Happy New Year!

Like last year, I will reveal my UFO's, what sadistic fun! But not today, as today is for acknowledging all that did get finished. 18 projects and 1 Cashew, not too bad! 2007 has been a crazy year, filled with friends, diapers and yarn. I don't expect 2008 to be much different in the amount of crazy thrown around, but perhaps I will figure out how to get in a few more rows.

I am wishing you all a very Happy New Year. Here's to more yarn!

Salut!

Warm and Fuzzy

Another FO! Whipped out in a hurry for a very special party. This past weekend was the 3rd Annual Sit 'n' Knit Holiday Party. It gets bigger and better every year! I was very happy with the positive response (60 RSVP's in 24 hours!) and the party was a blast. Of course, having an open bar helps. I mentioned that it was a PARTY, right?

Every year we have had a gift exchange, the rule being that the item must be handmade and the yarn from your stash. I have had some burgundy Malabrigo lingering in the wings and have been eyeing Minty's Bainbridge Scarf. It was a delightful knit! I modified for my yarn by casting 130 stitches and otherwise followed as written.

The gift exchange was a lot of fun and had more variety this year. Scarves, neckwarmers, washcloths, fingerless mitts, Haagen Daz cozies, heck, even thrummed mittens! I received a lovely alpaca/silk scarf and I was tickled that my Bainbridge matched the recipients' eyeglasses perfectly.

This year has been a challenge with being pregnant and having a baby and adjusting to life with a baby. I have struggled to keep organizing Sit 'n' Knit through all the adjustments. Many members picked up the slack by guest hosting and initiating events and suggesting venues. Thank you!!! It has meant so much to me to hear how much the group means to others. I love the color and variety of the personalities that come together for the sake of good times and yarn. It's like the most beautiful variegated yarn knit into a very warm and fuzzy scarf. I am honored to call the members of Sit 'n' Knit my friends!

I Feel Pretty, Oh So Pretty!

La, la la la la la la, la, la la! At last, Juliet is complete! I started this back in October in hopes of wearing it to the NYS Sheep & Wool Festival. But that didn't happen. And then I thought I could finish it in time for Tawana's baby shower. But that didn't happen. And finally, I was determined that I would have it done in time to wear to the Sit 'n' Knit Holiday Party and by golly, that happened!

So why was I so slow? Well, life with a baby cuts into knitting time. That and I kinda fell out of love with this project. I am not fan of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Superchunky. (Here's why.) I started second guessing the style for my figure. I was worried that it was going to be too baggy because of a small error I made. And then I finished it. AND I LOVE IT! More than I thought I would. Finally, a sweater I made that I will wear in public!


After perusing the Juliet's on Ravelry and learning that this sweater tends to run big, I decided to make the XS. I did an extra set of increases at the arm holes, which in the end, I probably didn't need to do. My mistake came when working down the body after the arm holes. I forgot to decrease to get back to the correct number of stitches. Thankfully, I was only over by 4 stitches. Even so, 4 stitches is practically an inch at this gauge. I was in too much of a rush with various deadlines to get this puppy done, so I was not going to fiddle with the math for the lace bit. So I just added the extra stitches to the edge, making the border 5 garter stitches as opposed to 3. It worked out pretty well, though I thought the body was going to end up as big as a ball gown. I haven't blocked it yet, so we'll see what happens.


The buttons are from Tender Buttons. I had a bunch of different buttons laid out on a table at the store and this guy walks by and points to the ones in the photo above and said "I like those." and walked away. I immediately put the other buttons away and purchased these lovelies. Sometimes you just need someone else to make the decision for you. Thanks, man!

As for the scarf from my other post, no, it was not for the Sit 'n' Knit Gift Exchange. My clue was subtle, but I thought for sure that my mom would get the hint. (She didn't. "Blueberries? Who's in Maine?") The scarf was sent off to Helga in Finland! As for the Sit 'n' Knit party, it was a blast. I have a whole separate blog post for that one!

The Gift of Blocking

And now we take a break from the creepy knitting to bring you this finished project! The Gift of Friendship Scarf by Christine McKnight knit with Schaefer Anne.

This was a great knit! The pattern is very easy to memorize. A bitch to tink, but using a life line was a life saver. I used a fingering weight and didn't really worry about gauge. What I should have worried about was pre-blocking vs blocking. Note to self - knit a swatch and wash and block to calculate percentage of growth next time you knit a lace project where gauge isn't critical. Duh.


Pre-blocking the scarf measured 7.5" wide and 32" long. Kind of short, I know. I figured I'd knit until I got good and tired of knitting. Schaefer Anne has a lot of yardage so I got good and tired of knitting a little sooner than I expected. I kept guesstimating how long the scarf was actually going to be, and I guess all that thinking hurt my head because one night I just decided that I was done. (See the note to self above.) I finished the garter edge and decided that I had planned all along for a shorter scarf. And truthfully, I like this scarf shorter. It's not meant to be a muffler, just some fluff for the neck area to keep out the draft. I like how it looks draping across the front of the neck, crossing the ends behind the neck and bringing the ends back to the front and tucking. (Basically the exact opposite of how a scarf is traditionally wrapped.)


With blocking it measures 8" wide and 44.5" long. Not too bad! I love how the mesh highlights the subtle color changes in the yarn. The yarn reminds me of blueberry bushes. Any guesses as to where this scarf is going? It is a gift, after all...

I'm an FO Ho!

Well, look at that! Another FO. Go me. Cashew isn't quite ready for her hardcore winter hats that Grandma brought from Finland, and her other little cream cap is too small. Thank goodness Mommy can knit. How ever could this bumpkin continue on the cuteness factor without a sweet little bonnet?


Baby Bonnet from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson. Yarn is Morehouse Merino, I am not sure what colorway. Natural and more natural? Anyhoo, I got gauge, it's soft and warm and is cute to boot. My only modification was to add a couple extra rows of garter stitch to the bottom edge to sufficiently cover Cashew's ears and get a little more wear out of it as her noggin grows. My favorite part is the i-cord edging. I can't believe that this is my first time doing an i-cord edge. It is so cool! It's neat looking and easy-peasy. So adding that to the Annie Book of Knowledge to pull out next time I want to get all fancy with my knitting.

And speaking of fancy knitting, I have a couple more projects to finish before I can get to work on Cashew's Christmas stocking. So many stitches...so little time...

Cashew Finally Has a Sweater

My Mom knit me this sweater. Ho hum.

I want to eat it, not wear it. it's only going to fit me for about 2 more weeks, anyway!

Child's Placket-Neck Pullover from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson. Knit with Manos Cotton Stria in colorway number...uh, pink. Size made is 6-12 months, no modifications and pretty much spot on with the sizing in the pattern. Wood beads were found on Etsy at Jingjingdesign. I have made this sweater 3 times, it's a good one! Made in cotton, machine wash and dry, what's not to love?

Blouson is On!

Well there it is. My Rhinebeck sweater. 1824 Blouson by Mari Lynn Patrick from Interweave Knits Summer 2007. Knit with Cascade 220 The Heathers, color 9450. I LOVE this color. Unfortunately the lighting in my apartment was not cooperating this morning and it looks more gray and washed out then it actually is. I can't fire my photographer because I'm married to him and he's the only other person in our house who can hold a camera without chewing it and drooling all over it.

For the most part, I am happy with this sweater. I even like the reverse stockinette! This pattern was easy to knit yet not boring because of the interesting finishing details. (My pleat tutorial is here.) My woulda, shoulda, coulda would be the size. I don't knit a lot of sweaters for myself, so I was fudging my size vs ease. I knit the smallest size which measures a 34" bust. I learned the hard way that the drape is not built in to the pattern. You have to knit up a size to get the drape. You can see more information about that here. (Wish this info been posted earlier!) If I could do it over, (and I probably won't) I would knit the next size up. I love the blouse effect of this sweater. I love how the sleeves turned out, but the waist isn't blousey. I blocked the hell out of it, but that just flattened the pleats, so there is not much of a blouse effect at all. Maybe when my boobs go back to pre-breast feeding size, there will be more blouse in my Blouson.

Shout Out to Sidewinders

Well there you have it. My first (and probably last) sideways sock. I knit these for the Sit 'n' Knit Sidewinders Knitalong. The pattern is Nonaknits Sidewinders: a PerpenSOCKular Pattern. The construction of the sideways sock is fascinating and they fit really well. All the grafting was annoying and I cheated for the leg and did a 3 needle bind off. It was fun to try knitting a sock sideways, but I prefer knitting tubes. It's really as simple as that. I used The Plucky Knitter's sock yarn in "A Thistle" colorway. The yarn was absolutely delightful to knit with. If you are looking for a serious happy place while knitting, I recommend this sock yarn. Super soft yet strong!

It is SO nice to have a finished project. Sure it feels good to put them on without the needles still attached or loose ends crying to be woven in. It's nice to know these will keep my feet toasty in the cooler weather. Yadda yadda. I can now cast on for something new! WOO HOO!

Together at Last

Is Cashew in awe? Is she in shock? Does she merely have to poop? Who knows for sure. One thing that is for sure is that Curlicue is done! Off the needles! No longer in a pile by the knitting chair! Grab that flask and take a celebratory swig!


There it is in all it's glory. It's a bit rumpled in the photo, but it did block very nicely. A tad tricky to photograph, so it may not be as creative as yesterday's salad but at least it's a full view.

So the technical knitter stuff: The pattern is Curlicue Coverlet by Oat Couture. I used Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Dusty Sage. I started this blanket mid-winter with hopes of finishing in early March before Cashew was born. Swollen fingers kept that from happening, and any remaining knitting was done during naps, bedtime and walks to the park. It was finally completed in late June. My modification was to do a provisional cast on. Instead of seaming the blanket, I kept the stitches live on the last section, picked up the stitches from the cast on, picked up stitches past the cast on (makes sense when you are working on this blanket), picked up a couple stitches in the center to close the hole and did a 3 needle bind off. Over all it is a fairly easy blanket to knit. The sections go by fast because they are all short rows. The pattern is easy to memorize. I was able to do it with Placenta Brain AND New Mommy Brain. That, in my opinion, is quite something.

So now I can finally move on to something else. I have so many beautiful yarns in my stash, I have decided to have fun with stash busting. Must make room for Rhinebeck!

Dr. Annie

This weekend I was determined to finish something. Closest to being finished was the Baby Shrug so I focused on that. Now I realize that you may be asking yourself why it would take so long to finish such a simple project. It comes from Debbie Bliss' Simply Baby after all. "Simply" implies that the patterns will be uncomplicated and quick. Well let me tell you, I think the title should be Simply Baby, Easy to Muck Up.

What makes it easy is that the shrug is knit in one piece with the ribbing being knit from picked up stitches. Where it is easy to muck up, well paying attention to the pattern. (Duh.) I accidentally was short in the back by 4 rows. There was no way to alter the front to match with out doing a lot of redesigning. Puh-lease it's a baby SHRUG. Not even a sweater, not worth the effort of all that calculating decreases yadda yadda. My fix was to knit extra ribbing on the back. But lo and behold, the bottom of the shrug has shaping to make it more circular. Extra ribbing would look silly at such a large gauge. Instead I performed surgery. Thanks to Knittypants and her tutorial, I cut off the bottom and knit down reversing the shaping. Yes my darlings, I cut my own knitting and it worked.

I thought about doing short rows for the shaping instead of binding off so that I could pick up live stitches. But no, no, no. Debbie likes to write patterns where there are 52 stitches for the back, but for the ribbing you have to pick up 58 stitches. 18 stitches for the back of the neck, but you have to pick up 26. 45 options for stitches at the cuff, but only need 34. Simply Annoying.


The back turned out quite well despite ripping out the ribbing several times and calculating how to get the correct number of stitches evenly. The funny thing is that in the end, the shaping didn't even matter. It looks pretty straight despite blocking. No Cashew shots because it is still a little big. (Phew!)

I was showing the completed shrug to Hila yesterday and filling her in on my drama with the back shaping. She looked at me and said "Why did you bother?" I paused for a moment, looked back at her and said "What else would I have to blog about?"

A Decent Dishcloth

My goal for Memorial Day Weekend was to finish the Baby Shrug and finish section 11 of Curlicue. June is well, here, and I have a plan. This plan did not include the Baby Shrug and Curlicue so I have some editing to do for my plan. Dishcloths were also not a part of the plan, any plan, for that matter. But while in Michigan I saw my mom's ripped up and worn out dishcloth and I thought hmmm, I know what to do for a thank you gift.


There is one handknit that my mom likes more than any other handknit, and that is the basic garter stitch dishcloth. All my life she has used these and swears by them. I learned the pattern as a kid, but in the 20+ years I have been knitting, I haven't made her any since. The ones she had left were crap, so a trip to Walmart and for less than $3 I had two balls of Peaches & Cream cotton. I whipped out two dishcloths and left them hanging in the (Finnish) bird feeders outside. When she finally saw them, she practically jumped for joy. "I can't find these anywhere!" Hey, what happened to the church craft fairs with all the knitting grannies and their dishcloths?

20 years of knitting. A taste for fancy shmancy yarns. $3 at Walmart. Sheesh, Christmas is so easy this year.

Red Hot

Red hot socks for Cashew! I did finally finish these. I am trying to perfect infant socks - getting the heel the right length, how long should the decreases go for the toe. It really comes down to one thing, knitting faster. Those little feet become bigger feet fast!


These socks are based on this pattern, but I've been messing with the pattern. I made the cuff longer, the heel longer, did the gusset decreases like a regular sock, same with the toe and did a kitchener finish. They look a little pointy in this photo, partly because they are not blocked, a tad too big, and well yah, they are just pointy. The yarn is an extra skein of Koigu that I had from Hila's socks.

Baby Shrug is almost complete and Curlicue is not!

Secret Knitting Makes Me Giddy

At last, the Sit n' Knit Sock Exchange! My secret knitting is finally revealed. First, the packaging. All part of the fun, me thinks. My "Secret Feet" likes black, gray and red...


So of course I found a box that is black and white so the red will pop. Of course, of course.


The pattern - Grumperina's Roza's Socks from Interweave Knits Spring 2007. Koigu KPM in color 1110. I pretty much followed the pattern as written. I used us2 needles to make sure they were nice and stretchy. Maybe too stretchy? I figure it's better to go a tad big than a tad small.


The look on Hila's face when she opened the box made me all warm and fuzzy. She whipped off her sandals and put the socks on immediately.

WOO HOO!

And just to prove that I really did knit them ... here's a photo from our daily walk to Charles Schurz Park. Cashew sleeps, I knit.

Being a Sock Exchange, I didn't just knit for someone else...


Chanin made me a pair of Monkey socks! LOVE! I have been eyeing this pattern so I am absolutely delighted. The yarn is Koigu though I am not certain of the colorway.


I put them on immediately (with one hand, thankyouverymuch), wore them all day and all evening. I took them off right before I went to bed. Now they are waiting to be washed so I can wear them again. Thank you, Chanin!

I wasn't sure how I would end up liking a sock exchange. Wouldn't I feel bad if someone complimented me on my socks and I couldn't say that I knit them? (Ego, anyone?) In the end, I didn't feel that way at all. We all want our recipients of hanknits to "ooh" and "ahh". This was a guaranteed audience. We all understood the skill that went into knitting so it was a fantastic display of talent with complete appreciation. Definitely doing this again! (If you want to see photos from our little party, you can find them here.)

My Feet are BACK

Falling Leaves are done! Schaefer Anne yarn, size us1 needles. Two at once using magic loop.


These were my first toe-up socks and my first go at a short row heel. I dig it! As I had suspected, they are just a hair too big, but I have decided not to care about it. They are very comfortable and I love the way the yarn knit up for this pattern.


A couple nights ago, I sat at my computer with my sock and learned how to do a tubular bind off. (Savannahchick has GREAT instructions here.) While fussing over it, I had an AIM conversation with my pal Nancy. 3/4 way through the finish, she informs me of an easier way to achieve a stretchy bind off for a toe up sock. "M1 every other stitch and then just bind off!" UGH! Would have been so much easier, but then we both agreed that a tubular bind off is quite pretty and Schaefer Anne is worthy of it. So for you Nancy, I include a close up of my tubular bind off.


My feet aren't swollen anymore and they aren't hidden by my belly. Yippee yahoo yah! Next up, a set of "Mommy and Me" Anastasia socks by Minty! (Yah, yah, still working on the Curlicue, too.)

Hubba Hubba

Hunky!

Husband is, too.

Yarn Harlot's One Row Handspun Scarf pattern knit with Brook's farm wool and silk blend. (Rhinebeck!) Hotty Hubby says he likes it and is wearing it everyday. Hooray!

And...Happy Blogiversary to me! Woo hoo!

Moving Along

Chante & Schrodinger (and all who agreed with them) YOU ROCK! Thanks for your advice with picking up the wraps for my short row in the Curlicue Coverlet. I am now moving on...


Even more so since this little diversion is done! I modified this pattern, omitting the K1, P1 detail in the leg and did an eye of partridge heel, and kitchener finish when I had 12 stitches left. The yarn is Brooklyn Handspun in Mocha Rose. Love!

Red Scarf Project

The scarf is done! I used Lorna's Laces Superwash in Bold Red. (And it is BOLD.) Broken rib all the way, which leaves an interesting texture on the reverse side. I am quite pleased. About 5" wide and 60" long. The edges were curling a bit, so after washing I also steam blocked the begeezus out of it. Because if that, there may be a few extra inches added to the length but I didn't check.


This scarf is for the Red Scarf Project as organized by the Orphan Foundation of America. Hila suggested that Sit n' Knit New York get involved and we have. Yesterday I collected scarves from other members...


And I received a total of 19 scarves! So I am off to the post office to mail them. Hooray!