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.

September song

But the days grow short, when you reach September...

and the autumn weather turns the leaves to grey

And the days dwindle down,

To a precious few...

And these few precious days

I spend with you....

First Prize!

Gentle readers, I'm happy to announce that the First Prize in this year's Knitting New England Poetry of Knitting contest, goes to 

Brandee O'Thown 

of Providence, Rhode Island. 

It wasn't hard to decide, as Ms. O'Thown's entry was both distinctive and accomplished. Herewith, her wonderful poem. I hope it inspires you to enter your own in next year's contest, which will run during the summer of 2011.

Knitting Life 

by Brandee O'Thown

Blend sox, afghan blocks.

Ribbed edge, born in college.

Buttonholes, rev St st rolls.

Aran monster, alpaca disaster.

Yarn stash—oh, wool rash.

Lined pocket, “cable” rocket.

Onion skin, fleece lanolin.

Allover lace—my _mistake_ face.

Intarsia, no mantra.

Getting bored, slipped st cord.

Book stack, wood needle crack.

Circular heaven, looped edge leavens.

Mosaic virus, St st tyrant.

Keep gauge, turn page.

Stash—bash!

Fair isle.  Fair day.

Knit.  Sit.  Flit. Writ. 

Smitten.

Always a cause for celebration

is the opening of another New England LYS.  Eneri Knits is in Oak Harbour Village shopping plaza, Exeter, Rhode Island. September 4th is the "soft" opening; Columbus Day Weekend is the grand opening. 

Owner Irene DeVerna may be familiar to patrons of Country Corner Yarns in Charlestown, having worked there prior to setting up her own shop. Much thought, energy, and dedication have gone into this endeavor, and Irene's vision of how she wants it to develop is already apparent. There's a distinctive feel--of serenity, peace, and friendship--no accident, as Irene wants Eneri Knits "to provide a support system for knitters." Besides many wonderful yarns, tools, and accessories, Eneri Knits will offer classes and problem-solving sessions on a regular basis. Check the website for schedules, business hours, contact info, and directions.  Below, the workshop area.

We will keep an eye on the evolution of this lovely place. It's a leap of faith to open a new business in difficult economic times, but then again, interest in knitting has historically surged when the outside world seems bleak. "Peace, relaxation, and tranquility to all who join us in knitting" is what Eneri Knits hopes to convey to its patrons. What's not to like? We wish Irene and Eneri Knits much success.

And that made all the difference

Same pattern.  Different yarns.

Left:  worsted, edged with Artyarn.  Right: cashmere, silk, merino blend edged with Noro Silk Garden.

If you'd like the pattern, click here and scroll to the bottom of the page.

Though very fond of this vine and leaf design, I'm preparing to try other embossed patterns. Everything happens in the fall, does it not? As I write this, summer's doing a last-gasp heat wave, but the handknitting, as it were, is on the wall. The season of mist and mellow fruitfulness approaches.

NB: two days left before The Poetry of Knitting Contest closes!

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!

Hidden in Plain Sight

Sometimes the best things are, you know. For example, who would have thought that purslane, a common weed-like infiltrator of otherwise impeccable gardens, is now the salad ingredient du jour, selling at chic venues like the NYC Greenmarket for upwards of six dollars a bunch?

 Find the purslane in this photograph!

Oh what does purslane, you may ask, have to do with Knitting New England? Simply this—that there are many knitting-relevant surprises in our own bailiwick, hiding in plain sight. The most recent discovery for me is the American headquarters of a fabulous European-based knitting magazine, Verena, in Providence, Rhode Island. And I was fortunate last week to have a conversation with Margery Winter, its American editor-in-chief.

Margery Winter, a RISD graduate and former editor of Vogue Knitting, comes to Verena with an extensive background in knitwear and fashion design, yarn development, and a fabulous fashion sense. The latter reinforces one of several major distinctions between Verena and other hand-knitting magazines. 

Verena patterns are haute couture far above and beyond what we usually see in American knitting magazines, and cause a serious knitter to think long and hard about what and how to knit. After all, if you’re going to put hours and hours of your life into knitting a garment, don’t you really want it to look amazing? Verena patterns—and at about 80 per issue, there are substantially more than in other knitting magazines—allow you to make a couture piece that you could probably not otherwise afford, and give you a real sense of how the European fashion industry operates in terms of fit, details, and finishing. The magazine's lavish photo spreads, too, are a pleasure, and as an additional bonus, the women's plus-sized, men’s, and children’s patterns Verena includes are definitely not your grandmother’s idea of hand knits. 

 Command Central at Verena, USA, in Providence.

I realize this sounds like a shameless plug, and I guess it is. I’m totally entranced by a preview copy of the Fall 2010 issue, which features a fabulous hooded vest on the cover, designed by none other than Providence’s Deborah Newton. The magazine can be purchased at some LYS and at Barnes and Noble, but it sells out fast.  Maybe the best way to get your own copy is to subscribe via the Verena website. Margery says the website will be totally redesigned and improved by mid-September. Even now, however, it’s still a good read and an interesting overview of the print publication.

As for my conversation with Margery, it was, to say the least, enlightening. Margery brings to the world of knitting a vision that’s new to me (and, I’d imagine, to many American knitters). She thinks about yarn, shaping, sizing, and impact from the perspective of the fashion designer who drapes and measures to fit, who plays with texture and color in unusual ways, and who understands the knit itself as fabric rather than stitches. But the bottom line, she says, is simply this—that “in fashion, as with art and beauty, there’s a universal denominator. People respond in a common way to what is beautiful. I’m searching for beauty. It’s a passion.”

Well, how inspirational is that?