Today, I’m calling a time out. Time out on reading, writing, grading, worrying. I turned in one of my final papers yesterday, and I’m stopping the clock. The pile of work isn’t going anywhere, and I can get back to it tomorrow.
Today is for laundry, cooking, cleaning, knitting — and maybe I’ll even be able to make time to sit down at my wheel. Happy weekend, folks!
Sleeve one is complete, and I’m really happy with the bracelet/longish three quarter length.
I’m also thrilled with the decision to go down a needle size for the sleeves. I’m realizing that I need to start thinking about buttons! Maybe once I finish the paper I’m writing (due this week).
Also:
Boh says hi. Time to pour the coffee and get back to work.
That’s the goal for my Garter Yoke Cardigan, and it looks like I might make it!
I’m leaning towards a bracelet sleeve length — longer than three quarter, but not so long that the cuff will get in the way of knitting and working. Also, there’s something about a slightly shorter sleeve on me that at least makes me feel like I’m a bit more put together (even if it is only in my head.)
When I tried on the sweater before starting the sleeves, I was concerned that the sleeves were going to be a bit baggy. The pattern calls for knitting the sleeves straight to the cuff — no shaping — so I decided that instead of playing with decreases, I’d just go down a size and use size 6 dpns. (It didn’t hurt that I could actually reach these needles from where I was curled up on the couch at the time…)
I’m really happy with how the first sleeve is fitting, and I think it is time to start digging around for buttons!
I might not post again before heading home for Thanksgiving, so I hope your holiday is filled with people you love and food you enjoy! (And maybe some time to rest and knit.)
I had to completely rearrange my fridge to get this bunch of tat soi inside. Isn’t it beautiful? I’ve been buried under a pile of grading this week (one more paper to grade before I head to campus), and while I do most of my reading on the couch and writing at my desk at the computer, I grade at my kitchen table. I have devised a strategy to help keep me on track, and (big surprise here) it involves food! Having something in the oven — granola, applesauce bread, squash roasting, etc. gives me something to occasionally check on AND a way to peg my progress to a more specific timeline without getting out the timer for each paper. Plus, there is something delicious for break-time.
I made a big pot of carrot soup and let it simmer away while I graded on Tuesday, and I’ve been enjoying the leftovers all week. I followed this recipe!
I also roasted some butternut squash this week while working through my grading pile. Yum!
And here’s a knitting shot. Here lies my garter yoke cardigan. It seemed appropriate to leave it in a big pile, as I’ve really only been able to knit half a row here and there this week, but I am so close to finishing the body. (Like, 4 rows away!) I decided not to use handspun for the bottom edge, as I like the simpler look of the brown Cascade 220. I can’t wait to wear this!
Alright, I think there is enough coffee in my system to warrant the last of the grading. Back to it!
LOVE. This is the botanic hat, by Stephen West. I rarely buy hat patterns, but as more and more botanic hat projects began showing up on ravelry, I decided that I needed to knit this, and I justified my purchase by telling myself that this pattern would be great for gift knitting. I can’t say enough about this pattern or the finished product: the instructions are very clear, and the hat is truly reversible — the two sides are quite different. I will be checking out more of Stephen West’s hat and shawl patterns!
Details:
Hello Yarn handspun in Five Plum Pie (MC) and purpley Cascade 220 (CC).
US size 6 needles (did not go up to 7s after ribbing).
Followed instructions for the regular hat, and the result is a generously sized (covers the tops of my ears) snug hat.
As I was knitting, I was thinking that these colors are perfect for a dear friend of mine, but now that the hat is finished, it might be very difficult to remove it from my head. We’ll see. I’ll definitely be making more of these!
I wound up two skeins of handspun last night with more hats in mind. This is Spunky Club dark bfl in myrtle, and AVFKW falklands in the silent undergrowth colorway. I’m going to cast on for a seaman’s cap with the myrtle today (after I grade another paper or two) to see how this yarn knits up.
In conclusion, hooray for handspun hats!
My sense of humor is returning, which makes me hopeful that I’ll be back to my usual (healthy) self today. A few weekends ago, I was having a conversation with my officemate about The Offspring. (He LOVED them, and even seemed a bit nostalgic for the days when they were on the radio all the time.) Thus, the title of today’s post. I sat down to think of a way to indicate that I had finished the raglan increases and divided the sleeves from the body on my garter yoke cardigan, and The Offspring came to mind.
I know you can’t tell from the photo, but I’m thrilled with the fit so far. I was too lazy to put this on scrap yarn, so it is still on a slightly too small circular.
When I joined the Cascade 220 and began working the raglan increases, I have to tell you that I had some doubts about my color choices — I just wasn’t sure that this brown was the right match for this handspun. I think I just needed to see more of the brown to get a sense for what it will look like, because I absolutely love this. Also, I think this is the first sweater I’m making with Cascade 220, and I am thoroughly enjoying knitting with it. I might need to acquire a bunch more the next time Webs has that incredible anniversary sale…
Here’s the first skein of my Crown Mountain Farms brown bfl before washing and setting the twist.
And here it is, all finished and ready to wait patiently for the other skeins. This is 150 yards of 3-ply worsted weight. If I can maintain this yardage per each 3 oz, I should be able to get 8 skeins, or about 1200 yards, to work with.
More gorgeous fiber came in yesterday’s mail, which certainly improved my mood. (I am not a very good sick person — too impatient and pouty.) I’m planning to head to campus for a little while today, but don’t worry, I’m going to take it easy to ensure that I’m over this little weekend flu bug. (Which means I’ll probably do some more knitting. And annotating.)
Despite the fact that I haven’t actively listened to any Michael Jackson since the summer, every time I go to abbreviate the garter yoke cardigan as GYC (you know, when I label photos and such), I hear the chorus of PYT in my head.
I’m just over halfway through the raglan increases now, and I’m hoping to separate the sleeves from the body before the end of the weekend.
I started spinning my CMF bfl yesterday as well. I’m going to work through this an ounce at a time, with the idea that if I keep 4 bobbins in rotation, I can spin 3 ounces and then ply them together, and then start on the next skein. In a perfect world, I’d spin all the singles first and ply the earlier bobbins with later ones to help increase my chances of uniformity, but since I only have 6 bobbins, and no storage bobbins, I’m thinking that working through this a skein of yarn at a time is the way to go, both for my storage options and my momentum. Speaking of momentum, today I should probably aim for more reading/writing and less knitting and spinning. The pace of the semester is really picking up, which means the book piles are growing.
I’m not even going to try for a smooth transition. I snapped this photograph of my lunch sauteing yesterday: fresh farm onions, bok choy, carrots, and homemade sauerkraut.
Time to hit the books. (Well, after I pour another cup of coffee and knit a row or two.)
“…where the rivers change direction across the great divide.” Other Voices, Other Rooms (Nanci Griffith) was on the stereo throughout a fun Saturday night at the home of friends, which prompted me to digitally dig out some Nanci to accompany me through my Sunday.
Though it warmed up to the low 70s yesterday, the morning heralded the coming fall, and I certainly needed my socks and mitts for our first lap around the neighborhood. Today’s weather is supposed to be similar — in the 70s by mid-afternoon, but cool and autumny right now.
In preparation for fall — and for a great evening of knitting, wine, and pie — I cast on the Botanic Hat with my leftover Five Plum Pie handspun and some Cascade 220 leftovers.
I am loving this hat already: involved enough that I’m interested and paying attention, but simple enough that it qualifies as social knitting. I started on 6s as directed in the pattern, and then decided to stick with 6s after the ribbing instead of changing to 7s in order to compensate for the occasional variability (read: thinner sections) of my handspun. Here’s a shot of the inside:
I love that this hat is reversible! I’m thinking that it may become a go-to pattern for this year’s holiday knitting, which I guess I should start thinking about…
Friday afternoon, we went frolicking slightly further afield. We hopped in the car and headed south to a nearby state forest to stretch our muscles and allow our minds to unwind a bit from a busy week. If you’ve been reading, you know I’ve been looking for good boy sock patterns, and the hang-up I’ve been facing has to do with how “fancy” sock patterns and sock yarn can be. I’ve settled on some socks made out of good, old-fashioned Cascade 220 superwash, as the feet they are intended for spend most of their time in hiking boots, romping through the woods.
Here’s what I’ve got so far — I’m using size 5 needles, and keeping my fingers crossed that the fabric is dense enough to support the amount of use I hope these get. Should I be thinking about carrying nylon thread along with the yarn for the heel? I should be reading right now, but I’d so much rather be working on these socks — or better still, off in the woods with boy and dog.
Here’s a picture of my reading companion. If only he’d start pulling his weight around here…
Back to the books. Have a great Sunday!
Whoops! Saw these last week at A Friend to Knit With and just had to cast on. I used random leftovers of Cascade 220 Heathers. Finished one immediately, and then life got in the way. I’ll be happy with my schoolwork progress if I read two books this weekend, and after I finished the first one, I sat down to knit on my second mitt. One episode of Craftlit later, and I was weaving in the ends.
I just learned that I’ve been assigned a carrel in the library stacks, and it is a bit chilly up there. These will be perfect for helping to keep my focus on my reading… I can’t believe we’re already 5 weeks into the semester. How did it become October? Now I will awkwardly transition to Socktober. I did an absolutely horrible job last year — I managed to not finish the pair of socks I already had on the needles. You heard it here, folks. I am vowing not to repeat that peformance. I’m going to finish at least one pair of socks, and to increase my chances of success, I’ve cast on for the Through the Loops Mystery Sock! Take a look:
Boh doesn’t seem to think I can do it. The yarn is sunshine yarns in a lovely variegated green — a gift from a knitting group friend months ago. These pictures do not do it justice, but I am thrilled with how the cuff is coming along. I’m going to reward myself with some more knitting time if I can make some progress on this second book. Hope you’re having a great weekend!
barefoot rooster 