New birds arriving
March 2, 2008 by rippedoffknitter
I suck, I know. I should have shown pictures of the Rogue ages ago, but the thing is that I haven’t been able to get anyone take pictures of me in it in daylight. I can only assure you that it is warm and comfy and I love it very much and have practically been living in it, cold and windy as it has been around here the past weeks.
I had some other FO pics ready but was unable to find my camera cable. It was hiding under a pile of old papers on my kitchen table and reappeared this morning so now I finally had a chance to get the photos transferred. If this makes you think that either my apartment or myself is a total mess you’re absolutely right but I’m blaming most of it on some painting and carpentering going on here, hoping things will look cleaner and brighter in every way possible very shortly.
Ah, knitting. Right. I made two chemo caps for my friend (who loved the shawl by the way, and thank you for all the good thoughts and comments). I didn’t get a photo of them but the leftovers look like this:
Using the purple Svale from Dalegarn for the top and the shinier Cotton viscose for the edging I made a Pi Topper cap that I enjoyed knitting so much that I decided to use the pattern as a base for a second stripy cap. In the background is the new yarn in the bird series from Dale (called Lerke, meaning larch in Norwegian) that was just perfect for this project, a cotton/merino blend that is soft to the skin and wonderful to knit with. For the stripy cap I knit a simple ribbed edging. I am no good at knitting hats but the top-down construction is so simple and clever that even I managed to make a wearable hat out of it. I might knit one for myself next winter, chemotherapy or not.
But except for this I think I’ve lost my knitting mojo. The last issue of IK has been lying still wrapped in plastic on my coffee table for over a week. I know, it is a very disturbing sign. But I have been knitting. A while ago I finished this just in time for the homecoming of a little baby boy who decided to come out a week before his due date, otherwise it would have been there to welcome him at the hospital.
Pattern: Curve of Pursuit
Yarn: 2-ply merino from Nøstebarn or Bånsull
Needles: 5 mm circulars. Lots of them..
I’m guessing I used somewhere between 150 and 200 g, and that the measures are about 1×1 m. Before the birth I had seen the parents washing and preparing a pile of outgrown stuff after the big sister including a blanket I knit for her in the pre-blog days so I knew this one would be welcome and used every day. Although I love knitting I love even more seeing the knitting resulting in something pretty and useful that will be appreciated and worn, either by myself or someone else. I’m probably more a product than a process knitter although I love watching a piece come together and nothing pleases me more than clever construction and design. I’m thrilled that my Dad loves his Noro scarf as much as he does, he wears it all the time and I’m happy I’m able to give him something that he enjoys so much. (There was a small drama when he forgot it at a restaurant but it ended well. The town is so small that if someone had stolen it chances are good he would have seen them wearing it sooner or later anyway).
That is why I have decided to finish three of my UFOs before I start anything new. All three are for people who I hope will like their knits very much and I want them to be living happily with their new owners as soon as possible.
Plain socks for a friend who asked if I could please make her a pair for her birthday (which is long overdue) after seeing my last pair of birthday socks. It was very easy to say yes for a lot of reasons:I’ve been wanting to knit up this beautiful yarn for ages and it is her favourite colour, she has very small feet, and I had decided not to knit any socks for myself in a while cause I don’t need any but still I had this great urge for a plain stockinette sock… case closed. One is done and I’m ready to start hte heel on the other so it shouldn’t be long.
The zebra hat had to be ripped back to the ribbing as I realized I had done a stupid mistake that would cause the mane to go from ear to ear instaed from forehead to neck. It could have been funky-looking I’m sure but I strongly believe that one should not mess with nature so I decided to get it right. I’m ready to start the decreases for the crown so this is also not to far from complete.
The black thing has not been mentioned on the blog yet even if it was started last summer, cause I just don’t know what to say about it, and I still don’t, but it is about 2/3 complete I think so… I’m not really enjoying the knitting for a number of reasons but I’ll get back to that later. When it is done.
And then, when these birds are out of the nest, I’ll cast on for something green. Yum.
oooh I love that curve of pursuit. I’ve often thought about doing one. I look forward to seeing the zebra hat with the mane in the right place!