SpiderWomanKnits

A big 'Thank You'  to everyone who commented on the socks I knit as a gift for my MIL. My in-laws were up visiting from NJ to celebrate Mr. SpiderWomanKnits birthday this past Saturday and things have been busy so I haven't had a chance to get back to anyone or read blogs the past few days. I'm catching up slowly but surely :-) 

Last night, however, I did find time to cast on for my new project brought about by the Summer of Stash Along. I was thinking about the yarn I have in my stash that I have never contemplated before, you know, the yarn that you pick up out of color lust but haven't given much thought to since. Well, I have three huge cones of DK weight Shetland New Wool that I picked up at the 2005 Webs Annual sale for a song and a dance that just sort of sit on the bottom shelf of my stash. I hardly notice them but Jennifer did (somehow) when I posted this photo and asked me what I was going to do with them. Good question, Jenn. Here's my answer (for at least one of the cones, anyway)...

 

I am pretty excited about this WIP since it will be my first attempt at Intarsia and my first Rowan knit. It's funny how you have to learn the language of each designer. I am finding the wording of the Rowan patterns a tad confusing/not intuitive but workable nonetheless. It's just a matter of "getting" the way they are thinking. The pattern is Laurent from Vintage Knits and I plan on using bits of the other cones for the color work. I wear a lot of Old Italian Lady type dresses so I can see myself using this a lot, belt and all. This book just makes me drool. I pretty much want to knit everything in it with a few exceptions. Hopefully, I'll be able to put the other two cones to use with this book since there are quite a few patterns for DK weight wool. 

Oh, as for those socks I knit for my mother-in-law...a picture is worth a thousand words...

 

 

Yup, she only has one sock on because the other one didn't fit! I can't even think about it right now so I am going back to catching up on blogs and knitting Laurent :-|

"Tomten is the small Swedish elf who specializes in good deeds, and your child will resemble him strangely, if you put a Tomten jacket on him or her."    ~Elizabeth Zimmerman

 

You might remember that I started this project for my friends new baby, well, after all is said and done it fits my 3 year old! So, my little guy has something to get him through the fall and I busted 3 skeins of yarn from my stash for the SOS! It was all done without shedding a single tear :-)

Yesterday marked the second annual WWKIP day and our local event turned out to be a cozy little gathering of just 2 knitters, myself and Jess.

I am certain that the weather had something to do with it since it was 50 degrees in the Berkshires yesterday with the wind chill making it feel like 42! Yes that's right I am talking about the "wind chill factor" in JUNE :-|

But it really didn't matter because if there was anyone I would rather be knitting with on WWKIP day it is this lady. Later on my DH and Little Guy showed up to hang out for a bit. Jess has proof of my goofy husband "interpretive knitting" but I'll leave it up to her to decide whether it should be shared with the world. It's pretty frightening ridiculous. 

My whole life I have resisted fitting in to any type of category or group. I never wanted to be labeled. There are so many other things I do besides knit. I take pictures, I write, I politic, I ride horses, I weave, etc etc but I am not a "photographer", I am not a "writer", I am not a "politician", I am not a "horse person", and I am not a "weaver". It wasn't until I started knitting that I really felt I was part of something bigger than myself, that I belonged to a group of people out there who took as much pride and joy as I do in a particular craft. A community. I proudly call myself  a Knitter and accept all the connotations that come along with that. So even though yesterday my "world" consisted of just Jess and myself I really felt the World Wide Knitting Community out there and the overwhelming joy of being a part of that.

I hope everyone had a great WWKIP filled with laughter and friends and here's to all the knitters out there who braved the cold or the heat or the rain to gather with members of our community for the sake of the craft.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen! Children of all ages!

Tomorrow is World Wide Knit in Public Day so get your sticks, get your yarn and head down to your main street or local cafe and stitch in public with pride! 

 
Jess and I as well as other members of Berkshire County Knitters will be here which is Park Square in Downtown Pittsfield. So if you are a Berkshire County/Massachusetts knitter and want to join our little knit out we'll be there from 1 pm - 3 pm! Have a great WWKIP Day everyone!  

Oh...think SUN people SUN...it has been raining cats and dogs for what feels like forever in Massachusetts and we don't want no stinkin wet wool tomorrow... 

It's offical people. I have joined the Summer of Stash Along. Now, before you get mad let me explain.
  There are certainly two camps when it comes to Stashes, there are the die hard SEAAE'ers (Stash Enhancement at any Expense) who panic or even become aggitated at the thought of a self impossed yarn diet and then there are the "others" people like myself who for any number of reasons have decided to take the ultimate challenge and not buy a single skein of yarn until LABOR DAY. I have to say that for me this will be quite easy. In fact, when it comes to "stuff" I like to have as little of it as possible. Possessions bog me down. I feel burdened and surpressed by ownership. Typically, I purge stuff three or four times a year to my poor DH's chagrin who is such a perpetual saver he has moved a BOX of old checks and used batteries at least five or six times. It goes a little something like this.   So, for someone like me the Summer of Stash Along should be easy as pie, right? Reorganize the stash, figure out what projects I would like to make and match with newly reorganized yarn, knit peacefully like a zen master until the stash is reduced feeling a sense of freedom by my lightened load. Right? Yup, that is how it is going to be for me only I can't help but experience this feeling of panic as I contemplate my two allowed exceptions. Yarn is different for me. I enjoy being surrounded by the color and textures. After a long day of parenting and taking care of everyone else's needs I can retreat into my yarn space and feel calm. So what do I allow myself in a moment of weakness when I can not seem to muster up the willpower to resist a purchase and what type of yarn would bring me to that point? The answer is none. If I am going to do this I am going to do this people. No holds bard. I certainly have enough yarn to keep me busy for the next three months that's for sure.

That being said I am a new sock knitter and only have one skein of sock yarn in my stash. I will allow myself to buy sock yarn if I find it at a fiber festival and it supports a local yarn producer but it must meet both of those criteria. However,  I will not start a new project with yarn purchased during the challenge until my challenge projects are done. That's it. That is my excepetion. So stay tuned and watch as I knit up my cubes and lighten my load.

Wish me luck!

This weekend was the Massachusetts Sheep and Wool Festival in Cummington. Lucky for us that is just in our backyard (almost literally). Last summer we bought a cabin in a state forest just one town over from Cummington which has quickly turned into my favorite place to be. I have some sort of connection to this land/area of MA that is deeply rooted in a feeling of peace and serenity. Needless to say I was really looking forward to this fiber fest. I knew it was going to be a beautiful day.

The night before Mr. & Mrs. SpiderWomanKnits and little SpiderWomanKnits feasted on lamb burgers which seems a little barbaric in retrospect but boy were they good.

Finally a Finished (and posted) object! I have so many FO's that need to be documented and now that the Northeastern weather is getting nicer there will be a whole bunch of stuff from the winter you'll be able to see.

I put the finishing touches on this Glampyre pattern just this afternoon. And Stefanie does it again with a quick, easy satisfaction guaranteed pattern.

There were only a few things that needed to be altered. I fell somewhere between the small and medium sizes so I had to do a few extra increases for the small size but neglected to calculate for the K3P2 ribbing when I was doing this so I had to increase one stitch when I got to the ribbing sections. No biggie. Also, the neckline is really wide which is ok with me except it is a sloppy sort of unfinished edge. Very Matrix. So it may evolve into something a little more fancy and if it does I will be sure to post the change. The yarn is Wild Apple Hill Farm (can't find a website but they were here) and is a good 'ol worsted raw wool type of wool. You know the kind where you have to pick organic particles out every now and then and lanolin helps break in your Clovers if that is what you are using. (I was using the bamboo interchangable circular set I got for Mother's Day last year.)

Start to finish this sweater only took a few days to knit and I am sure I will use it often. It's the humble stand by I can see myself throwing on with a pair of jeans whenever there is a chill in the air. Next up, I am the "Test Dummy" for Jess who will be teaching a Socks on Circulars class at a yarn shop somewhere in Upstate NY (Jess if you are reading this send the link) I have made a pair of socks before but never on circulars so she sent me her instructions and we'll see how it all works out :-) Cross your needles!

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!