lazy blogger

Ahem. Where to begin after such a lengthy absence?

I guess I will just jump right into the knitting because, despite my lack of blogging, there has not been a lack of knitting. I've just been enjoying life around here with an adorable almost 5 month old! It's hard to find the time to photograph my knitting when Prince Charming is constantly commanding my attention. LOL! Oh yeah, check out my new short hair cut. I like it a lot!

As promised, I promptly finished my Lush and Lacy in January.

Pattern: Lush and Lacy

Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca in a lilac color; somewhere around 3 and a half skeins

Needles: US #9

Notes: I'm happy with how this cardigan turned out but I'm just not that in love with it. Although, now that I'm looking at the pictures it is growing on me more. It was a very fun knit even though I am not a fan of seaming. And the pattern was fairly straightforward with the exception of the sleeve cap shaping. All in all, I will probably wear it fairly often in the coming spring.

I will be back soon to show you my progress on Jane (Rav link) which I promptly cast on for after finishing Lush and Lacy!

Lush and Lacy update

Thank you all for your suggestions on the sleeve cap instructions for Lush and Lacy! I'm still not sure if I got it right but hey, it seems to work.

Here's how I ended up interperting the "decrease 1 stitch at each end on every alternating 3rd and 4th row 3 times":

Row 1: knit, Row 2: purl, Row 3: knit dec 1st and last st.

Row 1: purl, Row 2: knit, Row 3: purl, Row 4: knit dec 1st and last st.

Row 1: purl, Row 2: knit, Row 3: purl dec 1st and last st.

I had left out previously, that, according to the stitch counts I had, only 6 stitched needed to be decreased for this section. However, it never said anything about the number of rows needed for each repeat or how many rows you were to end up with. So, I put a lifeline in and figured that I would rip back if the sleeve did not fit into the body properly. I am sooooo happy that it did though!!! it fit perfectly.

Early Arrival

No, not the baby!! LOL! he's still snug as a bug in a rug. He sure is making it hard for mama to sleep though....the heartburn, the aching hips, the squished lungs...I know it will all be worth it but I think I've reached the point where I'm counting down the days til he's OUT!

Actually, I got my Custom Knits book that I had pre-ordered from Amazon a long time ago. I knew I would want this book because I am such a fan of Wendy's patterns. I thought I would share a bunch of pics: There are a lot of patterns in this book! these are my favorites but I doubt all of them will go on my knit list. Although I haven't read through the book in detail, it seems to be well written and gives lots of tips for customizing the fit to your body shape. And a really cool part is that it gives you a variation for each pattern. My main complaints about it are that for about half of the patterns there is only one picture, which is frequently at an odd angle that makes it hard to tell what the garment will really look like on a regular person (for example, the last picture of the black cabled cardigan). Also, the other thing that is more of a personal taste issue is the very odd outfits that the knits are paired with....like the green Lettuce Coat. It looks like she is wearing pants made out of goldish/pinkish tapestry....I think it is hideous! There are a lot more like that one that I didn't show. For someone like me (with little imagination) it makes it harder to see the cute potential of garment if it were dressed differently. I think they were just trying to go for an edgy, modern look but I think it came off a bit too much. Overall, I think there are a lot of great patterns and I'm glad I bought it.

Okay, now I need to ask all you smart, non-preggo-brained knitting people for HELP! I am totally stuck on the sleeve cap for Lush and Lacy. I am at the point where I am decreasing for the sleeve cap and it says to "decrease 1 stitch at each end on every alternating 3rd and 4th row 3 times". For the life of me, I can't figure out what "on every alternating 3rd and 4th row" means! Anyone?

Thanks in advance! :)

Inspired

I've kind of been on an Amby Buter fabric ordering spree lately. Anyone in the DFW area know of a shop that carries a good selection of her stuff? I've found a few fabrics and patterns at The Sewing Room in Frisco but that's about it.

Anyway, I was inspired by Amy Butler's new Birdie Sling bag when I got some of the Martini print fabric. It's my own design because I wanted something a bit smaller. I absolutely love how it came out!! There is one thing I would change and that would be the strap. I made it a bit wide and if I were to redo it I would taper it at the shoulder. Hmm, I didn't realize how wrinkly it looks in the pictures. Oh well. I just love the Midwest Modern line of fabrics and I had a lot of fun making it!

I've been making progress on the knitting front as well!

This is the back of Lush and Lacy. I had a bit of confusion and a few false starts on the left front side but now that is finished as well. It's knitting up so fast! but I've nervous if it will fit well or not. My row gauge is slightly off and it's been hard to keep track of how many extra rows to add and where to add them. If you can believe it, this will be my first adult sweater knit in pieces and not in the round. Yikes!