Knit Jane Knit

2011-05-16T13:39:00.002-05:00

Sweater Fit Theory by Jane Tanner

I have noticed that some sweaters, often top-down raglans, end up producing ill-fitting underarm areas. Often there is a lumpy poof of extra fabric on the body, arm, or both. I often thought this was because I’m not very busty or because it was an issue with ease. However, even if I’m making the correct size for my torso, I still get these lumps on certain sweaters. I see them on other peoples’ sweaters too. So why are they there?

After looking over measurements and formulas for many different styles of sweaters, I think I may have come up with the reason. I’ll begin with two examples which don’t produce lumps and then look at one that does.

Example 1: Elizabeth Zimmermann's EPS system uses a mathematical formula to plan for customizable fit. K is the term used to express the body stitches needed, calculated by multiplying your gauge by your body circumference. The body is 100% of K, arm circumferences 35%, underarm stitches 8% of K (there is some flexibility allowed in the percents, but I’m going to use a simple version here). On a bottom-up sweater, the yoke is created when 8% of K stitches are removed from each sleeve (35-8=27%) and twice on the body for the corresponding underarms (100-8-8=84%). The sleeves are then knit onto the body with the underarm stitches on holders to be seamed later. Mathematically, the EZ yoke is 84+27+27=138% of K or 1.38K. This produces a sweater without the dreaded lumps.

Example 2: Stefanie Japel uses a top-down method that increases to the full arm and full body circumferences. Mathematically this ended up being somewhere around 166-169% of K on her sweater (100% for the body, and 33-34.5% for each sleeve). This method also produces a nice sweater, without the lumps.

So, why can two methods get great results and be so different? Why are other methods making the lumps? I think it is because of a term I like to refer to as total circumferences (T). If I were to add up EZ's and Japel's total arms and body circumferences, they both come in around 166%-170% of K or 1.66K-1.7K.

EZ’s: add the yoke percents 27+27+84 to the four sets of underarm percentages 8+8+8+8 for a total of 170% of K or 1.7 K. (If using the smaller percentages of EZ’s EPS method, you can get a T number closer to 1.66K.)
Japel’s: yokes are typically 166-169% of K or 1.66-1.69K

Although they are constructed differently and are the extreme opposites for underarm stitches cast on, they both arrive at a similar T values. I have looked at sweaters that had no underarm stitches (0% of K), a few (1-2% of K), several (3-4% of K), and many (5-8% of K) and all seemed to fit into this theory.

The Math: Now look at a top-down raglan sweater:
1. Calculate the body stitch count for the sweater=sweater circumference x gauge=K.
2. Look at the number of stitches for the yoke before dividing for the body and sleeves. Add the underarm stitches you are to add four times to this number. Why add the underarm stitches four times? Because you are casting those stitches on to make the underarms on the body of the sweater (two times) and later they will be stitches picked up for each sleeve (two times). This is T (total circumferences stitch count).
3. Divide T by K. If the number is 1.7 or below, the sweater will fit nicely at the underarms. If it is over 1.7, it will be lumpy. The closer you get to 1.8, the lumps get bigger.

Example 3: the math from a lumpy sweater top-down raglan
1. A sweater with a gauge of 6 stitches/1 inch and a circumference of 37” would have 222 stitches=K.
2. Increase yoke to 370 stitches. Add 6 underarm stitches four times=370+6+6+6+6=394 stitches=T.
3. 394/222=1.77K (177% of K)
Result: this sweater did not fit as well as I would like in the underarm area.

Data Collection: Here’s where I’d like a bit of Citizen Mathematician Assistance. Look at your top-down raglans (or sweaters in general) and look for one with the lumps and look for one that fits well in the underarm area. Do the math described in the steps above and see if my theory works for your body shaping. I’m curious if this theory works for others or just my build. Perhaps for your shape you can wear something with a T of 1.75K better than a 1.68 with no resulting underarm issues. Or, perhaps you can go up to 1.72K will no ill effects. Feed back and comments welcome!

Conclusion: If this theory works for you, then it may be of use in the future. Before beginning a project, run through the calculations and see what kind of a T measurement you get. Does it work for your body type? If not, then make some alterations. Reduce or add underarm stitches or alter the number of stitches you need to increase to for the yoke. Hopefully the knowledge will result in better fitting sweaters.

Happy 2011 (the February Edition)

2011-02-01T08:33:00.003-06:00

2010 ended with most of my goals completed. I did an accidental 10x10x10x10 of projects: 10 sock pairs, 11 hats, 11 sweaters, 11 shawls).

I also designed a new hat pattern Arboretum. I love how the cables turned out.

For 2011 my goals are:

11 pairs of socks, 11 sweaters, 11 accessories (hat/mitt/scarf/shawl/wrap/etc)
use more of my handspun yarn and at least one skein of fingering weight/sock yarn per month
continue to record yarn knit using knitmeter.com and keep track of how many yards I’m bringing in
read more

I've started using Shelfari and am doing more audio books. Great for knitting time.

End of 2009/Plans for 2010

2010-01-02T14:29:00.002-06:00

Well, 2009 ended up with me sick/injured for quite a bit of time, so it seems that the blog record has suffered. Here's how things ended up:

DONE Sweaters/big projects= 18 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down u-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-completed 5/25/09
8. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (Buttercup top)-completed 5/29/09
9. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (3rd try sweater)-completed 6/2/09
10. Peacock Plucky Knitter fingering 50 silk/50 merino-completed 6/18/09
11. Black Cascade 220 Superwash (Slinky Ribs henley)- completed 7/7/09
12. LE Music of the Night Sundara FSM (Apres Surf Sans Hoodie)-completed 8/4/09
13. LE The Celebration Sundara FSM (Liesl)-completed 8/15/09
14. LE Second Look Sundara Sock (February Lady)-completed 9/9/09
15. Duchess Madelinetosh Wren (Evening Shrug)-completed 9/17/09
16. Black Cascade 109 (Anise)-completed 10/04/09
17. Soot KnitPicks Lace Wt (Whisper Cardigan)-completed 11/9/09
18. Wisteria Madelinetosh Worsted (Tea Leaves)-completed 11/26/09

DONE For others projects=29! of 12
18. socks for mom
19. socks for W
20. socks for A
21. socks for L
22. Daybreak for mom
23. Rib-a-roni Malabrigo Twist for L
24. Rib-a-roni Plucky MCN worsted Morticia for Jon
25. Vest for baby G
26. felted bag for AEA
27. socks for Jon
28. Rib-a-roni Malabrigo Twist for BB
29. STOCKING for L

Overall, I'm very pleased with how these two large projects turned out. I never thought I'd make both goals honestly. I still have tons of sweater yarn and sock yarn to use, but it felt very good to make all those gifts for my family and friends. I love it that my family is enjoying wearing handmade socks. Very satisfying for a knitter.

For 2010, my goals are Knitting Everest and 10 Shawls in 2010. My KE project is to spin up all (seriously) my fiber stash and make projects from some of it (not necessarily all of it). I'm nearly done with the alpaca. I think the alpaca will become a Moderne Log Cabin blanket (Mason-Dixon pattern). I have a lot of natural wool colors, one in enough for a full sweater, maybe 2 vests/tops, or lots of colorwork. I've also updated my spinning records. I have some fiber I may destash as well. I can't buy any new fiber until this is gone.

For 10 shawls, I need to do at least two over 546 yards (500 m), with the rest over 273 yards (250 m). I'm working on the first one (Citron in Knit Picks lace).

I'm still interested in IntSweMoDo2010, but I may only try for 6 sweaters.

Ravelympics will be two projects (so far)-Sundara and ESK. I think that is all I'm going to attempt.

I'm also on a bit of a yarn diet. I'm going to try my yarn knit and not buy anything until the Knit-In in March (unless it is for a gift).

Those are the goals. After seeing the results of last year, I'm realizing that I need to set them to keep focused and stay motivated. I also like seeing the FO pictures in the Ravelry groups.

Mid October Update

2009-10-19T14:17:00.007-05:00

Socktober has begun and I'm plugging away. I finished my February Lady Socks in Squoosh Confection. I also am participating in the Mystery Sock KAL from Through the Loops using my malabrigo sock-cordovan (US1). That is going pretty well. New clues on Thursdays, knitting both socks because I had parts of two skeins leftover from Jon's socks. I also started Jon's Plucky Merino Socks in Nessie. Boy, I love that yarn. Those are counting toward my Sock Knitters Anonymous October project. Such fun groups and very motivating. If I finish those by the end of the month, I'll be pretty satisfied.

I started my Whisper Cardigan, but it is on hold due to the socks in progress. More to come on that. Plus, it was really cold for two weeks and a lace wt. sweater seemed silly.

I did finish my next NaKniSweMoDo sweater. Love IT. It is Anise from Rowan and I used the remaining Cascade 109 in black. It is a great dressy sweater.

DONE Sweaters/big projects= 16 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down u-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-completed 5/25/09
8. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (Buttercup top)-completed 5/29/09
9. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (3rd try sweater)-completed 6/2/09
10. Peacock Plucky Knitter fingering 50 silk/50 merino-completed 6/18/09
11. Black Cascade 220 Superwash (Slinky Ribs henley)- completed 7/7/09
12. LE Music of the Night Sundara FSM (Apres Surf Sans Hoodie)-completed 8/4/09
13. LE The Celebration Sundara FSM (Liesl)-completed 8/15/09
14. LE Second Look Sundara Sock (February Lady)-completed 9/9/09
15. Duchess Madelinetosh Wren (Evening Shrug)-completed 9/17/09
16. Black Cascade 109 (Anise)-completed 10/04/09
17. Soot KnitPicks Lace Wt (Whisper Cardigan)-begun 10/10/09

DONE For others projects=16 of 12
17. Nessie Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (Jon's socks)-begun 10/11/09

February Lady Socks for me
Rib-a-roni hat for W

Dane-Ish Scarf for mom in Malabrigo sock-velvet grapes

End of September/October Plans

2009-09-29T23:06:00.003-05:00

Where did the last two months go? School started (middle one in Kindergarten now!) and lots of knitting I guess.

I finished three more sweaters, a stocking, 4 hats, 2 shawls/scarves, 1 pair of mitts, and a disappointing felt tote. I love the two Gretel hats I made; one with Plucky MCN sport and the other is Madelinetosh Worsted. Yum!!! I participated in Single Skein September with the Stash and Burn Groupies, which is why there were quite a few small projects in there. So nice after all the sweaters! Two of my projects ended up in the Episode #83 photo (1st column, top and bottom pics).

Next up is October and Socktober. I have quite a few skeins of sock yarn which need to get made into something. My goals are to make at least three from this group:
-finish Squoosh "Confection" (February Lady Socks)
-Plucky "Nessie" socks for Jon
-Ruby Port Sundara (to match Henley Perfected sweater)
-Malabrigo "Cordovan" doubled
-KP Essential "Soot" for Jon
-Figure out a pattern for the Squoosh "Curry"
-Green socks for L

I also have some lace yarn to make some lightweight sweaters for next spring. I still want to make a Whisper Cardigan. I finally bought the magazine because the digital version was just not happening soon enough. More sweaters are out there, waiting to be knit. I started Anise; bulky sweaters knit up so fast!

DONE Sweaters/big projects= 15 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down u-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-completed 5/25/09
8. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (Buttercup top)-completed 5/29/09
9. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (3rd try sweater)-completed 6/2/09
10. Peacock Plucky Knitter fingering 50 silk/50 merino-completed 6/18/09
11. Black Cascade 220 Superwash (Slinky Ribs henley)- completed 7/7/09
12. LE Music of the Night Sundara FSM (Apres Surf Sans Hoodie)-completed 8/4/09
13. LE The Celebration Sundara FSM (Liesl)-completed 8/15/09
14. LE Second Look Sundara Sock (February Lady)-completed 9/9/09
15. Duchess Madelinetosh Wren (Evening Shrug)-completed 9/17/09
16. Black Cascade 109 (Anise)-started 9/26/09

DONE For others projects=16 of 12
14. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo Sock (Dane-Ish scarf-Mom) completed 9/24/09
15. Knit Picks Stroll Sport (Dawson's Stocking) completed 9/21/09
16. Plymouth Encore Red/Blue (Rib-a-roni hat-W) completed 9/29/09

Gretel-Madtosh Worsted Silver Fox
Liesl-Sundara FSM The Celebration LE
February Lady-Sundara Sock Second Look LE
Evening Shrug-Madelinetosh Wren Duchess

End of July/August Plans

2009-07-28T13:42:00.010-05:00

Done like Dinner!

The finishing line is here. I completed my 11th, 12th, and 13th items for others, which was a huge relief! I'm going to keep track for the rest of the year, but I've made my goal and am happy! Jon's 2 Rib-a-roni hats and Jacquie's scarf wrapped it up.

In NaKniSweMoDo land, I finished my black Slinky Ribs sweater #11 out of Cascade 220 Superwash and it fits very well. The cuffs may need to be reknit because they are a little too tight. We'll see. I completed my Apres Surf Sans Hoodie #12 and love the yarn and finished sweater. It gets a bit old to make a sweater out of fingering weight yarn, but I love the results. So pretty! I wasn't able to finish it before the end of the month because we had a bit of company to prep for and entertain.

What's next? I have a few sweaters worth of yarn to knit up (more than I started with!). Plus socks, hats, and shawls are cued up and waiting. I'm hoping for some good inspiration from the fall magazine/online patterns. I tired of the same old thing. I also have 2 Christmas stockings for my littler guys to make, so that would be fun to work on as well. Four months and no obligations sounds the best of all. I started up two new projects today (fingering and lace wt).

While trying to muster up the strength to finish my sweater and waiting for it to dry before the applied i-cord bindoff, I whipped up a Gretel (Ysolda pattern) using some Madelinetosh Merino Worsted yarn in Silver Fox. It was a dream project and I love the results. What is it about me and cabled hats? Must make more....

DONE Sweaters/big projects= 12 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down u-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-completed 5/25/09
8. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (Buttercup top)-completed 5/29/09
9. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (3rd try sweater)-completed 6/2/09
10. Peacock Plucky Knitter fingering 50 silk/50 merino-completed 6/18/09
11. Black Cascade 220 Superwash (Slinky Ribs henley)- completed 7/7/09
12. LE Music of the Night Sundara FSM (Sundara Summer Lace KACAL-Apres Surf Sans Hoodie)-completed 8/4/09
13. Soot Knit Picks Shadow Lace Kettle Dyed (variation of Emma)-started 8/6/09
14. LE The Celebration Sundara FSM (Liesl)-started 8/6/09
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 109 sweater #2
. LE Lady in Waiting Sundara Sport Merino (want to trade)
. LE Second Look Sundara Sock
. LE Lilacs Below My Window Sundara Sock
. Black over Violet Sundara FSM
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)

DONE For others projects=13 of 12
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-completed 3/22/09
9. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)-completed 4/13/09
10. MadTosh Scarlet Sock (Joan fruit loops socks)-completed 4/21/09
11. Fudge Squoosh MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 7/3/09
12. Jay Knit Picks Shadow Kettle Dyed lace (Jacquie Melody Scarf/Shawl)-completed 7/24/09
13. Ink Squoosh MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 8/2/09

Jon's Fudge Hat
Jon's Ink Hat
Jacquie's Scarf
Slinky Ribs
Apres Surf Sans Hoodie

"Grey Gretel"

Dane Shawl

2009-06-29T13:55:00.004-05:00

I got bit by the lace designing bug last week and HAD to write up this pattern. It is a styled like a traditional Danish shawl (more of a heart-shaped triangle). Those shawls use garter stitch, so I made up a variation of the Oriel lace pattern to incorporate garter stitch (Oriella). I love it! I'm having it test knit and the pattern will be up as soon as I hear back from one or more of them. Here's what it looks like:

Dane Shawl
(knit in Knit Picks Gloss-bare, US6 needles)

Now I'm testing it in Sundara Sock, US7 needles

The response has been amazing so far and I want to make sure it is error free before I put the links up on Ravelry--it will be free. Hopefully it will only be a week or two.

End June/July Plans

2009-06-29T13:50:00.002-05:00

I did start my Slinky Ribs sweater in Cascade 220 superwash as planned, but got side tracked a bit with designing a lace shawl. My Sundara Lace KACAL sweater was delayed because of that. I'm now test knitting the pattern using a skein of Sundara Sock (Deadly Nightshade) for the KACAL. Then it is back to the sweater mines for me! I can't decide what pattern to use for the FSM or sock, so this is a good diversion.

Sweaters/big projects= 10 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down u-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-completed 5/25/09
8. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (Buttercup top)-completed 5/29/09
9. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (3rd try sweater)-completed 6/2/09
10. Peacock Plucky Knitter fingering 50 silk/50 merino-completed 6/18/09
11. Black Cascade 220 Superwash (Slinky Ribs henley)-started 6/18/09
12. LE Second Look Sundara Sock (Sundara Summer Lace KACAL)-will start ??/09
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 109 sweater #2
. LE Lady in Waiting Sundara Sport Merino (want to trade)
. LE Music of the Night Sundara FSM
. Black over Violet Sundara FSM (arriving July)
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
. Noro (recycled from vest-felted bag?)

For others projects=10 of 12
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-completed 3/22/09
9. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)-completed 4/13/09
10. MadTosh Scarlet Sock (Joan's fruit loops socks)-completed 4/21/09
. Nessie Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (Jon socks)
. Black Knit Picks Essentials Kettle Dyed (Jon socks)
. Silver Fox MadTosh Worsted (hat?)
. Fudge Squoosh MCN worsted (Jon hat)

Mid June Update

2009-06-19T14:21:00.005-05:00

I'm closing in on the end of NaKniSweMoDo and it is only Mid-June! I'm very excited to have done so many sweaters in such a short time. However, I'm more thrilled that they have been very wearable pieces and I've learned a ton about sweater shaping, construction and what styles look good on me. After a very cool spring, I've seen that my wardrobe lacked light weight sweaters, so I've made more of those. Probably one of my happiest F.O.'s has been getting the two tops done in the plum Cotton Fleece. It is frustrating to work so hard and then have a garment that looks bad or fits poorly. I love both now and am realizing that it pays to get it right.

Next up, a black wool worsted wt. version of Slinky Ribs from Custom Knits and a sock weight sweater from my Sundara Limited Edition "Second Look". It is more varigated so I'll be doing a lace pattern on that one. It will be my project for Sundara Summer Lace KACAL, which starts June 21st.

Sweaters/big projects= 10 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down u-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-completed 5/25/09
8. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (Buttercup top)-completed 5/29/09
9. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (3rd try sweater)-completed 6/2/09
10. Peacock Plucky Knitter fingering 50 silk/50 merino-completed 6/18/09
11. Black Cascade 220 Superwash (Slinky Ribs henley)-started 6/18/09
12. LE Second Look Sundara Sock (Sundara Summer Lace KACAL)-will start 6/21/09
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 109 sweater #2
. LE Lady in Waiting Sundara Sport Merino (want to trade)
. LE Music of the Night Sundara FSM
. Black over Violet Sundara FSM (arriving July)
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
. Noro (recycled from vest-felted bag?)

For others projects=10 of 12
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-completed 3/22/09
9. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)-completed 4/13/09
10. MadTosh Scarlet Sock (Joan's fruit loops socks)-completed 4/21/09
. Nessie Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (Jon socks)
. Black Knit Picks Essentials Kettle Dyed (Jon socks)
. Silver Fox MadTosh Worsted (hat?)
. Fudge Squoosh MCN worsted (Jon hat)

#9 NaKniSweMoDo-The sweater that has been knit thrice:
#10 NaKniSweMoDo: Modified Emma-one of my favorite F.O.'s ever...

End May/June Plans

2009-05-31T20:44:00.005-05:00

I made great progress during the last week of May. I finished my Cassidy Cardigan and love it except for the excessively long sleeves. Then, I finished my Buttercup top out of Cotton Fleece from a recycled project. I knit the original during the winter Olympics in 2002. Then ripped it out and reknit it into a wrap cardigan last spring. It was too baggy, so I used the leftovers to start Buttercup and then had to rip out some of the wrap sweater to finish. The wrap sweater was then frogged back to the underarms and is being reknit (for the second time) to become the third (or is it fourth?) version of the sweater. On the upside, this yarn holds up to lots of reknitting. I'm hoping it will be a quick FO and #9 in my quest for 12 sweaters in 2009.

#10 will be a sweater out of some lovely Plucky Knitter 50% silk/50% merino fingering weight yarn in a Peacock color. Yum. It is nice to balance out the fine yarns with thicker yarns, and vice versa. I'll probably do #11 in either my Sundara FSM in a new shade from the Limited Edition color Music of the Night or my sock yarn LE Second Look. I'll be getting some Black over Violet soon too, which may not wait its turn in the queue.

Sweaters/big projects= 9 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down u-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-completed 5/25/09
8. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (Buttercup top)-completed 5/29/09
9. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (3rd try sweater)-started 5/30/09
10. Peacock Plucky Knitter fingering 50 silk/50 merino-swatched
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 109 sweater #2
. LE Lady in Waiting Sundara Sport Merino (want to trade)
. LE Second Look Sundara Sock
. LE Music of the Night Sundara FSM
. Black over Violet Sundara FSM (arriving July)
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
. Noro (recycled from vest-felted bag?)

For others projects=10 of 12
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-completed 3/22/09
9. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)-completed 4/13/09
10. MadTosh Scarlet Sock (Joan's fruit loops socks)-completed 4/21/09
. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock Nessie (Jon socks)
. Knit Picks Essentials Kettle Dyed Black (Jon socks)
. MadTosh Worsted Silver Fox (hat?)

Cassidy NaKniSweMoDo #7
Buttercup NaKniSweMoDo #8

2009-05-18T23:05:00.006-05:00

Mid May Report
I finished my Featherweight Sweater and it was a fast knit! I may make another light sweater out of lace weight in the future, or convert a similar pattern to sock yarn. Now back to my Cassidy sweater which keeps getting shelved. I need to figure out the front neck w/o the hood, so I'm doing the back before the other front (two sleeves are already done). Getting distracted and a bit bored, so now I have nothing else on the needles so that I can get a bit more done on it. The cabling and shaping is just complicated enough that I need to pay attention, but not enough to really drive me forward like other projects can. Periodic breaks seem to be a good approach for this one, which is sort of how I did the Lace Henley in February/March.

Sweaters/big projects= 7 of 12 (#s for NaKniSweMoDo only):
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down v-neck)-completed 3/2/09
a. Blues Cascade 109 (Kiki Rug/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
4. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
5. Savoir Faire Plucky Knitter MCN Sport (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
6. Black Parade Smooshy Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)-completed 5/18/09
7. Tan Ella Rae Worsted (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-started 4/10/09
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 220
. AC Lady in Waiting Sundara Sport Merino (going to trade)
. AC Second Look Sundara Sock (may trade?)
. AC Tales of Wonder Sundara FSM (traded ASM Black Cherry for this)
. Black Cascade 109 sweater #2
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
. Plum Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (recycled 500 yds-summer top?)
. Noro (recycled from vest-felted bag?)

For others projects=10 of 12
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-completed 3/22/09
9. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)-completed 4/13/09
10. MadTosh Scarlet Sock (Joan's fruit loops socks)-completed 4/21/09
. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock Nessie (Jon socks)
. Knit Picks Essentials Kettle Dyed Black (Jon socks)
. MadTosh Worsted Silver Fox (hat?)

End April/May Plans

2009-04-30T13:41:00.006-05:00

I finally got back into the swing of things and picked my nexted two projects. I ran out of yarn on the Plucky MCN Sport sweater, but finished it with shorter sleeves. I bought a pattern -Cassidy- and love being able to follow a pattern and not rewriting it. Coming up with patterns from scratch was getting tiring.

A recap: sweaters/big projects= 6 of 12; for others projects=10 of 12

Sweaters or big projects:
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down v-neck)-completed 3/2/09
4. Blues Cascade 109 Rug (Kiki/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
5. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
6. Plucky Knitter MCN Sport Savoir Faire (top down W. Bernard-style)-completed 4/20/09
7. Tan Ella Rae (Cassidy cabled cardigan)-started 4/10/09
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 220
. Smooshy Black Sock (Featherweight Cardigan)
. Artist Choice Lady in Waiting Sundara Sport Merino (going to trade)
. Second Look Sundara Sock
. Black Cherry Sundara ASM (or whatever I trade it for)
. Second black Cascade 109 sweater
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)

For others:
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-completed 3/22/09
9. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)-completed 4/13/09
10. MadTosh Scarlet Sock (Joan's fruit loops socks)-completed 4/21/09
. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock Nessie (Jon socks)
. Knit Picks Essentials Kettle Dyed Black (Jon socks)
. MadTosh Worsted Silver Fox (hat?)

Smaller FO-
I worked on my Sundara Sock-Night Blossom Lace-Rib Socks in the Grand Canyon. Halfway done on those.
Plucky Sweater #6
Cordovan Socks for Jon #9
Scarlet MadTosh Socks for Joan #10
Sundara Sock and the Grand Canyon

End March/April Plans

2009-04-02T13:17:00.008-05:00

Well, the second half of March was a weird one from the knitting perspective. I lost the wind in my sweater sails and decided to take a break. Nothing seemed to match up pattern/yarn wise and rather than commit to a yucky project I decided to work on a few smaller projects for me...with mixed results.

A recap: sweaters/big projects= 5 of 12, for others projects=8 of 12

Sweaters or big projects:
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down v-neck)-completed 3/2/09
4. Blues Cascade 109 Rug (Kiki/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
5. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
6. Plucky Knitter MCN Sport Savoir Faire (top down W. Bernard-style)-started 4/1/09
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 220
. Tan Ella Rae
. Artist Choice Sundara Sport Merino
. Second Look Sundara Sock
. Second black Cascade 109 sweater
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)

For others:
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-completed 3/22/09
9. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)-started
. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock Nessie (Jon socks)

Smaller FO-
-I made an Ishbel scarf out of Zen Yarn Garden Serenity (MCN base) yarn. Whoa, did that yarn bleed! I am actually sending it back to resteam/set the dye.
-I also knit up an awesome hat (rinsessa-pipo) from Ulla-a Finnish knitting online mag. It is Plucky Knitter MCN Worsted. Love it dearly.
-I knit up Pointsettia from Knitty in the scraps of my Sundara FSM Ruby Port. Love that base so much!
=Three red/burgundy projects in a row! Pretty funny, but I love that color and I have a pair of mittens that needed a hat/scarf combo for years. If the scarf can get set, it will be lovely. Ishbel is a great & fun pattern.
-Made a pair of purple socks from Tess's Twinkle Toes and a Nancy Buch (Vintage Socks) pattern/Silk Socks for a 5 or 6 year old. Very pretty, but the yarn showed quite a bit of wear after the first wearing. :(

My Kiki rug is still sitting in the corner in a time out. I really need to give it one more run in the washer to felt the edges. Also a bit disappointing! Oh well, so goes life sometimes.

April goals:
-make the next sweater
-finish Jon's socks in Cordovan and start the Nessie ones.
-figure out an Aran to make with my grey Cascade 220 and do some swatching.
-get Kiki felted and sew down the edges.

Mid March Update

2009-03-15T14:40:00.007-05:00

Hooray for finishing what you start! I completed a few big projects and really am happy with the results. I'm glad to have the Henley done. It was a lot of calculating and figuring, which wasn't very relaxing. I was concerned it wouldn't fit and that would be a shame considering the cost of the yarn and its beautiful hand-dyed loveliness. Technically I still need to sew down the sides of the rug, but that is not a big deal. I'm calling it done :)

Here's the updated stats: Sweaters: 5, Others: 7

Sweaters or big projects:
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down v-neck)-completed 3/2/09
4. Blues Cascade 109 Rug (Kiki/Mason Dixon book)-completed 3/13/09
5. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-completed 3/15/09
. Grey Cascade 220
. Black Cascade 220
. Tan Ella Rae
. Artist Choice Sundara Sport Merino
. Second Look Sundara Sock
. Second black Cascade 109 sweater
. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)
. Plucky Knitter MCN Sport Savoir Faire

For others:
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)-completed 3/3/09
8. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)-current project 30%
. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)
. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock Nessie (Jon socks)

FO gallery:

End of February Report/March Plans

2009-03-01T20:32:00.004-06:00

Still working away on my 3rd sweater, the Henley Perfected in Sundara fingering silky merino. I started my 4th sweater, a top-down U-neck pullover in Plucky Knitter Sock yarn. Both are pretty far along. I shouldn't have two sweaters going at the same time, but I really want to finish my Plucky one before the Knit-In in two weeks, so I jumped in before #3 was done. Lesson learned for the future.

I did finish 2 pairs of socks: one pair of Louet Sport for Jon and one for my mom. I had to buy a second skein anyway, and just lucked out to have enough to make a shorter pair of Whitbys from Knitting Around.

So my totals are:
2 of 12 sweaters and 6 of 12 for others

Sweaters or big projects:
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-current project 60%
4. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down v-neck)-current project 85%
5. Grey Cascade 220
6. Black Cascade 220
7. Tan Ella Rae
8. Artist Choice Sundara Sport Merino
9. Second Look Sundara Sock
10. Blues Cascade 109 Rug (Kiki/Mason Dixon book)
eta:
11. Second black Cascade 109 sweater
12. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)
13. Handspun grey salish wool (or several options to choose from)

For others:
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-completed 2/27/09
3. Tan Louet sport (Mom socks)-completed 3/1/09
4. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
5. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
6. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09
7. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)
8. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)
9. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)

Goals for March:
-finish sweaters 3 &4: Nessie is for Plucky Nature KAL, Henley is for Selfish KAL.
-make Jon's hat for Plucky Nature KAL
-start a pair of socks for myself using my Stitches yarn (Tess). If done with those, then start a pair for Jon.

Goals for Stitches:
I'm trying to use up my Stitches yarn within one year so that I can go again this fall. If I'm not done with it, then I can't go. I also want to be done with 8 of my sweaters by then. Also, if not done, then I can't go.

FO from the month:
Jon's

Mom's

NaKniSweMoDo--Sort of

2009-02-17T13:54:00.010-06:00

After nearly 8 months since my last post, I've decided to dust off the old blog. Many people in the knitting world are participating in NaKniSweMoDo, which is basically a group trying to knit 12 adult size sweaters in 2009. At first I thought that sounded insane. However, I realized that it could be done and decided to make up my own version of it. I'm going to try to post my monthly goals and progress as I work through the year. Hopefully.

My version started off with doing a "Six of one, half dozen of the other" plan. I wanted to knit 6 sweaters and make 6 pairs of socks for other people. At the time, I only had about 6 sweaters worth of yarn, but that has changed slightly. So, here's my planning:

Sweaters or big projects:
1. Blue Brooks Farm Solo (EZ set in sleeve, v-neck sweater)-completed 1/12/09
2. Black Cascade 109 (SweaterBabe Vine Lace Cardigan)-completed 2/11/09
3. Ruby Port Sundara FSM (Henley Perfected Sweater)-current project
4. Plucky Knitter Merino Sock (top down v-neck)
5. Grey Cascade 220
6. Black Cascade 220
7. Tan Ella Rae
8. Artist Choice Sundara Sport Merino
9. Second Look Sundara Sock
10. Blues Cascade 109 Rug (Kiki/Mason Dixon book)
eta:
11. Second black Cascade 109 sweater
12. Reassemble Drops Cardigan (steek & chop off the excess body width)

For others:
1. Tan Louet fingering (Jon socks)-completed 1/19/09
2. Tan Louet sport (Jon socks)-current project
3. Cordovan Malabrigo (Jon socks)
4. Black Walnut Pigeon Roof Studios sock (Jon socks)
5. Black Plucky Knitter MCN worsted (Jon hat)
6. Velvet Grapes Malabrigo chunky (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
7. Cuarzo Malabrigo worsted (mom's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/16/09
8. Tuareg Malabrigo worsted (Sam's unoriginal hat)-completed 1/2/09

There are lots of socks skeins piling up that could make a sweater, if I wanted to do a Tempest (from Knitty). Or I could make some socks for my mom, Anyway that is the status, as of today.

Here's a few FO pics:

Update on Vest Pattern

2008-05-26T21:02:00.002-05:00

I've decided to offer my Argyle Vest Pattern as a Free Ravelry Download. My user name is Knitjaneknit. Look for it there! Thanks for all of the interest!

Wrap it up

2008-04-28T13:20:00.008-05:00

Neckdown Wrap Cardi is completed...and a bit fitted. This yarn droops a lot, so I made it a bit snug to compensate. Hope I like it in the long run. I still have 8 oz of this Cotton Fleece, maybe for a baby sweater?
I also completed my Northern Lights shawl (Revontuli-huivi from ulla) in Kauni (US 9, 170g). It turned out great. It is not merino wool, but it was very lanolin-y while knitting it. I love the colors (EL): black, blue, purple. Now I need a shawl pin; shawls are tricky to wear without one I think.

I also cranked out a pair of Cascade 220 felted mittens (Fiber Trends Snow Country pttn). Love the pattern and the mittens are really wearable and keep my hands warm while shoveling, playing, etc.

I finished up the Skippyjon Jones socks in Socks that Rock Lightweight. Skippyjon is a Siamese cat who thinks he is a Chihuahua dog. My nearly 4 year old loves the books, so we celebrated the sock finishing with the purchase of the toy/book set from Borders....where I am going to see the Yarn Harlot tonight!!!! Yippee!!!

I went to get my wrist band for the book signing this morning and got there at 10:05 am. I am a goof. Anyway, I didn't want to have to wait around so long after. I spotted other knitters in the parking lot, in the kids' section (sporting Birks and handknit socks), etc. I bought the new book too, but am going to read that after. Trying to spread the fun out a bit.

Slacker and Stash Reducer

2008-04-07T19:34:00.007-05:00

Things have finally settled down here and I realized I haven't written anything in quite a few weeks. Bad blogger! Lots of family stuff, holidays, traveling, furnishing/decorating a guest room, etc are the culprit. Plus, we've had a few warm days so I have gotten into my garden which is exciting. Crocuses are blooming and lots of other bulbs are on the way.

In the knitting category, I've been slogging along. I made great progress on my wrap cardigan in Cotton Fleece. The body is done, but I'm not looking forward to miles of i-cord for the ties, so I'm going to do something else for a while. I was about to do the sleeves when I realized that my wrists were hurting a lot from the cotton, so I need to take a break to heal up.

These modified Hedgerow Socks from Knitters Review, are my in between project. Nearly done (one toe to go). First time using Kroy. It is a color I wanted, but not too springy so I'm not loving it. I'm sure they will wear well. I have black also which I'd like to make Monkeys with.

I whipped out a knitted basket which was lots of felted fun. I realize that I need a good dose of felting every now and again to give me that instant gratification I crave when working on a long term project like a sweater. The yarn is recycled from a vest I made in 2000 using some rainbow colored Lang Polar bulky yarn. It was out of date to say the least, so this is a good re-purposing. My boys use it to store toys in. Less plastic boxes for storage seems like a good idea-especially being so close to Earth Day.

I also have realized that I need to do more knitting from my stash. I don't have a huge one to say the least, but all of the small amounts and single skeins are annoying. So I'm going to knit it up until it is gone/reduced. How long can I last before adding more? Not sure. I just bought some great Kauni Effects in a blue/black combo. That will be it for a while. I'm hoping to make it to June 1st. That would be a good break from purchasing. I think that if I have too many projects in my stash, then if I buy more yarn, it will be forever before I can knit what I want. Then, once I can knit the cool "new" stuff, I will see more "even cooler newer" stuff and never be on top of things. Plus, I'd like to go to Stitches this August and yarn shop this fall when I visit my sister...with a clear conscience. No mountain of stash at home to make me feel guilty. Hopefully that is a good plan and I can stick to it.

Jane Austen quiz

2008-03-17T19:58:00.002-05:00

Fun quiz

Tells you which Austen heroine you are with a few funny questions. I own the BBC miniseries of Pride & Prejudice and have seen it an uncountable number of times. I can't stand the Kira version-bleeck!

Crawling out and growing up

2008-03-13T10:20:00.008-05:00

We have survived the first week of March. It is always so busy with family birthdays and all of the prep that goes with that. Spring has sprung and the grass is finally about 50% visible. The baby tried out his new boots and enjoyed walking around outside. No flowers yet, but I'm hoping for a few bulbs to emerge in a week or so.

Knitting has taken a back seat with all of the celebration activities in the forefront. I did finish the shawl, a pair of wool socks for the Mr.'s b-day and have made more progress on the STR socks. Here are the wool socks made from some local yarn (Wisconsin Highland). They are very warm and sheepy.
The shawl is made from left overs of my Norski Baby Sweaters (Cottage Creations). About 8 oz on size 7 needles. An 8 would have been better, in hindsight. This shawl makes me nostalgic. I used the yarn to make 6 sweaters total, 3 for my boys and 3 for some special family friends. They take a lot of work and really are not your normal gift sweaters. Making the shawl from these yarns was sort of an "end of an era" project. No more babies for me, so no need to save the half skeins for color work on another one. Maybe for my grandchildren, but that's a long way off. So, I'll be able to remember my boys being tiny enough to fit into the sweaters each and every time I wrap up in the shawl.
Here's the baby's version I made. He wore it for his first b-day photos a few months ago.His my second son's version:
And that's the oldest's version. He's six now. Time flies so quickly...

Maybe finished

2008-02-28T19:19:00.007-06:00

Well, I may have finished my green sweater (ripped from the Tunic, 2000). Top down custom fit raglan, with shaping on the body using Galway Color Nep wool (size 7 needles). I had the whole body done and then tried it on...I looked like I had wooly love handles! So, my shaping is not really what most shaping directions suggest to do. Lesson learned. I ripped back to the waist and reknit straight and only did one set of increases, in dart fashion 1 inch before the ribbing. I also learned that by doing a massive increase on the row before the ribbing, I was able to have my ribbing not pull in too much or pucker in the back. Second lesson learned. Very cool to see how that worked out. I may be done, except that the sleeves could be 1 inch shorter. I can live with it, but after this much work, I may just want it as good as I can make it. Here's the Green Redo Sweater:Close up of the shaping (or lack of it):

I also have been stash busting my Nature Spun Sport Wt yarns left over from 6 Cottage Creations Norski Toddler Sweaters. The pattern is Feather & Fan Comfort Shawl. Lots of fun on size 7 needles. I only have about 8 oz of 8 colors, so I'm trying to create narrow-medium width stripes, and keep it look orderly, yet slightly random.
I don't know if I am a shawl person, but this was a fun, easy pattern and sort of free yarn (stash scraps count as free, right?). Now, to find a place to block it in a house filled with boys...that will be the challenge!

Diamond Back Argyle Vest Pattern

2008-02-19T22:11:00.010-06:00

Last fall, I mentioned I was working on designing a project for my boys. I had some left over Wool of the Andes from Knit Picks and tried my hand at argyle and intarsia for the first time. This vest for my baby was the result.
Too Cute! To size it up for the big boys required a reworking of the original design. So I tweaked it a bit and now have a pattern for sale (hopefully soon) on Ravelry. Their version is called Diamond Back Argyle Vest ($US 4.00).
If someone would like to test knit this for me, I'll send you a free pdf. Drop me an email at knitjaneknit at gmail dot com

Edited to add: this pattern is now FREE as a Ravelry download. Enjoy!

Pretty flowers and a nearly FO

2008-02-18T13:10:00.007-06:00

After complaining about too much snow, we got a change in pace and had freezing rain and sleet (topped with more snow) this weekend. So much fun! Nothing like being housebound with three energetic boys! I think we are up to 84" of snow this year (last was 28", average is around 40"). Spring is just around the corner, I hope. I cut some forsythia twigs to force indoors, hoping for a little color to get me through. Lovely V-day flowers (by way of www.proflowers.com) also helped. Love ya babe!
I have been making progress on my Galway sweater made from frogged yarn (Tunic). I am nearly done with the bottom ribbing and both sleeves are completed. Just the neck rib and weaving in a lot of ends left to do. I'm fairly pleased with the results. A good wash and some blocking will be the final proof if this was a good experiment. Photo here of the status sometime this weekend:
I am working on the Count Cluckula socks, and am hoping they won't be too tight. Still loving the colors.Still no more movement on the Bird in Hand Mittens. My sights are looking toward making a shawl of some sort. I have no idea by. Not too lacey or fussy, more Brooklyntweed-y. Most likely I'll be trying some sort of Feather and Fan comfort shawl variation. Others are on my radar, but would require yarn purchase, so I'd like to see if I like the one from stashy leftovers first.

More snow=more knitting

2008-02-07T18:57:00.001-06:00

Yet another storm has hit us hard this week. Sigh. I really love the snow, but enough already! Knitting progress is being made on several fronts. I am working on these socks:
which I love. Socks That Rock Count Cluckula, Feather & Fan pattern. I love them so much that I'm not knitting them too fast, just to make it last longer. I love the dark gray and black in these stripes. LOVE them.

I also frogged the second Tunic sweater and now have 7 skeins worth of Cotton Fleece yarn to make my top down wrap cardi. Woo hoo! Free yarn, sort of.
I have also made serious progress on my Incredible Custom-fit Raglan with the frogged Galway green wool. I'm past the divide for the body and have started the waist shaping. This is the first time I've tried this, so I hope it looks nice. I'm making a sweater with minimal ease, because I think the baggy fit doesn't do me any good. Somehow the picture didn't work on the camera. Progress picture to come.

I also bought some Malabrigo Worsted in black (which is sort of sad considering the lovely colors this yarn comes in). I decided I needed to make a plain black hat to go with the not completed Bird in Hand Mittens. I love the softness of the yarn; no pattern yet planned.
I have so many projects planned or in the planning stages right now. I think the current batch of start-itis and plan-itis is due to the weather. Feels like we are making no progress toward spring, so I need the diversion. Luckily the Garden Expo is this weekend. I am soooo looking forward to seeing green plants, even if it is in a large expo hall.

Light at the end of the tunnel

2008-02-01T12:43:00.000-06:00

I am giddy due to the fact that January is over. What a loooong month it was this year! Lots of sick, snow, and cold. Although it is only in the 20's today, that is a vast improvement from the super sub zero temps from earlier this week. I have been finishing up more socks and contemplating what to make for larger projects, but without a lot of decisions. A quick update: I made two more sizes for my Rib-A-Roni hat, which I'll have to update to the pattern.
Adult
and baby.I also completed the green and blue Blackberry ridge sport wool socks in a garter rib and sock surgery on a pair of Mountain Colors Socks from 2000, which were knit at the wrong gauge (worsted spun confused with worsted weight, duh).
This worked very well and I may keep my my leftovers for doing this in the future. I hate to do ribbing on socks, so this was somewhat faster gratification to have that as a starting point.

I made some progress on the Bird in Hand mittens after I ripped back to the top of the cuff. It is easier going with the metal needles, so I'm determined to finish them. My reward knitting is now my "must finish before starting something else" knitting. Humph.

I started the Feather & Fan socks with Count Cluckula STR lightweight, which I completely love. Picture to come. I wanted to do their 2008 club, but the price was a bit much for me. The Dragon color for January (peeked on Ravelry) is very cool.

I also broke down and ordered some Kroy online (Jo-ann's) for socks. I haven't been able to find a gray I like or black for that matter and really needed those colors in my sock wardrobe. Now I need to find patterns for those that won't drive me batty with such dark colors.
I have an urgent desire to knit up a sweater from my stash, but can't decide what to make. I have too many ideas and not enough time to make big projects. So, I want to make something I'll really like. Ravelry is a help in that I get lots of ideas, but then I'm unable to pick one. Aaagh! Hopefully I'll decide on something once those mittens are done.

Stash Anxiety and Frogging Projects

2008-01-21T13:30:00.000-06:00

I finished the second wool/silk Blackberry Ridge Sock. Love them lots. I wore them yesterday when it was sub-zero, and my feet were very happy.
I also started these Garter Rib Top-down (I'm a chicken with toe-up) socks. I estimate that I can get a pair of socks out of the 2.2 oz I have. Hope that works out (yikes).

I frogged another finished project from years ago and am contemplating doing that to a few more. The sweater in question was an ill-fitting Cottage Creations Tunic from 2000 in a Galway Colornep Light Green Wool. I've made many of these sweaters over the years in tot-adult XL sizes. However, this one was too short and wide, which made it flare out in the back. I had plans to try out Ann Budd's Set in sleeve sweater. I think that style or the raglan are going to flatter my small-ish shoulders better than the massive drop sleeves of my early knitting days. Now you see it....

Now you don't....
I'm all so thinking about frogging another tunic in Cotton Fleece (again too big) and a Noro vest. With all of this yarn liberated from projects, my stash has increased slightly. After listening to Stash n' Burns podcast, I realize I'm not a big stash kind of person. It gives me anxiety. I think of all of those projects and I get a bit twitchy. That seems to make me enjoy each project less because I feel like I'm trying to work my way out from under a huge burden of yarn guilt. So, I think I need to keep the yarn to a moderate amount. I even feel bad about all of the leftovers from other projects, and need to get those used up as well. So, to get a few more yards and ounces out of the bins, I made these yesterday during the football games. A blanket for Lamby and a sweater for Baby Jason doll, as requested by my older boys.

I'm really wishing I could start one of these Northern Lights Shawls. Be still my beating heart. No yarn for it on hand, so must work on some current projects before I can even consider buying the yarn.

Surprised by...silk and shrimp

2008-01-16T13:54:00.000-06:00

I'll admit it, I'm an animal fiber yarn snob. I love wool, cashmere, alpaca, and quivit yarns dearly. Cotton and silk, not so much. I think it has a lot to do with the feel of cotton and silk (sort of dry?) and how badly my hands and wrists feel after working with them for any length of time. So, much to my surprise last night when I tried on the first sock made from the Blackberry Ridge Wool Silk sport wt blend I had in the stash (purchased as part of this kit) and I loved how it felt on my foot. Stunned. I was forcing myself to knit up the yarn from these well aged Blackberry kits (from my B.K.=before kids days) before I dove head first into my new Socks that Rock yarns. Now, I may just have to give silk a second chance. Who knew I'd like it so much? Here's a picture of the sock:I started off thinking that lots of cables would look nice, but ended up just with them at the top cuff. Reminds me a bit of my Fetching mitts. I kept the rib through the foot because the yarn isn't very elastic and needed the structural assistance.

Also in the surprising category, the Tofutsies socks. I will not buy this yarn again, but the socks are very nice (currently wearing them as I type). Do you think people with shellfish allergies can work with this stuff or wear it? I really respect the ethics of used waste products from industries to make new yarns, but the feel of the yarn did not wow me as I worked with it.
After the second silky sock is made, I'm going to crank out a third BBR sock in the green and blue mix. Perhaps I'll try toe up, because I don't have a whole lot of yarn and want to make matching socks (lengthwise). I have white and various other BBR scraps that can be used to stripe the leg if need be. Thinking cap will be required for that project; I'm not a fan of toe up and will need to proceed with caution. After these socks are done, I'm going to take a hard look at that Bird in the Hand Mitten and see if it is going to the frog pond.

Broken record...I'm making socks

2008-01-14T13:15:00.001-06:00

As new snow is falling gently outside, I am working diligently at keeping myself toasty today. A pair of socks were finished last week and the second (Tofutsies) is about 10 rows short of being done. The finished Broadripples, Blackberry Ridge 100% wool, sport wt in kool-aid colorsThey were fun, so I dug up some more of my Blackberry Ridge former sock kit yarn and made plans. I overdyed some white/lime green yarn with blue food coloring to make some more socks. Here's the before (a bit too electric for my tastes): and after (muted with a touch of light blue).I also have some of their taupe wool/silk blend sport wtwhich may be turned into a pair of cable socks. That is largely dependent on the napping situation today.

I reexamined my Socks that Rock haul and noticed that my Count Cluckula is light wt (as is the Lucy, Backstabber was medium). The are all so fun, but now I'm obsessed with trying to find the perfect pattern for each. I discovered I can search on Ravelry for projects by their colorway too, so I was able to see some of the socks already made up. Very cool. However, I didn't know that Lucy was named for Wendy Knits cat. I'm not much of a cat person, but I do like Siamese cats in general, so I guess it is ok.

I nearly ripped up my Bird in Hand mittens, because the size 2 wood needles with worsted wt yarn was making me excessively crabby. However, a quick trip to the yarn shop to pick up a set of metal 2s made all the difference. I've done 10 rows into the palm and they look nice. My tension with the left hand is kind of bad, due to the crazy gauge issue. No picture, they look strikingly similar to the last post about them.

Out of the fog

2008-01-07T13:21:00.001-06:00

We are living in a cottony world today, again. A week ago we were surrounded by days worth of winter foggy weirdness and it has returned. I thought fog was pretty cool in the past. I used to teach meteorology and have found it beautiful. Now, I'm just tired of it. Plus, driving in it is very dangerous; case in point...a huge pile up on the interstate near us yesterday. Trying to shake the winter blahs, I cast on for these socks.
Blackberry Ridge 100% wool sport wt. hand dyed by me with some Kool-aid. The pattern is Broadripple and adjusted to sport wt gauge. I like this pattern a lot, as it seems to play nicely with the multi-colored yarns. Easy to remember too, which is nice.

So, where were the other projects I had going. Hmm, they must be around here somewhere....
Oh, the Tofutsies socks. Making progress, but the yarn is doing a number on my hands and wrists. I somehow was too distracted by the tofu and seafood fiber contents to notice that they are 25% cotton. Ugh. Cotton yarn will be the death of me, or at least my wrists. The socks feel nice, but I need to spread out the knitting a bit so I'm not cringing in pain.

The Bird in the Hand mittens were supposed to be my carrot for all of the gift knitting I did last month. Unfortunately, they are a pain in the hand to knit. No offense to the designer. They are lovely. However, knitting worsted wt on size 2 needles is a bit rough. I'd much rather do this with a nice sport wt in the future, but what is started is going to continue. Let's just say they are very, um, sturdy.

Perfect timing was experienced today when I pulled out a package from the mailbox...my Socks that Rock yarn from Blue Moon Fiber Arts. Lovely! I got Lucy in light wt: Backstabber in light wt and Count Cluckula in medium, but the camera seems to have eaten that picture. So pretty. I'm forcing myself to knit up the Broadripples first before I cast on one of those newbies. I think I'll just leave them around the house to enjoy.

From my recent fall down the felting hole, the SWS bowl and the BBR boxes.The SWS bowl is just wonderful. I especially like the pentagon in the center. It is now spending some quality time with my dining room table. The boxes were immediately put into use by my older boys for wearing as mini fez hats and ferrying toys around the house. I also gave them some felted pouches made from Galway scrapes from years ago to be used as sleeping bags for stuffed animals. One is striped, the other is dark green. Both being put to good use.

A new start

2008-01-02T09:08:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year! 2007 ended with little fanfare, but that was ok. We were all sick with colds or recovering from colds, so our plans to head out for a night of family fun were replaced with a trip to Target for a new light saber instead.

Looking back, 2007 was a good year for knitting. I realized that with taking care of my family, I really needed the outlet, mental activity, and sense of accomplishment I feel from knitting. I was pretty productive too: 9 sweaters/vest, 6 pr. socks, 12 hats, 1 pr. mitts, 1 scarf, 10 household objects, 3 felted bags, 3 doll outfits. I really got the sock mojo back, which was fun. I stopped making them for a while, but all of the new sock yarns called me back and I realized how much fun they were to knit, tiny needles and all. Here's the last pair of 2007: finished these as we were pulling into the garage from our holiday travels. Half Jaywalkers in Socks that Rock Medium Wt-Valkryie. I only did the pattern on the leg.The yarn left dye on my hands and birch needles as I knit, but left very little in the water when washed by hand. Hoping that my feet don't turn color when I wear them. It was a very Star Wars Christmas, so the force is definitely with these socks.

I had a felting episode again and whipped out 3 boxes/bowls in about 36 hours. The rainbow ones are leftovers from a non-used Blackberry Ridge sock kit (100 % wool, sport wt doubled). I followed the general principals from Mason-Dixon's book for one, and improvised for the other. The third is Soy Wool Stripes using info from this pattern, but modified to be worked bottom up and larger. They are drying now, so pictures to come. The SWS felted great and the stripes are very pretty. I usually don't buy yarn from Michael's but this one is a lot of fun.

Update on the Monkey socks: the yarn was too busy for the pattern, so I'm just making a plain sock. We'll see if the Monkey pattern will work with some of the new STR yarn I ordered (as a gift certificate) or I'll look for a plain Knit Picks yarn.

Holiday Half-time and Rib-A-Roni hat pattern

2007-12-27T13:15:00.000-06:00

We have finished with my in-laws side of Christmas and all knitted gifts were completed on time. Hooray! I ended up making 2 Calorimetry, 2 Unoriginal hats, 1 scarf, and had baby booties and hat ready to go a month ago. It was touch and go on the scarf because it was looking like this a few days earlier:Lots of rolling (A Scarf Askew). So I ripped out all 2.5 feet of the scarf and did Yarn Harlot's One row scarf pattern. What a life saver that pattern was. Fast, more interesting than plain garter stitch, looks great when completed. I whipped out a 7.5x68" scarf in 3 days. Smoking fast, if I say so myself. My Bro-in-law is 6'3'' and it turned out to be a great length for him. The Ultra Alpaca yarn was lovely to knit with and I used about 5.1 oz of the two skeins I bought. I also finished the purple linen towel for my mom. It is three inches shorter than I hoped, but I was determined to be done. It looks nice. A bit of a dot stitch for 3" followed by 14" of garter stitch. I hope it looks nice after I machine wash and dry it. Wish me luck on that move (hopefully not famous last words). Used 2.2 oz of Euroflax Linen-Amethyst, size 13x17"
I also cranked out two hats for my boys to break up all of the scarf and towel knitting. I'm calling it Rib-A-Roni (as in, a rib hat to cover up your noodle). Here's the pattern and some pictures:
Rib-A-Roni Hat by Jane Tanner
copyright 2007

Materials:
1.5 (2) oz worsted weight yarn (I used Encore Worsted, about 0.1-0.2 oz were of a contrasting color)
Size 7 needles: 16" circular and dpn
4 stitch markers

Gauge: 5 rib pattern sts/1"
Sizes: child (youth/small adult).

Note: I used a p2tog-tbl (purl 2 together thru the back loops). Feel free to substitute it with a regular p2tog. It will still work and look fine.

Cast on 72 (80) sts loosely. Join, being careful not to twist, and place marker. Establish rib pattern: k4, p1, k3 (4), p1 (8 times around). Work for 5 (6) inches (adding a stripe after about 2" if desired).

Set up round: At beginning of round, remove marker, k2, place first marker (new location for beginning of rounds), *work around in established rib for 18 (20) sts, place another marker,* (repeat * * two more times for third and forth markers), ending with a k2. The stitches should be evenly divided between the 4 markers, 18 (20) sts between each.

Crown shaping: use rows 3-14 for smaller size (rows 1-14 for larger size)
For larger size only:
Row 1 (decrease round): *k2, p2tog-tbl, k3, p1, k4, p1, k3, p2tog, k2,* repeat around 3 more times. 72 sts.
Row 2: *K2, p1, k3, p1, k4, p1, k3, p1, k2,* repeat around 3 more times.

For both sizes:
Row 3 (decrease round): *k2, p2tog-tbl, k2, p1, k4, p1, k2, p2tog, k2,* repeat around 3 more times. 64 sts.
Row 4: *K2, p1, k2, p1, k4, p1, k2, p1, k2,* repeat around 3 more times.
Row 5 (decrease round): *k2, p2tog-tbl, k1, p1, k4, p1, k1, p2tog, k2,* repeat around 3 more times. 56 sts.
Row 6: *K2, p1, k1, p1, k4, p1, k1, p1, k2,* repeat around 3 more times.
Row 7 (decrease round): *k2, p2tog-tbl, p1, k4, p1, p2tog, k2,* repeat around 3 more times. 48 sts.
Row 8: *K2, p2, k4, p2, k2,* repeat around 3 more times.
Row 9 (decrease round): *k2, p2tog-tbl, k4, p2tog, k2,* repeat around 3 more times. 40 sts.
Row 10 *K2, p1, k4, p1, k2,* repeat around 3 more times.
Row 11 (decrease round): *k2, p2tog-tbl, k2, p2tog, k2,* repeat around 3 more times. 32 sts.
Row 12 (decrease round): *k2, p2tog-tbl, p2tog, k2,* repeat around 3 more times. 24 sts.
Row 13 (decrease round): *k1, ssk, k2tog, k1,* repeat around 3 more times. 16 sts.
Row 14 (decrease round): *ssk, k2tog,* repeat around 3 more times. 8 sts.

Cut 8" yarn tail and pull through last 8 sts on the needles. Weave in all ends.

Black and White

2007-12-18T13:51:00.000-06:00

I think we are experiencing our snowiest December on record, or it seems that way. The snow piles are so huge right now, I can barely add to them when we shovel. I usually am wearing a baby on my back (in a pack), so shoveling is hard enough. The upside of the weather is that it seems to produce great results in the knitting department. Also, getting ready for Christmas by knitting gifts has produced a nice line up of quick projects. Behold....

Two of Calorimetry: The larger of the two is a gift for my mother-in-law (a requested item) made of Savoy (Tahki) wool/silk. I had enough to make the smaller version for myself. I did a 96 sts cast on for hers and 88 for mine. This pattern is a good starting point, but I did a bit of messing around in the process. I hope she likes it. I did little ties to make it more adjustable than a button for hers. I sewed my ends together after taking the picture on mine. I'm pretty sure that my head's going to stay the same size.

Ribbed hat: made for a 5 year old who's head is as big as his mom's. Yikes! This kid is going to be a giant. I'll be lucky if I'm taller than him by the time he's 8. I was going for a more youth- looking hat to match his new winter coat. Successful, non?

A scarf from my Brother-in-law: based off the Scarf Askew (requested item). I heard this scarf, as written, rolled a lot. I modified it a bit and it still rolls, but he'll wear it only two times a year when he visits the midwest. I'm hoping some wet blocking will make it look flat for the gift giving moment. The yarn is Ultra Alpaca.

Jaywalker Socks update: Have 1 done and started the second one. I love my adaptation of increasing and decreasing the stitch count to give me a fab fit, if I say so myself.

Noticing a trend....all of these projects are black. The next project is a red/gray version of the hat for my middle son. Color!

Hats R' Us

2007-12-10T14:21:00.001-06:00

I have been a hat knitting machine over the past few days. The option to receive a personally knitted item for Christmas List giving was a huge success. People placed their orders last week and I have been a busy girl. I got the fun of picking out yarn, the fun of knitting, the fun of not shopping at the mall, and the hopeful fun of seeing my handy work enjoyed by a family member. Yippee! Why did I not do this sooner?!?

Here's what I've got so far:
A sleeping hat for Hubby's stocking gift (which I already gave him). He shaves his head and doesn't like the drafts while he's sleeping. Based on the Ribbed Beanie pattern, with my own tweaking. The yarn (Super Nova Chunky Sirdar) was a frogged hat I made for him a few years ago. I got the sizing wrong and thought I'd try again.

An Unoriginal Hat for SIL #1 in Sulka (Marisol) Snow White, which is really a cream/off white. This yarn is just lovely and the money is used to fund a school for the shepherds' children.
An Unoriginal Hat for SIL #2 in Rowan's Cashsoft Chunky Thunder Gray. Part cashmere, springy yarn. Prewashed picture:
A Calorimetry in Savoy (Tahki) Black...will be started today. With all of the gauge issues and fit issues, I'm going to swatch a bit first.
My BIL just asked for a black scarf. We'll see what I come up with for that. I really want to finish my Jaywalkers and my mom's purple linen towel as well as the Bird in Hand Mittens. I don't want to do something on tiny needles and plain knitting. Hopefully I can convince him to use a fun pattern or a tweedy yarn.

Christmas Knitting, etc.

2007-12-05T13:34:00.000-06:00

The Christmas knitting has begun. I picked up needles and yarn for the first Unoriginal Hat I'm making for my two sisters-in-law. I bought some AMAZING Crystal Palace dpns in the funky 10 3/4 size (7mm). For how much they cost, I'm glad I like them. I've already given them a test knit by reknitting MY Unoriginal Hat last night. Yes, I'm that big of a dork. The hat was a big too snug and I wanted to see how the fit would change with the larger needle. It is much better now. No need for a picture, cuz' it looks just like it did before. I used 0.2 oz more yarn, which seemed to be just the right amount.

Here's the yarn for the first hat:It is so nice and soft. Marisol Sulka in Snow White. Merino/Alpaca/Silk blend of squishy goodness. I had directives for which hat pattern to use, and it must be in cream. After hunting down all softness worthy yarns, I had three yarns to choose from. One was 100% Alpaca-too soft. One was 50/50 merino/alpaca-not soft enough. This one has just enough body to support the cables. We'll see how it looks. I'm making it a bit bigger than mine by inserting only 4 extra purls (2 each into only 2 of the repeats). Hope that gives me the extra inch in circumference I need.

Here's a rundown of the latest:
Garterloc dishtowel-fun and fast
Fetching Mitts-great use of a recently frogged baby hat. Made a smaller version for myself and did a bit of messing with the thumb area:
Socks that Rock Jaywalkers (finally)-also have done some sizing magic. Cast on 52 for ribbing, increased to 60 for leg, decreased to 52 for rest of sock. I'm not doing the zig zag stitch on the foot. The yarn is pretty, but it really leaves dye on my hands. I hope some of the color stays after I wash them. I know dark yarns often have "crocking" issues. Hummm, we shall see.
Off to knit a hat during nap time.

Undo, to-do...

2007-11-29T13:23:00.000-06:00

A week has passed and I feel like I have recovered from Thanksgiving. The rest of my events went smoothly. Hooray! Some of the Christmas decorations have even made it up and the storage rooms in the basement are cleaned out and organized. Why? Because I was freaking out about it. Dumb, but true. I gave birth to our son right after Christmas last year, so other members of my family packed up all the decorations last January. Then, we had our basement finished this spring and the builders jammed everything into odd places to make room for...new rooms. Plus, they sprinkled everything with a good measure of drywall dust and sawdust. It has been eating at me all year, but other projects were more of a priority. So full steaam ahead for the holiday fun and knitting now that I've finished that item on the to-do list.

I rounded up a bunch more pictures of finished objects to add to my flickr sets. In the process, I came to the conclusion that I needed to frog a few things. Item one: handspun pink yarn made into a baby hat. I realized that I would rather remake this into something for myself than give it away. I bought the fiber while pregnant with my first son. Ummm, no girls to give it to so I'm going to repurpose it. Same with the cute purple handspun made from the same trip (SOAR).
Second item: pink earflap hat made from Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran purchased on a trip to visit my brother before second son was born. Again, will make it into something cute for myself.
I was dumb and made a cute sweater while pregnant with my third son, again in a girly color. I'm going to give that to our kindergarten teacher's baby girl.

Third project destined for rebirth: a vest knit out of Polar rainbow yarn. Cute yarn, cute on a 20-something year old new knitter, not so cute on me now.
I also started my Jaywalker socks using Socks that Rock medium wt. Pictures next time.

Happy Stress Knitting to you

2007-11-22T12:28:00.000-06:00

It is/has been a long week of prepping for visiting family and preparing meals. So, instead of contemplating all that I have to be thankful for, I have been knitting up a storm to take the edge off the stress load in between events and responsibilities. After hosting a brunch yesterday, I zipped off to the yarn store before nap time to pick up some 1.5 sock needles and yarn for a hat. The needles are to make socks with this:
Socks that Rock medium wt in Valkyrie. I think they will be Jaywalkers. After gauging issues are explored, I will commit more. (Like the pretty snow?)

The yarn was this:

And by bed time, I had this:
It is Yarn Harlot's Unoriginal Hat. It is drying now. I doubled Malabrigo (worsted weight) on size 10.5 needles. My gauge was a bit tighter than I would have liked (on account of the stress), but I think it will fit fine. If not, I'll rip it and add a few purls into the pattern like others have done on Ravelry. I chose Violetas color, even though I have two other purple hats. I looked for other colors (I swear), but this one will look the best on me. I even have a bit of yarn (0.8 oz) left to use for some fun scrap project. Nice yarn.

The upside of all the visitors is that some of them are knitters. I got to do a little sock doctoring yesterday, and hope to do a bit of knitting in public during my visiting.

I also finished up my "Weirdest Socks Ever" made of the Essentials Meadow Multi. They are sort of ugly/fun, but feel great. I'll wear them anyway. I'll have to give some of the solids a try.
My big boys played outside in the snow this morning and the Packers are on TV. I have yarn, food, a home, and people who I love to share those things with. I have a lot to be thankful for.

Now pass me that ball winder and swift.

Retreat and compensation

2007-11-12T14:29:00.000-06:00

I gave up on the Jaywalkers using the Knit Picks Essentials Meadows Multi. The yarn was fighting too hard and wanted to be plain socks apparently. So boring, spiraling socks they shall be. I really like the yarn, but will try it in a plain color next time.
To compensate for all that hard work down the tubes, I bought Socks that Rock in Valkarie. Yum! I love black and was wishing it was more common in the sock yarn world. Lo and behold, Blue Moon just debuted a new Raven Clan color line. I also figured out that if I got the medium weight, it would be enough to make two pairs of socks for me. The Jaywalkers will look nice with this type of yarn instead I am hoping.

I was feeling very frustrated with 3 days of sock knitting frogged, so I decided to do some quick knits to make myself feel better. Nothing says happy like ditching the size 1 needles for size 15! I used up some stash Ecological Wool (Cascade) and made two Button Hole Bags from Mas0n-Dixon's blog. They turned out fine, but I wish I would have made one big bag instead. Oh well. Next time.
My next triumph was to use up some scrap Patons Classic Merino in yellow, blue and mauve from a long time ago. I whipped up some bowls and a hot pad on size 8s. My laundry room has many buttons lying around which were begging for a cute little holding pen until I got out the thread to sew them on. The buttons like to hang out with the loose change I find too. The others bowls will be snatched up by my older sons for Lego warmers or rock beds, etc.
We had a wonderful warm November day today so all my pictures were taken outside on the porch. I even knit on the sock a bit during nap time sitting out there. Got to love Global Warming!

GRRRR

2007-11-07T14:26:00.000-06:00

I have torn out my forth start to my Jaywalker Socks this afternoon. Here's the history:
-carefully knit and wash swatch, select size 2 needles instead of size 1s in pattern.
-start sock with 76 stitches...realize I'm not making knee highs...frog
-start on size 2s with 68 sts...still too big...frog
-start on 1s with 68 sts...finally fits but huge lighting bolts in brown, lime & magenta forming...carefully frog back to second row...
-use second ball to combat flashing only to realize I started it in the wrong place. If continued, sock will have one color on each side only...frog
-cast on again, but joining yarn in a better spot. We'll see if this works. I know I have narrow feet, but give me a break!

Swatch n' wash

2007-11-05T13:38:00.000-06:00

All knitting these days seems sock related. I finished the purple Trekking XXL socks yesterday. They are wonderful. I obviously made the first pair too large. I worried I took out too many stitches, but they are doing just fine today (no circulation issues!). I will need to hold back buying more of the yarn. The colors and patterns Trekking comes in are stunning. I have about 1.3 oz left of this color; what to do with the leftovers?.
I also cast on for the Jaywalkers using "Meadows Multi" Knit Picks Essentials. I actually swatched and washed this yarn first to make sure my gauge would work out correctly. I've heard some people say the socks can be tight.

I also bought some Tofutsies sock yarn to make a pair of Monkeys. Also swatched and washed. Can you tell I've been burned lately by the gauge of several projects. I've noticed that I'm getting more cautious with my calculations now that my knitting time is diminished by the demands of three small children. I can't mess around and rip out a bunch of rows if I've screwed up. Get it right the first time is my new motto.

To Darn or not

2007-10-24T13:30:00.000-05:00

I used to say that I would darn a bunch of my old socks and never have. However, I grabbed a pair yesterday and realized I had a choice. Either I suck it up and get the matching yarn from my stash to darn the toe, or I'd lose this pair of socks. They aren't my favorite ones, but I've had them since 1999. One more day of wear vs. 5 minutes of pidley mattress stitching. I'm glad I tried it and saved the pair for one more wear. Realistically, this will be the last season of wear for these lovely October Blackberry Ridge wool/silk socks. The bottoms are nearly thread bare. The side of the toe seams to be my "Achilles heel" as I seem to ruin that part first. Reinforcing the toes doesn't seem so dumb after all.

In other socky news, I finished one pair of the purple Trekking XXL socks. I tried to hunt down the next repeat for the second sock and realized that I didn't have it. So , I'll have fraternal instead of identical socks. I'm new to this type of color shifting sock yarn and don't know if there will be a matching point. The first one is just terrific, so I'm motivated to finish the pair.

Slow week

2007-10-18T13:26:00.000-05:00

Sadly there has been minimal knitting this week and no pictures today. We have been dealing with a teething baby, a preschooler who is waking up 2-7 x per night, sleep deprivation, colds, family visitors, etc. I have made it 70% thru the first Trekking XXL purple sock. Unfortunately, naps and decent amounts of car knitting have been hard to come by. I hope to make some more progress on something which will be interesting to photograph.

On the upside, we have had nice weather and the kindergartener has not brought home any nasty sicknesses yet.

Christine's baby booties

2007-10-12T13:37:00.000-05:00

I picked up this pattern when I purchased my Trekking XXL at a yarn shop. Now, I've been knitting for nearly 10 years, and I couldn't wrap my brain around this simple pattern. It is sort of vague, but give me a break! It must be the sleep-deprived haze I've been living in since my baby decided to sleep in 45 minute stretches all night long. It is a miracle I can still find the computer, let alone type. Anyway. I seriously was going to bury this pattern in the backyard and then I just figured out my own way of doing the instep. I basically just did it like a heel on a standard sock. They redeemed themselves by being incredibly cute and the stripes matched up nicely.

Once the booties were conquered I cast on the Trekking XXL purple. I also got a shipment in from Knitpicks with a host of Wool for my boys and some sock yarn to make Jaywalkers. It's Essentials Multi "Meadow". It surprised me because it is very brown. The picture made it look dark green in the catalog. Oh well.

Fall?

2007-10-08T13:53:00.001-05:00

I both love and dread fall. I love the cooler weather, beautiful colors, and autumn activities. However, I groan at the thought of frost, snow, and another season stuck indoors for most of the day. That being said, we have been loving our hot weather this past week. Trying on my new wool socks and having it be too warm to wear them has been a lovely surprise. This morning we went to a botanical garden and ate ice cream outside while sitting next to a lake. Now that is my idea of living.

I started the baby booties using my Trekking scrapes. So far, so good.

Here's a pick of the computer knitting. It is a dishcloth using linen. I must say, I prefer the Knitpicks cotton/linen blend much better. We'll see how the 100% washes up.

Ravely

2007-10-07T23:23:00.000-05:00

I got in over the weekend. Very exciting! There are a lot of cool features and I'm trying to get myself settled in. Hopefully I'll be able to get my stash uploaded. I have an old data base but my previous computer died. Good reason to try something new.

I finished the Trekking socks and am going to make some baby booties with the scraps. Next pair needs to be a bit tighter. I loosened up on my gauge a bit with the first pair. Great yarn but I'm not sure if I'm sold on the 8.5-9st/1" it requires. We'll see. Picture of the socks and booties are on their way, but not today.

Pink

2007-10-04T22:44:00.001-05:00

I finished two pink baby hats out of one ball of Louise Harding Kashmir DK for the upcoming baby (niece). I adjusted a pattern from Homespun Handknit (Ed. Linda Ligon) and made two sizes. We'll have to see how big the baby is at arrival. They turned out very well and went very quickly. Nice nap time knitting in the sunshine.

I also finished my special project for baby. I'm trying to figure it out in sizes so that I can offer it for sale in some form. It is better than I expected so I'm glad all my math figuring worked out in the end.

Socks in progress in their new home: a cute sock bag from the Etsy shop: Tipsy Knitter. The pattern was "Jane, his wife" in a Jetson's theme. I loved that show in high school. The bag is brown on the inside and is reversible. I've used it at the park already this week.

On the horizon: upcoming birthday yarn money spent on finding some Cascade 220 superwash to go with the three ball of Dream in Color. Still thinking of what it will become.
A picture of the lovely Trekking XXL sock yarn which will be started after the Chocolate Pink pair are done. I've rekindled my love for sock knitting and am looking forward tomore size 1 needle goodness.

Progress?

2007-09-23T21:31:00.000-05:00

I finished my Fixation Broad Ripple Socks on the 18th. They are lovely and comfy. I'm so glad I gave the yarn a chance. It was weird to knit with at first, but the end result was worth it. I might actually buy this yarn again, much to my own shock.
On other sock news I cast on my first pair using Trekking XXL yarn. I was not excited about the size 1 needles and 9 sts to 1 inch, but they are doing a very cool pattern and I'm not minding the itty bitty stitches as much as I expected. I'm trying to take my knitting to the park with the kids, so this might see some good progress. I'm half way done with the foot on the first one.

I'm working on sorting out a vest for the baby, but I'm having an "issue" with the pattern. I have no one to blame as I'm the designer. Uggh.

I also frogged my Dream in Color shrug. I love the yarn, but I look like a dork in the shrug. So, I rewound it and am making plans. It is too beautiful to be stuck in an unloved garment.
So one finished item, one frogged item, one stalled item and one in process. Not bad for a week's worth of knitting.

Mission accomplished

2007-09-13T20:56:00.000-05:00

The emergency hat for Baby has been completed. The weather was nice today and I had some time to work on it during nap time. Now it is washed and waiting for the 50 degrees we are expecting tomorrow. I love it when a plan comes together. It is my standard baby hat using Encore Colorspun yarn.

I also started some new computer knitting. It is a purple linen dishtowel using sand stitch and a few modifications from the red one. We'll see how the 100% linen feels pre and post washing.

I picked up two books from the library which I had reserved. Yarn Harlot and Knitting Rules. Very excited! Now I'm trying to knit and read at the same time.

Emergency hat!

2007-09-12T14:12:00.000-05:00

Fall has snuck up on me and I woke to some pretty chilly weather today. While getting the boys ready for our walk, I discovered that the Baby did not have a fall hat! I've made the older boys their own and saved them, so no hand-me-downs allowed on this one. I've picked out some cute leftovers of an orange/yellow/red Encore yarn which should fit the bill nicely. Now if he'd only sleep, then I'd be able to start it.

I finished my "computer knitting" piece; a Knitpicks Cotlin dish towel. I used sand stitch: 1)knit, 2)k1, p1, 3)knit, 4)p1, k1. Easy to remember and easy to tell if you make a mistake. I wish I had made it narrower/longer and more of a non-rolling egde. It looks like pique a bit. We'll see how it washes & dries. Love the color. Idea was from Mason-Dixon knitting, which is a good book.

Fall is in the air

2007-09-11T13:49:00.000-05:00

I put up a bunch more F.O. in the galleries to the right. I still have a lot of my sweaters to photograph, but I'm getting there. It seems like it is time consuming to do them, but it is fun to see what I've gotten done. However, I've noted a serious lack of productivity after having kids. I used to be able to cruise through projects super fast. Oh well. I love knitting for them, so it all evens out I guess. Speaking of, I'm dreaming up my own design for the Baby. He is so cute and LITTLE, so it is a quick project to be sure.

Recently completed and ready to send are the three sweaters for the American Girls Dolls. I did two cardigans for the big girls and a Harlot-inspired poncho for the Bitty.

I also have been working on the Broad Ripples Pattern from Knitty. It uses Fixation yarn which is a cotton/elastic combo. It has been with me for a while and needed to be used. It took some getting used to, being that it is cotton and stretchy. I'm nearly done with the first sock. See?I hope I don't run out of yarn. If so, they are going to be gift socks for a small footed friend. I need to get these done so that I can start some of the Trekking XXL sock yarn I've picked up. I found a new yarn store nearby and bought some in a beautiful purple color. And some baby pink yarn spoke to me for a new cousin to arrive this winter. Pattern yet to be decided, but it is a merino & cashmere blend. Yum!

I figured it out!

2007-09-06T14:26:00.000-05:00

Check out the picture galleries to the right. I'm in the process of taking pictures of my FO's and getting them uploaded.

In case you haven't noticed, I'm a devote Cottage Creations fan. I love the simplicity of the designs and the patterns are cute little booklets. I usually alter every pattern I use, but I have few changes for these classics. I LOVE LOVE the Norski sweater. It is a great tutorial for knitting a sweater with a steek. However, I do a different button band than hers. I've knit up 6 of these little gems for my three boys and three friends' kids. I use Nature Spun Sport because it comes in tons of colors and seems to hold up well. A picture of my latest one, knit for my Baby is above.

An aside...the Knit Jane Knit picture is constructed out of Legos and includes the members of my family. I'm the knitting one on the right. It is amazing what you can build while trying not to freak out about your oldest child's first day of kindergarten.

Getting Started

2007-09-04T20:43:00.000-05:00

Well, I finally decided I'd join the blogging world after reading and lurking for a while on a bunch of others. I've enjoyed reading all of the knit blogs out there and have been so inspired to make lots of new projects. I'm hoping to go back and do galleries of my finished projects of the past. I have to get more familiar with our digital camera too for some pictures.

Right now I have a huge list of to do projects and not a lot of time. I try to fit knitting time in when my kids are napping or after they are in bed for the night. I'm usually a pretty organized girl, so I keep records of all my yarn and projects. I usually have a few projects going at a time. If something sits too long I've been known to rip it out. I'll even rip out a finished projects and reknit it into something else I like better.

Right now I'm feverishly trying to finish three cute sweaters for my friend's daughters. We've been friends since the sixth grade. Their family came for a visit and they picked up American Girls dolls for their b-days. Too cute! I have three boys so I jumped on the chance to make doll clothes for the new dolls in their favorite colors. I'll post pics as soon as I figure out Flickr. So much to learn.

Back to knitting...