In other handwork

Okay, so if I heard it once, I heard it ten billion times…teachers, parents, babysitters…idle hands are the devil’s workshop.

I still can’t sit still.

So, there’s always something in my hands.  I used to spend a lot more time in the sewing room, and the sewing room wasn’t always as crowded as it is now, and sometimes Rob would join me to watch TV.  But, after we got Syd, he convinced me to start spending evenings out of the sewing room, with the family.  When I’m in a big, self-imposed, creative burst time crunch, I growl that out as “family time.”  But, most of the time, I brag about how we spend “Family Time” every evening, for at least an hour or so.  We laugh and we watch TV and we talk about our lives.  Or, we show one another how angry we are by not talking, laughing and sharing our lives.  Teenagers.  Can’t live with ‘em, can’t chain them in the attic anymore.

When we first started family time, I slept through it.  I cannot help it.  If I am still, I am asleep.  So, I started doing hand projects during family time.  That way, I’m awake and can enjoy it.  It’s too early to start hand quilting, but I have the bug.  I’m ready to pull my hand project out and just quilt away.  But, it’s too hot to lay a quilt over my lap. 

Right now, I’m making Rob a pair of gloves.  A friend shared this navy yarn.  Rob asked for fingerless gloves.

The other day, I had much more glove made than this.  It was huge, and then I was supposed to start the thumb.  First off, that used a ton of my yarn and jeopardized the completion of TWO gloves.  And, second, it was going to rise up half way to his elbow.  So, with Sydney staring at me open-mouthed, I ripped it down to the wrist, wound it back up, loaded it back on the needles, and gave it another go, adding fewer rows between my increases.  And, it worked perfect.  Now, I need to write that down so I can do it on the other glove.

Anyway, gloves are no harder than socks, in case you’re ever wondering.  The secret is a good, comprehensive pattern.  Mine comes from The Knitting Man(ual) by Kristin Spurkland.  Great technique book and I’ve made a couple of her patterns, which were clear and assumed I was a man and knew nothing about knitting.  It was great as I was self taught, toggling things together here and there.  I’d been knitting for years and made many things…some good, some not so much.  And, it wasn’t until I got this book that I learned the proper way to cast on. 

Everybody have a great Thursday.  I’ve got the borders on the holiday quilt now and my next focus is to get at least four backs ready to quilt some of the tops I have waiting.  There is a bottleneck in my production process right now.

Lane