Progress

As you can see with my last post, I'm going to try to update all of my finished objects from 2007 so they can be linked in a sidebar. Those updates will probably be pretty sporadic (as though all my posts aren't...)

Today I want to give updates on just about everything. I've been knitting a lot this past week, since I got out of school before all of my friends from home, so no one's been around to distract me from all that yarn yarn yarn. I should get a neon flashing light that says Yarn! Yarn! Yarn! You know, insead of Girls! Girls! Girls! ...Sometimes I'm too weird for my own good...

Anyhow, updates:

Thermal

I have finished the first sleeve!! Pretty exciting, n'est pas? Here, proof that I'm not lying like a pig in mud:



A close-up of the beautiful, beautiful, beautiful waffle stitch:




I am having so much fun working on this project. The stitch pattern is interesting and the fabric it creates is squishy and fun and wonderful. I have cast on for the second sleeve (against every tendency in my body which would compel me to work the body first, I have decided to start with the sleeves) and I have a few rounds of the twisted rib finished. I knit the majority of the first sleeve on US 3 dpns but my new Knitpicks circular was calling out to me so I decided to use the sleeve as an exercise in learning Magic Loop. I worked the first sleeve Magic Loop starting after the increases were complete. I'm going to use Magic Loop to work the second sleeve, I think. That's how I've cast it on, but I (still) am not entirely sure how I feel about the technique. I dislike working ribbing on dpns, so I think this is good for now, but I tend to find a cable flopping around to be just as finicky as dealing with double points. So I'm still up in the air about it.


Spring Fling

After casting on May 11, I have, in the past 10 days, completed the back, the left front, and the ribbing of the right front.



As I think I've mentioned before, the yarn is ridiculously soft. It's quite a bit pinker than I thought it would be, but I'm going to consider that a "happy accident." I generally don't wear pink, especially this shade of it, and since I really like the color, I think this will be a good chance for me to branch out. And if I end up hating it/looking jaundiced in it, a good friend of mine looks excellent in pink. Also, it's only a summer cardigan, so I can probably bear to wear it occasionally for the three months of the year it would be useful.

This is my first project with YOs. I tried making the legwarmers from One Skein which have a lace pattern at the tops, but the lace looked like I took my knitting to the garbage disposal, and I decided to frog. The lace pattern on this sweater is very simple, but still interesting enough to keep my from falling asleep.



I'm also altering this pattern to include buttons. I'll be placing three half-inch buttons along the ribbing at the bottom of the sweater. I think it will be a nice touch.

Raglan Sweater

Finally, I talk about the dang raglan that's been sitting over in the sidebar forever. It has, alas, also been sitting over in my knitting bag forever. I picked it up the other night while watching An Inconvienent Truth (excellent film, by the way). The Raglan makes for really excellent movie or tv knitting since it's just stockinette in the round with no shaping at this point, so I can just knitknitknitknitknit without having to look and check my stitches or pattern (ha!). I'm still not through with the body, but it's getting there. Slowly. And then I have the sleeves. Oh god, I may never finish....


(Please excuse the Peter Pan pose, here. I don't know what got into me...)

Okay, well, since this has been the longest post known to mankind, I think I'm finished, now.

I have, as you can see, lots and lots of work left to do. A friend just had a baby last week, so I have a cross-stitch birth sampler to work on as well.

Speaking of babies, congrats to Franklin and especially to his sister, Susan on the birth of Abigail Ann this morning. The 21st of May was my mother's birthday and she was a remarkable woman, so I'm sure that sends miles of good luck vibes to the new baby.

Huzzah!

Goodies and....Baddies?

Progress on the Raglan moves along slowly, but progress is still progress, no? I have another 5 inches or so left on the body, then both sleeves to work. I had told myself I'd finish it for my birthday (not that it will be cold enough to wear it) on May 7, but it seems pretty obvious that that's not going to happen.

Speaking of Birthdays, I got a wonderful package in the mail this week from my boyfriend. In it:



and



Wowza. These books just about made my year. The Maggie Righetti book really is written in plain English, too. It's easy to understand, well written, thoughtful, and funny. I love her chapter on body types. For instance:

THE TRIANGLE
Think of a triangle; think of a swan gracefully swimming across a pond. A long slender neck, gently sloping shoulders, lovely round and full hips and thighs are the hallmarks of a triangular figure.

"Lovely round and full hips and thighs"??

I could gain 400 pounds and this book would still make me feel good about myself.

Also under the "goodie" title - I bought more yarn. My KnitPicks package arrived at my Dad's house yesterday. I had it delivered there so I wouldn't be tempted to start more projects before finals [gulp] are over. I ordered 3 skeins of Alpaca Cloud in "Moss Heather" for the Print o' the Wave Stole I'm making for a friend for Christmas, some Shine Sport in "Orchid" for a Spring Fling Cardigan (that I'm going to alter by shortening the body, lengthening the sleeves, and adding buttons) for myself to wear to my Dad's June wedding, Gloss in "Burgundy" for a pair of Clessidras for moi, and finally, some Essential in "Dusk" for a pair of Bayerische Socks for my Dad's soon-to-be-wife's December birthday.

Whew. I'm hoping to knit really fast so I can make some more pretty things for myself. I am so selfish...

And, on to the not-so-goodies...

Finals (AHHHHH!) are upon us. Not cool. My finals are looking like they're going to totally kick my butt in the next two weeks, so I probably will not be getting very much knitting done. Which is le poo.

Socks! and Sweater?

I finished my socks! They're actually not as nice as I'd hoped, for some reason the beginning of the purl rows of the heel were really loose, and when I picked up stitches they pulled the loose edge and you can see my foot through a row of neat little holes. Hmmm. I'm hoping that changes with a run through the wash? I love the way first pair of hand-mades get softer and squishier and more comfy after every wash.

I also made some really great progress on my raglan, as well. I had a good chunk of time to kill tonight before a midnight movie with some friends (3 hours, to be exact) so I was able to stockinette my way to where the arms split from the body. However although the arms seem to be the perfect diameter, the armpits are, well, shall we say un peu too high. In other words, unless I'm after the "wooly-armpit" feeling, it will need to be ripped back. I think I'll continue the raglan increases on the body, but not the sleaves, because otherwise I'm afraid I'll have GIANT sleeves, and no one wants that.

I also had a serious problem while knitting this evening. As mentioned, I was killing some time before meeting friends on campus, so I got myself a comfy chair in the student center and decided I'd catch up on some podcasts. Note to Self: Laughing out loud while knitting will cause strange looks from others. Perhaps Lime & Violet is not the best knitting soundtrack for knitting in public...

I mean, really. The looks I got from people. You think they'd never seen a girl with a pile of yarn in her lap repeatedly measuring the distance from her neck to armpit while laughing out loud before. What is the world coming to?