Knitting Frenzy

I've been a crazy knitter lately, whipping up doll dresses galore. You can see photos to the right, on display in my Etsy shop. I have another almost seamed and another on the needles. I'm very lucky to have a co-worker who wants to start Christmas shopping in July, so I need quite a few to give her choices. Her 12-year-old daughter loves the dresses.

I took time away from doll dresses to finish the Summer shawl I'd started more than a month ago. I fell in love with the colors of this baby yarn and just had to do something good with it. The yellow buttons are both functional and decorative. The buttonhole edge is just a single crochet with chains to make the holes.

This pattern was inspired by a shawl a friend purchased. She brought it to work to show me and I commented on how simple it was. Since then I've made about a half dozen different ones and have ideas and yarn for others.

The basics: 12-14 inches wide by 48-54 inches long. The finished garment from my friend was 54 inches but I don't block things and when I knit to that length it ended up stretching far longer. So, if the yarn has a lot of give then I knit to 48 inches and they turn out very nice.

I love that it is such a simple pattern that can be changed to look so many different ways.

Here is the one I knit for my friend when she became a Grandma. It starts with a 12 x 12 crocheted granny square and has tiny granny squares incorporated throughout. Same dimensions but a totally different look.

Knitting Nerd

Nerd

• single-minded enthusiast: somebody who is considered to be excessively interested in a subject or activity that is regarded as too technical or scientific (often used in combination; offensive in some contexts) (as defined by Encarta® World English Dictionary[North American Edition] © & (P) 2009 Microsoft Corporation.All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc)
• an unstylish, unattractive, or socially inept person; especially : one slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits  (nerd. (2010). In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved June 22, 2010, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nerd)

I am what I'd fondly refer to as a Knitting Nerd! I fell in love with this Car Decal from Vinyl Wall Art on Etsy. I have ordered, I believe, four of them so far as I have had to change vehicles and misplaced at least one.

Not only do I love having this decal on the mini van just as a reminder of who I am, but I love that it is rare. I love even more that my four-year-old has taken to reading it each time we get in the van. She has a way about her and says it with pride in the fact that she knows what it says and it is our van and that is a good thing.

I think the decal just supports the nerdiness that I do exhibit when knitting. I was thinking that most poignantly the other day as I measured a knit wool swatch. I am not one to do a gauge swatch, but this is important. I purchased some recycled wool and then Kool Aid dyed it with my two lovely little girls. I chose the colors for winter hats for them (not that they knew it). I want to felt the hats so, I knit and measured a swatch and threw it into two loads of laundry. Well, the ends felted but not the swatch so I hand felted it and then eagerly measured again. I wrote it all down then dug out my calculator and that is when I just laughed.

I loved math in school, taking even more than one calculus class. I was a nerd throughout my life. So, as I figured the formula to determine what percent the yarn shrunk in each direction and then later calculated how many stitches to cast on based on the measurements of my daughters' heads I realized that this is what it is all about...math. Knitters love math! I have found a geeky, nerdy home amongst some of the most creative people on the planet. Now I know the secret...we have ambidextrous brains...thinking analytically and creatively.

Again, I'm chuckling. I was, you see, born ambidextrous (or so my older sister says) until I went to school and was forced to be a "righty". I know back then the teachers and parents were trying to do the best thing for me. I grew-up thinking I was right-handed. Now I look at some of my odd ways of doing things and realize the whole ambidextrous thing is probably why. I carry my purse on my left, can write pretty well with my left as well as my right, can knit left-handed if I put my mind to it, can use silverware with both, shoot pool with both, etc.

I guess then, my question to any who stumble across this little blog is, especially advanced knitters or crocheters...are you ambidextrous?

Kool Aid Dye

I've found time the last few months to wander the internet trolling for knitting sites. I consider myself very lucky to have stumbled upon a site that then directed me to others then to others and on and on and on.

One such site is Eskimimi Knits. This amazing woman writes from the heart and provides such inspiration. One such entry With Flying Colours detailed the process of dying natural fibers using nothing but Kool Aid. I was drawn in so much that I ordered some recycled wool and promptly went to the grocery store to pick colors. The girls helped mix and following Eskimimi's directions (mostly) I made some marvelous yarn which I cannot wait to use.

The process was fun and easy. I loved watching the wind blow the yarn around as it hung to dry. The scent is a familiar childhood friend. I even coaxed one of my nieces into sitting beside me a while as I wound the balls. This is one of my favorite knitting experiences thus far. I hope you'll try, too (perhaps you'll be more restrained and avoid green thumbs by not pushing the yarn into the dye with bare hands-LOL!).

Ch-ch-ch-Changes

I love the new options with Blogger templates. I suspect I'll be playing a bit more but in the meantime let's take a moment to breathe deeply in the sunshine and blue sky of a new life.