You are currently browsing the tag archive for the ‘sweater’ tag.
I currently have a whole series of works-in-progress going, of various and sundry crafts. It’s summer and I’m unemployed, which means if I only stick to one stockinette-based project at a time, I’ll lose my damn mind.
Anyway, yeah. There’s the Box 96 pullover I’ve been working on:
Finished the back and am working up the front.
There’s the aforementioned Ivy sockettes:
A somewhat-secret project, which is a new design, which will hopefully be somewhat seasonally appropriate when it gets released:
And some sewing projects. I believe I hinted about this project a couple of months ago:
I took all the shirts (mostly free) I got from my years at UMW, cut squares from the graphics, and am in the process of sewing them into a t-shirt quilt. They’re sewn in columns currently, so I have to sew the columns together, but I picked up a large sheet at the thrift yesterday for a backing, so at this point it’s just a lot of sewing. I haven’t decided if I want to do an edge binding (probably not because JESUS that would take forever), but I’ll definitely be quilting and top stitching. Loooooots of top stitching.
Finally, there’s one last sewing project in the works:
That there is a stack of delightfully soft felted cashmere squares cut from various thrifted sweaters. I need about one more sweater’s worth of squares and then I have to sew it all together. Not sure how I’m going to do that yet (overlap and zigzag stitch maybe?), but I know when it’s done, it’ll be ohhhhhhhh so soft and warm.
So that’s what’s in the works. I’ll probably finish the new design first but I might hold off on showing it off until the pattern’s done. What say you, readers? Do you prefer to see the FOs as I knit them and then the pattern updates or save everything for the pattern update?
Judging by the projects i currently have on the needles, I’m in something of a green jag (unsurprising seeing as it’s one of my favorite colors). Also, still on the sock jag. I’m working on two projects more or less simultaneously, so neither is finished, but one’s getting there.
First, there’s the artichoke socks I’ve been working on:
I’m currently cruising down the foot. They’re interesting enough to make for perfect television knitting. I finished watching through SG1 and a spotty re-watch of SGA (I re-watched the ones I like and now I’m sad there’s no more because OH I love that show). I’m currently about three episodes into Stargate: Universe and four episodes into the first season of Game of Thrones (which I like, but OH DEAR it is depressing as hell. Daenerys (WHATEVER) is hella awesome though).
My internet knitting (a simple project I work on when I’m trolling Ravelry or my Google Reader account or whatever) is the Box 96 Pullover from IK Summer 2010. I’m working it in a delightfully bright green cotton/acrylic mix I recycled. This is the back so far:
I like this pattern because it’s got year-round wear potential–as a tank in warm weather and a vest in cooler weather. And yes, I know people tend not to wear BRIGHT BRIGHT green in the dead of winter, but you know, I also wear white after Labor Day. So there. : )
Sooo my posts as of late have been mostly Finished Objects posts. But I have lots of time on my hands, so I do a lot of knitting. I kept meaning to write a WIP post for this sweater but then I finished other things, so I just posted about those instead. Anyway, I finished this top.
Pattern: Delphine from Interweave Knits Spring 2009
Yarn: Recycled 70/30 cotton/wool
Needles: US 4/3.75 KP options circ
Mods: Added a repeat or two to get a size between S and M, left out the split in the center front, and did the armhole picots in crochet.
So I’m pretty thrilled with this top. The fit is wonderful, it’s super cute and girly and will be perfect with skirts and over dresses. I love the ribbon and the neckline and the cap sleeves and the shaping and OH it is so cute.
The yarn I used, recycled from a short sleeved Old Navy tunic pullover, turned out to be perfect for this project. I didn’t swatch (I never do) and my gauge ended up being slightly bigger than the pattern, meaning the mods I made for fit worked out perfectly. Had I gotten gauge, it would have been a tic too small. The length is also exactly right, which is exciting since I have a long torso and most sweaters and written to be too short. But this one is just right!
This sweater is my seventh for the year, which means I am back on track for completing 12 for the year. I’m not sure that I will knit that many, but I do have the yarn and plans for at least six more sweaters. Not sure what I’ll start next (maybe more socks). I currently have a pair of thick hopefully thigh-high socks (I’m about mid-calf in them for a moment). But more on the socks later.
So the boyfriend is in town so I haven’t been posting, but I have been knitting! Convinced the boyfriend to help me with photographs, so the sweater I was knitting for a WWFY swap is finished and ready to be mailed off to its rightful owner.
Pattern: Karlsro from Noro Book One
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden, seven skeins for the large
Needles: US 10.5 and 10, straights and KP options circular
Mods: None, knit as written
Despite the lack of clarity in the pattern (it’s not very well written and definitely not for beginners), Karlsro was a pretty easy knit and thanks to the huge gauge, knit up super quickly. It was mostly interesting enough to not be boring but simple enough that I didn’t have to concentrate.
This is obviously too big on me since I made a large and I am small, but it’s very stretchy. So I can sort of extrapolate how a small would fit. And since I get to keep the book the pattern is in, I can make another for myself, either in the Noro Kureyon I was sent for payment or in some recycled wool from an ENORMOUS brown sweater I got at the thrift.
As for the yarn: It wasn’t terrible. There was some VM and that was annoying. And there were a bunch of knots with color changes and that was annoying. But for the most part, the yarn did what I ecpected it would–it kinked up because it’s a single and the thickness varies quite a lot. But it’s reasonably soft and it does make a pretty sweater. Am I going to buy some for myself? Absolutely not. But I’m not racing to sell or trade the leftover either (though if you’re dying for four skeins of Silk Garden, we can discuss it).
My current knitting project is working on the Haruni I started a bit ago. I’m a couple rows into chart B. I also embroidered a thing, but I’m going to wait until I find a frame or big enough hoop before I photograph it.
So, as I mentioned last post, I am taking a break from the endless Manly Aran Socks to knit a vest. It’s a super quick project that I’m designing mostly on the fly, and even though I started three days ago, this is what it looks like so far:
Plus about two inches of the back. So I have left to finish the rest of the back, plus some ribbing or something around the edges. My original sketch of this design looked like this:
I think I’m going to work up a shorter version of the sketch (the tails would be right under the bust) so I can fiddle with the neck/arm shaping so the pattern doesn’t suck. I do love the princess lines on the fronts, which came out pretty much how I wanted. The neckline is a little funny, but I think that’ll look better when I work some ribbing there.
I can’t wait for this vest to be finished–I’m thinking it’ll look super cute over a flowey blouse or dress.
Heeeey, remember that sweater I was making for my boyfriend’s birthday? Well, I finally finished and photographed it. Over a month after it was supposed to be done (the boy’s birthday was December 9). But now it is done!
Pattern: EZ’s Seamless Hybrid
Yarn: Six skeins of Knit Picks Comfy Bulky plus a skein of Comfy sport and half a skein of Comfy fingering, all in Planetarium.
Needles: US 9/5.5 mm
Mods: It’s a very basic sweater pattern. None.
So this sweater… it was an adventure. I started out with high hopes. “It’s in bulky weight!” I thought in October. “It’ll take no time at all!”
And then I ran out of yarn. Six skeins is apparently not enough for a man-sized sweater. So I contacted Knit Picks, the ISO forums, mentioned it in-blog. Nothing. One person had half a skein, which wasn’t gonna cut it. Knit Picks apparently DISCONTINUED the Planetarium line of Comfy Bulky. IDEK. I ended up ordering a skein of Comfy Fingering and two skeins of Comfy sport and using half of it to finish the sweater. Fortunately, the gauge is very similar.
It turns out, though, that six skeins might have been enough after all. It’s a bit too big on Joe, as you can possibly see. I think it’ll shrink in the wash (it’s mostly cotton) and it’ll fit, but I originally knit the sleeves way too long and there was a lot of waste as I picked out the cast on edge and tried to ravel up (apparently decreases will NOT frog in either direction and will, in fact, make you cry sad, sad tears).
Overall, though, despite all the struggles with this sweater, I think it came out well. Joe likes it, and that’s what matters to me, really. He loves cotton, and the sweater is indeed very soft and smooth. Knit Picks Comfy is a pretty good line of yarn–I have a sweater made out of the worsted weight. The first sweater, I actually ever designed, Lilith, which I still wear pretty often.
Anyway, a very happy (belated) birthday to my love, Joe. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go back to knitting a hundred pairs of shark mittens (I got a ton more orders yesterday).
It’s hard to believe it’s almost Christmas, isn’t it? This Saturday is the 25th, which means if you haven’t finished your gift knitting by now, there’s a good chance you’ll be up all night on the 24th, trying not to pull your hair out. I am not experiencing this stress, mostly because I’m not really celebrating any holidays this year. I’m spending Christmas and New Year’s with my boyfriend, who is Jewish and does not celebrate Christmas. Though I must say, I’m sort of feeling the lack of Christmas spirit.
Next year I think I’ll have a tree, a little table-top one, which will be the only size that will fit in our apartment next year. Perhaps I’ll wrap some gifts and make some cinnamon rolls. Spend the day in my pajamas and watch a holiday movie.
But this year, I’ll probably be eating Chinese foot and frantically trying to finish the billion trade and commission knits I have. Not to mention this:
(Sorry for the crappy flash picture. I may or may not have woken up this afternoon at three.)
It’s a muchly-finished sweater that was intended as a birthday gift to my boyfriend. We agreed to exchange gifts when I came to visit over Christmas so I had a couple extra weeks to finish it (his birthday was Dec. 9), but now I’ve run out of yarn and Knit Picks doesn’t appear to be selling that color. I’ve put in a desperate request to the ISO forums on Ravelry, but if any of my readers have some extra Comfy Bulky in Planetarium, PLEASE let me know.
I’ve also been working on this:
It’s one almost finished Kitty Hawk mitt for a WWFY swap. I started it because I was sick of shark mittens, but a nearly elbow-length glove in fingering weight yarn takes FOREVER. I’m going to finish the mitt, knit a pair of shark mittens, knit a hat, knit some more shark mittens, then perhaps knit the other mitt.
I currently have five pairs of outstanding shark mittens that I have to knit. So yes, I’ll be knitting these ittens forever.
So… I sort of fell of the NaBloPoMo bandwagon. Well, I tried anyway. And I did pretty well, I think. I posted most days, and I would have posted more often but I had trouble getting photos during the daylight, especially over Thanksgiving break.
Anyway, the third item of my OliviaGoddess WWFY trade finished drying over break and I finally mailed everything off:
Pattern: Cloud Bolero
Yarn: Claudia Handpainted and CEY Jil Eaton Minnow Merino
Needles: Big. Whatever the pattern calls for.
Mods: None. Made the XS.
This came out well but HOLY HELL is the pattern difficult to follow. It’s confusing and jumbled and really difficult to decipher. I’m pretty sure the only reason I could do it was because I made Liesl first (which is very similar). I considered just making a shrug out of Liesl, but OliviaGoddess said Cloud, so Cloud I made.
As for the yarn: The Claudia Handpainted (the variagated) is lovely, wonderful, dense merino. Like the best handspun and also gorgeous. LOVE. It’s hella expensive and it will never grace my fingers again, but damn is it pretty. The other stuff, the Classic Elite on the bottom, is okay. It’s a pretty basic wool single, though a bit too fuzzy for my taste.
So yeah. So much for NaBloPoMo. BUT: The future: more shark mittens (three more pairs by Friday), maybe some socks, HOPEFULLY a sweater for the boyfriend for Christmas.
Christ. It’s finals week next week and I have a ton of knitting to do. Good thing I only have two finals.
This post is a bit late in the day, but still on today, so my NaBloPoMo record is still good.
Anyway, I’ve made some progress on the boyfriend sweater:
I finished a sleeve and attached it and am currently working on the second sleeve. I seem to have misplaced my last skein of yarn, so I’ll have to locate that before I get too much farther along, but I think it’s possible I might have enough yarn. Maybe. Hopefully.
That’s how long the boyfriend and I have been together. Tomorrow is our official anniversary, but since he’s going home tomorrow to take the GRE, we’re celebrating tonight with dinner and a movie (followed by an unrelated party with our friends). The morning of our celebratory today was alright quite lovely–we slept in til noon, woke up slowly, had a quick breakfast then went for a walk (in the middle of which I obtained a delicious white chocolate mocha + extra shot of espresso).
Speaking of the boy, I have been working on his birthday sweater somewhat off and on. I finished the body up to the armpit and have started a sleeve:
That’s 15.5 of the 22 inches I’m going to need for the sleeve and almost an entire ball of Comfy Bulky. I have two balls left to do the rest of this sleeve plus a whole other sleeve and about 3/4 of a ball attached to the body for the top part of the body of the sweater. I think it’s pretty safe to say I’m going to need more yarn. I think I’ll put a post up on the Ravelry DS/ISO board today.
Happy Saturday all!
Stitch, Brinn, Stitch! 