More Sporadic Updating--Knitting

[dmarley]

Dear United States Postal Service,

Thank you for finally delivering a knitting magazine to my mailbox. I take back all the nasty things I said about you.

I actually learned a new cast-on from said magazine (Vogue Knitting International, if anyone's interested). It's called the German Twisted Cast-On (the writer felt there was something a bit un-PC in the original name by which she learned it: The Twisted German Cast-On). It's a lot like the tried and true long-tailed cast-on, but with a couple of extra twists that add a purl bump to both sides of the cast-on edge, preventing the edge from rolling as much. I tried it out on one of my bear bags (see below), and it only takes about two milliseconds longer to do than a normal long-tailed cast-on. It did make a nice little edge, but it also has the not-always-desirable effect of making the edge look like I'd started with a solid purl row. Still, it'll be nice to use for things that I don't want to roll as much, and maybe it'll help me cast on a bit tighter.

In other knitting news, I've been working lately on some charity knitting, specifically knitting teddy bears for Teddies for Tragedies. It only takes me about a day to make a bear--even considering how much of said day is spent running around after Boo--but two or three days to make the optional bag to carry it in. They've been a lot of fun to make, and I was very, very grateful to have been carrying them around in my knitting bag when vaklam's toddler was in desperate need of a sanity thread. I'm told it's been well-loved. :)

I found out about the bear project through a knitting-pattern-a-day calendar I got for Christmas. The pattern was a really good one for the purpose, simply constructed and easy for even a beginning knitter to follow, but I took one look at it and went "Argh! Seams! Seams everywhere!" So I made up my own knitted-almost-entirely-in-the-round pattern, which is probably about fifteen thousand times more complicated, but which only has a few small weavings for finishing. Some knitters will go to any lengths to avoid purling. I'll purl, weave, steek, and even use a wretchedly fiddly invisible cast-on to avoid a seam. :)


I've also been doing some blanket squares for Warm Up America (Drat, didn't bookmark it. Well, I found it listed on the Woolworks knitting charity page). That's been taking precedence this weekend, since there is a deadline for the local store collecting them just now, and not one for the bears. I've made six so far, and I'd like to get a total of ten done. We'll see how that goes.

Comments

seams

[sanba38.livejournal.com]

I feel the same way about seams.

Darn it! I was wishing you were back on Live Journal the other day, and now I'm trying to remember what I wanted to tell you.

Oh yeah! It was actually a photo. Hmmmm...let me see what I can do.

Re: seams

[dmarley.livejournal.com]

I might type in the pattern I made up, just to amuse you. It's all knitted in the round with two circular needles (okay, with two back and forth flaps around the sleeves), and there are no seams, just Kitchner stitch grafting at the top of the head, the ends of the paws, and the feet. I'm doing the bags all in the round, too, but that's more common sense and less an obsessive attempt to avoid seams.

Re: seams

[sanba38.livejournal.com]

I don't even own a set of knitting needles currently.

I do have a sewing machine, and one last denim chair cushion to finish sewing.

[vaklam.livejournal.com]

I was very, very grateful to have been carrying them around in my knitting bag when [info]vaklam's toddler was in desperate need of a sanity thread. I'm told it's been well-loved. :)

Not half as grateful as I was! You (and the wonderful bear and the Boynton song) saved my life that afternoon!

Thanks again!

Photos

[sanba38.livejournal.com]

It's been almost a year now, so I'm gonna hafta demand recent photos from both-a-y'all!

My new user photo is the one I wanted to show you, but you can't see the book Djapana is oh-so-effectively covering as well in the 96X96 version. It's much clearer in the desktop size.

Never mind

[sanba38.livejournal.com]

It wasn't the photo at all. It was the cat whisker Djapana shed last night.

And how is Randy? Ever hear from him?

Re: Never mind

[dmarley.livejournal.com]

Funny you should ask about Randy. He called me out of the blue just before Chattacon, because he'd seen my name on the list of members. Sadly, both Samantha and Calli passed away a couple of years ago, Sam because of complications from thyriod disease (eep!), and Calli from a tumor, but he and Stephanie have two new cats to keep them busy. :)

I met up with Randy a couple of times at the con and chatted about this and that. He's working for Jack Daniels now, and really seems to like it there. He's tried to get a couple of novels published, but no luck, and I gather he's put writing on the back burner for now. It was really great to see him again. He hasn't changed a bit.