Beekeeper update and GAUGE

First up. Beekeeper Quilt. I have 21.5 hexagons to date (yes, yes I am behind) and am plugging away on them tonight.



I got a new color (see above). Applewood. I think it works great with the other colors I have going. That container? My favorite thing currently.



Once that hexagon in the first pic was finished up I stuck the yarn through the mouth. I'm not sure why but it makes me ridiculously happy. :) Moving on.....I've been pondering the layout of colors for a bit now. Here are two options (one with a blue hex of which there are only 2 maybe 2.5) and one without.





In the second one I was thinking of alternating dark and light and in person it came across as that. That top, multicolored, one throws it all off though. I, personally, see the darker bits in it. The spouse sees the lighter bits. I see them as well in picture form. I think I'm going to need to dedicate an entire day to the layout once I get to that point. I'm thinking about connections as well. As written you just do a long stitch through the corners of 3 at a time. I like the ease of it (if one needs replaced it's easy) but at the same time I'd like to avoid the gap between them in the spots that won't be seamed. Things to think through.

I made a hat the other day. It was intended for an ADULT MAN. The stretch of this hat widthwise is awesome. Seriously awesome. It's a cabled hat and I cannot believe how much stretch it has honestly. The downfall? I knit it as written and didn't measure length. I also didn't measure gauge. GAUGE has foiled me once again. So while it would fit the girth of the dude's noggin it would not fit in length. At all. It barely reached my the bottom of my lobes. You know who it does fit perfectly?



The youngest.

It's been knit: Side slip cloche- GIVEAWAY CLOSED!

*For giveaway details scroll to the bottom*

Very few patterns in my Ravelry queue stay there for long. I try and thin it out every so often and generally what spoke to me 2 weeks ago no longer does. I recently deleted 20 or so patterns because they were too bulky or fiddly or not the right season. There are a couple that will stay there forever and ever though.

The Side Slip Cloche is one of them. I have added and deleted it so many times. A friend made one a year or so ago and I about died when I saw it. While at the library the other day I happened to grab a knitting book without looking beyond the title on the spine. Turns out it was the book with the pattern. Score!

I have 2 sets of pictures here. One on the oldest small person and one on me. I took the small person ones the night I finished it just so I could show some people. Since the hat is for an adult woman I figured it might be useful to also have an adult wear it.





The ruffle detail about does me in every time I see it. The gather at the top does too. I was working on minimial yarn and near the end was seeing just how minimal it was. This one is about 6 rows shorter than the pattern calls for. I think this is actually a good thing. As you can see it comes down low over the ears even without those rows. It definitely would have been at the bottom of my lobes with those extra ones in. I have a feeling blocking will give it a bit more length.



The band is nice and squishy. The hat is actually done in 3 pieces with the band done first. It is ribbed slightly so it has some stretch to it across the width. It fits snug but, as is plainly noted in the pictures, can fit a variety of head sizes.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:
This hat is intended for a giveaway over at a blog I'm sure you'll love. I do not have a date yet but I have the hat and I have her blog url. Visit I'm Naturally Simple over the next week or so. I'm sending the hat on Monday and as soon as she gets it she'll decide on a date. BONUS! She's sending things along with it as well. Once I know the officialy start and end date I will post them here in their own post. Watch for it!

It's been knit: Another Pixie Hat

My love for this hat seems to grow daily. I shared the blue one elsewhere online and got a speedy request for another one. This time sized for a 9 month old. Just so happens the lady asking for one LOVES green and since I had quite a bit leftover from the longies and tassle hat.



I still have some left (note: that's 2 skeins of Manos for one pair of small longies, a small hat, and a 17 inch circ. hat plus more for another small project). I'm thinking of saving it for a felted Christmas tree this year.



I kept the button detail to a minimum this time. Seeing as it's intended for a small child I figured that was the best way to go. The buttons are from the batch I bought at Micheal's a bit ago and I'm happy to see they worked out perfectly in terms of color.



I did make the strap a bit longer than the pattern calls for and I added 2 extra button holes (total of 3). Since she wanted a medium for growing room I figured the strap should have growing room as well. I only buttoned it on the 1st and 2nd hole for these pictures.



I did the back seam differently this time. I couldn't find my darning needle so I opted for a 3 needle bind off. I like the look and my internal seam is quite smooth and flat.

Another hat to love.

Stats: Pixie Hat

Yarn: Manos (see other posts)
Needles: 8
Deets: 3 needle bind off, garter tab and button closure, 9 month/17 inch circ.

7.5 of 17.5

That would be an entire skein of Malabrigo in Butter. 7.5 hexagons with a bit left over for seaming things together. Not sure if I'll do half ones (this was a tester) but so far I'm thinking it's a yes. Total I have 17.5 and based on the layout I did the other night I can do significantly less than I originally planned. Which is great. I only need to do 2-3 a day which seems MUCH more doable. Changing my daily number also means I'm less behind than I though. Woot! Doing a layout meant needing to do math to figure out how many skeins I'd need. I'm going to need a lot more. I bought 6 the day I started and if I only get 7.5 out of each skein (assuming they all make the same amount...HA!) I'm only getting 45 total. Which would make a decent rug in your bathroom but not much more. I'm aiming for 225 (counting all the half pieces as well). We shall see.

I have some yarn that's been on the wheel for sometime now. It's a gorgeous yellow varigated and I bought it along with a solid yellow. They are brighter than the current blanket colors but I'm seriously contemplating finishing the yarn up and using it as well. I'm thinking I'll need more yellows to offset the darker colors but I may be getting ahead of myself.

I'm plugging along. I'm not working on much else really so I have no choice. I think I'll start a hat tonight. Another request for the Pixie Hat has been made. :)

Thursday's Knits

Thursday's are about to get very focused. Not only do I need to work on Lepidoptera but I added on another large scale project.



Behold! The beginnings of Beekeeper's Quilt.

As written, the quilt is made in sock yarn on US 4's. I have high hopes for this though (I want to finish it in time for a Christmas present) so I changed things up. I have a thicker yarn (all of it is worsted though some is on the thinner end of it), larger needles (8's), and more stitches.

The intended Giftee is not a bright and bold color loving gal. I knew a hive-y themed color grouping was what was needed. I headed over to the LYS to browse and as I rounded the corner to the sale room I saw the perfect ones.



So going left to right and top to bottom I got:
Lorna's Laces in Patina
Lorna's Laces in Monkeyshines
Malabrigo in Butter
Lorna's Laces in Magnificent Mile
Madeline Tosh in Ginger
Malabrigo in Rich Chocolate

So far the colors are playing together PERFECTLY. Tonight I'll be working on that. To finish it in time I need to do at least 4 a day. 5 would be better. I'm already behind though so I'm looking forward to going to knitting night tonight. I'm hoping to crank out quite a few. If I can get caught up (and then some) I'll start alternating between this and Lepidoptera. I know it's only September but it feels good to have Christmas presents off to a start. I only have one other thing I want to get done in time (a stocking for the youngest)so I'm feeling optimistic.

What are you working on this week?

It's been knit: Pixie Hat

Since last night was knitting night I worked on a couple projects. Mostly a gift hat. I am so happy with the way it turned out. The color, the feel, the buttons. Love it all. The pattern is Small Things Bonnet by SweetMama-SmallSugar. I opted for the Pixie version (there is a rounded one as well) and since it was intended for an adult I did the largest size. I think the best part of the pattern is the slipped stitch edge. Makes for great lines. On to the pics!



I debated on the closure. Since it's for an adult it's not really super important. I can trust that she won't yank it off on the playground and toss it under the bench. The pattern has 2 choices. Button tab or icords. As you can see, I opted for buttons (which by the way were/are on sale at Micheal's in small packs for $1.50). Since it needed a bit more punch I stuck some on the back as well. No function. Just because.



The back has a bit of short row work to add some shaping. The very bottom curves in and sits closer to the back of the head and neck.



The garter ridge edge goes around the entire thing. The pattern is knit flat and in one piece. You start with the front piece and once you pick up stitches for the body of the hat the slipped edge is displayed nicely. It really is my most favorite part. The slipped stitches just give such a clean line.



It goes out into the mail tomorrow and hopefully gets there nice and quick. I just got her address and she said the timing is perfect as the weather has started to turn. I hope it fits. No matter how long I have been knitting, I suffer from fit paranoia. Will it fit? Will it be too big or too small? If it does fit, will they like how it sits on their body? I know it will. My paranoia is unfounded. I can't be the only one though!

Thursday's bag

Secret Yellow Sock: Worked on it last week and am past the short row heel and into the leg. Pondering the Secret Ribbing I want for the cuff. I decided not to short myself and got another skein of the yarn (to be revealed later) for the second sock. This way I can make the leg and cuff as long as my little heart desires. :)

Surprise Hat: Blue Araucania but can't remember which one. It is one of their heavenly blends. I can't find my tag so I have every intention of snapping a pic of a skein at the store tonight. The Surprise part is for the intended person but since I am fairly certain she does not read here I'll be sharing pics. What you see there is what I managed to get done this afternoon. Only a few more inches and some shaping and its done.

Christmas Lepidoptera: Haven't touched it for a bit. Lucky for me I have sticky notes on the desktop to remind me of where I left off. The yarn (Malabrigio sock in color 810 Cordovan) is nice and springy when held double but a little harsh on my finger when held single. It's a deterrant. That and the lack of focus I've been able to muster. :)

The proof is in the swatch

You know I'm talking about gauge so just go ahead and groan now. Every knitter on every blog has mentioned gauge at some point or another right? It bears repeating.

When size and fit matter, do a gauge swatch. Got that? When size and fit matter,DO A GAUGE SWATCH.

As a new knitter I often thought that was ridiculous and so long as I had a similar yarn (if using a sub) I would be fine. I've smartened up a bit since then and know that isn't always true.

I have pictures today. Luckily size and fit weren't super important. The item is intended for a baby and the difference worked in my favor.

Same pattern, same weight yarn, same needles, and same mods were made. Both are newborn sized.







Pretty amusing huh? So again, when fit is important, do the swatch.

And just as a bonus....the newest FO.

It's been knit: Tassle Hat

To say I am in love with this hat is an understatement. It makes me SQUEE! outloud. The yarn (it matches the longies a couple posts down) is beyond perfect for it. The squish and color and softness. To die for.



Not much more to be said about it other than it was in the knitting bag last night. I ended up needing to buy another skein to finish it off. A couple days ago I had too little yarn and today I am left with an excess of it. What should I do with it? I don't think I'll use it again (for no real reason other than not wanting to have a repeat) but who knows. Maybe a giveaway? Not sure anyone would want an almost-full-but-not-quite skein of some VERY bright and happy greens. I'll ponder it a bit. In the meantime the hat makes me happy and giggly. Everyone needs a tassle hat.

Thursdays are mine

It's knitting night at my LYS tonight. From 6-9pm I get to just think of knitting, knit, and talk knitting if I so desire.

In my knitting bag: shorties to show off, a secret sock, a sweater/Christmas gift, and an unfinished hat that needs more yarn to be finished.

What's in your bag these days? Humor me. Comment so I don't feel like I'm talking to dead air. ;) Tell me what you're working on. If you want, leave a link to the item.

Inspiration Redux

A business partner and his wife recently had a baby boy. They brought him by the office and The Spouse got a chance to hold him and oooh and ahh like people tend to do. He also picked that time to pimp out my knitting skills. :)



The blue yarns have been in the back of my mind for years now. They were originally wound together with a green with the intent of being turned into a mermaid tale. When that failed to pan out the way I wanted it went back into the closet.



Every time a toy needs to be made or a boy is born I go back to this yarn. Every time something watery floats into my mind I think of this yarn. It needed to be used so I unwound the ball (what a mess!) and started on some shorties.



The waistband started off in the green but it didn't look so nice on it's own. It was complimented so much in the ball but not so much otherwise. Taking it out also tweaked my plans of stripes. I didn't have enough of the lighter blue to pull it off.

This is where Inspiration Redux hit. The blues are very much water colors (if you get your water from a box of Crayola). As I knit I knew something nautical was in the mix. Not knowing what exactly made it so that the design would need to be duplicate stitched on. Hard to chart a design when that design is lacking. :)



I considered fish and whales mostly. I took them to Knitting Night on Thursday and got the opinions of others. Someone suggested a sailboat and the idea stuck. I wanted some fish in there under the waves but in the end I, and everyone else, decided it looked best on it's own.



I stuck an anchor on front to add a bit more cutesy factor to them. I'm rather pleased with how these turned out. I hope the intended people like them as much as I do.

Stats:
Pattern: Picky Pants- Shorts
Yarn: Random Acrylic- dark blue, turquoise, black, burgandy, and offwhite
Needles: 7's for the waist, 8's for the body
Smaller details: 2x2 waistband, twisted drawstring (more rope like and more fitting for the nautical theme), garter stitch cuff, 2 1/4 inch inseam (not sure where the 1/4 came from).

This was definitely a project where I had set out with my own ideas and had the yarn completely change them. Surely I can't be the only one. Leave a comment and tell me about a time when Inspiration became Inspiration Redux for you.

Inspiration

Where do you get yours?

With Borders closing we have stopped in a couple times. Nothing like cheap books to inspire you! I've made sure to stop by the knitting section each time and up until yesterday nothing had caught my attention.

Yesterday I happened to get lucky. While heavier knits like pictured above are not my cup of tea there is something deliciously inviting about them. I have a few people in mind from the brief flip through I did.

Spin Control was one I was thrilled to find. Being self taught on a craft can leave you wondering if you are doing it right. Yes, I can produce yarns but are they quality? Are they useable? Do they do their fiber qualities justice? I can honestly say, that in all the time I've been spinning (which is short), I have yet to learn the difference between worsted and woolen. I know the difference in looks but only in demonstration. Two swatches side by side. I have a lot to learn about it all and I'm excited to have found a book regarding just that. I haven't gotten far into it. The house is quieting down for the evening and I'm fighting the urge to knit or to read about knitting.

Tonight books about the finer details are my inspiration. What's yours?

Musings on pictures and an FO

I know for many knitters taking pictures of projects can be a time consuming and frustrating thing. Colors (like reds!) are a pain in the butt. Patterns can be difficult to see on a screen but obvious in person. Lines get blurred, colors become washed out or darkened, and drape starts to look bulky.

I took pictures today of a soaker I finished. I took them inside and out. In natural light and with flash. On dark backgrounds and light. No matter what I did my camera seemed to have a spasm of the shutter. I was starting to get peeved. The idea of dragging a camera and knitting around in an attempt to get a good and accurate shot was disheartening. Maybe it's just me but the second I am done I want to show it off. I want to brag and share and squeee! over it. Not being able to because various elements decide not to cooperate makes finishing all the less appealing. Why weave in my ends and tell people I am REALLY done if I can't prove it?

Today was an example of using your resources and patience. I know that can be applied in broader strokes to life so it was a lesson I was willing to take. Not happily mind you but willingly. I have bemoaned the fact that many of my pictures were from a cell phone many a time. They just don't turn out as well and really make showcasing work difficult. Today though my cell phone was my friend.

Perfect example of cell phone quality. In comparison to the final pic above it's small and hard to see but you know what? The color is so dead on here that you could use it as a swatch pic for ordering. I have never had purples turn out so accurately and certainly not on my phone. Luckily I had sent this to myself a couple days ago and had it available to use. There are advantages to my main camera but today they weren't as obvious. Despite having a great one picture taking wasn't any easier than it has been in the past.

Stats:
Pattern: Juliette Skirty...minus the skirt
Size: Small
Yarn: Cascade 220
Needles: US 5s and 7s
Details: 2x2 ribbing for waist, stripes are 2 rows each, and cuffs are 8 rounds of garter stitch.

FO: Skirtie and Longies

First up is a Juliette Skirtie. The non solid is some of my handspun so I'm quite partial to this one. :) It's a tiny newborn one. I love that the handspun comes across as a tweedy color.

Stats: Juliette Skirtie
Newborn
Solid Red: Random wool (either Paton's Merino or Cascade 220)
Body: Handspun
Needles: 5 and 7
Garter trim on a pleated skirt; no cuffs on the undersoaker; 2x2 ribbing for waist with icord drawstring

Next up is some longies. I wasn't sure about this yarn at first. Reminds me of when Yelloow-Green and Spring Green from the box of Crayola melt together on the sidewalk. It was pooling in the body (as you can see) and I was confident the shaping would break that up. Not really. In the end I think it works. Reminds me of grass now. :)

Stats: Picky Pants

Size: Small

Shaping: Backside Increases and Short Rows

Needles:8

Yarn: Manos (unsure of color/number)

Seed stitch cuff; 2x2 waist; icord drawstring

7 inch inseam

I'm quite pleased with both of these. They aren't for keeping but instead will go up for sale here soon. I was hoping to have enough yarn left to make a matching hat for the longies but it's not looking like I won't.

It's nice to be knitting again. My fingers have sat idle for too long.

Alive

It's been almost a year since my last post. I have a few things to post about but for now know that I am alive and well and knitting. I lost my mojo a bit (hence the no blogging) but it is back. :)

When stealth knitting has a deadline

This will be a rather detail-less post but I wanted to get something up. I know it's been quiet around here and for good reason. I bought a ton of fiber recently (more on that in an upcoming post) and once here I went to town. In five days I took 1 lb of fiber and spun it and knit it. I'll have more details tomorrow after the intended gets it but for now here are a couple pics to tide you over.
The fiber is a merino top (colorway: Forest) from Alpaca Direct. I was very happy with it. Spins well and the colors are nicely saturated. More to come!

Musings on unexpected results

The finished yarn from yesterday's post was not intended to go beyond a test spin. The wheel has been neglected as of late and has been in pieces for months. I have been itching to get it up and going for some time now and I finally got over my laziness and did it. Note to self: Do not take it apart EVER again. Not worth it. It wasn't difficult to assemble by any means but all my settings are/were off. After a day of tweaking I got busy and prepped some fiber.

This was a process. See the green there? Unknown, randomly dyed wool. See the issues with it? It was thick with lanolin. Not a problem since I can wash it out. I waited until after it was spun knowing the manhandling it was about to receive would help with that. Due to the amount of lanolin in it this was a sticky clump. It pulled apart easily but it was clingy to itself. Imagine pulling apart a peanut butter sandwich. Connected to itself but not. It also had second cuts in it. Not a problem seeing as most of my non-commerical fiber does and I'm used to it but this has been processed once before. In a very basic way but it has been done. As a result this has turned the end pieces of the cut (I'm assuming based on how they spun) into balls worthy of a sweater shaver. Add in my quirky blue and it was a fun night (no sarcasm). The blue is some of my free cycle fleece, dyed with Ashford one pot dyes last year. As you can see mine is loaded with kinky and curly pieces (some of which include 2nd cuts). Also, vegetable matter. Luckily this was not a repeat of the fleece-that-shall-not-be-mentioned and it was easily removed.

How did I make my bats? I grabbed a chunk of the green and a chunk of the blue (which needed some picking and fluffing to make it through my drum carder) and sent them on through. Once my large drum was filled I removed the bat and worked it another couple times. If a piece was noticeably not working in (i.e. a second) I'd simply pull it off/out and toss it. By the time I was done I only had a small handful of fluff not worth writing home about. Spinning the blended bat was interesting. The wool is not from the same sheep. Two different textures makes that very clear. Despite being covered in lanolin the green was very dry and had no silkiness to it. The resulting yarn is hearty and tweedy. The single made from the blended bat turned out a nice mellow blue. In fact it made me think of ocean water in the fall time. That blueish grey color you can get on an overcast day. Cheesy and poetic but there you have it. Once plied however the blue single swallowed any blue in the blended one and it was now a mild green color. Sage-y if you will. Tweedy and rustic it makes me think of places like New York. Places, I'd like to add, I've never been but that's the feel it gives. Because I didn't bother to work out the second cut fluff from the green the yarn has slabs in it. As I was spinning I wasn't sure I would like that but in the end they behaved nicely and add to the rustic quality.

Is this yarn something to take home and rub all over yourself? No. Not at all. Is this a yarn that could be worn and used and abused as an item of usefulness? Absolutely. I think, just from the experience of having knit it already, it also has the potential to submit and be broken into an item of comfort. Will its scratchiness (notice I said scratchy and not itchy....there is a difference) or utilitarian aspect go away completely? Probably not. It will however mold itself into something that makes you think of home eventually. It's a heavy load for a yarn to carry but it screams that to me as I ponder it. Who knew yarn would scream at ya'? I feel the need to share that this is a scratchy yarn. It isn't like the itchy most folks think of when they think of wool. I've had that kind before. This is a dry and brisk scratchy*. I rather like it actually.

Yes, the yarn is scratchy. No, the cowl is not. No worries. I've managed to work with the yarn and there will be no scratchiness going to town on your neck. :) It's all about working with what you have and what I have rocks.

From sheep to spun: A yarn FO

**More details to follow. Some of these pictures blow in terms of quality. Night time spinning/eagerness is not conducive to step by step picture taking.**