Alo Alo Alo

Hey! Remember me? A little? Maybe? From way back when I actually kept this thing updated? It's AUGUST! Which, in Chicago, means we should be sweating balls and running the dehumidifiers, but lately it's been incredibly mild ::knock on wood::. All talk seems to be towards fall which makes me want to dive head first into new projects. But first, some of the old ones that finally FINALLY have been completed.

Project 1: Monica from Knitty.

This project was fun to make and pretty easy. Although, I messed up twice because I got cocky and didn't think. I knit it in the round, and if I do that next time, I'll cross out stitch numbers on the pattern and write what it should be before I start knitting. Oh well. This was a present for little Miss Olive. I was afraid that she'd refuse to wear it, but as soon as she got off the wrapping paper she started taking off her dress so that she could put it on! It was awesome. She definitely looks like a little strawberry.

and

If I were guaranteed a smile like this every time I made something for someone, I'd never stop.

Project 2: Child's Placket-Neck Pullover from Last-Minute Hand Knitted Gifts

This sweater took me a ridiculously long time to finish. I started back in January, had technically finished by February and just had to close up the armpits and weave in the ends... months go by... baby is born... um yah I'm still not done. Poor little Cooper is 4 weeks old and he's COLD dang it! I really regret not seaming the armpits closed sooner. After being on stitch holders all that time, some of the stitches got stretched out and I had to try and kind of disperse the yarn again through the rows. I'm going to try and wash and stretch this guy to see if that helps, but there are still some lumpy bits. I would totally do this project again though. For some reason the neck on mine is way longer, I have no idea how that happened. Oh well...

Work in progress: The Aleita Shell from Interweave Knits Spring 2008

This issue has loads and loads of really cute patterns that I'd like to try, but this one stuck out as the one I'd probably wear the most. And it doesn't have sleeves... I'm a slacker. So far, I've messed up once, counted rows incorrectly, and had to rip back three inches. Now I'm putting in safety lines that I can rip back to if I need to. Right now I'm up to the part that separates for the crossover. I really hope this fits!


The color I chose isn't that fun, but I'm going for more practicality here than anything else. Maybe next time I'll choose something more colorful, if this works out that is.

In the queue: The Apres Surf Hoodie from Interweave Knits Summer 2008

This one is going to be a challenge. I've never done lace before, and I'll have to seriously concentrate on my stitches. We'll see how this goes. I love the yarn I chose for this! The last project was kind of ho hum but this is a really fun purple tencel yarn!

You're probably thinking the same thing I am, "Holy crap that is some tiny yarn." I know. I have no idea how I'm going to pull this off. I got special Addi lace turbos needles for this stuff. This is going to be a challenging project me thinks. To top it off, this project is NOT knit in the round. eeeeeeeks! Purling with this stuff does not sound like my idea of a good time. I'm nervous about my skills of converting this project to in-the-round knitting. I don't know if I'm going to do that. We'll see...

Before I get there, I will probably start a pair of hand-warmers for Joe. He's begging me for another longer pair, he even picked out yarn he liked. Since I'm heading to Denver!! YES!! VACAY! this weekend, I think the airport down time and flight will give me some time to crank out another pair for him. Maybe ones with cables... ooooooooo

Note: These pictures never look so great in blogger, so feel free to click on them to see a better enlargement.