Passing Lane Project…

Jeg har ganske mange projekter i gang på samme tid… nogle af dem helt sprit-nye, men de fleste rangerende i kategorien mellemlagret til gamle ole. Nogle gange fatter jeg ikke, at jeg ikke bare kan tage mig sammen og få dem færdige, men sådan fungerer jeg åbenbart ikke.

I have a lot of projects on the needles at any point in time… some of them are brand new, but most range from the mature to the really old. Some times I really don’t get, why I can’t just get a grip and finish them. But seemingly that’s not the way I work.

Et nyt projekt kan komme mange steder fra. Nogle gange bliver jeg tacklet af et bestemt, lækkert garn, der lokker tvinger mig til at strikke noget i det. Andre gange kommer fristelsen helt uventede steder fra. Som for eksempel da jeg var oppe og købe knapper til en trøje i min gode venindes butik. Da jeg egentlig var på vej ud af døren (uden garn til mig selv), kommer hun så lige med tacklingen “har du ikke lyst til at hjælpe mig og strikket noget til mit vindue?”… Tjo, tja, bum bum… en, to, tre… “Selvfølgelig”.

A new project can come from many places. Sometimes I get tacked by a certain, gorgeous yarn, which will entice force me to knit something with it. But sometimes the temptation comes from unexpected places. Like for example when I had been up at a friend’s shop to buy buttons for a pullover. As I was going (without yarn for myself), she delivers the tackle “please, would you knit something for my window?”… well, ehmm, see… one, two, three… “Off course”.

• Mønster/Pattern: Alfred’s Raglan (Ravelry link) by Britta Wilfert, 4/5 year 
• Garn/Yarn: 275 g Wilfert’s tweed
• Pinde/Needles: 4,5 mm
• Noter/Notes: Den var overraskende hurtig at strikke og garnet ganske dejligt. Jeg er ret betaget af mønsteret og kunne sagtens finde på at bruge det i for eksempel et halstørklæde. / It was a surprisingly quick knit and the yarn is lovely. I am pretty smitten by the stitch pattern and might well use it in a scarf for example (speaking of new projects)

Oslo and opera…

Det var ganske rigtigt Oslo, som jeg har muntret mig i i sidste uge. Min mor og jeg fangede et cruise+opera tilbud med DFDS for et par måneder siden og glædede os siden da helt vildt til en hyggelig mor-datter tur. At jeg så også fik lidt mig-tid på den konto gjorde det jo kun endnu bedre.

As some guessed, Oslo was the city that I enjoyed a couple of days last week. My mother and I caught a cruise-opera offer with DFDS a couple of months ago and had since then looked forward with glee to a mother-daugher trip. As a bonus I got some me-time at the same time, but that only made things better.

 

Vi vandrede byen tynd den første dag, sådan føltes det i hvert fald næsten, og så både operahus, Vigelandsparken, Bygdøy og Folkemuseet. Alt sammen i smukt, klart solskinsvejr med en god stærk brise der gav blus i kinden og appetit på lidt varm mad. Aftenen var helliget operaen, og vi havde fine pladser med godt udkik, omend benpladsen var ganske trang. Jeg kunne rigtig godt lide forstillingen, især på grund af den vellykkede opdatering.

We walked around the city the first day, quite a long walk if you asked my feet. We saw the new opera house, Vigelandsparken, Bygdøy and the Folk Museum. The sun shone from a clear though windy sky, which made the cheeks glow and the appetite ready for some hot food. The evening was spent in the opera. We had good seats and though the space for long legs was rather restricted, it was a good experience. I liked the performance and especially the way the opera had been updated.

 

Dagen efter var mere shoppingpræget, skønt kultursjælen blev nurset med et kig ind i rådhusets forhal og en gennemgang af Nationalgalleriet, hvor visakortet så også kom i sving… der er altså noget med museumsbutikker. Dernæst gik den vilde jagt på en strikkebutik, for jeg ville åh så gerne have “Selbuvotter” bogen med hjem. Efter et par fejlskud fandt vi endelig Husflidens håndarbejdsafdeling, hvor de både havde ganske meget garn (jeg købte faktisk ikke noget), og også den ønskede bog. Inden da havde jeg dog været så heldig at få en anden smuk og lækker strikkebog af min mor. Så hjembringelsen er ren inspiration i denne omgang.

The next day was rather more for shopping, though the artistic soul had its food in a glimpse of the townhall and a walkthrough at the National Gallery. Here the visa card had its debut too… something always gets to me in museum shops. After this the wild chase for a yarn shop began. The reason was that I really really wanted to buy a copy of the “Selbu mittens” book. A couple of missleads didn’t affect us and finally we found the craft section of the Husflid shop. They had rather a lot of yarn (I didn’t buy anything.. I know, shocking) and also the wished for book. Before that my mother had gifted me with another beautiful knitting book, so the haul this time was pure inspirational.

Joys abroad…

Gæt, hvor sokken og jeg har været henne?

Guess, where the sock and I have been at?

Sneak peek continues…

Der er gang i opskriftsafprøvningen. Nogle afprøvninger er dog længere undervejs end andre. Som for eksempel denne flertakkede hue, som jeg strikkede den første version af for mere end et år siden. Nu er den anden version endelig færdig, opskriften er også færdig, men skal lige godkendes før den kommer ud i det fri.

Det er nu sjovt med sådan nogle filtede ting… man ved aldrig rigtig, hvad størrelse man ender med… nogle gange for små, andre gange for store. Men heldigvis er der oftest en, som godt kan passe det endelige resultat. Jeg kunne godt med den her.

More than one pattern is being tested at the moment. But some pattern testings take longer than others. A good example is the multi spiked hat I’ve just finished. The first version was finished more than a year ago. Now the second is finally done, and the pattern is also written, but needs the final proofing before I released it.

It is a fun thing, those felted knits… you never really know what you’ll end up with… sometimes too small, sometimes too big. Luckily, there’s often somebody out there who the thing will fit. I was rightly sized for this one.

Pattern preview…

Endnu et par sokker er blevet færdige… jeg strikker vist ikke andet for tiden. Denne gang er det en prøve på en opskrift, jeg har solgt til Filcolana. Så når jeg har skrevet opskriften færdig kommer den som gratisopskrift fra deres hjemmeside.  Jeg har leget lidt og lavet en 2-i-1′er, hvor der bliver opskrift for sokker med eller uden ugler.

Another pair of socks are finished… I don’t seem to knit anything else these days. This time it is a test of a pattern, I’ve sold to Filcolana. When I’ve finished writing the pattern, it will appear as a free download from their home page. I’ve been playing and have made a 2-in-1, so that the pattern will describe how to knit the socks with or without the owls.

• Sockwise test (# 12 for 52 pair plunge III)
• Opskrift/Pattern: Sockwise by Lykkefanten
• Garn/Yarn: Arwetta sock fra Filcolana, farve 236, 64 g = 3.2% for Sock-O-Meter
• Pinde/Needles: 3mm
• Noter/Notes: Det var som sædvanlig en stor fornøjesle at strikke med Arwetta, men også lidt ærgeligt fordi jeg ikke får lov til at beholde de færdige sokker… / It was a pleasure, as usual, to knit with Arwetta, but also a bit sad, since I can’t keep the finished socks…

Limerick to Henley

I once had a pullover dream
it was to be creme-del-la-cream
an artwork of skill
of hours and will
with perfection in every seam

The pattern was searched and selected
it was to be a Henley perfected
the yarn was then found
the yarn cakes were sound
And the hour of cast on elected

In fevor the cast on was started
My first try though soon was twarted
The sleeves far to wide
Were put to the side
To the body my attention then darted

The knitting went happy and free
I thought “gauges are just not for me”
Alas what a fool
to neglect such a tool
And be forced to attempt number three

I sit now with hours of knitting
that never in life will be fitting
the body to wide
can fit two at a side
the thruth of the moment is hitting

… I must frogg

Jeg strikker sjældent strikkeprøver, og i dette tilfælde må jeg altså betale prisen. Mine 25 cm Henley må pilles op og startes forfra, for strikkefastheden er helt gal, og sweateren ville passe to af min størrelse hvis jeg fortsatte sådan her… ikke godt. Det er irriterende, men hvad kan man ellers vente når man udfordrer strikkeskæbnen? … Lidt senere i dag, tror jeg, jeg vil forsøge med en lille strikkeprøve…

I seldom take time to knit a gauge swatch, and in this case I have to pay the price. My 25 cm of Henly will have to be ripped and restarted as the gauge is way of, and the sweater is sized to fit two of me if I continued… not good. It’s annoying to say the least, but what else can be expected when you choose to taunt the knitting gods? … I might knit a wee swatch later today…

For father and son…

Livet kører godt nok stærkt for tiden… der er mange jern i ilden og meget der skal nås, så blogning og til dels også strikning kører på sidespor lige nu. Men lidt bliver der alligevel strikket, det er jo min måde at holde hjernekassen fri af for meget stress, så en pind på der til i ny og næ, og så bliver der jo af og til også noget færdigt.

Life is running at a break neck pace at the moment… I’ve got many irons in the fire and have much to try to fit into the limited time of the day. This means that blogging and for some part knitting runs in second (fifth?) place. But I do knit a little bit, as it is my way to keep sane. Though it’s only one row at a time, something gets done from time to time.

 

• Father and son socks (10 & 11 for 52 pair plunge III)
• Mønster/Pattern: min private standard sok str. far 45 og søn 23 / my vanilla standard sock size bigfoot (mens) 45 and child 23
• Garn/Yarn: Bärengame 76 g til fars sok og 23 til søns, samt 4 g Arwetta til tæerne på sønnens, i alt 103 g = 5.15% til Sock-O-Meter / Bärengame 76 g for fathers and 23 for sons, plus 4 g Arwetta for the toes on the son socks, a total of 103 g = 5.15% for the Sock-O-Meter
• Pinde/Needles: 3mm til faderen og 2½mm til sønnen / 3mm for the father and 2½mm for the son
• Noter/Notes: Normalt plejer jeg at være ganske tilfreds med det meste sokkegarn, alt har sine styrker og svagheder, men dette garn gav alligevel en hel del flere problemer end sædvanligt. Dels smittede det grusomt af under strikningen, og så var der knuder i. Nu håber jeg, at det ter sig bedre efter vask, men jeg er ikke sikker på, at jeg vil købe det igen. / Normally I’m pretty well satisfied with most sock yarns, everything has its forces and weaknesses, but this yarn gave me more troubles than usually. Firstly the dye came off in the knitting and coloured my hands, which annoyed me, and secondly there were several knots in the yarn. I just hope it’ll behave better after the washing, but I’m not sure I’ll ever buy this yarn again.

The art of procastination…

Den sidste uge har tydeliggjort noget for mig… jeg er vældig god til overspringshandlinger. Rigtig meget vældig god endda. Især når jeg bør læse svære økonomiske tekster eller sætte mig ind i et statistikprogram, som ikke vil, som jeg vil. Lige pludselig får jeg i stedet hængt billeder op, vasket tøj (nå ja, det gør jeg også, selv om jeg ikke skal læse), ryddet op de mærkeligste steder, strikket, læst sjove bøger, taget på visit og skrevet blog…

Måske specialet bliver hurtigere frem, hvis jeg fra nu af har en aftale med mig selv om at jeg først læser/datanørder/skriver, og så bagefter har fri leg?

The last week has made something very clear to me… I’m exceedingly good at procastination. Really very impressivly good. Especially when I should read difficult economic articles or learn to use a statistics programme, which doesn’t care to do as I want it to. Suddenly I manage to hang pictures, wash clothes (ok, I do that even when I don’t have to read), clean and clear the strangest places, knit, read fun books, go visiting, and write blog posts…

Maybe my thesis will be finished sooner, if I from now on has an agreement with myself that I first read/work with data/write, and then afterwards play?

Slow socks…

Slow food er jo et begreb i sig selv, så hvorfor ikke slow socks? Sokker strikket ikke for at nå en bestemt kvote, eller for at få dem hurtigt af pindene, men simpelthen fordi de er smukke og dejlige… og meget langsomme at strikke. Nu kan man vel med en hvis ret kalde alle håndstrikkede sokker for slow socks, i hvert fald i sammenligning med butikskøbte, men det seneste par af mine pinde slår nu alle rekorder. Jeg vidste godt, da jeg begyndte på dem, at jeg ikke skulle forvente, at det gik hurtigt. Men denne viden gjorde også, at jeg bare gav mig selv lov til at nyde strikningen i fulde drag.

Slow food is a commonly know concept, so why not slow socks? Socks knitted not to reach a certain quota, or to get them quickly of the needles, but simply because they are beautiful and gorgeous… and very very slow to knit. It is possible, I suppose, to call all hand knitted socks slow socks, at least compared to shop bought ones, but the latest pair of my needles is the record holder in my home. I knew, when I started them, that I shouldn’t expect the knitting to go fast… or even just normal. But this knowledge also freed me up to just fully enjoy the sensation of knitting… they became my yoga-knitting.

• Red Herringbone (Ravelry project link) (# 9 for 52 pair plunge III)
• Mønster/Pattern: Herringbone Rib Socks (Ravelry link) by Kristie Schueler
• Garn/Yarn: Malabrigo sock, Boticelli Red, 69 g = 3,45 % for Sock-Yarn-O-Meter II
• Pinde/Needles: 2½ mm
• Noter/Notes: Selvom jeg var indstillet på meditativt (= langsomt) strik, kunne jeg alligevel ikke lade være med at forsøge at sætte tempoet op. Det lykkedes at finde en nemmere måde at lave den ene af pindene, men stadigvæk ikke verdens hurtigste. Alligevel var den en sand fornøjelse, for mønsteret er velskrevet og giver et smukt resultat og garnet er dejligt at strikke med. En endelig bonus kom, da designeren bad om lov til at bruge mit billede på hendes Ravelry side for opskriften. / Even though I was prepared for meditative (i.e. slow) knitting, I couldn’t help but try to find a quicker way to knit the pattern. I succeeded in figuring out an alternative way to do the second row of the pattern, but still it wasn’t one of the fast knits. Even with all this, it was a true pleasure as the pattern is well written, the resulting sock gorgeous, and the yarn a pleasure to knit with. A final bonus arrived when the designer requested to use my picture on her Ravelry pattern page.

Hoot (again)…

Der er fløjet endnu et sæt ugler fra reden, eller nærmere fra pindene… Denne sweater har været ganske længe undervejs, selvom selve strikningen egentlig ikke har taget meget tid. Men hvis man får lagt ting lidt for grundigt til side, bliver de nogle gange gemt og glemt under bunken af nystartede projekter. Nu er den heldigvis færdig, klar til at beskytte en kær veninden mod efterårets kulde.

Another set of owls have flown from the nest, or rather from the needles… This sweater has been knitted over quite the period, though the actual knitting time doesn’t amount to much. But if you lay things a bit too much to the side, they sometimes get forgotten and burried below the pile of new projects. Somehow I managed to fish it out again, and now it is done and finished and ready to protect a dear friend from the autumn weather.

• Grey Owls sweater (Ravelry project link)
• Mønster/Pattern: O-w-l-s by Kate Davies (Ravelry link)
• Garn/Yarn: Navia Duo, 3 tråde holdt sammen, 2 lysegrå og 1 mørkegrå. I alt er der brugt 575 g garn / Navia Duo, 3 strands held together, 2 light grey and 1 dark grey. The total usage was 575 g.
• Pinde/Needles: 5.5 mm + 6.0 mm
• Noter/Notes: Det er blevet en overtøjssweater, ganske som ønsket, men den anelse brynjeagtige kvalitet af strikketøjet gjorde det til en blandet fornøjelse at strikke. Jeg har strikket på mindre pinde end opskriften, men har så kompenseret ved at vælge en større størrelse. Favoritdetaljen er helt klart skule-uglen på højre skulder… / The finished sweater is clearly an outer garment, just as wished for, but the rather amour like quality of the fabric made it a mixed pleasure to knit. I’ve knitted on smaller needles than specified, but have then compensated by choosing a larger size. The favorite detail is the scowl owl on the right shoulder…