Old sweaters

MH and I went to the Knit Nook today. Mimi (aka Cindy) was wearing one of the first sweaters she ever knitted. It was so long ago, in fact, that I don't remember the pattern or the yarn. (I think she made the pattern up and the yarn company went out of business, so a lot of good that information would have been anyway.)

But MH was sweaterless (again. I never seem to remember that people get mad when babies are hand knit-less in a yarn store. She doesn't even have a hand knit hat. I'm an embarrassment.)

But luckily, Mimi/Cindy was there and she had just the thing: another sweater that was knit a long time ago, except this time I sort of remember the stats. It was the lamb sweater from Slip Stitch Knitting out Swedish Yarns Baby Ull. It was the smallest size and I remember at the time we were convinced that it was impossible that a human could ever be so small, that only one of the smaller stuffed animals would wear it.


But here MH is at almost seven weeks and it fits her perfectly.

So MH has a new sweater. It was five years in the making, but definitely worth the wait.

First Sweater

I remember when I first knit this sweater and it didn't seem possible that a human being could ever be so small. Well, turns out Mary is even smaller than that! The sweater is a bit big, but she doesn't seem to mind! Here's hoping we'll get at least another month out of it.

Pattern: Eloise Eyelet Cardi (Lion Brand) [rav link]--the smallest size
Yarn: Exactly one skein of Cascade Sierra, gifted by Steven
Needles: US 8

This is a great pattern for a quick and easy baby sweater. It literally took me a day to knit.

In other news, we'll be closing early on Christmas Eve and will remain closed through the weekend. Have a Merry Christmas!

Audrey in Unst

Just because I wasn't blogging doesn't meant that I wasn't knitting. Here's one of my FO: Audrey in Unst from the Fall 2009 Twist Collective, knit out of Misti Alpaca Tonos Pima Silk DK in neon yellow. I made the fourth size and it took 3 skeins. The real color name is "Roasted Corn" but I don't think that conveys just how loud and obnoxious this color really is. Hey, I'm a child of the eighties--I love me some bright ass yellow!

This was one of those situations where I fell in love with the pattern and the yarn separately. I would dream about this cardigan, wondering what yarn I could possibly use. Simultaneously, a skein of this yarn would end up sitting next to me at the table. And a few skeins were even squirreled away in the back. But it really took me a while to make the connection.

Despite the tiny needles (the pattern calls for US 4 but I used US 3 because those were the only needles I had at the time--it was late at night and I wanted to get started so I told myself that 3 and 4 were practically the same needle--and then later I wondered why the sweater was a smidge too small...hmmmm) this was a really fast knit. The body of the sweater is done from the bottom up and the sleeve stitches are picked up from around the arm hole. The pattern incorporates ingenious short rows to shape the cap. And the lace was fun and easy.


Tonya was good enough to model the sweater for me. She even wore a green shirt and everything. (In this picture I told her to "do a Kevin pose." Not enough muscle-flexing, but good attitude.) Can you believe that it was only four months ago when Tonya has a baby? That's right, Johnny is four months old and Tonya is looking and feeling great. I'd like to say that it is all the sweater's doing because it's just that fantastic, but I'm sure that it has more to do with breastfeeding and Johnny finally sleeping mostly through the night.

Here's a close up of the unst. It's a great stitch with an awful name. Reminds me of smocking and it's very easy.

You can also see that I still haven't put the buttons on it. After I finished it and realized that US 3 needles are in fact smaller than US 4, I also realized that no amount of cajoling could get my pregnant boobs into that cardigan anyway. So for now, it's button-less, but no less wearable. It's the perfect summer sweater--great over a tank.

Empire Waist Cardigan

Yep, it's another FO!

This is the Empire Waist Cardigan by Pam Allen from the Classic Elite book New Harbor. I had looked through this book many times. I love Pam Allen (she's so sensible!) and also all of the models are standing next to the ocean while wearing their hand knit sweaters, and sometimes they are even walking in the ocean with rubber galoshes. For some reason, whenever I am looking for a knitting pattern, this is a prerequisite for me. Also, if there are any dogs or puppies involved. That usually convinces me to make the sweater, too. (As you can see, I am not nearly as sensible as Pam!)

But as I was saying, I looked through this book a lot, but I never ever noticed this sweater. Maybe it was the yarn choice (brindled light blue cotton). More likely it was that this model was just standing against a building and not next to the ocean at all. But for whatever reason, this sweater didn't even register. Until I saw it on A Friend to Knit With and I saw what a wearable, wonderful sweater this really is (and yes, in her pictures, she was standing next to the ocean--it never hurts. Me, I have no ocean. So I model with dogs. It's a close second.)

Stats:

Pattern: Provence Marl Empire Waist Cardigan by Pam Allen

Source: Classic Elite booklet #9098, New Harbor

Yarn: RYC Silk Wool DK, approximately 13 skeins

Needles: US 5, 6, and 7

And by the way, the little beagle in the pictures is our new dog, Desmond! We adopted him last week. The St. Tropez sweater worked!

The Polar Bear

Okay, Bekah emailed me these pictures weeks ago. In fact, she finished the Polar Bear months ago. She even brought it in, along with her adorable baby Seth. There she was, in the shop, bear and baby in hand. It was a perfect opportunity to take a picture for a blog post.

Bekah, never shy about bossing people around (she's a teacher as well as a girl after my own heart) told me to get the camera and take a picture so I would have something to blog about.

"But my camera is way over THERE!" I whined, pointing to the office that was precisely five feet away. (And we wonder why this blog isn't updated more frequently. Hmmmm....)

Luckily, Bekah took the initiative and sent me pics of the Polar Bear herself. Here he is.



I believe she knit him out of Blue Sky Organic Cotton. And she used safety eyes, I remember, because I marveled at such technological advances (I don't get out much). No clue where she got the pattern (Was it a book? Something about knitted toys? Is it at the Louisville Public Library?) but I know for a fact that the pattern was British because this bear is constructed from no less than five hundred little pieces that must be sewn together.

Of course, it took Bekah forever to knit it. Never mind that she was pregnant and working full time, and then caring for an infant. It took her almost a year to complete this project and I'm blaming it on the pattern. So now I don't feel so bad about taking a few weeks to blog about it. This bear has been a long time coming!

Our Stuffed Animal class just started last night, so hopefully this will be the first of many stuffed animals to make its way onto the blog. If you're interested in knitting a bear, I really recommend Otto by Ysolda Teague. He is made all in one piece, in the round, so there is absolutely no finishing (except for putting his face and ears on). Ysolda is Scottish and so she is much more practical than the British designers. Except she loves crazy cast ons. It must be a UK thing.

St. Tropez

Remember this sweater?
Yeah, I barely remembered it either. I entered it in the fair last year and then I brought it over to Cindy's to block and I never saw it again. That is, until I went over to her house to watch the Oscars and I wore it home.

I wore the sweater yesterday (yep, still unblocked). It's comfortable and as flattering as any hand knit I've ever made (which means, it's still wonky, but pretty much wearable--hey, maybe BLOCKING might solve some of those issues!) But it's a cotton sweater! With short sleeves! And it's called St. Tropez which sounds so tropical! So wearing my wonky, unblocked St. Tropez, I felt intoxicated. I ate some questionable sushi, drank too much wine, and almost adopted a dog over the phone.


I had so much fun making bad decisions, that I decided to wear it again today!

Stats:
Pattern: St Tropez by Sarah Hatton (Rowan Mag #45)
Yarn: Cotton Glace (the gray was frogged from another sweater, the red was from the shop--I don't remember how much. Aren't I so helpful?)

He is Knit-worthy!

It's a serious topic of discussion at the Knit Nook: as we're pouring hours and days and weeks (months!) of our lives into making all the little stitches that convert a ball of string into beautiful handmade objects, we wonder out loud who in the world could possibly be deserving of such a gift. The question is, is the person knit-worthy? Mothers usually are, even mother-in-laws on occasion. Grandmothers almost always are knit-worthy. But what about husbands?


I made Jonathan a sweater for his 30th birthday.

"When did you have time to make this?" he wondered.

And I thought back to all the times when I was sitting right next to him, knitting away on this gray furry monstrosity, wondering if it would be any good, wondering if he could ever appreciate such a gift, promising myself that I wouldn't resent him no matter how he acted because who wants to get a box of guilt for their birthday, even if it is made out of wool and alpaca?

"It's perfect!" he said. "Just what I always wanted!" And he put it on immediately. He even wore it to work the next day despite the fact that it still needed buttons on the collar.

So I gave my husband a sweater for his birthday, but the greatest gift was mine. My husband is KNIT-WORTHY!

Naana Naana Boo Boo!

Guess who I got to meet last night?

Heeeeereeeee's Johnny!

And he had some new sweaters to show me, both by Elizabeth Zimmerman.

Here is the Surplice Jacket made out of Corntastic. (This would be a great sweater to make in our upcoming Baby Sweater class that starts Sunday, April 11.)

And here is the Baby Surprise Jacket made out of Dale of Norway Baby Ull. (The BSJ is going to be a class in June!)

I thought the sweaters were wonderful, but Johnny wasn't too impressed. He could barely keep his eyes open.

Alright, Shizknit, I give you permission to steal these pictures!

Happy New Year!

Another holiday season has come and gone, and another year is here! I don't know about you, but after all that Christmas knitting, I seem to have more knitting to do for others, what with birthdays and babies (Oh, Tonya's baby shower has been postponed for Saturday, January 16 at 3 pm, so you've got more time to get knitting. But I can't push it back any more. The girl's about to pop!)

One of the best projects I saw all December was this amazing hat by Heather. Yep, that's R2D2 and light sabers and the May the Force Be With You stamped across the brim in crystal clear fair isle. Oh, and did I mention that it was reversible?

With Storm Troopers and the Star Wars logo on the other side! It was made out of Dale of Norway Baby Ull and the pattern was of her own design. (But here's hoping she decides to put it all down on paper!) I have shown pictures of this hat to everyone and knitters and muggles alike were thoroughly impressed. Great job, Heather! This is knitting that is sure to crack that boyfriend curse wide open!

The last class of the Fall 2009 season is starting this Friday: Fair Isle knitting. So if you want to learn to be a great knitter like Heather, call and sign up!

The Spring and Summer 2010 schedule will be posted by the end of the month. You know...by THE SUPERBOWL SUNDAY SALE!

Finished Object

Oh, this old thing? It was just something I whipped up when I didn't know what else to knit!

This is the Benbecula Sweater (which I always pronounce as "Bunnicula" in my head) from the newest Rowan Magazine (46), knit out of Rowan Felted Tweed Aran in color 729 (soot). I made a size medium, but I think I only needed 12 balls.

It's not blocked yet, so it's kind of wonky in the front (an aside: why do knitters always have to point out the flaws of their knitting?!), but I'm sure it will be beautiful when I finally get around to it! I know, it's been finished for a while, but in my defense, I knitted this sweater in less than a month, so I'm kind of owed some knitting time on the back end, and the 80 degree weather does not encourage sweater making!

I really recommend the Felted Tweed Aran. Although it's very different from the Scottish Tweed (and not really an appropriate substitute if you ask me), it's a softer tweed than most, but still sturdy enough to make a good solid sweater. And it has wonderful stitch definition as demonstrated by the thirty million cables on this sweater.

Baby Surprise Jacket

Last spring, Sally took our Baby Surprise Jacket class. And even though she sent me these pictures ages ago, I'm only now putting them up on the blog. But it was well worth the wait!

Sally says, "My granddaughter, Luci, is modeling the sweater. It was fun to make and I can't believe that blob turned into a sweater! What an interesting pattern!"

Thanks for sharing, Sally! Your granddaughter is adorable and that sweater ain't too shabby, either!

If you would like to make this sweater, we have a class coming up this November. And this time, it's not just for children! We've got the pattern sized for adults, too!

Our new schedule is not up on our website because we are in the process of redesigning it. If you would like a copy of our new class schedule, please email us (knitnook@knitnook.com) or stop by and pick up a hard copy.

Monkey Business

Vi's granddaughter Carol had her first communion. So of course, to celebrate this momentous occasion, Vi had to knit a striped stuffed monkey wearing a crocheted bikini!

It is the Monkey pattern from this Reynolds Kids Book knit out of various scraps Vi had on hand.

Carol loved her monkey! She asked Vi if she had made it or bought it. When she found out that her grandmother had knitted it by hand, Carol said, "Oh good!"

She's named the monkey Suzanne. Huh. I don't know if Suzanne should be honored or not.

Bekah's Baby Shower: the dinosaur

Last week, we had a baby shower for Bekah at the Knit Nook. I've got a lot of pictures from the happy occasion, so I decided that rather than overwhelming you with one humongous blog post, I would spread it out over the next week or so. (In other words, I'm going to milk this for all it's worth!)

A lot of things were knit for the baby. Jessica knitted this adorable dinosaur.

The pattern is from Knitted Toys. The yarn, Cascade Cotton Club (60% cotton, 40% acrylic). The needles, I forgot to ask. Knitter beware: the pattern is British which means that you knit no less than a thousand little pieces and then stitch them all together.

As you can see, he isn't a very big dinosaur as far as dinosaurs go. Look, the mole is almost as big as he is. Evolution takes no prisoners.


But I'm sure Baby Posnansky will happily drool on him regardless.

February Girlie Part 2

What to do with your extra yarn? Make a matching headband!

Ellana used the Saving Grace pattern [rav link] and the same Sierra Quattro from the February Girlie sweater.

February Girlie

The February Lady is nothing short of a phenomenon. Everybody has made one it seems. (Heck, I've made three of them!) Based on the February Baby sweater by Elizabeth Zimmerman, it seems like everybody gets to enjoy the February fabulousness.

And now that's absolutely true. Ellana has knit a February Lady for her daughter, Lily. And this February Girlie looks fabulous!

Ellana made the smallest size, used a smaller needle, and made the sweater shorter. It's knit out of Cascade Sierra Quattro, a wonderful cotton/wool blend.

Happy Spring!

I know the weather is chilly and rainy right now, but it is Spring! We've had a few days when it's been undeniable. We'll have a few more days this weekend.

If you've been around the Knit Nook lately, you are aware of the current season.

Take these birdies for instance. Becca made the blue bird (free pattern here) and the Mayor made the yellow duckie (which I can't find the pattern for on Ravelry--but have you ever done a search for "bird"? It's AMAZING!) Both projects were knit (yep! not all adorable animals are crocheted) out of washcloth cotton.

Our Mayor threw herself into Easter knitting. She also made a mama sheep (with removable coat) and baby sheep out of Plush. The pattern is called Sheep in Sheep's Clothing--how cute is that? [rav link] The Easter bunny was good to some grandchildren this year!

You just had to check out their little butts, too. Look at blue bird's tail feathers!

Do Dye Lots Matter?

Cindy and Margie have just finished these sweaters. Cindy's is Rowan Summer Tweed and Margie's is Rowan Calmer.

If I hadn't titled this blog post so obviously, would you have noticed that each of these sweaters is composed out of two dye lots?

It's not a mistake, it's a design feature. That's what we like to say. Margie and Cindy love their sweaters regardless (except Cindy keeps tugging on the sleeves, wishing they were a bit longer. Good thing the summer/silk blend is very stretchy!)

And a note to all the knitters out there with similar problems: if you don't go around pointing out the different dye lots as soon as you walk into a room, most likely nobody will notice your sweater's condition.

Some Colour on a Cloudy Day

It's another cold and rainy day, but Heather's not complaining. She just finished her Tender sweater from The Colourscape Chunky Collection out of Kaffe Fasset's Colourscape [rav link].

Check out those wings--er, I mean sleeves!

Look how elegant she looks, reaching for a ball of just out of reach yarn!

(And maintaining elegance in those electric candy shades is quite a feat! But, Heather, you pull it off without a hitch!)

So, it's a cold, gray, rainy Sunday. So what? Pick up that wool sweater you haven't quite finished, turn on the basketball game, and knit!

Crochet Socks

There's a lot of knitting on this blog, and crochet often gets the shaft. But Suzanne is doing her best to remedy the situation.

She has taught a lot of classes at the Knit Nook, mostly our Beginning Crochet on Saturdays, but also spinning and even some knitting classes too. This month, she taught her first Crochet Socks class. And I have a feeling, it's just the beginning.

Keith took the class and well within the three weeks, he finished his first pair of socks. They are made out of All Season's Cotton (I want to say three skeins, but I am really just making up that number) and a D hook. Keith defies convention by proving that just because you crochet, and just because you're a man, doesn't mean you can't make a pair of kick ass socks! Excellent job, Keith! And thanks for sending the pictures.

If you would like to learn how to crochet your own socks, don't wait until fall for the next class. Call or email us and Suzanne can get you hooked up. (Ha! Ha! My wit astounds me!)

Erika's Blanket

It was sad when Erika moved away. But it was also a reminder about how great technology is. She still calls us up at the shop to see what we're up to. We write notes on Facebook and Ravelry. And of course, email.

There isn't much of a knitting community where she lives. So when she finished a blanket for her nephew, she knew how much we'd appreciate it and emailed us some pictures.


The color scheme is sophisticated, but still colorful enough for a little boy. It will be something that can see him through his whole life.

It's made out of Blue Sky Cotton, which is without a doubt my favorite yarn, particularly for baby blankets. The vibrant green color is called Pickle.

Squares are a great way to experiment with new stitches. Also, blankets like this can be great stash busters. If you only have a little bit of yarn left, it might not be enough to make a hat, but it might be enough to make a square.

My favorite is the square with the F embossed on it.


Thank you, Erika for sharing your knitting with us! It's great to still feel connected even though you live on the other side of the country!