She Knits By The Seashore

Slowly but Surely

Slowly but surely the WIPs are coming along.

Here's the back of Caroline:

One pink mohair mitten is done, and the second cuff is started:

And for the ever popular pink picot camisole, the purl row (where the I-cord trim will go) is done, the fronts and back are separated, and I'm beginning to knit the right front.

Rosie inspects the camisole:

"Hmmm...wonder what would happen if I pull this string?"

"I've been sitting here the whole time. I didn't touch anything."

Did you have a good weekend? We went to a torchlight parade in our new downtown on Saturday night. Fife and drum corps marched down Main Street, along with some fun floats. My favorite was a big motor boat on a trailer outlined in colored lights, followed by a big lobster pot, and then a pick-up truck-sized animated lobster! I love Christmas at the seashore.

Wherever you live, and no matter how busy you are, I hope you are taking time to enjoy the sights and sounds and scents of the season.

Knitting Wish List, 2007

Last year, I posted a knitting wish list. It was fun to look at the list and see what items I received or purchased, and knitted or not, so I thought I'd do it again this year.

From last year's list: all three French Girl patterns have been added to my knitting notebook during the year. I've knit Oceane, and bought yarn for Fantine, but I'm still trying to decide on a color for Diamanta.

I found Helen's Lace in Tickled Pink, and knit the Pie Wedge Shawl. I have the Teseo Yarn, but haven't decided on a pattern for the shawl yet, other than that it should be triangular and have fringe. I bought more Teseo after this photo was taken, just in case. And are you noticing a theme here, or is it just me? Someone started a Pink Lover's Group on Ravelry called Think Pink, and I'm loving seeing the photos of everyone's pink things.

The only thing on my wish list I haven't found is some Fleece Artist Seashore. I'd like to see it in person before I buy it, because the dyelots seem to vary so much. Sometimes the pink is peach. So that can be my #1 for this year's list.

1. Fleece Artist Seashore yarn

2. Fiesta Yarns, La Boheme, in Rainforest.

3. Sublime mohair for Haze, below.

4. Rowan magazine #41

5. Luxury Knits by Amanda Griffiths

6. Knitpicks Chart Keeper, a swift and ball winder, and a blocking board.

What is on your knitting or crochet wish list? Or do you have another secret holiday wish, not knitting related? I have a new charm bracelet, but no charms yet, so it would be fun to receive one.

My Rainygirl

In cat news, we've been struggling to help everyone get along. Tim still won't come downstairs, but Rosie goes up in his space. I try to defend him, but he hides under the bed. At least the hissing, for the most part, has stopped. Progress?

Rainy is my complicated kitty, taking over where our dear Charlie left off. She's not been herself since Thanksgiving. I've taken her to the vet three times last week, once for a checkup, once to have her teeth cleaned (and one removed), and once because I was convinced she had a UTI (her test came back negative this morning). She's been lying around, not very talkative, and I've been worried she was sick in some way, or had a toothache. But after bloodwork, an X ray, and the dental work to rule out a physical cause, the best the new vet can come up with is that her thyroid level is now too low, so we're cutting back the dosage of her pills. We also think she's had too much change too fast since her rescue, and just needs lots of love, encouragement, and stability. I went out and got a Feliway plug-in today for her, but I would appreciate any and all advice, except "stop worrying," which for me is impossible. :)

Casting On and On

It's been a casting on kind of week.

First, the Caroline sweater with the Louet Yarn. In the photo you can hopefully see the "holes" that form the zig zag design.

Second, the pink mohair mittens I've had listed in the "Dreaming About" column (left side of blog) forever. The cuff seems a bit long, but maybe the designer intended it to be worn folded? I don't have a photo with the pattern so I'm guessing.

Third, a small and simple Christmas knit I can't show yet, because the recipient may read my blog. All three of these can be car knitting and are definitely TV knitting. I'm still working on the camisole too, but I haven't come up with a re-design of the top that I like yet.

Our new kitty Rainy has made herself right at home. Tim has sequestered himself in our bedroom in protest. I know he'll come out eventually, but I feel sorry for him. And someone else might be moving in this weekend...

Tim ought to be in Pictures

Elizabeth and I participated in a movie themed swap. She sent me the most wonderful box, all wrapped in black and gold, with gold stars!

  (please click to enlarge)

Inside, Elizabeth treated me to lovely lace yarn, silk yarn (which I have never had before), and some terrific celebrity-themed knitting books. Also a copy of Lace Style which I've been wanting to get!

Tim is looking forward to movie time with Audrey, and I've already been enjoying the tea and jelly bellies! Thank you so much!!!

The package was so fun to open, and really cheered me up. As did the arrival of the Louet Yarn for Caroline:

"More yarn I don't get to play with, right?"

Mittens are done and off to Lynne for the Mittens for Children collection:

and now we're trying to help Tim adjust to a new kitty...

new WHAT???!!!!

Wounded, but Still Walking (and Knitting)

Thank you so much for your kind thoughts and prayers and comfort. It has been such a hard week for us, but it does get a little easier each day, the happy and funny memories taking over the sad ones bit by bit.

Tim doesn't seem to be disturbed by his brand-new only catness. He's enjoying the extra attention and coming around for company more often than he used to. He helped me photograph some images this morning.

"I don't think this is really my color..."

The body of the pink camisole is nearly complete. I need to decide how I want to proceed with the top, to follow the design and add more stitches to the rows across the chest, or to abandon the cross over in the front and knit it as one piece.

(from IK site)

What do you think? I want to take the top up for more coverage and I don't know if one knitted piece will ruin the design.

Lynne is collecting mittens for Christmas and so I've started on two pair, using a now vintage pattern that my mother used when she used to make mittens for us. The top two need final seaming, and I've begun the thumb area on the two on the needle.

"This could work. I'll take it."

On Saturday afternoon, I went to a not LYS that has an amazing selection of yarn. I treated myself to some black Rowan Big Wool in preparation for Fantine. I'm not going to start it yet, as it will be my reward for finishing the camisole, but I couldn't leave without taking something home.

I am again late to the party, I'm sure, but finally got a close up look at the many colors of La Boheme by Fiesta Yarns. Wow. I know you are all thinking, Debby, that is so 2003! I saw a few of them when looking for the ribbon and rayon boucle yarns I used for Oceane, but this time fell madly in love with Rain forest. It has pink and blue but in fall shades, mixed with a little copper. Try as I might, I couldn't find a good link for the colors I saw. The store only had one skein, and I need two for a shawl, so I'm going to check locally and see if they carry it. If not, I'll order that one skein and have it shipped and see what else I can use it for. Why oh why do I keep finding irresistable shawl yarns when I really want to be making sweaters??!!

If you received an invitation from me for Shelfari and did not want it, I apologize. I received one from someone, and as I was looking through the site and wanted to send an invite to one or two people, it copied my entire address book and sent out invitations. It's since happened to someone who got my invite too. I don't know if the site developers did this on purpose, but it is very embarrassing and does not exactly endear them to me. So please be careful with it!

Some had asked me about donating to an IBD organization in memory of Charlie, which is so sweet and thoughtful. If you'd like to do that (or just see what studies are taking place in animal disease and treatment), the Morris Animal Foundation is a great site to check out. The Winn Feline Foundation also supports the advance of veterinary medicine, and you can specify the type of research you want to support, in this case, GI or gastrointestinal disorders. I was so happy to find associations that fund studies for animals, as I didn't know they existed. And we'll be continuing in Charlie's Spokescat honor next spring with another Get Your Guts in Gear fundraiser, for human IBD patients like his Person. Now keep hugging your furry loved ones tight!

Oceane by the Ocean

I couldn't resist.

Pattern: Oceane by French Girl.
Yarn: Gelato and Rayon Boucle, both by Fiesta Yarns. Two skeins each, in the Caribbean colorway.
Needles: Size 17US Brittany needles (Pattern calls for size 19US)
Finished Size: Approx. 20" x 72"

Notes: Pattern calls for Rowan's Linen Print, now discontinued, but still available in some shops. Since I wanted a blue green color, I substituted the ribbon yarn. On its own, it doesn't hold the pattern well. The boucle and smaller needles give it more body, though still retaining a silky drape. Pattern is relatively easy, but if you are using slippery yarn, I highly recommend a lifeline. Drop one stitch, and you'll be re-knitting ten rows. Which I did. Several times.

This was supposed to be my project for the Tour de France KAL, but it turned out to be my project for the Vuelta a Espana (Tour of Spain, also 3 weeks long) instead. Now I'm working on last year's unofficial TdF project, the picot camisole, 3.0 version. It's my longest-standing and only UFO, which tells you how much I've been avoiding it this year. The good news is, I'm further along than ever before, and I put the stitches on the circular needle in the correct direction this time. There is no bad news so far, but I'm still not entirely happy with this picking up of stitches from a sideways garter stitch border (and having to add in noticeable increases on the seam). The OCD part of me wants perfection, the rational part of me wants to believe local knitting expert friends, who looked at it for the umpteenth time this week, and tell me it's fine. I'm also working on a car-knitting Christmas scarf, for a very important person in Charlie's life. :)

Oceane 2.0

The boucle yarn is holding the pattern in place much better than the ribbon alone. At first I wasn't sure I liked the two yarns together, but they are growing on me. What do you think?

The picot camisole has been frogged back to the border, and I added two scallops to it to better accomodate the stitches I'll need to pick up. Once I have some progress to show, I'll post a photo of this. The yarn for the Caroline sweater from Louet is on back order, so hopefully Oceane will be finished before I start that.

Do you go through knitting phases? After making several shawls and stoles, I am really anxious to start making sweaters again. The new Knitty has two patterns I'm considering, Mr. Greenjeans and Cherie Amour. I also saw this booklet advertised in a magazine, and when I found it in a local shop, I had to have it. It's one of those rare times when I like most every pattern in the booklet -- and they're all made with mohair which is probably my very favorite yarn.

After I finished the pie wedge shawl on Labor Day weekend, I wanted to finish my so-called summer reading too, before the autumnal equinox this week. Both books are in the "On the Nightstand" column at left.

The Case of the Murdered Muckracker by Carola Dunn is another edition in the Daisy Dalrymple mystery series. Daisy is a freelance writer in 1920s Britain who gets mixed up in murders, and at one point in the series, marries the policeman usually sent to solve them. In this volume, they travel to the U.S. so she can meet her publisher and he can assist the federal government on a police matter. I found this to be one of the weakest volumes in the series, as there was really only one choice for the possible murderer, and the adventure was more in chasing him across country via airplane than in identifying him. In addition, the author does not hide her dislike for the U.S. police [at least the 1920s versions she created] -- the authority figures are depicted as biased, incompetent, or cowardly, compared to the British characters who eventually locate the murderer. Despite these flaws, it was a fun, quick read, and I'll keep on with the next volumes.

Positively False is the biography of Floyd Landis, the winner of the 2006 Tour de France accused of doping. Landis relates to Loren Mooney, his co-author, his early years in a Mennonite family in Pennsylvania, his move to California, training regime and cycling on various teams, including U.S. Postal [aka Discovery Channel], Lance Armstrong's former team. He talks about the accident that necessitated his new hip, winning the 2006 Tour, and being caught off guard by the news of a positive test for an elevated testosterone/epitestosterone ratio shortly thereafter. His subsequent fight to clear his name, and an epilogue including the summary of his arbitration hearing in May, are told in detail . You know that FL is my favorite cyclist, and from the transcripts of the hearing, it is clear to me that the lab performing the tests made some sloppy errors (what do you make of a lab that uses software from the 80s on their testing machine, and has no copy of the manual present? Of a scientist that testifies of interpreting test results, "it is because we say it is," and of the creator of the testing machine, testifying for the defense, that the lab used his machine with incorrect settings?). The decision of the hearing -- whether FL will remain as Tour winner, or be banned from cycling for two years -- will be announced within the week. No matter what the decision, the bureaucracy in cycling needs to clean up its act. In the meantime, I remain hopeful for a fair result.

Speaking of cycling, Chris and I did the 40-mile Folks on Spokes charity ride again this past weekend. With my new lighter bike, I was able to cut my total time from last year nearly in half, and make it back in time for the lunch! The hills are still monsters, but they didn't seem quite as bad. This coming weekend is the event I've been dreading highly anticipating, the Tri-State Seacoast Century. That's 100 miles, a little more than half of what I normally ride. Because of the move, I haven't trained as I should, so I'm going to just do the best I can. As with the FOS, there's always next year. More photos of the FOS ride can be found here.

Last but not least, a note from Charlie:

Thank you all for your concerns and well-wishes. After my first round of chemotherapy pills, I'm beginning to gain a little weight. My blood test results look good so far, so I'll start another round of chemotherapy in a week or two. I feel pretty good, talk more often to my persons and am spending more time with them. But I'm still making Timmy eat the cat food they give out in the mornings, so I can have the tunafish instead. I don't want them to think I'm too well just yet!

Farmhouse Yarns and Oceane Saved!

One of the best things about moving house is that I am closer to knitblogging friends. On Friday, Kristen of Audioknits invited me to go to the Farmhouse Yarns sale with her. I didn't know they were so close by! Yours truly forgot the camera (too many things going on that morning), so please see Kristen's post for photos. We had a wonderful time.

Carole of FY set up bins all along her driveway. You could fill a plastic bag with as much yarn as would fit, for a certain price. Or, you could buy individual skeins. Kristen did a great job of enhancing her stash, but I fear I was a disappointment, and purchased only two skeins of yarn for a Christmas gift.

  "It's not for me?"

No, it's not for you Tim, though it definitely is your color! It's as close as I'm going to get to Project Spectrum's colors of orange, brown, and purple for Aug/Sept. I feel bad that I started off strong with projects and yarns in the first two color groupings (blue/white, and pink/green/yellow), and have had nothing to post for the last two (red/black/metallic, and orange/brown/purple). Other than this gift yarn, I don't have any orange or brown in the stash, as they are my least favorite colors. I do love purple, but I don't seem to have any of that either. Hopefully I'll do better next round.

After having lunch at Kristen's (a local restaurant that even had a Kristen salad!), we went to my very favorite yarn shop. I hadn't been there since last summer, but now it is only a short distance from the new house. My intention was to pick up an extra ball of yarn that I hoped they'd been saving for me for the pink camisole I've been struggling with, not really expecting they'd have saved it after a year. They had! And Kristen and the saleswoman came up with some ideas to help me save Oceane!

Ugh! You can see here how the ribbon is limp and doesn't hold the stitch pattern. The cast-on edge was nice and neat when I started out, but now it's uneven and constantly has to be pulled back into shape.

We had been walking around the shop looking at the displays when I noticed bags of the Fiesta Gelato ribbon in a floor bin, paired as kits with their other yarns in the same colorway (mohair, boucle, etc). I took them over to the saleswoman and asked about ordering the rayon boucle in my colorway, whether or not it would stiffen up the ribbon of Oceane. Kristen suggested going down a needle size or two as well. The saleswoman found a Fiesta shawl pattern using those very yarns that requires a size 17 needle, rather than the 19 I'm using, so we know that the gauge will be OK for Oceane. A pair of wooden Brittany 17s later (the ribbon is horribly slippery on the plastic needles I have!) and I am thrilled! Of course now I have two out of my three WIPs to rip back, but it's better than having to give up on the projects completely. I'm on wedge 2 of 6 on the pie wedge shawl, so at least I'm making some progress.

On Saturday, Chris rode in his first race since Memorial Day. Unfortunately, he got a flat tire with only three laps to go, so he wasn't able to finish, but it was so nice to see him race again!

Chris, center

After the race, we met up with Sarah for a ride in one of my favorite places in Rhode Island, Tiverton. We're trying to increase mileage because our century rides are next month (that's 100 miles, and yes, I am delusional that I will get in enough training, but I'm determined to try!). This ride was 32 miles, the last ones fast and mostly uphill (ugh). The reward: ice cream!

Chris' photo of some scenery along the route

Our Charlie has lost weight again, down to 6.5 lbs from 8 in the spring. I took him to the vet last week and the first batch of blood tests look OK; he'll go for more on Monday. We're pretty sure the IBD is rearing its ugly head again, and I'm pretty sure that the move and the strangers in the house (we're having the heating/cooling system fixed) have pushed my already stressed-out kitty over the edge. He does have an appetite this go-round, but to encourage eating, I've gotten cans of Starkist tuna ("sorry Charlie!") and both cats are going crazy for it. Here's hoping he weighs the tiniest bit more for Monday's appt.

This post is already too long, so I'll save revealing a new fall project for next time. I do want to mention that Noolie is once again doing the Walk the Night fundraiser for leukemia and lymphoma patients, so please consider supporting her. I should mention too that Deb on the Web just completed a walk for the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation and deserves a big congratulations (kicking self that I didn't post about it earlier). My dad, my husband, and my cat can all testify that these are great organizations whose patients directly benefit from their hard work in pursuing new treatments and a cure. Thank you Noolie and Deb!!

Late to the Party

Are you one of those people like me that sees the movie or reads the book or knits the pattern long after everyone else has moved on? I do that all the time. There is most likely a Clapotis in my future. And now I'm probably the last person to post on our Ocean State Knitbloggers meeting Saturday, but it was too good not to share.

I love Rhode Island. Just being there makes me happy -- maybe it's all those negative ions from the ocean that surround me. I love it even more when I can go to what is probably my favorite, and most dangerous to the savings yarn shop, Sakonnet Purls, and meet up with friends to knit.

Below: Cindy's back, Erika, Kristen, Carol, and Sarah(click to enlarge):

Cindy's back II (I'm sorry Cindy!), Kimberly, Erika, and Kristen

Heather, her Lady Eleanor, and Greeley!

It was a perfect sunny, summer day. Though I was stressed out on arrival, having missed the turn on the highway and gotten lost in the wilds of southern Mass., it was easy to relax among all the good conversation and amazing yarn. It was also a sort of mini-meeting of Cycling Knitters, with Kristen, Sarah, myself, and Greeley. I feel so fortunate to have been adopted into this group! I'm looking forward to living closer to everyone soon.

After yarn purchases, Sarah and I went for a walk to the village and we passed this pretty scene:

Some people commented in the previous post about my tiny stash. Please be reassured that I had no will power, as usual, in SP.

Two skeins of Caribbean, for Oceane, my French Girl Tour de France project. It was meant to be. I could not knit something called Oceane with a color named Alaska, now could I? :) And...and...

five skeins of Dive, which I have wanted practically forever, and posted about here. I have been wanting to make a large but simple triangular shawl with fringe to wear during winter the season I don't talk about. I'm not sure if I have enough yarn here to do that, since I don't have a pattern yet. I've been looking at Knitty and Ravelry to see if I could find a comparable shawl, to estimate how much yardage I might need -- I suspect that with only 500 yards I need to order more. What do you think? If anyone has suggestions for a shawl kind of like the Koigu Charlotte's Web, but for a bulky weight yarn, I'd really appreciate it.

Birthday Meme:

Squidknits has tagged me for the birthday meme. You go to Wikipedia and type in your birth month and day, and post 3 events, 2 famous births, and 1 holiday:

Events:

1812 - Poet Lord Byron gives his first address as a member of the House of Lords, in defense of Luddite violence against Industrialism in his home county of Nottinghamshire.

1964 - The government of Italy asks for help to keep the Leaning Tower of Pisa from toppling over.

1991 - Gulf War: U.S. President George H. W. Bush announces that "Kuwait is liberated." (Nothing interrupts a birthday party like a Presidential address  on TV announcing a cease fire).

Births:

1807 - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet (d. 1882)

1904 - André Leducq, French cyclist (d. 1980) (I've never heard of him either)

1930 - Joanne Woodward, American actress

1932 - Elizabeth Taylor, British-American actress

Holidays:

There were none that were personally meaningful to me, or very well known (apologies to citizens of the Dominican Republic, as it is their Independence Day). So I'll change this category to observances, to note that in 2003, Fred Rogers, aka Mr. Rogers, died on my birthday. My family, knowing he is kind of a childhood hero of mine, were all afraid to tell me. I found out on the internets. I know they meant well!

If you would like to do this meme, please consider yourself tagged. I'll look forward to seeing what you find out about your special day! In the meantime, since we are talking about Mr. Rogers and being special...

You are my friend
You are special
You are my friend
You're special to me.
You are the only one like you.
Like you, my friend, I like you.

In the daytime
In the nighttime
Any time that you feel's the right time
For a friendship with me, you see
F-R-I-E-N-D special
You are my friend
You're special to me.
There's only one in this wonderful world
You are special.

 

Jacket with Seed Stitch Bands (Mystery Gift)

Pattern: Jacket with Seed Stitch Bands from Debbie Bliss' Baby Knits for Beginners, size newborn to 3 months.

Yarn: Cleckheaton merino bambino 4ply, Color #2151. 4 balls (though I had a lot left over).

Needles: Clover Bamboo straight 3s; old aluminum straight 2s.

Modifications: I moved the button holes over so that the buttons would appear in the center of the band. The pattern calls for asymmetrical button placement; I think anyone not familiar with the pattern (i.e. a non-knitter) would think I made a mistake and lined them up wrong.

Corrections: The Debbie Bliss site points out that the smallest size requires 6 buttons rather than 5, which I figured out before I looked it up, after the sweater was done. Warning: the pattern has no schematic drawings, for those that prefer them. As this was my first baby knit, they would have been helpful to me.

 

I'm not sure why such a simple knit was so persnickety. When I saw this pattern (also knit by uberknitter and friend C for a baby shower), I thought it would be perfect for my friend H's new granddaughter E. The individual pieces knit up quickly, but when I tried to pick up stitches for the neckband, I could not make them lie flat and even, and re-knit it 6 times before I was happy with it. I blocked the finished sweater as best I could, but some things still do not look as perfectly as I would like in the photo above. I think "Debbie Bliss" is an oxymoron; could it be because she spells her name differently than I do? This is the second time I have worked with her; the first was with her Cathay yarn for a shawl, pre-blog, that split so much it drove me to distraction.  I'm sure Debbie herself is perfectly lovely, but I have to admit I will think twice before I work with her yarns or patterns again. I hope that H has better experiences with this book, as she has already begun knitting up lovely confections for E that will make her the most stylish granddaughter on their street!