Monday, September 17, 2007

WIP Wednesday and Kristi's Color Meme

Ah, fall weather. It's finally sock weather. I wore my wool socks for the first time since it got too darn hot on Monday. I love my wool socks :-)

I've just picked up stitches for the gusset on my sock. Meanwhile, I'm trying to do at least ten rows a day on Hex Coat. It's getting to be the weather that would be perfect for it. But knit 1, purl 1 really grates on the nerves much more than plain old stockinette. And I've still got about 90 rows to the armhole decreases. Here's the back:

I figure just ten rows a day. If I do more, great. If not, at least I'm making progress. Otherwise, I've got to finish something and socks seem about right.

As a designer, Kristi has a few questions about color. So answer her meme and hop on over to her blog and let her know.

1. What is your current favorite color?
Mostly purple, any purple, but I seem to lean toward the really true purples or red-purple/burgundies. And pink-purples. I also have been known to like any of the pinks or cooler reds.
2. Had your favorite color changed over the years?
Definitely. It even changes with the years. Some years I find myself wearing more blues, some pink. Currently, I'm on a purple kick with some pinks and reds thrown in.
3. Is your current favorite color one that is currently trendy? (Do you see it in the fashion rags or on the clothes rack or in the linen aisle right now? How about 5 years ago?)
I have no idea. I really wear the colors I like regardless of trends.
4. What is your favorite color combination?
Purple or pink and black or purple and pink.
5. Is that combination a popular one? (Is it use in prints you see in the stores and catalogs and magazines now? How about 5 years ago?)
Again, no clue.
6. What is your favorite way of using color in your knitting? (Are you a stranded knitter? Do you prefer simple stripes? Do you prefer just accents at the hems/collars?)
I tend to choose a lot of the cooler colors for my shawls (okay, a lot of pink and purple, but also blues and turquoises). I love how colors play together and would like to do some more strandwork and stripes, but in the past, I've chosen mostly solid color shawls, sweaters, and tanks. For socks, I will go much brighter and wilder than I would for a sweater. (I'm wearing my wild Austermann socks right now.) I love self-striping sock yarn. And handpaints. And Trekking sock yarn; I love how the colors are never exactly the same.
7. What colors look good on you?
Blacks, greys, purples, pinks, and some blues.
8. What colors look bad on you?
Orange, most yellows, most warmer greens.
9. Do you wear colors that don’t look good on you just because you like them?
I guess I finally found that I lean toward colors that do look good on me. I denied I liked pink and purple for many years until I realized that my wardrobe was mostly either purple, pink, black or grey.
10. What is your favorite neutral color? black/white/ivory/tan/brown/gray – if brown or gray do you prefer cool or warm versions of those or does it matter? And, how dark?
Black, with grey a close second. Cooler is better for the grey and light or dark both.
11. Is there a sweater pattern that uses more than one color that you’d like to make, but you wish to change the colors from what is published? If yes, which one? What do you not like about the published colors?
I love the Fair Isle Cardigan from Veronik Avery's new book. I think she uses the right mix of colors and the sweater has an overall cooler feel with the colors she's chosen, so I wouldn't change anything in that, but I also want to do the Faeroese Sweater from the same book. I think I would change the colors in that. I'd keep the black and white and sub purple for the blue and a medium to bright pink for the tan. I actually do like the colors in the book, but just like purple better.

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Friday, May 18, 2007

One-Project Knitter? and a Meme

Bonsai's back is finished and I've begun the front. It's been pointed out to me recently that I'm a one-project knitter and I was sort of taken by surprise because that's not how I would ever describe myself. I mean just look at the sidebar; that's hardly one project there. But my friend is sort of right. Lately, though I have lots on the needles, I've been working on just one project at a time. I worked on the Shapely tank front, then the skirt front, then I finished the tank, then I finished the skirt, but I did work each piece one at a time, not simultaneously. To be quite honest, it's weirding me out because it's not at all like me. I usually jump from one project to the next, usually a pair of socks, maybe a bit of lace, and some sort of sweater/tank. I almost always have at least two projects in my knitting bag and will work on both in the space of ten minutes. But right now all my focus is on Bonsai. Though thoughts have occasionally entered my head of my poor languishing Forest Path Stole and the Purple Diamond Stole (and maybe a couple of other things), I just want to finish Bonsai before picking them back up. Maybe I've just been choosing quick projects; the tank didn't take long and Bonsai isn't going to either. Maybe I just really want some stuff to wear for the summer quickly.

Brenda tagged me, so here goes:

Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and need to read your blog.

The 7 Facts:
1. I've never lived outside of the South - Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia.
2. I had never been out of the country before college. I've now been to three continents besides North America - Australia, Asia and Europe.
3. I'm reading the first Harry Potter book translated into Latin. I plan to start Harrius Potter Et Camera Secretorum when I'm done. I'm also teaching myself Ancient Greek and plan to someday read the Ancient Greek translation of the first HP. (They are currently planning on translating all the books into both languages. And I'm excited about it.)
4. I'm very cynical about almost everything - politics, our country's educational system, celebrities, people in general.
5. I homeschool.
6. I hate making phone calls to strangers. I avoid it like the plague.
7. I've yet to meet a craft that I didn't like - tatting, crocheting, embroidery, sewing, cross-stitch, polymer clay, miniatures, beading, temari, and probably a few others. Someday, I hope to extend the list to bobbin lace and maybe weaving.

If you want to do the meme and haven't been tagged yet, consider yourself tagged!

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Monday, May 14, 2007

Meme

Thank you, everyone, for all the wonderful comments about the skirt. I still haven't had the chance to wear it out anywhere, but I will. If I didn't respond to you personally, I don't have your email address, but I do appreciate every one of your comments. I don't have much for today's post, so I borrowed this knitting meme from Margene:

Bold for stuff you've done, italics for stuff you plan to do one day, and normal for stuff you're not planning on doing.

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up

Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns

Knitting with bananafiber yarn
Domino knitting (=modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing

Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own handspun yarn

Slippers
Graffitti knitting (knitting items on, or to be left on the street)
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns

Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit

American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money

Button holes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting

Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colours
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies...)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items)on two circulars
Olympic knitting

Knitting with someone elses handspun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting

Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks

Knitting art (because Beth said so)
Knitting two socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener BO
Purses/bags

Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac Knitting and purling backwards

Machine knitting
Knitting with selfpatterning/selfstriping/variegating yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning

Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mits/armwarmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets

Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public

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