Alright, I feel a little explanation is in order. After my stunning resolve to not go for more than a week without posting, I promptly up and left for almost thirteen days. The reason? I was in Texas. In Texas with fellow yarn and fiber lovers, running about to various yarn destinations and generally shooting my budget. So, I shall attempt to summarize the many and various things I bought and did.
First off, I took along the indigo-dyed merino and a spinning wheel, hoping to get a bunch more spun. Unfortunately, I didn’t spin quite as much as I’d planned, but I was able to teach a friend to use the wheel, and two others to drop spindle. Now the goal is to finish the indigo merino well before Christmas.
I didn’t spin as much as I had planned because I was working away at my latest pair of socks. The first one is done, and the second is well on its way to the end. I’m now in the “knit until sock measures x length from heel” stage. A little on the boring side, but it needs to be done so I can get to some of the stuff I bought.
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Lesson Number One – Don’t stop blogging for any length of time because it becomes increasingly easy to put it off as the mountains of material pile up. Or because of colds. Or because of a busy schedule. But, that will change.
Ahem. I, me, myself, the fiber lover, hereby promise to keep up with blogging. You need to get all over my case if I go more than a week without updating. But, hopefully that will not become necessary.
Alright, now, let me see, what has happened since my last post? When was my last post? Oh goodness, twenty something days ago? That’s three weeks!
Well, to begin with, I finished my socks. As soon as they were done I was promptly assailed with a cold, during which I felt like laying around and knitting dozens of socks . . . but, I had no sock yarn. I now see the positive sides of having a stash, even if it’s a small one. The concept of spinning all your own yarn does not work when you’re too tired to even look at the spinning wheel. I had to grin and bear it, knowing that a visit to a yarn store was in the works.
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I have one whole sock now. It’s quite comfy, but a little baggy around the toes. It’s quite possible that I knit it a size too large. And the second sock is visible. I’m about an inch into it.
All the indigo dyed fiber is carded up and turned into roving.
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Look! Look at that. I almost have the entire foot covered in stripy material. Whoo-hoo!
I took it along to work, and the best part was a small friend’s conversation with me while babysitting.
Sam: “Why does that have so many needles?”
Me: “That’s just the way they need to be to help me knit this sock.”
Sam: “Whoa, that’s a sock?”
Me: “Yes. Wait just a minute (the row needed to be finished) and I’ll show you.”
*time lapse while row is finished and sock wriggled on*
Sam: “Whoaaaaa, that’s cool. If I’d known you made socks I’d have had a pair by now.”
(I don’t know what he was implying by that statement. Just because I made that red scarf for him earlier.)
Anyway, it’s currently giving a great impression of a hobo’s sock, and if I can just figure out where the pattern went I can finish it up and knit the second one. It’s been long enough since I started the first one that I’m not worried about the second being the same old same old. Definitely a bonus.
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Ta-da! Behold the latest in footwear fashions. (No, the photo is not sideways.) The unique design enhances ankle warmth and circulation while leaving your toes to cool off and wiggle about as they desire. The spikes protect from any little nippy dogs, and the ball of yarn drags along in case you have a sudden knitting urge.
Yes, I’m planning to finish it. And its mate. This one will have some queer little lumps and bumps in it. Things like “repeat rows A and B until x amount remains on the needles” should not be listed after “continue.” What do they think I am? A knitting guru? Ahem. Well, anyway, it seems to be turning out despite the difficulties. I can get it on. And off.
I’m enjoying knitting something that small. I like tiny things. Tiny stitches, tiny needles, tiny yarn. I even have a pattern picked out for the next pair! It’ll be a very special pair due to the fiber choice. (More on that later.)
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Last night I finished the ribbing on the tam! Whoo-hoo! We were watching a movie at the time, so rather than check with my knitting sister before binding off, I confidently plunged ahead. Doing all “knit” bind-offs on a knit two purl two ribbing.
Give me credit, though. I did realize that it didn’t look so good after binding off about twenty stitches. The movie was almost over, so I carefully raveled back and rescued whatever had been messed up.
That took awhile, I can tell you, because I hadn’t mastered the art of using the needles as needles. I was stuck in crochet mode, so I would knit a stitch, pick up the back loop with my fingernails, and pull it over the new one.
Some of you are probably wincing. It made for very splitty yarn and very messy stitches.
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“Oh, I could write a sonnet about my Easter soysilk. . .” Wait a minute. That doesn’t rhyme.
Well too bad for the song because this soysilk is the coolest thing since sliced bread. It’s a bit of a challenge to spin up because it’s clingy like silk, but it falls apart easily. Explain that one. I’ll be holding a chunk of roving and blop—half of it falls to the floor. And the other half sticks to my shirt and jeans. But I learned its wily ways fast!
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Okay, so that has a double meaning. I’ve made good progress on the fifty gram skein of sport weight. In fact, it’s done. 
And I’ve made really good progress on the tam. Just an inch and a half of ribbing to do. Someone remind me when I get around to trying socks to pick a pattern that’s more interesting than “knit until piece measures six inches.” Call me picky, but when you’re not good enough to knit without looking, it gets rather boring.
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I’ve heard the phrase “beginner’s luck” a lot. And I’ve thought I’ve had it several times. But this project is proving something to me. Beginner’s luck should be beginner’s pluck. It’s our drive to try something new and our passion to create that helps things turn out well. Whether on the first try or the hundredth. 
What brought this sudden rumination on was the apparent desire of my tam to inflict me with every single mistake known in the world of knitting. Which is okay. It gets them all out of the way faster. But if I hadn’t have been so excited about knitting my own hat I would have thrown it out the window long ago.
I’ve had to cast on twice, because we thought I’d twisted the stitches on the first round. I’ve done a few rows over three or four times. I dropped a stitch and didn’t notice until I’d knitted another four rows. (Thank you, sister of mine who can rescue lost stitches.)
I have a yarn over in the wrong spot. I’ve popped multiple stitches off the end of the double points. I’ve knitted the stitch marker into the hat. Twice. I used the wrong k3tog method. The only things I haven’t done yet are break a needle and cut through the hat.
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Alright. So the question is, “Are you officially a knitter when you get a wee bit giggly, adrenalin rushy, and over-the-top over whether the gauge with turn out right?” If the answer is yes, I’m officially a knitter. So I really like the yarn and the pattern. I tell you, this tam might be the death of me. If I got that excited over the swatch? This doesn’t bode well.
Not to mention I’m suffering from a little beginning knitter’s naivety. On being told that my gauge was seven and a half stitches per inch instead of eight, I promptly thought I would have to knit more loosely. Because, as everyone knows, if you want seven and half to become eight, you have to add.
I’ll just leave that one alone for awhile.
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