FO: Summertime Tunic

Ugh! So I just started to make corn muffins, got the egg cracked into the 1/3 cup of milk and everything, only to open up the Jiffy box and find the corn muffin mix covered in tiny, tiny ants. Strangest thing, they were just inside the box. Not a trace of them in the cabinet. How on earth did they get there?! It reminded me of my apartment senior year in college. It had a serious tiny ant problem even though the apartment was sprayed monthly. One time, I left the apartment and went shopping for a b-day present for my mom. I was out at the mall for a long while, shopped around, stopped for a hot pretzel, you know the drill. When I finally found something for my mom and held out my credit card to pay, there was one of those tiny ants on my wrist! It had hitched a ride on my body for HOURS!

Tonight, the corn muffins were going to be a treat for finally (finally!) finishing the "Summertime Tunic" from the summer 2007 issue of Inteweave Knits. I used Knit Picks Shine Worsted in "Bachelor Button" and size US 7 circular needles. That darn tunic was some sloooooow going. Especially since this past week I had a cold, threw out my back, aaaaand there were three days were it was, I kid you not, hotter than hell outside. Too hot to knit.

The name is Stockinette. Jen Stockinette.

This past January, EZ (my bestest-friend-from-college) and I left our fellas at home and went on a cruise together. Now, cruising is something you either love or hate. And we don' t just love it; we LURVE it! I guess it's like college for us, back when EZ and I were roommates, plus she and I travel well together. We love having our adventures in the ports-of-call, sure, but we like coming back to the ship at the end of the day, filling up on food and drink, getting pampered, and waking up in a new location. This ship is its own adventure, too. The best is meeting new people and talking to all the other cruisers, because, and I cannot stress this enough, EVERYONE IS SO HAPPY! (And there are no cell phones!)

It's interesting that while I am a terrible swimmer and while I am not exactly keen on being IN the water, I can't get enough of being ON the water. I think I got my love of cruising from my grandfather, who was in the Navy. He was also big on cruising.


In January, EZ and I went to Key West, Cozumel, and Belize City. We also had one day at sea to chill out and bake in the sun. This picture is from a sandy atoll near Belize City where we lounged for a time after snorkeling. Every time I see this picture, my heart physically aches because it is so beautiful.

Of course, the vacation was not without its "downs." Well, there was only one "down." It happened the morning of January 17. We were supposed to be docked in Cozumel, but something had happened so that a tender was needed to reach the shore. No matter to EZ and I, as we were going to be taking a 45-minute long tender ride anyway, not to Cozumel, but to Playa del Carmen, where we would continue on to the Tulum Mayan Ruins and Xel-Ha, a natural water park.

Our group was late getting onto the tender, which shall be forever now called the "Catamaran of Evil." As we finally boarded it, whisperings rippled through the crowd that we were late because someone had nearly fallen in the ocean, the water was so choppy. When the full Catamaran of Evil separated itself from the ship, it instantly bucked up and down like a rollercoaster, and the passengers squealed. As we moved along, the going got tougher. The stomachs of everyone on the Catamaran of Evil tightened collectively as the horizon line swinged above, then dipped below the portholes. At the same time, we were thrown backwards and forwards in our seats. The crew began walking through the aisles, passing out lavender-colored plastic bags. The television at the front of the Catamaran of Evil, which was showing still photographs of hot people on gorgeous beaches, was failing to distract me.

Then it began. Like the scene from "Stand By Me" where everyone starts to puke at the pie eating contest, lavender-colored bags were being thrown left and right, catching upchuck. And it was only 20 minutes into the 45-minute ride.

The panic set in. "I can't do this," I worried aloud to EZ. She said, "It's okay. Just breathe." I replied by jumping out of my seat and heading towards the restrooms in the back. On the way, I was thrown about by the choppy sea. I landed on a few other passengers, and, most notably, slammed into a pole and slid down an entire row of seats (earning a nasty bruise as a result). I finally made it to the back, where I grabbed a lavender-colored plastic bag from a member of the crew and slammed myself into a restroom. At this point, I must stress: I am NOT a vomiter and I do NOT get seasick. It had been ten years since my stomach had turned on me. But turn on me it did, this morning of January 17.

Now, I don't know if any of you have had the seasickness, but it is quite possibly the worst thing to happen to your body. You feel like it will never end, and you feel like you should just cut your losses and die already.

We finally made it to Playa del Carmen, and when I emerged from the restroom, at least 75% of the other passengers looked as pale as me. EZ, by the way, had been (secretly) taking Dramamine, the newfangled kind the lasts 24 hours and doesn't cause drowsiness, so while she was uncomfortable, her breakfast oatmeal stayed in its rightful place.

Anyway, we had an amazing day after that, but I was scared the whole time that I had to get back on the Catamaran of Evil to return to the ship. So I purchased some Mexican Dramamine, the suspicious kind with no Drug Facts listed on the side and no safety wrapping around the box. I took some, and was half asleep in 20 minutes. Good thing I was only half asleep, because I would have otherwise missed what was playing on the television. Instead of still photographs of hot people on gorgeous beaches, it was the video of Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer. EZ and I sat next to each other, exhaused and rapt by the video. Since that time, I've been addicted to Sledgehammer. And here is where knitting finally enters the story.

While knitting my Summertime Tunic on the commuter train this week, I realized that "Sledgehammer" is perfect for motivating stockinette in the round -- which is a good thing, because this tank is all stockinette, all the time. I don't know if Sledgehammer works for all you Continental-style knitters out there, but give it a shot and let me know.

This motivated me to find other tunes that matched my stockinette-in-the-round pace. I came up with a few...

(1) Average White Band's "Pick up the Pieces".

(2) K.C. & The Sunshine Band's "(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty"

(3) Madonna's "Hung Up" (which grew on me, as my intial reaction was: "What did she do to ABBA?!?!?!")

(4) The Eames Era's "Could Be Anything"

(5) Toots & The Maytals' "Funky Kingston" (slows down the pace a little, but it's worth it)

As for "Sledgehammer," viewing of the video by
Aardman is optional, but highly suggested.

"Let Them Buy Knitting Books!"

Good news! I've got a job!

Well, truth be told, I already had a job. The real news is that I get to keep it. Where I work, your first two years on the job are, for lack of a better term, "probationary." When the two years are up, all the big cheeses get together to decide whether or not to "invite" you to stay. I recently got invited to stay! Yay!

In my life before knitting, to celebrate such an exciting event, I would have purchased a handbag. Now, to celebrate, I feed my knitting obsession.



I treated myself to Jacqueline Fee's "The Sweater Workshop". I have already made a few garments from the top down, but decided it was time to learn to make garments from the bottom up. I could always use a little learnin'. I was a good student and started the "Sweater Sampler" (while watching Sofia Coppola's "Marie Antoinette"). What a great way for a novice, like me, to learn such things as short-rows and to try a little two-color knitting!

(By the way, I'm not usually a fan of Kirsten Dunst. I find her acting leaves much to be desired, and, if I may be so snotty, the snaggleteeth bother me. But I quite enjoyed her in "Marie Antoinette." Quite a delicious film. "Like candy!")

Oh, My Darlin'

A few months ago, I decided I should learn to read a chart, and that I should do so by making the Clementine Shawlette from IK Spring 2007 in Knit Picks "Gloss" in "Pumpkin." Only three mistaks on the whole thing. Not too shabby. Oh! AND I learned the kitchener stitch! Double whammy.

My "Sizzle" Saga

Today, I finished by third "Sizzle," designed by Wendy at Knit and Tonic.



My first "Sizzle" was a little red number knit up in Karabella Yarns "Zodiac" on size US 7 circular needles. This was my very first garment, and I followed the pattern exactly. The fit on top turned out well, but the bottom half was too roomy and it was too short for my taste. I did, however, love the deep v-neck. What did I learn? Working with 100% cotton is the pits!




My second "Sizzle" was for my mom for her birthday. I used the recommended yarn (Silk Bijou by Olympus) and size US 7 circular needles. I followed the pattern exactly, again knitting a front and a back and then seaming the pieces together. My mom, who lives in Chicago, says it fits, but has yet to send me a picture to prove it.



My third "Sizzle" was an experiment. I've recently become obsessed with knitting garments from the top down, in the round. So I adapted the pattern to do this. The result? The v-neck isn't as deep as I would have liked it, and the placement of my bust darts are all funky. (How did this happen? I have no idea. Thankfully, I just received in the mail
"Sweater Design in Plain English" by Maggi Righetti.) The moral of the story: I continue to underestimate the extent of my bust. This third "Sizzle" was knit on size US 7 circulars in nearly 8 complete balls of Knit Picks Shine Worsted in "Snapdragon."



While this third "Sizzle" is by no means my last (I intend to keep trying until it's perfect for my body), as soon as I finished weaving in the ends, I cast on for the "Summertime Tunic" from the summer 2007 issue of Inteweave Knits. I am using Knit Picks Shine Worsted in "Bachelor Button" and (of course) size US 7 circular needles from my brand-spankin'-new
Knit Picks Options Knitting Needles Set. Oh, how I love these needles!

My "Fad Classic"

My favorite knitting blogs are the ones with extensive, no-nonsense photos of finished objects, complete with extensive, no-nonsense details about the knitting of those objects. That's why, here at Law and Garter, I'll keep my Flickr album (check the sidebar) complete. I'll also give you all the details, here.

Here goes.



Here's the "Fad Classic," designed by Wendy at Knit and Tonic. I used size US 7 needles and (almost) three skeins of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in "Violet," which looked great in the skein, but looked more and more like Barney, the annoying dino, as I knitted along. The only modification I made to this size 34 garment was to not do any waist increases. In fact, instead of increasing, I decreased some more, though I don't remember how many times. I also don't remember how long this project took me. It got put on the back burner for a while, and I get the bulk of my knitting done while on the commuter train.

By the way, one round in the four-round stitch pattern calls for you to k1p1 into each stitch. I dreaded this round, because it took me so darn long --- until, that is, I discovered that I could k1p1 in time with Michael Jackson's Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough. Try it. You won't be sorry.

The Very First Thing

So it appears as if I am starting a blog. Little ol' me.

The idea is that I'd like to keep track of my knitting projects and, at the same time, maybe amuse a few people out there. The goal is to post at least once a week.

I'm fairly new to knitting; I only began last October, and I can be slooooooow. But that may have to do with my job taking up a lot of my time...

That being said, as this is the very first post for my very first blog, I'd like to share my very first bit 'o' knitting: a small swatch of crazy acrylic goodness created on aluminum US 8 needles. Garter stitch, all the way, baby!