by Kat | Jan 12, 2018 | General
Despite temps that reached the 70’s with the sun out yesterday, Treysta got her debut yesterday and, oh my, I just LOVE her!
Hindsight in knitting, I should have gone down once size I think, but it fits and is incredibly comfortable! Treysta is a well-written pattern with excellent directions on yarn dominance and how to carry three colors in the few rows where three colors are worked at the same time.
I did some minor modifications to the pattern: no ribbing at the cuffs or at the bottom of the sweater, but rather I did the rolled edge like the neckline and the fit is much better. I did 4 rows of stockinette with a smaller needle on the sleeves and 6 rows with the same size needle on the bottom hem. No other changes were made at all. This is my first FO of 2018 and I could not be happier with it. My love of Lettlopi grows, it absolutely knits into the most wonderful fabric!
My sweater knitting is not yet over and I am cruising along on my Stopover! I am through the waist shaping and will likely start the sleeves this weekend. I had forgotten what a quick knit this is and this will easily be done this month!
Now, how about some links!
I Knit New York has some fantastic knits in it! And, if you head over to those crazy girls at Mason Dixon, Jane Jacobs is free for a limited time!
JumperCables released Mock Rib Cowl which is on sale right now!
Mary and Vicki are leading a little KAL with the Parallelogram Scarf and there is still time to join in!
This January thaw is nice, but I promise that winter is far from over…Narwhal and Fossil (and the pattern is free!)
BT Winter 18 has some lovely knits!
And, finally, a pattern I have been stalking all week! September House by Kirsten Kapur. I really love it!
Have an amazing weekend stay warm and dry! See you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Jan 9, 2018 | General, Making
Yesterday, I saw this post from Gale which then took me to IG where I happily fell down a bit of a rabbit hole looking at #makenine2018 collages.
But, Gale was the starter of all this craziness and thanks to her I have also become a Ravelry Stalker of Kirsten Kapur’s pattern page watching for the release of not one, but two patterns: The September House Sweater and of course, her Mystery Socks which I hope will both be out soon.
I was going to “cheat” a bit and add my Treysta, but since I have less than 20 rows to go, I feel like it is already done (or it will be today!)
I have a little bit of sewing here, and lots of knitting.
Here is my Make Nine 2018:
- Ysolda’s Strokkur: I have the yarn, and am itching to cast on!
- Veronika Cardigan: I hope to spin some Romney to knit this.
- Merchant & Mills Curlew Dress
- Lotta Jansdottor’s Tunic from her Everyday Style book
- Through the Loops Mystery Socks
- Blaer: again, I already have the yarn for this
- Hygge, from Laine Magazine Issue 3: This is knit with Brooklyn Tweed Loft, so I am going to try and spin a similar yarn.
- Stopover: this time as a pullover!
- Autumn Forest, again from Laine Magazine: This is the only project that I have already in progress, however I have a good bit to still knit with 15 pattern repeats to go!
In addition to this, I would like to find some kind of sock mojo this year and maybe knit a couple of pairs of socks in addition to this list. I am amazed by those who somehow manage to knit a pair of socks a month… I have plenty of single socks that are sadly waiting for a mate. Either I find some sock mojo, or perhaps I start a trend of wearing mismatched socks!
What about you? Are you joining the #makenine2018 challenge?
by Kat | Jan 5, 2018 | General
I have been slowly plugging away at my Treysta, and Sleeve No. One is almost done! Sleeve No. Two should go faster, because I was smart and kept track of all my rows! Maybe by this time next week, a new sweater will be born!
I am glad it is the weekend and a bit of persistence will pay off there too! I got a new Lidia cookbook for Christmas and there is a cocktail (or ten) in there with my name on it. Perhaps a bit of a weekend celebration do-over is in order!
Now, how about some links to get the weekend started?
Shaila mittens were released last September but the pattern was not available for download until this week. Included is an excellent video on yarn dominance, in case you want to do some stranded knitting this year!
Staying in the stranded knitting theme, Setesdalish… oh my gosh!
Or, perhaps Vintersol
All of these are truly wonderful examples of stranded knitting!
Not up for stranded knitting? Perhaps just knitting a sweater is on your list this year. Both Margene and Mary give rave reviews for sweaters designed by Elizabeth Doherty and she has a new pattern out: Archer, knit with The Woolen Rabbit Airy.
Kate Davies also has a new pattern out today: Carbeth I love the simple lines of this sweater and the construction!
And, finally, PBSNewsHour is joining forces with the NYT’s and together they have started Now Read This! The first book is one that deeply moved me last year, Jesmyn Ward’s Sing, Unburied, Sing. At the end of the month there will be a Q&A with her! This should be so much fun!
That is all I have for this first Friday in January! Stay warm this weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Dec 15, 2017 | General
I have been doing some super-secret knitting during the day which I can’t tell you all about or show you just yet, but I am making some good progress. This has been assisted greatly by audiobooks (I am almost done with Bonfire) and Season 2 of The Crown on Netflix, which I finished yesterday.
I am anticipating this super-secret knitting to be completed today, which will allow me to BREATHE a deep sigh of relief!
I am also anticipating the 2018 Read Harder Challenge, which I am going to participate in next year. I have also been contemplating my Goodreads book challenge this year – do I play it safe or really push myself this year? Perhaps with the Net Neutrality debacle, reading might be more important next year as streaming Netflix might be limited. I am leaning towards pushing myself.
AND, as you can see, I am really ready for some Christmas Break Reading. The Library is being SUPER good to me right now and has somehow moved me up on my “hold list” almost to the GAH point! I checked out the above books on Tuesday night, and last night Killers of the Flower Moon was downloaded to my iPad. With these additions, it almost feels like I can make that 85-books-read mark!
But, how about some links:
First up, staying with the reading theme:
I laughed at this Hogwarts House Quiz (I got Slytherins and loved that I have read most of the books on the House Slytherin list)
I also loved the 100 Must-Read Books with One-Word Titles. I added quite a few to my read list!
Are you a mystery series lover? 25 Of The Absolute Best Cozy Mystery Series
Also, FYI: You can now follow hashtags on IG…
And, finally the knitting links:
Playtime
Sankta Lucia Socks
Little Knots Cardigan… LOVE!
Is 2018 you Year of Knitting? Big Sky Weather Scarf This could be an excellent stash buster as well!
Pine Burr I am not sure if it’s the color (which is divine!) or the stitch pattern but, I love this cowl!
Bittersweet Oh, my. I love the texture. Will 2018 be the year I finally tackle texture?
And, Kate Atherley’s Rosetta Tharpe is FREE until midnight December 17th in honor of the induction of Ms. Tharpe to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
That is all I have for this week! Have a great weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Dec 8, 2017 | General
The knitting marches on, albeit slowly. However, today I am going to share a bit of a preview about my 2018 Stitching Project, which will begin on December 21 and I am taking a bit of license from Vivaldi and borrowing his Four Seasons. There will be four much larger stitching projects; Winter, Spring, Summer, and Autumn. And, while they will still be free-hand stitching – no drawing out of my design, the season of stitches will all be the same motif, but will change color as the season does.
I have also been wondering how handspun yarn would work to use for stitching, so I have been playing with some fiber to create some “crayons” to stitch with. I will test this out before hand to see how I like it. I am not the best at spinning super fine yarns, so I am not sure that this will work as I am envisioning it. But, I am going to do some experimenting swatching and see what it looks like over the weekend and I will share my results back here on Monday.
Now, how about some links???
That is all I have for this week, have a great weekend – stay warm! I will see you back here on Monday!
