Tour de France Scarf Update

I'm in the airport (free wireless!) on my way back from North Carolina, where Kevin and I were visiting his parents (and aunt, uncle, cousins, their spouses and kids, and possibly some unrelated people who snuck in—come over at about 6 if you’re in the area and feeling hungry, no one will notice). We drove down so we could bring the bikes, and went on a long ride on Sunday morning. Our original plan (which we almost implemented) was to set out at the crack of dawn, bike to a coastal town about 35 miles away, meet his parents for brunch, then bike home. If things were going badly (for me… I’m always the one with the biking crises), we figured I could bail out after breakfast and ride back with my in-laws.

So we set out, and for a while things went well: it’s much flatter down here than near our house, the roads are in better condition, and there wasn’t much traffic. About 15 miles in, I got a flat tire. We had a spare tube (and four canisters of compressed air), so we changed the tire with a minimum of fuss and grease (although we did manage to pour out half of Kevin’s water), but had a hard time with the compressed air canisters and blew through all of them without getting my tire completely inflated. We figured it was good enough to get to the restaurant, called Kevin’s parents to make sure they planned to pack the pump, and set out again.

The bike wasn’t quite right—something was squeaking, and we never did quite figure out what it was—but we made it. We ate (a lot!), pumped up the tire, and set off for home. My in-laws stayed in the town to shop for a bit—which turned out to be a good thing, because about 16 miles into the 37 mile trip home, my tire was flat again. When they passed us, we pumped the tire again, and set off. Eight miles later, flat again. Fortunately, Kevin’s parents had stopped on the route to wait for us, so we pumped the tire again, and set off. A few miles later, flat again. We crawled along till we got up to their car, filled the tire, and started off again (yes, we’re a little slow—why do you ask?). That time, the tire got flat in barely a mile—and I finally gave up. We loaded the bike into the car, and got a ride home. Kevin finished off the ride (and added a little bit… evidently, 74 miles wasn’t quite enough). Even with the tire, I rode 69.5 miles—my furthest ever.

And I only tipped over once—at an intersection, right next to my in-laws' car. (I swear, one day I’m going to fall onto a stranger’s car, and it will really be embarrassing!)

The way this relates knitting is that I brought my Tour de France project with me (in the bag with my spare tube and air canister—it’s such sporty knitting). I brought it in case I needed to wait somewhere, but I didn’t work on it after all. The picture is actually from Saturday night, but it looks pretty much the same, just longer. I really like the "Alps" lace pattern along the lower edge, and the fill pattern I'm using for the middle is just the right amount of interesting and able-to-knit-while-talking (in contrast to the border, which took my whole brain).

Seaweed Socks

These are my sock a month KAL socks from last month... I finally wrote up the pattern, so here it is:

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Circumference: 8 inches unstretched
Foot length: 8.5 inches, unstretched
Cuff height: 6.5 inches

MATERIALS
1 skein Happy Fuzzy Yarn Sock Yarn (80% wool, 20% nylon; 425 yds/4 oz. skein)
1 set US size 1/2.25 mm double pointed needles
tapestry needle

GAUGE
36 sts/48 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch, unstretched

ABBREVIATIONS
BO = bind off
CO = cast on
K = knit
M1 = increase 1, using preferred method
P = purl
K2tog = knit 2 together
Sl = slip
St(s) = stitch(es)
Stst = stockinette stitch

SEAWEED PATTERN, from Barbara Walker’s Second Treasury
Row 1 and 2: *P4, K2, repeat from * across [ending P1].
Row 3 and 4: *P3, K3, repeat from * across [ending P1].
Row 5 and 6: *P2, K4, repeat from * across [ending P1].
Row 7 and 8: P1, *K4, P2, repeat from * across, end K4, P1 [P1].
Row 9 and 10: P1, *K3, P3, repeat from * across, end K3, P2 [P1].
Row 11 and 12: P1, *K2, P4, repeat from * across, end K2, P3 [P1].

DIRECTIONS
Using 2 needles, CO 32 sts using figure-eight cast-on (there will be 16 sts on each needle). Knit 1 round even.

Work increase round as follows: * K1, M1, K to 1 st from end of first needle, M1, K1, then repeat from * on second side.
Knit 1 round even, without increases.
Repeat these 2 rounds 9 times more: 72 sts.

At some point, it will become easier to work these sts on 3 or 4 needles (with an additional needle to knit sts onto). I think it’s more stable to use 3 needles and knit onto a 4th, but some people find that it’s easier to avoid ladders if they use 4 sts and knit onto a 5th. If you use four needles, the start of the round/one side of the foot will be at the beginning of needle 1, and the other side of the foot will be after needle 2. If you use three needles, the start of the round/side of the foot will still be at the beginning of needle 1, but the other side of the foot will be in the middle of needle 2—I like to put a marker there so I don’t accidentally continue the stitch pattern onto the sole of the foot.

Foot:
On the next round, you will begin working the seaweed pattern on the top of the foot (the first 36 sts). However, in order to center the pattern, you’ll need to work it over 37 sts, always purling the last stitch. To set this up, work row 1 of the pattern 5 times as *P4, K2, repeat from * across. On the next repeat, P4, K1, then increase by knitting into the front and back of the next st. Knit the remaining 36 sts on this round.

Continue without further increases, working the first 37 sts in seaweed pattern, including the last P1 in brackets, and the second 36 sts in stst. Stop at the beginning of a round, on either row 5 or 11, when the foot measures 7 inches from the toe, or about 1.5 inches less than desired length.

Heel:
Decreasing short rows:
Note: until the last row, the heel is worked back and forth on the second 36 sts.

Work across the first 37 sts in pattern, then:
Row 1: K35. Bring yarn to back of work. Slip unworked st to working needle. Turn work, and slip the unworked st back to the first needle.
Row 2: P34. Bring yarn to front of work. Slip unworked st to working needle. Turn work, and slip the unworked st back to the first needle.
Row 3: Same as row 1, but K33 sts before wrapping and turning work.
Row 4: Same as row 2, but P32 sts before wrapping and turning work.

Continue in this manner, working 1 fewer st before wrapping and turning, until 16 unwrapped sts remain.

Increasing short rows:
Row 1: K to st before the first wrapped st. K this st together with the wrap by sliding the needle through the wrap and the st at the same time. Wrap the next st as in decreasing short rows and turn work.

Row 2: P to the st before the first wrapped st. P this st together with the wrap by sliding the needle through the wrap and the st at the same time. Wrap the next st as in decreasing short rows and turn work.

Repeat these 2 rows, picking up both wraps, until only 1 wrapped st remains on each side of the heel.

Next row (RS): K to st before remaining wrapped st. K this st, together with the wrap. Do not turn, but resume working in the round by continuing on to the next needle in seaweed pattern (starting with row 7 or 1, depending on where you stopped). When next wrapped st is reached, work the wraps together with the st, and continue in seaweed pattern. Work the last 2 sts of the round as a K2tog or P2tog (rather than simple K or P, to reduce the stitch count to 72 again. Note that you will no longer be working the extra P1 in brackets from this point forward.

Cuff:
Continue to work in seaweed pattern till cuff measures 6 inches, or desired length, from top of heel.

Work 6 rounds in K1, P1 rib, then bind off all sts loosely, using preferred method. I like the kitchner bind off, although it’s a pain in the neck. There are some good directions here.

[ETA on 11/26/07: this pattern is also available as a free PDF through The Garter Belt, right here.]

Tired!

It’s been steamily hot the past few afternoons, so Kevin and I have been running in the morning (much to his chagrin). Since Wednesday is long run day, this means that we dragged ourselves out of bed at 4 this morning, planning to run 18 miles before work. And we actually did! (And weren’t even that late! Starting with our next long run, we’ve arranged to come in late, so this won’t be an issue.)

We ran from our house, over to the Farmington Canal Trail, then 3.5 miles up the trail (starting at the lower end of the long green section on the map--this section is about 10 miles long, total), and then back home. (Just as an aside, how funny is the phrase “linear park”? There’s a sign over the trail that welcomes you to the Farmington Canal Linear Park, which makes me smile every time I see it… it’s totally accurate, because the park is only as wide as the railroad right of way, but still funny! At least when you’re exhausted. As though the park is only 1 dimensional! Maybe you need to be math-y, as well as tired?) The sun rose about 3 miles in, although it was still kind of dim and misty when we got home. And wow! but it was humid. The humidity when we started was about 95%, and at one point must have reached 100% because the air filled with little raindrops.

The other thing that’s funny (?) about running that far is that by the end, it’s all I can do to keep going. You know those peppy runners whose ponytails bounce as the spring over curbs, small dogs, trashcans, and Jersey barriers? Not me—I’m not springy under the best of circumstances, and after a couple of hours any spring I might have started with is used up. At that point, I’m essentially running out of inertia, and anything that disrupts that (curbs, needing to pause for traffic, other runners, pedestrians, etc.) seems like it will require more energy than I can possibly muster. I wonder a lot what other runners think we’re up to—are they long distance runners themselves, and do they recognize what’s going on? Or do they run for 30 minutes or an hour, tops, and wonder what’s wrong with us? (In reality, I don’t think we look as pathetic as we feel. Or at least I hope not!)

I know this sounds like I hate running, but I really don’t—I actually love that I can do this (however slowly), since it’s so unlike my image of myself. Plus, it lets me eat more cookies.

More later (if I can muster the energy), including the Mystery Sole, my Tour de France KAL scarf, and the cardi I'm knitting for Schaefer Yarns (which it turns out I can blog about after all).

Photo Catch Up

Since I'm constantly behind on photos, it will come as no surprise that (now that I'm 10 rows from finishing my next pair of socks), I've finally taken a picture of the socks I finished 2 weekends ago for my Sock Pal--Monkey socks, using the April club yarn from Socks that Rock.

The yarn is a new one for STR--a wool and silk blend, and I really enjoyed working with it. You can't tell from this picture, but it looks almost like it's 1 ply of silk and several plies of wool (rather than a mix of wool and silk throughout), because one of the plies is lighter than the rest, making the yarn slightly tweedy.

I'm glad I finished these well ahead of the deadline (we're supposed to send them to they arrive at the beginning of August) because I said I was willing to ship internationally, so my pal's socks have a longer trip than most. I'm also going to send her the rest of the skein (in case she needs to make repairs eventually), some maple sugar candy from Lake Placid (since that's where I knit most of the socks), and maybe some other yarn, if it fits in the package.

Prologue

I've joined the Tour de France KAL (see my new button? Over on the left and down a bit?), and just like my real biking, I've managed to start out behind (my ability to fall behind in the first 10 feet of a bike ride is truly impressive, so at least I'm being consistent).

I was planning to knit a second version of a cardigan I designed for Schaefer Yarns--in the very accommodating "things I'd wear in a French cafe" category. While not appropriate for a TdF spectator (the yarn is a chunky alpaca), it's exactly the kind of sweater I always wish I was wearing as I'm starting a marathon, on the grounds that if I was wearing a thick sweater, I wouldn't be about to torture myself for four and a half hours, so it seemed appropriate--plus, I haven't started it and I need to finish it by the time the tour ends.

But, if they don't want me to write about the cardigan (I'm not sure yet), that would be pretty boring KAL-ing, so I've been trying to think of something else... and I had plenty of time to think today, because Kevin and I did our long bike for the week--75 miles for him, 56 miles for me (for the locals, we went up 17 to 79. Kevin turned off on 148 (I think), and I stayed on 79 down to Madison, where it rejoins 1. I waited in Madison till Kevin reappeared--I'm not quite sure how he got back to 1--then we stayed on 1 back to New Haven). Since I planned to wait, I brought my second Lorna's Laces sock to keep me entertained--I've gotten past the heel and partway up the ankle. We avoided disaster on the bike, and the weather was gorgeous, so there's not much to say. I nearly tipped over once but I unhooked my second foot and caught myself--I'm making progress!

But back to the knit along: my first thought was that I'd knit the Alpine Lace Shawl from Victorian Lace Today (I've been wanting to knit it, and in my mind the Tour de France is comprised entirely of mountains... maybe because I hate hills, and am most impressed by the riders who seem to discover an extra gear partway up, then suddenly zip past everyone?). But that's patterned on both sides, and with the Mystery Stole to work on too, I'm not sure my poor brain is up for a second complex lace project.

Okay then, what about another lace shawl or scarf named something French-ish? I looked when I got home, and I didn't find anything. But I did see a border called Alpine edging in the second Walker treasury (not yet in the Walker Treasury Project, sorry), and realized I could use that to make my own scarf, like the wide bordered scarves in Victorian Lace Today (which have the border pattern cross-wise on the two short ends, joined by a simple stitch to make up most of the length). Most of the VLT scarves have garter stitch as the body of the scarf, but I found a couple of simple "fill" patterns in the Second Book of Modern Lace Knitting, which will be slightly more interesting to knit. And, if you squint at them just right, some of them look like those shots of the peloton on tv--taken from above, when everyone is bunched up and moving together like part of the same being. (When I mess up the pattern I've just described as simple, it will be a crash in the middle of the peloton.)

(Naturally, the Amazon links are just for illustration, and you should buy these books from your local yarn store or independent bookstore.)

Speaking of which--this is not how anyone else thinks about sports, but I spend a good portion of the time I'm watching sports thinking about what it must be like to lose at that level. I know what losing is like at my (very slow) level, and it's not like losing (it isn't losing, for that matter), because I'm just happy to have run or biked that far, and happy to be done. But losing when you could have won--if you hadn't crashed, or hadn't gotten that flat, or had biked a little bit faster, or had gotten up that last hill a little more quickly, or had been able to sleep the night before, or whatever... kind of makes me glad I'm not good enough to have to deal with that kind of pressure.

When Picots Attack

I've been thinking hard, and I think I've only made one thing before with a picot edge--a little top-down capelet that I don't wear very often (I should have known that since all I wear all winter are sweaters, and I'd never need both a capelet and a sweater, that I wouldn't use it very often... at least it was quick!)

But back to the picot edging: except for the caplet, I have led a deprived, picot-less existence until this week. This week, however, I have been attacked by a picot virus, and am picoting everything I can get my hands on (the Mystery Stole is safe for the moment, but maybe only because I'm just following the directions).

My symptoms: the current socks, started over the weekend when I finished my pal's socks, and currently partway up the second foot thanks to a lovely Sunday afternoon and evening spent with USAir, and the sweater I'm designing as I go (still awaiting Something Interesting around the neck and sleeves).

The socks are just toe-up stockinette. I think I mentioned before that I had every intention of working some kind of stitch pattern--first on the foot, and then when that didn't happen, at least on the cuff--but I was hypnotized by the stripes and I didn't want to mess them up. Aren't they great stripes? (Thanks Greeley! This is really fun yarn! Everyone else: it's Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock, in the seaside colorway, #203).

And the sweater is the greyish-lavender cotton cashmere blend from Debbie Bliss, purchased at the Webs sale in May. I'd spoken very sternly to myself before SnB field trip to the sale about not buying yarn, but as it turns out I'm easily led astray. Also, I had a gift certificate.

I can tell my case of the picots is serious because I was willing to sew down the inside hem on both the socks and the sweater... and because I'm thinking about picoting the cuffs of the sweater and perhaps even around the front edge and neck. I'm leaning towards elbow-length or slightly longer sleeves, probably somewhat on the full side (I can't decide whether I should actually increase towards the elbow, or just not decrease). I'm always pushing my sleeves up to my elbows anyway, and since I don't think I want the cardigan to close in the front, I won't wear it when it's really arctic, so my lower arms shouldn't get chilly.

What I can't decide is if the neck and front edges would be interesting enough if I just worked a very deep double hem (with picots at the folded edge, of course)... maybe 3-4 inches deep? Or would that be too much bulk at the neck, if it wanted to fold over? But maybe it wouldn't want to fold over, just stand up a little on the back of my neck?

Sock Pal Socks and Mystery Stole Pix

So, here are some photos at last, only slightly out of date.

First, an action shot of me working on my sock pal's first sock last weekend in Lake Placid (at a Chinese restaurant with quite possibly the slowest-for-no-apparent-reason service I've every experienced... but they were very nice, I had my sock, and the food was yummy when it did arrive).

And then an in-progress shot of the same sock from the following day, stuffed with a towel to show the Monkey-ness.

As nearly everyone who knits this pattern has noticed, it's incredibly addictive to knit--this is my second pair, and while I was working on them I was thinking about making the pair I'm working on now Monkeys too (I didn't, but it was close). I'm done with the pair for my pal, but I'm not quite sure how I'm going to take pictures of them, since her feet are a little bit smaller than mine (and smaller than my sock blockers).

In other news, here's chart A, more or less, of the Mystery Stole (that's about 50 rows). I took this picture over the weekend, because I was worried again that I didn't like it after all. I liked the swatch, remember, but then once I knit a bit of the actual design, I got to worrying (again) that the stitches near the yarn overs still looked funny with smaller needles. Rather than ripping, I figured I should block it and think some more (focusing on the disastrous increase in yarn mileage which would result from buying more lace yarn helped me be patient).

But, remember that I was staying in a hotel, so I didn't have most of my knitting supplies. First I tried to block it by just getting wet, but then it wasn't staying flat without pins, so I ran some metal knitting needles through the eyelets along the edges and used them to spread it out while my mom ironed it (gently, through a dry washcloth). After it was dry, I stared at it some more, and decided I was being too critical, and that I liked it after all. Maybe.

In any case, I've knit a few more rows since this picture was taken, and--barring disaster--I should be done with clue 1 in plenty of time for clue 2.