Welp, I have been knitting. But it’s been in fits and starts, and only in short bursts, when I can grab the time. I don’t usually have more than one project going at a time, not including little things like socks. But look:
The left is a sock out of the wonderful Interlacements Little Feet, which I believe they stopped making? Is that right? Anyway, because that’s true, or maybe it’s not, I had to snatch up a skein I found last week while shopping with Jon.
Next to that is a lace scarf/shawl, my own design, my own yarn (silk/merino). How I love that last sentence.
Next to that, a determined stash-buster, inspired by the purchase of the software that ArtFibers uses to design their knitwear, called Knitware. You can buy it through ArtFibers (tell ’em I sent you!), and even though there’s no Mac base right now, it’s totally worth keeping my old PC clunker around for, just to fire it up and run this program. My favorite-fitting sweaters have been made using this design, and I swear I’m not getting a cut of any of the sales. You just knit a swatch, in what size needles you like, plug in the gauge and then drag and drop things around until you have a schematic of a sweater you like, and then it spits out the pattern for you. You can even rip out and measure the amount of yarn you used in your swatch and it will tell you REALLY darn close whether you have enough yarn to make the swater or not. I heart it.
It makes it so dern fun (too much fun, actually) to design a sweater. Print out the pattern. Put it in a plastic sleeve and pretend like you did all that math by yourself. Of course, I only got about two sleeves into that Chunky Wool-Ease (you know you have some in your stash, too) sweater before getting bored and casting on that luscious purple/green Malbrigo merino sweater. A little cardie, I think, with crochet trim on the edges. Yep, I designed it. Heh. Love it.
Please send info on the Malbrigo merino! I love, love, love that colorway and will hunt it down! 🙂 Did you buy it locally? (hoping, hoping)
I use graphic converter to play with my photos. It came bundled with my Mac, but if you don’t have ti you can download a version from http://www.lemkesoft.com/en/index.htm
You can export the photos (cmd-E) and pick a maximum size for them to resize them to (which would be the actual size if you’re only doing one picture or if they’re not cropped differently).
The scarf/shawl thing is very pretty.
All of your new started projects are lovely.
The Interlacements sock yarn that is no longer available is Little Toes and the heavier yarn is called Toasty Toes that’s still in existence. If you want some more Little Toes in a wine, brown, teal, etc. colorway for free, let me know. I’d be happy to mail it to you.
Does the star of the photo shoot know you forgot to mention name and geogeousness:0) or did they just make sure you understood the error of you ways as you dfifted into deep sleep to be joined startlingly by cat on head! Not withstanding it must be good to be back in your own bed or Lals’s, cough. Did your new employer also pay travelling expenses:0)
I second the CMD-E thing. But I use Ecto as my blog software and it has an iphoto plug-in that works beautifully. You tell it once what size you want your photo, specify that setting as the default, and you never have to worry again. Yarn Harlot uses it too 😉 I swear I don’t work for them or get paid sales commision – I just love software when it actually works. Kinda of like the sweater-pattern-spitting-software.
When I switched to a Mac a few months ago I lost my sweater program, and I was so desperate I figured it something out by hand. It took me forever to work out and by the time we moved I was only half way through with it.
Now that we live in Honolulu there is no way I am going to be able to wear it as it, and now I am working on rewriting it to be a summery cover. Again, by hand.
Oh the lengths we knitters go for our obsession…
What lace pattern are you using for the wrap/scarf? It looks really purdy!
Under “File,” Choose “Export.” You can then resize your photo to whatever width you want and it will automatically adjust the length. Super easy!
Mmm, that merino looks more incredible knit up than it did in the store! Can’t wait to see that one all done up…
Isn’t there a sweater design program for Macs?
All the knitting looks amazing, babe.
I love the Malbrigo! That colourway looks so gorgeous! And the sock yarn looks wonderful in good light. The dim lighting in Cha Cha Cha last week didn’t do it justice!
When you say “Knitware”, is that Knitware as in the product available from knitware.ca, or is this another program called Knitware?
(The Artfibers website says “Knitscape” so I’m confused–is it the same thing?)