theraineysisters knitting and so much more

November 7, 2006

From Susan — In Response

Filed under: Back Story — lv2knit @ 10:32 pm

I really appreciate all the thoughtful responses to my “To Be or Not To Be” dilemma.  [I seem to have had a few dilemmas lately].  Many of you recommended that I teach Kayla to knit — and offered some creative ideas.  I did teach Kayla to knit last year.  My favorite memory of last Thanksgiving was the Friday after when my husband had to work and Laura, Jena, Kayla and I were all sitting in front of the fireplace, knitting and watching movies.  The best time ever!! 

I think what I will do is think about it a bit more and recommend to Laura that we pick out some pretty yarn to make Kayla something less involved.  If Kayla is still around next year, maybe I’ll go for something bigger.  Teens tend to move in and out of friendships — if it lasts, we’ll see.

A wonderful thing came out of the “knit worthy” discussion.  June shared a comment, so I visited her blogsite and found a recipe for Hamantaschen.  I practically broke my neck getting to the store fast enough to make these lil cuties.  And they taste even better than they look.  These pastries are a traditional part of the celebration of Purim in the Jewish faith. 

Where have you been all my life?  I took them to work and “the crowd went wild.” 

Hamantaschen002.jpg

The minor changes I made to the recipe: June said she used the zest of two oranges (the recipe calls for 1 tsp of zest).  I used 1 T. and it took the zest of one orange.  I used an entire can of Wilderness ‘More Fruit’ cherry filling.  I made 3″ circles because the 2-1/2 inch size was a tad small. 

I highly recommend these for any occasion and thank you, June, for the fantastic recipe.  It’s already a family favorite — oops, it would be a family favorite if they got to eat any of them ;).

November 6, 2006

From Susan — To Be or Not To Be

Filed under: Back Story — lv2knit @ 8:33 am

What does it mean to be ‘knit worthy’?  How many of you have asked this question?  Have any of you been the victim of the “knit-for-boyfriend-and-he-dumps-you” curse.  I have! 

My daughter’s best friend said to her yesterday, “I keep hinting to your mom that I LOVE that sweater in Vogue Knitting (design #15 — thank goodness it’s in Cascade 220 and not cashmere!) and would love for her to make it for me for Christmas — she just doesn’t seem to be getting the hint.”  So, should I take the hint?  She is my daughter’s best friend, she comes over every morning before school to eat breakfast and give Laura a ride, she is called “The Third Sister.”  Why oh why didn’t she ask for something a little simpler??!!@@#??  Aaaaaaaaacccccckkkkkkkkkk!  Now I must decide how to spend my precious knitting time.

My daughter is definitely knit worthy, and because I just made something for the little one I must now make something for the big one.  We loved the lace glovelets in the new Interweave so I started a pair for her yesterday.  She wants fingerless gloves with actual fingers, so I have extra work to do on them.  The gauge is supposed to be 8 sts per inch but mine is more like 9 so some adjusting was necessary.  I’ll post a picture tonight after the first glovelet is finished.  I’m on the fingers now.

November 3, 2006

From Sally — Rosarie and More Glovelets

Filed under: Rosarie — Sally @ 11:16 am

Yes, I still do knit occasionally — it just doesn’t feel like it.

I did finish my red cashmere glovelets the other day and finally found a camera to take a picture. Here they are in all their glory:

Now that I’ve taken a photograph, I have no excuse for not mailing them to the friend I knit them for. (Yes, I ended that sentence with a preposition. What of it?) I thought this yarn was soft while I was knitting with it, but it softened and bloomed considerably when I wet blocked the gloves. I cannot describe how good this yarn feels. (In case you don’t remember, it’s Jade Sapphire’s 4-ply cashmere.) I have another full skein of this yarn and I will have to knit some small luxury item for myself out of it.

I’ve also made a little bit of progress on my Rosarie vest. I wish I had more time to knit these days; I have so many projects I want to work on, and some of those aren’t even on the needles yet. Here’s a new picture of Rosarie:

I so love knitting. I wish I were faster.

From Susan — I used my own blog as a resource!

Filed under: Current Projects — lv2knit @ 12:39 am

A few months back Sally posted a link to the Emily Ocker Cast On — it’s used for starting projects knit as a circle starting at the center.  I was swatching tonight and needed to use it — who would have guessed that I would use my own blog as a reference — woo hoo.  Way to go, Surly.

Tonight was Thursday knit night and it was great.  There was a total party-like atmosphere at Panera’s tonight for some reason. 

We got to meet Barabra Copeland — she was the recipient of the Thursdays at Four Panera Gift card for winning the sweepstakes this year at the fair.  She brought all of the items she entered in the fair.  She is an exceptional knitter.  It was great to meet her and see this in person:

Sweepstakes2.jpg

It was even more beautiful in person.  We were shocked to learn that she had to re-knit the border on this shawl — hundreds of stitches involved (~1500+)!!!!  The pattern (Mediterranean Shawl from A Gathering of Lace, Edited by Meg Swanson) says to go down in needle size to do the border, but Barb said the edging was way too small even after blocking.  It was placed in a bag for a couple of years before she could face ripping it out and redoing the entire border.  It was well worth it, but we could feel her pain!

She was wearing the entrelac vest she had entered (very attractive) and brought a Jade Starmore creation that won a ribbon as well.  She is very talented. 

Fun night tonight.  My peeps keep me sane :).

October 31, 2006

From Susan — Scary on So Many Levels

Filed under: Back Story,Sock Monkey Dresses — lv2knit @ 2:29 am

Happy Hallowe’en, everyone!  I thought in honor of goblins, ghosts and other scary creatures, I would share the scariest of them all and return to the horrors of the Sock Monkey!  Last summer when Sock Monkey Dresses were haunting us everywhere, I got caught up in the moment and purchased some socks designed solely (forgive the pun) for the making of Sock Monkeys.  

I started my Sock Monkey creature immediately but did not put the finishing touches on until this evening.  I sensed from the first moment that this creature would not be loved, but reviled.  A creature so hideous and malformed that children would scream, women faint, and men tremble.  Perfect for Hallowe’en!! 

 

SockMonkey002.jpg

AND I got to use my pom pom maker!  Now the question remains: is he so ugly he’s cute or just fugly?  Look into those little black eyes and decide.

SockMonkey004.jpg

Happy Hallowe’en ;).

October 30, 2006

From Susan — A Little Lace

Filed under: Current Projects,Updates — lv2knit @ 7:47 pm

The top is done.  I do need to seek out some better ribbon, but I am not going to travel the globe to find it.  I’ll just search as I go along.

LaceTopDetail005.jpg

Michelle asked for a picture to see if/how it fits:

LaceTopDetail009.jpg

It fits great.  And a picture of the top:

LaceTopDetail003.jpg

Chalk up another project!!  I enjoyed making this.  It was probably more for me than for her, but then she gets to wear it. 😉

October 29, 2006

From Susan — I can’t knit ALL the time!

Filed under: Current Projects,Updates — lv2knit @ 7:29 pm

Today I had to clean and do laundry :(.  Here are my definitions of cleaning:

Cleaning the house: you are able to open your door proudly to family, friends, and neighbors

Straightening up: you are not absolutely mortified if someone happens into a room

Natural state: one step ahead of the Board of Health

Today I straightened up — somewhat.  I also finished knitting the Vogue Lace Top and figured out the embellishment for it.  I found some old lace and also bought a beautiful ruffle, but let’s face it: it is for my 11 year old to wear to school, not to a Victorian-era debutante ball.  So, I cheated a little and sewed it on by machine (please don’t turn me in!).

LaceTopDetail.jpg

I’ll try harder on the front to get it perfect but I think it looks okay.  The finishing won’t take too long, but the front and sleeves need to dry.

I also started the raglan shaping on Anya.  I am loving the yarn so-o-o-o much.  It is soft and nubby and a gorgeous color.  Can’t wait to get it done. 

PS — Laura made the soup, too: “Wanted to let you know some one else made the potato cream cheese soup — it’s awesome! I made a double batch, so the freezer is full of emergency comfort soup.”

October 28, 2006

From Susan and Sally — re: Comments

Filed under: Updates — lv2knit @ 11:10 am

Michelle asked what her pattern meant when it said to hold the yarn double throughout (thanks for the question, Michelle).  Sally replied that as Michelle had suspected, it means that you hold two strands together as if they were one strand throughout the knitting of the garment.  It creates a yarn with a bigger gauge or, if two different yarns are used, creates a hybrid yarn with combined characteristics.

Here is the scarf my daughter is currently making.  She calls it Tennis Ball Green, which I think is quite descriptive (this scanned picture is very accurate):

TennisBallGreenScarf.jpg

When you hold 2 or more strands, occasionally you drop one strand accidently or only knit through one strand when making a stitch, so you have to pay a little bit more attention.  If you look at the three yarns Laura is using, the skinny yarn is the culprit and frequently gets left behind.  I’m not sure why so many newbies like knitting with these yarns, except that you get beautiful results with less effort (DUH, I guess that’s a pretty good reason!!).  They are harder to work with.

AND, an unsolicited comment from Patti:

“I just wanted to say that I made your potato cheese soup, and my family thought it was wonderful. Such a delicious soup and it is made in under an hour. Thanks for the recipe.”

I am delighted that the recipe worked for someone else.  I’ve had it happen that another cook tries a recipe and gets a total flop (it’s happened to me many times!).  Thank you for the great feedback.

October 27, 2006

From Susan — redanya

Filed under: Anya,Current Projects — lv2knit @ 9:06 pm

I have been working on my two latest projects: Anya and the Vogue Lace Top.  Lace Top front is done, back is done, sleeve #1 is started.  It would be great if I could get it completely finished this weekend so I can move on to other things.  Yes, I constantly think about the next one in queue, or the next step (how will I finish the top edge?) as I am knitting.  I think I kind of drive myself crazy.

Anyway, here is a picture of my mindless, on-the-go knitting:

Anya001.jpg

I absolutely love the yarn and know I will love the sweater.  I am fashioning it after a sweater that I wear all the time due to its loose fit and comfort.  I always feel good wearing the thing.  But I can’t wear it EVERY day, so I’m making its fraternal twin in this gorgeous, soft, beautiful, deep red yarn.  Sally and I are both in love with red at the moment.

The only change I will make is to convert it into a raglan — I really like raglans!  Raglans are very nice to knit and sew up because a mattress seam is virtually invisible.  I’m just about to the point of the raglan shaping on the back.  I sure hope I get some knittin’ time this weekend.  THAT is the definition of a good weekend!

 

October 26, 2006

From Sally — Look Ma, Even More No Fingers

Filed under: Uncategorized — Sally @ 5:10 pm

Pleased with my first pair of glovelets, I’ve already started a second. These are out of Jade Sapphire’s 4–ply cashmere called Keja, in a sort of Chinese red. I am in love with this yarn; I want to marry it and bear its children. My webcam doesn’t do justice to the colour and I still don’t have a working camera. Imagine a gorgeous, perfect red and you have it.

These will be a gift, but I have enough to make a pair for myself. And I just might have to.

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