FO: Twenty Ten Cardi

Pattern: Twenty Ten Cardigan

Yarn: Knit Picks Cadena in Peat

 Needles: 5 mm/ US 8 circulars

Mods: increased 4 stitches extra for the bust, added extra button holes, shortened sleeves by 2 rows (due to a deep, ongoing fear that I would run out of yarn with only a few rows left to do).

Notes: You know how sometimes the knit you're working on turns out to be your kryptonite? This was my kryptonite- it took me waaaaay long to knit than I ever thought it would. After all, bulky yarn, short sleeves- it should have been a breeze! But I had some trouble with this, most noteably because I accidentally didn't buy enough yarn and had to order 1 more skein, and then wait for said yarn to arrive. There is also the fact that there is a lot going on- the increases and decreases to create the diagonal front, as well as the button holes. I had to rip back a few times to sort out problems that arose from me losing count of buttonhole rows.

But the final result- ah, the wonderful final result. This sweater is perfect over a long sleeved tee, just the thing to keep me warm. I love it, this was totally worth my little struggle. And G loves this sweater- every time I wear it, he raves about it. And I love wearing it- it feels comfortable, a sweater to play in.

I haven't become a redhead and the sweater is not a rust colour- it's a lovely earthy brown. G took these photos at at that magic hour just before sunset, when the light is so golden and incredible. It was also wonderfully warm- a great day to be coatless and in this fantastic sweater. And I love the buttons- they remind me of 2 ply yarn.

Modification Monday: Saved by Seed Stitch Side-to-Side Cardigan

 Original Pattern: Knit Side-to-Side Cardigan

Knitter Extraordinaire: Teresa  (Rav Id, blog)

Modifications:  Added a seed stitch border to the entire sweater, changed button placement for closure. More details on her project page.

What Makes This Awesome: The mods don't seem that complicated, do they? Yet the simple act of adding the seed stitch edging and the button alignment makes this sweater even better than the original. Since then, almost everyone else who has knitted this project has used Teresa modifications, because they yield such lovely results. This cardigan now looks really classic and at the same time, something fresh and a bit different. I love the diagonal button closure, I think it's really flattering for a wide variety of shapes and sizes. And how amazing does her yarn choice look in this pattern? This sweater was made for a gorgeous tweed yarn. The results are perfect!

FO: Gossamer Stars Scarf

You ever turn around and suddenly realize that two whole weeks have gone by in a flash? Suddenly I looked at my blog and realized that the last 3 posts were all Mod Monday posts!Which I find odd, since I've been knitting loads. oh look- here's a FO!

Pattern: Gossamer Stars Scarf

Yarn: Palette in Iris Heather, 2 skeins


Needles: 4mm/ US 6

Mods: I loved Claudine's mods on this pattern, and followed her lead by casting on only 53 stitches. I love the final result!

I really enjoyed this pattern, it was interesting to knit, and the result is a very pretty scarf  that looks great from both sides.

This scarf is not for me. I don't know who it's for yet. I decided that this year, I wanted to knit several Christmas gifts, and I know myself well enough that if I leave it until the end of the year, it won't happen. So my plan is to knit some pretty things over the year to give away, and then decide closer to Christmas who would most love what. I find that I have so many generous people in my life, and at Christmas (which is especially crippling with an above average quantity of December birthdays, above average branches of family to buy for, and many wonderful friends) I often spend the last two months of the year feeling really upset that I can't feasibly return the generosity and love of the wonderful people on my life. So. I will knit.

Also- want to see a video of an alpaca surfing? Check it out here! I'm not sure if the alpaca is enjoying it that much to be honest, but at least the guy had the decency to put a life jacket on it.

Modification Mondays: Quadrat

Original Pattern: Quadrat

Knitter Extraordinaire: Yoko (Rav Id, Blog)

Mods: Yoko lengthened and narrowed the sleeves slightly, added a lovely ribbed funnel neck, and added several inched of ribbing to the hem.

What Makes This Awesome: Both the original pattern and this modification are so gorgeous, and so completely different. The original looks like you could knit it in a cool cotton, and it would be a great summer sweater. Yoko's deep ribbing at the hem and the matching funnel neck add a lot of warm to this sweater, and really up the cuddle factor- now it's cozy and chic, just perfect for winter. I absolutely love it.

Although the project page doesn't have details on the modifications, I think the above picture is pretty self explanatory and helpful. Yoko has a beautiful blog, which is entirely in Japanese, but an experienced knitter would find the pictures quite inspiring.

Modification Monday: Ballerina

Original Pattern: Bunny

Knitter Extraordinaire: Serena (Rav Id)

Mods: Serena used the body of the bunny pattern but turned it into a ballerina doll, by changing the colours to reflect a person in a pink ballerina costume, including grafting on a 'tutu', adding a tambourine, and a hairstyle that was similar to the one her daughter wears in ballet class. Project page is here.

What Makes This Awesome: I love that this little ballerina is so personalized- it's a replica of the costumes, props, and hairstyles worn by her daughter and the other little girls in her daughter's ballet class. I'm sure every kid would love a doll that is knitted to look just like them, doing the same things that they love to do! This is such a great gift idea. And seriously- look how cute that ballerina is!!

Modification Monday: Cable Headband

Original Pattern: Calorimetry

Knitter Extraordinaire: Michelle (Rav id)

Mods: Changed up the original almost-mitered ribbed headband to be a lushly cabled headband with seed stitch edging.


What Makes This Awesome: I love the texture of this piece. the seed stitch edging is perfect, and the cables are such a interesting and different idea, particularly how loose and almost free-form they look. This is the kind of piece that when you wear it, everyone would comment on it and ask were you got it. An absolutely gorgeous modification, for sure! You can find the full modified pattern on her project page, here.

Happy Anniversary, Love

(taken at Niagara Falls March 7, 2009- the day after we got married, hours before we left for our honeymoon)

One year ago today, I married the most wonderful man I have ever known. G is a fantastic husband, and I'm so ridiculously lucky. Since we started dating, and even now that we're married, he often tells me something that never fails to make me smile:

I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you.

Me too, Guy. I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you.
Happy Anniversary, my love.

Current WIPs, and my Next Projects

Before I even had a trip booked to Chicago, Eliza and I were planning on having a fingerless mitt swap. We would each knit one mitt, and give the mitt and the remaining yarn to the other, so that they could knit just one mitt and have a complete pair. I knitted her theSwan Maiden mitt, which I loved- I'm definitely going to knit myself a pair of these! Here is a photo of Eliza modelling the one I knit for her:

And Eliza knit me one of the October Leaves Fingerless Mitts, which are lovely: They are going to be perfect for spring!

While on the flight there and back, and anywhere else I could squeeze in a bit of knitting time, I've been working on this:

This lovely peat coloured, moss stitch lump is a test knit  Twenty Ten cardigan from Veera, who is working on the pattern. I love it so far!! I'm very excited about the asymmetrical front, and also excited to find the perfect project for my new massive button collection. I'm much further along than this photo shows- I'm actually at the collar portion. But how could I resist posting this picture of Gatsby modelling the WIP? He's such a camera ham, that Gatsby.

Some of you may recall the lovely Malabrigo laceweight I picked up on the trip, and it is definitely earmarked for specific projects! The olive colourway is going to be the Geodesic Cardigan from the new Knitscene, and the Paris Night colourway is likely to be a Featherweight Cardigan Meets Minimalist. Mods will be especially necessary, since the Featherweight starts at a size about 4" too big for me.

I love the olive green (it's one of my favourites), but I'm also in love with that Paris Night colourway- just look at the lovely variations in shade!

Modification Mondays: Modified Silk Cocoon Cardigan

Original Pattern: Silk Cocoon Cardigan


Knitter Extraordinaire: Jill (Rav id)

Mods: Jill transformed the long sleeved wrap cardigan into a short sleeved, v neck pullover.

What Makes This Awesome: As gorgeous as the original pattern is (and I'm a big fan of it), wrap cardigans aren't for everyone. I personally don't look that great in them, and subsequently didn't think too much about the pattern. But this mod is so lovely- the v neck is flawless (really- I wish all my v necks looked this professional!), and the lovely stitch pattern that makes the Silk Cocoon Cardi so distinctive plays out perfectly across the shoulder and upper back. Project page, with details on her mods, can be found here.