Eleven Stitches

Pull this thread as I walk away

Several months ago, I started a new sweater.  It was the Green Gable pattern, modified to have long sleeves.  I really liked Julie at Fricknits' version, and I even used Brooks Farm Harmony to make it. 

I modified it too much.  Or, ahem, I was a little too optimistic on how few inches around it needed to be.  Negative ease, while it looks good in some things, does not look good in this sweater.  I knew this when I was working on the sweater, but somehow I managed to convince myself to soldier through.  It didn't look that bad.  Maybe I could give it to my mom. 

I finished the sweater, stretched it out as much as I could during blocking, and wore it on a Saturday.  I changed out of it when we went out to dinner that night.  Clearly, this was not good enough.  If I'm spending time on a sweater, I had better want to wear it outside my house when it's done.

Analysis: I like the sleeves a lot, but everything from the chest down doesn't work.  It's also a little too short as is, and I want a different finish at the bottom. 

I decided to cut off the hemmed edge instead of undoing all of those stitches.  It was both strange and fun to cut through the knitted fabric. 

Work on this sweater has begun again.  I added six short rows in the bust, and added a few increases.  I also will not be decreasing so rapidly (if at all) this time.  And if I start feeling like I need to "soldier through", it's time to re-evaluate how it's really fitting.

One Sock

I finished my first Cablenet sock on Saturday night!  I was so excited to show it to my friend C when I visited her on Sunday, that I wore it with a, lets say, coordinating sock.

On the left, my own pattern Socks that Rock Mediumweight in Rooster Rock. On the right, my new Cablenet sock in Socks that Rock Lightweight Sunstone.

C really liked the look.  She thought more of us should be wearing coordinating socks instead of just boring old matching socks!  What do you think?  I suppose I'll go on and make the second sock.  Just in case I want to match ;)

Malabrigo Scarf

I have a new finished object!  Snow has arrived again in New Jersey, and it's nice timing to have a soft warm scarf.

Cable Pattern: "Asymmetrical Twists" from Vogue's Stitchtionary Vol. II One repeat wide and 14 repeats long with a seed stitch border. 
Yarn: Malabrigo worsted weight in Sauterne, almost 2 skeins
Needles: Size 9
Time to Knit: 1/15/07 - 2/15/07

This is a better representation of the color, but it doesn't show off the cables as nicely.  I love the warm, orangey yellow color.

It also fits!

Eye Candy Friday - Spinning in Circles

This is another quilt that now lives with someone else.  I actually have an in-progress picture of it as the background on my laptop, so I still get to see it a lot.  I'm wishing you all a happy Friday.

Progress

Some progress has been made on my Works in Progress.

The silk Hana sweater has been divided for the armholes.  The pattern suggested a provisional cast on of 14 stitches across the armhole gap.  I cast on 14 stitches in waste yarn and then knitted across.  This way I'll be able to have live stitches when I start the arms. 

Two heels have been turned.  One is a short row heel (I'm still perfecting this technique) and the other is a heel flap-- with cables!

A new quilting project has begun! 

The Malabrigo scarf has been blocked and is ready for her own post.

Happiness

I was reading an article in Scientific American Mind (Feb/Mar 2007) about Happiness, and why our generation is no happier than those who lived in the 1950s despite having overall better quality-of-life. It discussed how most people are always looking to the next goal and forgetting about the one they just achieved. It also mentioned that if a good thing happens too often, it is just added to the "normal environment" and taken for granted.

Some of the suggestions to increase your happiness were to join a community of people with common interests, to not always be focused on your next goal, and to enjoy living in the moment. Hmm, maybe this is why I've been so taken with knitting!

Although I think it's easy to get caught up in some things that are a detriment to happiness ("I must finish this sock by Saturday!", "I really need another skein of that lovely yarn"), there is so much about knitting that helps enhance my happiness. I enjoy making stitches, and it keeps me "living in the moment" to appreciate the softness of yarn, the subtle coloring of the fabric I created, and the  rich texture of the fancy stitchwork. Instead of taking it for granted, I savor the days when I have a good chunk of time to sit down and knit. And although I know I am goal focused, I do really, really appreciate the goals I have already achieved. Every time I wear my hand knit socks I'm happy, not just the first time!

What do you think? Clearly knitting enhances our happiness, but have you considered why this is?

Previously on Eleven Stitches*: Anemoi Mittens

Oh, of course I jumped on the bandwagon. 

They're so beautiful, it would be silly not to.

Pattern: Anemoi Mittens by Eunny Jang
Yarn: Koigu KPM (I lost the ball bands, but they're semi-solid light pink and semi-solid dark brown)
Needles: Susan Bates DPNs size 2
Time to Knit: December 23 - January 5
Modifications: None

This was a really lovely pattern to knit.  I really like the thumb gusset instead of the normal fair-isle style thumb.  The line of purl stitches made some people praise my finishing when really it was quite easy!

I spent a lot of time knitting these while on planes.   I really suggest it!  You'll get lots of attention from people of all generations who are impressed with your work.  And the fold-down tray on the airplane is a handy place to keep your chart.

*I've been an avid blog reader for several months now.  There are a few projects that I made before I started blogging that were either designed by another blogger or made with yarn dyed by one.  I want to show these off and give credit to some great people!

Japanese Feather Socks

Pattern: Japanese Feather Lace Socks
Yarn: Sundara Socks Yarn in Lenten Rose, 1 skein
Needles: Susan Bates DPNS, size 1
Time to Knit: 1/7/2007 - 2/2/2007
Modifications: I made the foot a little bit smaller for better fit.  I also did a traditional eye-of-partridge heel instead of the short-row heel.

This was an easily memorized pattern that worked well with socks.  Despite my mods, I think the socks are still a little bit too big.  They are certainly still wearable. The yarn came from Sundara's Petals Collection sock club.  It was my first installment (I joined the mid-year group) and the yarn is beautiful and a pleasure to work with. 

Eye Candy Friday

Quilting is actually my first love.  I've been quilting for about 7 years and only knitting for one.  This is a quilt I made last year, and it's one of my more recent favorites.  It's been sold and lives with someone else now, but I keep toying with the idea of making another copy for myself.

Traveling Tales

Whew!  There was a lot of snow outside this morning.  I made it to work fine (even picking up a pathetic-looking friend who was walking in the snow) even though the roads had not been plowed.  The snow looked and felt a lot like sugar when I was cleaning it off my car.  Maybe this is the planet's way of saying Happy Valentines Day!

This is the second installment of my WIPs introduction.  These are the simple stockinette projects and they travel with me. 

This blob is made from Artfiber's Hana.  It's 100% silk that is exquisitely soft and has a pink/coral sheen.  It's a top-down sweater on circular needles, so there isn't much to see yet.  I'll be splitting the sleeves off soon, and then it will start to actually look like something!

Artfibers is a wonderful store in San Francisco.  They make all of their own yarn, and it's really beautiful stuff.  They also include a free custom software-generated pattern with every purchase.  You can knit up a test swatch in the store, and the pattern will be made to your gauge, specifications, and measurements.  There was a beautiful sweater dress in the store when I was there, and this sweater is based off of that.

This sweater is my knit-in-class project.  I'm taking Abnormal Psychology at a local university, and I knit this when I'm not taking notes.  I do all of the increase rows (where I actually have to think) at home, and do all of the simple stockinette in class. 

My other traveling project is a simple sock.  It fits in my purse and is with me all the time.

I found this yarn at my local yarn store (LYS) and could not put it back down.  It's Collinette Jitterbug in the Castagna colorway.  The colors look dramatically different depending on the light source, and I find it enchanting. 

How can I keep this sock in my purse without poking holes or losing stitches?  Why, I use one of these

wonderful tin needle holders.  I first saw this on Stephanie's blog, and eventually got one for myself.  You can get them at Woolworks Ltd.  Very, very handy!