Monday, August 13, 2007

In the works

Well after what felt like a sea of scarves, my interests are finally turning towards some bigger projects that have been waiting in the wings:



Unfortunately I have no progress pictures to post of this nautical sweater from Phildar, but so far so good. I ran into a bit of snag last night in terms of some weird pattern translations from them but at least they give you the french copy to refer to as well. I was over at my folk's place getting some maternal help on a couple of lines that just made no sense to me whatsoever, and I am happy to report that as of last night the back of said sweater (always the most tedious part) is finally done, and I've now cast on for the front. Why does it seem like the nicest looking things are always in the most boring stockinette?

That sweater is pretty much occupying most of my free time these days, thereby putting these two projects on a wee bit of a hold:



The angora mittens are actually a little further along than that photo indicates. One mitt is done as well as the cuff of the second. It's 100% angora, so I have to do it all in dribs and drabs since I've discovered that I am insanely allergic to it. It's like knitting with a living breathing fuzzy bunny in my lap. Even my cats don't shed this much. Not even sure why I'm pressing on. They will only fit my child-sized hands, and I doubt if I can ever wear them! Oh the injustice! But who knows I may sit down and just finish them some evening just to remove them from my line of sight. The other black thing pictured there is the dropped stitch vest from stitch n bitch nation. It is a BEYOND tedious thing to knit, so as a result it's become my "leave it at work" knitting. I can't imagine it will even be done in the next decade.

I'm also cue-ing up another sweater --so thanks to Julia for turning me on to all of the new Drops patterns...it's going to be an exciting knit-tastic fall. I bought a bunch of yarn for this baby:



And again, frugal bastard that I am, I'm doin' it on the cheap! Yes, you read correctly, 75% acrylic. That's a first for me. But given that I have yet to make a sweater that I actually want to wear, I'd rather spend 35$ on the ingredients than $300. And that aside I was having a lot of difficulty finding a decent "chunky" yarn subsitute that didn't weigh a ton. I think I could have done it entirely in natural fibres, but it likely would have been 3 times as heavy as the yarn it calls for. I'm trying not to beat myself up about it. I have plenty of acrylic store-bought sweaters that I love, right?

And lo and behold, what also arrived in the mail last week?
(images deleted)

5 comments:

Sarah said...

Stop with the lovely patterns - I must not queue up anymore stuff, can't knit fast enough - but that grey jacket is fantastic - and it'll be great to be able to wash it easily - mmm maybe I could just add that one....

Virtuous said...

Yes I have that Drop Stitch pattern all printed out and ready for me to do something with it! LOL

I also have both of those Phildar mags! And you are right! One of the items I was eyeing is crochet! UGH!!!!!
When DID they turn into a crochet mix mag?? I was not happy!

Julia said...

Oooh - that Drops sweater was a close second for me when choosing one of their new patterns to knit. Can't wait to see how yours turns out! And don't sweat it on the fibre content - I'm knitting with some acrylic blend stuff right now and I actually really like it. Think how nice it will be to just toss it in the wash, too!

mishi2x said...

Hey - love the picks for fall!! Can't wait to see the nautical Phildar. On Drops patterns - we've been selling out of one particular pattern, and have noticed that they tell you need a lot more yarn than you actually do. Curious to see if it happens to you on that pattern.

Anonymous said...

woah lady! that sailor sweater/jacket is amazing! i cannot wait to see the end result. ahh i wish i could knit! i may have to coax you into a lesson on your CA kitch trip. ;P