Cattywampus

A thing of beauty

Clothilde in Sundara Fingering Silky Merino in Caribbean.  

larger than the original pattern - 6 repeats of the internal pattern & 2 of the lace border.  final measurements 31x68

I can't say enough good things about the silky merino, it's amazing to work with, soft and smooth - you don't ever want to stop touching it.  The color is intense and gorgeous, a beautiful blue turquoise-y color.  

I wore it with an all black outfit today and I felt totally chic, I'm absolutely loving it.

 

Obsession

It's been crazy at work, classes started last monday and it keeps me busy and I pretty much do nothing in the evenings except for zone out and knit.

I was working on this shawl on the bus and at lunch last week and for some reason I got completely obsessed with it.  Completely.  I couldn't stop working on it, couldn't put it down.

I think this was a combination of a fairly easy pattern, yarn that is like butter, and a color that I just couldn't wait to wear.

FO post coming soon, I just wanted to say WOOT!  I'm done and I ADORE it!!!  I hope it dries so I can wear it to work tomorrow.   :-)

Buttonbands

A few of you asked about the button bands and what I had done differently between the first and the second one.

The first one, I followed the instructions and knitted a separate button band and sewed it on.

Theoretically, this allows you to knit it to the proper length to prevent the sweater from stretching at the cardigan edge.

My experience with it wasn't fantastic, it was a pain to knit, took forever, and I had serious doubts about figuring out ratio of rows to rows when sewing it on.  I ended up with this, obviously my doubts were proven valid.

Not only are the edges of the cardigan longer than the body and pointy, but the buttons are in the wrong place because you sort of have to guess where to put them since the band is separate from the body.  I did follow the instructions on button hole placement, but I don't think it worked out well in this case.

So I ripped them off, eliminating about 15-20 hours of stupid button band back and forth knitting and 3-4 hours of sewing them on.  

After that I picked up stitches along the cardigan edge at a 2 for 3 ratio and ran with it.  Because the first button band was substantial, I had to do this one as wide or the sweater wouldn't have fit properly, I definitely don't lean towards 2" button bands in most cases.

Here is what the new button band looks like close up, and below you can see the two next to each other.

And of course, the finished sweater with the new button band.

It's not perfect, and if I knew I was making a regular cardigan I would have given the body some shaping.  The button band is wider than I would like it to be...but overall, it's wearable, which I don't think the first one was.  So there it is, I hope that answered your questions!

In other news - jaywalkers!

I like these socks, they are very fun!  Oddly enough, I weighed the ball and I only used 2 ounces of yarn, I have two ounces left, I could make an entire pair of socks out of the leftovers!  I'm a little confused by that, it doesn't seem right, but numbers don't lie.

A pictureless post

I have this in my head and I want to get it out, so I'm going to share it with you guys.

I work in a large university advising freshman & sophomore students in a very difficult major.  The kind of major that trying isn't enough, you have to have a certain level of intelligence, an inclination towards the major, you have to be able to give things up to succeed, and you have to love it.

Sometimes students just can't cut it.  Sometimes they flunk out first term and don't ever come back, that's sad, but not traumatizing for me.  What's traumatizing for me is a student who has been plodding along for 2 years, some successes, some failures, but no matter how hard he tries, he can't get anything better than Cs & Ds.  He doesn't know why, he's trying his hardest, he's going to study groups, to the instructors, to his friends for help, etc and he just can't do it.  The student thinks that if he just keeps trying, just one more time, it'll work this time.  Something will click that didn't click before and miraculously he'll be on his way and everything will be fine.

The hardest conversation to have is the one where I say 'have you thought about such & such public school?' or 'what about taking a few terms and going to community college to get some of these classes out of the way and then coming back?'

To them, this is the kiss of death.  To leave their friends?  To be labeled as a failure?  To have to go where all those other kids went and admit that they can't hack it?

But the worst, the absolute worst, is sitting across the desk from this 19 or 20 year old and watching as he realizes his life goals, his dreams, his purpose is coming crashing down around him.  Everything he thought of himself, everything he thought he would do in life, everything he ever wanted to be is no longer possible because it's all centered around this major and the jobs after graduation.  

My job is to help them step back and realize it's better to find out now, while they still have so many options open to them, that maybe a fresh start would be a good thing for them, that maybe even the best option is just another major but still here, so they can stay with their friends.  It's to help them realize that they aren't hitting a brick wall, that there are many, many paths that they can choose from and still be happy with their lives, and I do it, and I think I do it reasonably well.

But oh it breaks my heart.  It truly breaks my heart to watch a young man or woman's dream crumble to the ground before them.  I want so badly to make it be okay for them, but that's not my job, that's their parents job, my job is the reality check and I hate it sometimes.  

Sigh.  That's all.

Part Deux

Well.

Here's take number one, in case you've forgotten the splendor of ickiness that it turned out to be.

It was problematic.

Here is take number two.

So. much. better.  Here is a shot with flash, since this shot without turned out all grainy, you can see the fit, but the color is off.

If i had known I was going to do a regular button band I would have put in some shaping, it goes from 40" to 34" at the bustline, it's not all that flattering when it's completely closed, but I think it looks decent buttoned like this.  If nothing else it is at least wearable, which the first version was not.

Like EZ says, I took control of my knitting, and this sweater no longer makes me want to cry!

FAIL

My opinion of the swing style confirmed in my own knitting.  I hates it. 

So, I unsewed the button band and am doing a NORMAL button band and making it a NORMAL sweater.  

As Yosemite Sam would say, rattin frattin gol' darn razzima tooting #$@% button band.  I am Angry at the sweater, but I'm trying not to hold the button band incident against it.  We might be able to get along after all, I'll be back with an update in a day or two.  Wish me luck!

Oh, by the way, this is the first picture that the color really looks accurate in, the variegation is there, but overall the sweater just looks blue.

A Parade of Casting On

Last weekend when I didn't get the zephyr for the Pi Shawl (I still don't have the Zephyr, btw, I am NOT impressed by the customer service and will not be ordering from them again), I cast on for the Desdemona Shawl.

 

As is the wont of lace in progress, it looks like a mess, but I have faith that it will be lovely.  I am working this is Fearless Fibers Merino/silk, it's a deeper purple than it looks in the picture and the color variations are not as intense as they look in this light.

I also received the Sundara Fingering silky merino I had ordered months ago, the color way is Caribbean, it's beautiful.  I cast on for Clothilde, which as it turns out is more complicated than it looks, I was hoping for a bus knitting project, but not so much.

I cast on for an EZ fair isle yoke sweater.  After getting the Alice Starmore book and then spending some time watching some EZ videos last weekend I was finally ready to commit.  

The yoke will be in shades of blue, so I bordered the sweater in the same blue.  I hope this works out, I feel like this will be a really useable sweater. 

I cast on for Elaine's Blouse a few weeks ago as my tv knitting, it's progressing nicely.

I am hoping to have this done by the end of september, I think this will make a nice fall transition sweater.

So that's about it for the casting on.  Tho I have to admit I'm dying to cast on Girl Friday from the new Knitty.  It's just too cute and I think it would be great for work.  

I finished Ditto.  If you can call this finished.

I have tried it on at this point, I'm feeling 'eh' about it.  The knitting on button band was horrid.  Horrid to do, horrid to sew on, just plain horrid.  I know one should never say never, but really, never, ever, ever, ever again.  Why?  Not only did it take FOREVER to do, but I sewed both of them on a minimum of twice, one three times and STILL the cardigan edge bows out.  Whatever.  I'm done with it.  I will sew the ends in & put the buttons on later and see what I think.  Between the swing shaping, the evil button bands, and the button placement that is not at all where it appears the buttons are in the picture on the pattern, I am not convinced I will love this sweater.  Not at all.  

I will put up an FO post after I get the ends woven in & the buttons on.  We shall see.  

Random:  Has anybody used those Tom Bihn knit sacks?  I'm trying to come up with a solution for my carrying knitting bag, I was using a GoKnit pouch, but the strap ripped off and I think buying another one to replace it would be kind of silly since it would probably just happen again.  I am looking for something with a buckle or clasp so I can hook it to the outside of my bag without weakening it (like the strap on the GoKnit bag, I think it twisted too much and weakened the seam). 

Ooh!  One more thing, yesterday I went on a shopping trip with my stepmother to Penzey's (oh don't you just LOVE Penzey's?), I replenished a lot of my spices, clearing out old things and replacing so-so spices with better ones.  While we were there we wandered into a fabric store that had a fabulous supply of buttons.

So I picked out a few and bought what seems like the right amount - hopefully, I guessed right.  Since they aren't for anything specific it's kind of hard to tell...

That little extra something

I finished my forest canopy shawl, it's lovely, if I do say so myself.  Unfortunately, what I wanted was an everyday black shawl to throw in my bag and use whenever.  What I ended up with is a shawl that will give an outfit that little extra something.

This isn't bad, unless of course I was aiming for an everyday more casual look, which I was.  But - whatever, it's pretty, it will work for sprucing up a work outfit or for saturday night, I'll just have to be a little more careful about what I pair it with.

I don't regret my decision to add the beads, I just wish I had thought it through a little more carefully.

This is in jaggerspun zephyr, with silverlined black seed beads.

This is the most likely way I will wear it, I find I don't wear shawls draped out over my back, I tend to wear them bunched up like scarves.

It's good, very good - but now back to the drawing board for a more casual, every day sort of scarf that will go with the bright colors I like to wear.

Here are the colors from the fearless fibers simple value sock club - they are pretty!

 

and a little cashmere I picked up at Deb's offer of free shipping to include something else with the club shipment.

the color is a more intense blue-ish purple than it shows in the picture, I think I will make this into a heart to heart scarf, but I'm not entirely sure.

I got the yarn I picked out for my knitpicks vest, I am quite pleased with the colors.  I think I am going to wait for the class in October before I start anything, I just want to make sure I know what I'm doing.  I think I'll wait.  Unless I decide not to.

The yarn I ordered to start my pi shawl didn't show this week and it turns out it isn't going to.  I am annoyed, I ordered it monday and paid priority shipping.  Their shipping policy says that orders ship same day, so I should have gotten it this week.  

I called yesterday to see where my order was and it hadn't shipped yet.  The owner apologized and refunded my shipping, which was very nice, but it still doesn't get me my yarn for the three day weekend to get a good start on the shawl.  Sigh.  

Dog fight!

Happy long weekend everybody!  I hope you have a great one!

Plain Jane

Thank you to all of you who responded to my survey & left comments.

The conclusion is a new solid yarn, jaggerspun zephyr wool/silk.  That was one suggestion and I have to admit, I do LOVE that yarn.  So I have ordered a cone of deep blue and will cast on as soon as it arrives.  I don't know how long it takes to knit something like that, but it seems like it would take a long, long time.

As a side note, I got the reprint of Alice Starmore's Fair Isle knitting book today.  OMG.   It's GORGEOUS.  I want nothing more than to sit down for a few hours and read that book.  Hopefully this weekend I will have time to do that.  Check it out if you have a chance, it's just spectacular.  I can see why people have paid so much for it on Ebay.

Also, don't you just love the weather lately?  Highs in the 70s, can't it stay like this for a few months?  We wouldn't get bored with it until at LEAST November, maybe longer.