Wild Things

The Boy-O has re-arranged the office/art center (i.e., the 2^nd bedroom in our apt) to include a sexy table (again, from IKEA) that gives us both space to work.

Mmmrowr...

(For the record: the leopard print was his idea. Hee. I lurve my Boy-O!)

The unfortunate part of the re-org is that now I have no excuse to avoid the stash wrangling & cleaning needed to help house our Thanksgiving guests.
(Ben’s folks are driving up for the holiday. I guess I should refer to them as The Parents-O? Oh, man. That’s just wrong.)

Anyway, the new set up makes more room for my new toy:

Shocking but true: the Incredible Sweater Machine Lives!

Yup, that’s right. Inspired by the lovely BonneMarie of ChicKnits, I picked up an Incredible Sweater Machine. This is my second ISM, so I am not a new user (the first was lost in an unfortunate move), but it is a newer model than my previous one. Apparently, it was only used once – they even sent the swatch the first user knitted with it! I got it on eBay from a very nice seller. My only complaint? The video had been partly taped over w/a Fig Newton commercial. It wasn’t a crucial bit, so I will survive, but it was certainly odd to be listening to Cheryl Brunette one minute, and John Cleese the next.

I have swatched briefly with the ISM, doing a bit of plain stockinette, a cable, lace and even some Fair Isle.

Cables & Lace, all in one swatch!

Unfocused, but it's Fair Isle ... did I mention I love this contraption?

It is weird, as I am a dedicated Knitter of Things in the Round wherever possible, but the ISM obviously only makes pieces, and one is always facing the purl side. This fact may come in handy sooner than I think, as I have promised the Boy-O a vest for our upcoming wedding. The fronts need to be done by hand, but he wants a plain (Rev St St) back. I can’t see the good of knitting such a thing by hand, unless I do it in the round or want to include some clever shaping, so this could be a solid solution.

In the meantime, annoyed beyond measure by the sleeves of the Manly Knit Sweater, I have started a hat on the ISM. Yes, I know it will have a Seam. And yes, I know it will require sewing up of said Seam (seams are this particular knitter’s bête noire, if you will).
Still, unlike the sleeves of the gorilla-armed sweater, this hat has the virtue of being very nearly done.

The bare bones of the Boy-O's hat. This could be finished tomorrow.

What can I say? Sometimes a girl needs some instant gratification.