Use it in a Sentence

In honor of the brand-new month of May, I'm introducing a new feature, here on the blog. It's called "Totally Real Words We Just Made Up".

We here in the Huff family are all self-styled wordsmiths, so when no currently-available words will work, we often invent a new ones. We started doing this years ago when Phillip decreed that as an Official English Teacher (as certified by his suede elbow patches), he is authorized to make up new words any time he wants. The rest of us decided that we are too, by association.

Some of the words we make up are senseless, inappropriate, or just plain lame. But sometimes they are pretty good. Today's offering is one of those, courtesy of Lindsay:

Feel free to take it out for a spin, and if you come up with any good examples of daily use, please post them in the comments.  You're welcome. Just one more service we provide.

Just Like Ginger

It's one thing to say that you know your knitting inside and out, but quite another to actually DO your knitting inside out.

Enter the magical world of Knitted Lace (different from Lace Knitting: Thanks, English language!). When making knitted lace, increases and decreases happen on every single row. Which means that if you are working flat, you'll be executing half of your sexy lace maneuvers on the wrong side of the work. And they can't just be inside out; they have to also be backwards. But not upside down; unless you are working from the top down, which would give you an aneurysm.

Sometimes it's really easy. To get a K2tog on the right side, you just P2tog on the wrong side. But other times it's brain-hurting, such as when you want a SSK on the right side.  With yarn in front (you are still purling, after all), you have to slip 2 sts as if to knit (re-mounting them), then slip them back to the left needle, then use your right needle to P2tog, but through the back loops (TBL!) which are now mounted weird. And don't get screwed up and do the wrong thing (left-leaning vs. right leaning) on the wrong edge of the lace pattern - I'm still compulsively checking the front of the work to verify which thing to do because I can't seem to internalize the reverse operations.

If I wasn't dyslexic before, I'm pretty sure I am now. 

But even the capricious Knitting Gods have been kind to me in one regard. I worked so many repeats of the pattern in when it was still in the round that I now know it by heart. I just had to add the inside-out dance steps after separating front and back to shape the armholes. And I think I like the armholes, so far, so I've got that going for me.

I'm still worried about running out of yarn (when am I not?), but I was lucky enough to find a knitter on Ravelry who was willing to part with her skein. I have no idea how/if that will work out, since this color had no dye lots (!). Worst case, there will be a noticeable color change somewhere on the back, which I will then have to grow my hair long enough to cover.

You'll only be able to see it when Fred spins me.

Magic. Pure Magic.

Paisley went back to the vet for her checkup today, where she was given a perfect bill of health! Dr. Kennard said her mouth was even better-healed than he had hoped, and pronounced her a Good Dog. Thank you so much for all your well-wishes: I'm sure they're reason she got better so fast. Never underestimate the power of The Knitters; it's Magic..

And speaking of Magic, you won't believe what Gentle Reader Va sent us:

This is a drawing she made from the photo I took last Christmas:

"Mary Scott Huff's Scottish Terriers" by Va

Can you believe it? I was totally gobsmacked to see it, because I have always longed to have a real portrait of these two! And if that's not enough, get a load of this! It's called "Obedience School Uniform":

"Obedience School Uniform" by Va

This one's not actually of Paisley, but it could have been. Looking back, I think the right outfit would have helped her Obedience School experience greatly. Paisley's relationship with "Obedience" is a lot like the one I have with "Math": I only use it when everything else fails.

See more of Va's extraordinary artwork HERE, and hire her immediately for all of your illustration/dog love needs.

There is Magic afoot!