NYC

2007-07-23T12:35:00.000-04:00

I just got back from my weekend in NYC, visiting my sister. It was a really great time. I got to see an old roommate from college who I hadn't seen in 10 years, who is now I window designer for Bloomingdale's. (one of his creations is shown in the picture above) It was great to see him. As always he was funny, very down to earth and just full of energy. On Friday my sister was working and so I went off to yarn stores. Thank you Ambercakes for all of your information. It was fabulous. I walked for most of the day, but only got to 4 stores. The one that I loved the most was Downtown Yarns. What a nice comfortable shop! They had some gorgeous stuff, and it seemed like a place that I would love to go to hang out at if I lived there. I also went to Purl Soho, and really, what is not to love? They have gorgeous yarn (of which I bought a sweater's worth of a lovely merino, cashmere, angora blend). I had to leave the store quickly so I wouldn't buy more stuff - because lord knows I don't need it, and I couldn't afford it. I did go to Habu and to School Products, but I was not quite as excited about those places. I think if I had a project in mind, and knew what I was looking for, I would have had better luck at school products, but I was just looking to see if I "needed" anything, and I didn't. I also went to LUSH which has homemade bath products. I now just need to figure out how to knit in the bathtub and I will be all set! Friday evening we met up with my sister's coworkers for drinks which was great to be able to put some faces with names.

On Saturday we started off going to an hour and 40 minute Yoga class - can we say SWEATY! then went home for lunch, and then a bus tour of Brooklyn. Brooklyn reminds me a lot of Boston and I really want to explore it more then next time I go to visit. Needless to say we were wiped out when it came time for dinner, so we just chilled out at an Italian restaurant around the corner from my sister and her husband, which was so perfect! On Sunday sis and I treated ourselves to massages, and then I caught the train home. All in all it was a FABULOUS weekend! Both me and my credit card need to rest!

P2K

cousin's scarf

2007-07-16T10:48:00.000-04:00

I finally finished my cousin's scarf. She lives in Florida, so it is much more of an ornamental scarf, then one that we would use around here. I don't remember the yarn that I used, since I started it for her 40th birthday, and she turned 41 in April (tee hee). I believe it is a silk cotton blend by Karabella, but honestly, I don't remember. My cousin is a great woman, but unfortunately she is about 6 feet tall, and she wanted it to go to her waist. (I should have gone with the handbag!) I definitely had that experience where I would knit for about an hour and not have made any progress according to the tape measure. It is taking me a couple of times to block this scarf because it is bigger then my dining room table. I'm looking forward to sending this to her, because then it will really be done!

I started working out with a personal trainer last week. Boy am I sore! I figured it was time to take the plunge. I was a really steady weight until 1995 when I became a social worker and then I just ballooned up. (Stress sucks.) To make a long story short, it took a Master's degree, a job for 2 1/2 years and 40 pounds to make me realize that this was not the right career for me. I am glad I went to a profession that I now love (teaching) but I still have 30 pounds that need to come off. Thus the professional trainer. My legs are like jello and my arms and back are very sore. Everyone tells me it takes about 3 or 4 weeks to get back into workout shape - I am counting the days.

I am heading to NYC over the weekend, so if anyone has any suggestions of their favorite yarn stores, I'd love to hear from you.

P2K

Am I cool yet?

2007-07-11T15:42:00.000-04:00

Today I went down to the area of Boston that I lived for 12 years. When I lived there, I loved it. I thought it was really cool and gritty. It looks very similar now, but now that I am 39 instead of 23,the area still looks similar, but now it looks a little scary and dirty. (I feel very old saying that) Where did the "cool" me go? Actually, that is quite the laugh. I don't know if I could ever be considered "cool." I am definitely unique and an individual, but I don't think I was ever classified as cool.

I walked into one store today, that I used to frequent quite often. They sold Tarot cards, crystals, candles, incense etc. Today it smelled the same, but they have very few decks of Tarot cards (not that I need any more of them) and very few of the other things that I liked there, but they did have a WHOLE case of marijuana pipes and bongs. I, of course, was shocked. My thought process went something like this:

are those what they think they are?

OH MY GOD they are!

Things have certainly changed around here.

Maybe they haven't, maybe I just never noticed them before

Well that wouldn't be the strangest thing, I was a little oblivious

WAS - still am

well at least I am a cool person now.

WHO ARE YOU KIDDING?

I like knitting. I love the yarns, and I absolutely adore being part of the knit - blogging, podcast listening, knit along, swapping and stitch and bitch community. I feel like a cool kid! But again, I have to be serious, I know very few people in person outside of the people that I have met in knitting groups that share this passion. I'm having a great time, but though I thought it went away, there is still a little part of my mind that wishes that I had been cool when I had the chance.

P2K

Romance and Lace

2007-07-09T00:34:00.000-04:00

It feels like ages since I have written. I apologize. I've been busy doing mommy things, knitting and reading romance novels. To me, nothing says summer vacation better than romance novels! I used to call them my drug of choice, because my reading them seemed to be like an addiction. I have a hard time stopping once I start, I stay up all night to read them, and so I have a hang over in the morning, and I will avoid doing things that I really need to do, because of reading them - including ignoring friends (like this blog) because of romance novels! In my maturity (ha, ha), I now only read them when I know I can sleep the next day.

So I started the Mystery Stole 3 (about 6 times!) First I tried a merino lace weight, that I kept splitting, so I put that aside. Next I started working with Misty Alpaca lace weight (which I do think is a divine yarn.) and I couldn't do anything with it. That is not exactly true. I did get to row 45 or so, but it didn't really look right, and I was not used to the floating quality of lace weight yarn. It was very hard for me. So I went out and got some "Tofootsies" This is working out much better. I really need to take pictures! I am liking following a chart. It reminds me of when I did cross stitch! But I really need to have quiet time to work on it because it takes a lot of counting, and talking to myself. But it is very interesting to do. I just end up doing it from about 10:00 - 1:30 at night, when no one is around. Today the family went to the beach, so I brought a very simple stockinette sweater that I am making for my 5 year old - different projects for different times.

I promise to write soon.

P2K

blanket

2007-06-30T02:29:00.000-04:00

Just a quick note. I finished crocheting my first blanket for my youngest daughter. I had started it in January, and basically had it done in about 3 weeks, except for 2 sides of single crochet, which I did tonight. Why I didn't finish it much earlier, is beyond me! I will have to check my horoscope, and find out which planets were in retrograde (ha, ha.)

P2K

Back from Vacation

2007-06-29T23:38:00.000-04:00

We just got back from a week long vacation from visiting family on Cape Cod and Nantucket. It was fantastic. We had great weather, wonderful company and a lot of time to hang out and not worry about anything. It really was a terrific family vacation. I don't think my girls really slept until today. This morning my little one (who is almost 15 months old) slept until 11:30 (after having a snack at 6:00 am - she has been running her little self ragged!)

Coming home is usually tough, but not today! I received a great gift from my "blue pal." Cass from Shut up I'm counting. She was so thoughtful! I was definitely spoiled! I love the yarn, especially the bamboo (which is the single skein) I've got to find a good project for it that shows off the colors! I also love the stationary. THANKS CASS!

I did get to do a fair amount of knitting this week, and my carpal tunnel is definitely better. I have been changing around the yarns, and trying not to knit with cotton for too long a stretch. Although, I did get a lot of work done on my cousin's scarf, which is in a cotton/silk blend, but it is not that wide, so I think the constant turning helps give my hand a rest. I have also been better about doing my stretches. I have a great book which gives great exercises. If you have problems in this area, this is a great book to try. I should be blocking the scarf tomorrow. I'll write more about it then.

All the best,

P2K

Random thoughts

2007-06-18T22:05:00.000-04:00

Today I heard from Cass who received my swap items for the blue exchange. She seemed really pleased, which is great. I had a really fun time picking the stuff out, so I'm glad she liked them. I did include something with sugar, and then read that she doesn't eat sugar - ooops!
Today was my last day of school, which was very nice! My students left in the middle of May so I have been just surfing the net for a few weeks. This is the best feeling - all of you teachers out there know exactly what I mean. That feeling you have on the 1st day of summer vacation. Ohhh it is so full of potential! Don't get me wrong, I love teaching, and I love the kids, but I ABSOLUTELY ADORE summer vacation. I had 4 kids come see me today, so it was great to see them. I had such a great group of students this year. I teach 125 kids, and this year there wasn't even one that I couldn't stand. (Let me tell you, most years there is at least one!) I'm a very lucky person!
We had a busy weekend. I threw my husband a 40th birthday party. We had about 40-50 people here, and it really was great. I cleaned by buying 10 MORE Rubbermaid tubs, and putting all of the random stuff in them. I think emptying the bins is going to take me the next 2 weeks! Knitting has slowed a little due to carpal tunnel. It isn't awful, but I think my tendons need a little break.
P2K

Random Thoughts

2007-06-13T09:31:00.000-04:00

Last night I was at knitting, which was always a lot of fun. The founder of Yarn Safaris was there. My friend and I really want to go on one of her trips. They sound like so much fun. Peta arranges a "field trip" for fiber lovers. They go to a festival, or to yarn stores in an area. She also charters a bus so everyone can knit and chat. My friend from the group and I want to go to the Rhinebeck festival next year. It sounds overwhelmingly fun!

Speaking of a lot of yarn, Island Yarn (which is located about 1 mile from me) is having a 50% off sale. I don't have to tell you that I have gone crazy. But it is all good. I bought enough for about 4 adult sweaters and 2 kid sweaters, plus about 3 pairs of socks and another odd ball or two (don't worry, this was over 4 trips.) and I think my total cost so far has been about $275.00. Not bad at all! I should be busy for quite a while!

P2K

My buttons

2007-06-11T23:31:00.000-04:00

You will notice that I have buttons now, instead of yucky boxes with "x's" this is because of my husband! He is an electrical engineer (he designs robots) and he knows how to read the code. Of course I felt so dumb when he pointed out that it said "URL IMAGE HERE". (tee hee). I guess this is the 21st century equivalent of the knight in shining armour and the damsel in distress. Ahhh romance!

P2K

Virtual Vacation questionaire

2007-06-06T21:43:00.000-04:00

1. If you could visit any state in the US, which would it be and why? I have travelled around a lot of the US, and like the uniqueness of all of the regions. I have never been to Oregon or Washington, and I would like to go to see what it is like there.

2. If you could visit any country in the world, other than your own, which would it be and why? I would like to go to Greece, or the Amalfi coast in Italy, both because of the water. I also would love to go to Japan and China because the cultures are so rich and different. Denmark is another country I would like to go to, because I have never been. I would also like to go on a safari in Africa.

3. Have you ever driven across several states/providence/countries? Yes - the US and parts of Europe

4. Have you ever visited someplace you consider exotic? Where was it? I felt that Costa Rica was pretty exotic when I went there. I also really loved Norway, Sweden and Finland when I went there.

5. What was your favorite "travel" vacation? Why? My husband and I went to Italy in 2000 and had a great time. We spent a few days in Rome doing all of the ruins and touristy things. Then we relaxed at a beach community which had very few American tourists (if any) and then we went to Florence, and went to more museums. It was a great combination of learning, soaking in the culture, and relaxation.

6. Have you ever played tourist in your own home city/state (if international, country)? Explain.
A little bit. We live right outside of Boston, and so we some times have friends that come and we go on a tour with them. It is also great to go to the sights now that we have kids.

7. Are you a museum visitor, beach comer or an amusement seeker? I like museums, but I am a definite beach bum! I am NOT an amusement seeker!

8. What's your favorite type of yarn? I like yarns that have some "give" like wools or sythetics that have some drape.

9. What's your least favorite type of yarn? Acrylic

10. What items do you like to knit/crochet? I mainly do things that you can wear - sweaters, socks, hats etc.

11. What do you pack, knit/crochet wise when you go on vacation? Usually a sock and a sweater project. One that is stockinette, and one that is complex.

12. What other crafts do you do/would like to do other than Knit/Crochet? I've done a lot of cross stitch, needlepoint and some beading and paper crafts.

13. Are you allergic to anything? (Yarn wise or treat wise) soy

14. What is your favorite color? Least Favorite? I like most colors, especially those that are on the blue - ish side. I don't really like oranges, or avocado green, or mustard yellow

15. Sweet or Savory (Treat not personality)?I like them both

16. Anything else we are forgetting to ask that you think your partner desperately needs to know? I can't think of anything

P2K

Baby blanket again.

2007-06-06T10:14:00.000-04:00

Last night people at knitting were asking me about the blanket that I made. The post is here. We had a great group last night. We meet at a library and get a lot of new knitters. It is great to see how fast people pick up knitting. I must say, I am a fine teacher of psychology - I am a BAD knitting teacher! I don't have words to describe what my muscles are doing. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I don't really know my left from my right. My daughter thinks this is funny and that I'm joking. Unfortunately I am not. My husband got me a GPS for Christmas. It is a life saver, but even with that, I still get lost on occasion.
P2K

Knitting ADD

2007-06-05T22:58:00.000-04:00

I have been working on lots of things, and not completing anything! I don't seem to have the attention span to keep working on something until it is finished! Perhaps I have a fear of finishing? I'm not sure what is going on, but here are some updates. The first is my dollar and a half sweater. The back is almost done - we all know how much I love backs! I'm thinking that the fronts and the sleeves will go rather quickly, because this back really has.

I also decided not to rip out my "socks that rock" sock, so I did finish one, and am working on the other. They are very thick, but the colors are beautiful. I may order another skein of this weight to make a hat and mittens for my daughter.

The final thing that I have pictures of is going to be my first foray into design. I have had this Fiesta boucle for quite a while, and I want to make a tank top out of it. The only way to make it without it being obscene is to knit it on size 2 needles. Well that is not going to happen. So I bought some yarn to double with it, but I feel like it hides the beauty of the yarn. I tried a little bit of lace, and then some other stitches, which is why the swatch is so funny looking. But one day perhaps I will find the right use for this yarn. However, this is where the ADD comes in! I have no idea WHY I am so concerned about this. (I have spent hours swatching and pouring over patterns, and I haven't come up with anything yet.) You would think that I don't have anything else on the needles. THIS IS SO NOT TRUE! I haven't even photographed another pair of socks that I am making or a tank top that I am sewing together.

Life besides knitting is fine. I am trying not to buy yarn for a while. My stash is quite large enough already. I am counting down the days until school is done ( 9 more school days.) I am very excited about this.

Thanks for reading.

P2K

quick post

2007-05-29T23:23:00.001-04:00

Just a quick note. I was just looking around the web, and came across this site. I thought the yarns were gorgeous! Motomo gallery . I am going to keep this place in mind for when I believe I deserve an extra special treat. Go look, it is beautiful stuff.

P2K

The weekend as a Single girl

2007-05-29T11:35:00.000-04:00

My Memorial Day weekend was very nice. My husband was a total darling and took the 2 girls to his mother's house on Cape Cod. I think everyone was happy. I got to make a great dent in the house, as far as cleaning goes and the rest of my family got to frolic at the beach. It may seem like I missed out - but let me assure you, I didn't. I got to plant the garden (which always takes WAY longer then I think it will. ) I also got to get some really good cleaning done - again, it would not have sounded that exciting to a 25 year old me - but at 39 I thought it was FAB-U-LOUS!
My oldest daughter is in school with a set of twins who have 2 moms. My husband and I have become friends with them, and they took pity on me for being alone. (It was extremely sweet and totally not necessary) and so they invited me to their house after the twins went to bed - in order to continue the kid free weekend - and fed me lobster. It was terrific. I have to say - they LOVE my husband. I am very happy that they think he is sweet, but there really isn't much to say except for - yea, I know. All in all is was a very nice night, except for the fact that I really hadn't talked to anyone for 36 hours and I was a little rusty in the conversation department.
I didn't do any exciting knitting. Right now I am working on a cotton tank top (in a lovely eggplant color) that I started last September. I finished the back last year, and then it started getting cold, so I put it aside. This was a fabulous idea, because when I took it out 2 weeks ago to work on again, it was almost done. So I am not feeling badly about winter sweaters that I haven't finished, because I know that I will be ready to finish them when the weather cools.

P2K

Eye Candy from the 80's

2007-05-24T00:10:00.000-04:00

There was a thread on the knitlist a few weeks ago about when we started knitting. I have been knitting since I was about 12. Mostly self taught, but my mom paid for my yarn. Her belief was that if you were going to spend so much time on something, it should be of good quality. Fortunately (or unfortunately when I look at my Mastercard bill) I still subscribe to this philosophy. I started a bunch of sweaters, but never finished one until this grey one. The yarn is still really nice, I wish I knew what it was. The hot pink is mohair. I still wear it even though it screams Cyndi Lauper and Madonna in her "Like a Virgin" phase!

My other sweater that is still in the rotation from this era is this one:

I wore it for the first time in years, just the other day, and my coworker thought it screamed the '80's as well. I just think I had a thing for pink triangles! This one is made from a bumpy cotton and I remember the fuzz getting in my nose! After this sweater, I didn't knit in cotton again until about this year!

After these 2 sweaters, which took about a year each (I was in college at the time) I knit 4 more sweaters. 3 of which were for other people. I did that in about a 2 year period of time, and then I put down the needles in favor of needlepoint for about 10 years. This was also before kids, and I used to spend a lot of time playing Yahoo games. Now I knit about 10-20 hours a week. Especially while watching baseball!

Thanks for all of the previous comments. I can't tell you how great it is to know that people are out there!

P2K

Meme

2007-05-23T00:43:00.000-04:00

I found this over on Nicekerjac and I thought it might be fun.

Edit the list, bold for stuff you’ve done, italics for stuff you plan to do one day, and normal for stuff you’re not planning on doing.

Afghan/Blanket
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting (knitting items on, or to be left on the street)
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
Teaching a child to knitAmerican/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Button holes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cozies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars
Olympic knitting
Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
Knitting with DPNs
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener BO
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with self-patterning/self-striping/variegating yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mitts/arm warmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public

Backs

2007-05-18T22:32:00.000-04:00

I have finished 2 backs of sweaters recently. The Elite Inca Alpaca Diamond Fair Isle and then just a plain stockinette sweater made from Great Adoroindak "Nantucket" colorway.

The first takes some concentration, so I did the Nantucket sweater when I was really into the show that I was watching or at knitting group. The Alpaca sweater is my second fair isle project, and my first one in a couple of years. I'm enjoying it - especially the purl rows. I've been putting the secondary color around my neck and purling with my thumb. It is different, and gives my usual knitting muscles a rest.
I got the Alpaca when my husband had shoulder surgery. I got it from an LYS near the high school where I work, that I don't usually go into. The woman there can get a little bossy about knitting and projects, although she does have a decent selection. Anyway, the purchase of the yarn was definitely a stress reaction to my husband having to have surgery. She didn't have everything I needed in stock, so I had to order it. It came in a few days later (since Elite is located about 20 minutes from here) and the yarn store owner called to tell me it was in. My husband was totally doped up on percaset for his shoulder, and the woman was very surprised I got the message. I am sure she is still convinced that I live with a bum!
Backs of sweaters are interesting though - not by themselves, but I seem to have a hard time starting on the fronts of things!
My seniors (meaning all of my students) had their last day today, which is bitter sweet. They have been a really great group of kids. I teach AP Psychology and these kids were really brilliant.

Off to knit.

P2K

the Knitting Room

2007-05-16T20:23:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I went to The Knitting Room in Arlington. I've been in there a bunch, and Jackie (I believe she is the owner) was fabulous, as always. She was great at recommending needles and yarn - based on my needs, and not just what she wanted to sell. And what really impressed me is that she took time with me to talk about knitting like I was an intelligent knitter. I'll admit I am not as talented nor as prolific as some, but I'm definitely a solid intermediate to advanced knitter (thinking that people like Brooklyn Tweed are Masters)It made me start thinking about LYS's.
First of all living where I do means that I have about 12 or more yarn stores that are within a 20 minute drive of my house. I am REALLY lucky. There are 2 that are about a mile away from me in opposite directions. The first is Island Yarn in Waltham. You wouldn't think it was much. Ruthie's shop (Island Yarn) is in The Colonial Plaza. A strip mall sporting a laundromat, a swap book shop and a hearing aid place in addition to a pizza place and tanning beds. You know the type of place. Island yarn is actually pretty nice. She has a huge assortment of stuff, and a great variety. I always say that Ruthie's is the place that I go, when I know exactly what I need. I usually buy a little more to support her, but I am not usually inspired by her stuff. The first LYS I talked about (Jackie's store) is inspiring. The other LYS near me is not worth a mention. I have heard more horror stories from beginning knitters that go in there. When we get a newbie, and they tell an awful story about these pushy store owners we all say was it _____ and it always is.

Rain out tonight, but that is o.k. - I needed to make up the final exam for my seniors! Summer vacation is coming!

P2K

Happy Mother's day

2007-05-13T15:00:00.000-04:00

I realize it has been a while since I have written. We had to get a new computer, because our old one just basically died! Now we are in the process of trying to get everything on the new one, and it seems like this will take a LONG time. I am happy that this computer has so much space, but boy - what a pain!

I have been making progress on my dollar and a half sweater

which is actually a lot bigger now then when I took this picture. It has been going well, but I am having difficulty with the selvage edge, so I am keeping up with the lace, but not exactly as written.

I also finished my first sock in Socks that Rock (Fire on the Mountain), but when I put it on, it didn't fit right. It is in sport weight on 4's and I think I am going to rip it all out and make it into a hat and mittens for my daughter who is one.

P2K

baby blanket

2007-04-24T23:36:00.000-04:00

Tonight when I was at my knitting group, I was talking with a woman about a baby blanket I made. I made it in strips. Each block was 39 stitches by 50 rows, and when I finished one block, I just added the color for the next strip. Once all the strips were finished, I sewed them all together, and then I single crochetted around the edge. This was done with Debbie Bliss, baby cashmerino, on size 3 needles. It took over a year to make!

P2K

Debbie Bliss - Baby shrug

2007-04-20T00:44:00.000-04:00

I finally took some pictures.

Here is the baby shrug from the Debbie Bliss Book Simply Baby. It was a little confusing to make because she doesn't put a graph of what the pieces of the garment will look like when they are completed. So for the arms she has you increase stitches, which I found confusing at the time. Basically when you are done the stitches will go around the arm, instead of up and down.

I made it for my 1 year old daughter, but I made it to fit a 2 year old. I have a hard time putting a lot of time into something for the girls because they are growing so fast. However, these days I am knitting much faster, so I shouldn't be so reluctant. The shrug took about 2 weeks. The biggest pain of it was picking up the stitches around the garment. I liked the way it turned out, and hopefully she will get a lot of use out of it.

P2K

Dying with PAAS dye

2007-04-14T01:31:00.000-04:00

Tonight I dyed some yarn I had with PAAS easter egg dye. I thought it would be brighter. I don't know if I did it right. I think I may have covered it with water too soon. Oh well. It is more pastel then I thought, but I think I probably will make a hat out of it, and that will be good.
I scheduled the DVR correctly tonight and got to see the whole Red Sox game. Tim Wakefield was pitching. He is one of my favorites and I was happy to see his catcher, Doug Mirabelli do well. I like him too.

P2K

2 hours - 4 rows

2007-04-13T01:17:00.000-04:00

I'm sure we've all been here at some point - unfortunately I do this a lot. Somewhere I messed up in my counting and the fancy lace stitch, and so after 4 rows of knitting, I had to rip it all out. Only to knit it again (and tink, and knit and tink - you get the picture.) After this, I am feeling so proud when I finally have gotten it right, only to realize that it is really time for bed.

The Red Sox were rained out tonight - oh well.

P2K

knitting and baseball

2007-04-11T23:00:00.000-04:00

Tonight I planned on watching the Red Sox v. Mariners game, but I had to make dinner and help put the kids to bed, so I set my DVR to tape it because I didn't want to miss seeing Matsusaka pitch. It seemed like a great plan. Unfortunately, I scheduled the wrong channel to tape the game, so by the time I sat down it was the 6th inning. I guess I didn't miss much, though, because the Red Sox lost this one. : (
Some people don't readily see the connection between baseball and knitting, but baseball is FANTASTIC for knitters. You don't really have to watch the game, and when they do something great, the announcers make a big deal about it, and then show the play again. That is just enough time for you to look in, take in the play, and then go back to knitting. It also gives you a good 2-3 hours a night to knit, and not really get wrapped up in a show.
The other good thing about baseball in Boston, is that there is a sports radio station (WEEI) that talks all the time. So if you just want to knit and have something to listen to, this is a good place to go.
Baseball is like a soap opera. The games are fine, and sometimes can be a great adrenalin rush, but behind the scenes there is a lot of drama about the players. It definitely keeps me content and gives me something to talk about besides yarn.
On the knitting front, I just finished a Debbie Bliss pattern - the baby shrug (Made with Cascade 220 superwash) and am now doing the dollar and a half sweater from the current issue of Interweave Knitter. It is a really fun pattern, and so far not too hard.

P2K

I'm starting

2007-04-10T09:48:00.000-04:00

For about a year I have been reading blogs and listening to podcasts, - especially about knitting - and thought that I would really need to try my hand at this. So here I am. Let me tell you a little bit about me. I am a wife, a mother, and a teacher (of Psychology) and into knitting (including yarns!) tea, tarot, fountain pens and the Red Sox. I am hoping to use this blog to link to some of the sites that I love. So thanks for reading, and I'll write again soon.

P2K