5 Years Later, Still Weird.

5 years ago, Amy Singer at the then-fledgling Knitty thought my submission was just too weird to not publish. At that time, I think I'd already submitted to and been accepted for Stitch 'N Bitch Nation, but the Winter '04 issue of Knitty came out first and established me as a freak fiber artist. Hey, might as well be honest right from the start!

The version of Womb that I've been working on with different licensing permissions (this one will 1. hold things and 2. have permissions allowing the sale of finished items) has been going on for years now; I keep getting sidetracked by other things. Getting there, though.

San Francisco: Imagiknit and Urban Knitting Studio

So while in SF, I visited Imagiknit and Urban Knitting Studio.

I walked through the door of Imagiknit and if there hadn't been people coming in the door behind me, I would have just stopped and stared with my jaw hanging open.



...this is just part of the first room. There's a whole other second room. And, in all that, they also had every weight of Malabrigo, including Sock and Lace, which I didn't know about, and two skeins of Malabrigo Sock came home with me. Imagiknit has big front windows, so I walked them over into the daylight and that sold me, right there. The shop was buzzing with activity, but also had nice comfortable seats for those who wanted to sit and go through pattern books or just sit (it's a lot of yarn to take in all at once).



Urban Knitting Studio has a wonderful light, airy feeling, with plenty of space to browse in and comfortable seats in the big glass windows. As you can see, I lucked into a clear-skied, sunny stretch while I was there. Lovely place, stylish, elegant, and friendly!

I've got a small set of trip photos up on Flickr (SF November 2009); once I figure out how to get my short video clips uploaded to Flickr I'll add those in too.

Liesl: finished! Maybe.

Could it be?



After months of marinating, I finally finished Liesl!

Maybe.

Let me be a smug cheeseball for just a moment more...



...and I'm spent.

I'm going to stress that the issues I have with the finished sweater are all due to choices I made. I like the pattern layout and the way it is written and many, many knitters have successfully knit a Liesl.

In my case, the choices I made included using a vintage wool (Pingouin Fleur de Laine, not sure how old but I'd guess at least 30+ years). It's nice enough yarn, but it pre-dates the lovely merino breeds available today. It's not terribly scratchy, but it is scratchy enough so I won't wear it over bare arms again. I am also seemingly unable to count to four, a necessary skill for this lace pattern. This has become a running joke for the Aloha Knitters. "Nice enough girl, such a pity she can't count past 3." There is at least 2.5 sweaters worth of knitting in this as a result. Did you notice I still have the lifelines in the photos? Then I hit the first sleeve (right) and raging frustration ensued. I finally got it done and then shoved it in a bag and out of my sight until recently. The left sleeve had to be ripped back a few times, but I got it going smoothly last week and got it done in a final burst. I think there's something about the way I picked up stitches that threw things off; what worked for me was starting the round with *k2tog* twice, *yo, k1* twice, following the instructions in the * * and then ending with *k2tog* twice, *yo, k1* twice. Notes I'd scribbled on my pattern indicated that the swatch grew, so I had knit the body and the sleeves shorter than I wanted the finished results to be (and didn't weave in the ends, as you can see in the photos). After washing, the sweater grew to just the right length, but it's also looser than I'd like (which may have something to do with my losing about 30 lbs. between casting on the neck and binding off the second sleeve).

Then while trying it on again and admiring my work, I realized that the first sleeve had at least one mistake in it. On closer inspection, more than one. I am not posting photos, not yet, anyway. I plan to wear it a couple of times, and then if it makes me too crazy I'll rip back and re-knit that sleeve. I had also planned to dye this sweater, either dark blue or dark red, and I am leaning towards blue...and not chancing a dye debacle until I figure out if I am okay with this sleeve (right now I am not okay with it).

Pattern: Liesl, by Ysolda Teague
Yarn: Pingouin Fleur de Laine, 4.5 skeins
Size: 46" (if I did this now, I'd go down to at least 38")

Craft Supply's Ribbon and Yarn Store

Craft Supply of Honolulu's King Street branch has closed, and Craft Supply's Ribbon and Yarn Store has opened upstairs. Specializing in ribbons and yarns for making leis with, Craft Supply's Ribbon and Yarn Store offers crochet and ribbon lei making classes, free with purchase of supplies. Classes are offered twice a day every day (except Sunday, when the shop is closed); for details on classes and times please call them at (808) 942-5044.

Yarns for sale include standards like Red Heart, Sugar 'N Cream, Bernat (Baby Coordinates, Cotton Tots, Baby), and novelty/eyelash yarns from Crystal Palace and Trendsetter.

A small parking lot with free parking for customers is located behind the building; if you are driving east on S. King, the entrance to the parking lot is before the building. Nearby bus stops are served by routes 1 and 6 (check with TheBus for times and other possible routes).

1960 South King Street
(808) 942-5044

Monday - Friday 9am - 3pm
Saturday 9 - 12
Sunday CLOSED