Sarah Sue Magoo

decisions

2008-05-02T12:59:00.001-05:00

I've decided not to upkeep my blog Sarah Sue Magoo. It's too much work to separate the knitting parts of my life from the other parts... and I'm lacking in the spare-time department lately. So from now on everything will be posted on my other blog, beeline.

Celebrating

2008-02-14T12:34:00.002-06:00

We recently celebrated Steve's birthday and this past weekend I completed all of the knitting on the cardigan! Now all that's left is weaving in ends, sewing seams and hems, blocking, and putting on a zipper. He's tried it on and I think it will be quite lovely. I'm so tired of knitting on it. I have been working on it every night for the past few weeks and was trying to knit so fast that my forearms would often ache the next day. Knitting someone a sweater is truly a labor of love.

If you haven't listened to Franklin Habit's essay (on Cast On) "The Sharper End of the Needles" about knitting for loved ones, take a listen.

P.S. I love Cast On.

There's an old wives' tale about how if you knit your boyfriend a sweater you are sealing your fate... you will break up sooner rather than later. It's bad luck. But I've already knitted Steve a sweater (and we DID break up but that was a long time ago, and after a few months we UN-broke up).... I found it the other day... it's actually one of the first things I ever knit. And I just made it up, so it's all mis-shapen and huge, and furry, and green, and..... well, it's the complete opposite of a sweater that a hetero-late-twenties-male would choose for himself. We laughed when we found it. We decided it's going to our "house sweater". You know that one that your mom or sister puts on when they are visiting and feel chilly?

Maybe I'll post some pics of that one later.... it's somewhat embarrassing but sweet, in a way.

Revelations

2008-02-06T12:33:00.001-06:00

An ice storm hit us with full force last night leaving us to trudge through the slush and sleet to work, our faces pelted with stinging ice flakes - but I still love the mid-west. I'm used to this weather. I enjoy the changing seasons, and that means having some days where the world outside my window is covered in a cold white glaze... much like the glaze on a sour cream cake... The only thing that makes me really mad is when it's sub zero and I have to wait 20 minutes outside for a bus. But for now the snow is fine with me.

Here is a view of the library from kresge... and it's still coming down... big wet flakes of snow - yum!

The power went out in the library last night and I was (not so secretly) hoping that it would not have come back on, so I could stay at home and KNIT! It's very important to mention that without this weather, I would not get nearly as much knitting done as I do.

Which brings me to a discussion about my current project: Avast cardigan from Knitty for Steve. Now tomorrow is Steve's birthday, and though I have been knitting like a fiend, I am still not finished :( It's not a surprise - he's seen me working on it. I have accomplished a huge amount in just the past week. I made the second sleeve, attached both sleeves and am now almost finished with the yoke. I apologize for the low quality of this photo.... it was taken with my phone.

On Sunday night, after attaching the sleeves and beginning the initial decrease rounds of the yoke, I had a bit of a knitting revelation. In following the directions of the pattern, my ssk and k2tog were not looking right.... not slanting the way they were supposed to. And I realized... the way that I wrap my yarn around my needle when I purl must be different than most people. I've just always done what is most comfortable and fastest for me. But I think it reverses the way the stitches are facing when I flip it over to the knit side and start knitting. In the round, this would not matter because I'm always working on the RS of the fabric.

Is this common among other knitters using the continental method? Does it matter as long as I understand what the pattern is telling and I reach the same outcome?

Then I was trying to calculate how many stitches would be knitted in the yoke section... to try and figure out how long it would take me to finish this part. In my younger math-whiz days I would have known how to calculate this.... where's my genius sister when I need her????

If I start with 312 stitches in a row, and decrease 8 stitches every other row, 30 times... how many total stitches is that??? I did it the long way and came up with 12,032. So if anyone out there knows the formula for this problem let me know!

At this point I am just about ready to do the collar, front bands, lower hem, weave in ends and block! Then there's some seaming... then finding a zipper... okay so there is still a decent amount left in the home stretch. But I'm ready to wrap this up and send Steve out in the blizzard with a wooly cardigan to keep him warm.

Baby, it's cold outside

2008-01-24T07:49:00.001-06:00

Over the past week Chicago has been blasted by a severely frigid wind leaving us to fend for ourselves in sub-zero temps. The wind chill is often 15 below... and after riding the CTA on Monday and Wednesday, arriving to my office with numb hands, feet, and legs, mumbling four letter words under my scarves, I decided it is best for all if I drive to work in this weather. As long as I get here at least 30 minutes early it's not too difficult to find a parking spot.

These temps are really only good for one thing, and one thing alone.... one guess.... KNITTING! of course, you moron! I have so many projects I want to work on right now. After the holidays I vowed to work on something for myself, but somehow I have four projects started and they are all for other people.

Main project is a zip up cardigan for Steve. I'm using Lamb's Pride worsted in a heather gray color. He picked it out a while ago. It's sort of itchy so I hope he's okay with that..... Anyway, it has a cabled band around the bottom. I'm getting ready to start the sleeves. It would be nice to have it done by his birthday. Part of that will depend on if I can get the last two back ordered skeins that I need.

The next most important project is a secret for someone special... but here's a little sneak peek.

In other yarn news I am expecting a large Knit Picks order.... say 3,000-yards-ish. Good deals. I wonder what the average yardage per order is from Knit Picks?????? Maybe that order really isn't so huge. I'll keep telling myself that.

Something else I thought was very knit-worthy: When we stayed at my Mom's house for christmas something from my past emerged. I was a little chilly so I asked for more blankets on the bed. The only extra one she could find was this one that she crocheted when I was in high school. We were the Hudson Tigers, so this blanket was made specifically for football games. How sweet!

christmas bounty!

2008-01-13T08:30:00.000-06:00

I have been so busy using all of my christmas presents that I haven't had any time to blog about christmas presents. Some of my faves are this Dirt Devil Kone - sleek, stylish design elements and vaccuuming together at last!

I love the patagonia jacket that my mommy gave me. It's exactly what I wanted.

It has become a tradition for Steve to give me a new purse for christmas, even though I never ask for one. He always surprises me by picking something out himself. And I always love it. This year he bought me a clutch made from gum wrappers... it might sound weird, but it's more like a piece of art than something you would carry around every day. What I love about it is that it doesn't look like most recycled bags that you see at green stores or 10,000 villages. It's much more subtle. But it's beautiful.

We also received funds for a new bed and an external hard drive - woo hoo!

Okay - now for the knitted goods that were given at christmas this year... You know, the ones I had slaved over the entire month of December, down to the last minute, binding off stitches and weaving in ends... sewing on a button or two...

This is a little cable knit cowl that I made for Mary Tholking and it is probably my favorite thing that I knit this holiday season. First, it is made out of the SOFTEST alpaca.... so soft, you wouldn't believe it! (Misti Alpaca Chunky) Secondly, I knit it in one day. And the third reason - it is the best gift ever because it's so luscious and rich, yet only takes one skein so you won't break the bank. I think this would be a great project for learning cables because it is a straight rectangle and not too complicated. I already have several of my friends making them and I want to make about three more. You can get this pattern for free from Arcadia Knitting... and I think Kathy was talking about posting it on ravelry, but I'm not sure if she has yet.

The little duo is a gift I made for Steve's mom. I think it turned out so well, and a lot I owe to the yarn - fancy yarn, and lots of it - Malabrigo Greusa.... funny, it sounds like this yarn has genus and species names. Hhhmmm, what would Linnaeus think of that? Anyway, this is the Urchin hat from Fall Knitty, i think. And a simple drop stitch pattern scarf. Nice combo.

Doesn't she look pretty?

This one was a last minute mad rush, but I finished it in time. A BSJ in cotton, with an Aurora 8 edge, which for whatever reason I decided I wanted to do in stockinette. But it looked good. With a nice little rolled up edge.

I made these guys for my dad to wear outside to keep his hand warm. I actually started them before christmas 06. I should have just made the top open but instead I wanted to try half fingers.... not entirely pleased with how they turned out. I couldn't get the finger lengths right for some reason.......? But they are still warm and cozy and he liked them.

This is another Urchin hat, and was actually the first one that I made. It was for my dad's girlfriend, Cheryl. I used Lion Brand Homespun because it's so soft and easy to take care of. If you've seen the Urchin pattern you'll know that it is knit radially in 8 "wedge" sections. I think only knitted 7 for this hat because of the way the fabric drapes. It would have been way too floppy. I was pleased with the way it turned out. This photo is before grafting the ends together. Also, this is a pretty fast knit.

Homey for the Holidays

2007-12-12T06:03:00.001-06:00

(I'm using homey as an adjective here...)

The holidays are in full swing around here with decorations, shopping, christmas parties, and lots of knitting of course! This is the time of year when daunting deadlines prevent sleep and I could practically start a fire from the friction of my needles.... why metal needles are often a good option. I feel like I have a pretty good handle on things, and since our family events are spread out I'm not freaking out.... yet....

Since this is our first christmas at home, and since we have a faux fireplace, I'm making our stockings. Here are the first two. The red one is Steve's and the green is mine. I'm pretty happy with how they are turning out. I'm just using basic sock style proportions and I've charted out my colorwork designs. Originally they were all going to be the same design, but (with some prompting from Steve) I decided to make them unique. It's more fun that way, right? I still have to design two smaller stockings - one for each cat. And I may have to make a third one in case we have someone visiting for christmas. This year it may be Steve's mom.

Still have to do the loops.... I'm thinking i-cord but I will welcome other suggestions.

Here are some detail shots:

The Great Knitting Book Caper

2007-11-21T12:17:00.000-06:00

Someone in my SnB called our attention to this article... very interesting!

Librarians pinpoint bandit in mystery of missing patterns

(by Amy Goetzman - minnpost.com)

Overheard at a knitters gathering in Minneapolis: "The library catalog said the books were checked in, but they were not on the shelf. And I know how to use the Dewey Decimal system! Maybe the librarians are hiding them.

Confessions of a knitting librarian: "Well, actually, we were."

At some Hennepin County library locations, you'll have to talk to a librarian to get your hands on the latest knitting books. Why are they holding these tomes hostage when knitting is enjoying such a rebirth of cool?

Apparently the pattern books need protection from a wool-minded slasher.

90-something books vandalized

Last fall, librarians at the St. Louis Park, Ridgedale and Golden Valley branches noticed dozens of knitting books coming back with pages missing. One of the St. Louis Park librarians also worked at the Burnhaven library in Dakota County, and observed the same phenomenon at that library system. An estimated 90 books were vandalized, and an investigation was launched.

Vandals and fools should never underestimate the intelligence of people who work surrounded by books, and it wasn't long before librarians tracked down "an older gentleman" who was checking out massive numbers of knitting books and magazines from a far-flung array of libraries. He was often the first patron to check out a brand-new volume, making it easy to eliminate other suspects.

Once the avenging librarians pinpointed their suspect, they wielded their most shaming weapon: a massive load of library fines. The Dakota and Hennepin systems each levied approximately $400 in fines against the man and his wife, and banned the couple from the library for a year.

And that's when the stranger side of human nature presented itself. The man first denied the charges, blaming other patrons. Then he blamed librarians for the damaged brand-new books. And then he blamed his wife. He finally petitioned Hennepin County library commissioner Gail Dorfman for mercy.

Accused vandal needles librarians
"Oh, they felt very wronged," said Dorfman. "I worked with them, because they are regular users of the library and longstanding good citizens. We removed the fines (Dakota County did not), and perhaps the mystery of the knitting needle caper has been solved. It hasn't happened again.

"This was the biggest issue that we had, before the library merger," said Dorfman, laughing. "In this business of public service, things come up that you couldn't anticipate in your wildest dreams."

Vandalism of library material isn't uncommon, but when someone has a special interest, it catches the attention of librarians. "A few years ago, a person hit all the MELSA (Metropolitan Library Service Agency) libraries, and stole a huge number of materials," said Roseanne Bryne, deputy director of the Dakota County libraries. "He was particularly interested in fish and aquariums. Librarians noticed the theme, and they began comparing notes with other libraries. The authorities raided his home, and found boxes and boxes of materials."

Byrne says "99 percent" of patrons use the library responsibly. "People do love and appreciate their libraries, and this is extremely rare behavior. And most knitters are refined, gentle people who wouldn't do anything like this."

Yarnythings

2007-11-18T07:35:00.001-06:00

This weekend I went to a yarn shop that I had never been to before - Nina, in Wicker Park. It is a beautiful little boutique with luxurious yarns in almost a gallery type setting. Great atmosphere. Not too small. Helpful staff.

They were having their 3rd birthday sale - 20% all yarn. (and it's still going on today!) Due to the sale, however, there is no ball winding taking place today.... which I didn't quite get, since someone, whom I think was a staff member, was sitting on the couch knitting the entire time. Anyway, it wasn't a huge disadvantage. (I'll just make Steve hold some yarn while I wind.)

We purchased some wonderful yarn and saved $15. I bought 4 hanks of Malibrigo, and 3 balls of Aurora8..... all for projects I have in mind. The line was quite long, as we stood there for 20 minutes in our winter coats, but I don't think they are used to that sort of volume. There were cookies and tea. I had to remove my coat because I was getting warm, and by the time the woman in front of me had her turn at the register she almost fainted! Not sure why, but it gave everyone quite a scare and I think she was a bit embarrassed. But I hope she is alright!!!! Still a little worried about her, even though I don't know her.

In other news this week, I RECEIVED MY INVITATION TO RAVELRY!!!!!! Equivalent to myspace for knitters/crocheters! This site is awesome. I know it going to suck up large amounts of my time, but it's very cool, so I don't care. You should definitely put your name on the waiting list. There is still a lot of testing going on, that's why you have to be on a waiting list. It took a couple of weeks to get my invite.

If anyone wants to find me on ravelry my screen name is sarahsuemagoo.........

Cardigan City

2007-11-08T22:11:00.001-06:00

The first half of fall I spent lots of my knitting time working on a couple different cardigans. This is my first Baby Surprise Jacket and I LOVED the pattern! It's so awesome. For this one I used 2 different colors of sublime. I call this one Tavis's first cashmere sweater. It's for my cousin's baby due in about a week. I wanted him to have something fancy-shmancy.

I gave it to Zach & Niph recently and they liked it a lot. Of course it won't fit Tavis until he's almost a year or so.... maybe 9 months. But that's okay. It's nice to have something to grow into - especially cashmere! Now, it's not totally cashmere - it's blended with merino. Still I know it isn't practical, but it's not meant to be a practical gift.

I took these photos on a very nice October day in someone else's garden - tee hee!

A detail shot of the colors and buttons

I was so pleased with the way the first one turned out that I made a second BSJ and I'm not saying who this one is for! It's a SURPRISE.... just in case they read my blog... but if they DID read my blog they would probably know right away....

Anyway, I used Noro Silk Garden Lite and I forgot what the color was called. Maybe it was just a dye lot number. Yeah it was. And I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE the buttons I chose for this one. In the first photo I hadn't sewn them on yet, but the second is a detail shot. Surprisingly, I bought them at Hancock. I was in a pinch and I just had to spend some time looking. There they were!

Now, the third sweater is one that I made up myself, for myself. I really like it. There are a lot of things that just "happened" while I was making it. I didn't have a ton of expectations. A majority of the sweater is made by picking up stitches. I'm not completely happy with it so I want to play around with the pattern a little bit more. So maybe in a year I'll have another version...

It has one big oblong button to hold it together in front. Oh, and the yarn is some strange rayon blend that I purchased on big spools from Midwest Discount Yarn. I doubt if I will ever be able to tell what it's really made of or find any more of it. The next edition may be constructed of something entirely different.

I added some yarn overs to the edge to make it feel a little prettier.

Well I'm off to bed..... sitting at a desk all day really is exhausting.

More tomorrow on my christmas stocking dilemmas.

Do I hear sleigh bells?????

2007-11-01T14:33:00.001-06:00

On Wednesday I hosted a "Halloween" Stitch n Bitch at my house... or shall we call it Stitch and WITCH??? Anyway, it was fun. I didn't get much knitting done, just a lot of eating. Plus I helped Erin with her costume for a chunk of the evening.

Is it too early to be thinking about christmas??????

Maybe it's because we aren't travelling on Christmas or Christmas Eve, or maybe it's because we are spending our first christmas at home together with Monkey and Elvis, but I'm REALLY excited for christmas this year!

I went to Hancock Fabrics to get cheap yarn to make stockings for the four us (and possibly one for turtle.) I got really chunky yarn so hopefully they will knit up fast. And if I start now, I can stagger them in with other projects.

Just hear those sleigh bells jinglin' ring ting tinglin' too....

MCA SNB

2007-10-24T07:36:00.001-05:00

I think Kristen said it best when she posted her entry, so I'm just going to be lazy and quote her:

She's got the biggest, balls of them all!

...to quote a fabulous old AC/DC song....oh, am I dating myself???

The MCA (Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art) hosts a Stitch N Bitch "party" (as they call it, not us) once a month free every 3rd Tuesday. Tonight Sarah & I met there and hung out for about an hour or so knitting with some new peeps and having a beer.

There was a local artist, Pate Conaway, who knits with gigantic needles and gigantic cotton "yarn"...it was pretty entertaining to see....very cool. We were total dorks and took our picture with him to post on our knitting blog...

Wow, as Sarah put it, "we're knitting groupies"....I could just die....

check out the eyeball wallpaper.... that s***t creeps me out, man.

Time Travelling

2007-10-21T08:17:00.001-05:00

There were several weeks after we moved when I didn't have time to blog. Had I found the time, I would have posted these photos from some of our August trips. The first trip we took was to Minneapolis!

I had a lot of free knitting time that weekend so this is the progress I made on my cardigan. This is one of the first things I've designed myself from complete scratch. It's not based on any type of pattern, just my own measurements. A lot of the time I will take a pattern, and change the yarn completely (requiring a lot of math) and add some other embellishments. I just hate making something that looks exactly like the photo in the pattern.

Well, the cardigan is finished, and I had Steve photograph me wearing it yesterday so more on that soon!

Hyperbolic Coral Reef opening reception

2007-10-12T07:58:00.000-05:00

Well, the Crochet Coral Reef project is coming to a close. And the opening reception is TONIGHT at the cultural center from 6-8 with a lecture at 5:30. The events will take place on the second floor in the Chicago Rooms.

Even though the exhibition is up, there will be workshops going on Thursdays at noon for the duration of the show. October 13th to December 16th.

This photo is of one of the double-stitch twins (http://www.doublestitchwear.com/) I think this is Erika... stitching together part of the Chicago Reef.

You can see more of my photos by going to my picasa album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/sarahbellis27/CoralReef

There is also more information about the project on the following websites:
http://www.chicagoculturalcenter.org/
http://www.theiff.org/
www.uic.edu/jaddams/hull/

This is a photo of one of the artists who are contributing to the show: Inga Hamilton. Her blog can be found at: http://www.rockpoolcandy.typepad.com/

Hope to see you there!

Christine's Baby Booties

2007-08-21T06:58:00.000-05:00

Someone on Knitlist brought these to our attention.... They go well with the baby surprise jacket and the pattern can be found at this link:

http://www.fuzzygalore.biz/patterns/cbbooties.shtml

Someone else also asked about my bootie pattern shown here and here on my blog. It is actually just your basic sock pattern, sized down to fit a baby, using dk or worsted weight yarn. Changing yarn and needle size will change the size of the baby it will fit. I've heard they stay on! But I'm not so sure since I don't have a baby.

I just got back from vacation and I'm moving in 5 days!!! (I know, who goes on vacation right before they move??? but I did) and I haven't even really started packing yet, so it's time to get my butt into gear. Then if I have some free time I will possibly post my little bootie pattern.

I think I may try Christine's booties to go with the baby surprise jackets, for the next two babies.

Until next time....

considering EZ's Baby Surprise Jacket

2007-08-17T11:11:00.000-05:00

I just ordered this book the other day off of Amazon. I know a couple of couples who are expecting this fall and thought the baby surprise jacket would be a great addition to my usual baby sets (little booties, and a hat) after seeing it on the Panopticon.

I'm patiently awaiting the book's arrival via Super Saver Shipping..... and wanted to consider my yarn selection in the mean time. I posted this question on the knitlist:
"What weight, what kind, and how much yarn do I need???"

And here are some of the responses:

- The cool thing about this pattern is that you can use almost any size
yarn and needles, and that will determine the size jacket you get. Smaller yarn and needles for a newborn size, larger for toddlers, etc.
I made one with worsted weight yarn on size 6 needles and it came out about a 12-month size.
Jenny www.newtonsknitting.blogspot.com

- I have a friend who just made it out of Koigu and I am not sure if she used two or three skeins. Ruby

- I am on my fourth BSJ, goodness they are like peanuts- once you start you can't stop ! It totally depends on the size you want to make. A group of us in Boston made them for a charity, and they were sizrd from infant o toddler. The bulkier the yarn, the bigger the sweater, A Dk weight yarn will give you an infant size sweater I Ithink, I believe I used 450 to 500 yards on a size 7 needle. There may be a picture of some of them on my blog.
Judy www.jscothammerquist.blogspot.com

- It calls for 3 ounces of Shetland wool, gauge 6 stitches to the inch or 2 skeins of Canadien Regal.
Mich

- I love making this sweater! I find that between 300-400 yards with most weights will do. In general, a baby weight yarn will make a newborn size, worsted will usually fit about 1-2 years and bulky can make a toddler size. I say "in general" because this can vary with the needle size you choose as well. I used a heavy worsted weight yarn and size 10 1/2 needles to make a sweater for my slim 4 year old.
Denise in Iowa http://www.denisesn eedleworks. blogspot. com/

- I am knitting it right now in Cascade Fixation, which I think is a light worsted weight yarn. It is knitting up at 6 stiches per inch, which is the gauge called for in the pattern, and it looks like it will be TINY! Good thing it is for a newborn. :-) It is also using MUCH less yarn than I expected - I bought 6, 100 yard balls and am 3/4 of the way done and just started my second ball!
Tara

-I've knit them in everything from fingering weight (came out preemie) to worsted (came out about 18-24 months size), including the last batch which were made of two strands of sock yarn held together. When I used worsted, it took a bit more than one three ounce skein, so I'm guessing about 4 ounces of worsted. The sock yarn was leftovers, multiple small balls.
Check out the crafts pix folder at www.picturetrail.com ID = lisadinpa
Lisa D in PA

- It is a great sweater. The first one is the hardest. My favorite one so far was done on 16 inch circular size 3 needles and fingering yarn. I used the Claudia handpainted yarn. It took one skein and a little more. In shetland wool I used about 3 oz on size 4 16 inch circular needles. The larger the yarn and needles, the larger the sweater. The fingering yarn made a newborn size while the wool version is probably made a three month size. This pattern was so much fun to do but took concentration initially.
Dotti in NC

- (When it was asked whether you could buy the pattern w/out buying the whole book) You can purchase just the pattern for $3, directly from Schoolhouse Press:
http://www.schoolho usepress. com/spunout. htm
Anne Gainesville, FL

- Originally the pattern, by Elizabeth Zimmermann, was available as a single leaflet. You might check with her company, , now owned by her daughter Meg Swansen, to see if it's still available that way.
OTOH, the book, OPINIONATED KNITTER which has it now, includes most
of the other leaflets produced between '58 and the mid 70s which are
likewise, very ingeneous EZ patts. I got the book, EVEN THOUGH I had
all the original newsletters as some of the latter were getting
tattered from all the use.
Joan in Eugene, OR schrouderknits@ clearwire. net

I'm usually a very frugal yarn and knitting book shopper.... you have no choice when you are poor.... but I think this book is a classic and I know I will get a lot of use out of it. Plus, it was a gift from Steve!!!!!! Thanks, honey. :)

More to come after I receive the book.

Stitch n Pitch 2007

2007-08-12T19:35:00.000-05:00

Last night we attended the annual Stitch n Pitch event at US Cellular Field. I love the atmosphere of a baseball game..... I don't really watch the game though, so knitting and socializing was a nice distraction. Oh, so was the beer. I did some work on a piece of coral that I'm really happy with.

Here are some of the members of our SnB group! Becky, Kristen, and me! We also met some knitters from the Oak Park SnB. I hope they come to visit us at the Heartland Cafe some time soon.

He learned to do "what" in prison???

We dragged some of the boys along with us. They didn't complain.

The elusive Kaity... who knits, sort of

Then we went to an art show in Pilsen where Kristen unfortunately stubbed her toe very badly..... There's nothing paper towel and hot pink masking tape can't fix!

Crochet Coral Reef

2007-07-10T18:14:00.000-05:00

I haven't been knitting the usual amount lately.

I've been crocheting a coral reef!!!

There is an ongoing project I'm participating in that's taking place in Chicago. The end result will be exhibited at the Chicago Cultural Center in October.

Please go to www.sarahbellis.com/knitting/ for more information. I'm working on hosting a workshop in Rogers Park for the reef. ANYONE can participate.

On reinforcing heels & toes

2007-06-13T08:00:00.001-05:00

I received this e-mail from the designer of "bmp":

Hi there Sarah! Your bmp's are looking good! :) I don't reinforce heels & toes. Its mainly an issue that I never have the correct reinforcing thread available to me, and until very recently I was knitting in mainly handpainted, variegated yarns-- the colored nylons would never match quite right to my eye. I have knit with reinforcing thread before-- once, when I knit my very 1st pair of socks out of Rowan Calmer (not a great choice!). They were given away so I'm not sure how they held up, but I used the reinforcing thread from fortissima socka. I've read that wooly nylon (used for serging when sewing, I think-- I can't sew :)) is a great choice since its stretchy. The nylon type (sort of like really fine fishing wire) isn't so great-- when I 1st started knitting socks, I bought some of that but more experienced sock knitters told me it wasn't a good choice (wouldn't stretch).

There's also a camp of knitters who don't use reinforcing thread, saying that it can actually cause more wear-- the thread rubs against the yarn, causing it to lose its hold more quickly. I don't know what I think about that, but its out there :)

Mainly though, as with most things I knit-- its a laziness issue... I don't have it around, so I don't use it. If I did, I probably would use the wooly nylon over the fortissima socka reinforcing thread-- from what I remember, the card w/ the thread cost somewhere around $3-4, making the cost for a pair of socks much more, relative anyway. Wooly nylon (or, wooley nylon?) is about the same price and you get tons, Joanns/Michaels carry it so you can get a 40% off coupon most Sundays as well.

I also think that reinforcing thread's true worth isn't for helping stave off wear, but that when holes do wear into socks, you have a vertical set of remaining stitches in nylon to follow when darning socks. Most of my socks right now have holes in the toes (actually, the area under my little toe, where my foot is widest) from wear on the side of my shoes... I need to darn them, but trying to line up the stitches has me ... not wanting to and to wear sandals :)

Have a good one!

Aija
http://zero.etsy.com/
http://sockpr0n.blogspot.com/

PS! I recently realized that the "repeating invaders" chart of the bmp pattern has the last 2 invaders reversed from what is shown in the photos. It was my error, I sent the transposed chart to knitty-- they've been notified, but I don't think its been changed yet. Of course, the design still works, but will look slightly different from the photos. You could easily switch them back to the photos as seen, though. Good luck!

space invader socks

2007-06-10T21:08:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to post my progress on the bmp socks from knitty.com. I'm knitting two at once on two circular needles and it's actually much less confusing than I thought it was going to be. I don't work on it all the time. I have easier projects going on also, but I'm very excited about the progress made thus far. They are for Steve, and while I know he will definitely appreciate them, I also understand that he may only wear them at home, and that's okay with me.

This is my first time knitting two socks on circs and also my first time doing any kind of stranded color work. So far, so good.

I have knitted a number of pairs of socks before and I have never done any reinforcement of the heel and/or toe. If anyone has any comments on this or how I should go about it, please let me know!

The designer of this sock pattern also has a very cool blog called Sock Pr0n. (sock porn) Definitely worth checking out.

You can also find the pattern for these socks, as well as MANY other patterns, by clicking on the photo of the pattern to the left.

Wish me luck!

I'm also working on a sweater that I'm making up as I go along... I know it sounds insane... with some yarn that I got from Midwest Discount Yarn. It's very interesting.

halter news

2007-06-08T11:45:00.000-05:00

So I wore the halter top yesterday... AND...
it was a little saggy in the back, much to my surprise. It REALLY stretches out. So I think I shall thread some elastic through the top of the back section. When it fits right I'll take a good photo and post it on le blog.

Big big glove

2007-06-07T07:39:00.000-05:00

OMG. I found this blog last night and this girl's project is insanely awesome!

Click here to go to the actual blog and learn more! You will be amazed.

booties and halter top

2007-05-07T23:14:00.000-05:00

On my trip to Michigan last weekend I accomplished quite a bit of knitting! First I made this pair of booties for a friend's baby who was born at the end of March and I had been putting it off for a while.

Then I worked on my halter top project. I decided to use this Bettina yarn by Adrienne Vittadini. It has linen paper spun into it. The pattern is based off of the Sexie halter top pattern in the Stitch n Bitch Nation book with some modifications. I decided not to do the eyelet pattern in the back part, just ribbing, and I didn't want it to be too low cut, plus I made the straps wider, AND it won't lace up in the back.......... i hope it fits! who knows. It could be another one of my crazy projects... Here is also a close up shot of the yarn itself. I still have two skeins left so I might go buy a third one and make a halter top for my sister.

Flying Dutchmen socks

2007-04-28T06:46:00.000-05:00

I recently finished these socks for my sister, Catherine. I bought the yarn back in January before the super bowl. It is Lorna's sock yarn in "Go Bears" colorway. Not really a sports fanatic but my sister's school (Hope College) are the same colors. So I made these socks on three US2 dpns. But after I finished the second one, I realized it was not only shorter in length.... very frustrating.... but smaller in circumference.... even more frustrating. Since I seem to be gauge schizophrenic I decided that from now on I'm knitting the pair at the same time.

One of the projects I'm working on right now is the bmp socks on knitty.com - photos to come later - which are fair isle-ish in nature, and I'm also knitting both at once. Well I'm trying to. I have a couple of other easy projects going on right now too.

Today I'm off to Michigan on a train, so much knitting awaits me as I endure the journey on the railroad.

Knitting Blog!

2007-04-16T06:04:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I've had my website sarahbellis.com for about two years now, and I've been saying that I was going to create a page devoted totally to my knitting projects..... but never got around to it. Well, now the cool thing is to have a knitting blog, so I can post photos of FO's, show my progress on a project, yak about my LYS - basically so all you fellow knitters can share in the trials, tribulations, and glory that comes along with being oh-so-attached to your needles and yarn. Sarah Sue Magoo is my "knitting alter ego" of sorts........ ;)

(Speaking of LYS, I have a disturbing story about a man this weekend who asked about putting crochet hooks in the FREEZER! Yes, the freezer!...... but that's for later.)

I will end this post with a photo of some little booties that I knitted for a friend's baby. I knit a lot of these. They are so quick and so cute. And people LOVE receiving them as a gift. I usually knit them on three dpns like a little sock, instead of putting a seam in. My grandfather even reprimanded me for this, "Why are you using four needles?????? You're making it harder on yourself." I guess I just like knitting socks, and I don't really enjoy seams in things..... plus I think they're cuter this way :)