OK, I'll admit it, I knew I was going to have to disappear for a while there. But I really didn't expect my absence to be this prolonged & for that I apologize. But there's been a lot going on these past few weeks. First was the epic battle to renew Washington State's Motion Picture Competitiveness Program (AKA the tax incentive that rewards movies, commercials & TV shows for shooting here, AKA a little thing that makes it possible for me to work & therefore afford to knit). So it is with great joy & relief that I share the fact that weeks of anxious emails, letters & visits to legislators have finally resulted in a renewed incentive, despite the varied & treacherous obstacles that blocked our path. It was truly a roller coaster every step of the way & since recounting it would make this a mighty long post, I will simply direct you, if interested, to the blog that kept us informed & motivated over the past few months.
While all that was going on, I joined the production team of a web series called Journey Quest, which sucked my life up for 5 weeks & only recently spit it back out again, soaked in rain, covered in mud & battered by hail. I truly look forward to seeing the final product.
Once that was over, I ran headlong into promoting a writing workshop I'm organizing for Women in Film Seattle.
And now I'm working on a Microsoft job that's about to start shooting in London & NYC (no I don't get to go).
So yeah, it's been busy. But none of that means I haven't been knitting! In fact, there's been lots of great stuff happening on the needles. Like this for instance:
Finally, there are some inconsistencies in drape between the different types of yarn I used (most noticeable when the sweater is closed) but I plan to take some advice from my friend Bea & block the sweater with some hair conditioner then pin it out to try to loosen up the contrasting color. Despite that, I think this was a great success for my first sweater & I can't wait to cast on another one! I've got some smaller stuff on the needles now (including the first baby item I've ever knit) but I'll talk about those next time. It's good to be back!
While all that was going on, I joined the production team of a web series called Journey Quest, which sucked my life up for 5 weeks & only recently spit it back out again, soaked in rain, covered in mud & battered by hail. I truly look forward to seeing the final product.
Once that was over, I ran headlong into promoting a writing workshop I'm organizing for Women in Film Seattle.
And now I'm working on a Microsoft job that's about to start shooting in London & NYC (no I don't get to go).
So yeah, it's been busy. But none of that means I haven't been knitting! In fact, there's been lots of great stuff happening on the needles. Like this for instance:
Yes, friends, the Highland Park Hoodie (renamed to give props to my 'hood) is finally complete! And may I say, in no uncertain terms, that I love the shit out of it! I love the colors, I love the way it fits, I love the buttons I found at Seattle Yarn & I love all the stuff I learned while making it.
The biggest thing I learned is that I had no idea how to sew seams before making this sweater. In fact, even when I started the finishing for this sweater, I had no idea how. And while I'd always known that I was kind of figuring it out for myself, I had no idea just how wrong I was getting it. Luckily, my belated Xmas gift from Goldie (recipient of the Peekaboo Scarf) was the amazingly informative Finishing School: A Master Class for Knitters, which includes an entire, beautifully-illustrated chapter on seaming. And wow, did it show me the light.
Seams sewn before reading Finishing School.
Seam sewn after reading Finishing School.
I was also happy to see that the fix I came up with for my mistake of continuing the cable pattern up the hood worked. The hood calls for a series of small decreases in the center but when I decided not to rip out the misplaced cables, I moved those decreases to either side of the cable & let the cable terminate where the two sides of the hood get sewn together. And I'm really happy with how that came out.
Finally, there are some inconsistencies in drape between the different types of yarn I used (most noticeable when the sweater is closed) but I plan to take some advice from my friend Bea & block the sweater with some hair conditioner then pin it out to try to loosen up the contrasting color. Despite that, I think this was a great success for my first sweater & I can't wait to cast on another one! I've got some smaller stuff on the needles now (including the first baby item I've ever knit) but I'll talk about those next time. It's good to be back!