Why I knit (and sew for that matter).

Yesterday one of the bosses took a bunch of us to a luncheon for professional administrative assistants day (that would be secretary's day for the un PC of us). It is an anual lunch held by Planned Parenthood to raise funds for their cancer program (they treat women with breast and cerivical cancer on a sliding scale-- those women who couldn't get the treatments elsewhere due to lack of money-- good cause people-- good cause).

Besides the wonderful lunch and a fun fashion show, there are also raffel prizes. I happened to win a gift certificate to a high end clothin botique that I would normally never enter. Of course I had to hurry over there right after work before I woke up and learned that someone else had actually won and I was delusional as usual.

I anticipated purchasing a foundation piece for my work wardrobe and was suprisingly dissappointed to learn that the buyer for this store is a Paris Hilton protagee(sp?). I found one skirt that I would have loved if not for the pattern of the fabric that it was made out of (but I do think I can copy it with my trusty Singer) and one sweater that I might have considered as it was on sale if it wasn't the last one and not my size. The sweater (or shwrap I guess you could call it) was a basic black version of this version which is provided by Caron. Ironically, I've seen this in their magazine adds all winter long and both my sister and I have comented on what a great sweater it is, but until I saw a monitary value placed on it, I kept forget to look for the pattern (I should warn anyone else who loves it-- it's not on Caron's site, I had to e-mail them and ask them for it and they are the ones who call it a shwrap. I will keep a close eye on the bottom line when I make this (keeping track of both materials and hours spent on it) because the finished product in a smooth (prpbably wool blend) light-weight yarn with no edging detail cost $390. originally. I am sure I can do better than that. I should also mention that the fronts can be draped over your shoulder instead of tied-- like a wrap.

Knitting happened.....................................

Pictures didn't. Maybe tonight? I hope.

I was neglect in announcing the most significant event this month. This beauty turned 17 on the 20th (so she claims). I'm still not sure how I could have a child that old.

Take Two

Well, I found this morning that I have put my W-2s in a very safe and secure place-- so safe and secure that I can't find them now. Luckily for me I can re-print them thanks to my high-tech employer. Unlucky for me, I'm too lazy to load all the software on my home computer (yeah, picture downloading capabilities would be part of that) So off I trotted to work.

Well, since I'm here I might as well use the handy software that my sext IT team gives me.

This was what I started Wednesday night, Thursday I realized I didn't like it-- to spongy and the pattern didn't look right, but I trudged on until last night when I couldn't take anymore.








Rip-it, rip-it, rip-it. Today I have this:














What else do I have going? Well there's these:

And I do manage to get stuff done: (one for the color and one for the clarity-- stupid camera)

and now I'm really out and about.

Time for me to fly

I'm bad, I know-- I was going to tantilize y'all with pics of all my works in progress so I could show you just what I did on my Sring Break. As it was, I plopped my butt down after my work out and just worked on said works. Yes, I am hinting that I am dissappearing next week-- I am just going to hang out with the gremlin gang and make sure that I still have a house when they go back to school.

As for the works-- I have 5 on the needles right now, maybe, and would like to have one done by the end of my sabbatical. But then again, I'd like to do some sewing too and Gremlin Girl turns 17 next Thursday so I suspect she'll have ideas of her own.

So, hopefully the next post you get will be heavily overloaded with actual pictures, you think?

HEY! I resemble that remark.

I take a bus into work, what can I say, I'm cheap and parking is premium near my office. Anyway, being the creature of habbit that I am, I take the same bus every day and so it's come to the point that the bus driver and I talk-- wow- I guess he's almost a friend, what a concept.

Today he was a bit vexed by his girlfriend. She is a student from China and in enamoured with Western fashion and designer labels. Apparently often at the end of the month she is frustrated because in order to pay her half of the bills she has to forgo an amazing Prada bag or a pair of wonderful Itallian leather shoes (I know, I'm not up on my Sex and the City enough to remember the name).

Now, I bet, many like me are thinking "Thank God I am not a label hog". Don't lie. But then when I'd gotten off the bus and walked for a bit it struck me that I am. I swoon at the Lily Chin collection, I adore the Vogue sections that highlight Koors, DNKY and their ilk and I know practically every designer attached to my creations. And that's only the knitting. I also sew the designer patterns and I do look for certian names when I purchase them.

The only difference between me and our fashion victim? Skill. Yeah, I go for the quality and the namebrands with no less fanaticism as she does, but I have a bit of know how behind me so I can take what the designer visualized and make it my own. Sure I don't pay $6000 for a dress, but I've paid over $100 for yarn to spend hundreds of hours of my life (and even at minimum wage even that would be a small fortune) and there are people who would look at me with the same disbelief as I internally visualize myself looking at this woman. Most of the same people who wouldn't groove with designer lables, also wouldn't be down for huge segments of their lives sucked in to the clothes they wear-- and they certianly wouldn't pay more for yarn or fabric then it would cost them to purchase an ensemble at Walmart.

So I am no different then this lovely and fashionable Chineese lady, what seperates us is that while Visa knows her secret, only my sewing machine and knitting needles know mine-- and I don't think they're going to rat on my anytime soon.

My mother's mother spent most of her life sick with something or another, when she was a child she was diagnosed with tuberculosis and the family (all 12 children and a mother who had enough of an alcoholic husband) packed up and headed to California from Cleveland on a doctor's suggestion. She had toxemia when my mother was born and spent 6 more months in the hospital then my mother did. She also had to find a job a few years later when they lost the farm--literally.

My mother tells wonderful stories of my great-grandmothers, both of who she got to spend lots of time with. One was from Ireland, one was from Wales via Charlotte Michigan. I used to spend hours listening to my mother weave tales especially told to her by my Irish great-grandmother as she would slip into a delightful Irish brogue during the telling.

One day when my mother was about 6, she was taught how to crochet-- this sent the other grandmother into a tizzy of massive proportions and my mother had no choice but to learn how to knit as well. It's a good thing too because in the 50s when she was in highschool and wanted to wear the tight pullover sweaters that were all the rage, she discovered that she was allergic to wool.

I grew up watching my mother pick up a crochet hook as naturally as knitting needles and it never occurred to me until I got around other needleworkers that there could be a preference, nay a prejudice for one genre over the other.

The stories, the craft........... I sometimes imagine that it brings me closer to two amazingly strong women that I only wish that I could have met and known.

Well, there you are-- obviously this is a consiricy between you and blogger to get you a post all to yourself without any other sweater that could compete for attention.


Details: I bought 7 skeins of Mexico by Katia (at 50% off the $8.00 price, I might add). I used 6, but two of those are still fairly full (are we thinking scarf?). The pattern was the short cardigan with 3/4 lenght slevees in Knit1 by Vogue. Started Satruday morning, finished Tuesday night. How is that for (almost) instant gratification? I almost forgot to talk about the ribbon. After hours of scouring fabric stores Saturday for just the right ribbon and striking out, I walked by a flower shop on Monday at lunch and popped in there, not only did I find the perfect color and perfect width of ribbon (the only reason it wasn't completely perfect is I had to de-wire it), I asked the lady for a couple of yards and she appologetically told me that it was 80 cents a yard (she's talking to one who has spent more on the perfect button then yarn or fabric for the same outfit). I may have found a new ribbon outlet.

Hussy

Dear yarn,

When I walked into that yarn store 2 months ago, I wasn't looking for you-- I didn't need you, I didn't need anything. I was there to pass the time and to inspire me to get to work on what I already had so that I could appreciate it and love it more. But there you were, with all your boldness, all your brightness and all your charms blatently on display. Before I knew it, I'd gathered you up, paid for you and wisked you home.

That should have been enough to appease you, shouldn't it? After all, you now had a home, friends and a place to rest. But you had other plans-- you weren't going to make friends, you weren't going to integrete with the others, you felt you didn't belong and you were bound and determined not to stay long enough to become just another peice of the stash.

I have to say, you carried it a bit far when you kept interrupting me while I was working on the Mexico City Tunic, you knew that I couldn't get more yarn for that without ordering-- you knew that it was important to me to make sure that the investment of that yarn didn't go to waste, but you didn't care-- you wanted the stardome-- you wanted my undivided attention and you were not going to be silenced until you got it.

Well, you got your wish, I found the perfect pattern for you, I cast you on and I worked feverishly for 5 days to be done with you-- and you cooperated for it doesn't seem like you just wanted attention--but you desired to be taken out and shown off. I must admit, after all we've been though, I should despise your manipulation, I should be ashamed to be seen with a floozie such as yourself. I should, but I love you and for the moment, you are my favorite sweater.

and I'd love to show you off right now, but the blogger seems to be as tempermental as you.

I set up a blog somewhere else and wasn't happy with it. Unfortunatley one has to actully get hands on experience with a blog before they know if it is all they desire.

So-- I definately am digging the photoshop much better, now I just have to decide if I start over here or I just add on from where I left off there.