Two Finished Objects

Here is the left glove, finished. I decided to take a short glove break and finished a washcloth I had started before Thanksgiving. The washcloth ddn't turn out square, like I expected. I made it exactly according to the pattern: http://www.stitchersneedle.com/article1008.html

I guess it doesn't really matter. It's just a washcloth.

I suppose I will start the right glove today sometime.

Finished Hat

This is the hat that I designed and knitted for my son, who is modeling it. The motif is modeled from his personal website logo. He said he likes it and I believe him. :) Who wouldn't believe that face?!

I'm on the index finger of the first glove. There's only the thumb after that.

First Glove

This is the first glove I've ever tried to make. A friend requested I make her a pair of gloves to match a scarf she already has. Mittens and/or fingerless gloves just wouldn't do. They have to have fingers and the cuff needs to be extra long to keep her wrists warm. (This is my hand.) I hope they're not going to be too big for her.

I'm using the pattern on page 208 of Big Book of Knitting by Katharina Buss. This is a great book; it has a lot of helpful information in it.

Bob Finished

Here's Bob finished. Another disappointment. Can you see the stripe? I thought I was being so careful about making sure all the skeins had the same lot number. Well, I missed one. And I just had to pick that one for the middle of the sweater! It turns out the yarn wasn't right for this pattern, either. It sags and gets stretched out. Oh, well, another one for my knitting museum.

Bob 1

I've been working on Bob http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring03/PATTbob.html for about a week and a half. I'm just now ready to begin the front top ribbing. I can hardly wait to be able to wear it. I'm using Lion Brand MicroSpun. It is SO soft!

I haven't totally given up on the Halloween cardigan. I took it to the LYS yesterday to get some advice. It turns out that I made my first row on the top of the sleeve too long. I need to rip out, do some math, and start over. I have 11 months . . .

I got a crazy idea that I could knit a red tunic for my work Christmas luncheon on December 13 with big yarn and big needles and it won't take very long. I got some yarn to try out and got the swatch made. Can't find a pattern to use, so I'm just going to make a simple one.

Back to Bob . . .

Crazy

Well, I've finally given in to being Knit-Crazy. In addition to the Halloween Cardigan, on which I'm stumped right now because I've trying to figure out how to knit sleeves from the top down, and the orange Hallowig, I've swatched for my next sweater and I just started a scarf for Knit Your Bit.

I guess that's not really very many projects compared to some knitters. It's just more than I've allowed myself so far, since February. It looks like the cardigan won't be ready for this Halloween afterall. I really wanted to knit the sleeves from the top; I've just never done it before. I know I have to use short rows, and I've actually done that before, I'm just not sure about specifics. I've ordered a book by Barbara G. Walker about knitting in the round from the top. When it arrives, I hope to learn more about what I need to do.

The Hallowig is on double-pointed needles. They're a little clumsy for me because it's been so long since I knitted with dpn. I just have a few more rows of ribbing and then I will start the decreases.

The next sweater I want to make is Bob at knitty.com. It doesn't have a low neckline, so I'm hoping that it will be alright.

The Knit Your Bit is a sweater project for veterans. I've been thinking about knitting a scarf because I know someone that wants one. I looked through my thick knitting patterns file folder and found a pattern that I had printed about 10 years ago. It's a waffle rib pattern. When I get more than four rows done, I'll post a pic.

Oh, and I've been working on a beaded bracelet this weekend.

Three Seams

I thought I was getting the whole back when I took this picture. By the time I get it uploaded and where I can see it on the computer, I realized it wasn't the whole thing. Oh, well, I did get the whole front.
It looks like there's a difference in the flash. I finished sewing the left side seam this evening. I pinned the other seam together and decided that I didn't feel like sewing it. I took a break to work on another project and am wondering if I have the motivation to finish the cardigan before Halloween. That orange thing up there is Hallowig that I'm making for a friend. Some day I'll get the hang of where to put the pictures in relation to the text.

Well, my knitting mind is wandering to my next project: http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring03/PATTbob.html I wish I could find a few others who would like to knit this with me.

Since I don't feel like knitting, and I'm about done with this post, I guess it's time to exercise. Gonna go pop in a bellydance video.

Back and Left Front

Here is the wrong side of the back of the Halloween cardigan, with the almost-finished left front laying on top. I now have the left front done and am about halfway through with the right front. I'm still hopeful that I could finish in time for Halloween, but am trying not to worry about it.

I typically am challenged with finishing projects and find my mind wandering to my next project - or even the other two projects that are already started.

But, I'm going to try really hard to stick with this until it's done.

First Ghost

Here is a picture of the back of my Halloween cardigan, finished. Also, what I've gotten done on the left front. The white is the first of three ghosts that will be on the left front. Each will be different.

Cat in a Moon

I'm up to the armholes on the back of my Halloween cardigan. I just have few more rows and the cat will be finished. My plan is to start on the left front next. It will have ghosts on it. I don't know what they're going to look like yet. I saw some Halloween fabric at JoAnn's that inspired me.

Oh, and I bought yarn today to make this: http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring03/PATTbob.html I'll be using Lion Brand Micro Spun yarn in French Vanilla. It's a microfiber sports yarn and I used it for my first sweater, the turquoise Shapely Tee. Even though the neckline turned out too big, I have worn it and washed it several times. I'm impressed with how soft the yarn still feels after machine washing and drying. And I can't rave enough about being able to machine wash and dry a handmade sweater!

Now That Summer's Over

I finished the pink tank.

Please pay no attention to the funny face. I decided to sit down for the pictures of this sweater, trying to look a little more relaxed.

I got a little silly. And you can't see the bottom of the sweater very well.

Here is the link for this pattern: http://magknits.com/July06/ballet.htm

I used Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece, Pink-a-boo. I made the 44" size and it took about 3 1/2 skeins. I really like the feel of this yarn. It has to be handwashed, though, and I haven't washed it yet. So, we'll see how it is after I wash it and lay it flat to dry.

Now, I can focus on the Halloween cardigan.

Free Patterns

I just discvered that Michael's has 104 free knitting project patterns on their website. Here is the link: http://www.michaels.com/art/online/projectlist?categoryid=32

I crocheted around one armhole of the pink cami. I just need to crochet around the other armhole and the neckline. Then I'll post a pic. I tried it on and decided not to do the gathering at the front neckline because it's low enough already.

First Pic of Halloween Cardigan

Finally, I'm able to post a pic of the back of my Halloween cardigan. I'm using Brown Sheep cotton fleece. The main color is black, which looks better in person. The checks are a berry color, which actually look better in the picture than in person. Oh, well!

The little bit of yellow at the top is the bottom of the Moon which will have a black cat in it. This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago.

I've made progress since. I'm about halfway through the cat in the moon. I'll take another picture soon. I'm getting close to finishing the pink cami, so that might be my next picture.

Happy Knitting!

Pictureless

I haven't been able to post update pictures for awhile. My Kodak Easyshare became difficult and then my camera went on vacation to CA for a week and a half. I'm ready to put the back straps of the pink cami on stitch holders (when I can find them) and into the Moon/Cat motif on the back of the Halloween Cardigan. I'm excited about creating my own design!

Also on the needles is Hallowig in orange yarn that I got free at one of our Meetup Swaps. It's for Chewy, and if he likes it, I'll make another one in green.

I'm also working on a cross stitch called Strawberries and Cream. It's on light pink fabric with lovely shades of red and pink. I've decided to hang it in my first-ever office of my own in the Feng Shui Relationship gua.

Pink Cami Update

The picture isn't very good quality; I took it with my phone. My Kodak software has been messing up. I'm at 11 inches; only four to go until I can split for the straps.

Plans for the Halloween sweater are coming along slowly. I now have software that will help me design the motifs: witch hats, candy corn, jack'olanterns, ghosts. I may duplicate stitch some spirals on after it's done. The design is still evolving.

DAV Bargain

Here is my DAV purchase that I made on Saturday. I paid $2.98 plus tax for this bag of yarn. Don't know what I'm going to do with any of it yet. The two skeins in the front on the left are cotton. The three brown ones are sock yarn, I guess. I used to think I might learn how to make socks some day, but I think maybe I'll just knit something else and trade them for some homemade socks.

A Week

I've been working on the Pink Cami for a week now. Here is a picture. It's going well so far. I like the feel of the yarn and I think it's going to feel good to wear.

Third Sweater

Here is a pic of my third finished sweater. I'm wearing it at our Knitting Meetup Swap at Panera. I'm not very happy with it because it's a little too big. I suppose I could frog it, but I'm not ready to undo something that I've spent time on just yet. I probably wouldn't do anything else with the yarn anyway. I didn't care for working with it much. The little gold pieces in it were hard on my fingers.

Now What?

I'm almost ready to give up on my Halloween Cardigan idea. I thought it would be easier to find smallish Halloween motifs to incorporate into my pattern. I'm ready to consent to using the flying witch in front of the moon motif from knitting.about.com. But I can't afford to buy all the yarn I will need at one time. And what about the other motifs. I originally wanted some orange spirals. I don't know how to design these! And maybe I wouldn't know how to knit them in, anyway. It's been a long time since I did intarsia, and that may have been on a knitting machine.

On a lighter note: I had a BLAST at the Wichita KIP Swap last night. It was so much fun. I took one bag of stuff and left with three. Now I have to decide what to do with all my 'new' yarn. Maybe some hats for my winter morning walks.

Oh, I almost forgot, I have another gripe. I recently finished my third sweater since February. Before that it had been about 15 years since I did any knitting. Of these three sweaters, I really only like the way one fits. The neckline on the other two is too wide. And this third one is just plain too big. I must not be doing the swatch gauge process properly. Anyway, I want to make this cute, pink tank next:
I wonder if I'll be able to get the neckline right . . .

Here is a picture of my second sweater. It's from Knitalong for Green Gable. I used Lily Sugar N Cream in the color, Strawberry. I call it my Strawberry Gable. Of the three sweaters I've made recently, I like the fit of this one the best.

Time to think about Halloween.

I recently decided I want to knit a sweater for Halloween. I searched online for a pattern that I liked and didn't find one. So, now I have to design my own pattern. I know it will be a black cardigan, with decorations, of course. I bought a skein of Cotton Fleece at the LYS yesterday and am knitting the swatch today.