Holidays and knitting

Dear blog, It is nearly midnight on December 22nd. Christmas is so close I can taste it. I hope everyone has been having a pleasant holiday season, I certainly have been enjoying mine. There is snow everywhere which is rare for us, and all of the kids are enjoying playing around in their big coats and hats and snow boots. I enjoy being surrounded by my family, we're having lots of fun, eating good food, watching good movies, and trying to learn Na'vi, the language created for the movie Avatar which came out recently. I know it's not knitting related exactly, but I'm finding it to be not only a challenge, but a deliciously geeky past time. I have nothing but respect for the creator of Na'vi, he's clearly a mad genius in my book. I would only suggest that perhaps he need not have tried quit so hard to make it sound so 'exotic'. Today I found out that I am totally incapable of rolling my R's. I spent hours asking other people to demonstrate, and making the most ridiculous noises, spitting, gurgling, blowing raspberries, and in general making a complete fool of myself; Sounding like a dying car engine or an air mattress with a leak. I'm sure this wont be the last of the road blocks in this language's phonology!

I never did post pictures of my fetching gloves. I will get around to it eventually, for now I'll just say I have been convinced in the power of blocking. I used to imagine that blocking was only ever really important when you were knitting fancy things like lace, and I certainly felt that it was unnecessary for cables. However after blocking the Fetching gloves I realize what a terribly ignorant misconception that was. I shall be blocking all of my knitting from now on. (with exceptions for the acrylic stuff, of course.)

I'm nearly done with the Empress coat. I felted it yesterday, and let me tell you the sweating that went into it....
It was so easy. All I did was stick it in a pillow case, put it in the wash, and forget about it. Later after the wash had finished I pulled it out, lay it out flat on the floor, and let it dry. Just moments ago I had my mom try it on, and it seems to be a perfect fit. I can not say how both delighted and relieved I am. Just a few buttons and a quickly knit belt are all that remains before this project can be crossed off my list and graduated to FO status ^__^

Cheers,
Theo

FO's for the win

Hey blog!

I'm writing today in a simi-sleep deprived state, after having managed to complete both a pair fetching gloves and a crofter's cowl. I suppose it was only a matter of inevitability that I would screw up. The fetching pattern turned out to be so freaking fun to knit (and such a darn pretty end product to boot) that I started another pair. (Of course my favorite part is the thumb. Maybe I'm just new to glove construction but I find the thumb to be particularly sweet).
Anyway, I finished the first glove, and then started the other (while watching the Syfi movie Alice, and later Bourn identity) And I totally forgot to reverse the cables for the second glove! Sigh. The crux is always in the details, right? I suppose I could have just kept knitting, but that wouldn't have done full justice to the pattern, so I frogged it @_@
I'm much too tired to begin again tonight, but I'm enjoying my little knit marathon. I've got several more projects lined up, including the finishing of the Empress coat and The 9 to 5 socks. ( I know the sock has been a WIP for a long time. And I feel bad about that, but it's day will come soon. )

Pictures and rants about why I now love knitting thumbs in a future post!
'Cheers
Theo

Knitting Update

Hello Blog,

Just thought I'd pop in with a little knit update. Making steady, if slow, progress on the empress coat. Nearly done! Just have to seam in the second sleeve, work the collar, and deal with all the finishing. Awesome.

I've also just cast on a pair of fetching gloves. It was only a matter of time, right? Mastered magic loop method for real in order to knit these on size 6 needles, too (my double point needle collection being rather non-existent) . I'm on a bit of a deadline for these so I'm hoping I can finish them by the end of the week.

More knitting when school ends, I hope.

'cheers
Theo