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Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Knitted Headband Photos





I finally got some decent photos of the headband I knitted for the pattern I designed and mentioned earlier in this blog. This is the first one I knitted. I still have to do photos of the pink and green camo one. But today is almost over and I still have five or six things on my to-do list.

Monday, December 29, 2008

Easy Knit Scarf

I got tired of crocheting at the archery range yesterday and luckily I had a pair of big needles with me so I started crocheting a scarf in steel blue and medium purple Caron yarn. I did it in garter stitch and I got about a foot knitted before it got too cold to knit. That's the thing about Boye aluminum needles; in cold weather they are just like holding two popsicles.

The big needles will make a nice fluffly scarf. It's basically 20 stitches across and knit every row. It's what I call 'mindless knitting', a simple project to pass the time that doesn't have any finicky details or patterns to refer back to. Easy enough to knit in public while carrying on a conversation and watching people go by.
I leave my complicated projects at home for times when I'm alone and can concentrate.

Friday, December 26, 2008

One More Sleeve To Go

So far on my sweater I have the front panel, the back panel and one sleeve finished. Things have been hectic, but it shouldn't take too long to make the last sleeve if I can just find a few hours of uninterrupted time. I've already had to renew the book once, so I'd like to get on with it. I'm thinking of just buying the book from Amazon is it's out in paperback too. We'll see.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Sleeve and Video 51 Things


Today I finished the sleeve for the confetti sweater. I also made a youtube video called 51 things. My knitted headband is on there. Also some items I crocheted.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Confetti Sweater and Book



This is the knitting book I'm doing the sweater from. It's page 95.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Confetti Sweater 5 AM

I woke up before five AM with a tummy ache. Since I needed to sit up for awhile, I started working on my confetti sweater. After about an hour of knitting I felt I could lay down again and get some more sleep. I'm just about ready to put the marker in place for the V-neck.

Friday, December 12, 2008

Confetti Sweater Update

I finished the back panel of the sweater and I am well on the way with the front panel. This should be faster now that I know how the pattern goes. This sweater has no ribbing so I hope I like it. If it comes out I want to make more.

Monday, December 08, 2008

Tags and Blog Labels

I added labels to my blog again so it's easier to search by topic or follow along with a certain project. The tags are listed in the right column at the bottom of the page. That should help you track down the parts of the blog you want to read.

Sunday, December 07, 2008

Sweater Back

I almost have the back section of the sweater finished. This pattern has four parts; the back, the front, and the sleeves. So I'm happy to be almost done with part 1. The front is much the same as the back, only its split in the center to form the neck.

Saturday, December 06, 2008

Multidirectional Scarf

Today I needed a project to take on a day trip, and I grabbed a headwrap I was knitting. Then I grabbed a tote bag to stuff it into and we rushed out the door. I didn't have time to clean out the totebag first and later in the day I went through the bag and found the multidimensional scarf I started a year and a half ago. I worked on it a while hoping I'd remember the technique, but not a chance. So I ripped out the stitches I did today and when I got home I looked the directions up again on the Internet and ultimately found the link on my own blog that led to the directions. So here they are: scarf Now I need to go in the other room and see if I can correct the part I did wrong today.

Thursday, December 04, 2008

Loom knitting

Today I took a break from knitting on needles to knitting on a loom. The knitting is still done one stitch at a time with a hook. It makes a very nice texture. My loom knitting is on a different blog though.Here

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Yellow Sweater cont.


Now that I've got about a foot of stockinette stitch done on my new sweater back, it's a lot stretchier than I thought and there is a chance it might fit me after all. My guage was a bit on the big side and that slight difference could give me just enough extra space to fit me. We shall see. I'll probably add an inch or two to sleeve length as well, because I have longer than average arms.

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

The Cost of Knitting

I've seen some lovely knitted items on Etsy.com and people keep saying they are selling their knitting. But I've never been able to sell a single knitted item on Etsy. My prices reflect the time invested, and I see many other knitters only covering the cost of their supplies. They don't seem to add any wage for their time spent. Not all of them, but some of them. I do know one lady that manages to sell $300 hats. But I just can't see selling a handknit hat for $20.00. And I can't compete with those that do. I know they are trying to compete with Walmart/Kmart prices. Or they live in countries where $1.00 an hour is considered a good wage. It's really a no win situation.

Monday, December 01, 2008

Knitting and Cross Stitch

Yesterday I got over to Michael's and got the embroidery floss 791 I needed to finish the Twilight cross stitch quote. I might design some sort of artsy border to go around it and to add more color.

I also started working on that multicolored sweater and did some more this morning. It's knitting up fast on the number 15 knitting needles. After my recent tedious projects it's nice to see so much progress so quickly. It's been foggy out and there is just something so cheery about knitting with bright colors on a gloomy day.