Giftwrap or Giftcrap

Crafting a garment for hours and knitting kind thoughts and love into each of 10,000 (give or take) stitches produces a gift like none other. The thought of wrapping this gift in commercially produced giftwrap and donning a tacky, shiny plastic bow accompanied by a generic greeting card written by a stranger is just not right. A gift that comes from the heart need not be presented in a wrapped package at all but, for the recipient, there is a certain kind of joy brought about by being presented with a beautifully appointed vessel concealing a wonderful surprise.

This past week I had to make a choice with the presentation of a hand knit gift and decided that the package itself should reflect my creativity and values as well as the values of the recipient - I went green. The crafting process was rather easy and worth sharing so here it is:

The gift box was leftover from a coffee mug I had purchased. I wrapped the gift in tissue paper that had padded drinking glasses in a past life. For the outside a clean, brown paper bag was cut and used as eco-wrapping paper. Dolling up the brown paper package was quite a fun process as I hunted through some of my magazines and found some matte finish pages with a good amount of color on them, sliced them into strips and glued them to the box. For the bow, I managed to manipulate six of the strips into perminent loops and glued down the ends to each other in a graduated stack. For the card/gift tag I opened up a bunch of booklets I had salvaged from a print shop. The booklets contained different paper styles with line art, clip art, commercial graphics and a variety of print techniques. I cut out three very different pieces that complimented each other as well as the colors in the mag-page ribbon. When finished I thought the package looked as sweet as a piece of candy. Thoughtfulness, values, wonder, and joy.

The sweet smell of spring

"Stopping to smell the roses" is a phrase I've heard throughout my life and always understood it in a technical sense. Understanding how to put this statement of advice into practice in a spiritual, self-nurturing way and realizing how it happens had always eluded me. This week however, has really opened my eyes and mind to embrace this idea of life enjoyment. At first I thought that maybe something happened suddenly that made it click in my brain but looking back over the past year I found that it has been creeping up on me slowly.

Lately I've had a week off from work coupled with the most beautiful weather I've ever experienced in Indiana. Spending time outside the city at a farm full of budding trees and the sweet smell of grass and flowers was bliss and I was able to capture the experience and enjoy myself within it.

Yesterday I finally got to meet Bridger, the baby I made the hat for. He had to spend an extra week in the hospital because of jaundice but is now home with Christie and Dan. Absolutely dashing little baby boy and future heart-breaker for sure.

Last night I got so frustrated while trying a new sock toe and had to put my knitting down. I've cast on a sock toe twice now successfully without real instructions and without tears but didn't like the increases so bought a book of toe-up socks. Somehow, reading instructions was infuriating because they didn't make sense to me and didn't work. Surely taking a day off will help me go back to it and give it another go with a clearer head.

Knitting on toothpicks

Yeah! The baby hat is finished and the baby is born and the baby shower is this weekend. My friends Christie and Danny just had their first baby. He was born three weeks early which is why the baby shower is scheduled after the birth.

I'm really happy with the hat but the little i-cord loop at the top didn't go as planned. Originally there was going to be an i-cord long enough to tie in a little knot (like an umbilical cord) but as I was going along, one of the needles slipped out and I was too tired to fix it. The cord is long enough to fold down to create a cute little loop though so all-in-all I'm pleased. Tomorrow, some duplicate stitch designs will be added with some brown cotton so I need to find some motifs online that would look nice on a baby hat.

Bowl of oatmeal for breakfast

Actually, I ate beans on toast with poached eggs and then took a photo of the scarf I wrote about last time. The scarf was completed early this past week; just in time for the warm weather. Since I can't wear it until next winter I pulled it out of the cupboard to fondle one last time and take a photograph before wrapping it in lavender for summer storage. I love the oatmeal color and the thick, plush hand of this scarf but I'm a little disappointed in the edging. The sides don't match due to the pattern as it was written and had I thought about this near the beginning of the scarf I would have ripped it out and started again after reworking the stitch count. Without swatching, I can only assume that if the scarf were knit using a single worsted or sport weight yarn it would turn out like the picture in the written pattern and that the sides would look the same because of the ribbing. Since my version isn't exactly ribbed I think I could have changed my starting stitch count and gotten matching selvages.

I've started the baby cap that I mentioned ages ago. The baby is due this month and I need to get my ass moving quickly now on the hat that I've had 7 months to work on. Already my plans have gone from 4-color intarsia in organic undyed cotton to a simple 1-color hat with an over-stitch design. The ribbed edging was finished last night and I've started the plain knitting. Holding fingering weight cotton and using size 2 needles feels like micro-knitting after having worked on big chunky scarves. The yarn is soft and velvety like a horses nose.

On thursday night I went shopping for some summer shirts. I'm down to a medium in most shirts I tried on and found that many styles looked good on me that I wouldn't ordinarily entertain. Now I need to figure out what route I want to take to get some muscle on my arms (or twigs). They are not in proportion with my chest and shoulders and the main reason I never wear t-shirts in public. It isn't exactly that I'm embarrassed of my skinny arms, it's more that the t-shirt looks like a tent strapped over a barrel chest with triangular wings pointing off my shoulder caps.

Yes, more scarves

I get slightly uncomfortable every time I go to knitting group. We pull our sticks and strings out of bags and casually inspect each others projects. Once the conversation starts, I hear, "Oh, is that a scarf?", "Oh, another scarf.", and finally, "Let me guess, a scarf?". It isn't that I can't do other things and lord knows I want to do other things but scarves are comfortable. Scarves, whether garter stitch or intricate cables, are easy, shapeless, brainless fodder for ADD hands. They keep me occupied and I don't have to worry about fit. When I grow tired of them, they become highly desired gifts for friends. I love them. They are perfect for me and I'm trying to accept the idea that I've seemingly embraced one of the lamest knitted garments as my focus, my pride, my trademark.

This afternoon I posted my latest project on Ravelry and found myself questioning my own integrity. You see, the pattern used is called the corrugator and is available for free. I added the link to the original post of the pattern in order to give credit where it is due. I did not call mine the corrugator though and it looks absolutely nothing like the fabric created by the designer. Suddenly I felt dirty. Was I doing the pattern wrong; the designer an injustice? Was giving the pattern a different name a slap in the designer's face? It seems so tedious to pick through the world wide web for information on the etiquette one should follow when in my predicament so if anything comes of it I shall claim ignorance and be done with it.

Tip of the day: If you run short on sugar when making a cake do not substitute Splenda, skip the cake altogether. Furthermore, don't ever buy Splenda.

Production overriding purpose?

As I spent the weekend contemplating, among other things, the purpose of knitting in my life; I was struck by the notion of cheap yarn. It fascinates me that likened to discount-store clothing, cheap yarn is rarely, if ever, an aesthetic success. I know it must boil down to cutting corners for the sake of mass production and universal appeal but it seems as though the purpose of the manufactured item has been lost. I'll explore this thought sometime soon.

Friday morning I wore the big, super-posh, uber-luscious tweedy scarf. Wrapped in the softest merino and superfine alpaca, supremely textured by hand and needle; the epitome of class, sophistication and fine tailoring I was. The scarf belonged to me until about 3 o'clock when possession was hastily transferred to a co-worker/friend who was in desperate need of a luxurious hug. Exceptional are the moments when I can step outside of my own needs and commit friendly gestures for the sake of others. This act wasn't entirely selfless though because I got a little high off of turning someone's bad day around. I can always replace the yarn.

I want to knit a blanket for the foot of my bed.

A five lightbulb kind of day

As this dark and miserable winter drags on I continue to search the depths of my soul for that inner light that tells me this horrible, depressing funk will someday lift and there will be brighter days ahead in the spring. Wallowing in self-pitty I am reminded of a funny statement I once noticed either on a bumper sticker or a sign in someone's place of business which read, "Due to the current circumstances, the light at the end of the tunnel will be turned off until further notice." I did get my head out of the funk long enough today to realize almost everyone around me was in a very similar funk. This time of year I especially hate the whole of the Ohio Valley for it's foul weather. Dark depressing winters and summers of oppressive heat, 90% humidity and dead still air; this valley has made me hate two seasons I had always loved. In my mind, the darkness and humidity were incidental and occasional accompaniments to otherwise wonderful seasons yet somehow, in this valley, these traits completely define them. I think I'll sprinkle some vitamin D pills onto a map and wherever the capsules land I'll look in to moving there.

On the way home from work today I stopped at the hardware store and bought two more clamp lamps for my full spectrum light bulbs. With the window blinds completely open and a total of five full spectrum, 100watt bulbs shining down on me, I sat on the couch, picked up my needles and yarn, turned on a podcast du jour, and pretended like hell that it was sunny outside. My brain didn't totally fall for the trick I must say I started to feel a lot better.

The knitting reminded me again of when my sister and I discovered friendship bracelets and how we loved making them. Through the years I have made a few purely for the sake of doing it; the theraputic and rewarding sensation of tediously crafting by hand. It is that I'm a little bit OCD and a little bit fucked in the head that my focus should be drawn to the tedious, repetitious tasks of making friendship bracelets, knitting, and crocheting. Don't get me started on the long history of my obsession with touch-typing. I'm comfortable with my need to do; the need to keep my hands busy making something wonderful and warm and pretty, stitch by stitch, knot by knot, over and over again.

Wool came in the mail today from Knit Picks and another scarf began. Today is the day that I can announce with absolute certainty, "I have become one of those knitters" There are 6 UFOs in my closet, neatly tucked in plastic bags; a bin of needles in every size and material, including circulars; 6 drawers of yarn, enough for two sweaters and numerous other planned projects; hooks of all sizes, a full shelf of pattern and technique books; and a kit bag with every possible accoutrement. Did I mention the wool that arrived in the mail today? To think I used to laugh at the sickness.

What I need is a boyfriend, or a cat. The sun'll come out, Tomorrow!

I took 45 minutes to write this junk

My best friend recently suggested I give her one or two of my finished scarves since I have a pile of them in my closet that I never wear but am too proud of to give up. I sent her shopping on my flicker account to pick one out. She emailed her request and mentioned that her 16 year old son, Zane, had been ogling one of my hats as she clicked through my knitting photos. I was taken aback from the compliment as I never expected a teenage boy to give a crap about looking through photos of hand knits much less want one of the items. The hat in question, I'm sure, is too small for his head; it's too small for the man I knit it for and my own as well. Wanting to fulfill Zane's wish, I told my friend that I could knit one for him. In true ADD fashion, I believed I could knit this hat in two days, three at the most and send it off with the scarf to my friend. As some of you may know, ADD folks tend to have a lot of difficulty realistically gauging the time it takes to complete a task. Anyway, I'm on week number two now (progress pic attached) but have not worked on the hat every day. The hat that was completed last year is going to get frogged because some of the yarn is needed for the new one and I want to be rid of the reminder that I spent time on a lovely-to-look-at item that doesn't fit anyone I know.

Today I found an entertaining podcast called Answer Me This! I've listened to four episodes now and quite enjoy it. You can check it out here or find it on iTunes. The hosts are quick-witted and often hilarious as they answer listener questions about.....well...anything. It reminded of the commercials for the cell phone, questions/answer, texting thing called KGB in a half-hour program format (with better questions). I also subscribed to a podcast called Grammar Girl. I figure that if I re-learn the rules of grammar and punctuation I won't have to spend so much time thinking about all the mistakes I don't know how to fix; I can spend the time concentrating on avoiding the over-use of "I" and maintaining the proper tense throughout.

Fashion jeans and snack cakes

Valentines Day? I've been trying my damnedest to glimps the back of my head all weekend.

Brace yourselves, its gonna be a long' un and I ain't doing the proof-reading until tomorrow.

Friday's work started with some really sad news as I walked through the door to my office. It then moved on to some really angering news which led to feelings of guilt, got boring for a bit and then ended with a dull thud. All-in-all I was happy to see the weekend as I had planned to not think about work and not feel guilty about not being there, at work. Came home and re-discovered Sade on iTunes. When I was in grade school, a friend and I used to pull our scalp back as tight as we could on our heads and sing "you give me the sweetest taboo" through our noses to see who would laugh the hardest. If you know Sade, I needn't further explain. Anyway, I was curious to hear her now and poked through the samples only to fall slightly in love. She truly has an amazing voice, a very unique style, a great story, and honest-to-God talent.

Saturday was a much needed Me day. I enjoyed my coffee while listening to some of my favorite shows on public radio all morning, changed the bedclothes and planned my afternoon. Somewhere between casing the pillows and covering the duvet, I had developed a strong need to purchase a porcelain, Queen Anne tea pot and matching cups and saucers. Quickly talking myself down from this idiotic notion, I settled on just the shopping portion and not the actual buying. Believe it or not, I found such a teapot, cups and saucers; they are still at the store. I didn't leave all the stores empty handed though.

Fancying a pair of jeans with a little more shape and style than what I have I searched through the denim in the mens department. Reading the fit charts for each style, I got irritated with finding all the seemingly flattering cuts ended with those damn boot-cut legs that make me look like the back half of a Clydesdale. Skinny jeans and Slim Fit were everywhere and I decided to give in to temptation so that I could at least say I tried. I almost fell over in the dressing room as I zipped them up and realized they looked fantastic! Now, I'm not talking fantastic like when I was in high school and "imagined" fashion jeans looked great on me, these ACTUALLY look great on me.

After the jeans incident on Saturday night, things were going so well that it seemed a good idea to go to Wal-Mart for a thermal carafe. MY GOD! That is all I have to say about Wal-Mart.

The crazy Benetton hat that I knit a few months ago turned up in a drawer and I remembered it needed to be blocked. After soaking it in warm water, gentle stretching and molding made it look like a real hat rather than a yurt. The interesting thing was that the yarn stunk like a home perm when it was wet. As I recall, I had a store-bought sweater vest in a straw color similar to that of the hand made hat and when I soaked the sweater in water it stunk too. I'm wondering if it has to do with the chemical dye used to create the light brown heather color.

Sunday kicked me out of bed and I went to Kai's parent's house to enjoy a casual, lazy breakfast by the fireplace. Food always tastes best in the morning when it is made by someone else and served in way that encourages grazing. Mimosas on the big leather sofa were divine.

Lastly, a confession. This week I have indulged in all four varieties of Hostess Zingers, a few Reece's peanut butter eggs, a Pepperidge Farm 3-layer cake, two lemon-raspberry sponges, a container of ice cream, a cup of liquid chocolate, and a snack sized bag of potato chips. I just can't believe I ate those potato chips.

Circumstantial enlightenment

Last night I dreamt I was being chased by an angry Pantone color chart. This past week I've been rather forced to choose a paint scheme of three colors to be applied to the interiors of a commercial space (my place of work). I have no trouble visualizing the final product in my head but my brain shuts down as I pour over the thousands of color chips, charts, and samples. This, not to mention thoughts of company branding, historic identity, and the life cycle of a modern, commercial image. By the way, did you know that stunning copper brown turns into hideous burnt orange when placed next to apple green? Monday morning will find me placing a call to a professional interior designer.

Forcing my mind to open up and play with color in a new way is thrilling though I could do without the pressure at work to make design decisions. I look forward to a new way of combining colors in my knitting. Shopping for wools with a better knowledge of color theory will be fun and I'm hoping a little more fruitful as I won't have to rely so heavily on others to create the obvious color combination for me.

The new look of this page is due in part to my recent schooling. In a previous post I mentioned the need for photo editing software or a new camera. Turns out, at least on my screen, that changing the background has corrected the washed out appearance of my pictures. I also like how the blue and orange text now look backlit. I guess washed out colors wash out colors so I'm glad to get rid of the light gray.

Sunday supper

Since leaving Kansas, I've reacquainted myself with one of it's culinary treasures, the Runza. How this Russian-German pocket full of goodness ended up becoming a staple of home cooking in The Sunflower State is interesting. Generations ago, the small farmers who came to the land must have brought the recipes. Runza makes sense because the pocket sandwiches could be taken to the fields by the men for lunch and the women wouldn't have to stop their own work to make lunch. As eating lunch in the field became a thing of the past, the runza moved on to the dinner table where it has remained. I fondly remember eating them in our school cafeteria where they were made from scratch and every student in my class loved them. Probably the only way the school could ever get cabbage in our tummies.

Though there are many recipes for runza, I make mine by memory of taste. Prepared in a large kettle, the filling consists of ground beef and onions seasoned with salt, pepper, and dijon mustard, cabbage, carrot and cheese. I stuff and form my sandwiches "Kansas style" into what looks like a hamburger bun using store-bought yeast dough because I'm no good with the bread making. While easy to make, they are considered laborious by today's standards (god forbid we wait for dough to proof and hand-form individual servings) so I make big batches and freeze them. They are super handy to take to my "field" for lunch or to grab for a snack or quick dinner.

I think I would like to purchase a digital camera or some basic photo editing software. The photos taken with my iPhone are fine but the colors don't show true on the computer. With all the built-in wonders that apple has designed for my laptop, iPhoto kind of sucks.

Back to the stash

Letting go of beautiful things is always difficult and when I rip out this scarf it is going to sting. The stitch definition is amazing and it is a really fun pattern to work up. I've wanted this scarf for over a year but I'm glad I waited until now to work on it because I've grown up a little when it comes to how I approach knitting projects. I can appreciate the beauty of a garment and also realize that it isn't practical and I'd never get any use out of the finished object. I could give it away but I can't imagine any of my friends falling head-over-heels for it the way I have; not to mention appreciate the quality and cost of the wool and the time.

So here is the deal...
This wool is not super friendly against the skin which I believe to be the exact reason it renders stunning stitch definition. The front of the scarf is lovely but scarves shouldn't have "fronts" and if they do, the back should be handsome enough to hold it's own. This back has huge pits and unsightly, gnarled twists and because the garment is stiff and remains flat, the back is going to show no matter how it is worn. And did I say stiff? This scarf will never, ever drape nicely.

Now, what to do with the lovely yarn?

Flaunting their wares

One thing I have found with having a yarn stash is that if a much loved and well fondled yarn gets buried in the stash cupboard for long enough, when it resurfaces, the love feels brand new again!

Yesterday, my rusty Rowan Scottish Tweed with purple flecks turned up and I decided to get my ass moving on the cable scarf that I began a year ago with much difficulty and trepidation. This time around I read the pattern and it didn't seem as difficult as it once did so I ripped out the two inches I had completed and began anew. Rowan patterns are known to many as being slightly troublesome to decipher but I decided I would muddle through in order to learn their language because I love so many of their patterns. Although I've done cables and this pattern is easy to understand I concluded that a re-write of the repeats was necessary. I am happy with the outcome because now I can look at my own version of the pattern and not have to spend time referencing the abbreviated code explanations in the book (alas, I'm just not quick enough).

Cr4R, C6B and Cr4L are probably obvious abbreviations to most knitters who have done cables but my brain doesn't work that way. I can only assume that the first one means "cross 4 stitches to the right" which would totally blow my idea out of the water when it comes to C6B. Anyway I re-wrote it as "S1BK3+1" which means (to me) Slip 1 stitch to cable needle and hold in Back, Knit 3 stitches plus 1 stitch from the cable needle. You get the idea. Now I have a nice, neat little card that I can carry around with my knitting until I memorize the sixteen row repeat. If the last cable pattern I did is any measure, I should have it down after I do it five times.

BTW, I am quite familiar with "Cable 6 to the Back".

I've attached a picture of the scarf that I got from my book but to be fair I also attached a pic of my own progress and will post another when I am about half way through. Since I'm posting other people's work, credit is due. From the book Knitting for Him, designed by Martin Storey for Rowan Yarns, photography by John Heseltine and I shamelessly ripped the photo from the kangaroo.uk.com website.

Done...in more ways than one.

I've spent countless hours searching for the correct colors of yarn for this newest scarf. After placing three orders online, waiting for a particular color to be restocked, and an accidental find at the local yarn shop I'd collected all the right colors in the right weights (plus one or two extra balls of the wrong colors). A year in the making, the scarf took only 3 hours of stitching and now that it is finished I couldn't care less. Maybe because of dreaming about it for so long it has made it seem as though I've owned it for a while and am already tired of it. Also the color combination showed brilliant in the original inspiration photo and although mine are identical the finished object isn't as dazzling to my eyes. On the bright side, there is less yarn in my stash!

Lately the weather has been dreadful. I've taken to looking forward to the morning forcast so I can listen to the newsman make up new ways to say it is cloudy and will remain so for the entirety of the foreseeable future. Today it was "extremely overcast skies"

For knitting group today, I was asked to bring the snacks by the woman who had originally signed up as she was going out of town this weekend. I made honey-mustard, smoked ham & swiss pinwheels in puff pastry as well as bite sized quiche with bacon and bouquet garni. The cooking was fun and finger food is my all-time fav but my taste hasn't quite returned after my cold so I couldn't enjoy the nibbles.