An illustration of gauge

Posted on 13 January 2007 by Kris

As I mentioned in my January goals post, I had started the Endpaper Mitts. Even though I have knit two by this point, I’m not done with this project yet; I’ve got one more to finish.

That’s because the two existing mitts aren’t a pair.

Basically, I finished one, but didn’t realize that my gauge had tightened a bit until I was nearly done. (I’d tried on the cuff and it seemed to fit fine, so I continued on to the decreases and, well…) My gauge on that mitt ended up being around 9 st/in. While I do have nearly child-sized hands, “nearly” isn’t good enough for me to wear the first mitt.

To the left is a finished mitt at 9 st/in. To the right is my second mitt, knit to 8 st/in. While I can fit the smaller one on my non-dominant hand, it’s not very comfortable to wear. It’s past snug; it’s downright tight.

See, this is why gauge matters in fitted items. See how much of a difference 1 st/in makes here? Nearly an inch at its widest point. And this isn’t even a large project. Imagine how much more of a difference it would make if I’d knit up a sweater.

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January 2007 goals

Posted on 01 January 2007 by Kris

Happy New Year to all!

I realize that it looks like I sort of dropped off the face of the planet, and okay, I kind of did, knitting-wise. Last month’s goal progress:

  1. Finish chart 6 of Peacock Feathers – Not done
  2. Finish a pair of socks – Not done
  3. Finish at least one other WIP – Not done
  4. Work on all remaining WIPs – Done! (I did work on all of them…)
  5. Start Endpaper Mitts – Done!

I’ve made progress on all projects, but not enough. That’s okay, because today starts a new year, with new promise.

I’m going to do a little something different this year – I’m setting yearly goals in addition to monthly ones, and every month I’ll track my progress on both types. It’s the closest thing to New Year’s resolutions I’ll make, so…

2007 goals:

  1. Have only one project of each type (socks, lace, fitted garment, etc.) in progress at any one time. (Though I reserve the right to recategorize projects as I see fit.)
  2. Have a maximum of five projects on the needles at any given time.
  3. Finish at least five pairs of socks.
  4. Finish at least two shawls or stoles.
  5. Finish at least one of the two WIPs started in 2005, and rip out the remaining one if no progress has been made by the end of the year.
  6. Decrease the amount of yarn in my stash.
  7. Attend SnBs more regularly (at least once a month)

January goals:

  1. Finish chart 7 of Peacock Feathers
  2. Finish a pair of socks
  3. Finish at least one other WIP
  4. Work on all remaining WIPs

Wish me luck!

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Charted and recharted

Posted on 07 December 2006 by Kris

Thanks for the all the comments on my argyle-ish socks! I appreciate the encouragement, especially after this week’s progress.

First off, remember how I said that turning the heel was my least favorite part? Well, it figures that I’d have to rip it out and start over.

The problem was that I’d offset the pattern incorrectly when I charted it the first time. Oops.

And then there’s the gusset.

I’m not completely sure how I feel about it yet. It’s definitely not perfect; in particular, there’s a couple of small spots along the decrease lines that could be improved upon. On the other hand, I really don’t want to rip it out again, because this is actually my second try at the gusset. (I’d gotten about halfway through the first attempt when I decided I didn’t like how that was turning out.)

So I’m trying to decide whether I can live with what I currently have or if I should just suck it up, rip back, and rechart and knit it yet again. Thoughts, anyone?

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Feathered

Posted on 05 December 2006 by Kris

Charts 2 through 5 of Peacock Feathers are all basically the same exact same thing. So, needless to say, by the time I got to chart 4, I was extremely bored.

However, since I finished chart 5 over the weekend…

I’m excited about this project again. I like how the feathers have been turning out – I can’t wait to see how they’ll look after a proper blocking! And now I get to move on to a chart with a different motif, which is good for my relatively short attention span.

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Not-so-traditional argyle

Posted on 04 December 2006 by Kris

So as soon as I finished a sock with a stranded stitch pattern, I switched to a sock with stranded colorwork.

I’ve had ideas for these socks running around in my head for awhile, and I’m so glad I finally get to to put it all together.

I’d never done colorwork before, but it’s not like I was going to let that stop me! I just did a swatch and then ran with it. It’s been a good learning experience so far, and I’m pleased with the results, despite the minor tension wonkiness (yes, that’s a tension issue on the middle left, not an actual mistake). It should block out just fine, though, and it really does look better than the picture lets on.

The heel flap was a bit annoying to work, given that it’s stranded colorwork knit flat. It’s also a bit longer than I’d prefer, but it was kind of necessary because of the way the numbers for the heel turn worked out. Speaking of which:

This was eighteen short rows of sheer pain. Okay, maybe not sheer pain; I’m exaggerating a bit. But let’s just say it was my least favorite part.

I’ve just started the gusset. I’m not entirely sure it’ll work out the way I want it to, but we’ll see what happens.

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