Watercolor Sweater

I've always been the kind of person that ate their least favorite candy first after Halloween, saving the "good stuff" for last. I did my least favorite homework first - usually math- and saved the reading until the boring stuff was done. I use up the plain instant oatmeal first, and save the apples and Cinnamon for last. If I clean, (notice I said "if") I do the worst task first - the bathroom. I have always been like this. I didn't realize i was like this in knitting, until I went to knit this sweater.

It shouldn't have been, but it was a total surprise that I enjoyed knitting a sweater that had all the boring stuff at the beginning, and saved the "good" stuff for the end. It was like a huge bonus for getting through! The body and sleeves are knit in Stockinette, flat. Then, you seam the raglan bits, pickup some stitches, and knit the yoke in the round. Now, because I like to get all the boring stuff done first, if at all possible, I did all the seaming before I did the yoke. Oh how the yoke was sweet, sweet reward!

Name: Watercolor

Pattern:Yoke Detail Sweater by Debbie Bliss

Yarn: Fiesta Naturalle Wool in Dyer's Bugloss

Needles: Knitpicks Harmony size 6

Notes: This pattern was well written, and frankly, really easy. The only change I made was to knit nupps on the yoke instead of bobbles, and I did one more set of decreases. Aside from being a PITA, bobbles are weird looking on grown up clothing to me. Accessories - fine, but sweaters? Nah. The neck, as written, was kind of a boat neck, but I thought the intended recipient would like a crew neck better, so a little more decreasing, and voila!

The yarn is really nice to work with. It is soft, and lofty - so smooth. I can't say anything poor about it! I choose it for this sweater because my brother's fiance is in school for Zoo science, and always concerned about animals and environmental impact. Fiesta Naturalle is dyed with natural, plant derived dyes, with minimal impact to the environment - something that I knew she would appreciate! I plan to include a label for her, not only because of washing instructions, but also because it has information about the plant, and the earth friendly processing!

Overall, I'm very pleased with this sweater although, I randomly guessed on the size, so everybody cross your fingers!!

edited to add: Yeah totally not going to fit her. I am instead giving it to someone else, and knitting her a different sweater. More on that next week....

Knitting Events.... way after the fact

Want proof that I went to Rhinebeck?

Where else would one meet Bob?

awwww yeah.....

BackstageKnitter, HeadwigBC, AlainaJane, Evad and I all went to Rhinebeck this year, for a fiber rich, freezing cold, lamb burger filled weekend of excitement!! Of course, I suck, and didn't take many pictures, but I made up for it in yarn buying!

The only thing missing from this picture is the two skeins of Briar Rose Fiber's yarn that I have all ready knit with. Ooops. I managed to stay in the budget and pick up a mess of gorgeous stuff that I can't get anywhere except from the dyer. I still haven't officially put it way. I keep getting it out to pet it.

I also went to Star Wars in Concert! Ok, not a traditional knitting event, but I did knit during it!

Anthony Daniels was awesome in person, and the MUSIC. OMG. THE MUSIC. The whole thing was fucking fantastic. Really. GO see it if it comes near you. You don't have to bee a SW geek, the story is narrated as the concert goes on, and film footage is played behind the orchestra to help "tell" the story. The lobby display is totally cool too:

Just in case you wanted to be inches from the costumes like me!!!!!!

Neck things

Did you know that "Neck Things" is a category of knitwear to me? I didn't either until I just typed it. It is fitting though, since I've knit 4 "neck Things" since my blogging hiatus.

1. Evad's Rockstar Bodyguard

Ever since I knit myself the 'rochoke', Evad has wanted one for himself - in blood red. Since I am always in favor of encouraging Evad's love of all things knitted, I, of course, agreed. There is no pattern- just knit a shape, felt it, and add a clasp. He wore it to Rhinebeck with great success, and hopefully it will get some more use this winter. (The name comes from his Rhinebeck status. He is a big guy, and can move people out of the way when the rockstar (me), or her entourage, needs to get through.)

2. Angora Leaf Scarf from Vintage Knitwear for Modern Knitters.

This is a holiday gift, gone slightly awry. In theory, I thought I had enough black angora to knit this scarf. One ball, and less than 1 leaf into it, I realized that I in no way had enough angora to knit this. I dug about in the yarn wall and came up with a few balls of wool/poly with sequins. woo! I combined it all together, shortened the pattern, reshaped a leaf, and *just* eeked it out. All in all, I'm pretty sure the recipient is going to love this! It's sparkly and soft!

3. Monet Shawlette

A little holiday gift for my Intern! The pattern is "Sunshine and Shadows" from Evelyn Clark's "Knitting Lace Triangles" book. I love this book. If you are an aspiring lace designer - who plans to design triangle shawls, you should totally read this book and knit a few things from it. Seriously. The yarn is from Briar Rose Fibers. I got it in the sale bin, so I'm not sure on the colorway or yarn, but I think it is "Celebration in 3014". At any rate, it's pretty, and the colors remind me of a Monet painting. The pattern was a great knit. It took me like 16 hours total to knit this thing! Perfect gift knitting!!

4. RAHA!

Another Holiday gift in progress! This one is for (soon to be) Mrs. Ship. (A lace scarf is the decider of her 'knit worthy-ness'. We shall see how it goes.....) Oh, and yes, this is the same yarn as #3. I had a second ball, with a slightly more blue overall color and thought it would be great for a gift for her. I went to my personal library and pulled out this gem of a book - "Knitted Lace of Estonia". It's not too feminine, not too plain... a good medium interesting. Hey, it's hard to knit for someone you never met!!

Oh, and for those who are counting - #2 ,#3 and #4 are all from books on the list! I have 21 left to go, and one in progress! Dear god. I shouldn't have counted. It seemed like less....

I HAZ SWETTERZ

I'm a sweater machine

and I don't work for nobody but you

ye-ah baby!

I've been cranking away on the sweaters, semi-recently. I can't really say "recently", since I am including the near 2 months of almost total blog silence. Although, in knitting time, 2 months isn't that long....

I digress. I've been knitting, and surprisingly, completing sweaters! I've completed 2 adult size sweaters, and am rounding towards home on a third!

First up, my sweater KAL sweater!!

Name: Iceberg Lettuce

Pattern: Lettuce Sweater from Custom Knits

Yarn; Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride worsted in Silver Sliver, 6 skeins

Needles: KP Options, 9, 10, 10.5, and 11

Notes: To quote the Yarn Harlot, "If I change the decreases on the sleeve, make the bust bigger, add shaping and short rows in the front and knitted darts to the back, subtract some length, leave off the collar, and change the neckline to a V... when/if it doesn't work out, I do not have the right to speak ill of the designer's abilities."

yeah. My sweater, besides the back yoke and front to the bustline, in no way resembles the pattern i set out to make. it has short rows, the skirt starts further down towards the waist, the sleeves have different cuffs, and the skirt has a different stitch pattern AND is shaped totally different as well. wee! I only had to rip back three times to make it fit properly...

But, I love it. I got it finished in time for Rhinebeck, and before the end of the KAL. Lamb's Pride is one of my favorite yarns, but man does it shed the first few times you wear it! The seat of the car I was sitting in on the way to Rhinebeck was coated in a nice thick layer of silver wool hairs. heehee.

I also knit a holiday gift sweater for my Mom!

Name: Mom's sweater

Pattern: Classic Open Silk Cardi from Classic Elite 9098

Yarn: Filatura Di Crosa "wave" in colorway 11

Needles: Knit Picks Options 5 and 7

Notes: My mom isn't a "fussy" sweater person. She likes clean lines, a little detail, and semi-fitted shapes. Mostly, she owns fine knits in Stockinette, maybe a few cables. Finding a pattern for her is oddly hard. But, I think I found a winner!

Purple is her favorite color, and this is one she should be able to wear well, based on her coloring. It knit up very quickly, even if it was a tad dull to knit. Frankly, this would be a great travel knit, since it doesn't require much thinking at all, and the pieces are small enough to be pretty portable. let's hope she likes it!!

Last up is another Holiday gift:

I'm to the part where I join the body and sleeves, and do some yoke knitting magic! This sweater is very... um.... plain to knit, until this point. It is like you get a treat for making it through the SS slog. good thing my "soon to be SIL Kate" is a small person. I also hope she likes it. She is a little bit tomboy, and a little bit girly - just like this sweater feels to me. (cross your fingers that she feels the same way!)

bloggers block

I know I said I was going to update you with all my FOs and WIPs, but I have had a serious case of blogger block. I think about it everyday, plan what to blog about... but never get there. I'm just more interested in actually knitting, instead of just blogging!

I'm forcing myself to write today, in hopes that I can shake my blockage. (Insert Activia joke here) I ate the roughage of a good Sunday spent just sitting on the couch knitting, only getting up to pee and make food. I think I am ready to write!

Since I last 'really" blogged, I finished 3 projects for Schaefer Yarn. The one was a sweater that I enjoyed knitting, but never took a picture of. Sigh. She was 'Jamie Lee', and it was a really fun and quick knit! (Hee, insert second Activia joke) The neck/collar construction is really awesome. I wish I would have taken a few snapshots. Oh well.

I also knit up this cutie:

Name: Peter Sweater

Pattern: #62 Nichole Collared Pullover

Yarn: Schaefer Yarn Co, Nichole, in Peter

Needles: us 6 and 7 knitpicks options

Notes: This sweater was ridiculously entertaining to knit. You wouldn't know it from looking at it, but the stitch pattern is just interesting enough that you just... want... to ...keep... going! Plus, it is a kid's sweater, so it goes quickly anyway.

I'm not usually a huge fan of variegated colorways, but I did really like this one. It had blues and greens mixed together, but they were very close in tone, and it almost feels like a solid knit up. I ended up knitting with two skeins, alternating, so that I didn't get a lot of pooling, but I imagine YMMV. Different size, different knitter...different outcome. The shot of the full sweater is the closest to the real color. It is a nice vibrant color, and for some reason my camera was just not interested in capturing it completely. :(

Overall, a very fun project, quick to make up, and cute as a button!

I also knit a pair of socks for Schaefer...

Pattern: Bines

Yarn: Schaefer Yarn Co, Anne, in Thistle

Needles: US 1 knitpicks classic circs

Notes: This is not a sock pattern for the faint of heart! It has no rest rows, twisted stitches, and tons of purls! That said, I TOTALLY think it's worth it.

Bines is based on a 1x1 twisted rib, with "lace" elements. The twisted rib is not hard, and becomes almost second nature after a repeat or two. It took me unit the foot of the first sock to not need to refer to the pattern every row, but they are also written to be ankle socks, so I didn't have much leg to memorize the pattern. I cruised through the second sock though, hardly needing to look at the pattern at all!

If I had anything to say to those thinking of knitting these beauties, it would be:

1. write down how many repeats you did of each chart on the first sock. This is a hard pattern to "see" your rows if you go back and count - specifically at the toes

2. try them on after you get the cuff and one repeat of the leg finished. The gauge you get in SS is going to be different than the gauge in twisted rib, making the socks snugger than you would think they would be. Twisted rib is just like that! It's aways better to check before you get a whole sock finished!

Overall, though, they were a very fast knit, and quite pretty. I was sad to send them off!

I think next I will try to update on the sweaters I've knit since before my blogger block. Yes, that was plural. I've knit 2 and half sweaters since then. bad blogger. bad. Tonight I shall get some more knitting roughage and be prepared to blog again reliably! (Activia joke 3!)

Angee Mink

I shall now speak in prose about my love for Cookie A.

A knit designer named Cookie

had stuff that made me lookie.

her book rocked and rolled,

on it, I was sold

and I now have a gift "off the hook"ie.

how about in Haiku?

swirling, warm and soft

knits and purls dance across socks

all hail Cookie A

In all seriousness, I LOVED knitting these socks. Cookie A's patterns are the bomb-diggity.

Named: Angee Mink

Pattern: Angee from "Sock Innovation" by Cookie A

Yarn: Dye Dreams Twinkle Toes in Mink

Needles: Knit Picks classic circs, US 1

Notes: I love love love a lace pattern that has a nice long chart. It fills me with so much glee when I realize "huh, I only have to knit this chart twice before I get to the foot." It really feels like you are making soooo much progress! Also, Cookie A (did I mention that I love her patterns?) has a great way of creating patterns so that it looks hard, but when you really get into the sock, it isn't hard at all! her book is crazy informative about sock designing, pattern writing, and customization - not to mention the butt loads of awesome patterns to choose from. If you love to knit socks, and you haven't knit a cookie A pattern yet, go forth and knit! She has a few free ones on Knitty - including the ever popular "Monkey". You should try one. Go. I'll wait.

See?!

I knit these socks as a holiday present for a person I work with. I hope she likes them as much as I do. The yarn is beautiful - kind of a purply brown when you get it in the light. It has a shine to it too, which comes from the tencel blended into the yarn. It is so silky to knit with, I was almost sad to be finished! The skeins are very generous too, making it easy to get larger socks from one skein, if needed.

Overall, I'm incredibly pleased with these socks. they were a very fun, and quick, knit. Highly recommended!

WTF Costumechick?!

Were the hell have you been?!
Well, dear readers, I've been swamped. We had some man-power cuts at work last summer, and while losing two people from your department doesn't seem like a big deal, it is when your department was only 7 people to start with. We started this season with a massive show involving magic tricks, magic costumes, and 20 separate costumes. 20 costumes isn't that much, really, but when they are all engineered for magic tricks and built from the ground up, with 5 people - one of which is an intern, with only 3 weeks to do it and zero lead time... it's a lot. Any way, we survived, the show rocks, and we have a lot of great portfolio pieces. Oh, and even with all of the craziness, I did manage to keep knitting. I actually knit quite a bit. I didn't have time to blog about it, or to update Ravelry, but I still found a moment or two to wave the sticks about!
I'm going to try to catch ya'll up over the next few days. (I feel like I'm talking to a friend I only get to see once a year....)
In the month and a half since I last blogged, I have finished the Angee Mink Socks, My Iceberg Lettuce Kal sweater, a felted neckwarmer for Evad, the Classic Open Silk Cardi sweater for my Mom, the Peter Sweater for Schaefer, and Adult size top for Schaefer (that I won't blog about, considering I didn't even take a picture of it), and the Angora Leaf Scarf from Vintage Knitwear for Modern knitters. I also cast on, and am about 1/4 of the way through, another pair of socks and another adult size sweater. I also went to Rhinebeck. In other words, there is a lot of back log in the blog and Ravelry update world.
Bear with me folks. I still have to get some pictures of the FOs before I can properly take care of the back log. But.... they are coming...