bunchkinknits

What a year

2009-01-04T16:36:00.002-09:00

I know I've been a very bad blogger. But 2008 was a VERY bad year. Probably the worst I've ever had, and I just haven't had the mojo to write. Can't really get into details, but please keep me in your prayers. Ok, that was so depressing and boring. Hey look, a tattoo!

Shalom Cardigan

2008-10-21T01:12:00.004-08:00

So I'm sure after my previous sad little story I should give you a story that isn't quite so depressing. The Shalom Cardigan caught my eye as I was cruising around Ravelry. Cute, fast knit, loads of finished examples to look at. What could go wrong? Um, yeah, we are talking about me here. I decided to use 2 strands of Elsbeth Lavold Silky Wool instead of the bulky yarn called for. Even with the substitution I decided to not knit a swatch and just cross my fingers. Things were going well. I knit the yoke.
Beautiful.
Armhole?
Beautiful.
Waist shaping?
Beautiful.
Around 10 rows away from the bottom I happened to just pick it up and look at it and my jaw hit the floor.
I KNIT THE ENTIRE BODY AFTER THE YOKE INSIDE OUT.

Horrible picture I know, but it was taken in the heat of the moment. Can you see the yoke in the left hand corner? And all the little purl bumps on the right?
After I took a breath I decided to weigh my options. My choices were to keep on going and just leave the purl bumps out, flip it inside out and have the wrong side of the yoke showing, or rip it all out and knit the body over again. None of these options seemed pleasant. I wanted it the way it was supposed to look and I didn't want to knit it all over again! This left me with one last very scary option.

CUTTING.

I snipped a stitch about an inch below the armhole and carefully unraveled that row. Put it on needles, grabbed a stiff drink, and prepared myself to do a HECK of a lot of kitchenering. But first I had to go stitch by stitch and flip every row of that inch after the armhole and flip them from purls to knits. The whole process of snipping, unraveling, and restitching took about 2 days. Then I decided to add some short sleeves because it hadn't been challenging enough.
Now after all of this drama, the sweater was still way too small. I anticipated this and did it on purpose becuase I had heard that the Silky Wool stretches and grows after blocking. But whether it would be enough or too much I wasnt sure. Crossed my fingers, plunged it into some water, laid it out on the floor and began the waiting game.

AND LOOK!!!!!!!

I love a good happy ending.

Green Gable

2008-10-21T00:41:00.003-08:00

Well hello my bloggy friends, its been a while! The drama llama has made an appearance at my house the past several months, so blogging just wasn't a super priority. But I'm back! And oh the knitting stories I have to tell. First off lets start with my Green Gable Hoodie from the Fall issue of Vogue Knitting. This pattern was previously published as a free pattern, but was accepted by Vogue at a later time and Im guessing reformatted. There are many people who knit this pattern when it was free and churned out beautiful FOs with no mention of problems. But problems Ive had aplenty with this project. I knit this out of Beaverslide yarn in a pretty pink colorway that I snatched off of the Destash Board on Ravelry.

Doesn't look too bad, right? Lets take a closer look.

There was no direction as to how to meld the arm cables into the center cable and I ended up fudging it on my own. After finishing this part I realized a way I could have done it better, but by this time I just wanted to finish the dang thing. Next up, shoulder shaping.

I really didnt understand what the designer wanted me to do most of the time. I kind of winged most of it, and my numbers and the patterns numbers were very different. Didnt end up looking super shouldery. And the hood! Oh the hood!!

Yeah, totally wonky.
Even with all of the difficulties, Im still happy enough with it and wear it all the time. Would NEVER knit it again though!

Im one of the cool kids now!

2008-08-06T14:19:00.001-08:00

I got ravgear!!!

My disagree face:

Would people think I was weird if I wore this shirt every day for the next week?

Tepes, The Non Dead Version

2008-07-24T20:53:00.003-08:00

I've kind of been on a sock knitting kick lately, but all that sock knitting has not really translated into a whole lot of actual socks. I knit one, start a completely different one, or maybe rip one out, etc. The last sock was really ticking me off, so I frogged half of it and cast on a hat to punish it. Take that you little toe licker!

This is Tepes, from the most recent issue of Anticraft. Now I've never been a big fan of Anticraft, it's not really my bag, what with the knitted tumors and bacon tiaras and such. But I was really impressed with the cables in this hat, and the way they looked like little people. But I don't really dig the idea of wearing a hat with people impaled on sticks on my head. And then I realized that without the sticks, they kind of look like they're dancing, right? RIGHT?

Knitted out of mystery worsted wool from my stash, this hat took me about 3 days. From the bottom of the people up I followed the pattern, but below the people band I made quite a few. First of all, the hat was long enough without the band of seed stitch below the people, so I omitted that. I maybe possibly didnt check gauge before starting, and that could have contributed to this issue. I decided that cables plus tassels plus a funky top were enough without the addition of ear flaps, so I omitted those. And I did try an I-cord bind of for a little while, but ripped it out in favor of a simple 1x1 rib.

I luuurve this hat! It fits just right, not too loose, not too tight. It covers my ears, and has just enough funk to be interesting without being weird. When I first tried it on The Plumber informed me that it was gaudy, but then a few minute later requested the red and black version WITH stakes. Uh huh.

He knows my hat's rockin'.

Calorimetry

2008-07-03T12:28:00.002-08:00

When I first saw this pattern, I thought it was stupid. I thought that the thousands of folk who were knitting them left and right were stupid. I thought the whole Calorimetry craze was stupid.

I WAS WRONG.

This version only took 2 or 3 hrs. I cast on 100, and didnt do as many repeats as was called for. This pattern is my new obsession. I want one in 10 different colors. I scour the LYS for possible yarn choices. It's so darn cute!

Who knew over 4,000 people (according to Ravelry) could be so right?

This made my night

2008-07-01T23:23:00.001-08:00

This video had me rolling. YOU MUST WATCH IT.

Tempest Finished

2008-06-07T22:21:00.002-08:00

Wow, I can't believe I actually finished this sweater. Seems like I've been working on it forever, but it has taken about three weeks.

This is Tempest, one of the Knitty surprises. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to make it. We've been through some trials, this sweater and I.
First, there was the row gauge debacle. These sleeves were supposed to be 3/4 length, but due to the row gauge mishap, turned into full length ones. But I am really glad, because I think I prefer the full length ones anyway. And if the row gauge had not been off, the body length would have been way too short.

Secondly, several nights ago as I was sewing it together, it appeared that I had completely screwed up the fronts, and that the armholes were way to short in front. I stared, I counted stripes, and it just didn't make any sense. How could this have possibly happened? Was there some horrible error in the pattern that no one had picked up on yet? I felt like I was going to cry. I finally threw the sweater down in disgust.
The next morning I picked it up again and it all became clear. I had sewn the fronts in backwards, and was trying to sew the sleeves into the neckline. But I kind of got what I deserved, trying to knit after a few drinks at 3 am. Goes to show you what they say is true, knitting and drinking do not mix. I ripped out the shoulder seams, put the fronts in the right way, and voila! The pieces fit perfectly!
The list goes on and on. I couldn't find buttons that matched, it was too tight when I tried it on, etc, etc. So I took a deep breath, blocked it on the bedroom floor, and this morning tried it on. And it fit!

Pattern:Tempest (Ravelry link)
Yarn:Fleece Artist BFL
Needles: size 6
Modifications: Aside from the whole unintended row gauge mods, I added a foldover hem to the sleeves, since I wasn't really digging the unfinished look that was called for in the pattern.

I love it! Of course, now that its finished, it's getting too warm to wear now. but with living in Alaska, that won't last for too long.

(Sorry Alaska, didn't mean anything by it! Please, please, please, don't get cold just to spite me. I'm loving the warm weather. Really!)

@#$^%& Row Gauge!

2008-05-29T00:42:00.003-08:00

I'm knitting Tempest, one of the latest Knitty surprises.
I've finished the back, the fronts, and one sleeve. As I finished the first sleeve, I held it up over my arm. And....it reaches exactly to my wrists, right where a full length sleeve should.
The problem is that these are supposed to be 3/4 sleeves. I've followed the pattern perfectly, I have the right number of stripes. My stitch gauge was great. I even washed my swatch! This leads me to believe that my row gauge is a weeeeee bit off. Not that I actually measured the row gauge. Note to self: row gauge is very important in a striped pattern. I've held the other pieces up to my body, and they seem quite long also. *sigh*
My only options are to rip and reknit (not gonna happen), or finish this last sleeve, sew it all together, and hope that my long waistedness will be an advantage, and that the skinny waist rows will somehow fall in the right place. Otherwise, I've just spent the last few weeks knitting a sweater for a spaghetti noodle.

Say Hello To My Little Friend

2008-05-29T00:38:00.002-08:00

A little more complicated than I thought

2008-05-02T22:51:00.003-08:00

I got the idea that I wanted to make a lace baby blanket while I was pregnant. But it couldn't be TOO lacey, because, you know, my baby would have to retain his manliness and such. While cruising Ravelry, I came across a baby blanket made from the Frost Flowers and Leaves pattern from A Gathering of Lace. (I can't find the inspiration blanket now, or I would link to it) It kind of got stuck in my head, and started buzzing around in there. Match a buzzing little idea for a project with a chance meeting with a beautiful yarn in the yarn store, and my fate was sealed.

I used Aslan Trends Invernal in a yellow-strawish colorway. This yarn is actually not very attractive in the skein. It has a twine like look, and I passed right by it originally. I happened to notice a sample baby blanket knit with it, and I was in love. In the skein it is kind of blah, but knit up it is amazingly soft with a wonderful angora halo that begs to be squished.

I knit 2 repeats of chart 2, and used size 6 needles. This is not a very intuitive pattern, and you have to pay attention to almost every stitch of every row. It took about 2 months, and was finished about 2 weeks after Jack was born. I don't think I would have picked this particular pattern if I had known quite how complex it was, but now that I have done it I am so pleased with how it turned out and glad that I put in the time and effort.

This is the "go to" blanket for Jack, and I hope that it will be something that he is able to wrap his own babies in, and remember all the time his mommy put into it, and how much she loves him.

Useful if You've Ever Had The Urge to Pinch One of Their Heads Off

2008-04-19T22:55:00.003-08:00

Usually on this blog, I have tried to stay away from politics. Mostly because once I get started and all worked up about them, I can't stop. And then I get angry, and well...I'd like to keep this a happy place. I just save up all my frustrations about current affairs and unleash them on The Plumber. He doesn't mind. Too much.

But just this once, I'm going to make an exception. Because really,how often do you get to combine crafts and presidential candidates? Now go to this site, and make yourself a whole army of little Obamas or McCains or Hillarys. (The horror!) I think I'm going to make up a bunch of all of them and line them up on the coffee table. Then every time one of them says something stupid I'll just flick them across the room.

More of the Same

2008-04-12T02:12:00.005-08:00

I'll admit it. I like to knit a lot. But when I'm pregnant, I just can't bring myself to knit garments that I know won't fit me for quite a while. It's just not very fun to finish a sweater, love it, and then put it away for months. So that pretty much leaves me with scarves, gloves, hats, and baby knits. Socks were out because of all the horrible swelling that left me with Crocs as the only viable footwear option. So guess which one I kind of went crazy with?

These are made from the Moc-a-Soc pattern with scraps of sock yarn from the stash. The pattern calls for DK weight yarn, but I found that sock weight was needed to get a newborn size.

It seems like every picture taken of this kiddo, he's wearing some form of handknits.

These little red socks are from the Better Than Booties pattern that was in an issue of Interweave Knits a few years back.

For all of you that are saying, "Ok, enough with the baby knits!" Next post will contain not a single bit of babyness. But I can't vouch for the ones after that. I just did too much dang baby knitting while I was pregnant, and now I just can't help but show it all off. Plus, with such a cute model, how can I not?

Over the Knee baby Socks

2008-04-06T23:36:00.002-08:00

Remember those baby socks I made a while back? The ones with the funny bend at the knee?

They totally rock! These have been my hands down favorite baby socks. They stay on, they fit well, and they keep his legs warm underneath all those little newborn baby gowns.

I made these from a vintage knitting pattern, but modified them quite a bit. They were knit on dpns in the round, and I had to play with the foot shaping a little to make knitting them in the round work. I knit them in garter stitch as the pattern specified, but I think they would be really cute in stockinette also. I wish I had knit several more pairs! This will definitely be my go-to pattern for friends who are having babies. Maybe I'll even write up my own pattern for them one day, you know, with all that free time I have!

Finished!

2008-04-03T00:13:00.003-08:00

Wow! This FO took quite a while, but still ended up being finished 2 weeks ahead of schedule.

Pattern: A collaboration between myself and The Plumber. As cute as he is, I will NOT be publishing the pattern. This one is all mine!
Pattern Name: Jack
Finishing Date: March 27, 2008
Materials: A combination of Twizzlers, Peanut Butter Cups, and Diet Coke, with a sprinkling of Honeycomb cereal.
Finishing Time: Surprisingly, this was my longest labor out of all of my 5 children. 6 hrs! My fourth child was less than two hours, so I thought this little guy would fly out, but he took his time.
Verdict: Miserable pregnancy, long labor, and totally worth it!

I am finding myself in a losing battle. His feet are so darn cute that I want to EAT THEM UP! Baby feet! GAH!

I'm already finding myself feeling more energetic, and hope to be posting much more frequently. I've got LOTS of projects to post about, and can't wait to get back on the blogging bandwagon.

Peace Out!

Fifi Reincarnated

2008-03-07T10:16:00.002-09:00

Remember the disaster that was my Fifi sweater?

After frogging I had 5 skeins of Rowan Calmer, of which I had paid a pretty price for, sitting in my stash doing nothing. I recently picked up Baby Knits by Lois Daykin, at Jo- Anns with a nifty 40% of coupon, after seeing the really cute cover pattern.

This is the Teddy Suit, knit in 5 skeins of brown Rowan Calmer, with one skein of tan for the contrasting color. I haven't done intarsia in YEARS, so it was almost like doing it for the first time, but it wasn't so bad. I love the nubby texture of the background pattern, and the ears!

How stinkin' cute are these ears!

They were kind of a pain to put on, and my first attempt looked more like Eeyore ears than bear ones. But when I ACTUALLY FOLLOWED THE DIRECTIONS instead of just winging it, they turned out just right. Funny how that happens.

There is a zipper for the front closure, and there are supposed to be little flippable mitts on the arms and feet on the legs. I did try to add those pieces, but the directions weren't super clear and I didn't care for how they were looking, so poof! they were gone. I think I like the look of plain ribbing at the wrists and ankles better, anyway.

I don't think I would have gone out and spent the money for the yarn for this project because of it's short wearability span, but since I had the yarn already it was an awesome project and stash buster all in one. Be on the lookout for "baby in a bearsuit" pictures in the coming months.

Tomten Jacket

2008-02-11T00:10:00.004-09:00

Well hello again! I know I've been not so great about updating the blog lately, but I have an excuse. Umm, pregnancy sucks? I can't bend over, can't walk without waddling, and my back is killing me. I love the end result, but the process? Not so much. And I promise that's the end of the whining for this post.

There are so many great Tomten Jackets out there; it is such a classic. I bought some Noro Silver Thaw on sale for 50% off a while ago, and thought it would be perfect.

(That blur in the photo is what happens when someone eats a cookie and then touches the lens of your camera)

I made the pattern with no modifications except for adding a few extra rows in the hood. I'm glad I did, or it would have been too small.

I have not always been a huge fan of Elizabeth Zimmerman, but as I make more and more of her patterns, she has been growing on me. I don't really care for wordy patterns, I would rather have concise, cut to the chase directions, but the more I read her patterns, the more I am able to "translate" them into something I can understand. And some of her methods are so genious that wordy or not, I love learning them.
I wish the weather was a little warmer so he could get some more use out of it before he grows too much! It has been -38 the past few days, so a light jacket is out of the question, it's all bulky coats and snowpants around here right now. I have put it underneath his bulky coat a few times, just to have it get worn a little bit!

(If you are wondering what the ridiculous things are on his legs, those are BabyLegs. They are like tights without feet or tops, basically long tubes that keep little legs warm. I actually bought them for the new baby, but The Deanster saw them and wanted to wear them. He loves them and wears them all the time. Functional, fashionable, but so silly looking!)

Motherhood is Eating My Brain

2008-01-28T22:30:00.000-09:00

Earlier in the day, I blurted out in frustration,

"I am very muchly angry at your no not listening today!"

RAVELRY SUCKS!

2008-01-20T00:26:00.000-09:00

That's right. I said it. Ravelry Sucks!

It SUCKS me in every night!

I think, "Oh, I'll just check the forums and see what's going on."

CLICK.

Then, " Well, since I'm here, I'll check the destash pages."

CLICK CLICK.

I see a yarn that looks interesting, and think," Hmmm...What would I do with that? Let me see what other people have done with it."

CLICKETY CLICK.

"I've never seen that pattern before, what do the other versions look like?"

CLICK.

CLICK.

CLICK.

CLICK.

And then somehow it's 2 am and I haven't knit a stitch. But I've made plans. Oh, the PLANS I have made! And then the next night I think, "I wonder what's going on on Raverly? I'll just check real quick."

CLICK.

Oh Me Oh My

2008-01-15T01:28:00.001-09:00

We've had quite a week here.

The Plumber and I have cleaned up vomit 22 times in the last 4 days. (Yes, we counted)

My couch now reeks of puke. (Any good tips for getting that tang out of upholstery?)

The van broke down in -30 degree weather, and only after 2 days and several hours of help from some guys from church who went WAY above and beyond the call of duty did we get it to start again.

Because of the van breaking down while I was out by myself, I was forced to choose between accepting a ride from an unknown man, or having The Plumber load up 4 puking children into a freezing car full of plumbing parts. I took the risk, (he was a bellman at the hotel where my van broke down) and arrived home safely with no axe wounds or organs missing.

The auto start for the van that cost us $600 dollars 3 months ago is no longer working. Apparently the shop that installed it neglected to tell us that jumping the vehicle would mess up the auto start system. I have to call them tomorrow and see if they will fix it, or whether we are just screwed.

What? You just came here for the knitting?

Oh, alright. I aim to please.

This is Solo from Rowan Babies, knit in Rowan Denim. This is a great little jacket, and the only thing I dislike about it was that it was knit in so many pieces that had to be sewn together. I actually made the 2T size for the Deanster, but it ended up quite a bit larger and fits Sweetpea perfectly.

That's one of the advantages of having a lot of kids. No matter what size something you knit ends up being, it's gonna fit somebody.

The Most Ridiculous Thing I Have Ever Knit

2008-01-06T23:45:00.000-09:00

This is Cricket.

My sister is a vet tech, and one day a woman came into the clinic wanting to put her dog to sleep because the dog didn't get along with her other dogs. The workers at the clinic questioned her and found out that the dog wasn't aggresive towards people, just these particular dogs, so they asked the woman to leave the dog with them and they would find a good home for her. She didn't want to do it, said she wouldn't know for sure if she would go to a good family or not so she would rather just euthanize her. After much negotiating, she still wasn't sure, so my sister said that she would personally keep the dog, and since she was a vet tech, the dog would obviously be in a home where she would be well taken care of. Cricket has been her constant companion ever since.

I saw the cables + bits pattern on Knitty, and decided that Cricket needed one. I have never seen a dog that is as well dressed, has such a large wardrobe, and enjoys being dressed up as much as this little dog. She even has her own puffy little pink ski jacket. Knit in worsted superwash wool yarn, this was a quick knit, though the whole time I was making it I kept thinking, " I can't believe I am knitting for a dog!" I left out the bobbles in the ribbing because they were annoying (as all bobbles are) and didn't seem necessary.

I think she likes it, and I know my sister does, so I guess it wasn't TOTALLY ridiculous!

She's not in pain, that's just her "camera smile"

2007-12-15T00:53:00.002-09:00

We've all done it.

You're getting ready to check out at the yarn store, and a certain Noro colorway catches your eye. So you throw one skein of it onto the counter and bring it home. And there it sits.
Every time you browse the stash, it is sitting there, taunting you. But what to do with it?

This skein of Noro Silk Garden has been in my stash for over a year. Right on top. Staring at me. So when I saw the New Directions hat in 101 Designer One Skein Wonders, I knew it would be perfect for my little orphan skein.

I actually used the pattern as more of a guide, and altered it quite a bit. I used size 4 needles instead of size 8, knit the band until it fit my head, then knit up till it was long enough. I used my own method of decreasing the top, and omitted the little "stem" that was on the pattern.

I knit this hat for myself, and it fit well and was pretty darn cute. But about a week ago, The Plumber saw it in the mudroom and plunked it on Sweet Pea's head on their way out the door. Ever since then it has been HER hat. Oh well, at least it's getting used. And (cough) now I have a reason to buy another skein of Noro.

The Baby Bootees, They Must Be Knit

2007-12-06T01:21:00.001-09:00

What do you do when you buy 6 skeins of Louet Gems for a project, then realize that it is totally unsuitable for said project?

Knit some baby socks!

These are Better than Bootie socks, free from Interweave Knits. I followed the pattern except for continuing all of the cables down the instep, instead of only one on each side. I've knit this pattern before, and I think the cables on the instep make them fit better.

After roaming around on Ravelry I found this cute vintage pattern for baby knee socks. I thought that the curve going over the knee was really neat, of course I haven't been able to try them on yet, but that little feature seems like it will make them stay up better.

I altered the pattern to be knit in the round, becuase seams are a necessary evil, best to be avoided whenever possible.

That little blob of yarn is all that is left from one skein.

Now the question is, what do I do with the other 5 skeins?

Its a ....

2007-11-20T23:12:00.000-09:00

BOY!!!!!!!

Yep, we're having another boy! This will be boy number 4. We were kind of hoping for another girl so Sweet Pea would have a sister, but as soon as we saw him on the ultrasound he shoved his butt in the air and showed off his goods. Later in the day The Plumber patted my arm and said, " Oh, well. Maybe next time!"

And then I fainted.

Little Monster Bear

2007-11-20T22:55:00.001-09:00

I am usually a "big project" knitter. I turn my nose up at little things like hats and scarves, and go for the big, complicated stuff. But lately it seems like all I want to do is whip up quick little instant gratification projects. I made an impulse purchase of the book 101 Designer One-Skein Wonders, and have been pulling yarn out of the stash left and right!
This is the Little Monster Bear by Wendy Gross from page 155.

Before felting:

After felting:

I broke into a skein of Patons Merino, and barely used 1/4 of it. Knitting time was only about 2 hrs total, so it's a great gift project. And yarn plus the little eyes cost 1.50 total! All of my kiddos want one now, but I think this one will be a baby gift for someone I know.

I have also dipped into my stash for some Rowan Denim for Solo from Rowan Babies. I only have one more side seam to sew, and then it's done. This is the first time I have used Denim, and having to knit 20% more length that disappears into nothingness was kind of annoying. But then I washed it. And it is so beautiful and soft and yummy that I just want to keep knitting with it.
Have you ever seen how a nicotine addicts fingers are stained yellow?

Mine are stained blue. What does that make me?