Not Knitting, but Still Crafty

I made a bag for my BFF for her birthday. I couldn't find a pattern that I liked, so I made this up myself. It's basically two squares held together by an extra long strap. To make the bag sturdier, I used double thicknesses of all fabric pieces, including the lining. I also did double zigzag seams. The zipper gave me some grief, but mostly because after I had the whole zipper set and sewn, I discovered it would not open. I finally got it to open, but it's still not as smooth as I would like. It gets better with every tug, though.

This is Evelyn's first modeling job. Isn't she doing a great job?





Lining and blasted zipper.


In other news, I went to the fair today to check out how my sweaters fared in the exhibition. I got a red ribbon (2nd) for my lamb all-in-one, and a white ribbon (3rd) for my Round Trip cardigan! Best in Show went to a lovely aran sweater. What they say is true: once you enter in a fair, you'll be hooked! I already can't wait until next year, and actually find myself thinking of stuff to make just for the exhibition! I also plan to perfect my pie crust so I can enter into the big apple pie contest (it's one of the highlights of the fair). My filling, if I do say so myself, is pretty dynomite, but my crust tends to be a little hit or miss.

Work continues unabated on Rogue. I'm almost done with the first chart, and am getting ready to split for the arms. Now that it's getting colder, I just want to be knitting all the time.

The Cutest Thing I Have Ever Knit

Yep, there he is. The completed lamb all-in-one. I loved making this, despite all of the issues I had and all of that garter stitch. I will definitely be making others for more special babies. As stated before, I used the elusive 7 Settembre yarn from Lane Borgosesia's Baruffa line. I used just over six balls of off white for the body and almost exactly one ball of charcoal gray for the ears, mitts and feet. I found the pattern in New Baby Knits by Debbie Bliss. The book is wonderful. I think there are only one or two patterns I could never see myself making.

I haven't touched Branching Out in awhile, but plan to pick it back up tonight.



If I don't work on that, I'll cast on for Rogue (I guess it won't be done for my BFF's birthday).

And finally, I would like to solicit some advice. Remember when I finished the Zippy Cardigan (June 13th entry, I can't link to a single entry), and all I had left was to get a zipper? Well, the zipper is proving to be more difficult to find than I thought. I checked the Berocco site and noticed that they used what appears to be a black zipper with their model, but I really don't think that would work with mine. I wanted a green as close to matching as possible, and can't even find a dark green one the right length to save my life. I was thinking of skipping the zipper and using toggles for a closure. That way I could use a nice tan with wooden toggles. But then again, I feel the sweater was really designed to have a zipper. What do you think? Toggles or zipper? If you think I should use a zipper, what color would you recommend if green was unavailable? Thanks for the help! I want to get this baby shipped off before the baby outgrows it!

Snap Happy

Yipee! Let's kick this entry off right with some FO photos, shall we?

The finished Suede Tank from the front...

from the back...

and from the table.


You might notice a small flag of yarn sticking up out of the back. I didn't notice it until my back was photographed. Just an end that needs a little weaving in. I used Berroco Suede in color #3717 (Wild Bill Hickcock... yee haw!). I used just about every last scrap of three balls, which leaves me with one complete ball. I tried out my first pair of Addi-Turbos knitting this tank (US7), and wasn't that impressed. I think part of the problem was that this was a difficult yarn to knit with, so I will give the Addis a try with some wool before I pass final judgement.

But what of the lamb all-in-one? Still cooking:



One wee sleeve and another on the way. How cute!


Thank you Parikha for your suggestion on getting a good picture of this thing. I tried setting the exposure in a dark spot, and the picture improved, but was still dark. I was moaning about it to my boyfriend who suggested putting a white towel underneath it. Of course that works perfectly well, and I feel a little dim for not thinking of it myself. I plan to continue working on the second sleeve tonight.

But wait! There's more!



Come on! I had brand new, never tested yarn in my possession. How could I possibly resist its siren song? I'm only human, after all.

I went ahead and swatched for Rogue last night, you know, just to see if the yarn works. It does. It was nice to knit with, it felt soft and was easy on the hands (especially after the Suede), but it is a little coarse. Fortunately, Rogue should be big enough for my BFF to wear something underneath. I can't wait to cast on, but I'm forcing myself to finish the lamb first.

This summer has been all about slow knitting. It seemed like last summer I finished a ton of stuff. I blame softball and the Hades-like heat and humidity of this summer for my slow knitting progress. Here's looking forward to fall!

I finished up the main piece of the lamb all-in-one last night. You might notice something a little off in this photo.

If you look up at the tops of the fronts, you will notice that the shaping is identical on both sides. This, of course, should not be. Fortunately, it's just a couple of rows. That is why I hate when patterns just tell you to mirror the other side. I always have this crises at the end where I get myself so confused that I just jump in. I've been lucky up to now. I didn't even notice until I laid the piece out for the picture. I will begin the sleeves this week, and hope to actually have the whole enchilada wrapped up by next weekend. I also need to put a zipper in the zippy cardigan, and then I can mail both things out at once.

I'm working on the first triangle bit of my tank.



Whenever I'm working something in the round, I rarely, if ever, use stitch holders to hold my non-working stitches. This is convenient for me, because then I don't have holders flailing about and I feel like I have more control over the piece, but it's not so good for picture taking. I'm very excited to see how this comes out. I hope I did my math right and it fits!

I would also like to bring to your attention the severely different lighting in both of these photos. I took these pictures about three minutes apart, in the same room, in the same amount of natural light (no flash), and from the same angle. What the hell is going on? I can't get a good picture of this all-in-one for love or money! I'll keep experimenting, I guess.

Like A Broken Record But Without Sharp Edges

I can feel my knitting mojo coming back to me, but the last couple of weeks it was worrisomely absent. Work continues on the lamb all-in-one:

The funny thing about this all-in-one is that my friend's doctor told her that her baby will weigh between seven and ten pounds when he's born. Yay for big babies, but boo for too small baby clothes. Fortunately, she plans on having more children, so I will still send this along, but the news took a little bit of wind out of my sails.



I had a swatch I'd done with Berocco Suede in my knitting basket for the longest time, and I finally decided it was time to make something with this yarn. I couldn't find any tank top patterns I wanted to use it for, so I'm making one up. This is my first time making something with no guidance. I've made sweaters in the past that didn't have a pattern, per se, but I followed the guidelines in Ann Budd's Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns (highly recommended, by the way). I'm kind of excited to see how it turns out.


I'm about halfway through the waist shaping.



I love how this yarn feels knitted up, and it looks great, but it's hard to knit with. It has zero give, so I feel like every stitch is a struggle. I'm also trying out the much revered Addi-Turbos with this project. I have a feeling I'd be more impressed with them if I were using normal yarn. The struggle is worth the effort though.

Finally, I've decided what I'm going to start after these projects are done (aside from finishing up some projects that have languished all summer). I bought two patterns last weekend, both shawls. One is a cape kind of thing with a feather and fan trim and simple stockinette/reverse stockinette body. It's perfect for my grandmother, who asked me to make her a worsted weight shawl. I stash dove for the Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece I'm using for it. The second is a Fiddlesticks pattern that uses lace weight yarn. This will be my first foray into actual lace. Wish me luck!


I'm using Zephyr for the laceweight shawl. It feels so soft and kittenish. The worsted weight shawl is Sonoma by Oat Couture. The lace weight shawl is Creatures of the Reef, by Fiddlesticks.


It's an absolutely gorgeous day outside today, so I'm going to run off and enjoy it. Let's see if the camera batteries will last for a few photos that I can share later.

(Im)Patiently Waiting for Fall

I've been working away at the lamb all-in-one, and am pleased to say I am almost finished with the main body of the piece, and will just have to do the arms and trim. I haven't been able to work on it much lately, but I do work on it whenever I can.

I lost my primo photographing spot to our stereo, so until I figure out a better one, I'm afraid the photos will be a bit dark. Oh, how I long for a sunny porch to take outside pictures on!

I've not been buying much yarn lately, and I'm actually thinking of trying to knit down the stash before acquiring more yarn without a purpose. I recently had to empty out the old china cupboard and put all my yarn back and really saw how much I have. It'll certainly challenge me to go through the patterns I have, and maybe even add to my library.
I have a plan brewing for a scarf (can you believe I don't even have a scarf I made for myself?). I saw one in one of my LYSs the other day, and I think it will be easy to knock off. I'd like something a little lacy, but with enough substance to be warm in the fall.

Work Continues....

I am actually only actively working on one project at the moment, the lamb all-in-one. I don't remember if I mentioned this before, but I joined the softball team at work, and between games and going out, I haven't had much time for knitting. Here she is so far:

This is so much fun to knit, I am already thinking of who else I can make one for. If I had more time, I'd knit one to enter in the fair. Speaking of the fair, I've decided to enter my Round Trip cardigan in the big county fair in September. I've never entered anything before, but all the ladies I work with said I should. I'll give it a shot. Has anyone reading this ever entered a fair? Any tips?

Yep, I'm 30.

Long time, no post. I've kind of gotten into posting on the weekends, and last weekend was spent with my BFF, her fiance, and T, whooping it up with plenty of arcade games and fried dough. I just pulled the pictures (what few I got, the batteries died the first day) off the camera, and found one I forgot I took.

It's Jason Voorhees! You put your quarter in and you control how he moves while this bizarre music plays. Of course I did it!
I got to revisit all my old favorites... Frogger, Q*Bert, Pac*Man, Donkey Kong... and I got to play Galaga on a machine that actually worked! It was my best birthday yet, hands down.

On to the knitting!
You know I bought yarn on our trip, but I don't have photos. I picked up some sage green Sirdar Breeze for a cardigan (maybe), and some Berocco Suede, which will be a very sexy tank. Seriously, have you knit with that stuff yet? It really does look like you've knit with strips of leather. I chose a dark brown and am having a hard time not abandoning all other projects to cast on with it. I've done an extremely good job staying true to my projects.


The clown socks are done! With the weather being so crazy here, I was able to wear these socks the day after I finished them. Wool socks in July, who woulda thunk it? The Regia is a bit more coarse than the Blauband I used for my other socks, but I still like them.

The lamb all-in-one is coming along swimmingly, if slowly. It seems like it takes a hundred rows to get an inch, but every time I feel discouraged, I just remind myself of how adorable it'll be when it's done. Right now I pretty much only knit when the sun goes down, because it's too hot and sticky otherwise. Once we have our A/C hooked up, I think my progress will improve.


I've gotten a few more inches along since this picture was taken. I think I've added about four inches. I have to have nearly a foot of white before I can start the sleeves.


Today I wandered into Borders after T and I went to see Bewitched (incidentally, it was pretty good, but the ending felt a little tacked on), and finally picked up Vintage Knits by Sarah Dallas. I admired this book when I first began knitting, but could hardly believe I'd ever be able to make any of the patterns. As I thumbed through it today, I realized that none of the patterns are beyond my reach, and I love 90% of them. Now I just have to decide what to make first.

I'm thinking about moving my blog. I have a host in mind, and actually only started this one at Blogger to see if I'd actually update even semi-regularly. Blogger is okay, but I'm always afraid I'm going to lose everything, and I don't really like any of the templates. We'll see what happens. Of course I'll keep you posted.

How long until fall comes again?

The weather around here has been a little schizo lately (as I read it has been pretty much everywhere). One day will be cool and sunny, and the next will be insufferably hot and humid. We do not have A/C hooked up in our apartment, but have been keeping the draperies pulled closed and windows kept open for breeze, and have done okay. Yesterday was the first day I had issues knitting because of the weather. I was determined to finish the right leg of the lamb all-in-one, and the left foot. The yarn stuck to the needles, making every stitch a challenge, but I persevered!

I don't know if bamboo needles would work better in the humidity or not. You'd think metal would be best. This little outfit is going to be so darn cute! I can't wait to finish it!



I find that when the weather gets really steamy, socks can't be beat for small, portable projects! They don't lay in your lap like a fat cat, making the sticky weather seem even stickier. It is conceivable that you'll be able to wear them during the summer, on a cool summer night, perhaps. And, they are a quick project, which enables your poor, heat addled brain to stay on task and not throw temper tantrums at having to think so hard.



I think I've finally gotten the hang of picking up wraps corectly. I mean, my other short row heels have looked good enough, but the one on this sock is terrific! I adore this yarn!



Finally, here is a picture of the completed Little Sister Sweater, by Amy King. I highly recommend this sweater as a quick baby project (perfect for a last minute baby shower). The only change I made to the pattern was to put the buttons along the raglan seam, rather than on the front of the sweater. I think it's cute as hell.


Just a Palm photo, since the batteries in my camera had died that morning and I finished sewing on the buttons mere moments before I had to leave for the shower. I believe I have enough of the yarn left over from the hank of Laurel I used to make another sweater. You can't beat getting two baby sweaters out of one hank of yarn!


My plan is to complete my sock and the lamb all-in-one before casting on for anything else, however, I have been fondling some Cotton Ease in the Pineapple colorway and thinking wistfully of a cotton Ribby Cardi. Will I have the willpower to resist another project? Tune in!

Long Time, No Post

Wow. I really thought I had posted last weekend! Oh well, I probably didn't because there wasn't much knitting going on, and I didn't have much to show. I had the Zippy cardigan knitted and seamed, but didn't want to show it without a blocking. Here it is, in all its unzippered glory:

I'm planning to go out this week and get the zipper. There's a baby shower this weekend, and I'd like to have this wrapped up by then. Stats:
Pattern: Berroco Zippy cardigan
Yarn: Berroco Lullaby, in quince colorway. I made the smallest size and used about 3.5 balls


I liked using the Lullaby, even though it snagged on every little thing imaginable. The finished sweater feels so cuddley, yet light. Like a fleece jacket. I know the baby won't be able to wear it for awhile, but I'm hoping he'll be able to wear it in the winter or next spring.

Next up, I casted on for the lamb all-in-one sometime in the last week or so. I've got the foot and part of one leg done. I think I'm up to where I need to begin shaping for the (for lack of a better word) crotch. It's a good thing this baby is small, because the whole thing is in garter stitch, my most dreaded stitch. I've never been a fan of garter stitch, and actually have never made a garter stitch scarf, but I think it works in this project. It gives the idea of a lamb's coat.



I like the yarn I'm using for this project, but I won't get too attached to it, because it seems hard to find. I googled for it and came up with lots of links of people using it, but none for where to buy it. The yarn store I bought it from is hardly local, so I will simply put it out of my mind. It costs about the same for the same yardage as Debbie Bliss' Merino DK, which is also superwash.

Since I'm having such a grand time with baby projects lately, I decided I should do just one more sweater for this baby. I have five balls of Mission Falls 1824 Cotton which I bought for the express purpose of making a sweater for this baby, but it just wouldn't work in any of the projects I wanted it for. Pawing through my stash, I came across this beautiful cotton yarn that I bought on sale at least a year ago. They only had one hank in the entire store, but it was 400 yards, so I figured I'd pick it up and find something to do with it. Well, the project for this yarn has arrived!



The yarn is Shaefer Yarns Laurel. I don't know which colorway, since I lost the tag, but it doesn't look like it's still available. This yarn has reminded me of the beach from the second I first picked it up. My friend Amy is making a seaside themed nursery for her child. It's a match made in heaven! I'm using Amy King's Little Sister Sweater pattern. She created the pattern in her frustration to find a simple raglan sweater without seams for babies. I have to say, I'm glad she had the problem, because her pattern neatly filled my requirements for this yarn. I hate when I'm using variegated yarns and have to worry about matching colors at seams. The sweater would probably be done already (I started it the day before yesterday), but I had to spend six hours working out the most heinous knot I have ever seen. T had to help me at the very end, when I had what looked like a lump of macrame left. I'm glad I saved all that yarn though, because I might have enough yardage left over to make another sweater later.