Doh! Forgot to snap a photo. Well, it looks like this and this and this, only in yellow and no embroidery. It actually looks the most like Niecey's hat, because I purposely used a centered double decrease to make the decreases stick out, like Brunelleschi's Dome (the Duomo in Florence), except the hat has 4 sections instead of 6.
Pattern: My own, still evolving.
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino
Needles: Size 5, size 3 for casting on in picot cast-on.
I used the picot cast-on, and I've decided it just looks kind of messy. I'm going to try a tubular cast-on for the next one.
I also used centered double decreases (slip 2 tog as if to knit, K1, psso) and they also looked a bit messy. Next time I'm going to do single decreases K2tog, twice as many, evenly spaced, on a knit stitch.
I intended at first to embroider balloons in red and blue. Then I thought I can make red, yellow, and blue balloons knit onto the top, with tails pulled out as balloon strings. Then I ran out of time, and since the baby is breech and resisted efforts to turn it, a C-section got scheduled, 1 week before the due date, so I decided I'd better just finish the thing and send it. My mom and The Sweetie said it looked fine without any adornment (we don't know if it's a boy or a girl, and a daisy seemed too feminine) and I stuck it in the mail before I even snapped a picture.
This photo is my son running down to the shore of Lake Tahoe. (Due to careful framing, it does not appear as if anyone is nearby, but The Sweetie is giving chase just off the right frame.)
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
FO: Presto Chango
I finished it just in time for my SIL's baby shower. It was still a little damp when I wrapped it in tissue and stuck it in the bag. The party was a great success!
Pattern: Presto Chango, a sweater pattern with the idea that you can knit multiple front panels and change them out as they get soiled.
Needles: Knit Picks Options, size 5. Size 3 for seed stitch cast-on.
Yarn: Mystery cotton from KathyB.
Buttons: wooden, from Fabrics Unlimited in Stateline, NV. Gorgeous shop!
I started out assuming that the gauge would be smaller than 4 sts/inch. So I cast on for the biggest size. However, I realized after getting into the stockinette portion that I was in fact getting gauge, so for the rest of the pattern, I followed the 6 month size.
For the seaming, in the underarm I did that seaming technique where you make it look like another row of knitting. For the side seams I used mattress stitch.
My opinion, now that I've had a baby, is that babies don't (need to) wear clothes (that is, anything but onesies and footie pajamas) until at least 6 months, so there is no point in knitting sweaters for them smaller than that, except by accident.
After blocking, it grew enormous (the panel still needed severe blocking to fit, but that's the fault of the cast-on for the biggest size), so I told the mom-to-be to throw it in the washer and dryer. Hope the buttons survive!
If I am moved (and have time), I will make another panel, although I don't have enough yellow to do the whole panel. Maybe I'll make it yellow and blue stripes. Maybe I can make it for Christmas!
Next up: finishing the birth hat. I ran out of time and my hand hurt. Several days of non-knitting and now I'm back to it.
Pattern: Presto Chango, a sweater pattern with the idea that you can knit multiple front panels and change them out as they get soiled.
Needles: Knit Picks Options, size 5. Size 3 for seed stitch cast-on.
Yarn: Mystery cotton from KathyB.
Buttons: wooden, from Fabrics Unlimited in Stateline, NV. Gorgeous shop!
I started out assuming that the gauge would be smaller than 4 sts/inch. So I cast on for the biggest size. However, I realized after getting into the stockinette portion that I was in fact getting gauge, so for the rest of the pattern, I followed the 6 month size.
For the seaming, in the underarm I did that seaming technique where you make it look like another row of knitting. For the side seams I used mattress stitch.
My opinion, now that I've had a baby, is that babies don't (need to) wear clothes (that is, anything but onesies and footie pajamas) until at least 6 months, so there is no point in knitting sweaters for them smaller than that, except by accident.
After blocking, it grew enormous (the panel still needed severe blocking to fit, but that's the fault of the cast-on for the biggest size), so I told the mom-to-be to throw it in the washer and dryer. Hope the buttons survive!
If I am moved (and have time), I will make another panel, although I don't have enough yellow to do the whole panel. Maybe I'll make it yellow and blue stripes. Maybe I can make it for Christmas!
Next up: finishing the birth hat. I ran out of time and my hand hurt. Several days of non-knitting and now I'm back to it.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Cool knitting retreat!
Okay, I just joined Facebook, and as it turns out, one of the ads struck my fancy. It's for a knitting retreat in Santa Barbara with Joan McGowan-Michael. It would be so cool! It probably isn't realistic, given that my little guy still likes to nurse to sleep, and staying in a hotel isn't really that fun when you have to be nearby once he is in bed. But it does sound fun.
Anyway, just wanted to throw it out there. The fee includes transportation from San Diego or San Jose and lodging (double occupancy). Pretty good!
Here is the link.
The photo above is my little guy running toward the water of Angora Lake, in the Sierras. Later that day, he had his first official wading.
Anyway, just wanted to throw it out there. The fee includes transportation from San Diego or San Jose and lodging (double occupancy). Pretty good!
Here is the link.
The photo above is my little guy running toward the water of Angora Lake, in the Sierras. Later that day, he had his first official wading.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Feeding frenzy
A couple of weeks ago, the fish were jumping and there was this feeding frenzy of sea lions and pelicans. You can see the water in motion.
I'm just dropping in to say hi, blog friends! I'm still here. In fact, I have good news!
For the last 8 months, I've been pumping at work. At first I tried to improvise a system where I could have 2 hands free. But the pumping just didn't work as well, so I gave it up. But now I've found a product, the Simple Wishes pumping bustier, that allows me to pump hands free! I knew there were products like this around, but I hadn't seen one in person. This one in particular adjusts like crazy to fit your body (velcro in the back, for ribcage fit) and zips up the front - easy on and off.
So, I'll be knitting twice daily now! Woo-hoo!
Sadly, this won't help my photo downloading. For that, I still need like an extra 2 hours a night.
I'm just dropping in to say hi, blog friends! I'm still here. In fact, I have good news!
For the last 8 months, I've been pumping at work. At first I tried to improvise a system where I could have 2 hands free. But the pumping just didn't work as well, so I gave it up. But now I've found a product, the Simple Wishes pumping bustier, that allows me to pump hands free! I knew there were products like this around, but I hadn't seen one in person. This one in particular adjusts like crazy to fit your body (velcro in the back, for ribcage fit) and zips up the front - easy on and off.
So, I'll be knitting twice daily now! Woo-hoo!
Sadly, this won't help my photo downloading. For that, I still need like an extra 2 hours a night.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Old FO: Cat toy
Several years ago, my SIL and her husband adopted a kitten. For Christmas that year, I knit him a cat toy, and The Sweetie made the "fishing pole", complete with a rope-covered handle. (Sorry, sweetie, I forgot the fancy name for it.) We stuffed it with catnip. (We had to keep it in the fridge to keep OUR cat from playing with it!)
I recently dug through some old email and found photos that they sent of the toy, and it in use.
Pattern: Catnip Mouse by Wendy Johnson
Needles: Not sure anymore.
Yarn: Brunswick Germantown, leftover from Eric's Scarf.
It seemed like a lot of work to do cables for a cat toy, but it was small and fast and cute.
Here's an action shot:
I recently dug through some old email and found photos that they sent of the toy, and it in use.
Pattern: Catnip Mouse by Wendy Johnson
Needles: Not sure anymore.
Yarn: Brunswick Germantown, leftover from Eric's Scarf.
It seemed like a lot of work to do cables for a cat toy, but it was small and fast and cute.
Here's an action shot:
Monday, July 13, 2009
FO: Birth hat for R&H
My DH's currently favorite student, R, is expecting a baby any day now. We haven't heard whether R&H's baby is born yet, but one day DH came home and requested a hat for them. I found out it was to be a girl, and I acquired some appropriate colors. These hats just keep popping out!
This time, I looked more closely at the instructions for the knitted cast-on - it appears I was supposed to be twisting the stitches as I put them on the left needle. I'm not sure I like it better this way - I'll probably go back to the way I usually did it.
Also, I wanted to try out a smoother way to decrease in ribbing - I'd read somewhere to pick out knit stitches (evenly spaced) and whenever you get to a stitch before them, do a k2tog - the previous stitch slips under the kept stitch and so the rib continues upward. I did it this time, and I do like the effect, although it's not as pronounced as what I was doing before. I sort of liked the look of the dome in Florence of the previous ones. Oh, also I miscast on 60 stitches, instead of 64, and so dividing by 8 was a little hard. I kludged it until it worked out.
Pattern: Birth hat (just like this and this). Someday I'll write up the pattern; I keep doing it over and over, so it'll be worth it for my own use!
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, pink and a tiny bit of purple leftover. I'm amassing quite a collection of this yarn!
Needles: Size 3 (for the cast-on) dpns, and size 5 12" circular (Addi turbo) and dpn (Clover/Takumi).
DH gave it to R, and he was surprised and thrilled. That baby is due sometime in July. Any day now....
This time, I looked more closely at the instructions for the knitted cast-on - it appears I was supposed to be twisting the stitches as I put them on the left needle. I'm not sure I like it better this way - I'll probably go back to the way I usually did it.
Also, I wanted to try out a smoother way to decrease in ribbing - I'd read somewhere to pick out knit stitches (evenly spaced) and whenever you get to a stitch before them, do a k2tog - the previous stitch slips under the kept stitch and so the rib continues upward. I did it this time, and I do like the effect, although it's not as pronounced as what I was doing before. I sort of liked the look of the dome in Florence of the previous ones. Oh, also I miscast on 60 stitches, instead of 64, and so dividing by 8 was a little hard. I kludged it until it worked out.
Pattern: Birth hat (just like this and this). Someday I'll write up the pattern; I keep doing it over and over, so it'll be worth it for my own use!
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, pink and a tiny bit of purple leftover. I'm amassing quite a collection of this yarn!
Needles: Size 3 (for the cast-on) dpns, and size 5 12" circular (Addi turbo) and dpn (Clover/Takumi).
DH gave it to R, and he was surprised and thrilled. That baby is due sometime in July. Any day now....
Thursday, July 9, 2009
FO: Football hat & sneaker booties
A friend of mine is having her second child, a boy. I happen to know that her husband is very much into college football, so I decided to make the football helmet hat for them, from Itty-Bitty Hats. I chose Northwestern University's colors, because that's where the parents went to college, and where they met.
I was looking around for an appropriate bootie to go with them (while the knitted Converse sneakers are very cute, they're not really footballish) and I found these great sneaker booties. I ordered some Cascade 220 superwash from WEBS and got started.
The ear flaps, while quick to knit, were HUGE. Like, they'd cover my ears and then some. But I persevered on (you know, like the Harlot has said many times before, your inner knitter knows this is wrong, but you have this hope that when you complete it, the rest will shrink to fit the size it was supposed to be?) Finally, I finished the hat and it was ... okay. The cap part seemed baby sized. The ear flaps were impossible. I thought and I thought, and I said, I am a knitter. I can fix this.
I decided that the culprit was actually that the ear flaps are in seed stitch, and my seed stitch (apparently) is way, way looser than my stockinette. (I'm starting to suspect that it's either switching to purl or purling itself that is looser than my knit stitch.) So I decided, the ear flaps are modules, I can cut them off and kitchener new ones on. But then I thought, well, the first few rows of the brim are also seed stitch, so I could just redo the beginning of the hat, and kitchener in stockinette. Much better. (And along the way, I can correct the number of stitches to be odd, so that I can seed stitch around. And I can center the ear flaps on the brim - the original offset them toward the back of the head.)
So while TLD was napping in the car, I took a deep breath and picked up stitches around the bottom of the hat, checked twice, and snipped the yarn. Pulled out that sucker, and I had a brim and a hat to attach to each other, with about the same number of stitches.
Then I had my inspiration - I could use the 3 needle bind-off instead of kitchener, and it would create a nice line between the seed stitch brim and the stockinette. I ran it past my knitting group, and it was decided.
I finished it with some brown KnitPicks swish DK I had around. Why is it that the Swish DK and the Cascade 220 knit at the same gauge? (I know it doesn't matter for the football but I used it in the booties below also). Exact same!
Pattern: Football, from Itty-Bitty Hats
Yarn: Cascade 220 superwash in royal purple, KnitPicks Swish DK in brown and white.
Needles: Size 7 circular 16" (my first needle; forgot the brand), DPNs (Bryspun), and size 5 circular 16" (Addi Turbo, I think) and DPNs (Probably Clover Takumi) for the seed stitch section.
Mods: I accidentally had too many stitches in the first few rows of the stockinette section, so I did a k2tog to fix it. It's visible, but I put it at the back. Should've seen if I could sew the football over it!
The booties were really wonderful, quick, and easy. And I'd wondered for a long time why I hadn't seen any bootie patterns that knit the bottom and attached the sides at the same time. I'd thought that's how I'd like to make a bootie, but I assumed there was something wrong with it that I'd find out. Nope, nothing wrong, just not a very common construction. This is great- it makes a rectangular sole, and no seams at all (no seam up the bottom, no seams up the side, just no seams!) The roll-top is perfect (I did sew it down, as it was threatening to reveal my woven-in ends), and the lacing was fun.
Pattern: Sneaker Booties
Yarn: Cascade 220 superwash in royal purple, KnitPicks Swish DK in brown and white.
Needles: Size 2 DPNs (Clover Takumi)
I gave these to my friend, and she asked if I'd put the hat on TLD. It was so cute, I've got to make another hat for him to wear during college football season!
I was looking around for an appropriate bootie to go with them (while the knitted Converse sneakers are very cute, they're not really footballish) and I found these great sneaker booties. I ordered some Cascade 220 superwash from WEBS and got started.
The ear flaps, while quick to knit, were HUGE. Like, they'd cover my ears and then some. But I persevered on (you know, like the Harlot has said many times before, your inner knitter knows this is wrong, but you have this hope that when you complete it, the rest will shrink to fit the size it was supposed to be?) Finally, I finished the hat and it was ... okay. The cap part seemed baby sized. The ear flaps were impossible. I thought and I thought, and I said, I am a knitter. I can fix this.
I decided that the culprit was actually that the ear flaps are in seed stitch, and my seed stitch (apparently) is way, way looser than my stockinette. (I'm starting to suspect that it's either switching to purl or purling itself that is looser than my knit stitch.) So I decided, the ear flaps are modules, I can cut them off and kitchener new ones on. But then I thought, well, the first few rows of the brim are also seed stitch, so I could just redo the beginning of the hat, and kitchener in stockinette. Much better. (And along the way, I can correct the number of stitches to be odd, so that I can seed stitch around. And I can center the ear flaps on the brim - the original offset them toward the back of the head.)
So while TLD was napping in the car, I took a deep breath and picked up stitches around the bottom of the hat, checked twice, and snipped the yarn. Pulled out that sucker, and I had a brim and a hat to attach to each other, with about the same number of stitches.
Then I had my inspiration - I could use the 3 needle bind-off instead of kitchener, and it would create a nice line between the seed stitch brim and the stockinette. I ran it past my knitting group, and it was decided.
I finished it with some brown KnitPicks swish DK I had around. Why is it that the Swish DK and the Cascade 220 knit at the same gauge? (I know it doesn't matter for the football but I used it in the booties below also). Exact same!
Pattern: Football, from Itty-Bitty Hats
Yarn: Cascade 220 superwash in royal purple, KnitPicks Swish DK in brown and white.
Needles: Size 7 circular 16" (my first needle; forgot the brand), DPNs (Bryspun), and size 5 circular 16" (Addi Turbo, I think) and DPNs (Probably Clover Takumi) for the seed stitch section.
Mods: I accidentally had too many stitches in the first few rows of the stockinette section, so I did a k2tog to fix it. It's visible, but I put it at the back. Should've seen if I could sew the football over it!
The booties were really wonderful, quick, and easy. And I'd wondered for a long time why I hadn't seen any bootie patterns that knit the bottom and attached the sides at the same time. I'd thought that's how I'd like to make a bootie, but I assumed there was something wrong with it that I'd find out. Nope, nothing wrong, just not a very common construction. This is great- it makes a rectangular sole, and no seams at all (no seam up the bottom, no seams up the side, just no seams!) The roll-top is perfect (I did sew it down, as it was threatening to reveal my woven-in ends), and the lacing was fun.
Pattern: Sneaker Booties
Yarn: Cascade 220 superwash in royal purple, KnitPicks Swish DK in brown and white.
Needles: Size 2 DPNs (Clover Takumi)
I gave these to my friend, and she asked if I'd put the hat on TLD. It was so cute, I've got to make another hat for him to wear during college football season!
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