9.14.2017

high fiber diet: please make it stop...

i am banned from knitting for a day or two while my arms, shoulders, and wrists recover from self-inflicted stupidity. i tried lifting something that was quite a bit outside the range of my available upper-body strength. had my favorite animator not come running in time, i would have likely dropped said object on my feet, which would have ended with one (or both) of them in a cast. trust me, it was that heavy.

it hurt so much when i went to bed last night, that i was certain i had torn something vital in my left shoulder-neck junction area. he attempted to put the classic man-spin on the situation.

me: i am in so much pain right now.
him: but it's a good pain.
me:  there is no such thing as good pain. it actually hurts across the back of my shoulders if i inhale too deeply. 
him: ooh... that's the traps. it's a good pain.
me: you really need to stop talking. 

the pain had subsided a bit by the time i woke up this morning, leaving me with that intense soreness one gets after a session of weight-lifting when you have not lifted anything heavier than a milk carton for years. so, now i have to wait till everything stops aching before i can resume normal activity. i was hoping to get in a bit of work on that cabled cardi, as i would like to have it ready for the colder days ahead, but i can barely lift a coffee mug to my mouth right now, so a (short) break seems to be in order.

regular readers of this forum (all two-and-a-half of you) might recall my regretful attempt at venturing into the world of crochet from a few posts ago.  i am still recovering from the shock of that experience, but i did manage to rescue all of the yarn involved and turn it into (yet another) cottony tee. this is the Rau Sweater (by Queanna Lee) from this Summer's edition of Knitscene. again, i made this one more tunicy that the pattern suggested. i also made it sleeveless. my top. my rules. but, mainly because i did not have enough yarn for that part.


i was determined to use every last bit of this yarn, so i started in the middle and worked up through the top garter section (the ridged area). here you can see the orange sherbet yarn i used for the provisional (temporary) cast on.


i worked the front and back sections separately, then joined them at the shoulders, which you can sorta see below the cat


i love this cat more than i can explain, but there are some days when i think i should have gotten a goldfish instead. she loves me... like really really... really... loves me. this means needing to be where i am... all of the time. i assure you that i do not intentionally insert her into any of my photos. she just shows up... and stretches that same front leg (or should that be arm) across whatever i happen to be working on, as if she is claiming it as her own. oddly enough, she tends to do the same thing every time she climbs up on my lap. your life has no meaning until you have been claimed by a cat. trust me.


where was i? oh, yes... the shoulder seam. this is what it looked like from the outside (left) and inside (right). the safety pins were used in the shaping of the shoulders. i removed them before washing and wearing the top.


i also completed the i-cord edge around the neck, before returning to the starting point.


i removed the orange sherbet yarn with extreme care, one stitch at a time...


and placed those live stitches back on the needle.


i then joined the front and back sections together...


and continued in the round in stockinette (plain) stitch down to the hem.


with the exception of the leaf designs on the front, this was a mostly boring knit, so there may have been adult summer beverages involved. if memory serves, that was my lazy sangria, which consists of equal parts fruit juice and cheap (lest i be accused of being posh) red wine, watered down with seltzer. i was trying to be responsible, because everyone knows that you have to stay hydrated while you knit.


i split the last of the yarn in two for  the front and back hem, and stopped knitting when i was in danger of running out of yarn. i used the last few yards to add an i-cord edge to the sleeves... and i even ripped out my gauge swatch to have enough yarn for the second sleeve edge. THAT made me incredibly happy.


this was about the point where all of the pink became unbearable. i had ordered a couple patterns from a crazy (said with great appreciation of all things crazy) lady in the UK, and i was awaiting their arrival in the mail. this would have been a good time to take a break, but i was on such a roll, that i did not want it to end. i needed a quick project to keep me occupied for a few days. i went diving through the stash to find some more Summer-friendly yarn. the first one i came across was pink! please... make it stop!!!

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