Sad :(

Unfortunately it seems as though Magknits.com is no more. I loved this small collection of free patterns. The owner was having financial difficulties and weighed the few gripes she got against the many positive love she never recieved (seems as though more people send hate mail than love mail) and decided it wasn't worth her time anymore. Or at least that is how I read the thread over at Ravelry. So while I still love love love many of the patterns that I reviewed, they are currently no more. :( Some of the patterns maybe available through one of the many archive websites, but not the newer ones. I'll miss them. Hopefully the designers will let us know if they publish their works somewhere else. Farewell Magknits. You will be missed!

April Magknits review

Seems like the only time I have to blog is when there is a new issue of an online magazine. (sigh) In general knitting news, I am up to my elbows in tiny baby hats for a charity knitting project for Obama. I'm loving the instant gratification of these tiny hats that I can make in a couple hours. (Yes; I'm a slow knitter)

So on with the review....

First up is the aptly named Sweetness It's a simple spaghetti string tank for babies to toddlers. It truly is sweet. Still need a friend to have a baby for me so I can knit.

While I find Bellflower to be pretty I also find it to be not "one size fits all" as eluded to in the pattern. A shrug that is 38" long and 12" around is not going to fit everyone. I like the pattern, though and if I figure out a way to increase the size a bit it might be a consideration. Seeing, though, as 12" would be snug on my arms, I would be totally uncomfortable in this shrug. Lacking was a front view of how this sweater fits across the front. I'm presuming from looking at the pattern that other than arms there is no "front" and would accentuate the bustline quite a bit (as most shrugs do - this can be good or bad depending on how much notice you want of your bustage.)

While I know that Blush is knit, it sure is reminiscent of the 70's granny square crocheted vests. Didn't everyone have one of those? I'm sure it is just the checkerboard pattern, but there are some things that should just remain in history. Although, knowing my daughters, they are going to love this and I will be relegated to making a pair. It is nicely sized out to a 52" size, so kudos to Kessa Tay for the ample sizes!

While Sarah Wilson's Angularities are very pretty, I'm not sure I will be knitting them. They aren't my style. I love mitered squares and maybe this will be something I introduce to the girls (which they would wear.)

I am in love with Rhombus by Andrea Weinrick, but then they are socks with a unique angle on them. These are simply lovely. I wish they had been sized out to a men's size as well. I can easily see these be a plain enough sock for the pickiest of men yet entertaining enough to make the interesting for the one knitting the socks. My biggest reason for not knitting Dan socks is that he wants something "simple" and not noticeable. I told him if he wanted plain black socks he could go buy plain black socks.

Ok, til next time. Or whenever I remember to post here again (whichever comes first).

Spring Knitty Review

Once again I bring you my review of the newest patters at Knitty.com, an online free magazine for knitters.

Emma's unmentionables are really cute, but I just can't see my girls wearing these. I can see using the wonderful lace edging on the sleeves of a sweater, but I just don't think I'm up for a pair of knit bloomers.

Charm shrug is really a sweet springy sweater for a little girl. Alas, I have no little girls in my life anymore. I have big girls. It would make a darling Easter shrug as well. Not that there is much time left before Easter.

Juju pants are just too cute for words. But again it goes back to that problem of not having small children in the house. If I were a crazy cat woman I might consider making them for one of the cats. Rest assured, I'm not that crazy. Besides I have way too many of my own projects to contend with to take on cat knitting.

I really really like Jaden and the designer, Ruby Lo, has taken the time to figure out sizes for up to a 54" chest! Way to go. Now if I could only wear a boat neck and not show off the major part of my cleavage. I may tinker with this one when I get some time to see if I can make the neckline less deep. This has enough interest in it to keep me engaged. She recommends a mercerized cotton for this which would make it a perfect Florida or summer sweater.

I wasn't crazy for Nob Hill If I want a shrug I want it to be lightweight. This just is too unbalanced for a shrug. And it isn't the assymetricalness of it either. It's too much bulk for a shrug. Although I do think this would knit up quickly seeing as it is using a nice bulky yarn. And it does go up to a 3X/4X or 56" chest. This might be nicer a bit longer and with longer (at least 3/4 length) sleeves.

I started to dis this sweater at first, but after looking at Marjorie a little closer it really did remind me of the lovely sweaters form the 50's sweater girls. I like the interest at the bottom and the smooth look at the top. And with sizing up to a 5X (62.5" chest) this is a great sweater for so many sizes. The cabling would make it more fit around the middle giving off a nice girly shape to most any figure.

I'm really not into fitted clothing. Too many curves. But Talia is really pretty. And I may make it in the largest size to make it more flowing. SweaterBabe, the designer, has this going up to a size 3X (54" chest).

Yosemite is pretty. I like all the cables and the polo-like collar. I just wish it went bigger than a 42" chest. Done in a nice cotton/linen this would be a wonderful summer sweater. For someone smaller than me.

I'm really not a vest person. So while Honeycomb is pretty and interesting, it just isn't something I would run out and knit. I like the texture, though and think that Sarah Castor, the designer, did a beautiful job with making it interesting.

The Lace Ribbon Scarf is pretty. I like the lacework on it. I just live in Florida and there are only so many scarves you can have.

Laminaria is a really pretty shawl. I live the Estonian lace and the "beautiful undulating forms" (as knitty says). I may have to make this as a long term project (and remember to put in lots of life lines.

Mosey are really cute cabled legwarmers. Although, personally, I'd ditch the pom poms. Maybe it has something to do with Britney wearing pompoms on her boots in the middle of summer.

The girls and I thought that Paw cozy was just simply ingenious. Not ingenious enough for us to make one. Besides the cats probably wouldn't want to go for a walk on a leash (let alone go outside). But it may be an idea for a Christmas present to the dog walker across the street. (With a matching little jacket for Buddy).

Salto completely and totally is a must do. With the changing cables and the interesitng leg work, I have GOT to make these socks. I can even handle that they are in one color! (Although mine may be blue or orange).

And speaking of "must do socks" take a look at Posey with those wonderful two-toned half squares! Now that is one sharp sock. There does seem to be a lot of finishing work in these, but the final result is absolutely FUN!

And while I can appreciate An American in China for what it is, these socks are just way to bulky and boring for me. The bottoms are a bit interesting, but the rest of the sock just sort of is there.

I really like Brighton, but may have to make it smaller. While I tend to carry a lot of things around, I think this bag may be a bit excessive. If I go this big I'll be having the whole family's stuff to carry with me.

And while I found Spirogyra to be pretty, they truly just look like hand versions of Cookie A's Pomatomus. Uh, did the editors not notice the similarity? While the pattern is written a bit differently, it is still essentially the same. And I've already made Pomatomus (wearing them as I type this as a matter of fact), so would really need something quite different to hold my attention.

OK, that's all for now. Off to shower and finish off the first of my Jaywalker socks. Wee!

Magknits March review

Yes; late but it's finally here. My review of the Magknits 2008 patterns.

Tiny Bubbles This is a fun little scarf. I like the colors and considering you only need 200 yards you could really make this of just about any yarn. Not sure I would make it for myself as I'm not really a big scarf person, but definitely on my list for potential gifts for friends.

Josephine is a nice simple sweater (OK, looks simple to me) but unfortunately, it is sized only up to a 48 inche bust and designers have yet to consider making sizes for us BBB's. I like that it is made from some nice chunky yarn (Rowan Big Wool) so it would knit up really fast. Only 8 skeins for the largest size. I doubt it would be that hard to incrase, though looking at the pattern. Maybe if I get to Oregon before the world ends I'll make this. It is fairly impractical for Florida.

Now I could definitely get into Katlyn. Again this is a lovely sweater with great lines with a sort of kimono look made with bulky yarn (Brown Sheep Bulky) I'd probably substitute Wool-Ease Bulky just 'cause (it's cheaper and more easily obtainable for me). And (drumroll please) the designer has made this large enough for an XXL (60" bust!) And I can actually get away with only a regular XL. Woot!! Give this designer (Amber Daniels) a prize! Of course I'll probably make it blue or green. :)

Not sure I need a water bottle tote, but if I did I could definitely see making Sipp-a-Roo I like the pattern and may find a way to incorporate it into something else (maybe a shorter coffee cosy for Dan's endless Starbucks runs - since he never can remember to take his refillable mug).

Miss Muffett could almost make me want to have another child. Note that I did say almost. Maybe one of my younger friends will grace me with a child I can knit for. This is just a darling little knit dress. I just love everything about this little dress! The designer (Marjorie Brigham) was kind enough to give a variety of yarn choices for this little dress including some superwash yarns. I could even see this knit with a nice cool bamboo for hotter climates or maybe even linen or linen/cotton blend.

I want to make Pentapus as gloves. They are just so adorable. I'd even make them for myself! A simple modification of this stuffed plushie would make simply adorable gloves!

That's it for this month's Magknits!

Yes we can socks!

Anna Zilboorg (isn't that just an awesome name?) has created some wonderful socks for the Obama campaign. YOu can also see what they look like here (Yes; same pic) You can do them like she has them made up (Yes we can on one sock and Si se puede on the other) or do the same sock twice. I like the idea of having one of each! So how can you get these wonderful socks? Simple. Make a donation of any size to the Obama campaign and forward your donation acknowledgement to her at campaignSocks@swva.net She will then send you a pdf of the pattern to your e-mail account.

Anna Zilboorg has written some great books including Simply Socks: 45 Traditional Turkish Patterns to Knit, Knitting for Anarchists, and Magnificent Mittens. Her work is just beautiful!

Now if you want to make this even more wonderful (at least in this knitter's opinion) make your donation through Ravelry Knitters where we are trying to raise $7500 by April first (hey, under $600 to go)

Pomatotmus Socks and MagKnits Review for January

Yep, they are done. I almost loathed making the second sock. Partly because I had to rip it out 3 times. Not the first sock. No. That went together without any problems at all. It was that stupid second sock! I truly need to sit down with the new two-socks-at-one-time-on-one-long-circular-needle book I just bought and just force myself to learn how to do that. Maybe after I get Jaywalking off the needles. I'm a third finished with the first sock which I'm doing with the new Noro sock yarn I bougth in Portland. Here's a peek:



The Review as Promised
Starting with Bliss which is a small blanket. It's pretyt and I think it is a darling small afghan, but I don't do afghans. Maybe if my brother were to produce me another niece or nephew I might maybe perhaps make something like this. It's listed as Intermediate, but I think that is a bit harsh. I don't think it is tres simple, but more brain power needed than just knit knit knit.

While I think that J.D. is a lovely sweater it still isn't something I would want to knit. It still doesn't have enough needle interest in it for me. Although I love the play of the houndstooth in blue and white and inconsistant throughout.

I like it when designers turn things on their sides and give you a diffrent perspective to knitting. I think that is why I am taken with Lucy. It's a nice lacy cap that is knit from side to side rather than bottom to top as most wooly hats are. Being purple helps as well. Definitely in my list of things to make (one day).

Emily has been looking for an interesting hand warmer to use for the lovely silk and tenceal yarn she bought in Portland. Evangeline may just be it. I like both the short and long versions, but think she may only have enough for the shorter version. This lovely likke cabled pattern is fun and interesting. But then I do love cables.

Orno Abaci is a nice simple geeky scarf pattern. Unfortunately the main geek in my life wouldn't wear a scarf.

Now this is fun! But then I like color work, so I'm drawn to Stranded. I like how al the different patterns are put together and it doesn't look overly busy. Wouldn't it be lovely in purple and buttercup yellow?

That's it until next month's issue (which hopefully will be out in a day or two!)

A long post of catching up!

UGH!! I'm so far behind with all my blogs. Here's a quick catch up though.

This the Hervor Hat I made from the Elsabeth Lavold Viking Patterns book. I love how it turned out. The kids call it my Pie Crust hat because it does indeed look like a pie crust. The only thing I don't like is that I ended up with rather large ladders between the dpn sections so if I ever make this pattern again I'll decrease the needle size one down to try to eliminate so much gapping. They didn't shrink much even after blocking (yeah, I actually blocked something!)


My friend Suna gave me a "You Make My Day" award. Now I'm supposed to list 10 bloggers that I like and give them awards. Oy! OK, here goes:

1. My Autumn Friend Diane. Diane is a wonderful left-handed knitter who has created a video and learning tools for other left-handed knitters. She has started her own crusade to dispel the myths that lefties can't knit uniquely.

2. Greet's Middle Ages This is my friend Sarah's SCA blog. While not totally about knitting, she is a wonderful fiber artist and does wonderful things with wooly stuff as well as sew, cook, embroidery, and all kinds of "Peasant Tech" things.

3. Knitting Guy Mason is a truck-driving-hat-wearing-knitting-guy that I met through KnittingHelp.com His blog is always fun to read and filled with all kinds of fibery and on-the-road curiosities.

4. Slug Crossings is my friend Laura's blog. She updates it about weekly and is filled with all kinds of information from medieval costuming to the current political woes.

5. Julie's knitting blog is filled with knitting, sewing and pictures of an ever so cute baby!

6. Silver(whose real namei is Kristin, but I don't know anyone online who calls her that) is another KH friend who has a wonderful collection of sock tutorials. I think she is my most knitting devoted friend seeing as she did get herself inked with a knitting tat!

7. Jeanie is a great knitter who also is able to organize swaps very well! I know her through both KH and Ravelry.

8. ArtLady is how I will always think of Dollyce because her knitted work is just SO gorgeous! Check out her finished projects on Ravelry to see for yourself. She's also "in charge" of the stash busting group at KH!

9. Astabeth is another SCA fibery friend who actually lives in my own kingdom, but we keep missing each other at events. I try to keep up with her through her blog and Ravelry, though (if she would actually update her blog more often!)

10. Elmsey Rose is a SCA calligrapher who dissects alphabets (I think for fun). I try to keep up with her blog as she inspires me!


This is what I found on my desk this morning. It is made by my daughter Emily. She's into making plushie things of late. This is a plushie tea bag. It's really cute! She's also made me a pin cushion, but I haven't taken a picture of it yet.

OK, I think I'm fairly caught up, although I do owe a review of the January MagKnits before they post the February one.

I want this hat

We went and saw the Golden Compass yesterday. I'm not sure if it is a good idea or not to take a row of knitters to see a movie that has lots of knitware in it. We found several pieces that we want to add to our knitting collection. The one we all liked most was this one:


If anyone knows of a pattern like this PLEASE let me know. I really want to make this hat and have two daughters who want one. I'll even pay (nominally) for it (IOW I don't want to buy a whole book for one pattern.)

Time for Reviews

The new Magknits and Knitty are up and it is time for my scathing reviews :)

Magknits first. Well, aside from Hannah, a cute chunky weight quick hat with a hole for a ponytail, and Vine, a pair of lacy fingerless gloves, I was not impressed with Magknits at all this month. Maybe it was the choice of colors or something. Rosy is a moebeous gart stitche scarf that just looked too much like a tourniquet than a scarf. Five Fruits is a basicl raglan sleeved jumper for a toddler which is cute, but probably something I would never have knit even when I had kids. Not sure why I don't like this sweater. Reasonably Hip is just unimaginative. Again it may be the color or it may be the stitch. It just turned me off. I would never ever ever in a million years knit anything that accentuated my breasts the way Excuses would. I don't care if it is written for up to a size 3X I am not putting anymore focus on my breasts than they create on their own. Fall Rainbow isn't bad. Not my colors and I'm not sure why this is listed as an advance technique. The yoke is interesting, but not difficult. It's one of those patterns where you don't question what you are doing, just follow the pattern and it will turn out in the end. I find very little knitting difficult though (except fixing $*)@#$*$)(# mistakes in lace!!)

On to Knitty! Ice Queen is just lovely! I actually have some yellow lace weight yarn like this in my stash. Although Yellow Ice Queen makes me think of that old addage about eating yellow snow!

Quant is just fun! I have some SWS that might knit this up quite nicely. I love enterlac and this would knit up quite quickly. Mary might even like to make this for herself. I think she is ready for the I-cord challnge :)

I LOVE Tams and Three tams is a nice collection. I love psuedo fair isle that uses variegated yarns to create the pattern. Although I might forgo the Noro Silk Garden in leiu of something more affordable!

Tudora is another tourniquet. If you haven't figured it out by now I can't stand anything scrunched around my neck. Must.... breathe....... It's lovely if you like suffocation.

Halcyon is cute and lacy. Not something I'd wear. Must not show Em's or it will be on my ever growing list of things that Gothgirl needs in her collection of black and red. Somehow I can see Gothgirl wearing lace, but not Gothgirl knitting lace.

Justify just isn't me. Not my colors or style. I would be tugging at it all day. And I'm really not into the babydoll shirt look of Dahlia either. It probably has everything to do with my body shape more than anything else. Same goes for Abotanicity Yet another sweater that would make me look continually pregnant.

While I like the complexity of Aoife I don't like the mix of the heavy cables and belled sleeves with the short bolero. It is unbalanced. It also doesn't look like the model was the right size for the jacket. It looks oversized on her like it was made for someone more my size, but they used the cute petite blonde to model it.

Stardust is cute, but not my style. I am SO making Laughing Carrots for Keon, though! He would get a kick out of it. Although I may make it out of a washable Wool-Ease rather than the recommended Alpaca. He's so hard on his clothes! I also like that it is a cardigan which will work well for my pumpkin headed son!

We'll do the gloves all at once. Gloves can be deceiving are an interesting pattern, but I don't care for the colors at all! Matrix are interesting, but aside from some colorwork, they do seem to be just Your Average Mitten.

I like Fair Isle Rapids. It is interesting with some nice texture and movement going on. Nice to see more men designers as well! And I definitely see Entangled in my future. I love bags and this one has character! Speaking of characterful bags, I think Square Cake is a fun little bag, too! Altough I think I am going to forgo the $38 a skein silk for something a tad more in my reach. While the pattern only calls for 1 skein, I think I can find a fair substitute at the same guage (4 st to inch on size 8 needles)

Socks, socks, socks, socks, socks! While this issue isn't as full of socks as past issues, the ones in this issue are simply lovely! The Lighthouse Gansey Socks are fun and I like how the heel isn't a traditional heel flap, but continues to rib pattern into the heel. Same goes for Azure with its faux cables. Both of these definitely made the list. I am also taken with the Toirneach kilt hosen even though I don't own a kilt. Of course I am not beyond making an outfit to go with my socks! (Suna, you'd do that, right?) Chevrolace are quite nice and I think this may be a nice pattern for my Marmalade hand dyed sock yarn. And Slippery Socks may be the very sock for my mom, although not in oranges.

I'm not sure if I like the hat or the kid, but Toasty Topper is quite cute. And to add to the collection of patterns I have no use for is Cables and Bits but one would need babies and dogs for these two patterns. I have neither (thank the gods!) I'm also not sure I would knit Sally, the eco fairy although she is darling and I like that she has a pair of dainty panties!

I really have more to do with my days than knit soccer balls. I doubt I would ever get around to knitting Doddy. Maybe if I was bored and had run out of projects. (I'll let you know when that happens! Bwahahahahahaha!!) Probably same story for Kitty. While cute, I've got too many other pressing projects to work on.

And last, but certainly no least of the projects is Jeanie It's patterns like this that make me wish I was a shawl person. It's pretty and dainty and yet interesting. I do worry about how much those carries woudl catch on my rings and fingers. I could see myself becomeing intwined in a shawl like this quite easily!

Well that is all for now. I'm not sure if there are going to be any Surprises from Knitty this season as there aren't any listed at the bottom like usually. I guess we will just have to wait and see. Now it's the wait for the next issue of The AntiCraft to come out.

I have a gift registry

And it isn't at KnitPicks or Yarn Market! Actually it is with Heifer International. I love the message that Heifer sends out. It's based on the old Chinese proverb "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." They provide animals to hungry people all around the world. With this they also teach the people how to raise the animals and feed them. The recipients are then required to give offspring from their animals to others in their community to keep the giving going. This program has helped millions of families around the world become self-sufficient and saved them from a life of hunger and malnutrition. So this year I decided that I don't really want a bunch of "stuff" that I don't really need. I have more needles, yarn, ink, paper, nibs, fabric and cookware than I really need (or will be able to use in the next year!) But someone else would easily be able to use a flock of geese or a bevy of bees or a sheep (or rabbit or goat or llama or alpaca!) So I set up a gift registry. Maybe my friends and family will decide to donate or maybe they will set up their own gift registries as well. So please consider "gifting me" by making a donation to Heifer through my gift registry. I'd be just tickled pink to have somoene donate a sheep or llama to someone in need. In fact I don't even care if you do it through my registry. I hope that you are motivated to look at Heifer and read what good works they are doing and consider making gifts to other people through Heifer. You can get to my registry by going to Knitncook's Registry

Silver's New Tutorial

My friend Silver from Knitting Help and Ravelry has a new Sock Tutorial on her website! If you have ever wanted to learn to knit socks or knit socks on circs, this is the place to go. Step by step instructions, pictures that are clear and easy to see what is happening and links to places to get help if you don't understand the instructions. She is so cool!

MagKnits November Review

Time for another review of a new issue of MagKnits. First there is Elodea a festive short sock. This is a nice effect with the two colors, but I'd prefer it in blues (of course) and the short row heel is worked over too many stitches for my foot. Would definitely have to take it down some to make them fit my skinny little heels right.

The Chevron Lace Beret reminds me of an ugly doily on your head. Maybe it is the pattern or color or something. It reminds me of something my grandmother would crochet. Probably won't be making one of these.

Fibonacci Cardigan is made using the Fibonacci sequence. Well, first we all know how much I am just bored to tears with stockinette stitch. Yawn! Make me do lace before making me do stockinette. And it truly isn't a true Fibanocci sequence. I've seen other Fibonacci sweaters that utilized this much better. The Fibonacci sequence should go 0,1,1,2,3,5,8,13. Of course you can't do zero rows of something (well, you can but no one will see it!) And other sweaters do look more random when the Fibonacci sequence is then reversed so 1,1,2,3,5,8,13,8,5,3,2,1,1 and use at least 4 colors of yarn. It truly gives a more random look while still having a definite pattern. I like the colors used in this, but probably won't make my list of things to make.

Oh joy! more stockinette stitches! And in black. Can we get more exciting? (read tons of sarcasm here). Yep ditto on the stockinette stitch and while this is a flattering sweater on the young and/or thin body, I'd look like a sausage in a too small casing.

Now if I had a baby again (ain't happening folks, so don't get excited) I could really see me knitting up the Seaweed. It truly is cute and looks warm. Oh wait. I don't live in cold temperatures either. So if I ever had a baby again and lived back in Portland or some other cold clime I would definitely make this!

And then there is the Doh!-nut This is nice. Now if I could figure out someone who would wear it. I live with a bunch of "don't put anything too tight around my neck" people. Sigh. The few scarves I already have seem to be enough for our warmer weather. Doesn't get cold enough for long enough to invest in too many cold weather wear things.

We have to go back up to the review of the Seaweed to know that I would not be knitting a Hoodie Baby Blanket at least until I'm an auntie or grandma (uh, let's wait on the grandma part, shall we?) It's super cute and will probably bookmark this to print off at a later time. For someone else, of course.

Well, that's about all. LMK if you make any of them up and how they knit up for you.

I'm IN!!!

Woo hoo!!! I got my invitation to Ravelry today!! It truly is a cool website. If you haven't signed up for an invite yet, do so NOW!

Winter Wonderfuland Swap 2007

AstonH is hosting the Winter Wonderland Swap for 2007 at
Knitting Help forums. I signed up because it is just so fun. It's a surprise color theme. We each had to say what our favorite color was (and least) and we will send our swap partners items in their color! I chose blues as my color. Yes; I know blue is vague, but I love just about every blue there is!