My how time flies and I still haven't got this blog figured out. Of course, right now I'm still tramatized by Thanksgiving with the family:

As you can see they're a great lot. I can tell you now, that my Waldorf Salad was a great success at the dinner table.

This time of year is so hectic that my knitting projects are being done in spurts. This makes it hard, because I have never been able to knit by adhereing to a pattern. I just can't make myself sit slavishly to a pattern and 'on row 128 you p6, k35, sl1' . It takes the joy out of knitting. So I sit down with a paper, pencil, and measuring tape and write out my own designs. Some say isn't that great!! Well no, not when you haven't mastered all the techniques necessary to create clothing that fits, have a proper feel to the fiber, and have interesting design qualities. I am trying to stay to the basics until I learn, however I have had my failures:


One can get so involved in the rythme of clicking needles that it is easy to forget a few of the design elements of your great plan.

Size can be a problem as well. With accurate measurements and a good gauge swatch, design is just a matter of math. I hated math. I didn't think I'd ever need that stuff- wrong. With that as a handicapp, plus the fact that I often use hand spun yarn that changes gauge - with my hand spun yarn and it does change gauge- I do have challanges in getting things that are not too large and not too small. It has as not always come good:



But it is fun to keep trying new things. I now have more symphathy for fashion designers. The human body has been built the same way for all of history. One head, two arms stuck out the sides, a torso, hips, two legs. Although the sizes vary, the proportion to each other doesn't change that much. How many ways can you cloth this body to be just that little bit unique and edgey, but still have a sence of style and dignity. A sense of style is critical.

But I will soldier on with my success and failures because I hate being a pattern slave.