Peacock in Progress - Chart 6

We have finally made it to Grand Rapids, Michigan and I am up to my eyeballs in boxes. The good news is that I know where my yarn is. As long as that is accounted for all is well. It has also rapidly turned into fall. I have gotten to wear my green aran sweater for the first time. I think that was overly ambitious, however, since I had to take it off by afternoon.

I have finished chart 6 of my Peacock Feathers Shawl. It is turning out fairly nice and I am actually having a lot of fun with it now. I think that I find knitting it enjoyable so long as I do not have to shift the stitch markers which I find quite time consuming and annoying. I finished my first 440 yard ball of yarn on row 170. I have 3 balls left which makes me think I may have quite a lot leftover. I am thinking of doing the Estonian scarf that was in Vogue Knitting or Branching Out from Knitty. We'll see what I am in the mood for when this is all over.

My First Knitting Project

I have recovered most of my vision and am frantically getting ready for our big move to Michigan this week. In sorting out all of our Stuff (I think it deserves a capital letter), I came across my first knitted piece ever.

When I was 9 years old I knitted this blanket for my stuffed rabbit. I used garter stitch. The cast-on edge is way too tight and there is a hole from where I dropped a stitch. All-in-all I am quite impressed with myself though. This trip down memory lane . . .

Unfortunately I am a packrat so back to sorting through the Stuff.

Peacock in Progress - Chart 5

I finished chart 5 of my Peacock Feathers Shawl last weekend. Unfortunately I finished it in time for my daughter to accidentally poke me in the eye. I have been having daily visits to the doctors but I think that my vision is finally beginning to return. I haven't been able to work on my shawl because it requires better vision than I have at the moment. Instead I have been working on an item that requires only stockinette stitch. For awhile I was knitting it with my eyes closed because it hurt too much to open them. I am anxiously awaiting the return of my vision.

As for chart 5 of the shawl, it does seem to be going faster and I am having an easier time remembering the pattern. Of course, chart 5 and 6 are very short. The good news is that the last two charts seem to require few marker shifts.

Berry Blue Thumbless Mittens

By Lorri Ann R.

After I finished dying my recycled yarn with Kool Aid, I knit up some thumbless mittens for my 8 month old. There is nothing as frustrating as trying to fit a baby thumb into a mitten so I have skipped the thumb. I have written out the directions so that everyone can knit mittens for the babies in their lives.

Size:
Fits approximately 6 to 18 months.

Materials:
50g worsted weight yarn (I used recycled yarn (11wpi) from a white thrift store sweater that I dyed with Berry Blue Kool Aid.)
Four size 3 double pointed needles (or size needed for gauge)
Stitch marker
Tapestry needle

Gauge:
20 stitches = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

Directions:

Make 2:

Cast on 28 stitches loosely.

Arrange stitches evenly over 3 double pointed needles. Join into a circle being careful not to twist your work. Place marker at the beginning of the row.

Ribbing: *K2, P2*, 7 times.

Repeat ribbing row until ribbing measures 1 ½ inches.

Increase row: K next row across increasing 4 stitches evenly around. (32 stitches)

Stockinette stitch: Continue to K around until the stockinette stitch portion of the mitten measures 2 inches.

Next row: *K6, K2tog*, 4 times. (28 stitches)

Stockinette stitch: Continue to K around until the stockinette stitch portion of the mitten measures 3 inches.

Decrease as follows:
Row 1: *K5, K2tog*, 4 times. (24 stitches)
Row 2: K around.
Row 3: *K4, K2tog*, 4 times.
Row 4: K around.
Row 5: *K3, K2tog*, 4 times.
Row 6: *K2, K2tog*, 4 times.
Row 7: *K, K2tog*, 4 times.
Row 8: K2tog 4 times. (4 stitches)

Finishing: Cut yarn leaving a 10 inch tail. Thread yarn onto tapestry needle and sew through remaining 4 stitches 2 times. Tack tail on inside of mitten. Weave in ends.

Abbreviations:
K - knit
P - purl
K2tog - knit 2 together
Dec - decrease
Inc - increase
Wpi - wraps per inch

This pattern is for your personal use only. Please do not copy it, post it, or sell items made using pattern.

What's for Dinner?

Here is my first attempt at Kool Aid dying with the wool yarn from my recycled sweater. I used Berry Blue and Pink Lemonaide.

My first batch was the Berry Blue which I did in the microwave. I had the skeins of yarn wrapped too tightly which resulted in white lines throughout the yarn. I actually like the final look of the yarn although it is not what I had intended.

My second batch of yarn was the Pink Lemonaide which you can see cooking on the stove. My husband seriously questionedmy sanity when he saw me cooking wool in the kitchen at 9 at night. The color came out more uniform although the pink had a bit too much orange in it for my taste.