Honeycowl the 3rd

Honeycowl the 3rd is finished now. I cast on last Saturday, realized I was knitting a mobius and recast on Sunday, cast off last night. It's in Malabrigo teal something or another. It is absolutely gorgeous and oh so cozy. I'm a little sad that I have to give it away but I think it will be appreciated by the recipient. I got a little bored with the pattern so I didn't make it a full 12 inches wide but the pattern is flexible and it's plenty wide and long enough to double up.

I think for my next project I want to knock out a quick baby knit this weekend. We have friends that have a baby due by the end of the month and I do like welcoming a new baby with a hand knit gift. After that I'll work on more thrummed mittens for Kevin's Mom and her friend and then I'll be starting on Mom's Autumn Leaves Stole. I'm certainly not lacking for projects to keep me busy until Christmas.

Something Lacy progress

I finished up the back of Something Lacy last night and blocked it out.





It looks much bigger than it is. I seamed up the sleeves tonight and have started the ribbing around the body. I had to try it on after seaming the sleeves to make sure it fit. At first I seamed up the sleeves too much and couldn't squeeze into it. I took out a few inches on each sleeve and tried it on again and it fit. They're almost elbow length and cover the worst portion of my arms so I think that's probably mission accomplished. Hopefully I'll find the time this weekend to finish up the body ribbing and get the sleeve ribbing started by Monday. That won't take but a minute since the sleeves are already plenty long enough.

You better like this Manda, it's the only one you're getting! :)

Orchid Thief Now with More Kitteh!

This post is brought to you by the letter G, a tummy ache and the prettiest kitty in the land, Gracie. Also, not a insignificant amount of frustration.




Frustration you say? Well yes. Between being completely over the whole wedding planning thing and not at all interested in making any more decisions related to that, the near constant tummy ache I've had for the past few weeks that changes in intensity during the day but hasn't quite gone away completely (I'm starting to think I may have a food intolerance of some sort) and the fact that my Orchid Thief is has 10 extra stitches, I'm a little annoyed and frustrated.



I've made it through the 3 repeats of chart 3. Other than missing a yo here or there that I had to fudge and make up for everything turned out ok. I think it looks the way it should. I'm not spotting any glaring errors and the pattern worked out fine, I didn't come up with anything extra that doesn't seem like it belongs but some how I'm off my stitch count by 10. The book says I should have 283 and I have 293.



I started chart 4 and was following mitchypoo's written instructions for row 86. It started out ok (at least as far as I could tell). The stitches lined up at least through the first ktbl.


k3, ssk, yo, k10, k3tog, yo, k, yo, k, yo, k, yo, sk2p, k10, yo, sk2p, yo, k11, yo, k, yo, ktbl, yo, k, yo, k11, yo, sk2p, yo, k10, k3tog, yo, k, yo, k, yo, k, yo, sk2p, k10, yo, sk2p, yo, k10, k3tog, yo, k, yo, k, yo, k, yo, sk2p, k10, yo, sk2p, yo, k11, yo, k, yo, ktbl, yo, k, yo, k11, yo, sk2p, yo, k10, k3tog, yo, k, yo, k, yo, k, yo, sk2p, k10, yo, sk2p, yo, k10, k3tog, yo, k, yo, k, yo, k, yo, sk2p, k10, yo, sk2p, yo, k11, yo, k, yo, ktbl, yo, k, yo, k11, yo, sk2p, yo, k10, k3tog, yo, k, yo, k, yo, k, yo, sk2p, k10, yo, k2tog, k3

 The bolded line is where I hit problems. I got through the k11 but I didn't have just one stitch left to do a yo k yo before the next ktbl. I had like 15 more stitches before I got to the next spine and now I'm stuck. I'm not sure if I should just fudge a few decreases to make things work out or keep just knitting until I get to the ktbl. The problem with throwing the decreases in is I'm not sure where they should go since the first bit of the row lined up ok. I think It would help if I knew exactly how many stitches should be in each section (between the spines). I'm determined to make this work. I'll be damned if I'm ripping out anything. I think I even have enough yarn to get through it. There's 2.3oz on my needles and I've got 2oz left to knit with.

But until I figure it out, here's some more kitty.

Orchid Thief Progress Picture Edition

So I'm in the middle of the 2nd repeat of chart 3. I can't think about the repeats too much otherwise I just confuse myself . So I just look at the stitches and work them as they come. It's obvious where the decreases should be, where the knits and yos go and the spines let me know when my count is right. I've gotten off by a stitch once or twice (probably by forgetting a yo somewhere) so I just fudge it and trudge on. Good thing nobody pays me to do this and have any expectations of perfection.

So anyway, here it is so far. I really like the color quite a bit. But the yarn isn't quite as soft as my first skein of DIC smooshy that I ever worked with. I'm crossing my fingers that I'll have enough yarn for this (gauge? what?). I went down a needle size just to be on the safe side after what happened with Hanami and my DIC skein had 450 yards when the yarn in the pattern only has 440. But then again, I'm the girl that ran out of yarn with 1,000 friggin yards to work with.

Hanami Photos

So here's the infamous Hanami. Overall I have to say I'm pretty damn happy with it. I can see a few spots where I fudged it up a bit, but you gotta be looking for them to notice the mistakes. I LOVE the color. It's such a beautiful shade of purple. It should probably be longer but that's my fault for running out of yarn but it still works ok. I did get it finished before my fitting for my dress so I can take it with me to see how they'll look together. Yay!

Now on to the pictures. There will be a few of them.

My favorite part of the entire shawl is where the basket weave transitions into the cherry blossoms.

My modified cherry blossom ending with just a few rows of garter.

I love it. I'm so proud of myself for tackling this for my first shawl ever.

100th post!

I've been wanting to blog all week but I've not really had anything especially witty to say and no finished objects to show off. I didn't want to post my 100th without at least having a picture or two to share.

So I finished Kevin's Christopher hat last night. I started it sometime last week but I'm not sure on the exact date...probably when I finished my helix socks but I restarted it a few times because I didn't trust the pattern. The whole time I was knitting it I was sure that the hat was going to be way to big. It just seemed so dang huge. I actually stopped knitting about an inch before the pattern called for it. It's not too short but that extra inch wouldn't have hurt anything.

Red Side.


Blue side.


I knit it with Knit Picks wool of the andes in New England Patriot colors. Just in time for there not to be any football next season! Not to mention that it's been in the 50s for the past two weeks so we're past hat season. But it's extremely cozy and Kevin is really happy with it. I expect him to wear it constantly next winter.

I also started a pair of Jaywalkers with some Opal Harry Potter yarn that my dear friend Manda gave me...oh ages ago. I thought it was about time I actually knit something with yarn in my stash. The pattern is ridiculously easy, but the yarn is pretty crazy and it's hard to see the zig zags. I'll keep it going for awhile just to see how it turns out. I've never really used a self striping yarn before but so far I'm not really seeing any stripes.

In other news, I've discovered that I like mangos.

helix done!

That's right my friends. A pair of finished helix socks done ahead of schedule.

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Helix Pictures

I know, I promised Helix pictures days ago, but you know I'm lazy. I'm sure you guys are used to it by now. I wasn't completely unproductive. I did work on the second sock and have made some good progress on it. I think I might even finish it before the end of the month. Can you guys imagine that? Me finishing pair of socks (plus a honey cowl!) in a month? That's just crazy talk!



A progress shot, plus what they look like in the book.


This one shows the color pretty well.



The yarn is Fiesta Baby Boom dyed for the Loopy Ewe. The color is called Spring Chill.  It was the free skein they sent to me with my Loopy Groopy package. I have to say, I'm a big fan. It knits wonderfully and the colors are pretty much all of my favorite colors ever.

So that's where the Helix socks are. Hopefully by next weekend I'll have a finished pair to show off.

Nutkins Finished!

 

My nutkins are finished! I redid the toe on the first sock and it came out great. There was a wee nubbin on the heel of the second sock but blocking took care of that. They're a little big, but significantly easier to get on than my Spring Forward socks.




The Cherry Tree Hill yarn was great to knit with. Very similar to Dream In Color Smooshy. The red is a fun color and I've already worn them a few times. I can't get enough of them.

I also went ahead and finished my Jane hat. It was snug when I cast off, but blocking has loosened it up quite a bit. Malabrigo grows like a mofo when it's wet. No photos of that yet but they'll be coming soon. I cast on for a honey cowl this morning and it's going pretty quickly. I'm alternating the two colors every two rows and I think it's turning out ok so far. I also ordered the yarn for Kevin's Christopher hat so I should have that in the new few days and should be able to get started on it once I'm done with the honey cowl.

Finished Hedera

Here is the finished product.




I'm still not in love with it. Maybe it will grow on me while I work on a pair of Nutkins in the meantime. It took me a while to pick a new project. I really debated on doing a shawl or a new pair of socks. In the end socks won, but if I'm not digging it once I really get into the pattern then I'll start something else to hopefully keep the mojo going.

Peak Island Hood Pictures

Photographic proof of completeness.



Just an idea of how long it is.


Get a load of all that f'n seed stitch.

Finally finished a project!

Alright, I finally finished a project despite my winter blahs. I worked on the Thorpe yesterday afternoon so I could finally give it to my friend Mike after promising him an ear flap hat, oh, say 3 months ago? I was worried as I was making that it was going to be way too big. And the problem with knitting top down is you can't try the hat on as you go if you're using 16" circs.

It is a very easy and quick knit. I got a little confused towards the end when switching from working in a circle to going back and forth but I just worked through the pattern and it turned out ok. It took most of a ball of Knit Pick's Wool of the Andes bulky weight.

And of course there are pictures.





It was a wee bit too big on me so I was worried at first.



But no worries. It fits Mike just fine!



My only problem is now Kevin wants an earflap hat. He was totes jealous of Mike's hat. Arg!

Kev modeling his Marram

Isn't he a handsome devil?





I'll have to get a more detailed shot of the hat because it really is neat looking. There are two spirals. One from the slipped stitches and one from using the two colors.

An update finally.

So some sad news on the LYS front. Apparently there was smoke damage at the local LYS last week due to a boiler malfunction. This means this shop is closed right now, until repairs can be made. This is a total bummer for them, right in the middle of the holiday season and I can't imagine what that might have done to the yarn in the store. Is it salvageable? Washable? Who knows. Perhaps it could be sold at a discount for people willing to try to get the smoke out themselves. Or maybe they can fix it. I'll be interested to see what they do.

This also means I wasn't able to get my yarn wound up this weekend. That's probably for the best, since having pretty yarn cakes sitting about just tempt me into knitting them when I've already got enough projects going on and presents and requests to make.

So I took pictures of the yarn as is, just to have something to give to you guys. Also a few progress shots since I don't have anything finished right now.




(Manda called this the lemonade yarn. I agree with her.)


Manda so kindly got me this book as a present.


It has luxurious looking knits in it, like this one.


Her boyfriend called it a sexy knitting book (there's a chick modeling a scarf in her undies, he's not far off). The pictures are quiet lovely and the knits look really high end. Definite possibilities for future gifts when my skill sets improve some more.

Speaking of Manda.

I'm currently working on her Christmas present. Since she knows what she's getting and helped pick out the yarn, I'll go ahead and post the picture.


The pattern is fun to knit. I had a false start at first w/holy increases, but once I figured out the trick to invisible increases things started moving along quite well. This should go relatively quickly as far as scarves go, but I do have to keep picking up my socks to work on as the seed stitch gets a bit repetitive.

Speaking of socks...


This photo shows the detail a little better.



I'm currently working the heel of the first sock. When I can actually sit and knit these for awhile they work up pretty quickly and the pattern is easy to memorize. Unfortunately I didn't get as much knitting time as I would have liked this weekend so I don't have much progress to update on.

The holidays are starting to weigh down on me. Exams are coming up. Still loads of homework to do. Not to mention shopping and decorating and family stuff. I probably won't get to knit as many presents as I wanted (which isn't many at all). Kev's hat will probably be late. And the mittens I wanted to do...well see about those. May have to put the socks on hold and start actual present knitting instead. Or maybe just give the socks to somebody. (This isn't the time of year for selfish knitting.)

I need to manage my yarn projects better.

Thrum Maddness!

This will be the last blog update for the week from me. Tomorrow we're hittin' the road and heading to Massachusetts for the Thanksgiving holiday. I should get plenty of sock knitting done during the 12 hour drive north (at least until I can no longer see once the sun goes down). I just wanted to post pictures of what I accomplished this weekend during my 'boyfriend free knittingpalooza'. I finished the thrummed mittens for Kevin's Mom. These mittens worked up super fast, it just took me awhile because I alternated knitting mitten/sock to afford the dreaded Second Sock Syndrome.

Pardon the photos. I don't think they turned out very well at all thanks to the battery on my camera being almost dead.







They are super warm and cozy and should be excellent for keeping hands warm during the cold New England Winter. I wish I had a reason to wear them here in VA, but it just doesn't get that cold. :(

So until next week guys. Have a happy and safe holiday and I hope everyone gets to eat lots of yummy turkey!

I think it's official...

I've come to the realization that I am a sock knitter. You know, what of those crazy broads who has dozens of handknit socks and almost every WIP is a sock of some sort. I didn't think I would like socks that much while working on my first practice sock. I found it kind of tedious and annoying, but I really wanted a pretty pair of socks for myself. So I knit it and learned the basics and started on a real pair. I had fun knitting that pair. The pattern was easy yet interesting. But still, I thought 'oh, these are  just socks. I can't wait to knit a shawl!' I thought for sure my next project would be some sort of lace shawl or stole or scarf.

Nope. Once I pulled both socks on my feet and let the pride wash over me and basked in the glow of compliments I was hooked. I had hand knit socks and I wanted more.

I really wanted to start a new pair last night, but the only sock yarn I had on hand was some boring knit picks pallet and some fair isle striping yarn which would only work in stockinette. I didn't want to do just straight stockinette so I just worked on Thrummed Mitten #2 for a bit while watching Dexter.

Today I went to the LYS and picked up two skeins of Berroco Ultra Alpaca fine weight yarn. One in a lovely charcoal color and the other the color of...fall? It isn't really one color. It's many colors. Inside it looks kind of like a boring brown but once you get it out into some sunlight the magic happens. It's made out of yellow and purple and green and orange and red yarn. Absolutely gorgeous. And it shimmers.

See for yourselves...










(the blue is knitpicks gloss yarn in Winter Night. It arrived yesterday w/my sock blockers and I meant to take it to the LYS to have it wound up but totally forgot.)

As soon as I got home I snapped a few pictures while the sun was bright just to catch all the pretty colors. Then I sat down and cast on for a pair of Synesthesia socks using the fall yarn. The pattern is like the Spring Forward in that it's pretty simple, w/an easy to remember lace chart. It should make for good travel knitting this weekend while we're on the road to Boston for Thanksgiving. Hopefully by this time next week I'll at least have one more sock under my belt.

The gray yarn I think will become a pair of nice cable socks. Just need to find a pattern I like. The blue? Not sure yet. Maybe some Monkeys or Nutkins.

And that is my story. I am now officially a sock knitter. I think this means eventually I'm going to have to learn the two at a time method. Ugh.