Off the Wagon and Back On . . .

Okay, technically, I've already fallen off the knit from my stash wagon. Darn that Knitty! As most of you probably know, Knitty's Winter 2008 issue came out yesterday and I fell in love with Fern Glade, and of course, that resulted in me ordering 2 balls of RYC silk wool dk so I could knit the darn thing. I really had nothing in my stash that I could have substituted. Honest. And technically, need I point out, it's still 2008. :-)

Knitting My Yarn All Up in 2009

Okay, I've decided to make a very deep, very serious knitting committment for the new year. I will only knit from my stash. Period. I am putting all of my future projects into my Ravelry queue, and designating what yarn that I own I will use for each one. I have plenty to keep my busy for the whole year, and if I'm good, I will let myself buy some new yarn for Christmas next year. Yay! I love this! It makes me happy to be frugal!!!

I'm In Love . . .

KUDOS 005, originally uploaded by KristintheMom.

I must say, I recieved this yarn yesterday as an early birthday present (thanks to Loopy Ewe's super fast shipping), and I LOVE it! I couldn't hold off and finish my other socks before I cast it on. It's going to be my first pair of monkey socks and I think they are going to be fabulous!

Stripey Cotton Bag

Hail to the stashbuster projects! I bought this yarn last year with the intention of making a bag similar to this after I saw a cool picture in a Kohl's ad. So I ripped it out and saved it and last week I decided the time had come to finally make it. I just improvised because I didn't have a pattern, but all in all I'm pleased with how it turned out. I glued a piece of cardboard into the bottom to give it a place to sit, and then I made a lining for it and sewed a snap onto it. Voila! My summer purse!

Sophie Bag

My Sophie Bag is done! Pictures are both before and after felting. Made it with some yarn I Kool Aid Dyed last year, and yes, I finally got around to using it. It was just about the perfect amount. I think I used Lemon-Lime, Arctic Green Apple and Berry Blue. Anyway, I like it, but it's so small!

Francesca and Ruby

I thought I'd post the pictures of the little amigurumi dolls I made for Katherine and Caroline. Neither of them turned out quite as well as I wanted them to, but the girls liked them. Francesca is the butterfly and I made her for Katherine because back when she was 3, she was a butterfly one year for Halloween. I had a little trouble figuring out how to make the wings for her, but I managed somehow. Ruby is the strawberry, because the same year Katherine was a butterfly, Caroline was a strawberry. Go figure.

Jaywalkers

I was beginning to think I'd never get back to these things. I cast on in either november or december, can't remember which. I was so anxious to use the long awaited sock pixie yarn that I ordered in the Sunset colorway. I rolled it into a ball right away and started making my Jaywalkers. Of course, other things got in the way, like my daughters' demand for more amigurumi animals, of course. And finishing my Chevron Scarf. Still, when I needed easy knitting I came back to the Jaywalkers. The pattern is great, smooth, and quick knitting even if I'm not. Second sock syndrome set in of course, but I finally got them done. I can see why other people have complained about them being hard to get on if done too small, so I knitted them up at a slightly larger gauge than called for. It worked out fine and now I have finished my 3rd pair of socks!

Gobble Him Up

turkey, originally uploaded by KristintheMom.

Okay, not really. You'd get a mouth full of yarn. But isn't he cute? I love this pattern. I got the pattern for him online at http://bittersweetblog.wordpress.com/2006/11/07/gobble-gobble/
It worked out well. I made him for the dining room table but the kids keep trying to steal him. Go figure. My second crochet amigurmi. This amigurumi stuff is addicting because it's so quick! I can finish a project in a couple of days. I'm afraid I've been ignoring my Chevron scarf.

Caroline's Hexapus

octopode, originally uploaded by KristintheMom.

Okay, two posts in one day. Here's the start of my other obsession. I can feel it coming on. It's called Amigurumi! I took a break from my Chevron scarf and crocheted this octopus from PepperKitty's Octopode pattern on Craftster. I made it out of Bernat Softee Chunky, and it turned out quite big. However, one ball of yarn wasn't quite enough to make eight legs, so I had to stop with six. Doesn't matter though, she still loves it and it's been sleeping with her every night. So there it is. I have started making another Amigurumi project that is a Turkey from Bittersweet's homepage. I'm almost done. These amigurmi's are fast! That's one of the things I like about crochet. I'll post it when I finish. Ta ta!!

My Chevron Scarf . . .

chevronscarf1018, originally uploaded by KristintheMom.

This photo is a few weeks old but I'm too lazy to take another one. No, that's not right. I'm too TIME Crunched to take another one. Anyway, here it is, my Chevron Scarf, made from Socks that Rock Mediumweight in Fred Flintstone and Farmhouse. They are both beautiful yarns individually, and I'm pleased so far at how they are working together. My new winter coat is a dark red, so I wanted to make sure I knitted a scarf that I actually could wear. It's a fun project to knit, but very time consuming. I"m actually about 40 percent done now.

Katherine's Sweater

kathsweater, originally uploaded by KristintheMom.

Yay! I did it! I made a whole sweater! Granted, it's a kids sweater, but darn it, I worked hard on that thing. I am not the fastest knitter in the world, in part because I don't have a lot of time to devote to it. I think I'll stick to smaller projects for the time being. Like socks and scarves. Anyhow, I'm very pleased with the final product. It's a Yarn Girl Knits for Older Kids creation, specifically the "Family That Knits Together" sweater. I made it with Caron Simply Soft Shadows, and Simply Soft. I used acrylic because my daughter has allergies and I was afraid an animal fiber would accentuate that. Anyhow, I'm sure glad it's done, and I love it!

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

My New Socks!

Yay! I'm finally finished with my Regia Bamboo socks! I can start something else now! Actually, I have a lot of things I want to finish first. These socks were knit using the baby cable rib pattern in Sensational Knitted socks, but I used the top down pattern for 5 stitch repeats in the MORE Sensational Knitted Socks book. I'm pleased with them, and most importantly, they fit!

A Knitting Questionaire snagged from Knitting Help's Forums

1.) What are your favorite things to knit? Right now, socks. And things for my kids.

2.) What yarn/fiber do you like most? I like wool. But I knit with other stuff too. The only things I don't like are really cheap yarns (except cotton) and Mohair! Mohair bothers my contact lenses for some reason.

3.) What needles do you tend to use (i.e. type/material)?Circular ones. I use DPNs for socks but I'm trying to learn how to use circulars for them too.

4.) Do you tend to knit more in one specific part of the year than others?I knit the same way all year long.

5.) What style of knitting do you use? Continental. It's the way I learned from a book and since I'm left handed, it works for me.

6.) Do you consider yourself a "fast" knitter? No, not really. I've started choosing smaller projects since it takes me so long.

7.) Who is your favorite knitting author? Charlene Schurch right now. Love those sock books.

8.) What is your favorite by said author? More Sensational Knitted Socks

9.) How long ago did you learn to knit? 2 and a half years ago. January 2005.

10.) How do you knit small in-the-round objects? I use douple points, but I'm going to teach myself how to use circulars.

11.) What is the most useful technique you've learned so far? Yarn overs! Now I can knit lacey patterns.

12.) Do you prefer to knit fine gauge items, mid-range gauge items, or large gauge items, or do you like it all ? I like a gauge of about 5 stitches per inch. Except when knitting socks, of course.

13.) How do you like to knit your sweaters? I really haven't knitted that many sweaters. I doing one for my daughter knit flat in pieces. I don't really like finishing, though, so I think I'd like to knit in the round next time.

Yeah, I'm a Sock Addict!

Well, I've joined the wings of the sock addicted. I've only actually completed one pair so far, though. On my birthday I went to the local yarn store and bought some Regia Bamboo sock yarn and some Panda Wool sock yarn. I'm currently working on the Regia socks, and I really like how it's knitting up. The yarn is so soft. I gave in and purchase More Sensational Knitted Socks from Amazon, since I have the first book and I like it so much. I'm pretty determined at this point to knit the yarn I have, or at least a good portion of it before I buy anything else. I don't really have a large stash, but it's still a stash, and I want to bust it!

Clover VS Crystal Palace

I thought I'd put my two cents in. I recently bought a set of #2 Crystal Palace Bamboo DPNs to knit my first pair of socks. I liked them just fine, but they were a little pricey, $8.50, I believe. At the knitting store in Manteo the other day, I bought a pair of Clover Bamboo DPNs size 1, and I must tell you that I'm not as thrilled. The clover ones were cheaper, $6.50, and that's the reason I bought them. Let me tell you, the 2 dollar difference in price no longer matters to me. The Crystal Palace ones are smooth, yet not slippery at all. They held my stitches wonderfully, and I didn't have worry about dropping any. Not so for the Clovers! Very slippery, I felt like I might as well be using aluminum, which for me, on socks, would be a bad choice. So next time, note to self, buy the Crystal Palace!

Sad, Sad, Sad

What a depressing moment. I've been working on a sock for over a week and I just turned the heel last night. I tried it on, and lo and behold I realized that it was going to be too small. So I frogged it this morning. What a sad waste of time. I guess that's just part of knitting, though. So now I have to make another gauge swatch using my #2 needles, since I was using number 1's before. I think I might switch stitch patterns too while I'm at it and try a yarn over. I was using the double rib pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks, but I think a different one will keep me from getting bored with it. And for that reason alone, it's worth it. *sigh*

I'm Still Knitting

Hello,

Well, it's been one heck of a hiatus, I'll say that much. I'm still knitting quite a lot actually and I've picked up crochet along the way. I'm going to start posting again. I like to think I'm a better knitter now, or at least I've had more experience. There's still some things I don't know how to do. Still haven't learned to yarn over, but I'm going to soon, when I need to. Right now I'm passionate about socks, and I'm knitting my second pair. I'll post a picture of them soon.

I Like Stripes!!!

I'm enjoying knitting my beach bag. It's a red, light green and light blue stripe pattern and it makes me happy just to look at it. I got a great knitting book from the library today (the girls and I go practically every week). It's called "TheKnitting Experience: The Knit Stitch" and everything in the book is made in garter stitch. You'd think the patterns would be bland, but instead they are absolutely stunning! I may have to make one or two of them. A return to the basics, I guess. I also spent a good deal of time untangling some yarn today and I learned a very valuable lesson. I bought it in a skein and had to roll it in to a ball, something I've never done before. Next time, I'm using an extra pair of hands!