Ten-Day Cardigan in Ten Days

I have mentioned yarn I have received from my friend who is always bring given good quality yarn. She keeps some and gives some away. Sometimes we end up with the same yarn but in colours more suited to our individual taste. Recently she gave me loads of Brown Sheep Bulky. And by loads, I mean more than enough to make a garment so no angst over will I have enough to make anything.

My friend crocheted a cardigan which I really liked and decided to make as well, especially as my Tunisian crochet project was not working out. My friend included a strand of mohair with her project so we are not exactly matching. The pattern was written to be made over ten days and had a YouTube video for each day. I decided to start on a Friday so that I had the first weekend to keep up to date and a weekend at the end if I needed to catch up. I was able to keep up but I’m not sure it is something I would want to do again as it is a lot of crochet. I did two days worth in one day as I knew I was not going to be able crochet much the following day. The good thing about that was that I was able to give my hands a rest for a full day.

Although I said I completed this in ten days, there was the inevitable button angst. I decided to add buttons as it is a bulky garment and I wanted the option of being able to do it up. I made five buttonholes and then was dreading the trip to Jo-Anns to purchase buttons. I was debating asking for input about online button purchasing but in the meantime I went to Michaels to look for something completely different and as I was there I wondered around to look at what they had and came across buttons and purchased a pack of five.

Sewing on the buttons made it an 11-day project.

The cardigan is worked from sleeve to sleeve, with stitches picked up at various points to make fronts, bands, cuffs. If I was going to make this again, I would work from the middle of the back out to the sleeves to make each half the same; I especially didn’t like one of the sleeve seams. I would also make the cuffs longer and tighter.

Having said that, I am really happy with my garment and can see wearing it quite a bit in the winter. 

 

It’s Frog Season

A couple of posts ago I said that I had cast-on-all-the-things but had only finished one. This past week has been the week of the frog. I frogged three of April’s cast ons. Three! 

I had cast on three cardigans and one is nearly finished; I just need some time to sew all the seams.The other two, well...Before 1 April I swatched, including blocking, all three yarns but somehow the other two cardigan were both turning out too big. One of them is an allover lace pattern and I wondered if the size would change as I completed more of the pattern but I did not want to keep knitting and knitting and still have to frog, so I pulled it out and recast on a smaller size at the end of May.

The other cardigan is a bit of a mystery as the gauge of the garment is the same as the swatch but the size was still too big. I’m guessing that I was allowing for more ease than needed. Also as I have a limited amount of yarn I decided to restart with a different pattern. Now I am making a top-down cardigan. This way I can try it on at different times and see how it fits and I can stop knitting when I run out of yarn.

I also frogged the second pair of socks. This was a repeat pattern and my notes on the original project say “a bit fiddly”. That felt like an understatement this time around as I just couldn’t be bothered to work on them. They were frogged and yarn went back into stash. 

 

I still have one more project to frog. I knew I would not have enough yarn to complete the project but I convinced myself that I would just need to add contrasting yarn for the borders. It is pretty obvious that I am not going to have enough yarn to make the sleeves but the project is so pretty that I am not ready to frog yet.

But never fear, I made up for all these non-projects by casting on a load of things in June.

Wishful Knitting

In my last post I said I cast on all the things but only had one pair of socks to show for it.

Of the five items I started, one is finished, one is more than half-way through, one will be completely frogged and yarn put back in stash, one has been frogged and will be restarted, one needs to be frogged. I am going to frog the second pair of socks I started, the pattern is fiddly (which I knew), but I am not enjoying the process and as I have a few other projects that require concentration I don’t need to keep this project on the go.

The other two projects that were unsuccessful are both cardigans and in both cases they are knitting up larger than expected. It is interesting that this is the case for both of them as I did swatch. I didn’t rush the swatching and I made them a decent size. I haven’t had a problem like this before. Both projects are knit in one piece from the bottom up and the only thing I can think is that all the stitches is making me knit looser. I am going to restart one of them and work a smaller size. The other one I will frog and change to a top down pattern.

Although it is disappointing, I hadn’t got very far in any of the projects so I will consider it part of the swatching process and not a waste of knitting time.

Oh, and to add to the disappointment, I started a Tunisian crochet project in the middle of February using yarn from friend’s friend’s destash. I knew I did not have enough yarn but thought I would have enough for the main part of the cardigan and use a contrast colour for the bands. It is pretty obvious that I will not have enough yarn for the body and sleeves, which is disappointing as I am enjoying working on the project and the fabric that is being produced.

To end on a good note, I have finished the hat for May.

 

At Least I Finished a Pair of Socks

As is usually the case when I don’t write a post for a while it is because I have been writing in my head, and then something else comes up but I feel I need to commit the first post to the World Wide Web, so nothing is posted.

My original post has been erased (from my mind) and here, eventually, is a sock post. Which is a post about socks and not a post pretending to be something else.

At the beginning of April I cast on all the things. I’m not really sure why I went crazy but it was a combination of having just long term projects on the needles, liking the challenges in Sock Knitters Anonymous, wanting a selection of non-concentrating and concentrating patterns and the start of a new quarter.

And as 1 April was a Saturday, I was able to start ALL-THE-THINGS. I cast on two socks (different pairs), and three cardigans.

The two sock themes for April that I was interested in were manipulating self-striping yarn and patterns that you have made before. I have a skein of self-striping yarn that I purchased way back in 2019. It is bold red, white and blue and I have struggled choosing a pattern for it as if the stripes are going to be manipulated, I really want them to be manipulated. While I was thinking about patterns I might like to knit again, I realized that a yarn I had got in a swap in 2018 was also self-striping. I was all ready to start but changed my mind at the last minute. I ended up using the gift yarn in a self-striping pattern – and these are the socks I have finished – and used the bold self-striping in a “repeat” pattern.

For the self-striping pattern I chose Margaritaville. This pattern moves the design with decrease and increases and works well with the yarn I chose as it is what is called jacquard stripes as some of the stripes create a pattern; you can see this on the sole. I started them on 1 April and finished them on 30 April. I don’t know why they took so long. Especially as I was away for two of those weeks and, apart from in the car, this was the only thing I worked on – one sock. 

 

New Yarn, New Project

A new yarn store has opened near to me recently and a couple of friends and I met for lunch and a quick look. I wanted to support this store but I did not really want to buy anything so I decided I would buy yarn for a gift. I ended up doing that but also buying a skein of yarn for myself. The yarn is beautiful and could easily become a pair of socks but I cast on pretty quickly a longer cowl.

I like this style of cowl and I have knit a few by a different designer but this is a new to me designer. You start off knitting flat as you would for a shawl and then join in the round. Usually I would work until I ran out of yarn but this time I finished when the pattern said to. The start is a short piece of garter stitch with stitches picked up along one long edge, which is a pretty standard shawl start. I followed another knitter’s suggestion to cast on with much smaller needles and gradually increase size as this avoids the hump at the start of the shawl. I will definitely do that when I next make a shawl but I am not convinced it was the best thing for a cowl as you want lots of drape at the neck. But I do love the finished item, because I really love the yarn.

 

 

The yarn is Dream in Color Smoosy, colour Burr and the pattern is Secret Skein.

April’s Hat

No, I haven’t made a mistake. I have knitted next month’s hat in advance. As you know, I try to knit a hat each month and this year I started to work through the year of bulky hats.

A few days ago I finished a relatively easy knit. I didn’t want to cast on anything new because I have big plans for April; it being the start of a new quarter. But I did want a relatively easy and portable project. So why not cast on a hat and why not make it the next bulky hat? It’s only me that says a hat a month.

Once again I used YOTH father and now I am ready to start all the things on Saturday.

 

First Socks of 2023

With my new arbitrary system of choosing which sock patterns to knit, I didn’t cast on a sock until February. Once again a pattern in my favourites fit one of the prompts for February.

The pattern is Standing in the Shadow of Love by Adrienne Fong (may she RIP). And in keeping with unplanned stash intentions, I used leftover yarn. Both the yarns were featured in this shawl. Quite often with these types of patterns I will swap the yarns for the second sock but I didn’t his time as I did not think I would have had enough of the pink. I might have but it would have been close.

The pattern is illusion or shadow knitting, I have tried to capture the “illusion” but using a variegated yarn was not the best idea. Nevertheless, I enjoyed knitting them and I like the secret of the design being there. Having a plain foot made for easy knitting plus not having to worry about how they would feel in shoes.

A couple of weeks ago I was going to write about my WIPs but didn’t because Wednesday came and went – apparently I can only write about WIPs on WIPping Wednesday. But as you can see from the last few posts I have been finishing things. And I haven’t started new projects to replace them so the projects are being completed without having to be shamed on the internet.

 

 

Pride Goes Before the Fall and Other Finished Items

I have noticed that I know quite a bit about knitting and crochet but don’t often speak up when questions are asked. I have also noticed that the people with the most affirmative voices are the ones listened to even if they are not correct. This has made me think I should speak up more.

But a big mistake in my most recent finished project has brought me back to earth and reminded me that just because I know a lot doesn’t mean I will remember to use it myself.

I have knitted a hat which has bobbles, lots of them. I don’t mind bobbles but they can be a pain to knit. In this particular pattern, you increase to five stitches, turn your work to purl five together, turn work again and on your merry way.

My bobbles were not very pronounced; I put it down to using thinner yarn than the pattern and then about half-way through the pattern section it came to me – my bobbles were smaller because I had been doing them wrong! On the first bobble I had found the purl 5 together impossible to execute so instead I just passed four stitches over that last one without turning the work. All well and good except the purling of the stitches together creates another stitch which my bobbles were missing! I should have knit the last stitch before passing the other stitches over.

I decided to continue as you can see the pattern. It’s not as pronounced as the original pattern but no one has to know that, do they?

 

The other finished item is a baby jacket. I was given the yarn Caron Latte Cakes which is a good choice for a child as it is soft and washable. The pattern is a free one from Lion Brand. Not difficult but a couple of changes made it better. For example adding neck shaping and picking up all the stitches for the bottom skirt – pattern has you pick up front and backs separately then seam them.

The mother, always knitworthy, was very appreciative.

 

A Hat and a Frog

I have mentioned before about all the yarn that has come my way as people clear out their stash and give it to my friend. One of the yarns she gave me last year was a skein of Spincycle yarns. This yarn provokes all sorts of emotions in crafters as it is not a cheap yarn and certain designers use it in their patterns which creates an expensive finished item. Knitters feel there is a case of the haves and have nots and that they are being excluded if they can’t afford this yarn. I can’t comment on other people’s feelings but with so much yarn and so many patterns – walk on by. The yarn company justifies their prices by saying that it is an expensive process and they pay their staff a living wage with benefits.

I really wasn’t sure what I would make with the skein, it seemed a waste to let it sit in stash for so long but as with all these yarns I have been given I did not want to feel obligated to use it. I found a hat pattern which used the Spincycle with another yarn in a mosaic pattern. Pondering on what yarn to use, my friend then gave me some of her left over Malabrigo Arroyo.

The hat was one of my January cast ons and I finished it in two weeks. I had quite a bit of yarn left and thought some fingerless mitts would be fun. In a slipped stitch or mosaic pattern to go with the hat. This was not as easy as I was expecting and I started three times before I found a pattern that worked. In the end I used the stitch pattern from the Humboldt Hat and incorporated it into a mitt pattern I had already started so that I would not have to redo the rib. This was not a good idea. As I was working on them I knew they were not going to be long enough but I convinced myself otherwise but after taking off the stitches for the thumb, I couldn’t deny the truth any longer. I frogged them but have not restarted as by then I had more projects on the go. Although with all the yucky weather we have been having, I would have worn the hat and gloves.

 

I Cut My Knitting

After the enjoyment of making a tea cosy for my sister last year, I decided to make one, but a different pattern, for my mother. I chose this pattern for the design and not for the techniques, which include steeking. It is quite possible to knit this pattern back and forth in rows but this is a good way to practice the technique; which, amazingly, I have not done before. I have not avoided it but I have not been searching out patterns with steeks either. I don’t mind knitting back and forth and I don’t mind seaming.

The pattern also includes a Latvian braid or as the designer calls it a Vikkel braid. I am sure I have included these in patterns before but cannot think what off the top of my head. As I was using pure wool this was a bit of a pain as the yarns stick to each when they wrap around as you work the braid.

The designer said there was no need to catch strands going across the back of the design but in some areas there were twelve stitches in one colour for the other to cross. I didn’t like that idea so incorporated ladder back jacquard. It was a good chance to put it to use after having tried it in a pattern. I started off marking the pattern but found it was easier to look at each row as I was working to see if I needed to add back stitches.

For the steeks the designer refers you to a blog post she had written. This was written for a button band and completely encloses the cut edge whereas in this pattern she just has you sewing the steeks down. If I did it again I would work the crochet stitches one stitch in and not right on the middle stitch. In fact, next time I steek I will research more ways of working it. The steeks are for the openings for the spout and handle. After steeking you work an icord edge around them. I wasn’t going to do this as I thought it would be bulky but decide to give it a try and liked the end result.

There were many, many comments that the finished cosy was tight on the recommended size tea pot. I blocked it on my tea pot and although it fit, I would not like to be trying to get it on when the pot is full of boiling tea. As I have no idea what tea pots my mum has, I will be sending her a tea pot. At her age I am sure she does not need it but I do not want her to not use the cosy!

 Before cutting the steeks

I marked the middle of the steek with red sewing thread.

Crochet steek reinforcement

Not blocked and no icord.

Finished