What is Your Knitting Experience?

Saw this on Ruby’s and Purl’s site and thought it was a neat idea.

Bold = have already tried this
Italicized = Plan to try this
Unemphasized = Have no desire to try this

• Afghan
• I-cord
• garter stitch
• Knitting with metal wire
• Shawl
• Stockinette Stitch
• Socks: Top-down
• Socks: Toe-up
• Knitting with camel yarn
• Mittens: Cuff-up
• Mittens:  Tip down
• Hat
• Knitting with silk
• Moebius band knitting
• Participating in a KAL
• Sweater
• Drop stitch patterns
• Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
• Slip stitch patterns
• Knitting with banana fiber yarn
• Domino knitting
• Twisted stitch patterns
• Knitting with bamboo yarn
• Two end knitting
• Charity knitting
• Knitting with soy yarn
• Cardigan
• Toy/doll clothing
• Knitting with circular needles
• Baby items
• Knitting with your own handspun
• Slippers
• Graffiti knitting
• Continental knitting
• Designing knitted garments
• Cable stitch patterns
• Lace patterns
• Publishing a knitting book
• Scarf
• Teaching a child to knit
• America/English knitting
• Knitting to make money
• Buttonholes
• Knitting with alpaca
• Fair Isle
• Norwegian knitting
• Dying with plant colors
• Knitting items for a wedding
• Household items
• Knitting socks on two circulars
• Olympic knitting
• Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
• Knitting with dpn’s
• Holiday-related knitting
• Teaching a male how to knit
• Bobbles
• Knitting for a living
• Knitting with cotton
• Knitting smocking
• Dyeing yarn
• Steeks
• Knitting art
• Fulling/felting
• Knitting with wool
• Textured knitting
• Kitchener BO
• Purses/bags
• Knitting with beads
• Swatching
• Long tail CO
• Entrelac
• Knitting and purling backwards
• Machine Knitting
• Knitting with self-patterning/self-striping/variegated yarn
• Stuffed toys
• Knitting with cashmere
• Darning (I have some socks that need it)
  
• Jewelry
• Knitting with synthetic yarn
• Writing a pattern
• Gloves
• Intarsia
• Knitting with linen
• Knitting for preemies
• Tubular CO
• Freeform knitting
• Short rows
• Cuffs/fingerless mitts/armwarmers
• Pillows
• Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
• Rug
• Knitting on a loom
• Thrummed knitting
• Knitting a gift
• Knitting for pets
• Shrug/bolero/poncho
• Knitting with dog/cat hair
• Hair accessories
• Knitting in public
• Double knitting

FO’s or Whatever The Opposite of Startitis Is

Despite my swollen and sore little finger (which I’m starting to suspect is arthritis…FUN!) I managed to finish a few items and make way for some starters.  First off, in the wee, wee hours of the morning a few days ago, I finished the Playful Pineapples afghan:

It’s made with Caron Simply Soft in Bright Berry Blue and Caron Wintuk for the border (some creamy color).  I just need to wash it and package it up and it’s ready to be gifted to my cousin at her baby shower.  It’s 36″x42″.

 Next is my Paintbox Scarf:

I almost called this my Passenger Scarf because is was completed entirely in the passenger seat of the car on trips to various locations.  I used two balls of Paintbox yarn (don’t know the colorways) in a 2×2 rib.   I cast on 24 stitches which kept in fairly narrow and it turned out the perfect length (5 feet).

 After browsing flickr and blogs and seeing some awesome Navaho plying going on, I decided to conquer my fear and give it a shot on my spinning wheel.  I’m pleased with the results:

That’s 108 yards of 3-ply wool there folks!  And it’s not crap!  I still have more on the bobbin to ply and the second half of the wool to spin, so lets give an offering to the consistency gods that it all comes out close to the same weight.

Need a Startitis Vaccine

I’m trying really hard not to cast on another project until I have the Playful Pineapples blanket done. I have some serious work to do to get it done, and I’m having some issues with my little finger on my right hand that is slowing me down.

The issue is it’s swollen and it aches and I have no idea why. There is a fairly high probability that I hurt it in Tae Kwon Do and didn’t notice until it started to swell. We’ll see if the swelling starts to go down this week. I’m dying to start about 50 new pair of socks and there is no way I can hold small dpn’s right now, so it’s probably best if I wait.

Actual Fiber Related Post

See, I told you there would be one coming up. The last few weeks I’ve been making up for the time I’ve been idle as far as fiber-arts are concerned. I finished spinning the merino/silk blend I got from Adrian at Hello Yarn. It turned out well, but I didn’t calculate yardage, but it’s roughly a DK weight. I had a bobbin of this sitting on the wheel for about 7 months before I got to the other half of the fiber.

Then I grabbed a fiber I had dyed way back when. So far back that I can’t find a corresponding picture of the fiber. Once again, in too much of a rush to calculate yardage, and it’s a worsted to semi-chunky weight.

On the WIP front, my cousin is currently pregnant with her first child, and she already knows it’s a boy. Given that information, I decided to crochet up the Playful Pineapples Afghan from Pineapple Afghans for Baby (Leisure Arts). It’s done in Caron Simply Soft in Berry Blue using a G hook. I’m only about 20% done with it and I need to crack the whip and get it done. Sadly, I had made one in white previous to this for a friend of mine, took pictures, and have NO IDEA where the pictures are. There is a high probability they are on my dead laptop.

 

Then I got a package I ordered. Wonder what these could be?

I’ll give you a little hint with a picture of ALL my handspun.

 

Yep that’s right. I finally got myself a swift and ball winder!

 

Now my yarn won’t be all skeinky! Get it? Yeah, I know, but bad puns are my speciality!

Announcement!

Actual fiber related post coming soon!

Took a Break From it All

And didn’t do a whole hell of a lot in the past 6 months.

However, my cousin has her first child on the way and I have a few pictures hanging out in my camera, so hopefully I’ll update shortly.

They Make Me So Proud

Tonight, both girls wanted to go to bed early so they could sit in bed an knit. My five year old picked up on it pretty quickly, but panics at the first sign of a dropped stitch. My eight year old tried picking it up again after giving it up in frustration. She’s having a hard time relaxing into it and has a tendency to fight the yarn and needles and is so tense that she starts knitting tighter and tighter. What they create is far from pretty, but I’m so proud that they are giving it a chance.

Socktoberfest Continues

I finished my second pair of Socktoberfest socks last night.

Yarn: Handdyed Merino from The Painted Tiger in the Fruit Loop colorway
Needles: Size 2 dpns
Pattern: Variation on the Lizard texture in Donna Kooler’s Encyclopedia of Knitting. Used a four stitch pattern instead of three.

I still have *counts on fingers* three pair on the needles. I’m hoping to at least finish one more pair by the end of the month. 5 socks in 31 days doesn’t sound too bad to me.

Cast On Junkie

Would it be totally wrong for me to cast on for a third pair of socks?  I already have two separate ones on the needles.  The Trekking #107 has one sock done (second one cast on), My first Jaywalker is coming along, but I still want to start something else.  It’s a sickness I tell you.  I just don’t know if it will help or hurt my odds for finishing more socks for Socktoberfest.

Socktober Questionnaire

I realize I gave virtually NO information about my sock knitting history when I started posting the Socktoberfest socks.  So here’s a list of questions I found at Abrubt Change of Topic that will hopefully give you some insight into my style and approach.

1.  When did you start making socks?  Did you teach yourself or did you learn from a friend or relative?  or from a class? 

I started earlier this year.  Like most crafts, I taught myself.  Nobody I know knits.

2.  What was your first pair?  How have they “held up” over time?

My first pair was made with Magic Stripes on size 5 (I think) dpns.  I think they stretched out a little bit, but I can’t be sure as they now belong to my dad.

3.  What would you have done differently?

I would have learned how to graft with that first pair.  I used a three needle bind off and the results aren’t nearly as nice as a kitchenered toe.

4.  What yarns have you particularly enjoyed?

I have not quite “caught the fever” so I haven’t used a whole bunch of different yarns.  I did use a Yarntini yarn and would definately do so again.  The colors are fantastic and the yarn works up even and beautiful.  I just finished some Trekking XXL socks and have yet to wear them much.  I understand that because of the added nylon they hold up well.  I started another pair of Trekking and a pair with Magic Stripes (although the Magic Stripes is not my favorite.  I have a bunch in my stash from a closeout, and no other striping yarn right now.  Just solids and ombres).

5.  Do you like to crochet your socks? or knit them on DPNs, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method?

I haven’t tried crochet socks.  I’m afraid that the added texture that crochet has will make them uncomfortable.  I prefer to knit them on dpns.  I haven’t tried circulars or the Magic Loop method.  Circulars don’t seem to like me very much as I always feel like I’m wrestling with them.

6.  Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?)

Short-row is all I’ve done so far.  I’ll probably try the flap sometime in the future.

7.  How many pairs have you made?

Three.  I think. *counts on fingers*.  Two different ones are on the sticks, and I did once knit nearly and entire sock and frogged it because I wasn’t happy with how the colors and pattern were turning out.