Happy new year!

Last post of 2006...

<-<-<- Be careful around the fireworks everyone!








I hope 2007 is going to be a good knitting year! I've even thought up some knitting resolutions:

• I will finish seaming my Otis cardigan during January, even though I would much rater knit for Socktopia and the Stranded KAL.
• I will do my very best to knit for the KALs I've signed up for. No slacking tolerated!
• I will knit lovely things for all the babies popping out around me, even though they are plenty!
• I will knit a sweater for DD! A knitters child should not go without
• I WILL GET BETTER AT SWATCHING!

Also, I hope I can get a hang of pattern management, but I won't put that on the list. As I know I probably won't get there.

Wishing all my readers (I hope I have some) a very happy new year!

He said I could do it...

CIMG2079
Originally uploaded by G_u_r_o.

I started these socks 23 Dec, having an on and off for a few weeks project in mind. At a family party 25 Dec hubby told the recipient, his brother, that they would surely be ready for New Years Eve. Well, I just had to put other knits to the side and concentrate on these... And they are done now, with plenty of time to spare. Hubby was right:) I managed to fit in quite a lot of knitting inbetween all the Christmas eating and festivities.
I have not woven in the ends on the toes, as I'm not 100% sure they are big enough. I have a fair bit of yarn left, so I can easily undo the toe and make the foot longer. I'm even thinking of picking up stitches from the cast on edge and do a few more rounds of ribbing. I think BIL once mentioned he likes his socks long.

I really like these socks, although the stripes don't match up as well as I'd hoped. Apparently, no one notices but me.

We all love it!

The blue light special I knit for my brother is done. He really likes it, and the colours suit him wery well too.


The insides of the hat. The floats look a bit long, but they are just right when the hat is worn.

See how happy he is with his new hat, I got a bit hug for it and all:)

(This photo is taken by DD, 4 yrs old. )

For those wondering:

• pattern: Red light special by brooklyntweed. http://brooklyntweed.blogspot.com/2006/12/red-light-special-pattern.html
• yarn: Falk by Dale yarns. I used up nearly the whole ball of the main colour, the others have plenty left over. For the lining I used Cotton Sport by Gjesdal, 3/4 of a ball.
• Needles: 2,5mm addi turbos for the lining, 3,5mm Inox bamboo dpn's.
• Time to knit it: about 4 evenings, the lining took one evening of knitting alone.
• Yes, I'll gladly knit this hat again!

So, now I'm a joiner too

I've joined two knitalongs recently. The first one is The Colorwork Challenge, a knitalong for stranded knitting. The second one is socktopia, a sock knitting KAL.

The Colorwork Challenge is already in progress. I've finished one item for this KAL. It was done late last night, the Red light special hat mentioned earlier in this blog. Awsome pattern and FO, now I just have to take some decent photos and then I'll post more on it.

Socktopia; I'm really looking forward to this! It's not one of those knit-a-sock-from-THIS-pattern KALs. Instead each month has a theme, and as far as I've understood, you're pretty free to come up with your own take on that theme... Kick off for Socktopia is Dec. 31, and it's on for the entire 2007.

Want to join too?

You find the KALs here:

http://strandedcolorwork.blogspot.com/

http://socktopia.net/blog/

Blue light

CIMG1960
Originally uploaded by G_u_r_o.

Two posts in one day. The nearing Christmas combined with absolute lack of proper preparations must be driving me crazy.

I'm knitting this hat for my brother, for his birthday. His birthday was in July *sigh*. It's a free pattern by the now somewhat famous Jared of the Brooklyntweed blog. I very much understand his popularity; his pictures are awsome and his knits are very inspiering. This pattern is really good! Judging from the state the hat is in now, I'll probably make more of these. But I dare not say anyting for certaing until it's finished
Anyway, this hat is for my brother. Good thing I have finally started it, because he called today to inform me that he's coming to visit us on monday. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to finish it by then, if life does not get in the way.
(Brother initially wanted a newsboy cap in camouflage green, but I never found the correct yarn for the pattern I have. This will suit him better I think, the gray goes with his winter coat and the blue with a scarf I've knit for him earlier.)

Thank you Winter Cheer/Spring is here SP!

Two days ago hubby brought a package for me from the post office. My second cheer up from my wonderful Winter Cheer SP, k2togbabe. There were soo many nice things in there. Chocolate coins in a very nice piggy bank chest, Doctor Burts products, sticky things to put under socks, weird bubble gum, lots of tea and two skeins of Lorna's Laces Sheperd Sock in the Wisteria colourway. Also, in the card, she writes that she is going to make and send me a needle case as soon as her sewing machine starts working again. Isn't that awesome? This was my very first SP round and I've had so much fun, both putting together packages for my downstream SP Natasha and being on the receiving end of awesome, kind and generous k2togbabe. As you can see from the pictures, we really really like the Lornas...


There is no doubt I'll join up for more SP rounds in the future!

And someone really, really wanted to get their hands on that bubble gum and those coins...

Mason-Dixon things

I've been doing some knitting from the Mason-Dixon book.



A heartbreakingly cute baby kimono. I really like this pattern! Quick and simple enough that you can adjust the pattern to your own liking. I'm thinking crystal Palace's new Bunny Hop yarn and seed stitch for the next one I'm making.




And sure, I made a Ballband dishcloth too. How could I not?

Working on projects from this book has also made me pick up an oldish WIP too. I'm nearly half done with a log cabin blanket. Very pink, very easy TV-knitting. Very lovely. Must be done by March!

Back from a few days in London

I really thought I would come back with a lot of yarn! I thought I'd get some Christmas shopping done too!

Want to know what I bought? Two mascaras!!!

And quite a lot of beer, and some food, but I didn't take any of that home with me.

Grrrrr!

I knit a reptile hat for my daughters friend who loves dinosarus, snakes and lizards. Opal sock yarn, Rainforest collection in Cameleon. I made the hat, my daugther made the pom-pom. As you can see, it fits the recipient very well!

Thankyouverymuch, Elizabeth

In this post I'd like to thank Elizabeth. I find her knitting, her patterns and her very good blog a great inspiration. She is one amazing womann, in very many ways I'm sure.


See my lovely, finished shawl? That gorgeous colour... Elizabeth sent me the KoolAid I used to get that lovely colour. Aslo it reminds me of the colours she uses in some of her knitting (wich I have already said I really like, we might just as well say love!)
Thank you Elizabeth, for being who you are, and enabeling knitters, like me, around the world make lovely knitted items to warm themselves and others!



The whole shawl looks like this by the way. I'm very happy with it. I'm actually quite proud to have finished it. It really tested my patience knitting this at times. And I can be one patient girl if I set my mind to it!
Did I mention I love wearing it? I do.

Last but not least, for those of my readers (I know there is at least 2) who stop by from the knittyboard; the black baby kimono and hat is done! It's for a little girl, born yesterday.

I think it's very cute!

Finally, the knitting is done, it's washed and is blocking. Can't wait to unpin it tomorrow. Those ruffles take some time to dry...

2000?

I've been working on this shawl for a very long time. It feels like forever, but I know for a fact it's not that long. I'm near the end of it now, and last wednesday I tried to estimate how many stitches I have crammed around my 180 cm circular needle. I'm no math genius, but I came up with a number well over 2000.




It's not a very big shawl, and the ruffle edge is only about 2 cm wide. I'm sick and tired of knitting it though, so I'm going straight to the sofa to bind it off after blogging. 2000 stitches to go...


Oh, and I was at an S'n'B last Thursday. Go see lovely Theresa's blog for more on that. It was great. And my very first time S'n'B-ing.

My next post will have pictures of the finished shawl!

Here a baby, there a baby, everywhere a baby-baby

No, I'm not having one. Or two or more either. But there sure is going to be a lot of baby knitting in the near future.


K is becoming a dad sometime in November
H&S are pregnant
K&S are pregnant
My cousin M is pregnant
My cousin B is pregnant
My cousin R is pregnant
My friend A is actively trying to become pregnant (ETA: turns out she is pregnant. I had a hunch, turned out to be right:)

For all I know, there might be more pregnant people around me without me knowing...

Good thing baby stuff can be really fast!

First sock of fall

I must be really dense. I can not figure out how to put pictures from Photobucket into this blog. I've finished a pair of socks and have no idea how to show you. I've maxed my Flickr account limit this month so I had to use Photobucket. Bad idea!

You can however read about them here.

I look like Paul Newman? Again?

Once upon a time a guy gave me a totally spontaneous compliment. He said I have eyes like Paul Newman. I guess this proves it?

It's one of the best compliments I have ever had!




Knitting content: I bought yarn when going out for lunch today. I'm now ready to knit chunky socks for my friend. Ene's scarf and I are not friends, I have put her aside after just half a row of knitting. I'm thinking of frogging and making Flower Basket Shawl instead. And I started a cap for a friend of DD yasterday. I'm using my defalult hat pattern Karlchen and Opal sock yarn. Will be done this week I hope. I need a quick FO to boost my knitting ego.

Hundertwasser to the frog pond

The sideways knit socks, from the Hundertwasser pattern have been frogged. I suspected they would be too narrow while I was knitting them. The main part and the heel were sort of OK, but the ribbing at the top... There was absolutely no way I was going to get that around my (thin) ancles. I could not even get it past my heel, no matter how much I tried. They are now frogged!

To comfort myself I have started to cast on for Ene's scarf from Scarf style. Only 58 more stitches to cast on, and then I have to persuade Petter to help me check I have the correct number of stitches, then I am set to go. I'm using 3 mm needles and a 100 % wool weaving yarn called Mora from a swedish company called Klippan, in a gorgeous blue colour.

Socktober

CIMG1797
Originally uploaded by G_u_r_o.

I know there is this thing going on called Socktoberfest, all in the celebration of sock knitting. I have not joined (as a matter of fact I have never joined any KAL of any kind as of yet). Before last week I was very happy knitting on Otis and a shawl I have been working on for quite some time. There are also quite a few things I want to cast on for that are not socks. Now that I have this blog there might even be the chance that I manage to kick my own butt and write down a pattern for a thing or two brewing in my head.
However... What I came home from Austria with was sock yarn. Three gorgeous, great 150g(!) balls of Regia 6-ply, bought at the local Spar shop. The brown one was picked by Petters brother. I have wanted to knit him socks since summer, when he showed great intrest in some socks I was working on for his sister. (I have only knit one so far, and the second has to be cast on for soon!) The other two balls I have no plans for yet. All I know is I really like the yarn, and I love that it's for 3-4mm needles. I'm a little bit sick of the tiny gauge (2-2,5mm needle) socks. A girl can never have too much sock yarn, anyway! Right?
I have also promised to knit socks for a friend of mine, in Drops Eskimo or Highlander yarn. I've never knit socks at a gauge of 11 st/10cm. Intresting and quick I hope.
In the midst of all this I cast on for a pair of sideways knit socks on tuesday. More on that to come. All I can say about it is it's kind of weird and I find it sort of interesting in a weird way. And I'm working on it quite a bit, hence tha lack of progress on Otis and Shawl. I can't wait to see if they will actually fit.
I'm also hoping to make some progress on Otis and the shawl this weekend. I'm having quite a bit of knitting time on my hands just by myself. I'm really looking forward to it!

Anyone think I have knitters ADD? Why on earth would you think that?

(And boy was this a messy and incoherent post.)

A lovely holiday

MGP
Originally uploaded by G_u_r_o.

Austria was gorgeous! The holiday week went really fast. Lots of sightseeing , even more food and not so much knitting.

We arrived in lovely late summer weather and managed one hiking trip in shorts and t-shirts before fall hit in and called for knitwear of various sorts whenever outside. As you can see in the picture there is snow on the mountaintops.

The greatest experience on the trip was out visit to the worlds largest ice-cave, http://www.eisriesenwelt.at/ . Ice formations over 80 years old, over 500 stair steps and no fancy modern lighting just hand held, open flame gas lamps. Breathtaking in more than one way...

I've managed two rounds of ruffle edge on my shawl, so hopefully I'll have an FO pic to post soon. And there was some s.e.x. in Austria too; three 150 g balls of Regia 6-fädig sock yarn.

WIP - Otis for winter

otis from Knitty
Originally uploaded by G_u_r_o.

The WIP I'm working the most on right now is Otis from a previous edition of Knitty. I don't have a progress photo of it yet, and it really isn't very exiting to look at either. I've done the sleeves so far. And they basically look like two long pieces of very curling stockinette.

I'm making a long sleeve version, usin Vamsegarn by Rauma. I'm hoping it will be ok to wear with shirts in the office during winter. If it turns out nice and I like it when it's done I might make another using better quality yarn. Vamsegarn is cheap and a bit rough and scratchy. Deep down I think I'm a bit of a yarn snob, so I'd rather wear something else. But this is my first adult sweater, so I did not want to spend a lot of money on the yarn either. At leas I know I can use this yarn for Fuzzy Feet or felted mittens if I screw up the cardi. I would not have knit with this yarn if I was going to wear the garment like in the picture, next to skin. That would not be comfy.

I'm leaving for holiday in Austria tomorrow. We will be away for a week. I've planned what knitting to bring, and feel like I'm ready to go. More blogging when I get back.

And so it begins

The first post...
The one where you feel you must say the right things or you'll have started out with the wrong foot first. I don't know what to say. But I think I'll get the hang of this sooner or later.

The stash is slowly growing and sometimes I actually finish something. You'll hear about it here.