United

That's what I have left -- U N I T E D.  The Manchester is finished and what's supposed to pass for a soccer ball in the middle.  (It's a scarf for a Manchester United fan, and my 100th follower on Twitter.)

And just to show that is really is Double Knitting, here's the other side folded over the right side.

The squiggly thing at the top right is the best I could
do to portray the small ball that appears in the MU logo.
Various images are here -- Manchester United.

The back side?  Well the letters appear there, as expected.  However, they are in mirror format.

Having a great time with this one.

•  I'm learning double knitting. 
•  I'm designing some graphics, especially letters. 
•  I can see progress on a steady basis.

But it's intense, I'll warn you.  Every stitch and every row is carefully placed and I'm always watching.  Mistakes can be corrected but remember, for every mistake there are two stitches to fix -- one on each side.

Wanna try it?  Here's a tutorial from KnitPicks with great photos.

PS for the curious.  Yes, I did knit the sock monkey.  Twas a kit from KnitPicks several years ago, but no longer available.  Sock Monkey has a gray robe, too, which was not shown in the posting.

Hospital Time

There's God's time, earthly time, and Hospital Time.  If you've been a resident there or sat by the bed of a friend or relative, you know that HT elapses at a pace unknowable to mankind.  I don't think even the docs and nurses and aides can explain HT to you.  HT has a willful mind of its own and can be slower than glaciers and then pass more quickly than synapses in the brain.

Second verse -- sorta same as the first.  Another set of chest pains, a call to 911, EMT's at the house, ambulance trip to St. Joe's, boocoo tests (as in blood, x-ray, dye stress tests), and lots and lots of waiting in between -- all on HT.

I had a flight instructor who explained Flight Instructor Time to me this way:  hours and hours of boring flying punctuated by seconds of sheer terror  (remember there's a student pilot in the left seat, Pilot In Charge.)

HT feels the same way.  Long periods of boredom, bad food, interruptions for vital signs, and then finally a minute or two with someone who can explain test results and next steps.

Meanwhile -- I've grabbed my knitting bag on my way to the hospital.  Of course!

Here's what I worked on, all depending on available mental energy, interest level, and access to decent light.

Snug Sockettes -- from Vanessa at Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts.  Vaness at Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts.  Also on Ravelry if you wanna log in there.  I used stash, left-over Harry Potter sock yarn.  It's Cascade Heritage washable.

All the pics today were taken on the deck, as we finally have a bit of overcast sun.  We call them sun breaks here in PNW, USA.  It's a situation full of hope as in "we see enuf sun we can hope for the full dose soon."

Arimono Shawl -- Megan Goodacre from Tricksy Knitter.  I'm completely addicted to Megan's designs.  Just bot two patterns at her end-of-summer sale.  You might still be able to find a kit for Arimono, using Sweatermaker Yarns.  I gotta tell ya -- this is some of the most wonderful yarn I've ever worked with.  It's silk and cashmere, hand painted.  Tricksy Knitter.

Manchester United scarf -- my design and first experiment with Double Knitting.  Yarn is Patons Astra, sport weight acrylic.  This is very fun.  I encourage you to try something in Double Knitting.

We're home now and much improved.  We both enjoy being on our own time and away from HT.

Me, I prefer KT.

Knitting Time.

Twice as Nice

Now this is fun -- call me a knitting nerd -- but this is fun.

Double Knitting.  Two sides happen at the same time with the designs reversed.  One side is red with yellow design; the other is yellow with red pattern.

You goth admit that's very cool.

How did I get here?  Well, I'm on Twitter @RebeccaBianco and finally reached the incredible status of having 100 followers.  The 100th asked:  What do I get for being #100?  I offered a hand-knit scarf.  Mr. 100 is a rabid Manchester United fan.  And thus was born the scarf in double knitting.

• Front side / the 'right' side will be red with yellow pattern and words that read Manchester United.
• Back side / the 'wrong' side will be yellow but the words won't read correctly.  Maybe it will be mirror writing, but I haven't put any brain cells on that one.

I decided on Double Knitting so the scarf would be warm, reversible, and I would not have to use Duplicate Stitch or Intarsia (one layer) to add colors.  Double Knitting is really intarsia with two 'pieces' of knitting.

The process took at least 3 cast ons and frogs before the process gelled.  Here are some sites I used to help me along.  Both are easy reading and have clear directions.

• Knitting Help:  Where you can make a hot pad with a heart.  Author is Nancie Kramer and she's good.
• Knitty:  Where you can make "Not Your Grandma's Double Knit Hat."  Author is Jenanne Hassler, very nicely done.

I'm designing my own letters, one at a time.  I'm also a math nerd, so graph paper is a long time friend.  Yarn is Patons Astra, a sport weight.  The yarn label suggests US6 but the ladies above suggest smaller needles so I'm using US4.

Having fun -- double the fun.  

Warning -- either this will become your new yarn addiction OR you will decide it's fiddly or requires too much attention.  Don't try to look up while double knitting, so if you combine TV with knitting, you'll have to choose.  No more multi-tasking.