Sweater, Sweater, Sock, Sock, Now I've Got The Knitting Shot

I have been dreaming of knitting sweaters, especially sweaters for me. The problem I've encountered is that my weight has been all over the place because of the mystery GI problems. In the last 8 months I've lost 20 pounds (9kg), but managed to gain back almost 5 (2kg). This has left me a little unsure as to where I'll ultimately land, so making an especially fitted sweater is out. I have, however, been eyeing the Iceland pattern from Rowan 42. I even started it once way back in 2010. (That yarn turned into the Fireside Sweater instead, which fit my wrong in the shoulders and now belongs to my Mum.) The only problem is that it either looks good on you or it doesn't. I checked out many different projects on ravelry, and I'm hoping that if I can make the waist hit higher, it will look flattering on me.

Meanwhile, since Connor is remaining the same size (and also I love him), I've also been wanting to make him a sweater. Wei Siew generously gifted me 5 balls of Mythral I needed when I was in New Zealand last. I wanted to do my best to honor her by not letting the yarn sit in stash for too long. I had envisioned a Walter Mitty style sweater, but something kept me from recreating it. I just didn't like how there were cables on the arms, but none on the body. It just seemed unbalanced. But recently Christina Danaee made a sweater that looked much more like what I wanted to make. And what do you know, she was also inspired by Walter Mitty.

I very conveniently own the same magazine that she used to make the sweater

As I agonize over sweater decisions, I have been plodding along on my socks. The Concrete and Tulip socks have gone pretty well so far, but still have some decisions attached to them. I got to the top of the cuff of the first sock and realized that I might want to make the ribbing a bit longer. Also, I've never done a tubular bind off, but that might be more appropriate for these socks since they are knee-high. I haven't quite worked out what I want to do, so I went ahead and started the second sock. I think I'll knit the second sock with the adjustments I want to make. If it doesn't work out, then I only have to rip out one sock to make them match... in theory.

The Hieroglyphic Socks are also being knit at a good pace. I find doing two handed color makes my hands sore after a certain number of rounds, so I just make sure to put a few rounds into them every day. They will get done slowly and steadily.

Newly Knitworthy

I'm sure many knitters have felt the strong urge to outfit loved ones in hand knits. It's a little hard to explain to a non knitter, but there is a tugging at the heart and an itchy feeling in the fingers to get the knits made. Many of my friends and family have hand knits, but to my disgrace, Connor was missing his.... until now.

It was a little difficult to figure out what should be knitted first, but we decided that a hat was needed. I used the Watch Cap pattern by Michele Rose Orne. This is the third time I've used this pattern and I still really like the look of this hat. The yarn is Mythral from Stansborough, but it is a prototype that they were working on when I bought in 2010. 

Connor is pleased and has been wearing the hat everywhere. He has proven himself knitworthy. I see a matching cowl in his future.

Has anyone else got a newly knitworthy person in their life?

Fantastic Yarn Day

Last Thursday was a really, really, really good yarn day. Two different packages full of yarn showed up. And since they were sent by two different methods, they showed up at different times. I got to be excited twice in one day. Although I didn't open them right away. (With good reason I assure you.)

And that reason was because I went down to the Holland Road Yarn Co on Willis St. in Wellington and taught a class on starting the Southern Skies. Well, of course I forgot to take a picture of everyone. But I did get a picture of Jenn's start on her Southern Skies.

Now, being at the Holland Road Yarn Co, it's hard not to leave without some yarn. I'd been there earlier in my trip, so I thought I was safe. Not so. They had restocked their Mythral.... and they had the Rata color way that I had been unsuccessful in procuring the last time I'd been in New Zealand. I hemmed, I hawed, I bought.

But with only 8 balls (I had bought all they had in stock) I wasn't sure I'd be able to make the sweater I wanted. After talking to Wei Siew about what my options might be, she dove into her stash and came out with 5 more balls... in the same dye lot. She asked how many I needed, but I honestly couldn't answer her because my jaw had dropped. Too bad there isn't a picture of it. She said I could take all of them after I was unable to scoop my jaw back up off of the floor. She also gave me a project bag. I suppose stuffing one's half knit sock into one's pocket guarantees sympathy from another knitter.

So after all that, I did finally open my yarn packages. I ordered 5 skeins of Anna Gratton's 4ply Pure Wool in Natural White for a super secret project. Poor Wei Siew has had to listen to me prattle on about what they will grow up to be.

And after knitting part of a sock in the Stray Cat Sock that Wei Siew treated me to, I went ahead and bought myself two more balls in the Jaffa and Silver Star color ways.

So if we knitters are to learn any lesson in all of this, it is that if you are far away from your yarn stash, you will start building a new one. 

Stash Sisters

The last time I showed a sneak peek of this sweater was in February. When I knit the last one, it was made to fit the model. This time, it's going to fit me. I wasn't expecting to be so excited making this sweater again, but I am. I do wish for a few things though: I wish I was done knitting it and that The Book was out so that I could wear it. I also wish it was cold so that it would be possible to wear it for more than five minutes without overheating.

This version is made with Stansborough's Mythral in the color Takahe which Wei Siew so kindly gifted me. The yarn is glorious. For those who are use to only knitting with Merino wool, it might feel a little rough. But for me, it is perfect. Every time I wear the sweater, it will be a big, warm hug that reminds me that I have a yarn buddy who willingly gave up their favorite stash for me. You can't get any closer in the yarn world than that. It's like being blood brothers. Or in this case, stash sisters.

As for The Book, I have spent the last few days writing up the introduction, acknowledgments, and a few other non-pattern pages. It is so close to being done, yet it will still take over a month to get everything ready for the release. Even after The Book itself is finished, I'll still have to get my website updated, all the ravelry descriptions written, pictures resized for the different places they will be posted. It's funny how there are so many details tied up in a project like this. I sort of wish I could have several of me running around to get some of this done faster. But everything is still moving forward, even if it feels like it is at a snails pace.