Are you a Knitting Geek? (Version 1.1)

Well that didn’t take long. I knew I’d left out some items. To make it easier for those who did the beta version (1.0), all the new sub-categories are at the top so you can stop when it all seems a little too familiar.

This is an unofficial expansion pack of the original Geek Test, inspired by the final question “I can think of other things that should get me points on this test”.

Simply select the most relevant answer from each sub-heading – if none apply, you score 0 for that section. I haven’t adjusted the numbers required to reach Certified Geek Knitter status as it looks like I may have set the bar a bit high the first time around; you now have an extra 6 categories to score points on.

I hope to continue to build upon this quiz – constructive comments and suggestions welcome.

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Knitting for charity
I’ve donated hand-knitted items that didn’t quite work out exactly as I intended to charity (1pt)
I’ve donated one or more quality knitted items to charity (2pt)
I am a regular knitter for charity (3pts)

Sock knitting
I enjoy knitting socks (1pt)
I make at least one pair every two months (2 pts)
I now only wear hand-knitted socks (3pts)

Gift giving (part 1)
I’ve given hand-knitted items as gifts (1pt)
And they aren’t always scarfs (2pts)
I spend more on yarn to knit a gift than I would otherwise spend on the gift (3pts)

Gift giving (part 2)
I enjoy making knitted items as gifts (1pt)
My friends and family know to expect a hand-knitted item as a gift (2pts)
I start planning for Christmas in June (3pts)

Cat companionship
I live with one or more cats (1pt)
I no longer live with a cat due to the unfortunate incident in the yarn stash (2pts)
I have made a kitty pi bed for my cat (3pts)

Knit-a-longs
I’ve participated in a knit-a-long (1pt)
And finished the item (2pts)
I’ve hosted a knit-a-long (3pts)

Blogging
I blog regularly about my knitting (1pt)
On more than one site (2pts)
I have established and administered a specialised knitting blog site with multiple members (3pts)

Terminology
I know what at least 3 of the following terms mean in relation to knitting or blogging about knitting: frogging, KAL, LYS, WIP, SP, DH, KIP, SABLE (1pt)
I know what all those terms mean (2pts)
I regularly use those terms in conversation – and haven’t you left out a few? (3pts)

Fun fur
I know fun fur is Muppet murder (1pt)
I deliberately forget that I may have used it is the past (2pts)
I correct people when they describe eyelash or other novelty yarn as fun fur – correct terminology is important (3pts)

International Linguistics
I recognise that yarns and needle sizes are called by different names in different countries (1pt)
I have a conversion chart to guide my way in the knitting world (2pts)
I am an American who understands the metric system (3pts)

Stash building (part 1)
I have yarn for more than one future project in storage (1pt)
I have a dedicated bookcase/cupboard/room for my yarn (2pts)
I have reached SABLE (Stash Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy) point (3pts)

Stash building (part 2)
I recognise that non-knitters may consider I have an excessive amount of yarn (1pt)
I have tried to go on a yarn diet (2pts)
I fell off the wagon (3pts)

Local Yarn Store
I have a favourite local yarn store (1pt)
Where I am signed up to the loyalty program (2pts)
Several different local yarn stores regard me as their best customer (3pts)

Buying online
I have bought yarn online (includes eBay) (1pt)
From another country (2pts)
I have a list of favourite suppliers of yarn located around the globe (3pts)

The Knitting Olympics (part 1)
I took part in the inaugural Knitting Olympics (1pt)
And joined a team (2pts)
And made a specialised button for the team (3pts)

The Knitting Olympics (part 2)
I put a Knitting Olympics medal on my blog site (1pt)
On the permanent sidebar (2 pts)
Even though it is not gold (3pts)

Stitch ‘n’ Bitch (part 1)
I am a member of the local Stitch ‘n’ Bitch (1pt)
I am a member of more than one Stich ‘n’ Bitch group (2pts)
I organise/administer a Stich ‘n’ Bitch group (3 pts)

Stitch ‘n’ Bitch (part 2)
I understand the significance of ‘Free to Stich, Free to Bitch’ (1pt)
I have put a ‘Free to Stich, Free to Bitch’ button on my blog AND/OR purchased ‘Free to Stich, Free to Bitch’ paraphernalia (2pts)
Even though I am not in the United States (3pts)

Knitting in public
I knit in public (1pt)
I knit on public transport (2pts)
Even if I don’t have a seat (3pts)

Yarn snobbery (part 1)
I prefer to knit with natural fibre yarn (1pt)
I prefer to knit with Jo Sharp/Debbie Bliss/Noro/Rowan brand yarn (2pts)
I prefer to knit with my own handspun yarn (3pts)

Yarn snobbery (part 2)
I can’t believe I ever knitted with acrylic/craft yarn (1pt)
I feel sorry for or despise people who knit with acrylic/craft yarn (2pts)
I think acrylic/craft yarn should be banned (3pts)

Needle snobbery
My favourite needles are made out of bamboo (1pt)
I have disposed of the cheap plastic needles that may have once been in my collection (2pts)
I only knit with Addi needles (3pts)

Gender (Bonus section)
(Don’t whinge; the girls get bonus points in the original Geek quiz)
I am male (1 pts)
And heterosexual (2pts)
And my male friends know I knit (3pts)


Score
40+ Certified Knitting Geek. I’m sure you have lots of ideas for additional questions for this quiz. Please leave them in the comments section.
30-39 Aspiring Knitting Geek. You’ll get there soon.
20-29 Knitting Geek in training. Keep reading the knitting blogs.
19 or less Are you actually a knitter?

All content is copyright Margaret Bozik 2006 and may not be reproduced without permission.

We have heel turn

It took me only two goes this time around to do the heel turn properly. I think I'm going to enjoy wearing these socks but I'm not enjoying knitting with this yarn as much as the 100 percent wool. The Opal yarn splits a little when unknitted and re-knitted. It is 75 percent wool and 25 percent nylon which is meant to be more durable than pure wool but we'll see.

My attitude to yarn is very 'grandma'-ish. The more I knit, the more I like pure wool.

Are you a Knitting Geek? (Version 1.0)

The unofficial expansion pack of the original Geek Test, inspired by the final question “I can think of other things that should get me points on this test”.

The world of knitting and blogging about knitting is a wondrous experience for those involved but barely comprehensible to those outside the fold.

Unfortunately as I am a geek with no programming ability, you’ll have to add-up your own points as you go. Simply select the most relevant answer from each sub-heading – if none apply, you score 0 for that section.

I hope to build upon this quiz in the future – constructive comments and suggestions welcome.

If you enjoy this quiz, please refer others to it via an email link.

I like to see the numbers go up on the site-visit counter.
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Blogging
I blog regularly about my knitting (1pt)
On more than one site (2pts)
I have established and administered a specialised knitting blog site with multiple members (3pts)

Terminology
I know what at least 3 of the following terms mean in relation to knitting or blogging about knitting: frogging, KAL, LYS, WIP, SP, DH, KIP, SABLE (1pt)
I know what all those terms mean (2pts)
I regularly use those terms in conversation – and haven’t you left out a few? (3pts)

Fun fur
I know fun fur is Muppet murder (1pt)
I deliberately forget that I may have used it is the past (2pts)
I correct people when they describe eyelash or other novelty yarn as fun fur – accurate terminology is important (3pts)

International Linguistics
I recognise that yarns and needle sizes are called by different names in different countries (1pt)
I have a conversion chart to guide my way in the knitting world (2pts)
I am an American who understands the metric system (3pts)

Stash building (part 1)
I have yarn for more than one future project in storage (1pt)
I have a dedicated bookcase/cupboard/room for my yarn (2pts)
I have reached SABLE (Stash Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy) point (3pts)

Stash building (part 2)
I recognise that non-knitters may consider I have an excessive amount of yarn (1pt)
I have tried to go on a yarn diet (2pt)
I fell off the wagon (3pts)

Local Yarn Store
I have a favourite local yarn store (1pt)
Where I am signed up to the loyalty program (2pts)
Several different local yarn stores regard me as their best customer (3pts)

Buying online
I have bought yarn online (includes eBay) (1pt)
From another country (2pts)
I have a list of favourite suppliers of yarn located around the globe (3pts)

The Knitting Olympics (part 1)
I took part in the inaugural Knitting Olympics (1pt)
And joined a team (2pts)
And made a specialised button for the team (3pts)

The Knitting Olympics (part 2)
I put a Knitting Olympics medal on my blog site (1pt)
On the permanent sidebar (2 pts)
Even though it is not gold (3pts)

Stitch ‘n’ Bitch (part 1)
I am a member of the local Stitch ‘n’ Bitch (1pt)
I am a member of more than one Stich ‘n’ Bitch group (2pts)
I organise/administer a Stich ‘n’ Bitch group (3 pts)

Stitch ‘n’ Bitch (part 2)
I understand the significance of ‘Free to Stich, Free to Bitch’ (1pt)
I have put a ‘Free to Stich, Free to Bitch’ button on my blog AND/OR purchased ‘Free to Stich, Free to Bitch’ paraphernalia (2pts)
Even though I am not in the United States (3pts)

Knitting in public
I knit in public (1pt)
I knit on public transport (2pts)
Even if I don’t have a seat (3pts)

Yarn snobbery (part 1)
I prefer to knit with natural fibre yarn (1pt)
I prefer to knit with Jo Sharp/Debbie Bliss/Noro/Rowan brand yarn (2pts)
I prefer to knit with my own handspun yarn (3pts)

Yarn snobbery (part 2)
I can’t believe I ever knitted with acrylic/craft yarn (1pt)
I feel sorry for or despise people who knit with acrylic/craft yarn (2pts)
I think acrylic/craft yarn should be banned (3pts)

Needle snobbery
My favourite needles are made out of bamboo (1pt)
I have disposed of the cheap plastic needles that may have once been in my collection (2pts)
I only knit with Addi needles (3pts)

Gender (Bonus section)
(Don’t whinge; the girls get bonus points in the original Geek quiz)
I am male (1 pts)
And heterosexual (2pts)
And my male friends know I knit (3pts)

Now tally up your score...

Scoring
40+ Certified Knitting Geek. I’m sure you have lots of ideas for additional questions for this quiz. Please leave them in the comments section.
30-39 Aspiring Knitting Geek. You’ll get there soon.
20-29 Knitting Geek in training. Keep reading the knitting blogs.
19 or less Are you actually a knitter?

All content is copyright Margaret Bozik 2006 and may not be reproduced without permission.

I've turned a corner (not just a heel) in my knitting

For the past couple of weeks as Melbourne's temperature plunged I have had my hand-knitted purple socks on almost permanent rotation.  I wear them, wash them and curse how long they take to dry before starting the cycle again.

 

I have dozens of pairs of machine-made socks including a few expensive pure wool pairs in far more useful colours (such as black) but it suddenly struck me that my thick hand-knitted purple socks were truly my favourite.  I wasn't wearing them to show off my knitting skills or for any other reason apart from the fact they were warm and well-made and I liked them.

 

So maybe, just maybe, I should knit another pair.  For the one person who I knew would truly appreciate them.  For me.

 

So I pulled out the Opal 6-ply; checked my foot circumference and gauge against the sock pattern sizing chart where it fitted exactly between two official sizes, reminded myself that I had a brain and cast-on a number of stitches between the two sizes (64), figured the ribbing that can both expand and contract would take care of any inconsistencies, and started the first ever item which I was making for a very specific purpose for myself.

 

Don't get me wrong.  I love all the hats and scarfs I have made and wear them often but I never felt compelled to make them in quite the same way.  Usually I have wanted to try out a pattern or yarn and more often than not the end result is something I am happy and proud to wear and say I made.  But this time it is different.  I want another pair of socks made by me for me that fit exactly.

 

Speaking of the 6-ply Opal sock yarn...

I had a call from Rachel last night.  She got the DLB Hat and is so sleep-deprived with a new baby and toddler under the age of two she actually thought I had made the hat with genuine fancy fair-isle knitting for her bub.  So I explained the concept of self-patterning sock yarn and promised to show her a strand when she is next in Melbourne.  She reminded me that she had a complete collection showing the development of my knitting from plain cotton baby jumper onwards.

 

I have to finish Gabi's cardigan.  I've done the supposed hard bit.  I will beat those silly cardigan bands.

 

Worst case scenario I'll bring it to the next Stitch 'n' Bitch and throw myself on the mercy of the other knitters of Melbourne.

Prime Rib Mohair Scarf

I ended up abandoning the snake scarf. The curves irritated me and it was too skinny and I decided that I preferred the other short-row scarf patterns I had already done. But my aunt still deserved a scarf and I still had the blue colourway skein of mohair begging to be knitted up.

I ended up using a stitch called 'Prime Rib' that I had never heard of before reading Elizabeth Zimmermann and am still unsure why it is not in more common use. Because it is a really easy, fast knit for the intermediate knitter. It is not a beginner stitch, because the one bad thing about it is that you can't go back and correct mistakes without knitting every stitch back - but the same is true of every cable stitch and this is much easier than cabling.

So here is my 'Prime Rib' scarf pattern. Ingredients - 100 grams of 12-ply (that's 'aran' or 'heavy worsted' or 'triple knitting' for the Americans) brushed mohair and one pair of 9mm needles. Cast on 20 stitches (note, must be an even number).
Set up row: Knit one, *bring yarn forward, slip as if to purl, then with the yarn remaining forward knit one (thus creating a double loop). Repeat from * to last stitch, bring yarn forward, slip as if to purl.
All remaining rows: Knit one, *bring yarn forward, slip as if to purl, then with the yarn remaining forward knit two together (which still creates the double loop). Repeat from * to last stitch, bring yarn forward, slip as if to purl.

Don't be phased by all the words; just do it and it will make sense and it will be the most simple and fastest rib you have even made (as you never actually have to complete a purl stitch - EZ hated purling and invented a multitude of ways to avoid it). The main thing is to ensure at the end of every row you have exactly 20 stitches in the pattern of a single on each end and a pattern of single, double loop, single, double loop, etc in between, and all will be well.

The scarf ended up being 245 cm or 98 inches in length and 15 cm or 6 inches in width, which is very respectable for a mere 100 gram skein. I cheated a little by tugging the length as I knitted but in retrospect it did not even require that.

The colourway and the fluffy pattern give the scarf a very 1980s look but it is warm and cosy and the 1980s are very retro and trendy for those who care about such things.

My aunt will just see a handknitted scarf made out of a yarn and colour her sister would have loved. And that has more meaning than any fashion.

The problem with mohair

The problem with mohair is, well, that it is hairy. Which means that it is likely to shed fine hairs on the rest of your clothes, as though you have been cuddling a goat, rather than just wearing a garment made from its fleece.

The upside of mohair is that it is both lightweight and warm and very soft, unless, of course, you are allergic to it.

I am trying very hard not to behave like an offended sensitive artist just because a friend of mine chooses to wear a store-bought Made-in-China acrylic feather yarn scarf , instead of one of the hand-knitted hand-dyed lace mohair scarfs I had spent hours making.

Because after all, acrylic feathers will never shed, unlike mohair. And I am, after all, the ultimate pragmatist.

So maybe in the future I should stick to gift vouchers instead of trying to find exclusive yarn to make something that won't be found in every discount chainstore.

The advantage of metal DPNs

Last night was pretty productive. I finished a DLB hat for Rachel's new baby, Michael. You may as well check out the picture here as I used exactly the same pattern and yarn as the hat I made for Caroline's baby.

Much as I love Rachel, I have to admit that I was also motivated by the desire to check my gauge knitting Opal 6-ply yarn on 3mm needles and I hate knitting plain swatches - they seem like a waste of time. One may as well knit a hat.

Anyway, my gauge is 25 1/2 stitches to 10cm on 3mm needles which is useful to know if I knit socks or fingerless mitts out of the yarn.

I also discovered another advantage to metal DPNs. They bend but do not break when a Thug in Private School Uniform decides to shove me in the train. And the blood wipes off quite easily.

OK, I'm joking about the blood, but it did leave a nasty indentation in his arm - and didn't permanently destroy my needle.

Maybe next time he'll think twice before slamming his way through life.

Probably not.

But if I'm lucky he'll stab himself in the balls next time.

Last night I also pulled out the cursed lace cardigan for Rachel's other child, Gabi. I have done 95 percent of the knitting; I just can't work out what the pattern says about doing the bands. So I ironed the cardigan and looked at the pattern again and then put it aside. I have to get off my butt as winter is starting soon and there is no way the cardigan will fit her next year.

Tonight I should have dealt with the cardigan (how friggin hard can it be to finish the damn thing?) but I got distracted by another short-row scarf knitted out of Noro Kureyon project - String-Or-Nothing's Kureopatora's Snake Pattern scarf.

My excuse is that my aunt who is going through a tough time deserves a hand-knitted scarf. And Noro Kureyon colourway 126 is perfect for her.

It's suddenly dropped down to winter temperatures here so I wore my hand-knitted purple socks, purple mohair jumper and Noro Kuyeon diagonal short-row ribbed scarf and matching hat to work. I was very warm. And chuffed that I could get away with wearing my stuff in public. Even if I looked a bit batty with the socks.

An interesting article

Employers unprepared for blogging
By Craig Donaldson

WEB LOGS and ‘blogging’ present employers and their lawyers with new workplace relations issues, but few are prepared to handle them and many have not developed policies addressing the issue...

“Work-related blogging was once thought to be benign, but it is now one of the most complex and far-ranging issues in the workplace,” said Stephen Hirschfeld, CEO of the US-based Employment Law Alliance (ELA) and partner in the California-based firm of Curiale, Dellaverson, Hirschfeld & Kraemer.

Blog-related issues cover a broad spectrum well beyond concerns by employers over the web posting of company secrets, Hirschfeld said.

“For example, can the employer regulate off-duty blogging because they believe the content injures the company’s reputation, is embarrassing to a company, or disparages a company’s products, management or customers?”

Read more here.

Mohair Dreams in Pictures

It took me a while to work out how to photograph it, but finally some photos of Mohair Dreams that actually show the lacework (I had to turn off the flash to get the detail).

It's extremely light and fluffy (there is only 100 grams of mohair in the scarf) but it came out at 220cm which is a very decent length. Blocking in this case did not lengthen the scarf but it widened it to 17.5cm.

I'm very happy how it turned out. I was very determined to block and finish it tonight. Jackie's birthday isn't until next Tuesday but she's getting the present early (tomorrow). We've had a sudden cold change so she may as well have the scarf when it will be useful.

On the technical side, it appears that I may have knitted my first piece of (albeit simple) lace, rather than done lace knitting. According to the Knitting Curmudgeon there is a difference and as the alternate rows were not plain purl, it is actually knitted lace not lace knitting...

I got the pattern from this site (Mohair Dreams) so I am not trying to claim credit where it is not due but I am going to put down the pattern (which apparently came from January 5 of the 365 Knitting Stitches a Year Perpetual Calendar) in case the link disappears over time. Anyway, I got a completely different effect using one strand of 12ply Autumn Leaves mohair than she did using 2 strands of finer white mohair.

Cast on 25 sts
Row 1 (RS): K1, *K2tog, YO, P1; rep from * to last 3 sts, K2tog, YO, K1

Row 2: P3, *K1, P2; rep from * to last 4 sts, K1, P3

Row 3: K1, YO, sl 1, K1, psso, *P1, YO, sl 1, K1, psso; rep from * to last st, K1

Row 4: Rep row 2

Ye Gods! Another Finished Object

I am going to destroy my reputation soon. I finished the knitting aspect of Jackie's Mohair Dreams scarf last night, although it still needs some serious blocking. It came out at a good length considering I only had 100 grams of yarn - about 220cm. But it is also very light and fluffy.

I had a love/hate relationship with the lace pattern. It was reasonably easy to memorise in the end but too difficult to keep track of if I was also trying to talk at the same time (I am a multi-tasking kind of girl). I am hoping the detail of the lace will come out once it is seriously blocked.

But not too much detail. There are a few places where I seriously fudged to ensure I had the right number of stitches on each row.

The pattern is what I would call anti-Zimmermann. Elisabeth Zimmermann developed a whole new way of knitting jumpers based on her hatred of knitting purl and sewing up seams (now you can see why I like her so much). While there are no seams, there is a lot of purl stitching in the lace, but surprisingly that aspect wasn't as painful as I would have thought it would be.

The most amazing aspect of this pattern is that I even started it.

The happy husband - Dr Who scarf complete

It may be just a simple garter-stitch scarf, but in terms of my husband's appreciation, the Dr Who scarf scores a 10. Look at his smile.

And here is a shot from the back:

And a close-up of the face

What can I say? I'm happy he is happy.

He keeps on pointing out how warm and how high-quality it is. Well, that's the beauty of hand-made knitted garments. You can't buy anything like it. No-one would pay the true cost of making a quality hand-knit garment, so if you have one, appreciate that the maker is giving you more than just something you'd pick up at a department store.

In terms of vital stats, I knitted an extra 24 rows to Sarah Bradberry's pattern but made the fringes shorter. I used pure wool yarn in various brands (Patons Fireside, Panda, Basics, Cleckheaton Country and Harvest) costing $30.50 from Spotlight (some was on discount). It probably took about 15-20 hours over a 3-week period. It taught me that garter-stitch can look good when it is not full of holes, twisted yarn doesn't hold its shape as well as merchanised yarn - but is a lot softer, and made me think about the ethics as well as quality of knitting in cheap imported yarn.

Why I'm not flashing my stash

Those involved in knitting blogland (and it never ceases to amaze me just how many people there are who knit and blog about knitting) may notice that I allowed April 1 to pass without flashing my stash.

There is a reason for this.

Dealing with a problem means acknowledging that you have one in the first place and I don't know if I am quite ready to acknowledge all the skeins of yarn I have stashed around the house, under my computer desk, in the spare bedroom and in my filing cabinet at work. I may not have quite reached SABLE point yet (Stash Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy) but I am scared that I may be approaching it. And unfortunately(?) all the yarn I have left is GOOD yarn, proper wool, not novelty sh*t (I got rid of that on eBay some time ago), which means that I can't bare to part with it until it is knitted up into a useful item.

So this list is just off the top of my head and probably not comprehensive. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

10 balls Noro Kueryon 126 (most recent acquisition from eBay from a local Melbournian)
4 balls Noro Kureyon 148 (left over from the diagonal ribbed scarf and matching hat; yarn from Yarnela on eBay)
20 balls Jo Sharp DK viola (bargain on eBay from Perth mill that makes the stuff ,that I couldn't resist - one day I will turn it into a jumper)
19 balls 8-ply pink mohair (another eBay bargain)
13 balls 5-ply Cleckheaton burgundy (local Op shop bargain)
5 balls pink/purple Naturally 12-ply mohair (to be used in the yet to be completed drop-stitch shawl/scarf that I'm making instead of the silly poncho - from Box Hill Wool Shop in Balwyn Road)
2 1/2 * 150g balls 6-ply Opal sock yarn (bought from an eBay seller in the Netherlands - hi Astrid!)
10 balls 12-ply grey Cleckheaton Country (left over from a jumper I made for myself - I didn't want to run out)
16 balls 8-ply wool (in the form of a 1980s jumper kit)
20 balls 14-ply Patons husky (mostly in half-completed cursed jumper that I will unravel and turn into charity hats)
Probably about 15 other assorted balls of 8-ply wool
One skein of 100 gram 12-ply blue-coloured mohair

Quote of the day

"Take anything you find in an instruction book, including this one, with a large grain of salt... There are scores of different ways of doing things in knitting, and none of them are wrong, but they are sometimes unsuitable."

- Elizabeth Zimmermann, Knitting Without Tears

It's also a relief to discover that someone as knowledgeable as her also had issues with the long-tail cast-on. I will not feel guilty for continuing to use my "knitting-on" cast-on, although I will experiment with knitting between each stitch instead of through each stitch.

Today Melbourne has a sudden temperature drop so I am wearing my lovely warm purple wool handknit socks and over-sized grey handknit jumper. Mmm. Cosy.

Thoughts as I walked to Wednesday's Stitch and Bitch

As most people who know me in real life would agree, I am not exactly a walking fashion plate.

But I do have some common sense, which explains why I have never, ever bought a pair of bumster pants, shown the top of my undies to the world, or inflicted an over-flowing muffin top on the general public. Not only would it be cruel, it would make me look stupid.

I was thinking about this when I walked up Chapel Street (very trendy Melbourne street) on Wednesday night to attend the Stitch and Bitch meeting, and was looking at the clothes in the windows, the clothes on other people and caught a glance of myself in a shop mirror and could see the clothes on me.

While my ankle-length black skirt, sensible shoes and over-sized long cotton jumper would not earn me a place in Vogue, it would also not earn me a place on Australia's Dumbest Fashion Victims. I was an appropriately, if unimaginatively, dressed big girl, with a pretty, if pale and unmade-up, face.

Meanwhile a woman of approximately my age, but half my size, click-clacked her way down the pavement, nose in air, the better to not see a fat suburbanite like me. Her skin was a suspicious orange-bronze and had already acquired the leathery look of a woman of a certain age who had spent too much time in the sun. She was wearing orange lipstick, cropped pin-striped 3/4 leg suit pants, a ruffled white shirt, white stiletto fringed cowboy boots and was carrying a Louis Vuitton bag and holding a pair of Chanel sunglasses.

Naturally I assumed that the LV and Chanel accessories were replicas. I wondered how many hundreds of dollars she had paid for the fakes that would fool no-one.

But today it suddenly struck me that it would be even more hilarious if these accessories had been the genuine thing costing thousands of dollars each and everyone assumed they were fakes because of her overall look of a fashion victim.

Money does not buy class.

Knitting credibility 101

My husband is very disappointed that I am not taking the Dr Who scarf (now over 160 cm in length) to the Stitch and Bitch meet tonight. I explained that not only was the scarf getting very heavy and bulky, but as it is pure garter stitch, it has zero credibility in the knitting world. Jeff couldn't believe this.

"But it is so great! And what about the credibility it has with me?!?"

I'm glad he likes it. He is getting very excited at the prospect of it being finished this week.

I pointed out that at least the Dr Who scarf has major cult credibility and doesn't have negative knitting credibility.

"What is negative knitting credibility?"

A garter stitch garment made out of fun fur and novelty yarn. Which is badly finished and has dropped stitches all over the place. And has starred on You Knit What.

Speaking of knitting credibility...

I am nearing the end of Jackie's lace mohair scarf which like all lace will need some serious blocking to bring out the beauty. I usually just use pins to hold the knitting in place when I block, but I have read a fair bit about using blocking wire and think it might be a good idea in this case. So I ring up a well-known Melbourne knitting store (which will remain nameless) and ask them if they stock blocking wire. They didn't. And when I asked them if they knew of any place that stocked blocking wire the woman replied (and I quote), "I think you'll need to go to a proper craft store".

How foolish of me to think that a knitting store that stocks an abundance of various yarns, needles, knitting bags, patterns, stitch holders, row-counters, stitch markers and knitting gauges would sell knitting blocking wire or even know where it is sold.

I'll see if the Stitch and Bitch girls have any ideas tonight.

And on a final note, someone in the Melbourne Stitch and Bitch group sent me this link: Knitters Annonymous.

As you can see I have included a button link to the site on my sidebar. I am contemplating becoming their founding Australian member.

Some thoughts on buying cheaply produced wool

As a knitter on a budget, I was green with envy when I first heard about Knitpicks. Quality natural yarns at a fraction of the price they were sold for at the local yarn store. But only available to residents of America and Candada.

The free market, however, abhors a vacuum and Spotlight has recently brought out a 'Basics'range. This yarn is described as 100 percent Australian wool, made in China. It costs less than AUD$4.80 for 100 grams. And I'm sure it is only a matter of time before the choice of colours expands and we get the Basics alpaca, and the other natural yarn blends being sold by the likes of KnitPicks.

But just how good is this Basics yarn anyway, and should we be using it?

The Dr Who scarf is an eclectic collection of yarn brands, chosen for colour. For some reason the limited Basics colour section was the only brand to feature the exact shade of light tan I needed for the scarf.

While I am not sure how well it wears, Spotlight's 'Basic' wool is extremely soft and it certainly does not seem to be any worse quality than any other very soft wools I've used (soft yarns in general don't wear as well as the firmer yarns and don't retain garment shape/patterns as well but they do feel better next to the skin and that is why we sometimes use them) ; there is minimal shedding and if anything far fewer flaws/knots than I find in other yarns.

But I wonder about the ethics of using it. The only way that we can buy 100 percent Australian wool for such a good price is if the inputs are very cheap. How much did the farmers get for this wool and did it cover the cost of raising the sheep? And I wonder under just what conditions the yarn was spun in China, what the workers at the mill were paid and how they were treated, that meant I could buy 8ply Basics wool cheaply in Australia.

Just some thoughts.

First Stitch 'n' Bitch meeting

I finally stepped out of my nice safe virtual knitting world where I was the only real-life knitter I knew and attended a Stich 'n' Bitch meeting in Elsternwick yesterday.

I knew I was at the right place when I spotted the exact pair of socks, complete with the red and blue shading and unusual design, that I had been admiring on a blog, on the table of the cafe. They were the work of 'Ozknitter' who reminded me so much of a girl called 'Jen' who I work with. While Jen isn't a knitter, she both looks like and has a very similar personality to Ozknitter. In fact the biggest difference I noticed was that Ozknitter talked about knitting with the same level of knowledge and interest that Jen talks about computers and design, and then Ozknitter said something about html coding and I thought "Sh*t, I KNOW that however hard I try, I am going to call Ozknitter 'Jen' by accident". In fact, I'm pretty sure I did but no-one noticed.

It's also rather confronting to realise that real people actually read my blog (DER!!! it's on the internet and various knitting rings!!!). One girl turned around and said quite conversationally "I tried setting up a blog but it's not like yours where it is updated all the time".

Another girl was knitting a pair of socks on one circular needle using the 'Magic Loop' technique I have read about but never understood. It's comforting to know people can actually do this in real life - it's not just a cyber knitting myth - and if I continue to attend SnB meetings I might one day learn this skill.

Before I left, my husband was predicting that the average age of the SnB knitters would be considerably older than my own. He was wrong. While no-one wears their age on a button, I think most people were in their mid 20s to mi 30s. I'm not quite the old granny of the group but at 35 I am definitely not the youngest either.

The next meeting is on Wednesday night in South Yarra. I'm definitely going, work permitting.

Buying, selling, reading and knitting

Buying
Damn eBay. Sometimes it is better for me to not look and hence not be tempted. But I will give away my secret of getting a genuine yarn bargain.

I take the time to look at ads with dodgy photos. I have bought some gorgeous quality wool for the opening bid price because no-one else looked past the blurred photo to read (for example) "12 blues of Patons Totem purple wool, colour AB, dyelot 325". Opening bid $15.00, postage $8.10.

Anyone who gives that level of detail clearly has the genuine product. If they were a rip-off artist they would have a much better photo. And would be selling iPods, not wool.

Patons Totem is generally about $6.00/ball (full price) at Spotlight. So 12 balls would set you back $72.00. If you bought 12 balls at full price which I hardly ever do. So I start discounting the figure to get down to a number where the wool is still a great bargain. Generally I make the assumption that at some stage I could buy the yarn from Spotlight on a 20 percent discount day. This is not 100 percent fair as the discount days are generally more in the range of 10-15 percent but it ensures I don't overpay via eBay. I also factor in a discount of about 10-15 percent to take into account that the colour may not be exactly what I am expecting based on the photo but it will still be usable (I have never met a purple I don't like although I like some far better than others!). And that if I were buying yarn from the store I would be buying a specific number of balls for a project rather than being obliged to take all 12. So generally I discount the full price by a third. At $48 (including postage), this wool would be a good buy. At $24, it would be an absolute bargain. And the opening bid is $15.00 plus $8.10 postage = less than $24.

How could I resist?

I am much more comfortable doing this when I know exactly what brand is being sold because for some reason not all 100 percent 8-ply wools are all equal. I finally worked out this is partially because there are at least 2 completely different standard constructions of yarn (a firmer mercanised-spun yarn that is less likely to fray - such as Patons Totem, and a twisted yarn that is much softer and more natural looking - such as Cleckheaton Country) . But there is also some 'x factor' that somehow makes one 100 percent wool yarn seem cheap and nasty while another one just screams quality.

Nonetheless I took a chance on an unknown 100 percent wool yarn when buying another badly promoted yarn product on eBay.

The seller had a jumper kit from the 1980s that had never been made up, listed for $19.95 plus postage. No-one but me would be tempted by the cliche Australiana circa 1985 jumper pattern which had a giant rosella in full flight over the back, front and shoulder of the garment but surely someone else should have been doing the maths of "16 balls of 100 percent wool, at least half of them in a timeless classic navy blue plus red, yellow, grean and teal that I could make up into anything I wanted... and it's from the 1980s which means the wool won't be one of those cheap and nasty imports that flooded the country post-2000..."

I got it for just over $30, including postage. And while I am seriously contemplating making up the jumper I can hear my late mother reminding me that if one can remember the fashion from the first time around , you are too old to get away with wearing it the second time around.

Sigh.

It's still great wool.

Selling
There is a new link on my side-bar to my Etsy shop where you can buy some of the handmade items I have made over the past year. The prices are in US dollars (as it is the nature of the site) but I will do invoices in Australian dollars and discounts for direct bank deposits for locals (although I totally understand any Australian who doesn't know me who would rather use PayPal and have the creditcard guarantee rather than get a few dollars discount). While I would like to think people would buy my stuff, I really don't know if they are willing to pay anything approaching the real value of my time and the materials I use. It only costs me US $0.10 a listing so if I don't sell anything, it's not as though I've really lost anything. I made a deliberate decision to not seriously underprice my work (unlike some people who list on the site) and not to list anything that is badly made or made out of poor quality materials.

Lots of people are at least looking at my items and maybe some of them are even reading this blog because of my Etsy profile. Hi new readers. See I am a real person with a real knitting history.

Reading
Elizabeth Zimmermann's 'Knitting Without Tears'. A birthday present from my American in-laws (OK, at my request). Have to love Amazon.

I approached Elizabeth Zimmermann a bit like I approached Noro wool - certain I would be disappointed because of all the hype and then delighted to discover my pre-conceptions were unfounded. I love her informal chatty style and stress-free approach to knitting. She is the goddess of knitting who doesn't take herself or anything about knitting too seriously. I love how she can wax lyrical about her walrus tusk knitting needles (admitting that she put it in to boast) and the next moment describe using an aluminium needle to fix a motor boat, rubber bands to convert DPNs into straight needles and a pencil sharpener to convert a straight needle into a DPN.

And she has a jumper design that forces a perfect size 10 woman to do just as many (or few)calculations as a size 22 short-waisted, big-hipped, small-waist, large-breasted woman to create a jumper that fits.

I'm a convert.

Kinitting

The Dr Who scarf. It is getting very heavy. My husband loves it.

How does your garter scarf grow?

Sorry, no pics today. Both Blogger and Photobucket are being uncooperative. Blogger won't upload any pictures while Photobucket seems to only want to publish in Jolly Green Giant size, no matter how I edit the pic. Grrr

I measured the Dr Who scarf last night and it is just over one metre in length.

In terms of knitting I am well over half-way through the pattern which makes me wonder just how long (or short) this scarf is going to turn out. According to the pattern it is supposed to be 270 cm in length. I am beginning to suspect that this length includes the fringe, which will add an extra 25-30 cm at each end. So the real length of the scarf should be about 215 cm which I'm still not going to get near.

Unless...

Unless I hang the scarf from one end so the bulk of the 400 grams weight of wool stretches the scarf.

According to the knitting goddess Elizabeth Zimmermann, if one knits a skirt the best way to get the length right is to knit it to about 3 inches (or 7.5 cm) shorter than you want the final length to be, then hang it up for 2 weeks and remeasure the skirt again when it will have miraculously grown to the right length.

Now no-one in their right mind would knit a skirt in garter stitch; they'd do it in stocking-stitch or maybe a rib (OK, no-one in their right mind would knit a skirt in the first place but I have seen pictures of stocking-stitch and rib skirts). And garter stitch is notoriously stretchier than other stitch patterns. So presumably it would grow by a lot more than just 7.5 cm; maybe 15-20 cm.

Which means that I would only have to knit about two metres, maybe even less to get a scarf that will end up approximately the same length as the pattern.

Which means that maybe I am not so far off track as I thought I was.

Jeff at least seems to be very happy with how the scarf is growing. The scarf is very heavy and will be able to be used as armour or a weapon, as well as a cult item and means of keeping one's self warm.

We interrupt this knitting blog for a political statement

Workplace Relations Minister Kevin Andrews says there's no ulterior motive behind his release of 400 pages of industrial relations legislation during the Commonwealth Games.

 

Of course not.  Only a cynic would suggest he was trying to bury the draconian new legislation amongst a flurry of Australian sporting success.

 

I guess we should all settle down and enjoy the circus while it is still on offer.  Because I'm not holding out hope of much bread by the time this legislation is enacted.

 

 

In knitting news I'm powering away with Jackie's scarf on the tram to work and Jeff's scarf at home in front of the TV.  I've calmed down about the lace knitting as I seem to have settled down into a pattern.  And I can see it is going to look a LOT better once it is blocked.

Knitting as therapy - the Dr Who Scarf

I'm going through a horrible "I have the attention of a goldfish" knitting phase.

So I haven't finished Jackie's autumn leave scarf, let alone Gabi's cardigan. I haven't even started the socks I swore I would after the knitting Olympics. The pink mohair drop-stitch shawl is still in its bag.

Rachel's given birth to a baby boy. I have a baby beanie I knitted a while ago for him if nothing else.

But at least Jeff's Dr Who scarf is going well. I am knitting garter stitch back and forth while watching TV. And as an experience knitted I have managed to do this without gaining or losing any stitches. Whoo-hoo!

In a way it is good to occasionally do this kind of thing. Garter stitch garments can actually look OK when they aren't full of dropped and gained stitches.

I'm probably only 1/4 of the way through - and I am knitting the so-called short version (so-called because although 270 cm is LONG compared to most scarves these days, I am thankful Jeff doesn't want a full-scale 670cm replica!). Only time will tell if I manage to keep my focus on this sufficiently to finish the damn item before starting something else again this week.

Goal for week starting 19/03/06. Finish a WIP. Any WIP. Maybe Jackie's scarf.

And in late breaking news

I decided to put up a couple of items for sale via Etsy, which is like eBay but only for hand-made items. Very US-centric but there appears to be a few Australia sellers. So far 26 people have had a look at my hat but no-one has bought it which is not surprising given I have no feedback and the international postage costs are horrendous. I'm not holding my breath but it's there if anyone is interested.

And now for the Commonwealth Knitting (and Crocheting) Games

Last Friday I wished I had a camera on my mobile phone so I could show the world what a wonderful city I live in. Melbourne is hosting the Commonwealth Games which is like the Olympics but without any of the major sports powers in attendance. Nonetheless, the Games organisers are convinced this event is bigger than the Sydney Olympics and justification for imposing a Police State.

Not content with annoying the crap out of most Melbournians for running ads suggesting communters avoid public transport during peak hours (hello? Some of us have jobs to hold down), they are preparing for the Games with the level of secrecy and self-importance any tinpot dictator would be proud of. Probably the best example of this was last Friday when they put up huge blue barricades blocking any possible view off the bridge crossing the Yarra near Flinders' Street Station, posted security guards and had signs stating "No Public Viewing. Move On."

I just wished I had a camera to record this moment, so I could post it on the blog along with an appropriate caption. Like, "Melbourne welcomes its visitors" or "Why tourists prefer visiting Sydney, rather than Melbourne".

Today my ride home was delayed twice by the Queen's Baton relay. Initially this was in South Melbourne when our tram was stopped by a cavalry of police on motor cycles, ensuring that the accredited media and poor sod carrying the baton had right of way down the centre of a main transport route at peak hour. I arrived at the city just in time to watch the police block off the trams up Flinders Street, so that the Baton circus could pass up the road, delaying a mere several thousand plebs trying to get home.

But I am refusing to get mad by all these delays. Even if it took me two hours to get home. Because if it wasn't for these delays, I would never have got talking to a lovely old lady who was passing the time crocheting a cushion cover (as one does) in our tram. And I wouldn't have pulled out my knitting and had a lovely 1 1/2 hour conversation debating the merits of wool versus mohair; ribbing versus lace and God Knows What else. She obviously thought she had it all over a young girl like me and was quite startled to discover that I could knit something beyond garter stitch and that even if I was making a scarf, I was no novice. Just by pure luck I had the diagonal rib short-row scarf in my bag, so I was well and truly showing off by the time the tram crawled into Kew.

I knitted a few more rows of Jackie's lace scarf and it is getting better. But I needed something truly brainless to do in front of my Tuesday night TV, so I started Jeff's Dr Who scarf. I am following the pattern on Sarah Bradbry's Mostly Knitting website but have chosen the colours according to the guide on The Dr Who Scarf website. I must say it is very relaxing and even if it is only garter stitch I can see that my knitting has improved no end since I last tried to knit a plain wool garter stitch scarf when I was about 10.

I hate lace knitting

Why do I do this to myself? Here I am, knitting a scarf for a friend who won't notice or care if it's in garter-stitch and would be impressed if I did a simple 3X3 rib. and I decide to try a lace pattern. I got it from a site called Mohair Dreams and it is relatively simple but still annoying (I can't knit it while watching TV or if I'm a bit tired or stressed and I've already made a few mistakes I've had to fudged around), and like all lace looks like crap pre-blocking. I'm also wondering about the intelligence of doing a lace pattern in a variegated yarn but I'm already 88 rows in and I'm not ripping it out for anyone.

I hate the yarn. It's a good quality mohair and is nice to knit but not when it is 36 degrees outside (hello Mr Weather - summer was supposed to finish LAST month; we're supposed to be cooling down now - and don't give me that global warming shpiel; I'm not in the mood for it.) Like all mohair, it is a bitch to unknit when I make a mistake. And I loath the colours. It's supposed to be Autumn Leaves. I'm thinking baby diarrhea myself. But that's the chance you take when you buy mohair off the internet; it's not the seller's fault it was brighter than I expected. And the recipient of the scarf for some reason seems to like brown and orange rather than purple and blue, so maybe she will like it. Maybe I'll also give her something else with it for her birthday.

I was getting so frustrated with my inability to work on this project in front of the TV that I slipped out to Spotlight yesterday and bought the wool for my husband's Dr Who scarf. Yes I know I have a room full of unknit wool. But not in the right colours for the Dr Who scarf. So this means I have a nice brainless project to work on in between.

The Dr Who scarf is VERY wide. One pattern called for 60 stitches of 8ply/DK on 4mm needles; the other 55. I only cast on 55 and I used 3.75mm needles (as I'm a loose knitter) but it looks like it is going to be huge in width, even if I knit the shorter length (which I'm planning to as the good husband doesn't plan to be looping the scarf multiple times aroun d his neck like Tom Baker).

I just realised I hadn't posted all my knitting Olympics medal tags. Firstly a new Team Australia tag that seems particularly suitable today.

And now my team DPN medal:

And my absolute favoutite, the Knitting Championship gold medal which some Christian moron objected to because it has a naked person on it. Now let's just ignore the fact that the original Olympians competed in the nude and take a good close look at the medal.

And here is a larger version:

Can you see any nudity??? Maybe the raunchy chest and bare feet?

Where would the world be without the Christian Right?

Rainbow Connection complete

Despite the heat (we pushed 30+ degrees Celsius the last few days), I finished the Rainbow Connection hat and scarf this evening.

In many ways it was quite easy - just plain garter stitch; knit every row. Being loopy mohair, it was too easy to occasionally end up with an extra stitch on a row but I just knitted two stitches together when that happened. And if I dropped a stitch I picked up an extra stitch somewhere along the row. The one advantage of loopy mohair is that it is very forgiving, hiding every mistake. There's no point trying to do any fancy stitch with loopy mohair as everything is hidden by the boulce yarn.

It was quite fun, knitting 24 hues, but quite time consuming to sew in all the ends. My friend Susan wanted to know why I didn't start with purple on one end and finish with red on the other (like a real rainbow); the reason is that there were quite a few shade of pink that wouldn't have fitted in if I had knit this way.

Sometimes my non-knitting friends ask why I don't sell my knitting. Well, this hat and scarf set used $50 worth of materials and probably took about 15-20 hours to knit. The minimum wage for an adult in the manufacturing industry is about $12.75/hour - and as I get no annual or sick leave entitlements for my knitting, the minimum casual rate of wages would be more appropriate - around $16.00/hour. So is anyone going to pay $350.00 for this hat and scarf set? I don't think so. And if I sell it for less, I am selling my skill and labour for less than someone packing goods on a production line. This is why I stick to knitting for fun and gifts - not profit.

Fortunately I have the skills to earn a living in ways other than knitting. I also like writing and for a while earned my living this way. But eventually I got sick of being underpaid for my skill while watching people who were far duller earning far more for doing far less. So I decided to earn my living another way, so I could go back to enjoying doing writing instead of resenting what I was paid for it.

The other advantage of something being a hobby, rather than a job, is that you don't have to answer to anyone or work a certain number of hours. While I have got my strength back in my right hand (after a scare some weeks ago), I still get the occasional strange pain around my wrists, so I limit the amount of time I knit between breaks.

The knitting is getting out of control again

Rainbow connection scarf and hat - up to the red shades, have started decreasing on the hat; will probably finish it sometime this weekend.

Jackie's birthday scarf - mohair has arrived, it's lovely and soft but a bit lighter coloured than I expected. The shade is called Autumn Leaves. I'm planning a basic rib with maybe some eyelets in the knit part. Biggest problem is the yarn is in a hank and I need to wind it into a ball without tangling it. No, I don't have a ball winder or skein-holder - I will try the back of a chair.

Jackie's mohair also came with some gorgeous blue mohair which I will probably also knit up as a scarf - there will be no shortage of recipients who it will suit (Mother-in-law, cousin, various friends). And me but I WILL NOT KEEP THIS ONE. Honest.

I still haven't done Rachel's baby present or finished off Miss Gabi's lace cardigan.

I still haven't finished my own drop-stitch mohair shawl.

I still haven't started the 6-ply socks I've planned.

My husband wants his own Dr Who scarf. In the original colours and technically correct pattern but not as long as the original (thank God). It's in garter stitch and I need to buy some revolting tan, greeny-brown, orangey-red and khaki-green wool which I can't bring myself to do. But I need to.

I've also committed myself to donating some hats and scarfs for an APHEDA fund raising auction (maybe one of the sets I've already knitted ...)

And I'm sorely tempted by two new free patterns: String-or-Nothing's Kureopatoria Snake Pattern scarf (which I will almost certainly make using my favourite yarn, Noro Kureyon) and Knitty's 'Winter Surprise' pattern, Startsky. I love the shawl collar; I love the fact that the pattern goes UP to my size but it will be a big project and is ranked as 'extraspicy' which translates as 'Advanced' which I'm probably not quite at the level of doing. I could probably swing it but I can't justify buying any more yarn now. The aim is to knit through my stash faster than my rate of buying. Which is difficult. Especially as I've joined the Melbourne Stitch and Bitch Group and already have details of a yarn-store's close-out sale.

I'm getting plenty of knitting done in the morning on the train and at lunchtime at work (my office is so well air conditioned that the milk can be stored safely there if the fridge goes on the blink). But the heat is building up again at nights. It is officially autumn (or FALL as the Americans call it) and the temperature is hitting 30+ degrees Celsius again (in the 90s Fahrenheit). The tram is so crowded and over-heated on the way home that knitting is impossible and it's still too warm in the evenings as well.

But it is too gorgeous to be drowning in so mucyh lovely yarn!

The rainbow connection

Have you ever wanted to walk into a wool shop and say "I'll have one of every colour"?

In a brilliant piece of marketing, Marta's Yarns have put together a rainbow shawl kit that includes every shade of colour in boulce mohair - 24 hues spanning blue to greens to yellow to oranges to red to pinks to purples for $49.95. I haven't weighed the yarn but I estimte there is about 10 grams of each hue. To buy a 50 gram ball in each shade would cost $240.

I'm still sh*tty that I was charged an extra dollar for a very simple shawl pattern that is available free on her site. But the yarn is far better than her customer service. I decided to forgo the crappy shawl to knit up a hat and matching scarf - I do 3 rounds of each hue for the hat (I cast on about 92 stitches on a 5mm circular) and then knit the remaining of each hue into a simple garter-stitch scarf (25 stitches on 5mm straight bamboos).

According to the girls at work, it looks like I'm knitting up a Muppet Scarf. But at least it is proper mohair, not polyester fug fur.

Knitting quiz results

Well I have to entertain myself somehow while resting my knitting wrsits...

You may not be a granny, but you've got the mentality. Hard work and artistic vision lead to your beautiful knitted results.

Are you a knitter?

You appear to be a Knitting Purist.You are an accomplished knitter producing beautiful pieces with a classic feel. You sometimes lament losing half of your local yarn shop to garish novelty yarns. Perhaps you consider fun fur scarves the bane of knitting society and prefer to steer new knitters towards the wool and cotton blends. Some might call you a bit of an elitist but you know that you've been doing this craft long enough to respect the history behind it and honor it with beautiful piece that can last a lifetime.

What Kind of Knitter Are You?

You are interchangeable.Fun, free, and into everything, you've got every eventuality covered and every opportunity just has to be taken. Every fiber is wonderful, and every day is a new beginning. You are good at so many things, it's amazing, but you can easily lose your place and forget to show up. They have row counters for people like you!

What kind of knitting needles are you?


You're the 'classic' brands. You use lots of 'just
wool'. Technique may be very important to
you, as opposed to a yarn that does all the
work.

I hate racist Australians

I am so p*ssed off at racists. Not just because they are dumb and stupid and cringe-worthy and dangerous and pointless. But because they have stopped me being able to enjoy my own little bit of daggy kitsch Australiana fashion.

As you may know, I have a collection of Australiana knitting patterns, mostly from the 1980s. I also have a few Australiana knitting tote bags and a bandana in the colours of the Australian flag. I love going into tacky souvenir shops and selecting Australian-themed pens and notepads and erasers and tea-towels and caps and t-shirts to send my long-suffering inlaws in America. A few months ago all this meant was that I was a certified dag. Harmless.

But ever-since those racist moronic thugs in Cronulla (beach in NSW) decided to adopt the Australian flag to wear as an emblem in their intimidation of the Lebanese and other immigrants, wearing or carrying the Australian flag has become a political statement I do not want to be associated with. The reality of this struck me when I was in a souvenir shop last week contemplating a tote bag with a giant Australian flag last week. It would have made a perfect knitting bag. It cost $5.95. But I couldn't buy it because if I was seen carrying it around the streets, people who didn't know me would see me as politically supporting the racist anti-immigrant morons instead of being a daggy patriot. In fact I now have to be really careful not to carry around bags with giant Australian flags on it. Which is really really annoying.

I wonder if there was anyone in Germany in the 1930s who really liked the design of the swastika and was dismayed at how it was being used politically?

If only I could approach my life like I approach my knitting

I've noticed that when it comes to knitting, I really have it all together. Many of my non-knitting friends think I am so talented whereas it's more a case that I've learnt how to not set myself up for failure. For instance, the socks I just knitted; I deliberately went out and found a pattern for 8-ply wool because it would be much quicker than knitting 4-ply. I will attempt to make socks out of traditional (much thinner) sock yarn AFTER I've learnt how to make a basic sock. So everyone is impressed that I've made a pair of socks - they don't see me as having "cheated" by using thick wool; all they notice is that I'm not one of these people walking around with half an unfinished sock on the needles because it is just too slow and frustrating to get anywhere. I've learnt to utilise yarn that enables me to knit simple patterns that look OK (I love Noro!). I take "baby steps" learning one skill at a time on a project. And if a project fails, I can chuck it in saying "it just didn't work" rather than berate myself for being a failure in life because I couldn't manage a complex project.

Now if only I could transfer this healthy approach to the rest of my life, I might just get somewhere.

A knitter's greatest fear

Wrist injury.

Is it the start of the dreaded carpal tunnel syndrome (also known as occupational overuse syndrome - OOS - or RSI - Repetitive Strain Injury).

Or had I merely banged my hand against something without noticing?

I feared the former but my husband (aka Dr Jeff) suspected the latter, especially as it had come on quite suddenly. It actually felt like my hand had gone to sleep but the usual hand-shaking and rubbing wasn't getting the circulation going again. The only pain was around my wrist; it didn't extend up the forearm. What scared me was that I had lost strength to grip in my right-hand.

Dr Jeff prescribed ibuprofen and an ice-pack and things are better today - I've got the strength back in my hand but it is still quite sore around the wrist.

Maybe I just banged my hand after all.

Another hat/scarf set

The weather hit 35 degrees Celcius today so of course I chose to finish the Noro ribbed hat today. This is my third Noro hat/scarf set for winter...

I'm now working with the over-priced rainbow boulce mohair. I had forgotten what a bitch loopy mohair is to knit. I decided to make (surprise surprise) another hat/scarf set. I am knitting three rounds of each colour for the hat and then knitting up the remainder of each ball for the scarf. I'm using 5mm needles - a Birch circular and the new bamboo straights that were a gift. I have to admit I am beginning to see the attraction of the bamboo needles - they do feel very smooth and nice to knit with. But I will try and refrain from buying any of these needles myself. Five tiny bamboo DPNs cost $14.95 at Cleggs. WTF??? Even more than the Addis!!! I am terrified to think what my birthday gift of 8 pairs cost.

First socks finished!

And they are so warm I don't want to take them off.

I've learnt so much through this process; I'm sure my next pair will be much cleaner because I won't be unravelling and re-knitting as much next time.

Yes, I said next pair. Now I understand how people can get addicted to making socks; the shaping means you don't get bored and they don;t take too long to make.

I really like the ribbing; it makes them very comfortable.

My husband is teasing me and calling them Hobbit socks. He then has the gall to want to know where his pair is!

I'm making a brightly patterned pair next so I think they'll be safe from him.

Seven inches into second sock

Later:
Since posting this picture I have actually completed the full 8 inches of ribbing, 10 rounds of stocking stitch for the ankle and A COMPLETE heel-turn... I reckon I will have finished these socks completely witin the next day or two.

Observant people may notice that the top of my sock has changed. I re-worked the sock so that the cast-off seam was on the top of my foot, not under the sole where it may have interfered with walking.

First sock!!!

I don't believe it! I have actually finished my first ever sock and it fits! It is also VERY warm (which one would hope given it is 100 percent wool). I rolled the ribbed cuff down.

I've read a lot about second sock syndrome but I'm actually looking forward to making the next one as I want a pair of these babies to keep me warm in winter. I don't think they are the most practical socks for wearing with shoes in winter but they will be perfect for keeping my toesies warm. As I'm knitting in 8-ply (DK for any Brit readers) it is a much faster knit than if I was doing it in 4-ply or 6-ply (traditional sock thickness).

One of my friends (Jackie) asked me if this would be my first and last pair of socks given the time it takes to knit and the cost of the wool compared with the cost of just buying a pair of socks from the store. I can see her point but I'm beginning to think hand-knitted socks are for something other than wearing every day under one's jeans and hence I may continue knitting them. To begin with, you cannot compare the quality (and warmth) of the pure wool knitted fabric compared with store-bought socks (yes, even if they are made from 100 percent wool). The other thing is that they are so easy to knit to my weird foot shape. And though I had a lot of difficulty initially doing the heal turn, I used the same technique for the toes with minimal problems. So I think now I know what I am doing they should be a much faster knit.

Things I have learnt.

It is MUCH easier to knit socks on 5 DPNs than 4 DPNs. Adding an extra needle one size down doesn't seem to cause any problems.

Having now used three different brands of needles for this project, I feel well-qualified to make some judgment statements.

I used metal (I think aluminum) Birch 3.75 mm DPNs. They cost $3.99 at Spotlight and worked very well. I'd definitely recommend them as a good value, user-friendly needle. Please note I am only saying this for the smaller metal DPNs - Birch plastic DPNs (and in fact Birch plastic straight needles) are disgusting to use and I have even thrown out some of them.

I used Morgan Lustre 3.25mm needles that I bought from a small wool shop that no longer exists for about $5-$6. They are really good needles that I would recommend but they are extremely slippery. They are great to knit with once you have a few rounds of knitting but an absolute bitch for the first couple of rounds.

I also picked up a pack of 5 metal Addi 3.00 DPNs that cost $9.50 from a boutique yarn store that I will not be returning to (because I was over-charged on the over-priced merchandise). $9.50 is not a bad price for Addis in Australia but it is double the price you pay for most other brands. So you would hope they would be very good. The plus side is that you get five of them, which is good for sock knitting. The minus side is that I felt that the wool stuck to the needle - it didn't knit easily. For someone who hates slippery DPNs, they would be wonderful. But I've discovered I would rather have a slightly slippery needle.

So my verdict is that for value and comfort, you can't beat the Birch metal DPNs. But I would recommend buying two packs so you have the benefit of the extra needles as spares and so you can do a five-needle sock round. You'll still be spending less than if you bought the famous Addis.

Oh dear, she's got distracted

OK, so there I am having got past the hardest point of my Olympics project, the heal turn, and then I get distracted by some leftover Noro Kureyon sitting on the table which is just begging to be made into a ribbed hat to match my latest scarf... I'm probably about 1/3 of the way through the hat; the safe percentage I am through my pair of Olympics sock.

It's kind of like Steve Bradbury pausing in the middle of his speed skating to go for a snowboard down the mountain.

Speaking of which, the Chaser boys had their 'War on Everything' show on ABC TV last night. It was a very unusual piece of television in that it was a totally intense 25 minutes without a single bit of filler - others would have stretched that much material into a four-part series -- and an absolute pisser. I hope they were joking when they said it was the last in the series (it was the first show).

My DH has demonstrated that he still hasn't come to terms with basic maths. I was questioning why he was only taking 2 antibiotics a day when I knew 3 was the usual dose. Finally it came out. The instructions said to take one every 8 hours. I pointed out that there were 3 lots of 8 hours in each day. He replied that he was asleep for 8 hours a day. I explained that the way to get around this was to take one antibiotic as soon as he woke up, one in the middle of the day and one just before he went to sleep... let's hope he hasn't now trained his bacteria to be immune to the antibiotics.

We have heel turn

I'll start by saying this is the first pair of socks I have ever got so far with. I realise I am coming behind a lot of the other sock knitters in the knitting olympics but us Australians are known to do some sneaky things from behind in the winter games. On my fourth attempt I finally managed a heel turn that I didn't feel needed to be frogged. Yay team Australia/ team first socks/ team dpn, etc, etc . It looks like I may be dumped from team procrastination at this rate.

Currently blogging on Team DPN

So if you want to read about me ripping my hair out as I try to knit a friggin sock (actually two) without unintended holes, click here.

I will resume normal blogging after the Knitting Olympics.

I'm also attempting to put on a slide show of some of the wonderful buttons people have made for the games as there is no way there is room for all of them on my sidebar.

Proof I've started

In a shocking and rare act of non-procrastination I have actually STARTED one of the socks for the Knitting Olympics. I'm knitting it in 8-ply Cleckheaton Country so it will definitely be one of the thicker and warmer varieties. I figure if it is too thick to wear in my boots, I'll keep them as bedsocks for winter. I've cast on 48 stiches on 3.75mm needles and will be going down to 3.25 mm needles at some stage in the pattern. I'm warping the pattern a fair bit as my feet are so wide - a men's average in width but a woman's average in length.

While I will certainly be striving to do my best, I refuse to set myself up for failure. Plenty of time to knit socks in skinny yarn once I get down the basic tecnique in normal yarn. Particularly when knitting to a deadline.

The pattern called for an "Old Norweigan Cast-On" and much to my surprise I could actually follow the diagrams to loop the wool around my fingers and manipulate the needle to do the cast-on. But the result wasn't terribly even and after several attempts and studyng the 'look' for a bit I worked out that one got exactly the same result with my usual two-needle cast-on method. So although I could see that the Old Norweigen Cast-On would be quicker once one got it down pat, in the end I gave up and reverted to my old habbits. Bite me.

In other knitting news, the baby hat for Sam's new kid was a failure. It just looks terribly uneven and badly handmade, even after ironing. Serves me right for trying to be smart and make it out of recyled wool that had been knitted up in some other garment and shoved in a cupboard for more than 30 years. I had to go to Target today to get some trackpants for myself, so I ended up buying a set of 3 Winnie The Pooh socks in a blue shade that came in a cute little pencil-case style bag.

Team Procrastination here I come!

Ye gawds! If you've been following the Knitting Olympics around blogland, you will see there are some people taking this very very seriously. But there was NO WAY I was getting up at 6am Australian time just so I could cast on during the lighting of the Olympic flame.

Anyway I have to finish off YET ANOTHER baby hat since YET ANOTHER friend produced YET ANOTHER child.

Sam had YET ANOTHER boy making it 3 in total. She was all booked in to have her C-section on Friday when labour kicked in at 4.30am on Thursday. The best laid plans of mice, men and Elsternwick girls. By 10am she decided that natural labour was NOT FUN and she wanted a C-section. NOW. But as she was still reasonably early into a perfectly normal labour and only felt like she was dying than actually doing so, the doctors didn't break any records getting her into the theatre. At 12.30 she gave birth to Aaron Abraham who at 4.1 kg weighed more than her previous twins did together.

Her other two boys are called Ariel and Asher, so they all share the same initials.

I'm at the decreasing stage of the hat, so it shouldn't take too long now.

I'm adding a few more Knitting Olympic buttons on my site. I can't find "Team Procrastination" yet but there is "Team What The Hell Was I Thinking".

Proof of progress

If you look at the short-row ribbed scarf you can clearly see my progress in knitting skills. The early sections have the odd hole or two (yet to be repaired) and a few obviously mis-sized ribs while the newest sections are almost neat enough to have been done by a machine.

Last night I came to an essential decision-making moment on my scarf as I came towards the end of my third ball of yarn - how long was I going to make this scarf?

I hate too short scarves - they look skimpy and cheap as though you just want to save money by not buying an extra ball of yarn (this does not apply to people responsible for the care of toddlers who are capable of proving a 2 year old can strangle a grown adult to death if they pull hard enough on a scarf wrapped around the adults neck. But I do not have children.) But I've also come to the conclusion after the last two scarves that four-ball scarves are probably a bit on the long side even for me. So it looks like I'll be making this a 3 1/2 ball scarf - probably around 240 cm once it is blocked. Enough to hang down a decent distance even when wrapped around the neck but not so long that I will trip over it.

Yes, I used the word 'I'. I think I may be keeping this one also. I like the pattern too much to give to someone who isn't super special to me. And the colours, although not what I would have initially chosen for myself, seem to go OK. It's about $40 worth of yarn plus god-knows how many hours so it really is the equivalent of a $200 designer scarf. So why shouldn't I be selfish and keep it for me?

In other news, the DLB hat has gone down well with the baby's aunt, which is the main idea. She thinks it may be a bit big for him right now, but I'm cool with that. It means it should fit him perfectly around winter. I don't know how much wear he'd get out of it in our Indian summer.

I also bought another set of Addi DPSs to start swatching the Opal 6-ply for my Knitting Olympics sock challenge. 2 days until kick-off. WTF was I thinking??? I signed up to get Interweave Knits direct from the US (even with postage it will be about 30 percent cheaper than getting it in the shops in Australia - when I can) which also gave me access to their online stuff, including a sock pattern which in theory is suitable for all gauges and sizes.

Here's hoping!