Melissa found this beauty at Dover Cards.
Damian would love to have one of his own, but I’m afraid he’d be a bit overeager about using the horn.
January 06 2009 | Beatrice and Curious Creek Fibers and FOs and Spartacus and Uncategorized and WIPs and Yarn Reviews | 1 Comment »
It’s that magical (so to speak) time of the year again when several hundred writing instructors for the various UC campuses meet in Berkeley to devote a long weekend to scoring writing placement exams for next fall’s entering class. We’ll be reading 19,000+ exams, each of them twice and a good number of them three times (those with divergent or borderline scores all get an extra looking at). It comes out to something like 85 exams per day per reader.
I had a brief fantasy of going with Melissa to see Beowulf: A Thousand Years of Baggage one evening after the read, but I came to my senses before I bought the tickets and remembered that by 5:00 on any given day during the big read I’m pretty much brain dead. (I bring my radio so I can listen to the ballgame in the evenings, but generally don’t even last for all of that.) I am still hoping we will get to a performance before it closes—I am all for combinations of epic story-telling and mockery of academic excesses.
If any aspect of the read is truly magic, it’s the food service—though white magic or black is certainly an open question. Every time one turns around big trays full of croissants, cookies, scones, or brownies are popping up, beckoning one in with their promises of tongue-pleasing yumminess and sugar-fueled energy bursts. Of course these delights are soon followed by a cannonball-in-the-gut leadenness and post-sugar-high coma—but just try remembering that when confronted by trays full of baked goods. (We are all the product of millions of years of evolutionary tinkering during most of which “grab the pastry!” was an excellent survival strategy. Sadly, our genome is hundreds of years behind the times on that score, still urging us to binge at every opportunity like monkeys eking out an existence on a drought-ridden African savannah.) I have been muttering, “I’ll just have a piece of fruit” to myself over and over again all week in preparation.
I have resurrected my second Ruffles and Ridges shawl as my big read knitting project. It’s ideal: lots of long, long rows of mostly K or P, with a gradual decrease in length, so that I have some hopes of feeling that I’m picking up steam right around the time I hit the exam-read “wall” on Saturday afternoon. I have not yet decided what I’ll be bringing as a back-up project—perhaps some of my yummy Stitches West yarn and the Impressionist Cowl pattern from FiddleLee. On the other hand, I could always knit it in—you knew I’d be saying this—malabrigo.
May 28 2008 | Academia and Malabrigo Worsted | 1 Comment »
Today being at work doesn’t feel nearly as burdensome as it did Friday. The office re-do courtesy of my friend Ellen certainly helps. I also dug out a crystal that had been given to me by a friend years (about 23!) ago and hung that in the window, so I can give it a spin and watch the wild dance of spectra.
Saturday was the memorial service for a dear friend of mine who died unexpectedly last month. This is the first friend I’ve had who has died of more-or-less natural causes, and I am simply not ready to accept that someone in my peer group has been around long enough that it’s appropriate for her to be leaving. She was a good match for me—we shared all sorts of semi-obscure interests, including a fascination with space exploration, an enthusiasm for ballroom dance, and an occasionally eye-rolling appreciation for the choreography of Michael Smuin. It only takes one good connection to make a friendship, but she and I had all sorts of connections, so there have been and will be many moments when I come across something I want to share with her, then realize that opportunity has passed. The service, which we held at the local Quaker church, was surprisingly comforting: I’d been resenting the need to mourn and to mark her death in such a definite way, but I loved getting to meet her different circles of friends and getting to see the affection and appreciation others had for her.
Sunday, I felt able to step a bit more solidly back into my own life. Melissa helped me get a start on the week’s cooking, including several good recipes from the latest issue of Vegetarian Times (definitely worth checking out, even if—like me—you’re not a vegetarian). And heedless of the number of projects I currently have on the needles, I cast on for something new—
one of the “Grand-Plan Capelets” from Wrap Style. I’m knitting it in (surprise, surprise!) Malabrigo, the creamed carrot colorway, which glows like a spring sunrise.
Now that I’m properly caffeinated and have indulged in a perusal of the new patterns on Ravelry, I’ll settle down to my “real” work. I have class enrollments to check and a syllabus to finalize, but I’m hoping I can plow through those quickly enough for a bit of backyard knitting while the sun’s still out.
March 31 2008 | Books and Knitting and Malabrigo Worsted | 3 Comments »
Melissa throws a holiday party every year. I help out a bit, but really it’s her show. She bakes cookies for days beforehand, plans and prepares savories, compiles holiday music CDs, and cleans like a woman possessed. I show up the day before and alternate getting distracted by work/knitting on-line and following Melissa’s instructions and completing discrete tasks. This year I was feeling particularly unfestive and burdened by work, so I am afraid I wasn’t the help-meet I should have been.
On Saturday afternoon, Melissa sent me to the grocery store for cilantro, tangerines, and extra chocolate. While I was there, I got the inspired idea of picking up a bottle of Chandon Blanc de Noirs. I got back home, popped the cork, and within a few sips, I was full of the holiday spirit: slicing cucumber for little bits of salmon to perch atop, wrapping itty-bittty pigs in itty-bitty blankets, filling bowls with bourbon balls, and gyrating along as we listened to Elvis singing “Blue Christmas.”
Look a little closer…. This year, we had the brilliant idea of making a tree-topper out of a Melita no. 5 coffee filter.
We spread out my Christmas cat quilt.
(There is a cat fabric for every holiday out there, and I have them all.)
On Sunday, after we’d recovered from the festivities, Melissa photographed my Shell Stitch Shawl. She had lots of help from the cats.
Maggie approved of the stitch pattern.
And Damian found it a nice, soft spot to settle down on for a grooming session.
As I said earlier, now that I’m adjusting to the contrast border, I’m liking it just fine.
I expect I’ll be knitting another one—also in Malabrigo—soon.
December 17 2007 | Cameo Shell Stitch Shawl and Cats and FOs and Malabrigo Worsted and Quilts | 3 Comments »
My Noro Silver Thaw version of Revontuli is finished and blocked, and we’ve had cold evenings of late, so it’s been getting use.
Aren’t the colors wonderful? Normally, I am not big on purple/violet, but pair it up with the right green and I just can’t get enough of it.
This pattern is such a quick, intuitive knit once it gets going and yields such wonderful results, I expect I’ll be working it up more than twice.
My Cameo Shawl is completed as well and awaiting blocking. I’ll be pestering Melissa to photograph it and upload the picture this weekend. I almost made it through the entire shawl with four skeins of malabrigo in bergamota, but ran just a bit short. (I should have made it. The pattern calls for 847 yards; I had 864. I must face facts: I appear to be a loose knitter.) So, I pulled out a skein of malabrigo in sealing wax and worked the last few rows in that color. I love how the shawl feels over my shoulders: all thick, soft sponginess. I’m still ambivalent about the change in color. It looks just fine, but since it isn’t what I’d pictured as I was working on the shawl, I haven’t quite accepted it yet. I need a little time enjoying its warmth to help me reconcile my mental image with the reality of the finished product.
Have any of you had a similar experience? Is it possible to accept that a knit isn’t the fantasy-item I dreamed it would be and to still fall back in love with it?
P.S. If you do not normally stop by Rose-Kim Knits for “Thursdays are for What the Hell is This?,” you might want to start. Today’s entry defies description.
December 13 2007 | Cameo Shell Stitch Shawl and FOs and Malabrigo Worsted and Revontuli Shawl | 6 Comments »
(I’m just practicing for what I’ll have to tell Melissa.)
The knitting theme of this weekend has been—surprise!—Malabrigo. I confess I am unfairly using patterns from Crystal Palace to knit up my Malabrigo, so I will have to buy generous amounts of Crystal Palace soon to balance out my knitting karma, but I shouldn’t find that difficult!
I’m knitting the Cameo Shell Stitch Shawl in Bergamota malabrigo, a vivid, pinky-coral. Every row or two, I have to stop to fondle the work in progress. The garter and shell stitch patterns are wonderfully thick and cozy. This shawl will be nice and warm—much more than a decorative something to toss over my shoulders. My one regret is that I have just four skeins of this malabrigo, which should be enough, but which is threatening to run out on me a few rows early. I’m hoping I can make it through the last of the shell stitches, then I can can cast off in a contrast color, but I may run out before that in which case I will be tinking and grumbling and working on a Plan B.
I’ve also started the Cabled Capelet in Col China malabrigo. This is a fun knit: enough variation in each row to prevent tedium (which is important with 300+ stitches per row), but a clear overall logic, so one never has to knit against one’s instincts. The color variation of this yarn works well with the pattern, giving it lots of depth, but not obscuring it.
When I started knitting, I took great pride in only working up my own designs, but I’m discovering that working from patterns has real benefits, as well. Following a pattern takes enough pressure off that I can dream things up while I’m knitting, wondering how I might rewrite a stitch to make it bigger or smaller, what other kinds of garments it could serve well for, and the like. I am still toying with possibilities for the mock cable used in Rosebud. Now the Cameo Shawl had me cooking up alternate versions of the shell stitch that would lend themselves to staggered placement and knitting in the round. It’s also teaching me how to add stitches gradually to build up to another lace repeat—a task that had me feeling a bit too intimidated to try Michelle Ciccariello’s lovely Aran Weight Victorian Lace Poncho, which is waiting its turn in my Ravelry queue.
If it weren’t for this thing called “work” that keeps getting in the way—who are these eighteen-year-olds and why do they keep asking me about their papers?—I could lose myself in an absolute frenzy of creativity.
*****
Chris had two good additions to my list of pet theories…
1. It’s ok to sometimes buy ‘less expensive’ yarn from mass marketers. It allows us to have enough money to afford the nicer yarns too. And to NOT feel guilty about it.
2. Knitter to non-knitter translation. “Let me do just one more row” really means “I’d rather stay home and eat cereal for dinner and watch movies (so I can knit).”
I would add a corollary to #2: any film in the theaters is bound to be out on DVD in a few months, so why pay money sit in a room where I’ll have to worry about crabby non-knitters and the possibility of dropping stitches in the dark?
*****
P.S. If you are in the mood to yield to temptation, check out Aurora Alpacas‘ new Dragonfly Shawl pattern.
*****
P.P.S. The Golden Fleece has a new shipment of Kauni in. (I can tell you all about it now that I’ve got mine *ewg.*)
December 10 2007 | Malabrigo Worsted | 4 Comments »
First off, I present you with the finished Revontuli.
I am delighted with this piece and expect to get a lot of use out of it.
I knit it in Kauni on U.S. 9 needles. This yarn blooms a good bit during blocking, so the needle size, while seeming somewhat large as I worked, was just right.
If you look closely here, you’ll be able to see the one change I made to the pattern. At the top center (the bright apple green), I am working the double decreases as written: Sl1, K2tog, PSSO. This results in a leaf-like or woven-looking decrease A bit further down (the gold-green), I changed to my favorite double decrease: Slip 2 together, K1, Pass Slipped Stitches Over Together. This decrease gives a raised vertical stitch, with a straighter, more architectural look.
When I was a kid and my mother sewed clothes for us, she used to say that she really felt she’d gotten her money’s worth if she used a pattern twice. In that spirit (though money’s not an issue, as this was a free pattern), I’m knitting a second Revontuli in Noro Silver Thaw (on sale now at Little Knits!).
Because this is a heavier yarn, I used U.S. 10.5 needles and I knit 9 fewer rows than the chart calls for, which allows me to end with a set of eyelets, followed by a K row and the bind off as in the original. This version is done now except for that bind off—and my fingers are itching for the moment when I can leave work to head home and get it done.
I’m also done knitting the Wanda’s Flowers Shawl from Wrapped in Comfort, though I haven’t blocked it yet. (Melissa takes great delight in doing little cheerleader moves while chanting “Block that shawl! Block that shawl!”)
The colors are a bit washed out in this shot, so imagine rich forest hues as you look at the photo.
The leafy lace pattern goes perfectly with the Malabrigo.
I modified the pattern slightly, beginning a few rows in for a wider neck band and moving up several needle sizes to suit the yarn. I’ll write those changes up and post them soon with a picture of the blocked shawl.
Meanwhile, I am itching to try another shawl from Wrapped in Comfort.
I’m also thinking about using my Malabrigo in the Bergamota colorway to make this shawl. And I love this shrug (though I don’t know if I love it enough to justify buying a $15 pattern book). Yum!
November 28 2007 | FOs and Malabrigo Worsted and Revontuli Shawl and Wanda's Flowers Shawl | 13 Comments »
In case any of you are thinking Melissa is a brute for denying me the opportunity to buy yarn, allow me to clarify. She did get me to promise to hold off on buying more (with my inserted list of exceptions), but only after I’d been both celebrating and bemoaning the fact that I’d purchased a nice lot of Soy Wool Stripes and other basic wools that I found on sale at Michaels (thanks Mrs. H!). The celebrating part needs no explanation, of course. The bemoaning has to do with not having sufficient funds in checking and deciding to put everything on the credit card. I will pay it all off at the start of the December, but I’ve worked long and hard to get myself to purchase yarn with cash (or the equivalent) only, so this was a slip-up for me.
Melissa is actually quite understanding about my sudden, desperate needs for new yarns, needles, etc.—just as I am understanding about her sudden, desperate needs for paints, canvases, gigantic rolls of watercolor paper, and the like. We’ll save money by buying cheaper food and fewer cleaning products, thank you.
At the The Golden Fleece’s community knitting on Sunday, Carol showed me the new Smooshy Sock yarn, and I was instantly smitten. I am happy to report that she, Margaret, and I have worked out a deal: I’m designing a pattern for them in Smooshy in exchange for some of the yarn. So, if you’re local be on the lookout for the results. Here are two hints: I’m making a hat, and I’m using two colors, Cloud Jungle (370) and Gothic Rose (340).
Melissa will verify that I have been absolutely rapturous about Smooshy. The Cloud Jungle colorway, which is a warm, but unassuming grey grey at a distance, is marvelously rich close up—shot through with plums and greens and deep teals. It takes about thirty seconds of working with this yarn to relieve my nastiest post-work headaches. (Carol and Margaret were probably wise to work out this swap with me. They’ve created an addict, and I won’t be able to stop with the two skeins I currently have in hand.)
This has been a wretchedly busy time at work (see headache reference above), and to distract myself I’ve begun working on my queue on Ravelry. I try to knit from free patterns when I can, so my queue is essentially becoming my own customized on-line pattern book. I can click on the project, then go from there to fetch the pattern or to see what results others have had with it. I’m trying to be reasonable, so I’ve managed to keep my queue down to only fifty-eight projects thus far.
November 21 2007 | California and Design Projects and Free Knitting Pattern Sites and LYSs and Ravelry and Smooshy Sock and The Golden Fleece and Yarn Reviews | 4 Comments »
Academic jobs (and many others, I suppose) tend to be pieced together out of a variety of activities/obligations. Right now, I’m juggling three chunks of work: my Shakespeare class, a textbook review for a publishing house, and mastering my “new job”: ELWR (Entry-Level Writing Requirement) Coordinator at UC Santa Cruz. You may remember my entry from May when I talked about the joys of UC’s statewide writing placement test and the process of reading thousands of student essays (two to three times each) over the course of a single weekend. Well, I’m now in charge of that exam on my campus and all the record-keeping and detail-tracking-down that entails. I will coordinate four yearly administrations of the exam here, organize two major readings of student portfolios, track all the pass/no-pass data, make sure student records are accurate, and do anything else related to the placement exam that falls into my lap—returning calls from worried students and fretting parents, projecting class enrollments, and the like. This job requires a very detailed calendar and a gazillion to-do lists. I’m approaching it with the idea that if I do 3-6 little tasks for it pretty much every day, then I won’t get buried alive. I desperately hope I am right about this.
Today I sorted through several hundred electronic files bequeathed to me by the former ELWR Coordinator. I didn’t read them all, but I created my own on-line filing system for them in hopes that I’ll be able to find the data I need as questions arise. I also did my first-ever work creating/adapting excel documents and sent those out to various people.
Having been a dutiful worker bee, I’m now heading home for some knitting, some noshing, and some baseball watching. I’m on number two of the four-of-a-kind pattern-writing project. I’m also back to playing with dishcloths. Did you know that Lily’s Sugar & Cream comes in self-striping colorways? I didn’t—at least not until I came across this yarn at Michaels over the weekend. On an eight-inch dishcloth the stripes come out one-to-two inches wide (wider than the pictures on Lily’s web site make them appear). I can’t wait to try combining one of these yarns with a solid color for a Mason-Dixon style dishcloth.
By the way, if you’re a reader of fiction, check out Tracy Chevalier’s Burning Bright. To sum it up in a sentence, Burning Bright relates a year in the life of two children who are neighbors of the poet/artist/philosopher/printer William Blake (1757-1827), but that description doesn’t begin to do it justice. This book is a wonderful mix of opposites: simple on the surface, but complex in the topics it deals with; both a story of childhood and an exploration of English politics at the time of the French Revolution. It reads easily, but stays with you, leaving you to ponder all sorts of interesting questions.
August 08 2007 | Academia and Books and Peaches & Creme v. Sugar 'n Cream and Washcloths | 8 Comments »
I will admit up front that I am an “Ant,” not a mom, so things that strike me as noteworthy may appear a bit ho-hum to some of you. Nonetheless…
1. Ten-year-old pitchers develop speed before accuracy. In other words, those balls will come at you fast and from angles you never expected.
2. A fifteen-year-old boy can eat steak, noodles, biscuits, veggies, and three cupcakes for dinner and still be ravenous again before bedtime.
3. A teenage girl can tangle up a ball of yarn better than a kitten can.
4. Line-dried t-shirts are less desirable than machine-dried ones because they are—quote—”too crispy.”
5. When you are the spectator with the McDonald’s lucky player signature on your LumberKings baseball program you win a prize!: a coupon for one McDonald’s hamburger, valid only at a handful of participating local franchises. (Still this beats having the local-cell-phone-company lucky signature, in which case you get a foam beer-can cooler with the company’s logo.)
6. When you root for the SF Giants and your nephew’s favorite color is blue, he will pick the LA Dodgers mini-helmet to hold his sundae, and you will pay for it without complaining.
On the knitting front
I got four more balls of Soft Delight Extremes at Hobby Lobby and plan to undo the bind off on my first Easy Triangular Shawl, so that I can enlarge it significantly. (I do like a shawl that I can wrap over my head and around my body a time or two. You can never tell when the weather’s going to go all Dr. Zhivago on you.)
After some more knitting, I’ve decided I come down on the Peaches & Creme side of the Peaches & Creme versus Sugar ‘n Cream debate. The Peaches & Creme has a tighter twist, which results in far fewer split stitches.
P.S. Sparky is happy to be back from Oaktown, but behaved so nicely that he has been invited for a return visit whenever he likes. Mighty Bezoar survived her stay at Kitty Hill Resort. Apparently the shock of the new setting gave her an out-of-body experience of some sort, as the Kitty Hill folks reported that she was consistently affectionate and good-natured. We’re sharing some lovely “Home, Sweet Home” moments.
July 03 2007 | Beatrice and Cats and Easy Triangular Shawl and Peaches & Creme v. Sugar 'n Cream and Soft Delight Extremes and Spartacus | 2 Comments »
