Guess What I'm wearing today???

Yes that's right!  My new sweater :)  I'm so excited that the weather has finally cooled off enough for me to put it on...well cooled off enough in the morning that is, I'll prolly have to take it off this afternoon.

Still I'm happy to have it on.

I love that I decided to make my own buttons.  Part of that was because I didn't have money for pretty buttons and the cheap ones wouldn't work.  The other part is that I love fabric covered buttons :)

Well, I promise I'll try and pop in here a little more frequently but currently I am crazy swamped and can barely get what must get done finished each day.  I thought with the kids in school I'd have more time looks like I have less...a connundrum if I ever heard of it!

So I'm in desperate need of some love and need you all to tell me how much you love the sweater.  I still want to do a photo shoot with it but that will have to wait for another day...

Finshed Sweater...well almost ;)

Yes!!! My sweater is finished, well except for a few ends to weave in and buttons :) 

I'm in love and can barely wait for fall so I can wear this baby every. single. day. 

I've already started another sweater, just a baby sweater but a sweater nontheless.  I do have plans for more too but you'll just have to wait. 

I seriously can't believe that I finished a sweater for myself, with sock yarn in 7 weeks!  This is the first time I've finished a sweater with a deadline not only on time but early :) Ohmygoodness craziness.  Now to find the perfect buttons and have a friend take pictures of me wearing it :)

There's a Body!!!!

So sorry to have missed you all last week but I was traveling.  I had fully intended to schedule a post but I got that horrible orrible flu bug (on my birthday no less) and was just starting to recover on Tuesday so it was a no go.  Plus I didn't have much to show in the way of progress as I couldn't knit when I was sick...yes I was that ill!

Still today I have some great news...I cast off for the body of the sweater last night!  Yay for me :)

I'm still trying to figure out how to take decent photos of myself so you know laugh along with me at my self-portrait attempt in my bathroom (newly cleaned and painted thankyouverymuch).

I really love the stripes.  I have to say I was a bit nervous about striping the whole thing but I love how it has turned out, it is a very Buffy sweater look.  I also discovered much to my joy, that I have a shorter torso which means that I did not have to knit 15 inches of stocking stitch under the arm before the hem.  I knit 12 and I did the hem per the directions which is 20 rows of garter stitch which should be an 1.5 inches but it looks closer to 2 for me which gives me a total of 14ish inches in length which is perfect!  It is exactly the same length as my tank top and since I always wear and extra long cami under my clothes it'll be perfect :)

Those stripes I love.  I can hardly wait to get that baby soaking in a bath and watch the yarn relax and fill out the pattern.  Everything will look that much prettier once the blocking has happened :)  Still there are two sleeves left and I for one am looking forward to have less that 100 stitches on my needles :)

How is your sweater coming along?  I'm so close to finishing I can taste it! In fact I'm already planning my next sweater, well sweaters as one is going to be a baby sweater (seriously, baby season is upon us).  I promise when I'm done to have someone wonderful take photos for me so I can show it off in its true splendor :)

just a wee bit of progress...

I missed you all last week but life prevented me from posting.  First in that the computer went wako and my Tech Support Hubby had to back up everything and do a system restart (if you understand that kudos to you).  Also last week was VBS at church so I was busy baking goodies and making sure my kids didn't break anything :) So it's been 2 weeks and boy have I got some progress to show you on my sweater....

See that body?  Crazy right?  Well, probably not crazy as this is the only project I'm knitting on at the moment  for two reasons, I don't have time for another project and I love this project I don't want to start anything until it's finished (see, I'm not turning into a monogamous knitter).  Still, even with my monogamy to this project it is taking time as life got crazy busy.  Still I'm half way done with the body then I'll get to do the sleeves...

Which I'm excited for.  I'm only on my third ball of yarn and it's only half used so I'm totally confidant that I'll have plenty of yarn :)  Now that the body is coming along you can really see the umbrellas pop which of course is great!

I'm hopeful (if not a bit deragned) to have the body finished in the next week (really it'll probably be 2) so I can start on the sleeves.

Well, there it is.  Progress and insanity, two things that make my life complete :)  In other news my birthday is Sunday and tomorrow is my party and I am convinced I need make a new outfit...I'd say for both but I'm not sure I'm that crazy and because I want to knit more than I want to sew :)

and then there was scrap yarn...

It's true my sweater no longer looks like a hat for a giant but now an actual sweater with sleeves...

well maybe not sleeves exactly but at least there are stitches on scrap yarn marking wear sleeves will one day be :)

Since this is a top down I decided to try it on, make sure it wasn't too big or worse too small.  Drumroll...

It fits!  I have to say that I am entirely happy that I chose to knit the 36/38 size instead of the 40/42 because it's obvious that the 40 would have been too big. 

I'm gonna have to get some measurements and see when I want to start the waist shaping, that's probably the only modification that I'll be making, I'll put the decreases for my waist where, well my actual waist is :)

This past Sunday I took the some of the kids to the park (Husband was sick)...

I got to knit a little while I was there

It was awesome.

Well there you have it scrap yarn, parks and sleeves!  And oh yes, a giveaway as promised.  Nothing too spectacular, just an apron...

I saw this fabric and it cried to me to make it into an apron, so I obligied :)  I think it's perfect for summer and will be great on the dark, long winter day's to help brighten your kitchen and lighten the workload of cooking :) 

So just leave a comment below, if you need help thinking of something to say you could tell a joke, write a limmerick, or even give me a math problem to work on :)  Just be nice and in a couple weeks I'll pick a lucky winner at random.  (please for my sake and yours leave someway to be contacted via email or if your name links to your email that works too)

Hope you have a day that's sunny side up and get knitting :)


*Disclaimer*  I just want to clear the air in that I'm giving this apron away for fun and for no other reason.  I love to make things and give them away and I love making new friends :)

2 weeks in...

So I'm 2 weeks into my sweater  for the KAL at luvinthemommyhood and what to I have to show for it?  This, this is what I have...

UMBRELLAS!!!  Yes those are UMBRELLAS!  I love it already and can hardly wait to finish!!!!!

I finished the fair isle last night, finished a decrease round and now I'm placing stitch markers for the raglan increases.  I'm 13 3/4 rounds from dividing for the body and sleeves!!!  This is so exciting.

Speaking of stitch markers, what do you think of mine...

Everyone uses their daughters hair elastics for stitch markers right?  Haha!  I can never seem to keep track of stitch markers...I have hundreds floating around in my house but can barely find 1 for a beginning of round  marker so I go back to the hair elastics :)  I drool over markers like these...

Drops of Rainbow Stitch Markers from Charming Beadz

or these...

Musical Non Snag Stitch Markers by winemakerssister

and would love to get some like this...

Owl Knitting Stitch Markers by lavenderhillknits

but in all honesty I'd rather spend what little yarn budget I have on actual yarn and patterns than cute stitch markers.  I do however have a birthday coming up wink wink :)

So tell me, what do you think of the sweater progress?  What do you use for stitch markers?  Speaking of gifts I feel it's time to do another giveaway...it's been a while.  Next week I'll have something fun to give away :)

what they call obsessed...

It's true I'm obsessed.  Completely and unabashedly obsessed.  With Sherlock...

source

wait, wait, wait...I meant to say with my Umbrellas sweater :)

though as a side note how awesome is the name Benedict Cumberbatch?  I mean come on, can it get more British?  The man has amazing parents!  I of course deduced this from his name ;)

Okay, back on topic.  Knitting.  Fair Isle.  Sweaters.  Summertime.

I got the extra yarn I ordered.

I was over-the-top excited when I pulled them out of the bag. 

Look at the cake of yarn, that is what I had before.  They match perfectly!  I mean perfectly!   Considering that I didn't have the color number or dye lot for the yarn I had on hand...I just remembered the brand I think I got blessed by the Knitting Fairies :)  I promise, Fairies I'll pay it forward.

love the umbrella tops <3

Can I just say I love this sweater?  Oh, wait I just did :)  Honestly, I haven't found any errors or problems in the pattern though that doesn't mean I haven't made any.  It probably would go easier if I marked the fair isle pattern repeat but I can't find my stitch markers and I don't want to buy anymore.  I did have to go and buy another needle as my 29-inch just was too short for the 300+ sts and I still have one more row of increases!

Even though the pattern is knit with sock weight yarn it's really knit up at a DK gauge which doesn't bother me in the least.  Right now I'm following the pattern for the 36/38 but I may change it up after the split for the body and go up to the 40/42, I've had 5 babies people so I don't want to draw too much attention to the tummy but I did want some negative ease.  We'll see.  Once I'm done with fair isle pattern I'll try it on.

For those knitting along with me how is your sweater going?  Are you obsessed as me?  Personally I blame the obsession on watch Sherlock for most of the sweater, how can you watch that show and not become obsessed I don't know?  Seriously that show exudes obsession and compulsiveness :)  If you haven't watched it yet you should...you won't regret it!  BBC Masterpiece Mystery...on Netflix!  I'll see you all next week now I'm off to celebrate Independence Day by sewing, knitting and eating yummy food :) 

Knitterly Wisdom on Mistakes

Hand knitting is an art and sometimes it gets screwed up.  The wonderful thing about mistakes in knitting as opposed to charcoal, oil painting or even sculpting is that when you do screw up it is easier to fix.  All you have to do is rip back your knitting to the part before the mistake or even all the way to the beginning.  I'd like to see someone put back marble from a sculpture when the artist took too much off of the nose ;)

Source pinterest via tracysthoughts

Now mistakes aren't fun but they are normal and to be fair learning tools.  When one makes a mistake one should learn from it, hopefully, to avoid making it again.  A mistake is exactly what I made with my sweater.  Perhaps mistake isn't the right word...to be honest I ran out of yarn.  Yarn that I had in my stash, bought over 2 years ago from an online company, my chances of getting more are slim to none and I really don't feel like I should try.  So last night when I looked down at my second sleeve and noticed that I had about 10 yards left but about 50 yards worth of knitting to go I realized my problem.

Source pinterest

I thought about my options: make the sleeves 3/4 length, adjust the sleeve cap, or rip out completely and start again.  I went with the ripping out.  3/4 length just wasn't gonna cut it for the sleeve style as the sleeves were highly patterned and it wouldn't look good.  I really don't want to mess with the math for the sleeve sycthe so that left me with option 3, starting over.  As I spent the next 15 minutes ripping out an entire sleeve (over 20 inches in length) and about 3/4 of a second sleeve I thought back to when I cast on the sleeves.

Source pinterest via amy tangerine

I remembered the conversation I had with myself then...that I was afraid of this moment, of not having enough yarn. I knew that the sleeves would use more than the average sleeve in yarn because it had a bobble texture section and a cable section...two things that eat up yarn like garter stitch.  I wasn't completely sure I'd even like the sleeves with all that texture but I opted to go with the pattern anyway and hope for the best.  There lies in my mistake.  Not the hoping but the going against my preference.  I remember hearing some well known knitwear designer (though not well known enough as I can't remember who) say that the biggest mistake knitters make is following the patterns exactly.  I can't agree more.

Source pinterest

The part of hand knitting that appeals to most people is that ability to make things fit to you but if you fail to recognize your preferences in sleeve styles, or know your measurements and knit exactly as the pattern states you miss this opportunity for a truly unique garment.  So as I frogged (rip-it. rip-it, rip-it) my sleeves I made a mental note to myself that the next time I questioned myself if I would like something on a pattern I'm gonna go with my gut.  I'm going to learn from my mistake and work on something made just for me and not always what the designer had in mind...well at least for the next couple of projects.

Source pinterest via yahoo

In the meantime I'm going to cast on for a teddy bear sweater for a Christmas gift just because I really need a little knitter instant gratification and because the sweater and I need a few days apart to repair our friendship but mostly because it's the advice I gave a friend when she was at the breaking point in a sweater she was almost finished with.  Yes, a mini break is just what we need cause this photo makes my heart hurt right now...

My sleeves...all ripped out

{{hugs}}
Buffy

Have you made a mistake lately that you're still cringing over?  Have a bad run of project luck where nothing turns out right?  I'm off to make a pumpkin spice latte so let's visit about our creative blunders and how we turn the corner on creativity.

Summer Sweater KAL- Camp Knitting

Well I did it!  I finally figured out how to upload pictures from my new-old camera.  I'm excited.  Technically I don't know if I get to keep this camera because it is mine on loan from my dad.  He just got a new camera and since ours was broken he had pity on me and loaned me his old one.  At first I struggled with taking a picture...literally!  I would press the button but nothing would happen.  Husband discovered that the button is not for the wussy finger snap and you really have to press down on it.

Now that I figured out how to take pictures and then upload them to the computer (a hassle if ever there was one) I can now show you pictures of my Summer Sweater KAL progress!!!  As you know all last week we were on vacay, camping for most of it.  The campgrounds were about 7 hours away, plus we had to make a slight detour to collect Samuel from his week's stay with Nana & Papa.  Needless to say I put in a lot of knitting time on the drive.

I had just over an inch on the back when we started the trip and by the time we reached our destination I was almost to the waistband.  No small feat I assure you as that is 11 inches!  Well I was probably at 10 inches so that was 8.5 inches of knitting for one day.  That is true progress.

Now I love camping because I get even more knitting time in than usual and this last week was no exception.  I was able to knit at least 1 hour every day, sometimes more, which for this momma of five is a luxury!  A true luxury I tell ya :)  So by the time we hopped in the car on Sunday to head home (prepared for a 9 hour drive that took 12...but I digress) I had hopes of finishing the back on the drive.  I probably could have too had I not been so dog gone tired.  I had about an hour left of knitting to finish the back and that much time driving/riding until we were home when the sun dipped too low for me to see :(  I was disappointed but Monday, Husband was still home so I was able to finish it up and have enough daylight to take pics...

This is a up close picture of the wicker texture for the center panel.  What I like most about it is that it looks uber complicated when it isn't, just well placed knits and purls along with twisted stitches...awesome!

This is a picture of the bottom half, detailing one of the cable panels.  Now I've had some bad experiences with cabling but this sweater is certainly redeeming the technique for me :)  As for the photo, I'm pretty proud of this how this turned out :)

Still, there's less than 2 weeks in the KAL over on luvinthemommyhood and so I've really kicked it into high gear over here in knitopolis.  I started on the last remaining front and had high hopes of being finished with the waistband last night but a certain toddler (Thaddeus) decided he didn't need to go to bed on time and the knitting time went by the wayside...oh well, there's always tonight right?

Here are a few tempting pics for your eyes...I'm starting to feel like I just might be getting the hang of this photography thing.

The second front, in progress...

And my personal favorite picture...

Honestly I think I just got lucky...still I love how it turned out.  The whole blurry to in focus, the lighting and even the tail of yarn along the side.  Perfection.

{{hugs}}

Buffy

Enough of me blathering on now it's your turn.  How do ya like the progress I've made?  Are you a camper like me or not?  How do you like the pictures?  Any photography tips?  I'd love it if you shared with me today :) 

Summer Sweater Knitalong!!!

No, the date is right don't freak out just yet, I am in fact posting TWICE today.  Why?  You might ask...well that is simple I had two completely no related topics to discuss today and really didn't want to have a post go up tomorrow so here is a double feature for you all!

As you know I have joined in luvinthemommyhood's Summer Sweater Knitalong and so far it has been absolutely a blast.  I love my sweater choice.  It has just the right amount of patterning to keep it interesting but not so much that I feel like pulling out my teeth.

Of course everything doesn't go perfectly and on the 4th I realized that I was going to have to frog about 6 inches of knitting because I made the same mistake twice on a cable.  Originally I was just going to let the first oopsie slide but when I made it again...well, it was 2 too many and I knew I wouldn't be happy if I didn't fix it.

I had hoped to be able to finish the front on Monday, but with the frogging and the fact that I can't really knit this and carry on a conversation so I didn't get to knit it as much as I hoped.  So last night I stayed up until 1ish and finished the front!  I'm so excited :) :) :)

As a side note I've been following along in the ravelry discussion and some ladies have already finished their sweaters and are starting a second!   Plus my friend Rebecca of nook. who is participating is almost done with hers too!  It looks amazing. That is just amazing to me.  I'm really hoping to have this finished and my other sweater by September 1st.  

Yes, I know my sweater is a little dirty...the dark color really attracts all the strings it picks up along the way.  But not too worry, it'll get washed when I block it.

I love the collar!

I really think it was the ribbing that made me choose this pattern.

I think it would just be awesome to have 2 hand knit sweaters ready for fall.

{{hugs}}

Buffy

So what do you think of my progress?  If you're working on a sweater how is your progress coming?  I'd love to see more pics of people sweaters!  

Summer Sweater Knitalong!!!

As many of you know I am an avid reader of the blog luvinthemommyhood.  About a month ago Shannon posted a question to her readers about what should be her very first sweater knit.  The comments led to an amazing knitalong that she is hosting and I am so excited to be a part of it!  Not only did I help write a post on yarn choices or even that I'm throwing in a few treats for the end giveaway but I have also cast on for a lovely sweater.

In fact I currently have TWO sweaters on my needles both of which are for me!  If everything goes according to my plans I should have 2 completed sweaters for my by the 1st of September!  I am beyond excited.  It is every knitters dream to have a wardrobe of sweaters for fall but the reality of life is that husbands, kids, cooking, and laundry tend to get in the way of that dream.  However, with a little planning and a giant push from other knitters working along side you some dreams can come true.

I thought today would be a great day to showcase the pattern I've chosen and the progress I've made.  I have been working on Hannah Fettig's Gooseberry Cardigan since Mother's day and I am about 65%-70% of the way through it.

Gooseberry Cardigan by Hannah Fettig
Featured in Interweave Knits, Weekend 2009

As you can see it is a delicious little number and mine is purple too, although a much darker purple.  You can see my progress here if you are on ravelry.  However, in the exact same magazine is another fab sweater and as I have been knitting my cardi I would be completely enamored by it.  I thought how fun it would be to wear and loved all the patterns in it.  Wanna see?

Reversible Come and Go Sweater by Deborah Newton
Featured in Interweave Knits, Weekend 2009

As you can see it is highly patterned but I think that it compliments my current stockinette stitch Gooseberry Cardigan.  I cast on for the sweater last Wednesday and have made some serious progress...

Not a bad pic for a cell phone camera, eh?

What you see is the the left front (or right back if you wanted to wear the buttons in the back).  I thought it would be best to start of easily into the pattern by working on a front first.  Though I honestly could have started with the back.  It is super easy, you just have to have markers along with pencil and paper to keep track of repeats and decreases and increases.

As you can see from the photo I'm already done with the waistband and have about 2 more inches of knitting before decreasing again for the sleeve.  The pattern isn't difficult and I can still watch tv or movies while knitting it.  However it does keep the sweater interesting and I don't like to put it down :)

What I also love about this is that both of the sweaters I'm knitting I using yarn that I already had in my stash!  What with my purging and all this was a big PLUS in my book.  I am actually putting to use that which I already have.

The yarn I am using for the KAL sweater is Knit Picks Gloss.  It is a sock weight yarn that I am carrying double thus allowing me to knit the sweater on US 8s as opposed to rewriting the numbers and all to accomplish this on US 4s.  I love the yarn as it is a merino and silk blend and if you've never knitting with double yarns do not fear it for it is not difficult.  In fact I wound my ball double so that I'm only working from one ball of yarn and not two.

I promise I won't blather on anymore about this (well for today).  I wish you all a happy Tuesday!

{{hugs}}
Buffy

So what do you think of my pattern choice?  I love the color!  It is sooooo me and will be perfect for Autumn.  Are you working on anything ambitious?  Do share!  Grab some water and let's chat!