Crochet FO: Dead Simple Coasters

Or: I need a housewarming gift ASAP!

My friend Bex had a housewarming party about a month ago. When I realized I needed to come up with a housewarming gift, Kirsten Kapur saved me with her adorable crochet coasters. I raided my Sugar’n Cream Stash and came up with these cuties.

Pattern: Round Coasters (based on Kirsten Kapur’s basic pattern)

Source: Through the Loops!

Yarn: Random Sugar’n Cream from the stash

Hook: H hook

Notes: Bex is a huge fan of kitschy retro stuff, so I had a lot of fun picking out the color combos. Since I was running out of time, I stuck with the same two color themes. Otherwise I would have gone crazy!

Where I’ve crossed over to the Dark Side

AKA crochet!

In February and March of this year, I took a 6 week Crochet I class at WEBS. It was such a great class, mostly because crochet-guru Sara is such a fantastic teacher! I tried many times to teach myself to crochet using books, the interwebs, etc, but it never clicked. Sara’s brilliant because she teaches the basic single crochet stitch first, and then goes back and teaches you how to chain and crochet into the chain. I think that’s the hardest roadblock when you are trying to teach yourself, kind of like trying to knit into your CO row the first time. Anyways, the class was a great help and I can definitely crochet now! It’s so much fun, I highly recommend it.

We made several kitchen accessories as our class projects and they were a huge help in reinforcing what we learned the week before.

Sampler Dishtowel -

Blue Stripe = Single Crochet

Tan Stripe = Half-Double Crochet

Green Stripe = Double Crochet

Magic Double-Thick Potholder

Round Double-Thick Potholder

Granny Square Potholder

All projects used Reynolds Saucy and a G hook.

More crochet to come, I assure you…

FO: Last-Minute Ravelympics Hat of Awesome (aka Quincy)

Remember waaay back when, when everyone talking and knitting their way through the Ravelympics? Yeah, me too, even though it’s a fuzzy blur of Silky Merino, evenly spaced YOs, and Bob Costas. (OT: How gorgeous are those new Silky colors? Seriously.)

It’s no secret I failed on the Vine Bolero, but I managed to whip out my new favorite hat in the last remaining days of the Vancouver Olympics.

Pattern: Quincy (Ravelry pattern link)

Source: Brooklyn Tweed – Made in Brooklyn pattern collection (my own signed edition!)

Yarn: Malabrigo Twist in Grapes

Needles: US 10 & US 10 1/2 DPNs

Mods: None. This yarn is the softest, squishiest wool I have ever touched. Seriously. I want a swimming pool’s quantity of it. The being said, I’m not sure how much a sweater made with Twist would pill. I’m waiting to see what people’s experiences are first before I buy a sweater quantity.

This hat has the most interesting construction so it definitely isn’t boring! First, you start off making a garter stitch scarf with i-cord edges. Then you graft the edges together, after twisting the fabric.

Using the DPNs, you picks up stitches around the edge to create the crown of the hat.

It’s worth mentioning that this hat did not want to be photographed. The night before I was planning to take pictures, I left it at the yummy Italian restaurant near our house. After rescuing it and taking pictures in the freezing March dreariness, I realized I was wearing the hat inside-out. Oops! These are no excuses as to why it took me over a month to post this FO. Sigh.

Coming up: I cross over to the dark side… crochet!

FO: Kiila Sockdown Socks

Pattern: Kiila (Ravelry pattern link)

Source: Ravelry Pattern Store – I got it free by participating in Ravelry’s SKA group’s May Mystery Sock KAL

Yarn: Pagewood Farms Alyeska in Misty

Needles: US 1 1/2 40″ circs

Mods: My first attempt at TAAT toe-up socks! I didn’t knit the cuffs as long as the pattern called for since I was pretty sick of knitting k tbl rib.

This was a completely spontaneous project for me. I had just discovered the Sock Knitters’ Anonymous group on Ravelry and their May Sockdown challenge had just started. I had just order the skein of Alyeska and it was taunting me by sitting on my desk, so I grabbed my needles and casted on! I love the colors of the socks and how they didn’t pool too terribly. The cable details are a little lost in the dark yarn, and there’s some laddering along the cable edges, but I still like the way they came out!

FO: Super Secret Wedding Project

Holy crap guys! It’s been almost two months since I’ve posted? Yikes. Sorry about that!

The good thing is that I’ve really, truly been knitting up a storm. I have four or five WIPs right now, and actually they’re driving me crazy. I just want to finish them so that I can start new things. My immediate queue just keeps getting longer and longer… I ended up joining the WIPs Wrestlemania 2009 group on Ravelry in an attempt to finish up current projects. I’m not letting myself cast anything new in July. Oh, except my July SKA Sockdown project. Yup, another Ravely group! This one’s my new favorite, so addictive and sock-inspiring.

What’s that subject heading say? I actually finished the Super Secret Wedding Project? Yes, I did!!

Pattern: Estonian Garden Wrap (Ravelry pattern link)

Source: Fiber Trends – Evelyn Clark

Yarn: JaggerSpun Zephyr Wool-Silk 2/18 in White

Needles: US 5 circular needle (my first Addi Turbos!)

Mods: None

Notes: Dear lord, this project was a serious undertaking for me. A year and a half later, it’s finally completed. When I first started, I actually got through a good fourth of the wrap and then didn’t work on it for awhile. I couldn’t figure out where I left off and had to frog it. I feel really confident about my lace skills now, nupps and all! Dorothy was thrilled, even if the wedding was 15 months earlier.

Dorothy, the Beautiful Blushing Mysterious Bride!

Heads up, I actually finished another project today, so hopefully it won’t be another two months before you hear from me again!

FO: Icy Icing Swirl Hat

Yes, I’m still chugging along with the three never-ending projects, but progress is definitely being made so I can’t complain. A couple of weeks ago, however, I had an urge to cast-on for something new. I had two skeins of Plymouth Baby Alpaca Worsted I picked up at the WEBS annual sale. It seemed like the perfect yarn to make a floppy beret, so I searched around and found Ysolda’s pattern in Whimsical Little Knits. (An awesome pattern collection, BTW, and I’m not alone in thinking so, since Ishbels are popping up all over the place!)

Pattern: Icing Swirl Hat (Ravelry pattern link)

Source: Ysolda

Yarn: Plymouth Baby Alpaca Worsted in 6074 (Icy Blue)

Needles: US 10 1/2 DPNs and 16″ circ

Mods: Held the yarn double to create bulky weight. I was really afraid I was going to run out, so I may have skipped a row or two. I just made it with the two skeins. I need to block it eventually, but it’s not a huge deal.

Notes: It seems silly making a beret right at the beginning of spring, but I’ve been able to wear it a couple of times before work on chilly mornings. This is a great hat pattern, so quick!

FO Catch-Up – Monkey Socks

I don’t really have much to say about these socks except that I really adore the yarn. It was a last minute purchase, I added it to my cart for free shipping, but I’m really glad I did. It’s so *shiny*! The color is beautiful too.

Those darn Monkey socks are so popular that I had to see what all the hype was all about. Visually interesting? Check! Easily memorized? Check! Fast pattern? Check!

Pattern: Monkey Socks (Ravelry pattern link)

Source: Knitty

Yarn: Pagewood Farms Yukon sock yarn in Turquoise

Needles: US 2 DPNs

Mods: None

Notes: The heel flaps are HUGE on these, so they don’t fit so well. I wish I had gone with my gut feeling at the time, but I’ll know for next time. There will be a next time!

FO Catch-Up – BR Knockoff Hats

A month ago, my aunt turned 50 and she definitely deserved something handknit. I considered some thick and cozy house socks, but I just knew something like that would take forever. 

Pattern: Banana Republic Hat Knockoff (Ravelry Project link)

Source: Craftster

Yarn: 2 skeins of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Superchunky in Olive

Needles: US 8 circular, US 10 1/2 DPNs

Mods: I held the yarn double for the band since I originally thought the yarn wasn’t chunky enough. I also added a couple of rows before starting the crown decreases, this hat is short otherwise.

Notes: Cute hat, everyone loves the button detail!

My aunt had complimented my own BR hat so much that she needed her own. The Cashmerino is so much softer than my own hat, I’m kind of jealous. Oh wait, I never posted my own hat, huh?

The specs are the same as above, but I used Wool-Ease Thick ‘n’ Quick. It’s a warm hat, just a bit scratchy. My big white scarf is also Thick ‘n’ Quick and it’s started to pill something fierce this winter. Methinks I’m going to have to think about a new scarf and hat set for next winter…

 

I'm a goof with an unfinished hat!

FO Catch-Up – Malabrigo Axel Mitts

I promised to showcase some of my latest FOs, since I’ve been so focused on finishing that damn sweater. The first up is a pair of fingerless gloves I made with my first Malabrigo Club shipment. They’re soft and cozy, although I’m still getting used to typing with them.

 

Pattern: Axel Mitts

Source: Blue Garter

Yarn: 1 skein of Malabrigo Chunky in Brisa 

Needles: US 8 DPNs

Mods: I used the definition of RT and LT from Barbara Walker rather than the ones given in the pattern.

Notes: Quick and easy! It took less than a skein for these.

I’m still trying to figure out what to make with the second skein. I’m leaning towards a Foliage cap, but I don’t have any plans to cast-on anytime soon.

Six days later, it’s *actually* finished!

So I totally underestimated the time it would take me to pick up the stitches around each sleeve and knit 12 rows of seed stitch. I’m officially down with seed stitch for awhile! It doesn’t matter now because I’m DONE!

I sewed on the sleeve tabs, the buttons, and wove in the final strands just now. Not bad for my first sweater, right?

Overall, I’m very happy with it. Well, mostly I’m just happy that it fits! I’ll be honest, I never swatched for the sweater, I completely forgot! By the time I realized it, I could measure gauge from the actual sweater and I was close enough. The only thing is that I can’t button the sweater, but I don’t usually button my cardigans so it’s okay. Plus, I think the button alignment is a little off, but I’m not too worried.

 

Pattern: Flutter Sleeve Cardigan

Source: Interweave Knits Spring 2008

Yarn: 9 skeins of Valley Yarns Longmeadow in Willow (color 09) 

Needles: US 3, 6, and 7

Mods: None

Notes: My first sweater! I learned invisible seaming on this sweater.

I literally have a bunch of other little FOs to show off, so hopefully I’ll be posting a little more lately. Stay tuned!

Oh, and I won a book from Wendy today! I’m pretty excited since I’ve never won a blog contest before. She linked this blog, so HI to you fellow Wendy readers!