Shut Up & Knit!

Outlined in Pink

 

Outlined

Project Page

A friend, whose style I really like, suggested Outlined as a possible knitting project for me.  Twelve inches of ease through me for a minute, but I had a yarn that I figured would/could work and an interest in knitting something new.

Thanks to this pattern I am now the slightly confused owner of three pairs of circulars and I'm okay with that.  The construction of those pattern was interesting in a good way.  I used an i-cord bind off because the Vikkel Braid and my yarn did not get along.  I'm okay with that.  I think the i-cord works well with the three-needle bind off at the shoulders and under-arms.

I used Bamboo Pop, which is a bamboo/cotton blend.  A bit splitty but I've worked with worse.  I chose the yarn because I had the Strawberry already in stash and because I wanted a warm weather top.  While friends are already dealing with snow and frost warnings, it's going to be 100F again today.

I spent a slightly shocking two weeks and two days on this project, must to the shock of my friends who figured it would take less than a week.  Perhaps I could done in that time if I wasn't busy being social and having fun now and then.

Shocking, right?

Perhaps even more shocking is that I am currently working on a pair of socks for my best friend.

/gasp

Happy Friday, people!  Make it count!

Pressure & A Call Out

Saturday, I was looking through a pattern booklet from 1953.  I didn't keep a lot of my mum's knitting and crochet booklets, but I do like the ones I did keep.  Turns out that one of them was listed in the database on Ravelry.  This lead me to casting on for a doily.  Of course, it did.

Project page.

I had been complaining on Twitter about breathing in dust from 1953 because hello!  I had barely started the project page for my new doily when my darling friend Bev had faved it.  No pressure.  No, I'm not really complaining, however, I hadn't pulled yarn or needles/hooks yet and that thing already had a friend.  Then our Cheryl did the same thing.  No pressure.

Yesterday, our Cindy was giving me crap about how my new project looked a lot like lace.  I had told her months ago that it would be a long time before I was up to knit lace again, but here I am.  She's right, but look at that photo!  It's not really lace-lace.  It's knitting with the occasional yarn over on sock needles. 

Yes, that's my story.

Well, half of it.

Four years ago, during World Cup, I knit a Niebling out of a Russian yarn that was cotton/flax.  Yeah, pink, whatever.  That was the summer before everything changed, ya see.  I knit the Lotus pattern, loving it as I watched a LOT of footie and was relaxed for the last time.  I sent that doily out to be blocked and photographed and never saw it again.

Yeah...

World Cup is coming.  It's in a time zone closer to me for a change.  No more waking up at four to watch the boys play.  It feels right to knit something doily during that tournament that only happens once every four years.

Consider this my training.  I do.

Marked As Read

I suck and I know it. 

It's been crazy here.  Is still crazy here, and will be crazy here for a while longer.

How much of a week could it have been? 

• Slightly broken wheel, now fixed
• Broken bobbin, fixed
• "Interesting" encounter with someone who was trying to be funny.  o.O
• Panic attack inducing last night emails
• Followed around the grocery by slightly creepy old dude
• Beloved friend dealing with horrible medical stuff.  She'll be fine, but wow...
• Blood moon
• Full moon
• Taxes
• Dudes casing the neighbourhood.  (Rash of break-ins in the area lately)
• Not enough Tums on the planet
• Not anywhere near enough sleep

Hai.

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There's lots of good stuff, too.  However, good stuff distracts me more than crappy stuff does.  Does that make sense?  Oh!  And I typed up 2 different versions of that sock pattern.  I still want to call it Give Me $6 but I know some folks are so concrete that they would actually try to give me six bucks.  *L*

*  *  *  *

Speaking of good stuff...

*  *  *  *

Is Irohan Bkack wgat in supposed to watch?

Text of a text I got the other night.

I read it.  Lowered one eyebrow and read it again.  Then I raised the other eyebrow and read it again again.  Then I got it.  Thank goodness a certain someone I love used to be a typo queen before auto-correct became a thing.

Yes!  We are watching Orphan Black.  We are very excited about the new season, which starts Sautrday.  Yes, I really am that good.

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Gosford Park has become my happy place.  I am not looking at that one too closely.

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Did you know I knit socks?  (Someone asked what I was knitting.  Blame her...)

 

Exciting, right?

Happy Friday, everyone!

Twitchy & Insecure

The other day, someone started a thread on Ravelry about how people should smile in their finished object photos and how designers should use smiling models.  Selfies or otherwise.  Lots of people went in and explained reasons why folks don't smile in photos.   Folks went in and mentioned disliking photos where there's more hair/face than crafted item.

Then the OP, who may have been sensing that the tide was not with them, posted links to pages as examples.  This cowl she liked more because the model smiled.  That one she didn't like as much because the model was not smiling.

Someone posted a photo of their partner wearing a beautiful hand-knit sweater not looking happy at all.  It was explained that he is funny, light-hearted and smiles often but not so much in photos.  (I'm para-phrasing here.)  People mentioned they smile in photos and it doesn't go well.  Or that they just photograph well.

Happily, a mod wandered in and removed the links posted as examples and the thread was locked. 

Thankfully, I saw all this from the comfort and warmth of my bed on a Sunday morning and stayed out of it for the most part.  I did flag a post but that's because of this simple fact...

Not everyone looks great in photos.  Not everyone wants to be judged by how they look.  Not everyone wants everyone to see what they look like... and I like to think that most of us are not looking for praise from others.

Honestly?  I would curl up and die if someone did that to me.

I used to go around with a man who was always telling me to smile.  I was young and took it.  Now, after having been put through so much crap by so many people, I would not take it.  I would explain that how I look may not relate to how I'm feeling, that it's not my job to look pretty for anyone, and that men telling women to smile is just bullshit.  How I look or feel or come across is on no one but me.

There's a reason we don't see a lot of me on this blog, people.  There's a reason it took me 20 minutes to get a semi-okay photo of my new hairstyle for my girlies on the faceyspace.  There's a reason it's a huge trust issue for me these days. 

I am unbelievably insecure and twitchy.  I know why.  I know where it came from, and I really am working on it.  However, very few people know the whys/whos and it's staying that way because I don't need more people talking about me than are already.  I'll survive and I will be fine. 

My point?  Not my job to look the way you want me to look.  Or do what you want.  Or think how you think I should.  What I do is not for you.  I know that's shocking for all those emotionally fat judgy bitches out there who can't just be happy but too bad.  Spare us all the entitlement, thanks.

Oh, and I knit a pair of socks...

Project Page Here!

I took them to my LYs this morning and Babetta, the owner, commented on how matchy they are.  I reminded her that she shouldn't be surprised because she knows me.  She laughed and agreed.

Those socks are my love letter to being compulsive and controlling.  They are not perfect but close enough to make me happy.  Right now, that's all that matters.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some hooking to do.

I know right!

Put a Cookie in a Sweater

It would be easier if you just put a store bought cookie in a store bought sweater, and next time that's what you should do.   Turns out, I suffer from Faceyspace Syndrome.  More of less fine for 43 and a half years.  Go to take a selfie and suddenly I'm all forehead.  Yeah...

Color is off but we knew that would happen.  You can also see why I am not totally thrilled the sweater.  I was hoping for a smaller neckline.  This is fine and I do love the sweater, it's just not what I was hoping for.

You know how there's a theory that if every relationship you've ever had has been a failure, you may want to look into how you're the only thing all those relationships had in common and realize that the issue may be you?  Yeah.  Second sweater to not give me the neck I need/want/love.  Next sweater will be a cardi.

Or maybe it will be nothing but cat toys from now on...

Simplest Sweater: Sizes

I love how the pattern is written.  Each size is 2 pages.  You only need print out your size.  None of that trying to remember which set of numbers you are as you knit the pattern.  Love that!  Had wanted to knit this pattern for a long time but needed the upgrade to different sizes.  I'm so not a 34 inch bust and that's what the original pattern was. 

US 8/9/10

I did the cast on and a row of knitting with the US 8, in the hopes of getting a small enough to make me happy neck.  Yeah, imagine if I hadn't.  Then a couple of rows with the US 9 before switching to the US 10 needles that the pattern called for.  This is also why it was a fast knit. 

Love the round yoke and the increases.  I made a point of doing an increase that would not give me those little holes we see in the designer's version.  Lovely but so not me.

Beaverslide 90% Merino 10% Mohair

Honestly?  For a while there, it was more like 90% Merino 50% Mohair.  The color way is Mallard something.  It's the darker of the two Mallards that the fabulous people at Beaverslide dye.  The yarn was a gift from our Squishy, who has great taste in colors.  I can see why Margene loves this yarn.  It is wonderful to work with, blooms like a dream and is lovely to wear.  Yes, with a long sleeved something under it, but whatever.

Did a sewn bind off because that's what I do.

Everybody happy now?

Bitches!  :p

Meanwhile, I feel like I'm fighting off a bug, slightly talked/peopled out, and trying to see how long I can last before giving in and turning on the heat.  Still having sleep issues, but no more nightmares.  Thank goodness!  Still dealing with mom's stuff, wondering WTF comes next, and trying to take care of myself, which I've never been good at.  Now I just need to figure out how it's already Wednesday...