Cast On: Goth Kitty Worsted Hat

New Year and new cast on! I had some training this week so I decided that a basic beanie was the way to go. I grabbed the skein of Knit Picks Felici worsted, mostly because I required no winding, lol

I cast on 80 stitches on a US 8 needle. I worked 2×2 ribbing until it looked good. I didn’t really have a pattern in mind. The goal was to stay awake while listening to a four hour lecture. The good news is that four hours is enough time to get 60% of a hat done!

I think I need two more color stripes and then I can start the decreases! Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Perpetual Hope

Every behind the curve I decided to use my Queen City Yarn advent calendar to make the pattern it came with. It is Perpetual Hope by Kino Knits. I am still in Clue one……lol.

The yarn is sock weight and variegated in nature. I have already peaked at others FOs and I’m willing to give this one a try. If I get into it and I fall out of love I will frog back these minis for something else.

Oh, and the stitch markers were included with advent calendar. They are wooden, beautiful and lightweight. Perfect for a shawl project!

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Around Every Corner

Next on my needles is some past Wishful Knitting! Kind of nice to cast on something I planned and have been thinking a lot about!

This will be a flower inspired Around Every Corner by Stephanie Lotven. I am doing the main color in some Cascade sock yarn in a really deep green. And then my stripes will be in a range of colors that remind me of a daffodil or other spring flower.

I have this vision in my head of this garden like object. I really hope the actual object comes out like I see in my head. Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Musselburgh

I decided I could no longer resist seeing all the beautiful Musselburgh hats all over Raverly, social media and podcasts and I needed one of my own! I wound up the skein of Yak Sock from Moonstone Dyeworks and cast on my first Musselburgh.

I must admit I had put this project off for awhile because I HATE fiddly cast-ons with DPNs. I am totally capable of doing them but I have a mental block with them. And my needles definitely slipped out of my first try because it is slick yarn on metal needles.

But now I am off to the races and knitting the prescribed amount so I can determine my gauge and stitch count. Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Baby Blend Basic Hat

I’ve had a super soft skein of Shepherd’s Mill Baby Blend DK just sitting on my desk at home. It is a superwash merino, faux cashmere and silk blend in a 2 ply DK weight. I just couldn’t bear to put it in the stash, it needed knit up! So I grabbed one of my new project bag and some needles and started a basic hat.

Based on my hat experiments earlier this year I knew I needed roughly 80 stitches and I’m starting on a size 8 US needle. I think I’m just going to work stockinette and then turn the brim to create a double layer of fabric. The reason? I didn’t feel like doing ribbing and I want to use the majority of the skein inside this project, lol.

So far I’m about five rows in. I just need to stay off my spinning wheel long enough to keep knitting! Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Dad’s 2021 Christmas Socks

My sock needles were empty and my purse lacked travel knitting after I finished my Advent Socks #3 last week. I wanted some instant gratification so I decided to go for some sport weight socks rather than more fingering weight socks.

I pulled some Regia 6-ply from my deep stash in the every helpful color of “6974”. This has been marinating since 2017 and needs to turn into socks for my Dad. He makes a point to rave how warm his feet are when he is hunting in my hand knit socks.

I am doing the “sock recipe” I have for my dad. I cast on 18 stitches with a wedge toe and then increased to 68 stitches on US 2 needles. My dad has a 13 inch foot and I’ll do a toe up gusset heel. I just need to pay attention to when I get to halfway through the skein so I leave enough yarn for the second sock.

Happy Sock Knitting!!

Cast On: The Weekender #2

I did some soul searching about my Mycroft. It has been on the needles with approximately 10 rows knit since November 2020. I just never felt like working on it. So I frogged it, life is too short to knit project that don’t speak to you.

I ripped out all the Malabrigo and decided to make a second Weekender by Andrea Mowry. This time in a bigger size than my first one. I like and wear my first one but I want a cozier and slouchier version. Plus the pattern is easy and having been through it once before, I know the ropes. I need easy in my life!

I have my yarn caked, needles pulled and project bag organized. All that is left is to rewatch a tubular cast on video and have some uninterrupted time to get the hems on the needles. After that it’s just sweater round and round!

Happy Kniting!!

Cast On: 2020 Advent Socks #3

Now that the Down Cellar Studio’s Pigskin Party KAL is here and going full force I am casting on ALL THE THINGS to earn all the points I can. First up is a pair of socks to live in my purse!

This the LAST of my 2020 BFL advent minis from agirlandherwool. I had already made socks here and here with the rest. These will be my “recipe” of 68 stitch toe up vanilla socks with gusset heels. I obviously haven’t made it that far but that will come in time. I will earn yardage points AND sponsor points for this dyer. I am really trying to use my stash to my advantage and wrack up the points this year.

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Garter Rainbow Wrap

After finishing Bifrost I knew that I still had one advent set of minis left to complete. I had previously started the All My Stitches and had reached a crossroads. Y’all….I just couldn’t get past what to do next and so I stopped working on the project. I took this as a sign that the yarn/pattern combo wasn’t meant to be. So I frogged it!

I decided to improvise another wrap with the loose bones of the Bifrost. I am starting with a triangle that I will build out to my desired width and then I will knit the rectangle until I get to my last advent color. I don’t know if I will do another point on the opposite end or just leave it square.

But for right now I am happy to have this squishy and colorful project on my needles! Happy Knitting!!

Setting Myself Up For Success

I decided to set myself up for success for my third and last pair of 2020 Advent Socks by splitting the minis in half and then winding them in order into little sock balls.

After some travails on my second sock where I didn’t get the mini skeins split into half in a super even manner….I decided to be really serious about these last ones. I opened each mini and found each end. I then paired them and wound them across the room until I got to the middle of the yarn. I would then break the yarn and start winding to small balls. I repeat for the next color and spit sliced the ends together.

Oh, and I made sure to start with last mini and wind to where I wanted to start. Feeling proud that I remembered how hand wound yarn works, lol.

Now I just need the mojo to really get these cast on! Happy Knitting!!