blogdogblog

Levels

Level III

Have you been following Nanette's swatch progress this week? Nanette is within days of finishing TKGA's Level III course. Finishing this level makes her officially what we've always known she was: A Master Knitter. Congratulations, Nanette!

Level I

Della and Dyna both passed their first level of Agility/Good Canine Citizenship Thursday night. Well, luckily for Della, it was an automatic pass, but still! Dyna and Della did chutes and tunnels last night. Dyna is the tiniest little social butterfly; she charges with all 4.5 lbs at all the other dogs, tail a-wagging. It's so funny to watch that I think I'd have gone along for the class even if Della weren't participating! Sister needs to post more Dyna photos, right?

Level

Amber has turned me on to the most wonderful thing: active sitting with a Theraball. Theraball-sitting strengthens trunk muscles, and just the act of sitting on one helps build strength and balance. I'm using one at my office, and I have one at home that I'm sitting on now! I can even knit on one, and I'm finding that it's a great good-posture-builder. Something to think about if, like me, you need stronger back muscles, or tend to slump at your desk or your knitting. Thanks Amber! And blog-readers? Amber's got some cool knitting you should go see.

Loveable

So! Eyelash yarn is a great thing to knit teddy bears with; they're adorable in this medium, in fact. But the pink one is my favorite!

Update! 6:55 a.m. — Christine, our bear knitter, has written to say the pink bear is made from Brazilia, by Schachmeier! Thanks, Christine!

Pups

Friiiiidayyyyy! Little Jack says Ease on Down the Road. Have a good one, and a great weekend.

Check Please

What a lot of stuff to get done in a day! Wednesday hummed from start to finish. First on my list was ordering my extra wool from Anne. BTW, if you're ever trying to put together a knit kit from an older design by a Scottish designer ? Anne can fix it up for you in nothing flat. Melissa asked about this extra wool, whether I needed a specific dye lot, etc. Since I'm working bands-only on a blended color Fair Isle, I'm not at all worried about dye lots. I know it will be near-enough, whatever lot Anne sends it from. Oh, before I forget, I have one more note re: the 1993 Flora. I have knit my version not-exactly-on-gauge. I knit a bit "taller" than the gauge required; that is, my row gauge isn't spot-on. Had I started out with exact gauge, I'm not sure I'd be worried now about running out of wool.

Second! My latest and greatest gadget arrived, so I had to test-drive it. Remember this horrible thing? (No! Not the sleeve, silly! but the giant monster science fiction bug!). Well! Now I have this, and the pups and I feel quite liberated from our fear of Texas bugs. In case you don't feel up to following the link, it's a bug-vacuum, a bug-buster. It's a tube with which you can vacuum up a bug, cap the tube, then relocate your critter back into the wilds from whence it came. Excellent humane gadget. Two thumbs up!

Let's see. What else. I worked some more on my Physical Therapy sock, also known as the Bosnian Toe sock by Lucy Neatby. Emma is working on the same design in nearly the same wool, so you can go look at her Bosnian Toe sock to see a facsimile of my progress. I only work on this sock while I'm waiting on the physical therapist, and I'm surprised at how it grows while I wait. Thank goodness for the ability to knit in waiting rooms.

Hmm. More wool. Cool gadget. Bosnian Toe Progress. Yep. That's about the size of my day. Oh yah, I also picked up my taxes from my excellent accountant. How was your Wednesday?

Pups

Della has her agility and Good Canine Citizenship class Thursday night; I hope she is less shy than she was last week. In the meantime, she's just sitting around, looking like a beautiful dachshund.

Thursday! The pups say Get it Postmarked!

25 Grams Sunrise, Stat

I've finished up the body of the 1993 version of Flora by Alice Starmore, but I'm afraid I'm not going to have enough of the color Sunrise left to do the bands. And, in a similarly distressing development, I found I was unable to crochet a straight line Tuesday night, so we do not have our steeks crocheted as yet.

I'm planning on setting Flora aside for a few days while I await delivery of a bit more wool to use as a safety net. The shoulders are very lovely on this vest; observe this one, please:

Pretty? Yes, I think so.

Some other pretty knitting is happening around the blog rings. Remember my Dale 10706, the Foxes sweater? There's a simply gorgeous version with blue foxes at the tricofranco blog Au Fil des Mailles. Blue foxes! Fabulous! Don't miss the blue fox face close-up; scroll down!

Meanwhile, Noriko-san has finished some lace socks that I think are splendid and completely irresistable. Noriko has links to the Japanese pattern by Mihoko-san, who appears to have named her pattern "Godzilla Socks". At least I think that's the name; I very much hope so. I also think I must make a pair immediately in my favorite green. Thanks for the link, Noriko!

While several knit-blog readers asked about the wool I was using for the Elizabeth Zimmermann Surprise Baby Jacket design, I'd especially like to direct Terri's attention to this image,

which I hope clearly shows that I am not using Noro Kureyon, even though I wanted to. Real bad, in fact. But I refrained. :-) This not-Noro wool is Opera, by a subsidiary company of Plymouth Yarns, and that's been sitting in the stash for several years now. Doesn't Terri have great ideas? Baby Surprises and Bog Jackets in Noro Kureyon. Knitters rock!

Pups

Wednesday! Little Jack says Keep Your Chin Up.

We're halfway there!

News. Tues.

Sarah heard, and then filled us in; if you haven't heard yet, Sweatergirl had the Sweaterbump on 12 April! Yay! And thanks to Sarah for spreading the good news. Isn't the knitting blog ring an exciting place, what with new babies and Amber's 18th century printing press and Wendy's temperamental teenager. . . it's hard to think of anything to add to all of this interesting stuff! But! My dull-by-comparison blog news for Tuesday follows as per usual.

My hands were still a bit sore from working so much on Flora over the weekend, so I went ahead and cast on a Baby Surprise Jacket; the one designed by Elizabeth Zimmermann. Terri sent me the most awesome idea for a Baby Surprise Jacket; I can scarcely control my urge to take her idea and run run run, but I'll be polite and wait until she has an opportunity to talk about it herself. You should go look at the new photos from her latest hike, though. Very pretty.

Oh Right! The Baby Surprise Jacket!

I honestly can't imagine how EZ arrived at this design and construction; I'd love to know the story behind the Baby Surprise Jacket. It's like nothing else on the needles. Truly an original from an extraordinary mind.

Pups

Three cute pups wish you a happy Tuesday. Why not leave Sweatergirl some happy comments to read for when she's back home and online?

Mañana!

Bartender, Another Round

Actually, about six more rounds. But my hands got tired of Flora this weekend, so I'll finish up the shoulders and then three-needle-bind-off and then be ready to do the front and arm bands.

This has been an enjoyable knit. The colors are wonderful in person, the design is intricate enough to remain knit-interesting, and it's almost guaranteed to be a wardrobe classic. It's been excellent watching Wendy's VY version as I knit. I'm tempted to Ingeborg-along just for the fun of knitting with Wendy again, but I have too many gloves waiting! Those of you who are Ingeborging, though, are going to have a blast.

Textile Arts

Martha Bruin Degen has created some incredible art quilts. When people ask: What *is* a Fiber Artist, surely Degen is an exemplary answer. (via BoingBoing)

Pups

Monday again. Mike and Della would like to remind you that everything feels easier when you chat it up with a friend. Happy knitting, and happy chatting.