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Category: Knit (page 11 of 25)

Getting Crafty

September 16, 2007 / / 10 Comments

How appropriate that after blogging about the sounds of summer this past week treated us to a taste of fall weather. And how better to spend a fall-like Saturday than at a fair? The Renegade Craft Fair was in town this weekend so that became the starting point for a fun Saturday with friends. After picking up Kristy & Elaine we headed over towards the fair. We spent several hours looking through all of the booths of fun, quirky, unique and beautiful items. While I didn’t leave with nearly as many things as previous fairs this summer I did pick up a few things as a jump start for Christmas gifts. (As such, they are tucked inside the cute zippered pouch that I picked up for me)

Renegade Loot

Our time on Division ended with a great mid afternoon meal at Aki Sushi. It was our first time at Aki and we weren’t disappointed with our order. Since we were feeling crafty we decided to check out a “new to us” local yarn – Knitwerks. For several months I had been wanting to check out this store and after hearing Lolly and Nova rave about it when they were in town I knew I needed to get there soon. All of the buzz that I’ve heard was right – this is a great addition to the Chicago yarn community. So many beautiful yarns and colors – you just want to touch it all. Cherrl was so welcoming and friendly – Kristy’s sandal had broken and she offered a nearby store to pick-up a pair of flip-flops, our next visit will need to include time to check out the nearby Italian cafe that she recommends. Of course, we didn’t leave there empty handed. Elaine discovered the beauty of Dream in Color yarn and picked up a couple of skeins – she isn’t sure if she is going to crochet a scarf or have me teach her to knit one. I also picked up some needed needles and also some yarn for gift knitting (so no pictures here).

Speaking of local yarns – have you seen KnitMap.com? It has just launched and aims to collect all of the local yarn shops in one “go to” site with ratings and comments from local knitters. As someone who travels a lot, this will be a frequently visited site. I’ve already added one of my favorite shops to the mix.

Saturday’s weather was perfect for revealing a new knit project. Earlier this summer I made a scarf as a gift for Elaine (either a very belated gift for her last birthday or an early gift for this year). I gave it to Elaine first thing and it turned out that it matched her turtleneck perfectly so it immediately was put to use. Introducing – Sage Friend:

A Sage Friend
The details: Midwest Moonlight from Scarf Style; 2 skeins of Baby Pima from Catalina Yarns; Size 10 needles; This was a very fast knit. The yarn was very soft and even after blocking it retained the softness.

There has been a lot of knitting happening around here in recent weeks. Some has been gift knitting so it can’t be revealed. Other items are ready to show.

First up: Silky Summer Scarf

Silky Summer Scarf
The details: Montego Bay Scarf from Interweave Knits, Summer 2007; 1 skein of Brooks Farm Yarn – Limited Edition 3 (picked up at Midwest Fiber & Folk Art in July); Named Silky Summer because of being a summer knit – which will keep me warm in the fall & winter. This yarn was such a treat to work with – it was so fun to see the colors change from one to another and also see the yarn change from really thick to really thin. I’m glad I picked up 2 more skeins of this for another project.

Next up: Knit for a Cure

Knit for a Cure
The details: Based on Bejeweled; 2 skeins of Lion’s Brand Nature’s Choice Organic Cotton in Strawberry; Size 13 needles; Knit in preparation for a Breast Cancer Awareness event. Stay tuned for details. This was my first time working with this yarn and it was great to work with – I think I might add it to my list of baby blanket yarns. The resulting scarf is so soft. As I’ve said before, the Bejeweled stitch pattern is a great go-to pattern and each time I knit it the result is beautiful – on the large needles this was a fast knit – I started & finished it this weekend while catching up on my Netflix.

During the odd bits of time & while watching movies at the theater I’ve continued to build up the dishcloth stash.

More Dishcloths

Many other projects are currently on the needles – including some holiday gifts (so no pictures). The knits that can be shown are very appropriate for this final month of Project Spectrum 2.0 – variations on browns.

Brown Knits

Chocolate & Spice Socks – my current “basic sock” (in Trekking XXL #183) that stays in the work backpack or purse; Celebration Tote – my latest felted bag starts with a lot of brown knitting.

While the list of projects I want to knit seems to be never ending it is nice to see projects get completed and come off the needles.

Sounds of Summer…(& Socks, Too)

September 8, 2007 / / 8 Comments

Hibiscus Bloom

…the buzz of the air conditioner
…the gentle whir of the ceiling fans
…the repeating song of the neighborhood ice cream truck
…this year, cicadas
…ice cubes clinking in a glass of iced tea
…the sprinklers watering the lawns
…the neighborhood kids playing outside till well after dark
…lawnmowers starting
…fireworks being shot off by neighbors
…summer rainstorms – some (or a lot this year) with thunder & lightning

…songs under the stars…

With all of my work travel last summer it seemed like I didn’t hear a lot of the sounds of summer. Being back home in Chicago this summer has meant the opportunity to hear many sounds. In addition to the “routine” sounds of summer, a few summer evenings have been spent at favorite outdoor concert venues.

In June, my all time favorite band, Pink Martini, finally played at Ravinia Festival. (when I first heard them 5 years ago I immediately thought they would be a great act for this fun summertime venue) It was a perfect Chicago summer evening for this concert. Seven of us brought our folding lawn chairs, blankets and all the fixings for a simple picnic spread – while waiting for Pink Martini to take the stage, I did some sock knitting. By the time the first band took the stage the lawn was pretty filled; however, many people left after Arturo Sandoval – all the more room to spread out and enjoy the show.

In July, The Decembrist’s were in town playing with the Grant Park Orchestra at Millennium Park. Rain threatened as we gathered on the lawn to picnic – the first 30 minutes or so ended up being rainy but that didn’t stop the fun. The lawn was packed with concert goers. As the final song was being performed another storm came in so the music was accented with thunder & lightning that only added to the effect. As we headed for the parking garage after the show the sky opened up.

This week allowed for one last summer outing to Millennium Park – The Joffrey Ballet performed to the tunes of The Beach Boys, Motown and Prince. After a teasing rain shower as we headed to the park the evening turned out to be perfect weather for show. I love to watch the lights of the city come alive through the canopy of the Pritzker lawn.

The Joffrey @ Millennium Park
(more pictures here)

As I’ve listened to the sounds of summer I have been knitting away on my “summer socks” that I started back in May. While enjoying the ballet this week I finished up the second sock (actually, all but the Kitchener on the toe but by then it was too dark to do it). These are the 3rd pair of socks that I have made – again using the 2 circular needles method. This time I used size 1 needles and did a 4×2 rib pattern & continued it around the entire foot. I picked up this yarn (ONline Supersocke 100 Summer Color) on my first visit to My Sisters Knits, right after I started blogging, I loved the colors on the skein and as the stripes appeared during the knitting process I loved the colors even more. The colors of these socks remind me of the colors of my pot of portulaca on the back deck.

Summer 2007 Socks

Before long the seasonal soundtrack will change and the crunch of fallen leaves underfoot will become a loud chorus. This fall as I crunch through the leaves I will be wearing handknit socks for the first time – I can’t wait.

Of course, I have another sock on the needles – actually I started it about a month ago. This time, I’m using an “actual” pattern – Ampersand and am loving how the tvyarn is knitting into the sock so far.

MTM Socks

What sounds are “the sounds of Summer 2007” for you?

Face to Face

September 1, 2007 / / 11 Comments

In addition to being a place to write about my artistic endeavors and other things, one of the perks of blogging is making many new friends “in the virtual world” and on occassion I’ve been lucky enough to meet some of these friends in person.

This week provided me with a triple blogger encounter. First up, meeting up with Lolly, who was in town for a conference. (It turned out that her conference hotel was right next door to my current project site.) Lolly was one of the first bloggers that I started reading as I was contemplating joining the blog world so I was thrilled to hear that she was coming to Chicago & that our schedules allowed us to meet-up. On Sunday evening we met up for dinner – we went to one of my favorite places, Reza’s Restaurant, for a delicious spread of Persian food. After dinner we walked back through the city and I played a bit of tour guide, pointing out buildings & interesting facts along the way. What’s a knitter meet-up without knitting? We ended our evening working sitting, knitting & chatting. Lolly was working on the beautiful Malabrigo sweater and I also got to see the beautiful purple shawl that accompanied her on her recent Peru adventures. It was a lovely evening of conversation and friendship – because of blogging, this felt like catching up with an old friend rather than meeting one for the first time.

As the week progressed we made plans to visit The Field Museum on Friday morning – my work schedule allowed me to take the day off which meant I had a chance to be a tourist in my own town. What started as one plan for the morning turned into a full day of fun! The weather was ideal for walking along the lakefront to the museum, so Lolly & I set out for the museum with Nova, Paige & Cynthia (fellow conference attendees).

A stroll along the lakefront

Along the way we had fun seeing the current Chicago public art installation, Cool Globes.

A few Cool Globes

Right in front of the Field was the perfect globe for the knitters among us – Adjust the Thermostat by Lindsay Obermeyer – a globe that had been covered in a handknit sweater.

Knit Friends

(all pictures here)

We spent several hours wandering through the exhibit halls – it had been several years since I had been the museum so it was great to see it again, it is truly a museum that never fails to be enjoyable.

SUE

My favorite exhibit of this visit was Plant Portraits: The California Legacy of A. R. Valentien – I was unfamiliar with this artist but the combination of botanical prints & a focus on California was a great combination for me.

California Oak

Before long it was time to head back to the hotel – while everyone was in their afternoon sessions I passed the time with an iced coffee, a new magazine and some knitting (of course). After their afternoon conference sessions wrapped up, several of us piled into a cab for a bit of local yarn – a trip to Loopy Yarns. The collective purchases were minimal – mostly some magazines, a few supplies and some sock yarn.

The evening included a reception at Millennium Park. When that was over, it was time for more knitting. Lolly, Nova & I sat in the hotel lobby to knit and were soon joined by Rebecca. What started out as “oh, just a quick bit of knitting before calling it an evening” turned into several hours of knitting and great conversation. As we called it an evening we were able to get a quick picture of all of us with our projects.

Knitting in the lobby

Thanks girls for letting me hang out with you for the day – what a fun way to start off a holiday weekend!

Seasoned Stitchers

August 12, 2007 / / 13 Comments

As you may have read on other blogs, Stitches Midwest was in Chicago this weekend. So for the third Saturday morning this summer, I picked up iced coffees & my knit pals, Jen & Kristy, and headed out for some fiber fun.

When we arrived at Stitches last year I think “overwhelmed” was a very accurate word to describe our collective reaction to everything. This year, all three of us were much more prepared to make our way through the offerings. Since the Fiber and Folk Art Fair last month, we each had spent some time coming up with supply lists so that our shopping had purpose. After three hours in the marketplace we all were pleased with our purchases.

Handles Haul

Among my purchases – some leather bag handles from Homestead Heirlooms. The brown handles are for my stash bag that has been “in progress” for way too long. It is finally felting today & should be put into use soon. The pink handles are for my next felted tote project – which includes the brown and pink wool I picked up at the Webs booth.

Button Stash

A stop into the Color In Stitches booth yielded quite a stash of buttons. The best find was a semi-hidden basket of vintage buttons – there were all sorts of fun shapes, colors, sizes & the prices were some of the best I’ve seen for vintage things. I don’t have projects in mind for them but they will definitely serve as inspiration.

Brooks Farm Blue

Last month I picked up some Limited Edition 3 yarn from Brooks Farm that is becoming a Montego Bay scarf. It is a beautiful yarn that ebbs and flows from thicker to thinner weight. This weekend I picked up 2 additional skeins in a beautiful blue – I plan to turn this into Nereides.

Blueberry Mix yarn

My biggest purchase was also one that I never thought I’d make – yarn for a sweater for me. I picked up a beautiful Berreco Ultra Alpaca in Blueberry Mix at Webs. Stay tuned for details as I venture into my first sweater project this fall.

Button Yarn & Buttons

The last purchase of the day was at Black Water Abbey. I was immediately drawn to this Butter color. Last year I purchased the Seafoam color which has stayed in my stash – so I’m thinking of a project to incorporate both yarns. And these buttons were too cute to pass up. At the Black Water Abbey booth it was also fun to reconnect with Judy, my Vacation Knit Swap pal from last summer.

While wandering the aisle we stopped by to say hi to Jack & Kim at the Sit & Knit/Cast On, Bets Off booth where Jack was busy signing copies of the mystery the entire time we were chatting with them.

This year Stitches was sharing the convention center with a Wizard World convention – which yielded some extreme people watching opportunities. As we left the Marketplace, (classic) Batman & Robin got on the escalator in front of us. Jen’s husband Greg is a huge Batman fan – so it was only fitting to quickly get this picture with my cell phone.

As we headed back to the car – still giggling from the Batman picture which we emailed to Greg from the parking deck – we all were pleased with our purchases and joked that we were indeed Seasoned Stitchers with how we tackled the marketplace this year with purpose.

The day ended at Jen’s with Thai food, a movie, and of course knitting. I refrained from casting on any of the new purchases – rather I spent most of the evening working on a project with yarn from last year’s Stitches stash.

Sunflowers

August 5, 2007 / / 12 Comments

My sister and I have always considered ourselves to be Sunflower Gals – even with all the moving around that we did while growing up, our home was always Kansas. From an early age I have always considered the sunflower to be a favorite flower; throughout the years I have collected many sunflower things and at times decorated with sunflowers (although all sunflower decor items are not equal and I can be a bit picky about what I use).

Sunflowers

The sunflower was named the Kansas state flower in 1903:

This flower has to all Kansans a historic symbolism which speaks of frontier days, winding trails, pathless prairie and is full of the life and glory of the past, the pride of the present and richly emblematic of the majesty of the golden future, and is a flower which has given Kansas the world-wide name, ‘The Sunflower State.'”

Earlier this spring when Laura sounded the call for Rebuilding Greensburg – Block by Block I knew that was a “comfort knit” project that I needed to participate in. I dug into my stash and came up with the perfect yarn: Sunflowers that I had purchased from Cabin Cove Mercantile last summer. This was a thinner yarn, so I held it double and cast on in the Grandma’s Favorite pattern. The yarn knit up beautifully and the squares were so soft and squishy. In no time, 3 squares were complete. When I started the 4th square the yarn cake turned into a large knot. Since I had planned to knit more than 3 squares, a quick search on Etsy yielded another Sunflower inspired yarn from Laughing Rat Studios. The 5 additional squares I made with this yarn were a great simple knit when I needed some knitting to “slow down” from everything else going on over the last month.

Rebuilding Greensburg

While I was stateside and knitting on my sunflower yarn, my sister had the opportunity to go on a summer missions trip to Moldova – she was a chaperone for the church youth group. When I was home this past weekend, Rebecca showed me hundreds of pictures that she took on this life changing trip and told stories of her adventures – she also pulled together a highlights website. The group was involved in two camps while there – Rebecca was a part of the soccer camp. An unexpected highlight of the trip was the plethora of sunflower fields – did you know that Moldova produces a lot of sunflower oil? One afternoon her camp team was able to “frolic in the flowers” and captured some fun and beautiful pictures of the sunflowers.

Moldova Sunflowers

Sunflowers mean many things…as I was pulling together this post, the one I found most appropriate was that it is a symbol of community – what appears to be a single bloom is multitude of little flowers grouped together. A single sunflower plant can grow and blossom; however, single stalks normally need some sort of stake/support as they grow tall. Sunflowers are much stronger when planted in a larger patch and can collectively hold each other up as they grow towards the sun. What a wonderful reminder for all of us – we can indeed “go it alone” but it is much easier to grow and bloom when you are part of a community!

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