puppy food

on monday, my friend debby came to our 4 pm class, and once she settled int0 her chair, she said, “wait til you see my problem”. i guess the one time she allowed her puppy upstairs, he got hold of her handspun camel caravan blanket and decided that was to be lunch. what a mess.

but she had a plan; she just ended a little help getting started.

first, she took out stitches on either end of the tear until she had a solid, full row to place on a DPN—the bottoms of the stitches. then she did the same with the other side for the tops of the stitches.

she knit her way across the divide, then grafted the two ends together, that fixed the broken area, but she still had to attach it to the blanket edge, which she did with a vertical graft or weave.

this will always produce a join that is off by  half stitch, but thankfully, this unevenly spun yarn produces such a rustic fabric that once blocked and the fiber blooms, it will not not be noticeable. she did a great job on this and almost entirely without my help.

which gave ME a chance to catch up on some much needed knitting time (THANK you debby). i’ve been working so hard on class handouts and patterns for the last few weeks that my knitting to-do list has grown a bit out of control; i’ve got to start saying ‘no’ to email and other desk work in favor of actual knitting.

and i have to say, much as i love new technology and am thrilled with iOS8, at the end of every day i am more than happy to switch devices and head for my knitting needles and yarn. nothing (even the new iPhone, i promise) is so comforting as a fistful of squishy wool and a beautiful pattern, no? it really calms me in a way that the phone just doesn’t do. and, it’s productively restful—who doesn’t love that?

barb and i are both working on samples of this new scarf and cowl design that i’m making with spirit trail birte, which is jen’s luscious bespoke blend of merino/cashmere/silk. i’m working with the DK weight and to show it off, i knew i wanted something really extravagant—a large, dramatic motif for a neck ring or scarf.

i’m knitting a shorter infinity cowl, which is why i have started with a provisional caston. the pattern will have two sizes for both the infinity version and a flat scarf version. barb knit the scarf with the ebb and flow colorway—she finished that up in no time and texted me in between to say how much she enjoyed knitting it. i wish i had thought to take a photo the other night when she came to class, darn it—trust me, it looked spectacular. i love my sludgy blue/green/gray color too—bog shadows; it’s so mysterious. the pattern will be ready to release when we go to rhinebeck; look for samples, yarns and pattern in the spirit trail booth.

i’ve also been busy knitting other stuff—samples for my color work classes at yarn in the barn and our own rhinebeck after party. ok, now don’t think i’m crazy or anything, but i kinda got carried away with the project i started last week and well . . .

oh and that’s no all—i still have one or two left to go. i just feel like i need them, you know? the ones i’m working on now are all in natural colors—stunning. and one more with a wild, multi-color strand.

like i don’t have other work to do, huh?

oh well, you only live once.  it’s just so much fun to try out the different combinations you can create with just three colors.

for instance, these two cowls are from exactly the same pattern. i know, right?? and in my fall classes, we’re going to talk all about how different effects are created by understanding how color works.

these two cowls are also from the same pattern. the kit for the class project will allow the user to make two cowls of this size or one long one. we are gonna have SO MUCH fun.

in the course of researching information to include in my class discussions, i came across a few books i didn’t have in my library, so i treated myself to them. plus that DVD about the bonus cooperative—can’t wait to put my feet up and watch that one. the shetland book is extraordinary—if you can afford just one new book this year, i would say to get that one, even if you never plan to knit a shetland project.

i also finally purchased a copy of the spinner’s book of fleece, authored by my friend beth smith—another gorgeous book and so informative too. i love that it has so much breed specific information and such great photos of the animals. details about these and more at schoolhouse press.

and of course, it wouldn’t be a week without secret knitting! something cool is zipped up tight in this bag and it’s calling me now, so i’m going. see you in the morning.