Yarn Pr0n Friday!

I didn't forget, really I didn't. It's been such a busy day, I didn't even get a chance to knit until after 3pm *gasp* First it was the grocery store, then winter coat hunting for my 14yo dd, then to make an appt for my dog to get groomed. Then home, then BACK to the store to get my change they forgot to give me while I was there. Grrrr! Then back home. Just in time to run the dishwasher, empty the hampers, start a load of laundry take something out for dinner, and run back out the door to pick up the kiddos. During the wait for kiddos was the first chance I got to knit. I cast on Knucks for my 8yo ds. I've got all the digits of one done and am ready to start working in the round with the four fingers.

So anyway, my Yarn Pr0n Friday is full of "wish" pictures. Pictures of yarn I'd love to have for my very own :-)







Back to the Knucks :)

Felting Failure

I made this purse, intending it to be a Christmas present for 14yo dd, except it's a bust. I was following a LionBrand pattern for a striped felted tote using LionBrand Felting Wool. The felted size was supposed to be 14" x 9". I followed the pattern to a T, got gauge, blah blah blah.

A picture says a thousand words, so here's a couple of thousand :(
Pre-felt:


Post-felt:


As you can see, it felted vertically just fine. It's the horizontal part that didn't work so great. Even the handles didn't felt, they were worked horizontally (CO 7 and work in stockinette stitch until 35" long). So obviously this "Felting Wool" doesn't felt 'down' very well. I don't think I can salvage this one :(

If I were to use the rest of the LB FW I have I would need to cast on fewer stitches (making it less wide) to account for the lack of felting in that direction. Would that work?

*side rant- the stupid pattern said it would take three balls of each color and I used one of the green and one and a tiny bit of a second of the black.

I will say this, I will NEVER use LB FW for felting again. Has anyone else had similar issues with felting this yarn?

Twisti Wristies

I finally finished dd's wristlets. After trying out a few patterns and not finding them to suit my needs, I decided to just wing it. I think they turned out pretty well. Yes, they are a hideous green/silver Red Heart Sport acrylic (her choice, not mine - more proof that a 14yr old's taste is all in her mouth), but I like the finished product. The inspiration for the twists came from a dishcloth pattern, I don't know the author though.

Here they are:


And a close-up:


Pattern:
size 4 double pointed needles, set of 4
Sport weight yarn

Twist 1 Right: Knit next two stitches together and leave them on the left needle. Knit in the first stitch (between the two knit together), slipping both stitches off the needle.

Cast on 60. Divide evenly among 3 needles (20,20,20).
Ribbing: K2, P2 around. Repeat until ribbing measures 1/2".
Knit two rounds.

Twists:
Rnd 1: T1R, P2. Repeat around.
Rnd 2: K2, P2. Repeat around.
Rnd 3: K2, P2. Repeat around.
Repeat rounds 1, 2, 3 until piece measures 6".

Thumbhole:
Working back & forth (as if a flat piece).
Start on row 2 of pattern (K2, P2) right side (RS).
Wrong side(WS), P2, K2 across.
Next round(RS): T1R, P2 across
WS: P2, K2 across
RS: K2, P2 around, picking up and working in the round again
Next round: T1R, P2 around.

Work in ribbing pattern (K2, P2) until ribbing measures 1/2".
Bind off in pattern. Weave in ends.

Ribbed Scarf

I finished the ribbed Patons Soy Wool Stripes scarf.


And just in the knick of time. I was literally binding off in the middle of a snow storm while waiting for my boys to get out of school. Mother nature couldn't have waited FIVE minutes!


Pattern:
CO 39 stitches (or multiple of 3)
Row 1: (K3, P3) repeat to the end
Row 2: (P3, K3) repeat to the end

Repeat rows 1 & 2 until scarf is to desired length. Bind off in pattern.

I used 3 skeins of Patons SWS "Natural Gardenia" and US size 10.5 needles. My scarf is 72" long. Perfect!

Yarn Pr0n Friday!

Yes, it's that time again (and yes, I almost forgot!)...

Just one picture this week, due to time constraints.


KnitPick's Shadow in Grapevine colorway. It's what I'm doing Branching Out in.

To Do List

I'm getting a head start on my resolutions. I don't really do resolutions, per se, but I do like to set goals. I have a few knitting goals that I have been meaning to get to. Maybe actually typing them out will motivate me further.

Before 2006 is over I would like to:

Finish Clapotis #2

Make a felted bag (I have the pattern, yarn, & needles for this...just waiting on time)

Finish my Christmas knitting on time (I currently have two Christmas projects in the works with more that I'd like to do)

Finish dd's wristlets, no matter how boring it gets

Increase my stash

My goals for 2007:

Make Lucie for myself

Knit with beads, no project in mind..open to suggestions

Make my own stitch markers

Increase my stash

More to be added later...

My first lace

I cast on Branching Out this morning. It took me nearly an hour and a half to do 15 rows! I only had to pull it out twice with only a minimum of swearing. I think it looks quite a bit like it should. Sorry for the small-ish picture.


I'm doing it in Knitpick's Shadow, in Vineyard colorway. I'm double stranding it so it has a bit more substance.

I have to say, I felt kind of bad stabbing the yarn with pushpins to see how it would look blocked. Does yarn feel pain? Does blocking hurt? It seems like some medieval torturing device, The Rack for yarn lol.

Yarn Pr0n Fridays!!!

I've joined a ring devoted to Yarn Pr0n Friday!

These blog posts are for the true Peepin' Yarn Toms. The ones who love to drool over beautiful fibers. The ones who you may catch stroking their monitors in an attempt to feel the lovely goodness.

My Yarn Pr0n is more soft core, as I'm just getting to the point financially where I can buy some semi-good stuff. I'm also having a love affair with Patons SWS, so you will see quite a bit of that today.

No more blabbin'! Here's what you came here for:











Not only will Yarn Pr0n Fridays motivate me to post more often, but it is already motivating me to go to my LYS and by more yummy (yummier) yarn!

PSA

Ugly template. But the other one was flawed & I couldn't fix it. Hopefully I will have more time to play with it later today.

Baseball

Yeah, I'm a slacker. I haven't posted in MONTHS.

We've had a lot of changes 'round here and it took some getting used to. Plus, I have found that I am a "seasonal knitter". I just cannot get the motivation to knit when it's 90*+ outside and not much cooler inside (no A/C).

ANYWAY.

I just finished dh's sweater. It's Baseball from Knitty.com. I did it in TLC Cotton Plus in "Winter Sage" I think it was called. The color has been discontinued. Thank goodness I bought enough of it lol.

Baseball was a lot of firsts for me. This was my first adult-sized sweater. Ever. It was also my first time cabling. It was also my first time seaming with the mattress stitch. The cables & the mattress stitch were far less intimidating to do than they were to read about or watch being done on videos from KnittingHelp.com. The only parts that really gave me an issue were where the tops of the sleeves join the front & back of the sweater and where the collar joins at that same point. It looks a little awkward to me, dh says it's only a little snug in the shoulders. He does have wide shoulders though *swoon*. The sweater makes him look like he has skinny little arms lol. He doesn't, but it looks funny. I think that's the cabling down the sleeve.

Without further ado, here he is...trying not to look like a dork and not quite succeeding.


And here is a close up of the cables: