Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Month O'Socks: Knee Warmers

Here is my second finished project for the Month O'Socks, a pair of knee warmers in worsted weight. I modified the pattern to knit the knee caps in contrasting solid color and made the lower leg longer. I have also weaved in several rows elastic thread along the upper edge. Still, these have some tendency to slide down. But overall, these have turned out quite nicely, though I will not recommend the weaving in of the elastic to the faint of heart. It is far worse than having to sew up your knit pieces, but in this case, it was necessary and worth the effort.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Month O'Socks: Stashbuster Spirals II

This is my first completed a pair for the Month O'Socks. The pattern is Stashbuster Spirals knitted in child size for my son. I used three different leftover sock yarns to knit these up. I love this pattern, the spiraling keeps it interesting and the results are unpredictably wild.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Poppy

I took a break from Month O'Socks to knit a hat. This is to be my daughter's school hat this year. She had grown out of her old, generic one and I thought a little variation from the plain uniform hat was in order. Happily, her school is very appreciative of hand knits. It has a lovely shape, covers the ears and has enough stretch to accommodate the ponytails! And the crochet flower adds to the cuteness.

 
As for the pattern, it is a variation of the Aviatrix baby hat. I had knit one of those for my younger daughter and loved it. The pattern covers many sizes and yarn weights. I knit it in DK weight. The yarn is local acrylic.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Month O'Socks 2012

It is time for the annual Month O'Socks (MOS) at the Sporum Forum (ravelry). This year it runs from Jaunaury 16 to 15th of February. I have had a slow start but I hope to knit at least two pairs of socks and a pair of leg-knee warmers. Right now I am working at the first pair, stashbuster socks for my son, who has grown out of the pair I knit him last year. I have one complete sock and the other knit up the the heel.
 This first sock is not among of my finest works, I experimented with different knitting styles while knitting it, and also messed up the color spirals in the foot section. The second sock is looking much better. I have also started the leg-knee warmers. And I just might knit one hat too, this month, in addition to all the MOS knitting.




Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Girl Friday

My Girl Friday cardigan is all done. The pattern was straight forward, the lace pattern, easy to memorize and execute. It was a totally relaxing knit, especially after the aborted attempt at Vine yoke cardigan. The only modification I did was knit all body pieces together and knit sleeves in rounds to minimize seaming. It is just right for the chilly January we are having, with its snug shawl collar and extra-long sleeves. The yarn is Knit Picks Wool of Andes (Grizzly Heather). I am still undecided about how many buttons I want, one single large one or multiple smaller ones. As I do not normally wear my cardigan buttoned to the bottom, I am inclined to go with a single button.
  Next, I have a long line up of smaller projects for the coming month. More about those in the next post, inshaAllah.

Friday, January 13, 2012

Kaptaan Cabled Pullover

It took me eleven months to churn out the pattern for this pullover and get it test knitted. It is finally up for sale at my ravelry store. I had a great set of test knitter for this one too and you can also see their FOs at the store. Kaptaan is the Urdu word for captain, which is what my cricket-crazy son aspires to be one day.
 This raglan pullover is knit in rounds from bottom up till the armholes, then the front and back are worked separately. The sleeves are done the same way.
:  Aran / 10 ply (8 wpi)
: 20 stitches and 36 rows = 4 inches in cable pattern with 5 mm needles
:US 6 - 4.0 mm, US 8 - 5.0 mm
: 475 - 1300 yards (434 - 1189 m)
: 2 (4, 6, 8, 10, 12) years
Finished Measurements:
Chest: 26 (28, 30, 32, 34, 36) inches.
Length: 16 (18, 20, 22, 24, 26) inches.
Sleeve length (to underarm): 9 (11, 12, 13, 14, 15.5) inches.