Knitting in pink

My first sweater is finished. Done. And it fits. That really is the best part. Even after soaking it. It still fit.

I finished it at midnight the evening before the Connecticut Sheep and Wool festival. I really wanted to wear it that day and was ready to stay up all night until it was done. Thankfully it didn't take all night and I was able to sleep some before heading out to Connecticut on a beautiful sunny morning.

All in all it took me 2 months and a day to finish it. But while I was knitting it I went on vacation for a week and knit 2 and half pairs of socks. So it probably could have taken me 1 month if I had been monogamous. But I just can't do that! lol!

Here is a fun collage of my Hourglass from its earlier stages to the FO status. As always you can click on the picture to see it bigger.



My thoughts on the sweater now that it is completed:
It was my first full sized garment and I am quite happy with the pattern I chose as it was fairly simple and easy to follow. The stockinette wasn't boring, especially when knitting the small size. I managed to customize the length and width of the sleeves to fit me better and the results are pleasing. I ended up not adding more decreases in the neck area as I felt it fit fine when I tried it on prior to the turning round. I noticed though that the neck post block is a little bit wider than pre soak/block. But it still fits fine and is quite cute with a tank top underneath. The only thing I wasn't sure about was how the raglan fit. It felt a little small at the armpits, although it was still comfortable. Post soak the armhole stretched out a bit and is more comfortable. The yarn I used (Classic Elite Skye Tweed) was a good choice. I got gauge right away with the recommended needle size and it was easy to knit with. There were some really thin parts to the yarn but only in a couple balls. Overall it was a good match pattern/yarn.

Final Stats:
Started on February 26 and finished April 27.
Yarn: Classic Elite Skye Tweed. I used about 7 and a half balls out of the 10 I bought.
Pattern: Hourglass Sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Mods: Shorter sleeves started on smaller stitch count. I didn't seam the hems after finishing but picked up the stitches as I knit.

I've finally finished the socks I was knitting for my husband... It only took me 4 months! I do have to admit, I also knitted in the mean time 2.5 pairs of socks, 2 hats and various other things. But still, that was way too long. Thankfully, the weather is still cold, so he'll get quite a few wears out of them.

So here they are, my ninth pair of socks, third pair finished in 2007.

Stats
The socks were knit one at the time, starting November 14, 06. The pair was finished March 4th, 07. The first sock took about 2 weeks, the second about a month and half
Yarn: Austermann Step in Color 04 Nacht Blau
Pattern: My own, toe-up, short-row heel, 2x2 ribbed leg

These socks also count as my Project Spectrum for February/March (Colors Blue, White and Grey). These socks actually have all 3 of these colors! : )

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In other news, I received Friday my first shipment of the Rockin' Sock Club! If you want, you can go see a picture of the yarn here. I don't want to spoil it for anyone! I love the color of the yarn, even though it is totally not my colors. And the pattern seem very interesting. I am looking forward to knitting it.

My Dublin Bay socks are done. If you still haven't downloaded the pattern, you can get it here. It is a very easy pattern with a great result. It will look great with a variegated or solid yarn.

Notice the pooling? How it goes from one sock to the other? It's the second pair of socks that I knit that do that, is that common? Anyone else notice that in their own socks? I actually think it's kind of cool so I don't mind the pooling at all, but I know some people would mind it a lot!

Stats
Started February 3rd, finished February 23. The first sock took 10 days, the second 8.
Yarn: Grafton Fibers, color unknown. I call it "Rose Garden in the Fall". Bought at Rhinebeck 2006
Pattern: Dublin Bay by Mossy Garden
Mods: 7 inch leg, garter stitch short row heel. Knit using Magic Loop on US 2 Inox Express. Started with recommended 72 stitches but decreased down to 66 on the leg and 60 on the foot. 60 is really the right stitch count for me at that gauge.

I was really afraid that I would run out of yarn, especially since I did the leg so long. But after knitting the second sock, I still had this much left:



I guess I'll have enough yarn for when the holes that have been popping up here and there in peoples socks in blogland finally make it to my socks!

Now on to finish hubby's Austermann Step socks before it gets warm!

I can now cross of another item off of my to knit list: Calorimetry.

Between finishing Dublin Bay sock 1 and casting on Dublin Bay sock 2 I needed a VQK (Very Quick Knit) fix. And a fix I got! : )

In the stash I had this yarn handpainted by Maglia. A lovely worsted weight alpaca, silk and merino blend in the lovely Lillà color. I had 95yds of it so plenty for a Calorimetry.

Following many people's advice about the number of stitches to cast I decided to cast on 80 stitches. A few rows into the pattern I realized that it might end up too small, but I kept on going thinking that I could always give it to someone else or figure out a way to make it work anyways. Well, I finished it and it fits perfectly. I even had the perfect button to use.

Sorry about the poor bathroom lighting...

Stats
Knit February 14 2007
Yarn: Lulu's Yarns in Lillà
Pattern: Calorimetry from Knitty
Mods: Cast on 80 stitches. 10 repeats of row 5 and a number unknown of repeats of row 7. Used US 7 needles.

I weighed the ball of yarn left over and the Calorimetry itself. I used exactly half of the ball. So I can make another one in the same size!

Calorimetry is an awesome pattern for leftover yarn! I might have the yarn for many more of them.

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ETA: After receiving an email from BMFA I have finally decided that I wanted to be part of the Rockin' Sock Club. First shipment at the end of February!

I am proud to show you my first fair isle project. Meet Fake Isle Hat from Magknits.

First the cone head shot just after finishing it:

A top shot:


Multiple shots after a good soak, drying on a vase:



Before blocking I was a little concerned about the fit of the hat. I felt that the top was too pointy and that it was a little too tight to be able to pull it down enough so avoid the cone head effect. After the soak I tried it on and the top part stretched enough that the top is flatter, so I think it will fit well. But we'll have to wait until the hat is completely dry to know for sure.

Stats
The hat was started on January 14 and finished January 25.
Yarn: Noro Kureyon in 126 and Lamb's Pride Worsted in Fuschia
Pattern: Fake Isle hat as mentioned above
Mods: I'm pretty sure I used size 7 needles instead of 6s to account for my tight knitting. I also magic looped it after knitting the first 2 rows or ribbing flat.

Conclusion: It was my first experience fair-isling. I had to teach myself to knit Continental so I could knit with a color in each hand. Of course there are some issues with puckering but I am quite pleased with myself. I think that I just might make matching mittens with the leftover yarn!

Next up in Fair Isle will be Center Square from Knitty.

I'm going to leave you with this picture:

Kmkat and her kneedles wants to know what our wallpaper is so here is mine:



This picture was taken by my husband in Shelburne Falls Mass back in August 05. Next to the entrance to the Bridge of Flowers is a little weaving shop where the owner sells a bit of yarn, handknit socks and other cute stuff! And this is just outside her shop.

After a random Friday here is a random Monday. Beware, their will be lots of pictures!

First: Let me show you a before / after pictures

The boxes took a couple days each and were knitted out of two strands of Lambs Pride Bulky. I followed the pattern to the letter, except for a couple non-noticeable mistakes. I hope that my nieces will enjoy them!

Second: I'll show you my third FO of the year and my 7th pair of socks



Stats
The socks were started December 2, 2006 and finished January 19th. The first sock took 9 days, the second 12.
Yarn: Dicentra Design in Abalone
Pattern: Madder Ribbed socks from Knitting Vintage Socks
Mods: Did the socks toe-up with turkish cast-on with a purl row at the beginning of the pattern

Third: As soon as I finished my Madder socks I cast on for the second Austermann Step sock for DH



I would like to finish this sock by the end of January for it to count for Socktopia, but if it doesn't it will be my gray project for Project Spectrum in Feburary.

Fourth: I have a question for you guys


Click on it to make it bigger

This here is a handknit scarf made by J. J gave the scarf to her sister M for Christmas. Sister M has a dog, Lola. Do you see where this is going? Lola chewed on the edge of the scarf... Now we are wondering what to do to make the scarf better. There is no yarn leftover. Thankfully the yarn was angora and is sticking well to itself so there is no unraveling going on. Please help a girl out and make suggestions as to how I should help J fix this!

Thanks!

The last few days have been very productive on the knitting front. I have started 2 new projects and finished 2 projects. Where to begin...

First, let me introduce a completed Bejeweled

artsy photo or just plain out of focus!

Stats
Bejeweled was started on December 27 and finished January 14.
Yarn: Done Roving "Indigo Moon" 50/50 Fine Mohair/Wool
Pattern: Bejeweled by Lisa Shobhana Mason
Mods: Used US 10 needles, Increased till 24 stitches, length is about 60".

I had fun knitting the scarf. The pattern was really easy to knit and it went really fast. The yarn is a little itchy due to the mohair but it looks really nice and keeps the neck warm. I will definitely knit this again.

Second finished object is the garterlac dishcloth by Criminy Jickets. A couple of weeks ago I started obsessing about knitting Lady Eleanor from Scarf Style. And before investing in the yarn and the book I decided to try out the technique, see if I could actually do it! I had seen this pattern before and decided it would be a quick and easy way to try the technique and use some of my dishcloth cotton.

Here are the results of my experiment:



I really enjoyed the technique, it's really simple and the results are really cool. As you can imagine I had tons of ends to weave in. Using 2 colors on the dishcloth wasn't a wonderful idea but I didn't have any variegated cotton in the stash. Also, I am uncertain about the picking up of stitches part. Should I have picked up stitches only on one side? There was no mention of that in the pattern. Any experts on the subject want to comment?

After finishing both Bejeweled and the dishcloth on the same day my fingers were itching to start something new and this is what happened:



I know it's hard to tell what it is so I'll help you. It's the beginnings of the Fake Isle Hat from Magknits. I just couldn't wait any longer! Considering that it's my first fair isle project I think that it's going rather well. The color choice wasn't the wisest, though. The pattern color is very similar to the background color in this section of the pattern. So the fair isle pattern doesn't show very well, but it hides mistakes too! : )

Here's a close up shot



Ok, enough blogging, more knitting!

My first FO of 2007 is an MDK felted box. The pair to the one I knit back in December. Those boxes will be for my nieces. They still need to be felted, hopefully sooner than later. I'll show a after-felting picture then.

My Bejeweled scarf is about halfway done, it's an extremely fast knit and really enjoy it. It will make a great little scarf!

Not many people voted on which pair I should finish for this month's Socktopia but there was one vote for the Austermann Step soc and 2 or 3 for the Jaywalker. Which one did I pick? Neither of those two, sorry! I knew that the Madder Ribbed sock would take me the least amount of time and that with everything else I want to work on it would be the only one I would be sure to finish. So yesterday I cast on for it and now I've just started on the foot ribbing.



I've been restraining myself from casting on for the Fake Isle hat, I really would like to finish either the sock or Bejeweled before I do so. I hope that I can stay strong!

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I've got some eye candy for you today! This weekend, DH and I drove to Plum Island, MA. The weather was amazing, 70°F/20°C! Can you believe that kind of temperature in January? We walked up and down the beach enjoying the sun, the wind and the sound of the waves. A lot of people were there too enjoying the beach with their families and their dogs... I don't think I've ever seen this many dogs at once before! Anyways, it was a lot of fun and I am looking forward to going back!


Click on the pictures to see them bigger

I want to start a new list on the side bar for 2007 FOs, but first I need to get rid of the current one. And I don't want to lose all of the information there. So I am just copying it right here...

56 stitch, 56 row socks
Anastasia socks
Basketweave scarf
Blue Ribbed scarf
Dropped-stitch scarf
Fingerless gloves
Fixation socks
Garter Rib socks
Jaywalkers #1
Kemp bag
MDK Bib & Burp cloth
MDK Baby Kimono
MDK Felted box #1
MDK washcloth
Mock Rib scarf
Pretty-in-Pink pullover
Ribbed scarf for DH
Rolled Brim hat
Shoulder wrap
Top-down hat for DH
Wedding socks

First let's start off with the picture.

These are some of my FO's for 2006. There are more than that but their pictures are not uploaded into Flickr and I'm too lazy to do it at the moment... Also 2 near the bottom are partial FO's since they are missing their mate.

So, in 2006 I have knit the following:

5 scarves
6 pairs of socks plus 1 mismatched pair
3 hats
2 baby sweaters
1 washcloth
1 bib
1 burp cloth
1 felted bag
1 shoulder wrap
1 not-yet felted felted box

I have learned how to knit socks, first on dpns top-down, then magic-loop top-down, then magic-loop toe-up. I have learned to knit hats first with flat knitting, then circularly bottom-up, then circularly top-down.

My goals for 2007 are the following:

1. I will knit at least one pair of socks a month
2. I will learn to Fair-Isle. To start I will make the Fake Isle hat from MagKnits
3. I will knit myself some lace, starting with Bejeweled and working myself up to something more difficult
4. I will knit myself a sweater, perhaps starting with Klaralund, perhaps starting with the Hourglass sweater
5. I also want to knit gloves, mittens and wrist-warmers
6. I will find patterns for the less than 100yds balls of yarn in the stash