Yarn Chicken

Jun16

I’m playing a game of Yarn Chicken today. I’m *thisclose* to finishing my test knit cowl, and I have four rounds (260 stitches per round) plus the bind off, and this is what’s left of the yarn. That’s a whopping 8 grams. What do you think, will I make it?? Maybe if I knit really fast, I’ll finish before the yarn runs out!

My guess is NO, and I’ll have to leave off a row or two of the border. It’s either that or frog back the last pattern repeat, and I’m not sure I want to do that.

Check back tomorrow to see what happens!

A Story of Kindness

Jun15

I told you the other day about my adventure at my LYS, all the pretty yarns I splurged on. But I forgot to tell you about the awesome thing the owner did that day. After my shopping trip, I texted my Knitting SIL to let her know about the discounts. She asked me to pick up a skein of yarn for her, and since the store is two blocks from my house, I said it was no problem. When I went to pay for the yarn, it was $4 and change, and I handed her my debit card. She sounded apologetic when she said she doesn’t take cards for purchases under $5. I totally understand her point, but I don’t carry cash very often, so I didn’t have any on me. I said, “Okay, let me find something else.”

Almost any other store owner would have just said okay, and let me buy more. I would have bought more. I’ve done it before. But this lady, this kind, generous lady, said, “No, no, you’re close, right? Just come back by with the cash when it’s convenient.” I was shocked and asked if she was sure, and she said of course. I thanked her and said I’d come by in the morning, first thing, and she wrote down my name and the amount. I asked if she wanted my phone number and she waved me away. I left with the skein of yarn, feeling like I was getting away with something, but extremely grateful. I showed up the next morning, cash in hand, and said I was there to pay off my debt, and she laughed, said it was fine, I hadn’t needed to hurry.

This is the store that’s closing this summer, and that’s a shame. It’s a shame that a small business that understands the importance of putting service ahead of money is leaving. It’s not by choice; the building sold, and she decided to retire and spend time with her grandkids instead of finding a new location. I don’t blame her a bit, but I’m sad to see her go.

But I’m also encouraged, because it reassures me that there are still good people out there. And if we keep putting kindness out there, maybe we can inspire others to do the same.

Thrift Store Yarn

Jun14

I’ve been knitting, I swear I have, but I have nothing to show right now. I’m flying along on the test knit I’m doing for Andrea at This Knitted Life, and I’m loving it, but it’s not time to reveal that one yet. Here’s a sneak peak.

I will say that I found an error in the pattern and I was quite delighted because A, it meant I was doing my job as a test knitter right and B, the strange result I’d been getting wasn’t because I’m a crap knitter (which was what I was sure of for a while). I did have to frog about 15 rows of progress but I wasn’t stressed about it, and ever since I restarted, it’s been smooth sailing and I’m going to love the final product.

So instead of showing you knitting, I’ll show you the yarn I got the other day. I stopped at Savers, a thrift store near my house, on a whim and got all excited because I found a cake platter with a dome to replace the one broken in our move last summer. Then as I shopped more, I got even more excited because I found yarn!! And not just cheap scratchy acrylic, either! I found sock yarn, some Patons, some Deborah Norville Serenity, some Regia Galaxy. They were all jumbled together in plastic bags, and I found two bags with colors I really wanted, so of course I had to buy both. Plus, when you find good yarn for cheap, you just…buy it, right? One bag had some blue/gray that will go to my Knitting SIL, and these are the skeins I wanted.

They’re so pretty! I don’t make socks, so I don’t really know what they’ll be. My SIL makes these pretty yarn bags with sock yarn, so I might try one of those.

Then I found some glow in the dark yarn, and well…I bought some. No good reason, except I lose my head a bit around cheap yarn. I think it’ll be fun. I might make a couple of cute kid’s scarves with them.

And that would be fine if that’s all the new yarn I bought. But NOOOOO, of course I had to go to my LYS. “Just to check things out,” I told myself. I just needed to be in a yarn store. Ha. Yeah right. Before I knew it, I had several skeins of clearance yarn in my arms, and then she had the gall to tell me that all the full-priced yarn was 20% off. (They’re closing next month. I know. I’m devastated.) Well, apparently that was all the permission I needed to get some of the Cascade Ultra Pima cotton I’d been drooling over. And because she’s good at her job, she told me about two patterns a lot of her customers have been making with it. Sigh. Yeah. This is what came home with me.

These will be the Secret Beach Diagonal Scarf and Cowl when I have time to cast on a new project. Yummy yummy colors, I think!

And here’s ~~some of~~ my clearance yarn, more Berroco Luster. I have a special fondness for yarns with a sheen. I’ve got three who skeins of silver…and one skein of a gorgeous deep teal.

Finally, I will share one last bit of exciting news: we have a new licensed driver in our house! The girl learned to parallel park on Sunday (learned it in one day, of course) and I took her for the test yesterday.

Yep, that’s the excited “I PASSED!!!” grin. She immediately took her brother to the grocery store to buy some cookies, and last night she was able to drive herself to band rehearsal while I stayed home. It was awesome, and terrifying of course, especially since she left her phone at home. She very kindly used someone else’s phone to let me know she’d arrived safely. I’ll still have to drive her around during the day when I need the car, but there will be plenty of times when she can drive herself. And she’s got a job and is saving for a car and once that happens, my chauffeur duties will essentially come to an end! Am I supposed to be sad, nostalgic for all our times together? Maybe I will be…someday. But today is not that day. Not when I’m taking her to band camp at 9, picking her up at 11 to take her to summer school, and then picking her up again at 3. Nope, right now I’m thinking her car can’t come soon enough!

Okay, friends, that’s all the time I have this morning. And all the stories, really. You’re all caught up. Nope, I don’t have a job yet. I’m applying and getting rejected and going back for more. That’s how the game goes, right?

Work, and Knitting

Jun10

This morning I went to the bank, like I actually went inside and was at the teller, and she had the manager with her. They had a new machine, he said, so they were doing some training. No problem. It took several minutes longer than usual, and toward the end he apologized. Their trainer was out that day, and they were still getting used to it. That’s fine, I said. I’d been a software trainer before so I know how it goes.

And as I was walking out, it hit me. Yes, I’ve been a software trainer before. I did so many things under the umbrella of “retail manager” that I’d never referred to myself like that before. And…I really liked it. I liked the sound of it. It reminded me of all the time I spent as a trainer, and how much I loved it. It was probably one of my favorite parts of the job, both teaching people how to use the registers and the software, and learning new software so I could be the trainer. I might not end up in a training role in my next job, at least not right away, but this definitely reassures me that I’m on the right track by going back to work.

But at the moment I’m still a happy knitter, and today I met up with another crafter I’d found on Instagram. She makes project bags and I’m addicted to project bags, so it’s a good fit. Plus we’re both big fans of the KC Royals. See, isn’t it fantastic?

It’s so well-made, it even has a wrist strap, and I love that she chose a baseball fabric for the inside, when she could have chosen a cheaper, plain fabric.

I just love it. And I love that maybe I found a new local knitting friend! To thank her for meeting me nearby, I made a small set of three blue stitch markers.

And then I made a couple for myself. I had the beads out, you know?

Right now my knitting is fast and easy. I’m using up my cotton on simple dishcloths, some for me, and some for a craft show I’m doing tomorrow. It’s perfect knitting for when my brain is focused elsewhere, which it is right now.

I can still focus enough on knitting to grab good yarn deals when I see them, though. I found a bag of sock yarns at a thrift store today, and I loved four of the skeins, but these six aren’t really my style, so I’ll probably find them a new home. If you’re a sock knitter and you’re interested, holler at me and I’ll give you a good deal.

I think that needs to be all for today. I have more new yarns to share, but let’s do it another day, okay? I have a craft show to prep for and a cover letter to refine and a resume to submit.

Enjoy your Friday, friends!

Back to work?

Jun9

It has been four years since I left my last full-time position, and, maybe surprisingly, I’m ready to go back. I have been home when I was needed most, I’ve gotten my kids past the most critical stage and now that my daughter is old enough to start driving herself around, I can reach for more. I wouldn’t change anything about the last four years. It was absolutely what I needed to do.

But this is what I need to do now. I miss contributing something vital to the world, something on a bigger scope. I miss being part of a team that’s working together to make the world a better place, one step at a time. I love my creative endeavors, but they’re small, low-impact, solitary. I miss collaboration. I miss using my brain to learn new things and then helping others learn those things. I loved being a trainer, loved helping my peers and staff grow. I loved making a difference in clients’ lives. I’ve got these writing skills, and I feel like I could be using them in so many more ways. I could make an impact in the community…and that’s thrilling.

In no way do I mean this as a criticism of stay-at-home parents. I’ve done it in two long stretches now, and appreciated it both times. Parenting is a huge responsibility, and I admire and respect those to do it full-time. I *know* it’s a job, and a hard one. But it’s also a personal choice, and what works for one family may not be the best choice for another. It was the right choice at that point in time.

But now, my kids have grown up a lot. For that matter, I’ve grown up a lot after all the things I’ve faced the last four or five years. I have more to give, and I want to make a bigger difference. I will still knit, though I might focus more on what sparks my creativity and less on custom orders. I will still write and work on getting my book published. I will still proofread for other writers, though it might take me a little bit longer. But I want to do more. I want to challenge myself. I feel like this is my second wind, and I can’t wait to see where it takes me.

WIP Wednesday

Jun8

It IS Wednesday, right? Summer gets me all confused sometimes. The crochet slippers are all done, and we shall not speak of them again. They were fun for a brief moment, and they are surely cute, but I have no desire to make more. It was a relief to switch back to knitting. Almost as soon as I wove in the last end, I wound some yarn from the stash and cast on a new project. It’s for my winter inventory, but it’s something I’ve been eyeing for a while now. This is the Purl Soho Broken Garter Scarf, a pattern that’s so simple but so beautiful (like all their patterns, really). I’m using some Loops & Threads Value Pack Yarn in gray from Michaels. The bag had two skeins, over 2000 yards, for less than $10. Sure, it’s acrylic, but it makes a super affordable scarf, and it’s surprisingly soft. I’m really enjoying knitting with it. I’ve got some royal purple to use when this one is done. The yarn suggests a size 9 needle, but I’m using size 6 for a really dense fabric. It’s a perfect mindless knitting project.

Today I’m casting on another project, this one a test knit that I’m keeping quiet for now. But I will say it’s a cowl, and I’ll show you the yarn I’m using: It’s Fyberspates Scrumptious, which is 45% silk/55% superwash merino. Yummy!! The tag says “4 ply/sport” but it’s listed on Ravelry as a fingering weight, so that’s what I’m going with. Can’t wait to get going with this one, even if I will be using tiny needles! (Size THREE!)

And I also have a finished object, but I’ll show you the process photos rather than the FO photo.

Thanks to the girl, I had some travel knitting time last night so I grabbed a ball of red cotton and cast on for a new dishcloth, and it was done by the end of her band concert. (I did get some looks, but I wasn’t sure if it was due to the knitting or the purple hair.) You can see a video of me knitting on Instagram (@bonnyknits) or on my Facebook page. This was a very simple seed stitch dishcloth, and it was a relief to have a project that I could finish so quickly!

Anyone else feeling the urge to cast on for more WIPs?

IKEA Visit

Jun6

It finally happened. We’ve had an IKEA store in our area for a while now, but we just made it out there yesterday. It was impressive, but I have to confess, a bit underwhelming for me. The furniture is pretty far from what I prefer, very modern with clean lines, understated and simple. I live in an old house and I like the Craftsman styles, and I like furniture well-made out of solid wood. So I can appreciate the look, and the cost, but it doesn’t tempt me. Maybe that’s a good thing! I was tempted by two things, though. We got the cutest metal trash can for dog toys:

If you’ve been a reader for a while, you’re familiar with Grace’s tendency to chew on…everything. We had a plastic milk crate for toys for a while but she destroyed that. Recently we’ve been using a blue plastic Walmart bucket. It worked but wasn’t terribly attractive in the living room. So I’m delighted with this. I might have to take off the lid though. When it moves, it rattles and the noise scares Grace. I want them to be able to get toys out of it!

My other find was an awesome rolling cart. I’d seen other crafters post pictures of this and had coveted it, but honestly I’d forgotten about it until we came across it yesterday. It’s just as cute and functional as I thought it would be.

The girl ever so kindly offered to put it together for me. Thank goodness! I *could* have done it, but honestly…didn’t really want to. She had a bit of frustration with a screw that didn’t want to go in, but very soon I had a complete cart!

Didn’t take long for me to fill it up, either! These are all my current projects that were piled up on top of the radiator (and various other places, if I’m being honest) so I’m thrilled to have a central location for them. AND it’s cute!!

So, YAY, IKEA. Now I can say I’ve been there and don’t really need to go back.

The rest of the weekend was getting fresh purple hair, making more crochet slippers, and hanging out with the pups. One more slipper to make and then I’m DONE with that project.

I hope you all had a lovely weekend too. Bring on the Monday!

Pink Diamonds: Take Two

Jun3

I blocked my Pink Diamonds shawl yesterday and oh my gosh, guys, blocking is never so magical as it is with lace. I liked the shawl before; now I’m obsessed with it. Brace yourself. There’s lots of photos coming because I couldn’t choose between them.

I think I’m prouder of this than anything else I’ve ever knit. I don’t know why, because it wasn’t more difficult than other things I’ve made. But I just can’t stop looking at it in wonderment. I think it’s official: I’ve become a shawl knitter.

What’s your favorite shawl pattern? (But not lace weight. I can’t handle that craziness.)

If you’re looking for pattern details, check out the previous post.

Pink Diamonds Shawl

Jun2

I have another finished project to share today! This one I finished over the weekend, although I still need to weave in ends and block.

It looks like wings! 🙂 I think it will be stunning once I block out the lace so you can see the beautiful diamond pattern. Here’s a close-up from while I was knitting it:

I loved knitting this one and could totally see myself making it again. The lace pattern was complex enough to keep me interested, but not so hard that I got frustrated. I could watch TV, but nothing that needed a lot of attention. And the pattern was forgiving enough that a few times, when I got to the end of a row and was off a stitch, I could fudge it without it being too noticeable. (Yes, I tried to find my mistake first, but sometimes I just couldn’t and it was easier to knit one instead of k2tog than tink a row or two.)

Pattern: Elizabeth’s Diamond Shawlette

Yarn: KnitPicks Galileo, color Abalone. It took a little over 2 skeins, around 350 yards. I LOVED this yarn. It’s a merino/bamboo blend and it’s heavenly.

In other news, I’m still working on the crochet slippers and they’re going faster now, but to get the stitches tight enough, it’s working my wrist and elbow harder, so I might take a wee break from those. I did notice that the designer has added more notes to the pattern, and they’re good, helpful notes, so future crocheters will have an easier time of it than I did.

Also: I’m going to be a test knitter for the first time!! I have no idea what the protocol is, whether I can talk about details or if it’s a secret, but I’ll let you know as soon as I can. I feel like this is a big step for me, like I’m becoming a “real knitter” now.

Sun is shining and the French Open is on TV today, so my day is bright. Hope yours is too!

Kerr Diamond Cowl

Jun1

It has been a productive week for me. Let me try to catch up by sharing a finished object from a few days ago: the purple Kerr Diamond Cowl. I started it in early April, after getting both the yarn and pattern from Show Me Yarn at the Knitting in the Heartland event. (So amazing. I had SUCH a good time. Shighhhhh…) Then it got pushed aside for other things until finally I realized my WIPs were at an uncomfortable amount and I needed to start finishing some stuff. Ergo, the complete cowl!

The yarn is amazing, soft without being limp, not splitty at all, and rich colors. It really was a perfect combination of yarn and stitch pattern. I think the whole thing is gorgeous.

Here’s the back, where I grafted the two ends together.

The ribbing at the back of the neck really is a genius feature, decreasing the bulk nicely.

Now, I have to add a couple of caveats: this was not my favorite thing to knit. The pattern is well-written, easy to follow and simple enough for advanced beginning knitters who maybe want to try a couple of new skills like grafting. It’s well-matched to the yarn.

But it just didn’t match my personal knitting preferences. I had already made a bag, two hats, and two scarves with the butterfly/diamond stitch, and it’s a bit fiddly to knit, and I was just over that stitch. Also, I prefer to knit cowls in the round; I just adore knitting in the round. And finally, Kitchener Stitch is evil/amazing/horrible/awesome. I mean, it looks so good when it’s done but man, is it stressful. I go to knitting to get away from stress, not add to it.

Still, the pattern has a lot of great qualities and like I said, I love the finished object. So yeah, it was totally worth it. Just don’t ask me to knit that stitch again anytime soon!!

Pattern: Kerr Diamond Cowl by Kris Carlson.

Yarn: Show Me Yarn Cyclone in color All Dressed Up.

Ravelry notes here.