bareblueskin: On Your Left

Rose Lace Stole Knit-a-long

2012-01-27T13:59:00.000-05:00

On September 5, 2011 I started a knit-a-long project with my friend Donna for the Rose Lace Stole from Interweave Knits, Spring 2011. We ordered yarn from KnitPicks, messed about with gauge, and set out to knit.

Well, I had a few projects pop up in the fall and into winter. I knit the Pembroke Wrap as a gift for a friend, and a Christmas stocking for my brother-in-law. I also revived Babette and have been making steady progress on squares. This was through the busy holiday stretch and a lot of overtime at work.

That means that the knit-a-long is moving quite slowly. The lace pattern of the central panels is pretty simple but very easy to screw up if you aren't paying close attention. I think I've finally got the hang of the pattern and good way of working it. I tend to complete 4 rows per knitting session regardless of knitting alone, in a group, before or after dinner, time spent, etc. Now I also check my work after each lace row to make sure I didn't goof it up. It's so much easier to fix the error when it's still on the top! I'm now at row 60 of the 124 needed before I begin the bottom lace panel. With any luck, I'll knit a few nights a week on this project and get 10-15 rows done a week. At that pace I should be ready to do the complicated lace border by March 5th! Yes, I do sit and make all sorts of calculations about when I might finish, move to the next step, change yarn balls, etc. What, that's normal isn't it??

BOOTS!!!

2011-09-16T13:05:00.001-04:00

For years I've been trying to buy tall boots but my extra-large calves have held me back. I have ALWAYS had muscular calves, no matter what my weight, so finding boots has always been a disappointment. Most companies claim wide calf status when they make it about 16". I have a 19.5" calf, and it starts about halfway up. Pair after pair of boots have been ordered in vain only to find I can't zip them or pull them up.

I have just purchased my first pair of really nice knee boots (Land's End Diana Riding Boots, lined leather, yes they were on sale) because I found this great product that zips into the boot opening and voila, your boots fit! The Boot Band. How come I've never heard of these before? Apparently they were on the O List in O Magazine last Christmas, and they are mentioned this month in Woman's Day. I don't read either of those publications so I guess I missed out.

I just ordered a pair of the half calf elastic with leather border Boot Bands for myself, so now I can tell you about it! I have a feeling there's going to be a rush on these. I can't wait until they get here! I'll post a photo of me wearing my new boots with the insert when they arrive.

A Glitch in the System

2011-09-12T13:22:00.000-04:00

I finished reading Frankenstein over the weekend and went to my Goodreads account to move it into the 'read' category and creep a little closer to my goal of 52 books in 52 weeks. I clicked on the goal counter and Goodreads says I am 2 books behind (4%). If I finish up the book I'm in the middle of and get French Milk read this week, I should be back on track. I clicked on the counter to see the titles I've read this year that make up the count. Something was strange as I scrolled down...

Is there a glitch in the page? I see two The Cat Who... books are posted twice. Please tell me it isn't so...
Somehow I had added two different editions of each book as read. Damn! So now I'm 4 books behind (8%) my goal and also need to read one a week to keep up.

While we were chatting about reading, goals, the fact that each of has a list of books that that is more than we could read in a lifetime, Susan said something very wise. “I’m a reader. I don’t have to prove it to myself that I am.” Hmmm. Who am I trying to prove it to? I feel like if I read at a minimum, 52 books in one year, than I will reach the upper echelon of acclaimed readers. I’m even reading a book about reading books, Tolstoy and the Purple Chair: My Year of Magical Reading by Nina Sankovitch. Yes, she writes about reading a book a day for a year. But this book is more about experiencing the profound loss of her sister to cancer.

If you are reading a book that you don't like, stop! Go and read something else you'll enjoy. Likewise for all the trashy TV and mind numbing movies. Go outside and look up at the sky.

a flurry of activity

2011-09-07T15:18:00.000-04:00

Random list of successes:

Babette squares - 4 done, ahead of goals by 2 squares.
Read Frankenstein for book group Sunday on track to finish
Completed heel and started gusset on Paul Atwell socks
Knit and blocked swatch for Rose Lace Stole from Interweave Knits, Spring 2011
Cast on for Rose Lace Stole using a new cast on to me - provisional cast on
Knit 4 rows of Rose Lace Stole
Worked out five days in a row
Do P90 at least twice a week for a month - two weeks done so far...

Back to the squares.

2011-08-28T16:51:00.001-04:00

Ashamedly, Babette has been in progress for over 3 years. How could that be? Well, I probably haven't worked on Babette for over a year. When I see pictures of other peoples completed projects, I get all excited and want to pull my squares out and work on them.

Before, the first problem was organization. Where were the finished squares? And my J hook? And my pattern? Was I really using a J hook? That looks huge. (I look it up on Ravelry). Now, how does one...crochet? Never mind that the squares are made entirely of chains and double crochet, how do you DO those things? No idea. Up come the YouTube videos, and I never get started.

I'm not using the recommended yarn or colors, so I haven't been following the elaborate square color chart to construct my color combinations. But then what happens is I worry. At this point my completed squares are a result of my haphazard color mixing. From now on I will supplement that style with squares created according to the pattern. How about that!?!

For my own reference I am circling the number of any squares I've done according to pattern on the massive grid.

I've laid out all my squares according to what's in grid 10 but it's just occurred to me that maybe I won't need to make grid 10. If it turns out that this blanket is gigantic, which it will be (I'm making the squares in worsted instead of fingering weight) maybe i only need to do grids 1-9 because 10 is tacked on to the end and could add an extra foot or more of length. I was aiming for a Babette that would cover a full/queen bed. Grids 1-9 are fitted together to make a rectangle so removing #10 would be easy.

I organized my Babette squares and yarns month ago during a stash sort. So organization is no excuse for lack of progress. After much discussion with my friend C, I have a plan.

The pattern calls for 126 squares, broken down as follows:
Four-Rounds          49 (19 complete)
Two-Rounds        50 (10)
Six-Rounds        16 (2)
Eight-Rounds    7 (3)
Ten-Rounds          2 (0)
Twelve-Rounds      2 (0)

So, 34 finished squares, plus 2 1-round and 6 3-round squares that aren't really squares since they're not finished. 126 - 34 = 92. If I crochet 2 squares a week it will take me 46 weeks, 6 weeks for finishing/edging/assemblage, and I can be done by Fall 2012. I think finishing will take a lot longer than 6 weeks. If I manage to finish more than 2 per week I can shift more time to the end for finishing. And who knows? Maybe I can start connecting the squares before I have them all done.

My plan now is to blog each completed square going forward. Here are the squares completed in the last two weeks. 2 per week, so I'm on target. Hooray!

Cuff-tastic!

2011-08-22T14:44:00.002-04:00

I'm nearly done with the cuff of my first 'real' pair of socks.* Looks nice, doesn't it? I'm at 5.5 inches. The pattern calls for 6.5 inches, but these are men's socks, so do I have to make the cuff as long for me?

Let's take a look at some sock patterns in my Ravelry queue...Charade calls for a cuff 7-8 inches long, Thuja and Rivercat recommend 7 inches, and Mr. Pitt's Socks call for 9. It turns out that maybe the cuff length in this pattern might be a bit short to start off with, so maybe I shouldn't

I was also a bit worried that I was running out of yarn. I know that's crazy but I weighed the ball already on the postal scale here at work and it measures up to be 3.3 ounces remaining in the ball. I looked up what the original skein weight and it was 3.53 ounces. So, not running out of yarn!

*Okay, so I have made a pair of socks, in 2008, in worsted weight yarn, as preparation for Sock Wars. But I don't seem to have a post about it. And for some reason I don't consider them real socks. I do have one about Sock Wars though, right here! The socks I made are really bright and a bit baggy. They are complete, I wear them when it's cold, so they're socks!

Cheese me

2011-08-11T13:21:00.000-04:00

Cheese. Any kind, any age, any color, I'll try it. Just about any origin too.

Last weekend I bought an aged goat cheese from Blue Mood Blend at an Upstate NY farmers market in Brighton. It looked like a mossy stump on the outside, complete with bark. Inside it's a hard cheese, similar to parmesan or reggiano in texture and color, and in taste similar to parmesan and swiss. And the strange thing is, no goaty aftertaste. My family didn't care for it, but I'd love to try it over pasta.

Tuesday I bought a fresh goat cheese at the Harvard Square market, made only 12 hours before. Light and lovely, it just sort of melts in your mouth. And again, no goaty funk. Some cheeses are so strong it's like a goat hook in your mouth. Yuck! I do like a bit of goaty cheese too, but some of them are a bit overpowering.

I sampled the cheese at the booth before buying and got some instruction on the proper way to enjoy it - a bit of bread, fresh basil, slice of tomato, and a drizzle of good olive oil. It's light and lovely

I think the cheese was at the booth of Olio di Melli, an olive oil vendor that I would never normally stop at but the blackboard had cheese listed and pulled me in. I also bought a canteloupe, 2 tomatoes, and a red pepper. There was no basil to be found.

Wednesday I stopped at the Davis Square market on Wednesday I was on a mission for basil. Again, all sold out, but I did get a big bunch of baby bok choy for $3.50. Maybe I need to find a basil plant and buy a grow light so I can have fresh herbs...

Froggy went a courtin' revised

2011-07-17T18:56:00.001-04:00

Somehow yesterday I hit post instead of save draft, and I posted my entry filled with errors. Here is the revised version with the 3rd frogged project listed.

I've frogged three WIP knits, all garments. Hmmm.

1. Top down Raglan - started 2/6/10
Permanent hibernation - 10/17/10
Frogged - 7/17/11

2. Emmaline - started 4/17/10

Completed 5/1/11
Frogged - 7/17/11

3. Buttercup - started 5/3/11
Frogged - 7/17/11

1. The top down raglan was me trying to make a sweater for myself, and thinking I am the size of a hippo. That sweater would have looked like a clown prop in size if I had finished it. I was only to the 3rd buttonhole from the top down, so there wasn't a lot to frog.

2. I finished Emmaline in May and tried it on. It appeared in the Knitty Summer 2010 issue in bulky weight cotton yarn. A little big in the bust, and too tight in the bind off, and this yarn (Lion Brand Nature's Choice Organic Cotton is just not suited for summer or for this pattern. Plus, this yarn sheds everywhere. I read on some Ravelry boards that the fiber length in this cheap organic cotton is really short, and they skip the step in the manufacturing process where all that fluff gets separated out to make really nice organic yarn. Hmm.

When I first decided to make this pattern I also bought the Cotlin yarn from Knitpicks in Planetarium to make a dk version of this, but thought I'd make it according to pattern in bulky first. Not sure if that was a smart move or not! Seems I've wasted over a year on this, mainly with the project sitting in a box whispering to me about possible problems from the shelf. So I'm frogging this, but I think I learned a good amount from it.

I need to make the bottom of the sleeve cuff a little wider, probably an inch, and do more increases
around the stomach to make the top flare out for more room at the waist/hip area.

Also, make one size for the top to underbust, and a larger size for the stomach I think I made a L for the whole thing, and added increases 3 times to the stomach/natural waist area for me. I wore the top for about 10 minutes and in that time the bust area expanded enough to be roomy on Dolly Parton!

Next time I should make a Medium in the dk weight?I'd like to make it again in the hempathy I bought for Buttercup, or the Cotlin from Knitpicks. Decisions, decisions.

3. I thought Buttercup would be a good pattern for me since it's similar to Emmaline in style, and have a forgiving flare out at the bottom. I have read about some fit problems with the neckline, and I worry that not having a defined bust section will mean I just look a bit tent-y. In any case, this will not be revisited until I remake Emmaline, and first I have to find the modifed DK version of the pattern that some wonderful Raveler created.

I'm a bit frustrated with all this frogging. It's not my style. But do I want my style to be boxes of unfinished projects and bound energy sitting taking up space? No. Onward!

A farmer's lunch

2011-07-07T13:13:00.002-04:00

One of my favorite things about summer is that I have access to a great variety of local fresh foods at farmers markets. Today my lunch is from the Harvard Square market held on Tuesdays. French bread, fresh tomato, and a light herb cheese spread. Yum! Now where's dessert?

2011-05-12T11:26:00.000-04:00

Proof that I wore a skirt today. Yay! And look like Holly Hobby. Boo. All I need is a bonnet or some gingham. How do I manage to put together such frumpy outfits? And I forgot a necklace today. I never do that. I guess I didn't need to wear tights, but it's a bit cold still and they're sort of a security blanket. And I could have worn a blouse, but what color? Any tips for me?

Progress Report

2011-05-07T12:33:00.003-04:00

I've just finished repeat six of Citron. This project has been on the back burner for a bit while I've been making baby things and finishing other projects - a scarf for my sister, and Emmaline. Well, Emmaline's not quite finished, or rather it is, but I might have to undo a bit and add in some increases, and use a different bind off. My friend Linda suggested an elastic, stretchy bind off in a recent comment that I think I'll try out on this, because aren't garments meant to be comfortable and not cut off your circulation from the hips down? I don't like the idea just straightaway ripping out rows until I think I've reached the right point, then making sure all the stitches are caught and aimed the right way. I think it's time for a lifeline! This will be the first time I've threaded one through stitches that aren't on the needle. I'm not sure how this works, so I had to look it up.

Anyway, back to Citron.

Emmaline undone?

2011-05-02T12:25:00.000-04:00

Finishing Emmaline has been an obsession of mine for the past 6 weeks. Each day, whether it was a knitting day or not, I would check my progress on the garment and the pattern. Would my slight modifications be enough to account for my hourglass but plus-sized build? How will this yarn act once it's on my body and reacting to gravity?

After finishing the written pattern minus 6 rows in the center, I decided to add 17 more rows of length to it and struggled through the last rows. I just want it done already! I measured the remaining yarn to make sure I would have enough for the final purl row and bind off purled edge. I finished, unpicking and redoing the bind off halfway through for a looser edge, and had about 10 yards to spare.

What I hadn't taken into account is that now the edge extended to the top of my hips. Darn! Definitely too tight/too long. I think I will have to unravel a bit and try again. In fact, it looks like I will have to undo all of the added length rows and add some increases. I will not add as many rows for length this time - maybe only 12 additional rows.

The bind off edge I ended up with was unforgiving, but I had tried hard to keep it loose. I don't want to do the sewn edge bind off because it will take forever to pulled that long end through but that might give me a better fit. I have read that a few people did the bind off using a needle one or two sizes up, and that might be an easy solution for this top.

IMAG0435

2011-04-29T12:05:00.001-04:00

IMAG0435
Originally uploaded by bareblueskin

Breathing Life into Emmaline

2011-04-11T13:52:00.000-04:00

I started Emmaline, a lovely empire waist short sleeve top knit in bulky organic cotton, last April hoping to wear it in summer and have my very first adult sized finished garment. I've blogged about this a few times, and Emmaline slipped into the pile of unfinished projects due to size confusion. I didn't really want to make a garment in my current size, knowing that I was changing. It looks like I put it down some time in the fall. I know I've tried to pick it up a few times and been nervous about where I had left off. I have completed the top raglan portion and knit and bound off both sleeves, tried on, and gone back and modified the bind off so my arms won't turn blue from circulation issues.

Now, I've lost over 20 pounds since starting this project. You would think the arms would be loose by now, right? No such luck. They do fit properly though, and that makes me think that they were still too tight before. I had planned to modify the torso area and put in some ease to account for my stomach, but I've changed my mind. I'm going to knit as written and try it on in stages. I'm sure the finished garment will loosen up during the wearing of it, and I'd rather have things a little snug than baggy. A first for me!

In the past week I've made quite a bit of progress. I fixed my confusing stitch count, moved past the one purl stitch row, and started the more fitted torso section. I also took care of all the ends under the arms to make sure I was measuring properly - there were some loose stitches there that needed sewing up.

Taking a peek at my Ravelry project page, I started this project April 17, 2010. Let's see if I can finish knitting this and have a FINISH for the 17th...

FO: Cabled Chapeau

2011-04-07T13:00:00.000-04:00

The lovely Cabled Chapeau. I finished this hat back in December, wrote the majority of this post in January, and here it is, April 5th. And it's raining, not snowing, so no need for the hat. But oh, how I love this hat! I wore it on the cold, but not arctic, winter days here in New England. it was quick to knit (when I spent time knitting), soft and conforming, and most importantly, big enough for my head! We have big heads in my family and most feminine hats squeeze the dickens out of my head. That said, I'm sure other patterns can be customized to accommodate my cranium but I loved this pattern from the start - big cables, flexible brim, and covers my ears.

Knitting the brim was a a bit odd. I couldn't figure out what doing short rows in the middle would do to the shape. I just couldn't picture it. Also, the way the pattern is written, the two long edges are not the same length, and I thought they would be since they just fit on the inside and outside of the hat. Weird. I just kept on going with the pattern instructions and tried not to question it.

Once I finished all the pieces they cuddled up together in a bag on the couch as I tried to gather up my nerve to tackle the brim. I did have another hat to follow for brim shape, but I was anxious about doing it wrong. Then I realized if I didn't cut something, I wouldn't have a hat to wear when I went home for Christmas. And of course, I wanted to show off my handiwork!

I would have made the knit piece for the brim smaller but I just sewed it in father on the inside so I wouldn't have a baggy brim. If I make this hat again (and I think my friends back home are preparing to put in their orders) I will figure out how to make the knit piece a bit smaller, and use the cardboard template I made for the brim as a guide.

It's time to give this hat a wash in the sink and put it in with my other winter things. Or maybe I'll wear it on particularly chilling spring days...it is the perfect shade of blue!

Here is a photo of me and my big sister after the crazy northeast storm that made getting home from Christmas an adventure. Instead of flying from Rochester to Boston, I rode with my sister and brother-in-law to Montclair, NJ, then took the commuter rail in to NYC, then a Bolt bus to Boston, and then the subway home. A roundabout way of getting home after the holidays, but better than waiting for the snow to clear. I know this photo doesn't show off the hat all that well, but you get the picture!

Blog or Journal?

2011-04-04T15:41:00.000-04:00

I think I need to make a decision on whether to journal, or to blog. I find the allure of paper hard to resist, and I like having an archival copy of my thoughts, insignificant as they may be, to reflect on in future times. I like seeing the ink on the paper, worn pages, books bursting with my effort. I’ve always struggled with keeping an electronic version of this, since the format of blogging does not match up with my paper record, and I can’t paint on a website. I always meant to print out the pages, to keep them in some hard format, but then isn’t that wasting resources and storage space? How many apartments will I move those boxes to?

So far I have one box of journals in my closet. I think it contains only the writing journals since my move to Boston in 2000. That means that there is a box in my parents’ house containing my formative years, highly productive high school days, when I took up journaling as a mission, and probably part of my turbulent college years, where things turned dark and multimedia expressive.

I would like to find a more expressive blog format, so I might be changing hosts soon after watching fellow bloggers go through this quest.

There are things I want to record and remember that haven’t been written anywhere, just some thoughts.

Just this year:

-Fitting into smaller jeans – a size I never really believed possible, and now I’m looking beyond it to new numbers

-the death of my best friend’s mother

-finding the strength of self preservation, and learning it has a price

-missing my family so much at times it hurts, even at this stage in my adult life. I think this is something I will never lose, and I'm grateful to have that bond

-feeling able to stand on my own financial feet and take the changes as they come
-having so many friends that my social calendar swells and overlaps

Funny, now that I'm thinking I should stop blogging, I've written a bunch of draft posts and have 4 finished items to post too. So for now, conscious duality.

What was old is new again

2011-04-02T10:59:00.001-04:00

My suit fits!!!! I bought it in June 2004, it has been too small since 2005 and I have moved it 4 apartments. What a way to kick off my spring cleaning weekend, with a closet clear out session resulting in clothes that fit!

Knowing when to cut and run

2011-02-20T11:31:00.000-05:00

Last January I started Wabenschal, a hexagonal lace scarf. I was itchy to start something new for the new year. Against my better judgment, that loud voice in my head that gets pillows thrown at it, I started this instead of plugging away at my ocean waves scarf which is still unfinished at the time of this post. I only worked on Wabenschal while knitting with others, and I think I should have spent some time by myself getting to know the chart and the pattern. It was my first attempt at using a chart for any kind of knitting instead of following the written instructions, or creating written instructions from the chart.

I bought the yarn, Patons Lacette, on clearance for $.50 a skein, and I can see why. In the skein it's very soft - you can feel the mohair content. Knit up it feels like baling twine. Maybe once it's blocked it will soften up and show off the stitch pattern better.I don't know if this yarn and pattern combination is working. I haven't worked on this project in a year, and I can't decide whether to scrap what I've done and put the pattern back in my binder for future use, or to start up again with it. At this point the work I've done is about as large as a swatch. Maybe I'll bind off, block it, and use it as a reference when I start the pattern again. It's another one of those lurker projects, taking up space on my shelf, my Ravelry list, and my mind.

I don't want to abandon my work. It always makes me feel like a bit of a failure, even though it's just a knitting project. I expect myself to start and finish everything with perfection! Is that so difficult? How do I know when it's time to throw in the towel?

My project link Wabenschal in Maroon Mist

P.S. I broke down and bought size 8 straight needles two weeks ago after what I thought was a thorough search of my apartment. I determined that yes, remember, I lent this pair of needles to someone two years ago and never got them back. And didn't buy replacements. So, I picked up another pair at Windsor Button, even though I prefer the Boye straight needles purely for the thumbtack like end. The pair I bought at Windsor are by Susan Bates. They are a lovely blue but have a pinched, flattened end which I don't find aesthetically pleasing. It turns out that this Wabenshal is parked on my size 8 needles!

Baby Sizing

2011-02-14T14:04:00.000-05:00

It's that time again, time to put the pedal to the metal and crank out some baby things for a shower. How do these things creep up on me? My friend Mary made a special request for purple booties and I am happy to oblige, but of course I can't just make booties, I need to make a hat too! I've known about this since sometime in the fall, and Mary is due in April, so I had plenty of time. I made a winter hat for myself, the Cabled Chapeau (which you will see a finished picture of soon), worked on some other unfinished projects, and started but didn't finish a scarf for my sister's birthday in December. I wanted to finish the scarf before starting the baby things, but now I'm getting down to the wire.

Mary's baby shower is March 5th so I need to mail the gift by March 1st. That's two weeks from today! Now if I could just get knitting...though that hasn't been the problem. The problem is size.

I picked out the patterns months ago, bought the yarn a few weeks ago, but didn't sit down and read through everything until I was ready to start. Common mistake. I bought Plymouth Encore in worsted, but the Etanapipa snail hat calls for bulky, and Saartje's Bootees call for fingering weight. Ugh!

-Snail Hat-
1st cast on - size 10 needles, yarn doubled. Too confusing, can't figure out if the hat is the right size, pulling from both ends of one skein. Frogged.
2nd cast one - size 9 needles. Cast on 64 stitches. Slightly stretched it's 16-17" - too big for a baby, more like a toddler size. And I had added a stitch somewhere. Frogged.
3rd cast on - size 9 needles. Cast on 48 stitches. Stretched it's 12" - way too small. Frogged.
4th cast on - size 9 needles. Cast on 56 stitches. Stretched it's 14-15". Sticking with this one.

Never mind that bebecita probably doesn't need a woolly knitted hat in April. It's upstate NY. It still snows in April and May sometimes.

I've been referencing this size chart to figure out how big to make the hat.

-Saartje's Bootees-
1st cast on - size 7 needles. Seemed to crowded. Frogged.
Waiting until I'm finished with the hat to cast on again, probably with size 8 needles.

A late start...

2011-02-09T13:00:00.000-05:00

I had big plans for this January; blogging, crafting, getting fit, trying new things, and generally living a wonderful life. I underestimated the impact that major tragedies in my friends lives would have on mine, and I have spent January mourning and comforting, getting sick, and watching the structure in my own life disappear as I lose sight of my goals.

I need to treat February as my fresh start. February is usually the toughest month for me. It's the bleakest month. No end to winter in sight, resolutions abandoned or broken, no more holidays for a long while (none that I celebrate anyway - we don't have to talk about that pulsating pink target in the middle of the month) and it's harder than ever to get out of bed and get things done.

Not only that, but it seems that the knitting callus on my left index finger is disappearing from lack of use. Come back! I didn't even know I had achieved a knitting callus! I can't imagine what else it would be from that I'm not doing at the moment...does reading cause calluses? I'm not doing much of that either.

I still have my yearly goal of reading 52 books in 52 weeks, but I'm off to a bad start this year.

Still, I have a bunch of knitting projects in the works, and am planning on spending the rest of February working on my knitting. I need to start and finish two items for a friend's baby shower in early March.
I'm making the Etanapipa - Snail hat in a wee size and Saartje's Bootees by Saartje de Bruijn. I've had both of these in my Ravelry queue since I learned to knit a few years back and haven't tried them until now becuase I was intimidated. Why? They aren't difficult items in complexity or difficulty. And they're small. It should take me a week or less for each item.

Citron update - I knit and knit and knit, and still I have not reached the end of the first ball of Malabrigo. I brought this project with me on my trip to Las Vegas, small, light, and not too complicated. I knit on it during my flight across the country, but was way too busy to knit a thing once I got to my destination. Still, I managed to knit 10 rows and listen to all of my downloaded podcasts from Sticks and String.

Other knitting updates and many more posts to follow. I have a bunch in draft form that are waiting for completion. Maybe this weekend...

Cable complications

2010-11-29T16:13:00.000-05:00

I got to row 10 on the Cabled Chapeau hat and just didn't like what was happening with the purl stitches in between the cables. I was ending up with loose purl stitches, particularly to the right of the cable (for most knitters this happens in the column of stitches to the left of the cable, but I'm a lefty so it's reversed, remember?) I started searching online for help and ended up with some pretty complicated methods to try.

Cat bordhi has a video for just such a problem, however it's a complicated move that I could not grasp. Side linked with this were clips on how to do the Norwegian purl stitch, which looks to be the same move. Again, a bit tricky. I read somewhere that you could leave out a purl stitch in each place where the loose purl happens, knit the garment, then go back and pull up a line of stitches in that loose area with a crochet hook. Sort of picking up a dropped stitch that wasn't there. This seems like a lot of trouble to go to, modifying the pattern, adding the potential for lots of error. Knitty has a great section on knitting cables that does mention the loose purl stitch problem and essentially says, pull it real tight!

I decided to rip back to the ribbing section and start the cables over. I realized though that my cast-on/ribbing section was looser than I normally knit, and so the stitch spacing of the whole hat would be off, and after knitting two rows I ripped it all out again.

On row 2 of the second try I noticed that when I joined the yarn I didn't join it properly and once again, I have an infinite loop instead of a hat. I did this with my second try for the baby berry hat too. I never used to have a problem joining, but it seems to happen when I use a circular needle that's longer than I need it. If I plan to use magic loop for the knitting I just cast on with the longer needle, but then it's very easy to twist the join without noticing. So, 6 days after starting the hat and knitting along, I cast on for the third time. *sigh*

I decided to reverse the directions for the cable. The pattern calls for a 4/4 LPC (slip 4 stitches to cable needle and hold to front) to make left twist cables. For me, since I am lefty, I do this and get right twist cables. I really like how the hat looks as is, so I held the stitches in the back.

I managed to finish the main body of the hat while away for Thanksgiving, and started in on the brim only to realize that I needed a refresher on short rows. The hat pattern does not include full instructions on short rows. Once I was back home and could sit in front of the computer I sought some visual aids. Everyone has their own way of explaining the strange 'wrap and turn' function that makes short rows possible. I found watching the video on knitting help to be the most straight forward for me. I think this time I finally understand! Maybe now toe-up socks won't seem so scary.

So, all I have to do is finish the brim, knit the band for across the front, find buttons, eat a container of Cool-Whip, cut a brim out of Cool-Whip lid, sew it all together, and...I think I need a nap.

2010-11-27T20:09:00.001-05:00

I got motivated after returning from P-town and lugged the abandoned radiator cover upstairs. Here it is drying in my bathtub after a good scrub. It's bigger than my radiator but at least it'll be a shelf and it's worth trying right?

From One Hat to Another

2010-11-17T23:06:00.000-05:00

I finished a project! Late Sunday night I completed the baby hat for my friend's 17-month-old. I made them matching hats out of the Berry Baby Hat pattern and used black and white, flipping the colors so mom has the white with black top, and baby has the black with white top. I hope I can get it in the mail tomorrow. They've already had a bit of snow there!

Very late Sunday night I started a new project, the Cabled Chapeau, a pattern from Stitch Nation which is free on their site and on Coats and Clark. Last year I made a hat I loved but it doesn't look good on me. I would also need to frog it a bit and make the crown a lot deeper to get the fit I'm after, namely, to cover my bloody ears!

I'm using Plymouth Encore Worsted Tweed for this project. It's a wool/acrylic/viscose blend that is springy and soft. I noticed when casting on that this yarn is a 'Z' twist. I hope that doesn't cause too much of a problem for me. The only other time I knit with a 'Z' twist was for a baby kimono sweater in 2009. The Lion Brand Microspun has a tight 'Z' twist which gave the knitted fabric a different texture. This yarn seems to knit up fast and is very cushy and lovely so I hope that will offset the irritation of cables. They are lovely after all, so I must put up with them.

Tonight when I picked up the hat to work on it, I noticed a weird stitch. Well, not so much a stitch a mistake. There is a loop of yarn pulled from one row up over 5 rows and knitting back in. I don't know how this happened, but I will be ripping back a bit tonight to take care of it.

Also, does anyone have tips on how to knit cables? I end up with some loose stitches on one side of my cables, and I think there's a trick to preventing that, twisting the stitch, or knitting through the back? Something like that.

Projects check in - late fall 2010

2010-11-14T18:20:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago I was sick and down for the count with the really bad cold that's been going around. My knitting friends tell me they are able to knit when sick, and I suppose I could probably manage some stockinette or garter stitch on a project, if I had one that was that simple. I wish I spent more time working on knitting and other projects. When I'm sick I don't do much of anything, and when I feel fine I waste a lot of time on the internet or watching tv with knitting in my lap. Maybe I need to institute a rule that I can only watch tv if I'm actively knitting since I don't have any progress to show. I did try and knit while I was sick and realized later that I did have a stockinette hat in the round in progress, but instead had reached for my Lace Ribbon scarf - been in progress since, oh, May 16, 2009, according to my Ravelry notes.

Do I really knit that slowly? No. I have major startitis. It's disappointing that I can't seem to finish projects. Story of my life. REALLY. I think it might be time for a post about all of the 'in progress' projects and a run down of where they stand and why. Sound good?

I actually HAVE been working on some of these. Here's a quick list of what I've work on in the past month (fiberwise):

Babette - came out of hiding, looked at ALL the yarn. Started work on some in progress squares. Monday night 10/25 tried to start a new square and realized I can't remember how to start them. That's always been a stumbling block with this project, nothing new. Hate starting new squares.

Lace Ribbon scarf - this was next to the couch so I started working on it again 10/24. Have done 7 rows!

Citron - worked on at knitting group briefly 10/18. Realized I had a dropped stitch and panicked. Wasn't feeling good (impending monster cold) and set it aside with dropped stitch caught and marked. A big thanks to Jimmy who counted all 273 stitches and discovered that no, I didn't have any weird stitches going on and yes, just keep knitting. So, I've done another row, and put it down to work on

Black and White Pair, hat #2 - no excuse for this not being done other than monster cold. As I write this I am working on the i-cord stem of the hat, but stopped to post! I will definitely be able to follow up with another post on the finished product tomorrow!

Static Socks - probably 5 more rows knit because I was going through all my projects.

Emmaline - I stopped this because I reached the point in the armpit where I needed to continue on with the body, and the stitch count didn't add up. Now I've lost some weight and was thinking about ripping it out, but I think I will continue on and make the whole thing so at least I can say I've made myself a wearable garment. I was going to have to modify the belly area on the original pattern, but now I will knit it as written and see where I end up with the fit. Maybe I'll be finished by spring?

Wabenschal - I started this during my last flurry of startitis. I sort of like the pattern, but I am pretty sure I hate the yarn. Its scratchy and I can't think of anyone I could give it to who would be please to put this around their neck, so I'm going to move it to hibernation for now and probably frog it.
One project was in the current list, but...

Modified Twenny Dolla Sweater - officially frogged and put needles, yarn, etc back where they belong.

Posts coming up - an update on all my hibernating projects, sharing my new ~~obsession~~ craft, and reorganizing my craft bookshelf.

2010-11-07T15:47:00.001-05:00

My very first spinning! Done at the Inaugural Fiber Festival of New England.

This message has been sent using the picture and Video service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.

The Bag in my closet

2010-10-29T21:25:00.000-04:00

This evening after work, after spending some quality time with my cat Harry, after eating cottage cheese out of the container while watching clips of Michael J. Fox talk about Back to the Future (it's the 25th anniversary of when he went back in time, didn't you know that?), I settled in to do a bit of picking up. I picked through my aromatherapy oils and put something suitable in the burner, pushed play on the stereo to listen to Death Cab for Cutie, and began.

Putting anything away in my closet usually involves taking the contents of my closet out. The air conditioner has its own place, but to get to the empty box I had to pull out the mini trampoline and flattened storage boxes. Not a perfect system, but it works. I realized that there was no empty space in my closet and decided to pull everything out that didn't have a place, namely everything wedged behind and under the hanging clothes.

Out came rolls of wrapping paper, shoes, a purse, boxes of cat litter (actually those belong at the bottom of the closet, that is their designated storage spot) and last but most important, I pulled a Bag out of the bottom of my closet. Bag is capitalized because it means a very special sort of bag. The kind of bag that develops from my haphazard way of dealing with messes, stressors, company coming, lack of available surfaces, the urge to clean, etc. I end up with these bags stashed all over my apartment. They can be plastic grocery bags, but I seem to have moved on to paper grocery bags and more substantial reusable shopping bags.

Anyway, let's look at the contents. For the first time I am going to list what I find.

The bag itself - a paper shopping bag from The Container Store. How fitting!

Contents:
1 pair of pants - put in the bag when they were a little too small. Now they are too big. Into the donate bin!
1 scarf - a friend had one like this and it looked good on her. I have never worn this - would be good for a gift?
1 paper bag full of stuff - a Bag within a Bag.
silver tissue paper
2 cancelled stamps
1 plastic lid - recycle
3 unused Band-aids
1 expired coffee coupon
1 sewing kit
1 6 outlet power strip
my knitting needle gauge!
1 double pointed knitting needle - I've been looking for this for at least a month
1 crochet pattern
1 empty plastic grocery bag
unused tissues (yes I will throw them out)
1 teddy bear filled with catnip (now I know why my cat disappears into the closet all the time)
bubble wrap
1 return envelope
1 mini notebook with pen, with only the 2 pages used
8 plastic hanging file labels
4 bits of trash (post it note, wrapper, etc)
1 trouser sock
1 black lacquered strip of wood that looks like it fell off of something - wait - that's off a picture frame in the living room?
name badge from a sci-fi convention in January 2009

Phew! But wait...there was a Bag within a Bag. What is in THAT Bag?
cassette tape of a bootleg Phish concert, 1997
1 used Band-Aid (I know, gross)
catalog of accessories for my cell phone, in Spanish
freebie 2009 pocket calendar book
email printout of family Christmas lists, 2009
1 Christmas card that came back in the mail - maybe I should send it to my friend for this year?
1 birthday card from last year
Energy Guide sticker and new owner paperwork from the refrigerator in my apartment
hanging file folder labeled Astrology Stuff, which yes, contains my astrological chart
half of a Real Simple magazine, March 2008
paperwork from LL Bean return from 2005
pamphlet on the nutrition department at my doctor's office
sushi menu
pet store loyalty card
instruction sheet for my mini trampoline
a book forced on me belonging to someone I no longer know - donate
1 filter that fits into the lid of the litter box, but I tossed the lid this summer
crossword puzzle book
Comcast cable agreement pamphlet
insert from the Boston Sunday Globe, January 4, 2009
2008 wall calendar
Obama cross stitch pattern

I wonder if this could be considered a Time Capsule, a term that professional organizers and clinical psychologists often use when dealing with hoarders. Everything from one particular time gets dumped into a container, and time stops for those things. Time seems to have stopped mid January 2009. Eep!

Interesting that I did not find:
a rock
a marble
coins
receipts
I forget what else my sister says lurks in every bag I open, but whatever that stuff was, it's not here. I think this bag was worked over a bit before it ended up being a bag in the closet. There is a definite pocket of paper that should be in the recycle bin at the bottom. Hmm.
Well, that's what I did with my Friday night.

2010-10-15T20:42:00.002-04:00

I think i have found the perfect trench coat! and i think there are 2 women wearing the same coat but in different colors both right next each other. Is that weird? I LOVE the belt detail. slit grommet things on a special fitted waist panel. beautiful! I managed to read Via Spiga on the buttons of the girl now sitting. I think I have to run home and look up this coat. I always love via spiga shoes when I find them on clearance at DSW. And the clearance price? Around $100. It probably doesn't come in my size anyway...

Slog along...

2010-10-14T18:57:00.000-04:00

So, I was reading some posts by Mooncalf and trying to catch up so that I've read and seen all of her lovely knits, when I started reading a post called Slog Along 2010. In it she references a podcast by Stash and Burn as her inspiration, and it seems to have something to do with working on hibernating WIPS, so of course I want to know more. Didn't I just pull Babette out from the darkness and see what was what?

But what is this Stash and Burn? I typed it into Google and found a website with NINETY-SEVEN podcasts, ready for listening. How have I never heard of this before? I have only listened #97 so far, which prompted me to pull out ALL of the Babette mess that is on my yarn shelf...

Yes, that's 4 plastic shoebox-sized containers of yarn or squares and a bigger showbox, and a project bag of current squares and yarn. It looks like a lot but hey, if it's going to turn into a full/queen blanket then there had better be a lot of yarn! I bought the yarn in two stages. When I first committed to the project I waited until a sale at AC Moore and bought 20? skeins, in 17 colors. Then a long while later, the Vanna's Choice line was expanded to include brighter colors, and I went out and bought 5 of those. Doesn't it look nice with my blue couch?

On another note, the handle end of my Babette crochet hook is nicked and is bothering my hand something terrible. Any thoughts on how to fix? I wrapped the end in medical tape, but that's now a bit sticky and irritating. I know there's Plasti-Dip, cool handle dippy stuff, but it's probably cheaper to just get another hook right? Anyone has a spare round-tipped J hook that they can't stand the sight of and want to get rid of it?

2010-10-13T22:55:00.001-04:00

Babette is back in rotation!

2010-10-04T11:02:00.001-04:00

To prove I wore a skirt today... not saying it looks good...both the shirt and skirt are too big somehow. didn't I just go shopping? I did try on skirts but didn't find anything I liked. I wasn't quite ready to buy skirts. And as of this morning, 25 pounds gone since April 24. Hooray! Maybe that's why none of my clothes fit? This week's loss was 2 pounds. I ate more than normal this week and didn't work out once. Maybe my body just needed a break. I also feel terrible from getting a tetanus shot Friday. Like a mild flu. Blech.

Shaping up...

2010-09-30T10:48:00.001-04:00

0918002328.jpg
Originally uploaded by bareblueskin

Not a great picture, but it was really late with low light and my cell phone. And I was a bit tipsy... This is what I wore to a pirate costume party. Not so much pirate as mime, dressed as french barista, dressed as pirate. Hmmm.

I took the photo because for the first time in a long time I felt good about how I looked. I fit into clothes I haven't worn in TWO years! And didn't have to suck anything in. Woot!

2010-09-27T10:18:00.002-04:00

Mmm. Nothing like a grilled cheese on whole wheat with tomato and avocado. For breakfast. After a meeting with my nutritionst. Did I mention it's Muenster cheese? Mmmmmm.

Black and White Hats

2010-09-24T15:14:00.000-04:00

Little Xavier grew out of his blueberry hat, and I've had a request for a new hat, but this time with a matching one for mom, and this time, in black and white! So, Xavier's hat will be black on bottom, white on top, and Emily's hat will be white on bottom, black on top. I bought the yarns months ago but I'm seeing them in two weeks (!) so I'd better get knitting. I managed to make the 6 month hat in a week before, and that was with cotton yarn which was tougher to work with, so I'm hoping that I will be able to crank out these two hats. (holy run-on sentences, Batman!)

That means I won't be able to work on Citron OR my new socks, and once again I have way too many projects sitting around collecting dust.

Rav link for hat project: Black and White Hats

This week has been long and tiring, and I'm struggling with being hungry and getting workouts in at all. This weekend is full of activities - book group, party, outdoor music, and while I do want to go to all of them and see peple I'm just so tired. Maybe tonight I'll skip the workout and just do laundry, knit, take a nap, have dinner, wash dishes, reorganize my apartment...

Parmesan-Cauliflower Fritters

2010-09-22T13:51:00.000-04:00

***I found this post sitting in my draft posts, but it's all done as far as I can tell, and I've made this recipe a lot. I think it will be a good staple for fall.***

Sitting at work this afternoon I started thinking about what the heck I was going to make for dinner. It's dreadfully hot, I am sort of out of anything fresh (veg, fruit, meat, dairy, yep, all of it) and I'm NOT going to grocery store and walking my purchases home when it's 90 degrees out and sunny. Perish the thought, or perish myself, right?

I was going to walk through the harvard Square farmer's market on the way home, so I picked up some tomatoes, Narragansett Creamery cheese, local handmade chocolate, etc, but I had already decided to make a recipe that I made for the first time last week, which uses the oven. How crazy is that?

I found myself mentioning this recipe to my sister, to friends, it was that good!

Parmesan-Cauliflower Fritters

Biggest Loser Year 10!

2010-09-21T16:53:00.001-04:00

Along with the fall 2010 season of the Biggest Loser I am starting a new challenge for myself in my fitness and weight loss efforts.

I joined a Ravelry group for some added motivation called Biggest Loser Fitness and Knitting*. There is a mini competition where people can sign up to keep track of percentage of weight lost, and will be matched up with motivation buddies and that sort of thing. There are already some discussion threads going about nutrition and exercise. I am also helping out as assistant moderator.

Of course, since this group is on a knitting site, there will be some knitting and crafting involved. Hopefully there will be a knit-a-long too.

So far my goals are to:
-work out a minimum of 3 days a week
-convince my doctor to take me off blood pressure meds
-strengthen the muscles around my knee and thereby stop the creaking and occasional pain
-continue to lose weight - at least 1 pound a week
-lose 30 pounds by December 31, 2010
-buy and use a heart rate monitor to keep my workouts more consistent and more productive

The premiere is tonight! Off to buy healthy groceries, work out, and watch the show.

*You have to be a member of Ravelry to join the group.

2010-09-15T19:29:00.002-04:00

Two dueling guitars - one plays American heartland, the other a screetching rock riff. two skaters trip by in the street, inline and old school big wheels paired together. In a back yard big band horns rehearshal takes place as 4, no 5 runners pass by. And yes, woodsmoke on the air to my door. This is my neighborhood at 7:25 pm on a Wednesday.

2010-09-11T17:11:00.001-04:00

Grocery shopping

2010-09-10T18:58:00.000-04:00

Thursday after work I went grocery shopping. While I was sitting at my desk at work, I wrote out a perfunctory list. I realized at the end of my struggle in the frozen food aisle that I had pretty much stuck to my list. I did buy a few extra items, but I also didn't get two things. I NEVER stick to my list. This is a milestone!

Here's what I bought:

*items that were on my list

*Yogurt
*Cheese sticks
*Dubliner cheese
*Cottage cheese
*Cheese (yes, after all that, I needed to write down just "cheese" because I didn't have enough. Yes, I bought 4 distinct kinds of cheese. No, I was not having a wine and cheese party. Shush)
*Zucchini
*Spinach
*Broccoli
*Tomato sauce
~~Mushrooms~~
~~Frozen smoothie stuff~~
*Grapes
*Melon
*Triscuits
*Beans
Bananas
Sweet Potato
Bagged lettuce (I've been craving salad and figured, why not?)
Carrots
Croutons
Skinny Cow single serve Cookies and Cream ice cream
Thin Crust Margherita Pizza (It was on sale!)
Still, my purchases came to more than I thought they would. I even bought lot of things on sale or in their natural state, and tried to stick to my list.
Total spent - $64.95
11 out of 23 items on sale
Total saved - $9.26
Most expensive item - 24 pack of low fat string cheese
Least expensive item - bananas, $.69/lb., got 2 for $.50

I'm just so irked at the cost of decent food. Ugh. Sure, I could have only bought sale items and store brand, and trekked around the city from store to store cashing in on the bargains. I don't have a car. The grocery store I go to is in the city and has a high mark up. I am however able to walk home from the store and eliminate the need for a taxi or long bus ride and total exhaustion, thought I do tend to collapse once I get home from the sheer irritation factor of having to go to the store at all.

I'm also kind of shocked at how healthy this list is and the fact that there's no chocolate (unless you count the tiny single serving of Skinny Cow and let's face it, it's probably not 'real' anything. My eating has really changed for the better!

Slow progress, or maybe not...

2010-09-07T14:35:00.006-04:00

I finally saw some change on the scale this week. After three weeks of nothing, I'm 3.4 down, bring me to 18.4 down since April 24, 2010 (my starting off point). I should be excited, thrilled, blah blah blah. The only ting running through my head lately is "how long until I get to my goal?" Or even "how long until I get to my mid-way goal of 200?" Seems like a long time away. Forever. I've been using a free App on my iPod Touch called Lose It! to track food and exercise. It lets me put in a goal and plan how much I want to lose per week up to two pounds, so two pounds it is. Even with that formidable weekly target I will not hit 200 until January 6, 2011 (according to the program). I thought - that can't be right, let me do the math myself. I printed out a blank calendar sheet for September 1 - December 31 and wrote in what my weight should be each week with the 2 pound loss. Well, the tech program is right. January 6, 2011, If I stay on track and lose that much each week. If I never give in to temptation and don't hit any plateaus. Ugh.

*Yeah, if I cared about people knowing how much I weighed before, I guess I don't now. Whatever the number is now it less than my highest. So figure out whatever you want. Thbbft!

Taking time for breath

2010-09-02T13:09:00.000-04:00

During my lunch break today I must have heated and reheated my lunch 3 separate times while poking through emails, printing out invoices, poking around the internet, and playing on Facebook. And squirming around in my chair, hunched with stress and back pain.

I decided to try one of Kripalu's Audio Yoga Breaks for a little mindfulness to break up the day. How do I feel? Is this how I want to feel? I listened to Yoga Taps with Danny Arguetty. It was about 4 and a half minutes long, and guided me through a standing sort of soft pummeling of my body, working through the limbs, belly, butt, back, etc. as a way to increase circulation, stretch a little, and just step out of the stress of the day for a few minutes. It was great! I felt calmer, less tense, more awake, and more present in my day. I think I might start doing that when I hit my 2pm slump.

Kripalu has about a dozen of these 'breaks' posted on their site. Try one and let me know what you think.

2010-08-31T18:47:00.000-04:00

God, is it hot. I am laying on the bed, half-dressed in the path of the fan, and I just dripped SKinny Cow fudge pop on the latest weight-loss memoir I'm reading from the library, Half-Assed* by Jennette Fulda. Whoops! What did I say I would do when I got home? Oh, right, work out with the P90 Sweat DVD. Uh huh. Maybe in an hour. While I'm doing laundry, cooking dinner, and talking to my sister. I think I'd rather read.

*This book is #31 on my 2010 reads list. Still attempting to read 52 books in 52 weeks, but not pressuring myself this year to finish everything I start reading. If it's bad, stop!

Citron progress

2010-08-24T16:10:00.000-04:00

I have finished Row 18 of the 5th section. The pattern calls for 5 sections of 20 rows and a border section of 12 rows. I am definitely doing two more sections. I will never wear it if I stop at this size. I know the pattern makes more of a shawlette, but if this thing will never cover my shoulders, I think I would fling it across the room and leave it there. Maybe if I knit every day...I'll be done before the snow flies! Two more sections is 40 more rows, and these are biiiig rows that get over 600 stitches across. Eeep!

I also want to pick up a project from last fall - a wedding gift of a cabled pillow for my sister that I lost momentum on as the wedding drew closer. I figure if I can finish it by her 1 year anniversary then I'm in the clear. And I think that switching from working on my lace weight Citron to a worsted weight project will make the rows fly by! If you happen to look at the project in Ravelry, I have more knit than shows on the project page. Honestly I do! I just haven't updated the photo. Which I will do. Tonight. Really.

Citron frustration

2010-08-16T14:24:00.000-04:00

I was poking around on Ravelry looking at finished Citron shawls, and found poofus73's citron. She said it ended up looking like a tiny tea towel! That's exactly what I'm worried about. I am from healthy German stock and have the proportions to prove it. I don't want a big floppy shawl thing, but I also don't want to end up with a tea towel that I spent 6 months making (at this point) that doesn't look good and I won't wear out of the house. The shawl model on Knitty looks quite tiny and I can't see how that same size shawl on me will even come over my shoulders. I've now knit to the point where I am halfway done with the 5th and final section. Then there is a ruffle edge section which is 12 rows. I can sort of try it on now, but I certainly can't hold it AND see where it falls, let alone take a photo. I think there might have to be some photos taken at my knitting group tonight.

When I bought the yarn to make this shawl I bought two skeins of Malabrigo lace, planning on making it doubly big. I just don't want it TOO big. And I know it will stretch out a bit. Relax. Settle in to it's shape. So I don't want to go wild and add too many extra sections. I've seen some pictures of this shawl with anywhere from 5-9 sections. The thing is, in most of the photos, the shawl is laid out flat and NOT shown on a person. How do I know how big it turns out if people don't photograph themselves wearing it???

Hopefully photo of 5 full repeats to follow soon.

Taking a breath

2010-08-16T12:09:00.000-04:00

Sleep has been hard to come by for the past few weeks. A combination of reluctance to head towards rest time, mental and physical distractions including endless self improvement, impossible perfection standards, and a midnight visit from a bat have kept me from getting more than 5 hours of sleep at a stretch. I am ~~tired~~ exhausted. I am starting to resemble an after image. I have not been able to quiet my mind because I haven't taken the time for myself to make it possible.

I've managed to read a lot of books during this time, but my knitting has suffered a great deal - mainly becuase I don't trust myself to knit when I'm tired and not drop stitches, make mistakes, or switch directions in the middle of a row, as I did during my knitting group a few weeks ago!

Starting to practice yoga more, even if it's for 5 minutes. It helps me center and quiet my mind, this ambitious beast clamoring to outdo Wonder Woman by sheer volume of accomplishments. I end up with a pile of started projects, but nothing to show for my spinning wheels. I know what to do, I just need to think I am valuable enough to take care of and spend the time.

Last week I read this on PlanetYoga:

"Waking up this morning, I smile, 24 brand new hours are before me. I vow to live fully in each moment and to look at all beings with the eyes of compassion."-Thich Nhat Hanh

Meditation for today: sit comfortably tall, close your eyes, listen softly to your normal breath. Smile.

Today's lunch

2010-07-28T13:28:00.001-04:00

Today's lunch 7.28.10
Originally uploaded by bareblueskin

consists of steamed green beans (love those frozen steam-ready bags), half a chicken breast left over from enchiladas a few nights ago, salsa, and a mozzarella string cheeseover the top. And maybe some crackers and grapes later if I'm still hungry.

I tend to skip the protein and eat carb heavy, but I'm learning that is the main reason I can't lose weight - even if I'm good with calories and the kind of food I'm eating.

This actually tastes pretty good. Maybe I'll skip the crackers - I know my nutritionist would be happier if I did!

Knitting content coming soon...

2010-07-14T16:01:00.002-04:00

I've been trying to get more produce at the farmer's market and I keep meaning to keep a tally on here of what I purchase, but as you probably have noticed I haven't been posting much.

Last week at the Harvard Square Farmers Market I bought 4 zucchini, fava beans (yum!), and Narragansett Creamery Angelito Herb & Garlic Spread.

This week I went looking for more fava beans, but there were none to be found. Maybe I got them at the Davis Square market? That happens tonight. Yesterday at the Harvard Square Farmers Market I picked up Tomatoes, Broccoli, and of course, Narragansett Creamery Angelito Herb & Garlic Spread.

It's been very stormy here, with sudden thunderstorms in the afternoon accompanied by small flash floods. I haven't looked at my garden since Sunday because I don't want to see what's been flattened until the rain is done. maybe I'll take a look tonight, just to see if I should stake anything up.

Gettin' er done!

2010-06-26T20:07:00.002-04:00

Finally, a productive Saturday!

It is 8:12 pm, and I have done the following:
wtered vegetable garden
watered indoor plants
folded/hung up dry clothes from rack and put rack away!
Washed kitchen trash can
dumped, washed, and refilled litter pan
took out trash, recyling, and compost
talked to big sister for 3 hours
knitted 5 rows (hey, that's a lot for me)
run backup on my computer
located and tossed rotten potato

Summer weekends

2010-06-21T13:27:00.001-04:00

I feel like this was my first official summer weekend this year, and I spent it doing lots of summer things. I:

-sprawled out in front of the fan and watch BBC America for hours (How Clean is Your House?, You Are What You Eat, Top Gear)
-made a pitcher of peach iced tea and drank it all in an hour
-did my crazy P90 cardio workout and yes, the Ab Ripper 100 too
-ate lunch and people watched in Boston Common
-spent time reconnecting with someone from high school and I think she and I will now be great friends - it only took 18 years!
-went to the MFA and soaked up some good art, stinky cheese, and sangria
-went for pizza
-ate Abbott's frozen custard from my hometown but in Needham, MA!
-puttered around in the garden
-watched as my computer slipped into a coma (not sure yet what the problem is or if it's fixable)
-pulled out a hibernating scarf project and knit on it for a while
-managed to sunburn just my neck and shoulders
-pulled smaller summer clothes out of underbed storage. I put on my shorts to go outside, and realized they were baggy. As in, too big for me. Hooray! So I decided to try some of the "used to fit but don't right now" clothes and voila! We have fitting! (must be a sign of weight loss but I'm too nervous to check)

Progress Bars

2010-06-16T16:16:00.000-04:00

So right now I think I have five different posts in draft form, all 90% complete, and they haven't made it out here to the actual page where you readers can see them. Soon, I promise, I will post those and more. But for now, my first quick attempt at adding progress bars for my Ravelry projects. Ta-dah! (looks right) And...the percentages display in white, on white background. Hmm. And no thumbnail photos...Well, at least there are bars, and I'll get to fixing hopefully tonight, or this weekend.

2010-06-10T19:48:00.001-04:00

The start of Power 90 - I have now taken 50 kajillion photos of myself in current fat state. with shirt, no shirt, all angles. did measurements beforehand. i am pleased that some measurements are smaller than when taken in december. am blinded by the camera now and am okay to start the first scary workout. wish me luck!