Learning Curve

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Ran into a problem with my sister's Reverie (Ravelry link) and had to frog it down to the ribbing. I was four rows from finishing it. You think I would have learned by now to put in a lifeline...

As a result, I've started knitting a Wisp (Ravelry link). It's coming along quite nicely now. And no, I haven't put a lifeline in yet and I don't think I will. Yeah, I think there's something to be said about my learning curve.

I haven't decided what to do with the Wisp yet. It's not my color nor my style. I suppose I'll finish it, block it, and put it away until I find someone to give it to!

Spinning

Posted by Emily |0 comments

What a day! Seven hours in the car! Fortunately, I wasn't driving, so it was seven hours of quality knitting time.

I went to a family reunion in Wisconsin with my parents. After that, we went to see my grandmother in southern Minnesota, and ended up visiting my aunt at her farm. I was able to give away my very first knitted project, Kaitlyn's Reverie (Ravelry link). I also picked up a spinning wheel and a garbage bag full of mohair roving from my aunt! Now I just need to learn to spin!

Reverie

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I finally finished my cousin's hat today. I used the Reverie pattern from Knitty (Ravelry link). I really liked the pattern, but being a new knitter, it certainly gave me fits.

The decreases really gave me trouble, particularly after I switched to dpns. I got so stuck at one point (rows 14/15) that I had to drive to my LYS (Borealis Yarn) to get some help. They got me straightened out and I was able to finish the hat without any more trouble.

My sister would like me to make her the Reverie now, after seeing Kaitlyn's hat completed. I looked at fingering weight yarns when I was at Borealis this afternoon and picked out a couple skeins I thought she might like. Here's a photo of Araucania Ranco Multy 310 (left) and Dream in Color Smooshy in Some Summer Sky (right). The color is a little washed out from my flash, but it's pretty close.

Just Suck It Up

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I finally decided to suck it up and start my cousin's hat (Ravelry link). I think my gauge is correct on US 6 needles, but I'm not convinced. I'm very concerned about screwing up the gauge because I only have one skein of yarn and I'm knitting this for someone else. I won't know until I give it to her if I did it correctly and then it will be impossible to fix it. Understandably, this is why I've been putting this project off.

I've had it since May though, so it's long past time I got it on needles. It is a fast knit and the yarn is eminently enjoyable. Guessing which color will show up next is a lot of fun! I've done about the best I can as far as gauge is concerned, so all I can do is measure, measure, measure and cross my fingers that it will all come together properly.

My grandmother's afghan is coming along nicely as well (Ravelry link). Honestly, the reason I started the hat tonight was because I didn't feel like working on the afghan. It's such a simple pattern (4 row repeat - row 1: k, row 2: purl, row 3: feather and fan pattern, row 4: purl) that it's actually a bit boring. Man, this thing is going to be a beast when it's done though! It's already quite heavy and I'm only 4-5 skeins into it (out of 20). The feather and fan lace pattern was an excellent choice because it will give this gorgeous alpaca yarn just the right amount of ventilation. I'll have to take pictures of it soon!

I've made a handful of mistakes already, but nothing serious with the lace pattern. Primarily, I've been dropping stitches on the edges of the afghan. This is what comes of using Addi Turbos with pure alpaca yarn. My little kfbs to replace dropped stitches are basically invisible (unless you knew where to look), so I'm not too worried about it. This project is going quite quickly and it's very low stress, which is nice. Unfortunately, not very portable.

In non-wip-related news, I got some lovely deep teal mohair/wool yarn from a gal in my knitting group. I'm thinking Wisp (Ravelry link), but for now it will hang out in the stash until I make a final decision.

I also found out that another friend from high school is pregnant (due Dec. 31st). I'm very excited because it means I get to knit more baby stuff! Just need to find some more yarn and a new pattern to try!