Octopus-Pod

Finished object alert!

An innocent looking capsule...

But lo - what is this?

Something begins to emerge!

Partially transformed,

Welcome, Octopus!

Pattern: Cephalohedron by Erica Schlueter
From: Interweave Knits Holiday Gifts 2011
Yarn: Cascade 220 Sport
Needles: Size 4 US (16" circular and DPNs)

This pattern is awesome.  Clear and well-written (there was one minor error - see my Rav notes)  I love that I didn't have to sew any pieces - everything is knit together as you go, even the eyes!  Also, it is self-stuffing, so I didn't have to look for my elusive bag of ancient fiber-fill.  I started on Sunday and finished on Wednesday.  I could see making some of these as holiday gifts if I had any children on the list.

Cascade 220 Sport is also awesome.  The name is slightly misleading - it's only 164 yards - but this stuff has great stitch definition and is dirt cheap to boot.  It's just $4/a skein at the Fiber Gallery, and two skeins will definitely make two cephalohedrons, or possibly even three.  I really have no excuse not to make at least one more.

Sample Knitting

One of the things people assume about yarn store employees is that we get to sit around and knit all day. A lot of the time we have other things to do - helping customers, restocking yarn, cleaning, etc. But, sometimes, we do get to sit around and knit. Samples for the shop, that is.

I recently completed two such samples:


















Grace by Tonia Barry

Knit in Classic Elite Pirouette (67% mohair, 25% bamboo, 8% nylon) on size 6 needles. This took less than 2 balls of yarn, and includes some insane ruffle increases which I rather love.

The finished product is larger in reality than the photo in the booklet makes it appear. Or, maybe I just had gauge issues.






































Winding Way Mitts by Cheryl Beckerich
Knit in Cascade 220 Sport (100% wool) on size 4 needles. The pattern calls for one skein, but I only made one mitt so I only used 1/2 a skein. I would have to weigh the remainder to be sure, but it seems correct.

If I was a fingerless mitts person I would definitely make myself a pair of these. The cable pattern is engaging and easy to work, and the ribbing in the hand makes for a great fit. The 220 Sport is lovely to work with - lofty and soft, with awesome stitch definition.

Meet Harald Bairhair

Last fall I bought a DK weight cashmere sweater at Value Village. It had a hole in it, and wasn't the most attractive thing I'd ever seen, but it was extremely soft and a nice clean white color, so I bought it. I brought it home and washed it, and then it sat in a box for months.

This weekend I finally pulled it out, dissected it, and frogged it onto my ball winder. This is what it yielded:

















Also this weekend, at the yarn shop, a customer showed off the adorable bear she had just finished. I asked her about it, and learned that the pattern was Peabey the Polar Bear by Snowden Becker. I immediately queued it, and favorited her project, then went on about my day. On Monday I realized that I could make him out of a bit of the cashmere, and off I went. Two evenings later I was finished.

















Isn't he cute? The pattern is thorough and clear, with lots of great photos of the construction. I ended up using 7 dpns at once and wasn't even annoyed about it, it was that clever. Plus, 50% of the pattern sales proceeds are being donated to polar bear research and conservation. Everyone wins!













Tyler, tasked with naming our new friend, came up with Harald (after Harald Fairhair, first king of Norway). Bears are pleased.

The Partial Blankets in My Life, Part 1

This project began as an Albers Cowl by Ann Weaver, but quickly evolved into a sort of freeform patchwork blanket. I am slipping the first stitch of each row to facilitate pick-up, and am increasing the size in a willy-nilly way, working in all directions according to whim and yarn quantities, until I reach 100 stitches on a side.


















The first square is the more Albers-inspired so far - I started it in the middle of the new living room, surrounded by boxes in the midst of our move, because I needed a break from deciding where to put unpacked items, and because I had just unearthed my Ziploc full of fingering weight partials. It consists of sock yarn scraps from my stash: madelinetosh, Rowan, Yarn Hollow, Carpool Sock, Jitterbug, Malabrigo, and Sunshine Yarns.
















The second square contains Erin's sock yarn scraps, which she listed upon their delivery, but the specifics of which I did not note. I may ask her to identify them again once I have finished the square. The layout of this one happened even more organically, and the majority of it was knit while watching My So-Called Life on Netflix Watch Instantly. Did you know that there is only one season of that show? Shocking.

I have more of my own scraps, and Jen has given me some as well, but I know there will be many sections added to this item which I haven't purchased the yarn for yet, let alone knit the socks or shawl to leave me with oddments. I am picturing this as an ongoing project, which I will add on to now and then as a meditation, whenever I feel like it and also have sock leftovers available.

















And this one is a Mitered Crosses Blanket--for Japan by Kay Gardiner of Mason-Dixon Knitting. I'm using Noro Taiyo for the center crosses and Rowan Amy Butler Belle Aran for the borders. The yarns are very different from each other, but work well together and I like the way that each draws attention to the texture of the other. I selected three colors of each, and paired them off, which I'm hoping will ultimately create a harmonious effect. We'll see.
















I am enjoying working on this - it makes excellent modular, portable bus knitting for those long commutes. It also indulges my semi-random-self-striping-Noro fixation, with a little bit of slubby silkiness to boot. I'm using size 8 needles (instead of the recommended size 6, for Silk Garden), and I'm slipping the first stitch of every row. I'm yielding 4 crosses for every skein of Taiyo, and 1 border for each ball of Belle Aran.













I have at least three more unfinished blankets - one of which dates back to high school. If they ever see the light of day again they may get a write-up.

Wrapping Up

We are moving again, and I have more unfinished knitting projects than you can shake a dpn at.
I have resolved not to start any more new projects until we are settled in the new place. Furthermore, I am resolving to finish a bunch of the ones that are already underway - some of which have sat untouched for years.

Exhibit A:

















Jultomar and Teeny Tomte, the Yuletide Gnomes by Alan Dart. I started these last fall, thinking they'd be Christmas presents. I immediately realized I liked them too much to give away, and then I was cleaning up one day and set them (almost finished) on top of the television, where they've stoically sat ever since, awaiting noses, beards, and the sewing-on of hats. I took them down last night and finished them both in under an hour while watching Breaking Bad. I am still deciding whether they should have some sort of eyes. Opinions?

Exhibit B:

















A patternless two-tone striped hat, in Berroco Ultra Alpaca and Fleece Artist BFL DK. It ended up pointy and a bit elflike because of my laissez-faire decrease math. Out of the wip basket and into my Etsy shop.

Next up (maybe): an array of second socks.

Finished(s)

Mother's Day gifts!

For my mother: an Emily Shawl knit in Orkney Angora Incredible.

This yarn got up my nose a little while knitting, but it produced a beautiful (and very fluffy) fabric with more body than I expected. I love the finished product; it seems like it will be warm without being heavy.














This was my first time using blocking wires, and I'm definitely a convert. I can't believe I thought they'd be more hassle than they're worth - they made pinning so much easier than it normally is! I should have used more wires for the top edge of the shawl, but I was up way past my bedtime and wasn't thinking straight. Learning curve!


















And a quilted table runner for Ilene, using the same block as this quilt I made (and did eventually finish) last year. I switched up the layout, which produced a cool laddery effect against the floral.












It ended up about 5' long and a little over 1' wide, which hopefully fits the table it was intended for. Rather than use bias tape I had (which didn't match at all) or make some myself (difficult!) I just left extra backing fabric all around the edges of the top and batting, then rolled it on over and used it for the binding. I'm sure there's a quiltery name for this, but I don't know what it is.

The floral fabrics are from Rowan and Heather Bailey, and the stripe is probably Rowan but I'm not positive.














If I had to pick a title for this, it would be The Gardener's Ladder. Not that you asked.

Stripes on Parade

The Pi Shawl, she is finished.















I used up almost all of my DK-weight partials in this project, yarns left over from a multitude of hats and other small projects from the last few years, which I finally sorted last winter - things like Felted Tweed, Silky Wool, Whiskey, Swish, and Matchmaker. I love how the colors are all mismatched, and yet the finished product ended up relatively harmonious and balanced (at least to my eye).


















The border is Berroco Vintage Wool, the only yarn I purchased for this project. I almost got away with a single skein, but needed a second for the last foot or so of edging. I did the border on 7s, and the rest of the blanket on 5s.















After the blanket was done, I had a little bag full of much smaller scrap balls, so I set about to make a few hats. Two are finished, and a third is well under way. I've listed them in my Etsy shop, since I don't need any more hats, and since I need to start getting rid of things in preparation for our impending move west.














(clicking on the photos will take you to the Etsy listings)

Also new in the shop is this Trilobite hat, made from my Knitty pattern and a ball of Rowan Yorkshire Tweed.

Fiddlin'

I threw my back out again yesterday, so today I had plenty of time (between Advil doses) to mess around on the internet. I noticed some of my pattern photo links were broken, so I updated the links (and images) in my sidebar and ended up messing around with my blog colors as well. What do you think - is the background too bright?

I also cast on for a Pi Shawl with all my DK weight scraps. This thing is going to be colorful.

Oh my...

I've gone over a month again without blogging. Well, at least this time I've got knitting to show you, to the tune of three new patterns:

Bostonian






























Four skeins of Lion Brand Alpine Wool, which I picked up at Joann's, were begging to be made into an eye-popping colorwork something. I settled on chunky black and white houndstooth with a red interior, and the idea of knitting a muff amused me so greatly that I couldn't stop myself. It seemed a little impractical, but after a frigid photography session during which I stayed warm and toasty despite the elements I can see this item getting a lot of use this winter. My hands are always freezing (right now, for instance). Also, looking at these pictures, I'm declaring it reversible.

Blackstone Avenue
















Using a single ball of Berocco Blackstone Tweed, this beret is as frugal as it is stylish. It marks my first attempt at designing a lace pattern, and I must say I enjoyed the process more than I anticipated. This one is a sample for My Sister's Knits in Chicago, but I already have plans for another one in non-tweed yarn, just to see how it will look.

Indigo Dandy

















A single skein of Malabrigo Merino Worsted (I used Purple Mystery) makes this kerchief-point cowl. The pointed shape mimics the look of a triangular shawlette, but without the nuisance of having to wrap/tie any ends together to make it stay put. Published a few weeks ago, this is already getting a lot of wear.

All these patterns are available on Ravelry, as well as here in my sidebar. Enjoy!

Travel, a Gadget, and a Little Bit of Knitting

I went to Seattle and I only took one photo.













Then I went to Massachusetts and didn't take any photos at all. I spent time with my grandmother, who was in the mood to get rid of old kitchen stuff. We made a pile to keep, a pile to have a yard sale with, and a little pile of things she was done with but which I wanted to keep.

















This little guy is one such item. He's the only thing I carried home with me on the plane, since he's small and relatively unbreakable, and because I want to use him soon. He's a pie bird, which (as my grandmother explained) is a device placed in the center of a two-crust pie to vent the steam from inside to keep pies from boiling over. Genius! I've always had trouble with apple pies leaking all over the inside of the oven - and then smoking the next time I preheat - but now I think I'll be all set. I'll post again once I've put him to the test.

I've been doing a ton of knitting, but at present I have almost nothing to show for it. Some of it is secret, and some of it is just really dull unfinished sweater, and a little bit of it is nearly finished adorableness which I'll be posting next. But for now, a sock in progress:













This is the cuff of the Through the Loops Socktoberfest Mystery Sock 2009. The yarn is Araucania Ranco Multy, which I picked up at My Sister's Knits last week or the week before. (It was in the 50% off sale bin and I can't resist sale bins.) I went to Kirsten's blog last night (after midnight) to see what the gauge was and the first clue was up, so I cast on and stayed up past two to finish the clue. I think I'd get more knitting done if more patterns were this modular and more people were willing to spoon-feed them to me a little bit at a time.

La La's Simple Shawl

The Omelette Shawl is finished. It's more of a scarflet than a shawl, really, since I only worked five repeats of the lace pattern (as many as I could with a single skein of the Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock) before starting the border. I extended the border quite a bit, using almost a whole ball of Rowan 4 Ply Soft, and finished it with a picot bind off, which I hate working but love the look of.
















I'm pleased with the finished product, but in hindsight I wish I'd had the patience to incorporate the other skein of the Shepherd Sock. Live and learn, I guess.

Three Hats

There are two new hat patterns available from iknityouknot!

Gaussian is named for the bell curve shape it makes when laid flat. The yarn is Malabrigo Yarn Chunky in Frank Ochre (which makes me picture a dusty Steinbeck character) - a single skein will make the hat, and possibly a pom pom if you are so inclined. Pattern is available for $3 on Ravelry, or in my sidebar.































Blockhead is an extremely simple Fair Isle hat with a turned up lining to keep your ears warm in the colder months. I made mine in Reynolds Whiskey, using one ball each of Blood Orange and Ice Blue. The color possibilities boggle the mind - I think I'd like a black and white one. Pattern is available for $3 on Ravelry, or in my sidebar.

















Special thanks to Nancy for test knitting and to Nicole for modeling. (Don't you love how her necklace just happens to be the exact same colors as the hat? I do!)















I've also been test knitting! Bicycle Boy, the latest Weaverknits design, is a close-fitting cap ideal for wearing under a helmet. It features a Fair Isle bicycle chain motif and a chain ring cleverly delineated by the crown decreases. Mine is knit in Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed, which is VERY SOFT (but in some cases plagued by vegetable matter), in colors Gypsy (aka blue) and Imagine (aka blue-green). Pattern is available on Ravelry for $2.50.














The very appropriate model is my dear friend Hannah, who, as a member of Join the Cycle, is on a cross-country bicycle trip with co-riders Casey and Melissa. The trio stayed with us for a few days this week, but are back on the road. You can read about their exploits here.

Knitting an Omelette?

No, it's my La La's Simple Shawl, made in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock (color is Sunshine Stripe, a Purl Soho exclusive color - thanks Jenny!) It just happened to be Tyler's breakfast's twin on Sunday morning. For some reason, yellow and white together always make me think that things look like eggs (including Big Bird's forehead, which has reminded me of scrambled eggs since childhood). I don't even like cooked eggs, really: they're too squeaky.

And speaking of Tyler, I'm almost done with his new* sweater!













*According to Ravelry, this thing has been in progress since 2007. That is a long time to wait for a sweater, but this thing has given me problems. I started with an Elizabeth Zimmermann Seamless Raglan Sweater pattern, but the proportions didn't make sense with the measurements I'd taken, so I tweaked the numbers quite a bit. Then I tweaked them back towards the guidelines to avoid gorilla armpits (mostly successful, if he keeps his arms up).

Then I knit for ages and ages, and the knitting was finished. He tried it on, and it was about 4" too long. So I let it languish for a looong time, and he was very patient and good about not bringing it up. A few days ago I got a very innocent "So, do you think my sweater will be done in time for cold weather this year?" I had promised him it would be done for cold weather LAST year, so I immediately made him try it on again in case it had magically shortened itself. It hadn't, and he hadn't gotten any taller, so I set about to shorten the damn thing.

The sweater is worked in the round from the bottom up, with a knitted-in hem. This meant that I needed to either take the whole thing apart from the neckline down to below the armpits (not gonna happen, dear) or cut it near the bottom, remove length, and reknit the hem in the opposite direction, then sew it in place - not an attractive option, since I really like the finished edge on the original hem. I ended up snipping the yarn 4" into the Stockinette above the hem and picking up the live stitches above the snip (all five million of them), then unraveling down to the row above the hem and picking those stitches up as well. Then I kitchenered the two sets together, which took two days. It was worth it, since the length is now perfect.

Now I just have to teach myself duplicate stitch and apply the crest. Maybe by spring?

New

New Summer Blouse
(does "blouse" sound antiquated?)













Pattern is McCall's 5388, View B
Fabric is a pale blue cotton with white ginkgo leaves, which I bought at JoAnn Fabrics years ago.
I shortened the whole thing by about 6" because I didn't have as much fabric as I needed. I like this length, though, and probably wouldn't have wanted it longer.
Check out this finishing inside the underarm:













New Finished Sweater

















Pattern is Green Tea Raglan from Interweave Spring 2007
(which I started knitting in Spring 2007)
Yarn is Nashua Creative Focus Superwash in color 11
I ended up with accidental bracelet-length sleeves on this, which I am not sure I don't hate. I'll try wearing it as-is (and maybe I'll love it) but there's a good chance I'm going to snip the sleeves at 3/4 length and reknit the edging. Also the neckline is a little weird, but that I'm getting used to. (I think it stands up like that because I used wool instead of the recommended bamboo.)

Newly Big Tomato Plants

















Okay, so maybe they've been big for a while, but I just wrangled them into a tomato cage and tied them up, so they're newly tall. No buds yet, but I'm thinking any day now.
By the way, the secret to getting leggily overgrown tomato plants into cages is to cut the cages almost all the way up one side and then open them like a clam shell, instead of trying to get them up into a cage without breaking off a lot of branches.