Cold blooded

Mustardy Darcy

Well here is what I think I did.

The Pattern: Mrs. Darcy by Mary Weaver
The Yarn: Knit Picks City Tweed Heavy Worsted in Lemon Curd

just a little over 4 skeins
Needle size: 9

Started: 6/13
Finished: 6/21

Body: I hate hate HATE seaming. So I decided to knit the front panels and the back panels together. I cast on 138 sts, placing markers after the first 35 sts and before the last 35 sts. Then worked as one piece until I got to the armholes.

Armholes: On the RS row knit across until you get to the last four sts before the first marker. BO 8 sts. Continue knitting until you get to the last 4 sts before the marker BO 8 sts. Now the two front panels and the back panel are separated. Using 3 separate balls of yarn continue to knit the 3 pieces at the same time like you would when knitting socks two at a time.

Shoulders: Leaving the 3 garter trim stitches on each side live, I used a kitchener stitch to join the front panels to the back panels at the shoulder.

Neck: I wanted the garter trim to continue around the neck. So starting with the 3 garter trim stitch on the left panel, I continued the garter trim while joining it to the neck using a saddle stitch.
On WS: K2, k2tog (last stich of the garter with one stitch from the back panel).
On RS: slip one st from the back panel onto the left needle wyib. K2tog, k2
continue until all of the back panel sts are used.
Then using a kitchener stitch connect with the right panel garter detail.

The buttons I got are from M&J Trimmings in midtown. They have a large selection of all sorts of beads, ribbons, lace, buttons, etc. I choose blonde unfinished wooden buttons. Oh and I made 5 button holes instead of 3. For spacing I separated each by three garter ridges.

Lightside Cowl

The Pattern: Darkside Cowl by Sarah Fama 
The Yarn: Sundara Aran Silky Merino in Tulip about 2/3 of a skein
Needle size: 7

Started: 6/13
Finished: 6/28

I've been wanting to work with the yarn for quite some time. Luckily in a recent swap I received a skein of this. The yarn is very soft and silky. I'd love to make a sweater out of it, but at $32/skein it is a bit spendy for a larger project. The color is beautiful, pink over a pale yellow.

Since I only had one skein I needed a small project. This cowl was perfect, the pattern even recommended using this yarn. The pattern is very simple. A repeat of the same stitches that gets bumped one stitch over every two rows.

The pattern is reversible too. So I'll never have to worry that my cowl is inside out.

I also finished a larger project recently and have been meaning to post details. But I've lost the paper that I wrote all my revisions on. I'm planning on going over the sweater with a fine tooth comb so I can remember what I did. I'll post the details later next week.

Until then have a great 4th of July!

Yarn Makeover

Twice now I've bought camel colored yarn only to discover that I don't really like the color. So instead of leaving it in my stash to collect dust I decided to have a go at Kool Aid dyeing.

There are a lot of how-to's out there for dyeing yarn with Kool Aid. I chose to use the instructions from thepiper.com. She has a color chart to help you choose which flavor to use. And it shows both white and natural tan color (very similar to the camel I was starting out with).

I used the Blasts Berry Cherry flavor. It was the only Kool Aid that wasn't presweetened that I could find. Luckily I wanted red :) Of course you don't have to use Kool Aid brand, you're free to use any brand of drink mix. Just make sure you get the unsweetened kind, you don't want sticky yarn. From what I saw in the store the stuff in tubs all has some sort of sweetner, so look for the packets.

First I wrapped the yarn into loose skeins rather than balls so that it would dye evenly.

Then I had to soak the yarn for 20 minutes in hot water.

While my yarn was soaking I prepared the Kool Aid dye. The instructions call for 1pkg of Kool Aid per 8oz of liquid (6oz water, 2oz vinegar) for each oz of fiber. I had 3 balls equaling a total of 5.25oz. I decided to use 7 packets of Kool Aid, because I wanted the red to really cover up the camel color.

There are other recipes that don't use vinegar. But I was afraid that if I didn't use the vinegar to set the dye that it would bleed.

Next step calls for removing the excess soak water from the yarn and placing it in the dye mixture. The liquid should cover your yarn. If not add more water. Then you let it simmer for 45 minutes.

The heat helps the fibers to open up and suck in all the dye.

After its done cookin the water should be clear of dye - either clear or milky white. When I turned of the heat, my water still had a slight pinkish tint. But it cleared up as the yarn cooled down.

It takes a while for the water to cool down. But don't try to rinse your yarn in cold water to get it cooled down, it'll cause it to felt.

When it was cool enough to handle I wrung it out and then hung it in the bath tub to dry.

Voila! Yarn make over complete!

Towering Inga

My first Ugh!

The Pattern: The Inga Hat by Sheila Macdonald 
The Yarn: Main Color Ella Rae Classic in White 01
     Contrast Color 1 Jo Sharp Classic DK Wool in Maple 911
     Contrast Color 2 Cascade 220 in Teal 9420
Needle size: 3 and 5

Started: 3/7
Finished: 6/14

This is my second colorwork project and my first try with more than 2.

I did have a little trouble managing the 3 colors. It is much easier when you only have to worry about 2 colors.

It was fun to watch the braided edge come together. However, there is a lot of twisting of the yarn. Don't worry though. the first half of the braid twists in one direction and the second half twist in the opposite direction. So if you just let it keep twisting it'll eventually work itself out.

If you're having trouble understanding the pattern instructions for the knitted braid here's a good link to help you out: Siskyou Knits

I changed the chart up a bit, because I wanted to bring more of the second contrasting color into the pattern. So I used the second contrasting color for the centers of the diamonds and the lines inbetween. I recolored the chart so that I'd remember to use the correct color. The colors wouldn't have meshed as well if I didn't bring more of the teal in.

Things I love about Inga:
·The color combination. I really like the teal and maple combo, I think it looks really delicious and they really pop against the white background.
·The diamond design, I like the intricate look.
·The braided edge. Cool technique and I like how it turned out.

The ONE thing I HATE about how Inga is her size. She's ridiculously tall!

This is clearly my fault, because everyone else's Inga's seem to be the right height. Yet mine towers above. I suspect I should have paid more attention to the height of my gauge. I do confess, I didn't swatch for this.

I plan to go back and fix her. Eliminating half a a diamond should bring it down to the right height, but for now I'm shelving Inga. In the back of my closet. So I don't have to look at her. Because I'm frustrated.