Its all true, the boogie girl is real, and you've found her. She knits, sews, spins, does pottery and writes it all down in this blog.
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
The Saga
This is the story of the beginnings of a lovely Retro Prep cardi for my bud Anj.
This is the package I received. I love that skull fabric. I think I want a spindle bag from it. The Black roving is some Alpaca I’ll be spinning for Anj and the Noro is for Anj’s sweater. Now that you know what I have to work with, the story can begin.
I read through the pattern and marked up the size I needed and the stitches to cast on. I wasn’t feeling well enough to remove my butt from it’s indentation in my chair so I figured I may as well cast on right then.
I grabbed the new Denise needles, click the right size together and cast on. I cast on 170 stitches before I ran out of yarn. Fine, the stitches were sticking to the rubber part of the needles anyway. It’s an excuse to make another go and cast on looser.
This I do. I check and double check the amount of stitches. They were correct. They were loose but still sticking. Ok, slight annoyance but I’ll get over it. Knit the first row, ok, it’s getting better, less sticky. POP! Popped needle, stitches gone. Grrrr. Stupid needles. At this point I want to strangle the damn things but I can’t figure out how to throttle a set of circulars without doing more damage to myself.
Next to me sits brand new needles with super curly cords. They are the correct size but those cords are so curly. Maybe it was the sickness urging me on, or maybe the need to not be defeated by a set of stupid plastic needles.
I cast on for the third time. The cords are very curly but I stretch it out, count the stitches, and make sure the cast on isn’t twisted and I join. I knit the first row and check once again just to be sure it’s not twisted because geez it really does look twisted. Nope, not twisted, going good. Woohoo!
4 rows in the curl is getting to me still. I stretch it out once again. Lo and behold, they are twisted. Blasted thing! I pulled the stitches off and I slammed the needles in the drawer. No, not resting nicely in the drawer. I punished them by stretching them out and slamming the drawer on them. Yes, I know the nicer way to handle curly cords is immersing the cord in hot water. That would entail leaving my comfy chair, standing relatively upright over a hot pot of water, and being patient with the damn needles. All of those things were not desirable to me at that point.
Punished needles in hand, which are behaving better, I cast on again. There is the right amount of stitches, there is no extra twist and I'm 4 rows in.
Retro Prep will be traveling to SPA with me on Friday. I hope I find the time to get a bit done on it. I may be spending my free time taking naps.
Comments:
I was about to say...Amy, I know how you can uncurl those needles. Then read on and realized slamming in the drawer works too...lol. Glad everything worked out for you.
So your Denise needle tips are popping off the blue and black tipped cord? Bear with me here because I had a similar problem with the extender thingamajigger. I could have sworn I was twisting it on (but I didn't really feel that click) and it kept unpopping when I stretched the stitches over it...anyway, I sent my tale of woe to Denise and the next day they replied that it sounded as if it the joint was too tight and if I put on a pair of rubber dish gloves and put on the joint and gave it some serious twists back and forth I would hear the click I was looking for and it would lock on the way it was supposed to. I thought, "Hmm, shows what you know, it's not too tight, it's too loose, 'cuz it won't stay on." But I tried it anyway, and whaddyaknow, they were right. I guess they do know their product.
I mention this long boring story because maybe that's what's goin' on with your Denise tips, b/c you mention they're new. There really is a very distinct feeling click when they lock on, but even knowing that, with the join, I still kept trying and trying it, and it felt like it was twisting, just not locking, so I figured it wasn't formed right. Anyway, try the kitchen glove thing and see if that works.
I hope so, popping off needle tips blows sea monkeys.
I mention this long boring story because maybe that's what's goin' on with your Denise tips, b/c you mention they're new. There really is a very distinct feeling click when they lock on, but even knowing that, with the join, I still kept trying and trying it, and it felt like it was twisting, just not locking, so I figured it wasn't formed right. Anyway, try the kitchen glove thing and see if that works.
I hope so, popping off needle tips blows sea monkeys.
Yucky, yucky week. Elephants and misbehavin' needles. Hang in there and don't lose your Boogie! xox MOW Julia
# posted by 
: 2/16/2005 06:53:00 PM
: 2/16/2005 06:53:00 PM
argh! Good thing the weekend is almost here. I hope you're feeling better.
ooooooooh! The skulls are great. Any plans for sellable items from it? hint, hint.
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ooooooooh! The skulls are great. Any plans for sellable items from it? hint, hint.