The Hideously Ugly Sweater--Vest Incident

Dear Blog,

Sometimes, when I tell people that I knit, I get this strange reaction. They wrinkle up their nose and think for a minute and then they make one of two observations.

1. Knitting is itchy


Or


2. They received a hand-knit item once and it was an ugly color/striped monster.


This makes me kind of sad because for me knitting has always been first and foremost an art, and art is supposed to be pleasant and pretty. I've never really understood how those hand-knit sweater disasters happen, and can only assume that the knitter responsible was either eccentric or color blind.


The itchy part is slightly more reasonable. Knitting has widely been considered a frugal, cheaper method of getting stuff and it's one of the tragedies of the craft that comfort is generally the first thing to be sacrificed.


 All this is to say that I have recently found myself in the novel position of having created an ugly sweater of my own. I'm not saying that I take back my previous judgment of other ugly-sweater knitters. But I do feel like I can sympathize with them a little.


I recently cracked open a box of my stashed yarn and discovered I had several skeins of chunky acrylic. I'm on a tight budget right now and haven't been buying any new yarn so it was really important to me to try to find some pattern to knit with it. The obvious first choice was a hat, which I tried. But something about it just looked really ugly (something about the epic level of shininess that is the main attribute of this yarn. )

I've had this sweater vest in my queue for a bit and have really wanted to knit it. It's just hard to tell if something like that will fit well or to know ahead of time which places in the pattern to modify. So I knit it.
 I didn't have enough yarn to knit it in one color. So it's striped. The design and construction of the vest makes the stripes a bit unfortunate. The colors also clash deliciously. See for yourself.


Pattern: Shawl Collar Vest

Needles:
 I forget. US 11 or 13? 

Yarn: Loops & Threads Cozy Wool (3) balls purple and (.5) ball orange.


Overlooking the obvious, its a very nice vest and I would really like to knit it again in a solid color wool. I'd probably make some modifications. Only knit 8 inches or so before picking up the stitches and in short just making things a tiny bit shorter. (maybe knitting at a tighter gauge.)
In the meantime, while I'll probably refrain from wearing it in public, I'm enjoying my hideous vest.



Cheers.

FO: NRS Sweater

Today's FO is the NRS - No Remorse Sweater.  It started out life hoping to be the Sideways Redux, but I realized that pattern was hopelessly too complicated for me and switched at the last minute. This pattern was pretty easy (Except for the whole button thing. More on that later ) and I would love to knit it again. Knit this with knit picks wool of the andes, which in hindsight is not really soft enough for a close-to-the-skien sweater. (Though fine for hats and the like.)



Yarn : Knit picks wool of the andes (about ) 4 balls
Needles : US5
Pattern : Safire
Cast on : Jan 2012
Cast Off : Nov 2012





Other than the slight itchyness, my only real complaint is that I managed to knit the top two button holes on one side of the sweater and the bottom two on the other side. No idea how that happened but it's making for some seriously awkward fastening. I may or may not ever put in the effort to figuring out a fix for this, since its really too itchy to wear anyway. The positive side of all this is that I can knit sweaters that fit me perfectly and that are good enough quality that I would wear them in public, so my sweater phobia is mostly gone now




obligatory boob shot?


Cheers
THEO

Armed and ready

Hey blog!

Just thought I'd post a brief blurb on the NRS sweater. Both sleeves are finished!

I actually finished them a few weeks ago.

Everything went fine for the most part. I did have trouble figuring out how to do the join when I first started, so I ended up with this pretty unsightly hole in the arm pit area. I put that sleeve on a stitch holder, started the other sleeve so I could figure out what I did wrong. Once I finished that sleeve I went back and frogged the first sleeve, and started over.

All I need to do now is the collar/ button band and then I'll be done!

Of course, I'm trying to finished the super surpise blanket first! ^_^

Until next

Cheers

WIP Woops

Dear blog,

I dedicated a huge chunk of this past weekend to my knitting, and as you may have noticed, I have a pretty decent number of WIPs floating around right now. I honestly, sincerely meant to work on each one of them in turn (especially the burnt frost hat, which really only has a few rows of decreases left. ) I also planned on starting the 2nd sock in my Vampire Boyfriend pair, so I'd have something a little more juicy to knit in class if the SHELTER scarf got 'too' relaxing. But I'm afraid I have been very weak.

From the moment I seriously started knitting my No Remorse Sweater, I became blind to all other projects.

The NRS sweater is the reincarnation of an earlier attempt to knit this pattern. It turned out to be way too complex for my current direction-reading skill, so it was frogged in favor of a simpler project. Namely, this one. Of course, I still want to knit sideways-spencer-redux eventually. Just not quiet yet. Anyway, this sweater has consumed me. I'm driven on by the one oh-so-important question : Will it fit? The other projects I know will more or less work out, but I have a lousy track record with sweaters, and I'm hanging by the seat of my pants here waiting to find out how things are going to go down.

Until next

Cheers

Leap of faith

Dear blog,

I am about to take a giant leap of faith. My knitpicks order came in the mail - 900 yards of Wool of the Andes in the 'Winter Night' colorway, destined to become The sideway spencer sweater. I have to admit, I do not have good feelings about this sweater. I purchased the pattern ages ago, and it has sat pretty close to the top of my queue ever since. From a process knitter's perspective, it's perfect: It's full of wonderful, interesting cables, and it's knit sideways! What could be cooler? But the product knitter inside me looks at ravelry and sees how every single project is a completely different shape and size, which means I have no-way to predict what mine will look like finished. Plus, it's a cropped sweater, and those only flatter certain body types. Not to mention the bunchy bulky HORIZONTAL cables..... So yeah, I'm not convinced that even if I did everything totally right and this sweater came out perfect and in my size that I would actually wear it.

With all that said. I still really want to knit this pattern. And trust me, I've spent three days on ravelry with cold feet, looking at every other possible sweater I could knit instead. I still come back to this one. Which brings us to the real problems.

Gauge. Oh Gauge, why do you hate me so? This sweater is supposed to be knit on US8 needles with a gauge of 4sts =1 inch. I knit my swatch on US4 needles and am obtaining that gauge only in my imagination. (Depending on where on the swatch I measure, I get 5 sts or 4 1/2 sts. ) I tell myself that I have a 32 inch bust, and that surely by knitting the size 28 It'll more than make up for my loose gauge, right?

I'm doing the ribbing on the cuff on US2 needles, and it just doesn't feel right. It feels.....lacy and droopy.

The other problem is the pattern itself.... I'm used to knitting patterns that hold your hand for every single step, and while this pattern is well written, it says things like "Increase 6 sts evenly in this row." Without spelling out exactly how and where. I mean, I'm a smart person and I can figure out it, but it does not give me a warm fuzzy feeling inside. I especially don't like the part in the sleeve instructions where it says : "Begin with stitch 14, work 1 row of cable pattern across all stitches ending with stitch 13." I'm not sure, but I think these numbers refer to places in the cable chart.....but why not just start with the beginning of the chart? And the chart itself says that it's a repeat of 18 stitches + 8, but I can't find any reference to where those extra 8 stitches come in. There are also increases that happen... and all the pattern says is to include the new stitches into the cable pattern, without explaining how to do that. I'm sure a more experienced knitter doesn't need these kinds of prompts, but I do! I get a sick feeling in my gut every time I look at these instructions, but I'm casting on anyway. What's the worst that can happen?

Keep your eyes focused here. This is going to be an epic WIP.

R.I.P

Riiiiiiiiiiiiip.

Shh. Did you hear that? That sound? Listen...

Riiiiiiiiiiiiip.

It's the scariest most terrifying sound....The stuff of nightmare's and knitter's ghost stories. A project moaning in it's last throes of death, as it sinks despairingly into the frog pound, unraveling at last, returning to it's base element. The dreaded R.I.P - I'm not talking about simply ripping back a little bit to fix a mistake, I'm talking about all out total unmerciful shredding. We're sending this thing to the stash and back.

At this point you may ask, what project has fallen prey to such an evil fate? Good question! Remember Hey Teach?

I knit it, I sewed it up. Yes I got gauge, but it simply didn't fit. Not going to lie, it was too big and nothing was going to change that. Rather than try to salvage the project, I've decided to completely frog it and knit something else instead. This isn't anything against the Hey Teach pattern, I liked it and may knit it again someday. but for now, I've been there, done that, and now I just want to move on.

The frogging process was hard. Harder than I thought, and I'm not talking emotionally here, I'm talking technically. I did way too good a job seaming - and for now on I'm TOTALLY going to go easier on the weaving-in, because I ended up having to just cut the yarn in places in order to get it to unravel. Yikes! Oh well. I've already cast on a new project with this yarn, fingers crossed it'll have more luck!

FO : $12 in Pasadena

Drum roll please!

I give you, $5 in Paris!

Tada! 見て！できたよ！

Pattern: $5 in Paris

Yarn: 3 skeins Patons classic wool

Needles: 3US & 6US

Cast on: July 30th

Cast off : August 28th

I really enjoyed knitting this pattern! It's very simple, and with it being top-down, it's very easy to make adjustments until it fits exactly the way you want it. Knitting this as a knit-along with a friend only sweetened the deal. I never would have thought I could knit a whole sweater in a month, but I guess anything is possible with the right motivation ;)

I decided to go with wool rather than acrylic because I'm going through a phase where I really dislike the feel of acrylic while I knit it. I like the crunch of wool on needles and I've been a fan of Patons classic for awhile now, so I thought it was a sure choice. I've knit mostly scarfs and hats out of it before, and I've always been perfectly happy with how they've come out, so I was a bit surprised to find it a bit scratchy to wear knit up as a sweater. I haven't washed it yet, so it's possible it will soften out. Otherwise it wont be a big deal to wear something light underneath. I'll just chalk it up to experience, clearly my skin is more sensitive than I thought it was!

I don't have any actual problems with the sweater itself though. My problem with changing colors was solved easily while weaving in ends, and although the bind-off is tighter than I would like, it certainly isn't a significant complaint. This is definitely a pattern I'll want to knit again!

Currently suffering from a severe case of 'acute boredom', with startitis being one of the primary symptoms. I may not have enough left-over sweater yarn to knit the Penny wristers like I wanted, so I've cast on and frogged that pattern once already. I'm currently working on another pair of Treads and a Turn a Square hat and am actively scanning the queue and other people's favorited items for further inspiration...

TBC....

Weeks of Sweaters

Today, dear blog, a message for Brent Weeks.

Brent Weeks, if you are out there. I think you are awesome. I've only just discovered your books, and they sucked me right in. I read The way of Shadows pretty much in one go, and yes I was still up reading it at 3AM. But that's not how I know that you will be going permanently to my list of favorite authors. No, what clued me in was that, after reading the first book of the trilogy, my first impulse was not to reach for the second book, but rather, to read the acknowledgments. In simple terms: I love you. My only regret is how much this relationship will cut into my knitting time.

And now, the feature presentation.....

Tada! I did 6 increase rows before setting aside the sleeve stitches, completing one whole stripe and starting on another. At Jeanne's pool, did another 3" after the armpit and then started the waist shaping. So far, so good, as the daring say.

I only have 1 decrease left to go according to the pattern, but I'm thinking of adding one additional decrease round...We shall see. Also there's no actual reference to when to start increasing for the hips... so I'll have to lurk around on Ravelry for more specifics.

Stay tuned...

A Good Start.

Hello Blog!

First, since I know you'll ask; I did not finish Treads yesterday. I'm really close though!

Yesterday, was a bad day for me. I mean, a screaming, shouting, cursing, crying bad day. I know, but it's OK because after it was all over, I went to my friend's house and we went to AC Moore. AC Moore is where all of the pretty, cheap, acrylic yarn lives, and not to dis Michael's at all, but this particular AC Moore has the most amazing selection of brands and colors. It's nothing short of epic.

Suddenly, without really meaning to I had agreed to starting a knit-a-long. A Knit-a-long for a sweater. A SWEATER. There is nothing better for boosting morale, self-esteem, and delusions of grandeur than going to buy yarn with a fellow enabler. ( I might be her dealer but she's just as bad for me as I am for her, and that's the story I'm sticking to.)

What sweater you might ask? Why none-other than the simple and elegant $5 in Paris that has been high up in my queue for a good long time now. I love this sweater, it's really a classic, fitted look and it does stripes in a way that actually looks nice....

I don't want anything to go wrong with this project. I want this sweater to be a roaring success, I want it to fit properly, I want to be able to wear it out in public - or to work - without feeling embarrassed, or regretting some fault or another with the sweater that only I can see. To that end, today I am swatching. Serious swatching. It may be true that swatches lie, but I will swatch the living daylights out of this yarn until it tells me what I want to know.

Gauge is supposed to be 5 stitches to an inch.

on size 9 needles; unblocked 4 1/2 stitches, blocked 3 3/4 stitches

on size 8 needles; unblocked 5 stiches, blocked 4 stitches

on size 7 needles; unblocked 5 stitches, blocked 4 1/2 stitches

Regardless of what needle size I go with for the body, I plan on going down a size smaller for the ribbing. I do not want the neck of this thing draping off of my shoulders!

'Cheers,

Theo

Holidays and knitting

Dear blog, It is nearly midnight on December 22nd. Christmas is so close I can taste it. I hope everyone has been having a pleasant holiday season, I certainly have been enjoying mine. There is snow everywhere which is rare for us, and all of the kids are enjoying playing around in their big coats and hats and snow boots. I enjoy being surrounded by my family, we're having lots of fun, eating good food, watching good movies, and trying to learn Na'vi, the language created for the movie Avatar which came out recently. I know it's not knitting related exactly, but I'm finding it to be not only a challenge, but a deliciously geeky past time. I have nothing but respect for the creator of Na'vi, he's clearly a mad genius in my book. I would only suggest that perhaps he need not have tried quit so hard to make it sound so 'exotic'. Today I found out that I am totally incapable of rolling my R's. I spent hours asking other people to demonstrate, and making the most ridiculous noises, spitting, gurgling, blowing raspberries, and in general making a complete fool of myself; Sounding like a dying car engine or an air mattress with a leak. I'm sure this wont be the last of the road blocks in this language's phonology!

I never did post pictures of my fetching gloves. I will get around to it eventually, for now I'll just say I have been convinced in the power of blocking. I used to imagine that blocking was only ever really important when you were knitting fancy things like lace, and I certainly felt that it was unnecessary for cables. However after blocking the Fetching gloves I realize what a terribly ignorant misconception that was. I shall be blocking all of my knitting from now on. (with exceptions for the acrylic stuff, of course.)

I'm nearly done with the Empress coat. I felted it yesterday, and let me tell you the sweating that went into it....
It was so easy. All I did was stick it in a pillow case, put it in the wash, and forget about it. Later after the wash had finished I pulled it out, lay it out flat on the floor, and let it dry. Just moments ago I had my mom try it on, and it seems to be a perfect fit. I can not say how both delighted and relieved I am. Just a few buttons and a quickly knit belt are all that remains before this project can be crossed off my list and graduated to FO status ^__^

Cheers,
Theo

What to do when things don't fit

Blog, it's been a long time coming :



I have finally finished Hey Teach. Sort of. It looks ok, right? I'm not digging the button bands so I'm actually going to rip them out and do them at a smaller needle size. However, there is more...



I should have realized that my abnormally narrow shoulders would probably not be accounted for in the pattern sizing, but I didn't. So I've got a chunk of fabric up there that needs to be taken in. Not sure what the best method for this will be, I'm going to take it to my LYS knit along and pole for advice.

In other news, the empress jacket is also coming along. But more on that in future posts ^__-
'cheers
THEO

Big Project Pending

Hey, Blog. Guess what I scored yesterday?

This is 15 balls of Ella rae classic in color 114. The color is sort of like a muted brick-red with muted purple overtones. It is destined to become the Empress coat which I will be knitting with my LYS's Empress coat knit-along. I'm not really sure how this project happened, I found out about the knit along and within days the pattern and yarn were magically in my possession. Truth be told, I'm not too fond of either the pattern or the color, and wouldn't choose to wear either, but fortunately my mother has volunteered to be the recipient of this item when it's finished, giving me leave to enjoy 3,200 odd yards of stockinet stitch joy ^__^

This project couldn't have come at a more ideal time, either. My argument with Hey, Teach has been putting a dampener on the knitting lately, but with fall quickly turning to winter, and my midterms coming up, (not to mention all the cold rain we've been getting) I think this whole knit along is going to be a real sanity saver!

I've also been making progress on the sock. The real breakthrough was when I finally memorized the pattern repeat. (I know, it's only four rows, I'm ashamed it took this long ) I'm chugging away at the second sock, mere inches from the heel flap







Of course, all of this red yarn is starting to tire my eyes, and I'm really looking for an excuse to knit something else, like this lovely green :



This is a swatch for the Sideways spencer redux sweater. I've been really itching to knit this pattern for a long time. The only problem? I wanted to do it in a dark red, but I think if I buy any more red yarn for a long time I'll be absolutely sick, or possibly damage my poor eyes!
I'm not really into this color as a sweater though. So I think I'll knit a hat, or maybe gloves instead. Something with cables, hopefully.

Blocking today

Hey, Teach is officially blocking. There are no words for how excited that makes me feel ^__^
I'm knitting the XS size, (my bust is like a 33) but when I went to block this I found that all of my pieces were bigger than shown in the schematic (and BTW, what a fun word. Schematic. Yumm. ) Anyways, so I've blocked all of my pieces to the S size measurements. I think it'll work out since I was actually noticing that it might be a bit *too* snug so hopefully it'll all work out.

more soon!

Other fish

Just thought I'd pop in briefly and mention Hey, Teach.




After a month of ignoring this project I'm finally back in the game! finished the back piece tonight and ready for more :)
sixer : you've had plenty of time to catch up, prepare yourself to be left in the dust ^__^





BTW, my camera is still in it's death throes, so the color in these photos are pretty off.....

Hey, Teach!

Hello guys.

So, even though I have several projects currently on the needles, I have been looking forward to casting on for Hey, Teach! for quiet some time now. I bought the Yarn and the needles several months ago, but have been waiting to start this project in order to do a knit-a-long with my sister who will also be starting her first sweater soon. (did I mention Hey, Teach is going to be my 'first sweater type project'? ) My sister got the yarn for her project recently and is only waiting for her new harmony wood knitpicks needles to come in the mail to start, so I went ahead and cast on a few days ago. I simply couldn't wait any longer! After all of the projects I've been doing lately on DPNS this project feels like a breath of fresh air. I'm knitting them on size 8 knitpicks circulars, which are like a dream to knit with, and I'm using the new comfy worsted yarn. It is so, so soft. I can't stop touching it and petting it. I love the way it's knitting up (although my gauge seems to keep changing and it's a bit noticeable in some places) I could probably finish this project super fast if I'm not careful, but I'll try to pace myself!