joyousknits

Tomten jacket

When knitting for kids, it's probably a good idea to strike while the iron is hot.  I had 9 balls of Noro Silk Garden (color #203) stashed a few years back to make something for H, the oldest.  Of course, he's grown at a fantastic rate, and there wasn't enough yarn for such a large garment, so I knit something for L, who is ten.  Right from the start there wasn't going to be enough for a hooded version of the Tomten jacket, but I still ran out of yarn! 

For a good two months, this little jacket had three quarter sleeves and was bandless before I purchased a couple more skeins (which amazingly were of the same dyelot!), so I could finish it for CNY.  I started with 168 sts on 4.5 mm needles (gauge of 4.75 sts per inch), and followed the ratios as in the pattern (Elizabeth Zimmermann's, found in The Opinionated Knitter or Knitting Without Tears). 

I bound off a few stitches at the shoulder seam so that the neck wouldn't be too wide, did a shaped neckline and knit a few rows around the neck before picking up stitches from one side of the hem to the other side to make the band.

I probably could have finished this with just one extra ball of yarn, but as you can see, I like to match the stripes as best as I can (a bit obsessive, maybe?).  Besides, there was enough yarn to make some little mitts.  No leftover yarn, so it's all good.  The jacket's already a little pilly from wear; not only does L wear this outdoors, but it serves as his bed jacket too. :-) 

This is probably my twentieth project with stripey Noro yarn, and just when I thought I have exhausted my love for these yarns, I see this , some of which is coming my way.  Can't wait to try it!

The Fair Isle Vest

I've always hesitated to use 4 ply yarn to knit an adult-sized garment that's not for me (it would be a bit of a heartbreaker if it was rejected, for all the time put in); that is, until now.

This is H.  He is 12, and will be taller than me in a blink of the eye.  I can just squeeze into the vest, so when all three boys outgrow this, it will be mine! :-) 

The pattern is from Martin Storey's Classic Knits for Men (UK version, it's the vest on the cover) or Knitting for Him (US version).  The yarns used were Rowan Yorkshire Tweed 4 ply (7 balls Stainless, and 2 balls Explode), and Rowan Scottish Tweed 4 ply (a softer, more fragile cousin, 1 ball each of Lobster, Mallard, and Apple).  These are pretty much the same colors as the original, except with a brighter red and dark green (so bold of me to change colors like that, heh).  The only mods I made was to knit it slightly narrower, cast on with 10 fewer stitches in the back and 5 fewer stitches on each front than the smallest size, and lengthened the armhole a tad, because the pattern has a 7.5 inch armhole, which would be small, even for me.

One thing that irks me about this pattern is that there are no pictures that show the tiniest bit of the back, so it was a surprise upon reading the pattern, that there's no fairisling in the back, just all textured rib.  It turns out I quite like the contrast of the front and back.

There's very little seaming to do.  After three-needle binding off the shoulder seams, there was only the band at the back of the neck, and the side seams to do, thanks to the intarsia bands that are knit at the same time with the rest of the body.  There were some tangles along the way, but I still preferred that to seaming!

Not only is there less seaming, the decreases along the fronts and armholes look neater too.

The all important buttons...

These pictures were taken after a few wears.  (H may be too embarrassed to hold my hand in public, but he hasn't scorned the handknits yet, and he's worn this vest without any prodding.)  It's holding up remarkably well, probably in part due to the dense fabric created by a gauge of 10 rows per inch.

Another gratuitous innards picture (the colors look most accurate here).  Just bear with me; I like this knit a lot! ;-)

Rats!

I ended up not finishing all the knits for the whole family for CNY, but I hope to post some FOs soon.  Here's wishing you all a Happy Year of the Rat! I get such a kick out of those huge head-sized tangerines-the bigger the more luck you'll have. ;-) That the narcissus are in bloom is a real treat too, considering the cold weather we're still having.

And Happy Valentine's Day!  I'm not usually keen on heart shaped things, but I bought these cookie cutters on a whim yesterday, and made some shortbread, following this recipe.  They're artery-clogging good. :-)

Last, but not least, a huge thanks to Rebecca of Poshyarns, and Yvette of A Long Yarn, who said I make their day.  They sure made mine! :-)  Next up, some knitting!

Emergency mitts

The handknits are getting a good workout from the record-breaking long stretch of cold weather we've been having.  While I've got all the socks and sweaters I need, the boys were in dire need of warm woolens.  In past years, I'd buy some of those chemical handwarmers to ward off the odd freezing day, but it's been wretched (relatively) for weeks, so mitts are a more environmentally friendly option.  I'm also glad that some stash oddballs could be used.

The pattern is Maine morning mitts.  The mitts on the left are made from some remnants of Noro Silk Garden (shade 203).  They're for Y, who's eight, so I cast on 30 sts and knit them on 3.5 mm needles, and shortened them. Used a total of about 30 grams of yarn.  The mitts on the right are knit using Hamanaka Granbia, which was leftover from this sweater.  I also cast on 30 sts but knit them on 4.5 mm needles, for H, who's 12.

That's it for this quickie post.  In typical last minute fashion, I have some buttons to sew and ends to weave in so that we will have some new clothes to wear tomorrow on Chinese New Year!