Once upon a snarl

Two weeks ago, or was it three or four, Seemee brought a snag with her, with unkind words about her cat...

Just a little pull over here and...

A spin in the right direction there...

Are you sure this was a ball once?  Needs a community effort.!  And we are just the community!

What a tangled web we ...bring to knit nite!

Time machine!

I could use a time machine about now.

1. Where did the past five months go?
2. A crazy list of things to do in the next two weeks before I leave Norway. Things requested AND things I want to do and make. (My best planning is at 10 pm when I can't get out of the chair...)
3. Air travel: PLEASE beam me over 8 time zones!
4. Five knitting projects on the shelf!
5. Summer weather in Bergen. It could and does change!  Just yesterday, Linda shed her jacket for the first time, and when we left the restaurant after lunch she needed it, and more (like an umbrella) just for a moment. 
6. Lots of ideas for blog posts...  Here they come!
7. And let's slow down this afternoon with my granddaughter. Make it last (without the drama, of course). 

Picture of Rauma Finull at self-proclaimed largest yarn shop in Norway. Husfliden in basement floor of Glasmagasinet in Oslo.  

Shop Yarn Durango

A road trip with friends.
How can years go by?  We have such a great time...and vow we'll do it again, soon, then years go by.
It took a birthday to push us to the planning and it worked!  Laughter, talk, yarn touching, talk, yarn purchases, talk, Bed, Bath and Beyond, talk, eating, talk, singing, talk...a great day.

Thanks to Dee for her inspiration!  Hope she can go next time!

Another sock

Not just another sock, but my most unusual...
double knitted... which if I hadn't seen it, I wouldn't believe it.  Which means you won't believe it either... instead of knit in the round, it is knit back and forth, both sides at the same time.  huh?

 One side and the other:

Finished!

It seemed to move along quickly... but it took me over a year to finish the first sock.  The second one was a few weeks...although anyone who knows my knitting, also knows I'm not very dedicated to one project at a time.  I think they are quite lovely, and tempted to do it again!
Thanks for the help, Leena!

Doublefun, ankle-high

by Leena Siikaniemi

from Think Outside the Sox

Time for Fair Isle

Love love love the look,
The feel of two colors entwined,
The bands of design,
See how it grows!
Just one more row before bed...

And then it will rest until August.  I'll be traveling, and no need for a nice sweater over the summer.  I'm going to take my time, and start many other projects...

Child's Redbird Pullover

by Tone Takle and Lise Kolstad

from Sweaters: 28 Contemporary Designs in the Norwegian Tradition

It's a beauty!  Using fingering weight yarn from other projects.  

To the mountains

What would you do?  Spring has sprung, trees are blossoming, some even have touches of green foliage, the grass is getting a taste of irrigation water, eyes are painfully itchy, the wind is blowing, so...time to escape to winter!  Crazy, but just a few days, and I'll be ready to brave more of the above.
A painfully bright drive over two 10,000 ft passes, to the quiet community of Silverton and I'm ready to listen to the deluge of melting snow following the path of icicles.  It's loud on the metal roof.

The road is clear.

The skiers are happy to have another few runs.

And I'm delighted to be here with longer days. Last November I watched the sun rise and set at the highest peaks of the mountains.  Now it comes up and goes down in valleys with five more hours of light.

New socks finished!

Effect Vest

I would like to say I'm finished with another project, but let's face it:  It probably has some work to be done, and yet I'm SO excited because it really seems to be "my" creation with borrowed ideas ...blocked...

And tried on:

and found it's a bit TOO minimal for me.  No closures/ties/loops... yet.  So, I've decided to pass this on to a smaller body and do a requested closure method.  (Maybe nothing, maybe "Knot Closure", ...loop and button... too many to choose.)
The pattern is a combination of Sandi Rosner's Vest from a book called Not Just Socks, with a pattern around the middle from cookie a's Bex sock pattern (found in Sock innovation).  It was fun, even though it has seen many Atlantic Ocean flights.  That's the problem when you don't have a clear destination for the project.  LOVE the yarn:

 Hand-dye Effect by RegiaLight Fingering / 3 ply
70% Wool, 25% Nylon, 5% Acrylic
459 yards / 100 grams (used 2 skeins)

The colors in that series are beautiful, but with such long color repeats, I find it isn't suitable for the kinds of socks I knit.  

The edging is attached I-cord per Rosner's instructions.  Makes a nice finish, yet I'm wondering if it will stay blocked, and not roll... It may need an iron touch-up.

Yesterday, April Fool!