Tiny Tote

The girls in my knitting class this term have ambitious goals. Two are going to make Branching Out (or they are going to make large pretty messes, the jury is still out!). The others wanted to make felted bags that were like their current favorite bag. What can I say, they have expensive tastes.

So I ordered Wildflower DK for the scarves and the old stand by Lamb’s Pride Bulky for the bags and then set to work to see if I could create a felted bag that looked kind of like the model. Of course when I started the model I didn’t have an actual bag and hadn’t found the information on the web yet, so there was a lot of guessing.

I knit a base in garter stitch by casting on 24 using the LPB doubled and size 15 needles. I knit for 24 rows and cast off making a rectangle that was about 10.5″ by 5″. Then I picked up stitches all around the outside and knit in the round. One round of the dark color after the pick up and then with the lighter color until it was gone. The bag was about 5.5″ tall at that point. I divided what I had left of the darker color in half and then made two lengths of three-stitch i-cord again with the yarn doubled (ended up to be 23″ each). I sewed on the handles and had a very floppy bag! (Note Beanie Baby for scale)

Twice through the washing machine and I had a nice stiff tote. The final size was  8.5″x4″x4″. A little wider that the original, but a nice size for girls who don’t really have anything to carry around!

All in all I’m pretty pleased with my little experiment. It will be iteresting to see how the girls’ come out. I have also completed two repeats on the Branching Out to be sure I can help them. I’m thinking lots of counting and lifelines!!

In other knitting news I am up to the arms on a Wallaby and down to the arms on a raglan. Details to follow.

Knitter’s Notebook

There is knitting going on, just haven’t taken any pictures. I am working on a model for the 6th grade knitters who want to make little felted totes. All the knitting and stitching is done, tonight I felt. In this process it occurs to me that I really need a knitter’s notebook of some sort. I am not the lists and notebooks type so this came rather as a shock to me. Although you think it might have occurred to me when I couldn’t remember what size needles I used to swatch for the raglan and had to do it over…

So, what do you use? Just a regular notebook, or something made just for knitting? Do you like your system? Could someone like me, who operates more with piles than lists be converted? Inquiring minds want to know!

Sorrow

I can’t come up with anything much to say today other than, “Hang in the Hokies!” Our thoughts and prayers are with you.

Pinwheel Blanket

Hanna Gail (or perhaps Hannah Gail, the parents haven’t decided) arrived late yesterday afternoon. She’s a little slip of a thing, about five and a half pounds, but all reports are she is doing well. Just in time I finally finished her pinwheel blanket!

I feel like I need that giant “done” stamp that they used on the TV show Monster House.

This was a big undertaking and may be my one and only knitted blanket… Of course miters look interesting, as does log cabin, and the aunt of this baby may have one of her own some day so I guess there’s a chance I will make another blanket sometime.

I did have enough yarn to do the revised picot cast off, whew! I really liked working with the Rowan All Season cotton and ended up using almost 8 balls.

I washed the blanket after I finished last night and when I took it out of the washer there was a hole! Some quick darning did the trick, I think I had cut some ends too short. Boy am I glad I washed it so the recipients didn’t end up with a hole!

I’ll ship it out today. Maybe it will make it to their house before Hanna does!

Full details here.

The one in which we discover there’s not enough yarn

I am just as guilty as the next teacher of “inventing” reality to make a good lesson come together. But this time the reality was all too real.

Today’s class began with:

After knitting 33% of the picot border the yarn I have left wraps around the remote control 86 times. After knitting 40% of the border the remaining yarn wraps around the remote control 75 times. Will I have enough yarn to complete the border?

The answer, of course, is not enough… so out come my lovely picots and I try again with a bindoff that uses less yarn. How annoying. So much for being done with this project today.

I’m in good company, Grumperina is calculating how much yarn is left today too!

I Like Fish Food

Two posts in one day, I must have a lot of grading that I don’t feel like doing!

As long as I have known B (and that’s over 20 years now) he has claimed that there was a song called “I Like Fish Food” that was on the kid’s TV show The Electric Company. I insisted that a kid’s show would never have encouraged children to eat fish food… Enter the 21st century and You Tube. I was wrong, it’s 70’s karaoke:

Awesome SP

Yesterday wasn’t a particularly bad, but not great either. Then Bunny had a hard dinner with grumpiness and tears. Finally I realized I was locked out of the house, ugg. I got a key from the best in-laws in the world and got in the house only to discover a box… for me… from my SP!

Boy did she hit the nail on the head! What a great box of stuff she sent. There’s candy, both the gummy and chocolate varieties. The Bubble Chocolate looks particularly fun. Then there was a book for Bunny, Monsters Inc., one of his favorites. Then there was this nice fabric bag. A neat floral with a ribbon tie. What was inside you ask? Yarn! Two balls of Cascade Fixation in a great blue, green, and purple that I love. Along with it was a pack of little post it’s and two little pens. I would like to point out that the pens and the post it’s match the yarn… how cool is that? Thanks so much SP! What a great way to end the day. By the way, anybody have a suggestion for the best sock pattern for Fixation?

In other news, the Pinwheel should be done today! I have finished the border and started a picot cast off. Full details when it’s done.

What’s Wrong?

Oh how I wish that was powdered sugar on my tulips…

Now with bows!

Last night I discovered I really don’t like sewing with clear thread. But I like the final result so I suspect I will do it again. Kimono is done and delivered to go home with big sister today! Whew.

Actual knitting!

After a number of posts with startling little knitting, I have a Finished Object (or rather a mostly finished object) to share.

It’s a heart- breakingly cute kimono from Mason-Dixon. Knit in Mission Falls 1824 cotton in color chicory. It’s my second kimono, but the first in garter stitch. I will admit that it didn’t go as quickly as I had hoped, but it was still pretty quick. Now all that’s left are the ribbons, photos of those soon and I hope to send it home from school with big sister tomorrow!

I was so excited to finish this so that I could start on my Monsoon STR socks. However, today I discovered there’s another baby shower here at school far sooner than I expected. So today the Swish was ordered from KnitPicks so that I can jump on the Wallaby Bandwagon before it pulls out of town. My current plan is to get a little of the body done in time to for the shower and then gift it with return instructions to be completed before the one-on-the-way is ready for a size two hoodie. Since the mom to be is a crocheter and knitter I suspect she will understand. (Not to mention appreciate!)

Work to continue on the Pinwheel (ack, that baby is due in two weeks!) while I wait for the swish. Then there’s the raglan that needs work, and oh, the siren song of Monsoon…