Patternum Gratis: Safire Minisweater

Working my way through the patterns on my to-do list... Safire (originally created last year) is now available on Ravelry (and below)! As with the others, this is a free pattern so I did not use a tech editor. Though I checked, double-checked, and triple-checked, there may still be errors in the pattern, so please do not hesitate to contact me if you encounter any.



Pattern: Safire (click here to download now)
Sizes: XS (S, M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL, 4XL)
Finished Measurements: 28” (32”, 36”, 40”, 44”, 48”, 52”, 56”) bust
Yarn Requirements: 1 (1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2) skeins of Tess’ Designer Yarns Superwash Merino, or 490 (560, 630, 700, 770, 840, 910, 980) yards of a similar worsted weight yarn
Needles: US 6 (4mm) and US 7 (4.5mm) circular needles, at least 32” long and same size of needles preferred for working sleeves in the round
Gauge: 21 stitches x 26 rows = 4” in Stockinette stitch

Res Completae: Baby Gifties

So back in September, I actually forgot that I knit and sew. I had been invited to the dedication of a dear friend's baby around the same time that her other baby had turned 2 years old, and I completely agonized over what to get them for days. What would be special enough for the little one, what would be fun enough for the older one, etc. etc. I finally called my mom for her advice on what to do about gifts for these two little boys and she responded, ".......Couldn't you make them something?" I don't know if in the back of my mind I was thinking that I had already knit them things when they were born so I couldn't play that card anymore, or that they were boys and there was nothing to make them, or what. But.....yeah. Not sure why that was so hard to figure out.

For the little bebe, a blankie:



Pattern: Sumptuous Ripple Afghan, from Lion Brand Yarns
Yarn: James C. Brett Marble Chunky, about 3 skeins of color MC10
Needles: US 10
Start to Finish: September 20-26, 2009
Mods: I really just used the ripple stitch pattern from this pattern and didn't follow much else. I did 8 repeats of the pattern and worked until I had a 3ft square blankie.
Notes: I cannot say I adored working with this yarn, but as acrylics go, this one was pretty soft and squishy. I do love all the blues, though.

The 2-year old got a sewn stuffie:



Pattern: Peanut the Wee Elephant, from Last Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts
Fabric: Some leftovers of a fat quarter for the body and some of an old shirt of Neill's for the insides of the ears.
Start to Finish: September 23, 2009
Notes: This was a great, quick project! But I have a question for the sewing experts out there: how is one to press the seams of something when the space for said pressing is much smaller than the width of ones iron? For example, the seam that runs along Wee Peanut's head and nose? Or the space between his little feet?

In the end, I believe the little ones liked their gifts. The baby actually wasn't present for the opening of his blankie, but his mama assured me he'd love it. And the 2-year old (who was thrilled to be getting a present in general) opened Peanut then promptly threw him across the room. I think that's a good sign.

Better

Thank you all so much for your warm well-wishing last week. I think all the happy thoughts kicked my immune system up a notch and I was able to start knitting a little bit the day after my post. And by the weekend, I was on a project-finishing rampage that could not be stopped, including, but not limited to, the following:



A couple of those just needed to be blocked, one's brand new, another needed the brim and a few inches ripped back then the brim reknit...the scarf needed a few more inches knit (I had ripped out half of it to make Ishbel, then had some of the yarn left over...it was bothering me so I reknit the end of the scarf with the leftover yarn and reblocked it). Not pictured are a sweater that needed a couple inches and some finishing as well as the only sweater I have ever made Neill which didn't fit right and had needed some fixes (*cough*for the past two and a half years*cough*). I'm telling you, I was on fire. I was coughing, sniffling, and in pyjamas, but I was on fire. It felt great to check those things off the to-do list.

I'm still not feeling 100% back to normal, but, characteristic of my healthy self, I have been obsessing over what my next project should be all week. (Well, I know it should be something that will be given as a Christmas gift, but that's no fun.) I can't stop thinking about Philigry's Amanda Sweater....or this, the Not-A-Poncho City Cape from Custom Knits.

Any thoughts on knitted capes? Cool? Insane?

When I was feeling a little better

So on Monday, I started feeling a little sick. Coughing and such, but nothing too bad. Then came the 102 degree fever. Then the inability to do anything but lie* there and watch trash television (couldn't even knit!). It ends up that I have the flu. The swine one. The ol' H1N1. Really, this is no fun. I can't remember the last time I was too sick to knit. In fact, in the time I've been knitting I don't think it's ever happened. So because I don't have the energy for much of anything, here are some photos from my trusty telephone** from a wonderful*** trip to New York City that Neill and I took for our anniversary a week and a half ago, when I was feeling just a little better.


A walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.


A visit to the MoMA.


A window display outside the MoMA. I think this would be an excellent project if you happen to have tons and tons of roving lying**** around.


American Ballet Theater. There were no curtains on the stage, so we got to see the dancers warming up before the show and during intermissions, their costumes half-covered by leg warmers and sweatshirts. I enjoyed this as much as the performance itself. As an ex-dancer, it also made me really, really, really nostalgic.


Purl Soho! I, like, get their emails and stuff! Beautiful shop. Extremely friendly staff. Very, very tiny. The New York City Yarn Crawl happened to be going on at the time, so I also got a free tote bag. Cool!


Neill taking photos of the Statue of Liberty on the Staten Island Ferry.


The Chrysler Building.


Fancy night at the Met.


St. John the Divine. We went to an organ recital.


The Guggenheim. The building itself is a work of art.


Real Greek Nescafe frappe in Astoria. I tried for years to make a good frappe, but failed. I think you actually have to have Greek blood in you to make it taste good.


Manhattan from the train from Queens.

---------

*I originally wrote "lay" then figured I should look it up to make sure I was getting it right. I wasn't. All those lay/lie lessons over the years and I still don't have it! On the upside, I have effect/affect down pat.

**For me, cameraphone photos are kind of like Polaroids. Of course nothing beats a Polaroid, but I like having a camera with limited capabilities and an inability to adjust anything...sometimes the pictures turn out surprisingly interesting.

***Wonderful, yes, but I'm pretty sure that's where I picked up this devil virus. Either there or the airport.

****Ugh, I just had to look it up again.

Res Completa: Audrey in Unst

This might be my favorite sweater. Like, ever.



Pattern: Audrey in Unst, by Gudrun Johnston for Twist Collective
Yarn: Brown Sheep Nature Spun Sport, 4 skeins of Scarlet
Needles: US 3, 4, and 5 circs
Start to Finish: August 27 - September 18, 2009

Mods: This isn't really a mod per se, but I had a very hard time getting row gauge with this yarn (way too few rows per 4 inches) so ended up having to make a few little tweaks. I'll be honest, I was a little worried about knitting lace and top-down, set-in sleeves in the wrong row gauge, but after swatching a bazillion times and coming up short, I just went with the needles that got me stitch gauge and figured I'd deal with any potential problems as I got to them. So daring, I know.

For the body up to the armpits, this wasn't really an issue. For the bits with no shaping, I just calculated the length (instructions were given in rows, not inches) and worked to that measurement. When the waist shaping came into play, I figured some extra length would be ok, so I just worked the number of rows called for. It got a little trickier after the armpits, so I kept a very close eye on the length of the piece and omitted rows as necessary, including two repeats of the lace bib pattern. Somehow, it all ended up ok. Phew!



Notes: Firstly, I love the design of this sweater. Upon first laying eyes on it when the Fall Twist Collective came out, I immediately determined that I wanted one in every color. It's such a classic, wearable style (would go well with jeans, skirts, dresses...jumpsuits...satin harem pants...I can't really think of a type of outfit that this wouldn't work with), and the twisted ribbing and lace bib add that little extra oomph to the classic shape and also makes for some fun knitting.

Not only that, but I learned a great deal knitting Audrey, too. Having only ever read about the elusive top-down, set-in sleeve, I was thrilled to experience one in the wild. And applied i-cord edging? Fabulous. Why have I never done an applied i-cord edging before??

Love. Love, love, love. What color should I do next?

Res Completa: Indigo Playmate

Thank you so much, everyone, for the lovely birthday wishes! When I logged into the ol' blog just now, the comment count was at 19, which is of course my magic birthday number (when I turned 19, it was on 9-19-1999...so I had a party at 1900 hrs...yep, I'm a total dork about these things). That's pretty cool. And I can't tell you how much I appreciate each and every one.

So about the knitting. Back in February, when my knitting ladies and I went down to Stitches West, I got a great deal on a ginormous ball of navy blue cotton from the Newton's Yarn Country booth. (The last photo of this post shows just how ginormous). Originally, I thought I'd make some sort of garter stitch cardigan, but the texture of the yarn wasn't quite right, so I had a human-head sized ball of cotton sitting around in my stash for about a half a year. Then, in early August, I was flipping through Custom Knits and decided I needed an Indigo Playmate immediately. My lounge-around-the-house wardrobe was severely lacking and I needed something nicer than a beat-up, 11-year-old sweatshirt to wear while watching the Giants on tv*, and I needed it that night. Having no idea how much yarn I actually had in that giant skein, I wound it up, threw caution to the wind, and cast on.



Pattern: Indigo Playmate, by Wendy Bernard (in Custom Knits)
Yarn: Newton's Yarn Country Bulky Softball, ~1 lb.
Needles: US7 circs and dpns
Start to Finish: August 9-27, 2009



Mods: The original sweater is very slouchy with a large collar, which I love, but didn't have enough yarn for. So I used the pattern as a guide and, being a top-down'er, I was able to work everything to my measurements with a little bit of ease and use just the amount of yarn that I wanted to. The collar is teeny, but enough. Also, I worked a buttonhole in the collar just under my bust and added a button to close.

I don't think I've talked about how much I love Custom Knits, so I'll say it now. I love that book. The designs are fresh and adorable, and there is a mountain of information for aspiring designers inside all laid out in a very clear way. To quote Chrispy's post back in February, "If you don’t have Custom Knits, Run. Don’t walk to your nearest bookstore." For me, this book was an impulse purchase, having gone into a bookstore after wine tasting (great idea) and being lured in by the pretty pictures and fun style of the designs. But now it has a special spot on my shelf, alongside Sweater Design in Plain English and the Barbara Walker pattern treasuries, so much do I consult it. Run, don't walk.

*Silly me, wearing a sweater in Dodger blue while watching the Giants is totally bad luck. After a couple of losses, I went back to the sweatshirt.

XXIX

This year I am so lucky to be able to spend my birthday at my very favorite of all the California foggy sea-side locales. I will have two sweaters to share soon, but for now I need to turn off the computer, go outside, and enjoy my breakfast of chocolate covered gummy bears and celebrity gossip magazines.