Nothing wrong with garter stitch...

Even though a famous knitting designer and teacher says beginning knitters should not be limited to "garter stitch scarves."

Some of us may never get past garter stitch, without some kind of key to decode knitting instructions.

Tonight I spent far too long trying to work out instructions that seemed quite straightforward. Four or five rows into the pattern (which is supposed to produce, through a series of decreases, a beautifully mitered knit block) I discovered I was actually INCREASING. Ripped out, started over. Same result.

Finally got out the Vogue Knitting Book, hoping for one of its diagrams to sort out the confusion. Now I more or less understand "yo," (that's "yarn over," not "YO!") but I'm still not sure about "ssk."

Explain to me why one pattern book carefully defines "ssk:" "Slip two stitches knitwise, one at a time. Insert left needle into fronts of both stitches and knit in the usual way."

Vogue says, "Slip slip knit."

My grandmother and my mother were both phenomenal knitters. I should have asked more questions when they were still available to answer.

Fortunately, there are clever people at knitting shops who make the most complicated patterns seem easy. Meanwhile, garter stitch is an honorable pursuit.

Back again.

This blog is a little like the sweater I started to knit years ago. After finishing more than half the garment, I put it away in the cedar chest, and didn't look at it again until last week. At that point, I spent an entire evening ripping it back, and rewinding. Result: five balls of somewhat crinkled yarn (and nine more skeins still untouched.)

Now I'm reknitting the yarn, in an entirely new pattern. Perhaps this time a finished garment will emerge.

At least I don't have to rip back this blog - all the posts I might have written have just come and gone in my head. Blogging during an organized tour is a nice idea, but difficult and expensive to put into action. (And you could die from secondhand smoke in most European internet cafes!)

It's still cold in Seattle, but the sun is out. I'm on my way out to the hardware store, to find a couple of toggle bolts to hold up the refurbished chickadee house. A gentleman friend built the birdhouse a few years ago, adding a custom touch - a bird-shaped perch under the opening. Sometimes the chickadees sit on it - at other times they fly straight through the hole, something which seems impossible no matter how many times you actually see it.

Pictures later. First I have to hang the house.