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    phlox socks sneak peek
  • Phlox Socks - the Robyn's Nest June Sock Club
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I Want to Knit
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
SP12 QOTW
Here is question 8! Enjoy!
What is your favorite supper for a hot summer evening? (For added "flavor", post a photo or recipe link)

Well, I don't really have a favorite supper these days- the vomiting has gotten somewhat better; instead of everything I eat, I'm now only doing it anywhere from 1-6 times a day. And I had 3 random days last week where I didn't throw up at all.

Because it is so unpredictable, I don't look at meals anymore as "hmm...what looks good to eat?" Instead I think "what is worth it?" For example, last night Yannick decided he wanted to order supper. A big criteria for choosing a place to order from was the price- I didn't want to order something too expensive and not keep it down.

Plus I'm not a good one to talk about favorite suppers these days anyways, what with all the food aversions. Had you asked me this a few months ago I probably would have answered "ordering St-Hubert BBQ chicken" but now I have ZERO interest in eating chicken.

I have had no problems eating pasta though, so to make up for another crappy answer, let me share my easy rosé sauce recipe:

Cheese Tortellini with Rosé Sauce (really easy "recipe")*

-Put a large pot of water on to boil.

-While you wait, melt about a tablespoon of margerine or butter in a medium pot, then add some chopped onion. I love onions, so I use at least 1 huge onion for a portion of pasta for 2-3 people, more if there is more pasta. I usually chop half, and thinly slice half. I don't know if it tastes different after cooking, but I like the variation.

-Boil a package of fresh or frozen cheese tortellini. This usually takes about 9 minutes.

-Once the pasta is boiling, empty a small (125ml I think) can of Ayers tomato soup into the pot with the onions. Fill the empty can 2/3 of the way with cream, and add that to the pot too. If using milk, you can put a full can.

-Stir the sauce and let it simmer/heat until the cream and soup are well mixed. By this point the pasta should be ready.

-Drain the pasta, toss with the sauce, and serve. In the past I used to season the sauce with all kinds of spices and garlic, but as one of my favorite "comfort" foods, all I would add to this is some salt at the table.

It's plain, but homey, and really good on a cold night. Or any night. And it reheats well too.

*Yes, you're basically mixing store-bought pasta with tomato soup, cream and onions. I never said this was a Cordon-Bleu recipe. It's still really tasty!

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 3:30 pm   3 comments
Monday, July 28, 2008
it's the jakob show!
Here's some Jakob for those of you who thought the blog was missing some cuteness of late. I can't show you my recent knitting, so here are some other recent photos...
Check him out in his cut-off tank top! I don't see a baby any more when I look at him, I see a little boy, and it makes me a little sad sometimes. He's already grown up so much...I know he's still young, but he's such a "kid" already.

One afternoon when we were home during his Hand, Foot and Mouth contagious phase, I had to put him in his playpen so I could make a bathroom run. His retaliation was to throw EVERYTHING out. He's tossed toys before, but this was the first time the playpen was literally empty around him. He was so proud of himself that he gave me a huge, toothy grin. (The funny thing is I have a photo somewhere of me around 2 years old making the EXACT same face).

Does this kid look sick to you? :)

He loves zooming around with his walker-toy. I'm too lazy to convert the video for the blog, but if you were watching this live, he is FAST! I know, I know, he could/should be walking already. He WAS walking already. Not just while holding on to stuff, but 2 weeks ago he was actually letting go of the walls or whatever and walking to whatever/whoever he wanted to go to. Then he got sick, and he hasn't wanted to walk since, even though he's better. I don't know if he associated the weak/feverish feeling from being sick with walking, but he won't do it any more. He'll still be up in a second and cruise around holding onto walls or cabinets, but if you try and walk holding his hand, or stand him up to have him walk from one person to another like he used to, he'll plop himself right down. If you try a few times in a row to get him to walk he'll not only resist, but he'll get really upset and start to cry. I'm not worried- we know he *can* walk, he's just choosing *not* to. But still, it's hard for us when we know he was right at the cusp of taking off and running.


He DID accomplish one big milestone while we were home sick, though. He now can eat his meals with a fork and his desserts with a spoon. I need to help him push the fork into his food with enough force to actually spear it, but once the food is stuck on the fork I let go and he brings it right to his mouth without error, and then back to the bowl. The spoon he does great too- although he doesn't really "scoop" the food so much as he lets the yogurt or applesauce *coat* the spoon then he brings it to his mouth. It gets a little messy, but it's been 2 weeks and no food has ended up on the floor or walls! That's good enough for me!

posted by Jennifer Lori @ 11:49 pm   8 comments
Thursday, July 24, 2008
blame Tara
It's all Tara's fault.

I've been a little knitting restless lately, because I'm knitting for hire but occassionally I get stretches of time where I'm waiting for an instruction so I need something else to work on while I wait. I'm not going to randomly cast on for a sock or something and have ANOTHER unfinished object lying around. I have a few projects I'd like to start, but Maaike and I agreed we'd do mini "KAL"s for them, and so I need to wait for her to be ready, plus since I have Veronik's knitting as a priority, I really need something I can pick up or put down without any guilt that someone is waiting for me to catch up.

Then Tara goes and mentions the Pinwheel Blanket she's been working on. Which reminded me how long I've wanted to knit one. And how I have a perfect excuse. Plus how it is mindless and pretty-much patternless, which means I can pick it up and put it down whenever I want without making notes in a chart, or taking a note of my row count.

So I blame Tara for the fact that I am about to go stash diving for suitable yarn while I await an instruction clarification. I had no intent of casting on anything new, I swear.

It's Tara's fault.

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 10:37 pm   3 comments
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
SP12 QOTW
Time for the next Question of the Week:
We are all creatures of habit and when it comes to sitting down to knit, it's no different…
What is(are) your favorite place(s) to knit?
My favorite place to knit is in front of the TV. Ideally I'll have a stack of VHS tapes of the shows I'd recorded in the last little while, which would give me a few hours of only the shows I want to see. I knit without looking, so I get restless if I have nothing to distract my eyes. Also, this will sound strange because knitting requires varying degrees of concentration depending on the project, but I need the TV (or at least my iPod) to keep my brain occupied while I knit.

What supplies (besides yarn & needles) make the setting perfect for knitting?
Um...light? I have knit in the dark, but it didn't turn out pretty. Seriously, I think the only thing I'd need besides my yarn, needles and pattern, would be my notions caddy. I have a small 2-level makeup bag that holds everything I need in a compact, easily portable little bundle. Everything is in there, from scissors and sewing needles to spare buttons, pens, pencils, a highlighter, measuring tape, needle gauge, stitch markers, a scale, reinforcing thread, elastic thread, waste yarn, stitch holders and more I'm sure I'm forgetting.

Beyond that I just need a comfortable seat, although I have knit while walking many times. I'd love to be able to knit while lying down, but it isn't worth the strain on my arms.

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 11:13 am   1 comments
i found it!
Just wanted to let you know that it was driving me crazy, so I Googled my fingers off and found the creepy diner!

It's the Farmer's Diner, in Quechee, Vermont.

Of course, now I feel bad. I really want to explain that it was "probably" only creepy because it was half deserted and in the pitch-black, early night. And had no cell signal. And locked me out.

I also wanted to mention that both Maaike and I were impressed with the menu; it was full of highlighted items, each one was something that was locally produced or grown. We both had the South of the (Canadian) Border Nachos - hoo boy was the chicken spicy! - but had we more time, or had we been hungrier, there were many area foods that we wanted to try. If you're ever in Quechee, Vermont, I'd recommend to try it out.






But go in the daytime.
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 10:37 am   3 comments
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
webs part deux
I can't show you my actual knitting, but it hit me the other day that I never finished my WEBS story, and never showed you the new additions to the stash. It's a little late to recap the story, since I don't remember much...but I'll try.

After the Harlot event Maaike and I went back to WEBS to do our shopping. I was so tempted to go utterly crazy- I wanted yarn for so many different projects! But I resisted. With one exception, I made myself promise to only buy sweater-quantities, and only for myself. Before leaving I'd printed out the yardage requirements for a few items in my Ravelry queue, and I was able to get stuff that would actual work, instead of having cool yarn and trying to find a good project for it.
It's about time I show you, no?
First up is some Jaeger Aqua Cotton. It's 100% mercerized cotton in a rich, chocolate-brown color. I bought it to make a silky-look lacy tank top.
This Araucania Nature Wool Chunky is 100% wool. I bought it to make a heavy jacket-esque sweater. The color shift is so subtle but there really is a lot of depth to the color.
This Ironstone New Wool called out to me. I had finished my shopping and was leaving the warehouse when I spotted it- and it made me stop. For 4 years I have had a sketch of a sweater in my head, and this was the exact yarn I'd "made up" for it. I've never seen it before, and I couldn't resist it.
I cheated a little with the Valley Yarns Monterey. I needed something for a scarf project I want to design, and not only was the yardage crazy, I couldn't pass up the colors.
It's a 50% cotton/50% wool with 322 y/skein. !!! If you can't tell how huge that is, here is a normal-sized deck of cards with them, for scale.
This Iceland yarn by Madil is either black or a deep smokey gray. It's 100% machine washable wool, and I think I'd bought it to knit a Rogue. Either Rogue, or another sweater.
Finally, we have some Valley Yarns Shelburne. It's a 45% wool/30% acrylic/25% alpaca bulky yarn. I love the deep coral-red shade, and also plan to use this for a sweater for myself.
With our shopping complete (and wallets lighter!) we decided to start our drive back right away. It was already almost 6pm (I think, this was a few months ago now) and it was a good 5 hour drive if we didn't get lost. I drove and drove and drove, and it was pretty uneventful, until we got hungry and decided to stop for supper.
American highways aren't like Canadian ones. Yes, you have better roads, but we have better rest stops. Maybe it was just our route, but I never saw a single big, lit up rest stop complexe like we have all over here, with at least 2 restaurants, a convenience store and gas station. The few places we did see were few and far between, so when we saw a small sign saying the next one would be the last for a while, we decided to stop.
It was already late, and quite dark out. The exit had us go backwards in a circle for about 3 miles before opening onto what looked like it was probably a large flea market site during the day. At night it was deserted and pitch black, with the exception of a diner at one end of the lot. The part of the diner where patrons sit was shaped, from the outside, like a "traditional" diner, almost like a rounded, silver capsule. It was butted up against a log cabin, so you walk into the cabin's front door and the bar and kitchen of the diner were part of the log cabin, that also had a more formal restaurant within. For the life of me I can't remember the name of the town we were in, but if I saw it I'd know in a second.
In any case, we sat down and were given menus, and I joked to Maaike that the way the "locals" (I assumed they were locals) turned to look at us when we sat down, I felt like we were in a horror movie. One of those Stephen King things where it turns out everyone in the diner is dead and it's their ghosts, or something. We had a good laugh, although it really was creepy, especially since it was so black outside and you could barely see out the windows.
I tried sending a text message to my parents and Yannick to let them know we were stopping, and wouldn't you know it, but there was no cell signal in the diner! I left Maaike at the table and went outside. I had to get about 4 car lengths from the diner before I picked up a signal, so there I was in the dark, in an empty field, holding my phone up to the stars and watching over my shoulder to make sure I could still see Maaike in the window- now I REALLY felt like I was in a horror movie!
Finally my cell told me the text message couldn't go through because there was no digital signal around. I gave up and made my way quickly to the door to get back into the light...
...and the door was locked. The front door to the diner, with Maaike inside, was locked. From where the door was, you can't see the diner area, just the lobby. I was banging and banging, and peering through the small window, seeing NOBODY. I swear I banged on the door for a good 5 minutes, which is a LONG time when you are scared out of your wits in a dark, deserted empty field and separated from the only person you know. In my head the movie camera panned out, so I could see both me, banging on the door futely, and Maaike, being attacked by the zombie ghosts inside.
Finally the busboy came to the door, and in the strangest thing I'd been asked all year, looked at me and asked "were you inside already?" I think I just nodded and ran inside and back to Maaike. (Who was fine and not eaten by zombies).
We ended up having an okay meal, followed by an uneventful drive home. But boy will I never forget that diner!

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 6:36 pm   6 comments
Monday, July 21, 2008
ugh
I promise that this blog won't be all-pregancy, all-the-time. But I'm feeling icky so I need to share. I thought "morning sickness" was supposed to be a first trimester thing?!? Ok, so I had some nausea in the first trimester. I thought it was novel, because with Jakob I had a pretty symptom-free pregnancy. So I was like, ok, this is what people feel. I'm queasy, and feel like I'm living on a boat, but it's livable. I didn't need meds, so I was ok. It only started at 6 weeks, and was pretty much gone by 10 or 11 weeks.

But now? Holy cow! The DAY I hit 14 weeks (second trimester) I started throwing up. That's crazy! Friday night- lost supper. Saturday night- lost supper. And ever since yesterday, I have thrown up everything I've put in my mouth. Every meal, every snack, even a cup of coffee or 5 spoonfuls of soup. The craziest part is that I'm not nauseous at all! I don't feel sick, or queasy. Sure, I feel shakey afterwards, and weak, because I'm empty. But I feel like nothing is triggering it, other than the fact that I'm eating. I'm actually getting kinda scared to keep eating, because I don't want to keep throwing up. (Don't worry, I know I need to eat for the baby, and I will. It's just becoming an all-consuming thing now, this whole "am I going to throw up" thing).

Ugh.

In other news, I'm still working on the knitting for Veronik, so I can't show you my current project, but I have some stuff I will be able to share, so when I'm home and have access to my camera, I'll try to post some photos.

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 10:16 am   8 comments
Saturday, July 19, 2008
SP12 QOTW and first package
Here is this week's Secret Pal 12 Question of the Week:

Since thinking about holidays/vacations is SO much fun, let's continue with the theme…


Question #6-What is your favorite type of project to take along on holiday/vacation?
Hey Group!
If you'd like to share a story…Tell us about a time that you packed too much knitting or were stranded without knitting for Question of the Week #6.




Well. I think some of you might already know the answer to the second half of that question (I'm looking at YOU, Maaike), but I'll answer both anyways.





My favorite type of project to take along on holiday/vacation is socks. I put the yarn and needles into a tiny zippered heavy plastic bag, like a makeup bag or the bag baby shoes come in. I transcribe the pattern into my Palm so it is accessible, and am able to tuck both into any purse necessary. I like to have a more complicated pattern (maybe charts I need to look at, or something I need to pay attention to) for quiet times like relaxing on the beach, and a mindless stockinette or rib for times when I'll have to keep picking it up an putting it back down.

Now then, as for the overpacking or underpacking of yarn. I've never underpacked yarn. But I have overpacked. (Once! Only once!).

I severely misjudged the amount of knitting time I would have on the cruise my family took this past holiday season. What can I say, it was my first trip without my breastfeeding 7.5-month-old, and I thought I'd be knitting to try and ignore how much I'd be missing him, AND because of the novelty of having both hands free AT THE SAME TIME for hours on end.


This is the knitting that actually got done on the 13 day trip. I cast-on and finished Fibonacci Sock #2 (Ravelry project link), I completed 90% of my first Sidewinder Sock, and while waiting in the airport to come home, I cast on for Mona's November Mystery Socks (Barcelona Socks Ravelry link). Why didn't I finish the first Sidewinder before coming home? Who knows. Why didn't I knit in the rest of the airport time and on the plane (4 hours!) coming home? No idea. I might have slept.

As if that much yarn with so little knitting wasn't bad enough, here is more of the yarn I'd brought. Yes, apparently I thought I'd knit 15 socks in 13 days, while 11 of those days were spent on a cruise visiting Cartagena, Ochos Rios, Panama, Limon and somewhere else I forget right now. Plus I took about 9 1-hour computer courses. And we went to the shows every night. Etc... I *did* try to start one of the pairs during a long bus ride at one of the stops, but my gauge was completely off with the needles I had with me, so that got put aside.

But I'm not crazy! These are the 2 balls of yarn I took OUT of my suitcase before closing it- because they would have made it way too much yarn.

Stop laughing.

As a distraction, here is my first Secret Pal 12 package!

Thanks Secret Pal! As you can see, starting from the bottom left, there is some tissues (always handy, especially with a baby), a magnetized notebad (I always have one on my fridge) and a mini notebook with pen, a postcard with sheep on it, a sheep chocolate (which I shared with Yannick) and some LOVELY dyed-in-the-wool mediumweight sock yarn.
These colors are beautiful! Thank you so much Secret Pal!

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 9:43 am   4 comments
Friday, July 18, 2008
and then there were 2...so we'll be 4
I know I said I'd post today with photos of my first Secret Pal package. But that will have to wait until tomorrow, because I have something more important to talk about today. (Sorry Secret Pal!)




I've been working on a big project, something more special than any design or publication, and I feel that it is now time that I can share it with all of you.

Jakob feels like he hasn't had enough face-time on the blog lately, so he wanted to be the one to tell you:

Can you read that? It says "future big brother". Yup, that's right. In January Jakob is going to become a big brother.

Today is the beginning of my 14th week, which means I'm officially in my second trimester.


Everything looks good so far with this baby, and we are very excited to have another addition to our house. Jakob is already practicing being a good big brother- when we tell him to "kiss the baby" he lifts up my shirt and kisses my (growing!) belly. It's really cute! (Although...it probably won't be so cute when he kisses my belly after the baby is born!)

My due date is January 16th, and yes, some cold-weather baby knits have commenced!

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 9:10 am   15 comments
Thursday, July 17, 2008
another quickie
Woo hoo... a quickie!

Ok, here's the deal. I have photos of knitting to show you, I have news for you, and I have a package from my Secret Pal to show off. (Thanks Secret Pal! Photos coming soon!) But I've been having very hectic days with Jakob, who is still sick, and we're still keeping him home from work, and he's not napping very well during this transition from sickie to well, so my blogging time has been practically nil during the day. Add to that the fact that I've had some kind of plans every night this week, and that explains my continued absence.

Those plans continue tonight, and I'm late, so I'm going to run. But check this space tomorrow for a post, I promise!
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 6:50 pm   4 comments
Sunday, July 13, 2008
sorry about that!
I don't know how many of you noticed, but the blog seemed to have disappeared for a few days. (This would only have been apparent for those of you who come here by typing in http://www.jeloca.com/. The direct blogspot link wasn't affected).

Long story short is that I decided to repurchase some web space and host my own files, instead of relying on free online storage solutions that are often more of a headache. In the last few weeks I've tested my own free pattern links and found that they were down about a quarter of the time. I don't know if any of you had tried them and found a broken link, but if you did, I'm really sorry. The link is still the old one, but over the next few days I will be updating it it.

So what was the problem? I pay to have you forwarded here against your knowledge. Sounds sneaky, huh? All that means is that when you type in http://www.jeloca.com/ (short and sweet), my internet people zip you over to http://www.jeloca.blogspot.com/ (longer and easier to mess up). You don't realize it because the address bar stays the same. (Bloglines people aren't affected because the rss feed goes directly to the blogspot address). In any case, in a genius move on my part, I forgot that once my web space went "live" and was linked to my jeloca.com domain name, the new webspace would force itself over the forwarding. Which means that if you came to http://www.jeloca.com/ in the last few days you would have seen a message from my internet provider saying that the website wasn't up yet.

A lot of blather to say that I'd goofed, but I've now fixed it, and I'm quite happy with the results. It's clean, open and easy to read. Like the new look?

In the upcoming days, in addition to the Habs Cloth patterns moving to my own space with (reliable) links, I will also be adding more free patterns. The Vegas Scarf (Knitting Game) pattern will be updated with a new look, and I'll also be adding the Mug Cozy pattern I promised you.

In the meantime, I have been knitting for Veronik but can't show it here.

I've also been taking care of a toddler with Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease. It sounds worse than it is- anything with "disease" in the name can't help but sound horrible. It really isn't much more than a lingering, misery-inducing fever and achiness with barely-noticable blisters on the hands, feet and in the mouth. The doctor who diagnosed Jakob was calling it the "July Disease" because it is going around like crazy.

The worst parts are that Jakob doesn't want to eat ANYTHING because it hurts in his mouth, and his sleep is really disrupted because he keeps waking up. I'm also trying to limit what he touches because this bug is really contagious. It's not really harmful to adults (so I hear) but it travels fast to other little kids. Aparently he was contagious for a week before the symptoms even came out (yay) and even once he's better (about 7-10 days) the virus can live on countertops and toys and clothing/sheets for up to 2 weeks, and in his stools for up to 3 months. Which means a lot of disinfecting and hand washing. Fun times all around.
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 10:53 am   7 comments
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
SP12 QOTW
I'm rushing this post because I'm leaving work in 7 minutes and want to take advantage of a few Jakob-free moments at home (he spent the day at my mom's) to tidy up before my Aquafit class, so there are no photos, just a quick answer to the latest Question of the Week:

Boy, time flies. Summer is when many of us head out on vacation/holiday. So, this week's question/s has us wondering:
1) Where is your favorite place to go for vacation/holiday?

Hmm...I don't know, I don't get to take summer holidays anymore. I think those days ended when I neared the end of school and worked part- or full-time. Another sucky answer, but I really don't have a favorite holiday spot.

2) Where is one place you'd like to go?
I'd love to travel across Canada, preferably by train.

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 4:53 pm   2 comments
Thursday, July 03, 2008
share the love
I do have some knitting to show you, but I was too lazy busy to download them from my camera so they'll have to wait. In the meantime, I won a contest! The lovely and talented Tara had a contest to celebrate her birthday, and I won. I think this is the first blog-contest I've won since I started mine.

Her kids are sick today, so as a small thank-you for the contest win, I'm asking if you could go over and send her some feel-better love in the comments.
posted by Jennifer Lori @ 2:46 pm   2 comments
SP12 QOTW
The "perfect sized" stash was a tough question for many of you to answer. Maybe these stash related questions will be easier:
1) What yarn (that you don't have/haven't used) would make your stash "complete"?
2) What yarn do you never want to be without?

Hmm...these are harder! Let's see...

1) I don't know! There are a ton of yarns I haven't used/don't have...but I can't think of anything I'm lacking. The only way I can answer this is to say I wish I had more sweater-quantities of yarn in my stash. I know it doesn't answer the question exactly, but I honestly can't think of any particular brand/fiber/color/whatever that would be my Jerry Maguire.

2) Sock yarn. It works for socks, for fine projects, for baby clothes, for accessories, lace items...plus you can double it to get a different gauge. Give me a variety of fiber contents and I think I'll be set for almost anything.

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 7:41 am   2 comments
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
introducing...Phlox Socks
It's July 1st, and with that comes two things...

1) It's Canada Day! (Happy Canada Day)

2) I get to show you the Phlox Socks. So...ta da!
(size small shown above, size x-large shown below)
The Phlox Socks are the pattern I designed for the Robyn's Nest June Sock Club kit. They feature an optional lace cuff, a flower appliqué with a center bead, a short-row heel and ribbing that flows seamlessly into the lace design. (The ribbing is underneath the lace cuff- so you have the pretty outside and the functional inside).
The pattern is written for sizes small through x-large (7.5"-9") but due to the stretchability of lace patterns, fits 8.25"-9.75" and may even fit larger.
The yarn is from Biscotte & Cie (etsy shop here) and is really soft, plus her yardage can't be beat! I knit one x-large sock and one small, and have enough yarn left over to knit a second x-large sock for a complete pair. The colorway is called Alexandrite in the pattern, but that specific color was exclusive to the sock club.
The pattern calls for a 2.5 mm needle, and is written for both dpns and the Magic Loop method, with specific instructions for each methods when necessary.

(optional flower appliqué with center bead)


Again, the pattern will only be available for sale as of October 1st, but if you email me (or send me a message through Ravelry) I'll put you on the mailing list with a reminder in October.

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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 10:44 pm   4 comments
and then there were four...
Yes folks, another dishcloth has sprung forth from my needles. I feel like all I've done all week is knit ballband dishcloths- you'd almost never have known that I had my mom's retirement dinner on Wednesday, went to the West Island knitting meetup on Thursday, went for dinner with Yannick, Jakob, Maaike and her daughter on Friday...well, you *would* have known about that stuff if I'd posted better over the week. Sorry!

Friday after dinner Maaike and her daughter came over, and once the kids were in bed we popped in Meet the Spartans on DVD and knit and laughed. (Nothing is better than Kevin Sorbo's "whee" after a particularily amusing skipping dance to I Will Survive!) I cast on for this dishcloth and got through about half before going up to bed. Saturday I had off, so I managed to finish the cloth during Jakob's afternoon nap, while we watched Walk Hard. (It was cute, but Meet the Spartans was laugh-out-loud funnier).

Same pattern, same yarns, different color. All the details are already up on Ravelry, but I'll post them here once the full gift basket is complete.
Depending on how much time I have by Saturday, this 4 will be matched with 4 others. If I really run out of time, I'll split these 4 up into the two parts of the gift that I wanted to have dishcloths.
We'd rented 2 more movies when returning the first 2, so Saturday night I got more knitting done during Beowulf. It was much more entertaining than I'd remembered from reading it in university...although I'd read the early English, 11th century (or whatever) version, not a funky modern version with a smoking-hot Grendel's mother and some major storyline changes. It was an odd feeling to keep thinking I was watching an extended cut-scene in a videogame, but it was a good movie, all and all.

I took the time to fix and finish Velvet Oblivion. First I made a small cut and unpicked the joining round of the black Boa border. Once it was detatched I made sure that the mask itself wasn't cupping- it wasn't. It was huge, but relatively flat. Good. Next I picked up over double the amount of stitches I'd picked up the first time. Instead of following the pattern, I picked up stitches as frequently as I could around. I knit 1 extra row with the Boa to add a little extra depth of the border since my mask was so much bigger than the finished size of the actual pattern. Once that was done I bound off with my fingers crossed. It worked- there was no more cupping.
I haven't unpacked my black elastic I'd bought for this project years ago, and wanted to finish the pattern without waiting until the next day to run out to the store. I was afraid to attach a single tie and have the mask gape at the outside of the eyes or down on the cheeks, so I came up with (what I think is) a good idea. I took a really looooong length of yarn and folded it in half. I tied a knot about 7" down from the fold, leaving a skinny loop. I left that loop to be the tie, and sewed each of the other ends in a V shape to one side of the mask. I repeated it on the other side, and when I was done I had a mask that held nicely over the temple and near the cheek, with ties that joined together near the back of the head, with the loop after the knot being the length to tie the bow with. (Clear as mud?) The reason I'd tied the yarn in half before attaching it to the mask, as opposed to just tying lengths to each side, is so there would be no cut end of the yarn exposed that could fray over time. The yarn itself could wear out, but I think it would take longer than a cut end.


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posted by Jennifer Lori @ 10:17 am   2 comments
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