Masters Monday - 10

Today's Masters Monday post is a little late because I was busy ---



--- FINISHING! I'm done, I'm done, I'm Sooooo DONE!

That's my binder at the top, ready to hand in. I spent nearly the entire day going through the rest of these books and a long list of online resources (for a second time!) so I could write out my reference list and bibliography. I knew about the bibliography and had added to that as I worked on the swatches and questions, but I had somehow missed the fact that my "Blocking and Care of Knits" report had to include my references. I had done all my research, taking notes from each source I could find, and had then compiled the report from my notes --- but I had not written down my sources or page numbers. I had to look everything up a second time. *sigh*

Note to those just starting the program: Every time you crack open a book or magazine, or find a valuable online source, WRITE IT DOWN!

Sheldon

In or out, he's a cutie!





This is "Sheldon" the turtle, from the free Knitty pattern designed by Ruth Homrighaus. This is destined to be a baby present (shhh, don't tell Kaylen) so I embroidered the eyes using the method suggested by Bogie.

This was a fun knit. Not nearly so difficult as it might look.

Leaf Lace Set

Remember a while back when I modeled the Leaf Lace set I had knit on a baby doll? It fits Kaylen now, but not for long!



This was taken Monday, just before her first outing (not including neighbourhood walks).

Kaylen has started her own blog HERE. She'd love to have you come by and comment!

Grandma's Running Again

With the birth of my first grandchild last week, I was more than a little busy and wasn't able to make it to the gym. I'm back at it now though, 40 minutes running on the elliptical trainer yesterday and again today, brings my total so far this year to over 227 miles. Although I've given up on trying to make the distance from Chilliwack to Prince George by the end of April (too many unavoidable set backs), I still intend to keep on running and working out with weights at the gym. Once I make Prince George I'll reset the "exercise ticker" for a longer goal --- perhaps year end?

Now that baby Kaylen has arrived and I can take down the "pregnancy ticker" I've moved the exercise ticker to the top of my main blog page. This way I can keep it updated without repeatedly adding the graph to a blog post.

With this recent mileage addition I've now passed Mcleese Lake.

Masters Monday - 9

Do I look bored? Frustrated?



I am.

Torturous work this report writing. *Gag* I've found hundreds of reasons to put it off to the last and my procrastination is coming back to haunt me. All that stands between me and handing in my Master Knitters, Level 1 is this annoying report on Blocking and Care of Knits. I have no problem with the material which I feel I know quite well, it's just getting it all down on paper, in detail, and in a way that makes sense and "flows". Borrowing words from a song, I just need to "Knuckle down, buckle down, do it, do it, do it."

My husband says I like to ruin a perfectly good, relaxing hobby by finding a way to stress myself out.

Having taken notes from every book I own that references blocking or care of knits in any way, and having organized a small portion of that into sentences and paragraphs of some sort, I'm calling it quits for the night.

Stay tuned for more next week. Hopefully it will be news that I have crossed the finish line.

Girly Girl

As you might guess, any knitting content on the blog in the near future will likely be hidden among the baby pictures. Baby Kaylen is, after all, my favorite "work in progress" right now.

This very girly little outfit was lovingly knit by my mother, the baby's Great Grandmother.



It's the "Harebell Set for 3 Months" from an old booklet, "Nursery Styles for 3 to 12 Months" by Beehive.

In Praise of Charity Knitting

Along with the baby pictures and grandma-esk bragging that are sure to become a regular feature on this blog, I want to let everyone know how appreciated the little, hand knit, newborn hats anonymously donated to hospitals are.

I've never knit a charity hat for a newborn before but that might change now. I just wasn't aware how much the "little touch of handmade" would mean to the new parents (and grandma!). I figured that because the recipient didn't know the knitter there would be no "bond" with the item and it would just be "another hat", not special in any way. Boy, was I wrong.

The very fact that the knitter does NOT know the baby and parents they are knitting the hat for makes it extra, extra special. From the perspective of a grandma who was there for the labour, birth, and hospital stay, let me tell you it means a LOT when they open that big drawer of little knitted hats and let the mom choose the one she will keep as a memento of this special day, and baby's first bath.



While my daughter and I looked through the drawer finding just the right hat for newborn Kaylen, still damp from her first bath, it struck me that the little hat was a symbol that the baby was not only loved and welcomed by her family, but by the community as a whole, and by the particular knitter who selflessly knit that lovely little hat.



How wonderful the community of knitters are. So generous, so loving, and so willing to spend their time knitting with no thought of thanks or praise. In the case of the hospital hats, there is no opportunity for the mom to thank the particular knitter so --- Thank you kind knitters. Your work IS truly appreciated.

Kaylen also received another very special hat. This one was knit especially for her by her Great Grandma, my mom, and will always be a cherished keepsake.



Sorry mom that we did not understand that the intent was for her to wear it during her hospital stay. It was packed away in her dresser drawer with the pretty little things waiting for her home-coming. She is wearing it now though, and she looks like a little angel in it. So sweet. Thanks SO much. We love you.

New Granddaughter!

What a JOY it is to hold my first grandchild in my arms!



Kaylen Marie arrived in the early morning hours of March 12,



And weighed in at 8 pounds, 14 ounces.



After attending the birth and helping with the first few days at home,

GRANDMA IS EXHAUSTED!

While We're Waiting

So far no grand-baby. While I'm waiting for the call I'm knitting inappropriately colored soakers.



Our daughter would like to use cloth diapers but we couldn't find any first size rubber pants so I'm hoping a few old fashioned "soaker" diaper covers will help "contain" everything until Baby is large enough for the 3 month size. The colors are not very baby girl-ish, but they are all I have in my stash. A quick trip to my nearest LYS was not fruitful. Amazingly enough they don't have any pastel colors in knitting worsted wool.

Oh well. I'm not sure that they will work or fit anyway.

Sample Weaving

Last Saturday I attended a weaving workshop held by our guild and generously taught by one of our experienced weavers. We were learning about a weave structure which is named "Summer and Winter" after its alternating blocks of dark and light. I managed to complete 4 of the 14 samples that day, which was probably about average. I went home and completed two more of the samples that evening.

I continued with the project today and got another 6 samples finished. They aren't perfect, which of course bugs me, but I remind myself that they are just samples and are meant as learning tools. The good ones will make their way into a sample book/file, and the ones with errors may possibly be redone correctly some day --- that is if I like them enough otherwise. Some I like more than others.

Of the ones I did today, these first two are my favorites. Pardon the ends. Those are dealt with after the work is off the loom. This warp is still a work in progress.

Sample 7

Sample 8

The lower Sample in this next photo is riddled with mistakes. I think I wasn't paying careful enough attention and lost track of where I was in the treadling a couple of times. I kind of like the top Sample in the picture though. It was an experiment using "Swiss Twill" as the treadling pattern on the "Summer and Winter" warp.

Swiss Twill treadling (above)

Sample 9 (below)

Sample 10

Constant Baby Watch

Only 5 days left until our first grandchild is due, so it could be any day now and Constant Baby Watch has begun. I'm carrying my cell phone with me whenever I leave the house and still there is a strong temptation to phone our daughter to double check.

In other news, although I won't make it to Prince George by April first as originally planned, that doesn't mean I've ditched the faux journey altogether. I'm still making about 30 miles per week divided into 5 runs of around 6 miles each. 150 Mile House and Williams Lake are now behind me.

Masters Monday - 8

My commitment to posting about the Master Knitters Program each Monday is the only thing that is inching me forward at this point. With the knitting all done it's just paperwork from here on out. It's a slow process because, like a procrastinating school student, I often don't touch the "assignment" until Sunday night or early Monday morning --- right before it's "due".



I have now finished answering ALL the questions, including a mini essay on tension problems and another on yarn substitutions. All that's between me and my submission of Level 1 for evaluation is a detailed report on the blocking and care of knits and a bibliography. Hopefully this will be in the mail next week.

Delayed

It's hard to believe it's March already --- especially when waking to this:



I skipped my workout this morning. And with that, all hope of running the distance between Chilliwack and Prince George (on an elliptical trainer) by April first is gone. It was such a tight schedule that if I missed one more day I would not be able to make it. I was already running (hard) for 42 minutes, 5 days a week anyway for a total of over 30 miles per week. Adding any more time or distance was just not an option. Then waking today to see all the snow, hear of slippery roads and unpleasant temperatures --- bah --- my resolve slipped.

Part of me is glad that the pressure is off. As I said I was in a position where I could not miss a day for any reason and still hope to make the distance by April 1st. Sometime before the first of April our first grandchild will be born and when that happens I'll be taking a few days off anyway. I'll still make the goal though. It will just be slightly later.

Romper Buttons

It took a bit of searching but I finally found the perfect buttons for the shockingly bright baby romper I've been knitting.



I found cute little floral buttons in exactly the right colors in the beading department of Micheals. It did require that I rip out and reknit the buttonhole band with larger buttonholes, but it was worth it. Ironically they are now the size they were supposed to be in the first place. I had purposely knit the holes smaller as I usually prefer a smaller button and a YO, K2tog buttonhole.



This is my version of the "Rugby Romper" a free pattern from the Lion Brand website. I knit the smallest (6 month) size and substituted "Patons Astra" for the "Lion Brand Baby Soft". I used nearly 2 - 50 g balls of black as the main color and 1 ball of each of the contrasting colors: Hot Blue, Electric Blue, Hot Green, and Hot Pink.

Alterations: Between each band of bright color I added a 2 row garter stitch stripe of black to make the colors "pop". I used six buttons instead of eight and knit the sleeves from the top down, I cast on the leg cuffs with tubular cast on and I bound off the remaining ribbing edges in tubular bind off.

Lac La Hache

Another 6.74 miles added today for a total of 190.21. I zipped right on by Lac La Hache this morning!

Masters Monday - 7

The past week has been a very busy one for me. Every single day I had some commitment eating up my time. I wasn't able to give the Master Knitter Program as much time and thought as I would like. I did remain true to my promise to have SOMEthing accomplished this week though.

I went out and bought a binder that will fit in the standard UPS box that TKGA prefers to use. The one I had previously been using, a zippered type, was a bit too bulky. I then transferred all the samples and page dividers to the new binder.



I also finally finished the pattern writing for the Windblown Cable swatch. This was made a little more difficult than it might otherwise have been because the cable I picked was from a "chart only" format so I had to come up with abbreviations and written directions on my own.

I found and printed the Yarn Standards Guide as well. Having a current copy is required but I'm not sure if it must be included in the binder or not.

Anyone else working on the program?

Huck

When you are a beginning weaver such as I, "group projects" at the guild are wonderful. The hard part (the dressing of the loom) is done and all you have to do is the fun part --- the actual weaving.



This will be a tea towel, a favorite weaving project of mine because no matter how many mistakes it might contain it will still at least be functional. My dishes don't care if they are dried by a less than perfect tea towel. I believe the more knowledgeable weavers said this was "Huck Weave". I like it. I think maybe some day I'll get brave and warp my own loom to make a few in a different color scheme.

Halfway

I set out in January to run, on an elliptical trainer, the distance from Chilliwack, BC to my old home town of Prince George, BC by April 1st. Today, with 164.7 miles behind me, I passed the half way point.




I thought when I set the goal that it was going to be quite easy. If I did a minimum of 20 miles per week I'd easily reach the goal with a little time to spare. I normally run about 6 miles per workout and workout five days a week, so the 20 miles per week sounded like it would hardly be a challenge. I didn't bank on the flu robbing a few days followed a few weeks later by a knee strain. Now, when I do the math, I realize that I must be extra diligent and it could come down to a "photo finish" with me staggering across the finish line at the last possible second.

But I'll do it.

Last year I found the inner determination to do what it takes to lose 40 pounds. I can do this. I am counting on me. I will not let me down.

Edited on Friday, February 23: I've now passed 100 Mile House. TGIF, it's been a long week. I found this last workout especially tough. I'm glad to have the weekend off!

Time Ticking By

With the latest update to my "exercise ticker" I've passed 70 Mile House on my way from Chilliwack to Prince George. I lost a little time last week due to a knee strain and it has set me back. If I don't miss ANY of my scheduled workouts between now and the first of April I'll still make my deadline. Problem is, we have a grandchild due in the next few weeks and I'll be darned if I'll miss that for a workout. HA!

Hmmm --- maybe if I add a minute or two to each workout? Workout on an occasional Saturday?




And while we are speaking of "tickers" have you seen the "grand-baby ticker" at the top of my blog? Getting close now. Less than three weeks! SO exciting. This will be our first.

Master Monday - 6

Almost there. All the knitting is complete. Now I have to slog through the report on blocking, write the pattern for Swatch 15, and answer a few remaining questions. Ugh.



On the left, the hat project. Not very attractive, but knit according to the directions.

On the right, Swatch 16 - Color Work. Yes, the blue line at the top is supposed to be one row on the right and two rows of blue on the left. It tests the knitters ability to change colors and hide the tails mid-row.

Edited April 30, 2007 to add: Evaluators noted on Swatch 16 that "right side of ribbing is uneven, possibly due to tail weaving". (I checked, it was indeed the tail weaving.)