She's Here

May I present to you Lady Eleanore Stole in all her entrelac and fringed glory.


Despite my best efforts, puppy managed to sneak into this photo. He's the Photo Ninja. See his tail behind the chair? He's at his watchpost, sitting on my computer and staring out the only window in the house that overlooks a sidewalk. Someone's gotta spy on the neighbors. But enough about the cuddliest guy I know.

LE, as I affectionately call her, took only 7 - 3/4 balls of yarn. And she grew during blocking, despite the fact that I didn't pin her. I didn't pin because I thought she was the perfect size already, but apparently the friction with the carpet was enough to stretch it out, and it was too long for the smooth blocking board. Before blocking she was 70 inches long (5 foot 10 inches) and after she was 76 (6 foot 4 inches). It grew in width as well, from 21 inches to 22. Next time, I'll use the old plastic shower curtain that's currently packed in a box.



Ignore the terrible picture. As I said, it's is the perfect size. I was able to use it like a blanket on the drive out to Middle of Nowhere, Florida for a wedding last weekend (knitting and stories about the best rendition of Thriller ever performed by a drunk guy and a 4 year old will are to come). I also use it at work, where they thought it was a blanket. It's comfy enough that it feels like one, as it covers the top of my arms and my lap.

It is very soft after being washed in hair conditioner and fabric softener. I keep fondling it, which seems to intrigue my coworkers. The recommended yarn for this project is La Lana, which has a market value of $330 (15 balls at $22 per ball). One hundred or so dollars for Noro doesn't seem so bad to the hubby now, does it? The Noro Silk Garden is great for this pattern, and the variegation is absolutely beautiful. Plus, pure wool would've been too heavy for regular use here in the Sunshine State, and the silk-mohair blend is so squishably soft and really pet-able.

She's Coming...

My Lady Eleanore Entrelac Stole is blocking right now. I feel like I just put the kiddies to bed and now I can play online. Look how sweet it is while it's resting:



This wrap is absolutely gorgeous in Noro Silk Garden. This was my first time using Noro, and my first time spending a good amount of money on something for me. I'm a little disappointed at the number of breaks in the yarn, with an average of about one per ball, and as many as five.

I really like the colors, even though they came out darker and more rustic than I planned. It doesn't seem like this will be fancy enough to wear to the wedding I've been making it for. Doesn't seem like it will be necessary either, as it's supposed to be 85 degrees in Tampa this weekend, not exactly wool-blend-stole weather. Here's what it looks like in natural light:



I made it a little bit bigger than I needed it to be. I want it to be able to wrap around me. It is now the second scarf that I have made that is bigger than me, but that's not really hard to do, as my pal Donna pointed out (still love ya chica). I do come in just under 5 feet, and unless I hit a random growth spurt in my mid-20's that's not changing.


Also, I think I'm being watched. I didn't tell the dog to get in this picture, he just sneaks in. But he does add some cuteness.

The fringe comes after the blocking. I've washed it in fabric softener and hair conditioner which sill supposedly soften the Noro up a bit. This is the first tip I've gotten off of Ravelry.

Yeah, I finally got my invite, and I was so excited to get on, I really didn't think carefully about my screen name. Unfortunately, LittleKnittingNinja was too many characters, and I couldn't find another combination of Knit and Ninja that was available, and somehow I ended up with the screen name KnitPirate. I don't like it at all.

It Won't Fit

It's one of the dangers of being adventurous and jumping in with both feet. My second project ever didn't fit.



It was the Kittyville hat from Stitch n' Bitch. Made out of Lionbrand Woolease, so even if it had fit, it would've been too itchy to wear. Mmmm, fuzzy acrylic. Is it obvious that at this point in my knitting career I had never been into a real yarn shop?

But I digress. The real tragedy here is that since I failed to properly use a gauge swatch, the hat came out too small for my head. Notice that I said "failed to properly use" instead of "failed to make". I knit a swatch. Part of me knew that I needed to swatch, especially because I didn't use the recommended yarn. I think my swatch was within one or two stitches of the pattern gauge, and I figured that would be good enough. Knit wear is stretchy and most hats fit most heads, right?

WARNING: Shocking Images are contained in the following segment, and may not be suitable for some viewers, such as children and people who slave over knitwear.

In addition to the fit problems, my hat is scarred. I added one of the cat ears, and realized that I would wear the hat much more if it didn't have cat ears. So I did just about the stupidest thing I have ever done and I took scissors to the hat. I was definitely fearless as I was clueless. At this point, I wasn't able to recognize what was ear and what was hat, and I cut a few holes right in the hat. I also wasn't familiar with how to darn knit fabric, so I took some of the leftover scratchy, fuzzy yarn and knotted it and wove it through the holed until I was sure it wouldn't unravel on me. The result is a very noticeable line of knots, extra yarn, and small holes. Here's the aftermath of the botched ear removal surgery.


The holes are obvious next to my dark hair. It's hard to see, but the stitches near the hole are also skewed.

These graphic images are not meant to shock you, but rather to illustrate the dangers of reckless cutting. And always swatch up before you start a new project.

And please, never drink and knit. Well, that's another post.

Mason Dixon Dishcloth

Mason Dixon Washcloth 1
Originally uploaded by shishyb

This is the Mason Dixon Washcloth as part of my review of Mason Dixon Knitting. This book has a wide variety of patterns at many different skill levels. Even more valuable is that the authors try to help you make the projects your own, by offering multiple yarn selections and multiple versions of the same project, and encouraging readers to experiment.

I had a lot of choices for what to make form this book. I probably chose the Washcloth because I was drawn to the hexagonal shape. It is very suitable for gifts because of the low cost, and short time to completion factor, as well as the presentation shown in the book. The washrag is shown with ribbon run the eyelets, which transforms it into a small bag, just big enough for a nice bar of soap.

It is knit in the round, from the outside in. I used the knitted cast on, just to give the edge a different look. Bobbles are made near the edge, which creates the corners. The eyelets and decorative decreases add interest. Here's a closer look:





There is one errata in the pattern, and it's listed on the Mason Dixon Knitting blog.


I made it in Sugar n Cream, which made it 100% cotton, machine washable and dirt cheap. Since I am a loose woman, I used a size 5 to get gauge, and, more importantly for this piece, to get a fabric that looks and feels right.


I had two minor issues with the finished product that are worth noting, but wouldn't prevent me from making this again.


First of all, my washcloth just won't lie flat. It can be coaxed into a temporary flat state, but it seems that the decreases just aren't fast enough at some point in the first 10 rounds, because there is an ever so slight ruffle. I blocked it in hopes of fixing this, it reverted right back to its original noncompliant state once I picked it up. Here it is during blocking (for scale, these are 12 inch tiles):




After blocking, I tried machine washing and drying it. This only made it curlier, as you can tell here:




The second issue is the center isn't shown in the book. It's made in the same way that many hats are: decrease to a certain number of stitches and draw the yarn through the remaining loops and close up the hole. In hats, this isn't prominent, and it doesn't look bad. But in this application, it is the focal point, and it looks odd to me.

These aren't fatal flaws, I would still use this pattern again. For our new condo, I might make a set of guest towels using this washcloth and the hand towels in this book. The hand towels are beautiful in muted colors of linen, and the MD washcloth would too, especially if the center is embellished with a small flower. However, I don't think I'll be attempting full-sized bath towel to complete the set.

Geeky Knitting - The Super Mario Video Game Cozy

Here is a joint effort from my husband and I: the Double Sided- Mario Mushroom Game Cozy:

I say it is a joint effort because while I did all of the knitting, hubby designed it, down to the mushroom chart. It holds his DS and PSP.

The yarn is Lionbrand Microfiber, which should be electronics friendly. However, it isn't knitter friendly. It splits like nobody's business. On size U.S. 3 needles, it also knit to a very small gauge. Also electronics friendly.

It begins with a black tube, sewn shut on one end. It is made in 2x2 ribbing to be super stretchy. Then, a pocket is made with the mushroom chart and a seed stitch border. It is then crocheted onto the tube, to make 2 pockets. Run some icord around the top of the tube to make it close, and it's done.

With the seamless sides and the ribbing, it has very little structure. I may machine sew some piping along the sides and bottom to fix this.

Grandma's Afghan Post #2

Here is Grandma's Afghan in the process of being washed. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of it between being balled yarn and it's soak in the bathtub.


This is the light end of Grandma's Afghan being washed:





and this is the dark end:





As you can see, it was much larger than the bathtub. It was about six feet long and four feet wide. Here the darks appear much darker than they are.

I used three strands held together, and a size 35 needle. The blending was done by using several different yarns, of different textures, weights, and shades of pink.

Here is the completed afghan while it is being blocked.





The color changes look a little dramatic here, but I think that is because it is wet. When it dried (after about 6 days) they were less obvious, and looked like this:





In the end I loved the result. The fabric was so springy and comfy I wanted to make myself one. This would be a good way to get rid of those half balls of yarn you have, if you went from color to color, like from pink to white to yellow, or blue to green to yellow.


I'll post the final pictures of this afghan later, once I find them, along with everything else that disappeared mysteriously during the move...

The Story of my Grandmother's Afghan

Well, to start out, heres part of the yarn for my grandmother's afghan. It's about $100 worth of decent yarn, from a lys here in Jacksonville.



I only used pink and white yarn for this blanket. What's here was supplemented with filler from Micheals. I used blending, so that it fades from dark to light. I used three to four strands held together, depending on the thickness of the yarn, and size 35 circulars. It is in a fan and feather lace pattern. It measured about three feet wide and six feet long. With blocking and time, it should stretch. No matter what she'll appreciate it.

Part of the reason for doing this is because every year, she makes quilts for every one of her 10 grandkids. When I gave her the blanket, she said "No one ever makes anything for me". So I think next year, we'll do something where everyone in the family makes something for her.

Anyways, when I gave it to her, my grandma actually cried. She thought I had forgotten about it, since I just moved. Usually, when I'm making something for someone, they know it, becuase I keep them updated and ask them a million questions throughout the process. But, I guess I hadn't mentioned it to my grandma.

Pictures of the afghan are coming soon.