Pin, Stitch, Iron, Slice, Repeat

Dear Mandella,

Today's post would be a repeat of last week's post in which I finished 8 of the log-cabin quilt squares. I spent about 6 hours working those 8 squares today. I also spend another hour getting some sock yarn ready to dye. There's a bit of work to do on those, yet, but I'm hopeful of having them ready for a dye session on this Saturday. I've gotten some new colors to play with, so I'm dying to get at it (no pun intended).

I am only six weeks away from my 50th birthday. We were talking today about perhaps getting the family together to celebrate it, but I'm not sure how all of the schedules are going to work out. Also, my oldest sister and her husband won't be visiting Omaha until July, so we might wait until then because the family will want to get together to see them, too.

In the meantime, I am knitting. I have at last figured out how I want to do the sleeves on the latest pullover I've been designing. Now I'm wondering whether I want to wait before releasing the pattern as soon as it's done because it might be a good one to submit to Twist Collective. I don't know. I've got two friends who are going to test-knit the thing for me. One of them will knit a large size and that will be great because I can work on the sleeves while she works on the body. One thing I'm writing into this pattern is how to adjust it for the best fit, and one item of consideration is how to adjust the width of the sleeve without making the sleeve cap too large for the armhole.

Well, I've got to get some laundry done so that I have clothes to wear for another week of working for the jobs that pay in order to have time to do the things I love. Talk about a boring repeat! :)

Hugs and good knitting to you!

Judith

With deepest sympathy . . .

Details here.

Emma Thompson and Ellen DeGeneris

This had my laughing my arse off!

Mysterious Ticking Noise

This is one of my favorite little Harry Potter Puppets moments (on YouTube):

Log Cabin, Aching Joints

Dear Mandella,

Who would know from the little stacks of fabrics on my work table would come these two lovely blocks? I finished eight of them yesterday at my mom's house. Yes, that was after dyeing 18 skeins of yarn. I ache all over, but it's all worth it.

The blocks above are just 2 of the 64 required for the finished, king-size quilt. That does not count the borders which are comprised of long, thin strips of fabric (1" wide, just as the rails in this log cabin block) that will run perpendicular to the edges. If I can get 8 of these done each weekend, then it will be only 8 weeks until the main blocks are done. I figure that if I can get this whole thing put together and over to the quilter by October I'll be doing really well! Sheesh!

There are 17 pieces in each block. Yes, we did the math(s): 17 x 64 = 1088 pieces. Each block will then have 9 border strips; that makes another 252 pieces, and none of that includes the mitered strips on the corner squares. Fortunately, all of this is done on a tissue-paper foundation. Or, not. All of that pinning, ironing, and trimming has given me a very sore right shoulder. *sigh* I'm willing to suffer for my craft!

My home, of course, is a pig sty. The dining room is still set up for dyeing yarn; there are baskets of (clean) clothes in the living room that need to be folded; there are old towels littering the bathroom where I rinsed the yarn this morning and wiped up the drips; and there is an old girl sitting at her computer at 5:00 a.m. who can't sleep because she aches. OK, that and the dog woke up early. I'm going to try to get some sleep again before I tackle some of the clean-up.

Hugs!

Judith

Mama's Still Got It!

Here's my mom showing off the bit of quilting she did on a lone log-cabin square I'd stitched up. On Easter Sunday afternoon I added the borders and then marked it so she could quilt it. She's so proud of this! She can't do big quilts any more, but she can still do the little pillow covers.

Dye Works

Come into my house and you'll see this:

Because I've been doing this:

18 skeins, sport weight, machine-washable 100% wool.

Butter Lambs, Books, and Measuring Length

Dear Mandella,

I hope you had a nice Easter Sunday.  We went over to my mom’s house.  My DH cooked up a pork roast stuffed with Italian sausage and rubbed with spices.  He also picked up a poppyseed cake and some rolls to go with it.  My sister MT cooked up scalloped potatoes and mixed veggies; she also made a cheesecake-type of pie (from a prepared mix).  Oh, and the topper was the butter in the shape of a lamb.  Honestly!  They pour it into a mould of some kind and when it’s set they put in cloves for the eyes and then put a red ribbon around his neck.  They package him on that silly bright green Easter grass and put him in a clear container.  I’m close to having a crisis of faith over this:  If Easter is the celebration of the risen Christ, why are we hacking up the Paschal Lamb for our dinner rolls?

As you know, I’m developing a new pattern knit from King Tut cotton that incorporates the Flight of the Bumblebee stitch.  I’m calling it Sweet Honey.  It’s a woman’s short-sleeved (or no-sleeved if you opt for that) pullover.  I’ve knit up the back of it, but I’m not sure I’ve knit enough.  If I measure the garment flat I get 6” from the start of the armhole bind-off to the top of the garment.  If I hold it up so that gravity can have its lawful effect, I get 7”.  I think I should go for the latter, don’t you?  After all, the garment hangs from the shoulders.

Fortunately, I am not knitting this for myself.  I’m knitting it in size 36 which means it goes faster and I’ll find my errors more quickly.  This small size fits a lovely woman at my LYS so I will have her try it on tomorrow when I stop by there on my way to the stationery shop.

So, as I am giving that project a brief rest I have been working on a short cardigan for my sister MA.  The Opera Shrug that I’d knit for her was too tight in the shoulders, and she’d wanted something that came around to the front anyway.  Thus, I’m using Cascade Venezia (worsted weight) and I’m knitting up a simple cardigan and incorporating the same lace pattern used in the Summer Sunner pattern.  I am hopeful this will be pleasing for her.  Of course, I’ve also started in on another pair of socks (a kind of no-brainer for knitting – the waffle sock pattern).

Would you believe I also got some yarn prepared for dyeing?  After our noon meal at my mom’s I did a bit of mending (for my mom and for a friend) and then took some of my 8 oz cakes of Henry’s Attic Sport weight (washable merino) and reeled it off into 4 oz skeins.  I have 18 of them to dye now.

On top of that, I’m very near the end of my umpteenth reading of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (by Susanna Clarke), one of my favorite novels.  Her writing is so rich in detail that I discover something new each time.  Oh, yes, I know how it all comes out, but it’s the journey one takes in the reading of it that is the most fun.  I love her structure, I love her characters. (Plus, I learned a couple of years ago that the author knits.  I have great regard for anyone who knits and writes so well!)

Alas, it is a drizzling Easter Monday here.  I would rather be at home, reading and knitting.

Hugs and good knitting to you!

Judith

It's Official

You Are Coffee

You are highly ambitious and goal oriented. You feel like there isn't enough time in your day to get it all done. You are outgoing and creative. You love talking with people, thinking up crazy plans, and then acting immediately on them. When it comes to caffeine, you'd like a refill. You can almost always use an energy boost. Life is too short. You're going to get as much out of it as you can. You live for today.

Are You Coffee or Tea?

Meow!

You Are a Lynx

You are a quiet observer of the world around you. Your wisdom comes from listening carefully. You've always been extra sensitive and aware. And it's made it difficult for you to fit in. You see past people's outward personas. You are able to penetrate a stranger's soul. What you've learned about people is both beautiful and ugly. And you keep these secrets to yourself.

What Big Cat Are You?

For the love of knitting and the internet

Dear Mandella,

I was sitting and knitting one afternoon at my LYS (String of Purls). Well, actually, I was sitting and knitting a bit as I chatted with Sally who works there. I'd finished early at the stationery shop so it was natural that I'd go across the way and get in a bit of calming knitting.

Anyway, this nice guy came into the shop. He was visiting from out of town and he wanted to bring back something nice for his wife. She was a knitter and she also taught knitting classes. Well, Sally and I had a hundred ideas for him, but he didn't have a lot of room for packing up three great projects (we suggested Anne Ginn's Circle Vest, among other things), so he bought some nice yarn.

Here we are, a few days later, and I'm looking into the String of Purls forum on Ravelry. The guys wife posted a nice note about how he'd stopped in, etc., etc.

Now, isn't this great how the internet has brought all of us together? You can shop, you can blog, you can stop over at a knitting site and leave a nice note . . .

This was one of those days when I needed a happy ending. No, it's not because of Kutner's suicide on House (I realize he's a fictional character, you see), but because it's been cold and I've been tired and I've been grousing about having to work and clean house (gawd, our home is a pig sty again!). Would you believe I came home early today and cleaned one of the bathrooms just because (1) I didn't want to take a nap (it would mess up my sleep) and (2) it had been driving me crazy? Yep, today was a day for happy endings.

Hope you're well. Hugs to you and Dave,

Judith

R.I.P. Kutner

A Pace Near Madness

Dear Mandella,

My Ravelry shop is open, they've got me set for uploading PDFs and actually charging for patterns now, and I'm crazy busy with all sorts of other things so I can't get to it all that fast!

I had a migraine all day on Saturday, so I was able to get only a few things accomplished at home. Then on Sunday I went to my mom's house and started the process of skeining up some washable merino (dk weight) to dye. I have 13 skeins, each about 8 oz. I will skein them up into 26 skeins @ 4 oz each, then dye them. After that I have 10 lbs (thats 20 skeins at 8 oz each) of the Purlie Fat Sock yarn to go after in the same way.

On top of that, I worked a bit on the simple quilt that is for one of my sisters. I'm about 1/3 of the way to having it all constructed. It will be queen size (not your queen, of course -- she's far too small -- but ours, which is about 86" square).

Oh, did I hear a mention of laundry? Well, I've got most of it clean and waiting in baskets until I can run a vacuum (Hoover, to you) to pick up all of the black hair from the dog that has made a thin coating over everything. (Note to self: Black dog + beige carpeting = Lots of vacuuming.) After the vacuuming I would have some room to sort and fold all of the clean and dry laundry. (Yes, I do it on the living room carpet as I watch television -- you have to do something to make a dreary task less so.)

I may not have to put in as much time at the stationery shop this week. It means less pay over all, but also more time when I'm needing it. I'm going to try to get the yarn dyed by the end of this month.

Oh, did I mention I've been given a new task at my full-time job? It's creative -- coming up with some logos/images for promotional materials. At last! Such a dearth of activity, then the big boss comes in with two Blue Suits and needs actual work done! I'm all a-flutter.

Which likely explains why I can't sleep. At all. I've had an impossibly long day (that included a 25-minute walk, a 60-minute workout, plus a meeting at the stationery shop) and I just can't sleep.

*sigh*

Did I mention that the new cotton top I'm knitting is coming along well? I'm calling it Sweet Honey because of the Flight-of-the-Bumblebee stitch used in the center panels and also because the color is a kind of honey-beige. Or beige-y honey. I don't know. I just like it. And I've got the pattern all worked out now, so all that's left is to finish the knitting. I'm at the part where I increase again from the waist up, so I've got about 1/3 of the body knit (it's being knit in the round -- can't have side seams on this one or it will be too bulky). I slogged away at it through four episodes of The Sopranos this past weekend. If I continue knitting as I watch that series, I should be done with the knitting by the time I'm done with the entire series (I'm through Season 6, Pt 1, episode 9 so far).

In the meantime, I've got at least four other projects going and two more in my head. I need more hands.

Hugs!

Judith

My Ravelry Shop is Open

Ok, I admit that I’m late in coming to this, but I have a shop open on Ravelry now.  Here’s the link:

http://www.ravelry.com/designers/judith-brodnicki

There are four free patterns available:  Dishcloth Socks, Garter Linen Scarf, Quill Lace Socks (from knitty.com), and Waffle Stocks.  The Summer Sunner is there as a place-holder (you can purchase the pattern from String of Purls) until we get the whole “paid patterns” part worked out.

Right now the patterns are linked to various places where they are available for free – just print them out from the online site.  But I’ll soon be able to upload PDFs of the patterns which will include my illustrations and my preferred layout (for easier reading).

Enjoy!

Judith

Garter Linen Scarf

This is done with two skeins of Manos silk blend yarn, one in a solid blue-grey and the other in a variegated that included the same blue-grey color. On a US 9 needle, I cast on an uneven number of stitches and knit back and forth as follows:

Row 1 (solid color): *K1, Sl 1 with yarn in front* across, end K1. Turn work.

Row 2 (solid color): Purl all sts. Turn work.

Row 3 (variegated color): *K1, Sl 1 with yarn in front* across, end K1. Turn work.

Row 4 (variegated color): Knit all sts. Turn work.

Gauge is pretty much unimportant, but with this I'm getting about 4 sts to the inch.

Another One in the Family

Dear Mandella,

This is the sweetest picture of the day for me. It's my 10-year-old niece and she is showing me how she can do the knit stitch. She is taking a class at her school to learn to knit. I'm so pleased!

We all gathered at my mom's today to celebrate various milestone birthdays. My twin sisters celebrated their 60th (which is actually tomorrow), and that was doubly special (no pun intended) because one of the twins, K, emigrated to Canada. She arrived with her beau (E) this past Tuesday so that they could drive into Iowa and celebrate K's son's 40th birthday. Then they came back so that we all could descend upon them today at my mom's house. We even had Aunt Mary come over, which was a real treat for everyone because they don't get to see her as often as I do.

My niece's birthday was actually earlier in the week (same day as K's son, actually) and she was to have had a skating party today, but because K was visiting she gave it up so that they could visit us in Omaha. I made for her a little shirt and shorts, and then I made a stuffed animal for her (a dog) from the leftovers. I also made a set of Crane notes for her with her name on the front in 10 different styles/fonts. Honestly, I don't think she was crazy about them, but that's just how life is. (She was over the moon about a birthday card from one of my other sisters that contained CASH.)

Anyway, I'd gotten out some of my knitting to show my mom and that's when my niece reminded me that she'd learned knitting at school. So, we talked about circular needles and holding two strands of yarn together and all of that kind of thing. On the scarf where she's knitting a row, I'd shown her how to slip-with-yarn-in-front as a preliminary to showing her the purl stitch. It's all a bit clumsy in her hands yet, but you could tell she was feeling the magic of it, the absolute joy of knowing "the code."

Oh, and my Aunt Mary wore her scarf -- the one I'd knit for her -- so that everyone could see it. My little niece was in love with it. She loved the lace, she was intrigued by how I worked in the garter edging, and (get ready for it) she loved the colors. She loved all of those blues. She said they looked like the sky and mountains.

Oooooh. Another one in the family. I'm so proud!

Hugs!

Judith

Summer Sunner Pattern

Summer Sunner

Sleeveless pullover worked in King Tut mercerized cotton on US 7 needles.

The sample shown (size 36) is in three colors but you can certainly knit it all in one color if you like. It is written for sizes 36 through 60 (those are actual measurements).

Pattern is available at String of Purls . Visit their web site for a toll-free number to call. They can mail the pattern to you.

Flight of the Bumblebee

Dear Mandella,

you have to click on this to see it larger. I've been having some issues with uploading and downloading photos and emailing them (they sometimes get stripped by overly suspicious mail servers). Anyway, this is my latest favorite stitch. It's from the Big Book of Knitting Stitches, but they had a bit of a mistake in the directions, so I worked it out and am putting it here along with my detailed photographs (never mind my short nails!) of how that long stitch is worked.

I'm using this for a summer top that I'm knitting with King Tut cotton on US 4 needles.

Hugs!

Judith

PS - Hugh Laurie is a GOD!

Why We Block

Dear Mandella,

At left you can see a photo of a summer top that I'm in the midst of designing. The back is done. It is the one that is blocked and drying on the towel. The front is (obviously) the one that is in progress on the needles.

I don't quite know how it happened, but I had knit a gauge swatch with this yarn (King Tut mercerized cotton on US 7) and came up with 18 sts and 24 rows to 4" square in stockinette stitch (unblocked). However, in the course of knitting the simple lace pattern shown, I didn't get my gauge until I blocked it. Seriously.

I admit it: I am a fan of not blocking. I supposed that's why I mainly knit things like hats and socks that pretty much get blocked in the wearing, even if they're lace patterns. And I hate to have to find space to lay out the piece that's being blocked. Have you had much success in finding a place where neither the dog nor your spouse will disturb the item being blocked? I have found a rather unlikely place: the big sofa in my living room. OK, it probably helps that I've usually got it piled up with laundry that needs to be folded, but I think the main reason it works is because it is not facing the television. (Even the dog likes watching television!) Still, the cushions add a bit of roundness that I'm afraid will be much to my dismay at some point, and I dislike the idea of having a damp towel on the upholstery. Maybe I can figure out a way to rig the towel to rest above the sofa. (Yes, and maybe I'll win the Powerball Lottery, too!).

At any rate, the photo above is a perfect illustration of why blocking is necessary. I'm about halfway up the gold portion on the front. I'm looking forward to posting the photo of the finished product.

Hugs!

Judith

Kimono Scarf Done

Dear Mandella,

Here is a photo of my Aunt Mary in her new scarf. The "Kimono Scarf" (about half the width of the Kimono Shawl in Folk Shawls) was knit on US 7 straights with five balls of Mirasol Hacho (100% merino wool, 137 yds per hank) in color #306 Deep Blue Ocean. The scarf is about 8" wide and about 64" long. I worked it with 8 garter sts on each side of the main pattern.

The lovely lace pattern gets lost in the high constrast of this variegated yarn, but it's soft and it's my aunt's favorite color.

And it's another item I can cross off my list!

Aunt Mary is one of my favorites. She tells some of the best jokes, she sews and crochets, she can bring organization to any amount of chaos, and she's a hard worker. She's in her 80s and still lives on her own. About the only thing she can't do is drive.

When we visited Aunt Mary she always made us feel as if she'd like nothing better than to have all of us kids running around her house. Of course, she and her husband (Uncle Ed) mainly sat in the kitchen with my parents; they drank coffee and talked a lot while my brothers and sisters and I explored every inch of her home. Her bathroom had lavender walls, deep violet guest towels, and a mosaic tile that used violet in it. It was magnificently exotic to us!

After my dad died, Aunt Mary came to the little town where I grew up and helped my brothers and my sister Jodie get all of the accounts set up and on a computer with the family's telephone company. She helped to sort out a lot of stuff. She'd worked as a bookkeeper of some sort all of her life. In fact, I think she was working up until she was 82 or 83 years old.

Aunt Mary might be getting older, but there's not much stopping her!

Judith