A Knitting Meme

Yay! A blog post that doesn't require me to take or upload pics! Woohoo!

It's a knitting meme, and I got tagged. Thanks, Costumechick! A list of knitting experiences, I guess you'd say.

You list in bold for stuff you’ve done, italics for stuff you plan to do one day, and normal for stuff you’re not planning on doing.



Afghan/Blanket (baby sized)
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl - I am *so* not into shawls
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns - I don't know what these are, but they sound like fun!
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting - another fun-sounding one!
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting (knitting items on, or to be left on the street)
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments - but I did design a little clutch that I'm mighty happy with
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns - I just don't see the point, just not a lacy person, I guess
Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Button holes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dyeing with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cozies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars
Olympic knitting - what is this???
Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
Knitting with DPNs
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking - huh? I still don't get smocking, and why would I knit it?
Dyeing yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Fulling/felting - But not intentionally! I'd like to do it on purpose one day!
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener BO
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards - sounds interesting...I'd do it!
Machine knitting
Knitting with self-patterning/self-striping/variegating yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning - I think I've done this, anyway
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mitts/arm warmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting - What is it? I'd like to try it!
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho - but really not interested in this craze at *all*
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public

OK, Knelley? You reading this? Then tag, you're it! You get to do the knitting meme!

I'm Simple Like That

I am not a multi-tasker when it comes to knitting…why, then, do I have three things going at once??? This will not last. I actually get a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach when I have more than one thing going knitting-wise…it feels kind of like I’ve compromised my allegiance to the original work by adding more. Man, do I need to get a life.



Thing #1:

Well, things, actually. I’m learning to spin on a drop spindle…how neat is that? A fellow SnB'er graciously taught me the basics last week (thank you Barb!), and I've been practicing since. I hereby present to you my first, gruesome piece of work:

My second mini-skein, approaching even a vague linear form in some parts:

And my third, that, dare I say it?..... Almost looks like something that comes close to resembling real honest-to-goodness yarn!! I’m so excited! It’s so easy, much easier than I’d anticipated. It just takes practice, and you get better and better the more you do it. Barb's the one who's got it going on spindle-wise (not to mention that she was nice enough to even watch my how-to-spin DVD that I never got around to watching and to tell me what it said!) but I'm pretty ok with how I’m progressing.

Thing #2:

A sock. A simple, ordinary sock, but I am so digging these colors. The yarn is Fashion Trend Sportivo, #5763 by Gedifra. The colors remind me of sunbursts and berry sorbet, all rolled up together, although of course you couldn’t really do that, what with the sorbet getting all melty in the sun. Wow, that reminds me of a weird nitrous dream I had in the dentist’s chair when I was five.... ok, moving on...

Thing #3:

Yes, the Isabella from Knitty Spring '07…I’m actually working on it! And close to finishing the back. Considering that there really is only a front and a back to this piece, turns out I might actually get to wear this before the first frost!

Now, you didn’t happen to notice that half of it is, shall we say, soaking wet??????

This thing, I was so proud of it. Just pleased as punch about it all. Quite smug, actually, until I spattered COFFEE over it last night at SnB. Yes, I am 43 years old and apparently that whole drinking-while-knitting thing remains elusive. I got some wonderful ideas from our resident textiles maven for how to remove the stain (thanks Val!) and they worked, yay! But it ended up being pretty messy and soapier than it probably should have been. Laundry is really not my thing.. Anyway, now it’s half soaked with water, and I’m holding my breath waiting for it to dry and hoping that there aren’t any lasting water marks. And frankly I really hope it doesn’t get any bigger as the water seeps into it (it is cotton, after all).

But you know, whatever. I’ve decided I’m going to wear it anyway. Why? Because 1) this is all happening on the back and I can ignore things pretty easily; 2) I’ve put too much time and effort into this already; and 3) I’m really, really stubborn.

So, turns out that not only do I not like to do lots of projects at once, I can't even manage doing it without causing physical harm to one of them. Well, like they say, self-awareness is a GOOD THING.

Frogs R Us

Now, isn't this a better looking pair of frogs?

Well, then you got fooled too. My reknit sock (up there on the left) was so tight at the frog part that we couldn’t get it over my son’s ankle at first. You’d think if you find yourself sweating when you’re trying to put on a sock, you should stop. Not me. Just shy of using Crisco to help us, I got it on. I was so desperate not to knit this sock again that I heard myself actually making BARGAINS with him if he'd only agree to wear this pair as is. Bad, bad mommy. He said nice things like, sure, that’s fine, they're very comfortable when they’re on, I’ll wear them. But I had an inkling that he wasn’t as excited about all this as he once was. Duh.

So, onto reknit #2, or for those keeping score at home, my fourth frog knitted out of this pair of socks:

Ah, success! That tasted sweet!

A sweetness rivaled only by his hovering over me while I wove in ends and his insistence on wearing them for hours today in our 75 degree weather!

So, he’s happy, I’m happy, the frogs are happy. I am so completely and totally done with frogs!

Alright, alright, I *swear* I’m done now. I had to do it, it was his birthday. If you ask me, it seems like kind of an unnatural obsession. But then again, I knit and have to blog about it. You just go ahead and love your frogs, son. Not hurtin’ anyone.