Stitch, Brinn, Stitch!

Some WIPs

January 21, 2012 in knitting, life | Tags: knitting, scarf, swap, sweater, wip, work in progress, wwfy | Leave a comment

Soo I’ve been knitting my little fingers to the bone recently. I’ve finished some shark mittens, am partway through a second pair, and have two other projects in the works.

First up is a Pfeiffer Falls scarf in some delightful recycled cashmere:

That’s a terrible picture and it’s not that far along, but it’s delightfully soft and I love the puffy cables. Unfortunately, winter has been really warm this year and I haven’t even needed to get out my wool peacoat. I’ve been wearing my red cotton H&M trench and that’s been perfectly sufficient. Not that I don’t have plenty of scarves already, but I wish I had some cold weather to inspire me to work on the scarf.

The other thing I’ve been working on is a mohair wrap sweater from Fitted Knits:

This is for a WWFY swap. I frogged the Lacy Ribbons sweater I was working on and started this wrap instead, working two strands of lace weight mohair on size 11 needles. It’s going really quickly and even though it’s not for me, I love working on it. I might make one for myself but not in mohair. Probably lace weight cashmere held doubled or tripled.

I meant to photograph the sharks I just finished but then I forgot and you guys have seen sharks before. Perhaps I’ll remember to photograph the pair I’m currently working on, which (fingers crossed) should be the last pair. I have one pair of dino mittens that was returned (size Child large, 7″ length). I’m going to put them on Etsy, but if anyone here’s wants them, let me know. They’re ready to ship and will be $34.

Also, my lovely boyfriend Joe will be in town tomorrow sometime for about a week, so blame him if posting is erratic.

I Have a Lot of Yarn

January 17, 2012 in dyeing, stash | Tags: dyeing, recycing, stash, unraveling, yarn | Leave a comment

For the storage it is supposed to occupy, anyway. I did a bunch of unraveling stash sweaters and photographing yarn to add to my Ravelry stash. Here are some recent additions:

60/40 linen/cotton. GORGE, seriously. It’s such a happy color.

Mercerized cotton from a Calvin Klein sweater. Weird seaming but gorgeous yarn. About fingering. I’m thinking dress.

So I bought a vest at a yard sale, attempted to wear it, and it looked horrid on me. So I raveled it. It’s some kind of wool, I think merino. It was handknit so I suspect it’s a commercially available yarn. Maybe Malabrigo. It’s suuuuuper soft and the colors are so pretty.

I don’t remember the exact blend of this, but it’s lambswool/angora/nylon. The original color was light blue and I threw it in a dyepot to soak up some extra dye a while ago. Pretty.

Light blue silk yarn + black RIT dye = shiny shiny silver yarn that I am completely besotted with. Seriously. It’s so pretty. I have a lot more blue silk from the Nordstrom cardigan it came from, and I’ll probably overdye the rest. The silver is so pretty. It looks tiny but I think it’s somewhere in the neighborhood of 50g.

I’m also knitting things. Sharks (of course) and a scarf for me and a sweater for WWFY. Hopefully it will be before a week from now that I actually talk about those things.

FO: Garter Belt

January 12, 2012 in knitting, life | Tags: finished objects, FO, garter belt, knitting, life | 1 comment

I usually like to post every other day but apparently have a real job that requires me to be actually working (not knitting) makes that difficult. I’m gonna shoot for once or twice a week and call it a success. Anyway, I knitted a thing. The knitting’s been done for a while actually, but I’ve just recently (meaning last week) gotten photos of it. In my defense, I’ve been deep in the throes of another TV show obsession (BBC’s Sherlock if you must know. I have a thing for pretty British blokes who are clearly madly in love with each other).

On to the knitting.

Pattern: None, am sort of writing it up. Need to make another prototype.
Needles: US 5/3.75 mm straights
Yarn: 50/50 wool/acrylic

Yes, I wore tights. No, you cannot see my skivvies. Yes, I possibly had to shop out some lines. DON’T JUDGE ME. (And for the record, I am firmly on the side of tights are not pants, but you gotta do what you gotta do.)

Anyway, I put off photographing this for so long because I was convinced I would come up with a way to attach it to my socks without threading the ties through the ribbing and tying them together. I didn’t, obviously. I have to make another one for gauge/size issues anyway (this one was too big til I chucked it in the washing machine and drier and it shrunk a bit). I’ll probably attach something different to that one.

The pattern for this (if anyone’s interested) is sort of written but needs to be developed for clarity. On the off chance you’re interested in testing, please shoot me an email (or comment; I get those in my email too) and I’ll let you know if it’ll be ready for testing any time soon. I’d like it to be since I haven’t released a new pattern in a while and I’d like to continue expanding my library.

Unfortunately I have a billion sharks to knit first. Yes, still. Yes, I’m sick of them. I’m almost done though. I think. I hope.

FO: The Oncoming Storm

January 6, 2012 in knitting | Tags: cats, daleks, doctor who, fingerless mitts, FO, knitting, life | 1 comment

Yes, I know the Oncoming Storm refers to the Doctor and not the daleks. I did not name the pattern. But clearly I am the oncoming storm since I punched up through some daleks and out through the top. Suck on that, Davros. And yes, my obsession with this show is cemented.

Anyway, I finished these mitts:

Pattern: The Oncoming Storm
Yarn: Black Patons Classic Wool and silvery grey ArtFibers Ming, a merino/silk blend of delightfulness.
Needles: US 6/4mm
Mods: Changed the ribbed thumb to garter and fixed the first black stripe so it doesn’t have the grey purl bumps on the color change. I also used worsted instead of dk.

I really love how they came out–they fit really well and the Ming is soooo soft. It’s like kitten fur mixed with clouds and dreams. Seriously nice. And the silk makes it really strong too–I couldn’t break it with my hands, which is pretty impressive seeing as it’s a single.

This last picture features one of our four cats. His name is Scrawny and my mother found him in my grandparents’ barn as a stray. I think he’s getting old now because we don’t know how old he was when we found him, but he’s a sweet cat. Loves to sit on my lap and curl up next to me while I sleep. He never used to like coming in my room but now he pretty much never leaves. Here’s a better photo:

WIP: The Oncoming Storm

January 4, 2012 in knitting | Tags: daleks, doctor who, knitting, wip | 1 comment

I am a huge nerd. I somehow do not have any fingerless mitts. Therefore, these had to happen:

As you probably gathered, I have recently become a HUGE Doctor Who nut. I caught up on the entire New Who series in about two months or so and fell in love hard. I love the Daleks because they’re so delightfully campy and these mitts don’t scream “THIS IS ABOUT DOCTOR WHO.” Not that I’d care if they did.

The pattern is The Oncoming Storm and is pretty clearly written. I’m using some black Patons Classic Wool leftover from some spats and Artfibers Ming, a wool/silk single that feels like kittens. I’m having knitting anything else because I love working on these. Need to make some sharks, but I’m definitely enjoying the distraction.

Vacation Times

January 2, 2012 in knitting, life | Tags: disney, holidays, life, vacation | 1 comment

I’ve been somewhat remiss in blogging for the past, oh, two weeks or so. Sorry about that. In my defense I was out of town with REALLY terrible internet for much of that time. I went to Florida to visit my grandparents and we went to Disney since my grandparents work for the company. I, of course, brought my knitting to entertain myself in line.

I also fed kangaroos (!):

And made kissy faces at goats:

Also, this happened:

EPCOT has a Norway section. Because totes, that’s what you do in Norway.

Anyway, I mostly knitted sharks (I finished about three pair I think), but I did start a new thing which I will talk about later when I get some decent pictures of it thus far. It’s a thing for me because I’m taking a little break from sharks even though I have like three more pairs to knit. Bleh. I do like the income though.

Also, happy new year to all. I don’t really have any New Year’s resolutions (not that I’d keep them anyway), but my goals for 2012 are to be better and to finally move up to Fairfax and out of my parents’ house. I’m really hoping I’ll stick to that last one. I love working as a substitute teacher, but I’m sure I can find something similar in NOVA.

FO: Marzipan Cowl

December 21, 2011 in knitting | Tags: commissions, cowl, Etsy, FO, knitting | Leave a comment

I recently finished another non-shark FO! It was a commission, and it went faster than I thought it would.

Pattern: Marzipan Cowl (mine)
Yarn: Vanna’s Choice recycled from a vest I never wore
Needles: US 8/5mm I think
Mods: Made it a bit smaller around and the gauge is different.

I’m pretty pleased with how it came out and I was glad to make something other than mittens. I might make a similar one in wool for myself.

I am currently working on mittens, being exhausted from my actual job, and packing (sort of) for my holiday trip to Florida to visit my grandparents. During which I’ll likely be knitting all the things.

This post would have been more involved, but I’m exhausted, so there’s that. So yeah.

News and Not Sharks!

December 19, 2011 in knitting | Tags: commissions, dinosaurs, Etsy, FO, knitting, mittens | Leave a comment

News first! After weeks of staring at the WP ad above my dashboard, I finally caved and purchased my very own domain name! I am now located at stitchbrinnstitch.com (though it might take a day or so to load), though you can still find me at the WordPress link. Yay! Now it’ll be much easier to pass out my website.

Now a finished thing that isn’t sharks or spats! It is, however, mittens.

Pattern: Jurassic Mittens
Yarn: Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride in Kiwi and some recycled sweater yarn for the mouth.
Needles: US 8/4mm
Mods: None, they’re my damn pattern.

The dinos were a nice change from the sharks I’ve been knitting as of late. I love Lamb’s Pride (it’s squooshy and soft) and I ought to get some for myself (not that I need any more yarn).

On my plate at the moment, I have another pair of dinos and two pairs of sharks. And then there’s that mohair pullover. And all the things I want to make for me. Later this week I’ll have another non-shark FO, so you can look forward to that.

Good luck to people knitting for Christmas. I’m not knitting for anyone this year, even my completely knit-worthy boyfriend. I bought his birthday present this year (albeit a couple weeks late since we’re celebrating in January). I’ll probably knit it next year, but this year I simply didn’t have the time between my Etsy store and my actual real job (which is completely awesome. I love teaching).

FOs: Spats and Sharks

December 15, 2011 in knitting | Tags: commissions, doctor who, finished object, FO, knitting, life, mittens, spats, torchwood | 2 comments

I’m currently feeling the Christmas crunch thanks to my apparently booming Etsy business. I currently have seven outstanding mitten orders plus a Marzipan Cowl someone requested. So I’m knitting my fingers to the bone.

Here’s some things I finished recently:

Teal Spiffy Spats in Vanna’s Choice acrylic (didn’t have any teal on hand). I usually don’t like acrylic, but Vanna’s Choice is actually quite nice. Kinda smooshy. Just fine for items for sale.

Sharks in some wool I dyed, as usual. I took some glamor shots.

I finished those last week sometime and have been knitting away since then in between my regular job. I have, in the last couple of weeks, watched seasons 1-5 of New Doctor Who and 1-2 of Torchwood. I am now completely obsessed with the Whoniverse, so expect crafts on that front. I’m currently watching Torchwood: Miracle Day and holy Christ, it’s gripping. I’m getting less knitting done than I ought to because it’s so gripping I forget to knit. That rarely happens.

And yes, I’m a huge dork.

FO: Weeping Angel

December 11, 2011 in crochet | Tags: blink, crochet, doctor who, fandom, weeping angel | 2 comments

So I have this habit of cycling through sci fi franchises. The good ones I watch obsessively and welcome to the fold of my fandoms. It is these shows which I continue to rave about, craft about, and obsess about. Among these franchises are SG1 and SGA (oh, how I love SGA), BSG, Harry Potter (of course) and Sanctuary (still ongoing but despite the protests of my inner biologist, I love that show to death. Mostly because of Amanda Tapping).

In the past couple of weeks, I’ve welcomed a new franchise into the fold. Doctor Who. Oh, Doctor Who. I protested for so long even though my college friends were nuts about it. I saw part of 9/Rose episode on TV once and part of a Tom Baker ep at college and I didn’t care for it. It was odd, the special effects were terrible, the writing was disappointing.

And then, a couple of weeks ago, I watched Blink.

And there I fell, head over heels for the doctor and the TARDIS and the many companions (I even liked Donna in the end). I’m currently on episode 10 of season five (I went back to the beginning and pretty much marathoned what was on Netflix, which is 1-5). I’m completely obsessed. I’m planning Tardis socks, setting an alarm for the Christmas special, and crocheting this:

Pattern: Weeping Angel Statue
Yarn: Left overs from some sharks
Hook: 3.75
Mods: Worked the base attached to the body instead of separately.

Not that I particularly have the space for things without a use, but this worked up so quickly and was a nice break between shark mittens. And once I craft about a fandom, you know my love is official. (See Chuck Palaniuk, Futurama, Battlestar Galactica, SG1)