3 things I'm thinking on

1- THE COINS Oh, the coins. My knitting brain has been taken over. I adore knitting sweaters in winter yet I'm compelled to keep coining ever  onward.

Putting this scarf aside for a sweater might mean the coins rest unfinished till next winter... and I don’t want that!! I am falling short of my stripe-a-day plan but I figure I can block it to a longer length so I need less stripes in total, or so I have convinced myself.


2 - VALEDICTIONS  You know, your signoff at the end of an email. I'm focusing on the lameness of my options, specifically for  a work related email. Although I'm friendly with many of my clients, XO seems a little too... I dunno. Like I might dot my i with a happy face.

"Sincerely sounds cold, "Best" is vague (though I use it a lot). “Cheers!” is my standard but perhaps overly chipper. I brought this topic  up with two writers I photographed recently for author shots. They admitted they are similarly befuddled, so at least there's that comfort.  One told me she defaults to "Thanks"  ... and the other goes for “warmly”. It reminded me of a photographer I used to exchange notes with who signed off with " Camels and cocktails".  I always pictured him in a 1950's safari field jacket in an expat bar in  North Africa.  When I shared this with one of the writers, she signed her next  email “ Lattes and llamas"  Which isn't so bad. What do you use????
 
3-BREAK SHOT

I just finished listening to this and was surprised by how moved I was. I am not a super fan so I wasn't expecting how it touched me.   I mean, I grew up with his music, and some of his songs take me straight back to significant moments and many feel so personal. To hear him recount his life to age 21, when his album Sweet Baby James released, with the self-actualized hindsight he brings to it....I'm not sure how to sum it up. His story is pretty amazing,  just give it an ear.  Best 1.5 hours of listening I've spent in a long time. 

3 things on my thumbs up list

1. New sweater, done!

The Little Sock Arms Sweater is done and went to school shortly after this image was grabbed early this morning. Everyone, meaning Zoe and me, is very happy with it.

What? Were you expecting a professional looking photo shoot of the FO  from me? I laugh!  30 seconds with the phone before a quick run to the bus stop. Cobblers children all the way here!

Love this pattern and loved knitting it in Julia Vesper's Knitterly Things yarns. Super soft and great
colors. I knit it a little big on purpose to try to get two winters out of it. I mean, fingering weight sweaters do not grow on trees, right?  The pattern is also available as Sock Arms in adult sizes and, even more temptingly, in worsted weight. I love how the designer uses a picked up from the shoulder short row construction on the sleeves so you get stripes alllll the way down. 

2. More colors !

This scarf tube from the Mason Dixon Knitting Field Guide 13 Kaffe Fassett-palooza continues to get me through this season --along with nightly watching of The Spy.   Sometimes I get caught up inthe espionage and forget to keep knitting. 

No overarching plan for the colors- I am using up leftovers and scraps in Starcroft Fog. I accidentally hit the gray tone button filter in my phone and was amused to see that having strong contrast is not all that important to the success of the stripes--I like these color values. Sometimes it just works.   

I don't have enough knitting time to satisfy my addiction to this exercise- I am thinking  45 stripes of 1.5" will do it, I am on the number twelve.  If I do a stripe a night I'll have a new scarf in the beginning of March.  When we usually get slammed with a couple of snowstorms and ice so maybe that's my plan.

3. International Ice Cream for Breakfast Day is this Saturday Feb 1

 Three rules. Eat ice cream for breakfast. Before noon. On the first Saturday in February.
More info here.

I've been traveling for work for the last two years on this holiday but in 2020 we're setting out the ice cream topping buffet and honoring the day with friends the way we should be--I covered it some earlier years on this blog--like here and here. 

Don't say I didn't give you an advanced warning this year ==go  grab a pint.

sidekick hat + drop dead easy knits at vklive nyc

Join me and Kirsten Kapur with Drop Dead Easy Knits at Vogue Knitting Live  NYC this Sunday January 15, 2017 at the Dragonfly Fibers booth, NOON-3 PM  

If you already have our book,  come say hi and show us what you've been knitting from it.

 We will squeal with delight. I promise. 

I should be showing off my Sidekick Hat that I'm so so so close to finishing, knit in two colors of Dragonfly Fibers Djinni Sock . This design by Mary Lou Egan might be the most addictive colorwork pattern ever. It just flies. There's something very gratifying about seeing the squares build up, I keep wanting to knit just another couple of rounds.....
This all over pattern makes it look harder than it is, or you could say, makes me look more skilled than I am!  I (understatement alert) do not have the best memory. Yet, I haven't had to look at the chart since the eighth row. That means truly it is simple-- something you can knit while chatting, or watching, say, multiple episodes of Lilyhammer late at night.
 It is easy to track as you go, two colors, no float longer than four stitches(meaning the color not being used that is carried along the back), so you don't get all twisted up in catching long strands.  It's a good beginner colorwork project.  BTW? Colorwork with big graphics seems like it should be easy, but often isn't. Reference my stalled Passerine, to be continued at a calmer time when I can concentrate on the chart and long floats.

As far as choosing the yarn ....tough decisions!  Looking over the colors had me spinning. Kate's dyeing and colors are varied and beautiful. Contrast between the two yarns is important, and I worried about the variegated yarn detracting from the graphics. 
I settled on one almost solid neutral (Silver Fox, top), and a super bright (Oriental Poppy, bottom).  Although the pattern is written for sport weight, this fingering weight yarn works perfectly.  The range of contrast and color withing the Oriental Poppy is no  problem.  I absolutely LOVE how it looks knit in the repeats.

Lastly:
How thrilling is it to see PussyHats taking off? How're yours coming along? I've scavenged up the last couple of pink skeins here and am awaiting acquisition to knit more bulky last minute hats. Hot tip: Dragonfly Fiber  is offering their pinks at 15% off. through Sunday 1/15. I think I know what I may bring home from the weekend.

november post 16: in which we go on about colorwork

My new grey sweater is blocking, and my head is turned by colorwork. I love me a colorful project, and I'm thrilled that the lopapeysa/scandanavian/fair isle designs are popping up fresh like mushrooms after a good rain. Just looking through sweaters I've been up-close-and-personal with on photoshoots gives me crazy good options to consider..

clockwise: Bridget Pullover by Michele Rose Orne from Swans Island Yarn, Asymptote (womens version) from Modern Lopi by Lars Rains, Gulfoss by Cap Sease, from Green Mountain Spinnery

I like to always have a sweater on the needles and I am, for the moment, unfinished sweater- free. No way! We'll ignore the other UFO's that aren't sweaters and return to the sweater-starting task at hand.... here's even more color-y colorwork:

Phoebe Hat from Swans Island Yarn and Hildur by Lars Rains, Modern Lopi

Or graphic and modern and monochromatic-ish.... both below, on my to-do-list-for sure (I mean, c'mon, they are hats, they'll be done before I notice I'm knitting them)

Contrariwise by Elizabeth Elliott, and Trig, by Mary Lou Egan.

And that is not even looking at the patterns I didn't photograph.......or the mitts. 

So while I stew in my indecision juices for a day or two, I cast on another L'Arbre Hat. Solid.