Stupid Math

The Ruched Yoke Tee pattern I've been working on requires several rows of "increasing evenly" across the row. I'm a liberal arts major. I can do math, but only if I'm wearing sandals. But I'm also a millennial. So, I started looking for an app to do this for me. I knew there were stitch-counting ones, and I've heard about knitting mathematicians, so I was hopeful.

I think the shininess of the yarn picked up the dark mauve of the blouse I was wearing when I took this picture. It turned a weird color, even with editing. Also, I might do something about the row where I used the wrong increase stitch (distinguishable by the holes - oops). I'm thinking about weaving ribbon through it? But I might just leave it, like an artistic nod to the key-hole that will interrupt it. We'll see.

Turns out, there is an app. It looks pretty slick - you can adjust for in-the-round or straight; increasing or decreasing evenly; and for easier-to-remember or more-accurately-symmetrical. It will even keep track of where you are, and give you the next instruction. It's available for iThings. I'm an Android girl.

Fortunately there's a less-slick website. It doesn't adjust for circular or straight - it's all the same - and it won't feed you the instructions, but it will give give you the easy-to-remember way and the evenly-balanced way, and there's helpful, reassuring commentary. And, the creator made a calculator for decreasing.

The best thing about the website, though, is the list she keeps on the other page. It's a whole list of knitting-related math-doers. Very, very slick indeed.

In Progress: Corporate Synergy Gray Glovelets

I'm working on a solution to my freezing fingers at work. Now that it's winter, it's been a little warmer in the office, so my deadline for these is closer to April, when they'll start cranking the AC.

Since they're office accessories, and the yarn I want to use happens to be gray (Jo Sharp calls it "opal" - see below), I decided they're "corporate gray," like so many suits at so many meetings.

Also, I am infatuated with cable knits, and I like the idea of the pattern having a collaboration theme, which works well for a cable pattern. In this pattern, there are two cables which come together from opposite sides of the mitt, twist a bit, and then part again. It reminds me of a lot of my projects at work: I find someone with whom to collaborate - often from a completely different part of the organization - we work together and do great things, and when the project is over, we go our separate ways. As for the title, well, I'm working on my career evaluation package, so my head is full of buzz words. And the more buzzwords, the better, right? ;)

I had some left-over hanks of gorgeous Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran that I had bought on sale from Webs and used in a couple projects for my tiny baby daughter. It's 85% wool, 10% silk, 5% cashmere and it feels like a warm, cozy dream. Webs no longer sells Jo Sharp yarns (this was a long, long time ago that I bought it), and Jo Sharp apparently no longer makes Silkroad Aran in Opal. I'd look for an alpaca/wool blend with a similar gauge, if I were going to do this again.

This is the second time I'll have made the left glove. Last time, there were some things I realized I could have done better, and by the time I got into the right glove, I couldn't stop thinking about how this could be so much better. So I frogged what I had done on the right, and re-started. That first left mitt is a lost cause, but I'll keep it around in case I need to steal its yarn (though I should have plenty).

When I land on a pattern I'm happy with, I'll post here and on Ravelry, where you can find my other original pattern, too. I'm making myself finish this and the shawl from hell (not my pattern, for the record) before I start on anything else, so it should be done soon-ish.

The Answer is Socks... And Rain

Today was cool and rainy. A perfect day for knitting and a movie. I watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix with Thing One and worked on her socks.

I'm having to adjust the pattern - apparently I counted wrong on my gauge swatch (you know, the one I didn't do - I just started knitting the socks and stopped after a while and counted stitches and rows). There's no way that sock isn't going to be too long if I do 30 rounds of increases like I'm supposed to... but even so, I'm having ton of fun.

I've decided to make socks for everyone! Thing Two and DH and me. DH says he doesn't care about the pattern - I had been thinking of doing something with cables for him - but since he doesn't care, I'll stick with the plain old socks like I'm making for the Things. DH's feet tend to get hot, but these will be winter socks, so they need to be a little warm. I chose the Naiad in Espresso Roast. I figure the 70% Superwash merino will make them warm, the 10% nylon will keep them tough, and the 20% Bamboo will help wick moisture away. I hope. I bet he loves it, but i do hope it looks a little more brown than the gray that's in the picture.


Thing Two has a serious passion for red and black. I had originally thought the Ruby, Ruby Dragon sock would be best for the color, but I wasn't sure the yarn, 100% Merino, would be as durable as in the Djinni Sock, which has nylon mixed in for durability, so that's what we landed on. Thing Two put some serious holes in the last pair of socks I knitted him.

For myself, I chose the Crack In The Wall in Djinni. I know it'll be just like Thing One's socks, and I like the way it feels. Also, I love the colors. And, there's the thing about it being Djinni sock yarn for Djinn. And I'm pretty darn sure the color name is a reference to Dr. Who, which I also completely dig. I'm thinking some kind of lace. Just a little bit. Probably, I'll pick a pattern from one of the books a friend recently gave me, or from my favorite lace stitchionary. I'm so completely psyched. ... but I have got to get back into my spinning, too, because I have got some awesome roving and new bobbins, and the beginning of an excellent support net.

Crappy Yarn

I made super-crappy yarn! But it's recognizable as yarn, not just roving wrapped around the bobbin, which is what I had before! And I made it!

So, turns out you're supposed to pinch the yarn as the wheel spins. This means that the fly wheel will continue to revolve around the bobbin, and the bobbin will turn because the fly wheel is. When there's enough twist in it, then you let go, at which point your scotch tension keeps the bobbin from spinning, allowing the yarn to wrap around the bobbin. I think.

Presents! Again!

One of my co-workers got me one of the bestest co-worker presents I've gotten. It was perfect, really - that gift you spent all winter hoping some one would get for you, but never actually said anything about. I'm convinced she has ESP.

I love to look at the stitches and daydream about using them in things. There's an "embossed" vine with leaves pattern that is begging to be on the front of one side of a cardigan. The calendar is in my office, so getting to look at the weekend's stitch helps mitigate the Monday-ness at the beginning of a week.

I've already used the calendar to make two Warm-Up America squares.

Even better, I got to make the squares using some of the yarn a church friend gave me. It's like a win-win-win.

I've been dreaming...

About this sparkly blue yarn I have...

David says that it needs to be something casual... like a hoodie. That would be cool. With a zipper? And short sleeves? I only have two skeins (but they're big).

I think it could be like a bolero jacket with short sleeves - something to cover my shoulders.

Or something a little more formal. A strapless (neck strap optional?) top, empire style, 1x1 rib across the boobs, softening out to lace (feathers & fan?). Matching scarf. Or wrap. Oooh. A wrap with a twist in it.

I've been wanting to see what happens when you DO let the stitches twist (just once) when you join on circs. I think it'll make a mobius strip, which would be the desired effect.

I'm open to suggestions.