Brattleboro Hat

I had some leftover Paton's 100% Wool yarn that was left over from Alexandria's Blanket.  I have always wanted to make this Brattleboro Hat from Interweave Knits.  The photo is from my iPhone and really doesn't do justice to the sage colors of the hat.  The picture in the magazine was more of a minty green, but I prefer the sage green instead.  The buttons, which were a perfect match were found at Joanne's Fabric for about $2.00.  I can't wait for the opportunity to wear this!

Sockdown 2013-14

Let's face it. I love knitting socks.  It's my most favorite thing to do. It offers me the most variety and challenge in what I feel is a relatively short project.  I always get compliments on my knitted socks.  Even though I haven't completed my goal of the Cookie A Sock Innovation project, I have decided to try my hand at the Sockdown 2013-14 on ravelry.com.  Every month for a year, you are given a color theme.  You can knit their mystery pattern or "mock," choose your own pattern or a pattern from one of their suggested designers.  Participants are not allowed to cast on until the first of the month and must have their project completed by the end of the month.  This is a great motivator to get your project done.  

Since the September '13 theme is "tropical," I chose this beautiful colorway from Knitpicks.  Chroma Fingering is a 70%/30% wool blend and feels great.  The colorway, "Lollipop," has a great mix of yellow, green, rose, orange, and a bit of light purple.  It reminds me of a summer fruit salad.  

For the pattern, I am choosing the "Magic Mirror" pattern from Jeannie Cartmell, one of the chosen designers.  It's a great asymmetrical pattern which includes techniques such as a turkish cast on as well as a short row heel.  These are two techniques that I have yet to master.  This pattern can be found on ravelry.com for free.  I will use size 1 bamboo needles for the project and will be casting on tomorrow.

Here we go........

An Old Favorite for Vacation Knitting

I began these socks while I was home on vacation in Tennessee.  The "Jaywalker Sock" pattern is a very good beginner pattern for the new sock knitter.  The yarn used was some wool/bamboo blend that had been given to me a while ago through a swap.  The original idea was to use this yarn to make Cookie A's "Monkey Socks."  I didn't like the self striping pattern of the yarn because it detracted from the pattern of the "Monkey Socks."  The yarn is super soft and feels great against my feet.  The socks could have been more stretchy, though.  I can see me whipping these up for a swap or a quick gift.

Sock Innovation - Rick

It's been a while since I've been working on the Sock Innovation Project.  A January surgery as well as full time classes sidelined me from working on the project. 

I made these Rick Socks with a nice red/orange colorway.  I like how the "racing stripes" came out.  The pattern was easy to work up.

In hindsight, I wish I had waited until my shoulder had healed more before I started the second sock.  The first sock was pre-surgery and the second-post surgery.  You can certainly tell which is which.  The second sock is a lot looser then the first.  While I do plan on doing this pattern again, I am tempted to rip out the other sock completely and start over.  We'll see if I have the nerve to that.  Coming next, Milo....................

Aubrey's First Birthday

When Aubrey's first birthday came around, I couldn't resist making "Flo the Elephant."  

This pattern is free the e-zine knitty.com and I have listed the link at the bottom of this post.  It calls for 100% Worsted Weight Wool.  Luckily I had some Paton's Classic wool left over from my "Alexandria's Blanket."  The pattern is very easy to follow as well as easy to work up.  As you can see, you knit up the separate pieces.

Once the pieces are done, you begin sewing it together.  At first I was a little apprehensive.  I don't know anyone who likes assembly.  However, because you do it a little at a time, it's not so bad.  Because it's a straight garter stitch pattern, it's easy to use the mattress stitch which gives you almost seamless joins.  You first sew the back down to almost the end of the trunk, then stuff the trunk.  Then you assemble the underbelly to the body and stuff some more.  You then sew up the legs and stuff again.  Once it's all assembled, you attach the pads of the foot the ears.

I used regular qualofill for the stuffing and you can really pack it in.  A good tip is to keep stuffing so that it can stand alone.

Once you have it all assembled, then you can add whatever embellishment you want.  You can attach flowers, or an initial in any complimentary or contrasting color.  I used some nice heathered blue from Paton's Classic Wool (again, left over from a previous project).  I used a blanket stitch around the feet and ears and a satin stitch for the eyes.

I just can't wait to present this to Aubrey's parents.  I have already received many compliments on this project and will probably do it again.

http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEff10/FEATff10SIT.php

International Exchange Rate

One of my favorite swaps on Ravelry is the International Scarf Exchange.  I love creating for someone else and can't wait to see what I get in exchange.  My partner in this exchange is in Dover, Tasmania in Australia.   
The "Lace Ribbon Scarf" pattern is from the Spring 2008 issue of knitty.com and made with Deborah Norville fingering weight sock yarn.  I love the blue and green colorway.  I wanted the colors to represent the color of the ocean.  The scarf was an easy pattern to follow and work up.  

The length of the scarf ended up being 82".  The design of the scarf is for the wearer to be able to wrap it around their neck and have length left to drape down.  My swap partner loved her scarf.  Below is the beautiful scarf from her.  It was made with hand spun merino from Tasmania.

 I love the colors and it looks great against my forest green jacket.  Although it is merino wool, it is very soft and subtle.

Last Minute Christmas Scarves

These Keyhole scarves are were made this Christmas for my mom and sister.  It was a free pattern provided by Koigu and requires around 100 yards of fingering weight yarn.  The pattern doesn't specify a needle size, but I used a Size 7.  

The scarf on the right was made from Online Supersock which was leftover from my first pair of knitted socks.  The scarf on the right was hand spun merino wool that I had purchased in Lancaster County, PA a few years ago.

The pattern was very easy to follow.  The only difficulty was dividing the stitches to make the "keyhole" portion.  However, even a beginning knitter can accomplish this project.  The pattern was a simple rib, but I can see how you can modify the scarf with different rib patterns.

I love the way both scarfs knitted up.  It was interesting to see how different yarns created the same scarf, but with a little twist.

Corriedale Fingerless Mitts

I purchased this corriedale fiber from the CT Sheep and Wool Festival.  After spinning and plying, I ended up with almost 200 yards of fingering yarn, giving just enough to make my sister these fingerless mittens for her birthday.  

I used size one needles for a really dense knitted fabric.  These mittens were knit from the top down with a thumb gusset decrease.  It was very interesting to work them up this way and it went very quickly.  My sister loved her birthday present.

If you'd like to see more of my spinning projects, check out my spinning blog - "debknitsnspins.blogspot.com"

Sock Innovation - Cauchy

This is the second time I am doing the "Cauchy" sock.  The first pair was for a sock swap I had participated in.  I had modified the pattern of the that sock, but in the spirit of following Cookie A's patterns to the letter, I attempted the picot cuff.  

I started out with the provisional cast on method that was illustrated in the book, but I kept having trouble with the uniformity of the stitches.  I switched to a different cast on that worked much better.  I'm not sure of the proper name, but I used a crochet hook a couple sizes larger than my needles.  I did a chain stitch for about 20 more stitches than I needed, then proceeded to cast on a stitch in the "bump" of the chain.  Once I was ready to join the stitches, I just pulled out the chain and the live stitches were there.  I would advise using a heaver weight yarn in a contrasting color to make this process easier.

These socks for my Dad were made with Knit Picks Gloss Fingering in a silk/merino blend.  I loved the caramel color of the yarn.  While it is a neutral color, the pattern really popped, resulting in a very elegant pair of men's socks.

I'm very happy that I am knitting the patterns in order of the book.  I find that in every pattern Cookie A teaches a new skill.  I also took advantage of her sizing tutorial to make these bigger than what for the pattern called for.  On to the next challenge..............................

Mastering the Art of Picot

If I've heard it once, I've heard it a million times; "I don't have the patience."  Well, I have always had the patience, but this particular technique really tried my patience.  The Picot Cuff is done the following way:  First of all, you do a provisional cast on so that you keep the bottom edge as "live" stitches.  This alone is enough to drive you around the bend.  

The second step to this cuff is to pick up these live stitches and knit them along with the other stitches in the other end.  The cast on that was suggested in the Cookie A Sock Innovation Book was easy to do, but I did a cast on from a crocheted chain stitch.  I prefer this method because it is easier to pick up the stitches on each end.  I had to redo this cuff several times for the first sock, but the second was easier.  I recommend using a crochet hook larger than the needle size you need and a heaver weight yarn.  This will make picking up the stitches on each end much easier.  

Knitting is a perpetual exercise in learning the art of patience and gradually having the feeling that you can accomplish almost anything.  It is one of the only activities where you can actually have a "do over."

The Wedding Gift

This "Cable Knit Throw," available for free on Ravelry was a perfect, quick project for a quick wedding gift.

It was made with Knit Picks Brava Bulky yarn with size 10 1/2 circular needles.  It had originally called for worsted weight yarn, but a wanted a more "solid" blanket that would hold it's shape better.  

It knitted up in the perfect color of a brown with just a tiny hint of greenish gray.  It reminded me of the beach right after it had rained.  The pattern, listed at an intermediate level was easy to follow.  Just remember the basics; read the pattern and count your stitches.

The use of stitch markers went right out the window since the starting and stopping point of the pattern repeat changed in every row.  The recipients of the throw was my assistant minister and his new bride.  It was very well received upon the debut and also by my two friends who received a "sneak peek." 

Creatively Dyed Bamboo Bliss

I purchased this bamboo/merino blend from the Creatively Dyed booth at the 2011 New York Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck, New York.  

I really love the way the blues and unexpected greens popped up while I was spinning it up.  I navajo plied the yarn and came up with just under 200 yards, producing a super soft and light yarn.

I found this "Abstract Leaves Cowl" on ravelry.com for free.  It will look nice against my purple pea coat this winter.  The design of the pattern began with larger needles with the last two rounds of the pattern done in a smaller size needle for the graduated decrease effect.  This helps it hug the neck.  I will definitely be visiting the Creatively Dyed booth at Rhinebeck this October.  Here is the finished product.

Artistic Bex

The continuing project in Cookie A's Sock Innovation continues.  "Bex" was knit up in Knit Picks Silk/Merino Blend.  I finished these socks while I was on vacation in Tennessee.  

I love how the pattern popped out in the orange colorway.  Colored pencils and my new magnetic chart keeper from Knit Picks was a big help.  This is not a difficult pattern if you pay attention.  Lifelines and stitch markers are definitely  required.  When you get to the top of the foot pattern, you then repeat the same six rows over and over.  This gives a nice uniform pattern until you get to the toe increases.  Six more patterns to go...............

Ronan's Blanket

When my nephew Kyle and his wife Amanda had their son, I wanted to make something unique and unusual, with a "bright and dark" motif.  

This pattern - Op Art, available on Ravelry for free, hit the right note.  The pattern is visually stimulating as well as soft and warm.  It is worked in the round from the center out.  It got a little tedious near the end with finding longer needle cords.  I loved it's "off-center" design and slightly not perfectly squared shape.  The  blanket was a big hit with the new parents and grandparents.

Sock Innovation Continues

The next pattern in Cookie A's Sock Innovation - "Sam" was made with Knit Picks "Gloss."  This is a merino/silk blend and I loved the colorway.  

I have really been partial to the monochromatic colorways which make the patterns in this book really pop.  The pattern is easy to follow, but you get a false sense of security with such a simple pattern. I did have to frog and start over several times.  Again, with all others you have to pay attention.  I'm closer to using up my stash and haven't had to buy any yarn for long project yet.  I am happy with the results.