Black Olive Is: In The Loop

The Denim and Its Rough and Sexy Ways

The Denim...it's a workout!

Seriously, people, after knitting on this thing for about an hour, my arms feel as if I've just finshed an upper body routine.

Either I'm really out of shape, or it's the denim.

Ok, I AM out of shape, but still! This denim is rough!

The thing is, I love the feel of it. I love the color. I love the pattern (you can't beat Miss Hargreaves, can you?). So, my solution? Work an hour, stop, do some Yoga stretches, surf the net and repeat.

I can only endure this for about three hours at the most. And, if I go that long, my wrists start to hurt with that scary twinge that screams CARPAL TUNNEL! Then, everything else gets sore and I know I won't feel like or be able to pick it up the next day.

Given the situation, I was at least able to get this far along:

I am now up to the start of the armhole shaping.

During Bomber Break Days, as I affectionately call them, I knit a bit on Elizabeth I. She seems to be coming along nicely:

If I were a bit more practical, I'd be focusing on this baby right now, since I have a greater chance of getting more use out of her than the Bomber jacket. BUT, for some reason, I'm craving the denim and its rough and sexy ways. What's a girl to do?

And so I persist. :-)

Where In The World Is Black Olive?

I've been sick, people. Sick.

Immediately after that last post, I began to feel weird and generally "not right." The next day there was Scratchy Throat Stuff and then, well, I'm sure you know the rest.

I haven't felt much like knitting or spinning and have instead focused on just sitting on my papasan chair -- box of tissues by my side -- staring at the wall and hoping to feel better for the next day at work.

I did manage to knit a bit more on Elizabeth I before fully succumbing to the cold, the results of which you can see above and in the following photos:

(I know. Again with the plates. But, they get the job done!)

I have to say, either I'm getting good at this chart reading/stitch pattern thing, or it's just not as hard as it looks, because despite watery eyes and general cold-induced loopiness, I managed to not screw up any part of the rows I was able to knit.

I am thoroughly enjoying this pattern.

In addition to Elizabeth I progress, I knit a bit on the pair of socks I promised my co-worker. I don't even think I've blogged about these yet. I guess I just feel like I've knit SO MANY Koigu socks using my little generic sock recipe, that posting about them wasn't warranted. But, I feel I need to somehow inform you people that they do exist (they were started a while back) and that I haven't been completely dead to knitting this week.

As you can see, the first sock is on holders. After having my co-worker try it on, I decided I need to rip out about five rows before toe shaping begins. This is unbelievable to me because the foot on these already seems small, doesn't it? Or, am I just losing it?

Anyway, we had a family emergency last evening which resulted in sitting around the waiting room at the hospital for HOURS*. So, I decided to just cast on for the second sock instead of dealing with ripping and reknitting and then grafting the toe.

I must say, after about three days of no knitting (during the peak of my cold), it felt SO GOOD to just mindlessly knit on this sock. I didn't realize how much daily knitting time contributes to quelling my anxiety until I went without it for so long.

This little bit of knitting literally saved me from the insanity that is My Family and from the throngs of irritating people in the waiting room area. Were it not for the sock, I may have (not saying I would have, just that it was a slight possibility...ahem) been forced to drive my Mother back home -- far, FAR away from anything resembling the hospital. And I may have (again, not saying I would have) had to tell the people who came in at three am to morally support their friend who had his earring ripped off his ear, that it really doesn't take EIGHT PEOPLE to provide this kind of moral support and that they really DIDN'T need to continue their party in the waiting area.

I'm just sayin'. :-)

----

*Grandpa had a health issue which required immediate attention. He seems fairly stable now and we should find out the results of his tests tomorrow.

Woo.

Before I even begin this post, I'd like to be redundant (in terms of the blogosphere) and wish everyone a Happy New Year!

Woo.

Ok, so here we go...first post of 2006:

Do not make fun of me, people. I HAD to use the paper plates from my impromptu shindig last night in order to pin down this sucker and get it to unroll itself.

Also, do not, I repeat, DO NOT make fun of my "tomato." It is but a temporary measure until I can find an edgier, more stylish one (do they even exist in this fashion?). I only included it here so you could see the difference in reds between the "tomato" pin cushion and the Rowan 4-ply Soft. Rowan calls this color "red," but really, it's more of a deep, rich, cranberry color. In certain light it can be a traditional red, but in the light of day (the actual light of day, not the metaphorical light of day...ahem), it clearly has cranberry undertones.

The pattern is "Elizabeth I" from Alice Starmore's* Tudor Roses.

Here are some details:

So, this is how I ushered in the new year, people, and it was SU-WHEET!

Ah...

For three days now, I've been in my Hello Kitty and Snoopy jammies and my old, holey sweats (and yes, I have showered each day, transitioning from the jammies to the sweats) and it's been AWESOME.

I did have all these plans, but one-by-one they all fell through and I was left with this glorious chunk of time to do nothing but knit, spin, read about spinning, spin some more (not really spinning, more like learning to spin), eat, drink, watch movies while knitting and generally just lounging.

Did I mention how great this has been?

After weeks of Xmas flurry, a ton of obligations (fun, but with no detox time, which is something I need badly after going out) and work stuff, it was great to not have to go ANYwhere or do ANYthing.

I have to say, Elizabeth I is just what I need right now. Size 1 Addis, fingering weight yarn and a simple silhouette with an intricate, symmetrical, charted pattern. YUM. It's actually progressing much faster than I thought it would (I've knit on it a bit more after these pics were taken, but don't tell anyone...shhh!), and I'm hoping I can wear it before the season is over.

Now, excuse me while I get back to the business of catching up with my knitblogs and playing with my wheel (that just sounds funny, doesn't it? Hehe). Can you believe I have a whole other glorious day scheduled for this? Can you?

---

*Can I actually type her name and mention her pattern? I'm a little scared after reading this. I actually, seriously don't think I can even mention her name -- seriously (there are a bunch of other articles which mention how she's trademarked her name and how it is illegal to refer to her by name or by "AS" or by linking to her [I think]...just search her name and "litigation" and you can read all about it) -- but I like to live on the edge. Of course, I was totally unaware of this until Miss Grumperina turned me on to it when I first mentioned "Her" (I shall from this point on refer to AS as "Her," which I think is still in violation...hehe) book. I just realized this entire paragraph is probably in violation of her trademark thingy. Claudia? Again, I like to live on the edge. ;-)

Isn't this sort of like the whole Metallica Scandal, but with a "famous" (and I use that term loosely -- it's more like, Big Fish, Small Pond) knitwear designer?