Monthly Archives: August 2016

Bear With Me

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I forgot how fun these bears are!

They’re quick and easy, with just enough challenge to keep me interested. (Perfect for  marathoning intense TV shows.  This one was mostly knit while catching up on The Night Of, which is very good, but not a “fun” watch.)

I tried something a little different on this bear.  The official knit-in-the-round pattern has you leave arm holes in the body by working the chest/back back and forth.  Then, when the body is done, you go back and pick up stitches around the armholes to make thearms.  That way, the bear ends up being a single piece of knitting.

But sometimes you don’t want to bother with picking up and knitting.  (Or at least I don’t.) So I didn’t.  I knit the body straight through, from the top of the head to the bottom of the toes, not an arm hole to be seen.  Then I cast on for the arms and worked those separately.

Then, I stuffed the body, formed the ears and the neck.  I stuffed the arms and sewed them in place.  And wouldn’t you know it- it looks super cute, and felt much simpler (at least to me) to knit up.

IMG_3145I’m very pleased with this little dude.  I’ll probably wait to get out my felt and embroidery floss to add the face to a bunch of bears at once, assembly-line style.

I’ll definitely be making more of these guys!  Maybe I’ll try to send in another big box o’ bears  this Christmas.

Anyone want to join me?

Getting Cozy

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Yesterday was a cool, rainy day.  And, I spent it with my husband and my dog, sitting on the couch and watching Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell on Netflix.  It’s very interesting, and is just oozing creativity.  I read the book years ago, in college and only have a vague memory of what it was about, so it’s been fun to get to watch it as someone “new” to the story.

It’s based in the early 1800s, in England, and there’s all sorts of magic, fairies and prophecies flying around.  It’s all very Gothic.

And they drink a lot of tea.

So, yesterday, instead of making myself a dozen individual cups of tea to get me through the marathon, I brought out my tea pot.  And it occurred to me how embarrassing it is that I have never made a tea cozy for myself!  (I know!  A knitter with a naked tea pot- how uncivilized!)

IMG_3121Anyway, this was just a long way of saying, I’m going to design and make a tea cozy.  I’ve been thinking about walking you through my design process, from idea to finished pattern, but I haven’t found the right project.  I didn’t want something as big as a sweater (because that would be boring for you guys- all that math, and all that waiting for me to knit), but something little, like socks or mittens are too easy- to make those, you just plug a design into a formula- no math at all.

So, a tea cozy it is!  It’s big enough that we can do something fun with it, but small enough that it won’t take months and months to finish.  I’m excited.

I’ve got some yarn left over from a “colorwork phase”, that I think might work well.

These dark greens (and fuchsia) are really pretty DK-weight, in a nice squishy, soft wool.IMG_3133And these are a slightly finer Sport-weight wool (a little itchier but sturdy, with great stitch definition.  And anyway, teapots don’t care about itchiness, right?).  I like these colors, too.  They’re very cheerful.IMG_3126

I think I’m leaning to the bright colors of the sport-weight.  Maybe I can do something cool with slipped stitches, or fair isle…

Right now, I’m just trying to get a feel for what I might knit up.  My next step will be to get out my sketch book and make some doodles.

Do you have any thoughts, opinions or ideas?

Hey Bear!

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OK, I changed my mind.  I’m not up to making the amazing, complex patterns I posted about on Wednesday.  I’m sorry, but… oof.  It turns out that I’m not up to making a giant lace shawl right now.  (And, when I went into my stash and looked around to see if I had anything appropriate for knitting up those patterns, and didn’t find anything.)

Instead of going to the yarn store and dropping a bunch of money on yarn I probably won’t use (as fun as that can be), I decided to try to use up more of my leftover worsted weight.

It’s time for more bears!

Remember the Mother Bear Project?  I made a big box of bears for them last Christmas.  They deliver hand-made teddy bears to children in developing nations whose lives have been affected by HIV/AIDS.  You really couldn’t ask for a better cause to support.  (Also the bears end up super cute.)

IMG_3080I worked on this red, lavender and blue guy at work, while the kids were at recess yesterday.  (Recognize the lavender yarn?)  I forgot how fast these little dudes knit up.  I’m almost to the leg split, and I probably did about 2 hours of half-hearted knitting on this guy.

I’m happy to be back on the bear train!  Have you made any bears for the Mother Bear Project?  Or, have you done any other knitting for charity?

 

Inspiration: Phew!

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The Olympics are over and my sweater has finished blocking (just in time for a few lovely, cool days).  I love my new sweater, and there’s no denying that speed knitting can be very satisfying, but now my mind is wandering to a new project.  Something that I can really sink my teeth into, something I can work on slowly and carefully.  Something stupidly elaborate and full of ridiculous details.

This scarf/wrap is just gorgeous.  I love the use of a semi-solid with the slowly-transitioning rainbow colorway.  And the little sticky-outy leaves are a fantastic detail.  (Though one I think would drive me a little bit crazy to work up.)

Snood Forest Witch by Svetlana Gordon1m_medium2[1]And every time I see this project go across my screen, my heart skips a beat.  I love looking at all the beautiful colors people choose.  And, honestly, I can’t even guess how it’s constructed (short rows, maybe?)!

Fox Paws by Xandy Peters

2016-06-21-21-46-26_medium2[1]And, I do love lace.  It’s been years since I really sunk my teeth into a full-on lace shawl.  And this one has beads.  (And little cables.)

Lily-of-the-Valley-Rosea by Alla Borisova4_medium2[1]What do you like to work on when you’re looking for a complicated, careful knit?

Olympics: Across the finish line!

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I did it! Woo!

That last sleeve almost killed me, but I made it across the finish line with time to spare for blocking.

And, I love it!  This might be my new favorite sweater.  (It’s the Campside Cardi by Alicia Plummer, knit in Knit Picks’ Wool of the Andes Sport in Cobblestone, if you forgot.)IMG_3052(Yes, I am indeed a dork, and still haven’t figured out how to pose for a non-ridiculous photo of myself.)

It fits like a glove, and I even managed to get the sleeves the right length, which never happens! If you’re looking for a simple-yet-cute sweater, I definitely recommend this pattern.  IMG_3071Whenever I do a speed-knit project like this, I always think “Why can’t I always work like this?”  I’d be able to make two dozen sweaters ever year! Ha!

How did your Olympics go?  Did you finish your Ravellenic Games projects?

Olympics: The Final Leg

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I’m in the final stretch of the marathon, the last straightaway of the 400 meter dash, the last push toward the wall in the 1500 meter freestyle.

Except I’m knitting, not doing any sort of actual physical sport.  (I am breaking a sweat, however.  But that’s more due to the fact that we don’t have air conditioning and I have a big wool sweater on my lap than any great athletic exertion.)

I’ve still got 3/4 of a sleeve left.  And blocking.IMG_3018This sweater feels like it’s taking forever, which is crazy, since I’ve only been working on it for two weeks.

It’s funny, I zoomed through the body of the sweater, which was the biggest part of the project- all that stockinette and all those eyelets.  It was fun, easy, uncomplicated.  But now that I’m doing the sleeves, it feels a bit like pulling teeth.  I don’t know why, it’s just plain old knitting in the round with a handful of decrease rows.  Nothing difficult.

It took me two whole days to finish the right sleeve!  Two days!  Hopefully it won’t take me two more to finish the left.

And now, here I am procrastinating on my sleeve by writing this post (which was only supposed to be about three sentences long).

Enough faffing around.  I’d better buckle down and finish up.  The closing ceremony is on Sunday, after all!

How are your Olympics going?

And have you watched any synchronized swimming?!  It’s amazing!

Olympics- In the thick of it

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It’s Wednesday.  The Olympics end on Sunday.  I still have 2 arms to knit (OK, 1 and 7/8ths) on this sweater.

IMG_2986Will I make it?

I will need to knit with the speed of Katie Ledecky (assuming she knits as well as she swims), and harness the concentration of Simone Biles.

And I must be as pure of heart as the Olympic flame.  (OK, that doesn’t really make sense… I think I must be suffering from Ravellenic Games Madness, a very real and actual disease.)

I’ve gotten through the majority of the knitting- the body’s done, and I’ve bound off the collar/button band combo (have I ever mentioned how tiresome the sewn bind-off is… I wish I didn’t love the finished results so much).  Sleeves are always a pain, but there are only two of them.IMG_2996So, I should be off.  Only four days to go (three, if I hope to block this bad boy).  How’s your Ravellenic knitting going?

Yellowstone!

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I just got back from a week in Yellowstone, and even though I missed all the Olympic Gymnastics coverage, I had a really fantastic time.

A big group of our friends (9 people!) rented a big ‘ol cabin outside of West Yellowstone.  We spent the days hiking,Beaver Ponds Hike (26)And boating, Boat day (8)And making friends with horses.Wilderness Edge (27)We spent the evenings playing ukeleles (because we’re dorks),Wilderness Edge (19)And playing board games (also because we’re dorks).Wilderness Edge (17)It couldn’t have been more delightful.

We even saw a bunch of sand hill cranes, and three badgers (but we didn’t get a good picture of them).Beaver Ponds Hike (24)And, since we stayed about 45 minutes from the edge of the park, I had a nice long drive every day to work on my knitting (I’m halfway through the collar/button band-just sleeves to go!).

If you haven’t been to Yellowstone, you have to go!  (Actually, if you have been, you should go again.) It’s one of my absolutely favorite places to visit, and I can’t wait to go back again.

Quick Ravellenic Games Update

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I haven’t been updating you on my Ravellenic Games Project, but I’ve been chugging away on it since last Friday. and I’m sure you’re sitting on the edge of your seat, waiting with bated breath for an update.

Unfortunately, I’ve been in a magical land of no internet connection.  Or at least with crummy enough internet to count as no internet.

We took a road trip out to Yellowstone!  It’s my favorite place on earth, and if you haven’t gone yet, Go!  It’s absolutely amazing, every time I’ve been.

I’ll tell you more about that later, but I wanted to give you a quick update on the sweater, and I briefly have internet (we’re still on the road- we just stopped at a coffee shop for a little bit of WiFi and caffeine).

The my Campside Cardi is coming along great!  It’s perfect car ride knitting- just interesting enough to keep cabin fever from kicking in, but not so interesting that I have to watch my fingers.IMG_0652I’m well into the eyelets in the bottom half of the sweater body, and they’re surprisingly fun.  The pattern changes subtly every few inches, which keeps me on my toes.  But, it’s not so fiddly that if I zone out for a few miles I ruin the sweater.  Perfect!IMG_0667And, it’s fun playing with my new camera.  Artistic knitting shots ahoy!

I’d better head out- we need to get back on the road if we hope to make it back to Seattle by dark!

How’s your Ravellenic knitting going?

Shutterbug

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Holy cow, you guys!  I’m so excited!

I finally got a new camera.  I’ve been thinking about it for literally years.  And, it’s magnificent.

It’s a Canon Rebel T5, which (according to the guy at the camera store) is a good starter DSLR.  It’s pricey, but not too crazy (I hate spending money, which is why I’ve been using my same little point-and-shoot for so long).

Isn’t it beautiful?rebel-t5-dslr-ef-s-18-55mm-is-ii-zoom-lens-3q-d[1]OK, it looks just like every other DSLR Camera, but I still like it.

And look at these pictures!  I took these yesterday afternoon with the basic lens, on auto mode (because I haven’t learned enough to do anything else). There’s no Photoshop or anything!IMG_0109So pretty right?IMG_0060So much detail, and those colors!IMG_0038Look at that definition!IMG_0026And those eyelashes! (OK, that’s more to do with Ollie, and less to do with the camera.)

I can even make my blog photos bigger, since my pictures are already so much better!  And it takes video!  Maybe I can try my hand at making how-to videos! So get ready for me to be super awkward.

I’m excited!