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.

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.

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.

Yarn weight:  Aran / 10 ply (8 wpi)

Gauge: 20 stitches and 36 rows = 4 inches in cable pattern with 5 mm needles

Needle size:US 6 - 4.0 mm, US 8 - 5.0 mm

Yardage: 475 - 1300 yards (434 - 1189 m)

Sizes available: 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.

Well Begun is (almost) Half Done

After ditching the Vine yoke Cardigan, my friend Shells and I decided on Girl Friday (We are doing a knit along). She also had encountered some issues with the former pattern in an earlier attempt and was wise enough to wait the outcome of my project before recasting. Anyway, we both liked Girl Friday and started it. I am happy to report that it has been such a pleasant knit so far, no issues at all. The lace pattern is very easy to memorize. I am knitting both fronts and back together and am almost at the point of splitting for armholes. Shells is well pleased with her cardigan too, you can see it here.

Disappointment

It was the time of the year to knit cardigan for myself. I had picked out the pattern and yarn in advance. It was to be the Vine Yoke Cardigan in Knit Picks Wool of Andes. Going through the projects on ravelry, I discovered there were some finicky details which could be potentially troublesome. The cardigan was too short, it tended to grow quite large and had to be knitted a couple of size smaller, the button bands hung, the yoke lace was bulkier than the body. However, there seemed to be modifications around, for most of these problems, so I went ahead and cast on. A week on and well into the first sleeve, I feel unsure with the way this cardigan is progressing. There are many things that could go wrong and probably will. And that makes me uneasy while I knit on it. It is no longer fun. I will probably rip it and start anew with some other pattern. Now to go and look for that elusive pattern. In the meanwhile, I am going to start on a pair of socks.

A Hoodie

For a long time and especially since I knit Steggie, my older daughter has been asking me to make her a hooded sweater. So my sweater for her this winter had to have a hood. It was a quick knit in worsted weight yarn. The pattern is my own, though it is nothing very original, just some ribbing and cables around the chest and sleeves and two pockets to match. It is seamless, except for the pockets which are knitted separately and then sewed on. I briefly considered making it full-sleeved but that did not look so right. In all, it turned out quite nice and she is very happy to have her hoodie.

Hundreds and Thousands Quilt

My first quilt is all done. Since last posting about it, I added borders to it, put the top together with the batting and the inner layer, quilted and put a binding to the whole thing. It might not be perfect but I am very proud of it. And the positive experience I have had with it probably means more quilting in my future.

Dying camera batteries did not let me get a better photo.