stumbling out of the gate

As the fireworks exploded around and above the Bird's Nest Stadium in Beijing, I searched high and low, upstairs and down, for a crochet hook to begin the provisional cast on for my first bag. With all my prep, that was the one thing I overlooked - assembling all my tools.

No luck, so I cast on 35 sts in waste yarn, knit one row and bound off. Then I picked up my 25 sts for my handle in that waste fabric. It was a bit tricky to remove it later and reclaim the live stitches - but with the help of a spare set of dpns and some Sticky Tac needle stops, I got it done. Phew!

The setback put me a bit behind, but aren't coming from behind and overcoming adversity popular Olympic themes? I've made it through my first heat and I'm still in the competition .. and Sticky Tac has now earned its place in my knitting supplies!

soooooo nice

My preparations for the Ravelympics are complete; I've knitted my swatch and confirmed my needle size and gauge. I love Seed Stitch ... it's simple to work, the fabric lays flat, it's got nice texture and it's reversible. Just start with a foundation row of *K1, P1*, then continue by knitting the purls and purling the knits.

How nice to knit without tracking stitch counts, rows and repeats! How nice to let my mind wander without worrying about complicated pattern sequences! And how nice to knit with little thought other than how unbelievably soft this yarn is! Mmmmmmmm.

disappointing Results

In the few days before the Ravelympics I've been playing with the pattern Bonbon by Larissa Brown available from Knitty. It's a pattern for a bath puff, and I was enamoured by the idea of knitting gifts from nylon novelty yarns impulsively bought years ago. Even before I cast on I could imagine wrapping each with a fabulous handmade soap.

First, Moda Dea Ticker Tape - a lovely soft sueded ribbon in mottled beiges. Nope, the Ticker Tape puff sags and stays damp for days after use - reminds me of sodden kelp. Maybe something crisper? Next, Lion Brand Trellis - an open ladder-like tape with metallic gold steps hung on contrasting black framework. The texture is better, the functionality is better, but the shimmer of the golds is lost when scrunched and wet. It looks vaguely unhealthy - like a warning photo on a cigarette pack.

I'm disappointed these didn't turn out. .. I was so convinced about how great they were going to be. Time to take a deep breath and put the pattern aside. And maybe, one day, give it another try ... but then use the recommended yarn.

learning the hard way

The Misti Cotton for my next project came as big twisted pretzels of yarn. Up until now, all my yarns came as centre-pull skeins - easy - tear off the label, find the end and knit. Hmmm. Maybe ask the nice yarn store lady for tricks to get it ready to knit? Nah, how hard can it be!

After hours untangling snarled messes while rolling the first two balls, I googled for advice. Found a tutorial at knitting.about.com - How to Handle a Hank. Boy do I feel dumb! The author, S.E. White, warns "A hank is basically a big loop .... twisted into a yarn pretzel ... You can’t knit with it the way it is. Trust me. You’ll make a huge mess and lose a good deal of sanity trying to make it right." Wow. She is so right. With kitchen chairs keeping the yarn loops taut, winding the last two hanks went more smoothly. Which is a huge understatement - 15 minutes each instead of a few hours each!

So I've learned a couple things. I've learned how to wind a hank into a ball. And I've learned that next time, just go ahead and ask the dumb question. I learned these lessons the hard way; I won't forget them anytime soon. But at least my Mom had a really good laugh when I told her.

pretty good .. if I do say so myself

Today I'm celebrating ... the second sock is done. I've knitted a pair of socks and I'm pretty pleased with myself. I like them - they're comfortable and pretty good looking. Altogether, this sock project has been really successful.

Joining the Knit-Along Group was something new for me - I was a bit nervous. Knitting socks is new to me - I thought they'd be too hard and too finicky. Finishing anything in 17 days - oh, that's never happened before with me. Being happy with my end result - well, that's definitely something new. And really nice.

As I shuffle around and preen in my new socks, I'm trying to ignore how much cat hair they're picking up from my floors. I can't wait 'til the next KAL project is posted on August 15th. But maybe my next pair of socks should be a darker colour - more the colour of my cat!

does that come in a nice blue?

My eight year old nephew asked about my knitting yesterday. "What are you making? How do you do it? Will you show me how, so I can make some socks for my Mom?"

He's curious to know how things work and to try new things - things like knitting. And I can see why he's interested ... it's a kind of magic, turning yarn into cloth! Maybe he'd like to make a scarf ... simple knit stitches, no shaping and gauge doesn't matter.

Yesterday wasn't the day for knitting lessons - we went to the splash park to get outside, run around and get some relief from the heat and humidity. But maybe next time he's over! And because he asked so politely, I could probably get some yarn in a nice blue...

a journey of 8000 stitches

Last night we sat in a darkened room watching a movie and I continued with my sock - half the time with my eyes on the screen, the other half, peering at the pattern or making sure of my stitches.

After, when the movie ended, when we brightened the lights, I was struck by how depleted the skein of yarn looked. So much has inched its way around my needles ... about 400 stitches in the cuff, 1100 for the heel flap, around 280 more to turn the heel, 5500 for the instep and almost 600 to shape and finish the toe. That's nearly 8,000 stitches per sock!

Sounds overwhelming, doesn't it? Just as well I didn't know that before - it might've scared me off. But, it's getting done, one stitch at a time. And it's really amazing what the repetition of these simple stitches has resulted in. I can't hardly wait to finish and try them on!