Big (Yarn) Love

A few words on the two projects I have on needles this week: The Kitchen Sink Sweater, and the Striped Knee Sock (see their personal ads in the post below).

I knit the first knee sock back in November when I was away in Tofino with Doug. I called it a Wellington Sock because I noticed that when I wore my wellies with jeans over (not tucked in), the top of the boot rubbed against my leg in an irritating way. I thought to myself, hey! Why not make a really long pair of socks. This thought coincided nicely with the discovery that I had somehow cast on too many stitches for a normal pair of socks, so I tapered down the leg and just kept going until I had that knee sock. Now I'm finally knitting the second one. Not bothering to match. The yarn is nothing all that special. It's Lion Brand Magic Stripes sock yarn. It's kind of yutzy-cheapo in some ways, ok in others.

I like that you get a big ball of yarn for the price. I like that the colours keep changing, and it really is more fun to knit socks when that happens. I like that it's sport weight, and I can knit fast on 3 1/4mm needles. I like that it is a decent wool/nylon blend and that it is machine washable. What's not to like? The dye quality seems cheap, and there are blotchy bits. I can tell that this yarn doesn't begin to match the quality of so many other sock yarns I like and own. But it's fine being what it is, and I'm having fun with it.

The Kitchen Sink sweater is nearly done. I tried it on last night with its one sleeve all done and sewn in place. It's going to fit perfectly, and it looks great with jeans. I can already tell that it will be fun to wear and will end up being a favorite. And I'm already planning to make another one in a different set of colours.

In other news...the pattern for Jayne's AP Bag is now available at Knitting Pattern Central.

An intrepid knitter has made my AP Bag!! I thought that was totally cool, and her bag turned out great. See it here.

Doug and I have been devouring another HBO series this week. Over the past five years or so, we've found several excellent edgy TV gems that air first on HBO before being released to DVD. Then we rent them and gorge on a whole season's episodes over just a few days. We've done this with The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, and Weeds. We've also discovered some good network television such as House, the new Battlestar Galactica, and Dead Like Me. Some of these shows are a bit morally reprobate, but they have such interesting characters and plots, and such excellent writing that we end up loving them all.

So the current feast is a show that came out last year called Big Love. It stars Bill Paxton as a man married to three women. I thought they were going to play it for laughs and that it would be engaging but tasteless. Instead, they play it serious, and it is engaging and thought-provoking, even charming. If you want to know more, check it out here.

Now back to the last two episodes of Big Love and hoping to finish that second sleeve soon!