smariek knits

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Shadow

Pattern: Shadow Scarf (see below)
Yarn: Elann Highland Wool, autumn peach, 5 balls
Needle: 4.5 mm (US7)
Blocked size: 8.5 in x 67 in (21.5 cm x 170 cm)

This is cable scarf #9 in my series of cable scarves, knit with about 4.5 balls of Elann Highland Wool in autumn peach color. It's not really my color, so the scarf is definitely not for me. This is not even a color I would normally gravitate towards when shopping for yarn. However I was compelled to choose this color because it got so very tiresome knitting in the same colors all the time, viz. the pinks, purples, blues, and greens. This was exactly the change my eyes needed.

At first I wasn't sure whether this pattern from HG5 would work out well for a scarf, but I was pleasantly surprised and pleased with it after knitting a few repeats of the pattern. It's a simple cable pattern that would work well as a "manly" scarf. And there aren't so many different types of cable crossings in this scarf to make it a daunting knitting project. If you don't like the cables twisting towards the left, you can make them twist towards the right by replacing CF6 with CB6.

Blocking the scarf will help prevent edge curl. I didn't block the scarf aggressively, it was 20.5 cm x 154 cm (8 in x 60.5 in) before blocking and 21.5 cm x 170 cm after blocking (8.5 in x 67 in).
.

Shadow Scarf Pattern:
Shadow Scarf Pattern from Box.com (no registration required, just click on link & save file)

.

Shadow Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/04/shadow.html
Hera Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/08/hera-scarf-pattern.html
Triumph Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/08/triumph-cable-scarf-pattern.html
Ezra Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/09/ezra-cable-scarf-pattern.html
Sihnon Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/10/sihnon.html
Londinium Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/10/londinium.html
St. Albans Valentine Cable Scarf:
http://smariek.blogspot.com/2008/11/scarf-15.html

Stitches used in this scarf include:
Pattern # 24.24, HG5 pg 62
Seed Stitch, BW1 pg 11

Elann Highland Wool yarn info:
100% Highland Wool
Machine Wash, Dry Flat
19 st / 4 inches, 4.0 - 4.5 mm (US6-7)
100 m (109 yards) per 50 gm (1.75 oz) ball
$2.38

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

18 miles per ball of yarn

.

Barbara made a mention on her blog about the mileage on her car, and it got me thinking about how many balls of yarn goes into running my automobile. My car has one of those computerized things that will tell me how much mileage I am getting out of my current tank of gas. Right now it reads 18 miles per gallon -- or something like 13 litres per 100 km. Given that gas prices here in my town -- in the San Francisco Bay Area where gas prices are much higher than the national average -- is around $3.89 for regular unleaded and $4.12 for super unleaded, I'd have to say that it costs me one ball of my favorite yarn, Elann Luxury Merino Superwash ($3.98), to travel 18 miles.

Just putting things in perspective...

I don't even want to think about how many balls it takes to fill up the tank! Ok, I don't have to think. I know. I gassed up yesterday for $3.999 per gallon -- which I believe is around 0.68 € per litre. That came to $45.47 for 11.371 gallons of fuel, or roughly a little over a bag of Luxury Merino Superwash.

It's interesting to note that my mpg has dropped slightly since moving to the new house, I guess I do more "city" driving in the suburbs. Which sounds odd since I used to live in the city.

Things I'm thinking about now...

Honda's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car, which emits water vapor. How much greener can you get? :-) (more info/stats here) It has a top speed of 100 mph, and 68 mpg equivalent (to gas engines).

VW is working on a Diesel Hybrid that should get 70 mpg. I always cringe at the thought of diesel which is due primarily to my limited experience of always driving behind big old diesel trucks that stink stink STINK, however DH assures me that diesel cars today are much improved. I told him to point out when I'm driving behind a diesel sedan.

--<>--

Miles

Not a whole lot going on here. I'm taking a little break from cable knitting because I suspect it is causing some of my wrist pain; using the computer is the other contributer to my pains. So I started a little knit/purl project that is nice for almost mindless TV knitting. I actually picked out 2 knit/purl patterns, both with a diagonal theme, and have dubbed them Miles and Flora since they are siblings of sorts. Hmmm, is that too ominous? Anyhow, I liked this pattern for it's "manly" look, perfect for the guy who doesn't want anything too fussy.

Mom's vest, right front section

I've started the Right Front section of Mom's vest. I've almost reached the point where I will need to start the armhole shaping. I think this pattern may be easy for most people, however I find it difficult to reverse the shaping without having everything explicitly written out in great detail. I suppose the more experienced knitters are able to do this on the fly while they are knitting. (You saw the Back and Left Front sections here).

Oh, I started a cable scarf using the peachy yarn you saw here. I just chose a pattern from one of my books and tried it out. I wasn't sure how it would turn out knitted up, but I ended up liking it. I'm trying to take it easy on the cables. I do cables without a cable needle. A thought occurred to me that perhaps it might be easier on the wrists if I used a cable needle. If true, would it be worth having to slow down for a cable needle?

Peachy cable scarf (before blocking)

I couldn't get a good picture of the scarf, Miss M was trying very hard to "help", and would keep moving the scarf.

I used about 4.5 balls of Elann Highland Wool which gave a finished dimension of 20.5 cm x 154 cm (8 inch x 60.5 inch) before blocking. I did not block this scarf aggressively, so its finished size after blocking turned out to be 21.5 cm x 170 cm (8.5 inch x 67 inch).

I haven't yet had a chance to take photos of this scarf after blocking, but I will do that soon. I promise.

Regina Scarf for MIL

My current super secret project is a scarf for my MIL. Fortunately she doesn't read this blog, and in fact she doesn't use the computer at all. So I can mention this here. :-)

I wore my pink Regina when I visited her a few months ago and she commented on it. I was really surprised because she never comments on my knitting. I took this as a sign that she might like one of her own. So I hope she likes this. I'm using the same yarn, Elann Luxury Merino Superwash, in Ruby. I'm entertaining the idea of adding matching mitts, unfortunately Elann doesn't make Baby Cashmere yarn in Ruby color.

--<>--

Oh, I've discovered that someone has knitted my Persephone & Regina Mitts!!! You can see them here:
http://jaffe.bloggerism.net/archives/006467.html

I am new to the mitt pattern writing and was worried about readability, however seeing someone knit these mitts must mean that it wasn't too difficult to understand. I think. I hope. Or perhaps this person had to tweak things to make it work for her (I'm assuming it's a her), I really have no idea what she thinks since I can't read Chinese. :-(

I do like her charcoal colored mitts, and I wonder whether that color would make the mitt less feminine enough for gifting to a man. Do you think a man would wear mitts with this cable pattern if the yarn was a more manly or "tweedy" color?

I also have to mention SpillyJane's version of Regina, where she converted them mittens with full finger coverage, here:
http://spillyjane.blogspot.com/2008/02/finishing-school.html
I thought this was pretty cool.

Well, these are the only two people I know of who has dared to try my mitt patterns. Making mitts was a fun and educational experience for me, however I can't imagine knitting more mitts anytime soon. I'm sure I'll think differently when the weather cools down in late fall or winter.

--<>--

Here are some websites with information for bloggers:

Blogger Tips and Tricks:
http://blogger-tricks.blogspot.com/

Tips for New Bloggers:
http://tips-for-new-bloggers.blogspot.com/

Blog-U:
http://bloggeruniversity.blogspot.com/
.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Please excuse the dust

I'm in the process of updating my sidebar, something which I had been meaning to do for aeons. This will take a while since I have limited computer time, so the sidebar may appear a bit wonky at times.

I've already started by redoing my knitting blog links, changing it from "link list" Layout Element to "html" Layout Element, and adding a new section for photography links.

For those of you who use Blogger, you may recall that there used to be Old Blogger before this current incarnation known as New Blogger. Sometime during the transition to the new blogger template, I went into the Layout section and created a new Element, choosing "link list". This is what my Free Patterns list is and I despise it. When you add a new link, it will appear at the very top of the list. Moving them up or down, line by line, isn't too difficult when the list is short. Unfortunately my link list has grown quite a bit and it is a real PITA to add a new link and insert it where I want it to appear. My goal is to scrap it and recreate it using the "html" Layout Element. It will be so much easier to cut/paste to rearrange things in the list.

I'm thinking of removing the Google Translator widget. I'm not sure it is benefiting anyone. There are times when I see a bunch of icons there, times when only a few appear, and other times none at all. It doesn't appear reliable at all. And I suspect than anybody who needs to translate my blog into another language has their own system for doing so.

I do have some knitting to share with you, but it'll have to wait until the next post...

.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Sugar Bowl

Before you get excited about college football or a ski resort in California, this is about a sugar bowl which generally holds C12H22O11 (Carbon 12, Hydrogen 22, Oxygen 11; aka sucrose or table sugar).

If you asked me, six months ago, what I thought about Celestial Seasonings teas, I would have told you that I didn't like them, even after trying several different flavors. They weren't weren't my cup of tea despite their popularity. I enjoyed tea(s) from other brands ubiquitously found at supermarkets, for example, Stash, Twinings, Bigelow, Tazo, Yogi, and Traditional Medicinals. What was it about Celestial Seasonings teas? I wondered for a while and finally decided to ask the tea connoisseurs on Ravelry.

One person suggested adding sugar to make the fruit tea flavors pop. Eager to try this, I made some Raspberry Gardens tea -- a flavor I was not impressed with at all -- with a teaspoon of sugar. Boy did that make a difference in my tea drinking experience! The tea was much improved by this simple addition.

I drink a tremendous amount of tea on a daily basis, however most of my teas are consumed unadulterated with any sweeteners or milk. I was never in the habit of adding anything to my tea and I can enjoy many black teas plain, even the ones which most people drink with milk in it.

After this amazing discovery of what I've been doing wrong with the Celestial Seasonings teas, I decided it was time for me to dig out the sugar bowl. I should mention here that we don't use much sugar in our house. It is mostly used for baking, so we just measure out what we need from the 5 lb bag from the store or a large container if I have stored it in one. This is quite cumbersome when one only wants one teaspoon of tea. So I went in search of our sugar bowl, which was still packed in a box since our move to this new house back in September 2007.

Mom's sugar bowl

This is my mom's sugar bowl, it's part of a set of china which I "inherited" when we moved to the new house. The rest of the set is still packed up in boxes, along with a second set of china also "inherited" from my mom. The second set is a fancy Chinese style set which is not very practical for using, so it will most likely remain packed in boxes for a few decenniums.

Sitting next to this sugar bowl is my new love. Celestial Seasonings Sweet Coconut Thai Chai tea which someone on Ravelry recommended. It is not sold at my local Safeway, however I managed to find it yesterday at Target. I made 3 cups yesterday. And Miss M enjoyed drinking half of my tea.

As I was out shopping today, I managed to pick up more tea: Celestial Seasonings India Chai Spice Tea; Celestial Seasonings Fruit Tea Sampler; 2 boxes of Stash Chai Spice Black Tea. I have had the latter before, consumed plain. I intend to try it with some sugar and milk added.

I have a modest tea stash in my new home. I have managed to allocate one drawer for tea, and both tea bags and loose tea are packed in quite densely. The drawer is only 58.5 cm x 52 cm x 21.5 cm (23 in x 20.5 in x 8.5 in). To make the most of the space, I have consolidated individually wrapped tea bags into boxes. I found this a better use of space than having several boxes each containing 4 or 5 tea bags in them. It may sound like a disorganized mess, but I actually know where my teas are since they are grouped by like kind. Well, sort of.

Teatime now .... I am enjoying a cup of Celestial Seasonings Wild Berry Zinger. It's almost time for Miss M to wake from her nap -- yes, I actually got her to nap today!!! -- and then it'll be time to start dinner. We made Russian Tea Cakes earlier this afternoon, a little surprise for DH when he returns from work...