I cheated...

...on my knitting. And the result?

This quilt top. It's going to be a throw-size blanket. I'm planning on machine quilting, though not sure how yet. Probably a little in-the-ditch around the squares, something wave-like in the white spaces, and something TBD in the squares.

I needed a break from knitting on the featherweight cardigan. It's getting monotonous, but I feel like I still have to pay attention to the knitting because the stitches are so small, if I miss one, I'm not sure if I would notice it right away. And there's that pesky business of knitting across then purling back. I much prefer just knitting in the round.

I've done 20-some-odd increases so far. About half of the called for #, and with each increase round, there are 8 more stitches in a row, so it's gotten to the point where one row takes me a LONG time, and after a row or two, I'm bored and put it down. Hence the desire to cheat.

Let's make something! Part 2--The pesky issue of gauge

So, after I blabbed on about color choice for the featherweight cardigan, I went to the LYS and got some gorgeous blue yarn.


That's Malabrigo Merino Lace in Taureg, and goodness, it's gorgeous! And I think it will look good with my skin tone (as compared to a bright green). I finished up my Knitter's Mission with these simple wrist warmers

and set about starting this cardigan. And that's when I started butting my head against the wall we call gauge.

Oh, gauge. The bane of this knitter's existence. The pattern author got a gauge of 6 stitches and 9 rows per inch, on size 6 needles. Since I'm a loose knitter, I started my gauge swatch using a size 5 needle. And my gauge? 7 stitches and 10 rows per inch.

Grrrr! Since my 6 and 7 needles were in the other room, I went up size 8s and continued my gauge swatch. And with this needle, I got gauge. But the fabric looked awful--the top half of the gauge swatch.

So I went back to the 5s and swatched a bit more. Measured my gauge again and again, still 7 and 10 per inch. And decided that I would adapt the pattern to fit my gauge. So I did the math to change the numbers from a gauge of 6st/in to 7st/in. And I cast on.

I chose to use a cable cast on, my cast on method of choice. I like this cast on because it's quick and easy to work, doesn't involve 2 tails and is more sturdy than a simple knitted cast on. Worked back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. Sigh. And measured my gauge. 6st/in. Sigh.

Ugh. At this point, I could have continued knitting with my changed numbers of stitches--the beauty of top down reglan is that you can try it on as you go and stop increasing when it fits right. But instead, I chose to frog it, and start over, using size 5 needles and the numbers called for in the pattern.

Next time I'll talk a little bit about the increases used where it says M1 in this pattern. But for now, a pic of my new cat Butters when he discovered yarn.

Knitter's Mission, part 1--complete!

I cranked out this Second Shawlette in just about 2 days of devoted knitting. I'm pleasantly surprised with the results.

First of all, the yarn was wonderful to work with. And I don't think I've said it before, so I'll say it now: I am hopelessly devoted to the Addi Turbo Lace Needle. I wish ALL my needles had such pointy points--really makes things easier. So far I have sizes 1.5, 2.5 (x2--my most frequent sock needle size), 4 and 5. Someday I want to have one in every size. Anywayzzz.. back to the shawlette. The single skein of Dream in Color Smooshy has a pretty generous yardage, so I was able to get a good sized shawlette from it--though at the end I was consulting the scale after each row to determine how much I had left.

I would have liked to do a few more edge rows, but I'm still happy with how it came out. I ended up using the lace pattern from the Matilda Shawl for the lace portion of the shawl. I like the simplicity of it, and it was super easy to memorize, which is always convenient.

This shawl is basically a pretty scarf, just big enough to wrap around the neck. I kinda want to keep it--a sure sign that I'm pleased with the result. It's hard to tell in these pictures, but the color is just gorgeous--a deep purple with the slightest variation in tone.

Now I'm onto the second part of the Knitter's Mission: wrist warmers. These should be done in no time. :)

Let's make something! Part 1--Pattern and yarn choice

Chana and I are going to do a little 2-person knit along (or KAL) and I'm going to blog about it in intricate detail. The goal is to make a little light-weight sweater appropriate for summer. Our first plan was to make the Whisper cardigan from the summer 09 Interweave Knits.

This pattern uses lace weight yarn, which guarantees 2 things: it will be lightweight, and time-consuming. Based on finished pics on ravelry, this cardigan looks like it would be flattering for most people, and would work well as a little coverup to wear with a dress or tanktop for chilly summer nights (those might not exist in NYC, but they do here). But, then I saw this Featherweight cardigan on some else's blog.

Simpler construction than the Whisper, more basic design, but really pretty. Also knit from laceweight yarn--this pattern calls for Malabrigo Merino Lace, and you know we love us some Malabrigo around here! Malabrigo is a single ply lace weight, and the dying technique yields vibrant, slightly varied colors. The question of what color to use: I am drawn to making the cardigan out of something bright and lively--a bright light green, like this yarn

Though I think a light grayish color would be more versatile. And I'm not sure if the green would look on my skin tone.

The other issue with yarn choice is getting gauge (duh duh duhhhh!), something I'm a bit worried about. The pattern says the gauge should be 6st/in, and the author used size 6. Well, I'm getting more than 6st/in on the project I'm working on now--and it's with fingeringweight yarn on size 5 needles! So I'm not sure how I'm going to get the required gauge with laceweight yarn. Hmmm. There will definitely be some swatching--next post!

My new theme song?

Just maybe.

Instant gratification fix

I started this little thing on Friday, and finished it last night--pretty quick turnover for an item knit out of sport weight on size 5 needles (for me, at least).

Made from some knitpicks shine sport that was hanging out in the stash, this little top is sized to fit a 1-2 year old. And I just love it! So cute and summery, I kind of wish I had one for myself. :) Knit from the bottom up, using the EPS (Elizabeth Percentage System) to get the numbers for the sleeves and underarms. I did an I-cord cast on for the sleeves, and I really like the way this turned out. Since small people have large heads, I made a little notch in the collar to (hopefully) make this easier to get on. Not sure if the neck is the right size, though. Worried it might be a bit too small.

I used one of my mom's (11) sewing machines to do the free motion quilting on my placemats. And I'm so happy with how they came out!

The free motion quilting was super fun. I finished sewing the 12th and final napkin today. These were definitely more of a challenge than I expected, thanks to turning such a small hemmed edge and the pain in the ass mitered corners. But I'm very pleased with how they came out. Look at that corner!

And I finished just in time, too. I was worried there for a minute while sewing the last one. This is all the brown thread I have left:



I had so much fun sewing, I want to start more sewing projects RIGHT NOW. I saw this tutorial posted on a blog yesterday, and I really want to make one. But this will have to wait. Because now I am a knitter on mission. I gave my Aunt Michelle that little heart shawlette that I made last week, and she loved it so much, she's paying me to make another one for her to give to her mom. As a general rule, I do not make things for money--it's never really worth it. But when your sick aunt asks you to make something for her to give her mom, you say yes. So I went to the LYS this morning and got a skein of some lovely sock yarn to make another shawlette. I'm basically going to make it the same as the first one, I just wish I'd taken more notes the first time--I didn't think I'd be trying to recreate it. :)

It must be in the air here!

Brr! It's chilly today. Good thing I finished up this cozy wool sweater!

The sleeves are definitely too short (and so's the body). But I haven't washed the thing yet. So we'll see. And it fits kind of weird in the shoulders. I definitely want to try EZ's seemless sweater technique again to see if I can get better results. Maybe in June.

I finished knitting the pieces of the modern lace henley. I still need to block them then knit the placket and collar and sew all the pieces together.

Also finished a pair of socks. Remnant Stripies!

I used yarn left over from Tracie's xmas socks and Christine's xmas socks. Not too impressed with these socks. They'll enter the gift pile.

With all these projects off the needles, that leaves just one sock in progress. Gasp! Must start new project ASAP! But I'm not sure what to start. I want to start my May sweater, but I'm still waiting for the pattern to arrive in the mail. I kind of feel like knitting a baby sweater--I could use some near-instant gratification.

Speaking of near-instant gratification, I did some sewing yesterday! I made some placemats.

I love the apple/pear fabric, and I think the leaves match it pretty well. I'm going to machine quilt around the fruit. I'm also working on some cloth napkins out of the same 2 fabrics, but these are proving to be more laborious.

I've been listening to so much great music lately. I don't want to take the time to go into all of it, but today I'm grooving to local kids Say Hi (formerly Say Hi to Your Mom, which I think is a hilarious band name). Their newest CD, Oohs & Aahs, is great, clap your hands, dance around music. They're playing tomorrow night with Cloud Cult at Neumos. And I'm totally going, whether I can find someone to go with me or not! :)