Sunday, March 08, 2009

Knitting!

Several days ago, I promised actual knitting content. Well -- it's here!

I finished the Nereid mitts, and are very happy with them. They're longer than most mitts, with the hand part coming almost halfway up my fingers, which I like a lot - my hands are frequently cold.

Pomatomus mitts

These took longer than they should have, because I reversed the pattern on the second one. To do that, you can read the chart backward, or flip it over in your Photoshop-type program, which is what I did. Then I replaced the K2tog TBLs with plain K2tog's. The pattern on the second one doesn't look as smooth as the first one, and I'm sure there are further modifications I could have made to make them better, but I'm happy! The yarn is Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Pink Blossom -- I think I'll buy more and make a pair of matching Pomatomus socks!

I also started a baby blanket for a co-worker and his wife, who are expecting a girl in June. My suspicion is that they are people who would not be inclined to dress their little girl in pink daily (unlike me!), so I'm limiting the pink.

Cotton Ease

I'm making the Artful (Elegance) Afghan, which you may have seen on Chris's blog. (If you buy the pattern from the Lion Brand website, beware that, even though PayPal is listed as a payment option, you have to use a regular credit card for patterns, even though putting $2.50 on a credit card seems crazy!) I was going to use Wool-Ease, because of its washability and, um, cheapness, but my Michael's was out of most of the colors. Right next to it, though, was the Cotton-Ease -- also washable, and not scratchy -- and I just loved the colors, so I went with it. Luckily, knitting with cotton doesn't usually bother my hands.

Artful Baby Afghan


I'm using fewer colors than called for, obviously, so I spent some time last night figuring out how many rounds of each color I need to knit. In theory, you could just knit until you're out of a color, but since this is a gift, I figured I should plan a little! So far, I like it -- there's enough going on that I don't get bored, but it's easy enough that I don't have to think too much!


Have you noticed all the sales in the knitting world right now? I guess it's a sign of the times, but I"m trying to be a combination of economical but supportive (or at least, that's what I'm telling myself!)

Lexie Barnes had bags on sale (half price), plus there was a code on KnittyBlog for 10% more off, so I indulged and purchased the Lady B in Diablo, which I had looked at many times. I actually see using this as a laptop bag, not a knitting bag. And it came with the tiny bag leaning in the front!

Lexie Barnes Bag

Grafton Fibers also had their Darn Pretty DPNs in red on sale for Valentine's Day, so I ordered a couple of pairs -- I can never have too many size 1 and 1.5s!

4 comments:

Steven said...

Nice colors for the blanket! Cotton doesn't bother my hands either, but I tend not to knit with it much. I should, though, being in Texas.

That's gonna be a happy baby.

Anonymous said...

I scored on purple Grafton DPNs...
can't wait til that box arrives!!

GREAT pattern! Makes me want to knit one, and I have no victims... er recipients... and frankly, I think cotton is better for a baby blanket than woolease... great choice by you!

Chris said...

Oh, that's going to be a fun blanket! You know I love that pattern. :) And after knitting a blanket with Cotton-Ease a few months ago, I'm a fan. Definitely an under-appreciated yarn.

The Nereids are gorgeous!

Courtney said...

I have an older Lady B and I love it. It still looks new despite the fact that it's been on several flights etc. That afghan is great too!