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I made a sweater! It’s number 11 for the year. Only one more to get twelve and I have three months to do it (maybe I’ll finish the Star Trek dress I started). This one isn’t for me though. It’s for someone on the WWFY swap thread (no worries, I was fairly compensated with sock yarn and enough superwash wool to make Hetty).
Pattern: Rambling Rose from the Winter 06 IK
Yarn: Patons Silk Bamboo in Lotus, seven or eight skeins (I can’t remember the total number I was sent).
Needles: US 6/4 mm
Mods: Fewer yoke decreases for a boat neck and an extra row of Scallops for length, both requested mods. I also had to sew the buttonholes smaller since the button size called for in the pattern were WAY too small for the buttonholes in the pattern. This happens to me all the time and is really annoying. I need to learn a new buttonhole that will stay the size I want it to.
According to Ravelry, it took me just shy of a month to knit this thing. I figure that’s pretty good considering I was working on a bunch of other things at the time. This was a pretty fun knit though–it seemed to fly by. The lace patterning is pretty simple and I wasn’t glued to the chart at all. I tend not to make sweaters in pieces because I suck at seaming, but I think this one came out alright. The pieces did make it go faster though.
It’s a wee bit small on me, which is good since the person who will be wearing the sweater is smaller than me. It should fit her just fine. I probably won’t make this again for me because there are so many other sweater patterns out there I’d like to knit, but I did enjoy making this one.
In life news: I’m thinking about going to the Maryland Renaissance Faire in a couple weeks, on the 19th. A bunch of current and former fencers from UMW (where I went to school) are going up, so I’d go with them. I’m also kinda sorta considering going to Nekocon in Hampton at the beginning of November. It’s kind of a hike (though I could stay with my parents), but I’m not sure I have the spare cash. And I’ll be going to Florida with my folks for Christmas, provided I’m not otherwise employed and thus can’t go. This seems unlikely as, even though it’s two and a half months away, I haven’t really been looking. I like my job most of the time, I just wish I was paid better. I dunno. Meh, being an adult sucks. I say again: Why won’t anyone pay me to watch science fiction tv shows and make things (for me)?
Next in a line of finished objects for Anna-Marie of CorgiHillFarm (BUY ALL THE THINGS) is a completely scrumptious cowl:
Pattern: Zuzu’s Petals by Carina Spenser
Yarn: Cephalopod Traveller in Kalamazoo, about half a skein.
Needles: US 9/5.5 mm
Mods: None; knit as written
This was a super quick, fun knit, and I will definitely be making it again for me. The lace is fairly intuitive when you get the hang of it, and it would be super easy to add more repeats for a bigger cowl. The yarn, one which I’ve worked with several times now, is wonderful, as always. A squishy, soft base with an incredible depth of color.
The yarn is just a wee bit dark to really be able to see the pattern in the cowl. I think the original cowl, knit by the designer in a gradient yarn, is fabulous, and I’d love to make one of my own in a gradient. But the one I made is squishy and lovely, and I’m sad to have to give it up. But I know its owner will enjoy it immensely, so there’s that.
In life/fandom news: Still reading I, Jedi and still rewatching SG1. I got caught up on Castle (omg, feels) and I started watching Agents of SHIELD. OMG SHIELD. First of all, Gunn and Shepard Book were in the first episode, so hella squee there. And then there’s Coulson, who is completely perfect and UGH THIS SHOW. I love it to bits. It’s witty and snarky and I’m sure it has flaws, but I’m not seeing them right at the mo. It’s clearly going to get pretty episodic, but I’m mostly okay with that. Castle is super episodic, and I’m still completely enamored with that. Oh SHIELD. Because I needed another fandom. (Okay, it’s kinda technically in the Marvel/Avengers fandom BUT STILL.)
I know, I’m the worst blogger. Anyway, I finished a thing I’ve been working on for literally months: I spun a fleece! Okay, it wasn’t a whole fleece, it was only about 1.5 pounds. But it was 1.5 pounds of sticky, greasy fleece with very little discernible lock structure. I have no idea what breed of sheep it is. I got it when I bought my loom (I’m pretty sure I just mentioned it in passing). I’ve mentioned this project on the blog before.
Anyway, the fiber in question used to look like this:
It’s a hot mess, I know. Anyway, I smacked the fiber into line with my Schacht hand cards and spun it into super chunky yarn. Which actually turned out to be more of a worsted weight, but y’know.
It’s rough and uneven and still a little sticky but it’s DONE. All six skeins. A total of almost 700 yards (686), which is enough for a smallish sweater. I won’t make a sweater probably because it’s pretty rough and there’s not enough for a serious waterproof outerwear sweater (which this yarn would be perfect for).
I have no idea what it will become. Maybe some day it’ll become a serious waterproof sweater jacket for a tiny person (read: child). It would have to be my own child though because of the sheer number of hours that went in to spinning this stuff. For the time being, it’ll just marinate in the stash and think about what it wants to be.
I spun this yarn woolen, and it actually did puff up a bit with washing. I suspect that if I wash it in some grease-fighting dish soap it’ll puff up even more. (As it is, I just dunked it in a bucket of warm water with some Euclan, swished it around a bit, then let it soak for an hour.) I have since started another spinning project (some soft beautiful merino that is nothing like this coarse mystery wool), and I spent so much time spinning woolen that when I went to spin the merino worsted, I forgot how. I’ve picked it back up again, no worries.
In life news: I did not get the position that opened up at work (I wasn’t even aware they had been taking applications, actually) and I haven’t heard back from my other prospect yet. Looks like I’m stuck at the reception desk for the time being. Which is okay, I guess. If Congress (sorry to get political here, kids) can grow up and stop acting like petulant kids, I can even buy health insurance (which I am currently without) on the market, fixing part of my dissatisfaction with my job (which is to say low pay and no benefits thanks to being a temp). And I’ll start looking again for a better, more permanent position that requires me to do work that doesn’t make me all anxious (which is to say writing or editing instead of answering phones).
Anyway. In fan news, I am still watching through SG1 because it is the best ever. I’m currently on season four, which is the best season, hands down. There’s very little filler, a couple of truly excellent episodes, and tons of Jack/Carter shipping (and you know I’m all about that). At AUSA a couple of weeks ago (did I mention I went to Anime USA? I can’t remember–I did and it was fun and I took zero photos) I bought an SG1 patch (like the team patch) and a SGC patch (the one with Earth and the stars and the symbol for Earth), so I’m going to look for a green jacket/shirt to sew those on to. Katsucon is in February and I’d like to cosplay as Sam Carter. My hair will be pretty long, but I think I can tie it back or wear a baseball cap and it’ll be okay. Her hair gets pretty long in the later seasons anyway.
In reading, Joe and I are STILL reading I, Jedi (I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned it before, but it’s been literally months). Part of the problem is that there are a billion other things I want to do and part of the problem is that the first third of I, Jedi is really annoying. It is muchly a rehash of everything that happened in the Jedi Academy trilogy except with Corran thinking he’s so freakin’ special that everyone on Yavin 4 would be Sith meat without him there. It makes sense stylistically since it’s written in first problem and it’s been previously established that Corran’s biggest flaw is his arrogance, but still. In the passage we read the other day they finally beat the Big Bad (well, the one from Jedi Academy anyway), so hopefully things will be more interesting from here on out. Mara has been great though. I mentioned when we were reading the Thrawn books how much I adore Mara, and it hasn’t changed. She’s The Best and I Love Her.
Sorry for that last paragraph if you’re not a huge Star Wars nerd like I am. And if you are: I’m considering making a cross stitch with the Rebel crest and the words “I aim to misbehave”. Because everything’s better with multiple fandoms.
I finished another thing! This was going to be the last of my WWFY knits for CorgiHillFarm, buuuuut then we agreed on a couple more projects. So it isn’t. But it is a finished thing.
Pattern: Cafe Au Lait
Yarn: Cephalopod Yarns Traveller in Winter Garden, about half a skein
Needles: US 4/3.5 mm
Mods: 2×2 ribbing instead of 1×1, different thumb probably… Basically, I just threw the stitch pattern into a mitt of my own design. As you do.
These were super quick and fun to make. And the yarn is absolutely gorgeous–plump and squishy with lovely colors. I should make more fingerless mitts for myself. Course all of my long-sleeved shirts have extra long sleeves so I end up not needing them because the sleeves cover my palms, but still. I should make some for myself.
In life news, things are going pretty swimmingly. I’m hoping to trade up in jobs soon (waiting to hear back about one and there’s an opening in the office where I work currently that I’m going to apply for). I’m planning to move out of where I currently live in December, so I really need a better job in order to finance that move.
In fandom news, I was going to start watching MacGyver or Breaking Bad or Supernatural or a hundred other things and then Joe and I watched Children of the Gods and now I’m rewatching Stargate: SG1. What actually happened is that I put on the movie Stargate on a whim, decided I wanted to watch the SG1 pilot, and got sucked in. Sam Carter is simultaneously the more adorable and most badass thing ever, so you can understand how I was pulled in. LOVE HER. I probably won’t watch all ten seasons (and anyway, I’d be skipping the episodes that are terrible but there are SO MANY GOOD ONES in the first season, I don’t even) because of series rot, but still. Why can’t someone pay me $60k a year to watch science fiction tv shows and make things? That’s my real career goal right there.
I have been really bad about blogging, y’all. Not that I haven’t been making stuff–cause I definitely have. I’ve been super busy though. This past weekend was Anime USA, an anime convention in DC that I help with. It was a ton of fun, I cosplayed Tohru Honda from Fruits Basket and Amy Pond from Doctor Who and took absolutely no pictures.
Anyway, I finished a thing.
Pattern: Balm to the Soul Shawlette
Yarn: Art Yarns Cashmere Sock, two skeins
Needles: US 6/4 mm
Mods: I added an extra texture repeat
I made this for a WWFY swap for CorgiHillFarms. She’s a dyer and you should go buy her stuff because it is absolutely stunning. It is neither the first nor last thing I’ll be making for her cause she’s completely awesome to work with.
The shawl was super fun to make. Just the right amount of texture and simplicity. I’ll probably make one for myself (though a LOT bigger. This thing is TINY). The yarn was lovely as well–mostly cashmere with some wool and nylon. It’s pretty splitty though. There’s a two ply that’s tightly plied and then there are two other plies which aren’t twisted at all, either to each other or to the whole yarn. I have tons of experience knitting with loosely plied yarn (holla, recycled sweater yarn), but if you were used to a tight ply, it would be super annoying.
In life news: You guys, having a full time job makes finding time for photos and blogging HARD. And I’m not keen on it. I know this is what being an adult is like and blah blah blah whine, but still. In fandom news, I’m sort of between shows at the moment. I recently (last week) finished watching through the Magic School Bus, which was AWESOME and TOTALLY WORTH IT. And now I want to cosplay Ms. Frizzle. Have the red wig I can style; I just need to make a dress and knit a Liz. The latter will be happening regardless and the former just needs some crazy printed quilting cotton from JoAnn’s. It’s a plan.
I made socks! With a pattern on them!
Pattern: Heart to Hearts socks from Wendy Johnson’s Toe Up Socks for Every Body
Yarn: Cascade Heritage, considerably less than a full skein
Needles: Sock needles. US 1s.
Mods: None, knit as written. Though I should have increased fewer for the heel and started it a wee bit earlier
I bought the yarn for this socks in a yarn shop in Fredericksburg, the town where I went to college. The shop is new and was not there when I was, which is really too bad cause it’s a lovely shop (I was there a few months ago to visit some friends). The yarn is the most delightful shade of pink, perfect for girly socks with hearts on. And the base is lovely too, not that I would expect any less from Cascade. I actually have another skein of this yarn in purple in the stash.
The socks were pretty fun to knit too. Just enough concentration to make them good TV knitting. It took me a while to memorize the pattern, but I did eventually. It’s pretty intuitive.
If I were to make these again (I won’t, but let’s pretend), I would make the smallest size instead of the medium and I would make the changes I mentioned above. These are great socks and they’ll get a ton of wear, but they are just the tiniest bit too big. Which I guess is preferable to the pair of socks I have that’s just slightly too small, but you know.
In life news, operation obtain motor vehicle was a success! As was operation drive 400 miles in a car you’ve never driven before (and wasn’t THAT a fun one). It’s a lovely car and I’m pretty chuffed with it (2003 Pontiac Aztek, as I believe I said last time). Lots of cargo space, good engine, power accessories. I’m going to replace the radio because it doesn’t have an aux port or a tape deck (that I could use with a tape deck converter) and the idle is pretty high, but other than that, I love it.
The trip to NY was pretty fun too. We spent much of Saturday and Sunday up in Canada, the first day at Niagara Falls proper and the second at Niagara-on-the-Lake. We got pastries at a Reasonably Priced Bakery (my brother and mother were up there a couple weeks ago and discovered the bakery with the “really reasonably priced pastries”, hence the name), played at a park (I love a good swing set; also I’m five), and had lunch at a lovely Microbrewery on Queen St. called Taps. My brother and the friend he brought with them (who are both 19) were thrilled to be able to order beer. I ate poutine and it was delicious (my midsection and thighs disagree but who listens to them anyway). And we stopped at a garage sale because why the hell not (no one got anything. I looked at sweaters but there were no good fibers). A good time was had by all.
I’m currently working on about nine hundred projects for other people (a shawl, some mitts, and a sweater for WWFY and also shark mittens because IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN). I think I’m going to try to participate in Blogtober this year (it may get pushed back to NaBloPoMo in November) and because I don’t have enough things to knit (ha) I’ll probably cast on some socks for Socktoberfest. WHOO IT’S A PARTY.
Not the disease or even the Robert Browning poem (which is excellent, btw), the fingerless mitts pattern:
Pattern: Porphyria
Yarn: MadTosh Merino DK in “Flashdance”, about half a skein
Needles: US 4/3.5 mm
Mods: Well I used a dk instead of a fingering, so basically I just took the stitch pattern and made it up as I went.
This is pair two of the first round of WWFY swaps for my new best yarn friend AnnaMarie at Corgi Hill Farms. Like the first, they were super fun and fast to knit in a yarn I am completely in love with. The stitch pattern for Porphyria is interesting–it looks like a cable, but it’s not actually. Kept me on my toes.
The MadTosh is absolutely gorgeous. The color saturation is amazing. The base is pretty nice too–really sproingy and squishy. The US 4 needles were a wee bit too small for the yarn, but the resulting mitts are gorgeous. The fabric is pleasantly dense without being unyielding. I might have added another stitch repeat to make them slightly bigger, but they stretch nicely.
I had to redo the thumb a couple of times before I was happy with it, but the result fits really well. The recipient’s hands are sized similarly to mine, so they should fit her well too.
I’d definitely like to knit this pattern again for myself. I might even use the same yarn since I have about half a skein left from the first pair that I get to keep. I also have another skein in return for the next round of knitting, so I can make a matching hat or cowl or something. If I make these mitts again, I’ll probably go up a needle size to make them just a wee bit less snug.
What did I get for knitting these mitts and the previous pair, you ask? (As if the gorgeous leftover yarn wasn’t enough.) I’m glad you asked, because I got THE MOST GORGEOUS braid of fiber ever:
60/40 BFL/Tussah Silk. Colorway Senoma. OMG DYING IT’S SO PRETTY. I have like three other spinning projects (only one of which I’ve mentioned at all and has any significant progress on it) so I should wait, but OH I want to spin it. Immediately.
In life news, I am leaving this evening to head up to New York for the long weekend. It’s to visit my grandparents but also it’s to pick up my car! My grandfather owns a business buying and reselling cars, so I asked him to keep an eye out for me. He found a 2003 Pontiac Aztek and it’s mine, all mine! I’m super excited. I’ve been without a car for a while (I rely on my boyfriend’s to get around) and I’ve never had one of my own. I am thrilled and there will definitely be pictures of my baby when I get home. (And bumper stickers, especially geeky ones, are a go).
Sooo I’m doing another set of WWFY trades. Which works out to be awesome for me since I’m getting awesome stuff in return and getting to work with really nice yarns that I could not afford on my life. The first round (of at least three) was a couple of pairs of fingerless mitts. Here’s the first pair:
Pattern: Framed Cable Mitts
Yarn: Sundara Yarn DK Silky Cashmere in the colorway “Where the Tame Things Are”
Needles: US 4/3.5 mm
Mods: I only cast on 40 to better fit a smaller hand. I probably mucked up the thumb too, but it came out all right.
These mitts were super lovely to knit, y’all. They only take about 30g of yarn, which is just a couple hours of knitting time. The cable pattern is kind of hard to see in the variegation of the yarn, but it was fun to knit. A great, fast knit to cleanse the palate.
Plus also: THE YARN. Dear Jesus, what a soft yarn. I kept stopping the knitting in order to pet them (and they still only took a couple hours). The colors are really pretty too and in a simple stockinette or ribbing would really shine.
I love these things. I would have loved to keep them. I can’t. BUT. For the next round of knitting, I get my very own skein of Sundara DK Silky Cashmere. *excited squeak* I’m gonna make my very own ribbed mitts and wear them all the time.
Soo I made some socks for a swap. I mentioned them in my recent WIP Party post, so you may have seen one in progress. They’re basic acrylic house socks, but I did get some (always desperately needed) grey wool in return (and also a pattern I’ve had my eye on). I made three pairs, all fairly quickly.
Pair one!
Pattern: It’s a top-down sock. Wedge toe, flap and gusset heel.
Yarn: Deborah Norville Everyday Soft Worsted in Parfait
Needles: US 4/3.5 mm
Socks! They worked up pretty quickly. They are sized for a six-year-old foot with a cuff that can be folded over. Sorry they’re not modeled; I don’t know any six-year-olds whose feet I can borrow. I mostly knit on these at work, where I’m lucky enough to have a wee bit of knitting time.
Pair two!
Pattern: Top-down sock. Wedge toe. Afterthought heel.
Yarn: Deborah Norville Everyday Soft Worsted in and some recycled cotton/acrylic from my stash for the heel and toe.
Needles: US 4/3.5 mm
More socks! Same as the first pair, but with a different heel. Also, these are a little bigger. Plus I knit the feet too long the first time and had to snip it out and reattach the toe. It was an excellent way to practice kitchener in the round. And by perfect, I mean soul-sucking.
Pair three!
Pattern: Say it with me now: Top-down sock. Wedge Toe. Flap and Gusset heel. Whoo!
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft in Blue Mint and Passion
Needles: Yep, US 4/3.5 mm
Even more socks! These ones have non-yarn-patterned stripes and contrast heels and toes. They are bigger still, about a women’s size 7. They took a bit longer to make, but were pretty quick nonetheless. I made the toe of the first one too long, but I just reknit the toe onto the partially frogged foot. That actually ended up being faster.
I made a hat! I would say it was so quick that you didn’t get to see a WIP, but I finish things so often (and make so many things) that I don’t have a lot of WIP posts anyway.
(If you can’t have fun taking pictures of a wool hat in August, I don’t know when you could)
Pattern: Capucine
Yarn: Recycled wool/viscose/cashmere/angora laceweight, which I doubled and navajo plied. Six strands total. Super thick.
Needles: US 10/6mm
Mods: None, knit exactly as written
I made this hat in two days, the bulk of the knitting being done in one. Huge yarn and huge needles makes for a SUPER quick knit. The pattern was clear and easy to follow and the change in textures kept things interesting. As if you could get bored with such a quick project.
The hat itself is super thick and super warm and I am desperately in love with it. I want fall weather and cold and snow so I can get back to wearing my copious cold-weather knits. I have so many hats and mitts and scarves (OH the scarves since I took up weaving) and sweaters to wear. It has been marginally cooler over the past weekend, but not nearly cool enough.
Stitch, Brinn, Stitch! 