Tuesday, April 29, 2008

The Stash Goes In, The Stash Goes Out

Webs, what am I going to do with you? They send me this little e-mail that subtly suggests that Cascade 220 might be on sale, and I numbly click on the link, thinking, "But I'm not really in the market for... Hey, wait a minute!" And suddenly visions of new sweaters come screaming into my head. Senor needs one! I need something new, too! (but you already have something new) But I need another something new!! Hey, cousin Mark wanted a sweater, too!! And while I have reservations about knitting entire sweaters for a non-husband, now would be the time to find out what I'm really made of 'cause CASCADE 220 IS ON SALE!!!

Yeah, you laugh, but I suddenly have 26 skeins of Cascade 220 to store and no desire to touch wool in the current heat wave.

Cotton it is! Or rather, 80% cotton (the 20% wool doesn't seem to be a detractor)... After much unsuccessful swatching Saturday morning, I finally matched up some stash cotton with a pattern and needles.

Citrus Yoke Pullover- Interweave Knits Winter 2006.
Cotton Cords- Brown Sheep Company- colorway Crescendo (mixed berry-ish)
10 1/2 Needles.

Zippy little thing!! It's knit top down, so I tried it on yesterday to make sure everything was working out okay. So far, so good. It's down below the armpits now. Already. Yip!! It's fun to knit a big chunky tube after all that cabling on Twist and the other size 2 needled projects that are floating around my house. This should be done by this weekend, if all continues smoothly, next week at the latest. And it will make room for at least 8 skeins of my new stash...

Oy, what will I do with the other 18?

Friday, April 25, 2008

Finished Finished Finished!!


It's Twist, by Bonne Marie Burns!! Except with a twist (see what I did there?). I modified it to be a pullover instead of a cardigan. I simply knit the back twice, once as the pattern states and once with an improvised v-neck. I'd say for someone who was terrible at improv in school (I was a theater student), that's a darn fine neckline.

I already wore it out, even though it was way too hot.


Tonight I am wearing it to dinner. Senor thinks that is not a great idea. He's probably right. Vanity, thy name is PF Chang splash!!!

Thursday, April 24, 2008

My blog needs this



Senor, is there any chance we'll have little English kids someday?

Awww, man. That's too bad.

Now with photos!


Check this out! My Endpaper Mitts, knit in Colinette Jitterbug "Vincent's Apron" and "Blue Parrot", and cruising right along! I am experimenting with holding one yarn in the left hand and throwing the other with the right hand. So far, so good. I'll be interested to see how it all works once I get to the thumb gusset (Say it outloud, "Thumb Gusset". I sometimes use this as a substitute for "dumbass". It works great!).

I've also got a couple of owner appreciation shots of the Swing Thing jacket. It's now keeping my little neice warm in Australia (does it count as a neice if it's a sorority sister?).

Malabrigo makes her boogie!


Oh man, I hope that little ponytail never lays down! I feel so good about bringing handknits to Whoville. What a cutie!!!


Senor's new baby... we love it!! I have already experimented with convertible knitting. It's pretty much the same. Plus now I have a reason to wear a hat all of the time. I'll have to get on that!

And last but not least, Twist is seamed!!!!!! Yay! But you'll have to wait for finished photos. It isn't quite going to be perfect-perfect, but it is definitely close. There's a bit of room for armpit tumors, which I (fortunately) don't have, but other than that, it fits pretty darn well. It is superwash, too, so it might be that I just blocked it out a little too far, and maybe a washing will help it. Though I have to say throwing a brand new knit in the washing machine has me pretty freaked out. Are you sure it's safe?

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

What you've been waiting for... but didn't know it...

Since I last posted, 16 days ago after being sick, the knitting has exploded wildly! I have, in 16 tiny days, knit BOTH sleeves AND the front of Twist, which I converted from a cardigan into a V-neck pullover. I don't have photos for you at this very moment because my camera is dead as a doornail, but if you're wondering which sweater I'm talking about, it's the white cabled thing in the post below. The back and the sleeves are blocked, and I just cast-off the front on my lunch hour. Yay!! Unfortunately, I do not think I have enough yarn for the hood... though now that the rest of the knitting is complete, I can reevaluate. It MIGHT be possible, though I hear hoods are a lot bigger than they seem, and after all the bummerness of thinking I didn't have enough, I might now actually prefer it as a simple v-neck. It would certainly be more work and dress-up friendly. You'll have to wait and see...

I also finished Jaywalker 5.1 and began 5.2. I finished a pair of Roza's socks (not in the 16 days, I only wove in the ends). AND... I started a pair of Endpaper Mitts. How I love them! They are for wearing while out for Sunday drives in Senor's Miata convertible. That's right, ladies and gentlemen, Werner was put out to pasture. (Moment of silence) But the Miata, who is as of yet unnamed, is super cute and jaunty, definitely not gay, and really fun to ride in. But you see, my hands get cold. Endpaper Mitts it is!!!

I know, many of you are not knitters, and you have no idea what most of the aforementioned patterns are... hold tight. I will post photos soon!

Sunday, April 06, 2008

Sickening






Be back to business soon.