Friday, September 28, 2007

Books.

There have been some comments, the last few days, about the pile of knitting books I have listed over at Ravelry. (Forty something, at last count.) Remember, I've been knitting for twenty-odd years, so I've had a lot longer to accumulate books than some of you guys. Plus, I can only add the books that are already in the Ravelry library. I just went and did a quick count; I've got about a hundred and ten knitting books sitting on my shelves, with another ten (at least) scattered through the house.

However. Today's book is supposed to be for sewing.

"Make your own Japanese Clothing", by John Marshall.

Back to our kimono discussion of about a week ago, I'm still not sure that a proper kimono can be knitted. But if you wanna try, this book has all the directions you need to knit (or sew) at least ten variations of kimono. Someone in the comments mentioned wanting to make some, and for that, I'd suggest this book. Knitting or sewing, this one contains all the info you need.

-... -

Anyone not joining Ravelry, I have a suggested project for you: Get out a piece of paper and list everything you've ever knit, and when. Or at least try to. I'm in the process of doing that while adding said projects to Ravelry, and it's been really educational. So far I've learned:

-Up until my accident in 1998, I knit nothing but lace. After the accident, I switched over to knitting clothing, almost entirely sweaters and cardis, with a smattering of lace for presents (wedding) and blankets. BLANKETS. I knit THREE blankets when getting back in the groove, after my accident. Can you imagine?

-Not counting the insanity that was 2006 (I think I'm going to start blaming it on baby hormones) and 2007, I have never worked on more than one project at a time. I would cast on, knit to the end, and move on to the next. Obviously with this method, I had a solid record of finishing things, although occasionally I would get frustrated and chuck something aside (including the unfinished Dale of Norway from 2003 that lives in the closet). I set my record for fastest sweater ever, during this period: a Ram's Head Cardigan (similar to the Steeked Jacket, but with more steeks) in Reynolds Lopi Lite, on size eight needles. Knit it in three weeks.

-The green sweater I'm working on? I had to rate the pattern and the yarn when I entered it in, and I realized that not only do I hate the yarn, but I think the pattern sucks, too. Is it any wonder I'm less than motivated??

-All the knitting I finish, these days, goes to other people. All the 'me stuff' gets chucked aside so I can work on presents.


I've got a few things up my sleeve (only one sleeve, 'cause I never knit two) to solve this scattered attention span problem.

Today I'm going to drag out some really old projects and take photos; tomorrow I'll post them for you guys to snicker over. Included, two of the three blankets (looking back, you know, every one of those three blankets pisses me off, for different reasons). And a shawl I knit myself, that the cat sleeps on.

-... -

Season opener of Stargate Atlantis is on tonight. If they kill off another character, I'm going to go berserk. (And I've got a bad feeling.)

5 comments:

Amy Lane said...

I actually have kept a record of everything I've crafted--knit, crochet, & quilting--with (very brief)notes about what it's made of and who it was for. It's 10 pages long, single spaced. Crocheting goes really fast, and I would often use two strands of yarn or super chunky yarn on whoopty-twelves when doing blankets, (and about half of these are baby blankets) but I have over 140 blankets alone. The quantity thing sort of slowed to a crawl when I became addicted to socks:-) But then, I still haven't tackled a lace shawl--everything is relative.

I'd love to troll your library someday... just to sit and look and dream...

Anonymous said...

I am still bitter about Beckett. But I feel a RIP Dr Weir is coming on shortly. What can you do? Me personally, I'd like Ronon to console me.

Bells said...

Knowing you've got a Dale of Norway project chucked in a cupboard makes me feel less bad about the number of times I've considered doing just that to the steeked jacket.....

Anonymous said...

Wow. You've actually got your own knitting library at home. How cool is that!? (Very!)

Donna Lee said...

I have a mental list of finished projects. I have sewed and crochet most of my life. Knitting is a newer obsession for me. I am still in the process of teaching myself new skills (thus the strikke along). I have sewed my own wedding dress, dresses for my girls to wear in weddings and to their various formal dances. I love it when someone says "Your mom made that!?" to one of the girls in her "homemade" dress. I have crocheted chemo caps and granny square afghans and miles of scarves. I can't sit still and watch a movie (I really don't watch tv) or listen to a book, my hands have to be busy. So, for the time being, socks are my knitting of choice. I like small projects that are portable and easily finished. They seem to suit my attention span.