Inked

Lucky Devil in Barrie did a cancer awareness event last night. Kyle & I went along with my sister Daphne, a bunch of friends from The Mighty Mart of Wal and what looked like half of Barrie!! It was a more popular event than they had anticipated and they stopped taking names at 7:30. A few of us went to a pub around the corner to make the waiting time go faster.

I'm not sure exactly what I thought that it would feel like or how much it would hurt. I'm really not very good with regular needles ... I think that I was trying not to actually think too much about it. It stung like a mo-fo but it felt so good when he stopped!! I was a trooper and didn't even tear up. It felt/feels like a burn while it's healing.
I'm glad that I handled it so well because I really want to have a 1/2 sleeve on my right arm with a few knitting/spinning motifs and it's not going to be a 10 minute affair. I'll likely be doing that when radiation is done.

Daphne made us t-shirts:

And re-started

I have never been a fan of the kfb (knit into the front & back) increase - it just looks out of place, especially in stockinette. But I also like to stick to a pattern fairly closely when I'm doing a store sample. I tried ... I really did. I just wasn't feeling any love at all for it so I tried a few increases using a M1b (make 1 below), doing a yo on the WS row before so that it didn't pull too tightly. The sweater is done from the top down and I definitely didn't want to have the arm shaping too tight - not a good look on anyone! Much better!! The kfb left the single center stitch really showing a smaller stitch on the inc row. The M1b allows 2 center stitches and they are much more even and the incs are more subtly integrated. I'm really lucky that Julie allows me interpretive latitude when I knit for her!! So I ripped it out and am much happier!

My hair is growing back - hard to photograph, shiny white head, fuzzy hair - but it's coming in. I have a couple of baldish spots where there is no fuzz but there is stubble where brand new hair is coming in.
I would love to have it come in curly, even if it doesn't last past a first haircut ... ask my hairdressing cousin Pam, I can hold out on a hair cut for quite a while. But I'm not picky - I'm just happy to have it growing back. I'd really love my eyelashes back soon though!!

Stopped & Started

The interminable rib is still going, kind of. Normally when I have a sense that I'm going to run out of yarn I start knitting faster in an admittedly futile effort to beat the yarn to the end. This time I think that I was trying to postpone the inevitable. I am about 10cm short on the ribbing. Julie is sending out another ball - thank goodness I had something else to knit on!!

Every Last Yard by Amy Swenson knit from Madelaine Tosh DK in tart. I am in lust with this yarn already!!! I know that to most of you this is like preaching to the choir, but for those who haven't had the experience ... get thee some Madelaine Tosh!! The yarn has a nice twist that I think will stand up to wearing but is soft in hand when knitting. I don't know if the depth and richness of the colours are coming through on your monitor but they are mesmerizing. Saying that it's cherry red, merlot and almost sangoire only begins to describe the complexity of the colourway. insert lustful sigh

This is difference in just winding a skein once (on the right) and twice (on the left). It's just a bit tighter with one winding, and while I'm knitting it up right away I can almost hear the yarn whimpering from being so cramped so I wind twice.

I think that Julie is trying to make me a circular needle convert - that's okay, it's giving me a chance to make good on my justification of the collection of Addi Lace needles that I bought in The Netherlands.

CE Elizabeth

So here she is blocking. Just a couple of seams and the interminable ribbing for the collar. I was really hoping to have it done for tomorrow but I've been a bit of a slacker the last few days. No worries Julie - I'm all over it now!!

My hair is starting to grow back!!! I have some fluff of hair that didn't all fall out and is a bit longer but I can see actual new hair growing out of my scalp! Yeah, my wish for the 'not grey' - FAIL. Now just waiting to see if it comes in thicker and/or curly. I don't care - I'm just glad to have it coming back!

I start radiation on Feb 1^st. There is apparently no physiological reason for it to make me tired except for the back & forth to the hospital and considering that I'm back and forth to somewhere almost every day hopefully that won't be a problem. And I will allow the Cdn Cancer Society to drive me most days so that should take some of the load off (and not driving myself will avoid that eating into my knitting time!).

And I've sorted another dyeing day at Shelridge Farms on March 5^th. If you live in the area (Durham, ON) or area-ish and are interested in joining in on a whack of colourful fun let me know & I can give you more details!!

How I Knit

So CreativeHands wondered how I knit. Here is the video from the International Speed Knitting competition that was held at the Mall of America a number of years ago. No shame at all in coming in 3rd behind Hazel Tindall of the Shetland Isle & Miriam Tegels, Guiness Record holder.