joyousknits

A brand new toy for the birthday boy

I just had to make Otto, from Lucinda Guy's book, 'And so to bed'. It's those big googly eyes that had me wanting.  This was to be a frivolous knit, something with no purpose other than to satisfy the urge to make something cute.  I'm not even a stuffed toy kind of person.  But when Y saw me making Otto, he assumed it was his birthday present.  I was a bit surprised, and maybe secretly pleased that he would be happy to have a little stuffed owl.  I expected he would want something less soft, or more electronic, like a Gundam model, or a Gameboy. 

Of course, since it was to be Y's toy, he had his say about where the eyes go.

I knit this on 3.75mm needles for a tighter fabric, and used single, instead of double fabric for the wings.  The Rowan RYC Cashsoft DK is sooo soft, I would love to use it for a garment (for me, heh)  There were a couple of odd things about this yarn; the cream was noticeably thinner than the grey, and instead of knots, both the grey balls of yarn had cut off bits of yarn.  The finishing took forever, considering it's so small, but the result is definitely worth it! :-)

Happy B-day to Y! I can't believe my baby is seven years old already.  You know, there's a cute fox (heh) in the same book too. Do you think I could make that for Y next year? ;-)

A handsome Beau

is certainly worth waiting for. :-)

 

I'm very happy with this one.  I thought the Rowanspun aran was quite scratchy while knitting but after a post seaming bath, he came out softer, with a more cohesive fabric, and the ribbing flattened out.  The yarn is just perfect for this simple pattern.  Refined (it is Rowan after all!) ruggedness, is what it is.  Just look at these buttons:

Genuine faux leather buttons.  ;-)  Real leather would have meant dry cleaning. Boo to that!

I like the sleeve detail too.  All of the knitting was very straightforward.  Minor modifications included knitting the body in the round, with a 42" circumference and 25" length, both of which are smaller than the smallest size, and the sleeves were shortened by two inches.  Thanks to Rowanspun's amazing yardage, I only used four and a half skeins of yarn!

I wish my husband would model this, but as it's still extremely hot, I can understand his reluctance to put it on.  In the meantime...

Into the closet Beau goes!!

Sew, sew much

Hehe, obviously I've still not decided on a fall knitting project.  This skirt was super quick to do, and I got to use up some fabric that's been sitting around for years.  A colleague who had connections to the textile industry in HK gave me this fab cotton/linen blend fabric. The cost was less than one US dollar!

I made the size according to my measurements at the back of the envelope (the pattern is New Look 6566, view D) and while it fits well at the hip, the waist was waaay too big, and I had to sew in more than two inches at the waist (spread over several seams), even though it's low waisted.  And I used an invisible zipper (my favorite).

To catch a breeze in this heat!

There's more!  I started something with the recent fabric 'haul' from Liberty:

A shirt using an old (2001) DKNY pattern. This is a great pattern, with excellent finishing on the inside.  The dark color, but thin fabric would be perfect for HK autumns, which are like less humid summers.

Last but not least, I've been wanting a shirtdress for a long time, but still can't decide on the fabric.  What do you think?  Blue or red?  With or without sleeves?  Maybe I should finish some wips before cutting this, eh? :-)

A quick hello, from me and my Beau

Remember Beau?  I brought him on my trip.  Started in early February, I'd been knitting this a bit here and there, and the body had been done and sitting around for months.  I wanted to finish the sleeves so I could whittle the wip pile. Besides, the color is perfect for Project Spectrum's neutral month of August. :-)

From past experience, very little knitting gets done on vacation, but I thought two sleeves knit with aran weight yarn should be manageable. Again, I overestimated myself! I got almost one sleeve done on the plane to London, and didn't finish it until the day we came back. I really envy people who can knit on the bus/train/boat/plane without getting sick.  BTW, I didn't realize I needed so much room to knit; I kept nudging my neighbor's arm on the plane!

Also, thank you very much for the lovely comments on the linen top and Saltwater! :-) Anyway, that's all for now. I'm still trying to shake off the jetlag, and counting my blessings for narrowly missing the chaos at Heathrow.  Will be back soon!

Saltwater

Pattern Source: Saltwater, from Rowan RYC CLassic Beach

Yarn: 500g Noro Cash Iroha, shade 22

Modifications: Body knit in the round. I really can't remember if I made other mods. I'm just terrible  about not writing notes, and since I started this ages ago...

I'm glad I got one project done before going on vacation!  When I come back, the wip pile will be just a teeny bit smaller. :-)   I'd used this yarn when I first started knitting, and fell in love with the way it glides on the needles, and the way the thick and thin texture hides uneven stitches and untidy finishing.  Indeed, being an obsessive hoarder, I had at one point enough of this stuff for eight or nine projects!!  But I'd destashed all of it except for this favorite color. I'm no longer fond of the texture, as the thin parts look very snappable and makes that part of the knit weaker, nor the way it stretches a lot after washing.  The fit on this sweater is a bit tight right now, but I'll wash it when winter rolls around, and I know it'll stretch, but hopefully not overly so with all that cabling going on. Here're the ropes on those cables:

I just love the way they pop out! Unlike Noro's Kureyon and Silk Garden, whose stripes I really like, I can wear the Cash Iroha next to the skin.

And what do you do when you wear a fisherman sweater?

I'm obviously holding that thing all wrong, aren't I? :D  Well, I wasn't going to take any more shots because I nearly melted wearing this thing, even with the air con on full blast!! Seeing as I'm on a finishing roll, I should/could have tackled another wip (or started packing), but today, I cut some fabric for this top (New Look 6344).

Madder Ribbed Socks

Pattern: Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks.

Yarn: Claudia's Handpainted Yarns, 2 skeins of 'Plumlicious', a very generous gift from Agnes

Ever since I saw Purly's socks, I'd been wanting to knit my own pair.  Mindless sock knitting, along with a heel that I've not done, are good enough reasons to do these.  But the greatest attraction was the 'pointed toe'.  I'd always been fickle about getting well-fitting shoes for my narrow pointed feet. My toes have been described as 'chicken toes', and my shoes as 'bananas' or 'dragon boats'. But socks are stretchy so I never gave them much thought, except that they always wore through at the toe at great speed. So, fine fitting sock toes are something of a revelation.

The yarn is squishy soft, and the colors are so pretty. Alternating skeins is suggested for getting matching socks, but I don't mind the different pooling so I didn't bother.

The horseshoe heel doesn't fit me very well. It's like a loose flap of fabric hanging out, but...

Hmmm...snug, happy toes! It'll be difficult going back to 'regular' socks.

Aaaaah, the only way to get a breeze around here...only another 160 days to winter!

On a totally unrelated topic: HK iced lemon tea is a tall glass of very concentrated tea, with lots of ice, 4-5 slices of lemon, and syrup on the bottom of the glass.  You have to poke and pulverize the lemon delicately, as it's a very full glass, and in the process mix the syrup/lemon evenly. Anyhow, son #2 spilled some of his tea while mixing it at lunch today, and being a good boy, wiped it up with a paper napkin. When we weren't looking, he squeezed his tea back into the glass!! Yeah, eww. But I guess it's a good thing to be economical! :-D

Mini Madli's Shawl

Pattern source: Interweave Knits Summer 2004

Yarn: 500 yds/ 2 oz.  '4 ply' cashmere in color 'plum' from colourmartuk

Modifications: Used 4mm needles. Cast on 73, instead of 101 stitches, and knit 23 instead of 31 repeats of the middle section. (I still had enough yarn to do a couple more repeats, but thought this was long enough.)  Nupp-less, except for the borders.  Final measurements are about 14" x 48".

Feel-good knitting from beginning to end.  Interesting pattern that I could memorize after a few repeats, but the stole was not so long that I got bored with it.  My MIL is a few inches shorter than me, so the stole would probably cover her shoulders better, and at the same time reach her elbows.

There was something I didn't notice until I was blocking:

Two selvedge stitches on each side (as opposed to four in the original). The edge looks wider on the right, so I could have added a stitch or two on the left.  No big deal, but it would look nicer if they were more balanced.  I'll just have to make something better looking for my MIL later. :-)  I'll be gifting it this weekend, and I know she'll like it because she's not called a Very Appreciative Recipient for nothing!  :-)  This stole is going to look equally well at the restaurant, or for a game at the mahjong table.

About the yarn: most of the yarn sold by colourmart is oiled and on cones, but I'd bought yarn that was already washed once and sold in hanks at a very slightly higher price.  It became softer still after the second wash and I would be willing to try their heavier yarns for a garment in the future.

And a preview of what's next:

More purple for Project Spectrum!

The stole story

I love knitting for my mil because she's a Very Appreciative Recipient.  Maybe it's because she used to knit (before her eyes started failing her) so she knows the time put into the gift.  She just makes me feel good with the compliments, and her efforts to show me that she uses what I make. :-)

So, a couple of weeks ago, I offered to wash the Birch I made her, since there's no place to block such a big thing at her home.  She started saying how she liked that it was lightweight, but found the rectangular shape of the Clapotis versatile.  Then, the details. (Notice that this isn't a real request, but just a little discussion of style preferences? ;-) I'm sure she would think it crass to actually ask.)

A little stole that goes to her elbows. It needn't be long, as she could pin it. (She's also very considerate, not wanting me to use too much yarn, and time. Have to love that about her too!)

Purple suits her. Nothing flashy, nor drabby. (It's perfect for Project Spectrum July too.) And it's cashmere, which could be had at  a very reasonable price from ColourmartUK, an ebay store.  I bought 500 yards/ 2 oz.  '4-ply' weight, but it's more like a heavy lace weight, which is fine for this project. It's not as soft as other cashmeres I've seen, but it's supposed to bloom after washing, so we will see later if this is true.

I decided on Madli's shawl (from IK summer 2004), instead of trying to create a pattern from my newly acquired Barbara Walker stitch library. I'm so glad I did, because it probably would have taken me forever, trying to find a perfect combination of a lace pattern and a border pattern.

Since I only had about half the yarn stated in the pattern, I cast on 73, instead of 101 st, cutting out two repeats of the motif in the border, and had to reduce the selvedge stitches from four to two in the main part of the stole. I was also worried that the nupps would take a lot of yarn, so I didn't do them in the main section. However, I just had to try them, and made them in the border.

See the little nupps as inverted V's in between the diamonds?  Hmm, the yarn's too dark to see them clearly! Anyhow, without the nupps in the main section, this stole is just whipping up fast! Another eight repeats to go, then grafting the other border, and it's ready for blocking!

It's sassy! It's got swing!

The fringe is in!

I wish! :-)

I haven't done any knitting for over ten days. At first, I could attribute that to exam preparations with the boys, or the flu (which was quite bad this time).  But the last exams ended yesterday, and I'm recovering from the flu, and yet, I can't seem to get started on weaving in those ends. Is it any wonder I don't do more colorwork? :-)

The neckband is puckering a bit, which I might re-do if blocking can't cure it. I did enjoy grafting the side, which turned out better than I'd hoped.

Now if I can get my head around weaving in those ends!

A case of the blues

Carrie, the Kim Kit I'd been wanting to knit for Project Spectrum's blue June, has been put on the to-do-later queue. After knitting two consecutive thin-yarn projects (Nicole and the Icarus Shawl), I need a quick knit!

I'd mentioned these blue Rowan DK Cottons last year, but let's quickly recap.  The yarn was purchased for Toby, a boy's intarsia zip-up cardi from Rowan 33. I was weak in the face of a million ends to weave in and when I got half way up the back piece, I ripped it.  I thought of using the yarn to make a vertical stripe vest instead. After mulling it over on and off for over a year, it's time to start! Hehe, I do get to things eventually. :-)

I found using knitter's graph paper really useful. While regular graph paper is fine, it's easier to visualize the final article when the proportions are correct.

This isn't a very clear picture, but you get the idea. On the left is my 20 st x 28 rows/4" graph paper, and regular square graph paper on the right. The vest is knit sideways, starting from the left side of the graph, and with a provisional cast on so that I could knit the vest in one piece and graft the one side.

I have this habit of finishing with a purl row before calling it a day, and then place the knit with the right side up on my table. Then a couple of days ago, I flipped it to the 'wrong' side.

Well, helloooo! The stripes look woven/ pinstripy as reverse st st. I kind of like this side better now. What do you think? Good thing I didn't weave in the ends as I knit. Did I mention this was quick? I started on Friday evening, and I'm at the middle front now. (We'll ignore the ends for now. :-) I did carry the navy up the sides to reduce some of the ends.)  Maybe I'll get my son to choose sides. ;-)