Some things

Well, I'm officially full term with all this pregnancy business. That's a big deal. We only have 14 days until the due date. So, there's that going on...just waiting. So much waiting.

To pass the time, we took some belly shots. Here are a few of my favorites:



These were taken at 37 Weeks, 4 Days. :)

I have been sewing diapers. Here they are:




I used the Rita's Rump Pocket pattern for them. The first four (dogs and monsters) are "stuffable" and the other two (frogs) are "done stuffed and ready." I'm going to keep making the "done stuffed and ready" variety, but I think I'm going to try out a different pattern to see what I like the most. Another thing I am hoping to change is the material that I use to make the soaker pads. I have a ton of polyester fleece fabric and that is what I used, but I think I'd rather use a few layers of thin cotton batting and flannel. I just have to find some. I'm not sure that 100% cotton batting is something I can easily find at Joann's. Not being a quilter, I've never looked at the batting they carry.

I hear pregnant women can be crazy. I guess I am no different. On a whim, I decided to start two shawls. One of which is of the beaded lace variety: Aeolian. It's actually moving along quite quickly. I am surprised because it looks like it should be really complicated. Of course, I'm only on the first chart. I might be singing a different tune in a week or so when I'm juggling a complicated lace pattern and a newborn on close to zero sleep. Yeah, didn't really think that through...because I also bought needles to start a Shipwreck Shawl...and hope to get it started as soon as said needles arrive.

Here's the Aeolian in progress. I've done a few more repeats since the photo was taken:


The second shawl I started is less crazy making and I'm loving it because I'm using my handspun! It's the Citron shawl, but my yarn is much thicker and I'm using size 8s instead of the 6s called for in the pattern. It's also working up quickly...but I'm going to have to spin up the rest of the yarn soon or it will be stalled indefinitely!


See? It looks good in my handspun! :) I don't knit with handspun very much, but I really should make more of an effort to do so. I'm so much more proud of the results when I know I made the yarn myself.

Well, I don't know what else to say. That's about it. Maybe next time I blog, I'll have a baby to show you. I'm really hoping he comes sooner rather than later. :)

On Weaving

I love it. Setting up the loom is a lot of work...but I love it. :)

I finished my first weaving project. It's a scarf for Maxim.

• Specs: 10 dent heddle, simple weave. 58 ends. What other info do people give in weaving projects? I'm new to this and don't understand it all yet!!!!


• Warp: Silky Wool

• Weft: Creatively Dyed Steele in Topdog colorway
  

• Recipient: Max, my love. :)
  

I also finished that soaker from my last entry:

• Pattern: Adirondack Soaker

• Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Worsted...Hand dyed by me!

• Modifications: None

• Verdict: Cute and easy! I'm definitely going to make another one because I really only used half a ball to do this one. You can never have too many soakers!
  

AND that obnoxious potholder:

• Pattern: Your Nana's Potholders. That's not a Ravelry link, so anyone should be able to click to see it! :)

• Yarn: Sugar 'n Cream (stash yarn!)
  

• Verdict: Love!

Well, that's all for now. More to come soonish. :)

FO's and WIP's (Image HEAVY)

First up, I finished my Slouchy Entrelac Tam:



Apologies for the nightgown and scummy mirror.

• Pattern: Slouchy Entrelac Tam by Linsay Ingram

• Yarn: Noro Silk Garden (2 balls)

• Modifications: Pom pom! I did one extra round of 8 stitch squares to use up more yarn and add more floppiness. I blocked it on a dinner plate.

• Verdict: Love it! I've worn it a million times (well, not really)

• Link to my Ravelry entry for this project here.

Second in line, my Moderne Jacket is finished! And I didn't run out of yarn! Phew!

• Pattern: Moderne Jacket--free pattern from Lion Brand

• Yarn: This was a stash extravaganza! Cascade 220 Heathers and random Japanese stash yarn (cashmere content)

• Modifications: I fudged a few of the numbers in an attempt to get between two sizes. It didn't really work, lol. No buttons or buttonholes.
  

• Verdict: I didn't do a great job seaming because I'm not quite sure where to pick up stitches with crochet. Also, the seams might be a bit tight in some places. Again, I'm not super experienced with crochet...yet. I think it looks quite adorable without buttons as an open "jacket" thing. My favorite thing about making this was how much yarn it ate up! I only have one ball left of the Cascade 220 and just a scrap length of the blue Japanese yarn! Woot!

• Link to my Ravelry entry for this project here.

First up in the WIP's department:

We have a nearly finished soaker! All I need to do is figure out how many stitches to pick up around the legholes and do some ribbing. The pattern doesn't specify how many, all it says is pick them up "evenly."

Let's just say, I've already tried that once or twice. I'll figure it out eventually.

• Pattern: Adirondack Soaker

• Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Worsted...Hand dyed by me!

• Modifications thus far: None

• Verdict thus far: Cute and easy!

And finally, yet another WIP:

• Pattern: Your Nana's Potholders. That's not a Ravelry link, so anyone should be able to click to see it! :)

• Yarn: Sugar 'n Cream (stash yarn!)
  

• Verdict thus far: Oh, so very kitschy! Love it!
  

You might have noticed that I am all about the crochet lately. I'm sure it's only because it eats up tons of yarn and is fast, fast, FAST! I'm still predominantly a knitter, but I am loving the change and challenge (and it's good for the brain!). :)

Slow and steady...

...wins the race.


That's what I have to keep telling myself with my Blomsterknopper cardigan. At this point in the game, I have five decreases completed on the body of the garment, with 12 more to go. This thing is killing me, but I know that it will be more fun to work on once I get a few more decreases under my belt (because there will be fewer stitches!). Right now, one row takes me approximately one million years.

I really want this sweater finished before baby Armen (aka "womb monster") arrives in June because it is a major project (not to mention, the yarn takes up a lot of precious closet space). I should really adopt a regimen of complete project monogamy, but that hasn't really been happening.

Article 1: Slouchy Entrelac Tam (pattern by Verbena Knits)


I have had this yarn in my stash waiting for this project for a few months now. It's Noro Silk Garden (which is in my list of favorite yarns that I rarely have an opportunity to use). I'm loving it so far and it has been working up really quickly!

Article 2: Baby Romper


I couldn't resist casting on for this one. It's in Crystal Palace Maizy, which is made of corn fiber! It's really nice to work with, kind of silky but softer than silk. I love it! I can't wait to put a human in it. :)

Article 3: Moderne Jacket


I'm crocheting this out of leftover (purple Cascade 220) and stash yarn (a cashmere blend I bought while I was still in Japan a million years ago). I will probably run out before it's finished. If I do, I'm not sure what I'll do to rectify the situation. The Cascade will be easy to find (I know finding the same dyelot would be nearly impossible, though). The other yarn is the tricky bit. I guess I will just have to find a yarn that is nearly the same color and weight. Since the yarns are held doubled, dyelots might not be that big a deal. Still, I can worry about that if I need to. I might end up having plenty of both. We shall see. This garment takes no time at all on a size N hook! Big crochet is definitely the way to go!

Other than those three new projects, I'm still working on that baby sack I was supposed to finish during the Ravelympics (but didn't). I don't pick it up too often.

I've also been weaving. I'm not sure if I mentioned this on the blog, but my amazing husband bought me a 24" Kromski Harp for Valentine's Day. :) Weaving is a slow process for me, but I'm definitely getting the hang of it.

Ladylike Pullover, and other lady-ly things

Well, the last Ravelympics project came off the hooks at somewhere around 10 on the final day of the events! That means I finished an entire crochet pullover in less than 17 days (keep in mind that I didn't start the sweater until a few days into the events!). All in all, I'm happy with the results. Crocheting is super fun, yo!



Pattern: Ladylike Pullover, free pattern from Lion Brand Yarn
Yarn: Full O' Sheep (one of the new Stitch Nation yarns) in fuchsia
Modifications: I omitted the turtleneck because I noticed that this yarn is incredibly WARM and somewhat itchy. I thought a turtleneck would be too much. Also, I made necessary modifications to correct the pattern, which was messed up (as I ranted about in the previous post). Otherwise, the sweater was knit to pattern specifications
Verdict: I like it. It sort of fits me now (over my big prego belly), but I don't think it will fit me after I'm done having babies. :/ It might go to my mother next winter. It looks nice on her:


Wouldn't you agree?

I also crocheted this for my mommy in two days:



It's a cowl/hood thing knit out of Plymouth Baby Alpaca Grande. My mom picked and purchased the yarn and then put me to work. It was done in no time. I LOVE the yarn. I've decided to make another one for me because it was so fast, easy, and OMG SOFT.

Snug (and Ravelympics Day 15)

I finished that cute baby sweater.



Squee.

• Pattern: Snug by Hinke
• Yarn: Cascade Eco + (half a ball, if that)
• Modifications: I believe I made the sleeves a bit longer than suggested. This is because they can be rolled up and maybe this thing will get more wear that way!
  
• Verdict: So very cute! Because it is garter stitch, it is super stretchy. That's a good thing for baby clothes! My only complaint is that I bound off perhaps a little too tightly on the front button bands, so there isn't as much give there as I would like. Still, I think it will be ok.
  

The fuscia pullover is coming along, but not without rage.


Yes, it looks pretty on the dressform (you can't see how it sags in the back, but I knew it was going to be a looser fitting sweater than I'm used to and it doesn't bother me).

Ok, now let's rant. This pattern is easy. Because it is is easy, it shouldn't be "wrong." It is wrong. The pattern is wrong. If you do what the pattern tells you to do for the smallest size, you will have a wacky number of stitches and not at all the number of stitches they tell you to have (not even close!). I discovered this after finishing the bust section and had to frog back and fudge the directions to make it work.

All was supposed to be well after that, right? Wrong. I finished the first sleeve, all my stitch counts were spot on. On the last row, they have you slip the first 9 stitches and double crochet 31 stitches to create a gap for the underarm...much the same as was done on the body. The only problem here is that it creates quite a larger gap than that created on the body. My stitch counts are right, so I'm leaving it, but I'm a bit worried that I'll be having some difficulty when it comes time to connect those underarm seams. I'll have to seam 10 stitches to nearly 20 stitches, which might make things bulky. Bulky underarms don't make me feel "Ladylike," they make me feel sweaty and gross.

A resounding "ugh" of disapproval. Maybe this underarm worry is all premature. We will see how it turns out. If I can keep up this pace, I might actually get it done by Sunday and "win" a "medal" for this in the Ravelympics. We shall see.

We shall see.

Just another day...

...full of puppies,



fiber arts,


and books.


Happiness happens in a moment. :)

Knitting offers more...

...but crochet offers these:
I have been eye-balling these two crocheted dresses for a while now. I've had both patterns for a long time...and had almost forgotten them...but they were always in the back of my mind. ((oh, the other one is a pdf that I downloaded from interweave...but I can't find it online now for the life of me and I don't know how to import the image from a pdf...so...sooooooo....yeah)).

Should I cross over for a while...if only for a moment??

I like crochet. It's so...forgettable. Not in a bad way...it's forgettable in a such way that you can always come back and pick it up later...it won't unravel while you're away and if it does, it isn't a disaster. The stitches in crochet are almost independent of one another. They aren't so delicately linked as they are in knitting. That's part of why I think I love knitting so much...the interconnectedness of everything...but I also think, sometimes, it's why I like crochet. Maybe it is true that sometimes we need a break from interconnectedness. While we can never truly be separate...we can at least back away for a while. Know what I mean??

But actually, crochet is on my mind for another reason. I'm planning a trip to southern Illinois in a few weeks to visit my grandparents. I really wanted to have something nice to give to my grandma, but I really won't have the time to knit anything up. Maybe crochet is the answer here? I think it might be. I've found a nice crochet daisy lace pattern through a little bit of "witchcraft" and "demon arts" (use your imagination...you'll probably never guess what I mean). I need to decide on a really beautiful yarn...I love my grandma so much and I'm sad to say that her age is finally starting to catch up with her. I want to make her something beautiful...because she is beautiful. You know what I mean?

I won't be able to hit the LYS until tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully, I will find something affordable and lovely so that I can get started!! I don't have much time!!

Oh...dinner a few nights ago was tasty:


See! I CAN cook, when I put my mind to it. However, the peas were not quite done...still yummy.

Oh and the new Interweave?? Beautiful. I want to knit these now:






You think I care they're all turned on their sides? Well, I don't. Oh and size and order means nothing here. If you want to know my favorite; it is the snuggly grey sweater with the brown button (in other words, the last one).