Go big or go home

uh oh--I am almost three months to the day since my last post...and I wish I could give you an amazing reason as to why (but alas, you know how THAT goes!).

So to make it up to you I have come back in a big way.

A big BLANKET-Y way (no I am not talkin' about M.J's kid)



pattern: Missoni inspired blanket by Kelly Kingston
yarn: Cascade 220 (check ravelry for the list of all the colours I used)
needles: 4mm


this picture is a bit of an optical illusion...it was actually laying smooth and flat on the floor when I took it

So, I guess the moral of this story is don't ever let them tell you bigger isn't better? Just kidding. I think. It's definitely more impressive when it's bigger because the reality is this was an easy knit. Straight stockinette that dare I say actually went up FAST. Though I think that has something to do with the mental game you play with yourself when you are switching colours: "ok, just two rows of this black, I'll finish those before I take a break...." "Fours rows of orange? lemme just finish those before I start dinner". And then suddenly it's done.



And also kind of timely because I am pretty amped up about the fact that Missoni is also the next designer line that's been announced for Target this fall. (Almost as excited as I was to hear that Target is finally coming to Canada--tho not until 2014) so looks like I will still be trudging my way to New York state as usual to get my target designer line fix---save me some stuff ok people?

This is definitely the biggest thing I have knit to date (and is kind of making me feel somewhat accomplished after so many previous sweater FAILs). The only real anguish involved was agonizing over the colours. It's definitely a lot louder than something I'd normally knit, and if I had to do it again would probably still tweak some of the more neon-ish colours in it (like that lime or the lilac) for something less obnoxious. Still, I think as a whole it all works, and I will be more than proud to drape it on my bed or couch this winter.



What didn't feel fast to knit (but was smaller and probably even easier to knit) ---this baby blanket:



pattern: Basketweave blanket by Classic Elite
yarn: Bamboo Ewe in "Mercury" (4.5 skeins)
needles: 4mm I think?
mods: 160 stitches, seed stitch border instead of garter

Well go figure...endless solid grey-- knit 4, purl 4. Man I was SO glad to finally see the back of this one!



But I must say, I was very happy with how it turned out. The yarn is soft but substantive and easy-care and I didn't want to make it overtly scream "BABY" (even though it was in fact a baby gift). It just seemed a little more versatile in a neutral colour like this in case they wanted to use it as a throw instead.

So for me, blanket appears to be the new black. I am heartily tempted to knit the Missoni one again. The colour combinations and permutations are endless and would probably go a long way towards wiping out some of the colours in my stash that I am less fond of and don't know what the hell to do with. Though god knows I have a long history of saying "I am definitely knitting this again!" and then never following through (there's just too many new things out there to catch my fancy!)

Maybe some matching pillows though? I need to do something with all that leftover lime & lilac!

little things

hoooooo doggie, it is hot and humid today. This time last week I was wearing a hat and mitts--whatever happened to Spring? Why do we need to go from Winter directly to Summer?

I've finished off a few little things lately (that I guess I should just immediately pack away?) cause I don't think there will be much call for them for another 5 or 6 months...



Further to my last post about the owlie mitts comes the Stem & Leaf cowl from the same designer, Betsy Farquhar.



I love this pattern...it's really very reminiscent of one of my favourite designers, Orla Kiely, though uh slightly more in my snack bracket as they say.

That said, I'm not sure how wearable this cowl actually is. Having the full impact of the pattern kind of requires it to stand up rigidly (which it sort of does on it's own) but the second it gets scrunched down, the inside floats are all visible. It's not horrible, it still definitely works, but I dunno...I likely should have chosen some bolder colours. This might get gifted off to someone else.

Also fabulous and from one of my all time favourite knitter/designers, Michele Wang:



Tortillon!



This really is not my usual style of hat, but I have to say it might be time for me to get away from the floppy beret/snood. There definitely is no danger of this one slipping right off my head, in fact I'm not sure I've ever had a hat fit so well! I knit it in it's prescribed Lana Grossa Chiara which again is also not something I'd normally choose given that it's about 80% synthetic (and 20% kid mohair). There seems to be this whole new breed of "fancy" synthetic yarns out there that I know nothing about, and even this stuff is about 17 bucks a ball around these parts. Fortunately it used less than one ball and was decidely worth it. Cushy cushy cushy! This might be the most comfortable hat ever.



It just pains me that it won't see the light of day for many moons again.

And then I got stoked about wearing something like this for cross-country sking:



but we promptly ran out of snow.



Ah well. This is Endless Braid. You can see my Ravelry projects pages for more details about it because I really had to jimmy it to get it to work with one ball of Koigu KPPPM. This is the "winter" version of the pattern, though it's really somewhere in between sizes I'd say, since I knit the strands to different lengths/widths, and the pattern calls for a worsted yarn, not a sock yarn. And lets not forget my pea sized head.



I just really really wanted to knit this from stash and I really also wanted to knit it in a varigated (I apparently own like zero varigated yarns--even this lowly ball of koigu has been in my stash for years...)

And then, the Urban Turban:



I know turbans have been a bit of a fashion craze the last year or two, and this was yet another situation where I decided to knit from stash in a completely different weight of yarn. In this case a DK instead of a lace weight, and it worked though might not be quite as deep as I need this hat to be.

This is a Patons pattern, but I haven't been able to find it to link to it yet --will definitely fix that as soon as it becomes available! I knit it in some leftover baby alpaca --Fable Handknits.

If I was smart I would have dragged these knits out into individual posts with lots of detail for you, but pfft, that's what Ravelry's for I guess. Plus these days I find by the time I'm talking about these projects I am mentally done.with.them. and ready to move on to bigger and better.

And bigger and better is definitely my next course of action...I've never knit a blanket before but now find myself with not one but TWO in the works. And a "mini" sweater. Am I crazy? Will I be knitting with a wool blanket on my lap all summer long?!

Yes, yes I will.

intarsia mania (fair isle mania?)

Figured I should finally post about my latest white whale (sorry the English major in me finds it difficult to stop referencing books that I never really liked...)

But what I do like--

THESE:


pattern: Owlie Owl mittens by Betsy Farquhar
yarn: Fortissima Socka
needles: US #0
mods: I omitted a couple rows in the chart (see my ravelry project page for more specifics)



Soooo, I've never been a sock knitter, but for some reason I find the task of knitting mittens to be somehow less onerus. I did however still suffer from second-sock-syndome when it came time to knit mitt number two, and it wasn't until I was about halfway through the second one in fact when I realized I'd forgotten to change needle sizes after the cuff. Ugh, size zeros the whole way up.

The good news? A mitten knit entirely on tiny needles meant a perfect fit for me and my child-sized hands! Could I live with one that was smaller than the other?

Ummmm, maybe not:


The difference in size was pretty dramatic. If you look closely in the photo too you'll notice a giant boo boo in the bigger mitt, so that kind of closed that deal, it HAD to be torn out.

The difference is probably more obvious here, where I appear to have given my owl wings in the first mitt:


Regardless, it got torn out and knit properly on my smallest needles, and now they are a perfect fit. Dare I say probably one of the more impressive things I've knit to date.



Fair Isle does seem to elevate a project to "difficult looking" doesn't it? I mean the reality is that it's not and it's simply straight knitting, so I would definitely encourage anyone afraid of trying it to give it a go. There are lots of smaller colour-work patterns out there that you can start off with.

I liked these mitts so much that I've already cast-on for a second of Betsy's patterns, and shocker, it's a cowl:



She has some very cute patterns that you can get on her etsy page: Good egg.

Dude Cowls

Time for my favourite topic: cowls!

Only this time the cowls in question are not for me, but for my significant other...



No pattern to speak of...I think I cast on 100 stitches, started and ended in a 1X1 rib that sandwiched the rest of the cowl in stockinette. I increased a bit in the stockinette for a little more floppiness, but then decreased again for the last bit of ribbing. I ran out of the darker grey, otherwise I probably would have made sure to end on the same coloured striping.



I love this simplicity of this, and have a feeling I will likely be getting more wear out of it than the hubby. The yarn's beautiful and has been in my stash for ages... Fable handknit's pure baby alpaca.

It's funny, Nathaniel is not really what I consider to be a "flashy guy", he really is a very conservative dresser, despite being in a number of garage/punk/stoner rock sorta bands...but I'd say his overall aesthetic is a bit more uh undertones:


(sweaters, collared shirts, argyle... all things non threatening in the power pop persuasion I guess) as oppossed to you know, this:


(which as far as punk rock goes is a pretty non threatening look as well I'd venture, sorry Dee Dee)

But whatever, my point being that he finds the above cowl "TOO FLASHY" (yes, it is simply grey with stripes and totally boring) but nevertheless I will likely be the only one wearing it...

Which is why (yes I am coming to a point here) I was further baffled when he chose another cowl pattern for himself out of Cowlgirls. Possibly the girliest, flashiest collection of cowl patterns available, and more baffling still, chose the girliest one in the book!



Truly I have to give him credit for managing to see past all the shiny yarns and accompanying beaded necklace! But really...it's still lace. It doesn't exactly scream "macho".

Still he's makin' it work:


(seriously it was almost 40 BELOW when I took that picture)



I used a Cascade 220 superwash to make it (and obviously omitted the beaded "necklace"). I had to knit about 5 more sections of the final pattern repeat to make it long enough for him.

I think he likes it because it's a bit of an barbell shape that is looser on the bottom...it will stay tight up around his face and keep him warm without falling down and the benefit of the lace is that he can keep it on his nose but still breathe through the "holes" as he calls them.



Kind of a smart choice in the end--Who'd a thunk it? (not me, clearly).

old yarns, new F.O's

Geez looks like I'm averaging about a post a month these days...that can't be good.

What is good though? This scarf:



free pattern: Bertie scarf by Kate Blackburn
yarn: 3 balls of Rowan Tapestry (70% wool/30% soy) in "antique" (I think it's discontinued now)
needles: 4.5mm
mods: no beads, knit to about 70 inches



I'm kind of obsessed with this F.O right now. I think it's one of the nicest things I've knit in a while, and it's been so long since I've made anything with a bit of colour (muted colour, granted) let alone "varigated" for myself.

The yarn's been in my stash for a long time, in fact it was one of the first decent yarns I bought when I first started knitting so I'm sure it's been in my stash for at least 5 or 6 years now. It is actually somewhat of a relief to have finally used it up. (Though full disclosure: I still have another 5 balls of it in a different colour that I also need to find something to do with!)

Years ago I made a half-clapotis out of it, but found it too small so I never really wore it and subsequently gifted it shortly thereafter.

The Bertie scarf has kind of a similar aesthetic to the Clapotis (but no dropped stitches) and I was hell-bent on using up every ounce of it which brought this bad boy to a whopping 70 inches.



I tried to block it out as wide as possible, othewise it might have been a lot longer still. It really did block out gorgeously, and I now have a real sense of stash-busting satisfaction!

In other knit-news, I know that I repeatedly seem to be saying "I am not a toy knitter", but for some reason one always manages to squeak it's way out.

(Though this one was actually for a grown-ass 40-something Scottish dude, so I'm not sure what possessed me...)



pattern: Loch Ness Monster by Hansi Singh
yarn: more stash-busted patons classic in "Dark Olive" and some other kind of green for her tummy
needles: 4.5mm?


(I think I may have over-stuffed her a bit!)

The Scottish dude in question is my co-worker Roddy who had a big Inventory project coming up that I decided he needed a wee mascot for. Hence, Inventory-Nessie was born! She lives comfortably at his desk now so I can still visit her whenever I want to.

I am chomping at the bit right now to start on a few smaller projects but am holding off until this monkey is off my back (or owlie is off my back I guess..)



It is probably not immediately obvious in these pictures, but there is actually a giant booboo I've made that I didn't notice until I was about halfway done mitt #2. But no matter, it is an excuse for me to re-knit mitt #1 about two sizes down, and I know I will be much much happier with the end result when all is said and done.



For whatever reason I feel grudgingly devoted to it (even though I appear to be only averaging about three rows a day) and incapable of starting anything new while this one is still on the go.

But, I do have MORE cowls to talk about later.

Cowls are always the exception.

Favourite gift knits

Soooo, I didn't do a lot of gift knitting this year. In fact substanially less than I had planned to do. (Though isn't that always the way?)

But I thought I'd take a minute to comment on all my "last-minute" Xmas knitting and what I consider to be solid/go-to gift patterns.

Quite literally I finished knitting this hat for my sister-in-law on Christmas eve. I managed to snap a couple quick pictures of it before adding it to her gift on Xmas day...



pattern: Star Crossed slouchy beret by Natalie Larson



For starters, this pattern is gloriously FREE...and it looks like almost 7000 people on ravelry have knit it. Surely 7000 people can't be wrong!

I've knit it once before in Malabrigo with great results (though it was a little on the large size) and this latest one I knit in Patons Classic, and the size was pretty much bang on how I wanted it to be.

It goes up fast on larger needles, has enough subtle cables that keep it interesting looking (as well as keeping the knitting itself interesting) and as far as I can tell looks totally cute on everyone! Why I haven't knit one of these for myself yet I simply do not understand. I will have to rectify that soon!

And another go-to hat pattern that I seem to knit a lot:



The Seaman's cap from needlebeetle. (Also knit here in Patons Classic)



This was one of the first "real" things I ever knit (and by that I mean something other than a scarf...knitting in the round and decreasing seemed so complicated at the time, I remember having my mom help me with the whole "DPN" issue) She was the one that actually came across this pattern (it's free as well), and no joke I think she's probably knit HUNDREDS of them at this point.

She does a lot of charity knitting and I remember one year she had---seriously-- a garbage bag full of these hats that she was donating. She loves this pattern, and I have to say, I agree with her. It looks good on both men and women, and is just a great basic & classic design.

Also on my hot list for gift-giving (and again, a freebie)



is the textured shawl recipe

I knit this last year for my gran-in-law and the second I mailed it out knew I wanted one for myself, so knit this one a couple months back in Sublime's cashmere merino silk DK.



I wasn't quite as jazzed with how this one turned out versus the first one I knit, so I might actually try it again in another yarn.

There is just something about this pattern that makes you feel like it's knitting up fast. Maybe that's true of all shawls (when you start at the smallest point and go up from there I guess that's a given). It's not really until the last few rows that it starts to feel like a slog, but by then you're almost done and the end is in sight so you seem to just be automatically propelling yourself forward to completion.

Though likely maybe the same's not true if you were knitting a more complicated lace-weight shawl? Maybe I should try that some time and see.

Last week for the first time in a long time I had to consult knittinghelp.com. There was an abbreviation in a pattern I'm working on that I haven't come across before (yes this still happens!) and it dawned on me how much I owe to that particular website.

Apart from the fundamentals of knitting that I gleaned from my mother many many years ago (and promptly forgot/lost interest in I might add), I really attribute most of my beginner learnings about knitting to that website. It really is insane how there's a tutorial for virtually anything you might want online, and if you are a beginning knitter I would encourage you to check it out.

Even if you're not a new knitter you might be surprised about a tidbit here or there that you might pick up on that site. It dawned on me while I was on there that as "experienced" I am now as a knitter, I kind of feel like I've stalled out a bit...I haven't really learned anything "new" in some time. I don't know if that's because I wimp out or I play it safe and only stick to what I know (though I never let anything complicated stop me, I just knit what I'm interested in regardless of what it is, so maybe that's not it).

I'm not somebody who really has a lot of friends that knit (there are definitely some co-workers that do, but we don't knit together per se) nor do I attend any kind of SnB (I have yet to find one that really works for my schedule) so I'm feeling a bit like I'm not on a continuous learning track with knitting like I should be --or maybe I am and I just don't know it.

Whatever the case, sometimes the most obvious little tidbits seem to allude me and then when I do come across them they just blow me away in the why-the-hell-didn't-I-think-of-this-myself? manner.

I recently had one of those "knitting tip" type moments that I'd like to share.

At this point I can't even remember whose blog or where I found this tip so apologies for that.

I knit a lot of things in the round --cowls, hats etc. as a lot of you do. You cast on, you join your stitches and you follow the pattern from there. My "join" has always been fine, but I was always mindful of tightening or fixing it on the next row/round, or being sure to fix it up at the end when I was weaving in loose ends etc. I never really worried about it, but definitely when I first started knitting I hated how that looked.

The tip I gleaned for knitting in the round was this: Cast on one extra stitch than the pattern calls for. When you finish casting on and are about to join in the round, move that last stitch over to your left needle first and then knit your first two stitches together with the right needle as usual (English style knitting I mean...). Essentially your last stitch becomes your first and you have a PERFECT join with the right amount of cast on stitches again.

I'm sure this is an elemental "no duh" moment for a lot of you, but man this tip blew my mind and has essentially become a given for me ever since.

Ok, I will stop talking now.

requisite 2010 retrospective

(click on the mosaic for links to all of these items)

You know...I actually thought I hadn't really knit that much last year. But I guess the mosaic doesn't lie. Still, it's not exactly epic.

And I've actually got three or four things from 2010 that I still need to post about. Ugh, Hopefully I can get to that this week!

Knitting aside, it was a hell of a year for me...major ups and downs, so I'm hoping 2011 will be a much more relaxed year (knocks wood).

Seems I was smart enough last year not to make any knitting-related resolutions--though I still have yet to learn how to crochet. And while I've made some serious advances in de-stashing there's a long way to go (not to mention the joy of yarn shopping being sucked out of that whole process).

I do however think as I look at that mosaic that my days of sweater knitting for myself are on the wane. I really just do not wear any of them. Still I would never rule it out...a must knit will no doubt catch my eye eventually.

I'm also struck by the colour palate I chose. I think of myself as always knitting in a sea of neutrals--and there's definitely a lot of that there, but there's a lot of colour too. It's kind of making me feel less guilty about my usual neutralness--apparently I accessorize in colour!

So there you have it: my 2010 in knits!

Happy Holidays!

Well, here's to me squeezing in one more post before Xmas and taking a stab at making it somewhat festive!



I needed a last minute ornament for a tree decorating party and stumbled upon this pattern from beewee.



SO cute/fun/fast and before I knew it I had five of them knit...a couple for my tree and a couple extras to give away!.

I basically just used scrap yarn...The white is Patons Classic Wool, and the red is Rowan Kid Classic. I cut the little white spots out of felt and just fabric glued them on. They would be even cuter with needle-felted roving I'm sure.

The great thing about this pattern is that it's knit all in one piece and you just sort of stuff it as you go. Pull the yarn through the top down to the bottom, tie it in a knot and cram in inside so you don't really have to worry about any seaming and it's done lickety split with super cute results.

I also used the same yarn combo for another fun ornament:



pattern: Cherry brooch by Amanda Berry from Fluff and Fuzz.

You should check her out on ravelry, she really has some of THE cutest knit toy patterns available (though this one is gloriously free) and very well-written.



Not really sure what I'm going to do with them yet, but I will probably make some much smaller ones in future as brooches. (Perhaps something a little less testicle sized next time eh?).

And just so you're not thinking it's only been miniature knits coming off the needles these days, my Treeline Striped cardigan is finally done!



And I really like it (though have to say I don't think it's the most flattering thing --horizontal stripes, go figure...).



I knit the sleeves for this sweater probably about ten months ago (you may remember I had some issues with the sleeves), and then FINALLY picked it back up to finish off the rest last month.

I know a lot of people like to knit the sleeves first for sweaters but I've never really understood that, always preferring to get the biggest piece out of the way before anything else (i.e usually the back) but I have to say, because the pattern called for it that way, I knit the sleeves first and psychologically it did really seem to make a difference. (Or maybe it was my ten month lapse that made the difference?) cause once I got into the body of this sweater it just seemed to fly off the needles.



Now that said...this pattern was RIDDLED with errors. Too many to even get into here, so if you're thinking about knitting it I've written quite a few notes about it on my ravelry page for this F.O. You can find that HERE, hopefully it will help someone out. God knows I was ready to tear my hair out at a couple of points, but once you muddle through it all works out in the end.

I knit this using (once again...) Patons Classic Merino wool (in black and grey). I have a lot of Patons in the stash right now that I'm trying to get through. Don't get me wrong, I like it, (the price and yardage can't be beat) but I'm definitely getting tired of knitting with it lately. I'm craving something fancy again (but am TRYING to resist...)

Also knit with more black Patons:



The Olive Hat from the Patons "Fall in Love" booklet.

I was planning to gift this to my sister in law, but have subsequently moved on to something else instead. When I first saw the picture of it:



I was convinced it was cabled. Turns out it's a sea of eyelets, so not exactly the warmest hat to gift to someone.



It's also knit flat which I found a bit weird. I'm not sure I've ever knit a hat flat before. The seam up the back is pretty invisible, but I still know it's there and it bugs me. I would definitely opt to knit this in the round the next time.

Nevertheless it's kind of become my go-to hat lately, so I shouldn't complain!



So there you have it --can't believe I managed to cram so much into one post on Xmas eve!

I hope everyone has an amazing Holiday season--all the best to you and yours!
xo Cara