FTW!

After my last post of a steaming pile of failed knitting projects, it was time for a little self-reflection. I had never had so many repeated failures and frustrations, and so few satisfactory finished objects. Knitting less meant knitting worse. It meant finishing nothing. And for a product knitter like me, knitting and producing nothing was worse than not knitting at all.

It was time for a new paradigm of knitting for me. Knitting less isn't just forgoing a morning knitting session to hit the gym for me. I've had to release some of the mental energy that I was giving to knitting to give it to other areas of my life. I just don't think about it as much, and my failed projects were indications of lack of thought. I don't have the time or the inclination to think through design challenges. I don't have the energy to frog and re-knit the same project until I get it right again and again. I need the simple, the rewarding. Not instant gratification, necessarily, but the old, reliable standards of knitting.

Thus, I turned to EZ, the quintessential source of all that is classic, reliable, pleasureable knitting. Two of my dearest cousins are both expecting their first babies, and since both have wonderfully unique aesthetics, I was able to perfectly match those classic EZ baby sweaters for each of them.

First up was for Ellie's baby. She's expecting her first girl any minute now. Ellie has a very feminine but quirky, vintage-y, arty personal style, so the February Baby Sweater was the perfect choice.

A two skeins (and a little bit of the third) of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino in a yummy, grape-y purple, some beautiful silver rose buttons, and a little label embroidered with the initial E, which she, her soon-to-be-born daughter, and I all share. It's yummily soft and absolutely feminine without being overly twee. Classic.


Teri's baby is due in about a month. She and her husband have chosen not to find out the gender of their precious firstborn. In these cases, I usually knit something in a deep red color, since I think all babies look beautiful in red, and am not a fan of the insipid yellow, light green, and white sweaters these "surprise" babies get. However, Teri has a good chance of having a red-haired baby, since her husband and many of his family are vibrant redheads. Thus, their baby is receiving a Baby Surprise Jacket in an amazing green from Dream in Color (Happy Forest). This was my first time using this yarn, and it will not be my last. It was wonderful to work with, and the colors are vibrant and bright.
Teri and I happen to share the same last initial, so this sweater gets a "K." I am sort of obsessed by these cute little tags, so I'll take any excuse to sew and photograph them. I know nothing about embroidery, but these look better than I would ever expect.

You can check the details on my Ravelry page if you want to know more. But in the meantime, expect to see more old reliables, the trieds-and-trues from me in this space for the next little while. I'll be spreading my wings in other spaces in my life right now.

August Rain and a February Sweater

Alternate Title: Look Ma! No Seams!

We're finally getting some much needed rain. Not a lot. But a calm, steady sprinkle. The air is cool, the windows are open, and the kids are at art camp for the morning. Ah. I'm happy with the quiet, the garden is happy with the rain. Now, on to the baby sweater ...


Pattern: February Sweater by Elizabeth Zimmerman (Knitter's Almanac)
Yarn: Socks That Rock, medium weight superwash merino, Jade (the color is closer to the above photo)
Needles: US 3s


I began this project during the Olympic swimming week. I finished in about 5 days and discovered that although I had altered the numbers due to gauge and cast on more than it called for, I had failed to alter the numbers for where to place the sleeves. This was a big mistake (damn that Michael Phelps). I never noticed until I had cast off (damn him and his intoxicating racing).

I rushed to TYL to see Brilliant Melanie, could anything be done to save it? I already knew the answer, and she could see that I just couldn't stand tearing it out. She sent me next door with the kids as she ripped and rewound for me. Aren't knitting friends the best?

I reknit it in EZ's numbers since my gauge really wasn't off that much and now, she is a thing of beauty.

Modifications: I am so over seams. I know that I'll have to deal with them again, but anytime that I can avoid them, I will. Even though this sweater doesn't have many seams, I knit the sleeves in the round to avoid sewing them up. No seams, none, nada, zippo, zilch.


Also, I slipped the first stitch of each row to create a nicer edging. I toyed with the idea of crocheting a little picot edge, but decided that the plain edging was simple and beautiful. The exquisite buttons are, my favorites, from Danforth Pewter via TYL.

The next few projects will also be baby things, since my friends and family evidently just can't keep their pants on. Will you people please stop procreating and let me knit myself a sweater?

A Quick Surprise

At the end of the summer I got a surprise email forwarded to me from N's school -- a friend that I had met backpacking in Spain was trying to track me down and had found my name on the RWS website. We reconnected and it has been such a wonderful time getting to know her again and learning about her family and life.

And last week her family grew a bit ... one more life has joined it. So I will send off a little surprise in the mail tomorrow ...

Pattern: Baby Surprise Jacket by EZ (The Opinionated Knitter)
Needles: US 6s
Yarn: Louet Gems Fine/Sport Weight in Grape and Willow
Notes: I have been blessed with some mighty fine knitting projects lately and this was no exception. What an incredible pattern (my first BSJ) and what fabulous yarn (my first time with Louet Gems as well). I did not modify the pattern at all -- just wanted to knit it as it was written originally and see what happened. I am extremely happy with the results but wish my increases were a bit neater looking.

I changed colors randomly and love how the funky seaming turned out.

This yarn is just wonderful and I am going to use the remaining yarn for something for my girls (I used just about 1/2 skein of each color).

These excellent buttons are from The Yarn Lounge here in Richmond.

When I bought this yarn I had no idea it was from South Africa. Tomorrow I will be sending the BSJ to Cape Town where it will meet it's new little owner ...

Surprises all around!

I've Been Zimmermanned

On a whim about a month ago, I purchased "The Opinionated Knitter" from my LYS. Okay. Not really on a whim. Ever since Liz wowed me with her Baby Surprise Jacket and Spidey (has that baby arrived?) showed us her Tomten, I've been intrigued by Elizabeth Zimmermann and I vowed to buy one of her books. However, I always thought her patterns and writings were for knitters far more experienced and talented than I.

How wrong I was. Every knitter in the world should know and love Elizabeth Zimmermann. Her wit, talent, and, yes, opinion, is clear in every newsletter in this book. Here is my Tomten for an old friend's dear little baby. I enjoyed every minute of knitting this; I have deepened my knitting practice by allowing myself to design on the needles with the gentle guidance of EZ.

Pattern: Tomten by Elizabeth Zimmermann
Yarn: Maggi's Aran Tweed (color 03) and O-Wool Classic (I can't seem to find the color name or number)
Needles: US8s
Pattern Notes: I adjusted stitch counts for gauge and improvised to get the right vertical measurements since the vertical gauge was so different. I will spare you all the number crunching, but suffice it to say, it was not difficult. This size is about 12-18 months.

I had planned on doing an attached i-cord for the borders but didn't like the way it caused the jacket to pucker. I also really liked the way the garter stitch looked going different directions, so I just knit a garter stitch border. I'm afraid of zippers and button holes (I'll need to confront these fears one day soon), so I chose these clasps. I like the Scandinavian look.

I didn't think the sleeves were loose enough, so I didn't seam the sleeves all the way and crocheted a simple border around them. I love the look. They can be kept turned down or flipped up for a more gnomish or elfin look ...

I will gift this tomorrow and immediately start planning my next Zimmermann project. (Maybe an adult Tomten a la Brooklyn Tweed?)