Radio Silence

Of late, I have been working on a super-secret project, the culmination of which just happened to coincide with the anniversary of my mom's birth.  Ok, yes, it wasn't coincidental at all.  I was working on a cowl for her, and seeing as she's one of my two loyal followers, I could not post anything about the project!

Since we celebrated yesterday and Mom is in both knowledge and possession of it, here it is:

Ta-da!  I think I shall call her Glenda.

Glenda's a simple design, but one which complimented the Alpaca/bamboo blend yarn (Mirasol Qina) nicely.  I used larger-sized (US 15) straight needles to achieve a nice drape in the stockinette section (8 stitches long), smaller-sized (US 9) in the knit section (6st long), and used the kitchener stitch to join the ends into one continuous loop.  

I just cannot describe rightly how soft the knit side of the stockinette is.  You'll have to either take my word for it or hustle to your LYS and buy some Qina!

Some more Glenda shots:

Modeled by the always-fashionable Ikea chair.

I needed a genus humanis model but was feeling camera-shy.

A fun fact on this project (and segue to a new topic): It was supposed to have another color. Je vous raconterai l'histoire:

One day, a few Saturdays ago (January 28), I was feeling particularly adventurous after having just finished proctoring a standardized test (actually, not to toot my own horn, but it was my first day as a room supervisor ... oooOOOooo fancy).  It was a lovely day, I had been sitting for hours, and my spirit felt like sending my body bravely into the unknown. 

Just the day before, I had noticed the name of a LYS in a neighboring town referenced in the back of Interweave Knits magazine, and, vaguely recalling the address, I embarked for this destination known-and-unknown.  

Oh, alright, I'll admit it - I suppose you'd find out sooner or later - 

I own NEITHER

a smartphone, NOR 

a GPS.  

Before you cry "Luddite!" ... 

Oh very well, you may call me "Luddite."  

Anyway, my instincts/memory served me well, and I located the LYS, which as it so happens was having a wonderful sale.  Serendipity!  So of course, I did what any stash-busting, rational knitter would do and purchased $50 worth of yarn.

My finds:

I was feeling a touch of buyer's remorse and left my purchases in the bag for one whole day, considering making a return.  But ... since all sales were final ...

I. Love. Yarn.  Especially piles of it.

These four beauties were sharing the same cubby-hole at Village Wool.  So, naturally, I assumed they were different colorways of the same yarn.  Well, crack the whip and call me a Luddite ass, and while you're at it, consider yourself the same because you know what happened.

Lovely Yellow was actually Mirasol Nuna (as pictured), which wouldn't have been so bad except the fact that:

1) Nuna is a completely different weight than Qina (sport-weight 5-ply vs. DK-weight 8-ply), and 

2) Nuna is a merino blend.  This does not work well as a gift for a woman with a lanolin allergy.

So, poor sunshine-on-a-daisy's-center Nuna is sitting in the craft room, while I ponder her fate.  What CAN I do with 50g of a sport-weight silk/merino/bamboo blend?

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Mrs. Pi

P.S. I understand but will only briefly acknowledge the fact that I could have posted on any other subject in the past few weeks.

P.P.S. I shall argue - topic for another day - that a blog sans pictures is destined for failure.  At least, in the age of Pinterest, it is. 

P.P.P.S.  I may have given away the entire topic of that future post in my second post-script.  Fret not, it shall still be witty and interesting, even if you now know the punch-line before the joke.

I Need Knitting Friends

I have awesome friends.  I like to think that I actually have the best friends in the world (no offense to your friends, reader).  Really, they are amazing.  They are supportive and generous and honest and ... like I said, amazing.

Allow me to elucidate:  

(No, I'm not going to spontaneously break into song - just humor me a paragraph or two)

I have wise friends, and hilarious friends, and nerdy friends, sincere friends, and kind friends, and insightful friends.  I have friends to call when I'm up for an obscure fantasy movie marathon on the couch.  I have book-club friends and theater friends and softball friends.  I have friends that could find you the best deal on the planet or teach you the skills to do it yourself.  I have school friends and work friends and family friends.  

Dang, it sounds like I have a lot of friends.  Not so; I have a small group of people who I really connect with.  Like Anne's kindred spirits.  It's just that every one of my friends fits into many of the above-mentioned categories, and others besides.

But.

I know, there shouldn't be a "but".  I should be perfectly content because, let's face it, I have the best friends in the world.  Whether I have a financial quandary or a personal issue, my girls are there with words of advice and encouragement.

But ... what happens (theoretically speaking) when I finish Debra's Mittens, and I have lots of these annoying ends to weave in, and I'm not sure of the best way to do it without ruining the mittens?  I consulted "Finishing Techniques for Knitters" and it's just not the same.  I don't have a LYS, so that's out.  I need someone to pick up one of Debra's Mittens, and consider, and draw from prior experience, and provide a brilliant solution that will blend all those internal flying tentacles of black, white, and lime green.  


I've done this wrong before.  I left my ends too short for Jacob's Gryffindor scarf, and they decided to poke out all over the place.  I weaved in one long end on a shrug and you could see it, this weird vein poking out down the middle.  I don't do well with ends.


I need knitting friends.

Mrs. Pi