Sunday, July 29, 2007

Happy Cal Ripken Jr. Day!

Cal is being inducted today, hurrah for him! Now, on to the knitting . . .

Since The Devil's Shawl has been banished for its insolence (well, actually, it's just crumpled up on the couch awaiting divine intervention; God probably knits, right?), I've moved on to the All Season Shell. So far, it's not much to look at:

This is the back, and I've now reached the point where I can start shaping the armholes. It's not the most exciting pattern to work on, but since this is my first real sweater, sleeveless though it may be, I thought it best to keep it simple.
Tomorrow I'll be ordering more goodies from Knit Picks. For reasons unknown to me, the local Michael's refuses to carry straight needles under size 3 or DPNs under size 6, it seems, so I'll be buying some from Knit Picks. I really want to buy the Options interchangeable set, but since they're so $$ I'm holding off in the hopes that a kind soul will buy them for me for my birthday (in October). I still haven't used circs yet, but I ordered my first set from eBay last week (Michael's stock of circs is even more pitiful, and the size 2 circs are out of stock at Knit Picks for whatever reason) in preparation for working on Chapeau Marnier.
In my last post with the knitting quiz, I came across a term unfamiliar to me, so I decided to do some research on "steeking." Dear Lord, not for the faint of heart! Apparently steeking is a technique where one voluntarily cuts HOLES in a piece of knitting! I can't even fathom doing that. Just thinking about it makes me want to lie down with a cold compress across my forehead. Of course, this technique is used to make this adorable vest that I've decided I desperately need. Between the steeking and the colorwork, I think it's safe to say I am never going to own this vest. Sigh.
Stranding, Fair Isle, colorwork--whatever you want to call it, it's on my list of things to learn, I just don't know how to tackle it. While I've managed to teach myself what I know about knitting so far using books and online videos, I really wish I had a Grandma to teach me something this complex.

1 comment :

Mrs. Homesteader said...

Oh, tell me about the sad state of Michael's needle collection. I wanted 0 dpn's for socks, and they only had 3's and 5's, and then really huge ones. I got the 3's and luckily they came in handy for my Hogwarts sweater. Sheesh.

I just finished my first swatch for that vest - it's yummy! I didn't get quite the right guage, and I figure I can use more practice anyways, so I'll be making another one. The steeking is *scary*. Another reason to do another swatch - more steeking practice! Eunny's website has a great tutorial though, and so does brooklyntweed. good luck!