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I Want to Knit
Thursday, September 30, 2004
Today marks 1 year I've had my licence! (Don't laugh!)
It feels good to be back. I didn't actually go anywhere, but my IE wasn't workind and Netscape wouldn't show me the wysiwyg editor, so I couldn't add pics or anything! Here's the sock pic I wanted to post last time:


Unfortunately the 2nd sock hasn't gotten much progess on it since the 25th, because I've had too many projects going. I have 3 baby outfits to crochet, plus 2 knitting projects for my class.
Kisses!
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 9:52 pm   0 comments
Sunday, September 26, 2004
Long time no post
I know it's been about a week since my last post, but I've had a busy week.

Monday was my first knitting class, and it was a lot of fun. I'd been worried that it was just a primer class, as in "insert needle from front to back to knit, from back to front to purl, etc..." and was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't. We'll be covering a different set of basics, like the proper increases/decreases for each side of your work, finishing, stuff like that.

Hectic week at work due to the 2 days off last week, and day and a half coming up this week.

I finished Yannick's first sock! I'd love to show a picture, but I'm stuck using Netscape temporarily 'cus my IE won't work, and it's not giving me the edit buttons.

After our September Babies lunch today, Yannick and I are going over to the lys to get a sweater pattern and yarn for the class on Monday. She wants us to make a kid's sweater to practice all the stuff for a real sweater within the time constraints of the class- so I'm making one for one of Yannick's nephews, his godson Justin.

Hope people who fasted had an easy fast yesterday
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 9:46 am   101 comments
Sunday, September 19, 2004
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEBBIE!
A bunch of warm wishes go out to my favorite shortie birthday girl! I'm sorry I'm posting this so late but my IE isn't working and I just remembered that I also have Netscape on my computer.

Haven't done any knitting since Friday afternoon when I turned the heel and began the gusset on Yannick's first sock. All Friday night was spent watching Yannick and buddies fix my car so I could drive my dad to work on Saturday. Saturday was work then dinner with the family for Yannick's, mine and my sister Laura's birthdays, and then back to my parents' house. Today was filming for a tv show we'll be on in Japan (and possibly China), then some window shopping and stuff, now finally home, supper eaten, and ready for bed.

I'm very pissed that my IE isn't working, but very happy my car is 'cus I start my knitting classes tomorrow. I'm probably a little more advanced than the average level 1, but the instructor only lets you in her level 2 class if you've done her level 1, so it's back to the basics I go
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 11:38 pm   0 comments
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Happy Birthday Aaron!
This deserves a post to itself:




(From left to right: brother Michael, me, sister Laura, boyfriend Yannick, mom Betti, dad Mitchell)

Aaron, my brother who turns 22 on Sept. 16, has been in Australia since early this year and shows no immediate signs of returning. Since we couldn't be there to celebrate his birthday with him, we decided to at least send him a pic that shows we're thinking of him.


posted by Jennifer Lori @ 1:43 am   0 comments
Not much of a happy new year so far...
I'm not having a great start to the new year. My car overheated on the way home from work and still won't start, plus leaving the hazard lights on while I went to Rosh Hashanah dinner caused my battery to drain. Had to get a tow to my parents' house...at least the tow was free 'cus of my credit card service. If this is the forecast of things to come this year, I'm staying in bed!

On a more positive note, check this out:



What I'm happy about is actually what you CAN'T see in the picture. My very first time working on dpns, and NO LADDERING! I'm very happy about this, and I'm not even deliberately switching stitches around, I'm just being careful to pull my first few sts extra tight. I keep checking with the needles hidden and can't tell where my joins are, which makes me very happy. I'm very proud of myself.
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 1:38 am   0 comments
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Happy New Year!
No, I'm not crazy. It's Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. So to all my Jewish friends and family, I hope you have a very happy, sweet, healthy, prosperous and wonderful new year!

On the knitting front, almost done the ribbing on the top of Yannick's sock. I was worried that the dark stripes weren't lining up but figured I'd wait until I got to the stockinette part to see for sure. However, Yannick examined the pic on the front of the label and decided that the stripes weren't supposed to line up exactly, it was just a general darker section in between the Fair Isle sections. I don't know if that's true, but he's cool with it being slightly off, so it makes it easier for me- I don't have to worry about frogging anything.

p.s. Now that I've got almost 2" done, I'm laughing at myself from yesterday. How could I have been so scared of dpns???
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 8:53 am   0 comments
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Third time's a charm!
I finished my sock swatch yesterday and measured it around a drinking glass 'cus I didn't leave the trails in the back long enough to stretch it out flat. Happily, I was exactly on my gauge, so I promptly ripped it out to start the socks.

Scary thing those dpns for the first time!

I cast on all 68 sts, on to 2 needles like I'd done for my 2nd swatch, 'cus I found it too hard to knit into the cast on when it was tight on one needle, I kept splitting the yarn. I divided those looser cast-on sts onto 4 needles...and instantly saw there was no way I'd manage that on 4 dpns (knit with the 5th). They were too loose and it was impossible to keep them untwisted. I undid everything and cast on again on 2 ndeedles...but this time did a row of the k2, p2 ribbing before dividing the sts onto 4 needles and joining. I thought it made it easier, but then I didn't know if I was knitting into the inside or outside of the sock, so I did about 2 more rows in the rib trying to follow knit the knits and purl the purls ('cus I'm in the round), but after 4 rows I didn't have anything that looked like a ribbing...it looked more like a drunken garter stitch. So I undid everything again. Third time I got it. I cast on to 1 needle, just trying not to make it too tight, and divided my sts right away. I forced myself to go slow and do my first row of ribbing, keeping everything nice and tight... and it worked! I did about 5 rows last night, and although I think I'm getting some laddering, my ribbing is actually looking like ribbing. So I'm happy. I'll do more tonight while Yannick bowls.

Oh, and if anyone can figure out how to insert a marker on dpns that WON'T fall off the moment you turn the work, could you please let me know? I had to resort to a crochet marker that slips onto the stitch itself, 'cus there's no way I'm getting a ring to stay on these ndls.
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 11:29 am   0 comments
Sunday, September 12, 2004
Happy Birthday Jackie!
The birthday bonanza continues!

I not only had the most incredible birthday, but it's not over yet! See, my mom made the mistake of telling Yannick that I wasn't born until 2:29pm. So neither of them wished me a happy bday until then. But I made Yannick promise I'd get a full 24 hour day birthday to celebrate with him...so from now on every year my birthday with Yannick lasts until 2:29pm the following day. So sleepy as I still am...happy birthday to me! And Happy Birthday Jackie! I know I'm imposing on your birthday today, but we already shared a midnight so I hoped you wouldn't mind too much. (Plus you stole some of my day yesterday and celebrated early) :)

Last night when I finished working Yannick took me for TONS of yummy sushi, and then we went to see The Notebook. To everyone who saw the underrated commercials and wrote it off- GO SEE IT! Everyone should see it, especially anyone in a relationship. (And it's not just me saying that, Yannick agrees). I just wish someone would have warned us to bring Kleenex.

On the knitting front, I ended up ripping out my sock swatch yesterday. I'm making it flat but faking stockinette in the round by leaving long tails behind the work...and mistakenly did the first 18 rows of the swatch at the exact number of stitches the swatch calls for. But when you leave the long tails the first and last stitch of each row (at least) get all pulled out of shape, and I won't get a true measurement. So I re-cast on with about 10 extra stitches, and I'll do a larger swatch and measure within the crappy borders. I just hope I get the swatch done before the holidays next week...I'd like to bring the sock along to work on.
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 11:07 am   0 comments
Saturday, September 11, 2004
I know September 11 was a horrible day for some, but...
Happy Birthday to me!
Happy Birthday to me!
Happy Birthday dear Jennifer!
Happy Birthday to me!

(No, I will not skip around the room.)

posted by Jennifer Lori @ 9:58 am   0 comments
Friday, September 10, 2004
So 2.5mm dpns aren't evil after all!
I tried my first attempt at knitting with dpns today- 2.5mm. I'm making my first pair of socks, and they'll be for Yannick. He had a choice- I do my pair first as practice, and he gets a more experienced pair, or I do his first and he gets them sooner. He chose sooner, figuring I could always make him another pair. I think I got gyped somehow. :)

I was horrified at first, 'cus after I casted on (caste on??) the first row was HORRIBLE to knit! I kept splitting the yarn, and peering at the tiny things like I was blind. The only thing I could think of was what in the world I was getting into, with my birthday gift of 22 entire skeins of yarn waiting to be knitted on 2.5mm circs into a skirt and top. Luckily, once I got into rows 2 and beyond, it went much smoother and is actually kinda fun after big, loopy mohair-type stuff. Here's a pic (which didn't come out too bad considering I took it with my Palm):



This isn't actually part of the sock, but the beginnings of my gauge swatch. Isn't the yarn cute? It's by Regia and self-stripes to look almost like Fair Isle. I got myself 2 skeins also to make a striped pair. All the loops you see underneath are because I had to fake my swatch as if I was knitting in the round (stockinette by knitting every row instead of knit 1 row, purl 1 row, repeat) so I let the yarn hang behind the work a bit and then start knitting again at the right side. I only have 2 skeins though so I'll have to frog the swatch once I'm done.
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 7:04 pm   0 comments
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Happy Birthday Julie!
At least something good came out of today, besides dear, sweet Julie being born some unmentionable years ago on this very date. I just finished the last sleeve on my To Dye For sweater. Yay! Just the blocking left, and then sewing the whole thing together. I'm still not sure if I'm supposed to use my fake mohair stuff to seam it with, so I sent an email over to my knitting groups to ask. I think I'm really bugging them lately with questions.

As for today not being the best (Julie's birth aside), I'm grumpy 'cus I'm sick. And right before my birthday too. I left work an hour early yesterday and crawled into bed at 6pm. Yannick woke me around 11pm with NeoCitran. He's sweet. Did anyone else know they also made a cherry flavor? It's absolutely DISGUSTING! He made me drink the entire thing too, damn sadist. I had a bad sinus thing, with fever, coughing, the works. I didn't go to work today, so he gave me another NeoCitran around 10am before he left. Luckily we had a lemon flavor left in the medicine cabinet, so he gave me that one this morning. Not like a refreshing glass of lemonade, but nowhere near the death puke flavor of that cherry stuff. I think the lemon flavor is for general colds, and the cherry for coughs, I dunno. In any case I'm feeling better so I should be at work tomorrow, but first I have to go force down a glass of that cherry crap before bed.

At least I don't have the unfinished sleeve hanging over my head any more. I'm not going to post a picture, 'cus it looks exactly like the other sleeve.

I'm going to bed. Somebody come read me a story...I don't feel well. :(
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 10:21 pm   2 comments
Tuesday, September 07, 2004
I got motivated
It turned out I had about an hour until Big Brother 5 started (yes, I'm a reality tv junkie), so I worked on the site some. I updated the table over there on the left, and created those cute little angel buttons to link to pages on the site. The pages themselves aren't done yet, though. What do you think, I'm a miracle worker?

posted by Jennifer Lori @ 9:09 pm   0 comments
First Post
So here's the thing. I've had this site set up for almost a month now, and have yet to post 'cus I've been lazy and haven't gotten around to creating the rest of the content for the site. I still keep coming up with ideas for posts, though, and then get annoyed that I can't go and blog 'cus I don't feel like doing the rest of the work. So today I decided SCREW IT. My allergies are acting up and I don't feel like waiting any longer 'cus I can't be bothered to get my act in gear. So the rest of the site will be up whenever I get around to it. For now, at least, the blog will be current.

So what am I doing now? I have 3/4 of 1 sleeve left to finish on the To Dye For sweater from the Stitch 'n Bitch book. I have the back, front and other sleeve done, and the back blocked. I used a wannabe mohar yarn from Walmart, which I did NOT dye with Koolaid like the book suggests.


This is the back, blocked. To block I put a garbage bag over a piece of foam or foamcore craft board, or even corrugated cardboard if I'm stuck. I pin the piece to size with dressmaker's pins, then spritz with cool water in a spray bottle, until damp (or almost wet in places I want to stretch a lot). Then I leave it to dry. This back was my first attempt at blocking EVER, and I left it to dry for 2 days. I was afraid to take out the pins- I'd added about 2 inches to the width and was afraid it would spring back to its original size. It hasn't.


This is the front, not blocked. You can see the difference, especially in the width and the curling edges.


This is one sleeve, not blocked. It's bell-style. The bottom is down here with the 4 garter rows as a cuff, like the body. The rest of the sweater is done in stockinette.

Next up after that is 2 pairs of socks, or at least the pair for Yannick. I bought some cool yarn for those, my pair will be striped, and his will appear to be Fair Isle, without all the color switching work. Eventually there'll be an eyemask from knitty.com and a tank from whiteliesdesigns.com, but first I have to get to a special project. As part of my birthday present this year, Yannick took me to Ottawa during one of our vacation days and treated me to a pattern book and all the yarn to complete a project. So I got a great book that has over 20 patterns (at least 5 of which I'm really eager to make), and all 22 (plus 2 extra) skeins needed to make a gorgeous black scalloped top and matching long skirt, plus a skein of a "fancy" yarn with blocks in it, to make a contrasting scarf to add a little color. I'm feeling very spoiled and very eager to knit, especially after the last 3 weeks of rush-crocheting for work (see "3 kids" in my completed stuff section, once it's up).

I think I'll end here, adding only that I'm really looking forwards to starting my knitting classes on Sept. 20. I know the basics obviously, but I'm looking forwards on how to make my stuff more professional, and then eventually getting to the level 2 class and learning how to design my own patterns.

Oh, and for those who don't feel like reading about whatever craft stuff I'm doing, there will also be some bits and such about my life in this too, I just have nothing of that type to add right now. My life's boring. I wanna knit.
There are a bunch of products I want from Amazon.com...I hope my husband sees this message!

Handknitting with Meg Swanson

and

knitting around

and

op knitter

and

from the top

and

raz pacifier
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 6:50 pm   52 comments
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