Stitch, Brinn, Stitch!

FO: Hanukkah Cowl

November 29, 2013 in weaving | Tags: cowl, finished object, FO, gift, infinity scarf, weaving | 1 comment

Wow, posting every day kind of went down in flames, huh? Anyway, I made a cowl:

Yarn: Recycled 50/50 wool/acrylic
Loom: Vergere (24″ LeClerc)
Reed: 5.5 dpi
Weave: Tabby

I’ve called it the Hanukkah Cowl because it’s kind of a Hanukkah present. Joe’s sister asked if I would make her an infinity cowl, and I agreed. Since I finished it just a couple of days before Hanukkah (which started Wednesday night), I’m calling it a Hanukkah gift. Even though I’m not usually a gift person. I like making things for people, but usually only if they ask for something specific. I do make/buy gifts for Joe, but he’s really the only one with any regularity.

This wove up super fast. I mean, it’s worsted weight yarn on the loom, so yeah. Fast. I finished it in like two days of weaving in the evenings after work. The seam is about five total sewing lines–I zigzagged the ends of the fabric and cut off the fringe, then sewed a right-sides-together straight seam. And then I zigzagged the seam allowance down to the wrong side. It actually blends in fairly well. I don’t have a picture of the seam, but it’s fairly hard to see. I mean, it’s bulkier than the rest of the fabric, so it’s not impossible to find, but still.

I love the way this yarn wove up. I beat fairly loosely and it tightened up nicely. I have another skein or two of this yarn–maybe I’ll make another scarf or cowl or something. Not sure who for cause god knows I don’t need any more scarves (not that that stops me).

Anyway, I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving yesterday if you’re in the US and a lovely Thursday if you’re not. Be kind to Black Friday salespeople (Joe is one of them).

Spinning FO: Cloverleaf Farms Merino

November 20, 2013 in spinning | Tags: finished object, FO, spinning, yarn | 1 comment

I made some more yarn on my super amazing spinning wheel! I started with this:

I spun it worsted, short forward draw (which I think is how I’ll usually spin things on the wheel) and two plied it. The fiber was super great (it’s the same fiber as this) and it spun up like a dream. I drafted mostly end to end.

I had hella tension issues with this though. For some reason, the take up was super slow compared to the twist. This is probably because I don’t have a break band on the flyer, though I didn’t have that problem with the targhee. I’m going to fashion a break band out of some leather scraps I have, but I’m not really sure how I would go about attaching it. Maybe I’ll just lash it on there somehow.

A good, strong thwack evened out a lot of the tension issues. It’s not perfect and there are some spots that are definitely overspun, but for the most part, it softened up a lot.

Anyway, I got a total of 156 yards of a dk weight. I think it’s destined to be a hat of some kind. I mean, for the foreseeable future, it’ll just be stash because I have about a jillion other things to make first (two pairs of shark mittens; two pairs of mitts and a shawl for AnnaMarie), but still.

In life news: apartment hunting is soul-crushing. SOUL CRUSHING. That’s right, Joe and I are looking for a new place to live. Most likely a small studio or one-bedroom apartment, but that’s really all we need. The goal is to move in January right after the start of the year. I can’t wait to get out of my current place–it’s become untenable for a variety of reasons. But we’ve found some good options, so I’m sure we’ll find something. I just have to find myself a new job now. (And let me tell you, that is SO MUCH WORSE than apartment hunting).

Anyway. In fandom news: I think I mentioned before I was all caught up on Once Upon a Time. I don’t know if any of you saw this past Sunday’s episode, but OH MY GOD. sjkhsaf. Yeah. Anyway, I’ve started watching Lost Girl, which is basically a combination of the show Angel and that first episode of Torchwood with the sex energy alien. I completely adore it though. And I’m still reading Rogue Squadron. Oh my, but those books are good. SO GOOD.

More than Sharks

November 14, 2013 in knitting | Tags: knitting, shawl, socks, swap, wip, work in progress, wwfy | Leave a comment

Sooo I think we can safely say posting every day isn’t for me. Anyway. No new finished objects today, but I do have a bunch of stuff on the needles! Here’s a smattering:

Socks! I’m almost through the gusset decreases on the first one. The yarn is Wild Hare Pinnacle Sock in “Peacock”, and it is absolutely stunning. The colors are SO PRETTY. Unfortunately, the sock is kind of on the back burner thanks to everything else.

Big blue triangle shawl! The yarn is Berroco Ultra Alpaca. I got two skeins of it from Joe for my birthday last year, and I think it’ll be perfect as a gigantic triangle shawl. I’m not getting to work on it as much as I’d like though.

Catkin! I’m a bit further along than this, although not much. It’s in Skinny Bugga and it’s for AnnaMarie as part of a WWFY swap. I actually really enjoy working on this when I get the chance.

Alas, the thing that’s sucking up the majority of my knitting time is something I don’t have pictures of: shark mittens. There ARE pictures of shark mittens (on my patterns page and up in the header, and that’s just on the blog). I have to do teeth on a pair of adult smalls I just finished and I’m about a centimeter past the thumb divide (working two-at-a-time) on a pair of adult larges. And then I have a pair of child smalls to do. I need the money, especially with my upcoming move, but still. Sharks forever.

So moving: I’m doing it. Ideally in January (I say ideally, but what I mean is I’m pretty sure I’ll be evicted from my current place then soooo). I don’t have a place picked out yet (there are some issues), but I have been looking. There’s a place that I think would work out really well, but I have to discuss it with Joe. I tell you, apartment hunting is soul-sucking. Not as much as job hunting (which I’ve been doing as well), but still. Being an adult sucks, you guys. It really sucks.

FO: Battle Gauntlets

November 12, 2013 in knitting | Tags: fingerless mittens, finished object, FO, knitting, mitts, swap, wwfy | 2 comments

Remember when I said that the first day I missed, Nov 3, might be the only one? Yeah. Hah. Anyway.

Pattern: Battle Gauntlets
Yarn: Verdant Gryphon Mondegreen (blue) and a bit of AnnaMarie’s handspun for the braid
Needles: US 4/3.75mm
Mods: Plug and play, kids. Plug and play.

These are another pairs of mitts for AnnaMarie as part of our ongoing WWFY swap. I think they came out rather well, which is surprising given all the trouble I had knitting them. I had to restart them like three times. The first two times I screwed up the braid. The third try came out WAY too big. The forth time (cause I REstarted three times) finally worked. The cuff actually came out a bit snugger than anticipated, but not so much so that they’re impossible to wear.

The cuff makes a nice, sturdy fabric–perfect for gauntlets. I was worried the hand would come out too big, but I fixed it with a somewhat unconventional thumb. Instead of shifting just the increased stitches to waste yarn for the thumb, I borrowed a couple from the rest of the thumb. Perfect fit.

The yarn was a dream to work with. Very soft, not at all splitty, great depth of color. Not that I would expect any less from someone who used to be half of Sanguine Gryphon. Super lovely.

In fandom news, I finished the first Rogue Squadron book (named, of course, Rogue Squadron) and will start Wedge’s Gamble tomorrow. I’m all caught up on Once Upon and Time (and in Wonderland) and OH MAN it’s so good. I was a little concerned when (spoiler) at the end of season one, and season two was a little weaker, but season three is right on form. The stuff about Henry and Peter is super good and I was the rest of the season now. So I’m not currently binging on anything, but I might start Star Trek: Enterprise. Joe watched some of it and said it was pretty good. And I want to get back to Voyager but the first season was just so terrible. For now, I’ll just keep up with the shows I watch that are currently on (QI, Once, Castle, Shield, Arrow (omg Arrow is so good), the Daily Show, and the Colbert Report). Lots of good knitting time.

Spinning FO: Mountain Colors Targhee

November 10, 2013 in spinning | Tags: finished object, FO, gifts, spinning, stash, yarn | 1 comment

Sooo I accidentally skipped posting yesterday. Whoops. Anyway, I finished the yarn I was spinning, the first yarn on my new wheel:

It came out more or less exactly as intended–a heavy sport/light dk two ply with decent yardage. I got 240 yards and it did puff up a little in the wash. I spun it woolen with a short forward draw.

The spinning went by SO FAST. Less than a week. And the plying I did in just a couple of hours. I could only fit about 2 ounces on my bobbins so I had to splice the two halves together to get one skein. The join is pretty thick, so I’ll have to work on that for the next skein.

As I said, I’m going to send it to Lisa, who sent me the wheel I spun it on. Seems right she should get the first product of the wheel. I hope she likes it–and I’ll get to spinning the next skein!

Sparkle Yarn

November 8, 2013 in stash | Tags: sock yarn, stash, yarn | Leave a comment

Sock yarn doesn’t count as stash, right?

Especially if it sparkles?

I didn’t think so.

FO: Susie’s Reading Mitts

November 7, 2013 in knitting | Tags: fingerless mitts, fo finished object, knitting, mitts, swap, wwfy | 2 comments

Man, the parade of FOs just never stops around here. I made some mitts for Anna-Marie!

Pattern: Susie’s Reading Mitts by Susie Rodgers
Yarn: Blue Moon Socks that Rock Medium Weight in Rare Gems Fire
Needles: US 5/3.75mm
Mods: I used a provisional cast on instead of sewing up the bottom hem. As usual, I mostly just threw the stitch pattern in to my basic mitts pattern

So these knit up super quick. The yarn is a bit light for what’s called for, but I think this worked out okay. Both Anna-Marie and I have tiny hands, so the small gauge means they fit really well. I’ve had this pattern in my queue for a while and I got a chance to knit it up here. I probably won’t make them again, but they are cute. I like the picot hem. But then I love a good turned hem.

The yarn was an absolute delight to work with. It’s a very round, dense yarn, which I really love with fingerless gloves. And hats. And everything. The color’s nice too, although I don’t usually tend toward red for myself (recent sweater project notwithstanding). There’s a considerable amount of the yarn left. I can’t recall if Anna-Marie wants it back, but if she doesn’t, it’ll make a lovely hat. (It will make a lovely hat regardless, but you know what I mean.)

In only tangentally related news, I think I’m out of FOs for the moment. I have several works in progress, so expect tomorrow’s post to be something that isn’t finished yet. Imagine that–you guys can see something I’m making it before it’s finished. Remember when I used to do WIP posts? It’ll be just like old times.

A Wheel of One’s Own

November 6, 2013 in spinning, stash | Tags: antique wheels, new things, spinning, spinning wheel, stash, tools, wip, work in progress | 6 comments

Or: Ravelry folks are the kindest people you will ever meet

You guys. YOU GUYS. Let me spin you a tale (pun ABSOLUTELY intended). A tale of kindness and goodness and generosity. So I’m a fairly poor 20-something living in a basement. My disposable income is not great. I make do. I spend a lot of time on Ravelry in various forums, notably (for this story) the Unravellers forum. We take apart thrift store sweaters to save money on yarn. I have, on occasion, bemoaned the fact that I can’t afford a spinning wheel to ply all my cobweb weight cashmere and also fiber. Anyway, I got a pm the other day from the sweetest person ever. She said her friend had given her a spinning wheel that had belonged to the friend’s mother. Having no use for a wheel but being a member of Ravelry (and thus access to people who might want and use a spinning wheel), she took it. And then pmed me saying she had this wheel and had seen my posts and would I like it?

Would I like it?

Would I like it?

I could have it, she said, so long as I reimbursed her for the postage.

*excited screaming*

Needless to say, I accepted her INCREDIBLY generous offer and the wheel was shipped off. It was delivered yesterday, and I spent a couple of hours putting it together and figuring out how it worked. I had some issues getting the flyer to spin and it was a whole thing, but I got it working. This is my lovely new wheel in her new home:

I’ve named her Alexandra. I wanted something sort of English and regal. My first thought was Elizabeth, but that’s what my dress form is called, so that was out. Victoria didn’t seem quite right. So Alexandra it is.

The wheel is a Saxony style of unknown make and model. There aren’t any markings or anything on it. It appears to have both flyer and bobbin whorls, so I can set it up with Irish, Scotch, or double band tension. I set it up with Irish tension since, after a bit of playing, that seemed to make the most sense to me. I played around with some extra bits of fiber and once I thought I’d gotten the hang of it, I started in with some nice fiber.

This is Mountain Colors Targhee, which I purchased at a yarn shop in Vienna, Uniquities. I’m going to two-ply it I think. It’s spinning up SUPER fast on the wheel. I’ve got about 2 oz of 4 oz on the bobbin here, and that was after about three-ish hours of spinning yesterday and maybe another hour tonight. No way I could do that on a spindle.

I’m going to spin this up for Lisa, the amazing person that brought this wheel into my life. I don’t anticipate it taking very long, since work today was an exercise in patience being away from my new shiny for so long.

I’m gonna have to buy a lot more fiber to satisfy my new spinning need. I’m in love.

FO: Dinosaur Mittens

November 5, 2013 in knitting | Tags: dinosaurs, finished object, FO, knitting, mittens, shop | Leave a comment

Day five, four posts, and four FOs. Aww yeah. Why yes, I have been knittin up a storm. I guess the logical thing to do would be to save some of these FOs so I’d have something to post if I run out of things to post near the end of November, but planning ahead has never really been my strong suit. Anyway.

Pattern: My own Jurassic Mittens, the allosaur and the triceratops.
Yarn: Recycled. All recycled. Wool.
Needles: US 8/5 mm
Mods: None? I mean, it’s my pattern. It sorely needs an update.

I made these for an Etsy customer. It was nice to knit something other than sharks for Etsy, but then again, the sharks have fewer parts to be sewn on and I can make the teeth out of felt. And the base mitten pattern is exactly the same. Anyway.

There isn’t a tremendous amount of stuff to say about these mittens, so here’s another picture.

Annnnd now, in fandom news: I am rereading Rogue Squadron (I say rereading–the first time it was read to me aloud, so I’m sort of reading it for the first time). It’s the best thing ever and I’m completely in love with it. Wedge is one of my favorite Star Wars characters (after Mara Jade obviously because Mara). I also started watching Once Upon a Time. OH MY GOD THIS SHOW. I completely adore it, OMG. It’s so good. I’m completely hooked on the plot. It doesn’t hurt that everyone is completely gorgeous (wow, how many times can I use the word “completely” in one paragraph?). And Emma and Mary Margaret have some really sweet knitted hats. Some of which, I’m sure, I will attempt to replicate. Anyway, I’m almost through season one and it’s SO GOOD. Netflix, ilu.

FO: Veyla

November 4, 2013 in knitting | Tags: finished object, FO, knitting, mitts, swap, wwfy | 3 comments

Wow, two days and I’ve already failed at NaBloPoMo. In NaNo, if you miss a day, you can always make it up by writing more the next day. Unfortunately, that isn’t really the case here unless I post twice in the same day. Which I suppose I could, but still. Anyway, I’m going to continue trying to post every day. Maybe that’ll be the only day I skip (ha, like that’ll happen).

Anyway, you’re not here for meta blog talks; you’re here for posts about knitting. So here’s some knitting:

Pattern: Veyla by Ysolda Teague
Yarn: Cephalopod Yarns Skinny Bugga in Strawberry Crab, a negligible amount of the skein (seriously, there’s 90g left).
Needles: US 3/3.25 mm double points
Mods: None; knit exactly as written (shocking, I know)

Sooo these are completely gorgeous and I never want to give them up. I will, of course, because they’re for AnnaMarie, but I completely love them. The yarn is gorgeous, the pattern is gorgeous, the buttons match perfectly… Sigh. I do have a pair of these mitts I made myself (in some lovely cashmere no less), but oh, these mitts. I’ll pine for these mitts. (Okay, I probably won’t, but they are seriously pretty.)

I’m pretty sure these won’t be my last pair of Veyla. I knit these up in two days (of course, that was pretty constantly knitting) and I adore the pattern. Course, when I make some for me, I’ll have to use a slightly less gorgeous yarn, but I’ll aim for a nice deep jewel tone. My Veylas are lavender, which is fine and all, but like, did you see these mitts in this yarn?

*fans self* Oh my.