Look, Mom! I finished something.

Two FOs to show off.

This is my beautiful mother modeling her new vest.

Pattern: Aon by Berroco Design Team

Size: 48″

Yarn: Rowan Soft Tweed in Twig

Needle size: US6 and US8

Vast expanses of stockinette with a little ribbing make this the perfect no-brainer knit for watching television.  The pattern calls for a single button at the bottom of the V, but Mom didn’t want a button.

By the way, that ball of fluff at the bottom left is Tinkerbell.

Here’s another pic for a closer view:

 

 

 

A few days after the vest was finished and given to her, she called to say she wanted pockets.  So on Thanksgiving I made pockets and sewed them on.  Eventually I’ll get pics with the pockets.

 

This next project has a story.  Once upon a time, I was paging through a knitting magazine and saw a pair of mittens that screamed, and I mean screamed, at me:  “Make me!  I belong to [NAME REMOVED TO PROTECT THE SURPRISE IN CASE SHE READS THIS BLOG ENTRY]!”  I ignored them for a while, but for the next several months I kept going back to that issue and looking at the mittens and thinking to myself, “Yes, you DO belong to [NAME].  I really must make you.”  A year later I finally bought the yarn.  And this afternoon, I finally finished the mittens.

Thus introduced, I present to you the Pagliacci Mittens:

 

Pattern: Pagliacci Mittens by Kristen Nicholas

Source: Vogue Fall 2008

Yarn: Cascade 220

Needle: US8

The only reason these mittens took over a year to make is sheer laziness and procrastination. The knitting itself took no time at all. The embroidery intimidated me…I hadn’t done any embroidery work since I was a kid. But, once I finally knuckled down to do it, my hands remembered the techniques and stitches. The embroidery was done over two evenings of TV watching. I made a crochet chain strand for the pompoms rather than a knit strand.

 

 

Oh, look! A yarn-related entry!

Today I took inventory of the projects in various stages of completion. Oh boy. I had no idea my startitis had been this bad over the last several months….

The oldest project is a baby afghan. I started this thing over two years ago. All the squares are done, and have been done for more than a year; the only thing remaining is to sew them all together. Consider this an example of how badly I hate seaming.

There are two women in my office expecting babies shortly after the turn of the year. This blanket needs to be sewn up soon, and another baby blanket made in the near future.

Next oldest is Delphine, from Kristeen Griffin Grimes’ French Girl Knits.

I’m into the bodice section now. This could be completed in just a few more hours of knitting, if only I would sit down and work on it.

Next up are these fabulous Pagliacci mittens from Vogue Knitting‘s Fall 2008 issue.

The first time I saw these mittens, they screamed the name of a particular friend. I ordered the yarn last year and knitted them up in no time, then stalled on the embroidery. Again, a few more hours and they’ll be done. Maybe they’ll get sent off as this year’s Christmas present…

The Windowpane Coat came from Interweave Knit‘s Fall 2008 issue:

Remaining work to be done: Buttonhole band and seaming.

Not all projects are huge or have multiple pieces. I have a pair of socks on the needles as well, Belle Epoque from Melissa Morgan-Oakes’ 2 At A Time Socks.

I made my first pair of socks last year, using this method, and loved it. This is the third pair I’ve made in this fashion. I’ve yet to make socks one at a time, and don’t think I ever will. Anyway, the heel has been turned and the gusset finished. It’s onward to the toe now, eventually.

Sweet Nothing is a top down shrug explicitly for the purpose of warding off the air conditioning chill at the office.

This is the knit that’s been going with me backstage to work on while waiting for my entrances during performances…mindless stockinette and easy peasy construction. I’ll probably get it finished by the time the run is over next weekend.

And finally, the Aon Vest from Berroco’s #296 Weekend pamphlet.

Mom wanted a vest to wear on a late autumn trip to California, so I hustled and nearly had it finished…more mindless stockinette which went with me to rehearsals, and a bulky yarn which made the knitting go quickly…but then Mom announced they weren’t going this year after all. So I put it down and picked up the shrug again. All that remains is part of one front piece and a ribbed edging, then seaming. I expect I’ll finish this one after the shrug.

Lots and lots of knitting recently. I feel another crochet project coming along in the near future… Crochet deserves equal time, and it is my first yarn love, after all.

Long time no see….

So, um, I finally return to the world of knitblogs (or crochet blogs, as the case may be).  Curse that newfound addiction to Facebook!  To make up for the looooooong absence, I have project pics.  Completed project pics, even.

My "Denimbrigo Vest", so called because it's loosely based on Julia Vaconsin's Malabrigo Top from Interweave Crochet, but made with Rowan Denim rather than Malabrigo Lace.

Bamboo washcloths, a quickie little gift knit for the sole purpose of using two remaining skeins of Bernat Bamboo.

Two cowls are currently blocking.  I'll get those posted sometime in the next couple of days.  I'm not even going to try to review the knit and crochet magazines that have accumulated in the last couple of months.  We'll start fresh with the fall issues when they show up. 

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