The Ships Project: Off Duty Roll Brim Hat, Lagoon

Off Duty Roll Brim Hat, Lagoon

Knit Roll Brim Hat by Kathleen Sams

Blue Sky Alpacas Worsted Hand Dyes

The Crown

This hat is for The Ships Project.  I want a baker’s dozen knit up before shipping out. I knit this in an evening. It’s quite plain so I knit it in luxury yarn. I’ll attach a tag with yarn and care info. 

• I wear hats in small and this was snug before blocking. After blocking it is very comfortable.
• I did my best to minimize the openness at the crown but I can tug only so much with dbl pointed needles.
• I added a few extra rows to protect against blended sea winds.
• Clean stitch definition. Soft. Warm. Love the color, Lagoon.

 ...Happy Trails.....

Snow Disc O Friday

10.27.11 First Snow Day

I was at Short Sands the weekend of York's Harvestfest for the Pow Wow.  It was standing ovation when Ed announced Black Thunder Singers were Native American Music Awards winners for Best Pow Wow Recording and Best New Age Recording.

One of my regular Short Sands shop-stops is the Beach Funatic.   I got a castle pail in purple for snow castle making and I took home the one and only hot pink Snow Disc (made in the USA). 

When daughter-who-knits saw me carrying the Snow Disc she was appauled and couldn't believe I was buying a snow disc in October.  She didn't even want to think about snow.  Meanwhile, her daughter, a.k.a. the Best Granddaughter in the Whole Wide World grinned.  I'm glad I listened to my gut for once, because I can never find one when I want one.  I put a few miles on it today. It was fun while the snow lasted. 

...Happy Trails...

Boy Blue Beanie & Chunky Cardi

Baby's Beanie Hat  Size 0-3

Erika Knight's Simple Knits for Cherished Babies

 Hurricane Irene project finished hours before she was.

Baby's Chunky Cardigan Size 0-3

Erika Knight's Simple Knits for Cherished Babies

The cardigan photo is not very clear or true to color.  It looks out of shape but it blocked beautifully. I noticed a piece of knit-lint in the photo too so my knitting bag got a going over with the lint roller. 

Shoulder seams:  I used the 3 needle bind off and forgot to go up a size in needle! Blocking loosened the seams, but not enough to my liking. I would have frogged back to those seams if time had not run out!

3rd Times a Charm with Inserting Sleeves:  Inserting the sleeves into the armhole seamed together beautifully on my third try.  The rows on either side of the the armhole seam lined up perfectly as if one continuous row, and no puckering.

I think after I seamed the curve of the underarm and started going up toward the shoulder seam is when I picked up only one running board from the body to every two from the sleeve armhole, until I started going down to the other underarm curve.

Button Holes:  The button holes are placed as the pattern is written but the top button looks one row too high. 

Seaming:   Seaming is chunky for such a small garment. When I weaved in the ends I split the strands in half and went in either direction to thin it out a bit.

Buttons:   The buttons are from Italy and their watercolor look of blue sky and clouds made them a pefect match for Rowan's All Seasons cotton in Denim.

I'll knit this again, maybe the body in the round. I’ll go up a needle size when I do the 3 needle bind off, have the top button lowered one row (adjusting the others to achieve this) and thin the yarn for seaming.  Both Boy Blue projects were fun gifts to knit.

...Happy Trails...

Chinese Waves

My 3-Corner Cosmetic Cloths inspired me to knit washcloths for face and body.  

Before Wash & Dry:  10” x 5.5”

After Wash & Dry: 6” x 5” Unstretched

I modified the Chinese Wave on the diagonal to make my 3 corner washcloth for face and body.  This is thicker than my 3 Corner Cosmetic Cloths, and big enough to wrap around my shea butter body bar.

I knit up more in two different colors; one color for the neck down, one for the neck up.  Just toss them in their own lingerie bags for washing and drying.

To make my 3 corner washcloth for face and body:  Using 2 strands of Pigsah's Peaches and Cream cotton yarn I followed the modified Chinese Waves pattern to about 35 stitches on the needle and bound off to create my triangle.

This knits up fast, soft and cushion-like wth the 2 strands. 100% cotton, 100% reuseable.  I thank Margaret K. K. Radcliffe for the Chinese Waves pattern and ailurokat (Ravelry) for the modifications to knit the pattern on the diagonal.

...Happy Trails...

Wave ByeBye to Disposable Cosmetic Pads

The Chinese Waves inspired me to knit cosmetic cloths.

3-Corner Cosmetic Cloth

100% Cotton. 100% Reusable.

I used the modified Chinese Wave pattern on the diagonal.

I don't use disposable cosmetic wipes.  I was always folding a square face cloth into a small triangle so this 3 corner cloth works perfect for me, and has less bulk.  Just toss in a lingerie bag for easy washing.

Pisgah Yarn & Dyeing Co., Inc Peaches & Creme Solids

To make my 3 corner cloth:   I used one strand of Peaches and Cream cotton yarn and followed the pattern to 27 stitches on the needle and bound off.  For a finer gauge and even softer cloth I plan to knit more in Rowan's Cotton Handknit, single strand.   I knit up larger ones for face cloths using Peaches and Cream.  

I boiled the 3 corner cloth in water for 5 minutes, cooled enough to squeeze out excess water and tossed it in the dryer.  It shrunk from 6” to 3” across the top and from 3” to 2.5” in length unstretched.   I used scrap yarn and didn't think to measure the yardage.   If I knit more using this yarn I will post the yardage.

A quick knit!  100% cotton, 100% reuseable.  I thank Margaret K. K. Radcliffe for the Chinese Waves pattern and ailurokat  (Ravelry) for the modifications to knit the pattern on the diagonal.  

...Happy Trails...

WIP IT

Work In Progress

Each of these WIP tops have their own one particular issue that holds me back from finishing them. 

Rowan's Smooch. 

Saucy plunging neckline.

  The decreases in the v neckline do not match perfectly on either side.  




Nora Gaughan's Cabaret. 
Cool Deco.

I need to reseam 4" under arms so sleeve and body meet neatly. 


Erika Knight's Kelly. 
Queen of Cardi-Gras.

The shoulder stair-step decreases need short row wraps to close in holes. 


"When a problem comes along, you must whip it.
It's not too late".




...Happy Trails...

You gotta roll, roll, roll...

For the daughter who has everything but doesn't knit...

 

Yarn: Ella Rae Amity Print
Pattern: Coats and Clark Knit Roll Brim Hat (free)

I don’t like acrylic yarn (especially with wool) but the sample hat on display sealed the deal.  The colors are my favorite and the self-pattern is pretty.  Without the sample hat I would not have spent any time looking at Amity Print.   Now I plan to buy more for a different project.  Daughter who knits likes it too.

The Coats and Clark Knit Roll Brim Hat is an easy and quick knit.  I cast on early Easter morning.  After a wonderful Easter dinner, daughter who knits finished the last few decrease rows for me while I played Wii golf with BGITWWW.  I decided the hat is too long for me.  One can roll only so far up before it starts rolling back. Daughter who doesn’t knit liked it and it fit her perfectly.  Like and fit in the same hand knit garment for her is almost unheard of, so I was thrilled!  No frogging is a bonus.  

The finished hat weighed .45 grams so there is enough for one more hat or wide head band to keep ears warm and hair out of face when in the wind.   So bright and cheery it will be.  

 

...Happy Trails...

Baby Take a Bow

Every adult who saw and touched this sweet little "Tee" loved it for the design and soft hand of the fabric. 

Garter Stitch Wrap Top

Size 0-3 months

Pattern : Erika Knight's Simple Knits for Cherished Babies

Yarn: Rowan's Purelife Cotton 4 ply Natural Undyed 

Bagged up and ready to go!

The following photos are taken from the inside of the top. I am not a big fan of garter stitch fabric because if just one stitch is off on the edge it shows. Blocking will improve but not remove. 

The edge decreases had to be tugged and stretched gently throughout the drying process. When I knit this again I will decrease loosely for stretch allowance. Maybe 100% cotton has something to do with the negative stretch too.  I was almost finished before I had to add a second skein.

 Nice one piece wrap.  

Inside seam. My first try at garter stitch seaming. I thought I was matching up frown to smile but it looks a a little off to me.  The seaming looks beautiful on the front side and there is zero bulk! Nice for baby.

In my humble opinion the seaming from underarm to end of sleeve “seams” to interfere with the simple flow of the body’s garter stitch seam. If this top were knit from top down it would be my favorite baby garment for gift giving (and a quick knit indeed).

...Happy Trails...

Wrap It Up

BGITWWW's Ballet Cardi

#109 Girl's Ballet Cardigan
From Diane Soucy's Knitting Pure and Simple Patterns
Yarn:  Blue Skys Dyed Cotton, 3 Skeins in Rasberry

This wrap sweater is knit from the top down.  Instructions are written well and easy to understand.  I knit a few extra rows of rib at the sleeves for spurt growth.

I do not do well with adding stitches at the underarm and knitting in the round with 3 needles. I must do more.  The yarn feels great but it pills fast and furious. I want to use it again but I wont. I just don’t like that pilling! The color is much darker than what I saw on the monitor too. I used 2.5 skeins.

Daughter who knits said I did a fine job. BGITWWW wore it to school and received many compliments. I am sure she said “Thank you, my NANee knit this for me…”

This knit up quickly and I will probably knit another one for Fall. 

I cannot say enough about the button! I asked BGITWWW if she would like a new button or an old one from an antique shop. She asked for an old button with glitterrrrr.   

I went to Quechee Timber Village antique shop in Quechee, Vt.   Guess what I found! 3 Bakelite buttons the right size with -no kidding- glitter! Normally I would not consider a black button but I had searched through 16 dusty boxes of vintage buttons and these were the only ones with sparkle.   The inside button is a contemporary smooth one.  The other two Bakelite buttons are in the BGITWWW's button jar.

BGITWWW would have no other! What sparkle! What Shine!

                                    What luck!                                   

...Happy Trails...

She lost her mittens and she began to cry...

So.  I've lost track of the snow storms but the plow man's bill will remind me of most.  Not all because I have done my own fair amount of shoveling.  Between Friday and Saturday we got about 19" of snow. February went out with an ice storm.  

The first day of March was blue sky and out I went to clean up the mess at the top of the drive.  As I shoveled I just happened to catch a glimpse of something turquoise blue in a chunk of dirty ice and snow.   I knew immediately what it was!  One of my Rock Lobster mittens.  One.  I didn't even know I had lost them because I wear them to special occassions only. 

I had to leave and was just sick about it.  How could I tell my daughter who knit them?  I was optimistic that the other mitten was buried  in close proximity of the first one and I would find it.  I prayed the plow man would not stop by to remove the ice storm mess while I was away.  He did.  

March 2nd, another fine day.  I went back up to the top of the drive with shovel and camera.  42 minutes later what did I spy with my blue eyes?  The mate! 

Click on photo and look in the lower left area near the 2nd chunk of snow... 

Save me!

Get me outta here!

Ahhh!  Love The Cashmere Only wash!

...Happy Trails...

Hermione-two

This is my 2nd Hermione Hearts Ron Hat.  This time I used Ella Rae Bamboo Silk I received as a gift from the BGITWWW.   (Pattern by Christy Aylesworth on Ravelry) 

...Happy Trails...

Sugar on Snow in the Half Shell

It's Maple Sugaring time and NH maple producers are tapping sugar maple trees for their sap.  I get a fresh jug of maple syrup from "Lyle" every March, otherwise I wouldn't be a Vermonster.

For Sugar on Snow you need 100% pure maple syrup and fresh clean hard packed snow.  I boiled what was left from last Spring's syrup to the "hard  ball" stage and drizzled on snow.  For fun I packed snow into sea shells from Sanibel & Captiva Islands.   It's fun to pick and prep a bank of snow outside and have Sugar on Snow out in nature but the high wind warning kept us inside.

   

Dug down for a bucket of clean snow.

 Packed snow into shells & drizzled boiled syrup on the snow.

Yum Yum ate it up!

...Happy Trails...

Alpaca and An American Girl Cardi

Blue Sky smiling at me...

...nothing but Blue Sky do I see.
100% Baby Alpaca from Blue Sky Alpaca in Capri. I call it "My Aruba."

I modified Hermione Hearts Ron by Christy Aylesworth for daughter-who-doesn't-knit.  I eliminated the eyelet and shortened the rib.  The yarn is soft and the color is a beautiful turquoise blue.  She likes it. 

Nearly there....

Relaxed and floating Starfish (more like actual color).

Drying over FUN-O-RAMA Bucket

Ready to go...

Update:  Bummer!

Daughter-who-doesn't knit wore her new hat on the way home from work and reported "It's itchy! It itched all around my forehead and I had to take it off a few miles down the road."  Or something like that because as soon as I heard "It's itchy" I was thinking Oh. No. How. Very. Disappointing.  
 
I asked if I could have it and there was no reply.  LOL.   Maybe another soak or two will free some of the tiny fibers or minimize halo.  I'll be doing itch factor research and hope to find a solution.   Where can I buy a fine gauge cotton or silk knit skull cap?
 
 

 ...Happy Trails....



2011 Northeast Motorcycle Expo...

Northeast Motorcycle Expos are Kev-Marv productions you don't want to miss!  If you're in Boston at the end of the month look for my flames!

$2.00 off 1 adult ticket for the 2011 Motorcyles, Midgets, & Mayhem Tour

Salem, NH 14th Annual

January 15-16, 2011

Rockingham Race Track
79 Rockingham Park Blvd
Salem, NH 03079
(603) 898-2311

Hours:
Saturday, January 15 10am-5pm
Sunday, January 16 10am-5pm
Tickets:  Adults $13 and Children $6

Boston, MA 9th Annual

January 29-30, 2011
Seaport World Trade Center
200 Seaport Boulevard
Boston, MA 02210
(617) 385-5000

Hours:
Saturday, January 29 10am-7pm
Sunday, January 30 10am-5pm
Tickets: Adults $15 and Children $7

HaPpY 2011 EvErYoNe!

I've made two resolutions and count my blessings!  How 'bout you?!

...Happy Trails...