long over due...

It has been a month almost since I last updated. I still haven't made the peach jam, although maybe next week. I've made two batches of pesto--one is in the freezer and one in the fridge and then I knit this:



It is the Lodi cardigan I mentioned in the last entry . I ended up with yarn leftover, so I could have made the sleeves a tad longer. I ended up using buttons that I originally purchased for my first central park hoodie, but I think they look better on this sweater.



What I did not think looked good was how I looked compared to the model in this sweater. I feel frumpy while she looks very chic. Then it was pointed out to me that perhaps if I buttoned the cardi in the middle, it would accentuate my waist and I would look not as A line and boxy. and lo and behold when I went to look at the picture to link to this entry, what did I notice--the model is wearing hers with a middle button buttoned! All in the styling I tell you.

I keep thinking that this is the time to start the dollar and a half cardigan. That way it will be ready to wear when it starts to get cooler. but then I start to feel all overwhelmed.
Patterns are on sale at Joann's over labor day weekend, so halloween costumes are just around the corner!

summer knitting

Jam update for posterity: 3 batches of strawberry, 1 batch of sour cherry, blueberry to be determined. Peaches just coming in.

sock update: I'm tired of making plain socks

Back in April, when my LYS had it's annual sale, I picked up seven skeins of Rowen summer tweed in denim, thinking that I would make a summer short sleeved tee. Then summer actually hit and the thought of wearing yarn, even cotton/silk yarn, repulsed me.

Before that happened though, I picked a copy of Summer 2011 Knitscene, because it had several top down raglan style Tee patterns.

A few days ago, I threw down the sock I was knitting because my goodness was I bored and I started contemplating something different. A sweater maybe. I dug out all my stuff from the dollar and a half cardigan and decided that would be too hard. I need something simple but not mindless. So I dug out the summer tweed and started envisioning a shrug. I have a pattern I want to make someday, but twice now I've gone into it with yarn, swatched and missed gauge by enough that I don't dare attempt it. But something funny happened while I was swatching, I started seeing not lace, but a raglan style shirt/cardigan something.

And so, last night instead of reading before bed, I flipped through Knitscene looking at all the patterns, looking for one with the gauge I had and the amount of yarn I had (because sale =none left I'm sure). I'm reasonably close on both gauge and amounts on the Lodi Cardigan . I'm only 75 yards short--surely that's the difference between 3/4 length sleeves and short ones?

Please somebody get ready to say I told you so, in a month when I complain about being too short to finish.

RAINBOW socks

It has been a while but I have many things to report. First, I made 3 batches of strawberry freezer jam. I ended up having lots leftover from last year but I think that had to do with making 2 batches of blueberry instead of one, and then not making the strawberry ganache that I frequently make. So I made three again this year. I only have one more jam from last year to use up now, see it is easy to give away extras.

I also went on a long car trip to see my mom and brought along my rainbow socks, dyed from a sock blank that I spoke about last time. I cast on shortly after I posted that entry--a basic toe up. I struggled with--should I make them super long or should I save roughly half the yarn for something else and decided I could do a rainbow scarf too if I stopped. So I did. When we got back from our short trip (1 week!) I had this:





And a few days after we got back I had this:


These have to be the fastest socks I have ever knit. EVER. And I've started a new pair. But now I'm thinking perhaps I need a second project going. Either the rainbow scarf (lacy!) or a sweater--maybe dollar and a half as I am feeling braver.

socks!!!!

Thanks to everyone who commented on the crooked shrug. I am going to try it open and see how it feels. Right now we are in the middle of humid weather though so I'm not sure when I'll feel like having a shrug on.

Also I'm not sure when I'll feel like wearing socks again, but when I do I'll have these:

I just finished the second sock--after having the first one done for a few months.

Pattern is wandia from Sock innovation
Yarn is a handdyed from Threadbear Fiber studio which seems to have closed.

It wasn't really the sit by the pool and chat kind of pattern, though, so for summer I want to have something easy going. Just some nice plain vanilla toe up socks. Something I can pull out and knit on and chat with people while my kids play. I have just the thing of course. Sock blank!

A while ago (maybe 2 years!) I dyed a sock blank from knit picks

The idea is that you then knit two socks at the same time from it, unraveling as you go. I haven't mastered the whole two at a time thing, and while I may someday, that's not quite the summer thing I had in mind. so I unraveled mine and wound two balls. I did discover I didn't get the dye all the way through so it is whiter than I want, but ahhh well....

I'm shrugging about this....

So, the shrug. I finished it. I had to russian join on the buttonhole band to get it to cast off. And I could not pick up the 83 stitched I had on the left front. I got as for as 60 and was out of room.

And my friends there is a good reason for this, because of course the shrug that I have had to repeatedly rip and reknit has not gone gentle into the night. Oh not, it has a major flaw. One that if I want to really fix, will require a HUGE chunk of ripping. And frankly, given that I think I might have 10 yards of yarn left may not be even feasible.

Anyway, when I wear it open it looks like this:



Looks good doesn't it. And that is the dress I bought it for and as you can see the purples, while not totally true in the picture, do actually match! And it looks really good until....

You think about buttoning it. And that's when you'll realize that somehow someway I managed to knit one side almost two inches longer than the other.
TWO INCHES!!



I think the two inches is in the sleeve cap. I have no idea what to do with it. And at this point, it might be easier to walk lopsided. Although truthfully it doesn't show if it is unbuttoned, but it doesn't hang quite right.

There is a reason that I called this blog Disasters with yarn......

shrug again

I thought by now I'd be showing you a picture of a finished purple shrug. And I would be too if it weren't for you pesky kids. No wait, I would be if it weren't for one little tiny problem.
I think I'm running out of yarn.

I have all the major pieces knit. I have them all sewn together. I have the collar and the button band done. And I have little tiny balls of yarn left. And so I also have a major hangup.

Last night I took a deep breath and started in on the buttonhole band. I finished it! I had yarn to spare! I tried it on and whoops. See, on the button band I had picked up 83 stitches and on the buttonhole band it came out to like 56 and I thought "well I am just spacing them farther out and that's not a bad thing." In reality I was... let's just say not in reality. I don't know why but for some reason I didn't pick up stitches all along the front, I missed about an inch at the top and about 2 on the bottom.

So I ripped it out. Actually I'm thinking of renaming this shrug on ravelry to the frog shrug. I think I have had to rip back on almost every piece of this. I can't remember about the back and I think the first sleeve was pretty uneventful.

So now I have a little less yarn (because yes I wove in my ends and trimmed) and more buttonhole band to knit. I'd buy another skein but I bought this yarn OVER a year ago and I really don't want to pay another 9.50 to use such a small amount. Also--this yarn doesn't russian join very well.

Alas, I think I just need to take a deep breath and knit. I am SO close.

shrug

I have not been sewing lately, so I have no new blocks to show off. But I am making progress with my purple shrug:



Plus, I have one sleeve done. I hit a snag with sleeve two and need to rip back 3 rows and am being all wah wah wah about it.

One thing that really saved me on this project was this blog. When I picked it back up I couldn't remember all the modifications I had made to the pattern. See I'm starting with a henley pattern and converting it into a shrug. So i lopped off the entire bottom half. But then I couldn't remember what size I had been making (39--thanks Ravelry) or which needles I was using (3 and 4--thanks again ravlery). And then on the hem, when I started the new side (right I think) I looked back at my old blog posts and I mentioned, I'm making a bigger hem than the pattern calls for because it curled as written. So then I counted and the pattern calls for a 5 row hem and I had made a 10 row hem. I'm so terrible at writing out details that frankly I am amazed I was able to pick this up a year later and have it not look so mismatched.

Other mods I have made: I am making short sleeves for this, and debated heavily if the sleeves should have the hemmed border or start directly with lace. I decided on hemmed in case the lace curled. I went ahead and did the three needle bind offs instead of blocking each piece separately on stitch holders. And I need to figure out the collar and button bands since I went for a provisional cast on hem instead of a sew it together hem (seriously IK--whipstich?).

I think if I were going to do another one of these I would probably not do the garter selvedge and instead do a stockinette selvedge, because generally I am good at sewing up, but I really hate sewing up garter stitch.

I was hoping to get this finished by yesterday so I could wear it out for a fancy lunch. But I have a fancy dinner and another fancy lunch coming up soon. However, I don't think that it will be done in time for those either.

selvedge log cabin

I don't know if I've ever said as much here, but I don't sew a whole lot. Mostly I knit. But for me sewing is kind of cathartic. The rat tat tat of the machine, the alone time in the basement where it is cooler than the rest of the house, with usually just me and the radio, soothes me when I am stressed. In the days leading up to my grandmother's death--when we knew this was "it" I quilted a double bed sized quilt, just for the comfort of the rat tat tat.

I've been sewing nearly every day these days. It is cooler in the basement, and I can lose my thoughts in the fabric.



I've been doing these selvedge log cabins--throwing on scraps and making something (hopefully beautiful) from them. The pattern calls for 36. I have 10. I have no idea what I'm going to do with this when I am done. I don't need another quilt, especially of that size (the blocks are 9.5 inches).

selvedge

And now for something completely different:



My MIL has given me 6 bags of selvedge edges ever since I saw a book about quilting with them. Now I guess is the time to do something with them....

Central Park Hoodie!

Last Monday as the temperatures soared into the upper 70s, I finished my all wool Central Park hoodie.

I did get a chance to wear it for a few hours at work, where the air conditioner made it comfy. but I didn't really get a good picture until Sunday when the temps went back down into the 50s.



It fits! And I have one skein of the beautiful Lark (in leek!) from Quince and Company left. I can not recommend this yarn enough. And when I had to get more (I would have been one short in my original), Pam Allen was gracious enough to make sure I had the right dyelot. It is so sproingy and was such fun to work with.

I was going to say, I can't wait to wear it, but I am really looking forward to summer. Instead I'll say--I'll be taking every opportunity to wear it. Or maybe I'll just have it out this week. At any rate, I loved knitting with this yarn so much I bought the pattern Estelle and enough yarn to make it (for my birthday).

perfect storm

About a year ago, I got fed up with this shrug I was making. In the picture you might be able to see why:


I had the left front nearly done before I realized that the arm hole decrease was about 1.5 inches shorter than the ones I'd made for the back. And it was lace, and I just couldn't focus enough to rip it back. So I put it away and moved on to other projects.

Until Saturday.

Saturday a perfect storm occurred. The day was sunny and warm, but it wasn't the first sunny warm day. My kids were happy to play outside and didn't seem to need anything. My husband was off at a work function and the dishes were clean.

In the end, I ripped back row by row, backwards counting on my counter. Thankfully, the lace pattern is easy to read and so I realized I was only a row or two off in my rough counting. Soon, I had the yarn wound up and had knitted a few new rows. Since then, I've done most of the sleeve decreases. I'm going to finish this, and in time to wear this summer too.

tale of two sleeves

I have a confession about sleeves. I don't really like making them. It probably stems from the first ever sweaters I knit (about the 5th and 6th things I ever knit respectively). Both sweaters were the same pattern, same yarn (different colors), done on the same needles and all 4 sleeves came out different lengths!
I have gone so far as to do both sleeves at the same time to get even lengths. Mostly, I find just paying attention to the pattern usually gets me within a few rows. And this was the case in my sleeves for the central park hoodie. Because of the pattern, I was able to determine, that I was within 4 rows.

I suppose I should also say that I don't pay much attention to row gauge. I always figure that the pattern will say--knit until piece measures X inches. I do pay attention to stitch gauge, but I also confess, I don't record before and after blocking measurements.

I suppose that it is no surprise then to note that if you compare a blocked sleeve to an unblocked sleeve you get this:


Blocked one is on the right.
Ironically the one on the left is a little longer.
Not so ironically, these are going to be really long on me.

earrings!

I have all the major pieces done on my Central park hoodie, and I have the extra yarn, although now I'm sure I have way too much. And I had an idea to do an entry about blocking that puppy. But it will have to wait.

I also have a bunch of knitting I want to do--almost all of it summer knitting, and I'll blog about that once I get my thoughts in order.

I did repair my daughter's sweater, but I only took pictures of the hole before and the hole after and not really any in process. So I'll tell you this, she managed to snag and break off some yarn in such a way that it was really only effecting 2 rows of stitches. So I did what might be seen as a spot of darning--I wove in the end real good, looped the two loose stitches several times, wove around it, in case it was loose in other places and wove in the ends. Then I noticed one of the cuffs was a little ratty, so I cut it off, picked up the stitches and knit a new one. You can tell if you look at it, because the new does not look lie a child wore it happily through two years of outside play. I also bound it off with a sewn bind off because it felt clever. And I wanted to get her hand through it.

I'm glad I made those sweaters big--even though it might be time this winter to make new ones.

I also finished an object:

Don't look at it big because it is blurry. Of course photographing earrings is hard--if you don't believe me you should check out etsy!
I finally figured out the whole how to get them on the earring thing. I think stitch markers might be in my future. Of course I didn't make one pair, I made three. Two blue and one green.

I don't know, but I think I might not be as good at this whole jewelry thing--I took three necklaces to the mom to mom sale, marked them $10 which I thought was fair, and none of them sold. So remember how I made so many and I didn't have any for me? Well now I have three. I'm going to make another one just for me, and I wanted to make earrings to match, but I don't know quite how to do that yet. The closest I have is a blue necklace, and those blue earrings, which I wore to work the other day as a set and no one said anything, which means either--ha you look terrible or wow, we didn't even think they looked homemade. I also bought a dress, which just happens to look good with both of these (and needs a little shrug--see summer knitting decisions). I guess I like them and that's all that matters right now.

Ok, next time, I hope to have a big list of what I want to knit this summer!

easily distracted

I had an entry started but I think this might be a better one to describe this and any other long absence I have from this blog. I am easily distracted.

I say this because I still haven't finished my central park hoodie--although I am on sleeve number 2 and I am certain I will have enough yarn to finish that sleeve, but not enough for the hood and trim. I'm attempting to get more. Usually my second fear is that it will be too small (or too big) and so I've been blocking pieces of this sweater, and I'm more hopeful of its fit.

But I haven't been spending as much time on that as I could. I started the second sock of the screaming green variety--have gotten it cast on and 1/4 inch of ribbing.

Then there is this sale thing coming up this weekend and I wanted to make a few necklaces to see how they'd sell. So I did.

Then at the library I got ahold, by accident because Dewey was so helpful in putting the knitting books near the beading books, this book on making stringed beaded jewelry that shows you how to make earrings that I LOVE. And it doesn't look too hard. (Stringing beaded jewelry in case you are curious). And honestly stitch markers are very similar in construction.

And then one of my daughters brought out a sweater I knit for her and it has a hole. And I thought, I'll blog that repair. So I have that in the works!
So you see, I distract easily, but I hope that it will all come together soon and you'll see post after post after post. Now, though, I need to go buy some earring findings.

I'm still here!

You'd think after a month of not posting, I'd have a finished object to show you. I don't, but I am making progress:



For some reason that picture has some odd colors, my carpet is grey and the sweater green. I'm loving this yarn (from Quince and company).
I have the back and most of the sides done. I'm still worried about my usual sweater things--fit and running out of yarn.
I was trying to get it finished in time for St. Patrick's day, but this isn't going to happen.

I also had a birthday in the time I was gone, and got lots of gift certificates for yarn, so I'm trying to plan some projects. My husband tells me I probably have enough sweaters though. (as if such a thing exists).

I am also making lots of other beaded necklaces for an event coming up. I think I've lost my tremendous excitement for them, even though I am still enjoying making them.

So, I've been busy even if I haven't been posting. Hopefully soon I'll have some other projects to show off.

Green

February is a busy month for me. I'm not sure exactly why but for some reason February gets crazy every year. And this year is no exception. In fact if my kids did not have a rare 4 day weekend, I'm not sure I'd have the time to write this today.

I have been knitting though--I finished the first of the screaming green socks:


Pattern is Wanida from Sock Innovation the yarn is from ThreadBEar in lansing--some of their handdyed. It really is VERY green. My problem is that I'm kind of being handicapped by my indecision. YOu see I finished this sock over a week ago and I haven't started the second. Not because I don't like the pattern or the yarn, but because I'm not sure this sock isn't way too big.



See when I knit my gauge swatch, I decided that the pattern gauge wasn't as important as the fact that the sock had to actually fit me. So I tried on my swatch and discovered it was a little snug. So I ripped out and went up from a size 1 to a size 1.5. But all along the knitting I felt like this sock was just HUGE. Except every time I put it on it fit. It isn't snug like some socks I've knitted are, but I am afraid that by the end of a day of wearing them it will feel all baggy and loose and I'll hate that. So I've put off starting the second sock. Although honestly I could make a second sock on the smaller needles and see what happens.

In the meantime, I've decided to knit something else for a while:


I seem to be on a green kick.

red and gold

You would think that a snow day (or two) would make for some knitting results. But alas, I still have about an inch more on my screaming green socks and then I'll start the toe--which makes me feel like I have HUGE feet (the better to walk through the snow with).

But then I remembered, I made this:


As a birthday present for a friend, I went and bought red and gold beads special as these seem to be the colors she wears the most. I still have yet to finish one for me. Better get on that!

jinx

I'm not sure what happened to me but for some reason I've been having problems getting excited about my knitting. Maybe I felt like I was making too many mistakes and getting worried about starting new things in case my knitting had been jinxed or something.
One project that I had had sitting for far too long was this pair of baby socks:



I had the second one ready to kitchner and I realized they were not the same size and somewhere along the line I had made an error or something. So in an effort to exorcise the knitting jinx, I finally ripped back and finished the second one properly. Now I just need to get them mailed to where they need to go.

Jinx fixed, I started a pair of socks for me. The pattern is from Sock innovation and the yarn is a hand dyed (not by me) called appropriately enough: screaming green. I'm pretty sure they are going to be too big, but they do go over my foot.



I think it might be residual jinx feeling. But I am prepared to rip this one out, if indeed when it is done it is too big--and restart it on smaller needles. I am.

In the meantime, I'm psyching myself up to start a new central park hoodie. I looked back at Ravelry and found that ARGH the one I made that is very very snug when I close it is a 40 (supposedly) so this one will probably be a 44. That SHOULD be 8 inches of ease normally, but I'm just hoping to get 4. Hmm maybe I should make the 48.

Oh, I was also asked how the girls liked their doll hats. They were received with glee, but then demands were made for coats. knitted coats. SIGH.

Winding and swatching

Ten days into 2011 and I'm just getting around to writing. Bad me. Of course you'd think I'd have some huge finished project to show too. Sadly, despite having travelled 12 hours in the car over the holidays, I have nothing really to show. I ended up taking a pair of baby socks, and I do have those sort of finished but when I was showing them off I noticed one was a bit smaller than the other, so since I haven't finished off the toe, I'm going to unravel it a bit and make it match. So I don't want to photograph them until I have that fixed.

You think I might even have a resolution, but sadly no on that either. I thought about making a list of things I'd like to knit in 2011, but that seemed a little too much like work, where I make goals and objectives all the time.

So far though 2011 has been about getting ready to knit.

I received from my mother in law, who sticks to the lists people give her, enough Lark in the color Leek to make a sweater. I think that another central Park Hoodie is in my future. So right now I'm swatching. I actually felted my first swatch because I didn't realize that even my washer on delicate would be too rough. So the second swatch got hand washed, we'll see--unwashed I get gauge pretty easily.

I also bought a new pair of shoes to replace my beloved loafers that I usually wear to work with my hand knit socks. These shoes are more a mary jane style and show off way more sock than my loafers did, which has me wanting more socks. Only not plain socks. I want socks with interest! Socks with a detail on the foot! I'm thinking Wanida from the book Sock innovations And I have just the yarn. Sadly though it is still in a skein and so needs to be wound and swatched.

So that's 2011 so far for me, winding and swatching.

Holiday knitting

I have given away all the necklaces. Here are the ones I made for my co-workers.


They seemed to like them. I also gave the teachers theirs and they seem to have been appreciated. Then I went and bought some new beads.

But, beaded crochet isn't a good "travel" project. I put travel in quotes because travel projects are good if you are traveling a long way or just down the street for holiday stuff. I always think it is good to have a small easily memorizable patterned thing when visiting with people. And the week after christmas is going to be big on this knit and chat type project, so I was trying to finish up a few things so I could get well and easily started on my "talking" or "traveling" or whatever you would call it knitting.

So I finished my leftover socks. I didn't know if I would have enough yarn. I didn't but was only 4 rounds away, so I just made the second sock a little shorter. (Would have stunk to have run out of yarn in the middle of the post turkey talk!)


This way I can wear them over the holidays.

I also want to finish my shawl before Christmas--and get something new started, for my talking knitting. It has about 4 maybe 5 more rows left.

Instead of baking this year, I seem to be doing all this knitting. It is kind of too bad because I have a few things I love to make at Christmas, and this year I skipped them to make socks. Ah well, probably better for my waistline to be making socks than spiced pecans.