Stitches!!!

I just love Stitches. For 5 days I get to just be Cindy the Knitter. Not Mom, Wife, Librarian, Brownie Leader, etc...but Knitter. I walk into the hotel and instantly I'm amongst my peeps. I'm sure my kids are rolling their eyes at that, but it is true. People knitting everywhere you look, people complimenting what everyone is wearing, people openly gawking at cables or lace walking by, people touching other people's clothes in elevators without hesitation and it all makes SENSE.

Tracy and I had our lovely day Wednesday shopping at Santana Row, this time joined by Janice. We had a nice lunch and made our way to the hotel, and then ate sushi for dinner while we sat and knitted in the hotel bar. (Okay, there were also mojitos involved. That was fun too). Tracy spent the night then departed just as the action began at Stitches. We somehow have to get that girl to stay. I'll work on that.

Then came the knitting fun. The opening session was intarsia, with such heavy hitters as Lucy Neatby (two different color shoes), Nicky Epstein and Jane Slicer Smith. Very cool. Then came the classes - this year I took intermediate cables with Melissa Leapman, Edgings and Flowers with Nicky Epstein, Fiendishly Difficult Stitches, and Harnessing Hand-dyed Yarns. So much fun. Made a lot of swatches. Learned a lot of building blocks to make my own designs on sweaters, etc. Should maybe try that sometime.

The evening events were fun too, punctuated by bad food as usual, and lots of knitting everywhere. What was different this year was how many people I knew! I was no longer by myself the entire time, it seemed like everywhere I went I recognized people from previous years and they remembered me too. I hung out with Janice for the most part, and we met up frequently with Wendy (now from Portland) and Diane came up for a day or two. One big knitting party!
Of course I visited the market too. I came back with yarn for a sweater for me, two for Alex, and a few (ahem) pair of socks. So many pretty yarns!

I did finish my February Lady Sweater and wore it to Stitches. I picked out my buttons on Thursday Night Market Preview (cost all of $1.50) and sewed them on in the hotel room.
Mom and Carey came up on Saturday night and met me then we shopped together until midday Sunday and then drove home. Sad to leave the knitting bliss behind. See you next year knitters!

A Day to Dye

My fabulous friend Janice is a very talented yarn dyer! I used her yarn even before I ever met her and loved it. She calls her wares French 75. I have made monkey socks, waving lace socks, and pumpkin socks from her yarn, plus I confess to having a few stashed for sock knitting emergencies.

Well, once we met and I convinced her I wasn't a stalker, just a yarn admirer, we became friends and she (and Diane) joined our little Knotty (Naughty) Knitter group. This past Friday she invited me to dye with her!! Like being asked to craft along with Martha, cook along with Emeril, you get the picture.

Now I realize I need another craft like the "hole in head" cliche', but how could I resist? I was interested in watching her in action, seeing how she makes decisions about color, and just maybe getting my hands wet.

It was fun! She has lots of colors of dye mixed up, and since it was raining, we got to work at the kitchen table. It wasn't nearly as messy as I thought it would be. I spent most of the morning and early afternoon with her, and ended up dyeing 7 or 8 skeins of sock yarn. Since I had to go turn into a Brownie Leader, I left my work to dry and a day later took home 5 prized skeins of yarn!! (Although I do think I need that one pink one I accidently left behind...Oh, and I forgot about the turquoise one....)

Needless to say, someone has created a monster! I was in seventh heaven, and although I know I could stand some practice, it really wasn't that hard to do. Could become addictive. I'm resisting the urge to get in over my head, but I would really not turn down another dye day adventure.

Thanks Janice!

Yes, I did!!

We made it. Forty-four of us made it home safe and sound from our inauguration adventure.

We left before dawn on Saturday and made our way by bus to SFO, where our flight via Virgin America went off without a hitch (nice airline, by the way). When we arrived in Washington, all of our luggage arrived too (yay!) and another bus wisked us off to immediately see some sights.

Brrrr! That evening tour took place is 8 degree weather, I might add! We saw the Jefferson Memorial, FDR Memorial, Washington Monument, White House (behind lots of scaffolds) and bleachers set up for the parade to come. Did I mention we were walking around them? And that it was cold? Brrrrr, especially since some of us didn't pack all our weather gear in our carry-ons.

The next morning dawned bright and early and once again we were off seeing the sights. We started at the World War II memorial, and off to the Vietnam Memorial and Lincoln Memorial, and in the process got caught up in the crowds that were there to see the pre-inauguration concert. Some of the monuments were blocked off, but we got to see more port-a-potties than ever before assembled in the United States (not kidding about that stat).

We then had a whirlwind visit to the Smithsonian where my personal highlights included Dorothy's Ruby Slippers, Seinfeld's Puffy Shirt and Kermit the Frog. We saw First Ladies' dresses and other such goodies, and then off to the National Archives to see the Constitution, Declaration of Independence,
and Magna Carta, and then had a sobering experience at the Holocaust Museum.

Monday included visits to the Iwo Jima memorial, , the National Cathedral, and Arlington Cemetery, where our group got to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The real adventure came Tuesday Morning. We were up at 4, bus at 5:30 and into the city at 6. The city was closed off to regular traffic, but our bus and tour company had secured parking at the Washington Nationals Baseball Stadium. We were supposed to have a short 1.2 mile walk to our spot on the Mall which had been staked out by the World Strides people the day before. Of course there were incredible crowds (we walked arm in arm, 4 deep, to avoid losing any of the kids) and unexpected streets closed off, so it ended up being a 2 hour walk instead of a 20 minute one, but by 8 am we had our spot on the Mall, about half way between the Washington Monument and the Capitol, with a Jumbotron in full view. Then we got to wait for two hours until the action started. It was COLD!! The high that day was 27 degrees, so that early it was around 18 - 20. We had hand warmers galore, and I was SO thankful for knitwear, and sheep in general.

Around 10 the action began, and we watched, along with our 2 million friends. It was incredible, and every bit of it made you very proud to be an American. People were so happy around us, cheering, laughing, wearing all sorts of Obama-wear. It was a memorable experience that I'm sure the kids will never forget.

Afterward the crowds were intense, but our never-tiring tour guide pushed us toward the Lincoln Memorial, where our bus was supposed to meet us. Unfortunately, he got diverted out of town and was unable to get back in, so we had to walk some more (!) to the Metro station, where we rode to Virginia to meet back up. After a lovely dinner, we went back to the hotel to collapse. What a day!!

Wednesday was our trip to Mt. Vernon and the Capitol. We stood on the spot where the outgoing President traditionally hands his "resignation" papers to the incoming President (as Bush did the day before), and saw where the luncheon was held where Sen. Kennedy had a seizure. We walked down the same stairs seen on tv where Obama walked on the way out to the Capitol steps where he took his oath. We also met with our Congressman, where the kids got to talk and ask him questions.

Then it was off to the airport, where despite crowds, our flights went perfectly, and back to SFO and bus home. So tired! But all worth it.

As not to embarrass myself....

I'm going to Washington D.C. Can you guess why? One hint, I'll be there on January 20.

I'm going to accompany my daughter and around 30 or so other high school students as we see our new president be sworn in.

I'm excited, and nervous. I never dreamed when we signed up that I was going to join up to 4 million other people doing the same thing. I'm having big time second thoughts, but am taking a deep breath and hoping for the best.

Many, many things will be out of my control. The one thing I do have control over is how prepared I am for the weather. I realize it will be cold, much colder than I've been in for a long time (I did live a year in northern Sweden, folks, so I can recall cold). As I've told a few people, I've also seen March of the Penguins, and don't plan on being the outside penguin, but still, I've got some preparing to do.

Boots? Check (new REI store in town, clearance prices, North Face down lined, I'm good). Knitwear? Got to have lots of that lying around, right? I'm a hard core knitter. Wait. I have never knitted myself a hat. I have lots of scarves, but they are the "pretty" kind, not really the warm kind. Mittens? Yes, but sort of same thing. Plus, being the knitter of very short attention span, nothing is knit to work together, they are all sort of independently wonderful, but not by any stretch a set.

What kind of self-respecting kitter am I? I can't even scrounge up cold weather gear? Yikes.

Okay, I'm cheating on the gloves, and I bought some leather, furry lined ones. But a hat I can do. I've been admiring Ysolda Teague's hat designs on Ravelry, so quickly downloaded one of her new ones, the Icing Swirl Hat and went in search of yarn. I found some Takhi Bunny Print that I've had for AGES, and set off. Now I have this:


I think it is lovely. Such a fun little pattern. My only problem at this point is that I don't have a scarf to match. Not enough yarn to make a scarf too, and although I do have some solids that would match, they are in a thinner yarn that would take too long. I'll have to work on that this week.

In other news, I am making the Marlene Sock, by Cookie A. It is going nicely too, her patterns are always wonderful. This one is in chocolate brown (or officially cocoa kiss), by Dream in Color.

Janice and I are also starting a knit a long of the February Lady Sweater. I ordered my Dream in Color Classy, in the Chinatown Apple colorway, not quite knowing what I was going to get. When it came, I was delighted. Such a pretty orangey russetty color, with a little mossy jade green thrown in. I started the sweater and then did the buttonhole, and after consultation with my partner and the internet, ripped the whole thing out and will start again. But I can show you a picture of my pretty yarn.

So January is off to a knitting start. One finished object, on sock in progress, and one sweater to be. Not bad.

Look for me in the crowds, okay? I'm the one with the pretty hat.

Hooked up

OK, so this is a knitting blog. I know that. But I could not help but show you all what my mother in law crocheted for Gary and I for Christmas. First, my obvious hints didn't fall on deaf ears. We got some new coasters. This time in red and green. Here, look!


























And, as if that isn't enough creativity, she created a yummy lap blanket.



Lookie... those are cookies!

If you're interested in trying to make some cookies, check this out.
http://www.thriftyfun.com/downloads/CrochetOreoCookies.pdf

What fun!

Knitting New Year

In 2008, I knit:

1 sweater (Ravelry link)
8 pair of socks
8 scarves
1 major lace piece
1 pair of mittens
1 hat

Production really took a dive this year. I blame it on the major sweater, employment, and general laziness. Time spent on Ravelry had nothing to do with it. (uh huh)

My 2009 knitting resolutions (goals):
2 sweaters
12 pair of socks
1 major lace piece
assorted other stuff as the whim strikes

The one things I really achieved in 2008 was widening my circle of knitting friends to include more local friends. I'm really happy I've gotten to know Janice, Diane, Sandra, and many others.

I enjoy knitting things for others and I've got a few things up my sleeve for that, but I want to make sure this year I do some selfish knitting, meaning keep a few things. (Don't worry Tracy, there'll be plenty for you to claim). I've got a major knit brewing for Grace, and I'm due to start a sweater for myself soon (hurry Priority Mail!!).

Here's hoping the new year will be a productive one, full of projects, yarn, and lots of friends. Happy New Year!

Filling in the Blanks

I got the idea for the sweater I knit Mom for Christmas way back when I saw the Spring/Summer issue of Vogue Knitting. A Kaffe Fassett floral cardigan, fitted with 3/4 length sleeves. It was made from Rowan Pure Wool DK.

I started to look around for the yarn. Not available in Fresno at the time, so I looked around on the internet, and found some of the 8 colors at one place, some at another. I ordered what I could, but I couldn't find the background color, shamrock, and two of the others. Article Pract in Oakland would order it for me, but then I'd have to ship it here. I didn't want to switch yarns, because part of the appeal was the interplay of the colors, and I didn't want to mess that up.

Then Swatches opened, and Fran carried Rowan! I quickly made my way there and she had black in stock that I could use as the blackground (better than Shamrock's goofy green anyway) and she could order the other colors. She initially forgot to place the order, but after two weeks it was placed, and took another week or so to arrive.

That took me to October. Still plenty of time, right? Meanwhile, I was looking at the pattern, and decided that a wool cardigan that clearly was outerwear should not have 3/4 length sleeves. Oh, I can do that, no sweat. And didn't really want it fitted, looser fit better. Okay, no problem. The rest would be easy. Just follow the pattern.

Then the yarn came and I started to swatch. I've done color work before, mittens, socks, no problem. Flat colorwork, with color changes every row, sometimes with more than two colors a row? Purling with two colors was complicated, and you couldn't see if you were going according to the pattern. Hmm, what if I knit it in the round, and steeked the front? Never done that before, but it might be easier....

So I did all the math and wrapped my brain around connecting the pieces and knit it as a single tube. I looked up and read all the steek info I could find on ravelry and the internet, and plunged ahead. It went fine, until the armholes, when I had to once again think it through, and the same with the neckline. Meg from Ancient Pathways gave her advice, and I was cheered on by Janice, Tracy, Diane, and several in-progress comments from Ravelry people, some I knew, and some I didn't.

I sewed and cut the steeks on December 15. That part was fun, kind of like daredevil knitting. I trust my sewing machine, so I really wasn't scared, and it was fun to see it start to resemble a sweater. I knit the bands on the fronts and neck, sewed up the hems, and meanwhile, had to figure out the sleeves.

Time was running out, and Janice suggested doing the sleeves solid black. Splendid idea, except I knew I didn't have enough black yarn for that. Quickly ordered more, priority mail (love priority mail-- 4 days from New Hampshire!) and decided to do a band of pattern at the cuffs, which I had to do more math to lengthen. A little marathon knitting, and on December 23, the sleeves were sewn in and it was done!!

A date with the steam iron, and we have a sweater folks!

Here's what I learned--
*steeks-front, armhole, neckline
*converting from flat to round (both body of sweater and sleeves)
*how to lengthen sleeves based on arm measurements (mine), row gauge, and a bunch of math
*pick up stitches and knit front bands
*Jingle Bell stitch markers are festive, but noisy in some emergency knitting places
*A pattern is only a suggestion
*Kaffe Fassett probably did not knit this sweater or he would have done it my way
*Start Christmas knitting earlier

Would I do it again? Maybe. It turned out nicely when all was said and done. It was dicey at times, but isn't all Christmas deadline knitting?

Merry Christmas!

Quick note before the craziness of Christmas Morning starts (9 minutes from now):

Mom loved her gift-
Carey loved hers - a scarf but no photo yet

Hopefully Jean got hers too - I'll keep that quiet for a little longer.

I'll do a major post about the cardigan, I've been silent and it's been driving me crazy. It was my most wild "adventure in yarn" up to this point, so stay tuned.

Until then, Merry Christmas! May the peace of Christ be with you all!

Computer Safety

Hello, it's me...the kinda-sorta tech girl of the blog. Emily's the name, in case you forgot.

Now normally I don't post on my mother's blog, except on occasion, like when I'm alerting you all of a new overhead banner. Which, by the way, looks rather festive, don't you think? I admit it's not my best work; it was a...rushed project. Yeah, that's it. Anyway, I stumbled across something interesting and I feel like I should share it with you. So I will.

Earlier this fine Tuesday, a major bug was found in Internet Explorer.
It affects all versions, even the shiny new IE8 (Internet Explorer 8). To generalize, this little hole in the system allows criminals to steal your passwords and take over your computer. Which is not peoples' idea of a fun time. Microsoft is working on fixing it, but basically, you're at risk. Internet Explorer is one of the biggest browsers used today. Even Microsoft admitted it!

If you do use Internet Explorer, switch to another browser. Even before this bug, IE has been a pretty sorry excuse for a browser. If you've ever had to sit through a dozen "Not Responding" windows, you know what I mean. Personally, I find IE to be a drag, but yet I've been using it for ages. I think everyone's just so accustomed to it that they're frightened of trying out another program. I can imagine you right now, sitting there, fretting. All your passwords! All your bookmarks! Your homepages! Yes, it is a tedious thing, changing browsers. BUT IT'S TOTALLY WORTH IT!

Right now I'm on Firefox. Firefox is great. End of story. Nah, not the end of story. I still have to rant on why it's so great! :)

• This bug is not found on Firefox.
• Firefox is compatible with just about anything and everything Internet Explorer is. This means you can still download your toolbars! Yay toolbars!
• Automatic spell checking. This is right up there with sliced bread.
• Built-in pop-up blocker
• Most importantly, Firefox is SO. MUCH. FASTER.

Seriously, I think you could spend days waiting for Internet Explorer to boot up. And have you ever noticed that when you open several tabs in a window, it gets even slower? I certainly have. So please, for your computer's health and your own mental health, download Mozilla Firefox.

Download it here. It's free! (And no, I'm not secretly working for Mozilla. I'm just a supporter.) Thank you for reading my small but informational piece of writing.

Turkey Cookies

Gram and Grace got together the day before Thanksgiving and made some cookies to bring to the family feast. Grace was really looking forward to this "Gram time" and she loves making cookies, so she had a blast. The cookies were cute too.

Note the perfect aprons - Cookie Maker and Cookie Taster, which defines their talents nicely. Fun!

The Invisible Knitter

Hello blogland,

Yes, I have been absent from the blog. And not because I don't WANT to tell you what I'm doing, I just can't. Yet. As you may have noticed, it is high season for Christmas knitting, and I wouldn't want to spoil any surprises.

So here are a few teasers-

That's it. Sorry. More will be revealed in good time. (Note to self - knit faster).

In other news, I am mourning the loss of a nice yarn store (LYS to us yarn types). Knitter's Haven was not my personal Local Yarn Store, but was a store I liked to visit when I made it to Visalia, which was every few months or so. Ellen had a nice selection, and she was friendly to us Northerners.

She had been thinking of closing for awhile now, and I think the dismal economy just made her decision easier. She will close next week, and she has been having her final sale for a month now. Janice, Tracy, Diane, and I went a few weeks ago and I got some Baby Ull to make some mini-mittens for an Advent calendar idea I have. While the mittens are cute, I don't think I have time to finish the Advent idea, at least not this year. Stay tuned.

I like the yarn so much, however, that Carey, Mom, and I made our way there yesterday to get some more before it was gone forever. Thanks Ellen!

I'm so published...

OK, so like, in the real world, I'm published all the time. Having a day job at a newspaper sorta takes the glam out of the experience of seeing your name in print. But, this week, it is something altogether different. I'm published. Yep. Little 'ol me.

It is Tracy's fault.

Go back in time about a year and sweet Tracy made me a stack of personal business cards. She also made some for Cindy and NolaMom. She went to this great Web site, designergals.com, and created a little miniature version of me. The site -- which you've simply got to check out -- is a great excuse to play paper dolls, all electroinc like, as a grown up. You can send e-cards, make stuff to print out or buy notepads and other cool stuff. The best part about it is that money raised on the site helps fund the Gal Foundation, a nonprofit org. that grants wishes to Stage IV breast cancer patients and their families. So, Tracy gave me these cards and I checked out the site and became hooked. A few months ago I entered a contest to make your "gal" and send in a quote you live by. And I was named a winner!

The quotes and gals are being used in a 2009 planner by Franklin Covey, who will give a portion of the sales of the calendar to the Gal Foundation. My gal and my quote are in there alongside such celebrities as Kristin Chenoweth (Pushing Up Daisies), Marg Helgenberger (CSI) and the most impresssive, Maxine Clark, the founder of Build-A-Bear. How cool is that?

Thanks Tracy!

By the way... my quote: Things fall apart so things can fall together.

Two socks are better than one

Pumpkin socks are in the books.

They turned out really nice. Love the pattern, so easy, and love the yarn, so pretty.

Grace was a witch this year. Emily reprised the pirate look and Alex apparently went as a teenager. Trick-or-treating was at Lori's house this year, a change of pace for us that was a fun twist to the evening. Note: Bella does not make a good trick or treat companion.

Now on to November's first major event: Emily turns 15 today! Happy birthday my eldest child. We are proud of you and we love you.