Do overs

Still here, still knitting.  Or trying to.  This past weekend was spent with friends, but my attempts to knit and chat did not work well:  I lost a sock needle and could not work on the last of the birthday socks, and I kept dropping stitches on the Danish shawl, so set that aside as well.

Last night I finished the socks, but they are too short in the foot, so I am redoing the toes.  And I still have not blocked Belinda because I think it needs a couple more rows of pink.

This is the time of year when the knitting goes nearly dormant.  Something has to give - there are only so many hours in the day.

Belinda but for the blocking

The knitting of Belinda is done, but I still have to block it.

I'm more than a little afraid what will happen when I saturate this thing.  The yarn is Kidsilk Haze.  Need I say more?

And then there is the actual blocking.  Oh, lord, give me strength.  And enough patience and pins.

Feather and Fan baby blanket

I like making blankets.  They tend to be simple patterns requiring little thought and not much counting or angst.  They are always appreciated and well-used.

Pattern:  Feather and Fan Baby Blanket, by Sara Baldwin
Yarn:  Dream in Color Classy, in 'Wisteria'
Needles:  US8
Modifications:  none

I was planning to get a pic of this blanket with Baby N, but it has already left the premises.

That's... odd

Today I went to the Barnes &Noble site, to see if a particular book was available for the Nook, and was rather surprised to discover that BN.com is now selling craft supplies.  Like yarn.  I know booksellers are struggling, but does this really make sense?  Theoretically, one might want to buy yarn when buying a knitting book, but I can't think of a single time I have done this, even when buying a book in a yarn store.  Personally, I think B&N has more problems than just competition from online sellers.  I wish they would address those first.

Anyway, a feather and fan baby blanket is in the works...

and the final pair of birthday socks are on their way.

Baby cables!

More birthday socks

So far, I am liking my plan to knit birthday socks instead of xmas socks.  Three down and one to go for 2011.

Pattern:  Retro Rib Socks, by Evelyn A. Clark
Yarn:  Fortissima Socka Degradee Color in blues
Needles:  US1
Modifications:  none

I like these socks and the pattern, although I tired quickly of the K2TBL's.  Since the ribbing is stretchy, the tops are knit the same for both sizes, then the foot is a bit bigger for the large size.  These should fit my son, aka Big Foot, just fine.

Summer slumber sack

Sorry for the long silence.  Once I recovered from my cold, I went on a business trip, and while I could have blogged using my work computer, after being on it all day, I was not so inclined in the evenings.  Before I left on the trip, though, I finished this summer slumber sack for my granddaughter.

Pattern:  My own

Yarn:  Valley Yarns Valley Superwash DK, in four colors

Needles:  US6 (for main part of body) and US5 (for the bodice) circs

What makes this a summer slumber sack is the absence of hood and sleeves and the addition of open work in the chest area.  Hopefully, this will ward off AC chill but not be overly warm.  Another good feature is it is open at the bottom, facilitating diaper changing.  I put ribbing at the bottom and below and above the diaper area, but I'm not sure it will make much difference.  Also, I trimmed the neck and armholes with applied i-cord, to prevent them from getting overly stretched out.

When I first put this on Baby N to take the above photo, she fussed and protested, but once she saw the camera, the smiles came out.  What a diva!

Nothing to see here, folks

Just checking in to let you know I am still alive and almost over my cold.  I would have some knitting to show, but I have been reworking the bodice on the summer slumber sack over and over and OVER again.  Since all my mistakes may be due to illness and/or OTC medications, I decided to give the knitting a rest for a few days.  Instead, I watched all three Stieg Larsson movies.  It's difficult to knit while reading subtitles.  BTW, I thoroughly enjoyed the movies, but they are not for the squeamish.

I hab a code

Little girls may be made with sugar and spice and everything nice, but when they are not quite 6 months old, they don't know to cover their mouths when they cough or to sneeze into the crook of their arm or to wash their hands regularly.  Hence, my cold, courtesy of my granddaughter.  She seems to not only be a new vector for infectious diseases, she also mutates the germs into something my immune system can't cope with.  This is the worst cold I have had in a long time.  That's the bad news.

The good news is I am not too sick to knit.

Here is the bottom portion of the new sleep sack my daughter requested for Baby N.  I want to try it on the baby before finishing the top.

Here are the birthday socks for my son.  The gussets are done, so it should be (relatively) smooth sailing to the toes.

Even Belinda has gotten some attention.  The pink yarn is much easier to see, so I can work on this even when the lighting is not perfect.

The only thing being totally neglected is the Danish shawl.  I would not mind wrapping up in that today, to ward off the chills.

While knitting, I listened to Poser: My Life in Twenty-three Yoga Poses, by Claire Dederer.  Initially, I found this book to be mildly entertaining, but there are nuggets of wisdom scattered throughout.  Next up on the audio book list is The Pioneer Woman:  Black Heels to Tractor Wheels.  I also downloaded a Sherlock Holmes to my Nook, in part because I have never read any Arthur Conan Doyle, in part to see if I like listening to books on my eReader.  And it was one of the few books available through the local library that could be checked out immediately AND comes in MP3 format.

Now, time for a nap.

Breaking news

I have managed to stab myself with a knitting needle, so I know how sharp they can be.  Hope we hear the rest of this story.  Maybe a riot at an LYS with good yarn at cheap prices but low inventory?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_knitting_needle_stabbing

It's my daughter's fault

The sleep sack I made for my granddaughter has had a lot of use this winter.  Not only does Baby N sleep in it, she travels in it.  And she has not yet outgrown it.

Now my daughter wants a summer sleep sack for Baby N, more like a long jumper, to keep her warm in their air conditioned house while she sleeps.  And what knitter can resists a special request and/or the invitation to start something new?  Not me.  I'm combining some patterns and adding my own ideas to the mix, to come up with a solution, one that does not include a draw string or buttons at the bottom, because Baby N now can do this:

So progress on current projects may grind to a crawl.  Here is the status of those soon-to-be-neglected projects:

I am over halfway done with Belinda, as evidenced by the change of colors above.  The going will be slow, however, because I am now working 208 stitches per row.  Also, I prefer to knit KidSilk Haze on straights, so every one of those 208 stitches has been crammed onto one needle.  KSH is light weight, but having all those stitches on one needle can still cramp one's style.  Or hands, as the case may be.

I'm plodding along on the Danish shawl, which like many lace projects, doesn't look like much right now.  I'm anxious to get the bottom border done so I can move onto the body, which is mostly garter stitch.  Theoretically, that part should fly.

The current pair of socks feels like it is dragging, which I blame on the K2TOG's.  Otherwise, I would be cruising on these.  I like the resulting pattern, plus this is my portable project, so it shouldn't get totally neglected.

These not-quite-springlike gray and rainy days are perfect for knitting, were it not for the need to earn a living.  Stupid job.

Dithering

Last night I inspected the work-so-far on the Danish shawl and decided it's not anything a firm blocking won't correct.  So I am NOT starting over.  At least, not today.  Check back tomorrow.

Still wrong

It wasn't the slipped stitches that made the border points on the Danish shawl list to the left; it was the bind off.  Not wanting to take the current work off the circular Addi needles, I worked up a few points on straights, just to see if binding off more loosely would help.  Not only did it make the points straight, I liked the resulting lace better, too.  Usually I think of needles as being interchangeable sizewise, but not in this case.

SO... maybe I will start over.  *sigh*

Wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

I was wrong about the second half of the Danish shawl border being ssk's instead of k2tog's.  I was also wrong not to take seriously the instruction about keeping the slipped stitch very loose, which is why the points slant.  This would not be so bad if I could figure out how to get the points on the second half to slant in the opposite direction.  The shawl is taking a brief time out while I contemplate and experiment and see what I can do.  One thing I know I am NOT going to do is start over.

Another pair of birthday socks found their way onto the needles, Retro Rib from Favorite Socks.  I have only one skein of yarn to knit a man-sized pair of socks.  This pattern is only 64 stitches around, but they are stretchy stitches, so I decided to give it a try.  Unfortunately, over 50% of those stitches are purl, and a good many of the remaining are ktbl.  Not difficult, just annoying.

Then I purchased Mitered Crosses Blanket Pattern for Japan, because I like the idea of creating a knitted blanket from a quilt pattern and it's pretty and it's big and the money goes to a good cause.  I completely forgot that I don't particularly like to knit mitered squares.  Oh, well, it was only $5.

Birthday socks #2

I was afraid these would be too loose from the YOs, so I knit through the back loop when knitting the YOs. Then I was concerned they would not be loose enough! 

Pattern:  Bluebell Rib (six-stitch sock pattern) from Sensational Knitted Socks
Yarn:  Schoeller+Stahl Fortissima Socka Degradee Color, colorway 104
Needles:  US1
Modifications:  None, except to knit the YOs through the back loop.

They turned out fine sizewise, but the “bluebells” look like bluebells only to the wearer; to others, they will look like tulips.


In case you were wondering, I am still working on Belinda.  I am almost halfway done!

And I am halfway done with the bottom border of the Danish shawl:

The second half of the border uses ssk's instead of k2tog's, so I should have an easier time of it regarding the splitty yarn.  Thank goodness!

Because I'm (half) Danish

My mother's parents emigrated to the US from Denmark, which in my eyes makes me half Danish.  When my mother's brother converted to Catholicism, I went around telling people I was "half Catholic" (I was about ten at the time).  While I was told that was not accurate, no one really explained why.

Because of my Danish "heritage" I always chose Denmark as the subject of history reports, lorded over my friends the fact we opened our xmas gifts on xmas eve, and periodically bugged my mother to teach me to speak Danish.  As an adult, I am drawn to Danish films and knitting.  So when I stumbled across the

Kællingesjal shawl, I had to knit it.

Starting out the border

The shawl dates from the late 1800's.  Mette Rørbech created her "recipe" for this shawl based on one she saw in a museum.  The yarn I am using is some alpaca I purchased at a fiber arts festival from Weavers Loft, yarn I now realize was designed for weaving and not for knitting.  It comes in 8-oz. hanks and is single ply with little twist, which makes it split easily.  The k2tog's are particularly vexing.  But the good news is only the borders are lace; the body of the shawl is garter with stockinette and reverse stockinette bands.  And I like to think the yarn is similar to yarn used 100 years ago - a little roughly spun.  At least, that is what I tell myself each time I have to rework a k2tog, which is almost every one. 

No FOs but she looks good in green

The February Baby sweater and pants:

But I was born in October!

From the back:

Check out the hair!

The full ensemble:

Any more photos and you will have to call my agent!

And who can resist that smile?

Grandma is SO funny!

Birthday socks #1

After xmas, I decided that this year I would knit birthday socks for the usual suspects, then at xmas present everyone with felted slippers.  First birthday is in April, but these are done now, so happy early bday, son-in-law!

Pattern: Twin Rib - one of the 6-stitch rib patterns from Sensational Knitted Socks
Yarn: Fortissima Socka Degradee Color in colorway 102
Needles: US1
Modifications:  None

The photo above does not do justice to the subtle color gradations.  The yarn is a blend of wool, bamboo, and nylon, which should be comfortable even in warm weather.  It's a nice yarn to work with, too.

Quandry resolved

I knit up a Spiral Tweed Cloche with the remaining skein of Laughing Tree Farm yarn and did not need to steal yarn from the snood, so the latter will be added to the gift drawer while I wear the former.

Pattern:  Spiral Tweed Cloche by Veronik Avery (published in Knitting 24/7)
Yarn:  Laughing Tree Yarn 50/50 3-ply
Needles:  US8 and US7
Modifications:  None, except the pattern calls for some internal ribbon to help shape the cap, plus a big button as decoration, neither of which I have employed.  Yet.

Kromboomssloot quandry

I knit up a Kromboomssloot Snood in just a few days, BUT.  I discovered that this is not a good look for me.  It looks better on my daughter, but she declared it not her style.  I used only half the yarn I designated for this project, so now I am contemplating what to do with the rest and whether I should frog the snood if I need the yarn.  Meanwhile, I won't block it yet.

Pattern: Kromboomssloot Snood from Knitting Brioche
Yarn:  Laughing Tree Farm 3-play in chocolate
Needles:  US7 (for ribbing) and US10.5 for Kromboom Tuck stitch
Modifications:  none

Happiness is a new pair of socks

Mondays are not my best days.  My weekends are too enjoyable, I guess.  What would make me feel better on this gray day?  Orange socks, of course!

 

Pattern:  Undulating Rib Socks, by Ann Budd (from Favorite Socks)

Yarn:  Plymouth Yarn Zino, in ? (can't find the ball band)

Needles:  US2 and US1 DPNs

Modifications:  For some reason, the arithmetic in the pattern did not quite work for me, so I made some modest modifications to center the pattern over the foot.

I have a vague memory of trying this pattern once before, without success, but I love this result.  And while I think the colorway is gorgeous, I did not like knitting this single ply yarn.  Too splitty, especially when worked off the outside of the skein.  There are plenty of beautiful yarns out there, so I see no sense in knitting one this cantankerous.