See Jo knit!: 2008.08

31 August 2008

Seriously evil socks.

My Bellatrix socks are complete. Yay! Just in time for the last day of Summer of Socks.

I used one skein (way less than one skein, really — I probably have enough left over to knit a third socks) of Wollmeise sockenwolle in color Poison No. 5. US 1 Hiya DPNs. Magic toe cast on, 64 sts, Wendy's heel, 1x1 twisted rib cuff, EZ sewn bind off. I modified the pattern to only use the drop stitch when I hit long chunks of color. This way they seem way more pink.

Anyway, I love them. And I've already cast on for my next pair:

Embossed Stitch socks from More Sensational Knitted Socks. The yarn is Needful Yarns Australian Merino, and I'm super sad because the U.S. distributor isn't going to get this anymore. I'm using US 2 Brittany DPNs and 56 sts. The yarn is super squooshy and soft. I think I will be happy to wear them this winter, especially if the Farmer's Almanac is telling the truth.

I only have to knit the sleeves of my Weasley sweater and it will be done! The charming and very helpful Selkie had a skein of Harrisville Flax and Wool in my color and dyelot, and she was kind enough to send it my way. So I will have full-length sleeves on this sweater! I was kind of worried that I'd only get 3/4 sleeves with the yarn I had. But no worries, I have been rescued by Ravelry yet again!

26 August 2008

Addiction.

I can't stop knitting this sweater. (Ignore the waste yarn at the neck. And all the loose ends.)

It fits! The color here is fairly accurate, considering the picture was taken in the dark with a flash on Christine's back porch. The body is a little tight up to where I split for the arms, but my stitch gauge should even out when I block the sweater. So it should be longer and a bit wider.

I did alter the pattern to be knit in the round — why seam if you don't have to? And instead of binding off the shoulders separately and sewing them together, I just did a three-needle bind off. Super-easy, and the shoulder seams look great. Now I'm picking up the stitches and knitting the neckline before I knit the sleeves.

I think I might try to get my hands on a paper copy of Twilight and read that, just to see if the reader is the problem. I think I've been spoiled by some of the better readers: Stephen Fry, Jim Dale, Alan Rickman, Stephen Fry, anyone who read the Chronicles of Narnia (including Kenneth Branagh, Lynn Redgrave, Patrick Stewart and Derek Jacobi), and Stephen Fry. You get the idea. Also, the woman who reads The Sweet Potato Queens books. Hilarious.

25 August 2008

What I've been doing.

This is how I spent my weekend:

(color not remotely accurate)

Yes, I knitted most of a Weasley sweater this weekend. I haven't blogged about it because it's fairly uninteresting. Step one: knit a rectangle. Step two: knit another rectangle, just like the first. Step three: knit some sleeves and sew the whole mess together. Ta-da!

I'm using Harrisville Designs Flax & Wool blend, color cranberry, and a US 8 Addi circ. I bought this yarn ages ago to make an Hourglass pullover from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, but only got a few inches past the turned hem before I threw my needles down in disgust. I feel that I'm in a much better place now, spiritually, to knit miles of stockinette. (I'm totally kidding. St st is my fave.) I've adapted the pattern to be knit mostly in the round, and as you can see, I've split for the armholes, completed the back and am cruising up the front. Yay! At this rate, I will have a sweater by the end of the week.

The more rabid HP fans among you will notice that my sweater is plain. As much as I would love to run round with a giant H or R on my chest, I think I'll get more wear out of this sweater if I make it plain.

My entertainment while knitting this sweater has been Twilight on CD (courtesy Johnson County Public Library) and I have to say, I'm not impressed. Amazon calls it a "saga," and that's exactly what it is: melodramatic fluff. When I think saga, I think... Lifetime miniseries. Cheesy romance novels. My history with a particular ex... but that's neither here nor there. I think a large part of my dislike is for the reader. Also? No high schooler talks like that.

Tonight I made a pie. It is tasty. Missouri peaches are in season — get them while you can.

22 August 2008

I hate bobbles.

But this still would have been a really sweet hat to wear to the release of Harry Potter.

Pattern specs: Hermione's cable and bobble hat, from Charmed Knits. I used less than one skein of Lamb's Pride superwash worsted wool, color Shane's Red and US 7 circs. I really like this red — it's kind of heathered. The yarn is soft and shows cables really well.

I still hate knitting bobbles. But I like the hat.

Today was my lone day of unemployment — I slept in, got up and went to Barnes and Noble to get Wendy Bernard's book, Custom Knits. There are a ton of patterns in this book that I would knit, and I am super excited. There's a mix of pattern construction, but most (if not all) of the sweaters are top-down (my favorite, so you can try on as you go) with a variety of raglan and circular yoke shaping, and lots of patterns with set-in sleeves. (That's right, folks — top-down, set-in sleeves. Heaven!)

I also did this.

I know, I look thrilled to be there. Really, I'm SO GLAD that I finally finished the wraps on this sweater. Now all I have left is the sleeves, which shouldn't take long at all.

Except I maybe started another sweater.

19 August 2008

Sahara

Sahara
Originally uploaded by knitjoknit

Stealth-blogging from work again. This probably won't fly at my new job. Bummer.

Here's my Sahara top. I'm using South West Trading Co. Love (bamboo/silk) in a color called Mulder and Scully and US 6 Hiya bamboo circs. The pattern can be found at www.stitchdiva.com. (Yes, I am too lazy to actually link it for you.) I'm at the edging pattern on the hem. I'm trying to decide if I should bead the yarn for the hem and neckline and sleeves, so this will probably be on pause for awhile. Which is unfortunate, because I really want to hijack the needles so I can knit something else. Because I have the attention span of a toddler who's been trick-or-treating.

18 August 2008

Gratuitous Jo picture.

DSC02234
Originally uploaded by knitjoknit

It's official -- I finally have a new job! I start next week. Here is a picture of me and my new cube farm neighbor. Yes, the Jos are going to be working side by side. We will now be 100% more annoying.

I finished my Hermione hat last night while watching the Olympics, but because of an unfortunate technical difficulty, my laptop charger melted. (Actually, it was smoking and sparking, and then it melted. I have an appointment at the Mac store on Tuesday.) So no pictures. Sorry.

13 August 2008

Birthday plans.

It is official: I will be in CHICAGO for my twenty-fifth birthday! My brother and his wife live in Portage Park, in a little red house that looks like a barn. Really, I think they're taking this "Barnes in a barn" thing a *bit* too far, but at least I have not bore witness to hayrack rides or an impromptu hoedown. They're more beer and baseball sort of people anyway.

My birthday (25!) also falls smack dab in the middle of GermanFest, which is a holiday with lots of beer and closing down the streets. There will be beer. There will be men. There will be ladies. A good time will be had by all.

I am sad that I will miss Stitch 'n' Pitch on Sept. 7 at Kauffman Stadium. I don't actually cheer for any team over any other. But if the hangover I had last time is any indication of the hangover I will have this time, y'all should be glad that I am not going to make it to the game that day. Usually I do nothing but moan about what an idiot I am, and is it too soon to take some more aspirin? In between vomiting spectacularly and asking for a glass of water, when really a gallon jug may be more appropriate.

11 August 2008

Mockery!

I finished the last five rows of the Mockery socks.

US 0 Hiyas, worked toe-up over 72 sts. Used Wendy's toe-up gusset and heel flap. I tried the eye of partridge heel on this pair, and I think I much prefer a plain heel. My gauge was about 10sts/in.

Pattern notes: this pattern does not have a lot of "give" in the instep and leg, probably because of all the twisted stitches. On the other hand, I don't have to worry about them sagging around my ankles. There is also a lot of bias to the stitch pattern. When the socks aren't on my feet, they look all twisty and weird. But they fit well, and that's what's important.

On to other things.

Saturday, we had a Victorian tea in honor of the great Elizabeth Zimmermann's 98th birthday. A wonderful time was had by all.

10 August 2008

So close.

I have five rows to knit on the second Mockery sock. Because I am spectacularly lazy, there will be no photos until tomorrow.

Today I made cookies. Tasty.

Also, I am an insomniac.

04 August 2008

Mathematically impaired.

I cannot count. Damn damn damn.

A whole Sunday afternoon's worth of work, down the tubes, because of my sub-par counting skills.

My August resolutions are faltering under the influence of extreme heat, at least on the sock front. Maybe if I dig out Sahara I could accomplish something. It feels like a really long time since I've had a FO to share. (Half a dozen Calorimetries don't really seem to count.)

I actually found another WIP, deep in the depths of my knitting bag. It's another Retro Redux, this time in black. Same yarn as before. It is scrumptious. I think I started it at the last guild meeting. Or maybe it was the guild meeting before that.

The heat has cooked my last brain cell.

02 August 2008

August resolutions.

OK, I've been kind of scattered lately (damn you, Calorimetry, for being so fun to knit!) but I have a renewed sense of purpose. Thus, my August resolutions.

Finish Airy wrap-around cardi. This had been languishing in the knitting basket for far too long. Especially when all I've got left is the sleeves.
Finish (well, start, really) the Sahara top. I started this waaaay back in early July (it was supposed to be my July 4 airplane knitting before I got distracted by those damn Calorimetries) and it's been living in my knitting bag ever since. It was supposed to be a knitalong with Sarah, but obviously that didn't happen. (Sorry, Sarah!)
Work through second-sock syndrome for not one, but TWO pairs for Summer of Socks. I have the second Mockery sock started and the second Bellatrix is waiting to be cast on.
Then knit my mom a new pair of socks. I got some of the new Lion Brand Sock-Ease ($9.99/ball at Hobby Lobby here in KC) in the cotton candy colorway, because apparently my mother is not to be trusted with 100% wool socks. The Sock-Ease is 75% wool, 25% nylon and has been treated with aloe. It feels pretty nice — a bit like Regia or any other basic sock yarn. (Mom also got to pick out a ball of Trekking for more new socks. And I maybe got a second ball of the pink Sock-Ease so I can...)
Then knit myself one (or three) new pairs of socks. Number to be determined.
Try not to cast on anything new.

That last one is probably the most important. Now taking bets as to when I cast on something new.