A Solution

 

I realized earlier this week that I wasn't really happy with my Raindrops pullover.  If it had been knit in other yarn, I might have been able to finish it and see how it looked, but using four discontinued colors (which also are some of my favorites), I just didn't want to keep on knitting.

Yesterday I frogged it.  I will use the yarns for weaving I think.  I do like them together and I think they would make a nice wrap.

So, I'm 0-2 for sweaters this year.  The first one had color bleeding (I still haven't messed with that) and the second one was just frogged.  I have no idea what's going on with my sweater mojo, but I've got to shake it off!

Have a great weekend!  I have no idea what I'll do this weekend!

Thinking

 

I've been thinking about the Raindrops pullover and I think I have a solution.

In the meantime, I pulled out my Granny Goes Large blanket while I was thinking and I'm now one round shy of completing three repeats.  I think this is the last repeat that will have all the colors in it too because a couple of the colors were not full skeins when I started.  I have other colors where I have multiple skeins of the same color though, so I'll just drop colors as I run out of them and keep going with what I have left.  Not very scientific, but if you're coming here for the science, you're in the wrong place anyway.

I'll explain the Raindrops plan tomorrow.

Raindrops

 

I've started the first sleeve of my Raindrops pullover, but I realized something.  If I change colors at the same places I did on the body, my 3/4 length sleeves will have little to no Ink in them and that might look funny.  I think I need to do my color changes sooner.  I'm going to have to do some math and some thinking.  That's part of the reason I've only gotten a little bit done of the first sleeve - I can tell something is wrong.  I've learned that when I get this feeling about a project, to listen to it and figure out what's going on.

Time to do some thinking...

Ramble On!

 

I spent the weekend working on Brioche and it's moving along nicely.  I've definitely gotten back into the rhythm of it.  (Also, can I go on record right here and say that rhythm is one of the most irritating words in the English language as far as spelling is concerned.  It always takes me several tries.)

If I were making this in the DK yarn the pattern calls for, I'd be almost finished with the shawl.  Since I'm making it in fingering weight, I've got a bit more to go.  I'm not entirely sure how many repeats I'll get exactly, but I plan to keep going to use as much yarn as possible.

The End is Near!

 

The end of the body of my Raindrops pullover that is.  I've begun the lower ribbing and I hope to get it finished later today and get started on the sleeves this weekend!  I've kept careful notes so I can blend the sleeves at the same places as the body.  I'm really just figuring this out as I go along, so I'm hoping it actually works.

Have a great weekend!

Cthulhu

One of Caleb's subjects in homeschooling this year is American Literature.  We're using a curriculum from the same company we used for British Literature last year and each month he reads and studies a new book.  We both enjoy this curriculum and the books covered, and while they might not all be things he absolutely loves, there's a good mix of authors and styles and if he really doesn't enjoy a book, at least we'll move on to something else the next month.  (He really felt that Sense and Sensibility from last year could have used a few explosions to spice things up.)

This year we have another great assortment of American literature, from Huckleberry Finn, To Kill A Mockingbird, The Right Stuff, and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, to name a few.  Unfortunately, one of the books is Little Women.  Now I know there are people who love Little Women and I mean no disrespect to you or the book, I just personally have never been able to get through it.  Knowing that I couldn't do it, I just really couldn't ask my 17 year old son to do it and be able to discuss it with him.  I knew he would be bored and while there are some things in school that we just need to suck up and do, sometimes, particularly in homeschooling, maybe it's better to just do something we're actually interested in (after all, I did make him read Jane Austen last year).  So I decided that instead of Little Women we would study two American authors that are known for their short stories that I knew Caleb (and I) would be interested in - Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft.

As soon as I suggested the idea to Caleb his first question was, "We'll be doing Cthulhu right?"

We definitely are doing Cthulhu and I decided he needed a little Cthulhu amigurumi too.  This is the Cthulhu from the Creepy Cute Crochet book made in some cotton yarn I had in my stash.  He was a little fiddly to make, and I'm glad I didn't go with my initial instinct and make him out of fingering weight yarn, but he's so cute all finished that he was worth it.  I might have to find a raven amigurumi pattern and make one of those too!

Ramble On

 

I've gotten farther on the Brioche section of Ramble.  This section won't grow as quickly as the garter stitch stripes, but it's just so fun to knit!  I've settled into the rhythm of it now and that helps too.

I also got a picture of the back side because it's doing something different.  Brioche stitch patterns are fun that way in that you sometimes get something different on the back side.  It doesn't hurt that the yarn is doing all sorts of amazing color things.  I'm still fascinated that a yarn can have this much going on and not look like crazy clown barf!

It Is Finished!

 

This is what I've been working on all last week!  The Meditative Blanket is finished.  I began this April 26, 2015 and I finished it this past Saturday, March 17, 2018.

The finished size is 52.5" x 66".  There are 720 squares total (24 x 30).  It's all done in fingering weight with a 2.75mm hook for the squares and a 2.25mm hook for the borders.

If I were to do it again, I might use a 3.25mm hook for the squares, just to make the blanket a little less dense.  It weighs 1433g, which if you assume 400 yards/100g means 5,732 yards of fingering weight yarn were used.  That sounds high to me, but maybe not.

I think the important thing to remember is that after almost three years, Max has a new blanket.  He actually woke up from a nap to inspect it after its blocking while I was getting the blog photos!

Requiem in Color

 

I have begun the Ink at the bottom of the Raindrops sweater.  Maybe I should rename this sweater the Teardrops pullover.

It's Spring Break here so I'm planning to just pop in occasionally when I have something to show.  Or I might just do my regular blogging schedule.  Who know?  I'm not even caffeinated yet!

It's Getting Darker and Darker!

 

I'm working my way through the Worn Denim section of my Raindrops pullover and I'm almost ready to begin blending in the Ink.  I've kept a careful round count as I knit this so I can make the blending in the sleeves match the body.  It's been a great brainless knitting project since it's straight stockinette, but it does make me sad that all four of these colors are discontinued.  (Clearly, it's going to take me some time to work through my feelings about this.)

Have a great weekend!

Knitting Stitches That Look Like Knitting Stitches!

 

I'm far enough into the brioche section of Ramble that I can see the pattern!  It takes several rows of brioche before you can see anything, but I'm now far enough for the herringbone pattern to be visible.  I think it looks like giant stockinette stitches!  Also, I'm easily amused.

One More Row To Go!

 

I've added (and woven in the ends for) Row 29!  This means I have only 24 more squares, or one row, before I finish the center of this blanket and can start borders!

According to the Ravelry project page, I began this blanket April 26, 2015, so I'm coming up on three years with it.  I just checked and my Babette blanket (also crochet) took just over four years - at least I'm getting faster.  I think the join-as-you-go versus sew eleventy thousand squares together at the end probably helps.

I don't have definite plans for the border yet, although I have some ideas and I do know what color will be the widest outer border.  I think there will be a narrow inner border or two between the squares and the outer border.  I'm also thinking of going down a hook size for the border just to keep the edges from getting stretched out.  Kind of like using a smaller needle for ribbing at the edge in knitting.  If anyone knows a reason why I shouldn't do this, please feel free to let me know!

On To The Next Color!

 

I've begun my third color (Worn Denim) in my Raindrops pullover.  I've also learned some disturbing news.  Remember how the colors I'm using (Cove, Jasper, Worn Denim, and Ink) were all discontinued Madelinetosh colors, except for Ink?  Well, Ink has been discontinued now too.  This sweater will be a memorial to some of Madelinetosh's greatest hits.

Don't get me wrong, I do like the speckled colors and I think they're great for some kinds of projects, but the kinds of colors I'm using in this pullover, the subtle variegateds and tonal colors are the reason I fell in love with Madelinetosh.  They did them like no one else (although Malabrigo is getting pretty close).  Madelinetosh's speckled yarns just don't stand out from anyone else's speckled yarns for me.  I don't really know where I'm going with this, I guess I'm still dealing with the shock of Ink being discontinued.  It was a great color - more interesting than navy, but still a neutral that went with anything.

If anyone needs me, I'll be curled up in my stash, crying.

Brioche!

 

I've finished the stripe section of my Ramble and begun the brioche!  I ran a lifeline through the stitches at the end of the stripes because I wasn't sure if I had done my math right (since I'm knitting this in fingering weight instead of DK weight, I added more stripes, but I had to end on a number that would give me the repeat I need for the brioche section to work out - math).  I think I got it right, but I'm going to work a few more rows before I pull out the lifeline.  Also, my love of the the Aniversario colorway shows no signs of fading.  Just.  Look.  At.  That! 

It's been several months since I knit brioche, but I'm getting back into the rhythm of it and it's just as much fun as I remembered.

Have a great weekend!  I'm just excited to see the sun today!