Derailed already.
Sometimes all it takes is publicly declaring something to make sure it absolutely does NOT happen. I throw down the gauntlet to myself to finish those project, and then what do I do? Start something new that wasn't even on my to-do list until last night.
This is the Sunflower Tam from Knitting Nature, which I cast on for last night and just finished. I used 1 skein of Manos in color #114, knit on size 8 needles. The pattern was intriguing to knit and very cleverly done, with the top shaping completely hidden by the swirls. I didn't find any mistakes, although I kept forgeting to decrease every few repeats and ended up with too many stitches a few times, but that was from not paying attention.
Mine came out more of a skull cap than a tam, due to two things: my gauge was a little tight, and I have a HUGE head and LOTS of hair. This shape is actually more flattering on me anyway, so I don't mind. Other than the size, the only other modification I made is knitting the i-cord at the top to be about 3" long and tying it into a knot, I didn't like the little tail shown in the picture.
I am really happy with how this came out. I was worried that the multicolor might fight with the swirls, but in the end I think they complement eachother very well. If you're looking to make this and want to use Manos, one skein is more than enough but you may want to go up to a US9 to ensure you get gauge. I had a good amount of yarn leftover, but my hat is smaller than it was supposed to be.
I think it'll get a lot of wear in the winter. At the moment though, even wearing it for 10 minutes to get a decent shot of it was torture -- it's so humid in NYC, you'd think it was the Amazon!
New Chiagu Pattern: Halfobi!
I knit this on size 8 needles using one strand of Koigu and one strand lace cashmere from Karabella (you may remember I fell in love with this combo a long time ago). It's knit at 4.5 sts/inch, so plenty of yarns can substitute in. . . I can see it knit in Silk Garden, for example, you'd get flattering vertical stripes . . .
The pattern is available via downloadable PDF for $4.50. Hop on over to Chiagu to get your copy!
And let me know what you think! I love it so much I already started a second one, I have this idea to make a whole series of cuff-to-cuff pieces. And I'm totally obsessed with this wide, below-the-elbow sleeve, don't be surprised if you see it pop up again in the near future!
ETA: In the bright light of morning I realized that the two pics yesterday didn't show very much stitch detail . . . it's really hard to photograph this color and yarn combo! So today I tried to take clearer pictures, here's what I came up with:
Here it is all laid out so you can see the construction well. The fronts are not meant to meet, so I give the size in terms of finished back width. I made the Medium for myself, which has a finished back measurement of 22". My actual bust measurement is 37" around. This boxy top should fit loosely, so the small size is good for those whose actual measurements are 30-34", the medium for 35-42", and the large for 42-48".
And here's an extreme closeup of the front ribbing, this one being the best for color and texture.
Another sizing note to keep in mind: It might seem strange that the sleeve length gets shorter as the sizes gets bigger. This is because all 3 sizes are written so that the sleeves will hit at that
below-the-elbow length, you can see the length on a person in yesterday's pictures (I'm 5' 5", which happens to be the average height for an American woman). As the body width grows, the sleeve length has to shrink in order to keep the sleeve-to-sleeve length consistent.
If you're very petite or tall, you should shorten or lengthen the sleeve length to flatter your frame. To see if you like where the sleeve hits, hold a tape measure from one elbow, over your shoulders and down the other arm, and see where the sleeves will hit as written (the overall width from sleeve to sleeve is given in the schematic). Then adjust accordingly.
As always, if you have any questions or need help, just email me!
ETA (again): I'm changing the date to keep this as the top-most entry for a couple days.
New Chiagu Pattern: Vee!
Announcing my latest Chiagu pattern, Vee!
I have been looking for just the right proportion deep-v neck pullover, but nothing was ever perfect, so I ended up making my own! The back is also a v, but not as deep, see?
The pullover's actually completely reversible, so you could wear the deep V in the back instead. It features just-below-the-elbow sleeves, and is long in the body so it works well with low-slung jeans and tall boots. Think "naughy librarian."
Knit in Classic Elite's Charmed, this pullover is light and soft, yet warm. The yarn is a mix of cashmere and mohair, so you get the softeness of cashmere that's light as a cloud. It blocks out beautifully for nice, even stitches, too. At 4 sts/inch, you can substitute tons of other yarns for this pattern, just don't pick something too heavy or the shoulders won't stay up.
Hop on over to Chiagu to purchase a downloadable PDF of this pattern for $5.00.
Any questions, please ask!
Crazy Aurora 8's Raglan
So remember I showed you this picture of yarn ends in December?
It took me long enough, but here's an FO shot of my Crazy Aurora 8's Raglan!
It took forEVER to weave in all those damn ends. What was I thinking??? I hate weaving in ends. HATE. So much so, that I put it off, and put it off, and then put it off some more.
I started this pullover around September 1st. The knitting was done and it was even sewn together on September 15th. Sometime later I fixed the buttonband, bought and sewed on buttons (which I also hate doing), and tried it on to make sure it worked. But it took me until DECEMBER 26th to finally make myself weave in those ends! (not to mention it took until January 25th to take an FO photo, somehow it doesn't feel done until I do that anyway!).
Here's a not-great shot of it on me:
The colors are more accurate in the first picture, this one has a strange sepia glow to it (you know I'd never manage to do that if I was actually going for that look).
For the buttonbands, I ended up crocheting a crazy made-up band. I worked a row of sc along each side of the split, then worked ch loops for the buttons. I wanted the green to show, so after I crocheted the loops, I made them thicker by working sl st's into each ch, so that the green shows around the buttons. I like the way it turned out, but it's not too neat. Since I knit the sweater fairly loosely (I did that on purpose to make it less warm), the stitches where I inserted the crochet hook stretched out, so they aren't as neat as I usually like my finishing to be (especially since I first knit a buttonband, ripped it out, and then crocheted into the same spaces). It'll have to do though, because this took long enough as it is!
I've worn it exactly once since I finished it, and I can't say it'll be getting much time in the handknit sweater rotation. It's too bright. Some part of me knew it all along. I'll wear it on days when I want to stand out. ;o)
Project specs:
Pattern: Made it up as I went along, basic shaped raglan
Yarn: Karabella Aurora 8 in 9 colors, 2 skeins each
Needles: US size 8
Started: September 1, 2005
Finished: December 26, 2005
Lots of knitting going on!
So I went to buy the Aurora for Little Rivers today, and we were too busy for me to even be able think about my own knitting all day (not complaining, busy's GOOD!). I had to leave work early to go to the dentist, so I couldn't even shop after we closed. Boohoo. I still haven't made a decision on color, even though all of you seem to be mostly in agreement that I should go for the blue. Thank you for your votes! I will show you the yarn porn picture when I manage to actually buy the yarn.
In the meantime, of course, there's other knitting going on. I'm sure you all assumed that, huh?
I just finished a simple 1x1 rib scarf for a store sample:
This is knit on size 11 needles, using 4 skeins of Filatura di Crosa's Scozia Print. This bulky 100% cashmere yarn is wonderful to knit with, and the colors are really beautiful. It's a marled yarn, which means that the plies are different colors wrapped around eachother. But in this yarn, one ply changes color and the other doesn't, so you get a mostly-solid look with speckles of different colors. And the yarn is SO SOFT. It's amazing. Just flies off the needles.
Here's a closeup:
This color is perfect for a man's scarf, it's interesting without being loud and goes with almost anything. I may have to make one of these for my Dad, he'd love this color.
