Neither Hip Nor Funky

So after that last post, I really thought I was getting back in the bloggie swing of things after sporadic posting for the last few months.  Yup, but things change.

I had an unexpected trip

Then a crazy heat wave that kept me from wanting to photograph knits in the 100 degree weather.

But then again, nothing says summer heat like handspun wool socks. (Well, except for ice cream, lemonade, cold beer, and fresh berries…but after those it is definitely handpsun wool socks.)

Pattern: Basic Toe Up
Yarn: my handspun from pigeonroof studios superwash BFL in Harvest
Needles: US3 Rosewood DPNs

So I had to grab a beer and knit up some more wool handspun:

I’ve had a few weeks now where I just keep going back and forth on things.

One of those times when you make a big decision that you know is right and you are happy about for a few days but then spend the next week mopey and mourning about the other things that you will miss out on due to that same decision.

When you are glad to see a person go and be successful but you will miss them and are anxious for their future at the same time.

When your house is a wreck but you feel at home in it.

When your partner decides to fix a faucet. You are glad that he wants to fix things but also glad he stops after he tries to use a dremel but before he pulls out the torch (and decides to call a plumber). While it may stink to have no water it the house, it is also kind of cute at the same time.

When, although you have cast on for the same project 3 times, yet you still love it.

You may be a little mopey but you have socks.

Although I guess there is even another side to that: the silly mistake on your last socks

Featured Patterns:

Gentleman’s Half Hose in Ringwood Pattern from Knitting Vintage Socks
Knit in Wollemeise Sockenwolle in Kurbis (dark)

Nutkin by Beth LaPensee
Knit in Madeline Tosh Sock in Olivia
One of mine is more biased than the other, due to slight differences in the cuff.

Let move that failed knit down by putting up some pictures of a successful skirt.

Oh, would you like better picture?

How about one that is matchy-matchy with a VW microbus?

Pattern: Barcelona Skirt by Amy Butler, in between M and L
Fabric: Joel Dewberry, Aviary collection

A better view of the layers and fray:

I really enjoyed this pattern. It was so well written. I don’t sew as often as I knit because I get so easily frustrated with sewing, partly because I am not as confident with it and mistakes feel harder to fix. However, I took a sewing class last spring which definitely did increase my confidence and teach me to alter patterns.

I drew new lines for a size in between M and L. After I finished it, I was a bit worried that I should have gone with the L and the skirt might be to small. However, I wore it all afternoon at the Craft Block Party and it was super comfortable and fit well. The skirt just naturally moves up about a half inch from where it was supposed to fit at and then it works fine at this size.

some collaborative embroidery at the party

The only other alteration I made was to follow Whispering Pine’s lead and let the bottom fray also, instead of hemming it. I sewed a\two line of stitches at a half inch and 5/8 inch around the bottom edge.

I love it.

So I don’t really have much many “ughs” in my projects. Normally that is due to a fearless approach to ripping or altering (i.e. underarm inserts) my projects until the point that I am satisfied with them.

Occasionally, however, I make a bad decision to knit a pattern that just isn’t my style. It is no fault of the pattern. It isn’t even that the finished product is unattractive; I may find it quite cute….on someone who is not me.

The last one of these was about two years ago when I Accidentally decided to On Purpose to knit a vest that really wasn’t me under the delusion that I could be as cool as Tori Amos and would looks all alternative and rockstar like instead like …well like me. Looking like me is fine and I rather like it, but it is not looking like a rockstar no matter how many shredded vests I wear.

In this case, I knit the Sullivan Street Bolero from the Purl Bee. Cute pattern, adorable on others. It just really doesn’t fit my style. Especially as I hate things being near my armpits, especially in summer when I hat even wearing sleeves.

So when it went wrong at the end; l didn’t even have the investment to fix it.

My delusion that this knit would work for me carried through to weaving in all the ends.

However, I altered the pattern a bit and then didn’t pick up enough stitches for the edging.

I could fix it, but I still wouldn’t wear it. So the plan is to pick something else I can make with around 600yds of this dk weight yarn (I have a lot still left in the ball). Any suggestions?

So as we were packing for Alaska, I decided that I needed another vest for the chilliness about to ensue. I started one beforehand, and I didn’t quite finish in time to pack it up. Instead, I took it with me and finished the knitting on the ferry up. I then started to wear it right away with my other layers of wool as it was quite cold on the ferry in the evenings.

The bonus of finishing a knit while being touristy is that you can take picture of the finished knit in front of fantastic scenery, and no one will notice if the knit is still lumpy, bumpy, and unblocked.

See, I bet you only notice color and pretty glacial ice.

The trip was wonderful and I visited more ice with the uber cool and friendly Alli from Knitosaurus and her boy Lou. She was a great Juneau tour guide volunteering to show P-funk and I all around. Although we somehow did not end up knitting, we did have a yarn swap.

Me, Alli, and camera shy Oso

I’m in love with glaciers, but we definitely saw much more than that. (You can visit my flickr set if you are interested in more photos.)

And back to business as usual:

I think the color is more accurate in the first photos, but this gives you blocked pictures. I am a firm believer in wet blocking

Pattern: Ms Marigold modified, bust 34.5
Yarn: Yarn Nerd 1200 MHz Buttered Popcorn (yum!)
I got this yarn as part of a swap with Adam and I love it. It is one of his newer bases and the color is amazing. It is not a super soft merino; I think it is best described as soft yet sturdy. Although I can not vouch for the wear yet, it definitely feels like it will not pill as quickly as many merinos.

Needles: Knitpicks US5 and Addi Turbos US4

Mods: A bunch. I used the Ms Marigold as a basic template. I increased for the neck every other row instead of every fourth row. I also did some increases on the back to make sure I would have the same stitch count for front and back. After I connected in the round, I did alternate skeins as I was knitting. I know many people feel this is a pain. However, if you are knitting in the round on a sweater it feels quite natural to just pick up the yarn from the row below when you get to it and continue knitting. The subtly shaded result instead of risking pooling is definitely worth it. (Well, it is worth it for larger knits. I don’t think it is worth it for socks.)