No Words

There are simply no words to describe this shawl.

Well, maybe a few.

It was crocheted on commission for a wonderful lady who is paying me in massages. (She's a professional masseuse, so get your dirty mind out of the gutter.)

She wanted a ruana, which I had really never heard of before, but it is a rather nice shape for a shawl. She brought in all the yarn, mostly acrylic and fun fur, and she said to do lots of different open crochet stitches. She also wanted the colors placed randomly.

I think I achieved that.

It took a long time, and a lot of effort, but she's a really good masseuse. And now she's having me do an afghan. I...have not words for that either. It's still fuzzy acrylic. But she's still a really good masseuse.

In summary:

Yarn: Various acrylics and furry things in mass quantities

Needle: Size N crochet hook

Pattern: Choosing random stitches as I along, basic ruana shape

Time: 17 hours

Cost: Well, she supplied the yarn, so it was all profit massage-wise for me

Drop Stitch Scarf

In all honesty, I had no idea what this scarf was going to look like before I knit it. I was trusting the Yarn Harlot. And I have to say, the result is not too bad. It was a general prescription from one of her books. Knit the scarf about a third as long as you want it, then drop every other stitch as you're binding off. Pull it apart, and voila.

I had been hoarding a skein of worsted weight cashmere (mmmmm) that was a mere 87 yards. It wasn't long enough for an actual scarf, but this works out to be a decent length.

The cashmere was expensive, even at a half off sale. And despite being a pretty robin's egg blue, I would have picked a different color if I had a choice. I did not - it was the only skein of cashmere in the entire store. It was half off. There really was no choice here. Cashmere needs me. It calls to me, begging to be knit, or worn, or simply petted.

*Edit* Okay, aparently it's just the combination of Blogger and my laptop. Pictures abound.

In summary:
Yarn: Jade Sapphire cashmere (100% cashmere, worsted weight, ~87 yards)
Needles: Size 10
Pattern: The Yarn Harlot's drop stitch pattern
Time: A few hours
Total Cost: Around $20? When you lose the ball band with price tag, these things get harder to figure. But that's about what I would spend.

Lacy, and the implications thereof

Someone asked me what I was working on when I was knitting this in semi-public. "A lacy washcloth," I answered.

"You know, " he said. "Lacy sounds a lot better when followed by bra or panties."

I suppose this is true. Despite getting the awesome book, Naughty Needles, I've yet to knit anything particularly naughty. No, these are nice, wholesome facecloths, a late Christmas gift for a friend that has moved away.

They may feel stiff at first, but the linen is lovely, and will soften up with each use. I love this fact in a fiber. Not only is it okay to wash it very often, it's actually a good thing. It makes the item better. Until it eventually falls apart, but such is the way of things.

I threw in some handmade soap (that I've been hoarding for no apparent reason) and a Curious George pen (because we're grown up now, but we're not that grown up) and I finally mailed it off today. Yes, I know it's nearly a month past Christmas. I can't even claim any other holidays. But hey, hand knit linen washcloths? Who's going to complain?

There are a few of their friends at the shop, but I don't have a picture.

In summary:

Yarn: Louet Eurosport Linen (100% linen, mmmm)

Pattern: Bathing Beauties, a Fiber Trends pattern

Needles: Size 4

Time: Each one could easily be made in a night. Not that I made them in a night, mind you. But you could.

Total cost: 2 skeins will make about 5 washcloths...so this was probably around $10 considering I used the rest for shop samples

New Image?

People keep asking me for business cards, so I thought I might as well break down and do it. It's like $40 for 1000 cards, so I think that could keep me for a while. I'll turn into one of those annoying people that won't shake your hand without giving you a business card. The Kinkos guy suggested some kind of clip art. After a little playing in Paint, this is what I came up with:

Could this be the official logo? Can you tell that it's knitting and physics? I'm not so sure. I'm going to have to ponder this for a while.

What Language Should You Learn?

You Should Learn French

C'est super! You appreciate the finer things in life... wine, art, cheese, love affairs. You are definitely a Parisian at heart. You just need your tongue to catch up...

What Language Should You Learn?

Your Inner European is French!

Smart and sophisticated. You have the best of everything - at least, *you* think so.

Who's Your Inner European?

Done and Done.

TOO CUTE FOR WORDS

http://www.jessica-tromp.nl/hellokittyknittingsweatercardiganfamilyfriends.htm

I mean, seriously.
Seriously.
I can't take it. If only I were in an intarsia mood.

That Thing That's Been Going Around

No, not that cough/ flu thing (although I had that too), the one about blogs where you post your first sentence(s) from each month this last year.

January: Well, okay, I owe you a brief explanation of what string theory really is.

February: Have you ever noticed that when you're working on a project during a movie, or while you're thinking about something, whenever you pick it up again, you find yourself reminded of what you were doing before?

March: So here's the thing. Once a week, my department has a physics colloquium, where someone comes in from another department or another school and gives a physics-y lecture. Naturally, I use this time to further my physics education by exposing myself to a broad range of research, by which I mean knit.

April: So I really haven't posted in about a week.

May: Yes, I know you want shiny, pretty pictures of knitted objects, but I'm going to disappoint you once again.

June: So after some hard work and recorded TV shows this weekend, I finished Cassie's wedding shawl.

July: In the midst of shawl madness, I took a little break to make these sweet little baby booties.

August: Well, tomorrow I leave for Germany and the Czech Republic.

September: I was back visiting my parents yesterday. Although they have three cats, they evidently still have a mouse problem.

October: Now that the cold weather has hit, and hit hard, it's time to break out my brand new sweater.

November: It's not that I haven't been knitting. I really have, even on the scuba trip. It's just that I'm still knitting the same thing.

December: The stash has reached outrageous proportions. Someone asked me if I could fill a bathtub with it, as a measure of insanity. I could fill the tub with the amount of yarn I have hidden in the living room alone, let alone the main stash in my closet.

Hats Galore Part I

Hats Galore!

One of the classes I'm scheduled to teach at Fringe pretty soon is one on children's hats. Pick a yarn, get an idea, and turn it into a hat. I make these things pretty much obsessively. There's always time for a hat.
But they're getting strict about shop samples these days, so they wanted a few. Here's some bown ones in Ultra Alpaca, with bear ears and without. (But seriously, why would you want without?)

They're supposed to be children's sized, but I'm realizing more and more that I have a really small head. They fit me just fine.

Summary:
Yarn: Berrocco Ultra Alpaca (50% alpaca/ 50% wool, 215 yards). 1 skein makes 2 hats and change. Alpaca with a Twist Highlander Tweed for contrast
Needles: Size 7 US (4.5mm), which is basically what I always do hats on
Pattern: Making this up as I go along
Cost: Shop Sample
Time: A few hours