Ply and Burl

Several years ago, I taught myself to knit Continental style (I had done English up to that point). Early on, the tension on my knits and purls was about equal, probably due to my lack of dexterity and thus the extra-tight grip I kept on the knitting. However, while I knit quickly and easily in Continental style, my purl stitches seem to be getting really loose. Substantially looser than the knit stitches to be sure. I’m not sure why this is — I’ve tried correcting it by using an extra wrap around my fingers to increase tension, but it only helps marginally. Thoughts? Ideas?

Finally, the in-betweens are over! We left Ithaca a last Tuesday and have been in Ann Arbor for one week as of today. Recycling night was Sunday, so were finally able to clear the boxes and newspapers out of the living room. I took a load to Salvation Army yesterday, and have been posting the things on Craigslist that I should have sold before the move rather than after. The house is slowly getting organized and is starting to feel like home.

Our new place is essentially a cottage in the city, and is just a hair less funky than I can take, which is perfect. It’s at the back of another lot, meaning our front door opens onto one street, and our back door opens onto the driveway of a house on another. We have a perimeter of about three feet of yard on two sides of the house, one of which is shady, and one of which is overgrown with burdock. Where our front yard would be, there is poured cement.

As you can imagine, this is putting an interesting twist on my gardening. I’ve arrived in A2 too late to start a veggie plot at a community garden site. However, in anticipation of needing to scratch my gardening itch, I planted some basil, peppers, and geraniums in pots early in the summer, which I then transported out here during the move. Since arriving, we’ve picked up a few herbs and put those in pots, and I’ve also planted some Scarlet Runner Beans in hopes that they’ll bolt up and obscure the not-so-classy posts for the porch that overhangs our front door. It’s no gardener’s paradise, but it’s something!

Knitting has been, well, neglected. There, I admit it. That’s part of the reason I haven’t blogged in so long! I had no time for it, with the work and the travel and the move and all the heart-wrenching goodbye dates before we left. I was working through the spring on the Airy Cardigan, and made a lot of progress. All that remains to finish it is a single sleeve, but I’m finding the kid mohair so irritating to knit that I can barely look at the thing. Not to mention that it fits like a mumu… not my sartorial favorite.

Weirdly, a few days ago, as I was unpacking, I picked up a crochet hook. I ran across my copy of Stitch and Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker, which a friend gave me for my birthday last year. Now, let me not mince words: I hate crocheting! I hate how it looks, I am a klutz with the hook, and it just generally bugs me.

But guess what? I’m actually enjoying it! Gah — Internet, don’t repeat that to anyone. I can’t believe I actually let it out of my mouth. But there it is, the truth laid bare, probably destined to alienate all my knitter friends. Oh well, try to still love me, OK? I can’t help that I’m open-minded, and crocheting just walked right in the door.

My house right now is littered with little purple crochet bits — my practice swatches. I’ve learned single crochet, double crochet, triple crochet, the shell stitch, and the fishnet stitch. My mind is full of the tackiest ideas, too: I’ll crochet plant hangers for the house! I’ll make a purse out of the shell stitch! I’ll crochet the cowboy hat pattern from the book!

Look, knitters, I know this is a dangerous path I’m going down. But hear me out, ’cause I’m one of you: a knitter through and through. At the same time, I’m thinking that there are several instances of crochet that aren’t tacky! Think beautiful crocheted lace our foremothers made from fine thread. Or the afghans that keep us warm in the winter! My grandmother and her mother both crocheted afghans for all their kids and grandkids. Mine, which I got to pick out the yarn for, is one of my most treasured possessions. My grandma passed away 11 years ago, and I still love and guard that blanket like a mama bear guards her cubs. It’s got my gram’s touch in every stitch, and her hands, which look like my hands, held every thread in it. It revives her in my mind, and brings her closer to me. (That could make a good advertisement no? “Crochet: It brings people back from the dead!”)

So this crochet phase? I think it’s kind of sweet, don’t you? I know it’s illogical, sentimental, and entirely misguided, but still, don’t deny it: crochet just melted a little bit of your sappy heart.

p.s. As a cure for my homesickness (and wet feet in the rain) I bought these new stylin’ shoes!

p.p.s. Also, even better news: the boy and I got engaged on July 2!

Though my stash is teeny tiny already, I still feel the need to liberate a few skeins, let them fly off to new homes where they’ll be knit with joy. So, I’ve got yarn for sale!

Super cheap $2 shipping for any order, or one or all of the following. Comment here or contact me by email (at the bottom of the sidebar) to buy!

2 skeins Karabella Soft Tweed in Tweedy Purple

$14 (that’s $3.50 off retail!)
Dyelot # 7553, 50g/108yd per skein, US 7 16sts/4″

Super soft and fluffy yarn!

Here’s the Karabella knit up:

3 skeins Elsabeth Lavold’s Silky Wool in Pumpkin

$16 (that’s $4.85 off retail!)
Dyelot #40, 50g/175m per skein, US 6 22sts/4″

Earthy, organic silk yarn with a lovely drape

Here’s the Silky Wool knit up:

Brand New Knitting Bag/Scarf Kit

Just $25!
Comes with this funky bag, 4 skeins of yarn, a pair of wooden needles, and a spindle topped crochet hook. Bag has needle holding hoops on the inside.

The bag:

The contents:

Knitpicks Red Yarn Grab Bag

$6 (that’s $3 off retail!)
1 ball Wool of the Andes in Iron Ore
1 ball Wool of the Andes in Hollyberry
1 ball Andean Silk in Hollyberry

Check out knit picks textures and colors with these three test skeins

3 skeins Alpaca Yarn Co.’s Classic Alpaca in Horizon

$16 (that $5 off retail!)
Dyelot # 58266 50g/110yd per skein, 22sts/4″

Soft, elegant 100% alpaca yarn in a gengle gray/lavender hue

Monday was a sad day, a sad day indeed. It was the day all my knitting came to a screeching halt. I smashed my finger while adjusting a drafting table — a serious smash that rendered it bulbous, gecko-like, and an arresting shade of purple. So my hourglass and sunrise sit in wait, while I cruise around holding my finger out of harm’s way in a permanant pointing position. It’s healing, but slowly, so expect lots of kitty and spring flower pics until it gets better.

Turns out my cat Iggy is a Yarn Eater. Not a yarn-stalker, nor a yarn-swatter, nor a roll-around-on-the-floor-with-yarner. No. He’s a Yarn Eater.

Three times this morning the Little Sh*t (as he’ll henceforth be called) chewed through my yarn for the Sunrise Circle Jacket. His work is swift — he’ll have already bitten through the strand and left two spitty nubs by the time you notice his gnawing sounds. We’re talking 3 seconds flat.

They train cats with squirt guns, right? Newest addition to my knitting bag: SQUIRT GUN.

Gauge Update/Mystery: The body of the Hourglass sweater was not worked on an Inox, but on a Mystery Needle! See below:

I thought it was an Addi at first, but the cord looks different than my new Addis — it’s a tough black plastic. Also the actual needle parts are longer. One additional clue is that there is a small “45″ impressed into the metal at the bottom of each needle. Finally, the needles spin at the point where they attach to the cord.

Cry for Help: Can you identify this needle? Have a guess? Leave a comment!

p.s. I couldn’t resist posting this pic — I made the cats a bed out of a salvation army basket and a cushion fashioned with fleece scraps I have. Apparently they like it enough to sleep in a pile :).

p.p.s. An additional update: I ripped out the Hourglass sleeve that was knit on the DPs. Until I identify the mystery needle, I’m going to click along with the 2 circulars on the second sleeve and see if the gauge loosens up as the piece gets heavier.

I’m still working on my Hourglass sweater — the body up to the armpits and half of each sleeve are done. But here’s the thing: they all have different gauges!

The body has 19 sts per 4″ (done on an Inox circular US 7).

The first sleeve has 20 sts per 4″ (done on Inox US 7 double pointeds).

The second sleeve has 22 sts per 4″(done on 2 Addi turnbo US 7 cirulars)!

I made the switch from the DPs to the Addi circulars because the DPs were resulting in really bad fabric — even though I tightened every first and last stitch and moved the DPs around to avoid ladders, there were giant loose stitches peppered throughout.

I bought two Addis instead of a second Inox circular to work the sleeve because I figured if I was going to spend the money, I might as well upgrade.

I am not so surprised at the variation between Inox circular and the Inox DPs — but I amtotally surprised about the difference between the gauge of the sleeve worked on two Addi ciruclars vs. the body and the other sleeve.

Though I’ve certainly heard about gauge differences between ciruclars vs. DPs vs. straight needles, I’ve never heard of such a giant gauge difference between three metal needles of different brands.

Have you heard of this before? Let me know!

Also, any advice? Rip out the sleeves and use 2 inox circulars? Keep the tighter sleeve but adjust the stitches? Quit altogether?