Tis the season to be frantic
It never fails that about this time of year I start worrying about what on earth I’m going to give/make people for Christmas (or Christmikkah if you’re a dual-holiday celebrator). There are always people on my list that I have great plans of making lovely knitted or jeweled things for. Little drop earrings for Sally! Oh and a big bangly fun necklace for Susie! OOOH Jeanie would LOVE to have a pair of these super warm and snuggly house-boots!
(and so would I! BTW)
You can buy the pattern for these awesome boots at Knot Sew Cute‘s Etsy Shop
Not to mention the fingerless gloves that I promised Joe and the scarf I keep telling Bob I’m going to make! All of this and only a month’s worth of week nights and weekends to get it all finished!? I tell you it’s STRESSFUL!
I LOVE Christmas. I love everything about it! I love the lights, and the smells, and the decorations, and the snow – when I get to have it – and the baking and the movies. But more than all of this stuff I love having a perfectly acceptable reason to empty out my bank account buying gifties for people that are special to me. And because I love giving gifties so much, I literally AGONIZE over what in the world to get people. I always fret and fuss about trying to find the perfect gift. Sometimes I get so caught up in searching for that perfect gift idea or frantically finishing that pair of boots up there, that I completely forget the point. And then I have to step back, have a gingerbread cookie and say, “it’s not even Thanksgiving yet!”
Life, the Universe, and knitting
I know I said I would be more diligent about knitting and blogging. But then life happened, as it is want to do, and I didn’t feel much like doing either.
I won’t get into the horrible details of what’s been going on – but to use a brief (and not very good metaphor) let’s just say that bad things come in waves, and I am tired of surfing. However, I think I’m coming to the end of it. Granted, I don’t really know how to surf, so I’m pretty sure that the end will look like a world-class, funniest home video winning wipe-out. Maybe along these lines?
Or maybe more along these lines (this kid didn’t even make it to the water!)
It’s gonna hurt, but I think I see the end coming…
One of the nice things about this personal crisis, is that in the middle of it I got to add a little financial crisis on top! Partly due to the bills, and partly due to the stupidity of paying my rent twice. Friends, a little bit of advice for you: when you set up an automatic draft for your rent, don’t write a check too. So – with the emptying of all my bank accounts, and maxing out my credit card for the month – I’m left to sit at home with my stack of Disney cartoons and KNIT! Which, really, is all I ever want to do anyway, so I suppose everything does happen for a reason.
CLT Twit-Knit-Up
It’s official, I’m a geeky grandma. I mean seriously. How many single 24 year olds do you know who would be eager to try to combine two such completely different niches as knitting and Twitter? Yes, that’s right friends. I’m officially trying to start a Tweet-up for knitters in the area. I have no idea how many of us there are, but I know there are at least 3 people in Charlotte who Tweet and knit in their spare time (and at least 2/3 of us even do this when we have to MAKE spare time).
I’m not sure where the final landing place is going to be… but I also sort of enjoy the idea of having a floating meeting! So long as we are able to get people organized enough and the locale settled soon enough to notify people.
For now it seems that the Common Market in South End, Charlotte is a pretty easy and central location. Plus they offer everything from tea and scones to sandwiches, beer and wine, and back down to Luna bars and peanuts!
I’m absolutely up for ideas on locations!
I also want this to be for Twitters who want to learn to knit! I love to teach people and I’d be happy to work with you. Or if you want to learn to crotchet, I can help you there too! Please spread the word though, it’s gonna be a great time.
Leave a comment or message me @MaggieHyde if you are interested or have ideas for how to spread the word and build the group.
The play’s the thing!
Theatre and plays were a major part of my childhood experiences. My mother and sister were always involved in some community theatre project or another and I used to love watching them do their thing up on stage. When I was just a wee one, I remember they were part of a local stage production of The Hobbit. My sister was cast as Thorin and my mother took on the daunting task of being musical director. I was just old enough that I could be dragged to the theatre to sit around and entertain myself while they were in rehearsal. This usually meant that I was running around trying to find some way to be involved with what was going on around me. I can remember running through the tunnels under the theatre that actors would use to get to the front of house during shows, playing in the costume room, and running errands and snack runs to the little convenience store for actors (and myself obviously!)
As I got older I actually started to find ways to be useful! Like most people do when they first dive into theatre, I started helping with props and backstage stuff. Then when my sister was living at home and decided to try out directing I worked up the nerve to actually audition and started playing in the spotlight. But ultimately, my creative and bossy nature found that the costuming, set design, and generally having something to be in control of was just as much (if not more) fun than being center stage.
So when my sister asked me to help her with the costumes for her Children’s Theatre production of “Peggy the Pint Sized Pirate” I accepted joyously! Pirates! Sea monsters! FUN! It’s been too long since I was in a theatre and I dove at the chance.
Course, then I remembered why I haven’t had time for theatre recently. THERE’S NO TIME! Seriously.
With lots of help from my friend I seem to be making progress. Tonight is the first time the actors will see their (partially finished) costumes, but I must say that i’m pretty freaking impressed with them, myself. I mean… We are talking about late night HAND SEWING of a life-sized mermaid tail. That’s not exactly a project that carries well to the local Starbucks. And duct tape monsters! (Gonna be awesome, ps.)
I can hear the old Granny in line behind me now – “oh my, that’s an interesting…what are you making dear?”
Accidental Hiatus
I realized that there is a slight problem with having a blog about knitting – when you don’t knit for months on end, you kind of don’t have much to write about! But I’m definitely trying to get back into a normal pattern (no pun intended) and establish some balance again. I got so out of whack this summer! I swear it’s not just that I’m lazy (although that was a huge factor, really, when it comes down to it). I was also busy people! And believe you me, with some of the things that have been going on in my life, I really wish I had been sitting around knitting instead of running around like a chicken with my head cut off. But alas, I was not.
I would love to go over all the things that have happened to me and that I’ve done in the last 3 months, but the truth of the matter is that none of it is all that exciting. Sitting here trying to come up with everything to tell you about all I can do is sum it up with “I’ve been really busy”.
This summer brought about a number of huge changes for me, family issues and successes, and all kinds of work to keep me busy in between. But the summer has ended and in general the world seems to have regained some of its sanity. Hopefully that means that my life can slow down a little bit and I can get back to focusing on things that are important to me.
As for this blog, I’m gonna make it a regularly scheduled item. It’s true, I’ve even put it onto my calendar! That makes it official people. I’ve got some ideas for topics and will most likely be expanding my blog to include categories other than crafting. For those weeks when life gets in the way of hobbies.
So hang in there with me and I’ll see what I can do about making this blog worth reading!
Knitting in Maine
Last week was a big week for the Hyde family. My sister, brother-in-law, Grandmother, Aunt, and myself all dragged our persons up to Vacation Land (the state of Maine for those of you state-motto challenged readers) to witness my little brother’s high school graduation!
As you might expect, when one visits the state of Maine, with beautiful mild spring weather to enjoy and distant family members to entertain you, you don’t end up spending a lot of time sitting around on the couch knitting. Not that I’m complaining, mind you.
However, when you’re stuck in a stuffy high school gymnasium with a couple hundred kids you’ve never seen before – you thank your lucky stars that between the tearful toasts and wild parties, the travel plans and the rainstorms you didn’t plan for, that you had the presence of mind to remember to bring your knitting bag with you.
Here you can see a photograph taken by one of the local newspaper’s that features my entire family. That’s me and my sister there – the only two people with our heads down. Guess what we were doing? (Insert evil laugh here.)
Caught on camera with the needles out!
So from left to right in that row we have the following: Sarah (Sister), John (Boyfriend), Grandma Dessie (Grandma), Mom (Mom), Dad (Dad), Aunt Cathey (Aunt). </sarcasm>
We did wait until after Jeremy had walked, and we really didn’t ignore the proceedings. We still clapped for the names of the kids we recognized from weekly phone calls with the family. But when you don’t really know anyone there – it’s hard to stay focused for 2.5 hours!
All in all it was a great weekend. I’m very proud of my brother who was awarded 6 scholarships by his high school for various points of awesomeness. He will be attending Elon University in North Carolina this fall, and I can’t wait to have him down here in the sunny south!
What is Knitting?
As I was browsing the forums on www.ravelry.com yesterday I came across one in which one Raveler asked the question – what exactly defines someone as a knitter? I was intrigued.
The arguement was that if someone is not using knitting needles but rather a knitting machine, are they in fact knitting?
Well obviously the first thing I did was to go to the Webster Online Dictionary and find out what they had to say about it.
Knit
transitive verb1chiefly dialect : to tie together2 a: to link firmly or closely <knitted my hands> b: to cause to grow together <time and rest will knit a fractured bone> c: to contract into wrinkles <knitted her brow>3: to form by interlacing yarn or thread in a series of connected loops with needlesintransitive verb1: to make knitted fabrics or objects2 a: to become compact b: to grow together c: to become drawn together
Knitting
1 : the action or method of one that knits2 : work done or being done by one that knits
So if we use Webster’s terminology, then knitting has nothing to do with what you use to achieve the end result. Instead, it is a term that refers to the final product… the end result being that an item (or items) need to be intertwined in some way.
When you put it in writing, that’s not very impressive. But when you define it visually it’s so much more than that!
Fellow Raveler dolliewollie's absolutely STUNNING work!
Raveler turtlegirl76 - a Charlotte Yarn Employee!
You can find out all about TurtleGirl76 and keep up with all her beautiful knitting projects at her blog!
YarnHarlot's Lotus Blossom Shawl
Learning to Knit
A few weeks ago I started teaching my friend and her daughter to knit. We sat down on the front porch with some beer (and juice for the little one) and we spent a good 20 minutes working the cast on.
Melisa tries to wrangle that tricky working thread!
Before, when I would teach people I would always just cast on for them. Because we all know that when you’re getting started and the process is a struggle -people just want to see results! They want to look down in their lap and see a beautiful sweater that they made and they want to see it now!
It’s not until later, when our fingers magically work the yarn to the right tension and in the right direction without any conscious thought, that we begin to appreciate the process itself.
There is a unique joy that comes from starting with nothing but some sticks and a (gorgeous) ball of yarn and creating with them, one stitch at a time, intricate and delicate works of art.
But this time I thought we’d try a different approach. I’m proud to report that a few weeks later they both (with a little gentle reminder) know how to do a long tail cast-on and the knit stitch! We’re more than halfway there!
Melisa and Cori as they learn the long tail caston method.
Once I finish teaching them the purl stitch we’ll be ready for our first project. I’m thinking that we should do some small squares with yarn scraps. They could practice their knit, purl, and stockinette stitches for different textures and then they can seam them together and have a Mother-Daughter blanket!
What do you guys think? Do you have recommendations for good learner projects?
It’s Anne kitteh!
My 24th birthday was Saturday and what a glorious day it was! My boyfriend who lives in Maine flew down in the morning and we passed a pleasant day of not really doing anything at all and enjoying the sparse patches of sunshine. He gave me my glorious presents – Douglas Musenukle – a stuffed and snuggly soft moose to cuddle with when he is not here, and the most hilarious t-shirt I have ever seen; Cornelius the Fat Unicorn from Shirt.Woot.com. It’s pretty freaking awesome and I’m not gonna lie, I wore it all weekend.
The awesome shirt that John got me.
Then my sister and her husband came over with bags and bags and boxes of presents for me. They made me open the card first and I’m very glad that they did. Inside was none other than the adoption forms for a new KITTEH! complete with handmade coupons for help with veterinarian bills and unlimited petsitting! Sarah informed me that when I called her crying because I thought I may have the Swine Flu, she decided then and there that I could not live alone any longer and I needed a four legged friend. So she and my Mother worked it out that they would pay for all the upfront costs (rental appartment pet security deposit included!) for me to adopt a little pet of my own. The rest of Saturday was spent with friends at a Mexican restaurant which was tons of fun but I couldn’t help but get distracted with visions of my soon-to-be pet!
Sunday afternoon John and Sarah and I made our way over to the Animal Control Facility to pick out a kitteh for me! I am pleased to report that although that facility does euthanize animals, those that get to live on are treated very well with very clean and large cages and kind people taking care of them. I made a short list of about 4 kittehs that I wanted to meet and play with – but ran out of time and only got to see one. But this one was so perfect and so adorable with such beautiful markings that I went ahead and took him home! I figure, I was bound to fall in love with pretty much any animal I held that day – it’s a weakness of mine. So why not take the one that is sound asleep in my arms and purring right now!? So that’s exactly what I did, thanks to a little bit of paperwork finagaling by my sister and brother-in-law!
So now I’m sitting in my living room with the most adorable tortoiseshell cat playing at my feet. She is loving and gentle and all mine, mine, mine!
Me and Anne Cat
The thing about gauge
Some knitters love it, some knitters (me) HAAAAATE it – the Gauge Swatch. Here is why I hate it. You go to the yarn store and you find the perfect yarn for that oh-so-cute cropped sweater from the latest edition of Interweave Knits that you’ve been staring at every day. It’s a little more pricey than you wanted, but it’s so perfect you buy it anyway – and hey! Aren’t you a member of the Fiber Fan Club that gives you a 5% discount on all your purchases?! So there you go! You race home, dig out the pattern and needles, pour yourself a tasty beverage and bowl of snacks, and settle into the couch for a glorious afternoon of knitting and veg-ing. And just as you’re ready to start visualizing how cute you’ll look in your one-of-a-kind shrug, you realize you can’t start yet because you have to make your gauge swatch. You contemplate ignoring that first paragraph of the directions and just hoping it’s the right size, but remember how much money you just spent on the yarn. So you swatch away. And instead of spending a pleasant afternoon daydreaming and knitting, you spent the rest of your day fighting to find the right set of needles, trying not to race through the 30 some rows so that you knit normally (and hopefully to the right gauge). You worry about holding the yarn “normally” and end up making it way too tight or way too loose in your attempts to be natural. By the time you get the gauge right it’s 10 pm and you are so sick of that stupid yarn you never want to use it again. But you will, and you know you will.
