Category Archives: On My Needles

Ch-ch-ch-changes

I’ve finished my swatch and got my gauge for my new Chuck sweater. I was just going to follow the pattern as written, but you know me. I can’t leave well enough alone.

I love the general shape of the sweater- the natural-waist hem is perfect. And, the cables down the front are so cute. But there are things I think I’m going to change.

First, I like the boat-neck collar, in theory, but I think it has to. I have pretty narrow shoulders, so I usually end up fussing with drooping shoulders all day if I wear anything with a boat neck. (Also, I’m constantly cold, so I’ll take any opportunity to be a little more covered-up.)So, that means I’ll keep the neckline shaping more or less the same, but move the sides of the neck in toward the middle just a bit. To do that, I’ll cast on more stitches for each shoulder, and take away the same number of stitches from the bottom of the neckline. A little math, but nothing too tricky.

Also, I gotta say, that big ol’ stockinette back makes me a little sad- I think it needs some extra decorations! (Of course, I tend to like my sweaters to be totally covered with texture or color, so maybe I’m not one to talk.)So, I’m going to add a cable (or maybe two) down the back. Nothing as elaborate as the front of the sweater, but just something to add a little something special.

I also think I might make the sleeves a touch longer (but I do that on almost every sweater, since I’ve got long orangutan arms). I won’t have to decide about that for a while, though.

I hope it’ll turn out OK- I love the original pattern so much, I don’t want to ruin it. In my head, my changes will only make it better- but we’ll just have to wait and see when it’s done. In the meantime- cross your fingers for me!

Have you ever given an existing pattern your own spin? How did it turn out?

Chuck

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I’m a big fat liar.

Sort of.

So, last week, I wrote a whole big thing about how I am a process knitter only. I said I would never knit something simply because I want the finished project.

Well, I shouldn’t have been so insistent about that. Because this weekend, I went looking through my Ravelry Queue, trying to find something to do between work assignments. And I re-discovered a sweater I has been living, half-forgotten in the back of my brain for the two years since I put it in my queue.

It’s Chuck!

I first saw this sweater at a knitting convention in 2015. A group of impossibly cool ladies were all wearing the same sweater (this one) in different colors, and each had paired it with a unique vintage skirt. I knew immediately I needed a Chuck of my own.

I have a bunch of high-waisted dresses that I love wearing in the summer, but none of my sweaters really go with them, so I end up having to wait to wear my dresses until the weather gets really warm (June or July in Seattle).

I love the shape of this sweater- the length is perfect with a skirt or dress, and the wide ribbed hem is super flattering. I love how the sweater is fitted through the waist, and that cable is to die for!

I also happen to have a bunch of dark-chocolate yarn just waiting in my stash for a project like this. (It was on sale years and years ago, and I miscalculated how much I would need for a different pullover by a couple skeins, so it’s just been sitting in my closet, waiting for me to figure out what to do with it.)

Anyway, I’m very excited to get started on this project. (Or, rather, I’m excited to have this finished sweater.) I think I’ll cast on this afternoon!

Have you ever made a project solely because you wanted (needed) the finished object?

And, don’t forget! You’ve got until Friday to be entered into the Flourish giveaway!

Bears, But Not Too Many

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So, I made some resolutions at the beginning of the year, and I’m not doing a great job following up on them, if I’m honest.

My three goals were:

-Do more knitting “just for fun.”

-Knit at least 1 bear per month.

-Sketch more.

My sketch book has only a couple more pages filled in than it did in January, I’ve been knitting almost exclusively for work (which means I’m getting more design work- Yay! But, I can’t show you guys my WIPs- Boo!). And, my bear collection is a little pitiful.I know! Only a bear and a half, and it’s already approaching the end of March! And neither one is stuffed! (And most of that half-bear was knit this morning when I realized how behind I was.)

I suppose it’s not a big deal, after all it’s just a goal, not a real deadline, and it’s just something I’m doing on my own. But, still. It’s the principle!

I just finished knitting another project for work, so I have a little time “off.” I guess I know what I’m doing this week!

Are you still making Mother Bears? What goals do you set for yourself, and do you do a good job keeping up with them?

Purse Socks

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Last weekend, my brother and his girlfriend came to visit us up here in the Pacific Northwest. It was my brother’s first time visiting us in years, and his girlfriend’s first time in Seattle ever! So, we spent Saturday being tourists. We visited Pike Place Market and the Gum Wall. We ate piroshkis and drank cocktails made with local ginger beer. We did a lot of driving.

Sure, the driving part is never fun, but when you’re showing guests around your city, you always end up driving a lot. And, that’s where your purse knitting comes in handy (unless you’re the one driving the car. In that case, please don’t drive and knit).According to my Ravelry page, I started these bad boys back in January. They’re going slowly, but that’s OK. I keep one sock in my purse at all times, so whenever I have a little down time, I can break it out and knit a few rows. I’ve worked on these socks in the car, waiting for food to be delivered at a restaurant, in the waiting room at the doctor’s office, and when I get to work before my shift starts.

These socks are perfect for piecemeal knitting- the pattern is super simple, there are no stitch markers to wrangle, no cable needles to lose, and no colorwork to worry about. The overall pattern is just knits and purls, and there’s really very little shaping (just the usual heel and toe shaping that I could do in my sleep). It’s a pattern I can keep in my head, without having to keep referring to a chart or a book, and it’s a nice dark color (so it won’t get grimy-looking from living in my purse for months).

I love my purse socks, and I’m excited for when they’re finished (though that’ll probably be in June, at the rate I’m going). Maybe we should play tourist more often- I’d get more knitting in!

Do you keep purse knitting? What’s your favorite “in a pinch” project?

Back to the Beginning

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Sometime you’ve just got to go back to your roots. You’ve gotta eat a bowl of Kraft Macaroni Dinner, or watch the Princess Bride for the thousandth time, or dig out that old, cozy sweater your high school friend let you “steal” from their closet. There’s just something so meditative and lovely about going back and doing something comfortable once in a while.

Don’t get me wrong- I’m always trying new things, new food, new knitting techniques. But sometimes it’s so nice to return to something easy, simple and comfortable.

And, I just so happened to have a gigantic skein of Hazel Knits the Big Squeeze in Electric Slide. I got it at last fall’s Knit Fit, here in Seattle. It’s gigantic, squishy, and hand-dyed in the most gorgeous shades of electric purple and hot pink. You know I’m more of a browns, grays, greens, and blues lady, but sometimes I just have to go super bright and girly, and this is one of those times.

I hemmed and hawed about what to do with this skein when I first got it, eventually settling on “just leave the skein out on my desk so I can look at it.” But I’m a knitter, not (just) a yarn buyer, and I needed something fun and easy to work on.

So, with such big, gorgeous, striking yarn, why not go old-school? Why not remake everyone’s first project- something I haven’t made in 20 years? Why try to fancy-up such an already-fancy skein of yarn?

Why not make a garter-stitch scarf?This yarn is crazy, I mean, just look at it- the yarn is as big around as a pencil!But, the color is what sold me on this yarn when I first saw it, and it’s still what makes me so happy every time I pick it up. Just look at the magnificent dye-job. I love it to death.

I wonder if I could dye my hair that color…

Do you ever go “back to basics” with your knitting projects? What are your favorite “old favorites”?

Christmas Balls

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It’s snowing again!

The schools I teach at had a snow day on Monday, and a two-hour late start on Tuesday. I can only imagine what’s going to happen now that it’s snowing again! Maybe I’ll just get the rest of the week off (one can hope, right?). (It’s amazing how much of a Seattleite I’ve become. The first sign of flurries, and I go into full-blown hibernation mode. Growing up in the Midwest, we didn’t change our plans unless there was a good 6″ of snow in an hour, and then we just drove a little slower.)

And what’s better than finishing up some of Arne and Carlos’ Christmas Balls on a snowy morning?

My mom gave me a copy of this adorable book for Christmas (thanks Mom!), and I’ve knit up a couple balls since the holidays. They’re fun, quick, and don’t use too much yarn (though I did manage to run through my stash of red and white DK wool- I’ve got to order some more).These little guys are really fun if you want to practice your colorwork in the round. They have dozens of different designs, and they even include a blank chart in the back of the book if you want to get fancy and design your own patterns!Of course, finishing is a little fiddly (but any small colorwork project is going to be a bit fiddly). I sat down with the newest episode of Victoria and a cup of tea, and I had all three of these balls finished before the episode was over.

Now my only problem is that I want to make about three dozen more, so that next year my Christmas tree will be decorated only with these lovely guys!

Have you made Christmas ornaments before? What’s your favorite?

Ugh!

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I have a problem.

I think it’s a problem that a lot of knitters have.

I think I might hate my current project.

I loved it at first, and I’m sure one day I will love it again. But, right now- no.

I can’t talk about it in detail, or really, in anything other than the broadest, most vague terms (it’s a design I’m working on, so it’s all Top Secret, hence the very un-illuminating photos). But, let’s just say there’s a lot of stockinette.

Like a lot.

Like, I’ve been knitting plain, purple stockinette for a couple weeks now, and other than a couple Pussyhats, I haven’t been able to do anything to break up the monotony.

When I started this project, I was super jazzed- I love simple, clean designs- there’s something so elegant about simple projects. And, I know I’ll wear the heck out of this project when it’s finished.

But… oofda. It’s a lot of stockinette.

I got to do a little bit of 1×1 ribbing the other day, and I just about got up and danced a jig. I’m in a sorry state.My deadline is fast approaching, so one way or the other, I’ll finish up this project soon. And boy, am I ready.

Have you ever taken on a project that was a little too much? A little too much stockinette? A few too many cables? A bit too fiddly?

Christmas Post-Mortem: Another sweater

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Guess what?!

I made another sweater.

I know, I’m a masochist. (Or, maybe I really like making sweaters.)

This one was for my dad. He’s a pretty classy guy- he wears a suit to work and if you see him in a sweater, it’s more likely he’d wear a thin, understated merino one from Nordstrom than something I’d knit (I do lean toward cables and bright colors, after all).

But he hasn’t gotten a sweater from me yet! We can’t let that stand!

So, I got a big pile of Knit Picks’ Swish in Cobblestone, and broke out the “Knits for Everybody” book. (I love a top-down raglan.) I started making the sweater just as written- all stockinette all the time- but the smallish gauge and the simple pattern made me feel like I was knitting at a glacial pace.

So, I decided to add a little interest.

Stripes were out (Dad’s not a stripes guy), but I thought I could do a little texture. I didn’t want to add any cables, since those can mess up your gauge, and I had already started knitting.

A little poking around on Ravelry, and I found Flax I liked the garter band down the sleeves (garter is my favorite). So, I carefully ripped back a few stitches at either shoulder and re-knit them in garter. And, because I love to embellish, I added garter panels down both sides of the body, too.The sweater turned out pretty well, and (I think) pretty classy, which is not something I usually strive for.