I designed a baby sweater

First of all, Happy New Year everyone! Second of all, here is a little something I designed.

This pattern grew out of a sweater that I knit out of my imagination one day back in January 2007. Finally it is here in professional form!

One Planet Yarn and Fiber released it just after Thanksgiving, as they told me they would, and I didn’t think to check whether it was up! They even posted a blog entry about it. You can see the blue version modeled by a little tyke on the blog.

A few days after the release, I left for Kinshasa again, with little to no internet, and then we were in the thick of the holidays, thus the delay in posting.

The pattern is written in 5 sizes and uses #8US straight needles. The recommended yarn is 2 skeins of Lanas Puras Melosa worsted weight. The colors used in the samples are cornflower (blue) and orchid (purple).

Why I haven’t been blogging; hose, socks, a shawl, and a teaser

I haven’t posted here in two months. That was not intentional. During those two months, I have been fighting colds, trying to heal a sick cat, traveled out of the country for work, traveled to my hometown to visit my elderly grandparents, and tried to get used to my new job.

My new job is an addition to my old job, so now in addition to managing one group of public health research projects in DR Congo, I now help another team manage another group of public health research projects there. This meant an additional trip this fall, and my trips have ranged between 2 1/2 to 6 weeks, so we’re not talking some overnight to Washington, DC.

The new job has meant more time and effort put into my work, but no pay raise, which is fine with me because my old job wasn’t providing enough challenge anymore.

But in the spate of work that hit me, I fell off the Summer of Socks bandwagon and the knit blogging bandwagon. I have been doing a bit of knitting, but somehow in my efforts to photograph my projects, I left several WIPs out. So, those will come later. But here is a photo of my second pair of Highland Schottische Kilt Hose, never before photographed even though they have been done since … September? August? These took 3.25 skeins of Nature Spun Sport weight in color French Clay.

I was also working this summer on some socks based on the Ampersand pattern (.pdf), made with Hello Yarn’s Tough Sock in color Glowing, that came out like this:

And a photograph of my Mystery Stole blocking, which was a nice challenge… I don’t have a modeled photo yet. I used 1.5 skeins of Schaefer’s Anne.

Last but not least is a teaser for a pattern that will be released very soon - more details to come! If you have a little one in mind, you should have time to whip this one up before the holidays. Stay tuned! [And thanks if you are still out there reading. I have been reading but haven't had lots of time for commenting.]

Late to Cinderella’s party

The fall Knitty was released the other day - I think everyone else has already posted about it? Kathryn designed these super cool two-needle socks that require worsted-weight yarn and are a fairly quick knit. And they have a lot of visual appeal. You definitely won’t be bored knitting these gems.

(Full disclosure: Kathryn may have recruited me to take the photos…if you visit the link, you’ll see a photo of her at the bottom of the page hugging one of her newly acquired Shetland sheep, Wally! *Sigh* I just love Wally.)

I really am enjoying all the patterns in this issue. Emilee has produced these lovely leaf motif hats called Foliage. And Anne of Knitspot entertains us with this gorgeous throw: Totally Autumn.

I love Nancy Marchant’s colorwork in the Pecan Pie hat, as well as the 3-D effect of the colorwork in Aija Goto’s knee-high socks, called Q.

Man - I really have to get back in the game.

Not taking off just yet

My trip is postponed so I am still here. I don’t have new knitting photos for you but hopefully this weekend? Amber was here visiting though, and she brought the kilt hose that I had knit for James and began unraveling them.

Yes. Pulling the ends out and taking out the toes. WHY??? ON EARTH??? might you ask? Well - because she loves them! But they are size 13 men’s and don’t fit her. So she’s going to reknit the toes and make them her own. We planned to wear our hose around together last weekend but hers weren’t reknit yet and it was too hot anyway. Maybe next time!

Checking in and checking out

Posts are going to continue to be slow on the HeatherKnits front for a little bit. I made it back from Equateur Province with one complete Kilt Ho– and now have a pair of Kilt Hose (17 days for the pair, just like the last pair) but no photo!

Stalled on the Kauni Cardigan and the Mystery Stole but made it over those humps last night so I will be working away on those once again. A couple of other socks have made it to the finish line as well.

I also have had some gastro-intestinal fallout from the water and a bad cough/cold from too much airplane time. And the internet at my house crapped out.

But in the mean time, I finished up my visit in DR Congo, came home, took on some new work, and will be heading out to Kinshasa again in the next couple of days (!!). In case you were wondering what is up. That’s what’s up! I am running around like a chicken with its head cut off hoping against hope to get my visa in time for my Thursday departure, wondering how to do laundry when I’ve misplaced the key to my neighbor’s apartment, and “staying home sick” but heading out to the cafe next door since I have to do work and, well, my internet crapped out!

It sounds ridiculous, but I think I’ll be a more reliable blogger once I leave town again!

Not a post

Dear all, I don’t have anything new to show you but I lied about being away. I’m going tomorrow, not yesterday, and you won’t hear from me till next week. We have to take a satellite phone we are going so far into the middle of nowhere.

I am bringing five changes of clothes because I’ve been told I won’t want to wear anything twice after all the dirt and sweat. I am bringing the kilt hose and “The Portable Graham Greene” for entertainment because I doubt there will be TV, although I am hoping for electricity because I can’t knit and hold a Maglite. I am bringing jerky and trail mix and handiwipes and gifts and bug spray and mosquito coils and remedies for malaria, worms, and diarrhea (oral rehydration salts). It should be a blast.

T minus 6 hours.

Into the hinterlands

I have a quick update for you with a progress shot - I think I’ve added five repeats since the last photo, and I’ve done two since reaching the armpits. I am so glad that I brought this project with me - even though the yarn takes up a lot of space, it is so nice and relaxing to work on, at least pre-sleeves.

This week I’ll be out of internet range checking out a project that I have not visited before. We’ll be driving over non-roads and battling the insects and eating lots of canned sardines and bread (I imagine, from similar trips in the past). We’ll be bucket bathing and talking to people who will tell us all of their health needs and I’ll feel frustrated that I cannot change their situation with a wave of my imaginary wand. But we’ll hear directly from our provincial and community coordinators, and from the traditional birth attendants and community health workers that collect data for our research.

Since neither the Kauni nor MS3 were really cut out for trips to the interior, I think I’ll be bringing my as of yet nonexistent Highland Schottische Kilt Hose with me.

In the mean time, one more photo, this one of a storefront in Kinshasa, the Dorcas bucket shop!

Oh no only 23%!

Something that did not occur to me is that South Africa would require a different plug adaptor from what I have for Kinshasa. So I am quickly running out of computer juice, but in the mean time a brief update.

I am in Johannesburg. I had two uneventful overnight flights and was so tired that I slept all day. I almost fell asleep in a lecture on environmental change and its relationship to conflict in Darfur yesterday in London. How rude! I met a friend for lunch and we went to a super cute cafe with a Vespa theme near Waterloo station - I think it was on Marsh Street…

Also did not realize that I would not be able to check my luggage through to Johannesburg because I was arriving at one airport in London and leaving from another. So I was very tired after lugging luggage across the city on the tube. But all told, everything went well. Until my South African Air flight. The flight itself was lovely, but I don’t think I should have had that big container of fruit from Marks and Spencer (or something…) because my stomach has been rumbling in a threatening manner for hours and hour and hours.

I brought the Kauni cardigan with me - here’s a view that looks almost like the other day, but no, look carefully and you will see two more square repeats!!

(No I will not show it to you every two repeats.)

My guesthouse here in Joburg is very nice, and the weather is cool, like fall - what a relief from North Carolina! I went out to 7th street in Melville for dinner, quite the trendy little area. I think I picked a good spot to stay - thanks Margaret for facilitating the connection!

Here is my room, super comfortable (and, I know, kind of boring, but like I said, I slept ALL DAY so I don’t have any other photos for you yet!).

Tomorrow I am meeting up with a contact that I hope is willing to drive me around to see - well - whatever it is that I am supposed to see here!

It’s not vacation

Mel is on vacation, and Jenifleur is on vacation, and both posting about that most important question - what knitting to bring???

I am leaving in 1 hour and I am still wrestling with this problem. I will have two overnight flights and one daytime flight spread over several days. I’ll have 12 hours layover in London, which will probably turn into only 6 actual hours of free time but still, there will be train time and waiting time. I’ll have most of three days in South Africa, but I’ll be out touring around (or completely crashed after two overnight flights…). Then I spend three weeks in DR Congo, one of which will be out in the boonies, where I’m not even sure I’ll take any knitting. Those car rides are pretty ridiculous, more of an athletic feat on rutted and pitted and potholed dirt roads than relaxing knitting time.

I am bringing a medium suitcase, a frame pack, and a carryon thingie with my laptop, etc. The MS3 is coming with me. I can’t leave that behind when Clue 5 is a mere 2 days away! And I bought yarn for another pair of Kilt Hose - yeah!! So that’s coming, too. Is a pair of knee socks and one more shawl clue enough to keep me occupied for almost all of August? Probably, but somehow it doesn’t seem like enough.

The problem, really, is that I don’t want to leave this behind.

This also came in the mail, but I don’t think it’s going in the carryon. Or the suitcase. It requires too much attention for this trip, I think. *sniffle*

And I had some vague thought that I would finish the Josephine Top before I left, but no, that’s going to be awaiting my return as well. I did the sleeve caps at least…

Ugh. Gotta go! Wish me luck with the London airports and their restrictive needle obsessions…

Kinshasa

I’ll be going to see my boyfriend again soon. Just kidding. For those of you who don’t obsess over central African news the way I do, let me introduce you to President Joseph Desire (that’s deh-sir-ay) Kabila, inaugurated Dec 6, 2006, after three years as a sort of illegal leader (following his father Laurent’s overthrow of Mobutu Sese Seko and Laurent’s subsequent assassination) of the ‘transition government.’ Transition as in, going from five years of civil war to something a bit less violent.

There was quite a bit of campaigning during the lead-up to elections last year, but I’ve seen very few slogans on T-shirts or bumper stickers. In DR Congo, it was primarily billboards, printed cloth which can be made into all manner of garments, and - apparently - watches. The watches are more rare, but cloth, commonly called a pagne when it is cut into a 2-yard piece and wrapped around or used to carry something, can be ordered to advertise your organization, your slogan, or to commemorate the Pope’s visit to Africa. I am not kidding.

Leaving my job and the travails of hanging out in a central African capital city out of it, I will say that although there is definitely not a yarn shop there, you can find all manner of crazy textiles. Here are examples from my last trip.

1. Heureux Mariage (Happy Marriage): 1+1=1

2. Celebrating corn! I for one would love to have a dress or skirt made from this fabric. Sewing skills - well, maybe I should just hire a tailor while I am there.

3. They say “shrimp” (actually, they say cossa cossa), I say CRAWFISH! Four years living in New Orleans had its effect, what can I say?

All of these fabrics are cotton and many are imported from Europe and then printed locally. You can find western-style fabric shops for different materials, including synthetic fabric or uphostering. And there are batiks and tie-dyes, some very beautiful, imported from West Africa.

But those shown above came from CongoTex, formerly UtexAfrica, which is a company in Kinshasa recently purchased by a Hong Kong business man who allegedly owns a fabric business in every African country. I have some concerns about the recent surge in Chinese involvement in the African economy, though it has nothing to do with China per se. It has to do with the fact that it’s painfully obvious that Africa needs the economic input but doesn’t have the investors within its own borders.

As well, I can’t find a good link for you but I have heard that the mass import of second hand clothing from organizations such as Good Will or the Salvation Army effectively handicapped the textile industry in Africa. WTO-initiated new trade rules effective since 2005 have also negatively affected textile industry in Africa.

Nonetheless, Congolese use lots of bright fabrics purchased locally, though some are imported, and have their clothing made by local tailors. Someone has pictures of me in one of my outfits, but I don’t have any on hand to show you… But I’ll be sure to take some fashion photos on this visit, because the full-on effect of outfits fashioned from these fabrics is stunning.