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Green vest for the green-eyed best

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Well, I failed at documenting this one, but for good reasons -- this project worked out every step of the way.  I was planning a trip to Europe, which included visiting my best friend Ira. She enjoys wearing many things, but in particular collared shirts with vests, so I decided to knit her a vest. I got this beautiful Sublime yarn that was a cashmere/merino/silk blend that was honestly just sublime -- so soft and squishy and so very lovely to work with. I couldn't decide between beige and olive green and my daughter picked the latter, so olive green it was. Inspired by the earthy tone, I decided to incorporate the Column of Leaves pattern in the center of front and back of the vest. Determined to knit in the round, I adjusted it, changed up the border to include two mock cables on each side and 13 more stitches to make for a total of 73*2 stitches in the round. Here is the worst-ever chart of the front/back pattern, understandably beat up by the process of being constantly used ...
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Felt ball adventures

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We have spent time in our friend’s cabin in PEI the last two summers. There really is nothing quite like it and I’m not good enough of a writer to describe why. If you visit, no matter how much (or how little) you are in touch with your emotions or memories, one thing we will certainly have to agree on is that it is just so incredibly colourful. The spaces are always filled with rich, vibrant colours — no matter where you look. The bronzes of the beaches, the blues of the water and skies, the greens of the fields with freckles of purples. It’s the latter that really captivated me.  With so much green, you can only expect there to be lot of sheep and hence lot of wool. Of course I couldn’t resist buying local wool and of course I ended up with 3 shades of green and 3 shades of purple. Pure wool in DK or maybe sport weight. I didn’t know what I was going to do with it, but it certainly wasn’t going to be a scarf or a sweater as the wool was quite thick and not terribly soft.  Th...
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Fingerless frenzy

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I saw these Clouldburst fingerless gloves and I loved them. I figured these will work great for anyone on the West Coast and their milder climate. I had lovely Lion Brand's Touch of Alpaca yarn that and I got to work. I used my 2.5mm flexi needles and had to cast on 36 stitches for a nice fit. This meant slightly adjusting the pattern. Knitting went smoothly and quickly, nothing special to report here. Soon I had a pair of fingerless gloves.  I loved the longer fit on both the fingers and the wrist. But I didn't think this pattern was as visible on my yarn of choice as it was on the original. So why not try another pattern?  I wanted something similar with a vertical column of maybe cables and I remembered Purl Soho's Soft as a Cloud Cowl  and decided to incorporate the mock cables into my design.  I cast on 36, meaning 18 stitches for each front and back of the glove. I wanted two columns of mock cables on the back of the glove. So after 10 rows of ribbing, here wa...
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Pining for a black hat

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My friend Vanessa and I were in Montreal for a conference in early December 2023 and wondered around a craft Christmas market on one evening. Of course someone was selling hats and she tried a few on, but didn't purchase, potentially helped by my assurance that I will make her one. So here we are, October of 2024 and I am determined to finish her hat for Christmas.  Vanessa has a fantastic sense of style. She has a knack for finding these vintage outfits that are classy and fashionable but also fun and eye-catching. I figured black yarn with sparkly thread would be just the thing.  I wanted a pattern with texture, so I searched for cables and settled on  Norway Pine Hat . I got two different types of black sparkly yarn, and having thrown out the labels, it is now mystery yarn. I know I case on some number, knit a bit, decided it was too big and re-cast on 88 stitches. This seemed the right size so I went through it all. I finished, I talked myself into believing it wasn't...
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Going bananas

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Banana socks . I always figure they will be the first footwear I'd ever try. Amanda mentioned she would love some comfy socks, yellow is her favourite and I had just the yarn for the job -- yellow banana socks, what more can you ask for.  The yarn I had was fingering, so I coupled it with a cream fingering yarn for the DK-ish weight. I took my 2.5mm flexi needles and figured I'll see later if I like the knit density. I cast on 48 stitches, joined in the round and did 12 rows of 2 by 2 ribbing. Then the pattern splits into two parts (you continue in the round): on half the stitches you do horizontal knit-purls stripes and on the other half the stitches you do vertical ribbing for the back of the sock.  Since I had 48 stitches total, each half would be 24 and I faced one small issue. For my 2 by 2 back-ribbing, being 24 it meant that starting with a column of 2 knits, I'd end with a column of 2 purls and I wasn't a fan of this asymmetry. So I figured I will do 3 knits, (2...
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The chase is better than the catch

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We do crafts for the process, not the end result. The end result matters (if for no other reason than the testament to your efforts), but it's the journey that is enjoyable, educational, frustrating.   I'm pretty crafty. I do knitting, crocheting, scrapbooking, sewing, watercolours, I've done embroidery and macrame. I've done things I don't remember anymore. Some crafts (like fiber-related ones) are clearly stuck with me for good, while others are a more transitory adventure. I first learned to knit as a kid. Both my grandmothers were fantastic knitters and I learned to knit before I knew it was hard. Then I haven't touched knitting for years. But apparently it's like riding a bike. When I picked up knitting again in my 20s, I knew how to do basic stitches and I didn't have issues learning more complicated ones or learning new techniques. What I mildly resent though is the categorical decisiveness of the patterns and their ultimate precision. It seems I ...
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