Dogs Steal Yarn

Have vines, will travel*

*No, that's not a Tarzan quote

For my birthday last year, the lovely La Brainy sent me a hank of Celestial Merino in Sugar Maple. (You Canadians who take this stuff for granted, please note that we don't have Celestial Merino down here in the States. Not that I've ever seen, anyway.)

I wanted to do something really special with the yarn. Since I'm kind of hooked on lace after finishing the Leaf Lace Shawl, I went poking through the knitting section of The Complete Encyclopedia of Stitchery by Mildred Graves Ryan and chose the Traveling Vines stitch. Per the book, it's a traditional French lace stitch. I wrote up a simple little pattern for a scarf using this stitch, and thought I'd share it with you kind folks. You can find it here.

And here's a detail:

If you knit this little baby, I'd love to see photos. I used fingering weight yarn, but I think it would look fantastic in laceweight too. I may make another one out of laceweight alpaca in a solid color.

What I learned when Alison came to visit

She's just as cute in person as in photos, if not cuter (but here's another photo, so you'll still have to take my word for it):

If you surround yourself with enough friends and enough snacks, knitting with wool on a hot NYC evening can be almost tolerable:

Doggie love knows no breed. Jackie brought her dog Ty over and he and Sadie fell in love. They're talking about a June wedding:

That's all I've got, folks. I've learned something else. As my knitblogger friends become less like knitbloggers I'm friendly with and more like friends who happen to blog, the less I remember to whip out the camera to document our adventures. I think that's probably a good sign. Good for the friendships, anyway, if not for the blog. Three guesses which I think is more important.

And speaking of friends who happen to blog, Anne has started a blog! Go say hi to her. (please)

More blogging as soon as my head stops spinning

Yeah...um...busy few days in the Life of Cari. Someone decided it was time I get routed out of my little cave. Alison arrived Thursday night and I got to spend time with her in actual 3-D here in my own home, and then we spent a lovely knitty Friday with some of my favorite knitters (though we missed some of my other favorites. There were two shifts of knitting at The Point on Friday and shift one got antsy before shift two arrived. Alas).

Saturday was the Mermaid Parade and Sunday that craft fair...but not for me. I had made plans well over a month ago to visit a dear friend in DC, and our mutual dear friend was flying in to join us. Well over a month ago this plan was made. Regular readers will know that I almost never go anywhere. Never. So what were the chances that the one weekend I would be out of town would be the weekend La Brainy flew in for a visit? Yeah. Exactly. So I missed the crafty mermaid hijinks and packed Alison off to spend a few nights Chez Em. Monday night I get her back, though. (Yay!)

Though the timing of the trip could have been better, DC was still great. Okay, actually DC was oppressively hot and muggy, but the visit was great. Quality time with Rebecca and Serena, as well as Rebecca's husband, Matt, and their new daughter, Olivia (she's the one I knit that placket-neck sweater for). AND I managed to talk them into swinging by Knit Happens to hug the huggable Kristine and fondle the yarn. I also got to meet Cindy. Yes, I bought yarn. I bought sock yarn, of course, but I also walked out of there with two hanks of Kaalund Expressions in the Wombat colorway. It's called Wombat. How can you resist a yarn when the colorway is named Wombat? Laceweight hand-dyed kid mohair. Mmmmm. Knit Happens is just as great as it looks in all the pictures (which is pretty damn great). Now if only I could convince Kristine to open a branch here in New York...

Get this: I forgot my camera. Yeah. I met Kristine and didn't take pictures. She got one, but my strongest superpower is the ability to ruin a photo so there's a great chance it didn't come out.

I'll try to do a bit better with the whole photo-taking thing for the rest of Alison's visit.

And now, sleep. Much-needed sleep. I spent entirely too much time with Amtrak this weekend. Let's just say I know now why they're in trouble. Miserable experience. Pack mule would have been faster, more comfortable, and probably smell better. And perhaps I could have spun its hair as we traveled. Knitting might have been harder, though. You know, mules tend to sway more than trains...

Good news No. 1: Diego is okay! Previous tests had shown his liver function was seriously impaired (!) and he was put on liver-disease specific antibiotics for two weeks. If the retests didn't show improved function he was going to have to have a biopsy. Well, test results came in yesterday and his bile acids were normal! Thanks to everyone who sent their good wishes for our furry little hound.

Good news No. 2: La Brainy is coming to town! Em and I will pick her up at Penn Station tonight and whisk her back to my house. She'll be in town till Wednesday morning! Quality time with Alison! Woohoo! It's too bad Rachael can't fly out for a complete Grammar Avenger convergence, but we all trust that'll happen some day soon.

Check this space for evidence of Brainylady's adventures in NYC.

(And I repeat: Woohoo!!)

What to wear to Maid Marian's wedding

The Leaf Lace Shawl is finished. I'm madly in love with it, but wearing it does make me feel a bit like a bridesmaid in a Sherwood Forest wedding. Not that that's a bad thing, mind you.

Here it is on its own, bathing in the sun from the hallway skylight:

As any good leaf shawl would be, it was much happier once I took it outside.

The back:

The front:

The yarn is Gems Opal sportweight merino. The pattern is by Evelyn A. Clark, distributed by FiberTrends. It's a very well-written pattern, clear instructions. I bought this as a kit well over a year ago and for some reason let it sit on the shelf and intimidate me all this time. I wish I'd cast on for it last year. It was almost easy. I couldn't knit it while watching a movie or talking to friends, but given time alone and quiet it was a fairly simple knit. Twenty-two days of off-and-on knitting from cast-on to blocking. I'm pleased. Very pleased.

That was my sportweight warm-up. Now on to laceweight lace. Having just completed a leaf-lace triangular shawl, I no longer feel the need to make Birch. I've cast on for a little lace scarf using a traditional French lace stitch (traveling vines) I found in a stitchery book I had forgotten I had. If that works out (and so far so good) I'll share that pattern with you. So I've got that little scarf going, and I want to cast on for a larger shawl or stole. Probably a stole... It's between the Baltic Sea Stole and the Bird's Nest Shawl right now. I'll be using KnitPicks Alpaca Cloud.

When I think of all the summer knitting time wasted in years past on cotton tanks I never wore, when I could have been knitting lace...

By special request...

John, me, and a scarf named Cari. Do I really need to tell you that it's the red one? My yarn hair has faded to the point that I'm hardly worthy of having such a scarf named for me. I think it's time to head to the stylist...

Calling all boys

I've got a message for you from the utterly adorable John at The Point:

An editor from Bust Magazine is doing a feature on men who knit. She'll be at The Point this Sunday for their regularly scheduled Boy's Night. It starts at 5:30. Yarn, cupcakes, coffee, men who knit, AND the press. Really, did you have something better planned for Sunday evening? I didn't think so. Tell John that Cari sent ya.

PS: If for nothing else, go to see the scarf in the window that John designed and... sob...named after me. Yes, there is a scarf named Cari. She's the most wonderful concoction of colors that you wouldn't think should work together and yet... Well, that John's got an eye for color. I may have to borrow the scarf for my next yarn hair appointment.

PPS: Unrelated note: Go say hi to my friend Lawrence. He's just started blogging again after an insufferably long hiatus. His blog was the first one I ever read. In fact, I'd never heard the word "blog" before I heard him say it.

Here she is, Ms. Dogs Steal Yarn Sock 2005

Ms. GWTF: I want to thank each and every one of you who voted for me. When Cari Kitchenered the toe of my second sock, I expected a quiet life, a modest life lived in the sock drawer and in Cari's cute little red shoes. Now, thanks to you, I have a greater purpose. It is my hope that we will see the scourge of Second Sock Syndrome defeated in my lifetime. I will work tirelessly to remind knitters of their responsibility to finish what they start. I will work tirelessly...but not yet. It's hot out there and I'm wearing cashmere. I'll see you in the fall. Late fall, most likely.

October! Our crusade begins in October! But first, a long nap. Um, Cari? Is there air conditioning in that sock drawer?

Who deserves the crown? You decide!

The First Annual Dogs Steal Yarn Sock Pageant*
(*It’s a scholarship contest, we swear!)

Welcome to the finals of the Dogs Steal Yarn Sock Pageant. Who will be crowned Ms. Dogs Steal Yarn Sock 2005?

Let’s meet our finalists:

Ms. Go With the Flow

Ms. Go With the Flow hails from Interweave Knits. She’s made of Elann Baby Cashmere, and was lovingly crafted on two Addi Turbo circular needles. She is especially proud of the fact that she was knit on size one needles. “I’m delicate but not tight, ya’ll,” she is often overheard saying. “And my lace pattern is tasteful, not slutty. No matter what that tubby Ms. Daffodil says. She was knit on twos, you know. Girl can’t help it that she’s thick like that. It’s just her gauge.”

Ms. Sweet Summer Short Sock

Summer, as she likes to be called (“No need to be so formal. I’m a simple sock.”), is a basic sock pattern, but shortened at the leg for a cool, summery look. “Hence my name, you know.” She’s made of KnitPicks Dancing sock yarn in a cotton/wool/elastic blend. “I’m versatile. Cari can wear me on all but the warmest of days. Not so with those other two. I don’t mean to speak ill of my competitors. I’m really a very positive pair of socks... But really...don’t you think 100% wool is...well...somewhat limiting? I am proud, though, that all three finalists are house brand yarns. Ms. Daffodil is actually my cousin, and we’re very fond of all the Elann yarns. You should have seen the snit the Koigu and Lorna’s girls were throwing backstage when they found out none of them had made the finals. Who’s worth ten bucks a skein now? I ask you. Oh—and I was knit on size zero Addis. Bet Flow didn’t tell you that when she was crowing about her petite stitches.”

Ms. Daffodil

Ms. Daffodil shares her KnitPicks and basic pattern roots with Ms. Sweet Summer, but at her heavier gauge on size two Addis and her 100% Merino background, she feels her spiritual home is in the Pacific Northwest. “I think I’m the reincarnation of a sweater from Portland,” she says.

The talent portion of our competition, conducted earlier today, was quite exciting.

Ms. Go With the Flow wowed us with her fabulous flamenco. Who knew a pair of socks could clap, much less play the castanets?

Ms. Sweet Summer Short Sock brought the judges to tears with a heartfelt rendition of “Danny Boy” in a flawless soprano.

Ms. Daffodil got off to a rough start with her juggling act, but the magic act she followed with brought the house down. Here she is at the beginning of the “Saw my mate in half” trick. How DID she do that? (Judges investigated following Ms. Go With the Flow’s assertions that there was no magic involved, but that in fact Daffodil had cut her mate in half at a secretly steeked point in the foot and then grafted it back together. These allegations were found to be false and the scores were allowed to stand.)

The runway and talent competitions certainly were exciting. Now it’s on to the interview competition! Let’s catch up with our finalists and see what they have to say to our judges.

Judge: Ms. Go With the Flow, what is your greatest concern for young socks today?

Ms. Go With the Flow: Oh please.

Thank you to our lovely and talented finalists. This concludes the final portion of our competition. The decision is now in your hands, wise readers of Dogs Steal Yarn. Who should be crowned Ms. Dogs Steal Yarn Sock 2005? Vote in the comments section.

Voting ends at midnight EST on Tuesday! Get your vote in now, or don't come cryin to me when your favorite isn't crowned the winner.

Have I mentioned lately that Alison is a goddess?

She is, and here I am to offer you yet more proof. Look what arrived in the mail today, for no reason at all other than that she is wonderful and generous:

Want to know what's inside that sweet white packet? My very own piggy-nosed cat, created by Alison! (Get a load of those little elephants on her dress!)

The tag tells me that the piggy cat's name is Cari-Abellamia Bella. Here's what it says on her tag:

A retro kitty who takes design seriously, Cari-bella enjoys the cutting edge of the art world, machiattos at brunch, and walks through Central Park. She likes 2nd hand furniture, fresh pasta and cinnamon & licorice ice cream.

Let's take a moment to admire the yarn, shall we? You know you want to. It's from Marta's. (Thanks for the link, Jacqueline!) Alison sent me some of the Flowers (the especially bumpy stuff) back when she was my anonymous secret pal last summer. It's the very most delicious of yarns, this Marta's stuff. Amazing colors. The photos can't ever do it justice.

Oh...and the most important part: Hey, Alison! Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!!!

A Public Service Announcement from the Knitter Relocation Department

Hey, any Dayton, Ohio, knitters out there? My beloved beloved friend Serena just relocated to Dayton and is looking for some people to knit with. If you're out there, please leave a comment and I'll put you in touch with her.

Don't let her get too comfortable out there, though, and don't be TOO nice. I'm counting on her moving back to New York before long.

The book I'm currently devouring

I'm supposed to be editing tonight, and so I am. A deadline is a deadline. All I really want to do, though, is get back to reading Michael Cunningham's new book, which came out yesterday. I finished the first section on the Q train this evening and so far it's brilliant. Mind you, he was one of my favorite authors long before he was one of my favorite teachers. He's Michael. Of course it's brilliant. There are things he does with language that make me want to weep. Seriously.

Ernesto and I went to hear him read from it at the Union Square Barnes & Noble last night. I'd gotten so accustomed to him just being our fabulous and beloved MC over the two years of the MFA program, that it was a bit strange to see him again in this other context, as Pulitzer-prize winning author giving a public reading. It was thrilling, actually. A reminder that he was my hero before he was my mentor. (Damn. Having one of those how-did-I-get-this-lucky goosebump moments.)

Anyway, I'm telling everyone to read the book because I've been waiting for it for years and it really was worth the wait.

(How wonderful is Michael as a teacher, you ask? Worthy of handknit Lorna's Laces socks wonderful.)

Added later: a radio interview he did today, talking about the book...

Knitbloggers Overrun The Point! Film at Eleven

This past week was a hard one. Diego is sick. (Test results were not what we were hoping for but didn't provide a clear diagnosis so we've got two more weeks of antibiotics and hand-wringing and then a retest.) It was the twelfth anniversary of my father's death on the second. I'm having angst with the final draft of the novel. Money stuff directly related to dog stuff is causing stress. Luckily I've got this knitting habit and a wonderful group of knitting friends to turn to. I saw a lot of them last week and this weekend, and that helped a lot.

Friday night was coffee and knitting with Stephanie, Cassie, Cassie, Valentina, Anne, and Kay. Nice and low-key and at my very favorite cafe. Saturday I saw the gorgeous and wonderful tiny nephew and presented the $@%#* baby blanket. They loved it and I'm thrilled not to be looking at it anymore.

Today a HUGE group of us met up at The Point. A very big public THANK YOU! to Helane and John for making us feel so very welcome in our new knitting home. Yarn was fondled and purchased. Baked goods and sandwiches were eaten. Pictures were taken. It was a great day.

Our very special guest star, the delightful Ms. Amy, getting friendly with some silk:

Isn't Cassie cute with her braids?

And isn't Cassie cute with her pigtails? (How we ended up with two Cassies and FIVE Sarahs, I'll never know.)

Me with John, a teacher at The Point. We adore John. He and I are going to rig up an intricate trapeze system to get around The Point when it's really crowded. We'll be like a fibery circus act. It'll be brilliant.

Here's Em, falling in love with some Soy Silk:
There was a really cute photo of Em here, but she didn't like it, so it has been removed. Trust me. She looked very cute.

Non-blogger Irene who wins the wardrobe prize of the day in her fabulous vintage dress (which of course you can't really see in the photo. Sorry 'bout that):

And Billy's adorable cousin Sarah, who just moved here from Chicago. And she's a knitter! (And she needs to start a blog. Let's all pressure Sarah to start a blog.):

Present and not pictured (and I'm sure I'm forgetting someone because there were so damn many of us!): Valentina, Jackie, Sarah, Sara, Sarah, Regina, Anne, Melissa, Heather, Jillian...um... Someone please tell me who I'm forgetting!

So...uh...yeah. It was kind of like a mini sheep and wool. Except it was indoors. And there were no sheep or alpaca. No fried dough. No fleece... Yeah, maybe not like a sheep and wool at all. It was a good day, though. Mindy and Iris, we missed you!

And on the 44th day, the knitting aunt rested

And the knitting aunt's husband said "Hey, that's good" and the knitting aunt said "Never again."

Behold, 30" x 36" with the power to absolutely numb the mind of even the most well-intentioned knitter.

The baby blanket, it's done. Forty-four days from cast-on to woven endy bits. It would have gone faster if I hadn't needed to break it up with other knitting to save my sanity. I used Mission Falls 1824 Wool and #6 Denise needles. The 40" cable also did wonders for preserving sanity.

Thank you all so much for your kind words and good thoughts for Diego. He spent all day yesterday at the hospital for more tests. Today he's home and he seems to be feeling much better, so I'm hopeful that whatever is wrong is totally treatable with the antibiotics he's on. That's right. We still don't know what's wrong. We'll have the (hopefully) final test results back tomorrow, and we're hoping that will tell us once and for all what's going on with the little guy. If only he could tell us exactly what he's feeling...

It's been a hard week for a number of reasons. Plenty of time with knitters has helped. Wednesday I met up with the usual suspects at Teva Durham's book launch party, as well as some I hadn't met before, both local and visiting. I took a few photos, but none that really came out well. For the sake of all involved, I'm going to keep them to myself. Tonight a few of us are meeting up, and on Sunday we're knitting at The Point with the lovely visiting Amy. I've been waiting forever to meet Amy in person. You see, she owes me a hug.

Less time to sit around feeling sorry for yourself with all these knitters around. Don't think I don't know how lucky I am. Between the local folk and all of you online, I'm extremely lucky. I know it. I absolutely do.