Can I knit a cocoon?

This week, my baby got her driver’s license. For her, a milestone in freedom and independence. And, as we remind her often, in responsibility. For me, the next step in the “mother journey” – the continual exercise of letting go.

I’m happy for her, really; and I’m proud of her ability and her new skills. But there is a place deep inside me that wants to knit her a cocoon to keep her safe – from other drivers, from herself – and, heck – from the whole world. I want to wrap her in something thick and soft that will shield her from any harm. Like woolly bubble wrap. But little butterfly that she is, I know she’d eventually find her way out. And that’s as it should be.

Perhaps what I really want is not to knit, but to unravel. If life were more like knitting, I could gently pull the yarn of time and go back – to hold the tiny baby she was (and will always be to me) and to be able to control so much more of life’s dangers. I could re-knit the same pattern, but omit some of the mistakes I made along the way.

Life is not a sweater, however. Her life is changing, and so is mine. I wouldn’t have it any other way. But if you see my baby out there, treat her carefully. She’s precious.

Franklin in Michigan!

The weather was snowy -- the driving was terrible.

But I was first in line in the Threadbear parking lot yesterday to meet Franklin Habit. Which was good, because I had a baby shower to attend and the line got long fast.
See, this is how I know I am officially middle-aged -- my biggest celebrity crush is on a knitter. Who, by the way, is delightful in person. He does a great job of making his photo subjects feel completely at ease. Which is a real gift.

I knit on the scarf for the 1,000 Knitters project.

I talked to Franklin.

I watched him work.
I got my picture taken with him.
I was smitten. I want to fix him up with my brother.

Then I went to my sister-in-law's baby shower for another dose of feeling old. I actually heard myself saying things like, "Wow, they didn't have those (insert name of coolest new baby gadget) when I was having babies." Oh my God, it's exactly what my mother used to say when I was pregnant.

There was a lively conversation about the value of disposable vs. cloth diapers. I suggested to the women on the cloth side of the debate that I think we should return to cloth diapers as soon as all women are also ready to return to torn rags for sanitary feminine products. Not so many takers on that idea. Ah well, it's tough to be cutting edge.

Laura looked beautiful.

And she loved the peapod sweater set. Now, I just have to deal with my daughter and her friends who want them knitted up in their sizes.

Peapod Finished!

I finished the peapod sweater and hat for my sister-in-law's baby shower tomorrow. I love the pattern, and I designed a pair of baby socks to go with. Leaves on the ribbing and a little leaf on the heel.
And tomorrow, before I go to the shower, I am going to Threadbear to see Franklin! Scott laughed a couple of weeks ago when I saw Franklin's post that he was coming to Lansing -- because I squealed like a middle-school girl with a crush. Who'd have thought knitting bloggers would make me swoon?

Anyway, I'm really looking forward to meeting him -- and I would LOVE to be part of 1,000 Knitters. But I'm not sure how that process works.

So, I may be late to the shower. But hey, I could get a chance to meet Dolores.

Where in the world?

You know, I've had statcounter on my blog for a while. And really, I was stunned to find out that anyone besides my sister was reading it.

But then, the other day, I realized that statcounter had a little map feature on it. So you can find out where your readers live.

Oh

my

God!

From the map, it appears that you come from all over -- Berlin, Norway, France, Ireland, London, Cincinnati, British Columbia, Lima (Ohio), Brazil and other US cities too numerous to mention.

Wow.

I'm feeling pressure to write better. To be more interesting. To lose more weight before I post another picture. (I'm at 43 pounds and counting -- although, over Christmas, the counting came to a screeching halt. Because Christmas cookies and eggnog make a screeching sound, right?)

So ... next blog post, we'll have POETRY!! (Because really, I know that's what you all want to read. Right? right?)

Feeling productive ...

The knitting part of my life feels productive lately. I've finished the Ice Queen -- I really loved knitting this, which surprised me, because the only time I knit with mohair in the past -- I have to be honest -- I loathed it. But the Rowan Kidsilk Haze is soft, silky, delightful. I'd make something with it again in a heart beat. I've gotten lots of compliments on this; the only thing I would change would be to make it a couple of inches longer. I chose not to switch to the smaller needle for the bind off because I really wanted a loose drape around my face, not something tight.

And Scott's Norwegian hat is also in the "FO" pile. He loved it. I was pretty pleased as well. The leftover yarn will now go to a pair of mittens for my son, who has very specifically requested what he wants in a mitten.

I'm also making great progress on the peapod sweater for my not-yet-born nephew, Joseph. I'm using Reynolds' Seasoft. It's nice, with a lot of bounce. And Kate Gilbert's pattern is completely adorable.

It is good that I am making progress with knitting, because I haven't spun since the last guild meeting, and the weaving is languishing on the loom. But I bought a book on rigid heddle weaving from my sister's bookstore, so I'll be studying that shortly. I feel like the little engine -- I think I can, I think I can.

Brrrr!

We woke up this morning to cold air blowing from the furnace vents. Scott is in the basement even as I type, trying to figure out what's wrong with the blasted thing. Meanwhile, let us give thanks for wool.


Yesterday was our monthly Spinner's Flock meeting. This is a great group, and I am thankful for the years of help they have given me (and many others) in learning to spin.

There was spinning and chatting --

shopping (so much fleece, so little time) --

and a happy gathering of fellow fiber addicts --

Not all of our members are, precisely speaking, human. This little guy provides some lovely angoraEspecially after his haircut --

I bought a few books about weaving, which serve to teach me that there is so much I do not know. Lessons are clearly in my future.

I am casting off the Ice Queen and am hoping to wear it this week. And I finished the Norwegian-patterned hat I designed for Scott.

Pictures will follow, but my fingers are getting too cold for the keyboard. I hear Scott on the phone with the furnace-repair guy, so I'm going to head out for practice driving with my daughter --- the car will be warm, and the adrenaline rush will keep me alert.

Old car, new life

The other day, we sold my 1999 Ford Escort. It was time for it to go to a new home, and I was glad to sell it, but it was bittersweet as well.

When I got divorced in 1998, this was my first major purchase. It was the first new car I'd had since 1982 and it became a sign of my independence. I really could do this alone-- raise two children, earn a living, go back to graduate school. Over time, I've bought other cars, gotten better jobs, married a wonderful man. My son drove the car through high school and half of college. It now sports a rock station window sticker that somewhat negated its "mom car" status.

It never broke down, never needed more than routine maintenance for more than 150,000 miles. And for me, it is a symbol of what I could do -- of strength I didn't know I had. In so many ways, that car never let me down.

In remembering the time of my life when I bought the car, I thought about other things I counted on. My family and friends -- there aren't words to express what they did for me.

And oddly, I also thought about knitting. I began knitting for my children in the midst of a marriage whose difficulties exceed description. I won't even try. But knitting became my distraction -- something close enough that a screamer couldn't come between me and it. It became a way to express love to my children and family, a place to focus my energy and anger. I knitted through some horrible times -- and in some ways, it was the knitting that kept my sanity intact.

Now, I knit for creative expression, for meditation, for the pleasure of yarn in my hands, and color and pattern before my eyes. Now, I knit for joy.

Happy New Year!

Will I ever be a weaver?

I am having a great time with my new rigid heddle loom. But what a lot to learn! I took a few weaving books out of the library just to familiarize myself with some of the terms. I think it will be really good for me to crack open the rusty old brain and try to gain some new skills.

In the meantime, however, this is some pretty sorry-looking weaving --

Selvedges are clearly not my friends.

I am taking the occasional break from weaving to take comfort with my old friend knitting. Since Christmas, I've made myself a pair of felted mittens to match my daughter's. So quick! So warm! So easy!

And I've begun the Ice Queen from Knitty -- I'm using a warm red Kidsilk Haze and some size 8 beads in almost a matching color. They add a little sparkle without being too glitzy.

Tomorrow, we take a break from all things fiber for our traditional New Year's Eve celebration. Karen and David will be coming over for an hours-long, multi-course dinner of wild mushroom crostini, consomme, shrimp salad with lime-ginger dressing, (the wonderful palate-cleansing citrus sorbet with its generous helping of tequila), beef wellington, grilled asparagus and lemon sponge pudding with raspberry sauce. I shall obviously be spending time cooking tomorrow -- and enjoying every minute of it. This is our favorite way of ringing in the New Year -- friends, family and good food. (And champagne!)

Wishing all of you a wonderful 2008!

Peace.

Happy Day after Boxing Day

I've always loved the day after Christmas. In fact, all the days between Christmas and New Year's Day are among my favorites. The house is clean and nicely decorated. There are plenty of cookies already baked to serve when people come over. The stress of the holiday itself is over.

And there are toys to play with!

Christmas was wonderful -- over many days, we saw friends and family. We went to Greenfield Village for the Holiday Nights extravaganza. (Of course, on our chosen night, Dec. 23, there were wind advisories and a wind chill factor of -1F. But hey, that's what wool is for, right?)Gifts were finished on time. Scott loved his vest. (Perhaps not quite as much as his new Nikon D40x digital SLR camera, but close) Caroline loved her knitted, felted mittens. Ileana was happy with her alpaca scarf.

And Andrew's socks were a hit, except for a bit of bagginess around the ankle. His legs are slimmer than his size 13 feet would suggest. So, I'm going to try a bit of fulling. I'd better not over-shrink these, because I dread the idea of making another enormous pair.

Kathy's felted tote, filled with handspun yarn and crochet materials, was well-received. And everyone loved their ornaments. All in all, a good gift-giving holiday.

And a great gift-getting holiday. Among many lovely things, I received some Schaefer yarn and a knitting bag from the Point in New York, courtesy of Ileana. (coincidentally, we got each other's names in the family name-draw. No, really, the fact that I was the organizer of the drawing is just serendipity. )

My son gave me Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitting Workshop DVD, my daughter gave me a knitting book.

And my darling husband gave me a 32" rigid heddle loom!

I have wanted to dabble a bit in weaving. Nothing too much. Perhaps. In any event, after warping it wrong -- and then figuring out my mistake, cutting off all the yarn and warping it right -- I have started playing with weaving. There is nothing like trying to learn a completely new skill to appreciate how much I don't know. But hey, it will keep my mind sharp, right?

And even though this one was finished this summer, I never took a picture of it. So, here is the beaded evening bag I made as a wedding gift for my new sister-in-law, Cathy. It's 100% silk, lined with velvet. And was a bit of a pain to knit.

Hope you all had a wonderful, peaceful holiday and wishing you a fabulous new year!

Christmas countdown

Ack! We celebrate Christmas tomorrow with my family, and I still need to bake cookies (peanut blossoms, butter cookies with icing and gingersnaps to replace the ones my son apparently found). I have a squash casserole to make, and not a gift has been wrapped.

Oh, and the knitting.

Scott's vest is still not finished. I had picked up all the stitches for the buttonband the other night, when the cable for my Knitpicks Options needles snapped. And stitches slid smoothly off that nice flexible material. Sigh. I'm hopeful this is just a fluke with one cable, and not indicative of a problem, because otherwise, I love these needles. No snagging at the join, smooth -- love them.

I have now picked up the dropped stitches, knitted past the buttonholes-- and just need to do a couple more rows on the button band. Then the armhole bands, the side seams, sewing on the buttons and blocking!

I also have to put the cuffs on these --

Felted mittens for my daughter.

Although I feel slightly overwhelmed, I realize my knitting schedule is nothing compared to Stephanie's. I figure if she can get all those projects finished in time, then I too should be able to travel through a rift in the space-time continuum and do the same.

Merry Christmas.

Sometimes I love winter

Like many people in the Midwest, we had a few inches of snow on Sunday. Fortunately for us, we had none of the negative power outages or tragedies that many others experienced. Instead, we are left with this ---

It looks like Christmas!

I finished the felted tote for Kathy. Remember that I did not buy nearly enough yarn for this when I was at Fingerlakes Fibers in Watkins Glen, NY? So, I had Matt from ThreadBear in Lansing order me some. Not only did it come in time, it was the SAME dye lot. I felt like Julie Andrews singing, "Somewhere in my youth or childhood, I must have done something good."

Since Scott was around all weekend (which is a good thing and yet makes gift knitting so hard), I got a chance to knit up a pair of felted mittens for Caroline

I just need to add cuffs and they can go in the stocking on Christmas morning.

Now, if I can just get back to Scott's vest.

How many knitting days until Christmas?

This has been a week of major progress. My sister-in-law's felted tote is finished and successfully fulled. Yessss! It is in the dryer even as I type. Photos to come.

Ileana's scarf is finished --

And Scott and I have finished about a dozen of these (I know the picture is not great -- in an unusual moment for Michigan, there was too much sunshine. I couldn't bring myself to close the blinds -- we may not see the sun again for months.)

They are knitted, beaded ornaments with turned finials and icicles. We actually got enough of them finished to give away for Christmas. (Of course, we didn't finish any in time for the Spinner's Flock annual holiday sale, but there's always next year, right?)

A few years ago, I made this for Scott

and I love it. So, when I was on my birthday yarn crawl this year, I bought a complementary kit for a stocking for me --

Since I made a Norwegian stocking this year (that is still hanging in Carol's store), I don't think this one is a rush. But I'd like to have it for next year -- so if I actually started some time before next November, that would be good, yes?

I also bought a copy of this almost two months ago, and I am getting itchy to start some of these socks. If you haven't looked at this book, it's mind-blowing. I cannot wait to try out some of the techniques in it. Perhaps I'll get a chance over my two-week Christmas break.

We're all waiting for the blizzard "they" have predicted will be hitting us overnight. I'm grateful to be home, warm and safe -- and with my Christmas shopping finished!!! Tomorrow, I'll enjoy the snow and bake cookies with my daughter.

(The astute among you will notice that I did not mention Scott's vest during this post. I am in denial. The number of hours left to knit and the amount of knitting actually left to do may not exactly correspond to reality. Perhaps the wool elves will show up during the night and finish a few rows for me. Or the big guy in the red suit himself?)

Christmas Panic Knitting

The panic has officially begun! I have two weekends prior to the first family Christmas celebration. And those weekends are filled with Spinner's Flock and knitting group parties, Christmas parades and Christmas-tree-setting-up.

And let's not forget weekdays filled with work. It is at these moments I wish there was more mass transit -- I could get a lot of knitting done in the three-hours total that commute each day.

And Scott's vest still needs a right front, and the neck and button bands.

My sister-in-law's felted bag is still more like a do-it-yourself knitting/felting project.

I was hoping to make some felted mittens for someone's stocking -- but I'm not sure it's going to happen.

Take a deeeep breath.
It helps to make the scream louder.

It would help if I read the pattern ...

I was busily knitting away on a felted tote for my sister-in-law, when I realized there was no way I was going to have enough yarn.


I don't mean I was a little short -- I mean I only had about half of what I need. I have no idea how I did this. I bought the yarn (Lamb's Pride Worsted) and the contrasting yarn (Noro Kureyon) and the pattern (Fiber Trends) all at the SAME place -- Fingerlakes Fibers in Watkins Glen, NY.


At first, I thought maybe I just started knitting the wrong size. But no, I don't have enough for even the smallest size and I know that wasn't what I intended anyway. The Kureyon will be fine -- it's the Lamb's Pride I'm woefully short of. I think I need about 1400 yards, and I have 600.

Obviously, I did not read the pattern.

At all.

So it was off to ThreadBear in Lansing today. GREAT place, if you haven't been there. Matt is ordering my yarn. And with any luck, I'll get it in time to finish the bag.

If not, my sister-in-law will be really happy with her "make your own felted bag" kit, won't she?

Christmas knitting

Thanksgiving week was wonderful -- a poetry reading by Laura Kasdorf on Monday, time with my daughter, family on Thursday and on Saturday.

And fiber-wise, I finished five more knitted and beaded ornaments -- ready for Scott to add the turned cherry finials and icicles. And Ileana's scarf is finished, grafted together and blocked. The back of Scott's vest and half of the left front are finished too. And yesterday, I spent some time demonstrating at the Spinner's Flock Holiday Fair in Ann Arbor. It's always inspiring to see what beautiful things the members of our guild make -- and I succumbed to some socks (all my handknit socks were in the laundry basket) and some handspun to give as part of a Christmas gift.

Hoping everyone's Thanksgiving was filled with peace, friends and family.

Ouch!

I learned a very valuable lesson last night.

When you leave a knitting bag on the seat of your car, it is important to check that these

are not poking through before you sit on the bag.

And I have definitively determined that you really can penetrate flesh pretty far with an Addi Turbo.

Just a word of warning.

Birthday stash!

Yesterday was my birthday -- we won't say which one -- suffice to say it ends in "9."

In a sequel to last year's fabulous yarn store crawl, Scott took me on another tour -- this time of shops in Northwest Ohio (and one in Michigan that was almost in Ohio)


First, we went to Vintage Yarns in Lambertville -- what a great store and lovely people. I bought an Elegant Heirloom stocking kit (The Hapsburg Santa). I made the Christmas tree version for Scott a few years ago and loved it, so I'm making one for me.


Then it was off to Marblehead, Ohio, home of an old lighthouse and some fascinating history involving the Revolutionary War, cholera and the first woman lighthouse keeper. You should look it up. We visited Just for Ewe, a really cute little shop --

packed with lots of yarn --

I bought some of the Noro Kureyon -- for socks!

There were also some hungry fiber animals --

and who am I to resist making a llama smile?

And some not-fiber animals, but cute nonetheless.

Christi has lots of gifts and Christmas ornaments, and she's a knitter and spinner. What's not to love?


After lunch overlooking the marshes, we headed to Perrysburg and visited Dale Ann and Bobbie at Yarn Haven, which is located in a little house on Second Street. They are warm and friendly, and helpful without being pushy. I bought Cat Bordhi's New Pathways for Sock Knitters and Knitting Memories (on CD, so I can listen in the car.)


Last was FiberWorks in Toledo. Packed with great stuff, and now missing a few skeins of Rowan's KidSilk Haze.


After all that yarn, we had to get sustenance. So we headed to Barnes and Noble to make shameless use of their restrooms to change into our clothes for dinner. And of course, we were in a bookstore, so I had to buy Knitting America --
and then it was off to Diva in Toledo for one of the best meals I've had in a long time. Absolutely fabulous food, and a lovely wait staff.


And dinner with the person I love most in this world.
Truly a happy birthday.