Wednesday, September 21, 2011

FOs: One for Izzy, One for Me

It took several months, but I've recovered from the heartbreak of Izzy having lost the first skating sweater I made her. Yep, you read that right. Best we can figure, it went MIA at either the ice rink or school in April. But since it never showed up in either's Lost & Found, I've consoled myself by fabricating a story about how it's being worn and loved by some little girl somewhere. Some little girl who sleeps in it and never lets it out of her sight.

So when I agreed to cast on another sweater for Izzy, it came with a sworn promise that she would not lose this one. (And the acknowledgement that if she did, there would be nadda handknits for her for years to come.)


Pattern: Purl Stripe Cardigan by Amy Polcyn
Yarn: Alice Starmore Scottish Heather (Aubretia), Noro Iro (111)

It also seemed wise to go stash diving for the yarn. In the end, I ended up frogging a half-finished Tweedy Pie coat I'd started for Izzy when she was three — even at that small size, it was more Seed Stitch (1000-some yards) than I could stomach. The yarn is this amazing heathered purple with bits of violet and pink that's not done justice by my photos. It also proved to be one of those yarns that change texture completely (from stiff and kind of scratchy to almost fuzzy soft) after blocking.


This is my first attempt at a yoke cardigan, which had me quite nervous before the blocking. The fact that I'd pushed the purl stripes by selecting a slightly bulkier yarn than what was in the pattern certainly didn't help. In the end, I'm reasonably satisfied with the result — the button band is just a bit wavy, but I'm hoping that will straighten out with wear. I'd also done the math to size up two-inches around to make it bigger than the largest size in the pattern. And while it's a bit big now, given how fast Izzy's growing, I was happy to see that.


To get the color sequencing I wanted, I had to dip into the second skein of Iro I bought for the project. But that left me with nearly a full skein to play with. And who could resist digging through Ravelry to find just the perfect pattern to use up the rest of that glorious rainbow yardage?


Pattern: Mega Cabled Scarf by Marie Connolly
Yarn: Noro Iro (111)

Gotta say, I'm as happy with this extra knit as I am with Izzy's sweater. Now for fall to arrive in Albquerque...

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

FO: Deep Waters Clockwork

You know life is a little too bustling when the kid asks to stay home and chill on a three-day weekend.

So after our back-to-back Saturday commitments and the usual weekend chores, we spent the rest of Labor Day weekend watching movies — Rio (meh) and Rango (fun) — and hanging out at the pool.

And, no surprise, there was lots of knitting. With "Deep Waters" and "Mermaid Lagoon" as the yarn color names, this third in my West Knits collection just begged for a poolside shot. And since it was such a relaxing knit, a shot in the Zen Garden.


Pattern: Clockwork by Stephen West
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll Tonal and Imagination Hand Painted

And, as you've no doubt come to expect, there needed to be a few Izzy modeling shots as well.