Christmas in China

I thought it would be good to show you some of the Christmas decorations that I am encountering. The sample is very small as I haven't been going out very much. It has mostly been work that is getting in the way. Last weekend we went to Xi'an but that deserves its own post and I have to do justice to it.

We live near a very high end mall with very expensive brand name stores. They have done a great job decorating for Christmas with a house, nut crackers, Christmas trees, all lit up with lights. The railings on the various floors have garlands on them.

There are also decorations in the lobby of my office building.

And there were some in the lobby of our hotel in Xi'an. A gorgeous purple tree...

The bake counter in the restaurant in the lobby was decorated like a gingerbread house.

In contrast to all this light and festivity, we have also had a very high level of pollution this week. It is not common in Shanghai but our levels were higher than those in Beijing this week.
This is the sun at around 10-11 am

Through the trees...

If you remember the photos from my balcony last winter, here is the same view yesterday. The pollution level has dropped a lot today.

Air purifiers and masks are sold out at most retailers. Our apt doesn't seem to admit the pollution as I could smell the difference as soon as I stepped out into the balcony to take that photo. I did wear a mask on the way to work and back and when I went to the bank.

Lastly, I whipped out this pair of mittens for DH last weekend.

The yarn is the hand-dyed merino I bought in Melbourne. I knitted it at a fairly tight gauge. I hope it holds up. Merino is nice and soft and the mittens can handle some felting but I hope they don't pill too much.

I also did some finishing of handspun. I had some sample yarn spun on the various Jenkins spindles I've acquired over the last year. I had not finished any of them. So I wound them off and finished them. 

Today I finished the yarn that was endlessly plied on the Jenkins Swan. Here is the very beginning of the story. Here is the end... more than 1000 yds of 2 ply yarn - spindle spun and spindle plied. It was made from one 4 oz braid less the singles that I lost when I messed up one of the bobbins along the way. You can see that disaster here. If you want to read the whole story, just look at posts with the label 'gradient'. But all's well that end's well.

That last photo shows the gradient. It goes from a brownish red to a pinky red to a purple.

It is still damp so I won't wind it up into a twisted hank yet to take the shot with the quarter. That is reserved for next time.

I am also spinning away on the Briar Rose Cormo. Progress to date on the first single.

I hope the color counteracts the dreary pollution pictures.

Spinning with a purpose

So far in my spinning, I have been content to just spin and then decide what I'm going to make with the results. This has worked out quite well and given me the opportunity to experiment with a lot of different spinning techniques without worrying about the end result.

This year has been different. I am still trying different techniques and still spinning a lot without thinking about what the end product is going to look like. But I have spun a couple of things with a planned project in mind.

The ITW Romney is the first of these. I thought a little bit about it and decided to spin a thicker yarn, not my usual fingering or lace weight. I also thought that Romney is lovely silky long wool, not soft to the touch but durable. So I spun a lightly twisted thick single that I plied with a tight twist to get what I hope will be a lofty yet durable yarn. I wanted a sport weight but the actual thickness is between sport and worsted. No, I don't spin that consistently yet!

I also knit the mittens with a firm gauge. It actually hurt my hands quite bit to knit them. And they are chunky but quite warm and I can curl my fingers inside the mitts to keep them warm.

And here they are, all complete.

I love the colors, not particularly fond of such chunky knits. I am a fine gauge girl at heart but these are warmer than my sock weight fingerless mitts, even though those are stranded with two colors. I am willing to give these some time but if I don't like wearing them, I'll frog them and make them into regular mitts. They didn't take that long to make that I'll mind redoing them.

Now I'll go back to my thinner yarns.

The best laid plans....

If you remember, a long time ago, I bought some buttons to put on mittens I was going to make with handspun Romney.

I suppose I could have used them had I planned my mitt better. There are two problems with using these buttons. The first is that I have 10 buttons but I made 6 button holes on the first mitt. Since there should be 6 buttonholes on the second mitt to match the first, 10 buttons just won't do. sigh I did think about not putting a button on the last button hole. Which brings us to the second problem.

Let me remind you of what the mitt looks like:

It is a chunky, bold sort of fabric and the buttons are rather delicate and small. In fact, they are too small. The yo buttonholes I made are too big for the buttons. double sigh

This past Sunday, we took a trip back to the notions market, mitt in hand. I found these lovely lilac and pewter looking buttons. I couldn't find anything that matched the colors in the mitt but there is a darker lilac and I thought the contrast with the lighter color brightened up the mitt.

I did buy 12. I put only 4 on the mitt as they slid off. I will be traveling over the next couple of days and will finish up the second mitt and then I can sew them all on. I had to buy sewing thread to match. The thread shops had these huge cones of thread and I thought I'd have to buy one of those (think serger thread on steroids). But then one shop had sets of smaller amounts in related colors. I found one set with a color I could use.

So maybe I will have a completed pair of mitts by next week.

More knitting from handspun

I decided to put the Viajante away for the trip since it was getting a bit big and bulky. Instead, I took the Romney that I had spun for mitts. I didn't have a mitt pattern in mind but was intrigued by the construction of one that I saw on Ravelry. I don't even remember which one it was because there were many aspects of it that I didn't like.

Anyway, I started and finished one mitt on the plane and started the second. I definitely did not help myself with the right tools. I had brought a number of needles as I didn't know which one would work. A size 7 was perfect. It made a nice dense fabric. I am also pleased with the way the colors have turned out on the yarn. It is the Nebula colorway from Into the Whirled.

The construction is simple. It is a rectangle with a button band on one side and a buttonhole band on the other. I used a k1, p1 followed by an all knit row and then a p1, k1 with the same all knit row. The ends curl a bit but won't once I button up the sides.

At the correct point, I put 7 sts on a holder (FAIL #2 - no holder) for the thumb. I resorted to using a tiny safety pin that barely held the sts. I wish I had had some scrap yarn but I didn't. So I cast on the sts using an e-wrap and continued.

FAIL #1 was not having a cable needle. Yes, I can cable without a cable needle - I have proof that I can (see photo above) but I prefer not to. I find it much faster to cable with a cable needle.

I then picked up the sts and made a little thumb as my thumb looked naked just protruding from the slit.

It fits perfectly but I knew that. I was measuring as I went - I am sure I got a few strange looks from passers-by on the plane but I didn't notice. The elderly lady sitting next to me was fascinated and watched me the whole time.

It is a bit messy looking on the hand without the buttons to hold it on.

I started the second mitt but I only have a couple of the cable twists done. I think I'll have it done next week. I don't like the buttons I bought - plus I made 6 button holes in the mitt and only have 10 total buttons (FAIL #3). So I am planning to go tomorrow with the mitt in hand and buy more buttons.

I spent this afternoon (actually about 30 mins) polishing my silver jewelry. I haven't been able to wear any of it as all were badly tarnished. Now they are looking nice and I can wear them. I used some stuff I found in the grocery store in the US - Wright's Silver Cream. It does a nice job.

No spinning or knitting since I got back as I've been at work (remember that?) and busy with jet-lag in the evening. I pretend it doesn't exist and try not to sleep in daylight or turn the lights on at night. But I do go to sleep early and get up early. If it is still dark, I stay in bed with the light off and listen to podcasts.

It might take some adjustment to go to work for a full week after 2 weeks off.

Last but not least, some lovely fall colors from Pennsylvania...

Shanghai is hot (79 F/27 C) and humid so I am vicariously enjoying the crisp fall weather by looking at the photos.

and a NYC skyline taken from the Whitestone bridge...

We were crawling along so I whipped out the camera and took a photo.

More little things

I finished the cafe au lait mitts with some help from Maggie, who gave me the yarn to finish. I was short yarn for the top of the second mitt and thankfully, she had some leftovers in the same natural color. They are wonderfully warm and comfortable. The pattern is very well written and is a great choice for leftover yarn.

Unfortunately, even putting them on to photograph made my hand warm. I will be looking forward to the fall to get use out of them.

I started the Skew socks from Knitty in a Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock yarn that I had on hand. I think this will create subtle swirls of color rather than the more graphic swirls that are in the original pattern. The color is called Irving Park.

As you can see, I am still on a small things kick. Next I need to start something more substantial, I think.

Quick little things

Little things get completed quickly. I started this beret last Saturday and finished it on Friday even though I didn't knit every day. It is cute.

I started this yesterday. It is a fingerless mitten out of the mink/cashmere leftover yarn. I hope I have enough to make its mate. Quick easy knitting. It can get addictive to make little things since they are like potato chips. It is hard to stick to one.

Spring!

Flowers are a sign of spring. Yesterday we were in Washington DC and decided to go see the cherry blossoms. The National Mall was packed with people. Of course, I had a lovely camera around my neck but was taking pictures with my cell phone! Why? Because the lovely camera was out of battery charge and wouldn't take any photos. sigh Here's the Washington monument with the crowds in view. It was a gorgeous day and it felt as if the entire population of the US was out there.
Aren't cherry trees in bloom beautiful? This one has a lovely shape and a very delicate appearance. I came home to find my very own cherry tree in full bloom. It isn't pink but it has a lovely lacy appearance. The sad part is that it doesn't last long. It will be done with its blooming in a week or less. double sighTo celebrate spring, I started a very spring-like knit. This will be Reverie. The yarn is Schaefer Nichole.

Finally, I am done with 3 pairs of wrist brace liners. Thank goodness. This is the most boring knit ever. Fortunately I only have to make them every 4-5 years. Here's the last pair.

I hope all of you are having a wonderful Easter weekend!

Winter-warming color

When I first came to the United States, I hated the cold. I lived for the 3-4 weeks in the summer when it was hot and humid. I loved the crispness of the fall but it presaged the cold, dark winter so I didn't welcome it. Over the decades, my body has changed 180 degrees. I like the cold and dislike the heat. Spring and fall are my favorite seasons but given the choice between summer and winter, I prefer winter. Very strange, I know, but that is the way it is.

The only problem with the winter is the lack of color. I love crisp white snow but most of the time, it doesn't last. The trees are bare and brown, the grass is brown, the only color comes from the sky, the houses and the evergreen trees. All in all, it is rather dull and not very inspiring. At such times, I love color in my clothes, in my knitting and even in my food. A salad with carrots, tomatoes, multi-colored peppers and celery is like sunshine on a grey day.

Unfortunately, I am currently knitting a white garment so my color needs are being met by books and by yarn in my stash right now. I am sharing some recent acquisitions with you to bring that color to you to warm your heart and your eyes.

I missed Magnificent Mittens when it was first published because I wasn't into mittens then. Therefore, I was very thrilled to see it republished with some new patterns. It has gorgeous designs in it. Anna Zilboorg is a wonderful knitter and designer. I had the privilege of sitting next to her at a Stitches East many moons ago and was impressed by her, even though I didn't know who she was at the time. She is a lovely, warm and articulate person. I jumped at the chance to aquire the new paperback version.
Keeping with the theme of this post, here are some of the colorful designs in it. The designs can be adapted for socks and hats as well as mittens but the stranded work makes warm and windproof mittens.Another book that I ignored when it was first published is Handknit Holidays. In general, I don't buy pattern books unless they have some significant technique sections in them. Handknit Holidays has a wide variety of unusual patterns but nothing that attracted me at the time. However, times change...

A friend of mine made the Swedish Heartwarmer Shawl from Handknit Holidays and I fell in love. It is colorful and has incredible depth of color due to the handpainted yarns used in it.

It starts off plain and then switches to a stranded set of borders. Again, the stranded colorwork adds warmth and heft to the shawl. The images are also inspiring in the winter - suns, roses, wavy vines and stars.

Once I got the book, I started looking around for sales on the yarn. I was fortunate in finding a couple that had the colors used in the shawl. For a change, I am going to make this exactly as written so I am kitting it up!

The yarn is sock weight yarn from Mountain Colors. It is called Bearfoot and is a combination of superwash wool and mohair. For a shawl, this is durable and warm. I am starting to become a fan of sock yarn for shawls because of the nylon content. I am a klutz and I have holes in two lace shawls already. So durability and strength in the yarn is a good thing.I end this with a close-up of the colors to warm you up. If you are in a warm place and don't need any warming-up, use it to warm your heart and mind, if not your body!

The frog is done!

I didn't post last week as I had no news to report. But today is different! I finished the froggy scarf and it is lovely. It has l-o-n-g tails which I tried to show you by this 'artistic' layout. The pattern is 22.5 degrees which makes a short shawl with long tails. I like this because it can be worn as a scarf under a jacket as well as a shoulder shawl.I ran out of the main color because I wasn't paying attention to the number of repeats. I did one more than I should have, and with that width, it used up a lot of yarn. I didn't want to undo it - again due to the number of sts in each row - so I found another yarn in a similar color and weight and did the edging with that. I was hoping for more of a contrast but all the contrast colors I had didn't make the main color 'pop'. So I stuck to matching rather than contrasting. There are a few extra colors in the edging - a blue and a brighter yellow. I like the effect. This is what it looks like, if I'm wearing it.
Here is a close-up showing the difference in the texture and colors. Just a hint of color and texture, right? The main yarn is Kashmir by the Woolen Rabbit. The edging is Koigu KPPPM.This is the back. I love the scalloped edge and it is so easy to do. The designer has a Youtube video demonstrating the technique. Easy-peasy!
I am working on another secret project right now so I won't be beginning a new project or finishing up Stor Rund Dug right away. But my next project after that will be born of necessity.
I have carpal tunnel syndrome and wear wrist braces at night. They get disgusting and aren't easy to wash. When I complained about this early on, my doctor suggested I cut holes in tube socks and wear them under the liners. They can be washed more easily and absorb the sweat and skin oils that make the braces smell.

Being a knitter, I immediately thought of finger-less gloves. I had to make them longer to fit the liners completely. Here is my current collection. I can wash a pair every few days and always have another pair ready to go. They work really well.
Unfortunately, because they take a lot of washing and wearing, they eventually end up looking like this...and this...Which means I have to knit new pairs to replace them. I use Elann Esprit which is a cotton/elastic sock yarn. The cotton is very absorbent and cool and the elastic keeps the liners in shape after washing. As you can see, despite all the wear, they still look shapely. One ball makes a pair so I have 3 more balls left for the new batch. I had originally bought 2 balls of each color as I wasn't sure how much I would need.

It is boring knitting - imagine making 6 mittens all the same! But it goes quickly and I love the result. I also only have to do it every 3 or 4 years.

As Elizabeth Zimmermann said, Knit On!