We dashed up to Indiana two weekends ago to surprise College Daughter for her birthday. While we were driving down the main street of Upland (it goes on and on and on… for two blocks…), we saw this snowman having a bad hair day. I can so relate, some days. Not that my hair ever stands straight up like that. But did I tell you about the time (in 4th grade) when Web Guy had to write a “Top Ten Things You Love About Your Mom” list for Mother’s Day? Number 4 was: “I think you’re really pretty except in the mornings when your hair looks like a pulled apart bush.” He pretty much nailed that description. Actually, that was my favorite thing on the list and the original note is now in the scrapbook, preserved for posterity. But I’m thinking that this snowman really has the pulled-apart-bush look mastered, don’t you think?
Your Cat and Dog comments cracked me up on Wednesday’s blog! Did you all read some of those? Like Diane’s cat who walked off the end of the dresser while bird watching? And Cathy’s doxie Gretel, who felt threatened by a rock on an evening walk? Or Sue’s cat Max, who was scared of dust bunnies? So many funny stories! It makes me feel better to hear that Gracie isn’t the only dim (much loved) bulb out there.
Lots going on this weekend – I’ll fill you in on Monday. I’ll also be working on my Ultra Pima sweater (almost done with the back) and I’m thinking of starting 28’s Cousin 53 in DC Smooshy with Cashmere. I picked a lovely color, and then the Elves pointed out that I rarely wear what I knit. (Socks, yes. Shawls and scarves? No.) I realized that it’s because I tend to knit colors that I love, but that don’t always “go” with things I wear. So this time, I picked Basalt, because I wear a lot of black and it will go perfectly. What about you? Do you tend to pick colors you want to knit or colors you’re most likely to wear?
Sheri partoftheproblemisthattherearetoomany
prettyyarnchoicesaroundhere
This topic is oh so appropriate. I have knit several shawls & scarves recently and I was just thinking last night….”how come I don’t wear those more?” Same reason as you…they don’t match the coats etc that I wear everyday. I too started a black one last night.. I laughed out loud when I read that.
Love the snowman pic.. my hair DOES look that on a bad day!! I wish that the Elves could make those obversations for me on color choices… yes, I tend to knit the colors that I don’t really wear too often. I’m going to try harder to knit in more browns, blacks,and blues.
Happy birthday Sheri…..on Monday Feb. 28th We are blessed to have you in our lives. We love you.
Hey there, hey there! ANYTHING goes with black – so wear your pretties. Set a good example, dear lady!
I tend to wear my favorite colors, and I knit with them too. So I guess I fall into the “both” category. I have some DIC Cashmere on the way to me right now, and I may steal your pattern idea and to the same shawl. I love it!
p.s.
I love your tag line today (about the pretty yarn choices)… as if we didn’t all know that already! You are such an evil temptress! 🙂 But we love you.
love the snow hair! Now that I get “curly girl” cuts the number of bad hair days is way less. I love color but I tend to buy the same colors for knitting and quilting- blue, purples, reds, brown. unless I’m knitting for the 3 DDs. I don’t like to knit with black, these old eyes need an Ott light for that. So I wear black pants and tees and add colorful sweaters and scarves. Thanks for having so many yummy colors available.
lol, both!
I knit with colors I like and I do wear different colors together that one might not choose at first. A few years ago I decided if colors looked good together in my quilt blocks, then I could wear those colors together in my clothing choices. Seems to work in my yarn color choices, too. Happy weekend!
I tend to pick yarn in colors I love, so the colors generally go with my clothing, but I need more simple clothes to wear with my colorful hand knits (or vice versa). I’m working on this too.
I’m just like you, Sheri. My knitting projects are based on colors I’m blown away by rather than personal style. I kind of learned my lesson when I asked my husband and daughter what lovely color of Lambs Pride bulky I should choose for my Einstein coat. They both answered, unhesitatingly, charcoal gray. What??? I hate gray. So I went ahead and knit the coat and now it has become my favorite garment because I look good in it and it goes with the rest of my wardrobe. So now I’m using gray as my neutral and trying to build a wardrobe of handknits around it. However, occasionally I have to do something wild like a pair of socks in Zombie BBQ!
I always pick colors I love but may not wear. Drives me nuts, but I figure if I hang onto my FO’s long enough, I’ll eventually wear them.
You mean they’re supposed to MATCH??? O.O
That said, the colors to which I tend to be attracted are generally the colors that I wear a lot. Or colors that will go with what I wear. Which doesn’t mean I wear my stuff alot, as most of my actually FO’s are gifts. Stuff for me tends to sit on the back burner.
You have hit the nail on the head!
I pick colors I want to work with, not necessarily what I wear.
With that in mind, I just finished a sweater/shrug in a color I wear. Trying hard to make things that go with my wardrobe.
Next up-the Kollage Riveting sweater
The colors I like to knit are the colors I like to wear. One of the biggest reasons that I join sock clubs is to expand my horizons of colors. Left to my own devices, I’d only knit pink and purple. Right now I’m knitting socks with the Promise of Spring yarn and loving it. I’d have never chosen those colors myself.
Wow – it’s a Lyle Lovett snowman!! I’m definitely prone to buying yarn in colors I want to knit with. It’s why my best friend has a ton of lovely handknits from me – all in purple, HER favorite color. I don’t wear much purple, but I love to knit it.
Um . . . that looks exactly like my hair (seriously). 😀
I xhoose the yarn I love and then figure out what to knit with it. Finally, it goes in the gift stash when finished waiting for the right person on the right occasion to be gifted.
I choose the yarn I love and then figure out what to knit with it. Finally, it goes in the gift stash when finished waiting for the right person on the right occasion to be gifted.
I tend to knit with colors that I’m drawn to and if I don’t have anything to go with it, well, it’s time for a new outfit that will go with it 🙂
I have recently discovered that I too have that problem. I knit gorgeous lace shawls in colours that go with nothing that I wear, then I lament that I never get to wear my shawls. I need to remedy that.
Q: Do you tend to pick colors you want to knit or colors you’re most likely to wear?
A: YES! 😀
I admit to knitting things in colors I love that may not be quite right for the wardrobe this year…but if I truly love that color, something will appear that it goes with by next year.
And if it is a shawl or scarf, it hasn’t gone out of style in the meantime.
YES, I think that snowman hair is the definition of pulled apart bush hair LOL I always love your sweet little comments about your “kids”, they remind me of the sweet things about my grown up kid 😉
I almost always knit things to give away… so usually I pick things they’ll like or similar to colors they wear. For me I always fall in love with blues, purples and natural looking greens, and yes, that’s mostly what I wear so if I’d ever knit for me I’d be in fine shape 😛
I don’t wear triangular shawls, but do love rectangular wraps and right now I am knitting my third 28’s Cousin 53. It comes out differently with each yarn you use.
Mine is made with Wollmeise lace weight yarn and is all curly and twisty if I let the ends dangle at the front. A friend wanted one in polyester, so I made her’s in Bernat Satin and it’s soft and cuddly and smooshy. The third one I just started (also for a friend) is in Cascade Ultra Pima 100% cotton and I can see this is going to be different again.
Wendy
I love this pattern, and it’s so easy to knit – and wear!
Haha! My mom tells me that when I was in preschool, I once brought home something I’d dictated to the teacher that said, “My mom is pretty old. I think she is about 7.”
I love purple, but then I get caught up thinking I need to expand my color range. However, when reviewing my handknits, I find myself thinking “I would wear that more if it was purple.”
Morale of the story? The answer should always be purple.
It depends on what I’m knitting. If it’s something that will be close to my face, I pick reds, hot pinks, purples, greys, some greens, black and white (I’m a Winter). If it’s socks, anything goes!! Lime green, yellow, orange, turquoise, plus the “face” colors. But I’m not a fan of browns or blues for either.
not only are there too many yarn choices but now I’m collecting patterns and, of course, I never have just the right stash yarn so that means I buy more yarn. Then I’ve got handspun to knit/weave and 7 lbs of corriedale roving and alpaca at the carding mill and two more sheep fleeces to go…gotta go the producer of Hoarders is at the door.
YUM on the Basalt!
Alot of times I pick yarn out just because of the colorway, not necessarily because it will go with my wardrobe. When I am knitting for others I try to knit with colors that I know they will wear. I wear mary janes so I love to knit brightly colored socks to show off! 🙂 I have an issue with picking out the wrong color when I knit lace. I always tend to pick darker colors than I should that don’t show off the lace as well as a lighter color. Knowing that, you’d think I would change my evil ways!
I love the snowman…that’s actually how my hair is supposed to look but lots shorter. I figure if I keep it moussed “messed up” then no one can tell I can’t do a thing with it!!!! I typically go with autumnal colors because of my red hair but lately I’ve been trying to step outside my comfort zone. 2011 is all about making things for me so right now I’m working on a shawl in black, shades of grey and red. Not sure how I’ll like this but we’ll see. I have in the past actually bought shirts to go with socks I’ve knitted. Unfortunately my baby cat, Pearl, ate my favorite socks that went with the red shirt. I’m going to have to remake them and the yarn is out of stock. Pearl ate a pair of size 1 bamboo needles this past week. She is grounded until Easter!!
Ugh, I so rarely wear what I knit. And yes, color is a part of the reason for that, because like you I’m drawn to certain colors for certain projects regardless of if they’ll match my wardrobe or not. But another part of it is that I’m so scared I’ll spill something, snag it, or otherwise ruin it. That, and I hate washing and reblocking!
How funny! I just read this post (sorry to be late) and see you are going to use Basalt for your next project… I ordered that very same colorway on Tuesday and am petting it right now! It is a lovely yarn. Thank you for adding it to the shop.
I never thought about why I never where anything I knit but it is partially color also. I tend to just knit with whatever color strikes my fancy or that I have on hand. I must mostly knit to knit and don’t think about the finished product. Must be why I have given one friend two shawls recently. She loves them and wears them where if I kept them, they would just take up space in the hope chest.
I wear a lot of black and jewel tones, so I go out of my way to knit things for myself that either go well with those colors or are those colors. I also don’t care what color my socks are, so I will happily wear my almost neon yellow socks with as much glee as my almost black madeline tosh socks (I cannot remember her yarn color names to save my life).
Ha! Love that snowman. Once we were in a novelty hat shop, and my middle son found a hat that was a red dragon with yellow horns sprouting out all over it’s head. He proclaimed, hey, this looks like mom in the morning!! (yes, we bought the hat)
First, I tend to wear the colors I love, so no problem. Now, bad hair day? Do you remember the mini-series ‘Roots’? Around that time my mother got a perm in her short hair. For at least a couple of years she was known fondly around the house as ‘Kizzy”. Later, during yet another scary hair of the 70’s/80’s moment, Mom was referred to as Tina Turner, again it was fondly. Finally, around the time the James Bond movie with Grace Jones came out, Dad suggested Mom consider a flat-top. As you can see, Mom, and her hair, is a good sport.
Just a late comment to wish Sheri a Very Happy Birthday!
As to colors, I tend to buy yarn in colors that I love. The problem is that once I have the yarn, I have to find the perfect pattern for it, and I agonize over whether I’ve made the right choices to show off the yarn to best advantage. I don’t worry as much about this with socks, which is why I’m knitting mostly socks lately! I have yarn for a couple of shawls, but hate to start if I’m not absolutely certain that the yarn and pattern are a perfect match – which is why I have not started a shawl yet. Must find the courage to just jump in!
Wear!!!