Soon, there will be swatching.

Because, see? My Autumn Rose kit from Two Swans yarn came today.

Next, of course, comes the swatching. Because swatching is a must for me, what with my wonky, loose gauge. I’m thinking that maybe I should get some ebony needles, too, since I don’t have any in size 2 (3mm) or size 1 (2.5mm). …Actually, no, I just checked. I do have a pair of Suzanne’s ebony in 3 mm with a 24″ cable. I also have an Addi Lace in size 1 with a 32″ cable, so they might work.

If not, I’ll just adjust my stitches according to my gauge like I do all the time for other things. I DO plan on adjusting the neckline so it’s not quite so low, though. I like the scoop neck, just . . . I don’t want mine quite that . . . scoopy. But now, of course, I’m worrying that maybe I didn’t buy enough yarn. I usually make my sweaters to fit 36″ and there’s a “jump” in the yarn requirements between the 37″ and the 39″ sizes . . . If I adjust the neckline, and don’t do quite as much waist shaping (since my waist isn’t quite this shapely) . . . what happens if I should have bought those extra skeins of those 8 colors who make that “jump?” Although, if my gauge is as loose as it usually is, that would counter-act the additional knitted fabric, because I’d be starting with fewer stitches for my size anyway….

Really, you can see why a gauge swatch is an absolute must. As well as keeping my fingers crossed for yarn . . . while I’m wondering if I should just order those 8 skeins, just in case . . . Though, that’s another $35 for yarn I might end up not needing at all . . . Thoughts anyone?

It’s going to be fun, regardless. I haven’t done any color-stranded work since the Olympics. And all the other stranded sweaters I’ve done have been Scandinavian in design, so this is actually my first “real” Fair Isle design, modernized or not. I’ve never done a sweater that had this many colors in it. Certainly not this many that I needed to carry with me at all times!

Organizing my knitting bag to hold all of this is going to be … interesting.

Now, let’s see. Tomorrow’s going to be an interesting day. My father needs a minor medical procedure done, and had schedule it for last Friday at 2:00 . . . except that the hospital (or doctor, I’m not sure) rescheduled it for something like 9:45 in the morning and never called to tell us. So Dad got at call at 9:45 wondering where he was, which you can imagine made him just so happy. Anyway, they rescheduled it for tomorrow . . . except, tomorrow’s kind of . . . crazy.

In steps: (1) It’s my nephew’s high school orientation and my sister absolutely has to–and wants to–go. However, (2) it’s also ny niece’s chance to get a look at her actual dorm room before moving in on Friday. Something which has been planned for weeks–for both her and her chauffeur, my Mother, who was the one person Tiffany wanted to have come along, since her Mom couldn’t come. Which means that (3) I’m the lucky person who gets to drive Dad to the hospital in the morning. Something which I, as a loving daughter, am happy to do, except . . . we have to leave the house at 6:15 to get to the hospital by 6:30 for his procedure at 7:30.

That’s right. 6:15. Half an hour earlier than I usually wake up in the first place. Which means I need to be up at 5:15 to be ready. Which means there’s no way I’m going to get enough sleep tonight, because I’m just not going to be able to convince my body to fall asleep by 10:30. (Remember, I’m the late-riser in my family. I’ve been known to sleep until 8:30 (gasp) on weekends. So far as my body is concerned, there’s only one 5:15 in the day, and it’s close to supper time.) I’ve already cleared it with my boss that I’m coming in late, working for a few hours, and then leaving early, because I fully expect to be dragging by afternoon. I’ll also be the one cooking tomorrow, since Mom’s going to be spending about 5 hours in the car . . .

As I said. Tomorrow’s going to be interesting! And boy oh boy, is Chappy ever going to be confused when I get up in the morning. And with him getting his breakfast so early, he’s going to be looking for his supper about 3:00 in the afternoon….

Oh, if you’re a spinner, go check out Abby’s comparison between spinning on spindles and wheels–thought-provoking!

Tags: Family, General, Knitting/Spinning // 14 Comments »