Workbasket Wednesday...

 Here is a wee update on what has been occupying me over the past few months.

Isaiah's sweater - I posted about this way back here and then here again and so here it is.  I weaved in the ends while the kids were asleep in the sunshine Monday afternoon.  A labour of love, this sweater.  This was the first time I tried Elizabeth Zimmerman's Percentage System for a sweater from The Opinionated Knitter.  It worked like a charm for the entire thing but the neck opening.  That I had to rip back a few rows to make a bit wider for Isaiah's gargantuan melon.

Thrummed Mittens - I made good progress on these on Mother's Day - sticking them in my purse with some torn unspun yarn in a ziploc baggie.  I'm pretty impressed with how fast they knit up once you get going.  Tearing the unspun wool is what fuels the procrastination.  Thanks to the Yarn Harlot for the hilarious yarn-along.

Isaiah's "Superhero" - that is what he lovingly calls all capes - just "superhero".  So he's getting one and I am excited to give it to him with the warm weather upon us.  I have visions of him wearing only this cape and his underpants running around the parking lot.



Those Socks - yes, yes.  I'm still working on them.  Sort of.  I lost another needle a couple of weeks ago so I'm back down to 3 size 2mm needles.  sigh.  now I have to go buy a new set of them before I can make any more progress.  Update: The very nice Chinese man at the drycleaning/yarn store gave me a set of 2mm for free - before I dropped off Keith's pants for cleaning!! Nice man.

I have a couple of projects for my little miss.  One is finished but too small so I'll be making another LARGER one soon.  The other is still in the works so I'll be posting on them a little later this week.

What have you been working on this week?

Vintage Goodness...

Last Spring, Keith's grandma passed away and after a few months Grandpa asked all of the grandkids to come and go through Grandma's belongings and take what we'd like.  I was away at school when both of my grandmothers died so I was never part of this process.  It was overwhelming - the feeling that these were her's - that she picked them out herself and I felt I knew this Grandmother-in-law of mine a bit better by being there.  The most wonderful and also somewhat sad part was going through all of her yarn and fabric and notions.  Beautiful fabric all neatly tied into bundles with scraps secured inside.  Summery cotton prints neatly folded and waiting for their turn to be sewn into something useful and lovely.  She wasted nothing - each scrap was there just in case she ever needed it for a log cabin square or a pocket lining. Grandpa even sent along her Bernina sewing machine.  I cannot wait to try it out.  It was so special and humbling to go through her wardrobes of cloth and sewing tables - to pick and choose as best I could what I would use and what might be better used by the quilting guild. I was sad because none of her original granddaughters sew or knit.  I was sad that they couldn't fully appreciate the richness of her collection of thread, rickrack, wool and cloth. The history in the cut fabric of pajamas and receiving blankets and nightgowns; pant suits and summer skirts and blouses. I was honoured to take it and I hope I can make some beautiful things for her great grandbabies - just like she would have wanted to do.

Project Update: Mostly Knitting

Well, it is the middle of March and I haven't posted very many project pictures in a few weeks.

First up - the finished projects!

This is the Lazy Days skirt from Oliver +S.  The cotton fabric was quite thin so I added a second layer of solid coloured fabric inside.  I made a bunch of mistakes but learned a lot.  I actually made two of these, one for my wee girl (not shown) and my niece for their 2nd and 4th birthdays, respectively.

I also finished up knitting this cowl out of stash yarn.  It is too big so I'm thinking about knitting an I-cord to weave through it so I can cinch it at the neck.  It is soooo soft - baby alpaca and silk. I can't wait to wear it - guess I should weave in the ends...

Next on the finished pile is a small hat that ended up being too small for Rowie (and even a bit small on Lulu) but I'll put it in the growing pile of gifts to go to upcoming babies.



Isaiah's striped sweater is coming slowly along - row by row.  It is going to be way too big, I can tell already, but I try to tell myself it means more seasons of wear before it gets retired or passed down.  I am itching to cast on a Tomten for him but I'm resisting.

Up next - those socks.  I finished up Sock #1 but haven't found the time (or the pattern...) for the second one... grr.

Finally, the project I'm having the most fun with - thrummed mittens!  Woot.  These are knitting up fast (besides all that ripping and twisting of unspun wool).  I am so excited by how easy these actually are to make - and how warm they are. They are my new favourite.  Thank you Yarn Harlot, for the humorous yarn-along.

I have about 30 balls of yarn hidden (from myself, not my husband) under our bed right now that I bought with birthday money and gift certificates. (Thank you, Keith and Dad Dow) as well as a Turkish drop spindle so I'm working hard at trying to get these unfinished projects into the finished pile before I lose all focus and self-control and open that box.  I may need another cup of coffee...

Drycleaners and Pygmy Puffs

It was the first week in January and Keith's birthday so I went to get my hair cut upon his request.  I have a small face, so when my bangs get too long they kind of - take over.  Keith happens to like my face so I thought it would be a nice gift if he could see it again.  The hairdresser only had time to cut my bangs since I didn't have an appointment so I was childless and had 20 extra minutes of spare time!

I was feeling leisurely when I left the salon and happened to be looking in the windows of the other shops in the strip mall when I saw it - yarn.  Yarn and knit up socks in the window of a drycleaner.  I believe I threw open the door and said - okay, yelled - "You sell yarn here!"   If you aren't a knitter or crocheter you probably don't understand what it is like to find a new yarn source a mere 5 minute walk from your house.  So, after my outburst, the very sweet lady behind the counter started to tell me about her online yarn store and her mother who knit up the socks.  The yarn was mostly bamboo sock weight yarn and some chunky wool but the prices were great.  They also had some eyelash yarn for dirt cheap and I had only just stumbled upon Nancy Frye's pattern for Pygmy Puffs from Harry Potter VI.  What was a girl to do?  So I spent $7.50 for two balls of bamboo and one ball of purple/blue eyelash yarn.  

Here is my Puff :)

I think I'm going to knit the stay-on baby booties with bamboo, but we'll see.  I have managed to stay on my yarn-fast wagon since my slip on the 6th - but we are entering February, which although short, seems to drag out the Winter here in Ottawa...and I think my Christmas dress needs to be drycleaned :)

Wool Socks

Wool socks.  The epitome of warmth and comfort on Wintery days.  This is what I thought when I set out knitting these guys for my brother-in-law, Colin.  He is an outdoorsy guy who hunts and fishes and has loved the fingerless gloves I've made for him in the past. So, I started knitting.  These are the third pair of socks I've made in my four and a half years as a knitter.  The first pair took about 6 months.  Well, the first sock took about 3 months and the second sock took three months to even make it onto the needles but knit up in a couple of weeks.  The second pair I blitzed and finished in a little over a week. Naturally, I was optimistic when I cast on the first of this pair back before Thanksgiving - Canadian Thanksgiving - at the beginning of October.  This is as far as they've made it - or rather, IT has made it.

The combination of a knit 3, purl 1 pattern and the very fine navy blue yarn means that I need good lighting to work on these and since I have a 3.5 year old and a 23month-old - I knit mostly watching TV with Keith in the evenings with very poor lighting.

Needless to say, I took a break from knitting on these for a few weeks after the holidays, once I was reconciled to the fact that Colin wouldn't be getting these socks before Spring.  During my hiatus I was at our monthly knitting guild meeting with my friend Jasmine. I was telling her about "those stupid socks" when the lady across the table told me she had knit every pair of socks her husband had for the last 50 years.  In a knit 3, purl 1 pattern.  In black yarn.  She told me she hated knitting every pair, but he loved them so she kept doing it for 50 years.  Isn't that just it?  Us crazy knitters will knit something we hate working on for someone we love just because we know they will love it.  We are a mental, but generous bunch.

p.s. If you haven't looked at this video on Franklin Habit's blog: The Panopticon, I think you should.  Especially if you are a non-knitter with a knitting friend.  This may explain a lot.  

The Yarn Fast - Month One.

Yup, it's true. I told my sweet husband that I was going to go a whole year without buying any new yarn but was going to knit up projects from my stash. And my husband loves me and so he holds me accountable for those careless words I spoke in my altruistic moment.  And so, I'll be posting pictures as I progress through my stash, knitting projects big and small for my littles and loved ones.

Here is my first sweater of the year that I began last Fall but put on hold for Christmas knitting.  It's the Shalom Cardigan.  I really wanted to add sleeves, but they will either have to wait a year - or I'll just have to knit a second Shalom when I break my fast (or someone sends me 2 Skeins of Cascade EcoWool). :)

This sweater turned out rather well, I think.  I may have reversed my twisted ribs (front and back) but they still stand out enough.  I followed the mods made by some on ravelry - no waist shaping and twisted ribbing on the hem.

The Pebble...

I always knit with the best of intentions.  I always intend to follow the pattern as it is written and fix mistakes as I go.  It seems, though, that there is a point of no return, where I am not going to go back and fix a mistake - I'm going to press on and finish the project.  And hence, we have The Pebble.  This sweater vest pattern was written for a 6-12 month old baby.  I wanted to knit it for Isaiah for Christmas so I made my first attempt at "upsizing".  I bought Lion Brand's Thick and Quick and 10mm circular needles and went for it.  I just knit the pattern as it was written, made almost no mistakes and got this:

A sweater vest that fit me. sort of.  It was certainly far too huge for Isaiah, and I knew this as I was knitting it.  I knew it was way bigger around than he needed - but by the time I got far enough to see this, I was past the point of no return.  So then I had this:

Because honestly, I wasn't going to wear this manly little vest.  It was a bit too short and shapless and bulky and although perfect for my 3-year-old - not at all becoming on me.

So now I have this, a baby cocoon for a soon-to-be-here boy and lots of green potential for those days when the white of winter seems to go on forever and I'm longing for Spring.

Reasons Why Yarn is a Weapon

Just when I was feeling a bit gloomy from being busy and discouraged and, let's face it, grumpy with my kids, I got this beautiful gem of a book in the mail from my friend Pam.  I must have rubbed off on her during all those Sunday nights of board games with NHL200whatever in the background.  I'm quite sure she would never have bought me book of horrific, scandalous and emasculating yarn catastrophes, complete with less-than-appropriate commentary.  But she did, and I love her for it.

Oh, how I love that knitted helmet!

Now, I'm not sure I'm supposed to be posting pictures from this book, but it is all in praise of Stitchy McYarnpants and her work in uncovering these treasures from the past.

This is one of my favourite parts.  It has long been discussed in yarny circles, this problem with knitting for our manly loved ones.  After thumbing through this chapter I think Keith would happily wear anything I knit for him provided he never ended up looking like any of these chumps.

And onto my the most entertaining and perhaps most disturbing chapter on knitted toys.  I have now seen enough terrifying clowns and babies in knitted unitards with gun holsters and cowboy hats.  It has definitely made me rethink the toys I've thought of making for the kids.

Thank you, Pam  for this fantastic book.  Whenever I start to feel discouraged about my own knitting disasters it will be nice to have this little piece of perspective!