Mitten Progress Phase 8 and 9

My Minions,

I finished a mitten!

I considered waiting until the left mitten was finished to put the buttons on, but I really wanted to be able to say I was halfway finished with this project.  So I made buttons with some leftover red fabric that I think with match the Empress Mum's ski jacket.

And I sewed one on!  I think it looks pretty good!  I hope she likes it!

Now I just need to complete the left mitten to make a pair. Before starting I weighed my yarn to see if I would have enough and the short answer is no, I do not have enough.  I will have to unravel my swatch and use that yarn and still might not have enough.  Thankfully I still have the ball bands with the lot numbers so I'll head over to my local yarn store if necessary and buy another ball.  Needless to say, this means Fairy Godchild will probably not get her own angora headband.  She was horrified when I told her.

But look! I've already cast on the left mitten!  And without starting a new project too!

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Seriously though, what's the deal with socks?!?

My Minions,

My Thanksgiving was wonderful.  Approximately 80 people packed themselves into my Favorite Aunt's house and waited impatiently for dinner to be served.  While they waited, we put all they babies born since Easter on the couch and took some photos.

It's almost too much cuteness to have in one room.  Fairy Godchild is the second baby from the left. She was definitely the cutest and most rotten of the six, but she is also the only one with a Fairy Godmother to make her so rotten.

Imperial Family Gatherings are loud and chaotic and always a good time.  Much wine was consumed, and in the process of consuming said wine, the subject of my Christmas list was brought up. Favorite Aunt was not happy with the list and said I had to come up with something other than yarn and a Ninja blender.  I asked that she be open-minded, head to the yarn store, search for patterns she thought I would like and yarn to go with the pattern and then present me with the sweater/scarf/hat/etc with a note that some assembly was required.  She didn't buy into it.

Then her son, who is the Brother I Never Had, asked what kind of yarn was on my list, so I showed him some sock yarn on my phone.  Knowing that he wears him store bought socks inside out because the seam irritates him, informed him that hand knit socks had no seams.  Astonished, he put in an order for me to make him 36 pair or black socks and was not deterred when I informed him that it was likely to take 36 months or more to fill his order.  At this point Favorite Aunt informs me that she would like a nice pair of fuzzy socks to wander about the house in, and the Empress Dad jumped on board and order a pair of socks in "whatever was warmer than wool" for him to wear when hunting.  More family members submitted their orders and I left with three thoughts:

1. Why do people who've never experienced a hand knit sock want them so badly?
2. I should go ahead and let the sock yarns in my virtual carts become a reality in my home.
3. I better get some effing yarn for Christmas!

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Mitten Progress Phase 6 and 7

Happy Thanksgiving Minions!

My mitten success continues!

Phase 6: Outer Mitten Top

I picked up the yarn over stitches off the Addi Click cord and used a cable cast on (thank you YouTube) to create the additional stitches necessary to form the circumference of the mitten top. This part was no big deal after figuring out the cable cast on.  I just went round and round while drinking wine until I had reached the top of my pinky finger.

Here's the palm:

And the back where you can see the transition point of the flap:

And here it is with the flap open:

Phase 7: Mitten Decreases and Top Finishing

This was just a lot of decreasing over a lot of coffee and, again, was no big deal.  I did have to consult my notes from my sock making class to remember the Kitchener stitch and YouTube for instructions on making an I-cord for the button loop.

 Look!  It fits!  And it looks like a mitten (for a thumbless person)!

All that's left now if to knit the thumb, sew on a button and finish.  Well, and knit the left mitten.  But all of that will have to wait.  For the rest of the day, I'll be enjoying a day filled with great food and my wonderful family.

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

The Allure of Sock Yarn

My Minions,

I have issues with socks.  More specifically, I have issues with sock yarn.  I keep finding it in my cart, unrealistically planning to knit socks for everyone I know.  I feel like The Heir needs worsted weight wool socks for skiing and lace weight silk to keep the wool from itching his tender skin.  And when the perfect yarn is found, suddenly I need the same for myself.  It's as if I've forgotten I'm not a kept Empress, free to knit away my days without a care for keeping the peace and order in the Universe.

So far, I have resisted the urge to buy yarn for projects I don't have time to complete this year, but its hard to remove those yarns from my cart after they've landed there, even if they are virtual carts.  I'm beginning to understand why a lot of knitters don't count sock yarn when speaking of their stash....

I did order some Lothlorien Opulence sock yarn from knitcircus to knit socks for the lucky individual who's name I drew for the Imperial Family Christmas Gift Exchange.

Doesn't it look lovely?  I also bought this individual a gift from her list, as per the rules of the gift exchange.  No sooner did I place my orders (I love shopping on the internet; it's a beautiful thing!), than the individual changed her mind about her list, sending out an entirely new one where each item falls in the established spending range, causing me to have to return the original store bought gift and leaving this yarn all to me!

In other sock news, I have wound yarn for the Empress Mum's birthday socks (only 3 weeks after Christmas - why can we not push back the celebration by at least a month or six?).

She requested angora (I have no idea why she is so enamored of that fiber), and Knit Picks obliged by introducing a Special Reserve yarn called Bare Hare.  It is 80% wool and 20% angora, so I feel it will meet the material of construction specification while being able to survive more than a day of wear as a sock.

My plan is to attempt to knit these socks toe up in order to eliminate any leftover yarn at the end of the project (what does a knitter without a Fairy Godchild do with all those leftover tiny balls of yarn?).  Once completed, I plan to dye them blue.  Why not dye the yarn before knitting? Well, its already wound, and if my plan to knit toe up fails, I'd rather have undyed leftover yarn than yarn a shade of blue I'll never be able to duplicate.

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Mitten Progress Phase 5

My Minions,

My mitten construction luck continues despite not having made a gauge swatch!

Phase 5: Inner Hand

The beginning of this phase was a little confusing.  The instructions directed a yarn over that was then to be picked up and dropped onto waste yarn.  Hmmm, not sure how that is supposed to work and YouTube did not oblige my attempts at visualization.  So I held my working double pointed needles and my Addi Click core with a stopper on one end and a size 5 needle on the other end in my right hand and did the yarn over on the Addi cord needle and the normal stitch on the double pointed needle.  It seems to have worked, or at least is not currently giving me any indications that it has not worked.  I continued to work my rounds for the inner hand after making all of my yarn overs and Voila!  The fit still seems right!

Up next: the outer mitten top.

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Mitten Progress Phase 2, 3, and 4

My Minions,

My mitten adventure continues!  I did in fact cast on a size small with US 5 needles.  I lost about 10 minutes contemplating my row gauge issue before casting on.  16 stitches over 4 inches meant that the 12 round cuff should be 3 inches long.  However, the photos in the pattern show a cuff of about 1 1/2 to 2 inches, which was much closer to my calculated row gauge.  I moved forward.  What was the worst that could happen?

Phase 2: Cuff

The cuff consists of 12 rows of knit 2, purl 2 ribbing.  As I worked the rounds, I tried to keep in mind that I had not confirmed my needle size with a gauge swatch.  Not wanting this to bite me in the @$$ at the end of the project I've planned a series of highly technical visual checks to ensure early problem identification.

After 4 rows, I had approximately a 1/2" of knitting that was slightly less wide than my wrist.

My highly technical visual check allowed me to determined this was close enough to move forward.

After 12 rows, I still felt the sizing was right based and moved into...

Phase 3: Wrist

This section was short and included some cabling that provides the ideal location for the button that will hold the mitten flap.  And as an added bonus it still looked like it will fit!

Phase 4: Thumb

This section increased the number of stitches to allow room for the thumb and the separated out the stitched that will be knit for the thumb.  The increases weren't so bad.  The instructions were clear. When I got the separating out the thumb, I had to consult YouTube.  It ended up not being difficult, I think the instructions were just a little unclear.  Also it advised moving the thumb stitches to waste yarn.   I'm thinking a short Addi Click cable with the stoppers on the ends sounds much more secure...

A test fit showed I'm still on track with the fit!  Yes, I breathed a sigh of relief that my knitting math didn't fail me!

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Mitten Progress Phase 1

My Minions,

I have begun my mitten adventure!

Phase 1 of 9: Swatch and Gauge

I began (as one is always supposed to do) with a swatch on size 3 needles as instructed.  I cast on 30 stitches and after knitting a few rows of garter stitch started working in stockinette stitch.  Once I had about an inch of work, I did a gut check.

My 30 stitch wide swatch was not even 4 inches wide and I was trying to achieve 22 stitches and 16 rows in 4 inches of stockinette stitch required per the pattern.  Verdict:

Rip it out and try again.

I started by reading the pattern from the beginning instead of skipping straight to gauge.  It was then that I realized the pattern writer had held two yarns together and recommended heavy fingerling or sport weight yarn.  I had light fingerling yarn.  I cast on another 30 stitches holding the yarn doubled and after a bit of knitting did a gut check.

It was more than 4 inches wide.  I decided this was sufficient to justify completing the swatch.

The results were 26 stitches and 30ish rows in 4 inches of stockinette stitch versus the 22 stitches and 16 rows in 4 inches of stockinette stitch required per the pattern.  Verdict: I am a tight knitter.

I immediately disregard the row gauge discrepancy.  These are mittens, I'll just knit more rounds to get the results I want.

I thought about knitting another swatch.  Hating to waste the time though, I opted to do some math. 26 stitches over 4 inches is 6.5 stitches per inch.  If I compared the diameter ratio of size 3 needles versus size 4 needles, I could reasonably expect to achieve 24 stitches per 4 inches.  The same ratio logic revealed that I should expect 22 stitches over 4 inches on size 5 needles.

Size 5 sounds like a winner to me, so I'm casting on the mittens without knitting a new swatch.  I'll verify gauge once I've knit for a bit to confirm that I did my math correctly.

And If not, I won't have lost any more time than making a new swatch would take.

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Ski Bunny Headband

My Minions,

I have completed the headband the Empress Mum requested for skiing.  This didn't look so great before blocking.

The cast on edge (left hand side of the photo) did not seem to match the bound off edge
(right hand side) in terms of length,

but I forced them together and hoped a good blocking would solve the rest.

I admit there are some mistakes.  Like here:

where I sneezed while in the middle of a row, causing all of the stitches to fly off my needles, and then failed to reknit the slipped stitch, making for an extra long stitch there along the edge.  I decided that the angora halo will keep this mistake hidden from all but the keenest knitting eyes. Can you see it?  What do experienced knitters do when a sneeze suddenly overcomes them mid row?  I'm not the only person this has happened to, right?

I'd like to note that at this point I was only 20 minutes into my lunch hour and had nothing else with me to work on...the Prime Minister's scarf was at home with the skirt that still needs stitches picked out of it and I had not thought to bring any new projects to cast on.  The only thing left to do was shop for fabric or yarn or notions or tools...something!  It was a costly error I shall not repeat again!

Back to the headband.  I'm quite pleased with how it turned out once it was blocked.

I used silk thread to hold the edges together evenly and then wrapped the thread tightly around some extra pins to achieve a nice straight edge.  Then I stuck in a few extra pins on the edge in case the thread-holding pins came loose or some other unforeseen pin/thread disaster occurred overnight. I owe a big thanks to the Yarn Harlot for inspiration on this one.  I stole it straight from her advice on blocking lace.

Fairy Godchild was also impressed and kindly requested an angora headband of her own by trying to stuff a fistful of the headband in her mouth when I showed it off to her.  I told her she was going to have to get in line.  At some point though I'm sure I'll put off finishing Christmas presents to make her one soon.  Until that happens, I'm focused on making mittens to match the Empress Mum's headband. She needs to match while shooshing down the slopes.  I was thinking I'd use the Flip Flap Mittens pattern. Here's what they look like:

Someone on Ravelry even used the Rowan Angora Haze yarn that I used on the headband, so I feel confident they'll turn out well if I can follow instructions.  In fact, I already wound the yarn (I still think using the ball winder is immensely satisfying), printed the pattern and found my needles!

More on the challenges and rewards of mitten-making to come in the near future!

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Eden DK Hat

My Minions,
I was able to complete my Eden DK hat in class this past Monday.  Just look at the pride and joy on my face as I put it on for the first time!

It was completed just in time for this to happen on Sunday night.

I have strong feelings about snow which basically boils down to my not having a use for it unless I am skiing.  In my perfect world, the temperature would never dip below 65 F.  It is currently 14 F.  I am not happy about this!

I am quite please with how this hat turned out.  Due to the haloing of my yarn, the pattern definition is not as crisp as some of my classmate's hats, but mine is also softer, snugglier, and warmer than their hats look so I think it was worth the trade-off.  Here are some more photos.

The Heir immediately tried to claim it as his own upon seeing it yesterday, which I take to mean its construction is satisfactory.  Here he is showing me how well it fit as he tried to justify his theft.

I was finally able to convince him to give it back by threatening to make myself another exactly like this one so we would match.  And if we matched, all of his friends would suspect how much he really did like me.

As a result of my focus on the Eden DK hat for class, there has been little progress on my other projects.

The Empress Mum's headband is a few inches longer than last week and should be finished in the next few days now that it is my primary focus.

The Prime Minister's scarf is still expected to be completed in time for spring.  I am still knitting the second ball of yarn and am on target to start knitting the third ball of yarn during my next pedicure, whenever that happens.

And the skirt that I was sewing?  Well, here's the thing about the skirt...No, let me back up .  I am product-driven when it comes to sewing.  I have a vision of what I want and I don't care how long it takes to make my vision a reality.  I will rip and resew until there is nothing left I can work with or I have exactly what I envisioned.  Knitting is different.  Its more about the learning process.  I want what I make to be of high quality construction, but I don't have visions of the way the finished product will look, nor do I feel the need to correct mistakes I have to hunt for to find the next day.  I enjoy learning about it and trying new things, but I'm in learning mode with knitting while my sewing is in mastering mode.  So the skirt is resting while I contemplate and research how to correct and prevent the awful seaming and topstitching at the waistband.

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

New Skills

My Minions,

Over the weekend, I had the pleasure of spending two glorious hours at Hank, A Yarn Boutique with Llama Una running through the fingers of both hands as I learned the basics of Fair Isle knitting.

Before I get into the class, project, and takeaways, let's talk about this yarn.  It is 100% baby llama, and it is super soft and squishy with a slight halo...it makes my fingers happy!  I'm seriously considering buying an inventory of every color to use for every project that calls for DK weight yarn. Go get some and see if you don't instantly fall in lust with it!

 Our project for the class is the Eden DK hat.  It's not a hat I would have picked out on my own, but I'm liking the way it's working up so far in my yarn.  I think the green is probably the reason I would have overlooked it.  I'm not a fan of green.

Class has mostly been about how to read the pattern for the color work and how to hold the yarns.  I think I could have figured out the pattern on my own with very little learning curve.  Holding the yarn was an entirely different matter.  For the sake of keeping the yarns straight, it was suggested that we hold the main color in our left hand (Continental style) and the contrast color in our right hand. This resulted in a brief lesson on Continental knitting, and more specifically how to pick the yarn that's being held by your left hand to create a knit stitch.  I was shocked to find I could knit the main color with very little movement of my hand.  It was so efficient!  It dawned on me how some knitters are able to knit so fast!

This got me thinking that maybe the Prime Minister's scarf would be less torturous if I used the project to teach myself how to pick English style (not Continental because, let's be honest, doing anything with my left hand is very awkward).  It's been a bit awkward, but I'm not knitting any slower than before and I'm holding out hope that I'll get faster.  Until that happens, I'm still on track to complete the scarf just in time for Easter (I'm going to spare you having to look at the scarf again. It looks the same only a bit longer).

In other knitting news, I ripped out the Empress Mum's headband because I didn't like the way it was turning out.  It was too lacy and not as wide as I would have liked.  So I recast it onto smaller needles and added in extra stitches to have two cables going around the whole thing instead of one.  I was able to make significant progress on this while "watching" the Heir's basketball practice earlier this week. It still looks narrow, but that's because it hasn't been blocked.  I like it much better now!

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

An Overdose of Cute

My Minions,

Last week I completed the Cozy Little Toes socks for my Fairy Godchild.  I'm still not adept with DPNs, so these took me a few evenings to knit, but for an experienced knitter, they would probably be completed in an afternoon.  Also, they use about 70 yards of fingerling weight yarn and are a most satisfying way to bust one's stash.  They are without a doubt the cutest thing I've ever made!

I wanted to include a photo of the socks on Fairy Godchild with this post, hence the delay.  Our schedules just weren't lining up.  She had lots of naps to take, I had to keep peace in the universe...I think it was worth the wait though.

She loves them!  I could tell by how quickly she tried to get them into her mouth.  And she's glad they were completed before the polar vortex arrived!

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

A Knitting Miracle!

My Minions,

Fact: Knitting miracles are performed during pedicures.

Proof: As if by magic, the never-ending ball of yarn disappeared, effortlessly knit into the scarf during a pedicure.  

The Only Logical Conclusion: The more pedicures I get, the sooner this scarf will be completed.

I explained this logic to the Prime Minister hoping he would respond by simultaneously opening his wallet and encouraging me to pamper my feet on a weekly basis. 

He didn't respond as I had hoped.  Instead, he laughed and said he’s never had a scarf and his neck is used to being cold and he’s okay with my current timeline of completing the scarf just in time for spring. 

I'm not giving up though.  I think he'll give in to the pedicures in exchange for homemade warmth and comfort when it gets a little colder.  

Until next time,

Jessica, Empress of the Universe

Sewing Rules (and the consequences of breaking them)

My Minions,

Very early in my sewing journey, I was strongly advised against cutting and sewing in the same day, or at least without a significant break.  Applying interfacing, staystitching, and other steps to prepare for construction are okay immediately after cutting and marking, but one must at least eat before real sewing begins. 

I started this past Saturday afternoon by pressing my patter pieces with a dry iron, figuring out my layout, cutting, marking, interfacing, and staystitching.

And then I thought, oh, I’ll just get the darts sewn in and then eat, run errands, be a responsible adult, etc. before continuing with construction.  This was the punishment for not following the rules.

My machine ate my lining fabric.  I spent a good 30 minutes disassembling, pulling, tugging, and cursing to remove the lining without any real damage.  And then I spent another 30 minutes cleaning my machine (hey, it was already open!) and reassembling with a straight stitch plate in order to avoid further issues.

After eating, grocery shopping, folding laundry, and otherwise behaving like an adult, I decided construction could wait until the following morning.

I made significant progress after a full night of sleep.  Everything lined up without any confusion.  There was no tugging or easing to make match points work and thanks to my edgestitch foot, the topstitching was a breeze.  Just look at how beautiful it is!  

Then I got to the part where the waistband was supposed to be attached.  I scratched my head for a bit, pinned, and stressed about how I would keep it all flat while going under the presser foot.  At this point I decided I needed a break. 

My break apparently was not long enough though because my seam was not even and my topstitching makes it worse instead of camouflaging it.  Consequently, I will be removing the waistband, which may result in may mean cutting new waistband pieces, and trying again this weekend.

I should know better than to defy the sewing gods.

Until next time,                                                 

Jessica, Empress of the Universe