Author Archives: atangledyarn84

What Did I Get Myself Into 

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The yarn for my Aeon Vest is here! Now I’m being a good girl. I’ve knit a swatch…

  
I haven’t blocked it yet. But I did use the recommended size 6 needles and the fabric is very loose. I haven’t compared this to pattern guage because it’s not blocked and I’m not sure I like how this fabric feels. I want this vest not to grow when worn or be too loosey goosey.

Now before I did this swatch I had taken my measurements to find the appropriate pattern size. I then went about marking up the pattern after reading carefully. I like to white out all the directions that don’t apply to me and make notes/highlights to help me along the way. Now I’m not sure the size I marked is the one I’ll end up knitting based on my desired fabric guage…knitting fail.

  
Having done all that, I can’t help but think….what the hell did I get myself into!? This pattern is knit in one piece and has detailed directions. But it’s my first foray into a moderately shaped piece with lots of *at the same time*. I may well lose what little brains I have left. But  I know I will need to color coded the snot out of this to reduce my chance of screwing up.

Only time will tell! Happy Knitting!!

Blanket Fever

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I’m a complete looney tune. For the past couple of weeks I’ve been sneaking another crochet blanket along. I’ve mentioned in previous posts that my mom has hinted more than once that she wanted a chenille blanket. I purchased 5 skeins of the Bernat blanket in the Sonoma color (thanks to a 20% off Joanns coupon). This blanket is going to be huge! I’m carting it and the yarn around in a repurposed comforter bag.  

The deal is that I can kill two birds with one stone with this project. I can get a present for my mother done and score some major points for the #dcspigskinparty2015! The yardage (1,056 yds) alone would be 73 points but since it’s over 1,000 yards I can earn an extra 500 points for a blitz project!

  
I have made more progress since these photos and I only have one skein of yarn left and I need to finish this by tomorrow night.  

Wish me luck!

FO Friday: Go Patriots! Socks

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I did it! I finished my Go Patriots! Socks and just in the nick of time!

Pattern: Toe up Vanilla Sock with Gusset Heel

Yarn: Berry Colorful Yarnings Pats self-striping sock with Premier Sock in Black for the toes

Needle: US 2 nine inch circular

Ravelry notes here.

I had to put my hustle pants on but these socks made the #dcspigskinparty2015 KAL deadline. And my husband even wore then last week during the Patriots/Broncos game. My husband is not superstitious so he held no ill will towards the socks after the Broncos loss thank goodness.

   
 The hubby now has two pair of hand knit socks. One afterthought vanilla pair and this vanilla gusset heel pair. I’m going to make him wear them both for awhile and decide which fit he likes better before I got knitting him many more.

Happy Knitting!

Little Roses For A Little Princess

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Another crochet blanket has hit the finished pile! The Baby Beinhoff Blanket is complete! 

I made this one bigger than my previous attempts. I used two skeins of Bernat Baby Blanket in the colorway Little Roses. It looks more like Neapolitan ice cream to me but I guess no one asked me to name it!

My stitch tension is fairly even and I am having to not stare as intently at the work as much as before. I’m able to read the stitches and feel where things should go. This little blanket is intended for a baby girl due this summer to an old coworker I miss very dearly. She lives 4 hours away and we don’t see much of each other. I guess I’ll just have to settle for swaddling her little princess in yarn!

Stayed tuned for another blanket I’ve been sneaking under the radar to finish strong with the #dcspigskinparty2015!

Vestuary

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The month of February has become known as Vestuary in the knitting world. I’m not sure who started it but it’s cute regardless. I’ve never played along but I got the itch this year. I’ve been eyeing the Aeon Vest by Hilary Smith Callis.

  
(Photo @hilarysmithcallis)

I want this vest like right now in this color in my greedy little paws. Jewel tones really go well with my eyes and skin tone. Not to mention that the open nature of this vest won’t emphasize my still there mom belly. And it’s got pockets!!

This is worked in worsted and I need over 1,000 yards. I can’t afford to break the bank but I really need this sweater!!! A friend had recently mentioned she used Mighty Stitch by Knit Picks for a sweater and found it really hard wearing yet soft. Perfect for my life where I get covered in Toddler “love” every day. It’s 20% SW and 80% acrylic with 208 yard skeins. At $3.49 per ball I could knit my vest for under $25. And you guys….they had that blue….

  
It’s “celestial” and just perfect. So then I might have gone right over and put in my order. I’m hoping the yarn gets here fast so I can at least start this in Vestuary!

My Husband Thinks I am Weird

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I hand wash some of my “special” socks still. This last time I was too lazy to take them downstairs to the laundry line to dry. The stove seemed an optimally warm place to hang them, lol.

The husband walked in and saw them then literally raised his eyebrows at me and walked out. At least he didn’t laugh!

Do you dry your hand knits in weird places?

Babies Babies Babies

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I have a several babies making their appearance this year in my circle of friends. And I’ve developed a reputation for gifting hand knits. Not that I don’t love knitting for wee ones but my limited craft time makes it hard to want to work on obligation knitting. But my newfound crochet skills have given me an easy out!

I have worked another crochet baby blanket in half double crochets in Bernat Baby Blanket in the color little roses. I used two skeins this time for a bigger blanket. I’m quite pleased and it’s getting easier to handle the hook. I think the variagated yarn really lends itself to hiding my another status as well! Not to mention I knocked this out in two evenings. 

  
You can find my Rav notes here for yarn and project details.

Happy Knitting!

So Close!!

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My Husbands Pats socks are soooooo close!

  
We took a last minute three day weekend not so long ago and I got some really good car knitting in. I finished the first sock and plowed through the second one. It’s Jan 30th and I have until Feb 7th (the Super Bowl) to get these done for the #dcspigskinparty2015 KAL.

Seriously it’s like 4 more inches of ribbing and done! Fingers crossed!!

FO Friday: Crochet Baby Blanket #2

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I talked on Monday about my first (test) crochet blanket and how I started the second one. Guess what it’s done!

  

I chained fewer stitches on this one to make a longer blanket than the first and then worked the same half double crochet stitch. I was able to keep my edges straighter and my tension is much more even. I kept working until I  hit my totally length. But I still had a ton of yarn left so I added a single crochet border to even it out and use every bit of the yarn.

This was CRAZY fast I finished this one in a total of two sittings or roughly 5 hours. I definitely picked up steam from the first one. I don’t think I’m going to become a crazy crochet junkie but this is a nice skill to have to knock out a quick baby present. This blanket is going into the gift pile for a future tiny human.

I might be ready to start my mom’s blanket….maybe. The only caveat is that I think I’ll pick a variegated yarn that will cover a multitude of sins that is my beginning crochet, lol.

A Question of Leftovers

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I’m starting to get quite a stash of leftover sock yarn and worsted weight. None of it is enough to make much of a project in and of itself. So I’ve been toying with the idea of a leftover blanket. A nice mashup of my leftovers woven into a nice memory project. 

For my sock scraps I’ve always eyed the The Beekeepers Quilt by tiny owl knits. This project has the awesome portability and quick gratification of socks. But the offset is a TON of seaming at the end. There are also a ton of mitered square blankets on Ravelry that would eliminate seaming but the project would be much less portable over time. I just can’t decide!

And the worsted scraps also present a unique challenge. They are mostly acrylic from my early knits. My inner wild child says to just cast on a bunch of stitches and work a crazy garter stitch blanket with random scraps. It might be ugly but it would be my memories keeping me warm!

What are your thoughts on scrap patterns and uses?