A Year in the Making

I have written this post in my head for, well, almost a year now.

I say "I really need to blog about this, but I have to block it first. I'll do it tomorrow." Tomorrow comes and I never feel like blocking. I knit a new thing, I weave in ends on another thing, I sew a little something. Summer turns to Fall, Fall turns to Winter, Winter turns to Spring and $!@&;^%$ it's Summer AGAIN??!

I have been saying " I really should block this." about once a week and somehow I never do it. I think
"I kinda want to wear it" as I lay trying to fall asleep. Tomorrow...

Tomorrow came and I did it!!!Maybe all this foot dragging is due to the fact that this was my second Buttercup tunic and so it wasn't a thrill to knit or finish. I made another one because I wasn't really that happy with how the first one turned out and I had to make some modifications.

The Low Down
Pattern: Buttercup by Heidi Kirrmaier
Yarn: Jaeger Trinity
Modifications: There are a ton and since I finished knitting this almost a year ago and didn't take good notes I'm making some grand guesses as to how exactly I modified my top. First off I omitted the gathering at the back neck to result in a more overall fitted look. According to my notes I did this "body, knit until measures 10 cm from underarm. after marker ssk knit until 2 st before next marker k2tog sm ssk knit until 2 stitches before marker k2tog"  I assume this was to take it in a bit so it fit better.   I knit the sleeve much shorter. In fact I only did a couple rounds after picking up the stitches for the sleeves then I bound off loosely and I didn't do the "puff" sleeve so I could get a tighter trimmer fit.

My overall goal was a more fitted top and I am so much happier with this version then I am with my first attempt.

Notice the red bracelet?

Here's a close up

It was a birthday gift from my friend Christy who has a wonderful line of jewelry over at B-side Metalworks. It's a wish bracelet that is so sweet in it's concept and look that I couldn't resist tell you about it. The idea behind it is to make a wish when putting it on and when the bracelet falls off your wish will come true. So cute!

Just in TIme...

Oh, wait...maybe not.
Even though it's not quite as warm as it has been I think I've missed the weather boat with this one.

I actually started this sweater waaay back in September thinking I'd knock it out in a month or two, it being all nearly seamless and semi-bulky.

Well, me being me, I made some modifications. In my mind they were going to be totally minor and not at all a big deal.

WRONG! I forgot that converting a pattern from flat to in the round can sometimes be tricky. So tricky that even after you figure it all out it messes with the way the rest of the pattern goes too and then you have to figure that part out as well. So I put this sweater down in favor of many, many, many other things.

After much procrastination I made myself finish this project in hopes I'd wear it while we were on vacation, but the weather was just too warm.

I put it on today for the first time to take pictures and will probably not wear it again until the fall.

The Low Down;
Pattern: August Pullover by Veera Valimaki
Yarn: Cascade Eco + in Amethyst Heather
Modifications: OK, here we go
I really wanted the sleeves a bit less wide which other people of done by knitting a few more rounds of the twisted rib before separating for the sleeves front and back. Easy. Not for me because I didn't really like the look of having more ribbing, so I set out to knit the twisted rib as written then change to  herringbone pattern in the round  until I got to the point I wanted. Piece of cake??? NO, no and no.

After trying very hard to wrap my brain around converting a pattern from flat to in the round I went in search of someone who had already done it. I searched and searched and finally found a lovely pattern by Lauren Osborn called Herringbone Cowl. Thankfully she had figured it out and even charted it. So all is good right? 

WRONG.

The herringbone patterns are just ever so slightly different and I had to figure out how. I thought I did but then after knitting 18 rounds figured out I figured out an 18 row repeat instead of a 20 row one. I went with it because I thought it was minor, NOPE.

I used an ancient method of cutting a pasting paper to rework the chart.

OK it wasn't THAT big a deal. I only had to figure out how it changed the sleeve count,the neck shaping and how you cast on for the back of the sweater, no biggie. 

So you can see why it took me so long. Ton's of stopping,starting and brain wracking. Now that it's done I'm not even sure it's something I will really wear. Oh well...Le Sigh.

In Full Spring!

Almost everyday we go for a walk and are lucky enough to live by a paved path that does a nice loop around a river and over a dam. Along the walk are parks, crew boathouse, and a little pond teaming with frogs and turtles.

The other day we set out with nets in hand to catch frogs. On the way we got caught in a rainstorm that passed just as we pulled up to the pond (so no pics of our adventure). A bit soggy we got right to work and I caught two frogs. Both boys loved it. After that the frogs got wise and I set about randomly swooping the net though the water. Much to my surprise I got a huge tadpole. I have never ever seen one in real life. It was the size of a small lime with a fishy looking tail and frog eyes.

Why am I telling you all this? Well when we got home Loki asked him I could please knit him a "tagpole". So I did.

Thank goodness for scrap yarn!

Retro Fabulous?

Or retro hideous?

I say retro because the color combo reminds me of a 70's crochet afghan my grandmother had. I ask because I'm not sure I want to continue of it's leaning towards the hideous side of things. If I carry on it will turn into a little vest with race car buttons for Astas.

Be honest!

I Love Cables!

I just now, this very second (well about 20 minutes ago) I finished my first snuggly fall project.

I have a long sweater I bought at Old Navy waay back in 2000 or something like that. It's polyester and kinda frumpy, but I wear it at home all the time. As soon as I saw the cover of the fall issue of Interweave Knits peeking out of my mailbox I knew the Cardiff Coat would be a perfect replacement for my junky sweater.

Cardiff Coat not the junky sweater of old.

I've set about this season to challenge myself more when it comes to knitting. This pattern fit the bill. It was top down (which I love) it would be my 2nd cable project (a challenge) and it has reversible cables too (another challenge)!

The pretty pretty back view...ooh I love cables!

The Low Down
Pattern: Cardiff Coat by Jennifer Wood
Yarn: Ushya by Mirasol Yarn
Modifications: I knit the sleeves a bit longer because I like um that way.

Ooh you lovely cables you! These are the reversible ones.

As a way to challenge myself I did all the cables without a needle. A skill I taught myself while knitting this very cardigan. It was so great to not have to fiddle around with an extra needle. It's a little like living on the knitting edge because you have to let your stitches dangle in mid air for a half a second.


 I'm going to let you in on a few mishaps that happened while knitting this coat, but before I do that I'm going to confess that I pretty much make a least one mistake in every project I make. I think mostly it's because I'm knitting while watching TV so I'm not always paying the closest attention. Usually I go back a fix it if need be.

With this coat I made a serious error in the cables in that I totally forgot to do them in one part, EEK!
This wouldn't really be a problem except that I didn't notice until well after dividing for the arms. What did I do? I just left it. Chalked it up to to late and kept knitting.

Candid photo shoot photo.

I also want to mention that I have yet to block this thing because  I really love the cable all puffy. I wish that I would have considered this when deciding on what size because I would have made it one size larger. I think when I work up the motivation to blocking it It will lengthen a bit and fit much better, but for now I'm wearing it as is.

Slacker Sweater

Belted with an amazing belt from my fav, Anthropologie.

This was literally a year in the making from start to finish. The yarn was a pain to work with and I swore that I would never ever use cotton yarn again (more on that aonther time). I also used a different yarn for the trim which just made for almost unbearably slooooow going and I don't recommend it. At least the end result is a good one, no?

The Low Down

Pattern: Lilas by Hilary Smith Callis

Yarn: Louisa Harding nautical cotton, Louisa Harding Glisten for the trim.

Modifications: I just made it a tad longer and the sleeves a tad shorter.

I must mention the lack of real good photos. Boy, it is so hard to take pictures of yourself. Seriously, even with a tripod, if the lights not right or your pose is off or a kid runs into the picture the picture is blown. It's really easy to talk myself out of a photo shoot. If it weren't for that I'd probably blog more often. I hate taking the photos, there I said it. I like creating the "things" and talking about them but I really dislike the taking of the photo, uploading and placing the picture on the blog. UGH! So I'm sorry for the lame photos but it was this or wait another month for the stars to align.

It's a Cool Koolhaas

What's that you say? It's 90 degrees and I'm wearing a hat?

Well, it is made out of wool and SILK, silk, which is cool right?

As you can see I'm knitting out of season but, man I have been wanting to knit this hat for ages and I had all this yarn leftover from my buttercup shirt and I've been wanting get over the hump over doing a cabled pattern. Perfect! Let's knit a hat in the heat (and I mean HEAT) of the summer.

Can you tell that this is not me?

The Low Down

Pattern: Koolhaas by Jared Flood

Yarn: Silky Wool by Elsebeth Lavold

I love this yarn! It is soft and light and pretty. It's also a joy for me to knit with. I highly recommend trying it if you haven't already.

The way this hat decreases and keeps the pattern is so wonderful. I really liked making this hat, but I'm not sure I like all the fiddlyness of handling a cable needle. I think I'm going to have to learn to do it without a needle. I like to keep things as simple (and lazy) as possible. Although I did like working with the wooden brittany cable needle. It had a nice feel to it and it didn't slip out too easy, plus it looks nice.

Loving Purple Right Now

Hum, is it creepy to have a headless picture? This was the best close up.

The Low Down

Pattern: Buttercup by Heidi Kirrmaier

Yarn: Silky Wool by Elsebeth Lavold in Lt. Purple and Dk purple

Modifications: Clearly I used a different color to edge the bottom and the sleeves. I also only did 4 A-line increases instead of 6 because it was already looking rather wide.

Strike a pose! It really feels weird to take pictures of yourself

First off, I love, love the yarn. It is a joy to knit with and I'm already plotting what I can make next with it. Second, I love this pattern but am not super happy with how it looks on me.

The top is a bit big . I knit the size XS and it's still big. Also I must have done something wrong with the sleeves because instead of being a cute princess style they just look too big and long. I also think I could have gone a tad longer to have a more tunic look. Maybe, just maybe, I should have gone ahead and done all the increases to have a true A-line shape and then it might be more flattering on me.

I already cast on with a different yarn to make a second one with all kinds of modifications. Will see how it goes.

Something Old, Something New.

This sweater is not actually that old. I started knitting it in January and finished weaving in ends about two weeks ago. I wouldn't call it finished because man, I can not figure out how to close this sucker. This was also the hardest thing to photograph, granted I am almost always shooting the pictures myself and that makes it even harder, but for some reason this was really hard. I just finally gave up.

Me looking dreamy. Close up of the collar

The low down

Pattern: I made this up. After searching Ravelry for patterns that matched my yarn/gauge I used several as guides but ultimately knit til it fit, divided for sleeves and body and then as I went shaped it just so in the middle so the fronts would meet. When all was said and done I didn't like it so I added a ruffle. For some reason this sweater reminds me of a Frilled Neck Lizard, so I'm calling this the Frilled Neck Cadi.

Yarn: Noro Taiyo

Gauge: 4 stitches = 1 inch

I did not put any buttonholes and now I have no idea what to do about how to have the cardigan close. Any Ideas?

Out of desperation I enlisted the help of my 4 year old. Can you tell?

I have no idea whats going on with my hands here but this one one of the "best" shots of the sweater.

On to the something new!! As I mentioned in my previous post I finished everything I had on needles and was waiting for yarn for my next project.

Light purple silky wool

It came last week and I jumped for joy when I opened the package.This yarn was better than expected! I love the pale lavender color and it's going to make one great summer top. Stay tuned.

TA DA! Shalom!

This is another post where you may want to sit before reading because of the possibility of fainting from absolute disbelief. Brace yourself: This post is not about anything baby related. No, seriously it's not. I know very hard to believe.

I actually made something for myself and I did it in about a months time (another shocker!)

It all started with a post from Soule Mama in which there was a sweater that I loved. It linked back to Ravelry which is where the magic began . If you don't know about ravelry and you are a knitter or crocheter then please check it out right after you read this post.  After looking at the pattern and decideing that I had to make this sweater I used the yarn suggestions tab to see what had been used and Ravelry told me I already had a yarn in my stash that would work. Ahhh? WOW! It turned out I had the perfect amount required for this project. I cast on that very day and here are the results!

Shalom by Megan McFarlane

(With Modifications that can be found on Ravelry)

Yarn: Manos del Uruguay color Wildflowers (113)

and a tiny bit of yarn I spun (the dk purple cuffs)

Needles: 10 1/2 Addi turbos

Different shirt and flash

I have to mention the buttons because, well, it's kinda like someone saw my sweater and then made these buttons for it. The teaser from a few posts ago is a close up of a the button. I searched for about a half hour , was just about to settle, when I bent down to pick something that had fallen to the ground and there they were. Perfect wouldn't you say?

As Promised, Item #1

Ahhhhhh, finally, I've finished something:

Astas' Pants 

Or Jumper/Overalls

These started out as Cargo from Knitty, but then morphed into my own pattern (I'll provide details in an upcoming post) These can be worn with or without the re-moveable straps. There are buttons on the front and back and the straps have the buttonholes.

These skull buttons on the front of the "pants" were originally going to go on a sweater I made for Loki last year. I think they found a better home here.

The Proof Is In The Knitting.

Hey, look I'm knitting! Wonder of wonders! Wonder what I'm knitting?

Can you tell yet? 

I'm sure you may recognize the yarn. Why yes, it's Swish Worsted, again ( I bought way, way to much for the moderne log cabin baby blanket). The colors are Lawn and Marine Heather. 

What about now!

I'm making a pair of wee pants for Astas. I'm using the Cargo pattern from Knitty Summer 05 issue. I'm knitting 2 legs at a time on one needle using magic loop. I'm super lazy and any way to get stuff done that even seems faster and easier, I'll take it!  Someday soon I'm going to do a blog tutorial on the old 2 at a time magic loop I just got to get all the info together in an easy to understand way. Anyway......

My plan for these pants is to, 

A: not put pockets on ( refer to aforementioned laziness) 

B: make them into a jumper of sorts (you'll see when I'm finished what I'm talking about)

I'm using the jogless stripes technique from TECHknitting™

A sort of terribly lit close up of the color change

It's working great although I think I could be pulling a bit tighter to have less of a seam due the magic loop and it kinda bulges because of the floats of yarn from the stripe changes.

One thing about working two pant legs (sleeve's, socks, ect..) at a time and in stripes is that you have kind of a yarn nightmare you really have to stay on top of or you will spend precious knitting time untangling the mess.

Note the mess on the right! 

(It's really not that bad, as I am keeping it under control)

I hope to finish them before Astas is too big to wear um!