Step Into My Thimble

Just in time to make it on the Finished Object calendar for June, 2004, I present the Red Chickami!!

The specs

Pattern: Chickami, smallest size, shaped and with wide straps
Yarn: Reynolds Saucy in color 379 Cranberry, 2.5 balls*
Needles: US 3 and 6
Time to completion: About 3 weeks of fairly steady knitting
Modifications and notes: Instead of doing the twelve decrease repeats at the armhole/top, I only did six, plus two rows of straight knitting prior to the ribbing. My row gauge was larger than called for, and I didn’t need the extra rows to get a reasonable amount of coverage. I also wanted the straps to be a little bit wider set apart, to line up better with where my bra tends to be.

I’m thinking about adding some details to this eventually, like a knit-on flower or something, but at present I like it plain. I even took it for a test run just now, to the corner market for a gallon of milk. It was great!!

*That’s right…after the WEBS spring sale, this project cost a mere $10!

Update: I made a new About page today. Also relocated the links list. Feedback welcome.

Today I’m trying to find a new home for some materials that don’t suit my collection. Oh yeah, this is for work.

I have a copy of “The Letter Writer’s Own Book: Or, The Art of Polite Correspondence, Containing a Variety of Plain and Elegant Letters, on Business, Love, Courtship, Marriage, Relationship, Friendship, &c. with Forms of Complimentary Cards, and Directions for Letter Writing, To Which Are Added Forms of Mortgages, Deeds, Bonds, Powers of Attorney, &c.” (phew) It’s from 1846.

Never mind the title, the table of contents is highly entertaining! A sample, from the “On Love, Courtship, and Marriage” section:

-From a gentleman to a young lady of a superior fortune,
-The answer,
-From a widow to a young gentleman, rejecting his suit,
-From a young lady to a gentleman, complaining of indifference,
-The gentleman’s answer

And from the “On Relationship” section:

-From a father to his son, on his negligence in his affairs,
-The son’s grateful answer,
-From an elder to a younger brother, cautioning him in the choice of a wife,
-The earl of Stafford to his son, just before his lordship’s execution,
-From an uncle to his nephew, on the pernicious habit of drinking to excess,
-From a father to his daughters, on courtship and coquettish behavior,
-From the same to the same, on the foregoing subject

Want to read a whole letter? Indeed, which one should I choose? Click!
Read the rest of this entry »

Yay–the back is done. Now all I have to do is the front and this will be ready to model at KIP on Thursday!

Who is this little cutie in the morning sun?

Why, Stanley of course! He likes to help.

Yesterday I gave myself a birthday present: a day off from knitting. How could I do this, you ask? Well, 1. my right arm has been sore from too much knitting lately, and 2. we were off on a big all-day adventure to the Chicago Botanic Garden. We went by public transportation and on foot, and although I probably could have gotten a lot done on the Metra I really didn’t feel like carrying a big bag around all day.

Have you ever been to the Botanic Garden? It’s up in the Glencoe area, north of Evanston. This area is one of the very nicest Chicago suburban areas, with beautiful well-kept older homes, curving roads, and scenic lakefront views. It’s not exactly made for people who are carless, and when we got lost, it was difficult to get directions for how to walk to the gardens. [Thanks, Reference Desk at the Glencoe Public Library!]

It really only should have been about a mile from the Metra stop on foot. We probably ended up walking about four miles to get there, not including wandering around the gardens for a good three hours. Since Rodney gave me Dansko Lolita sandals for a birthday gift, my feet held up very well all day, even while running to catch a train.

Some scenes from the gardens:

A sign frequently encountered in the Fruit and Vegetable Garden

A tiny pear just starting to grow on one of the many fruit trees

Rodney posing in a little building on one of the three islands of Sansho-En (Japanese gardens connected by bridges)

Me in the same location. This is what it looks like to be 32!

All told, the gardens made for an excellent adventure. Of course, a sunny 75° day helps immensely.

A major overhaul has been made to this site tonight! Phew. It’s getting closer to how I want it to look. The one thing that still really bugs me is inability of the banner graphic to center. It doesn’t agree with my otherwise-CSS layout yet. But, as for the direction things are going, what do you think?

I know there are still bugs in the comment and archives templates, but I’ve done all I can stand for one day.

Now back to knitting!

Update: It doesn’t look that pretty in IE. Download a mozilla browser, or at least adjust your text zoom to “smaller” if you want to see my current best version.