Non Alarmist

I do not have a particularly green thumb. My mother can grow anything. She raises champion begonias. She has started raising orchids. From seed. I like to grow things I can eat. If I'm going to get dirty, I want a payout at the end.

I've been having trouble growing rosemary. I am not sure what the problem is. I realize that we are a bit out of the rosemary wintering zone, so it's likely they've just been killed by the cold. This year I decided to try the volume approach. I planted three; one in the back along the porch and two in the front right up against the house. It's south facing, so the brick should keep them warm.

The plant in the back is doing quite well. This one in the front didn't even make it a month.

Before...

and after. *sigh* Maybe I should have watered it more. Or at all.

At least the lavender is happy.I was planning to title this post "Rosemary's Dead," or "The Death of Rosemary," but given recent events I decided I didn't want to add to the atmosphere of uncertainty and panic.

I have two FO's to share. First, the most recent BSJ. This one is for Carrie. I am loving this pattern.

I used vintage buttons to finish it.
I also completed a curly scarf for the girl next door, shown here modeled by Little Brewer #1. A very sleepy LB#1. She was at a birthday party the night before. You can see how much fun she had by the state of her shirt. Now that I have children I've learned there is a high correlation between messy self and fun.

Tour de France KAL update

Brewgal is in danger of being dropped off the back of the Peloton. The race has reached the Alps, and I have reached row 57 of the Baby Surprise Jacket only to discover that instead of the 114 stitches in the pattern, I have 116 stitches in the center section of my jacket. At some point I picked up 2 stitches. Do I rip back and start over? Abandon? No way. I've just got to figure out how to distribute my 10 stitches over 116 rather than 114.

Need more coffee.

I also made an equipment change after stage one. I'm now working on circular needles. The straights I picked out were sticking to the yarn.

Look! A sleeve!

It's also brewday in the Brewgal household. Here we see Brewguy heating water for the wirt boil (technically called the "hot liquor"). It is heated to a temperature in the 160 degree farenheit range. The water is used first for the mash, and then later for the sparge. See what Brewguy is doing in the background? He is about to spring the fruit fly trap.

We have an abundance of fruit flies. I think they came home with us from West Virginia. We first tried the paper over the glass trick, a trap suggested to us by a former neighbor who was a professor of biology. He was conducting experiments on special species of fruit flies in his lab and used this method to trap wild fruit flies. You place a small amount of sugar water (or beer) in a jar or glass, cover the top with a piece of paper secured by a rubber band and poke a small hole in the top with a pencil. The fruit flies can go through the hole into the glass but can't find their way back out. When the trap was full he microwaved the jar.

We've used the same method, sans the microwaving. With our luck we'd only create a species of microwave-proof fruit flies.

The paper trick didn't work last night. Brewguy got up early to brew and discovered that instead of being inside the glass, all the fruit flies had clustered on top of the paper, like they were waiting for the club to open. So he trapped them by placing a flower vase on top and released them into the wild.

It's the Hav-a-Hart of fruit fly traps.

Winners and losers

The results from the fair are in.

I entered eight items this year (I know- crazy!): three hats, two scarves, a small afghan, a sweater, and a belt. The sweater nearly killed me. I was sewing seams two hours before the entry deadline.


I am proud to say that not only did I successfully attempt CABLES and BLOCKING, but the sweater actually fits me. Except for some weird arm shaping. I think I can fix that post-fair.

First, the losers.

Item 1: Knit scarf, in a 2x3 broken rib-type pattern. Prize: honorable mention.

Sorry about the poor detail photo. There's nothing particularly wrong with this scarf, although I admit it's not my best effort.

Item 2: Crochet baby afghan, half-double crochet surrounded by single crochet and a curly border. Prize: fourth place.

The crochet afghan category is highly competitive. I thought the curly edge would catch the judge's attention. It's perfect for little hands to grab on to. Alas, the judges did not agree.

Item 3: Crochet adult hat with celtic border in tapestry crochet. Prize: third place.

Wha? Third? This was the hat I made for my father last Christmas and in my opinion, the most challenging piece for me. This design was incredibly difficult to execute. Third??

Next, the winners.

Item 4: Crochet scarf, overall curly. Prize: second.

(I love how they display the entries under Saran Wrap.)

I was into the curlicues last year. I actually wore this scarf in my passport photo. I look like I'm being strangled by a sea slug.

Item 5: Crochet infant hat. Prize: second.


More curlicues! Brewgal's standard baby hat design.

Item 6: Knit sweater, plain knit with cable arm design. Prize: second.
A step up from last year's shruggigan. Cables attempted! Ha!

Item 7: Crochet belt. Prize: second.
I made this for Little Brewer #2 last year. I entered this on a whim just because there was a category for it. I couldn't tell if there was any competition in this category. Little Brewer #2 was very anxious when I entered this. He was afraid he would not get it back. Not that he ever wears the darn thing.

And finally, Item 8: Child's crochet hat with flower. Prize: first.

I made this the week before the fair. Little Brewer #1 chose the color scheme. I felt it was a winner. Faux hatband with two-tone crochet flower? How could the judges not love it?

In conclusion, I have no idea what the judges like. They typically do not provide comments, so I cannot tell what I did wrong or right. I'm plotting next year's entries. I may attempt a log cabin blanket from Mason-Dixon knitting.

XXOO

The Metro Vest

It seems like it has been forever since I've finished anything. Besides crocheted hats for small babies, that is. Althought I certainly do not begrudge the newborn their haberdashery, I felt it was time to make myself a little something. Et voila! An honest-to-goodness finished item. I saw a blue version of this vest about two months ago on a woman riding the Metro. She was across the platform from me at Metro Station. I thought to myself, "Self, I WANT that!" So I designed my own.




It's a low-cut front, racer back vest. It doesn't seem like much on the hanger, but I think it looks great on.







Here's a shot of the back. Sorry about the bathroom clutter.






I didn't measure. I tried out a few stitch patterns until I found one I liked. The 2x2 rib is cute and has a lot of stretch to it. I used one of my old tank tops as a guide for the racer back. I just laid the piece down on the tank and guessed at the shaping. Brewgal is rather slight in the bust (36") and long in the torso, so take these instructions for what they are.


Here is the pattern I worked out.


Yarn: 3 1/2 skeins Plymouth Encore Colorspun DK (wool/acrylic blend)

Needles: size 6 straights

Crochet hook: approximately size F (Wouldn't you know it, I chose the one hook in the house that isn't size labeled. It claims to be non-inflammable, which means it could burst into flames at any moment.)

Finished measurements:

Shoulder to waist = 24 inches

Armhole to waist = 15 inches

Bottom of neckline to waist = 14 inches

Width = 8 3/4 inches (I relied on the stretchy nature of the 2x2 rib)

Back:

Cast on 70

First row: knit

Second and succeeding rows: 2 x 2 rib (knit 2, purl 2 to end)

Work in 2x2 rib until armholes



Armhole shaping (back)

Bind off 2 sts at beginning of every other row for 4 rows (this is the outside edge of the piece)

Bind off 1 st at beginning of every other row for 8 rows

Work in pattern for 26 rows



Neck shaping (back)

Work 20 sts in pattern

Bind off 14

Place remaining sts on holder



Work 1 row

Bind off 2 sts at beginning of 1 row (inside edge)

Work 1 row

Bind off 1 st at beginning of every other row for 4 rows.

You should have 14 sts remaining on needle. Work in pattern for 2 more rows, bind off all sts.


Join new yarn to stitches on holder. Repeat shaping for other side.



Front

Cast on 70.

First row: knit

Second and succeeding rows: 2 x 2 rib (knit 2, purl 2 to end)
Work in 2x2 rib until you want to start neck shaping.

You'll be shaping the neck and armholes at the same time.



Neck and armhole shaping (front)

Work 26 sts in pattern

Bind off 18

Place remaining sts on holder.



Work 1 row in pattern

Bind off 2 sts at beginning of 2 rows (this is the inside edge of the neck)

Work in pattern until armhole

Bind off 2 sts at beginning of every other row for 2 rows (this is the outside edge of the armhole)

Bind off 1 st at beginning of every other row for 4 rows. You should have 14 sts on needle.

Work straight until piece is same length as back. For me, this was 40 rows. Bind off all sts.



Join new yarn to stitches on holder. Repeat shaping for other side.



Joining back to front:

You'll be putting these together just like you would if you were sewing; right sides facing each other, sewing on the wrong side. I usually start piecing together at the points hardest to fix if I've made a mistake- the top of the shoulder. I can always go back and fix a crooked hem, but sloppy shoulders make me crazy.


Hold right sides together. Start join at shoulders. Placing the two sides together, take a crochet hook and single crochet through the stitches on both sides.

Next join: armholes, down sides.


Once pieces are joined, turn vest right side out and single crochet around the neckline and armholes. This gives a more finished look.



XXOO

Something pink this way comes...

Fear not!

This is the lesson I try to pass along to everyone I teach: do not be afraid of the knitting. I am not sure how this fear of knitting got started. I myself had this fear when I first started knitting: the fear that I would make a mistake and as a result, ruin the whole piece.

You cannot ruin the whole piece. You only need start again. Sure, it can be frustrating if you are twelve inches into a complicated lace pattern only to discover you've dropped a stitch at inch #four. This is why lifelines were invented. And yes, it helps if you use reasonably-priced yarn until you are comfortable. This is why Red Heart is $1.99 a skein.

In the beginning, however, you have to be free to experiment. Work out how to hold the needles in a way that is comfortable for you (continental, american).

Experimentation is how I stumbled across my current scarf pattern, a reversible rib. I was sitting in my car, killing time before my doctor's appointment. Having learned my lesson about not bringing a project, I had needles and a nice dk weight varigated merino in my purse. "Let's try a drop stitch pattern!" I thought to myself (I had just finished re-reading the Clapotis pattern after seeing the photos on Franklin's blog). Ok, that looks yucky (rip, rip, rip). Now what? Cables would not show very well on the stripes. I had already tried a straight stockinette. This yarn was recovered from another scarf I made in stockinette that rolled like a stack of quarters no matter how much I blocked it.

Then I tried a 3x2 rib pattern on an even-number of stitches. I have lately become enamored of even numbered patterns on odd-numbered stitches. I thought this would make a nice crumbly nap but it turned out to be much more interesting.

Brewgal's Reversible Rib Scarf
Cast on 34
Knit first row (I find starting with one knit row is easier than starting the pattern off the cast on row.)
Slip 1, knit 1 (edge stitch). *Knit 3, purl 2* repeat 6 times, knit last two stitches.
Repeat this row until scarf reaches desired length, knit last row, cast off.

Nothing fancy. I used #6 needles on dk weight yarn. This makes a cute little 2-stitch-wide rib on both sides.

XXOO Permalink