Yarn Party!

There's a lot of talk and hype about buying local produce - it's fresher, it's better for you, it supports local farmers. All good.

Did you know you can buy local yarn too? And for the same reasons. (Supporting local farmers, dyers, and spinners is a given. And yes, yarn IS good for you - it's eye candy without the calories, you can make pretty things with it for yourself and others, the making process can lower your stress levels; and surely local yarn is fresher?)

I had no idea how many local sheep, goat, and alpaca farmers there are in Maryland and surrounding states. Not to mention the local yarn dyers and spinners. And then I saw this site about the Homespun Yarn Party, and I took a gander at the vendors on the left sidebar, and then saw that they'll all be at Savage Mill on March 15th, which is where my knitting group meets.

There will be yarn galore. There will be other craft vendors as well. There will be knitting, crocheting, and spinning lessons. There will be prizes and goody bags. There will be outdoor stitching and spinning if the weather cooperates. Knitters & Crocheters Care will be collecting yarn donations and other handmade items.

I should just camp out at Savage Mill that weekend.

why I love Crowded House

quick haircut, riffing a little Beck, goofy dancing, and entertaining the audience all in one go...




I'm SO glad they got back together!

candy hearts

I've never been fond of the candy hearts. Too chalky-tasting. If I want chalky tasting, I'll take my calcium supplement, thanks. (Mine tastes like chalky Fresca.)

And it seems to me that you wouldn't want to give those things to people you actually like, right? Hopefully, you think more of people you like than that. They deserve really good dark chocolate at least. So, I thought this site was hilarious and perfect. A much better use for candy hearts that you can give to people you don't like and/or who are getting on your last nerve.

I spent Valentine's morning with my knitting group, which is a great way to spend a Valentine's morning without the pressure/expectations/disappointments of The Day.

I'm spending the rest of the three-day weekend revising my thesis, which is love story times three - one tragic, one wonderful, one just beginning.

Oh, and I came across these really neat Edgar Allan Poe stamps at the post office. It's his 200th birthday this year.

I can tell spring is coming...

...because my color preferences for yarn projects are lightening up.

I think I need to get some of these colorways for projects later this year:

Cascade Cotton Fixation Effects - English Garden

Moda Dea Stripes - Vintage

Interestingly, these aren't color combinations I wear, and they are thinner yarns than I usually use, and yet I can't stop staring at them. I love how the colors go together, and I really want to try them out.

Cate needs...

This was actually a fun meme.

Type in your name and the word " ___ needs" in quotes (" Your name needs”) into a search engine and see what comes up. List the first 10.

• Cate needs to take the cable-car up to Chateau Dumas
• All Cate needs now to complete her look is a black lamp and some 60's tunes.
• Cate needs the freedom to do her own thing in order to blaze her own trail.
• After that, Cate needs to find the evildoers’ shelter by finding differences between two side by side pictures.
• Cate Needs Brains, or At Least Carbs
• Cate needs to stop recruiting kids from East and making them star struck
• It does appear, however, that Cate needs a stiff reprimand, if not more than that
• Cate needs to go to a book signing at her friend Wesley's bookstore
• Cate Needs those socks!!
• Cate needs no introduction as she's easily found on the Internet and in places like Purestorm

overcritiqued, I'm sure, but I can't help it

So I went to see Coraline last Friday night. The theater was packed - not only for the film, but also because it was Friday night, but probably more for the film. The younger generation of the Gaiman army were out in full force, and there were even some really young trainees, who were having their first Gaiman experience. I couldn't help but smile at them - they were in for a lifelong treat of writing by one author whose works they could discover at every stage of their lives and in pretty much any genre that might interest them.

Granted, I feel old in the Gaiman army, and I don't wear much black. But they still let me in.

I heard a lot of comments along the lines of "is this story really suitable for young children?" The button eyes bit seemed to be the main catalyst for this question. It's a creepy idea, sewing buttons on eyes, I agree. But consider some of the other creepy elements that are part of childhood literature - a headless horseman, a witch that wants to fatten up children and cook them and eat them, another witch who wants her stepdaughter's heart brought back to her in a box, a wolf who eats a little girl and then is cut open to free her, giant snakes and spiders in and near a wizarding school. If kids can handle that, they can handle button eyes.

The stop motion animation was wonderful. The sets were gorgeous. I loved Coraline's blue hair, and after I recently saw a little video of the micro-knitter who made the clothes, I couldn't stop staring at the outfits. Great voice work. French and Saunders as Spink and Forcible - perfect casting. It had just the right amount of menace and creepiness, as the book does. Incidentally, it's a great adaptation of the book. Nothing feels left out, trivialized, or overdone. And Coraline is such a great heroine for kids, especially girls. She's intelligent, and she takes action. To see her change from what she thinks she wants to appreciating what she has, and to see her realize that there are times when it is okay to defend yourself and talk back to adults, especially if they're trying to hurt you, is a powerful message that I hope the younger viewers pick up on.

Definitely one for the DVD collection.

Click here for a far better review that mine.

due to circs beyond my control

This is a yarn post, and it's long and linky and somewhat philosophical. I suggest you make some tea and/or use the restroom before continuing. I'll wait...

All right? Settled in? Good. Onward.

I have made another revolution for this year: one knit project and one crochet project going at any one time. I'm hoping this will get rid of my guilt about working on multiple projects at the same time and will keep my interest in my projects if I alternate between the two types, thereby leading to finished projects.

However, this intention has had unforseen consequences.

See, it's like this, I've encountered a personal knitting revelation. Circular needles and I are not meant to have a long-term relationship. I'm afraid the same goes for double-pointed needles.

I completely understand the usefulness of both:

• you can avoid having to do purl stitches
• you can make seamless tube-shaped objects, thereby avoiding any sewing
• you can use them as you would straight-point needles

And yet, I don't love them. There are many reasons for this:

• I don't mind doing purl stitches
• crochet has spoiled me - I can use the same hook for a blanket as for a sock
• double-pointed needles = too many needles for me to keep track of
• I don't buy the "you can knit scarves end-to-end on circular needles, which is faster" argument; you're limited by the length of the needles, and I like really long scarves
• I already have enough knitting needles; I don't need to buy more

I've wanted to complete at least one project on circular needles and one on dpns so I can say I've done it and so I can figure out why some knitters love them so much. Generally what happens is I get so frustrated with them that I transfer the project to straight-point needles and end up so much happier. I tend to knit faster on straights anyway. Knitting is not supposed to be stressful. It is supposed to be better than psychotherapy because you see results after just one session, or so somebody said.

I arrived at this conclusion about my future with these tools because I came across a lovely pattern for a sleeveless turtleneck sweater, and I have some even more lovely yarn in a fern green colorway. The two were made for each other and will be great for spring. The pattern calls for knitting two panels that are sewn together. It's a super-easy pattern, so I thought I may at last have found a project I can see through to the end on circular needles. It wouldn't be too bad using them to knit from the bottom ribbing up to where the arm holes start. But then things get complicated.

Shaping arm holes means decreasing stitches on four sides - two on the front, two on the back. This means separating the top part of the piece, so no more seamless tube. At the top of the armholes, the two pieces then join again for the shoulder and the neck.

I'm trying to decide if it's worth it to knit part of this sweater on circular needles, then switch to straights for the arm holes and the shoulder and neck. I'll be knitting the same number of stitches whether I'm using straights or circs. It will take me as long, if not longer, using circs. I'll still have to sew up the shoulder and neck seams. Seems like an awful lot of effort just to avoid having to sew up two sides of a sweater. It's not like they're a mile long. Twelve inches at most.

And another thing: I also find circular needles are harder on my hands. No idea why. Should be easier and lighter since the weight of the piece is more evenly distributed on the cable, yet my hands feel sore and cramped after using them.

If anyone has circular needle experience and can comment on my issues, feel free.

***

I'm getting better at the knitting/crocheting for guys thing. I've made a bunch of things for male family members and friends recently, and learned a lot. It comes down to a few factors:

• Be careful with color choice - indeed, it's a good idea to ask the guy what colors he prefers


• The same goes for yarn choice - I've yet to meet a guy that would wear something made out of fun fur or itchy yarn
  
• Keep the design simple - When in doubt, show the guy the design you want to use and carefully observe his reaction. If he doesn't like it, why waste your time/money/energy making it since he won't wear it? Yarn projects are not supposed to end in tears (see psychotherapy comment above).
  
• Customize if requested - if he says he can never find sweaters with sleeves that are long enough, keep that in mind when making sleeves for a sweater. Measure his arms if necessary.

• There are many pattern books with projects intended for guys. Moreso now than ever, seeing as so many men are taking up the hook or the needles (yay!), and demanding patterns they'd actually like to make. However, not every knitting/crochet pattern designed for guys is one that every guy would like - see third bullet above. Ties, for instance. I can't remember the last time I saw a guy wearing a knitted or crocheted tie, but I'm seeing a lot of patterns for them lately (knit examples here and here; crocheted examples here and here). Apparently, there's a report on the market viability of knitted and crocheted ties, but I'm not paying 348 pounds to find out what it says. Guys who read this - would you wear a knitted or crocheted tie? Is the proliferation of patterns a hint that I should be making ties now because you really want to wear them? Or are the yarn tie designers way off base and should stop wasting their time designing ties because you will never allow yourself to be seen in one? The answer to these questions could do the yarn industry heaps of good either way.

***

Here are some neat yarn projects to browse on:

This is a video about the knitter who made the clothes for the Coraline movie (which I'm going to try to go see tomorrow night). Stunning work.

I'm on a yarn-buying fast until at least mid-March because there's a yarn party coming up where my knitting group meets, and I think I should let myself have a little splurge there. It supports local yarn dyers and spinners. I'm really looking forward to this.

However, I may need to break the yarn fast so I can make something for the Milkweed Project. They're hoping to start receiving contributions in May and they'd like big pieces. I've even got some yarn in mind for it, which reminds me of milkweed. (I keep wanting to write "milkwood" because I read some Dylan Thomas recently.)

I haven't decided yet what I think of Kniitiing for the Wii.

Yarnbombing is the only kind of bombing that should be allowed because there's no violence involved and no one gets hurt and it's much easier to remove than spraypaint.

This appeals to my knitterly medical writing heart. Notice the red stuffing in the valves.

And for those who were wondering, the crochet project I have going is Angel's babette blanket. Since Angel reads this blog, I'm not posting pics yet. It's coming along slowly but nicely though. If you want to see what babettes look like, click here.