Feeling Flopsy

Thanks in no small part to my family (and especially to Phillip, who volunteered to guest blog when he noticed I was neglecting you), the swatches and the last two project samples for the book are done.  And now we can start rewriting the thing.

To celebrate, I took a nap.  And by nap, I mean mini-coma.  I lost a day somewhere in there, and so far I haven't missed it.

When I woke up, I didn't even want to knit.  To those of you who sensed that disturbance in the force, let me reassure you:  the burnout was only temporary.  What I did instead was spin.  Nothing sexy, but a nice, solid bobbin of Romney that I got at last year's OFFF parking lot sale to practice using my mini-combs on.  Kind of a nice, oatmealy-gray-tan that soothed my ragged nerves after the technicolor whirlwind of all those swatches.  Did I mention that each chapter's swatches are done in a different color of the spectrum?  The Stripes chapter are in reds, Slipped Stitches oranges, and so on, all the way through to violet.  Soft gray-beige is delicious after all that.

And then I decided I had recovered sufficiently (well enough to sit up and take yarn, so to speak), to make the second sock for Mom's birthday.  The birthday last August that I totally missed.  For which I presented Mom with a single sock, in October, with the promise of a second one when possible.  I located the second skein and proficiently wound it.  I found the pattern and narrowed the needle choices to one of two sets.  And could NOT find the first sock, for reference.  It's lost.  Naturally.

As everybody knows, the only antidote for that sort of frustration is to make bunny slippers.  These bunny slippers.

The Smallies got so excited when they saw this gorgeous pattern that they have decided to make bunny slippers, too.  Lindsay's are going to be "extra fluffy", and Campbell's are required to have fangs.  Phillip has not placed any special requests for his bunnies, but I'm sure we'll think of something to set his apart from the rest of the warren.  The flagship pair look like this at the moment:

Thanks in no small part to my family (and especially to Phillip, who volunteered to guest blog when he noticed I was neglecting you), the swatches and the last two project samples for the book are done.  And now we can start rewriting the thing.

To celebrate, I took a nap.  And by nap, I mean mini-coma.  I lost a day somewhere in there, and so far I haven't missed it.

When I woke up, I didn't even want to knit.  To those of you who sensed that disturbance in the force, let me reassure you:  the burnout was only temporary.  What I did instead was spin.  Nothing sexy, but a nice, solid bobbin of Romney that I got at last year's OFFF parking lot sale to practice using my mini-combs on.  Kind of a nice, oatmealy-gray-tan that soothed my ragged nerves after the technicolor whirlwind of all those swatches.  Did I mention that each chapter's swatches are done in a different color of the spectrum?  The Stripes chapter are in reds, Slipped Stitches oranges, and so on, all the way through to violet.  Soft gray-beige is delicious after all that.

And then I decided I had recovered sufficiently (well enough to sit up and take yarn, so to speak), to make the second sock for Mom's birthday.  The birthday last August that I totally missed.  For which I presented Mom with a single sock, in October, with the promise of a second one when possible.  I located the second skein and proficiently wound it.  I found the pattern and narrowed the needle choices to one of two sets.  And could NOT find the first sock, for reference.  It's lost.  Naturally.

As everybody knows, the only antidote for that sort of frustration is to make bunny slippers.  These bunny slippers.

The Smallies got so excited when they saw this gorgeous pattern that they have decided to make bunny slippers, too.  Lindsay's are going to be "extra fluffy", and Campbell's are required to have fangs.  Phillip has not placed any special requests for his bunnies, but I'm sure we'll think of something to set his apart from the rest of the warren.  The flagship pair look like this at the moment:

All Nighter

*Guest post from the husband.  BTW, she reminded me to make sure I used the spell check before I published, and as a lifelong totally awesome speller I was a tad bit 'offended'. So, I am not using ye olde spellcheck, if you readers notice any typos, please do me  a favor and let's keep it between ourselves shall we? Thanks.

Remember college? The project/paper/assignment that your grade was based on? The final evening that kept going and going. Downing cups of coffee/soda/beer (in no particular order), your favorite alt.rock band playing in the background, and a frantic adrenaline and stimulant-fueled race to an impending deadline.  This, knitterers, has been the state of my beloved wife for the past ten days.  She apologizes for her time away from the blog, she will return Monday, and I'm writing this in her place to give you something meager to digest until she returns. 

Creating the final swatches for her book was a more brutal task thatn she had planned for and it took its toll. The work below is what has consumed the household for the past two weeks.  Her efforts culminated in an honest-to-God-all-nighter Thursday night. Over the pat few weeks our house became a horror show of loose fiber, coffee cups, wine glasses, and general disorder (which we know how much OCDers LOVE disorder). We knew it was coming, but neither of us was prepared for the actual 'event'.

Lindsay and I arrived home from skating practice around nine o' clock Thursday evening to find our heroine staring intensely at the laptop with a look of white-hot hatred.

"This isn't going to be good." I muttered to Lindsay; she nodded and smartly retired to her room after giving Mary a quick kiss.

"What's wrong?  I meekly asked.
I'm not going into the response.  It isn't suitable for a blog of this stature, but my wife was trying to download some podcasts off of itunes. As a life-long PC lover, she still isn't hip to how Apple works, and I received a tirade focusing on color scheme, user-friendliness, and why-do-we-have-ESPN-podcasts here (Guilty: fnatasy football teams are not simply created...they have to be dilligently maintained).

I calmed her down, loaded John Hodgman, Fresh Air, and some Wait Wait Don't Tell Mes, got her situated in the reading/knitting nook, and took my leave to bed (I have over 190 tenth graders wating for me every day, so I need my beauty sleep).

I felt the familiar re-adjusting of the pillows (apparently I sleep 'wrong') far later that night. In fact, the AM alarm went off a few minutes later.
"An all-nighter?" I asked.
"Set the alarm for nine, and make sure the kids go to school." she sighed.
Done and done.
When I called that afternoon, she had finished. When I arrived home, the kids were packing the box while she took reference pictures of the swatches, and I was immediately sent to the local FedEx office.

We had some quick dinner, and she was off to bed. Hopefuly she'll be awake by Monday.  Like all all-nighters, her relief was palpable and immediate.  So, that was great, and she feels the project is finished. 

When do I tell her the first re-writes arrived by e-mail today...?

Below are a few images of the state of our house for the past few days. Enjoy.

Schedule Some Fun

It's hard for me to imagine anything as far away as late winter and early spring, denying, as I am, that it's already November (although I did turn on the furnace, under duress).  Be that as it may, I'd like to tell you about three exciting things today.  Think of them as carrots for getting yourself through the holidays:  Once you power through the annual round of giving till it hurts, you can then enjoy these fun treats, which you cleverly planned for yourself, "Way back last November":

Exciting Thing Number One:

Beginning in January, I'm planning my first-ever Mystery KnitAlong.  For those who haven't tried it before, a Mystery KAL is a pattern that is given out in parts, or "clues", with no prior information of how the finished item will look when it is completed - hence the Mystery. You receive only part (a clue) of the pattern each week for a specified time period until all "clues" have been given. Once you've finished knitting all of the "clues" you will know the final look of the design.

The Mystery KAL will be a stranded Colorwork project, suitable for adventurous beginners.  You'll subscribe to the clues, which I'll then deliver to you via e-mail, at the rate of one per week.  I'll post the subscription info sometime this month (as soon as I finish swatch-knitting for my book, or I run out of Month, which ever comes first).

Do you have a stranded colorwork sweater pattern you’re not sure about tackling on your own?

Do you have a  colorwork sweater you’d like to adapt to knitting in the round? 

Do you have a pattern you love but need to make some size adjustments to?

Would you like help designing your own colorwork pattern?

If you answered yes to one ore more of these questions, then I have the class for you!  Beginning January 14,  2012, we will spend one day a month together working on the steeked colorwork cardigan of your choice.  Before the first class, I'll help you choose your ideal project, including yarn and color advice, should you need it.  Then we'll meet four times, during which I'll teach you all you need to know to knit your dream cardigan, finish it, and wear it in May.

Contact Linda Lingle at the Nordic Heritage Museum Education Department for additional course information and registration at 206-789-5707 ext. 21, or email lindal@nordicmuseum.org. 

In February I will again be at the Madrona Fiber Arts Winter Retreat; February 16-19th, 2012.  This year's exclusive design will be an entrelac hat and mitten set.  A list of classes and teachers can be found here right now and registration will open soon.  In addition to the all-day (Sunday) "Entre to Entrelac" class, I'll also be teaching 90-minute classes on finishing, and on introductory stranded colorwork.

And don't forget to check www.maryscotthuff.com for my 5 new patterns, containing Dala Horses, Queen Bees, Frog Princes, Orca Whales and Dancing Chldren.  It's all for you, Gentle Readers. 

Mary Scott Huff Hand Knitter: We Never Close!