Yes, I still knit but nothing very exciting these days. While in Israel I finished my Gust, it turned out really lovely, I gave it as a very early birthday present to a friend. I only have a not very good photo of its beginning and before the blocking that did it a lot of good:

After that I started a sock for my nephew (he is a trance artist, the long haired half of Exaile), I used the yarn I won in Claudia’s MS Ride Raffle from Woolarina. Mine was a happy combo of yellows and greens and blues similar to the one in the link but not the same colorway. I knitted a simple rib 1×1 with a short row heel and it was a fast fun knit. Unfortunately I don’t have a photo of these bright lovely socks that may be in Osaka, Japan even as we speak.

I was knitting those socks while visiting my mother in Jerusalem, I thought she was kind of interested in them so when I finished I made a quick calculation, decided I have enough time to finish another pair while in Israel and asked her if she wants me to knit her a pair too. To my surprise she said YES (her usual answer these days is: I don’t need this or that,,,) so I chose a lovely Fleece Artist yarn that I bought in Lettuce Knit awhile ago, the colour is similar to jester. I knitted her a pair of Anne’s Pave Socks. I knitted them looser than I usually knit socks and I went one size up half a pattern repeat before the heel and kept it on the larger needles for half a pattern repeat after I finished the heel to make room for her swollen ankles and the result was really lovely. Like any other Fleece Artist yarn I knitted to date, the socks came out quite different but not as different as Sam’s birthday socks. My mother loves them, when she went to put them away she said: they are too nice to put in the socks drawer, I am going to put them with the sweaters, so I can see them all the time!

As I finished my mother’s pair just a few days before my long flight back home I had to start a new pair cause I couldn’t take my very neglected cardigan (I did finish the sleeves while in Israel and got ahead with the fronts, I am afraid I will not have enough yarn, some ripping and reknitting may be needed,,,) on the flight with me – such a good excuse, isn’t it? So, I started a pair for me:

It is another Fleece Artist sock yarn I bought in Toronto awhile ago. I love the colour variations and stitch definition in their yarns:

Although my flight was LONG, it didn’t include a lot of knitting time as it was a night flight and I slept a lot, oh well. Since my return I was fighting the jet lag and then the monstrous paper pile on my desk and celebrated my birthday too, so knitting time was very limited but I am already at the heel of the second sock (I am determined to finish the pair and not have another half done pair!) so soon it will be decision time: will I be good and finish UFOs that are waiting patiently for some TLC or will I start something new,,,, hmmm,,,, maybe I will take advantage of this sock roll and finish my Sideways (I knitted the first one so fast and take so long to finish the second, shoosh!) and the other half of Joe’s Kaffe Fassett Simple Pair and will at least finish the sock part of my UFOs – good idea I think!

Can someone please explain to me why you call that side of our knits wrong?

As the title of my blog suggest, I am knitting in translation, and it goes further then me knitting in English (which is not my mother tongue) now. But this is the subject for another post.

Today I wanted to understand something that baffles me every time I hear it, see it or read it, the wrong side of the knit?!?

I don’t regard this side as wrong and can’t use this term, no sir! (or madam for that matter). I call it the back side or the left side as opposed to the front side or the right side of my knit. The right and left come from the names of the basic stitches in Hebrew, we call the knit: right and the purl: left!

Anyway, I can’t see anything wrong with that side of my knits, actually in many cases I quite like the looks of that side especially when the knit is done with many different yarns like fair isle. When it is done right, the back side of such a knit looks to me like the true manifestation of the piece of art that shows the skill level of the knitter.

Also, if something was wrong on that side of our knit, the whole thing would be wrong, no? as those sides are very strongly connected,,,, so I really don’t understand that term and don’t like it either.

And I wonder, is it only me or is there something wrong with that term?

Oh and by the way, I don’t understand why people don’t like to purl, actually I think it is my preferred stitch, maybe this is why I have such a problem with the name of it side of our knits!