Knitting Musclemom

I'm back (do I always say that?)

No, I have not disappeared off the surface of the earth. I've been really busy.

First, I went to Camp Stitches White Eagle in June, where I attended three days of classes with Cat Bordhi. I learnt so much, it was absolutely great! For the first time, my husband came with me to a knitting retreat; it was held at White Eagle in Hamilton, New York (a mere 5.5 hour drive from Toronto):

These were the cabins; a bit rustic for my DH's taste (he's a bit of a snob when it comes to hotels), but it was in a really nice area on a lake, and the food was surprisingly and consistently good.

And of course, the highlight was Cat Bordhi's classes. Here's when she showed up how to measure the circumference of the foot -- I found out I have been measuring my foot in the wrong place all these years:

Here's the whole group, minus Christine and me, who were taking photos:

 

and here's Christine (Ravelry link, I don't think she has a blog) in a blurry picture. She attended with her mother (second from the right on the group photo) and fed us all delicious treats during the morning and afternoon breaks (ok, she mostly fed me -- ok, I was stealing all her food, I admit it!):

Cat Bordhi is not only a great teacher, but she is also a lovely person. We often sat at the same table for meals and when Colin and I mentioned that we were planning to leave Toronto in 2 years when our daughter graduates from high school, she encouraged us to visit Vancouver and see if we would like to live there. I think it's a great idea!

Here's what we got to knit -- all the techniques explained and the socks we knitted come from her book, New Pathways for Sock Knitters:

   

This is a miniature bowl that we knitted to practice her way of doing short rows. Then I knit this:

This is a baby sock knit with the upstream arch expansion. And then I knit this:

This is another baby sock knit with the Coriolis arch expansion. And finally, the pièce de résistance:

An adult sock, knit with the Riverbed architecture and incorporating a little stitch design to make it more interesting (otherwise, it's knit all around, but I would have died of boredom). I really, really learnt so much and I now understand her book and how to follow my own measurements and incorporate my own stitch designs into the sock architecture chosen. A very worthwhile workshop; you get so much more out of three days (actually, a.m. and p.m. on Friday and Sunday, a half day on Saturday) with one instructor, especially when it's someone of Cat Bordhi's caliber!

I was a bit worried Colin would be very bored, since there is not much to do around the area; it's a rural area, and it's very pretty, but let's face it, there wasn't a whole lot to see. Well, he actually had a wonderful time; he took the canoe out on the lake, he went for drives (in his Porsche, obviously!) and he just relaxed with his book. He actually didn't know how much he needed the break until we got there, and he just did nothing for the whole time we spent there. By 10 p.m., we were exhausted -- all this oxygen and pollution-free air is too much for our city-polluted bodies -- and we slept really well. See, doesn't he look happy (please ignore my totally out-of-control hair, it was, to say the least, quite humid)?

 

We came back to Toronto, rested and relaxed. And the next day, on Canada day, my brother called me to say my stepfather had passed away. He was 91 and survived my mother by 3 years, even though he was 17 years older than she was. It was sad, but he had been in poor health for the last six months, and he died peacefully at home, without pain or prolonged agony. This is one of the last photos I have of my mother and my stepfather together, taken at Christmas 2004, when my mother was already very ill:

 

It was the last family gathering we had before she passed away in May 2005. His passing away, of course, brought back an absence I have been trying to get used to for the last three years.

Anyway, on to more cheerful things. I got myself a new car, a VW GTI. I picked it up on Thursday and I absolutely love it! It has the premium package with leather seats and summer performance tires, satellite radio, and of course, it's manual. Yes, I hate driving automatics, I guess it's my European origins that come back to the surface when it comes to driving cars.

And since I saw Cat Bordhi with this shawl:

I liked it so much I have started knitting one. It's Sivia Harding's Norwegian Woods Scarf; I happened to have the pattern already and I am knitting the shawl version of it, which uses 900 yds of yarn instead of 470 yds. Here is the blob so far:

 

I am knitting it with an 8 oz skein of Brooklyn Handspun Signature yarn. And this is my exclusive work-in-progress at the moment, because I know from personal experience that if I don't stick with a lace project until it's finished, I will lose interest and let it languish forever after. As with the Mystery Stole 3, half finished since last year. No, I'm not unravelling this one, I worked too much of the whole project. I will finish it.... one day.... (yeaaaah, right). Here's a close-up which shows the semi-solid subtle quality of the colour:

 

This is a really lovely yarn, nice to look at, nice to knit with. I have almost 400 stitches per row now, so I guess I will be knitting it for a while more. As long as I finish it before I get sick of it, I should be okay.

Here's a last shot of the canine beasts; admire the really modest sleeping pose of the boy dog!

Socks and Summer

As I mentioned in my last post, I finished the Etrusca Sleeveless Top, but didn't block it. However, I did take photos. It is being modelled here by my daughter, who is a size smaller than I am, so it looks just a tad large on her at the waist and hips. But it's a lot easier to take photos this way, than to have her take a dozen photos which will not show what I want them to show. So you'll just have to imagine this top fits me snugly, which is what I wanted. It's knit in Berroco Touché (colour 7906) on 4.5 mm needles, and I used 6 skeins for the small size. No modifications. All in all, a fast knit for a really pretty summer top:

And here's the back:

Here are the promised photos of the finished pair of Chain Lightning Socks, knit in Fearless Fibers Superwash merino, Coral pink colourway:

The past week-end was busy -- on Saturday morning, Colin and I went to Woofstock, the largest outdoor festival for dogs in all of North America (or so the Website says). It was held downtown, near the St. Lawrence Market, and a large part of Front street was closed the whole week-end to accommodate dog products exhibitors, as well as the over 100,000 dogs and owners that were expected to visit the Festival this week-end. It was extremely hot (approaching 40 degrees with the humidex) and we only stayed 1 hour and a half, because I was worried the dogs would get too dehydrated. I didn't take photos, as it was difficult to manoeuver dogs, bags, treats, and the crowds, without on top of that having to handle a camera. However, Colin did take photos of the two dogs enjoying a doggie frozen yoghurt:

They both had a great time; Tigger got a lot of attention in his puppy cuteness and we met several other dachshunds, some even from the same breeder.

On Saturday evening, we went to see Leonard Cohen in concert; he started a world tour here in Toronto, and we went to the second evening of four sold-out evenings. It was wonderful. I love his songs and his voice was still the same, still strong, a bit deeper than in the past; he is 73 years old and has embarked on a four-month tour. His musicians and singers are absolutely amazing and he is one of the rare few singers whose words you can still hear (and understand!) when he sings. It was a magical evening; no special effects, no dancing, no glamour, just great songs, great singing and great music. And yes, I forgot my camera. All I have is a blurry picture taken with my phone:

He's the one wearing the Borsalino hat. Even Colin, who usually comes with me to those events because he's being nice and wants to keep me company, thoroughly enjoyed seeing this show. Once Leonard Cohen gives his last concert tonight, he's off to Dublin, Ireland, and then to Manchester, U.K. He comes back to Montreal, and then he returns to Europe. I don't see any stops in the U.S., but perhaps they haven't been put up on his schedule yet. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys his songs -- you won't be disappointed!

Going back to knitting, I test-knit another pattern for Anne of knitspot, which she has named Luxor:

I used Zen Yarn Garden 50% tencel, 50% merino yarn, in the Cotton Candy colourway. It's actually quite shiny:

Fast knit, easy to memorize -- top-down sock with a short-row heel. And I surprised myself by actually knitting a short-row heel without actually screwing it up, which is a first. It was due to the very clear explanations given by Anne in her pattern. I will usually do everything possible to avoid a short-row heel, but I could not really skip this one, since I was test-knitting it. It was great and I have started on the second sock, although it is, as usual, getting competition from other projects. But I will finish it in the near future. Before next year, I promise!

And for something totally random, here is a photo of his cuteness:

The two dogs are getting along well, even though Tigger tends to be rough with Moka, who endures the torture, all the time looking at me with eyes that say "Save me, please!":

Later this month, I'm going to White Eagle to attend Camp Stitches and 3 days of classes with Cat Bordhi. I am really looking forward to this. Colin and I will be driving down -- I found out it's actually closer than I thought in the State of New York, shorter than driving from Toronto to Montreal. While I take classes, he'll visit the places around and relax.

That's it for now -- time to walk the dogs in the searing heat!

knitspot and puppy dogs

So I have been kind of quiet lately, but I've had my hands full with the newest addition to the family:

He has been named Tigger (because of his stripes) by my daughter and he was 2 months old yesterday. I have never seen a pet adapt as quickly and as easily as he did to his new home. He didn't cry once looking for his mother and sisters (although he tried to suckle a couple of times on Moka, our other miniature dachshund, who was a bit horrified) and he quickly found out that a human's lap was the best place to be. He has been sleeping with Mélanie and she has been very good at getting up twice every night for his nocturnal pees in the garden. He has indeed peed on the carpets a few times the first couple of days, but taking him out in the garden a million times a day during the first 3 days has really helped to drive the whole "not peeing inside" point home. He has a solid appetite and a really friendly, happy temperament. He walked on the leash without a problem from day one; it does make a huge difference to have an older dog already there, showing him what to do. He is a sweetheart, and a bundle of energy when he's awake. And nothing wakes him up once he falls asleep:

On the knitting front, I finished the Oh! Canada wrap from knitspot -- here it is blocking:

And here it is modelled by my daughter:

I made the tall wrap and it came out exactly as the finished size in the pattern, 19 inches wide by 82 inches long. The yarn is Ball and Skein Artisan Merino & Silk, The Blues colourway. This yarn is simply gorgeous and sooo soft. It is actually a semi-solid and it shows on the finished product very nicely:

Knitting it up was fast and the project was finished before I had a chance to get bored. I used 4 1/2 skeins and I have enough to knit a scarf with the 2 1/2 skeins left over. The pattern illustrates flying geese (see the V formations?) and was originally knit in an autumnal colourway, but I decided to make it blue and spring-like to celebrate the return of the Canadian geese, rather than their departure from Canada (Fall not being my favourite season of the year, as it announces the cold winter to come). Anyway, it has now gone to France, as a birthday gift to my godfather's wife whose birthday is on the 29th May. I do hope she likes it!

And still on the knitspot theme, I finished a sock I am test-knitting for Anne; it's the Shifty Sock pattern (scroll down to the second photo) and this one is knit with Twisted's Angst colourway, Arial yarn. It is knit in the large size for my husband and yes, he chose that colourway for himself; he wanted something a bit less conservative this time:

It was a fast and enjoyable knit, that doesn't require a whole lot of concentration; I love the way the stitches move along the leg:

Anne really knows how to maximize the effect of a self-striping yarn!

 

Colin is delighted with his sock and wants me to get started right now with the second one. I hope he gets to wear them before the weather turns hot, but considering the dismal temperatures we have been experiencing, he might have a few wears before summer starts!

Victoria Day week-end was cold, grey and windy; masses of Torontonians were leaving the city to open their cottage, but I don't think they enjoyed themselves too much. Since we don't "do" the cottage thing, we get to stay in the city when it's quiet and there is less traffic. I don't particularly enjoy the Canadian cottage scene, but then that's just me. I hate black flies and swarms of mosquitoes, and I find lakewater dead and cold (I prefer the ocean). My sister goes to the family cottage every week-end; I haven't set foot there for at least 10 years. It's a 3-hour drive from Toronto (and that's without traffic; it's more like 5 hours on a Friday night), it's mosquito-infested most of the summer and the black flies take chunks of flesh out of us poor humans as soon as we are wet or hot. My sciatic nerve flares up as soon as I swim in water that is less than 20 degrees and frankly, I don't see the point in being stuck on an island. You can't go anywhere unless it's by boat, and I'd rather go biking or walking on terra firma. Yes, I've made my point, and I shall move on, thank you.

I have almost finished the Etrusca sleeveless top (I'm past the neckband divide on the second half of the back)and I shall be posting photos next time. I do have to keep something for next time, yes? And I still must post photos of the Chain Lightning socks, which I did end up finding when I was looking for something else, tucked away in an unlikely place.

And further to my last post, no moths in the last 10 days. I still make a frantic search every few days through the stash in the living room, but so far, nothing. And nothing in the hand-knitted sweaters upstairs, or the cashmere coat downstairs, or the wool tapestry hanging on the wall of the living room. Hopefully, this house is de-contaminated; I do sincerely wish these are not famous last words...

 

Wee Tiny Sock and wee tiny dogs

Look what I got in the post yesterday afternoon:

My Wee Tiny Sock, sent by blogless (as far as I know) Lynne from Ohio. Isn't it cute? And I love the chihuahua on the card! It's pretty and the colours are lovely and she knitted the sock with a great deal of care. Thank you Lynne!

And talking of wee tiny things, here's another one:

I am a 2-week old brindle miniature dachshund. Despite my tine size (I fit in a human hand), I am already able to bark indignantly to be returned to my rightful place, with my 3 sisters:

 

On Monday, I totally conquered my parents-to-be, and especially, my adoptive father's, who had only agreed reluctantly to add another pet to the household. I will stay with my real mother until mid-May, and then I shall move in with three humans, two Siamese cats, and a 4 1/2 year old sister of my own kind. Fully grown, I will become a huge 8 pound dog. So my adoptive father has found a very fitting name for the mass of muscle I will become: my name is Goliath. 

What does Moka think of it?

She's cool with it, as long as somebody rubs her tummy.

Finally, have you seen the Ravelry group started by Fricknits? It's Ravelraiser -- your donations to Ravelry not only help a Website that all knitters love and spend way too many hours surfing, but every $10 donation enters your name in a draw with an ever-increasing list of prizes!

So if you enjoy Ravelry, why not consider giving a bit back?

No, no knitting today. I spent a good part of the day yesterday going to the dachshund breeder where we got Moka several years ago and selecting a companion for her. I wanted to get a pup now, when we have many months of warm weather ahead. House-breaking a dachshund is a challenge and I shall never repeat having to convince a two-month old pup to pee outside at midnight when it's minus 10. We got Moka in December 2003; she must have used all the carpets in the house at one point or another and when she finally got the message that dogs leave their crap and pee outside (that took its sweet old time -- yes, many, many months), we had all the rugs cleaned. The silk rug got it, the Chinese rug, the Persian rugs. My husband doesn't know half of the times she relieved herself on the best rug in the house (I became very good at hiding the evidence and a super-fast cleaner-upper), but he did know the time he walked in dog poo left in the entrance hallway and dragged it over part of the house before realizing the rather obnoxious smell was coming from his slippers. I never heard the end of that one. Now, he is so attached to this dog he never wanted in the first place (it took me five years to convince him) that he finally agreed to get a second one. Moka loves the company of other dachshunds and I think she will be very happy to have one who lives at home with her. 

Chain Lightning Socks

I finished one sock and started the second one:

This is Sockaholic Katie's Chain Lightning Socks, a pattern I test-knit for her. The three cables around the foot create a lovely pattern without getting complicated; definitely something that can be knit while watching TV. It's easy to memorize and the detail is charming:

The Linen Stitch heel is definitely fussier to knit than a regular heel flap, but it is so pretty once it's done -- it's well worth the extra effort.

Ok, enough already. I think everybody got the point.

Yarn: Fearless Fibers Superwash Merino wool, Coral Pink colourway. It's a soft yarn and a nice semi-solid colour, perfect for spring. The sock is knit cuff down, on the Magic Loop, with 2.25mm Knitpicks 32" circular needles. I prefer the wooden ones, but at 2.25mm, my grip of death on the needles produces casualties, so I'm safer with the metal, which is a lot harder to break.

Did I like it? Well, let's just say that I cast on the second one right away, and I am almost at the heel point. So, definitely yes, I can't wait to wear them!

 

Vacation socks

So, during my two-week holiday, and despite the 4 skeins of yarn and half a dozen patterns I had brought (plus an extra WIP, just in case), I managed to knit one, and only one, pair of socks. It's not like I was that busy; but by 8:30 p.m. every day, I could barely keep my eyes open, and since I knit mostly in the evenings, it put a serious dent into my knitting time.

I actually used one of my precious skeins of Twisted Fiber art sock yarn, in a colourway I had just received: Karma. Actually, I had received two skeins, which is why I used one, otherwise I would have never risked it. I might never be able to get another skein again, see? So I can't use a single skein in a single colour, I can only use duplicates. No, I don't need therapy, thank you, and yes, I have admitted before being very insecure about my yarn.

I used a pattern I had also just purchased: the Dolomite sock from knitspot. The last pair I knit, I combined Twisted with a Knitspot pattern, so decided to do it again, with a different type of yarn and a different pattern. Obviously, I am a bit fixated at the moment on Twisted and Knitspot. Here's the result:

The only modification was a regular heel flap and dividing equally the stitches between the foot and the heel (30 + 30) as opposed to 28 + 32. And I did a 3-needle bind-off when there were 10 stitches left on each needle (20 in all). The socks are really nice, here's a close-up of the stitch effect:

The pattern produces those lovely little zigzags across the leg -- the colour of the yarn is wrong here though, the real colour is closer to the photo below.

 

The texture is sooo soft, it's Meg's Kabam! yarn, which is 30% bamboo, 60% Merino, 10% nylon. Love it. I would probably use 2.5 mm needles next time instead of the 2.25 mm recommended. Although I got gauge, I tend to be a tight knitter (yes, I do tend to break thin wooden needles, why do you ask?) and the socks are a tiny bit tight, but they will probably stretch after a few washes.

I also went on a yarn buying frenzy, I don't know why, it must be Spring or something. Nine skeins of Twisted appeared on my doorstep yesterday, a combination of pre-ordering on the Ravelry Twisted group and a bit of buying madness when she did her regular update. I also bought some lace yarn from Yarn ahoy because she had a sale and was going away for two months. And then... I think I may have bought some sock yarn from Fearless Fibers because it was pretty; and I may have bought some lace yarn from Ball and Skein because I was getting a discount to knit up the Oh! Canada wrap, and then I wanted six skeins, but she had seven, and offered me a special price on the seventh, and why not, and so I will be receiving a lot of packages in the next little while. In addition to the various sock yarn clubs I have subscribed too (although in a moment of incredible restraint and self-denial, I have chosen not to renew two that were coming up for renewal; I still have pangs of regret, but it's OK, they sold out within a few hours and I might as well let others enjoy them, yes?).

I am eagerly awaiting the first shipment of A Year of Lace and I just received this little package from the STR March shipment (CAREFUL - spoiler):

 

It's really pretty, isn't it?

Twisted Square socks

What happens when you combine a simple, yet beautiful pattern with an exquisite yarn? You get this:

The pattern is So Square Sock from knitspot. The fact I knit the pair in one week instead of my usual 10 days attests to the simplicity of the pattern and the satisfaction of knitting it. The yarn is from my favourite indie dyer, Meg from Twister Fiber Art. The colourway is Orbit and the yarn is Shiny (50% superwash merino, 50% tencel). The skein was 106 grams, and I have 32 grams left over (the skein is 400 yards).

I knit these socks on 2.5 mm needles instead of the 2.25 mm recommended, because I am a tight knitter and I had to go up one needle size to get gauge (yes, I do knit a swatch -- I hate to swatch, but I hate even more having to frog because I find out half-way through the sock that it's too small or too big). I used a knitted cast-on which gave me a very elastic cuff and the only modifications are a regular heel flap instead of the short-row heel just because I prefer them. I used the Magic Loop on Knitpick Harmony needles and I did a three-needle bind-off at the end because I hate kitchener-ing. They are on my feet right now and they are really beautiful.

Here's a detail of the heel flap and the yummy, subtle colours:

Here's a last photo -- can't get enough of them:

And now, it's back to the Henley Pefected sweater, which I have been neglecting to knit these socks.

But before I leave, some photos of the ice sculptures taken at the Icefest in Yorkville:

And my 15-year old daughter (she's on the left), about to go to her semi-formal on Friday night:

She only smiles with her mouth closed because of the braces.

Yes, she had a great time. Yes, she was totally exhausted and in a crummy mood the next day. Yes, she hated her parents. But that's the way 15-year olds tend to be, no?

Sock Pattern

Here is a free pattern download (in PDF format) of a pair of socks I designed. They are called Shanghai Fans and are knit on 2.5 mm needles (US 1) with Fleece Artist 100% Washable Merino wool. These socks are knit from the top down with a fan pattern that is easy to memorize, with a picot edge. I used the Magic Loop Technique, but they can easily be adapted for DPNs.

Download shanghai_fans.pdf

Here are a couple of photos of the socks:

Feel free to download and try the patten out -- comments are welcome!

 

Baby Fern socks

So, believe it or not, my husband actually liked the pooling. He said it made his socks look more "masculine" (What?). Fine, I said, and I finished the first one, which fit him perfectly. Can you actually believe the amount of pooling in this sock? I personally would never wear it.

There is a bit of striping in the heel and the gusset, and at the toe. The rest is a blob of colour splashed on the sock, here and there. At least the second sock is equally "poolicized".

                                                                                                         

So the pair will actually more or less go together. But as I was merrily knitting away, I ran into another problem.

If you can't see it, it's because it's tiny. Here is a close-up:

Yup, that's how much yarn I have left to finish the friggin' sock. So I had to order more from the STR website, which of course, I couldn't leave at just the one skein of yarn, since I had the 10% one-time discount offered to all STR yarn sock club members. Anyway, I bought more STR when I already have a bag full, and I mean a big bag. Enough said. I will continue knitting until I run out, then I will wait patiently for the order to arrive.

By the way, do you like my stitchmarkers? They are a set of elephants, 4 grey and one pink one that I got from Yarnimals at Etsy. She has such lovely stitchmarkers!

On a sadder note, my DH got a call on Sunday evening. His mother, who was going to be 94 next month and had been suffering from Alzheimer's for the last 7 years, had passed away. He had just returned home from visiting her in Dublin. He flew back to Dublin on Monday and spent the whole week there, attending Shiva (Jewish mourning, with prayers and other stuff I am not 100% sure about) and starting to sort out her affairs with the executors. While it was not a complete surprise, considering her age, he was still very sad when it finally happened. He is coming home tonight and I am sure he will be totally exhausted. I couldn't not go with him, as my daughter was right in the middle of final exams for Grade 9.

Our two children, who are 19 and 14, have now no more living grandparents, which is quite sad. I remember my grandparents fondly and how important they were during the years I lived in the same place they did (my family travelled a lot). My father passed away in 1989, so my children did not know him, and my mother two years ago. My husband's father had passed away when he was 8. My son burst into tears when we called him in Alberta where he was planting trees to inform him of the news. He was very fond of his grandma and I guess, he thought she was going to live forever. My daughter was upset, but she was not as close; my mother-in-law stopped travelling to visit us twice a year (she used to spend two weeks here at a time) several years ago, when my daughter was still young, so she did not know her as well. She was much more upset when my mother died, because she saw a lot more of her. She lived in Ottawa, so we visited quite frequently. Anyway, it is a strange thing to realize another generation has passed on, and you are now your parents' generation. It feels very empty sometimes; no more anchor, no more fountain of memories you could tap into anytime you needed, no more reminder of your childhood, no more being someone's child.

I have left aside the Bohus for the moment; it is 30 degrees outside and the thought of touching very warm wool with angora is not a pleasant thought at the moment. I will probably start another pair of socks...

New socks

Okay, so I finally got the photos of the new socks I am knitting for my DH. These are in the Blue Moon Fiber STR ligthweight, in the Stormy Weather colourway. I am following one of the 12-stitch patterns in the More Sensational Knitted Socks book by Charlene Schurch. Here are the photos of the sock so far:

 

Do you see anything? What about with this one?

 

Here's a close-up:

Now, I know that STR tends to pool, but this is rather extreme -- it's not a pool, it's a lake! We're talking one big blog of colour and another big blog of another colour. Not quite what I had in mind...

I'll show it tonight to my weary traveller and see what he thinks. Men think differently; maybe he will like his bicolour sock, but for me, I would send the knitter back to the drawing board with another yarn.

Let's hope he's not as OCD as I am...