Heeeeeeey so Canary Sanctuary featured me as her Indie Designer Profile! Whoo! So go check it out and I’ll be back tomorrow with a FO.
SO WHO SAW THE DOCTOR WHO PREMIERE? ALL THE THOUGHTS. So brain is basically DOCTOR WHO OMG and also ROGUE SQUADRON OMG because the boyfriend is reading them to me and ALL MY FEELINGS. Anyway, I’ve been knitting on some super secret stuff so I can’t show that just yet. I can, however, show you some sewing I did yesterday.\
First I made this zipper pouch to replace my old Halloween-themed knitting notions bag:
Pretty simple and I managed not to fuck it up too badly which is great cause me + sewing usually = mistakes.
The next thing is a project bag that is AMAZING AND FANNISH:
AHH TARDIS FABRIC. Spoonflower had a deal recently for a free fat quarter with $1 shipping. So you know I was all over that. I also made an *ahem* super secret project and I had about a five inch square left over. So it became this:
TARDIS hoop! For the hoop wall/door, obviously. : )
The other dy I finished spinning the orange sparkly fiber I got at the Uniquities Fiber Festival. It was a super fun, fast spin, and I am thrilled with the resulting yarn.
Fiber: Avalon Farms Targee/Mohair/Glitz in Avebury Circle, 4 oz.
Yardage: 208 yards
Weight: DKish
I spun the singles on my .9 oz KnotMyDayJob spindle and plied with my big ass maple spindle. It’s my plying spindle. I currently only have three usable spindles (those two and my supported; my Schatt Hi-Lo had a bit of an accident) which seems like not enough, but then I don’t usually do more than one spinning project at once (though I am working on support spindling some merino which I started after I started the Avalon Farms).
I have basically no idea what I’m going to make with this yarn. I love it and it’s super squooshy and springy but it’s not the softest. My singles were a bit overspun and I wouldn’t want the yarn next to my neck. I’m thinking hat for right now, but maybe not. Maybe it’ll just be pretty and sit in my stash. : )
Good news first: I am employed! It’s only part time, but it’s working with a nanny agency and I quite like it. We’ll let that be the reason I’ve been terrible about blogging. Because I’ve been doing a bit of crafting, mostly knitting. I currently have two projects on the needles, though one is a super secret wedding present, so no pictures of that because the recipient might wander over here. The other is a lace sweater of my own design:
Top down, set in sleeves, making it up as I go. I’m using a half pound cone of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece fine. I think I should have enough yarn, but I’m going to do all the cuffs/edgings in a blue of the same yarn. I’m pretty thrilled with the way things have turned out so far.
Here’s a close up of the stitch pattern I’m using:
I do sort of have a finished object, but it’s a pair of shark mittens for an Etsy buyer. You guys all know what they look like and anyway I forgot to snap a picture before I packaged them up.
I’m also doing two swaps: a yarn/hooper swap (for which I am a yarnie and will be knitting) and a Doctor Who swap. The new season starts Sept. 1 and I cannot wait at all. Love that show. : )
I’ve been finishing things so quickly around here lately (one of the benefits of being unemployed) that I don’t believe I ever had the chance to mention I was working on this skirt. And now it’s done!
Pattern: Carnaby Skirt from Knitty
Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes, 5.5 skeins in Hollyberry
Needles: US 6/4 mm KP Options
Mods: I apparently can’t read, so my wedges don’t have the purl rows and I didn’t do the garter hem around the bottom, so I just did a couple rows of crochet.
I absolutely adore the buttons I used for this. They’re super sparkly. I love silver. The problem was that I only had four so the top two are just plain black buttons. I figured those two will almost always be covered up by my shirt, so it’ll be fine.
This was a super fun knit and it kept me entertained all the way through it. It came out a titch too big but I crocheted a chain to weave through the top and it fits just fine. I can’t wait for the weather to get cooler–this skirt will look great with tights, boots, and a blouse.
In more life-related knitting, I sold my first pair of shark mittens of the season yesterday on Etsy. I dyed up some yarn and am currently knitting them up. Tis the season, so get ready to see lots of sharks on the blog. I certainly won’t complain–I could do with the income.
So remember how I bought that supported spindle from the Uniquities Fiber Market? I have been practicing my butt off and I’ve finally got the hang of it. It took a couple weeks and some serious frustration, but I’ve found the key: a loose prep and fiber that’s not boring. I spun up this batt the other day:
It was only about 1.5 oz so it took practically no time at all. Plus I stopped caring about evenness, which was pretty impossible considering the yarn/neps/bits content. I two-plied it and got this:
It’s only about 50 yards of a dk-ish weight. Not sure I’ll ever knit it into anything (maybe a little stuffy). It’s kind of the ugliest yarn ever, but as my first supported spindle skein, it’s not bad.
Having finished that, I spun up some leftover BFL I had hanging about:
This one required a ton of predrafting because the fiber was so compacted, but it came out pretty nice. I navajo plied it. Not sure of the yardage but it’s a tiny tiny little skein. Mostly just decoration I think.
I then started a new supported spindle project:
The fiber is the other half of a four oz braid I got somewhere online a while back. It’s merino in the color way “Storm Front Coming”. I bought it from LakeHouse Loft on Artfire I think. It’s pretty compacted from being smooshed in my stash, but it’s spinning up pretty evenly. So yay.
A note on the spindle bowl: I was previously using a tiny tea cup. When I was in the Outer Banks, I went to a store called Michael’s, where they sell all manner of fossils, shells, geodes, stones, etc. They had a bunch of stone mortar and pestle sets and I was going to get one to use as a spindle bowl. On the last day, I spotted one that had been marked down for its missing pestle. Perfect. So I got an amazing spindle bowl for $5. It’s stone, so it’s good and solid and won’t tip over. WHOOT.
So remember that project I started after Counterpane that I was 80% through? Well it’s done now, natch. I have a lot of time. So yeah.
Pattern: Veyla from Whimsical Little Knits 2
Yarn: Recycled cashmere, navajo plied
Needles: US 3/3.25 mm dpns
In addition to being completely adorable and soft and warm and beautiful, these mitts were also extremely fast and fun to knit. The cuff is interesting and there isn’t much plain stockinette. Definitely kept my attention.
So I will have a lovely pair of mitts when the weather gets around to cooling. Especially if I have to commute on the Metro. You know, when I eventually get a job. Cause I need one. Anyway, pretty.
Sooooo hi there. It’s been a while. In my defense, I went to the Outer Banks with my boyfriend and his folks for a week and didn’t really have time for blog posting. There was way too much beaching and knitting and swimming and Scrabble-playing for blogging. BUUUT I did finish my Ravelympics Ravellenic project. Just barely, just under the wire.
Pattern: Counterpane Blouse, from the Summer 2010 Interweave Knits
Yarn: 65/35 linen/cotton recycled yarn
Needles: US 4/3.5 mm
Mods: Skipped some of the skirt decreases and my pick up for the skirt was uneven to say the least so I just sort of winged it.
WHOOOO. I just finished the crochet edging around 7pm EST which is about midnight BST, the end of the Olympic Closing Ceremonies (ope, hope I don’t get sued). So just in time. It was close. I finished the main knitting in the car on the way back from the beach but didn’t have a crochet hook so I had to hurry and finish the edging once I got home.
In case anyone is keeping up with my 12 in 12 sweater challenge, I am up to eight. So I’m right on track. WHOO.
I finished knitting around three that afternoon so of course I had to start another project, rather then work on one already started. That project is about 80% done now thanks to two hour-long metro rides today. But more on that later. : )
YOU GUYS YOU GUYS IT’S THAT TIME. Where I challenge myself to knit a sweater and apparently five other things in two weeks! Whoo! I hear there’s some sports or something happening, but NBC apparently doesn’t want me to actually see them seeing as I don’t have cable. (Bootleg online tv is another story, however. Don’t tell the ass hats at NBC. Or do. Whatever.)
ANYWAY I’m knitting a sweater. Well, a top at any rate. I’m knitting Counterpane out of some recycled linen/cotton in a GORGEOUS teal. Here’s where I was earlier (I have since knitted a fair bit more):
I’m knitting for Team Unravelers, where we are using recycled yarn. Whoo!
I also had to knit a Betta fish for an Etsy customer, so I guess I medaled in Toy Toss but I never actually got a picture of it before I put in in the mailbox this morning. I also had a impromptu Frogging Trampoline entry where I frogged my Lelah as it is too small. Plus side: Two skeins of my beloved Cascade Sierra to play with.
More sweater updates as they happen. I’m planning to see if I can squeeze some fingerless mitts in before the end.
Sooo I made sweater number seven for the year:
(I’m cool)
Pattern: Accidentally on Purpose Drop Stitch Tank from Stitch and Bitch Nation. Sort of.
Yarn: Lion Brand Incredible, exactly three skeins
Needles: US 10/6mm
Mods: All of them. Based on this version in Incredible.
I quite like how this top came out. It fits well and gives me SHAPES. Like, check out that hourglass action happening there.
Yeah. I knit this up really quickly (about two days). I intended to follow the pattern sort of, but I ended up just making it up as I went along. This resulted in a much higher neckline than intended, but I like it. Very racer back-shaped. Lovely. Have to wear a tank underneath because of the dropped stitches (which were super fun) but no matter.
Since completing this top, it’s been cast-on mania around here. I currently have seven WIPs, including two spinning projects. Also, the EFKA Ravelympics (Ravelenic WHATEVER FUCK YOU USOC) starts tomorrow, so that’ll be another thing cast on. Look for posts on that soon. I’m looking to complete a summer top (Counterpane to be exact), so we’ll see how that goes.
Stitch, Brinn, Stitch! 