LuLuPurl

It's been a long time

2006-12-14T10:12:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy with work. I spent two weeks working on a environmental site investigation in Livingston, Montana. It was very interesting work, but long, long hours and very cold and windy. Then a came home to contract negotiations for a new environmental compliance project that has been a crazy wild start. I am so exhausted and cranky. I can barely even knit, but at least I got a lot of knitting done in the hotel in Livingston and on the weekends I am working on a really fun project. O.k. FOs include a Cornelia Tuttle shawl in Noro, the basic socks for my husband, and the simple cardigan in Bitteroot Rainbow. I really have to photograph those. I also started a pair of socks in Mountain Colors Bearfoot, but those are on hold for the moment. Now I am working on a pattern for a new design I created! That will have to be finished this month. No one is getting knitted Christmas gifts this year from me. All my energy is in the project at work and this other design. Someday I'll be able to knit full-time . . .

O.k. I'm a nut!

2006-11-07T11:09:00.000-07:00

A girlfriend called me on a recent Sunday morning and cracked up after the following conversation:

Me: "Guess what I did this morning!"

She: "What?"

Me: "I made a sock!"

She: "You what?"

Me: "I made a sock for Mike."

She: "What time did you get up?"

Me: "Seven."

She: "You are a nut!"

Me: "You wanna know the funny part?"

She: "What?"

Me: "I snuck back into the bedroom and measured his foot, because I want it to be a surprise. I untucked the covers and slowly lifted them and held my measuring tape up to his foot. I got the measurement, and he groaned a little, so I covered his foot back up and slipped back out of the bedroom."

She: "You are too much. When do you want to go for a hike. I think I need to get you out of the house."

Rainbow Flash

2006-11-06T13:33:00.000-07:00

The Bitterroot Rainbow Tie-Front Cardigan is coming along. It actually has one and a half sleeves now. I'm knitting faster than I can photodocument. It is so soft. It is 85% merino wool and 15% silk. It's incredible. I'll have enough left over so that I can make some baby booties as gifts. The colors will be wonderful for baby tootsies.

Hat Class

2006-10-23T15:12:00.000-06:00

I just took a color knitting class with Anne Carrol Gilmore from the Black Sheep Wool Company in Salt Lake City. It was great. She is so inspiring. She has researched many traditional patterns and incorporated inspiration from these sources into her own designs. She gave us a bibliography for inspiration which included the following: Enchanted Knitting, Folk Socks, Tassels: The Fanciful Embellishments, The Tap Dancing Lizard, and many more. We made Khroma hats. I'll post a picture after I block mine.
That was the weekend before last. And then since I have had absolutely too much activity lately, I hibernated at home most of this last weekend and started a new project. It's made out of Mountain Colors, Twizzle, in Bitteroot Rainbow. The pattern is a simple, tie front cardigan from Pure and Simple. It has a seed stitch border. It's a top down pattern and I got to the arm pits last night. Tonight I will separate the sleeves and start the main part of the body. I love knitting top down, and I love the colorway. It's so primary and bright. It will be the perfect thing to wear when volunteering at the Utah AIDS Foundation! That wasn't totally my inspiration, but I think it fits.
I know, I know a blog without photos is pretty boring. I'll get to work on that ASAP.

The Washing Machine Brain Cycle

2006-10-06T02:44:00.000-06:00

Well the washing machine brain strikes again. You know the times when something is bugging you and you wake up in the middle of the night with the repeat spin cycle going on in your head? You know the times when you recreate conversations and wonder what you should or shouldn't have said? Then you compose and recompose in your head a letter to all concerned parties trying to address any mistakes you may possibly have made? Yes, it's 2:45 am and the washing machine brain has driven me from my cozy bed and onto the living room couch. Here I sit with my laptop. I have knitted half a sock for my husband. That's the big surprise I was talking about in a past post. I'm now not concerned about sharing because for some unknown reason my husband seems more interested in rock climbing and golf websites than knitting ones. Well to each his own. My husband has the endless possibilities associated with golf shots and bicycles. Clyde has his red ball which is filled with hope and possibilities. He has joined me in the living room, after finding his red ball, giving it a good chew, and then curling up with his head resting on it. I think he derives similar pleasure from that ball that we derive from yarn. The possibilities include endless options of hand tosses and fetches in midair, grounders, after bouncing off of a fence or the garage door, or finding it in the tall grass after it has come to a dead stop. Do you think these possibilities are similar to the possibilities of socks, bags, scarves, and sweaters that we see when admiring a new yarn? I hope so. That would help me understand this seemingly crazy obsession he has with his red ball.
Anyway, I hope I have broken the washing machine cycle in my head. My hand has gone numb from knitting furiously and I would like to get some sleep tonight. The reason for my spin cycle head is that I got a rejection letter today. I had applied for a job and interviewed with six people. I know and have worked with several people at the company and I believe they were pulling for me. I think I'm very qualified for the projects thecompany has right now. I don't know what happened. I know better than to take these things personally, but I can't help but think that I must have committed a faux pas, said something disconcerting, or acted really ditzy. Maybe I'll find a way to ask. Maybe it just wasn't meant to be. Right now I'm just hoping for a little sleep, but in the mean time knitting with my dog by my side is so very comforting.
BTW: I am about six rows shy of finishing my diagonal scarf and I ran out of yarn! Oops. I guess I'll have to get a few more skeins and make another scarf for my mom. The whole time I've been knitting this I've been thinking of her and how much she would like it.

New Buttons

2006-10-02T17:37:00.000-06:00

Here's the Proof

2006-10-02T17:07:00.000-06:00

See? I really did get to meet the Yarn Harlot and hold the sock.

Best and Oldest Friends

2006-10-02T10:05:00.000-06:00

I have known this woman since before I can remember. Our dads used to race motorcycles together and our moms became friends and shared their pregnancies with us together. Both sets of parents split up when we were two. My mom and I moved in with her and her mom. We have grown up together and apart, but can never be anything but our true selves to each other. She was more vibrant, athletic, glamorous, and outgoing. I was more bookish and quiet with a hidden dangerous streak. When we were teens she moved to Singapore for a couple years with her mom, stepdad, and new step brother. When she came back she was tall, tan, super skinny, and beautiful as ever. She hung out with a group of very mod and hip young women who called themselves the fab four. I hung out with my rocker boyfriend. When we graduated from college she moved to Ireland and then Iceland to act in the theater, commercials, and some film. I moved to Utah to ski and become a geologist. Today she is in Colorado Springs with her wonderful husband, two wonderful girls, and a baby girl on the way. I think about her daily and with so much love. Although we are riddled by a grown-up politeness, we still get into competitive conversations like we did when we were children and teens. Sometimes we are a magical duo who can change the world. Most importantly, like I said, we can't escape from our true selves when we are together.
I would post more about knitting but I have been painting the house. My hands are sore and my knitting has suffered. The diagonal scarf is almost done though, and I have been doing a row at a time on my Ariel-design-as-I-go summer top. It will be out of season, but it looks very nice so far. I have been trying to up load my wonderful and cherished photo of my with the Yarn Harlot, but my computer bonks each time. I don't know what to do about that. I'd really like to share it. I'm also trying to learn how to put my web ring buttons on my side bar. If anyone has blogger and knows how to do that, please let me know.

You Have to Have Balls to Knit Like This

2006-09-20T17:32:00.000-06:00

Light can be deceiving. It looks bright and warm, but really that's just the camera flash. This is the Taos diagonal scarf in process in a log cabin in Wyoming. The clue to the actual conditions are the heavy fleece, the actual kerosene lantern on the table, and the headlamp. My husband's caption for this picture is, "Let Me Knit or I Will Kill." I don't think I look that crazy, do I?
We had a great time. The conditions were rustic but adventurous, and the scenery was fantastic.

Taos scarf

2006-09-15T22:40:00.000-06:00

I have been working on a little summer top in Filatura di Crosa Ariel in a beautiful blue and turquoise merle sort of thing. I got it to make Sizzle by Wendy, but realize the yarn just wasn't right for that pattern and I really should get the silk bijou that she recommends. So I have been going it alone making a summer sweater from the bottom up, in the round, K2P2. The K2P2 is really nice for this yarn. It really brings out the texture. I have no idea what I'm going to do once I get up to the armpits. Well actually, I think I can handle that. It's the neckline and trim I'm concerned with. So to take a break with that I'm knitting a scarf in Crystal Palace Taos which of course I bought at my favorite LYS in the City of Salt, Black Sheep Wool Company. I'm using this great pattern of triangles made of short rows. I can't find the pattern right now, or I'd give you the name and designer. I'll post that when I post the photos. The colors are so rich and warm and autumnal with orange, rust, blue, green, brown, and yellow. And, it is self-striping. I have another top secret knitting project going. I guess that happens a lot in blog world before the holidays. There is so much we can't talk about for fear that someone might happen upon. I'm also making a quilted Christmas tree skirt for my mom. I really have no fear that she'll find this blog. I haven't let her know about it yet. I'll fill her in after she gets her gift, when hopefully I've gotten a little more sophisticated with blogging. I'm making the quilted tree skirt from some fat quarters in the Moda Mistletoe collection from the book Stir Crazy that I got at a wonderful little LQS. It's really cute. I hope she likes it. She is still using an ugly felt skirt that I made for her when I was eight. I think at one time she had talked about making another nicer one but I made her feel guilty for not loving the one I made her. Oh I'm such a weird and bad daughter. Hopefully, she'll like this one and we can laugh about that another time.
I've been very obsessive about my crafts. That's probably because I really should be applying to grad school. My close friend advised me to OCD myself right into an application essay. Yuck.
It's late and I promise to post more pictures. I have to figure out the pictures and size files and a lot more. I suppose I'll have to buy an Idiot's Guide to get my blog a little more sophisticated. If you're out there and following along cross your fingers and check back. The progress may be slow, but I'm sure to figure out some fun stuff sooner or later.
-L

Confessions Time

2006-09-09T12:40:00.000-06:00

I know this may look like a small stash to many out there, but look at the disorganization. Look at the haphazard confusion. Also, look at the size of this photo! It's ridiculous. The size of the photos I am uploading appears to be totally random. Of course I know there is a perfectly logical explanation for this, but I have yet to figure it out. Do you think I should try to find an instruction book for this? The blogger help page is pretty helpful, but a bit of a maze. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Thanks.

Green Gable on the Sweeter One

2006-09-09T12:28:00.000-06:00

There's my sweet niece! What good fortune that I am a total din dong at sizing garments. I swear I made a swatch. I think what happened is that my gauge on circulars (particularly when they are too short) is quite a bit more tight than on straights. Well, I'm glad it looks so lovely on her. I'll just have to try again to make a bigger one in for myself.

Oh boy

2006-09-09T08:36:00.000-06:00

I tell you what. I just spilled my heart out to this little computer screen, tried to edit the post, and wouldn't you know it, I lost the server. It was nothing earth shattering. It was just an admission of not knowing a thing about creating a blog, it taking me forever to figure out the simplest of tasks, and my total and utter insecurity about writing anything for the blogging world to see. I'm sure I'm not half as creative and witty as everyone else whose blogs I read religiously, but here it goes. Something compels me to give it a try. Motivated by meeting the most engaging, lovely, and funny person I have yet to meet, The Yarn Harlot, last night, I am inspired. I will publish my charished photo of her and me together as soon as I find the USB cord that my husband has so insensitively reposessed and apparently hidden from me. It was a delightful night last night with the Yarn Harlot in our salty city. We had loads of healthy and hearty laughs that only us knitters could understand.
This is Thelma's Knitting Bag. The pattern is by Favorite Things (www.favoritethings.net). The fabric is by Alexander Henry which can be purchased at www.purlsoho.com among other places. There is a zipper inside that allows me to expand this bag to twice the size. The zipper is a little superfluous because my bag is so full, that I must always keep it unzipped and big. I guess it might be a good exercise to keep it in the small size when starting out travelling. This would allow expansion for adding items from various knitting shops throughout my travels. Maybe I'll try this sometime.

Here is this very fun fabric by Moda. I have turned this into a Kimono that I have yet to photograph, but will shortly. I used a pattern from the book Amy Butler's In Stitches. This book is beautiful. It is filled with gorgeous pictures and wonderful simple patterns for things for the home and things that would make excellent gifts.

Here is a picture of my neice who got the Green Gable sweater. It looks so much better on her than it would ever look on me. I'm proud to hear from her grandma that she loves it and wears it all the time. She and my mom seem to be the only people who truly appreciate the things I make for them. Well, my husband used to save every thing that I made at the pottery studio. It didn't matter how ugly or heavy that mug was. He would cherish it. That was sweet, but I had to curtail that collection by "accidentally" breaking the mugs that were really awful. He also has a scarf he seems fond of, but I don't think he'll every actually wear it. It has a special place in his closet. Saving it for a special occasion, I'm sure. Anyway, back to that picture of my niece. I'm having a hard time uploading the image. Let me try again . . .
O.k. the internet gods are against me. I promise. I do actually knit. I am humbled by the community that I was with last night and have to admit that I don't knit a lot in comparison, but I DO KNIT. I WILL prove it to you, eventually. For some reason this is not the time for my to upload knitting photos. I will go to Pilates, clear my mind, and try later today.
-bye for now, in peace.

my profile picture

2006-09-09T08:02:00.000-06:00

2006-08-15T15:51:00.000-06:00

I just wanted to see if I could upload some photos. Here are Maggie (the cat) and Clyde (the dog).

First Post

2006-08-15T14:30:00.000-06:00

The very first entry for LuLuPurl may be a bit boring. I'm starting this rather spontaneously. I have no photos saved yet, but lots of ideas. I have just finished a Green Gable and it is beautiful. But, I didn't realize that my gauge for the circulars is much small than the stocknette swatch that I created with straight needles. Oops. It looks darling on my eight year old niece. I'll have to make another for me once I figure out the gauge. Then I started Wendy's Sizzle in an Italian yarn called Ariel. It's beautiful, but too big. I'm sure it will look super fantastic on my mom. I truly must get the gauging thing figured out. I think of it like a science class with lab. I know the concept, but it took a couple blow ups before I seriously applied the theory. I've always knit scarves, bags, hats, and winter sweaters that aren't very fitted. Third tries a charm. In the mean time I have been inadvertantly generous with my knitting. Now I am trying my first pair of socks. They are looking pretty cute. I think socks may be addictive. I promise to come up with something more interesting soon.
-LLP