I've got a secret...

First off, thanks for all the nice comments on the graknitti... sadly both times that cozies were put up they had been removed by the next morning... so I've been putting off working on mine. We're going to save them for when she moves the LYS into the new space down the street in a month.

Next... there's a reason I haven't posted in a week and it isn't because I haven't been knitting... in fact, I've been knitting feverishly. And I've been hiding something:

Green Bonzai Tunic, originally uploaded by gradschoolknitter.

I started working on this last Friday and could not put it down. I cast on Friday evening and finished it up this morning. So this picture is was taken inside Lovelyarns by the lovelyowner, Sue, during Saturday SnB. (Note the lovely skeins of Malabrigo behind me? I have plans for those... oh yes, many many plans...) Anyways, back to the tunic... I loved making this, so it was about process, but I also really REALLY wanted it... so it was at least partially a product knit too. (I haven't yet decided if I'm a "process" or "product" knitter... I love to knit, I love the process, but I also generally pick projects that I can't wait to wear/use either.

Anyways, here are the details:

Pattern: Interweave Knits Spring 2007
Yarn: Berroco Bonzai in Sage (9 skeins - the pattern in my size called for 10, which I bought, but I never touched the 10th one, so I traded it in for something else delicious!)
Needles: Bamboo straights, sizes 6 & 8, Inox DPNs size 6

I've also decided that I need to focus on some serious stash reduction before I can buy anything else for myself! I'm going to participate in Flash your Stash tomorrow (although I didn't see anywhere to officially sign up) and that will help me sort through a bit and see what exactly I have and remind myself what I had planned for it!

Graknitti

Tonight I took part in my first ever graffiti experience, as only a knitter could. Some local knitters made parking meter cosies and we put them up near a local yarn store. It was so hilarious and fun... especially when a cop walked by, wondered what all us women were giggling about and didn't even notice the fact that the parking meters were now covered in knitted stockings. He probably figured that we were drinking or something. I'm designing another one tonight and hopefully it will be up in a day or two.

Below are some pictures... one of the "anonymous" knitters sewing up a meter cosy and one of the other cosy. More to come in the following weeks, we hope!

FO: lace cap

lace hat, originally uploaded by gradschoolknitter.

I finished the lace cap from knitty summer '03. I love it! I chose a single strand of teal bamboo and I have enough left over for another hat, at least. And it's warm enough here that I could wear it today with a new dress I bought a few weeks ago. Yay Spring!

And I got an email today from my secret pal! Exciting! She's in France, which means that maybe I'll get to see some interesting yarns and things that we don't always get on this side of the ocean! Maybe I'll even get to practice my (very rusty) French, too!

And I went to my fav LYS today and got the rest of the bonsai that I'll need to make bonsai tunic in the new interweaves, and I picked up some things for the first package for my secret pal! Unfortunately, there was a bit of a snafu with the vest for the oscbf, so I had to frog the hood and start over. My plan is to finish that up sometime soon, hopefully, and then cast on some summer projects! :D

Edit: here's a picture from the top... do you know how incredibly hard it is to take a picture of the top of your own head?!

surprise hat

surprise hat, originally uploaded by gradschoolknitter.

I almost forgot that I can now blog the hat I made for my dad's birthday. It was finished quite a while ago, but I didn't give it to him until his birthday last Saturday. The brim and top are Berroco Ultra Alpaca, and the rest is Trendsetters Tonalita. Sorry about the lumpy look the hat has in the picture, I stuffed it with plastic bags and it didn't make for the most attractive shape... Someday perhaps I'll actually be able to get pictures of my family members wearing their FOs...

Oh, and the pattern is, as almost always, from Last Minute Knitted Gifts.

back to baltimore and a brand-new bag!

Whew, that was a lot of "b" words! I was home all week for spring break, and I am now back in Baltimore. I didn't get a whole lot of knitting done, or reading for that matter (whoops!) but I did find a new knitting bag at happysq's etsy shop. Here it is:


And the back - which I think is super awesome:


The back has instructions for casting on and the knit stitch. I think it's super cool anyways!

As for actual knitting this week, like I said, I didn't get a whole lot done. I've got a few inches on the lace cap now, and I "finished" the hood for the bf's vest. I say "finished" because now that it is done I think I might have to frog the whole hood. When I pull it over my head it doesn't even cover my ears. Oops. I have two options: 1. Pull the hood apart and start over, cast on closer to the centre of the neck, or, 2. Add a ribbed collar to the hood and sew it to the neckline afterwards. I'm leaning more towards option 1 now because it will look closer to what I was originally aiming for... but it means ripping out all that hard work and starting over on a bigger garter stitch hood. Oh well, that's the price you pay for love... and man is he lucky I love him after an entire garter stitched vest!

secret pal 10

Secret pal 10 matches are being made soon, and even though it's in my title bar, I though I'd post another link to my Secret Pal 10 Questionaire. I got a little gung-ho about it when I first signed up so it's now buried in my february archives. I'm really excited to start spoiling... and getting spoiled!

A new ssk, or, is it wrong to take shortcuts while knitting?

I'm still knitting the lace cap from knitty, but I traded in the berroco cotton twist for a single strand of bamboo. The cotton twist was not the right weight for the project, nor was it very fun to work with... the strands would split and fray really easily. Anyways, the pattern calls for a lot of ssk's and I'm not really a fan. Plus, with the tiny needles and bamboo yarn (it's sort of like working with toothpicks and floss...) it's really easy to drop a stitch and then it's pretty much gone forever, making you rip out and start all over again. So instead of ssk's I'm knitting 2 together through the back loops. Is this wrong? I mean, the final product looks the same to me. I haven't found anywhere else where someone mentions exchanging an ssk for k2togtbl...

In any case, while researching it I realized that I wasn't slipping my stitches correctly in the first place. I tend to slip as if to purl and all the blogs, instructions, etc that I found said to slip as if to knit. So far I'm happy with my method so I think I'll stick with it and we'll see how the final product turns out.

In other news, I went to this crafting warehouse in my parents town (I'm home in the land of snow for "spring" break) yesterday and picked up another skein of the Lett Lopi to finish off the vest for the OSCBF, and I got some superwash merino for the Space Invader socks. I can't wait to start working on them, 'cause there are some interesting colourway techniques that I want to try out. And if they turn out ok then I'll probably make a second pair for myself!

I take it back

The more I look at them, the cooler the space invader socks, featured on the cover page of the new knitty, become. I'm think I'll make them for my little bro, perhaps. And then maybe a pair for myself... but in shades of pink, of course!

In other news, the second pair of Cindy Lou Who mittens are now completed. With any luck, pictures will be taken in full daylight tomorrow to be posted. And I've started the lace cap from knitty's summer '03 issue, although it's hard to tell right now how it's going to turn out... I think the yarn I'm using may be too stiff...

just in case you didn't already know...

The new Knitty issue is out for Spring. Check it out here.

I gotta be honest, I didn't see anything that I was really thrilled with except a cute skirt, made for little girls but with the idea that you could (if you check gauge and all that) size it out to any size you want.

In other news, the sample mitts for Lovelyarns are almost done... And I'll be teaching beginner lefties in April!

The underground world of crocheting...

weekend recap

I spent a lot of time on public transport and things this weekend (I was helping out at a conference downtown) and I went to my LYS's sit n' knit on Saturday. So I got a lot of knitting done, is what I'm trying to say. On Saturday I got these both started and finished:


For a friend back home in Canada who is having a baby boy in a couple of months. I used a yarn called Sprinkles by King Cole which is impossible to use on small needles, so they turned out a bit large. Oh well, maybe he can use them around 6months.

And for myself I finished up the legwarmers:




Both patterns are from Last Minute Knitted Gifts... if anyone's interested I post more specs later. (Must run to school and teach now...)

bad blogger

I've been a bad knitting blogger. But to be honest there hasn't been a whole lot of time for knitting lately... I finished one of the leg warmers and am about 3/4 of the way through the second. I hope to go to my fav LYS's Sit n' knit on Saturday and finish it up. I'll post pictures when it's done. Then I'm going to use the leftovers to make another pair of my mittens.

It's sad 'cause the weather is warming up significantly here in Bmore (whoever would have thought that I would lament the coming of warmer weather?!) but I am going back to Canada for March Break and I'm sure I'll have to show off my winter gear again!

Edit: Check it out: Protesting as only a knitter can!

WIPs update

It's been a few days and no new completed projects, so I thought I'd do a works in progress update. Apologies ahead of time for the bad lighting/flashes... it's dark out now so there's little natural light and our floor is extremely shiny! (Note: if you click to make the pictures bigger the colour and stitch definition is much more visible.)

First off we have the Red Cross Army Vest for the OSCBF:


Specs:
Pattern: WWI Red Cross Army Vest, available online
Yarn: Lett Lopi Mid Grey (0057)
Needles: US 6 / 4mm (straights for body, dpns for hood)
Modifications: Shortened the body, adding hood

Next up, leg warmers from Last Minute Knitted Gifts:


Specs:
Pattern: Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca 6289 Charcoal Mix + Crystal Palace Kid Merino 9801 Code Pink
Needles: US 9 / 5.5mm dpns
Modifications: none except for yarn substitutions

Next up, some socks:


Specs:
Pattern: none (toe-up, short row heel)
Yarn: Cascade Pima Silk 5134, 5136, 5139
Needles: US 3 / 3.25mm (2 circs)
Modifications: making the pattern up as I go

And finally, the Hourglass Sweater, also from Last Minute Knitted Gifts:



Specs:
Pattern: Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Aran DK with flecks brought back from Ireland by a relative, given to my mom (10 years ago approx.) then given by mom to me this past January
Needles: US 9 / 5.5mm circ (I think)
Modifications: Needle size to obtain gauge, otherwise nothing so far...

The Vest for the OSCBF will have to be put aside for a bit... the squiggly grey line at the top of the picture is the last bit of yarn I have left as of right now. I ordered a new skein earlier this evening but sadly it could take 7-21 days to get here. Which is really unfortunate since it is his birthday this weekend and I was hoping to have it delivered to him for then, but that clearly isn't happening. With any luck the yarn will be here sometime next week and I should be able to finish it up before I go home for Spring Break mid-March.

The leg warmers I am loving, the colour, the yarn (sooooooo soft), and even though I never thought I'd be much of a leg warmer kind of gal, I think they're going to be a lot of fun.

The socks I'm not such a huge fan of, but perhaps I'll keep them aside for a gift. It's mostly the colours I'm not huge on... but they were started as a small, easily portable project until I found something more intriguing (i.e. the leg warmers)!

And finally, the hourglass sweater. I think it's cute (at least the pattern picture is...) and it's very cool to be knitting with wool from Ireland. :D I picked a size without really measuring (and why don't knitting books tell you where to measure?! I mean, is a 37" bust measured below, above or somewhere in between?!) so if it's too big I might give it to my mom. It was technically supposed to be wool for her own sweater.

argh

OK, I'm really frustrated. Or, at least, I was. Now that I've cast on a new *fun* project for myself, eaten home made pasta (by my awesome roommate) and had a beer and a glass of wine, I'm a bit more relaxed. But I worked the whole afternoon at sit n' knit at my LYS on a sample for the store and in the end neither I nor Sue (the owner) liked it. The yarn I was using just wasn't right for the pattern. Afterwards I picked up a skein of Berroco Ultra Alpaca Charcoal mix and wound it with Crystal Palace Kid Merino in self-striping pink to make myself the leg warmers from Last Minute Knitted Gifts:



Oh, and then I found out that my peanut butter might be killing me...

yesterday...

all my troubles seemed so far away...

Or at least, school was closed so I didn't have to get off my butt and do anything extraordinarily special. So I knit, and got some (read: very little - in my defense it was Modern German Philosophy and not exactly my "thing") reading done and watched the film for class next week. But mostly I knit. In fact, I'm now almost done the main body for the Red Cross Army Vest for the OSCBF. And now I have to figure out how to attach a hood to it, as per his request. I'm trying to decide whether I should sew up the sides first (it is knit in one piece from the bottom of the front to the bottom of the back... go read the pattern (and make sure you scroll down and read the "Modern Version") here and you might understand what I mean a bit better) or pick up stitches around the neckline and knit up the hood first... any suggestions would be much appreciated. I'm probably going to have to order another skein of the wool before it can be finished in any case. I have about 1/2 a skein left and another inch or two of ribbing before the back is done. Something tells me that 1/2 a skein won't be quite enough to get the hood on too.

school's out for... winter!

Hopkins FINALLY decided to close for the day. Every other school, university, college, etc in Baltimore decided hours ago to close, but JHU kept us hanging until 10 minutes ago. We were supposed to open at 10:30 (what was I supposed to do? I teach at 10... should I have taught from 10:30-10:50?!) but I guess they finally decided that it was just easier to close for the day. Wohoo! I plan on getting caught up on some readings and watching the movie (El hijo de la novia - Son of the Bride) that we're supposed to be showing in class next week (although now with the school closed we may need that time to catch up...), all while doing some serious knitting! I mean, what else do you do when there's 2 inches of ice covering a couple more inches of snow outside?!

dilemma

Sure I have 2 huge projects (Hourglass sweater from LMKG and the Red Cross Army Vest for the OSCBF) on the go, but I don't have anything small and simple that I can take with me anywhere. I'm still working on the sample of the modular scarf for my wonderful LYS but the pattern is too complicated to work on while reading / chatting in the TA room at school. So I'm thinking I might grab the leftover yarns from the wristwarmers I made to order, specifically the 3 pima silks, and start some socks today. Simple St st, toe-up, short heel (possibly with a garter heel like I read about over at Knitting in the Desert) ribbed top socks. Only they'll be stripped, because I don't have enough of any of the colours for 2 full socks.

OK, I guess it's not that big of a dilemma!

FO: hat

I finished the surprise hat in berroco ultra alpaca and trendsetters tonalita... but I can't reveal it until it has been given to it's intended receiver. Which, btw, won't be happening for about another month. Oops. It was a really quick project, and yet another of the patterns from Las Minute Knitted Gifts that I would definitely use again. I picked up this book at Stitches East back in November and it is an awesome, awesome book. I have used (or am currently using) a bunch of the patterns already and I have plans for several more. I would definitely recommend getting it... and no, I'm not going to get any commission or anything! :P

First class!

I taught my first class at Lovelyarns today and it was a lot of fun. No pictures though, 'cause it was just too insane and the time passed by so quickly that I didn't even think to stop and take any. And I ended up frogging my scarf because I really want to end up using the Berroco Bonsai to make this from the interweave spring 2007 magazine. I don't currently have a subscription but I think my LYS gets it in next week, so I might buy it as a trial copy... it looks like there's a lot of interesting patterns this issue. I'll need a few more skeins (like, say 7 or 8...) but I have the same colour and I think that this will be well worth it and something that I'll get a lot more use out of.

I ended up staying at the store from 11 - 5, except for lunch... and I got absolutely NO progress done on anything. I frogged the small bit of scarf I had started with my class, and ended up ripping out and starting over on the sample scarf I'm making for the store. First off, I brought the wrong needles somehow (one 6 and one 9) and then I dropped a stitch and the Waikiki is practically impossible to work with when trying to go back or pick up stitches in, so I ripped it out and started over. By 5:00 I had finally gotten back to the point that I was at at the beginning of the day, so I decided to call it even and pack it in. One of the other girls from my knitting group was there, so we grabbed a pizza and came back here to hang out, eat junky food and knit. I'm coming along nicely now on my Hourglass Sweater. I've started the decreases for the waist line.

I should be teaching another class next weekend, the basketweave scarf (check out the last class description on this page) if anyone signs up. There is apparently one woman who said she would tentatively like to sign up, so we'll see what happens...

India Purse

India Purse, originally uploaded by gradschoolknitter.

I know, I know, third post today, this is getting ridiculous. BUT... it is Friday and I reserve the right to do some fun stuff. And I received the button I ordered to finally finish this purse I started back in October. So, of course, I had to sew it on immediately! It was really hard to get a detailed photo of the button, although I did try... you can see details of the button and handle (which I found at Stitches East last November) on my flickr photos or you can go to see the original photo on ebay here. The ebay picture is MUCH better than the ones I took.

Edit: strangely flickr cut off the right side of the photo when blogging, so if you click the photo it will take you to the original and show you the full purse.