Confessions of Fidgety Fingers

I'm slowly making progress on my scarf. I have finished the first skein of yarn, and if I'm only doing three repeats of the patterns, then I'm on my last repeat. Once I get through this repeat, then I will test the length, and see if it is going to be long enough. I had my kumihimo class. It didn't go as well as I was hoping, but it was a learning experience. I have picked up a few things that I will want to do for the next time. The discs I made for the class were a bit rough, and I'm sure I can improve the quality of the discs, with a few simple changes in the process of making the discs, and in the tools that I used. I was using embroidery floss for the strands of fiber, and I had them wound on the paperboard floss bobbins. Even though it will cost more, I really think that if I provided EZ-bobbins instead, then a lot of the issues with tangling fibers will be solved. I also know that if I had given myself more time in prep, and had set up the first braid ...

I can't believe that it has been over a month since I last posted. Unfortunately I can't say I have gotten a lot done in that time. I did finish the glove-mittens for my wife. She has used them during several mornings in February and a couple in early March. My only issue with the pattern is that I think the pinkie is a little tight. I think this can be fixed by adding a stitch, at most two to the pinky, and therefore the whole hand. I'm still working on my scarf. I would have more of it done, but it is still my away from home project, so I get any where from one to five hours of work on it a week. I have been using my home time to work on a class I will be teaching for my local SCA group on kumihimo . This has been good, because it has gotten my butt in gear on a project I have been meaning to do for a while. I mention in a posting back on September 23, 2007 that my wife and I had gotten an award called the Red Raven. We received them on elastic cording. I have ...

It has been a while since I have posted. I would like to say that it is completely because I'm too busy, but I have been rather lazy about posting. I did receive the book of 25 sock designs by Interweave press. Several of them look wonderful, but I have yet to even cast on a sock yet. I have one of my wife's glove-mitts done, and it is looking pretty nice. She had picked a wedgewood colored yarn with dark blue, white and red flecks. It knits up quite nicely. I'm also working on a scarf for me. It is a sampler scarf with four patters (basket weave, sugar cubes, seed and divided square). It is in a gray, slightly, shiny yarn. It is coming a long nicely, as I'm in to my second of four sets of the pattern. The directions call for three pattern sets, but I think I will want it longer than that. After I'm finished these items, I'm going to start on my wife's sweater jacket. I have started this twice already, but I think the pattern is bit beyond me at th...

I have finally finished my wife's scarf. I would have wanted it longer, but my wife seems quite happy with it, and it is long enough for the way that she will be wearing it. Now that the last of my Christmas presents are done, I have started on a sampler scarf for me, and I will be making a pair my wife a pair of fingerless gloves, that have a mitten "flap" to cover the fingers when they get cold. I got a couple books over the holiday season. I had bought "Knit Mittens" by Robin Hansen before I knit the mittens for my father in law, but I haven't had a chance to do any of the projects. I had gotten some christmas money, and with it I bought "Knitting Circles around Socks" by Antje Gillingham. This describes how to knit a pair socks on a pair of circular needles. I'm still waiting for "Favorite Socks: 25 Timeless Designs from Tinterweave" by Ann Budd and Anne Merrow. I'm hoping that it will arrive soon as I would love to try...

Yea!!! The holidays are over, mostly. I have presents to exchange with some close friends, but I'm done with the family units. I don't have any more knitting pictures to post at this time, as I didn't knit anything for my family. I'm still working on my wife's scarf. It is taking a bit, and it is using up yarn faster than I was expecting. I'm working on my 4th 65 meter ball of yarn and it is only 3.5 to 4 feet long. I bought 6, so I'm hoping that I don't need to go back and buy more.

I spent Christmas week with my in-laws. I had a great time, even if work did call me multiple times. Everyone seemed to like their presents. My father-in-law loved the mittens, and said they fit perfectly. My mother-in-laws hat and scarf looked good together , and it is amazing how wide the 4x4 ribbing on her hat can stretch. My brother-in-law's hat was a bit small , but he was able to stretch it out enough to get it on his head. After a good dinner and great company, we noticed that it was starting to snow. This made the company hurry out and down the road, before the roads got bad. When we woke up on Boxing Day, we were greeted with these scenes. Here is a closer view of our truck. I did get a message from my sister, and she licked her scarf, and wondered how I did it. Unfortunately I won't be getting a picture of that one.

So close, but so far. I only have my wife's present left to do, and everything is packaged up for gifting. I'm not sure if I will be able to do the pattern that I want for my wife's scarf. The pattern I'm using is called a berry stitch. I have pulled it out once because i had messed up on a stitch some place. I need to be a lot more carfeful in how I do the (K1, k1tbl, K1) into the same stitch and the P3tog, or else I'll have to find a new pattern. Luckily this time I was only on the 6th row. The reason that i couldn't fix it is because I couldn't tell where the mistake was (the yarn is a little fuzzy), and with all the increases and decreases, it is hard to tell exactly where the issue was. I have learned something from this pattern. I have learned that i should knit a bit looser, as putting 3 stiches in to one is a bit difficult at times. I have also learned that I have been knitting through the back loop this whole time. Unfortunately I forgot t...