Slouching into the New Year.

I started a new pattern on Saturday night. It really was just something to fill the time while watching a Middle School Boy's basketball game. If you have ever watched Middle School Basketball, you won't blame me for needing something interesting to do. But sometimes a last minute, lark turns out to be a great decision. Slouchy('s no Slouch) is a free hat pattern that I found on Ravelry by Lea Kobayashi. (Free is good -- Remember?!) I have been looking at the pattern for the last few weeks and I even saved a PDF of the pattern on my computer. So, of course it was a natural when I needed to make a quick choice.

I have been working the pattern over the last couple of days worth of commuting and have made good progress. At this point I am almost through the 1st of two skeins of the Knit Picks' Wool of the Andes that I had left over from my Avocado Carnaby. As I said then, the stitch definition of this wool is excellent.

The hardest part about the hat so far was knitting the cables -- not actually knitting the cables, it was getting under the seat on the train to pick up the cable needle when I lost control of it going over a bump. The cables were a ton-o-fun to do. I have not done any in a long time -- and these were small and easy. Forming ribbing, they are both lovely and useful. I also like the detailing formed by the SSK and the yarn over. The combo creates an interesting spiral to the ridge of the hat. The hat is topped off with a quick i-cord and a decorative bead.

I am nearly to the point of decreasing for the crown of the hat. The knitting has been so easy that I have yet to grow tired of it. This may end up being a "go-to" favorite for gift making.

Happy Knitting!!

Avocado Carnaby -- Finishing touches

It's done! It's done! I love the drape of blocked wool. It just hangs straight off of your hand all relaxed and happy. There is no fighting with it to lie still or tussling over sides that don't quite match up. Those were my thoughts as I pulled the blocking wires out of the skirt this morning.

 I grabbed the buttons and got to work.  Now, I know most of you have sewn a million buttons on things; so have I in my lifetime. But there is a difference to sewing buttons on to a knitted item as opposed to most woven fabric.

With these buttons, using regular thread would have taken forever, so I split the 4 ply worsted weight yarn I used into two sets of two ply and threaded a small yarn needle.

I then doubled the yarn over and tied a knot at the end. This is really important for an upcoming step.

If you line up the two sides with the button hole on top, you can mark the placement of the button by sticking your needle straight into button hole.

Holding the needle, pull back the buttonhole side and look at the placement of the needle. This is where you want your button to be centered.

One difficulty with sewing into knitted fabric is that there are so many holes! So one of the tricks that I learned many years ago is: When you go up and then down through the button's holes for the first time slip the needle through the loop formed by the two legs of the yarn. This will anchor the end of the yarn with the button itself so that it won't come loose.

It only takes a few passes with the yarn to fill up the big holes in the button. Try sewing on 7 of these with plain thread!

Make sure that the direction of the threads through the button holes all go the same way. It would look really funny if some were horizontal and some were vertical. I don't think it matters which way they go as long as they are consistent.

Happy Knitting!

My current project: The Carnaby

The Carnaby, designed by Nikol Lohr and published in the Fall 2010 online Knitty, is a skirt reminiscent of the prep-school tartan. This skirt is knit along its length in a two panel pattern. One panel is in box stitch, a 2 X 2 checkerboard pattern that lends huge texture and meatiness, the other panel is a short row stocking-stitch forming a long, thin pie wedge. This combination gives the skirt a natural increase from the waist to hip without darts or increase/decrease shaping at a side seam. It also adds a fun and flirty A-line look.

I have lengthened the skirt just slightly to just-above-the-knee length, so that I can wear it to work without worrying about professionalism. The wrap styling is one of the best features of this skirt, but I plan to make only the top two buttons functional and close the remaining ones permanently. This will lesson the number of button holes that I have to make and make the skirt less likely to open at inopportune times. Big, fat, wooden buttons are what I have in mind. I will have to go button shopping closer to the end of my knitting when I get to the button hole row.

The yarn I have chosen is Wool of the Andes by Knit Picks in a beautiful, creamy avocado color. I like this yarn. I used the Wool of the Andes Bulky when I did my Chocolate Diamonds last fall and decided to try it in the worsted weight. I am glad that I did since I am getting the same good stitch definition that I got with the bulky version. The color is great and is a direct result of my love of the fruit, too!

Well, since I would rather be knitting than blogging. . . Happy knitting!!!