Author Archives: atangledyarn84

FO Friday: Go Patriots! Socks

Posted on by
1

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

Posted on by
5

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

Posted on by
9

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

Posted on by
7

  
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

Posted on by
6

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!!

Posted on by
3

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

Posted on by
7

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

Posted on by
17

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?

WIP Wednesday: Go Patriots! Socks 

Posted on by
3

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

Posted on by
3

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!