A Post About Knitting!

Occasionally I should include some actual knitting content on this so-called knitting blog, hmm? Here's a detail picture of the Yarn Botanika scarf-in-progress. The stitch couldn't be easier, but it makes a great effect with this yarn. I'm planning to add something to the ends, to jazz things up a bit. Maybe some strands with interesting beads? Is the artsy-Bohemian look out again? I hope not. That's one trend I'm always happy to see cycle around again.

While I've been working with this yarn, I've been thinking about the other kinds of projects it would serve well for. Since it's a superwash, I bet a couple of skeins in the right colorway would make adorable baby things. I can tell you, it would not cause itch on even the most hyper-sensitive of babies. The stitch pattern I'm using for the scarf would also work well with it for a swingy unstructured cardigan. I can imagine all sorts of interesting textured scarves, worked the long way with self-fringe. Of course you'd scare a few people away if you tell them to cast on 300 stitches on #2 needles, but for the stalwarts who stick with it, the effect would be great.

I've been making mental lists of various WIPs. That's Works in Progress as well as Works in Planning. As always for me, socks don't count. Anyone remember the tweedy slip-stitch sweater I started for Mr. SABLE last fall? Maybe I'll bump that back into active status. I doubt it would be a best-seller pattern (those # 3 needles!), but I know it will be a great garment. I still have high hopes of starting a complex fair isle soon. Like this fall? Again, I don't know that such a pattern would sell enough to justify the work in a pure dollars and cents accounting. But, it would make me happy and satisfy a deep itch. I need to finish machine knitting a very basic fisherman ribbed sweater for my friend Jim. This is long overdue. I will be relieved to clear it from the pipeline so I no longer need to feel guilty about neglecting it.

I would like to strengthen the Mens' offerings over at TGB. Only two garments for men! No wonder the guys grouse so much about their choices in knitting patterns. Then you read up on their wants and you understand why: no bright colors, no dull colors; not too fine a gauge, not too bulky; not plain, not complex; don't make it look like a sailor, no cables; not like a Grampa sweater, not too trendy and of the moment, and certainly nothing you might call a "Cosby sweater", etc etc. It can be any color as long as it's blue or grey. Maybe beige. But only the right beige. If any guys care to tell me what they personally would like, I'd love to work on expanding the options. But the way I read it, all the patterns most men would ever need have already been written: they just need to re-use the classics.

All in all, a busy time ahead. I just need to get these kids settled in their schools and my whole life will change. And this will once again be more of a knitting blog. It seems every time I post a close up picture of a bug, someone unsubscribes from my bloglines feed. We can't have that, now, can we?