TGI Friday? Fiber? Futzing? Freakin' Tired!!!

1,500 hits in 6 weeks. I'm pretty pleased with that!
I never had a counter on my blog until July 12th so I don't know what it was like before, but it was at the same time that I joined the PDXknit bloggers. Good deal.

So, it's Friday night and I've gone back to work on the Faux Russian Stole again. The short row heel turn on the toe up socks I'm working on went relatively well, but the heel flap sucks. Maybe tomorrow I'll have the attention span to figure it out. I don't think I'll ever want to regularly knit socks from the toe up. I'm giving it the attention it deserves as a reasonable method, but it's just not jazzing me.

The next pair of NORMAL socks I'm going to knit are the Yarn Harlot's Earl Grey socks.

I have this thing...

...where I think I need to post a picture to be able to post to my blog at all. It wasn't that way to start because my camera was broken, like four years ago. Now, it just doesn't seem right. You won't be entertained and amused and you'll think I'm really boring.

This thing, though has to do with the light in my apartment when I am NOT AT WORK. You know, those very few hours everyday? So, I actually am working on things and finishing things and going places but just never take pictures of them anymore. Okay, that's an exaggeration, but you know what I mean.

So, for those of you not in Portland, I will simply give a weather report:
Mornings: Darn chilly.
Afternoons: Blinding sun and warm with a coolish breeze.
Nights: Who cares, I'm sleeping.

That's it folks!

First of Many

Okay, I rarely share my feelings on this blog, but let me tell you, I'm in a crap mood tonight. So, this is actually something I'm doing (posting) to get out of my ick feelings. Hey, it's a start. I never made it to the knitting meet up that I had intended to go to. My pj's and spinning wheel and a glass of port sounded better. It is lovely out tonight though. Ughhhh. I'm a slug.

So, if you're reading this, send me some good vibes and maybe they'll find their way to me. Okay, on to the knitting:

I finished this Forest Canopy Shawl a little bit ago but have had a hard time getting it in the camera. This shawl is the first thing I've even knit from my own yarn. A whole 8oz's I managed. It's merino and silk and it's kind of a lightly green hay color. You can't really tell by these pictures because of the time of day. Delicate color to capture.

The back story on this one is that's when my friend Barbara first visited, she wore one that she had knit and I saw how perfect it was for the weather around here. Then she tells me that she's knit it multiple times. Well, come to find out, she always seems to have one on the needles. Now I know why. It's not boring to knit, but it's not very difficult either. Pretty satisfying and can look really different in different gauges and yarn types. Yes, that leads me to the fact that I'm already knitting it again in some Blue Moon Fiber Arts fingering weight alpaca in a subtle green/blue/gray coloration.

I wonder how many people will think this is accurate?

Your Life Path Number is 6

Your purpose in life is to help others You are very compassionate, and you offer comfort to those around you.It pains you to see other people hurting, and you do all in your power to help them.You take on responsibility, and don't mind personal sacrifice. You are the ultimate giver. In love, you offer warmth and protection to your partner. You often give too much of yourself, and you rarely put your own needs first.Emotions tend to rule your decisions too much, especially when it comes to love.And while taking care of people is great, make sure to give them room to grow on their own.

http://www.blogthings.com/

Blogger Rodger

Rodger somehow manages to write the blog for Abundant Yarn in Sellwood, OR as well as working there. I met him the first time when he saved me and a knitting buddy seats to a Yarn Harlot event. That makes him golden in my book. Second row, what a guy!

What is your favorite fiber to knit with and why?

Oh I love wool. I'm really old school, for the most part. Wool's light and warm and comes in such a staggering variety that I love it. On the other hand, I LOVE exploring the properties and abilities of other fibers. It just shocks me sometimes the stuff that other fibers can do. Anti-microbial sock yarn? An acrylic with the hand of bamboo? That amazes me and makes me so excited.

What is the color you are most drawn to in a yarn shop?

I go through cycles. When I'm not in love with any one colour, though, I tend to go for greens or blues.

What is the weirdest thing a stranger has ever said about you knitting or the knitting itself? (i.e. So, what are you doing...is that sewing...you're a guy knitting, right?)

A customer in the yarn store I work at once asked my advice and 10 minutes later after I was done with my "mini-lecture", she said "You know a lot more than I thought you did for somebody so young, and a guy!" This whole exchange happened after she had seen me finish knitting a sweater of my own design. It was pretty strange!

Blogger Chris Church

Chris is here to answer those same burning questions! One thing I can say, is this lady actually wears the wonderful stuff she knits! This is a point of admiration for me. Hey, if you're proud of the great work you've done, you wear it!
Chris' blog http://pursuitoffiber.blogspot.com/

What is your favorite fiber to knit with and why?

Just one fiber? Many you make life difficult. I like choices. Well, my favorite to wear is hemp. I just got a bunch from Elann.com this week. I am in heaven. I just don't have time to start on it yet. My favorite for tactile knitting is Probably anything from Blue Moon but especially Socks that Rock Heavyweight. It is a great garment weight. I can't wait to start a cardi in some Obsidian or maybe Raven.

What is the color you are most drawn to in a yarn shop?

Colors. I love all colors except pink and true purple. I fall for the oranges, reds, browns and greens. I am just a big forest lover. I guess it helps that I look good in those colors.

What is the weirdest thing a stranger has ever said about you knitting or the knitting itself? (i.e. So, what are you doing...is that sewing...you're a guy knitting, right?)

I am sure I have had a few but mostly I get. "Wow, I can only knit scarves and afghans!" My response is normally something around " I can't knit scarves and afghans." I actually have a friend knit me a scarf when I want one. To me a scarf is torture. If you took me hostage and tortured me, I think I might make it a little worn on the edges but to drive me completely blinking mad would be to force me to knit a garter stitch scarf under dripping water on size 13 metal needles out of 70s acrylic (what else would a kidnapper have lying around).

It's a Blog Hop

Okay, so I'm a blog hop virgin. I've selected three questions to ask three of my knit-blogging cohorts here in Portland. I'm already loving the answers!

An interview will appear every other day and hey, we've got a trend going! A thing. A connectivity of the fiber kind. Fiberlicious excitement. (OK, I'll stop now.) But really, check in and read my buddies answers to these burning questions.

Here comes Duffy!

I've known Duffy for a couple of years and she never ceases to amaze me with her versatility and imagination!
You can visit her blog here and read her answers to my "journalistic" questions below.
http://www.fiberqat.blogspot.com/

What is your favorite fiber to knit with and why?

I love working with a good medium to fine micron count smooth wool. I can knit forever with it because it has give and springiness, and the fabric produced looks so classy no matter what you do with it (lace, cables, textures, plain). If I had unlimited funds, I'd knit with really fine merino all the time.

What is the color you are most drawn to in a yarn shop?

Rich colorways are like a porchlight to a moth for me. Think Renaissance Era colors. I am especially drawn to deep reds, warm purples, and deep sapphire blue. Combine them with a good bronze and green and I'm yours forever.

When I saw Norah Gaughan's Origami Cardi in IK's Summer issue, I was interested in knitting it up but I didn't like the yarn that was chosen for it. However, Berroco had another yarn in the same gauge that was much more lustrous . The body was going to be in a bronze and the bobbled band was to be in a rich rich red (think a pool of blood, not a smear). I was all agog for buying it and knitting it up but finances and a knitting job popped the bubble. It would still be a great combination but not on me.


What is the weirdest thing a stranger has ever said about you knitting or the knitting itself? (i.e. So, what are you doing...is that sewing...you're a guy knitting, right?)

It was four years ago in June. I had just started back up knitting after a 15 year hiatus and was working on a big felted bag. On a whim, I decided I would walk in the annual Dyke March which goes through downtown Portland the Saturday of Pride weekend. I dressed in a floaty femmy pair of blue batik pants and my purple batik coat, comfy shoes, fanny pack, and a wide brimmed hat. Using the fanny pack as a rest for the knitted portion of the big bag, I knitted in the parade. I had a lot of looks and laughs but this one girl shouted, "OMG she's KNITTING!"

Just like making a sweater

When you knit up a yarn, it looks entirely different than it did in the skein. Now I'm seeing that when I spin up a fiber, it looks completely different than the fleece. I know it seems obvious, but it just amazes me. This stuff has been sitting around for a year and now I love it and want to knit it! It also had this really boring name, un-romantic: Grape. Oh, it's SO much more, people.

Even

Look, I'm getting the hang of this spinning thing!

Shrinkage of the Fiber

Fiber on the left, before water. Fiber on the right, after water. Silk merino blend. I never measured before and this time I just did it for the heck of it! I guess that's where the "bloom" comes from...