FO Monday : Know Your Roman Numerals Socks

I finished these about a week and a half ago, but kept forgetting to post until now.  Partly because I got involved in other things, and partly because it was hard to photograph them successfully.  But anyhow, here you go.

Project:  Know Your Roman Numerals Socks

Pattern:  I made this up and will probably write it up for myself, and for anyone else who may be interested

Yarn:  Puff the Magic Rabbit Superwash Sock in the colorway It's the Great Pumpkin, Mephistopheles

Needles:  US size 1

Modifications:  None, since I made up the pattern

Notes:  This yarn has been in my stash for while.  The dyer is a friend of mine, and sent it to me as a gift a few years back.  I finally decided it was time to knit with it, and though I had one thing in mind, I started fooling around and did something else.

It's a simple and easily memorizable pattern, and I really like the way it all turns out.  I realized not far into the knitting that it would probably show up better on a tonal or solid yarn, but I was on a roll and liked the way it looked, so I carried on.

I am really pleased with the way they turned out.  I call them Know Your Roman Numerals Socks because I regularly see/translate Roman numerals at work (it comes with being a rare book cataloger) and most people I work with have no clue what they are - and as for students, well, forget that!  Anyway, this creates a V-shape, and V = 5 as far as Roman numerals go.  I kept thinking of that while knitting these.

I'm really pleased with them, and love the yarn, both colorwise and how it feels.  Mindy's yarns come in such lovely colorways, and are always so soft!  If you want to try some yarn from an indie dyer new to you, here is her website.

They seem especially appropriate to have knitted during the end of October into November, don't you think? 

On To the Next Thing, Whatever That Might Be

Tomorrow I return to work from my medical leave.  To say I am not looking forward to doing so would be an understatement.  However, it is what it is and I know that I am incredibly lucky to have a job in the first place, and to be well enough to return to said job.  Plus, it will be really good to start getting paid again, since I have not been paid during my medical leave.  In the end, having money to afford to live and pay bills does make a big difference, you know?  ;-)

I am a little disappointed that I had to give up my standing desk, per my dr's instructions.  He said that in a year or so I could go back to it, but by then who knows what will be going on at my workplace, or if I'll even still be there - things are "changing" all the time.  Granted, I would be miserable with a standing desk at least for a while, but the good thing about it was that it made me move around more, and believe it or not, I slept better at night!  Again though, see first paragraph - I'll live ...

In the meantime, I've been trying to get some things done that are low-energy but decent results around the house while I've been home.  I finally got around to sorting through towels and sheets to keep those usable, and organize the linen closet.  That was something I've wanted to do for a long time, and I could do it sitting down.  The end result was a much cleaner-looking and better organized linen closet, and some towels to donate to our local vet and one of the local animal shelters.  Win-win.

I also asked The Tim to get out my sewing machine (it is stowed in the sewing table, but is too heavy for me to currently lift), because there were a few things I wanted to do.  I experimented with making some kitchen tie-towels out of some of our extra kitchen towels.  These days, I don't see them anywhere to buy, and we use ours ALL the time.  I had a teeny bit of success, but have in mind what I want to try next so that (theoretically at least) the results will look more like this:

The two that I completed are usable, but I don't expect them to last long due to some things I failed to take into consideration.  Still, I'm on  my way.  

The item I am most pleased with was something that I had been thinking of trying for a while.  I have had a Nook Simple Touch for a couple of years, and always have used the bubble wrap sleeve that came in the packaging with it to carry it around.

I was always intending to knit a cover for it, like I did for my Nook Tablet, but never ever got around to doing that.  But then I had an idea to sew a pouch for it, that would hold he bubble wrap container as well, so it would still be cushioned.  So I poked around in my fabric stash, and found something I thought would be perfect for it.  Some measuring and sewing, et voila!

I put velcro strips on the inside top seam, to keep it closed, but found this button and thought it gave the whole thing just a little more zip.  I am really happy with the result, though I know that the Sewing Gods and Goddesses were appalled that I didn't press the fabric at any point during the process.  But I was on the third floor, and the iron and ironing board were in the basement, so it just wasn't gonna happen.  And since it was neither an article of clothing nor a gift, I was fine with skipping that step - it's not like it's gonna stay crisp and fresh-looking once I start schlepping it around in my bag anyway!

The sewing machine is now put away, since I knew that I wouldn't get back to it for at least a few weeks, since I'm sure that heading back to work will wear me out.  Since space is not overwhelming in our house, it's better to put the machine away until I use it again.

So the last few days of my time at home have been busy but in a good and relaxing way.  Now it's back to the usual, but different, routine and figuring out the cans and cannots of that.

Never a dull moment, huh?

Have a good week, everyone!

Pieces of 2013, Part Three - The Knitting

Well, this isn't too bad - I'm finishing up with 2013 right near the middle of January 2014 - sooner than I have finished my thank-you notes for Christmas gifts! There wasn't a lot of knitting this past year, and to be honest, I'm not exactly sure why.  I was happy with what I made, I just didn't make too many things!

The final knits of the year were four birthday gifts, and one thing for myself.  I think I mentioned here that I had decided to knit gifts for four of my nieces' birthdays, after seeing a cowl that was knit in a class at Rosie's.  I asked each of them for their favorite colors, and bought the yarn, and was finished in plenty of time for gifting!  (I send the BD gifts with the Christmas gifts, as all four birthdays are around that time as well.)  Here they are, all together, mainly because the photo of them together is so much prettier and more interesting than the photo of each one individually!

Projects:  Favorite Color Birthday Cowls
Pattern:  Drydock Cowl, by Jocelyn Tunney (a free pattern)
Yarn:  O-Wool  Balance Bulky - Boltwoodite (yellow); Rhodonite (pink); Peridot (green); Graphite (gray), nearly one skein for each cowl was needed
Needles:  US13
Modifications:  None
Comments:  This is an easy, interesting knit and the resulting cowl is really lovely.  Balance Bulky is not an expensive yarn, so I was able to make these without breaking the bank.  The pattern is well written, and you can easily complete a cowl during an evening or weekend afternoon.  I recommend it for gifts, especially.

After these were finished and sent off to their respective recipients, I realized that I had no more gift knitting to do!  I have a couple of projects underway, but neither were calling to me over the holiday break.

Last year, I received a gift certificate to Loop for Christmas from a friend, and I had purchased yarn with a specific design in mind. Unfortunately, the yarn and my idea were not destined to be friends, and since I had wound the yarn, it was not able to be returned.  So all year, I kept looking at it, thinking I'd use it for something, sometime.  With the weather turning colder, I thought about something else, and decided to give it a try.  The result?  The Seedy Cowl!

Not only was this the last project I finished in 2013, I did the bind off and weaving in of the ends at 11:20 p.m. on December 31!  It is incredibly soft, and cozy, and was absolutely perfect for the subzero temperatures that hit the next week.  It was completely unplanned, and once I got started, didn't require much thought or attention, and I truly love the result. (More pics on the Ravelry project page.)

Project:  The Seedy Cowl
Pattern:  From my brain
Yarn:  Fibre Company Tundra - Scotia Sea (blue, 2 skeins); Petrel (gray, 1 skein)
Needles:  US10
Comments:  I cast on 150 stitches, joined into a circle, and just knit double moss stitch.  When I ran out of the first skein of blue, I attached the gray, and when that was done, went to the other skein of blue.  By the time I cast off, I had maybe 4 feet of yarn left altogether - bits and pieces from each skein that were not enough to complete a round.  This is quite possibly the cushiest thing I have ever knit or worn, and it can actually be worn as a hood/scarf combination if desired.

And there you have it, the final projects of the year, which brought my grand total for the year to ten knits.  I'll take it!

The Purple Blob

A few months ago, I signed up for a Christmas-themed swap on Ravelry.  I enjoy swaps, probably because I love getting stuff in the mail, and also because I've been fortunate to have never been burned, participating in one.**

One of the rules is that you must knit something for your swap partner, and there was a questionnaire to give you info, hints on favorite colors, etc.  My swap partner said that her favorite color was purple, that she liked bulky knits, and texture.  I decided to knit a hat.  Of course, then every single pattern I looked at called for two skeins of bulky yarn, but seemed to only use a small bit of the second skein.  I couldn't really afford two skeins, so I decided to try my hand at knitting a hat using one skein, and got started.

At first, I was just going to do a knit three rows/purl three rows pattern, but as I started, I decided to change it a little.  After a little more than a week, I had a completed hat, that I thought looked very acceptable.  

In the beginning, it was just The Purple Blob, but it turned out to be the 3-5-7 Hat:

Knit three rows/purl three rows; then knit five rows/purl five rows; then knit seven rows/purl seven rows; repeat until you are afraid you are going to run out of yarn, and then decrease, and bind off.

Add a jaunty tassel on the top, and voila!

I think it turned out pretty well, though it doesn't completely cover the wearer's ears (well, it doesn't cover my ears anyway).  But it is purple, it is bulky, and the knit/purl combs give it texture.  That's what she asked for, if you recall.

Details:

Project:  3-5-7 Hat aka The Purple Blob
Source:  My brain
Yarn:  O-Wool Legacy Bulky; colorway, Cabbage
Needles:  US9
Comments:  As I mentioned, it probably could have been a little bit longer, but I didn't want to run out of yarn.  The Legacy Bulky is a nice yarn, and the pattern I made up was easy enough to do while watching TV and still required attention to remember when to go from knits to purls.  I think I may try a version - maybe in another weight yarn - and keep notes while I knit, so that I can share the information with anyone who is interested (and now I'm sure you'll all be waiting with bated breath, right???).  I am pleased that I was able to translate something from my brain to the needles, which is something that I wouldn't have had a clue how to do even as recently as a few years ago.

Now I need only to mail the package, and hope she likes it.  But even if she doesn't for some reason, I tried, right?

**There was the time I participated in a swap, where one of the things we were supposed to send was some tea.  My partner was in England, so imagine my surprise/dismay when I opened up the package and there was a box of LIPTON tea!

Moving on to This Year ...

Now that I finally showed you the final project of 2012, I think it only makes sense to move on to the current year, don't you?

Granted, I started this one in 2012 ... the Sunday before we left for Ireland (that's October to be specific), with the completely misguided idea that I would be able to finish it before we left (in 5 days?  Really?), or during the trip.  Without saying much more, I think we can all figure out how this idea ended ...

But, I did love the yarn and the pattern I used, and I really wanted to finish it, so once all of the busy and crazy of the holiday season was finished, and I stopped being sick, I buckled down and got it finished.  Of course, only when I blocked it did I realize that I had lost count a couple of times without realizing it, so the eyelet "spine" is crooked.  I was not going to rip it all out and fix things, and to be honest, I was just proud that I finished it and couldn't wait to wear it.

Since it was my Ireland shawl, I gave it the name of the "Ath-Udair Shawl"  Ath-Udair is Gaelic for "next time," and I know I'll take it with me and wear it on our next trip to Ireland ... whenever that may be.

Blocking, when I discovered the "oops!"

This shows the shading and lovely drape better

The details:

Project:  Ath-Udair Shawl

Pattern:  One from my head, but I'm sure the experienced knitters can take a look and see that it's a variation on many themes.  At some point, I'd like to make another one, and write down what I actually did as I do it, in the event that anyone else wants to try it ... and so that hopefully, I can avoid the mistakes.

Yarn:  Laines de Nord Romeo (colorway #215, primary color forest green), 1 skein

Needles:  Size 11US

I truly do love this shawl!  It's a nice size, and very cozy.  I've gotten lots of compliments on it (and one person made a point to ask me if I knew there were mistakes, because there's always at least one, right?), and though the yarn is a bulky weight, the finished shawl is as light as a feather.  I decided I'd knit until I was as close to the end of the ball as possible.  After binding off, I had slightly less than 8 inches of yarn remaining!

Even if I don't make it to Ireland again anytime soon, I did work on this while we were there, so every time I see it or wear it, I think of our trip, and it makes me very  happy.  Which, when you think about it, should be why we knit anyway, right?