rushing

We decided this morning to take a couple of days and go to camp. We're leaving this evening so I am rushing to get a couple of errands done today and then pack my knitting. I'm taking the hemp ponchette #409 from http://www.hempforknitting.com/ ,

and a top down sweater I've started for myself out of Briggs & Little sports weight wool http://www.briggsandlittle.com/ (I do love getting back to knitting with wool), and I was going to bring one sock which hasn't seen any progress since the spring but I think these 2 projects are enough. Lots of straight knitting to do on the sweater.

My errands have to do with the next big event around here, Mariposa Folk Festival, coming up next weekend http://www.mariposafolk.com/ . A merry group of visionaries worked hard this last year trying to start new Arts school around Mariposa. For 2 days before the weekend you could have taken classes in songwriting, photography, creative writing, singing, dancing, printmaking and improv. Did you notice the past tense? It didn't get off the ground. So some more of us have joined the group and I am lending my marketing knowledge, such as it is, and have made up a flyer to advertise for next year 'New in 2009, A Learning Experience...email us at forum@mariposafolk.com, we'll keep you informed.' We'll be emailing a newsletter with profiles of teachers and all the info that comes up during the year. Lakehead University has pitched in with classrooms and restaurants will discount meals and there might be an arts tour and who knows what. If you see me at Mariposa on the weekend I'll be there with green flyers because

I have a few.

My short list of people I want to see there: Cheryl Wheeler, Loudon Wainwright III, Sarah Harmer, John Wort Hannam, JP Cormier, Maria Dunn, Holmes Hooke, Taj Mahal, Connie Kaldor and some that sound interesting like the Funky Mamas, Creeking Tree, & the Foggy Hogtown Boys. It's going to be an exciting weekend and it's only Monday - 4 more sleeps.

-Deb

What's New

'New' seems to be a theme these days. Our New patterns are on our website www.cabinfever.ca/PatRequest.asp . And the Baby V booklet is definitely almost done. One more week of editing and then it goes to the printers. This is where Lynda has to pry the booklet out of my hands (it's not a booklet, it's a computer file but that's not too visual), lock me in the room and take it away, while I agonize about one more little change I would like to make. I could make little changes forever and it would never see the light of day and I would be happy. But no one would be knitting these little darlings so out it's going to go.

The process at the printers takes a little time with proofs and colour proofs and checking that everything ended up on the right page, making any little changes at that stage and THEN it will be on the presses. YES. I know it's a long, long road but it's only been 4 months which for me was too quick. I really need about 6 months. I know, a long time and it only takes a couple days to knit any of these baby sweaters! It's like having a baby, the beginning is fun and the end is exciting but the long 9 months has it's ups and downs. We are in that last month of anticipation: excitement that it's almost ready, worry that nothing will go wrong and wondering how it will be received.

There is even more excitement at my house because these have finally arrived. I am not the only one in my house who has been working on a creative endeavour. My husband, paul, has finished his first CD. They arrived the other day and he is so thrilled.It all started when Steve Earle sang a song at Mariposa about the Donnelly family called 'Justice in Ontario'. Paul was totally pissed off by his bias view and wrote a song in rebuttal. And then... he just couldn't let it go. He started reading more about the tragedy and writing more songs. Eventually he sent out word that he'd like to do some kind of project and was anyone interested. Susan Charters, a storyteller, jumped in (Susan and paul used to play in a local band). In January 2008 they put on 2 house concerts of songs and stories of the murder of the Donnelly family. In Lucan Ontario, February 4, 1880, five members of the family died and their house was burned to the ground. Six members of the Vigilance Committee were brought to trial but during the trial many stories arose of the reign of terror the Donnelly's had led in their community. No one was found guilty. Right or Wrong?This is a 'live' recording of the house concert and I know where you could get a CD or two if you're interested.
- Deb

something new

I started something new which is not a baby anything. It's not in baby friendly yarn, it's not baby sized, it's not for a book, it might even be for me but I do have someone else in mind for it.

It's Hemp for Knitting's Ponchette(http://www.hempforknitting.com/) #k409. The hemp is DK weight and the ponchette is knit with large needles, I'm using 4.5mm/US7, and it's flying along.

It's so easy that I cast on last night during our last knitting guild meeting. We went formal for the occasion and had a pot luck at a members house. We sat in her sun room and knit the evening away. There were baby sweaters, socks, a baby afghan, a coat, a couple of shawls and a ponchette being worked on. Our guild is very small about 14 knitters and this is about 1/2 of us here but we have a great time together.

In fact there was always so much talking going on during the meeting that we now meet for dinner first and then go to our shop for the meeting. We generally have a show and tell which takes up most of the time and a short workshop afterwards. Some home made wine made it even better this evening.

We set up our program for next year. Different members have volunteered to attempt to teach us all: spinning with drop spindles (one of our members husband is going to make us some), a new 'knit one below' stitch one of our members test knit for a new XRX book coming out in November, tweed stitch squares from Sally Melville's stash busting book 'Styles' and maybe we'll throw them in a dye pot too, knitting with wire & beads (before christmas so we can all make presents), japanese cording or braiding, twinning (spelt right? - using 2 ends of the ball at once), work on some accreditation samples for the Canadian Guild of Knitters (http://www.cgknitters.ca/ - Cynthia, the president, is one of our members), and we're going to get a demo on cutting a lining for a knitted jacket which one of our members does beautifully. It's going to be an exciting year. We're not done yet though. In July I think we're going to Huntsville to do a dyeing workshop with Karen the owner of the Sheepstrings store. So much good stuff to learn and try out. Makes one giddy!

-Deb

Top & toes

I had an excellent weekend away and still got some work done. I listened to 2 audio books while I knit and even managed to read two other books too. I was working on hats and socks to match the sweaters in the Baby V booklet. My goal was a hat and sock set done every day which was going great until I ran out of navy yarn. As soon as that happened I sort of lost my momentum but not a bad haul for the weekend.
-Deb

One more test knit

I have one more Baby V checked and test knit. I wanted to show you some of the details...

Now I am off to camp for the weekend and I'll be knitting socks and hats to go with most of the sweaters. Yes almost finished.

What can I think up to do next. I definitely need a carrot at this time in the proceedings because I'm almost done myself. Time to move on here. I'll be thinking over the weekend and making lists of things to do.

-Deb

What is she doing?

I have new neighbours and today they got the special treat of watching me try to photograph my own feet. It's harder than it would appear. I have finished a second pair of my Queen's Castle socks in Shelridge Farms Ultra Soft Touch fingering wool (http://www.shelridge.com/). It's a real pleasure to knit with.
Oops, sort of missed my toes there. But you can see the lace holes a little bit here.
A close up of the star toes. These are knit toe-up and I really like this toe. These socks are a tiny bit too big for me. I usually knit myself a sock with a 7" circumference but these are the regulation 8 inches around.
The 'official pattern photo'. OK have you figured out how I took this one? Yes, I got my husband to do it. I don't bend like that anymore if I ever did. Oh ouch those stones are sharp. Modelling can be painful.
The pattern will be ready this week so if you want to knit a pair order it by name, Queen's Castle Socks, on the website http://www.cabinfever.ca/ or email Lynda at info@cabinfever.ca and ask for it. And when all the patterns are up on the website I'll put their photos up and we'll have an unveiling.
- Deb
P.S. Thanks Samm for your comment and a good idea to put the explanation for non-symmetry in bold because I know people don't read the small print (see last post).

Question

Here's one of the sweaters which you haven't seen yet. But I have a question about it. My quandary is, wait let me explain first.

When you knit a cardigan top down you have 5 sections to the sweater - 2 Fronts, 2 sleeves, 1 Back. And if you want to work a 2 stitch pattern repeat - K1, P1 - it's important at the front edges next to the buttonbands that the pattern be symmetrical. So you really work P1, repeat [K1, P1] to end, beginning with a purl and ending with a purl. Usually the odd stitch would be in the centre Back. But this becomes a nightmare to write up.

Slightly simplified here it would go like this: Front: work [P1, K1] to marker// Sleeve: work [P1, K1]// Back: work [P1, K1] end with a P1 (Back has an odd no. of sts)// second Sleeve sequence is worked opposite: work [K1, P1]// work Front: work [K1, P1]. OK not bad.

When you look across the sections you had 2 Fronts and 2 sleeves with an even no. of stitches, and 1 Back with an odd no. of stitches. Now if we work an Increase Row, the Sleeves and Back increase by 2 sts each, but the Fronts only increase by 1 stitch. So now we have 2 Fronts with an odd no. of sts, 2 sleeves with even no. of stitches, and the Back with odd no. of sts.

So now the sequence is: Front begins with P1, work [K1, P1]//sleeve work [K1, P1]//Back begins with [K1, P1], ends with K1//sleeve work [P1, K1]//Front work [P1, K1], ends with P1.

Then add in several sizes and some Short Row shaping and it's getting complicated. I'm trying to simplify. So what I did was move the odd stitch from the centre Back to the second Front. I know, I know, now it's not symmetrical. One of the Fronts has 1 more stitch. But look how easy it becomes when the Front, sleeve, Back, & sleeve are all even numbers. Every section is worked [P1, K1], then the second Front begins with [P1, K1] like the other sections and ends with P1 (odd no. sts). Perfect right? Well except for the symmetrical thing. After working an increase row the first Front becomes odd and the second Front is even. So you work: Front begins with P1, work [K1, P1] (0dd no. sts), and then all the other sections are worked [K1, P1], and the second Front will end with a P1 naturally. Lovely.

To tell you the truth the non-symmetrical thing would bug the *&^%* out of me and I would try to do it so it was symmetrical and get into all kinds of trouble and then figure out that maybe the designer was trying to do me a favour and make the whole thing easier for me to work. So I put in this Note: To make the executing the pattern easier both sleeves, the Back and one of the Fronts have an even number of stitches. The other Front will have an odd number of stitches in order to make the pattern come out properly at front bands. This is obviously not a very good explanation but I hope to indicate that it was all done on purpose to make things easier.

It's a lovely sweater to knit and looks great when finished.

My question is am I setting myself up here to get a barrage of questions and should I be packing my bags to leave the country to get away from the ringing of the phone. Symmetry is a big deal and not to be trifled with.

- Deb