Bog jacket progress

The bog jacket garters along, and still no pictures from me. Well, its red. A lot of red garter stitch. As a matter of fact, it has gotten so large that it is about to cross the threshold into no longer being subway knitting. It has almost lost its portability, so big and bulky has it grown. It still makes fine TV knitting, of course, it just can't be carted around much longer without neccessitating its own bag, as large as the bag I already carry that it should fit into.

Still, I enjoy working it and I so love EZ. Its a very satisfying project. While I can certainly see the numerous benefits in knitting in the round or knitting in one piece (like the bog), its not very practical for someone like me who may not want to haul around half an entire sweater with her all day. And besides, I don't hate to purl, nor do I hate seaming sweaters (although - confession, I have a completed sweater that is waiting to be seamed. But thats only because I am currently without an ironing board or any way to block anything).

So, what to work on the subway? I could work on my lace shawl which sadly has gone untouched for several weeks now. I have knitted lace on the subway before, I just need a row counter to remind myself where I left off. At home, I almost never put it down without having finished an entire repeat. I could also use a little pouch to attach to my ipod cozy for the headphones. And the man wants an ipod cozy after seeing mine, so theres that to work too.

But a new project must start to brew, as I am going on vacation - yep, no work involved - in just over two weeks and since I am going to Rome, I'm going to have a lot of knitting time! But I still have the same travel knitting conundrum - nothing that requires hauling too much yarn, using too many tools, too much paperwork, whatever. So that makes my nephew's monkey sweater a no-go, besides the risk that I might finish something for a baby too quickly.

What to knit, what to knit? Well, the good news is the stash trunk is more or less accessible now. Guess I'll have to dig in and see what inspires. But not tonight. No, tonight is Antiques Roadshow night! And if you check out that link, don't miss the video of knitted civil war socks appraisal. Its going to be on next week's show from Salt Lake City - I can't recall seeing knitted items on the show, so yippee!

Back to the blog

North Carolina was fantastic - gorgeous weather, first of all, and a success, business-wise, as well. And of course, the customary delay at the airport on the way home. Was I glad I had my (are you ready for this??) EZ BOG JACKET to work on!

Yes, the project for the trip was the bog jacket. I am using red Panda Woolbale (not the fanciest yarn in the world, to be sure, but decent and it appears to be hardwearing, so what more could I ask for, really? The bog is a practical garment, after all).

I had been reading Knitter's Almanac for a year or so, and after finding the fabulous blog Zimmermania , I was REALLY inspired to buy Knitting Around and Knitting Without Tears (from Schoolhouse Press , of course). The Panda Woolbale had been used as packing material for our record collection, so I didn't even have to open the trunk to go through the stash.

It is all garter stitch, so its a little bit slow going but it makes such a lovely, satisfying fabric that its hard to complain. After all, its about the knitting!

Pictures forthcoming, honestly...