Giddy

yes, I’m giddy about a new yarn. Yes, I’m wondering about my current mental status too. But its great new yarn, and I was able to go to the yarn shop all by myself (I say that with so much pride in my head its strange). It was amazing, it was odd, it took me forever to make up my mind! I conned my SIL into watching my two youngest kids, while the older two where at their Dad’s so I could run away for a few hours and have some me time and run up to Stitch your Art out to hit up their anniversary sale (6 years, congrats!) . It was wonderful, it was awesome, it was really odd to be driving an empty mini van. Kept feeling like I was missing something important.

I came home with 6 balls of Noro chirimen, and an orphan ball of Jo Sharp silkroad aran tweed in a beautiful blackberry color, that’ll make a Christmas gift later, maybe. I’ve been wanting to knit a top down raglan with some kinda striping yarn, and since the chirimen was on sale, and it sounds like it would be great for chilly nights this summer and fall.  I’m calling it Emily Jane. Emily after the character in the trashy romance novel I’m reading and Jane because I think it sounds sweet with Emily (don’t you think so Mom?; )

I’m going to add a shawl collar/edge thing to it, I’ll share my notes when I’m done. I’m hoping I’ll have enough yarn. I think there is some magic way of figuring out how much yarn you need for a project but I have NO idea how its done. Maths elude me, among a great many things. This sweater in progress will be accompanying me to the dentist tomorrow, I’m very apprehensive, there is a lot of work to be done and I’m trying not to over think it. It needs to be done and I need to quit whining and worrying and just go do it.

Anyway, the knitting. I finished two baby sweaters last week for two mom’s who recently had baby boys.

more pictures on flickr starting here

Now, before you think I’m super speedy lil blue sweater (my rav project page)  was started back in May. While I was knitting it, I thought “why don’t I increase up to the larger size? ” The pattern I was using seamless yoked baby sweater is written for sport and I used worsted (Knit picks swish worsted in deep ocean on US size 7’s). And I ran out of yarn with just the sleeves to do so I put it down until I ordered more. The only reason it was picked back up was because I really wanted to finish and gift it before softball was done and over for the season. Since it was for Corra’s one coach and the lady who took over my brownie troup new baby boy. Well, it came out to be about a 2T/3T size, he’ll grow into it sooner or later! The second sweater, the BSJ (my rav progect page) is knit for a friend who just had a baby boy I need to hurry up and mail it before he grows out of it. I used US 5’s and a little less then a skien of STR medium weight in Iolite.

Tonight was Corra’s mother daugheter softball game. It was great fun, more fun than last year. The girls where cheating horribly thanks to their third base coach telling them to steal bases before the ball was pitched. Corra made the All-Star team so softball is going on a little bit longer for us this year. Bryce wanted to play flag football, I’m extremly greatful that it only last a month. Anyway, it was great fun having the softball coaches line up at home plate and letting the girls pelt them with water balloons! mahhahahhaaa.

FO: Difficult Daisy*

I’m having a really hard time coming up with some cute story to tell ya’ll that goes with this top. (which btw that’s a tank that I’m wearing under the knit top.)

but I gots nothin. Ok, probably not nothing I can tell ya that I’m a little peeved that the lace is *right* over my b**bs. My Grandmother would have been thrilled with that, completely thrilled. (so much sarcasm is hard to fit into one small sentence 😉 It’s totally my fault that the lace hits there, I should have put the panel up higher, which I could have done by casting on more stitches. I don’t think it would bother me quite as much if it um, well complemented them more…

The other thing I got, is I bought this basket, with little red handles a few years ago on clearance either at Joann’s or Walmart. (I’m a super sucker for something on clearance.) I thought it would be really cute lined but had no idea how to do it, so it sat and sat and sat in my craft room. A few months ago I was searching through my stash and found an antique red print (a gift from my Auntie Adair a few years ago) and a yellow reproduction print (purchased from a quilt shop, also years ago.) and then a few days ago after realizing that it would look really cute all finished and with my new top I finished it.

really cute, huh? Clicky here for a shot of the inside of the bag.

pattern stats:
7th NaKniSweMoDo
pattern: based on Buttercup by Heidi Kirrmaier
needles US 8 (5.0 mm) US 7 (4.5 mm) for the collar
yarn: 3 skeins Lion Brand Cotton-Ease color Maize
Started May 17 2009
Completed May 24 2009
raveled here.
mods:
*Since I knit this with a heaver weight, I cast on 48sts and divided as follows: 1,8,30,8,1 knit the first row, purl the second start increasing on the third.
* didn’t increase for the gathered back, or for the puffy sleeves.
* sleeves- Row 19- Knit the rest of the row as before, except for the sleeves I increased in the 1 sts after the marker then k2, then kfb of the next sts. (38 sts). When it came time to knit the sleeves I knit them as written except when I picked up my sts from under the arm I had a total of 51sts. My decrease row was k16, (ssk, k1) 3 times, (k2tog k1) 3 times then k17.
* Row 25 knit to the last marker start purling, I did the whole cast on thing like the pattern, however I casted on 20sts to make my total sts for the front be 74. Worked 1 repeats of the lace pattern, then put the sleeves on hold, then worked 3 more pattern repeats before starting the body.
* collar- picked up and knit 96sts, –
* added some shaping right after starting the body. Decreased 2 sts on both sides right under the arm a few times. Knit straight for body, then increased to 127 sts, worked bottom as written.

ya, I guess I didn’t have nothing, nothing.

*named for my own personal tendency to be difficult. No, can’t knit this pattern with DK weight, have to use worsted and make things difficult for myself.

PS.  Our cat had kittens a few days ago, these cute little kittenz keep melting my heart.

#6 Licorice Lime

Honestly, I’m really wondering if this is possible, am I counting right? Licorice Lime is my 6th  NaKniSweMoDo (that I’ve managed to photograph, I’ve finished 2 more, total of 8). Seriously folks with the rate my brain is farting lately I keep double checking my math. Cause my skillz are rusty and right now its kinda hard to count and actually retain what I just did. Yepper’s Licorice Lime is my 6th sweater for NaKniSweMoDo. I’ve had this pattern in my queue for awhile, I don’t know what took me so long.

I’m not sure if its the lack of brain power or what, but I’m feeling kinda blah about this one. I do like it, I just don’t well, LOVE it. The color is starting to grow on me, its not one I would usually pick out for myself. Mike bought this yarn for me years ago at Michael’s in Virginia. Cotton-ease was on sale, and there was a Michael’s near his hotel., and I whined, a.lot. Still, I’ll never forget that conversation with him in Michael’s and me explaining dye lots over the phone. I do like my mods though, I wanted my neckline to be lower, really hate having shirts or sweaters up close on my neck. So I casted on 84sts (28,14,28,14) and left out the eyelets in the collar. Had to decrease one sts on the front so the lace panel would be centered. When I was almost done with the yoke I realized I could have:

1. moved a stitch from the back over to the front by moving the increase markers or done
2. cast on 86 sts and made placed the increase markers as so : 30,13,30,13. and the lace panel would be 19s, plm, 11sts plm 19s.

but like I said, lack of brain power. Complete, oh, duh moment. It doesn’t affect the way the sweater wears, or anything important like that.  Still, its like my brain is a marshmallowy goo. For 3 hours today I seriously thought truancy was a pirate term, not well you know, skipping school.  Yes, seriously. I wish I was kidding (wait, read on to Bryce’s cleats, my brilliance shines on.)

I added short rows to the back neck. First time I’ve done this on a sweater, well that I can remember right now, still not sure if it really made a difference or not. Now, I’m wondering if I didn’t put in enough because it doesn’t seem different really. My other mods, well their kind obvious no lace on the sleeves, no real reason just didn’t want it. Ribbing on the cuffs and waist band instead of the rolled whateveryoucallitIcan’tremember.

stats:
pattern: Licorice Whip by Jenifer Paulousky
needles : US 7 (4.5 mm) for the ribbing and US 8 (5.0 mm) for the rest.
yarn: a little less than 4 balls Lion Brand Cotton-Ease in lime (sorry, don’t feel like getting out the scale)
Started May 8 2009
Completed May 17 2009
knot count- 1 knot found in the first ball. In the third ball when I was looking for the end in the middle of the skein I pull out a 1 yard piece. WTH?
raveled here.

I’ve finished two other sweaters since this one, my difficult daisy and Liesl. Ok but Liesl is done but I still haven’t had a moment to attach her buttons. This has been one crazy week, not to mention the usual twice a week for both baseball and softball games (4 total) that are plaguing me lasting until the 3rd week of June, GS camp is this weekend, this is the last week of school which means teacher’s gifts, there are other things that I just can’t remember now. (wait mental count. Yep, all kids in bed. phew) I haven’t been able to cast on for something new. I’ve been working on my on the go socks and dreaming of a vest for myself out of DIC classy in deep seaflower in a all over waving rib pattern.*sigh* Laundry isn’t that important, is it?

PS. Remember my lack of brain power?  I’m still amazed at how well Bryce played and ran during his baseball game tonight, considering he was wearing one (yes, just one) of his older sister’s cleats. This wasn’t discovered till we where all in the van, leaving the ballfield parking lot Corra looks at Bryce’s cleat’s and says “Bryce, are you wearing my cleats!!??” Bryce looks down at his feet “what?? no! Wait, what?? Hey! I have one of Corra’s cleats on!!” well oops. He had one left and one right one on. Still wondering how I managed this one.
PPS. I’m going to bed, I don’t think I’ll ever catch up on my email.
PPPS. Yes, its amazing. I drive and have reproduced. Scared? I am.