19 inches and a headband

I do this a lot. I get forgetful, or very boring and I don't update my blog. My bad. Although according to Blogger stats, I have only had 21 page-views so I only feel slightly regretful.

In other news, I've started and almost completed the sleeve portion of Knitty's "Tubey" pattern, which I've made a couple modifications to. I also finished a slightly lame [probably only because I designed it myself] but ridiculously easy crochet headband today and am determined to find a lovely flower pattern to attach onto one side in hopes of increasing it's bohemian charm.

I have also determined to create another knitted boob for my friend, who was the unfortunate victim of a spaz-out of mine over the weekend. A while ago I had made one for my boyfriend, who loved it [but then again what male doesn't love a knitted boob?] and so, hopefully this will make everything peachy keen and show my deepest apologies...with tassels.

3 Hour Sweater Challenge

Needless to say, contrary to this entry's title I did not finish a sweater in 3 hours. I DID, however, finish the back piece relatively quickly. Which is pretty amazing and wonderful since I'm pretty sure I have slight A.D.D. when it comes to knitting large projects. AKA that lovely pink sweater I blogged about a little while ago......

Which I am now debating on frogging and using the yarn for other projects; AKA another 3 hour sweater for my sister for Christmas and some baby things for multiple baby girls that will be coming into my life in February.

Also I've discovered that my work, Value Village [or Savers in America] is a WONDERFUL place for collecting beautiful yarn. Such as -

this lovely, lovely lavender lace weight that is going to last me for AGES. It called to me in the store but has since just been chilling out on my side table waiting for the perfect project to come along. I keep thinking SHAWL but then along come WINTER and I move on to my warmer projects. 

This lovely mohair concoction [I'm sorry, this yarn and the last one didn't come with any labels aside from a little sticker with a number inside lavender's spindle; so i can only guess at who and what they truly are {I am also too lazy to be hardcore about it and perform tests to see what they are at that}] which is being transformed into a baggy bolero from Pickles. I am tres excited even if it seems to be taking forever [see? There's that A.D.D. again!] but luckily I have....

this beauty to keep me occupied when the mohair is getting me down [mohair doesn't really get me down, I love it to bits even when, after hours of knitting, it makes the tip of my finger feel really weird and waterlogged]. This Cloudspun is what I'm making my Three Hour Sweater out of and I am definately in love. I was lucky enough to buy two big bags of it with at least 7 50g skeins in each. And the way the sweater is shaping up, I will still have one bag left to make some lovely hats and whatnots out of! 

Not to mention the other fabulous finds - including some 100% pinky wool from a foreign land - all for under $20 CDN. Oh yes, who's jealous? 

For the love of scarves.

When I first started knitting, my gram bought be enough Patons tweed yarn to make two scarves with. Being the ambitious beginner I was, I pounded out one garter scarf with a few mistake purl rows thrown in and pushed it on my supportive boyfriend. After that I craved more complicated things and more yarn.

Thus I forgot about most of the tweed yarn until I made a sad, little headband...and then forgot about the rest again. Since then I've attempted at least 3 different scarves with the remaining yarn [I honestly love this yarn and am determined it should be used as it was meant to be] but get bored and restless and....blah about each one. Scarves and I don't really seem to match.

Finally in desperation I decided to try my hand at a cowl scarf for this yarn. So I looked up a basic cowl pattern on ravelry, cast on the recommended stitches, and went my own way from there. Surprisingly it's holding my attention and is now almost done. Finally a compatible love for my yarn and style that has made me vow to never [ok, maybe not never] knit a long-ass scarf again; it will all be cowl scarves or cute, short scarves that look like a mix between ascots and bow ties [oh, left-over alpaca yarn, do I have a plan for YOU!].

the end.

The second

So now after relatively successfully completing my first sock - I don't think it would stand up to the scrutiny of any seasoned knitter, but at least to my non-knitter family and boyfriend it was perfect - and a tenuous beginning [I still haven't become pro at joining in the round on the first try yet] I am just past the ribbing cuff on my second sock, and my hope is I will be able to turn this heel much better than the first. 

Truly, the only problem worse than trying to turn a heel is once people realize you can make socks, they all want some. Or a sweater. There are some very big grabbers out there.

sock virgin

On a very stressful Sunday, after getting sent home from work, I went and bought some yarn, Patons Classic Wool [which I love, love, love by the way!] and some 3.5mm dpns and started my first pair of socks. The Weekend Socks from Canadian Living to be specific.

After finally getting my stitches situated on my dpns, I began loving the dpns and the yarn and my emerging tube; I even didn't mind working short rows...until I had to start turning my heel. All the horror stories are true - maybe not as bad as I thought it was going to be, but I could totally see how far they could go.

Picking up stitches seem to be my biggest problem. I've had to find ulterior places to pick up stitches. Can you pick up one stitch in the front bar, then one in the back? Do you have to use one or the other or both at the same time [the route I went]?

Oy. Anyways, as bad as this might turn out [I'm one of those practice makes perfect people] I've got enough stitches on one needle for the small size, and enough on the other two for the medium size and hoping this'll turn out because I have size 6 1/2 size feet anyways, perfectly in between the sizes in the pattern.

callus

Over the last little while I've been developing a callus on my index finger from all the needle pushing I've been doing. The 3.5 mm needles I've been using for a very slow going sweater project have been helping it along greatly. Especially after I rediscovered the project tucked away under my sewing table where I had placed it the last time I worked on it for too long and my fingers couldn't handle the needles anymore. I swear, my fingers aren't big fans of small needles - but then again, is there any hands that are?

Anyways, this sweater is my next big project to focus on when hats and scarves get me down. After reading multiple knitting writers who claim that the difficult-looking, -reading, -etc. patterns are only difficult as a whole and can be broken down into easy rows, I've decided to definitely keep going with this and challenge myself with this four out of four bar difficulty leveled pattern, so declares Vogue knitting. Bring it on, baby; I'mma get some rubber thimbles for you.

This is the only picture I could find on google of the back of the sweater [apparently no one else loves this sweater like I do]

The only thing I worry about a wee bit is that I'm using acrylic yarn again [Phentex Worsted to be exact] and so I'm hoping the lace work comes out ok and it doesn't end up too short like my parachute top [although I'm thinking the pattern for that one was accounting for mad loosage after blocking, whereas this one seems to give more "realistic" lengths for fitting even if you don't block].

I guess we shall see!

dear acrylic yarn,

I accept you for who you are and appreciate you can be tossed in the wash, even if some types of you will fuzz more easily than others. I just wish you`d give a little more and not snap back into place so easily. I don`t care about stretch marks or if you become a bit larger, I just want you and me to work.

love,

Victoria