hopieknits

This year's Red Scarf

  This is the third year I've been involved with the Red Scarf project.  It 's a phenomenal effort that provides scarves and other goodies to college students who were formerly in foster care.  If you know anything about that system, in any state, you know what an accomplishment it is to make it to college if you are a product of it.  These young women and men don't have families to send them care packages but the Red Scarf project rectifies that situation. Knitters contributing to the project not only provide a scarf but are encouraged to put together a whole package of items desired by the average college student.  This year my recipient will not only get this scarf, but I plan to include a Dunkin Donuts gift card,pens, highlighters, post-its, and some other items that I think might be enjoyed or needed.

If you want to get involved, click on the link above and learn more about it.  If you don't feel like knitting a scarf, you can always send a donation.  Try it, you'll like it.

2009 Red Scarf

Yarn: Patons Shetland Chunky Tweed - 3 skeins

Pattern:  One row Scarf

Needles :  Size 10

                

Knitting again. Finally!

It's funny.  For the past few months I've been looking for ways to help manage the impact that increased stress has wrought in my life. I won't bore you with the litany of issues I'm dealing with because everybody has their time in the pit.  But I will say that I thought I could deal with stress better than I have and on top of everything, I've gone back to work again, full time.  I've gained at least 10 pounds since the beginning of the year and some days I feel like I'm 20 feet underwater with no scuba gear.

With the weight gain, (a lifelong battle), I considered joining a gym, taking a Zumba class, yoga and meditation.  None of these options are bad choices, but I suddenly realized that my weight gain not only coincided with the stresses, but also with my lacking of knitting.  I've been looking for someway to manage my anxieties and I had the way all along.  I've always called knitting my meditation and I guess I couldn't see the forest for the trees.  So I'm knitting again.  I haven't lost  any weight yet but I do feel a lot more relaxed and I certainly am more productive.  Look at the photos below.  Both completed in the last two weeks. 

As for blogging, I am really impressed with those who are so consistent with their posts.  I was beginning to feel bad about not blogging when I took some time to check out some of my favorites and also linked to some of theirs.  What did I notice?  That I'm not unique.  So many of the bloggers I like to read, have also taken a hiatus from blogging or at the very least have increased the time between posts.  Also most of the up-to-date bogs belong to those who have their sites for commercial purposes.  This is not true of everyone but those selling pattens or other items are the ones mostly likely to be current; as well they should be.

Enough talk - I have been knitting.  First there's this lovely sweater made for our newest grandchild, Madison, who is now 6 months old.  The blanket I finished earlier this year was for her too but unfortunately, I made some mistakes and there is a fairly large hole in the center of the blanket.  I was determined that I would finish this sweater with no errors and it turned out pretty well. 

Pattern:  Cable and Lace Wrap Cardigan from Baby Knits by Lois Daykin

Yarn: RYCashsoft Baby DK

Needles: Sizes 3 and 6

This was a fun knit.  Just enough lace to keep it interesting but not so much that it became annoying.

My next project was a sweater for our grandson Brandon, who turned 3 last month.  I've been wanting to make this one for sometime and it's the perfect time of the year so that he can wear it right away.  The knitting on this one was done in less than a week, mostly during training for my new job.  It could have been a boring task but it went so quickly, I didn't have time to get bored. 

My photography skills leave a lot to be desired but I love the little pockets. 

Pattern: Stocking Stitch Sweater - Debbie Bliss, Easy Knits

Yarn: Elann's Peruvian Sierra Aran

Needles: Size 8

I can't wait to see both of them in their new sweaters.  I hope they like them.

Here's Brandon modeling another FO made during my two weeks of training.  My daughter recently cut her hair, and asked me to make a hat for her since she won't have hair to keep her warm this winter.  The hat was my introduction to entrelac.  I have to admit that I probably made four hats since I kept getting to the end only to realize that I'd done something wrong.  It's not perfect but it's not so bad either.  My daughter likes it and I guess that's all that counts.

Pattern:  Ella - Hip Knits Hats

Yarn:   Baby Alpaca Grande

Needles: Size 10.5 circulars

Lastly I working on my Red Scarf Project scarf for this year.  For those of you unfamiliar with the Red Scarf Project, please take the time to link to the information and seriously consider getting involved or sending a donation.

This post is entirely too long but who knows when I'll post again, so I have to get it all in.              

I Want to Knit - (but I haven't had the time)

It 's been so long since my last post or at least it feels that way to me.  I think about knitting almost everyday, but I just can't organize my thoughts well enough to figure out what I should knit.  Of course, I have a few works in progress but those sometimes take more energy to pick up then something new.

In any case I hope to be back in the swing of things soon.  I'm dancing as fast as I can.

It's been a long time

It's been a while since my last post; almost three months.  I haven't even been reading blogs as much as I usually do.  I don't know why but I suppose that after two years of blogging it's good to take a short break.  I took a break from knitting too, for the most part.  I did make a blanket for our newest grandchild, a girl, Madison Chase, compliments of my stepson and his wife.  I love having new babies in the family.  They love about 45 minutes away from us and we hope that we will get to see Miss Madi as often as possible.  I don't know if I really like the blanket though.  I made it with Lion Brand Cotton Ease because since she's a Spring baby I thought she'd need a lightweight blanket. I'm not sure I like it though.  There's something about the shape of it, it's too wide or too short or something.  Her mother wants her name embroidered on it.  I'm not the world's best embroiderer.  In fact, I'm not an embroiderer at all.  But I am going to try to have it done by a professional. 

I also started a sweater for my friend Valerie's newest baby boy who was born at the end of January.  But after checking out the latest photos of him on Facebook, I think I need to make a larger size.  He's a big boy! I don't know if I have enough yarn to make it bigger and I haven't had the chance to check but since I'm in a knitting mood, I've been knitting washcloths.  I've made three so far this week and it's the sort of mindless knitting that is fun, easy and immediately satisfying.  Of course, I want to be knitting something else but there's so much going on in my life at this point that I can't make a decision about anything, so washcloths it is.  Not so bad, custom made washcloths are a luxury.

 

It wasn't so bad after all.

I've been doing a lot of bitching about my participation in the Sock Madness competition lately but now that I've successfully completed the socks for Round 1, I'm able to sit back and evaluate the experience.  As much as I hated the Afterthought hell, I mean heel, now that I've done them I can appreciate the learning experience.  I will probably never use this method again but at least I can say I've done it once.  I also learned that I can make a pair of socks in a few days if I really want to and I didn't even spend every waking hour knitting.  The bonus is that I now qualify to move into the second round of the competition, (there are four) and my competitive juices are really flowing now. I may make it to Round 3 cause I don't think I have a chance of winning the whole thing or even making it to the end.  You wouldn't believe how fast some folks can knit socks.  Next round I'm going to try knitting two at a time since that seems to be the faster way of doing things.  Anyway here's a photo of my new Tropical Mer-Tini Socks.  I didn't like the pattern at first but now I kinda like them.

Sock Madness 3 is making me crazy!

As I mentioned in my last post I am participating in this year's Sock Madness competition. Last Thursday we received the pattern and the race was on. It is now after midnight Monday and I'm still questioning myself, trying to understand why I am doing this.  I am not the greatest sock knitter nor the most passionate one.  But I am somewhat competitive and I guess I want to see how far I can make it in this event.  One good thing has come from it. I am being exposed to new techniques.  The cast on is a new one on me, Twisted German cast - on.  I've never heard of it before but of course there is a video on You Tube demonstrating how to do it.  It's a nice stretchy cast on, which is just the thing for socks, but it hurt my hands to do it.  I don't know if I was using muscles I don't normally engage but my fingers were aching when I finished casting on.

I had bought some beautiful Koigu KPPPM in a lovely green color and knitted all the way to the heel before I decided I didn't want to use this yarn for this pattern.   I was thinking that I would finish my first sock on Friday, but I panicked when I saw something called the Afterthought Heel which made me want to throw in the towel, so I frogged it and didn't pick up needles again until Saturday when I decided I'd try again with some gray Patons Kroy sock yarn from my stash.  This time when I reached the heel I didn't panic but referred to some very helpful directions found in the Sock Madness group on Ravelry.  Seems like I wasn't the only person having a problem with the heel. Even now that I've made my way past it, I'm still trying to figure out why one would want to use this method to make a heel.  You leave a big hole in your sock and then go back to it later after you've completed the toe.  I'm doing it but for me, once I finish the toe and kitchener it together, I want a completed sock.  I don't want to have to go back to the heel. But then I read that this technique is one from Elizabeth Zimmerman and who am I to question the First Lady of knitting?

I started on the second sock even though I haven't completely finished the heel on the first.  Luckily only 10 people in my division have completed their socks and the first 40 who finish move forward to the next round.  Hopefully I will be among them.  Here's what the first sock looks like at this point.

It's not the greatest photo but the sock fits well.  Now if I could just finish the heel.

Sock Madness or Just Plain 'Ole Crazy?

I received an email yesterday from Shameka with the subject line, are you interested? Since I don't often get actual emails from Shameka I opened it immediately to find information on Sock Madness 3.  Now I didn't even know that there was a Sock Madness 1 or 2 but I followed the link and read about this challenge.  I'm not certain I really understand it completely, I'm a little dense when it comes to things like this, but you know what I did?  I signed up!  Don't really know why, but I'm a little intrigued to see how I do.  My only previous experience with challenges was Ravelympics and I have to say I don't think I completed even one project.  Who won that thing anyway?  I'll have to go look it up.

In any case if anyone reading this is interested in signing up for SM3, you have until Friday, March 6 to do so.  Hey if I can do it anyone can.

Thank God for Knitting!

I don't know about you but knitting is sometimes my refuge.  Whatever I'm going through I can submerge myself in knitting and zone out for a while.  It's a meditation that calms me and clears my head.  That's what it has been this weekend.  I won't bore you with the details, everyone has stuff to deal, but suffice it to say that I've had to call on my emotional and physical reserves over the past few days and knitting has been my resting place.

I can't show you what I've been working on this weekend, it's a surprise, but I can show you my finally completed Lifestyle socks. Can you tell that one is bigger than the other?  No matter, I will wear them anyway, in boots though because I really don't like the way they look.  I'm going to have to learn how to match with self-striping socks.

I also forgot to post a photo of the Malabrigo socks I made for my daughter.  She so loved the socks I made for her last year that she has worn them to shreds.  I wanted to try the Malabrigo sock yarn which is beautiful, but these socks were a trial. They're the first pair I've made using a chart and it drove me crazy.  It took some of the fun out of making the socks, but I do like the finished product.  I also reinforced the heels with Regia yarn.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

  

Erikka's Malabrigo Socks

Color: Rayon Vert

Pattern: Rhombus by Andrea Weinrick

Needles: Size 2, 29" circulars

I still have challenges ahead but thankfully I have enough yarn to get me through. The good thing is that a lot of folks will be getting surprise gifts as I work through the issues.