theraineysisters knitting and so much more

I bought buttons, and they are now on my sweater — this may be temporary, though.  I am rarely thrilled about the buttons I end up with and usually threaten to buy different ones.  However, I have never actually changed buttons once they make it onto a sweater.  By then I have moved on and don’t really care any more!

I’ll bring this to my knitting group tonight and get the approval I crave and then move on!  My knitting group gets me through the week.  They are more than just people I knit with — I really like their company.  If I can get them to let me take a picture, I’ll post it.

I finished knitting the pieces of the ST cardigan, basted it together, and it fits!!!!!  The sleeves are the perfect length.  The body is the length I wanted.  I am amazed, shocked and speechless — in a good way.  I started sewing the seams last night and I’ll buy buttons on my way home.  It should be done and ready to wear by this weekend (xxxxx — crossed fingers).  I will post a picture of the finished garment.  Chalk up another one for moi!

I am making progress, but slowly, on the Summer Tweed.  Getting stalled like this happens every so often.  Well, truthfully, it tends to happen pretty frequently.  You get to a certain point in a project and just feel bored.  That is why so many knitters jump from project to project.  The problem is, if you jump ship, you may not come back to it.  I have many UFOs as proof.  So, if I really want the end product, I have to force myself to get through the doldrums.  I really need to finish this sweater because my spring/summer wardrobe is so pathetic.  I’ll keep on plodding.

I’ll leave you with an inspirational picture: From the ‘Avant Garden’ flower show at Marshall Field’s.  Spring is in Minnesota

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I will definitely have enough yarn to make the sleeves as long as I want.  I picture this sweater being worn over a very soft cotton summer dress — long and flowy.  So, today I bought fabric.  Six yards cost me about $13.00!  Woo hoo!  This picture (from my scanner, not camera) shows the colors much more accurately.  So now I have both knitting and sewing to do.

 

I am behind on my knitting because of spring break.  I worked through all of it except Friday.  So I decided to take my two girls out for a one day vacation.  We did all the kinds of things you do on vacation: we went bowling (my girls are “bowlers” in name only!), had our nails done, ate lunch at a fabulous restaurant, and shopped, shopped, shopped.  It was so much fun!!!  We really had a good time. 

Tomorrow I will knit on my way to and from Grandpa’s for Easter dinner, so I hope to finish the second sleeve then.  Have a happy holiday, everyone!

What am I talking about?  Sleeves, of course!  There is no easy way to predict how long to make the sleeves on a sweater.  I have formulas and theories and 4 decades of experience — but, there is a 50-50 chance that the sleeves will end up the wrong length.  It is because each sweater is different: the fit, the hang, where the armholes land, etc.  I have finally accepted it.  I am mentally prepared to knit the entire sleeve, baste the sweater together, and undo it all to rip back the sleeve cap and correct the fit. 

It is looking like I will have enough yarn to finish long sleeves on my Summer Tweed.  Yippee!  I’ll be finished with Sleeve #1 today, Sleeve #2 by Saturday, and should be sewing the thing together this weekend.  And, alas, probably re-sewing it together AGAIN next Monday or Tuesday.  It’s worth it, though, or it just wouldn’t be fun to wear.

I’ll post some pics in the next couple of days.

I have done a bit more on Ballerina, but I’m mostly focusing on my Summer Tweed, so I can get it done and start wearing it.

This is a fun and very cute sock pattern.  The yarn is getting prettier as it starts to change color, which it does very gradually.  You get a lot of texture for not a lot of effort with the pattern stitch.  When will I finish these?  Not for a while.  I want to finish up my Summer Tweed cardigan ASAP, and then have a few other things on the burner.

Summer Tweed is progressing: the back and both fronts are complete.  I don’t know if I have enough yarn for long sleeves, but I have decided to give it a try.  I’ll attempt to knit a full length sleeve and if I can’t make it on 2 skeins, I’ll rip it out and start over.  Extra knitting, but I don’t know what else to do.

The other major knitting-related project that is taking my time and energy is preparing for an all day knitting workshop that I will be doing on April 29 at “Yarnover.”  Yarnover is sponsored by the Minnesota Knitters Guild and is held every year.  It is a lot of fun, and this is the first time I have been asked to teach a class.  My class is called “A Few of My Favorite Things from A to Z” and includes knitting tips, stories, techniques, and projects for every letter of the alphabet.  I’ll share more details after the event because some of the attendees read this blog and I do not want to spill the beans. 

Today my 16 year old and I are going to the American Craft Council Expo — it is a juried show of hand crafts of all types, including some knitting/fiber arts.  The glass, wood, and jewelry items are gorgeous.

TV and Knitting — a combination that can’t be beat.  I hate just sitting and watching.  It seems like such a waste of time.  But if you KNIT while watching, that’s another story.  One of my favorite shows is Grey’s Anatomy.  I watch it every week.  I suppose it is a guilty pleasure because it is not PBS, but I really do enjoy it.  Last night was even better than usual.  All they did throughout the whole show was knit.  They were knitting everywhere!  Meredith (main character) was knitting to maintain her celibacy (that’s the reason I knit, by the way — not really, John, just a by product!).  Anyway, I digress.  It was great seeing knitting on the tube.  I have heard, but not seen, that they also knit on Desperate Housewives.  Does that mean we are cool or that the rest of the world has caught up with us? 

Project Update:  I finished the back and 1-1/2 of the fronts on my Summer Tweed Cardigan, rounded the bend on Ballerina and started a pair of socks. 

Speaking of “anatomy,” I continue to wonder about mine — do I have ankles or tree trunks?  The socks are too small so I must start them over.  I am making a pair with the same yarn that Sally used in #10 (see previous entry).  They look very different because my colorway is more monochromatic.  The ragwool effect is much less apparent.  Hers are much cuter.

I have not truly embraced sock knitting.  I made one pair and I’ve started many others.  I like the idea of sock knitting and every knitter seems hellbent on making socks, but I can’t seem to find my rhythm.  So, if I rip these out, they may not make it back onto the needles for a while.