Hey!

Can we just admit the fact that with school, my knitting and blogging about knitting is essentially on hiatus? Ugh.

BUT! Here are some photos to show I was very productive in my summer break. (Seriously, no time off of school until Christmas, except for when I get random days off, like for 4th of July.)

Anyway, I finished my sweater. Kinda. It needs to be blocked and ends need to be woven in and all that jazz. I know the sleeves look teeny-tiny. My gauge was different if I knit flat vs. in the round. The rest of the sweater was knit flat, so the sleeves were too. They're just rolled in on themselves. Also, I wasn't thinking and knit the band as a part of the sweater instead of picking up and adding on later. Of course, I didn't want the stripe pattern to extend into the band and so there are a lot of holes to be sewn up with creative weaving in of ends. Ugh...

I used the seamless yoke pattern from Ann Budd's The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns: Basic Designs in Multiple Sizes & Gauges. It's knit in Lamb's Pride, with a gauge of 4 st/inch. The stripes are in Wildefoot. For the bottom band, collar, and cuffs, I dropped down 2 needle sizes and did seed stitch. The bottom and cuff were 5 rows of seed stitch. It's then 3 rows of stockinette, 1 row of CC, 1 row of MC, 2 rows of CC, 1 row of MC, 1 row of CC. The band is just 1 slipped stitch and then 5 stitches of seed stitch. For the yoke, I after joining the sleeves to the body, I did 1 row of MC, and the stripe pattern as established in sleeves and bottom. 3 rows of MC, then the stripe pattern again all the way up. For the collar, I dropped down 2 needle sizes and did seed stitch, increasing one stitch at the beginning of each row for about 2 inches.

I then cast on and started knitting this. I think it's a vest. If I have enough yarn left over, it will have cap sleeves. The cabling is going to go up until the ribcage, and then switch to plain stockinette. Hopefully, I'll keep you posted!

MD Sheep and Wool

Last weekend, I went to Maryland Sheep and Wool and it was awesome.

I was going to take lots of pictures of its awesomeness, but the battery on my camera was dead, so that didn't happen.

I bought lots of yarn. Hopefully this weekend I'll replace the camera battery and show you pictures of said yarn.

Second sweater sleeve is coming along nicely. My goal is to finish this thing before June 4.

That might seem arbitrary to you, but that's when summer classes start, and once that happens, I will have no time until, like, Christmas for knitting.

Knitting!

I've been knitting again! And I'm going to Sheep and Wool next weekend!

Here's my pretty Peace Fleece replacement needles from the lovely Ellie.











Here's the sweater I'm working on! I've done a lot in a just a few weeks. Too bad it's way too hot to wear! I'm doing a seamless yoke cardigan from Ann Budd's The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns

Here the lovely yarn, a gift from my friend Sarah. Lamb's Pride and Handpaint Originals-- very lovely:

Here's the body-- it's knit in one piece up until the sleeves...

Here's a close up of the striping pattern and border. I'm doing seed stitch and stripes of the Handpaint Originals. I'll do a lot of stripes when I get to the yoke.

And here's the first sleeve, ready to be added in to the body to knit the yoke, once I get the other sleeve done...

And here's the other sleeve, in the very beginning stages.

Here's a baby bonnet for someone at work. I'm knit it in Calmer.

It's from Erika Knight's Knitting for Two. Here's a detail of the back: I need to put some lovely brown velvet ribbon bows and ties on it... yummy.

And what I promise will one day be a teddy bear, once I sew it up and stuff it. It's from Simply Baby by Debbie Bliss.

Look! The sweater I knit for Denise's new little one!

So, I tried an experiment in felting. I made a crazy ball of Peace Fleece and knit myself a giant rectangle of linen stitch for a pillow? Maybe?

And here's the result after felting... ummm... not so good. Maybe another trip and it could be a scarf? Maybe. Ugh.

The stitches turned out kinda neat... I forgot about the mohair halo. D'oh.

Yarn Stores

I went to Stitch DC in Georgetown yesterday morning. It was pretty nice-- I fell in love with 225 yards of lace weight cashmere in beautiful colors. There may still be a little puddle of drool on the floor. The price tag kept it firmly on the shelf though, and not in my yarn stash.

But the store made me realize something that I really miss about the Midwest-- large yarn stores. Rent is much out East these days that yarn stores are small with a higher markup. Ah well, what am I going to do? I shouldn't be buying yarn anyway-- gotta stick to the stash diet!

GAH

I need to get off my duff and take some pictures to share with y'all.

But I finished knitting the teddy bear. There's a lot of finishing that needs to be done but for knitting I picked up a crazy ball yarn felted pillow project that I've been working on for awhile now (it's my between projects project).

I started whitening my teeth today. Now they're hyper-sensitive. Blargh.

Curing the Slump?

I really need to dig out the USB cable and my camera.

But I think that maybe cute girly baby things might be the slump cure.

So, my friends, STOP HAVING BOYS! :)

Argh

I hate knitting slumps and this one has gone on forever.

New pretty needles from a friend? I'm stroking them and loving them, but not knitting with them.

Pretty yarn from multiple friends? See above.

Every few days I'll do another round or two on my legwarmers, but I don't know what my problem is.

My friend Elizabeth just knit the most gorgeous Debbie Abrahams blanket.

I want to knit again! I miss it.

bad me

Man, I'm really out of practice with this blogging thing.

I also need to get the pictures off my camera and onto here!

I'm knitting some legwarmers. They're brown and one is done.

My friend Sarah hooked me up with mad amounts of Lamb's Pride for Christmas.

I got the greatest bunch of needles from a secret awesome person who's real-life identity I've uncovered. ;) LOVE HER.

I also got the new KnitPicks Options needle things, but I haven't used 'em yet.

Oh, Wow

Peace Fleece Knitting Needle Replacement Squad? I don't know what to say, except wow. I am humbled and thankful and whomever you are, your kindness made me cry (but you know, in that good way).

THANK YOU!

SADNESS

Oh, it looks like the vast majority of my knitting needles did, indeed, disappear during the move.

I can't find them. Anywhere. Just gone gone gone gone gone.

That full set of Peace Fleece straights I bought last spring? Gone.

My half dozen sets of Lantern Moons? Gone.

Those dozen Addi Turbos? Gone.

All my Brittanys? Gone.

Crochet hooks? Gone.

Double Points? Gone.

All my other needles? GONE GONE GONE.

*sob*

I KNOW!

Ack, HolyKnitter, I know, I know. Part of me telling you I wanted to update once a week was so y'all could ride me when I didn't!

Knitting update:
Secret Knitting is done. And about to not be a secret because ANN ARBOR! I NEED DENISE'S ADDRESS! Or hey! Denise! I need your address!

I'm working on the UFO Rebecca Wrap. Miles of Brioche Stitch = done! First sleeve = done! YAY! Second sleeve is almost up to the bit where I start increasing. Then sewing in the sleeves.

I'm looking for a good pattern for a sweater done in a fingering weight yarn. Preferably a stripey cardigan. I know. I'll have to design it myself. Poo.

I have some knitting books to review, too.

Thai Prisons+Mattress Stitch+Wine=Love

Ok, so, one of my resolutions this year is to update this every week.

So, what have I been up to? Well, I've been in a bit of a slump lately. I'm not sure why, and with school and work, I almost didn't realize it. I've started up again, but what I'm working on is a big fat secret, because it's a long overdue present. When I started it, it was not at all near overdue, but now, woo-boy.

So that's the knitting front. Plus, I still haven't found my knitting needles that got lost in the move. I know they're somewhere in some box in the attic.

But, last night was all about a bottle of merlot, Bridget Jones - The Edge of Reason, and mattress stitching up seams on the secret knitting.

I also knit some rows on the Rebecca wrap that has been languishing forever. Woot! Maybe my slump is nearing an end? Let's hope so.