Knitting as therapy

Have you ever just sat and knit something, usually a swatch for nothing in particular. I found myself doing that the other night. I literally knit for hours, and yet made nothing. I'd get to a certain place in the swatch and rip it out, then start over again. All the while I was doing this, my mind was focused on some problems I was trying to come to terms with. Even when I'm actually knitting on a project, I usually find myself in this "knitter's zone", and sometimes don't even notice what's going on around me. I find I'm calmer if I have needles in my hands. If I'm in a situation that makes me anxious or uncomfortable, I either grab my knitting or I wish desperately that I could. So I've decided, as no doubt many other knitters have in the past, the knitting is my therapy, my Xanax, my method of coping with pressure. I just hope I never have to do without it, would be to horrible to imagine. Of course, with the size of my stash and the number of needles that I've accumulated, it will be along time before I'm without the equipment I need to cope with life.

Making Progress!

I'm making progress on the Lion Brand KAL. The blog posts from the designer really help. I've substituted seed stitch for the textured rows. I think it is a more subtle effect that will work better with my chubby arms.

Great Lakes Fiber Show

Yesterday I went to my very first fiber fest. Now I want to go to all of them, and I want to take tons of money with me! I was taking a class at pm, so I spent the time before that wandering from vender to vender wishing desperately for more money and trying to remember where the things I really liked and considered actually buying were. There were tons of beautiful things, roving, hand spun and hand dyed yarns, baskets, and woven items. If I had had more money, I probably wouldn't have been able to get everything in my car. I only had a small amount, but I hit the jackpot when I found some Lamb's Pride which is a mohair/wool blend from Brown Sheep Yarns in this really great shade of purple for only $4 a skein! I bought as much as I could and only had change in my wallet, but I didn't mind a bit. Here are some pictures of my big find! I really did have a great time. Took a lace class, also from Annie Modesitt. I learned a lot about reading charts and figuring out the pattern in a lace design.

Another KAL?!

I signed up for another KAL! This one is on Knit Picks and is based on the book Knitting Goes Large. What was funny was that I had ordered the book just a few days before finding out about the KAL. There are many beautiful patterns in the book, but the one I was drawn to was the Cabled Bag. I've been wanting to try cables for a long time now, but I found them quite intimidating on a garment. To me, this looks like a more doable option. Still, can't believe I've signed up for this. I already have more projects going that I need. Aside from the other KAL, I'm finishing a sundress for my niece, a purse for another niece, a baby layette, a beaded wristlet, and was toying with some patterns for a skinny scarf. My knitting bag runneth over! Maybe, if I knit non-stop, with only bathroom breaks and with my boys occasionally throwing food my way, I might finish by the time I'm 80!
I've decided on the yarn and found a fabric that I'll use as the lining. Really love the colors!

A beautiful spring day!

Even I, who really doesn't see sunlight all that much, had to really enjoy the weather today. It was absolutely beautiful! The sun was shining, birds singing and doing whatever it is that birds do. I was even inspired to leave the house and run a few errands.

I'm in the middle of several projects, but couldn't resist when Lion Brand said they were starting another KAL. I've chosen the yarn, made my swatches and am almost ready to cast on the first stitches. I'm trying to add pictures of my KAL yarn/swatches. Hope they show up!

Okay, enough whining!

This is something I have to tell myself from time to time. But there are times when it seems everything is just piling up so that there is no way to come out on top. When I start feeling this way, I usually turn to one of my projects. This past week I finally finished the sweater for my Mom, even got it mailed out yesterday. It's not the sweater I started out to make for her, I may make that one for Christmas. This was actually a sweater that I started for my sister-in-law for this past Christmas, but didn't get finished in time. My Mom admired it then, so when the other sweater I had started for her just wasn't working out, my middle son reminded me of this one and how much Mom liked it. It was already mostly done, and so I was able to get it finished in time, all I had to do was finish the trim on the sleeves, increase the length, and add a border along the front edges. The yarn was a rayon that was hand painted in shades of deep pink/mauve and blues on a cream colored background. I forgot to take a picture before I mailed it out, but I'll try to get a picture of Mom wearing it to post here.

Another day, more frogging done...

Okay, started a sweater for my Mom's birthday. She's great, and I love her, but she's not the easiest person when it comes to gifts. We have very different taste when it comes to clothing and while I might enjoy a sweater in an interesting color or style, she prefers something that can be worn with everything in her closet, something very neutral, and something that is wash and wear. So instead of using something from my stash, I bought some Vanna's choice in a color called Pearl Mist and started knitting. I'd been working on it for several days and then found that I had made an error several rows before. It wasn't a catastrophic error, but it was bugging me, so I decided to un-knit a few rows and fix it. But the more I un-knitted, the more errors I found. (I would often fall asleep while working on the sweater, as I said a very neutral color.) Finally I said the heck with, or words to that effect and just ripped the whole thing out! I'll save the yarn and maybe try the sweater again in the fall. So now I'm in the process of finishing a spring/summer cardi that I had, in fact, started last fall for my sister-in-law. I ended up giving her something else for Christmas as I hadn't finished this cardigan, but my son reminded me that my Mom had really liked it when she saw me working on it. Sooo, with a few alterations for sizing, I will hopefully get this gift finished in time for her birthday later this month. Actually, I have a much better chance of finishing this cardigan than I would have had finishing the other sweater, so maybe the errors were really for the best!