Picture of third time charm

After reading all the ribbing tales, here is finally a pic of the sweater in it's current incarnation. I am on my third ball of yarn, so you can assume I like it. The photo does not quite do the yarn justice, but you can see why a busy pattern was out. I have a cold so I sit around and knit.

MANY THANKS
I received a package from Jacqui all the way from Australia with my Red Letter Day prize. I am stoked - this stuff (2 skeins of rare essentials "cocoon cherry" alpaca/silk/mohair and superfine merino and 1 skein of Jo Sharp's aran cotton in "Mareschino") is incredible. You guys have the best reds Down Under. It is NICE STUFF! Thank you so much! I think I've finally settled on Cinxia from Knitty.com for my red sweater project. I've mooned over the Elsebeth Lavold vest but now that I've looked at the pattern I think I will work my way up towards it. I've ordered some of her wool/silk yarn in a lovely red (rosehip - what a great colorway name) that I think will be perfect. It didn't hurt to notice that The Yarn and Fiber company that I bought it from on-line is selling it for a dollar less per skein than a local yarn store and with free shipping.

I have yet to post my button (feel free to steal minus bandwidth of course, if you like). I could only get it really, really tiny or HUGE. With the holidays I have had no time for poking at it hoping things will work "this time". Soon, soon. I also have to figure out the blogger upgrade. Sigh.

Let's hope third time is the charm

Once again I have taken the red sweater and ribbed it. Argh. I like the moss stitch, I like the stockinett stitch, but I want a sweater and one that fits more closely. So with some calculations I am aiming at a Hybrid from EZ, but with a bit of shaping that I will borrow from my Rosedale United. Let's hope this is it now.

Christmas Knitting

Travelling Cables Front
Originally uploaded by pghjan2.

Over Christmas I came down with a terrible cold and so I sat and knit. I managed to finish the front of my Travelling Cables Cardigan. I didn't do such a great job on the buttonholes which you would be able to tell if I wasn't hiding them from you! I am hoping a good blocking will straighten them out. Now I am doing the sleeves which don't involve any adding cables or buttonholes so I should be good (I hope). Then its on to all that finishing which makes me tired just to think about !

Next Try

After deciding that Mrs CB's Camp Jacket will have to move to another yarn, I have just cast on with my red yarn again. This time I am trying for Park from NoroKnits by Jane Ellison. The first thing I did was change. I did cast on the back and the fronts together, because I dislike keeping track of the rows in stockinette stitch. Then I read with disbelief that you just start knitting. Sorry? That is so going to curl. Not what I want, so my Park starts with 4 rows of moss stitch. I changed the pattern for the zipper blends from garter to moss stitch too. But now I am off to some lovely stockinette stitch (40 cms of it with 219 stitches each row). Pictures when there is more than just 10 rows.

Travelling Cables Update

TCC Left Front 2
Originally uploaded by pghjan2.

I have the back and left front done on my Travelling Cables Cardigan. There have been no big surprises so I hope to have the right side done by Christmas. Its hard to get a good photo of the cables because the red does not photograph well, but they are very pretty. This is a neat design and I think I would knit her again in a darker color to show off the cables and the fit more. Now you notice how red she is first and the cables second. But I still like her. There is a side photo of her up on my blog if you're interested.

Round by round...

...my red sweater is slowly taking shape. (I should be like Anne and name all my projects. But, my mind draws blanks at clever, fitting names.)

Sorry about the terrible coloring/lighting. Somedays our eight year old digital camera doesn't want to cooperate. (I'm will not admit to incompetence.)With everything going on these days I manageto knit a couple rounds each day on the body and the sleeve.

The pattern is a basic neck down raglan sleeve to which I've added the vines going down the arms, and the seed stitch at the top. I love the weight and feel of this Briar Rose yarn and am eager to begin wearing it. Which is why I keep working on it when other things are impatiently waiting. With just nine days until Christmas I decided not to stress out anymore about unfinished hopes of knitting some presents. The ideas came too late in the season and I'm too slow of a knitter. Shoot, one pair of socks takes me two weeks.

Hooray to Chris and Peg for capturing the prize drawings today!

today is a RED LETTER day—times two!

good morning and a happy red letter day to everyone!
today erica has offered two lovely prizes to the KAL. the first batch of sock yarn, key chain, stitch markers, and a mini-sock pattern goes to


congratulations to chris of briar rose fibers!
and the second prize of sock yarn and stitch markers goes to


congratulations peg! i think it's great that both of today's winner's happen to be members who also gave prizes for the KAL in the last couple of months—it's nice to be able to celebrate them this way.

these giveaways have been really fun and a nice touch to the KAL. we are always happy to accept prize offerings from any member; simply contact anne or laura that you have something to offer. our next giveaway is scheduled for february 14th!

RED LETTER DAY—one day late!

oh dear—yesterday was a RED LETTER DAY and, since i did not have it in my iCal, i forgot!
i am so sorry . . .
happy happy birthday to jacqui, who has some delicious-sounding yarn to send out.

and our winner is . . .

congratulations earin—and thank you again jacqui! the next RED LETTER DAY will be tomorrow, so stay tuned.

Finally Posting--Red Ribbed Cardi

Holiday knitting has snowed me under! No pun intended. It's kept me from doing some serious blogging. But I'm here now, with a pic of my finished Red Ribbed Cardi.

I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. Cutting the steek and sewing in the zipper was not nearly as painful as I had expected. In fact, the steek was the easiest part of the whole thing! There are a few things I wish I'd done differently, such as working more raglan decreases before starting the collar (the neck is a little "boatier" than I had planned), and I also wish I'd worked some of Elizabeth Zimmermann's famous applied I-cord to the fronts to cover the zipper a little better. But hey, it was a prototype and I'm happy it fit at all!

If you'd like to see more details, and see pictures of how I cut the steek *gasp* you can check out my blog here

Happy knitting all!

Photo Finish

Here is a picture of my finished sweater.


I used the V-Necked Top Down Pullover pattern by Knitting Pure and Simple with Elann Sierra Aran in Sangria colorway. Modifications include adding my own waist shaping and using a garter stitch cuff instead of a k1p1 cuff. I also changed the neck ribbing from K1p1 to K2p2.

I am wearing it to work today and it is wonderful. My garter stitch ridge at the bottom is not flipping up and I didn't do anything special to it while blocking. Maybe I just got lucky.

This thing is sooo warm!

My next sweater is brown, but the one after that will be red with stranded colorwork. See ya'll later on down the line. I will keep dropping in to see updates, though.

Susan

On hold

My red sweater has been put on hold. I am heading home for the holidays in just two days, and my suitcase space for knitting projects will be taken up by gifts that must be finished. At least once I give away the gifts, I will have room for a few yarn purchases from Newfoundland!

I have managed to finish, block, and assemble the back and two fronts of my red cardigan and knit the button bands and collar- All that's left to knit is the sleeves. It's looking a little too big for me, but I'll re-evaluate once it has sleeves so that I can try it on properly. I would be okay with making this one a birthday gift for someone special if it does turn out too big, and chalking it up to a learning experience in the design department. Next time I'll get some help with measuring myself more accurately and try for less ease. Oh well, I'll have a red pullover in the works for myself soon.

I have promised hubby a birthday sweater in February, but there is no way on earth that he would ever wear red, or anything particularly textured or interesting for that matter. So I have resigned myself to miles of brown or grey stockinette. I may have to find another knit along for moral support on that one!

My prize of designer Red Branch (K)Nights yarn arrived from Jo yesterday, and it is simply lovely. I think I will make a length-wise scarf out of it, but it may be some time before I get to it. Thank you Jo for this unique skein.

Stalled...

I've been knitting Argyle by Anna Bell, and I've just halted. Bang. Christmas knitting is somewhat to blame: but I'm going to Geneva in the New Year, and I want to ahve it ready to wear by then. Should I try and speed the process up a little by doing the sleeves without the texture, do you think?
~x~

Done!

My red sweater is done! It's lying on blocking towels on my office floor. I will take modeled shots soon as it's dry and I have some daylight. I love the way it turned out and the yarn softened up quite a bit in washing. It was nice before, but now it's fabulous.

The blocking picture is too dark to bother with. It looks like a dark sweater shaped outline on pale towels. Trust me, not worth bothering with. I'll take a picture during daylight tonight.

Going to go get the fan and point it at the sweater to help drying. I want to wear it tomorrow!

Sleeves Done, Neck Next

My sleeves are complete! I actually was so in the zone of knitting that I knit the right sleeve an inch longer than the left, so I had to rip back. Oops.

Tonight I pick up stitches for the neckline and block it. I hope to be wearing it by Thursday, which is my Sit'n'Stitch night.

My next red sweater will be a yoked sweater with stranded colorwork from Knitting Without Tears. However, first I have to knit a sweater for my husband. He's been waiting for a sweater since last year. That sweater will be a nice maple brown.

Celtic Vest is looking beautiful!

I've been having quite a good time with this wonderful Celtic Vest from Elsebeth Lavold. After the contretemps with the Alice Starmore Eriskay, it was such a relief to start work on something which was calmly and sensibly explained, had clear instructions, and didn't expect me to have a degree in advanced mathematics to suss it out. Plus the poppy-red lambswool behaved beautifully (I had worried that plying it by three might lead to splitting and loose loops, but no, it went along with everything as if born to three times the thickness) and all currently goes merry as a marriage bell.



Look, look, I've created my very first Lavold motif, and it's a double one to boot! Can you see it? Do you want a closer look?



It was really not difficult at all, despite my initial fears. You do have to keep the sharpest of eyes on the chart, though, so as not to miss those deceptively tiny little increases and decreases which allow you the additional stitches to make the motif. But I've managed to join up the two pieces of the back above the central slit (which I love) and now it's hey and away with a helluva lot of reversed stocking stitch, with only the two central cable twists to vary the monotony, until I get to the armholes and another couple of motifs. Still, it's a pleasant pattern to work, that's the best way to describe it, whereas with the Eriskay, the stress levels were way above acceptable level the entire time - whatever Starmore was up to when she designed it, the feelings that come through on the pattern are wholly negative.

Very happy with this vest. Thank you Elsebeth, keep on championing the Viking motifs and let's have lots and lots more. I've ordered another of her books but it isn't here yet. And I'm so thrilled that the 'rescue cone' of dusty, weary old yarn turned out to be such a stunning poppy-red lambswool. Now I just need to find enough time to get ahead with this project, even if it does mean others have to wait.

Thanks, Lilith!

My hat kit came and it's absolutely wonderful! The colors are beautiful, and the yarn is so soft. I couldn't be more pleased - Thanks again!

slow going

remember back in the beginning of november, when i posted about finishing my red sweater in time for christmas?....
well.
unlikely isn't even the word for it. it's still at the same stage as the last posting, working away on the cabled band for the empire waist (at least the band is longer, about 18" or so, although it needs to be about 36"). it's getting quite frustrating because i have the whole sweater planned out in my head - i can see it, and it's fabulous! a wide horizontal cabled empire waistband & smaller horizontal cabled bands along the neckline & the bottom of the sleeves & body; vertical cables to emphasize the side seams of the body, up the undersides of the sleeves, and up the raglan decreases; a longer tunic-type length & long bell sleeves.....
sigh. if only i could knit as fast as i can plan! it would perhaps help if i wasn't knitting 4 ply yarn on 2.5mm needles...
& everyone else seems to be whizzing along - i'm getting a bit discouraged seeing everyone finished work, & really reall want mine to progress more quickly! so the goal for the week is to finish the cabled waistband & start the lower body of the sweater... i'll keep you posted.

... and ripped

My new red cardigan made it up to 10 cm before I ripped it. The yarn is lovely, the pattern is good, but they were fighting for attention. Therefore they got seperated. Mrs. CB's Camp Jacket is restarted in a plainer yarn, but now it is green. On the other hand I have found a simple pattern that might work for the red yarn. I am itching to cast of for that project as well. Hm, Starteritis anyone?

One down, one to go!

The left sleeve is done! I finished it during my lunchtime knitting break yesterday and will be picking up my stitches for the right sleeve right after I finish my coffee. I want to get a good start on the right this weekend. The end is in sight!

Now. Off to finish my coffee...