Gee, has it been a while?
Posted by Amber on November 26, 2007
While I haven’t been blogging, I have been knitting. Some sort of anti Blog-Post-Month thing, I suppose.
I started Sweetpea (while still in NYC…):
Claudia Handpaint (Pink Posey). I tried out the Magic Cast on - I really like it. Much more than the Figure 8 cast on or the short row toe. And it just goes so much faster.
Then I started some Retro Rib Socks:
with Black Bunny Fibers (I got mine from Rosie’s Yarn Cellar @ Stitches this year; you can get yours from Black bunny @ Etsy ). I’m going toe up in order to get the most from the ball - it reaches just below my knee! I’m using size 1 needles, and it’s very soft and plump. Reminds me a lot of koigu - both the texture and color.
I also tried out the magic loop method with these socks - I’m totally hooked! I tried it a while back with my Wicked sleeves, and it was so handy, just needing the one needle. I haven’t been starting many sock because my needles were all tied up. But now, much smaller investment in new materials.
I also started my first pair of plain old stockinette socks:
SpinningYarnsOnline.com fingering weight (neopolitan) - also available at Stitch DC (G’town!). Good yardage (540 yards), but it feels a little off in my hand. It feels sort of like it has nylon in it, which is odd, because it’s 100% merino. Lorna’s Laces (with 20% nylon) feels more like 100% wool. I’ll hold off on total judgment until I wash it - maybe it will nicely plump & soften up.
Thanksgiving at Chez Yarny was lovely, although nothing particularly photogenic. For breakfast, I made Giada De Laurentiis’ Berry Strata. Then, for dinner I made Barefoot Contessa’s (Ina Garten) Turkey Meatloaf (sans onions), and Barefoot Contessa Cranberry Fruit Conserve (a granny smith apple provides natural pectin to turn it into jelly! - and this year it actually set. Two years ago it didn’t set, and we had pink, chunky gravy, last year I skipped the cranberries), along with your basic steamed broccoli, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. So instead of food photos, I bring you photos from the park in my backyard (early Thanksgiving morning, all the muggers, murderers and rapists were still sleeping):
