Now Norma Knits

Green!

While still pondering exactly what I'm going to do about the buttonhole situation on Marta, I have started my next project.  [I'm *thisclose* to doing the sewing machine buttonhole, but there's a reason I'm a knitter and not a sewing person -- (I just can't type "sewer") -- and that is that I am deadly with a sewing machine or needle. My heart rate increases, my blood pressure goes through the roof, my flight-or-fight response sets in, and I'm really terrible at it. It is truly a life-threatening exercise to place me in front of a sewing machine. Maybe I can find someone at JoAnn who dares -- and whom I trust -- to sew it for me. Or then, there's the EZ afterthought one.... I no longer own Knitting Without Tears; I gave it away. Blasphemous, I know. Perhaps I need to get another one.]  But I do love my Marta sweater...I might even make a Version 2.0 -- one with the mods I've mentioned -- I like it that much.  I wore it all day yesterday again -- two days in a row. And boy, that Mountain Mohair is THE perfect yarn for that sweater.  Perhaps another one in the lovely warm purple they have.....

But first, the new project:  I was certain it was going to be the Garter Yoke Cardi (Ravelry link here) in Lauren's Coral Peace Fleece. I got gauge.  I love the peachy-rosy hues of the Lauren's Coral, and felt it would be a sweet look ahead toward spring. 

But damned if I didn't pick up this instead and just start knitting (no swatching, which could come back to bite me in the behind, but life's short -- live dangerously, I say!) -->

It's Rowan Scottish Tweed Aran in Shade No. 033.  As I was in Row 5, I wondered, "Now, why did I do that?  Why was I so certain it was going to be coral, but now I'm working in green?"  (looks more blue in the photo than it really is) I thought and thought as I knit and knit. 

And then I remembered the great new pendant I got in Mexico:

Aha.  So that's what I was thinking!  The earth's stones, they really do speak to me. 

(The store people said this was malachite, and I believed it to be so, but I have since seen much more malachite to compare this piece to, and it is quite different, so I'm just not sure anymore. If anyone has any clearer ideas, please let me know.  In any event, I love it.  The shape, the stone, the silver -- all lovely.)

I'm up to Row 22 of the sweater and I love the way it looks!

Spring Tonic in a Box and Sweater Psychobabble -- "I Need Closure"

Look what came in the mail yesterday:

Fresh dandelion greens from the state of Washington. Srsly.

"I assume 'tonic' is a euphemism for something, but I'm not sure what." ~ Erika

So that white under the salad bowl?  Snow.  I won't have my own dandelions for months.  (And it appears that possibly the weather gods were not happy with Erika for sending spring's greens to someone in the frozen northeast, because look what happened after she dug these and sent them to me!) Last night I had them sauteed with onions, garlic, and olive oil, with a sprinkling of lemon juice at the end, served with a roasted chicken.  Delicious! I feel toned already.  Hee.

Thanks, Erika!!!

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Sweater Psychobabble*:

The Marta sweater blocked beautifully.  It fits very nicely and is soft and I love it.  I wore it all day yesterday, and it was great.  This sweater, made in the medium size, fits me perfectly -- all the waist shaping, etc., now that it's blocked.  But keep in mind, I am quite short.  It would need to be lengthened considerably to fit an average or tall person. I love the waist shaping and the slim fit.

I'm struggling, though, to find closure*. 

If I were to do this sweater again, I'd put in a buttonhole.  I wish the pattern had one.  I just didn't know at what level to put it.  If you are going to make this sweater, (and you're the same size as me, which I realize makes this all very unscientific -- not to mention that if I were to make this sweater again, I'd want it to be longer, more tunic-length, as well) it's my opinion that a single buttonhole should be about 6 3/4 inches from the bottom. 

Then again, it could be at various other places and look good, too, depending on the clothing you're wearing it with.  I was in a real conundrum getting dressed yesterday, on the way to the button store, trying to decide at which level a button or buttons or clasp, or what-all, should go.

I'm just not a big fan of the no-closure design, even though I often wear cardigans unbuttoned.  This design needs a little SOMEthing to pull it together, or the ribs pull it all the way over near my armpits, practically.  Not a great look. 

Brooches don't work well for me with sweaters -- I'm too worried about the delicacy of the knits, and I struggle to get them on straight.  As well, I don't want to have to search for the brooch when I'm getting dressed.  Wearing various brooches or sticks or whatever can nicely change the look and tone of a garment -- this sweater could be changed from dressy to casual with just a change of brooch -- but it's too fussy for me to be bothered.  Now, one of the beauties of this design is that the front band (one can't call it a button band, now, can one?!) is incorporated into the design and knitted right in.  But that means that I can't even take it off now that I realize where I want the button to be, and add a buttonhole, which I would be tempted to do if I could. 

As often happens, the heavy stone button that looks FABULOSO with the yarn, just doesn't work with the sweater.  So I bought a whole bunch of buttons yesterday, and I also bought hooks and eyes.  I thought maybe an invisible hook-and-eye closure would work, and I sewed one on, but it gapped and pulled too much to look attractive.  So I -- hold your breath -- cut them off with a razor blade.  I ended up sewing this shell button on, and it looks great (much better in real life than it looks in the photo) but now I will have to come up with a loop on the other side.  

I don't believe this yarn, even in i-cord or lucet cord, will hold up to repeated handling on and off a button.  Tomorrow I am going to go searching for some rawhide.  I don't know how successful I will be at sewing it onto my sweater.  Eek.  In addition, having a button on one side with a loop from the other makes a just-asymmetrical-enough look to slightly annoy me. 

I think it will all look nice in the end, and I think I will wear this sweater a LOT.  I love the fit, love the yarn (it is very special -- Green Mountain Spinnery Mountain Mohair in Spice, which I purchased at my very first trip to Rhinebeck in 2004. Love it, love it, love it, and I do think this sweater is a good choice for the yarn.)

But I wish I'd put in a buttonhole.  Sigh. 

I would love to give you a modeled shot, but I don't have a patient, talented, ready knitwear photographer real handy.  Paging Cheryl!  Gale? Sandy? Cara? Anyone? Someday I'll manage one, I promise.

Still Gorgeous After All These Wears -- Ode to a Perfect Sweater

The first thing I did after I got home from my vacation was to put on my friend, Central Park, Sans Hood.  I should have brought it with me -- it would have kept me toasty against the cold winds that were blowing in New York and D.C.  But I did not take it.  I packed for 10 days, four cities, three distinct climates, all in a carry-on.  No room for hefty wool sweater!

I had not seen it for 10 days, and when I put it on I was struck by how much I have worn it, how lovely it still looks and how much I still love it.  It's definitely paid for itself many times over -- in the fun I had knitting it and constructing it, and the number of times I have worn it.  Anyone who sees me on an almost daily basis will confirm that I have hardly taken it off since I completed it.  I wear it with black and tan and gray and denim and red and brown and olive green -- I dress it up and dress it down -- it goes with just about everything I own. It never ceases to make me feel pulled-together and toasty warm when it's cold.  It's a three-season wear, as well -- I wear it as a jacket when it's cool, but not too cold, outside.  I wear it under my coat, simply as a cardigan, when it's frigid.

The sweater has grown ever so slightly with wear, but really not a lot, and it still fits beautifully. 

I get compliments on it all the time, from knitters and non-knitters alike.  I can't decide which compliments mean the most!  A compliment from a knitter -- wow, it makes me feel that I've come such a long way in the craft. 

From a non-knitter, it almost means more.  It is simply a compliment along the lines of, "I love your sweater," and the next question is going to be, "Where did you get it?"  When I respond, "Thanks.  I made it," well, I should be in a MasterCard commercial, I guess. 

The Peace Fleece has held up so well it's beyond belief.  Nary a pill, and though I worry about the buttons held on with the yarn, so far they are doing great.  My love affair with this sweater is destined to be very long-lived indeed.  So much so that I am seriously considering making another one in a different color. 

In the meantime, I am nearing the end of Marta.  I finished the first sleeve while waiting on the runway at JFK on the way to San Diego.  I sewed it in somewhere over the United States.  I could hardly contain my excitement.....until I got to the cruise ship and tried it on.  Very, very SMALL, and not as flattering and nice as I thought it would be.  I love the yarn, but didn't care for the sweater.  I strongly considered taking the sleeve out and turning it into a nice, shapely vest. 

But then I tried it on again, over a different, thinner, top, and it didn't seem so bad.  Cheryl urged me not to give up on it.  I also know that this yarn grows a lot in the wash.  In addition, it's ribbed, and it can be blocked to be quite a bit bigger.

I wanted negative ease in this sweater, but not this much negative ease:

(Would this fit Coraline, ya think?)

Eek.  Fingers crossed, people.  Fingers crossed. 

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P.S.  I think I need a total-body Spanx. 

Have You Ever Been Spanxed?

Great Idea Week continues here at Now Norma Knits. 

The other entrepreneur featured on the same show as the granola guys is Sara Blakely, the creator of Spanx.  Well, having grown up on the tail end of the girdle era (my mom's girdle still gives me nightmares) and having tried various body-shapers over the years that were not worth the money -- and hot and uncomfortable and poor-fitting and generally just not helpful -- I have been very reticent to try Spanx since I first heard about them a few years ago.  But after that show, I am intrigued! I must be one of those $150 million annually in sales! I can't be left behind!  (pun, well, yes....intended!)

I went out and bought some trouser socks (AWESOME!  No tight binding at the knee!  Smooth and soft and wonderful!) and two pairs of tights, one of which I wore on the cruise on "Elegant Night," and yeah, I felt elegant all right -- and they were comfy and pretty and breathable. 

I've shunned pantyhose for five or more years for everything except tying up tomato plants. After having worn them every day for 15 years at work, I just.could.not.wear.them.one.more.day.of.my.life.  But Spanx might just bring me back to believing in having something to "finish" my legs.  And now I've ordered two of these and one of these.

Ooh, baby, I think I've been bad. I might need a Spanxing. 

What about you -- have you ever tried Spanx?

Supermarket Economics

In my quest to keep the plastic bags out of my life, I have done well.  I remember my reusable bags greater than 90% of the time -- actually, darn close to 100%. Once in a while I will forget to bring it to the drugstore or a store like TJMaxx, but most of the time I either remember or I ask for no bag if I have forgotten.  I'm straining so much to pat myself on the back, I'm probably going to throw my shoulder out, eh?  But anyway...

 

I bought these cotton mesh produce bags a while back, to eliminate the thin plastic bags in the produce department.  [Edited to add:  The bags are the Garden Sac from here, but this looks like they're only available wholesale. I bought them from the produce department of my local "healthy" store.]  I'm not as good about remembering to use those, but I have been redoubling my effort.  For some reason, it's easier for me to remember when I shop at a "healthier" store than it is to remember at the regular supermarket.  Yesterday, though, I did remember to use them when I bought my asparagus and radishes. 

The clerk rang up the asparagus in the bag.  I said to her, "The thing is, this bag is heavy, so would you please take the asparagus out of the bag to ring it up?" In a way, I felt like I was being too petty, and I said to her that it will just be interesting to see what the difference is. Thankfully, she did not flinch or treat me with any disrespect or such. She canceled the first transaction and rang it up again, outside the bag.

 

Look at the difference!  Plus, she credited me 5c per bag.  I don't remember how much these bags cost me, and it would probably take me eons to recoup the cost of them, but still, it feels good trying to be plastic-free.

It'll feel even better in *mumble-mumble* months when I can grow my own asparagus and radishes.

Please note, Cynthia commented this:

They are available on Amazon from Greenfeet.

http://www.amazon.com/EcoSac-GardenSac-Reusable-Produce-Bags/dp/B000E8X3JS

$4.95 for a set of two.

 

 

Good Gracious, That's Great Granola!

Someone who cares about these things told me I shouldn't fall off the blogging wagon, and that I was falling a day behind.  I'm on a roll, he says, and I shouldn't lose the momentum.  Well, as it happens, (heh) I did have something else I wanted to tell you, so to make sure I don't lose a day, here you are:

A few weeks ago I  watched a show on TV about entrepreneurs.  One of the featured items was Feed granola, which carries with it a fascinating back story about the two successful male models who started the business.  The other night I was shopping in our local Hannaford supermarket, and there it was, on the shelf. I had to try some to see if it was all that.  And yowsa, is it ever! I'm not a huge granola eater, because I try to stay away from grains, but this is a lovely not-too-sweet treat, filled with good things like oats and rye, flax seed and sunflower seeds (fiber, Sandy!), and free of bad things like corn syrup.  It's also all-organic and wheat-free, though the package has a very cautious allergy warning that it contains gluten because it's packaged in a facility that also packages wheat-containing products.  I love it, especially the cranberry-coconut flavor. I've already bought another bag to send to Abigail. Go buy some!

There.  Homework assignment done. 

  

 

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Airport

I was running a bit late to get to the airport in D.C. this morning.  It was cold and spitting rain and sneet, and I was a bit nervous about getting there on time.  Luckily for me, this economy means that cabs are trolling the streets quite plentifully, looking for fares.  I briefly flicked my hand (I could have just been brushing a strand of hair from my face) and a cab immediately pulled over on the other side of the street.  At the same time, one of those unmarked town car drivers who was anonymously sitting right in front of me rolled his window down and offered to take me to the airport.  The taxi driver was getting out of his vehicle to stake his claim, and I said, "Oh, this cab stopped for me, so...."

I go across the street, and the driver puts my suitcase in the trunk of his minivan-style taxi.  I try to get in the passenger door, and it's locked, so I wait for him to get to his door and open it.  He looks at me expectantly, and I keep on trying to open the door.  I begin to think he's going to have to come around to my side to open my door, as I must have become one of those feminine creatures who can't even open her own door and must be doing it wrong. (Sound familiar, Cheryl?  Cheryl can tell you I had trouble with the stateroom door for the duration of the cruise, even when there was no alcohol involved.) 

Then the cab driver looks bewildered.  "How did that get locked?!" 

The car is running, the keys are in the ignition, my luggage is locked in the trunk, and the cab is locked tight.

Only me! 

The driver is embarrassed and befuddled, but he quickly remembers that he has a spare key under the On Duty light on the top of his vehicle.  The only problem is, he does not have a screwdriver.  "Just a minute, just a minute," he says, and starts running around in circles rather aimlessly flapping his wings.  Then he repeats, "Just a minute, stay right there," and runs several hundred feet to another cab that is sitting there at the curb ahead.

By this point, it is clear we are in trouble of some sort or another, and several other cabs start circling, slowing down, and pulling over, asking what is wrong.  Being the naive Vermonter, I think, "Oh, how sweet." I believe they are congregating to help out their poor broken-down brother.  Someone more wise than I later pointed out to me it was more likely they were vultures hoping to grab the fare.  Anyway, because I was worried about getting to the airport on time, I'd have gone with any one of them, except for that pesky little detail of my luggage being locked in the trunk.

Miraculously, someone produces a screwdriver. The only problem is, the driver is a bit too short to reach the screws, and since the doors are locked, there is no place to step up to finish the job.  More Keystone Kops antics ensue, and eventually a retired basketball player (well, he looked like one) comes over to finish the screwing...I mean UNscrewing. The spare key is fished out and we are on our way. 

In the meantime, the vultures are all beginning to applaud my driver for his ingenuity in keeping a spare key up there.  As we pull away, the cabbie speculates that all those drivers are probably heading, as we speak, to buy spare keys and put them up under their On Duty lights.

And the blogger applauds him for providing her with a good story.  (I wish I'd gotten pictures, but of course the camera was...you guessed it...locked in the trunk.) 

Now I'm back in Vermont, it feels like I've been gone much longer than ten days, and as the saying goes, I gotta get back to work.

A Bit Travel-Weary, But Still Eating Having Fun

I'm so far behind in blog-reading as well as the news  (as in world events) I feel strangely detached.  Being caught up in things to do and places to go, and with the mini computer not really being optimum for high-speed browsing or photo loading, even if I had the time, makes it a bit difficult to keep up.  All healthy, I think. 

I left New York yesterday with a grand-finale brunch in a French cafe on 5th Avenue called Bar Breton.  We had galettes! And really great coffee! And really great gossip!  Who is "we," you ask?  Why, Kay, Cara, Meli (the cutest baby in all the land, though if you have a baby of your own, your mileage may vary) and I, of course.  And what is a galette?  I'm still not sure, but it was very French and very good and involved an egg and ham and cheese and NOT a crepe but a galette. What could be bad?  Anyway, I'm glad I didn't choose the crepe with Nutella, because one should always try new things.  But though I have not a hungry fiber in my being whatsoever, I am still hankering for a crepe with Nutella.  

I do have a photo to commemorate the event. It is practically useless, though, because it's so dark.  I uploaded it to Flickr and used picnik to lighten it (and it's cute as the Dickens), but this computer is so slow (with so little memory) that I just don't have the patience to try to route it into the blog.  It takes 200 years to upload a photo on this thing, and that's just from my documents -- I simply cannot figure out how to get it here from Flickr.

And besides, there is more eating to do! The stomach is waiting! Anyway, though it was a bit rushed because I had a plane to catch, it was lovely to sit and nosh with the gals, and so sweet of them to come to me in the super-frigid weather that was New York yesterday.  Thanks, ladies!

Then I braved frostbite on my poor bare hands to trek to Penn Station and took the subway and the Air Train (have I mentioned I love the Air Train?) and flew to D.C. to learn that it is Restaurant Week here. Oh, goody, because I'm practically starving!

Criminy. I left New York in the midst of Fashion Week.  (I think everybody needs a gimmick to get through the month of February.)  But given my activities, it was really Restaurant Week there, too. Fashion Week/Restaurant Week, whatever.  I'm eating.  All.the.time.  That's all I'm going to say about that.  Today was a gorgeous day in Georgetown, and I spent the day with a friend, taking in the sun, the local culture, the shopping (I just love Georgetown), and of course the food.  I'd better stop this vacation foolishness, or I'll weigh 300 pounds.  

Tomorrow I go back home.  I just got an email from the person in charge of the work event I will cover Tuesday evening.  She asked if I'd like an entree (it's a retirement dinner) and gave me two choices.  F, my dears, is apparently not for February at all (or any other thing -- minds out of the gutters, please) -- it's for food. 

Do my feet look fat?

More Travel Notes

This is getting quite boring, isn't it?  But here are a few more notes from my travelogue.

The weather was beautiful yesterday, and I spent two and a half hours out walking with Mr. J.   Two and a half hours!

The Yorkie continues to bring smiles from all he encounters. I don't really understand it, because in New York there are lots of people walking lots of dogs big and small, and Mr. Jefferies is not very well groomed and therefore looks a bit ragamuffin.  But that guy is a bona fide people- and dog magnet.  It is quite astounding to see the spontaneous broad grins from all the New Yorkers, and comments, "Ohhh, so cuuuuute," and pets and cuddles and conversations started from tourists and locals alike. One guy was walking a golden retriever and Mr. Jefferies kissed and played with the retriever (which outweighed him about 20-fold) while the guy showed me photos of his two Chihaurkies -- Chihauhah-Yorkie mixes.  I am completely unfamiliar with this kind of dog behavior, since Vincent was not ever properly socialized (my fault) and therefore was just horrid with other dogs, so I'm filled with trepidation every time we run into another dog.  But it's always perfect chemistry with every one.  Amazing. 

We went to see Coraline in 3D last night.  I gasped when I saw how much it cost for three people to see a movie in New York, but as Abigail said, "It's cheaper than taking us to a Broadway show."  Well, that's a point. 

Perhaps I was expecting too much, but I was a bit disappointed in the movie. When I found out in the beginning credits that Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders were in it I was very excited and expected great giggles, but their characters were quite flat.  The whole thing, I thought, could have been so much more, but as a piece of art it was amazing -- to think it was all done in miniature and stop-motion animation -- quite astonishing.  And of course it was special to me because of Jenn's role in it. Way to go, Cousin! 

The mini-computer, several people have asked how it's going, and here's my review:  It's GREAT for what it is.  Light and small and packable.  It is slow and the keyboard can be annoying, though as I'm typing this entry it's just fine, so I guess I've gotten used to it.  It fits just beautifully in the little backpack I got, while still leaving plenty of room for many more items in the bag.  And it's so light I hardly notice it's there. There is not much more to say beyond that.  I'm glad I have it because it is incredibly handy to have a laptop, and glad I'm not lugging around a full-sized one. 

The lovely lightweight brown trench coat I bought from Travelsmith is literally falling apart at the seams.  No wonder it was on clearance sale.  It will be returned when I get back.  One pocket is completely ripped through so I cannot place anything in it, and one of the back seams is coming apart.  Damn.  It's really good-looking and a nicely fitting and lightweight garment.  It's a great color, and an interesting-looking fabric.  The snapped patch pockets are great for traveling -- nothing will fall out, and they're big enough to hold a passport and the BlackBerry.  But the coat was very poorly constructed. I think it's that the fabric was a bad choice for a coat -- it's a slippery, loosely-woven (like basketweave, almost) fabric, and though they have taken great care to enclose every seam and every edge in a binding,  the stitching has not always caught, and after only 5 days' wear, it's just not holding up.  

More travel adventures to tell you about tomorrow. 

How I'm Handling The Cold, Rainy Weather on My NYC Vacation

1.  Wear layers.  This is working out pretty well, but someone less hardy might still think it's cold, and I have to do laundry in my sink every night, because every layer is getting dirty or sweaty or powdery or something, given my activities which have included lots of dog-walking, shopping, spa-going, and of course eating.

2.  Walk briskly.  Thank Mr. Jefferies.  Yorkies are power walkers with attitude.  Unstoppable.  Untireable.

3.  Go to the spa.  Again.  It's such a nice warm, safe haven. *sigh* (It was a collagen facial this time.)

4.  Go to Bikram yoga. There's a studio 8 minutes' walk from my hotel.  How could I not? 

(I got souvenir yoga shorts.  Awesome.)

5.  Drink copious amounts of coffee and tea.

6.  You'd think I'd be inclined to quickly finish up the Marta sweater so I'd have a warm wool & mohair layer, but I haven't picked up the needles.  No time!