Tag Archives: knit

All done!

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And just in time for a heat wave, of course. I finished my kid’s sweater on Monday. Tuesday was a chilly 50 degrees, so we busted it out right away on a little trip to the woods near our house. He looked like a cross between a baby hobbit and a little old man. Frankly, my ideal kid aesthetic. (Though I think the cute factor could be upped with the addition of elbow patches.)

And literally by Wednesday, it was in the 70s, and over the weekend it got into the 80s. So, it seems like this super-cozy, cabled wool sweater will not be getting a lot of play until next fall.

But, thank goodness, I managed to make the sweater big enough that it’ll definitely fit all the way through the next year (probably). There’s plenty of length in the sleeves, and if I blocked it out, I’m sure I could get some extra room around the belly and chest. I haven’t blocked it yet, because it fits just about perfect as is, and it’s extra-squishy and fluffy pre-blocking. It’s possible the neck will be a little too tight if this kid’s gigantic head keeps growing at its current rate, but that would be an easy fix.

I’m so happy to have this sweater finished! I truly don’t know the last time I finished any project, much less a full sweater. And, I’m so glad it turned out well! Now I’m thinking of making myself another Ben sweater to match… My current one is definitely “well-loved.”

Have you finished any projects lately?

So close I can taste it

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I’m thiiiiis close to finishing my toddler’s sweater! Miracle of miracles, I got it seamed up over the weekend, and the sleeves actually look proportional to the rest of the sweater! I had serious doubts about that, but hey, it turns out that my math was correct! Who knew?

It’s so cute, and all I have left to add is the neckband! And, I suppose, block it. But that’s it! I honestly didn’t think this sweater was ever going to get finished. I’ve gotta say, it’s a nice feeling, getting close to finishing a long project. It’s been too long since I managed a bigger project like this.

And it even looks like its still going to fit the kid… maybe even next year!

Have you managed to finish anything lately?

Nearly There

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I’ve just about done it- I’ve got all the big pieces for the toddler Ben-ish pullover finished. (And right in time for summer-y weather to set in. Though this is Seattle; I’m sure it’ll get back to cold and rainy before the week is out.)

The sweater looks so good! I just love this cable pattern- it’s making me want to knit up another Ben for myself (the one I made for my husband 10+ years ago and that I subsequently adopted/stole back is looking pretty disreputable). I can’t wait to see this on my little guy. He’s naturally got a real “tenured professor” vibe, so it’s basically a crime that he doesn’t have a cabled sweater already. Maybe I should add some elbow patches, too.

Anyway, all that’s left is to seam it, add the collar and block it. And if I say it like that, it doesn’t sound like much, but I’m sure it’s going to take a few weeks for me to actually get around to finishing up everything. Because why would this step take any less time than any other step? For a tiny little sweater, it’s really taking a lot of work. Long gone are the days of finishing an entire adult sweater in two weeks.

How do you feel when you get close to the end of a project?

A Roll of the Dice

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I started working on the second sleeve, and, well, I almost immediately ran out of yarn. I had managed to delude myself into thinking that I had enough yarn to make it through the sleeve. But, no matter how much I wanted it to be true, I had barely made it through the cuff when I was left with this much yarn:

So, I ran back to Webs and ordered another skein. I was excited when the package showed up yesterday, but then I suddenly realized- I had no idea if it was going to match. The color on the website vs. the actual color was so wildly different, it suddenly occurred to me that the new and old yarn might not match at all.

I crossed my fingers, held my breath, and opened the package.

And thank all the Knitting Gods! Not only did the color match- the new yarn was actually the same dye lot as the stuff I ordered months ago. I certainly lucked out!

Now all I have to do is… finish the sweater!

Did you ever luck out (or not) with a dye lot?

Halfway across the island

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Woo! It’s starting to look more like a sweater! It’s going to need a nice blocking (and assembly) to really see how it looks, but I’m feeling more optimistic that this will be done before my toddler is in high school.

Anyway, here’s the sweater all laid out. Obviously, I haven’t sewed it up yet, but it’s getting there. Despite my best/worst attempts at math, the proportions look more or less correct. And I just love the “little old man” aesthetic for my slow-moving, cheerful, and thoughtful little guy.

One funny thing that happened though, is that the sleeves are literally wider than the body pieces. It’s an oversized sweater with generous sleeves, so it’s not that surprising, but still, when they’re laid out like that… it looks a little funny.

Now I just have to make the other sleeve… and sew it together… and block it. I’m basically done, right?

Are you working on any long-term projects?

Onto the Sleeves

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I’ll be honest. When I went to photograph this sleeve this morning, I was a little disappointed. I thought that I had completed more than I have. It’s really not much more than a cuff right now, but oh well. At least it’s a nice cuff.

It’s just been so nice and sunny and warm (ish… it’s still hovering around 50, but I’ll take what I can get), I’ve just not been in the mood to knit like I do in the winter.

Still, I’m making progress. I’ve cast on for the cuff and am increasing 1 stitch at the beginning and end of every other RS row. So far, I think it’s going well, but of course I’ve got quite a way to go before I know for sure that the sleeve is the right size. (I probably won’t know for sure until I block it out, honestly.)

But I’m still cruising along. I’m just crossing my fingers that it still fits my kid next winter, since I seem to have missed the cold-weather window.

How often do you miss the season for your WIPs?

New Pattern: Rainbow Socks

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It’s been a while since I was able to show you guys a new pattern, so today’s definitely a special day!

I’d like to introduce you to the happiest socks on the block: the Rainbow Socks!

These guys are in the new super-cheerful sock collection from Knit Picks (Pop Socks), which I definitely recommend you check out.

These adorable little guys are a super simple, top-down sock with an afterthought heel. The only tricky part about them is that they’re absolutely COVERED in bright, stripey rainbows! (Which isn’t really tricky, it just involves a lot of end-weaving.)

I’m so pleased with how these turned out, and even more tickled because the Knit Picks team put together a pack of rainbow-colored minis specifically for this project! You can grab the pack here!

I can’t wait to see folks start knitting up these little guys- nothing says “Spring” like hand-knits covered in rainbows!

Grab the pattern here, the book here, and the yarn here!

Flying V

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I’m going to be honest, I’m kind of winging this sweater. I thought I had a plan- well, I do have a plan, but it’s a very rough plan. And the further in I get to this project, the more I realize that the “pattern” I wrote up at the beginning of this knit is more of a “suggestion” than an actual pattern.

But that’s fine, it just means I do a little math on the fly, and keep my fingers crossed that everything works out in the end.

The most recent thing that I’ve winged is the V-neck for the front of the sweater. I marked the center-most stitch, then decreased 1 stitch each side of the neck, every RS row. I kept decreasing until the neck seemed wide enough (which I always have trouble estimating). It looks a little wonky because of the cables, but I think it will look OK once I add the neckband. I hope.

I’ve roughly estimated the proportions on this sweater by holding up the project against my kid’s favorite sweatshirt. And, so far it looks OK (though the proportions will change a bit with blocking).

I guess I’ll just keep guessing and keep crossing my fingers, and hopefully it’ll turn out OK (or at least OK enough for my kid to wear it a few times).

Do you ever wing your projects, or are you strictly a follow-the-pattern knitter?

Better late than never

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This is one of my favorite/least favorite genre of project. It’s one of those tasks that I know I should get done right away, because if I don’t do it right off the bat, then it’ll sit in my “to be mended” pile for months.

And that’s exactly what happened.

At the beginning of Fall, my big kid was wearing their favorite stripey sweater. It’s a cute, scrappy project that I made for them about a year ago. It’s getting a little “well loved” but still has plenty of life in it.

Anyway, I was sitting, chatting with them, and they were wearing the sweater inside-out (because that’s something that 4-year-olds do, I guess). They noticed the ends poking out of the sweater, and since it was a “use up all the scraps” project, there are quite a few ends. Before I could say anything, they grabbed one end, said “What’s this?” and yanked with all their might.

Sigh.

It doesn’t look that bad from the outside, but it’s turned into a weird, 4-inch-long lump. (It’s the blue stripe right at the top of the red section… It kind of pulls in and makes the blue disappear).

But if you look to the inside… it’s pretty obvious that something’s wrong.

So, I thew the sweater in my knitting/mending pile and figured I’d fix it when I had the time.

Long story short… that was probably 3 months ago, and I’m not even sure if the sweater still fits the kid.

Anyway, in a fit of productivity this afternoon, I sat down for 10 minutes (with the kids crawling all over me, so I probably could have gotten it done in 5, had I been alone) and fixed the whole dang thing. I used a big needle to unpick all the super-tight stitches and redistribute the yarn. Simple.

The sweater is good as new! (I mean, not new. There are plenty of stains and the elbows are a little threadbare. But still.)

Why are the simplest tasks sometimes the hardest to finish?

Yarn Therapy

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It’s been a wild few weeks at our house. We’ve got a toddler that’s suddenly developed a LOT of opinions. A four-year-old who’s realized that the toddler wants to play with the “big kid toys,” and is suddenly on high alert making sure that “babies don’t go in my room.” We’ve had two rounds of illness (one of which was a nasty stomach bug- my literal nightmare). And I’ve been dealing with drama at the kids’ preschool co-op. (Why do all volunteer-run organizations seem to thrive on big drama?) February has been a lot.

To that end, I haven’t been able to get much knitting time. But what I have gotten has been really lovely. It might just be a row or two each day (or half a row), but it’s been so nice to have a familiar, comforting pattern to fall back on. Something that I know how to do, that I can count on, even when things are rough.

This little sweater is going slowly. It might not be done before the warm weather sets in. It might not be done before the toddler outgrows it (especially at the rate they’re eating lately). But right now, the most important part of knitting isn’t getting the object done. We’ve got plenty of knitwear in this house. It’s having a project available that I know how to do. Something simple and comfortable. Something that isn’t going to require more brain power than the limited supply I have available right now.

And, hopefully, once it’s done (some day), I’ll end up with a cute li’l sweater.

What do you like to work on when you’re overwhelmed?