Bird in Hand

Happy Valentine's Day! Let me present some red mittens in honor of this day of love.

I first spied these mittens on the hands of a fellow knitter here in town. Do you see the bird?(Photo credit: Kate Gilbert, 2007) I was instantly in love and quickly added them to my ravelry queue. Last weekend I decided to give them a try as I have now frogged my forest mittens, again. Third time is a charm, right?

These are knitting up like a dream. I even learned a two new techniques from this pattern: picot edging and braids. Let me just say that picot edging is so cute and easy! You'll be seeing more of it in the future from me.

I also had a light bulb moment and finally figured out how to wrap - or carry - the yarn while doing two color knitting. I had been trying to do it a bunch of different ways with no success. Then I realized that I really just needed to twist the yarns around each other - not actually knit the color I was carrying - to make it work. Viola.

The picture below is actually of the second mitten I made. I knit up the first one on size 3 needles and they came out way too big. They would have fit a giant. I ripped it apart and dropped down to a size 1 needle. Now it fits me perfectly. I also added the gold color as an accent. Adding that third yarn sparingly was a good choice on my part. Going from two yarns to three yarns is difficult. More difficult than, I dare say, going from two kids to three :)

The mittens are pictured with some cool mitten blockers handmade by maudawoodworks. I showed him this DIY tutorial (these sisters have lovely blog too) then traced my hand for him. A short time later he presented me with a pair of these. Besides being lovely, who can resist a detachable thumb?!

I still have the thumb of the right mitten to finish, but I have already cast on for the left mitten. I'm pretty excited to finish these off and use them. Even though the weather has been at record-breaking temps (50 degrees!) lately I know more cold weather is on it's way.

In reflecting on my other pair of mittens, I've decided to re-work them with the same yarn/needles I'm knitting these up with. The patterns don't match up exactly, but they sure are close. So, with some help from a lovely friend a solution has been proposed. Modify the pattern (slightly). Unfortunately this does mean monkeying a bit with the tree design, but really not too much. I like to think of it as sustainable forestry of sorts.

"I hope this isn't too forward, but..."

My husband's co-worker stopped him on his way out of the office last week. He said, "I hope this isn't too forward, but do you think your wife would knit me a hat? I lost mine last week."

When my husband relayed this story I wasn't sure how I felt. At first I was flattered. Then I wondered how this guy knew I knit. I thought back to the first and only time I met him - at my husbands holiday party. He's younger then I am, but not by much. He seemed nice enough. He is the assistant to the office librarian.

In the end I decided to go ahead and knit him a hat. I guess I felt a little maternal about it. "His ears must be cold," I thought. Besides, I needed a knitting break from my mittens. The trouble was that I didn't have any measurements for his head. I also have no idea what he might like in a hat. So I just went with my imagination, and used my husband as a model.

I pretended that I had a teenage son. Then imagined what I would knit for him. I found a pattern that matched my vision on ravelry. It's called The Boy Hat. Perfect.

Springing forward in fall colors

I love the name of this sock pattern: Spring Forward.  I like to think of these socks actually springing forward - over and beyond my frustrations about my mittens.  Propelling me forward; towards melting snow and the warm spring rain.  

These lovely socks have given me the respite I needed from my mittens.  I like having 2 or 3 projects going at the same time.  I usually divide them up by difficulty, or more accurately how much of my attention they require.  For example, I have one project that I can do while the TV is on and/or the kids are arguing over toys and/or the baby is climbing on me like a jungle gym.  These are, as you have guessed, projects that I can pick-up and set-down at a seconds notice without any worry about messing it up.  

Then I have projects that require fidelity, focus and concentration.  Usually this is a lace pattern or a new project like the mittens.  I tend to save these projects for the rare nights when I have energy past kiddo bedtime, or I find some spare time while the kids are napping.

These socks are luckily of the first variety.  Once you've got the basics of sock construction figured out these are easily put-down and picked-up.  These orange socks are made with the second (color: pumpkin) of three colors of knitpicks essential sock yarn that I purchased in the fall.  I have to say that I really do love this yarn.  It knits up with ease and seems to be very durable. 

A (gratuitous) kid-related story:  This is the first pair of socks that I have knit with my new row counter - a gift from DH for Christmas.  The older girls are just fascinated with it.  They love to watch me change the numbers and always ask, "Momma, what number are you on now?"  It is the kind of question that melts my heart.  I love that they are interested in my knitting and I look forward to teaching them how to knit over the next couple of years.  In the meantime we've been playing with yarn in other ways.  Inspired by a friend to knit with we made some yarn-based birds nests over the weekend.  Arn't they cute?!

Can't see the forest for the trees (Deep in the Forest Mittens)

We are back up to speed with the semester underway.  I have found my study time, my writing time, my mommy time, my wife time, and my knitting time.  [Like how I laid those out there like they are separate things with affiliated hours of the day?  The truth is I am always all those things all the time - just a little more one thing and then the other from minute to minute.]  So here's a status report on one of my current projects: frustration.

I can't seem to get this two-color stranded knitting thing down. I purchased this pattern awhile back. I HAD to have it. It's incredible - striking, complex and lovely all in one.  People seem to be knitting them like crazy on ravelry and I even heard the pattern mentioned in a podcast this past week.  I scrolled through ravelry for yarn ideas and settled on this. I immediately tried knitting the first mitten and it came out all puckered.

I frogged it.

I tried again on larger needles - and I was cautious to leave more trailing yarn than I thought I needed to. It came out too big, and didn't look right with the yarn I was using.

I frogged it.

Now I am back to my original size needles, leaving WAY more yarn that I think I need to and it is still puckering.

I need to frog it.  But...

my ego hurts.

My patience left me days ago.

I so want these mittens.

Any advice from seasoned knitters out there?  I was able to chat with a wonderful local knitter who encouraged me to try to get the knitting to lay flat (i.e. no puckering at all) because the puckering won't really be undone during the blocking process.  

Maybe I need different yarn?  Maybe I try a different pair of mittens first?  Maybe I should just stick with it and try again?  HELP!!

On a related note, I celebrated candlemas with friends this past Monday.  During our time together I drew a Native American medicine card - the dog.  Loyalty.  Huh.  Maybe this explains why I can't let this project go.