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Today, I’ve got one small FO to show you and a couple of wip’s. First, the FO:
Pattern: None, just a square of linen stitch
Yarn: Handspun Miss Babs BFL
Needles: US 5/3.75 mm
My lining is sort of shoddy and it’s not wide enough, but it fits my phone and ID card fairly easily, and that’s what I use it for. Plus I get to look at my pretty pretty handspun even when it’s not cold enough for Saroyan. : )
Currently, I’m working on a hat that will probably be finished today or tomorrow. Currently, it looks like this:
(it’s rather difficult to photograph a half-finished hat, by the way)
Almost done. I’m using the same orange vintage Grants Wool I’ve had for ages and am slowly making my way through. The color is a lot less obnoxious than the bright orange it originally was, but I still don’t love it. This hat is for a swap. The swap is called “Yarnies Vs. Sewers” and is partnered based on craft, a yarnie (spinner/knitter/crocheter) with a sewer. Sign ups aren’t technically over until next week, but another person and I decided that we needed to be partnered based on the (probably rude) thing I wanted to make for someone. So we insisted, and the mod complied, and we’ve already gotten started (even though the send out isn’t until Mary). I’m making a total of five things, none particularly complicated, and will probably be finished quite early.
I am also sort of working on spinning this:
Or half of it anyway. I got 8 oz. of Crown Mountain Farms superwash merino in a Ravelry destash, and I’m spinning 4 oz. into what will hopefully be a 2 ply worsted that I’ll knit into the yoke of a sweater.
Also, I am waiting on some mail–an OWS swap which I am incredibly excited to receive, and some roving I ordered which is RIDICULOUSLY AWESOME and gorgeous, and I’ll definitely be showing it off here. I expect to get both things on Monday or Tuesday, so stay tuned for that.
So for my lastest OWS adventure, I claimed JodiLynn85 for slippers. Fast and fun to make, and now I’ll probably make some for myself. Take a look:
Pattern: Mary Jane Slippers
Yarn: Bernat Alpaca Blend
Hook: H8/5 mm
Mods: Worked an extra toe round, only used one color.
These came out pretty well, I think. And they were SUPER fast to make. Less than an hour per slipper. Probably close to an hour and a half for the pair. Yeah. FAST. They fit me, which means they should fit her pretty well too. I used a Bernat alpaca blend that everyone on Ravelry seems to despise, but I really don’t think it’s that bad. I mean, yeah, it sheds a lot, but so do cats and the shedding wasn’t really too bad. And I personally don’t find it that itchy, but I seem to be immune to all but the absolute itchiest of fibers. Like, I have no problem whatsoever wearing Cascade eco next to skin, and people bitch about that one all the time.
Pair two:
Pattern: Same as above, Mary Jane Slippers.
Yarn: Vintage wool that I over dyed and now instead of obnoxious orange is just blood orange colored.
Hook: H8/5 mm
Mods: One color. I left out the extra round I added above.
These were also super fast to make and probably took less than two hours total. There was a small hiccup when I realized I’d sewn the strap and button on backwards on the second one (I have a tendency to mix that up a lot), but that was easily fixed. And they came out pretty well. Ignore my purple feet; I didn’t feel like taking my socks off.
The reason, by the way, that one of them is two different colors is that I overdyed the yarn, and it didn’t take up the color evenly at all. The darker color is how I wanted the whole yarn to come out, but it didn’t. Boo. Oh well. That just means I have plenty of yarn for making swap things.
So I finally finished the shetland I was spinning. It took a while, but it came out totally awesome and I love it to pieces. Here’s what the fiber looked like:
(Side note: Someone pm’d me on Ravelry to tell me she thought this looked like a pile of ferrets at first glance)
And here’s what it looks like now:
Fiber: Spunky Eclectic Shetland top in Winnipeg
Weight: Fingering/sport (it’s a bit uneven)
Ply: 3 ply/Navajo plied
Yardage: Total of 460
Spindle: Schacht Hi-Lo, also ordered from Spunky Eclectic
With a coin for scale:
Okay, so I love this yarn to pieces. It’s the thinnest and most even thing I’ve ever spun, it’s reasonably soft, and I got an awesome yardage out of it (this is mostly because of the thin bits, but still). I love it. I’m planning to make socks with it, but regular size ones, not just the ankle socks I’ve been making. I’ll probably do a stockinette foot and ribbed leg, but I haven’t decided yet (but I’ll definitely be working them toe up). One of the skeins has a lot more pink than the others, and I expect that’ll show up in the socks too, but I don’t really have a problem with mismatching socks, so it’s alright.
I have a few projects on the needles currently (a shawl, that damned Featherweight, and some swap stuff), so it might be a bit before I actually start on the socks, but that’s what this yarn will eventually become. And they will be awesome.
I’ve decided, by the way, the Navajo plying is awesome. It’s fast, simple, and results in a lovely round yarn. I had heard that it was a little tricky, but I think because I crochet I picked it up rather quickly. There’s a yard or two of messy plying in the beginning of my sample skein (the tiny one in the first picture), but seeing as I’ll start my socks there, it’s alright since it’ll mostly be taken up in the figure 8 cast on anyway. Now I want to chain ply all of my yarn for socks, but the stash I have currently of fiber is mostly merino, which I wouldn’t want to use for socks. Clearly this means I need to buy more Romney/Jacob/Shetland/other fibers suitable for socks. I think my bank account just groaned in pain.
Sooooo I claimed PheonixFireDesigns for hand knit house socks! And they are great.
Pattern: Get-Together Cable Socks
Yarn: Some vintage orange wool I got at the thrift store that I’ve had forever.
Needles: US 6/4 mm Knit Picks Options Circular
Mods: Knit toe-up, left out some of the cables. Basically, I took the k1 rib and the 2×2 cable and threw them into my own socks.
I like how these came out. : ) I absolutely despise the color, but despite that, they’re cute. I worked these two at a time on Magic Loop. I don’t hate the technique, but I don’t think I love it either. I almost certainly wouldn’t bother for fingering weight socks, but these took practically no time at all, so it wasn’t too bad. At the very least, I’m fortunate to have done these on my Knit Picks Options because if I were still working on those cheap Susan Boye circular needles, there’s no way I would have finished these magic loop. I love my bendy Knit Picks cables. : )
Pattern: Basic toe up socks.
Yarn: Ella Rae Solid and some random red wool I probably got at the thrift store.
Needles: US 7/4 mm Knit Picks Options circ
So I love these socks. And if they weren’t size 6.5 and knit specifically for the swap, I’d keep them for myself. As it is, I think I have enough yarn to knit another pair for myself anyway. They remind me of spiderman. : ) I have more of the red than the blue left over, so I think for mine, I’ll do one row of blue and two of red.
Anyway, I hope Phoenix likes her socks. I certainly do. : )
Whoo! I made it! I completed my sweater, steek, zipper and all, in under 17 days!
Pattern: EZ’s Icelandic Yoke Sweater (Rav link) from Knitting Workshop
Yarn: Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool in Oatmeal, Lion Wool in Purple and Dark Teal, and Ella Rae Classic in Navy.
Needles: US 7/4.5 mm Knit Picks Options and Susan Bates dpns
Mods: Made it me sized (more like 34″ instead of 38″ or 40″), left out the neck shaping, did a steek (only sort of a mod), added a zipper.
So…. this sweater. It was an adventure. The knitting wasn’t especially difficult at all, although I haven’t had as much practice at colorwork as I’d like, so my floats are a little tight and it’s a little puckery. But I still love it. It was my first time doing a steek and putting in a zipper, both of which were nerve-wracking. I wasn’t sure about the tension of my sewing machine, so I was sure the whole thing was going to unravel after I cut it. It didn’t though! The zipper was also difficult. I ended up sort of basting it on and then top stitching it in place. Not the neatest job ever and it’s a little wavy, but it’s in there and it fits and it’s great.
The sweater is still drying as I’m typing (I snapped photos while it was a little dark; I wanted to catch the light), but I think by tomorrow, it will be ready for wearing. Very exciting.
So who else got the gold?
So I claimed for another round of OWS, as I said before. This round, I claimed luckdragon for Domo-Kun fingerless mitts and some amiguruimi, both of which turned out to be for her daughter. So this is what I made:
Pattern: My own, which I based on pictures of mitts on Craftster.
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash in brown and some random red wool.
Needles: US 7/4.5 mm
They’re cute. The eyes were a pain to sew on. The teeth are quilt batting since I didn’t have felt. They were also sort of a pain. Also, I tried out a new thumb gusset on these, and I think I’ll be using it from now on since it makes more sense.
And now the amigurumi (which I knitted, mostly):
Pattern: My own, which I made up mostly on the spot.
Yarn: Cascade 220
Needles: US 4/whatever metric size that is
He’s a little top heavy, but super cute. I started him before the Ravelympics started, then took a break from my sweater on Saturday to finish him up. I like him. His body and head/trunk were knit in one piece, and I crocheted the ears and legs. It was much easier that way than dealing with five dpns to knit four little legs.
Pattern: My own, which I totally just made up.
Yarn: Red Heart Heart and Sole in Watercolor Stripes
Needles: US 1
He’s cute too, with his little button eyes. I took more pictures of him than the other things:
He likes to play the piano!
With his favorite movie!
HE WILL HAUNT YOUR DREAMS.
Or just be cute. Here’s one more:
Pattern: Monster Chunks, sort of. I made it up, but I based in on this pattern.
Yarn: Lily Sugar ‘n’ Cream in Hot Pink and Serendipity Tweed in Water Lily Leaves
Needles: US 5/3.75 mm dpns
I wasn’t going to do the teeth, but I cut them out and they looked so cute, so I left them in. : ) This little guy is my favorite.
So now I’m expecting two OWS packages (plus some various other things I’ve ordered which I’ll probably show you whenever they get there). One of them was sent out today. The other isn’t due for another week (though I haven’t heard from her either, even just about my address). I really dislike getting flaked on, but at least the people I sent to are productive swappers that don’t flake (as far as I know).
(By the way, here’s what the Rav sweater looks like today:)
Body is done up to the armpits. Now need to finish and attach the sleeves, then do the yoke. I am flyin’ through this baby.
In case you were wondering, it is extremely difficult to block a full-length scarf in a dorm room. Just a PSA for your consideration. Still it worked out alright:
Pattern: Saroyan, by Liz Abinante (free Ravelry download)
Yarn: My own handspun BFL!
Needles: US 7/4.5 mm
Mods: Did seven increase repeats, six decrease repeats (yeah, I’m not sure how that worked out either) and 12 straight repeats.
When I started the scarf, I was worried the yarn was too fuzzy and the pattern wouldn’t show up clearly. This was true in the beginning, sort of, because my spinning hadn’t been very even. As the yarn got better, the pattern showed up better, so yay. I’m glad I persevered. It’s super pretty and the pattern is great.
The yarn is also great. Cause I spun it! It’s a little rough/ropey in places where I over plied and over spun, but a nice bath evened most of that out and the BFL is soft enough in most places anyway.
Here are some pretty detail shots:
In other knitting news, I’m fixing to have a couple more small things to show off soon. I claimed for another round of OWS for amigurumi and wrist warmers, so that’s happening. Plus the things I was claimed for.
Also, here’s what’s happening on the Ravelympics sweater:
(Yes, I’m watching the Ravelympics Radar. On my pretty pretty Mac.)
Yeah, I’m so getting gold.
So I finished a spinning thing! Remember the superwash merino Joe got me for my birthday?
Well, I finished spinning it. And it is great.
Fiber: Fiber Optic Superwash Merino, in colorway Superstition. 4 oz.
WPI: 28? / Lace weight
Yardage: About 700. I measured the first half, which was 374, but didn’t bother with the second, so I’m estimating about 700.
I had originally intended to make Swallowtail with this yarn, though I think the color repeats would too distracting. I still want a triangle shawl though, and I think I can get a pretty large one with my yardage. The trick will be to find one that’s interesting to knit (no no stockinette/garter with eyelets) that also plays nice with the yarn. It’s rather uneven in spots and occasionally goes up to a heavy fingering weight. I’ve got a couple other contenders, but I’ll look at some patterns and let you know what I come up with. : )
I’ve been knitting lots of small things lately, so it seems like every post recently has been a FO post. As such, here’s another small thing I finished:
Pattern: My own. I’m thinking of writing it up mostly because I like the decreases.
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash, about half a skein
Needles: US 7/4.5
I made this hat for Joe, the boyfriend, because the previous hat I made him was acrylic and did not cover his ears. Since he only wears it in the snow (I swear, it’s like he doesn’t cold–it’s a curse, being a knitter dating such a person), earflaps are a good thing. I can’t imagine he’ll wear it often, but at least I know that he will if it’s cold enough. And that he likes it. : )
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I love Cascade Yarns. This was my first time using the 220 Superwash (even though I’ve had it in the stash since probably June), and I LOVE it. It’s a little pricey for me to use a lot (poor college student, you know), but it is all kinds of soft. And superwash! It was so wonderful to knit with. And I have half the ball left. Not sure what I’m going to make yet, but whatever it is will be enjoyable.
And as for my pattern: As I said, I’m considering writing it up and offering it as a free/cheap (like a dollar or two cause I’m a college student and am poor. See above note about poorness) pattern. If you want to test knit, shoot me a comment with your email, an email, or a Rav pm (link in the sidebar). If you need convincing, look at the pretty decreases:
(In the pattern I’m writing up, the ribs will go all the way to the center. I just got lazy when I was knitting this for Joe.)
Anyway, coming up, there are swap things and a scarf thing I’ve been working on in between the small projects. And then there’s the Ravelympics, which I am doing. More about that later. : )
Pattern: French Press Felted Slippers, available for purchase on Ravelry.
Yarn: Ella Rae Classic, about a skein and a half.
Needles: US 15/10 mm Knit Picks Options
Mods: I think I knit them as written?
So… this was really my first experience with felting, though that’s not even the problem with these. The first one came out the proper size from the washing machine. It needed to be felted a little more, which I did by hand, but it wasn’t difficult. I had to cut a triangle out of the toe to make it smaller and fit better, but it came out alright.
The other one… hoo boy, let me tell you about the other one. First, I wasn’t paying attention when I was knitting it, so all of the pieces came out too big. Then it didn’t felt as much as the other one in the washer/dryer, so I had to felt it by hand more. THEN, even when I felted it as much as I could, it was still too big, so I had to Frankenstein it and chop the slipper in half and resew it back together smaller:
(It’s deceptively well-hidden. Felt is pretty forgiving.)
Yeah. AND THEN they still didn’t work right, so I had to sew a Frankenstein seam in the heel. AND THEN I had the hardest time getting the strap straight. And when I finally got the strap straight and the button on, I realized I SEWED THE STRAP ON BACKWARDS. Rip out, redo. And when I finally get the whole thing put together, Frankenstein seams and everything, it looks like this:
It’s functional but ridiculous. I guess I’ve never really had an epic knitting fail or a too-big sweater or whatever, so it’s about time. I’ll definitely be making this pattern again, but I’ll be paying closer attention to the row counts so they come out a proper size.
Stitch, Brinn, Stitch! 