Short and Squat

Sometimes I knit with a pattern.

Sometimes I go it alone.

Every so often

I feel like adventure...

And I make a pattern my own!

This time there was a pattern.

A blanket chart, double-knit.

I started out strong,

but it didn't last long...

Then I re-wrote the charts just a bit!

In truth, I re-wrote the charts a LOT. I have now started this blanket a total of three times: twice before the re-write! I love the look of picture knits, and I love that this will be reversible, but I did not love how the first row of pictures turned out...very short and squat.

When I first looked at the pattern (which is really just the chart), I saw that it was a bit too square looking. After all, knit stitches are short and squat...to get a  square you might need 10 stitches and 15 rows, or 12 stitches and 16 rows, or some other ratio. The smart thing to do, knowing this, would be to make a small swatch to test the ratio. Yes, that would be the smart thing to do.

What I did instead was to just cast on 139 stitches (times two, for double-knitting), and start knitting. Oops! A mistake! That's ok...I can rip back to fix it. Oops! I didn't rip back far enough? Ok, let's just rip it all out and start over. On a roll now, I am almost ready for the next set of picture charts...wait just a cotton pickin' minute! This is NOT a square! None of them are! 7 inches wide and only 5.5 inches tall? Ugh! 

And then I re-charted the whole thing. In Excel. 139 stitches by 184 rows, one square at a time. 

So, as I headed into this weekend, I had 3 rows of a new blankey on my needles...and high hopes! I would show you new photos, but I am at a knitters' retreat, and that is a little like Vegas...it stays here, people! Also, the Wi-Fi is sketchy, so I have blogged ahead. But I can tell you that I am having fun, knitting much and laughing with friends! There is no shortage of words (or food or drinks) here at the retreat, but the blog (unlike attempt 3 at the blanket, I hope) is a little short and squat this week!

Thanks for stopping by anyway, and Knit in Good Health yourself!

Prehistoric Pop of Color!

When one lives in northeast Ohio, one learns to tolerate the dull and dreary for months on end...even if one is a cat!

But then one day, in April or May, one just cannot take it any longer! The other day, while contemplating April snow...again...

I reached out for some color. (Side note: If you have a container of Tic Tacs Fruit Adventure, this is a perfect pour! Very inspiring!)

Anyhoo, as I popped those bad boys into my mouth, I started thinking about the yarn again. Remember the yarn? So. Much. Yarn. What color should I knit next? I know! I will knit ALL THE COLORS...muahahahahaha! And so I did...

I started a Stegosaurus in stripes, with the brightest of green plates running down his (her?) back...  

Even when the knitters made fun of my acrylic yarn (which may or may not have come from a dear, departed knitter's stash, gifted to our group by a loving relative...we quite affectionately refer to this as "dead people yarn"), I pressed on until it was time to add the personality.

"I'm stuffed!," shouted Steggie, after many minutes of manipulating fiber fill into the body cavity...

Then the legs. The bright green legs. The legs that will help her (him?) hold that head high! Well, not high. Technically (according to Wikipedia anyway), a stegosaurus holds its tail high, but its short forelegs bring the head closer to the ground, so it can munch on all the natural salad it can find. I know, I know. I am a geek, so I had to look it up. 

Before I looked it up, I agonized at the way that the head always pointed down when I stood Steggie up. I even removed and repositioned the hind legs to make the thing sit a bit straighter, but as it turns out, I should have left it alone. This dinosaur should look like it is taking a nose dive, and Steggie was apparently frustrated with my efforts. In any case, he (she?) was finished with the photo shoot, so I stopped stressing.

Now I am left with only one question: What does one knit following a striped stegosaurus? Well, after just a few minutes contemplation, the cat mentioned a T-Rex...so I have obliged. It does not yet have legs, but she (he?) seems to like the cat already... Black Cat, on the other hand, is not quite sure that she should have chimed in. She did not realize that her suggestion would require participation in the knitting event. She has heaved many a heavy sigh since I started this one! lol! 

So now you now, this is what happens when Springtime in Cleveland lags, which it does pretty much every year. The weather people tell me that the sun should shine today, and it has, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that warm will soon follow! Well, I have uncrossed them to knit...but you get the idea. 

How are you surviving the extended winter of 2018? Are you knitting?

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

Demanding Dolls

(To the tune of The Brady Bunch Theme Song) 

Here's the story of a gal named Pretty, 

Who was thinking up some very lovely toys:

It starts by having White Cat pick the skin tone,

Then deciding girls or boys?

Since the grand kids are both daughters, 

She decides that gir-irls it must be. 

So she starts to knit the heads and arms and le-egs, 

Then she knits up two bodies.

Now this pile of pieces looks so very lifeless, 

And the dolls are seeming pretty rough -

The next steps are the stuffing and the sewing

Stitching them together so they're tough!

But they're naked, and that's not good! 

Wearing clothes is something they must do...

So Pretty heads out to the local craft store 

To bring home yarn for dresses too.

Then more knitting, and more knitting,
And then some more knitting still...

Until both dolls have new dresses and are decent. 

Yes, I think that fits the bill!

Ok, I am done with the singing now. But I am not done with the knitting! You see, after I finished these two dresses, the dolls looked over and noticed that there was a LOT more yarn available to me, 

and they have demanded more outfits. "At least one more dress each, I think," said the blonde.

"Yes, and wouldn't we like jeans as well? I mean sometimes a girl needs to be a bit more casual," answered her sister. 

"Oh! That's a lovely idea! Jeans! And t-shirts! Why aren't you knitting, Pretty?"

"Oh...," I answered slowly, unsure. "I guess I thought I was finished?" 

"Certainly not!," they replied in unison. And then they made me a list. Purses, hats, tote bags, and maybe a cardigan or shrug? But summer is coming, so they said I could take my time on the sweaters... 

Sigh! Dolls are demanding! But I do enjoy the knitting, so I suppose I will stop complaining and get to it! After all, the forecast calls for rain all weekend, so really...what better way is there to fill my rainy Saturday than knitting and catonlap? 

Is it raining where you are? Do you have weekend plans dictated by demanding dolls? 

Whatever your plans for the weekend, thanks for stopping by, and Knit (or not) in Good Health!

Just Because Follows Fifty

Sooo, last week I turned 50...here, there and everywhere! This morning, I was having a little trouble figuring out how exactly to follow that! I asked the cats for help, and they agreed to brainstorm with me...but then they saw a bird.

I thought back on chocolate covered fruit, sent from the clan in Colorado (THANK YOU!!! Super yummm!!!)...but then I was sad, because it is all eaten up!

I even thought about Barbie...all the Barbies, and all their new clothes, which were so fun to knit! (Photo courtesy of the Colorado girls.)

By the way, as I turned fifty, Peanut was turning 7, and Sweet Pea has managed 3 years and a  couple months...time, she sure does fly!

Anyhoo, I finally settled on the giant pile of yarn at my feet. Even the knitting has been a little uninspired lately. But, as I was getting ready to ship another box of Barbie goodies, it dawned on me that I have not knit a doll in a while...and we all know that I love to knit toys!

So, even though there is no occasion (Christmas is long gone, birthdays are finished, and Easter has passed), I am knitting some just-because-I-want-to dolls!

After all, there are many things in this life that I do because I have to (eat, shower, pay taxes, drive slow), and there are even more that I do because I should (eat less, wear pants, keep from strangling annoying people - yes, you're welcome)...once in awhile, it is good to do something just because it is something I want to do. Today, I want to knit dolls, and knitting dolls does not hurt anyone, so that is what I will do.

I remember thinking, when I was less than 50 years old, that it would be a glorious thing to be all grown up and be able to do whatever I wanted to do, whenever I wanted to do it, just because that is what I wanted to do. As it turns out (spoiler alert!) life rarely works that way for adults. Bills have to be paid, so jobs must be attended. Houses have to be cleaned and families need to eat, so mom naps are often forsaken. Cats must be petted, so even the knitting  sometimes takes a back seat to other things!

However, dull and sad is the life that is void of simple pleasures. I know that I have mentioned abundant life here before, but it bears repeating. Jesus came and died and rose again so that his followers would have life in abundance, including simple and extravagant pleasures! (John 10) Big birthdays and holidays, expensive toys and hobbies, elaborate outings and gatherings are a part of that abundance, for sure. The bigger part, though, is comprised of the smaller things: the perfect strawberry, plump and sweet and juicy, to finish out a simple snack; a really good parking spot, found by chance, in a really bad rainstorm; a word of encouragement, spoken at the right time, and a smile. For me, the little things sometimes include the frivolous knitting of unneeded toys, just because. 

The extravagant is often here and gone quickly. But pay attention. The little things add up, day by day. When they do, they create an overflow of the heart that brings personal and shared joy that can barely be contained! 

Regardless of the big things that you wish you had, can you find some of those little things in your life today? I would bet my eye teeth that they are there, hidden among the have-tos and shoulds, just waiting to be discovered so they can bring more abundance to your life. Keep your heart and your eyes open, and see what you find. Oh, and along the way, do a little something "just because" today. 

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit (what you love) in Good Health!