They didn't know...

A Girl can never have too many Handbags

2006-08-14T18:12:00.000-05:00

So, I Googled "Noni bags," and aside from the gazillion pictures of the tea brand, I found maybe three or four knitters who have made the Noni bag. I can't believe that! It seems like these bags are all the rage--I see the patterns all over the shops now (as opposed to just a few months ago, when I needed to own the pattern RIGHT AWAY or I would die). Maybe the knitter's aren't blogging or photographing their work?

Anyway, I have made two flowers, one Unfurling Rose and one medium-sized Camellia. I HEART the camellia. That rose is absolutely gigantic, which is the point, I am sure. I think I will make one more white Camellia. The rest of the orange will be used for the base of the Carpet Bag (for a flash of unexpected color). I have a feeling I will be searching long and hard for the perfect handle. Didn't find one on MJ Trimmings' site, which was unfortunate, since they just finished up a month long sale...I am fairly sure I have more yarn that the pattern for the medium-sized Carpet Bag calls for, so -yeah!- I will be able to make it much bigger. But taller, wider or deeper? Hmmm...
(Also pictured is the fabric lining for my Noni Carpet Bag. The white flowers are just like my Camellia!)

Okay, enough of the love. Onto the hate. Can I please express my dismay at how HARD it is to find a circular size 6 US in 32" length? Jeepers. All I need...that's all I need, is to find these circulars!...so I can finish Ms Marigold!! I tried two LYS's, and even went to...Bible Camp, AKA Hobby Lobby. The only thing Hobby Lobby did for me was force me to buy more Lily Sugar 'n Creme for gifted washcloths. (They were on sale - a dollar each!!) Oh, and I must, absolutely must, shame the middle aged...woman...who totally invaded my personal space at the Bible Camp check out. If there's anything that gets my goat, it's when someone gets all up in my space. Dude. I left muttering obscene things under my breath about her and her middle-aged suburban crafts.

Lastly, a Staunch Survey: Since I will have to order a set of 6 circulars somewhere, I think I might break down and purchase an interchangeable set. So, the question of the day is: Denise or Knit Picks? I like Knit Picks for the metal (yes, I like metal needles), but Denise has more sizes...

Fake-a-Fini!

2006-08-07T18:42:00.000-05:00

My beautiful bag is finished! And it has only been, like, what, a month? If I had been more dedicated, Fake-a-Gamo would have been finished long ago, but, dear Reader, Edie L was a bit intimidated by the sewing. (Yeah, what's a couple of straight seams, I hear you scoff. Knitting is easy. Sewing...takes a whole 'nother part of my brain to understand, kinda like geometry.) Alas, I needn't have worried. The lining was tons easier than I expected, and I even made pockets! I do love having my own sewing machine now. Thanks Mom!

I love the pattern, and only made a few modifications to satisfy my need for a giant handbag (and boy, is it heavy!). Quick note on a stitch reinterpretation--the dropping and wrapping of that swirly swirl: I knit one, then double yarn-overed when called to double wrap. On the next row, I slipped the knit stitch and dropped the yarn-overs. (I think that is a little different than Kate's instructions. I think.) Then I had 11 (or five) nice, long stitches that were so easy to knit together. I also doubled the lining, so the Admirer can see the pretty pink flowers through the lacier bits of the knit.
Honestly, this is such a lovely bag, and I really can't believe all my stuff fits! Thanks, knitlit, et al!

We all march together...

2006-07-31T14:58:00.000-05:00

Edie V. here after a long hiatus. Though I, too, have been delightedly working my way through Ms. Marigold (in black), nothing terribly exciting to report on the knitting front.

I think you, gentle reader, will be much more interested in reading about a completely true, but barely believable story of how Edie V. narrowly avoided a most unladylike bout of fisticuffs in a Trader Joe's parking lot yesterday!

My sister and I made a brief stop at Trader Joe's yesterday to pick up a few things. I left feeling good (how could I not with three bottles of Chianti under my arm?). As we emerged from the store into a sweltering 100 degree parking lot, we were greeted by the sight of two girls (late 20s?) on their cell phones honking and screaming at people in another car that they (the cell phone twins) had narrowly avoided hitting at a three way stop. We began walking across the crosswalk when the girls (still on their phones) raced through yet another stop sign, into the crosswalk and nearly into the legs of my sister and I. I turned and mouthed the words, "What are you doing?" The girl in the passenger seat shot me the dirtiest look and jammed her middle finger up and started screaming obscenities at me, most memorable was f@8%&^g c$#*. Lovely, right? Wait, it gets better. She then cracks the window a few inches and actually asks, "You wanna go?" Dear reader, please picture me in a knee length skirt, flip-flops, and huge Jackie-O sunglasses. Normally, at this point in a conflict, my heart would begin to race, but the ridiculousness of the situation prevailed, and I couldn't help but laugh and say, "Yeah, I wanna fight you in the parking lot." Then, the little granny inside came to the fore, and I actually wagged my finger (yeah, you read that right) and said, "You're a menace to everyone in this parking lot, and you should be ashamed of yourselves." They then sped on and almost hit an elderly couple in the crosswalk. You can't make this stuff up! Am I wrong or is that total insanity? I don't think I've ever been a situation where I would honestly ask someone, "Do you wanna go?"

At any rate, the story has been a hit at the office today. Did I mention that when the girl in the passenger seat was inviting me to fight, she still had phone in hand? I wish I could revoke licenses at will.

The wonderful Ms. Marigold

2006-07-30T19:56:00.000-05:00

Yo, Edie L is kicking Ms.Marigold's teeny-tiny little behind! A long weekend of knitting has finished parts A through E...the flirty little sweater vest is now just about half way done! (We just have, oh, about 11 inches of straight knitting in the round to plow through next.) Hopefully, Edie L will be able to focus and finish the stockinette bodice in a timely fashion, no matter how tedious it may become. There are things to do and places to wear Ms.Marigold!
And may I just say, how lovely and EASY the pattern is? Edie L simply adores the straightforwardness of knitting top-down and in the round. (Hate seaming! Hate it!) The only hiccup: crochet. Edie L will have to learn to crochet.
Sigh.

Fake-a-Gamo will be finished fairly soon. Edie L is a novice seamstress and will probably put off wrangling the scary sewing machine until her new Craft Area is set up. It's high time she reorganized herself and made her art supplies more easily accessible. If you can't see it, how do you remember it's there?
Edie V, darling, your help and expertise will be recquired. Please and thank you with a cherry on top!

Fake-a-Update

2006-07-27T21:08:00.000-05:00

Gosh, I feel like we are officially part of the blogosphere now! Real photos of knits in progress! ...Will there be a ceremony with certificates and cocktails to follow?
May I present Edie L's (unfinished) Fake Fergamo, knit on Addi Turbo 9s with Blue Sky Cotton Azul. In real life, of course, Azul has a touch more green. Such is amateur digital photography at night. Anyway, Fake-a is resting on the lining that Edie V helped pick out, something much more dainty and ladylike than Edie L is used to. But that's why Edie L loves it! Here's a detail of the lining:

Still haven't decided on pearls in the sworls yet...
This Fake-a-Gamo is a little bit larger than knitlit's Fergamo; I added a fourth section and fudged my way through a new handle. (That's three rows of the first section repeated, then a bunch of stockinette and decreasing, and a few rows of purls thrown in for good measure.)
Edie L cannot live without an excessively large handbag.

Second thoughts

2006-07-21T20:16:00.000-05:00

Just a quickie tonight; you might have noticed this image:

as something I have lusted after since this blog's inception.
...however. howEVER. I have since come across this image here:

Excuse me? What is that, you ask? It that the same tunic? One word, holmes: BARF. It's like finding out that the cute waiter you've had a crush on picks his nose! (Or has a kid, eh, Edie V?) Is it me, or is that just a bad photograph? I mean, yes, I was planning on using different yarn, and taking out the pockets, but...oh, I am just heaving one big sigh of disappointment.
P.S. to whom it may concern: Stauncharacters will soon have possession of their very own digital camera! So that means...actual knitting photos for our knitting blog!

long time, no...

2006-07-05T21:48:00.000-05:00

Well, we've been slackers. But hey, it's summertime...distractions are plentiful!
No, seriously, the Edies' have just let the blogging wither and wilt. We've been knitting like crz-azy! Eddie L finished both her Clapotis, and Edie V is workin' it with a pretty white afghan en vacances.
Edie L has finished one half of Fake-a-Gamo in a pretty light blue Blue Sky Alpaca Cotton. Edie L made a special trip to the Home Depot for a wooden dowl (all the way in the freakin' back of the giant cavern that is the Depot) and some dark red wood stain, for the handle. Cost less than fi' dollas. But now, the question of the day is: embellishments? What about pearls sewn into the pretty little sworls in the Fake-a-Gamo stitch pattern? Yea? Nay? Or, huh?

2006-04-27T19:28:00.000-05:00

Edie L here; totally loving the bags right now! between the noni, the two bag ladies' harriet, and the fake feragamo...omigosh, here's where summer knittin's gonna be! props to knit lit! genius!

Team Staunch has crossed the finish line...

2006-03-12T09:26:00.000-06:00

Yes, it has been several weeks since the Knitting Olympics flame was extinguished, but, the Reader must forgive Team Staunch for the delay, as we are still quite new to this blogging thing.
But, here are photos of Edies V. and L. striking their best Little Edie pose in their gorgeous F.O.s. (Again--new to the blogging and digital photos and such...please forgive the slightly funky colors...)

The Edies are back to their joint knitting project, Debbie Bliss's LARA, and are urged on by the early springlike temperatures. Must finish before it is too warm to wear Malabrigo!

Up next: Project NONI...

A Hypothetical

2006-02-25T15:32:00.000-06:00

Question: What does one do when one is sooo over scarves, but all one has in her stash is a ton of scarf projects because she never had any confidence she could move on to bigger and better knitwear?
Help, Edie V., help!

Je suis aux anges...

2006-02-20T19:51:00.000-06:00

I so want to be that girl, strolling down the street with a scarf in her hair, big Jackie O sunglasses, and this loveliness under her arm:

The camellias are so simple, yet so luxurious; they are the best felted flowers I have seen. Everyone, you simply MUST go to Nora Bellows' website, nonibags.com! My favorite? The mossy green stripey number with the fuzzy pink flowers: "In the Sculpture Garden-Triangle Baguette." I can't say how much I am in love with these flowers and bags. I am almost willing to drop everything, including Lara, and knit these bags. Don't care how much they cost! Ooh la la! Tres magnifique!

P.S. to Edie V.: I have had "La Vie en Rose" stuck in my head for the past few days...I am obsessed with Paris in the springtime...

"...quand il me prend dans ses bras
Il me parle tout bas,
Je vois la vie en rose!"

A Night at the Opera and a Case of the Clap[otis]

2006-02-20T15:08:00.000-06:00

As Edie L. said in her previous post, we've been knitting our little fingers to the bone. I think sheer determination will bring Edie L. close to finishing in both events, though the tedious Opera Scarf might not quite be complete at the time the torch is extinguished. I've finished the straight rows of clapotis and am moving right along on the decrease rows. I'm finding it a very enjoyable television watching project (lots of A-Team reruns have contributed to my clapotis marathon, and I bet I'm the only person who can say that). The Noro Silk Garden is gorgeous, though the little bits of fiber making the drop stitches not want to drop on their own. When I was first beginnning the clapotis, I decided I would knit one for my mom's birthday, but my clapotis is a little punky looking, which I love, but will mom? So it's between Clapotis and Ella (both from Knitty) for my mom's b-day, and which yarn to use has been a consistent subject of my worktime daydreams for a week. Her b-day is very close to Mother's Day and she will be getting socks for that holiday. It's shaping up to be a very knitty year.

The two Edie's got together Saturday despite the biting cold and knitted a bit while watching Sabrina with Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart. It's so good both agreed that it nearly erased from memory the Harrison Ford/Julia Ormond debacle. Cocktails were not imbibed, as the cold had exhausted both of the Edies and even quashed the desire for the sauce. But not to worry, things are warming up here, and I'm feeling thirsty.

week TWO of the knitting olympics...

2006-02-19T09:35:00.000-06:00

So there are just a few more days left in our online version of the Winter Games. Eddie V. has just one more skein of Noro left to go in her amazing Clapotis. Omigod, it's so pretty! Edie V. is particularly fond of the golden highlights in her Silk Garden. She is enjoying her Clapotis very much. Eddie L. has started both scarves, and is terribly pleased with both. Some major changes were made to the Opera Scarf...there was an upgrade to size 11US needles, and an additional 21 stitches cast on. Opera Scarf bore these modifications well, and is indeed thriving on this cold, blustery Sunday Morning. The Elaine is almost finished, and is possibly one of the most beautiful colorways Edie L. has ever seen. We promise photos during the closing ceremonies!

Did you see my sign? I'm not ready yet...but things are getting bettah!

2006-02-11T21:50:00.000-06:00

We hope everyone's projects are off to a promising start...
Edie L. has realized she couldn't follow a pattern without modifying it to save her life. Since we are knitting in the OLYMPICS, Edie L. kind of thinks she should stick by the rules of her patterns. But if she makes changes--for what feels like the bettah--wouldn't that be a mark of a true Athlete, evaluating her opponent/pattern and adapting in order to perform her best?
Edie V.'s Clapotis is rumored to be gorgeous. We can't wait to be wearing our F.O.s...turban style with an old family brooch.
ps. Schaefer Elaine is so lovely!

We'll be raided again!

2006-02-09T22:49:00.000-06:00

On this, the eve of the 2006 Knitting Olympics, two knitters prepare for bed, each in her own home, to catch a restful night's sleep before knitting like they've never knit before. Team Staunch Member 1, Edie L. will be competing in the biathalon, in both the Blue Sky Opera Scarf competition, and a second, more involved scarf project involving Schaefer Elaine. Team Staunch Member 2, Edie V. will attempt Clapotis from 6 skeins of a purple colorway of Noro Silk Garden. The yarns are balled and ready to go. Team Staunch is in it to win it, so watch out, Soviet Union. Luckily this is not a partner event, so we hope to avoid any Tai Babilonia-style drama. Next time you see us, we'll be sporting the laurels.

As the sport we are competing in did not begin in Athens, we will not be competing in the nude...

2006-02-08T13:01:00.000-06:00

We have decided to join the hordes who are training for the Knitting Olympics. Yup, we're competing. Team Staunch Member 1 has not decided what she will knit, but Team Staunch Member 2 will be knitting socks or Clapotis (Yes, she realizes that it's so 2003). Clapotis would be knit in Noro Silk Garden (purpley), Socks would probably be knit in Shaeffer Anne in an awesome pink/green/black colorway, the name of which escapes me. Suggestions would be welcomed! Team Member 1 would love to hear your ideas, Team Member 2 thinks she should knit Ene's Scarf from Scarf Style in an ultra gorgeous sock-weight yarn à la Koigu or Lorna's Laces. We will soon be linking up with some of our fave websites, so it you have a fave that we don't know about, we'd love to hear about it, too.

2006-02-07T23:08:00.000-06:00

FAMOUS LIBRA MEN

Will Smith, Matt Damon, John Lennon, Sting, Michael Douglas, Jesse Jackson, Chuck Berry, Russell Simmons, Mahatma Gandhi, Jimmy Carter, Meatloaf, Himmler, Aleister Crowley

2006-02-05T16:24:00.000-06:00

Racoons and cats can become a little bit boring...