Playing Safely: the condom amulet project

How often is it that you cross paths – even electronically -with someone who shares mulitiple interests? I don’t remember when, but somehow I crossed paths with Naomi, the Little Red Hen. I think it was a few years ago, when I was looking for another infusion of redworms for our composting box (we’ve been feeding worms for over a decade); Naomi’s Knit One Red Worm project collected knitted redworms (!!) to promote vermi-composting. After reading her “Creativity in the Third Age” essay, I knew I’d caught sight of a fellow traveler. My hunch was confirmed after discovering our shared commitment to “knitting in public” as a route to promoting “public knitting” (for public purposes) – Naomi’s documented plenty of public knitting in action, and I’m a “walking knitter“, clicking away as I wend my way through town and task, sharing and teaching whenever possible. Eventually, Naomi found me through my own knittivist project, the TikkunTree.

Naomi’s latest effort is the Condom Amulet project, which promotes HIV and safe sex education for women over 50. Naomi and others (including 60 members of the related Ravelry group) have been knitting artful, playful, and practical pouches for precious cargo – the condom – important protection for older women who find themselves dating in a dramatically different sexual world, the age of HIV.

I’m delighted to be able to contribute to the Condom Amulet project … here’s my Seashell Amulet Bag, inspired by the pearl oyster shell. This is a rather dressy amulet bag, a bit of jewelry in fact, that might encourage more of us to carry our own protection with us. Please do make one for yourself and for a friend! (just don’t use my pattern commercially).

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Seashell Amulet Bag
Copyright Tikkunarts 2008 (this pattern is available for personal use only)

Finished size: approximately 3 1/2″ wide x 3 3/4″ tall (not including the 10″ handle)

Materials

• Yarn: Silver metallic cord – I purchase mine from KnitPlace on ebay: Silver Metallic Sport Wt Yarn 5 Oz cone 600 Yds ($9.85 + S&H)
• Needles: Size 1 dpns (2.5 mm)
• 1 removable stitch marker
• tapestry needle
• one condom (though the bag will accomodate 2-3)

Directions

Row 1. cast-on 13 sts on one dpn, kfb on all sts (26 sts).

Divide and redistribute the sts so that they are on 4 dpns, as follows: slip the odd sts to a needle in front, the even sts to a needle in back, and then split the sts onto 2 additional needles. When you have done this you should have the following: needle 1 (7 sts), needle 2 (6 sts), needle 3 (7 sts), needle 4 (6 sts). Mark first stitch.

Row 2. * [k1, p1] 6x, kfb *, repeat between ** (28 sts)

Row 3. * k1, p1*, repeat between ** to end of round

Rows 4-6. repeat row 3

Row 7. * [ssk] 3 times, k1, [k2tog] 3 times, p1 *, repeat between ** (16 sts)

Rows 8-9. * k7, p1 *, repeat between **

Row 10. * k2, [kfb] 2 times, k3, p1 *, repeat between ** (20 sts)

Row 11. * k1, kfb, [k1, p1] 2 times, kfb, k2, p1 *, repeat between ** (24 sts)

Row 12. * k2, p1, [k1, p1] 3 times, k2, p1 *, repeat between **

Row 13. * kfb, [k1, p1] 4 times, kfb, k1, p1 *, repeat between ** (28 sts)

Row 14. * k1, p1*, repeat between ** to end of round

Row 15. * [k1, p1] 2 times, [kfb, p1] 2 times, [k1, p1] 3 times*, repeat between ** (32 sts)

Row 16. work all sts as they come (knit all knit sts, purl all purl sts)

Row 17. * k1, p1, kfb, p1, k1, p2, k1, p2, kfb, p1, [k1, p1] 2 times*, repeat between ** (36 sts)

Row 18. Repeat row 16

Row 19. * kfb, p1, [k1,p2] 4 times, kfb, p1, k1, p1 *, repeat between ** (40 sts)

Rows 20-21. Repeat row 16

Row 22. * [k1, p2] 2 times, [kfb, p2] 2 times, [k1, p2] 2 times, k1, p1 *, repeat between ** (44 sts)

Rows 23-25. Repeat row 16

Row 26. * k1, p2, kfb, [k1, p3] 2 times, kfb, p2, k1, p2, k1, p1 *, repeat between ** (48 sts)

Rows 27-32. Repeat row 16

Rows 33-36. Purl

To finish: BO purl-wise to the center of the back of the bag. Work an I-cord loop on 2 sts for about 2″ (or longer if you plan to use a large button closure), then continue binding off to last st. Work an I-cord handle on the last 3 sts. A 10″ length of I-cord should be sufficient for a purse or belt loop. Make the I-cord longer if you want to wear this as a neckpiece. Cut the cord, leaving an 8″ tail. Tie off the remaining sts, and sew securely to the pouch and weave in all ends. Sew on button.

Insert condom into pouch, attach to your purse, belt or body, and socialize safely!

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Monkey Business

My son is to graduate from university in a few weeks’ time, so there’s plenty to plan for, and to celebrate. This soon-to-be-graduate has a “thing” for monkeys in general, and for sock monkey stuff in particular ever since learning about Mr. Johnson (adult content alert! – this website has changed content since we first stumbled across it, meriting an R-rating at this point).

So I’ve been working on some special graduation presents for my own “monkey boy” (doesn’t every family have at least one “monkey baby”? ) …

I hope to finish the final stitches on the binding of his Monkey Wrench quilt … it’s only been in progress since his high school graduation

I’ll try to provide a soft landing for the inevitable bumps in the adult road he’s about to travel, with a pair of Sock Monkey Slippers (knitted and felted/fulled, inspired by the pair of sock monkey scuffs he saw online).

These slippers (a simple variation of the ever-popular Fibertrends Felted Clogs pattern by Bev Galeskas) are the third pair I’ve made for this son. I think I could make these in my sleep!

He’s my educated monkey, so I’m trying to replicate Mr. Smart the Educated Monkey mechanical multiplier so that he has a back-up tool in his kit when he takes those job interviews (every software engineer needs one of these, surely). (There’s more information about this nifty little piece of Americana here), and more about its place among the machines of computer history here). He had a terrific passion for any and all manner of building toys when he was little, including Legos, Tinker Toys, Lincoln Logs, so I’m looking for a special effect with this project (something like this, perhaps?). And I hope he thinks that some of our time together was, as the advertisement said, MULTE (Many Useful Lessons Taught Enjoyably).

Finally, we’ll settle him into a comfy chair, covered from tip to toes in quilt and clogs, to toast his achievement to the accompaniment of a Michael Jackson medley, performed by the inimitable duo Bubbles (the monkey) and Damon Scott. If it was good enough for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, it’s good enough for my monkey.

This stage of life is very sweet.

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Spring-ing Forward!

Spring has its own momentum and direction … growth, very much forward! The pear tree in the back garden has sprouted fuzzy buds, daffodils and crocuses are scattered about in neighbors’ tree wells, and babies have appeared everywhere in the city, in cloth carriers, prams, carseats and carriages. It’s amazing what a couple of days above 50 will do for the morale and foliage of a mid-Atlantic city.

Now that the tea cozy is done, I’ve had my eye on other corners of the house, where UFOs continue to languish. Some are lined up for a final push before the warm weather. First tackled was my younger son’s Cobblestone Pullover, which came off the needles (a second time) a week ago; he’s happy as can be with it, which makes it worth the effort (both times).

My older son’s graduation from university is approaching, so I’ve leapt into the work of his projects: the binding on his Monkey Wrench quilt is finally done, – this was supposed to be completed for him to take to university after his high school graduation (!!), so these final stitches were especially satisfying. Always game to indulge his preference for monkeys, I’ve finally started his “graduation sock monkeys” – a pair of felted sock monkey clogs he’s been asking for for a few years now. I tested mixing cream and brown Cascade 220 on a pair of baby moccasins (the Little Turtle Knits pattern is now available in 100 Knitting Projects; the booties are on their way to the Pine Ridge Reservation collection), and located some marled brown worsted (Dune Twist) from KnitPicks. Using the Fibertrends felted clogs pattern (I can’t even count how many of these I’ve made in the past four years), these clogs are inspired by a pair of sock monkey scuffs he saw online. Perhaps most importantly (since graduation is in early May), they are flying off the needles in the evening; one clog is knitted, the second in progress. I grin with each stitch, just thinking of how tickled he’ll be when he finally gets these. And there will be enough time to make another pair if these don’t work out, or if his brother claims them first.

Last Friday was both Purim and Knit for Peace Day. This felted fortune cookie pattern was converted to use for a felted Hamentaschen cookie, and I used every spare minute to work on a few more variations of the TikkunTree cabled co-existence leaves (more information here).

There’s been some progress on a few of the walking projects: I’ve finished the second hank on the cabled rib scarf, deeply pleased with the subtle undulating waves produced by the alternating cables and ribbing. I started this project to improve my left hand Continental technique, and really feel as if I have the hang of it at this point; there’s nothing like the repetition of K1, P1 ribbing to perfect control of either technique (English-American “throwing” or Continental “picking”). With confidence in the left hand, I’m also working another brioche beret, using only Continental techniques. This is the third of Nancy Marchant’s Ying Yang Beret I’ll have made this season, again with contrasting skeins of Noro Silk Garden, and equally enjoyable to work on.

Unfortunately, it’s nearly impossible to avoid starting a new project whenever I manage to finish a few others. So, with a sister’s 50th birthday coming in a month or so, I’ve finally made a start on a shawl for her. My sister has a glorious waterfront view of the Atlantic coast from the back of her little house, and I’d hoped to work the seascape into her shawl, by using either the Morning Surf pattern’s horizontal drop stitch, or a similar vertical drop-stitch lozenge design. She doesn’t wear wool, and wanted something a bit more durable than silk. So I’m using the last three hanks of hand-dyed rayon boucle I have from Mystical Creations Yarns (before the business shut down). It’s a gentle combination of cream, gray, green and burgundy, that produces gentle zigs and zags according to the disposition of the alternating sets of decreases in the Stormwater pattern (either SSK’s or K2tog’s) that came with a hank of SeaSilk I used last year for a similar scarf for my mother.

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Hands and Hearts

There’s been small amounts of progress on many needlework fronts lately, and closure on a few smaller projects. Flu has kept me indoors more than usual, and there was a work-related trip to Boston, which has meant more knitting. I’ve been switching from project to project, small to large, fine to chunky, straight needle to circular, to see if the variety minimizes carpal tunnel symptoms. It’s hard to tell yet, as the condition seems to have stabilized at moderate chronic discomfort. Typing seems to aggravate it, so I’ve been slow to share progress on projects and ideas.

What’s been happening? I finally finished knitting the second of two pairs of Turkish-style slippers with SWS from the stash; these go quickly, and I look forward to seeing how they felt once I have a large enough pile to start the machine. I’ve also finished a pair of mitered booties a la Elizabeth Zimmerman the first of two new booties (for demonstrating mitered knitting techniques to the RS Tikkun Knitters), and I’m having a go at a new pattern available through Ravelry, Jolene Mosley’s Baby Shoes, a knitted knock-off of the standard cloth or leather booties on so many infants’ feet. I’ve used some merino worsted in the stash from Handpaintedyarn.com leftover from the felted clog fest a few years ago. The blue booties are as diminutive as the usual Saartje’s booties, and I’ve tried to enlarge the orange slippers by working with worsted and slightly larger needles.

Three ideas for the Patterns for Peacebuiders have been started and then frogged. I was particularly inspired by a cabled sweater that crossed my path one night on Ravelry, theyarnmonkey‘s gray man’s sweater – he’s set it aside as an “ugh” project, but I was inspired by the edge treatment, which reminded me of the columns of poplars and cedars I remember during a trip to Israel/Palestine long ago. This sweater inspired the idea to create a set of projects based on the flora of Israel/Palestine, starting with cedar and fig motifs. The test swatch with Peace Fleece’s Shabu Green just didn’t seem to work, so it’s been set aside for the time being (frogged before I remembered to photograph it, but theyarnmonkey’s is here).

Brioche berets seem to fly off the needles – they’ve become a standard project for the recumbent bike. The Rooftop Beret is worked in 4 sections. The spiralling Ying Yang Beret is my favorite of Nancy Marchant’s patterns, and this (second) one will go to auction for the Support Center for Child Advocates in Philadelphia.

When a Ravelry editor asked to use a photo of a hat I’d made last summer, inspired the vintage Five O’Clock Hat pattern,

I thought I’d best provide a proper example as well. My Kureyon striped hat was really only inspired by the stovepipe shape of the vintage version. The second one is was knitted with Rowan Felted Tweed doubled, which gave it fine weight (the pattern calls for a sportweight boucle). The strip of garter ribbing up one side works like ruching, creating the jaunty tilt (in the original). Unfortunately, I tried to be clever and close the top by “turning the heel”, so to speak, rather than binding off and sewing a seam. I’m not satisfied with the shape of the top, so it will just have to be reknit when there’s time.

There’s also the top-down Valentine’s cable hat I’ve been working on designing (cables have been the order of business for the past few weeks, now that I’ve finished the owl cap and Nottingham hats, and finally received my copy of Vogue’s Stitchonary, Vol. 2). Working out the interlocking knots was quite a challenge – at one point I was reduced to working with papercut images. I’m still not satisfied with the circular cables, but it’s been knit and reknit so many times that the merino has acquired cloud-lets of fuzz. My hands will be full of hearts for the rest of the week.

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Interstices: slow & steady on the run

It’s always difficult to juggle the big and small projects with a schedule that keeps me moving. Small ones fly off the needles as I move between appointments and rehearsals, and large ones fill my lap when I sit and catch my breath. This week has seen endless rehearsals and many performances (of the Philadelphia Orchestra’s premier of Jennifer Higdon’s “The Singing Rooms” with the Philadelphia Singers Chorale), so I’ve had to do my knitting in the interstices …

I’m especially pleased to have finished the first set of dpn caps based on this vintage pattern, the Knitted Punchinello Caps for Knitting Needles, c1890, from The Ladies Treasury. With a set of 2.00 mm (Size 0) dpns, a bit of leftover Trekking, a plastic cork and a couple of hours, they were breeze to complete.

I experimented with the tops, attaching a button to one end (from which I cast on, through the button’s holes!), and a knitted “button” on the other end. This set just fits my 5″ needles, but I’m ready to make another few sets with some of my silver cord, once I get my hands on some sturdier short steel needles and a few lengths of elastic cord.

In addition, I managed (just about) to complete the second sleeve on my son’s Cobblestone Pullover, finished another couple of inches on my DIY Peasant’s Cap (it would have been nice to have had it to wear against the bitter cold wind today), and began yet another brioche beret, this one requested by a fellow singer (based on Nancy Marchant’s Rooftop Beret pattern). My second Clapotis has grown by three inches (nearly ready for it’s first dropped stitch); this project is especially nice to take out when time permits, since the Handmaiden Kidsilk is so splendid to handle. I still need to add the buttons to the pair of Saartje’s booties finished for a rabbi’s new daughter, but the matching Sweet Baby Cap

and Toasty Topper for her “big” (toddler) brother are ready for delivery. I used some lovely Nature’s Palette (Oddfellows” colorways) for the cap, and a skein of Encore Colorspun Worsted by Plymouth from a more ancient corner of the stash for the helmet.

Charity knitting is seldom absent from my tote, and I’ve also managed to complete a couple of hats to contribute to an upcoming Ravelry collection for the local Women Against Abuse project, organized by a local member of the City of Knitterly Love group. This little pink Noedel by Andrealea worked up quickly with some leftover Ejido 160. A half-finished blue Zeebee by Schmeebot should keep an older child very warm – it’s made with three strands of mystery Takhi tweed from the stash (re-purposed from a frogged cardigan begun decades ago for my husband). These little hats, and the many booties that accumulate in my basket, are among the most satisfying to execute in the interstices of the day or evening; I never seem to tire of making these for the small people I imagine wearing them. And of course finishing them slowly and steadily reduces the piles of UFO’s and stashed yarns.

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Catching up, and knitting style (nature or nurture)

The past few weeks have been challenging, with intensive rehearsals for performance of Robert Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri (Paradise and the Peri) with the Philadelphia Singers Chorale and the Philadelphia Orchestra. In spite of the hectic schedule, there was time to knit (during preparations for three performances in Philadelphia, and especially during the trip to the Carnegie Hall (!!) performance last Friday).

So what’s the state of the UFO knitting basket after all the to-ing and fro-ing?

I’ve finished the first of a number of Hanukkah knits – a working dreidel. My knitted menorah is proceeding slowly (photos coming soon), and the latkes are waiting to be felted. More information about the dreidel, including the pattern (one of my “Patterns for Peacebuilders”), is available here and here.

My second Noro Striped Scarf (popularized by Jared Flood) is nearly done. The first I share with husband and resident son. This second is for my nephew, HS; it’s about time I finish something special for him, after all the attention I’ve showered on my niece-lets. (In the spirit of fairness, to me – he returned, unworn, and without explanation – the felted clogs I made for him for Hanukkah last year). HS chose this project, and I look forward to seeing it wrapped around his impressively-growing frame. This is a project that gets attention wherever it appears – the miracle of Noro and the miraculous properties of its variegation.

A pair of Malabrigo Loafers were completed, and now join the basket of “house shoes” that greet visitors to our home.

For a final push to finish the Clapotis I started a year ago for my sister’s birthday, I’ve joined the Second Wave Clapotis KAL. I used the 3 hanks of Ottawa hand-dyed yarn from Handmaiden’s Jane Origami Pullover pack, but neglected to alternate skeins as I proceeded; thus, beautiful even variegation for the first two hanks, but serious concentration of gray and blue on the third. Fortunately, my sister loves this “sin free” yarn from Nova Scotia, however the colors are distributed over the shawl. We’ll see if I can, with communal encouragement, complete the last corner before her next birthday in mid-January.

On Sunday I began the R.S. Tikkun Knitters project in religious school classrooms. Four teenage students in the “Confirmation Academy” learned to knit. In a few weeks they’ll begin their projects with Peace Fleece’s Baghdad Blue, which will give us many hours of conversation about knitting and peace.

I’ve also (finally!!) completed my entries to my Ravelry account. It’s taken an unreasonable and inordinate amount of time to do so, made that much more difficult by the distractions offered by the sometimes fascinating group discussions. My principal commitment is to the “Knitting Our Way to Peace” forum, a noteworthy group in which interfaith and inter-ethnic conversation takes place with remarkable respect and mutual concern, though not without occasional fireworks.

The challenge of the past few weeks have included not just the seemingly endless project of emptying the UFO baskets, but also finding a way to to do so without developing carpal tunnel syndrome. To that end I’ve embarked on a journey to expand my repertoire of knitting techniques (which will also expand the ways I can assist new knitters). So, I used my version of the Kusha Kusha Scarf to learn to knit Continental style. Online resources (1, 2, 3, 4) provided plenty of instruction (video and written) for Continental knit, Continental purl, Eastern continental knitting, Eastern continental purling, alternating Eastern (K1, P1). [[Note: The Habu Kusha Kusha Scarf kit was beyond my budget (two sons in university), but I located sufficient discussion online to be able to work out my own version. It's taken the better part of two cones of Habu's silk & steel thread, so I may not have saved myself much. But I love the indigo & red merino lace from Handpaintedyarn.com , and am looking forward to felting the scarf soon.]] After more than 40 years of “throwing” my yarn, American (or English) style, it’s been a revelation to carry the yarn in my left hand. It works! I’m almost accustomed to the different directions the knit and purl stitches face (at least the way I’m producing them). Next? Ambidextrous knitting …

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UFO sightings for the holidays

With the holidays approaching, every spare minute counts, and progress has been made on a number of projects. The We Call Them Pirates pattern has been in my files for ages, and I’ve managed to use some recycled stash (Froehlich-Wolle sport weight, from a frogged Philospher’s Sweater kit received as a gift years ago) on this one for an old friend; the contrast in the colors is only just strong enough to make the skull & crossbones pattern visible.

Garnstudio’s newest patterns for felted slippers and scuffs are well underway. I’ve combined leftover Lamb’s Pride Bulky (charcoal heather for one pair, gray heather for the other) with recycled taupe Pingouin wool.

The knitted soccer ball is coming along slowly. The pattern is easy enough, but the yarn is unpleasant to work with and the hexagons and pentagons are a bit “fiddly” to connect. I’ll have by the end of Thanksgiving weekend, when it and the baby hat have to go to the neighbors.

My “recreational” project is designed and underway: a knitted dreidel for Hanukkah. The pattern is my own (though there is another by Lion Brand for a pet toy). I’m using 28 gauge galvanized steel wire (from Paramount Wire Co, NJ) combined with 2 strands of sport weight silver metallic yarn. I found the yarn on ebay a few years ago, used it for a fairy crown for a niece, and still have plenty to experiment with. The combination of yarns, worked on size 2 dpns, makes a very stiff fabric – this dreidel will spin! Anna Hrachovec’ Ninjabun and Woodikins (of Mochimochiland) are the technical inspirations for a knitted menorah I’ve designed. With luck I’ll find just a few more spare hours – and strength in my hands – to knit the wire menorah with the remaining wire and cord.

I’d be glad to share these patterns once they are done – just let me know if you are interested.

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