Bounce Fell Flat

I love the pattern. I love the yarn. Pattern and yarn together, not so much. I didn't take any frogging pics but I will tell you that Bounce is no more. The yarn was much too lofty to find the stitches when knitting in the row below, combined with the almost black color, left my eyes seeing double. So for the first time since Finish or Frog It began, I present this:

I've Been a Bit Distracted

By the Human Tetris.

There's this. But then there's this and this. I have no words.

Finishing, and Starting

Since I finished Ishbel last week I've worn it over and over. The pattern, plus the color is so perfect for me. I also finished My Anthro-Inspired Scarflet. Here - have a look.
This is what it looked like when I first started...


And now -



It was loads of fun. I will definitely make more. But since it is right up next to your skin, I recommend some cashmere. The Brown Sheep worsted is a little itchy.

I also picked up a new yarn this week.
Meet Tanis.
It is the Green Label Aran Weight, Midnight Colourway, from Tanis Fiber Arts. It was originally slated to be another Porom, but I'm now leaning toward Through The Loops Katie Beret. I'm a big fan of the designer, Kristin Kapur. I've already completed her Dr. G.'s Memory Vest (pics soon, I promise!) and have queued Sunkist Cardi and Rickenbacker Scarf.
So, another
comes and goes. My previous Friday night looked like this, from our hotel room in Montauk.

Six families, all sharing good times together for a whole weekend. This is when Life really is Good.

Ishbel - in a Flash

So this thing just flew off the needles -
I cast on January 21, and bound off January 29. And I wasn't faithful - I never am, at least with knitting...
Take that, Finish or Frog It!
Now if only February Lady Sweater, Muir, and Juno Regina could go so fast.
So I'm putting on the scarf, and heading out to Montauk for a weekend with friends. I've packed a few bottles of wine, some stinky cheese, and lots of other snick-snacks.

Warning: Gratuitous blocking shots...

Another quick pic to entertain. My friend from church destashed some old knitting needles and while I passed on all of them, there was one set I snatched up immediately.



Check the price, and the commitment that they tell you that you'll have happy knitting! The color is my favorite. They went to a place of honor with my miniature childrens' sewing machines and old wooden thread spools. I am the keeper of the old.











By the way, it's been snowing pretty often here lately. So far the kids haven't had school closed, but Lola is having a hard time finding a place to squat in the yard, if you get my drift. This is how she comes into the house lately:

Finally Granny is here

I always wanted to make a granny square. I decided back in 2007 that it would be a goal. I was intimidated by crochet, never having done really well at it before, blaming it on being a lefty taught by righties. Now that I was knitting intricate lace I decided I could no longer find lame excuses as to why I hadn't yet conquered this form of needle arts which had been growing by leaps and bounds all around me. I was so inspired by CaftyObsessions version of a Cath Kidston Granny Square quilt that I saw on their web page which cost oodles of dollars. This was the push I needed to finally teach myself to make grannies. I ran to my LYS and picked an array of brightly colored Cascade 220 skeins. I went for the superwash to make it a bit more easy to wash. With various patterns in hand and YouTube streaming, I sat down to create the first of which would be 60 of these happy, bright granny squares which I decided would look great in my youngest daughters room. I started this back in the summer of 2007. It came off the hook about a year later in July of 2008. I sewed all the blocks together with a mattress stitch and buried all the ends. Then I washed it in cold water and THE RED RAN MAD CRAZY!. I removed the Soak solution and added vinegar. Too late, all the whites were pink, the light greens were muted, the yellow, were, well, not too yellow anymore. Gone was my happy colored quilt. But I perservered. Really, what else could I do at this point but move forward? So gently, very gently, I lifted this 60 square wool behemoth out of the basin and POP! grannies were popping all over the place. Some from the centers, some from the mattress stitch borders, some from more than one place. I laid this mutant piece of wool waste down and gently tried to square it to a sheet that I had placed in a secure drying spot. It was no use. I looked like strings of colorful cheese melted over my sheet. So calmly, I got my scissors out and began to free the squares from their mattress stitches. I had to cut into the outside borders to do this, since their was no way to tell what was a mattress stitch and what was a double crochet. I made a pile - Good, Bad, Ugly. The Good just needed new red borders, the bad needed advice on how to fix them. (Thank you crocheters on Ravelry) and the ugly, well, let's just say they went away - far away. When all was said and done, 35 grannies remained. I soaked them again to try and get more of the red out, and was starting to like the muted look the read had given everything, even if I did miss the white hot white. The blocks got a "time out" for a few months until I could bring myself to give them all new borders and reattach them I finally did, and here is my finished product:

No, I'm not going to get a beauty shot, with terrific outdoor lighting, laid out all flat and perfect. It is done. It is being used and gently loved. I am requested to place it over her every night after the good tuck I give the comforter underneath. I can tag this


What went wrong? I think it was a combination of errors. First, I used a hook that was too large for the gauge of yarn. Cascade is a light worsted, almost dk weight. I used a J hook, and later a G when I realized my error, but it made the squares too drapey, which when wet had no body to hold itself together. Then I blame my lack of experience in burying ends in crochet. I thought if I just crocheted over the tails it would be enough, but I think now that I needed to bury them more deligently. Then, I blame the yarn choice. While Cascade 220 superwash is a dream to work with, In my opinion it might be best served on smaller items, like sweaters and such. Certainly not 60 12" square grannies. But anyway, it's all good now and it is really all about the learning.

Kiri In Silk

I thought I'd show you what came off the needles last November. Here is Kiri, done in Claudia's Handpaints 100% silk.

It took less than a skein and size 3 Addi turbo Lace circs.
The pattern was so easy to memorize that I could do it anywhere, even in the car, which is a nice thing because usually my lace projects have to be done at home. The silk was enjoyable, but I had to get used to it because I knit mostly with wool.

I highly recommend the pattern to any of you who feel less than adequate at lace knitting, or for anyone who needs a break from the chart intensive or more complex lace patterns out there.

Finish or Frog It

I know, I haven't blogged since October. Let's just forget about that now and get on with the FOs, shall we? Today, in honor of Finish or Frog It, I finished a hat that has been languishing in a bag for months, cast on for an never knitted. Porom, by Brooklyn Tweed is easy, quick (when you get down to it) and really enjoyable, apart from the K3togTBLs. So, without further ado, I present:
I haven't blocked it yet, but I'm not sure if I will because it has the right amount of slouch right now. I decreased at 6" and it was perfect.

She looks warm!

She looks warm!
Originally uploaded by frecklegirl.

My pals made the cover of Ravelry news! This was the party at Rhinebeck. Famous now! BTW, the one with the gorgeous Clapotis had a b'day yesterday.

Rhinebeck

Lots of pictures to show you -

Sheep - lots of sheep. These beauties were getting a good grooming...
I love how these boys were all taking care of the grooming. I have a hard time getting my boy to take out the garbage...
The Rasta kind...
The kind that need to be turned into Webkins so you can take them home...
And the naked kid. Their mama needs to make them sweaters. The weather was in the 30s at 9am here...
This sheep went for $225 , which I heard was very cheap. (And another boy, helping...)

Llamas and their crossings...

And bunnies. Cute cuddly angoras. One woman was "plucking" and spinning from her angora on her lap. Not sure how I feel about that. Doesn't it hurt?

I thought this guy looked like one of our presidents from the 1800s...

We're for sale!But the best part was seeing friends. Karen found me at about 9:30 on Saturday. Look at that clapotis!!!

Why is she looking so happy on the really long STR line? Because she doesn't want me to take her picture. She knows I'll put her right here in my blog!
We each bought our first roving here at the Weston Wools booth.
I also saw my friend Angie who wore her beautiful shawl. I saw Liz too, who bought a Golding Spindle. Now we both have one! I was really excited to see Anne Hanson of Knitspot. I've met a lot of celebs before, with husband's profession being what it is, but I got all silly inside at the idea of meeting Anne. She's an amazing designer, and I love reading her blog. I also saw Yarn Harlot later that night at the Ravelry party. Pretty cool! But the one blogger I didn't see although I really looked hard was Pam of Lick My Sticks. I love her blog and really wanted to see her "in the flesh". Maybe next time!
More sights and smells...


Not too crowded yet at 9:30...But at 12 noon - Food Court!
No show would be complete without my favorite exhibit, the Border Collie demonstrations.

Tomorrow I promise to show you some Ravelry party pics and my haul but I've got to go work on Kiri for my girlfriend Marianne (big birthday coming in 3 weeks) and a baby blanket for my girlfriend Trish. Wee Seamus is due in 3 weeks, but I'm feeling like he might be here before Marianne's birthday comes, so I'd better work on the blanket first. (Let's not even talk about the bad bout of start-itis I've had for the past 2 months. These two knits have got to get done NOW.)

Ravelympics Anyone?

I'm diving in to the deep end - Ravelympics - in the categories "Lace Long Jump" with this
shawl -Muir from Knitty.
Yarn - White Willow Farms Merino Lace - Autumn
Addi Turbo Lace #4
And this Vest for the Vest Vault:
Lauryn from Rowan - free kit with membership
Yarn - Rowan All Seasons Cotton - beige
Addi #7

If we finish by the time the Olympics end, we get a button for our blogs. I know, it's all pretty goofy, but a fun diversion. I doubt I'll get the Muir shawl done in time, because I've been busy working on this too:
HoneyBee Stole by Anne Hanson of Knitspot. Love her patterns!!!
Yarn - Posh Yarn Sophia - 2 ply laceweight cashmere, color- Finch. Size #3 Addi Turbo Lace Needles.

I'm loving all three projects, so they're all getting more or less equal time, which means nothing is getting finished. Oh, and there are some other things floating in and out of the knitting bag, when I need "easy knitting". I'll show you these next time. They involve sleeves...

I'm Really Happy...

... that I don't have to look at this in my knitting bag any more. I really didn't enjoy it at all, and probably should have frogged it half way through and used the yarn for another Swallowtail Shawl or something. But it is done now and the overall results are good.

Specs: Bryspun #4 Flex needles for most of it, but a section of it was done with addi turbo lace #4s, just to see if it helped my attention span...span...span...
Handmaiden Sea Silk Yarn in Sangria

Little Lily

A client of Dh's adopted a baby recently. I've always wanted to try the Fleegle-ized Saartje Baby Booty pattern, so I had a perfect chance. It was quick and fun. They came out in very Lily Pulitzer-esque colors, in Cascade 220 Superwash. The buttons are little crocheted wheels.

It's Time

William Martin Loney
April 27, 1928 - July 1, 2008
I miss you Daddy. You taught me perfection.

I Swear

If I hit the lottery tomorrow, I'd only wear Anthropologie...
In the meantime...
Scarf - Anne
127 Print, Size J hook (yes hook, I crochet too!) 1 skein on sale at KNIT (in Glen Cove, which was in Greenvale, which stilll doesn't have a web page... on Long Island , ahhh.