A Finished Pair of Socks

The summer is over (not quite with the temperature yet), Caleb is back to school and started classes yesterday, and I've finished another pair of socks.  These were the perfect, simple project that I could pick up and put down in between trying to corral all of Caleb's stuff - where did you put your microwave?  I didn't have the uninterrupted time or the mental space to work on anything more complicated, so these were exactly what I needed on the needles. 

The main color is Spun Right Round Classic Sock in Flamingo and the accent color is Teal Torch Knits Sock in Where My Peeps At?  I love the way these worked out and I plan to make another pair with the colors reversed.  I'll probably sleep in them or wear them around the house like slippers when it does get cooler around here.  They've been inspected by He Who Cannot Be Trusted Around Wool (and they're now safely in the drawer.

And just in case you were curious, the microwave was in the guest room.  Naturally.

A Sock

Everything I'm knitting right now is in a place where I need to pay extra attention to it.  My brain is not in that kind of place.  So, I started a simple pair of socks and have already finished the first sock!

This is essentially based on the Jelly Rolls pattern, but I worked the heel flap in a single color and dropped some little two round stripes just a bit before the toe decreases.  The yarns are Teal Torch Knits Sock in Where My Peeps At? (the white with speckles) and Spun Right Round Classic Sock in Flamingo (the pink).  

Sometimes, simple is exactly what life calls for.  The other projects will keep until I have the time and brain space to work on them again.  In the meantime, I can't tell you how amused I am by this simple, eye searing sock!

Have a great weekend!

When Pink Lemon Solves A Problem

I've been working on my Punchwork Cardigan again and I was running up against one of the reasons I prefer knitting sweaters top down more than bottom up.  I had finished the body of the cardigan and had started the first sleeve, but I always worry when I do this that I'm not going to get the sleeves quite right.  Even with a schematic (this pattern has one, but not all patterns do), it's hard to tell exactly how and where the sleeve will sit in the underarm area.  Not knowing this makes it hard to know how long to knit the sleeve.  I tend to have to add some length to sleeves, but it also depends on the designer and I don't think I've ever knit a sweater from this designer before.  I could have started the sleeve with a provisional cast on and begun the knitting above the ribbing, then when the sweater was finished I could go back and add any needed length and the ribbing, but I didn't think of doing that at the time.  

 Then Monday afternoon I had an idea!  By using the pattern numbers for the sleeve stitch count (not including any underarm stitches to be put on a holder), all I had to do was start knitting the body again where the pattern called for joining the sleeves and beginning the yoke.  As I got to the sleeve places, I used a provisional cast on for those stitches and was able to knit the entire row without any actual sleeves!  The sleeves in this pattern are stockinette so I don't have to worry about a stitch pattern looking funny from using a provisional cast on.  I'm now just working along on the yoke decreases, following the pattern, and it's working perfectly.  Once I finish the body up, I can pick up the sleeve stitches and the body stitches that were held for the underarm and knit the sleeves down for as long as they need to be.  (I have already frogged the original sleeve attempt.)

I can't believe it's taken me this long to figure out that I can do this.  On a highly patterned sleeve I don't think it would work, but for plain stockinette stitch, it's perfect.  (I'm currently feeling pretty pleased with myself.)

Have a great weekend!

Catching Up!

I've got a few things finished up around here that just haven't quite made it to the blog, so I thought I'd just devote a post to all of those and we can get caught up around here!

In spinning news, I have finished spinning the fifth bobbin of singles for my combo spin which means I just have one more to go before all the singles are finished!  I'm actually almost halfway through that last bobbin now and yes, the spinning wheel still lives in the tent.  Yes, the tent is still a source of kitten amusement around here.  Lately, he's been trying to jump on the very top of the tent, and while he's come close, the tent is too slippery and there's no place to catch yourself with your claws on it to grip.  Or at least that's how it looks to me.  He tells me he intends to slide down the side of the tent repeatedly.  I'll let you decide.

I also made a cowl.  This is the GAP-tastic cowl knit in Malabrigo Mecha in Arapey (which is actually the name of an aquatic plant).  The colors just reminded me of iridescent shell, and I cannot overstate the amount of squishyness of this knit!  Seriously!

Here's a close up just because it's so pretty.  This project was for an ESK Flash Craft-A-Long.

Finally, I made a pair of socks for Caleb to match his mitts and hat.  I'm a bit over 2x2 ribbing in dark charcoal fingering weight yarns at this point, but I'm really happy with the way all of these came out and I hope he feels warm and loved wearing them.  (Assuming he gets cold enough in Galveston.  Again.)  The yarn is Hazel Knits Blueprint in Carbon Fiber.  The pattern is the one Caleb and I figured out for his feet and preferences.

I think that's everything that's laying around here unblogged!  Now you know it all!  I hope to check in later this week with a project I'm actually knitting on right now.

Teacup Rex

This fall Caleb is taking a class called Micro Paleontology.  When he told me about it, my brain started working through the definition of the class title and I said, "Tiny Dinosaurs?"  Yes, he's going to be learning about Tiny Dinosaurs!  Naturally, I decided he needed a little moral support for the class so I made him a little Teacup Rex!*

This is the Timothy the T-Rex pattern, which I've always thought was adorable, but had never made.  I used Malabrigo Rios in Lettuce for the main color and Squoosh Fiberarts Ultra Worsted in Event Horizon for the stripes.

The pattern calls for 10mm eyes, but all I had was 9mm or 12 mm.  When it comes to eyes, bigger is usually better (unless you're going for a beady eyed look), so I used the 12mm eyes.

This was a great pattern and had some of the best sewing up directions I've seen.  She tells you exactly where to put the arms, legs, and tail as you're adding them to the body.  This means he stands up nicely!  There's no wobble to this guy.  He's extremely stable, which doesn't always happen in crocheted critters.  I think he's adorable and can't wait to give him to Caleb when we move him back into school for fall.

*The actual class is taught through the Marine Sciences department so I seriously doubt they will be learning about the elusive Teacup Rex, since they were a land dinosaur.

A Hat for Caleb

After finishing the mitts for Caleb a couple of weeks ago, I made him a matching hat!  This is the same yarn as the mitts (Hazel Knits Blueprint in Carbon Fiber) and when I picked the pattern, I purposely went looking for a 2x2 ribbed hat pattern in fingering weight so I could make him a perfectly coordinated set.  The pattern I used was Ribbed For His Pleasure, but it's not available on Ravelry anymore.  I had it in my library so I was still able to use it.

It was a very straightforward project, just lots of ribbing.  I did fall into a knitting black hole though as I was working on it because I knit and knit and knit and only added about 1/4 inch to the length.  Then I knit and knit for two more evenings and it was still the same measurement!  Finally, after the next evening of knitting I was able to get out of the black hole and all of a sudden had worked several inches.  I have no idea how or why that happens with some projects and I know it's not just psychological because I was measuring with a ruler, not just eyeballing it.  

I'm going to make him a matching pair of socks from this same yarn also, but that's it for this set.  I haven't decided if I'll make them the usual shorty socks that he likes so much or if I'll make longer socks, you know, to keep him extra warm!

Tent update:  we still love the tent!  Mr. Noodle is trying to climb the tent now because he can see the spinning wheel inside it and he's decided that the spinning wheel is his One True Love and he must get to it!  Fortunately, he can't get any kind of traction on the exterior of the tent with his claws.

Ripstop Nylon - 1, Cat - 0

A Very Long Time

I started this April 1, 2020.  I finished knitting it April 24, 2021.  I finally blocked it over the past weekend.  This is the Nuvem, knit in Malabrigo Silkpaca (70% alpaca, 30% silk) in Paris Night.  I used four skeins and it's huge, but also super lightweight and can easily be twisted to be narrower and worn like a scarf.  I knit it on US 4's (3.5mm), but in hindsight, I wish I had gone down a needle size.  It's possible that the alpaca will bloom a bit as I wear it, but I don't know for sure.

This was a wonderful project to have on the needles.  Perfectly brainless and easy to pick up and put down despite being big enough to be seen from outer space.  I might make another one at some point because it's just such a nice, big knit!

In other news, the fascination with the tent has not waned.  Noodle spends quite a bit of time playing with it and trying to get the spinning wheel out of it every day (and then he naps).  He's even tried meowing at the spinning wheel.  So far, the spinning wheel hasn't come out to play with his meows.