Fast Hat

Two days of evening knitting got me a finished hat.

The pattern is called Starving Artist by LaLa Knits! and I found it on Ravelry for free, the yarn is from my stash, Yarn Bee Melody Bulky in Violets.

I heard about this pattern on Round the Twist with Carin. It was a great knit and learned how to do a purl increase which she calls a purl front and back.

Next time I will do just the beret version instead of the slouchy in this particular yarn. It is a little too crisp to slouch.

KCWG Sock of the Month Club - February Update

The first sock is done as of February 9th. The second one is on the needles.

One thing I am learning about this yarn, Blue Moon Fiber Arts Lightweight, is that the next time I knit socks with it I will try size 1US in 2.5mm instead of 2.25mm. So far the finished sock is beautiful and crisp, but a wee tight for me knit in this pattern and over 64 stitches.

They are still wearable and will be worn because the yarn is so yummy and beautiful. Now I just have to find some more, searching, searching.....

I hope everyone is making good progress on their projects this month~!

New Word of the Week #4 - Cool Hunter

Cool Hunter - def: One who predicts new styles and trends.

Don't you think this design would make a cool snowboarder hat? I do!

KWCG Sock of the Month - February Update

For this week's update I have good news, I am through the heel turn and ready to do the decreases on the first sock. I love this yarn! It is the Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock lightweight and is wonderful to knit with. It does not split on sharp points, the pattern technique really pops and the color changes make it interesting no matter what part of the sock you look at.

I knit this pattern, Mock Cable Rib, over 64 stitches on size 1US (2.25mm), all the way around the leg for 6 inches, did the 2.5 inch heel flap and picked up a total of 20 stitches on each side for the gusset. The leg is stretchy while maintaining a crisp patterned look.

These socks are car project for the month until it is done. I am tracking my progress on Ravelry with the start date of February 1st. It will be interesting to see how fast they do go this time. k

I hope everyone has a fun project they are working on this month~!

The Dilemma of Finishing

What do you do when you finish a project? As you know I keep two projects going at a time, one in the house and the other for the car. So this past month I finished my house project, the Summer Cardi, and was a bit delayed in the January sock project. So that became my house project on February 1st annd the February sock became the car project.

That was until I finished the January sock on February 2nd. Now I am working on the February sock full time but with no new house project to start. Dilemma! I need to pick out a new house project. Here are my choices:

Another Summer Cardi out of Caron Simply Paints in either Oceana or Harlequin, as shown.

The Envy Mitts in Claudia Handpaints in Mardi Gras or the Siren Sleeves in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport in Black Purl - very piratety I think, both yarns were purchased at Loopy Ewe last year.

I also have the option to start the Knit One Below Reversible Vest out of the skein of Interlacements Oregon Worsted in a bright variegate that will go with the Royal Purple leftovers in the Encore from my first Summer Cardi. The only think I have to decide is what size to do it in. I will be checking the gauge on the shop sample I knit to be sure I pick the right size.

And, lastly, the Vine and Leaf Beret from Vogue that I have some wonderful (you guessed it) purple yarn for.

So, those are my choices, and, drum roll please, the decision for this week is: The Siren Sleeves. They are now cast on and about 2 inches into the first one. I think they are going to be lovely for lightweight warmth with a T-shirt this spring.

Knitting Tool Find

Knitting tools and accessories can be found in the oddest places. For instance, Office Depot, I found a zippered bag from Mead Scholastic called a Stand and Store.

It will make a fabulous travel sock knitting bag to take on the plane to Spring Fling. I could not get a purple one so I chose one in orange that will stand out hanging on my Monroe bag that is eggplant.

I have a mini carbiner to use for hanging it. The only issue I see is the velcro pouch on the inside that could catch yarn, so I reset the fastening to cover most of it and then I can stand my folded pattern on that side to further protect it.

It will hold a sock yarn skein enough for one sock (170-200 yards), 6-7 inch wood dpns that are acceptable to TSA, a set of dpn holders, and the pattern. The other TSA approved tools will be in a little pouch holder in the larger bag easy to get to and use when needed.

This pouch can also be clipped onto the name badge lanyard to have hands free, no large bag, knitting on the go. How can I go wrong! Looks like a cool tool find to me!

KWCG - February Sock Announced

Introducing the February Sock - The Mock Cable Rib Socks, pattern is available from Ravelry from Jen Hansen for free. This pair is being knit out of Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock lightweight in Purple Rain, 360 yards. This is a skein I bought at Sock Summit 2009, my very first skein of the Socks That Rock yarn. I really like this colorway.

And the first one is on the needles and will be the car project for February. You may have noticed that I am not waiting until mid-month to get started like I did with January.

Watch for updates on the progress of this pair and my review of pattern and yarn.