Strange and Amazing Times

Got some of the romney singles plied up. It's really crazy how I can't stop sniffing freshly washed wool (blush).

And I got some more of the Angel wool plied up. When I added these two to my bag of homespun, it hit me just how much homespun I've accumulated . . . there's actually enough in there to make something! Wow . . .

And I got to thinking that my Mom's birthday is coming up in a few weeks and the only idea I have for a gift is a small thing. It's a perfectly thoughtful thing, but not enough. Then it hit me. She has very thick curly hair and is always looking for things and ways to put her hair up. Why didn't I think of this sooner? The Calorimetry I've been wanting to knit would be perfect for her; but could I finish one in time? I have several other projects already going, so I don't know about finishing one of these for her in time. What the hell, since I have cast-on-itis lately.

Doncha know, this wee wonderful pattern only took four hours? No kidding, from casting on the first stitches to binding off and attaching its button, only four hours! Yesterday morning, I was watching a DVR'd episode of Sunrise Earth, when I cast on and got it started. That was the first hour. Then later in the night, I finished all the stitching during a two hour movie (Ali). This morning saw its fourth hour, as I did the bind-off and button attaching with my morning coffee.

When I first read the pattern's description, I groaned at the thought of doing short rows in ribbing. But, as it turned out, it's written with this nifty little stress-free way of keeping up with the short rows. And the ribbing is 2x2, instead of 1x1. Instead of fussy, it showed itself to actually be one of those relaxing nearly mindless patterns to work. You know, good TV knitting. And it only needs one skein - nay, less than a skein! Malabrigo anyone?

And in the end, I love the way it felt when I tried it on. Mom gets this one, but I assure you there will be fifty-bujillion of these made up in my house this year!

The Fertile Turtles were already a good sized crowd when I got there around 11am, with more trickling in during the following hour. Check us out -- it took two photos to get us all in!

Mary Beth graciously volunteered to model the Calorimetry for me, since it doesn't look like much just laying on a poster board. Don't it look great on her?

Ryan was with us again today, and has a dishcloth in the works. We talked about how to bind off and pick up dropped stitches, and we talked about our toons in the World of Warcraft.
And in discussing how hats are made on two straight needles, we touched on decrease stitches and general shaping. Did you know that he learned to knit from a woman in California via a web cam? He 'met' a knitter on Ravelry, who was very generous with her time. Two strangers, hundreds and hundreds of miles away from each other, had a knitting lesson via their computers! I am sooo impressed with them both. The Yarn Harlot is correct in that knitters oughta be in charge of the world. My jaw just dropped. We live in strange, yet amazing times, no doubt.

We were blessed with yet another newcomer, both to our group and to the world of knitting. Meet Anastasia. She also bought the same book I did recently, 'bout the toe-up way of making socks, and folks, she's learning to knit from it! Her very first knitting project is a sock for crying out loud! Okay, I'm scared of her already. And by the way, she plays WoW too . . . gotta love it!

Brooke was using her new square doublepoints today, and I dunno what they're made of, but I want some! They're a coppery brassy color that fascinated me as much as their square shape. She was blown away by the eveness of her stitches, and she's already a very steady and even knitter. She was won over, and I'm left deeply interested in these little wonders. Hmmmm . . . .