Friday, May 14, 2010

Cast on: Jess

For my birthday Eileen sent me some Rowan Baby Alpaca. It's delightfully soft and I'm guessing it will be very warm. With some forward planning I cast on for a cardigan for next winter.



The pattern is Jess by Martin Storey. The colour is more of a true red than this photo looks to me - it looks less pink in reality.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

On the needles: Citron

Don't know what happened there...impromptu blogging break: things at work are busy and school is winding up for the end of term.

Christina sent me some yarn: Knitwitches mohair and silk laceweight in a citrus green colour. I decided it was perfect for a Citron Shawl




So far it's easy TV knitting - and the increase/decrease rows for the ruffling pattern are manageable at the moment.

Monday, May 03, 2010

Lizard cushions

Now we are using our new living room the Lizard Ridge blanket lives in there. I thought our new sofa needed some cushions and when Kerstin and I went to IKEA last time we bought some valentine's themed cushions for $1.99 with a view to using the inserts.




I used the leftovers of Noro Kureyon, along with some additional balls to make these cushions.

I followed the Lizard Ridge pattern, with 5 'bubbles' and knitted until it seemed big enough! I sewed them onto a brown denim back with an envelope closure. The denim has been in my fabric box for an eternity - I think I bought it at John Lewis which would make it at least 13 years old.

Saturday, May 01, 2010

Off the needles: Buttercup

I finished the Buttercup top. This was knitted in Garnstudio Drops Silke Tweed yarn that I got from Duncan for Christmas.



I am not thrilled with the outcome this project: the neckline is very wide and I knitted several decrease rows across the back neck - it is still too wide to wear without a t-shirt underneath. And of course it's also too low-cut to wear without a t-shirt. The yarn grew in length quite considerably during blocking - and I may try to block it again to tighten the stitches. The yarn is lovely, quite nubbly, and knitted at this tension it's very drapey - possibly too drapey.

I think if I knitted this again I would knit an even smaller size to get a better width across the neck and shoulders, and would not pick up any stitches at the underarms. I already knit a size smaller than I would normally chose because of the width at the shoulders - but I think this is a perennial issue with top-down raglan construction. It would be better with narrower shoulders and short-row bust shaping on me.

So - on balance, a nice pattern, but in need of more customization for me. I will see how much I wear the tunic and maybe re-block. Otherwise the yarn might be destined to become something else!