Morning all, happy Friday!
I worked some more on the Tee yesterday.
So far, so good :)
It takes me quite a while to get across the row, but things are progressing nicely, I think. I also discovered that despite swatching heavily and measuring carefully, that a pattern repeat is bigger than I had determined. Which means that this piece is quite a bit wider than I had expected it to be. By the end of the day, I’ll have determined whether that’s a fatal flaw or not - but I don’t think it is. I think there are a couple of things I can do that won’t entail ripping it all out and starting from the beginning again. On the other hand, re-starting would mean I could drop a substantial number of stitches which would seriously improve my time. I mean, that picture? That’s about three hours work since the last time you saw it.
Yes, I’m a slowpoke :)
Pursuant to yesterday’s post about Socks Socks Socks, in particular to the entrelac socks, I cast on last night to try out that toe - a new (to me) method of starting a toe-up sock. The pattern has you cast on a few stitches and then work back and forth until you have a small block. Then you pick up the stitches around the sides and increase your way up to foot circumference.
This is so cool!
I hadn’t realized the bright red yarn would be so funky to photograph, but this method (which I think is what Nat was trying to explain to me last week) is simple, effective and no sweat at all. Also there are no gaps, nor do I have to worry about short-row wraps and whether or not to pick them up, leave them lie, dance with them or cook them for dinner. Ahem…
I love the concept of toe-up socks because you just knit until you run out of yarn and you don’t have to guess about how long to make the leg. This toe is the rat’s behind and will probably become a staple of my sock-knitting repertoire!
I finished Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince this morning (at around 2:00 AM, to be precise!). Did anyone besides me find this to be rather…um…lackluster? Lukewarm? Rowling getting bored, maybe?
On the other hand, we watched National Treasure the other day and despite the critics panning this into the ground, found it to be thoroughly enjoyable and great fun. I particularly like the ending which was satisfying in a way adventure films haven’t been in 30 years and which was not obviously setting up for a sequel - something I get real tired of. Make popcorn - definitely recommended :)
Have a wonderful weekend all!
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I’ve been reluctant to try any of the toe up methods out there….but that sounds too cool to pass up. Have to give it a shot.
I’m slowly coming around to the idea of ripping as not being a baaaaaaaad thing…In the past I would stand on my head and chew nails if I thought it would get me out of ripping…but lately, the freshness of starting over has been sort of a relief in some cases.
Lisa - I know in my head that ripping is sometimes the only way to go - but I will always probably feel a pang at having to tear out work.
That toe up sock method sounds very interesting. I started a pair and couldn’t figure out the instructions for doing the figure 8 cast on so I’m going to have to graft the toe closed when I’m done.
I’m delighted to hear someone else enjoyed National Treasure! Rob and I watched it Monday night and I loved it. Anything that makes history that interesting has got to be a good thing. And I found it very refreshing that there was no gratuitous sex or violence. I think too many of today’s movie makers don’t realize that those things do not necessarily make for a good movie.
Erin - And you know? It was sufficiently entertaining that I didn’t realize its PG nature (I wouldn’t worry about a child older than 6 seeing the film) until long after it was over. Just plain fun :)
yup, that is the toe I was trying to explain last week. was my explanation poor? My apologoes if that was the case! sometimes I dont get to review answers/emails as much as I would like. if the situation arises please just ask me to explain it again etc. I’m more than happy to! :)
Nat - Your explanation was great and I saved it for future reference. It’s just that I had never heard of that type of toe before and here I got your fine description of how it works plus it showed up in my new book. An amusing coincidence :)
Hope you had a good vacation!
Yep - Half Blood was uneven at best (the first 200 pages were booooring) and I was disappointed. It didn’t have the spark of, say, Goblet of Fire (my personal fav.) All I hope is that #7 gives us back the “fire” with a satisfactory ending. :)
By the way - I SWEAR I wrote my post today BEFORE I read this one. So all the swatch talk was already published before I came over here. Honest!
Bron - I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who thought the book had a half-hearted, dashed off feel to it. Rather disappointing and really makes me wonder what the 7th volume is going to be like.
About the swatching thing, we all do whatever we have to to suit our specific needs and wants. I don’t always swatch, but sometimes feel compelled to :)
