BRR!!! Wool rules. Do you want?

Oh my goodness it’s chilly out. I just checked online and they say with windchill it’s 10°F (-12°C), some of those gusts made me feel it’s at least 10 below THAT.

One of my colleagues mentioned two weeks ago that she didn’t have a winter hat. This weekend I fixed that with a very super fast knit which fits her perfectly and quite necessary as she’s been sent out twice so far today.

An Unoriginal Hat by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Yarn: Kraemer Yarns Mauch Chunky in Portabello, less than 1 skein.
Needles: ~8mm — we’ve had a dowel floating around and I chopped it up and used a pencil sharpener to make myself a set of 4dpns. I’m searching for the remainder of the dowel because I prefer my dpn’s in the European set of 5.
Mods: I only knit the chart twice. It fits both me and the recipient perfectly.
Verdict: She LOVES IT. :) Though she did say it was so cold she didn’t care WHAT her hat looked like. I’m happy that she now has a hat in this suddenly bitter cold weather, I’m picky about hats and kidneys being covered. Mum’s lessons stuck (even though I’m not fully sure on the why of the second one beyond that if I wear a cropped sweater I’ve noticed that I get cold faster than something longer)

While I had the portabello out, I finally fixed the “instant hat” I completed last December by ripping the decreases [which was difficult as it had felted slightly] and worked a few more regular rows so my ears are now covered. Not that it really helped today with this wind.

I’m saddened to report that I’ve not yet completed E’s fingerless mitts. Considering how cold his office is, you’d think I’d get at it. I hate knitting fingers. Even half fingers. Well, compare it to the black socks of last year (which were blogged about this time a year ago?) hmmm… I think I’ll take the black socks. Which, btw, he wore ONCE. They now live in my sock bin and I’ve worn them a few times. Actually I am about to pull them out now to put over the socks I have on even though I’ve moved my office into the bedroom with the heating blanket for the afternoon [hey, there are great perks to working at home] because my feet are still just so DARN COLD. Aaah… slightly better. I think that’s my next Saturday night project when I don’t want to work on anything else… bulky wool house socks to go over whatever and to wear with my wool clogs because let’s face it, I don’t keep those on my feet. Anyway, I’m bribing myself, if I work on the Project consistently for 30 minutes I can then knit a finger. Repeat. ad nauseum or until 10 fingers are completed. Then work on Project.

A few weeks ago I knit a heart but haven’t photographed it because E says it looks really scary, the eyes frighten him. sigh

Other knits and crochets are slowly progressing with a row here and a repeat there. Hopefully it’ll add up. We’ll see. I was informed on Sunday that a good friend gave birth to a baby girl, C [we’ve lost touch and I sort of forgot she was pregnant, or at least when she was due]. As I crocheted her brother an afghan I’m in a bind, I don’t really have the resources to make a blanket, but the hemlock ring has been tempting me and I have 3-4 skeins of cotton-ease in purple or tan (or both?). I feel giving booties to a second child is cheating and lame. Somehow I fear my fate is set. ;) [though I see it needs 5 cotton-ease from browsing Ravelry … Thoughts? which colour should I choose? Violet or Taupe? I’d do Lake, but I don’t want her brother to take it as his.]

I’ve not spun, but not for lack of desire. If I gain the main room back I’ll be able to get at the spinning stuff more easily.

Lastly, all this kitchen clutter has made (me) realize that I still have too much CRUD here and I need to purge considerable amounts of things. Certain items are not going anywhere, but I did make $1 selling 4 paperbacks this afternoon. Anyway, I have a tupperware shoebox full of random polymer clay things. I wish I could sculpt clay but find wool, cotton, and other fibres much more to my interests than clay. If I emptied it I could then fill it with more fibre. ;) I’ve not touched it at least a year and it seems a shame for me to keep when someone else might use it. Are you interested? If so, please let me know.

Once I figure out all the fibre I’ll let known what can go. There’s some stuff that’s sat and I’m sad about that but I should stop writing posts and get to my work so I have time to knit, crochet, and spin!

Keep warm!

• Category: handmade
• Tag: knit