wednesday's poems

here are some knitting poems (haikus?  kinda...) that i found

Knitting 

by Theresa Ann Moore

Knitting needles sing

Connecting soft looping notes

Compose sweater song

Sitting and Knitting

by Pisapia Gina

Sitting and knitting

allured by its yellow hue

bees sit beside me.

when in doubt, bsj

i was looking through my flickr account the other day and realized that there is always one knitting pattern that i can count on:  elizabeth zimmermann's baby surprise jacket.

now, of course, i shouldn't make this sounds like some big revelation, because it's no news at all that i have made this pattern so many times i can probably do it in my sleep.  it is also no news at all that i've taught this pattern so many times, i could probably walk someone through it in my sleep.  BUT, no matter how familiar i am with the pattern, it still amazes me every time!

After knitting the pattern, you end up with this floppy looking square type of thing.  

Then you just fold it up and it becomes this darling little sweater!

and FINALLY:  sew on some buttons and you are done!

some other pretty neat-o things about this pattern are (1) you can use the same pattern for a wide range of yarns:  fingering, dk, or worsted.  its the same pattern no matter what, you just get a different size sweater!  (2) in anticipation of a mystery baby, you can pick a gender-neutral color and you make button holes on both sides of the sweater, so when the baby is born, you can pick some buttons, sew them on the correct side (buttons go on the right for girls, buttons go on the left for boys)* (3) the entire thing is done in garter stitch!  no purling!  and (4) once you get the hang of ms. zimmermann's minimalist pattern-writing style, this is quick, quick, quick!

here are some more BSJs for your viewing pleasure:

and one more!

*don't ask me why, i don't make this stuff up.  if you are an anarchist, feel free to f*** it and put your buttons wherever you damn well please.  

footprints

i just finished (well, last week) the most magical and lovely socks.  have you tried knitting a personal footprint a la Cat Bordhi?

here are my very own personal footprints and they fit like a glove!  or, well, er, a footprint, actually...

this is a quite brilliant way to knit socks.  you start at the toe, increase until it is wide enough for your very own foot, knit straight, increasing as needed to fit your instep, knit straight again,  all the way until you're ready to start decreasing for the heel, which is a basically just the same as the toe (in reverse!).

along the way you make a nifty notation with some scrap yarn:

and THEN, both bravely and magically, you get out your scissors, cut that little marked row open, hold your breath, catch those stitches on your needles, and knit up a leg!  voi la!  socks:

twisted +

(Noro Silk Garden)
Originally uploaded by myriadlane

my most favoritest and beloved local yarn shop now has an online store! check it out!

as if you needed another excuse to buy yarn.

wednesday's poems

Another Westminster Bridge 

by Alice Oswald

go and glimpse the lovely inattentive water

discarding the gaze of many a bored street walker

where the weather trespasses into strip-lit offices

through tiny windows into tiny thoughts and authorities

and the soft beseeching tapping of typewriters

take hold of a breath-width instant, stare

at water which is already elsewhere

in a scrapwork of flashes and glittery flutters

and regular waves of apparently motionless motion

under the teetering structures of administration

where a million shut-away eyes glance once

restlessly at the river’s ruts and glints

count five, then wander swiftly

away over the stone wing-bone of the city.

*

i am in love with this spell thing

and!

a lesson about gauge

i have been knitting for many, many years.  i know the importance of gauge.*

* gauge is a measurement of the number of stitches and rows per inch of knitting.

i always check my gauge.  always.*

* except if it is a yarn and needle combo i use constantly. like, for example, blue moon fiber arts socks that rock in lightweight = size 1 needles (addi turbos or addi turbo lace needles). 

now, maybe, maybe sometimes, i get a little hopeful with my gauge. like, for example, when i knit a gauge swatch flat and get 3 1/2 stitches per inch and think, "well, when i knit in the round, my gauge will definitely be tigher, so that probably counts as 4 stitches per inch." 

guess what? it doesn't work that way:

and you might end up with a hat that is 2 times bigger than your head.  it does look kinda okay from some angles:

but not at all from others:

have we learned our lesson yet?  check your gauge.  be honest.  you're only hurting yourself.