Knitting Kick

I've been on a fresh finishing kick lately - first, I finished the socks I've been working on for a few weeks. I used Quaere Fibre self-striping in "Socktober". Unfortunately, I started the heel turn just a tiny bit too early, so they're just the tiniest bit too snug. Looks like my mom gets a new pair of socks. 

After that, I needed a size one needle to start a sweater for #3. While I was looking, I found a sock-yarn sweater I started in December 2010 - a full year before Carter was even born. It turned out I really only needed to do seven rows of garter stitch, bind off, weave in ends, and seam the sleeves. I have no idea why I left it lingering for so long! It turned out it wasn't even the needle I needed, but I was very happy to have that done. 

Right now, I'm almost done with the body on a Newborn Vertabrae using Felici. It is a very quick knit, and hopefully I'll be done before I leave for the knitting retreat next Thursday. Then I need to plan what I'm bringing for that!!!

Back!

It has obviously been awhile since I've posted!  Little did I know while writing the last post, I was about 24 hours away from heading to the midwife's office in labor! Carter was born 12.7.11 at 7:23pm.  Since then, I haven't had nearly enough knitting time :) I finished knitting my sister's sweater a few weeks ago, but still don't have it all seamed together. Turns out I made it too long, so I have to pick out my bind off and rip back two repeats. THEN I will be able to seam it and give it to her.  Just in time for summer. . .whoops.
After I finished that, I made a Multnomah with the Seven Dwarves like I'd planned.  It was very easy, but man some of those rows got long near the end!  I didn't do a very good job blocking it - Carter woke up as I was just starting to lay it out, so the edge isn't shaped the way I'd like it. Oh well, at least the knitting and weaving in of ends is done!

I was recruited to crochet the border on one of the baby blankets my knitting group makes. It has been taking me longer than I wanted, but I should be done tonight.  I just got an order from KnitPicks with two different colors of Felici (two pairs of socks), another of Felici Sport (something for Carter, probably sweater/hat), two balls of Chroma (for another Noro Striped Scarf) and some tools for colorwork.  I bought the kit for the Falling Stars sweater last month and have started the hat as practice.  It will definitely be easier now using the bobbins and yarn stranding guide I just bought!  It hasn't been nearly as difficult as I expected, as long as I focus on not pulling the strands too tight.  Once I'm done with the border, I will finish the hat, then move on to a pair of socks. I can't believe how much I want to cast on a pair right now! Unfortunately my child only likes to nap about 45 minutes at a time, so my knitting time is severely limited!
 

Final Stretch

I'm due in just 4 days, so I've been working on finishing Courtney's wrap around sweater. It's actually pretty fast going, it's just a matter of me picking it up instead of sitting around on the computer or napping. I don't think I'm actually going to 'finish' it before I give it to her. The construction is pretty simple - it's just a scarf, but with the ends seamed together and then attached to the back (this makes a lot more sense when you look at the pattern).  Since in my current state, my abdomen is HUGE compared to hers, I'm going to have a difficult time judging how long it needs to be.  I think I'll do the recommended 16 pattern repeats, then put it on waste yarn and finish it up while we're there at Christmas. Worst case scenario, I'll need to add a repeat or two, and they only take about a half hour apiece, so I should have plenty of time during the few days we're in GR. It's looking like it will take just over 3 skeins of Knit Picks Biggo, so I'm glad I went for that extra skein I wasn't sure about.  Maybe the extra will be just enough for a small snuggly cowl or something. The yarn is nice and soft, but it does tend to fuzz a little.  After knitting with it for awhile, I have little reddish fibers all over my (ginormous) stomach.
Something I would have liked to have done is use a provisional cast on. I attempted it a few times, but it just frustrated me, so I ended up just doing my typical long tail CO. It seems like a provisional would be nice, though, because then I could just kitchener (or whatever, I don't know all of my official terms) the two ends together for a neater seam. Oh well, someday I'll figure it out.
When this is done (providing there isn't a new baby around), I need to finish my second Offset Wraplan, and then I think I'll make something for me - my eye is on Multnomah (Rav link), in Knit Picks Imagination in Seven Dwarves. I bought two skeins in 2009 (my first real sock yarn purchase), and then never got around to doing anything with it after a few false starts on socks.  I think it's about time! The pattern also looks easy enough for me to be able to pick it up and just knit a few rows while baby is sleeping (if I'm not also sleeping, of course). I'm thinking of just making one slight modification, and only doing 3 center stitches instead of 5.
No pictures this time since I haven't taken any in forever :)

More Finished Goods!

     I'm apparently really on a baby roll.  Larissa called me a few weeks ago asking if there was any way possible I could make Easton a pair of baby mittens and a matching hat.  Since I was already planning on making him a hat for Christmas, I said, "Of course!"

     I had just finished my first hat in Swish, and it turned out to be very stretchy, so I decided to use that pattern again (Little Boy Blue Ribbed Baby Hat), and found an easy thumb-less pattern for baby mitts (Basic Baby Mitts). She told me to use whatever yarn I had on hand, but clearly this was an opportunity to place a Knit Picks order (plus I needed to order yarn for a project for my little sister), so I picked up a skein of Swish Worsted in Dublin and one in Dove Heather to make the perfect MSU set!
Once I finally got to knitting it, it was super quick - mittens took about an hour apiece, and the hat was two easy nights of TV knitting.
     Up next is my sister's wrap around sweater using Biggo.  We'll see how it goes!

Lots of mini-knitting

Knitting for babies is so much better than knitting for adults.  My Zora is still sitting, unseamed, waiting for the day when I get the motivation to spend a few hours finishing it.  On the other hand, I've finished two cardigans, two pairs of thumbless mittens, five hats, a sleep sack, and two blanket squares since doing the final Zora knitting.
My latest FOs are the Owlie Sleep Sack with a matching hat (I just finished the hat last night and haven't taken a picture yet).

 I shelled out the big bucks for Malabrigo Rios, and it was totally worth it.  They are super soft, and I love the semi-solid look.  I'm also a big fan of the color, which is closer to the full picture.  I know babies are born with blue eyes in general, but since Evan and I are both blue-eyed babes ourselves, it's looking pretty good that little Rocky Balboa will be sporting them as well.  The teal-y color of the Owlie set should look really, really good on the kid. He's clearly going to be a good looking kid ANYWAY, so this set makes me really happy. I honestly don't know how often it will get used - my main purpose for it was to have a nice prop for his newborn pictures.  Kristy, our photographer, is pretty awesome, so I'm sure she will get some terrific shots.
I'm thinking with my leftover Malabrigo I'm going to make another Hermione hat.  I have about 66 grams leftover, which is enough for just about any hat, but I'm a huge fan of the Hermione hat I made last Christmas.  I probably don't need another one, but I'm not sure what else I'll do with the yarn, and I don't see any other hat patterns that are calling my name. I've also found a cardigan I'd like to make for myself (with NO SEAMING, I've learned my lesson) out of the yarn I bought at a fiber fest at the end of September. It was supposed to be a vest, but based on the gauge I should be getting, the yarn is just not going to work.  The pattern calls for either a worsted or bulky yarn, but I think it would work much better with bulky, and this 'worsted' is more like a light worsted.  I have six weeks-ish left until this baby shows up, so I'm thinking I should get a bulk of my knitting done now! Odds are, I'll just sit on Ravelry and look at stuff, though, instead of actually knitting. . .

Oops

     I made the mistake of washing and drying the new sweater in the machines.  By mistake, I mean it was totally on purpose, but hoped the outcome would be different.  Turns out it shrunk a little, and looks even more wonky than before :-/ I'm hoping that running an iron over it (especially the hem which WON'T STAY DOWN) will help, or even just soaking it again and blocking instead of drying. We'll see. It should still fit for a little while at least, so not a huge disaster.
     I finally got around to making a hat, also.  The Dec 2011 Mom's group on Rav had a hat KAL for the end of August, but it seemed like I never had the needles I needed when I needed them (just ask my fellow stitch 'n' bitchers - I think there were multiple nights when I just didn't end up knitting anything).  Since my Zora is currently off the needles (still blocked, still not seamed), I realized it freed up my 40" size 3. Triumph! Finished a baby hat right away. I used the "Very Basic Baby Beanie" (rav link) pattern, which was exactly as described.  A perfect quick little knit. I am definitely planning on using the pattern again. I think the brim will end up being turned up, but this should fit for a little while at least.  After finishing this, I started an "Offset Wraplan" (rav link) in the same yarn (KP's Felici Sport, colorway "Too Cool"). The Dec2011 group just so happened to pick sweaters as the theme for Sept.'s KAL, so this is perfect! Hopefully that little bit of motivation I might need near the end.  Assuming all goes well, this *might* be baby's coming home outfit.

Baby!

     With my baby boy due in December, I decided it was (finally) time to start some baby knitting. My husband kept bugging me - "When are you going to make something for the baby?" - as I worked on my Zora sweater, so once the knitting on that was mostly done, I went for a sweater.  I had a few sweaters in my queue already, but ended up finding a striped sweater in the book 60 Quick Baby Knits (rav link) that I figured would work nicely and, more importantly, quickly.  I ordered two skeins each of Gulfstream and Pebble (disc.) in KnitPicks Swish Worsted. I've never worked with it before, but decided I didn't want to mess around with handwashing things.
     I'm really happy with how quickly the sweater worked up, although there are a few little things I'd do differently. I didn't want the bottom to roll up, so I purled a RS row to make a hem.  The sweater still wants to fold up, so there must be a better method there. I didn't really know what I was doing, so I'm sure there is something I'm missing there.  Also, the bottom corners where I picked up stitches for the button band look a little wonky. I like how the knitted on buttons bands LOOK, but while knitting, I much prefer one that is just a continuation of each row, using intarsia if multiple colors are used.

     I started this on Thursday and finished on Sunday, so all in all, a super fast knit.  It still needs buttons, so I'll run to JoAnn's today and decide on the color and shape. Right now, I'm thinking bright yellow, but I don't know about dressing my kid in blue and yellow. . .(Go Green!). Hopefully something will catch my eye!
     Now I need to get back to work on my Zora - the back, front, and sleeves are all knit, but not seamed together yet.  Once that's done, I need to do a 4 inch 2x2 rib all along the front and neck. This could take awhile. . .I will probably end up starting another baby project somewhere in there.