Feeling Girly here, too.

Dear Mom,

Bonnie Jo wasn't the only one Feeling Girly last week. In celebration of a straight A report card, the Young Lady and I went to get our toes done.

We both selected neon colors- which apparently are so bright they are almost unphotographable. (Orange for me- of course, and green for the Young Lady.)

Patsy was feeling girly, too.

Love,

Kim

Curses

Dear Mom,

Well, I finished the Tomten Jacket baby gift.

front

back

I covered the buttons with fabric recycled from shirt purchased at the Goodwill.

It is hard to see in the pictures, but the tweed yarn has light blue flecks in it.

Sadly, these photos were taken moments (MOMENTS!) before Patsy decided to chew the top two buttons off the sweater making a modest hole in the process.

She is still alive.

And I haven't cried about it. Yet.

I did manage to do a repair, but the sweater is no longer up to my gift giving standards. It will languish here as a sad reminder until it finds a good home. Time to go dive into my stash start Tomten # 2.

Love,

Kim

P.S. We recently determined Patsy to be a Black Mouthed Cur, but if she pulls any more stunts like she did yesterday, I may rename her as a Black Mouthed Curse. ( I just don't want to turn into a Foul-Mouthed Cuss.)

Feeling Girly

Dear Mom,

This morning, I polished my toe nails.  I feel sooo much better!

Love, Bonnie Jo

All kinds of stuff

Dear Mom,

There has been so much activity here that I haven't been able to sit down and compose myself long enough to put a blog post together. Since realizing that Patsy and doggie daycare are not a good combination, I have been focusing on staying ahead of her energy. Regular visits to the dog park and long walks seem to be working, proving that a tired dog is a good dog. I am getting my exercise, and Bumper's endurance has certainly improved. This time last year, a one mile walk was his limit. And sometimes finishing that left him with a slight limp the next day. Now we take 1 1/2 to 2 mile walks a couple of times a day. We also try to visit the dog park several times a week.

The best part of the dog park is the small pond. I don't mind a wet dog, and I've stocked up on blankets from the Goodwill to protect my car seats. One evening last week, during one of our visits, a duck flew in and landed on the pond. Bumper was on immediate high alert and headed straight into the pond, determined to get that duck. I wish I had my camera with me! Patsy, who is not afraid of the water but will only get in as deep as she is able to keep her paws in the muck, decided that running laps around the perimeter of the pond might help Bumper in his quest. 

Even with Bumper's   ahen    natural buoyancy, I was surprised at how well he swam. The Young Lady, who was with me, pointed out that BumperJosephMichaelPhelps was smiling. The duck managed to keep himself at a consistent distance away from Bumper, but in the center of the pond and away from Perimeter Patsy. Bumper turned back, reevaluated, and went for it, swimming all the way across the pond, "chasing" the duck. The duck probably decided it wasn't worth  all the maneuvers required to avoid the dog on perimeter patrol and the one in the water, and flew away. I wish I could hire that duck for regular visits.

The commotion of replacing the siding on the house is now behind us. We have a minor checklist of things to take care of and then we can officially say we are done.(And write that last check.) We spent part of our Memorial Day replacing our outdoor light fixtures. With fresh paint and siding, the old fixtures looked....old. I still need to put the inside back together. I took everything off the exterior walls before it fell off.

The only casualty of the exterior work was the postponement of the Annual Last Day of School Snow Cone Party. The painters were not finished and I wasn't willing to risk having me, the kids, the neighbors and our snowcones/frozen adult beverages covered in a mist of Sherwin Williams SW3004 "Summerhouse Beige".  But I think the painters would have enjoyed the party.

I got terribly little knitting done over the long weekend. Small price to pay for all that we did accomplish, though. All the dog walking is wearing ME out and when I sit down to knit at the end of the day, I find myself dozing off waaaay too soon. I am about 2/3 of the way done with a little baby jacket. It is Elizabeth Zimmermann's Tomten, one of my favorite baby things to knit, and one of my favorite baby/kid things I made for my kids. I'll show you when it is all done.

I can also proudly show off this project, which was finished on Sunday:

My Hero is reconstructing our Adirondack chairs using his broken hockey sticks. Both foot stools and one chair are complete - he just needs to collect more sticks to finish the second chair. They are Sturdy and Comfy (just like us) and hopefully we will be able to spend many hours relaxing time in them this summer with frosty summer beverages nearby ( and my knitting, too!)

Love,

Kim

My latest finished object

Dear Mom-

I finished and blocked my latest sweater. I'll call it Wishbone because of the stitch detail at the neckline. The pattern is an Adrienne Vittadini design.

The actual color is more of a cranberry red. The only change I made to the pattern was to shorten the sleeves by an inch. When I make this again (because I will) I will lengthen the body by and inch and maybe the neck by another 2 inches, I think,. I'll also make the next smallest size. I have a bad habit of knitting things too large for myself.

This was a quick, easy knit. Here is a close-up of the stitch pattern at the neck-

I have a baby gift to knit and then I really should finish some things that have been abandoned for whatever reason. I also need to get back on the sock-a-week plan which seems to have been replaced by dog walking and gardening. I may need to revise it to sock-a-month.

Love,

Kim

Knit Picks

Dear Mom,
Two of my designs went "live" yesterday on the Knit Picks website.
Over the past 6-8 weeks, I've been designing, pattern writing, knitting and photographing 2 children's items for Knit Picks Independent Designer Program. It was for these patterns that I learned to chart with Excel and draw a schematic on Word. It was also for the Knit Picks website that Bonnie so thoughtfully photographed me for my "bio" page. You can see the bio and chosen photo here.

You can go here and here for a closer look at the patterns.

I had tremendous help from Mary Lee, who test knit the boys sweater for me. I think you can click on this and see a picture of the sweater she knit for a grandson. I love the color combination she chose. Mary Lee helped me to look at my words through someone else's eyes and gave me the priceless reassurance that someone else could knit what I had written. If  it weren't for Mary Lee, the sleeves would probably be too long. On top of all that, she kept her sense of humor intact despite my too many "change row 3 from this to this" and "here is another correction" emails. But we did it and I thank her tremendously, for both doing it and for doing it at lightening speed. Sharing the process with Mary Lee made it all the more fun. Way more fun.

Love,
Kim

In Yesterday's Mail

Dear Mom,

Yesterday's mail brought me some very nice things.

The first was the July issue of Creative Knitting magazine, which has my fun little Hopscotch skirt in it on page 28.

It also shows my friend Carol showing off the changes she made to her "Walk in the Parka" in the letters to the editor on page 5!!!!

The other thing that arrived was this!

This is the bag o'wool, which I washed and picked to the best of my ability, and then sent off to Ohio Valley Natural Fibers to be carded into roving that I can now spin. I am amazed at how much roving that the wool became and I am now anxious to spin it and see how much yarn I can make. I wonder if there is an entire sweater in that box?  I was also pleasantly surprised at the very reasonable processing cost. I have a second bag o'wool waiting in the garage. I guess it is time to start washing and picking raw material out of it and send it on its way!  And THEN I can start playing with some of the dyeing techniques I learned at that workshop a few weeks ago!!!

Love,

Kim

A Tour of the Castle

Dear Mom,

Last Friday, I felt it was time to take a look inside Queen Alessandra's castle to check on the progress and expansion of the colony.  It has been three weeks since I installed the four new frames of bees into the hive.  My friend and mentor, Melissa, helped locate Queen Alessandra two weeks ago, and I have been noticing increased traffic and activity of the bees.  My eager assistant, N, got the smoker started.  The smoke calms and quiets the bees by disrupting the alarm pheromone sent out by the guard bees.  Since we would be opening the hive up and moving frames around, we definitely wanted to smoke the bees...just a little bit goes a long way.  N also photographed our castle tour and took some great photos for me to show you!

The bees have built some extra comb which is coming out the ventilation hole of the inner cover.  I later scraped this off and added it back into the hive body for the bees to reuse. 

N and I were thrilled to see that the bees have expanded out onto the newer frames.  We estimated they have drawn out (built new wax comb) on at least 80% of the foundation and we concluded it was time to add a new super (a second floor to the castle)!

The bees were calm and cooperative.  We pulled a frame from the other side of the brood box and were excited to see what the bees have been doing.  The white stuff at the top of the frame is capped honey cells!

We did not see Queen Alessandra, but we weren't really looking for her.  It is obvious that the colony is growing and we know she is inside one of these busy inner frames laying eggs. 

I have to look in the reference books and ask a lot of questions (thank goodness for Melissa) to figure out what I'm doing.  I listen to webinars while I'm ironing!  I feel I only know 10% of what there is to know about bees...but I am just LOVIN' it! 

And the castle just grew taller!

Love, Bonnie Jo

The Photo Shoot

Dear Mom,

For the past 6 weeks or so, I've been working on a couple of patterns for Knit Picks. I thought all the hard work was done when I emailed  the instructions and sent the samples off. I was wrong.

The final part of the process turned out to be the toughest. They asked for a photo of myself and a brief bio for their website.

I stewed over the bio and wording for a little while, organized my thoughts and wrote the short paragraph. Then I set about trying to take a self portrait. With my camera held at arms length, I tried different lighting, different poses and different backgrounds. I tried not to feel dumb as I stood in the backyard and smiled at the camera I was holding. I tried to make myself look less wrinkled, and thinner. And less gray. And less like Daddy. I tried to find my "best side".

I was getting discouraged.

I enlisted the help of the Young Lady. "Take a few pictures of me with Bumper", I begged. "It is for a website."

The Young Lady has inherited her Grandpa's love of animals, and his talent for making them the focal point of a photograph.

Next, I tried using my little tripod and the self timer. I got an acceptable picture, but Bonnie came to my rescue.

She had several ideas for our Photo Shoot and was determined to take a good one that would not feature a mole, wrinkles or gray hair. She promised nothing about skinny.

We took shots of me watering the daisies with Patsy.

And pictures of me sitting on the front porch until Bumper decided to see what was going on...

And some action shots of me knitting on the back porch, which worked fine until Patsy grabbed the yarn ball and ran.

Bonnie took her job seriously. She even told me to "WORK IT" and asked about the wind machine.

Then we laughed.

And I laughed even harder when I noticed her photographer's stance.

Love,

Kim

I AM WOMAN....

HEAR ME PLOW!

Dear Mom,

For most Hoosiers, the month of May in Indiana means the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race and all of the excitement that goes along with it.   But not me.  For me, it means planting the garden...which means firing up the tiller and working the soil until it is dark brown and weed-free.  Love it, love it, LOVE IT!!  I can't describe the feeling it brings, but I'm willing to bet you know the feeling....a sense of pride, accomplishment and empowerment!  It is mostly because there is just something about operating Rhonda Honda.  She may not be a full-size rototiller, but she is a power tool nonetheless.  She is my stress management therapy.  As far as power tools go, every gal should have one of these.

This year, I am planting a "salsa garden" so I can make lots and LOTS of Wendy's Salsa, which by the way, happens to be the best salsa ON THE PLANET.  Along with the tomatoes, peppers, garlic and onion, I also planted a few rows of green beans and some cucumbers.  I have never put in a garden without cucumbers and I can't imagine a summer without fresh cucumbers to snack on before dinner.

OKAY LADIES...START YOUR ENGINES!

Love, Bonnie Jo

TA DAAAAA!

Dear Mom,
Here are the results of Saturday's Dye Workshop, all dried and dressed up. I am unreasonably happy and excited about these bundles of fiber. I want to play with them and make some more!

Love,
Kim

I'm Dyeing Here!

Dear Mom,
If learning to spin wasn't enough, on Saturday I learned how to dye all that wool. I took a beginner's dye workshop with Rita Petteys. The class was held at Tabby Tree Weaver.

Rita's company is Yarn Hollow, and much of the hand painted roving that I have purchased to spin has been hers.

I am glad that I didn't know ahead of time that I would be called upon to:

use the metric system

weigh and measure stuff in grams

do math 

because I might have talked myself out of the class.

As it was, Rita did an excellent job explaining the process and we all carried on with no tears, tantrums or nasty dye accidents.

In class we learned both immersion dyeing and hand painting. This workshop was focused on protein based fibers which include animal fibers, nylon, silk and soy. We started with immersion dyeing and a skein of yarn. The hard part was choosing a color. Rita suggested picking the OPPOSITE of our favorite color, which in my case meant that I would be using a green dye. I chose "Golden Pear". Because if it has to be green it may as well sound tasty. Plus, the Young Lady likes green.

We weighed and calculated and measured. Our yarns were soaked and the kettles were simmering.

Here is what my yarn looked like in the pot, after it had absorbed all the dye and while it was cooling:

The only good thing about our unseasonably frigid weather on Saturday was that it helped to speed up the cooling process.

Next up we learned how to hand paint a skein of yarn. This time I chose colors that make me happy.  We covered our workspace with plastic wrap, arranged our skeins into ovals and set about painting the yarn with our chosen dyes. Literally- sponge paintbrushes were dipped into jars filled with dyes and applied to the yarn at whim. I already have a plan for my bright red and orange yarn!

Then we moved on to hand painting on roving. I tried duplicating one of my favorite YarnHollow colorways, and then painted another roving working with colors I would not normally choose. The last bit of dyeing I attempted, because I thought that it would be what I will most likely try at home, was immersion dyeing the roving. This may be my favorite result of them all, and I can't wait to spin it and see how it looks. I dyed the superwash merino roving in "Turkey Red" - a very cranberry red.

Once cooled, the dyed fibers are hung out to dry. Here is a good sampling of most of what the class produced on Saturday-

Even after spending the day on the porch on a drying rack, my fibers are still damp. I hope that tomorrow they are dry enough that I can take a good picture and show them to you. Needless to say, I am catching myself daydreaming about dyeing enough roving to spin into enough yarn to make a really special sweater. And more.....

Love,

Kim  

May 9, 2010

Dear Mom, Kim and Wendy ~

Happy Mother's Day!

Love, Bonnie Jo

The Mini

Dear Mom,
On Saturday, the 34th annual 500 Festival Mini- Marathon kicks off the Month of May in Indianapolis. I think it was twenty years ago that I walked in my first mini-marathon. It was not my last mini.

It was my second to last.

That first marathon, I walked the 13-point-whatever miles with some co-workers. The dentist I was working for at the time was (and still is) an avid runner and he convinced some of us that we could do it. So we did. It was a bright, hot day. Perfect for a nice long walk. Until you are so hot and sweaty and hungry and your fingers have swelled so much that you can't make a fist, that you start praying for clouds and a significant drop in temperature. Back then the Mini was held just before the actual race at the end of the month, started at Monument Circle and finished at the track, forcing the participants to finish the last 2 1/2 grueling miles without shade, on hot asphalt and with your legs striking the pavement at different levels thanks to the banking of the track all while suffering the illusion that the next turn was within reach when really it was a mile away. But we got to cross the "yard of bricks" that is the finish line.Since then the race has been moved to early in the month, and the route has been changed. I think they still run on the track but it is only part of the race route.

The next year, with the promise of unlimited cookies at the finish, I convinced Wendy to walk with me. She was a nearly newlywed, still living in an apartment, and we trained separately, but boasted of our training progress. This was back in the days when a Sony Walkman was the hi-tech way of taking your music with you, and I can remember walking many miles and listening to Prince's (he was still Prince back then) Batman soundtrack. I don't know what Wendy listened to. Probably not Prince.

Our Race Day arrives and it is a rainy one. Wendy drives herself to my house, and I drive us to the track. We park and take a shuttle to Monument Circle and await the start of the race. Personally, even though my feet squelched with every saturated step, I felt good. I was not hot. It became clear about halfway through the race that Wendy was not feeling the joy. At one point I decided I couldn't walk that slow anymore and told her that I would meet her just past the finish line. "Turn left through the gate. I will be right there on the right side. Don't forget. There are cookies!!!" And on I went. I ended up finishing with my best time. I know. Best of two is not worth mentioning, but still. I crossed the finish line, grabbed some cookies and water and waited. And watched. And waited.

I finally see Wendy approaching the finish line. She manages to make it to the left through the gate, but in her dazed stupor, she walked straight past me and sort of winds her way in the opposite direction AWAY from the cookies. I fought my way through the crowd, grab her and saying the only thing it would be possible for her to comprehend, shout, "THE COOKIES ARE OVER HERE!!"

At this point, a miracle happens. Wendy is able to walk at a brisker pace than she was able to manage for the last hour. She has focus and determination. I direct her to the cookie table. She picks up one cookie, and her rain soaked, shaking hand is poised to take a second cookie when.... SLAP! Her hand is smacked away by the lady managing the cookie table. I was afraid Wendy would start to cry. I don't really remember much of what happened after that. I just know we found our way back to the car, threw modesty out the window and changed into dry clothes right there in the front seat of my Mazda and drove back to my house. I think we stopped for fast food burgers on the way.

I also remember that Wendy didn't have the energy to drive home and David had to come and get her. Sadly, I have no pictures from our rain soaked accomplishment. I cannot find the photo taken when I crossed that wet finish line all those years ago. I wonder if Wendy still has hers.

Love,
Kim

p.s. Yes, as revealed in the picture, I did walk with my t-shirt tucked in and I had a cute belt in my walking shorts. Clearly, I did not know what I was doing. I do know that I wore knit pants with an elastic waist the second year. Probably still had my shirt tucked in, though!

The Haircut

Dear Mom,
Pippers went from this:

To this:

And this:

So much nicer!
Love,
Wendy

The Graduate

Dear Mom,

She did it!
Love,
Kim

Pasta!

Dear Mom,
Several hours on Friday were spent getting a lesson in pasta making from Brother. I also asked him to teach me how to make Alfredo sauce,because Fettuccine Alfredo is one of My Hero's favorites. So off we went, just before noon, to purchase the ingredients and look at pasta machines. Our plan was to use Brother's pasta machine, but I wanted his expert advice when I purchased my own. I went ahead and bought one, knowing that I could return it (unused, of course) if I found the process too difficult.
We did not linger over ingredients or other kitchen gadgets. Being his father's son, we had a mission to accomplish and we were sticking to it! NO DETOURS.

We returned to my kitchen, found the least girlie apron that would fit him, and set about making pasta.

"This is STUPID EASY", he tells me.

He was right.

How can it be that egg and flour can be manipulated and formed into noodles? And why don't they boil into one messy blob in the pot? A kitchen mystery, and frankly, one that I had to see to believe.

Easy, but a little messy.

I am thinking that once I am a more efficient pasta maker, I won't have quite so much mess to clean up. Plus there were two cooks.

We made fettuccine noodles, then we proceeded to make Alfredo sauce. Again, Stupid Easy. But time consuming. I am not a fan of standing over a sauce pan and stirring. But I did it, and I'll do it again.

After Brother left, I went solo and made some ravioli. (Fettuccine Alfredo is not one of my faves. I much prefer ravioli, so while I was at it, I decided to make both.) I stuffed the ravioli with spinach, ricotta and feta cheese. Next time I will add some garlic, because my combo was a bit bland. I also tried a new tomato sauce recipe. It was good, but it didn't have the zing I wanted.

After literally spending the entire afternoon cooking and anticipating the meal, I was so anxious to taste everything that I forgot to take any pictures of the end results.

We all sat down and gobbled it up. My Hero said that it may be the best Fettuccine Alfredo he has ever eaten.......
What really happened is this:
I said, " Is it the BEST Fettuccine Alfredo you've ever had in your WHOLE LIFE?" and he said, " May be."
I think it was.

And I am keeping my pasta machine.

Love,
Kim

Coffee and Cookies Combined!

Dear Mom,
I have enjoyed 2 glorious days off from any kind of "work" so I took the days to be lazy and enjoy the yard, the weather (knitting outside!) and baking! I baked 4 loaves of Grams' Bread, otherwise known as Mercy Watson Toast, white chocolate chip cookies that were terrible (but eaten anyway!) and then these:

Coffee Bean Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup shortening

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 cup chopped almonds, toasted

1 cup chocolate-covered coffee beans (purchased at Starbucks, of course!)

1 cup heath bar chips

Beat butter and shortening at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add sugars, beating well.  Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.

Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; add to butter mixture, beating well.

Stir in chopped almonds, chocolate-covered coffee beans and heath bar chips.  Cover and chill dough, if desired.

Drop dough by heaping teaspoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-11 minutes or until golden.  Cool 1 minute on baking sheets; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Yield:  4 dozen

These cookies have always been my favorites!!  An indulgence for me.  The kids got the white chocolate chip cookies; I ate all of the coffee bean cookies!

Much has been brewing during these past two days . . . . all of which I will share in the next coming week!  In the meantime, I can't wait to read about The Queen! And I STILL have my Alice Starmore "Reef" sweater that was properly steeked with the aid of Kim and her bottle of wine, but never finished.  It was to be for the teenager when he was 2 . . . and then the Diva . . . and then Pipsqueak  . . . . . .

Enjoy your weekend!

Love,

Wendy

Slowing down, moving fast and trying to feel groovy. And some knitting, too.

Dear Mom,
Lately I have been feeling in a perpetual hurry. Mostly it is all self-inflicted and at some point this week I realized I need to slow myself down. Time to dig out some Simon & Garfunkel and remember to slow down, make the morning last. You know....Feel Groovy. Well, try to anyway.

The What I Need to Do's are colliding with the What I Want to Do's and I've become a spinning top. So much to do, where to start? I don't know why I get frantic about it, everything gets done in its time. It just doesn't always get done in the time frame that I plan on. For instance, yesterday I intended to burn off some energy getting the house clean. All was well until I found an empty retainer case (again). Apparently Patsy is concerned with her oral health, because this is the second time I've had to search for that retainer and I've lost track of how many toothbrushes we've replaced. The first retainer search ended with the retainer intact. Not so lucky this time. I scold the dog. I call the orthodontist to schedule an appointment for new retainer. While I am on the phone I decide to call Brother and ask him to till up a new garden spot. Yes, he can, right now. Outside to stake off desired location. Brother tills. Time for lunch. Brother calls to tell me something. (Can't remember what.) I ask him about making pasta. We talk about making pasta. We talk about pasta machines. We decide to make pasta, soon. I look on the internet at pasta machines. The afternoon is slipping away. On my list of Want to Do's is the Green Sweater. It has reached a point in its construction that requires me to cut the steeks and I need daylight to do this. If I don't get it done now, before the after school routine begins, it will be another day, or two, before I can do it. I stop everything and git r done. I can clean tomorrow or on Saturday when it rains.

I think the steeking process is something you might find interesting. The Green Sweater is going to be a cardigan when it grows up, but it is knitted entirely in the round in one piece, not flat or in pieces. I am basically knitting a wonky tube. To turn the tube into a cardigan with sleeves enlists the use of steeks. Steeks are basically extra stitches placed in strategic locations to be used as selvages. All the sweater shaping is done outside of these selvages. Constructing a sweater this way is faster- I can knit around in circles a lot faster than I can knit a row, turn the sweater to the wrong side, and purl back. I think most knitters can work a knit stitch faster than a purl stitch. I can, anyway. Another good thing about working in rounds is that the right side is always facing while you knit, especially helpful when working a color or stitch pattern. The Green Sweater is just plain old stockinette stitch with very little shaping and no color or pattern to keep track of. On something like this I can really get in the zone and knit at a pretty good clip.

So, back to yesterday. I had reached the point where nothing more can happen to the Green Sweater until I secure and cut the steeks. It looked like this:

a wonky tube

There are four steeks on this sweater. One at the center front, another at the neck opening, and two for the arms. 

At this point, I mark the center of the steeks with a basting yarn in a contrasting color. You can see that here:

Now for the scary part.

Assemble the necessary tools:

1. 
   
   Good light. Daylight preferred.
2. 
   
   Cheaters.
3. 
   
   Puppies sniffing at your feet are not helpful. Try to distract them, or do this when they are sleeping.
4. 
   
   Sewing machine
5. 
   
   Scissors
6. 
   
   Wine. For after you are done. I think Elizabeth Zimmermann suggests lying down in a dark room. A glass of wine is more fun.

Time to secure the steeks. There is more than one way to do this, and this time I am using the sewing machine method. This is how I did my very first steek, back in 1992, at Meg Swansen's Knitting Camp. I was smart enough, back then, to realize that I had better learn it in the presence of an expert and with supportive knitters beside me.

It seems wrong to use a sewing machine on a hand knit, but I like to use this method because there is less bulk in the selvage edge that is created. Plus, my sewing machine, Judy Jetson, likes it when she feels needed.

The tiniest possible stitch is sewed right next to the basting thread.

First on one side, then the other. Again, I use a contrasting thread so that it is easy to see. Plus, this edge will be hidden and the thread won't show when the sweater is finished.

The really scary part.

Cut the steeks. Yes. Cut that perfectly good knitting. That wonky tube is good for nothing until you cut it. Except here is the disadvantage to steeks. There is no going back once the steeks are cut. Honestly, there is no going back once you've run it through the sewing machine, because I cannot for the life of me imagine ripping out those tiny stitches and having the yarn survive. But the cutting is final.

Truthfully, this is only Very Scary the first time. Once the dizzy spell passed, I found the whole process to be liberating. I steek freely now.

So, here is Elle, modeling the sweater with the steeks cut open. The sweater has not been joined at the shoulders yet, but you get the idea.

Looks more like a cardigan now, doesn't it!

I went ahead and blocked the sweater at this point. I need to turn the steeks under and sew down some facings, and it seemed prudent for me to block first to flatten those curling edges and make the sewing down process easier. I'll join the shoulders and sew the facings and then I can start the sleeves.

So last night, I was faced with only socks to knit. Rather than do the smart thing, which would be to knit the socks or go to an unfinished project, I decided to start something new.  I cast on for this.

Love,

Kim