Swedish Knitblogger who loves spinning, knitting, dyeing and yarn. I will do some other roundabouts about life too.

Friday, July 02, 2010

FO - Broken Rib Top (with sleeves)

With a somewhat tired look - I pose in the heat with the Broken Rib Top - that became a Tee. It was a quick and easy knit. I have used it all day and the Elsebeth Lavold Cotton Patiné yarn is super soft. The only problem I have is that the yarn was bought at a sale, and not until I came home I realized it must have been in the window, and the "outer layer" of the yarn is bleached. Not so nice.... Otherwise it is just hot hot hot.. and the strawberries are cheap!
I forgot to thank you all for your nice comments on my Spring Green White Peony sweater. It is rather special!
Also - I would like to wish you a wonderful summer (if you are not having one already!) I have a new content feeling. It is good to live.

Sunday, June 27, 2010

FO- Diagonal Lace Sock - and Cast On Mania

I finished a pair of socks for the 2009 KAL Diagonal Lace. It just did NOT work for me. I knitted them both (according to pattern from toe up) and they just did not fit, since nothing indicates how far away you are from the heel. So I frogged the whole thing and reknitted from the top down. Still not happy. The wonderful Australian Bambo yarn just did not fit. The socks sag. I will wash them, an we will see then if they ar better. I have got some questions about a "training camp" I wrote on. No - I did not go anywhere but to my yarnroom. It was a trial to try to cast on as many knits as possible (my goal was 10 selfish garments). It is VERY hard. The first is easy, then you fall in love with a knit - and then it is HARD. Just have a look! First knit casted on was of course a sock - Bush harvesting Estonian Lace knits - and renamed it "fox-faces". Great in Noro yarn. Secondly, I just had to cast on Persephone Shell from the last Interweave Knits mag. A wonderful top, enough complicated And no, the pink is not going there.. it was when I was in "choosing mode". I am not now. And - the name. All who know me, know I must knit Per-SE-Phone haha.....shell...I got most of the body done, before I casted on number 3, Broken rib Tee: OK, I have bought a lot of turqoise yarn. This is what really got me hooked. Cotton Patiné, a really bleeding cotton. colours my hands and the bamboo needle. To be honest, I am already done with the pattern as it was, but with two balls of yarn left - I got to knit sleeves. Soft though, very nice and super simple. Still being good, I have then casted on Arbor a cabled top. But the pattern designer really warned about silk/alpacka blend I choose, and claiming it has no elastics, which is true, so I am staring at the cast on and thinking was should I do then? But this yarn is FAB and I can just see it in pink, so I think I will take a chance. As you can see, not much has happend since cast on. And then there is of course White silk swagger. Utterly difficult to knit with recycled silk. So, I put in a string of wool. I also tried some glass beeds, but they really did not show. Anayway - that is in "free-form" so it is always exiting to get fit and pattern created on the fly. Another one of those "casted on, but not really going yet" is the wondeful Elsebeth Lavold "Glenn" I guess named after Glenn Close in her "Sophisticated Ladies" booklet. I wanted to knit that a long time, and bought the kit some years ago. Realizing - the kit had different colours than the booklet. Also that the swedish pattern was incomplete. I am glad I have the english version. And I tried to make it in the round, only to find out the patterns are really for back and forth knitting. So - I will do both back and front at the same time, but back and forth on a round needle. This will definitely take a long time to do. Finally, the latest fab, is the wonderful Ysolda Teague free pattern called Cloud 9 bolero. It is wonderfully lace - and with 8 markers it is just the math you need for two absolutely gorgous balls of yarn. The wonderful Lion and lamb (silk and wool) in Black n Purl. Thick soft and a pleasure to knit. And I am already half way. It will be fun to see how it works out. So - yes, Here is where I iterate right now. I still need to cast on a few before ends month, But I tell you - it is not as easy as it sounds. Yarn has to be wound, pattern ready, needles available and....yeah - you got to have want to cast it on, because if you love your old project you are knitting on - it is not happening. No wonder I need a training camp ;-) In September - they have a MONTH of cast on - and one of my friends casted on 35 objects. I definitely need more training ;-) Happy midsummer.