SpiderWomanKnits

Knitting? What's knitting when you have a Jeep and it is finally warm enough to go topless?! OK. I have to brag a little about a recent addition to our family. You see I used to have a Jeep way back when, before husband and child when I used to have to drive 1/2 mile into the woods to get to the little cabin I used to live in without running water or plumbing that I still have to tell you all about. But when I met my husband and we started a family we had to trade the incredibly impractical Jeep in for a much more family friendly car. Well, I have always longed for my Jeep back. Every car I get into I think, yeah it's a nice car, but it's not a Jeep. I can't explain it. If you have a Jeep you know what I am talking about. So, when my DH switched his work hours we found ourselves needing a second car (well there is a third but that one is kept safe and sound all through the winter and treated like an endangered species the rest of the year). The answer was clear I needed to have another Jeep. So last month we found a good used one and brought it home. Yesterday, we took it on it's first topless voyage of the season.

So after yesterdays knitting debacle I came across this hilarious post over at Laurie's blog and it hit the spot. I needed a good knitting laugh! Thanks Laurie! Head on over and check out the Gangsta Knitter Video.

I also spent a few hours after my little guy headed off to bed creating an Etsy Shop. For those of you who haven't come across it already (I can't imagine who) it is a highly addictive crafters marketplace. I am not much of a shopper but if you are looking for handmade items to lust over and covet Etsy is the place to go.

During the 2004 elections I started making politically and socially oriented T-Shirts for my husband and I to wear and got such a great response that my home based business Revoltees was born. I have spent the past few summers selling my shirts at fairs and markets when I could and maintained my own web-site for a while but recently decided that Etsy is the place to be.

I make the shirts using a heat press (the kind they use in tourist shops and years ago in Modell's to adhere those funky, fuzzy letter designs to shirts...think GIGANTIC iron or ENORMOUS panini grill) and I only press on American Apparel shirts. All the magic happens in the "craft room" upstairs in our house :-) A Mom and Pop shop in Washington produces the custom transfers for me that I design. It's really a lot of fun but the greatest part is the conversation and debate that the Shirts provoke. So when you get a chance head on over and check out some of what I do when I am not knitting, then let me know what you think!

Since my DH didn't have to go to work until 3pm and since it is pouring and freezing here on the East Coast today I decided to take the opportunity to begin a new knitting project. I have been endlessly knitting sweaters and thought a summer project would be a nice change of pace. So the hubby occupies the child while I gather all of my knitting supplies and nestle in to a relaxing afternoon of creativity...or so I thought.

I thought this pattern from a latest Knitty is just adorable and I still do it is just that I have spent HOURS trying to get it going unsuccessfully and not in a challenging and inspiring way. I hated EVERY minute of it. There was cursing and ripping and frenzied pacing around the house and all I have to show for it is this...

Part of my New Year resolution/goals for this year is to do things purposefully and with intent. I also set a goal for myself to take better care of the people within my circle of support (friends and loved ones) Though the people I love are always in my heart I am typically very bad at keeping in touch partly because life gets in the way and also because I have an aversion to the telephone. But since I have become a parent time seems to move SO much faster. I can almost feel it passing as I watch my son and realize he is always growing both in body and in mind and each moment is a both a treasure and a reminder of it's own passing. The demands of parenting so often leave you with very little time to yourself as well so you begin to understand the saying "youth is wasted on the the young". For someone like me who has resisted conformity my entire life and who values creativity there are times when I can experience conflicting emotions between wanting to give everything I have to my family and wanting it all back so that I can pursue my own personal creative outlets. The key is balance.

I have knit for people I love before but always for people who make things themselves with their hands and get the craft. I excuse myself from knitting for those who I feel might not understand or appreciate the time end energy involved in hand knitting but I have had a change of heart. If I have a hard time calling people to catch up when my son is napping because all I crave is quiet or can't focus my eyes on a computer to send emails because they are weary from a day of parenting or I just can't form sentences to write a nice letter because my brain is mush from constant toddler negotiations one thing I can and always will do is find comfort in a few rows of knitting or maybe even a few hours when I can. So, along with the more challenging personal projects I work on (that can often get quite frustrating) I am making the time to knit simplistic but relaxing items that will eventually be gifted when the time is right. And it feels good. Whether or not the recipient understands the time involved is unimportant. We all have different ways of saying, "I am thinking about you or I love you". Knitting is mine.

Momma SpiderWomanKnits came for a visit this week and besides joining Berkshire County Knitters for our weekly gathering she decided that she wanted to pick up some sticks and give knitting a go! Now, I am not the best teacher but with my trusty copy of Stitch 'n' Bitch (how I learned) by our sides I thought we could give it a go.

My mom was a natural! Really. She cast on (a little tight but don't we all at first) and instinctually knew where the needles were supposed to go. She said that years/decades ago she knit a sweater for our toy poodle, Peaches, so most likely she had the residue of physical memory in her hands. Momma SpiderWomanKnits is also a pianist so hand coordination comes easy.
Not only did she cast on and start knitting easy but she is fearless. She didn't like her first row so she ripped it out and started over again but then frustration kicked in and to my dismay she set the needles down and stated knitting wasn't for her :-( Now mommas are usually right but since I am a mother now myself I can say that I most certainly believe that knitting is for her when the time is right and I hope she finds her way back to the craft somewhere down the line. Mom- if you're reading this I'm here for you like you've been there for me...when you are ready.

I ended up turning Jess' (free) Bunny Pattern into a cat for softie #2 bound for a baby whose mama is a cat lover. "Buggy" (the guy in the stripes) as he is now lovingly called turned out quite big so instead of knitting the same toy for the baby I went for the smaller pattern thinking that it will be easier for smaller arms to snuggle. I made the bunny before and I can't tell you how quickly these guys work up. It's really a fun pattern because once you get it down you are only limited by your own imagination.

Now it doesn't take long for cats, knitted or not, to get into yarn! Our gal Trixie has a connection to these guys since my mom-to-be friend gave her to us as a kitten. I hope they all manage to stay in touch! And yes, I knit a little sweater vest for baby cat so he comes with a layette :-)

What happens when you have a three year old and you are knitting a gift for a friends baby shower? You end up knitting not one but two softies. But that's ok by me. I really love knitting dolls. This one is from Jess Hutch's Knitty Pattern. As soon as he was done my little guy named him Buggy, said, "You can make another one for the baby", very matter of factly and ran off. They have been inseperable ever since.

I followed the pattern but changed the colors and added a tail. I am in the process of making a second one intended for my friends baby.  I'll have to sneak him out of the house though ;-)