Author Archives: atangledyarn84

WIP Wednesday: Go Patriots! Socks 

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I have made progress on the Hubby’s Go Patriots! Socks but alas it’s become eminently clear that these won’t make the #dcspigskinparty2015 KAL deadline of the Super Bowl. But no worries I’ll still get a cute FO regardless!

  
As you can see I’m finished with the heel of the first sock. I had a brainstorm while working the foot that these are just the first few socks I’ve knit for the husband. (I have just finished the Heritage Vanilla socks for the hubby and they used a 60% afterthought heel.) Now I know what kinds of heels I like in my socks but the hubby doesn’t (and maybe won’t care). Anyhow I’ve decided to do a gusset heel for this pair. That way he has a pair of each and can tell me which is more comfortable after wearing for awhile.

We will see but for the time being I need to get knitting!

Casu Cowl Rebooted

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I managed to rip back my Casu Cowl blunder and start again with the correct pattern. 

  
I completed the set up and two pattern repeats. The patter is pretty straight forward and should be easy to memorize. The problem is that this yarn doesn’t sing to me. Therefore the project as a whole doesn’t get my mojo going. I don’t hate it….but given other options I always pick something else. I have a car trip coming up and the short back and forth rows should be good car knitting. I may just pack this project and only this project to get it off the needles.

This is definitely a case where I want the FO but I’m struggling with the actually knitting if it, lol.

Happy Knitting!

Working Out The Kinks

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I finished my crochet baby blanket! I definitely had a few kinks in the process. I feel fairly clumsy with the hook still.

  
This is definitely a test piece! I had trouble controlling my tension and losing stitches at the end of my rows. Look how wonky this sides are! But I did get the hang of the half double crochet stitch and where to place my hook. This finished blanket turned out to be 21 inches by 27 inches so that’s not bad for baby sized. I’m still not ready to start a huge blanket and I had another single skein of this Bernat Baby blanket in my stash so I started a second one.

  
Upside is that this one is more even and the stiches are easier to see in the blue color. And boy howdy is this faster than knitting. I finished my white blanket in four sittings or roughly 8 hours! I don’t think I’ll end up being a huge crochet fiend but it is a great way to knock out a quick baby knit!

FO Friday: Not Quite Tube Socks

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I have been collecting sock leftovers in a nice neat bag and in my 2016 Wishlist I wanted to knit Jellybean some tube socks. I have been mulling using Jasmin from the Knitmore Girls Genevieve’s Tube Socks. I had the yarn and the needles and took off. I pulled the Saki Bamboo from my  Conference Vanilla Socks in crayon box. I had 20 grams left and divided it in half.

  
At first blush they look fine…

  
They are waaaay to short! My baby had big feet and these “socks” are only 6 inches long. They don’t even cover his heels! The width is fine but they need to be twice as long. In other words I need at least 40 grams of sock yarn leftovers.

Oh well, we’ve repurposed them as gloves!

  
Happy Knitting!

Back In The Saddle

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Taking care of Jellybean has put a serious dent in my reading. What little spare time I do get I usually spend knitting. But I keep seeing yummy books pop up on my friends Goodreads accounts and on  my favorite blogs. I decided to just get over myself and get back on the horse!

First up, Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

  
I’ve finished this one already. It took me awhile to get into the story but I enjoyed it. I’m waiting for the e-book copy of book two in the series to become available at my local library. 

In the mean time I’ve picked up Yarn Over Murder by Maggie Sefton.

  

I’ve been devoted to this series and this is book 12? They are light, fluffy, and I can predict the killer from a mile away. But I still love them. It’s just about the right amount of brain power and attention I can spare at the moment.

What are you reading?

WIP Wednesday: Go Patriots! Socks

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Just a quick flyby up date on my Go Patriots! Socks.

  
This is A LOT of tiny stitches. I really want these to be done by the Super Bowl to count for the #dcspigskinparty2015. But I’m not sure I’ll get there. I don’t want rush so much that I stress myself out. This yarn from Berry Colorful Yarning is to die for! And the stripes are just so….stripey!

I’m still not sold on the black toes but my husband likes it. Pretty sure I will continue to complain about it until these are off my needles, lol. What’s a knitter to do but to keep knitting! 

Happy Knitting!

Never Will I Ever…

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I never thought I would ever have the urge to crochet….and then this happened…

 
I have several LARGE skeins of Bernat baby blanket and my mom has been dropping hints hard core that she wants a lap blanket out of this. I tried to knit with this chenille yarn several times and HATED IT. The yarn is very grippy and sticks to itself. (My last project was here)

A couple fiber friends reccomended crochet. I experimented with double crochets and half double crochets. I settled on the half double crochet and an ergonomic size N hook. Mostly because my fingers found it comfortable and I could remember it. I chained a butt load of stitches then took off.

  
This will be a baby/receiving size blanket. I’m still working on hook placement, reading the stitches, and evening out my tension. This yarn is definitely easier to work with in crochet than in knitting. This peice is definitely a practice object. I don’t plan on giving it away as it’s terribly uneven. But I want to get better so I can do a nice blanket for my mom some day!

Happy Knitting…er, I mean Crochet!

Fantastic Find

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I was killing time in Micheals (a tough job, I know) after Christmas waiting for my aunt to finish her shopping. I wandered into the Christmas clearance isle and spotted this…

  
A coffee cup with a cable and stockinette design! This puppy was $9.99 on sale for $1.99! How could I not buy this as a knitter!?

  
My husband would kill me if I brought more coffee cups in the house so this cup went straight to work to be pretty and functional on my desk. 😄

Happy Knitting!

FO Friday: Heritage Vanilla Socks

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The Heritage Vanilla Socks for the hubby are done! They weren’t without their trials but for heavens sake they are finished!  Pattern: A 72 stitch toe up vanilla sock with 60% afterthought heel

Yarn: Cascade Yarns Heritage Prints

Needles: Size 2 US 9″ circulars

Size: US Mens  Size 12 shoe (give or take)

I managed to snap a few photos last night while the hubby was playing video games. (Sorry for the lighting…best I could do). They fit okay. Due to some epic memory loss and lack of note taking…one sock is has an 11 inch sole and the other 10 1/2 inch sole. I can totally tell the difference and my husband says one is tighter than the other. He won’t let me fix it. And I’ve decided to let him have them as is. I’m considering it an experiment to see which level of snugness her prefers.

This was a single skein of 100 gram yarn. I knit the first sock until my skein weighed 50 grams and then bound off. Reason would dictate that I was at half my yarn, right? Wrong…I knit the second sock to the same measurements as the first (save the 1/2 I missed in the foot) and I still have 34 grams of yarn left in the skein!! Now it’s possible the skein was a bit heavier than 100 grams as I didn’t weight it before I started. But still 34 grams seems a bit excessive to have left over after two almost identical socks…

I’m going to ball up the remainder and save in case the husband decides he would like them taller. I can just undo the cuff bind on and keep knitting. For now…these are done!

Happy Knitting!