Sunday 21 June 2009

Waddya Mean 'Not Knitting'?

I expect this post is sort of that 'tree falling in the forest' type of post -- we'll answer that age old question if a blogger suddenly blogs after a long and unexplained absence does anyone read?

When last I blogged I was on a bit of a strange scarf in summer thing. I had just completed the very colourful drop knit scarf (good news - there is now an errata on the Vogue site!). A couple of other scarf projects were waiting in the wings (until today) for blogdom and since then -- I haven't knit a stitch.

Not a stitch. None. Zero.

Crazy.

The new job and learning the vagaries of HMRC (taxes!) has kept me occupied I guess....but I'm keen to start something soon. It was my best friend's birthday today and I took her out on Thursday for some yummy cocktails (cocktail bar near London Bridge called The Old School Yard)(comfy sofas, nice staff and amazing drinks - heaven!) and dinner and she turned up wearing some skinny white jeans, a black t-shirt and the wrap I made for gorgeous goddaughter Genevieve at Christmas. (We won't depress ourselves too much by dwelling on a woman who can fit into her 15 year old daughter's clothes.) The point was that she looked fabulous and it inspired me to make something for Gen's birthday.

But I'm still in inspired rather than 'doing' mode so I'll finish up this post with a bit more about last month's scarf mania.

Around the time I finished the colourful scarf I also tackled Victorian Ruby from Victorian Lace Today in a pale peach linen yarn. I decided to take the lazy approach to blocking this scarf, I just washed it and then laid it out flat to dry - no wires, no pins. I shaped it so that the ends flare out which I quite like.

It's a useful summer scarf - the linen means it's light and mostly decorative.

I also tackled a wrap in the most luscious sea foam Manos del Uruguay Silk Blend yarn - a single 100 gr skein was enough for this project. I decided it was time to tackle a mobius wrap and discovered that like most things in knitting it's pretty straightforward.

There are a few methods out there (Google is your friend) here's what I did.

I cast on 130 stitches using backward loop method onto some very long and very flexible circular needles. To get the famous 'half twist' on the first row you don't knit into the stitches. Put a marker on your right needles and then you turn all the stitches upside down and knit into the little piece of yarn between the stitches. (This is muchharder to describe than do!)(Probably easier if you have knitting in front of you.) You knit all these 'between stitches' loops until you are back at the beginning -- and NOW you start to knit the stitches you cast on originally. When you are back at your marker you have completed your first round.

I alternated 5 rounds knitting, 5 rounds purling to get the wide bands of stocking and reverse stocking stitch. I just knit until I was almost out of yarn. I cast off and heh presto - there it was.

It's modelled here by gorgeous goddaughter Genevieve, worn fetchingly over her school shirt.

My final scarf project (and perhaps it was this one that caused my mini knitting hiatus) was an attempt to make my mother a pink Ene's Scarf from Scarf Style. My mom likes pink and I found some mystery pink yarn in my stash (unknown brand) and decided it was about the right amount for a scarf.

My mistake was choosing a scarf design that started at the long edge. Scarves that start at the long edge do not give you the option of deciding that the scarf is big enough if you run out of yarn. You can't just decide to do the border in another colour.

Nope - when you run out of yarn on a scarf that starts at the long edge the scarf just taunts you with the gaping hole in the centre of your scarf. It mocks you for deciding to make a scarf that starts at the long edge with a yarn with unknown yardage that you can't even identify a brand, colour or (ha!) a dye lot for.

You can almost hear the scarf laughing in this picture.

It sits on the needles still - waiting for some knitting miracle to deliver another skein of the mystery unbranded yarn. A knitter can dream.

14 comments:

fleegle said...

Ah, the miracle of Google Reader. I just subscribe and your posts show up when the show up. I don't have to check your blog for updates :)

I love your peachy little scarf, although in the Georgia summer, it would still be unbearable. Actually, all clothes are unbearable. But we have to suffer for modesty sale.

So sorry about your pink, um, disaster? Looks like a Really Small Neck wrap. Add some beads and pretend that you meant to make it that way :)

florencemary said...

The problem with not blogging for a while is that you have tons to blog about, so your readers are satiated.. gasp, so much info!

Your god-daughter is gorgeous, btw!

nestra said...

Hmmm.... moebius, that may be the answer I was looking for. The wrap for GGG is great.

aija said...

Welcome back! Good luck with the pink, lace in all forms still scares me :)

The Caked Crusader said...

Cool, you're back. I can stop nagging for updates now...for a week or so at least!

Gale Bulkley said...

It's nice to see you back. And with so much to say. Great looking pieces though, it's really a tragedy about the pink.

Linda said...

So nice to read you again. the knits are fabulous. I love th elace scarf and the wrap.

La Vaughn Rynearson said...

I've often wondered, too, about the tree falling in the woods thing regarding blogging. I'm rather scattershot in my postings. I'll post frequently for awhile and then nothing for quite awhile. Now that I have access to your site through Ravelry, I'll be sure to stop back.

Joan said...

I'm glad I still walk through the forest from time to time. Bitter, bitter shame about Ene-- welcome back!

Opal said...

thank the internet gods for google reader! i'm always alerted when you post. :)

beautiful scarves and beautiful god-daughter!

Anonymous said...

I think the Victorian Ruby is stunning, and never would have guessed that you did so little blocking with it! I really should start knitting again too (I can so relate with you at the moment, lol), but just haven't gotten that 'aha' moment yet regarding yarn and pattern. Hmm... maybe if I actually went and looked at what I've got in my stash it would help some, lol.

Welcome back to the blogging world!

Batty said...

Yay, you're back, and with knitting, too!
Sorry you're not going to find out about what happens if a blogger blogs and nobody reads it, but it's good to see you again -- and knitting. Did you get New Job Yarn? It's a tradition I've established with the last 2 jobs I've held. It's a great way to celebrate.

cici said...

Feels good to have you back. It feels like I was away too.I love your projects,especially Victorian Ruby♥

Karen said...

Please come back! I've just found your blog!