I Hat Therefore I Am

A quick perusal of my projects page on Ravelry lead me to an interesting conclusion earlier today: I am not a knitter, I am a Hatter. With a capital H.

Of the 32 projects I've finished this year, a full 12 have been hats (that's 37.5% for those of you who are into math). You might think 12 hats is a full complement for a year. It is after all, one hat per month.

But no.

I have EIGHT (!!!!!!!) more on the needles. There is no other single category of knit items that even comes close to the dominance of the hats. Mitts are a distant second with 3 FO's and 4 WIPs. Or, if I combine scarves & cowls for a Neckwear category I have 2 Fo's and 7 WIPs.

Doesn't really matter. In my world of knitting, Hats Rule.

Ergo, I am a Hatter.

Who knew?

Still with me or did I drive you away with such minutia?

At any rate, I guess I like knitting hats. My kids certainly like wearing them:



Nottingham, Size Medium (Child)
Emerald Blue Malabrigo Merino Worsted
Size 6 Addi Turbos and Prym dpns


Toddler Republic Hat
Blue Surf Malabrigo Merino Worsted
Size 6 Addi Turbos and Prym dpns

I did cast on an extra ten stitches for the Republic hat as I was worried about it being to small.

The kiddos like them well enough. Now to put them away until it's hat season again.

So that's all the knitting for now. I also finished a square for a wedding blanket I am contributing to but I let it leave the house without taking a picture, oh well.

I need to work out some kind of balance between the sewing and knitting. As I do more sewing I get antsy about the knitting I'm not doing. Maybe once the shop is a bit more established I'll be better able to strike that balance.

In the meantime I've made bunches of zippered pouches like these:


And today I added a whole new bag style to the shop.


More of these project bags to come as the weekend progresses.

Until next time, enjoy the long weekend and have a fun (and safe) Memorial Day.

Oh, and, Happy Birthday Todd!!! (a day early but he doesn't read this blog anyway... but just in case...)

Bottom of the Barrel

I've got nothing today.

Well, that's not exactly true. I've got stuff.

Like this:

Star-Crossed Slouchy Beret (for me)
Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Vaa

Or this:

Deja vu! The second one was for a friend of mine. Still Malabrigo but the colorway is Taureg. This one is blocked, mine isn't. A nice knit. Obviously, or I wouldn't have made it twice no matter how Kristen might have "begged."

But really, the muse? She has left me and I just can't get motivated to try to say anything even remotely clever or amusing.

(note: if you don't feel that I am normally even remotely clever or amusing, please do not burst my bubble... I like my little fantasy world)

I want to share. I have lots of things percolating in the brain but sitting down to type? No appeal. I blame my laptop. It gave up the ghost a week ago and I haven't been the same since. Which is odd. I despised my laptop. It made me crazy (slow and cranky it was!). But. It was mine. And now I am forced to squat on my husband's old MacBook.

sigh

Not the same. I miss you cranky, slow, infuriating HP!

Anyhow. More soon. I made a hat for Gwen which is quite cute- I just have to get her to take a picture in sans that awful Fake Smile she has going right now.

Bleh. No good pictures unless I ambush her and that is hard to do if you want her to model something. She might be three but she's no dummy. "What? Oh, I know it's 65 degrees Sweet Pea, but I think you should wear this new hat Mommy made you anyway..." Uh huh. Like that's gonna fly.

And, Thank you! to everyone who has said nice things about my little enterprise. Everyone has been supportive and I've even managed sell a few things. I'm working on a few things and hope to have some fun new things to share next week. (I wonder if I could work "things" into this paragraph again? Oh look! I just did.)

And (last item I promise) in case I get all wrapped up in life and forget to post before Sunday: Happy Mother's Day to all my mommy friends and most especially,

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

I have no idea how you did it and every day I grow more in more in awe of you (and Daddy, too) for the way you raised the three of us- thank you, thank you, thank you! Love you!

Spring has Sprung?

Mother Nature is ignoring my (not so) silent pleas to end the cold dreariness and bring on the sun, already. Damn her. I am so very ready to don some fresh spring togs and enjoy the sunshine. At least today we have not had any of that lovely slushy mush that greeted us yesterday morning.

It has occurred to me that Mother Nature is perhaps withholding my spring until I perform a Spring Cleaning of some sort. Little does she know who she's playing chicken with... Bring it on Mommy Nature!

In lieu of any real spring I have been trying to manufacture one instead, or at least some springy items.

Cherry Garcia by Adrian Bizilia
Malabrigo Chunky Merino in Brisa
Size 10.5 - 16" Addi Turbo Circular

This was a super quick knit: one day, cast-on to bind off. In the Malabrigo Chunky the cowl is super soft and squishy. It will definitely keep the winter (or spring) chill away.

Zune Cozy by Michelle Mooney
Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Vetiver (green) & Paris Nights (navy)
Size 5 & 7 dpns

So admittedly not as springy as the cowl but it does house my happy pink Zune so that counts right? Another quickie knit (I am clearly in instant gratification mode), I think this took me a couple hours at knit night so under non-distracted circumstances I'm sure it could be cranked out lickety-split.

Now here is something genuinely springy:

Flowers! I adore fresh flowers and wish I could afford to have arrangements in my house all the time but alas... perhaps when I win the lottery. I made the above arrangement yesterday at my MOPS meeting (Mothers of Preschoolers). I had such fun. Normally I indulge in a riot of color when I put together a floral arrangemnet but yesterday green was speaking to me and I decided to try the monochromatic/tone-on-tone look. Pretty darn good if I'm allowed to toot my own horn.

That's Beezer the Cranky One in the background. She is a floweraholic. I have to make sure to put any and all flowers out of her range or they become a kitty snack. And I do mean Any and All. She has been known to consume silk flower arrangements in their entirety. Yup. Silk flowers. Not quite the brightest bulb, our Beezer.

Pooh. What Happened to the Sun?

Looking outside today it is hard to believe that just a little while ago it looked like this:

Glorious!

This was a couple Fridays ago and I took advantage of a babysitter to steal a little time for myself during the day. I grabbed my lunch and headed down to Golden Gardens to enjoy the sunshine. It was still pretty cool temperature-wise but I could feel Spring waiting in the wings.

I think Spring got stage fright because it is nowhere to be seen now. Oh well. At least I got to indulge for a couple hours...

And what did I do with those hours? I worked on this:

This is Thermis by Kristen Patay.

And here it is completed:

I used Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Natural (unbelievably soft!!!) and my trusty Addi Turbos in size 6. The buttons came from The Fiber Gallery.

I love it! And really, if it isn't going to be Spring- could it be just a little colder so I can use this? I hate to think I'm going to have to put it away until the fall :(

And just to spite me for maligning it, the sun has come out as I put the final touches on this post. Go figure.

December?

Um, what happened to November? I swear I was just dressing the kiddos up in Halloween costumes yesterday.

I hope you all had scrumptious Thanksgiving dinners and survived the madness that was our retail establishments this past weekend. For our part we had a quiet turkey dinner at home with all the fixins'...



...and pie of course!



And we limited our post-Thanksgiving shopping to getting a Christmas tree so we have nary a stubbed toe to show for the Black Friday craziness.

I have been knitting up a storm recently but many of the items will be winging their way to rest beneath Christmas trees so I cannot share them here yet.

So instead I'll share one of my favorite projects from this past year that I haven't shown you here yet.

Pattern: Faberge Cowl by Nina Machlin Dayton (pattern available on Ravelry)

Yarn: Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Vetiver

Needles: Size 7 Addi Turbos (20" I think, maybe 16")

Beads: Size 6/0 Japanese Seed Beads

I knit this as a test knit for Nina and I love it. The beads add just the right touch (they are place with a crochet hook instead of pre-stringing the beads). This is a fantastic pattern: clear instructions, a fun, interesting knit, and beautiful result.

A Little Math

So looking over things I discovered some disturbing math. I've only posted here 11 time in 2008. That's 1.1 posts per month but that isn't what disturbed me (although maybe it should).


You might think that no posts on a knitting blog might mean no knitting:

0 p = 0 FO

But that isn't the case. In fact, the opposite is true. Since the beginning of the year I've completed 23 knitted items.

11 p = 23 FO

Even if I had managed to put a finished object in each of my paltry posts (I didn't) I still would be 12 FO's behind when it comes to sharing. In reality, I think I have 18 or so FO's to share.


That's a lot. Daunting almost.

But I shall not be defeated.


As I have nothing clever or profound to add I'll just get straight to it. I was going to do this chronologically but I am missing some pictures so it'll have to be haphazard.


Last week I decided the kiddos needed Pumpkin Hats and so, voila!




Pumpkin hats. This is the Little Pumpkin hat (Ravelry link) from Itty-Bitty Hats.
.
I used Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Glazed Carrot, Sapphire Green, and Marron Oscuro and knit them on my trusty size 7 Addi Turbos and dpns. The pattern goes up to a 1-2 year size but my little ones have not so little heads so I opted to use a worsted weight yarn instead of the called for DK weight. The hats are a little big but they'll fit for several years- better big than too small :) This is a quick knit, each hat took me less than two days to knit so I'm sure some of you speedier knitters out there could crank these out in no time. Overall, I am very happy with the results and hope that the weather this fall is cool enough that they get lots of use.


And while we're on the subject of hats, a while back (April!!?) I did a test knit for a friend of mine from Ravelry.



This is the Warwick Hat by Nina Machlin Dayton.


I made the child's small size but Matt has since outgrown it so I guess I need to make another one (in a solid color this time). The yarn is Malabrigo worsted again, the main color is Lime-Blue and the contrast color is Lettuce. And once again I used my Addi Turbos (size 8) and dpns. The hat is knot from the top down and has this cool contrast braid detail at the top and down at the brim. I'm bummed it's too small now...


So that's it for today. I don't want to over-do it. See you soon with more FOs and if I ever get caught up with those maybe I'll show you what I'm working on now... what a concept.

Fully Vested

I finished my gift for Todd just in the nick of time, threw a ribbon around it and handed it over to him minutes before our anniversary ended.

This is the Subtle Stripe Vest by Lara Killian. The yarn is Cascade 220 Superwash in a Green/Blue/Grey with flecks of gold (#867 I think- it is a great color). I used my trusty Addi Turbos in size 5.

This was my largest garment project to date and I am pretty happy with the results. The vest is exactly what I wanted: simple, but with just enough detail to keep it from being boring. If I make this vest again I will pick up more stitches along the armholes and neck than the instructions indicate because I felt the ribbing was not as “dense” as I would have liked in an ideal world.

I also need to add that I liked the yarn more than I thought I would. While I would never call it soft it never bothered my hands and was quite tolerable. I anticipate using it again in the future. I feel like I am the last one on the Cascade 220 bandwagon but better late than never, right?

I'm just a Jamaican Bobsledder

For so many athletes the joy of the Olympics is in the participation. The accomplishment is merely making it to the Games perhaps setting a new personal best if they are lucky.

And so it is for me in the Ravelympics. I will not be completing my event, the Shawl Relay. Let's just say I am emulating the US track & field relay teams and I fumbled the baton hand-off.

Actually, the hand-off is the problem. Instead of attacking my Clementine Shawlette with single-minded focus and determination a la Michael Phelps, I spread myself too thin, taking on another large project at virtually the same time, the vest for Todd.

That's not to say I haven't tried. I've made a good effort, putting in the time and doing the training. I felt good going in but it just didn't happen for me this time. The Clementine will not be done before the closing ceremonies. Here are my results:

The shawl has passed the halfway point. The first half is complete and looks great. I'm just into Chart B for the second half, a few more rows than shown above. I am only working on the Clementine when Todd is around because I need to dedicate every free moment when he isn't present to this:

The Anniversary Vest. I am half a row away from dividing for the front and back (two more inches than pictured). FINALLY! It is going to be really hard to finish it by the 31st but I am going to go out there, stick to my game plan, and give 110%.

Hopefully I'll be back with a finished vest and fewer sports cliches next week. Have a great weekend!

I'm feeling lazy...

So I will jump on this bandwagon. Actually it was kind of interesting to take inventory of all that I have accomplished in the last year. And there is always another challenge ahead, I guess that is what keeps knitting exciting and fun!



Bold for stuff you've done, Italics for stuff you plan to do one day,
and Normal for stuff you're not planning on doing.



Afghan

I-cord

Garter Stitch

Knitting with Metal Wire

Shawl

Stockinette Stitch

Socks: top-down (working on my first pair right now!)

Socks: toe-up

Knitting with Camel Yarn

Mittens: cuff-up

Mittens: tip-down

Hat

Knitting with Silk

Moebius Band Knitting

Participating in a KAL

Sweater

Drop Stitch Patterns

Knitting with Recycled / Second Hand Yarn

Slip Stitch Patterns

Knitting with Bamboo Yarn

Two End Knitting

Charity Knitting

Knitting with Soy Yarn

Cardigan

Toy/Doll Clothing

Knitting with Circular Needles

Baby Items

Knitting with Your Own Handspun Yarn

Slippers

Graffitti Knitting

Designing Knitted Garments

Cable Stitch Patterns

Lace Patterns

Publishing a Knitting Book

Scarf

Teaching a Child to Knit

American/English Knitting

Knitting to Make Money

Button Holes

Knitting with Alpaca (Scarf in progress)

Fair Isle Knitting

Norwegian Knitting

Dying with Plant Colours

Knitting Items for a Wedding

Household Items (Dishcloths, Washcloths, Tea Cosies...)

Knitting Socks (or other small tubular items) on Two Circulars

Olympic Knitting

Knitting with Someone Else's Handspun Yarn

Knitting with dpns

Holiday Related Knitting

Teaching a Male How To Knit

Bobbles

Knitting for a Living - if only...

Knitting with Cotton

Knitting Smocking

Dying Yarn

Steeks

Knitting Art

Knitting Two Socks (or other small tubular items) on Two Circulars Simultaneously

Fulling/Felting

Knitting With Wool

Textured Knitting

Kitchener BO

Purses/Bags

Knitting with Beads

Swatching

Long Tail CO

Entrelac Knitting

Machine Knitting

Knitting with SelfPatterning/SelfStriping/Variegating Yarn

Stuffed Toys

Knitting with Cashmere

Darning

Jewelry

Knitting with Synthetic Yarn

Writing a Pattern

Gloves

Intarsia

Knitting with Linen

Knitting for Preemies

Tubular CO

Freeform Knitting

Short Rows

Cuffs/Fingerless Mitts/ArmWarmers

Pillows

Knitting a Pattern from an On-Line Knitting Magazine

Rug

Knitting on a Loom

Thrummed Knitting

Knitting a Gift

Knitting for Pets

Shrug/Bolero/Poncho (I’ve made a baby one but not a real size)

Knitting with Dog/Cat Hair (ick.)

Hair Accessories

Knitting in Public

I feel Knitty!

Let me start by saying that I am fickle and it seems my fickleness is at an all time high. After totally changing my color scheme for this blog this morning I have now scrapped all that and picked a new template altogether. This is better. For now. Tune in tomorrow... Someday I'll figure out how to have my own banner and other nifty features like so many of the blogs I admire but, for now, I have other priorities...

A finished object for instance? It is true. I have finished something! This is a Strawberry Hat.
The pattern is Ann Norling's Fruit Cap. I used Aurora 8 Merino Wool in #5 Crimson and #1145 Hunter Green knit on Susan Bates Quicksilver circulars (US 7) and skacel wood dpn (US 7).
As modeled by my Pooh Bear:

*This photo is a little fuzzier than I expected, it looked good elsewhere. Oh, well.*

This was my first real foray into colorwork (I had done stripes before but that doesn't count) and it was not as difficult as I had anticipated which makes me very happy. I think the little Piglet-to-be may get a blueberry version...

I have to say that I felt like a "real" knitting blogger today. Racing outside to quickly snap a few photos while my daughter took a nap. That's right, a few photos - there is more to see!

Here is my major WIP at the moment, the Ruffled Ridges Baby Blanket:
The yarn is a bit deeper/darker than shows here but at least you can see the pattern in this picture.

I'm almost a third of the way done which is very exciting since I was about 1/30 of the way done a week ago when I picked this project up again after a year+ hiatus. I'm trying to stay motivated, but it is a bit grinding, row after 161 stitch row (not that I'm counting). I'm a slow knitter so I aim to complete one 8 row pattern each day. At that rate I'll be done by the end of March. I hope. I have so many other things I want to do, so many cute things lined up... not to mention the other two WIPs I have in the bag.

Time to go if I'm going to get any knitting done before Pooh Bear wakes up. I'll leave you with one last picture, just in case you think it always rains in Seattle...

the promised knitting content, but first...

I have been knitting... there is knitting to write about but before I get to that I simply must get something off my chest.

NBC is cancelling Studio 60. I am crushed. Devastated. Beside myself. They are canceling it due to lack of ratings so my guess is that there aren't many of you out there who feel my pain (damn it. it is all your fault... why didn't you watch???) I love this show! It is amusing, cleverly written and has good characterizations. It has real actors for goodness sakes, not just Joe Schmoe from down the street doing something ridiculous to gain his 15 minutes of fame and a few bucks. My hubby and I watch the show each week. Sometimes I watch it live and sit through the commercials without using a tivo-like product! That is how much I love this show (I record everything, I can no longer deal with the agony of sitting through a couple minutes of commercials... must. fast. forward.) NBC doesn't know when they will air the remaining 6 episodes. Talk about adding salt to the wound. Not only do I have to deal with the loss of my favorite show, I have to wait in limbo for the network to decide when I can find out what happens next. What will happen the Harriet and Matt? Will Tom and Lucy ever manage to go on their first date? And what about Danny and Jordan? Argh. This is the only new show I invested in this past fall and this is the thanks I get. My husband follows many shows: Lost, Heroes, Survivor, the list goes on. Me? Not very many (Studio 60, Numbers, CSI:original flavor and sometimes Miami, and Las Vegas) and Studio 60 is the only one I get upset about missing. Oh well. Seems that my luck with Bath & Body Works scents has transferred to tv shows, ie. if I like it, it won't be around for long.

OK. whew. So sorry about that, but jeez...

Onward to knitting!

Please alert the media, I have been knitting! That is, I think that is what it is called when I wrap the the yarn around the two pointy sticks, right? It has been so long...

So here's the saga (wow. this was going to be a short post but after my rant and now with my throwing around the term "saga" I think we can toss that idea into the scrap heap): I started knitting when I was 5 months pregnant with my daughter, Pooh Bear. I couldn't continue with my normal outlet activity, dancing (ballet & modern), because my body was no longer cooperating so I thought knitting seemed like the thing to do when you were expecting a baby. In the normal way of things I signed up for a weekly class and was hooked. That was in October 2006. Unfortunately, when December rolled around my body decided to start retaining every single molecule of water in the atmosphere and I swelled up so badly that I got carpal tunnel in both wrists. It was so bad the knitting had to be curtailed. Actually, I probably could have continued knitting had I been able to not type at work. That was not an option, typing being a major part of my job at the time, so the knitting suffered (I understand some might see this as a poor decision. I, too, wonder if I would have been better off picking the knitting). Anyway, my daughter was born in late January 2007 and I was caught up in the "OMG, what have I done, I have this little being that I created and now must be responsible for" swirl of things and knitting was really not a priority. I wanted it to be. I thought about it a lot but just could seem to squeeze it in. BTW, should any of you moms who claim to "knit while nursing" happen to read this post, please do email me. I am rather agile but cannot even begin to fathom the mechanics that make this possible. As I am having another baby in July, I am desperate to figure it out. Th upshot of all this is that with a few tiny exceptions (finishing off a couple gifts for friends that only needed seaming, the Candy Corn hat at Halloween, a few classes back in December) there has been no knitting!

All the adorable little projects I had lovingly picked out and planned for my daughter? Still in stash form. The baby blanket I had begun? It only had 33 of 300 rows complete. We're talking virtually no knitting in over a year! And yet I am still knitting obsessed. Clearly things could not continue in this manner.

And happily they have not. Two weeks ago I signed up for a project knitting class at my lys. Two hours of guaranteed knitting a week! Yippee! At the same time, my husband and I have finally managed to establish a bedtime routine for our daughter. Free time at night = knitting time! Amazing! And then, the discovery of not one knitting group I can attend, but two!!! My knitting cup runneth over. I have knit nine out of the last ten days (no knitting yet today as I wanted to blog and I only have two hands *sigh*).

There has been progress made on the aforementioned baby blanket, it almost is beginning to look like it might be a blanket instead of a scarf! So, what about this blanket, eh? It is the Ruffled Ridges pattern from Fiber Trends (pictured in pink in the link). I'm actually knitting it in a beautiful navy (Blue Sky Alpacas hand Dyed Cotton in #624 Indigo). I know, I know. Navy was an odd choice since I started this blanket for my daughter but I love navy. And now it will be perfect because I can make it for my new little boy instead (doing everything in my power to keep up the momentum so I can complete before his arrival in July). I promise a picture in my next post, I'm just to lazy to get the camera right now, and it is nighttime and it would be great to have natural light for a photo, and... you get the idea.

Lest you think my daughter will be denied her mommy-made blanket, fear not! I have already picked out a blanket pattern for her (and I have the yarn) but more about that and my recent stash enhancement next time. This post is already into quadruple overtime and needs to come to a close so you will just have to wait! (I think Dickens was really onto something when he created/popularized the whole cliffhanger concept...)