Distraction…so worth it!

As you may recall, last week I posted about an on line knitting book I found.

I also commented that I liked one of the patterns suggested for a Canadian cloud.

It is the one in the middle of the left hand page. Finding a couple of balls of fine wool during my clean and purge work, led me to abandon my current projects (again) and start a new one.

As is normal, the instructions are a bit vague and some trial and error is typical.  The instructions read.

Use #6 needles.  I have no idea what that is.  I used 5.5 metric 9 US needles with fine lace weight wool.  The idea behind clouds is loose and airy.  Cast on even stitches.  That didn’t work out so well.  I used multiples of 3 plus 4.

First row: knit.  That is straight forward.

Second row: Slip one, knit one.  * Wool in front of needle, insert needle under three stitches and knit as one. Repeat from * to the end of the row.

Second row translation: Slip one, knit one (this creates the edge of the cloud) *Yarn over the right needle (I did front to back).  Knit 3 stitches together.  (I found it too tight to do that so I slipped the next stitch, knit one, pull the slipped stitch over the knit stitch and off the needle.  Move the knit stitch back onto the left needle, pull the second stitch on the left needle over the first stitch and off the needle, move the first stitch on the left needle back onto the right needle.) Repeat from * to the last 2 stitches.  Knit last two stitches.

Third row reads: knit 2 * k1 out of the put over thread, purl 1, knit 1 repeat from *

Third row translation: this is where I guessed.  You could knit the first 2 stitches or you could slip one, knit one. (which is what I did).  *Knit 1 into the yarn over stitch but don’t pull it off the needle! Purl one onto the same yarn over thread and pull it off the needle.  Knit one. Repeat from * to the last two stitches.  Knit 2.

Fourth, Fifth and Sixth row reads: knit all three rows.

What I did: I slipped the first stitch on each of these rows to keep the pattern of the edge.

The drawing in the book looks more like a stocking stitch.  If I do this again, I will be more careful about changing the instructions so that I am alternating each row with knits and purls to make it smooth on one side (stocking stitch).  But a cloud wrapped around the head will look fine with both sides of the work looking the same.

Advertisements

Unintended comedy!

I recently came into possession of this book.

The cover is in sad shape (missing the back cover and the front cover is completely detached) but the interior is in good shape.

It was written by Marion Harland in 1889.

I have started reading it and I’m getting some surprising enjoyment out of it.  Her language is not too formal (Victorian books can be very hard to read for that reason) and she is unintentionally funny.

The first chapter is about the difference between a house keeper and a home maker.  The house keeper is described as a person who keeps an immaculate home.  She dusts and cleans every nook and corner everyday, including the hanging pictures.  And once a week she takes the pictures off the wall and dusts the hooks and cords.  She describes this woman as a person who makes her friends feel inferior and who drives her children out because of exhaustion from cleaning.

Here is the funny part.  A home maker is not so anal. She may only dust her picture hooks and cords only every 6 weeks but her family is happier in this chaos!  Hahaha!  My family must be in bliss because my pictures may get dusted once a year and I have never in my life dusted the hooks and cords!  Not even when packing to move!

Sorry, that struck me as hilarious!

Look what I found

I was wandering around the devil’s distraction (also known as Pintrest) when I happened upon an archived book called The Art of Knitting published in 1892.

I thought you might like to have a look too so I added a link to the book title.  I can’t tell you how pleased I am that these books are archived on the internet!  What a resource!  Modern times definitely have perks!

I barely got 5 pages in and I found some wonderful knitting stitches.  Gorgeous! My creative mind was thinking I can make this or that with these stitches! (This is one of the reasons why I can’t finish things!)

I encourage all my knitting friends to hop on over there and check it out!

 

 

Making my free time mean something

The reduced hours at work are starting to take effect and I had a day off this week.  I used it wisely.  I cleaned out 4 cupboards.  One was just a mess and now it is sorted. One opened up space so all of my candles can be stored in one spot. And two are now empty (future plans for them still in the works).  They used to hold unfinished projects.  I moved them into my son’s old room.  I got real with myself about 2 of those UFO’s and unraveled them.

Some of that crap is just nasty and will get donated to charity.  Some of it is less nasty and it might be made into toys.  Not sure yet.

My dog got a hair cut “a la mommy”.  Cute alert.

It is the dog version of a bowl cut.  Uneven ears, stray strands hanging out.  I’m on a budget and she wont sit still.  Better than letting her become like a sheep that missed shearing day.

I also made some progress on the dark modern version of the counterpane I saw at a local museum.

Museum version.

My version.

The above photo shows where I left off.  I made 4 more blocks.  I think the blocks are lovely.  A bit hard to see the detail but still nice.

I’m proud of myself!

 

 

 

Cool gift

I got some awesome gifts this year but one might be one you would be interested in.  It is a soft cover book.

It has a lot of information in it about the Victorian era in the British Empire.  Some I knew some I didn’t.  It has a lot of pictures in it but this is my favorite.  It is full page and I have to resist the urge to rip it out and hang it like a teenagers poster in my room!

The colors are loosing some of their punch here but it is lovely!

I hope you all got gifts that you are wild about!

Completed project and progress on goals!

I have spent my New Years Day parked on the couch but I have not been unproductive!  I had dug up a UFO after finishing my last project and I found it was almost done!  Anyone else have this happen?  Only a few hours of work away from finishing a project and then- SCREECH!-motivation vanishes and the work comes to a grinding halt and then sits there, literally for YEARS! I have no idea why this is so for me.  Anyway today I finished a project.  When I started it, I had intended to put it in my friends craft sale and see what happens to it but now that my boys are grown, I may put it in my hope chest.  My “I hope to be a grandma chest”.

In keeping with my “shrink the UFO pile” goal for this year, I reached into the pile and randomly pulled out a bag.  The bag contains a project that uses double point needles and is based off of a knitted counterpane I have seen in one of the house museums I like to go to.

Mine will be in black with some sort of acrylic yarn so not exactly the same and not very Victorian.  Anyway, when I checked the bag, one of the needles had gone missing which led to a clean out of the basket where I keep all my needles.  I didn’t find the needle but apparently I had been given a whole new set of that size when my mom cleaned out her crap so yeah!  The project is back on track, the needle basket is cleaned out and my new year is on track for working on the UFO pile and cleaning out the storage areas in my house.

 

Welcome 2019

Just a quick note to thank my readers for joining me this past year and to wish you all a happy 2019.  My life will be different this year.  Perhaps, there will be more time for the things I love which hopefully translates into more interesting posts for you!  Have a good one friends!