KATHY'S FANCY STITCHING NEWS



Postings and ponderings of a quilting and knitting addict!





Friday, January 11, 2013

A Fickle Persuasion…

Knitting can be such a fickle thing… it goes from wonderful to hair-pulling on a whim.  I am always just 1 mis-stitch away from a disaster, it seems.  It is sort of like Mr. Boots, our beloved minx stray that adopted us.  He craves attention and loves to be scratched or rubbed, but he may very well nip the hand that is loving on him.  Knitting is that way… except it may bite on the nether parts.

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I am working my very first lace pattern!  Yes!  I can do this!  I am at the half-way mark on my project.  I proudly pat myself on the back from time to time as I am working along, loving the way the pattern is developing, row by row. Pattern row, knit row, pattern row, knit row.  But wait… something is not working out here.

“Pride goeth before the fall.”  How true these words of wisdom are.  It only takes one time of forgetting to do the YO (yarn over) to totally throw the pattern off. (Actually, I MAY have forgotten to YO several times on the offending row, but it only takes ONE time to blow the pattern out of the water.)  And since there is a plain row between each pattern row, being the novice knitter that I am, I did not realize the incorrect stitch count until it was too late.

“Frogging”  (Rippit-rippit!) goes so easily in quilting, although it is a real time-killer when you are under a deadline.   When I mis-stitch in quilting I just grab the seam ripper and pick out the offending stitches, re-stitch, and we are good to go.  You would think knit “frogging” would also be a breeze but it just is not so.  And I submit the evidence below:

1.  Just a quick glance can usually tell me where the quilting went bad… I have worked on finding my knitting mistake for about 1 1/2 hours now.

2.  Taking the knitting OUT is easy, but making sure you have all the live stitches on the needles is a real pain, and very time consuming. This has taken about another 45 minutes to rip back one row of 120 stitches.

3.  Then there is the little problem of being sure the stitches on the needles are turned the correct way after frogging.  I am slowly figuring this out… experience is a hard but good teacher on things like this. 

Long story short, I THINK I have found the problem, I THINK I have ripped out all the mistake-ridden row, and I THINK I have all stitches turned the correct direction.  We will see… the next pattern row will be the “proof in the pudding”.103_0826

But it will be SOOO worth it when my Fresco Basket Whip Cowl (a free Ravelry pattern) is finished.   The soft, squishiness  of the KnitPicks Andean Treasure yarn (100% baby alpaca)  and the “Tidepool” color are wonderful things.  (It is a little brighter in color than the photo shows.)

I know you are thinking, “She lives in Louisiana.  When would she ever need a cowl?”  Sometimes it just is not about NEED, my friends, but rather a NEED to KNIT!  Colder weather is coming next week, and I will be so ready for it, in my Fresco Basket Whip Cowl, which I am hoping does NOT cause “hat-hair” when used as shown in the Ravelry picture.

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For those visiting from Judy’s Patchwork Times “On the Needles Friday”, you may enjoy seeing the BOATLOAD of knitting I have done in the past month.  Check this post for an update, please.

Happy knitting, my friends.  May all your k2tog’s and yo’s be correctly placed!

KAT

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Socks In A Week…

And Other Knitting Feats Beyond Belief!

Yes, really.  I did knit a pair of socks in one week!  I knit while watching TV, and football is a wonderful opportunity for knitting.  So what does this accomplishment tell you?  I have been watching WAY too much football, but it will soon be over.103_0814

The pattern is “Circle Socks”, a free pattern from Ravelry.  The yarn is Lion Brand Sock-Ease.

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I have been knitting up a storm, and a lot of it was for gifting.

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Pedi Socks for my Katie Bug from a yarn that pooled too much in my size.  She loves them!

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Socks for my step-father… finished 5 minutes AFTER they said, “Let’s open presents now!”

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The Reader’s Wrap, finished, blocked, and gifted to a friend.  (That is my sock blocker sticking into the pocket so you will notice how pretty they came out!)

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Three crocheted shawls to leave at church so those of us that are cold-natured can be comfortable while the hot- natured ones have the air going.  I have yarn for another one but it will have to wait until I get over my knitting frenzy.

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I played around with the Slipper Purse pattern (another free Ravelry pattern).  I am still working on getting it to come out the right size.  I have made one that was way too large and another that was way too small… hopefully the next attempt will get it right.

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I am working on finishing up this pair of socks started in October.  I really did not like the yarn (It was sale yarn, so that excuses me for choosing this.) and it was so very boring knit in plain stockinet stitch.

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I debated abandoning the project, but I just don’t do that.  So I ripped back to the gusset decreases and worked the “Simple Skyp” pattern, another free Ravelry pattern.  I LOVE doing this pattern, and it is keeping my interest enough to go ahead and finish the pair. 

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One sock is complete and I am working on the foot for the next one.

And I have knit 1 fingerless mitt for myself.  I promise pictures when they are finished.  I am hoping to get the other one done soon… having only one is useless, so I will try to have the 2nd one done before really cold weather returns.

And there you have it… knitting up a storm.  I have to because… (SSHHHHHH!  Don’t tell, but my KnitPicks order of more yarn should be here soon… I am SOOO weak when they flash the S-A-L-E word around.)

Happy knitting, or sewing, or whatever you are finding to do on this wonderful, rainy day.

KAT

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