No progress picture of Hey, Teach today because I made absolutely no progress yesterday. I didn't knit. At all. Other stuff got in the way...long story. I can't guarantee there will be any knitting time today either. Oh well. At least it's a no-deadline project, so I don't have to feel stressed and guilty when more important things keep me from working on it.
-Amie
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Friday, May 29, 2009
Work. Meh.
Work is getting in the way of my knitting, and I don't like it! I was hardly able to get any knitting done yesterday (again) because I had to do newspaper work instead. Bleh. I was only able to work 6 rows yesterday, from the beginning of the armhole shaping to the end of the actual shaping. Now I have to work even until the armholes are big enough, do the back neckline shaping and the shoulders and the back piece will be finished. Unfortunately, I have to work late again tonight (high school graduation) so I probably won't get to do much today either.
I don't like that. But, alas, the adult world requires it of me.
Since I haven't made much progress and it probably wouldn't show up in a large picture, today I opted for a close-up that shows the armhole shaping. Voila:
There is very little armhole shaping; all the pattern has you do is bind off 4 and dec 4 on each side over a total of 6 rows. Then you just work even the rest of the way up the armhole. That doesn't seem like much to me, but I'm going to trust the pattern and hope I don't have to frog anymore.
And hopefully I'll be able to get more knitting time this weekend!
-Amie
I don't like that. But, alas, the adult world requires it of me.
Since I haven't made much progress and it probably wouldn't show up in a large picture, today I opted for a close-up that shows the armhole shaping. Voila:
There is very little armhole shaping; all the pattern has you do is bind off 4 and dec 4 on each side over a total of 6 rows. Then you just work even the rest of the way up the armhole. That doesn't seem like much to me, but I'm going to trust the pattern and hope I don't have to frog anymore.
And hopefully I'll be able to get more knitting time this weekend!
-Amie
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Day 4!
I didn't get a lot of knitting done last night, because I was preoccupied with bringing the blog up-to-date and giving it a more sophistocated look. So today's picture looks very similar to yesterday's. But is there progress, I promise! I finished that 2nd repeat of the lace pattern I mentioned yesterday, and now I'm about to begin the armhole shaping. I forced myself to not knit any on it today until I'd photo-documented my progress from yesterday, so here I am.
(I'll be honest, I'd rather be knitting, but I don't want to slip into the bad habit of not blogging my progress.)
But I am gonna make this short so I can get to the fun knitting part! So, without further ado, day 4's progress:
Off to knit armholes now!
(I'll be honest, I'd rather be knitting, but I don't want to slip into the bad habit of not blogging my progress.)
But I am gonna make this short so I can get to the fun knitting part! So, without further ado, day 4's progress:
Off to knit armholes now!
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Moving right along
Day 3 of Hey, Teach. I didn't get as much done last night as I would have liked. I finished the center ribbing, checked the pattern for the next row and quickly realized I left something out: the decreases that are supposed to be done before starting the ribbing. I toyed around with a few ideas (dropping stitches and picking back up as decreases, working a decrease row after the ribbing, etc.) but I didn't think any would look right. So I bit the bullet and ripped back. It was only 6 rows anyway, but I hate frogging, and I hate knitting 1x1 ribbing. Oh well. I decided 9 rows of ribbing was too many, anyway. So I redid it with decreases and only 7 rows of ribbing. I'm much more satisfied with that.
I'm 1.5 repeats into the bodice. I think I'll finish the 2nd repeat before I need to start the armhole shaping. That's only 6 rows, though. I'm getting close to finishing the back! If only I can keep from screwing up again, it'll be good.
Today's photo:
Also, because I can't remember if I ever posted this anywhere or not (probably not), I knit CanaryKnits' Anne Elliot Spencer last summer. I'm wearing it today. I love this little sweater. I never got around to sewing the buttons on, but I think it looks cute with a ribbon laced through. And you can't even tell the buttonholes are only on one side.
Photo!
I know I've said this before, but it is so good to be knitting again.
I'm 1.5 repeats into the bodice. I think I'll finish the 2nd repeat before I need to start the armhole shaping. That's only 6 rows, though. I'm getting close to finishing the back! If only I can keep from screwing up again, it'll be good.
Today's photo:
Also, because I can't remember if I ever posted this anywhere or not (probably not), I knit CanaryKnits' Anne Elliot Spencer last summer. I'm wearing it today. I love this little sweater. I never got around to sewing the buttons on, but I think it looks cute with a ribbon laced through. And you can't even tell the buttonholes are only on one side.
Photo!
I know I've said this before, but it is so good to be knitting again.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Hey, Teach Progress: Day 2
I really intend to keep better track of my projects, and this is the best way to do it. Plus, with the handy built-in webcam on my laptop, there's really no reason for me not to post pictures. (But I promise I'll take higher-quality shots of the finished objects.)
So, here's Day 2 of my Hey, Teach project. It doesn't look too terribly different from Day 1, except that you can see I've started the ribbing that goes just under the bust. I also took this shot with the piece held up to me so you can see the size and fit better. I know this is only the back piece of the cardigan, but it still seems like I'm flying through this project. That's the way I like it, though; I hate working forever on a project and not getting anywhere. I just hope the lace doesn't slow me down too badly.
Oh, you can't really tell in the picture, but I decided to add the eyelets for the drawstring. I'm doing an extra row of ribbing (to make a total of 9) so the eyelets will fall directly in the center, vertically. That's the last row I knit before bed last night.
Enough rambling; on to the picture!
This picture is also a lot more flattering to me. Hehe. In the last one, I was sitting in bed and had to lean way back at a weird angle to get the shot. In this one, I was able to put the laptop on my desk at work and just stand in front of it.
-Amie
So, here's Day 2 of my Hey, Teach project. It doesn't look too terribly different from Day 1, except that you can see I've started the ribbing that goes just under the bust. I also took this shot with the piece held up to me so you can see the size and fit better. I know this is only the back piece of the cardigan, but it still seems like I'm flying through this project. That's the way I like it, though; I hate working forever on a project and not getting anywhere. I just hope the lace doesn't slow me down too badly.
Oh, you can't really tell in the picture, but I decided to add the eyelets for the drawstring. I'm doing an extra row of ribbing (to make a total of 9) so the eyelets will fall directly in the center, vertically. That's the last row I knit before bed last night.
Enough rambling; on to the picture!
This picture is also a lot more flattering to me. Hehe. In the last one, I was sitting in bed and had to lean way back at a weird angle to get the shot. In this one, I was able to put the laptop on my desk at work and just stand in front of it.
-Amie
Monday, May 25, 2009
Hello world!
I'm back! Now that I have a working computer (and a nice shiny laptop at that), a camera, an easy way to upload things and time to knit those things, I actually get to post here again! It feels great.
WARNING: Long post ahead! I've been gone a while, and I have a lot to say!
I just finished Hew, but I haven't taken any good pictures of it yet, so I won't post those yet. I've also done some other stuff in my absence from blogging, but nothing major and nothing I have pictures of. I didn't get a lot of knitting time when I was working two jobs. Everything's coming together now though. (It feels better than you can even imagine.) I'll have to remember to get pictures of Hew. And my version of the Baroness Beret (PDF link), which turned out more like a slightly loose beanie than a beret, but I'm really happy with it. I've also been working on-and-off on Bayerische during lulls between projects, and I actually have good pictures of my progress on that, but I'm not sure where they're hiding at the moment so they'll have to wait a while.
Oh, I also knit a black hat for a Wal-Mart coworker, but it was kind of a nightmare to get the sizing right on that one and we just won't talk about it.
I think that's pretty much all I've done, except for a basic baby beanie and booties. And part of a baby sweater that got lost and wasn't found until after the birth, so it's now been set aside to wait for the next boy baby. Except not really the next, because the next one gets something extra-special. The sweater's made of baby blue acrylic, anyway...I can do better than that for special little boys that are born to special knitter friends. ;)
Anyway, in the meantime, here's stats on the Hew and the beret.
Hew
Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Classic AL, color 05: Aged Wine
Needles: Size 4 bamboo unknown brand (whatever it was I purchased at Knit during my honeymoon in Charleston!)
Started/Finished: completely unsure; this was my go-to project for several weeks whenever I had a few spare minutes to knit between phone calls and meetings and proofing pages at work
Comments: I love this sweater/shrug/bolero/mini-sweater/boobholder. I hated knitting the thing. First of all, my gauge was off. I don't remember exactly how much, but it was off. Also, the pattern was too large and had to be sized down, just like most things I knit for myself. So I figured out the necessary math and got started. I knit and knit and knit and never seemed to get anywhere. It was the never-ending sweater. Then I finally got to where nothing was left but the ties and the neckband...and promptly ran out of yarn. I found a girl (lifesaver) on Ravelry with one skein in the same colorway/dyelot that she didn't plan to use and was willing to sell me for the original purchase price. So I got it and got back to work, only to get barely more than halfway through the neckband and run out of yarn again. No way was I buying more yarn; this was supposed to be a stash-busting project. So I ripped the entire neckband and reknit a smaller one. I didn't have enough yarn to go all the way around the back, so I just knit the neckband to the top of the sleeves and sewed it to the back of the sweater. It poofs up a little on the shoulders, but it doesn't look bad. Kinda like a design feature, actually. Plus, I'm pretty sure it'll settle down once I finally get around to blocking the sweater. Incidentally, I think there would've been too much fabric bunched up around my shoulders if I had knit the neckband all the way around, so...well, let's just say the entire sweater was a learning experience. And a real pain in the butt.
Baroness Beret
Yarn: Misti Alpaca sport/fingering in cream; I don't remember the yarn's exact weight or colorway because it was originally purchased for use as a Christmas gift. (I didn't skimp on the gift. I just decided to use rose-colored yarn instead.)
Needles: I think size 3 metal dpns...they've kinda been the needles of choice lately for anything that will work at all on them
Start/Finish: No idea; it's been a while. It didn't take long to knit, I know that. And I guess it had to be some time in January, because I know I didn't start until after Christmas, and I wore the hat during the infamous ice storm of late January/early February 2009.
Comments: Unlike Hew, the hat was a completely enjoyable knit and I love the finished product. I had doubts when I first started knitting. I didn't think I'd like the beret shape on me. And, to be honest, this hat turned out more like a beanie. But I love it. The slight fuzziness, the color, the lace pattern, the size, it's all perfect. I would like to say that I'll definitely knit the pattern again, but I can't think of any other color that would work as well with it and with my clothes and complexion, so maybe I won't. But I'd definitely recommend the pattern to others. And I may end up knitting it for other people, as well, just for the sheer pleasure of knitting it again.
So, enough FOs...now time for a WIP. I've been seriously knitting-deprived lately, so I picked a new project pretty much as soon as I finished weaving in ends on Hew. Now I'm working on Hey, Teach from Knitty from stashed Pakucho organic cotton yarn. I've loved that sweater ever since the pattern was released, but I wasn't sure where my stashed Pakucho was, and I didn't have a shirt I wanted to wear under it anyway. Long story short, I got a shirt and found the yarn, and voila. I swatched this afternoon, cast on tonight and am about 6" into the back piece. So far I'm pretty happy with how it's working out. I'm knitting the smallest size, as written for once, with size 7 Clover bamboo circs. The smallest size, even though it's an XS, is a little bit too big for me, and the modeled sweater looks like it has just a wee bit too much ease for my taste, so I'm knitting at a slightly smaller gauge than called-for (4.69 sts per inch instead of the called-for 4.25 stitches per inch). I did some preliminary math, and it seems like that should fit me pretty much perfectly, so here's hoping. If all else fails...blocking works wonders, especially on lace.
Oh, one modification. I'm thinking about knitting eyelets in the center ribbing and running an i-cord drawstring through, as suggested in the pattern. I haven't decided for sure yet, though. Opinions?
And, just because I can ... a picture! I didn't feel like running out to the car for the real camera, so it's just a webcam shot. But still, my first picture in months!
It's really tan, not a barely-brownish white, like it looks in the picture. Lighting is bad in here, especially without a quality camera.
I have 12 more rows of stockinette before the center ribbing.
It feels great to be back in the land of the living!
-Amie
WARNING: Long post ahead! I've been gone a while, and I have a lot to say!
I just finished Hew, but I haven't taken any good pictures of it yet, so I won't post those yet. I've also done some other stuff in my absence from blogging, but nothing major and nothing I have pictures of. I didn't get a lot of knitting time when I was working two jobs. Everything's coming together now though. (It feels better than you can even imagine.) I'll have to remember to get pictures of Hew. And my version of the Baroness Beret (PDF link), which turned out more like a slightly loose beanie than a beret, but I'm really happy with it. I've also been working on-and-off on Bayerische during lulls between projects, and I actually have good pictures of my progress on that, but I'm not sure where they're hiding at the moment so they'll have to wait a while.
Oh, I also knit a black hat for a Wal-Mart coworker, but it was kind of a nightmare to get the sizing right on that one and we just won't talk about it.
I think that's pretty much all I've done, except for a basic baby beanie and booties. And part of a baby sweater that got lost and wasn't found until after the birth, so it's now been set aside to wait for the next boy baby. Except not really the next, because the next one gets something extra-special. The sweater's made of baby blue acrylic, anyway...I can do better than that for special little boys that are born to special knitter friends. ;)
Anyway, in the meantime, here's stats on the Hew and the beret.
Hew
Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Classic AL, color 05: Aged Wine
Needles: Size 4 bamboo unknown brand (whatever it was I purchased at Knit during my honeymoon in Charleston!)
Started/Finished: completely unsure; this was my go-to project for several weeks whenever I had a few spare minutes to knit between phone calls and meetings and proofing pages at work
Comments: I love this sweater/shrug/bolero/mini-sweater/boobholder. I hated knitting the thing. First of all, my gauge was off. I don't remember exactly how much, but it was off. Also, the pattern was too large and had to be sized down, just like most things I knit for myself. So I figured out the necessary math and got started. I knit and knit and knit and never seemed to get anywhere. It was the never-ending sweater. Then I finally got to where nothing was left but the ties and the neckband...and promptly ran out of yarn. I found a girl (lifesaver) on Ravelry with one skein in the same colorway/dyelot that she didn't plan to use and was willing to sell me for the original purchase price. So I got it and got back to work, only to get barely more than halfway through the neckband and run out of yarn again. No way was I buying more yarn; this was supposed to be a stash-busting project. So I ripped the entire neckband and reknit a smaller one. I didn't have enough yarn to go all the way around the back, so I just knit the neckband to the top of the sleeves and sewed it to the back of the sweater. It poofs up a little on the shoulders, but it doesn't look bad. Kinda like a design feature, actually. Plus, I'm pretty sure it'll settle down once I finally get around to blocking the sweater. Incidentally, I think there would've been too much fabric bunched up around my shoulders if I had knit the neckband all the way around, so...well, let's just say the entire sweater was a learning experience. And a real pain in the butt.
Baroness Beret
Yarn: Misti Alpaca sport/fingering in cream; I don't remember the yarn's exact weight or colorway because it was originally purchased for use as a Christmas gift. (I didn't skimp on the gift. I just decided to use rose-colored yarn instead.)
Needles: I think size 3 metal dpns...they've kinda been the needles of choice lately for anything that will work at all on them
Start/Finish: No idea; it's been a while. It didn't take long to knit, I know that. And I guess it had to be some time in January, because I know I didn't start until after Christmas, and I wore the hat during the infamous ice storm of late January/early February 2009.
Comments: Unlike Hew, the hat was a completely enjoyable knit and I love the finished product. I had doubts when I first started knitting. I didn't think I'd like the beret shape on me. And, to be honest, this hat turned out more like a beanie. But I love it. The slight fuzziness, the color, the lace pattern, the size, it's all perfect. I would like to say that I'll definitely knit the pattern again, but I can't think of any other color that would work as well with it and with my clothes and complexion, so maybe I won't. But I'd definitely recommend the pattern to others. And I may end up knitting it for other people, as well, just for the sheer pleasure of knitting it again.
So, enough FOs...now time for a WIP. I've been seriously knitting-deprived lately, so I picked a new project pretty much as soon as I finished weaving in ends on Hew. Now I'm working on Hey, Teach from Knitty from stashed Pakucho organic cotton yarn. I've loved that sweater ever since the pattern was released, but I wasn't sure where my stashed Pakucho was, and I didn't have a shirt I wanted to wear under it anyway. Long story short, I got a shirt and found the yarn, and voila. I swatched this afternoon, cast on tonight and am about 6" into the back piece. So far I'm pretty happy with how it's working out. I'm knitting the smallest size, as written for once, with size 7 Clover bamboo circs. The smallest size, even though it's an XS, is a little bit too big for me, and the modeled sweater looks like it has just a wee bit too much ease for my taste, so I'm knitting at a slightly smaller gauge than called-for (4.69 sts per inch instead of the called-for 4.25 stitches per inch). I did some preliminary math, and it seems like that should fit me pretty much perfectly, so here's hoping. If all else fails...blocking works wonders, especially on lace.
Oh, one modification. I'm thinking about knitting eyelets in the center ribbing and running an i-cord drawstring through, as suggested in the pattern. I haven't decided for sure yet, though. Opinions?
And, just because I can ... a picture! I didn't feel like running out to the car for the real camera, so it's just a webcam shot. But still, my first picture in months!
It's really tan, not a barely-brownish white, like it looks in the picture. Lighting is bad in here, especially without a quality camera.
I have 12 more rows of stockinette before the center ribbing.
It feels great to be back in the land of the living!
-Amie
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