Back in the Saddle

It's been a while since my last post. In the last episode, I believe I was teetering on the edge of what was looking like a bad cold. Well, I have to say that it certainly was a bad one. The cold itself wasn't any big deal, but the bronchitis that came after kicked my butt pretty good. The worst part of it was the fact that it has been so difficult to sleep because I've felt like I had an elephant sitting on my chest. I'm finally coming out of it though, although I'm still sleeping a lot.

There has been knitting, though. I finished Julian, my self-designed sweater and it's been waiting to be blocked for over a week. We had a streak of fairly warm days, so I wasn't motivated to get it done. I heard that we're in for some chilly weather, though, so I washed and blocked it today. It is now drying and will hopefully be done in time to keep me toasty.



It has turned out to be one of those big and cozy sweaters, but it isn't really suitable to be worn to work or anything.

I've been meaning to talk about the yarn I used for this sweater, Rowanspun Aran. Lets just say I can see why Rowan discontinued this yarn. It's a very pretty yarn, definitely, but working with it is a challenge. It's a felted yarn, and I think that process must weaken the yarn. Also, it was spun with really thin spots throughout each hank. So between these two things, the yarn is pretty easy to snap. I just hope that since it's all knitted up, it will have enough strength. It also produced a fairly stiff fabric which I hope will become more fluid as it gets washed. I've had this difficulty with tweed yarns in the past. Finally, it bled like crazy in its bath, stained the towel I used to squeeze the water out and it stained the sweater I was wearing while I carried it folded over my arm while it was damp. Overall, not impressed.

I have moved on to my next project - the Cozy V-neck Pullover from Fitted Knits. I'm using Cascade Ecological Wool. This yarn is the complete opposite of Rowanspun. It's strong, soft and fluid. I'm knitting a bulky sweater but it has both the weight and drape of a worsted weight sweater. I'm in love. The color is a beautiful Crayola Burnt Siena.



I also gave a knitted baby sweater to my advisor whose wife had a baby in November. I don't think I ever showed a photo of the completed sweater on the blog, but now I can't find the one I took. I'll look around for it. Anyway, the recipients were very grateful for the gift and made me a thank you note that is just precious:



Yup, that's the baby wearing the sweater. Doesn't that just warm a knitter's heart? I think that's the best reception my knitting has ever had.

Mayday! Mayday!

I feel like one of those WWII planes that got hit by German flak on a mission over France. At the moment, I'm still airborne, but going down fast. I am in the process of being taken out by a cold. Admittedly, it's a slow mover. I knew the minute it started. I felt a scratch in my throat and a wave of fatigue. Those symptoms are still there, but they haven't worsened much. However, my husband was sick last week, so I know to expect. Either it's a bad cold or he's a big baby. I'll let you know.

In addition to this, I went two straight days without knitting! How unbelievable is that? My thesis is due at the end of March and I'm starting to seriously freak out, so I spent two nights until 2 a.m. working. I'd intended to knit both nights, but by the time I packed it in for the night, I was too beat and it was too late.

I figured the cold was my body's signal to me - SLOW DOWN, GET SOME SLEEP, GO FOR A WALK, KNIT, RELAX--OR ELSE!!! My body's messages are not subtle.

So, I finally knit that sleeve cap tonight, fixed the back neck where I'd screwed up my short row technique, and pinned the pieces together. Before I knit the second sleeve, I want to make sure it's all OK. I mean, I winged the sleeve cap so the chance for disaster was pretty big.

Well, it all works! I love it! I tried it on and absolutely love the way it fits. I know, I know. It's simple, it's plain. But it combines elements from about 3 sweaters that I love, so it's perfect! In this photo, I think you can make out the tweedy bits:



Now, onto the second sleeve and then a new sweater! Yay!

An Uncluttered Life

Getting rid of all of the clutter in my life is something that I've wanted to do for a while now. To me, it's simpler to have less stuff. I've had people to tell me that I need to simply get a bigger home, but it seems to be that this isn't the answer. Although small, my home is already larger than what most people in New York or Boston have, so certainly, I can make do.

On Saturday, since it was raining, it seemed like a good day to stay indoors and get some stuff done around the house. So, I began the difficult chore of shoveling out our den. Before I began, there was dust, cat hair and piles of crap everywhere. My desk was an avalanche of papers and junk and there was knitting stuff on every surface, including the floor. Yarn, needles, notions, half-finished projects - you name it.

After about 8 hours of organizing and getting rid of stuff, I now have this:



The best part is that everything is actually put away in a way that I think it can stay that way. That is what has eluded me in the past.

I also have started a new sweater project. It's an original design, although since it's so plain, it can hardly be called original. However, it is all mine. It's a sweater that I've had in my head for years it seems, so I thought I'd finally knit it. I've had the yarn about as long as I've had the idea brewing as well - it's Rowanspun Aran in a really dark tweedy blue. I love the green specks.



This is the sleeve. When this photo was in my camera, I could see the stitches and the tweedy bits, but on my computer screen, it's a dark blob. Hopefully, you can see it better than I can. I designed the sleeve cap last night, so I'm going to finish knitting it tonight and as soon as I have time, I'm going to set it in to see if it fits in the armhole. I call this project Julian because it is the kind of sweater I would wear for a day in the mountains. It's soft, cozy and slightly oversized for a casual look. I think I'm going to be happy with it.