1/19/11: Woolly Goodness for January

Sorry about the lapse of writing there, had the flu to tend with for a good portion of the new year. Being down with the flu is no way enjoyable, but it does make you do one thing: sit still long enough and do some mindless knitting. And that is exactly where I was at with my Acorns sweater. You know, the one I've mentioned here. This sweater pattern is by no means an easy one to execute--with all its many increases, decreases, and elaborate stitch pattern--but when it comes to knitting those sleeves. . . Well, they probably could make you fall asleep mid-row if you weren't careful. :)

So once I punched out both sleeves, there was only three little steps to do: sew the underarm seams, sew on the buttons, and weave in the ends. When I formed this small list in my head, a strange feeling came over me. It was then and there when I realized I was truthfully ALMOST DONE! When you've been working tediously on something for months--yes, since September to be exact--you sort of forget that there really is an end.

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12/20/10: An Old-Fashioned Girl

photo taken from ingridbergmanfilms.tumblr.com

I think of myself as being old-fashioned. I like things from ages gone by, be it movies like Casablanca or books like Little Women. Oh, don't think that I enjoy using ten year old cell phones or computers, oh no! I'm just pointing out that I enjoy using and doing certain things that are simple and wholesome in some aspect. Knitting is certainly one of them.

I was just thinking about this now because it is mighty chilly outside today (snowing, too!) and for some reason I cannot bring myself to buying a warm knitted sweater. I am in need of one but I won't even take a peek at JCP.com. You see, I have to make it myself. Ah, the old-fashioned side of me showing! And it appears that this vow cannot be shaken, I'm afraid. So I am left with wearing fleeces and my robe until I make my sweater.

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8/23/10: My New Crocheted Baby Jacket and Giveaway Project Update

Mini Jean Jacket designed by Cal Patch

Don't you worry, I am still planning on sharing with you the process of making the giveaway prize. I will be showing you the supplies, sources, and techniques I use to make rosaries and I may even show you a quick tutorial on how to make a small rosary bag for storing a rosary in a purse. Very handy! I just need to find some free time with a camera; not something that's always easy for me. :D

In the meantime, I wanted to show you my latest creation. I just finished crocheting a baby cardigan using the Mini Jean Jacket pattern designed by Cal Patch. It was featured in the Sept/Oct 2007 issue of Crochet Today. I am selling this piece in the Arts and Crafts room at Magicland Farms now. Read more »

7/28/10 : Sweater Musings

The September/October 2010 issue of Crochet Today is out now (yay!) and I have spent the last two evenings reading it from cover-to-cover. There were a lot of patterns I liked right away--not something that happens often for me! I typically need to go back to the issue after a month to really appreciate the designs, but Robyn Chachula and Mari Lynn Patrick's sweaters really caught my eye.
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2/12/10: Sweater Vow

Ah, Liesl. A beautiful sweater designed by a young Scottish designer named Ysolda Teague. She is one of my favorite designers and Liesl is one of her best designs. So I buy the pattern from Ravelry.com, buy the oh-so-soft Cascade Luna yarn at a yarn shop, and start knitting. That was about one year ago and I can't seem to find the sweater in my closet. Instead I find it in a plastic drawer in the sewing room with needles still holding a multitude of stitches. Yeah, I'm still working on it.

I love the pattern and everything there is to it, but there it lies unfinished. Why? Because I'm making the sweater for myself, and if it is for me, it takes 10 x longer.

That is why I decided to write a post on it. If I feel that I would have to write a similar post in another year, well, that would just be too humiliating! So in order to get my Liesl juices flowing, I will say right here that I will finish Ysolda's sweater for Spring. There, I said it.

I wrote a few notes about my knitting so far, so here they are:

January 11, 2009: Bought pattern.
Mid-February 2009: Bought yarn from New Ewe Yarn Shoppe in Michigan. Was a birthday gift from my parents. :) The staff at the shop were so very helpful! I don’t know where I would have been without their help. This yarn is so soft and I have found that it is a dream to work with because it doesn’t split at all.
April 7, 2009: After a tedious time of deciding what needle to use (I tried size 7 all the way to size 11), I finally came to using size 10, even though my gauge doesn’t match the pattern’s gauge. (My gauge: 3.5” for one 12 stitch rep / pattern’s gauge: 4” for one 12 stitch rep.) That is OK with me because I will just use my smaller gauge with the next larger size. I’ve used this method before when knitting my Veste Everest.
So what version am I doing? I chose to do the “pink” version (one being worn by the girl in the red dress). It has a high neckline and cap sleeves.
So how is it coming? I must be honest by saying that it is rather difficult to understand the chart instructions. This would be my first time using lace charts so I have to go slow and take my time to learn these new symbols. It will come to me in time. And I am having trouble trying to follow the pattern without schematics. I know this pattern was designed in such a way as to allow the knitter to personalize it by trying it on often, but I still miss my schematics. :) It’s hard to break a habit, I guess.
November 23, 2009: I placed this project aside for many months now and I’m completely mortified by it! It always seems like I never finish a project if it is for myself; I never see the necessity of it. But my family has been pushing me so I’ll do it to make them happy! :) Now it is going to be difficult to find where I left off, that teaches me not to leave a pattern mid-way. Wish me good luck!

Update, February 12, 2009: One year since I started. Will try to finish this sweater for Spring.