If you’re looking for cotton you’ve come to the wrong place

Green wool. Yum. This green wool is Takhi Donegal Tweed, from a bagsale (meaning I have a whole kilo of the goodness) bought online but I can’t remember where. I had to email them my credit card number so I will most likely not shop there again until they discover PayPal anyway. The only reason I took the chance was because I thought “hey, they sell yarn, they must be nice people”.  I don’t recommend it though.

Donegal tweed, green, cables, any bells ringing yet? It can of course only be one thing and that is the Central Park Hoodie from Knitscene Fall 06. Yeah, I know I’m late to this party, but I’ve been saving the yarn and pattern until I got some other stuff off my back and could give myself a reward. I started it just before easter and had secret hopes (based on the bad weather forecasts for the holidays) that I would have the jacket ready by tonight since I’m going away for work tomorrow. Well…I think I need something hotter both fashionwise and temperaturewise but two sleeves and half a front so this smells travel knitting. And if your are now thinking “why, why is she knitting up thick wools when April is about to start, it is almost summer” then I can only assure you that no. It is not summer and it won’t be for a long time and even in summer I don’t stash away knitted jackets, and April is, statistically, the month with the biggest snowfall around here. So. And if you ask why I am knitting a thick cabled hooded sweater just after finishing (the yet undocumented, I know and I’m sorry but I want to provide something better than self portraits in the bathroom mirror for that one) Rogue I have nothing to say to that except do I really need a reason?

The Central Park hoodie is a really nice knit that I think I will love very much when it is done but it isn’t yet. And then I thought I would document the progress on the blog instead of just posting FO pics as I seem to usually do even if what I enjoy most when reading other blogs is following the process and see a piece come together. I also wanted, at least once, try knitting something flat and seaming it up, if only to prove to myself that I prefer knitting in the round. The sleeves were a charm and I managed to follow the pattern except for (ahem, here goes) knitting the cuffs in the round with the knit stitches twisted, and lengthening the sleeves, and messing up the cable. I knit the cable rounds every 8th row instead of every 10th row and I didn’t notice until I started the front and had another look at the charts. I don’t care though cause the cables are still not too tight but at some point I have to decide if I’ll do the same for the centre back cable as that one is supposed to be similar to the sleeve cables. But at the moment I’m working my way up the fronts and actually quite enjoying the flat knitting thing since it breaks up the work in steps and in smaller, easier to carry around chunks instead of one big heavy sweater-to-be. I’m now at the point where I need to decide on where to add waist shaping. The original design doesn’t have any but it should be doable, and even more so because today’s Knitting Daily newsletter announced a waist shaping calculator. I’m tempted to say it will be easy but I know saying that will jinx everything so all I’ll say is that I’ll give it a try and hope it works.

And just when I thought I would have only one work in progress for the next few weeks my mom saved me by saying that she threw  Grandpa’s mittens because they were completely worn out and undarnable and that he would like a new pair for his birthday and not necessarily in black and white. I have lots of different mitten patterns and managed to narrow it down to two favourites. Then I asked a friend help me pick one and she came up with the same two among at least 20! Great minds think alike, and eventually I settled for this one instead of a simpler, more typical snowflake motif. My stranded knitting has improved lots after practicing yarn dominance on the zebra hat and I no longer have to focus to keep the dominant yarn, red in this case, in the right place.

This will be nice knitting for the plane tomorrow. Now I just need to decide how much green wool to bring for the week. And some sock yarn just in case. And then pack the rest of what I need. A girl has her priorities.

Ztripey

Pattern: Zebra hat kit from Dale of Norway

Yarn: Dale of Norway Falk, one ball of each colour.

Needles: 2.5 and 3 mm bamboo dpns. Should maybe have used 3.5 mm for the stripe section to make it more elastic.

Modifications: Added earflaps and I-cord ties to make it stay on a toddler’s head.

Knits are hard to photograph. It helps a great deal that the sun is back though (and Picasa can usually fix the rest). Kids are pretty damn hard to photograph too. Planning doesn’t help a bit, all you can do is shoot from the hip and hope that some part of the kiddo is still within the frame when the flash goes off. Thank heavens for digital cameras!

I made the 2-4 yr size but it won’t fit next winter I think, so it is basically a 2 yr size. Luckily (or not…) it is still snowing here and it won’t stop anytime soon. If I make the hat again, and I might, I’ll use 3.5 mm needles for the stripy part. There is not enough yarn left in any of the colours for another hat but this is one of those nice plain workinghorse yarns that you can never buy too much of.

This charming little lady sure appreciates her handknits. (Notice handknitted overall!) The hat was pulled on the moment it came out of the bag and stayed on for the reminder of my visit. It is very versatile. Just look.

I actually started with the I-cord, knitted upwards and increased somehow to make the earflaps. I first did a plain all over 2×2 rib which did not work at all as it pulled in too much. Then I came up with this option. It is a 6 st garter edge with some “ribbing” that makes it stretchy, but not curly. I think it looks like pointy juicy green grass. Yummy says zebra.

The pattern requires some attention but the great thing about it is that it doesn’t matter if you do small mistakes. If you do big ones, like adding earflaps and place the decreases and the “seam” on the sides instead of front and back…. well, I ripped the whole thing and reknit to get the mane where it is usually found on zebras. I chose white as the dominant yarn but I’m not sure it matters too much here.

If you’re not tired of zebra knits you can check out Theresa’s projects. She is doing a whole zebra set!

This zebra is sleeping now. And she kept her hat on.

Spring?

At these latitudes, seasons are more about changes in light than in temperatures. A crappy, rainy winter day will typically offer 4 degrees C. A crappy, rainy summer day may give you the chills with 8 degrees. Although these are the extremes they are more than real when you experience them. This is why handknits are always so welcome at these latitudes.

I hear spring is starting to show up around knitter’s homes. Cari is growing vegetables already.  Here the snow is still covering the ground by two or three feet and I guess that qualifies for winter still. But. The winter we have in December and January, with the sun below the horizon, and the winter in March when the day is longer than the night already (spring equinox is coming up this week!) are two completely different seasons. And although the snow is still deep, you can see it dripping from the roof or feel the sun on your face on a warm day. Two moths ago it never got above the horizon, now she is high in the sky when I wake up in the morning (although that doesn’t always happen as early as it should).

So it is very easy to forget that it is still cold, and boldly cross the doorstep with too thin a jacket and no mittens. So ready to give up on the wools, still knowing it will backfire and give you a nasty spring cold. I don’t want my friends to get a spring cold. I want them to have warm, happy feet in spring colours.

Pattern: My standard sock, 56 st, 1×1 rib, eye of partridge flap heel. I’ll write down the pattern some day.

Needles: Clover 2 mm bamboo dpns

Yarn: Regia Canadian colour, lost the ball band but think it was 4726 Columbia and I got it in a yarn swap with Fuglemamma.
A friend asked if I could knit her a pair of socks for her birthday and I was happy to do so cause I knew she would appreciate the work and because I had some yarn in a colour that screams her name. I originally wanted to make the pretty Daisies socks but after knitting the first leg it became painfully obvious that one should knit these in a contrast colour compared to your skin, and light blue is by no means a contrast to any Scandinavian skin this time of the year.  So I ripped and made plain socks,  but I do recommend the pattern if you want to give it a try. Here the plain socks are modeled by my feet which are three sizes larger than my friend’s feet. I didn’t dare trying to pull the sock heels over my own heels but you get the picture. I had access to her foot when I closed the toe on the first one so I know they fit her perfectly even if I only used 60 g yarn.

I’m also happy to say that I have finished the other two items on my UFO list (that does not mean I’m out of UFOs though!) and have cast on for something green that will accompany me when I go on Easter vacation tomorrow. Bringing almost a kilo of yarn with me, I’ll be happy and knitting whatever happens and I wish the same for you!

New birds arriving

I suck, I know. I should have shown pictures of the Rogue ages ago, but the thing is that I haven’t been able to get anyone take pictures of me in it in daylight. I can only assure you that it is warm and comfy and I love it very much and have practically been living in it, cold and windy as it has been around here the past weeks.

I had some other FO pics ready but was unable to find my camera cable. It was hiding under a pile of old papers on my kitchen table and reappeared this morning so now I finally had a chance to get the photos transferred. If this makes you think that either my apartment or myself is a total mess you’re absolutely right but I’m blaming most of it on some painting and carpentering going on here, hoping things will look cleaner and brighter in every way possible very shortly.

Ah, knitting. Right. I made two chemo caps for my friend (who loved the shawl by the way, and thank you for all the good thoughts and comments). I didn’t get a photo of them but the leftovers look like this:

Using the purple Svale from Dalegarn for the top and the shinier Cotton viscose for the edging I made a Pi Topper cap that I enjoyed knitting so much that I decided to  use the pattern as a base for a second stripy cap. In the background is the new yarn in the bird series from Dale (called Lerke, meaning larch in Norwegian)  that was just perfect for this project, a cotton/merino blend that is soft to the skin and wonderful to knit with. For the stripy cap I knit a simple ribbed  edging. I am no good at knitting hats but the top-down construction is so simple and clever that even I managed to make a wearable hat out of it. I might knit one for myself next winter, chemotherapy or not.

But except for this I think I’ve lost my knitting mojo. The last issue of IK has been lying still wrapped in plastic on my coffee table for over a week. I know, it is a very disturbing sign. But I have been knitting. A while ago I finished this just in time for the homecoming of a little baby boy who decided to come out a week before his due date, otherwise it would have been there to welcome him at the hospital.

Pattern: Curve of Pursuit

Yarn: 2-ply merino from Nøstebarn or Bånsull

Needles: 5 mm circulars. Lots of them..

I’m guessing I used somewhere between 150 and 200 g, and that the measures are about 1×1 m. Before the birth I had seen the parents washing and preparing a pile of outgrown stuff after the big sister including a blanket I knit for her in the pre-blog days so I knew this one would be welcome and used every day. Although I love knitting I love even more seeing the knitting resulting in something pretty and useful that will be appreciated and worn, either by myself or someone else. I’m probably more a product than a process knitter although I love watching a piece come together and nothing pleases me more than clever construction and design. I’m thrilled that my Dad loves his Noro scarf as much as he does, he wears it all the time and I’m happy I’m able to give him something that he enjoys so much. (There was a small drama when he forgot it at a restaurant but it ended well. The town is so small that if someone had stolen it chances are good he would have seen them wearing it sooner or later anyway).

That is why I have decided to finish three of my UFOs before I start anything new. All three are for people who I hope will like their knits very much and I want them to be living happily with their new owners as soon as possible.

Plain socks for a friend who asked if I could please make her a pair for her birthday (which is long overdue) after seeing my last pair of birthday socks. It was very easy to say yes for a lot of reasons:I’ve been wanting to knit up this beautiful yarn for ages and it is her favourite colour, she has very small feet, and I had decided not to knit any socks for myself in a while cause I don’t need any but still I had this great urge for a plain stockinette sock… case closed. One is done and I’m ready to start hte heel on the other so it shouldn’t be long.

The zebra hat had to be ripped back to the ribbing as I realized I had done a stupid mistake that would cause the mane to go from ear to ear instaed from forehead to neck. It could have been funky-looking I’m sure but I strongly believe that one should not mess with nature so I decided to get it right. I’m ready to start the decreases for the crown so this is also not to far from complete.

The black thing has not been mentioned on the blog yet even if it was started last summer, cause I just don’t know what to say about it, and I still don’t, but it is about 2/3 complete I think so… I’m not really enjoying the knitting for a number of reasons but I’ll get back to that later. When it is done.

And then, when these birds are out of the nest, I’ll cast on for something green. Yum.

Protect and comfort

Pattern: Feather and Fan comfort shawl

Yarn: Evilla Artyarn 6/2 colour Denim, 185 g, and PT2 colour 06, 2 balls (100 g). About 250 blue and grey beads, randomly placed along edge.

Needles: 3.5 and 4 mm Addi Turbo Lace circulars

Breast cancer has somehow become the knitblogging disease. We read about it, raise money and share stories. There are devoted pattern pages like Knitty Breast cancer issue and Headhuggers. I’m sure the knitblogging community have most diseases out there represented, but at least this is one that we talk about and work actively against. Still, it is like a punch in the face when it suddenly hits someone you know. There is just no way to be prepared.

I picked up this yarn for no real reason other than liking it, and had no plans for it. Later that day I was told that a friend of mine had cancer. There is just so little one can do. I cast on for a shawl.

I wanted the shawl to be warm, sturdy and snuggly but good-looking at the same time. Comforting waves. Not blue, not grey, not purple but shifting with the light. With little treasures hidden deep down.

In many years from now I hope so see this shawl worn out, and I hope I can knit a new one for my friend. And I want to thank Knitty, Virtuella, Oktober Rosa and everyone else who is continuously working to fight this terrible disease.

Cross your needles. Please.

Just dropping by to say

that my finished Rogue is now blocking.

This is a thick sweater. We’re talking days before it is dry.

Aaargh!

For Daddy

Pattern: Noro generic scarf

Yarn: Noro (duh..) Silk garden, 2 balls no 31 and 2 balls no 248

Needles: 4.5 mm short metal circulars

This is the Christmas gift my dad asked for in October when he saw the first Noro scarf I made. Only that he wanted more colour, and some grey to go with his coat. I have to say my dad is surprisingly bold for a man when it comes to wearing colours and although the scarf turned out more colourful than intended I think he will like it.

There isn’t much to say really, except that this is a really quick, entertaining and mindless knit if you manage not to obsess over what colour meets what other colour and would that colour go better with that colour and should I break the yarn and force the colours to work the way I want or just let them do their thing cause if I force them I’ll get into more trouble later and have to weave in a lot of ends too and…

I managed not to obsess about this and broke the yarn only once. And this time I read the part in the pattern that tells you to slip the first and last st of the second row of each stripe to avoid the jog. Improvement comes in small steps around here.

The hardest part was selecting the yarn cause computer images doesn’t give you much to judge from when all you can see is a little ball in low resolution. First I ordered four balls of the 31 (darkest) and realized the scarf would be almost black with very little, subtle grey striping and although I think that would have been a cool effect is wasn’t what I was after. So more yarn was ordered and delivered too late for Christmas hence the late finish.But, in other words I have another four balls of NSG safely hidden in my stash…I have ideas but no time to bring them into life.

Merry Christmas Daddy. Let the new knitting year begin.

Unwrapping more gifts

Pattern: Feather and Fan comfort shawl

Yarn: Evilla Artyarn and Rauma Finull (the leftovers from my Pinwheel Circle jacket)

Needles: Circulars3.5 mm for the artyarn and 4 mm for the Rauma.

Initially I wanted to knit the Icelandic shawl from Folk shawls, to justify all the money I spend on knitting books, but after a closer look I realized that most of the shawl was knit plain, with a feather and fan border at the bottom only. So again I turned to the simple and free option. And this shawl truly is a comfort, both to knit and to wear.

I just hope I actually did use up all the leftover yarn, if I find another ball hidden somewhere I will scream, I’m telling you! This is the perfect leftover yarn project, and it ended up even bigger than I expected, more than 2 m across. Luckily the recipient, my mom, is a tall woman who likes things big, and the yarn is light and gives the shawl a beautiful drape without being heavy. And it blocks really well!

After the shawl was unwrapped I rarely saw it anywhere else but on the shoulders of the recipient, except for when my aunt used it during a visit. The perfect snuggle-up-in-front-of the-fire shawl. Success!

Happy new year to y’all!

Pattern: Unknown Norwegian gloves

Yarn: Dale of Norway Heilo

Needles: 3 mm metal dpns

Rarely have I been looking so much forward to a new year. 2007 was a beautiful and painful year, full of good and bad surprises, losses, gains and all these things you can never prepare for. I ended 2007 not knowing what on earth my life will look like from now. I entered 2008 with a job in hand, so the biggest piece in the puzzle is now in place. I think 2008 will be a good year.

But, before I can get started on my 2008 blogging, there is some summing up to do. Part of why I only wrote one post (!) last month was the Secret Christmas Knitting. I have to add though, that I am not yet done with the knitting for Christmas 2007. More about that tomorrow.

On the good side, I did get help with the knitting this (last) year. And not from just anyone. Remember the last time I told about the wooly treasures my Grandma left behind? There was more, and probably still is, or as my mom dryly commented, “I see where all your UFOs come from, they run in the family”. As if it was a bad thing. At least this UFO is now finished:

All that was left to do was the fingers on one hand, and both thumbs, and all the ends to weave in. The tricky part was not so much that I had no pattern, but that I ran out of yarn, and had no idea what Grandma had used. Some common-sense qualified thinking based on likelihood and availability narrowed the options down to Dale of Norway Heilo, which has been around for 70 years (!) and I found both the white and the grey I needed in my own stash! Yeay! Quality never goes out of style.

The gloves were gifted to my sister for Christmas, from Granny and me. Hope they will bring lots of warmth into the new year!

All about little things

Pattern: Fetching from Knitty

Yarn: Dale of Norway Tiur, unknown colour, but it is a gorgeous shiny charcoal grey.

Needles: I’m pretty sure I used needles. 3 mm maybe?

Modifications: Did six cable repeats instead of three for longer cuffs.

I actually made two similar pairs of these. Or, I made one, and a second, and discovered that they weren’t really a pair, and made a third and paired it with the most similar, and…you see where this goes? I think I knit the last one maybe 4 times before it matched the lone one close enough to be called a pair. My gauge must have been doing weird things. Or my eyes. Or both.

Then they have been resting around the house, and since I never saw more than one of the quartet at any given time I never got around to make the thumbs and weave in ends. But. Now. One pair is warming my hands as I type ( it is cold, but oh! so beautiful here these days) and the other will soon be on its way to a friend living somewhere where it is even colder. I don’t think she reads the blog. Ssh, don’t tell her!

I really love this pattern, it is fast, easy, pretty and very wearable and I think I’ve made 5-6 pairs tota but this is the first I’ve managed to keep for myself. And it is a great first-cable project if you’re looking for one. And I love the yarn, a gorgeous wool/mohair blend that is sadly discontinued. I would love to knit a sweater in this yarn…must dig deeper in my mother’s stash.

I am struggling really hard trying not to cast on any new stuff right now. I need easy knitting, but have a bunch of half-or almost finished things at various stages where important decisions must me made. And I have misplaced the rest of the yarn for the one simple object I have on the needles. And all I can think of is the one thing I don’t need; stockinette socks for myself. So, in weakness the other night, and with the promise of only knitting on them while watching TV so they won’t steal time from my other WIPs, I cast on a pair of stockinette socks, size 2 years, hoping to get the sock fix I need.

That doesn’t count, does it? Thanks, I knew I could lean on your support!