Two A and now Two B

Yet again, I have very little to show on the knitting front.  I spent a lot of the week playing catch-up at work, Spring Break might have been nice from a not having to get up and put a suit on first thing every morning, but it also meant I had 187 emails to deal with when I got back to my office!

We had a wonderful first quarter at the branch, which also leads to lots of planning on how to top it, because as we all know, the reward for a job well done is a harder job.  Probably why I am taking my time in what is really a very easy knit for the ColourMart Spring Contest.  No fancy new stitches to learn, fairly easy to read charts, but when you add 8 repeats of the first one it does take on more of a  difficulty in scope.

Chart 1 of this pattern gives you the option to knit more or less based on your yarn and how big you want the shawl to be.  I like to be able to wrap a shawl all the way around me, so bigger was certainly in the cards, the only question is, have I gone big enough?  Because the one thing I had forgotten is how quickly I get bored with the same pattern repeat over and over again!

Chart 2 A flew by and I am now set to start Chart 2 B, where I am adding beads with gay abandon!

Maybe next week I will have some to show you, for today I am setting up where to put them.  :)

~M

Sampling, Testing and Pleasure

Another week has flown by and it was a busy one!

After our snowy start, Spring Break was filled with the usual round of "get the kids in for this or that appointment while they are not in school" and the waiting that happens when everyone else has the same idea.  A couple of things had to be postponed, mainly mine, but the week saw most of our major errands run and Spring Cleaning well under way.

What does that have to do with sampling, testing and pleasure you may ask?

Well, actually nothing! Except the reason I don't have a lot of knitting to share with you, when I am testing it is usually a secret,  but this week did bring up an interesting topic...couple of them actually, but today I am going to focus on one......what is the difference between test knitting, sample knitting and pleasure knitting the way it is done at Chez Yarn Diet?

I am very lucky, although all three use a different mind set, I can (usually) combine at least two out of the three every time, but sometimes I am doing just one

.

For instance, when I am test knitting a pattern, which in my case usually involves lace of some kind, so doubles as pleasure knitting, hopefully I am looking at each square of the chart and making sure that all of the symbols are there, that row repeats actually fit across rows and that stitch counts are accurate.  I cannot assume that any missing yarn overs are just my own lack of attention, but go back and recheck and then either fire off an email or fix what I did wrong.  :)

When I am sample knitting the idea is to get my knitting as close as is physically possible to being "perfect" so that if there are other samples being knit, by different people, and they are all lined up together (for instance showing the same pattern worked in a range of different color choices) you can't tell who knit what.  Sometimes I am lucky, if not very bored, and I am knitting all the colors of the same pattern which makes that part easier.

And finally, when I am just knitting to make my own heart sing, I change things up as I want to or need to, assume that all mistakes are my own and compensate for them, or just plain ignore the instructions and do what I think is right. (Probably explains why I got no less than three updates to the same pattern I knit at Christmas talking about mistakes that I thought were just in my knitting of it!)

This week saw a little bit of knitting I can share, WinterExtravaganza is still trucking along!  My purple version is ready to have the neck side stitches picked up and some shaping added.



 The beads on the purple one make TDQ happy!

The grey has "been there, done that"!
I also got in a few more repeats on my ColourMart Shawl.  I am still not sure how many I am going to work, but I know that there are at least several more in my future, this is so light and airy I want it to be big and snuggly too!

Finally some very plain vanilla socks to knit in the dark and while in waiting rooms.  Sometimes it is so much fun knitting in public, watching people trying to watch you knit without you noticing.  That is especially hard for strangers to do when you don't have to look at your knitting!

Til next time, Knit On!

At least I am only a day late!

Today, well Friday really for the kids, but I like to start things on a Monday so we are going with today..Today marked the first day of Spring Break at Chez Yarn Diet.

Pity no one told the weather people we were looking for Spring not Winter!  This time last year it was nearly 80 degrees, today......well not so much!  We did get above freezing temps, just barely, which turned the snow to this pretty white stuff with slushy nastiness under it.  Certainly not "Go outside and run off some energy" conditions, which is what I had been hoping for.  Certain people in this house need to run off some energy - or donate some of their excess to me.

It was another week of all run and no getting anywhere for me.  I don't even have tons of knitting to show you, but I do have a little!

In honor of the Spring that forgot to come to somewhere outside Columbus, Ohio, The ColourMart Lovers Group is holding their Spring Contest. I spotted a pattern that I liked,  Ethereal and dove through my ColourMart Stash for some merino and immediately changed the cast on of the pattern!  I am using a 2/28 in cream and will be working the first chart a few more times than the pattern suggests, mostly because as light as this will be I want lots of "snuggle up" room.

Rather than just start with two rows of garter stitch I have widened the garter border and used a variation on a Turkish Cast On that works very well with garter stitch.  I plan on adding some pearl beads to the edging, the ones I have just about match the cream tone of the yarn so they will add slight highlights (nothing drastic) and some weight to hold the bottom edge down.

I got a little further on my Winter Wrap, TDQ is still in love with the colors of this one. She didn't want beads on the back, but decided some "bling" on the front would be just her style!  I have just under one front to go and then the neck shaping, I hope I can get those done before the next installment comes out!

There have been a few other things on the needles, lots of little swatches, but we will talk about them later!

Until next time......Happy Knitting!

~M

Thick and Thin

Another week has passed, and another week has just been a blur of things that needed to be done, places I needed to go, people I needed to see, meals that needed to be cooked and a house that needed to be cleaned.  I am so ready for a vacation, know anyone who wants to fill my role for a few days?

I had these plans of getting some of my WIPs if not off the needles, at least to the next step in their development.......One got there!

The Winter Extravaganza saw it's center finished, blocked, measured and approved by TDQ and then stitches marked for sleeves and all but one edge on waste yarn ready for the next step.  Which coincidentally was published on the Yahoo Group today.

The blankets, the some kind of wrap and Tardis...well they sit patiently waiting for me to pick them back up.  All of them I need to be able to look at what I am doing, at least every now and then, so they didn't work out so well for me Monday.  Not being able to sit still for long without something to do does have one advantage....

I am starting to put things up for Christmas already.  TDQ really liked the idea of thick, squishy socks having seen the ones I made for a birthday present in Feb and thick, squishy socks knit up rather quickly.  Not to mention garter rib being something I can knit in the dark!

Pattern, you ask?  Well, there isn't one really, but if you have ever knit The Yarn Harlot's vanilla sock recipe you could figure it out, just replace the plain knit rows for the leg and foot with two by two garter rib (knit one round, knit 2 purl 2 one round) and you are set.

This was the last of the Christmas yarn I got not this last year, but the year before and I planned it just about right as there are only a couple of yards left.  I got a lot of projects out of that particular gift, two pairs of fingerless mitts, two pairs of socks and two little neck scarves.  Warm necks, hands and feet for us Yarn Diet Ladies (and I use the term very loosely!)

Hopefully next week I will have more to show you!*

Until then, keep knitting!

~M

I bet you thought March Madness was about sports

Tuesday evening, the kids here at Chez YarnDiet were all very excited.  The weather people had been tracking a storm that was due to hit us and estimates of how much snow and when we were going to get it ranged all over the show!  Certain teachers had suggested to their classes that wearing your pajama's backwards and inside out along with doing a snow dance would help the winter weather on its way........


Snow dances and inside out pajama's aside, the kids got their wish and we woke up to about 8 inches of snow on the driveway and I had a messy commute into work while they got to sit home playing computer games and drinking hot cocoa.

Snow is easier to walk and drive through than the thick coating of ice we had on everything a couple of weeks ago, so at least I didn't fall or have to hang on to anyone to get from my car to my office this time around, and without being asked two out of three children helped with clearing snow so I could get there on time!  Even though I had all that going for me,  I wished and hoped that I could get a snow day too and sit beside a cozy fire, drinking coffee and knitting.  Franklin Habit has a great post about just that on the Lion Brand Website, you should go read it!

But to the March Madness part of the post....8 inches of snow on Wednesday and what do we have today?  Nearly 70 degree temps and mud everywhere!

I have been plodding along on my long term knits, dithering from squares to big blue things to this :


I might have had to cast it on a few times to get it going, but there is Chart A of my current knit along. TDQ likes it so much that I have on the go in shades of purple for her too!


Other than that, life has me always running to try and catch up.  What ever happened to the days that I thought I had it all together and knew where I had left it?

Here's to hoping you are keeping it together in your corner of the world!

~M

Re-Runs and Spoilers

Have you ever played that game where people ask you.."If your life was a television show, what would it be called?"  This past week I am not sure what the title of my life story would be, but I can tell you we are in re-run season!

Our Monday episode, again, saw our fearless knitter trying to cram three days of errands into a single bank holiday.  Sunday's blogging even got moved to Monday, which was one of the few things she actually completed.

Tuesday was spent trying to cram Monday's chores and work schedule into a day that also had it's own chores and work schedule.

Wednesday was, almost, a re-run of Tuesday, with the addition of a couple of conference calls, and still those errands from Monday were being pushed aside.

And so it went all week.

Even my knitting was re-runs.

A couple more squares and a repeat of a pair of socks!

I so very nearly made it to the end of the second sock without having to break into the very stripey looking skein of yarn.  For the want of the last three decrease rounds I had to do it, though!

I don't think it even shows, at least while they are still wet and on the blockers, and once they are on my feet no-one will ever know!

In the Spoiler department, after a poll on the Yahoo Group, Andrea (Bad Cat Designs) is giving everyone a choice.  Knit her  Winter Extravaganza as a mystery or know what you are getting into.  Only click here if you want to know what you are getting into!

So, this week was the week of Re-runs and Spoilers, I wonder what this coming week will hold?

~M

Got any spare needles?

I have  discovered a problem with the case of startitus that I have had lately......All of the projects have been long term things.  Big, like blankets and fuzzy wrap things, or tedious like Tardis Plushies, so although there has been knitting there isn't a lot to show because, really, who wants to see more pictures of squares no matter how attractive I think the colors are working out, or more repeats of one lace pattern, or a big blue blob?

I did sneak a pair of alpaca socks in, they were a birthday gift that was quite a bit late, but at least seemed to be appreciated!  The yarn has been aging in my stash for a bit, and is long since discontinued but I had 3 skeins left, these socks took most of two of them.  In a fit of tempting the knitting gods to laugh at me I took the leftovers from the socks and a hat that I also knit from this yarn a while back and cast on a smaller pair of socks for myself.  I suspect that the toe ,and maybe part of the foot, of one will look a little different as the last skein of this yarn I have is much more stripey, being hand dyed there is that chance of variation even when you buy them all at the same time.  But all I want is something soft and squoushy to keep my toes warm!

In the middle of the keep knitting the things I already have going I had a rude awakening at the drug store.  I had stopped in to pick up my latest levels of prescriptions and my credit card would not work.  The pharmacist called the number and got put on hold, and I was on my way to a meeting so just grabbed my debit card and used it to pay instead.  When I finally got in touch with the credit card area of the bank I found out that my card number was having a jolly time in England without me!  Having not used the card anywhere I wouldn't usually, I was at a loss as to how my card number was exposed, but cancelled it and went on with my day.  (Side note here, I am very good at making sure that we live within the budget, so good that it was actually amazing that I had my debit card with me, I use my credit card for everything, rack up the reward points and pay it off when the statement comes in.  Waiting ten days for a new one was going to be a huge life style change!  But I survived and the new card came in on Saturday, just in time for grocery shopping and kids needing new shoes!)

Since that day at the drug store I have found out that one of the online retailers that I use, Knit Picks, had their info exposed and I am not the only knitter who had fraud on their credit card...and Knit Picks wasn't even customer service oriented enough to tell their customers this themselves!

Which is a pity, because with all those needles in projects I had been about to place an order for more cables for my interchangeable needles and some more cotton yarn for the baby blanket, and now....well now I am not sure I can trust them to be honest with me and I don't want to complete the purchase!

So, if you have spare cables or needles maybe you could send them my way because there is something good coming.

A project I have been waiting to start.  It is tradition, after all, that I knit along with the Bad Cat when she has something special on the needles!

I am late inviting you to the party, but won't you join me at the Winter Extravaganza?  The knit alongs are always fun, lots of happy chit chat and fellowship from knitters around the world and the timing couldn't be better for all of us.  Still chilly enough to knit and wear a mohair wrap for those of us in North America, and it should be heading into fall and cool enough to knit and wear a mohair wrap for those of you in the Southern Hemisphere.

~M