Spiral Hats

Well, these hats didn't really come out the way I wanted them to. The patterns came out lovely, but they were a little smaller than I anticipated, so I made a pair and I plan to give them to the neighbor children. I sure hope they fit them.

I also ventured downtown and paid a visit to the yarn store, Knitwit. I got some gorgeous wine-colored yarn to make my next sweater with and I'll probably start that when we get back from Vermont. We're leaving tomorrow morning for a Christmas family gathering, but we'll be back Sunday afternoon. I'm so excited--this is such an integral part of Christmas and gives me a warm fuzzy feeling. It's easily my favorite time of year. =)

Cheers,

-Allie

Sweater, v.3

Hurray, the sweater is finished!!I'm so pleased with it I even wore it around today--and got quite a few astonished compliments, I might add. Caroline wants me to make her one in cream. We'll see about that.
I also started a fun spirally hat which looks like a warm candycane with a pompom. Adorable.
I'm on the lookout for the next major project, though. Input is more than welcome.
Happy Holidays all!
-Allie

I want to be a Machine

Okay, not really. That was Andy Warhol.

But I have finished a whole lot of sweater rather quickly. I'm actually 50% done with it now, having completed the front and back panels. They look kind of ugly now, but since you insisted, here are some pictures:

This one's the back panel, unblocked

Front panel, unblocked

And a closeup of the cables on the front

Okay, that picture didn't come out so well, but you get the idea. It all looks smaller than it should because it's curling underneath, but if it turns out not to fit me, I'm going to cry. The next task is to make some sleeves, which I'll probably start today. And then I need to make a collar and sew the whole thing together. The goal is to finish it before Christmas so it can make for some festive holiday attire. At this rate, it looks like I'm going to make it, hurray!
At least I have plenty time to work on it today since I was supposed to go home, but because of the killer snowstorm (which was over by the time I woke up) I stayed in Williamstown another day. I'll just head home tomorrow morning instead and with more completed sweater than if I'd left early.

I hope everyone else has/had a safe trip home for the holidays!

Cheers,

-Allie

Five more days 'til Vacation

So I finished those socks:

They're really soft and comfortable. Even though they have those icky holes in the heels, they'll make nice slipper-socks for the holidays =)

I also finished Christina's hat a few days ago and have since received a number of rave reviews about it--all from Christina. I'm glad you like it and I'm doubly glad it keeps your head warm. But because Christina loves it so much, I was unable to photograph it, so you'll just have to guess what it looks like based on pictures from previous posts. Sorry guys.

And since both final papers are now behind me, I treated myself to starting the Torque sweater. I made some alterations to the pattern and hopefully it will fit me well. The one on the webpage fit that woman rather dumpily and I don't like sweaters that do that. So we'll see how it turns out. I'm pulling for 'well.'

If I don't update before I leave, have a wonderful vacation everyone!!

-Allie

Productive Procrastination?

Like those who flock to Youtube to put off their studies, I find I am also driven to distraction, but less in the form of video entertainment (well, that too), but in the form of knitting. And so in the last couple of days, I've made some lovely progress on my knitting projects an not so much on my academic projects.
As promised, I have begun Christina's hat, and am nearly halfway done with it! I should even finish it within the next couple of days if I don't manage to find academic motivation. Here's a nice picture of what I have so far:I think it's going to come out rather nicely =)
I've also completed the first of those pink kid merino socks:It came out really warm and comfortable. And I especially love the way the lace cuffs were designed to be folded over like that so you can see the lace in that position. The problem is, though, that the pattern's heel shaping was different than anything I've tried and was mostly based on slipped stitches. Apparently I can't make my slipped stitches tight enough because there are some rather unsightly holes in my heel. Maybe I can block them so there are no holes... If not I'll just have to deal with it because I'm not taking the sock apart to fix something as minor as that. Maybe it'll be better on the other one--when I get around to making it.

As far as finals go, I think I'm on top of things. I've got two exams and two papers, but I've already written half of one paper and I'm not too worried about the other. Besides, being the relentless planner that I am, I have mapped out a work/study schedule to keep me on track without getting too overwhelmed or distracted. I know that sounds ridiculously anal, but that's just how I have to operate, otherwise I'll say "Oh, I can do it later..." and then it never gets done because I end up knitting all evening instead. Basically, I can't wait until a week from Sunday, when I'll be all done with finals and on me way home for some wonderfully lazy holiday time. Plus we'll be that much closer to Christmas, my most favorite holiday of the year. =)

Good luck with your finals everyone. I hope they all go smoothly.

Cheers,
-Allie

Cascading Lace

I finally finished that lacy scarf. Yay! Just when I was starting to get bored with the pattern, too. I think it came out really nicely--it'll look even better when it's done blocking.
I especially love the pointy ends. I had to do the scarf in halves and graft them in the middle so that it would cascade and have pointy ends on both sides. How pretty! To block it, I just pinned it to a large towel in the shape I want it to have and then sprayed it with cold water. I've never tried this method before, but presumably it'll hold this shape once it dries. I'm excited! The kid mohair fibers are so soft and drapey =).

The next project, as you can see I've started a little bit, is a pair of socks made of the same yarn as this scarf, but in a 'strawberry soda' pink. I get the softness on my feet, too! Pictures to follow in next post, once I have something to show you. I'll be alternating the socks' time with Christina's request for a hat similar to the one shown in the previous post. She ordered some light blue and cream yarn and as soon as I get my hands on it, I swear I'll start making her that fair isle hat. I just don't know how quickly it'll happen what with exams right around the corner.

On a completely unrelated note, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Williamstown with the festive decorations and the snow last night! Snow makes me so happy (except when I have to travel in it) because it brings me back to happy childhood Christmases. So today I totally got in the holiday spirit: I did some Christmas shopping on Spring Street (Can't tell you, it's a surprise). And the other day I set up a little artificial tree in the window of my room. Every time I look at it, it makes me smile.

Do you feel the same way? The gifts beneath it are today's purchases for my sister and a certain somebody upstairs. 'Tis the season, kiddies!

Cheers,

-Allie

Me = Slacker

Sorry all,

I've been too busy/negligent to update this in a while. First I was working hard to get things done before Thanksgiving break and then I didn't bring my camera's usb hookup with me to GA, (which was a really nice break) so I'll have to do some serious updating now.

First of all, I finished my fair isle hat in one of the prettiest patterns I've ever seen:

Que belle, non? I'm especially proud of the braided pattern at the bottom--that wasn't easy to maneuver, folks. Too bad the whole hat is too tall and narrow--makes my head look like a huge oval. If I get bored one day, I may take the top apart and make the whole thing shorter, but for now I can live with a tall hat with a lovely pattern.

Second order of business: Thanksgiving project. There wasn't a whole lot to do while I was down in GA, so I mostly worked on this scarf:

It's made with laceweight kid merino yarn that's so soft and delicate I even bought a bunch to make some socks out of (next project!) Little old ladies in airports kept coming up to me and asking me about this scarf, telling me how pretty it is. I quite agree with them. Too bad I didn't buy enough yarn to finish the darn thing--the pattern lied to me. I ordered some more this afternoon so eventually I'll have 5 feet of 'lucious' lace scarf with only 3 balls (not the advertised 2).

I have also come to the conclusion that the sweater I made this summer looks like crap on me, so I'm going to take it apart and use that yarn for something I'll actually wear. And because I love a challenge, I'm going to attempt this sweater. So in about 4 years maybe I'll have a berry red torque sweater... But for now, while I wait for supplies, current project is a pair of 'strawberry soda' socks in kid merino. I'm such a knitting dork...

Until next time,

-Allie

PS: Keep on the lookout for people with abnormally long heads who enjoy fair isle.

Mitten Part Deux

Mitten number two is now complete! Hurray! Since I finally finished the schoolwork that needed to be done, I had some time to work on my project and boy did it come out nice!

The new one is on top. I think the grafting on this one came out better than the other one--it looks cleaner anyway. My sister's special request for these mittens was that they have a cord between them so she wouldn't lose them. I wasn't really sure how to do this, so I decided to go with a detachable model--I ran a strand around the wrist and tied a long braided chain to both mittens. So she gets the cord, which she can detach if she wants and some pretty bows =).

The best part, though, was her thank you--it made me feel all fuzzy inside to know that she really does appreciate my efforts. So I'd say the mittens were a success since I got to learn fair isle and to see my sister's softer side. Makes me want to go frollick in the sunshine.

Too bad it's 12:30am. Maybe tomorrow =)

Cheers,

-Allie

Mitten!

So earlier this week, my sister IMs me with the unusual request "Allie, will you make me some mittens??" Apparently it gets cold enough in North Carolina to require mittens. I can't imagine anywhere south of Maryland so much as needing a scarf, but any distraction from my studies is welcome. So I foolishly told her to find me a pattern--any pattern and she came up with this one: Corazon Mittens. Things had become slightly more complicated.

Since I've always wanted to try fair isle, I thought "why not practice on my sister?" Sounds selfish, but she won't really notice, right? So I bought the yarn and started the project most eagerly, but not without some trepidation.

I have since finished one mitten and am quite pleased with the result. I only have two complaints. One: My grafting could do with a little practice. Two: I regret letting my sister pick out the colors. You can hardly see the pattern I worked so hard on!

Sorry about the poor image quality. I'll just wait til daytime for the next set of pictures.

Here it is again on my hand:

I think she'll be pleased with it, don't you?

Mitten #2 to follow shortly.

Cheers,

-Allie

A New Leaf

Greetings all,

I have decided to try my hand at blogging, more specifically, blogging my various knitting projects and aspirations. Because my discussions about knitting have been boring my boyfriend to tears, I've decided to try a new audience.
I really learned to knit last year, and have since become something of an addict, spending most of my free time tangled up in yarn and fantasizing about it in class. Far from looking for a cure, I intend to make this more of a record of my efforts and a place to meet other people whose knitting hobby borders on obsession.

Cheers,
-Allie