Stash Queen

Not My Fault

I recently got back from a trip down south with my daughter and the boys, to take my niece home after a two week visit and to give my mom and dad some time with the great grandsons.  The week passed pleasantly with no daytime rain (amazing luck), trips to the park and the zoo, and of course some shopping.

We got over to Port Perry to see Carole at Never Enough Wool.  The shop name says it all.  Any overspending is partly her fault for keeping such lovely yarns, so many that my local LYS doesn't carry.  Being able to fondle yarn makes it more irresistible than internet shopping, although I've been known to succumb there too!  I showed some restraint and only purchased sweater yarn for a predetermined project - the Silky Rib sweater from Custom Knits.  And I think part of the blame for that choice falls squarely on Brenda - hers looks so nice on her that she calls it "Slinky Ribs."  (Edited:  Duh!  That is the name of the pattern.  I kept thinking it was Silky Ribs because of the yarn.)  Then my daughter decided to try a pair of socks as her next project, won over by Cookie A's new book.  My daughter is not a timid beginner:  her first mitts, not plain but Chevalier's; her first socks, not plain but Angee's (Ravelry link).  So Risa's the one who found the OnLine sock yarn in wool and silk, but some came home with me too - her fault, see?

 

These are Spring Forward socks and I love this lace pattern.  It looks intricate but it's really just one simple line of pattern to learn and it only shifts once every twelve rows to offset the increase and decrease sections.  Check the chart - nothing to it, but so impressive!

I felt entitled to start these socks because I finished the other Blossom Top sock

and the plain socks knit two at a time on one circular needle (car knitting).

 

I had a love/hate relationship with this yarn.  It's one of the new Kroy colorways and I think it's unusual and more attractive than their former combinations.  Often I don't care if my self striping socks match exactly - I'm happy with kissin' cousins.  However, this time I tried to match the socks as I cast on both and I got fooled.  There are two different sections where turquoise follows black, as I discovered part way through the ribbing.  I tried to convince myself that I could live with another pair of unmatched socks and kept knitting.  Twenty-one rows in, I admitted I was unhappy:  I had wanted this pair to match, I tried to make them match and damn it, I would rip out one sock and reknit it to make them match.  So rip and re-cast on I did.  Not realizing that with both socks on one needle, it would mean slipping the other 60 stitch sock for twenty-one rows until I got caught up.  But I was stuck in the car for eight hours anyway, I hadn't yet managed to complete a pair of socks with this new method, and I didn't want to give up now.  So I persevered and was so happy when I could finally knit a row on both socks again.  Two rows later I encountered a knot followed by a MAJOR jump in the color sequence and was left swearing again.   After all my trials, I could NOT have unmatched socks.  Luckily it was the opposite ball to the one from which I had already wasted so much yarn, and I pulled until I found the next matching section and joined the yarn to carry on.  Please appreciate the perfectly plain but nicely matched socks shown above.  They did not come into being by chance.

I am not the kind of person who can finish two projects and just start one.  That's my nature  and I've accepted it.  It's not my fault either.  So here's the other pair of socks I've started. 

 

They are "Jeweled Steps," another new pathway from Cat Bordhi, made from the leftover Opal Handpaint that my friend bought two summers ago for me to knit her a vest.  The socks will be for her too, and I hope to have them done in two weeks when I go back down south with my DH for our mini vacation in "The County," Prince Edward County, Picton and surrounding area.

Notice the center stitch marker above:  Bordhi recommends using markers with alphabet labels and writes her instructions accordingly.  I found small beads at a local dollar store, A Buck or Two, that slip perfectly onto the Clover safety pin-type stitch markers and even match in colour.  Cool, eh!

I Give Up

Carrying on from my last Manitoulin post, I'd like to share with you some of my uncle's talents.  The yard of his home on the west end is filled with figures, twenty or more.  This is the first fellow you see sitting before the driveway.

They are a combination of metal, wood, and old clothing and props.  Tourists often stop for a better look at his creations. 

Most are people, but there are also a couple of birds, this Mother Goose being one of my favorites.

 

My dad is talented too, specializing in wood carving.  I've shown some of his birds before, posed with my works in progress.  We're a crafty family.

Now for my knitting:  the Rivendell socks are finished and delivered to my daughter.

 

And the bamboo sock yarn scarf is ready to wear. 

 

But I will never run out of UFO's!  I don't dare show you all the projects I've started.  I seem to finish one and start two - I'm worse than that old frog trying to climb out of the well.  I've made some progress on the Hempathy skirt I started last summer and abandoned when I realized I needed a size between medium and large.  At the time, I was in the mood for knitting, not math.  The recent Creative Knitting magazine has a similar skirt so I am now combining the Greetings from the Knit Cafe ruffle with increases from the other pattern.

 

But of course I got distracted and started something totally new.  I've been looking for a scarf to use my Noro Silk Garden sock yarn.  I considered a small Clapotis, but was drawn to the similar but more complex basketweave pattern with dropped and wrapped/dropped  stitches that is in the current Vogue Knitting (the one with the Botanic Medallion on the front - sigh/dream).  It's a "Pay Attention" project, and with company around, there's not much chance of working on this again for a while. 

 

And then the weather discouraged me from knitting anything summery.  Except for a day and a half, it's rained all week.  So, I give up.  I might as well just work on my afghan.  I'm on the last octagon, and I've purchased some purple yarn for the finishing diamonds and border to tie it all together.

Haweater Renewal

I've had a very busy couple of weeks.  I travelled to Manitoulin Island the last weekend of June for my cousin Glenn's wedding.  "Haweater" is the nickname for someone born on the island.  My dad says you have to return every year to keep your status, and I admit I've missed quite a few years since I married, but I've been fortunate to have joyful family events to bring me back the last couple of years.  I choke up when I cross the swing bridge at Little Current.  It was open when we arrived (15 min. on the hour), so I had time to snap this photo.

 

We proceeded to Evansville where the wedding was to take place at my cousin's home on the lake and where we stayed at the Northernaire Lodge.  This is our little cabin,

 

and this was our view.

Food and hospitality was great.  I found out that the owner is a cousin of my internet friend Freshisle Fibers, whom sadly I did not get in to Gore Bay to meet since wedding and family took up all my time.

It was a second marriage for both the bride and groom, and they included their combined five children and eight grandchildren in the wedding party.  This is the groom's side.

 

The reception was held at a local community center, and my cousin's son and my son-in-law organized all the kids, toddlers to teens, for an impromptu basketball game - including the flower girl and junior bridesmaid still in their gowns.  My two grandsons had a blast, even though they were way too young to be actually playing the game.

 

 

I love the Island's casual and laid back lifestyle.  Family and fun - no airs - this is what it's all about!

What - you expected knitting?  I drove this trip, so I was in knitting withdrawal the whole weekend, but I did complete the shrug before I left.  My first Manos yarn, and certain not to be the last.  The wool and silk blend is "to die for," as one of my girlfriends says.