Bookending the Month

Posted on November 30, 2017 by shoelaceswitcher

Getting my second blog post of the month in just under the wire, 30 days after the first one! Never mind that I’ve been writing blog posts in my head each week, I have to actually commit them to the page for them to mean anything. Here’s a mish-mash of Things That Are Happening Lately, including a sale, FOs, and a WIP!

Thing The First: Sale!

Remember Sweet Sheep Body Shoppe? You haven’t heard much from me about it lately (I really need to outsource marketing) but we’re still creating lovely, lanolin-rich lotion bars and lip balms over here! I’m currently running a sale of 15% off a purchase of $15 or more through December 7th. These moisturizers make great holiday gifts and work really well on dry, chapped winter hands.

Thing(s) the Second: FOs!

GUYS OMG LOOK I FINISHED THINGS AND THEY ARE FABULOUS.

This is the Flax pattern, designed by Tin Can Knits, and it fits him perfectly. I knit the 2-4 year size on smaller needles with slightly tighter gauge and it worked out well for my son, who is in the 95th percentile for height and 91st for weight at 17 months old. I provide some measurements on my project page. I used Malabrigo Rios and this knit was totally enjoyable, I’m even considering making an adult-sized one for the Fiasco (but don’t tell him, he’s still holding his breath for more socks).

This is the Roar, A Dinosaur Hat pattern by Kate Oates and it’s already been on lots of adventures, including numerous walks around the neighborhood and on the beach with Nanny and Poppy over our Thanksgiving visit. Those spikes were a tiny pain-in-the-tuckus to sew on because I hate finishing but I’m happy with all but one of them and I’m probably the only person who will ever really notice the messed up one. Again, I used Malabrigo Rios at a slightly tighter gauge and I think I knit the child size because my kiddo has a 19.5″ head.

Both coordinating FOs together, with bonus sloth butt! 😀 I’m really happy with both of these projects and still have enough yarn leftover from the 3 dark green and 1 bright green skeins to make matching mittens and maybe even a cowl or neckwarmer of some sort. I love it when that happens! Does anyone have a suggestion for a toddler-sized neckwarmer? I feel like I’ve never really seen a little kid wear one before.

Thing the Third: WIP!

I have since begun three new projects, all intended as gifts, which I don’t appear to have listed in Ravelry yet (who am I even?!?!) so I’ll blog in more detail about them later, but this one is my current favorite:

Those colors, though, am I right?!?!?! The yarn is Freia Handpaints Ombre Worsted in the Blue Velvet colorway and it’s ridiculously pretty stuff. The yarn is a single-ply wool, and by feel it’s likely not Merino (or definitely not 100% Merino) as it has a bit more body and bite, not quite as much fluffiness. I’d describe it as a “sturdy” yarn and I imagine it would make really excellent mittens or garments that receive a lot of wear. I’ll reveal the pattern and an FO pic after it’s been gifted. (Just building suspense for next time!) I haven’t done a ton of gift knitting over the past couple of years and it feels really good to be planning presents for people again.

Two more sleeps!

Posted on October 18, 2017 by shoelaceswitcher

Rhinebeck is so soon, and I am so excited to go! I don’t think I’ve ever needed a vacation more, and even though it’s just a long weekend it’s going to be a great way to escape everyday life. And the Fiasco is coming this time! He’ll finally understand what I mean when I talk about it like the holy-friggin’-grail of the knitting world (maybe). And of course, my Hatchling will be there, too.

Sweater in progress.

Hat!

I’ve abandoned all plans to finish spinning that pink yarn and knitting a pussyhat with it. For one, I’m out of time. But also, the weather is supposed to be gorgeous! At 70 degrees and sunny, I’m not going to need to wear a bulky weight hat. So instead, I’m hoping to finish the projects I’m currently knitting for my little boy.

Flax Sweater in Malabrigo Rios, colorway Hojas

I’m nearly done with this great little Flax sweater designed by tincanknits. The pattern is easy peasy and a pleasure to knit. My progress was slightly delayed when I couldn’t find my size 6 DPNs for the cuffs. I realized that I probably hadn’t used those needles in over 2 years and had no earthly idea where they might be. Rather than face the pile of WIPs to try to figure out where they were hiding, I just bought another set. These bamboo needles are ridiculously cheap ($14 for 12 sets of needles!) on amazon and have decently sharp points and last forever (as long as you don’t lose them). I don’t knit with DPNs often enough to care if they’re fancy, I just need them to be there when I want them.

Dino-Roar! hat with Malabrigo Rios, colorways Hojas and Apple Green

The knitting for this dinosaur hat (designed by Kate Oates) has been done for a while but as with my last project, I’ve been procrastinating the finishing. I finally got around to blocking it and now need to work up the nerve to sew the wee spikes onto the top of the hat *shudder*. I really have no idea how to approach this. The top of the hat swirls around as you decrease, so I can’t even follow a column of stitches to make sure they’re attached in a straight line and that’s as far as I’ve gotten in trying to sort this out. I don’t want them to be wonky! How do I attach these to best guarantee non-wonkiness?

With a little luck, in a few days you’ll see me wandering the fairgrounds with an overheating toddler in his brand new hat and sweater, made by Mama.

Flax and a Finish

Posted on August 25, 2017 by shoelaceswitcher

I’m happy to report that I’ve held true to my word to put down the phone and pick up the knitting more often, and lo and behold, we have progress!

First, I finished Pussyhat #3 that I’ve had basically done for quite a long time. It was languishing because winter was over, but I recently participated in a swap on Ravelry and I realized my swap receiver would be the perfect recipient so I stuck a Nasty Woman button on there (from Katrinkles), took a quick pic in bad lighting, and off it went to my swap receiver.

IMG_20170825_164748

It is the 8th month of the year, and that is my 5th finished object of 2017, and the 3rd Pussyhat. That should tell you something about the rate of knitting around here!

From my swap giver, I received many amazing project bags and gifts that are right up my marine-bio-loving alley, along with some lovely maroon-ish BFL fiber to spin. It was Hatchling-approved.

And finally, I have actually been knitting (even swatching)! This is my Summer Flax sweater for my little guy in a new-to-me colorway of Malabrigo Rios: Hojas. It’s such a great green! I was indecisive about the size, he wears 24 month clothes right now at 14 months old, and the pattern had either 1-2 years or 2-4 years for size choices. When I swatched, I liked the fabric I got with one needle size down and slightly tighter gauge, so I decided to go with the larger size, hoping that my firmer gauge will help snug it up a bit, and if it doesn’t, he’ll grow into it eventually. Length probably matters more than width at this point, so I’ll have to do some trying on when the time comes to make decisions.

Sweet Sheep O’Clock

Posted on January 20, 2017 by shoelaceswitcher

We’ve been working ’round the clock over here to prepare for a big event this weekend where Sweet Sheep will be vending. We did this marketplace last year, and it was pretty amazing. And the year before, I attended the classes, which were really great. I’m talking about Knitting Weekend, part of the Trad Arts Studio programming at Old Slater Mill in Pawtucket, RI.

And we really have been going out of our minds making enough lotions, lip balms, and sheep-shaped soaps to sell at the two-day event. Last year we underestimated what we needed, hopefully this year we’ve overestimated! Major props to the Fiasco, who has been doing much of the production while I’ve been working crazy deadlines and wrangling the resident Hatchling. (Turns out, kids really suck up all your usual side-business time!)

Who, meeeeeeeeeeee?

Bonus: if you come to the marketplace on Sunday, you’ll get to meet the little guy! It’s crazy to think that at the last show, I was pregnant. 0_O I’m much happier with my buddy on the outside, even if he is teething at the moment and preventing me from sleeping more than 2 hours in a row at night. (#teetharetheworst)

Pussyhats, finished.

In other news, my pussyhats have left the building. It turned out that one of my coworkers was heading to the march in D.C. with her daughter, which is pretty awesome. I was happy to donate hats to the cause but I’m even happier that I know the awesome ladies who will be wearing them. I used the KitKat pattern by Andre Sue for mine (I much prefer to work in the round). The hot pink hat is in Malabrigo Chunky (colorway Cactus Flower) on size 10 needles with a 68 st cast on, my old standard for a quick chunky hat. The pale pink version is in a new-to-me yarn: Blue Sky Fibres Woolstok in Quartz Crystal, that I picked up at The Mermaid’s Purl in Wickford (#shoplocal). For this second hat, I held the yarn double and used size 9 needles and a 72 st cast on. I really liked the yarn, it’s a thin worsted weight 2-ply wool that has a bit of a rustic feel, and lots of energy when knit held double. Both hats fit really well. I recommend doing the little stitch in the middle of the ‘ears’ to make them look more ear-like, as this pattern suggests. I did so after I took the photo of me wearing it and I liked it much better.

March on, sisters, and I hope I see some of you this weekend!

WIPWed #124: Actual Knitting Content

Posted on November 30, 2016 by shoelaceswitcher

As I mentioned in my come-back post last week, I’ve finally managed to work on some knitting while juggling my 5-month-old. By the by, props to the people who teach themselves to knit while they’re pregnant or after the baby arrives, I don’t know where they get the energy for that. I’m a seasoned knitter and when I was pregnant, all I wanted to do was sleep. And now that the Hatchling is here… sleep is still a hot commodity. However, he’s starting to settle into a routine and I’ve finally weaned off pumping in the evenings which means I get occasional hands-free time to dally with yarn again. Yay!

Green Gathered

Cephalopod Yarns Traveler, colorway Wolcott . Click for project page.

This photo is something of a lie as this hat is done and has been worn already, but I haven’t had a chance to take good finished photos yet so I’m still calling it a WIP. 🙂 The pattern is Gather by tincanknits and I loved it. The stitch pattern is easy-peasy but fun to work. I knit the toddler size for my kiddo because he has a big head and it fits perfectly with some stretch for future growth.

Wine Toast:

Verdant Gryphon Zaftig, colorways Kiss of Cabernet and Russian Something-or-Other. Click for project page.

Speaking of easy-peasy, this project couldn’t be simpler. I’m knitting the Toast armwarmers by Leslie Friend, which are basically just plain stockinette tubes knit in the round. I often wear 3/4 length sleeve sweaters to work and my arms get cold, plus I’m always warmer with my wrists covered, so these will be a big luxurious (worsted weight Merino-cashmere-nylon yarn, yum!) treat for me. I’m making them a bit longer so they go all the way to my elbow, wider to accommodate my larger forearms, and adding a thumbhole (but no actual thumb) so they can also serve as fingerless mitts when needed.

Hatchling’s Sky Blanket:

O-Wool O-Wash Fingering in various colors. Click for project page.

I’ve been making very slow progress on my Sky Blanket (<– scroll to the bottom of that post to read the history of this particular project). In summary, I’m knitting 360 square that represent the sky each day (minus 5) in the first year of the Hatchling’s life. That strip represents the first couple of weeks in July. HAHAHAHA I’m soooooo behind. The worst part is, I stopped recording the weather during the first couple of weeks in November, at least before that point I’d had everything written down. So now I’m going to have to get creative with the almanac or something to figure out what to knit for the missing dates. I WILL COMPLETE THIS BLANKET.

Is there a particular project you’ve been dragging your feet about? Holiday knitting, perhaps? Speaking of, check out the Knitter’s Gift Guide on the KnittedBliss blog. It’s a great collection of gift ideas, including a little shout out to my Sweet Sheep Body Shoppe sheep-shaped soaps in the stocking stuffer section (sooooo many S’s in that sentence)!

Still Chugging Along

Posted on June 20, 2016 by shoelaceswitcher

I’m still here, still pregnant, still slowly working on tiny baby knits. Thus, I finished a pair of (rather large) baby socks!

Not-so-tiny booties.

I made these socks to match the Newborn Vertebrae cardi I finished last month. I took a wild guess at the number of stitches to cast on (40) and the lengths of all the various bits. I figure if they’re too big, they’ll fit eventually, and I used them basically as a gauge swatch to figure out how big to make a coordinating hat.

Coordinating hat.

Since my gauge on the foot of the socks was 8 sts/in, I cast on 104 sts for the rolled stockinette brim of the hat, then increased to 112 sts for the body. This should give me a 14″ circumference hat when all is said and done. That might be a tad large for a newborn head, which is said to be about 14″ and I usually like negative ease in hats, but he should grow into it in time for cooler weather in the fall. Knitting for someone who doesn’t yet exist in a measurable way is hard, yo.

Calypso demonstrating her impressive size.

Speaking of measurable sizes, at 39 weeks the Hatchling is supposedly the size of a domestic shorthair cat. How freaking terrifying is that, right? Let’s hope the cat in question was not quite as chubby as Calypso above!

FOFri #46: All I Finish Are Hats

Posted on March 18, 2016 by shoelaceswitcher

I seem to have finished knitting hats, and only hats (ok, except for one pair of gift socks), since November. Eight hats in five months, two of which you can find here, one here (which I knit twice), one more here, and the remaining three in this post.

Speckles for baby and me.

Happily, all the plain stockinette that’s involved in knitting a Sockhead Slouch Hat (designed by Kelly McClure) is totally worth it, because I adore the finished product. The colors are my favorite, the speckles make me happy, the ribbing is super cozy, and the length is just right for a good amount of slouch. I modified a few things in my version: I used a sport-weight yarn (BMFA Socks That Rock Mediumweight), cast on fewer stitches (136), and knit to a shorter length (10.5″ total) before the crown decreases. This removed some slouch and is just right for my head. I will update my project page with measurements later, as I did not get a chance to do so yet.

For the wee one.

Because I COULD NOT RESIST, I knit a wee baby hat for Hatchling so that we could be all matchy-matchy. I really should have done longer ribbing for the rolled-up brim, but alas I did not. I used the same yarn and needles (2.75 mm) and cast on 88 stitches in a gauge of 7 sts/inch, for a hat that should be approximately 12.5″ around after blocking, unstretched. Newborn heads are typically 13″ or so, but with the stretchiness of the fabric and the fact that I can roll the brim down as the kid grows, I’m hoping the hat will continue to fit for a while, because that little i-cord loop at the top is just too damn precious.

Frida for a friend.

I had intended to make this hat (Fidra, designed by Gudrun Johnston) for my friend’s December birthday. However, it’s March, and it’s still sitting in my house. It went through a failed iteration with inappropriate yarn, and then waited weeks for a pom-pom, and now I just haven’t gotten around to mailing it. Despite that, the finished product is pretty fabulous. Knit with the called-for yarn (BT Quarry) and needles, it’s actually a little snug, so I hope she likes it as I know she likes her hats on the bigger side. If you’re finding the Quarry yarn difficult to work with (it’s basically unplied pencil roving) I’d recommend going up a needle size or using metal instead of bamboo. Going up a size would give everything a bit more room to move around and the size would probably still work out fine.

So there are my hats! Sorry none of them are modeled, I haven’t had time for proper photoshoots lately. When the kiddo arrives I’ll be sure to take a mommy-and-me shot in matching hats, middle-of-summer heat waves be damned. 😉

WIPWed #117:Back in the Swing

Posted on March 2, 2016 by shoelaceswitcher

After my lack of crafting motivation recently, I’m finally getting back in the swing of things a bit.

Speckled Sockhead:

BMFA Socks That Rock Mediumweight, rare gem colorway. Click for project page.

I decided to end my Sockhead hat a couple of inches early, as it seemed ridiculously long already. I just need to bind off, block, and check the fit, but I’m not willing to call this ‘done’ until I’m sure I won’t want to add more length.

Christmas Katniss Socks:

BMFA Tigger Targhee in Gnome for the Holidays. Click for project page.

I finally re-drew the chart and am well on my way on the second sock. These are just a tad bit boring (mostly ribbing) and the colorway no longer feels like the kind I want to be knitting at the moment, but they go quickly when I actually work on them so hopefully I can wrap them up sooner than later.

Sherbet Baby:

Play At Life Fiber Arts DK in Pastels gradient. Click for project page.

The sweet little rainbow cardi for my Hatchling was zooming along, and then I stalled out when I had to make a decision regarding trim color, because I was waiting to find out the baby’s sex. Well, we found out yesterday:

WE’RE HAVING A BOY!

For some reason, the Fiasco and I had kind of convinced ourselves that we were probably going to have a girl so it’s been a bit of a mental adjustment to imagine myself as a mother to a son! We’re going to have a little dude running around! Ah! So I’ve decided that the trim color on this cardi will be a deep forest green, which I think will go nicely with the turtle-shaped buttons I’ve picked out. Now, to start browsing all the boy-ish knitting patterns on Ravelry and pick out a name… the Fiasco is leaning towards Megatron or Copernicus. 😉

As for reading, I’ve barreled through a few random choices that I had hanging around the house:

The Book of Shadows – a grim-yet-gripping horror/fantasy story about a hermaphroditic witch and some ghastly ghouls,
My Heart is an Autumn Garage – a short memoire by a blogger I like about her experiences with depression, and
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves – a fascinating novel about a girl who was raised with a chimp as a sister, and the effect it had on her family.

I’m now reading Baby 411, which is not super exciting, but probably important, right? Linking up with Yarnalong.

FOFri #45: This Did Not Take 2 Weeks

Posted on February 26, 2016 by shoelaceswitcher

Friends, I have been in a knitting-blogging-creative rut. I finished the hat I will show you below over 2 weeks ago, and am just now getting a chance to blog about it. All my other knitting feels ‘stuck’ for one reason or another. I seem to have lost my crafting mojo and so have been majorly procrastinating the following:

making the pom-pom for my Fidra hat,
knitting my current socks because I lost the index card on which I drew the chart and I can’t be bothered to draw another,
knitting my sockhead hat because I need to look up how long to make it before decreasing and I feel like I’m almost there,
knitting my baby sweater because I need to wind yarn for the trim color
winding yarn because I lost an integral piece of my swift when I moved a couple of moths ago and have yet to locate it,
organizing my yarn bins, in hopes of finding that piece of my swift, which would also clean up my room, and
spinning, because I’m too lazy to not sit on the couch in the evenings.

There are things I want to do, and the impulses to do them are there, but by the time I get home from work, I would just rather curl up on the couch and read or watch TV or sleep. This is not normal for me. Prior to pregnancy, that sort of blatant inactivity wouldn’t happen before 10 pm, and TV-watching was ALWAYS accompanied by crafting. Now it’s happening at 7 pm and I’m feeling too physically tired to do anything crafty, so I’m losing all of my productive evening hours, and going to bed early to boot. I’m just going to go ahead and blame the fetus, but still. I feel like I’m wasting away my last few child-free months of crafting time!

Anywho, onto the hat.

Malabrigo Mecha in Vaa, click for project page.

I started this simple, waffle-stitch hat when my coworker announced that he was moving on to bigger and better things. And since he was my science buddy at work, he got a hat. I used Malabrigo Mecha in Vaa, one of my favorite thicker-weight yarns for gift knitting (the other is Malabrigo Chunky). Mecha is a single-ply, superwash Merino wool that is (in my opinion) thinner than the bulky weight at which it’s listed (and definitely thinner than Mal Chunky). I cast on 72 stitches and used size 9 needles, which gave me a nice tension and a perfect size, and the hat took me about .

I’m particularly enamored with the way the decreases worked out. Since I couldn’t be bothered to write down what I did, I will probably never be able to replicate it, but I know that I decreased later than I typically would and more often per round in order to get a very fast, concentric-looking decrease.

And that’s all I’ve accomplished lately! My Fidra hat is nearly there, though (just one pom-pom away…) and I’m hoping I can find that swift piece soon so I can wind yarn more easily and get moving on some other projects I have in mind.

What do you do when you’ve lost your crafting mojo? How do you get your groove back?

WIPWed #116: You Down with OPK?

Posted on February 10, 2016 by shoelaceswitcher

OPK = Other People’s Knitting. That’s all I’ve been working on lately, things that are Not For Me. I do not even recognize my selfish-knitting-self right now.

Moonstone Fidra:

Brooklyn Tweed Quarry in Moonstone, click for project page.

My renewed attempt at the Fidra hat using Brooklyn Tweed Quarry yarn is SO MUCH NICER than my first try. The yarn really really really makes a difference here. The fluff-factor (a.k.a. spin and density of the yarn) is apparently very important for both fit and feel, and a simple colorway works so much better than the speckled one I used before.

So Long:

Malabrigo Mecha in Vaa, click for project page.

This is a new hat I began as a ‘see ya later’ gift for a coworker who is leaving the company this week. He is my favorite person there to chat science with, and since I process my emotions through yarn, a hat is happening. I’m winging it in a waffle knit pattern (alternate 3 rows of 2×2 rib with 3 rows of plain knit), using a 72 stitch cast-on with size 9 needles on a yarn that is classified as bulky but really knits up more like an aran weight (in my opinion).

Sherbet Baby:

Play At Life Boundless DK in Pastels, click for project page.

After a disappointing visit to the doctor where we did NOT find out the sex of our impending baby (little thing was being ‘wily’ according to the ultrasound tech) I consoled myself by starting the baby sweater I wanted to knit for it anyway. This is the Babycakes pattern by Laura Aylor. I’m making the 6 month old size, since Hatchling is due in June so it won’t be sweater-wearing-weather until he/she/it is a few months old. I’m using a fun rainbow gradient set by Play At Life Fiber Arts in the Pastels colorway (DK weight) and you know, it’s hard to be bummed when you’re knitting with such happy colors. The construction was pretty fun and engaging since I’ve never knit anything like it before (Barbara Walker’s top-down, seamless, simultaneous set-in sleeve method) but now it’s a bit boring since it’s all stockinette for the remainder of the body. At least the color changes will help pass the time.

Our future yogi all folded in half, with nowhere to go.

As for reading, I’ve actually zoomed through quite a few books in the best couple of weeks. I read the entire Kass Morgan The 100 trilogy, but really, those three could’ve been combined into one book easily, it was such easy fluff reading. The TV show is so different that it’s amusing to read the books and watch the show at the same time. Both are highly entertaining so even though the writing isn’t particularly ‘adult’ the concept is still pretty great. I’ve finished the Baby Bargains book (just in time to start figuring out what the heck we want on our registry) and am nearly done with Your Baby’s First Year, gifted to me from one of my best friends, who is a pediatrician and recommends it to all her patient’s parents. When things are feeling kinda shitty pregnancy-wise, it’s nice to think about the actual infant that should result from all this trouble. Also, I’m 20 weeks now, so HALFWAY FUCKING THERE. Woot.

That’s about all I’ve been up to this week. Linking up with Yarnalong and Stitch Along Wednesday.