Olympic Knitting - Part 2

Day 4
Sent off an email to the yarn company and they responded. They were very apologetic and offered to send 5 balls of the same dye lot by Express Post. That was very nice of them. In light of this news, I decided to take a rest day.

Day 5
The new yarn arrived while I was at work. I did not expect it to across Canada so fast!  I had the back fully knitted up and really was not looking forward to knitting the back yet again with the new yarn. Decided to start on the front instead.

Day 6
Ripped back the front when I noticed I did not use the smaller needles for the ribbing. Start again.

Day 7
Knit a few rows.

Day 8
Knit a few more rows.

At this rate, I should be done for the 2018 Winter Games. I think I'll just take my time, knit and watch the Olympics on TV and enjoy the show.

2014 Ravellenics have begun!

The 2014 Ravellenics (formerly known as Ravelympics but due to a cease and desist letter from the 2012 USOC, the name as been changed).

Anyhow, the games have begun and knitters all over the world cast on their projects at the start of the Opening Ceremonies.  Due to the huge time difference, we recorded the ceremonies and I was able to cast on while watching the recorded show. 

Day 1 - false start #1.  I'm not really following a pattern.  I have yarn and the plan is to make a cardigan - my version of the the Olympic sweater.  I had made a swatch the week before as my "training" and worked out how many stitches I'm going to need.  After knitting 6", it was obvious that the cardigan would be too big.  Frogged back and started over again. 

Day 2 - false start #2.  I'm just about to bind off the back and noticed the colour was slightly off.  I checked the bag and realized the second ball of yarn was a different dye lot.  Bad.  Checked the rest of the yarn and saw that the company I ordered the yarn from sent me three balls of one dye lot and two balls of another dye lot.  ARRGH!  Annoying because the company is a reputable yarn company and should know better, considering we had a phone conversation when I placed the order discussing how much yarn I'm going to need to knit this sweater. Checking dye lots for a knitter is as fundamental as breathing.  Frogged back again to start over using one of the three and hope it's going to be enough for both the front and back, saving the other two different dye lots for the sleeves.

Day 3 - so far so good.  Halfway done with the back and feeling good.  Hand is a bit sore - I'm not used to knitting this much with very bulky and heavy yarn.  Tomorrow may be a rest day.  

Did I made a difference today?

I like to think that in some small way I did made a difference today. I used cloth bags for my groceries. I recycled my cans and plastics. I shopped local. These are all the things my family do now as a matter of course.  Little things adds up.

I think it's great that all these things are now part of our normal daily routine. By doing so, yes, I made a difference today.

The weather was much cooler today and I was able to get some knitting done. I found this project while rummaging in my workroom looking for some sock yarn. I forgot all about this project...it's going to be a light knitted tee done with Habu silk. I'm about halfway through so I might be able to finish this before the end of summer. It's all stockinette stitch and knitted in the round so it's really boring.

King of Coffeemakers

My Hansen mini spinner is not here yet but the new coffee maker arrived on Friday. It's a very unusual looking machine this Technivorn Mochamaster. It's handmade...yes, handmade coffee maker. While not quite as awwsome as a mini spinner, it's a pretty amazing coffee maker. What makes it so special is that it actually brews coffee at the right temperature!


On the knitting front, I finished the Stockholm shawl in record time. My motivation was the very cold mornings waiting for the train. Long enough to wrap around twice and wide enough to pull over my head as a hood.


Pithy details: Berroco Ultra Alpaca in dark brown, roughly 3-ish skeins (yarn reclaimed from a project that was destined to be unfinished). 7 mm needles, cast on 252 sts and knitted in the round. Knitted to 16" wide and blocked to 13". Silly me washed it in warm water.

Boxing Day

I think, of all of the days during the Christmas holidays, my favourite day is Boxing Day. It's a little like the hump day of Christmas and New Year's Day. I don't really care for the crowds of Boxing Day shoppers so it's a stay-at-home day for me. Boxing Day is when the craziness of Christmas has past, the presents have been opened, and everyone is relaxing to enjoy their new toys. You still have plenty of leftovers from the dinners previously so no cooking is required. There is still the holiday glow but you're not quite into the New Year's celebrations yet.

It's a day that you can sit around and catch up on all the Christmas specials that you recorded but haven't had time to watch. And knit.



Excuse the mismatched hat...she doesn't have hair yet.

Shrugging off the Shrug

Version 1 - I hate sewing so I thought it would be brilliant to knit the shrug in the round. I always get gauge so didn't bother doing a swatch. By the time I finished the first sleeve and was well on my way through the back, I decided the fabric was too tight. I wanted something looser. Ripped everything out and started with bigger needles.

Version 2 - This time, I casted on for the sleeve and knitted 4" and checked the gauge. Close enough...just off by a stitch or two. No problem. I wanted the shrug to be on the big side anyway. Merrily knitted the first sleeve, the back, and then the second sleeve. Keeping in mind that I wanted this shrug to be loose, I added 2 extra inches. Did I mention that because I wanted it on the big side, I casted on for the largest size? Well, I did. According to the pattern, this would give me 22" across the back when all done.

This morning, I noticed that I have only less than half a ball left and I still have the ruffles to do. Odd. I don't usually run out of yarn. Off I go to the LYS and found out they were out of the colour I'm using. If I'm lucky, I might have enought to do a simple edging. Got home and knitted the last three rows. I decided to pin the shrug together & make sure everything fits before binding off. It was too big. Measured it and it turns out that it was 5" too big across the back. 27" across the back meant that it was falling-off-my-shoulders-too-big. No wonder I ran out of yarn.

Version 3 will have to wait until another day when I'm not so frustrated.

Things that save the day:
1. Picked up fibre from Sweet Georgia. Can't wait to spin that.
2. Picked up more Noro Shirakaba in a different colour in case I want to make another shrug. This time, I bought extras.
3. First time ever! Four balls of Noro and only found two knots.