This ball is better than the slapdash attempt I made at the work event last week. I’ll be telling them to scrap the first version. It was messy as heck.
An infinity scarf
Isn’t this fabric cute! And I got it for less than three bucks!! It was an 80cm remnant of soft brushed knit fabric. Two seams and it’s done.
Another huge swoncho
A friend came over to sew with me today. I took the opportunity to sew this swoncho. It’s the same pattern as the grey one I made for myself, but a larger size, as this is a gift for someone. I just love that I can make a complete garment in an afternoon.
I’m feeling very proud of myself this week. I completed a plaid shirt and the pattern stripes line up and it actually fits. I’m gobsmacked.
It has a collar, collar band, cuffs, a yoke that I cut on the bias, an extra seam in each sleeve leading to the cuff opening, separate front bands and (eek) buttonholes!
It mostly went well though I did unpick the sleeve seams and shave an inch off the body at the shoulders so that it didn’t look like I was wearing something that was way too big.
And I shortened the front and back by two inches at the pattern cutting stage which turned out just right. The sleeves could have been shortened by an inch or so but that’s a minor thing as I will wear the sleeves rolled up anyway.
I estimate it took me about 16 hours so I’m very glad it was all worth it in the end.
A much quicker project followed on its heels. I bought the pattern and fabric while the shirt was still in progress. It was being modelled on the front of the McCall’s pattern book and I made a quick decision to make one. I guess you’d call it a swoncho!
Yes, lots of positive ease. But so comfy. It’s a fairly thin rib knit and it was really easy and quick to make. Only four pattern pieces.
Next up will probably be some reusable snack bags. I have lots of cotton and a metre of white ripstop nylon for the lining and plenty of zippers.
I haven’t washed this yet, so the stitches are still somewhat uneven in places. It took just over six weeks to complete though if I had been a little more focused it could have taken way less.
I did try it on and I have to say I’m not 100% happy with it. It fits ok but I was anticipating it being more roomy. Guess I should have made the larger size. Could have been a little longer too, and the neck doesn’t sit smoothly probably because it’s a funnel-type neck with no neckline shaping. If I made it again, I would make it bigger and wider, add length below the armholes, work the ribbing without changing to smaller needles and do the short rows at the back neck. Hmmm, that’s a lot of changes!
As you can see, the snow really built up over the course of the last 24 hours. I think we have a couple more casualties of the heavy weight on the tree branches out there – a branch on one of our hawthorn trees looks to have cracked, and the lilac is bent down to the ground.
There is some blue sky today, and the temperature is hovering around freezing, so most of the snow will probably hang around, except on the roads.
Progress has been made on the Turtle Dove swoncho.
The twisted rib hem has been finished on the front and I have a couple of inches to go on the back. Then I’ll need to add the sleeves, which will be pretty short because of the style of this garment. I think I only need to do 6 inches of stockinette and a couple of inches of ribbing.
Mr Fixit was commenting last night that his fingerless mitts were getting worn out. I have darned them a little in the past. We couldn’t remember how long he’d had them – our guesses were way off – turns out I knitted them in January 2010! The beauty of Ravelry is that I was able to look at the project page and find out that they are 11 years old. No wonder they are wearing out, but I’m impressed that they’ve lasted this long. He uses them every winter around the house. Not sure I feel like knitting him some new ones, but maybe I should just do it anyway!
It was a beautiful sunny day today, but cold. Last night we had freezing rain and when I was driving to the dentist to get my tooth prepared for a crown I was sliding a little on the road, despite my new winter tires.
The dentist spent a long time reshaping my tooth and getting a 3D scan of my mouth for the new crown to be made. It wasn’t painful and I wasn’t stressed out but I was glad when she was done. Afterwards I had a walk around the neighbourhood, cosied up in my new winter coat and a crocheted grey beanie with a neon yellow pompom! First hat day of the winter.
Once I’d had my exercise, off I went to my sewing room. I finished the Christmas journal, which I think will probably be the Secret Santa gift for work this year. Below are a few photos of some of the pages.
I called that one done, and started adding pages to the flowery cover I showed you last time. It’s not quite full enough yet so you’ll have to wait to see that one.
I’ve finished two balls of the Cygnet Chunky on my Turtle Dove swoncho now. The yoke is growing bigger and bigger – by the time I split for the sleeves and body I should have about 300 stitches.
It’s definitely good Netflix knitting – or I should I say “Knitflix” (I know, not an original joke)!
What do you like to watch on Netflix? Recently, I burned through five seasons of Lucifer, then watched The Queen’s Gambit, and now I’m on Dark. When you’re knitting, the fact that the voices are dubbed isn’t a big deal because you’re not always looking at the screen anyway. Better than subtitles anyway – you have to watch for those!
Dark is a German series. It has quite a convoluted plot, and without trying to be too spoilery I find that watching people walking/crawling through caves makes me feel very claustrophobic and tense. I shall have to choose something lighter when this show is done.
Whew, feeling tired and it’s not even 9pm. I went to bed really late last night, forgetting I had to be up early for the dentist appointment. And tomorrow and Sunday I have work so need to be well-rested, so I’m going to say ta ta for now. Have a great weekend!
I had a fun evening last night making some Christmas-themed masks to wear at work.
We are all thoroughly fed up with covid and mask-wearing and all of that shit but I am cheering myself up with my fun masks. One of the fabrics looks like knit stitches, so you know that appeals to me. The others are just pretty Christmassy ones in non-traditional colours, which again is definitely my thing.
And this morning I experimented with a bit of buffalo plaid flannelette, some faux fur and felt, and made this GNOME mask. The lining is quilting cotton.
I haven’t put it on my own face yet, but it looks good on Sally!
I sent a photo to my sewing friends and they loved it – I’m sure it’ll give my co-workers a good laugh too.
I’ve also finished another journal cover. I spotted a quilt block that someone had made yesterday and they said it was from a video by Darlene Michaud. It’s called Wonky Selvage Christmas Tree and of course I just HAD to make one.
I really like this idea and can see myself making more.
I don’t think I showed you these two journal covers yet, either. I need to tea dye a bunch more paper so I can finish them.
Also, exciting news! My yarn arrived from Wool Warehouse and it looks like this…
Cygnet Chunky in Blackberry
So my swoncho is well underway – the pattern is Turtle Dove and I found it on Ravelry (link to my project page). I have already knitted up one whole ball and started the second.
I swatched with a 10.5US/6.5mm needle because I didn’t have a 7mm in my Knit Picks set, and I liked the fabric I was getting. My gauge is 15 stitches to 4 inches rather than 14, so I am following the instructions for the Large to get a Medium. There is a LOT of ease written into this pattern which makes it less fraught!
I hope that life is going well for all of you. Happy crafting! After all, our creativity and crafting is often our sanity-saver, right?
NICOLA KNITS 