The Knitting Dork

Christmas knitting didn’t actually get completed until after Christmas. I did a pair of socks and another Redskins hat for a couple of people at work. After the Christmas knitting was done, I needed something for myself, and fast. Lacy Baktus fit the bill for a hank of Sundara I received from a friend. So here’s details.

This is the second set of Monkey socks I’ve done. This is Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock in colorway Iris Garden.

Redskins Hat # 3 really doesn’t need any explanation and probably doesn’t even REALLY need a picture but here it is anyway.

Lacy Baktus was done with one hank of Sundara Sock in colorway “Smiles to Share” (whatever that means). I love the color. It was a quick and easy knit, just what I needed for after Christmas knitting. I worked on size 3 needles and it blocked to about 61″.

Well I see I haven’t posted since I finished Mandala. It’s hard enough for me to post things on Ravelry and I’m having a hard time keeping up with this, too. I have a few finished items so let me just get into it.

I decided to do Christmas presents for Adam’s family this year using only yarn I had in my stash. I did end up buying one thing of Lamb’s Pride Worsted (color Bing Cherry), but since it went towards two hats it means I spent a grand total of $8 for all the gifts for his family.

I did a pair of Redskins hats for his brother and sister-in-law, since they are fans. I didn’t really use a pattern, I mean, it’s just a hat. Lamb’s Pride Worsted in Bing Cherry and Sunburst Gold. I already had the gold in my stash. Size 7 needles.

I made a hat and scarf for his dad. The yarn is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Mist. The scarf took four balls and the hat took one. Size 7 needles. Again, no pattern, it’s just seed stitch!

Next up is a hat I made for his other brother. This is the Marsan Watchcap, which I have made before, for Adam. I used Lamb’s Pride Worsted in Aubergine (M-185) and size 7 needles.

Finally, a pair of socks I made for his mom. The pattern is Queen of Cups by Nathania Apple from Knitty, Spring 2007. I really like this pattern and plan to make these again for myself (eventually). I used Cascade Yarns Heritage in color 5609, which I am calling Chocolate Brown.

In September I finished my first two-color knitting, the Endpaper Mitts by Eunny Yang. I am still not sure how I feel about this type of knitting, but the result is really lovely. The multi-colored yarn I used is Koigu (KPPPM) color 105d, which I have named Way Too Many Colors. The beige is Louet Gems Fingering Weight in Champagne (101). I used about 77 yards of the Koigu and 122 yards of the Louet and did the smallest size. I used size 2.5 US (3.0mm) on the ribbing and 1 US (2.25mm) on the main body of the mitts.

After I was nearly done with the second mitt, I realized I had done one extra repeat in the ‘arm’ part. I decided for the sake of my sanity I would not rip it, so one mitt is longer than the other. When I am wearing them you can’t see it since usually my sleeves cover the cuff anyway.

I did a regular rib on the cuff but at the ends of the fingers I did a twisted rib because I thought it looked nicer. This was my first time doing a tubular cast-on and kitchener bind-off. It’s very pretty and very stretchy. (Yes, I’ve done kitchener on sock toes but a bind-off is a bit different.)

Thank you so much to Lisa for taking these pictures for me.

Before the pictures, the details.
Yarn: Chewy Spaghetti Capellini in color Lucky, purchased at Maryland Sheep and Wool in 2008. I used about 131 grams, so just slightly over two hanks. I actually used nearly 1/4 of the second hank because a winding mishap with the first hank caused me to waste some yarn. The yarn was nice to work with, and the finished fabric feels soft against the skin.

Pattern: Mandala (Ravelry link, Goddess Knits link)
As many people know, this shawl was a “choose your own adventure” pattern. There are four sections to the shawl, and each section has an option of four patterns. I chose the following:
Section 1: Chart C
Section 2: Chart A
Section 3: Chart B
Section 4: Chart B

Needles: I used my Knit Picks Harmony needles for this. I started off using size four needles. After I put the shawl in time-out, I reclaimed the needles for another project. I then thought I put the same size needle back on the project when I resumed, but learnd after I finished that most of the last half of the shawl was worked on size 5. I AM A GENIUS!

The finished shawl measures just over 61″. I wondered why my gauge seemed different in the later parts of the shawl, but now I see that it was a user error on my part. It looks good, though, and I tell you what, I am not about to rip it out and do a ‘do over’.

Okay enough yammering, here are the pictures.