............ with alice starmore.
her book just came in at the library for me (finally!). i spent my entire lunch break drooling on the pages, with heart all aflutter. turning every page in wide-eyed wonder. i would go out and buy it, but it seems it has reached 'rare book' status in the world. i can't seem to find a copy of it anywhere thats even kinda reasonable.
and yet... its almost worth it.
and now, i'm going to commune with alice. just think of the possibilities.
Friday, March 31, 2006
Monday, March 27, 2006
Ufserud!
i'm starting the week off right with a new hat to wear around. i'll start by saying this pattern is GREAT! i'm generally not a knit-kit person, but this i can make an exception for. (i'm not 'anti-kit,' but usually i can find cheaper, more individual alternatives which i enjoy more anyway).
the pictures you see here are taken before i blocked it, so there are a few tension issues. i actually had a more difficult time keeping even tension with my stranding this time (it came a bit easier on my mittens). i think this is mostly due to the fact that i was knitting magic-loop method using some really CRAP-tastic needles (aluminum 29" with an abysmal join and an even worse cable (coilly, hard plastic) - bought them way back before i knew the bliss of addi turbos). the needle situation caused for some frustration, but i was too anxious to make the hat and not ready to go out and buy something fancier. i hadn't anticipated going up 2 needle sizes, so i was a bit unprepared.
anyway, i wet blocked it last night and the stitches evened out nicely. these pics will have to do for now though!
pattern: ufserud bea ellis knitwear
materials: dale of norway 'heilo' in #9155 (MC) and #9834 (CC). inner lining: aurora 'muskat' in color #44
needles: US 4 for lining and US 7 for stranded knitting (using magic loop)
start date: 3/21/06
finish date: 3/26/06
modifications: i did a provisional cast on using crochet chain method and knit about 1 inch of the lining before turning the hem and launching into the stranding section. after shaping the crown, i went back and picked up my provisional live-stitches and knit the lining to the desired height (just under 3 inches). instead of binding off, i left the stitches live and sewed them to the inside. this provides the most elastic liningpossible. also, i had to go up two needle sizes, apparently i knit tightly in fair isle?
side view :: inside out
the pictures you see here are taken before i blocked it, so there are a few tension issues. i actually had a more difficult time keeping even tension with my stranding this time (it came a bit easier on my mittens). i think this is mostly due to the fact that i was knitting magic-loop method using some really CRAP-tastic needles (aluminum 29" with an abysmal join and an even worse cable (coilly, hard plastic) - bought them way back before i knew the bliss of addi turbos). the needle situation caused for some frustration, but i was too anxious to make the hat and not ready to go out and buy something fancier. i hadn't anticipated going up 2 needle sizes, so i was a bit unprepared.
anyway, i wet blocked it last night and the stitches evened out nicely. these pics will have to do for now though!
pattern: ufserud bea ellis knitwear
materials: dale of norway 'heilo' in #9155 (MC) and #9834 (CC). inner lining: aurora 'muskat' in color #44
needles: US 4 for lining and US 7 for stranded knitting (using magic loop)
start date: 3/21/06
finish date: 3/26/06
modifications: i did a provisional cast on using crochet chain method and knit about 1 inch of the lining before turning the hem and launching into the stranding section. after shaping the crown, i went back and picked up my provisional live-stitches and knit the lining to the desired height (just under 3 inches). instead of binding off, i left the stitches live and sewed them to the inside. this provides the most elastic liningpossible. also, i had to go up two needle sizes, apparently i knit tightly in fair isle?
side view :: inside out
thoughts: i like this hat a lot. its different from any in my collection (and i have many!). its really warm, but not itchy at all (thanks to the egyptian cotton lining). the sizing is practically perfect, which is lucky, because i didn't really get guage precisely, but just kind of went with what felt right (this usually never works). i highly recommend making one yourself!
in other knitterly news, my strategy at tackling my project queue has begun. whats on deck?
1. the urban aran :: i've ordered the yarn and have the pattern and needles at the ready. i'm excited for this one, its been a couple of months since my last sweater, so i'm ready to go.
2. forbes forest :: yarn has been ordered. i'll be using shelridge farms soft touch ultra dk in a chocolate brown. should be arriving in the next couple of days.
3. ganomy v 2.0 :: this one wasn't on my list, but i'm adapting a version of EZ's ganomy hat for a worsted weight yarn. (i want one for myself). i'm in the process of fashioning a prototype... we'll see what happens. i'm using debbie bliss merino aran in taupe.
in other knitterly news, my strategy at tackling my project queue has begun. whats on deck?
1. the urban aran :: i've ordered the yarn and have the pattern and needles at the ready. i'm excited for this one, its been a couple of months since my last sweater, so i'm ready to go.
2. forbes forest :: yarn has been ordered. i'll be using shelridge farms soft touch ultra dk in a chocolate brown. should be arriving in the next couple of days.
3. ganomy v 2.0 :: this one wasn't on my list, but i'm adapting a version of EZ's ganomy hat for a worsted weight yarn. (i want one for myself). i'm in the process of fashioning a prototype... we'll see what happens. i'm using debbie bliss merino aran in taupe.
Friday, March 24, 2006
stashbusting
two years ago my dear friend bought me two skeins of manos for my birthday. the color was perfect and i always liked the yarn too much to commit to one project. through all the moving that has happened in the last year, some of my yarn had fallen out of my greater consciousness. recently i reassessed my stash in hopes of formulating a strategy for using as much of it as possible. i was surprised to find these two hanks of manos sitting at the bottom of a box. i'm usually more aware of the presence of finer fibers in my home. what a great surprise it was! kind of like finding a $20 dollar bill in an old coat pocket.
so i wound them up, picked up the needles and pumped this baby out in a couple of evenings. i've seen this scarf done up in so many variations, i'm sure it wont be too exciting to add another one to the internet-proper, but thought i'd post it anyway. plus, i've never seen anything knit up in this colorway and its definitely one of my favorites.
check out those colors
for anyone who has yet to use this pattern and might still be planning on it, i'd say go for it. its a very fast knit, worked on large needles because of all the PSSO-ing thats happening. there is slight curl to the fabric, but not to an annoying degree (well, its slightly annoying, but tolerable.) i have been thinking of blocking it, but so far have been too lazy for anything like that
click to make larger
pattern : my-so-called-scarf (free)
materials: manos del uruguay variegated "granite"
needles: us 11 straight bamboo
in other news: i received my Ufserud kit from bea ellis knitwear on tuesday and have been knitting away on it.. i'm already starting the crown decreasing. its going much faster than i thought! dont have pictures yet, but will probably take some this weekend (they might be finished pictures... we'll see how much time i get). see you on the flipside.
so i wound them up, picked up the needles and pumped this baby out in a couple of evenings. i've seen this scarf done up in so many variations, i'm sure it wont be too exciting to add another one to the internet-proper, but thought i'd post it anyway. plus, i've never seen anything knit up in this colorway and its definitely one of my favorites.
check out those colors
for anyone who has yet to use this pattern and might still be planning on it, i'd say go for it. its a very fast knit, worked on large needles because of all the PSSO-ing thats happening. there is slight curl to the fabric, but not to an annoying degree (well, its slightly annoying, but tolerable.) i have been thinking of blocking it, but so far have been too lazy for anything like that
click to make larger
materials: manos del uruguay variegated "granite"
needles: us 11 straight bamboo
in other news: i received my Ufserud kit from bea ellis knitwear on tuesday and have been knitting away on it.. i'm already starting the crown decreasing. its going much faster than i thought! dont have pictures yet, but will probably take some this weekend (they might be finished pictures... we'll see how much time i get). see you on the flipside.
Monday, March 20, 2006
my rip-off trapper
when i need to feel better about myself, i knit with bulky yarn. starting and completing a project during two episodes of my favorite addiction (six feet under) can make anybody feel pretty great! The rip-off hat happened all-of-a-sudden… kinda like blacking out and when you come to, you have a finished hat in your lap?
so here's the story on the hat you see above: i saw the trapper hat in the winter 2006 vogue knitting and thought it was great. Then I saw some pictures floating around out there and thought it was really great. Here’s the thing - I have to REALLY love a pattern and really want (nay, need) it in order to drop any cash on it. There are just too many great free patterns out there… and if that fails, I can usually make something up that I like even better.
so when I picked up the magazine to assess… as I expected, 98% of the patterns are ridiculous and not practical. I wasn’t about to spend my money on it. So I took a good long look at the hat, the suggested guage, needle size and yarn, and went on my way, with future plans of making my own version.
about a week later, my friend handed me a bag of yarn saying “my mom went to a close out sale at our local yarn shop and picked up some random stuff for me… can you make me a hat with any of these?” i opened the bag and out plopped a fat hank of brown sheep BURLY spun. It was just the sign I was looking for. I told her I already had something in mind for her and went on my merry way…
click on images to see detail
pattern: my own rip-off of the trapper hat
materials: brown sheep burly spun (100% wool) in "prarie fire"
needles: US 13 circulars
so this is what i came up with. i decided to leave the brim off of the hat - the more i thought about it, the more i didn’t like the brim. pulled out the big US 13’s and before I knew it I had effectively created the rip-off trapper hat. and my friend loves it… although the timing is a little off, its not necessarily a ‘spring cap,’ but hey, I figure its still cold in NYC right?
i roughly kept notes of the pattern, am thinking about posting it if anybody would like to knit this (cheaper and more practical) version of the Trapper.
PS: my roommate has a silver mannequin. It’s a great hat model.
so here's the story on the hat you see above: i saw the trapper hat in the winter 2006 vogue knitting and thought it was great. Then I saw some pictures floating around out there and thought it was really great. Here’s the thing - I have to REALLY love a pattern and really want (nay, need) it in order to drop any cash on it. There are just too many great free patterns out there… and if that fails, I can usually make something up that I like even better.
so when I picked up the magazine to assess… as I expected, 98% of the patterns are ridiculous and not practical. I wasn’t about to spend my money on it. So I took a good long look at the hat, the suggested guage, needle size and yarn, and went on my way, with future plans of making my own version.
about a week later, my friend handed me a bag of yarn saying “my mom went to a close out sale at our local yarn shop and picked up some random stuff for me… can you make me a hat with any of these?” i opened the bag and out plopped a fat hank of brown sheep BURLY spun. It was just the sign I was looking for. I told her I already had something in mind for her and went on my merry way…
click on images to see detail
pattern: my own rip-off of the trapper hat
materials: brown sheep burly spun (100% wool) in "prarie fire"
so this is what i came up with. i decided to leave the brim off of the hat - the more i thought about it, the more i didn’t like the brim. pulled out the big US 13’s and before I knew it I had effectively created the rip-off trapper hat. and my friend loves it… although the timing is a little off, its not necessarily a ‘spring cap,’ but hey, I figure its still cold in NYC right?
i roughly kept notes of the pattern, am thinking about posting it if anybody would like to knit this (cheaper and more practical) version of the Trapper.
PS: my roommate has a silver mannequin. It’s a great hat model.
Friday, March 17, 2006
looking toward the future
i've been meaning to assemble a collection of images for future projects. here's the beginning of that list. these are images of projects that i've probably had stewing in my mind for a while but haven't had the time or money to make happen.
sweaters
hats
scarves/socks/gloves
click on any of the thumbnails to see more details.
hats
scarves/socks/gloves
click on any of the thumbnails to see more details.
all comments positive or negative towards any of these patterns are welcome! i do like to know what i'm getting into before i make the plunge....
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Ufserud Ordered!
well thank you all for your input on my colors! I would love to say that there was a clear victor in the competition... but it seems that you all have varying tastes (thank god), or worse (like me) want to see multiple combinations knit up.
The three contenders came down to B, C and E, with B having the most votes. Here's the thing... while I really like E, I really just can't shake the whole high school mascot/letterman's jacket vibe it puts out. that yellow. that green. its got that kitchy home-game feeling to it, which was originally why i found it interesting. but after more consideration, i like B better (surprise surprise!) i really like both B and C, and probably will use both color schemes on future projects (i have a fair-isle queue in my pattern bible)... but the winner for this one is...... B!
dont i always go back to these neutral green tones? and as Marq1 so astutely observed, they do complement the color scheme of my blog perfectly.
its been quiet around brooklyn t w e e d this week. Be warned, this silence should not be confused with a "silence" in my knitting. I've actually been obsessively knitting away on something that, alas, I cannot show you all yet. but look forward to a surprise FO in the future that is aaaaawe-some if I do say so myself.
don't worry - when Ufserud comes, I'll go picture crazy. its hard for me to sift through knitblogs that are pictureless, and for that I apologize. blocks of text, regardless of their wildly exciting content, are just hard to traverse sometimes.
and one last thing... i gotta give a shout out to craftoholic's latest creation. if you haven't already seen them... YES these are awesome. i'm gonna make some for k whenever i finish the pile-o-projects lurking in the corner. the glove-version of pomatomous, i feel, surpassess the original sock pattern in design and intrigue! (not to imply any negativity on the socks, they're awesome too!) it got me excited... so obviously, i'm plugging it. well, i'll see you soon - with more norwegian knitterly things to share!
The three contenders came down to B, C and E, with B having the most votes. Here's the thing... while I really like E, I really just can't shake the whole high school mascot/letterman's jacket vibe it puts out. that yellow. that green. its got that kitchy home-game feeling to it, which was originally why i found it interesting. but after more consideration, i like B better (surprise surprise!) i really like both B and C, and probably will use both color schemes on future projects (i have a fair-isle queue in my pattern bible)... but the winner for this one is...... B!
dont i always go back to these neutral green tones? and as Marq1 so astutely observed, they do complement the color scheme of my blog perfectly.
its been quiet around brooklyn t w e e d this week. Be warned, this silence should not be confused with a "silence" in my knitting. I've actually been obsessively knitting away on something that, alas, I cannot show you all yet. but look forward to a surprise FO in the future that is aaaaawe-some if I do say so myself.
don't worry - when Ufserud comes, I'll go picture crazy. its hard for me to sift through knitblogs that are pictureless, and for that I apologize. blocks of text, regardless of their wildly exciting content, are just hard to traverse sometimes.
and one last thing... i gotta give a shout out to craftoholic's latest creation. if you haven't already seen them... YES these are awesome. i'm gonna make some for k whenever i finish the pile-o-projects lurking in the corner. the glove-version of pomatomous, i feel, surpassess the original sock pattern in design and intrigue! (not to imply any negativity on the socks, they're awesome too!) it got me excited... so obviously, i'm plugging it. well, i'll see you soon - with more norwegian knitterly things to share!
Tuesday, March 7, 2006
CAST YOUR VOTE!
this is our busiest and craziest week of the year in my office. i'll probably be working 20+ hours overtime in total and so i haven't really gotten any time to knit and probably wont be doing any until this weekend. aside from impending exhaustion and major lack of personal time, i will be making a significant amount of overtime money and have decided to reward myself by purchasing the Ufserud kit from Bea Ellis. (seems i can always find a way to justify breaking the steadfast yarn diet.)
the reason i'm telling you this is because i need your input on something. i've been going back and forth for the last few hours (between working) trying to decide what colors to choose for the project. now usually, i have no problem picking colors - its all fairly intuitive, and usually after a few seconds of staring at the color card, i'm positive that i've made the best decision. unfortunately, the heilo color card is just too good. too many good colors. too many slight variations. too many options. not to mention i'm completely and utterly braindead from work anyway. so... i need your help. I've come up with a few options, and I'd love to hear your comments/thoughts on what you think would work.
option B is the most 'representative' of my usual preferences, but i thought maybe i'd try something different... although i'm definitely not ruling option B out... those colors rock. if you have a chance (and an opinion) i would love to hear what you think....
cast your vote now!
the reason i'm telling you this is because i need your input on something. i've been going back and forth for the last few hours (between working) trying to decide what colors to choose for the project. now usually, i have no problem picking colors - its all fairly intuitive, and usually after a few seconds of staring at the color card, i'm positive that i've made the best decision. unfortunately, the heilo color card is just too good. too many good colors. too many slight variations. too many options. not to mention i'm completely and utterly braindead from work anyway. so... i need your help. I've come up with a few options, and I'd love to hear your comments/thoughts on what you think would work.
option B is the most 'representative' of my usual preferences, but i thought maybe i'd try something different... although i'm definitely not ruling option B out... those colors rock. if you have a chance (and an opinion) i would love to hear what you think....
cast your vote now!
Friday, March 3, 2006
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