Rick Reeves 1977 17" Solid Cherry "Slanty" or Saxon?

reeves 1977, a photo by rubyintheroughknits on Flickr.

This is how the spinning wheel looks today. Still trying to get it all fixed.

Knitting Graph paper calculator & printer

The same person as mentioned in the last post, Lucia Liljegren, has a program that will create proportionate knitters graph paper.  This is a very tallented person here.  I'll be doing more research on this.

Wolly Wormhead has good hat patterns - some are free

Wolly Wormhead has patterns for hats, caps, and other kinds of "Toppers".  They're even available in digital form for download - some free, some at a price.  Don't let the British Pounds Sterling worry you on the prices.  As of this writing, $1 = about .6 pound.  Or inversely, 1pound = about $1.65.  So, I shop online like this I kindof figure the final cost will be 2x what is shown.  Then at the end, I'm sure to have stayed in budget.  When you go to PayPal, the calculators will figure it out for you in USA Dollars if that's what you usually work with.
                                         This is one of the free patterns I'm going to try this weekend.

I found a wonderful web page that has Typical Head Sizes in a very nice table format.
Since I'm on a hat knitting binge, I need to have this available and thought you might like it too.

Nationwide Knitting Craze Hits Four State Area

Nationwide Knitting Craze Hits Four State Area
Really?  Are we having a Nationwide Knitting Craze?  Again?  I love a good craft craze!

It'll be great if we do.  Wal-mart's sure missed the boat though.  As far as I can tell, they've cut back all their craft department offerings in the stores that I've been to lately.

Wal-mart's loss will be the LYS's gains though, won't it?  Maybe the big W has lost it's strangle-hold on the pulse of mid-america.  That would be sooooo good.  I could really look forward to the return of LYSs on Main Street and at the Strip Mall.  Actually, wherever and whenever I can find more yarn and fiber, I'm good with it.

Psalms 139:13

So, even the Creator is a knitter?
If you look at all of Creation as a knitting project......
That just gets really deep.

Just looking at the smallest thing, say a leaf......
The interconnectedness of everything.
How one part depends on another.
If a piece is missing, sure the world can go on,
but it might leave a hole in the fabric.
Is the soul, the spirit of a person perhaps "joined" to a body,
much like a new fiber is joined at the spinning wheel,
or the next ball of yarn is joined when the first is used up,
or maybe like a Kitchner Stitched seam?
So invisible that only the maker can see the join?

One thing leads to another:
Then there's the history questions: 
When was this translation of Psalms recorded?   When did people start knitting?
Was anyone actually knitting when the Psalms were originally written in their original language?

Ravelry Stash update

Update on the stash I have listed on Ravelry:
195 different kinds of yarn - includes different colors and different packaging (ie: a Ball of Lily Sugar'n Cream is not the same as a Cone of Lily Sugar'n Cream)
379.49 skeins of yarn - Yes, I'm entering partial skeins
76,076.2 yards of yarn = 43.225 MILES

Calculations:  if one square inch of knitted fabric uses up one yard of yarn, on average,
This is ONLY 528.3 square feet of knitting.
Now, really, that doesn't sound so bad does it?
I know, it's only the tip of the iceberg.
Hmmm, will have to add the photos later, not seeming to let me do it here and now.

Ravelry is so cool.

My goal is to list all the yarn in my stash on Ravelry

Get it all into one place for safe storage and organization.
Throw away any yarn that is even slightly damaged.
Life is too short to knit with bad yarn!

Has it really been that long since I last posted?

Wow, this is all changed since last time I posted.  I'm sure I'll get used to it though.  Bear with me while I get everything set back up though.

Cap & Booties from Akron Children's

The first is a pattern from the Akron Children's Hospital for booties and hat.


https://www.akronchildrens.org/cms/tipsActions/8fa643d8d0498261/cap_bootie_knit_pattern.pdf

It calls for Baby yarn - plain, pastel only - and has no fuzzy yarns in bold and underlined. Well, I've got Bernat Baby Jacquards that is begging to be used. So, that's what I'm going with.  I've done several hats with a ruffle and lots of pink.  So, this is Blues and Greens called "I'm a Big Boy".  Since I actually have some big boys, including one teenager, I'm thinking it still needs to be a pretty little big boy to wear this color.
In the past, a lot of my hats have gone without being worn because the intended "victim" wasn't pleased with the color choice.

So, here goes.

Preemie Pattern site

I found a preemie pattern list at:

http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/preemies.html

It's a place to start.

Preemie Knits

Maybe this is my "calling".  I'm going to make preemie baby knits.
I've made several from the pattern on Bernat Baby Jacquards titled "Ruffle Hat".  It's a top down pattern and so to make smaller sizes, I just increased on fewer rows.  Photos when I can get to them.  Several were made from one skein of pink and blue stripe with pink, blue, yellow and white patterning.  I was using US size 3 double points, instead of the US 6 that the ball band calls for.  I think they came out wonderful and soft.

More Later

Knitting on through Adversity

What is the Elizabeth Zimmerman quote? Knit on through all adversity. ? Maybe. I'll have to verify that.
Personally, I've been experiencing adversity. A lot of the people around me have been experiencing adversity. The knitting does help.

March Madness

Oh, no! Is it March already! My goodness, I’ve got to get a move on quick. Hustle, Hustle!!! What should it be this year? I love the socks that I made last year “Jayhawk Jaywalkers”. Every time I had a bad day, or was sick, I wore those socks. I even wore them to work a couple of times on Jayhawk days when other people were wearing KU shirts, etc. Soo, I’m goin’ huntin’ Rubyintherough.blogspot.com

Having a change of focus

Have you ever realized that your project has had a major change of focus?
That you had started out on a journey, and the destination has somehow changed?

I've been here before, you know?
I didn't even realize that it was happening, but here it is:
I don't want to be snarky about other people's knitting mistakes anymore.

There you go. It's the truth.
I just realized that I haven't really seen any knit objects that I cannot resist making fun of.
How did that happen? you might ask.

Well, I think I'm going to blame it on Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, Yarn Harlot, the witty writer about knitters, not knitting. I've been reading her books a lot lately. Mostly when I can't sleep and my hands hurt too much to knit. She really is quite inspiring. And she seems to be such a good hearted soul. The point is, I just can't condemn another's efforts in knitting anymore. No matter how wonky the project, someone poured a lot of effort into it. No matter what the fiber choice, or the color, or texture, it is a rendition of someone's creativity and that should be celebrated. Who am I to say "What Were You Thinking?" when you knit that?

Now, that's not to say that I won't at some point in the future point out some questionable design choices on the part of say, a Yarn Company. Or a Magazine Editor. Or some high fashion designer that forces hard working runway models into outrageous garb that no mere human being should try to wear.

Let's just recognize that there's a Kinder, Gentler, Ruby out there now.
Thank You Yarn Harlot

Well, lots of stuff is talking to me, but not the yarn

Did you ever have one of those weeks where the "Muse" is not with you?
The highlight of my week was when DD1 introduced me to a D&D cartoon on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UqFPujRZWo
Did I do that right? Anyway, we've had a love/hate relationship with the kids playing D&D for several years now. It just struck me as increadibly funny when she was reciting parts of the video for her little brother. And, now I just can't get it out of my head.
Anyway, that's the kind of week it's been.
The DH's Work Socks With a Twist from Unique Sheep's Ram Club are showing progress ! Yeah !

When is a pattern modification really a new pattern?

At what point does a pattern modification become a whole new pattern?
The case in point for me right now is the February Ladies Sweater that has taken Ravelry by storm. What I have read about it so far gives a lot of credit for inspiration to the EZ SBJ.
But, it is obviously a new pattern, not just a derivation. Where does that line get crossed?
When did it become New and not Copy? Where is the line between the New FLS and something equally different that can stand on it's own merit?
The February Ladies Sweater is absolutely wonderful. When I saw it today for the first time, I knew that I would be casting on asap. The yarn has just been waiting for it since it jumped into my arms at the RenFest. A Black Baby Alpaca that is so luscious, I could not put it down. Of all the yarns there, this was far and away the softest. I would have picked it no matter what color it was.

There are literally hundreds of FLS photos posted on Ravelry. Many, many of these are being made as fast as needles can fly. Very few of them are in dark shades. Maybe because of the season of the year. Maybe because black doesn't photograph well. And, I agree that the FLS does look lovely in all of the infinite varieties of colors and fibers out there. But, I have this black that is begging to be made into something that I will want to wear every day.

Modifications:
1) The baby Alpaca is far finer than what is specified, worsted, I'll check exactly how fine.
2) The square neck isn't the best for my narrow, slopey shoulders. I'll be checking into a smaller, rounder neckline.
3) The widening look at the shoulders is good, and I'll be emphasizing that as much as possible.
4) Maybe not so much garter stitch. The Baby Alpaca wants to be smoother than all garter.
5) The lengthening look of the vertical lace pattern is good, but I'm not sold on the pointy shape of the lace. Due to the yarn's RenFest background, it wants to be a celtic knotwork of some kind. Aran or Gansey or some such mystery.
6) Not so sure about the 3/4 sleeves. Not sure why, I always push my sleeves up to that level anyway, so why not start out there? Hmmmmm
7) Must have a pocket somewhere. Yeah, I'm weird.
8) Not so sure about the baby doll, show off the baby bump effect on someone of my age. Might be kind of scarry.
9) Will be as long as I have yarn to make. It could end up quite a lot longer than in the design. I knit until the yarn is gone. Yeah, I'm weird.

So, more planning, more sketching, more thinking. Maybe if I just hold the yarn for a few minutes it will tell me what it wants to be.

I Missed the Yarn Harlot !

No one that I know (outside of You All) can possibly understand how disappointed I am. The Yarn Harlot, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee came within driving range, and the job sent me the other way! I even Excel calculated it out and MapQuested and everything. There was nothing short of a Hiro timeshift that was going to get me to the Yarnies before they left the building, and probably the airport. (Which makes me think, maybe if I had been a little more creative, I could have found out what flight she was on, raced to the tarmac, and .... what then? Would I have Kinneared her unobtrusively? Would I have collapsed, laughing, at her feet?)

There I was, all set to go to a wonderful night of knitting, ROFL, the awesome Yarn Harlot ! I mean who cares about the Debates, the New TV season, all that stuff. What is really important here, people? I mean, where are your priorities? All the Heroes, LOST, BSG, Dancing with the Stars, Survivor, ER, CSI, EM-HE, and Gray's Anatomy in the world don't measure up to one evening with the "One Who Understands". (Don't get me wrong, I know there are more important events: my faith overall, staying married to my DH, the birth of a child....)

Well, obviously, my priorities are with my job. Eventhough the non-knitters had no idea what they were doing by sending me to a different office miles and miles in the wrong direction. But. Seeing as how the paycheck leads to Stash Enhancement.
And, this paycheck will pay for the book that is waiting for me at the wonderful local book shop.
And they called today to let me know that Ms. Pearl-McPhee signed it for me even though I wasn't even there. If I wasn't in the office full of non-knitters, I would have cried. She is So Wonderful ! So Human, so Humane, so Knitterly!

Counting down the minutes until I can leave for the book shop to pick up the new book! Free Range Knitter! It's gotta be good.

Excel My Knitting

Excel is my friend, it helps me think to see everything all lined up in neat rows. Sortable, alphabetizable, numbers that can be manipulated: added, subtracted, averaged, factored. Lists that I can print off and boxes that I can use to check off. Excel doesn’t care about my grammar, or punctuation unless it’s in a formula.

I’ve been wanting to come up with a way to chart knit stitches in Excel. In the past, I tried using the regular fonts that come with Office and just typing in the stitches. But, it really only works for the simplest of patterns. So, off to search the internet. Maybe people have put new stuff out there since the last time I looked.

If I was going to spend money, there’s a program - Stitch and Motif Maker:
http://www.software4knitting.com/pstitchmotif/stmkr.htm

For free: you can download fonts with knitting symbols that you can plug into an Excel spreadsheet or a Word document I would assume.

Almost every link on the internet that showed up in my search eventually pointed to one of these two. So that’s where I’m starting.

http://www.knittinguniverse.com/xrx/DownloadsList.php?CategoryID=32
(scroll down to "Symbol Font")
or
http://home.earthlink.net/~ardesign/knitfont.htm

Update at 11

Greg Kinnear and the Yarn Harlot

Ok, so I have been out of the loop. Greg Kinnear was on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and actually talked about the Yarn Harlot; called her the Michael Jordan of Knitting!
It's about 20 minutes into this show:
http://www.nbc.com/Late_Night_with_Conan_O%27Brien/video/episodes/#vid=726521

So, this knitting wild woman that writes about knitters (not knitting) posts a story about the airport on her blog in August 2007. Then, a word she has coined, minted herself, is listed in the Urban Dictionary within days. See it here: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=kinnear Way to go Ms. Pearl-McPhee!

Yet, it takes over a year for it to hit TV. Makes you think, doesn't it?
Maybe Television is going to loose it's status as the trend-setter of our times.
Does that mean that within my lifetime, Television rose to the pinnacle of influence and then was usurped by the microchip on broadband?
Man, and my grandma thought that she had seen great changes in her lifetime.
What will tomorrow bring? What wondrous leap of progress is flying off someone's needles right at this very moment?
You know how the Geek/Nerd crowd is always talking in languages that mere mortals cannot comprehend? Clingon, for example. Metric, Binary, Emoticons, txtng, OMG, ...
What if the knitters spoke their own language? Would it be Yarnish? Harlotton? Knitish?
Fiberlingo?

An international language of fiber, where fiber lovers all over the universe live together in peace and harmony. Think of the influence that knitters, and fiber artists overall, would have on the world.

Wait a minute, I think we might actually have that started already.

I am so proud to be a knitter right now! sniff, sniff....