Can’t breathe, too busy…

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Quantum Tea

February always feels like an absurdly busy month. The 5th is the anniversary of our first date back in 1994, which is now 18 years ago. Valentine's Day is a mere three days before Hubby's birthday, which is two weeks before my birthday. Then we get a break, event-wise, until the wedding anniversary in August.

I am still knitting hats. Windschief is going well, a second welted hat got ripped out after I got pattern gauge and realised the pattern was designed for an elephant. That'll get a restart after some emergency gauge calculations and a new hem colour, making it a grey hat with a deep purple hem.

A piece of my chainmail made with rubber rings and aluminium took a very short turn in a tensile strength testing machine designed for testing steel. It did not survive, but it was fun seeing its first incarnation ripped apart with bare hands as a quick and dirty tensile test. Test #2 was supposed to be a more scientific test, but it broke under the pre-load (which for steel amounts to the machine saying "yep, I have something here I can hold on to, when do I start trying to break it?"). Rubber and aluminium are not the most durable of materials under extreme stress, but they are very good to fiddle with when you're in a dull meeting.

With a week to go until the February meeting of Fictional Authors, our post-NaNoWriMo writing group, I finally have an idea for the writing exercise, which comes from Stephen King's book On Writing. I have done this exercise before and it came out decently then, this time I'm taking a very different direction.

Posted in Chainmail, Knitting, Personal, Writing | Leave a comment

FO: Slouch hat

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Quantum Tea

This hat consumed one of the three skeins of Cascade 220 leftover from my Eris cardigan (Eris is now blocked and awaiting zipper installation).

Slouch hat

Pattern: Slöfock hat by knitspot
Yarn: Cascade 220
Needles: US5 and US8
Duration: 20th January to January

The pattern is quick and simple, the thermal ribbing pattern looks good and the switch to a larger needle gives the crown of the hat a more fluid feel. I managed to cast on 10 less stitches than I needed for the medium size, but I think it works OK, and it'll stretch.

This is my second completed stash-busting project for 2012. I have 45 different yarns in the stash, including 8 handspun skeins, my goal is to get the total down to 30 total, and use some of the handspun. Next up is a Windschief hat in fluffy 3 strand Morehouse Merino yarn. If you haven't tried Morehouse Merino, it's well worth it, there's a little vegetable matter in the wool but the undyed skeins are like knitting clouds. I haven't tried the dyed stuff or the sport weight yet but I expect it to be just as awesome.

Posted in Knitting | 2 Comments

On Muggles

Posted on January 27, 2012 by Quantum Tea

In the Harry Potter universe, muggles are the non-wizarding humans, the majority of humanity. To knitters and crafters, they are the non-crafting humans, also a majority who have little understanding of a crafting brain. For instance, non-crafters may think that because a person is knitting, they can't pay attention to anything else. In some instances (complex lace, counting stitches, or a daring repair in progress) they're right, but the rest of the time? We're just keeping our hands and a low-level chunk of brain subroutine devoted to the craft, leaving the higher brain functions available to chat or listen or watch or otherwise pay attention.

When you drive from place A to place B like you do every day, you are probably not consciously aware of what you're doing the whole time. The brain creates subroutines to handle the trivial case of driving with no immediate threats. If there's bad weather, you pay more attention and use the active focussing part of the brain, but on good days, you may not even remember chunks of the trip because they were boring and handled by the automatic functions. If we were 100% aware of precisely what was happenning each second of the journey (hurtling along at speeds unreachable without mechanical assitance, depending on group adherance to a small and sometimes vague set of driving rules), we'd be terrified and never drive anywhere.

How do you express to a muggle, even one who may be married to a knitter, that it's OK to knit during a meeting, especially when you have nothing official to contribute to that meeting?

Posted in Craft, Knitting, Personal | 3 Comments

FO: Welted hat

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Quantum Tea

This was a fun project, and it's part of my 2012 stash-busting resolution to knit primarily from the stash. I seem to be on a hat kick, I've been eyeing several patterns like the Hannah newsboy hat, the Ekaterin slouch hat, the Pineapple Upside Down Hat, and Zumthor. There's also two knitspot patterns with fun names, Fartlek Hat ("speedplay" in Swedish, a form of interval training) and Slöfock Cap (it's Swedish for "slouch" according to the designer).

Welted hat with contrast hem.

Pattern: A Hat for Eudora
Yarn: Hemp For Knitting's Hempwol and some Cascade 220 for the hem
Needles: US6 and US8
Duration: 8th January to 18th January

This is the first hemmed hat I've made. I've done this with socks before, on this pattern had you switch from the contrast colour to the main colour a row before doing the hem purl row, which is new to me and looks really good. I did deviate from the pattern over the short rows, they were done as wrap and turn because when I followed the pattern instructions I got holes. Love the welts, I've never done them before. They were easier if you prepared them in advance by putting all the stitches to be welted on a spare needle. I had to ignore the pattern directions in order to get the decreases to line up, which was annoying.

The yarn is light for a worsted weight, and it has fibres of hemp loosely attached. I like the heathery look, but I'd use this for sportweight patterns in future. The Slöfock Cap made it into the next project slot after a gauge miscalculation on socks means I made the hem way too big, and hems are fiddly enough even without splitty Tofutsies yarn that the socks are on timeout until I finish sulking.

Posted in Knitting | 1 Comment

Chainmail

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Quantum Tea

Spent some time working on more chainmail. Since I have smaller wrists, the only bracelets that will fit me are ones I make myself. Used two new chainmail weaves to make these two, first is Japanese Lace:

Japanese Lace with double hook clasps.

This is a very time-consuming design, but fantastic to wear, it feels smooth and slippery and it rattles ever so slightly when you move your wrist. It's also very flexible, it rolls up into a small roll. I closed it with a pair of sterling hook clasps and made it only slightly longer around than my wrist. I also made a hexagon of Japanese lace using rubber rings as the larger ring and it's fantastic as a flat stress ball, or possibly a waterproof coaster. It's one of those desktop things you can pick up and fiddle with.

The other new creation is a bracelet using the Full Persian 6-in-1 weave, using anodized aluminium with a sterling hook clasp:

Full Persian bracelet

This one is a little more chunky than I was expecting, more so in contrast to the very flat Japanese Lace, but I love the bronze/caramel colour of the rings. It's a fiddly weave to start, but I like the finished look.

I've made all the weaves from my Basic Chainmail book now, and a couple from the Advanced Chainmail book. I have a few more designs I want to learn and lots more things to make.

Posted in Chainmail | 2 Comments

Spinning FO: Corgi Hill Farm Polwarth Silk

Posted on January 5, 2012 by Quantum Tea

This was my first fibre order from Corgi Hill Farm, a custom-dyed braid of polwarth/silk in Burnt Orange. I was a little afraid of how tightly the braid had been made, but the fibre was a dream to spin and not compressed at all. I was aiming for a sportweight yarn for this, deliberately trying to spin thicker than my last skein, which came out as laceweight. That was polwarth too, I like spinning polwarth and a polwarth silk blend was something I'd never seen before.

Corgi Hill Farm 85/15 polwarth silk.

Fiber: 85/15 polwarth silk, dyed by Corgi Hill Farm
Construction: 2-ply
Amount: 306 yards, 5oz (25yds in a mini skein)
Tool: Majacraft Rose spinning wheel

This was some of the fastest yarn I've ever spun, 20 days from start to finish. It was difficult to adjust to spinning thicker, my default has been to spin as thin as I possibly could and accept the consequences. It came out well, it's not entirely even but it's close enough that knitting will smooth it out.

Next up is some Finn top I dyed red and brown with Amy. The undyed patches are getting nicely lost in the coloured sections as it spins.

Posted in Spinning | 2 Comments

Looking forwards – 2012 resolutions

Posted on January 1, 2012 by Quantum Tea

I achieved most of my 2011 resolutions this year. I resolved not to stab anyone in 2011 and managed this one, though there were some very worthy candidates.

In knitting, I finished knitting the Eris cardigan, though I still need to block it and install a zipper, which is scary as I've never done it (the zipper, not the blocking). I knit something with Wollmeise and discovered I do not like knitting with Wollmeise. It's hard, feels stringy, and twists up on itself in an annoying way. I destashed all the Wollmeise I had, leaving just one skein I'd already wound up.

In karate, I did not compete in at least one karate tournament, but I did get my kenpo green belt. I'd like to get my 3rd degree brown belt this year.

For 2012, I'd like to finish my trilogy of novels and maybe even start editing them. I'd like to bake bread with Hubby, walk by the ocean, knit up the stashed yarn, make pretty and useful things, and give them to people who will use or appreciate them. And not stab anyone. Happy New Year, hope 2012 is a good one.

Posted in Personal | 3 Comments

Looking back

Posted on December 31, 2011 by Quantum Tea

In 2011 I knit:

  • 6 pairs of socks (all my own designs)
  • 3 neck-warmer scarves (one from unspun silk hankies
  • 2 shawls (Larix and Citron)
  • 4 toys (two bats, a hedgehog and a bunny)
  • 2 lace scarves (both knitspot designs, Butternut and an unblocked Aria Delicata)
  • 2 tops (Eris, still waiting for a zip, and a Dew Point shrug)
  • 1 washcloth and one mouth guard holder

That's a total of 21 finished objects, which is pretty good. I taught two people how to knit, which I love doing.

I also spun three good skeins of usable yarn, one fingering, one lace, and one sport, plus the little leftover skeins from the bobbin ends. Could have been better.

In the last week, I've made five Celtic Star pendants, three Celtic Visions bracelets, and two Helm chain flowers, plus a bunch of short practice pieces of Box chain, Byzantine chain, and Full Persian chain. I have plans to make other chainmail bracelets, since the only bracelets that fit me well are ones I make myself. Manipulating dozens of small wire jump rings into shapes is like building a three dimensional jigsaw, and you end up with curiously mobile piece of jewellery.

In November I wrote 58000 words on a novel which turned out to be book #2 of a trilogy, book #1 being my 2009 NaNoWriMo novel. I'm not quite finished yet, though I'm working on the last three chapters and I can see the end from here. The final book of the trilogy will be written next year, possibly for NaNoWriMo.

I changed job this year, leaving a company I've been with for nearly seven years. Not an easy decision to make, but I'm loving the new company. Got my green belt in Kenpo and started working on 3rd degree Brown Belt techniques. Brown belt is the first of the advanced level belts and the tests get more difficult now. Also you're no longer allowed to have people watch your test unless they're above you in rank.

I read forty books and watched twenty-seven movies. I wrote twenty-seven haiku, which is a good habit to keep up. So, what's next?

Posted in Chainmail, Knitting, NaNoWriMo, Personal, Spinning, Writing | 2 Comments

FO: The Golden Bat

Posted on December 21, 2011 by Quantum Tea

My first Mochimochi Land pattern:

Golden Bat.

Pattern: Boo the bat (Ravelry link)
Yarn: Cascade 200
Needles: US3 and US6
Duration: 25th November to 6th December
Ravelry project: Double Boo

These had to remain a secret until after they went to their respective owners. One was for my karate instructor, who reminds me periodically I still haven't made her the golden bat she asked for back in 2010. The other was for a gift swap for my knitgroup, an awesome bunch of ladies I love to hang out with.

I did different wings to the pattern, using a wing designed by a Ravelry user nosmallfeet, and I think these wings are much more bat-like than the pattern wings.

There may be a small diversion from knitting while I make some chainmail jewellry. Also I have three more chapters to write to wrap up my novel, and ten days straight vacation over Christmas and New Year. Please stand by...

Posted in Knitting | 4 Comments

Back to what passes for normal

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Quantum Tea

It was a long November. I haven't finished my novel, though at 58,000 words it's at the end of chapter nine, with three more chapters to go. I'm going to finish this one, read the first book, then this second book, and then plan out an end to the trilogy. I did win NaNoWriMo, my eighth win since I started this in 2004, and my first sequel (though I realised partway through it was actually the middle book of a trilogy).

I have several knitting projects in progress, most notable is a pair of socks for my karate instructor, and two secret projects. There's a hat I'm toying with a design for (silver cabled band, rolled edge, orange crown with the cable band folded back) and a cardigan waiting patiently for two fronts and a button band. The socks are fun because I'm taking what could be a boring pair of ribbed socks and periodically breaking the ribs by purling across them.

Broken Rib sock.

This week I'll be putting some good fibre on the spinning wheel, an orange polwarth/silk (an 85/15 blend) from Corgi Hill Farm, who dyes beautiful fibre and has interesting blends to spin. I have some of her baby camel/silk (a 50/50 blend) to play with after the polwarth/silk is done, that came in two 2oz braids. I love polwarth fibre, that and Falklands are my favourites, but I do not like spinning batts. Even very good batts, I much prefer roving. So, some beautiful Cupcake Fiber batts are on their way out of my stash to a good home.

Corgi Hill Farm spinning fibre.

The weather has turned wintery, first frost and snow flurries this week. Roll on summer...

Posted in Knitting, NaNoWriMo, Spinning, Writing | 4 Comments