Category: sweaters

  • booooooring

    I know I’ve been pretty quiet lately – the knitting’s not all that exciting, and I haven’t been home much! When I am, it’s sleepy time. I did manage to finish the secret project in time (eucalan-ing right now!) so there’ll be pictures tomorrow. Not that it’s all that exciting a project, but it’s really not all that often that I knit for others.

    In the meanwhile, I finished the sleeves of the Snap Cardi as well. Just two front and a long-ass collar to knit!

    It really is just soft and comfy and lovely. I can’t wait to use my Blue Sky cotton – I’m thinking just a simple pullover, maybe with a cable on the front.

    Sooooo…that’s about it for now! I hope to have a knitterly weekend, so maybe I’ll have something exciting to show then!

  • finally, a real update!

    I finally put the finishing touches on Elspeth!

    Sorry it’s kind of dark; that’s what happens with dark brown!

    Elspeth
    Pattern: by Laura Long, from Rowan 37
    Yarn: Rowan Calmer, just over 3 skeins for size small, “Coffee Bean”
    Needles: Denise US8
    Started: August 2, 2005
    Finished: August 22, 2005

    Notes:
    The knitting was fast, but boy was it confusing! I ended up writing out the fronts line-by-line, with where I needed to do increases and what pattern row I was on, although the actual lace pattern was pretty easy to memorize. I put off things like sewing up and the crochet edging, otherwise it would’ve been done faster! I made the 34″ even though I’m a 36″, because I wanted it to be fitted and the way the pattern is written gives an inch of ease – so for the 34″, it comes out 35″.

    Hm, what else…oh, I ended up doing the crochet edging around the body THREE TIMES because it kept flaring out. Still flares slightly in the back neck, but since I can’t see it, it doesn’t bother me! The Calmer is just sooo soft and lovely, there’s definitely more of it in my knitting future.

    Meanwhile, I’ve been chipping away at the deadline projects – I finished a scarf in Knitpicks Shine for my youngest sister yesterday (her birthday’s tomorrow). I just need to weave in the ends and wrap it up with the fingerless mitts and I’ll be all set.

    I did take some time out of the knitting to make this, for Julie:

    She gave me the jeans, I reconstructed. Came out well, and only took a little over an hour – although that was a somewhat aggravating hour.

    Ah, and the problem with the Blueberry Jacke – here it is.

    See the two markers (sorry for the blurriness!) in the middle there? They’re separated by p2, k2, p2. Now, the pattern calls for starting and ending the rib at the sides with p2, but I just thought psh, why would I want to seam reverse st st? So I started and ended with k2 instead…

    …which lead to starting the diagonal pattern after a different number of stitches (to make it line up with the rib). That was fine. But what I forgot was that you’re supposed to do the diagonal pattern until there are two purl stitches left between them – and that isn’t going to happen with the way I’ve set it up (since in the middle there are 2 knit stitches instead).

    I’ve decided to just stop the diagonal pattern at the marker, so the middle section will be wider. I think I’ll do it correctly on the front, though…I think.

    One more thing – I went to Ikea today for some yarn storage solutions! Excellent.

  • yaaarn

    First off the top, my OSW modifications by popular demand –

    – I changed the gauge from 16 sts/4″ to 20 sts/4″ (row gauge was the same as the pattern)
    – I think I probably did a few more increase rows than given
    – sleeves: I joined the sleeve stitches into a round where you’re supposed to do the seed stitch border – obviously I didn’t do that. I placed a marker under the arm and decreased 1 stitch on either side, every 6th row, until I liked the size – I think that was 9 times.
    – I did 2×2 rib on the cuffs.
    That’s about it for that!

    In yarn news…yes, I’m still on a diet. BUT, as a yarn diet to me is more about saving money than rejecting more yarn, I can’t possibly reject yarn that I don’t actually output money for…

    So. Blue Sky Alpacas cotton, in a rusty red, enough for a pullover.

    I really wasn’t totally, completely sold on the colour, but I can still think about it. I might switch it for the blue –

    No, I’m not insane. The blue is for a sample sweater I’m knitting for lettuce knit, the Snap Cardigan by Blue Sky.

    I also got a wee bit o’ lorna’s laces, in “Irving Park”.

    And, well, as for the Jacke en Blueberry, I got through 2 repeats of the chart when I realized that I’d cast on for the wrong size – I was planning to do the larger size at a smaller gauge, but I cast on for the smaller size at a small gauge! Very small! So I had to rip it all out and start again.

    This was Tuesday night, after I ripped. I’m almost back up to where I was. Here’s hoping for some forward progress!