skein

Knitting going slowly

It's not going well! 

By today I thought I'd have completed the knitting of both cardigans, and most of my sock.  Instead I haven't even picked up the sock nor Ormond.  Just Deco.

 

Yesterday I knittd the button band.  Took a few attempts to pick up the correct number of stitches, because as usual I hadn't made notes, so couldn't remember the rate of pick up (which turned out to be a bit odd!).  These bands are wide too, 26 rows!

Once I'd done the button band I sorted out the exact sleeve length.  It's coming out a bit tight, so I needed extra length, and have added about half an inch to the cuff.  Should it stretch or I decrease, I can always unpick that last half an inch.

Next up, the neckband.  This is a slipped stitch 1x1 ribbing.  Lots of stitches.   By bedtime I had finished the  neckband, went to cast off - and realised I hadn't done a buttonhole! 

But the good news.  I picked it up this morning, and had a look at the buttonhole placement.  I had decided all those weeks ago to do the top buttonhole on the body, and leave the neckband as us.  Joy!  I cast off, darned in ends, gave it a pressing.  I just need buttons, its all done!

Here's the finished photo, and it's ot purple, that's the indoor lighting/mobile phone combination.

Now for Ormond!  Knit knit, knit.

 

Deco progress

I have returned to Deco.  I really want ot finish this in April.  And leaving it for a while means that I have had to try to remember what I had done with the first sleeve.  I tend not to make notes but put stitch markers at various important places.  That, and my memory usually works.

I'm up to the cuff of the second sleeve!  Hopefully will finsih this tonight.  I'm going to knit an extra half inch of cuff as the garment is, well, tight.  I'm hoping a good steaming will loosen it up a bit!  My tension was a bit too small, and I'm a bit fatter than I think I am!   

So, this weekend will be all about Deco and Ormond.  I reckon I can finsh both, though a finished post might have to wait until May.   I may not be able to fit in fingerless mitts, Other or that second sock!!

Here's an indoor gloomy mobile photo of Deco, so far.

A not very productive weekend of knitting

I was determined to finish the body of Ormond, and then see how much yarn I had left for the two 3/4 length sleeves.  

2.2 balls of yarn left.  That's one and a bit for each sleeve.  Considering I used nearly eight balls for the body meant I really, really wouldn't have enough for two sleeves.

I tried.

One ball plus half of the remnants equals this:

nearly a 3/4 sleeve, just shy by about 2.5".  An over-the elbow sleeve.

Next attempt was an above the elbow sleeve, startig with eight more stitches, to allow for a wider part of my arm.

Going well, until I was a few inches from the top of the sleeve cap. 

Still not enough yarn!  

I counted the number of stitches short and thought that if I frogged back six rows on the sleeve I would have enough. 

Third attempt:

Success, I hope, if the last remaining ball has the same yardage.  

This Roma yarn has the same yardage as the pattern yarn, but I'm at least a ball short.  As I've not seen anyone complaining about this on ravelry, and I noticed what seems like variations in the amount I knitted with each ball, I suspect the yarn is the culprit.  It's a fsorly stretchy yarn and I AM SURE that they measured it when stretched out ;)

 

So, Ormond will not be as I expected, but, due to the summery colour of the yarn, it looks ok with short ssleeves.  I hope.  

I'm on a tight knitting schedule, should I wish to accomplish my goals this month.  In six evenings and two days I need to:

* knit Ormond's second sleeve, darn in ends, sew in sleeves and sew down neckband

* knit Deco's second sleeve, knit button border, knit collar, find and sew on buttons, darn in ends

* knit an entire sock (though it has a shortish leg and is plain)

* knit a pair of mitts

* knit something else under my category of Other

Rather a lot ot do in a short space of time!

 

Look what I won!

As a member of Sock Knitters Anonymous (SKA on ravelry) and as someone who posted cast on and cast off posts for one of the monthly challenges, I was eligible for  a prize.  And I won one!  (I never win anything). 

It arrived a week later, all the way from Maryland, courtesy of SheilaR (on ravelry).  I could choose a yarn from her Etsy shop, and chose a colour called Strawberry Fields,  guess I am going through a pink/red phase!  

 

Wool and stitch markers. how lovely! 

As for knitting, I've been working solely on Ormond, hoping that I won't run out of yarn. I have just over three balls of wool left, with two sleeves, a left front, half a right front and back neckband to knit.  I want all fingers collectively crosses, please!!

Orrmond progress

Yes I ought to be knitting on Deco but the warmer weather and summery colours appealled too much.  So Ormond went with me for a family visit this weekend.  Just Ormond and a apair of socks and I've just worked on Ormond  Great progress.  The body and borders are worked in one piece up to the armhole.  Sleeves are worked separately and joined.  I intend knitting the whole body plus back neck and then the sleeves, dividing the yarn up so that I don' run out. 

I won't run out!

From this on Friday evening:

to this just now (Monday afternoon)

The colour is Summer Berries more vibrant than in these mobile photos taken indoors.

Here's a close up of the pattern very pretty and very easy.

I still have knitting time left today, hopefully I'll get up to the armholes. Just 1.75" to go!

 

Knitting catch up

Phew!  I can't quite believe that I haven't posted all week, despite having four days off at Easter.

Easter =  four days off work knitting. Not quite.  I spent a day getting out the summer stuff, a day looking at patterns on ravelry, a day knitting a Deco sleeve and a day knitting (and reknitting)  Deco buttonhole border.   Plus a bit of swatching!

 

So, Deco.  It's not finished yet, but I now know I can knit a sleeve in  a day and the button band and collar in a day.  That's a weekend's worth of knitting.   I've also knitted the second sleeve cap, before I forget what I did!  Here's the progress photo.  IT IS NOT PURPLE!!

I haven't quite finsihed that first sleeve, am leavig it not cast off, in case I need to adjust the sleeve length.

And the next garment. 

I have had a bit of an obsession with a lace design for this one,  I remembered knitting a cardigan years ago and went on the hunt for the design.  It was a Mission Falls design, calle the Trudy Jacket.  I found the booklet!  It calls though, for an aran weight, and I fancied knitting with some dk weight.   Twist Collective to the rescue!  There was a design in Spring 11 which I liked, but not enough to buy it. Instead I bought several other designs.  A year later I want to knit it!  It's Ormonde.  
First swatch was some matured Debbie Bliss Cotton Cashmere.  

Really, really wanted to knit this yarn, but I coudln't manage to get tension.  Back to the drawing board.  

Next up was some discontinued Jaeger Roma, in Summer Berries. 

MUCH better.  I don't normally do this sort of colour but it  seemed very summery and just what I wanted to knit with at this time.

It's knitted in one piece up to the armholes, and so far so good.

The only dark cloud on the horizon is that it's discontinued - and from a quick look on ravelry and ebay isn't readily available, and I seem to be eating up the yarn!  This is the second ball, and I've just knitted four inches.  Here's hoping that the sleeves take no yarn at all, and the armhole depth is shallow!  

I'm going home to visit the family this weekend, and this is the knitting I'm taking.  Just this, and a sock.  Unheard of!

 

 

Odessa Hat

My fourth hat for the year, one which I'v been menaing to knit for a few years.  It's Odessa. a free pattern, using one ball of dk yarn and beads, if you want to.

Pattern:Odessa

Started and finished: April 1st to 6th

Needles: 3.5mm

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Rialto, one ball.

Shhhh I haven't blocked it yet!

It's a very quick knit. If you can manage to cast on first time.  I cast this on a total of SEVEN times!

*ran out of yarn uon cast on

*accidentally used the tail yarn in the rist row

*deliberately used the tail yarn (long!) for the first row and ran out

*made a mistake on the first round, easire to frog

*decided after a few rounds to change needle size, easier to frog

*new needle size - after a few rounds found I had twisted the yarn in joining

*success!  I knitted two round before joining.

Even experienced knitters have problems!

I've had a good Easter break so far. Not much knitting though.  It was sunny enough on Friday to do the yarn swapover.  That's getting out the vacuum packed summer (cotton) yarn packs and putting away SOME of the winter wools and jumpers.   That part took a morning (with the help of Mr C doing all the lifting and vacuuming)  but putting away the cotton packs took me all afternoon!  It shouldn't have!  More  a case of yarn fondling!   The evening was spent looking for cardigan patterns on ravelry.  A good job Mr C was in charge of the cooking for two days!

 

Yesterday I picked up Deco and knitted the first sleeve.  Today I'm doing the buttonhole border, and I may start playing with some of the summer yarn, see if I can cast on for the next cardigan.  I shall be sucked into ravelry again! 

 

 

 

 

More Deco

Slowly getting there.

The upper back is finished. 

I wasn't looking forward to starting the sleeves.  My row tension was off, and I thought that  the short rows might need to be recalculated.  And the instructions looked a bit detailed! 

The sleeve caps are created by knitting a  series of short rows, getting longer by one stitch each time, centred around the shoulder seam. 

First of all, though, you need to pick up the stitches around the armhole.  The pattern instructs thus:

Using a small needle, pick up and knit the stitches all the way around the armhole, starting at the left of the on-hold underarm stitches, and ending at the right of the on-hold underarm stitches.  Break yarn.  LYou now have all the armhole stitches (except underarm) on one circular.  But you want to start the short rows from, say 6 stitches before the shoulder seam,  so you then use a second small needle to slip the first lot of picked up stitches onto it until you get to the place you are starting the short rows.  Rejoin yarn here, and using larger needles start the short rowing. 

Late Saturday evening I did just this.  But it was far too fiddly for me, trying to manouvre the four tips of two small circulars, flapping all over the place, NOT helped by trying to use 3" lengths of yarn for the short rows, which kept falling out. Or the fact that the only 2.75mm circular I could find was 150cm!

Sunday I pulled it all out and restarted. 

Instead of fiddling about trying to pick up stitches, break yarn, slip stitches, I just picked them all up, all the way around, including the underarm stitches. I don't think the extra partial row will bother me at all.  I also switched to one of those locking stitch markers to mark the turning point.  MUCH better.  I still used a smaller needle to pick up though, as it keeps that first row of stitches small.

It's not really much of a problem having the wrong row tension either.  I'm knitting the smallest size sleeve cap (which means it will be narrower but that doesn't bother me either!) and I've cut the number of short rows I need to work by having that initial short row an extra 6 stitches longer, meaning six short rows less to work.

Long story short, here's the outcome.   I prefer a slimmer sleeve cap and this seems to be working out, so far!

 

Meilenweit green socks

First, the finished socks.

Started March 4th, finished March 30th.

Yarn: Meilenweit Colortweed in greens

Needles: 2.25mm

Top down, ribbed leg and plain foot.  These will be for my brother, another stash yarn knitted up.  My third pair of socks this year, so I'm keeping up!

This means that my March stash totals are down by 1637yds, some knittd and some destashed.  NO new purchases!  Year to date is 3080 yds out.   That's two months in a row!  April might have a bit of yarn  acquisition though ....

The next socks are already on the needles.  It's Lorna's Laces Shepherd's sock, for me. The colour is Glenwood, one I've had in my stash for years.  Always overlooked, I pulled it out over the weekend and thought how nice it was, a bit Spring like. So it's wound up and cast on.

So unusual for me to like this colour, but I do!

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