Cables

In my effort to decrease my yarn stash, I designed a hat pattern to use up some of my spare skeins of Paton's Classic Wool.  I had two shades of gray left over from something years ago.  I wanted a cabled rib brim in the darker color that folded up and the lighter color in stockinette for the rest of the hat. My plans got a bit skewed, however, when I tried it on halfway through the top and Leda told me she liked it better as a beanie with the reverse stockinette showing. I was shocked! How could my design have been wrong, and this be better? But alas, I looked in the mirror and the dark cabled rib brim looked kind of plain when it was folded up over the stockinette stitch. The reverse stockinette stitch added a bit more pizazz and much more charm. So I followed Leda's advise and finished it as it was. I think it turned out lovely, and gave it to my model as thanks after the photoshoot.

Robyn’s Banana Brimmed Hat.

Yarn: 2 colors Worsted Weight (Paton’s Classic Wool, charcoal and light gray)
Needles:  16” circulars, size US 4

Instructions

Cast on 111 stitches in Color A (charcoal).  Join in the round, knitting first and last stitch together to eliminate the jag. This leaves 100 stitches.

Brim

Row 1, 2, 4, 5: K2, P2, K4, P2 around.

Row 3: K2, P2, C2B, P2 around.

Knit rows 1-5 in pattern for 3 inches. 

Body

Knit around for 1 row in charcoal.  Switch to light gray and knit around for 1 more row.  Continue in stockinette for 3 inches, following option 1 or option 2.

Option 1: Switch from knit to purl and continue in reverse stockinette stitch for 3 inches before beginning the decrease.

Option 2: If you hate purling around, follow this option.  This is what I did.

At start of next row, wrap and turn and knit around the opposite direction.  Turn work inside out and continue knitting in stockinette stitch for 3 inches.

Wrap and turn: bring yarn from back of work to front.  Slip next stitch onto right needle,move yarn to back of work, and slip stitch back to left needle.  Turn work.  Move yarn to back of work and continue in pattern. 

Decrease

Follow this for Option 2. For Option 1, all Ks should be Ps.

Row 1: (K8, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 2: K around
Row 3: (K7, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 4: K around
Row 5: (K6, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 6: K around
Row 7: (K5, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 8: K around
Row 9: (K4, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 10: K around
Row 11: (K3, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 12: K around
Row 13: (K2, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 14: K around
Row 15: (K1, K2tog) repeat around.
Row 16: K2tog around (Should have 11 sts on needles)

Break yarn and run through remaining stitches.  Pull tight and tie off.  

Why yes, the brim of my hat does look quite a bit like the ribbing on some Banana Republic sweaters. Coincidence? I think not! I've had a sweater with this ribbing for a couple years and have always thought it would look nice on a hat. So here I gone and done it.

Why yes, the brim of my hat does look a lot like my Oscarette sweater socks. Coincidence? Heck yes! I finished this hat moments before I ran out the door to the annual Oscars Pajama Party, where my swag was a pair of these knee high sweater socks. They match! 

I see a theme in my life at the moment. And I like it.

Kaa Hat

Remember The Jungle Book? And remember the python with the mesmerizing googly eyes, Kaa?

I wanted to make myself a hat with some nice cream colored yarn I bought about a year ago that's been languishing in the stash waiting for the perfect pattern. I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for, so I made one up, inspired by the "Eyes of Kaa." It's just what I wanted, and I used stash yarn to boot!

Total Yards: 16,710
Total Grams: 10,479
Number of Skeins: 123.6
Finished Objects from Stash: 2

Robyn’s Brimmed Kaa Hat.

Yarn: Worsted Weight (Berroco Lustra)
Needles:  16” circulars, size US 8 (5mm)

Instructions

Cast on 101 stitches.  Join in the round, knitting first and last stitch together to eliminate the jag. This leaves 100 stitches.

Brim

K2P2 around for 4 inches.  Increase for a larger “roll”.

Body

Make 1 stitch before you start body to allow patter to “swirl”.  (101 sts)

K9, P1 around.

Continue in this pattern for desired length of hat.  Approximately 5 inches is a medium-large size. (I stopped at about 4 because I have a smallish head, but could definitely have gone another round or two)

Decrease

To keep the swirl moving, decrease knit stitches by one (K2tog) every other round until 1 stitch remains for each pattern repeat.

Row 1: K7, K2tog, P1.
Row 2: K8, P1
Row 3: K6, K2tog, P1
Row 4: K7, P1
Row 5: K5, K2tog, P1.
Row 6: K6, P1
Row 7: K4, K2tog, P1
Row 8: K5, P1
Row 9: K3, K2tog, P1
Row 10: K4, P1
Row 11: K2, K2tog, P1
Row 12: K3, P1
Row 13: K1, K2tog, P1
Row 14: K2, P1
Row 15: K2tog, P1
Row 16: K2tog.

Break yarn and run through remaining stitches.  Pull tight and tie off. 

Christmas Projects

As you may have seen in my last post, I worked my fingers to the bone to produce an afghan for my brother and sister-in-law for Christmas. I was, all things considered, pretty easy. Just VERY time consuming.

The pattern called for four strips to be made with one cable column in each.  But I hate stitching things together when there is an easier way (why would you knit a hat on straight needles when you could knit it in the round??), so cast on enough stitches to make five columns, plus an extra six stitches on either end for a border. 

I thought the Lemongrass might be too bright, so I added ten rows of garter stitch in Linen to the top and the bottom. Completed ten pattern repeats in Lemongrass.


Pattern: Sutter's Mill Throw, Lion Brand Yarn
Yarn: Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick and Quick, Lemongrass and Linen
Needles: US 13, 29" circular

_____________________________________


I've started yet another hobby as well. I had all these beads sitting around from various crafts - beading bracelets back in high school, making wine charms two years ago, and, more recently, making stitch markers.  So during the Black Friday sales I bought a bunch of earring blanks and some posts and decided to learn how to make earrings.  Several of the ladies in my life received a pair for Christmas.

SIL got odd shaped pearls with green crystals.

Mom got green pearls with green crystals.

And several ladies got variations on a theme: rectangular glass beads and metal disks salvaged from a relatively hideous clearance necklace at Cost Plus World Market.



There is a bit of a learning curve for making these.  Getting my "round" loops where the post attaches to the earring blank is not the easiest thing when you're starting.  But I'm getting there.  Soon I'll be busting out earrings like a pro!

Andes Hat Pattern

Inspired by a hat seen at on an outdoor gear website, I designed this pattern to use up some yarn I got on the cheap --it's discontinued.  As much as I don't actually enjoy knitting with the yarn (it likes to split), I do like the final product.

Andes Hat
by Robyn Redekopp

Materials:
3 skeins Rowan Alpaca Soft (1 Tuscan, 1 Old Rose, 1 Lichen)
Size 8 DPN or 16 inch circular
Tapestry needle
Stitch Marker

Fits Small/Medium sized head.

CO 60 sts in Tuscan (green).  Place marker and join in the round.

Ribbing:
K1P1 around for 6 rows.

Switch to striping pattern. Repeat stripes in color pattern - Old Rose (pink), Lichen (tan), and Tuscan (green).
Row 1: Knit around.
Row 2: Knit around.
Row 3: Purl around.
Switch to next color.

Repeat 3-color striping pattern five times. After completing fifth stripe in Lichen, begin to decrease in Tuscan.


Row 1: *K8, k2tog* Repeat from * to * around. (54 sts)
Row 2: *K7, k2tog* Repeat from * to * around. (48 sts)
Row 3: *K6, k2tog* Repeat from * to * around. (42 sts)

Continue to decrease until 6 sts remain, break yarn and run through sts. Pull tight and tie off.

Anthro-Headwrap

How's about a quick knit.

Anthro-Headwrap

Materials:
16" circulars, size 6-8US (I used size 8)
non-scratchy yarn (I used 50% alpaca, 50% acrylic)
tapestry needle

Directions:

Headwrap:
CO 94 sts, or enough to get gauge. See gauge calculator at bottom for those of you who want really really easy maths.

Join in round.
Knit 5 rows in twisted rib (K into the back loop, p1).

Knit 20 rows in stockinette stitch (or rows to get desired width).

Knit 5 rows twisted rib.

Bind off using favored "stretchy" method.  Sewn bind off works. Or, for really easy, bind off knitting the ks, purl the ps.






Flowers:
Option 1: 

CO anywhere form 6-10, depending on desired size.
Row 1: K.
Row 2 and other even rows: P.
Rows 3, 5, and 7: Kfb across.
Row 9: Bind off.
Twist into rosette and sew together. 





Option 2:
CO 21 sts.
Knit 2 rows.
 Pass all sts, one at a time, over first sts.
Twist into rosette. Stitch in place.




Gauge calculator:

I needed this in particular for the yarn I used. Since it was reclaimed from a sweater, I had no idea the yarn weight. I estimated I would need the headband to be about 16 inches to fit around my head (but it's small, so a normal person might need it to be 17 inches), then knit a small swatch in st st.

CO 18, knit in st st for ~4 inches.

Use this formula to figure out how many sts you should cast on:

___18 sts___      =      ___Y sts___
    X inches                     17 inches

where x = the width, in inches, of your swatch, without pulling; and y = the number of sts to CO for the project.

My swatch was 3.25 inches wide, so (18 x 17)/3.25 = 94.

Flowers

I found a winter headband at Anthropologie the other day that was cute, but waaaay too expensive to purchase when you know how to knit.  So I'm going to try to make one.

I went on Ravelry to find a pattern for a flower. I've never made one before. There are SO MANY options. It's a little hard to handle that many choices. So I decided I would try two different ones and go from there.

My first attempt was at a free pattern from Lion Brand yarn, a simple knit rose.

Here's what it's supposed to look like:

Cute and small, right?

Well, mine didn't turn out anything like that. Not sure if I didn't use the right needles for my yarn or what, but it turned out.....

Kind of looking like a va-jay-jay.

Oops.

So, I tried a different pattern. This time, I used a pattern posted by a fellow Raveler.

This gal turned out true to the pattern:

Now that I've got the flowers, I just have to make the headband to attach them to. I'm thinking about using the yarn I harvested from the sweater.

Also thinking about trying to knit this other braided headwrap at Anthropologie. Looks super simple, and I actually have a pattern for a braided scarf that I could go off of. Not that you really need a pattern for something this simple. Or that you could ever wear a braided scarf and a braided headwrap at the same time. Too matchy-matchy.

I'll keep you posted with updates. Pun intended.

Drops Purse

I finally finished knitting the purse I've been working on since... April? Surely not that long, but close to it. It was a simple pattern that didn't require much attention, but I couldn't work on it when there were so many other fun projects to do (and other activities occupying my time this summer). But, at long last, I finished the main part of the bag.

Pattern: Drops bag, by Garn Studios DROPS Design
Yarn: eBay stuff I bought three years ago that has been sitting around waiting for a project
Needles: Size US 8 29" circulars

I kind of like the dark strip across the middle. I think it adds a little pizazz. 

I still need to sew up the bottom, line it, add a closure, and find some handles. The pattern suggests knitting some straps, but I just don't see knit straps holding up quite the way I want them to. I need to hit the craft store to check out my options, but I'm seriously considering buying a purse at Goodwill and surgically removing the strap.

Someday, hopefully soon, this guy will hold all my stuff. Yay!

Knit hand towel

Finally, some knitting! Finished this basket rib hand towel last week.

Pattern: Basket Rib Hand Towel by Tracy Heiner
Yarn: Lily Sugar'n Cream, Potpourri
Needles: US 6

I finished a dish rag for Mother's Day, but didn't remember to take a picture before mailing it off. It was quick and fun, so there will surely be more of them.

Also started a new project:

Pattern: Slouchy Mama by Brook Harlan
Yarn: Moda Dea Silk'n Wool Blends, Aquatic
Needles: US 11 Double Pointed

I already completed one, but I really didn't like the decreases at the top, so I'm making a second one. Not sure what I'll change yet, but I'll be sure to do something I like.

Wait, what's the hobby of mine?

Oh yeah, that's right, I'm a knitter. I knit. I should start doing that again.

Once upon a time I ordered four hanks of pretty green yarn from Argentina on Ebay. I've decided it's time to get it out of the closet so I can store something else (more yarn?) there. Enter the Drops Bag Pattern.

Pattern: Drops Bag
Size needles: US8, 29" circular
Yarn: Argentina green

This should be a quicker project than some because it's a simple k/p/cable pattern. However, it will require a liner, buttons, and a strap. I've never used purse handles before (only sewn my own straps), so it could be an adventure. I hope to find a fun pattern that's a surprise when you open the bag. JoAnn's clearance section usually suits me fine. (Sarah's purse hides a cowboy!!)

And after that? It might be time to try something new and challenging. I have yet to make a sweater, so I think I'll do that. Anyone got a bun in the oven? I'm not ready to make something for myself, so I'll start with a baby sweater. One option:

Pattern: Trellis by Britta Stolfus Rueschhoff

Or similar. Come on, who's preggers?

Wish I had a Baller

I've been "hank"ering to use the hank* of 100% baby alpaca I bought in Kennewick on Black Friday and was finally successful.

*Hank: a unit of yarn or twine that is in a coiled form (aka unknittable form).

In order to use the hank, you have to first put the coil on a yarn swift. A swift will rotate and allow the yarn to be pulled off without causing twists, knots, or other irritating fiascoes. A yarn baller is the mechanism needed to pull the yarn off the swift and twist it into the tidy little skeins you can find at craft stores. Yarn ballers create "center-pull" balls so you can set them on the table or couch and not have it roll away (and entice your cat) when you pull on your yarn.

Swifts can get pretty pricey (some up to $90! For a couple pieces of wood!), so asked for one for Christmas. On Christmas morning I got to open a beautiful collapsible swift, handmade by my pops! Supposedly I'll be getting a baller, too, but it's backordered. I borrowed my coworker's on Thursday to ball my alpaca, and this is what the operation looked like:



Also balled up some handspun wool I ordered on Ebay about three years ago and never got around to working with. Maybe now's the time?

Couldn't stop the "Balla!" jokes while I was winding. Made me wish I was a little bit taller, wish I was a baller, wish I had a rabbit in a hat with a bat...



....Three and a half knitting hours later, with Skee-Lo still in my head, I finished my baby alpaca hat for myself.

Only three hours!!!

Pattern: Unoriginal Hat by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Chunky Solid, Gray
Needles: US 10.5 DPN

I love it. It's suuuuper soft and warm and fits me perfectly!

Desk Chair Traveller

Today was one of those days (and I've had a few of them recently) when I had too much time on my hands at work and started dreaming of things that can't be done from a desk chair. Yesterday, these dreams mostly centered around baby alpaca and the delightful things I could knit with it (namely, a hat for ME! I deserve it. And I deserve the flowers I bought for myself. And this bottle of wine I'm going to drink.).

(Thanks for the wine, Dad! It's delicious!)


Today, I spent my spare time dreaming of the mountains, the Sound and the ocean. Probably spent two hours back and forth between the Washington Trails Association, Google Maps and Google in general. I've marked my calendar with random weekends on which I want to get outside.

I've been told I'm going snowshoeing sometime in January, but it's yet to be planned. Apparently there are some good trails for it around Mt. Rainier. Apparently. Potentially? I hope I get to find out.

I have had a slowly simmering desire to visit Cape Alava for about, oh, four years now. The simmer is turning into a rolling boil. The hike is mostly flat and almost all the trail that's not on the beach is boardwalk, so it should be doable in January.

Judging from past experience, the Olympics should be fine in January as long as you wear lots of layers...





...and drink lots of beer.




Now is one of the few times I wish I still lived in EWa, where even when it's cold the ground is still dry and you can hike any time between Thanksgiving and Easter.


Badger Mountain on Black Friday... with ice wine!

I also want to get out in my kayak and was looking at Deception Pass. Kayaking the Pass itself scares the poop outta me, but Bowman Bay is just about my speed.

(yes, that's me in my little yellow boat, with coworkers in the canoe further asea)

It's also great for catching these when the season is open.









Also, now is the season for cheap deals on the Oregon Coast. You could get lucky and see this:


You may be not so lucky and see this, even in August:



Or this in June:


(that's one windy beach.)

Christmas Project Reveal

I know all of my avid readers are anxious to see what I created for my friends and family for Christmas. The time is now!


Project #1
Dad's Tweed Scarf

Pattern:Harris Tweed by PurpleSage
Yarn: Cascade Yarns Pastaza, Charcoal
Needles: Size 10





Dad seemed to like it. Hopefully it will keep his neck warm while in MT this week (it's 3 degrees there as I type this) and at home in Kennewick while walking Willis.



Project #2
Angela's "Spirit Warmers"

Pattern: Alpaca Sox by Classic Elite Yarns
Yarn: Classic Elite Alpaca Sox, Violet
Needles: Size 3




Still not finished. =( But, perhaps a good thing, because I made her try them on. Pattern calls for them to come above the knee. As written, it was already pretty dang wide on her leg, so instead of increasing to go over the knee I'm going to decrease and make them shorter. But she seemed to like them just fine. =)

Project #3
Carmen's Pseudo-Hypoallergenic Mitts
(see past post)



Project #4
Christmas Gnome! (The Gnoel Gnome)


Project: Christmas Gnome by Irina Haller (pattern for purchase on Ravelry.com)
Yarn: Paton's Classic Wool, Red, Cream
Needles: Size 2



Wish his beard was a bit more wiry, but I'm hoping it'll unravel with time. He sits awfully well over a beer bottle. I hope to make a family of them to fit wine bottles, beer bottles, and maybe I'll even make a super fat one to fit a champagne bottle.



Project #5
Mom's Holiday Headband

Pattern: Julia's Cabled Headband by Paulina Chin
Yarn: Paton's SWS, Black
Needles: Size 7



For me mums because she doesn't like that hats mess up her hair, but complains if her ears get cold. If only I could engineer earwarmers that would automatically apply lotion to her as she walked outside because you know "the air is like a sponge" and it sucks up all the moisture in your skin!



Last, but certainly not least, is an unnumbered project made when my fingers were too tired to work on Ang's Leg Warmers.


A beer koozie for Ryan!

(doesn't it kind of look like one of the purple and gold Bud Light football cans?)

First Christmas success!

I had a wonderful change of plans on Friday night! My original plans were to see Hey Marseilles, my buddy's band. They're fantastic and were opening for The Maldives, a band I saw over the summer and LOVED (potentially more so due to the tallboys of PBR that it is necessary to consume at a venue). As bummed as I was to miss the show, instead I got to see my long-lost cousin Carmen!! She's been teaching in a teeny-tiny village in northeastern Alaska for what feels like ten years and our Montana schedules never seem to coincide. It was a rousing good time to catch up with her.

PLUS I got to be Santa! Evil Project #3 completed, wrapped, delivered, and, hopefully, enjoyed!



Pattern: Bella's Mittens by Marielle Henault
Yarn: Alpaca with a Twist, Ladyfern
Needles: Size 8 DPN

Only three knitting days left before all projects are due. Finished Project #5, so just #2 left to finish up on. Less than half done with one of two. Sigh. I think working on this project is giving me premature arthritis.

Koozied!

Two months ago I had the brilliant idea to knit myself a koozie to take to Husky tailgates. I used yarn I had laying around from a hat project for my brother several Christmases back and made myself a striped beverage cooler/hand warmer. Voila! A thing of beauty!

I used it at a tailgate and had about ten requests for the same, and several people mentioned that if I could work in a big ol' Washington W, they'd even pay for them, so it was back to the drawing board. After an attempt with different yarn that turned out more like a stein koozie, I got it down and wrote up a pattern. Husky fans everywhere rejoice.



It can be downloaded here. (Thanks, LP, for all the help!)

Go Dawgs!

Who loves Twilight knits? It's me, it's me!

I'm not a Twilight fanatic, but man, does that movie have some nice knit patterns! Leda's hat was from it (or at least an actress from the movie) and I just started these awesome gloves.


(photo by marielle henault)

This will be my first attempt at mittens. My repertoire expands daily!! I started on Saturday and completed the first mitten Sunday night. I was a little worried that it would turn out too big on my tiny carnie hands, but it's perfect! I did shorten the thumb by one round, and probably could have gotten away with two. The pattern also calls for casting on in the middle of a row, which I've never done. Lisa and I played with it a bit and did something that kind of works, but now that I've started the second I think I'll look up how to do it for real. I'm keeping these, so I don't really care if they look a little different, plus its only four sts AND it's in the thumb crack.

Hope to finish these on Thursday at the latest. May have difficulties with that due to bowling tonight and the Pacific Fabrics open house and demo on Wednesday, but I'll try my best. Already have most of the arm done.

Pattern: Bella's Mittens by Marielle Henault
Yarn: Paton's Classic Wool, Dark Gray
Needles: Size 8 DPN

Warning: Stash Busting in progress

My parents brought back two skeins of yarn for me from a cruise to Norway last summer. It's pretty yarn, a nice deep red wine color, but two small skeins does not many projects make! Determined to use it in a way that would display the quality of the yarn, I started a scarf. Two months later, I'm still only 2/3 of the way through. It's an easy pattern, but it just can't hold my attention. I'd much rather be making my UW beer coozies or working on my first attempt at mittens!



Pattern: Ripened Scarf by Danielle Chalson
Yarn: Norwegian nylon blend (??), wine
Needles: size 7

Leda's birthday hat

This hat drove me a little crazy in the beginning. Had the brilliant idea to make this using the green yarn left over from a friend's housewarming afghan to make my roommate a birthday hat, and our other roommate would make a scarf using the same pattern. Multiple disasters followed.

Bought size 4 16" circulars and cast on at my parents house. After failing to start with enough yarn using long tail method four times (!!!), I realized after working a row that I had miscounted my sts and had to try again. I wised up and placed stitch markers every 10 cast on sts and got working for real. Finished the ribbing for the brim and wanted to shoot myself in the foot because it was HUGE. No doubt about it, using worsted weight yarn and needles one size too large did not gauge correctly. Who would have expected that? Modified the pattern by decreasing purls between columns by two and got to working. My first try at cable and it turned out awesome. If only the Husky's had pulled out a win that night, I would have been able to go to bed happy. End result: A little big on my head, but perfect for Leda's massive amounts of hair!


Lisa started the scarf around the same time as me and after 18" of work we compared and found, to our dismay, something was awry. We worked the same pattern, but Lisa's scarf was much looser and the lace pattern were super stretched out. Perhaps a gremlin had crept in at night and changed our needles so we were not both working with 6s? Ten minutes later we realized we watch too many SciFi made-for-tv movies when Lisa had the epiphany that while we were using the same pattern, her project was stretched x2 due to purling the wrong side. Alas, no gremlins here, just yarn monsters and one Jabba the Cat.

Pattern: Ashley by Bethe Galantino
Yarn: Vanna's Choice, Dusty Green
Needles: Size 4 for ribbing, 6 for hat body