yarntherapy

grumble, grumble......

So annoyed. I was going to finish up with Tempting today, but I ran out of yarn! I've seen that a few people have had the same problem, but I really thought I'd be OK. I got 6 skeins as required for the medium - and since 6 is also required for the large, I shouldn't have had a problem, even with the inch I added to the body length. And of course, it's pouring rain here and the nearest yarn store (which I don't even like!) isn't open on Mondays anyway. Total waste of a day off.

There's still knitting happening, though - I figured out the math to adjust the gauge on the Interweave shrug, so I've been cruising along on one sleeve - where Tempting seemed to bog down and take forever, the shrug started to go faster despite the bloody size 2 needles. It's going to be tres cute - too bad it's not for me :-(

I also did a little yarn buying from Elann - some Endless Summer Sonata in black and Fresh Pesto and some Filatura Di Crosa Pasta in Sunbaked Brick and Black & Tan. The Endless Summer will definitely be for a Honeymoon Cami or two, and I'm looking at various tank & cami patterns to try with the Pasta - it's a ribbon yarn, and I love the way it looks & feels when knitted up. Nice and textury and substantial without being too heavy. I see that a lot of the colors are going fast, I guess I should order some more........just in case......

finished cuteness and more

Yay! I had good button karma and found the perfect buttons at a store I don't even really like, but ducked into because it was raining - I was in the garment district looking for less pricey options before I headed over to M & J where I am sure I would have found something amazing that would have ended up costing ten bucks apiece.

So check it out:

I've said before how pleased I am with the way this yarn knitted up - I was a little floored that I managed to find a button that was both cute and the right color. This will be Katie's first birthday present, along with whatever else I manage to buy between now and the end of April. Babies are so fun to shop for! I'm still going to try to knit a bunny - if there isn't enough of this yarn left, I have masses of the Berroco Plush left over from her baby Uggs that will make an adorably fluffy something-or-other.

News on the Tempting front: I'm a couple of inches into the yoke, and praying I don't run out of yarn. I have a little over one skein left, and about 4 inches of knitting left to go. I think I'll be ok. I hope. Because it would make me very cranky to have to buy another whole skein for an inch of knitting......

The color looks charcoal in this photo, and navy in others, but it's really just plain ol' black. It's interesting how even my stitches look in the cotton of the pink cardi, and how uneven they always look in wool. I'll do a quick block to even everything out, maybe. Once it's stretched out on the body it won't matter, anyway.

I picked up a few ribbon options:

The top one is white grosgrain with black edge stitching, I thought it looked cool and retro - it will give a more tailored look. In the middle is another grosgrain, this one wider and in a pretty coral color - The waste yarn I used for the sleeves is a similar color and I loved the contrast. The bottom yarn is silvery grey satin, for a dressier look. I have an idea about combining this one with some rhinestone pins.

Speaking of Tempting, Knitty Gritty last night featured its designer, Jenna Adorno and another of her adorable patterns. The pattern is on the website, but it was also instantly recognizable as Ultra Femme from Stitch N' Bitch Nation. Very cute, and she did a nice demonstration of kitchener that made things a little clearer for me. (I still prefer three-needle-bindoff though!) There was a little fashion show of her designs, including Tempting and the Mudflap Girl Tank, also from SNBN. Her stuff is geared towards petites but I really appreciate that she sizes her patterns for many different figures.

It's still grey and dreary outside today, but I have faith that spring really is just around the corner. I can't wait for the new magazines to come out - Vogue Knitting looks like it has some pretty lacy scarves that might be nice for my Knitpicks stash. And I really can't wait to see what Knitty has in store for summer!

ms. fixit

You will all be happy to know that the below-mentioned travesty of knitting has been successfully repaired and the sweater is finished! Well, almost finished. I need to get buttons tomorrow. Then it will be officially finished. I might even have enough yarn left for a bunny, or at least a catnip mouse for their cat.

I also got through the sleeves of Tempting with a minimum of trauma and got them attached, so I'm going round & round & round on the yoke now. A few people have reported running out of yarn, but so far it looks like I'll be fine. Thankfully I'm using the Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran in black, which won't be hard to find if I do need to buy another ball.

I'm starting to think about summer knitting now - tanks and camisoles in cottons and linens.........yummy. I'm also going to experiment with ribbon yarn - I just ordered some Filatura Di Crosta Pasta from Elann, which comes in some gorgeous colors. It's over 50 degrees here today, so the thought of going sleeveless actually seems like it might be a reality soon.

this is what happens when you get cocky...

Yeah, this is what happens when you're all pleased with yourself and you're almost done with your project and everyone is telling you how great your work is and how cute it will be.....

So I'm cruising along on the little pink cardigan, couple of inches of stockinette and a buttonhole left to go. I notice that I seem to be getting very close to the end of my yarn, but it looks like I'll make it. No bunny, though. Oh well. I get to the fifth and last buttonhole (ha!) and I get all happy because then I'm just 11 rows of garter and a bind-off away from finishing. I do a couple of rows of garter and......hmmm....this cardigan looks a wee bit long. Strange. I hold it up. Yep, definitely too long for a one-year-old. Very out of proportion. Not attractive.

Is it my row gauge? The pattern didn't specify a row gauge, but I tend to have problems in that department - could it be? This is weird. How could this sweater possibly be 3 inches too long?

I consult the pattern. Crap. Well, I figured it out - I read the buttonhole directions for the larger size - I only needed to do four, not five. Bummer.

I decide to rip back and I did the nifty trick that I read about online where you do a lifeline using dental floss - just run it through the stitches on the row you need to rip back to, and then you can rip with abandon. Worked like a charm, took like five minutes to get it all straightened out. Yay! I'm back to being almost done!!

Right?

I get to that garter stitch edging bit again and I'm two rows from being totally done when I notice a weird flaw in the stockinette area. A funny little bump that kind of looks like an increase where there shouldn't be one. I look at the wrong side and for some reason there's an actual loop of yarn hanging out back there! Less than an inch or so, too short to just clip and weave back in. I very cleverly pull at the loop with a needle and manage to ease the excess yarn into the surrounding stitches. Once again, very proud of my problem-solving skills (which wouldn't be needed if I hadn't made some idiotic mistake in the first place!)

Something still doesn't look right, though. There's still a bumpy flaw thing going on, and this is a gift, therefore it must be perfect. So I decide to drop stitches down to where I can fix the flaw. And this is when I realize that the gremlins are messing with my knitting - I discover an actual extra row that magically inserted itself into my work. Look!!

See, on the right there? Between the bottom two ladders? Yeah, a whole extra stitch, which means a whole extra row. I think what happened is that when I oh-so-cleverly ran the lifeline, I jumped a row off at some point and that caused the magical extra row to appear.

See, like I said, I got all cocky and stuff.

So of course the solution is to..........run another lifeline and redo the last few rows again. Not too terrible, but I really thought I was about to be finished!

cuteness

I'm nearly done with the little pink sweater and it's way too cute. I need to find buttons worthy of it's cuteness.  This has been a really, really fun knit - luckily I have a couple of friends with or expecting babies right now, so I will get to knit it again. Yay!

Love the yarn, too - it came from All About Yarn in Maryland, and I don't think I've seen it anywhere else. I can't seem to find it online, either - I guess that means more trips to Maryland!

This sweater is going to be a gift for my niece's first birthday. I'm going to package it up with a few cute T-shirts from American Apparel - my favorite T-shirts in the world. Great stuff - the best part is that the adult sized Ts are actually nice and long which I require for my long-waisted self. They are also soft and durable - they don't shrink and they get softer the more you wash them. We actually use a couple of them in the show, which means they get washed at least 4 times a week, and they hold up beautifully. And they're sweatshop-free!  They're a wee bit pricy for baby clothes, since they grow so fast - but my niece is worth it!

To finish the gift, I think I'm going to have enough yarn left over to make a matching bunny rabbit!

I hate dpns...

...but the alternative is even worse.

Here's my latest project: Tasia's Cardigan from Cabin Fever for my niece.

It's turning out very well, I'm really pleased with the yarn. Very subtle gradiations in color, just enough to give a bit of interest without being too busy. This is my first top-down raglan and I really like doing it this way! The pattern offers two options for the sleeves - either in the round on dpns;  or flat, which requires you to sew up the underarm seam afterwards. As much as I hate the awkwardness of working with dpns, I much prefer working in the round - I hate purling and sewing seams more than I hate dpns, I guess.

Nearly done with the body of Tempting:

I'm going to add a couple of extra rows in length since I'm long-waisted. I'm liking how this is turning out, as well. I cast on with a needle two sizes larger than I'm knitting with, and the cast-on edge is really nice and stretchy. Since I'm curvy & long-waisted, some garments tend to ride up if they don't have enough give at the hem. The added stretch here should help. I need to get down to Daytona to pick out ribbon! So many choices!

Next on Tempting, unfortunately, are the sleeves - teeny weeny tubes of 2x2 ribbing done on, you guessed it, dpns. Ugh.

tv funhouse

OK, first of all - Craft Corner Deathmatch is hilarious. Oh my. They just went there, you know? And there's even a bit of craft instruction hidden within all the sick, sick humor.

Amazing Race. Frustrating. Really, I want to like Rob & Amber. They've proven to be a strong team. I just....hate that they're on my show. I hate that CBS feels the need to cross-promote on this show. I hate that they already have a million-plus bucks already. And I really hate that a show that used to be about people relying on their own skills is now becoming about people intentionally screwing each other over. Ugh. And there was once again, the sight of Americans begging for money in the streets! Already! Here I was hoping they'd gotten rid of the stupid money loss on the non-elimination legs (which I still think they probably have done) but it's the second episode and one team ran out of money and had to beg for it. WTF?

Though, as much as I hated the begging, the money aspect of the market task was awesome; in fact the market task was really pretty great. Bustling marketplaces+raw fish+racers=good TV. Always.

Oh, and I'm not sad to see the blondies sent packing. Now we'll be spared the inane flirtation with the brothers. Plus, they sucked.

In knitting news, yesterday I received my first shipment from Rowan! Rowan 37 has a couple of cute things, but I'll need to finish Audrey before I tackle anything else (um, I guess I actually need to start Audrey, huh?)

The best part? My welcome gift was 4 skeins of Cork in the most beautiful green! My color! Look:

I highly doubt I'll be making this into the mini-poncho which was the included free pattern, but the color is just so great that I will be using it for something. Ideas?

I've been tagged!

Cool, my first meme! I feel like a real member of the community now. (I'm still not entirely convinced that anyone actually reads this thing!)

So the Divine Ms. Em tagged me for the knitting meme. It's fun to think about these things, and to figure out why you are drawn to certain aspects of the craft and not to others. So here goes:

1. Do you knit continental or English?

English, which is the way I was taught. I've tried continental a couple of times but it's really uncomfortable to me - I feel the same way about crochet. I guess I'm used to having the yarn do most of the work!

2. How long ago did you learn to knit?

Winter of 2001, so about three years now. I've written about this before, too - I've been sewing since I was 5 and I actually make my living working with theatrical costumes. I love doing fiddly little handwork projects but got sick of cross stitch and embroidery. I wanted to learn to knit because I wanted more practical results. After years of bugging my friend Gayle to teach me, we finally sat down and she showed me the basics. Then she left for another job and I was on my own!

3. First FO?

It's around here somewhere - I'll try to find it so I can take a picture. A hat in the round, rolled edge, stockinette stitch, in a lovely lavender Cotton Classic. Never been worn :-)

4. Favorite yarn?

Hmm......favorite to knit with is Filatura Di Crosa Zara. It's so soft and doesn't split, which made it perfect for my first real sweater project, Interweave's Retroprep. I'm also a big fan of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino for the same reasons. I'm not a big fan of novelty yarns. For felting I like Cascade 220 the best - I like a solid, non-fuzzy fabric which this produces beautifully.

5. Favorite pattern?

Usually whatever I'm working on at the time! Patterns I have made more than once (or plan to make again) include the above-mentioned Retroprep (maybe I'll actually check the gauge this time!) and Sophie from Magknits. Oh, and Clapotis, of course!

6. Favorite pattern source?

Well, free is best, of course. I love, love, love Knitty. Magazinewise, I prefer Interweave to Vogue Knitting but I do read both.

7. Favorite needles?

Addi Turbos! Even for slippery stuff - I always find bamboo too sticky for my taste, and plastic just feels flimsy. This may change when I attempt my first lace project. I also have a few sets of Susan Bates Quicksilvers that I like - smooth surface, not too pointy. I prefer circulars for all knitting - that's how I learned and I've never gotten used to having needle ends waving around near my elbows. I also knit on the subway a lot, and circulars are less likely to stab a neighbor.

8. Nicest thing you’ve ever knit?

Probably the Debbie Bliss Matinee Coat I made for my niece - pale pink Baby Cashmerino, seed stitch detail. So pretty. Of course, I don't have a picture of it. Grrrr.

I'm also super-proud of Michelle's bag. I designed it myself and it came out better than I ever expected. Love the shape and color combination.

9. Most hated project?

I don't think I've really hated anything......I got a late start on my Christmas knitting last year and got mightily sick of knitting the scarves that I did for my dad and brother. I actually made my dad's shorter than I had intended because I was so bored. It's more of a spring neckwarmer than a real muffler. He wears it anyway!

10. Who are you going to pass this on to?

Gosh. I'm still really new here, and I don't really know anyone, but I will throw this to a couple of people whose blogs I enjoy. Mindy, because she was very fun to make flowers for and she just posted one of the funniest things I have ever read; Kitten, because she's the first blogger who listed my blog in her faves, and Lucinda, who is slogging her way through Tempting just like I am!

oh my

Is there really a TV show called Craft Corner Deathmatch?

Apparently, yes there is.

I'm so there. Thank god for Tivo.

monday monday

I finished the heart scarf, and here is what was left over:

Yeah, not much! I probably could have gone down a needle size which would have left more yarn, but it doesn't matter now. The person I made it for was very touched, so it was a successful project all around. I did my first three-needle bind off which is now my new favorite technique! It was a bit awkward, what with the yarnovers and the bulky yarn and gigantic needles. Still, so much easier than kitchener. I have to say I do not love working with bulky yarns and large needles. I have one more of these scarves to make and then I will be retiring any needle larger than a 10 if I can help it.

I was at my dad's in Maryland this weekend, and I have discovered the sweetest store there, All About Yarn.  This is what I wish I had in my neighborhood - large, airy space; really nice people working there, and great selection. I have made it my mission to stop by every time I am in Columbia - this is the kind of store that should be supported!

Did I shop? Of course!

My sister-in-law strongly hinted that cardigans are very useful for my little niece in the Pacific Northwest weather, so this is four skeins of Trendsetter Scoubi Du in a varigated pinky-peach. Cotton/acrylic, I think it will be cute and easy to care for. Best part? The name!

Also picked up a couple skeins of Cascade 220 for the felting stash:

The darker pink is a Quattro, I can't wait to see how it felts up.

It was an emotionally draining weekend, with my mother's memorial. So it's been nice to have a day off at home before I have to head back to work tomorrow. I've been hanging out on the couch reading Television Without Pity recaps. I can see from cruising blogs that there are lots of other fans of Lost and The Amazing Race in knitblog land. Great stuff last week, huh? Can't wait to see what's in store for us. I am also hopelessly addicted to Carnivale, not that I have a clue what it's really all about. Think they can wrap it up in just three more episodes? We'll see........