Sparkle Motion

Although things have been quiet on the blog, I actually have been knitting. Mostly, I've been focused on gifts, which I can't really blog about in advance because I have 8 readers and I'm preeeeetty sure they'd figure it out.

So here's some odds and ends:

Knit Night inspired me to pick up the ol' crochet hook again and I made some granny squares.

I was also inspired by that episode of Call the Midwife where they all frantically patch together a baby blanket for Chummy while waiting for news from the hospital. You're all watching the show, right?

I've also picked up the Sparkle Yarn again for a new purpose. Originally, this was to be used for a Holla Back Tank, but I won't lie to you, gentle reader. The lace defeated me. The time came when I need to to decrease to make the armholes and I had to rip back four different times. I just couldn't take it anymore. I put it in a drawer and declared the project Dead To Me.

But the yarn is just so... mesmerizing. It deserves to be something. Using a modified version of Jilted from Holla Knits, I'm making a little spring sweater that will hopefully make a good addition to the work uniform.

I've taken my sweet time finishing the body, but you know what else has been dragging it's heals? Summer. So, who cares, right? It's going to have short sleeves, so hopefully I'll have results for you in this century. No promises, though!

Color Wonder

I'm feeling lazy today, but I need to share my latest project. It's making me so happy because it involves color - something that the Chicagoland area has been lacking lately. Blues Brothers? More like Grey Brothers, amiright?!

My life, all day every day

So, the pattern I'm working on is called Chevron Stripe Infinity Scarf by Jill Zielinski. Allyson of Sweatshop of Love and Holla Knits was making one at Knit Night in February and it looked *so* fun. Once again, I swiped her awesome taste in patterns and decided to make one for myself.

I always struggle when it comes to putting colors together. It's just not a talent I have. Luckily, Pinterest exists and I don't have to look far for help in that department. My friend Lily directed me to Design Seeds and my work was done. I liked the color combo from this image in particular:

I would never have thought to put these together and I think this would work well with my dark green coat. Done and done. Knit Picks Palette is great for this project and comes in all known colors ever. The FedEx guy dropped these on my stoop on Friday:

A tower of yarn. Welcome to my dreams

And getting started has been a breeze.

Just trust me, this is going to be great. Even if it isn't - I'm loving the process. And that's what it's all about, right?

Loose Ends

As previously mentioned, I'm drowning in yarn and plans for future projects.

Yarntopia by KnitPicks

This is a great feeling and it's good to know I'll have plenty to do in the coming weeks. It's important to me, however, to finish up a few things before getting too wrapped up in new fun. That's why I'm revisiting this stripped toddler dress I started at Christmas time. Remember?

 

Tiiiiny sleeves

I abandoned this little project when I got too overwhelmed with Christmas stuff. Now, it's going to be too small for my boyfriend's nieces, but I know a 3-month-old who will grow into it one day. Problem solved! Plus, after working on those socks for ever, this feels like it's almost done - why not go for it?

Additionally, I've made some progress on the Umaro blanket I began a few weeks ago. It's such a fast project, I love working on it when all of the sock weight yarn and tiny stitches are making me go cross-eyed.

Here's to a productive Spring!

Fancy Delancey - Part 1

Eight weeks ago, Sweatshop of Love hosted a Knit Along for Alexis Winslow's Delancey Cardigan. I was sad to miss out on this one - it has been in my project 'to do' list forever - but I'd just put in a yarn order and that was going to be it for the month. Then, a knitting friend The Owl and The Bee took two minutes to convince me it was worth another purchase, and my mind was made up! It was cardigan time.

Trying to stay somewhat budget conscious and knowing that summer is just around the corner, I decided to make the sweater in cotton instead of wool. I went with Knit Picks Comfy Worsted in Planetarium (blue) and Macaw (a bright green).

This is the second project that I actually sat down and swatched. This doesn't seem like a big deal to the average reader, but trust me, when you have a pile of brand new yarn and a freshly printed pattern, the urge to just dive right in is strong.

Swatchin' the day away

 

My gauge turned out to be what the pattern called for: size 8 needles. It was officially time to get started. My fellow KAL-ers agreed, the best part of this project was two-fold: 1) the construction was really interesting- you start by casting on just three stitches! 2) STRIPES!

The beginning weeks flew by:

Stripe mania!

Blue and green

And the tons and tons of stockinette stitch was easily tackled because of the increases/ decreases every few stitches and getting to change color just when you think you've had enough!

The binding off for arm holes also went pretty smoothly. I think this is where using cotton is a bit problematic, the one side is a lot saggier than the other due to the diagonal stitches. I had to make some adjustments when I seamed the shoulders together.

Dividing for armholes

Starting the first sleeve

The sleeves were the biggest challenge for me. My picked up stitches left some holes along the seam and when I sewed the front and the back of the body together, I needed to make an adjustment on the left side to make sure both sides were even. This has left me with a little flap next to the seam. I think I've figured out a solution, but I won't worry about it until the rest of the sweater is completely finished.

Tomorrow: The Rest of the Delancey Story!

Hexipuff Madness: The Chicago Skies Quilt

My knitting life has really gotten heavy duty lately. I'm working on multiple projects (more on those later) and watching the mail for Knit Picks packages. But sometimes, you get infected with a crafting brain worm of sorts. An idea occurs to you and you just can't let it go. For me, it came in the form of The Beekeepers Quilt and the components of that project, known colloquially as "Hexipuffs". For whatever reason, I couldn't stop thinking about this project.

Hexipuff Vase

What drew me to the quilt at first was the idea of using scrap yarn. It turns out, however, that most of my scraps are worsted weight and not sock yarn. Additionally, I didn't necessarily love the color story that you get when you use all your scrap yarn. My taste changes with the wind, so it would look pretty disjointed. Still, I used some sock yarn I received in a Sampler Kit to get things started. I may or may not have woken up at 3 a.m. on Saturday to download the pattern and feverishly put needle to fiber


I started with self-striping sock yarn which led to larger blocks of color per puff. Then I switched over to the color "Atmosphere Multi" which had gentle, smaller stripes which looks lovely in puff form.

Left: Atmosphere Multi (Knit Picks Stroll, Right: Moonlight (Knit Picks Felici)

I really loved the colors in the Stroll Atmosphere skein and it reminded me of a project I'd seen on Pinterest: The April Sky Scarf. The author of the post tracked the color of the sky each day in a year and knitted a stripe of a scarf to correspond with the weather that day. The colors in stripey Stroll Atmosphere are a perfect stepping off point to an insane idea: a puff for every day's sky here in Chicago. I'm tracking the sky color using a spreadsheet and will slowly acquire the appropriate yarn colors to begin. I grabbed some sparkly white Vanna's Choice from Lion Brand at Michael's yesterday to get started on the 'snow days' we've had so far in January. You can see the result in the top left-hand of the photo.

Please note that this is in no way scientific. I'm an office drone and really only see the sky during my commute or if I run in the mornings. The color listings are based off of archives from weather.com or my overall impression of the sky that day. I'm still loving this project... but that's seven puffs out of 365+. I think the Felici Moonlight colors are charming and might sprinkle them throughout to break up some of the grey months I know we've got coming.

Stay tuned!

Windy City Weather Color Chart:

Sweater-itis

Today, I feel like a grownup. For the first time in my knitting life, I swatched before starting a project. I recieved a package full of lovely new yarn and was able to stop myself from diving right in on this sweater project that I'm really excited about. Please remember this occasion.

The project I'm so jazzed about? Shadow by Olga Buraya-Kefelian, published in Wool People Vol. 1 by Brooklyn Tweed.

Swatchin' it up!

I've got the width right and it's just a touch long, but I think "agressive blocking" will do the trick on that one.

I would apologize for the photography, but it's winter in the Midwest, so nice natural light is hard to come by. You'll just have to deal with my horrible yellow lighting for now and I promise to try to make improvements. Anyway, I'm really excited how nice the yarn looks in the cable pattern. It's Wool of the Andes in Camel Heather from Knit Picks.

Closer to the real color

Meanwhile, I'm using up some yarn I won on ebay by starting a Beatnik Sweater.

Beatnik

The yarn is super ugly, in my opinion. It's a combination of christmas green and red that comes together to make this muddy brown look. I'm hoping the cables will give it a nice retro feel and diminish the fug. I'd wanted to work with Cascade 220 for a while, and ebay makes me compulsive, so here I am. It's actual color looks a little something like:

Doesn't quite capture the ugly...

And finally: a project for the commute. A Herringbone Cowl from The Purl Bee for a beloved sorority sister of mine. She lives in a warmer climate but is always cold. In her honor, I've named this project The Alphie Cowl. <> The yarn is scrumptious - Brava from KnitPicks in Dove Heather. It's the best acrylic I've ever worked with - so soft and light. This one is going by fast and I'm loving every stitch.

I may have taken this picture on the bus...

With snow in the forecast for tonight, I'm looking forward to some Netflix and knitting. After my workout, which really will happen. Really! Happy Friday, guys.

This Is It

I got busy over the holidays. I know you did, too. I was busy knitting, which I know is a surprise for you because I haven't posted for months and months! But I realized that these were gifts for people and showing them all over the internet before Christmas kind of defeated the point. And then all of a sudden, it was December 23rd and I had four projects to go. And then I was wrapping them as I was leaving for Christmas dinner and had No Time to photograph any of them.

And then I was having a beautiful New Years in a Galena, Illinois, a town that was CRYING OUT for a dusting of snow, but instead got some drizzle and looked like the old mining town it actually is:

 Quaint-adjacent

But now. I'm back to knitting for fun and general merriment. And I look forward to sharing with you guys, because I love writing, fiber arts and attention. Oh, MAN do I love attention - thank you so much for giving it to me so freely.

As a token of my esteem, have a little "pattern" that I developed while watching every 30 for 30 ESPN documentary with my boyfriend over the holidays.

One Skein Seed Stitch Cowl

Materials:
1 skein Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick
Size 17 Needles (I used Circular, but straight would be preferable)

Gauge:
8 stitch x 9 rows = 4 inches
Note: Gauge is not important - use whatever you needles you have on hand)

Cast on 26 stitches. I recommend using Long Tail Cast On.

First row, K2 then P2 to end.
Second row, knit all purls and purl all knits.

Repeat Row 1 and Row 2 until end of skein (approximately 18 inches) leaving yourself enough yarn to seam ends together - (approximately enough yarn to wrap around your work twice). Instead of binding off, seam live stitches to bottom of work. Weave in ends. Steam block if desired.

Final step: Take insanely unflattering photo of yourself in the mirror before walking your dog. Enjoy!

Unflattering: Accomplished!

New Yarn!!

I came home from work yesterday to some mail.

Mail Time

This only means one thing:

NEW  YARN DAY!!!

I am STOKED. Now, this pile o' string (if all goes according to plan) will eventually become:

- A sweater
- A cardigan
- A hat
- A dress for a two year old

So exciting... I couldn' t just LEAVE it sitting there. I had to cast on something I've had in my head for a while.

Ribbed Yolk Topper

I'll keep working on the hat, probably on the commute, but I want to be wearing this sweater in the next few weeks. Fall is so fleeting - I'd hate to miss it, especially with something that's 'on trend'. Stay tuned!

FOs: Labor Day's Labor

I hope you had an excellent holiday weekend. I did - some chores, some study prep with the ol' boyfriend, Coin Star-ing some pocket change.

And a head start on Holiday Knitting!

First, I finished the knitting portion of the Maile Sweater for bf's goddaughter. It looks a little something like this:

Baby Love

This guy took two days to finish up and I'm pretty happy with it! I just need to find some buttons that might cheer up this bruise-colored yarn.

Raglan Detail

Baby Sweater in the wild! (closer to the actual color)

I've never knitted clothing for a baby before, so I kept checking and re-checking the pattern measurements. The sleeves were only supposed to be 4 1/2 inches long - that seemed so tiny, I couldn't get past it! But once I decided to just go with it, it all looked right in the end.

I also finished up a beret that is currently blocking (aka dunked in water and had a plate shoved in it to give it that 'beret' shape), so I haven't photographed it quite yet. It's a lovely green: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Sport weight in Grass. Sport weight is thinner than the bulky yarn the pattern calls for, so I doubled up the yarn on nice big needles which made the fabric much thicker than previous versions I've whipped up. It's really nice to go from a tiiiny lace project to big ol' Done In A Day needles. The only downside to doubling up my yarn is that it made me run out of yarn faster than I should have, but I think the blocking will still make it pretty and wearable. I'm not sure who this is going to quite yet, but it should keep someone pretty warm and stylin'.

This is an early version of the Star Crossed Slouchy Beret pattern that I made last year:

Prototype of Ballad of the Green Beret

So that's two gifts in one weekend! Not too shabby. I cast on the beginnings of a braided cable headwrap and another Make Up Your Mind tank for my little sister at her request - in green, in order to "make my eyes pop". This is a direct quote. No embellishment.

I also studied-by-extension for a teaching certification exam, played some tennis, made some Barefoot Contessa mac & cheese, got to turn off the AC and open the windows while watching a great deal of television. All in all, pretty great.

Make Up Your Mind!

Hello, there.

My on-again-off-again blogging style had been upsetting my two readers. I came back with a flourish in early 2011 and blogged about nothing but my ongoing knitting projects. This brought the readership squarely into the zero digit category. So, why not move all my knitting to a space that promises only knitting updates?

Sure, the world is not  in short supply of knitting blogs, but I need a hobby and you need something to do when facebook is really, really slow one day. Help me build my knittery brand, won't you?

So, what am I up to? I'm thrilled you asked. I was inspired by the Sweatshop of Love's summer sweater knit-along (also known as a "KAL") to start on the Make Up Your Mind racerback tank.

Make Up Your Mind - will you actually wear this?

Now, this photo presents a lot of problems for me.

1) This woman is stunning. She is also the designer of this pattern, so the tank fits her perfectly.
2) I don't wear lacy or crochet-y things. I find them to look sloppy, bulky or like those macrame plant holders your loopy neighbor had on her porch when you were a kid.

BUT THEN, this looks like a lot of fun to make - you get to change patterns often and it might knit up pretty fast. And maybe I really WILL wear something like this, I just haven't been bold enough.

Drunk with power that a birthday check from grandma and grandpa offers, I bought the yarn for this and cast on.

Knit Pick Comfy yarn in the colorway "Planetarium" Fingering weight (*snort*)

I started a new job at the beginning of August which included a longer commute, which translates to PROGRESS:

After a week of commute knitting

My other sock-weight yarn project has been rusting on the needles due to boredom and running out of yarn for the second time, so I was not sure how fast this project would move. Turns out: quickly!

Racin' with my Racer Back

So, now I'm thisclose to being finished. I've got straps and just need to finish up the back and graft them together. THEN we'll see if I actually can talk myself into wearing patterned stripes across my gut.

There are a few mistakes here and there, but overall, I'm happy with it. What do you think - would YOU wear it? is there a way to ensure it doesn't look too Grateful dead? What do you think of the color?