Extreme Knitting Part 3

Knitting was a piece of cake with my new ginormous needles and uber-thick fabric/yarn. Purling took a while to get used to.



At first I cast on a needles worth of stitches only to discover that would have made a VERY large something or other. I pulled it all off and cast on only 13 stitches. It seems the gauge is an impossible sounding 1 stitch=1 inch. The resulting fabric is rather stiff however. I am wondering, since I still have half a bolt left to cut, if I should make the polyester into smaller strips for my next try.

Extreme Knitting Part 2

I found this 5 yard bolt of stretchy material for $5 at Walmart.



I brought it home and began cutting it into strips.



I had a system going that kept it from being too back breaking a job by cutting sections up to the bolt before undoing any more.



I am not nearly done but I made a test cast on with my new size 50 needles. The material being stretchy is really fun to work with. The cast on went on easily. I didn't have enough to knit a row because it uses LOTS of material. I am going to be cutting forever but I see real possibilities here. I only wish the needles were longer.

A Nostalgic Knit Night

I have an hour drive to get to the cafe where we hold our weekly Knit Night. It's the same commute I made Monday-Friday for 20 years. I always get there early and then sit for a while in the car to get my project in order. Tonight I had to bind off the back of my pullover and cast on the front. That's too much counting to do while trying to talk as much as possible so I needed to get this done before going in.



I wore my Classic Lines Cardigan for the first time tonight. I had started it on May 6th, 2010 and used to work on it at school during my lunch break. We talked a lot about school tonight and I left with a heavy heart. I miss my job. In case you want to know, here is my post about why I decided to retire so early.



Show and Tell began with me dragging this hat out into the remaining sunlight to get a decent picture. The texture is amazing. It really is a work of art.



Patterns for headbands literally exploded all over the table along with this super soft ball of a silk and bamboo blend. It was purchased at Hobby Lobby for a ridiculous price. I have never been to a Hobby Lobby. I think I need to go. Soon.



My Show and Tell project was on these giant needles. Come back tomorrow for all the details on my new obsession.



Someone bought this crocheted hat at Franklin's. I have never been there either but it looks like a really good place for a grown-up field trip. We decided we could make this hat and I am pretty sure someday soon someone will.



Miss Prodigy is using her handspun to knit a Gail/aka Nightsongs (!) shawl. It is her first try at lace and I am holding my breath until next week-but seriously, if anyone could pull this off as a beginner lace project she could.



This is not a toe-up sock. No indeedy. It is another stuffed thingamabob named Otis. I think. I should have spent more time talking about knitting and less time catching up on school gossip-but it was particularly juicy tonight.



A crocheted scarf made its appearance. It has beads. I like beads. I like anything shiny and sparkly. I need to learn to do this.



The first of the headbands was cast on and then general confusion began over the M1L direction on the purl side. Somehow it all worked out.



Finally, a very long ribbon scarf inched its way out of its bag for a brief time. Things like this make me wish I had a better camera-or better light.

Teetime

One of the reasons I have been able to get things done lately is because I have been taking my knitting on the road.



Every Saturday I have been accompanying Daughter and Dad to golf lessons. I get an hour of quiet time in the clubhouse or on a bench at the driving range while they hack and slash at little white balls.



It is a very posh place and this past Saturday I looked down and realized I had on my silly green crocs. I meant to change them. I really did but trying to rush out the door is hard in the morning when you are out of practice. At least Daughter didn't make me wait in the car. There was a time when she would have insisted on it.

Finally...A Done Deal

My Classic Lines Cardigan is DONE. I love it even though I have not worn it yet. It does fit but I have nothing to wear under it that looks right with the color.



The color is my favorite part. I love how you carry along a variegated yarn to give you those crayon-like scribbles every few rows. It is knit with 2 strands of laceweight-3 when you add the contrasting stripe and it has amazing drape. I am fighting the urge to start another one.

Daddio's Workshop

I can't even get one of his quilts finished before he has lost interest and is on to something new. He is not crazy about sewing but he loves cutting things out and playing with designs.



His psychedelic quilt has only two more blocks and a border to go and then it's a done deal.



He recently came back from Joanne's with this bundle of material. He was mumbling something about using the fat quarters for a log cabin. The brights will be for another appliqued granny's garden. It makes me tired just looking at it all. Since he is not so good with the machine, I know who will be sewing it all together.

Before I Dye

I've turned the heel on my latest sock blank project. As I am heading down the home stretch all I can think of is how much I hate that gold dye I used. Instead of knitting socks with this blank, I should have framed it to remind myself to think before I dye.