Wow – it doesn’t feel like I knit all weekend. I had time to work in the yard, start sewing a blouse, go to a movie with a friend, plus do all the normal weekend catch-up-on-housework stuff (oh, except go to the grocery store; I didn’t do that), yet, I was shocked this morning when I laid the sweater out and looked at how far along it is! The lace pattern is so easy and fast (plus I’m knitting it in the round, so I don’t have to purl the WS rows!).
What I’m doing different from the pattern:
1. Knitting in the round.
2. I won’t be doing the I-cord edging at the hem or cuffs because Shine Sport is a little thicker and more substantial than the yarn originally used for the pattern, and I don’t fancy the idea of having a tube of …

The weather’s been pretty crazy here in the Northwest. It went from the 40s to the 90s in 2 days, so when I finished my Fad Classic vest, it was 96 degrees. Thankfully, I have air conditioning! Today it’s back to cool temperatures and rain though. Normally I would be sad, but it gives me a chance to wear the vest before I have to pack it away for summer. (Summer IS coming, right?)
This was a fairly quick knit, though the stitch pattern did get a bit tedious after a while. It’s supposed to double as a summer top, but it looks horrible on me like that for some reason. As a vest, it’s flattering. I wouldn’t want to wear a wool summer top anyway!
Pattern: Fad Classic by Wendy Bernard
Yarn: Swish Worsted in “Jade”
Needles: Options Nickel Plated, size 6 for body and 4 for edging. …

Whew! Now that it looks better, I’ll show it to you…. When I took the photos of my Apres Surf Hoodie on Monday, I placed the body strategically so you couldn’t see the sides because I was embarrassed by how the sides looked. Early on, I had decided that I didn’t want to deal with increasing and decreasing in pattern while I was knitting in the round, so I started at the hem with an extra 8 stitches in stockinette at each side. These stitches got decreased out to the waist, then increased back in to the bust. And, they looked terrible!
I’m glad the bottom side sections of stockinette are there because I will use them for the steeks for the side vents, but the side stockinette sections at the bust height were just plain ugly. Soooo, I …

Remember my post on color picking last month? Well, I just finished the hat with the colors I chose.

The five colors of Main Line I was considering were Adobo, Harbor, Steel, Cypress, and Oregano. Only 4 would make it into the hat. Ultimately, I eliminated Oregano. Then was the issue of which color would be the main color. At first I went with Steel, but it ended up washing out the other colors, so that I wasn’t getting enough Adobo love, so I ripped it out and changed the main color to Adobo. Here’s a view of the crown:

The pattern is one I made up using a spiraling 1 row stripe technique that I wanted to try from Grumperina’s blog. For Christmas I made my husband a Jayne hat with earflaps at his request (any Firefly fans out …

I finally took a picture, so I can show you my latest lace project – the Myrtle Leaf Shawl from Victorian Lace Today. I am in love with this book, and every time I finish one project from it, I start another. I’m making this shawl nine pattern repeats wide because I prefer wider lace shawls that can wrap around really warmly. There is errata for this pattern, especially the chart, so if you’re making it too, you’ll want to check on that.
I have a trip coming up in a few weeks, so I’m saving this project to be my in-flight entertainment. Besides, I’m supposed to be knitting my Apres Surf Hoodie to wear on the trip, so I need to pick up my needles on that project this weekend.
Pattern: Myrtle Leaf Shawl from Victorian Lace Today
Yarn: Shadow in Campfire, a discontinued color from …

I finally finished my sister’s sweater!

All that seed stitch took forever, but it’s finally done and, thankfully, fits her without any weird gaps or bunching. The pattern is Roam from Knitty, and I really liked the shaping that’s hidden in those long chains of slipped stitches that run up the front (and are on the back, too).

Yarn: Knit Picks Elegance, in Ash
Needles: Nickel Plated Options, US 5
Pattern: Roam, Knitty.com <

I have a confession to make. I play roller derby. I’ve tried not to let it interfere with my work or knitting, but somehow derby seems to sneak into everything I do. My Ravelry ID is cherry lipsmacker because that’s my roller derby name. But I’d managed to resist the urge to knit roller derby inspired projects. Until now.

When Hard Knox announced she was throwing a baby shower for T’Beatcha Senseless, the first girl in our league to retire because she’s having a baby, I knew exactly what I *needed* to knit.
I adapted this pattern from Ravelry for hockey skate baby booties and used Bare Superwash Merino instead of black yarn to make the roller skate equivalent.
In order to make the skate, I had to:
a. learn how to switch between knitting and purling without creating huge holes (AKA yarnovers). Thanks Tina!
b. learn how to …