Let me tell you, it was a real shocker to measure the vest on a whim and realize I'm only a few rounds from starting the armhole steeks. Time to get serious! There was a tense moment where I worried about having enough rows to finish the end-of-waist increases for the bust before simultaneously needing to decrease for the arms, but I think it's going to work out fine. If you try telling me that I could have just subtracted the necessary increases from the decreases and life would have been peachy, I will ignore you. Just a warning.
Yesterday was so gorgeous I spent all morning knitting outside, on our porch, without needing a coat. Since taking this picture I've finished the large motif nearest the needles.
Funny story: I kept insisting that I didn't need anything from the yarn shop while we were nearby, but we decided to stop in anyway since it was on the way home, and it took me a half hour in the shop before I remembered I need a crochet hook for Eunny-approved steeking. I have to say, those things are handy. I have never been afraid of dropping down several rows to fix a mistake and just using my regular needles to work my way back up, but the hook definitely tops the list of "Best $3 Purchase In Recent Memory".
Showing posts with label knitting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label knitting. Show all posts
Monday, February 09, 2009
Saturday, February 07, 2009
Last minute change in the lineup
We have a winner! I've decided to go with the Fyne vest and join in with the Vest-uary festivities on Ravelry.
Getting past the ribbing was tough, because it was hard to feel like I was getting anywhere with it. However, yesterday I only had to go in to work for three hours, and I devoted a solid portion of the rest of the day to knitting. Although I don't particularly want to devote every waking moment to the vest between now and March 1, it now seems possible to finish in a month (as per the loosey goosey Vest-uary "rules").
I took a break from the actual vest knitting this morning to lengthen my swatch and reevaluate colors. I've decided to replace the dark forest green in the largest motif with a dark blue color of Felted Tweed I have in my stash, and switch the order of the light blue and purple so that the purple is furthest away from the center. I've probably mentioned before how I'm a bit of a chicken when it comes to changing design colors, so this decision was a Very Big Deal. I had to take a break and talk it over with Mo before I decided to go ahead with the substitution. Having that swatch ready to embroider over in the various colors was a lifesaver--I would hate to knit dozens of 200+ stitch rounds only to decide it didn't look quite how I had expected.
Every time I finish a round I think about how grateful I am that I don't have to start purling. Yay steeks!
Getting past the ribbing was tough, because it was hard to feel like I was getting anywhere with it. However, yesterday I only had to go in to work for three hours, and I devoted a solid portion of the rest of the day to knitting. Although I don't particularly want to devote every waking moment to the vest between now and March 1, it now seems possible to finish in a month (as per the loosey goosey Vest-uary "rules").
I took a break from the actual vest knitting this morning to lengthen my swatch and reevaluate colors. I've decided to replace the dark forest green in the largest motif with a dark blue color of Felted Tweed I have in my stash, and switch the order of the light blue and purple so that the purple is furthest away from the center. I've probably mentioned before how I'm a bit of a chicken when it comes to changing design colors, so this decision was a Very Big Deal. I had to take a break and talk it over with Mo before I decided to go ahead with the substitution. Having that swatch ready to embroider over in the various colors was a lifesaver--I would hate to knit dozens of 200+ stitch rounds only to decide it didn't look quite how I had expected.
Every time I finish a round I think about how grateful I am that I don't have to start purling. Yay steeks!
Friday, January 30, 2009
Hoorah!
I am very, very excited to be wearing this sweater. I am also excited to have captured on film a cat toy escaping behind the door hinge.
When I wear hats and scarves to work I am often asked if I knit, but it's almost as if this is beyond the realm of what people think is possible of a handmade item. I have to admit I enjoy the attention.
Some thoughts on the pattern: If you are thinking about making this, you should strongly consider going down a size, perhaps even two sizes (as I did). I ended up unraveling the first eight inches I knit in order to start over, and it nearly derailed my entire project. I'm generally somewhere in the 37-38" bust range, and having gone down to the smallest size (for a 32" bust) this is still plenty roomy.
I did not incorporate color changes into my swatch because I was concerned about running out of yarn, and I wanted the option of re-knitting from my swatch without having to deal with a million short pieces of yarn. Although I think the sizing problem is more the fault of the pattern than my particular batch of yarns, it is possible that my swatching decision contributed as well. There was a highly variable level of twist between each color, which may have changed my spot-on gauge measurement into something a little...roomier. I relied on several vendors in order to assemble all of the colors, so I think it may simply have been because some of the yarn was much older (for instance, the now-discontinued dusty rose).
The sweater is flattering and (as long as you compensate for the sizing problems) I think the original pattern picture does a good job of portraying the type of fit--if you want to make a statement with your figure, you will need a bra with an attitude, because there is no bust shaping.
If I were to suddenly have the patience, sewing experience, and visualizing/charting/math skills to change one thing about this pattern, it would be to modify the shape of the set in sleeve. The sleeves begin farther down on the torso than I think is entirely necessary, which makes it feel slightly like having miniature bat wings. However, I know that I am not yet at the point where I want to start messing around with changing armholes, so I'm pretty darn satisfied with how this turned out.
Three last words of advice: buy (and use) stitch markers, first of all; count often; and forgive yourself if your stitch count gets off for a few rows. Feather and fan is forgiving, and I can't tell you how many times I compensated for a mistake several rows later instead of going back six rows to fix it. I can't tell you because it is practically impossible to tell without a magnifying glass and a severe case of OCD.
Working on and completing this project after more than a year and a half has greatly influenced the type of project I am interested in tackling next. For the longest time I thought I would want to work on Salina--I finished the moss stitch hem last winter and the Felted Tweed looks absolutely delicious--but I don't think that is enough of a challenge. Besides, I have plenty of classic, single color sweaters in my wardrobe already, and although they aren't hand knit I don't feel an urgent desire to add another one.
So here are the top contenders: a slightly elongated Fyne vest, with added bust shaping and steeks for the arms and neck, or a Tangled Yoke. I already have the yarn I would use for both of them, but so far it seems like the Fyne vest may be winning as I have already swatched. Stay tuned.
When I wear hats and scarves to work I am often asked if I knit, but it's almost as if this is beyond the realm of what people think is possible of a handmade item. I have to admit I enjoy the attention.
Some thoughts on the pattern: If you are thinking about making this, you should strongly consider going down a size, perhaps even two sizes (as I did). I ended up unraveling the first eight inches I knit in order to start over, and it nearly derailed my entire project. I'm generally somewhere in the 37-38" bust range, and having gone down to the smallest size (for a 32" bust) this is still plenty roomy.
I did not incorporate color changes into my swatch because I was concerned about running out of yarn, and I wanted the option of re-knitting from my swatch without having to deal with a million short pieces of yarn. Although I think the sizing problem is more the fault of the pattern than my particular batch of yarns, it is possible that my swatching decision contributed as well. There was a highly variable level of twist between each color, which may have changed my spot-on gauge measurement into something a little...roomier. I relied on several vendors in order to assemble all of the colors, so I think it may simply have been because some of the yarn was much older (for instance, the now-discontinued dusty rose).
The sweater is flattering and (as long as you compensate for the sizing problems) I think the original pattern picture does a good job of portraying the type of fit--if you want to make a statement with your figure, you will need a bra with an attitude, because there is no bust shaping.
If I were to suddenly have the patience, sewing experience, and visualizing/charting/math skills to change one thing about this pattern, it would be to modify the shape of the set in sleeve. The sleeves begin farther down on the torso than I think is entirely necessary, which makes it feel slightly like having miniature bat wings. However, I know that I am not yet at the point where I want to start messing around with changing armholes, so I'm pretty darn satisfied with how this turned out.
Three last words of advice: buy (and use) stitch markers, first of all; count often; and forgive yourself if your stitch count gets off for a few rows. Feather and fan is forgiving, and I can't tell you how many times I compensated for a mistake several rows later instead of going back six rows to fix it. I can't tell you because it is practically impossible to tell without a magnifying glass and a severe case of OCD.
Working on and completing this project after more than a year and a half has greatly influenced the type of project I am interested in tackling next. For the longest time I thought I would want to work on Salina--I finished the moss stitch hem last winter and the Felted Tweed looks absolutely delicious--but I don't think that is enough of a challenge. Besides, I have plenty of classic, single color sweaters in my wardrobe already, and although they aren't hand knit I don't feel an urgent desire to add another one.
So here are the top contenders: a slightly elongated Fyne vest, with added bust shaping and steeks for the arms and neck, or a Tangled Yoke. I already have the yarn I would use for both of them, but so far it seems like the Fyne vest may be winning as I have already swatched. Stay tuned.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Does she or doesn't she?
She does! Finish, that is, not run out of yarn, although it was certainly close towards the end. If I had an overflowing basket of these yarns (or even just another two yards of the khaki, white and the lightest blue) I probably would have done the last few stripes differently, but I'm still quite pleased with this tidy little jacket. My cousin has a great deal of experience in designing clothes, and I was sorely tempted to gift this as an amoeba without sewing up the sleeve seams, just so she could see how it looks before hand. I will admit that it makes a much better presentation with all parts properly attached.
I couldn't find a lot of information about the best way to seam together perpendicular pieces of garter stitch, so I ended up just trying a bunch of things until something worked. The first thing I tried was stitching right behind the cast on row on the back, but because the stitching resembles a knit stitch it appeared as if there were two rows in stockinette right at the transition. I was worried that the seam would get bulky if I hid a knit row with the cast on edge, but the yarn is small enough that it didn't make much of a difference. If I have something critical to add before I find buttons I may post a close up of the seam, because I am very proud of how they turned out. If you're impatient you can just poke around on my Flickr page (click on the picture above).
I couldn't find a lot of information about the best way to seam together perpendicular pieces of garter stitch, so I ended up just trying a bunch of things until something worked. The first thing I tried was stitching right behind the cast on row on the back, but because the stitching resembles a knit stitch it appeared as if there were two rows in stockinette right at the transition. I was worried that the seam would get bulky if I hid a knit row with the cast on edge, but the yarn is small enough that it didn't make much of a difference. If I have something critical to add before I find buttons I may post a close up of the seam, because I am very proud of how they turned out. If you're impatient you can just poke around on my Flickr page (click on the picture above).
Sunday, May 25, 2008
If-I-knit-faster-I'll-have-enough-yarn
This is a common misperception, is it not? At this point, a few rows short of halfway, I had 3.5 ounces of knit fabric, and 4 ounces of yarn. I had to rip out project to even get that much, a neckerchief that I never would have worn. I'm pretty sure that I'll have enough to finish, but there is still the question of whether I'll be changing colors in the middle of rows. I also have two untouched skeins leftover from the same sweater as all of the yarn pictured, but as it is a pastel pink it may not be the best match.
With this small sweater I have connected to the Yankee within. Knitting down each tiny skein within an inch of its life and strategizing about when to switch colors has been a true pleasure. I don't think the sweater would have been half as fun if I were working with a bountiful excess of cotton. It feels cleansing to know that there is that much more space left in my showcase box of yarn, although I'm sure some quick rearranging will fill it.
With this small sweater I have connected to the Yankee within. Knitting down each tiny skein within an inch of its life and strategizing about when to switch colors has been a true pleasure. I don't think the sweater would have been half as fun if I were working with a bountiful excess of cotton. It feels cleansing to know that there is that much more space left in my showcase box of yarn, although I'm sure some quick rearranging will fill it.
Friday, May 23, 2008
Surprise!
No matter how shocking the final construction of this garment, the real surprise is that I ever found the pattern again. Sometimes packing up can be a marvelous thing. I've been intending to get this Baby Surprise Jacket started since the end of last summer, and it feels good to be whittling down the yarn in my "use is imminent" box.
That's all for today!
That's all for today!
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Stalling
I can't remember exactly how I got this far on the Claudia hat because I haven't been knitting on it for days. I haven't forgotten it but I've definitely been stalling. I'm far enough along to start the decreases for the top, except that I bought my size 6 dpns in January while I was making a concerted effort to control my knitting expenses. My entire purchase that day was within my budget and I was the very embodiment of virtue. I've been paying for it ever since.
I got a set of Susan Bates dpns and they would be perfect except they came in a set of four needles instead of five. Knitting in the round with only four dpns feels awkward, and I have a hard time knitting a few extra stitches onto each needle to move the join. I started doing this when I made my first Odessa, and I've found that moving the join is key to avoiding tension problems in my knitting. I made my first socks on two circulars, and it's fairly clear where one circular ended and the next began. As it was my first attempt with fair-isle, the entirety of the first sock could be said to have some tension issues because I either hadn't heard or didn't take seriously the advise to space out your stitches before changing colors. However, I'm pretty sure that the tightest spots on the sock occur right at the joins because I was overcompensating for the stitches being pulled apart by the weight of the needles. I have one pairs worth of Koigu in my stash from Marylen, and I can guarantee that it will get worked up on five needles if I ever get to it.
I got a set of Susan Bates dpns and they would be perfect except they came in a set of four needles instead of five. Knitting in the round with only four dpns feels awkward, and I have a hard time knitting a few extra stitches onto each needle to move the join. I started doing this when I made my first Odessa, and I've found that moving the join is key to avoiding tension problems in my knitting. I made my first socks on two circulars, and it's fairly clear where one circular ended and the next began. As it was my first attempt with fair-isle, the entirety of the first sock could be said to have some tension issues because I either hadn't heard or didn't take seriously the advise to space out your stitches before changing colors. However, I'm pretty sure that the tightest spots on the sock occur right at the joins because I was overcompensating for the stitches being pulled apart by the weight of the needles. I have one pairs worth of Koigu in my stash from Marylen, and I can guarantee that it will get worked up on five needles if I ever get to it.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Packing up & moving out
Despite the fact that this looks exactly like the back we have come to know and love, this is the front. Mo and I had a crazy busy weekend--I finished my last college paper on Friday morning at 3 am, and three hours later a friend drove us to the Springfield train station for a trip to Philly. I would have accomplished more of the sweater on the way down, but I was understandably exhausted and didn't even get all the way through the ribbing. Packing at three in the morning is never a good idea, especially when there is unpleasant weather on the horizon. Neither of us remembered (or should I say, both remembered and packed) a rain jacket, so we were freezing and soggy on the first day of our visit. We did not find an apartment we liked, but spending time in the area gave us a much better idea of where to look.
I started packing up my things today. The first box is always the hardest for me, and I tend to start with something easy. When I left for college it was my favorite books, and today it was all the yarn I don't plan on using over the next five days. I found and tried on a second iteration of Green Gables which is much better than the first but still needs some tweaking with the sleeves. We'll have to see what I'm up for once I've finished with this purple beauty. The bursts of colder weather we keep having are taunting me, telling me that if I finished the sweater by Sunday I'd be able to wear it to graduation, but I'm pretty sure that I don't want to spend my last week (almost half over already!) knitting on a deadline.
I started packing up my things today. The first box is always the hardest for me, and I tend to start with something easy. When I left for college it was my favorite books, and today it was all the yarn I don't plan on using over the next five days. I found and tried on a second iteration of Green Gables which is much better than the first but still needs some tweaking with the sleeves. We'll have to see what I'm up for once I've finished with this purple beauty. The bursts of colder weather we keep having are taunting me, telling me that if I finished the sweater by Sunday I'd be able to wear it to graduation, but I'm pretty sure that I don't want to spend my last week (almost half over already!) knitting on a deadline.
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Obsession
I woke up the first morning of reading period several hours before our alarm was set to go off, compulsively thinking about knitting. When I first saw the preview for the spring Interweave Knits, I was underwhelmed by the Drawstring Raglan. Something about the color striping bothered me, but I just decided the pattern wasn't for me. Then the gallery went up at Knitting Daily, and I realized it was the colors that were driving me crazy; the dark charcoal color seemed to fade into the purple stripe it surrounds, which makes a huge dark block. I would never knit something like that.
Overnight I must have dreamed about the drawstring raglan, because I certainly wasn't thinking about horticulture and the growing habit of green beans. The first thought that came to me when I woke up was the fact that I still have linen yarn left from making facecloths a while ago. The colors would be perfect.
It's all over. I don't have the rest of the yarn yet, but I've placed an order for two balls of Cotlin from Knitpicks, and they'll be auditioning shortly. I've decided to make the bottom half of the sweater be a combination of textures, much like Adrienne's blanket pictured above. I first saw the Colinette Absolutely Fabulous Blanket when we visited Marylen, and it was the first time I really understood why you would use such a large group of radically different yarns on the same project. It's beautiful! (Fairy Godmother moment number three) Hopefully the final sweater will be slightly more sedate, as I think there could be a strong tendency towards blanket-qualities if I go too nuts with the color and texture mixing. I still have about $30 left on a gift certificate to Webs, and so I'm currently considering all of their linens. I'm particularly drawn to Elsebeth Lavold's new yarn called Bamboucle, and even though I haven't seen it yet in person I'm pretty sure that at least one stripe will make it into the final garment.
Many thanks to Adrienne of Yarn for Brains for allowing me to use her picture. Her Ravelry page for this blanket is here, and she's blogged about this photo here. There are a lot of other gorgeous Ab Fab blankets on Ravelry, I recommend taking a look around.
Overnight I must have dreamed about the drawstring raglan, because I certainly wasn't thinking about horticulture and the growing habit of green beans. The first thought that came to me when I woke up was the fact that I still have linen yarn left from making facecloths a while ago. The colors would be perfect.
It's all over. I don't have the rest of the yarn yet, but I've placed an order for two balls of Cotlin from Knitpicks, and they'll be auditioning shortly. I've decided to make the bottom half of the sweater be a combination of textures, much like Adrienne's blanket pictured above. I first saw the Colinette Absolutely Fabulous Blanket when we visited Marylen, and it was the first time I really understood why you would use such a large group of radically different yarns on the same project. It's beautiful! (Fairy Godmother moment number three) Hopefully the final sweater will be slightly more sedate, as I think there could be a strong tendency towards blanket-qualities if I go too nuts with the color and texture mixing. I still have about $30 left on a gift certificate to Webs, and so I'm currently considering all of their linens. I'm particularly drawn to Elsebeth Lavold's new yarn called Bamboucle, and even though I haven't seen it yet in person I'm pretty sure that at least one stripe will make it into the final garment.
Many thanks to Adrienne of Yarn for Brains for allowing me to use her picture. Her Ravelry page for this blanket is here, and she's blogged about this photo here. There are a lot of other gorgeous Ab Fab blankets on Ravelry, I recommend taking a look around.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Claudia hat
I may or may not have started this hat because I wanted to take a picture of something besides Alouette. This is the Claudia hat by MJ Kim at exartstudent, and it turns out that the chart I was so excited about before is entirely unnecessary. I still think it's a pretty chart and amazing that something so professional looking can be made online, for free, but I digress. This pattern is destined for stardom. I feel it in my bones.
I'm using Malabrigo Merino Worsted, which I first saw in person when Mo's mom Lydia (hi!) gave Mo a gorgeous gray version of the My So Called Scarf. Now I understand why everyone goes nuts for the stuff. It truly is amazingly soft. The colors in the photo look a little more blue than the yarn is in real life, which is slightly more emphatic about being purple than I realized in the store (not that I mind, I'm on a purple kick as well). It's a bit tight doing all the cables on size 4 needles and if I were to start over again I might use a size 5 circular. Then again, I might not. We've probably figured out by now that I am highly attracted to knitting tightly even though I know it isn't good for me.
I just listened to the most recent episode of YKnit, which will be up in the sidebar as soon as I have a spare moment. It was a really interesting episode, they interviewed Lucy Neatby and I highly recommend taking a listen.
I'm using Malabrigo Merino Worsted, which I first saw in person when Mo's mom Lydia (hi!) gave Mo a gorgeous gray version of the My So Called Scarf. Now I understand why everyone goes nuts for the stuff. It truly is amazingly soft. The colors in the photo look a little more blue than the yarn is in real life, which is slightly more emphatic about being purple than I realized in the store (not that I mind, I'm on a purple kick as well). It's a bit tight doing all the cables on size 4 needles and if I were to start over again I might use a size 5 circular. Then again, I might not. We've probably figured out by now that I am highly attracted to knitting tightly even though I know it isn't good for me.
I just listened to the most recent episode of YKnit, which will be up in the sidebar as soon as I have a spare moment. It was a really interesting episode, they interviewed Lucy Neatby and I highly recommend taking a listen.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Progress on Alouette
My goal was to finish the back before taking another picture, but it was suitably overcast this morning and I couldn't resist. Look! Armhole shaping!
Even though I have a long way to go, I'm looking forward to seaming this up. What I am not looking forward to is dealing with all of the ends. Working on the striped Kidsilk Haze scarf reminded me that I can keep some of the yarn running up the side instead of cutting after every color block. In the picture here it may be hard to tell exactly what's going on because the yarn is actually attached to the sweater outside of the frame, but I've just finished the first 2 rows of brown and started knitting with the cream. I've left the brown attached and when I've finished the back-and-forth with the cream I'll pick up the brown again and keep knitting. Besides a few accidental cuts, I've nearly been able to halve the number of ends I'll have to deal with later, which is a huge help.
Even though I have a long way to go, I'm looking forward to seaming this up. What I am not looking forward to is dealing with all of the ends. Working on the striped Kidsilk Haze scarf reminded me that I can keep some of the yarn running up the side instead of cutting after every color block. In the picture here it may be hard to tell exactly what's going on because the yarn is actually attached to the sweater outside of the frame, but I've just finished the first 2 rows of brown and started knitting with the cream. I've left the brown attached and when I've finished the back-and-forth with the cream I'll pick up the brown again and keep knitting. Besides a few accidental cuts, I've nearly been able to halve the number of ends I'll have to deal with later, which is a huge help.
Monday, April 21, 2008
An armful of yarny goodness.
I have been dutifully working on Alouette, and I've managed to catch up to the length I had before recognizing my mistake with the stripes. I will be much happier finishing the sweater now that it has symmetric color striping, but there was something interesting about the not-quite-as-rigid color changing. I think my next experiment with stripes will be a little more spur of the moment.
In the meantime, here's what I have hiding in my closet (because really, how many pictures of that sweater can you stand in a row?). It's all Dale Baby Ull. I wasn't sure about the orange before I held them all up with the skein of white, but now I'm convinced that the colors will work. I'm still waiting for a circumference measurement on the intended recipient, and I don't mind the short repreive. Having already missed the birthday, any further delay that isn't my fault is fine by me.
In the meantime, here's what I have hiding in my closet (because really, how many pictures of that sweater can you stand in a row?). It's all Dale Baby Ull. I wasn't sure about the orange before I held them all up with the skein of white, but now I'm convinced that the colors will work. I'm still waiting for a circumference measurement on the intended recipient, and I don't mind the short repreive. Having already missed the birthday, any further delay that isn't my fault is fine by me.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Revisiting the Tortoise and the Hare
It wasn't until I saw this picture sized down on Flickr that I realized I've been following the stripe pattern improperly. The second set of brown stripes is supposed to have a total of six oatmeal rows right below it, but right now there are only two. What a bummer. I don't really mind the ripping out, it's just that I now feel like I have thoroughly wasted all the time I spent knitting between taking the photo and actually looking at it.
I was just reveling in how much better I was doing this time around, too. If you ignore the frogging festivities about to take place, I've already caught up with where I was in the fall. The best part about this news is that I haven't been an obsessive maniac this time around. In the fall I was committed to cranking this out, and I spent such long stretches of time knitting that my hands started to hurt. Strangely enough, it wasn't actually the knitting motion that started giving me problems. I keep having to toss around the balls to let out some of the extra twist that gets introduced with every stitch, and all that flipping was making my wrists hurt. I don't know if this overtwisting is a common problem or particular to certain types of yarn, but I can't remember hearing anything about it before. Fortunately there have been no wrist problems so far.
I was just reveling in how much better I was doing this time around, too. If you ignore the frogging festivities about to take place, I've already caught up with where I was in the fall. The best part about this news is that I haven't been an obsessive maniac this time around. In the fall I was committed to cranking this out, and I spent such long stretches of time knitting that my hands started to hurt. Strangely enough, it wasn't actually the knitting motion that started giving me problems. I keep having to toss around the balls to let out some of the extra twist that gets introduced with every stitch, and all that flipping was making my wrists hurt. I don't know if this overtwisting is a common problem or particular to certain types of yarn, but I can't remember hearing anything about it before. Fortunately there have been no wrist problems so far.
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Starting over
I was all set to buy yarn this weekend, but Webs doesn't carry Dale Baby Ull in orange, which I really think would be ideal for the whale sweater. I found a ball via Ravelry and I'm waiting for that to show up, but I had to start something in the meantime. I have several sweaters'-worth of yarn, but I'm still trying to work out exactly which yarn belongs to which pattern. It seemed safest to return to Alouette, a long-neglected project which has been hiding in my closet for several months. I don't think I ever gave a proper explanation for why this sweater dropped out of view, but maybe the picture gives you a hint. I swear that I made a large swatch, which I even washed it before measuring. Somehow when I started the actual sweater it grew more than I expected. I was extremely reluctant to notice how large the back was, so I ended up knitting almost all of the way to the armpit before measuring. It's a full two inches wider than intended, which is far outside the range of fudging. I've now started over again in a smaller size, and I'm falling in love with this sweater (and yarn) all over again. I can't wait to wear it and I hope there are a few brisk spring days left by the time I'm done.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Ta dah!
So now the shoulders will fit a swimmer, instead of a linebacker, which is a drastic improvement. I used fewer decrease rows than I did the first time, because I figured most young kids have enormous heads and it simply wouldn't do to squeeze the living daylights out of them. Unfortunately I don't know any local two year olds of the appropriate size, so there may not be any cute toddler-in-a-sweater pictures for a while.
Now that I've finished this I feel absolutely justified buying yarn to make the whale sweater, and I am really excited about getting that started. Web's is even having a sale on old standby yarns for the entire month of April, so I'm hoping to find a good match when I go this weekend.
I have to say that it feels weird to have finished this so quickly. Even though I started this before spring break, I feel like there should still be something left for me to do, but I've even woven in all the ends. The rugby sweater I made for Zanthe had a million color changes, which ate up a lot of time, besides being twice the size of the intended recipient.
Now that I've finished this I feel absolutely justified buying yarn to make the whale sweater, and I am really excited about getting that started. Web's is even having a sale on old standby yarns for the entire month of April, so I'm hoping to find a good match when I go this weekend.
I have to say that it feels weird to have finished this so quickly. Even though I started this before spring break, I feel like there should still be something left for me to do, but I've even woven in all the ends. The rugby sweater I made for Zanthe had a million color changes, which ate up a lot of time, besides being twice the size of the intended recipient.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Fairy Godmother, part II
The second amazing thing that happened when I visited Marylen was that she let me borrow two of her Denise cables and her size 7 tips. I had finished the body and both sleeves of the sweater, but I was having the hardest time attaching the sleeves to start the yoke. My needles were simply too long and inflexible to go all the way around the diameter of the tiny, baby-sized sleeves. I tried using the two-circulars method, but that didn't work out either. Maybe I was just being impatient, but it was getting incredibly complicated, especially because the pattern has you graft together the underarm stitches at the very end, so there were 2 extra balls of yarn getting tangled in everything. These needles are both shorter and a little bendy, so the yoke is no longer a problem.
I actually already finished this on Friday, but because I'm figuring out the decreases and short rows as I go along, the first attempt came out looking like a linebacker. It was incredibly depressing. So far this attempt is looking much better (although if my monitor is any indication, flickr is having some issues and you can't tell what the sweater looks like at all. I will try to fix the picture issue later).
I actually already finished this on Friday, but because I'm figuring out the decreases and short rows as I go along, the first attempt came out looking like a linebacker. It was incredibly depressing. So far this attempt is looking much better (although if my monitor is any indication, flickr is having some issues and you can't tell what the sweater looks like at all. I will try to fix the picture issue later).
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Reincarnation
Do you remember seeing that Youtube video a while ago where the knitter was on a cliff, and she ran out of yarn so she started knitting from her sweater, and then she ran out of sweater so she started knitting her own hair? That's what I feel like while I'm working on the sleeve for the toddler-sized Cobblestone. Ordinarily I would have unwound and rinsed the yarn to relax the kinks out of it, but I followed a hunch that it would straighten out on its own, and it's been working better than I expected. I think it's because of the two levels of plying (each ply in the yarn is itself a two ply strand).
Mo and I are in St. Louis because Mo is writing a paper about the construction of the Arch, so I may have a traveling sleeve pic over the next few days. My goal is to completely finish this sweater by the time we get back to Northampton on Sunday, but there's a lot of church happening in the next few days so I'm not sure how much I'll get done before our flight.
After going to the Central Library today (which has an amazing reading room) we picked up Mo's mom Lydia and went to Knitorious, their local knitting shop. I was really impressed with their selection of yarns and I'd love to go back sometime when I don't have a million and six projects on needles. Tomorrow we're going to a bead shop so Lydia can pick out some beads to make Odessa, which should be exciting. I haven't gone looking for beads since elementary school, so this should be a new experience.
Mo and I are in St. Louis because Mo is writing a paper about the construction of the Arch, so I may have a traveling sleeve pic over the next few days. My goal is to completely finish this sweater by the time we get back to Northampton on Sunday, but there's a lot of church happening in the next few days so I'm not sure how much I'll get done before our flight.
After going to the Central Library today (which has an amazing reading room) we picked up Mo's mom Lydia and went to Knitorious, their local knitting shop. I was really impressed with their selection of yarns and I'd love to go back sometime when I don't have a million and six projects on needles. Tomorrow we're going to a bead shop so Lydia can pick out some beads to make Odessa, which should be exciting. I haven't gone looking for beads since elementary school, so this should be a new experience.
Friday, March 14, 2008
Catching up with old friends
This was the first sweater/top that I made for myself, and I can't say that I count it entirely in the success column. It's true, it does look like a garment, but it doesn't fit me very well. The biggest problem is length. It isn't long enough to wear without a cardigan of some kind, but it is also quite warm on its own (even without long sleeves). I finished this in the middle of the summer and I was absolutely determined to wear it. I managed, but I can't say that it was an enjoyable experience. It felt much better wearing it in January, but that still doesn't take care of the length issue.
I used the Green Gable pattern by Zephyr Style, and knit it up in Classic Elite Wool Bam Boo. I used leftovers from this sweater to make the two Odessa hats, because the thought of putting this back on the needles was just too painful. Not that there is anything wrong with either the yarn or pattern, I just feel like I have given this sweater as much time and love as it is ever going to get.
(Many thanks to Julia for modeling)
I used the Green Gable pattern by Zephyr Style, and knit it up in Classic Elite Wool Bam Boo. I used leftovers from this sweater to make the two Odessa hats, because the thought of putting this back on the needles was just too painful. Not that there is anything wrong with either the yarn or pattern, I just feel like I have given this sweater as much time and love as it is ever going to get.
(Many thanks to Julia for modeling)
Friday, March 07, 2008
Doubts...
I finished up the back of Jordan's sweater yesterday, and I am having second thoughts about several things. The first is sizing; 30" is way too big. This can be easily remedied.
The second is this combination of yarn and pattern. It has definitely been nice (and fast) knitting with worsted weight wool, and the stitches themselves look gorgeous. However, if I'm going to start over with this yarn in a smaller size, I will have fewer stitches, and I really don't want to loose any more detail with the whale on the front.
One thing I'm not having regrets about is this garter stitch border. In fact, I think it may be the only thing I will really miss when I start ripping this out. I started thinking about designs that incorporate an abundance of garter stitch. Everything by Elizabeth Zimmerman came to mind, especially the Baby Surprise Jacket and the Tomtom jacket, although I had a disturbingly difficult time finding anything she has written, despite my absolute certainty that 2 books and 1 pattern sheet are hidden in my bedroom. ("Disturbingly difficult" may be interpreted to mean that I did not actually find any of them) After this brief interlude I thought of Jared Flood's Cobblestone, clearly inspired by Zimmerman, and everything seems to have clicked into place.
I refuse to buy more yarn to make this sweater before I have used up the Zenith. Pangs of guilt will eat through me like Coke on a car bonnet if I take a trip to Webs before the final blocking. Conveniently enough for me, Jordan is a twin. The Zenith can remain designated as Jordan's yarn, re-purposed for a toddler sized Cobblestone, and his sister Isla will now be the lucky recipient of a whale sweater. Doubly lucky for me, because when I switch to a smaller yarn (I'm thinking Dale Falk or Baby Ull) I'll also be able to make a smaller sweater overall; Jordan is much taller than his sister. If I'm going to switch to a sport or even fingering weight yarn, though, I'm definitely going to take a less cavalier attitude about measurements before casting on. The last fingering weight sweater I cast on was Allouette, and the only appropriate description of its status is...languishing.
(Just a note--there is a fantastic example of a scaled-down Cobblestone here)
The second is this combination of yarn and pattern. It has definitely been nice (and fast) knitting with worsted weight wool, and the stitches themselves look gorgeous. However, if I'm going to start over with this yarn in a smaller size, I will have fewer stitches, and I really don't want to loose any more detail with the whale on the front.
One thing I'm not having regrets about is this garter stitch border. In fact, I think it may be the only thing I will really miss when I start ripping this out. I started thinking about designs that incorporate an abundance of garter stitch. Everything by Elizabeth Zimmerman came to mind, especially the Baby Surprise Jacket and the Tomtom jacket, although I had a disturbingly difficult time finding anything she has written, despite my absolute certainty that 2 books and 1 pattern sheet are hidden in my bedroom. ("Disturbingly difficult" may be interpreted to mean that I did not actually find any of them) After this brief interlude I thought of Jared Flood's Cobblestone, clearly inspired by Zimmerman, and everything seems to have clicked into place.
I refuse to buy more yarn to make this sweater before I have used up the Zenith. Pangs of guilt will eat through me like Coke on a car bonnet if I take a trip to Webs before the final blocking. Conveniently enough for me, Jordan is a twin. The Zenith can remain designated as Jordan's yarn, re-purposed for a toddler sized Cobblestone, and his sister Isla will now be the lucky recipient of a whale sweater. Doubly lucky for me, because when I switch to a smaller yarn (I'm thinking Dale Falk or Baby Ull) I'll also be able to make a smaller sweater overall; Jordan is much taller than his sister. If I'm going to switch to a sport or even fingering weight yarn, though, I'm definitely going to take a less cavalier attitude about measurements before casting on. The last fingering weight sweater I cast on was Allouette, and the only appropriate description of its status is...languishing.
(Just a note--there is a fantastic example of a scaled-down Cobblestone here)
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Jordan's Whale
How cute is this whale? You have no idea how excited I am about knitting this chart. I've been kicking around the idea of a blue sweater with an orange whale since my very first attempt at colorwork (it was this tiny scrap). The orange is an aggressive color, so I've inserted a purple "W" to help bridge the gap between the deep blue and the bright orange. I haven't brought this in to Webs yet, so I'm not sure if the shade will be right, but if it seems off I think I'll go for either a green or a light blue.
I've solicited through Ravelry and found a knitter willing to send me a scrap to use for the eye, which is fantastic because buying an entire ball of yarn for that single stitch would be absolutely ridiculous.
I've already knit the back of the sweater up past the bottom of the sleeve join, and I'm a little concerned that it will be gigantic when it's finished. I'm making the 30" circumference size, and Jordan is only turning two, but he's on the tall side. The family lives in a warm climate so he'll have quite a while before he needs a sweater again. Besides, 3 year olds can wear whales, right?
I've solicited through Ravelry and found a knitter willing to send me a scrap to use for the eye, which is fantastic because buying an entire ball of yarn for that single stitch would be absolutely ridiculous.
I've already knit the back of the sweater up past the bottom of the sleeve join, and I'm a little concerned that it will be gigantic when it's finished. I'm making the 30" circumference size, and Jordan is only turning two, but he's on the tall side. The family lives in a warm climate so he'll have quite a while before he needs a sweater again. Besides, 3 year olds can wear whales, right?
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