Market bag madness

Last year, my friend Gina knit a market bag from a free pattern she found online. (She even used the yarn called for in the pattern!) It turned out great, and she has since knit a few more.

At the beginning of this month, I got the market-bag itch myself and proceeded to crank out three of these suckers in quick succession, making some slight modifications to the original pattern. The first one, knit in four different colors of leftover dishcloth cotton, ended up with handles that were far too long for my liking. The original pattern called for 20-stitch-long handles. Gina did this on her first bag, and I thought the handles were a bit short. So I decided to extend them...a lot. In a burst of overzealous handle-making I cast on one hundred stitches for each handle. The result doesn't work for me...but turned out to be just right for Katie, to whom I gave the bag (though I left the ends for her to weave in).

The second bag I made, the green one on the right here, was knit in Shine Worsted; the third bag, knit from dishcloth cotton, is slightly shorter because I was experimenting with length in an effort to find the right balance between "big enough to be useful at the farmers' market" and "not so big that it bounces off my butt when I walk." Both of these are planned as gifts for swap partners.

This is a great pattern and one that's extremely easy to remember. Somewhere between one and a half and two balls of dishcloth cotton is what you'll need for this, so it's by no means an expensive project. And the best part is there's no seaming, grafting, Kitchener stitching, or whatever (though you do have to pick up some stitches around the flat base...).

"The Last Guy in the World to See Star Wars"

Here's a fun commentary piece just published on the Wired website: nearly thirty years to the day after Star Wars was first released, this guy finally saw it.

He points out up front that he didn't go into the viewing totally clueless. It's impossible to have lived in our society for the past three decades without being exposed (heavily!) to what he calls "the fallout from this pop-culture phenomenon."

In the end, he's unimpressed--and rightly so. This is an entertaining film but by no means great art. George Lucas's ability to write decent dialogue is nonexistent and, amazingly, somehow manages to get even worse over the course of the rest of the series, culminating in the gut-wrenching (for anyone who saw the film) palaver of the courtship scene in episode 2.

His final verdict? "I should have waited for the 50th anniversary." Heh.

My once and future knitting

My friend Gina (a.k.a. "she of the jaw-dropping stash") just posted to her blog a meme about knitting projects. She's got a pretty impressive list of accomplishments--my own pales in comparison.

The list of possibilities is interesting, though I object to "Teaching a man to knit" because it seems to assume that all the knitters who participate in this meme are women. So I've balanced this out by adding "Teaching a woman to knit" to the list.

I had to look up a few things. (All bow before the Great Google Search!) "Thrummed knitting"? That produces those super-thick mittens that are one color with flecks of another color on them. There's a lovely picture and description of them here. And from what I can gather, "domino knitting" is a type of modular knitting that looks an awful lot like mitred squares (but isn't). Interweave Press has a whole book on the subject and claims that it "has been the rage among European knitters for several years." Hmmmm. Any European knitters out there who can tell me if this is true or not? Knitty has an article on "two-end knitting," a Scandinavian technique that looks a bit complicated but produces very warm garments (which they need up there in Scandinavia, I'm sure!).

I'm surprised by just how many knitting techniques and projects I've tried. And it looks like there's a lot more for me to do out there--and not many things I'm not interested in trying!

So how does your own list look? If you post this on your blog, put a note in the comments here letting me know to take a look!

THE RULES

• Bold for stuff you’ve done
• Italics for stuff you plan to do one day
• Normal for stuff you’re not planning on doing

THE LIST

Afghan/blanket (baby)
I-cord
Garter stitch
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Hat
Moebius band knitting
Sweater
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip-stitch patterns
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Knitting with circular needles
Cable-stitch patterns
Lace patterns
Scarf
American/English knitting
Buttonholes
Knitting with alpaca
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cozies…)
Knitting with DPNs
Holiday-related knitting
Knitting with cotton
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener BO
Purses/bags
Swatching
Long-tail CO
Knitting with self-patterning/self-striping/variegated yarn
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Intarsia
Cuffs/fingerless mitts/arm warmers
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Knitting a gift
Knitting in public
Teaching a woman to knit

Knitting with metal wire
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Knitting with silk
Participating in a KAL
Drop-stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (modular knitting)
Twisted-stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two-end knitting
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Publishing a knitting book
Teaching a child to knit
Knitting to make money
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars
Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
Teaching a man to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting with beads
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Stuffed toys
Darning
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Pillows
Rug
Thrummed knitting
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair

Slippers
Graffiti knitting (knitting items on or to be left on the street)
Olympic knitting
Knitting smocking
Knitting art
Machine knitting
Knitting on a loom
Hair accessories

Summer Knitting

The "official" start of summer, Memorial Day weekend, is just a week away. So it's only fitting that I just came across a contest about summer knitting. Ali at Skeins Her Way has asked people to post a list of their summer knitting projects by the end of this month. The winner gets a copy of her new pattern (for an awfully cute-looking tank) and the yarn for it.

My own list is fairly modest:

• Another (my second!) pair of toe-up socks.
• A Wonderful Wallaby for my daughter.
• The Artisan Vest in the Green Mountain Spinnery book. (I can't start this one until my friend and knitting guru, Pat, helps me size the pattern down to fit me.)

I'm sure I'll get interested in some other projects along the way and maybe even start some of them. But right now, as the advent of summer nears, this is what's on my plate.

Memories

This is a real trip down memory lane. Jan sent this link to me recently, and as soon as I heard "Ed Gruberman" I was back in high school, listening to the Dr. Demento Show on the radio. "Boot to the head!" indeed.

He also sent me a link to a short film called Balance that won the 1989 Academy Award for Best Animated Short and was shown in art-house theaters in the early 90s (that's where I first saw it). Then and now it's a striking commentary on the absurdity of greed.

Another swap

A couple of weeks ago, I stumbled across the Knitting Gnome Swap. It's a one-time swap: someone sends you a box in the mail that contains, well, a gnome and some knitting-related goodies. You keep the goodies, give the gnome a tour of your town, write about your adventures (with pictures, ideally!) in your blog, then send the gnome (with knitting-related goodies) to the next person on the list. This sounded like way too much fun, so I signed up right away.

The matches have been sent out. I've written to the person "downstream" of me (i.e., the person I'll be sending stuff to), and today I got an e-card from the person who will have the gnome before me. I have no idea when the gnome will be headed my way--the waiting is part of fun!

My SP10 strikes again

First, she sent me (and Sylvia) a beautiful birthday card by snail-mail. And then today I received another terrific package from her.

Until now, I've been using plastic rings and bits of leftover yarn tied into circles to mark the beginning of a round. But now my knitting is going to be even more glamorous, with these beautiful stitch markers. (This means, of course, that I need to start a big lace project some time soon. These markers just scream to be used for something elegant like lace!) She also sent a candle and a lotion stick--no dripping! no mess!--designed just for knitters. What a great thing to stow in my knitting bag!

My SP10 also included a skein of recycled silk yarn--something I have been dying to try ever since I first heard of it. According to Katie, who used to work in a yarn shop, this stuff isn't ideal for garments because of its drape. But I bet it would be just perfect for a dressy scarf or perhaps (as Katie suggested) as trim or edging on a garment. Anyone else have any other ideas?

And what's that right next to the yarn? Why it's chocolate, of course--with raspberries and rose hips. (And I can't believe it made it to this photo shoot without getting eaten by any of the chocoholics here...) And look: it's in its very own little candy-bar holster, which I'm guessing was made by my SP10. (Am I right?) Too cute!

The box also contained a fabulous circular-needle holder, which I have sorely needed. I've been keeping my circulars in a gallon-sized ziploc bag, which is functional but not very pretty (and a bit of a pain to root around in when I'm looking for something in particular). So now all of my needles--straights, double-pointed, and circular--have proper homes. Hooray!

Last but not least, there were some goodies that I'll be sharing with Sylvia: Play-Doh and Silly Putty. We'll be having lots of fun with that stuff, I'm sure.

Thanks so much, SP10! This package really made my day!

Happy birthday to me

Yupper, today is my birthday--just two days after Sylvia's. Two years ago, when we were anxiously waiting for her to hurry up and get born already, Jan and I were worried that she'd end up sharing my birthday, which also happened to land on Mother's Day that year. Talk about a triple whammy. Fortunately, she arrived two days earlier (one week after her due date), thus ensuring that she gets her very own birthday--which I think is important, since it's awfully nice to have a birthday that's your own special day, don't you think?

In addition to the niceness of having family around to celebrate my birthday, I was also fortunate enough to receive several wonderful gifts, many of which were knitting/craft related. Simple Sewing: Patterns and How-To for 24 Fresh and Easy Projects by Lotta Jansdotter and Knitted Flowers by Nicky Epstein now grace my bookshelves, and a tote with seventeen (yes, that's right--seventeen) pockets on the outside alone will insure that I don't lose my crafting supplies.

My friends Gina and Todd gave me a Louet kit for handpainting sock yarn. It contains some incredibly soft wool sock yarn (enough for a pair), three different color-coordinated dyes, and--thank goodness--instructions. I am very much looking forward to trying this!

Last but not least, my Dutch father-in-law gave me a terrific set of knitting supplies. He doesn't know anything about knitting, so he went to his local yarn store, a place called Charmant that's in the next town over from his, and said, "I want to get something for someone who knits." Fortunately, he was helped by someone who knew what they were doing (though I'm not surprised--I've been to this shop and was very impressed by how knowledgeable the staff were). She guided him toward the spring/summer 2007 issue of Babymode (Phildar No. 465), a set of 3.5mm needles (which is what most of the patterns call for), and twelve balls of a very soft cotton-acrylic blend Dutch yarn that's pretty indistinguishable from Rowan All-Season Cotton.

There are lots of great patterns in here. I'm especially looking forward to making the two-toned cardigan with the tomten hood. Unfortunately, all of the written instructions are in Dutch--which I don't read or speak. But I'm hoping that with the help of the pictures and schematics (not to mention Babelfish) I can figure them out!

Birthday baby

It's been a busy week here, with preparations for Sylvia's second birthday underway. Her Opa (Jan's father) arrived from the Netherlands a little over a week ago, and my parents arrived from Illinois two days ago, so we have a full house.

The festivities began two days ago, on Friday, when Sylvia's playgroup gathered here. We meet weekly, rotation among our homes and local parks, and this week's meeting took place two days before her birthday. To celebrate the occasion--and provide some massively geeky entertainment for five toddlers--Jan and I built a castle in our backyard, using giant cardboard boxes and plastic rivets designed for this purpose. With two parents as geeky as Jan and me, Sylvia doesn't stand a chance: geekdom is definitely in her future. Her cardboard bridge even had a drawbridge, for crying out loud.

Her actual birthday party was yesterday, since that worked out best for my brother, whose crazy work schedule gives him limited time off. We started the day by attending the annual spring festival at a local county park that's a 300-acre historic working farm. Here's the tenuous connection to knitting: the festival is called Sheep and Wool Day, and on this day the farm's eight sheep lose their winter coats. Pieces of freshly shorn wool are handed out to the kids. It's interesting to think about how this dirty, gray, ball of rough hair can be transformed into fine yarn.

Back at home, we did the presents-and-cake thing, with three grandparents, one uncle, and two close (adult) friends in attendance. Sylvia was thrilled by all of the attention, and loved the "cheetah" cake that Jan made for her. (She is really into cheetahs and sleeps with a stuffed cheetah every night.) It was a chocolate butter cake with raspberry buttercream, covered with orange-tinted marzipan and black icing "cheetah spots." Delicious!

Today, Sylvia's actual birthday, was fairly low-key, since we just had two days of celebration. But we did do something special today nonetheless: a trip to a local dairy farm and ice creamery, for some yummy scoops of freshly made ice cream. Ahhh!

"Earth laughs in flowers"

Every spring, when the forsythias, dogwoods, magnolias, lilacs, azaleas, daffodils, and tulips put on their annual show, I'm reminded of these words penned by Emerson. Of course, this phrase is part of a longer passage about humanity's inability to escape death, but I still like it in the context of thinking about spring and nature and renewal.

My SP10 hostess, Kerry, has asked everyone in her group to post about their favorite flowers. That's a really difficult task, because I'd be hard pressed to name a flower I didn't like. I even find dandelions sort of appealing.

Right now, though, I'd have to say that my favorite flowers are these giant red tulips growing in my front yard. Jan and I moved into this house in the fall a few years ago, and shortly afterward his father, who is Dutch and lives in the Netherlands, came to visit. While he was here, my father-in-law, a horticulturalist who knows pretty much everything about plants, planted about three hundred tulip, daffodil, and crocus bulbs around the house, mostly in the front. Squirrels dug up most of the crocuses, but every spring we get to enjoy a magnificent display of yellow and white daffodils, followed by tulips in almost every size and color imaginable.

Workers of the world, unite!

Happy May Day (Labour Day), everyone!