Still winter in WV....

Hiya girls!
First, I want to thank you Jill for posting my flickr badge so quickly. I love it. This might end up being a very long post, because I have lots to cover. I'm also really sad about the quilt. Porter definitely deserves a time-out for that. It almost made me cry too. What a sad day.

News about winter: While it is sunny and flowery in Alabama, we still have snow (5.25 new inches, this morning; And to clarify, the picture above of Kane and I is not from WV, but from Northern VA-close enough, in Shenandoah NP, but you get the idea. Also, the picture is for you Molly, so you'll know who I am). To celebrate, I just got a new snowboard. It's a Never Summer Infinity 151. Made in the USA with a 3 year warranty. I've tried it once so far and I really like it and I'm looking forward to our Park City, UT vacation coming up at the end of March.



News about knitting: ENTRELAC! I went to an entrelac workshop yesterday at Y2Knit (my LYS). And I learned a new technique. Backwards knitting! Jill, I think this will interest the speed demon in you, as you already knit at lightning speed. So, I've decided to show you with step by step instruction. This really speeds up the process and eliminates the need to turn and purl, which in turn will eliminate many "yarn management" issues (Kane's term for gigantic tangles of yarn) when you are working with several colors. It is a great help with entrelac and with short-row heels on socks.


Step 1: I've knitted 5 stitches onto the right needle (purple yarn). Now, instead of turning to purl...


Step 2:...insert the tip of the left needle into the back of the first stitch on the right needle.

Step 3: Wrap the yarn around the left needle counter-clockwise.

Step 4: With the left needle, pull the newly wrapped stitch through the loop on the right needle.

Step 5: Slip the completed stitch off the right needle and onto the left needle (like we would normally do, just in reverse). You can see that there are now 4 stiches on the right needle.

Voila! Backwards knitting. It was a really big help for me and I really wanted to share it with you guys. Maybe you can try that with the new socks you are knitting....by the way, I am pleasantly surprised at how well the yarn we dyed turned out, and you are certainly welcome =).