The Knitting Pirate

The Tour de Fleece doesn’t start for four more days, but I’m getting excited about it – perhaps overexcited. I’ve been looking through my fibre stash and deciding on what to spin first, in what weight, with what technique, and wondering just how much of this fluff I’ll be able to get through in twenty-three days. I’m making plans, but of course those might totally fly out the window once I get started.

At the very least, I’m planning on starting with this six ounce sampler of Jacob roving from Firefly Farm. When I was in Canada in February, I admired the earflap hats with colourwork that so many people were wearing, and swore that I’d knit one for myself before next Winterlude. This pattern (link to .pdf) looks cute and interesting and would make use of the three colours of wool that I have to work with. It should be easy and quick enough to knit with only two colours per round. I also like the Norwegian Star pattern (Ravelry link), but that only calls for two colours. If the hat comes out too itchy, I could knit a lining out of a softer wool, or perhaps sew in a fleece lining. Lining the hat would make it extra-warm, which is always a bonus for me.

After that, I’m not sure what will come next. Perhaps some of the older fibre in the stash. I’d like to try chain-plying one of my yarns to keep the colour progression. There’s one that I will spin up thick and quick, and one that’s meant to be socks. I have more to choose from in the stash than I could possibly spin in a month, so I’m not running out to buy more fibre just yet…

Monday was a terrible day in which nothing went right, so I was determined to make Tuesday a good day in which everything went wonderfully. I started off by wearing my new socks – because really, how can I be in a bad mood if I’m wearing new socks? And on the way home from work, I stopped at With Yarn In Front to show them off… and to pick out some cotton yarn. My swornbrother Michael is going to become an uncle in just a few more weeks, and I thought it might be nice for me to knit a little something for the baby.

I browsed around the store for a little while and eventually decided to get a ball of Plymouth Sweet Caroline, a 100% cotton, worsted-weight yarn. Three strands are solid-coloured, and the fourth is variegated in the standard baby colours. It was a tossup between a colourway that was mostly pink with the one variegated strand, or the white one that I got. I went with white because I don’t know if Michael’s sister is a fan of baby-pink! The yarn came with a free pattern for this lacy Baby Bunny Hat, perfect for a little girl to wear in the springtime.

The pattern is written for the hat to be knit flat and seamed, but I decided to knit it in the round. The WS rows are only purling back with no lace, so I figured it wouldn’t be too difficult.

“Cast on 101 stitches,” the pattern said. I got out my DPNs and measured out a length of yarn for my usual long-tail cast-on, very carefully counted out 100 stitches, and knit a full round before I realized that I’d forgotten to add stitch #26 to the fourth needle. Rip, rip.

I cast on again, 101 stitches this time, and knit a full round before I realized that the first row of the edging is actually the wrong side of the work, and when the pattern said “knit” I should have purled because I’m working in the round instead of flat. Hooray for reading comprehension! …so I cheated. I turned the work inside out. Voila, a purl round! Then I worked back the other way, and I used the tail from the cast-on to fill in the little hole that was left.

This might be the least terrible cotton yarn I’ve ever worked with. I never find cotton to be as nice on the hands as wool, but I knit the edging and a full pattern repeat last night and my hands aren’t complaining. In addition, the yarn is theoretically machine-washable (excellent for baby clothing!), but the label had no care instructions. Cold-cold? Delicate cycle? I want to include a little tag with the gift, but I don’t know what to write on it!

Last weekend, while my house in Virginia was buried in more than two feet of snow, I went to Canada. Ironically, the weather there was beautiful and clear, if really cold. It was even too cold for me to want to skate on the canal. Instead, my sworn-sister the Ninja and I, along with our friend Amy, took an afternoon to visit yarn stores.

Our first stop was Wool N’ Things in Orleans, where I was thrilled to find some of the discontinued Jo Sharp Silkroad DK Tweed, the same yarn that I used to knit my Fleep-Tops. I picked up two skeins in Cedar, a gorgeous dark green with red and yellow flecks. They’ll probably become another pair of Fleeps, as backup for when my first pair inevitably wears out. The green totally doesn’t match my dark blue winter coat, but it’s time for a new coat anyway. Perhaps something in green, or preferably black. Black goes with everything.

Then we headed over to Yarn Forward in Ottawa proper, where I bought two skeins of this super-soft (and superwash!) Lang Merino DK in a gray so dark it’s almost black. My first thought was that it might make a pair of Fleeps for Michael, but he wanted something thicker and tweedier, so I’m going to use it for a pair of classy office armwarmers for myself and pick up some Rowan Felted Tweed in as black as it comes for him. Not that I mind being able to use this pettably soft stuff for myself, not at all! I am thinking about making something like these Cafe au Lait Mitts from SnapperKnits, or perhaps I will come up with my own pattern for them.

I did have a disappointment this year: My old Stellar Toque, now over four years old, may be nearing retirement. It’s gotten stretched out and too large, and lets the wind through to my ears. I am thinking that before next Winterlude, I will knit a colourwork hat with earflaps and line it with fleece. We saw many of them in the Byward Market when we were there for the Stew Cook-Off on Friday, and I was seriously tempted to buy one – but why buy what I can knit? Pirate-Husband suggested that I could salvage the Stellar Toque by knitting earflaps onto it and lining it with fleece, instead of making a whole new hat. I could also felt it a little to shrink it and make it more windproof.

“What have you knit this year?” Pirate-Husband asked me last night.

First there was the Jayne hat that I knit from Knitting Ninja’s pattern for friend Otel. This was a quick project. I had to borrow needles for it, which have since been returned. Although I probably have enough yarn for a second hat, I need to get the right size needles before I can knit it up. Not that I know anyone who wants a Jayne hat… I already have one, and Otel is the brownest browncoat of all my friends.

Then a Baby Surprise Jacket for friend Gwen’s second baby, a little girl. I loved the 100purewool yarn I used for this project; it is so soft and easy to work with! The pattern got tricky a few times, but with help from Ravelers I worked through it. I finished knitting only minutes before my deadline, but Gwen loved the sweater. It should fit on her daughter right about now; I’d love to get an ‘action shot’ from her to post.

Something for myself, a pair of Garter Rib socks! The pattern is from Charlene Schurch’s “Sensational Knitted Socks”. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to get the basics of sock knitting. These socks were knit up in Blue Moon Fiber Arts’ Socks that Rock lightweight, and I was short by about ten yards. Fortunately a kind Raveler had some extra in the same colorway that she was able to send me.

Something for the house, a quick and easy Swiffer mop cover from Noelle’s pattern. This project took about six hours, which is about my tolerance for knitting with cotton. I plan to make several more of these, with an additional pattern repeat so that when the cover curls, it goes over the edges of the mop instead of under. Pirate-Husband mopped the floors this past weekend and was disappointed to find that the cover I’d made had been used but not yet washed; he used one of the disposables instead and afterwards said that mine worked a lot better!

I’d promised Pirate-Husband a pair of socks last November, and in July of this year I finally delivered. He has very wide feet and I was concerned that I’d run out of yarn, after my experience with the Socks that Rock, so I didn’t make the socks very tall. I had a few yards left over at the end, so I guess it worked out just right! He wears them often, especially now that it’s cold out, and I know he’d love to have another pair.

After I finished Pirate-Husband’s socks, I cast on for the second baby knit of the year. This one was for friend Asa’s second child, but as she hadn’t chosen to find out the sex of the baby, I had to knit a gender-neutral blanket. Feather and Fan seemed fitting, as did these muted colors. Once again, I finished knitting the night before I needed to give the gift. Once of these days I’ll break that habit.

I sure didn’t break the habit with the Bloo Socks, knit in Trekking XXL for friend Michael. I finished these in the afternoon and gave them to him that very evening. I also didn’t learn the lesson of splitting the yarn in half before beginning; I used more than half of the 100g ball on the first sock and had to frantically call yarn stores all over the country to find another ball in the same dye lot. I’ll be writing this pattern up in the near future, as soon as I work out the heel and toe numbers in other sizes. There is a shortage of fine-gauge sock patterns out there. These were knit up at 45 stitches to 4″ on US size 0 DPNs.

Mom’s gloves will probably be the last completed project of the year. Her birthday present is knit up of Blue Moon Fiber Arts Silkie Socks that Rock in Ravenscroft. She’d requested a colorway that would go well with both her black wool dress coat, and her green winter jacket, so what better than a black yarn with subtle greens that glow in the sunlight? I am using Marnie MacLean’s Hooray for Me pattern, just making full fingers instead of partial. I’m sure she’ll love them; I just hope they fit!

Eight projects in 2008, not a bad tally! In other accomplishments, I read 23 books in the past year, and I learned to spin on a wheel. Pirate-Husband commented that I should knit more for myself, and I want to commit more time to spinning as well. Those will be my goals in 2009!

Using this basic hat formula, I took the leftover Manos del Uruguay in green from my scarf, and in tan from a previous hat project, and made a whole new hat! At first, I was going to put a solid green stripe in the middle. Then I decided that it was time to try colorwork. I made up a five-row chart and got started with one yarn in my right hand and one in my left hand. Wow, is that awkward!

I’ve never gotten the hang of knitting with the yarn in my right hand, but this seemed like a good chance to give it a try. Five rows later, I really didn’t like what I had at all. The colors are too close to each other, and the one-stitch-then-switch stuff I’d been doing wasn’t showing up very well. I ripped it out, revised my chart to six rows and more green, and tried again.

I’m really not so good at taking pictures of myself, but I try! The best thing about hats is that they’re over quickly. You get something warm and functional for a few hours’ worth of effort. It may not be my favorite color, but it does match the scarf well… I’m not entirely sure I like the colorwork; I might have preferred a solid stripe. But I did need the practice, and now I kinda sorta maybe know how to knit with the yarn in my right hand, too!

My father called me this morning.

Dad: Hi, toots!** What’s going on?
Me: Uh.. you called me, Dad. Did something happen?
Dad: No, I was just calling to say hi.
Me: Oh! Okay good. I thought you were calling to tell me that the baby was born.
Dad: No, not yet! But it will be Any Day Now.

I could hear the significance and capital letters on Any Day Now, and it made me Very Very Nervous, also in capital letters, because the baby’s pants are still not done. The baby herself is due on May 16, but we all know that due dates are estimates and not an exact science. She could be born tomorrow, or she could take another four weeks. Either way, I want those pants done – so I went into my room and looked at the projects on my desk. Most of a Pomatomus, part of a hat, half of a potential Knitty submission… and no babypants. “Okay,” said I to myself, “this will not do,” and now the babypants are on the desk but none of the other projects are. That doesn’t seem like much progress – but they are also 35 rows larger than they were this morning. I have about 70 rows to go, then the finishing. They can be done in a few days.

Tomorrow is the Sheep and Wool Festival. I may buy sock yarn or perhaps some laceweight, depending on what calls out to me and refuses to be left behind. Whatever I get, I swear, it will not distract me from these babypants until they are finished! I am project-monogamous from now until the end of these pants!

Metachaos asked what hat pattern I am using – it is this Basic Hat Pattern from Mielke’s Fiber Arts. I like formulas for hats for a number of reasons, primarily that the hat will fit me well regardless of yarn and gauge. The original Stellar and Tan hat was meant to be a Coronet, but my gauge was so far off with the Manos that I went with a plain toque instead.

** My dad has called me “toots” for years. I don’t know why, or where it came from – but I like it. It’s one of those things that only Dad can get away with calling me, and that makes it special.

I’ve never been one to let leftovers go to waste. Perhaps I hold onto them a little longer than necessary (note to self: remove dead casserole from fridge) but when we’re talking about yarn, leftovers are great! A couple of years ago, I made this hat of Manos del Uruguay. It fits my head perfectly, which is more than I can say about most store-bought hats. I love the blue, gold and teal of the Stellar colorway, and the golden-tan of the ribbing was a perfect match for it. The only thing is… it doesn’t go with my new scarf.

Enter the leftovers. There is enough green from the scarf for the ribbing and a stripe, and enough golden-tan from the first hat for the body of the second hat (I hope). And it’s really nice to knit stockinette in the round for a change. I barely have to look at what I’m doing!

The babypants are glaring at me. I swear, I will work on them tomorrow. Honest! The baby’s due on the 16th now. I still have time, right? …right?