New Pattern!

The strangest thing has happened! I've been hit by a couple of pattern ideas like a one-two punch! I'm still working on one, but am in the processing of trying to get the other up on Ravelry as a cheap (but not free) download.

It's a double-knit scarf made with Kureyon or Silk Garden and it is so cool! Look -

My favorite is the Silk Garden one - it feels so cushy and soft and I love the colors.

It was so cool to get inspired again (what is it with me and Noro anyway?) but between knitting as fast as I can, exams, Christmas, and the usual rat race, I feel like I'm being pulled in 50 different directions.

Superfluous?

Well, it seems that Ravelry has taken over the job of keeping me on-task with my knitting. This blog is redundant given that all the project info is in my ravelry notebook. I'm not quite ready to delete it, but I don't see any future posts. I need to read back through and see if I need to save anything.

Becky - she is done!

I had to wait a week for 16 inch size 3 needles to finish the armholes. They finally came today and I finished it up this afternoon. Haven't washed/blocked yet. I'm a little nervous about the ends staying put. I left long tails that I won't clip until after the bath.



This is my second straight pattern converted to knitting in the round. So easy that I just don't get why the pattern wasn't written that way to begin with.

Here's a list of what I'd like to get knit this summer -

• Picovoli in Hempathy or Silky Wool
• Tomato in Knitpicks Comfy
• Martine in Knitpicks CotLin
• Finish Birds Nest shawl
• Finish Heartland shawl
• Finish Shoulder shawl

I'm also working on a modified BYOB from the summer issue of knitty. I had Cotton Ease leftover from my Yoga Hoodie, Cache Coeur, and Salt Peanuts, so I'm using them to make a knitting bag. Since it won't be for groceries, I'm leaving the mesh part out. I'm using the leftover cotton ease in big stripes to minimize ends needing to be woven in.

I need to swatch the lovely Knitpicks Comfy I hope to use for my Tomato -

More FOs

Salt Peanuts from an old Interweave Knits. I used Cotton-Ease (again) and knit it in one piece to the armholes. After using short rows and a 3-needle bind off on the shoulders I knit the sleeves from the top down. Only seaming required was joining the collar at the back and sewing it down. Using a ribbon to tie it as the pattern calls for makes the collar want to roll, so I tried a pin and that seemed to work.

This is anther Lizard Ridge dishcloth for a knitting friend's birthday -

And this is my favorite of the ones I've knit so far -

I also did a solid one -

This is what I've been working on since Sunday - it's hand-dyed alpaca from Rivanna River Farms -

The colors are not showing up well - pretty aquas and soooooooooo soft! I showed great restraint at the Sedalia Fiber Festival as this was my only purchase!

New Pattern! (sorta)

I said I'd probably never publish another pattern, but I'm not sure this counts anyway since it's basically the same one with different yarn and a couple of rows of garter stitch. I've put it on Ravely as a free download. My Ravelry username is LAylor13, or you can search for "Lizard Ridge Dishcloth." I have not been able to get a really good shot of this particular one - the colors look washed out no matter where I take the picture, and now that it's been in use for a few months, it's all faded anyway -

Pedicure Socks and Cache Coeur

I think she (DD) likes them. Doesn't make me want to knit socks though.


Finally done and I wore it today. DD wants to borrow it, so I guess that's a compliment.

After all that tedious edging, the bind off was too tight and I had to REDO THE WHOLE OUTSIDE EDGE!!! I couldn't use dpns like I did on the second underarm (which worked great btw) but since there were soooo many stitches packed on they didn't get all crossed up on the cable like before. Plus I used my Harmony interchangeables instead of my Addi Natura's and they are smoother so the stitches moved along more easily. I bound off with bigger needles and it came out much better. I didn't make the ties, but decided I did want a front closure of some sort and found a pretty silver dogwood blossom pin that belonged to my grandmother that's perfect. The color in this picture has a strange purple cast - the actual color is more like the progress shot a few posts ago.

I started yet another project in Cotton Ease - (I really should have washed something to see if it holds up. Hope there are no nasty surprises on laundry day) Salt Peanuts from Interweave Knits Spring 2004. This one is heavily modified. I knit the body in one piece to the underarms which was easy to figure out - I just took out the selvedge stitches and combined all the instructions. When I divided for the fronts and back at the armholes things got hairy. Someone on Ravelry said "Holy complicated shaping Batman!" I couldn't have said it better myself. Migraine inducing, and I'm not sure I got it exactly right. There was some vagueness in a spot or two that I may or may not have interpreted correctly and may or may not have done the same way on both fronts. I tried it on after doing a 3-needle bind off for the shoulders and it seems to be okay. (Small rant: why would a pattern chock full of short rows NOT use them for the shoulders? No biggie to figure out myself but I did find it odd.) I've picked the stitches up for sleeve #1 and am using Barbara Walker's method to knit the sleeve cap from the top down (more short rows.) I had to redo it once - my gauge is a bit tighter when only knitting (no purling) so I had to go up a needle size to keep it from being a bit snug.

I've also made one Christmas present mug cozy from leftover gold Aurora 8. Picture to come eventually.

Hmmm, after my recent rip-fest, I'm not sure what's left on my to-do list for this year. Let's see!

1. Shawl-collared vest COMPLETE
2. Fix DH's sweater DONE
3. Finish Tangled Yoke DONE
4. Toggles on CPH (will wait 'til fall)
5. Finish Malabrigo sweater FROGGED
6. Finish Silky Wool sweater FROGGED
7. Finish Cotton Patiné top FROGGED
8. Bird's Nest shawl (UFO - 33% completed) (will work on this summer)
9. Heartland shawl (UFO - maybe 15% completed) (ditto)
10. Lamb's Pride cardigan FROGGED
11. Einstein coat (UFO - about 60% completed) (will pick up in the fall)
12. Celtic Knot FROGGED

That's 8 UFO's/projects dealt with since the first of the year. I'm not positive I will finish the shawls or the Einstein this year, but I do plan to make some progress anyway.

No regrets so far about the ripping out. I think it has freed me up to knit some stuff that I can wear right now. As soon as I finish Salt Peanuts, I have a ginormous skein of Sugar 'n Cream in a pretty cinnamon shade to make a summer top with. I really like 'Becky' in Debbie Bliss Summer Essentials which I'm going to try to find at the LYS tomorrow after Yoga class. Gotta love Ravelry - I never would have found that pattern otherwise.

I finally got around to 'registering' as a designer on Ravelry. I have a tiny little pattern I plan to put on as a free download as soon as it get it all polished up.

More frogging and a new project that's already done!

I frogged the Silky Wool sweater and tossed the cotton patiné top. I tried the Silky Wool sweater on and wasn't happy enough with what was already knit to keep on. The cotton patiné top I would have worn if I'd been able to knit the sleeves, but I really didn't like it as a sleeveless top. I didn't frog it because of the fading.

One pedicure sock is done, I'll post pictures when I finish the other one - I'm about 1/2 way through now. The Cache Coeur is being edged. Which is very tedious. And involves picking up lots of stitches. And doing this cool 4-wrap stitch which is a complete pain to slide along the circular cable up to the needle to be knit. I literally spent hours coaxing the stitches along for one side edging. I think when I get the energy up to tackle the next side I will use a bunch of dpns to do the wrapped stitches. This may take awhile...

I started and finished a mug cozy in a day.

Can anyone say "Christmas presents"?

And, here's a better picture of the back of the Yoga Hoodie -

Completed: 1 Started: 2 Frogged: 1

The Yoga Hoodie is done - I love it! Here's a shot before blocking -

I cast on for some Pedicure Socks from knitty and the Cache Coeur from Weekend Knits.

Ravelry is really getting my knitting organized! It's so nice to have all the things I want to knit stored in one place, plus a stash inventory and a list of other peoples' projects to check for tips, problems, yarn substitutions, etc. (That's how I decided to knit the Yoga Hoodie with the Cotton Ease in my stash.) At first I was putting everything I wanted to knit into my queue which got huge fast. Then I decided to only put things in my queue that I expect to knit in the (fairly) near future. The rest are listed as favorite patterns. I've also enjoyed clicking on the yarn tab to see what others have made with yarns I have and how they liked them. I haven't participated much in the forums yet, although I do have several areas I keep up with.

The Malabrigo sweater is no more. Rather than just ripping back to the armholes I decided to rip it all the way out and return the yarn to the stash. Not sure right now what I want to knit with it.

Time to check on the goals for this year again:

1. Shawl-collared vest COMPLETE
2. Fix DH's sweater DONE
3. Finish Tangled Yoke DONE
4. Toggles on CPH
5. Finish Malabrigo sweater FROGGED
6. Finish Silky Wool sweater (UFO - needs sleeves)
7. Finish Cotton Patiné top (UFO - seam and knit edging for armholes)
8. Bird's Nest shawl (UFO - 33% completed)
9. Heartland shawl (UFO - maybe 15% completed)
10. Lamb's Pride cardigan FROGGED
11. Einstein coat (UFO - about 60% completed)
12. Celtic Knot FROGGED

So I've dealt with half of my list - either by finishing or frogging. Hopefully I'll get 5-8 done this spring and summer and finish up the Einstein and CPH this fall.

New project alert!

I actually cast on for this a little over a week ago. It's the Olive Branch Yoga Hoodie from WEBS. I've never knit a sweater from the top down before, and I'm loving it! The hood is done, but not seamed yet, the sleeves are done, and last night I started on the lower body. Can't wait to get to the cable in the center back. I hope to have it done to wear to my knitting group next week.

I finished the back panel of the Not-so-warm Einstein and put it away for the season. It's not good to knit with a big old pile of wool in your lap this time of year! The other day I pulled the warm-weather projects out of the bin -

Silky wool swearter - 2 strands knit as one - 1 of rust, 1 of brown. Just needs sleeves.

Bird's Nest Shawl. One third done. Two strands of KnitPicks Alpaca Cloud.

Heartland Shawl. Henry's Attic Monty 3/9.

There's one other project I forgot to photograph - a cabled sweater in Cotton Patiné that has had a traumatic childhood. I knit all the pieces, but the sleeves faded (not sure why - I don't think they were in the sun...) so much that they don't look like the same yarn. The current plan is to leave the sleeves off and make it into a sleeveless top. We'll see. It may end up in the trash.

Frog Day

I ripped out the Shoulder Scarf to be restarted - there was a small strange place that bothered me and I couldn't seem to straighten it out so I'm starting over. I hadn't got far, so no big deal. I also made the decision and ripped the Lamb's Pride Cardigan and am in the process of ripping the Celtic Knot sweater. It came to me that if I don't pick a project back up when the season rolls around again, there's a reason. Both of these were heavily modified patterns and I can't remember exactly what I was thinking or doing, even though I did keep (pithy) notes. I've probably progressed enough since setting them aside that I wouldn't do them the same way now. Sometimes you just need to retain the lessons learned and move on. The Malabrigo sweater is next. I don't think it will be as hard to rip that as it was to rip out all those lovely cables. That takes 2 more projects off my to-do list for the year! I think April is spring cleaning month in one Ravelry group I'm in - UFOs. Knit ‘em, rip ‘em, or toss ‘em!

Finished Objects!

The Tangled Yoke and Rib Warmer are both done!

I used grosgrain ribbon on the Tangled Yoke button flap to make the buttons more likely to stay on and not damage the knitting. It could really use ribbon on the buttonhole side, but I'm not sure I'll be able to psych myself up for all the measuring and sewing involved. It's a bit snug on me, which would be fine if the buttons would stay closed, but it looks better on DD.

I ended up using an odd skein of Silk Garden to edge the rib warmer instead of my Einstein Kureyon. The pattern called for 5 inches of kniting under each arm before turning to go up the fronts. I thought that sounded like too much and only knit 4 inches, but I wish I'd knit only about 2 'cause the arm holes are a little big. I wasn't sure what effect decreasing rows there would have on the whole entity, never having seen one of these in the flesh before. I figured this would be a test run. I've ordered a leaflet from Schoolhouse Press with other options. I have to say that I do like this versions method of doing the back in one piece (not being a fan of seaming in general and seaming garter in particular!)

And I've started something new - the Anne Shoulder Scarf only in Smooshy instead of Anne. Love the color - it's called Good Luck Jade. This was souvenier yarn - from Island Knits in Pawley's Island, SC. Spring break was good knitting/reading/watching movie weather.

A little stash enhancement -

Donegal Tweed from Orchardside and Araucania Naturewool from Yarnela (eBay.) Probably the tweed for a vest - no idea on the Araucania. It may be my favorite yarn ever and I am hoarding it. I have eggplant, brick, tan, blue-green, and a few odd skeins of light blue and brown. I want more.

Re-evaluating 3 months in

Original goals for this year:

• Shawl-collared vest (new) COMPLETE
• Fix DH's sweater (needs to be lengthened) DONE
• Finish Tangled Yoke (needs buttons and underarm seams) Underarms done
• Toggles on CPH
• Finish (???) Malabrigo sweater (UFO - just needs sleeves and neckband)
• Finish Silky Wool sweater (UFO - I think it just needs sleeves)
• Finish Cotton Patine top (UFO - seam and knit edging for armholes)
• Bird's Nest shawl (UFO - maybe 25% completed)
• Heartland shawl (UFO - maybe 15% completed)
• Lamb's Pride cardigan (finish or rip - needs sleeves, seaming)
• Einstein coat (UFO - about 20% completed) Now over half-way done
• Celtic Knot (UFO - about 30% complete)

I guess that's not too bad for less than 3 months work. I have started another project - a version of Elizabeth Zimmerman's Rib Warmer Vest that was in an old issue of Knitters Magazine. I'm nearly halfway done with that. I was wearing the Shawl-collared vest so much I figured I must need another vest! I'm using some Bartlett 2-ply I got on eBay years ago. It's a pretty Bronze color. It's been hanging out in the work basket with the Noro Einstein coat and they look so nice together that I may use some of that Noro for the i-cord edging.

I've modified the Einstein design by knitting the body in one piece for a few inches to avoid having batwing sleeves. I'm pretty much flying by the seat of my pants with this one, making it up as I go along. As you can tell from my past history, I'm not put off by the idea of ripping it out if it doesn't work.

Speaking of ripping out - I'm leaning that way on the Malabrigo sweater. I love the yarn and the sweater is just not living up to expectations. Someone at my knitting group was telling me of a way to alternate yarns when knitting in the round. I may start over trying that. I've pulled out the Celtic knot pullover and Lamb's Pride cabled cardigan, but no decisions yet on their fates.

Progress Report

I've finished the modifcation to Husband's sweater to make it longer. No pictures - it looks the same as before - just longer ;o)

That's 2 down, 10 to go. I don't know if I'll be able to tackle the seaming of the Tangled Yoke in the next week - it's looking pretty hectic and I need to be able to slow down and concentrate. I'm thinking this will be the plan when I do get around to it:

1. Seam underarms
2. Block
3. Darn in ends
4. Sew grosgrain ribbon on button placket
5. Sew buttons
6. Wear it!

Still wearing the vest everyday. I've gotten lots of compliments on it.

I have to decide if I'm going to frog the Malabrigo sweater before I knit any more on the sleeves. Need to slow down and concentrate for that too. My best bet at this point is probably to pick up the Not-so-warm Einstein. Everything else just takes too much thinking for my poor overloaded brain.

What did I wear before I finished this vest?

I finished the knitting except for the button tabs a few days ago, and started wearing it as soon as it dried after blocking. I got the buttons and tabs on two days ago. It's very warm and comfortable to wear, although I do need to wear it with a turtleneck, which is okay since I can't stand to have my neck exposed in cold weather anyway. While I was working on it, my fingers did get better, but that may have been partially due to the warm weather we were having. Now it's cold again, I'm done with the vest, and my fingers are starting to split :o( Maybe I should fondle one of the remaining skeins twice a day?

I've ripped out the ribbing on Husband's sweater and knit most of the additional stockinette. I inadvertently picked up 6's instead of 7's and didn't realize it until I noticed a definite ridge where I started knitting again. By then I'd knit too much to rip out, so I'm hoping that blocking will disguise the ridge and that the tighter gauge will work okay since DH's hips are smaller than his tummy!

I've decided to use some grosgrain ribbon on the buttonband of the Tangled Yoke cardigan. I really hate sewing buttons on knit garments, and I'm hoping the ribbon will help make the job easier and more durable.

I'm really not happy with the patterns the variegation is making in the Malabrigo sweater. It looks better on the reverse side, so I guess I will wear it that way unless I decide to rip it out. It's hard to alternate skeins to avoid that issue when you're knitting in the round!

Nearly done

The shawl-collared vest just needs buttons and tabs. Now I have 3 sweaters to sew buttons on and 2 that need tabs. At least I finally found buttons for the Tangled Yoke cardigan, so once I get the buttons for the vest I can have a finishing party.

Started taking the ribbing off of Husband's sweater - pretty tedious. The old ribbing was an inch and a half. He wants it 3 inches longer so I think I'll knit 2 1/2 more inches of stockinette and then 2 inch ribbing.

The color of this yarn (Cascade 220 in Lichen) does not photograph well - it's a really lovely green with heathery bits of other colors. I'll try to get a picture outside once I get the reknitting done.

Progress report

Moving right along on the vest - the body is complete and one armhole and shoulder are done. Just the other armhole/shoulder and then the shawl collar left (which I understand takes forever.) My finger tips are in better shape, but I don't know if it's the lanolin-rich yarn or the warm weather we've been having. I bought 2 different sets of buttons to try out for the Tangled Yoke, and dug up instructions for lenghthening DH's sweater by ripping out the cast on at the waist which should be a lot quicker than rekniting from the armholes up. I also knit a few rows on the sleeve of the Malabrigo sweater when I needed some mindless knitting and the vest was at a point that required too much attention.

I hope I can make it to our knit group tonight. I haven't been in ages because of scheduling conflicts. I think we will have some new people that found out about us on Ravelry.

2008 Knitting Goals

• Shawl-collared vest (new)
• Fix DH's sweater (needs to be lengthened)
• Finish Tangled Yoke (needs buttons and underarm seams)
• Toggles on CPH
• Finish Malabrigo sweater (UFO - just needs sleeves and neckband)
• Finish Silky Wool sweater (UFO - I think it just needs sleeves)
• Finish Cotton Patine top (UFO - seam and knit edging for armholes)
• Bird's Nest shawl (UFO - maybe 25% completed)
• Heartland shawl (UFO - maybe 15% completed)
• Lamb's Pride cardigan (finish or rip - needs sleeves, seaming)
• Einstein coat (UFO - about 20% completed)
• Celtic Knot (UFO - about 30% complete)

I'm sure other things will slip in there as well, but I'd really like to clean out the UFOs. I find it hard to remember exactly what I was doing when I let them marinate too long. I should take better notes, but this is supposed to be fun, not a job, right?

I did finish 45 items last year. 5 sweaters, 1 vest, 5 shawls, 1 hat, 4 Calorimetrys/ies?, 1 felted bag (that morphed into a cat mat,) 5 scarves, 6 Itty Bitty bears, 2 pairs of felted clogs, 1 pair fulled socks, 1 felted box, and 13 dishcloths. Surely I can manage the 12 items listed this year.

The shawl-collared vest I started 2 days ago is in "Handknitting with Meg Swansen" and I'm using 3-ply wool from the MacAusland Woolen Mill on PEI. It has lots of lanolin and I'm hoping it will help heal my sore, dry fingertips.

The husband sweater was much worn last winter, but he would like it a bit longer, so I will rip back to where I joined the sleeves and add a bit, then reknit the top. No big deal, and a lot easier than knitting a whole new sweater.

I should've finished the Tangled Yoke a couple of months ago, but I'm having trouble finding buttons and I'm putting off seaming the underarms.

The Central Park Hoodie is technically a finished object and was worn quite a bit last year, but I think I would prefer being able to close it, so have found toggles and just need to decide how I want to proceed. I will be doing loops of some sort, possibly like those in the shawl-collared vest pattern.

The rest are just UFOs that have been sitting too long. One or two may end up being ripped out rather than finished. More details as I get to them. The plan is to tackle the list from the top down, but I reserve the right to change the order or to jump around, working some here and some there. Whatever it takes to keep me moving through the list. There are lots of new projects clamoring to be knit, but I think 10 works-in-progress is plenty.