skein

March knitting and April knitting goals

March has flown by, rather too quickly!  I haven't finished my March knitting! Oh well, not too far behind!

 

MARCH:

Blog:

1) My Hall of Fire tam - done!

Finish:

2) My pink socks for SKA.  Done!

3) The fingeerless mitts - urgh, not done. I seem to have lost the fingerless mitts mojo!

Start and finish:

4) My third garment for IntSweMoDo2012.  It's Deco, and it's not done.  I mgiht have been halfway through the first sleeve if I hadn't frogged a whole six inches of body. 

5) My third pair of socks. Done!  Finished yesterday, in the nick of time. I haven't blogged these yet, but they're just plain self striping yarn.

6)  My third hat.  Done!  A very quick baby hat.

7) My second Other.   Done!  A cute kimono. 

8) My third Other.  Another cute baby cardigan.

So, six (small) successes and two fails.

Now for April. I'm going to assume that I'll be able to knit a phenomenal amount as it's Easter and we stay at home.  I'll be visiting the family sometime this month too, that's a lot of knitting time.

April:

Blog:

1) Green socks, my third for the year.

Finish:

2) Deco cardigan, my third for IntSweMoDo2012.  I will finish..

I'm abandoning the just-started mitts, obviously they aren't going to happen.

Start and finish:

3) Fourth pair of socks. I have wound up soem Lorna's laces yarn in a Spring colour.

4) Fourth garment for IntSweMoDo2012.  No idea, but I thougth I might look at some lighter colours, am fed up with dark colours.  FROM STASH!

5) Fourth hat. 

6) Fourth pair of fingerless mitts. Will try a different pattern!

7) Fourth Other. 

No idea what any of these fourth hat/mitts/other/garment will be.  It'll be fun to browse ravelry, just have to avoid getting sucked in!

I have done another month with no yarn purchases.  I have found out though that I have a $50 credit at Elann, so I shall be scouring their site for bargains!

 

 

Deco progress

Well, one thing's for sure,  I won't be finishing this in March!

I've knitted the body up to the armholes, and the two upper fronts.  So it means, if I want to finish this in March, I have an upper body, two sleeves and borders to knit in two evenings and a day.  I think not! The last time I tried to knit a sweater in a short time I was up all night finishing it off  and swore that I'd never do this again.  I'm going to dedicate the rest of the month to working on Deci, hopefully I can get a good bit done!

 

Elsie baby cardigan and Scalloped Lace Baby Cap

Two more finished baby things, get 'em in quick whilst the weather is cool enough to wear them and they're small enough for a quick knit!

Both are knitted in some stashed Louisa Harding Kashmir dk yarn.  I wanted to try it out as I have a pack of pink and two packs of dark blue!  In the ball it looks floppy, a bit like Debbie Bliss's Cashmerino, but it knits up ok. I once knitted a striped jumper in some Rowan cashsoft, and loose stitches at seams seemed (to me) to stay a bit stretched out.  I think this would happen with this yarn too, so should I knit up an adult sized garment I'd probably try to go for a seamless one. 

Scalloped Lace Baby Cap is a dk pattern, one size for a birth - 9 month size.

Well I'm not convinced that this would fit a 9 month baby.  The lace is stretchy (and I could have kntited it with a bigger needle) but I think it will be too shallow.  Never mind, if it's too small for a 3month baby it will fit a dolly later on!

Needles: 3.75mm and under half a ball of yarn.

 Very easy pattern, written and charted. 

Should I knit it again I'd add another 12 row pattern repeat before decreasing. 

Matching garment is Elsie.  Now this is a dk weight pattern, but the tension and needle size are more suited to a worsted weight than a dk weight.  Tension is 20st and 25 rows to 4" on 4.5mm needles.  I didn't want a loose knit cardigan, so opted for 4mm.  At my tension I was getting 21st sand 28 rows to 4". 

For the 3 months size I followed instructions for the 6 month size (which is pretty similar to the 3 months anyway) and just added extra rows to get the length.  No diagram, but measurements are given in the charts.

Mods:

4 buttonholes instead of 3.

First buttonhole was placed on the 4th row from cast on, rather than the 3rd row (which was a WS row, and I like doing them on RS rows, just habit!)

Used smaller needle for the garter stitch borders, including the cast on and neck border.

There's an optional crochet eging, which I think adds a bit of interest to an otherwise plain cardigan (and dead easy).

This should keep Polena going for a few months!

Seamless Baby Kimono

Whilst Deco is in the naughty corner, I've been busy knitting baby things, for baby Polena in Moscow.  She's 3 months old and both mum and grandma wanted more hand knits after the Small Things cardigan.

It is NOT as vibrant as this!  The pink is a deeper, ruby colour.  I set my camera to phtograph on the vibrant setting!  Not very good first thing in the morning, when I'm late for the train itno work!

Here's the first, the Seamless Baby Kimono.

Started/finished: March 11th to March 14th, again, just three evenings!

Needles: 4.5mm, 3.5mm (for the garter stitch borders)

Yarn: DIC Classy, a pink colour (but ruby pink) and purple, 104g in total, less than one skein,

Mods: none, except changing needle size.

This is another great pattern.  You have the option of garter sttich or moss stitch bands, tapered or straigth sleeves, button holes (for two buttons, with the garter bands) or button loop (for one button, moss stitch bands).  There are I-cord ties for the inner fastening. 

I also love my DIC Classy.  I bought mine from Stash in Putney, sadly closed now (not Stash Fine Yarns in Chester!).  I am reduced to odd skeins now, but it is such a great yarn to knit baby things with. I love the saturated colours and the springy yarn.  I have some left, mainly blues and greens, with a bit of purple and a bit of pink, could make a reverse kimono I suppose!

A slight setback with Deco

It was all going so well

That green marker signifies a whole 10" of body.

As set, the body to the armhles is 12.5" in my size. 

The pattern is thus:

1) 2" of the Deco (slipped stitch) pattern

2) Start waist decreases for 2.5" .  The pattern changes to stocking stitch wit the Deco pattern worked on the first five and last fice stitches at the front borders. 

3) Start waist increases for  2.5" and at the same time start increasing the Deco pattern at the fronts, increasing one pattern repeat each side, every six rows.    This is continued for about 6.5" in my size. 

4) Knit as set without any more increases in either stitch count or Deco pattern until the body is 12.5", when the armhole shaping starts.  Very roughly, it's for another inch or so.

I decided I wanted another 3" in length, and thought that the best place to put this extra length was just after step 1, before starting step 2.  This would mean I could follow the pattern as set after knitting these 3", without any mods to the pattern. 

I didn't bank on two things.  My row tension was a little off, so I would have just about fitted in the extra Deco pattern repeats before reaching the armhole, if I was lucky.  And I just didn't like that extra bit of plain stocking stitch before the Deco pattern starts increasing.

I had three options.

1) tink back down colums near the border and reknit the Deco pattern increases from lower down.

2) cut in the middle of the extra 3" and remove an inch (or two) and graft, after finishing.

3) frog back to where I wanted to start the Deco increases.

Tinking back down might take  me just as long as frogging the whole thing, and I'm not nromally happy with the reknitted stitches, always seem there's a loose one.

Cutting and grafting might work, but it might look a bit scrappy.  Not worth risking all of that knitting to find I don't like it!

So I frogged, right back to 4" from the beginning.  I'm only adding 2" of length here, might add another inch nearer the armholes but I shall see how the row tension changes the length.

I'm starting the waist increases at this 4" length, and will start the Deco increases after six rows of waist decreasing, rather that simultaneously starting them when I start he waist increases.  Clear as muc, but it helps me blog this and know what I'm doing!

 

It's in the naughty corner for a few evenings whilst I concentrate on baby knitting, after which I shall be fresh and more determined to crack on with it.  Deco can wiat, but the baby knitting can't, as I'm knitting for a 3 month old baby in 3 month sizing!

This is a more accurate photo of the colour, it's quite a dark colour, but my mobile likes to lighten it up in the envenig!                                              

 

Cairi Sweetheart socks

 

These were for the SKA February challenge.  Fortunately they only had to be started in February, and can be finished by the end of March!  Hearts seemed apt for February.

 

Pattern:  Cairi Sweetheart Socks

Started: 5th February

Finished: 17th February

Needles: 2.25mm

Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd's Sock, Antique Rose, 70g

A very easy pattern, worked on 56 sts , so it's a relatively fast knit, should you devote time to it.  Mine has taken this long because I've been working on other stuff.

These are my second socks for the eyear.  Trying to do twelve pairs. Must knit faster!

 

The Seamless Kimono for baby is done ...

well, nearly done.

It's such a great knit, and goes quickly.  The knitting was finished in three evenings, and that includes two work evenings, when I didn't get home until 8pm, and didn't actually pick up the knitting till after 9pm.

I need to darn in ends and sew on buttons.  Buttons have been bought on ebay.  Hope they match the colours! Then it needs a wash to flatten out the rolling hem.

What next for baby Pollena?  I am thinking of using the mauve Louisa Harding Kashmir dk, and will investigate the patterns I have lined up. It's going to be seamless, whichever pattern I choose, so much better.  Who wants big seams on little garments?  Top contender is the Elsie cardigan.  It's top down, simple and has 3/4 sleeves so quite summery, suits this summery yarn.  I

 

As for other knitting. it's going rather slowly.    I've just not knitted much this month (in comparison to usual!).  It's past the halfway mark for March and I am slacking!  Out of eight goals I've managed just one so far.  I'd better get a move on.  Hoping to finsih my pink socks this weekend, and  reach the armholes of Deco.  AND start Elsie!   

 

 

 

A few new things on the needles

Nothing fantastic.  Just some plain commuting socks and a baby garment.

The socks were started on 4th March.  The only decision I had to make was which yarn to use.  The pattern is my usual one for plain socks - top down, 3x1 ribbing on the leg and a plain foot.

The yarn is Lana Grossa Meilenweit Colortweed,  a mix of greens - not quite as blue as in this photo. 

The second new project took a little more planning.  Five hours on ravelry planning, to be exact!   Such a long time choosing yarn and pattern for such a little garment! 

First of all I chose the yarns. Well, short-listed the yarns.  Four different weights, 4ply, sport, dk and worsted.  That meant four different search criteria on ravelry, and then browsing through all of the projects and yarns. That's what took up so much time!

I wanted to knit two baby cardigans this month and so I went for the thicker worsted and dk weight yarns.  Starting with the worsted first, this is the Seamless Kimono, by the same designer as Small Things, which is an ideal baby gift.   This is Dream in Color Classy.  I've a ball of pink and one of purple.   I've opted for the textured middle, just in case I run out of pink!

 

It's going quickly (which is more than I can say for Deco) and I've onother few inches before starting the bottom border. 

I don't have anything planned for he dk weight cardigan, better start planning that one now!

 

Deco progress

A very quick post today on Deco progress.  Really, it's the only bit of knitting I've done and not that much either, though (I think) in this photo it looks quite impressive progress.

 

 

The photo was taken in a rush this morning, in dim light, with a mobile.  It is NOT PURPLE!  It's got lots of brown in it, and ia called aubergine. 

At the moment I'm in the middle of waist decreases (though that might be something I regret, it's looking quite snug and I don't have much of a waist!). 

This is about six inches worth. I knitted another three inches before starting the decreases as I'm not too keen on a shorter cardigan. 

This weekend I feel another project coming on.  Not sure yet if it will be a hat or a baby cardigan but I think it might be baby knitting for baby Pollena in Moscow!  I want to get a few in before the warm weather starts.  Currently surfing ravelry for inspiration.  Now that I know Polly's mum looks after knitted things (ok, machine washable, but she hasn't tried to use hot water or dry it!) I am looking at my 4ply soft yarn, have some bright pink!  We shall see what happens over the weekend...

Hall of Fire Tam

Pattern: Hall of Fire Tam

Started:February 19th

Finished:February 28th

Neeldes: 2.25mm for the ribbing and 3mm for the hat.

Yarn: Renaissance Dyeing 4ply organic Poll Dorset, a kit, total used 61g 229 yards

Mods: none!

A lovely, interesting kit. The yarn is the same yarn used in my Urban Troubadour. Cikiyrs are lovely.

Note to self:  next time I block a hat over a plate, use the regular sized dinner plate and bubble wrap.  This softens the edge of the plate and eliminates that sharp line.  teh minute I took the hat off the plate and put it on Mr C glanced across at me and said 'you look like you're wearing a plate'.  And it did resemble a plate!  I'm going to steam that sharp edge soon! 

Hence the lack of photos!  We took dozens, but I'm either wearing a plate, a shower cap or laughing too much.  Most of them I've got my eyes shut too!  I love kniting hats, but am pretty uncomfortable wearing them, they never seem to suit me!  One day ...

Anyway this is hat #2 this year, just another 10 to go!  I haven't quite decided ont he next one yet, will do a bit of ravelry surfing first.