Owl Hat (Again)

October 8: I made another one of these hats for a gift but it was really hard to give away, so I wanted to make another one for me.

I wanted a small project that I could start and finish in one evening and this hat was just perfect for that goal. It turned out really nicely.

Pattern: Owl Hat by Ruthie Nussbaum
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash in Blue Velvet (#813)

Windy City Hat

September 13: A pretty easy knit. I went up to size 8 needles and also added about 3 extra rounds of the stockinette before decreasing at the top. Fits great!



Pattern: Windy City Hat by Jodi Haraldson
Yarn: Dream in Color Classy in Some Summer Sky

Aestlight Shawl

August 10: Started the shawl. The construction is a bit different from some of the other shawls I’ve done, so I’m excited to see how this one comes together. Because I did these YOs on the edges for the toe up socks, I’m feeling pretty comfortable with doing them on the garter stitch triangle. Otherwise, I think that it would have been a little bit of an adjustment at first to get the hang of them.
August 15: Only 3 rows left in the garter stitch triangle!
August 16: I’ve started on the border. I’ve picked up all the stitches and I’m up through row 4 so far. I had a couple of weird issues with the picked up stitches and knitting through the back loop. I counted carefully and made sure twice that I had all the loops, but for some reason on the knit row after the one through the back loop, I found two places where something wonky happened and it looked like the stitches hadn’t been picked up correctly. I was able to fix them both times and as I’ve knitted a little further along, I don’t think it shows at all, so I hope it’s all taken care of. But I’d really like to know how the mistakes happened!
August 23: I’m now exactly halfway through the Bird’s Eye Lace section. (Sadly, with the semester starting up, I’m having a lot less time to knit so it’s been slow going). My curse as a tight knitter has struck again. My bird’s eyes are rather small. When I stretch them, they look okay, so I’m hoping that the blocking will make them stand out, but mine are no where near as large or prominent as other pictures I’ve seen of WIPs. (Speaking of pictures, I need to get some updated ones!)
August 25: Just 6 more rows to go with the Bird’s Eye Lace!
August 27: I’ve finally gotten to the edging (I’ve finished just one repeat of it so far) and I’m finally posting a couple of updated pictures. I’m also using the handy trick that haramis mentioned of using a DPN as the second needle for the edging. Thanks Emily! It’s a lot easier to work with.
August 28: I made it to the halfway point on the edging section. I may actually be able to finish this shawl within the next week!
September 12: I got a little bogged down working on the border because it was so repetitive and got boring after a while. But I pushed through today and finished it. It’s currently blocking (see picture). Although there are some parts I would have liked to see turn out better, I’m pleased with it overall.

Pattern: Aestlight Shawl by Gudrun Johnston
Yarn: Wollmeise 100% Merino Superwash in Gewitterhimmel

Available for sale in my etsy shop.

Happy Frog

Sept. 7: Started the body of the frog.

Sept. 8: Finished the body, both arms, and one leg. This little guy is turning out a bit smaller than I had expected. But I think he’s going to be super cute. I learned how to do a picot bind off to create the digits on the fingers/toes. I had to redo the first arm, but I think I’ve got it now. I need to get to the hobby store soon and pick out some eyes!

Sept. 9: This little guy is nearly finished. He’s all put together and looks really cute, but I still need to embroider on a mouth for him. So that’s all that he needs and he’ll be done! (And I have enough yarn and another set of eyes so I can make him a companion.)

Sept. 12: Mouth completed (if a little wonky)

Pattern: Happy Frog by Emily Stoneking
Yarn: Malabrigo Silky Merino in Lettuce

Birthday Cowl

September 1: I felt like working on a quick and easy project this evening, so I picked up this cowl. It was an easy pattern to memorize and I think it turned out really well.



Pattern: Birthday Cowl by Nova Seals
Yarn: Dream in Color Classy in Some Summer Sky

Mouse King

July 12: Started the king mouse. I’ve finished knitting all of the pieces. Now comes the hard part of putting everything together.

July 14: Got the body and head put together.

July 24: Put on the feet, crown, and ears.

August 30: This poor guys was without arms and clothing for far too long, so I took an hour or so this morning and finished him. Some parts are a little fiddly (I need to get more practice at piecing small parts together), but he looks cute over all.

Pattern: Mouse King from Tails of Yore by Alan Dart (from Simply Knitting Issue 53)
Yarn: various colors in Hayfield Bonus DK

Whitby

August 1: Started the first sock and finished up through the heel flap. Knitting socks with sport weight yarn definitely moves quickly!

August 2: Finished first sock! The pattern is pretty easy (both to memorize and to read). It’s a slightly different type of heel than I’ve done before (I believe it’s a square heel) and I think I like it. It seems sturdy and like it will wear a little better. It also looks like I’m going to have almost exactly enough yarn. (If my measurements are correct, I may have 0.1 oz leftover.)

August 21: Finally cast on for second sock.

August 29: I decided to treat myself to a full day of knitting and watching Buffy. After 12 episodes (season 4), I have another completed sock. And actually 0.4 oz of yarn leftover.

Pattern: Whitby by Nancy Bush (from Knitting on the Road)
Yarn: Mama Blue Knitting Goods Troika Sport in Ruby

Selbu

I’ve been wanting to try some colorwork so I decided that this hat might make a good first project. I picked some leftover sock yarn that I thought both looked decent together and also had enough yardage. It wasn’t until I started working on the hat that I realized that the colors are John Deere colors. Oh well, the hat is mostly for practice. Perhaps if it turns out okay then I’ll donate it somewhere.

August 20: The colorwork had been really slow going. I was trying out different ways of holding the yarn (even getting some continental knitting going) but nothing was really comfortable. I was at the point where I just decided to pick up each color as I needed it, which was extremely time consuming to drop the yarn, pick up the other, knit a stitch, drop the yarn, pick up the other, knit two stitches, etc.

I got one of the Knitting Yarn Guides. It’s a very small piece of plastic, but what a difference it makes! It’s a lifesaver!! I think I knit 9 rows last night faster than I had knit the rest of the hat up to that point (11 rows plus the ribbing). The yarn guide keeps my yarn untangled, I can easily grab the color I need without having to drop anything. And the tension stays almost just right.

In fact, it helped so much, that I flew through the knitting of the rest of the hat and it’s now finished! I’m quite happy with how the colorwork came out. Now, the shape of the hat is another story. It’s not quite as flopsy as it probably should be, but that’s okay.

Pattern: Selbu Modern by Kate Gagnon Osborn
Yarn: Dream in Color Smooshy (Happy Forest) and MadelineTosh Sock (Chamomile)

More Toe Up Socks

July 9: I enjoyed working the short row toe on the practice socks for my class, so I decided to jump in and start another pair of toe-up socks in a fingering weight yarn. I should have gone down a needle size as the fabric feels a bit loose, but I’m going to continue with these right now and see how they look after I finish the foot.

July 11: Finished the foot and heel and started working on the leg.

July 24: Finished the first sock and the toe of the second sock.

July 30: Finished the foot, heel, and just got started on the ribbing on the leg.

August 9: Finished second sock!

Yarn: numma numma toasty in Blackberry Jam
Pattern: Basic toe up sock provided by the class instructor

New Niece Cardigan

August 3: I was a little confused about the pattern at first until I realized that the top part is knit sideways rather than from top to bottom. Once I figured that out, the pattern makes a lot more sense!

August 4: Finished the top section. Now I need to pick up stitches for the lace skirt part.

August 8: Finished! I want to get a snap for the closure and also do a little blocking, but I’ve posted some pictures for now.

Pattern: Vintage Rocks Baby by Dianna Smith
Yarn: Have You Any Wool Simplicity Sock in Printemps