FO Friday: Deep Water Echo

June 1, 2012May 6, 2012remilyknits 5 Comments

I made a pretty pretty shawl! I think I’m in love with Estonian-style lace patterns.

Available: FREE! on Ravelry

Yarn: Knit Picks Shadow Tonal in Deep Waters

I made the larger version of this pattern, which I only regretted when doing the umpteenth repeat of the 3-into-9 body pattern. I love the nupps, the stars, everything! High marks to this first-time designer for a beautiful and well-written pattern!

Knit Picks Shadow Tonal is a joy to work with — springy and just enough color variation for beauty, without distracting from the lace. I did find Deep Waters a bit dark for night-time knitting: I had to wait for good light.

FO Friday: Knit Jasper

May 25, 2012May 6, 2012remilyknits 3 Comments

Please say hi to Knit Jasper!

Project: Knit Jasper

Pattern: Siberian Husky, highly modified

Designer: Joanna Osborne and Sally Muir

Available: in Knit Your Own Dog

Yarn: Palette

A friend of mine from agility lost her dog Jasper to a sudden accident. Before he died, she incurred some serious vet bills, and the agility community held some raffles to raise money to help her out. I donated a “custom knit mini dog” for the raffle. Someone mentioned that they hoped the winner would give the prize to Kathy … so I decided to make her a Jasper up front, so the winner wouldn’t have to give up their prize. (The winner, by the way, has a mini poodle — look for that project soon!)

It was hard to get started on Knit Jasper, because I wanted so badly for it to be as close to perfect as possible. This was extra hard, because the original Jasper is not any particular breed — so there wasn’t a pattern in Knit Your Own Dog that was exactly right. Eventually I decided that the Siberian Husky was closest in shape, especially the ears and head.

I charted out the written pattern for the Husky, and colored in Jasper’s signature tri-color markings. I made the legs and body just a smidge shorter to better match Jasper’s sturdy frame. Slowly he came together … I couldn’t figure out how to put a ruff around his neck without making it look like a lion’s mane, but overall I am satisfied with the doppelganger. After I took photos, I decided to tip the right ear — I soaked it in water, pinched it in a chip clip, and let it dry overnight. The tipped ear really helps the look!

Here’s another pair of knit vs. original photos — it’s important to get rears right too!

So long Jasper, happy trails to you.

FO Friday: Very Orange Hoodie

May 18, 2012May 6, 2012remilyknits 3 Comments

I finished the big orange hoodie!!

Project: Very Orange Hoodie

Pattern: Hooded Guernsey, highly modified

Designer: Debbie Bliss

Available: in Family Knits, among other sources

Yarn: CEY Duchess

Astute readers may recognize this hoodie as one of my “Finish It or Frog It” projects from January. See the orange bit in the upper left? Now it’s a sweater, yay!

I bought two bags of unlabelled Duchess from the back wall at Hub Mills — a great yarn shop (yes, I work them and am justifiably biased) that often has great finds along the back wall. Off-label and discontinued CEY yarns can often be had for a song! And let’s be honest kids — I wouldn’t normally make a kid’s hoodie out of a cashmere blend yarn, right?

Let’s get on to the mods …

First of all, the pattern calls for DK yarn and only goes up to size 4. I actually made the size 4 for Eli a few years ago, following the pattern more or less exactly. When he asked for a new sweater, he wanted the same one, only in orange. Since bright orange can be tricky to find, I bought the bulky-weight Duchess anyway, knowing I’d have to alter the pattern.

I did a bunch of math to figure out how big the finished size 10-ish sweater should be, and how many stitches I’d need with the Duchess (I got 7 sts/2 in), and went to work. One major change I made was to work the body and sleeves in the round. I also worked the inside of the kangaroo pocket from picked-up stitches, to avoid sewing later on. I did use 3-needle bind-off for the shoulders, to give it a bit of structure. I worked the hood from a “Judy’s magic cast on” center, again to avoid a seam.

To prove that even seasoned knitters can make dorky mistakes, I carefully sewed in the hood …. facing backwards. Ugh. Picked it out and sewed it in correctly and was finally done! Eli is pleased, but considers it a bit TOO large — I made a classic mom error and knit with next fall in mind. But, at least I have a good chance of having it fit him in the next cold season.

FO Friday: Yar

May 11, 2012May 6, 2012remilyknits Leave a comment

I made something fun for the shop!

Project: Yar

Pattern: Starboard

Designer: Susan Mills

Available: $6 on Ravelry, in CE #9168 (Harbor) for $10

Yarn: CEY Seedling Handpaint in #4567

“Starboard” is a quick and fun knit, using just two hanks of soft and colorful Seedling Handpaint. I was asked to make a store sample for the shop, and I was pleased to do so! The cast-on edge of 135 elongated picots was … sorry to say … a bit tedious. But, I knew that once the edge was done, the rest would be quickly completed. I played a board game with friends while making the picots, and two hours later, I was at work on the short-row ribbed body. I finished the next day.

Thanks to my model Eli for showing off Yar for me! 🙂

FO Friday: Alizarin Damask

May 4, 2012April 22, 2012remilyknits 1 Comment

Project: Alizarin Damask

Pattern: Damask

Designer: Kitman Figueroa

Available: $5 on Ravelry

Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light in Alizarin

This is my second try on this particular pattern, and I’m glad I stuck it out! I love the undulating waves, punctuated by nupps and wrapped stitches. There’s a lot going on with this pattern, and in retrospect I wish I’d chosen a lighter-colored yarn … but I loved working with the Tosh Light, and I love wearing the finished shawlette. I made the small size, and it’s really more kerchief than shawl.

FO Friday: Evergreen Beanie

April 27, 2012April 5, 2012remilyknits 3 Comments

Project: Evergreen Beanie

Pattern: Everdeen Beanie

Designer: Tanis Gray

Available: in Weekend Hats

Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh DK in Jade

Oh how I love this yarn! Oh how I love this pattern! It really is a match made in heaven. Tosh DK is squishy and wonderful in every possible way, and the non-pooling variegated greens never cease to amaze. The pattern evokes fish scales or waves, or (if you’re a truly mad knitter) you might think of the famous Pomatomus socks by Cookie A (I’ve made two pair, so I know a bit of what I speak). The body of the hat is essentially 1×1 twisted rib, with increases and decreases that make the rib swoop around so attractively. It also makes for an elastic, bouncy, warm hat — love it!

In the spirit of matchy-matchy, I opted to do the brim in 1×1 twisted-knit rib (rather than the 2×2 plain rib called for in the pattern), so that the rib would flow directly into the main body pattern. I also changed the first round — I did a regular k2tog (in lieu of a k2togtbl) on round 1, every repeat of the pattern. To my eye, this allowed the waves to flow into each other more smoothly.

FO Friday: Hellebores Wristlets

April 20, 2012April 5, 2012remilyknits 3 Comments

Project: Hellebores Wristlets

Pattern: Hellebores

Designer: Anne Hanson

Available: $8 on Ravelry; includes matching beret pattern

Yarn: CEY Silky Alpaca Lace in #2458

Although I really like my finished wristlets, this pattern was a bit of a slog. For me, the lace never made sense, so it was tricky to follow. Ending with 24 rounds of itty-bitty 1×1 ribbing did not help my mood. But, the finished bits of lacy softness are a true delight, and help add a bit of warmth and color when tucked into the ends of a jacket or sweater. I like the idea and would make more in the future, but with a different lace pattern, I think.

FO Friday: Silver Ribband

April 13, 2012April 5, 2012remilyknits 1 Comment

Project: Silver Ribband

Pattern: Ribband

Designer: Laura Nelkin

Available: $5 on Ravelry, pattern kit with all accouterments was $21 retail

Yarn: Alpaca with a Twist Fino

I made this pretty and versatile knitted jewelry piece in just one day. The kit came with all the fixings: beads, crystals, yarn, clasp, and even a special tool to help thread the beads onto the yarn. For this pattern, the beads are all strung ahead of time, then popped into place as needed. What else can I say? Well-written and clear, this pattern was a pleasure to knit. The FO is another shop sample for the Hub Mills Store.

FO Friday: Princess Wander’s Aran Cape

April 6, 2012April 5, 2012remilyknits 8 Comments

I made a cape! This does not make me a knitting superhero.

Project: Princess Wander’s Aran Cape

Pattern: Wandering Aran Fields

Designer: Norah Gaughan

Available: in Wrap Style

Yarn: CEY Princess in peacock (3409)

This is a store sample for the Hub Mills Store. Even though Princess has been discontinued (SOB!) we still have some in stock — come and get it, before it’s all gone! There is nothing quite so soft and lovely as this worsted-weight yarn. I will miss it when it’s gone entirely. In the mean time, I got to knit this cabled cape — such fun!

The pattern is pretty straightforward: cast on the bottom edge, work cables until done, make button bands, then make more ribbing than you’d like to. The shoulder decreases are cleverly hidden in the cables — very cool! The button bands are worked separately in the pattern, with smaller needles, although I noticed several knitters elected to work them as they went rather than deal with seaming. Seaming doesn’t bother me, and I think it adds to the structure of the garment in many cases.

If you make this pattern, don’t make MY mistake. I thought I knew what they wanted for 2×2 rib — I mean, 2×2 rib, right? How hard is that? Well, I failed to take into account a totally appropriate one-stitch selvage (to make seaming those button bands easier), and ended up having to correct two inches of 2×2 rib that was off by one stitch. Ugh. Of course, I could have ripped it all out … but ribbing is my nemesis, and I just couldn’t face it.

I have improved my ribbing a great deal with this project, speaking of. All it took was a little more attention paid to keep the working yarn on the needle tips when going from a knit to a purl — I was allowing the yarn to slip back a bit, adding too much slack at this crucial point and causing a loose left edge to knit columns.

FO Friday: Ashton Sweet Pea

March 30, 2012March 8, 2012remilyknits 1 Comment

I fear I am becoming a bit of a fingering-weight shawlette whore …

Project: Ashton Sweet Pea

Pattern: Ashton Shawlette

Designer: Dee O’Keefe

Available: FREE! on Ravelry

Yarn: Socks That Rock Lightweight in Sweet Pea

I had this ball of STR saved from May 2010. I tried (and failed) to make the club sock that month. The yarn seemed boring and lackluster, too pale. But, oh how this “spirit” colorway shines in a mostly-stockinette shawl! Ashton is a great pattern in it’s own right, but the designer makes it even better by intentionally making it accessible to the beginner lace knitter. A thoughtful step-by-step process leads a novice lace knitter through the process of reading charts to make a traditional top-down triangular lace shawl. I have, in fact, already recommended this pattern to a friend and a knitting student. I did do one repeat less than the pattern called for, because I knew I was working with a smallish skein. I ended up with 6g left after the bind off. Success!

Remily Knits

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