Pattern: Doocot by Kate Davies
Yarn: 3 skeins of Cascade Yarns Roslyn in colorway #13 “Olive”
Needles: US 5
Time: December 16, 2018--March 9, 2019
Ravelry link
Looks like I have to play catchup on some project notes... Here’s a sweater I worked on throughout the winter and finished just in time to start layering in spring! I went back and forth on my opinion of this yarn for a while; though it’s incredibly soft for a tweed-looking texture, all of those little silk flecks popped off often while knitting, so frequently I would find my lap, desk, bag, floor, etc speckled green after working on the project :/ It seems to be holding together and not shedding quite so much after blocking, however, and the fabric is beautifully light.
I’m quite a fan of this pattern, too--I already have another Doocot on my needles now!
Pattern: Carbeth by Kate Davies
Yarn: 2 skeins of MarLen mill ends (approximately 500 yds)
Needles: US 10.5 and 11
Time: December 7-15, 2018
Ravelry link
Whew, what a busy couple of months it’s been! New jobs and big changes have meant I’ve neglected blog upkeep, so the next couple of posts will be playing catch-up with a couple of unblogged knits from 2018 :)
One major goal with my knitting for the last several years has to been to stashbust effectively. Yes, I know, it’s been SEVERAL years and I’m still working on it, but part of that process has been to reevaluate yarns and projects I’ve made but no longer wear or want, and see what can be done with them. If you’ve been here a good while, you may recognize this yarn from this project:
Now at the time, this was a fun project; I got to try out huge needles, make something out of two mill ends yarn from a very cool shop in Prague (where I was living for a study abroad program), and knit from a Japanese pattern chart for the first time! But I don’t know what I was thinking, because I hate vests, I didn’t own any others aside from this one and never buy them, because I never wear them!! This ultra-thick vest also brushed on my neck, and with a lot of random wool and mohair bits in this yarn blends, it was too far itchy to wear with any of my shirts unless they had high collars. A fun project, but effectively a useless garment.
So three years later, I frogged it. I soaked the yarn to let out the kinks, wound it, and let it sit in my stash a while. I tried another sweater pattern and again found the result not something I’d actually wear, and frogged quite early into the process. I let the yarn sit some more. And then Kate Davies published her brilliant “Carbeth” pattern, I checked the yardage requirements, looked over at my stash and thought, “I bet I could make it work.”
“Carbeth” is a simple but brilliant pattern, written neatly and simply with the PDF being easy to read and lovely to look at without being spread over too many pages. The principle of the sweater is essentially a bottom-up raglan, but instead of the traditional 8 decreases every 2nd round on body and sleeves, “Carbeth” decreases 4 stitches every round to create a neat edge in the yoke where body meets sleeves. Because of my aforementioned itchy yarn, I opted for a simple crew neckband instead of the turtleneck, which helped me stretch the sleeves as far as they could go--which landed on being pretty perfectly 3/4 sleeves. My only major pattern mod was to add 4 short rows on the back neck in order to help the crew stay lower in the front and not ride up against my throat. Most satisfying: there was not a single end left to waste at the end of this. Stashbusting!!!
A lot of people--both knitters and not--can be pretty horrified when I rip apart my old projects. Projects that, save for being unworn, are perfectly good knits. But I’ve always felt that I’d rather put that yarn to use in something that I actually enjoy picking up and putting on, or something that I know will be a great fit for a friend or loved one. Don’t be afraid to frog, people, no matter how many years have gone by!!! Or give away something whole to a better home, as the case may be. My stashbusting has taken quite a while, yes, but it’s brought me more in touch with the clothes I like to wear and the things I like to make--as well as made me think about quality of supplies what I’m spending my money on.
Pattern: Cupido Cowl by Hiroko Fukatsu
Yarn: 2 skeins of Noro Silver Thaw (*discontinued) in colorway #1
Needles: US 8
Time: November 19-28, 2018
Ravelry link
I was a little goofier in this photoshoot than I usually am, but because this cowl was a gift for @aquamirage, lover of all black cats, I couldn’t resist pulling out this headband and dressing up ;) The Cupido Cowl is one of my go-to patterns for cowls that just need a little extra texture to make them really stand out. The linen stitch variation worked out amazingly with the stripes of the Noro, giving this piece an almost faux-woven texture! It now lives in New York with its recipient and is hopefully keeping her cozy this winter.
Pattern: Cambria Wrap by Alexandra Tavel
Yarn: 6 skeins of Paintbox Yarns Cotton DK in #407 “Granite Grey”
Needles: US 8
Time: November 7-19, 2018
Ravelry link
I know I say this every year, but I do take knit commissions on a case-by-case basis! This one is currently in the mail headed to @liobi, who requested a “witchy shawl” that wouldn’t be too stuffy to wear in the warmer climate of LA. After we selected the pattern, I recommended a lighter weight cotton yarn to achieve the same kind of drape for this shawl, but not as much heat as a worsted wool. Though smaller than the pattern sample, this shawl has an 80″ wingspan and 32.5″ length at the center, so it is still plenty big enough to wrap around the back and shoulders, or drape as triangle scarf in the front. The tassels were quite fun to make as well, and give it that extra touch of drama! ;)
Pattern: Hemlock Ring Blanket by Jared Flood
Yarn: 3 skeins of Purl Essence Sincerely Everyday Solids in #127 “Oatmeal Heather”
Needles: US 10.5
Time: August 15--October 26, 2018
Ravelry link
Do you ever purpose a batch of yarn without thinking much about it just because it’s cheap, and then realize you don’t like ANYTHING about the texture or color, but now you have a lot of it, but nothing you make with it is enjoyable? That is, in a nutshell, this yarn. I got about 1500 yards for under $30 at a Jo-Ann sale many years ago, and have attempted to use it no less than 3 times, each a catastrophic failure. I don’t buy acrylic much at all anymore just because I really hate how it has to be heat-blocked and gets weirdly sticky against my skin with certain textures.
This year, my parents celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary, I looked into my stash and saw a mass of beige, and thought “THIS IS HOW I AM FINALLY GOING TO GET RID OF ALL THIS!!!!!” Behold: an afghan that used 3 of my 5 skeins! There are still things I don’t like--the blocking didn’t work out so smoothly bc I have no room to steam this entire thing on my floor--but I figure as a gift, it will likely be tossed on the couch. And since it’s acrylic, it can be washed easily or spilled on or used however my parents like, but still looks fancy enough to display in public. The Hemlock Ring lace just honestly makes even garbage yarn look pretty good!!
Pattern: Sleeveless Slipover by Churchmouse Yarns and Teas
Yarn: 3 skeins of Shibui Knits Twig in colorway “Ash”
Needles: US 5
Time: June 10--August 29, 2018
Ravelry link
Since moving to Seattle, I have savored every time I get to take the ferry to Bainbridge Island and bask in the Churchmouse Yarns and Teas shop. Over the summer, I picked up a copy of their Sleeveless Slipover pattern and some Shibui Twig to make something I’d never made before: a non-wool knit top!
Using a linen yarn like Twig was very interesting--though I knew, in theory, that it would soften up after blocking, seeing the yarn become a completely different texture just by adding water and a little Soak was like watching magic! I also love the subtle heather in these colorways. Combined with the clean lines of this pattern, the resulting top feels light, elegant, and easily dressed up or down. I definitely hope to revisit the pattern in one of its different lengths in the future!
Pattern: Begonia Swirl by Carfield Ma
Yarn: 1 skein of Malabrigo Yarn Lace in colorway “Sabiduria”
Needles: US 4
Time: June 19--July 23, 2018
Ravelry link
Whoops…it’s been a while, Tumblr! The end of my graduate school career, summer job adventures, and fall job hunting adventures have back blogging on the backburner this year, but I have proof that I have been knitting in between!!
This piece was a commission/gift for my friend @tamocch, who has gotten me amazing birthday gifts from the Toronto Comic Arts Festival every year in exchange for a knitted item from me! Her request this year was for another shawl (see the previous), and she picked out the Begonia pattern herself as well. Though I wasn’t a fan of knitting lace without a chart, the construction of this shawl was really fun and did indeed create a “swirl” during blocking. I had never done a crochet edging before--me and crochet are not on good terms--but this one turned out so well and so cute that I dared to do a larger one on a different project (pics of that coming soon too), and may even do more in the future!
As always, Malabrigo lace is so glorious and light. I don’t wear shawls myself, but gosh this yarn makes me want to knit a thousand…
Pattern: Igawa by Junko Okamoto
Yarn: 3 skeins of Cedar House Yarns Sapling Sock in “Oyster,” “Ink,” and “Toasted Marshmallow”
Needles: US 2 and 4
Time: April 17, 2017--January 29, 2018
Ravelry link
There are people--many people--who frequently making large knits out of fingering weight yarn. These people are the strongest, bravest, and most patient people who have ever lived, and I fully believe that one day they will rule the earth. For me, on the other hand, this was……a struggle. Not only to keep fitting inside my backpack, but to find the will to finish 66 rounds in which nothing much was happening.
On the bright side, I LOVE the finished product. I picked up these skeins from the Cedar House Yarns booth at a Seattle knitting festival last year (forgive me, I can’t remember which one!!) and even got some help from the lovely owners on picking colors! Now that winter is going to hopefully recede a bit, it’s great to have another lighter sweater in my closet to pull out when I want a classy but comfy look :)
For more pattern notes and my mods on Igawa, click the Ravelry link above!
A problem I frequently run into in my crafting life is that I am either having a bountiful posting season or a complete dry spell. Being in graduate school over the last two years has certainly contributed to my lack of time devoted to this blog and to knitting in general, but with 2018 here I really do want to spend more time with both! So here’s a brief recap of what I was up to in 2017 :)
Commissions
I was lucky to receive several commissions last year (and am still open to receiving more!) All three were hats, two with pre-written patterns and one that I designed myself. My favorite part of knitting for others is always seeing the recipient wear the finished product, so if you commission from me in the future please don’t hesitate to send along a photo!
Long-lasting gifts
In my early knitting days, I confess that I made a lot of gifts for family members, saw them hidden away from the light of day, and subsequently vowed I’d never knit presents again. Of course now I understand that I was making a pretty common mistake: I was making things for people that *I* wanted to make them, not things they would actually like to have! Since then, both my skills and my eye for gift-giving have improved a lot, and I get the immense joy of seeing my friends and relatives actually make use of their knits. In 2017 my favorite things to both make and deliver were some presents for two new babies in my family, a cowl for a dear friend who moved out of state, and a fun, squishable toy for another long-distance pal.
Just For Me
I’ve been on a long-term mission to really cut back on my stash. Living that #gradstudentlife means I've not had the funds for new yarn in quite some time, but also made me reassess what I do have and whether it’s really something I like to knit with. In the future, I want my stash to be full of things that inspire and delight me, not just a bunch of yarn I feel guilty for not using!! I’m very proud that of my selfish 2017 FO’s, I was able to use a beloved yarn from Rhinebeck 2015 to make a sweater I love to wear and wear often, and make a jellyfish toy/necklace for an event entirely of scraps I didn’t like in their scrap form, but that I LOVE put together in the finished knit.
I did work on several others WIPs that will be pushed into the 2018 FO category, but I’m excited to show off what I’ve been creating out of what I already have so I can clear out some drawers for future yarn endeavors!! :D
That’s all the news that’s fit to print for this post! I’m not going to hold myself to any promises of posting weekly or something this coming year, but I AM graduating in the spring, and who knows what knits await in the future?? See you then!!
(PS: you can find all of the project information for these items on Ravelry! Friend me if you like, too! :) )
Pattern: Docklight by Julie Hoover
Yarn: 4 skeins of Botanical Shades Superwash 4-Ply in “Gold”
Needles: US 5 and 6
Time: October 20, 2016--April 6, 2017
Ravelry link
This project has been dubbed “Centennial” on Ravelry because--drumroll--it is the 100th project I entered there!!! It’s hard to believe I’ve made over 100 knits in my lifetime, but here we are?!
It’s also a very special piece because it’s made with yarn I purchased at my first ever Rhinebeck visit! At the festival I wanted to find a worsted wool, preferably superwash, in a deep gold or mustard tone. I stumbled upon the Botanical Shades booth and couldn’t believe I found everything I wanted in one yarn, and am not ashamed to confess I snatched up the last four skeins and cradled them in my arms until @fooost could return and consult with me. I love that this lovely color comes from Botanical Shades’ natural dyes of chestnut, osage, and cutch, even though it did mean I had to alternate skeins.
Unfortunately I did have quite a lot of trouble with the pattern. You can follow my Ravelry link to read about the issues I faced while making it, but in summary I am not a fan of Brooklyn Tweed’s formatting template nor their notoriously weak worsted wool that has made many of their patterns seamed for strength purposes. Still, I can’t deny that I love the fit and shape of the finished product, and was pleased to make my first seamed collar!
Pattern: Little Coffee Bean Cardigan by Elizabeth Smith
Yarn: 1 skein of Berroco Vintage in #51181, 1 skein of Patons Beehive Baby Sport in “Angel White” held together with sport weight recycled gray acrylic
Needles: US 6 and 7
Time: March 30--April 4, 2017
Ravelry link
I LOVE baby knits: always quick, easy, and so much fun to play with! This was a cardigan for my cousin’s second child (the little brother of the recipient of this cardigan), sized for a 12-month-old instead of a newborn so that he can get more wear out of it in the fall and winter. I got to use up some of the spare acrylics languishing in my stash too--always good for messy babies, and a bonus of stashbusting for me!!
While this year’s total of knitted good didn’t quite live up to last year’s (and I’m not surprised, I think being bed-ridden for most of the spring is the only reason I was able to get my count above double digits haha), some pretty significant life things did happen for me in 2016, such as:
I graduated from college!
I was accepted to and began my first year of graduate school!!
I moved across the country to Seattle, WA!!!
I started a part-time job in my career field that has given me fantastic experiences and some amazing coworkers and friends!!!!
I was still knitting during all of this, but this year instead of a bunch of smaller projects I found myself focusing on fewer, large-scale ones. Namely, my first-ever pieced afghan, a project I’ve been dreaming of making for a long time! I also used up more yarn than I purchased this year, which is a good feat for me and one I hope to continue in 2017.
Here’s a further breakdown of my 2016 knits:
7 completed FO’s
2 hats
2 pairs of socks
1 cowl
1 shawl
1 afghan
3 projects were gifts
4 were for me ;)
over 5,000 yards of yarn used (2,000~ of which were in the afghan!)
Lately I’ve been taking stock of my knitting and trying to make more things that I can use often, such as socks, along with buying less yarn that looks cool or is cheap in favor of yarn that I know will hold up and still be wearable over time. I’ve also been trying to buy more either from local yarn stores or independent spinners/dyers, because I fully believe it’s important to support fiber artists! My goals for 2017 are to keep hacking away at my stash, knit more gifts for friends, and finish all of the sweaters that I have planned for the year. And of course, keep wearing the projects that I’ve made and love well!
Wishing you all a bright new year and happy knitting <3
Pattern: Fish Hat [Dead or Alive?] by Thelma Egberts
Yarn: 1 skein of Knit Picks Brava Worsted in “Orange,” fins, tail, and feelers in scraps of Brava Worsted in “Canary” and Patons Beehive Baby Sport in “Angel White,” lips in Emotive Classic in “Pink”
Needles: US 8 for body, US 6 for other features
Time: August 18--December 23, 2016
Ravelry link
Last of the belated FO posts! While I did not enjoy sewing all the accessory parts on (I think I’m just really bad at placing things, even with pins??), this hat was a blast to make. I’d seen a few magikarp versions of the Fish Hat and thought it would make a great gift for one of my cousins who has been obsessed with Pokémon Go. Little did I expect that this hat would be such a successful gift that other family members kept stealing it from him all night--even the model in this photo is not the original recipient! But it’s good to know that this handknit will be well-loved!
Pattern: Triangles, Diamonds, & Squares, Oh my! by Grace Akhrem
Yarn: roughly 2000+ yards of worsted wool yarns, including Patons Classic Wool Worsted, Cascade 220, Araucania Nature Wool, and Cosymakes Snagdragon Worsted
Needles: US 7
Time: August 21--December 8, 2016
Ravelry link
Around August I gathered up a ton of spare worsted wool yarns in my stash and decided to use them in a project I’ve been dreaming of for a while: an afghan. I wanted to make something that could use up all of the colors I don’t typically wear, namely a ton of beige shades, and after a Ravelry search I found the Triangles, Diamonds, and Squares pattern. I’ve always loved quilts and loved the easy way the squares could be arranged like quilt blocks! While thinking of designs, I came across the website Quiltivate and used their Flying Geese template to try out my color ideas.
While the timeline on this project is long, I really had finished all of my 36 squares by October; the most time-consuming part of the pattern was blocking and seaming all of them (so…many…ends……). The pattern uses fingering weight yarn instead of worsted, so my squares were blocked to 8″x8″ and gave me a blanket roughly 44″x44″ after seaming. Like many others have noted on Ravelry, the squares do look a little wonky before blocking, but it was very easy to shape them into perfect squares after a bath.
Most of the knitting took place as I moved from the east coast to Seattle to begin grad school. I’m happy to report that I love the city and my university a lot, and have had an incredible time there! This blanket has kind of become a comfort object for me that symbolizes the big move. While I didn’t select the colors for any reasons other than stashbusting initially, I can’t help but associate them with sights I’ve become familiar with in the northwest: the grey mountains, blue seas, green, red, and orange trees in the fall, black ravens, and one white snowy Mt. Rainier. My apartment gets pretty chilly in the winter, and this afghan is the perfect size to throw over my lap or around my shoulders when I sit at my desk to work :)
Pattern: The Photographer Hat by Lavanya Patricella
Yarn: 1 skein of Patons Classic Wool Merino in “Bright Red”
Needles: US 6 and 8
Time: November 25--28, 2016
Ravelry link
I have to play a bit of catch-up with some finished project posts! This is a hat I made as a Christmas present for my cousin who loves the band Twenty-One Pilots, who are known for their love of red hats. This pattern was a very quick knit that made a great gift, so I definitely intend to make it again!
Pattern: 15-11 Marius-genser rund sal by Unn Søiland Dale
Yarn: 8 skeins of Patons DK Classic Wool Superwash in “Dark Gray Heather,” 2 in “Ivory,” and 1 in “Red”
Needles: US 5
Time: June 26--August 8, 2015
Ravelry link
If you’re someone who pays attention to my project notes, you may have noticed that this isn’t a recent FO. In fact, this is my 2015 Rhinebeck sweater! Though it was briefly featured on this blog last year before the festival, I never made a separate FO post because I was missing one thing: actual pictures of me wearing it. Because as amazing as going to Rhinebeck was, a flaw in my plan to take pictures of this sweater appeared, which was that it was too cold to take my jacket off!
It is now one whole year later, and today in Seattle the temperature at last dipped to Chilly Enough to Break Out the Pure Wool. I wore this sweater over a long-sleeved shirt to keep the wool from my skin (I’m very sensitive, oops) and felt cozy and accomplished all day! Part of the reason I love this sweater so much is that despite it looking very simple, I Frankenstein’d the pattern to an absurd degree. Mods and more comments can be found below the cut!
What happened was this: I began knitting this on US 4′s and started with a sleeve. Got halfway through the sleeve and tried it on just to see. Uh-oh. Sleeve is much too tight around the wrist, tight enough that even blocking won’t fix it. Sleeve is also hugely wide after the increases, which is what the pattern specifies but not how I like my sleeves. I also notice that the sleeve has taken a lot more yarn to knit than I anticipated, and I got the Patons on sale and don’t really want to buy more. I’m also knitting a size above my 0 ease fit because I initially wanted the sweater to be a little baggy, but if that takes more yarn that’ll have to go. At this time I’ve also looked through the Ravelry project page enough to notice that other knitters report not liking how deep the yoke is/how high the collar sits. I already knew that I’d have to wear this over something in order not to scratch myself to death, so leaving the collar that high is a no-go.
BEGIN THE MAD MODDING
I need to save yarn, so I rip the sleeve, go up a needle size (4 -> 5) and down a pattern size (M -> S). My first priority is making sure I have enough yarn to complete the yoke and the body to a length I want; the sleeves can be shortened after that if I’m running low on gray.
So I start knitting where it matters: yoke first! I provisional cast-on 336 sts for the S yoke and knit up to the 4th yoke motif (the x’s) as normal.
As many other projects had noted the yoke as being way too deep, I cut out one of the yoke motifs in CC1 and went on to the next motif in CC2, but kept the yoke decreases intact throughout those rounds. This decreased the depth of the yoke and left the collar at the level I wanted.
For the collar, I shortened the final CC2 motif somewhat and knit 4 short rows over the back half to give it a bit more shape (and be able to tell which side of the sweater was which), then decreased (k3, k2tog) around to get 112 sts before 6 rounds of k2p2 rib.
Next, I unraveled the provisional cast-on and divided for body with 96 sts for front and back, 72 for each sleeve. CO 10 between front and back for each underarm. Total body sts = 212
For the sleeves: I picked 5 sts from the underarm, 2 in between underarm and sts on hold, 72 from on hold, 2 between on hold and underarm, 5 from underarm = 86 sleeve sts. Decreased 2 sts every 6th round as pattern instructs, then decreased 2 sts every 11th round until = 54 sts. I worked first yoke motif and then decreaseed 2 sts before working the modified red cuff = 52 sts
All hems were 2x2 rib instead of seed stitch because I hate seed stitch…
A simple way to sum up the process if all of that made your head spin: instead of knitting the whole sweater as a seamless yoke bottom-up, I knit the yoke bottom up, then picked up stitches around the body and sleeves to knit those top-down.
Did it work??? Here are my Ravelry notes from last summer:
when I tried this on after blocking I was so proud of myself that I could’ve cried. this sweater is absolutely perfect. PERFECT. the fit not too snug but not too baggy, the wool is lightweight but warm, and picking gray over navy for the base color was a great decision because the sweater looks old-fashioned and classy without reminding me of my old school uniform. and all this was achieved despite me making this sweater--a plain and simple bottom-up stranded yoke--in the most completely complicated method possible. I mean seriously, read the mods below if you want to delve into my twisted mind, but all of my frantic math, ripping and reknitting, and wild guesswork somehow mixed together in a miracle fruit salad that brought forth this masterpiece that I finished in the hottest part of the summer. many, MANY pictures will be taken when I wear it to my first Rhinebeck in October, and I couldn’t be happier!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love these photos by my friend Katie, but thanks to that coat the sweater was still hidden. Sigh!
My first Rhinebeck was indeed magical (again, here’s the recap) and finishing this sweater in time to wear it there makes the garment all the more special in my eyes. I’m glad that I can at last share with you what it looks like on a human body, as well as break it in for another season :)
