The Golden Iris

I finished my first Monkey sock on Sunday, and here it is, finally: And a texture closeup: (And of course I've started the second one.) I really like working with the Claudia Hand Paint yarn, especially once I figured out that the Gems that Claudia and Koigu both work with is nominally machine washable. I hand wash all my socks anyways, but it's nice to know that I won't accidentally felt them in the sink. As for Serrano, I've figured out that I'm more than ready to start the armhole and neck shaping. I just have to find time where I can concentrate on more than one thing at once. Finally, the preview of the new spring Interweave Knits is out! I want to give a speedy review based on the images. First, IK seems to have a revised cover design. Not sure if I like it yet, because to me it looks older, but not a big deal. Second, I want to make about 5 or 6 different things based on the tiny photos alone. I'd make Eunny Jang's entrelac socks, although proba...

I think I'm still in fancy cabled sweater destruction denial, so I've been working on socks instead. I like to have a project I can drag around with me wherever I go, even if I don't get to work on it. Lately I've been working with some really yummy Claudia's Handpaint and the Monkey pattern. I really like it and they've been working up very quickly, aside from some gauge mistakes: This was the first attempt, on #2 needles. It has taken me a while to realize that there's a huge gap between #1 and #2 needles -- half a millimeter really makes a difference here. So I was happy to find some #1.5 Crystal Palace dpns (sadly, one end was badly splintered, but I've been working to emery and wax it into submission) and now the Monkey socks are a little more the way they are supposed to be, after ripping the first attempt out entirely. I've also turned twisted ribbing into ordinary ribbing, and the plain heel into an eye-of-partridge one. My camera seems ...

Norberta and Knee-High Socks Scribble Lace Scarf/Wrap Shetland Triangle Felted Hedgehog Sock Project Bag Vintage Cabled Pullover Embossed Leaves Socks Jaywalkers Gossamer Ruffle Shawl Basic Handwarmers Child's First Socks Cell Phone Cozy Kool-Aid Dyed Slippers Parade Socks First Plied Handspun Picovoli Falling Leaves Socks Rosedale Baby Surprise Jacket Nordic Mittens (2006 Knitting Olympics) Clapotis Fraternal Twin Socks Baby Booties Curlicue Coverlet

I know this isn't a very good excuse, but part of the reason I haven't had much to say lately is because my knitting is going backwards rather than forwards. And unknitting isn't nearly as much fun as new knitting. Remember this sweater? What you don't see in that photo is that my awkward slouchy pose is hiding the fact that the sweater is at least two or three inches too short. Nope, not the pattern's fault, even though it's over 40 years old... reader error. Knowing that I would never comfortably wear the sweater the way it was, this is what it now looks like after two short evenings of work: Not nearly as cute, huh? Sadly, the major drawback of the allover-patterned sweater is that it would have been impossible to cut off the ribbing and knit downwards (which surely would have been the solution for a stockinette-bodied sweater, thus avoiding ripping out all the nice shaping and truly textbook seaming I did). So I'm back down to the armholes, ready to k...

So I have a short attention span. I decided to take a break from Serrano for a couple days and try out a new pattern from Victorian Lace Today This is the very first lace scarf in the book, and it is very simple and easy to do. I'm looking forward to finishing the body and applying the edging. I like the book, I don't mind the charts, and I think the photography is nice, although in my opinion the mohair blends were overused in the models. Anyhow, the one thing that I would have liked to see is a ratio of how much yarn is used in the borders compared to the body of the piece. I'm altering a pattern because I have a little less yarn than is called for, and I am having trouble determining where to leave off -- of course I want the scarf to be as long as possible, but I don't want to get almost to the end of the edging, run out of yarn, and then have to rip out all that work. I think today I have to clean the bathroom and vacuum before I can knit more... better get the...

It's 70 degrees here in Delaware today, and I'm set to go out and take a nice long walk in a few minutes. But I've spent this morning getting frustrated over the apparent lack of interesting content on the internets, so I decided I ought to create some. Not that I promise it will be interesting, but it will be new. While working on Serrano a few days ago I realized I'd made a mistake in pattern-reading and its subsequent execution: "work these 4 rows 5 more times" does not, under any circumstances, equal, "work these 4 rows 5 times total ". This was unfortunate because I had to rip out about 2 inches of a fairly big piece of knitting. Here it is before I ripped it out: Just for kicks, I measured it. 22" across -- and this piece is supposed to go all the way around my body. No way in hell, I thought. But since it was off the needles and I was going to rip it out anyhow, I figured it could withstand a little test stretching. Believe it or ...

As I had said, I got a lot of knitting done over Christmas; not all of it resulted in finished objects but I reached a few milestones. Works in Progress Custom-fit gloves: I really hate when my wrists get cold in the winter, sticking out between my coat and my gloves. So I'm making gloves with extra-long cuffs to help alleviate that problem. I'm using one of my favorite Interweave Knits patterns, a 2003 do-your-own calculation glove pattern for any gauge. I'm using Trekking Color and #1 needles, and I'm happy with the subtle variegation I'm getting. I've also modified the palm section with short rows to better mimic the shape of a hand. More about that when I get both gloves finished I think. Pomatomus Sock: Here is my most recent attempt to try and show the true color of this yarn, Brown Sheep Wildfoote, which is unstoppably difficult to photograph. I think I made a mistake on these socks; I didn't like the fabric I got on #2 needles so I switched to #...

It's been a while again, and unfortunately I have a lot to catch up on. Suffice to say that I went on 2 weeks' vacation to see family over the holidays, and got a lot of relaxing and knitting done. I'm happy to be back in Delaware, where things are a bit more familiar now. Gift Knitting Now that the recipient has gotten their gift, I can show it off. This is knitty's Norberta , reinterpreted in Red Heart Plush from my stash. It was a Christmas gift for my nephew. Here is another view of the dragon. I don't know if it was changing the pattern from cotton to acrylic, but things were a little wonky when I went to sew it together. The spines were a little too long for the back, and the tail was a little short. Maybe I screwed up in my pattern reading, but I'm not sure. I like making stuffed animals but I probably will not make a second one, just because I hate to make the same thing twice. Knee High Socks These got finished very quickly one night while watchi...