Chaussettes de Montréal

I've knitted up half of a leg. This yarn is lovely!

So far

Maude Louise has a back, two fronts, two sleeves (finished last night!), and 3" of each side of the button band. I'm keeping up the two-sides-on-one-needle method so I shouldn't have to worry about the lengths matching. I think I better find myself some buttons...

Math

Math is not my favorite thing to do on a Friday night, but my hubby's working so I figured I'd get started on it. I bought yarn in April while visiting Montréal and have decided to knit it into the Cable Rib Socks from IK's Favorite Socks book. This project will from now on be known as Chaussettes de Montréal. :)

My problem was that the pattern called for fingering weight yarn and my hand-dyed yarn wasn't quite going to match. Tonight I sat down with my swatch (which had been knitted and washed last night), the pattern, my handy dandy Knit Picks needle gauge with magnified measurement area, a calculator, etc. I think I've done all the figuring properly but we'll see once I start knitting the leg, which will hopefully happen this weekend. Wish me luck!

I've also been working on Maude Louise whenever I can. I've been squeezing lots of other stuff in what used to be my knitting time so it's not going as fast as I'd hoped. I'm still making excellent progress though and have knitted up about 8" of each sleeve. I bought a sample size of Soak (Aquae) and I plan on washing Maude in it when she's done.

Update: No, I have not yet sewn together or finished Toddler's Pullover. No need to scold; every time I see it I get annoyed at myself.

Shopping: Yesterday at lunch I bought some stuff - partly to console myself for having "one of those days" where everything seems to go wrong, including missing two buses and then forgetting your coffee not in your car (as you thought), but on top of your car in the parking lot of the urban college where you work. Yes, it was still there when I remembered about it. Anyway, what did I buy, you ask?

• Swish Superwash in "Deep Ocean" for a friend's new baby boy - it will become a No-Daisy Daisy (of the hoodless variety).


• Essential Tweed sock yarn in "Russet" - it will become the Bavarian Twisted Stitch socks by Cat Bordhi (pic here).


• Sample size of Kookaburra Woolwash. I'll compare it to the Aquae-scented Soak I mentioned above to see which I like better. The soap I usually use for my knits is just about done.


• Two replacement pocket pages for my Knit Picks Options needle case.

Yoga?

I used to do yoga several times a week, but lately I've fallen out of that (wonderful) routine. Every once in a while I'll go to the yoga class at my gym, but the instructor I like isn't there anymore so I don't even do that as much as I'd like.

I went to Target today to do a bit of shopping and ended up in the aisle with yoga paraphernalia; I bought a 3-disc Gaiam yoga DVD and passed up on the (much-wanted) Thirsty Yoga Towel and yoga strap. I'm telling you this because it seemed strange to come home, turn on NPR, and find that Krista Tippett's guest is someone who teaches yoga and travels around the world working with people in need.

Alright, I'm going to go open my yoga DVDs and do one of them before starting up on my massive writing endeavor. (And, no, I did not buy buttons for Maude Louise even though I made a special trip to Jo-Ann's and checked in Target.)

But first, in actual knitting news, I finally bought The Knitter's Almanac. It arrived yesterday and I spent 5-10 minutes babbling at my husband about EZ and Meg Swansen. (All the info I learned from David.) I can't wait to look through it more thoroughly!

Goings-on

Maude Louise: As of last night, the whole body of the cardigan is knitted up. Today at my knitting guild meeting, I cast on for both sleeves on one needle and knitted about 2" of ribbing on each.

I think I might bring my swatch for a car ride this weekend to see about buttons. This weekend will be 90% work since my schedule is currently a bit nuts but it might be a good thing to do as a break. :)

Knitting Guild meeting: Our September meeting was tonight. When I got there, I saw lots of semi-used skeins of yarn on a table and people rifling through them. I asked someone what the yarn was for and apparently it was for us to take. (I have some to donate next time!)

Almost immediately I spotted this green lace weight (?) yarn and pictured the shawl on the cover of Victorian Lace Today. I have no idea how much yarn is on this cone, but it's a lot of yarn and I think that, if so inclined, I might be able to make a lace sweater as well as a shawl out of it. Hmm... In any case, the label inside says "Roselon Yarns, Inc." and "Texturalized Nylon" and "3480" and some stuff I can't read.

And just because I'm (just slightly) obsessed with my dog:

February Lady is up soon!

Look at what arrived today--I love Eat.Sleep.Knit!! I ordered Malabrigo Yarn Merino Worsted from them on 9/4 and it was waiting for me when I got home from class today. :)

The yarn is a beautiful lightish blue (that doesn't show up well indoors...but I couldn't wait till Thursday to take a pic) that will turn into a February Lady Sweater.

FYI: I've promised myself that I'll finish Maude Louise before I cast on for this and I'm doing well on that front. I knitted last night (after finishing writing encyclopedia article #1!) and today at lunch and before class. I'm about halfway done shaping the armholes on the back of the sweater.

And take a look at what came in my Eat.Sleep.Knit package: yarn (obviously), a sample size of Soak in Aquae (which I bought), a Yarn Lotto ticket (that won me a $5 credit!), 3 buttons/pins, a Yarn Marathon welcome letter congratulating me on reaching the 1 mile marker, a complimentary copy of Dream In Color's "Oakleaf 3/4 Shawl" pattern, yarn sample cards, and a notecard to keep track of my needles. Fun stuff. :)

being a perfectionist

I've been knitting away on Maude Louise but you wouldn't know it from looking at my progress.

Fronts
Before: I put in a lifeline at the 15" mark. When I got about halfway done shaping the armholes, I decided that I really didn't like the seed stitch design and ripped back to the lifeline. Whew! Saved again by a little piece of thread...

After: with stockinette stitch. (You'll have to use your imagination...no photo.) Plain was the way to go! I love it. :)


Back
Before: I decreased on the purl side rather than the knit side and thought it showed too much. Also, I was running out of my ball of hand-dyed yarn and alternated rows with a new ball so the color change wouldn't be abrupt. The knitting part of that plan worked well and I was happy with the coloring of the back, but I think I might have messed up a bit on carrying-it-up-the-side.

After: I still notice the dec 10 but it looks *much* better than it did when I decreased on the purl side. Maybe it'll be better after blocking?

In both cases, thank God for my lifelines. I probably use them way more than the normal knitter, but I feel like they give me a safety net. And with Knit Picks Options needles it's so easy to put one in: you thread your thread through the little hole at the base of the needle and just purl across regularly. How brilliant!

I have been knitting

Maude Louise is no longer in hibernation. Knitting it over the holiday weekend (mostly Sunday & Monday) allowed me to finish the lattice stitch waist of the back of the cardigan and to get halfway through the lattice stitch waist of the front pieces, which are being knit at the same time on one needle.

I love the lattice stitch. I love the yarn. I can't wait to wear this thing!

On Friday, 8/29, I blocked all the pieces--front, back, and sleeves--of the Toddler's Pullover. I was hoping to have the one toddler I know model the sweater at our Saturday BBQ but the pieces still needed to be sewn up, the collar needed to be knitted, and it was just generally impossible. I was proud of myself for doing all that knitting and I enjoyed doing the cables and the blackberry stitch.