Knitterly news

This post is a recap of the "dreaded" UFO (un-finished object). If you're like me you have one or two...or fourteen. Some are projects that aren't going to work out and rather than face this fact you stuff the annoying mess...and the discouragement...into a bag and shove it to the back of a closet or drawer. Out of sight, out of mind. Other projects are just stalled due to lack of interest or finish-itis. I suffer from the latter in a big way. For example, I love the act of knitting and sometimes the end result is not what I'm after. I have a few things that are just an hour's worth of work, if that, away from being finished and for some reason I just don't sit down and do it. The lure of a new project is sometimes just too great, especially if it's with yarn or fabric I just purchased.

About a year ago I took inventory of my knitting UFOs, so I thought I'd bring back the list of eleven items and see where I am with it and what new items I've added to the UFO list or actually finished.

1. White cotton sweater from Stitches magazine.  FROGGED! It was my oldest. unfinished project and when I finally did finish the knitting I found that my gauge varied too much and couldn't be fixed with blocking. I didn't really like how it turned out anyway.

2. Liv - this was an Elsebeth Lavold pattern, knitted in Rowan cashsoft. It was going to come out too small. FROGGED!

3. Clapotis shawl - I blocked it sometime last year but still needed to weave in the ends, which I finally did last night. It only took me about 15 months to get around to it.

4. Felted bag out of Noro. I felted it at least but it still needs a lining and closure. NOT DONE

5. Cat bed that I knit and never felted. DONE!

6. Socks for my husband. These were my first attempt at toe-up socks. I almost made it to the heel but it's looking a bit narrow and I need to decide if it should be frogged or finished. UNCHANGED

7. Jaywalker socks. I ran out of yarn during the second sock so I frogged the toe of the first one, reknit it using a different but complementary yarn and used the frogged-yarn to finish the second sock up to its toe. The yarn I bought for the toes was a little thin so I doubled it, which made it a little too thick but better to have the toe too thick than too thin, I think. But the thicker yarn made the decreases really hard to work. I'm at the toe of the second sock and not looking forward to fighting with those decreases so the sock sits...unfinished. UNCHANGED

8. Blue t-shirt. This was a store pattern for a short sleeve sweater using two different Rowan yarns. I really liked the store display and it was a quick knit. I only have a few more rows to go and then the dreaded seaming to do. I stopped knitting it because summer ended...that would be summer of 2007...and because I'm afraid the sweater will look dumpy on me. UNCHANGED

9. Fingerless gloves. I had alpaca yarn left over from the Clapotis and thought it would make lovely and soft fingerless gloves. I started knitting some but the pattern didn't have a thumb, only a hole for the thumb, and I didn't know how to make one. So the gloves sat and my hands remained cold. UNCHANGED  - but I knit and finished a different pair of fingerless gloves so my hands aren't cold now.

10. Capri sweater from Rowan magazine, knit in lime green Rowan Calmer yarn. I knit this in June 2008 while sitting on console monitoring a satellite that was just launched. I need to block it before I can pick up stitches for the front band. UNCHANGED

11. Lara - was a UFO on that list last year, but now it is FINISHED

Now for the new stuff:

12. Blue twisty top - I think I finished knitting all the pieces and it just needs to be blocked and seamed. And of course the ends need to be woven in.

13. Brown stripey socks - need the ends woven in. This goes into the category of may not work out so I'll just never finish it and put it aside instead. The socks are narrow and a bit snug. I know what you're thinking - frog them or finish them already!

14. Gray socks - I have a sock and a half completed. I put it aside so I could start a new project on the long flight to Japan. This has been my current knitting project but I messed up at the very end of the short row heel and think I need to frog the entire heel because I can't make the stitches work without leaving a hole where there isn't supposed to be one.

15. Multi-colored hat - the Japan project. I stopped it so I could start a new project on the long flight to France. Hmmm, there's a theme there. But I did finally finish it. It had a gazillion ends to weave in and I forced myself to stick with it and get 'em done. Yay.

16. The France project. Fingerless mitts in Rowan RYC Baby Alpaca. Soooooo soft. When I finished the first mitt, per the pattern instructions (Endpaper Mitts by Eunny Jang), I didn't like that the mitt went way up my arm. I wanted shorter mitts that were more at my wrist, so I ripped it almost all the way back and reknit it. This was after already ripping it back once because I didn't read the instructions correctly and made a mess of the pattern. But now they are done.

Of course I hope to finish the UFOs but in the meantime I have another 11 hour flight to France, which means another new project. I'm thinking of making an infinity scarf, which is just a scarf that is joined at the end and worn twisted around the neck. It should be pretty easy, no two-color knitting or intricate lace patterns.

One more year

It's that time of year to review and reflect on the past year and look ahead to the next one.

Let's see how I did for 2009 and what I plan to do for 2010:

1. Blog more often - In 2008 I had 67 posts and in 2009 I posted about half that: 33 (counting this one). I didn't have any sewing content and only a little knitting content to talk about so most of my posts were about the renovations we did on the house and my travel. I am going to try to blog more about my textile projects next year, since that is the intent of this blog. There are some knitting projects in process that I should photograph and share, and I hope to get back to sewing and share those projects as well.

2. Lose weight. I should just take this one off the list! I actually did make an earnest attempt in October and lost two pounds (woohoo)...and then I quickly gained it back eating yummy food in France. At least I am eating a little healthier. Last summer we started getting a weekly delivery of a vegetable/fruit box, so now I'm eating more salads and greens and fruit than before. I do need to exercise though, which I will try to do next year. 

3. Embrace my hobbies. Knitting, travel and photography (while traveling) were about the only hobbies I embraced. I guess home renovation is on the list too but in a different sense than it used to be. We used to do all of the work ourselves but now we don't have the time. But we do have the money so we put some of it into the local economy and hired a contractor to do the labor. I still did the design work, which is the part of renovation I like the most. I do hope to get back into sewing in 2010. My sewing area has been buried under a pile of stuff, mostly sewing related stuff, but it can't be put away until the renovations are complete. The bedroom where I set up my cutting table is next on the list for demo and redo so it's going to be a few months until I can sew again. I do have a custom-built pattern cabinet and bookshelf to show off, I just need to take the pictures and post them.

4. Think before I buy. I'm doing pretty well with this one and expect to continue next year. At the beginning of last year I did a major closet clean out, which was a good thing considering that we did a major closet redo as part of the renovations and everything had to come out anyway. I donated a lot of clothing and realized that much of it was barely worn. Some clothes no longer fit but even when they did fit I don't think I wore them enough to justify the purchase or a place in the closet. I decided that I needed to be more critical when buying (or making) clothes and I've been doing that. When I bought clothes for my new job I was very picky. It made it harder to shop but it was worth it. I also am very critical when I buy other stuff. More than a few times I found myself in a store, holding an item in my hand and really being honest with myself about why I wanted to buy it and if I was really going to use it or if I just wanted to buy something. Watching the show Hoarders on A&E also helps curtail the urge to buy more stuff. Believe me.

5. Find the good in my work. I have a job again and it is good. Sometimes I don't want to go to work, and I remember with a bit of nostalgia about the 3-4 months of unemployed "playtime" I enjoyed last year, but there really is good in my work. First, I'm fulfilling a critical need with my customer, which makes me feel very useful. Second, the retirement accounts are getting a nice boost. Third, the extra income let us renovate the house, travel to Japan, and enjoy life. As they say...money can't buy happiness, but it sure helps.

6. Nurture relationships. Same as last year - I think I did ok but can do better, especially with family. I call my mom every Sunday but don't talk much with my siblings. But I did call my sisters on Christmas Day and we had nice chats. (Hi D! Now that I know you follow my blog!)

I know 2009 has been a difficult year for many people, especially for those without jobs. I know we're fortunate but it wasn't just luck that got us here. Our parents valued education, which in my opinion is a solid foundation for so much in life. Also, my DH loves me but he also respects me, trusts me, and is a true partner and we have built a good life together. So on that happy note, I wish you all a great new year and hope you are all fortunate in your lives!

Home again

Felix insists that I not leave again.

Travel photos

Deux

I've posted a bunch of photos over at flickr. I went to Nice on Sunday and Genoa on Saturday (those pictures will be posted soon). I took lots of photos but these are some of my favorites. Enjoy.

Click here to go to my flickr page.

Still no sunny pictures from Cannes to share

We had two sunny days this week but I spent them inside learning about satellite stuff and by the time we were through for the day, it was dark. Today it rained but the forecast for "le weekend" is partly cloudy. So maybe I'll have more cloudy pictures of Cannes, and perhaps Nice, to share.

My sore throat turned into a cold. Bleh. I'm sniffling and snuffling and taking cold medicine with the instructions in French. I can understand enough French to determine how much to take and when and that it's ok for me to take it because I'm older than 15.

Apparently the stuff works because I had renewed energy this evening and decided to go out, even in the rainy weather. I went to the Monoprix to look for sewing pattern magazines but they only had Burda and one rather dog-earred Fait Main, which I decided wasn't worth the 5.5 euros (about $8.30). I did pick up a superb Burda special knitting issue on socks. I briefly looked at it in the store but now that I've flipped through every page I think it was definitely 6 euro well spent. It's a bargain for what you get. These are not simple socks.

The magazine has instructions for 30 socks, representative of 20 different European countries. Each one is quite intricate and gorgeous and I want to make all of them. Well, except for the tacky one with the Eiffel Tower intrasia! Yes, the instructions are in French, but they all have charts and I have a knitting instruction book in French, so I think I can figure it out.



To my knitting friends out there, let me know if you want me to see if I can pick up another copy. I can't promise, since I bought the only copy at Monoprix and I only have this weekend and one Saturday to shop. And remember, the magazine is entirely in French. But let me know if you want me to try.

Some good, some bad

Part of this post has knitting content and well, some of it does not.

 I'll start with the very good - I'm in the French Riviera and I didn't pay to fly over here.

Ok, now the bad. I lost two sets of double points and a sock knitting holder (the needles were inside the tube) on the airplane, I had to rip back all of the patterned part of the mitts because of a very bad error that could not be fixed, it's raining and chilly, I woke up a 3 am with a sore throat and could not go back to sleep.

But there is some good. Work is going ok, I have free internet in the hotel room, the hotel room is big...a little shabby, but I really can't complain, I'm in France!, I found replacement double points to knit the cuffs of the mitts, so I can at least finish them.

My throat still hurts so I went out to the pharmacy to get some throat drops. Here in France the pharmacist dispenses assistance and an appropriate remedy. So I practiced what to say in French: J'ai mal à la gorge...but didn't use it. I walked in and there was a basket of "Vicks" throat lozenges packages. Perhaps not as potent as what the pharmacist could give me but hopefully they'll help. Since I have a few medicinal allergies I didn't want to risk taking something that might cause me a rash...or worse.

Since I was already out in the chilly air - and the rain has let up for now - I thought I'd see about replacing my knitting needles. I passed a rather pricey looking knitting shop yesterday and although I was sure the needles would be way overpriced (this IS Cannes and the shop looked like it catered to the elite), I decided to try it anyway.  I again practiced what to say and brought along one of my remaining needles to show them what I was talking about. But the shop is closed on Monday. Oh well. Not wanting to give up just yet, I tried the Monoprix - a lower priced department and grocery store. Score! They had a section called "Le Weekend" with shelves of mostly acrylic blend yarn, a small selection of essential sewing supplies and a few pairs of knitting needles. But I guess something went right for me today because one of the pairs was 2.5 mm double point...almost exactly what I needed. I say "almost" because bamboo would have been preferable over the metal but they'll do just fine, thank you. And I didn't pay an exhorbitant amount for them either. Woot!

Now if I could get over this sore throat and escape without a cold or flu (had my flu shot, but not H1N1).

I give you knitting!

I know I've been lax in posting any knitting or sewing content on this blog. Despite home renovations and jetting off to Japan, I have been knitting. (The sewing is on hold until the renovations are done and I can get my sewing area straightened up.) I may be knitting but it seems I'm not finishing much. I did finish one project - a baby cardigan and hat for a friend of mine. It helps to have a deadline.

The cardigan is knit out of one skein of Plymouth Italia Fingerpaints (discontinued) with the cuffs and collar out of Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride bulky. I used the remaining Brown Sheep for the hat. The pattern for the cardigan is "Toddler Cardigan" by Hope Blazer and Joanne Turcotte, and I used "New Directions Hat" by Margaret K. K. Radcliffe for the hat.

I started a new knitting project yesterday on the 10 hour flight from San Francisco to Paris and then the 1.5 hour flight fron Paris to Nice. Yes - I'm traveling again! But it's not a vacation. I'm in Cannes for work for two weeks. The new knitting project is the "Endpaper Mitts" by Euny Jang:



And I'll leave you with a not so "soleil" Cannes beach: