Yellow Rose Mitts from Yarnivore - Done!

Exquisite mitts!

Often I shy away from "dainty" or frilly looking accessories, opting for bold drama.  And I can't say I wouldn't adore these just as much in a bright, bold hue. There's just something I love, however, about how these turned out.  They have a certain vintage elegance to them.  A classy mitt, wouldn't you say?

Sure, the size 0 needles took patience and commitment, but don't lots of worthwhile things?  They were excellent traveling partners, and I look forward to wearing them.

And, it must be said:  I have BOTH of them!  No "second sock syndrome" here--hooray magic loop!

And hooray to Yarnivore for a knitting adventure in a new place, color, and style for this grateful knitter.

Yellow Rose Mitts from Yarnivore - Day 5

Thumbthing to think about...

Thumbs are important.

They separate us from many other species.  They give one-gesture opinions, they text, they wrestle, they are essential PlayStation equipment, Facebook icons, and way back before Aunt Allie was old enough, an extended one could gain you a form of transportation.

So don’t just rest those digits on the spacebar, show them some respect.

Thumbs in fingerless mitts are rather a one-note samba, a place to show a little style without having to go through the complications of gloves.  I’ve done hand or wrist warmers where the thumbs just peek through a hole in the tube, but I prefer a nicely crafted thumb as in these and these.

Here, our thumbs get a delicately sensible garter trim to finish off the stockinette of the palm and gusset.  Just enough of a detail to compliment the rose motif without competing with it.

What’s extra nice is that they work right off the magic loop.  I was thinking I’d have to cast the thumb tube back on to double-points (not something I was looking forward to), but nope, I’m all set.

Now I just have to finish off the hand and its own  border, and I’m done.  The color continues to charm, and I’m finding all those teeny stitches worth the effort.

Yellow Rose Mitts from Yarnivore - Day 3

Magic markers...

Magic loop can be confusing.  With socks, you’re just doing the same thing for both pieces—there isn’t a “left” or “right”—and when you get to a “front” or “back” being important, you’ve got the gusset and heel there right in front of you.

Things are a bit different here.  Without a clear front or back, I might misconstrue whether or not I’ve made it clear around a round because every side looks the same.  I have learned this lesson through painful, lopsided experience.  To save myself from myself, I use different color stitch markers for the front and for the back. Since the working yarn always must come from the back to begin at the right side of each mitt, it only takes a few seconds of scanning to know exactly where I am when I return to my work.

My mitts and I traveled to North Carolina this weekend to visit my daughter, and I was once again reminded of the pleasures of travel knitting.  Airports these days are all about the wait—from security lines to boarding to “the fasten your seatbelt sign is still illuminated” to yesterday's 27-minute taxi upon landing (otherwise known as the complete tour of every inch of tarmac in O’Hare).  Did I stress?  Well, maybe a little bit, but mostly I happily knit.  Glad for the guilt-free time where opening my laptop is not permitted, but knitting most certainly is allowed.

Hooray for adventures accompanied by yarn!

Yellow Rose Mitts from Yarnivore - Day 2

Double-Pointless?

The results of my experiment were clear and useful:  I’m not a fan of bamboo double-pointed needles (dpn's) for this project.  For tiny stitches like these, I prefer the slide of metal needles and the simplicity of magic loop.

I have a line in one of my books, Homefront Hero, where a war hero is learning to knit socks on dpn’s, and he says, “I feel like I’m wrangling a porcupine!”  That’s exactly how I felt working this.  It’s not that I don’t like double-points—I don't mind them in larger sizes.  These itty bitty ones, however, gave me fits.  I found it poignant—and amusing—that they came with the following warning on the package:

“These should be used with all due care as these may cause injury if used improperly by an untrained/unfamiliar person.”

Maybe not injury, and I’m certainly trained, but they caused frustration and annoyance in this particular knitter on this particular project.

And so, it is with great delight that I share the news that the next section—the Rosebud Wrists—settled itself perfectly on a two-at-a-time magic loop circ. Hooray!  I’ll fly through the four repeats in happiness.

Until the thumb gusset, which may (or may not) require the reintroduction of dpns.  Ah, the adventure of knitting…

Yellow Rose Mitts from Yarnivore - Day 1

I love it, and it will require devotion...

Knitting can be a humbling adventure—especially when you consider yourself “experienced.”  K2tog on size 0 needles, for example.  This is enough to set my 50+ eyes to squinting, twitching, and my middle-aged fingers to cramping.  Were I to shoot a video of my face while doing all the “pass stitch over”s required on the cast on, I’m sure the faces I made would be mighty entertaining.  

And we’re not discussing how I had to call Caryn at Yarnivore to figure out where I went wrong and start over.  It happens to the best of us, right?

While the color of this super wash merino from The Sheepwalk Fiber Arts Studio—called “Love & Devotion”—is delicious, it’s somewhat splitty.  That nature can be frustrating when working on such a small scale.  I know—without a doubt—that I’ll have to do both of these mitts at once because I’ll never be able to convince myself I have enough patience to do the second once I finish the first.

And so…an experiment of sorts.

I much prefer magic loop—most especially two-at-a-time magic loop—to one-at-a-time-on-double-points when knitting such pieces. However, sometimes lacy patterns don’t always lend themselves to the immovable divisions of magic loop.  Some patterns you can tell it will divide up nicely.  Others, you can’t.

What to do?  Do both!  Do one magic loop and one on DPNs—at the same time.  After the first round of the Rose pattern (the part I think will give me trouble), I should know whether or not I can slide both of these onto a single circular needle ala magic loop.  Sure, I may have to split them up again when I get to the thumb, but I’m okay with that.

Onward—for science and craft!

SAN ANTONIO, TX--Day Two

More Texas treats...

San Antonio has a lot of fun things to do. You don’t want to spend your entire day having DestiKNITions adventures, but you don’t want to miss out on some local treasures, either.  Here’s a second day schedule that will still leave you a nice block of time to take in the River Walk (a very nice place to knit in public, by the way), the Alamo, or other San Antonio goodies.

Start your day at:

Sol Y Luna Baking Company

4421 De Zavala Rd

San Antonio, TX 78249

(210) 492-5777

They are known for their breads—especially the delicious Monkey Bread—but there are a variety of mouth-watering cupcakes, muffins, bars, and cookies to choose from.   There are even sandwiches if you don’t do “morning food.”  I had the massive, scrumptious bread pudding and got nearly three meals out of it!  A sweet little place (pun intended) with a friendly staff.

After that, head the short drive to:

Yarnivore

2357 NW Military Hwy

San Antonio, TX 78231

(210) 979-8255

yarnivoresa.com

Caryn on the left with yours truly

Longtime customer turned owner Caryn Moir took over the store with her husband Martin roughly a year ago, and her passion for inspiring people shows up strong. 

 “I was crocheting before I could read,” Caryn shares, which makes this not only a great knit shop, but a truly crochet and weaving-friendly establishment.  “We’re fiber obsessed,” she confesses—and aren’t we all?

The store boasts both a strong female and male customer base, as well as an enthusiastic staff.  “We strive to create a judgement-free zone where friends of fiber can come try anything they want.”  A regular core of classes is offered year-round while other classes rotate by season or demand.  There’s also a six-month intensive class for students seeking a comprehensive education in the craft.  

It’s an organized, welcoming space.  “I don’t want anyone to feel overwhelmed.  This place should feel like a refuge for fiber fans—we’re investing in each other,” Caryn says.  One of the store’s unique features is providing customers with a yarn’s price per yard.  “Customers looking for value love that information” she relates.

Make sure you take a look at these when you visit:

Weaving Scarves

If you’ve ever wanted to take up weaving, here’s the perfect project to get you started.  A solid warp combined with a color-changing weft teaches you not only the skill of weaving, but the basics of color theory as well.  A very fine bamboo fiber makes for a luscious accessory that feels as good as it looks.

Dawn’s One Ball Shawlette

Who wouldn’t like to crochet a rainbow for their shoulders?  Of course, it could be anything depending on whatever ball of yarn you choose, but a self-striping will give you the most cheerful results.  Crochet always makes great little trims possible, and this shawlette is no exception.

Crocodile Stitch Cowl

How much fun is this?  For best effect, grab one skein of Manos de Uruguay Fino sock weight in  a reptilian color and stitch up this eye-catching crochet piece.  Or go for a marine color and mimic fish scales?  Floral to look like petals?  Brown for a pine cone? Brightly colored mariachi ruffles? The possibilities are endless!

Yellow Rose Mitts

We are in Texas, after all, so why not join me in this knit-along project of Yellow Rose Mitts?  Any sock weight yarn (no, it doesn’t have to be yellow) will produce pretty-yet-substantial fingerless mitts guaranteed to help you embrace cooler temperatures but still text and dial (or knit?).  If you want a nice, dense fabric, make sure you use 00 needles.

Malabrigo Rasta Brioche Hat

The favorite chunky fiber of many knitters, Rasta knits up fast to create this cleverly ribbed beanie.  Go for solid, a multi-color, or school-color stripes to keep your favorite noggin toasty.

Gadget Recommendation

I’ve got pins, I’ve got blocking wires, but these Knitter's Pride Knit Blockers beauties are something in between.  Each “blocker” has a stretch of pins—either 8 or 4 pins—to keep points from showing up where you don’t want and reduce tension to any single spot on your garment.  A great tool!

Not too far away is the perfect spot for lunch:

Green Vegetarian Cuisine

10003 Nw Military Hwy, Ste 2115

San Antonio, TX 78230

(210) 233-1249

eatatgreen.com

Now, I am not a vegetarian, and I confess to a bit of skepticism before I ate here.  I’d heard the dessert tray was worth the trip, but I wanted good, healthy veggie-rich food after all the meat I’d been eating. I love orange chicken from my favorite Chinese restaurant, so I took the server’s word that I’d enjoy the Sesame Chik-N meatless entree—and I did!  

The outdoor seating at this location (and also at a sister location at yesterday’s Pearl) makes the experience especially pleasant.  Dog friendly, too.  And oh, the cupcakes—my sources tell me really good vegan cupcakes are a rare find, and these were outstanding.

Travel Channel photo

Spend your afternoon taking in the River Walk or any other classic  San Antonio sites.  There are a hundred great places to eat right there on the River Walk.

If you need a shot of energy once you head away from the river, get a great one at:

CommonWealth Coffeehouse & Bakery

118 Davis Ct

San Antonio, TX 78209

(210) 560-2955

commonwealthcoffeehouse.com

A really lovely little place with lots of charm and a great assortment of indoor and outdoor seating.  I had lunch there—the delicious CommonWealth salad with the Fondant au Chocolat cake for desert.  A great atmosphere for a chat or for getting some work done.

One last recommendation for dinner:

Max’s Wine Dive

340 E. Basse Rd Ste 101

San Antonio, TX 78209

(210) 444-9547

maxswinedive.com

Okay, it’s not really a “dive,”—it’s actually in the snazzy Quarry Village shopping center—but my sources tell me this is THE place to get fried chicken.  I needed to eat bison burgers for some book research, too.  Thankfully, my helpful server arranged for me to get a bit of both—and each was tasty.  The fried chicken is perfectly crispy but not greasy, and the slightly crispy, buttery brioche buns on the bison sliders were nothing short of heaven.  What sounded like the most fun was “Bunch Before Bed,” served 10pm - 1am on Friday and Saturday nights.

These stops wrap up two days in a terrific city I look forward to revisiting as soon as I can.  San Antonio serves up some tasty adventures, charming shopping, and a pair of fabulous fiber finds.  

Next up, we meet this month’s Reader Who Knits, then cast on the Linen Stitch Bag from Unraveled.