Off My Diet

Yarn diet,  that is.  I promised myself at the beginning of the year that I wouldn't buy any more yarn.   I would concentrate more on using up my stash.  I had done pretty well, up until a couple of weeks ago.  That's when I took an excursion with my yarn guild to 3 yarn shops. I did show some restraint, though. My most expensive purchase was this lovely green silk, perfect for the scarf pattern called Saroyan.  It is a shallow triangle with a leaf edge. 
I obsessed about the cast on and set up, but I'm happy with the way it's turning out.

My Continuing Obsession with Shawls

I love knitting shawls. Three modeled by my mannequin have already been given away.  The blue one to my cousin and the red and beige one to my auntie. I'm keeping the lace one for myself.  It is knit of silk and requires special care.  The yarn had been in my stash for ages.

The shawl  on the bottom was also knit with yarn that has been in my stash a long, long time.  Knit from a favorite pattern called Weaver's Wool Mini Shawl that I've done four times. It easily sits on your shoulders to keep them warm. The only problem is that there is one teeny - tiny mistake in it.  So I need a home for it, someone who wouldn't mind a small error, before I rip it out and it returns back into my stash.

Another Hat

I liked the cable hat so much that I knit another one. The pattern is called Speedy Cable Beret.  Very speedy, I made it in a day, but not much of a beret.  That's because I altered the pattern to work seamless and I used a different yarn,  so really the pattern was only a suggestion. 

Gift Hats

Latest crop of hats.  Clockwise from top left, Ribbed Beanie ( could have made it a little longer), Speedy Cable Beret (not much of a beret, but I liked this one a lot),  Hermoine Hat  (from the movie) and Spring Beret (this was hard to wear, "I look like a mushroom" was one comment).  All made from washable yarns to save the giftee any laundry problems.

Gnome on a Shelf

He can see if you are naughty or nice!  Actually he can't see anything;  his eyes are covered with his hat.  This gnome has been hidden unfinished for a couple of years in a plastic shoe box.  A UFO for 2 years! Does that make me a naughty knitter?  He didn't have his arms  and one leg sewn on.  It really took very little time to sew everything together.

Afghans, Blankets and Throws

They are all the same thing, ways to use up a lot of yarn.  The white cable afghan was done quite a while ago except for weaving in the ends. The yarn, a fluffy acrylic (Lion Brand Jiffy) was given to me.  It looks pretty good considering...     I just wish I had made it bigger, because I still have 2 skeins left. 

The gray one (Red Heart yarn) is  in the blanket category, it is large enough to cover a queen size bed.  It was started in the Summer, when the weather here was cool. As it warmed up in the Fall, and the blanket grew heavy,  I had to put it down.  Finally last week it was done.  Alas, the yarn did not come from my stash.  Because it was a gift, I bought the yarn for this project.

 The pattern for the orange (couldn't photograph the true color) one is called  Lacy Chunky Throw.  It's about 40" by 50". This yarn has been in my stash for a long time, what I was thinking when I bought it, I can't remember.  I'm just glad that I used up every bit of it.

Bear Sweater Pattern

One of the charities that my knitting guild participates in is called Precious Pals.  Stuffed animals are dressed in knitted clothing and donated to the local police department for giving to children in crises situations.  At the guild meeting last month I had a conversation with another knitter who was having trouble with a sweater pattern for one of these animals.  The pattern was very frustrating because it was more difficult than it should have been.  So I wrote up a simple pattern. I call it a "Beary Easy Sweater". (I thought it was a cute name).  Anyway, it's suitable for a beginning knitter.  Hope you like it.

Beary Easy Sweater

Seamless sweater for a 10 inch bear

Materials: worsted weight yarn about 40 yards,

needles US 7 (4.5 mm), 4 markers 

Gauge 18 stitches = 4 inches

Begin at neck edge: Cast on 30 stitches.

Rows 1 & 2: Knit

Row 3: (WS) Knit 2, Purl 4, place marker, Purl 4, place marker, Purl 10, place marker, Purl 4, place marker, Purl 4, Knit 2

Row 4: (RS) increase row *Knit to stitch before marker, knit in the front and back of that stitch (Kfb), slip marker, Kfb, repeat from * 3 times, knit to end of row. 8 stitches increased.

Row 5: K2, P to last 2 stitches, K2

Row 6: *K to stitch before marker, Kfb, slip marker, Kfb, repeat from * 3 times, K to end of row.

Repeat rows 5 & 6 five more times. (86 stitches)

Row 17: (WS) K2, P to next marker, K to next marker, P to next marker, K to next marker,

P to last 2 stitches, K2

Row 18: K to marker, Bind off 18 stitches, K to next marker, Bind off 18 stitches , K to end

Row 19: K2, Purl to last 2 stitches joining fronts and back, K2. (50 stitches)

Rows 20 - 24 : Continue knitting on the right side and purling on the wrong side, keeping the first 2 and last 2 stitches in knit stitch.

Row 25: (WS) Knit

Bind off.

Weave in ends.

Abbreviations: K- Knit, P-Purl, RS- right side, WS-wrong side, Kfb- knit in the front and back of the stitch

Please use this pattern for charity or personal use.

OC Knitter October 2010

Lots of Projects

I'm still working through my shawl obsession.  I've already knit more than I'll ever use in my life time.  But I enjoy knitting them, so there are still more in the future.  These are both from stash yarn.

 These are hats that will be donated to the Knots of Love Charity.  They send hats to cancer centers throughout the country. This charity is a little different from others that do the same work in that they specify the brand of yarn that you use.

A twirly skirt.
And these don't even add up to half the projects I've finished in the last few months.

Felted Bag

                                                                 

       I started this bag after a conversation with a friend in my knitting guild.  She asked me what I did with my scraps.  I gave her some suggestions none of which was a bag.  The idea came to me when I got home and looked at my scraps. Yes, I save scraps of yarn. A few yards here, a few yards there and it all add up into a project.          

Catch Up

Yes, It's been a while since I last posted. And, yes, I'm still knitting  (because you know I can't stop).  So here are my  recent projects. This is my recycled shawl.  I found a  cashmere sweater for a few dollars at Goodwill and unraveled it  to knit this.   I had to wind the yarn into hanks, wash it, then wind it into balls before knitting.  It was worth the work.  Very soft!

More cat beds.  And I still have yarn for many more.  They have already been donated to the animal shelter.