Author Archives: Jean

Christmas in October

Some friends and I have knitted up a bunch of little stockings to fill and send to a helicopter unit in Iraq. It’s the unit my friends’ husbands are in. I had to come up with a simple and quick pattern. These would make great gifts for teachers, the mailman… whoever you need a little somethin’ somethin’ for. They are about the right size for a candy bar. Each one takes me about an hour and ten minutes to knit from start to finish. They really are cute in person. I used a deep cranberry red and cream colored yarns. My early Christmas gift to you:
I used a double strand of dk weight yarn on 4.0mm needles (I’m a loose knitter). Mine came out to 3×8”.
Gauge isn’t really important as long as you’re happy with your fabric.
Cast on 24 stitches with white. Divide on double points. I put six stitches each on four needles.
Join in a round and knit seed stitch for eight rows. Cut off white leaving tail to weave in later (about 3 inches)
Measure off a full arm length of red and start knitting from this point with the red yarn (you’ll use this tail later to crochet the hanging cord). Knit 14 rounds. On 15th round, knit first three needles.
Start Heel Flap: Slip 1st stitch on needle 4, Knit across. Knit across needle 1 with same needle (all 12 heel stitches will be on one needle now). Turn. Slip 1st stitch purl across.
Repeat these last two rows back and forth for a total of nine rows. You will have five “loops” going down each side of the heel flap.
Take another needle and pick up five stitches down the side of the heel flap. Slide these stitches you just knit back on to needle with heel stitches. Knit across instep stitches that have been holding on needles 2 and 3. With a new needle, pick up five stitches up other side of heel flap. Using this same needle, knit six stitches from heel needle. You now have 11 stitches on needles 4 and 1 and six stitches on needles 2 and 3.
Gussets: 1st Round: Knit to last three stitches on needle 1. K2tog, K1. Knit across instep needles. On needle 4, K1, SSK, Knit to end of needle.
2nd Round: K Repeat these two rounds until there are 8 stitches on the two heel needles.
Slip one stitch from needles 1 and 4 to needles 2 and 3 so there are seven sts on each needle.
Foot: Knit 8 rounds.
Toe: 1st Round: Needle 1: Knit to last three stitches K2tog, K1. Needle 2: Knit 1, SSK, Knit across Needle 3: Knit to last three stitches, K2tog, K1 Needle 4: Knit 1, SSK, Knit across 2nd Round: Knit
Repeat these two rounds until there are three stitches on each needle. Knit across needle one to bring the tail to the end. Put stitches on needles 1 and 4 on one needle and stitches on needles 2 and 3 on another needle. There are now 6 stitches on two needles. Cut yarn leaving a tail of about eight inches.
Hold the needles so that the tail is on the right and coming from the back needle. Thread the tail onto a tapestry needle.
Grafting set up: Go into the 1st stitch of the back needle as if to knit. Leave on needle. Go into the 1st stitch of the front needle as if to purl. Leave on needle.
Grafting: 1. Go into 1st stitch of back needle as if to purl while sliding it off needle. Go into 2nd stitch as if to knit. Leave on needle.
2. Come to front needle. Go into 1st stitch as if to knit while sliding it off needle. Go into 2nd stitch as if to purl. Leave it on the needle.
Repeat these last two steps until you’ve woven all stitches. Make sure to bring working yarn under knitting needles and not over them and snug the yarn up as you go so the toe closes up nicely.
Weave in tails. Starting from the end that’s attached to the sock, crochet the long cast on tail you left (I did about 18-20 chain sts). Hook the last chain stitch to the first to form a loop and finish off.

Hot Dog!

I know Bailey girl doesn’t look very happy. I think that’s because I recruited her to join me in my workout routine of walking for an hour every morning starting this past Tuesday. She’s done in. I only have to move two legs and I’m beat. I can only imagine how she feels with four! How cute is she though? We rescued her from the pound in Clarksville, TN about 4 1/2 years ago and she’s been a great addition to the family. Her only flaw is that she doesn’t get along with other dogs. It’s like Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde. I think it’s Napoleon complex. She’s much worse with dogs that are bigger than her. I guess it’s too much to ask for looks and brains too. I love the colors of this yarn. It’s Lamb’s Pride Superwash that I bought in white to dye. It actually has a blip of brown all through it. I hadn’t heated it enough (afraid I’d turn it into plastic – gotta be careful with superwash) and couldn’t get it to stop bleeding. Finally wrapped it up in saran wrap and stuck it in to steam with an autumn colors batch that was dyeing. Oops. Didn’t seal it well enough. You can’t even tell though. I alternated the four skeins all the way through and can’t even find the brown now. She’s gonna need a thicker one. This isn’t going to get her through the winter here come another month or so. That means I’ll have to buy some more yarn. I have a responsibility to take good care of her, right?

Awe… Rhinebeck Schmineck!

In doing my daily blog reads this morning I read nothing but bragging… I got this at Rhinebeck, I got to meet so-and-so at Rhinebeck…. Rhinebeck this… Rhinebeck that… blah. blah. blah. Oh… and all the talk about the foliage! Like I don’t miss New England enough already! Thanks… thanks loads everyone. Very thoughtful of you. Geesh! Okay already! I got it! It was THE place to be this weekend and I was an ocean and a few countries away from it. Yea… well just wait… If the Army Gods that make our assignments are good to us, I’ll be at Rhinebeck in 2006 because it’ll only be a four-hour drive from our new duty station, Fort Drum, by Watertown NY. So THERE!! Let me add that gives me two… count ’em… two years to have a little BIG Rhinebeck savings account going. Yea… paybacks, Baby!!
I hope you all know I’m kidding. I couldn’t wait to start reading this morning knowing that’s what everyone would be writing about. You bet your sweet bippy that if plane tickets weren’t over $1000 to get to the States I’d have been there with bells on. So I’ll have to live through everyone else’s journey and dream about 2006. Look on the bright side! There’s only 726 days to go!
I finished the dog sweater last night but I forgot the camera this morning when Bailey and I headed out on our walk in the woods. She wore her sweater proudly even though it’s a smidge too big. Can’t even felt it down because it’s superwash. I’ll take a picture tomorrow when we’re on our little jaunt. Oh well…

Wednesdays Are For Spinning

Wednesdays are for spinning for me. That way nothing can interfere with my spinning day….except this Wednesday. I just had too much to catch up on. I’m still not finished and Wednesday is almost over here in Germany. I did get a lot done though and, as you’ll see, I was rewarded handsomely when the German post arrived. We don’t often get mail in our German mail box other than the weekly sale fliers every Friday. We pick up our American mail at the mail room on the Army Post

Besides a trip to the commissary and the usual daily stuff, here’s what I accomplished today:
I had to do some machine embroidery today.

I needed to put a new baby’s name and birthdate on a blanket. He was born August 21st. That shows you how long this has been festering in the back of my mind. Now… it is done. While the machine was out I also had to do a military flag for a retirement gift for the Sergeant Major in Dan’s unit. Now that’s done too. Man does that feel good to say.

Speaking of done… the Vittadini is done! Can you give me an AMEN! That’s another baby that’s been festering in the undone pile for months. It’s done in some German cotton yarn that I bought here at the local yarn shop. I swear it looks like suede up close. It’s the richest deep purple. I love it.

My friend, Mariana, and I are having our own little knit-a-long with the Knitting Pure and Simple Neck-down Jacket. Mariana cast hers on about a month ago. I promised to finish the Vittadini before I could cast mine on. I’m happy to report that last night I cast it on with Berroco Uxbridge Tweed that I bought from Elann about six weeks ago.

And now for the Grand Finale for today: Just to show you that no good deed goes unnoticed (in the knitting world anyway) I received a terrific thank you from Yvette in France:

Pumpkin Patch

I finished up some pumpkin hats on the way to the MP Military Ball in Heidelberg on Saturday. I made one for each of the four babies in my husband’s office. Yea… I know there are only three here. One was for the newest member who was just born at the end of August, so I took it to the hospital when we went to welcome him into the world. Hopefully I can get a picture of all of them together sporting their little punkin’ heads. This is the tried and true “Patrick’s Pumpkin” pattern from Fiber Trends.

Here’s a snapshot of Dan and I at the Ball. We clean up good, huh? lol. A good time was had by all. We usually get stuck at a table where we don’t know anyone. This year we knew everyone at our table and the next one over so we had… well….a ball. Sorry…. I couldn’t resist. Right now I’m playing around with felting some yarn from Elann which happens to be my favorite place to shop for all things fiber. I’ll share my experiment results within a couple of days.

Bonnie Bonnie Scotland

As I type this my oldest son, Jeremy, is on a flight to Iraq. Please keep him and all of our soldiers in your thoughts and prayers.

I thought I’d backtrack a little and tell you about my trip to Scotland at the end of July. Twenty-one knitters and spinners from all over the world met on the Isle of Mull in the Inner Hebrides off the West Coast of Scotland. It was SO beautiful there. My heritage is very Scottish so I think it’s in my blood to feel at home in that gorgeous country.

This is the Hall in that we had the classes in and some people stayed there for the week. I was in a B&B across the field from it. It was wonderful waking up to the view of the water, sounds of the sheep and the clean crisp air with a cup of tea under a nice warm wool blanket.

There were sheep everywhere. It was a mile walk into the town of Fionnphort and you could be sure there’d be many sheep and cow sightings along the way.

Debbie New stayed at the hall for the week and taught a class on playing around with color patterning and she explained some of the patterns in her book. I need to send my book or a bookplate to her for her autograph. This woman is awesome. Her mind is like a clock. It just keeps ticking away. I was amazed. Best of all she is a very nice, down-to-earth soul who was a joy to be around.

I can’t begin to tell you how great it was to be surrounded by so many others that love wool as much as I do. What a great group and a ton of knowledge and talent. I sent a photo in to Knitter’s Magazine of most of us outside the Hall. Hopefully it’ll be in the next issue.

We went to visit Ardalanish Organic Farm. This is all wool from the Black Hebridean Sheep on the farm. I got two of these babies (the cones of yarn… not the sheep… how I wish!) Oh… to have had more money with me!!

On the last day I took the short five-minute ferry ride from Fionnphort to the Isle of Iona To see the Abbey. What a way to end the trip. Very serene and oh-so-beautiful. I’d love to take my family back there one day. The only place I loved more is Shetland.

Testing… 1, 2, 3

Let’s give this blogging puppy a shot. Why not? I love to knit and spin and have a ridiculous stash. Maybe the pressure of having to have something to blog about will get that stash down. Ha. Who are we kidding? We all know stashes just get bigger.

I started knitting about 19 years ago (holy crap! I’m 41 already. How’d that happen?). The first big project I did was for my Gram. She’d knit for all of us as babies and she was my inspiration to start knitting so I thought it was only fitting. I knit the cover sweater of the Winter 88 issue of Simpliciy Knitting.

I miss that magazine.

When the internet came about I joined the new Knitlist. Imagine! Getting to chat with hundreds of people about knitting! lol. Little did we know then how big it would get. I unsubbed years ago when two boys and thousands of members made it too big for me. Through the list though I acquired a love for all things wool. Hello, my name is Jean and I’m a wool addict. I bought a second-hand Ashford Traditional and took a class with Fay Drozd in the Hill Country of Texas about ten years ago. I upgraded to a Majacraft Rose when they first came out but I’d still classify myself as a novice spinner.

We are an Army family stationed in Germany for the third time. We love it here but are really starting to miss the States. Being in Europe has allowed me to do “knitting” travel that I never thought I’d be able to do. We went to the Shetland Isles in 97. That was the best trip of my life. This past July I returned to Scotland for the Spinning and Knitting retreat on the Isle of Mull (part of the Inner Hebrides) where I got to meet a bunch of great knitters, spinners and weavers. Debbie New gave a terrific class. One of these days I’ll write a full report. I don’t know if it’s my Scottish roots or just the pure beauty of Scotland but I always feel like I belong and cry every time I have to leave.

I’ve been lucky enough to meet knitters from all over the world and it’s always a blast. Non-knitters just can’t understand the joy of that wool going through your fingers and turning into something to keep a loved one warm.

So, enough for now. In my next post I’ll share current projects….