Beautiful Shawl

I've been meaning to share this for awhile, but school, family, and my new doggie have taken precedence over blogging. Will you ever forgive me? For today's post I get to share my first ever test knitting project. Michele Bernstein aka "PDXKnitterati" was looking for knitters to test her "Pacific Shawl" pattern. I so love Michele's designs that I asked if I could give it a try.










Over Labor Day weekend (yes, that long ago), I cast on using some stash BMFA lightweight yarn & away I went. I've never done a test knit before, so I was a tad bit nervous. Fortunately, Michele is such a great pattern writer & the pattern so wonderful that I was able zip right along.
As with many triangular shawl patterns, most of the first section is knit in stockinette with periodic increases to give it shape. Then came the fun "waves" lace pattern. Michele had included beads in the pattern & after my last experience with beads, I was a little reluctant. However - these beads are placed as you knit, using a tiny-weeny crochet hook - no pre-stringing required (Huzzah!)


Of course - beading is easier when you have the correct size crochet hook. I was down on the Kenai Peninsula with friends when I realized the hooks I had in my bag were too big. I was just going to forget about the beads (they are optional) when my ingenious friend created a mini-crochet hook using a twist tie. How clever is she?! She admitted that she really wanted to see the beading process & what the beads would look like against the yarn. I have to say - the twist-tie hook was perfect. So - if you ever find yourself in need of a teeny-tiny hook, you can save a few bucks & use a twist tie - provided you have one of those lying around. :0)


Details:

Pattern: Pacific Shawl by Michele Bernstein

Yarn: BMFA Socks That Rock Lightweight, "Beryl" colorway

Beads: Size 6 Triangular Seed Bead

Needles: US 6

Size: Small

Thanks for this opportunity Michele! :0)

Ciao!

Back to School Sweater...

I'm baaaaaaaaack.... (think Poltergeist). I know - it's been a while & I'll use the usual excuse that I've been crazy busy as is expected with the beginning of a new school year. So let's just cut to the chase & share with you a F.O. I've designated as my "Back to School Sweater" well - because I wore it on the first day "back to school". And yes - the school year is going well; classes are large, but my students seem to be a great bunch, thankyouforasking.

Project Details:

Pattern: Kiama by Berroco. This was "harlotized" earlier this year & I was fascinated by the drape and construction.

Yarn: Origami by Berroco in the "Canteloupe Freeze" colorway (I think...) Very interesting mix of fibers - acrylic (!), nylon, cotton, and Linen. I've yet to officially block the garment, so I can't report on how well it softens up. I can say that while the yarn has a different feel than wool, it wasn't hard on the hands & the finished garment has a nice feel to it.

Needle: US8

Size: S/M

Overall - I very easy knit. You essentially knit starting at one sleeve, increase for the arms, knit flat for the back & then decrease for the other arm. Arms are seemed together up to the armpits & then stitches are picked up & you knit back & forth in a ribbed pattern for the collar & skirt of the sweater. Pretty easy even though I'm convinced I've made some mistake somewhere as the ribbing on the shawl portion goes in a different direction than the collar/skirt portion. I think it's a little too long in the back & the Yarn Harlots suggestion of doing short rows at a certain part of the pattern would have been a good idea. Love hindsight and all that. I figure that with standing in front of teenagers all day having a slightly longer sweater certainly isn't a bad thing.

I think it looks fine & I've received plenty of complements. It fits well & is surprisingly 'in style' - I've notices lots of similar type cardigans being worn this fall - full & drapey in the front.

Of course - since it's the beginning of the school year (or at least it was - the first day of school around here was August 18) I must include the requisite first day of school photos in front of the fireplace (I planned ahead this year - no last minute shots in the driveway before we zip off to school!)

First - My 3rd grader:
Pretty cute photo if I do say so. He is often uncooperative with photos - perhaps I threatened him this time? Can't remember...

Next - my 5th (!!) grader. How is it possible I have a child who is 10 years old?

He is more comfortable and cooperative in front of the camera.

"Hey boys - let's get a photo of the two of you together":

Grrrr.... Fortunately this was really all in jest & that most of the time the following photo best captures their true relationship:

I'm a pretty lucky mom.

I plan on less blog silence and more knitting (another wee FO & test knitting FO to share) coming soon.

Ciao!

Road Trip Sweater FO

As promised - a post about my 3rd Road Trip knitted finished FO, albeit much later than intended. We've been home for a few days now, but haven't had the weather cooperate enough for a photo shoot. So - when the skies finally "cleared", I grabbed my sweater, camera, and photographer and set out to finally get some photos so I can finally write this blog post.

Details:

Pattern: Mondo Cable Pullover by Chic Knits. Before our road trip I was looking for a pattern that would be an easy knit for the road. Luckily for me, my knitting/blogging friend at OneMoreRow shared that she was currently knitting this & I thought "That's Perfect!" (And it was!) Thanks HollyJo!


Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts "Peru" - A blend of silk, angora, and merino wool. Total yarn yumminess! The yardage on the skeins of Peru are so generous (500 yds/skein) that I only used 1.5 skeins for the entire sweater! I think I used one skein for the entire body of the sweater & only dipped into the 2nd skein for the ribbed edge of the body & the sleeves. My knitting goals for the road trip knitting were to complete as many projects as I could (check!) and also reduce the stash. I thought knitting a sweater would be the perfect project to destash. So - it looks like to fully complete my goal I have to knit another project with this yarn. I'll share that project soon, I hope.

The Raglan Detail - My First!

Needles: US8 on my knit picks options (love them!) I only chose the 8 because it was the recommended size for this yarn & seemed to give me the gauge I needed for the size. After completing the sweater & blocking it, I think I could even have gone down a needle size. However - the size 8 created a nice drapey fabric - perfect for a sweater that I can throw on in a pinch, or pair with a nice pair of slacks or a skirt for a more dressy occasion.

Have I mentioned how much I love cables?!?

Mods: This was my first top-down sweater (!), so I didn't want to embark on any drastic changes. However, the original design is more of an "A-shape", and I thought with the yarn, perhaps a more fitted shape would be better. After searching ravelry for suggestions, I decided to do some decreases rather than all of the increases called for in the pattern. Then, as I neared the bottom, I increased again to help account for my hips. I think it worked okay, not perfect, but okay.


Overall - I think I'm going to get a lot of wear out of this sweater. It's so soft, comfy & warm. Can't wait until it's sibling project is complete. It was the perfect choice for knitting on the road & other than having to learn how to graft live stitches to a cast on edge (for the neck), I think I did pretty well.

Happy Day - more reports of our travels coming soon (I hope....)

Ciao!

Holidazed on Holiday

Finally - I share with you FO #2

"Holidazed"

Details:

Pattern: "Holidazed" by Anne Hanson

Source: Rockin' Sock Club 2009

Yarn: BMFA Lightweight "Muddy Autumn Rainbow"

Method: Magic Loop

Mods: Toe up over 56 stitches rather than cuff down. Worked well except the Diagonal Twill Rib stitch count did not work evenly over 28 stitches per needle. So.... I just added a purl & knit stitches on either side of the 24 stitch pattern.

"Toe Pic"

Time Frame: Well.... Sock #1 was completed during our Thanksgiving Holiday to Hawaii last year. I started sock #2 while we were there, but then returned home, lost my sock mojo & the sock languished in a sock bag until our 2010 summer road trip. I think I actually finished sock #2 somewhere on I-80 in Pennsylvania.

Of course, I neglected to bring the sock pattern with me & didn't have the mental capacity to figure out where I was. So - my wonderful BKFF was also a member of RSC 2009, so she was able to email me the Diagonal Twill Rib pattern. I couldn't remember where I had left off last November (write it down - what a novel idea!), so just had to make my best guess. I don't think I guessed correctly, but oh well - I doubt anyone could really tell unless you were up close and personal. And.... if you're that up close & personal....

Diagonal Twill Rib Pattern Detail

Since this is supposed to be a blog about knitting and traveling, I hope I've upheld the knitting end with this little tidbit. While I'm posting this as FO #2, I think it's actually the 3rd FO completed on the road trip. I still have 2 more to share - as soon as they have their respective photo shoots. And when it's 90°F+, it's hard to put on wool & stand in the sun without looking like a wilted flower. Perhaps I'll suck it up before we drive off.

Until then - Ciao & Happy Travels!

Timing is Everything!

We interrupt our cross country travels to show you what I've been up to while dear Wado is driving. Because I've been blessed with the ability to read, knit, etc in a car w/o getting motion sickness, I've been able to get lots of knitting accomplished. I recently reported that I have 2 projects to share with you, but since that post, I'm please to announce that I have FOUR (yeah!) finished objects. I'll intersperse my travel posts with reports of knitting just to spice it up a bit.

Because my timing is impeccable, I chose a nice hot, sunny day (perhaps 90°F in the sun?) in Sacramento for the finished photo shoot. I think I actually finished this project while driving from my aunt's home in New Jersey back to our friend's home in Wisconsin. It's been sitting in my knitting bag and occasionally balled up on the dashboard of the van until now.

This is a project inspired by my friend Sandy (not blogless, but hasn't blogged in many moons...). She's knit quite a few & they just look so fun, especially when they're rolled up along the waviness of the scarf.



Details:

Pattern: Sea Lettuce Scarf by Lucy Neatby. A fun lesson in the skill of short rows and picot edges. I've mentioned before that I don't knit many scarves because my knitting attention span is that of a flea with ADHD, so I didn't knit it until the yarn ran out. I figure I'll probably just use this as an accessory rather than a piece of functional winter wear. It is a fun knit and the directions are easy to follow. Lucy has provided directions for different weights of yarn depending on your preference.

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts "Twisted" in Jubilation colorway; less than 1 skein. I think I have enough left over to knit a small hat. Perhaps something for my new nephew expected to make his debut in September? I know that natural occurring Sea Lettuce is not purple (as Wade kept pointing out - "Sea Lettuce isn't purple, it's green!!"), but I was attracted to this color way (as I often am to purples) & that was that.

Needles: US7 The pattern recommends a US2, but I figure that's for those using fingering weight yarn. Also - since scarves are very forgiving in terms of fit, I just used a needle that was close to that suggested by BMFA and what I thought produced a nice looking fabric.


Overall: Very fun project!

I'll share more FO's later (they're drying in the warm, dry Sacramento air) & more of our travel adventures soon. Tonight - Wade & I are going to see Carbon Leaf in concert - should be fun!

Ciao & Happy Travels!

Tangled Yoke Not-Cardigan

Finally - a knitting F.O. to share. This project started out as my spring break knitting & knitting "while-I-recover-from-meniscus-repair-surgery-since-I-can't-do-anything else." I actually made quite speedy progress until I got to the cabled yoke pattern. Apparently I have a hard time counting to 13 (let's not dwell on the irony that I've taught math for several years) & had to rip back hundreds of stitches to fix silly mistakes.

But alas - even after starting another project (cough*tapestry cowl*cough), I finally picked-up & knit the collar, thus finishing the sweater.


Details:

Pattern: "The Tangled Yoke Cardigan" published in Fall 2007 issue of Interweave Knits

Yarn: Cascade 220 Tweed - Don't ask about the colorway - I've had this yarn for years & finally decided to do something about it. I call it "Confetti" because tiny flecks of different colors are interspersed throughout the neutral color of yarn. It was originally intended for a different sweater, but I think the pairing works quite well. Remember - 2010 is all about the stash here at chez Arctic Knitter.

Needles: US5 for ribbing & main body, US 4 for collar.




Modifications: Well, as you can see - this is definitely not a cardigan. Since I've knit a few cardigans already, I wanted another pullover. This pattern seemed easy enough to modify & I was looking to some easy, knit in the round, minimal purling, knitting. I came across a project knit by The Rainey Sisters using a similar idea & followed her modifications (for the split neck, etc).


What I learned while knitting this sweater:

#1: Swatches lie. Hasn't the Yarn Harlot warned us of this before? Here's the irony - I normally don't swatch. I just choose the size that looks closest to my measurements & knit away. Normally this works great. This time, according to the swatch & some math I needed to cast on 210 stitches to get the appropriate size. Well - when all was said & done, the sweater was a smidgy too big, especially in the bust/yoke area. I can live w/a loose fitting body, but a baggy bustline isn't too attractive. Sooo....

#2: Cascade 220 is a great felting wool. Warning: Only the strong at heart should read ahead. I let the sweater soak in the washing machine w/some Euculan. Since it was sopping wet and I wanted to somehow magically make the bust/yoke a smidge smaller, I thought I would throw it in the dryer (yeah, I know) for a wee bit. I put it on the setting using only air & no heat. After a short bit of time the sweater still seemed a bit damp (boy am I impatient), so I reset the dryer & this time used the setting w/heat (gasp!!) meaning only to leave it in for a couple of minutes. I have young children, so of course I lost track of time & the sweater stayed in for far longer than I had intended. While it didn't felt 100%, the sweater was smaller - and *Fit As I wanted it to!!*

#3: Felting diminishes the depth of cables & ribbing. I pinned out the still kinda damp sweater to get the shaping settled & could tell the cables & ribbing don't "pop" as they should. At first I was a bit sad - lots of work put into knitting a sweater only to diminish it's beauty by my stupidity. But a friend stopped by & gushed over the sweater Friday night. I thought "she's right - this is a pretty nice sweater". So - I threw it on the headless lady (my dress form needs a real name - suggestions?) & have been admiring it all weekend.

So - it's finally too warm (for Alaskans) to wear wool sweaters for any length of time, so I'll carefully put it away for the summer & be pleasantly warm come next fall. I think I might even knit this again, but perhaps go down a needle size on the yoke so I don't have to resort to drastic measures. It worked once, but I don't think I need to tempt fate.

:0) Ciao!

Stash Busting Bag

I've been promising to show another FO, but have been waylaid by other life events such as tons of snow & knee repair. The delay in the post in no way reflects my feelings of this bag. I *love* this finished project.

Presenting: The "Felted Slip Stitch Tote" designed by PDXKnitterati, Michele Bernstein.

I've had this pattern for quite a while meaning to use it to lighten the stash load. Finally, after having 100% wool spilling out of containers & finishing a couple of French Press Slippers, I decided to finally cast on.

I wish I hadn't waited for so long as this bag is so great! It's the perfect size for holding knitting projects such as my Olympic sweater. It's a great way to use left over wool & the color combinations are endless!

Yarns I used: Lamb's Pride Worsted (Purple & Pink) and Paton's Classic Wool (Blue & Light Purple) All felted very well = I used Michele's suggestion & placed a box within a plastic shopping bag inside the tote to help with drying; great idea! I found the game "Blockus" is just the right size.

Needle: US 10.5

Mods: Instead of using DPNs to knit the straps, I made a 7 stitch i-cord. Worked out rather well! Otherwise - this pattern is just perfect & well written.

I'm planning to teach a beginning knitting class to my high school students in April. I asked Michele about using this pattern & she thought it'd be great - felting is so forgiving for new knitters, and I think they should be able to finish this in a relatively short period of time. So - expect another bag within the coming month; I'm looking forward to using up more stash, because after all, 2010 is all about stash reduction here at Chez Arcticknitter.

Happy Day! Ciao~

Mandatory Rest

Ahhh - I can tell I've been knitting like a fiend for the past 17 days - little twinges in my wrist. Guess that's a good enough excuse to take a wee break from knitting & perhaps catch up on the mountain of clean laundry that needs sorting, folding, & put-awaying. For that reason alone, I think I'll have to bow out of the group of Ravelers undertaking "Iknitarod" (isn't that clever?!)

Here is the long awaited prize: My Gold Medal, courtesy of Mr. Franklin Habit by request of the Yarn Harlot:


Would it be too much to print it out, paste it on a wooden circle & wear it about my neck for the next week or two? Okay - perhaps just a tad overkill. I'm pleased as punch & so proud to have met the challenge.

Students, friends, and co-workers were equally impressed with my sweater. My orthopedic surgeon's (more on that later....) assistant wanted to take a photo so she could show her daughter. Instead, I suggested she join Ravelry & check out the pattern. I'm such an enabler...

Thank you to all who've left such nice comments regarding the sweater - I'm glad it's not just me who thinks it's pretty neat. I'd reply if I could, but for some reason the email reply isn't working out. Any suggestions how to fix that? Is it a settings thing?

Anyhow - back to the laundry. Another pre-olympic knitting FO to show soon.

Ciao!

Tickled Pink!

That is how I feel about my latest FO: My February Lady Sweater.

Please forgive me if this post is especially photo laden. I'm absolutely ecstatic about my latest finished object.

Details:

Pattern: February Lady Sweater - an adult version of Elizabeth Zimmerman's February Sweater.

Yarn: Tahki Yarns New Tweed (60% Merino Wool, 14% silk, 26% Viscose) Great yarn, small balls - 50grams/92 yards per ball, so you feel like you fly through this yarn. I was cutting it close at the end.

Needles: US 8

Size: Medium - I have the newer version of the pattern. Apparently the earlier versions were a bit sketchy when it came to determining the correct size, so several knitters knit sizes XS when they normally knit a size M. No way in the world am I an XS!

Modifications: Left out the eyelet row before the start of the lace. I think the eyelet row was originally intended for weaving a piece of ribbon, but that's not my style at all. The color pink is already pushing the envelope. 15 lace repeats on the sleeves, 19 lace repeats on the body.

Let's admire the buttons, shall we? What a great find! Sometimes details just fall into place.

The lace pattern is the famous "Gull Lace" pattern - very simple to memorize, so this project was perfect Sunday English Premier League knitting. What I didn't like was having to purl back a gazillion stitches (perhaps just a slight exaggeration). The yoke is straight garter stitch w/increases at the shoulders. I did a kfb for the increases - very simple, blends in well with the garter stitch & leaves no holes.

The back fits just perfectly. I was worried the neckline would sag, or maybe even ride up. But nope - all sits as it should. I think perhaps the hard blocking I gave the sweater last week helped out a bit. Last year when I was at Madrona Fiber Arts retreat I met a woman wearing a FLS & it sagged all over the place. The ravelry forum for the FLS warns against how the lace grows. I haven't noticed this happening yet & the sweater has been hanging for several days while it waited the adornment of buttons. I'm going to fold it neatly rather than hanging it in the closet, just to be safe.

This week is "Spirit Week" at our school & today's theme was "Girls in Pearls & Guys in Ties". A perfect day for my sweater's Maiden Voyage. My friends, colleagues, and students all admired with lots of 'oohs and ahhs'. You know you've done a good job when students say they want one (wear something that a teacher wears? Highest praise from teenagers!) & that it looks like something they might find at Nordstroms. Several conversations today went something like this:

Colleague: "You Made That?!?"
Me: "Yup, Why yes I did..."
Colleague: "Nu-uh!" (how do you spell that?!?)
Me: "Uh-huh!!"

Anyhow - I was very pleased with the responses & complements my sweater & I received today. If I'd known earlier how well this would turn out, I would have finished it much, much sooner!I leave you with my "Bio" photo I'll use in the engineering notebooks of my FTC robotics teams (we all have to add photos + biography). I'd like to think that my role on the FTC teams is that of kind, yet effective, Project Manager. After having to ask a couple of students not to return since they were hindering progress & my constant (yet gentle) reminders for the teams to focus & stay on task (I can even say it in ASL as one of my students is hearing impaired), the students on the teams have dubbed me, "The Hammer".

The smile and the pink kind of softens it, don't you think? :0)

Ciao!!

Still Knitting....

Okay - another month has passed & no blogging. I don't know why I can't seem to develop a habit or schedule to sit down & blog a bit. Perhaps it's because I feel that the daily happenings such as "Today I graded homework & taught teenagers that electron configuration really is exciting, really!" are too mundane to write about. I guess the science teacher in me isn't well versed in word-smithing the mundane to sound exciting. And then there's the fact that I don't have any finished objects to share. Until now....

To quote a famous elephant (or perhaps paraphrase), "A finished object is a finished object, no matter how small". May I present the latest FO at chez Arcticknitter: More 10 cabled baby hats!


Pattern: Cabled Baby Hats
Yarn: Classic Elite Jil eaton minnow-merino; 100% super fine merino.
Needles: US 8, 16" circular
Time to knit: 1 afternoon each; very, very quick knit!

The recipient is a much awaited baby (gender TBA) of a former colleague. The parents also happen to be Green Bay Packers fans, so I figured I couldn't go wrong with yellow & green. I just adore the yellow, although I don't know if I'd ever wear it. Perhaps the gray days of winter have left me longing for bright colors. The hats are so cute - I added the pom-pom as a little embellishment. Of course I was frantically casting off on the yellow hat while getting ready to go to the baby shower, so no pom-pom.
While not a knitting FO, I also made a no-sew fleece blanket using some fleece originally destined for Iain's pre-school blanket. I didn't use overhand knots, but think it should work just fine. Of course, after cutting & tying, I noticed that every other row of letters were backwards/upside down. What kind of fabric is that? Perhaps it was designed so that you'd always see some letter in the correct orientation, no matter which side of the blanket you're on. Oh well - if their child has dyslexia, I guess we know who they can blame.

I was an utter failure at NaKniMitMo - failing to finish even one pair of mittens during the month of January. How sad considering that I knit 3 pairs over Christmas vacation. Oh well - I'm finishing a pair right now, but in all fairness they are lined, so finishing one pair is like knitting 2 pairs. Yeah - that's my story & I'm sticking with it! At least when I finish it'll be more fodder for the blog.

Other than knitting, robotics is in full swing. The Alaska FTC championship is in 2 weeks up at UAF. My team won last year & are very excited to defend their title. I've added an additional team & they're doing quite well. I hope both teams are proud of all they've accomplished. For more info on the FTC robotics program, go here. I'll be sure to post about their results when we return from competition.

Okay - that's all for now. I hope everyone enjoys the big game tomorrow, and by big game I know you all are tuning in to watch Chelsea take on Arsenal in the English Premiere League. I've heard rumor there's some other game going on here in the states, but I don't have much to say about that.... Go Blues!

~Ciao!

Aloha!

Aloha! I know - it's been so long since I've posted on line. Best intentions, and all that you know. In fact, I thought I might just designate November as "NaNoWriBloMo" - i.e. - National No Write Blog Month", since I haven't written since (gasp!) mid-October.

Quick recaps:

1) Knitting - Yup: I've finished at least one project that I haven't shared yet & of course photos are on my computer at home. So - take my word that I finished "The Wonderful Wallaby". I knit a size 4, which really looked like a size 2. So - since I don't have anyone suitable for such a small sweater, I donated it to my children's school auction.

2) Non-Knitting: I took a sewing (gasp!) class at our local quilt/knit shop to learn how to make a Kuspuk (a traditional Alaskan garment). It is really cute & pretty darned easy to make. I've finished one for me, one for my 9 y.o (for their Alaska studies project) & have 2 more in progress. Photos to share upon my return home...

3) Vacation: The fam & I flew to Kauai last Sunday for a Thanksgiving vacation. It's similar to a vacation we took w/friends 3 years ago. Unfortunately we weren't able to coordinate travel plans with our friends for this trip. Fortunately we were able to travel with hubby's family. It's a nice treat as we haven't spent Thanksgiving together since we were in college.

Day 1: Day at the Beach

Fun in the sun. Iain's suitcase didn't make it to Kauai on the first day, so no swim shirt for him. Lots & Lots of SPF 50 sunscreen in it's stead. I think you can easily spot the Alaskans at the beach - glaringly white (yet healthy!!) skin.

We got up close & personal with a Sea Turtle - very cool! Throughout the day we spied several turtles close to shore in addition to 2 Monk seals.

Day 2: Trip to the North Shore

On our last trip to Kauai, we stayed mostly on the south shore & didn't venture past Lydgate state park on the east shore. We decided to drive north to the end of the road (literally!) to "see what we could see". We knew the beaches wouldn't be conducive to swimming (HUGE waves due to winter storms), so we opted for a hike on the north end of the Napali coast.

We only hiked about 2.5 hours & maybe went a total of 2.5 miles ??? Lots of up, up, up & after the previous weekend's rain, lots & lots of mud. Slippery conditions, but the views were spectacular. Just like Jurassic Park.

This is one of the caves/tunnels near the end of the road. Don't drink the water - Leptospirosis lurks within.

Knitting - the drive to & from the north shore took a few hours - a great opportunity to knit on my vacation project - Holidazed, the November RSC 2008 installment. I was able to finish the foot, turn the heel, & finish the flap before we returned home. It's a bit long, but not too big that I feel the need to rip back. I'm choosing to knit this from the toe up which has been a bit of a challenge. I'm knitting the 56 stitch size, meaning 28 stitches per needle (I magic loop). However - the pattern is a 8 stitch repeat. Hmmm - I know I haven't taught math in a while, but I'm pretty darned sure that 28 is NOT divisible by 8. Arghhh - so, in order to center the pattern on the instep, I used 2 stitches on either size of the 24 stitch (which IS divisible by 8) pattern as a 'frame'. I choose to alternate 2 rows of knits w/ 2 rows of purls for the "wing" stitches. So far so good - now that I'm on the leg, I've just adjusted accordingly & now use only the charted pattern. Here's what it looks like so far....

Well - the photo was taken in haste & only shows the pattern. Oh well - I'll share more later.

Okay - off to the beach!

Aloha!

Lickety Split FO

One pair off the needles means another pair on (not counting the TTL Mystery socks, of course). I wanted to start a pair of socks that I could easily work on during staff meetings and while riding in the car across town to soccer games & soccer practice. Little did I know that my car project would take such a hold of me that I would work on them outside of riding in the car...

Presenting:

Van Dyke Socks by Wendy D. Johnson

Yarn: STR Mediumweight
Colorway: River Rocked
Needles: Knit Picks 2.75mm
Size: 52 stitches - 5 repeats on the foot before gusset increases, 6 pattern repeats on the leg

Neato-Bandito trick: Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off. It is slick & makes a nice stretchy cuff, perfect for toe-up socks! You can find the how-to in the Fall issue of Knitty.

Cast on: Sunday afternoon, October 11, 2009
Finished: Saturday afternoon, October 17, 2009

These were such a blast to knit. I was inspired after reading the Rockin' Sock Club forum on Ravelry & saw another knitter had used her Sept. yarn for a pair of socks other than the intended pattern. I felt like I had been given permission to deviate from the club shipment. I loved the yarn - such pretty fall colors!, but the pattern did not interest me that much. So - I followed her lead & knit the Van Dyke socks - a pattern from "Socks From the Toe-Up" by Wendy D. Johnson of Wendy Knits! Fantastic, fun, quick pattern. It certainly didn't hurt that the yarn was a heavier weight than what I've been knitting with lately & that every other row of the 10 row repeat was a knit row.

True, instant gratification knitting. Now to find another project that will be easy to work on while in the car....

Happy Knitting! Ciao~

It's Go Time!

The Babies & Bears Sweater KAL has officially begun. I know - crazy to think about a sweater project when holiday knitting should be forefront in my mind, but that's just how I roll, I guess. Also - my BKFF & I thought we'd make this a nice and loooooooong KAL (through Feb) so that folks can get the holiday knitting completed without having to stress over the KAL progress. Since I haven't really started any holiday knitting, I figured I'd start right away.

Here's what I have so far:

Not too much - cuff #1 is done (who knew 2" was so big?) & 2 sets of increases of the sleeve are done. The construction is interesting as the sweater is knit from the cuff to the middle of the back & front, repeated for the other side & then the backs are grafted together. Pure knitting genius, I say. Right now the knitting is fairly straight forward & brainless - good t.v. knitting for sure!

Meanwhile I'm plugging away on the TTL Mystery sock as well as sock #2 of some instant gratification knitting.

More later - it was an in-service day today, so I'm actually home at a reasonable time. Kids & hubby aren't home yet, so perfect quiet atmosphere for some quality knitting time.

~Ciao

Socktober is for Socks!

Nothing like a witty name for the month of October to get me inspired to finish languishing pairs of socks!


Details:

Pattern: Shur'tugal

Yarn: BMFA Socks That Rock Lightweight

Colorway: Star Sapphire

Size: Medium (64 stitch count)

Needle: Knit Picks 2.25mm

Cast On: March 28, 2009
Cast Off: October 11, 2009

These were started for the Socks That Rawk Ravelry group's Q2 KAL. I finished the 1st sock in a reasonable amount of time (for me) & then let it sit, and sit, and sit. Fortunately I left it on my dresser so I'd have to look at its lonely face every day. Finally I'd had enough & in my flurry of finishing of late, decided to finally knit up its mate once and for all.

So glad I did - this is a great pattern & the socks fit fine. I really love how the pattern flows into the heel:


Expect a couple more pairs over the coming months. I've finished clue #2 for the TTL Mystery Sock KAL and cast-on a pair using a pattern from Wendy Knits' Socks From the Toe Up book.

Happy Knitting & Happy Fall!

Ciao~

FO: Hey Teach!.... Again...

Few patterns harness my knitting mojo and make me want to make it more than once. Monkey Socks, Leyburn socks, the Danish Ear Flap Cap are the ones that spring to mind. And now - Hey, Teach! Joins the list. Last year I jumped on the bandwagon & knit Hey, Teach only to underestimate my size & the finished project was too small. So - I ordered the same yarn & set out to knit it again - a size larger - for me. And finally - I have achieved my quest.



Details:

Pattern: Hey, Teach! (knitty - Summer 2008)

Yarn: Knit Picks Shine, Worsted

Needles: KPO US 8

Mods: Nothing except the three-needle bind-off.

Lots of finishing around here. Another project is on its way to FO status. I think that gives me the green light to cast on a new project.


This is some Malabrigo sock yarn, remnants from the Jeanne Shawl that I'm going to use for the 2009 Mystery Sock KAL designed by Kirsten Kapur of Through The Loops. Come along & Join us!

~Ciao