Valkyrie FTW

Turns out: Handknit socks that someone else knit you? At least 100% more awesome than normal. =D

Love(1000).

Shrug Update 2.4.10

Because everyone loves looking at really shitty mirror photos.

Come on. You know you love it.

Note to self: Congratulations on not making a squinty face. Next time consider that you are not about to be eaten by evil space monkeys. Try looking less like something is about to pop up and shoot you (camera notwithstanding).

I have been neurotically trying this one on as I go. Annoying though it is to toss the stitches onto waste yarn and pick them back up again over & over it does seem to be working for me. Any future issues aside the arms and back fit well.

I'm in the ribbing section before the increases and at that spot where I'm doubting a little that I should wait as long as I'm told to start them. I will knit to where it tells me to start and try it on again. If it pulls too much I can always tear back a few rows and start increasing earlier.

Fit is pretty good right now. The reverse stockinette/stockinette stripes are all smooshed up right now but based on that super-swatch I did was back when, I anticipate them relaxing substantially with blocking. The back should presumably drop several inches when this happens (May steam block it on the needles to check for sure). The shoulder bands where I have smoothed it down and stuck it to my shirt are much closer to how I anticipate the finished look to be.

I'm hoping that I can get the final length at the back to fall about to the base of my belt loops but this means a LOT more knitting to cover my freakishly long torso. Also there may reach a point where the Collar becomes too bulky and I have to say when (or else do something involving short rows... ugh). I expect I will like it even if it falls a bit short of the goal... just so long as it comes down past my natural waist.

Still on the fence about how long I want to do the sleeves. I have them on holders at elbow length but I'm considering if I want them full length. Going to wait until the body is done to decide for sure.

Evil Zombie Space Bugs Have Hijacked My Brain!

No. Really. They have. I was just ya know walking along, minding my own business and they swooped in and started hijacking people and taking them away to do evil experiments and stuff and so I had to rally up the troops and go hunt them down because the Fate of the Galaxy was at stake. It was crazy hard and everyone was being a jerk about my being dead and and so I just punched them all in the face and got on with it and then there was this big evil dead ship and more evil space zombie bugs that it turned out are really ---------- and I was super freaked out and I got the feeling the Fishman was hitting on me which was really sort of disturbing even though I totally liked him in concept but then there was an evil robot that wasn't really ---------- and more evil zombie space bugs and OMG CAN'T SLEEP. HAVE TO SAVE GALAXY.

Right.

What Garrus said.

As I understand it all this Galaxy saving made me a pretty amusing person to be around last week. Between the lack of sleep and adrenaline and caffeine I was basically running on I gather that most of my conversations with people that were not aliens (or humans that I was not allowed to kick off the ship) did not really follow a common thread of sense much.

Perhaps miraculously I did actually get quite a bit of knitting done though. I attribute this mostly to loading screens and my stubborn refusal never to click through dialogue even if I've already been through a section 4 times before.

I've started a new cardigan /shrug (shrugigan?) out of the red Inca Gold that I originally bought for the Vivian cardi back in December. That particular attempt didn't work out so well and I was all set to try it again... when I randomly decided that it would look just as good as a Textured Circle Shrug and probably get more wear as that pattern also. Bonus for it being brainless enough to knit while half asleep at 2 am or at knitting group (I've been on a string of inability to knit and talk at the same time failures).

I am liking the pattern so far, its pretty intuitive, easy to modify and there was a big KAL at Lion Brand for it so I have copious notes available from other people who have already knit it (and with any luck that have already messed it up so I don't have to - or at least blocked off some routes to my messing it up. I will have to be more ingenious to find some obscure and confused way to make this a disaster.)

I also finished some socks:

Malabrigo Sock yarn in Caribeno. 56st stockinette soles knit toe up with afterthought heels and 3x3 ribbed cuffs (increased to 60sts after the heel location). Pretty much my default socks.

I started these way back in... uh... it was summer I think. Or what passes for fall here. One of those two. I made big progress on them at the KidnEwe Festival and then sort of forgot about them for a month. My gauge was kind enough to walk off onto its own planet somewhere between sock 1 and 2. Its not a big fit difference but the pooling changed pretty dramatically around the cuff of the second sock.

Do like them, but find myself with no socks to work on now. I think this is OK as I'm thinking I may be suffering from sock burn out right now but I need to find something small and portable anyway. Maybe carrying my drop spindle around a lot instead for awhile.

I have been thinking about Olympic knitting projects lately. I think I have picked out my yarn:


It is Malabrigo Worsted in Buscando Azul. Which is a pretty awesome nearly solid blue.

But I am torn on the project. There are 4 skeins of the Malabrigo (840yds). I have been considering doing a Shalom Cardigan (really more of a vest - though I would like to add some small sleeves if/when I do that one) but keep going back and forth on if I love it or it would linger in a dark corner of my closet once complete. Alternately I really really want (and am pretty sure I would wear - A LOT) a Gallery Jacket. My issue with this one is that I might prefer it out of a non-wool fiber or at least something with a blend in it and multiple plies. I am thinking perhaps the black bamboo that's been in my stash forever would work. I am on the fence about being able to knit a sizable project from such a non flexible fiber in 2 weeks however. Also considering: a shorter sleeved version of the February Lady's Sweater (made doubly appropriate since I'd be knitting it in February?), a Back to School U-Neck Vest the main obstacle to which is that my copy of fitted knits is in Kentucky somewhere, a Hey Teach! cardigan, which ironically I already have the suggested yarn for though I have not been able to get anything that resembles gauge with it (have also considered doing a Rusted Root with said yarn instead), or a Kelso Lace Cardigan which would actually probably work with any of the yarns I have in sweater amounts already and have already mentioned or, just to throw in one more option, some of the Arucania Lonco that I have with the strands held doubled (there is one knit in Paton's grace to support the idea that this would look pretty stellar in a lighter weight mercerized yarn).

Yes.

I need some help picking this out clearly.

Anyway. Galaxy saving calls. (Did I mention there is an advert for handspun Asari burial robes on the citadel? I am now convinced there is a knitter on staff at bioware.)

Nom nom nom...

It be done.

And dry.

336yds of 2ply laceweight. 2.1oz.
50/50 yak & merino

Its looks much coarser than it feels. Despite the rustic coloration and overall appearance its very, very soft. Its much denser than I expected, though maybe some of that is from working with the polwarth recently. I would be interested to see how 100% yak spun since the merino seemed to hamper the fiber more than help it (I find this true with a lot of down blends, I know some people find them helpful but I'm of the opinion that they mess up the best properties of both fibers). I have not ruled out the possibility that I am simply spinning these blends in an unnecessarily complicated way however.

*sigh* all frustrations aside. She is beautiful, no?

Also - I keep forgetting to talk about the yellow BFL from last year.

This is what the finished yarn looked like:

This Ugly Roving <- Is what it came from.

The ugly roving in the picture was a disaster. It was muddy. it was partially felted. It was just... not a good thing. I persisted in spinning it mostly because I am a strange stubborn person, and also possibly as punishment for messing up some perfectly lovely wool. I spun all 8oz of it, persisted in hating it and then went and got 8oz more.

Because damnit. I was going to save that ugly fiber even if I had to trash another half a pound to do it! I dyed the second batch significantly lighter and more saturated than the first. It was not felted (thank god - by that point I was about ready to scream about how much suck spinning partially felted roving is. Also I think my drafting thumb was threatening to fall off.) but it was day-glo orange in a couple of places, which I decided was better than that unfortunately muddy/pooey greenish yellow that it was in places on the first roving.

A bit of praying and some thankfully solid color theory later and you have the above yarn. The unfortunate bits balanced each other out well and the overall effect is a bright yellowy gold. I had trouble letting go of the yarn in the end. It came very close the matching my car.

I didn't achieve the yardage I set out for, unfortunately. A lot of this is because of the density of the felted singles, some of it is because I was a bad spinner and did not sample, and some of it is because the universe is just like that sometimes. I think the final count of all 4 skeins was in the upper 600yds range, which still isn't bad, of a heavy worsted/Aran weight.

Enough spinning for now. I have 2 sweaters started and a pair of socks 1 heel away from done. Must get back to it.

Experimental swatching

I would really like to rant about the day I had, but seeing as its is still today and time heals all wounds (or at least takes the sting out of them) and attempts at self preservation in this 24hr period seem to be backfiring on me...

I will not rant. I won't even save it for another day.

That does mean that I cannot talk about knitting, but this is OK since I've been in a mad spinning frenzy this evening. Partly coping mechanism, partly wanna finish stuff that I've been working on forever.

First to be finished - my polwarth samples. I picked up 4 oz of polwarth dyed locks at Yarnorama at the last spin in and tried spinning them with different hand preps.

I started out with hand cards and spun about 2/3rds of the fiber with a woolen long draw from rolags. I plied half of it back on itself to see how it changed with plying. I like how lofty the finished yarn is, but the carded prep has a lot of nepps and is fairly uneven. This is typical of woolen yarns to a point but I have spun much more consistent woolen singles than this before.

Part of the problem may have been my cards. Polwarth is a fairly fine wool and I have coarse cloth cards. Part of the problem may also have been the amount of lanolin left on the locks - it was enough to make them somewhat sticky and in hindsight I might have been happier if I had washed the locks before carding & spinning.

I put aside the locks that had the best structure left to them while I was doing this and so for the last third of the fiber I simply flicked them open on both ends and spun them worsted like I would a commercial top. The result is very different from the woolen. Smooth and fairly consistent and it seems to have notably more drape. I enjoyed the spinning this way much more as well. The lanolin effect was vastly reduced when spinning from fibers that were lined up.

The results left to right:

Woolen 2-ply, 176yds & 1.2 oz
Woolen singles, 282yds & 1.1oz
Worsted singles, 420yds & 1.3oz

My missing ~half ounce seems to have gone to a combination of waste/short cuts, VM and lanolin which I did scour out mostly when I washed the finished yarn (I don't like knitting with greasy wool any more than I like spinning it) and this is something I'll take into account in the future when working with locks and fleece vs. roving or top.

One thing I didn't like about these particular locks is the perfume the dyer put on them. It took me a lot more washing than I would normally do to get it mostly out and even now there is a faint scent on them that as one of my knitting friends mentioned smells rather like "Old Lady Perfume". I can only assume this was done to cover up the sheepy smell but I would much have preferred Au de Sweaty Ewe.

I also finally(!) finished the last of my 2oz of 50/50 Yak/Merino.

The finished yarn is lovely and soft. It is still drying at the moment so better photos will follow. I am estimating it at 360yds, but I need to measure the dry hank to be sure of any shrinkage.

This was a complete nuisance to spin and the finished yarn feels like a real accomplishment. The blend was not very homogeneous so I pulled off bits by the "lock" fluffed them and rolled them into mini-faux rolags and then spun them semi-woolen. This mostly limited the tendency to spin out all the merino but there are still sections that are just yak or merino despite all my best efforts. The final yarn is more consistent than I expected considering. There are some thick & thin bits, especially where the first lengths of yarn I spun are, but its a pretty nice heavy lace/light fingering.

Although I really love the brown marl I am considering over dyeing it. I just tend to prefer color to neutrals.

Finally, I spun this much merino:

Its much heavier than all this lace weight I've been doing lately and a nice change of pace. I'm hoping for a 3-ply worsted. Maybe plied with something variegated.

I have a whole pound of the solid so it will be sweater yarn (Or vest yarn if it doesn't get a third alternate color ply).

Mmm... sweater yarn.

My give up

... for now anyway.

I am being punished for some previous crime against knitting, I just know it.

After going on and on and on about how much I wanted a dark red heavy cabled sweater I gave in and bought a bunch of Berrocco Inca Gold in Vino on sale and the Vivian pattern.

This yarn is lush. I love it. It makes lovely popping cables and its soft but firm at the same time - Also favorite shade of red ever.

This pattern is gorgeous and flattering and intricate and interesting.

This sweater when its done will be the hotness.

Now, I was doubly good about this. I swatched the yarn before I invested in the sweater's worth and by swatch I mean I knit half a freaking sleeve.

Seriously.

My swatch is over a foot long. I used half a ball of yarn to do it. I used two needles sizes because one looked pretty close but I went down anyway in case it blocked out some (it did).

I washed it.

I blocked it.

I carried it around in my knitting bag for a week and took it out to pet it and reconfirm that yes, the gauge is workable and yes the cables look good, and yes the seed stitch is lovely.

Now - Technically the pattern calls for aran/bulky yarn and Inca Gold is definitely a worsted weight. But this is fine. Other people have successfully made this pattern in worsted yarns and I went through and read all their notes.

I want this to fit with zero ease, but I want that to be zero ease over something more than a cami. So I measure myself with a dress shirt on and then with a light v-neck sweater and a t-shirt and figure that to accommodate the slightly finer yarn and half stitch off of gauge I have that I should go up one size from my bust. Especially since my last sweater was massively too small.

All this sounds reasonable, yes?

One reason I was really feeling this pattern is that its knit in one piece from the bottom up so I can try it on as I go and adjust as necessary. I'm pretty sure while I'm casting on that this is going to work out extra well because *if* for some reason the size I've chosen looks like its going to be a little loose come the end of the shaping I can do some extra decreases in the waist and slim it down a size at the bust line. I am a little on the hippy side anyway so this works perfectly in my head.

I have knit the first 25 rows or so this week which gives me about 5 inches of fabric and I decide that this is a good point to try it on.

I don't really need to tell you how that went do I? (Just for the record this time it was too big. By something like 4 inches - and i tried it on over jeans and with a sweater on)

Thankfully I was only 1 ball in and so I quite un-neurotically (aside from the brief stomping fit and banging of my head against the wall and cussing) pulled it all out and set it aside.

I will try this again in January.

Maybe 2010 will be my sweater year because clearly 2009 is not.

(Thankfully Inca gold frogs well.)

Oh! Shiny!

spindleset2
Originally uploaded by kleighb

One of the women at my Thursday night knitting group has been working on making a line of drop spindles and I've been having entirely too much fun playing with them as she's worked out how to put them together. Tonight she brought in the first finished batch and they are quite lovely.

One of them (made out of a cool sounding wood that I've already forgotten the name of... it starts with a "Ch" sound I think. Its pretty and kind of iridescent) decided that it needed to come home with me. Because it loves me.

Which is good because I love it back.

(It is the smaller of the two in the picture, the big one is an earlier prototype that came home with me awhile ago. It is also very nice but more of a plying weight at a bit over 1.5oz - the little lovely is 5/8oz. which is right in my favorite weight range. And Oh! their cutouts match! Its like having a paired set!)

I sort of lost interests in top whorls after I first learned to spin, but I am rediscovering the appeal here. I have never had one that's done a thigh roll quite so nicely. And she does spin and spin and spin and spin....

Also did I mention the pretty shiny part?