Back to Normal

Our son packed up and went back to school yesterday after almost a month of vacation. It was great to have him home, but it's also nice to get back to a normal routine.

When he came home for his Thanksgiving break, we talked about taking a trip together after the New Year. We all realize that there won't be that many more years for us to travel together as a family---just the three of us, and we thought it would be good to get away after all the hub-bub of the holidays settled down.

Before we bought our tickets and made the reservations, we batted around a few different ideas. Eventually we settled on going down south and revisiting what was our home for a short time (almost twenty years ago), and the place where our son was born---Louisiana. He was only two when we packed up and moved back to Minnesota, so he has no memory of his Cajun beginning.

We started by flying into San Antonio, continued on through Louisiana, and after spending a few days in New Orleans, flew home. We sure didn't get much of a break from the cold; we must have brought the frigid temperatures with us. It wasn't Minnesota cold, but it wasn't much of a thaw either. Despite the cold, we had a great time. We visited all our old haunts, did the tourism thing, and ate some really terrific food---from fajitas and margaritas in Texas to gumbo and blackened fish in New Orleans.

...and watched lots of football. Between the bowl games and playoffs---not to mention several hours in the car, I knew there would be times that I would have to have some knitting along on the trip. The trouble was that I had knit enough of of the Zimmermann Green Sweater to get to the point of cutting steeks, and I wasn't about to attempt that in a hotel room.

I guess I was in a Zimmermann sort of mood. I remembered that the Tomten Jacket was something I wanted to try and that I had a bagful of grey Lite Lopi in the closet that I had picked up on clearance. The night before we left, I read as much as I could about other knitters' experiences with the pattern, printed off a few notes, and threw the whole works in my suitcase. (With the tightened security at the airport, I figured I wouldn't risk losing my needles to some overly zealous TSA agent, so I didn't even try to bring it on the plane.)

This pattern appears in several of Mrs. Zimmermann's books, and I was at first attracted to the simplicity of its construction. It has since been expanded on and modified by other knitters to include some basic shaping. Of course, the originator would have surely admired these innovations. I wanted to keep as close as possible to the original and incorporate just a few of the best of the changes.

I've made some more extensive notes on my project page of Ravelry---mostly for myself, if I ever want to make this again. Besides that information, here's what I've discovered so far in the process. I think it's a good idea to knit this sweater at a fairly firm gauge. Garter stitch stretches quite liberally, and it could look like a big slouchy mess if the gauge were too loose. I also think it's important to choose a yarn with plenty of body. Reynolds Lite Lopi is a personal favorite of mine, and since I had it on hand with a couple of other colors leftover from past projects, it seemed like a good choice. It's also important to remember that this is meant to be an oversized jacket. I probably tend to err on the side of making things a little too big, but in my opinion, there's nothing worse than wearing something that looks too tight or too small. Once you've prepped a swatch and are doing the math, plan for plenty of ease.

The knitting progresses quickly without the fuss of having to closely follow a pattern. I could watch the games with the guys or follow a map in the car and not end up frogging back when the action got exciting or we were looking for the right highway.

Now that we're home, I considered putting this aside to finish my other Zimmermann. I don't think I will, though. I'm afraid I'll get out of the zone and forget all my intentions for the project. Besides, I need to build up the courage to cut those darn steeks on the other one. There is one thing about this Tomten that I'm not too happy about. The longer I work with it, the more I realize that it's calling out for a zipper closure on the front. For some reason, I always dread putting a zipper into a sweater even though it's never as bad as I think it will be.

I think I've stalled long enough. Being back to normal means that I do have to get back to some of those basic chores that got pushed aside for the last month, and admittedly, blogging should probably have been towards the bottom of that list. Procrastinating...I guess things are back to normal.

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.

Happy Thanksgiving!

This guy doesn't look too worried about his fate on Thursday, but his cousin is already thawing out in the refrigerator, and we've got a ravenous college kid at home who's sizing him up. I'm not sure if the bar is raised or lowered for this meal once your kids start doing their own cooking---the pressure is on to make it memorable, but you've got to figure anything tastes better than most of the stuff they're making.

So, here's Thursday. Dinner. Football. (Packers, no less.) Nap. Check. Check. And check.