Vickilicious Knits

This blog has moved (again)

2010-09-26T00:51:00.002-04:00

This is a quick note to let you know that I finally have moved my blog back to its original home, Vickilicious Knits. Please update your bookmarks, RSS feeds, etc. accordingly.

I will leave this archive up on Blogger, in case you liked the old look, but it will not be updated.

Cheers!

For the time being

2010-04-11T03:05:00.003-04:00

I'm in the process of migrating this blog from Blogger to Wordpress and I seem to have run aground at a new blogspot site for the time being.

This will not be the end destination of this blog - it will go back to its former address as soon as I can get my databases and stuff sorted out. I'm looking forward to updating the design and functionality while I'm at it, so there is much to look forward to upon my return.

But I must ask for your patience, as I'm scrambling around trying to finish my master's degrees this spring, and I suspect I will be short on time for both knitting and blogging until I know it's in the bag (soon!). I look forward to lots of great things to come.

This blog has moved

2010-04-11T00:42:00.001-04:00

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FO - Fern Pattern Socks (Farnmustersocken)

2010-04-08T21:08:00.000-04:00

When I photographed the last five pairs of socks I'd knit in one session, my father apparently asked my mother, "Just how many pairs of socks has she knit while procrastinating her thesis??" While I clarified that those were socks spread out over the past year or more, I also had to sheepishly admit that yes, there were two more pairs.

As my love of green lace is extensive and well-documented, I have to say, I really don't see myself getting tired of it.

Pattern: Fern Pattern Socks (Farnmustersocken) by Diana Harrison, from the German magazine Wollke7; my project is here on Ravelry
Size: US women's 9
Yarn: Knit Picks Gloss Sock 4-ply fingering weight, in Jade, 70% wool / 30% silk; I used 83.7 grams, which was approximately 367.4 yards/ 336 meters
Needles: Knit Picks size 2 (2.75 mm) DPNs, set of 5
Modifications: worked toe-up with a short-row heel

Started: February 7, 2010
Finished: March 14, 2010

I knit these as part of the Under-appreciated Patterns challenge for Sock Knitters Anonymous on Ravelry. The criteria for this challenge included that there must be less than 15 projects at the time of cast-on for a pattern to be considered under-appreciated, and in this instance, my project was the third.

I figured the reason it was obscure was because it was written in German, though I'm surprised more German-speaking sock knitters hadn't picked up on it. Because the lace pattern was charted out, I found a very helpful German to English Symbol Knitting site that made quick sense of it, which combined with Google Translator helped me sort out all the relevant details. No longer will I be put off by patterns written in another language, with the internet here to help me!

This pattern has a lot of pluses for my personal preferences. The repeats are simple and short, yet long enough that you only need to work a few over each round. The fern shapes are built by two 8-row sequences of essentially the same pattern, shifted left or right, so the stitches and sequence of working them are almost the same. The only even remotely tricky part is that at the start of the 15th row on the chart, a stitch must be moved from the previous needle to make the pattern work. I wondered how that was going to work out, then just did what it said, and I had my answer: effortlessly.

In addition to being great fun to knit, this type of lace also has a strong visual impact and dimensionality without getting too distracting. I enjoyed working it in a solid color so that from a distance, they'd be sort of sedate, but up close you could really see the stitches, unobscured.

Working on larger than my usual needles, with the somewhat beefier Gloss yarn, made these socks move pretty quickly. I knit most of them while I was in bed sick with bronchitis (yuck), but even through a codeine haze I could tell I was going to be happy with the finished product.

I worked my standard toe starting with a figure-8 cast-on, then a short-row heel. I have to say I really love the way this yarn works at this gauge, as it makes for really neat structural elements that feel great on the feet.

I look forward to wearing these often and continuing to spread the love for green lace socks.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Neue Socken

Grape Lace

2010-03-25T09:00:00.000-04:00

In what I'm sure will come as no surprise to anyone, I've started a new pair of socks. These are special because they're not the usual sock, so much as lace stockings, and well, I have reason to believe I'm going to love them.

So you've seen Bettie's Lace Stockings from the Spring 2009 Interweave Knits, right? As soon as I saw them, I fell in love and was certain I would be making them one day.

Among the numerous points that attracted me to this pattern (beautiful lace! size 2 needles! not a lot of yarn but you end up with knee socks! fast! stretchy! ribbons!!!), the fact that they are designed toe-up jumped out and made me extraordinarily happy. Toe-up is, to my thinking, the most logical and comforting way to knit socks, and I've noticed that the fit is much better than the top-down socks I've knit.

I changed the cast-on to my usual figure-8 (not a big fan of unpicking provisional cast-ons) and increased to 48 stitches, then got going with the pattern as written. Then I started feeling a little disconcerted.

(This is actually the bottom of my foot.)

The elements of this design are essentially a wider central pattern of lace, flanked by two narrow eyelet panels. Eventually there will be calf increases and what all built into these elements, but on the foot, it felt very strange to work three sections of lace, two of which were split on the bottom of the foot. I tried to think through the logic on that, but when I realized that there would be a short-row heel interrupting the lace up the back of the leg anyway, I wondered if it wouldn't be better to knit the sole in stockinette?

I hemmed and hawed about how well they would wear with sole lace, and whether I felt like knitting two extra repeats when I was only interested in the one on the top of the foot. When I noticed how many times I'd flubbed the eyelet panels (from losing track at the start of the row at the middle of the sole), I took it as a sign, frogged back to the toe and started over.

I am so much happier now. I have the wide panel of bee pattern lace centered between two narrow eyelet columns on the top of the foot, with the sole knit in plain stockinette. I'll work a regular short row heel, then follow the pattern afterwards for calf increases and so on. It's moving way, way faster, and I'm not so annoyed feeling like I'm putting a lot of effort into something that will get bedraggled in my shoes anyway.

If you're interested in making this change (and heck, for my own future reference when I inevitably forget what I did and need to match the second socks), it's quite easy.

Cast on using a figure-8 or Turkish cast-on, Judy's magic cast-on, etc and increase to 48 stitches. Or do whatever provisional toe-up cast-on you like, so long as you get to 48 stitches. When you switch to 3 needles (one for the top and two for the bottom), slip the first stitch of needle 1 and the last stitch of needle 2 to the bottom needles, such that you have 13 stitches on each of those and 22 stitches on the top needle.

P1, work a repeat of the narrow eyelet lace (in the pattern it is called Feathered Fagoting), work a repeat of the center bee lace (Narrow Gathered Lace), p1, work a second repeat of narrow eyelet lace, p1. Then knit the sole stitches in stockinette. Much easier, faster, and it retains the stretchiness of the pattern, with the sturdiness of a stockinette sole. Now these are socks I will love to knit as much as I'll love to wear them.

FO - Child's Sock in Miranda Pattern

2010-03-11T09:22:00.002-05:00

For the last pair in my five-sock reveal, I thought I'd share the most recent and, to my color sensibility, maybe the best.

This is one pair of Nancy Bush socks that I didn't work as written, and I couldn't be happier with the result.

Pattern: Child's Sock in Miranda Pattern by Nancy Bush, from the book Knitting Vintage Socks; my project is here on Ravelry
Size: US women's 9
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll 4-ply fingering weight, in Tidepool Heather, 75% Merino wool / 25% nylon; I used 69.5 grams, which was approximately 321 yards/ 293 meters
Needles: Susan Bates size 1 (2.25 mm) aluminum DPNs, set of 5
Modifications: worked toe-up with a short-row heel and omitted leg shaping, added length to legs

Started: January 1, 2010
Finished: February 27, 2010

This pattern is strikingly simple, but with a nice impact. I read someone's project notes on Ravelry that said "It’s a sock. There’s yarn overs. That pretty much covers it," and of course I chuckled because really, that's it. The arrangement of the yarn-overs with their paired decreases, however, made for these nice box shapes that reminded me of chessboards and plaids.

I had seen a lot of pairs that seemed kind of baggy and weirdly shaped, and I worried that that was a consequence of the calf shaping, which I omitted. Working these toe-up, I was able to try them on and make sure I got an acceptably firm fit, such that by the time I tried them over my heel I saw no need to increase and if anything, made them longer to try to pull up some of the slack, so to speak (there wasn't much - I always like my socks as long as possible).

At first I felt these were slow-moving, since I was knitting on slightly smaller needles than usual and often while on the train. For a while I had a fit counting the stockinette rows between Miranda pattern repeats (why? why was that so hard?), but eventually I got an eye for it and was able to move a lot more quickly. Ultimately it took getting sick with an awful case of bronchitis, trapping me in bed for two weeks on codeine and nothing to do but watch Hulu and Netflix, to be able to mellow out and just go with the pattern. Once I got in that state, I knit the second sock in a day or two.

The yarn is, of course, what makes these socks. I wanted something with a little variation to the color for visual interest, but not so much that it would overpower such a simple lace pattern. This heathered yarn struck the perfect balance, making a fabric that I love to look at, while still showing the pattern.

While knitting I noticed that the overall tone of these socks is almost exactly the same as my current purse, as well as a lot of my favorite clothes and jewelry. I love a nice blue-green, as it seems to go with all my other favorite colors, and it looks fantastic on its own. In this color, I think these socks will be pretty wearable through many seasons, and in case I haven't said it enough, I really, really love them.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- For the Love of Nancy Bush

FO - Fancy Merino Socks

2010-03-10T17:17:00.000-05:00

That Nancy Bush, man. She can really design a pair of socks.

Nancy Bush is one of the only designers for whom I will happily knit socks from the top-down, and I'm really happy when I do.

Pattern: Fancy Silk Sock for a Child of 5 or 6 Years by Nancy Bush, from the book Knitting Vintage Socks; my project is here on Ravelry
Size: US women's 9
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll 4-ply fingering weight, in Glacial, 75% Merino wool / 25% nylon; I used 71.9 grams, which was approximately 332.6 yards/ 304.2 meters
Needles: Knit Picks size 1.5 (2.5 mm) nickel-plated DPNs, set of 5
Modifications: added one lace repeat to lengthen the leg, otherwise knit as written

Started: January 2, 2010
Finished: February 17, 2010

I've wanted to knit these socks for a while, and the January Sock Knitters Anonymous challenge featuring Nancy Bush as a designer provided the perfect opportunity. While knitting, I wondered why I enjoy Nancy Bush patterns so very much, and I think it's the utter clarity of design, which is carried through in the directions. Every stitch is accounted for, with patterns that are logical and intuitive, with clever transitions and connections among motifs, as well as ways for keeping track of progress that aren't tedious, such as counting the selvedge chains on the heel flap.

A lot of the sock patterns I've seen are essentially some stitch pattern plugged into a basic sock formula, which is what makes them so easy to convert to toe-up. I like that Nancy (yeah, we're going to be on a first-name basis now) really thought through ways to incorporate the vintage shapes into an overall harmonious flow of stitchery that results in not just a sock, but really a bit of artistry.

And yet, these delicate little tulip shapes blooming up the leg, as well as the dancing lace between them, are incredibly easy and fast to work, which of course I have to love. This portion of the design could have been worked upside-down, but I don't think it would have the same dimensionality and rhythm.

I'm completely in love with the yarn. It is creamy and squishy and soft, yet strong and durable, making for a lovely sock that feels great on the feet, but holds up to wearing with shoes. I have great love for Knit Picks, and this yarn is one of the ones I'd most highly recommend.

Oh, and the color. It's this agonizingly beautiful minty bluish greenish color, very accurately named for its similarity to glacial ice (which I will be seeing a lot of on my upcoming trip to Iceland). It also conjures a particularly delightful chapter in the D.H. Lawrence book Women in Love called "Crème de Menthe," along with general mint green frostings and creamy, decadent things. It may be weird to associate this color with romance and indulgence, but I picture it somehow with cushy white spa robes and crisp white sheets, gentleness and tenderness and all kinds of mushy things.

My only misgiving of sorts, with these socks, is that the lace cuff at the top is a little tight, which prevented me from lengthening the leg as much as I wanted to. I'd read recommendations to work it with a larger needle, and I meant to, then forgot at the last minute and went at it with the 1.5 size. I figured I should be alright since I'd already gone up a half size from the recommended size 1's, but this is a common issue for me with top-down socks. I can probably fix the cuff with some aggressive blocking (though weirdly, I can't find my sock blockers anywhere!). Still, these are long enough that they don't bother me, and their loveliness makes up for anything else for me.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- For the Love of Nancy Bush

FO - Lotus Hat

2010-03-10T16:25:00.000-05:00

To interrupt my spate of sock posts (I'm going to put another pair up today), I thought I should share this little lace hat.

While knitting it, I wondered about the purpose of such a hat, and then I found the perfect day to wear it, when it was sunny and almost warm, but still cool enough to want to cover my ears and (still wet) hair while walking the dogs.

Oh hi, I have thesis face and look like hell. But don't you like my hat?

Pattern: Lotus Hat by UptownPurl at Third Base Line; my project is here on Ravelry
Size: one size, women's beanie-style hat
Yarn: Knit Picks Comfy Worsted 10-ply, in color B990 Creme Brulee, 75% Pima cotton / 25% acrylic; I used 44.9 grams, which was approximately 97 yards/ 88.7 meters, just under one ball
Needles: size 6 (4.00 mm) 16" circular and set of 5 size 6 (4.00 mm) DPNs
Modifications: added one chart repeat to lengthen

Started: January 17, 2010
Finished: January 17, 2010

I haven't really worn this style of hat before. If it's cold enough to wear a hat, I generally go for something thick and wooly. If I want something prettier, I'd go for one of several traditional tweed caps or felt cloches I have (is it in any way surprising that I love hats?). So this was a departure, and one I'm glad I took.

Do you do this? Contorting and torturing your poor photographer (thank you, Mom!) trying to get a shot of the top of your head? There were actually some comical out-takes from when I tried to do it myself, and my mother mercifully intervened.

What initially drew me to this pattern was the lotus flower shape made by the crown decreases (hence the name), and I think it's beautifully written to take full advantage of the transition between the lace and this shape. The cross-hatch lace itself is lovely and very enjoyable to knit. It's an intuitive, rhythmic pattern, and I liked watching its organic development. I knit this hat in just a few hours, and I'm sure part of the speed was how much I enjoyed working the lace.

I am head over heels in love with the yarn. It is heavenly soft, with just enough squish and bounce to have excellent stitch definition. It feels great to work with and even better to wear. While knitting this hat, I thought I should try to use this yarn whenever possible in future, especially for baby and children's garments and anything that would be worn against the skin.

This project felt nice and serendipitous. This ball of yarn was leftover from a camisole I knit last summer (yeah, I should probably get around to photographing that too...), and I've been going through one heck of a yellow obsession, so it all came together nicely.

I was sweating the yardage the whole time, which is why I didn't add yet another chart repeat, but I decided that if the hat were much longer, it would start looking silly for a spring cap, and I didn't want it to be puffy on the top of my head.

I can't explain it, but I have a bit of a compulsion to wear my hair in braided pigtails with this hat - I'll have to let you know how that works out.

FO - Toe-Up Jaywalkers

2010-03-09T17:29:00.000-05:00

This winter, I knit another pair of Jaywalkers, and I'm delighted with them.

Is there anything more charming than zig-zapping striped socks?

Pattern: Jaywalker by Grumperina, adapted to knit toe-up by Natalia Marek; my project is here on Ravelry
Size: US women's 9
Yarn: Regia Crazy Color 4-ply fingering weight, in color 5438, 75% new wool / 25% nylon; I used 82.5 grams, which was approximately 379.5 yards/ 347 meters
Needles: Susan Bates size 1 (2.25 mm) DPNs, set of 5
Modifications: used my standard short-row heel

Started: December 2, 2009
Finished: December 29, 2009

These socks were part of the December Sock Knitters Anonymous challenge, using self-striping yarns. I hadn't realized that I was in the minority for how much I love self-striping yarn until I heard all the griping about it during that challenge, but I love it now more than ever.

I took a calculated risk in knitting the smaller size of these, even though the first pair of Jaywalkers I knit was the 84-stitch version (also on slightly larger needles). I will admit that the biased, unstretchy fabric on these makes them very difficult to get over my heels, but they can juuuuuuust do it. I suspect that with a little washing and wearing, they'll stretch enough to pull on and off more easily without losing their firm fit. It must be said, these never fall down, not even a bit, and I love that about them.

I also love the crisp, tight little stitches formed by working at a smaller gauge, and I found myself admiring them throughout.

I tend to wear my shoes on the fitted side, with thinner trouser socks or hosiery more often than not. For that reason, sometimes it's difficult to wear hand-knit socks with my regular shoes, as they can fall a bit on the bulky side. I wanted to be able to wear these socks with jeans or casual work pants, for a shot of playful stripes, but still keep it all together in my work flats.

I love the way the chevron stripe pattern works with self-striping yarn, and of course it goes without saying that Jaywalkers are one of the greatest patterns of all time. Working them in a stripe makes it especially engaging to keep knitting a few more of the two-row repeats, just to watch the chevrons form, so these moved very quickly in a handful of knitting sessions.

I was characteristically obsessive in making sure my stripes matched up exactly, and I think I got it pretty spot on. I really, really love that.

I waxed poetic about Regia yarn in my last post, and these colors hold similar associations for me, plus this nautical, sailing feel. I knit these in the midst of a snowy winter, dreaming of sunshine on the river, the crisp white sails of our boat and the millions of shades of blue swirling lazily in the morning light. In my head, they became my "sailing socks," and every time I picked them up, I daydreamed about sailing.

It's probably no surprise, then, how much I love them.

FO - Eleanor in Blue Socks

2010-03-09T16:11:00.003-05:00

Another pair of long-finished socks, these were such a treat during last spring's trip to Italy.

Like broken-in jeans and a cushy sweater, these were instantly comfortable and felt familiar.

Pattern: Eleanor by Gigi Silva/Monkey Toes; available as a free pattern on Ravelry; my project is here
Size: US women's 9
Yarn: Regia Havanna Color 4-ply fingering weight, in color 4182, 75% new wool / 25% nylon; I used 80.4 grams, which was approximately 367.5 yards/ 336 meters
Needles: Clover size 2 (2.75 mm) bamboo DPNs, set of 5
Modifications: worked toe-up, with a short-row heel

Started: February 5, 2009
Finished: March 31, 2009

I've knit a pair of Eleanor socks before, but I was dissatisfied with the eyelets on those (I really should reknit one and finish that pair). For this pair, I followed the pattern and I'm so glad I did.

I felt a weird tenderness toward these socks, partly as a consequence of working them slowly on bamboo DPNs. These were my refuge after long, cold days working outside, and later, my little bit of warmth and relaxation tucked in my bag while doing thesis research in Venice. I knit these while waiting for, and then riding trains, and I vividly remember one frustrating afternoon where I actually wrote in my journal "I just want to sit outside and knit my socks in the sunshine, the hell with thesis research."

This pattern is great - I've really enjoyed it immensely both times I've worked on it, and I'm surprised that it doesn't get boring from something so repetitive. I knit 8 repeats up the legs, and though I had enough yarn, I didn't feel like figuring out calf increases. Still, I imagine they'd look smashing as knee socks.

I knit the majority of the second sock on the plane home, when I was utterly exhausted and couldn't wait to be with my family and sleep in my own bed. My seat-mate, a college-aged guy from the UK, seemed genuinely perplexed by me, but I was completely unconcerned. At one point a woman walking by knocked my working yarn on the ground in front of the flight attendant's drink cart, and it was a bit of a disaster as they rolled it over, pulling my sock and DPNs and all out of my hands and dragging it down the aisle. There is a break in the yarn, and even those little woven in ends elicit a fond smile whenever I see them.

The yarn is sturdy and was very pleasant to knit with. I've always loved Regia and found it to be an excellent yarn at a great price. The subtly blended colors are delightful in person and they sustained my interest throughout knitting. The rich blues and warm, gentle browns and tans remind me of corduroy pants and flannel shirts, of the beach where the ocean and sand meet, and of mud flats at low tide with wind-bent cattails and a brilliant blue sky.

In short, they feel like home.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Also Blue

FO - Spring Forward Socks

2010-03-07T13:49:00.002-05:00

These are a bit of a flashback, since I finished them more than a year ago, but I still really love my Spring Forward Socks.

These are probably the pinkest, most feminine, girliest socks I've ever made, and I just adore them.

Pattern: Spring Forward by Linda Welch, free pattern from summer 2008 Knitty; my project is here on Ravelry
Size: US women's 9
Yarn: Dream in Color Smooshy fingering weight, in Petal Shower, 100% Merino wool; I used 90.9 grams, which was approximately 360 yards/ 329.2 meters
Needles: Knit Picks size 1.5 (2.5 mm) nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5
Modifications: worked toe-up, with a short-row heel

Started: January 3, 2009
Finished: April 5, 2009

As you may have surmised, these socks are practically perfect in every way. The fit is wonderfully comfortable. Because I had so much yarn (seriously - the yardage for Smooshy is so generous already, and I still have 20 grams leftover!), I was able to make the leg as long as I wanted.

The lace pattern was wonderfully easy, and fun, and I love the way it looks. The springy shapes are playful and move the yarn in pleasing ways, while still maintaining an almost solid fabric, so they're not too open to wear as trouser socks or what have you. When I actually worked on these socks, they moved as quickly as, say, Monkeys, which made them very satisfying.

I still haven't found a heel I love as much as a short-row heel (which is probably not a bad thing), and these were worked with 10 stitches on each side and 13 in the middle.

Apart from a wonderful pattern, I think what really made these socks for me is the yarn. I love this yarn so much I want to sing songs about it - the springy quality of the heavenly soft Merino is ideally suited for this bouncy lace, the colors are just variegated enough to stay interesting without getting distracting, the colors are lovely blends of pinks and creams so beautiful that I love every one, and the finished sock feels downright decadent on my feet. For the time it takes to make a pair of hand knit socks, it is very rewarding for them to feel so cushy and refined, like the luxury they really are. I will definitely be using as much Smooshy as possible in the future!

As for these socks, I can tell I will be getting a lot of wear out of them, starting right away.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Pink

Sock Happy

2010-03-06T16:36:00.003-05:00

I was perusing my hand knit sock drawer (yes, I finally have a drawer devoted to hand knit socks, and no it's not a very large drawer, but still, it exists), and I realized I had five pairs I haven't photographed yet, some dating to over a year ago (though two from last month, which, yknow, woohoo).

That also means I have five pairs I haven't been wearing, because I wanted them to be clean and new for their debut photographs... which is quite silly of me.

Today we finally had proper sunshine, not the little peeks here and there that have been passing for daylight the past few weeks, and I took advantage of the opportunity for some sock photography. I'll try to post a pair a day (or so) as I get the chance to write about them.

But you can bet I will be wearing them immediately.

Hooray socks!

Wakame Lace Tunic progress

2010-03-05T22:45:00.000-05:00

When last we checked in on the Wakame Lace Tunic, it was a scarf-like band of lace that was taking me forever to knit.

Since then, I've finished the bottom band and joined it with a three-needle bind-off, picked up stitches, and begun working the body in the round.

I'm happy with the way the lace looks (would be nice if I could photograph it in focus), and I enjoy knitting it in the round much more than I did knitting back and forth on straights. I'm sure a lot of it is to do with being able to read the lace better now, as well as having memorized the chart.

The three-needle bind-off doesn't look as terrible as I thought it would. Actually when it's stretched out (as it will be when it's blocked), it looks pretty neat and clean. I'm learning a lot of new construction techniques with this project, so it's quite interesting and enjoyable.

Since taking these photos I knit another body repeat and am getting close to where I would cast on for the sleeves. I'm looking forward to seeing how that works.

I want to have this tunic finished by the end of March (for a KAL, yes), and while I know it's hypothetically possible, I don't know if it's likely. I guess the only thing to do is knit and see.

Two new cast-ons

2010-02-25T02:39:00.002-05:00

In every aspect of my life, I have trouble finishing what I start. I could say a lot more about this, but since this is a knitting blog, I'll just leave that as a fact.

Still, is there any thrill so great as starting a new project? I love gathering the materials, poring over the pattern again to anticipate the process, and finally getting the first few stitches going on the needles, knowing that at some point, all of it will transform from a pile of materials and pattern and ambition into an actual, knitted thing.

This is the beginning of the Diminishing Rib Cardigan by Andrea Pomerantz, from the spring 2009 Interweave Knits (my project is here on Ravelry). I've been wanting to knit this cardigan since I saw the preview more than a year ago, as it is exactly the type of sweater I like to wear over dresses and camis in the spring and fall.

I went with this magenta because I am absolutely obsessed with this color lately. It also goes nicely with a lot of my spring and fall clothes, and I think that saturated hues kind of transcend seasons, so I can get a lot of wear out of it.

I'm contemplating types of fasteners, and after reading the designer's notes on this on her blog, I still haven't decided, but I do think I'd like it to close at the waist.

The second new cast-on is probably very predictable for me, another pair of socks.

These are called Oh So Nikki socks, by Judy Sumner (PDF of the pattern here), another "underappreciated" pattern, for the SKA February challenge, which I described in my last post. My project page for these is here on Ravelry.

The name comes from a rather charming story related in the Designer's Notes:

These socks were hiding in a container in my family room and I found them recently and said to myself “These are oh so Nikki!” Nikki is one of my twin granddaughters and she had requested “grandma socks with bright green and orange”
and these fit the bill and then some. I hope you have a Nikki in your life who will love them too.

Isn't that sweet?? How could I resist?

It also doesn't hurt that the stitch pattern is super easy, fast, and fun.

For such a simple pattern, I think it has a lot of visual impact, and I'm really enjoying this project!

I am still working to finish one of the socks from my January pairs, as well as that lace tunic and admittedly some things I haven't even shown yet. I think I'm going to put some thought into how to get WIPs under control this spring...

Neue Socken

2010-02-17T03:29:00.002-05:00

When I first started knitting, casting on a new project was an event. I put so much time and thought and energy into it, and I was so excited by the time I started that I couldn't wait to take photos and document it, even if all I had to show was a few rows of a sock toe or the beginning of a sweater back.

I was worried that I was getting blasé about it, that starting a new pair of socks when I had so many already on the needles was becoming old hat (I'll address my rather alarming WIP problem in another post).

The typical prompt for me to cast on new socks is the Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdown challenges on Ravelry. This is such a fun, vibrant, and active group that it makes it utterly compelling to participate, and it's extraordinarily satisfying to finish a pair within the group's (very generous) timeframe.

The February Sockdown challenge included an option for Underappreciated Patterns, which of course intrigues me, as a big fan of the obscure and less recognized. I kept wondering what makes one particular pattern skyrocket in popularity while another equally beautiful (or perhaps even more beautiful) one gets overlooked.

In most cases, I realized that I personally overlook patterns which are photographed in a way that obscures the details (blurry, too dark or light, too far away to see the pattern etc) or, far more commonly, where an overly busy yarn is used. I think some hand-painted yarns are truly works of art, but not all yarns are suited for all patterns, and it drives me nuts when a great pattern is completely obscured by a high-contrast, crazy variegated yarn. Or, when such a yarn is forced to fight with a pattern rather than used in a simpler way that showcases its unique qualities.

All these obsessive issues of mine aside, I am pretty confident that the reason this pattern is underappreciated is because it is written in German. I of course don't know any German, but I found the photos of this pattern so lovely that I really needed to make a pair of these socks, and I had this green Gloss yarn just begging to become fern lace.

It turns out it's rather remarkably easy to figure out a German pattern, especially one such as this, which has the lace charted out. I found this super-helpful website which translates common German knitting symbols, and combining this with Google Translator, I pieced together the stitch count and instructions.

I've finished the first sock already, and I'm pretty stoked with the way they are coming out. More to the point, I'm actually enjoying the process, each component, and the whole experience of knitting. It's a lovely change of perspective.

FO - Vine Lace Scarf

2010-01-25T03:46:00.000-05:00

When I was thinking of something to knit for my boss's birthday, I thought about her preferences and decided that something green and sparkly was absolutely the way to go.

Pattern: my own (still coming), using Barbara Walker's Vine Lace stitch, learned from the Jellyfish shrug; project page here on Ravelry
Size: scarf size, approximately 6"x54"
Yarn: Patons Brilliant 69% Acrylic 19% Nylon 12% Polyester, color 3232 Glitter Green; I used 1 ball, 1.75 oz/50 g and 166 yards/158 m.
Needles: aluminum 9-inch size 10.5
Modifications: same as my first

Started: December 4, 2008
Finished: January 10, 2010

I had been wanting to knit another Vine Lace Scarf for a long time, since my cousin's wife Yvonne loved my first one so much and it looked so cute on her. My boss is really into accessories, the shinier the better (I think this is part of why we get along so well).

I actually started this project for my boss's birthday last year (her 2008 birthday) and then again for her 2009 birthday, but I didn't give it to her until I gave the rest of my lab their extraordinarily belated Christmas gifts in January. The actual knitting time was about a day, as vine lace really flies by.

Vine lace is one of my favorite stitch patterns, as it has a big impact for easy, intuitive knitting that my hands seem to know how to do automatically by now.

I love lace scarves and the way they flutter and shimmer in the breeze. This yarn blocks remarkably well for an artificial fiber - I soaked the finished scarf in soap and warm water, then ran it over with an iron on low heat (my iron's Nylon setting) to block it into place.

I really couldn't be happier with the way this scarf came out. It was a lovely little gift - my boss loved it and pointed out how nicely it contrasted against the black top she was wearing. She also thought it would work tied in her hair or as a belt.

I'll probably write a quick little pattern at some point (surround two repeats of vine lace with garter stitch, knit until you run out of yarn...), but I'm sure I will knit another one of these scarves soon.

Previous posts on this project:
- But what about December birthdays?

FO - Hello Kitty Hat

2010-01-23T20:20:00.000-05:00

My labmate and dear friend Penelope is fairly obsessed with Hello Kitty. When I was brainstorming her Christmas gift, I thought something playful and well, adorable, was in order, and so I made her a Hello Kitty hat.

Pattern: Official Kittyville Hat (Ravelry link) by Kitty Schmidt, free pattern on Kittyville
Size: adult size hat
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft 10-ply aran weight, colors White and Raspberry, 100% acrylic; I used about half a skein of the white, which was approximately 165 yards/ 151 meters and a small amount of the raspberry
Needles: Susan Bates size 7 (4.5 mm) 16" circular and Knit Picks nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 7 (4.5 mm)
Modifications: Knit hat as written; added bow from the Hello Kitty Hat pattern (Ravelry)

Started: January 12, 2010
Finished: January 13, 2010

I saw a number of almost unbearably cute Hello Kitty hats on Ravelry, but I decided to go with just the bow and ears attached to an otherwise serviceable white hat, as a kind of homage to Hello Kitty, a hat in the spirit without being a literal depiction. Also, this way Penelope could actually be Hello Kitty, and that is way, way more fun.

The pattern was great: straightforward, fast, and easy, making for a very satisfying and enjoyable project. I loved the I-cord and had to refrain from making 3-foot long tassles. The pom-poms look sweet now, but they were quite a hassle to make. I've read before that acrylic makes lousy pom-poms, and I think it was only through sheer obsession that I got these to a state I am happy with.

I love the way the ears are constructed from picked-up stitches, knit in two layers that are sewn together for stability and structure. Having the seed stitch echo the lower band and ear flaps was a nice touch. I really like the way the seed stitch looks on this hat, and it didn't occur to me until I was almost done with it that it's really no more work than K1, P1 ribbing.

Of course, what makes this project is the bow. My goodness, am I smitten with this bow. It's such a simple construction (garter stitch rectangle with a smaller rectangle cinching it in at the middle and sewn together), but it comes out utterly adorable. I sewed it down at a coquettish angle, and the hat came alive.

I had so much fun making this hat, and I loved giving it as a gift. Penelope was totally thrilled and looked ridiculously cute. I'm so happy!

For the love of Nancy Bush

2010-01-10T10:13:00.000-05:00

I purchased my copy of Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks quite some time ago, and it wasn't until this past September that I knit my first project from it.

When I saw that the January Sockdown for the Sock Knitters Anonymous group on Ravelry had Nancy Bush as the featured designer, I couldn't resist starting two new pairs.

The first is the Child's Sock in Miranda Pattern, which I am working toe-up over 64 stitches. This is my portable, train and subway type knitting, since the pattern is effortless to memorize and easy to pick up at any point and work a few rows.

In starting the second pair, I surprised even myself, as I was following the instructions and knitting them from the top down. They are the Fancy Silk Sock for a Child of 5 or 6 Years, though I am calling them my Fancy Merino Socks. I probably could have knit these toe-up, but I love the lacy cuff and the way the heel shaping forms a geometric counterpoint to the delicate lace pattern. I guess Nancy Bush really is that good.

New year, new lace

2010-01-09T10:55:00.002-05:00

In lieu of a mosaic of last year's FOs (which I umm, still haven't finished photographing) or a summary of frantic Christmas gift knitting (nope), I have a fresh start for the new year.

Hellooooo, lace. I've missed you.

This is the start of the Wakame Lace Tunic, from the summer 2008 Interweave Knits. It has a very interesting construction, and I really love the lace pattern. I hope I continue to enjoy this project after a couple hundred more hours of it.

FO - Yellow Evening Stockings

2009-12-09T15:09:00.000-05:00

It feels like so long ago that I photographed these, and even longer since I finished them, but I'm happy to finally present one of my favorite FOs yet, yellow knee socks:

Pattern: Evening Stockings for a Young Lady (Ravelry link) by Nancy Bush, from the book Knitting Vintage Socks
Size: lady's US size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Knit Picks Palette 4-ply fingering weight, color 6240 Semolina, 100% wool; I used 2.14 skeins, which was 107 grams/3.76 oz or 494.3 yards/452 meters.
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 1.5 (2.50 mm)
Modifications: Added 10 lace repeats after calf decreases to lengthen leg; used toe from Hedera instead of star toe in pattern

Started: September 1, 2009
Finished: September 27, 2009

These were my first knee socks, and I actually followed the pattern, despite my general reluctance (should I call it extreme aversion?) to knitting socks from the top-down. That Nancy Bush, man. She can write a pattern!

Usually when I knit socks, I take the lace or stitch pattern and plug it into my preferred method of toe-up sock knitting. I was really tempted to do that with these socks as well, but when I started reading all of the calf-shaping instructions, I realized that these were a totally different game, and if I wanted socks that would fit, I should do them the way Nancy wrote them. I'm so glad I did!

The calf shaping is wonderful. It was written to transition smoothly within the lace pattern, so there was no tricky math or problematic recalculation of where in the lace to work increases or decreases. The lace pattern itself was wonderfully intuitive, and I memorized it in the first repeat. Because it was so easy and logical, these socks literally flew by, and I loved every minute of them.

I was iffy about the star toe in the pattern, since I was definitely planning to wear these socks with shoes and I wanted something that would lay as flat as possible. I opted for the toe from the Hedera pattern, which was one of the only top-down toes I'd done before, but which I noted fit my toes very comfortably and worked unobtrusively in shoes.

And I have to admit that while I wasn't a fan of working the heel and gusset (the pattern was very clear, easy to follow etc - it's just a personal thing), it looks pretty lovely and it fits very comfortably into my shoes. Shockingly, these socks actually stay up while I walk too, which is a major bonus for any knee socks.

I knit these socks as part of the September Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdown challenge, where one of the options was knitting yellow socks. I was surprised at how many people started out hating on yellow, since I adore it. I had been dreaming about yellow lace knee socks for a while (perhaps I have a bit of Malvolio in me), so I found this a perfect occasion.

The yarn was a pleasure, as I expected. While not as soft as some of the pricier sock yarns I've used, I found Palette to be a really good yarn for this project. The socks didn't stretch out with wearing, they didn't felt or pill at all, and they seemed comfortable and durable, yet soft. For the price, I don't think you can find a better value in fingering-weight wool, and I genuinely adore its color.

If it's not overly obvious, I love these socks and I'm thrilled with this project. I wore these to work and my labmates were all coveting them like crazy, asking where they could buy a similar pair. I love having something so unique and so specifically suited to my personality, which I enjoy wearing as much as I enjoyed making them!

Why haven't I been blogging?

2009-12-09T04:45:00.002-05:00

Usually when you title a blog post with a question, it implies that that question will be answered and perhaps remedied, rather than contemplated at length, but I can't make such a promise in this instance.

My interest in blogging certainly waxes and wanes, both here and on my regular blog. I have a plethora of "life excuses," including another long trip to Italy in October and November that I forgot to mention, crazy lots of stuff going on at work, and all kinds of illnesses ranging from bronchitis with borderline pneumonia (which almost prevented that Italy trip) and my current malady, swine flu. Bleh.

This blog, unlike my everyday blog or my non-sequitor Twitter and Facebook updates, is so focused in its subject that if I don't have something specific to say about knitting or crafts, I tend not to say it.

More to the point, the way I "say" things here is largely through photography. It's not that the words are just spacers between photos - I care a lot about those too - but I am not likely to write about a project if I don't have photos.

(People who read a lot of knitting blogs are probably all "Ha, photography, that old chestnut!")

I used to live in a light-filled apartment, with a photographer. It's not that he shot my knits for me (at least not without some begging), but our whole apartment was set up in a way that was conducive to shooting (along with painting). We had white counter-tops and white windowsills, white desktops, off-white curtains and white walls that wouldn't distort colors, and plenty of fill lamps and photography stuff that would block out the clutter or shadows or what have you. If I needed to take modeled shots, I lived in Brooklyn and was never shy for a backdrop.

Now I am living in my parents' house, where there is very little consistent light. Every room is a different color, and there are all kinds of furniture and decorations (lovely stuff, of course). You'd think this would make for easier shooting, since it should be more interesting (and unlike our apartment, it's usually very clean), but I struggle to find anywhere that doesn't overpower the knits themselves with pattern and texture. More often than not, when I am shooting my knitting projects, I find myself laying them out on a large sheet of drawing paper on my bed or resorting to the top of the washing machine, to get a neutral background.

It should have been easier in the summer, since my parents have a truly lovely garden, but I struggled with boats, coolers, neighboring houses, and so forth always intruding in the background. And while my mother is patient and a very talented photographer, she doesn't seem to understand, the way my ex-boyfriend did, that sometimes I need a couple dozen photos to get one where I don't look agonizingly awkward and uncomfortable.

That said, I haven't fully sorted out the photography situation, but I will at least make some attempts soon. I have quite a growing pile of FOs, which I've been mentioning since the spring, and I'm either lacking proper photos or am fairly dismally unhappy with those that I have. But I'm going to work on them and try to get back in the habit of posting more frequently.

I'm really looking forward to it.

A Touch of Yellow

2009-09-13T23:35:00.003-04:00

As much as I don't want to acknowledge that summer will ever end, I've become increasingly aware of the chill in the air. In my memory, summer stretches through September and well up to my birthday (November 1), but in reality, I know that fall is coming sooner than I think.

I put aside my plan to make the Upstairs Wrap for this October wedding. I still plan to make it, since I absolutely adore the way it's coming out, but I think it will be too airy, light, and summery for a proper fall wrap.

Instead I've started a pair of wool knee socks, in a delightful warm yellow (Knit Picks Palette, in Semolina). I really don't like knitting socks from the top down, but I'm glad I'm following the pattern as written on these.

I guess they are my way of stretching a bit of summer into the fall.

FO - Farnkrautsocken

2009-08-31T16:08:00.000-04:00

Remember when I joked about renaming this blog "Vickilicious Knits Green Socks"? There is some comfort in being predictable, no?

In many ways, these are a Greatest Hits of my favorite aspects of knitting: green wool, toe-up, small gauge, fast-moving, vine lace, socks... I mean, what's not to love??

Pattern: Farnkrautsocken (Ravelry link) by Silke Pieper, available as a free Ravelry download; my project page is here
Size: lady's US size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Schachenmayr nomotta/Regia Uni 4-ply fingering weight, color 2082 Green, 75% new wool/25% nylon; I used 76.1 grams/2.67 oz or 349.6 yards/319.7 meters.
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 1.5 (2.50 mm)
Modifications: Used figure-8 cast-on and swapped jojo heel for short-row heel

Started: July 29, 2009
Finished: August 26, 2009

I knit these socks as part of the July Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdown, a challenge that included Homegrown Designers who are members of the group. I found this pattern clearly written, well-organized, and just lovely through and through.

The pattern called for a jojo heel, and while I was looking forward to trying this new technique, I ended up using my tried and true short-row heel. I really like the look of it and, frankly, I didn't have the pattern with me when it came to heel-turning time, so I just went with what I knew.

I'm sort of glad I did because these are some of the neater heels I've worked, and I really love the way they fit.

Everything about these socks was easy and satisfying. I am a huge fan of vine lace (as you may note from the scarf and two Jellyfish shrugs I've knit that incorporate the vine lace pattern). It's a four-row repeat, with two plain knit rows and two essentially identical pattern rows that differ only in being off-set by one stitch. It is fast, intuitive, has a pleasant rhythm, and at this point, I can work it in my sleep, which is helpful because much of the time I spent knitting these socks was while half-awake on the train or subway.

I like the way the front and back are divided by narrow bands of stockinette that frame the vine lace. In the past, when I'd considered knitting vine lace socks, I thought I wanted an all-over lace pattern, but the way these bands absorb the off-set stitches and draw a neat line down the leg just charms me.

The yarn was quite a treat as well. I kept finding myself surprised at how soft it was, for such a durable, workhorse type of yarn. I'm happy I have a few other colors of this yarn in my stash, and I will certainly keep an eye out for it in the future - I just love it. I also must say, this is perhaps the most perfect shade of green I've ever worked with, and I'm thrilled to have socks in such a great color. (I'm also happy to have nearly 25 grams leftover, which I hope to use in some kind of accessory.)

All in all, I couldn't be happier with this project! It's revived my interest in sock-knitting, lace, and knitting in general, just in time for fall.

FO - iPod Sock

2009-08-30T23:18:00.002-04:00

For such a simple project, this iPod sock has been one of the most satisfying lately.

Pattern: iPod Sock by Jillian Neary (free PDF available here), my project is here on Ravelry
Size: one size, approximately 2"x4.5"
Yarn: Mondial Extrafine 8-ply DK weight*, color 804 Orange dye lot #57, 100% Extrafine Merino; I used 9 grams, totaling approximately 34.7 yards/31.8 meters.
Needles: size 1 (2.25mm) DPNs
Modifications: None

Started: August 29, 2009
Finished: August 29, 2009

* This yarn is listed as DK weight in Ravelry, but I found it to be straight up fingering weight.

I was charmed by such a wee tiny ball of yarn left over from my Bella Catena Italiana socks, and I'd hoped to be able to use it, as it is such a decadent, lovely merino.

When I recently upgraded to a Macbook Pro (looooooove), I got a free engraved iPod because I purchased it through my school's Apple store. I could have gotten a Nano, but I opted for a classic because it had a 120 gig drive (versus the 8 gig Nano) and well, it matches my Mac so nicely.

The trouble is, within seconds of getting my shiny new iPod, my brother dragged it across the table and scratched the silver bottom. Grrrr. I knew it needed a cozy if it was going to survive many-hour trips through Manhattan and Brooklyn.

This pattern was straightforward, easy, fast, fun, and I adore the finished product. I'm so charmed by the crispness of the edge formed by the ribbing, and even though my Kitchener stitch was surprisingly sloppy, I sort of dug the sharp edge it made. The ribbing made it nice and stretchy for a snug, happy fit.

I used all but a few centimeters of the rest of this fantastic orange yarn, which was yet another of many points of satisfaction in this great project. Highly recommended for a rainy afternoon.

(On an administrative note, I suspect I've gotten some of the technical problems worked out, so I hope to have a lot more to share soon!)

Technical difficulties

2009-08-29T13:55:00.002-04:00

I'm having some trouble with FTP publishing on this blog, and more and more I think I may jump ship to WordPess since they seem to do a lot better with self-hosted blogs.

I have a few things I'd like to post, but I keep seeing weird errors and screwy things, so I'm going to hold off until I get that sorted out, I hope sometime this weekend.

Sorry for the (continued) delay!

FO - Green Jellyfish Shrug

2009-08-23T21:21:00.000-04:00

(Note: I actually wrote this post in September of 2008, but I didn't publish it at the time because I didn't take detail shots until uhh, last weekend.)

As far as shrugs go, this one is already very well traveled.

It was seen on the streets of Milan.

It made undocumented appearances in Venice and Volterra (among other cities).

It went to Rome where it visited many churches.

It even made it to the Vatican.

With each time I took it out of my suitcase and slid it over my shoulders, I think I fell a little more in love.

Pattern: Jellyfish (Ravelry link) by Iris G., free pattern previously available on MagKnits, now available for sale here
On Ravelry: Green Jellyfish
Size: Small
Yarn: Knit Picks Shine Worsted 10-ply worsted weight, Grass (dye lot 3740), 60% Pima cotton 40% Modal; I used 4.5 50-gram balls, totaling approximately 225 grams/7.92 oz or 337.5 yards/308.6 meters.
Needles: US size 10 (6.0 mm) straights and Knit Picks Options interchangeable circular needles, in US size 8 (5.0 mm)
Modifications: none

Started: July 10, 2008
Finished: July 14, 2008

This project literally flew off the needles. I've knit one Jellyfish previously and loved the experience then, so I knew it would be fun. By substituting worsted weight cotton yarn, I got a denser but still nicely draping fabric which made for a substantial yet cool shrug.

I took a bit of a risk working the size small, since I usually wear a large in store-bought tops, but I think if I had made this any larger it would fall off my shoulders and look sloppy.

The construction of this shrug is really satisfying: the sleeves and body are knit flat, seamed at the underarms, then stitches are picked up to do the neckline ribbing in the round. Because of the heavier yarn, the neck ribbing forms a sort of collar that cuts in sweetly around my clavicle. It's a nice surprising detail that looks intentional, and I have to like that.

I used Elizabeth Zimmermann's sewn bind-off (with instructions from this Knitty article) to maintain the stretchiness of the rib. Because I used a way longer yarn tail than necessary, I wasn't completely in love with the technique, but I see how useful it is.

The way the vine lace came out just thrills me.

I have previously professed my deep love for this yarn, and it continues to rank among my favorites. I noticed that this color shed slightly more than the others I've used, which I hear is a fairly common complaint, but I didn't find it bothersome. It holds up beautifully to washing and wearing and the color is exactly what I wanted for a summery shrug.

This almost instantly became my go-to garment to wear with sleeveless dresses and tops. I wore it regularly while I was in Italy (and got compliments every time), all over Brooklyn and New Jersey, and basically everywhere I go. It is by far my most frequently worn FO, and I adore it. People consistently comment on its color (which matches my favorite malachite earrings really nicely) as well as its unique style, all of which please me to no end.

I definitely recommend this pattern in a DK or worsted weight yarn, or whatever you could imagine. It was a fast, easy, and pleasant knit and I think it would makes a great gift too. All around, this is one of my favorite FOs, and I look forward to all the wear I'm sure I will continue to get out of it.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Keeping Busy

For Those About to Block...

2009-08-23T09:23:00.000-04:00

This is a really good one.

Once the weather sorts itself out, I hope to have a big pile of FO photos.

Knitting to Wear

2009-08-15T06:00:00.004-04:00

I've been thinking lately about why I knit what I do. Like many knitters, I get entranced by patterns and yarns, dream about creating unique garments custom-fit to my measurements, and I get a special thrill when it all comes together "just so."

This summer I noticed that I have seasonal "uniforms" that I put together, without fail, every year. I'm sure it's because my mother imbued a sense of classic styling in me very young, but there are few differences between dresses or outfits I would have worn at ages seven or twenty-seven. When I looked in my armoire, I noticed stacks and stacks of carefully-folded sweaters, shrugs, and little knits of all weights that I've amassed over the years and come to consider indispensable in dressing. Above anyone I know, I am that girl who always brings a sweater.

Unfortunately, my knitting output hasn't really matched my wardrobe needs up to this point. Of the projects I've actually finished (which is its own issue), the two I've used exponentially more than all others were both shrugs. Every single time I wear them, I get compliments. My friends and colleagues - and even strangers in churches in Italy - admire their unique shape or color, ask where I got them, and refuse to believe how simple they were to make, until (in one instance), I sketched out a top-down raglan and explained exactly how it was made.

There have been a handful of projects that, if I'm being honest, I will probably never wear. Or they require so much work to "fix" that I've lost all enthusiasm for them. That bums me out, and for a long time it discouraged me from knitting anything wearable (perhaps you noticed the sock fixation?). Often I'd hit that point of realization partway through knitting them, and they'd languish for several years in hibernation, their pieces stacked in my knitting basket making me feel guilty.

I've come to this realization before, but I disregarded those intentions and launched into a flurry of accessories, socks, impractical strapless situations, and well, more socks.

I think I've sorted it out now. I'm learning about which type of garments suit me, and I've gone back through my projects in progress to make a secondary queue of sorts, dividing pieces into those which I really do intend to finish, versus those I plan to frog so I can reuse the yarn for something I will actually enjoy wearing.

That said, I'm still going to make socks and accessories, since I love knitting them and I do wear them a lot. In fact, I've got big knee-sock plans for this fall. I guess in general, I'm going to try to spend my "sweater time" a little more productively if I can help it, and actually get some of these big exciting wearable things made.

Shimmer

2009-08-08T16:08:00.003-04:00

It occurs to me that if I wait to photograph and post each of the eight FOs I currently have waiting, or the staggering pile of WIPs I've started, I will succeed in taking the entire summer off from blogging, which really hasn't been my intent.

Moving forward, I have become utterly entranced by this yarn.

It is KnitPicks Shimmer Hand Dyed, a lovely baby alpaca and silk blend that has escaped my attention until now. I originally bought it for a little laceweight shrug project, thinking the variegation would look nice in the stitch pattern. The color is Eucalyptus, a subtle blend of light greens and pale tones.

It wasn't until I got it in my hands, though, that I realized just how special it feels. It is heavenly soft, a pleasure to touch. The silk gives it strength and smoothness that glides through my fingers, while the baby alpaca makes it weightless, with a delicate halo.

I decided this yarn needed to become something special, elegant, maybe even a little fancy. Also, I wanted to wrap myself in it. I searched Ravelry for an understated pattern which would showcase the beautiful texture and colors of the yarn, and I came up with the fabulous Upstairs Shawl.

I have this green Calvin Klein satin dress that I bought earlier this summer, which I've decided to wear to a wedding in October. I am excited beyond words to try to complete this shawl in time to go with it.

Man, I am a sucker for green lace.

Sweater Events

2009-06-27T18:55:00.003-04:00

I know I've read before about these "events" that occur in the creation of a sweater. Casting on, waist shaping, working the neckline, and so on.

I think, apart from casting on and casting off, there are few sweater events I enjoy more than splitting the sleeves from the body of a top-down raglan. It feels like such definite and specific progress, and it breaks the seemingly interminable increase rows into much more manageable sections.

I've been slowly knitting here and there on my Featherweight Cardigan all month, and I finally finished the increases and split the sleeves the other night while watching Madama Butterfly on TV.

I switched from M1 increases to kf&b, which I'm happy about. I'm surprised at how much I'm enjoying knitting with laceweight yarn, even if it's slow-going at times. I expect there will be quite a few more laceweight tops showing up in these parts soon.

Whispering Along

2009-06-16T16:26:00.002-04:00

As much as it feels like I haven't been knitting, I've been making quiet progress on my Whisper Cardigan.

I'm about to finish the second sleeve, and I have to say, this is going much faster than I thought it would. I'm encouraged that one day soon it will simply slide off the needles finished like a sigh.

The fabric created is so lovely. Using a fingering weight yarn makes it feel substantial, but still airy and light. I think this is going to be really pleasant to wear.

I think this is true love.

One Glorious Inch

2009-06-13T10:28:00.001-04:00

I got out of lab early on Wednesday, and I was determined to parlay my unexpected free time into relaxation. I probably would have benefited more from catching up on work and preparing myself for the rest of the week... but I opted for napping, watching a wonderful documentary with my mom, and knitting.

Yes, you read that correctly, knitting! I cast on for the Featherweight Cardigan and knit the first few rows, a whole inch. Working with laceweight yarn on size 6 needles makes for beautiful, airy fabric, and I am fanatical about this color.

The merino/silk blend feels lovely in my hands, which are so happy to be at this again. I have a feeling this is going to become one of my all-time favorite projects, and I'm looking forward to enjoying every stitch!

An abundance of light but nary a stitch

2009-06-08T00:04:00.003-04:00

In the winter, I complain that my knitting photos are thin on the ground because there is insufficient light or lousy weather. Here I am surrounded with gorgeous spring light and ample opportunity to photograph knits... and I've been too busy.

The end of this past semester was incredibly demanding. I spoke at a science & art symposium, which required weeks of preparation. I postponed my thesis and graduation until the fall. I took a trip to Boston. I got a new sailboat (early graduation gift from my parents) and I have been pretty obsessed with getting it ready to take out on the water (and learning to sail). I attended a conference for a week in Los Angeles (didn't even bring a knitting project - what is wrong with me?!). It's just gone on.

And now that I'm back, I've been taking an Organic Chemistry class at the university down the road. It's a 6-week intensive course with lab, meeting all day every Monday through Thursday, with hours and hours of homework, reading, and lab reports every evening. It is no exaggeration when I say I've had barely any time for anything else. Oh, but I'm trying to stay on top of work projects and my art history thesis too. It is exhausting.

The thing is, I haven't lost interest in knitting. Or in knit-blogging. The scarce few minutes a day I spend looking through knitting blogs are some of my most pleasant moments, and I daydream about picking back up needles and yarn.

Like many knitters, I am currently obsessed with two Hannah Fettig lightweight cardigans. First, the Whisper Cardigan from the spring 2009 Interweave Knits, which I've cast on in this surprisingly lovely Knit Picks Palette in Twig:

This yarn has a history, as I originally bought it to make my ex-boyfriend a Henry scarf. I decided the color was not right next to his greenish-brown coat and when I thought about it next to his neck, I opted for softer Knit Picks Gloss instead. Then we broke up, so I had 800+ yards of both yarns sitting in my stash cabinet kind of mocking me.

I decided I would quite like a slinky little fly-away cardigan to wear over spring and summer dresses, and I love the way this project is going so far. I'm just about to start the second sleeve, but I've been totally remiss in taking any progress photos so far. I hope I'm not lying when I say, "Soon."

This project got me all amped up for using thin yarns to make cardigans, so I went on a rash of queuing sweater-type projects using the laceweight I'd previously designated for various shawls. Making and attempting to wear my Flower Basket Shawl was an interesting lesson for me. While I can always go for a good scarf or rectangular wrap, I feel really awkward in a triangular shawl. I'm not ready to say they're not my style yet, but they may not be.

Part of my attraction to knitting is this idea that you can create whatever you can imagine. I often open my closet and dream about all the types of garments I'd like to have floating out of it, which is how I know I really need to learn to sew. Whenever I put on a sleeveless dress, I open the right half of my armoire (where I store the sweaters, shrugs etc), and I wish some light-weight, airy colorful little cardigans with 3/4 sleeves would spring into being. Fortunately, I can knit them! And this is wonderful!

I wound one skein of Knit Picks Gloss Lace in Aegean, in preparation for the Featherweight Cardigan, my second obsession-sweater of this summer. I've already bought and swooned over the pattern (such elegant construction), and I can't wait to make it.

I finished another project, too, and predictably, not made time for FO shots.

This brings the total to-photograph and to-post list for FOs up to:
- three hats
- two pairs of socks
- two shrugs
- one scarf

The list for WIPs is staggering and ridiculous, so I'm gonna leave that one alone until I catch up around here. I even have an indigo-dyeing project and articles on mordants and natural dyeing from, well, a year ago. Yikes.

I'm going to try to make some time for knitting in this coming week if at all possible. I really, really miss it!

Oh hello there, I'm home.

2009-04-10T00:37:00.002-04:00

I keep forgetting to come back over here to say hello, and I've been back from Italy over a week already!

Since I last wrote, I've finished two pairs of socks and started three more. I still have to photograph the two (yes, two) hats I finished before I left. I have other new projects to talk about too! This is to say, I've been a good knitter, but a bad blogger, and I will attempt to remedy that this weekend.

In the past 10 days, I've been to the opera twice (wheee!), I've made a major decision about my academic career, and I've gotten incredibly obsessed with the data I'm analyzing for a talk I'm giving later this month.

I've also been photographing flowers in the April sun, enjoying time relaxing with my parents and pets, and getting back into the swing of life in the good old USA.

So, I will take some photos and be back with the beginning of a parade of FOs soon!

Un altro viaggio

2009-03-12T05:45:00.002-04:00

I think I completely neglected to mention that I am going back to Italy! And I leave today!

My research group has been invited to study an ancient mosaic in the Herculaneum, and we'll be conducting additional research in Pompeii. From there, I travel to Venice for art history thesis research in manuscript collections and libraries. I will be spending a total of 20 days in Italy, the rest of March. I am ridiculously excited.

I finished two projects this past week, which I am dying to show you. I am close to finishing my pink socks, and I do hope to find some time to knit on planes, trains, and in what little downtime I may have while I am in Italy.

I hope you have a lovely March, and I will see you with FOs in April. Arrivederci!

How the time flies

2009-03-03T02:14:00.003-05:00

I realize, with much chagrin, that I am becoming one of those once-a-month-or-so bloggers around here. I have never been busier with work or school, and it's all coming to a head as I finish my second thesis (and with it, two master's degrees) this semester. I haven't had much time to knit, let alone think or breathe, and as such, my projects languish.

I discovered a huge error that I made in my Sunshine sweater, which necessitated frogging the entire thing and starting over. I'd just split off for the sleeves and was working my way down the body when the math wasn't really adding up. I was supposed to have fewer stitches on the front than the back, yet I had many more. I asked the Obscuriosity KAL group on Ravelry for help, and the designer figured out that instead of increasing at the beginning and end of a RS row just two times (as is clearly indicated in the pattern), I kept doing so on every RS row, all the way along. Obviously this created many additional stitches and the wrong shape to my neckline, whoops.

I also just plain ran out of February to finish the January Sockdown challenge socks I was knitting (my pink ones). I have not yet turned the heel on the second sock, though I do love the way the first finished sock looks. I expect to have those done sometime soon.

And no, I have not touched the pile of my now long, long overdue Christmas knits, nor did I write down the modifications I made to one item that is part of what must be a matching pair.

I am very much looking forward to organizing my projects and having a big finishing party, but I fear that day is much further away than I'd like. Ah well, one stitch at a time!

Also Blue

2009-02-06T17:36:00.000-05:00

In contrast with my ever-so-pink socks, I am also going through quite a bit of a blue phase as well. I'm obsessed with navy and deeper, richer blues in ways I've never been before.

I started a Sunshine sweater, a beautifully-detailed top-down raglan designed by the lovely Auntie Amanda.

I remember when Amanda submitted this design to a Craftster "One Stitch to Rule Them All" challenge (where I submitted my Garter Lace Tote) and I thought I'd never be able to make something that complex and stylish.

I'm pretty chuffed that I'm making it through with nary a worry. This is a wonderful pattern and easy to customize for a perfect fit. I just split off the sleeves and am making my way down the body. I can't wait to finish this sweater!

It wouldn't be me if I didn't also cast on for a new pair of socks. These are Eleanor socks, a pattern I've made once before (with not such great success).

This yarn is quite a treat. The varying shades of blue are combining so nicely, and I love working with it.

I'm working the eyelets the same this time, so I think I should be really happy with these socks.

Meanwhile, I'm relishing the blues.

Pink

2009-02-04T19:14:00.002-05:00

When I was a child, my favorite color, without question, was pink. Everything I owned was some shade between the palest blush and the most scorching vibrant hot pink the 1980s could produce.

Over time, this enthusiasm waned, and I started to hate pink. I'd say "I'm just not a pink person," even as I admired delicate pink flowers or bold swathes of magenta in paintings. Quietly, I'd slip it into my clothing choices, thinking it was just another color, until the other day I looked in the mirror and saw pink pearls with a pink blouse (and pink camisole and underwear underneath).

I realized I have definitely returned to pink, in all its delicate and delectable shades.

The yarn for these socks is unabashedly feminine and pink, tempered with a creamy white that makes it so very pleasant to work with. The heavenly soft merino of Dream in Color Smooshy is making the entire experience one of great sensory delights, and I'm thrilled with how these socks are coming along.

I never thought I'd be so happy making something so... pink.

FO - Une Cabled Legwarmers

2009-01-17T16:09:00.000-05:00

For a while now, I've been trying to bring legwarmers back.

These make me so glad I did.

Pattern: Une Cabled Legwarmers, free pattern from Berroco (here on Ravelry)
Size: one size
Yarn: Knit Picks Sierra (now Cadena) super-bulky, Natural color, 70% Peruvian Highland Wool / 30% Superfine Alpaca; I used 3 100-gram skeins and part of a 4th, totaling approximately 350 yards
Needles: size 10 (6.0 mm) and size 8 (5.0 mm) straights
Modifications: Changed pattern so it didn't have the attached clogs, started by casting on 52 stitches and working 7 rounds of 1x1 ribbing at ankle

Started: January 5, 2009
Finished: January 14, 2009

I started knitting in part because I wanted so badly to make myself a pair of legwarmers. They are such a perfect item for frigid cold weather like we've been experiencing lately, and they make it that I can actually stay warmer wearing skirts and dress shoes than if I wore pants.

This pattern is fast, fun, and intuitive. You knit them flat on straights, which I think makes it go a little faster, and it avoided issues with ladders like I usually get when working at a large gauge in the round.

One seam up the back et voilà, legwarmers!

I was nervous about the cables, but they were much easier than I anticipated. I love the plaited look of them, and they were actually really fun to do.

In this yarn, they are so squishy and sculptural, and they make an elegant, but strong statement.

I feel as though I should write a love letter to this yarn. I bought it several years ago to make a capelet that looked disastrous on me. When I found this pattern, I was thrilled, as it was a much more suitable use of such warm, snuggly, thick, and crazy soft yarn.

This is actually a slightly heavier yarn than the pattern called for, but it was a nominal difference which makes them roomy enough on my ankles to pull down over my shoes, but still fitted enough to stay up at my calves and knees. The top ribbing is just long enough to pull over my knees on really cold days, but perfect if I fold them over as shown.

These are so cozy that I don't just wear them when I want to be stylishly warm out in public. In fact most often, I wear them around the house with slippers.

My legs have never been happier.

2008 Knits in Review

2009-01-04T16:48:00.001-05:00

I didn't mean to come off so negative in my last post. Once I finally found a few minutes to make these mosaics, I realized I've actually been quite involved in knitting this year.

I think most of my knitting attention went to socks, and I finished nine pairs, all for myself.

1. Komet Socks, 2. Shock the Monkey Socks, 3. Bella Catena Italiana, 4. Eleanor Socks, 5. Spring Twists, 6. Kaaffe Fassett Socks, 7. Seduction Socks, 8. Toe-Up Eye of Partridge Heel Socks, 9. Hedera Socks

Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

With the exception of the Hedera socks, all were knit toe-up and with a short-row heel. I think I've found a formula that really works for me. Sock Knitters Anonymous definitely played a huge part in my sock obsession (or is it the other way around?), though I may ease up on my participation a touch to focus on other projects.

In non-sock knitting, I did a bit more than I realized.

1. Flower Basket Shawl, 2. Green Jellyfish Shrug, 3. Cropped Raglan Sweater for Elise, 4. Molly Ringwald, 5. Bella Paquita, 6. Tempting, 7. Butterfly Hat, 8. Sun Ray Shawl, 9. Naturally-Dyed Yarns

Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

(I haven't even posted about that green shrug, yikes.)

Still, it felt like I was knitting so much more. I may have gotten carried away with the mosaic maker, but I compiled one final collection: Knits That Might Have Been. All the things I started and didn't finish, the projects to which I devoted several days and then frogged, things I got 80% through and then put aside... there's a lot of these.

1. Odessa Hat (IP), 2. Billy's Birthday Hat (IP), 3. Cobblestone Pullover for Dad (IP), 4. Dad's Slip-Stitch Socks (IP), 5. Calorimetry (IP), 6. Springtide Socks (IP), 7. Scrolls Socks (IP), 8. Lace Ribbon Scarf (IP), 9. One-Tone Shrug (IP), 10. Spiral Boot Socks (IP), 11. Holly Jacket (IP), 12. A Knitted Gnome (IP), 13. Kolenya Mitts (IP), 14. Lelah Top (IP), 15. Esther Socks (F), 16. July Mystery Socks (F), 17. Aleita Shell (F), 18. Brigit Socks (F), 19. Pretty Petals Socks (F), 20. Entrelac Socks (F), 21. Pomatomus Socks (F)

Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

(IP) = in progress still
(F) = frogged

And if I'm being honest, there are even more that I haven't photographed, including 3 or 4 unfinished Christmas gifts.

I expect that many of the projects from this third mosaic will comprise the early FOs of 2009. Otherwise they will join the ever-increasing pile of languishing knits from 2007 and 2006 (have I really been knitting that long already?).

This leads me to my goal for 2009: The Year of Finishing Things I Start.

What this means and how I plan to accomplish it will be fleshed out soon, including a parade of WIPs and discussion of what makes me abandon a project.

I look forward to a more productive and relaxing year of knitting in 2009. This time without the sarcasm, Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T19:35:00.002-05:00

Oh dear, I have been so remiss. I really didn't mean to disappear over the holidays, but things got insane in my personal and academic life, and something had to give. Sadly, it was knitting.

I didn't finish any of the handmade gifts I was working on this Christmas. I didn't even start most of them. Since they were mostly for my immediate family, who saw firsthand the stress I was under, there was no issue giving them cards with an image of the pattern and yarn I was planning for them, to be given at some point before next Christmas.

I didn't finish most of what I planned for this year. Looking at my knitting resolutions, it's tempting to be discouraged.

I didn't knit a pair of socks every month, I didn't dye my own yarn again, I didn't learn the techniques I planned (though I made some progress with the Christmas gifts I did start), and I let scores of WIPs languish. I didn't post the mini-pattern I meant to, I didn't write posts on mordanting and dyeing (those will come soon, though, since I have to write about them for lab reports due next week), and I didn't even mention the rank horror that was indigo dyeing.

The only area where I succeeded this year was not buying any more yarn (except for gifts), and here I slipped up a touch too. I didn't even have time to round up all the things I knit in 2008 and make one of those sexy mosaics I keep seeing on all my favorite blogs.

I've decided, though, to be okay with that. Knitting isn't a chore - it's something I do to relax and unwind. To the extent that I enjoy learning new things, using nice materials, and creating beautiful objects, knitting is a very satisfying diversion. I will work harder to keep this in mind in 2009.

As such, I do have goals for 2009. I have plans, ideas, visions, and dreams. To begin, I will catch up with 2008 knits, and we'll go from there.

I hope you all had safe and happy holidays, and I look forward to getting back in touch soon!

But what about December birthdays?

2008-12-06T22:08:00.003-05:00

I prepared a ridiculous schedule for Christmas gift-knitting (which will probably have to get pared down a little), but I forgot all about December birthdays. I imagine those who have birthdays in the weeks before or after Christmas get a little slighted, so I try really hard not to neglect Sagittarius and Capricorn friends.

It happens that one of these birthdays is tomorrow, December 7th, and I want to have a gift to give this person when I see her on the 8th. I didn't even think about it until a few days ago, so I quickly looked around my stash and found this sparkly green yarn. When I thought about the project for which I'd intended this yarn, I realized it would make a perfect gift. How serendipitous!

The gift I'm knitting should be a fast one, and I hope to post photos and a little pattern soon.

FO - Komet Socks

2008-11-30T16:36:00.000-05:00

I neglected to even mention that I was working on these, but I finished a pair of Komet socks this week.

These are like no socks I've knit before.

Pattern: Komet Socks by Stephanie van der Linden, originally published on the Socken-Kreativ-Liste Yahoo Group, but now available free on Ravelry
Size: lady's size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Schachenmayr nomotta Regia Color 4-ply /4-fädig fingering weight, color 1900, 75% wool / 25% polyamide (nylon); I used less than 2 100-gram skeins
Needles: size 1.5 (2.5mm) Knit Picks nickel-plated DPNs
Modifications: Inverted pattern to toe-up, with short-row heel

Started: October 5, 2008
Finished: November 25, 2008

This isn't exactly a formal theory, but I think a knitter is either a lace person or a cable person. I would have considered myself firmly in the lace camp, as I gravitate toward open, flat patterns with simple repeats.

Then I got hooked on these socks, which have both cables and lace, and I couldn't decide which section I enjoyed more. Fortunately they were worked simultaneously, so I got to indulge in both. While I have cabled in the past, I didn't really love it the way I love lace, but this time the cables clicked for me. The maneuvers finally made sense, and I looked forward to the crossings, which thankfully only occurred every 14 rows.

By the time I got past the heel on the first sock, I'd memorized the pattern, and I really enjoyed working from memory. This was, though, one of my first times working a pattern purely from a chart, without writing it out for myself, and it went a lot more smoothly than I expected.

The yarn was delightful, as I've come to expect from Regia. I bought a lot of colors of this particular yarn from WEBS close-outs, and it's a truly fantastic go-to yarn. This color seemed an anomaly among my typical choices, in that it is so subdued, with such subtle variations within a gentle range of tones. It ended up being a perfect counterpoint to the architectural quality of the cables and lace pattern, providing visual interest and delicate movement without distracting at all from the stitching.

I hope it's not immodest to say I think these socks are beautiful.

I would definitely recommend this pattern. It was very intuitive, enjoyable, and I think the outcome is great. The fit on these socks is fabulous, and all in all I just couldn't be happier with them. It figures that I waited until the rainiest, darkest day of November to photograph them, but they are much nicer in person.

Now that I've gotten my (probably) last selfish project off the needles, I must concentrate in earnest on gift knitting for the rest of the year. I'll just have to admire my feet while I do it!

Knitting Experience (meme)

2008-11-19T14:30:00.000-05:00

I saw this over on Gypsy Coins & Peacock Feathers and thought it was an interesting list.

Bold = Have already tried this
Italicized = Plan to try this
Unemphasized = Have no desire to try this

- Afghan
- I-cord
- Garter stitch
- Knitting with metal wire
- Shawl
- Stockinette Stitch
- Socks: Top-down
- Socks: Toe-up
- Knitting with camel yarn
- Mittens: Cuff-up
- Mittens: Tip down
- Hat
- Knitting with silk
- Moebius band knitting (I've done it accidentally)
- Participating in a KAL
- Sweater
- Drop stitch patterns
- Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
- Slip stitch patterns
- Knitting with banana fiber yarn
- Domino knitting (I had to look this up, but sure)
- Twisted stitch patterns
- Knitting with bamboo yarn
- Two end knitting (this one is weird)
- Charity knitting
- Knitting with soy yarn
- Cardigan
- Toy/doll clothing (does our dachshund count as a toy?)
- Knitting with circular needles
- Baby items
- Knitting with your own handspun (I have never spun, and I'm not sure I want to)
- Slippers
- Graffiti knitting
- Continental knitting (I'm really happy with English though)
- Designing knitted garments (patterns coming soon)
- Cable stitch patterns
- Lace patterns
- Publishing a knitting book
- Scarf
- Teaching a child to knit
- American/English knitting
- Knitting to make money
- Buttonholes
- Knitting with alpaca
- Fair Isle
- Norwegian knitting
- Dying with plant colors (it was awesome)
- Knitting items for a wedding
- Household items
- Knitting socks on two circulars
- Olympic knitting
- Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
- Knitting with dpn’s
- Holiday-related knitting
- Teaching a male how to knit
- Bobbles
- Knitting for a living
- Knitting with cotton
- Knitting smocking
- Dyeing yarn (need to do more of this)
- Steeks
- Knitting art (seems like I should)
- Fulling/felting
- Knitting with wool
- Textured knitting
- Kitchener BO
- Purses/bags
- Knitting with beads (I'm doing this soon!)
- Swatching
- Long tail CO
- Entrelac
- Knitting and purling backwards (will have to if I want to try entrelac again)
- Machine Knitting
- Knitting with self-patterning/self-striping/variegated yarn
- Stuffed toys
- Knitting with cashmere
- Darning
- Jewelry
- Knitting with synthetic yarn
- Writing a pattern
- Gloves
- Intarsia
- Knitting with linen
- Knitting for preemies
- Tubular CO
- Freeform knitting
- Short rows
- Cuffs/fingerless mitts/armwarmers
- Pillows
- Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
- Rug
- Knitting on a loom (when I was a child)
- Thrummed knitting (honestly, I get irrationally creeped out).
- Knitting a gift
- Knitting for pets
- Shrug/bolero/poncho
- Knitting with dog/cat hair (maybe)
- Hair accessories
- Knitting in public
- Double knitting

It turns out I have a lot more experience than I might have thought, and I'm pretty open to trying new things. I'm looking forward to adding more techniques to my repertoire in my next few projects.

How about you?

Gift Knitting

2008-11-12T23:55:00.001-05:00

This year I've decided to replace my usual flurry of selfish knitting with handmade Christmas gifts.

I've made a rather ambitious schedule for myself, and while this is mostly a to-do list, it may inspire you in your own gift-knitting as well:

- for DAD - slip-stitch socks, Cobblestone Pullover, finish Oiled Wool gloves from last year
- for MOM - Baby Cables and Big Ones Too, Odessa hat (yay shiny beads!)
- for my BROTHER - oiled wool Broad Street Mitts, finish his birthday hat
- for a FRIEND - matching hat and fingerless glove set

I may also be able to tack on:

- for my GRANDMOTHER - tabi socks
- for an AUNT - lace picture mats (may do something else instead)
- for our DACHSHUND - a custom-sized cabled dog sweater (kind of a gift for my mom)
- for our KITTIES - catnip-filled mice

For the rest of my family and friends, I think I'm going to go with batches of these cookies, which are insanely delicious, or some other baked treat.

What are your gift plans?

A Hat Saga

2008-11-11T02:23:00.000-05:00

Much like the sock sagas of days gone by, I am not having an easy time coming up with a basic hat for my brother's birthday.

His request was simple. He sent me a photo of a hat he wanted, and we brainstormed. The original was wool, but he is a fishing boat captain, so I knew this hat would get damp and need to be washed frequently. We picked Cotton-Ease to make it machine washable, and I suggested gray, black and blue. I found a simple hat pattern online and thought I could whip it out in a few days for his birthday on November 3rd.

The first hat did indeed zip along (you must see where we're going with the "first" thing, right?). I figured out how to strand my knitting to make a diamond pattern that I thought was pretty spiffy.

The trouble was, the band of stranded stitches made this hat tight. Before blocking, it fit snugly on my head, and my brother has a much bigger head, with thick curly hair to boot.

I tried to maintain hope, soaking it and stretching it like crazy while it was wet, then periodically throughout blocking. Because there were so very many ends, I decided I'd have my brother try it on before I finished it completely, and as I feared, it was much too tight. It also seemed too long, so I made mental notes on modifications and resigned myself to knitting a second hat.

At his suggestion, I changed the pattern a bit, though I prefer the first. I moved up a needle size and knit it flat so that I could do proper intarsia, thinking it would all stretch uniformly. I resisted casting on extra stitches, as this pattern was supposed to fit a man's head and I was sure it was just the stranded bits making it too tight.

With many, many more ends to weave in, I stretched it around my brother's head before I even sewed it up, and it barely went all the way around. He looked at me grimly and said "Better get going on a third."

I am still hopeful that once it's seamed, it can stretch more than it did in that cursory fitting, but I worry that it's still going to be too small. I don't think I have enough gray yarn left and because I cut so many pieces for the intarsia bits, I don't think I can reuse hat #2's yarn.

Technique-wise, I have no idea what I would do differently besides casting on more stitches. I preferred stranding to intarsia, but I didn't exactly love either one.

Sigh. Good thing hats go quickly, right?

FO - Flower Basket Shawl

2008-11-09T22:20:00.001-05:00

I thought I would barely eke out this shawl when I only had 20 days to knit it. Then I had a break-up and moved over 100 miles away, so I thought I'd never get it done.

Perseverance and a long train commute can do wonders.

Pattern: Flower Basket Shawl by Evelyn A. Clark, from Interweave Knits Fall 2004 and available for purchase from Fiber Trends (here on Ravelry)
Size: approximately 63-inch wide triangular shawl, 31.5-inch long at center point
Yarn: Colourmart Silk 32/120NM DK weight 8-ply, color moss green, 100% silk; I used about half my cone, totaling approximately 80 grams/2.8 oz or 328.6 yards/300.5 meters.
Needles: size 7 (4.5mm) Knit Picks Options nickel-plated circular needle
Modifications: Changed yarn weight, added two repeats of Lower Flower Basket chart

Started: October 5, 2008
Finished: October 24, 2008

I think even if I weren't driven to finish this shawl for an October 25 wedding, it would have gone pretty quickly.

The lace was intuitive and easy to memorize within rows. It still amazes me that such lovely shapes can be created with simple yarn-overs and decreases.

The pattern calls for holding lace-weight yarn double, but I decided I'd rather use a single strand of DK for neater lines. That gave me the opportunity to use this delicious silk, which made the whole project feel special.

I did get to wear it to the wedding, and I must thank my friends for unwittingly taking FO shots which I unscrupulously borrowed.

Note to self: learn how to wear shawls.

As you can see, the size is okay, but not quite as large as I would have liked. I thought part of it might have been issues with blocking, seeing as the only surface available the night before the wedding was my mattress, leaning against the wall in a hallway. I blocked it vertically, without measuring, trying to just stretch like mad, and I think I could have done a little better with that.

Still it was passable, and I am suitably charmed by turning a green blob in a sink into an adult-size shawl (or shawlette, whatever).

The yarn was as luminous and lovely as I thought it would be. It was a tad splitty, I suspect because it is actually a lot of very thin singles plied but not really spun together. I've never knit with pure silk before, so this might be a common experience, but it certainly wasn't enough to deter me.

The color is a fantastic, delicate spring green that makes me happy every time I see it. I think it is now listed as "pistaccio" on Colourmart's site (their spelling), but there are so many delectable shades of silk there you really can't go wrong.

The whole cone, of which I used about half, cost $20 including shipping, so I will definitely be able to make something else with it too. That's a pretty great value for such a special-feeling project.

I would enthusiastically recommend this pattern for beginner and experienced lace knitters alike. While I wish I'd made my shawl bigger, I am still happy with the finished project and look forward to many more lace shawls in my future.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Lacemaking
- Another new home

Oh hi, I'm the one who lives here.

2008-11-08T23:50:00.003-05:00

I have an interesting predicament where, for the first time since starting this blog, I have more knitting than blogging to show for myself.

My crazy long commute has been good for knitting progress, but bad because I leave before the sun and come home well after it's set. The days when I am home, it keeps raining (and even snowing!) which again, good for knitting, bad for photography.

I have at least one FO to show, one almost-FO, and quite a few new WIPs. Let's hope for some decent light because they are feeling unloved.

I also decided I was finally ready to knit for other people: socks and a Cobblestone Pullover for my Dad, an adorable sweater for my Mom, fingerless gloves for my brother, a Christmas gift for my best friend, socks for my grandmother, and a handful of other little things. I'd better get at it!

Lacemaking

2008-10-24T01:20:00.003-04:00

I mentioned that I've been working on a project that was getting a bit emotional. This is about where I'd left it when I moved out:

What makes it even more emotional is that it's a lace shawl that I was making to wear to a wedding this Saturday.

I invested all my nerves and emotions and more than a few long train rides into knitting this silly blob of lace. This evening I happily bound it off, in a sense closing that chapter.

I'm going to block it later tonight and wear it to the wedding on Saturday. I can't wait to see how it comes out.

Another new home

2008-10-17T02:10:00.003-04:00

For me knitting is a way of finding order in the world. It helps me maintain control and focus my emotions and energy on something predictable, finite, and productive. If I do everything the way I'm supposed to, I can have the results I desire (or even better).

Each tiny little stitch harnesses my joys, anxieties, trepidations, and scattered thoughts, and when I look back at pieces I've knit, I am transported to the time in my life when I was making them. These loops and bumps record my experience, and they are invested with what I brought to them.

I have a project that I stopped in the middle of a row, and I'm reluctant to even pick it back up again because it was what I was working on last week when I realized my living arrangement (and as a consequence my relationship) wasn't going to work out.

On Monday, my cat and I moved from Connecticut to my parents' house in New Jersey. My boyfriend and I are taking a break after dating for four years and living together the last three. In my heart, I knew this time was coming, and I am sure it is the right thing to do, but it still really hurts.

This weekend will find my mother and I packing all my belongings (most still not unpacked from the last move) into a U-Haul, and it will be done. I have no idea what the future holds (apart from a wedding we're going to the next weekend), and I have so much schoolwork and thesis stuff to catch up on that I don't really have time to process my thoughts and feelings.

This may be overly personal to share on my knitting blog, but I felt like it would be dishonest to show photos of stitches and projects without giving the emotional context behind them. It happens that my commute will get even longer, so we'll have lots of stitches to mull over in the coming weeks and months. And maybe somewhere in there, things will start to make sense again.

FO - Shock the Monkey Socks

2008-10-12T13:22:00.004-04:00

I thought it was time to give the world's most popular sock pattern a try.

Boy my feet are getting happier and happier by the day.

Pattern: Monkey by Cookie A., from the winter 2006 Knitty (here on Ravelry)
Size: lady's size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Zwerner Garn Opal Neon 4-ply fingering weight, color 1937 dye lot #1, 75% wool / 25% polyamide; I used about 3/4 of a skein, totaling approximately 74 grams/2.64 oz or 347.5 yards*/318 meters.
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 1.5 (2.5 mm)
Modifications: Worked toe-up, with short row heel, 1x1 twisted ribbing and stretchy bind-off

Started: September 24, 2008
Finished: October 3, 2008

* Incidentally, this is the exact same yardage I used for my Bella Catena Italiana socks. Spooky.

When I saw how many people have knit Monkey socks before me, raving about how great the pattern is, I wondered if it could ever live up to the hype. I am so happy that not only did it meet my expectations, it completely surpassed them.

I decided to make these toe-up, even though that would mean flipping the chart upside-down. While there are patterns for toe-up Monkeys, I really did want to try the original chart as designed. I rather enjoy the look of the pattern done toe-up, as it makes little V's and upward-pointing triangles. Somehow that seems optimistic.

The lace pattern is about as intuitive as I've ever seen and addictive as all get-out. I had previously said that Bella Catena Italiana were the fastest socks I'd ever knit, but these Monkeys were decidedly speedier. I mean, 10 days?? Insanity!

I think I was just into the groove, and I was visiting my parents, so sock-knitting seemed to be a great companion to talking story, watching the debates, and whining about my thesis. Mostly though, I'm going to go with the addictiveness of the pattern, which begged me "just one more repeat, just a few more rows..."

I'm sure others have deconstructed the glory that is the Monkey chart before, but I think so much of its beauty comes in the plain rows. Each patterned row is followed by a rather plain sequence of knits and purls that absorb the increases and decreases. Within an eleven row repeat, there are basically only 4 rows with patterning, 3 which are knit completely plain, and 4 which are so simple they may as well be plain. This is a lot of fast and easy knitting, but with a great pay-off, as the lace becomes structural, textured, and really quite lovely.

The fit on these is fabulous, and I think I'm either really lucky with the ratio of pattern repeats to my foot's length, or I've figured out exactly where to start the short-row heels on socks. My boyfriend recently took a jab at me, saying that all I ever knit is socks for myself, and while he's right (and I felt appropriately selfish), I worry that I may not be able to get this kind of fit and comfort knitting for someone else, if I don't have them around to try it on as I go. I guess I'll have to give it a shot and see.

Back when I bought this yarn, I said:

This yarn is so cheerful and bright. It is positively electric with happiness, glowing with warmth and intense color. I feel as though it would be impossible to have a bad day when wearing socks knit in such a merry yarn.

I worried about how it may work into a pattern, and yes, the colors are pretty crazy, but I'm happy with the wacky stripes. As I knit, I realized that the colors formed a primary rainbow of red, coral, orange, yellow, and a gorgeous teal blue bouncing back and forth. As they laid side by side, they looked less neon to me than in the skein, but they still didn't look muddy or cancel out each others' saturation, which is an enjoyable thing about such pure color.

The put-up with Opal is nice and generous at 465 yards - with 7 repeats on the foot and 8 on the leg, I still have a quarter of the ball left. It felt nice to knit with, sturdy and well-spun, and they are wonderfully comfortable to wear.

I even like the way these socks look on the inside.

I had named these socks after one of my all-time favorite songs, "Shock the Monkey" by Peter Gabriel. Cause yknow, neon, electric, shock...? Really, I think it was because I knew one day I would want to gratuitously link to this video on my blog. Hehehe.

I feel silly saying I highly recommend this pattern, since really, doesn't it recommend itself? But I do, and I enjoyed it immensely, and I'd be surprised if I didn't knit another pair. They were fun, the fastest socks I've ever knit, and even in such a crazy yarn, I think they look pretty smashing. Happy feet indeed.

Previous Entries on this Project:
Ahem, none. Kind of sneaked on and off the needles.

FO - Bella Catena Italiana Socks

2008-10-09T17:54:00.000-04:00

I finished these orange socks the other day, and my feet are so very happy!

Pattern: Bella Catena Italiana by Terry L. Ross (here on Ravelry)
Size: lady's size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Mondial Extrafine 8-ply DK weight*, color 804 Orange dye lot #57, 100% Extrafine Merino; I used almost 2 skeins, totaling approximately 91 grams/3.168 oz or 347.5 yards/318 meters.
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 2 (2.75 mm)
Modifications: Worked toe-up, with short row heel, 1x1 ribbing and stretchy bind-off

Started: September 8, 2008
Finished: September 26, 2008

* This yarn is listed as DK weight in Ravelry, but I found it to be straight up fingering weight.

I don't think I've ever knit a pair of socks as quickly as these, for which I suspect I have my new train commuting time to thank.

It is also immensely soothing to have reached the point in sock knitting where I can work them by habit: cast on 12 stitches with figure-8, increase the toes, work the pattern stitch up to a set point on my foot, use the equations I've memorized to work the short-row heel, and coast on up the leg to finish with ribbing and a stretchy bind-off.

I think the ease of this process makes toe-up sock knitting vastly more enjoyable than cuff-down, as the trickier structural parts (which in my preferred short-row heel method are really quite easy) get out of the way early and allow for a nice expanse of the fun stitching which drew me to the particular pattern in the first place. I don't have to worry about running out of yarn, picking up stitches, gusset and toe shaping, or Kitchener (which oddly, I don't mind at all). I should be careful to avoid proselytizing, but I suspect I am a full-on toe-up devotee and at this point I struggle to imagine knitting a sock any other way.

As for this particular pattern, I absolutely love it. The lace is fun, intuitive, and a really big impact for simple maneuvering. The name means "beautiful Italian chain," and I found myself driven to continue in the 4-row repeats, striving to add one more link - okay and maybe another - before I reached my train or subway stop.

I could have made the legs longer, as I actually had a good deal of yarn leftover, but I am happy with where they hit on my legs. The lace is stretchy, but not overly so, and the fit is really comfortable without being loose or snug.

The length of the foot is exactly right and the toes and heel feel fantastic. Actually, it doesn't feel like I am wearing socks (apart from the warmth and coziness), which I guess is a pretty high compliment.

The yarn is absolutely exquisite. It is incredibly soft and decadent to touch. I think it is more customarily used for fine-gauge tops or accessories, which I imagine would give it an insanely lovely drape and feel. It has a nice spin to it, though, which makes it plump and resilient, and this is part of why I was confident that it would hold up to being socks just as well.

The color is a nice kind of orange, saturated without being garish and subtle without being muted. I knit these socks as part of the Sock Knitters Anonymous orange socks challenge for September, and I later added them to the Solid Socks group's September pool as well. (By the way, the Solid Socks group is really lovely, and I just discovered they are doing monthly color KALs in solid and semi-solid sock yarns all year.) Seeing so many orange socks all over Ravelry has me thinking more and more about colors, and I am happy to come out of the experience as much in love with orange as ever.

I would definitely recommend this pattern for beginning and experienced sock knitters alike, as the lace is easy, quickly memorized, yet consistently enjoyable. I had such a great time knitting these socks that I have renewed my resolution to knit 12 pairs this year. We'll talk more about that soon though.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Second Sock... Speed-Up?
- Orange Socks

Second Sock... Speed-Up?

2008-09-27T23:25:00.004-04:00

There are many knitting myths to which I do not subscribe. The most predominant has got to be the greatly bemoaned "Second Sock Syndrome."

While a cute name and oft-sympathized malady, I find my behavior to be exactly the opposite of that described by the lethargy which sets in upon completion of the first sock, especially the supposed reluctance to cast on and then complete the second sock of the pair.

Instead, the closer I get to finishing the first sock, the more antsy I am to cast on the second. Once I have worked out the amount of pattern repeats for the foot, the stitches on the heel, and the length of the leg, I cannot wait to breeze through the second sock on an autopilot-like level of gleeful enjoyment.

I'm calling it the Second Sock Speed-Up, and I will champion its cause. All the drudgery and monotony of the first sock is removed by being half-finished with the pair. Each stitch toward the second sock is faster and ultimately easier because you've done it before and there are no surprises or confusing bits left, just smooth sailing.

Which is to say... stay tuned. I have something nice to show you.

Orange Socks

2008-09-13T16:21:00.005-04:00

Though I have many other things to show and talk about, most of my knitting is still packed in boxes from the move. I did manage to fish out some orange yarn and my size 2 DPNs to start the September Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdown orange socks challenge.

I had planned to use this yarn for a pair of Snicket socks (Ravelry link), but I could not figure out how to do the cables without a cable needle and I was feeling tremendously impatient. I searched around Ravelry for a simpler sock that would be knit over 60 stitches and found the lovely Bella Catena Italiana pattern (here on Ravelry).

The name means "Beautiful Italian Chain" and it is knit in an Italian virgin wool, so it seems fitting upon a return from Italy. These socks are moving pretty quickly and I think I may just finish a Sockdown challenge in one month this time.

(On a technical note, I am having some mystifying issues between Blogger and the FTP upload to my server. When I look at this site, I'm seeing a post that I've deleted in Blogger, as well as physically deleted from my server... yet I can't get it to go away, hence the duplication. It's also doing flukey things with comments.

If this blog goes silent for a while, please check my sidebar or Blogger profile for notes on what's going on.)

Back to a new home

2008-09-10T22:16:00.006-04:00

I wanted to drop in quickly and say I am back from Italy (it was AMAZING) and coping fairly well with having moved to a different state, having everything we own still mostly in boxes, and now enjoying a commute that is about 2.5 hours each way.

I would be lying if I pretended I didn't secretly relish the train time, as I'm envisioning piles and piles of knitting getting done, but it is worrying for the rest of my life.

The chill in the air is inspiring beyond belief - I am nuts about fall, and it seems I'm not at all alone in that. I will post an FO and some new WIPs soon, whenever I get to the "knitting stuff" strata of Ye Olde Box Mountain.

Arrivederci!

2008-07-26T10:26:00.003-04:00

I am leaving for Italy this afternoon!

At the last minute, I decided not to bring any knitting, and while I'm already sort of kicking myself for that, I know it will be for the best. It will give me time to draw and to learn French for a very important exam (upon which the rest of my degree and the next year or more of my life depends).

I hope you all enjoy the rest of your summer, and I'll see you in September! Ciao!

Keeping Busy

2008-07-15T22:47:00.003-04:00

I feel bad doing these drive-by posts where I slap up a few photos and scurry back to what I've been doing, but I am exceedingly busy with work, getting ready for my trip, sorting out a mess with my student loans, and figuring out where I'm going to live once this lease ends.

I guess the good thing is that the prevalence of anxiety and insomnia lately results in lots of knitting.

While I sort out what to do with my Eleanor socks (I am going to knit a third one to match the more open eyelets of the second sock, I think), I have continued working on my self-designed socks. Look - they're actually looking like socks!

I've decided to name these Springtide socks. In designing them, I was going for something that evoked the new life of spring growth, delicate chutes emerging from the soggy ground and vibrant leaf tips glowing in the sunlight. I hope to have these finished soon, as the deadline for their particular Sockdown contest is rapidly approaching.

I also cast on a really cool pattern for July, Scrolls Socks (Ravelry link) by Charlene Schurch from her book More Sensational Knitted Socks.

I love the swooping movement in this pattern, which is deceptively easy to knit.

It's amazing to me how such different patterns can emerge from simple combinations of knit, purl, increases, decreases, and YOs. I am utterly charmed by these.

I'm planning to bring the Scrolls socks and a few other small projects with me to work on in Italy. I am also planning to bring my newly-finished Jellyfish shrug (which we will talk about in all kinds of depth soon).

For now, a peek...

Yeah, I'm pretty happy about that.

Almost Eleanor

2008-07-10T04:05:00.000-04:00

Well this has never happened before.

I made a pair of socks, in a pattern and a yarn I absolutely adore, but I am not happy with the socks. I finished these on June 30th, and I've been unhappily thinking about them since then.

(Please excuse the lousy photo - I was rushing to submit it for a Sockdown entry.)

I love almost everything about these socks, but I made one big error. I tried to make the eyelets mirror images of one another, so they would cascade from the center down to each foot. Unfortunately, the way the pattern progressed, it made one set of eyelets (at left) very open and well-formed, the way they were intended. The second (at right) are smaller and tighter, more like a squinting aperture than a true eyelet.

I knit the smaller eyelets first, and as I saw the pattern changing on the second sock, I liked it so much that I figured I'd deal with the difference and try to compensate for it with a severe blocking of the first. Nothing doing. If I want these socks to match (and I do), I have to re-knit one of them.

As much as I love knitting socks, three of a kind may be too much for me.

FO - Cropped Raglan Sweater for Elise

2008-06-27T23:26:00.000-04:00

I am very glad to have finished Elise's cropped raglan sweater today.

I took photos before blocking, but I think you can see I'm pretty happy with it.

Pattern: Cropped Raglan Sweater (Ravelry link), free pattern from Lion Brand
Size: Large (41")
Yarn: Knit Picks Shine Worsted 10-ply worsted weight, color #8067 Sea Spray (dye lot 3740), 60% Pima cotton 40% Modal; I used just under eight 50-gram balls, totaling approximately 400 grams/14.08 oz or 600 yards/552 meters.
Needles: Knit Picks Options interchangeable circular needles, in US size 7 (4.5 mm) and 8 (5.0 mm)
Recipient: my aunt Elise
Modifications: none

Started: February 1, 2008
Finished: June 27, 2008

The usual disclaimers apply, in that I started this months ago and put it down for a long time, then finished it this week.

My aunt lives in Hawaii and works in an air-conditioned hospital. She mentioned how her shoulders and upper arms often freeze at work, so I wanted to make her something light and appropriate to the tropics, but substantial enough to keep her warm. I also wanted a soft and easy-care yarn, and I knew she adored this cotton/modal blend when she was admiring my grandmother's shawl.

One of the most interesting aspects of this project for me is that I've made this pattern before, a little more than a year ago, and in acrylic. I really enjoyed knitting it in cotton and seeing the way it was intended to drape. As much as I love my first version, I found the cotton to be swoon-worthy in wonderful ways.

There were several technical differences this time around as well. Apart from general speed and confidence, now that I know how to seam, I knit the sleeves flat rather than in the round on DPNs, which I found made them go a lot more quickly.

As I only just learned how to properly pick up and knit stitches last week, it was quite a different experience doing the front band ribbing. I picked up 2 stitches for every 3 rows, which gave me about 74 stitches when the pattern called for 94. I feel like if I had picked up more stitches (as I'd done in my acrylic version), the ribbing would sag in the heavy cotton.

I used a stretchier bind-off on the arm and waist ribbing to make for a more comfortable fit. I learned this bind-off from toe-up sock knitting and figured it would work as well for upper arms and to give the waist some stretch. I wanted this sweater to be easy to pull on and off, fitting with the easygoing drape of the cotton. I worried that this bind-off made it flare slightly, but I can happily say that all evened out with blocking.

I think this is a great pattern. Because it's such a versatile design, I find I wear mine all the time, over girly dresses or casual tees. I chose this soft greenish blue color because I think it's beautifully subtle. I hope it will function almost as a neutral with the rest of my aunt's vibrant wardrobe, making it easy to coordinate and enjoyable to wear. I also thought it would look great against her lovely tan complexion and blue eyes.

I am completely thrilled with the yarn. It is so nice to use and makes for a decadent finished project. I got to see how well it held up with my grandmother's shawl, so I know that my aunt's sweater will look great for a long time too.

My only concern is that this sweater may be a touch too big for my aunt. I tried it on myself to compare it with last summer's version, and it's slightly looser and more drapey all over. I think it'll be okay, if a bit more casual in feel than mine was. I really hope she likes it! I'll try to get photos of her wearing it when I give it to her for her birthday this weekend.

(By the way, for any Cure fans out there, I can't look at this project without thinking of "A Letter to Elise," but yknow, a sweater for Elise. Heh.)

Previous Entries on this Project:
- So close
- WIP it Out
- About those resolutions...

So close

2008-06-27T17:51:00.002-04:00

I have so, so many things I want to talk about. I'll start with this.

I just sewed the second seam, and now I must weave in the ends and block it. Kind of in the nick of time, as it's a birthday gift for this Sunday, and I'm leaving to visit its recipient (and my family) tomorrow.

Whew. More soon.

WIP it Out

2008-06-13T15:27:00.000-04:00

I think that show and tell is probably the best course of action to describe what I've been up to lately. (Isn't it always?)

First, I've taken appraisal of the yarn situation in my apartment and determined there is entirely too much. I posted this photo to Ravelry, but neglected to post it here - this is my entire sock yarn stash:

Yikes. I have another labeled version of it all as well. My boyfriend did take a few photos of my entire stash covering our bed, but the colors are grossly inaccurate. If you can stand an HDR, here it is. Seeing it sprawled out reaffirms my decision not to buy any more yarn for a good long while.

A recent day serving jury duty provided ample knitting opportunity, where predictably I worked on green socks. I am well past the heel and up the cuff on my first Eleanor sock, which is good, as I am trying to finish them by the end of June.

I also worked on a design-your-own sock challenge for Sock Knitters Anonymous, and it has involved a little math and a lot of frogging.

I got pretty far along when I realized a minor (and mostly undetectable error) that I knew would drive me crazy. I was so frustrated that I ripped all the way back to the beginning. I think I've got the pattern sorted out completely now, so once I cast back on these should be pretty fast-moving.

I also have socks in other colors currently going - Spiral Boot Socks for the Knitting 19th Century Novels KAL for Around the World in 80 Days.

I've loved reading the book when I have a spare moment (or can't sleep), but I have not made any real time for these socks yet, and it's unlikely I will finish them by June with everything else I'm attempting.

My green fixation has combined with my need for practicality in a One-Tone Ribbed Shrug from Fitted Knits.

This shrug is an enjoyable knit, and it's moving quickly. The latter point is crucial because I really should be using those needles to finish this other little sweater, whose recipient is visiting my parents in less than two weeks.

This is the Cropped Raglan Sweater from Lion Brand, and I've knit one for myself, so I know I love the pattern.

The one that I knit last summer was all acrylic, and this is in Knit Picks Shine Worsted (a cotton/modal blend), so the drape and feel are completely different. At first I didn't think I liked it, and I worried about the color, but now that I've had some time away from it, I think it has the potential to be a really lovely gift.

On some weird compulsion, I forced myself to cast on the Lace Ribbon Scarf even though I already had too many projects going. I messed up not once, twice, or even three times, but more than four times, resulting in complete froggings. Of course then it became a vendetta. I had to make this scarf.

I think I've got it now.

This is a red cotton yarn, and I really love the way it feels. The color and the texture remind me so much of Kabbalah strings it's uncanny.

As this post probably makes perfectly clear, I've got a lot of projects going on and have failed miserably at my three-projects-at-a-time goal. I think this is an accurate reflection of the rest of my life at the moment as well. I hope to knock out some FOs quickly so that I can get it all back under control.

Oh, and I've also got this to deal with.

Sigh. We'll talk more about that soon.

A Kitty Dream Come True

2008-05-31T15:44:00.000-04:00

During a recent attempt to reorganize my stash (we'll talk about that soon), I covered our queen-size bed in yarn, then wandered off, as I'm prone to do.

I came back to find our little Iggy beside himself with glee, relaxing on a bed of yarn.

Smokey joined him later, and the two of them spent many blissful hours living the dream.

Not surprisingly, they honed right in on the very dearest part of my stash, concentrating themselves among the sock yarn and laceweight. These cats have good taste.

(More photos in Eric's Flickr set of cats)

Practically knitting

2008-05-30T16:08:00.006-04:00

Lately I have been all about the KALs and fun projects: Sockdowns, Sexy Knitters Club, Knitting 19th Century Novels, Summer of Socks... and then for my own diversions, scarves, design projects, and lots of frivolity.

While these are a great time and I really enjoy the process, I'm not sure that what I'm producing is as, well, practical, as it could be. I should say that I don't think knitting has to be practical, nor that it should. However, I have some goals that I set for myself this year, and to this end, I'm not reaching them.

For example, I want to seriously reduce my stash. We're going to be moving at the end of the summer, and my mother has offered to refinish a gorgeous glass-doored secretary desk that I want to use for yarn, needle, and pattern storage. Unfortunately at this point, my stash couldn't possibly fit, and it's more than a little unwieldy.

I decided that primarily I want to knit up the acrylic portion of my stash, and I have made some progress with that, but really nowhere near enough. If all I'm casting on lately are luxurious socks and little lacy items, I'm never going to get to those big hunks of Caron One Pound lurking in a suitcase.

The other thing is that my wardrobe is in serious need of certain basic items. I know that I could just buy them and spend all my knitting time on other projects, but part of why I started knitting is so that I could make exactly what I want, the way I want it, to my measurements.

So from this point onward, I am trying to be realistic and casting on sensible projects as much as I can. They're not going to be boring and utilitarian - rather, still fun and exciting - but they're going to use up my stash, fill gaps in my wardrobe, and be worn more than once.

I'm going to continue with the KALs I have in progress, but I'm going to try for more practical, wearable knits within these contexts.

Phew. I guess I just had to put that out there for myself.

I've got this thing for green...

2008-05-25T18:06:00.000-04:00

I have jokingly said before that this blog could more accurately be called "Vickilicious Knits Green Socks," and umm, I'm doing little to change that fact.

These are Brigit socks (Ravelry link) by the late Gigi Silva, aka Momma Monkey. I'm going to rearrange the motifs to be centered on the foot.

Because I'm a little worn out on cabling, though, I also cast on Eleanor socks (Ravelry link), also by Gigi Silva, in Dream in Color Smooshy, Good Luck Jade.

This yarn is absolutely heavenly, and the subtle modulations in color are fantastic.

I'm knitting them toe-up, and I'm planning to make the eyelets mirror images of one another on each foot. I have a feeling these are going to become very well loved socks.

But wait! I don't just knit green socks!

Heh, I knit green tops too.

FO - Spring Twists Socks

2008-05-23T20:16:00.001-04:00

This afternoon I finished my Spring Twists socks.

I'm more than a little charmed.

Pattern: Spring Twists (Ravelry link) by Jeanie Townsend, through the Townsend Socks KnitAlong Group on Yahoo
Size: lady's size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Jaeger Siena 4-ply fingering weight, color 431 Sage, 100% mercerized cotton; I used two 50-gram balls and 26 grams of a third, totaling approximately 126 grams/4.4 oz or 386 yards/353 meters.
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 2 (2.75 mm)
Modifications: Worked toe-up, with short row heel

Started: April 3, 2008*
Finished: May 23, 2008

* - I actually started these with a different yarn on bamboo needles, then restarted on metal needles on April 24th, then a third time with the current yarn and needle configuration on April 25th.

Confession: In my haste to catch the afternoon sunlight, I may not have woven in my ends. These will look a lot neater at the top once I've done so.

I'm really glad I decided to switch yarns. My original yarn, while delectable and beautiful, just wasn't holding the stitches strongly enough to make it worthwhile. While they may look complex, these socks are essentially 1x2 ribbing, with 4-stitch cables every fourth row.

This was my first time cabling in socks, and I must admit, it wasn't exactly love at first twist. It involved a lot of grumbling, dropped needles, and expletives.

You start with four stitches in a row on the left needle, which we'll call ABCD, with A and D being knit stitches and B and C purls. You manuever them in such a way that once they've been worked, they "read" DBCA on the right-hand needle.

The instructions for the twist involved slipping them onto a cable needle, then moving them back one at a time to be worked. I found the cables became infinitely more bearable once I started rearranging the stitches on a DPN all at once, then purling and knitting straight across. It achieved the same result, but faster and a lot more easily, which made me much happier.

My boyfriend Eric helped me make this video to demonstrate what I'm describing:

(The song is an Aphex Twin remix of Nav Katze "Change.")

Yes, I really do knit that slowly. I got a little clumsy while transferring the purl stitches, but I hope you can get the gist of it.

Here, you move the first three stitches to the DPN, knit the last stitch (A), transfer the first knit stitch (D) from one end of the DPN, spin it around, and transfer stitches C and B from the other end. Then you purl B, C, and knit D. I have to say, I really enjoyed the propeller-like twirling of my DPN in the back of the stitches.

This yarn is not generally used for socks, rather for fine-gauge summer garments and accessories. It is highly inelastic and hurt my hands if I did too many cables or pulled too tightly. When knit at a tight, sock-appropriate gauge, the yarn is thick and durable, while still nice to use.

The comfort of the finished socks is out of this world. They breathe fantastically and feel wonderful on my feet. These socks do have a slight tendency to slouch if you dance around in them (as I was doing), but I think that could be controlled by choice of pattern and cuff length. I would say this is a gamble that paid off, and I'm glad for that as I have three other colors of this yarn in my stash, all intended for socks.

Cotton socks seem to be thicker than their wool counterparts, and I imagine the same qualities which give great stitch and cable definition also make them firmer and denser than a stretchier fiber.

The pattern as written is clear and easy to understand. I modified it to work these socks toe-up with a figure-8 cast-on, increased to 64 stitches around. I carried the pattern up the foot, turned upside-down, such that I worked three rows of ribbing, then a twist row.

I used a short-row heel from my standard formula. In this case, my heels were worked over 32 stitches, and I worked the short rows until I had 10 stitches on each side and 12 in the middle. Because I started my heel at a logical break in the pattern (just after the fourth twist on the second double-twist motif), it was easy to resume the ribbing and twists straight out of the heel.

I was pleasantly surprised by the lozenges that formed between the twists when I stretched the sock over my foot for the first time. When I was selecting this sock for the Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdown, I didn't have a lot of finished socks for comparison, and there were none that showed the sock on the feet. I think I would have been disappointed if they came out the way I was expecting, as I seriously love the organic movement of these swooping curves which travel into twists.

I would recommend this pattern for patient, somewhat experienced sock knitters. There is nothing particularly difficult about it, but the amount of the socks which are purled, combined with the possible complexities of cabling, make it slightly more difficult than your average stockinette-based sock.

As for me, I am onto something simpler, I think, for my next project...

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Switcheroo
- More Socks on the Needles

FO - Kaffe Fassett Toe-Up Socks

2008-05-13T19:58:00.000-04:00

I decided it was time to finish my toe-up Kaffe Fassett socks.

I am so, so happy I did.

Pattern: Universal Toe-Up Sock Formula by Amy Swenson in the summer 2006 Knitty
Size: custom fit to a lady's size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Regia Design Line Kaffe Fassett 4-ply fingering weight, color 4261 Landscape Caribbean, 75% wool 25% polyamide; I used every inch of two 50 g/1.76 oz skeins, totaling approximately 460 yd/420 m.
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 1.5 (2.5 mm)
Modifications: None, as they were custom fit to my feet.

Started: December 3, 2007*
Finished: May 8, 2008

* - I put these socks on hold several times. I finished the first sock January 2, 2008, but did not cast on the second until March 8, 2008.

These were the third pair of socks I started, but they've become the sixth pair I've finished. I can actually see some differences in technique between the two, especially in the heels. It feels really good to know I've become so much more comfortable with sock-knitting in just a few months.

My speed also picked up dramatically. I knit the second sock from about an inch before the heel upward in two evenings. When I think how long I spent slowly eking out rows on the first sock, this is really gratifying.

I've raved about how much I love this pattern before, and I still highly recommend it. I now prefer a figure-8 cast-on to the short-row toe in this pattern, though it's not the short rows themselves. My issue is purely to do with unpicking the provisional cast-on, which I never seem to do quickly or efficiently.

The condensed technical details for these socks were:

A = gauge of 8 stitches/inch
B = 8.5 inch long cuff
C = 72 stitches around
D = 36 stitches for the toes and heels
E = 14 stitches in the middle of the short rows (11 stitches at each side)

These socks are really all about the yarn, which I adore beyond sense or reason. The colors are so intensely saturated and vibrant, with such interesting combinations of hues and spacing in the stripe pattern. Kaffe Fassett is truly a genius with color, and this self-striping yarn showcases his talents in a streamlined, effortless way.

I decided a plain stockinette sock was the only way I'd be happy. I switched to 2x2 ribbing where my calves needed more room, and I kept on knitting until I had about two inches of yarn left on the first sock. While I'm glad I used every last inch of this yarn, it did cause some problems in trying to match the second sock up to the first.

I am, admittedly, more than a little obsessive about my stripes matching, but I think I can live with the ribbing not matching. I cobbled together scraps to recreate the stripe pattern up to that point, but I ran out of yarn and had to finish with a completely different yarn. I think that unless you're really closely examining these socks (or I just told you all about it), this isn't the kind of thing anyone would notice, and it doesn't really spoil the effect for me. In a way it's kind of nice because I will always know which sock is my right and which is my left.

(I also know that up to that point, they are perfectly, row-for-row matched.)

This was a very satisfying, meditative project, mostly worked while reading or on public transit, but it remained interesting and fun because I loved watching the stripes change and new color combinations appear.

I definitely want to try other colors of this yarn. I think it makes just plain spectacular-looking socks.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- More Socks on the Needles

Summer of Socks? Yes please!

2008-05-10T16:53:00.000-04:00

A few years ago my mother and I were talking about how we each have rather embarrassingly large shoe collections. Neither of us go shopping very often (since I started grad school, I'd amend this to hardly ever), and we're not big fashionistas in any appreciable sense of the word. But we both just have this thing for shoes. Shoes of all shapes and styles, multiple colors of the same model, closets full of shoes.

We reasoned that shoes always make us feel good because our feet don't change sizes if we're stressed or retaining water. Our feet don't bulge or gap buttons if we're wearing the wrong undergarments. And our feet are (if I dare say so myself) rather attractive.

It follows, then, that my love of shoes should also be reflected in the recent emphasis (obsession?) I've placed on sock-knitting. I do have a huge amount of sweaters, blouses, and other projects in my queue, which I do plan to continue, but I am consistently, thoroughly satisfied by sock-knitting, and it tends to feel like the perfect project, all the time.

When I came across mentions of the Summer of Socks over at Zarzuela Knits and Crochets, of course I had to sign up.

I know I am going to knit at least a pair of socks every month for my personal goals and Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdowns. I also have some sock projects planned for other KALs which I hope to cast on soon.

And while I neglected to take any knitting with me to Italy last summer (what was I thinking?!), socks are portable enough that I'm sure I can bring them on my travels this year. Summer of socks, here we go!

Natural Dyeing

2008-05-06T02:36:00.000-04:00

If you didn't guess from my previous hints, this weekend I ventured into yarn dyeing, more specifically dyeing from natural sources.

This semester I was taking a class called the Chemistry of Artists' Materials, Techniques & Conservation, where we studied historical methods and materials, as well as the chemical and conservation issues they present. In a unit to do with organic materials in art, we learned about the chemistry of dyes and inks, and I was utterly fascinated.

For my final project and paper, I decided to expand on a natural dyeing lab with my own project and additional research (in class, we dyed multifiber strips with madder, weld, cochineal, and had an unsuccessful attempt with indigo, then compared alum, iron, and no mordant for shifts in color - you can see photos and brief notes from that here).

I decided on a standard method, since this was a chemistry project, but on hindsight I do wish I'd tailored my recipes to the particular dyes used. I documented the process in perhaps excruciating detail, as I really wanted my results to be unambiguous and repeatable. All of these pictures enlarge considerably.

I began with two 100-gram skeins of 4-ply fingering weight undyed 100% Merino wool (Knit Picks Bare). I split this into four 25-gram skeins by weight.

I used the legs of an old piano bench to wind my yarn into skeins, then sectioned and tied them each in four places using figure-8 loops.

They were really cute all dressed up and ready for dyeing.

I thoroughly washed the skeins in a mild dish detergent. After scrubbing, I let them soak for 20 minutes to ensure that they were completely wetted and cleansed. I then rinsed completely.

I prepared a mordant from a recipe by Ida Grae in her book Nature's Colors: Dyes from Plants. I mixed enough to mordant four skeins at a time:

1 gallon water
1 ounce (28.4 grams) alum
1/4 ounce (7.1 grams) cream of tartar

I simmered the yarn and mordant together for two hours at a temperature just below boiling. I kept thinking to myself "Mmm, yarn soup." I allowed the yarn to cool in the mordant bath and soak overnight, at least 12 hours.

Meanwhile, I got to work preparing the dye liquors. For this project the dyestuffs I used were:

black tea
spinach mixed with dandelions
alkanet
Osage orange
annatto
kamala
sandalwood
cutch

Part of my research included the backgrounds, history of use, and chemistry of each substance. Specifically, I was interested in OH end groups that allowed for covalent bonding between an alum mordant and the fabric (I have diagrams and all kinds of nerdy stuff on this, which I may post in the future). Apart from the black tea and spinach-dandelion concoction, all of these dyestuffs were purchased through Dharma Trading.

I used equal weights of dyestuff to the amount of yarn being dyed, in this case 25 grams of each product. I simmered each dyestuff with 1 quart (32 oz) water in individual dye pots for one hour.

Here you see the beautiful, colorful brews.

Black tea / Spinach & Dandelions

Alkanet / Osage orange (cooled)

Annatto / Kamala

Sandalwood / Cutch

I let these mixtures cool and sit together overnight, at least 12 hours, to ensure maximum extraction of dye.

I filtered each dye using coffee filters and a kitchen strainer. I saved the remaining pieces on filter paper, with paper toweling and wax paper underneath, set on my windowsill to dry. Supposedly, you can reuse some dyestuffs for weaker, though often still successful dye extractions.

Once I had my clean dye liquors, I was ready to finally get dyeing!

I put one skein of yarn in each dye liquor and made sure it was completely covered in the pot. Here I patted myself on the back for the forethought to measure ahead, as I knew how much dye liquor I'd need to cover a skein of yarn. I got an amazing thrill out of looking at the yarns in their little enamel pots, trying to predict what colors I would get.

Black tea / Spinach & Dandelions

Alkanet / Osage orange

Annatto / Kamala

Sandalwood / Cutch

I simmered the yarns in the dye liquors for one hour at a temperature just below boiling. I let the yarn cool in the dye baths, then steeped the whole situation overnight, in this case eight hours.

(Yarn soup for sale).

I prepared a rinse for each yarn using about a gallon of water and 2-3 ounces of white vinegar. I did all this with a plastic bin in my bathtub, with a plastic tablecloth covering the floor and the door closed to avert cat or boyfriend-related disaster. I wrung out the excess dye from each skein and re-sealed the dye liquor container, again with the intention of reusing the seemingly not-yet-exhausted dyes.

I first did a thorough vinegar rinse in a plastic tub (wearing gloves), squeezing, pressing, and gently agitating the yarn. Once the initial dye bleed seemed to subside, I rinsed the yarns with cool water from the shower, squeezing them and examining the rinse water. I continued rinsing until they ceased bleeding completely, which I hoped meant that the dyes were adequately set and will not bleed in the future.

I hung each skein to air dry with acrylic waste yarn from my towel rack. Once they were completely dry, I was thrilled with the results.

I reskeined each yarn and got to work comparing the colors I achieved with samples from books and wrote the conclusion to my chemistry paper.

I learned so much in my research, and I'd really like to spout on and on about it, but for now let's say I mostly got the results that I expected, with a few pleasant surprises. My Osage orange and annatto were much brighter and more vibrant than I expected, and I think my favorite was the beautiful warm rosy pink from sandalwood.

This yarn was definitely a labor of love, but it was a fascinating project and I hope I did well with the chemistry part of it.

Now, for some gratuitous yarn photos:

BLACK TEA

SPINACH & DANDELIONS

ALKANET

OSAGE ORANGE

ANNATTO

KAMALA

SANDALWOOD

CUTCH

If you may be interested in natural dyeing, in addition to the Ida Grae book I mentioned above (which can be hard to come by if you don't have access to a good library), I would highly recommend the very useful and inspiring book Natural Dyeing by Jackie Crook.

Now that I have the supplies, the method, and an intense curiosity, I think there will be much more dyeing in my future. As for these yarns, well yes, I have a plan for them too...

Help my dad get out of jail!

2008-05-03T12:21:00.000-04:00

I have consistently been amazed and astonished by the generosity and kind-hearted nature of knitters. I hope you don't mind if I take a moment away from our regularly-scheduled programming in support of an upcoming charity event.

My father is a physical therapist and an all-around spectacular guy.

On Tuesday, May 6, he is getting locked up as part of the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Belmar LockUp 2008 - to help “Jerry’s Kids ®.”

To get out of jail, he must raise donations, and he needs your help!

Can you leave this man behind bars??

You can read all about muscular dystrophy and the work the MDA does on their website.

To help my dad get out of jail, you can go directly to his event page, where you can make a tax-deductible contribution by credit card.

His deadline to raise bail is Monday, May 5, so please do consider giving whatever you are able.

Once again, the link to donate is here.

I always gush to my family about the kindness and warmth of the knitting community I've found on the internet, and I hope to astound them with how deep that spirit runs.

Thank you so much for your generosity and concern!

(By the way, I plan to have some really exciting new stuff to show after this weekend too!)

Obsession has its rewards

2008-05-02T03:28:00.002-04:00

First, I must thank you all for your lovely comments on my Molly Ringwald. Knitters sure know how to boost a girl's self-esteem!

Next, a story... which admittedly could be construed as gloating, but I hope it won't.

I was pulling an all-nighter (still am in fact) grading undergraduate art history exams in a rush to get final grades submitted tomorrow morning. I took a break to check Ravelry, where rumors were swirling that the Ravelry store could be open as early as this evening, though perhaps only for 30 minutes.

Intrigued, I set up a Ravelry page in the background and refreshed whenever I finished an exam. In a fortuitous moment, I happened to refresh right as Casey posted that the next 8 people to respond would be given trial access to the store to test if the system worked. And uhh, guess who was number 6! Heeee!

Two t-shirts and a set of pint glasses were successfully ordered, and the order was sent to the warehouse and will be shipped tomorrow! Can you tell I'm just a little bit excited?

This is a fantastic reward for schlepping through the wee late-night hours, scribbling points next to assertions that Rembrandt worked in acrylics or Vermeer once made a painting called "Lightface Girl and the Guy in a Hat."

I can't wait to get these exams and a handful of errands taken care of so that I can devote my weekend to the big, exciting project I hinted about recently. Patience and obsession... they seem to be a winning combo lately.

FO - Molly Ringwald

2008-04-26T20:14:00.000-04:00

Last Sunday, I finished my Molly Ringwald.

I think it's pretty cute.

Pattern: Molly Ringwald by Michele Rose Orne, from Knitscene fall 2006 (on Ravelry)
Size: 43"
Yarn: Bernat Satin, 100% acrylic, 10-ply worsted weight, color 04232 Sage, 3.3 skeins or approximately 546 yards
Needles: Knit Picks Options, size 6 (4.00mm), Brittany birch crochet hook, size E (3.5 mm)
Modifications: added 1 inch length to body, used kf&b increases instead of m1, reversed strap stitch pattern for mirror symmetry, added crochet rounds at armscyes

Started: March 3, 2008
Finished: April 20, 2008

This was a lovely pattern, and I learned a lot in the process. It is full of elegant little design touches, like the way the ruffles are formed or the transition from the bust to the sleeves.

Because it is relatively simple, I knew finishing would be important. I was very careful with my seaming, and while I was tempted to avoid learning how to crochet for the neckline, it is now one of my favorite details. I like the clean, sharp edge so much that I crocheted around the armscyes as well. This is definitely a good skill to add to my knitter's toolkit, as I'm sure I'll use it again.

I really admired the way the sleeves were constructed, and that is another trick I plan to remember: the front neckline stitches are reduced down to 4 stitches on each side, and these are knit into a ribbed strap which extends over the shoulders and attaches to the back. Once the body is sewn together, you pick up stitches from this edge and knit outwards to form a pretty little shoulder. I imagine it would not be at all difficult to extend this to a cap or short sleeve. Way cute.

There were a few times when the 3x1 ribbing became maddening, but mostly I zoned out and got into the Zen of it. It was a good companion project for reading, or in this case, listening to the audiobook of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll for the Knitting 19th Century Novels group.

I'd been wanting to knit this top for a while, but when I envisioned it as Alice's pinafore, I couldn't resist bumping it up to have something cute for spring.

As I mentioned in my last post, I am completely entranced with this particular shade of soft bluish sage green, and I'm sure this won't be the last project I knit in this color. The yarn was lovely to work with, and it's soft and comfortable to wear. This was my first time using Satin, and it was just perfect for this project.

I do think I could have gone down a size. I've come across quite a few people online who've said there is a lot of ease built into the pattern, but I thought I'd rather have something slightly loose than too tight.

I would definitely recommend this pattern. It's a lot of fun and a great learning experience. I think the effort I put into the finishing details really paid off, and overall I think this is a sweet top. I will probably not wear it with puff-sleeved embroidered shirts all the time, but I think it will still carry some of that charm with simpler styles too.

Now for my next sweater, something without ribbing!

Previous Entries on this Project:
- The C-Word
- Knitsomnia

Switcheroo

2008-04-25T20:01:00.000-04:00

Once I decided to put my Entrelac Socks aside, I eagerly picked up my Spring Twists socks.

I truly love working with this yarn, as it is so spectacularly luscious and agreeable.

The only trouble is, I really don't like how it looks in this pattern. Something about the vague striping of the variegation or the way the traveling stitches dissipate in softness... it just isn't working the way I'd hoped.

So I decided to try a different yarn, a 100% mercerized cotton which is not actually intended for sock-knitting. This is Jager Siena 4-ply, and I think it's going to work perfectly.

The tight twist of the firmer yarn makes the traveling stitches and ribbing pop more, and the solid color proves much less distracting. Which is to say nothing of how head over heels in love I am with this slightly shiny sage green.

I'm feeling a lot better and looking forward to how these socks turn out.

No-Roll Hem and Some Notes

2008-04-22T18:06:00.003-04:00

I have so many things to talk about, and I feel like I've fallen behind, but I'm getting to that point in the semester where everything is accelerating and becoming almost overwhelming.

I did want to mention a cool technique I just learned for knitting no-roll hems. I read about some similar techniques the other day on Knitting Daily, and I made a mental note to try them some time.

Then I cast on for a new project (we'll talk about that soon), and it called for just this kind of hem. Serendipitous!

This project is knit in reverse stockinette, but the premise is almost identical to working it on a stockinette sweater. I started with smaller-sized needles to work an inch and a half, then switched to larger needles for another 1.5 inches, to make a total of 3 inches. This will give me about a 1.5-inch hem. For a longer hem, you would simply increase each portion by equal amounts, remembering that the whole piece gets folded in half.

From there, I used a smaller needle to pick up stitches from my cast-on edge (the green one above), such that I have an equal amount of stitches on my working needle and on the back needle.

I arranged the needles so that the wrong sides of the knitting faced one another, then took a third needle and began to attach the hem by working p2togs.

To do this, I inserted the needle through the back stitch, then through the front, and purled, pulling the yarn through both stitches.

This transforms a weird three-needle-pronged tube into a tidy, folded no-roll hem. The post I linked above has instructions for working a picot turning row and some other fancy ideas, but the basic technique is really quite elegant.

Now, for two quick notes...

I've decided for the sake of sanity that I'm not going to try to finish my Entrelac Socks by the end of this month. I haven't made much progress on them since the last time I showed them, and I know they aren't going to start moving more quickly any time soon. I'm really glad I learned the technique, though, and I like the way these socks are coming out, so when I get some time I look forward to finishing them.

Instead, I have a new, exciting project that I'm starting for my Chemistry of Artist's Materials class (which also overlaps a bit with a graduate assistantship I'm working).

I'm not going to say exactly what it is just yet, but here is a big hint:

Man, I am thrilled beyond words.

The C-Word

2008-04-19T23:46:00.002-04:00

My mom always says that you achieve greatest personal growth outside of your comfort zone.

I expect I should be growing quite a bit then.

FO - Seduction Socks

2008-04-13T23:58:00.000-04:00

This weekend I finished my Seduction Socks.

And yeah, they are everything I thought they'd be.

Pattern: Seduction Socks by Ann Budd, from Interweave Knits spring 2007 (also available as a free PDF here)
Size: women's US 9
Yarn: Knit Picks Gloss, 70% Merino wool 30% silk, 4-ply fingering weight, color Dusk (dye lot 29279), less than 2 skeins or approximately 330 yards
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated DPNs, size 2.5 (3.00mm)
Modifications: worked toe-up with a short-row heel, added length to leg and changed cuff to 2x2 ribbing

Started: March 1, 2008
Finished: April 12, 2008

I absolutely loved this pattern, and these socks were a joy to knit. The 8-row sequence was extremely easy to memorize, as it was actually two very similar "patterny" rows, with 3 rows of simple filler in between.

If it were poetry, the stanzas might have gone ABBB CBBB (does that make sense?). In this case the difference between A & C was practically negligible, so it was really more like a 4-row repeat, where 3 rows were the same. My point is that it was very easy and fun lace that I worked from a Post-It for the first two or three repeats and from memory for the rest.

I am simply thrilled with the elegance of this approach. I'm a huge fan of patterns where you get a big pay-off for a simple effort, and the graceful, dancing movement of this lace makes me so happy for both its economy and beauty.

I decided to go toe-up so I could make the most of my yarn and decide on the length of the leg as I went. Conversion was simple, and I'm really happy I made that choice. I used a figure-8 cast on (12 stitches to start, for a wider toe) and increased to 56 stitches. I worked 5 rows after my increases to get a toe length of about 2". I determined this length by looking at where the decreases were supposed to begin in the original pattern.

I worked 64 rounds of lace (8 pattern repeats) on the foot, then worked a short-row heel calculated from this pattern. Because I had 56 stitches, I worked the heel over 28 stitches, with 10 in the middle and 9 on each side (if you're looking at that pattern, E=10). I am really happy with these heels - the fit is spot-on perfect. I hope it's not immodest to say they are probably the best heels I've ever worked.

I worked 96 rounds (12 repeats) after the heel, to give a leg that came just to the point in my calf where I'd have to start thinking about increasing. I had an abundance of yarn leftover, probably enough to have made knee socks. I used 2x2 ribbing with a stretchy bind-off at the top, and they feel marvelous.

The yarn is more than heavenly to use, with a decadent feel and insane softness. They really are luxurious on the feet, and worked on such large needles, I worried they might not be strong enough to wear with shoes. Because of the silk content and the fairly open lace, I was planning for these to be lounging or bed socks from the beginning, though once I've worn them around the apartment some, I'm no longer concerned about their strength.

I would absolutely recommend using Gloss if you want to fall in love with socks. The new colors are especially appealing, and I am exercising tremendous self-control by resisting the urge to buy every available color immediately. As for this blue, it has a seductive power all its own, and I'm really pleased with the fit of yarn to pattern.

I think these socks would make an excellent beginning lace project, and I actually think they'd make great first socks. Using a row counter alleviated any anxiety I had about having to pay attention or making sure they matched, but it's simple enough to see what's going on in this pattern by itself. I think I've reached a comfort level with sock-knitting that there was no point where I worried about not knowing what to do - actually, I knit these socks on autopilot, so they were wonderful stress relief and downright meditative.

In conclusion, I am utterly, thoroughly seduced... and now rather smitten.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- More Socks on the Needles
- Seduced

More Socks on the Needles

2008-04-05T21:07:00.003-04:00

I must thank you all for your lovely and kind comments about my Bella Paquita, horrid photo and all. I'm going to take clearer, nicer photos as soon as I can.

I realize I am becoming more than a little obsessed with socks lately. At present, I have four pairs on the needles.

The first I meant to post a photo of back when I started them. I was kind of stunned that I couldn't find any mention of them (haven't I shown these before??), as I cast on the same day I cast off my toe-up Magic Stripes socks, using the same pattern and the Regia Design Line Kaaffe Fassett yarn in Landscape Carribean.

I'm more than a little in love with the way they're coming out. They have been my between-projects project, as well as my current portable project.

I've shown the second pair, my Seduction Socks. I decided to go with short row heels, and I'm falling more and more in love the longer I knit with the luxurious wool/silk Gloss yarn.

The next two socks are also products of the Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdown challenges on Ravelry. It is so fun to participate in these, and I find the group really supportive and entertaining.

The March themes were a design by Ann Budd (my Seduction Socks) and/or entrelac. I've never done entrelac before, but I was hoping to get a chance this month.

I cast on Entrelac Socks by Eunny Jang in the spring 2007 Interweave Knits around 11:30pm on the last night of March, which just lets them count for the challenge but does not give me much time to knit complex knee-high socks.

I am double-dipping with these, as they will be my second project for a Knitting 19th Century Novels group, also on Ravelry. This group is a new incarnation of the recently and mysteriously deleted Knit the Classics blog, and it's a lot of fun so far. We're currently reading Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, so I thought the blue and white colors and checkerboard aspect was fitting.

I was also inspired by the crazy bodysuits and checkers in the Wonderland-themed Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers video for "Don't Come Around Here No More."

Entrelac is incredibly addictive and lots of fun. The yarn I'm using is Elann Esprit, an elasticated cotton. It was really tough to work with for the SSKs in the set-up triangles, but it loosened up and became quite agreeable once I moved into squares. I'm hoping that the stretchiness of the yarn will help these socks stay up around my calves.

The fourth and final pair of socks currently on my needles is just a toe, but it will become toe-up Spring Twists (Ravelry link) by Jeanie Townsend. She is the featured designer for the April sockdown, and I'm pretty excited about this pattern.

The yarn is Dream in Color Smooshy in the color Petal Shower, and it is absolute heaven to work with. I seriously love this yarn in practically indescribable ways, and I'm very much looking forward to focusing all my attention on these socks.

I would be quite busy if I were only knitting socks, but as it happens I'm also working on a handful of other projects at the same time, which we'll talk about soon.

It feels really good to be knitting so much and making so much progress. These knit-alongs are definitely helping me stay focused and push myself toward a challenge, so I'm happy to keep them up.

Now back to sock-knitting!

Photo Finish

2008-03-31T14:10:00.005-04:00

Against all odds, I finished my Bella Paquita before the end of March, the deadline for the Sexy Knitters Club KAL.

Please excuse the truly awful photo. It's pouring rain today, my boyfriend is at work, and I have about five minutes before I need to leave for a meeting.

I have so many thoughts about this project, and I plan to take much better photos, all of which I will post soon.

But I just wanted to pat myself on the back that yes, I set myself a goal and I reached it! Phew!

Look Ma, Seams!

2008-03-26T18:00:00.000-04:00

Today was a huge day for me as a knitter.

I hunkered down with The Knitters Book of Finishing Techniques by Nancie Wiseman and resolved not to stand up until I had set in the sleeves for my Bella Paquita.

I stared at the diagrams and read the text over and over until I understood the weaving stitch (which I gather is the same as mattress stitch?).

I did everything she told me to: I pressed the pieces, I worked on a flat surface, I carefully pinned it together...

And it worked!!!

I finally, properly LEARNED HOW TO SEAM!

My seams are nowhere near perfect, but they're also not the glaringly awful results I got with my previous haphazard stabby sutures technique. As in, I would wear these sleeves in public.

I have only a few more days to finish this sweater for the knitalong, but I am just thrilled to have overcome what has thus far been my greatest knitting obstacle!

FO - Tempting

2008-03-25T19:27:00.001-04:00

I actually finished my Tempting a while ago, but I only just had a sunny afternoon and the inclination to photograph it.

As a sweater it's lovely... but I am not completely sure how I feel about it as a sweater on me.

Pattern: Tempting by Jenna Adorno, free pattern from Knitty Winter 2004
Size: L (40")
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft, 100% acrylic, worsted weight, color 2710 Gray Heather, 2.2 skeins or approximately 726 yards
Needles: Knit Picks Options, size 8 (5.00mm) and Knit Picks 8" double-pointed needles, size 8 (5.00mm)
Notions: Offray 2-1/4" wide black grosgrain ribbon
Modifications: added a touch of length

Started: August 18, 2007
Finished: February 16, 2008

I actually finished knitting this way back in October 2007, but it took me several months to thread the ribbon, tie the bow and call it finished.

The construction was fantastically simple, though I did have some bones to pick with the way the arms are attached. Nothing major, but I keep wondering if there is a better way of doing it.

I'm tempted (heh) to stammer lots of things in my own defense, that this sweater looked a lot better on me a month ago, but let's just lay it out there.

It's a style I've never worn before, which was a lot of its appeal. Knitting is pretty fabulous for the opportunity to make a completely new-to-me silhouette and try out fashions which are custom-fit for me.

The trouble is, I actually think this came out a little big on me in some places, so rather than the ribbing clinging in a sexy, stretchy way, it kind of hangs in a baggy way. I didn't really have the right gauge with this yarn, so I needed more than the pattern called for to get the proper row gauge. The top then ended up a little long once the yarn stretched with the weight of hanging on the body. Live and learn.

Onto the positives. I love, love, love the neckline.

I cannot even begin to describe how many tries it took me to thread the ribbon in a way that it wouldn't curl (simple solution: fold it in half).

I also figured out the bow largely by trial and error, and I must humbly retract any statements I've ever made along the lines of "how hard can it be to tie a bow?" and "it's just like tying your shoes, but with ribbon!"

I do, admittedly, fuss with it a lot still when I'm wearing this top.

I really like the way the neck curves around the shoulders, and it's incredibly comfortable to wear. The yarn feels great against my skin and I hear it washes beautifully, which is encouraging.

With an improvement in my gym habits, I think this will easily become a favorite top. I wore it out to a party the day I finished it, and my friends were all very kind and enthusiastic. I wondered if I would have a use for a short-sleeved, open-neck sweater, but it turns out it's the perfect thing to wear to a crowded bar on a cold night. I suspect it will fare as well this spring and summer too.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Notes from the pile
- Knitting is good company
- Tempt tempt tempt
- Unconscious Knitting
- A Tempting Tempting
- Moving Right Along

One Year

2008-03-23T13:09:00.000-04:00

I was sort of stunned to realize the other day that today is my one-year blogiversary.

I have had so much fun learning about knitting, meeting new people, and immersing myself in this wonderful hobby.

Blogging about knitting has been such a treat because it's put me in touch with such lovely like-minded folks. Thank you for reading, commenting, and doing what you do! I'm looking forward to great things in the next year.

A Knitted Gnome

2008-03-19T23:04:00.000-04:00

When I was at my parents' house this weekend, my mom had a little pile of yarns on a desk in my old bedroom. They included purple and green tweed, gray mohair, and tan wool.

I thought they were great looking, so I asked if I could have them. Having already given me all her needles a year ago, my mother said sure, that's why she put the yarn in my room.

"There's a pattern there, too," she said, and I ran back upstairs to see this adorable leaflet from 1987, Instructions for Making a Knitted Gnome by Darian Dragge. Suddenly I remembered my mother making gnome dolls years ago, and in that instant I positively needed to knit a gnome myself.

The kit indicated "all natural materials" and included a cute story about gnomes with instructions to make a 10" stuffed doll. It's really straightforward and easy, and in no time at all, I'd whipped up gnome pants and the beginning of a gnome face.

My plan is to knit all the pieces, then weigh the green bits to determine if I have enough of the purple tweed to make an entirely purple gnome.

I'm pretty excited about this project, as I've never knit a doll or toy before and these gnomes are spectacularly cute. If this works out as well as I hope, I see several more gnomes in my future. Heee!

Knitters are the nicest people in the world

2008-03-17T15:20:00.000-04:00

Recently, a very nice knitter named Julia (purlia on Ravelry) contacted me because I'd mentioned that I love colorful anodized aluminum knitting needles.

Preferring bamboos herself, she had a large collection of various sizes that she wanted to give to me. Awesome!!!

But the awesome didn't just stop at the needles:

I am thoroughly convinced that knitters are the most generous, thoughtful human beings in the world. My boyfriend looked over my shoulder in amazement as I pulled out so many fun, sweet treats.

This funny card had beautiful stitch markers inside.

She included Halls Vitamin C drops (my favorites) and tissues with the note "Because you've been sick". So sweet!

I am thoroughly enjoying Lindt chocolate truffles and drinking chocolate - they may be a secret recovery cure.

A note taped to light-up needles addressed my recent insomnia, "For when you can't sleep but don't want to wake the boyfriend." He's never seen these needles before and thought they were a positively brilliant invention.

This Lantern Moon needle case is gorgeous in my two favorite colors:

And my goodness, she put in a skein of Malabrigo Worsted in a breath-takingly lovely shade of Forest green.

I've never felt Malabrigo in person before, much less owned a skein, and it is everything it's rumored to be - so soft and luxurious in the hand and such an intense and rich blend of colors.

The needles themselves were overwhelmingly cool, in colors I've never seen!

They are a fantastic array of sizes, and yes, I've already cast on a new project with them. I think so much of the appeal of knitting is the sensory pleasures and all these beautiful supplies.

As you can see, I've been completely spoiled rotten, and I am thrilled. It's totally heart-warming to know there are such generous, kind people who share this hobby I love.

Thank you so much, Julia!!! You made my day!

FO - Toe-Up Eye of Partridge Heel Socks

2008-03-09T17:24:00.000-04:00

I haven't slept in about 34 hours, and somehow these socks fit that mood just right.

Crazy socks? Don't mind if I do.

Pattern: Generic Toe-Up Slip-Stitch Heel Formula (PDF) by Sarah Keller, free pattern posted at Knot Another Hat Blog.
Size: women's 9
Yarn: Regia Color 4-ply, 75% wool 25% polyamide, fingering weight, color 5346
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated DPNs, size 1.5 (2.25mm)
Modifications: used Eye of Partridge in place of slip stitch in heel

Started: February 1, 2008
Finished: March 8, 2008

Almost everything about these socks was a new technique for me.

I started with a figure-8 cast-on, which was a lot easier and more straightforward than I thought it would be. I was following the instructions exactly, so I started with 8 stitches. I think if I were to do it again, I'd use 12 or 16, since I was increasing to 72 stitches circumference for these socks.

I enjoyed the gusset shaping and toe-up heel flap. It gives the sock a more comfortable fit than a short-row heel, though I wish the heel flap were longer.

Eye of Partridge is a really easy stitch. You simply alternate knit and slip stitches between rows (you could think of it as staggering every other row by one stitch). This heel flap started with a slip stitch. To make it Eye of Partridge, I worked as follows:

Row 1: Slip 1, *K1, sl1* - Repeat from * to end of flap.
Row 2: Purl
Row 3: Slip 1, K1, *K1, sl1* - Repeat between *'s to end of flap.
Row 4: Purl

Alternate Rows 1 & 2 for heel flap.

(Other descriptions can be found here, and this page has directions and a nice chart.)

Lastly, I finished them with 2x2 ribbing and I used a stretchy bind-off, which I learned about in a Ravelry forum. Essentially it goes:

Knit first 2 stitches. Insert left needle through loops of stitches on right needle and knit them together. With one stitch on the needle, knit the next stitch, then knit these two together. Continue thusly all around cuff.

It made for a very nice, comfortable bind-off, and it's a rather neat solution for toe-up socks.

I think the most obvious and prominent feature of these socks is the yarn. In the skein, it really looked pretty tame, but as I began knitting it, it started flashing these crazy color sequences.

Eventually they pooled together into psychedelic designs that traveled all over. Whereas normally I hope variegated yarn doesn't ever do stuff like this, I found myself rooting for it. When faced with one awesome Shazam sock and the possibility of a mismatch, yes, I actually did find the same color sequence for the beginning and tried to get them to flash in the same way.

Though these two skeins were from the same dye lot and looked identical in balls, one had definitively more white than the other. At first this really bothered me, but as I look at them, I don't think normalcy is the real goal at hand here.

(By the way, these are most definitely wear-around-the-house socks, whatever super powers they may bestow upon me.)

I had a lot of fun knitting these because the color was constantly changing every few stitches and leaving wacky hallucinogenic trails in its wake. I kind of love these socks because they are so, so weird.

(And yeah, all these pictures enlarge.)

Now I think I'd better take some medicine and attempt to rest, before these happy feet dance their way straight to the insane asylum.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Colorful Frogging
- About those resolutions...

Knitsomnia

2008-03-08T14:07:00.004-05:00

This past week I came down with a pretty nasty sore throat and chest cough. Frankly, I blame undergrads.

Somehow, nighttime formula Robitussin - by which I mean the super extra-drowsy kind with all kinds of warnings - does not make me sleepy. Not even remotely tired. In fact, it makes my heart race and gives me insomnia. Meanwhile non-drowsy daytime sinus decongestants or heck, those sugar-free vitamin C cough drops, make me want to pass out in a drooling coma.

My point is that I've had a lot of time when I've been not sleeping and feeling lousy. Knitting has been my primary means of preserving sanity.

I cast on Molly Ringwald, from the Fall 2006 Knitscene, and it's coming along nicely.

I've been trying to figure out why I like the color of this yarn (Bernat Satin in Sage) so much, and I think it's because it reminds me of ground malachite, my favorite pigment in painting (when ground it's more like this).

I just wish all this 3x1 ribbing would go faster!

Seduced

2008-03-04T06:17:00.000-05:00

One of my knitting resolutions this year is to knit a pair of socks every month. The Sock Knitters Anonymous group on Ravelry has been extremely helpful in keeping me focused on this task, as they have monthly challenges and - best for me - two months to complete each pair.

The March challenge includes the option of a pair of socks designed by Ann Budd, and as it happens, I like so many of her patterns that perhaps the hardest part was choosing which one to knit.

I went with the Seduction Socks, from the spring 2007 issue of Interweave Knits, also available online (PDF) for free. This pattern is really enjoyable and simple, and it zips along over 56 stitches on size 2 needles.

I've chosen to do these toe-up so that I can use all of my yarn and so that I can increase the length of the cuff. I am knitting the lace pattern as written, without flipping it upside down, as it is highly symmetrical and I think it looks good this way.

Keep things simple, right?

Colorful Frogging

2008-03-01T23:47:00.000-05:00

This is how far along I got on my second Toe-up Eye of Partridge Heel sock before I realized that I'd done the toe wrong:

Usually when I increase, I use a kfb (knit front & back), and I tuck it one stitch in from the edges. In this case, I'd done them right at the edges, which was making a gapping, stiff, weirdly folding toe.

It just wouldn't do. I thought about how much I'd worked on these already (through the entirety of Sense and Sensibility, at least!), but in the end I thought it wasn't just a problem of mismatching, it was a structural deficiency, and I really couldn't live with it.

Oh, what lovely frogging. And can you believe that I wound all this back up without a single knot, tangle, or snag?

Because the figure-8 cast-on is so truly effortless, I was back up and running in no time, and I've since surpassed this progress.

Speaking of colorful yarn spaghetti, I really enjoyed these photos of an as yet unmentioned project.

It gives me the sense of knitting as a hugely complex, tentacled monster which encroaches upon all order and normalcy. Or as perhaps an island of calm in a chaotic sea.

Thankfully, this project is going a lot smoother than one might expect from such thoughts.

What I can make with what I have

2008-02-27T03:08:00.000-05:00

The other day, my boyfriend looked at me and said "How many sweaters do you suppose you could make with all this yarn?"

He suggested I assign a project to every quantity of yarn I have and package them up into little kits. For someone who's never knit in his life, he really does understand it pretty well.

I want to knit down a significant section of my stash this year. I've almost never bought yarn without a specific project plan, but in my first year knitting, I got into a frenzy of yarn-buying and casting on, and I've found myself with an alarming amount of intended projects.

At a quick count, I have the yarn to make 11 short sleeve or sleeveless tops, 11 long-sleeve sweaters, and 5 or 6 shrugs. This is not even getting into sock yarn, lace weight, or accessories stuff.

I looked at the projects I was intending to make, and I realized I was actually dreading some of them. Huh?! Dreading knitting??? I finally had the moment of clarity I needed, and I was able to start thinking about what I really wanted to knit.

I started a little game of swap-a-roo. Anything I wasn't positively thrilled about knitting, I scrapped from my plans, and I reassigned the yarn to new projects.

For some lovely Simply Soft in light country peach, I had been planning a Valpuri top.

Beautiful, but ugh, those cables didn't really look fun.

So now I'm using the yarn for Bella Paquita, also conveniently the object of the current Sexy Knitters Club challenge.

Dark sage Simply Soft, intended for a Bristow Cardigan (eventually).

Again, the cables, and piecing, and I don't know that it would be flattering.

Gathered Pullover? Much more my speed.

Cream One Pound, meant for a Cable Down Raglan.

It produced fabric like chainmail, and I just couldn't picture the sweater looking good. I still want to knit this pattern in a different yarn, but in the meantime I have this cream.

So now how about a Holly Jacket? Wheee!

Lastly, I have a bunch of white Simply Soft, that I was intending for a solid-colored Bad Penny.

Meh. In a solid color, it's way too much like something I could buy in a store. What I really wanted was a cute white sweater to wear over dresses and springy tops.

Hello, Hexacomb Cardigan! Where have you been all my life?

These are just a few of the ideas I had. I'm totally psyched for new projects, and I'm looking forward to this plan.

If you are so inclined, you can check out my Ravelry queue, which is now somewhat updated with the actual projects I'm planning to knit. (This is more than I can say for my sidebar).

FO - Butterfly Hat

2008-02-21T15:35:00.003-05:00

The crazy cold weather lately persuaded me that I needed a new hat. I decided it should be as green as I could make it.

I absolutely love this hat!

Pattern: Butterfly Hat by Sofiya Cremin, free pattern posted at Alice in Dilbertland.
Size: adult 20-22" circumference
Yarn: Debbie Mumm Traditions by JoAnn, 75% acrylic 23% wool 2% other, worsted weight, color 08 Pine Needle
Needles: Knit Picks 8" nickel-plated DPNs, size 5 (3.75mm) and size 7 (4.50mm)
Modifications: none

Started: February 14, 2008
Finished: February 20, 2008

As written, this pattern came out perfectly. The fit is cozy and snug to my ears, without being tight at all, so it won't leave marks in my forehead or mess up my hair like a lot of my other hats do.

It actually stretches large enough to fit my boyfriend's head, but I think if I were to knit him one I would add a sequence of butterflies to get a better length. He said how much he wanted one until I referred to them that way, then he recoiled in horror and asked if he could have beetles or scarabs instead. I suggested we call them Mothra, and he was happy. Such a boy.

I did the ribbing for it on Valentine's Day (immediately after casting off my Hedera socks), but I actually knit it all in a few hours yesterday, as I started feeling progressively sicker. I should note, by way of excuse for my appearance, that I am home sick today after staying up most of the night with something gross (you don't want to know). That I could still genuinely love knitting this hat while sick is a testament to what a fun, easy, and charming little project it is.

What really makes this hat for me is the butterflies. As I showed yesterday, this little butterfly stitch is made by a series of floats, which are then picked up and transformed into a charming detail.

As an added bonus, they kind of pull the fabric around them a little snugger like smocking, which makes cute puffs. When strategically placed at the edges of the DPNs where I usually get ladders, they remedy it beautifully.

The math in this pattern is intuitive and elegant, which of course I love. It has perfect symmetry all around, and it's addictive knitting at its best. I got really lucky with the way the colors blended to the crown, and I love the star shape of the bright green decreases.

I would be remiss if I didn't talk a little bit about the yarn. The initial reviews I read about it were that it has gorgeous blending colors, but that knitters hated working with it. It got panned on Ravelry, and I noticed very few people were making projects with it. (I actually found this hat pattern because I saw the designer had made a hat in this yarn, and I loved it so much I just needed one of my own.)

It completely surpassed my expectations in terms of color. It is so rich, saturated, and vibrant that I am instantly happy just looking at it. The color transitions are nice and gradual, forming subtle bands.

Where I think people have a problem with this yarn is in its structure. It is essentially a tube of loosely spun wool (hence its crazy softness), wrapped around a black acrylic core (which gives it strength and integrity). The reviews I read complained of its tendency to spin and bunch up on itself, revealing the black core. I checked it out and resorted to my primary reaction to most things in life: "It is what it is."

Recognizing that this was just its unique structure, I had to adjust my tension, hold it very gently, and work at a slightly looser gauge than I usually knit. This actually ended up being very good for my hands, as well as preserving the design elements of this hat.

I found that if I worked from the center of the ball and gently pulled about an arm's length or two of yarn out at a time, very loosely, I could knit without straining the yarn. As soon as an obstacle got in the way or I started holding it too tightly, I saw the effect others got, but it was easy enough to redistribute the wool and keep happily knitting. Once knit, the stitches were firm and well-defined, yet wonderfully soft against the skin. I had no trouble with splitting or snagging.

I would definitely encourage others to try this yarn and enjoy its beauty without stressing about its handling properties. In the end, I think that its structure is what makes it such a pleasure to wear. I definitely would not wind it on a ball-winder or over-handle it, and sharply-pointed metal needles are definitely the way to go. The way it is packaged will tell you everything you need to know about how it wants to be handled.

It is possible that the care and gentleness I exhibited toward the yarn is part of why I feel such endearing tenderness toward this hat. I am almost certain I will knit this pattern again - I really can't recommend it highly enough. I also like the yarn so much I'm going to make matching mitts with my second ball of it.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- You're my butterfly, sugar, baby...

You're my butterfly, sugar, baby...

2008-02-20T23:53:00.000-05:00

Do you know that Crazy Town song, Butterfly? Every time I pick up this project, I sing that to myself.

I decided I absolutely needed a Butterfly Hat. I love this pattern!

I am so exquisitely charmed by the butterfly stitch. It turns a series of floats that look like this:

... into adorable little butterfly stitches that look like this:

Just fantastic!

Knitting at School, heee

2008-02-19T23:58:00.003-05:00

First I must say, thank you so much for your nice compliments on my Hederas. Knitters are so supportive and wonderful, and I really appreciate it!

So, I've never knit at school before, since I am a compulsive note-taker, and I worry it would be a sign of disrespect to the professor.

This semester, however, I'm working as a grading assistant in three undergraduate art history survey classes. After a few classes, the professor said she felt bad that I was sitting through the same lecture twice on Tuesdays then essentially the same lecture again on Thursdays. She suggested I take a seat in the very last row and catch up on reading, sketch, or do whatever I wanted to do.

"No problem," I thought, "you don't have to ask me twice."

Last week I brought a book I have to read for class, and for my life I couldn't concentrate. I tried to write an essay, and I found similar problems. I just can't tune out a lecture on art! So this week, I brought my February sock, and for the first time in my life, I knit through an entire lecture. Wow, what a feeling!

It was illicit and so delightfully wrong. I was enjoying knitting, looking up occasionally at the images on screen, and just plain loving it. I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy my assistantships a lot more.

Also, hearing my professor repeatedly pronounce Michelangelo's name "Michael-angelo," I was reminded of something that kind of blew my mind recently.

Do you know this man? Kaffe Fassett?

For all I've read about him in books and online, I've never heard his name pronounced. In my head it rhymed with "Taffy Cassette." Turns out I was totally wrong, and via Ravelry I learned it actually rhymes with "safe asset." For my life, I can't make that change.

I keep looking at my beautiful blue yarn and thinking "Kaffy. Kaaaaaaafffe. Kaffy, darn it."

And also, Patons? I've been pronouncing like General Patton, and here it turns out they're actually pey-ton, like Peyton Manning or uhh, peyote. Pay-ton. Whew. Impossible for my silly brain.

The good news is I made huge progress on my sock, and I expect to have the pair completed soon. Woohoo!

FO - Hedera Socks

2008-02-14T16:49:00.004-05:00

I finished my Hedera socks today.

They're pretty cozy.

Pattern: Hedera by Cookie A, from spring 2006 Knitty
Size: L, to fit a women's size 9
Yarn: Knit Picks Essential 75% superwash Merino wool / 25% nylon, fingering weight, color 23695, Grass
Needles: Susan Bates size 1 DPNs
Modifications: I added three extra lace repeats in the cuff, for 17 total.

Started: January 7, 2008
Finished: February 14, 2008

As I said, I added 3 lace repeats to the cuff, but on hindsight I could have added much more. I had about 24 grams of yarn out of 100 leftover, nearly a quarter of my yarn (twice the amount pictured below).

I don't know why, but that really bothered me. This is something that I definitely don't like about cuff-down socks, as well as picking up stitches for the gusset and Kitchener stitch on the toes. I think it's safe to say I will be knitting socks toe-up whenever possible from here forward.

The pattern itself is brilliantly written and elegant. That Cookie A, she really knows how to design socks.

Once I memorized the lace pattern and got used to doing things like a yarn over just before an SSK decrease, they moved a lot faster. I made considerably fewer mistakes on the second sock than on the first, probably because the cuff of the first was knit almost entirely in the dim cabin lighting of an airplane, while bleary eyed with travel exhaustion.

There is not a huge payoff for the amount of work the lace took, but they look pretty nice. I was planning for these to be fairly simple socks, in an almost neutral color, so that I could wear them with dress pants and such. In that respect, I think they'll work very well.

The yarn was thinner and a little coarser than I've worked with before, but I have a feeling it will wear like iron. The fabric on the feet is nicely tight and snug, but with enough flexibility to be very comfortable on.

All in all, I'm pretty pleased. The fit is fabulous, especially in the toes. My only wish is that they were a little longer, but that's what Sodera socks are for, right?

I'm wearing them already, and I suspect they will get a lot of use.

Onward to more green knits! (I'm not kidding).

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Knitting in the Present Tense
- About those resolutions...
- Sockdown: January

Knitting in the present tense

2008-02-13T18:48:00.004-05:00

So much of knitting, for me, is about the anticipation of future knits. Stashing, swatching, imagining yarn and pattern combinations and finished objects... so much of the pleasure is theoretical.

The rest of knitting tends to focus on the past: things I've completed, small accomplishments within projects, milestones, percentages toward completion... I'm always wishing I could knit faster, in a sense to dispense with the present and rapidly move from future to past tenses, in the form of an FO.

Perhaps it is because Smokey plopped himself on top of my in-progress Hederas, or perhaps I'm just in a peculiar mindset, but I started asking myself how actually present I am with my knitting.

How much do I think about each stitch, contemplate each row? What kind of consideration do I give to the physical act of knitting, the small movements and thoughts which add up into the project at hand?

I started knitting as a way to focus my mind, to meditate and relax, to calm down when I would get distracted and frenzied in my life. So as I sat in the sun the other day, I quieted everything around me and just focused on my sock.

I am turning a heel. I am knitting a gusset. I am making stitches and working through a lace pattern. A yarn over makes a hole.

And so on. It was beautiful, in a way, because I felt so deeply connected with myself in that moment in space and time. I was really doing what I was doing and paying attention to it. I wasn't thinking about the socks I want to cast on next or what I should have been doing instead of knitting (because yeah, there's a huge pile of that). I was just enjoying knitting, in the present tense.

Finally, I felt present. I can't begin to explain what a relief it was.

About those resolutions...

2008-02-08T06:50:00.001-05:00

As soon as I got home from Hawaii, I was slammed with work and responsibilities, and I think I've just about gotten my life under control again.

So, how have I been doing with my knitting resolutions, you may wonder?

First off, I bought new yarn. It's allowed, because it is for a gift for the aunt with whom I stayed in Hawaii... but still, I felt a little guilty. I very nearly averted disaster, as I was about to fill up my Knit Picks shopping cart with lace-weight and sock yarn and other goodies to get free shipping, but I cleared it all out and bought just the gift yarn by itself. The shipping cost? $2.99.

The gift I'm making is a Cropped Raglan Shrug, like the one I made for myself (which my aunt adored), in Shine Worsted, in the color Sea Spray. So far it's coming along nicely, though I wish it would move faster so I can send it out soon.

While I'm confessing to new yarn, I should say that my package from discountyarnsale.com finally got here. I ordered this yarn in October, then when they realized I'd ordered a discontinued color, I had to reorder it in early November. Now I know that it was special order and I should have expected a delay, but I was still pretty antsy. The price, however, was fairly fabulous, so I think it was worth waiting, especially since it will take me a while to build up ample skills and courage to knit with it. It is Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool in color 48, intended for a Tangled Yoke Cardigan, which I know is well beyond my current skill level.

My boyfriend teased me, as I'd asked him to be there to sign for my package. When he gave it to me, I opened the bag, stroked the yarn lovingly, checked all the skeins, then put it immediately onto a shelf with the rest of my stash. He said "So that's it? You wait four months for yarn, then just throw it on the pile?" I didn't really know how to explain that yeah, pretty much, that was the plan all along.

Another significantly challenging resolution has been the limitation of WIPs to a set of three (one simple brainless project, one fiddly complex one, and one portable one).

I brought my Coachella on vacation with me and got a few more inches along (knitting in the car and such). For the first plane ride, I knit obsessively on a Hedera sock, and I got all the way through the heel flap. As we were getting our stuff from the overhead bin, a mother and daughter across the aisle said they'd been watching me the whole flight and had bet each other on whether it was a sock or the sleeve to a baby sweater. The mother had guessed sock.

I finished the first Hedera and cast on the second on the last day of January, prompted by a new month's Sockdown challenge on Ravelry. I am becoming consumed with sock-knitting as a consequence of this brilliant group (Sock Knitters Anonymous), and I of course broke my 3 projects rule by casting on two more socks while I'm still slowly working along on the second Hedera.

First, a Pomatomus, which I also cast on for on the last day of January, just in case I gained the ability to warp the space-time continuum and sneak in a really complex and fiddly pair of socks. I doubt these will ever get finished by the end of February, but it's good to at least have them going. I have been thinking about them in this yarn for so long it's almost bizarre, so I'm stoked to know that with some knitting, I could actualize the dream.

I also cast on a pair of toe-up socks, which I intend to give an Eye of Partridge heel. February's challenge is a new-to-you heel technique, and though I've knit heel flaps before, I've never done them toe-up, nor have I done an Eye of Partridge heel. I'm using this pattern (PDF) as a guide.

This was my first figure 8 cast-on, and I found it rather pleasant and easy. It was so soothing to be able to immediately start knitting without having to pick out a provisional cast-on or do the wrap-and-turns of a short row toe. I think because this is a 72-stitch sock, it may have been wiser to cast on 12 or 16 or so stitches for the toe, but it doesn't look too terribly pointy when stretched over my toes. I will just have to make sure to get the length spot-on.

This yarn knits up in very interesting ways. It's Regia Color 4-ply, and from the skein I am not sure what I expected, but I think it was longer stretches of color with fewer quick changes. As I keep on knitting with it, I am really enjoying the sudden, gorgeous bursts of new colors. I think from a distance, they will look kind of muddy and indistinctly magenta, but I love looking at them up close.

Lastly, I am extremely tempted to cast on a fourth pair of socks, though these are prompted by the sad passing of Gigi Silva, better known as Momma Monkey. A lot of Ravelers are knitting socks from her patterns in memory, and I wanted to make a pair of toe-up Brigits (PDF pattern).

I think the only thing that kept me from casting on immediately is that I couldn't decide between these two greens:

The jury is still out, though I think I mostly prefer the second.

So I guess this is going to be not just a green-knitting blog, but a green sock-knitting blog. Just kidding, I have lots of other stuff planned. In green.

A Cat Related Yarn

2008-02-07T05:17:00.000-05:00

While consolidating data on several hard drives, my boyfriend came across an animation project he did several years ago which features a kitty and some particularly feisty yarn.

It's called A Cat Related Yarn, and I really love it.

He made it long before I started knitting, but this has always been the experience our cats have with my yarn. They still find it irresistibly alluring.

My boyfriend said that screening it for final critique was particularly funny because he was outing himself as a big giant cat nerd to a room full of hipster animation students. I think this is part of why I love him!

Aloha again

2008-01-27T18:02:00.001-05:00

I am back from Hawaii, and I am thrilled to say my grandmother loves her shawl.

She kept stroking it and admiring it, saying how soft and lovely it is. I told her how I think of her every time I see that color and she said "Yes! It is so me!" It suits her wonderfully, and she kept saying she feels so elegant in it.

She wore it often while we were there, and she had it on her bed or draped over her chair when she didn't. Whenever she had it on, she told me how perfect it was, and she showed it off to family and friends. My aunt washed it once, and I was relieved to see it held up perfectly - the lace didn't even need to be reshaped.

It is incredibly gratifying to see how visibly happy someone is in a hand-knit. I'm definitely inspired to make more gifts, and I hope every recipient is as pleased as my gram.

FO - Sun Ray Shawl

2008-01-13T14:04:00.000-05:00

I absolutely LOVE this shawl.

I hope my grandmother feels the same.

Pattern: Sun Ray Shawl by Shui Kuen Kozinski, from elann.com
Size: approximately 80 inches wide x 40 inches long
Yarn: Knit Picks Shine Worsted 60% Pima cotton / 40% Modal, color Wisteria; I used a little more than 10 balls, each 50 g and 75 yards, for approximately 770 yards total.
Needles: Knit Picks Options size 10, crochet hook for cast-on
Modifications: none

Started: October 6, 2007
Finished: January 12, 2008

I got the idea to knit a shawl for my grandmother early on in my knitting career, and I'd actually purchased this yarn for a Cozy that I started back in November 2006.

My requirements for the yarn were not easy because my grandmother lives in Hawaii and is afraid of bugs getting into wool or animal fibers. I chose this cotton because it is machine washable and easy care, with a lustrous sheen and gorgeous feel. It should be said: I officially have a crush on this yarn. It is a pleasure to work with, and I think the results are stunning. When I had this shawl around my shoulders, it felt like heaven.

I chose the color because my grandmother often wears brights and pastels, so I know she's not afraid of color. Her favorite scent is lavender, and I always think of her when I see soft purples and lilacs.

I also wanted something a little more casual than a crisp white or ivory because I want her to wear it often and get a lot of use out of it. I worried a more formal color would make her think it's only for special occasions and thus relegate it to the bottom of a drawer. I want her to grab this shawl when the sun goes down in the afternoon and her house gets chilly, bring it to restaurants, or just drape it on her lap when she wants a bit of softness and warmth.

After the initial pattern sequence, I completed an additional six repeats, to give seven total, 154 rows. This gives it a really comfortable, substantial size and used up almost all of the yarn I had for this project.

The picot bind-off took me ages, but I think it gives a really nice edge. The pattern called for pinning out each fifth picot to give a scalloped edge, which my boyfriend enjoyed helping me with. I dug that effect. It looks very much like my grandmother's style.

I really recommend this pattern for a great beginner's lace shawl. I love the symmetrical progression of the pattern, which becomes easy to memorize in 10-stitch repeats across the rows. I strongly urge using a row counter to keep track of the 20-row repeat, and for my part, I found it easier to read the written instructions than to follow the chart. For peace of mind, life lines were a big comfort as well.

I will most likely knit this pattern again, as it yields a surprisingly large, comfortable, and elegant shawl with a comparably small amount of yarn.

As my first time blocking lace, it wasn't too bad, though I found even a queen-size bed was a tight fit. I pinned it out on towels and had a fan oscillate across it to speed drying time. It came out feeling soft and lovely.

I packaged it up with fiber content and care instructions that I printed out. If I know my gram, she'll keep the whole kit together, so I got a non-acidic tinted plastic portfolio at a local art store to protect it all. I will of course encourage her to keep the shawl bunched up in her purse or haphazardly thrown over the sofa, but we'll see.

I'm thrilled with this shawl, and as I've said previously it is the largest project I've ever made. It feels like a real knitting milestone, my first big shawl, and I just hope my grandmother loves it as much as I do.

I will try to get photos of the shawl in Hawaii, which is incidentally where I will be through January 26th. I'm looking forward to lots of plane knitting and hope to have my Hederas close to finished when I get back.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- The Finish Line
- Organic Growth
- Executive Decision

The Finish Line

2008-01-12T18:08:00.000-05:00

I finished knitting my grandmother's Sun Ray Shawl!

It is blocking this very moment, and I will have it dry and packaged to come with me to Hawaii on Monday.

I thought the picot bind-off would kill me, but I did it. This is the largest project I've ever undertaken, and I can't wait to see how it turns out after blocking.

Sockdown: January

2008-01-08T13:55:00.000-05:00

I decided to participate in this month's Sockdown on Ravelry, since the featured designer is the brilliant Cookie A.

I've had the Hedera pattern printed out and ready to go for months now, so I was very exciting to cast on for them last night.

I'm using Knit Picks Essential in Grass, and I love the way it subtly matches the gentle green of my Susan Bates Silvalume size 1 DPNs.

Now I just have to finish my grandmother's shawl (just a few days left!) so I can devote myself completely to these while on vacation.

Oh happy day

2008-01-07T11:49:00.000-05:00

Today has already been a really great day. First, my boyfriend is home from a month-long trip around Asia. I've missed him quite a bit.

I brought our cats back from my parents' house in New Jersey, as well as their cat Oreo, who will be staying with us for a bit. While my boyfriend was out of town, I cleaned and organized the apartment top to bottom, and I think the cats are really relaxed to be here now.

Or Smokey is helpless against gravity. Or both.

We walked to Bergen Bagels for breakfast (Brooklyn's best bagel), where I got a toasted whole wheat bagel with basil cream cheese. It was insanely delicious.

Seriously. Unbelievable.

And lastly, the thing that actually has to do with knitting (because what is this blogging about my life stuff?!), I got a delicious box of yarn which I was afraid had gone missing. It's actually been sitting at the post office since December 19th (thank goodness).

Oh, it was worth the wait. This was the last yarn that I purchased in 2007 (and it was all at close-out prices!), thus kicking off my no-yarn-buying year of 2008. I gotta say, if I'm only knitting from my stash, I've got some brilliant choices to work from.

Rowan Big Wool, 100% merino bulky, color 24 Cassis

Elsebeth Lavold Chunky AL 50% FS alpaca / 50% Peruvian Wool, color 010 Turquoise

Classic Elite Alaska 50% alpaca / 50% wool super bulky, color 1515 Hot Springs (heathered teal)

Classic Elite Alaska 50% alpaca / 50% wool super bulky, color 1503 Mogul (light gray)

South West Trading Company Gianna 50% soysilk / 50% wool bulky, green

And then a whole bunch of Regia 4-ply, all 75% superwash wool / 25% polyamide, about which I am officially nuts. (All these photos enlarge).

Now I just have to finish some stuff so I can start playing with all this beautiful new yarn!

Handmade Ornaments

2008-01-05T10:48:00.000-05:00

Since my mother likes to keep the Christmas tree up through Epiphany, we get extra time to admire the decorations and ornaments around the house.

The tree was beautiful this year, but unfortunately my father's puppy Smooch has taken to chomping up ornaments daily.

Including the baby Jesus from my mother's DiGiovanni Nativity set. Whoops.

Inspired by some sense of posterity, I decided to photograph some of the cross-stitched ornaments I'd made when I was a child, lest they end up like Smooch's other prey.

My mother bought me fabulous Christmas ornament kits when I expressed an interest in counted cross-stitch. They came with cute little frames, cardboard backing material, a square of Aida fabric, a tiny little pattern, the right-size needle, and generous lengths of all the DMC colors you'd need. I kept the whole kit in a sandwich bag while I worked on them and thought they were just the most charming things.

This church ornament was the very first cross-stitch project I ever did. I love its painted wood frame, and I still have to smile at those cute little stained glass windows.

My mother and I were admiring this ornament, and she asked how old I was when I made it. I turned it over, saw that I'd clumsily embroidered 1991 on the back, which I showed her. She looked at me, perplexed, as she tried to count back from 2007.

We both got a good laugh when I rolled my eyes and said "Mom, I was born in 1981."

This cat and mouse were my two favorites (even though I can see an error in the cat now) because they were the cutest designs and also in part because they used a very fine-count Aida cloth.

At that time, I usually worked on 12-count, and I think these were 14 or 16 count, so I felt terribly sophisticated.

I was kind of a snot about this swan because I felt it was too simple and easy, stitched on 12-count fabric.

I also wasn't as wild about the rocking horse because it had almost no back-stitching, which at the time was one of my favorite parts.

That was my 10-year old sensibility, of course. Now I think they're all adorable, and I admire them fondly. I love having something that I made more than 15 years ago so well-preserved and cared-for.

Then again I shouldn't be surprised. My parents have kept ornaments I made at a very politically-correct kindergarten: a geeky snowflake,

and their personal favorite, my star of David.

Lastly, while I'm admiring my favorite ornaments, I had to post a photo of this one, which I did not make, but which we bought many years ago from a basketry artisan at a Pennsylvania Dutch folk festival in Kutztown, PA.

I just love this weaving, and I want to learn how to do it.

When I return to Brooklyn, I may take a stab at finishing some of the other cross-stitch pieces I have had "in progress" for 10 or 15 years. I was really into stitching way before knitting, and I actually got quite good at it, so it'd be nice to pick it back up again.

Ahh memories.