Some Progress

I didn't complete as much of the baby surprise as I thought I would. Instead of listening to a speaker, we watched a video and I haven't accomplished knitting and watching TV simultaneously, yet. If you come camping at Lake Huron Campground You can be assured that I was paying attention enough that at least I know to call 911 if you are injured.



I started this BSJ in 2005 and all it needs to be an FO is to weave in a couple of loose ends and sew on the buttons. You'd think I could get that done without much effort. I like the collar on this one. I've made a few with a rib collar and some according to the original instructions, but this collar is my favorite. When I used to frequent the knitting forum on www.about.com, there was a woman who went by Island Knitter and she had made a lot of these sweaters. She very generously posted a lot of tips and variations and that is where I learned how to make this collar. The other day I went searching for her on the web and came across her photos on Picture Trail.

Baby Surprise

I don't know how many Baby Surprise Jackets I've made, but whenever I get inspired by someone else's creation, I want to knit another one. So here I've started one using some acrylic I bought a couple of years ago.



I used a provisional cast-on because I'm going to lengthen the sleeves when I'm done. I also don't like the bulkiness in the shoulders, so I'm hoping this will eliminate some of that.

I have an all day first-aid class today at my new job and hopefully I will be able to knit though most of it.

I tried on my vest and I don't like the fit. I haven't decided if I'm going to start over or use the yarn to make something else. At this stage, there's no way if I start over I would have it done for winter wear, so I'm working on another sock.



This is from Lisa Souza The color is Wild Things
And the pattern is Retro Rib from a back issue of Interweave Knits.

Busy Busy Me

I finished my Sockotta socks a couple of weeks ago.



I like the socks, they fit well and are comfortable to wear, but I was disappointed in the way the colors faded after a couple of washings.

I've also done a little more knitting on my vest



I might have to make the armholes a little longer, I'm going to pin the shoulders together and try it on before I start the edging.

I have a few other projects started and I purchased a little more yarn at Mary Maxim, but I'll leave all of that for another post.

When all else fails

start a new project.



I haven't abandoned the vest, I just wanted to start these socks. This is Plymouth Sockotta, 45% cotton, 40% superwash wool and 15% nylon. I went to Elaine's Yarn in Davison Michigan and really wanted some sock yarn. I wasn't looking for a self-patterning yarn, but it's what came home with me. This is the first time I've used Wendy's generic toe-up pattern. I've only used a toe-up pattern once and it was for the Magical Mystery Sock Tour.

The MMST pattern I used had a figure eight cast on that took me hours to get right. My simple sock can be found on page four of the tour.

Not too exciting

Today I took a photo of my unfinished vest.



I can't say I'm in love with it. I think it's too bulky, but I will finish it since it's mindless knitting which is all I'm capable of at the moment.

Winter has finally arrived, just in time for the start of the tax season. I knew there was a reason I was going to look for a job closer to my home.

Making mistakes

I couldn't resist starting my vest, and I see I didn't continue the ribbing where I was supposed to. It will be easy to fix, but I haven't had time to knit the past few days. At first I didn't like the way the color combinations were knitting up, when looking at it in the daylight though, I like it. As soon as I can get a daylight photo, I will post it.

More Yarn!

I went to Mary Maxim yesterday and bought five skeins of Kureyon for a vest. I looked through all of my old knitting magazines and found a pattern that should work. Of course it would be a lot easier to buy the pattern from ChicKnits. I'm using colorway #163, they had only two Kureyon colors that I liked.

Mary Maxim has a buyer reward program, if you buy $300.00 in merchandise, you get $20.00 off your next purchase. I finally filled my card last time I was there, instead of paying $40.00, it cost me only $20.00. Now that Mary Maxim has a much larger yarn selection I might be able to fill that card quicker. I think it took almost 3 years to fill the old card.

Back to Knitting

I bought a miniature dachshund puppy last May and she has really cut into my knitting time. Only recently has she calmed down enough that I can sit and knit without chasing her and my ball of yarn. Doesn't she look innocent?



Currently I'm working on a sweater from Knitter's No. 54 Fall 1999 which I started last winter. I'm using Knitpicks Wool of the Andes in Hyacinth. The back and left front are finished and I'm half way through the right front. As much as I like wearing sweaters, I prefer knitting vests just so I can finish that much quicker and move on to the next project. If I can find some Noro Kureyon that I like, I think I'm going to knit a vest like Bonnie Marie.