Back to FO catch up

Sorry, got side tracked for a few days. Some more pictures have been taken and I can get back to documenting all of the FOs I have been behind on. The good news is, I'm finally current after this post. "Current" meaning I'm less then a month behind, though I do have projects building up again. I've been knitting up a storm as if to try and squeeze all the yarny goodness I can out of 2009. All in all, I'd say that's a good thing and I'll work to get pictures of my most current work after it's done blocking. On one piece, I'm sewing in some lining.

First up: the much kvetched about, never-ending cardigan. That's right kittens, it's...

Pattern: Whisper Cardigan (Ravel it)

Needles: US size 5

Yarn: The Plucky Knitter Cashmere Silk Laceweight: 2 of Hearts

Whisper. Three and a half months on needles. About 90% of that time was the damn sleeves. If anyone plans to knit this, do yourself a favor: do. not. knit. on. 12" circulars. Just don't. You will hate it. Your hands will cramp. You will hate the sweater. My Snobs group debated this rather in depth and magic loop seems to be the best way to go with the sleeves on this to avoid cramping and ladders.

The following notes are taken directly from my project page. I used every last bit of this yarn, with maybe a yard left over, but I think it was less. Almost all modifications made were due to necessity and not enough yarn, with the exception of the sleeve shape. I left it the stitch count of the widest part of the sleeve and shortened it due to personal preference. Other modifications included 2.5” of the 1x1 rib vs 3”, and the body length was closer to 6” then 8.” Had yarn allowed, I would have made the ribbing the full width and done at least another inch on the body. Due to my own shape, I may have also added a section of straight knitting before adding the increases every other row so that they hit under the bust.

If it isn't obvious from my notes, I ran out of yarn. Lesson learned: when buying a limited hand dye, be a bit more cautious about how you use it. You can not just go buy more. I bought the yarn first then picked the pattern. I have some additional thoughts now that I've worn the sweater a few times. One, even though I made the large, I would have shortened the back sections just a tad because it's a bit too loose across the back. This makes it very comfy but taking out 1/2" from each side would have made a world of difference. Two, I think I would have used short row shaping to bring the front ribbing out a bit further to do a better job of covering tank top and bra straps. Despite that, this is one of my favorite knits to wear. It's soft as a kitten's belly and warm without being hot. So nice and light. I will definitely knit another and probably mod the bejeesus out of it.

Oh look! We're to the end of November, finally.

Pattern: Wurm (Ravel it)

Needles: US size 5 & US size 7

Yarn: Mama Blue Troika Sport: Mermaid

I LOVE THIS HAT. That pretty much covers it. I love the color. I love the whimsical shape. I wish Troika sport had about 10g more in the skein so I could have done one more pattern repeat, but this was good enough. I used every last inch of yarn. Love, love, love. And it makes The Husband smile.

Last, but not least, finished in the first days of this month...

Pattern: Aquaphobia Socks (Ravel it)

Needles: US size 2 1/2

Yarn: Unwind Yarns Merlot Fingering: Cheeky Monkey

These were a gift knit for my sister and will be in the mail in the next day or so. I want to keep them. This pattern was super easy to memorize, but looks complicated. It's just a simple slipped stitch pattern with 4 stitch cables on the sides to give it some stretch. Because of the pattern, it takes forever to do the leg, but once you get past that part, it flies. The only modifications I made were larger needles since I knit tight, shorter leg because I wasn't sure how the sock would fit the leg and my sister is an anklets kind of gal, and a shorter, wider toe since the "normal" way doesn't fit me properly and looks funny. Happy, happy, happy.

That's it for tonight's installment. I have three more FOs in various stages of finishing and a project on needles I could easily finish tonight.