Lessons in Humility: Gauge Edition

Just about a year ago, I started a stranded sweater for my husband (Streymoy from Knitty Winter 2013). I even posted photos of the swatches and the buttons on this here blog and promptly never wrote about it again. I was pretty excited about the project, as I already had the yarn in my stash and my husband liked the look of it. We decided between us that we'd prefer it as a pullover, rather than a cardigan, and I got started swatching.

My first swatch with the recommended needle size got me 15 stitches per 4 inches. Since the pattern gauge was meant to be 20 sts/4", I needed to go down at least a needle size. The next swatch got me 18 sts/4", which was closer to gauge, but not quite there. And here's where I got myself into trouble: I was really anxious to get started knitting, so I did some math and calculated that I could use the directions for the men's large size and have it fit with 2" or so of ease. My math was wrong. Terribly, comically wrong. Like 4" too big around the chest wrong. It was so frustrating! Even worse, it had taken me a solid two months to knit it wrong, and I was disgusted with it. I unraveled my work and set the yarn aside to taunt me at different times throughout the year.

I picked it up again this fall, determined to make a sweater that fit. I took a hard look at the swatches and the sleeves that I hadn't unraveled. I also took another look at the math and determined that my calculations had been off by .25 stitches per inch, which was just the difference between a sweater that would fit my husband and a sweater that would fit Rubeus Hagrid. Anyway, with this reevaluation of my mathing, I decided that following the directions for the men's medium size would end in a sweater that my husband could wear in public, not just in our frigid basement.

The two months of futile knitting last fall seems to have made this fall's knitting go really fast. The stranded charts were easy to memorize, and it felt like it took me no time at all to knit the body portion of the sweater. Once it was long enough, I had my husband try it on. It fit! I was so happy! I was less happy, though, at the prospect of having to re-knit the sleeves. As they were knit to stitch counts of the large size, I didn't want to try to calculate the adjustments necessary to make them work with the new body. It only took about a week to re-do the sleeves and join them to the body.

Now that I had one big garment on the needles, I marked off the steek stitches for the collar and began the raglan shoulder decreases. The designer did a fantastic job here by planning the decreases in such a way that it ended up a little more like a saddle shoulder than a true raglan, which I think made for a better-fitting neckline than most. Once I completed the shoulders and neck, it was time to prepare the steek stitches for cutting.

I'm not gonna lie: just the thought of cutting my knitting makes me want to pee my pants. What if I cut too far? What if I cut in the wrong place? What if the reinforcements don't hold? What if??? I was really sweating it. In the end, I followed Kate Davies' steeking instructions: I did the crochet reinforcements and cut that sweater right down the middle. I even stopped in the right place. The only thing I think I'll do differently if I ever do another short steek is that I'll bind off the stitches meant to be at the base of the collar, which I think will add a little strength. It's a small thing, I think, but one that could help the sweater's durability.

With the steek cut, I picked up stitches for the shawl collar. I made it a 1x1 rib to match the cuffs and bottom ribbing. I had originally followed Jared Flood's collar instructions from the Brownstone pullover, but it ended up with too much fabric at the back of the neck, so I undid it and reduced the number of short rows by half. This made the collar fit my husband much better. I finished it with an i-cord bind off, incorporating the buttonholes as I bound off. As soon as I added the buttons, I made my husband try it on. It fit! We were both pretty happy about it. As I hadn't washed and blocked it when I took the photos, you're seeing it fit more snugly than it does since it was washed. As it was a lot of sweater (bulky-weight yarn, stranded), I filled the tub of my washing machine with water & wool wash and let it soak. I briefly considered blotting it dry by hand, but changed my mind when I lifted it out of the washer and found it was really, really heavy wet. I decided the better plan would be to use the spin cycle (skipping the agitation) to remove most of the water from the sweater. Then I laid it out on the guest bed, getting it to its proper shape and size and let it dry for a few days.

Since I finished it, my husband has gotten to wear it a couple times and has told me how much he loves it, which makes me pretty happy. He's so knitworthy! There's yarn leftover from this project and I'm trying to decide if I want to make something for myself from it. I've found a couple patterns I like, but I haven't made up my mind yet. That decision may need a little time to percolate.

So, Friends, that's it for tonight. Until next time.

It felt like a minute

Oh, Friends, where has the time gone? I'm having difficulty believing that I've been gone as long as I have, but so it is. Last time I wrote, I talked about my disappointing State Fair results, and showed you the beginning of a sock I was making for my mother-in-law. I've since completed the sock and three other projects.

First, the sock: it's the Rhombus pattern from CookieA's Knit Sock Love book. It ended up taking about six weeks to finish, and I ended up running out of yarn about 2.5" before I could close up the toes. A kind Raveler sold me a second skein of the gorgeous Sundara Sock, which allowed me to finish with enough left over to make some socks for myself.

Next I decided that I would make a point of knitting up the oldest yarn in my stash, partly as a way to clear out some space in my bins and partly as a challenge to myself. While I have a whole lot of some mohair boucle that I bought at a fiber festival some years ago, I knew I could find a pattern for the silk/bamboo hand-dyed sport weight that's been in my stash nearly as long. Anyway, believing that I had a mere 450 yards of this yarn, I cast on for the Glitz at the Ritz shawl, which I thought would use up both skeins. I got through nearly the whole shawl before I realized that I'd underestimated the yardage of the skeins, leaving me with nearly the whole second skein upon completion of the shawl.

Knowing that I likely didn't have enough yardage remaining to make another triangular shawl, I decided that a rectangular scarf would be the way to go. I could cast on and knit until I ran out of yarn, hoping that the yarn's slinkiness would help once it was washed and blocked. I used the Shimmer Wave scarf pattern, which had an easy-to-memorize repeat and traveled well. I mostly worked on it during my commute to work every day and occasionally in meetings and waiting rooms. It took a mere three weeks to complete, and I've already given it to a coworker.

Lastly, I restarted the Streymoy sweater I'd had so little success with last winter, but I think I'll save that for next time. There's a lot to tell! Until then.

State Fair Knitting: Done!

So I've completed my Kentucky State Fair knitting! It's been done for more than a week or so, and last Thursday I gave it to my friend, Karen, so that she can turn it in for me (I'll be out of town for the submission times, so she's kindly taking it for me.) I entered four items, most of which I've documented here, but one which I was determined to keep secret until the very last minute.

The secret project was my entry in the sock category. I won the blue ribbon in this category the last two times I entered, and I wanted to keep my competition in the dark about what I was knitting. I don't think anyone I'll be up against really reads this blog (except Karen, but I don't mind that she knows what I'm working on - we see each other at knit night anyway), but it's just one of those things. Maybe I'm just a little superstitious. Or just competitive. Actually, it's probably the competitive thing. My husband laughs about it and says that I should just go out and break their fingers, but I don't think that's very sporting.

Anyway, the sock pattern is CookieA's Gothic Spire socks and I knit them with Dream in Color Smooshy Sock in the Melon Bomb color. For whatever reason, I can knit Cookie's sock patterns, the tessellated ones especially, effortlessly. This pattern looks really complicated knit up, and I think a lot of people might find it to be challenging work, but the best thing about it is I think it will impress the judges. I was very careful, too, about the color choice. In past years, it seems that light, bright colors have earned more ribbons than dark, sombre colors, so this bright melon-y orange was just the ticket.

According to my Ravelry notes, I knit the socks in a mere eleven days, which, even by my standards, is pretty darned fast. I generally allow for up to 21 days for complicated fingering-weight socks, but these practically flew off my needles. Almost before I knew it, they were done! They are fabulously comfortable socks, due in large part to the yarn. It's a nice, squishy yarn, that knits into nice, squishy socks. I need more of this in my stash. Soon.

Once the Fair opens next week (on August 15, I think) I'll go check everything out. I'm very hopeful that the socks will win me another blue ribbon. I'm also submitting my Hanami stole (in the lace category), my Cypri shawl (in the shawl category), and my Rafters cardigan (in the Aran-stitch sweater category). I think the Hanami has a pretty good chance for a third-place ribbon, although the delicacy of the beadwork could get it a second place. The lace category is very competitive, and my friend Holly pretty much owns this category. I know that she's entering an epic beaded shawl and I expect she'll get the blue ribbon here. She should've had Best of Show for the beaded shawl she made last year, but she was robbed. I'm hopeful it doesn't happen twice. As for the Cypri shawl, I'm not sure how it will do, because I haven't paid much attention to this category the last few years. I think it's pretty good - maybe a second-place here - though I can't say for sure. I have no idea whatsoever how the Rafters cardigan will do. I think it shows a great deal of skill, so it should score well there, but I did wear it all last winter, and it's gotten slightly felted from several washings. The stitch definition isn't as crisp as I'd like it to be, but I don't know what it will be up against. I used a high-quality yarn, and the sweaters I remember from past years appeared to have been knit from acrylic, but I really don't know how it'll do. I guess I could live with an honorable mention, but I'd prefer to place.

Well, that's it for now. The Fair stuff is now out of my hands, and it's no good worrying about the judging, anyway. I've done my best, and now I'll have to wait it out. I'm at the lake this week, and I hope to put up another post while I'm here. It's amazing how easy the writing is when you're on vacation! So, until next time, Friends.

Another project finished!

I've finished my Cypri shawl, and I can't be happier about it. I enjoyed knitting it, but, seriously, 382 stitches for something like 1000 rows (just kidding, it was probably more like 70 rows) is a lot. It didn't help that I forgot some decreases that were supposed to happen right after I started on the first chart. And the confusion I had near the end of the second chart, that caused me to have to un-knit about a dozen rows. And almost running out of yarn before I finished binding off - I finished with 18". I had another skein in reserve, but who wants to add new yarn just for a bind off? I'd probably have un-knit the last four rows before I'd have chosen that. Ugh.

I have also finished my State Fair socks, but I'm not ready to show them just yet. Maybe in a couple weeks or so. I can say that they practically flew off my needles, the pattern is gorgeous, and I love the yarn. Aside from that, mum's the word.

So it's a short post tonight, Friends. Until next time.

Hey! It's a WIPs Wednesday post. On Wednesday!

So I have two projects on the needles right now: a Cypri shawl and a Euclid sock. The shawl is humming right along, while the sock is kind of stalled, so it looks like I'll talk about the shawl first.

I've been working on it pretty steadily since I completed the Feminine Lace socks, getting about two rows done during my bus rides to and from work. 382 stitches is a lot! Especially when, at stitch 350 or so, you realize you've been decreasing too much and have to unknit back to stitch 12. The nice thing about this project is that the garter stitch is super-duper easy and the traveling stitches only happen every fourth row. It's really just a matter of getting through those long rows. I really like how it's knitting up and I can't wait 'til it's finished!

As for the Euclid socks, I've gotten through turning the heel, but I haven't decided if I want to knit the sole with the centered double decrease as it's written in the pattern. I love how the yarn (Knitivity Phydlbitz) is behaving in the triangles, but I'm pretty sure that the ridge from the decrease will be uncomfortable. I suppose I could try and see how I like it. It's only one sock, after all. I can make it differently without too much trouble. This sock (how long has it been since I knit a single sock? I have no earthly idea.) has been a lot of fun to knit, thanks to its interesting construction. I think the only way I'd like it better would be if I had this yarn in 4 small skeins: 3 semi-solids and 1 variegated, so that the triangles would be a little more obvious. I think this pattern would be great for stash busting, which I might consider after I complete my State Fair knitting.

Regarding the Fair, I haven't yet decided what I want to enter this year. I have a couple projects I've been  considering, but I don't want to broadcast it just yet. I'll save it for a post later in the summer.

Well, I think that's about it for tonight. Until next time, Friends.

Unstuck!

Louie loves cashmere. He has good taste.

Well, I laid a big, fat egg for Knit & Crochet Blog Week, what with my one sad post and no follow-up. I'm still thinking that I'll get around to writing posts for all the other prompts, but for tonight, I'll just give you an update on the Portico Shawl.

I managed to finish it the day after I posted on it, I think. My kind friend, Cindy, happened to have another skein of the wasabi cashmere, and it turned out that I only needed about 15 yards of it to finish the shawl. The blocking went pretty quickly, and once I had it pinned up, it dried quickly as well. I haven't had an opportunity to wear it yet - I might not get to wear it until Fall, as it's been pretty hot the last few days and will likely stay hot until October.

It has turned out just as light and airy as you could imagine. It practically floats! I won't dare call it "ethereal," because that adjective is so over-used, but it is pretty effing nice. It has just a hint of a halo from the cashmere, and it's so soft against the skin. I will definitely love wearing this around my neck.

Anyway, that's about all I've got for tonight. Next time I'll have photos of the Amaya sweater, and maybe even of the Frankenanklets I made from some leftover sock yarn. Until then, Friends.

Stuck.

See that picture there? The one that looks like a nearly finished shawl? That's a picture of frustration. Of the heartbreak felt by the optimistic knitter. The one who read that bit in the pattern where the designer said she nearly ran out of yarn. The one who thought that a 100% cashmere yarn would have more yardage in its 55 gram skein than a 55/45 silk/cashmere blend.

The one who was wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

I'm three 300-stitch rows & a bind off short of a shawl. And I only have about 5 yards of yarn left. And another skein of this yarn will run me $47 + shipping. I am stuck but good.

What's most frustrating is that this project started out so well! Those first few charts just flew by! I mean, it's been a mere two weeks, and I could have had this thing finished, soaked and blocking by now. And it's such lovely, soft cashmere. That isn't yet a pretty lace shawl.

I'm going to have to set this aside for a minute, and think about what I want to do. I could rip back a bit and bind off where it might make sense. I could message a few people on the Rav to see if they're willing to let go of a few yards of their yarn. Or I could buy a whole 'nother skein. I can't think about this right now. I'm going to go start something else. I don't know what that will be, but I hope it's one I have enough yarn for.

Until next time, Friends.

Zipping right along

My Amaya sweater is really moving fast, mostly because it's stockinette stitch on size 8 needles, with minimal shaping. It's been a fast knit, so much so that I've already finished the front and the back. Why, as recently as Tuesday, I was halfway through the front and even though I left it at the office overnight Wednesday, I was able to complete the neck and shoulders last night. I'm saving the seams for Sunday, since that will be my next day off, and once that job's finished, I'll be able to finish the collar. After it gets a wash and a dry, I'll have a nice, new, Spring sweater - just in time for the comfortable weather we're finally starting to see.

Since I didn't have anything else on the needles Wednesday evening, in my desolation I decided (with a little prodding from a friend on the Facebook) to cast on Kirsten Kapur's Portico shawl. Mostly I chose it because it called for a mere 400 yards of laceweight that I could knit on size 6 needles from a skein of Jade Sapphire cashmere that's been in my stash since the Knit Nook closed. Decision made, I whipped through the first set of instructions before I went to bed.

The yarn I'm using is 100% cashmere, completely soft and very fuzzy, but different from the 55/45 silk/cashmere that the pattern calls for. I expect that my shawl will end up with a lovely halo, but without the nice smoothness and drape that the silk blend yarn will give. If I can finish it fairly quickly, I think it will be a light, airy layer to wear on the chilly mornings and evenings we'll have for a few more weeks. Otherwise, I'll likely have to wait until fall to wear it.

Well, that's all I have for tonight. Until next time, Friends.