Archive for the ‘knitting loom’ Category

The best laid plans…

I’m pretty much at the decision point.
green and yellow baby blanket

This green section is the point of no return. If I finish it off with three rows, then I’m stuck with that pattern. If I do 6 rows, I can do the math sequence suggested by Beth. It’s OCD vs. Geek! Who will win?

Who are we kidding? OCD wins every time. On the up side, it also make me have to make one in the math pattern. That’s just too cool to pass up! The other up side is that I get to plan it out and do it on purpose. Huzzah!

Naturally, I’m not only working on one project right now. The blanket is my work project. It gets worked on at lunch and maybe on the subway, if it’s not too crowded (right-o!).

My home project is a quick little scarf. You see, I have a scarf already. It’s a long scarf, and it’s quite pretty. But it’s a bit unwieldy sometimes. I’ve been in a short scarf mood lately, but without a short scarf.

I have a plan in mind for a really nifty scarf, but it’s going to take a while to execute, so what to do in the mean time?

Why, make a fast and easy short scarf to work in the mean time!

I wanted something that will match the hat that I’m going to make for myself, so Patons Melody on a Knifty Knitter loom it is! Well, scarves made on the looms with just a straight e-wrap stitch (my fastest stitch on the loom) tend to curl, and I didn’t want that. My solution: I’ll use the small blue loom and go all the way around. That way I have a scarf with double-thickness for extra warmth!

There goes the “fast” part of the equation! I’m not sure how my logic let me believe that a double-thickness scarf would work up fast, but there it is.

And here’s the scarf in progress!
black tube scarf

I know it’s a bit of a departure from my usual “It’s dreary out, let’s go nuts with colour” attitude, but no worries… the hat will make up for it. ^_-

Annnnd… We’re back!

First, thank you everyone who kept checking back. Those of you on my Facebook friends list already know that I’ve been sick with bronchitis for the last couple of weeks. I can’t remember ever being as sick as I have been this month, or for as long. Thankfully I’m finally starting to get better. I’m in quite a bit of pain from all of the coughing, but the coughing seems to be going away now. I’ve got my appetite back (after losing about 10 lbs!), and I started back to work yesterday after 9 days off.

The worst part about this whole ordeal is that I’ve been too sick to craft! Can you even imagine?

So, today I present you with crafts I’ve made in the past that have been keeping me warm (especially during that blackout we just had!)

First, the slippers. I made these to wear at work. I just hate wearing shoes there, but walking around in my socks has given me funny looks and can be quite disastrous when they mop the floor!

These are the first slippers I’d ever made:
purple slippers
purple slipper

I got the pattern for these from a friend of mine. Basically, you pick a fuzzy yarn (so as to hide what you’re doing), and start working in the round. Make some increases until the circle is big enough to go around your foot, then do one stitch per one stitch to form a tube. Sometimes I find I need to make some decreases while making the tube… just keep measuring it against your foot as you go. When you get near your ankle it’s time to stop making a tube and start making a u-shape. Keep going back and forth in the u-shape until you reach your heel. I find it very useful to pull the slipper tight every time I measure it against my foot… they seem to last longer that way. When it’s the right size, cut the yarn leaving a really long tail, finish off, then use the tail to sew the two sides of the u-shape together to form the back of the slipper.

Repeat for other foot.

It’s really quite easy. Using the fuzzy yarn really hides any fudging you have to do with increases and decreases. Oh! I also find it best to start with a circle made of sc, then do dc for the rest.

Here are the last pair I made for myself:
green striped slippers

I used Bernat Soft BouclĂ© for all of my slippers. The green ones are “Sage Stripes” (which doesn’t seem to exist anymore… that really sucks!).

From my feet we move on to my head. I made myself this hat:
AFK hat It can’t talk to you right now.

And finally, I present to you a photo essay detailing the creation of the Giant Pink Mitten of Doom:
The Thumb:
Giant Pink Mitten of Doom - thumb

Where I ran out of yarn:
Giant Pink Mitten of Doom - ran out of yarn

Finished! It’s a bit on the big side:
Giant Pink Mitten of Doom

Ongoing Project 1

I have several projects on the go. The first is a charity project facilitated by my Mom’s sorority. We’re making hats, scarves, and mitts for elementary school-aged children.

Since Mom neither knits nor crochets, she buys the yarn and gives it to me to make things.

Some of my first hats using the Knifty Knitter round looms:

hats

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