Concept Hat Complete

I just realized that I never did post pics of my finished project known as the Concept Hat. I was waiting to post pics until I was certain it would fit and whatnot. Well, I'm most pleased to announce that it fit and it worked! Yea! It looks so cute in person. I did chuckle when I tried it on because it looked a bit Rastafarian on me. Oh well. It looks great over my mom's hair rollers. She said it felt great too. It wasn't too loose or too snug and it stayed in place overnight without issue. Holla!

Pattern: Mine (aka "Made it up as I went along")
Yarn: Crystal Palace Panda Cotton, 1 skein, Colorway 0415, Roses
Needles: Size 7 16" circs
Size 9 16" circs

2 Projects at once

I've been making progress on both of my most recent projects. I'm just a little shy of the half-way mark for my Chapeau Marnier. The flash washed the color out a bit, but I think it still shows how far I've come with it. I just discovered that I may have been a stitch off on part of the pattern, but I'm not going to fix it. It's really not a big deal and when I run the ribbon through it, I'm almost certain it won't be noticeable. Plus, it's a design feature. Yeah, that's it. :)


I've also made progress on the Everlasting Bag. The picture doesn't show too much at first glance. But if you were to look closely, and really use your imagination, you might be able to see that I've finished the base of it and have picked up the stitches to complete the base. After another inch or 2, I'll be switching to size 11 needles and moving on to the body of the bag. Once I do that, it will be a lot quicker and easier. I feel like I'm struggling to keep all these stitches on size 7 16" circs, and well, I am! It's a lot of stitches for those needles, trust me. I didn't have any 24" length circs in a good size, so I made do with what I had. That means stuffing a lot of stitches on a smaller needle. Oh well. They are my Addi Turbos so I imagine they are up for the challenge.

So far, I'm quite pleased with my progress on both projects. I wonder which one I'll finish first. Normally, I'd say the hat would win, but there are a lot of rows when you're making a hat on size 2s. It's a tough call for sure!

Marnier Update

I'm on the super tricksy row 11 of this pattern and I'm doing okay. I had to take a moment to figure out where I was and what I needed to do, but after only 1 small mistake that was easy to fix, I've not had too many problems with it. It looks like it's going to be a big hat! This is a good thing for me because I have a big head. :) I'd love to just bust the rest of this hat out in a day, but I have to pay attention during the beginning and I just haven't had the attention span yet. Honestly, once I'm finished with the super cute brim, the hat will be a breeze.

In the meantime, however, don't be surprised if I cast on for an Everlasting Bag for a friend. She's been hinting, not too subtly, that she wants a bag she can take to the farmer's market. I pointed out this new pattern and said I could be convinced to make it for her. She seemed to really like it, so it's now in my queue. I need to print it out so that I can have it on hand when I'm ready to start.

Marnier hat for me!

I decided to do something drastically out of character today (yeah, right!) and cast on for a new project! My latest project is Knitty's Chapeau Marnier. I'm very excited by this pattern and I'm not sure why. I don't have much of a personal style but I fell in love the moment I saw this hat. The designer has directions for 2 different styles and I haven't totally decided which one to do. I think I'm going to go with the one on her website. I'll make my final decision in about 12 more rows. Hooray for casting on for a new project! :)

So far the only change I would make to the pattern is a very minor thing. She called for using size 6 needles to cast on, but then switching to size 2 needles to work the actual pattern. That ended up being quite the fiddly thing for me to conquer and so I would omit it. I generally don't have a problem with casting on tightly, so I really don't think it was necessary. But, seriously, how minor of a change is that?

And just in case you forgot, I'm using the Louet Gems yarn I balled the other day. I really like this yarn. The red is fabulous and I like the feel of it. I hope this hat turns out as great as I'm thinking it will. :)

Concept Hat is Finished!

Yea! Another finished object! I think the hat will work well for my mom and she really seemed to like it. I have a few pics, but I want to wait before posting them. I want to see it in action before I get too happy!

Knitting Hold

Sorry but I can't knit right now. I'm too busy reading the latest Harry Potter!!! hahahahaha!

Yarn Therapy

I did attempt to work on the concept hat today, but I did not get very far. Today was just a busy day of phone calls and surprise visits. I feel like I spent half the day on the phone, but I didn't chat with anyone for very long. Truthfully, I spent most of the day in a funk. Now that the wedding is over and every one is moving on with life again, I'm feeling a little down. I had a truly fantastic time and it's always really hard for me to return to life after seeing my old friends. So, after watching a particularly funny segment of the Daily Show today that did wonders for getting my mood up a bit, I decided to try some yarn therapy. I pulled out the Tiny Toes yarn I mentioned the other day and went to work. I balled both hanks and they look so pretty! Check them out!



Then I decided to attack the Louet Gems yarn that I have marked for making a Chapeau Marnier. It's almost funny that the 2 yarns I chose to wind today are earmarked for projects for me. I hardly ever make myself anything, but I guess I'm feeling it right now. :) I already own one red hat, but I can't wait to make another. It looks so pretty when it's all balled up.

See what I mean? Lovely yarn. Balling it up helped to relax me a bit. There's something meditative about letting the yarn run through your fingers while you ball it up. I don't know what it is, but it's relaxing. :)

Pics of Socks for Alicia

I went and updated my last post with a picture of the socks. But, I wanted to post additional shots and I figured it would be easier to just make a new post with them. :)

Pattern: Traveling Vine pattern from More Sensational Knitted Socks
Yarn: Louet Gems
Needles: Size 2 DPNs
Notes: I did these from the top down with an eye of partridge heel. I found picking up my gusset stitches went very well despite not having a slipped stitch edge. In fact, I'd say it was my neatest attempt at picking up stitches thus far. I wasn't thrilled with the pattern at first because it didn't look the same as in the book to me, but it grew on me over time. Now I love them and they appeared to fit Alicia's feet well.

the heel

Sock 1 complete

This ended up being a very fun project for me and I love the finished socks. The next pair of socks I make, however, will be for me. I've not made myself a pair of socks yet so I think it's the perfect time. :)

I Did It!

Yes! I finished them on time! They are currently hanging up to dry and I leave in about 12 hours. I had them off the needles, with the ends woven in, before 10 pm. I'm quite pleased with myself. I can't wait to give them to her. Lord do I hope they fit! lol!

Here they are just before I gave them a bath. Yea!

Impressive Progress Report

Well, I'm quite pleased to announce that I nearly finished the leg of sock number 2 today. In fact, I have only 10 rows to go before starting the heel and I might try to finish them before I head to bed tonight. There were multiple distractions today and yet I still made excellent progress. First up, an old friend from high school stopped by to chat for an hour or so. I tried calling Lisa 3 times between 2-4:30 pm because she owes me money that I need to pick up before I head out of town. Then I drove by her house to see if she was home (twice) and picked up dinner. I took a small nap by accident, watched Hell's Kitchen, took a few phone calls, and called my brother. Later, I caught up with a friend online. Given that I rarely knit for more than 20 minutes in one sitting, it's amazing I got so much done. I just took frequent breaks, moved around a lot, and knit off and on throughout the entire day. I know other knitters out there will sit for hours and knit, but I can't do that. My attention span isn't that great and I fear that if I knit for long periods of time that my wrist problems will come back. So, I only knit in short bursts, yet I occasionally get stuff done.

Oh and my mom bought me a present today when she went to her favorite sewing store. It just so happens that her favorite sewing store is about 2 store fronts away from a yarn store. So, she popped in to the yarn store to buy me a gift. She did a really excellent job! I was quite excited when I opened the bag and found a double hank of Tiny Toes in gorgeous shades of purple, turquoise, and green. It's quite lovely to be honest. This yarn will not be used to make a gift. Nope, it's all mine! I will be winding it and playing with it soon, I hope. I need a pair of gorgeous socks for myself despite my general aversion to wearing them. Thank the knitting Gods that I have both Sensational Knitted Socks and More Sensational Knitted Socks because I'm certain the perfect pattern is in one of them. I almost wish I could start playing with it now. But, first, Alicia's socks will be done before her wedding. They will! :)

No SSS for me!

No, I'm NOT suffering from SSS. I started the second sock today just fine, thank you very much. I was smart this time and cast on with my 2 and 1/2 size needles and knit 2 rows of the ribbing with them. Then I transferred over to the size 2s and I am almost done with the ribbing. Well, I'm 2/3 finished at this point, but I think I'm going to go work on it for a few right now. I talked on the phone with Alicia today and that helped. Chatting for a few and just being reminded of how awesome she is helps me feel a little more motivated. :) I'm getting excited about her wedding and seeing everyone. She invited me to stay at her house (again) and I decided to go for it. Only 5 days before I leave! And, since I'll be staying at her house, it would probably be a good idea to have the socks done before I get there. So, yeah, I must leave now and work on the sock.

Half way there

Who cast off the first sock today? That's right! This girl did. Yea!

Okay, it looks way cuter now than I thought it was going to look. It might be just a little short for her foot, but it should be quite wearable. Plus, when she washes it, she can put them on and make sure they'll fit her foot. It's a nice wool blend and it will have enough give, I'm sure. Tomorrow though, I get to cast on for the mate. I have to make sure I keep the ribbing a little looser as it's just a touch difficult to pull on. Once the sock is on though, it's great. I have until Saturday to finish the mate. I need all the luck in the world on this one! :)

FSS

The title of this post is FSS because I've decided that I suffer from a very rare knitting disease. We've all heard of the dreaded SSS, aka Second Sock Syndrome. But I seem to have a rare variation known as FSS- First Sock Syndrome. It appears as though getting through that first sock is really my issue. I've never had a problem finishing the second one. I think it's because I work out all the kinks with the first sock and I know what I'm doing for the second one. I won't need to rip anything back with the second one unless I totally screw up my pattern or lose a needle. So once I get through that first one, I feel confident that it's all going to work out right. Right now, I'm getting dangerously close to the toe on Alicia's sock. I want to do a round toe and I'm tripping about it. A round toe will be a full 2 inches for me and the pattern says the toe should only be 1 3/4 inches. So obviously I'm just going to start the toe 2" from where I want it to end, but I'm still tripping anyway because that's what I do. It's not like I'm using a yarn that has no give either. It will stretch if it's a touch short and it won't be uncomfortable at all. I know all of this and still I freak out. I can't wait until it's time to start the second one so that I can just knit it and let it go. :)

Concept Hat update

Well, I finished the ribbing and have switched to size 9 circs. I was distracted while trying to do the switch and it was NOT working well for me. It took me twice as long as I think it should have, but at least it's on there now. I was contemplating finding a different stitch pattern to use, but decided the k2tog, yo followed by a row of yo, k2tog would be easiest. I think it might be the right size this time with the 80 stitches I cast on, but it's still a little too early to call.

I successfully ignored the sock today. I had to walk by it several times and I still managed to not work on it. I was always better at writing papers with a very pressing deadline. Perhaps I will turn out to be a great pressure knitter too. Or else I just won't get them done on time and they can become a Christmas or birthday present. :) Sometimes I hate to admit that I want them done but lack the motivation to work on them. Oh well. It's my own issue to work on, I guess. I could easily finish the first one by Saturday if I just don't ignore it. That would give me a week to finish the mate and I usually bust out the second one a little faster than the first.

Who am I kidding? I really want to finish these. I just need to sleep better tonight and work on it tomorrow. A lot.

Concept Hat and sock update

I have a project I've been calling Concept Hat. My mom likes to set her hair with rollers before going to bed on occasion because she hasn't heard that it isn't 1964. Anyway, she usually wears some kind of cap over them at night to hold them in place and possibly for comfort. She's tried all kinds of caps and most won't get the job done. Her current one has lots of holes in it and is getting ready to retire. So she asked me if I could knit her something appropriate.

Well, to be honest, I'm not sure if I can or not. I thought it over a bit, talked it over with knowledgeable people, and decided to at least give it a shot. I wanted yarn with some elastic content and the LYS didn't have much that would fit the bill. In the end, I decided to try this Panda Cotton yarn. I pulled out my size 7 Addi Turbos and cast on. I didn't know how many stitches I wanted and didn't feel like doing a real swatch when I have no idea if my idea is even going to get off the ground. So I knit about an inch of 2X2 ribbing and switched to size 9 needles and a k2tog, yo type of open stitch. I did that for a few inches just to get a look at it. Then I put it on a longer cable to really investigate.

It appeared to be a bit too big but I felt like I was on the right track. So, today I ripped it all out, rewound the yarn, and cast on with fewer stitches. I've only done about 3 rounds of ribbing but I'm feeling like this project just might work out right. I'm quite excited about it actually. :)

In sock news, the gusset decreases are done! I tried the sock on and it seemed to fit okay. It's a little snug for sliding on, but once it's on, it feels just about perfect. Just a few inches of foot and then a toe and it's done! Yea!

Gusset decreses

Well, I'm more than halfway done with the gusset decreases. I have about 6 rounds left until I start the foot, if I remember correctly. It's been kind of hot and my motivation is waning just a bit. Yes I realize that I live in a climate controlled environment, but the outside conditions still manage to affect me.

Okay, then there's this gem of a story. It happens all the time, but it still drives me crazy when it happens. Anyway, I belong to a book swapping community and I love love love it. I had a book order that I needed to wrap and take to the post office by the 5th. Well, tomorrow is a holiday, so I decided to just go ahead and take it up there today. So I printed out the label, wrapped the book up, and went to the post office. It was a fast and easy trip and when I got home, I went to mark it mailed on the site. Wouldn't you know it? I had another brand new request waiting for me!!! I have my shelf scheduled to go on hold in a few days so that I can go to Alicia's wedding and not have to worry about people ordering books from me. I really didn't think I'd get too many requests prior to that because I haven't posted anything new in a while. Oh well. It's just Murphy's Law at work. You would be shocked at how often this happens to me. I try to save up my book orders so that I only have to go to the post office every once in a while. But, the book swapping Gods have quite the sense of humor when it comes to me. :)

Well, that's it for now. Time to watch some lame TV and think about knitting on that sock, even though I know I won't. :)

Heel Turn Complete!

Can you believe it? Not only did I finish the leg of the first sock, I did all of the heel stitches, the turn, and I'm actually into the gusset decreases! It's shocking, I know. I could actually finish it before the wedding! Not only could I finish the one, I could even cast on and knit the second one too. Will I? I'm crossing my fingers on this one. I really would love to give them to her at her wedding. Maybe I will be able to continue plugging away at it like I did today. I was actually enjoying the pattern more than ever before. Plus, that eye of partridge heel was something new and fun for me to do. I like it! I did make a small mistake in the early rows, but I fudged my numbers and covered it rather than fix it. It doesn't look too bad or else I'd rip it out. It's a mistake I can live with. Plus, that's how you know it was a hand made gift. :)

Sock for Alicia

Well, I got my invitation to Ravelry the other day and I jumped right in. I realized very quickly that it might be a good idea to start a blog devoted to my knitting. I'm not the fastest knitter and I don't finish things in a timely manner, but that doesn't really matter too much to me. I just want a place where I can go on and on about knitting if I want and not bore my non-knitting friends to tears. :)

So, I started on Ravelry by listing my current WIPs. I made notes about them as well. On the entry for Alicia's sock, I mentioned that "I was hoping to finish [them] before her wedding, but I don't forsee that happening. I'm just unmotivated to work on them". Something about seeing that in print lit a fire under me and I've been working on them. I don't know if I will continue to stay motivated, but for now, things are moving along rather nicely. Can you say heel flap? Oh and I'm trying the Eye of Partridge with seed stitch border heel flap from More Sensational Knitted Socks for the first time. It's very easy to follow and so far, I'm liking how it looks. Only 24 more rows to go before the turn. I'd like to get them done today, but we'll see what happens.