i make stuff

Man-sweater.

My man has a new sweater!

PATTERN: Cobblestone by Jared Flood
NEEDLES: US 7 (4.5mm)
YARN: Brooklyn Tweed Shelter in "Woodsmoke"

My spouse is something of a clothes horse. He actually likes buying clothes and puts thought into what he wears. He also likes handmade sweaters. I told him I would knit him a sweater every other year, because let's face it, man sweaters take for-ev-errrr. I settled on the Cobblestone pattern by Jared Flood a long time ago, but wasn't sure about the yarn. Jay is really great about wearing wool - he has no itch or heat issues. As a wool lover, this is awesome for me, as I'm not restricted in what I can use.

When Jared Flood announced his new yarn, Shelter, an American-made wool, I was super excited and thought Jay's sweater would be the perfect excuse to try it out. I hopped on the next ferry to Churchmouse Yarns and brought back 10 skeins of the Woodsmoke colorway. I cast on for the sweater in November, but it ended up taking me until January to finish it, due to the Christmas knitting madness.

In terms of the pattern, this was a really simple knit. You start at the bottom and knit up the body, make two sleeves, join and knit a yoke with short-row shaping on the back. Easy. I did, however, modify the arms a good bit. In the original pattern, the sleeves are rather loose at the cuff and all the way up, and I knew Jay would hate that. So I cast on 10 fewer stitches at the cuff and reworked the math for the increases. The result is a much closer-fitting (and I think more flattering) sleeve. Jay and I are both pleased.

A note about Shelter: The yarn I got was from the first-ever lot. There was a lot of hype when this stuff came out, and people rushed to stash it. Like lots of other people around the country, I experienced an unusually high amount of vegetable matter in the yarn - much more than I have ever encountered in Beaverslide or Rowan tweeds or similar rustic yarns. I’m told this issue has been resolved in subsequent lots of the yarn, but you might want to check if you or your intended wearer has sensitive skin.

Even aside from the VM, this is a very rustic yarn. It has a great, lofty hand and is super nice, but it’s definitely not going to work, for lots of people, for next-to-skin wear. My suggestion - if you’re wool sensitive, grab a skein of this to see if you like it before committing to an entire sweater. As a wool lover, I definitely would knit with this yarn again, even with the VM. The stitch definition is just beautiful (as you can see in the photos) and I think this would make beautiful cable knitting.

 

Tubey

It's so rare that I make a baby gift and then actually receive photo evidence of the child wearing the gifted item. So when my friends Erin and Bill sent me photos of their new son, Bennett, wearing the hat I'd knit him, I was so excited!

PATTERN: Tubey by Wee Woolly Wormhead
NEEDLES: US 7 (4.5mm)
YARN: Sunshine Yarns Merino Worsted in "Mountain Shadow"

I kind of hate the traditional powder blues and pinks that make up most baby gifts, so I really wanted to dig into my stash for something a little richer. I love this gorgeous green and blue yarn from Sunshine Yarns and thought it would be a great alternative baby color. I made the small, not really expecting it to fit Bennett yet, as he was born a little bit early. But it appears he's already growing at the speed of light!

Here's Bennett with his gorgeous mama...

Scarves and cowls and hats, oh my!

Still playing catch-up, I have a few more items to share from this fall.

PATTERN: Melody's Shawl by Melody Moore
NEEDLES: US 9 (5.5mm)
YARN: Sundara Yarn Fingering Silky Merino in "Poppy"

This is the very definition of a languishing WIP (work in progress). I started in March 2010 during our trip to Paris/Warsaw, and dubbed it "Old French Whore" after the old SNL game show parody. I finished it this September. Yeah...that took a while. The thing about the Melody Shawl is that it's perfect mindless knitting, to cart around in your bag with you and pull out while you're waiting for your food to come at a restaurant or gabbing with a friend. There was really no rush to finish it, but as soon as it was done, it became a staple of my wardrobe for fall. I don't normally wear a lot of purple clothing, but as an accessory, the color is stunning. And the yarn is so luxurious. I get questions and compliments about this scarf all the time. And I've cast on another, which should be finished in roughly October 2011. 

PATTERN: Boneyard Shawl by Stephen West
NEEDLES: US 7 (4.5mm)
YARN: Hand spun yarn from my friend Marianne!

I cast on for this shawl very soon after receiving this gorgeous yarn (spun from Finn wool) from my friend Marianne. The color was "Orchard" so I thought it would be the perfect accessory for my October trip to NYC and Rhinebeck. I didn't finish it before the trip, but during, so I did get to enjoy it! :) Super easy pattern, great for showing off handspun yarn.

PATTERN: Honey Cowl by Madelinetosh
NEEDLES: US 7 (4.5mm)
YARN: Hand spun yarn made from Funky Carolina BFL/Silk in "Dragonskin"

I love this project so much. My knitting friends do these quarterly swaps, and I ended up with my friend Thayer as a swap partner. I wanted to make her something really fun and appropriate to her personality. Thayer is a huge gamer, and she loves big loopy cowls, so when I saw the Dragonskin colorway my friend Carrie dyes, I thought it would be perfect for Thayer. The color reminded me of the blues in World of Warcraft, and the stitch pattern of the cowl really did resemble scaly dragonskin. I found this hilarious button and pinned it to the finished cowl, and Thayer wears it that way. Love! It was a hard one to part with, because the cowl was so snuggly and such an awesome jewel tone. Again - will have to make another for me!

PATTERN: Flicker Socks by Cookie A.
NEEDLES: US 1 (2.25mm)
YARN: Sunshine Yarns Classic Sock Yarn in "Bella's Truck"

This is a lesser-loved Cookie A. sock design but I just LOVE the finished socks. I have had this pattern in my faves for a really long time, and the yarn seemed like the perfect match. These are mine all mine!

PATTERN: Wurm by katushika
NEEDLES: US 4 & US 6
YARN: Madelinetosh Pashmina in "Tart"

Yep, I jumped on the Tart bandwagon. In case you don't know, Madelinetosh is a maker of gorgeous hand-dyed yarns, and this color was something of an internet sensation throughout the end of 2009 and most of 2010. It appears to be going strong still, because really, it is the perfect deep red. Not pink, not burgundy, RED. So I had to copy my friend Megan, who also made a Tarty Wurm. It's such a great, adorable, slouchy hat. I already had one made with handspun but I just had to have another!

Whew! I was productive this fall, even though I fell off my sweater-a-month kick a bit.

Christmas knitting.

Friends, I am so behind on blogging. OMG. I don't know what's been the matter with me, but I just have been totally comatose when it comes to writing. And now I have a ton of things finished and not shown. Part of this was Christmas knitting, which of course means not showing things off till people receive them. But anyway, let's catch up a bit. 

Jay and I did a mostly non-storebought Christmas this year, which was great. I knit a lot of small gifts, which was also great, since last year I about killed myself knitting two gift sweaters. SO...

PATTERN: Christmas Greens (improvised toe-up socks)
NEEDLES: US 3 (3.25mm)
YARN: Hand spun yarn made from GLBLF Superwash Merino in "Greensleeves"

My sister loves green and hates knitting socks, so I decided to spin up some yarn for her and make her a pair. I contacted my friend Sam of GLBLF and asked her to custom-dye a gradient colorway for my sister, and the result was so beautiful! 

I knit the socks over just a few days, and sort of improvised a toe-up, 48-stitch sock recipe. 

 

PATTERN: Chicklets Socks by Anne Hanson
NEEDLES: US 3 (3.25mm)
YARN: Sunshine Yarns Merino Sport in "Counting Lilypads"

I knit these socks for my mom for a wee Christmas gift. The yarn is special - my friend Dani chose a photo I took in the Asticou Gardens in Bar Harbor, Maine for her annual summer photos-inspired shop update. I knew I had to have some of the color to make something for my mom, who lives in Bar Harbor. I used every single inch of the yarn, and barely made it through the second toe, but I love the finished socks. Super simple, I must make another pair for me!

PATTERN: Dotty by Irishgirlieknits
NEEDLES: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
YARN: The Plucky Knitter Merino Cashmere Nylon Fingering in "Cream Tea"

I love these socks! They knit up so quickly for fingering weight, and I think my mother-in-law, Susan, really loves them too. It's another pair I'll have to do again for myself, because they turned out so great. The yarn was really awesome - I love MCN! It's so stretchy and soft.

PATTERN: Cross-Country Garter (improvised)
NEEDLES: US 7 (4.5mm)
YARN: Hand spun yarn from The Thylacine merino fiber in "Zig-Zag Track"

This scarf took sooo much longer than I intended. I started it last winter during my move across the country, but then put it on hold for a really long time and finally finished cranking it out this fall - just in time for the cold weather. I think Jay likes it, because he wears it all the time :) It's just simple garter stitch, perfect way to show off hand spun yarn.

PATTERN: Seaman's Cap by Brenda Zuk
NEEDLES: US 6 & US 7
YARN: Hand spun yarn from Squoosh Fiberarts Corriedale in "Coffeehouse"

I love, love, LOVE this hat. It's actually a gift for my brother, Jeremy, who is a sophomore in college, but I made Jay model it for me before sending it off to him. The yarn was just so gorgeous and manly, I was really proud of it. The pattern was perfect, too - manly, simple, not dorky. Total success. I made a size large, and really didn't make any modifications.

I have a lot of other projects to catch up on, so stay tuned.