big fat buttons!

Monday morning. I get to work unusually early. Approaching my desk,  I see a large bag sitting precariously on the corner with a box sticking out the top. What is this? What kooky task have they conjured up for me today? Warily I peer into the bag, but I am pleasantly surprised at the contents.

BUTTONS!
LOTS OF BUTTONS!

Then I recalled a conversation with a coworker on Friday. “My aunt had a button collection. I can’t imagine anyone would buy it at the garage sale. You can have them if you want.”

I spent the afternoon sorting them. It is not what I would call a unique collection considering there are large quantities of a single type. But if ever I decide to knit a floor length cardigan with buttons 1/4 inch apart, I’ll be set.

“the lost fleece”

To continue with the fiber show theme, and by Cosy’s request, I will relate the story of The Lost Fleece.

In the town where I live, there is a very nice woman who has several sheep and llamas. Her wheel was the first I spun on, it was a Louet and I was bad. After visiting with her on one occasion, and mentioning that I was going to the Fiber Show (in 2006), she asked if I’d like to buy a fleece and take it with me to have it processed. So, I bought one of her fleeces, a Cotswold cross from Big Mama and it was huge!

Big Mama’s Fleece

She had suggested I take it to the Wooly Knob, a mill in Indiana, who was going to be accepting fleeces at the show. So I stuffed it into the trunk of the car and off we went. Sometime during the day, Rich dragged the fleece out of the car and over to their booth where it was weighed (10 lbs I think?) and taken off my hands. I wasn’t excepting to hear back from them for quite some time, since they had collected A LOT of fleeces that day.

Several months later, perhaps September or October, I called the mill since they hadn’t called me. I asked about the fleece, they said they’d have to call me back. Eventually, after many calls and unanswered questions, it came to light that the fleece had been LOST. How does one lose a 10 lb fleece?? I was irritated, to say the least. But the owner of the sheep was more upset. She and I were going to split the cost and final product and this sheep was getting old. Who knew if she’d last until the next shearing? I can’t say with certainty whether Big Mama was able to give another fleece or not, and no, the fleece I sent was never found.

To amend the situation, the mill voluntarily sent me replacement wool. However, it was several months later that it arrived. When he made the suggestion, I assumed he was staring at the wool as he spoke. In actuality, it had not even been processed yet. I know they did not send me an equivalent amount, but I accepted it nonetheless. Unfortunately, it is a rather low-quality wool with a short staple and lots of veggie matter. I have spun through one entire bag, half of another, and still have one more.

Box of replacement wool

So, this year when I take in my fleece I will try a new mill, Zeilinger Wool Co. in Frankenmuth, MI. I have not gone around sullying the name of the Wooly Knob, but I can say I was not overly pleased with the transaction.

yarn always emerges

This weekend we took our first real step towards beginning our final research project.  We had to drive 40 minutes to a retirement community for a tour.  I was not overly enthusiastic about the whole thing, mostly because it just meant I’d have to go back again and again.  The facility is very nice and huge!  We were there about an hour before piling into the car and heading home.  Since the general consensus was to take a different route home, I suggested driving through a particular town where I knew a yarn shop lived.  We stopped there to browse and it was so cute!  I’m the only knitter in the group of three, but the other two ladies meandered around the store like pros – squishing yarns and thumbing through books and patterns.  I bought a skein of sock yarn and Ann Budd’s The Knitter’s Handy Book Patterns - something I’ve been holding out on since September.  After shopping, we walked down to an English pub for lunch.  It was a nice surprise, turning a school trip into a yarn stop!

I started knitting the socks for my dad.  Rather than following a specific pattern, I’m using the charts in Budd’s book.  It’s quite exciting.  I have pictures to share, but they are still on the camera and I haven’t had time to get them off and adjusted.

hat on head

Finished Rich’s cap this morning. It came in really handy last night at the Greenwich Meantime New Year’s Eve party as a way to keep me from eating more. Unfortunately and mysteriously, it ended up just a little bit shorter than I was going for. But it still fits. Now that he has TWO hats, he’s not sure which to wear. I told him that one is heavier and for colder weather, and the other, lighter one is for just cool weather. Tonight he wore them both at the same time. I also told him he’s going to end up with a lot more than just two hats if he sticks around!

Today I started another Wormhead’s Rollin’ Beret for a woman at church. The situation amuses me on several levels. First of all, she’s a knitter. She has given my mom several scarves. However, whenever she sees me knitting, she just raves about my extreme competence at being able to knit such things as hats and socks. I always tell her that she could do it too, but she says no. Alright, not everyone wants to get into increases and decreases. The other thing that I find a curiosity and a challenge is her disinterest in wool. When I suggested making it in wool, I could tell she bristled at the idea. After giving it some thought, I decided on Lion Brand, as they have fairly decent acrylics and I’ve successfully used their yarn before. How does a knitter of natural fibers accept – rather than try to impress her own high praise of wool – that there are folks out there who are perfectly happy with acrylic??

i am the hulk

I um… I broke my knitting needles today.

I don’t knit flat very often, but the neckwarmers have been calling me out of my comfort zone on multiple levels – using straight needles, sewing on buttons, knitting scarves. Despite my straight needle phobia, I have at least one set of aluminum needles in nearly every size.  Oddly enough, I’m missing 10 and 10.5.  I’m not sure if I had them at some point and they were misplaced, or I decided not to get any because I had a set of plastic needles in #10.  They were likely purchased during the early stage of knitting when I had to buy everything knitting related regardless of its usefulness. Lately I’ve been avoiding them, but the size difference between 9 and 11 is huge and my latest neckwarmer desperately required the 10. Before psych class, I casted on.  All was going well, making good progress. I got to work and continued knitting. But then disaster struck! While I paused briefly to talk with a coworker, I flexed the needle and – SNAP! – it broke in two.  Luckily it broke closer to the blunt end and I was able to continue.  But it happened again with the other needle!  This time I was walking through the office and I hit the needle against my thigh – CRACK! – it broke into three pieces!  Still, I was able to continue knitting.  Never have I experienced such a thing before.  This is why I only buy aluminum needles.  

two unrelated topics

A question for dyers: Are there any agreed upon names for the different methods of dyeing?  I read the Twisted Sisters book and they had cold-pour and hot-pour (I think).  The former being the saran wrap and steam method and the latter being the pot of water on the stove method.  So, that’s all well and good, but aren’t there other things out there that people are doing?  What is kettle dyeing? What is dyeing in a crockpot? Why is that different from using a stockpot on the stove? What is putting fiber in a dish without water and baking it in the oven or microwave? How do these compare?  

A knitting anecdote:  This morning before class, I sat in the big lounge where people go to sleep/study/talk about stupid things.  It was pretty full, so I couldn’t sit in a quiet corner away from anyone else.  Instead, I parked in between two girls who both had their cellphones out.  I brought out my knitting and on either side of me, they were typing away text messages. It was an amusing sight, I’m sure.  I was working on my Cosy Train Tam, which is coming along quite nicely. I’ve gotten to the decreases.  Before I left the house, I used the nostepinne to rewind the two separate balls into one ball.  It’s a lot less to carry now, which is why I brought it to school with me.