I'm a joiner!

I finished the knitting on the Pea Pod sweaters. I'm partway through weaving in ends - the right side represents the done weaving ends pile (light green body only), the left side is the pieces that need ends woven in (dark green body + 4 sleeves). Then seaming, and finally knitting the neck band!

Have you heard about the Wee Tiny Sock swap? Today is the last day to sign up - it's super fast and it ends next week. Just sign up, knit a tiny sock, and mail it next Friday. Fun and quick, and doesn't break the budget (or yarn diet).

(Knitting book) stash enhancement!

I took my dad to Solvang this weekend for some sightseeing and wine tasting. And we just happened to pop in to Village Spinning & Weaving! I hinted that maybe I should start there while they (The Sweetie and dad) were lingering over brunch, but they demurred. So they wandered around for a while, while inside the shop I petted yarns and mostly paged through books I've seen mentioned in the knitblogging world and which are in my Amazon wishlist.

Most of them I found I didn't need so much - the Montse Stanley book that Grumperina worships might have a place on my shelf eventually, but a large portion of it covers knitting skills I already have. I should visit it again before buying.

They did have a copy of Kids Knit, which made its way home in my bag. It's really not for me, so it's okay, right? A friend mentioned her daughter was interested in knitting, and after perusing it, it looks like a good kids book. The only hitch might be that she's left-handed. I plan to teach her "right-handed" especially after the survey that ScoutJ put out, but I was going to try and teach her continental. This book has only English. Maybe we'll start there and if she doesn't like English, we can go to continental. I also this week ordered a knit potholder kit from Peace Fleece - it includes 4 colors of yarn and some nice needles with hand-painted ends.

But here - a book on designing kilt hose! I happen to know someone who wears kilt hose: The Sweetie's sister's husband. And I happened to ask him if he might someday want a pair. Smart man, he said yes. This book is a delight - written by a woman from Argyll, Scotland, and recently reprinted by Schoolhouse Press. There is a wonderful paragraph about deciding what kind of stocking you are designing - one for running about outside at work, or fine stockings for evening wear. The knitting group had a few giggles over that one!

The bookshelf has gotten rather heavier as a result of the yarn diet so far this year!

New Knitty!

I haven't even looked at it yet. Just wanted you to know.

From the fact that it took two reloads to get the front page, and even then some of the photos didn't load, I am not alone in trying to see what's in it!

Good Causes & Happy News

There are many good causes in the world. I have the blessings of having a job, owning a home (well, a mortgage the size of California), and being able to go out to dinner when I feel like it, and I feel that I don't donate enough of my money to charity. And with the web and PayPal, it's really easy. Knitting is easy too, especially if you have stash yarn waiting around, and if they're stockinette hats in kids or baby sizes.

Here are my opportunities, shared here in case you want to join the fun:

• Fun fur hats. Mini is done, but she is passing the torch to her friend, MargaretGraceMills (AT) gmail (DOT) com, who will donate hats to Seattle Children's Hospital. Finish up your fun fur by April 1!
  
• Heather, yarn dyer extraordinaire, at All Things Heather, is raising money to buy books for her daughter's school's sister school in South Africa. She is offering deals on her own hand-dyed yarn for those who donate! $20 gets you a skein (Heather, are you crazy?), $25 gets a skein dyed just for you, and $50 gets you 1 lb of yarn at 50% cost for wool or at cost for silk yarn. You can add to stash while not buying yarn!
• Julie is collecting preemie hats until April 15. A great way to end the Stash Bust-along, don't you think? I have a bit of leftover sock yarn that would be great for this.

And just because I'm a sucker for weddings, Theresa is setting a new course! Congratulations Theresa!

[ETA: Also, I have donated to the Harlot's favorite, MSF, and also to She Knits By the Seashore's campaign for IBS, Get Your Guts in Gear. More info here. Really, donating is a good idea, sweetened even more by the possibility of winning some nice yarn in a drawing!]

FO: Baby Bolero

Finally seamed, blocked, and declared finished!

Project specs:

• Pattern: Debbie Bliss Baby Bolero pattern from Baby Cashmerino 2 (the cover photo)
  
• Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, red color, purchased from Monarch Knitting & Quilts, Pacific Grove, CA
• Needles: Size 3 bamboo needles, Takumi/Clover. I usually prefer circular, but due to TSA recommendations, I chose straights. The pattern called for two sizes, 3mm and 3.25mm. I decided I could live with a difference of .25mm in my needles.
  
• Notes: The pattern is kind of vague at times. In the future, I would avoid stair stepping* the shaping at the bottom. I might try the 3-needle bind-off for shoulder seams. I would definitely do a provisional cast-on for the edging and I might even attempt to knit it in one piece, to avoid grafting and the line that appeared when I wove the ends in; at least, I'd take care to end the ends on the inside edge of the edging. I did steam the edging flat, although I'm not sure how aggressive you can be when you don't touch the fabric.
  

The yarn was a little bit splitty. Mostly I noticed that since it is S-twist yarn, the stockinette had a vertical stripe look to it, where one side of the V was twisted tighter and the other side of the V was looser. I think I prefer even Vs created by Z-twist yarn. But it does wash and dry (in the dryer on low) well.

Overall, I'm glad it's done. I'll add it to the "finished objects" pile; it might get sent to a somewhat distant relative/friend who is expecting.

My dad was visiting this weekend, so we went around doing touristy things and I didn't take photos of my eBay purchase yet. But it did arrive and was speedily shipped.

[11:45am: ETA Re: Stair stepping: I read somewhere on Friday, a link to a link, about avoiding stair stepping when binding off some of the stitches in a row, to keep the last loop to be bound off, slip it to the left needle, and knit it together with the first stitch not to bind off. Now I can't find it...can any of you, dear readers, tell me where I read this? This is not the same as short row shaping.]

Eye Candy for Friday

I've had these in the Flickr account for a while now. The Pea Pod sweater has made it past the dividing for back and left sides, and is 2 rows into the ending lace chart. Finishing is soon - but my dad is visiting this weekend so the outlook for the weekend knitting is low.

And a couple of close-ups (okay, I was just playing with the macro lens) of Aija's stitch markers. I am such a sucker for those pearls!

I promised you some musings...

I don't really have any news to report. I do have a FO, but I'll blog about it after I get a photo taken. And it's not Friday, so no eye candy either. Instead, I have a photo of my co-habitant cat, Fred. I was taking photos to document my stash, and he wandered in and seemed to say, "Aren't I worthy of a photo?" There you have it.

My new favorite blog: Nona Swatches. Seriously, this woman is making the rest of us look bad. She has pledged to do a swatch a day. Talk about creativity! The swatch, in its size and simplicity, in its no-or-low expectations, in its minimal investment of yarn (and economy - use up scraps!), is just a perfect medium for going out on a limb: trying out new techniques, new color combinations, practicing new skills, different yarns in combination, different stitch patterns. The insight Nona is getting about her own knitting is fabulous, and she is generous enough to share it with the rest of us. She has a perfect stockinette swatch that she knitted backwards - knitting backwards and purling backwards. Today's swatch is a mini Orenburg lace shawl. All of the technical components, done out in sock yarn, now prepared to tackle it in gossamer weight...

Nona, you are truly inspiring.