Um, yeah. Last night I made a couple mistakes with my lace scarf and I just couldn't figure out how to fix them. I ripped it out and cast on brand new for the fourth time. It's not the yarn or the pattern, it's me. I was just having a bad day. The good news is that this time I should do much better because I'm used to knitting with lace weight yarn now. It's really hard to switch from worsted to lace quickly. I took the time to rewind my ball on the ball winder so that it's much looser than before. My Dad helped me wind this one and it was way too tight (not his fault at all).
I need to work on my unknitting skills with the SSK stitch. That's the one that keeps messing everything up for me. It's not a big deal to unknit a few stitches in a row if you forgot a yarn over or something like that BUT it turns into a big mess if you can't correctly unknit that SSK. I thought I knew how to do that just fine but with this fine yarn I just can't seem to do it this time.
I'm just going to take deep breaths and take my time. No deadline with this project either although being in Ravelry seems to make me want to knit faster so I can get to more projects on my To Do list.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
A Break for Lace
I decided to cast on the next Elizabeth I pattern, Glorianna on Friday night. I'm using my Alpaca Cloud in the Autumn colored hank for this one and it's just beautiful. It's like a deep reddish brown color with hits of orangish yellow when the sun hits it. My picture doesn't do it justice:
I struggled with it on Friday night and had to rip it out 3 times. I think that might be because my husband was traveling and his flights kept getting delayed until it was eventually cancelled since there was blue skies in Chicago (oh no!) and then he finally got on a flight to Rochester, about an hour and a half drive at 10 pm. So my mind was not focused on my knitting.
I do like knitting lace. The pattern repeats aren't going that fast for me yet and I'm not sure if I'll get to a point where I don't have to look at the pattern but then again I always say that.
I struggled with it on Friday night and had to rip it out 3 times. I think that might be because my husband was traveling and his flights kept getting delayed until it was eventually cancelled since there was blue skies in Chicago (oh no!) and then he finally got on a flight to Rochester, about an hour and a half drive at 10 pm. So my mind was not focused on my knitting.
I do like knitting lace. The pattern repeats aren't going that fast for me yet and I'm not sure if I'll get to a point where I don't have to look at the pattern but then again I always say that.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Free Pattern - Braided Cable Alpaca Scarf
I noticed that many people are searching for this pattern when they get to my site so I contacted Sue at Adirondack Yarns in Lake Placid and got her approval to post the Braided Cable Alpaca Scarf pattern. Enjoy!
Braided Cable Alpaca Scarf
2 skeins of Catalina Baby Alpaca chunky (109 yards each, 3.5 sts & 4.5 rows = 1" on #10.5 needle, 100 grams or 3.5 ounces each)
US 10 needles
cable needle
Gauge: It's a scarf, let's be adventurous . . .
Pattern Notes:
C6F - Slip 3 sts onto cable needle & hold to the front, knit 3 sts, then knit the 3 sts from the cable needle
C6B - Slip 3 sts onto cable needle & hold to the back, knit 3 sts, then knit the 3 sts from the cable needle
Cast on 24 sts
Row 1: *C6F* repeat 4 times
Row 2: P
Row 3: K
Row 4: P
Row 5: K3, *C6B* repeat 3 times, K3
Row 6: P
Row 7: K
Row 8: P
Repeat these 8 rows until desired length is reached.
Here is a close up of the cables (please excuse my poor photography skills - it's actually red yarn and this further proves I'm a knitter, not a photographer)
Braided Cable Alpaca Scarf
2 skeins of Catalina Baby Alpaca chunky (109 yards each, 3.5 sts & 4.5 rows = 1" on #10.5 needle, 100 grams or 3.5 ounces each)
US 10 needles
cable needle
Gauge: It's a scarf, let's be adventurous . . .
Pattern Notes:
C6F - Slip 3 sts onto cable needle & hold to the front, knit 3 sts, then knit the 3 sts from the cable needle
C6B - Slip 3 sts onto cable needle & hold to the back, knit 3 sts, then knit the 3 sts from the cable needle
Cast on 24 sts
Row 1: *C6F* repeat 4 times
Row 2: P
Row 3: K
Row 4: P
Row 5: K3, *C6B* repeat 3 times, K3
Row 6: P
Row 7: K
Row 8: P
Repeat these 8 rows until desired length is reached.
Here is a close up of the cables (please excuse my poor photography skills - it's actually red yarn and this further proves I'm a knitter, not a photographer)
Friday, August 24, 2007
GAAA - Morioka Square
Yup, it's done. It took 8 days to do it but only 7 nights of actual knitting. I am so impressed with myself that I'm going to cast on a lace scarf tonight just for fun.
This square combines my love of lace and cables. Here's a close up of the lace zig-zag pattern bordering the cables:
This square combines my love of lace and cables. Here's a close up of the lace zig-zag pattern bordering the cables:
No, my yarn isn't dirty. I just haven't figured out taking pictures in full light yet. Anyway, here's a close up of of the cable work with the lace mixed in:
I really like it. I can't wait to start the next square but I'm going to keep up the routine of working a square every other project. I don't want to get burned out working with the same yarn every day for the next couple months. Here's the full FO picture:
Pattern: The Great American Aran Afghan - Meredith K. Morioka square
Yarn: Plymouth Encore color 7357 worsted weight
Needles: size 5 US (3.75mm)
Notions: cable needle & 2 stitch markers
Size before blocking: 11" x 13"
Time frame: 8/15/07 to 8/23/07
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Knitting & Family Time
Last night I was able to complete another pattern repeat. We watched Are we there yet? (I just love Ice Cube) and then the season finale of America's Got Talent (my parents were really into this show - me not so much). Anyway, I have one more pattern repeat to go. I think I really have a shot at getting this GAAA done in my life time!
My husband is traveling this week and my parents have the week off so they're here having some grandparent time with our son. I took a break from work and went downstairs to see what they were up to.
They put him to work doing the laundry!
My husband is traveling this week and my parents have the week off so they're here having some grandparent time with our son. I took a break from work and went downstairs to see what they were up to.
They put him to work doing the laundry!
He's going back for another load of clothes!
He spotted me and decided to take a break from all the hard work.
But he's not sure which toy to play with.
Still not sure so he sits down for another look.
The wagon wins and he's off to the races.
With a break for a photo op of course!
After running all around the house he wipes out at the bottom of the stairs.
All of that running makes a boy tired! Time to take a break with Grandpa!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Knitting Meme
No pictures today since I'm still working on the GAAA square. I was able to do an entire pattern repeat last night so now I only have 2 to go.
This was on the Knitting Help forum a little while back. What exactly is a "meme" anyway?
1. What are your favorite things to knit?
I like to knit gifts. It can be anything really but something knitted for someone else is the best. Socks, scarves, sweaters, hats, blankets, etc it doesn't matter what it is. I really love to knit requested items. Lately I've been knitting things that force me to learn a new technique so I'm all over the place with projects.
2. What yarn/fiber do you like most?
I tend to use wool and alpaca blends but anything with alpaca will top my list. I love lace weight alpaca and how it's so soft you just want to put it up to your cheek.
3. What needles do you tend to use (i.e. type/material)?
I use bamboo DPNs and metal straights, nothing fancy here. I have a set of Denise interchangeable circulars and have used them in the past but I'm not proficient with them yet.
4. Do you tend to knit more in one specific part of the year than others?
Nope, I knit just about every evening. I used to knit all day on Sunday's during football season but with a 1 1/2 year old at home I'm just happy to knit once he's gone to bed for the night.
5. What style of knitting do you use?
I'm a Thrower (aka English) but I would really like to learn Continental for seed stitch patterns. But since I'm a process knitter speed isn't a huge issue for me right now.
6. Do you consider yourself a “fast” knitter?
Not really, more of an average knitter. I'm very slow at the beginning of a project and then speed up as I get more into the pattern.
7. Who is your favorite knitting author?
I really like the Knitting Pure and Simple patterns. I know that they're not as exciting as some of the other patterns out there but I'm not exactly a runway model. They're written extremely clear and concise which happens to work well for me.
8. What is your favorite by said author?
So far it's the Men's Heavy Weight Boot Sock but I plan to knit up some of their sweaters and cardigans in the future.
9. How long ago did you learn to knit?
I learned to knit right around the time I got married so 2001 would make it 6 years now. My mother-in-law was gracious enough to teach me the basics and then I found Knitting Help's free videos for when I had questions (we lived 900 miles away from each other at that point).
10. How do you knit small in-the-round objects?
I lean towards my bamboo DPNs but I have used circulars in the past.
11. What is the most useful technique you have learned so far?
Seaming and understanding charts. I'm still no expert in either but seaming something well just makes the finished project look nice. I just recently learned that you need to read odd rows on a chart from right to left and even rows from left to right. That is going to be very helpful in my upcoming projects!
12. Do you prefer to knit fine gauge items, mid-range gauge items, or large gauge items, or do you like it all?
I like it all but I tend to stay in the mid to fine range with my projects. Super Bulky yarns knit up quickly but I like the look of the finer stitches.
13. How do you like to knit your sweaters?
I've only knit a couple baby sweaters so far so I only know those with seaming. I plan to try a top-down raglan in the future so that should expand my techniques more. I've heard that's the way to go with sweaters.
This was on the Knitting Help forum a little while back. What exactly is a "meme" anyway?
1. What are your favorite things to knit?
I like to knit gifts. It can be anything really but something knitted for someone else is the best. Socks, scarves, sweaters, hats, blankets, etc it doesn't matter what it is. I really love to knit requested items. Lately I've been knitting things that force me to learn a new technique so I'm all over the place with projects.
2. What yarn/fiber do you like most?
I tend to use wool and alpaca blends but anything with alpaca will top my list. I love lace weight alpaca and how it's so soft you just want to put it up to your cheek.
3. What needles do you tend to use (i.e. type/material)?
I use bamboo DPNs and metal straights, nothing fancy here. I have a set of Denise interchangeable circulars and have used them in the past but I'm not proficient with them yet.
4. Do you tend to knit more in one specific part of the year than others?
Nope, I knit just about every evening. I used to knit all day on Sunday's during football season but with a 1 1/2 year old at home I'm just happy to knit once he's gone to bed for the night.
5. What style of knitting do you use?
I'm a Thrower (aka English) but I would really like to learn Continental for seed stitch patterns. But since I'm a process knitter speed isn't a huge issue for me right now.
6. Do you consider yourself a “fast” knitter?
Not really, more of an average knitter. I'm very slow at the beginning of a project and then speed up as I get more into the pattern.
7. Who is your favorite knitting author?
I really like the Knitting Pure and Simple patterns. I know that they're not as exciting as some of the other patterns out there but I'm not exactly a runway model. They're written extremely clear and concise which happens to work well for me.
8. What is your favorite by said author?
So far it's the Men's Heavy Weight Boot Sock but I plan to knit up some of their sweaters and cardigans in the future.
9. How long ago did you learn to knit?
I learned to knit right around the time I got married so 2001 would make it 6 years now. My mother-in-law was gracious enough to teach me the basics and then I found Knitting Help's free videos for when I had questions (we lived 900 miles away from each other at that point).
10. How do you knit small in-the-round objects?
I lean towards my bamboo DPNs but I have used circulars in the past.
11. What is the most useful technique you have learned so far?
Seaming and understanding charts. I'm still no expert in either but seaming something well just makes the finished project look nice. I just recently learned that you need to read odd rows on a chart from right to left and even rows from left to right. That is going to be very helpful in my upcoming projects!
12. Do you prefer to knit fine gauge items, mid-range gauge items, or large gauge items, or do you like it all?
I like it all but I tend to stay in the mid to fine range with my projects. Super Bulky yarns knit up quickly but I like the look of the finer stitches.
13. How do you like to knit your sweaters?
I've only knit a couple baby sweaters so far so I only know those with seaming. I plan to try a top-down raglan in the future so that should expand my techniques more. I've heard that's the way to go with sweaters.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Weekend Knitting & Shopping
I have finished 2 out of the 5 repeats for the Morioka square and it's going faster each time. I may have this one done in weeks instead of months! Here's my progress:
I love how fast this is knitting up now. I was so intimidated by this project and now I'm just loving the details.
I found a male volunteer to be my guinea pig and let me knit him a sweater. He selected the pattern an the yarn. He's also married to my mother-in-law so he definitely appreciates the hard work that goes into a project. This will be my first adult pullover. I'm excited to get working on it but I'm not sure when I'll start. I don't have to have it finished until May at the earliest - but I could sneak in and try to get it done for Christmas.
He chose the cover pattern from Men In Knits to be knit up in Wool-Ease Chunky in the Charcoal color. I think it will look fabulous!
As a side note, I told my father about the project and he said that he likes sweaters too. It looks like I'll have a sweater to knit up for next Christmas now too. Now I just have to get him to pick a design that's in style and that I like . . .
I love how fast this is knitting up now. I was so intimidated by this project and now I'm just loving the details.
I found a male volunteer to be my guinea pig and let me knit him a sweater. He selected the pattern an the yarn. He's also married to my mother-in-law so he definitely appreciates the hard work that goes into a project. This will be my first adult pullover. I'm excited to get working on it but I'm not sure when I'll start. I don't have to have it finished until May at the earliest - but I could sneak in and try to get it done for Christmas.
He chose the cover pattern from Men In Knits to be knit up in Wool-Ease Chunky in the Charcoal color. I think it will look fabulous!
As a side note, I told my father about the project and he said that he likes sweaters too. It looks like I'll have a sweater to knit up for next Christmas now too. Now I just have to get him to pick a design that's in style and that I like . . .
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