Stupid with a flaregun

 
I finished weaving in the ends on these today. Stephanie and I both fell in love with this knit while we were yarn-crawling a few weeks ago, so we each got a kit. I of course went with an eggplant color, and tada! I love them. Bonus? The match my new Namaste knitting bag, which I've been carrying everywhere as a purse (that is mysteriously full of knitting).
And also the shirt I was wearing today.
As well as the purple part of my market squares bag.
And my robe (though nary the twain shall meet).
And honestly a bunch of other stuff I have around here, because apparently this is my favorite color.

In sadder news, my crochet hooks have gone missing and I cannot figure out where they are. I even thought that by looking feverishly for something else I could trick them into appearing, but it wasn't to be! Alas, and also alack.

Angevoli

Mom said I had made enough changes to Picovoli that it was like a different pattern. She recommended I write up my notes. Sigh. I'm far too lazy for this sort of thing! But here we go:

The yarn I used, 2nd Time Cotton, knit up at a gauge of 4 st/in on size 8 needles (Denises, if you were wondering) instead of the 5.5 st/in called for in the original pattern. I'm not gonna let a little thing like gauge stop me! This looks like a job for math!
So, the cast-on specified for the size I wanted to make (40-inch bust) was 140. Divide that by the gauge: 140/5.5=25.4545454545... which either I or my cell phone (which doubles as my calculator!) rounded up to 25.5.
Multiply that by the new gauge: 25.5 * 4 = 102
But I wanted a number that divided by 4 evenly, so I made it 104. I could have made it 100 instead, but I didn't. Oh well! I cast on with crochet hook because I like the way that looks with garter stitch, and purled my first round. Right now, and until I finished the garter stitch rows, I was working on a size 6 needle.
At this point, honestly, I think I just picked nice divisible-by-four numbers to be how many I have at front, back, and sleeves. I went with 16 stitches at each sleeve and 36 at front and back. I didn't take very good notes as I went along.
Anyway, with my markers placed, it was time to work my first increase round. I worked the increase rounds thus, every other round:
*Knit to 1 st before marker, yo, k1, sm, k1, yo, repeat from * until end of round. When I finished garter stitch, I switched to size 8 needles but kept on in the increase pattern.
I worked until I had the sweater the size I wanted it, then put the sleeves on holders (extra Denise cables). On front and back I had 76 stitches each, and at each underarm I cast on 4 stitches, which put the sweater right at 40 inches. Cool.
Then I worked even until the point where it was time to begin decreases. At this point I basically followed the pattern except that I had to adjust the number of stitches between markers on the waist shaping:
The original has 52 stitches at front and back and 58 stitches at the sides, so for me
52/5.5≈9.5*4=38 "untouched" stitches at sides
58/5.5≈10.5*4=42 stitches to start waist shaping with.

This is where I switched my size, too, to account for a larger waist and hip. This part is easy: I just stopped the waist decreases early. The I increased as per instructions and then knit even till it was as long as I wanted it. Switched back to size 6 needle, worked 10 rounds of garter stitch, and bound off.
All this part I finished probably in August, not too long after I had started it.

After that I left it in a project bag all by itself for a long time.
When March rolled around, I put one sleeve's stitches on needles, picked up the four underarm stitches, and knit my sleeves, decreasing two stitches at the bottom side every 1.5 inches twice. Then I worked 10 rounds of garter stitch on size 6 to make it match the neck and lower edges, bound off, and did the same thing on the other sleeve. The process took part of an evening.

Then I wondered why I had put it off so long. Oh well, I've got a new top now. It's on Ravelry here!

Octopus Prime

This little fella came from Tamie Snow's book Tiny Yarn Animals: Amigurumi Friends to Make and Enjoy, which I got way back when I had a birthday. I'm pleased with how he turned out.
Something else I'm pleased with:

the shirt I finished a couple weeks ago, a version of Grumperina's Picovoli that I reworked for a larger gauge and sleeves. I changed the increase ratio at the yoke for this, but maintained the shaping because I love it. It's hella comfy, but the neckline is pretty wide. Which WOULD be okay except that my purse is wool and has a wool strap. Which, again, WOULD be okay except that I'm allergic to wool. So the exposed bit of neck/shoulder turns red. Guess I'll just have to use a different purse when I wear this top.

Photos that are unrelated to Thanksgiving.

I just thought that was too funny, and can't imagine a good slogan for them. "If you need someone to Arse it up..." and that manner of thing.
While I was at it with the uploading today, I took a bunch of knitting pictures as well, because I needed to. I was tired of seeing blank spots on my Ravelry.
Here's the baby sweater, laid out in pieces, waiting for me to muster the conviction to sew it up:

And here's one of the socks for Rachel, the other one still needing to be grafted at the toe:

FINALLY, I've taken a picture of the post-fulling version of Market Squares:

Here's a man-sized hat:

Most exciting of all, part of our tree believes it to be autumn now! It's turned a brilliant shade of red on one side (the rest is still green).


I confess, I'm pretty glad Thanksgiving is over. We had a full 16 humans in this house yesterday, and while I love each and every one of them, everybody at once is overwhelming to my poor senses. Timothy spent the whole day hiding under a bed and Banzai spent most of it hiding behind a plant in a bedroom that was free of traffic. I hung out with him for a long time, because I really have feline instincts about crowds. The food was good though, and the meat-eaters feasted on a free-range organic turkey that we're saying died laughing. From what I've heard, it was delicious. And well, it should be! It was healthy and free of antibiotics, not to mention all the adrenaline that can be found in ill-treated turkeys. And it had a special bonus flavor: Good karma. Rock on. If you're gonna eat animals, you gotta do it right (though I'm still dreaming of a vegetarian holiday one of these years).

Oddly lacking in case of Mondays

I've been in a pretty swell mood today, and haven't had any trouble staying awake, which is strange, because I had tons of trouble falling asleep last night. I ended up being awake until about 3, and then getting up at 7. That's just ridiculous. It sucked too, because I was lying in bed with my eyes closed and they felt gritty and gluey like eyes do when you're sleepy, but my mind was just refusing to cooperate. And it wasn't that there was anything bothering me or consuming my thoughts. It's just that my brain wasn't ready for bed yet.


I've knit a new hat. I started it last week sometime and finished it today. I'm pleased with the stretchiness of the tubular cast-on and the swirls of the decreases and the softness of the yarn. I hope it goes to a good home.

I also want to show off a use for my cellphone that takes full advantage of its skinny shape:

Missed it by that much.

I saw Get Smart on Saturday, and loved it.
Anyway, before the movie I cast on a scarf I could work on without looking-- a lot of stitches for a knit-sideways garter stitch fluffy purple affair. Mindless knitting. When the movie ended I started casting off with what I assumed was just the right amount left. I thought to myself, "My, what a clever knitter you are" and patted myself on the back until I ran out of yarn about, oh, ten stitches from the end? And that's what the picture shows. The sad remainder of live stitches. You can't see it but the tail is only about 3" long.

But wait!
I AM such a clever knitter! I fixed it. Tomorrow maybe I'll tell how.

Juke Sock

Last month everyone in the family got new cellphones and switched carriers. I picked out this adorable little combination phone/mp3 player, the Samsung Juke, and immediately had to begin knitting it something to wear so it'd stay shiny and safe.
I like to use fun details like the Turkish cast-on to give me a nice start and very little finishing, and the i-cord bind off to make the edge look clean.
Without further ado,

The Juke Sock.
yarn: sport weight
needles: US size 1,16 in circulars, x2

Turkish CO 16 st (8 wraps)
increase (kfb) at 2nd and 2nds to last st each needle until there are 16 sts each needle (32 total)
knit 1 round.
Begin cable pattern:
Round 1: (p4, k8, p4) twice
Round 2: k4, c4f,c4b, k8, c4b, c4f, k4
Round 3: rep. rd 1
Round 4: knit.
Repeat these four rows 12 times
Work i-cord bind off:
co. 3 stitches using backwards-loop caston.
1. knit 2, k2tog through back loop.
2. slip 3 stitches back to left needle.
Repeat 1 and 2 until you've come to the start, then kitchener the ends of the i-cord together.

Of course, this pattern can be easily adapted for like... anything. Just increase at the beginning until you've got the circumference you like, put in more garter stitch between the cables, and knit until it's whatever length seems right to you. Eeeeasy.

A Pattern! Tiny Scarf.

This little scarf won't keep your neck very warm, but it's pretty and the yarn (which I'm pretty sure is bamboo) is soft and smooth against a sensitive neck. It'll look lovely with a little brooch to close it, don't you think?


And because I'm always taking and never giving when it comes to content online, I've written it up like a real live pattern.

Tiny scarf that's really way too easy

CO 24 stitches using the crochet-hook cast-on.
Knit 3 rows, and always slip the last stitch of the row purl-wise with yarn in front.
Begin Pattern:
Row 1: K3, (k2tog) thrice, (yo, k1) 6 times, (k2tog) thrice, k2, slip 1 purlwise wyif.
Row 2: Purl
Row 3, 4: Knit.
Work those four rows until you get sick of them or the scarf is the length you like (Mine will just go around my neck twice with a little stretching), then knit 3 rows (slipping last st), and bind off.

Some things I've been working on are:
Pacman on acid. This is the Sunburst Sling Bag from Just One More Row, size medium, and


Rachel Calado's Fern Clog Socks
(click here for non-Ravelry link). They're lovely in this yarn--Kertzer's "On Your Toes Bamboo", which is 75% bamboo and 25% nylon. I'm completely done with this first sock and have yet to cast on the second, but I totally WILL. I swear.

Log Cabin

It is done. I had finished the knitting and bound off but there were still just a few ends to weave in (I did most as I went) and some ends to trim, and for some reason that was enough to make must just set it aside for a couple weeks.

In this blanket, I'm particularly proud of my picking up stitches, as I got my bumps all lined up.



It's worked in Caron Simply Soft on size 7 needles, and following the instructions for "How to Log Cabin" in Mason-Dixon Knitting. I've got on my ravelry here.

it's nice having a camera

The Chinese Pistache in the front yard has been growing a lot and I thought it would be fun to take a photo every day and see its progress. I've focused on one particular branch. Yesterday:


Today:


In knitting news, I've finally gotten a pic of my Picovoli in its finished state. Not a GREAT picture, taken in the computer room with indoor light and stuff, but whatever.



And one final thing, a treat. Banzai went into the closet in the computer room (the only walk-in closet upstairs, and ironically the one that is NOT attached to somebody's bedroom) and seemed to be pursuing something. I watched him put a paw in the wire drawer where some of my fabric is stored, and then proceed to put the rest of himself in too.

Yawwwwwn.

I love pictures of cats yawning or otherwise engaged in having their mouths open. This is Timmy, on Rachel's bed.
I made myself a shirt, Picovoli, but I haven't taken any pictures of it since I finished it. I do have one from when I was working on it and hadn't decided how much longer to make it:

I like it, and it fits well. I used size 5 needles and four skeins of Lion Brand Microspun for it, which feels really nice but tends toward splittiness while knitting. It's also 100% acrylic, so it's not the BEST for garments, but whatever. It reduced my stash.
This is a top I may well make again.
Rachel and I both have gotten new assignments at Pearson (used to be Harcourt), so that's good. It's not a job I've been pining after or anything, but it'll be money, and we'll be working together (ish). We start Wednesday--THIS Wednesday--so that makes me wonder whether they were, you know, planning to get some scorers? Was it a case of divine Providence for them that we called? What a mystery!

Some knitting, but mostly cats

KNITTING

I finished another string bag and it has already been put to that most noble purpose of carrying a yarn store purchase, since we ate lunch at India Oven today and were so close that we had to go to Yarnivore. I spent $40. I am weak. But from that I should get a bag, some socks, and some playing, so it's not TOO bad, right...?

CATS

Cutie, now 19.5 years old, has been climbing the stairs mom made him to get up onto her bed to enjoy the sun that comes through the window and warms it. I love pictures of Cutie sleeping. He looks so peaceful and his back paws are crossed.


This cat below lives in our neighborhood and likes to hang around our yard. I guess she's probably about a year old or so.

string bags

I've been knitting some shopping bags lately, for my own personal use, and of stash I've had lying around. The blue/green/yellow one has gone to my mom, though, when she commented that shopping bags were "really a good idea". These are both of my own design, and very simple. The ecru-colored one is some twine I picked up at the UT co-op, and is done in crochet only. The colorful one, with knitted body and crochet top and bottom, is Sugar'n Cream in "Summer Splash" that I bought a ton of way back when I started to knit because the colors so charmed me. I still feel just as fond of it because it's so cheery.

Every time I take a step, I feel like it's not enough. So I'm trying to remember that no matter how small, a step is a step. And I think that maybe the next step is to try and get everyone I know to use reusable shopping bags. I figure that, with any luck, I could even sell them at like $5 each? I don't know.

Haha, I didn't do any Christmas knitting this year.

I've been knitting the Nomad Hat and Scarf from Interweave Knits Fall 07 issue, which is still the last one I've gotten (Yeah, I could whine about it but my head hurts too much for shrill noises). Instead of the called-for yarn, I'm using Bernat Alpaca because it was cheap on sale. It's soft, I seem to not be allergic to alpaca (score!!!!) and it being a blend (with acrylic) rather than bulky-weight 100% alpaca yarn means I won't be too overheated if I try to wear it, since after all, I live in south Texas. It almost never gets freezing.
This yarn sheds. The photographic evidence shows the yarn's hairs all over my knee. But I really don't mind that much, because it really reminds me of Pooh this way. She was a prolific shedder, and her hairs were similarly greyish white.
Oh, I've made myself sad.

Changing the subject then! I keep forgetting to take a GOOD picture of my laburnum socks, but this will just have to do! I knit them from Panda Cotton in Red Cinnamon, using two balls, toe-up on 2 circular needles, size 1. I used the instructions from Sensational Knitted Socks, except that I used a Turkish cast-on. They bias a bit because of the stitch pattern, but they're comfy and I like the bright colors. They look great with my red Birkenstocks.

Two examples of "Cozy"

Timothy has found my pillow to be juuuust the right size for himself. It's the kind that has an indentation in the middle, and is good for supporting my neck while I sleep, but Timmy discovered its secret other purpose of cat bed. Such a clever boy.
Oh yeah, and remember how I sometimes knit? Well, I've actually got a FO to show, but it's tiny.

My favorite lip-balm, Burt's Bees, had become lost! I was pretty distraught and for a week or so went around with dry lips. My Mom, my hero, bought me a new tube and I vowed to never lose it again, so I made a cozy. Not much later the old tube showed up, but oh well. I used a minuscule amount of Sugar 'n Cream in countryside ombre, and US size six needles. I saw it as an opportunity to play with double-knitting, and I really like the way the yarn makes stripes when I used so few stitches. Now it's attached to my keychain so I can't leave home without it.

Eventually, I'll post photos of my brand new socks! Won't that be nice?

Stripey wrist-warmers

I did not knit these. All I did was cut the holey parts (the feet) off some knee-socks and then make a ruffly edge with the sewing machine. But they're cute anyway, and I like that this photo includes my Banzai inspecting my work.

I suck at titling my posts

Pat's hat has been finished and given to its recipient. If I'd been thinking this morning I'd have brought my camera with me to church to get a picture of the hat on its owner, but I have been feeling dreadful. I'd had this headache for probably 34 hours?
Anyway. I've since embarked on a new project, and photographed the (mid-blocking) swatch: As usual, my photography kinda sucks hard, but I really like this lace pattern and am going to use it on a stole for myself. Though the swatch is in color #80 (ivory), I'll do the stole in #59 (orange) and it will be great. The pattern is Vine Lace from Barbara G. Walker's Treasury of Knitting Patterns (the first) and is so easy I feel like I'm cheating.

So many pictures.

Heh heh heh.
These are very belatedly posted, even though they were finished and given to their recipients before Christmas. But... uh... well, no time like the present to post them!


And I'd like to say that Ravelry has inspired me to get on the ball about this stuff (I can be found there as Angeluhh) but it didn't. It was Cutie. I took some cute pictures of him with my parents' camera today and then borrowed said camera to get the pictures off it and found our Christmas pictures too.



Cutie turned 19 on July 4th and he's my inspiration. I thought he looked super sweet rolled up like that. I love you Cutie.

But here are some things Ravelry DID inspire me to photograph (I am so bad at the taking pictures):
Needle Roll that I made when I'd just started knitting.



And my Shapely Tank that I've been wearing a LOT this summer (see that unfortunate color pooling? Yeeeeah.):


And finally, my Lutea Lace-Sleeved Shell, which I've also been wearing a lot but which I washed in the washer making it fuzzy. I need shots of me actually wearing these but something > nothing, yes?


And now finally, my Work-in-Progress.

I love the way this yarn looks in the feather & fan pattern, and it's easy enough I can work it in front of the TV or whatever. The only concern I have is that my yarns so far are two different dye lots, but that didn't really dawn on me until I had gotten quite far into skein #2 and said, "Oh my, these don't quite match." I'm debating whether it's noticeable enough to rip out... which I do not want to do.

FO--socks

They're just plain stockinette with a little bit of ribbing at the top; top-down, heel flap. Kitchener toe. My first socks ever. Done in Plymouth Sockotta (45% cotton, 40% Superwash wool, 15% nylon) on US 2 DPN, as per the label, but I think if I use this yarn again for socks I'll want a tighter guage because I can feel individual purl bumps on the soles of my feet.
I made them pretty short because I didn't know how far the skein would go, and so I'm left with enough to make something else small-ish.