What are you proudest of making?

I received a very thought-provoking email newsletter from 'Knitting Daily' a couple of weeks ago, entitled "What are you proudest of making?", and it piqued my inspiration for another blog post (can one 'pique one's inspiration', I wonder? Oh well, I'll say I can.)

So, what am I proudest of making?

1. Mohair cowl-neck jumper, also known as 'My First Jumper'. I had been knitting blanket squares for what seemed like forever, when Mum handed me a big bag from Victoria House with balls of Heirloom Picasso, needles and a Patons (or was it Cleckheaton? Maybe it was Cleckheaton.) pattern book, saying to me "Here. Now knit something useful!".

I discovered that with my ability to knit, purl, increase and decrease, I really could make myself something wearable. The colours are a dark rainbow of sorts, reminding me of an oil slick. I followed the pattern to the letter. The ribbing is riddled with errors, hidden mercifully within the fuzzy mohair; the seams are lumpy and awkward, as I had no idea about weaving pieces together; and the entire thing is enormous, as I was convinced that the best size to knit would be The Biggest. Because, after all, I could wear something that was too big, I couldn't wear something too small.

2. My First Socks; continuing the 'My Firsts' theme I have going here. There is something amazing about knitting your first pair of socks. Realising I could knit a tube using five needles was a revelation, and turning a heel to create a specially-placed dent in the tube was, well, mind-blowing. I credit Stephanie Pearl-McPhee with helping me make sense of it all, and showing me just how easy it really is. Plus, handknit socks really really impress knitting Muggles: "Oh, these? Just something I whipped up myself..."

3. My 'Raspberry Clapotis' and my 'Baby Mine': Firstly, 'Baby Mine'... I can knit lace? Yep. I can knit a seamless garment? Yep. A challenging and extremely rewarding knit - I loved it. It was this and my 'Raspberry Clapotis' that I believe helped my Mum (who taught me to knit) to see my knitting in a whole new way. When looking at the half-finished Clapotis on weekend, she commented that I seem to knit like I'm creating art. She has also mentioned that my Gran (her mum, who taught me to knit the second time) would be so proud to see my knitting. I'm instantly proud of anything I've made that can prompt a compliment from my mum.

4. WonderBoy's Weasley Sweater: The first knitting I've done where I've really thought about gauge, yarn substitution and the mathematics of size. It turned out reasonably successful, and I'm extremely proud of not just knitting what the pattern says.

And, in a preemptive listing on the 'Proud-O-Meter', I have a very warm feeling about Lola-Frog's 2009 blanket. Each month, I feel good about the squares I'm completing, and I'm so proud to think that she'll be have a tangible, huggable reminder of how I felt about her arrival.

Knitting speaks volumes, and I love that.

I'm forever knitting bobbles...

I've started a "Cables and Bobbles" square for the first of three April squares of Lola-Frog's 2009 blanket, and I'm quite enjoying it, really - I've never knit a bobble before, and I feel quite pleased with myself whenever one turns out okay.

I read an article in one of the knitting magazines Mum lent me a few days ago (and I can't for the life of me remember which one or where!!), where someone (who?) says that one should always stop to admire one's knitting often as you go, to make sure you're still enamoured with the project, also to remind yourself just how fabulously talented you are. I like this advice. I like to look down every few rows and marvel at the patterns emerging from the underside of the needle, like a document sliding from a printer... it just appears, as if by magic! But photos of the squares will be here when they're all completed and blocked. It gives me something to aim for.

However, there are photos of the Raspberry Clapotis! Sadly, the weather round these parts has been fantastic for crops, gardens and ducks; less so for outdoors knitting photography. So in the name of expediency, we shall make do with a chair near the window...... and one, just to show the rows of dropped stitches. I still can't believe how long it took to drop a stitch and have it ladder down a row in this yarn - I really had to work at each and every drop to get them to let go! Still, I think it's worked out very prettily, and I'm quite pleased with it. I think I shall wear it tonight to Knit Night.

Here's the Noro Striped Scarf, in its' infancy. I LOVE knitting this scarf, and it's just emerging so naturally and organically - I almost don't need to concentrate too hard now on the 1x1 rib, my hands have got used to working the stitches in this pattern. When Lola-Frog is having a lie and a kick on her mat, I sit next to her to knock off a few more rows while I'm chatting to her, and she's just... transfixed! She watches my hands so intently as I'm knitting this one, I'm beginning to think she'll be picking up her own needles before long!

Stay tuned

I have completed my "Raspberry Clapotis", finally! Photos hopefully to be taken and posted tomorrow - I want to take shots outside, and we've finally got a week's worth of rainy weather in our area, thank goodness...

Noro Striped Scarf was cast on at Knit Night last Thursday, and I am LOVING it stupid... the colour changes keep me so excited, and quickly dashing off a row or two when I've got ten minutes to spare is easily done. It's coming along beautifully. Photos tomorrow, hopefully...

Next on the list? I'm trying to decide between having a crack at a Baby Surprise Jacket for Lola-Frog (I've decided to use her actual nickname rather than her 'in utero' name!) or starting WonderBoy's Weasley Sweater, while I get started on the April squares for 2009 in a Blanket...

Three projects running simultaneously - can it be done? Time will tell...

Mad as a March Square...

Quick picture update on the '2009 in a Blanket' KAL... I have completed the three March squares and am all ready to get back to my Raspberry Clapotis! Sounds like some sort of dessert - yum!


Here's the first; the pattern is from 'knitsimple' online, called "Carla's Blanket"... I've enjoyed choosing patterns from this blanket to add to mine...

This one is from my book, "Blankets and Throws to Knit" by Debbie Abrahams. Lots of inspiring squares in there that can be knit as the blanket pattern prescribes, or by picking and choosing individual squares, like I have... The intarsia was a bit of a battle - as all intarsia is for me! - but like all intarsia for me, this was rewarding in its outcome.

And the third, also from Debbie Abrahams book. Not my favourite - it didn't work out quite the way I'd wanted... It's supposed to be done in one colour, with the wavy lines being done in a texturally contrasting purl stitch against the flat knit stitch background. But, for better or for worse, it's done.
Back to Clapotis tomorrow night at Knit Night... it's coming along nicely. I did make the decision to add further repeats of the middle section rows to elongate it, and I'm pleased I did - it's looking very good, and eminently wearable for this winter!

A new month, and a Clapotis dilemma...

I have been knitting away furiously at my Clapotis scarf (and am very impressed with the way it's looking right now!) for the last few days. I have to say that knitting this in sock yarn, on 3mm needles does make me feel like I've fallen into one of the black holes that plague knitters. I'm up to the middle section - actually, I've just completed the middle section as the pattern dictates, and I was able to excitedly announce to Pete how pleased I was that I could start on the decreases: "Finally, I can decrease... DECREASE!"... It's all very autumnal here...

Now I'm not so sure. I've held it up, measured the sides, stretched it out a little, measured the sides again and wrapped it around my neck and I'm starting to think that maybe I need to do several more middle section repeats so that I end up with a longer scarf. I have plenty of yarn left (which is another hint to me that I should make it longer), but am lacking a little willpower. My internal dialogue is sounding a little like this:

Sane me: "You know, you're going to want this to be longer. It's not going to wrap around your neck properly."

Impatient me: "Yeah, but... but the pattern says I can decrease now."

Sane me: "You are going to be totally annoyed at yourself when you finish up with a heap of leftover yarn and a scarf that's too short."

Impatient me *whingeing*: "Yeah, but the pattern... the pattern says so!"

Sane me: "Every time you put this scarf on - every time you even look at a top and think 'Hey, my Raspberry Clapotis would look great with that!' - you're going to shudder and remember that you could have had it fit fine if only you'd listened to me in the first place. Let's not go to that place, yeah?"

Impatient me: "Will you look at the calender? It's March already. I'm gonna start the next squares for the Year in a Blanket KAL. So there."

Dyeing for a change

A few weeks ago, I posted about an acquired stash of six 50 gram balls of cotton that Mum had sourced for me from the op shop she volunteers at. It's called 'Panama' by Cleckheaton (something I've never seen or heard of, before or since!) and is the most basic, icy-white colour.

I've decided white is boring. It all needs a good wash anyway, so I've unwound it all and prepared it to be skeined (hurrah for my 'All-Powerful' swift!), washed and then dyed. I want to try handpainting this cotton, to try to get repeating stripes, so I can knit it into a couple of little pinafore-type dresses for Little One. I just hope I can figure out how to do it properly and right the first time - I don't have any extra to fall back on!I'm going to use Dylon cold water dye, which I have used to dye cotton before (tie dye, but successful dyeing nonetheless), so I know it works - one remaining question is: Dylon cold water dyes are usually used by submersing the item to be dyed in a pot of the colour, rather than painting it on sections and wrapping in plastic, which is how you see most handpainted yarns done (they are then heated up, either in a microwave or steamed in hot water)... can I do this with my cold water dye??

Maybe to play it safe, I could arrange the yarn to 'flow' into and out of several containers, each with a measure of dye... nicolana111 (on Ravelry) has pictures of something similar that she did to make her own self-striping sock yarn (project name is 'Hand Dyed Self Striping').

In the meantime, I have this entry in my list of things to get done this week:
"Knit on the Clapotis without planning new projects"

Here is the Clapotis as it stand right now;(don't you just love my DIY stitch markers there?)

... and here is the yarn I bought on Monday (Cleckheaton Country Prints 8 ply) to start a Baby Surprise Jacket for Little One.
That's a big FAIL there for me!