It's been knit: Gift edition: Socks and a doll

This is "Ragdoll" by Debbie Bliss (free pattern on Ravelry though it's also in Essential Knits for Kids: 20 Fesh, New Looks for Kids). This works up super fast! I was able to use up lots of little scraps with her. The purple (I know, hard to see) is some of my handspun. Pink is Paton's Merino, green is Cascade 220, body is Wool of the Andes, and panties/bottoms is more Cascade 200. Hair is leftover Swish Worsted from socks (posted below). Stuffed with wool.

These are Blueberry Waffles by Sandy Turner. I did these over 40 stitches on size 5 needles with a short row heel and 2x2 ribbing. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these socks and it was tough to send them to my sister.

It's been knit: Gift edition: Earwarmer Caps galore!

There should be three more in this set (hint hint) but they were also gifted once they were mailed out so there are no pictures. Le sigh.

First pic: Wool of the Andes, largest size and with the zigzag texture. I think there might be extra rows in this one but I can't be sure. 2 of the missing 3 were also done in Wool of the Andes, largest size, and with texture. I can't remember which one though. Note to others: Do not rely on the recipient to take pictures for you if you intend to blog the item. :)

Second pic: Girls hat: Lion Brand Wool Ease with tree texture. Boys hat: Wool of the Andes with tree texture. Child size on both.

Third pic: Lion Brand Wool Ease with tree texture. Can't remember size here.

The 3rd missing hat pic was done in some random acrylic I have lying around.

If I remember right (wow, there is a huge lack of memory in this post isn't there?) the Wool Ease ones were done on size 6's (instead of 8's). The smallest one (pic 3) has extra rows. I did the pattern as specified and it turned out oddly short...I added more length and I, personally, think it's oddly cone headed now but apparently it's a perfect fit

I'm cutting this post short...there's not enough memory to make it worthwhile. :)

It's been knit: Cold weather gear

Woah! Would you look at that! Quality pictures. :)

Bis S's gear stats:

Hat pattern: Earwarmer Cap with the herringbone texture (size child)

Mittens pattern: A combo of one I found on Ravelry and my own numbers

Yarn: Paton's Merino in Pink Petal and my BFL Handspun

Needles: 8's and 6's (I think on the mittens)

Little S's gear stats:
Hat pattern: Earwarmer Cap without texture (size child though not as big as Big S's)
Mittens: Kidlett Mittenz on Ravelry (I think I made them a tad bigger than the pattern...yarn held double)
Yarn: Cascade 200 (brown) and Manos Del Uruguay ("recycled" from some longies I knit Big S years back that got slightly felted...perfect for this hat)
Needles: 8's and 6's (I think)

The hats were done first. Big S's mittens were done pretty quickly after the hats but Little S's weren't done until Halloween. I realized a few hours before heading out that it was flipping cold! She was a monkey and since the brown was the same color as her costume I hauled but. She had "monkey" hands as a result. They were a tad big then but she's grown into them already. Sad thing is it's only been cold enough to need mittens a couple times and the hats a few more than that. I totally love their sets this year and they are rarely getting to wear them. Hopefully I only have to upsize the mittens next year and they can use the hats again. We shall see.

Up next: Christmas stockings! Yes I know but I haven't posted the finished ones yet and they are deserving of it. Then if my sister behaves and gets me pictures already I can show you what I sent her (and it was a ton....7 hats, a soaker, a pair of socks, and a doll!). Then the 3 things I did for our Christmas. Then it's on to current stuff. At first it was only going to be one measly WIP but tonight I was begged for some Barbie clothes. Yes, you read that right. As of tonight I have done one dress and a pair of panties. See what I've been reduced to?

Fiber to FO: Handspun socks

I wish i had better pictures of this yarn! I also wish I remembered any details about it. I know I have the band around here somewhere. Anyhow, this was a braid I bought at the sock summit this last August. I had bought it due to the colors: oranges and browns and reds with a bit of a olivey green. Very fall. However, the way it spun up reminded me of my parent's wedding colors...the one that used quail feathers as part of the bouquet. The one done in tones that makes me think of aging pictures from the 70's. I wasn't impressed.
I finally broke down and knit them. I had done a kids sock in it but it was too thick (even though the yarn was maybe a sport weight. Maybe.) so I opted for some me socks. They are growing on me. I like the colors better knit up (and look how it stripes! that was unintended) but they still seem a bit dull and faded to me.

These are done in a unique way. This is the second pair I've done like this (the first pair will be blogged about soon). I was unsure of the yardage which makes most sock people recommend one thing: do them toe up. I however don't like the heel and foot when done toe up which makes sock people recommend one thing: do them cuff down. See the issue? So I opted for both. I did a provisional cast on and started at the heel. I worked the heel and foot from the top down. Once that was done, I yanked out the provisional cast on and knit the leg toe up! I think this is my new favorite way of doing socks. I have another pair ont he needles right now going that way.

Stats:

Pattern: Mine. Done over 38 stitches both toe up and cuff down. Leg ribbing is staggered to create a stairs effect on the back of the leg (1x1 ribbing with a stretchy bind off). Short row heel and rounded toe. (Pattern will be available soon)

Yarn: My handspun

Needles: 5's

Once I get the pattern written up I'll get better pictures. Blasted winter light!

It's been knit: Gift knits: Apple Blossom Cardigan

Near Christmas, a sister-on-law had her baby (after much waiting..the stinker was late!). The day she was born (naturally) I decided I neeed to knit something right then. I hopped on Ravelry and got searching. I ended up using the Apple Blossom Cardigan (sorry no link right now). I am so in love with this pattern I already have another one in the works (for a friend due this summer).


The pattern calls for icord ties but it just didn't seem like a sweater that could use those. I found these little heart buttons and decided to stick them on (2 of my increases ended up working perfectly for button holes!).

It was a super quick knit (yes my pictures suck but guess what!? My camera is back in action so no more craptastic pics :) ).

Stats:

Pattern: Apple Blossom Cardigan

Needles: 8's (this is a mod)

Size: Newbornish

Yarn: Random acrylic

Mods: Only 4 repeats of the lace pattern (pattern calls for 6 which would be huge on a newborn), size 8 needles (I think the pattern uses 10's), buttons instead of icord ties.

No pictures of it yet on the baby..every time she has worn it (a couple from the sounds of it) I haven't been around them that day. :)

Gift Knits: A sweet little sweater

(Two posts in one day...boy, aren't you lucky!)

The nice thing about having knitting friends is when the occassion calls for it, you get awesome handknits! Another friend sent me a sweater (Seamless Baby Kimono for the curious) before she was born 9the baby that is, not the knitter). When I first got it I was sad to see that the wee one would likely not wear it in the right season. I have tiny babies that don't grow fast. Note to others: when you'd like to be proven wrong, say the idea/notion out loud. The universe has a way of providing. :) The wee one was indeed small (being early does that to one) but she has grown FAST! The weather here has been freaky just like the rest of the US so we've managed to get by with thicker jackets/sweaters. This one is perfect! I only have to cuff the arms a tiny bit. She has growing room but it fits great. It's my favorite top for her and we use it often. So on to the good stuff...a picture!

(Ahhh! Good ol' quality cell phone pic in the dead of winter lighting....always a lovely result.)

Gift Knits: Monstery longies

(I'm a slacker and missed my own blogiversary...better luck next year I suppose!)

Back when I was pregnant (she's 2 months already!!) a friend offered to knit me up some longies. She'd done some faux monster/cranky pants and I wanted some. She showed me her yarn colors, I picked, and she went to town. They are one of my favorite pairs now. They look so stinkin' cute on and they fit really nice (we use different patterns)! Since the wee one was early all her longies were super long on her (like the entire length of her body could fit in them...not quite but close enough). She took a couple weeks to grow into them (and even then they were cuffed). This is one of the pairs that no longer needs to be cuffed (the Manos pair and handspun pair I did are also this way) and I am going to be so sad when they no longer fit. I can see the appeal of monster pants for sure! Without further ado, here are some pictures!

(This pictures is hers....I have yet to get a good shot of them in my house.)

(Who doesn't love a picture of handknits on wee ones?)

Stay tuned...

I have quite a few kindasorta catch up psots coming. Ones with lots of pictures (good ones!). All are Christmas knitting (see? Only kindasorta catching up since the only reason they aren't posted yet is due to laziness on my end). There'll be an item count too of what all was knit this last year. I'm interested to see that number since I didn't feel particularly productive.

I have a plan for my knitting this year. In an effort to get on track and finish up various things I made of list of unfinished stuff. One of which is level one for the master knitter program. Not too long ago the harddrive on my computer died (again! BACK UP your files) and I lost ALL of the q&a portion to it. I'm still quite ornry about it and as a result have ignored it. This should be done already! I've written out my list of books I want and am going to be nabbing them from the library soon. I'm not knitting anything until I finish this level! The only thing that will be knit is the hat as the end project for it. I don't have too much left to do. It's ridiculous and irritating (to me) that I haven't finished it yet. I'm looking at this as a chance to answer my questions better (hence the list of library books) and really do it well and not rushed through. There will be actual posting about it now as well. (This does not apply to spinning as well...gotta leave something open for myself)

Once that is finished I am wanting to do one of a couple things. My ideas are: 1. knit only from my Ravelry queue (7 pages worth!). I will have 'rules" for this but for the most part it'll be knit only from that and I can add as many patterns as I want but can't delete anything. We'll see. Still tinkering with that. My other idea is to knit only socks for the year. I made 3 pairs since September and my sock love has been renewed (now these pairs were done on thicker yarn and bigger needles but it gave me a boost). I only have 2 pairs of matching socks. The husband now has one (after being on the banned knit list for losing the first pair) and the oldest has one sock. Read again: ONE SOCK. Not a pair. Just one single sock. She keeps asking why I haven't made the other one yet and told the husbands mom at Christmas she was glad to get socks from her because "Mom won't make my other one". There is no reason there should be a lack of sock pairs (matching ones...I have a couple "pairs" but they couldn't even be deemed faternal twins) in this house considering 1. I have an insane amount of sock yarn and 2. know how to knit them. :) Still trying to decide which one I want to go with. I won't decide til level one is done.

My blogiversary is in 2ish weeks. Thinking of doing a giveaway but I don't think my readership is that high anymore (what with the distinct lack of posting). I do have a loose goal of blogging at least once a week for the year. Hopefully I can stick to that.

I'm feeling twitchy. I have nothing on the needles right now. NOTHING. I cast off my last project last night. I don't have anything on my wheel either (though I do have a bit on my spindle). There is a distinct lack of fiber stuff going on right now.

It's been knit: Playing Catch up 1: Red Shorties

Pattern: Picky Pants
Yarn: Wool of the Andes: Onyx Heather and Firecracker Heather
Needles: 8's
Pattern Picks: Short rows, Icord bind off, 2x1 ribbing (I think)
Mods:Hmmm, not that I can remember.

This was the final pair (of 4) meant for a friend. Luckily she got them in time to at least wear in shorts appropriate weather. :)

It's been knit: Manos longies

Stats:
Size: Newborn with backside increases and short rows
Yarn: Manos Del Uraguay in Wildflower and....can't remember the name of the purple one so we'll call it Purple
Mods: Extra crotch stitches, longer length (6.5 inches?)
Garter stitch cuff

I will be going back and fixing the second leg. It's about 2 rounds shorter than the other and it drives me nuts. I'm constantly pulling on it which I'm sure isn't going to help.

When handknits are worn: Super Secret Stealth Surprise

I think it fits rather well. :) The sizing ended up being around 0-3 months and this little dude is definitely in that range. I think he looks rather good in it, if I do say so myself. :)

Up next:
2 pairs of longies (one knit by me and one a gift)
5 (FIVE!) hats: 3 adults and 2 kiddos
Newborn soaker for K
My first intarsia: Christmas stocking: Technically a WIP but humor me

WIPS:
K's socks (one down, one to go)
4ish (FOUR!) more hats: one adult and 3 kiddos
2 pairs of Kiddo mittens
Me socks
Kiddos socks
Christmas stockings (planned for 2 but maybe will do 3...unless mom really does decide she wants one and then there's that one as well)
3 more soakers for K: 1 newborn and 2 small

I think that's it...I went out to my sister's this last weekend and in that time finished one of 3 hats (one had already been done). I got back on Monday and in that time I have done 1 adult hat, 2 kids hats, a newborn soaker, and half of a Christmas stocking that has intarsia. I won't say it but you know what I'm thinking has happened right? It's back. That's all I'll say. DOn't want to jinx myself. :)

It's been done: Fiber to FO

Remember this fiber? Safari from Freckle Face Fibers on Etsy. I never blogged the spinning of it because I had intentions for the final yarn. I wanted to show it all in one post.

I LOVE the way it turned out. I spun it thicker than I normally would and had enough for my item with some left over.
I never did figure out the WPI or end yardage but I had a ton. Squishy too! I admit that at first I wasn't sure I liked how it plied together (my standard 2-ply). There were parts that seemed to cancel out because it plied together with another chunk of itself. I had hoped the green would pop more as well. Once knitted though I loved how subtle the colors were. It really is very Safari like in the sense of the scenery I think.

This horrible picture is from my cell phone. The sad thing is this is the BEST picture I have managed to get in weeks. Weeks? Yes, these have been done since August. I have tried inside and outside and at all times of day. Lights on or off, with dark and light backgrounds. It's impossible to get a decent picture. I am hoping to get truely better ones soon but this is all you get for now. The yellow tones make it hard accuracy wise.

This one almost looks felted but they aren't. Oy, I wish I had better pics! I had to seize the chance though because these really are the best color wise.

Stats:

Pattern: Picky Pants

Size: Newborn with backside increases and short rows

Mods: Longer inseam (6.5 inches? They are put away so I can't measure right now). I did a simple icord bind off since the yarn is the oomph to these I think. :) I kept everything simple for that reason.

It's been knit: Flower embroidery longies (and hat)

These were done over a week ago (as in finished...took longer than that sicne they were an in between project). I went to Sock Summit and have been debating whether to post my two FO posts or that one. I'll do these first. :)
I did these before we knew gender and was very hopeful that they would stay with me. Luckily they will. :) First...I did a picot waist and cuffs on the longies and brim on the hat. I wasn't sure how the waist would turn out and it's not as defined as the other two parts but it's still there. I like it. Not sure I'll do it again though. :) Both the brim and waist were worked per the picky pants directions. I've seen so many variations for them (and as a result many variations in look) but decided to keep the look consistent. I knew I was going to use those directions for the cuffs so I kept with it the whole way. The hat does have a few rounds of garter stitch after the picot to help keep it from rolling up/out. I found that to be an issue when I did the easter bunny hat so I'm glad I threw it in. It doesn't flare out at all!
Here's a side shot of the leg embroidery (some of these pics are darker/poorer quality....the camera batteries are dying so some were taken on the cell phone). I did REAL embroidery!! I used lazy daisy/detached chain for the flowers and stem stitch for the stems and leaves. The small dots (hard to see here) are french knots. I spent time finding videos that were thorough enough to know not everyone knows how to do this but not so basic I felt stupid. :) I love doing it! So much better than the attempt I did on the tree longies. I did have a picture I used as a reference but I can no longer find it or I'd link it. It's pretty similar to that though. :)
I decided to carry it around the back of the leg and on to the butt. I didn't want a ton there since really, who is goingto be seeing it that much? but also because I didn't want it to look heavy. The leg is already detailed enough.

As you can see, the design is visible on all sides. I wanted just enough visible on the front and/or back to make you want to look at it more but not so much that it was crowded (visually). I'm pretty pleased with the placement. I just eye balled it so was surprised it worked out as well as it did.The hat is my own basic pattern (same as the one in my stealth knitting post). This time I worked it from the bottom up. I'm not sure why I was having such difficulties but I did start it more than once top down. My stitch count was never right though. I did frog back a little at one point in order to readjust length. I had misjudged my total decrease length and it ended up super long. Luckily hats are small so it's not a big deal.
Just a crown shot (stuck on a racoon doll :) ). I'm pretty pleased with how well my decreases turned out. Nice and pretty.

Stats:
Pattern: Longies: Picky Pants
Hat: Basic baby beanie (mine)
Size: Longies: Newborn with backside increases and short rows, inseam is 6.5-7 inches
Hat: 0-3? Not sure...just winged it..I'll ask my sister in law how her's fits her newborn since it's the same stitch count
Yarn: Green: Cascade 220 Lavender: BFL handspun
Needles: 8's

Only drawback that I can is the length is a bit too long (please don't ask me why I made NEWBORN pants so long...it baffles me) which means cuffing will likely be called for. Since I used the picot hem it's not going to be as smooth/easy or cute. With garter I can cuff it up and it still looks like garter. This onewill be a tad more goofy looking but hopefully it won't be needed for long. Overall, I love this pair! Mostly because I mastered some embroidery!! :)

It's been knit: Super Secret Stealth Surprise

I realize secret and surprise are the same thing but really....that many s's I couldn't finish with the word knitting. :)

Sweater Details: Pattern: LittleCoffeeBean Yarn: random acrylic Needles: size 8's Pattern size: 3 months Mods: Stripes are 4 and 2 wide instead of 2 wide on all of them. Ribbing isn't as long on any part. Icord bobbles for buttons.

Hat Details: Pattern: My own basic beanie Yarn: same random acrylic Needles: size 8's Pattern size: eh, I'd say 0-3 months :)

(As an aside I hate the random double spacing blogger occasionally does. It pisses me off and I do not like the look of the above paragraphs as a result.)

This is for a sister in law being induced tomorrow. It's her second little boy and when I found out she was being induced I sprang to action knowing it would be soon. Never mind that I have already started 2 or 3 other sweaters for her....this one is the only one to actually get finished. I LOVE it and plan on making more. The yarn sucked but oh well. She needs washable (and not because she's a new mom) so it works. I do love how the colors turned out though. I wasn't sure about the combo but once I got past the first couple stripes I was in love. I tried the hat in just the multiblue color at first and it's actually an ugly color. The solid really helped bring out the good parts of it. :) Total knitting time (for both items together including weaving in ends) was 1 day. Super fast!

It's been knit: Juliette Skirtie

It's ridiculous how much I love this thing! I broke down and bought a skirtie pattern last week. This is my first from it (Juliette Skirtie) and I am so dang happy I did!

The pleats directions are fantastic! I have seen generic ones here and there but they were always vauge and not to my liking. This one is just perfect (as you can see). I did modify mine a bit and did all but the last increase round since I was running out of yarn.

The soaker is another favorite part of mine. I do not like soakers. I do knit the Curly Purly one since I do like having that option of going under clothes but really....I don't like how many fit. Either too low and baggy or a lack of shaping or too dang long (which on my short kids is never good). This one is shorter than the pattern (not by much)but there is a very good reason for that.

I had to knit the waist and undersoaker twice. I was all done and grafting when I thought the yarn I was using (a dark brown) was "familiar". I hopped up and grabbed a lighter and sure enough I had been using acrylic. I took both out and reknit them in the white/cream wool. I was using scraps for the whole thing and was VERY unsure of the amount I had. I did the undersoaker first and knit it to the length it would/should be if the waistband had been in place. I then knit the waistband (bottom up essentially). My original one had 16 rounds. This one had 12 or 13. I barely made it.

I also did the waist as 1x1 ribbing out of habit. :) The pattern calls for 2x2 and I wish I had done it (I like the look) but that's ok. This one is a tad short in the skirt for my wee one but that's ok. She's almost potty trained and I had already sworn off knitting her more covers as a result. She just needed a legit skirtie though so this doesn't count. :) The stripe on the body has duplicate stitch on it. The single round of darker green was also brown. Instead of frogging all the way to that I just covered it once the knitting was done. It's not the best looking one but it was late and I wasn't concerned about reaching perfection (which is good because my duplicate stitch is far from it). It is looser in a couple spots but it honestly looks more like loose knitting/gauge than anything else. I am considering adding cuffs but this is one of the few that I am ok with not having them. It fits nicely and no prefold pokes out. Not too often that happens.

Stats:

Pattern: Juliette Skirtie

Size: Small

Needles: 5 and 6. The pattern calls for 7's but I don't own any and I got gauge with these (checked long after the fact).
Yarn: Knit Picks Wools of the Andes: Pampas, Avocado, Ferm (?), and an unknown Cream/White. I thought it was Wool of the Andes based off ball size but it would be Cascade 220. All scraps.

Mods: Pleats only worked til second to last increase round and then knitted til desired length (definitely wanted to make longer but ran out of yarn). Waist done in 1x1 ribbing and slightly shorter than pattern called for.

Note to self

When you have a new pattern and are excited to get started make sure you double check your supplies. In lots of cases your yarn may be missing a ballband which indicate what the fiber content is. When in doubt, check. Having to reknit the entire bottom portion of a soaker because you grabbed acrylic on accident will piss you off. Lots.

Ahh retail therapy!

I never understood the appeal of it until today. :) I got a paypal gift so I decided to spend it. So without further ado...look what is coming to me!

First up is "Tumble Into BFL". Some lovely BFL. I've only spun BFL once and knit with it a couple more times but boy is it lovely! I cannot wait to see what this turns out like. These are not "my" colors but I have someone/something in mind for it so it doesn't matter. :)

This is called "Coi". Some Falkland wool. Again, someone else was in mind when I got this. It seems like a more mature/adult version of the one above. Also not my colors. :) I don't think I've ever spun Falkland but that's ok. It's wool! :)This is "Safari" merino. I have seen varaitions of these tones and everytime I am insanely jealous. It's just a nice colorway and looks well with most things. Again, I have plans for it that don't involve me. Seeing a trend? :)This may be one of my favorites. This is "Black Coffee" superwash. I have some plans for socks that I might keep for myself. Still deciding.Oh I hope shipping is fast. I'm entertaining myself currently with some random stuff I have. I'm already a third of the way through it so I'm thinking I'll need to find more to do until it gets here.

Remember the infernal shorties?

The bum is now oh so purtty. :)

It's been done and waiting on me to get things finished (like weave in ends and lanolize) for awhile. It turned out so dang easy!!! Amazing what following a chart can do for you. ;) I hope it doesn't sit too low on the intended. I tried them on my wee one and it ame down low but there is a year difference between the two. Hopefully that helps. :)