Machine knitting

The knitting machine came out this week, first attempt at using it for a proper garment.  I've only tried knitting baby garments (small babies, too) with no joy. The knitting was quick, but the finishing (hems, borders, ends) took far too long and it would have been quicker to handknit the whole garment. 

A short while ago a fellow knitter, Jacinta,  was wearing  Lynton, from RYC Coast, and it looked great. I'd had my eye on this for a few months, even had the yarn (there are several designs in this book which I love; I just hadn't made my mind up about which design to knit), so this month I decided that Lynton would be first garment on the knitting machine. 

Monday evening I sat down and reworked the pattern for my difference in row tension. Of all the garments, I'd chosen one with sloped fronts! I knitted the back and two fronts, which took longer than it ought to - my yarn is RYC Cotton Jeans, a nice yarn to handknit with, but probably not the greatest choice for a first project on a knitting machine, it's quite splitty.    Tuesday evening I knitted the sleeves and sewed them into the body of the garment. Thursday evening I knitted the bottom border and front edgings (ok, hardly any knitting time!).  I only have to knit the huge collar and the sleeve ends, which I'm doing last so that I can alter the length of the sleeve as it's looking a little too long for me at the moment.

 
Not a great photo, it's always a rush before work, and with our weather at the moment, I'm lucky to see daylight before I leave for work, it's so gloomy in the mornings. 
I think that I'll run out of yarn though, only two balls left for a ginormous collar!  I'm going to risk it and see if I can pick up some of the same dye lot.

I've finished one cardigan for Brigid.  The yarn is called Aspen Moon yarn, and I'm 99% certain that I did not order this colour.  It's difficult selecting colours online, but my fellow knitters at Stash also thought it was Not Me.  Very soft though, so it's been put to good use as I'm sure babies will love this bright colour. 
This is the skein

This is the first garment, an EZ Surprise Jacket, which looked horrible (the sleeves could have been a bit wider in retrospect)

And this is the final cardigan, much improved, I think.  It's just a made up as I go pattern, plain knitting (what pattern could compete with these colours?) with simple buttons.

I have the weekend free as Chris is decorating. I'd be in the way and more of a hindrance than a help, it involves the furniture being moved all over the place, and he doesn't really need an extra pair of hands to help paint, so I'm off to the stash flat, where I'll immerse myself in yarn and patterns all weekend. I intend working on the Mystery Stole, a little bit on my Forest Path, and knitting the collar on Lynton (unless I run out of yarn).  It'll be weird though, I don't think I've had a weekend on my own for decades! 

Comments

[Tracy]

Well you made a really good job of it, I'm impressed. It's the casting off I find laborious and I have to keep checking myself as I keep doing it too tightly. Mine does fine to heavy four ply, maybe a light double knit, you have to watch your tension on that I can tell you :( Hope you do have enough for the collar, enjoy your weekend anyway.

[Karen]

I think I actually may have this weekend to myself too for a change. I can't wait!

I like your baby cardi much better than the EZBS with that yarn, which I really like btw.

I hope you don't run out of yarn. That's a really cute pattern!

[Linda]

I think wistfully of all the family leaving me alone but then the house seems so quiet and strange when they (rarely)do. Nothing like one imagines it will be.

[Li_B]

I've been debating doing that Baby Surprise jacket. I've seen so many in blogland, but very few pictures actually on a baby. The proportions seem strange to me. Like the way the second sweater looks.
Li