First, I finally finished spinning the merino/tencel blend. The smaller skein is the one I've posted before. I didn't like it, so I spun the rest a little heavier, which also made the colors appear a little brighter. There's not enough of the fiber to make a whole project, so I figure it doesn't matter that I spun it at two different weights. I'll do... uh... something with it.
Part of the reason this took so long is that the dog hates when I spin. I don't know why. Maybe he thinks I'm teasing him with the spindle hanging there and all that tasty tasty fluffy wool? He does enjoy eating bits of fluff. Anyone else have a pet who hates spinning? Or knitting, for that matter?
Moving on, I'm still plodding through the pooling colors scarf. Here you see it laid out across the length of the dining room table. The pooling has ceased to be exciting and intriguing. It is now boring and boring. It just goes on forever. Look at all the yarn left in that ball! I still have all that left to knit! I just popped over to check out on the knit-along, and there are no new finished scarves since I joined. Because it's a freaking endurance trial. And I don't think the issue is that it's a six-plus foot scarf in fingering weight yarn. I knit an entire sweater at 9 stitches per inch in 2x2 ribbing. (Yes, I am insane. No, you cannot see the sweater. It's being punished.)
So, what is the problem with this scarf? All I can figure is that I've never knit anything that needed so much babysitting. I can't take it to a movie. I can barely even work on it in front of the TV. If I stop paying attention for even a minute, the colors go all wrong. If I'm trying to pay attention, but the lighting isn't good enough, it's entirely futile. But the pattern is also not interesting enough to really deserve as much attention as it requires. The lace only has two different rows, and after about the first foot you know how the fabric turns out, and you're done being fascinated that the colors line up right. All that's left is to slog through to the end. That said, it is lovely, and the yarn is so soft. The mohair gives a nice amount of shine, but remarkably little fuzzy halo.
Pool went to Renegade with me, because it's pretty portable and it's kind of a conversation piece. I did maybe 5 rows all weekend, and those rows are now easily identifiable because they make up the inch where the gold stripe went completely wonky. But not wonky enough to make me rip out lace. See if you can spot the bad rows. Maybe there will be a prize. How about a Gmail invitation? I'm up to my ears in Gmail invitations and no one I know wants them anymore.
Last but not least, this is what I finished on Wednesday. I call it Bubblewrap, even though it ended up being a scarf. Seriously, what was I thinking when I decided to knit a shawl out of this? Did I honestly think I would ever wear anything that screamed "CRAZY LADY!" quite that loudly? Luckily, I had the presence of mind to stop at a good scarf width. Unluckily, I have an entire, very expensive, skein of Prism Bubbles left over because I cut the project off short. I bought the Bubbles at the beginning of the spring to reward myself to something. I've completely forgotten what I was rewarding myself for, but I'm sure it was just an excuse I made up for buying something at the Prism trunk show, anyway. There are three different black yarns in there. One is Karabella Gossamer, and I've completely forgotten what the others are. If anyone really cares I probably could find the ball bands. One is a slippery nylon chain-construction yarn and the other is a very snaggy sparkly strand. I cast on and bound off on US35s and knit everything inbetween on a US19 circular.
The scarf looks awesome! I agree with all of your points about it. Good for you for hanging in there. So many of us have gotten too frustrated and are taking a break. I admire your stick-to-it-iveness.
Posted by: alison | October 05, 2004 at 10:04 AM
Oh! veryvery pretty! I have a nice fat check for you, to make up for all the non-knitting at Renegade. I like scarves that scream 'crazy lady' - wait til you see the hat I am in planning mode on right now, it'll make your scarf look tame. ;)
Posted by: Shannon | October 05, 2004 at 05:22 PM
Great blog! I completely empathize with your frustration at the scarf and am intrigued with your very apt description of the angst it is causing by needing constant "babysitting". I often feel that way about projects but have never put it into words so succinctly. For what it's worth, I think your scarf is lovely. I hope it's worth the headache. Happy knitting!
Posted by: Jennifer | October 09, 2004 at 06:11 PM