Weaving in the ends.

Finishing. It's arguably the most important step in any craft, particularly in garment construction. But finishing any project is what turns it from a project to a finished piece. (By "finishing" I don't mean completing, I mean weaving in ends, sewing seams, etc.) I am more of a process knitter. I enjoy the process of knitting, but it's the actual clack of the needles that I find relaxing. It's watching a pattern emerge that I enjoy. This isn't to say I don't like seeing the finished product, but if it turns out wrong, or just not the way I expected, I have no problem walking away from it (or giving it away) and moving on. But the finishing...

It the hardest part of any project for me. The part I find least enjoyable and the part that I am not particularly great at. I mean, I'm not terrible - I can seam two pieces of fabric, knit or otherwise - but I just find it to be tedious.

Obviously I'm writing this post because I am in the middle of finishing a project and am procrastinating.

I'm using online tutorials to (hopefully) create better seams. This one seems (ha) to be pretty good, though I haven't actually started seaming yet.  Right now I am weaving in approximately eleventy billion ends. The only way I know how to do that effectively and neatly is to duplicate stitch them in. I haven't found a good explanation of how to weave in ends invisibly and quickly, other than duplicate stitch. It's a good method, but time consuming. I suppose I should get back to it...

Shoes.

So this isn't craft related, per se, but I just ordered these shoes: Seychelles Stand and Deliver Flats. They are gorgeous, man-made and I already have an outfit in mind to wear them with. Now I just need a warm evening, a bottle of wine and an outdoor concert to complete the look.

Last day for the yarny raffle!

Today is the last day to enter the yarn raffle in support of Emily! Great prizes being given away, but more importantly, a great oppotunity to help a woman fight both cancer and discrimination.

For more info, go here.

Super secret sneak preview.

Much of this month has been occupied with sample knitting. This is my first foray into the world of pay-for-knit, and I've got to say, I kind of love it. I mean, it's got pros and cons. Pros: paid to knit - hey-o!, get to work with yarns I might not otherwise have used, fun new patterns to try out and correct, my name in a knitting book and a free copy of said book! Plus, watching my friend develop and release her own yarn line! Woo. Cons: deadlines, deadlines, deadlines, I'm not designing anything, just doing "grunt work" (not complaining though!), less time for personal projects.

All in all, I'm really enjoying it and I think this might be a good way to earn a little extra cash for yarn purchases when I transition to full time housewife. It's pretty awesome.

Since the yarn line and pattern books haven't been released yet, I can't show you what I've been doing other than this super sneaky peek... I'll say this, the yarn is delightful to knit with - it's got a soft sheen and is wonderfully soft and squooshy, but is also sturdy. You can put tension on it without worrying about snapping the yarn. It's pretty luxurious stuff and the put ups are fantastic. I'm not much of a photographer, but trust me when I say the yarn was divine.

For Emily - donate to a good cause and win amazing yarn.

Re-blogged (with permission) from my friend Ann (Fidget Knits). Not that a ton of people follow this blog, but getting this info out to even one more person is a good thing. Here's the deal:

A Request, For Emily (Win Crafty Goodies!)

So. My best friend in the world, Erin, has a sister, Emily. This is Emily.

Emily is sick. Very sick. They thought her liver was failing and she was preparing for a transplant last month when they discovered she actually has liver cancer -- which makes her ineligible for a transplant. Emily recently began chemotherapy, the first leg of her long journey to fight cancer. When she beats the cancer, she will still need a liver transplant.

When she is healthy, Emily works as a school teacher in my hometown in Kansas. Unfortunately, Emily's health insurance does not cover prescriptions. And because Kansas does not recognize gay marriage, Emily cannot get on her partner's insurance to help cover some of the costs. Right now, her prescriptions are running about $1,000 a month -- $35 a day -- which doesn't include co-pays for other medical treatments. She is hoping to raise at least $20,000 in the short term to help cover these costs. Emily keeps journal at CaringBridge to chronicle her fight against cancer.

I’ve put together a small fundraiser to help Emily get the money she needs for her fight. And amazing crafters from across the Internet have rallied to help out, too. Just look at the bevy of goodies for the winners! (Please note: the actual goods far exceed my photographic skills.)

My good friend Elspeth, of Wry Punster fame, will knit you a sweater!
* One winner will receive a sweater, knit by a former knitting teacher, to her (his) measurements. The winner will provide the yarn (worsted weight or heavier) and Elspeth will develop the custom pattern in consultation with the winner. The winner will receive the sweater and the pattern so that she (he) can knit additional garments to the same specs.


KFI Yarns donated a ton of yarns, most in sweater quantities. Including Louisa Harding Grace, which is a kissing cousing to Sundara Aran Silky Merino or Lorna’s Laces Lion & Lamb. Desert Island Yarn, for real. But wait, there’s more:

Top: Louisa Harding Grace; Queensland Collection Pima Fresca; Elsbeth Lavold Hempathy; Louisa Harding La Salute.
Bottom: Arucania Milodon & Louisa Harding Kashmir Baby; Louisa Harding Kashmir (baby, dk and aran weights); Arucania Milodon; Queensland Super Aussie Merino & Elsbeth Lavold Bamboucle.
These will be divided as follows:
* One winner: 9 hanks of Grace in Berry
* Two winners: 9 hanks each of Grace in Tangerine
* One winner: 5 hanks of Grace in a chocolate-covered cherry colorway, plus 10 balls of Kashmir Aran in Merlot
* One winner: 10 balls of Kashmir Baby in green plus 10 balls of La Salute in black
* One winner: 10 balls of Kashmir Baby in pink, plus 10 balls of La Salute in ivory
* One winner: 10 balls of Kashmir Aran in teal, plus 10 balls of La Salute in red
* Two winners: 10 balls of Kashmir DK in teal, plus 10 balls of La Salute in red
* One winner: 10 balls of Kashmir Baby in navy, blus 10 balls of La Salute in red
* One winner: 9 hanks of Pima Fresca in Ivory, plus 10 balls of Kashmir DK in rust
* One winner: 3 hanks of Arucania Milodon in purple, plus 4 balls of Kashmir baby in violet
* One winner: 10 hanks of Arucania Milodon in green
* One winner: 9 balls of Queensland Super Aussie Merino plus 5 balls of Elsbeth Lavold Bamboucle in celadon
* One winner: grab bag, including Elsbeth Lavold bamboucle in celery, plus 4 balls of Sublime Cashmerino dk in assorted colors, plus a full bag of unlabeled bulky ivory yarn.


Kathy at WEBS-America’s Yarn Store, has generously donated to the cause.

* One winner will receive a $50 gift card to WEBS, plus the two hanks of Huntington sock yarn in a deep purple pictured above, plus one set of size 2 bamboo dpns.
* One winner will receive a $50 gift card to WEBS and one set of size 2 bamboo dpns.


You know I’m a sucker for Fiberphile yarns from early on in her shop-days. Georgia’s colors are so amazing!

* One winner will receive a hank of 2-Ply Squooshy sock yarn in Concord.


Likewise, my girl Sundara has generously donated a hank of Fingering Silky Merino. One hank is 560 yards – plenty of yarn for a shawl or scarf.

* One winner will receive a hank of Fingering Silky Merino, Colorway Flower Studies #5.


My good friend (and lunch-buddy) Pia dug into her own stash for these highly coveted goodies.

* One winner will receive a hank of Wollmeise Twin in Frosch.
* One winner will receive a hank of Sanguine Gryphon Skinny Bugga, colorway Autumn Tiger Beetle.


I decided to match Pia's generosity.

* One winner will receive a hank of Wollmeise sock yarn in Veilchen.
* One winner will receive a hank of Sanguine Gryphon Skinny Bugga, colorway Cuban Cockroach.


The amazing and generous Caro has donated a box bag from her shop, Splityarn.
* One winner will be able to pick a box bag – print of the winner’s choosing. (I’m partial to the spiderpig box bag myself.


With so much yarn to be won, there can’t just be one bag, right? Jen from YarnPlayCafe has donated to the cause as well.
* One winner can pick a tote bag (exact kind to be specified soon!) from her shop.


The incomparable Kirsten Kapur of Through the Loops fame has generously offered up her designs.
* Three winners will each receive gift certificates to the Through The Loops pattern store, good for three patterns each.


The inspiring, phenomenally talented force behind Cauchy Complete has created a wonderful mini-quilt.

* One winner will receive a handmade mini-quilt.


Remember Elspeth at the top of this list? Her mother, an accomplished beader, has graciously contributed.

* One winner will receive the handmade, double-strand labradorite necklace.


Here’s how to participate:
1. Go to Emily’s donation site at Give Forward.
2. Give an amount you feel comfortable with. With your donation, leave Emily a note of support. Let her know the knitters are cheering her on, or share an inspiring quote or a song lyric. Or just share the cheesiest joke you’ve heard lately – something to make her smile.
3. Come back here and leave a comment with your donation amount. For every $10 you donate, you will receive one entry into the raffle. If you donate at least $20 and mention this fundraiser on your blog, public twitter account, or flickr, you’ll get an extra entry. (Make sure you include the link where it’s mentioned.)
(3.5. Important! Make sure that your comment information includes how to reach you if you win! )
4. Comments will be accepted until Tuesday, March 29, at 11:59 p.m. Winners will be announced the next day.
(4.5 Fine print: Taxes are the responsibility of the winner. Winners who do not respond to their notification within 7 days will forfeit their winnings. International entries are okay but will be shipped at the cheapest rate.)
Finally, a note about giving: There is a lot of tragedy in the world today, and I recognize that everyone has many opportunities to give. This is not intended to detract from any fundraisers for other worthwhile causes. If you do choose to give to help Emily, your donation will go directly to help her fight against liver cancer. And for that: THANK YOU.

Sample knitting.

I have recently discovered the miraculous world of test and sample knitting. Did you guys know about this?? I haven't test knit anything yet, but I have been working on some projects for a friend who has 30 patterns coming out with a new yarn line. It's pretty exciting stuff and honestly? I'm a little star struck by her. I mean, she's an amazing friend but she also happens to be a knitting rock star.

So, sample knitting. I volunteered to do some sample knitting for this friend, because hey - new knitting and helping out a friend! Best of both worlds! But as it turns out, you get paid for sample knitting! Paid! I mean, granted, it's slave wages in terms of hours worked, but getting paid to do something I would have done for free is pretty amaze-balls. I'm still trying to figure out how to turn this into a full time gig...

Having said that however, I will also say that having a deadline for your knitting can be stressful. Thankfully, though, I am a last minute knitter anyway, so almost all my knitting is "deadline" knitting. I have discovered that I am turning into a knitting monogamist, much to my surprise. I have 5 works-in-progress right now and that, more than anything else, is what stresses me out. But I'm actually feeling proud about it, if you follow what I mean. Yes, it's stressful to me to have so many knitting projects unfinished right now, but I really feel like that is a sign that I am growing up as a knitter. I am a finisher! I do not like to have WIPs all over the place! I have (hopefully) beaten the startitis!

Fingers crossed, anyway.

The problem with blogging...

The problem with having a crafting blog and being a bad/lazy photographer is that it makes for a boring blog. I want everyone (all two of you) to know that I'm not purposely ignoring this blog. It's just that I have very little patience for photographing stuff (because I'm not great at it and it is labor intensive), and posting on a crafting blog without photos doesn't really work. I'm trying to find a happy medium.

Thus far my attempts have been unsuccessful. ::sigh::

I'll try harder. Promise.

Shawls are for boys, too.

Shawls are, as a friend once said, a "very knitterly thing." You don't really see shawls out in the public sphere, unless they are worn by knitters, or little old ladies from the Old Country. I actually didn't really see the appeal of shawls until I started knitting in earnest. But now... Oh, shawls, how I love you!

The great thing about a shawl is its versatility. I wear Dover Castle as my Winter scarf. It has more surface area than a typical scarf, so it can cover more of my neck. Plus, I love the way the little point of the shawl kicks out, even when I have it wrapped around my neck like a scarf. It's just a little touch of sass that makes me smile. And shawls don't have to be just for Winter. Knit up in a lighter weight yarn - like cotton, or Hempathy, or Rowan Lenpur Linen - they can be the perfect little shoulder cover for a breezy evening, or a super air conditioned office.

But I digress. The main point is that typically, shawls seem to be a decidedly feminine accessory. It's not hard to see why. Most of them are very lacy, and even when knit in a bold or "masculine" color, "lacy" does not evoke images of conquering mountains or chainsawing huge logs in half or whatever other manly imagery you can come up with. (Apparently, when I think "manly", I think "lumberjack".) However, and I don't know if this is a recent phenomenon or not, but there seem to be an increasing number of not-lacy shawls making the knitting rounds. Some of these are designed by men - Stephen West, for example - but not necessarily all of them. Enter the shawl-for-a-guy.

There are so many great things about shawls-for-men. First, there are myriad ways to make it a structurally and visually interesting shawl without lace. Second, there are millions of color possibilities to explore - even pink can be masculine in the right setting! Third, you get the size, coziness factor and fun of knitting a shawl without it being a feminine accessory. I recently made Clockwork (by Stephen West) for Allen and it is fabulous. He loves that he can wrap it around his neck a million times and cuddle down into it when the bitterly cold wind blows in his face during his morning commute, and I absolutely loved picking out colors and knitting this fabulous, uh, I mean manly, neck warmer.

So, if you are a knitter and you are looking for a manly scarf to make for your significant other, don't be afraid of shawls! You know how much fun they are to knit! I would recommend calling it a "scarf" around the house though. Just to keep up the manly facade.

KALs are the best.

My new favorite thing in the fiber world is the knit-along. Or maybe it's knit-a-long since the acronym is KAL? At any rate, there are so many great things about them.

1. They let you knit with a friend or a group, even if you can't be in physically the same place while knitting. It brings a sense of community back to your knitting when you can't get to your LYS for knit-night, or when you are traveling, or any time you find yourself with a stretch of lonely knitting.

2. If someone else is knitting the exact same thing, it's really easy for you to help each other out with sticky spots. Most patterns have one or two places where the instructions are vague, or you just aren't getting it. If you are knitting it with a friend, they can help explain funky spots to you - or vice versa.

3. They keep you on track and on  target. Oh, startitis. You foul temptress. It's so easy to give in to your siren call. Unless you know you are going to have to compare progress on your KAL with someone else. Then, rather than be embarrassed by how little you have completed, you put down the skein of Sanguine Gryphon you were just fondling and pick up your knitting instead.

A few things to consider when contemplating a KAL...

A. It's better for everyone involved if you are close in skill level to your fellow KAL-ers. This is not to say everyone has to be a newb. If you have someone in the group who is more advanced, they can help point out pitfalls that the novices are likely to fall into. But if everyone is on approximately the same level, there is less embarrassment at pattern snafus or knitting speed. Also, if someone in your group is a crazy fast knitter (not mentioning names here... and no, it's not me), it's not much of a knit-a-long. It's more like a game of catch-up.

B. Pattern. Kind of obvious. But it should be something that everyone is interested in knitting. As a corollary, you might want to check out the pattern beforehand to make sure it's worth knitting. Everyone has had a moment where they bought a pattern, bought the yarn and cast on, only to find out the pattern is a hot mess and un-knit-able. Or un-crochet-able. Ask me how I know. Or read back in the archives.

C. How often will you be checking in? My friend and I sent each other email updates fairly frequently to check progress. If it's a short term project, like a cowl, maybe daily check-ins? Long term project, maybe weekly?

The beauty of the KAL is it's totally up to you! There are no rules and no deadlines, but I found that it definitely kept me on track and on task when I got to that "endless stockinette" portion of the pattern. I can't wait to do another one!

The fruits of our labor! (P.S. The KAL in question was Rosamund's Cardigan. Not too tough for beginners, but interesting enough to keep you occupied for not-beginners. Heart!)

So sick I can't even knit.

How sad. What a terrible way to kick off the New Year! With the worst cold ever! (Well, the worst since I had this same cold last year...) I called out of work today, but even with uninterrupted couch time, I was too sick to knit more than a few rows of my Rosamund's Cardigan. I started this cardigan as a KAL (knit along) with a friend, and hers is now blocking while mine still needs 3 waist decreases and 2 sleeves. I am loving this sweater though. There's a ton of plain (reverse) stockinette, so it goes fast, but there's enough to keep track of with cables and shaping that it doesn't get boring. I'm knitting it in some gorgeous Sanguine Gryphon Free Range in the Indian Peafowl colorway. I bought the yarn at Rhinebeck in October and I love it so much, I ordered 2 more skeins to make Allen a Clockwork! If my nose stops running I may actually finish Rosamund this week.

My first cast-on of the new year will be a pair of convertible (flip top) mitts for Allen. Since my long-suffering husband has yet to receive any of my knitting handiwork, I figured it was time. He's actually getting a set: convertible mitts, a koolhaas and Clockwork. I'm trying to fly through the mitts and hat so I can get to clockwork before it warms up! My goal is to finish Allen's "commuting set" before February 1. Hurry up fingers! Knit faster!

The amigurumi that we knit for our nieces went over really well. I'm very pleased with how they turned out and how easy it was to modify the clothes for each. Allen's Hep Kitty is my absolute favorite, and our niece almost didn't get a Christmas gift from us as a result! So tempting to keep it for my own! Allen has promised to make me one though. And the Little Man Vest I made for our nephew came out adorable and fit him perfectly! Which, actually, is a bad thing since he's one and a half. He'll basically get to wear it this winter and that's it. Luckily, my sister (in-law) has another on the way so maybe it will get some more use!

Look at those adorable crafts! Uh, I mean kids! Happy New year and happy crafting!

Resolutions.

1. Knitting project bigamy. No more then 2 projects on needles at any given time!

2. Blog more. And include photos.

3. Run.

4. Be thankful, be positive, look forward.