A Turbo Sweater

The third quarter KAL for Eat.Sleep.Knit is to knit an adult sweater.  If you can knit the whole thing in two weeks or less, you get an extra star for your team.  I'm pretty sure I can make the two week time frame but I did put some careful thought into my sweater pattern choice.  I knew working in worsted weight would be faster than fingering or sport weight.  I also know that I work faster when it's a top down construction.  (I realize that logically there are the same number of stitches in a bottom up sweater as there are in top down, but I lose momentum at the yoke in a bottom up sweater for some reason.)  I decided to knit the Beccs cardigan because not only is this a top down, worsted weight cardigan, but it's also designed by Isabell Kraemer whose designs I've knit before, so her style would be familiar.  There are no buttons and the cabled front bands are knit with the fronts as you go.  I chose Dream in Color Classy in Juliette's Blush for my yarn.

Saturday morning I cast on and started my two week attempt.  As of right now, I'm about half way done with the body of the sweater.  The sleeve stitches are on holders and I'm alternating skeins at the left side seam.  Obviously I will be knitting exclusively on this until it's finished so the blog will be all Beccs all the time until then.

Oh, and just in case I can't finish it in two weeks for some reason, I just won't submit it for the KAL and I'll knit another sweater!  See, I've got a backup plan!

The Camelot Wrap

 

Introducing the Camelot Wrap, just in time to kick off your fall knitting.  This warm, textured wrap will be perfect as an extra layer over your fall jacket when the sun goes down and the temperatures drop.  Knit in an Aran weight or light bulky yarn it works up quickly and would also make a beautiful gift for the holidays.  The cabled argyle variation is a timeless classic while the heavier yarn weight gives it a modern feel.

Edged in Seed Stitch and Beginning with a cabled rib, the design flows organically from the beginning ribs, along the length of the wrap before fading back to the cabled rib at the opposite end. Knit as shown it measures 21.5 inches wide and 75 inches long.  It takes two skeins of Cascade Ecological Wool (100% Undyed Peruvian Highland Wool), shown in color 8010 Ecru.

The pattern has both written text instructions as well as charts so you can pick whichever style of directions you prefer. This versatile wrap looks luxurious while feeling thick and snuggly.  Dress it up or down, it will keep you toasty and warm.

$6.00

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Ravelry Pattern Page

 

More of A Sock

 

I've knit the leg of my sock.  I'm ready to start the heel turn on the next round.  I've found that the Fish Lips Kiss heel works really well on these self striping yarns so that's what I'll be using again here.

We now have a new roof, so that's out of the way.  Logan and Max were great.  Max burrowed under the covers and went to sleep and Logan reverted to his typical stance of "if I can't see them, I don't need to bark at them."  I kept the blinds closed all day and he stayed pretty calm.

I still haven't cast on for my ESK Q3 KAL sweater because I'm finishing up something else first - a surprise!  Hopefully I can share it with you later this week or the first of next week!

A Sock

I'm kind of in a weird project place right now.  I've finished the sweater and shawl I was working on and while I usually keep one of each on the needles I'm not quite ready to start either.  The ESK Q3 KAL is a sweater, which I am planning to do, but if you knit the entire thing in two weeks, you get an extra star for your team.  I've picked out a worsted weight, top down cardigan that should be doable in two weeks, and I know I want to knit it over the summer, in fact I plan to start it in the next week or so, but I'm not exactly sure what day to start it because at some point this week, we're getting a new roof.  We had another huge hail storm this past spring, so now we get to have the roof redone.  It's been six years since the last time the roof had to be replaced (we had Logan, not Max) and I don't expect Logan to be any more relaxed about it this time around.  (I have no idea what Max is going to have to say about it).  So since I'm guessing roofing day will not be a good knitting day, I don't want to start until after the roof is finished.  I should know later today when all this excitement will happen.

I could start a shawl but I feel like I should wait until after I knit the sweater so I don't have any distractions or temptations.  This means I don't have much on the needles right now and since I didn't have anything brainless or portable, I started a new pair of socks.

This is Biscotte and Cie, Bis-Sock Self Striping.  I believe the colorway is Pink Lemonade, which was a limited edition colorway they did a year or two ago.  Obviously, I was morally required to buy it and it's been in my stash waiting for me to knit it up.  I'm doing my standard, vanilla, stockinette sock which I always do with this brand of self striping yarns.  I'll do a Fish Lips Kiss heel, which seems to work really well in self striping.

I've been thinking about my current state of blogging lately and I think it might be better (less stressful for me and less boring for you) if I just pop in when I actually have something to show - something new, something finished, major progress, that kind of thing.  I think this might work better for the summer and then in September I'll go back to posting four or five times a week.  Summer blogging will just be a little more relaxed!

Finished!

 

I finished my Rose Gold brioche shawl this week!  I kept putting off blogging because I knew I was so close to finishing and I didn't want to show it to you again before it was quite done.  It's all done and blocked now though so here it is!

I made no changes to the pattern except that I had a little more yarn in each gradient set than the designer did, so I knit until I ran out of yarn.  It's knit in Miss Babs Gradient Sets in Yummy 2-Ply Toes in the Canis Major and Beachcomber colorways.  (Canis Major seems to be sold out at the moment.)  I started with the lightest tone in each gradient and worked to the darkest.

This was such a fun project to knit that I'm actually sad it's finished.  Something about using two gradients at a time and working brioche (which I find inexplicably fun to knit) all at the same time combined to make a really fun project.

Here's a shot of the "wrong" side of the shawl (the side that's primarily the Beachcomber set).  Since brioche knitting is basically reversible, there isn't really a right or wrong side to this, which is nice because the ends of this shawl fall in a spiral or corkscrew shape, so both sides show.

One last shot on Fifi!  This is definitely a big, snuggly shawl.  It will be wonderful to wrap up in this winter.  Right now, it's a little much.

On the Edge!

 

I've begun the edging on my Rose Gold wrap!  As a happy little coincidence, I hit the edging stitch count just as I was finishing up the fourth shade of my gradient, so I started the fifth shade and the edging at the same time.  There's only one more (darker) shade after this!  The edging is a little more involved than the rest of the wrap, so it is moving slower, but I'll keep plugging away at it until it's finished.  It is fun doing different shapes and designs with the brioche though.

I haven't really decided what shawl to knit after this.  I had figured I would be brioche-d out and be ready to take a break from the stitch, but I'm not sure that's true at all.  I'm really trying to knit from my stash this year (ignoring the fact that I totally ordered yarn just for this project, but other than that...), so I'll have to do some stash diving to see what I've got that will work for brioche.  I don't tend to buy yarn for two (or more) color projects (obviously, this is something I need to practice), so there's no telling what's up there.  I've got some time to decide, but once I hit the edging on a project I tend to start thinking ahead.

Another Row

 

I'm still slowly plugging along on my Meditative Blanket.  At the pace I'm going, there's no way I'm going to finish it this year.  Since I'm not ready to give up just yet, I've got to pick up the pace.  At this point it's 24 blocks wide and 16 blocks tall.  The original plan was to make it 24 blocks by 36 blocks.  I've got a lot to do. 

Finished!

 

My Jih pullover is completely finished and blocked!  This was really a fun knit, working with two strands of laceweight yarn held together.  I used Malabrigo Yarn Lace in Jewel Blue with Solstice Yarns Annwn in Avalon as my yarns.  Watching the colors blend and enjoying the softness and lightness of the knitted fabric made working on this project a pleasure.  I knit the sweater according to the pattern with the exception of the edgings, which I crocheted.  All the details and stitch information is on my Ravelry pattern page (because I do intend to make another one or three of these).  Theoretically, I won't wear this until October at the earliest, but I've got a pair of white shorts this would look really cute with...