Fir Cone Shawl

I started this project on our drive to the Grand Canyon in November. It was rather experimental, as I took a stitch from the Stitch-A-Day calendar of Jill's and improvised a shawl design using the stitch. It worked out really well, with the only problem being I had a limited amount of yarn (it is leftover from the chevron clutch that I made) and would have liked to make it a little larger. I think the size is okay though, it does keep a neck warm! The fir cone stitch was really easy to memorize (it is basically the same line repeated through the whole thing, and purling every other row) and I think it looks pretty fancy for how easy it is. This is a gift for a friend who asked for a lace shawl/scarf for Christmas so I hope she likes it!

I'm back.....

So, finally after a many-month blogging sabbatical, I'm back. My mom and I finished the ginormous blanket we've been knitting since May and it's on the way to S.C. as we speak to meet it's new owner.

I made a quick trip home last weekend to assemble the blanket and pretty much worked two days straight so that we could get it sewn together (we went with mattress stitch, which was imperative since many of the squares weren't exactly the same size).

Now, I'm excited to finally finish the tree jacket, but I have to rip out some mistakes.....Hope you girls are doing well and Happy Holidays!

Glittens

Pattern: Minnesota Mittens from Folk Mittens

Yarn: Noro Silk Garden

Needles: US 2

Start: November 11, 2008

Finish: December 11, 2008

I really have not been doing much knitting lately. About a month ago I cut my little finger on my right hand, right on the back of my nuckle. I cut it with a piece of glass and it was a pretty bad cut. I use my little finger to 'grip' the needle, and although it has healed, it hurts when I knit. These mittens are knit with worsted weight wool on size 2 needles, so they are REALLY tight, which made it even worse.

But, I think it was worth it. These mittens are awesome. They are super warm since they are knit so tightly, I love the colors, and they are really nice for riding my bike to the bus stop at 6 in the morning!

They are definatly a winner and I'm even thinking of making another pair for a Christmas gift... except there's less than 2 weeks until Christmas!!!

Christmas gifts

In the recent weeks, I have been knitting away at Christmas gifts for friends. These are some finished products. They are all original patterns using leftovers from the Shalom Cardigan! I am so sick of this army green, but I still have more than one more entire skein left (over 200 yards) so it looks like I'll probably be staring at it some more in the coming weeks. I have changed gears a bit after this and started a lace shawl project, also an original pattern. It is using some leftover wool in a gorgeous dark cerulean blue. Don't be too impressed; the lace pattern I am using is pretty simple. If it turns out it should be really nice, though. Pictures to come soon!

Green Cable Hat

Just your typical cable hat.

Norway Mittens
A first attempt at multiple-color patterns (is there a name for this?), and it turned out to be pretty easy, but some of the looped white yarn on the inside are annoying when it catches on your fingers/jewelery. Overall I'm impressed. These are inspired by the patterns in Folk Mittens: Techniques and Patterns for Handknitted Mittens by Marcia Lewandowski.

Chevron Hat
I really like chevron patterns. So I decided to make a hat with one. This stitch pattern came from the clutch that I finished earlier this fall. I made it into a hat with only minor flaws (knitting this stitch in the round was a little challenging for me).

Moonlight Mittens
These are knit from the pattern I wrote. In knitting them I realized how terrible the pattern is. It is dire need of some revisions, but I don't know that I am up for it. eek.

Thing
This thing turns out to be a trivet, I think. It was an experiment that didn't necessarily turn out the best since some of the "wool" yarn I had did not felt. But, it is still pretty cute I think, and will serve its purpose.

Mystery Solved and Decisions Made

Pattern: Mystery Socks by Kirsten Kapur

Yarn: Koigu KPPPM

Needle: US 2

Start: October 7, 2008

Finish: November 11, 2008

I made these socks not knowing what they would look like in the end; they were 'mystery socks'. A designer (Kirsten at Through the Loops) posted a part of the pattern once a week for the month of October. It was a fun project and I tried to keep up with the weekly 'clues', but of course, I got distracted. I always do. They turned out nice - a little fancy for my taste, but it was a fun to watch the pattern appear as I knit along. They will find a good home, I'm sure.

And since I know you all were really worried about my brown dilemma, here's what I came up with (and thanks for the suggestions!): start one project with fun bright colors and start one project in brown.

So, I am making some of those fingerless mitts with the flop-over mitten thing in Noro (like these):

still havethe flop-over part to do

And I am making a vest with one of the browns. I am making up a pattern as I go, so we'll see how it turns out. It will be a zip-up vest; I am aiming for something like this . This is what I've got so far:

Brown

I have a problem: too much brown. I look in my closet and see lots of brown, especially in the sweater department. I decide I want to make a sweater, something in blue. Or maybe green. Or red. I take a look at my yarn stash. This is what I have in quantities large enough for a sweater:cream. tan. brown. brown.

When did I become so boring (no need to answer, Molly)? Ugh. I am trying so hard to be good and use up the yarn I have. But its all so blech. See, the thing is... I am always drawn to the natural colors of yarn, but that's not necessarily what I wear. I mean, I can only wear so many brown things.

So whats a girl to do?

Dreaming

Pattern: Dream in Color Shrug by Kay Dahlquist

Yarn: Dream in Color Classy

Needles: US 10.5

Start: 9.19.08

Finish: 10.7.08

I finished this shrug almost a month ago. I really love the pattern and the yarn, but I'm not sure if I'll really wear this very much. I haven't worn it yet, but the weather hasn't really been appropriate. The sleeves turned out to be a little bit too big - they are kind of loose and I wish they were tighter. I guess I need to bulk up a little :) And the bind off is too tight. So really what I need to do to make it wearable is to undo the bind off and do a sewn bind off so that it isn't so tight under my armpits. But that involves undoing and finding/picking up A LOT of stitches, which is not one of my favorite things. And the doing the bind off itself will probably take forever. Its one of those things that I will eventually do, but it might not be until next spring when I actually want to wear the garment. The shrug itself was really simple to make - its just a big square that is then folded and the sides partially sewn together to make the arms. The lace pattern was really easy to memorize, too. Its a really is a cute shrug and I love the color of the yarn. I think it will look really cute over a black dress.

Speaking of black, I dressed up as a raven for Halloween. My costume involved hot glueing a lot of feathers. Sister dressed up as a picnic which involved a lot of fake grass. Our house was a mess for a couple days during the creative process, but it all got cleaned up. Molly didnt' get a photo of her costume, but I did!

You're right, I have been knitting

I've been knitting and not writing about it. Time has just been flying lately... I don't know where October went. Or September for that matter... I don't even remember September. Anyway, I've been doing a little knitting - mostly smallish projects. I made a Koolhas hat for my friend Seth when we met up in Wisconsin for a little adventure a few weeks ago. I used a ball of Cascade 220 that I had leftover from my Tree Jacket and I lined it with fleece so it wouldn't be scratchy. I was happy because Seth really liked it - he wore it the whole weekend and kept showing it to other people. I tend to knit for other people whether they appreciate it or not - and I wasn't sure if he would - but its always a good feeling when people really do appreciate it. I only got one really crappy photo of it, though:

The photos from the beginning of the post are from my trip home. I had an terrific time. I packed a lot in for the short time I was there. And for missing my flight to WI. But we won't talk about that. Anyway, we went to a wedding of one my high school friends and saw lots of other friends there. We took a little camping trip up to Door County, where the weather and the colors were spectacular. And we went to a Packer game and tailgated with some other friends. The Packers won and the UW band played during half-time. It really was a blast! It was a perfect fall getaway... it made me all the more homesick, though :(

I made another hat, this one for myself. Its the Urchin Beret pattern by Ysolda Teague. The yarn (Lumpy Bumpy by Farmhouse Yarns) I picked up here in Albuquerque when I came for my interview. It was 'souviner' yarn because at that point, I wasn't sure if I'd be coming back. I absolutely love the yarn and the pattern suits it perfectly. I've been wearing this hat quite a bit already.

And now I'm working on a pair of socks... it is the Mystery Sock pattern that was part of Socktober fest. Right now I am about 70% finished with them. I wanted to finish them by the end of October for Socktoberfest, but now its November and they're not done... I've only got the feet to do on each sock, so I should have them finished pretty soon.

Hope you all are enjoying the weekend - the weather is lovely here. I hope it is wherever you are too!

...I know I'm not the only one knitting.... where are you?

Little Blue Clutch is finished! Remember, from back in January? Of course you do.... Well here it is, finally finished! I really really really like it, except for one thing; my giant wallet doesn't fit in it. Oh well. The pattern for it was from Interweave Knits and here's the ravelry page for it. They called for some sort of shiny string to be knit along with it, but I definitely prefer it without. I also lined it with an old tablecloth that Jill had laying around that matches perfectly. It has giant blue, green, yellow, and red flowers on it. They're my colors.

And.... the Shalom cardigan. It grew about a foot long when I blocked it, and now it goes down to my thighs, so I may have to re-block. I've also got to sew the buttons on yet. I got simple plastic black ones because buttons are outrageously expensive, even at places where they should be cheap (JoAnn Fabrics?)

As for modifications, I obviously turned it from a one-button cardigan into a full-fledged button down cardigan. I thought I'd be ok, but then I haphazardly had to add a bunch of stitches right under the yolk pattern because I realized that the sweater as it was would have trouble stretching around my chest. It makes it a little strange in the armpits, but it's not noticable when I'm wearing it. The pattern was really fast; I finished most of the knitting in less than three weeks. I'd definitely recommend it.

Shalom Cardigan

Moonlight Mittens

So I made these mittens last year by improvising a pattern. I wrote down what i did, and today Joelle asked me for the pattern. After a few hours worth of tweaking, I completed my very first original pattern! Exciting! If you don't remember these, I talked about them here and here.

Moonlight Mittens!

Pattern by Molly Wick

Yarn: Natuasha Handknits Creative Focus Worsted, 1 skein
Needles: size 6 double pointed needles

Ribbing:
CO 36 st on no. 6 dpns. Join for knitting in the round
*(K1, P1) Repeat until ribbing measures 7 cm.

Mitten Increases:

Row 1: Knit
Row 2: Increase 1. Place marker. Knit to last st. Place marker before last stitch. Inc 1. The increase stitches between the two stitch markers will become the thumb for the mitten.
Rows 3: Inc 1. Knit cable chart* to last st. Inc 1.
Row 4-15: Inc 1. Knit as shown in cable chart. Inc 1.
Row 16: Put first 14 st on st holder. K37 (to st marker). Put remaining 13 st on st holder. The stitches on the stitch holder will form the thumb.

Mitten Body: 36 st on needles.
Row 17 and up: Knit cable repeat (in chart) until mitten measures 22cm from bottom of cuff. (cable on every fifth row)

Mitten Decreases:
Start these when mitten measures 22cm. Start with 36 st.
Row 1: k2tog, k15, ssk, k2tog, k15, ssk. This should finish round.
Row 2: k2tog, k13, ssk, k2tog, k13, ssk
Row 3: k2tog, k11, ssk, k2tog, k11, ssk
Row 4: k2tog, k9, ssk, k2tog, k9, ssk
Row 5: k2tog, k7, ssk, k2tog, k7, ssk
Row 6: k2tog, k5, ssk, k2tog, k5, ssk
Row 7: Put remaining st on two dpns, the front on one dpn and the back on another. Use third needle to knit into first two st on each needle, and bind off the two sides together to close the end.

Mitten Thumb:
Pick up 26 st on dpns from st holder.
Row 1: k12, inc, inc, k12. 28st.
Row 2: k2tog, k11, inc, inc, k11, ssk.
Row 3: k2tog, k24 ssk.
Row 4: k2tog, k8, sssk (slip 3 & knit), k3tog, k8, ssk.
Row 5: k2tog, k6, ssk, k2tog, k6, ssk.
Row 6: k2tog, k4, ssk, k2tog, k4, ssk.
Row 7: Cut working end and thread it through remaining st. Knot on inside of thumb.

Weave in all ends. Block if desired (suggested) and enjoy!

*To cable: place first 2 "x" stitches (from cable chart) on cable needle and place these behind or in front of knitting, according to chart. Knit next two stitches. Knit two stitches off of cable needle, and continue in pattern. The cable pattern calls for three cables across the back of the mitten, so you repeat the cable three times. The middle cable has a “worm” form, from alternating where the held cable stitches are placed ( in front or in back of work) while knitting other two stitches.

Cable Charts

If you'd like to make these mittens and what a better copy of the pattern & cable chart, just let me know and I can send it to you.

Pretty Fly

Skirt made with butterfly stitch and sweet thrifted yarn (for cheap)

Itty Bitty Sweater

Just completed baby sweater for my friend Jennifer who is having a baby at the end of October. The yarn is pompom from Filatura Di Crosa. Man, it's a huge pain to work with because all those little pompoms get stuck on the wrong side of the work. Quick knit otherwise.
Two of my other friends and I had a shower for the mom to be last weekend in WV. It was nice to visit with my girlfriends and my family. Only 2 more weeks until the road trip to come visit you girls. I'm very excited....but under no circumstance am I to buy anymore than $25 worth of yarn at the festival. I'm counting on the two of you....

Love.

Pattern: Lace Surplice Top by Gayle Bunn

Source: Nashua Handknits: North American Designer Collection #4

Yarn: Nashua Ecologie Cotton

Needle: US 3 & 4

Start: May 25, 2008

Finish: September 13, 2008

This turned out awesome. I had some problems along the way, but it turned out great. I love it. Its my new favorite knit. I had gauge issues in the beginning, but once I worked those out, it was pretty smooth sailing. Until I ran out of yarn. Because of the gauge issues, I ended up knitting this on size 4 needles instead of the reccommended size 6. And I added 3 pattern repeats in the body; both of those resulted in using more yarn than called for. I didn't have enough to make sleeves for the top, so I ended up making it a sleeveless top, which worked out just fine. I have worn this twice already and I LOVE it. It fits perfectly, is really flattering, and is comfortable! It is definatly a winner.

Molly and I are going to the local yarn store and to a knitting club tonight. I told her to recruit some people for a knitting club and she produced. All she had to do was wear her sweater to school one day. A girl in her office noticed, asked if she knitted it, and informed her of a new knitting club she was starting. So tonight is the first meeting and we're both pretty happy about it :)

distracted

Summer makes me distracted. I have started a number of things this summer only to get distracted away from them. For example, this gorgeous scarf that I started when I was out west and haven't picked up since:

Lace Ribbon Scarf
Knitty Spring 2008
southwest trading company's soysilk

Hopefully as fall rolls in I will pick this scarf back up, as well as the herringbone clutch that I started last spring.

And hopefully, as fall rolls in I will be wearing a cute skirt that I have been working on. It looks a little tight but I swear, I tried it on when it was only a few inches long and it fit. I swear. That's what I keep telling myself when I look at my butt compared to the area inside of this skirt's rounds. It is not from a pattern, but it is similar to a couple patterns, including the flirty skirt, and Tina's Skirt because the body of it is in the same butterfly stitch. The bottom of mine is going to be a band of green... can you imagine it?
Also-- I am using the yarn that I thrifted back in mpls for $2.50!!

Coreopsis

Pattern: Retro Rib

Source: Favorite Socks

Yarn: Knit Picks Bare Fingering, dyed by me with coreopsis flowers

Needle: US 2

Start: July 4, 2008

Finish: August 30, 2008

I LOVE these socks. What can I say? They are perfect - love the color, love the pattern, love the contrasting trim. Love love love.

Winter sweater in the middle of summer

Pattern: Skating Sweater

Source: Twinkle's Big City Knits

Yarn: Rowan Big Wool

Needle: US 17

Start: February 2, 2008
Finish: August 24, 2008

I started this sweater way back in February, knit about two inches and put it aside. I picked it up again a few weeks ago and finished it in less than a week... Knitting on size 17s goes fast! I had originally made a different sweater (Venus) with this yarn, but I didn't like how that sweater fit and I never wore it because it was impracticle - 3/4 sleeves in heavy wool just doesn't work. So I ripped it and knit this with the yarn. Anyway, I like this sweater much better; it is really comfortable and soft. And its gonna be really warm! I think I will wear it quite a bit.

I pretty much knit it as in the pattern; however I lengthened it by about 3 inches and widened the sleeves by 6 stitches. Even with that modification, the sleeves are still pretty tight. And I have rather stick-like sleeves.

*****

Molly and I went with a couple friends to Chaco Culture National Historic Site yesterday. It was an amazing place to visit and we are excited to go back again this fall when it is a bit cooler and we can stay overnight. It is in the middle of nowhere (~75 miles from the nearest town), so the night sky is supposed to be amazing. There are more pictures on my Flickr, if you're interested.

Fitted Tank

Pattern: Fitted Tank by Alison Williams

Yarn: Thrifted cotton

Needles: US 7

Start: July 23, 2008

Finish: August 8, 2008

This was a very belated Mother's Day-ish gift for my mom. I found the yarn at the thrift store and my mom saw a photo of it and said she liked it. So I decided to knit up a summer tank top for her. She picked the pattern and I think it turned out quite nicely. The pattern was easy to knit and went pretty quickly. I'm happy with how it turned out and I think Mom is too!

This has no relevance to anything, really...

So I was prusing the internet on my lunch break today and came across this list, the Omnivore Hundred. It is a list that was made by a British woman of one hundred foods she thinks every omnivore should try at least once in their life. There is quite a few things on the list that I had to google because I didn't know what it was. Anyway, I copied the list here and bolded all the foods I have already had and made the lettering really small of all the foods I refuse to eat (mostly sausages/intestines/organs or animals I just don't think we should be eating. I'm kinda picky when it comes to meat. The list is heavy on meat). Oh, and Spam.

I think its an interesting idea and I'm thinking about coming up with a list of my own! How do you all measure up?

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Bakalava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth $120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. s'mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (not sure what this is - wikapedia says its a mineral/rock)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

Three things

First off, Happy Belated Birthday, Jamie! I didn't forget, I just got lazy... I hope you had a fabulous day Sunday!

Second, Molly has arrived! Along with 13 of her boxes, which were piled in my front yard yesterday when I got home... Third, the current knitting situation:

Two nearly finished projects, the first the the Lace Surplice Top I have been working on for a few weeks now. I have finished the back and about three repeats of the lace on the front finished. And they I got bored with it and picked up an old project... The Skating Sweater from Twinkle's Big City Knits. I stared this last February but was only about three inches into it before it got cast aside. It is made with super bulky yarn (Rowan Biggie) and size US 17 needles, so it is going super fast. I should be finished in the next couple days if, Molly allows me any time for knitting. I hear we're going furniture shopping tonight...

Last weekend I took a little road trip up to the Jemez Mountains, which are north west of Albuquerque. I hadn't been up there and there is a ton of stuff to do in this area, so I thought I'd take a little trip through and see the sights. I didn't venture too far off the road since I was by myself (and I forgot to bring a leash for Frazier. I'm a bad dog owner.). The mountains are beautiful, though; lots of hiking possibilities. I checked out a couple campgrounds and went on a couple short hikes. The wildflowers were in full bloom with all the monsoon rains we've been getting. It really was beautiful and I can't wait to get back up there sometime soon and do some real hiking. I'm excited for winter too; there are lots of places for cross-country skiing, and also lots of hot springs - a great combination, in my opinon! I didn't make it to Bandelier National Monument, which supposedly has a lot of really interesting Native American ruins. I definatley want to check it out another time. I drove through Santa Fe, but didn't really stop. That will be another trip, too.

I did stop at the Tent Rocks National Monument, though. Very very cool. All kinds of weird rock formations. I wish I had a geologist around to explain all this stuff to me... oh yeah, she'll be here in two days!