Potter-rama

In honor of the release of the latest Harry Potter movie and upcoming final book, I am declaring July Harry Potter month. All my new projects will be Harry Potter related. Here’s what I hope to accomplish this month (the packers come on the 25th so not sure how much knitting will happen once all my stuff is on a moving truck!):

1. Gryffindor socks in Sunshine Yarns Gryffindor Stripe.
2. House bookscarves (Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw) – As you can see, I’ve just cast on for this – so cute!
3. Horcrux socks in Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Philosopher’s Stone (pattern from Six Sox Knitalong on Yahoo!).
4. Ampersand in Sunshine Yarns Swedish Short Snout Dragon (link goes to a PDF).

Who else is excited about Harry Potter? 🙂

***Knitting Group is Tonight! We meet at the new Starbucks in Wilmette (corner of Lake & Laramie, just to the west of I-94 on Lake Ave.). We start at around 6:30 and go until 8ish. Any yarn enthusiast is welcome!***

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Summer Goals

Ali at Skeins her way… is having a contest. All you do is list your summer goals. Plus, when you comment and sign up for the contest you tell her whose blog pointed you to the contest and that person gets another entry. (If you heard it from me, be sure to let her know!) Just go to her site for all the details.

As you may remember, I am a list/goal fanatic so this is the perfect contest for me. 🙂

Summer 2007 Knitting Goals

1. Knit a baby sweater and baby blanket for my brother Ted’s future baby;
2. Knit the Summertime Tunic from Interweave Knits;
3. Knit lots of socks…maybe 6 or 7 pairs…;
4. Knit a Chevron Socks that Rock Scarf; and
5. Knit another Shaped Knit Tee using Brooks Farm.

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Restructuring

In order to get around this ennui I’ve been having with regards to my knitting I’m overhauling my whole project list process. In the past I have kept a large list of future projects broken into categories (e.g., sweaters, scarves) and then listed the projects with no particular priority. I also have my giant sock list with patterns and yarns all matched up. Then, I had a month by month goal list with projects assigned to each month. (My god this sounds geeky!)

Not anymore. I’m redoing the whole list and the way I’m doing it is by project type and then priority. (Yeah, sometimes I have a lot of free time). So, here’s yet another revised list of what I’ll be knitting in the future. I’ll try to be working on something from each group at any one time, but I don’t think I will restrict myself by monthly goals anymore. Also, these lists come with the disclaimer that I will rearrange, add, and remove things on random whims.

Scarf/Hat Projects:
1) Endpaper Mitts (Blues)
2) Coronet Hat and Here & There Cables Scarf in Malabrigo Brown Berries with Anemoi Mittens
3) Patons SWS Entrelac Scarf and Ribbed Hat
4) Wide Ribbed Scarf and Hat for Matt (Brooks Farm Duet)
5) Fake Isle Hat in Noro #148
6) Endpaper Mitts (Greens)

Socks:
1) Posh Yarns – another toe-up attempt.
2) Duet Socks from A Swell Yarn Shop
3) Project Runway Socks – Yarn from Yarntini
4) Philosopher’s Stone Socks for Matt (again)
5) Stillwater Lorna’s Laces Desert Flower Socks

Sweaters:
1) Pippa Cardigan
2) Wicked
3) Knitting Pure & Simple Top Down Shaped Neck Cardigan
4) T-Twist in Green/Brown Brooks Farm
5) Shaped Neck Tee in Red/Brown Brooks Farm

And there you have it! Now, on to some actual knitting….

Marmalade Citrine Socks
Pattern: Marmalade
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock in mediumweight Citrine
Needles: Inox 2.5mm (US 1)
Start Date: January 15, 2007
End Date: January 24, 2007
Comments: These may be the most cheerful socks I’ve ever knit. I love the combination of pattern and color. They knit up quickly and I did not change a thing. Not much else to say about them.

Great Pattern + Great Yarn + Great Needles = Wonderful Socks

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The Demise of the Philosopher’s Stone Socks

Today I had hoped to show you the finished Philosopher’s Stone Socks for Matt. However, my little orange kitchen scale arrived a few days again and confirmed my fear – I did not have enough yarn to finish the second sock. I told Matt I would need a little time before ripping them out and starting over. He’s bummed and so am I.

For posterity I will record that I was knitting the Garter Rib Stitch from Sensational Knitted Socks using lightweight Socks that Rock in Philosopher’s Stone. I knit a 6 inch cuff and a 10 1/2 inch foot for the first sock and apparently that took too much yarn and did not leave enough for the second sock. I think when I redo them I may use a different pattern. Any suggestions?

The good news is that the first Jingle Bell Rock sock is finished. Yea! That’s the first Socks that Rock Jingle Bell Rock (lightweight) sock. I’m using the Agate Bay pattern and size 2.0mm needles (KnitPicks US 0). I’m absolutely thrilled with the colors and it’s pretty cool how I got a little bit of a spiral on the foot.

In nerdy news, I revised my list of projects for the next 6 months. I decided to take the pace down a notch and give myself a little more time for certain projects. The revised goal list for January is as follows:
1) Lichen Socks – FINISHED!
2)Garter Rib Socks (Matt)(STR Philosopher’s Stone) Back to the drawing board…
3) Jingle Bell Agate Bay Socks
4) Tapestry Scarf (and if anything left over maybe a hat?)
5) Moss Sea Stitch Scarf – not too sure about this…I swatched and I wasn’t in love with it…
6) Finish Trinket Scarf

I’ll now leave you with a random picture of the Jingle Bell Rock socks gusset. I love the gusset decrease.What’s your favorite part of a sock?

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In the year 2007

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a lovely holiday season. We had a great time in Carbondale though the visit was too short, as always. The stupid neck pain I’ve been dealing with did prevent me from knitting the last couple weeks, but I have high hopes for 2007. Once I get my MRI done on Friday we’ll know for sure what’s causing the pain and I’m sure I’ll be back in knitting business. 🙂 At least I’ve been able to catch up on some reading!

Here’s my little knitting wrap up of 2006 and my goal for 2007:

2006

• I did alright knitting from the stash, but I know I added a bit too much to it as well.
• I knit my first lace project (the Baltic Sea Stole) and loved it!
• I received a Gold Medal in the Knitting Olympics.
• I attended Stitches Midwest again and had an excellent time.
• I knit much more for myself and Matt.
• I became a more consistent blogger. Thanks to everyone who reads this blog!

2007

• Only one goal: Keep the stash from growing! As we will most likely be moving by the end of this summer I am motivated to minimize packing by knitting through the stash. 🙂

January 2007 Knitting Goals – all of the following projects are somewhat tentative as I need to finish up a couple items from December while taking care of my silly neck…

1) Cheesylove sweater from Knitty2) Forbes Forest Scarf from Scarf Style
3) Socks in Yarntini 4-8-15-16-23-42
4) Finish the Trinket Scarf!!! (my oldest work in progress)

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Snowy Day, Misty Garden

How perfect to wake up on the first day of December to a beautiful snowy world! I couldn’t resist a picture of the Misty Garden scarf I just started with the snow in the background. Kilby had to be involved too. 🙂

So, November was busy with trying to balance workout time with knitting time, but I think I’ve got the hang of it now. Most of my November goals were met (just need to finish up a couple scarves for myself, no rush) so now it’s on to December in which I will try to knit some for others (and me!).

December Goals:
1) Misty Garden Scarf x2 (one for me or someone else and one definitely for someone else)
2) Stocking (for someone else)
3) Cedar Bark Socks in Sunshine Yarns Hungarian Horntail Dragon (for someone else)
4) Jingle Bell Rock Isosceles Socks (mine, all mine)
5) Interlocking Balloons Scarf (for someone else)
6) 2×2 Rib Pure Fall Socks – started in November (me me me)

The Yarntini Pure Fall socks are moving along. As you know, I started them in November, so no matter what, I’m ahead of schedule. 🙂 I plan on using the toe-up heel flap instructions in Sensational Knitted Socks and if it works it will open up a whole new world of toe-up socks! I’ll be done with the first heel soon. I may put off knitting the second sock for a little while to work on holiday gifts, but I don’t know. I hate not finishing a pair…

The other night I cast on for one of the Misty Garden Scarves (that’s the picture at the top of this entry) and it’s really knitting up quickly. I’m using Artful Yarns Portrait in Fazio’s Mistress. So far so good! This one’s a gift and I really hope the recipient likes the colors. (The close-up is a pretty good representation of the color – a variety of shades of pink as well as a hint of orange).

This weekend I plan on working on my Rowan Tapestry Yarn Harlot Scarf. I haven’t made too much progress so no picture today. Saturday night we’ll be at the opera, but other than that I’ll be knitting all weekend. 🙂

What’s everyone else going to do this weekend?

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November

November Goals
So, October is over and with it numerous projects are complete. Ivy took a little bit longer than I expected so that pushed back the time I had allotted for Rosedale United. Now, with both of these gorgeous sweaters nearly finished (Rosedale should be done by the end of the week), I can focus on this month’s goals. I had originally planned on knitting another sweater, but I’ve decided after doing two back to back that I’ll just focus on some smaller projects this month.

1) Socks that Rock Knee Highs (Jen is knitting some and they are great!)
2) Rowan Tapestry Scarf, Mitts, Hat
3) Pure Fall Plain Socks October Rockin’ Socks in Socks that Rock Pink Granite (I may get around to the Pure Fall socks sometime this month, but the new Rockin’ Sock pattern and yarn are too irresistible to ignore)
4) Dublin Bay socks (pdf) in Sunshine Yarns Dragonfly
5) Another We Call Them Pirates Hat (after the tragic misplacement of the first one)
6) Basic scarf using 100purewool

November is all about portable, easy projects. I didn’t get a progress shot of my Dublin Dragonfly socks, but trust me, they are moving along. I started them at the end of October hoping to squeeze them in as a third pair for Socktober, but I got incredibly distracted by Rosedale so that didn’t happen. I’m just finishing the first sock. I don’t think I’ll have any trouble finishing these up sometime over the weekend. Once these are off the needles I’ll be starting my first pair of knee socks in the long-coveted Nodding Violets colorway of Socks that Rock (assuming my order gets here soon). Gorgeous!

What’s everyone going to be working on this month?

***Knitting Group is tonight (Wednesday) at the Borders’ Cafe in Wilmette (corner of Lake & Skokie). We meet from 6:30 until 8:00 and any yarn enthusiast is welcome!***

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October Goals

Crisp air, rustling leaves, shorter days – it must be October. Last month I came very close to meeting my goals. I failed to finish up the Trinket Scarf, but I’ll be sure to work on it over the next couple months (and I’ve abandoned the Elizabeth lace scarf). I did finish my wonderful Silk Shrug, two pairs of socks, and a cabled scarf. So what’s up for October?

1) Marissa pullover from Adrienne Vittadini volume 20 (Forgot I moved Marissa to November:) ) Rosedale United
2) Ivy
3) Plain Socks in Schoeller & Stahl Mexiko Disco #9051 Durango
4) Stillwater socks in Claudia Hand Painted Chocolate Cherry
I was so excited about knitting Ivy that I already started and so far I have a couple inches of the back done. I am knitting the 40 inch size on size 2 needles. I decided not to go with the recommended yarn since none of the colors really appealed to me. Instead I picked out the Autumn Purple color in the Elann Peruvian Highland Silk. Elann indicates it is the same weight and gauge as the recommended yarn, but it creates a very firm fabric when I knit to the pattern gauge (though it did soften considerably when I washed the swatch). The density of the yarn does allow the cables to really pop though which is always a good thing. The yarn is beautiful and you can’t beat the price (total cost of sweater with just-in-case-extra ball of yarn $57). I’ve also joined the Ivy Knitalong. It is a lot of fun to see everyone’s different Ivy sweaters. The pattern is very well written and I am enjoying knitting this a lot. I love purple!

As for socks, I cast on for a pair of simple stockinette socks using Schoeller & Stahl Mexiko Disco (color #9051 Durango). Since this yarn has little sparkles it’s not exactly plain so I think stockinette is the way to go. I have always loved shiny things (My mom is convinced I was a raccoon in a past life) so when I saw this yarn at Elann last year I bought a bunch. As I’ve come to learn, I knit self-patterning yarns more quickly than monochromatic or handpainted yarns since I like to see the next repetition of the pattern. I had a false start on them this weekend, which you can see to the right. I got past the heel and gusset decreases before I realized these socks weren’t just loose, they were full out baggy. Oh well, these socks (once frogged and restarted) should still go very quickly which is good since I’m dying to cast on with the Claudia Hand Painted. October is Socktoberfest time after all!

This weekend I also knit up a cute little hat using Olympus Make Make yarn and a free pattern that came with it from KPixie. I absolutely love this hat and it matches my hard to match coat perfectly! The yarn was very nice to work with (it’s wool with a little mohair) and I like the tone on tone color shifts. I finished the hat using the pattern as written and found it to be more of a beanie length than a hat so I undid the top and added a couple inches to the plain stockinette section at the top. Much better now. The yarn is a little spendy ($18 for 3 balls – you need 2 for the hat, but it comes in bags of 3), but, really, less than $20 for a cute hat that knits up in a day? That’s not bad at all…now, do I need to make more of these in other colors? 😉

And a little sidenote…The opera was wonderful! We had an incredible time. I can’t wait to see our next one in November:)

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September Goals

Another month goes by and with it my finished Heather sweater, two pairs of socks, and very good progress on a top secret winter solstice sweater. August was a nice month as it was the return of winter knitting which I just love. There is nothing like using some lovely wool to create a garment that will keep you or a loved one warm even in the middle of a Chicago winter. Only a couple months until sweater season arrives!

For September I have the following knitting goals:
1) Silk Shrug in Blue Sky Alpaca & Silk
2) Elizabeth I scarf -Town & Country pattern
3) Besotted Scarf
4) Widdershins socks in Hill Country Yarns Honey Butter
5) Finish Trinket (now that it’s finally cooler I can actually think about touching mohair again)

Two of the weekends in September we will have visitors so I hope I’m not casting on for more than I can knit. As you saw the other day, I’ve already swatched for the Silk Shrug. The yarn is simply decadent. I was lucky enough to find a great deal on the color I wanted on Ebay. This yarn may be the nicest, loveliest yarn I’ve ever knit up. There are not enough superlatives to express how fantastic this stuff is – the shine, the smooth texture, the rich color. Mmmmm…

Unfortunately my swatch on US 3 (3.0 mm) needles is very close to gauge, but not exactly the gauge I want so I have to wait a few days for a pair of US 2 circulars to arrive from KnitPicks. Oh well, just gives me a chance to start on my Widdershins socks (seen to the right – that’s lovely Hill Country Yarn Sweet Feet Self-Striping in Honey Butter). I think it’s time to give toe-up sock knitting another shot, especially since I almost had another shortage tragedy on my Isosceles Socks:

Isosceles Cherries Jubilee Socks

Pattern: Wildhorse Farm Designs Isosceles pattern
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Sock Candy in Cherries Jubilee
Needles: Size US 0/2.0mm (8 stitches per inch)
Start Date: August 13, 2006
End Date: September 1, 2006
Comments: First off, the second sock had to be modified with a slightly shorter rib cuff and toe as I ran out of the first ball of yarn at the toe decreases of sock #1. I decided then to simply shorten the ribbing on the second sock and hoped that would be enough. Well, this time it just barely worked out, but as I’m worried about the frequency with which I appear to be running out of yarn before my socks are finished, I am very excited about knitting the Widdershins toe-up pattern.

Anyway, as for these socks, I love this yarn. This yarn is the first cotton I’ve used for socks and I loved every minute. It was not hard on the hands and has a lovely little cushiness to it. Another great product from Blue Moon Fiber Arts! (Just be careful about yardage…these socks have a six inch leg and 10 1/4 inch foot and I nearly ran out. Any future Sock Candy socks will have 4 inch legs just to be safe). As for the pattern, fun, fun, fun. I’m sure I will use it many times as it works really well to bring out the variegation in the handpainted yarn. I look forward to seeing how it looks with more contrasting colors.

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August Goals

Yowza! July was a blast! Six pairs of socks was the goal and I ended up with….six pairs of socks. Hooray!

Now on to my August goals. For this month, sweaters are back on the list. For myself I will knit Heather from Rowan’s A Season’s Tale pattern book. I am using some gorgeous Jaeger Shetland Aran in a sage green color that works very well with this pattern. I started knitting the back Monday night and I’ve already made terrific progress. After all that sock yarn, this aran weight yarn feels like rope (really nice soft rope)!

This month I will also knit a sweater for Matt. He reads this blog now and again so, unfortunately, to keep it a bit of a surprise, I will not blog about his sweater until after it is finished and gifted to him sometime around the winter solstice. He knows about the yarn (he helped pick it out), so here’ s a picture of lovely Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed in Licorice that will become his sweater.

Aside from the two big sweater projects, I will be knitting various socks as well. Here’s a picture of the sock I’ve started for Matt. It’s in Trekking XXL #71 in a basic 6×2 rib. I will also probably knit another pair for myself with a new pattern I just purchased from Wildhorse Farm Designs. Maybe some leg warmers too (nothing says “August!” like leg warmers). After completing six pairs last month, I’m not putting any pressure on myself sockwise in August so if these socks get done, great! If not, I won’t stress about it:) I have been considering joining Sock Wars, but I’m just not sure…it looks like a lot of fun though…hmmm.

Many thanks to the Crazy Colorado Knitter she gave me some great advice about using photos on my new Mac. Firefox did the trick! Thank you.

***Knitting GROUP is tonight at the Borders’ Cafe in Wilmette (corner of Lake & Skokie). We meet from 6:30 until 8:00 and any yarn enthusiast is welcome!***

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