Kind of Like a Ghost Town
Things around the Village have been pretty quiet lately. Not that life hasn’t continued to gush forth as it does, but I’ve been more introspective and spending a lot of time trying to be involved and present in my own life. This seems to be a good thing.
I am close to completing my Socks That Rock socks, but I must have relaxed my tension a little on the second one, because instead of getting 8 stitches to the inch, I am only getting 7.5. Also, I’m not happy with the cuff and I don’t like the cast on I used. Would it be crazy to rip them both out and start over in order to get something I really liked? This yarn is too scrumptious to be making socks that I don’t want to wear every single day. You know what I mean?
And since there will be no new yarn purchases until Maryland, I decided to cast on for the Kiri shawl with some Alchemy merino/silk that my mother bought for me when I was back in Minnesota. Oh. My. God. This yarn is divine. I want to just lay down in it and fall asleep. It is shiney. It is soft. The color shifts subtley from a bright ruby red to a deep crimson. The pattern is simple, yet interesting and I don’t want to work today, because all I want to do is knit on this. As I was sitting in the living room with my sweetie yesterday I told him that this feeling was precisely why it is worth spending money to get yarn you like. Better to make a few things that you love than a hundred things you only like.
Spinning has also been happening. Last week I was finally able to make it to the monthly spin-in at the local handweaving guild, which was very enjoyable and so nice to meet some local fiber folks. As always, just a little time with the wheel got me wanting a whole lot more. I think I’ve been afraid of finishing up the BFL before Maryland and not having anything to spin until then. But I tend to get a little obsessive about things and once I got going, I couldn’t stop.
I am feeling pretty good about my speed and consistency — especially for lace and fingering weight yarns. However, I think I tend to put too much twist in it and this results in yarn that is not as soft as I would like. I find that there is a fine line between too tight and so lose it falls apart. So I am experimenting with my tension and speed to see if I can come up with something a little more scrumptious. This has resulted in slightly thicker singles. Early on I fell so in love with spinning fine singles that I haven’t really done anything else, so this has been interesting. I wonder if I can manage to translate the softness of these thicker singles to something fine. Hmmm. Experimentation continues.
Finally, tonight I will have the opportunity to see the Yarn Harlot in person as she is coming to my much beloved Loop. Also, it will be nice to see the always Enchanting Juno again, since she is just one of those people who makes you feel better about the world. Hope to see some of you there — I’ll be the quiet girl in black sitting timidly in the corner (or I might be in the middle of the room belting out show tunes dressed in something saucy and red — I haven’t decided what sort of mood I’m in yet). I will tell you one thing though, it is not going to be easy to get out of there without spending a little money on yarn. Craig is so nice you just want to give him your money. And can you say Lorna’s Laces sock yarn? How many more days until Maryland?
April 10th, 2006 at 4:20 pm
That Alchemy yarn sounds fab. Have a great time at the Harlot reading.
I won’t see you at maryland because it is just too far south for me. We are going to NH instead. Smaller but actually doable from here.
April 11th, 2006 at 8:03 am
Definitely rip out those socks, or at least one of them. You may like the first sock well enough to leave it. I rip finished things on a regular basis. I’ve recently lost weight and will be reknitting many of my sweaters. I won’t wear them if they’re like tents and I love the yarn and pattern.
April 12th, 2006 at 6:01 am
Isn’t Alchemy wonderful? I knit a Melissa Leapman design in Foggy Notion (birthday present a couple of years ago) and loved working with it.
The singles change as you wash them and beat them about during the wash. They also change in twist when you ply (loosen). I know what you mean….this learning curve can be frustrating, because each different fiber I spin, I do something a little different that I thought was missing on the last batch. But it’s usually different fiber…am I comparing apples and apples or apples and oranges?
Hope to make it MD. Would love to meet you.
April 19th, 2006 at 8:40 am
I agree with Lorraine–re-do those socks if you’re not satisfied. “In for a penny, in for a pound.”
And I agree with you–it’s only worth your investment of time, $, and frustration if you’re totally orgasmically in-love with your materials and your project.
Glad you’re getting some time to network with local knitters/spinners. Hope you get many more opportunities for that!