New Machine

New Hobby

LOADS of fun

Wednesday April 3, 2013

Is there anything more exciting than “out for delivery” -- the anticipation was CRUSHING -- all day goes by -- then around 3:00 -- she’s here! Hmmm is there time to put everything together (including the table) BEFORE walking the dogs and having dinner?? YES!!!

Thursday April 4, 2013

Thursday morning -- bright and early -- walked the dogs -- so they will stay OUT of my hair while I explore my lovely new machine. Watching videos for an hour or so, now ready to go -- using netting, the machine gets threaded -- YAY!! lots of left over yarn -- so I just grabbed a ball ( the lavender self patterning) and started in on tubes. Make a tube, take it off, rewind the tube -- over and over. Oooh -- let’s try a thicker wool (sport weight) -- a little harder but ok -- try the heel! -- lots of dropped (and repaired stitches)

Friday April 5, 2013

Posted a “HELP” regarding dropped stitches -- must watch those latches. This was make a few (3 in all) cast on bonnets, and practice those heels. Everything went well. Cranking is still kind of hard, and the stitches really seem TIGHT, but -- one problem at a time. Get the heel thingy figured out, and watch those pesky, latches. Over all doing better, but still getting a fair amount of practice at dropped stitches.

Saturday April 6, 2013

Knit socks day. Not bad! A few minor issues here and there -- trying to get the tension JUST right -- this is going to take some figuring. There is the thickness of the yarn, the tension from the yarn mast, and the stitch length (tension) on the cam. GEEZE - Oh Man! You need a score card to keep up! Used knitting needles to kitchener -- not having watched the kitchener stitch video yet. Fingers are starting to look pretty beat up. Those heel forks are dangerous, so are the needles!

Sunday April 7, 2013

There MUST be another way to close the toes -- video surfing -- goodie -- found a toe up method -- interesting music. Looks easy enough. I’ll try it! After 3 failed attempts -- failed because I could not even begin to STREEEETCH those poor stitches on my 54 slot cylinder to the other side -- ouch. Also using yarn that is really not stretchy -- it is like a non-wool, wool -- hard, not elastic, what the heck kind of sheep did this come off of??? Finally managed to get one done, could have used it as a trampoline (once the toe was stretched across the cylinder) Puuushing REAL hard with the soft weight and my hands to knit over the stitches -- and of course (later I discover) not all of them were knit in, ::rats:: foiled again. Spent the afternoon watching closing toe videos -- maybe toe up is not for me after all -- stitched up 2 socks -- not bad. One had to get frogged because I was not paying attention to both sides of the toe, and it was, well, lopsided!

Monday April 8, 2013

sock machine withdrawal ALL day -- first day back at work from spring vacation. Had to WAIT all day to get home, walk the dogs (yep they have to come first), have dinner, then -- at last -- time to make a sock. “Hey what gives?? This sucker is REALLY getting hard to crank, stitches falling of at the drop of a hat, and man alive are they TIGHT” What am I doing wrong. --Gave up -- time to do something easy -- work on knit shawl.

Tuesday April 9, 2013

After sleeping on it, watching videos Wednesday during lunch -- I figured out that I had the yarn mast threaded wrong ALL along! (except maybe the first day) -- had the heel spring engaged -- well sort of half engaged -- stupid woman. Now I understand why those stitches were so dang tight, why they were dropping and why loosening the vcam did not seem to work! Made another sock, with the correct tension (see day 5 and 6 pics) what a difference! I guess if I want to have “compression” socks, I’ll use my crazy half heel spring tension, and if I want to NOT LOSE my MIND -- I’ll have normal tension. ::grinning sheepishly::

Wednesday April 10, 2013

Needed diversion -- stopped by the Mini store to drool over the Clubman -- it would be nicer for hauling fiber, wheels etc. Hmmm …. A good friend was coming to dinner, so I wanted to show her my new toy. I loaded up ole “Erl” with my cast on bonnet and I thought it would be “fun” to try some left over toe-footsies yarn -- Oh yeah GREAT idea. I was able to show her how the stitches are knit, and set it up to work on the heel after dinner. I don’t know if it was the extra wine we had at dinner, or just my bad luck, but once I sat down to finish the sock, I had so many dropped stitches, and the tension was tight AGAIN -- even though I was not engaging the spring. Dang it, dang it, dang it. Managed to finish the sock -- just barely before going completely nuts. Husband was hiding in the basement, waiting for the storm to blow over. ARGH!

Thursday April 11, 2013

Had a “safety” meeting at school. Too depressed to knit. Wine was better. It is so strange and sad to work at a school where people were shot to death.

Friday, April 12, 2013

Went back to the Mini store, negotiated a GREAT interest rate, and ordered my new spice orange clubman -- 6 to 8 weeks till delivery. Tried to knit a sock after dinner, after realizing that my thread needs to go OVER the hook for the mast spring and then under the hook -- HA -- perfect tension at last. Got to the END of the sock, and then dropped a stitch right at the corner of the toe, you guessed it -- impossible to fish the stitch. And at night with this sucky lamp, impossible to see the yarn. -- Another sock to the FROG bin.

Saturday, April 13 2013

DH has managed to book the next two weekends in a row -- subconscious desire to be away from home, and crazed wife?? I think so. Anyway -- armed with solutions to all my failures and DETERMINED to watch those crafty latches -- I was ready to knit socks all day. SUCCESS 2 pairs of socks knit, and the mate to the toe-footsies disaster (albeit a tad more loose and, oops, a larger picot edge) Woohoo! I can, I Can, I CAN knit socks -- same size, perfectly paired up!