A Short Note....

...to let you know that things here at Chez Knits is/are moving along mightily. Finals are next week. Hallelujah!!!!! and the open house/graduation party is too. I've been spinning and knitting and sewing and cooking up a storm for the ensuing festivities(trying to, anyway). For some out-of-focus frivolity, imagine a man in his late 40's, wearing moose antlers decorated with lights. What fun! Scroll down to see what you missed.

Norway Rocks!!!!

My fiber and frenzy friend Nina from Norway sent the most wonderful thank you gift. She is a wonderfully talented crafter, mom and nursing student. I guess that those of us that want to do it all usually find our way to connect with each other. This time through the online magazine 'Spindle and Wheel', Alena the editor and founder of the magazine organized a fiber exchange. It's been fun to see what everybody is sending to each other. Anyway, I attended a fiber event on Saturday, this past, that I had been looking forward to for along long time. Nina's package arrived, via post, as I was leaving. I set it aside to give it it's proper consideration. I am completely in awe! This is much more than I expected.

The packaged contained three pamphlets containing children's knitwear and ethnic stockings, gloves and hats for adults, a wrist distaff in shades of blue with beads, a hand-wrapped crystal necklace, three bags of fiber: some black alpaca and two bags of hand washed and carded by herself Norwegian lambswool! and last but not least, a bar of Norwegian style chocolate. The best!!! By sheer will power I have managed to keep the bar intact til pictures today.

There's a story about the chocolate: When my family was stationed in Europe, we went on a family driving vacation through northern Europe. My mom and I where supposed to be collecting chocolate for presents. But none of the Norwegian chocolate made it home to the air base. I wonder........

No. 251

I was person number 251 yesterday, as the Camella City Stockin'ettes Knitting Guild hosted the venerable Franklin Habit of the blog "the panopticon" * here in Sacramento, California for a shoot of his "1000 Faces of Knitting" project. A really wonderful and well spoken, genteel sort of guy who is seems really good at his job of getting people to relax under the bright lights for their five seconds of fame.

He had mentioned that the visit to California was a trip into the unknown for him. These women from the far coast could be a far cry from the women of the mid west. Fear not, because a good majority of us are from somewhere else. Natives are hard to find and even harder to pin down.

I was able to get one of the ladies hosting the event to take my picture with Franklin, but in the joy and exuberance of the event, forgot to ask if it was OK of me to post his picture, so I won't. I will make mention that Dolores was nowhere to be seen and if the rumors from the 'green room' are to be believed, she may have made a bee-line for the Castro District in SF! Being the gentleman that he is, Franklin demurred.

*the address for Franklin's blog is in the side bar under Links.
**ed. note: if you go and read the entry for Wed, Nov 7 at Franklin's blog you will read about the full story of the adventures of the Habit's and the Von Hoofen's......and Harry/.

Fiber Art Trade

I made these in response to a call for a trade for fiber charms. These are angelina over angelina and other snibbles from the snibble bowl on my sewing table. I fuzed down the cover layer of angelina with misty fuze, and then did some stitching with some rayon thread. I scanned them cause my clunky camera does not do closeups. So they look kinda like shell. How cool is that!??

Long time...

...no see! Things here are at their normal pace: slow to non-bloggable. School is back in session. I am in my last semester! Halleleuah! I am only taking one class. My second class I was dropped, kicked out, asked to leave- in other words, because I knew too much and asked too many hard questions! This was a painting class at State! The teacher couldn't hang!!!!!!!!!!!!!! According to her, I didn't paint the correct way, had the wrong equipment and the wrong attitude. Every other class I have taken at either the community or state level I have never had a problem with equipment or knowing too much/not enough. Go figure?!?! The other class is fine. Chinese Philosophy.

In other news, I heard from my Fiber Frenzy Pal over at the www.spindleandwheel.com ezine. Anna Banana is a really cool pal. She had an illness and death in her family, so I sent my prayers and a note to do whatever she thought she could do-or not. I would not expect her to complete a swap under those conditions. However...this is what she sent:

• 8 oz of blue and yellow fiber,
• 2 oz of pinky-mauve silk roving,
  
• a deep blue silk hankie,
  
• some lime green mohair curls,
  
• a handful of silk cocoons,
  
• some tea for the inside of me,
• and some for the outside of me.
  

This is way outside the call of swapping and much, much more than I ever anticipated. You spoil me, girl. Thank You!!!!

Can't tell...............yet!!!

I can't say much except to say that I was experimenting with food dye and making myself a color card of the colors I was able to obtain. In the muffin tin was the colors dyed cold, and on the clothes line are the same colors dyed hot, in the microwave. I wanted to see the differences. However, my camera, being from the stone age, only gave me good shots of the processes at the very beginning and the end. Oh! Well!

On a side note, thanks to all of you who requested and are trying my attempts at sock pattern writing. It's not as easy as it looks. The 'mad to dance' pattern below was a fun and excruciating look at how I, personally knit socks. What an eye-opener! Just to let you know, I am submitting another design for SockMadness2. I can only hope that the ladies there like my design as well as the first one. I'll keep ya posted.

spinning

Here is an accumulation of spinning that had been occupying my bobbins this summer. On the left is the colorway "mardi gras" from Lisa Souza, half of a soft BFL roving spun 2-spy for socks. In the middle is half of the purple from Cross Patch Creations, a silk and wool blend 2-ply. And the brown on the right is from Shadow, a ramboullet friend of mine, spun woolen and a 3-ply; soft and bouncy. All drying in the shade of a 100F day in sunny and HOT California.

SOCKS!!!!!

...........from Sweden!!!! YAAAAA! my Sockapalooza4 pal Anna-Karin (pansarknitting-dot-typepad-dot-com) sent me a wonderful pair of socks knit in the "monkey" pattern from Knitty.com How.Did.She.Know? that that's what I was thinking of doing for myself sometime this summer/fall. Anna did her's in a wonderful Opal colorway 1433. I would really like to have tried them on, but it's 100F here in California today, so pictures on hangers in the shade will have to do. So, I go to look at her site and I find out that she's a molecular biology student. YAAA! another scientist that likes to knit! The instructor I had for microbiology is a knitter, she had me teach her how to do socks.

On a side note, This. IS. My. Last. Semester!!!!!! I graduate on the 22nd of December. I started back to school in September of 1996, with one art class while the boys where in school all day. I wonder what it's like to have a real job instead of being in school all the time or at a part time job that won't last???????????

mad to dance, cont....

I forgot, for a while, that I was gonna post this, or was the ladies at the SockMadness site gonna do it?????? anyway, between full time college and trying to parent teenagers, I got lost in the madness and never posted the pattern. so here it is:

Mad to Dance

Mad to Dance!

The working title of this pattern was “let’s dance!” Aran meet Lace, Lace meet Aran. Now go dance!” the little lacy bit interweaves with the cabled aran part in ribs that dance up and down the leg and foot.

This sock was knit with Cherry Tree Hill Superwash Merino Supersock yarn in color Loden, 4oz =420yards on US size 1 Inox 24 inch circular needle in the ‘Magic Loop’ method. I also used 4 stitch markers, 3 the same and 1 different for marking the start of a round

Recommended gauge: 7 1/2 to 8 stitches to the inch on needles in that get you gauge.
33 stitches in pattern = 4 inches lightly stretched.

NOTES:
•To change the size of the sock: work on a different size needle for the leg and a smaller needle for the entire foot or just the sole of the foot. For example, if you have a very narrow foot or want to make a pair for a young lady, then decrease 1 purl stitch between each rib. Or use a smaller needle and finer yarn.

•The circumference of the sock is 7 to 71/2 inches around unstretched or very lightly stretched. Length is up to you. This particular pattern is for a woman’s size 8 or 9 foot of normal width. On the other hand, if you have wide feet, then use a needle size larger than your usual or work an extra repeat on your standard needle or both. This pattern is really stretchy because of the lace, so going down a size pulls in the extra so there is no slop in the foot,(important if wearing to a dance!) the cables pull in some also, but not enough.

•I work my socks with the “Magic Loop” method, I pay no attention to what goes where for what needle if doing a pattern that calls for double points. Half of the stitches are for the instep and half are for the heel. I only pay attention to where the round starts and stops.

•If the heel is too deep, then decrease a purl stitch between the 2 outside rows of ribbing, one on each end of the back and forth, just between the first and second rib and between the fourth and fifth rib, NOT on the purl stitch on the outer side of the first and fifth rib, you need that purl there to pickup gusset stitches later. You can decrease 4 purls, one between each rib, leaving 2 purls each at the beginning and end and one in between each rib.

•The heel is a continuation of the cables, but not the lace. The heel cables follow the direction that was used previously in the rib, every 4^th row til the turn for the heel, chart to follow. If that doesn’t work for you, then slip every other row on the knit side, maintaining the rib.(Meaning that on the public side you slip the knits and purl the purls, and on the private side you purl the entire row.

K = Knit
SSK(\) = slip, slip, knit together
K2tog(/) = knit2 together
P = Purl
YO(O) = yarn over
P2tog = purl 2 together
C2F: place the next 2 stitches on a cable needle and hold to the front of your knitting while you knit the next 2 stitches, then the knit the 2 from the cable needle.
C2B: place the next 2 stitches on a cable needle and hold to the back of your knitting, knit the next 2 stitches, then knit the 2 from the cable needle.

PATTERN: Using the Norwegian Cast On/backwards thumb loop, cast on 60(72) stitches over both needles, not too snug or too loose. Pull out one needle, leaving the stitches on the other needle. Join, place marker, being careful not to twist, purl 3 rows.

Row 1: k4, p2, repeat to marker
Row 2: k, yo, k, yo, k2tog, p2, k4, p2, repeat to marker. Now you will have 65(78) stitches.
Row 3: Knit the knits/yo’s and purl the purls
Row 4: k, yo, k2tog, yo, k2tog, p2, k4, p2, repeat to marker.
Row 5: k5, p2, C2B, p2, repeat to marker.
Row 6: k, yo, k2tog, yo, k2tog, p2, k4, p2, repeat to marker.
Row 7: Knit the knits/yo’s and purl the purls!
Row 8: k, yo, k2tog, yo, k2tog, p2, k4, p2, repeat to marker.
Row 9: k5, p2, C2B, p2, repeat to marker.
Row 10: k, yo, k2tog, yo, k2tog, p2, k4, p2, repeat to marker.
Row 11: Knit the knits/yo’s and purl the purls!
Row 12: k, yo, k2tog, yo, k2tog, p2, k4, p2, repeat to marker.
Row 13: k2tog, k3, p2, k4, p2, repeat to marker
Row 14: k4, p2, ssk, yo, k, yo, k, p2, repeat to marker
Row 15: Knit the knits/yo’s and purl the purls!
Row 16: k4, p2, ssk, yo, ssk, yo, k, p2, repeat to marker
Row 17: C2F, p2, k5, p2, repeat to marker
Row 18: k4, p2, ssk, yo, k, yo, k, p2, repeat to marker
Row 19: Knit the knits/yo’s and purl the purls!
Row 20: k4, p2, ssk, yo, ssk, yo, k, p2, repeat to marker
Row 21: C2F, p2, k5, p2, repeat to marker
Row 22: k4, p2, ssk, yo, k, yo, k, p2, repeat to marker
Row 23: Knit the knits/yo’s and purl the purls!
Row 24: k4, p2, ssk, yo, k, yo, k, p2, repeat to marker (end of repeat)
Row 25: Knit the knits/yo’s and purl the purls! (row 1)
Row 26: k, yo, k, yo, k2tog, p2, ssk, k3, p2, repeat to marker (row 2, etc)

Repeat rows 3 through 26 for the pattern on the leg 4 or more times for the length you want.

Do however many repeats of the pattern are necessary to get the length you require. I decreased all the lace ribs at the beginning of the heel to p1, (k4, p2)*, k4, p1, so that I could do the cables.

PATTERN CHART:

P

/

P

P

/

O

O

26

P

P

P

P

25

P

P

O

\

O

\

P

P

24

P

P

P

P

23

P

P

O

\

O

\

P

P

22

P

P

P

P

C

2

F

21

P

P

O

\

O

\

P

P

20

P

P

P

P

19

P

P

O

\

O

\

P

P

18

P

P

P

P

C

2

F

17

P

P

O

\

O

\

P

P

16

P

P

P

P

15

P

P

O

O

\

P

P

14

P

P

P

P

\

13

P

P

P

P

/

O

/

O

12

P

P

P

P

11

P

P

P

P

/

O

/

O

10

P

P

C

2

B

P

P

9

P

P

P

P

/

O

/

O

8

P

P

P

P

7

P

P

P

P

/

O

/

O

6

P

P

C

2

B

P

P

5

P

P

P

P

/

O

/

O

4

P

P

P

P

3

P

P

P

P

/

O

O

2

p

P

P

P

1

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

P

A blank square means to knit that stitch. A black square means that there is no stitch there, you do not count it!

HEEL CHART: for example, if you are going to do this pattern, then you would start the cables as a continuation or replacement of row 25 of the pattern above. See the graph for a representation of how this works. The first and last purl stitch is staying with the instep(top of the foot) stitches.

Working back and forth on heel stitches, I continued the cable pattern down the heel for a ‘Birkenstock’, ‘walking away’ or clog heel. I worked 27 rows from the end of the repeat at row 25. On the 28^th, I started the heel turn.

P	C	2	B		P	P					P
P					P	P					P
P					P	P	C	2	F		P
P					P	P					P
P	C	2	B		P	P					P
P					P	P					P
P					P	P	C	2	F		P
P					P	P					P
P	C	2	B		P	P					P
P					P	P					P
P					P	P	C	2	F		P
P					P	P					P
P	C	2	B		P	P					P
P					P	P					P
P					P	P	C	2	F		P
P					P	P					P

sorry for the sideway's picture, I forgot to turn it, and then, once in, I decided on the better part of valor and left it there. Pms, ya know!? But it is the best picture of how the cables flow from the lacey ribbing. They just keep going...and going....

TURNING THE HEEL: starting on the public or knit side of the heel:
k17,k2tog, k1, turn
slip the first stitch, p6, p2tog, p1, turn
slip the first st, k to the last st, k2tog, k1, turn
slip the first, p across to the last st, p2tog, p1,turn
repeat this till you run out of stitches to purl or knit together.

PICKING UP THE GUSSETS:
•Ideally, you will want to be on the public side of the sock when you do this, i.e. the knit side. I picked up 14 stitches on the side of the heel, knit in pattern across the top of the foot, picked up 14 on the opposite side, and then knit stockinette across the heel.
•You will have more than 65(77) stitches on your needles.
•I placed markers at both ends of the extra gusset stitches, 1 before the decrease and 1 at the other end by the heel ON EACH SIDE, so that that extra stitches will be decreased and the markers will come together. When I finish decreasing I will have 66 stitches on my needles, 33 on each side.•The Pattern across the top of the foot has lost 2 purl stitches: the first and last stitch across the top of the foot has been used by the gusset. The next row to knit across the top of the sock would be row 26, minus the first and last purls: p1, k, yo, k, yo, k2tog, p2, ssk, k3, p2, repeat to the end of the top of the foot, p1, pass the 1^st marker, ssk, k across(past the 2^nd and 3^rd markers) to the last 2 st before the 4^th marker, k2tog, etc. Knit the next row plain. Now continue with row 3 of the chart across the top of the foot, at the same time alternating a decrease row and a plain row on the gusset stitches.

KNITTING THE FOOT:
•When you have decreased away the extra stitches, you will not need the markers any more, because of the pattern on the top and the stockinette on the bottom will tell you where you are.
•work the pattern across the top of the foot and stockinette on the bottom, till you are about 2 inches from the end of your toes. Hopefully the pattern repeats will stop at a place that matches –or nearly matches- where your toe will start.
•If you have to stop a few rows early, that’s ok, a few rows of stockinette will not affect the wearing or the look of your sock. If you have to stop in the middle of a repeat, try to stop on rows 13, 14 or 15, in the middle where the plain stuff is.
•Knit at least 1 row plain, all the way around. If you need a few more rows, then do a few more.

TOE DECREASES:
•At the start of the round, k2, ssk, knit across to the last 4 stitches on the needle, k2tog, k2, change to next needle, k2, ssk, knit across the bottom to the last 4 stitches on the bottom needle, k2tog, k2 change to the next needle. Knit the next row plain. Repeat these 2 rows til there are 12 stitches on each needle, ending with a plain knit row. Cut the yarn, leaving a 10 or 12 inch tail.
•Kitchener stitch the toe stitches using a darning needle. Weave your ends in. Enjoy! the madness that is dancing up and down your sock. Now…….you have the make the other one!

sorry for the lousy looking post, Blogger is PMS'ing today.