FO - Sweet Jazz

Mary Rose on Ravelry gifted me with this pattern and I had to drop everything and knit it. So I did!

I had a skein of TFA in Deep Sea left over from my tank top and I knew this would make a beautiful scarf. Unfortunately I didn't read the yarn requirements properly and I really thought one skein would be enough, after all, most shawls on Rav are the one skein variety. Or at least the ones I've knit.

So I had to get creative and search the yarn store for something that would work. I found a skein of Noro Silk Garden Sock in a cream/beige colourway that I thought wouldn't look too terrible and really the contrast is pretty slick. I was able to knit all the lace in TFA and finish the last 2 rows in the Noro.

I've had great luck with stretchy bind offs lately and so I thought I'd try the EZ sewn bind off... If some of you  are thinking I'm crazy or if you're rolling on the floor laughing at me right now, where the heck were you when I was ready to bind off? I sure could have used the warning!

750 stitches are a lot to bind off...  to many to use this method... the yarn kept tangling, splitting, shedding and generally was a real pain in the rump.

Never use this bind off on this shawl... you will cry... especially as it took me over 8 hours to do (I'm so not exaggerating here)!

I had a bugger of a time blocking this (steam blocking isn't a very exact science) so the scarf has a ruffle. Seeing as there is a bit of a ruffle trend going on right now, I'm not overly concerned with stretching it out.

Thankfully I bought the perfect shawl pin at the Folk Festival a few weeks ago...

Also this scarf is long... really long...

Ok, so I'm complaining... but I'm finished now... it really is a fabulous thing this sweet jazz... I'm thinking of knitting another but in eye popping purple and bright green (I'm insane, must be the heat) ... it would go wonderfully with my charcoal peacoat...

FO - Arroyo

This is called Arroyo and it's a free pattern by Sarah H. Wolf. I knit this shawl/scarf from a skein of Malabrigo Sock yarn that I've had in my stash for over a year.

It always feels so good to use up stash... I try not to buy yarn without a project in mind but sometimes a skein is just too pretty to pass up and this yarn with it's turquoise, blues and earthy browns was very pretty.

It knit up into a fabulous scarf although I wish I'd have cast on for a few more lace repeats. I have lots of yarn left over.

I liked that this pattern started with the lace edging and then the body was knit after. I've never done a shawl that way and it was easy.

I did a few mods of course:

...the first was knitting the body in stockinette instead of garter stitch. I was nervous I wouldn't have enough yarn (garter stitch eats yarn like crazy) and really my first mod was using sock weight yarn instead of worsted weight (quite a large mod actually) so I was freaked out about running short.

...I also decided I didn't like the edging along the neck. The pattern has you just cast off which is fine if you did the garter stitch but stockinette will curl and this scarf needed a proper edging to finish it off, so the next mod was the eyelet row just before casting off. 

Here's what I did:
Final edge: Purl one row… next row {k2tog, yo} repeat thru to end of row… Purl one row... bind off in Jenny’s stretchy bind off purlwise….

I blocked very aggressively because I knew this scarf was on the small side and there you have it... Arroyo... Perfect for wrapping around your neck for a bit of colour and style in the office...

crochet mania!

I have been crocheting up a storm lately. Mostly in an attempt to finish this blanket...

I started on the Neat Ripple Blanket back in February. It fits a queen sized bed but will look best on a double (which is what I intended)...

I thought I'd use up all the girly colours of acrylic that my in-laws gave me a few years ago. It's true, what they say about crochet... it does eat up a lot of yarn. I still have a whole big bin left in the basement though.

I originally thought I was making this for the Superstar but Mr. Man is in love with it! I'd give it to him but I started another blanket last night with him in mind.

I'm crocheting another Lucy In The Attic pattern called Granny Stripes. I've chosen many shades of blues and greens, some cream and maybe the last of the black. I also threw in a bright red into the blanket bag. It looks something like this...

I'm pretty excited about it. I hope it doesn't take 6 months like the last one! It may be a post xmas gift!

Bet you think that's the end of my crochet party don't you? Nope. There's more...

I recently ordered a bunch of cotton from Knit Picks called Dishie. It's a new line of theirs and there are so many colours to choose from! I had a hard time picking just 10 (I know that seems like an obscene amount of dishcloth cotton). I could seriously put in an order for another 10... The yarn is soft and the colours are just fun...

I've been eyeballing this pattern for potholders for about a year now. I kept thinking crocheting a circle can't be hard and I'd really like something fun and cute to throw under a casserole dish and save my table... So I ordered all that Dishie to make some.

On a podcast I listen too called the Knitmore Girls they would call this potato chip knitting (bet you can't have just one). I think I may crank out a dozen or so before I get tired of them, maybe more...

FO - Wanderlust

I finished something! Yay! I've been loving this pattern Wandering the Moor forever. I've blogged about it and finally I've knit the shawl.

The first yarn I tried knitting it with did nothing for me so I frogged it and put the idea of Wandering away for a few months... Then as I was stash diving one day I realized I had 4 skeins of Rowan Felted Tweed in a rich chocolate brown called Phantom. I love Felted Tweed and thought "well heck! Why I don't I just use what I already have?" So I did.

I wore Wandering to work today and love it! I'm already planning to make another. Maybe in a brighter colour this time. I'm really pleased with the way this shawl turned out. It's the perfect size and it's so soft.

If you'd like to check out my project details you can find them here.

If I can get my butt in gear I'll have another FO to share this week too! I can feel my knitting mojo coming back!

FO - Aidez

I finished the sweater on Earth Day just like I wanted. I tried it on and...

I wonder why I'm so hard to please when it comes to sweaters...

OK, so the things I would change and do differently next time are:
- knit the arms a size larger than the size I'm knitting the sweater. The arms are tight although, they've loosened up a bit and were fairly comfortable last night.
- adjust the 1x1 ribbing to start with a knit and end with a purl instead of starting with a knit and ending with a knit. When it came time to seam, it was obvious, which is a shame because it's an easy thing to fix. At least it's consistent through all the ribbing seams
- add a few inches to the arm length but that may be fine if I knit the next size arm.
- do a ear corn cable in the back portion to mirror the front panels. I chose a simple twist cable that looks fine but I think it would have looked better with the same cables.

Why am I so picky? The sweater looks great. I wore it all night last night and it felt fine. It fit and was warm and I love the creaminess.

The Superstar requested one in baby blue. I'm thinking that would be a lovely fall project. Maybe I'll get it right next time...

FO - Swap Bunny

Well here he is! This little guy doesn't have a name yet. I always like to name the toys I make but I'm not keeping him, he's destined for warmer climes. I hope my Easter Swap partner picks a good one, and loves him up!

I sure had fun making him. This is a Susan B. Anderson pattern that was published in the Knit Simple Holiday Edition last year. I made the owl a few months ago, but he was also destined as a gift. I really need to start knitting some of these woodland critters for myself! They're just so adorable.

I love taking pictures of toys outside. The light is so much better than in the house (although I'm pretty lucky to have some super huge windows and great natural light inside too). I also love outside for it's stunning backgrounds.

Except maybe today.

Today is -15C and that's cold! Like stupid-winter-is-no-where-near-over cold. The snow isn't melting and my poor bunny friend froze his paws off. I think that's why his whiskers are droopy. But that's just a theory.

FO - Hint of Spring Mittens

Remember this picture?

I started these mittens last month when the weather was a chilly -28C. I knew even then they wouldn't be a good choice for those cold winter days. But today, ah, now that's a different story! We're slowly inching up the thermometer and into warmer temps like -10C. Seriously a wonderful improvement! These mittens are the perfect accessory for late winter, early spring days.

I love spring. I decided to name these mittens Hint of Spring because that's what we have around here, just the barest hint.

I used 2mm dpns for the ribbing and while I like a tight rib, this pair may be a bit too tight. next time I'll go to a 2.75mm instead. The main mitten was knit with 3.25mm dpns. They are a small ladies mitten for sure and very light weight. I weighed them at work and they are 19 grams each!

This was my first project with Tern by Quince and Company, it won't be my last. I love this stuff! It's so soft and the colour of the Columbine (the pink) is heathered and luscious. A real treat! The ice grey is called Oyster and it's a very cold colour but combined with the pink it's striking. I used less than half of each skein. I could easily knit these again with the colours reversed, I'm just so impressed. Tern is a 25% silk and 75% wool blend that has all the warmth of wool, the shine of silk and it's so soft! I'm glad it worked out so well because I bought 4 more skeins for mittens!

This is the second Strago pattern I've made and I've really enjoyed the colourwork. It isn't complicated to knit but does require a bit of concentration. The finished mitten looks polished and lovely. I'm keeping these!

So this is pair number 4 in my quest to knit 11 pairs of mittens in 2011. I'm sure I'll have no problem meeting that goal although the warm days of summer are coming. I'd like to think that I'll put mittens aside but I know I won't. I've already cast on another pair. 

FO - Elmer

Yup, I finished him. Here's a little sample of his cuteness.

I knit him out of some leftover Cotton Ease that I bought when I first learned how to knit. I used it to make baby hats for my friends Jill and Bridie. This blue is almost gone. I think I have enough to use it as the accent colour on a second Elephante toy though. I still have almost half a ball of green and a full ball of "almond", a lovely cream. So now you know what the next one will look like!

I followed the pattern as written except for a few minor modifications:

* I chose to knit Elmer in a solid colour and added some plastic toy eyes.

* I created a bigger tassel than the pattern stated.

* I didn't use any polly pellets this time, just some fiber fill.

* I didn't seam his noggin on the way the pattern described either. In Susan's version the elephant is looking down with his trunk touching the floor. I wanted Elmer to see a bit more of the world and the world to see him so I positioned his head up on the body a few inches.

Finishing toys is always the tricky bit for me. I often fly through the knitting of the "bits" only to procrastinate sometimes for months on the sewing up. I'm not really sure why. Seaming once you get going has a nice flow and feel to it. A rhythm almost. Elmer took me all of a few hours to finish.

I used plastic eyes for the first time. I like them. There's something special about an embroidered face though, so I can still see plenty of those in my future, but these little black eyes give Elmer some attitude. I looked high and low to find them in the city and had no luck. Turns out I had a package hiding in my stash that I bought from a closing out sale at Stedmans last year. Rescued by the stash once again!

Thank goodness for Susan's blog! She has some great tutorials on there and the one to make the ears is the best! I had them both done in no time.

I would definitely knit another of these, in fact I've cast on for another Elephante already!

FO - Lavender Grey Cowl

Here is my first cowl! B says 'bah it's a neck warmer', but I say it's warm and squishy and fun. I love the colour and the buttons work perfectly with it.

I won this yarn from Tanis's blog a few weeks ago. She sent it to me super fast, like within the week! I couldn't resist casting on. The pattern is called Button Cowl and is free on Ravelry. The knitting itself flew by and I lightly blocked it before I sewed the buttons on.

I wasn't sure I'd get any decent pictures because it's bitterly cold here but the Superstar managed to get this one, and I kind of like it, minus the no makeup part.

Here are a few more that I snapped in the house. I like how the colour seems to shift and move. It's just so pretty.

FO - Prime Mittens

Yup I finished my third pair for the 11 in 2011 challenge. I blogged about them here. I think they turned out great. I love the peacock colour. It's one of the nicest teals I've seen in a long time. The chantrelle was a great light grey/brown/cream and did the trick as a good contrast colour.

I made them originally for B, but he tried them on last night and told me that while they're very nice, he isn't really a mitten guy. So now I know where I'm sending them tomorrow (today is a holiday).

I like them so much I'm already knitting them again, this time for myself.

Hoot

I see lots of these little owls in my future.

And dusting...

the prettiest mittens ever

No really, they are. I think they are prettiest thing I've ever knit. JoAnn says they are the prettiest mittens she's ever seen. So I'll take her word for it.

I do love them, they have cables and lace and teeny tiny stitches. But... right now, as I'm typing this it's -27C outside and these mittens have lots of holes all over. Pretty in lace, not really smart in the winter.

I've blogged about these mittens before so I won't go over those details (like what the pattern is and yarn, etc...). I did want to say how much I enjoyed knitting the first mitten. How challenging it was to keep track of lace repeats and the cable twist and the increases for the thumb gusset. I wanted to wax on about this all came together perfectly while knitting the first mitten. A real pleasure.

Then, I started the second mitten. I don't really know what happened but all my good knitting mojo flew the coop and I had problem after problem. It took me a month to finish these. A month!

I was listening to a Knitmore Girls Podcast  one evening in bed and knitting this cursed 2nd mitten when realized I was having one. A big one. A giant, big, "when knitting attacks" and I laughed out loud causing B to look at me funny (he was in bed too reading Stephen King, how he falls asleep after reading that stuff I'll never know). I started to write down all the mistakes I made on the back of the pattern.

Yup. It happens to everyone. Still, I'd knit them again, they are really pretty mittens.