I am repeating myself, but knitting top-down is FUN!
I have reached below the sleeves now, and I love how I won’t have to sew – almost at all. I have reached the point of mindless knitting in the round for 5″, but I keep being amazed at the lovely texture of the yarn. I am using Nepal from Drops, and it is 65% wool and 35% alpaca. And amazingly easy to work with.
I keep petting the sleeve increases – they look so nice! Much prettier than seams:
The pattern is Francis Revisited by Beth Silverstein – ravelry link here.
I couldn’t resist any longer, and bought the yarn for my Francis yesterday. And I just had to start:
I love the yarn, so soft to the touch and easy to work with. And I love the pattern, too! This is my first top-down sweater, and it is really fun. Look at the increases!
It is really fast on 6mm needles (which is good, as I have no patience).
I made some simple bracelets last week that I haven’t posted yet. I have used the same technique as on a handmade bracelet I bought in Cuba a couple of years ago: a long string with a couple of beads knotted on, and a few rows of macramé to secure them together and make the bracelet adjustable. Neat, huh?
This one is for my mother, who loves hot pink:
And this one is for me, with little green turtles:
I bought the turtle beads from Little Appleton Beads some years ago – the melon beads on the ends og the string is from the same shop.
What am I doing now?
I am knitting.
This is the beginning of a little cardi for me, in pale yellow cotton. I suspect I will put it away when the weather gets colder and pick it up again in the spring. I don’t like knitting with cotton in the autumn and winter.
As you can see, it has been a while since I knitted anything – my stitches are uneven. Hopefully it will get better with blocking.
I plan on starting a sweater when autumn comes. I’ve fallen in love with Francis Revisited:
(image from the creator’s blog).
You can find the pattern here, in the right column.
Isn’t it lovely? I plan on knitting it in the new DROPS yarn Nepal, a wool/alpaca blend knitted on 5mm needles. Should be quick (I hope).
Seen this one?
It’s a nautiloid, a prehistoric beast. Would look good on any bed, in my opinion.
Via Knitty
Being ill for a couple of days does wonders for the crafting part of my life.
I’ve made a new calorimetry, one that actually suits me:
And a neckwarmer to match:
I’va also made a Bainbridge scarf from the yarn I bought from MamaLlama at Etsy:
Hm. All the pictures are very blue. How strange. Well, the calorimetry and the neckwarmer are made from a thick, lovely grey alpaca, and the MamaLlama yarn is purple and green.
I cast on 100 instead of 120 for the calorimetry, but it seems I could have reduced to 90. I will try that the next time, but it works well enough. And it is really lovely and warm :) The bainbridge was fun and fast to make, and I will definitely make more as gifts. Instead of knitting the ties, I crocheted them (just because I find it easier). I will try some more with different stitches, and possibly some crocheted ones?
I have started to knit a shawl in Bånsull’s Merino wool/silk mix. I unashamedly copied one my friend’s mother made for her, a simple pattern of one increase at the beginning of each round.
The going is slow, with 3 mm needles and my arms tiring easily, but it will be lovely when it is finished :) I plan to add a crocheted edging if there is enough yarn at the end.
This is the world’s largest Calorimetry.
I learned a few things from this:
- My head is small.
- I knit very losely.
- Checking the gauge is a good idea.
I can use it, but I have to make a knot from the ends…
I am learning to knit, and lace patterns are fun! It demands concentration, and I think it would have been easier with a thicker yarn – it is really difficult to make out the pattern as I go. Fortunately, the mistakes are nearly impossible to spot as well :)
I finally finished the red mittens. Apparently, I crochet tighter now than I used to, and they became smaller than the last pair. So, I only felted them at 40 degrees, and I am rather happy with the result.
I have started making jewellery again: these are some of the latest examples.
This is the beginning of my alpaca vest from Lene Holme Samsøe’s book Feminin strikk. I am not a fast knitter (as mentioned), but I am immensely proud to have knitted all of five centimetres :) Hopefully, it will go faster by the time I’m finished with the back…
This is a half-finished hat in single crochet, made in fat cotton yarn. This is for a friend who has his birthday tomorrow – I hope he’ll like it!
I have a lot of projects at the moment – I am crocheting a bag in mustard yellow cotton yarn, knitting scarves and sewing a dress. Luckily, the easter holidays are not too far ahead! I will have to study a bit over easter – exam in just over a month! Eeeeek!
This is what I’m doing at the moment. On the left is my scarf in Noro Kureyon. I decided to knit it in ribs(knit two, purl tw0), and I imagine it says a LOT about my marvellous knitting skills that I am actually very proud to have achieved as much. To think of the knitting projects that I have decided to try makes me shiver in fright… I have decided on a vest, and traditional Selbu mittens, and a little jacket. I am not sure how this will turn out, but stay tuned.
I have come to love the Noro yarn – just look at the amazing colours! My crappy photo does not do them justice. One skein will not do for the scarf, however. And I’m horribly broke, so the scarf will have to be a temporary UFO until payday.
On the right is one mitten, minus thumb, pre-felting. Crocheting mittens is excellent for the train ride every day, as they are comparatively small, does not require a pattern, and won’t unravel in my bag if not watched carefully throughout the day (have I tried knitting on the train? yes.)
My 2do-list is getting longer by the minute, but I am at least very inspired at the moment. Everything is taken note of for a later occasion – now I’m looking forward to starting on the fantasy-along (and hopefully finish before April 1st), the Granny Ripple baby blanket, and the knitted mittens. But first: hood and hem on my woolen jacket (tonight). And fixing the hem of my silk dress.
…but I’m not feeling sad.
I am on a roll with the blue colour for february! I have finished the lavender bag for my mother:
And I made a little bowl as well! It was really cute :) Eskimo yarn felts so nicely, and is a treat to work with.
I could not resist this petrol silk alpaca yarn, so I actually knitted (!) a little neckwarmer, and crocheted the edges with black mohair:
I made one edge in picots and one in mussels.
And I even started a vest, with Sys Fredens’ pattern from “Hæklerier”:
Also in turquoise mohair, a yarn that’s been hanging around my apartment forever…
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