Yellowbird Yarn Room

Wabi-sabi and fiddley toes

The first ever Yellowbird Sock Knit-Along is officially under way!

There were five of us all together, plus one sniffly six year old with a Nintendo and apple slices for entertainment.  It was a fantastic morning, filled with knitting and laughter, and my son was sweetly patient even as time slipped away from us.

Our merry party was lead by Barbara, who is not only a highly experienced knitter but also an excellent baker of shortbread!  We nibbled our way through a covering of the bases as Barbara explained what we were getting ourselves in to.

It was at this point that Judy, owner of River City and novice knitter, who was "only going to watch for a little while", found herself pulling up a chair.

For those of you who do not yet know, the purpose of this knit-along is to explore Cat Bordhi's new method of knitting socks as spelled out in Personal Footprints for Insouciant Sock Knitters.  To start off, this new method involves having someone trace your foot on a piece of cardboard.

Now, that's an ice breaker!

Cut out your foot, and you've got yourself a handy-dandy pattern which you will use for making notes as you knit your Discovery Sock.  You will be marking things such as where to increase, where to decrease, and where to put your leg.

Because you need to know where to put your leg.

You see, for this method you knit from toe to heel as if the leg isn't even there, resulting in one long closed tube.  During the process, you mark where your leg will be in the sock and that is where you cut.  The yarn.  Just cut right smack dab in the middle of the row. And rip out those stitches.

But we're not there yet!  No, we've only just cast on and started our increases.  We spent some time on this, learning the Turkish cast-on since none of us but Barbara were familiar with it.  I have to say that I did start over once, only to find I had done it correctly after finishing it the second time!  I do believe that I will spend some time at Open Knit tomorrow starting over once more, though, just to make sure I got it down.  I tend to knit tightly when trying something new, and I would hate for my guage to be thrown off because of that!

According to Barbara, the toes are a bit "fiddley" (please read in a Brittish accent), but they are truly the toughest part of the whole sock.  And, like anything else in knitting, mistakes happen and should be relished!  (Insert zen-like definition of wabi-sabi, akin to the happy accident but much more poetic.)

The morning flew by in such a pleasant manner (though the poor nice man from the newspaper who was forced to speak with Judy in the middle of this fiesty group may disagree), and ended with a happy little boy with Superman ice cream.  Patience in a six year old boy is, after all, a quality that demands a reward!

A little local love

One of my main goals in opening the Yarn Room was to offer local yarns, be they homegrown or homedyed or homespun...

At last, we have homegrown!  Yay!

I acquired some lovely black alpaca yarn from Wolf Creek Alpacas in Norton which I will be finding a home for in the shop after Open Knit tomorrow.  It is just luscious and sweet and a wonderful story.

I stumbled across their website back in December and contacted them right away, thrilled to find a farm so close that obviously offered yarn for public sale.  I spoke at length with the lady of the farm, Pat, who promised to see what she had that she would be willing to part with.  She found a cone of the black and spent some time putting together skeins by hand on her niddy noddy.  

When her husband brought me the finished skeins, I have to admit that I was quite touched.  There were thirteen skeins, of varied lengths and weights, with handmade tags and a sign all ready for hanging that explains the history of the yarn and the animal it came from.

It can be so obvious sometimes.  So easy to read the story of someone's passion for what they do simply by looking at the product of their labor. 

Pat suggests that the yarn is perfect for scarves, but she did say she had a bit more if someone would like to use it for a sweater.  If you decide you have the perfect pattern for this lovliness, please let me know so that I can pass the word on.  Better yet, send me a picture of the finished product!  No doubt, Pat would be very happy to know that her yarn found a good home.  

Announcing Yellowbird's first ever Knit-Along! (Yay!)

It has been quite some time in the works, but it's finally set.

I am going to knit me my first pair of socks! 

Curiosity got the better of me a while back, so I decided to do a sock knit-along to see what all the fuss was about.  I have no doubt there are more knitters out there like myself, possibly reading the Yarn Harlot wax poetic over the vast superiority of the handknit sock, and thinking to themselves "hey, I'm going to have to try that one of these days."

Today is that day!

Well, okay, not today.  But February 25th is that day!

My new friend, Barbara, who has been knitting most of her life and conquered many a sock over the years, has graciously agreed to walk us through the steps of the newest (and certainly easiest) method.  Cat Bordhi's book, Personal Footprints for Insouciant Sock Knitters, introduces the notion of sock knitting without heel flaps or picking up stitches!  Barbara and I both agree that even a beginning knitter who is ready to move up from scarves and hot pads can tackle this sock with ease.

How cool is that!

So, starting February 25th we will be meeting every Thursday for six weeks at Judy's Ice Cream.  We will be there at 10:00 and plan on an hour each week.  There is no fee, and you are not required to purchase your supplies from Yellowbird, though any supplies bought for the knit-along will be at a 30% discount.  Even the book! 

And all you need is the book that first day, but be prepared to remove a shoe or two to trace your tootsies!  As implied by the name, this method involves a pattern based upon your own Personal Footprint and that is where we will begin.

I would appreciate a little fair warning if you plan to attend, just so we have an idea of how many people to expect.  Just click on the "Email me" on the top left of the page here as soon as you know you're ready to jump in with both feet!

And, yes, I have been dying to say that. 

Amended favorite

After many viewings with my sons, it is decided that this is the true cutest ukulele-playing amigurumi video you have ever seen.

I've watched it easily 20 times in the past few days, and it still makes me giggle.  The boys and I can't stop singing it!

Am I crazy?

Only time will tell.

Ever since I first saw the Winter 2009 issue of Interweave Knits, I have been thinking about Rosemay Hill's sweater, Lacy Ribbons.   I think it would be beautiful in the sherbet tones of Tahki's Baby Kid Extra Print in Lemon-Lime (a yarn I have been drooling over for months).

I have never worked with such a fine yarn.  My tastes usually run a bit on the chunky side.  But I just cannot get the image of the potential sweater out of my mind!  Wouldn't it be lovely on a cool spring day?

So, I sat down earlier with a ball, my trusty dpn's, and a bit of determination to test out my guage.

I think I could get it done in time for spring.  Of next year.  Or maybe the year after.

The notes on the pattern say to check your guage in the round.  I'm not exactly new to double points, but knitting with the Baby Kid is a bit like knitting with fuzzy sewing thread!  I know it will just take some getting used to, and the end result will be well worth the effort, but my goodness! 

The guage swatch has been started, and set aside after just a few rows.  I plan to work on it during Open Knit on Saturday, so wish me luck.  If you are an experienced lace knitter and have any tips to offer, I would certainly welcome them!  Or, if you would just like to offer a bit of moral support, I'll be in Judy's Ice Cream Saturday morning from 10 until noon! 

I. Love. This.

Please click here to see one of the cutest ukulele-playing amigurumi videos you have ever seen. 

No Open Knit today!

I will not be making it in to Open Knit today.  Or anywhere else for that matter.

There's snow.  A lot of it.

We knew it was coming, but last we heard it was going to be maybe about 6 inches.  I do believe there's a little bit more than that.  There's probably a good foot of wet, heavy snow packed on top of our front porch railing!  And it hasn't completely stopped.

I did see a car go by on the street, and the main roads may not be too bad, but we have a rather long gravel driveway and it will likely take all day to dig out!  The event has inspired me to add a photo album in the sidebar that I have been meaning to add, called "Just Because".  The picture was taken out of our kitchen window, which afforded the best shot of the driveway without my having to go outside.  You have to click on the album and then click on the picture to make it bigger.

Have a wonderful weekend, and maybe I'll see you at next Saturday's Open Knit!