I'm Having the "I Hate the Color Combo" Blues

I'm currently knitting a scarf, hat and fingerless glove set for our school's auction. Love the pattern, but semi-embarrassed to knit this in public as I absolutely hate the school's colors. . . so Halloween. The pattern (Blue Strips by Andrea Halasi) is really beautiful, but I've done away with many of the stripes as I just don't like the orange and black combo. I'm thinking the hat and gloves will be solid black and not include the orange accents that I'd originally planned. The auction organizers talked me into school colors, but it's just not doing it for me.

One Down, Many More to Go

Finished the Sailor's Rib Fingerless Gloves by Gretchen Tracy last night. Have not blocked them, which might improve the look. Can't say I've done my best work, but I think they will do.

Started other pair, but this time using Yarnspiration's Caron Fingerless Glove pattern. I realized once I started that the pattern was for single pointed needles, but I had already cast onto double pointed, so I scrambled to see if anyone had already reworked the pattern. Luckily, I found arbettes'  rewrite for circular needles on Ravelry. Seems to be working quite well.

Again using some older yarn that I got several years ago at the London Knit and Stitch Show. I had enough at one time for a sweater, but there always seemed to be a project to knit using a ball here and a ball there until I now don't have enough left for anything substantial. Probably should just get rid of these through trade to someone who needs a few extra balls. Off to get more done.

Sometimes You've Gotta Improvise

Rushed out of the house on Saturday morning to catch a train to Sheffield for my daughter's swim meet. Thought I had everything packed to knit a scarf for the school's auction. Hadn't really read the pattern properly so didn't even noticed the small cables up the sides. So with no cable needle on my person, but not wanting to waste a solid two hours of knitting, I improvised. Can't say a plastic fork was the best option, but it was the only one I could find. Knitted for probably ten hours on that thing, but nice to get home to a real cable needle. 

Boxing Day Knitting

Seems like I have to go through this every so often... finishing up projects that I have abandoned... vowing not to start anything else until everything is complete. Once again, I find myself in this spot and the end of the year seems like as good a time as any to clean things up and start fresh.

Today I finished a hat for my youngest. It was a Toft pattern that I bought as a kit at the Knitting and Stitching Show in London that I went to with my mother-in-law this fall. Although this is the photo from the pattern itself, the one I knitted for her was a lovely camel color with an off-white-colored fluff bit at the top. Hopefully a photo to come later.

I then tackled a pair of short socks that I knitted to use up some of my leftover scraps of yarn this past summer. This is the second pair... one I finished this summer. For some reason, I totally misread the pattern and knitted an extra large men's size for my daughter. Needless to say, those socks stayed in my drawer at the lake to be worn around the house. They were hideous and way too big. This is the same pattern, but but this time in the right size. I used some bits of cotton wool that I had remaining from other projects. Figured as short socks, they might work fine with my Birkenstocks. Couldn't find the original pattern, so I guessed a bit on the toe of the second sock. As imperfect as they are, I'll be the only one wearing these.

Still have a few projects to go. Mittens for my eldest and a pair fingerless gloves for someone at work. Not too much left to do in the last few days of the year.

Fingerless Gloves for Warm London

While an Arctic Blast causes plummeting temperatures in parts of the United States, London is still relatively warm. Have even opted out of wearing a coat the last few days... long sweater is all that's needed, especially when going into overly heated stores to Christmas shop. Although I'm currently working on a pair of mittens for my eldest who goes to school in central New York state, I'm also finishing a pair of fingerless gloves for someone at work. I think I've worn gloves only a handful of times this season and didn't really need them even then. Thought that this year I might just knit everyone fingerless gloves as they are really perfect for London much of the time.

Decided on the Sailor's Rib Fingerless Gloves by Gretchen Tracy because of all the interesting textures in the pattern, from the palm to the top of the hand. My friend suggested navy or gray and I happened to have two balls of something old I had gotten at a garage sale. In my mind I thought this yarn might be acrylic, which I guessed would be fine for a glove which may need to be washed more often. but when I looked more closely at the aging label, I realized it was actually 100% wool from New Zealand (or Australia), quite soft and a nice weight for the pattern. I've tried to research the company to see if they are still around, but I can't seem to find any information. When I look up Thorbred yarns, I see a few other labels, but truthfully, nothing that looks this old. Would love to hear if anyone knows how old this wool is. Still in very good shape... looks and feels great.

Iceland Is Cool!

So Iceland is pretty cold, but it's also really cool. Took a group of 20 students for a four-day tour of the country several weeks ago and learned a few things on from our guides that impressed me. By the way, did you see the politician giving a speech before Parliament while breastfeeding? We stood in front of and behind that parliament building where there was zero security as it's not needed. Although there are protests, they are peaceful... except for the racket. They bang on pots and pans. Our guide carries a wooden spoon around in his backpack in case he happens upon a protest and wants to join in. We also learned about Össur Kristinsson whose company Össur produces prosthetics... you know, those blades that the Paralympians wear? Almost all from that company. Very progressive country when it comes to the rights of women and workers and there's an extremely low unemployment rate (thanks in large part to tourism).

Besides the natural beauty, there was some wonderful wool as well. With 20 kids in tow, didn't really have much time to do wool shopping. Some that I did see was a bit scratchy, but to be fair, I only handled a couple of skeins in one shop. 

One of my favorite finds was a mitten that keeps your hand from getting cold when drinking a cold beverage outside. I so wanted this pattern, but couldn't find it for sale anywhere. Found the mittens, but didn't want to buy them already finished, so checked out Ravelry where I found a free download... might need to give it a try.

It wasn't until the airport that I finally had a minute to pick up a skein. Hespa seemed like the yarn of choice at Keflavík International. Not sure I can find a website to show the product as Icelandic businesses often seem to rely on Facebook as their official form of communication. Possibly this is the company website, but not entirely sure. If I ever go back to visit without students, I would love to visit where they make this plant-dyed yarn. The colors are absolutely beautiful. Would love to see more selection as well. Here on the right is the one lonely ball of yarn that I purchased in Iceland. Not sure what it will become, but loved the vibrant color.

If you're planning a trip, I highly recommend Iceland. We went when the weather was amazing, but have heard that it can be windy, wet and bitterly cold, so make sure to pack the wooly sweaters you've made and some knitting needles in case your need to whip up another hat or scarf to keep you warm.

London's Stitching & Knitting Show

  

My in-laws visited London recently and it just so happened that the Stitching and Knitting Show coincided with their visit. My mother-in-law is an avid quilter, knitter and cross-stitcher, so I figured she'd enjoy the show. I hadn't been in several years because it seems I can't resist temptation. In previous years I'd go thinking, "I'll just look," but I always came home with bags of yarn that I loved but had no immediate plans for (and we all know what that means... it sits in a bag in the closet for years, untouched). I have spent the last five years avoiding Ally Pally, trying to work through my stash instead of adding to it. As Grandma DeeDee is rarely in town, I decided to take her and I braced myself for the spending spree to come. 

Held once again at Alexander Palace, the show was an old familiar friend. Not much has changed since I last attended. There were still row upon row of vendors selling everything imaginable from quilting squares, notions and buttons, to knitting needles, patterns and sewing machines worth more than a small car. There were still the three-foot-high piles of bagged wool on the floor at the massive Black Sheep Wools stall. Women (and a few men to be fair) waded and pawed through to find deals on the yarns they love: Rowan, Debbie Bliss, Sublime, Louisa Harding, Noro (which I bought) and more. Then there were the galleries with the really amazing "artsy" museum pieces (a few pix below). And finally, the workshops, fashion shows, etc. All very familiar.

Color

I love the color at this show. The whole thing is a bit sensory overload. Found these pieces in the Gallery area and took photos just to remember the color combinations, which I loved.

Also love looking through the quilting squares (Liberty fabric or colorful batik prints are my favorites), often organized by color scheme or ROYGBIV. Then there were the balls of yarn spilling out of half-price bins or bagged up in stunning combinations of color and coupled with a fair isle pattern. Funny what the eye is drawn to and how different it can be from one person to the next. I love the combinations above, but sometimes found myself questioning others. Funny how we can be drawn to such different things.

Shading

Took photos of the needlework on these two cuties... the shading, which my horrible, rushed photos don't show well, was absolutely incredible. It was like the shading you do on an oil painting but done with thread. 

I suppose like anything, there's a huge difference between the average Joe who does some knitting and needlework, and the artists who did these. Part of me would love to be snarky about some of the tacky, kitschy stuff that people make or sell, especially after seeing what real "art" looks like, but I suppose the point of handwork isn't always the artistry of the end product, but the simple act of creation. Sometimes the function of a piece is more important than how unique or special it is. Sometimes the point is in the doing and the learning, not in the beauty of the finished piece. 

Just yesterday I was trying to explain that to a friend who was given some lovely yarn years ago that she doesn't know what to do with because she doesn't really knit. She brought the wool and a foot of a scarf on needles into work to show me. She hadn't touched the scarf for many years. It was riddled with holes from dropped stitches toward its start, but the knitting smoothed as the piece neared the needle. She doesn't have a burning desire to knit. It just doesn't seem interesting to her, but I encouraged her to give it another try, to continue for a while longer on the scarf and once she remembered what to do and the stitches once again smoothed, we could frog this mess and start again. I remember back to my first end products. So proud of them, even though they were a mess. And I WORE them! I didn't care what they looked like; I was proud that I had created something. 

These shows remind me that we're all in different places in our knitting or quilting or crafting lives. The final product doesn't have to hang in a glassed frame on the wall to make it worth doing. It was incredible to see so many people finding joy from the act of creation (or at least from the act of buying the materials to create). 

Hoping my mother-in-law enjoyed her visit to Ally Pally. We both left with a couple of bags. Tried to leave only with yarn I had a plan for... wish me luck getting through these new projects.