Knitting in a Winter Wonderland

There's something about inclement weather that is so conducive to knitting. I left work a bit early and, after working for a while at home to make up for leaving early, the knitting was on. I popped Across the Universe into the dvd player and picked up the sticks.



First, I got to work on my Evening Stockings for a Young Lady. I had made it through one heel and the gusset on Saturday and had get the second sock caught up so that I could get them both back on the needle and enter the home stretch with them. I'm hoping to put these puppies to bed by the end of this weekend. Then, I will be diving into the sock yarn stash for a yarn for my March socks. I love what I am learning about shaping by knitting socks. I think doing a pair of socks a month this year will greatly improve the look of my other knitted garments as well. I did a slipped stitch heel on these socks instead of the ribbed one called for in the pattern.

Feeling like I needed a change of pace, I moved on to the heartbreakingly cute baby kimono. I have started the increases for the sleeves. I am also hoping to finish this by the end of the weekend. I think this is doable as it is tiny and all garter stitch.

In gift knitting, I finished two more dishcloths. These will go into my gift pile.

Enjoy your Wednesday!

Quick Update

Things have been fairly quiet in jsinsland lately. I've cast on for the puffed sleeve feminine cardigan from Stephanie Japel's Fitted Knits. I am only on the collar so I do not have a picture to show. I love the red from the version in the book so I am unoriginally knitting it in the exact same yarn in the exact same color. I've used the same yarn that a pattern called for before but I think this is the first time that I am also using the same color. (It's Knitpicks Merino Style in Maple Leaf.)

I have also knit 2 dishcloths as part of the Year Long Gift-A-Long. If I can keep focused on folding in gift knits with my standard selfish knitting, I may actually have a stress free Christmas this year.

In non-knitting but other crafting news, I have signed up to take a sewing class at the Community College of Allegheny County. I am really looking forward to taking this class. I have a sewing machine and have made curtains and pillows with it but I would like to become more proficient with sewing and tackle some more complicated projects.

Happy Monday!

A Wicked Debut - The First Sweater of 2008

Don't make me get my flying monkeys as I have one Wicked sweater and I can't find my ruby slippers! I can't believe how quickly this sweater knitted up once I concentrated on it. It was about 35% finished when I picked it up last weekend and now here it is complete before the week had passed.

Wicked Specs
Pattern: Wicked by Zephyr Style
Yarn: Cascade 220 Heathers Ocean Heather - 3 skeins (and I have been sweating over whether or not I would have enough yarn since Sunday when I set it aside to ponder the situation and only got the courage to pick it up and finish it last night.)
Needles: Size 7 Knitpicks Options
Start Date: November 18, 2007
Finish Date: January 24, 2008 (This sweater would not have taken so long but it took a vacation from the first weed of December until January 19. All in all, I would estimate that the actual knitting and finishing time to complete this sweater was around 30 hours if that.)
Project Notes: I'm not usually a blue person but, when I saw the Cascade 220 Ocean Heather, it called out to me that it would be perfect for this sweater and I am really glad that I headed the call. I didn't really do any mods to this sweater. The directions were very clear and it was a very quick and easy knit. As most of the sweater is stockinette and the crossover pattern is fairly simple, I would recommend this project to beginning knitters looking to tackle their first sweater. The most fiddly part of the project is the pocket and it's not all that fiddly in the grand scheme of things and can be left off if you don't like it or feel like attempting it.

In other FO news, I knit Grandmother's Favorite Dishcloth as part of the Year Long Gift-A-Long. This will be part of someone's Christmas or birthday present this year. This was knit out of Peaches and Creme cotton on size 7 needles.

Have a great weekend everyone!
jsins

An old FO, a few more recent and a WIP

I'll start off with an old FO that I've been wearing alot recently (until very recently when the temp has been in the 60s and 70s, what a weird January we are having.) The scarf pictured is the first cable project that I ever undertook in October 2006. Knit for an intermediate knitting class at Ewe Can Knit, a lys in downtown Pittsburgh, the yarn used was Reynolds Rapture, silk/wool blend.

I finished the garter rib socks that were e.'s Christmas present just in time to gift them before he took off for Florida for the holidays. The yarns used were black Crystal Palace Panda Cotton and a black/tan/white/grey skein of Tofutsies for the leg and foot.
Betty Jean wasn't sure what her Christmas present was and tried to put it on her head like a hat. However, it is the Mason Dixon Dishrag from Mason Dixon Knitting made with a red/pink/white variegated Peaches and Creme cotton. I omitted the yarn over round as I didn't think it would show up very well in the variegated cotton.
I started knitting Wicked the weekend before Thanksgiving. It has not progressed much farther than it is in this photo as I got caught up with finishing Christmas present projects and have been working fairly consistently on the Dublin Bay socks that I am knitting at the moment. I am hoping to finish the socks by the end of this weekend and get back to Wicked so that I will have a new sweater to wear when the weather returns to its normal winter state.