Back and Forth and Back and Forth and Back

Monday, July 31, 2006

Five points to anyone who can name the song and artist the title comes from.

So far the Baudelaire socks are fun, fascinating, and aggravating as hell. I realized the other day my post may have sounded a little down on knit designers and that's not how I wanted to sound at all! The problem comes in interpreting the pattern and so far I've not done that correctly 100% of the time with this one. There are a couple of sections that were a few ambiguous sections that I figured out pretty easily but I'm not sure a beginning knitter could have. Then again, it is rated "Piquant" so beginning knitters could expect it to be a challenge. (Boy do I ramble.)

First off, I measured my foot: 10". The pattern stated that I should do this size according to that foot size but I'm guessing it really meant like, the standard length I make my socks, which is somewhere around 8.75" because, as I've said, I like them snug. This is what you get when you make a sock for a 10" foot.



Just in case it's not real obvious from that picture, I'll try it on for you.



Ah, yeah, at least an inch too big. So I frogged and was left with this:



I'm back to, and past, where I was already though. This pattern is just mesmerizing. And after doing toe-up socks forever, I finally know what a gusset is. Hooray for me, right? I feel a little smarter anyway. The heel on this thing is really cool. It looks like a heel flap but it's done toe-up. There are wrap and turns, which I'm used to, and also a bunch of knit and purl togethers and it just looks so darn fancy. Wow, what a geek. I'll stop now.

For the record, my wrist is feeling much better. I made some adjustments to my wrist brace that I wear overnight and it seems to have made a dramatic difference. They are always too big so I sewed up a little more on the thumb side and it fits much better. Before it almost made it worse because, while it relieved the carpal tunnel-like symptoms, it seemed to created tendonitis ones on the outside of my wrist! Anyway, much better now. I'm so happy to be knitting like crazy again!

FI-nally

Friday, July 28, 2006

I can hardly believe I'm posting this but my orange socks are FINALLY done. Truly and completely done and finished and wearable and everything.



They look long and skinny and like they wouldn't fit an adult size foot in a hundred years but I have long and skinny feet. I also like my socks a bit snug. These turned out perfect and I can't wait for cooler weather to try them out. It's been so hot here that I've been wondering if I've somehow been transported to another dimension. A dimension where it actually gets up into the 90's for several weeks at a time in North Dakota. I mean, I'm usually the first to defend my poor, forgotten state when people start talking about how cold it is here all the time. We have seasons just like everyone else: it's hot in the summer and freaking freezing in the winter but, you know, it's not usually this hot for this long. I could definitely do without it. I mean, why else would I live here through the insanely cold winters if I didn't expect a nice 70-80 degree summer?

The heat and no rain has been bad news for my garden too. Well, that and my putting off watering because I've been so busy. I found out the other day that a ton of my tomatoes had blossom end rot. Despite what that site says about calcium, the more likely reason for it is the unpredictable watering sessions they've been getting. I pulled off all the bad tomatoes and have dedicated myself to watering more regularly. Meanwhile, we're eating lots of purple beans and cucumbers! The purple beans turn green when placed in boiling water so they're fun for kids (and adults, I'll admit it). I took a picture when I cooked some last night but I don't seem to have transferred it here. Oh well.

Back to knitting. After finishing the orange socks, I immediately cast on for my Baudelaires. While knitting and realizing they were definitely Too Big I was thinking about this blind faith I, and many other knitters, seem to have in patterns. I mean, this isn't the first time I've started a project, rechecked the gauge and listed sizes several times, and still plowed on thinking that the author must just know what they're talking about. The pattern says she made the small size for a size 6.5 foot. I figure a 6.5 foot must be pretty similar in circumference to mine since they're so skinny and I measure my foot and start according to what the pattern recommends: the medium. Whoa boy, these suckers are HUGE!



And I'm almost exactly spot on with gauge and refuse to go down to size 1's so I frogged and restarted as a size extra small (not listed in the pattern, I sized it down myself). I know this is risky since she states in the pattern that the lace isn't stretchy but so far it feels perfect. I got through the lace chart twice on the big sock and boy is it pretty. I can't wait to get farther along and get a better picture for you!

(sorry for the blurry picture.)

LOST but busy

Thursday, July 20, 2006

Still watching LOST (on to Season 2) and now anxiously awaiting the arrival of my new laptop. I've had my current desktop computer for about six years and while it's not a hunk of junk just yet, I think a laptop will be much more convenient come homework time. Not only will I be able to sit around on the couch and type up papers and such but I'll actually be able to use my desk for spreading out books and notebooks and writing.

Quick little moral dilemna though: the other day I had the work laptop at home and I found a wireless network whilst sitting on my couch. I'm not really close to any businesses in town that provide wireless access so I'm assuming it's a neighbor's service. Do I use it? Do I inquire with my neighbors and let them know I can access their unsecured internet? Do I hope it's a business and just pretend that I'm clueless? Though already having copies of the second season of LOST sort of shows that I'm not clueless when it comes to computers. I've discovered the wonderful world of torrents and am almost caught up to the episodes they're showing on TV.

Oh, this is a knitting blog? Surprisingly there has been knitting. I've almost completed the orange socks FINALLY. I'm very excited to start some Baudelaire's with this gorgeous yarn I bought in Sioux Falls the other day. It's Wildfoote in the colorway Blue Blood Red. The internet gives it no justice. The depth of the color is amazing and it's so soft and sproingy. I'd also love to start Mon Petit Chou but neither of the yarn shops I went to on my trip this week (for work, to SD) had Cascade Fixation. I'll have to order online.

Boy, this entry is really spastic or something. I meant to just write about my laptop and the awesome yarn shop I went to in Sioux Falls, Athena Fibers. I also wanted to mention that I went to one other yarn shop on my trip that shall remain nameless because I was taught not to say anything if you don't have anything good to say. Athena Fibers though, you should go there if you're ever in Sioux Falls. The staff was fantastic, the yarn was gorgeous, and the house it was in was really neat.

I'll try to post some pictures next week after the hullaballo of my best friend's wedding this weekend. And I'll try to be more coherent then too. Have a great weekend!