talk about pressure...

I haven't been doing too much blogging or standard gauge knitting lately - I've been working on a new book of techniques for the manual machine - more on that later!
Rhiana, my nine year old granddaughter, was over on the weekend and spotted the jade green and white cones of yarn sitting on top of my standard machine and wondered if I was getting around to her panda sweater (http://knitwords.blogspot.ca/2016/05/panda-monium.html) and when did I think I'd have it ready? I promised her that it would be ready for her back-to-school which is the day after Labour Day. I was thinking that would give me 2 weeks but crikey! it's only a week away! I do have the swatch that I/we made back in May, but why can I not find any notes? I was going to start with that nice hem that I had on the swatch - it looks really good but I don't know what I did!
I thought I'd wing it...sat down and cast on with waste yarn on the single bed and then, thought, why would I do that? I need the ribber for the semi-jacquard so why wouldn't I use a ribber band and then I went DUH! It's a double bed circular hem! and it IS really nice! The 'fold' line at the bottom was what was puzzling me because it works so well and then the rest of the band is so even and neat - LOL! Well, lesson learned! If I write it in this blogpost, I'll always know where to find it, even if you don't care!
Circular Hem. Swing H5. Arrange for full needle rib, end ns on RB. Cast on WY. Knit several rows. Set to circular. T4/6, ravel cord, K2R. Move carriages to left without knitting. Bring ns all out. This will cancel the circular setting and make a zigzag row (without having to change the settings back and forth). MC, T2/2, K1R. Hang comb and one weight. RC000. T1/3, knit circular, grading tension by increasing one full number for each row to T8/10, RC014. Swing P. Transfer sts to needle arrangement desired - for semi Jacquard, all working on MB and only every 6th needle in work on RB. Swing H. Program pattern and use next row to read/select. T9/7, K1R. RC000. Set to slip.

And the book? I think of it as a resource manual for the manual machine so I wanted to call it 'The Manual Manual' but I'm working on that. It's full of techniques, the when, where and whys of what to do, and hand transferred stitch patterns and trims and edgings all suitable for non-punchcard or non-patterning machines. Rick (my layout guy) is calling it the 'war and peace of knitting'! We are on page 78 of the layout and still have probably another 35 to go - I was aiming for 75 total - he knows my other 'books' were all 28 pages and the magazine was 48 pages so no wonder! He thinks I need to get a life! Do I edit it down or go for broke?