Tag Archive for ‘sweaters’ at adam knits!

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Oooohhh, Shiny! 01 Sep 07

Hey everyone, thanks for all your great comments on my yarn being at The Loopy Ewe! I’m finishing up the dyeing and reskeining this weekend, so it should be off to Sheri and up at the store soon. Keep an eye out! Also, I’ll be placing an order for some 1500 MHz Sport Merino as soon as I ship off the wholesale order, so keep an eye out for that yarn at www.yarnnerd.com.

In other news, I got a new toy!

That’s right, I finally had enough money saved up to go pay off my bike and get it out of layaway. I picked it up last night, and my Dad helped me put on some clipless pedals and showed me a few things, and off I went! I was a bit worried about using the clipless pedals, but commuting these last few months has made me a lot more confident on the bike, and my fears turned out to be unfounded. The pedals are super easy to use and it’s definitely a lot more efficient than straight push pedals. My Dad was kind enough to take a picture of me riding (wow, I look like a 5 year old boy in that picture) around the neighborhood.

It feels really great to have a bike that actually fits me, and I’m really looking forward to next week’s commute now. I’m interested to see how much time I can shave off, since this bike is super fast. Oh, and it’s super light too, so it should be a bit easier to load it onto the bus to school (and hopefully it will get me less grouchy bus driver stares, since the mountain bike was a bit hard to load onto that rack).

All in all, it’s only been a few months since I started bike commuting, but it’s already drastically changed the way I look at transportation. I absolutely love my commute now, and I’m always looking for opportunities to ride instead of driving. Plus, I’m so happy to have finally found a form of exercise that I really enjoy. In the past I never found something I really loved, so it was always hard to stick to a routine. I just wish I had given cycling a serious try sooner!

I also have another pair of socks under my belt to show off. (__Two pairs in consecutive posts! What is this blog coming to?__)

Remember these?

“Jolly Good Chap” Socks

Pattern: Gentleman’s Sock with Lozenge Pattern from Knitting Vintage Socks, by Nancy Bush.
Yarn: Hand-Spun by Anne, received in a swap.
Needles / Gauge: 7.5 spi on US #1’s. Knitted with Magic Loop.
Construction: I stuck to the pattern on this one, except I used a slip stitch heel instead of a stockinette one. I also modified the lozenge pattern to be over 60 stitches, since my gauge was less than the book’s.
Completion Time: 4 months (May - August)

I really love these socks. This was the first time (at the time of cast-on) that I had used hand-spun, and it was a very different and wonderful experience. The wool that Anne used is a bit more coarse than I was used to, but it makes a really sturdy and warm fabric. Anne’s spinning job was superb, and I know that these socks will be around for many years to come. They’re a bit slouchy around the leg, because the pattern gauge is a bit bigger than stockinette gauge, but the ribbed cuff holds them up, and I think that slouchy socks are wonderful. They’ll be perfect for cold winter evenings, to keep my feet warm while I drink coffee and knit. And the pattern gives them a very sophisticated look; so much so, that I fancy myself a Brit while wearing them. ;)

So thanks Anne, the yarn is wonderful, and the socks are even better!

Lastly, I want to leave you with a bit of a somber warning. If you are ever knitting a sweater, be sure to count the number of stitches in your gauge swatch instead of assuming. Or, if you always knit your swatches over 32 stitches, don’t make a 36 stitch swatch, and then measure your gauge thinking your swatch is 32 stitches. Cause that means all your impeccable math and perfect sizing doesn’t mean anything…, and it leads to this inevitable outcome:

Oh, and listen to that nagging voice in your head that says, “hey, maybe before you get too much farther, you should take it off the needles and try it on!” Cause it will be right. At least I was only 1 inch past the hem, so no harm no foul this time. I forge ahead, because I am determined to have a cosy sweater to go with my Englishman socks this winter.

Published

Adam

in biking, dyeing, finished objects, frogged, hand spun, knitting, socks, sweaters and yarn nerd

Obsession is Normal. 24 May 07

37 Comments

My neighbors must think I’m a loon. Actually, they might not be too far off. If you were in my neighborhood yesterday, you might have been taken aback as well. So what on earth was I doing?

Well let’s just say that I had a little dog photo shoot involving baby knits…

No Schnauzers were physically harmed during this photoshoot, although emotional damage may have occurred.

"did you say treat? you better deliver!"

I better get a freaking treat out of this.

"Arrrr! shiver me timbers, I’ll get you for this! Arrrr, dArrrrr, dΘ"

I would explain, but there’s really nothing to explain. Some good friends of mine just had their second baby, and seeing as I have had lots of time, I cranked out a few hats for their adorable new son. I wanted to get some pictures of the hats before I gifted them, but wanted something more than an ordinary lightbox shot. I thought about using a comforter (like brooklyntweed does for baby knits) to model the hats, but then I realized that I had something even better. Live models with furry little heads. Next thing I knew, I was laying in the grass, saying “Treat!” over and over, trying to get my poor humiliated dogs to look at the camera. The things I do for the blog…

You have to admit though, these pictures are darn cute.

Dallas is wearing a very lovely Top Down Bonnet in some red Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky. I loved this pattern, but I wasn’t paying attention and increased too much, so I ended up making the child size instead of the baby size. It’s all good though, because I promised my friends a hat for their daughter over a year ago, and now I can finally deliver on that promise! Sorry it’s taken so long guys!

Emma is wearing a Children’s Cotton Hat, from Last Minute Knitted Gifts, knitted up with less than 1/2 of a skein of Patagonia Nature Cotton. It was leftovers from another baby hat, and I didn’t have too much, so this hat turned out to be more of a baby skull cap. I also knitted another one with some Manos Cotton Stria, but it wouldn’t stay on Emma’s head. I really like that hat pattern, it’s quick and simple, and makes a very cool looking baby knit.

So congrats on the new baby Sam and Rosemary, he’s absolutely adorable! Hopefully there’s not dog hair on the hats, but Schnauzers don’t shed, so they should be hair free! ;)

In other news, the yarn for my Seamless Hybrid came yesterday. It came in a USPS shoe box, which prompted me to wonder why I was receiving shoes that I hadn’t ordered, until I opened it and was greeted with the sweet smell of wool. Ahhh, Cascade 220, how I love thee. This color is so great too, it looks like a mixture of coffee and red wine, with a bit of chocolate thrown in. I’m planning to use the olive green to do the sleeve hems, and possibly the neckband too. I can’t wait to get started on this!

one of these things is not like the others

I also wound up my Tree Scum Handspun, to begin the project planning phase. I’m such a planner when I knit, and I want to be especially conscientious with this yarn since it’s so nice. The project planning phase (or PPP) usually involves making a swatch or two with different needle sizes, washing and blocking those swatches, then measuring them to get accurate gauge. Of course, this all gets written down in my yarn notebook, so that if I ever use a particular yarn again, I can just "check my notes". Then I pick a pattern, and usually adapt it in some form to suit what I’m looking for. Then I can finally cast-on! There’s also obsessive amounts of trying on and measuring during the knitting phase, to ensure that the item comes out perfectly.

tree scum handspun - waiting for the cast on

I know my process is a bit obsessive, but _what else would you expect from an engineer?_ And one benefit is that I can almost always guarantee that my knitted objects will fit well. The few times I have strayed from this process are the few times where things have gone horribly wrong. So I take comfort in perfecting my art through the use of my calculator, ruler and notebook. Someday I hope to pass the knitting bug onto my kids, and leave them all of my notebooks so they can know what a weirdo their Dad was. As if the dogs in hats pictures aren’t proof enough ;)

So what’s your process? Are you like me, or do you prefer to be a bit more free form? No judgment here, I’m just interested to know if there’s other obsessive knitters out there! Besides Grumperina of course, because she totally rocks the math skills too.

Oh, and if you have any pattern ideas for my handspun, please toss them into the hat! I’m thinking something Nancy Bush, or Anne’s Smokin’ Socks, but I’m open to suggestions!

Published

Adam

in baby, dallas, ee, emma, finished objects, gifts, knitting, knitting techniques, nerdy, patterns, schnauzers, socks and sweaters

I Heart Yarn 19 May 07

16 Comments

All this free time is making me go knitting crazy! I love it! I actually got to go the LYS yesterday, for the first time in who knows how long. It’s been a few months at least. It was a wonderful experience just to browse, fondling many of the yarns and thumbing through the books. Sometimes I think I’m around yarn so much with all the dyeing, that I forget how much I really like this stuff.

I did pick up a few things at Village Wools yesterday, including this Debbie Blish Cashmerino Chunky in a deep red color. It’s super nice stuff, and I’m planning to knit up an undisclosed baby item as a gift for some friends who are expecting. (Past due now actually!) You guys know who you are! ;) I think it will look pretty sweet, and I’m looking forward to working with this yarn, because it’s so unbelievably soft and buttery. Yes, buttery.

I also got a copy of the fabled book, Knitting Without Tears, by the knitting legend herself, Elizabeth Zimmerman. I’m planning to make a Seamless Hybrid Sweater (much like this one by the talented Julie Frick) over the summer, and I figured I should get the instructions first!

Oh, and somehow 6 skeins of Cascade 220 wandered into my shopping cart the other day and are now on their way to me. It all happened so fast, I don’t really remember it, but I’m pretty sure I gave into the bad angel on that one. (But at only $4.89 a skein, I just couldn’t say no.) I place all the blame on Jared, with all his gorgeous sweaters, how could I not be tempted to learn sweaters for myself?

Then to top all the yarny goodness off, my Tree Scum Handspun from Anne arrived today. It totally makes me weak in the knees. Just to look at it and know that it was spun from roving blows my mind. It’s a beautifully spun yarn, with very even singles and plying, and the colors are phenomenal. I’m super excited to cast on my for first handspun experience, I think it’ll be a good one.

my first handspun (well I didn't spin it...)!

Now the hardest thing I have to decide is which project to cast on for first! (Oh and don’t worry Mom, I’ve actually gotten 5 rounds done on the Garden Shawl in the last few days, so I’m not neglecting it entirely!)

And what would a Saturday afternoon be without a sky picture? Today’s picture was taken just moments before hail started pelting my street in a torrential downpour. This is only 5 minutes after there were no clouds in the sky. New Mexico weather is weird stuff…

I did manage to have a little panic attack when it started hailing, since hail and I don’t have a very good history. (Google the 2004 Socorro Hailstorm if you don’t already know what happened). But all is well, because I have a garage now, and was able to get my car into safety in mere moments. Then it promptly stopped hailing. Yeesh!

I’ll leave you with some shots of the kids dogs, since I think it’s been a while since I’ve had obligatory dog pictures on the blog. I got them some new collars today, aren’t they sweet? (You know you’re living in the fast lane when you get excited over new dog collars). I had to bribe Emma with her chew bone to get her to take a picture…she’s such a diva. And Dallas? Well give him a toy and he’s pretty much oblivious to everything around him.