Hibernation

 With the exception of a few hours of sun today, this is what Seattle has looked like for over two weeks.  In fact, this is light fog compared to some of the days we've had recently.  Combined with freezing or near-freezing temperatures, being outside, as a friend put it, is like taking a cold shower.  And since I start my first job of the year in a couple of days, I haven't felt the slightest bit of guilt about staying inside knitting every day.  I even got off my ass & moved my Buttony Sweater off the needles & onto some waste yarn so I could try it on & photograph it. 

I think I'll knit about 2 more inches before separating the sleeves from the body.  I'm happy with the way it looks so far & I think it will fit well, though I might incorporate some waist shaping for a snugger fit.

I've been listening to a lot of podcasts the last few days & have discovered some new ones (new to me at least) that I really like.  Tonight, before running out to snap the after-dark photo above, I listened to fiberstory.tv, an interview show hosted by Johnny Vasquez (whose beautiful wife, Lacie Lynnae, you've probably seen in recent issues of Knitscene).  Up until October, Johnny was a prolific podcaster, interviewing designers like Cirilia Rose, Emma Welford & Allyson Dykhuizen.  However, he hasn't put out a new podcast since October so I hope the show hasn't come to an end.

Yesterday, I shuttled my sweater off of then back on to the needles in the company of the video podcast 90% Knitting. Normally I stick to audio podcasts because they don't require me to divide my attention as much.  I can visually focus on my knitting while my mind focuses on the podcast.  But when I have an exceptionally boring or tedious task at hand, a video podcast is just the thing.  And Lisa, who hosts 90% Knitting, is adorable & charming.

I've also discovered the knitting section at my local library & it kinda rocks!  I just finished reading Clara Parkes' Knitter's Book of Wool & it was absolutely eye-opening!  As with everything she writes, it was readable & concise while containing a wealth of information.  It really helped me figure out which breeds of wool I want to spin & I will be on the lookout for them at the Madrona Fiber Arts Festival this year.  I've even begun entertaining the possibility of traveling to Oregon Flock & Fiber or Black Sheep Gathering later this year for more breed exposure.  Until then, knitting with yarns simply labeled "wool" will hold a whole new level of mystery! 

Hit Refresh

Despite how long it's been since my last post, this finally-finished Vite Cowl is really the only thing I have to show you.  And it's kind of a difficult garment to take good pictures of since wrapping it around my neck obscures the pattern more than I'd realized it would.  But it's very warm & comfy & looks terrific with one of my winter coats so I dig it.  

My excuses for this poor showing in finished objects are as follows:

1. Carpel tunnel.  Yep, I'm gonna play that card again.
2. Work.  Normally I can expect a bit of a lull in this excuse come November before we ramp up for a big finish at the end of the year.  But this year was non-stop!  Not that I'm complaining but I worked straight through December 10th (without a day off after Nov. 25th) then scrambled to finish all things Xmas before I left town on the 20th for the annual trip to NY.
3. Xmas knitting.  Or actually a total lack thereof!  I decided to bypass the Xmas knitting this year & I am so glad I did!  With my work schedule, I pretty much need to start making knitted gifts in January, when I least want to be thinking about Xmas.  I'd even started buying people gifts in April this year so I thought I was ahead!  But when it came right down to it, there were still lots of gifts unaccounted for at too late a stage for knitting.  Plus I've already knitted gifts for many people in my family & Dan's so it was time for a break.  I think I'll revive the tradition this year but I need some inspiration...& some serious lead time!
4. And last but not least, there's been this little distraction:

This is Carter & we brought him home exactly one week ago.  After we lost Isaac in September, Tree got very lonely & needed more companionship than any human can give a cat.  We've been wanting to get her a friend but neither of us had much time to devote to acclimating a new cat over the last few months.  So we forced ourselves to wait until after the holidays & as soon as we returned from NY, we went right out & found this little dude.  Things are always slow for me in January so I've been able to help him get settled in & now he's completely at home.  Tree took a few days to come around but she loves him almost as much as we do now.  And just in time, as I just landed my first gig of the year, which will start in a little over a week.  

With my down time, I've been doing a bunch of knitting & spinning but don't have much to show for it just yet.  I finished my first Mermaid's Lagoon sock & started on the second.  And I've been spinning away at the multi-colored alpaca I spoke of previously, but I'm not even halfway through the fiber yet!  

I also cast on for the Buttony Sweater by Katie Marcus, whose simple but super-cool patterns I just love.  I've also knitted her Razor Cami.  I'm using the rest of the Patons Jet that I bought in Australia in 2008.  I don't have quite enough blue for the whole sweater so I'm doing the trim & possibly the cuffs in green.  It'll be a little clashy...but in a good way.  It's a top-down raglan so I hope to use this project to really learn & understand raglan construction.  I'm at the point where I need to try the sweater on under the arms, which means I need to move it from the needle to a holder.  So naturally, I'm procrastinating on that.  :)

This is the first of what I intend to be many projects geared towards significantly reducing my stash.  I don't have a huge stash but it's overflowing the space I've allocated to it & a lot of it has been just sitting there for quite a while so I either need to use it or trade it.  I have a few uncommon yarns in odd yardage so it's a bit of a challenge, plus I refuse to knit something that I know I won't wear just to get rid of a yarn.  Though I'm not opposed to charity knitting.  I'll keep you abreast of my progress & hope to have some photos to share next time.

Till then, happy new year!