Catch up
Bad blogger, I am. I meant to update so many times last week and never got around to it. I was chained to my desk at work, trying to get an issue into production. Almost 350 pages later, my grey matter was scrambled and I haven't been able to think of writing anything until today. I promise to be better about posting from now on. Break's over.
Well, now that the last round of Secret Pal is over, I can post the pictures of the things that I made for my downstream SP javede. First up is a pair of fingerless gloves.
Pattern: Fetching from my beloved Knitty.com.
Yarn: Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed. I think the color number 124, though I can't be sure because I don't have the ball band anymore. I bought 2 skeins and ended up only using 1, so I sent javede the extra skein to do with it what she wanted.
Needles: Inox aluminum double-points, size 7.
Modifications: none
Notes: I originally started these in a purple/black/tan Patons SWS. I love this yarn, but the color repeats were too long for this project. By the time I was halfway through the first glove, the color had only changed once, from tan to black. I was afraid that the purple wouldn't show up at all, and that was the color that caught my eye when I bought the yarn. Overall, these were a pretty easy knit. They took me a couple of weeks to finish, but only because I was doing other things at the same time. I kind of want a pair for myself. I'd have to modify the pattern a bit, though, and make the cuff longer, and extend the finger part by about an inch.
The other thing that I made for javede was a knitted bracelet.
I love beads. I love the idea of knitting jewelry. I searched on the web and found a pattern for a knitted bracelet from 2nd Nature Designs. It was a very easy knit.
Pattern: Bead-Knit Bracelet by 2nd Nature Designs
Materials: Perl Cotton embroidery floss from DMC, seed beads, and clasp
Modifications: The pattern calls for a big button for closure, but I liked the look of a toggle clasp better. Also, the edge was a bit unfinished looking, so I crotched a single chain around the whole thing.
Notes: I had a false start on this because the first bunch of beads I bought were too small and I couldn't get them threaded. The ones I settled on are size 10, I think. The pattern calls for size 8 (what I bought first was size 6), but Michael's didn't have any good colors in size 8.
I have also finished a pair of socks over the last month.
These are the ones I made for mom. I finished them a couple of weeks ago. I'm really pleased with the way they turned out, especially since the yarn had already had one life. It managed to hang on for a whole new life.
Pattern: Broadripple from my beloved Knitty.com
Yarn: Opal Brazil in a color that has a number, but not a name, and I don't think it is available anymore, so I'm not going to dig out the ball band to find out what the number is.
Needles: Addi Turbo in size 2
Modifications: I worked these toe-up with the Magic Cast-on instead of cuff-down. This meant that the ripples were pointing in the opposite direction from the pattern, but only someone who has made the pattern before would notice. Because I needed to cast-on 64 stitches, I added 2 stitches at the beginning and end of every pattern repeat, making the pattern repeats 16 stitches. Also, instead of a heel flap, I decided to try a short-row heel.
This is the first time I've tried this method. I don't like that the wrapped stitches look at bit messy, but I'm not sure there is a good way to avoid that. I've read of many others with the same complaint. Otherwise, I liked working it. I'm using the same heel on some other socks I'm working on right now.
One thing that I did differently with these socks that I've never attempted before was to make them identical with regards to the striping. Before, I've just let the stripes fall where they may. This time, I tried to start the second sock at the same point in the color repeats as the first sock. It turned out pretty nicely. They are a wee different, but it's only noticeable in the heel.
One the other projects front, I am still working on the charity knitting, as well as a new pair of socks that I hope to have finished and blogged by the end of the week. I decided to rip out the sleeveless cardigan I was working on for myself. The design was not coming out at all like I wanted, so instead of staring at the partially finished carcass, I frogged the whole thing and put the yarn away in a box. I have another idea what to do with that yarn. Also, I haven't done much on the sweater vest. Intarsia didn't work, so I tried mosaic knitting. That didn't work either, so now I'm on to fair isle, which may not work either because I'm not working it in the round. The purl rows kinda suck. We'll see. I may have to come up with some other color design. Thankfully, Christmas is far off, so I don't have to worry about it for a while. The only other thing I'm working on is a gift for a family member that I don't want to blog about until later. It's a big-un, so I'll be working on it for a while.
That's all for now.
Well, now that the last round of Secret Pal is over, I can post the pictures of the things that I made for my downstream SP javede. First up is a pair of fingerless gloves.
Pattern: Fetching from my beloved Knitty.com.
Yarn: Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed. I think the color number 124, though I can't be sure because I don't have the ball band anymore. I bought 2 skeins and ended up only using 1, so I sent javede the extra skein to do with it what she wanted.
Needles: Inox aluminum double-points, size 7.
Modifications: none
Notes: I originally started these in a purple/black/tan Patons SWS. I love this yarn, but the color repeats were too long for this project. By the time I was halfway through the first glove, the color had only changed once, from tan to black. I was afraid that the purple wouldn't show up at all, and that was the color that caught my eye when I bought the yarn. Overall, these were a pretty easy knit. They took me a couple of weeks to finish, but only because I was doing other things at the same time. I kind of want a pair for myself. I'd have to modify the pattern a bit, though, and make the cuff longer, and extend the finger part by about an inch.
The other thing that I made for javede was a knitted bracelet.
I love beads. I love the idea of knitting jewelry. I searched on the web and found a pattern for a knitted bracelet from 2nd Nature Designs. It was a very easy knit.
Pattern: Bead-Knit Bracelet by 2nd Nature Designs
Materials: Perl Cotton embroidery floss from DMC, seed beads, and clasp
Modifications: The pattern calls for a big button for closure, but I liked the look of a toggle clasp better. Also, the edge was a bit unfinished looking, so I crotched a single chain around the whole thing.
Notes: I had a false start on this because the first bunch of beads I bought were too small and I couldn't get them threaded. The ones I settled on are size 10, I think. The pattern calls for size 8 (what I bought first was size 6), but Michael's didn't have any good colors in size 8.
I have also finished a pair of socks over the last month.
These are the ones I made for mom. I finished them a couple of weeks ago. I'm really pleased with the way they turned out, especially since the yarn had already had one life. It managed to hang on for a whole new life.
Pattern: Broadripple from my beloved Knitty.com
Yarn: Opal Brazil in a color that has a number, but not a name, and I don't think it is available anymore, so I'm not going to dig out the ball band to find out what the number is.
Needles: Addi Turbo in size 2
Modifications: I worked these toe-up with the Magic Cast-on instead of cuff-down. This meant that the ripples were pointing in the opposite direction from the pattern, but only someone who has made the pattern before would notice. Because I needed to cast-on 64 stitches, I added 2 stitches at the beginning and end of every pattern repeat, making the pattern repeats 16 stitches. Also, instead of a heel flap, I decided to try a short-row heel.
This is the first time I've tried this method. I don't like that the wrapped stitches look at bit messy, but I'm not sure there is a good way to avoid that. I've read of many others with the same complaint. Otherwise, I liked working it. I'm using the same heel on some other socks I'm working on right now.
One thing that I did differently with these socks that I've never attempted before was to make them identical with regards to the striping. Before, I've just let the stripes fall where they may. This time, I tried to start the second sock at the same point in the color repeats as the first sock. It turned out pretty nicely. They are a wee different, but it's only noticeable in the heel.
One the other projects front, I am still working on the charity knitting, as well as a new pair of socks that I hope to have finished and blogged by the end of the week. I decided to rip out the sleeveless cardigan I was working on for myself. The design was not coming out at all like I wanted, so instead of staring at the partially finished carcass, I frogged the whole thing and put the yarn away in a box. I have another idea what to do with that yarn. Also, I haven't done much on the sweater vest. Intarsia didn't work, so I tried mosaic knitting. That didn't work either, so now I'm on to fair isle, which may not work either because I'm not working it in the round. The purl rows kinda suck. We'll see. I may have to come up with some other color design. Thankfully, Christmas is far off, so I don't have to worry about it for a while. The only other thing I'm working on is a gift for a family member that I don't want to blog about until later. It's a big-un, so I'll be working on it for a while.
That's all for now.
posted by Beverly at 6:49 PM
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