Done!
Here is the pattern. I wanted to make this usable in the summer, so I used cotton yarn. Just good ol’ Sugar n’ Cream in the batik ombre colourway. I’m pleasantly surprised at how it turned out.
scarf
Mitts are DONE
Hallelujah!
You may remember my starting them waaaay back in this post. 6’4″ Man sized convertible mitts take significantly more yarn than I’m used to :S Plus the pattern I was working from had to be altered several times (though a man pattern, it was definitely not made for the 6’4″ variety), resulting in multiple froggings. I also added on the convertible thumb. I’m debating publishing it as its own pattern. But that requires me to compare it to the original. I don’t want to plagarize. We’ll see how motivated (and not lazy) I feel over the next few days…
The important thing is that they are DONE. To celebrate, here are some goodies:
1) I bought needles online. Turns out I’m not as happy with them as I’d hoped, but the eBay seller had this neat chart on their listing, and I saved a copy. You’re welcome.
2) I wanna make the Favorite Things Scarf. Such a cool concept.
But I should probably get on this instead… Life is hard.
3) I bought a copy of Mary Thomas’s Knitting Book
Um… ignore the Xbox controller. Ours is a nerdy house…
Anyway, this little book is a classic. Perhaps not as well known as Elizabeth Zimmermann or Barbara Walker, but every bit as chock full of invaluable information. An added draw is the wealth of historical information she includes.
Be warned, however, that this was originally published in the 1930s. Knitting techniques might not date, but the cartoons do. Most are charmingly cute, but some venture into mildly sexist and/or culturally insensitive territory. Mrs. Thomas was brilliant, but still a product of her time. Let’s focus on some cute ones:
4) Look what I found in my mom’s closet: an authentic Cowican Sweater! I’ve written about these before.
5) Not knitting, but still crafty, and friend told me about XStitchMyHeart via The Mary Sue.
… must learn cross stitch.
Pattern coveting
The walking mitts for mom are finally done!
Six yarn overs in a row is a LOT, let me tell you. Also, if you are making very fitted mitts with ribbed cuffs I suggest this cast off. It saved my bacon after several ill-fated attempts at other methods.
I also managed to whip up another pair of fingerless gloves, this time for myself, using Julia Vaconsin’s pattern on Crochet Me.
Not as fancy, but it’s getting too cold to not have something on my hands. Crochet aran weight works up FAST, yo. I got a little tripped up by the foundation single crochet (fsc) row, but this tutorial was a great help.
My next project is Martina Behm‘s Hitchhiker Shawl.
Why is it called “Hitchhiker?” As the pattern says, it has 42 teeth/points. 42 is the answer to the question about the universe and everything, according to Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, which happens to be one of my favourite books!
And this is the yarn I’m gonna use for it:
It’s the Manos del Uruguay Serena I picked up at The Purple Purl at the September Knitty Yarn Roundtable. Photobomb courtesy of my cat, Desmond.
Speaking of cats. This is the stuff my nightmares are made of:
He even looks like Desmond.
Who has taken to burrowing in our bedclothes, by the way. Yarn isn’t a far cry.
Good thing I keep all of my stash in plastic bins…
Other things that are new:
Remember Canary Knits’ book “Ghosts” I talked about in my last post? I scored a free copy in Knit and Purl Mama‘s giveaway. So excited to get knitting! Especially Calavera Catrina
and Hitodama
I also stumbled upon this amazing free Christmas ornament pattern:
Definitely making one (or five…)
Can I also just point out that I miss Christmas lights that looked like that? Reminds me of my childhood.
Happy hump day, everyone!
All Hallows Eve
Happy Hallowe’en!
In honour of this most creepy of holidays, here are some spooky-type projects.
The lovely Teresa Gregorio has recently published an entire book of patterns inspired by ghosts. In addition to the patterns, there are essays exploring how different cultures view the “physical” apparition of a ghost.
This new free pattern from Red Heart is freaking amazing:
Definitely planning on this for next year.
I know, I know, it may be a little hard to get something knit and blocked by tonight, but you can always get a head start on next year. Or you’ll be all set to celebrate Christmas Tim Burton style.
Source: Shayne on Geekcrafts
Zero the Ghostly Dog by Meg-Ann Skilton
In the same vein, you could choose to start getting ready for the Mayan apocalypse on Dec 21:
Judith Shangold’s Mayan Scarf.
Quetzal Mayan Bird from Erssie Major’s Magickal Throw.
Speaking of Christmas, better get cracking on those gifts!
KatKnit over at Dances with Wool has a list of cute free patterns to get you started. I personally love the elf slippers:
And for those that celebrate other holidays at this time of year:
I saw this posted by Knitomatic in my Pinterest feed. Frigging adorable. Look at the wee little candles! For little toddler hands!
Creativ Festival haul
Two posts a tad close together, I know, but I had to share the fruits of my second day at the Creativ Festival. Pics of my adventures as a model for the Fashion Knits show to hopefully come soon.
Voilà my haul of goodies, comprising both days:
Breaking it down, we have the two awesome books I got, more detail in my other post. Both are entirely worth the investment, but I love that I got them at a huge discount from Grantham Books. They’re at the festival every year, and I always come home with something. On their site they list other shows they go to as well as permanent locations.
In the foreground you can see some navy blue DK possum merino. That’s right, possum. It is made in New Zealand, and available in Canada here, the UK here, and the USA here or here. Apparently, “the possum fur is hollow and, when spun with merino wool, produces a hardwearing yarn with superior heat retaining qualities.” Either way, it feels awesome and I am excited to try it. Here’s a close-up.
I also picked up some good ol’ Berroco Vintage Chunky in white from Creative Yarns. It shall one day (soon) become the shrug for my wedding dress. I’ll be using the same pattern as for the one I talk about here.
I think it will be gorgeous. Actually, I know it will be because someone has already done it:
I also got some neats beads, pendants, and a pair of cool glass earrings at this store’s booth.
After much hunting, I was finally able to find a booth that sold Brother equipment for my Brother sewing machine. I got some thread, extra bobbins, a blind presser foot for fancy hems on dresses and dress pants (I have a backlog of stuff to fix…), and a teflon foot and twin needle for sewing onto knitting, so that maybe I can finally get the lining onto my cabled belt from way back.
One thing I did not buy, purely because I have a large enough stash already, is the HPKY I fell in love with. Their website isn’t the greatest, but I believe the yarn is called Lamé. It’s a bulkier weight and has strands of glitter running through it. The booth selling it (called Yarn Deals, LLC) I could not find a website for anywhere, but they had these wicked knitted samples that only need 1 skein:
I especially like the one with the tapered and braided ends. It makes it really easy to wear as a scarf or snood/hood type thing. Gotta remember this design idea for later.
And finally, you may remember Ozzy the Alpaca from yesterday’s post. Today, I leave you with a fortune.
Cnyttende Textiles 