So KnitPicky Gallery

Countdown Calendar

2010-09-17T00:00:00.004-06:00

This countdown calendar was inspired by Patrick Frey's Gregor Calendar. To create the design, numbers are drawn onto a sock blank. The calendar is meant to be slowly unraveled to count down to your big event. Mark the time until a delivery, graduation, retirement, holiday, or anything else you're waiting for.

Supplies

sock blank
markers
stencils (optional)
tapestry needle
yarn or thread
dowel

Instructions

1. Block the sock blank. Despite having a ribbed edging on either side, my sock blank curled a lot when I first took it out of the package, and it needed to be blocked. I was tempted to use SOAK. It probably would have been okay, but I was skittish about whether that would affect how the fabric would take up the color afterwards, so I just used water to wet block.

2. Lay out the sock blank, making sure to orient the edge that unravels at the bottom. It is a good idea to have something underneath to protect your work surface. I had blocked mine on top of a foam playmat, and I just left it on that.

3. Measure the length of the sock blank and calculate how big your numbers can be. You want to make sure that the numbers don't overlap. Remember to allow 2-4" at the top to form a casing for the hanging dowel. I was able to make my numbers 1" high, with 1/4" vertical distance between numbers.

4. Draw in your numbers and graphics.
a. I used stencils in an easy-to-read font (Helvetica). They were translucent, which made it simple to line things up. The graphics were inspired by a baby shower theme at Hostess with the Mostess.
b. The markers I used were Le Plume II by Marvy Uchida. I like them because the marker tips give you good control without skimping on coverage. If you're used to how these markers look on paper, though, keep in mind that the colors will be much more saturated on the knit fabric--more like the color of the marker tip rather than the cap. In case you're wondering, I also experimented with fabric paint, but that did not work at all; it was messy and clumpy.
c. Be patient with the markers, allowing time for the knit fabric to take up the color. I found that a stippling motion helped.

5. Fold down the top 1-2" towards the back. Use the tapestry needle with either yarn or thread to sew down the edge, making a casing.

7. Insert dowel and hang.

Have fun unraveling!

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2010

2010-07-24T07:54:00.006-06:00

Chic Cables & Lace (& Cowl Neck)

2010-04-11T21:59:00.004-06:00

Completed: March 2010

Pattern: Chic Labels and Lace Cowl Neck Sweater, by SweaterBabe

Yarn: Berroco Comfort Chunky (50% nylon, 50% acrylic), #5713, 5 x 150yd/100g

Notes: I loved Yantarik's idea (Rav link) of making the cowl detachable, so I did that too. I made my cowl a bit smaller--only up to row 42. After that row, I did the decrease row and bound off. I found that my cowl stayed in place when I wore it, and so I decided not to add any sort of attachments. If things start to slip around later, I’ll put some small buttons on the cowl. With yarn at this gauge, if I use a small enough button, I can button right through the neckline of the sweater without needing any buttonholes.

For the neck, I cast on 88 sts for size XS. This was 2 more than the original pattern calls for, but I needed a multiple of 4 to make 2x2 ribbing. Although I didn’t think to do it originally, I went back and made the ribbing using 2 needle sizes smaller, to prevent it from flaring out. After 3 rounds of 2x2 ribbing, I continued with the directions for short-row shaping except that 26 stitches were knit on the first short row, and the first set of 2 increases were ignored. This got me back to the right number of stitches. Unless I missed it, there weren’t any instructions for working the short-row wraps with their stitches, but I did it anyway.

Like in the other Sweaterbabe pattern I made, this one calls for the sleeves to be made before the body. I always think it’s a better idea to make the body first, though, since the shaping there is more critical and since having a completed body allows you to try it on and figure out how you want the sleeves.

The pattern uses the abbreviation “p-inc,” which is not defined as far as I could tell. I assumed this was a PFB, which was defined, so that’s what I did, and it looks fine.

On the sleeves, I cast off in knit, rather than in pattern. This helped to counteract the slight tendency of the reverse stockinette portions of the sleeve to curl in.

I decide to omit the belt since I didn't feel like it needed one.

The yarn was a bit splitty, but not unreasonably so. I really like it and think it’s a great alternative if you want the bulky yarn look but don’t want a garment that’s going to be too warm.

Yoshino

2010-04-01T17:54:00.003-06:00

Completed: March 2010

Pattern: Oriental Lily, by Georgie Hallam

Yarn: Rowan Purelife Organic Cotton DK (100% organic cottn), #986, 3 x 131yd/50g; #983, 1 x 131yd/50g; #982, 0.2 x 131yd/50g

Notes: My inspiration for this dress was the cherry blossom tree. I love the fluffy white blooms that gradually turn more pink before eventually cascading down and covering the ground. At our previous house, we had Yoshino trees that would herald the arrival of spring, and it always made me smile to look at them.

I used the Oriental Lily pattern to give me some guidelines for knitting the surplice top. I continued making increases until the top fit my daughter, who is a petite 4-year-old (I started this before the designer updated the pattern to include larger sizes).

The sash was done by knitting 1 round, purling 1 round, knitting 6 rounds, and finally purling 1 round. After switching colors and knitting 1 round for the skirt, I doubled the stitch count by knitting into the front and back of each stitch. The skirt is knit straight after that. The color transition at the bottom of the skirt was done with the help of a random number generator (I discuss this further on the main blog). The bottom of the skirt has a modified seafoam stitch.

The sleeves are obviously short and have a garter-stitch hem. I knit a small triangle to sew behind the surplice bodice, both for modesty and to bring the pink color to the top.

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Wisteria

2010-03-15T19:48:00.004-06:00

Completed: March 2010

Pattern: Wisteria, by Kate Gilbert

Yarn: Sublime Yarns Extra Fine Merino Wool DK (100% extra fine merino), #0002, 9.5 x 127yd/50g

Notes: I followed Larisa’s modifications for this one (Rav link). The waist was slightly altered to fit me better, and I knit the sleeves as she did. Since I followed the 37” size, I picked up just 1 extra stitch for the sleeve, for a total of 60. This matched the final stitch count needed for the sleeve, so I just knit straight till I reached the cables. Then, I followed the chart as if all the knit stitches were already filled in and disregarded the directions to make more stitches. The sleeve cable was extended by a few extra rows to match the length of the bottom hem cable. On the last row of the cable, I kept all the purl stitches in pattern and did not convert any of them to knit stitches the way they are on the hem.

Drifted Pearls

2010-03-15T19:39:00.004-06:00

Completed: January 2010

Pattern: Drifted Pearls, by Jennifer Lang

Yarn: Rowan Lima (84% baby alpaca, 8% merino, 8% nylon), #882, 2.5 x 109yd/50g

Notes: This is a lovely pattern, and the suggested yarn, Lima, is really soft and scrumptious. In retrospect, though, I would have chosen a yarn with better stitch definition for the cable and bobbles. I probably would have also only made it 10” wide, rather than 12”. As several other people did, I lengthened the stockinette section by a couple of inches.

Pi Topper Chemo Cap

2010-03-15T19:30:00.005-06:00

Completed: January 2010

Pattern: Pi Topper Chemo Cap, by Corey Laflamme

Yarn: GGH Bel Air (90% merino wool, 10% nylon), #09, 0.5 x 142y/50g

Notes: The pattern was easy to follow and made for a very nice hat.

Cocoon

2010-03-15T19:22:00.004-06:00

Completed: December 2009

Pattern: Cocoon, by Tanya Alpert, in Haiku Knits

Yarn: GGH Bel Air (90% merino wool, 10% nylon), #09, 4.5 x 142y/50g

Notes: My instinct was to knit this in the round, but I went ahead and constructed it mostly as instructed. The intention was to knit the body in one piece, starting with the bottom edge of the front and ending with the bottom edge of the back. Once I got to the neck section, I did change things up a bit by leaving the neck stitches for the front live on a holder and doing a provisional cast on for the back neck stitches. After finishing the body, I went back to the neck stitches and knit them all at once, in the round. In retrospect, it would have been easier to have knit the whole body in the round. This is particularly true if you have a different gauge (as I did), because then you don’t have to do calculations to ensure that the cables on the front and back end at the same place.

I knit this at a gauge of 16st x 22 rows per
4”x4”, so I had to made adjustments accordingly. Note that the schematic seems to show the wrong width numbers.

The neck has some wonkiness to it because of the mixture of stockinette and reverse stockinette. Personally, I like it, but if you don’t, you might consider doing it differently.

What sold me on this design was, of course, the cable. It is really lovely and fun to do! I especialy love how it results in extra little folds in the cable. Totally makes it worth it.

Austen

2010-03-15T19:02:00.002-06:00

Completed: December 2009

Pattern: my own

Yarn: Plymouth Yarn Royal Llama Linen (40% fine llama, 35% silk, 25% linen), #1553, 6x 109yd/50g

Notes: The dress is knit top-down with raglan sleeves. I initially cast on 44 stitches, using 2 for the front panel, 10 for each sleeve, and 20 for the back. Extra increases were done to add a bit of puffiness to the upper sleeve. After the main part of the bodice was completed, stitches were picked up along the right front panel, and then the middle ruched section was knit horizontally and then grafted to the left front panel. Afterwards, stitches were picked up along the waist edge. After a few rows of garter stitch, the stitch count was doubled by knitting into the front and back of each stitch, and the remainder of the skirt was knit from the top down.

Winding Path

2010-03-15T18:48:00.002-06:00

Completed: December 2009

Pattern: Winding Path, by Wenlan Chia, in Reversible Knitting

Yarn: Spud & Chloe Outer (65% superwash wool, 35% organic cotton), #7200, 7 x 60yd/100g; #7201, 1 x 60yd/100g; #7205, 1 x60yd/100g

Notes: I was immediately drawn to the sheer brilliance of this design: a pullover sweater you can wear upside down! The description says you can also wear it inside out, but I think that’s hard to do because of yarn ends that need to be woven in and the seam around the armhole. Of course, if you’re using a yarn that you can spit-spliced and if you don’t mind exposed seams, you could pull it off. Even then, though, the shaping in the ribbing doesn’t look as good on the other side. Either way, it’s still a cool concept.

I substituted a yarn with a different gauge (8st/4” instead of 6st/4”), so I had to cast on 60sts to get the size I needed. If you are casting on a different number of stitches too, remember to use a multiple of 4.

If you look at the picture in the book, it looks like the rib shaping should begin in the middle of the sweater. However, if you follow the instructions, you’ll be starting the shaping off to one side for all sizes but the largest. I wanted mine to start in the middle, so that’s what I did. For the ribbing increases where you add knit stitches, I didn’t like the results the pattern gave me. Instead, I did a KLL followed by a M1L.

I do like the “dashed line” effect that the yarn color change creates with the stripes at the “top” of the sweater, but not the intermittent lines that develop when the color change is done over ribbing at the “bottom” of the sweater. So for the 1st row of the MC, I did stockinette and then returned to ribbing for the 2nd row. Oh, and you might want to remember to use your favorite jogless stripe method here--at this gauge, the jog is pretty noticeable, IMO.

I made the “bottom” section only 16” instead of 18”. For the sleeves, I picked up from the armholes and knit them in the round, from the top down. If you choose to do that too, remember to pick up a multiple of 4 sts. If you are following the directions as written, they are a bit vague in that you are supposed to do k2p2 rib but are told to cast on an odd number of stitches. I suppose the best way is to do k2p2 rib and end with a k1 for your spare stitch, and then use a mattress stitch to seam up the sleeve, taking it in 1/2 st on either side instead of the usual 1 st. This avoids extra bulk and gives the illusion of continuous k2p2 ribbing.

This yarn is very soft and comfy, but I had 2 major problems. First, it fuzzes like mad. This was the first sweater I’ve ever made that I had to shave before I ever wore it. Second, the red color bled onto the adjacent cream color. Thankfully it’s not so obvious on the reverse side, so I will probably wear it with the red stripes in the neck. I might frog the red stripes and reknit the stripes in a different color or as solid cream instead.

Vine Lace Cardigan II

2010-03-15T18:37:00.005-06:00

Completed: November 2009

Pattern: Vine Lace Cardigan, by SweaterBabe

Yarn: GGH Bel Air (90% merino wool, 10% nylon), #09, 5 x 142y/50g

Notes: It's not often that I knit a pattern twice, so it's a testament to how much I like this design that I started knitting it again right after finishing the first. For this version, I knit it at 4st/in to fit my daughter.

On the body, I did not do any decreases for the waist or for the ribbing section, but I did do increases after the ribbing. I did about 10 extra rows at the bottom (because of the significant row gauge differences) and added an extra buttonhole. Otherwise, I pretty much did the same things I had done on the version of this that I had made to fit myself.

The yarn is extra soft and cushy (my daughter’s skin is really sensitive, and she just loves it), yet also very light. I did have a knot or two in every ball, though, and that was a big drawback. It also tends to fuzz up pretty quickly, but that’s nothing a shaver can’t take care of.

Feynman

2009-12-28T06:46:00.002-06:00

Completed: October 2009

Pattern: Seamless Hybrid in Knitting Without Tears, by Elizabeth Zimmerman

Yarn: Cascade Ecological Wool (100% wool), #9004, 1.5 x 478y/250g

Notes: I followed Elizabeth Zimmerman’s pattern and incorporated Jared Flood’s notes on his design elements since I was so enamored with Big Blue. I went ahead and knit it back-and-forth as he did, without thinking about it. In retrospect, though, I deprived myself of a great opportunity to make it in the round and learn steeking. Oh well–next time.

Since my yarn is a DK rather than a worsted weight, I made the ribbing 3x3 instead of the 2x2 ribbing used in Big Blue, just for better visual impact.

I followed the pattern directions for sleeve increases. It looks fine, but it is different than what I’m used to. The increases all take place below the elbow, whereas I’m used to having them tapered throughout the length, up to the armhole.

Two zipper facings were knit so that the zipper could be sandwiched in between. The front zipper facing was made by picking up stitches from the front edges and knitting in 3x3 rib. Then, stitches were picked up from behind those and knit in stockinette for the back zipper facing. The back facing was knit 2 rows shorter than the front, with the idea being that the longer front facing would help hide the zipper teeth. The zipper was sewn to the back zipper facing by machine and then to the front zipper by hand. My husband chose a parka-style separating zipper, and I love how it opens from the top and from the bottom.

The collar was initially kind of floppy, so after knitting the collar to the desired height, I did a purl turning row, reversed the ribbing pattern and continued on until the height was doubled. This way, after the collar was folded down at the turning row, the two sides nested against each other and made for a sturdy collar that was not too terribly bulky.

Vine Lace Cardigan

2009-10-23T17:34:00.004-06:00

Completed: October 2009

Pattern: Vine Lace Cardigan, by SweaterBabe

Yarn: Cascade Ecological Wool (100% wool), #9004, 1.5 x 478y/250g

Notes: Knitting size M at 3.5 st/in gauge gives me a 35” cardi, which is a better sze for me than the 40” that the pattern offers at the smallest size. Luckily, the row gauge is only slightly off, and I wanted it shorter anyway, so I didn’t have to make any modifications there. My sweater fits more like a regular cardi than a sweater coat.

For the raglan increases without a stitch in between them, I prefer to do a KLL and KRL, rather than doing 2 consecutive m1’s.

I joined the body pieces first, instead of doing the sleeves first. It’s just easier for me to visualize how I want the sleeves to be if the body is already done and I can put it on. After the body was done the sleeves were knit in the round, picking up the necessary stitches from the body (this meant no seaming at the armpit later). The sleeves were knit straight, without any increases.

I did 3 sets of decreases for the waist (only on RS rows) and knit the ribbing section straight, without any shaping. I waited till row 56 to start the ribbing so that the buttonhole that is supposed to be made on row 62 (for size M) would be vertically centered in the ribbing section. I really liked that little tweak, but I think if you are actually knitting the pattern at row gauge, it may not work for you since the ribbing section may sit too low across your abdomen and not be flattering. After the ribbing section, I made 4 sets of increases for the waist so that the hips were a bit bigger than the chest.

I was initially tempted to leave off the pockets, but I’m so glad I made them. They are soooo cute! I did add an extra selvedge stitch on each side to make the seaming up a bit neater.

I’m very pleased with the results. This is the type of sweater that I can throw over just about anything, and I know I’ll grab for it often. The pattern was clear, but personally, I’m not a fan of how each row is spelled out for the first section of the pattern. At the least, it could have been simplified to say that all the WS rows were worked the same.

Ingenue

2009-09-22T17:08:00.003-06:00

Completed: July 2009

Pattern: Ingenue, Custom Knits, by Wendy Bernard

Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash (100% wool), #1910, 4 x 220y/100g

Notes: I was adventurous and started this without doing a swatch first. I figured it wouldn’t be too big of a deal since it’s a top-down raglan and adjustments are relatively simple to make. I made the collar on size 7’s and realized the gauge was too small, but I like the way the collar turned out anyway, so I left it alone. I switched to size 8’s once I got to the yoke to get closer to gauge but it was still smaller, at 20st/24r.

I knit the collar in as I went along, rather than waiting to sew it in at the end. For the raglan increases on the yoke, I spaced them further apart towards the end. After the 12th increase, I set them every 3rd row instead of every other. In part, this was to help make up my row gauge difference, but it also changed the slope of the increase and helps to prevent some of that fabric excess that often happens near the armpit on raglans. I picked this up from knitting Hargreave’s Jasmine, and I think it makes for nice shaping. As you can see in the picture with my arms down, there is still some bunching, but not too terrible. I like the way the waist shaping is done in the front and back just under the bust and at the sides along the hip. I think I will use this method in future sweaters.

I had some trouble with the bottom hem flipping up. It didn’t curl-–it just kept flipping up after I sat down or if I bent at the waist. So to try and fix this, I did the hem a bit differently. It was fiddly to get the tension just right, but I’m okay with how it turned out. After knitting row 4 of the pattern (I only did 3 repeats)…
-Knit 1 row
-Purl 1 row (turning ridge)
-Knit 2 rows using 1 needle size down
-Turn hem in along turning ridge and sew live stitches to wrong side of fabric

I didn’t have any problems with the sleeve hems flipping up, but nevertheless, I did those hems in a similar way, just for consistency. The only difference was that on the sleeves, I went down 1 needle size starting on row 4 of the last pattern repeat and also decreased by 2 stitches on that row. After purling 1 row for the turning ridge, I kept the same needle size but decreased another 2 stitches on the next knit row.

The yarn is really nice and easy to work with. It doesn’t feel plasticky like some other superwash yarns. It’s pretty soft and comfortable to wear. I think most people could easily wear it next to their skin, but I’m extra sensitive, so I did feel more comfortable with a tank on underneath.

Uni

2009-09-21T19:03:00.005-06:00

Completed: September 2009

Pattern: Hobby Horse, by Ann Budd

Yarn:

Cascade 220 Heathers #2453 (100% wool), 0.3 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #7805 (100% wool), 1 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #8686 (100% wool), 0.25 x 220yd/100g

Imperial Stock Ranch Lopi #01 (100% wool), 0.3 x 113yd/100g

Notes: I am no sock knitter, so I’m not sure if it’s a mistake or not, but I believe the first decrease on the gusset should be a k2tog, rather than a ssk. I guess it doesn’t matter all that much since it’s felted.

When making the face, I first knit 1 round before starting the basketweave stitch pattern. This avoided weird purl bumps of the MC showing through on the first round of the basketweave. The pattern calls for k2p2 as the stitch pattern, but the picture looks like it’s a k4p4, so that’s what I did instead. After finishing the face, I did a 1/2 round to move the remaining color transitions to the underside of the face to make them less obvious.

The only other minor thing I found was that the diagram of the bridle doesn’t really correspond to what’s pictured. No big deal, though. I will confess that I bought some decorative cord to use for the bridle rather than making I-cord, and I used just regular yarn to close off the bottom instead of making a crochet chain. Why? ‘Cause life is short and my queue is long! :-)

I used the Imperial Stock Ranch Lopi because I wanted a natural-colored yarn, and I already had it on hand. It did not felt nearly as well as the Cascade 220, though, and I wish I had gone ahead and bought more 220 instead.

I did the stripes on the neck a little differently, but the main modification I made to this pattern was to add a horn. It’s attached with velcro rather than sewn on, just so my little one has the option of choosing what kind of steed she wants to ride that day. The “hair” for the forelock area was arranged in a V-shape (basically like an inverted widow’s peak), creating a comb-over that hides the velcro. The soft side of the velcro is sewn to the head and the hard side is sewn to the bottom of the horn, to avoid having the hair snag on the velcro when the horn is not in place. The pieces of yarn that make up the forelock at 8" long and the yarn for the rest of the mane is 10" long.

CO 24sts. Join to knit in the round
1: k10, p2, k10 , p2
2: k9, p2, k10 p2, k1
3: k8, p2, k10, p2, k2
4: k7, p2, k10, p2, k3
5: k6, p2, k10, p2, k4
6: k5, p2, k10, p2, k5
7: k3, p2tog, p1, k9, p2tog, p1, k6
8: k2, p2, k9, p2, k7
9: k1, p2, k9, p2, k8
10: p2, k9, p2, k9
11: p1, k9, p2, k9, p1
12: k8, p2tog, p1, k8, p2tog, p1
13: k7, p2, k8, p2, k1
14: k6, p2, k8, p2, k2
15: k5, p2, k8, p2, k3
16: k4, p2, k8, p2, k4
17: k2, p2tog, p1, k7, p2tog, p1, k5
18: k1, p2, k7, p2, k6
19: p2, k7, p2, k7
20: p1, k7, p2, k7, p1
21: k6, p2tog, p1, k6, p2tog, p1
22: k5, p2, k6, p2, k1
23: k4, p2, k6, p2, k2
24: k3, p2, k6, p2, k3
25: k1, p2tog, p1, k5, p2tog, p1, k4
26: p2, k5, p2, k5
27: p1, k5, p2, k5, p1
28: k4, p2tog, p1, k4, p2tog, p1
29: k3, p2, k4, p2, k1
30: k2, p2, k4, p2, k2
31: p2tog, p1, k3, p2tog, p1, k3
32: p1, k3, p2, k3, p1
33: k3, p2, k3, p2
34: k1, p2tog, p1, k2, p2tog, p1, k1
35: p2, k2, p2, k2
Break yarn and weave tail through remaining stitches.

Now, you have to decide whether you like the inside or the outside better. Personally, I liked the side with mostly purl stitches better, so I turned it inside out. If you want to only make a unicorn, you can sew this onto the head after each is felted, stuffing it before you finish up the seam. If you want a “convertible” horn, you’ll need to make a base for the horn.

CO 6sts. Join to knit in the round
1: knit
2: kfb each stitch (12 sts)
3: knit
4: knit
5: kfb each stitch (24sts)
6: knit
BO.

Felt all the pieces separately and then saw the base onto the horn, stuffing it before you finish up the seam. Sew the hard side of the velcro onto the base of the horn and the soft side onto the horse’s head.

Lizzie

2009-09-16T18:15:00.003-06:00

Completed: September 2009

Pattern: Lizard, by Amy-Lynne Mitchell

Yarn: Spud & Chloe Sweater (55% superwash wool, 45% organic cotton), #7507, 2.5 x 160yd/100g

Notes: I wanted to make a stole for my friend. Since her name is Liz and she likes lizards, I wanted to include a graphic and thought this dishcloth pattern would be just right. Basically, I just added a bit of garter and some eyelets to the bottom edge, followed the pattern, added a bunch of stockinette to the middle, and then repeated the lizard motif and edging. Easy peasy! The finished stole was about 5' x 1'.

This was my first time working with the Sweater yarn. The colors are rich and beautiful, but some of the color does come off in the wash–so be careful. The feel is nice and soft, not plasticky like some other superwash yarns.

Babs

2009-08-30T15:50:00.003-06:00

Completed: August 2009

Pattern: Knit Chickens, by Susan B. Anderson, and chart by Michelle Mooney

Yarn:

Cascade 220 Heathers #2453 (100% wool), 0.3 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #9476 (100% wool), 0.3 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #9404 (100% wool), 0.2 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #7824 (100% wool), just a bit x 220yd/100g

Notes: I made another chicken following ElleM’s awesome chart, just using a different color scheme. My first one was made as a gift, and this one I made for myself and wanted her to match my kitchen.

I constructed this one in the same way as Henrietta. The only other thing I’ll mention is that I find it helpful to put a layer of polyfill on the bottom before pouring in the pellets–helps to keep them from working their way out.

She is named after Babs, the knitting chicken from the movie Chicken Run. It's not meant to look like the original Babs, just an homage :-)

Flutter

2009-08-16T19:03:00.005-06:00

Completed: August 2009

Pattern: Flutter, Norah Gaughan Vol 4

Yarn: Nashua Handknits June (100% microfiber), #003, 5 x 120y/50g

Notes: This is a cute, straightforward pattern. The only minor point of confusion for me was doing the slipped stitch on the front, which occurs between 2 purl stitches. It wasn’t entirely clear to me at first whether to slip the stitch with the yarn in front or yarn in back. The answer is: yarn in back (thank you gwenuvere).

The narrowest part of the waist shaping hits higher than in most other patterns, and I wasn’t sure how that would work out, but I think it looks fine.

Rather than finishing off the neck edge by picking up stitches and then immediately binding off (which would have actually been a lot faster for me), I forced myself to do a crochet edge to practice a bit more crochet.

I got the Nashua Handknits June on clearance and really like it. Every now and then, I’d detect just the slightest plasticky crunch when working with it, but for the most part, I really didn’t notice that it’s a synthetic. It’s very soft and pretty flowy. I suspect the ruffle would have been a little better drape if I had used the yarn the pattern calls for, but it still works.

Akomeogi

2009-07-15T19:10:00.007-06:00

Completed: July 2009

Pattern: Akogeomi, Interweave Knits Summer 2009, by Olga Buraya-Kefelian

Yarn: Louet Euroflax Sport Weight (100% linen), #charcoal, 1.75 x 650y/0.5lb cone

Notes: I made the vents only 3” instead of 4” and continued seed stitch on either side of the vents for 3 rows after joining. This was in lieu of going back and stitching up the top part of the side slit as the pattern suggests.

I added waist shaping and was so pleased to see that had been part of Olga’s original vision. My waist shaping is made at the sides, though, not as darts.

My swatch gauge is 24st, which is different from the pattern’s. I used that to my advantage, though, to be able to knit a 34” top following the 32” directions (this gave me 2" positive ease).

I did some calculations and made the armholes 1/2” less deep and made only 3 instead of 4 pleats. On the pleats, the first half is straightforward. The second half of the fold was confusing to me, and Olga was so kind to help. Basically, you incrementally work the wraps you made in the first half while making new ones. I’m not sure if it’s an error or not, but the directions tell you to work to 2 sts before your last wrapped st, but it seems to me you’re actually working 2 sts past the last wrap stitch you had made. For example, on the smallest size, you work 4 sts on row 1 (working the wrap with the 3rd st) and wrap the 5th st. When you come back on row 3, you work 4 sts, work the 5th st with the wrap you had just made, work the 6th st with the wrap you made from the first half, and then wrap the 7th st. Once you get going, it’s a lot easier to do than it looks to read.

There is a minor error in the directions for the shoulder shaping on the right front (as of 6/28/09). It should say “Row 2 and all WS rows…”

After splitting for the armholes, I kept the 2 sides of the front joined until I was ready to do my first pleat (I omitted the bottom pleat from the pattern). I then worked on the right front first, followed by the left front, and then finally the back. I just figured that since the right front was more complicated (especially since I made slight mods), that it would just be easier to make the rest of it match that part than the other way around. For the left front, rather than casting on stitches for the buttonband, I picked up stitches behind the corresponding stitches on the right front piece. For the collar, I only did 2 rows of stockinette before switching to seed stitch.

The sleeves are 3/4 length and roll up to 1/2 length. I did give myself a bit more ease in the upper arm than what the pattern has, and the sleeve cap is 1/4” shorter (since I changed the armhole). I decided to do without the sleeve tab.

Doing this as a mini-KAL with Sylphette was so helpful and kept me motivated! I could only work on this a little bit at a time. Otherwise, the yarn would have been really hard on my hands. In the end, though, after a good washing and drying, it feels really nice!

The buttons are La Mode Style #24793.

Flutter Scarf

2009-07-08T19:11:00.002-06:00

Completed: June 2009

Pattern: Flutter Scarf, by Miriam Felton

Yarn: Alpaca with a Twist Fin (70% alpaca, 30% silk), #3001, 0.5 x 875yd/100g

Notes: This is a lovely, straightforward pattern. The middle section is very easy to memorize, so it made for a portable, pick-up-anytime project. I only did a total of 80 repeats of the first chart, rather than 100, but I still ended up with a decently sized 52" scarf. I haven't weighed it out, but I think there will still be enough yarn left from this skein to yield another scarf.

George

2009-06-04T20:24:00.003-06:00

Completed: June 2009

Pattern: George--Sock Monkey Cup Cozy (Ravelry download), by Alejandra Quiroz

Yarn:

Queensland Collection Kathmandu DK #419 (85% merino wool 10% silk, 5% cashmere)

Cascade 220 #8010 (100% wool)

Cascade 220 #9404 (100% wool)

Notes: Actually, my 9-year-old knit this as part of an end-of-year present for her homeroom teacher. We filled the inside of the coffee cup with treats and gift cards. I had her knit it flat because it was easier than using dpn’s or magic loop. All I did was the seaming and sewing on the little parts.

Emily

2009-05-27T19:26:00.003-06:00

Completed: May 2009

Pattern: Emily, The Dark House Collection, by Kim Hargreaves

Yarn: Rowan RYC Cashsoft DK (57% extra fine merino, 33% microfiber, and 10% cashmere), #506, 6 x142/50g

Notes: I wanted to make the sleeves shorter and a bit less poufy so that they would be better for my proportions. I also changed the construction so that there would be a crisp transition between the sleeve and the cuff, with no flaring on the cuff. For my size, I cast on 39 stitches with the largest needles. On the next row, I doubled the stitch count by Kfb of each stitch. I then continued on the sleeve, making decreases at intervals, so that by the time I reached the sleeve top, I had the same number of stitches as the pattern (there was 1 extra stitch since I had an even number). The sleeve top was shaped according to the pattern, with the extra stitch being boung off in the last step. Then, I used the smallest needles to pick up 42 sts for the cuff. On the next row (WS), I just knit. And from there, I worked through row 11 of the cuff pattern and then bound off knitwise on the next row. The only other modification I made was to knit this in the round up to the armholes.

My gauge got very sloppy in the back-and-forth sections near the neckline–loose and wonky, and not all of it blocked out. I’m not sure what was going on with that, so personally, it was not my best knitting.

This yarn is so soft and comfy, but it does shed a lot. I am bummed, too, that in the bag of 10 that I bought, there was one with a dye defect–it looked very uneven. Sadly, I didn’t notice this until I had knit up the entire ball (I was on a plane and the lighting was bad). I also had one ball that had 3 knots in it.

Henrietta

2009-05-25T10:52:00.003-06:00

Completed: May 2009

Pattern: Knit Chickens, by Susan B. Anderson, and chart by Michelle Mooney

Yarn:

Cascade 220 #8555 (100% wool), 0.3 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #8010 (100% wool), 0.3 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #9404 (100% wool), 0.2 x 220yd/100g

Cascade 220 #7824 (100% wool), just a bit x 220yd/100g
Notes: I completely copied Michelle for this one, color scheme and all. She has very generously shared the chart she used to make her beyond-brilliant version of the already adorable Knit Chickens pattern.

I made just a couple of very minor tweaks to the pattern. For the tail feather shaping, I did row 3 as ssk, k1, k2tog because I thought that was more symmetric (yes, I’m anal). I steam blocked the wattle flat after knitting it and sewed it on at the top but did not tack it down the rest of the way. For the crown and beak, I cut a long tail and stuffed it inside instead of trying to get the fiberfill inside. And finally, I changed the construction order a bit. I finished the head and tail and sewed on all the little pieces before closing up the body. I just thought it would be a bit easier to sew and to manage all those yarn ends this way.

Petal Halter

2009-05-02T15:51:00.005-06:00

Completed: May 2009

Pattern: Petal Halter, Interweave Knit Spring 2009, by Olga Buraya-Kefelian

Yarn: Louisa Harding Merletto (46% Viscose rayon, 34% Nylon, 20% Linen), 98yd/50g, 2 x #1, 2 x #2, 2 x #12

Notes: To start, I used a more standard provisional cast on, rather than the Eastern method.
The pattern tells you to knit each petal until the garter ridge edge is a certain length. Well, rather than calculating it out using my row gauge as I should have done, I measured the unblocked, unstretched garter edge. You guessed it-–I ended up with a set of petals that were too long once blocked. Luckily, I had started with the bottom tier of petals and pieced it together as I went along, so I discovered my mistake after the first 2 petals. I then realized I could make the 2 remaining petal tiers progressively smaller, so I did not have to frog anything.

Instead of leaving live stitches on each petal, I passed the stitches over one another–like binding off. For me, this made it a little easier to sew them together and made the seams have less gape. The sewing was not complicated, but keeping everything properly aligned in such slippery fabric and creative geometry required a lot of safety pins for basting.

Rather than making the original straps, I decided to make it a strappy halter. The cord is formed by casting on a whole bunch of stitches, and then casting off. I sewed the cord to the “points” on the front and back. Luckily, my head fit through the opening, but if it had not, I would have left more cording to be able to tie it at the side of the neck.

I like this top, and the construction was fun and interesting. I was nervous about it the whole way because I usually try things on as I go along, and this was hard to do. In the end, though, it worked out well enough. I probably should have cast on more stitches to make each petal wider (and then made adjustments so they’d still be the same length as the original). That would have allowed the top as a whole to be a bit longer. I can’t really wear this with my low-cut jeans without showing a little wedge of belly.

Because I used different colors, I had to buy more total yarn: 2 skeins of each color. I suspect that if I had done the straps as directed, I might have needed a 3rd skein of the top color. The yarn has a pretty nice drape and sheen. However, it’s just a bit scratchy, and it was really splitty to work with.

Vintage Cowl

2009-04-29T20:33:00.005-06:00

Completed: April 2009

Pattern: With the New Cowl Neck Line, in A Stitch In Time: Vintage knitting and crochet patterns 1920-1949, Vol. 1 by Jane Waller and Susan Crawford

Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy (40% Hemp, 40% Cotton, 20% Modal rayon), #26, 4 x 153yd/50g

Notes: I loved this pattern from the moment I saw it and am very happy with the results. There is currently an error listed for the back piece, and I suspect there is an error in the sleeve/armhole directions–am waiting to hear back about that as of 4/28/09.

I would strongly recommend you buy extra yarn. I did use a different yarn than recommended, but the yardage is nearly identical. I made the smallest size, which calls for 4 balls, and I thought I would be safe since the next size up also called for 4 balls. But I had to make my sash 42” instead of the 34” the pattern says in order to make sure that the sash could tie and stay tied properly. I needed a whole ball just for that, and I had basically nothing left over.

I did a few modifications. The saddle shoulder is done in stockinette rather than rib, and I cast on 4 fewer stitches. The sash is done in 1x1 rib; it looks and acts like double knitting, except the ends tend to flare out. To combat this, I modified the construction a bit:
-CO half the required number of stitches
-Row 1: Kfb of each stitch
-Row 2: Establish p1, k1 rib
-Continue in rib pattern till desired length
-Last row: K2tog to end, casting off as you go.

Thanks to TechKnitter’s excellent instructions for doing the beginning and end of the neckline bindoff stitches, I got a beautiful edge with no ugly gaps. That, combined with the fact that the fabric blocked out well and did not have any meaningful stockinette curl, meant that I was able to forego the crochet edging that the pattern suggests.

The yarn was great, blocked beautifully, and had the right mix of drape and body at this loose gauge.