ay 7! The shrug is finished and I've begun the edging.

The Kindle cover is from StrangeDog!

The Knitting Olympics Athletes Pledge

nitting Olympics Pledge (from the knitting Olympics site):

I, a knitter of able hands and quick wits, do hereby swear that over the course of these Olympics I will uphold the highest standard of knitterly excellence.

I will be deft of hand and sure of pattern, I will overcome troubles of yarn overs and misplaced decreases. I will use the gifts of intelligence and persistence (as well as caffeine and chocolate) and I will execute my art to the highest form, carrying with me the hope for excellence known to every knitter.

I strive to win. To do my best, and to approach the needles with my own best effort in mind, without comparing myself to my fellow knitters, for they have challenges unique to them.

While I engage in this pursuit of excellence and my own personal, individual best, I also swear that I will continue to engage with my family in conversation, care for my pets, speak kindly with those who would ask me to do something other than knit, and above all, above every stitch thrown or picked, above every cable, every heel stitch, every change of colour, I swear this:

That I will remember that this is not the real Olympics, that I'm supposed to be having fun and that my happiness and self-worth ride not on my success... but on my trying.

Let the games begin!

Knitting Olympics Update

t's going well!




Okay, I didn't knit at all yesterday, but here's how far I'd gotten by Saturday night - and I doubled that on Sunday! If I finish the main body of the shrug tonight, I'll post a new photo tomorrow.

Helen's Cables! Part II

emember this?

That was the front of Helen's cable patterned vest. Here's the back!

Ahem. We ask that you please note the Tiffany bracelet on her arm...

Socks

t last - a photo of my first ever completed pair of socks. After the ones on dpns, where I only made one sock, and the ones on straight needles, where I only sewed up one sock and ran out of wool for the second, it's nice to be able to say "I've made a pair of socks!" Hooray for the magic loop method.

Kitchener Stitch:

Pulling in all threads:

The lovely Eye of Partridge Stitch!:

As you can see, there was some slight trouble with laddering (strange, since I normally knit so tightly) and the decreasing for the toe looks rather obvious. The toe with the Kitchener stitch also looks funny in the photograph, but it's also partly because I did on my own, without watching the how-to video.

Knitting Olympics!

ictorian Shrug - pattern on page 12 here - is the pattern I'll be starting at flame-lighting, tonight!

The Socks Are Coming, I Promise!

nd the Knitting Olympics start tomorrow!

What's Wrong With The World?

pecifically, Scotland, where guns are illegal, but you can get married at 16, drive at 17, drink alchohol at 18 - yet have to be 25 to knit. What, do they ask for identification when you walk into a local yarn store?
"Sorry, sir or madam, but according to this ID you still have a month to go before your birthday. I don't care what your parents let you get away with at home, I can't sell you those blunt tipped bamboo 9mm sticks. Yes, I am aware that you can buy bamboo shoots at the nearest Chinese grocery, and that these needles are thicker than a pen, however..."
I mean to say, what?
Thanks to India for pointing this out.
Meanwhile, I'm two sets of Kitchener stitches away from finishing my socks on the magic loop!

Caught You Peeking!

peek at Helen's first finished pair of socks:

And here's Jerry, peeking through my ribbed blanket while it was still in progress:

Last Year and Ongoing

ne item I omitted from my photos and features last year is the scarf below.

I knitted it as a gift (which explains the length – it was for a much taller person), in December 2008, with more of the Icelaine wool, but ended up wearing it myself. It’s the cosiest and warmest scarf I own and the Doctor Who length makes it easy to wear in different styles.

Come to think of it, I knitted a Tom Baker scarf once – wonder where it went?

(image from age of geek)

As for the ongoing, here are some shots of the magic loop socks in progress:

The ones nearer to completion belong to Helen; I decided to make mine anklets because I’m working with larger needles than called for. I love following the Tostetoes pattern; it’s very detailed and guides you every step of the way. I doubt I’ll ever use any other method for socks ever again. I’ve got to start the kilt hose once I finish this pair, but before that I’ve got to make another pair for Jenny, who enjoys socks with fun patterns as much as I do.

Before I forget, here’s a link from kc dyer for all UKphile knitters:

And in my ongoing series of knitting as featured in the media, I recently saw an episode of MASH where a trio of Korean doctors perform acupuncture to heal Winchester's aching back, and when asked how he feels he replies "I feel like I've been knitted and purled."