trust and obey--the lace version

It probably won't surprise anyone that on the sliding scale of product knitter to process knitter, that I fall closer to the product side. What that means to me is that while I enjoy the actual knitting and the click click click of needles sliding together does do a lot to calm me, I knit primarily to make stuff. You won't find me making a project with a ton of stockinet stitch just so I can feel calmed by the knit and purl of it all. I would do a project like that, but only if I wanted the result.

All this big lead up just to talk about lace.

I love lacy things. I love the idea of shawls, I love lacy scarfs, lacy socks, sweaters with bits of lace. One of my favorite designs is actually the Oriel lace blouse. I even don't mind the knitting of lace, fiddly though it can be.
But while I love looking at those things, I'm not so much for the wearing. Take the Oriel Lace blouse for example. I love it. I have the skill to knit it. I would never wear it. Well I might, but honestly if it were in my closet right now, I think I'd have a hard time figuring out where I'd wear it. Maybe because it is so cold right now--maybe I'd be more apt to wear it in the spring. But take shawls, I love them I think they are beautiful, but I have a hard time wearing them. I only have one though--Cozy. And I don't look like the model wearing it either.

So it would seem that a knitter like me would not knit lace. Clearly I think it is pretty, but impractical. However, for the last few weeks, I've been ever-so slowly working on a Swallowtail shawl that appeared in Interweave knits fall 2006. I can't find a link outside of ravelry. I'm not far into it and I'm realizing that my product is not matching very well with the finished picture. Which is leading me to believe that one of two thinks is going on a) there was a correction to the pattern (nope) or b) I need to relax and knit (yes). I keep thinking that knitting lace is a little bit like the hymn--Trust and Obey (go here if you want the music too). I need to trust the pattern, obey the pattern and it will all come out right. this is as hard for me in knitting as it sometimes is in life.

I have no idea when I'll finish it, I'm only working on it when I feel I can pay attention to the pattern--although perhaps I'll try it as tv knitting this week because the section I'm working on is very repetitive.
No pictures yet because unblocked lace is not that attractive.

the state of the projects

You would think that when I take these big gaps in blogging that I'd have finished object after finished object to show you. I'm working on three concurrent projects right now, so none of them are really progressing that fast.

My children seem to think that all my knitting efforts should be for them. So, after much nagging I gave in. I'm making baby sweaters for Bone and Stillwater. Here's bone modeling hers:

Stillwater's isn't done yet. I'm almost done with Stillwater's but then I got it in my head that I'd like to have my sock finished for my birthday (in 8 days) and so I've been sock knitting at night.

I have a lace project I'm working on too, but I feel like that needs its own post.

On another note, I think I have an idea for my cousin's quilt. I broke down and bought the scrappy quilt book. (then got all excited about a project for me--later). My MIL likes the kaleidoscope quilt pattern, which is the one I'm planning, and so she bought the fancy triangle ruler to use for cutting. THEN, I went through my stash and came up with a huge pile of blues, and some yellow to set it off:

I need to see if I have some more yellow, that I just didn't pull. I think the only material I'll have to buy is a bit more yellow for some of the boarder triangles, and if I don't have any extra, maybe some for the main quilt too. I asked MIL, which ones should I use. All of them was her answer. Ok then. I'm hoping to start cutting in a week or so, after life settles down (I'm planning a party for my girls--who share a birthday with me--and birthday treats for school and about 50 other things this week).

stall

I'm going to go an a limb here and say the hardest part about knitblogging is when you hit one of those times when you just aren't knitting. And right now... well I've been a little busy with this and that and the other, and it translates to nothing I can share here. Mostly I've been working or sleeping during my regular knitting time. I have been thinking about my knitting though, sometimes you need to think things through, so perhaps this time hasn't been wasted after all.

I still haven't decided what color to do my dollar and a half cardigan. Probably the dark brown though.

I did decide what quilt pattern to use. I broke down and bought probably the only book by M'lss rae Hawley I didn't own and I'll be making a version of Magic Hour. Mine will probably be all blues. My cousin says she's having a boy. While I don't usually do "boy or girl" colors for quilts, I happen to have a lot of blues in my stash.

So that's what I've been up to.