Another Bag

I know it appears that I am sewing more than knitting. But that is just because the items I am sewing are small enough and easy enough to become a finished object in a small amount of time. My knitting has not been abandoned.

The last bags I made were as a result of a link on Ravelry so, of course, when someone else posted a photo of a bag she had made I had to find the instructions:- reversible purse. This is a simple bag to make but as with most things there are a few changes I would make for next time. And I am sure there is going to be a next time.

I would press the seams at each stage and not at the end; I would mark a 1/4 inch line around the outside handle edge before joining the pieces as this was the only fiddly part of the whole project. There is a video to show this bag being made, which I did not see until after I had made my bag. There are also comments which are helpful for those with home printers which print on one size of paper only.

I used "home décor" fabric for my bag, (on sale at Jo-Ann's) which gives it a bit of stability. I am trying to decide if I want to use this as a project bag or a regular purse.

Another Quilt

After the last post, I realised I hadn't posted about my latest completed quilt. I had made all the projects in "I Can't Believe I'm Quilting" but that didn't mean my career as a quilter was over. Hubby had given me another quilting book and from all the fabric my mother-in-law had sent me, I was able to make a quilt top. The backing fabric had to be purchased.

I have no idea when I started this quilt or how long it took me or if I had any breaks between each section before stopping after the binding was machine sewn to the front. I know that it was sewn when we were living in Calgary and the backing fabric was purchased in 2009 and all I had to do was sew the binding to the backing. So I finally sat down and sewed. It didn't take long.

I really like this quilt. It is nowhere near perfect but it is not a gift nor a competition entry so the small mistakes do not matter as they are only noticeable if you look closely.




Just a quick note on the knitting front; yesterday I finished a sock. I still have the other one to knit to make a pair but at least it's a sock with yarn from my stash. This is the first sock I have made since the socks I showed off in this post. It is going to take a long while to use up my sock yarn at this rate.

Let's Make A Jelly Roll Quilt

This is not a post about how to make a jelly roll race quilt. There are plenty of instructions and videos available; just Google jelly roll race quilt and take your pick. Rather this is a bunch of photos of three women (and one onlooker) who decided to spend some time together and each make a quilt.

I was the only one who actually bought a (or bought an actual) jelly roll. After much deliberation I bought this one from Missouri Star Quilt Co. By coincidence this was also the company where I had first watched how to make a jelly roll race quilt.



My two compadres cut their own 2 inch strips from their own fabric supply. (OK one of them had a nice mother who did it for them.)

I decided to just sew my strips together as they came off the roll as had been suggested in one video. I also joined my strips with a straight seam as suggested in another blog. These two methods made it easy to align strips. Originally I chose the straight join as I liked the look in the one I saw on-line. Also it would have taken me for ever to join the strips on the diagonal. The other two chose strips at random and joined on the diagonal. This meant I "won" the first part of the race.

Here are my strips waiting to be sewn together and then after they have been sewn together but before cutting the threads.



Jenny sewing her strips. We knew it was serious when Jenny put her headband on.





After sewing together, I pressed open all my seams and smoothed out the wrinkles in the fabric, folded the strip in half and folded it in my lap to keep it under control while sewing the first seam.

Here it is sitting nicely in my lap and coming off the machine.



Elizabeth wrangling her first long strip all 1600 inches.



And Jenny with hers.



As each seam gets shorter the sewing time should get shorter but I didn't feel that was the case and I soon fell behind. Elizabeth showed Jenny how to wrap the strip around the newel post to ease the folding in half.




Elizabeth won the race.



(She was in a hurry as she had to pick up her children.)

Then Jenny.



And finally me.



And here is our onlooker, Lisa, concentrating on the sock she is knitting.



And the obligatory cat photo.



And now we all want to make another one, except we should finish these completely first. I am going to add borders to mine before backing, binding and quilting as I would like it to be bigger.

The things that I have learned from this first one: I do like the diagonal join but I would need much more time to ensure every strip lined up correctly; joining the strips as they come off the roll produces a nice enough quilt but the colours are spaced too regularly; don't eat a chocolate chip muffin and sew at the same time; you can sew with friends and produce something and have fun.

A Skirt and a Shawl

I have finished two things from the too-many-projects-on-the-go. As the title indicates, a skirt and a shawl. Bad timing for the skirt as it is not wool skirt weather. Oh well. It is finished and I like it.

I started the skirt in January with yarn purchased in 2011. The pattern is Lanesplitter from Knitty.com. I have made this pattern before and although the pattern calls for Noro Kureyon you can use any yarn as basically you are knitting a rectangle (on the bias) to the length and width you require. A new yarn shop opened in Calgary in 2011 and our knitting group had an outing on its opening day. I purchased some Noro Shirakaba in dark pinks.


I knew this would be great for another skirt but it needed another colour to go with it but the store didn't have any other suitable colourways so I bought it, put it in my stash and stayed on the look out for a suitable match. In the end, when Personal Threads had their end of year sale, I bought more Shirakaba in a different colour.


These colours work well together as they tone each other down.

The main thing I wanted to change on the original pattern was the waistband. On the original pattern the waistband is worked in rib with Tahki Cotton Classic, sewn down to the inside of the skirt and elastic inserted. This made a bulky waistline on my skirt. For the second version I worked a stocking stich band with the Shirakaba. This also meant that I did not have to buy a third yarn. After sewing the seam I picked up stitches along one edge, I had worked out my row and stitch gauge and picked up stitches in this ratio, and then knit (I was working in the round) two rows in each colour until the band was the same width as the elastic. I worked a purl row for the fold line and then worked the same number of striped rows. And then came the fun part. Elastic was measured around my waist and the ends sewn together to make a circle, this was held against the waistband and I picked up one stitch from the pick up edge and knit it with the stitch on the needle thus enclosing the elastic. I really should have taken a photo of this process to show how it was done. After the elastic was enclosed, I cast off. The waistband is exactly the same width as the elastic so it will not twist.

Here's a picture of the skirt and a close-up of the waistband. No photos of the skirt being worn yet.



The other project, the shawl, was a quicker knit in terms of start and finish dates. The Yahoo group for Mystery shawls is very quiet but they decided to have a new mystery starting on March 14 - Pi day. Rather than using lace yarn (and I do have some in my stash) I used a sport weight alpaca that had been in my stash for who knows how long. The only thing I can say is that I purchased it in Calgary and there was an original purpose for the yarn which eventually went out the window. I had four balls of the yarn and intended to knit until I had none left so I knew I would not make the full shawl. I ended up with two full sections and half the edging. This is a circular shawl worked on the Pi basis of doubling rows and stitches, I still doubled the stitches before working the edging although I knew this would make the edge ruffled but I like the effect.

After completion, I just did a gentle block. I soaked it and then spread it out to shape. I really like it but once again the photo does not show it being worn.



I forgot to measure it before blocking, but post blocking it is 112cm in diameter.

Some People Have Firedogs

We have a firecat.

OK it's an excuse for a gratuitous cat picture.

Another Project Bag

In my last post I mentioned that I had started a patchwork bag. It is a bigger bag than the first one I made and should be fine for the shawls that I now seem intent on making.

This was a great way to use the larger scraps of fabric I had kept. And I had some actual lining material left over that was ideal for the interior of the bag. I also used interfacing as the lining material is thin. I messed up adding the interfacing but I hope if anyone notices they are kind enough not to say anything.

The bag is made from strips of fabric sewn together with different strips sewn together for the accent piece at the top of the bag which holds the drawstring. The back and front are at right angles to each other and part of me wishes I had used different directions for the accent pieces.

Make Project Bags of Course

(Like six of them!)

Someone on Ravelry linked to this tutorial for making drawstring bags which they thought would make a good sock project bag. I looked at the tutorial and it seemed easy enough so I decided to make one.

I don't actually have a fabric stash. When we cleared out my mother-in-law's house I brought back with me quite a bit of her fabric. When we moved 2 1/2 years later I had not touched any of it so I gave it all away. Apart from fabric for two designated projects, the only fabric I have are scraps which I am gradually sewing together.

To make the bag, all that was needed was 3 fat quarters and some ribbon for the drawstrings. Easy enough I thought, just buy a pack of fat quarters and sew. No deciding on matching or contrasting colours or designs. So what did I do when I got to Jo-Ann's? Buy three packs of fat quarters. Because if I am trying to use up my yarn stash, why not start a fabric stash?

I set aside some time to make a bag so as not to be interrupted by pesky things like housework or eating. Chose three fabrics from one of the packs and got going. I completed one bag apart from the drawstrings and decided I had time to make more. I wondered if I could streamline the process - stack fabric for cutting, sew the seams in a continuous flow etc. This worked except when you are making five bags and you make a mistake it is likely to be repeated across all five. You know that old adage "measure twice, cut once"? There's a reason for it and the five bags are narrower than the original. When cutting the first piece I read the numbers on the ruler from the wrong side. Oh well. The bags are still sock project size or can be used for gifts.

Rather than buy more fabric for the drawstrings, I used the fabric left over from the main piece. Instead of 2 pieces cut to the required width, I cut 4 of the required width and 1/2 the required length plus extra for joining. I used a diagonal line to join 2 strips together and then continued as the instructions.

I am pleased with my bags. The instructions say three fat quarters plus fabric or ribbon for the drawstrings. You can make one bag out of three FQs but two bags can be made from four FQs as one FQ is enough for accent and lining fabric. There are more bags in my future. I have 3 FQs that have not been cut plus I have started a patchwork bag out of the scraps of fabric I did keep. And by finishing the bags this weekend I did not add to my pile of unfinished projects. I am very pleased with myself.

And as I had the sewing machine set up I completed a few repair jobs that I had been putting off because I didn't want to set up the sewing machine for one small job. (Even though I had three small jobs.)

What To Do When You Have Too Many Projects On The Go

Before I answer that, I should probably explain how you (read I) can end up with too many unfinished projects. A term which can be reduced to a TLA or two; UFO for unfinished object which is a project that has been languishing for so long the chances of it being finished this decade are slim; and WIP for work in progress which is a project that is currently being worked on although it too may be set aside for other projects.

I have an ideal number of projects in progress: 3 + 1. The plus one does not really count as a work in progress as it is a project that lives in the car. This stems from my days as son's chauffeur and if I was early for pick up or practice ran late then I always had something to work on. Only yesterday I knitted a few rows on the car project as we had stopped to look at the sea on the way back from breakfast. (As a side note I love looking at the sea and you can't really do that when reading a book.)



Before I explain my ideal number of 3 I want to explain how I rate projects as easy or hard. The differentiation is the amount of concentration that is required. An easy pattern requires little concentration, it has minimal shaping and patterning and I can read, watch sub-titles, carry on a conversation while knitting (so that the person I am with doesn't think I am focused on my knitting). A hard pattern requires much concentration, the hardest being where the only other thing I can do at the same time is listen to music. Although I would like most of them to be at the level of being able to listen to an audio book. The first shawl shown in this post I classified as hard because of the beads and nupps and changing lace pattern. The neck warmer shown at the end of this post counts as easy because it is a simple rib pattern.

So how do I arrive at 3+1 for my ideal number of projects in progress? The 3 is broken down as one crochet project, one easy project and one hard project and the plus one is the "stays in the car" project. I know many people are monogamous knitters, working on just one project until it is finished and there are others who work on many projects. And then there are the monogamous knitters who work on one project until the next shiny thing comes along and the project is cast aside into the UFO pile. Whatever your knit number, it needs to be at a level where you can finish something once in a while and not too high that you feel so overwhelmed that you can't work on anything.

It is probably becoming obvious from this post that I have exceeded my magic number. (And I am not going to admit that number here as a certain marital partner reads this blog but you can always check my page on Ravelry.) There are many innocuous but insidious ways that a new project creeps into my work basket.

• Firstly the innocent little gift. Usually this will mean all the other projects are put to one side while the gift is worked on. The redeeming feature of gift knitting is a due date so once it is finished, I am back to my ideal number. 
• Next is the mystery pattern. If I want to keep up with the clues I have to cast on on the start date and start each clue on the release date. Depending on the complexity and size of the pattern I can work on one of the "ideal 3" while waiting for the next clue. (Confession - 2 of my current projects started out as mysteries.)
•  And then an easy pattern turns into a hard pattern. So I need to cast on another easy pattern because I can never not have an easy pattern on the go. If the easy project just needs casting off or seaming then it can jump ahead of the current hard project and quickly be finished but if more work than that is involved I know have two hard projects to choose from. 
• Running out of yarn. This doesn't happen very often but when it does, of course, I have to cast on an appropriate project to work on until I get more yarn. 
• Gift yarn. Although I will mostly wait until I have finished a project before starting a new one with yarn I have received as a gift, there are times when I feel guilty that such yarn is still in my stash so I cast on regardless of how many projects I have on the go!

And that's how an ideal of three can easily turn into eight or more.

Next time I'll have the answer to What To Do When You Have Too Many Projects On The Go.

Baby Blanket

It has been two years since I last made a baby blanket. (Excluding those made for WCOBBS.) So when my nephew announced that his wife was pregnant the opportunity arouse to start creating. I wanted to take the blanket with me to England so I could not wait to know the sex of the child before starting the blanket. Also because of this time frame I decided to crochet a blanket as this is usually quicker than knitting. That narrowed the choice down slightly! I needed a pattern and yarn that was unisex. But my first choice of yarn in an oatmeal colour was returned to the store as it was too thick to work with the pattern I chose. I might have been better off sticking to the yarn and changing the pattern. Returned from store with thinner yarn in a different colour and tried pattern again. The pattern still didn't work, so the pattern was scrapped and a new one started. That didn't work either. I had made a mistake early on but after ripping out, didn't restart as I didn't think it worked in the colour yarn I had chosen. So for pattern number three I chose a simple shell stitch and V stitch combo. Worked in a jewel tone blue it will work for a boy or girl. I finished it while in England and left it with a relative to give to the new parents.

Yarn: Caron Simply Soft
Hook: 5.0 mm
Pattern: Cloud-Soft Shells from Our Best Baby Afghans

On Being A Tourist

I have recently returned from a trip to Europe. This was for a family wedding in the UK. We spent some time with family but also spent a couple of days in London and some time in Rome which was first for me and our son.

On this trip I was really aware of people taking photos. Not sure why as these places were just as touristy as other places I have visited. What I noticed was the look on the faces of those who were in the photo. They were posing in front of some famous site (or even sight) and the look on their faces was of pride of being in that place. Unlike my husband whose look is usually of can we get this over and done with and a lack of me being in the photo as hubby doesn't think to take any.

The other thing I noticed is the cameras. It seems that more people have fancy digital cameras. When I had a SLR camera many years ago, most people had point and shoots. Now it is a digital SLR or camera phone. You can take loads of pictures and delete the ones that didn't come out right - so much easier than film. I gave up my SLR when the flash broke. Digital SlRs were expensive so I got a digital camera that was better than a point and shoot but now it is coming to the end of its life and the photos are not as good as when I first got the camera. So of course I want to be one of those fancy camera owners.

I wonder if someone can explain to me why if you are in a foreign country where you don't speak the language, when someone speaks to you in that language instead of replying in English, you reply in a foreign language that you do speak. So on this trip when someone spoke to me in Italian why did I find that I would speak French?

Sweater Quest

A book by Adrienne Martini

Ms Martinis knits Mary Tudor by Alice Starmore, a fair isle design, which you will have to search the internet yourself if you wish to see a picture. Alice Starmore is very - very - protective of her name, her designs and the island where she lives.

I do not know where I first heard about the book Sweater Quest but I finally decided to check it out of the library. I'm not sure why I say finally as it was only published in 2010, but that does make it nearly 3 years old and a lot can happen in three years.

I thought this was a book about knitting, in particular a book about knitting a certain sweater in one year. Non-knitters should search for this design to get an idea of why it could possibly take a whole year to knit a sweater. Although Adrienne's year includes finding the pattern, finding yarn as well as periods of not knitting the sweater. I was concerned when I read the publisher's blurb on the back cover which included a wooly Julie and Julia. Was this going to be another book by a whiny New Yorker? I really didn't need to read another book about the life of a New Yorker who feels entitled to have everything their way because, after all, I'm from New York; oh, and don't forget I'm better than you because I'm from New York, oh and I'm now doubly entitled to be this way because of - well you know what.

So it was with some trepidation I started the book. Its subject matter was something I loved that I did not want the book to ruin for me so that I turned to macrame. Relief, the book was not like Julie and Julia nor that other popular book by a whiny New Yorker. Unfortunately, for Ms. Martini, I am sure that if it was of the same ilk, her book would now be a hit movie. Julia Roberts could not play the man character having starred in the movie version of an aforementioned book; Audrey Hepburn is no longer with us; I wonder if Ms. Martini would like to be portrayed by Brooke Shields? The reason for picking these actresses - they're all knitters of course.

The book is more about knitters than knitting although Ms. Martini does describe the knitting of the sweater. She is almost disappointed when she cuts (yes you read that correctly she cuts) her knitting for the armholes and it is an easier process than she hyped herself up for. So as this is a book about knitters, she visits with various knitterati in the US and Canada. This was fun as you could (OK I could) feel that anyone could pop into these peoples lives and be welcomed. Although it's probably more like my people get in touch with your people and they say your writing a book about knitting a sweater and you famous knitterati person just have to be in it.

There were two recurring questions she had for people she met, one concerned her sweater and the other was the simple question "why do you knit?". This second question annoyed me after a while. Maybe because I couldn't come up with the thoughtful responses that the famous knitters did. But really I was hoping for one person to say they enjoyed the process. Gone are the days when people made their own clothes because it was cheaper. Now people knit (and sew and crochet) for enjoyment, it is a leisure activity not a necessity. Therefore it is a process to be enjoyed; from that premise maybe it can be analyzed down to its zen moment. So the question should not be "why do you knit?" but "why do you like to knit?". Because all the 'it keeps me calm", "it connects me to my grandmother", "I am creating something", make no sense if you do not enjoy the act of knitting.

Another Shower Puff

In February i showed a shower pouffe that I had made for a gift exchange and I commented that i could see myself making more. So with a friend's birthday on the horizon, it was a perfect opportunity. This time I used 100% cotton and made different changes to the pattern. To create a lighter feel, I worked alternatively two rows on size 5.5mm needles and two rows on size 12mm needles until it was a size I liked.

And what better to go with it than soap in the shape of a sheep, which I didn't think to take a photo of and some locally dyed yarn.

And There's More

In my last two posts I mentioned an item that was finished but I needed to redo the cast off. Today I finally managed to take photos.



Another pattern from knitty.com. The yarn was gifted to me by one of my Calgary knitting friends when I left Calgary. It started out as a completely different shawl that didn't work out and I decided it needed a simple pattern to show off the yarn, which is Glimmer by Julie Spins. It was appropriate to make this pattern from this gift as the first time I saw it, was in a yarn shop and it had been knitted by the person who gave me this yarn. They had made it wider and I did too as I wanted less of a scarf and more of a wrap. I knitted until I ran out of yarn and as this is a 15 row repeat I was lucky to be able to use up most of the yarn. I am not happy with the cast on but I am not messing around to get that tighter but I am looking forward to wearing it on warm days.

Finished Objects

In my last post, I had a photo of my latest shawl. At the weekend I persuaded hubby to take a picture of the complete thing so here it is.

I am wearing it today and I love how light it is.

And here is a photo of an item I finished way back in 2010. I had just not been able to take a decent photo of me wearing the skirt so when I wore it to knitting group last week I persuaded another member to take a photo.



I redid the cast off of another item and it needs some good photos but the other item that I said should be finished needs some frogging so it might not be finished this month. And a couple of new projects were cast on. :)

Frenetic February

I know alliterations are so 2012 but the title seemed appropriate for my achievements. February finishers didn't sound as exciting. I have finished three projects; actually I finished four but after blocking I decided that the cast off needs to be redone - it is too loose which is way better than being too tight. I'm also hoping that I'll finish another project currently on the needles before the end of the month.

Here is the photographic evidence.

First off the needles was a shower pouf for a gift exchange our knitting group was having.

The pattern is Bonbon on Knitty.com. It is a simple tube, scrunched and tied in the centre. I cast on more stitches than called for to account for the different yarn and had the purl side of the stocking stitch as the right side. The yarn is Bernat Bamboo Natural Blends although that is a misnomer as it is only 86% bamboo. I can see myself making more of these for gifts.

Next off the needles was a shawl. I had bought two different lace yarns to knit shawls on my road trip but one took a long time. Even so, when it was finished I wanted to cast on the other one. Which was a much quicker knit, for three reasons, smaller size (used less than 1/2 the yardage), easier pattern, and no beads.

This is a close up for the time being, I hope to have some photos of it being worn soon. The yarn is Drops Lace by Garnstudio in a lovely deep blue. It is another pattern from Knitty.com - Forest Ridge; as I had plenty of yarn I worked two extra repeats of the leaf pattern.

And last off the needles was a pair of socks because I still have sock yarn ha ha.

The pattern is Marigold Socks, which I chose as there was a flora and fauna theme in Sock Knitters Anonymous for January. The pattern on the instep has two plain stitches on one side and three on the other so I just decreased one stitch to have the pattern centered. I'm not sure why the designer didn't think of it as she has you decrease a stitch after the heel.

The yarn is Shepherd Sock by Lorna's Laces and was given to me as the next knitter on one of the WCOBBS blankets. As I wanted the leg to be a bit longer than the yardage would allow, the heel was knitted with Araucania Ranco left over from the socks in this post. The pattern is toe-up and here is a photo of Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off.

So a very productive February to date, which has reduced the projects on the needles, although another sock has to be cast on so I can get through the sock yarn.

A Prize and a Decision...Maybe

So I frequently reference Ravelry in my posts and in particular a group called Sock Knitters Anonymous. I first wrote about this group in June 2010, the aim, for me, of joining the group was to use up my sock yarn. Except I have not been successful as the group introduced me to many more manufacturers and dyers of sock yarn.

Finally, after 2 1/2 years, I won a prize. Prizes are awarded on a random basis as long as each participant has followed the rules for the sock design and cast on and cast off info. My prize was a project bag.

Which I am now using for socks.

The decision now is whether to continue in the group. One of the incentives for keeping up with the group was the possibility of winning a prize and now I have, although previously winning does not preclude you from winning again. At the beginning of the year, I wrote that I wanted to make a dent in the stash which includes sock yarn. But do I want to continue with the challenges that the group sets? And even if the answer to that is yes, do I want to continue with the group? As with any group, the dynamics change as participation changes although there is a core of regulars and all but two of the moderators have been moderating since I have been in the group but were not the original "founders" of the group. I am now getting the impression that one of the moderators is fed up with the group and injudiciously writes comments that should be left unsaid. Lately the comments have been about the challenge and that certain members are just knitting any old pattern that fits that month's challenge. This had me concerned as previously it had been said that only the individual knew what their challenge was. For me it was using up my yarn. But as these comments were being made more often I was worried that a moderator would decide my choice of pattern was not a challenge for me. Of course there started to be comments about what constituted a challenge and how could the moderators say what was a challenge for one person. This morphed into a separate discussion about what changes could be made to make it easier to follow the rules etc and some of the replies just made me laugh. There was the "how dare you even suggest things need changing" post and the "the moderators are mean" post and after a few days the thread was shut down because one person went too far. And then someone started a new thread asking why the original had closed down! Never a dull moment with sock knitters.

The sniping in itself doesn't bother me too much because the internet is always a place where people are rude but do I want to continue with a worry that my choice is not a challenge? For once I had my next month's choice of pattern and yarn picked out in advance, although that is no guarantee that I will not change my mind after starting. So I will join in for February and see how the group settles down.

Consult a Doctor Before Starting Any Programme

You know all exercise programmes and diets say this. It is a CYA because the purveyors/promotors of these regimes do not want bad publicity or to be sued.

I have always ignored this advice. After all, I am not stupid enough to do something which is going to hurt me. Surely not. But the balmy days have gone to my head and I embarked on a popular exercise routine that has done me more harm than good.

For a long time I have wanted to follow the Couch to 5K programme. I don't know who came up with the concept but there are plenty of examples on the internet. I liked the idea of the running increasing each week and that there was a goal at the end of 9 weeks. I was really keen on being able to say that I had run 5K. Without the limitations of work and weather there was no excuse not to start the programme, which I did the week after Thanksgiving (US). Three times a week I went for a walk/run and upped the running time each week according to the progamme. I felt really pleased with myself after each session and, although, it wasn't easy I was able to increase the running time each week.

Then suddenly my knees started to hurt. And when I say suddenly I mean one day, not even a running day, they started to hurt. And when I say hurt, I mean really painful so I couldn't bend my knees and could hardly walk. As an aside, I have a very low pain tolerance, what can I say, I'm sensitive, and my husband usually hears about every little injury. But this time I didn't want him to know as I knew he would tell me that maybe running wasn't such a good idea. But I couldn't keep it from him when he noticed that I had great difficulty walking down the steps to the beach. And, of course, he told me that I should give up running. I really don't think he got it as to how good it made me feel.

So while I was laid up I turned to trusty Google to research how to make my knees stop hurting (don't run duh!) and what caused the problem. It seems likely that the problem is my running style, more specifically how my foot/feet land after each step. It is possible to check this out and remedy yourself by watching your feet as you run. Which sounds just as body damaging as your head collides with trees, lamp posts etc. Or you could work with a trainer.

Now I need to find another form of exercise that is not going to damage my body but will give me the same sense of achievement and well being as the running.

First in 2013

So here is my first finished item of 2013, although it was started in 2012. It is a quick easy knit so was saved for those times when I didn't want to look at a pattern.

The pattern is Quincy by Jared Flood and it is the third time I have made this pattern. Here is the first time I made it, I also made it for my sister but never posted a photo. Since I first knitted it, I have made a couple of adjustments; I add 5 stitches to the initial cast on as I found the hat only just fit me. Before cutting the yarn after the working the band, I make sure that I have a knit side at one end and a purl side at the other to start the garter stitch graft. An extra row may be necessary depending on the type of provisional cast on.

The yarn is Merisoft Hand Painted Aran by Punta Yarns and purchased just because I liked it; probably because I was with my friend Clair who is a Punta fiend. Having moved, there seemed little point in making hat, gloves or scarf for myself so decided to make this hat for my friend Sally who lives in Calgary and always commented on my pink hat.

It is difficult to photograph this hat but this should give you an idea.



And now my Knit Meter is no longer zero!

A New Year, A New Look

It started with a new widget - the Knit Meter at the top of the blog and then I decided it was time for a new look.

The widget is lying because I have knit this year and yesterday I finished a project. Just need to take some photos and the widget and blog can be updated.

Plans

So much better than resolutions; plans can be changed, resolutions are meant to be kept.

My plans for 2013 are eat better, exercise better, (I need to write a separate post for this), finish work on the house, knit from stash, read more.

Hmm pretty standard stuff for New Year plans/resolutions. Working on the house is in partnership with hubby and, although, it seems that the list is long it is doable. We just have to do it and not go for walks on the beach like we are about to do today. I'm also hopeful that I will read more than last year as the beginning of the year won't involve boxing things up.

On the knitting front I still intend to knit from stash this year with a couple of exceptions. A baby is due in the family and I do not have any yarn to make a blanket and if we have another dishcloth gift exchange I will need more cotton. Because, yay, the dishcloth cotton is mostly gone. There are left overs some of which are big enough to be combined to make a stripey cloth so I'm not sure I can say I achieved the target from last year of no dishcloth cotton but it's darn close. I am going to have to knit socks as sock yarn in equaled socks out but that is better than increasing the total sock yarn. And the lacey thing that has been on the needles for ever, my excuse being that I can't find the right needles to go with the yarn, I'm thinking that if I work two rows a day (one patterned, one plain) that will go a long way towards finishing it and with only two rows the needles won't be such an issue. I also really need to find a pattern to work with the last ball of yarn from the yarn crawl and then all the yarn from big blocks of purchases will have been used. So I'm really hoping that this time next year I can say that I have made a good dent in my stash.

Happy New Year everyone.