Time for a Lifeline

Veil, Phase 2:


This looks like it has a radius of about 6" -- for only about 2.5 hours of work, it's not bad! (I know, I know. This was the quick and easy part, where I still only have about 75 stitches on my needles....)


I mixed up the chart somewhere during the second repeat of the mesh lace pattern, and didn't find it until it was too late. I decided to cast off and use this as a second swatch -- to see how the Merino Oro blocks out. I do really like the pattern I decided on. I'm ready to cast-on again. This time I'll use a crochet-cotton lifeline after every repeat of the pattern, so I'll be able to continue. It worked out well with the print-o-the-wave stole, and I think it will work well.

The Railway Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks are my new commuting pattern. The calf decreases are really tricky, and I spent one day on the subway and in the post office looking up directions every other round. Now I'm on the leg part, and it's working really well. I'm using Lorna's Laces in Baltic Sea on size 0s.

And I finished one pomatomus. I must say, I really like the pattern, and the sock fits really well. Usually I cast on right away, but I'm not thrilled with the yarn I used, and I'm toying with the idea of ripping the whole thing out. I don't like the way the Cherry Tree Hill yarn pooled in this pattern.

I love everything about this pattern, including the way mistakes are easy to conceal in the 1x1 ribbing. The more I look at it, though, the more I think about ripping it out completely. If only I hadn't already kitchenered the toe!

New Arrivals

I love it when I get packages in the mail! Even if I ordered them myself.

Here is some Merino Oro in Natural and yet another sock book.

Lace

I was serious about the veil. See?

These are the swatches to test out patterns. Above is the horseshoe lace pattern from here.

This is the English Mesh Lace from the same place.

And this is the mini-vine lace. I think it should look like the top part of the swatch. I wasn't enamoured enough to continue.

This is the flickering flames lace pattern from here. If you follow the link and scroll down there's a picture of the skirt. Although it's not my kind of skirt, you can see what the shawl will be like -- just a semi-circle instead of a full circle. It will have the various rows where the pattern is interrupted.

This last one is the kimono lace pattern from Folk Shawls.

And this is the Ostrich Plumes lace pattern from here.

I could also use this stitch pattern (but it would be turned 90 degrees counterclockwise):

or this one:

What do you think?

Just in time for summer:

I completed my eighth pair of wool socks. They fit beautifully -- just a tad snug, which will help make sure they stay up as I walk. I haven't worn them for more than a few minutes, so we'll have to wait until it cools down to see how it goes.

I really like the subtlety of the heel shaping and the calf-increases. Non-knitters probably wouldn't notice these details, but they really add to the sock.

Specs:

Toe-Up Socks (original, if you can say that) with stockinette heel-flap, regular heel-turn and heel-stitch gusset; ribbed calf increases

Yarn: Regia 4faedig Color (Color 1912, Lot 58692), 2 balls, on sale from Webs.

Needles: Japanese size 1s

Here's the best thing about the socks:

The reason I like toe-up socks is because you can use up all of your yarn. That's just what I did, and after I cut my ends, this is what I had left over. Frugality meets knitting, just like it used to.

Isabella

I finished knitting Isabella right before I went to Rochester last weekend. I had been thinking that the bottom flared a bit too much, and after I seamed it (painstakingly, using mattress stitch) I realized that it really did flare. I did not appear to have a waist when I wore it. Since the sweater was knit from the bottom up, I used my mom's sewing machine and took out my scissors.

Usually I would never cut a hand-knit with scissors (unless it somehow involved a steek). The thought of re-knitting the whole sweater on size 3 needles with Cotlin was just too much. What I did was stitch straight down from the smallest part of the waist. I then zigzagged the row of stitches right to the outside of that line of stitches. Then I cut, and zigzagged the edge again. I carefully seamed the sweater again and now it looks like this:

This is the inside. The seam lays very flat, and from the right side you can barely see it. It may not be the most gracious solution, but I am happy with it.

(Something else you can see in this picture is how my tension has improved in stockinette: on the left is the back, that I did first -- notice the unevenness in the rows? And the front is to the right. There is still a little rowing out, but not nearly as much.)

The best thing about Cotlin? You can iron it in order to block the lace out. Obviously, it's time for me to plug in the iron....

Specs:
Isabella from Knitty.com.
Modifications: I knit size small to pattern. The decreases were too severe and so I would eliminate them if I made this pattern agan. My mod was to chop off that part.
Yarn: 6.5 balls of Cotlin in Island Coral from knitpicks.com
Needles: Knitpicks size 3
Completed: May 27, 2007

(All of these photos I edited at picnik.com. Check it out -- it's really great.)