One last photo...

I promise, I'm done taking photos of these mitts now!

They are washed and blocked, and I have moved on to "show knitting"... (more to come once I can take a half-decent photo of what I'm working on).

FO: Last Christmas Prezzie DONE!!!!

Oooh, it feels soooo good to be done with these mitts; I had to take crappy cell phone photos to show them off:



Project Details:
Yarn: Knitpicks Palette in the aptly named "blue" and "yellow" -- Swedish colours!
Pattern: Swirly Mittens from Anne L (aka. Goldenknits)'s blog, Kultalankaa (Golden Thread) -- the blog is in Finnish and English. FYI: The pattern is more of a chart to insert into your own mitten pattern. I had to learn how to do the cuff (loose directions given), thumb gusset and thumb (no directions given).
Needles: Addi Turbo 2.5mm circular needles -- magic looped
Ravelry Project Page: Click here!



Feel free to now resume your regularly scheduled blog reading... I'm off to block and better photograph these babies -- and to dream about what I'm knitting next!

Doh.

I'm officially an idiot regarding this second mitt.

Problems so far:

1) I cast on too few stitches, and didn't even realize ("hmmm, does that look small?") until 3 inches into the cuff. Had to rip back and create some blue and yellow ramen to start over.

2) In the palm motive, I messed up a set of four blue/yellow stitches at the end of a round. I dropped a couple of stitches intentionally to sort them out, and managed to fix them, but with wonky tension.

3) Luckily (?!) problem #2 didn't matter because I totally forgot to start the increases for the thumb gusset. More ramen as I ripped WAY back. Ouch.

Hopefully these things come in threes and that's it now. I'd like to get these done and gifted!

Ticking Along...

photo.jpg
Originally uploaded by linzknits

I'm working on these mitts, still... and they are a joy to knit, but I wish I weren't trying to get them done ASAP.

I think deadline knitting is enough to sap all the energy out of what I'm working on.

Luckily, these are gorgeous enough that I'm motivated to get them done!

I'm using teeny tiny needles, and funnily enough, they keep warping just a little bit. I think this two-handed stranded knitting has my tension all wound up super tight. I do manage to bend the needles back every so often, but perhaps I need to loosen up a little?

Wish me luck... I think I need it!

Merry Christmas

I wish you all yarny goodness and time to knit and celebrate with family and friends!

I was hoping to post finished pics of Solveig's Swirly Mittens... but they won't be done until the new year. I've got one done... except for the thumb (and I may have to work out how to knit a thumb to do it... hmmmmm) and just barely started on the second.



Luckily, I have a store-bought prezzie for her, and she's happy with her surprise knitted prezzie coming in the new year, for perhaps Ethiopian Christmas (Jan. 7). She has a friend working in Ethiopia right now, so we had a good giggle over the delayed present.



I would normally be mortified to not finish a Christmas present on time, but I think these are going to be worth it! Let's hope Solveig feels the same way.

Oh, and as a Christmas wrap-up: all the other prezzies got finished!!! Huzzah!

Best of the season to all, whatever you may celebrate, and to all a good night.

Christmas Prezzie #4 is finito!

What a wonderful and quick project! I think these will be go-to gifts for a while! One skein (just just barely, I had about 2 inches leftover, even after I skipped a row of the second wristwarmer!) and so super fast!

Hopefully the recipient will LURVE them!

Project Details:
Yarn: Manos Silk Blend in the gorgeous colourway, 3109 (what a name!).

Needles: Addi Turbo Lace (mmm... still obsessed) 4.0 mm circulars, and Holz & Stein Rosewood 3.5 mm circs for the 'smaller size'. I went MacGyver for the cables and used a paperclip.

Pattern: Toast! by Jennifer Campbell of the Purple Purl, free pattern with purchase of Manos Silk Blend or Malabrigo Silky Merino

Ravelry Link: click here

Gratuitous photos:






These will be very hard to give up, but they definitely have given me a one-skein project for the luscious balls of yarn that I never know what to do with, but desperately need to take home.

Now, to finish the last knitted Christmas present!!!

Christmas Prezzie #3 in progress...

This is my "tricky knitting" for Christmas this year. I got hooked on stranded colourwork doing Pemm's wristwarmers, that I needed another project!

Well, diving right into the deep end, I pulled some Knitpicks Palette from my stash, and seeing as it costs about $2/ball, I figured I'd be ok even if I messed this up completely.

I'd bought these colours for my boyfriend's Mum, Solveig, as they are the Swedish national colours, originally destined for a pair of stripey socks. But I think these results are going to be much more exciting:



Mittens!!!! Solveig's Swirly Mittens!!!

Don't you love them? I'm using the chart from this blog, which I think is in Finnish. It's much more of a chart than a pattern, and it's my first real pair of mittens, so I'm learning mitten construction as I go. Definitely fun knitting!

My Mum loves the pattern on the back:


And you have to see what I'm doing with the thumb:


Yes, these are my official precursor to the Selbuvotter mittens I am dying to make. But those will be for me!