Snow!

Snow! Snow in Seattle, especially around Christmas, is quite unusual. We do not like it, especially when it persists for over a week(!). Luckily, for me it's been inconvenient, not crippling - but if things don't get back to normal soon, I will go crazy.

I took some pictures - it is picturesque today, Christmas Eve, with snow coming down. It's coming down in the form of snowflakes, which are fabulous, and in the form of big clumps as old snow melts and falls off power lines and rooftops. It's 33 degrees at the moment, which has me hoping it will become rain at some point.

Red twig dogwood.



You can see a bit of the bright fuschia colored (formerly purple) house next to mine. In this dim light, it's not too bad. When the sun is out, it really pops.



Balsam fir in the backyard. Lovely.


Somewhere underneath all that there is a car.

And to prove that it's not just me whining about snow, it's the whole city of Seattle:
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/393514_storm25.html
The headline in the dead tree version is "Desperate for drizzle".

March/April/May Showers Bring Lots of Flowers

The temperatures have finally warmed up to tolerable here, we've had some sunny, dry days, and the plants seem to have loved all the cold, rainy, even snowy days we had. Irises of all kinds are blooming - many that I have not seen bloom in years or forgot that I had. I have a few pictures (my camera has been devouring batteries).

German Bearded Iris - mauve and white - really lovely this year - sometimes the colors are too muddy for me:



Siberian Iris - Summer Sky - light sky blue/white/yellow - these are in a bed that has been around for 10 years or more, overcrowded, grass-infested - putting on quite a show, along with the dark purple, larger-flowered Caesar's Brother, which I thought had died out.


Not a very good picture of my favorite purple species iris - reminds me of the iris that grows wild in Virginia, and certainly runs wild in my yard. It winds up everywhere. Also in the picture are blue columbine - descendants of purple columbine from my Aunt Helen.


Autumn fern, with Tassel fern behind it. Not a very good picture - it's a gorgeous coppery pink, leaves unfurling. The Tassel fern is dark, glossy green.

Spring is on its way, right?

We've had snow(!) the last couple of days, despite the temperature being above freezing - about 36 degrees. The plants don't seem to mind, although the seeds that we planted in the ground are taking their time. Below is the clematis armandii in the back corner, which has taken off and is doing what I envisioned. I like that I can see it from the deck. The yellow thing hanging from the rose bush is a praying mantis egg case in protective netting. The other clematises are getting new growth, as are the roses.




My latest pair of socks. They fit pretty well, but could stand to be a tad smaller and snugger. And I need to do something about the toe - I have a wide toe, so probably decreasing more gradually and having more stitches at the end would work better.

Happy Valentine's Day

My husband surprised me with 2 dozen beautiful red and white roses for Valentine's Day. He's usually good with giving me something, but this is the first time for roses, I think. I would typically say that I'm not that crazy about roses, but these are gorgeous. He put them on my computer desk where I work from home, knowing that it's the first place I stumble to in the morning (I have a wretched 7:15 ayem meeting daily). What a great surprise! Work has been very stressful - looking at beautiful roses really helps.

Lovely, sunny day today. I noticed some crocuses out the other day, and the snowdrops and clematis are coming out, roses putting out new growth. I love this time of year, and while it is still cold and spring isn't here yet, it's my favorite, hopeful time of year.

I.Am.An.Idiot.

I've been spending time on Ravelry lately, and getting more comfortable with all the stuff there. Sunday I decided to inventory my knitting needles. I have a lot, jumbled up in a needle case, on shelves, in bags. Most are old metal ones that I've had for 30 years, although I have started buying bamboo and wood circular and double pointed needles. And Addi Turbofast needles, which are amazing. So, I get to the needles I used for making my socks. They were in a sleeve with no size on it, and I couldn't read what was written on them, so I put them in my handy gauge/needle sizer, and guess what - they're size 3! I thought they were size 2! No wonder my socks are too big - what an idiot!

I'm not sure what happened. I may have had them before class, and took them along, thinking it was likely we would start relatively big. Or I may have grabbed the wrong size, then got it in my head they were 2's. I don't know - it is kind of a relief. I don't feel like such a sock-knitting failure.

I put my second sock away - have been working on other things. But now I have my sock enthusiasm back! I needed cotton yarn for a market bag swap I'm doing for Ravelry, and decided to go out to Issaquah to a Pacific Fabrics store. It turns out that store is closing and everything is on sale. It's pretty picked over already, but I found plenty of sock yarn, including alpaca sock yarn, and needles, and a book (Knit Lit Too). I'm going to be across the street from it tomorrow, so I'm going in with a clear head and a plan.

Sock Class Graduation

I graduated from sock class last Saturday, and have the proof:

I didn't get the gauge quite small enough, so they're a bit big, and the striping doesn't match, and I didn't get the toe decrease right on the first one. But they are a pair of socks, good enough to wear around the house. I've got another one done in a different pattern, in a solid navy blue - it's a bit big too, so I definitely have to get the gauge right. I'm afraid I'll be using size 0 needles. ;(

Absolutely addicted - very fun and so many variations!

Groundhog Day

The Yarn Harlot says this is the day for blogger's silent poetry readings. This is one of my favorites, by Pablo Neruda:

Ode to a pair of socks

Maru Mori brought me
a pair
of socks
that she knit with her
shepherd's hands.
Two socks as soft
as rabbit fur.
I thrust my feet
inside them
as if they were
two
little boxes
knit
from threads
of sunset
and sheepskin

My feet were
two woolen
fish
in those outrageous socks,
two gangly,
navy-blue sharks
impaled
on a golden thread,
two giant blackbirds,
two cannons:
thus
were my feet
honored
by
those
heavenly
socks.
They were
so beautiful
I found my feet
unlovable
for the very first time,
like two crusty old
firemen, firemen
unworthy
of that embroidered
fire,
those incandescent
socks.

Nevertheless
I fought
the sharp temptation
to put them away
the way schoolboys
put
fireflies in a bottle,
the way scholars
hoard
holy writ.
I fought
the mad urge
to lock them
in a golden
cage
and feed them birdseed
and morsels of pink melon
every day.
Like jungle
explorers
who deliver a young deer
of the rarest species
to the roasting spit
then wolf it down
in shame,
I stretched
my feet forward
and pulled on
those
gorgeous
socks,
and over them
my shoes.

So this is
the moral of my ode:
beauty is beauty
twice over
and good things are doubly
good
when you're talking about a pair of wool
socks
in the dead of winter.

taken from Odes to Common Things

Sock Class - Part 2

When I blogged last, I was stuck on turning the heel of my sock, waiting for class to become enlightened. When I got there, it turned out that the instructors and sock-making veterans were perplexed by the instructions, too, even though the pattern was the one the instructor handed out in class. Sigh. But, we persevered, followed the instructions, and it worked! Ta da -


I went on to pick up stitches, then decrease stitches - I think I understand the next bit, which should get me to the point of grafting the toe (which I know I do not understand). I've picked up a cold in the meantime, but may be able to work on it later today, so I'll be ready for the 3rd day of class. I see how addictive this can become.

This is the watch cap I made for my husband for Christmas. It's Wool-Ease, navy blue. It worked up really fast on an Addi Turbo 16" circular needle, size 6 (US), using this pattern. I finished it on Christmas Eve - and it fits! And I made fingerless mitts to match, but on size 10 needles. They're not nearly as nice - I think the smaller needles and the twisted rib stitch works really well with this yarn. I'm going to make my kid the same hat. I made him one from the alpaca yarn, and it's ok, but I was so pleased with this that I'd like to do another one.


Brown alpaca hat:

This was done on #10 straight needles, in k2, p2 rib. The main thing is that it fit, and he wore it while he was visiting. I made fingerless mitts to match, which were not pretty - holes, dropped stitches - but again, they fit and were functional. I may try this pattern - Dashing fingerless mitts - for matching navy blue mitts, although it's a bit more complicated than I'd like at this point.

Sock Class

The first sock class was yesterday. It was a lot of fun. A little chaotic, as there were many different levels of experience, from those of us who could barely get started with double pointed needles, to knitters who are tackling very complicated patterns, with cast on techniques that I have never heard of. I had some sock yarn and the beautiful, tiny rosewood needles that my friend Needles (dr) brought me, but I was a bit concerned that the yarn wouldn't be sufficient. I bought it at the shop and asked at the time if one skein would be enough - the owner looked at my small feet and said yes. But I was happy when I scrounged through the racks to find another skein of each in the same dye lot (!), so now I won't have to be concerned about running out. The yarn I picked for my first attempt is Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock - Superwash Wool and Nylon - Devon (the blue and gray colorway). The red/blue/purple is Uptown, and the other skein is a gift from Needles - Merino wool, which I'm saving for when I'm more confident - and competent.


I knit the cuff and leg of the sock last night. Not sure if I will attempt the heel before the next class. I watched the video on Knitting Help, so I might be able to continue. Miraculously, the gauge seems to be about right.

I'm pretty pleased so far. I sort of wish the yarn was striping more - as Jo at Celtic Memory mentioned in her latest blog, sometimes the variegated yarn is prettier in the skein. But given that this is a very plain, basic sock, I think this will do nicely. Although heaven knows if I can get get the same colors in the same places on the second sock! But that's a detail - if I manage to get 2 socks done that fit me, I'll be very happy.

The instructor also showed us other methods of circular sock knitting - using 2 circular needles, and the magic loop method, using 1 long circular needle. Using 2 looks even more unwieldy to me than dp's, but I want to try the magic loop. The woman sitting next to me in class was having some difficulty with it, though - definitely sounds easier than it is.

I was thinking about going to see a movie today, but decided to stay inside and do sock homework - and I'm glad because now it's starting to snow!