knitting school dropout

you're here!
welcome to the new site. you'll probably notice frequent changes here as i try to figure out what the hell i'm doing get aquainted with movable type. i've already moved many of the old posts here, although they no longer have comments.
au revoir blogger!
besides staring blankly at the computer, i have also been working on the cardigan.
in an attempt to assuage bordom, i ran out to webs to pick up addi 12 inch circulars , and started knitting a sleeve. it didn't work. the 12" needles are great for sleeves, but man, do my hands cramp up while using them. now i've started alternating between sleeve and body.

i'm looking forward to those button bands and the trim, but at this rate, it may be awhile.

Posted by melissa at 08:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

i want to finish this cardigan, but i knit, and knit, and it doesn't seem to get any bigger. maybe knitting a long-sleeve sweater on size 3 needles in this humidity wasn't the best idea i've ever had. i'm into the end of the second ball of d.b. wool/cotton in dark brown. the whole sweater is knit in stockinette, and the edges will be picked up and knit in that light yellow. the button band will be wide, with 2 rows of buttons, that i've yet to pick out. even after the edging is knit, it should have a pretty wide neckline, just the way i like it.

the lacy tank has been partially frogged. i still need to get that sucker back on the needle. sooo not looking forward to that.

Posted by melissa at 08:31 AM | Permalink

maybe hate is too strong of a word, but mere seconds after completing the lace-topped tank, i threw it on and ran to the mirror. from the top to right under the bust, i loved it. the decreases under the bust were perfect, but somewhere in my freestyle knitting i went a little overboard with the increases. the damn thing made me look pregnant.
if i'm going to walk around looking pregnant, i want the free baby that comes with it. right after i undo the bind-off, i'm attaching the end to my ball winder and frogging 60% of it. i'll re-knit it over the next few weeks, but i really need to work on something else. i've started a chocolate brown raglan cardigan, mostly because i just need one, in debbie bliss wool/cotton.
here's the last photo of the tank before i finished. i was hanging out w/ my best friend on her porch, which just happens to be right up the stairs from mine.

if you look down the stairs, you can see a bit of my porch, with my flowers and green rocking chair.

Posted by melissa at 08:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

i tried to take advantage of the sunshine today and show the nearly completed tank. the result is the washed-out and shadowy photo below. i only need to knit the second strap and about 2 more inches on the bottom and this baby is done!

i also finished the dream swatch for my stepmom:

it was an extremely lazy weekend here, which is exactly what i needed. i got a chance to read some of Maggie Righetti's Sweater Design in Plain English, and started planning out my first baby sweater. knitting a sweater for a baby that hasn't been born yet is a bit intimidating. there is no head, chest or upper arm to measure. i'll be making a cardigan, probably with a little lace detail. i have 9 weeks to get it done.

Posted by melissa at 07:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

that's about all i've knit on the tank this weekend. i was sidetracked by this one skein of Mountain Colors wool/mohair handpainted yarn. the colors just made me think of my stepmom, a very earthy/outdoorsy kind of gal. i knew i'd be visiting her this weekend, so i thought i'd knit something up for her and bring it along. i decided to use knit & tonic's dream swatch pattern, which is super-easy. i brought it along on my visit today, so she could decide if she wanted it a single or double wrap length. single it is.

i left her house with a box of old buttons that belonged to her mother and grandmother, beautiful ones, glass knots, glass balls, painted wooden buttons, and odd shaped plastics. i can't wait to use them.
i should be finished with the scarf tonight, then it's back to the tank. i'm not sure where to go from here with it. part of me just wants a few decreases and a 2 inch band of garter stitch under the bust, but then i think i might want to make a sort of belt, closing with 2 rows of 2 buttons, just under the bust. then i'm thinking that i absolutely do not want to end up on you knit what. know what i mean?

Posted by melissa at 06:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

man, i am an idiot. i am 31 years old now, and should know better.
my sunburn, my really bad sunburn from sunday's flea market, is now an attractive combination of blisters and welts. maybe next time i'll wear sunblock.

i've started the top back of the new tank. it doesn't look like much, but that's yesterday's picture, and today the camera batteries are dead.
i guess the shape is sort-of inspired by my recent apron binge, my renewed love of garter stitch, and the urge to make something summery that i can use up some of my cute buttons on. the top will eventually have 1" wide straps that close with 2 buttons each. it looked cute as a drawing at least, we'll see how it actually turns out.
i'm also considering making another orangina in either red, or black. the yarn is just sitting there in my stash, and it was a fun and easy project. i just can't decide which color to use.
the leaf t-shirt pattern is now a pdf. there's a link in the sidebar.
pass the aloe.

Posted by melissa at 06:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)