skein

June knitting and July goals

I've had a very successful June.

1) Marvels of the Sunless Seas. Finish one long edging and two corners, leaving just the other long edging and one corner.  Done!  And I've had  a mini break for a few weeks, so I'm ready to pick this up again.

2) Finish my plain Opal Zebra socks. Done!

3) Finish Preppy 2, garment six for IntSweMoDo2010.Done!

4) Start garment number seven for IntSweMoDo2010  Done!  It's Bea, and I'm actually on the final sleeve!  Thanks to a weekend away visiting family, the fronts and one sleeve are finished.

5) Start some new socks. Done!  And actually finished last Sunday, but I haven't had the opportunity to take photos yet. 

6) Start another shawl for 10shawls2010. Done!  And finished!  Beach Glass.

7) Start another shawl for 10Shawls2010.  Done and finished!  Can't believe it! It's Abrazo.

 

So I've surpassed myself, completed all of my goals. Very, very pleased.

Now for July. 

1) Finish Marvels of the Sunless Sea stole. I can do it!  It's only one of two things on the needles, so if I don't cast on too many things, I ought to get it finished.  It's one long side, one corner and blocking (which might be a challenge if it doesn't fit on the bed). This will be the sixth shawl for 10shawls2010,

2) Finish Bea, my seventh garment for IntSweMoDo2010.  One sleeve to go!

3) Cast on and finish another pair of socks, just plain ones.  More Lorna's Laces, in Bee (I think that's what the shade is called, label has gone missing).

4) Cast on my seventh shawl for 10shawls2010. Not sure which one yet. Not thinking about it just yet, until Marvels is finished!

5) Start and finish the eighth garment for Intswemodo2010..  Now that the weather's warmer I may start knitting with cotton. If I can bear it, it might be yet another Kim Harvgreaves! 

6) Start the ninth garment for IntSweMoDo20101  I have some cotton fine, which will take an age to knit up, so I'm going to allow myself a good month or two to knit this one. Hope I can get it done before Autumn!

7) Get another shawl on the needles, number eight.  I can't guarantee getting much done, but if it's on the needles I'll be happy!

Bea!

This is the seventh garment for Intswemodo2010. I stuttered a bit, with all of the garter stitch (after knitting Preppy2) but am zooming along now.

This is the back, taken in the evening, so the detail isn't great. There's a lovely pattern stitch, very easy but breaks up the monotony of stocking stitch.

 

and this one, of the left front, was taken on Thursday at lunchtime.  A much more accurate representation of the colour, and you can see the texture a bit better.

 

I'm hoping to have finished both fronts and made a start on the sleeves by the end of the week, want to get this one done asap so that I can wear it, it matches a few bags I have (and M&S carrier bags!!)

Abrazo Shawl

 

(a bit blurry, we were taking photos tonight at 7.30 when I got back from work)

Pattern: Abrazo from Twist Collective

Started 13th June, finished 20th June (yes, really!).  So quick that I haven't blogged it yet.

Yarn: Seasilk, about 90g, and size 6/0 lime beads from Debbie Abrahams site.

Needles: 4.5mm

See how manky it looks unblocked...

 

but it blooms

It's another shawl where you cast on all the bottom stitches, and knit upwards, but unlike Beach Glass, where you're decreasing every other row, this one is shaped by short row shaping, similar to  turning a heel.

 

The seasilk wouldn't block out to 17" at the bottom (which I think is the measurement given) so mine's a long, narrow shawl, practically a scarf.

 

I think I'll probably wear it wound around my neck a few times.

The beads are added with a crochet hook, which means that the lace rows took forever.  It's strangely addictive, this adding beads and casting on hundreds of stitches!

 

There are beads here; they're lime ones which go very well with the colour (which is not as blue as this, more yellow).  This is the fifth shawl for 10shawls2010, halfway there!

I'm having a breather now, and working on Bea, garment number seven for IntSweMoDo2010!

Beach Glass Shawl

Pattern: Beach Glass by Susan Lawrence.

Started: 31st May

Finished: 13th June

Yarn: Joslyn's Fiber Farm Angel Hair (I think!) which is a fine merino laceweight. 66g

Needles: 3.5mm

Before blocking:

 

After blocking:

 

It doesn't look like it, but I blocked it so that the ends are curving upwards, rather than pinning them out straight across.

This is the 4th finished shawl for 10shawls2010.  At the end of this month we are halfway through the year, so I'd better get a move on! I have finished the next one though, it needs blocking and blogging (and it's not Marvels of the Sunless Seas, either).

 

Opal Zebra socks

Plain, top down socks, in Opal's Rainforest, Zebra colour. 

Not a favourite knit, At least with self patterning stripes I have something to keep me interested, but these had nothing going for them, don't like the pattern, nor the boring black and white colour.  Opal isn't my favourite sock yarn either - it's a bit thin and I can never knit a pair of socks without pulling a massive yarn tangle out from the centre.

Never mind, they're done, and I've gone for a bright shade of one of my favourite sock yarns - Lorna's Laces and I think this is Desert Flower.  The current commuter knitting.

Marvels of the Sunless sea - progress

It's getting there!  I've finished my June goal - to finish one long border and knit the next two corners.  I can't tell you how boring I'm finding this.  My plan was to try to knit 3 repeats each evening, which means there's less repeats on the Saturday when I spend the day knitting on this.  But it means I don't do much other knitting, so my plan for July might be different, just have a huge knit session at the weekend. I'm have a few weeks break now.

Until next month!

Preppy 2

Pattern: Preppy 2 from Rowan's Studion nine.

Yarn: Calmer, 9 balls of pale blue-green and half a ball of red

Needles: 4.5mm

Started: May 16th 2010

Finished: June 12th 2010

Modifications:  Buttons all the way down.

This is the sixth garment for IntSweMoDo2010.  It was a very easy knit and this morning I had just one more button to sew on, and about a dozen ends. Then I cut the wrong bit of yarn and the shoulder started unravelling.  It was a 3 needle cast off, so I had to frog the neckline, take out one sleep cap and frog back on the shoulders (I'd also cut an edge stitch on the front a few inches down!).  Which meant I was finished just as the Argentina-Nigeria match was kicking off, hence just a few photos (Mr C in a hurry to get back to the tv).  And I hadn't brushed my hair, just tried to flatten it down!

I knitted a size smaller, thinking that my tension would ease as I knitted, not so!  But it's so stretchy that I can wear it.  I haven't knitted such rubbish garter stitch for decades!  I must give it a wash, ,see if I can even out the knitting!

Overall I'm pleased with it. It's still cool here so I may even get some wear out of it before our summer starts.  

Now I feel that I can get on with the next garment.

Preppy, and a few new things on the needles

Preppy 2 knitting is done. I have ends to darn in and buttons to sew on. I usually do a firmer cast off on necklines like this, but in this instance it may be a little too firm - I'll find out when I sew the buttons on.

 

This means that I have space for the next garment for IntSweMoDo2010.  And it's here:

 

It's Bea, from Kim Hargreave's Precious.  I cast on on Sunday evening, but will put it aside for a few days, after knitting all that garter stitch for Preppy 2 I need a break!  It's wool cotton and a pale lime colour.  Lovely.

Another new project is on the needles too!  Another shawl, as Marvels can be a bit tedious.  It's Beach Glass and it's knitted in some fine laceweight merino from Joslyn's Fiber Farm, had it in stash for years.  It's cast on at the bottom and decreases as you knit.  It's actually a small shawl, but casting on 380 stitches is still a lot!

 

It's a simple feather and fan bottom bit with garter stitch top bit, with a few double yarnovers for interest.  The yarn's yummy.  I think it might be her Angel Hair, though the label has long gone. 

I have the next THREE shawl patterns lined up !  Dare not get onto ravelry to look at other's progress or there may be more in the queue!

Marvels of the Sunless Sea - the dreaded edging

I'm finding this so tedious! 

The bottom and top borders were knitted with the body, with provisional cast on and live stitches at the other side.  Corners are worked by placing the live or provisional stitches (depending on which corner you are knitting), casting on provisionally another 25 or so, and working central decrease.  Then the side edging is worked by picking up the provisional stitches and working up the side, attaching as you go (or I suppose you could sew the border on, not me though!).

This was taken last weekend, after working the first corner and doing 2 edge repeats.  I counted up the side stitches and worked out that I'd have to do 42 each side...

 

But now I've reached the centre of the stole I know I have to do 40 each side. That's good  ndws!  It is sooooo boring. I put some bland tv on and worked on it all afternoon today.  

Here's a shot of the whole stole. 

I'm having a break now, and will resume edging knitting on Monday evening!

May knitting and June goals

I didn't manage a few of my May goals but am very pleased with my May knitting, because I finished Foolish Virgins!

1) Foolish Virgins striped backing.  Done!  And finished the whole project.  Very pleased!..

2) Marvels of the Sunless Sea  finish the border and start the central panel.Done!  I've finished the central panel, grafted it together and made a start on the edging. Another brilliant knitting session!

 

A new photo, taken this morninga and not yet blogged about. 

3) Finish Erin, which is the fifth garment for IntSweMoDo2010. Done!

4) Finish my Opal Zebra socks. Not done but I'm on the second sock Once I finish Preppy 2 this will be my carry-along.

5) Start the sixth garment for IntSweMoDo2010 - done, and it's preppy.

6) Start another shawl for 10shawlsin2010.  Nope, too involved with Foolish Virgins and Marvels!

7) The usual, start something else.  Nope, see above.

So overall, I managed just four of seven, but what two are long term projects which have more than made up for not starting a few things and finishing a pair of socks. 

Now for June.

1) Marvels of the Sunless Seas. I wanted to finish this in June, but having seen how long it's taking me to knit a corner and one repeat I am going to say that I'll finish one long edging and two corners, leaving just the other long edging and one corner.

2) Finish my plain Opal Zebra socks, which I should have finished in May.

3) Finish Preppy 2, garment six for IntSweMoDo2010.

4) Start garment number seven for IntSweMoDo2010 (I'm keeping up!)

5) Start some new socks.

6) Start another shawl for 10shawls2010.  I've finished three, marvels is another. I have several small shawl patterns lined up already!

7) Start another shawl for 10Shawls2010.  I need to get a move on!

Wonder how many I'll manage this month?