Back On A Roll

i think i am finally back on a roll as far as knitting is concerned - i'm also starting work on a quilt. the crafty bug is finally back in this little corner of brooklyn!

first up is this little blue dress i made for myself.

pattern: jill's dress from modern top down knitting

yarn: elsebeth lavold silky wool in blue

needles: size 5, circular

didn't make a lot of modifications. the only one was to add a little waist shaping. great simple mindless pattern. didn't even mind all the crochet trim!

i was feeling much better after working on the blue dress, so much so that i decided to use up the 3 skeins of pink synchronicity i had laying around to make up a sweater for e.

pattern: e's pink "japanese" sweater

yarn: alchemy synchronicity in vermillion

needles: size 6, circular

all i knew was i wanted a little cardigan for e that she could wear in the spring (she pretty much won't wear any color but pink...) and i had just 3 skeins of the yarn so had to make something for her now before i wouldn't have a sweater's worth anymore. i was feeling inspired by japanese design and thought it would be cool to have an asymmetrical opening in the front. with that information i did a gauge - took her measurements and started knitting. i knit stockinette until i got to the armholes. i then separated for the fronts and back, provisionally cast on for the sleeves and knit up both fronts. leaving the fronts on waste yarn, i picked up the sleeve stitches provisionally cast on and knit up the back. next i grafted the tops of the sleeves and the shoulder stitches together and knit up the collar. i would have made the collar bigger but was running low on yarn. since i had so much doing the crochet trim on the blue dress, i did the same here.

i actually took really good notes while knitting this so if anyone is interested in the pattern, let me know and i can write it up. also, i think it would be a super easy pattern for me to size up or down.

Finishing Up With Winter

spring is finally here. i swear this has been the longest. most depressing winter. i have had way too much going on and unfortunately that left me with very little time to do all the crafty things that i love and that make me happy. here are two projects i can share - not the most glamourous but finished! - just click on the names to go to ravelry.

swans's island sweater

yarn: swan's island organic merino in worsted weight

needles: #7 circular

pattern: auburn top from new england knits

i didn't make any real modifications to this except to make it a little longer. the sweater is just ok but the yarn was a delight to knit with. definitely worth the large price tag :)

mom's coat

yarn: rowan felted tween aran

needles: #7 straight

pattern: audrey coat from blue sky alpacas

the major mod i made was to use a much thicker tweedy yarn. when i saw this pattern i thought it called for a tweed. i hate to say bad things about patterns and there was nothing "wrong" with this one but god was it boring! i had been working on it off and on for a year and i am so glad to be done! was originally planning on making one of these for myself as well but not anymore - so glad i didn't buy all the yarn.

the best news right now in my life is i have decided to step down as pta president from my son's school. it was making me so unhappy and i feel it left me in a way worse position to actually help out there and make a real difference. i am looking forward to this summer and then coming back in the fall. i can volunteer for only the events i want to be involved with and have a lot more time to do the stuff that puts a smile on my face and take care of my family.

i am working on a bunch of projects right now that i am actually excited about - a quilt, a knit dress for myself and i have an idea for a sweater design for my daughter.

onward!

Lace Jacket

i just love knitting lace - it is never boring and always comes out looking beautiful. now that i have very little knitting time (i volunteered to be co-president of the pta at my son's school... ugh...), it is very important that i actually enjoy what i am knitting and the end result. this was the perfect project for this.

lace jacket

pattern: #13 lace jacket from vogue knitting, fall 2010

yarn: malabrigo lace, verde adriana, 2 1/2 skeins

needles: #5 circular

i didn't make any modification. no time to think about things... but i didn't need to - i think it came out great! i did use the magic loop method instead of lots of different circulars and double pointed needles. the only real comment i have is the sleeves are really tight!

i am having a problem figuring out what to make next. for now, i am continuing to work on a coat for my mother - i have been knitting a piece of it in between each project forever. i did purchase a bunch of swan's island yarn in a orangey color yesterday at brooklyn general - i think it will inspire me.

Holiday Gifts

i know i haven't posted in awhile, i took on a huge volunteer job at my son's school and unfortunately have had very little time for knitting :(

however, i have had some time to get some holiday presents done. here are some pictures with links to ravelry for the details!

latvian mittens for my sister

latvian mittens for my mother in law

fingerless mitts for my brother, brother-in-law and father

i hope to get a pair of mittens done for me soon!

Leftover Knitting

besides holiday presents the only thing i have been knitting lately is stuff i meant to get done a long time ago but never finished.

first up are a pair of socks from my ridiculous stash of sock yarn.

copper penny socks

pattern: copper penny by nancy bush from knitting socks with handpainted yarns

yarn: koigu painter's palette premium merino

needles: size 1.5 circular

i used the magic loop method and made a few modifications after reading other people's notes on ravelry. the pattern called for 72 stitches which seemed a bit much and most people commented that their socks were huge. i got rid of one 12 stitch pattern repeat and casted on 60 stitches - i'm glad i did because my socks fit great! the only other mod i made was to use the eye of the partridge stitch for the heel (but i always use this stitch!) all in all, i am very happy with these socks and i'm glad i used a little of my stash but i wish i used some of my claudia's handpainted yarn for socks for me - i think it is just a little but softer.

up next, i finally made another present for my husband.

cobblestone pullover

pattern: cobblestone pullover by jared flood in interweave knits

yarn: kathmandu aran

needles: size 7 circular

i have had this yarn sitting around for around 2 years and have started and frogged numerous sweaters for b until i finally decided i had to make something and the cobblestone seemed like an easy mindless knit. which it was but i didn't love it. basically just an ez seamless yoke which i have been knitting a lot of lately... the only modification i made was to the neck - i reduced the amount of stitches and the neck is still big! oh well, b is still happy with it and that is all that matters.

up next, i have a whole slew of latvian mittens in mind for holiday gifts and a coat for my mother. i have also taken on a huge role in my son's school (more about that another time) so hopefully it won't interfere too much with my knitting!

May The Force Be With You

my son is a huge star wars freak so last year i made him an adorable star wars fair isle yoke sweater. of course it is getting a little small so he wanted another one. not feeling up for all that fair isle work i convinced him that a "jedi" sweater would be soooo much cooler. he picked out some gray noro yarn and basically told me to get to work. now i was a little stuck - what would i do for a "jedi" sweater. after talking it over with some of my friday morning knitting group friends i realized all that was important was the huge hood. here is the end result:

"jedi" sweater

pattern: elizabeth zimmerman's tomten

yarn: noro shirakaba in color #2, gray

needles: #7 circular and #6 for inside of the hems

i decided to go with the basic pattern of the tomten since i knew that would give me the larger hood i needed. the biggest modification i made was to make the sweater stockinette instead of garter. once this decision was most of ez's percentages go out the window and then when i wanted to make the armholes smaller - the rest of them went out the same window!

the sweater was knit to h's measurements. i used a provisional cast on and then knit up to where i thought the sleeves should go. also, wanted the sleeves to start a little later so it would be less modular looking so i made the front and back larger and put less stitches on waist yarn for the armhole than you would for the typical tomten.

and then used a three needle bind off to make a more defined shoulder. i thought it was important for the hood to not have as much of a point so added some decreases in the center of it when i got close to the top. lastly, i then knit up the provisional cast on stitches and picked up all around the front and hood edges to form the mitered button hole band. and of course, used my favorite edge treatment - a nice neat hem. the buttons are different robot buttons i purchased at brooklyn general 2 years ago.

and there you have it - a "jedi" sweater - of course the hood should be a little bit bigger...

since i decided the rest of the summer will be spent finishing some things that have been sitting around - here are the egyptian mittens i started in january for my chicken knitting group. finally!

Glittery E

this was one of the first projects where the yarn called to me before a pattern. i saw the glittery silver threads and all the pink and just knew e would love it - sure enough she couldn't wait to put it on. in fact the pictures of her in it don't even have the buttons on it yet.

e's starry cardigan

pattern: loosely ez's seamless yoke sweater

yarn: dream in color starry, ruby river color

needles: size 3 circular

6 vintage pink buttons

went off of elizabeth zimmerman's seamless yoke sweater with lots of modifications. here are the full details of what i did...

provisionally cast on for the bottom of the sweater, knit one row, cast on 5 stitches for the steek and joined to knit in the round. from there i followed the usual seamless yoke pattern with, of course, making the sleeve wider than the original pattern calls for. the two sleeves have hemmed borders with a picot edging.

after knitting approximately one inch after joining the three tubes i knit 2 rows of purl and then doubled the amount of stitches to form the ruffle. after knitting 8 rows, i then halved the stitches right before it was time to decrease for the yoke. (does any of this make any sense?) i repeated this two more times. basically just replaced the fair isle patterns with ruffles and put two rows of purl in between.

when all that was done it was time for the steeking... wasn't as scary as the green sweater! i used the crochet method. i then picked up the cast on stitches on the bottom, up the front edge, around the neck and then back down the other front edge. knitting in the round i knit 8 rows of hem (including the button holes) with mitered corners - then the picot turn row (k2tog, yo) and then another 8 rows.

all that was then left was to sew down the hem and the steeked edges.

ta da! that's all it takes to make a very happy 2 year old girl! :)