I have a conundrum….I have a yarn I adore and a project I am bored with.
My Prism Break hat is really awesome. And it has got me through some really touch times during COVID19 and crazy work environment. But I’m honestly ready for the project to be done. I think I’m far enough that I can add decreases and still end up with a decent hat. Just maybe not as slouchy as the designer intended.
Do I power through or finish the damn thing? Pretty sure I’m going to finish the thing, lol
Happy Knitting!!
My Weekender is 99.9% complete and getting its bath now. I had some false starts and ripping back on the first sleeve to get a fit I liked. But once I had my plan settled I quite literally zoomed through the second sleeve. It was so much easier to just count my rows and know exactly what I was doing next.
Now you might notice I said 99.9% done and keen eyes will see some blue tape and needles in the photo. I finished the knitting of the sleeves but I very purposefully didn’t bind off. This yarn is Malabrigo Rios, which is a superwash yarn. Odds are that this garment is going to GROW depending on how I block it. So to keep my cords and needles nice I used some painters tape to just keep them just above the water line.
After its bath my intent is to pull this sleeves as wide as I can in the upper arms to see if I can buy myself just a teensy bit more ease. But the fabric is going to want to stretch lengthwise regardless. I left the sleeves live just in case I need to rip back and shorten the sleeves if they come out ridiculously long.
I’m hoping that all these precautions will keep my knitting karma in check, the sleeves will turn out fine and I’ll just be able to do the tubular bind off once the sweater is dry. Fingers crossed!!
Happy Knitting!!
I have officially reached sleeve island on my Weekender sweater!
I picked up the pattern recommended number of stitches at the arm hole and knit an inch or so to where the pattern wanted me to start decreasing. Then I stepped back and looked at my sleeve and looked my arm….and looked at my sleeve and back to my arm. I’m confident the sleeve will fit my upper arm as it is now but I’m just as confident it will not fit if I work the pattern decreases as written.
My arm and shoulders are a little robust from hauling around a 31 pound toddler who still likes to be carried and snuggled. My arms taper more sharply at my forearms to my wrist. So based on this I have decided to wing it for the sleeve shaping. I’m going to just knit and keep trying the sleeve on as I go. I’ll start my decrease at or just below the elbow. I dug out some locking stitch markers to start marking my decreases to help me remember how to knit the second sleeve.
I am also pleased to be using my Chia Goo mini twist set that I got last Christmas so that I can knit the sleeves on a tiny circular. This way I can just zoom along and not fuss with changing DPNs or creating ladders.
I’m really happy with this sweater and hope to have this done very soon. Though it is now officially 100 degrees Fahrenheit here in Kansas so I won’t get to wear it until the Fall. Oh well, sometimes it’s just about the process right?
Happy Knitting!!
I have been using my DK Habitation Throw in the evenings a lot. I made it from scraps earlier this year and it was so fun. I have been fighting the itch to cast on another one. I finally tipped over the edge when I found my Teal Torch Knits minis from last Christmas’ advent calendar.
They came in a full spectrum rainbow in 12 minis, so I used my swift and ball winder to wind them into two equal cakes of six colors. I used a loose knot to connect the colors but I will russian join them when I get to the actual knitting. I also spied some leftover Suri Alpaca that I might work into the blanket. I’m considering using it a separation between the rainbow colors OR holding it double with the sock yarn on just the eyelet rows to provide some visual interest. I have some thinking to do on that one.
This project is living in my Cherry Pie Cottage project bag that is the most perfect summer theme of mermaids and ocean creatures. Probably going to be as close as I get to the beach this year!
Happy Knitting!!
I did it! I finished the body of my Weekender!!
The short rows were easier than I thought and I did manage to do each side the same. The ribbing was a bit of a challenge as I had an extra stitch on one side and one short on the other. I just fudged it to make it work. And bonus, I was able to try this one!
As suspected, the sweater is not exceedingly oversized on me. It still has positive ease but it’s not exactly boxy on me as it is in the pattern. But the length is nice and I’m glad I added the 2-3 extra inches in the body.
I finished the body and I have two 100 gram skeins left for each sleeve. So I have more than enough yarn to knit each sleeve and I won’t have to alternate skeins. I measured the armhole and my arms will fit through but they don’t have a ton of ease either. I think I will have to call an audible and knit my own sleeves. I will not have a lot of space in the upper arms to do the decreases the pattern calls for. I think my plan is just to knit a tube to my elbow and then try it on. I will just crunch the numbers and plan out my decreases from elbow to wrist.
I’m getting so antsy to finish this! I can’t wait to wash and see how the final garment is going to come out. I am also seriously considering casting on a second one in the next size up right after I finish this one! Am I crazy?
As promised, after I finished my Antagonist Vanilla Socks I put some needles right back on the needles. I remembered that I still had the MustStash sock yarn wound up from my winding frenzy and so I got to work on another vanilla toe up sock.
I’m just doing a 72 stitch toe up sock on US0 needles. Nothing super fancy, I’m just going to let the yarn sing. I did notice that thanks to my winding I will be working one sock from the inside of the cake and the other from the outside to make them match. Whoops!
This is the Retro Rainbow color from Stacey at MustStash and it’s brilliant. I haven’t even finished the full six color repeat and I’m already in love. Self striping sock yarn is the most perfect kind of magic.
These socks are the perfect pick me up to tuck in my purse to wait in social distancing lines and drive thrus. Thank goodness for knitting!!
I’m inching every closer to finishing my Weekender Sweater. I had split for the armholes and knit up both sides in the plain section. I’m finding it helpful to knit the sections in one after another. Meaning I knit up the front until I got the right height and then I counted my rows and knit up the back to same measurement.
The next step in this project is to knit a series of short rows before the final ribbing that will create the boat neck collar. I think I will like ways knit those in a similar fashion. I hope these will mean I can keep them symmetrical and therefore matching.
I’m keen to get this knit up and bound off so I can try the sweater on. I am thinking its not going to have as much ease as the pattern suggests. That is what I get for not swatching but I do believe blocking will add some because the Malabrigo is superwash. And for my body shape it is not always a bad thing not to have a huge amount of ease and be a little closer fitting. I just need to knit faster so I can find out!
Happy Knitting!
Happy Friday! To celebrate this week I have a new pair of socks to snuggle my feet in. My Antagonist Vanilla Socks are done, washed and blocked!
Pattern: Toe Up Vanilla Socks using 68 stitches and a gusset heel
Yarn: Stranded Dyeworks BFL Nylong Fingering in Antagonist color
Needles: US 1s
These are the perfect socks. They have a nice sturdy fabric thanks to the BFL fiber content but they are still next to skin super soft. The speckles really pop out of the dark grey main color. The fit is really good with plenty of room in the heel and the cuff hugs my leg just right amount.
I do have a decent amount of yarn left from the skein. I used 68 grams or 272 yards in my socks so I have roughly 130 yards left for my scrap projects. Which I’m not mad at. I definitely see more BFL socks in my future.
Happy Knitting!!
Every year on Mother’s Day I take some time for myself and cast on a new project with full delight and wild abandon. WIPs be damned….it is incredibly satisfying to have a little treat just for myself and let myself do as the mood strikes. This Mother’s Day kind of snuck up on me given the current state of our world. So I found myself on the eve of Mother’s day with no real plan.
I searched my brain and I remember that I had a skein of KnitCircus Trampoline in the Dream a Little Dream colorway that came already caked up. It’s a gorgeous gradient that felt right for Mother’s Day. I did some pattern searching on Ravelry and came up with the One Perfect Skein Shawl by Fredi Baker.
This pattern is specifically designed to use up the whole skein of yarn and would showcase the gradient nicely. Bonus points were that it was garter stitches and eyelets, which is kind of my jam right now. Though it has a picot edge, not sure how I feel about that but I can always modify that
I can’t wait to see how this purple fade plays out. I didn’t get very far on Mother’s Day as PB asked to take me on a bike ride on the local park trail. I of course said yes as I needed to burn off breakfast in bed feast of pancakes and bacon. This means I neglected to get my customary photo of my babies with my project cast on. Oh well, maybe I’ll wait until it’s finished and get my group photo then.
Happy Knitting!!
Happy Wednesday to all! I took some time this week to turn the heel on my second Antagonist Vanilla Sock. Why is so satisfying to finish a heel and then just sit an admire the magic that is a hand knit sock heel?
I really was feeling the vibes of this sock. You see that progress keeper? That is where I was last Tuesday. I completed the fit and finished the heel! All that is left is the small leg and then the cuff.
I haven’t officially finished this sock, but I’m already dreaming of my next sock cast on…..probably something self-striping…..
Happy Knitting!!
Michele plays with yarn, food, and music in Portland
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