In the Knitting Bag

Instead of doing a list of resolutions for the new year I thought I would just take pictures of all my current knitting. That way I can look back next year and see what got done, scrapped, and might still be in progress. So, on to the current WIPs:


First up is a soon to be S'n B Kittyville hat. I just need ears and possibly ties. It's actually a little smaller than adult size as it's meant for a child. This needs to be done mid Jan as that's when the child's birthday is.



Next up I have my current work/movie/travel knitting. No time limit on these, just easy knitting for those free moments when out and about.



Yet another sock. This is "Sunshine" from Sock Innovation. This is the first sock. I'm happy to say this is the second time I've knit from this book even though I've only had it since the end of April (I have a history of buying books and magazines and never making anything from them.) I have to say I love the book and intend on making at least half of the designs in it. Again, no time limit on the socks. I'm just making them for the fun of it.



This is the current state of the gloves I began ages ago. I've heard of second sock syndrome - but I seem to suffer from second glove. I do want to finish these before the weather warms up.



Swatches for projects to be. Sweaters, I think. But sometimes plans change.




Not yet wound but already destined to be fingerless gloves for BB- the pair I made him a few years back are beginning to disintegrate from constant loving wear.

More Tree Decorations

Every year I bake cookies and give them to friends in tins. Most years I get crafty and make ornaments to go with the cookies. This year I thought I was going to skip it but at the end of the last day of work until next year all I really wanted to do was curl up with some small instant gratification knitting. And so I made an ornament. Then another. Thus- ornaments! The yarn is all leftovers from various projects. I didn't use any patterns, just made it up as I went. My favorite is the purple mitten - I love the shape of the hand and the pointy thumb and hand. I want to knit myself some mittens like that.

Keeping Warm

This is my newest knit hat modeled by my new head, Edith. (Yes, I know it's a terrible pun.) It's Madeline Tosh sock yarn in what I think was hydrangea colorway. I made socks but they pooled in the ugliest way and met an awful fate with the dryer (perhaps intentional on my part). Luckily there was still enough of this pretty yarn for this hat. It's just stockinette in the round. I made it long enough it fits over an updo and still covers the ears.
It's been colder than usual round these parts and I've had an opportunity to really use a whole lot of my handknit goodies. Both sets of handwarmers, my mittens, two knitted berets, this hat, the recycled sari silk scarf, my clapotis, legwarmers, and plenty of knitted socks have seen action lately. Sadly I only have one handknit wool sweater that fits so I haven't gotten to show off my skills there. On the plus I managed to do some savy shopping for myself and pick up three cashmere cardigans for a little less than the price of one. Everyday I wear one and I will keep this up for as long as the cold lasts (or until I knit a new sweater.) It's sort of like a game. A game I always win.

Ornaments

I love knitting ornaments. They take up little time and yarn. You don't need to worry about allergies or wash ability as it won't be worn or washed. You really don't need a pattern as knitting is pretty intuitive-if you can knit a sock or a hat for a human you can easily knit one in miniature. Plus they are an opportunity to experiment with techniques or try out something different since the little time investment means ripping out a failure isn't heart breaking at all.

Nothing new or exciting here. Just socks attached with i-cord. They are meant to represent the socks of the wicked witch of the East as the recipient likes the Wizard of Oz.

My continuing quest for warm hands

I've knitted gloves before but they were always for someone else. For the longest time I've hankered for a pair of gloves to call my own. So I'm finally going to remedy this situation. The pattern is the ruffled gloves from Loop d Loop and the yarn is some knit picks palette (I possess a metric ton of this stuff). This is the first glove and I'm quite close to starting the fingers. The only modifications I've made thus far is to go down a needle size on both the big and small needles and to use thinner yarn. I must be the loosest knitter in the universe because even when I get gauge and knit things several sizes smaller than my measurements - I often end up with something too big. Hence the going down in yarn and needle size. So far they seem to fit fine.

Why do you wear those socks on your hands?*

These were finished a couple days ago and took about that long dry after I washed 'em. Even with not rushing it only took three days total to do the second warmer. Again, my own pattern and mystery lambswool/alpaca blend. I love these. I got exactly what I set out to make. How nice when that happens.

*Number one question I get from the middle schoolers when I bust out the hand warmers. Number two is "Will you knit me some?" and occasionally "what's the point if they don't cover your fingers?"

Like socks, but faster

I've not been knitting a whole lot lately. There's the beanie that never ends, but progress on that is dull. And I've got two sweaters going but they are top down raglans and not past the yokes. So I decided that maybe what I needed was an instant gratification project. I settled on hand warmers. I actually only have one pair but I've knit lots - they make excellent gifts because they take so little yarn and time. I knit this one yesterday. I plan on casting on the next one today but taking my time with it. There is no pattern, I cast on a couple times and ripped out until I got what I wanted. I like my hand warmers on the snug side as they tend to loosen up a lot with washing and wearing. I knit them on sixes and used a worsted weight alpaca/lambswool blend for the yarn. I don't know the brand as I've long lost the ball band (I know it's not Berroco though). The yarn started life as a beret that I knit around six months ago. I kept pulling it out of my knitting bag, putting it on, sighing, and putting it back. I figured since I had yet to weave in ends the yarn was not intended for a beret.

Originally I was going to put the cable down the back of the hand but I didn't like it that way and then I figured on the side might work. It does, though I'm thinking I might sew a few mismatched buttons on the stockinette section. I'll see once they're done.

Ladies and snotty nosed women should always carry . . .

I think I came to the whole hanky world quite firmly one day when I was standing in a store with snot globbering down my face, not a tissue in sight, and a $5 t-shirt seeming a tempting option. (I would have bought it after I blew my nose, kay?) After that I bought half a dozen pack and of course used it as an excuse to embroider. All the pretty designs are from various Sublime Stitching kits and while I love to embroider I feel it should be used sparingly in one's wardrobe. One's hankys on the other hand . . . I have a pack of ten that I'm at work on now but it may be a bit. I'm even thinking of doing my own designs for some of them.

The hankys look so nice because I ironed them, which I do not normally do and am not converted into doing -it was all for the photo shoot. I ironed them while watching an episode of Mad Men. It was nice to think that due to a few massive shifts in society I rarely touch an iron except when sewing or ironing patterns on.

Knitting content should come once I can figure out how to get decent pics. I think I need a new camera but that will have to wait for now.

Notice the Clove gum. It's in stores right now. I bought like twenty packs. I love Clove gum.

Sari Scarf

So I've been taking lots of pictures of projects but they aren't coming out very well. This semi - decent photo is of an older FO - a couple months maybe. I got the recycled sari silk yarn about four years ago from my LYS with a gift certificate. I spent a good twenty minutes picking the skein with the color combo I liked best. Then the yarn sat in the stash waiting for just the right moment. The scarf is just garter stitch and knit on the bias. It didn't take long at all to knit and it was a joy to knit too. I would have thought the fuzziness would make it a pain but I was honestly sad when I was done. I ran into a snafu very near the end where suddenly the yarn was about half the thickness it had been before - so I doubled the yarn and it worked very well. Originally I was going to do a plain garter stitch but then hit upon the idea of the bias. I owe some credit to two patterns on knitty - one of a bag knit in recycled sari silk where it was knit on the bias and the famous clapotis for teaching me how to knit something on the bias. When it finally gets cold enough to wear a scarf again I hope to get lots of wear out of this.

I like to think sock patterns are his favorites

I went to see the new HP film yesterday. They kept the knitting reference in, which I was very pleased about. Beyond that there are plenty of things I could say on the matter but I don't wish to do a review, so I won't.

While watching I worked on my current movie knitting. Usually it's socks -I don't turn heels or work toes while in darkened theaters but I do straight stockinette or a simple rib. This is a top down beanie for BB out of tofutsies yarn. It's leftover from a pair of socks I knitted for BB for his birthday last year (I think). Anyway this will be for his b day this year if I can get a couple more movies in before then. If not I'll just give it to him when it's done. I already got him a few non crafty things he'll like.

I also knit on this during Star Trek and I planned on knitting on it during the following films:
The Brothers Bloom
Away We Go
(500) Days of Summer
All Good Things
Taking Woodstock

Except it appears none of them came or will come to my little town. Sigh.

ETA: Away we Go started Friday and I went to see it on Sat. Of course I forgot to bring my movie knitting with. On the plus I loved the movie. It was somehow even better than the hype.

Lorna's Laces Yumminess

I went to my LYS a few weeks back to buy yarn for a sweater for BB and I made my customary sweep of the sock yarns and discovered some Lorna's Laces. I didn't even know they carried the yarn since I had never seen it there before. Turns out they carry it, it just doesn't stay on the shelves. The pink and yellow is my current travel project - they've already been knit in a pub, a Mexican restaurant, a Greek restaurant, a deli, and at a friend's house while watching the first season of the Tudors. The blue may or may not be involved in a holiday gift.