Knitting and spinning. The fun never stops.

Now that I’ve got a bit of Roscalie completed, I can take a good look at it and tell you what I think about the colors in this version (knitted from Virtualyarns 2-ply Hebridean) as opposed to the original (knitted in Scottish Campion? J&S? I forget. And Lucy’s in my lap so I can’t go get the book to check).

I am making the Roscalie cardigan. Virtualyarns sent me the color patterncard for the Roscalie vest, along with an insert with instructions that revise the vest pattern into a cardi.

The photo on the patterncard is of the vest, knitted in the exact colors that I’m knitting my cardi in. And is unfortunately often the case with Virtualyarns, I don’t think the photo on the patterncard accurately depicts the colors. In the photo, the whole vest looks much more “orangey” than it does in person.

Teresa, did you find this to be true? I went back to your blog to see once again the photo of your finished Roscalie vest, but couldn’t get access your archives.

In my opinion, the colors of my Roscalie look much more like the original photo in In the Hebrides, but richer, more glowing colors. But that of course could just be bad photo reproduction in the book.

So I looked at Geane’s Roscalie, which she knitted from presumably the original yarn. (Didja, Geane?)

Very close indeed, I think.

Catnip Mouse Knit-along

So when do you guys wanna start knitting? I think most of us are ready, right? I can post the basic pattern tomorrow and you all can jump in when you’re ready.

Here are my supplies.

Some Brown Sheep Naturespun wool, a tub o’ catnip, and a 16 inch circular needle in US size 5.

Oh, and if you don’t cable without a needle, you’ll need a cable needle as well. And a tapestry needle for sewing up the mouse after knitting it.

We’ll be knitting back and forth, so you don’t need a circular — straights are fine. And the size is not hugely important. Just go down a couple of needle sizes from what you usually use for worsted. I generally knit Naturespun with a US size 7, so I’ll be using a size 5.

I usually buy Cosmic Catnip, but this little tub of catnip looked intriguing — bought it in PetsMart over the weekend. We’ll see how Miss Lucy likes it.

I plan to make a catnip mouse gallery page, so when you’ve finished your mouse, you can send me a photo for the gallery if you like. If you can photograph your kitty with the mouse, that’s great too!

Lucy

Yesterday was the first sunny afternoon since Lucy came home, so I was able to clearly photograph her sweet little face.

Here are all the license plate suggestions I got. Thank you for playing — there are a lot of really cute suggestions here!

And the winner is (selected using a random number generator):

Sara Ellis, who sent in:

Sara wins the Knitty license plate frame and bumper sticker. Congratulations to Sara, and thanks to everyone who played.

(Sara, I emailed you Friday night — email me your snail mail addy and I’ll get your prize to you asap.)

Aran Catnip Mouse Knit-along

Wow! I’m so happy that so many of you want to join in on this and make a gift for your furry friends. Lucy is psyched about it too!

Okay, here’s some preliminary info on the catnip mouse.

I’m going to design my own mouse. I’ve been knitting catnip mice for my kitties since I was a teenager, and they were always gratefully received, so I’m an experienced Mouse Knitter.

I always use wool (because every cat I’ve known loves wool), but if your cat shows a marked preference for a certain yarn, by all means use it.

For this knit along, I’d like to use a worsted weight wool, so we’ll all be on the same page and not have to re-figure the design for a bunch of different gauges. After you make your initial mouse, you can experiment with different yarns and gauges.

Although we’ll be using worsted wool, we’ll be knitting it at a tighter than usual gauge. This is to make the mouse more durable, as it is likely to become your kitty’s favorite toy and we’d like it to last longer than a few days!

My plan is for a mouse with a center cable running the length of the body, with seed stitch panels on each side. We can all pick different cables for the center motif — during the course of the project I’ll offer some cable suggestions.

So for today, we can talk about yarn and catnip. I’m going to use Brown Sheep Naturespun worsted. I’ve got some left over from other projects . You only need a little bit to knit a mouse — this is a great way to use up small leftovers!

As for the stuffing . . . I’ll use some catnip I bought at PetsMart, but really, any catnip will work. I know Lisak has some killer weed — she stuffed the mouse she sent to Izzy in January with it and I can attest to it’s potency! If you’ve got home-grown, use it!

Official St. Moritz Photos

For L-B, who asked very nicely, we did the St. Moritz photo shoot. Photos are on the official St. Moritz page.

But here I am in the elevator, on the way to the photo shoot!

Lucy

Lucy had a great weekend. She now has her daddy wrapped around her paw. Here she is, in Ian’s lap:

And of course she wants you all to see her pretty blue eyes:

She also met her “grandparents” this weekend, my mom and dad. I think she was in my mother’s lap, purring, within 90 seconds of meeting her. And she proved once again what a remarkable kitty she is: she quite obviously understood when my dad spoke to her in Swedish!

Last but not least . . .

Roscalie.

We had a really busy weekend, but I managed to do a bit of knitting. I’ll discuss Roscalie and how I think it differs from the colors used in the original design at more length tomorrow.

See Wendy rationalize buying more yarn. Rationalize, Wendy, rationalize.

This week I got official word that I was selected for a job I applied for that amounts to a big promotion for me. Effective Monday. (It’s in my same agency, working with the same people, so no serious upheaval here.)

What’s the first thing you do when you get news like that? Why, buy yarn to celebrate, of course.

Would you believe that I don’t own a copy of Poetry in Stitches? Well, I do now. Or will soon, along with the kit to make this:

I’ve been lusting after this sweater, ever since seeing the one that Catherine S. made. If you are a member of Norgeknit, you’ve seen it too, in the group’s Photos area.

Wanna do a Knit-along?

Would any of you people who are supervised by cats like to do an Aran Catnip Mouse Knit-along? Auntie Lolly came up with this idea when she was here for MDS&W. We were discussing my adopting Lucy and she said “Oh Wendy, you have to do a catnip mouse knit-along!”

I think it’s a great idea! Anyone wanna play?

Ebony Needle Update

I called the Needlepoint Joint yesterday and ordered the last 3.25mm 32″ ebony circular needle they had in stock. Thanks to Jo from Boston for tipping me off! I may at some point be able to do something to ressurect my chipped needle and that would be nice too. Always good to have a spare!

Lucy Update

Lucy was a big help to me last night — I was baking desserts for a birthday party this weekend. Here’s her contribution:

Roscalie
Very little knitting last night, due to baking (see above).

Have a great weekend, everyone. Contest winner will be announced Monday!

In no particular order:

A huge thank you to Marit, who created my wonderful new blog button and banner, featuring the lovely Miss Lucy.

And an equally huge thank you to Catherine S., who made a donation to the Montgomery County Humane Society in Izzy’s name. I got a card from the Humane Society yesterday letting me know. I love that you have honored her memory in such a wonderful way.

Some Sock Talk

Cheryl had some toe-up sock questions in yesterday’s comments.

First, when you undo the provisional cast-on, don’t you end up with one less stitch? Or do you automatically make an extra stitch while picking up?

Yes you do end up with one less stitch. and yes, I always automatically make an extra stitch whe picking up.

Second, some people recommend using a reinforcing thread (I know some sock yarns come with this), especially for toes and heels. Do you do this, and if you do, does it make a difference with wear?

I don’t use reinforcing thread. I think the sock yarns I use all wear pretty well, because they are all approximately 20% nylon. But I give all my socks away, so I can’t give you a personal report on their wearability. Anyone care to comment on this?

Last, do you swatch when using a new sock yarn or do you go by the recommended gauge? Some toe-up patterns claim that gauge doesn’t matter because you can adjust as you knit.

I am the Queen of No Swatching. I do have a pretty good idea what my gauge will be so can easily estimate the number of stitches for a sock. If I’m unsure of the width of a recipient’s foot, I’ll do the sock in a few more stitches and do a rib pattern — that way if I’ve over-compensated, the rib will pull it in for a snug fit.

Ebony Needle Tragedy

The other night I was ready to switch to my larger needle while knitting Roscalie. Imagine my horror when I whipped out my 80cm 3.25mm (US 3) ebony needle and discovered that there is a chip out of the tip of the needle. I have absolutely no idea how this could have happened. I last used the needle for the body of Hank 8 and put it away carefully as soon as I was done with it. I tried to use it, but the chip bothered me too much, so I sadly put it away and am using a Crystal Palace bamboo instead.

What makes matters worse is that no one seems to make the ebony or rosewood needles in size 3.25mm anymore. The sizes jump from 3.0 to 3.5 mm.

I suppose I could grind down the tip of the needle and make a new point . . . assuming I had the ability to do that. I don’t think sanding it with an emery board is going to get it done in my lifetime.

*whimper*

Roscalie

Lucy’s being a big help with Roscalie.

Her fur does look lovely knitted into the pattern.

A close-up:

Speaking of Lucy, does she look like she’s settling in?

Ah, just getting into the pattern on Roscalie.

For the cardi, you knit a facing in a solid color in stockinette stitch, do a purl row for the turning, then commence the fair isle pattern.

And because this is a cardi, there’s a steek running down the front of it. And you know what that means, don’t you? You start and end the different colors in the center of the front steek. Yahoo! No tying off the ends, no weaving in the ends. Just let them bad boys hang, cuz they’ll be cut off when I cut open the front steek.

Life can be so good sometimes.

Contest Update

I’ve gotten lots of really cute entries for the “vanity plate” contest. Keep ‘em coming!

Superwash Wool

A couple of questions in my comments about superwash wool, specifically Heilo (which isn’t) and Falk (which is). As a rule, I don’t like superwash wool. Most of the ones I have experienced have a slightly harsh feel to them, due undoubtedly to the chemical processing they undergo to make them able to withstand machine washing and drying.

But superwash baby wools I’ve knitted with seem to be the exception — like Dale Baby Ull. That’s a fingering weight superwash merino and it’s as nice and soft as can be.

Lucy Update

Lucy did a little happy dance when I came home from work yesterday. And she sat next to me while I knitted last night and feigned indifference.