Supreme Court Impact

This coming Tuesday and Wednesday, the United States Supreme Court will be listening to arguments about two issues that mean a lot to me.

California Proposition 8 and DOMA
First of all, the best thing about SCOTUS (Supreme Court of The United States) listening to these two cases, is that is lets a LOT of people know that fairness and liberty aren't there yet for the LGBT community.

Many people I speak with...even relatively well-informed people...think that I am able to get married legally...in fact they think all same sex couples can get married in this country.

Or at least I could move to a state where I could get legally married.

I'm hopeful that many of my readers already know more about this issue than most people...while I can go to some States and get legally married, it would only be legal in that State...not in my home state and more importantly, not Federally legal...in fact, Defense of Marriage Act, the ridiculously name act passed by Bill Clinton in 1996 says that no State or Federal law is required to recognize any marriage that isn't one man and one woman.

So, suffice it to say, this week's Supreme Court hearings could have a significant impact on my life.

Current Knitting

I finished the neck and did something with it that I'm quite pleased with, and also started the first sleeve, including getting past all the shoulder cap shaping.

The neck might seem a bit small in relation to the rest of the sweater, but it fits quite well, without being tight. The opening was a bit too large, and the shoulder width was a bit too wide when I got to the top, so I reduced the number of stitches I'd normally pick up for the neck and it solved both issues quite well.

For the shoulder cap shaping, I just did short-rows.  I picked up 124 stitches, and then knit one inch past the center of the shoulder-top and turned (I use the standard wrap for my short-rows), and then knit 2 inches back and kept adding an inch of knitting until I had knit 2/3rds of the sleeve, and then I started knitting around.  I haven't tried it on, but it looks like it will work okay.

Readers' Comments/Questions

Julie in San Diego asks, "Are you really retiring in a month?"

I don't think so.  First of all, my current project is slated to go until at least May, so I won't leave until the project is over.  Second, I really haven't met my financial goals for retirement, although I could revise them too.  It's still up in the air what I'll do.

Up Next...

Liesl

by Ysolda Teague

The Wisdom of Men

One of the founding principles of The Men's Knitting Retreats is that we look among our own ranks for expertise and workshops.

A Bounty of Expertise

And each year, I am never disappointed in some of the most interesting workshops offered by the guys that come to our retreat.

For the upcoming retreat in May,

- Learning to Knit - The Basics (for our newbie knitters)
- Intro to Spinning
- Weaving on a Rigid Heddle Loom
- Choosing Colors That Work Together
- Upcoming Yarn Trends from the Global Yarn Market
- Beyond Worsted - Drafting for Lofty Yarns
- Measuring Yourself and Sweater Fitting Techniques
- Heels for Human Feet
- Beyond Beginner Knitting (also for our newbie knitters)
- Finger-Tip to Cuff Gloves
- Striping, Shading, Patterning

You can see why I'm never disappointed...the workshops each year are always this good.

Current Knitting

Lots of progress since my last post.  I finished my latest pair of socks and I added a few inches to the Henry Der Sweater Vest in Icelandic wool.

They look very nice on as well...of course Finn had to photo-bomb that photo.

And here's the center/front panel of the Henry Der Vest.

I'm liking how this is coming out so far and it looks as if I'll have enough yarn to complete the project.  That's always a relief.

Week 1: Book Review: Knitted Flowers

Since it is now officially spring, I thought it would be quite fitting to choose the book Knitted Flowers by Nicky Epstein for my first review and giveaway.

I know that not everyone reading this is a knitted flower type of person. 

I happen to like them though. When I first started knitting in 2002 I really really liked them.

Back then I knit and crocheted tons of flowers and attached them to hats, scarves, baby booties, purses.. Everything.

I haven't knit a flower in awhile, and I probably am not as excited by them as I used to be.. but I still definitely think they have a wonderful application.

I happen to have a 5 year old girl in my home who loves all things pink, frilly and princess-like, so I will most likely be knitting up more flowers for her knitted accessories as the years go on.

So if you are a knitted flower type of person, you will really enjoy this book by Nicky Epstein. 

I have to say, I have always thought that Nicky Epstein was a remarkable designer. She is very inventive and comes up with very unusual and interesting ideas. I own several of her books and I use them regularly.

In this book, Knitted Flowers, she offers a variety of flower designs using different techniques. I find myself especially drawn to her felted flowers. I think they are quite beautiful.

I've also always been attracted to her "Wallflower" pattern. 

The mohair yarn and the tiny pearl in the center is so delicate and feminine.

Aside from the multitude of flower pattern instructions, there are also patterns included for larger garments and accessories on which to attach the flowers to. Such as a pillow, wrap, bag and poncho. 

Nicky also offers many ideas of how to use and attach the flowers to various non knitted accessories such as a belt or shoes, or even as a pin on a jacket.

To sum up everything, I think that this is an interesting book full of lots of fun ideas surrounding the subject of knitted flowers. It's a beautifully presented 133 page publication full of lovely large photographs and easy to read instructions. Additionally, the back of the book contains pages of helpful information such as technique and abbreviation explanation, templates, and schematics.

I like and would use many of the flowers pictured, but since this book was originally printed in 2006, some of the yarns used in the samples are somewhat outdated at this point.

For instance..... This.

Many flowers are shown in novelty yarns which we don't see as much of in 2011 as we did back in 2006.

That doesn't mean that these "novelty" flowers wouldn't look totally different knit up in a different yarn though.

But for myself, as a strictly non-novelty-yarn-knitter, coming face to face with a picture like this can be a little unsettling.

But furry, sparkly, ribbon-y, multicolored, shiny yarn might just be your thing, and if it is.. there are many flowers in here that you will love. :)

So guess what? I am giving away this book to one of you! 

If you would like to enter to win this brand new copy of Knitted Flowers provided by Sixth and Spring Publishing, please leave a comment under this post. 

Please remember to include your contact information in your comment.

I will be announcing the winner next week with another book review!

Irish Eyelet Mesh Stitch

The Irish Mesh Stitch is a simple knitting stitch and would look great on almost any knitted project! This stitch pattern is a 4 row repeat and is knitted in a multiple of 3 sts

Row 1: Knit 2, * yan over, slip 1 as if to knit -knit 2-pass slipped stitch over both knit sts; repeat from * to last st, knit 1.
Row 2: Purl
Row 3: Knit 1, * slip 1 as if to knit - knit 2 - pass slipped stitch over both knit sts, yarn over; repeat from * to last 2 sts, knit 2.
Row 4: Purl
Repeat rows 1-4 until you have reached your desired length.

View more: Textured Knitting Stitch Patterns

Out Of The Loop

Lately, when I'm not working, I seem to be sleeping, eating or flying.


No News Isn't Necessarily Good News

So, reading or watching or listening to the news has largely fallen by the wayside. While I get to miss most of the craziness about Charlie Sheen, I was also taken quite by surprise when I heard the latest news about Libya.

This is another task I can use my iPhone to help with. Anyone use any useful apps for keeping abreast of the news?

Current Crochet/Knitting

I've almost completed the main section of the crochet baby blanket.

I liked the idea of one of the commenters last week, but I'm not sure I executed it quite well enough.

There's a possibility I may still have to rip this back...I just need to put it down for a week before I decide.

I've also started a second baby blanket in much more traditional baby colors. I'll post photos when I can

Reader' Comments/Questions

Thank you for all your suggestions on book recommendation engines. I've already used LibraryThing for tracking my knitting books, but I didn't realize it had a wizard for recommending books...I will definitely check it out.

It never ceases to amaze me how many librarians knit.

Change Doesn't Always Suck

I can't tell you how glad I was to see the Democrats break through the log-jam of Republican petulance.

U.S. Political Stuff
Sorry for the non-U.S. readers, but something rather important in terms of progressive movement in this country just happened yesterday.

Ever since the Democrats won the White House and the majority of seats in the two houses of congress, the whiner-babies on the Republican side have done everything they could to stymie any of the changes that the U.S. public demanded through their voting voice.

Finally, after trying everything they possibly could to incorporate the conservative obstructionists, it became obvious to both the Democrats and the U.S. public, that there was no compromise that could be made that would have them participate in the long-awaited changes necessary in this country.

I am so glad the Democrats finally took the reins and said enough is enough and did what they were voted in to do.

Like many progressives, I don't believe that the health care reform bill goes far enough. I can't imagine there are many folks that don't believe that we truly need a public option for health care insurance, so that we can bypass the money-sucking bastards spending millions of dollars or our insurance premiums lobbying politicians
to let them continue to rape this country. However, I do think the passing of this bill is a huge step forward, and renews my confidence that the Democrats are at least going to try and make changes.

Current Knitting
I put the woven cable scarf to the side for a little while when I was inspired by Asplund's incredible rendition of Marianne Isager's sweater, Zaire. Although, I am halfway finished with the woven cable scarf.

But then I decided to try my hand at the Zaire after I liked how well the swatch turned out.

Here's what I've gotten to so far.

Since you can't see the back, you wouldn't know that I only have five diamonds completed. I had six, but then realized that I had completed twisted the in-the-round bottom of the sweater when I connected the ends (I know...I know...totally beginner's mistake), and this required me to rip out one of the diamonds.

I'm kind of making up the color scheme as I go along, but I'm liking it a lot so far.

Cool Note Cards
A while ago, I was asked if an artist up in the hinterlands of Canada could use a photograph of me spinning to create an original art piece on note cards, specifically geared towards men who spin. Of course I was thrilled.

Monica took a photo some of you might recognize and turned into this delightful note card.

I've since ordered a full set of the male-oriented spinning note cards and they are perfectly delightful. To reduce postage, I honestly wished I had ordered a few sets. She's also been nice enough to send some of her original note cards as door prizes for the Men's Knitting Retreat.

I have decided I am no where near nice enough to live in Canada.