Carrying on

It has been a strange week, gentle knitters. Strangest was a meeting of the Langworthy Library Knitters, which I found difficult to endure, so I left early.

As often happens when people democratically connected by little other than a single interest convene, there is some incompatibility among group members. This wouldn't matter if everyone focused on the shared passion of knitting. However, one member continually hijacks the conversation and monologues about her life as it played out from about the 1940s through present, though she seems especially fond of tales from the 1960s. Does she not notice that people rarely, if ever, respond to her chatter?

As usual there was this background noise, but then a new member joined the group, and within about fifteen minutes had informed us all of her extensive and serious health issues, surgeries, and treatments IN A VERY LOUD VOICE.

That was the straw, my friends. I do not go to a knitting club to be bombarded by the semi-tragic and deeply personal information of someone who's clearly looking for...what? Sympathy? Help? To this sad person, I donate a metaphorical Kit Bag. Were she to pack her troubles into it, she might enjoy life. Meanwhile I was the one with the fake smile on my face, while inwardly I wanted to stab someone with my #3 dpns, so nice and pointy.

So, farewell to the Langworthy Knitting Association for the time being.

Yes, people need to relieve themselves of the burdens of their misery, their angst, their fears. We all have confessed or vented to close friends, family members, clergy, and paid therapists. These are either people who know and love us, or people who are professionally qualified to help folks Deal with their Issues. What does it say about someone who foists her baggage on strangers and mere acquaintances? That, like Blanche Dubois, she relies on their kindness? IMHO, it merely adds unfairly to the burdens we all carry, less or more gracefully.

Never has the maxim, Keep Calm and Carry Yarn, seemed so appropriate.

Ted carries yarn.

Dyed in the wool, Part One

Neuroknitter graciously invited me to participate in a yarn-dyeing session on Friday, in the historic New England city of New London, Connecticut. She is a fearless knitter, spinner, fibre creator, and such is her sang froid that she actually wore a white tee-shirt while mixing the various dyes in her underground laboratory! I was completely awestruck.

The colors mixed were as follows:  pine green, pear green, emerald green, slate, mahogany. Nervous Nellie that I am, I asked Neuroknitter to forge ahead whilst I, protected behind my trusty Panasonic Lumix, observed from the sidelines. With consummate aplomb she demonstrated the application of the dye to pristine white yarn that had previously soaked in a solution of water and Synthrapol.

After coloring the blank slate, as it were, to her satisfaction, the yarn was then carefully squished to ensure a good saturation of the dyes.

Next, it was enfolded in the plastic wrap on which it had been resting, and cooked for five minutes in the microwave.

At this point, exhausted and depleted, we gulped frosty glasses of iced Earl Grey. Then, as Neuroknitter's yarn cooled in its plastic sheath, I sallied forth on my first attempt. The yarn I'd chosen was a natural wool worsted that had  (my conjecture) somewhat yellowed over the ages. I acquired it as part of an enormous stash someone had donated to the Langworthy Library Knitting Association.

Timid creature that I am, I started with only one color, Slate. Brownie the cat, who skeptically watched our proceedings, approved my cautious approach, I think.

(To be continued in the next post....)

Prospective delights

Friday begins the first annual Great Rhody Yarn Crawl. Sponsored by Slater Mill Knitting and Crochet Guild, it runs all weekend. (Click on the GRYC link for a map and a "passport" to download.) I plan to visit an LYS or two to check out the merriment. Word has it that an interesting mystery guest will appear at Eneri Knits in Exeter on Friday between 5 and 7 p.m., and I'm rather curious to see whom that might be. Perhaps I will meet you there, gentle reader, as well.

Last Wednesday, at the weekly meeting of the Langworthy Library Knitting Association, our beloved founder, Jane Green, brought in her handwork for show-and-tell.

She knit this for a specific reason--namely, that she and some friends will gather, on the 29th of this month, to view the broadcast of Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding in Westminster Abbey, and as it is a lengthy production, they will require some fortification. Tea and cakes are the preferred refreshment of this discerning fan club, as we are six hours earlier than London, where no doubt folks will be quaffing more potent celebratory beverages:

I gave her Cakes and I gave her Ale,
I gave her sack and sherry.
I kist her once and I kist her twice;
And we were wondrous merry.

Please admire the beautiful delicate roses knitted from variegated sock yarn.

To this list of two prospective delights, I shall immodestly add another: my article, "Stitch and Seed:  Summer's Bounties," in the summer 2011 issue of Knitscene Magazine, on sale starting just about this week at many LYS, including Eneri Knits.

Simple Gifts

Give someone a pair of socks, and you warm her feet for a day.  Teach someone to knit socks, and you warm her feet for a lifetime.                                                                                         
The Langworthy Library Knitting Association began nearly two years ago when Denise wandered into the library and knowing Jane-the-librarian was a knitter, asked for lessons in socks.  The upshot was the birth of the Knitting Association, and a pattern, Denise's sock, that Jane has graciously agreed to share.

Denise's Sock is a good, basic sock that will warm the tootsies in a variety of yarns: plain, variegated, self-patterning.  You can add your own touches--I usually do a 2x2 rib at the top for at least an inch. I learned to make socks from this pattern, too, and I hope you will use it and wear it in good health. Thank you and brava to Jane! The ramifications of her gift are far-reaching, delightful, and warm. In her gesture is a lesson for us all.

Jane Green
knitting a sock

Alfie eyes one of "Denise's socks" suspiciously.

Local boy makes good

So there we were, last night, sitting and knitting, as per usual with one exception:  Gordon. Having read about us in the Wood River Press (edition of 11/25/10) he was eager to join up with kindred souls.

Of course we wanted a show-and-tell.  He'd fortunately brought a pair of mitts and a hat of his own design, from yarn spun by his mother from locally-raised fiber animals.

Yesterday he worked on a scarf of mixed-fiber, Kool-Aid dyed (by himself) yarn (spun by his mother).  He told us he learned to knit five years ago, while recovering from surgery.

When not knitting, he works at a convenience store in town and is in the National Guard. We hope he'll become a regular member of the Langworthy Library Knitting Association!

Mice in the library

Jane Green, librarian and sock knitter par excellence (check out her Spirit Sisters website), brought these little guys to the library last week:

They are a wonderful Ysolda Teague pattern, "Mousie,"available through Ysolda's website or Ravelry.

And above are two of Jane's latest sock creations--an olive green tweed hiking sock, and elegant blue cabled socks with Jane's signature "fizz" at top.  The mice are about to leave for Louisville, KY, where Jane's heading for a week's visit with her daughter and grand-cat.  (Guess who's getting the mice?)

Why Socks?  An Existential Disquisition, Part 1

Recently I've come across more than a few manifestos, online and in knitting magazines, arguing in favor of knitted socks. The Langworthy Library Knitting Association, perhaps as a reflection of Jane's proclivities, cleaves to socks more than to anything else.  Denise tells me, "They're instant gratification." She favors them over more time-consuming projects, as do many other proponents, both in-library and outside.

I'm in the early stages of my sock-knitting career, and consider myself a convert to the beauty and general superiority of hand-knitted socks. They are warmer, lighter, and softer than any machine-made sock I've ever worn, including machine-made cashmere and angora. Plus, they're mine--original, unique, and custom-fitted!

Below a small gallery of hand-knitted socks made by the Langworthians:

Judy's socks

Denise's socks

Anne's socks

Socks I made for HC's birthday in November!

Here's a question:  Why do you or don't you knit socks?  (Responses will appear in a future post.)

Planting ahead

Busy ant that he is, H has begun the winter crops:  kale, chard, radicchio, lettuce, garlic. Some of them are or will be outdoors under a heavy mulch wrap; others, like the lettuce, will be in the unheated hoop house. This is the first year he'll do lettuces there, and we are interested to see how long they can go before frost nukes them. Above photo is of two kinds of kale, still looking summery, as there hasn't yet been cold here to nip surrounding vegetables, and the straw mulch is yet to be applied.

My philosophy of knitted baby clothes is similar to that of the Master Gardener, inasmuch I prepare ahead by knitting everything for recent arrivals on this planet in size one year. It doesn't bother me that a sweater may be on the large and loose side.

Ted here is comparable in length and width to a three-month-old baby, but he thinks this oversized shetland-wool sweater looks fine on him, and doesn't mind the rolled-up sleeves.  He's loath to relinquish it, but it must be mailed tomorrow to Sofia in Berkeley, California, who was born in July. For those of you unfamiliar with Berkeley, it, like many coastal cities, has its share of morning mists and cool days, and we anticipate that Sofia will wear the sweater, in good health, for more than a year.

I've knitted this pattern once before; it's a free download that you can access here (scroll down to the bottom of the page) and was the ostensible subject of my very first ever post last year. The pattern calls for cotton yarn; I did it in wool and think the gauge may be larger than with cotton, but I didn't measure. That's one of the pleasures of knitting baby clothes--it's so not an exact science that it feels improvisatory. Too large is not a problem. This pattern is extremely clever--everything is done in one piece except for the button-on center panel. Thus you may knit several panels if you choose, for variety and to save washing the sweater too often. The pattern was designed by a mother of five, so she knows.

Speaking of which, a young woman came to the Langworthy Library Knitting Association meeting a few weeks ago with a ball of fingering weight white cotton yarn and size six needles she'd recently purchased. She didn't know how to knit but planned to make a sweater for an infant. I wished her much luck.

BKIND

Coming to the Langworthy Library Knitting Association meeting yesterday, I passed a car in the parking lot whose license plate read "BKIND." These wise words carried over to the meeting, where Jane, knitter par excellence and founder of the group, was busy instructing eight-year-old Amity, and her mom, in knitting. By now our collection of donated needles and yarn is large enough that we can provide materials for anyone who might stop by and want to learn to knit.

Jane is an excellent teacher--soft-voiced, clear, and patient.  She gave Amity a quilted knitting tote, and after she and her mom left, those of us remaining speculated as to whether they'd return. School starts next week, and things will get busy. But we are hoping...

Jane's passion is knitting socks, and she's designed a good basic pattern which I hope to post fairly soon. It led me to the completion of my first pair...and inspired by that project, I'm now knitting my third. When I brought my first pair to a recent meeting, I was given a Blue Plastic Yarn Needle to betoken my initiation. This is a tradition Jane established.

And here's a photo of Jane modeling a recently-completed pair of socks, knit in a beautiful German organic wool, Zitron.

For more examples of Jane's spectacular work, check out her website, Spirit-Sisters.

(I've been wondering if any of my readers are involved with library knitting groups in Rhode Island and elsewhere in New England. I'd be interested in hearing and writing about them.)

Well...time to pick beans in the garden. Before ending, however, I'll remind you that The Poetry of Knitting Contest closes on August 31st, in only five days. Submissions so far have been delightful!

Third Annual World-Wide Knit in Public Day

Fortified by gingersnaps and lemon seltzer, six of us met at the Langworthy Library yesterday to celebrate WWKIP.  As it turned out, all of us were making socks (Denise's are on the table in the foreground) except for Linda (above with arm raised) who was knitting the most interesting lariats (photo below) that can be worn as belts or necklaces. They are worked in metallic yarns with beads.

The sponsors of WWKIP have officially designated June 12-20th as WWKIP WEEK!  Knitters, please make time in your busy schedules during these days to sit and knit on a park bench, in an outdoor café, at a library, on the bleachers at a sporting event, or any other venue where you'll be visible to the general public as a bona fide knitter and inciter of ravelry.

In honor of WWKIP, a generous soul donated a huge box of knitting needles to the Langworthy Library Knitting Association!

These are a few of my favorite things...

Gentle readers,
"The Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater" has concluded, and I now return to my usual postings of nonfiction knitting-in-New England items.  I enjoyed creating the story--my method was the Victorian model of serial fiction, written to deadline--but while involved with that, I was also busy sussing out other topics and leads. Soon to come from this period of fact gathering will be posts about an alpaca farm in Rhode Island and a trip to Massachusetts yarn country. I was heartened to see, however, that while "The Curse" was ongoing, my readership spiked and the total readership outside the U.S. increased to twenty-four countries.

It is fascinating for me to know that there are some in Europe, Asia, and Africa who read this blog, and I am curious to learn what drew them to it. Are you New England knitters far from home? Are you Europeans/Africans/Asians who are interested in the knitting culture of the world?  If any of you care to drop me a line via this blog's comments option (or the email address on my profile page) to let me know, I would be most grateful.  Similarly I'm also interested in hearing from readers in North America, whether Canada, the U.S., or the West Indies, who are outside the regional scope yet read the blog regularly.  What is it that you enjoy?

Meanwhile, I will use the rest of the this post to update the world about the prodigious accomplishments of the Langworthy Library Knitting Association.  The sock photo at top is of the five amazingly gorgeous pairs Denise knit during April and May. Next, a photo of Julia (and a peek at Jane), both wearing their handknitted sweaters.  Julia's is a top-down design in an alpaca-wool blend that requires minimal seaming.  Her next project--same pattern, I believe--is on the table before her.

Finally, here's Jane wearing a beautiful pink cardigan.  The shocking thing about it is...this was the first sweater she ever made, and she knit it when she was twelve.  How awesome is that?  The sweater is still in gorgeous condition, more than thirty-five years ex post facto, and the work is stunning.  Below, a detail.

I shall close with two noteworthy items.  First, WWKIP approaches: World Wide Knit In Public Day is the second Saturday in June. What will you do to celebrate?  The Langworthy Knitters will meet at the library, rain or shine, and go at it from 10-2 on June 12th. Please join us, and we'll give you a sticker badge.  If you want to learn to knit or need knitting help, we are there for you!  24 Spring St., Hope Valley, Rhode Island.  It's also the date of the annual library book sale (need I say more?).

Second, this month marks the first anniversary of www.Knitting New England.blogspot.com! How time flies when I'm having fun! Please send suggestions for future posts. And yes, I'm actually going to Maine in September, maybe earlier, with at least one stop in New Hampshire.

Yours gratefully,
smw and friend (below)