tales of a train knitter

They're done. My broken cable rib socks.

My first train socks- knitted in about 6 weeks, during my daily commute to work. I knit standing on the platform, sitting on the train and standing on the train if neccessary when I've been running late and haven't been able to make it all the way to the last carriage- the one which still has some spare seats when it pulls in at my station.

In those six weeks*, I haven't seen any other knitters, and only one couple have spoken to me (He says "Can you do that?" She says "I don't know" Me says (butting into the scintilating conversation to explain) "It's ribbing" She looks blank and says "I only know how to knit"). However, I have experienced less stares than expected. I don't know if I'm pleased or disappointed by this- I take pleasure in doing something constructive and creative with my time, and I kind of wish all those silent, dazed, computer fazed commuters would react and show some some flicker of interest or intrigue in tactile productivity.

I must confess there were some spots of frogging involved in sock #2 (I managed to do one cable round completely out of sync) but it doesn't have any broken cables (like sock #1). I'm very happy with them this way. I took them along to show off at S'n'B on Sunday, where a couple of the girls told me about the Japanese concept of Wabi Sabi. I like the sound of it. The ease of it. No tense need for perfection (am I free of this curse?). Thinking about the missed cable again I remembered Betty's earlier comment about the missed cable- it's the small imperfection that makes the whole sock have sense. I think she's right.

The Vital Statistics:
Pattern: Broken Cable Rib Socks from Interweave Knits
Yarn: Patons Kroy, a gift from Siri
Needles: 2.5mm bamboo dpn's
Pattern modifications and thoughts:
A simple yet repetitive challenging knit- just a simple K2 P1 rib with the fun of a round of cables every 10 rows- a great way to practice cabling without a cable needle. The cable is done over 5 stitches, and in this regard I now realise I didn't quite follow the pattern- I knitted all 5 cabled stitches on the cable round and then reverted to K2 P1 the round after.

I've read some comments about it being an easy pattern to make mistakes with, which I suppose it is, but I think if you can exert a bit of concentration every 10 rows, the rest should be plain sailing. I can handle a pattern like that, and I'm pleased that I can now successfully cable without a cable needle, whilst standing up on a moving train (I love learning a new technique!).

I also departed from the pattern, inspired by Nona and Purly's Mini and Mega Nancy Bush Masterclasses, to try out a Welsh Heel. I followed directions Nancy Bush gives in Knitting Vintage Socks, although I omitted the central purled "seam stitch" she has. I like the fit (although the heel flap seems a bit gapey) and it was fun to try a different heel. Although I must confess, the heel was done on the sofa at home, where I could balance the instructions infront of me, not standing up on the train!

* based on this level of productivity, and allowing for holidays, I could knit about 8 pairs of socks in the next calendar year... Wow! Next up: Sockapaloooza socks!

feeling special?

I think it's a good thing to take note of the things that sometimes happen, that make us feel special. It's a way of reminding ourselves that life is a wonderful thing, when day to day events get us down, or we feel momentarily let down or hurt by someone or something.

The last couple of weeks have brought me a few special moments.

Firstly all the lovely comments about the felted blocks, including a brief moment of glory being mentioned on the fabulous Whip Up (*Thanks Kath!). Thank you all- it's such a buzz when we share something and receive so much positive feedback. I do hope to see more blocks popping up around blogland in the future- perhaps some made with thrifted felted sweaters -perhaps even hand dyed- as a few people suggested. Sounds like a great idea, although I suspect (being a bit of an op shop novice) that it may take a bit longer than the machine knitting.. and one may return home with more than just supplies for fulling?

Secondly my tummy (and Scott's too) was made to feel exceptionally special by the arrival of chocolate chip cookies from Bel. Her contribution to the delightful afternoon tea swap that's being happening Down Under. Sooooo good- I grew up on Mum's wonderfully nutty and crunchy chocy chip cookies, and Bel's were completely different but perhaps even more delicious- soft and rich, melt in the mouth, and gone in the blink of an eye. Thanks Bel! Hope you have a chance to post the recipe soon.


And thirdly, I received the most wonderful yarn and chocolate in a little swap I did with Purly. We decided to do a little sock yarn swap for... well.... just for the heck of it! She sent me the most gorgeous Fleece Artist Merino in the most spectacular shades. The colourway is Origin, although the website swatch really doesn't do it justice. It's sooooo me! I love the dark luscious plummy purples and burgundies, with rich reds and varying to bright sunny yellow. Just gorgeous - the camera couldn't do it justice either. And Purly also sent some chocolate - Yum. I love how in craft swapping etiquette it seems almost obligatory to include chocolate or some other treats.


It's lovely to have these kinds of special things in your life, especially when I'm tired from interstate travel and endless meetings at work (although the new job is great, and I'm loving working in the city centre again, for those of you wondering about that), and more than capable of finding other small things in life to feel down or peeved about. *sigh* I hope you can find a few special things in your life at the moment too :)

full of it

Man, this project seems to have taken for ever, but at last this morning I gave my friend Clare (her baby is now 3 months old) a set of fulled (aka felted, but technically fulled) wool baby blocks


I'm really pleased with how they turned out -soft and squishy, bright and colourful -but not in the mass produced boring primary colours way. Something a bit more interesting and shaded. The fact that they went down very well with the giftee is even more satisfying, and makes the frustrations of the process a paler memory.

The Vital Statistics:
What: 6.5cm stuffed felted wool blocks
Yarn: 8ply feltable (fullable?) pure wools such as Panda Woolbale and Lincraft Cosy Wool.
Needles: just whipped up on a knitting machine to a fairly loose tension.

Process and comments:
Frustrations of the process? This wasn't something I was expecting. It seemed like such a simple idea. "Why on earth hasn't everyone made some of these?" I'd wondered.

But that was before I'd spent a couple of afternoons, back bent over Mr Bond cranking out stocking stitch pelts (in the end I found it easier to machine knit standing up rather than sitting down). I didn't totally hate the machine knitting- don't get me wrong- but it was just the first step of what seemed like a really long process to create something so simple.

Next were the traumas of machine felting. My first batch (on the right in the photo) I didn't press first, so the rolled edges stayed rolled, and felted into nice fat sausage edges instead of a nice wide expanse of fulled fabric. Thankfully I'm a quick learner and I usually hedge my bets, so the second batch were steam pressed first and yielded a larger quantity of usable material.

And then there was the cutting. This involved another couple of Sunday afternoons' craft time- crouched over the cutting mat with roller cutter and spare blades, making silly cutting mistakes and producing what seemed like great quantities of wastage. I loathe creating waste. I like efficiency. I like getting the most possible bang for my buck and my effort, and the wastage of what felt ;) like limited resources really annoyed me.

However, playing with the neatly cut squares, putting together little sets of colours (planning them all out carefully after making one test block to see that the stitching and stuffing were going to work) was fun and improved my mood no end. I should mention that the colours were really more luck than anything else- it's hard to find good cheap feltable colour selections during summer down here! I raided a few Sincraft and Scrag-fight stores for Cosy Wool and Panda Woolbale in bright colours, but trying to avoid the primaries -aside from Red of course. Red is essential. And a dash of Blue for some balance to the warmth of the other colours.

The blocks were blanket stitched together with stranded embroidery threads (three strands) in close matching shades, and stuffed with polyester fill to a nice squishy level. I've recommended hand washing them to my friend, noting that they'll cope fine with hot water. The stitching has been perfect TV watching crafting in the evenings. I still have about a dozen more to piece together... they'll be going out as gifts to other friends, and Mr Bond will be going back to live with the Guru, who has some other quick (?) craft projects lined up for him.

But having spotted Judy's Shibori experiments (via Moth Heaven), recalling Alison's shibori work, and eyeing off strange felted creations (amongst other things) at Velvet Boutique, I'm inspired to whip out the machine for one more run before I return it to it's gracious owner. I just need to find some time for a quick trip to Marta's first...

**speaking of Marta's, if you're seeking the pattern for the slubby wool cardigan I knitted, as featured in Knitscene, you can now get it here

to market, to market...

It's a weekend for selling.

My little flat went on the market this week. Auction date is set for the 4th March, unless someone makes an appropriate offer earlier. It's all very exciting- fingers are crossed- but I'll be sad to part with it. It's such a lovely little flat, and I really enjoyed living there. I feel like I accomplished so much for myself in finding, buying it, and decorating it.

On a smaller scale, I've added a little purse to my etsy store.


It's made with leftovers from the bag I made for Kris. I love the Japanese print- must find some more of it. I have managed to get hold of some more of the orange floral that I used for Kris's bag (and a couple of others), which a few people seemd to like alot.

I'll be making some more bags once I've sold the three bags I made a while back. With that in mind, I've put them all on sale- 20% off though February. So if you're interested in buying one of my quilted box bags, please take a look!

four more

I've enjoyed reading everyone elses, and fellow snb'er Lynne S of Oz tagged me ages ago... so here it goes:

four jobs I've had:
1. delivering the free community newspaper
2. sales girl in a bakery
3. teacher
4. architect

four movies I could watch over and over (this is so hard to pick…):
1. blade runner (the directors cut)
2. lara croft: tomb raider (I love a little trashy action)
3. tampopo (japanese noodle/spaghetti western)
4. delicatessen (and many other french films)

four places I've lived:
1. Newman, Western Australia
2. Perth, Western Australia
3. Copenhagen, Denmark (I studied there for a semester)
4. Melbourne, Victoria

four TV shows I love:
1. sex and the city
2. smallville (aaah, highschool love foiled by meteor rocks…)
3. gordon ramsay’s kitchen nightmares (a reality food show with a difference)
4. faking it

four places I've vacationed (these are the ones with my most favourite memories):
1. Campania and the Amalfi coast in Italy
2. South West corner of Western Australia (aka “down south”)
3. New York and Chicago (preceded by Spain and the UK… it was a wonderfully long trip)
4. Cambodia and Vietnam

four of my favorite dishes (I assume this means eating, not making? four favorite dishes to make would be interesting too..):
1. roast lamb with all the trimmings and mum’s lumpy gravy
2. pasta with chicken, asparagus and persian fetta
3. peaches
4. pancakes with crispy bacon, maple syrup and banana (although the hazelnut pancakes with blueberries, poached pear and yoghurt that I had out for breakfast a couple of weeks ago were stupendously wonderful….)

four sites I visit daily:
1. gmail
2. bloglines
3. google
4. dictionary.com

four places I'd rather be right now:
1. upstairs in the craft room sewing
2. outside in the sun dappled shade
3. out at my favourite café with some good friends
4. in a pool

four people I'd like to tag:
1. suse
2. nichola
3. girlprinter
4. bel

japanese critters

A crafty friend of mine just got back from a holiday in Japan. She sent me a crafty postcard and brought back this adorable book for me*- more inspiration to try picking up the crochet hook and having a stab at some amigurimi.


It's got a wonderful selection of different critters (have a look at the fronts here and the corresponding backs here), but one of the most delightful things is the simple, spare and stylish photography.


The instructions (as per so many of the japanese craft books I've seen) are so simple and clear.. and they include the need for a cup of tea... Ahhh my kind of project!

I'm developing a taste for these Japanese books...

* and in return I'm giving my friend this little (housewarming) gift

teamwork

There's nothing like a spot of communal collaborating and bonding. The group experience. That feeling of togetherness.

I guess that's why I'm so excited that (along with 605 other sock knitters) I made it into Sockapaloooza, and why so many knitters are signing up for the olympics, checking in at the village and showing off their team allegiances. Has anyone made an official "spectator" button yet? I'd be into that (although I am slightly tempted by the Team Wales platform.. I even qualify on almost all counts).

But the latest creative teamwork excitement for me this week is the opening (do blogs "open"?) of Whip up. Please- go and check it out. So much on offer from a wonderful list of impressive crafty gals- some of my favorites. My only concern is that now I have so much more reading to do... I'm a slow reader...