Enough to cause Tears in Heaven

Umbilical cord hat in SWTC bamboo, and a drawstring version without the topper, of Manos del Uruguay Cotton Stria.
Becky, this is the cotton stria that you sent me last year as a gift when you were doing some blog-giveaway gifts. Thanks, (there is enough left for two-three more). It's the same cotton I used for Joey's chemo blanket, and it is soft as butter.

click on the icon to link to the story

This is One of the saddest stories I've read on the internet.
Children die. Children get cancer, Children get into accidents, but children who are murdered fall into a special and separate category of sad.

I think I'll knit a hat tonight. Maybe you can too?

Kilkenny and Selbu

Kilkenny for Mark back 9.23
Originally uploaded by mlweaving

see, I have been getting something done!

Scarf for Jacquie

Scarf for Jacquie
Originally uploaded by mlweaving

Edit: This yarn is indeed Ironstone Paris Nights and the colorway (discontinued) is 33. There is one online vendor who said they have it, but they don't.

Thanks for looking, and many thanks to the Ravelers who id'd this yarn for me and found an internet source, almost immediately.

I am desperately needing a ball of this, so if you have one in your stash, please....???

just another quick question:
Does anyone recognize what the novelty yarn in this pic is?

I've run out, and I need to find another skein of it, but I haven't a clue what it is anymore. Don't ask where I bought it, what the ball band is, any of that...if I knew/had that info, I wouldn't need to ask. ;)

Monday Monday; mitten choices, a meme

mitten choices
Originally uploaded by mlweaving

First off, It's Monday and I've been absent from the computer Again.
so, to catch up.
It's been quite a couple of weeks.
1. Kim and DeeAnn have both emerged from Hibernation. Welcome back to the land of virtual friends, my friends.
2. I finally got and accepted my invite to Ravelry. What little computer time I've had in the last week has been spent there, but I PROMISE my friends over at Stitchers Guild and PR, I will balance out soon.
3. I got an email from Scribner asking if I would read then review a book on my blog for them. ??? Really? Well, evidently, really! The book arrived in the mail middle of last week. Details to come forthwith. teaser: it is a Novel, and a certain real-life figure by the name of Coco plays a prominent part.
4. After a rather long dry spell, I've been knitting again, with abandon. And making some serious progress. Pics to come. (beginning to sound like a refrain of promises, promises).
5. Again, after a long hiatus, I've become a Joiner again. I've joined a mystery Lace KAL (the Yahoo group Secret of the Stole), The Fall Cable KAL again, (last year I won a copy of Janet Szabo's Aran knitting book via this KAL), a Ravelry Mitten exchange (see part 2 of todays entry, I'm interested), an online reading group, and the Yahoo group to knit Fulmar. each and every one of these topics will fill up an entire blog post.
6. I've also done some work in the past week that I've actually gotten paid for. Not a bad thing. Job hunting though, is at a crawl.

Part 2
taking a survey
disregarding colors for a moment, what would be your preference in a mitten. Please reply in comments, and rank in order by number.
1. Latvian mitten (this is my own project
2. A Selbu mitten - not necessarily with the date, but the type
3.a heavily cabled gauntlet
4.a light cabled one. This one is by theLadyWyvern, is her own design, and the pattern is available for sale at
sldknitting.com/arms1.html StreetLegalDesigns.com
5. Stranded gauntlet mittens ala Magnificent mittens. This one is the project of jmolaei on Ravelry

and last: Nancy Tagged me
8 things about me you might not know. hmmm? I feel like I'm a pretty open book. So this stuff may just be pretty obscure.
1. I love fish and seafood but can't abide clams, oysters or mussells
2. I can't run. I win x-country ski races and can swim, cycle and sail, but I cannot run.
3. I'm terrified of alligators. I have alligator nightmares, regularly. And I've never lived where there really are alligators.
4. I love walking on the shore of Lake Michigan up North in February.
5. I've gone winter camping, alone, when it was -5F
6. I'm a take-it or leave-it person when it comes to chocolate. I like it, but wouldn't walk a mile for it.
7. I'm not a big fan of variegated yarn (oops, if you've been reading this blog for awhile, you already knew that)
8. I went to the Canary Islands on my senior trip for high school, and I bought YARN there. (can you even believe it?) it's true.

If you want to be tagged, consider yourself tagged.

miscellany, and Happy B;day to my baby bro - just in case he pops in to read this

Library Enhancement

In the mail, from Jae
Thank you Jae. Ohhh, I'm torn between knitting more mittens and starting an Aran.




At Barnes and Noble today (my pampering stop after the Dentist this A.M.) I picked up the latest Threads (not as great as the last issue, let me say), and on my way out, after having Tea and perusing some books, I walked past a table with "Craft" books on sale.
I scored Volumes Two (Cables) and Three (Colorwork) of the Vogue Stitchionary Books, at 50% off, then another 10% off. Total after tax: $28. For both. I've found that I love the stitch dictionaries, and these have a lot more depth than I first expected. (I just linked to B&N website, where the books are also avail on sale...happy little enabler that I am)

Then, while drinking my tea and flipping through the knitting mag's, I saw an ad for Nordic Fiberarts. The ad read something along the lines of "Some copies left of Norsk Strikkedesign and Poetry in Stitches". What??
Well, thank heavens for cell phones. I called immediately.
Yes, I'm sad to say, both books are going OOP. She told me they have maybe 6 copies left of Poetry in Stitches, and more of Norske Strikkedesign. I've had my copy of Poetry in Stitches for years, but I've really been coveting the Strikkedesign book for the last year or so. So guess what's winging it's way here?
So, just to pick up the link for this post, I clicked on Nordic Fiberarts. Did you see the Selbustrikk book of mittens? Lovely. Different charts than the Selbuvotter. oh my...

ok, put me on your Christmas list, and that book goes on top. I'll even knit you some mittens from it.


Meanwhile

I've been listening to books faster than I can change my sidebar.
I Heart Audible.com

Lifted from Cidell, who's also Erudite...this one goes out to CarrieK. Carrie, I expect no less than a complete A (I got the A- , I think it had to do with phlegmatic).

Your Vocabulary Score: A-

Congratulations on your multifarious vocabulary! You must be quite an erudite person.

How's Your Vocabulary?

knit knit knit... actually starting on Holiday gift knitting.

First, in remembrance, lest we be tempted to forget 9/11
A Moment of Silence







I've been knitting, among other activities.
First, I want to show you Daniels hat, although I'm sure you want to see the mittens. Ok, scroll down, look at the mitten, then come back. I'll wait.

This hat is the second of these that I've made. I made one for ds#1, however I made it shorter than the pattern said, and ds was always tugging at it and complaining that it was too short, so I told him, (in front of her, bad idea mom) to give it to his girlfriend (now ex) and I'd make him another. So, as soon as this one is done for ds#2, another goes on the needles for ds#1.
What's so great about this hat? It's double knit.
The pattern is From The Blue Blog
It's ingenious really. Knit with two balls of yarn, and slipping every other stitch, one round is done with color A and knit, then the next round is done with color B and purled, to end up with a double knit cap with stockinette on each side, and two layers for the ultimate warm hat.
BTW, those of you who may remember, this is also the hat that I need to make for dh - that da*n hat!.
I'm using Cascade 220, this is supposed to be snow camo, for hunting in the great white north, so one side is 'dirty white' and the other the same yarn in tan. Needles size 6, 16" Addi Turbo














The Selbu mittens - need thumbs. These have been so much fun to make. This pair is for ds#2 fiance - (ha!, no longer gf, but 'fiance'). Needs thumbs, needs blocking. I know that the ripples will even out with blocking.

I expect the thumbs to be fussy little things to knit, and I was anxious to do something more fun than fussy, so last week, as soon as the second purple Selbu mitten was off the needle, I started this next one from the book Latvian Mittens. I figure I'll get several made, then spend a weekend knitting thumbs.
This next pair has really interesting knitted cuffs, knit in the style for mitten from District of Latgale.
There are four districts, each with distinct styles. I'm going to knit a sample from each District, then have a go at some more of the Selbu mittens.
This pair: knit on size 1 needles, using one sk Jo Sharp Alpaca Kid lustre (the black), a sk of Koigu solid (the orange) and a sk of SRK Collection Truffles, a cashmere blend (the garnet)

This pair really is a learning pair - there are all sorts of anamolies (mistakes) in the cuff that I really should have just ripped them out and started over, but I didn't.


And, let's not be tempted to call them "design elements".
Interesting quote from the third chapter in Latvian Mittens: "Correct your mistakes. If you discover an error in your knitting, rip it out and knit again. ... It is a soul purifying experience which never takes as much time or trouble as you've imagined it will.
Last note: Lisa wrote to mention that knitting two colors with one or two hands isn't nearly as important as being consistent with which yarn is carried under, and which is carried over. Thanks Lisa. You bring up a very good point, which is Yarn dominance. The tension across my tiny finger on my left hand isn't very good yet, but it's getting better...but I have been very very careful to be consistent with the way I'm carrying the yarns across the back.

Coming up next: Anatomy of a muslin.