The Never Ending Sweater

I have a major case of the sads over one of the sweaters I knit recently. Remember this one:

I wanted this sweater for so long. The first time I wore it, I loved it. I wore it again and the yarn grew. I wore it again and it grew even more. And more. Pretty soon this sweater was so wide on me it looked ridiculous. I thought I could solve the problem by washing it again. I even threw it in the dryer. It didn't shrink one bit - superwash yarn. This sweater was so big on me I couldn't wear it any more. Luckily, it got a good home. I hope I am not embarrassing my mother by saying that she took it (gladly) and it fits her perfectly. She gave me money to buy more yarn to knit it again. I just really dislike knitting things twice, especially a sweater, but I really, really want it. So I went on the hunt for yarn. I wanted something chunkier than the original yarn I used. I found some Valley Yarn at Webs that I thought would fit the bill. When I got my order I was disappointed. The yarn was not at all what I wanted for this sweater. I swatched it anyway just to see if I would like it when it was knit up. I didn't like it any better and my gauge was off. The yarn is too chunky - and too scratchy.

Then I remembered that I had some chunky yarn stashed away somewhere. Why didn't I think of this in the first place? I was saving some Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky for something I saw a couple of years back and never knit it. I went ahead and swatched that - and it is perfect! I got gauge, the yarn is soft, it is the right color, and I know from experience using Debbie Bliss yarn that it doesn't grow.

I just don't have enough for the sweater. I decided to order some more just to be on the safe side. Well, it is discontinued. Luckily, I found some at a yarn store online, oh about six pages into Google after finding out everyone else is sold out. They had 7 balls left and I took all of them. Phew! I am crossing my fingers that will be enough.

On a much happier note, I just got the new St. Denis Magazine for Spring/Summer 2010.

Love. Love. Love. There are some really beautiful pieces in here that I cannot wait to knit up!

Lilac

My newest project (a cardigan). Knitting up in such a lovely spring color. This was the color my husband and I chose for our wedding which was by the seashore. I have very fond memories of this color.

Savoring the Scarf

I have been slowly knitting away on this very pretty scarf. It is such a pleasure to knit that I have been taking my time with it and have actually been savoring my knitting time. It is kind of like a very good book that you are enjoying reading so much that you don't want to get to the end too quickly because then the story will be over.

FO: Spring Hoodie

I have been finished with the hoodie sweater I had been knitting for my son for a few days now but it has been so dreary outside - definitely not weather to be taking pictures of a little spring sweater in. We were so happy that the sun finally came out for us today!

Pattern: Design D Plain Sweater with Hood from Sirdar booklet 318 Lazy Days and Holidays
Yarn: Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in colors in Putty and Navy
Needles: size US 3, 5, and 6

I made quite a few mods to this sweater because the original design was very plain. I wanted to make this a little more sporty - give it a little something. To start with, I added an inch and a half to the length but shortened the sleeves by an inch. I added 1x1 ribbing to the hem and cuffs. The original design had rolled edges but 1x1 ribbing for the trim on the hood. I wanted all of the trim to match. I also added a pouch pocket and trimmed that with the 1x1 rib. I lined the pocket with the blue yarn. I added the blue varsity stripes on the left sleeve and I also lined the hood in blue. I knit the hood lining separately on a size smaller needle. To attach it, I picked up the stitches for the trim on the hood through both thicknesses of the hood and then tacked the bottom edge of the lining to the inside.

I feel like I have been working on this sweater for so long that I was really getting tired of it. But as soon as I finished, I loved the way it turned out. The biggest reward though, is that my son really loves it. He is a great little dude! He was so excited to put it on and was super patient being my model while I snapped his picture.

Almost There

Well, it is almost spring (yay!) and I am almost finished with my son's sweater. I am this close to finishing and I ran out of yarn. Don't you just hate when that happens? The yarn store that I bought the yarn from is also out. So now I am on the hunt.

I'm not really sure why, but I feel like it takes me longer to knit a little sweater for my son than it takes me to knit one for myself. Why is that? Maybe its the extra amount of love and attention I put into it. I would like to think that but I think I'm just slow.

RL 2010 Olympic Ski Cap

I am finished with my 2010 Olympic Ski Cap! And here it is:

Pattern: Olympic Reindeer Hat by Helena Bristow (originally Ralph Lauren)
Yarn: RYC Cashsoft 4 Ply in Navy, White, and Red
Needles: size US 2 and 3

I modified this hat from the original pattern written up by Helena Bristow because after viewing quite a few of these on Ravelry, it looked like it was turning out too large and too wide. So here are some of the changes I made: I used fingering weight yarn instead of worsted weight and used size 3 needles (size 2 for the inside of the brim). I also increased the number of stitches I cast on from 110 to 130 and I added another tree motif. I also made the trees bigger so that they were more like the original Ralph Lauren hat. I cut out a lot of the white rows above and below the moose. I also knit the moose and trees in intarsia (in the round) and stranded the rest. I found a great tutorial here on how to knit intarsia in the round and then I used this source for the top decreases. They were both very helpful. And after all that.... it fits perfectly!

I love the way this hat turned out! I think it is so cute..... and it matches my vintage Ralph Lauren duffle coat! Bonus!

Inspirational Stitches

Last week I caught that terrible 24-hour stomach bug that has been going around. While recovering in bed, I streamed Valentino: The Last Emperor on Netflix, about the fashion designer, Valentino. It was inspirational, no matter what kind of stitches you make. Just to watch those seamstresses hand stitch every little sequin and ruffle and get every detail just perfect.

It also made me think of the time we were in Rome and went to the Valentino retrospective at the Ara Pacis, which is featured in the film.

This is one of my favorite pictures from that visit. My husband took this of me and my son as I was descending the steps. I can't tell you how unglamorous I felt wearing jeans and a plain white shirt and carrying a barefoot 11 month old and being surrounded by all of those gorgeous couture gowns. Quite a contrast.