The Ravelympics is here! I took this opportunity to take a break from sweater knitting and pop my shawl cherry with Clapotis (I know, I know, everyone and their grandma have done it already). I’m still doing the increases and will have to speed up a little if I want to do something else before the Ravelympics ends. I’m thinking about doing the WIP and Unwind events too.

My Clapotis is a complete Curly McCurly at this point but I think it will be fixed when I start dropping stitches. Wheeeeee.

Anyone else taking part?

My project on Ravelry

• Clapotis

And now for FO number 2 of 2010 and IntSweMoDo2010!

Pattern: Mondo Cable Cardi

Size: 34 (2″ positive ease)

Yarn: 4.5 x Lion Brand Cotton-Ease in Charcoal (152)

Needle: 3.25mm (collar), 3.75mm (ribbing), 4.0mm

Modifications: I knit the body from shoulder to hem for about 19.5″ instead of 21″.

Pattern is clear and well-written. The collar is genius. GENIUS. I did have problems with the instructions at first. The trick is to just do it. Seriously.

I didn’t put the buttons and snaps on the cardi because I’m not going to wear it buttoned up to the neck. Too feckin’ hot.

The cables look pretty damn amazing in Cotton-Ease. The cardi is a little stiff due to knitting at a slightly smaller than recommended gauge for the yarn but I can live with it.

I think this will make a pretty comfy cardi for the freezing office. Also, I so need to learn to pose better. There goes my shot at being a suuupaaamodel.

My project on Ravelry

• Mondo Cable Cardi

First FO of 2010 and first FO for IntSweMoDo2010!

Pattern: Buttercup

Size: XS

Yarn: 4.5 x Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy in Green Sage (021)

Needle: 3.5mm

Modifications: I’m short so I didn’t knit to 38cm for the body; I stopped at about 33cm.

This one isn’t really a modification but I didn’t cast on separately with new yarn for joining in the round. What I did: after knitting to 4th marker and purling to end, turn work around (wrong side facing) and cast on using cable cast-on. Turn work around (right side facing) and purl to Marker A. Begin knitting in rounds.

Picked up total of 8 underarm stitches instead of 4 and decreased to 4 on next round to eliminate holes. Unfortunately, there were still holes and I had to sew them up after finishing.

After picking up for neck edging, I attached edging to lace panel as I knitted by doing a k2tog with last stitch from edging and one stitch from lace panel cast-on edge. Anything to lessen the amount of sewing needed…

I love the fit of the top but I’m not crazy about the sleeves. I think due to my narrow shoulders, the sleeves seem somewhat droopy.

The pattern is clear and well-written.

Hempathy wasn’t easy to work with but the fabric had a nice drape and was soft and cool after a wash. Perfect for the tropical weather. However, the ends kept sticking out through the front. I think I’ll tack them down with some needle and thread.

God, I need a haircut.

My project on Ravelry

• Buttercup

I doubt I can finish another project by the last day of the year, which is tomorrow, so I’m going to do my review now.

At the beginning of the year, I told myself I’ll try to complete at least one project a month, and I did i.e. I finished more than 12 projects. I only blogged about 9 of them but I had a few scarves and hats done that I didn’t photograph before giving them away.

Looking at all the projects I’ve finished this year, it’s amazing that only one of them was for me. Everything else was either a gift or donated to charity.

List of completed projects in 2009:

1. Little Button Loafers (2-button)
2. Little Button Loafers (1-button)
3. Child’s Self-striping Hat
4. Who?
5. Rachel Lacy Rib Hat
6. One Row Handspun Scarf
7. Annette
8. Scrappy Lengthwise Scarf
9. One Row Handspun Scarf

I’m actively working on 3 projects at the moment and I’m happy to report they’re almost near completion.

Mondo Cable Cardi. I’ve actually done a lot more than shown in the pic. Second sleeve is almost completed. Collar and buttons left.

Buttercup. Few more rows on the body, neckline and sleeves to go.

February Lady Sweater. Started on first sleeve and buttons left to be sewn.

I have other projects on the needle that are due to be frogged because I know they won’t fit. Most of them will be reknitted for better fit.

My next post will most likely be in the new year so let me wish all you crafters out there a very happy new year in advance!

The pattern is bloody fantastic for a quick gift which is just what I need as this scarf is supposed to be a gift. Knit in a worsted weight, it certainly went a lot faster than my first One Row Handspun Scarf which was done in DK weight.

Pattern: One Row Handspun Scarf

Size: ~ 70″ x 4.5″

Yarn: 1 x Malabrigo Yarn Merino Worsted in Fucsia

Needle: 5.0mm

I cast on only 22 stitches for a narrower scarf and slipped the first stitch purlwise with yarn in front for a neat edge.

They’re not kidding when they say Malabrigo grows. The scarf was about 59″ x 4.5″ pre-blocked. After giving it a soak and laying it out to dry flat, the scarf was about 70″ x 4.5″. While I certainly like the extra length, I prefer the thick squishiness of the pre-blocked scarf.

I also have this problem with the cast-on and bind-off edges being wider than the rest of the scarf (happens with most scarves I knit). How do you remedy this?

My project on Ravelry

• One Row Handspun Scarf

Wow. Looks like I haven’t posted in forever. I lost my knitting mojo for a while but I’m now slowly getting it back. I love knitting but living in a tropical country where I’ll never get to wear beautiful hand-knit wool sweaters gets a bit discouraging some time. Most of the time, I’ll just substitute with plant-based yarn but we all know that doesn’t work all the time and it’s just not the same.

Right. Enough with the woe cake and on to the FO. Again, this is a scarf I knitted for charity. Like the One Row Handspun Scarf, it’s wonderful mindless commute knitting but it doesn’t go as fast.

Pattern: Scrappy Lengthwise Scarf

Size: ~ 60″ x 5.75″

Yarn: Slightly less than 1 x Spotlight Basics 8 Ply Acrylic

Needle: 5.0mm

The original pattern has the scarf knitted lengthwise. That wasn’t very portable for me so I knitted it widthwise. I cast on 30 stitches and just knitted till the yarn ran out.

Anyone who’s interested in knitting this pattern should take note to use a needle size larger than the one normally used for the yarn.

I really like the woven look of this pattern. Must knit one for myself!

My project on Ravelry

• Scrappy Lengthwise Scarf

This has been completed for a while but I only just got around to photographing it.

Pattern: Annette

Size: S (knit at smaller gauge to give about 32″ size)

Yarn: slightly less than 5 x Knit Picks Shine Sport in Orchid

Needle: 4.0mm

Modifications: Started with 4 rows of seed stitch instead of 2. Did the same for sleeves. I also lengthened the body to 14″ by adding another buttonhole.

I knitted this cardigan twice! I started off knitting the XS thinking I was on gauge. Well, turns out my gauge was smaller and the cardigan was a little too small. Frogged it and knitted the S size instead. My smaller gauge meant that the cardigan came out to about 32″ instead of 34.25″.

The underarms were a bit too fitted for my liking. I can only wear sleeveless tops with this. I wish I’ve lengthened the sleeves.

Overall, this was a pretty simple lace pattern. Some people did have trouble keeping track of the lace but I didn’t have any problems.

Shine Sport is really comfortable to wear in hot and humid Singapore. I didn’t experience any significant shrinkage or growth after putting the cardigan through the wash once. However, it did lose some of its lustre and looked a little worn. There was also some fuzz when knitting with the yarn which tickled my nose.

My project on Ravelry

• Annette
  

I started this scarf for the charity knitting thread in Rubberneckers. The 4-stitch pattern’s perfect for mindless commute knitting. I can just put it down and pick it up again any time with no fear of losing my place in the pattern.

Pattern: One Row Handspun Scarf

Size: ~ 60″ x 6″

Yarn: 1 x Spotlight Basics 8 Ply Acrylic

Needle: 4.0mm

I cast on 34 stitches and just knit till the yarn ran out. I slipped the first stitch of every row purlwise with yarn in back for a neat edge.

Black yarn is a bitch to photograph!

My project on Ravelry

• One Row Handspun Scarf
  

This is Annette from Knitty Summer 2009. It’s almost complete. I just need to sew on the buttons and weave in ends and I’m done! Couldn’t resist taking a few pictures first though.

Annnd I’ve begun swatching for my next project! The yarn is Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy and it came out pretty soft after throwing it into the washing machine.

My Project on Ravelry

• Annette

I spend a lot of time on Ravelry and most of it is with the Rubberneckers. They’re a hilarious bunch of hoars. I knit three hats for Sharky’s charity knitting thingy on RnR and I apologise for being two seasons late.

I don’t have a small child to pose with the knits so my lamp will have to do. She has ambitions of catwalk modelling so I’m sure she’s secretly pleased at this opportunity.

Rachel Lacy Rib Hat

Pattern: Rachel Lacy Rib Hat

Size: Smaller one (CO 80)

Yarn: Slightly less than 1 x Spotlight Basics Delight

Needles: 4mm

This is my first time doing a picot edging and although it’s pretty, it’s a bloody pain in the arse.

I believe there’s an error in the crown decreases in the pattern. This is what I did:

Row 3: *skp, k1,p, k2tog, yo, p repeat from * to end

There is also no stitch count for the crown decreases for the smaller size so I’ve provided them here:

Row 1: … (63 st)
Row 3: … (54 st)
Row 5: … (36 st)
Row 7: … (18 st)
Row 9: … (9 st)

Child’s Self-striping Hat

Pattern: Child’s Self-striping Hat

Size: CO 104

Yarn: Not very sure but I think it’s less than half x Lion Brand Magic Stripes

Needles: 4mm

Easy and straightforward pattern. Plus, designer included different cast-on numbers for different gauges.

Who?

Pattern: Who?

Size: Infant

Yarn: 1 x Spotlight Basics Delight

Needles: 4mm

This is my favourite hat pattern out of the three. The owls are adorable! I need to make one for myself!

My Projects on Ravelry

• Rachel Lacy Rib Hat
• Child’s Self-striping Hat
• Who?

Yet another new home for the blog! I doubt I’ll be moving again anytime soon. The new URL is http://liscrafts.com and the RSS feed is http://feeds.feedburner.com/liscrafts. Please update your bookmarks and feed readers.

Some things on the blog may still be broken so please let me know if you find any. This blog is still very much a work-in-progress so please bear with it more for the next few weeks. You may also see old posts pop up in your feed, sorry about that. You can opt to ignore updated items if your feed reader has that function.

On to the knitting! I got my copy of Breeze last week and I loooove it. I think it’s much, much better than Nectar. Certainly a lot more patterns I want to knit.

I’ve been eyeing Blithe even before Breeze came out so when I received the book, I cast on right away! So far, I’m really enjoying knitting with skinny cotton on teeny needles.

My Project on Ravelry

• Blithe
  

I didn’t finish that many projects in 2008 so I told myself that I’ll try to complete at least one a month in 2009. A great way to fit in more knitting or crocheting time is to do so on my daily commute. The cardigan I’m currently working on is a little too bulky to lug around so I started a sock last night. This is the Nine-to-Five socks.

Ever since starting my cardigan sleeves on two circulars, I’ve been warming to the idea of knitting my socks on them too. However, I don’t have any 2mm circs (what I normally use for socks) at the moment and I don’t really want to buy crappy ones just to knit this pair of socks. It’s a big production to order from Knit Picks since I’ve to do so via a third party shipper so I’ll just have to wait a while more before getting those circs. In the meantime, I’ll stick to DPNs.

Another sorta resolution I’ve made this year is to try to whittle down my stash before buying more. I don’t have a ginormous stash but it’s still quite a sizable one. Hell, just Rowan All Seasons Cotton alone I already have 80 balls. I really do love the stuff though and I only buy the colours that’ve been discontinued. I just can’t bring myself to pay full price for them especially since I like to use them so much. If only we have Cotton Ease here at really low prices.

So what knitting or crocheting related resolutions have you made this year?

My Project on Ravelry

• Nine-to-Five Socks

I had already finished the body and had started on the sleeves when I realised I had totally messed up the bottom of the body. I think I missed a row and switched the RS and WS so the border looked kind of funky. Gonna rip back and may add another inch or two at the same time.

I’m doing the sleeves on 2 circulars. I tried it previously when I was learning the Turkish cast-on and was delighted to find that I had barely no ladders when I used 2 circulars. I’m fine with slight laddering when knitting socks on DPNs but I had some fairly obvious ones when I was knitting the sleeves on my Gathered Cardi (not too obvious in the picture, I think) and that kind of suck some mighty bollocks.  Although I do find using 2 circulars kind of fiddly, I’m hoping it will eliminate the ladders on this cardigan. I should probably also learn magic loop so I don’t have to have doubles of every needle size.

Happy 2009 ahead, everyone. Here’s to a more knitty and crochety (not crotchety!) new year!

My Project on Ravelry

• Short-Sleeved Cardigan with Ribbing

Just need to tack the cuffs down and I’m done! Everyone enjoying the holiday season?

The cool weather has made me want to knit more cardigans and so I’ve started on the Short-Sleeved Cardigan with Ribbing from Fitted Knits. Mine’s going to have long sleeves instead.

My Projects on Ravelry

• Gathered Cardi
• Short-Sleeved Cardigan with Ribbing

I frogged my Cookie Cardigan (Liesl) and used the yarn for another cardigan pattern instead. The funny thing was I initially bought a bamboo/cotton blend for this pattern but the yarn turned out to be too drapey. I decided to switch yarn and will be using the bamboo/cotton blend for Liesl instead. The drapeyness will probably work better for a lacy pattern.

This cardigan is working up really fast with the endless stockinette. It’s perfect for mindless telly knitting. Not a big fan of the seed stitch though.

My Project on Ravelry

• Gathered Cardi

I haven’t had much time for knitting lately. After concentrating on my Butterscotch Cardigan last month, I decided it’s time to start a new knitting project (even though I still have some unfinished ones lying around!). I chose a simple top down pattern – Sassymetrical – this time round. I know it looks like a lump of crap at the moment…

Speaking of my Butterscotch Cardigan, I’ve completed the crocheting, seaming and have even woven in more than half the ends. I’ve yet to sew on the buttons though. It should be completed soon. I hope.

My Projects on Ravelry

• Butterscotch Cardigan
• Sassymetrical

I did it! This is my Ravelympics project for Team Rubberneckers.

Pattern: Rusted Root

Size: XS (28″ – 32″)

Yarn: 4 x Knit Picks Cotlin in Moroccan Red

Needles: 4.5mm for body, 4mm for ribbing

Modifications:

1) Added hip increases.
2) Picked up additional 6 stitches on each sleeve to close the underarm gap, knit 2 rounds of stockinette before starting on ribbing.
3) Used EZ sewn bind-off on all the ribbing.

Pattern Comments:
Pattern was relatively simple and straightforward.

BUT.

No schematics. Theoretically speaking, I usually zoom in on the smallest size but I like to see the bust, waist and hip measurements and there were none in this pattern. I know this is a top down pattern and it’s easy to adjust as you knit but I’ll still like to see some schematics.

Pattern could also do with more stitch counts especially after the increase/decrease sections. I ended up doing my own calculations to make sure I was on the right track.

No chart for lace panel, plus sl1-k1-psso (skp) was written as sl1, k1, psso which confused me for a bit because it looked like 3 separate steps.

The pattern asked for 24″ circular needles. What the pattern didn’t state was that the neckline, when joined in the round, was less than 24″ so you could either stretch the crap out of the stitches or magic loop it. I ended up stretching the crap out of the stitches.

Yarn Comments:
When knitting with the Cotlin, the yarn fuzz was incredible. By incredible, I meant in a “some gigantic red animal just shed a shit load of fur in my room” kind of way. My nose wouldn’t stop twitching. Washing did remove most of it but I suspect it’ll take a few washes before it’s completely gone.

Also, I do not like Cotlin knit at this gauge (20 st st/4″). If I do this pattern again in the same yarn, I’ll go for a smaller gauge and knit a bigger size.

On the whole, it’s a cute top but I’m not sure I like it on me. My mum wants one though.

Edit: 2008 is turned into the Year of the Red!

Edit Strikes Back: Woohoo my Ravelympics medal!

Can Lis finish this before the end of the Olympics? Stay tuned to find out!

So what’s the cure for crochet frustration? Yep, you got it. A spanking new knit project. Just before the Ravelympics no less. That’s right, I like living life on the edge.

This project has been hibernating for more than half a year since I first started it in October last year. I stopped mainly because I had 2 skeins of the yarn in the same dye lot which should give me a pair of normal length socks and I didn’t want to knit 2 pairs of ankle socks instead. So I frogged and bought another skein instead. Is this making sense?

Pattern: Breeze

Size: Ladies Small (US Shoe Size 5/6) (see notes below)

Yarn: 1 x Knit Picks Risata in Burgundy

Needles: 2.00mm

I have skinny ankles so I had to go down in needle size to get the socks to fit snugly round my ankles. However, this meant my gauge changed totally so instead of knitting the size S, I ended up knitting size M to fit. Also, I have no idea why the pattern says to break yarn before starting on the heel flap. I didn’t do it, of course. Other than that, I didn’t change anything. Incidentally, it’s only when I’m writing this post that I noticed the Ravelry page for this pattern stated there’s errata which can be found here. Oh well.

I thought I’ll really like the yarn because it has cotton but it’s still a little prickly for me which is probably due to the wool.

I finished knitting the socks with less than 4 yards of the yarn left so I think those with bigger feet may require more than 1 skein if you intend to use Risata. I may also be talking out of my arse.

When I first knit the sock back in October, I had giant holes on both sides of the sock after picking up stitches for the gusset. I’ve finally eliminated the problem this time round by picking up the bar between the heel flap and the ribbing. Yes! I looove the look of the heel flap (please excuse my unmoisturised reptilian legs).

This is a fun and addictive pattern. I mean, you keep telling yourself “hmm, I’ll stop after the next round” just to see the lace pattern forming and before you know it, you’ve finished the sock.

And yes, I’m aware I knit too much red stuff.