Here we go again
Remember the stash dive the other day? The one that led to a small mountain of fall-colored scraps heaped in a pile in the corner of my office? Yeah. Well those little bits of yarn crept up behind me when I wasn't looking, tripped me, wrestled me into submission, and climbed onto my needles. This is the start of one of those things. One of those ridiculous, pointless, all-consuming obsessions that occasionally grips me. And I mean, the results are never bad. In the past, these fits have led to hears, stars, acorns, and cupcakes. All of which have, in [...]
Second verse, same as the first
I feel like there should be some way to make 'and then do it all again' more interesting than it is. Now mind you, I haven't found that way. But I do think there should be one. So let's all just sort of communally agree to nod along and pretend that knitting slipper (or sock...or mitt) number two posed all sorts of unexpected challenges and perplexing developments. Or we could just sort of revel in something going smoothly and easily and maybe admit that not every bit of knitting needs to be a breathless tale of death defying adventure. Sometimes [...]
This part’s quick
Once these join up, they zip right along. I'm not sure why I knit faster in the round, but somehow I really really do. This brings up a handy opportunity to be obnoxiously preachy (what fun, I'm sure you're thrilled!). Lots of folks get a different gauge when they knit in the round than when they knit flat. The only way to know for sure if you do is...you guessed it...to swatch. Swatch both in the round and flat. Which I know is not what you want to hear. But on projects like this where you knit both flat and in [...]
Like a weed
Now you it's time to basically sit back and watch this grow. The sides and bottom of the slipper sort of grow out of the bit on the back. There's a stage there in the middle where it looks a little menacing (lots of needles because the fabric is U-shaped, even though you're knitting flat...if you were less stubborn than me and used circular needles it would be less prickly at this stage). But after a while things calm down and you just knit and knit and knit until the slipper gets close to where you want it to join [...]
A Little Loopy
Sometimes it's the tiniest little details that get something started. I've been wanting some slippers with a little loop on the back for, well, for an awfully long time now. So it was time to finally make that happen. I did a bit of planning and fiddling and got everything all sorted out in my head. I knew exactly how this was going to come together. And, as is so often the case, once I figured out how something will work, I sort of feel like I've solved the puzzle and then don't necessarily care about actually doing the thing. (Tell [...]
While we’re at it
So, let's fix another hat top while we're at it. Remember how I said I did not madly love the top of the turquoise hat? And how brioche hat tops should be a thing of joy? Yeah. So let's fix it. Here's what it looked like at first. The decrease lines are just a little too jagged and not swirly enough. It's not awful, but it's not great. So step one is ripping it out. I jammed needles in the stitches so I could just rip back and know when to stop and have an easy time getting the live [...]
Ready for my closeup
This is the knitting equivalent of 'let's zoom in reeeeeeeeal close on your nose and make you feel bad about your pores.' Gather round. See it? I'll sing the 'one of these things is not like the other' song for you in the background. See how on most of the clusters, there are three columns of knit stitches...but on one there are four? Yeah...that's no good. Here, let's show it off again, in all it's messed up glory. Right there in the middle. I should have ripped it. I should have, it wouldn't have taken long, and it would have been [...]
Refraction (plus giveaway)
Refraction is out on ravelry, it's 10% off with the code BOUNCE (or you can get it as part of a set for a bigger discount, details on the rav page), and I've got yarn to give away! But first I want to talk about the hat a little. This is the knitting equivalent of opposite day. Wait, that takes a little explanation... So, earlier this year I fell hard for brioche. I was (and remain) hideously smitten. I had a hard time knitting anything else. But, I know not everyone shares my current obsession. Which I suppose is fine...probably [...]
On a technicality
So I mean technically this is done. As in 'it's not on the needles any more.' But I'm not loving the top as much as I should. So I'm going to rip back the last dozen or so rounds (yes, on fuzzy yarn, yes, on brioche) and fix it. Because it will be SO much better if I fix it. So, all the good vibes, all the good light, and absolutely no lap kittens for the next fifteen minutes. I'll report back when it's all better!
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