No Socks!

What is a girl to do when her hand knit sock drawer is empty?? And it’s 25 degrees Fahrenheit? And her toes are cold?

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Well, she has to wash her socks! I only have 4 pairs, and 3 pairs are every day pairs…one is  a pair of house socks.

In a 2 bedroom, one bathroom flat, sometimes the sink is not the best place for these things…so I use a mixing bowl. I fill it with some Eucalan and warm water.

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I throw in the pair of socks, one by one…first up are my Squishy Socks out of some Regia 6 ply followed by my Technicolor Socks in Pagewood Farms Denali Sock.

And my ???? socks I can’t find that I made a project page on Rav…I don’t even know what the yarn is…they were the first real pair of socks I made after my House Socks made from Jarbo Yarns Raggi.

Next up I just need to roll them out and lay flat to dry…only 24 hours between me and toasty toes!!

How do you block/wash your knits?


Jenna

Open Your Ears!

Each time I’ve climbed into my car alone to go all around town, I’ve turned on some of my backlogged episodes of The Knitmore Girls. They’ve kept me quite entertained lately. I’m inspired to knit (sweaters thanks to Jasmin and socks thanks to GiGi), participate in Stash Dash (with the Knit Girllls, I have declared for a 5K), start a small collection of kids’ knits, undertake my own CustomFit Featherweight (I’ve got the yarn), and just be knitting more all the time!!!

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ee! I told you I had the yarn for the Featherweight 🙂

Let me say that I was on episode 328…about 9 episodes behind, not counting the interviews. It has been so so so wonderful just to hear the chatter and feel inspired. I love listening to Jasmin & GiGi talk. They are a mother-daughter pair and they talk about all the knitting all the time 🙂 Plus, talking about Jasmin’s daughter Genevieve. It reminds me so much of how my mom and I talk about knitting. We don’t have nearly the pedigree of knitting years that these two have, but we are a little obsessed (slightly) with knitting and yarn. We don’t spin (yet), but we are definitely excited about knitting.

The other part of this that I really enjoy about listening to this podcast is that I listen when I can’t knit. Mostly this happens when I’m driving since that would not be irresponsible (knitting & driving at the same time) or when I’m doing chores or cooking. It’s like knitting with my brain.

I’m particularly inspired by (and slightly envious of) all of Jasmin’s sweater knitting. I keep finding myself browsing Ravelry for sweater patterns, especially baby/little kid sweaters I want to knit for my cute niece Payton. Not that Payton would really even wear them right now because a) she’s growing like a weed and b) it’s averaging like 95 degrees Fahrenheit in Louisiana right now. No one is wearing wool down there right now unless they have their A/C cranked all the way up. But still, I am inspired.

I want to knit a Gramps cardigan by TinCanKnits for Payton. It would be a wonderful little sweater to knit and a great way to sample the pattern in a small way before knitting myself one because I want one…

But alas, I’ve got other things to finish or possibly frog. First up, I’m trying to knock out these two:

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he first is the lovely Catkin Shawl and the second is the Skinty Stripe Scarf.

I’m participating in a UFO Wars competition with a local knitting group (Gateway Knitters) where you declare war on projects that were started before January 1, 2015 and are still unfinished. I had 4 in my projects as of the start May 2 and to be finished by September 5. The other 2 projects are:

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he Colour Change Scarf and the FINISHED Technicolor Socks (victory #1). So a win is finishing those socks. And the Colour Change Scarf. Meh. Each time I pull it out and look at it, I’m less and less pleased with it.

  • Pros:
    • I love the colors
    • I love the lace
  • Cons:
    • I don’t like the colors together
    • I don’t like knitting it

So I think I’ll frog and find another use for the yarn. What do you think?

Linking up with these lovelies:
Keep Calm & Craft On
Yarn Along
Whatcha’ Workin’ On
Stitch Along Wednesday


Jenna

Picture Perfect

I don’t normally take pictures. Of anything. Ever. Unless I’m planning to showcase it in a blog post and even then, it’s after I’ve written the post. I’ll pull out whatever projects and yarn I need to really complete the post.

It’s funny because when I was in college, I had the nickname “Party Pics.” When I’d be at parties, I’d just snap away without even looking through the viewfinder or the screen…tons of candid shots of people dancing, drinking, talking, smiling. I loved snapping those photos because it gave me a real sense of what the night was about, how it felt, the people who were there, having a great time, not “posing” for photos with their best smiles and best hair flips and best sides and what not. It felt real.

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I love coming across those photos now. It reminds me of silly games, bad dance moves, and honest if not slurred conversations. (This is from a friend’s wedding, I love it since weddings seem to have the most pictures that are posed.)

I don’t do that anymore. Perhaps I don’t live that lifestyle any more…it’s probably for the best since I’m sure my liver would object to consuming alcohol that many nights a week for this many years in that amount (use your imagination here). But I do miss the honesty.

All this to say, I don’t take pictures. 🙂 I need to make a better effort.

I was reminded when my 4-year-old niece commandeered my phone and was snapping away without a care in the world. I got it back from her later that evening filled with pictures of her swimsuit, her bunny, her brother, the tv, the floor, the ceiling, me…here are a few of my favorites:

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I’m putting these in like I found them on my phone. As a reminder to find the beautiful in the candid. As a reminder to snap away more frequently, without being hesitant, without wondering if I look silly, without worrying if it will make my life look less than “Instagram Perfect.”

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I’m hoping to do my best to give you more candid knitting as well…speaking of less than perfect…

Remember those Bootstrap socks that looked like this?

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So after I finished up the Technicolor Socks last Friday, I went to turn the heel on the Bootstrap sock so I could have something mindless. I opened up Sock Architecture and started reading about the heel turn. It involves knitting a heel flap and I was trying to figure out where the little garter “straps” would ride in relationship with the heel…I looked at the pattern picture and it looks like they ride on the heel side of the gusset stitches, I read the directions and it was saying to work the heel over the first half of the stitches only my garter straps weren’t both in the first half of the stitches….

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so I ripped back. It was actually a much bigger pile, but you get the idea of kinky yarn that’s been knit…what’s better than a little mindless knitting on the leg of a sock on lovely Dreamz US 1 with some squishy (and sturdy) Mountain Colors Crazyfoot sock yarn?

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I even got to knit on these while those cuties from earlier bounced around on a few bouncehouses at this huge indoor thing! Wish I would have snapped a picture :/

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When life sends you to the frog pond why not enjoy the journey back?

What about you? Any little setbacks in your knitting recently?


Jenna

Freshly Finished Friday #19

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Welcome to a link-up party for your Friday Finished Object posts! In an effort to connect everyone who creates and blogs about it here on the web, I thought providing a place to link up and share your freshly finished creations would be a great way to see what everyone is working on. Please feel free to share ANY of your finished crafty pursuits from knitting and crocheting to sewing and scrapbooking.

Drumroll please….

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and the beautiful French heel from Lara Neel’s Sock Architecture:

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and the Round Toe from Sock Architecture…

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and a glamour shot or two 🙂

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Oh how I love them! Technicolor Socks are finished!! Originally the Show-Off Stranded Socks (free on Ravelry) in the Pagewood Farms Denali Sock, colorway Sky Blue Pink.

To join in the fun, click the link up below to see all the others participating in a Freshly Finished Friday! It will take you away from this page, but don’t worry, you will always be able to find your way back. It’s especially helpful if the linked up blog has a link back here. Please add your specific blog post link and remember to link back here in your blog so we can all be connected 🙂

 

Can’t wait to see what you’ve been working on!!!

Now, what to cast on??


Jenna

Getting There

So we knit and knit and knit, but sometimes the things stay on the needles! I can’t understand why even after all the stitches (I think) I put onto these lovely Technicolor Socks, I still feel like I’m a few rows from actually starting the toe decreases on the right sock!! I think the left sock is ready.

 

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Maybe I’ll blame it on my long toes. Or on the US 0 needles.

Maybe I shouldn’t blame them at all. It’s so nice to have a mindless knitting project to cart around in my purse that’s not huge (here’s looking at you Turia)

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or doesn’t need a book to travel with it (Bootstrap Socks that are ready for the heel)

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or doesn’t need to be really looked at every stitch (Curl #2 Cerise)

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or isn’t turning out like I think I want (Colour Change Scarf)

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or isn’t a general pain in the bum (Skinty Stripe Scarf) with a kitty supervisor

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or doesn’t need a chart, pencil, row counter and complete silence (Catkin Shawl)…

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That’s all the current WIPs and most of them are not travel worthy…maybe I should just finish these socks and turn the heel on the Bootstrap Socks so I can have more things to travel with and some empty needles?

Or the alternative…

I could start something new! Maybe keep it in line with my Love Your Library Challenge and work on a Curl or another pair of socks from Sock Architecture? I could go and check out all the lovelies at Keep Calm & Craft On for inspiration…

What would you do in this situation, keep your nose down and finish or venture into the stash for something fresh and new?


Jenna

Freshly Finished Friday #18

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Welcome to a link-up party for your Friday Finished Object posts! In an effort to connect everyone who creates and blogs about it here on the web, I thought providing a place to link up and share your freshly finished creations would be a great way to see what everyone is working on. Please feel free to share ANY of your finished crafty pursuits from knitting and crocheting to sewing and scrapbooking.

So I didn’t finish anything this week…I’ve been working on the Technicolor Socks, but I still have the toes to finish.

 

To join in the fun, click the link up below to see all the others participating in a Freshly Finished Friday! It will take you away from this page, but don’t worry, you will always be able to find your way back. It’s especially helpful if the linked up blog has a link back here. Please add your specific blog post link and remember to link back here in your blog so we can all be connected 🙂

I hope you’ll link up with whatever you’re working on or finished 🙂 Can’t wait to see it all!!

Jenna

Knitting it UP!!

The stash! And the WIPs! And the WIP stash!!! I’m trying to stay away from spending money and knit some of the beautiful things I already have. My stash is gorgeously curated…from travels and impulses, I feel so inspired when I look at my cabinet! I’m trying to refrain from casting on though and just working through my WIPs…old and new!

In fact, I’ve been working pretty hard to finish things up. I know I’ve featured this cute little hat, the Aviatrix. But I actually technically finished it since I put the super cute button on!

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And I’m working on weaving in the ends on my awesome 3 Color Cashmere Cowl.

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SO MANY ENDS!!

And I’ve been tackling these Technicolor Socks…I’m about an inch away from starting the toe decreases and I’m excited to explore some toes in Lara Neel’s Sock Architecture. That’s where I got the heel from. Shout out to the Love Your Library Challenge!!!

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I’m so loving the way the fabric looks…It’s some gorgeous Pagewood Farms Denali Sock Yarn in the Sky Blue Pink colorway.

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And of course, I’ve been working on the Turia Sweater. I’m loving it and I so want to wear the thing…we’ve had a couple of cooler days (55-66 degrees Fahrenheit) that would make wearing this linen blend sweater so cozy without being hot.

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I wandered out onto the front steps to take these photos in the fading daylight…so much better than trying to capture them inside where I can’t seem to get enough light!

Head on over the Snapdragon Crafts to see how everyone else’s Love Your Library Challenge is coming 🙂

Or to Nicole’s Keep Calm & Craft On 🙂

Until next time!

Jenna

Freshly Finished Friday #17

FFF Button2

Welcome to a link-up party for your Friday Finished Object posts! In an effort to connect everyone who creates and blogs about it here on the web, I thought providing a place to link up and share your freshly finished creations would be a great way to see what everyone is working on. Please feel free to share ANY of your finished crafty pursuits from knitting and crocheting to sewing and scrapbooking.

I finished the Linier Top!!!

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The knitting is done. The ends are woven in. The shoulders are attached. The piece has been steam blocked..only 1 tiny problem…

I RAN OUT OF YARN FOR THE UNDERARM SEAMS!! But never fear, it will be on its way to McNeedles today where there is more yarn and it will be around it’s fellow samples.

Plus now I get to work on these beauties!

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A badly lit picture of the Technicolor Socks!!

To join in the fun, click the link up below to see all the others participating in a Freshly Finished Friday! It will take you away from this page, but don’t worry, you will always be able to find your way back. It’s especially helpful if the linked up blog has a link back here. Please add your specific blog post link and remember to link back here in your blog so we can all be connected 🙂

 

Click on the little blue button to check out what everyone else has been working on and finishing up!! Can’t wait to see it all 🙂


Jenna

Along for the Yarn

 

It’s been a day or two since I’ve connected here. I’ve been knee-deep in preparing a 7th grade math lesson for a job interview this week. Prayers, good vibes, and crossed fingers are all welcome 🙂

On to the yarn!

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I’ve been working almost exclusively on my Cerise Curl, trying to finish by today for the KAL…obviously I didn’t quite make it. I’ve also been working on my Technicolor Socks. Just decreasing on the gusset. It’s taking a while because I’m using US size 0s and after picking up gusset stitches, I had 98 stitches on the needles and need to get down to 72.

I’m still reading some. I finished A Severe Mercy. A wonderfully moving story about loving a partner and loving God. Beautiful. I picked up Mother Teresa, Come Be My Light. I did not realize how little I actually knew about Mother Teresa and her amazing life.

Linking up with these wonderful communities:
Ginny at Small Things for Yarn Along
Nicole at Frontier Dreams for Keep Calm & Craft On
Tammy at Life & Yarn for Stitch Along
Beth at iknead2knit for Whatcha Workin’ On

Jenna

 

Things I “Dislike”

I read this quote last week on a blog post by Karen on Pumpkin Sunrise. (You should definitely check out her site. Karen is someone to relate to and always seems to have the most thoughtful, beautiful posts.)

Be content with what you have;
rejoice in the way things are.
When you realize there is nothing lacking,
the whole world belongs to you.      -Lao Tzu

Talk about perfect timing! This came right after my post last week about happiness. It really made me think about how I do think about happiness. Couple this with all the kind, thoughtful comments from you guys and I was feeling incredibly encouraged. Such a fantastic reminder to “rejoice in the way things are.”

This helped me reflect on another aspect of happiness, “dislike.”

I was in bed last night and thinking about things. My brain was just buzzing and I couldn’t fall asleep until I thought a few things through. I pulled out my journal and jotted down this:

“Things I dislike? –retrain the brain/feelings to try new thinks”

Seems a little silly, but I thought I’d try. I think disliking most things is all about the way we think about them. What if, instead of completing a chore like sweeping and vacuuming with an attitude of dread, I undertook the chore as something good, productive, dare I say-fun? That will be my experiment for the coming month: retraining my brain to think about things I initially dislike and thinking about them in a new way or “new thinks.”

Your waiting for when this comes to knitting.

Well, you remember those socks I started a while ago, like a long while ago, the Technicolor Socks?

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They are still kicking around in my WIP pile, but they aren’t that far from being done. Why are they stalling? I don’t like knitting heels and picking up gusset stitches. You are thinking, “why didn’t you just throw in a ripcord and do an afterthought heel?” or “It’s not that bad” or “what in the world are you talking about?”

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I don’t love this part of the knitting and I think this would be a great way to try out my new way of thinking 🙂 I will keep you posted on how this goes.

I’ve also got these Bootstrap Socks (at least one) that is dangerously close to the heel here, but it’s going to be a different heel experience thanks to Lara Neel & Sock Architecture (some Love Your Library progress!).

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I’ll let you know if this changes the way I feel about heels too.

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I love that little blip of pink! So Spring-y 🙂

Linking up with:
Emily for Love Your Library
Nicole for Keep Calm & Craft On


Jenna