Saturday, December 27, 2008

My Mom!

Look how cute she is!

Saturday, December 20, 2008

who?

It's a hat with owls! Yay!


This is for my brother, whose mangyle will never be done. Certainly not for christmas. He always sends me pictures of owls, so i figured he'd appreciate it. Anyway, just for PoorLuci, here's what I did:


Who?

Materials:
1 ball Nashua Creative Focus (I used half)
size 6 circular needle and dpns (or however you want to do it)
stitch marker
4 small buttons for eyes (optional, you can use more, less, or none at all)

sewing needle and thread

Sizes:
infant (child, adult) Note about sizing: I've only tested the adult size, please let me know about any problems with the smaller size and I'll be happy to fix them.

Abbreviations:
C4F: slip two sts onto cable needle and hold in front, k2, k2 from cable neeedle
C4B: slip two sts onto cable needle and hold in back, k2, k2 from cable needle

Owl Cable pattern:
(multiple of 11 sts)
Rounds 1-3: *p3, k8, repeat from * to end
Round 4: *p3, C4B, C4f, repeat from * to end
Rounds 5-11: same as round 1
Round 12: same as round 4
Round 13: same as round 1
Rounds 14-15: *p3, k1, p2, k2, p2, k1. repeat from * to end
Round 16-17: same as round 1
Round 18: same as round 4
Round 19: same as round 1

Directions:
Cast on 92 (100, 112) sts, join in round and work in 2x2 ribbing for 1 inch.
Switch to stockinette and work for 5 rounds, decreasing 4(1,2) sts evenly spaced in row 3. 88(99, 110) sts.

Work 19 rows of owl cable pattern over all sts.
Knit 1 or more rows and increase 0(5,2) sts. 88 (104, 112) sts.

Continue in stockinette stitch until work measures 4.5 (5, 6) inches including ribbing or to desired length.

Decrease as follows: (nothing mysterious here, just like a regular hat)
*K 9(11, 12) k2tog, repeat from * to end.
K1 round plain.
K 8(10, 11), k2tog.
K1 plain.
Continue decreasing in this manner until 40 (56, 64) sts remain.
Then decrease every round (no plain rounds) until 8 sts remain. Cut yarn and pass through remaining sts to fasten off.

Weave in all ends and block.

Sew buttons over the purl sections within the cable pattern that form the owl's eyes. I only did 2 owls, but you could do as many as you want. To be sure that the thread doesn't pull through, tie a nice big knot.

Pattern and photos © Sara Amoroso, 2008-2009. Permission is given for personal use only. This pattern or items made from it may not be sold.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Since I made the video...


P1030259
Originally uploaded by eudyptula48
This is how i do a long-tail cast on. I made it to help a friend, but what she really needed was a video on continental knitting. perhaps someday.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Swampfield Cowl: free pattern!

Though my mister is notoriously hard to knit for (he already has a hat, why on earth would he want another?) my Dad is fantastic and loves everything I make for him, even funny looking hats. Since he already has a few of them and a pair of fingerless gloves, I wanted to make something different this year without the stress and time investment of something like a sweater. Nor is he the kind of dude to wear a scarf. Enter the Swampfield Cowl, named after the former name of the town he lives in, and because i like to say "Swampfield." It's very fast, easy, and cheap, requiring just one ball of yarn; all ideal with the holidays coming up. And when you weave the ends in carefully, it will be fully reversible.

Swampfield Cowl
Yarn: 1 ball Cascade 109 Tweed LE
Needles: US 10.5 (6.5 mm) 16 or 20 inch circular needle
Notions: cable needle, stitch marker, yarn needle for weaving ends

Stitch Guide
C8F: Slip next 4 sts onto cable needle and hold in front. Work next 4 sts in k1p1 rib as established, then work 4 sts from cable needle, also in k1p1 rib as established.

CO 80 sts and join in round. For the love of mike make sure not to twist! Place marker to indicate beginning of round.

Rounds 1-4: *k1p1, repeat from * to end
Round 5: *C8F, (making sure to keep all sts in k1p1 rib) work 8 sts in k1p1 rib. Repeat 5 times from * to end of round.
Rounds 6-9: as for rounds 1-4
Round 10: *work 8 sts in k1p1 ribbing, C8F. Repeat 5 times from * to end of round.

Repeat rounds 1-10 once more, then repeat rounds 1-7 once more.

Bind of loosely in pattern, weave in ends, and hey presto!

Pattern and photos © Sara Amoroso, 2008-2009. Permission is given for personal use only. This pattern or items made from it may not be sold.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

today was made of win

Today was the big LSG meetup at WEBS; about 10 thoroughly awesome members made it out. Between the knuckle tats, groping, yarn buying, and swearing in front of old people, it was a ball. I feel very lucky to have met yberry, sarahsarah, crabbycrocheter, wickedgoodyarn, suef, aliceq, thislittlepiggy, crisscross, archiphile, and (of course) feistyjess. Cower before our fierceness!

Monday, December 1, 2008

squishy squishy squishy


I just finished a cute cowl/neckwarmer/whatever for my stepdad. It's called the darkside cowl, and it is very alluring. It's so squishy and textural I just want to squeeze it!

My mods were minimal; I used the superbulky Cascade 109 tweed (on sale at WEBS) and size 10.5 needles, casting on 72 for a large man's size. For myself, I'd probably cast on 64. It was easy to finish in two evenings' knitting, so I'll probably be making some more for xmas gifts.