Finished Object Dance

I'm finally recovering from the throat/nose something that I've been fighting for the last few days, and there's progress on projects to report.

The French Market Bag has been felted. Original posts in August are available here, here and here. Here it is pre-felted, and with a gauge measure. I'm not finding notes on what size needle I used, but I think this time it was an 8 (5.0 mm) vs. a 6 (4.25 mm) as I had done in the prior 3. It's looser knit and bigger before felting than the other 3 I've made and I think that made a difference in how the fabric felted. Most everything else I've felted before you can still make out stitches when you get in close, even though it's a solid fabric. This one you can make out the line of color changes, but not stitches quite so much. It's drying now, but I'll see if I can get better close-ups in a few days when it's completely dry.

I used a dryer for felting, soaking the FMB and the 2 towels first. The dryer started at 3:10 p.m. with high heat. First check was at 3:40 p.m., and there was a fair amount of mohair lint in the lint catcher. Next check was at 4:20 p.m., things got resoaked and there was more lint coming off. At 4:45 p.m., it seemed 'done,' so it came out, got stuffed with plastic grocery bags and left to dry. The last time, no more mohair had come to the lint trap. The bag has a bit of halo fuzz. The wool is still holding a fair amount of water, so 24 hours later, it's still on a rack above a drip tray, and this morning it was releasing water a few minutes after it was moved to a new position. It may be a little smaller than the other 3 I've done, but not much.

The Forest Path Stole has had some hiking. The 23 tiers are done (in this picture) and this afternoon the top triangles were finished. That leaves the side borders to be put on. Unfortuantely, it's at the attractive nuisance stage, so it won't be going to Wednesday night knitting group. People won't take no when I say it hasn't changed appreciably since they last saw it, and it really is too big, too tangled in itself and too prone to wanting the bottom stitch holders to snag on other parts of the work to make me comfortable with getting it spread out just for their enjoyment.

Plugs, or things to point out
Schoolhouse Press has put the Knitting Glossary on DVD, with updates. I may order it for myself, rather than chance it as a Christmas Present (ahem).

Franklin, a Chicago blogger, knitter, photographer and, as it turns out, cartoonist, has lately been making hand-drawings to illustrate his blog that are just hilarious. He now has a Cafe Press site with garments/bags (mugs coming soon he says) of his drawings and sayings he's crafted. I love the Knitting is the New Yoga image, but I already have so many t-shirts I don't wear, I can't justify another. Maybe he'll publish prints?

Mind's Eye Yarns is putting together an order for solid color sock yarn, Regia 4fadig. For those of us who have been looking for plain sock yarn for slightly less than forever, Lucy is looking to hear what colors folks would like to buy. The link above is the first of 3 color page sites (follow all three) and has more colors than the color card she has in the store but should work reasonably well as a reference (she just may not be able to get some of them). The 2/4/6/8 numbers above are the weights of yarn, so look for the /4/. There 3 and 4 digit numbers with the names for those of us who are so arrogant that we don't speak German*.

*{in 2003 I was at a several-days party in Italy populated mostly by German people who already knew each other. Himself was raised speaking German, I've had smatterings of French, Spanish and Russian in the course of my education. No one was coming over to introduce themselves to us and speak English to me and I wasn't about to go break into their conversation in a language I don't know. There was a 92 year old woman there who's major claim to fame was that she was 92. She spoke to me in English saying it was arrogant of me to have never studied German, how could I expect to get along in the world not knowing German? I didn't get to tell her it's so little used in the US that most schools don't even offer it. I was making a red sweater in lace weight yarn on size zeros at 9 sts. to the inch. I got a lot done on it at the party.}