knitting school dropout

oops, fell off the face of the earth for a minute there, sorry!

thanks so much for all the lovely comments on my last entry. you really know how to make a sweater feel loved! but really, all those positive words came at a time when i was feeling a little low and uninspired, and they gave me a virtual kick in my knitting ass.

so, what i've been up to since then is writing patterns. really. one, which i can't show you just yet, will be showing up in classic elite's web-letter in just over a month. if you're interested, you can subscribe to it here.

i've also been working on a pattern for my garter-yoked cardigan. since i'm kind of a seat-of-your-pants knitter, i usually cast on with an idea, but really no plan. if i don't take decent notes, i'm really struggling to figure out when and where i did what. this time, i'm re-knitting the sweater, but i'm attempting to write the pattern first, so i can also be test-knitting it as i go. the yarn i'm using is some beautiful beaverslide mctaggart tweed in a lovely pink, called "cutthroat trout".

i've also been carrying around this sock in my tote bag for what seems like forever. it's the child's first sock in shell pattern from knitting vintage socks. the yarn is some gorgeous merino sock from mamablue. i think this "mermaid" colorway is a great match for the shell pattern, but man, am i burnt out on socks. i'm only really knitting this one when i'm needing a break from my other projects.

the stitch pattern is one that is really easy to remember, so when i was asked to knit a spring hat for my great aunt, i decided to use it. i really love how it came out, although it's much too small for me, it's just perfect for her.

i'm making 2 other hats like this now. one is just a larger one, seen above, to fit me. the other is slouchier and has a slightly different stitch pattern. i'm having to do a lot of ripping and re-knitting on that one at the moment, but i'm sure it'll be finished pretty soon.

tomorrow i'm heading to mass sheep and wool for a little while. it's my first time going, so i'm not sure what to expect. unfortunately, i messed up my knee this week and i'm really not supposed to be skipping through fields and such, but i'm making an exception.

Posted by melissa at 09:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (18) | TrackBacks (0)

i've been carrying around this project in my tote bag for the last month, knitting a few rows here and there. yesterday's sudden cold snap had me powering through the last few inches.

the yarn, sock hop, really is as great as everyone claims. i wish i had more, but i refused to let myself buy some at the last sale. i hadn't finished this pair yet, and all my money was going to my mechanic anyway. where's my medal?

these socks were knit over 58 stitches on a us1 circular, toe-up (my favorite), with a figure 8 cast-on and short-row heel . i thought plain old stockinette was the way to go. the yarn is so pretty, it doesn't really need a pattern. i could have probably gone close to knee-high with these, but i thought i'd wear them more if i stuck with my standard height. i'm especially happy with the colors. this colorway, called "i feel free", is a combination of my favorite blues and greens. these have officially become my new favorite socks.

happy monday, folks!

Posted by melissa at 04:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (23) | TrackBacks (0)

only 20 days late, the girlfriend's 35th birthday socks are finally on her feet.

the details:
pattern: none. these are plain, 64 stitch, toe up socks with a short-row heel. i had to ask her to try them on constantly, because her feet are 3 sizes bigger than mine, and i was worried they wouldn't fit.
needles:us1, 2.25mm knitpicks circular for magic loop.
yarn: noro kureyon sock color 184
thoughts: well, the girlfriend likes them, and they fit her big feet perfectly, so overall i'm happy with the result. the yarn was good to work with for the most part. i've read many complaints about the roughness of the noro sock, but that's one of my favorite things about it. i love rough wool yarns. love them.
the yarn had some very thin parts, and in retrospect, i think i would have been better off using us0 needles. the yarn did plump up and soften a bit after washing, so they still look good. there was only 1 knot in the 3/4 of the skein i used, but it caused the pink and blue to repeat again and this kind of annoyed me. in the end, laziness won (it usually does), and i left it.
they're nice socks, and i'm a little jealous of them, but i probably won't be knitting another pair. there are too many great sock yarns i've yet to knit with.

i have the rest of the week off from work because i finally had my annoying, impacted, wisdom tooth removed this morning. for the last few weeks the left side of my face has been swelling up, so i'm glad to be done with it. i was an ass from the moment i woke up this morning, mostly because i was petrified of the anesthesia, but it's all good now. poor girlfriend.
i spent the whole day on the couch, knitting, eating gelato, and napping (sometimes in the middle of these activities). tomorrow won't be much different, i'm guessing.

Posted by melissa at 03:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (14) | TrackBacks (0)

my first ever sock is lonely no more:

pattern: elfine's socks by anna bell
yarn: fleece artist merino sock in "moss"
needle: addi turbo lace us1 for magic loop
time to knit: a ridiculous 6 months
thoughts: hooray! i love them.
sock #1 was my first ever sock. although i thoroughly enjoyed knitting it, a whole new world had opened up to me, and i found myself casting on for several other socks instead. socktoberfest was what finally inspired me to finish them up. after all, i was already half-way there.

this is a great pattern and a really good introduction to knitting toe-up with short-row heels. had i weighed my yarn into 2 equal balls ahead of time i would have known that i had enough yarn left to add an extra repeat to each leg. oh well, lesson learned. in the end i did 4 repeats on the foot and 4 on the leg.

now, back to my bubble pullover...

Posted by melissa at 02:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)

i have no idea where the last few weeks have gone.
i have 569 unread feeds in my bloglines, so i'm sure i'm totally missing out on all the greatest knits/crafty things ever. i'm daring myself to read most of them tomorrow.

i finished one of the str toe-up monkey socks (left). i also started and finished a completely unrelated sock:

the sock on the right is a pattern i've made up. i'm not sure if i like it yet. i was trying out different stitch patterns and none of them were what i really wanted, so i just kind of messed with one until it no longer resembled the original and wrote it down. somehow, over the last few days, it became an entire sock. i even wrote down a pattern. now i'm thinking that i no longer like the purl gutters in the center and at the sides. i'm thinking about just changing them to knit stitches in the second sock and calling it a step above stockinette. about the yarn, it's fleece artist sea wool and I AM IN LOVE WITH IT. it's silky and gorgeous and i don't know why i've had 2 skeins sitting in my stash so long and never tried it. love it.

my bubble pullover has seen a little more progress since this photo was taken. the body is complete and has almost one whole sleeve.

alright, i need to get ready to go out and have some over-priced cocktails with one of my best friends. i've been anti-social for too long.

in a few days i'll be back with reports on the 4 other projects i started last week. really.

Posted by melissa at 07:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)

i keep resolving to myself to become a better blogger, but it just hasn't happened yet.

well, i'm here now, and i come bearing a completed project!

pattern: baltic socks from clementineshoes
yarn: bmfa socks that rock lightweight "in the navy"
needles: us1 addi lace 32" circular for magic loop.
mods: the pattern is written cuff-down, but i knit mine toe-up, with a figure 8 cast-on and a short row heel. i knit a 68 stitch sock, adding the extra stitches to the stockinette panels on the sides.
i truly love thes socks, yarn, color, pattern, everything. i highly recommend the pattern, the lace panel is actually very easy to memorize. it is similar to the twin leaf panel from barbara walker's 2nd treasury, which is one i swatched once for a sweater idea that was never realized.

other than the socks, i've had a few little projects going. i've knit a really neat little swatch to plan for future fair-isling. i'm working on fixing a wide-necked disaster. i've also been knitting a few rows here and there on the two-toned shrug from fitted knits, although mine is one-toned. i have a few more things too, but it just started raining so i'll take photos another day.

for the last year, knitting has really taken over my life. if i'm not looking at knitting mags, technique or stitch books, admiring the knitting of knitters online, then i'm working on my own knitting. i used to read 3-5 books a week. now i can't think of more than 5 that i read this year that weren't knitting related. i also used to go to a gym 3-5 days a week. when i
did, i looked and felt healthier. i've also kind of lost touch with music, which my life used to revolve around. i'm mean how on earth did i miss the fact that electrelane came out with a new record months ago when the power out is one of the most listened-to records i own?
anyway, what i'm trying to say is, i still love knitting, but i'm going to be inserting more books, music, and exercise into my knitting time, because i really need to. i've already started walking on my lunch breaks, which used to always be my knitting time and my summer reading pile is looking good. maybe i should just quit my job, so i can do everything. yeah, that would be nice.

Posted by melissa at 10:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)

baltic sock #1 is officially finished, and i couldn't be happier this time. my first try didn't work out so well, largely due to the yarn i chose. this time i used bmfa socks that rock in the shaded solid "in the navy". instant love, i tell ya. i also knit the pattern toe up this time and i'm loving the leaf pattern going up the leg. swoon. the pattern is one that is easily memorized after only a few repeats, so i was knitting the bulk of the leg while watching pan's labyrinth (so good) and the 3rd season of the wire (shitbird!).

i've already started the toe of the second sock. miraculous, no? but i feel like i should take care of some unfinished business first. my arrowhead lace cardigan is only a half-sleeve away from being done. finally. i'm finishing up that sleeve right now, but i have some worries about the length of the body. it seems a little long for a light summery thing. this cardigan was supposed to be a little protection against the chill of air-conditioning that seems to bother me everywhere i go. i tend to wear 3-quarter length sleeve, slightly cropped cardigans around work and in restaurants throughout the summer. the problem is, i've knit this one with my usual length for sweaters, and with the shorter sleeves, it seems a little weird and less like something i would throw on everyday at work. i may adjust the length later today, but either way, this one is going to be finished this week. wish me luck!

don't forget to join the i made it with noro! flickr pool, i'm really enjoying looking at everyone's projects.

have a great sunday!

Posted by melissa at 01:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (15) | TrackBacks (0)

sock knitting has become overwhelming. there are just too many great patterns out there. i started another single sock at an emergency vet visit the other day. i figured that jaywalkers would be a perfectly mindless, but cute, knit while i was waiting. i returned home with a sick cat, his antibiotics, and a 76 stitch sock cuff that was way too big. so i ripped and started reknitting over 68 stitches while at the yarn harlot. now it's too small. i mean i can pull it on, but not without a stream of expletives, and i wasn't all that thrilled with how this particular colorway was knitting up in the pattern. before i ripped though, i had to take a photo. the yarn is socks that rock in the "socktopus" colorway, modeled here with my very own socktopus. aww...

i'm going to ask a little favor. could you please send all your good healthy kitty vibes this way? my very sweet cat, buddy, took a turn for the worse this morning and had to have emergency surgery to get rid of a blockage. he's out now, and i got a chance to see him after the surgery and he was rubbing his face against my hand, purring and letting out these cute little drugged kitty meows. he can't come home for at least 3 days though, they still have to see how his kidneys are doing after he heals a bit. i'm thinking positively. i'm sure he'll be sitting on my shoulders and trying to stick his paw in my mouth while i'm sleeping in no time. a little extra positive energy wouldn't hurt though.

Posted by melissa at 06:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (17) | TrackBacks (1)

i was looking for some yarn for my new project and realized that i have a few things that i probably won't use. i'm having a mini stash sale. click that link to check it out on flickr. if interested in any of the yarn, email me at knittingschooldropout(at)gmail(dot)com and i'll send you a paypal invoice. all the yarn has been sold! thanks everyone!

i finished one of the monkey socks the other day:

jenna was nice enough to point me in the direction of this video for the blonde redhead song "top ranking" off their newest cd. i'm a big fan of blonde redhead and miranda july already, which is why i love this video so much.

enjoy!

Posted by melissa at 04:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

i'm heading out the door in a minute, but here's a quick update:

i am on my way to developing a single sock problem.

yesterday i had every intention of knitting #2 of my elfine's socks. it wasn't meant to be. i was distracted instead by the monkey pattern and some great koigu sitting in my stash. by the end of the night, i was past the heel:

previous to this i had been plugging away at one of clementine's baltic socks. i had to knit the pattern after i fell in love with this temptress' version. i've run into a few problems though. i am so not in love with the lorna's laces i'm using. although it's the perfect yellow, it's super thin and feels like cotton on my hands. my first attempt at this sock came out way too small, so i ripped and reknit, casting on more stitches. i'm having a hard time doing the sl3k and k3tog with my blunt size 0 addis too, so the knitting has been going slowly, and hasn't been very enjoyable. the pattern is great. it's easy to follow and the results are pretty, but i think i'll be ripping this one and starting in a different yarn and i'm pretty sure my addi lace needles will help me out with the rest.

say goodbye to the yellow sock!

Posted by melissa at 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (1)

people, i have finally knit a sock.

i don't know what kept me from knitting one before. maybe it was the fear of the unknown, coupled with my inability to follow directions. i've knit several sock cuffs and partial legs before, but gave up well before the heel for one reason or another. now i get it. there are many reasons to love sock knitting, my favorite being the extreme portability of a small project. i see smaller totes and purses in my future.

the pattern is elfine's socks. they're knit toe up using magic loop starting with a figure 8 cast on, which i had always feared (it was easier than i thought). the only change i made was using a twisted rib instead of the garter cuff. the yarn i'm using is fleece artist merino sock in moss, it's pretty but a little fuzzy and not as soft as the koigu i'll be using on my next pair. um, that is, if i can finish the second sock.
i haven't forgotton about my sweater, i worked on it for a little bit with my coffee this morning. someday, i will finish.

i'm off to the outdoor flea market! have a great sunday!

Posted by melissa at 01:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (18) | TrackBacks (2)