Out With the Old

Just as the old year is about to end and a new one begin, it has worked out that I've been able to finish one knitting project and start another. And why not? This is prime knitting season now that winter has settled in, we're still in vacation/holiday mode, and months of good-sweater-wearing weather are ahead of us.

Last night I sewed the buttons on a yoked cardigan that I started around Thanksgiving. I don't quite remember how I came across this pattern originally. I suppose I saw a posting on Ravelry. Several knitters had begun with the complimentary pattern from the DROPs website and modified it to include long sleeves and a slightly different pattern in the yoke design. The modified look appealed to me, I had some yarn on hand, and so I cast on.

Talk about economical knitting. I used only two skeins of Lion's Brand Fisherman's Wool and bought those on sale. I'm pretty sure that the buttons cost more than the yarn did on this project--and that's saying something, because the buttons are nothing special.

It's a cute sweater, and I'm sure I'll get plenty of wear out of it, but I would warn a new knitter that the finished product has little to do with the original pattern. If you are confident enough to "go with the flow" as you are knitting to get the yoke decreases and garment shaping, by all means. But if you need a "by the book" knit, I would think twice.

Of course, I was itching to get started on the "Green (Red) Sweater" project that was shipped to the house earlier this month. It's not even so much the sweater itself that has me excited to get knitting as it is the story behind the sweater. It makes you wonder how many other undiscovered treasures could be out there. It also makes me wonder what will ever happen to all the garments I've knit over the years. I'm surely no Elizabeth Zimmermann, but there are lots of sweaters around that have come off my needles. Maybe someone will put one on some day and think about who put it together one cold winter day.

Merry Christmas!

Now I Pay

After spending a few days in the lap of luxury as a guest of the Encore in Vegas, now I must pay. Not for any gambling losses, but for the days lost in Christmas prep. No tree or nuthin' up in our house yet. Yikes!

It was worth it. Look at this view! Not to mention much warmer temperatures than we were getting back home. And the food. Ah, the food. For me, Vegas isn't about gambling. It's about the restaurants. I think it might take several days before I actually experience a normal hunger pang again.

The cold wind in the airport parking ramp was an extremely nasty slap in the face that brought me back to reality. Fortunately, I adapt quickly and by even later this morning as I ran to the grocery store I was struck by how warm the car gets in the sunshine even in these grisly temperatures. Besides, it won't be too long and we'll be heading down south again.

As an update...
Before we left, I took delivery on the pattern and yarn for EZ's Green Sweater. As you can plainly see, my Green Sweater is going to be red---lovely red Ultra Alpaca. I read through the pattern to see what's in store, and I saw that word "steek." I've steeked before, just not any of my hand knit projects. I must admit that I was a bit put off at first, but decided that this will be a good time to try something (sort of) new. I've never minded cutting machine knitting before because I think of it as knit fabric. Of course, that's what I create by hand as well. It takes much longer to create though, doesn't it?

Okay, break's over.

Oh, the Weather Outside Is Frightful

The first good snowstorm of the season is always exciting. We are on the lighter edge of the snowfall totals here, but even this amount of snow looks impressive when it's whipped up by brisk winds.

As tempting as it was to stay in a warm bed this morning, I made it to the gym and had the place practically to myself. Wimps!!

Now I'm the wimp. I intend hole up inside today and get to some Christmas prep chores, so while the weather outside is frightful...

Speaking of exciting, after a few days of rather dull stockinette knitting, I am finally approaching the interesting part of my Patterned Yoke Cardigan---the yoke. The Packer game on Monday night gave me a chance to get an entire sleeve finished, but I haven't gotten back to it since.

This is the first time I've used one of the DROPS designs, and I probably wouldn't have made this one in its original form. It's the variations of the pattern posted on Ravelry that have appealed to me. Substituting a ribbed hem and cuff and adding longer sleeves gives the sweater a traditional look and also makes it more practical.

I haven't decided yet how I'm going to work the yoke. Some knitters have substituted moss stitch for the rows of "purl 3 together", and it's attractive. Maybe I'll try some of both and see what works the best. As much as I'd like to shut the laptop and pick it up right now, I have to resist that urge. Seriously, how great would it be to sip coffee, knit, and watch an old movie by the fireplace while the snow flies? That's going to have to wait for another time.

Two for the Price of One

Last year I made the big mistake of ordering croissants from Williams-Sonoma for a holiday treat for our family. A big mistake because they are so incredibly delicious that I had to order some more again this year. And not only are they delicate, buttery goodness in every bite, but they are shipped with several pouches of dry ice. Two big thrills for the price of one!

Almost as soon as they arrived, I was producing mounds of bubbling fog on my kitchen counter. I did restrain myself and saved some for later when my husband got home. This actually made me feel better about the whole thing, since I was a little embarrassed by my delight over such a simple pleasure, but trust me, he was getting just as big of a thrill out of it as I was. Next year maybe I should just order up a boxes of dry ice for everyone's Christmas gifts. I will continue to get mine delivered with croissants, thank you very much.

I've become more acquainted with the UPS and FedEx drivers this week now that all my Internet purchases are being delivered. What a great way to shop for Christmas! And for me! I'm not a big shopper most of the year, so when I'm looking around for gifts, I always seem to find a few things I can't live without. Merry Christmas to me. Last week one of those items dropped right in my lap(top).

A while back, I was perusing the online knitting magazine Twist Collective and was intrigued by a story entitled Channeling Elizabeth by Sunday Holm about a wonderful keepsake one woman has from her famous---at least among knitters---godmother. Probably like everyone else who read the article, I proceeded to search and search trying to figure out why I couldn't find the link to the site where I would be able to purchase the pattern for this "I-can't-wait-to-make-it-for-myself" design. After several minutes, I finally figured out that there wasn't a pattern, at least not yet. (They have since noted that fact at the end of the piece.) I did get my name on a list of people who wished to be contacted by email when the pattern would become available, and that email popped up in my box over the weekend while I still had my still-smoking Visa card in hand after making a few Amazon purchases.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who was itching to make this sweater. It appears that Schoolhouse Press has been swamped with orders for the pattern and wool. This is great. I'm picturing Mrs. Zimmermann getting quite a kick out of the fuss being made about some old sweater. Good for her. So now even if I have to wait a little longer, it's big fun knowing I have one great Christmas gift coming my way.