Woah! 2012 Knitting Wrap Up

This year I am not in Hawaii for the New Year, however it is currently 30+ above at my house, so I am pretty happy about that. This year my knitting waned a bit, simply because this fall I took 15 credits, worked 18 hours a week, and managed to squeak out a 3.2 GPA (1 A, 1 B+ and 3 Bs). So, I am not particularly surprised I wasn’t quite as productive in years past. I am also not disappointed about it either. It has been a long time since I have consistently gotten good grades and I am extremely proud of myself!!

 

In 2012…. 

(Some links are blog, some links are Ravelry. I was lazy about blogging this year, that is for sure!)

 

1 scarf (Quiviuk Lace Scarf)

7 pairs of socks (Skew, Yoda, Petal, Monkeys, Stripey Stashbusters, Think Fall, Socks for my Sweetie #3)

3 baby sweaters [One was truly a tank top, but I'm including it in this category!] (Stripey Girly Mossy, Brown and Green Stripey, Baby Halter)

1 shawl (Handspun Shawl)

5 cowls (Pink and Grey, PINK!, Not Socks, Cloudy Sky, Zeus Crossing) [really the howlcat could fit into cowl or hat!]

5 hats [one is a headband] (Hippie Hat, Pink Baby Hat, Brown and Green Baby Hat, Calorimetry, TARDIS Botanic)

2 pairs of fingerless mitts (Toasty Tubes, Test Knit Mitts)

1 sweater [that I hate] (Leisl)

1 doll dress (Polka Dot Dress)

3 felted things (Ballband Bag Take 5, Duffers For Kelsey #2, Felted Mittens for Me)

1 giant ridiculous circular lace blanket (Leaves of Grass)

 

 

That makes this year’s total 30 knitted items. I guess that is only 9 less than last year, so not too bad! I am headed into the new year with three things on the needles – A cowl for my mom, a scarf for my aunt and a pair of socks for me. I also need to get started on another one soon! Ah well, I still have this entire next week off and then school doesn’t start until the 17th – although it is another semester of 15 credits and 18 hours of work a week! Hopefully it won’t be too nuts! And my last crazy semester. After that, this fall I will take about 9 credits and then 3 the spring after that, and then I will be GRADUATED! 

 

Happy New Year, everyone!

 

FO: Gradient Cowl

Knitting it was kind of a frustrating process, but I love this finished product.

it is long and loopy, and it looks fabulous with my blue winter jacket!

Stats:
Pattern: Gradient Cowl from Shibui Knits
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Angel, 6 skeins. Light Blue (1), Dark Blue (1), Teal (2), White (2)
Needles: US9
Mods: none, other than a super ugly grafting job:)

I enjoyed knitting this for a while, and it would have been better had I actually read yarn labels and realized that Debbie Bliss Angel has almost 100yds less per skein than Shibui Silk Cloud has, which the pattern calls for. The pattern uses more of the colors A & C, and so unsurprisingly, I ran out of both of those colors while knitting..But it is done now, and I am loving wearing it!

When I look at it I feel like my colors C & D get kind of muddled (the teal and the dark blue) but I the gradient is somewhat there. This is a neat way to make them gradient, because you hold 3 strands together, intermittently changing one strange, to make the colors slowly change.

 

More photos from lately…

Took a Recycled Mitten class with my mom yesterday! Felted thrift store sweater, lined with fleece. I can’t wait to experiment more with these…

huge icicles in the afternoon sunlight – on my way to my afternoon sociology class. probably around 315PM.

pumpkin roll – gearing myself up for fall holiday baking. I’ve been in a baking mood a lot lately, I assume from the amount of schoolwork that has been on my plate lately:) the end of the semester is starting to loom already. the filling of this is cream cheese frosting that has greek yogurt in it, so it is sweet and tangy at the same time.

Belle, being irritated at me disturbing her for photographs.

me and gabs, hanging out on my parents bed.

and last but not least,

this morning i put cinnamon rolls from a tube onto my waffle iron and this was what resulted…basically cinnamon roll biscuits that were crunchy on the outside. now I want to try with homemade cinnamon rolls….

 

Some summer, mostly fall 2012

Fair Monkeys (did not place, but that is probably because there were like 10 other pairs of monkeys entered!)

Stripey Socks

Stripey Sweaters (Baby Size)

Test knitting – in class.

A cowl in an hour and a half (and a new technique – my first moebius.)

As far as non-knitting content goes:

Studying for tests is pretty much constant. (this photo was me studying for a test after getting done with one)

The leaves were lovely for a few days (this is outside the front door of my work)

drinking lots of tea (ice green tea every morning, please.)

testing my new sewing machine. (first time doing french seams, first time using bias tape.)

That is where I am.

 

I haven’t been blogging…

Obviously. Life is busy. My computer likes to stop being aware of the fact that it receives an internet signal, and has a trackpad that also likes to have a mind of it’s own…so most of the time blogging goes by the wayside.

But I had to share this.

Raverly Link

 

A couple FOs..

I’m finally done with this semester (and got some of the best grades I’ve gotten since middle school!) and I get to JUST WORK until my summer class begins on July 9. It is pretty awesome, not being school! Anyways. I have been seriously slacking on blogging. Like, coooompletely a total blog slacker. So here you’re gonna get to see a few.

First up. Another felted ballband bag. I LOVE knitting these things. This one went to my sister, Kelsey, who lives in AZ. She’s been needing some encouragement lately, so I sent her a care package of sorts. The bag, some chocolate chip cookies, and a beginning knitter kit:) Put together by yours truly, of course! I wish I could teach her myself, but she is interested in learning now and we won’t be in the same state until the end of July. So we’ll see how she does with what I sent her.

Stats:
Pattern: Ballband Bag Recipe
Yarn: 1 skein of Lamb’s Pride Worsted, colorway Misty Blue. 2 skeins of Noro Kureyon, colorway 240
Needle: US 10
Mods: Listed on the Ravelry Project Page

Next up! There are a LOT of babies coming in my life (although none of them are in Alaska..and some of them have just arrived!) Between two of my family members, and two friends, there are FIVE babies coming this summer that I want to knit for. And two of them (twins) arrived earlier this week! I’ve been having some fun doing baby knitting. It is very satisfying when all your other projects seem endless (cough cough..i’m looking at you, leaves of grass)

This hat pattern is so cute and quick and fun. This one is going to Michelanne’s baby girl, who I believe is due in July.
Pattern: Umbilical Cord Hat (from Stitch ‘n Bitch)
Yarn: Dream in Color Classy, colorway Punky Fuschia
Needles: US 7
Mods: None!
Ravelry Page

And the last thing I have to show you tonight is a very simple pair of handwarmers. I knit these for the Tour de Cure silent auction! They will have a matching headband or hat, I have not decided which yet. They are wonderfully soft, and I am kind of wanting to make a pair for myself!

And, look at how impressively long my nails are! I have been biting my nails as long as I can remember, and last summer I started really seriously trying to kick the habit. And I am almost confident in saying that I have kicked it!

Pattern: Toasty
Yarn: Berroco Blackstone Tweed, Plum Island (less than 1 skein)
Needles: US 7
Mods: I shortened them greatly, to preserve yarn. Next time I’d use a bigger needle or cast on more stitches. These fit me but I have very small hands!

Anyways. Until next time, blog readers! Hopefully soon I’ll have my massive blanket of doom (leaves of grass) to show you….

 

Hippie Hat for Sarena

Sarena requested a hat. She offered to buy the yarn and have it mailed to me (she is in Anchorage). I walked her through the online yarn shopping and at one point she proclaimed “this is fun!!!”

I seriously need to teach that girl how to knit! Anyways. I picked out a pattern, she approved it, and I got to knitting. I don’t have any great photos of the hat because I gave it to her and took some iPhone photos and that is all! That’s alright though, cause it looks great on her!

This pattern is a little bit of a pain in the ass. First, you have to work it backwards, so what you are seeing is technically the wrong side of the hat, which mean I had to purl the entire thing. Second, the star stitch pattern does not have a lot of give. If I do it again, I’d cast on at least one more repeat of the pattern, if not two. As you can see in the photo, I did stockinette at the top..This was not my original intention, but the stars don’t line up right if you decrease in the pattern, so I decided to go with stockinette and I am happy I did, it is a much cleaner look, I think. And the pompom is there simply because Sarena requested it!

Stats:
Pattern: Holding Hands, Feeding Ducks Hat
Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted in Malambo, 1 skein
Needle: US 6 for the ribbing, US 8 for the body
Mods: I used a lighter weight yarn and accidentally did a purl row in between the ribbing and the pattern, but I really like the way it looks.