My knitting comes in waves,

where I will go through a time where I am constantly knitting, and then I can go a few months without knitting a thing. I have been knitting up a storm lately, so there's a lot to show.

Good news on the Bed Jacket front - my sister loves it. It fits her as if I knit it for her (and thinking about it, the specs are exactly her size) and apparently it looks great on her. I'm far away, so I can't attest to it, but from what I hear, it's a big success.

Since I last posted, I finished Vivian, blocked it and installed a zipper. I've worn it a few times too, and it's great. I have a couple problems with it - it hits a bit lower on the hip than a lot of sweaters, but I would still like it a couple inches lower. Also, I modified the hood to make it bigger, but it's still on the small side. Still, it's exactly what I wanted, and it will replace my old gross sweater easily, which is why I made it.

Finished Vivian, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Vivian cable/zipper detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Vivian cable detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Vivian satin grosgrain detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I used satin grosgrain ribbon for the zipper backing. It's probably my favorite detail of the whole sweater. It feels great, and it seems like a luxury. Besides, it hides the ugly backstitch I used to put in the zipper.

Vivian Back, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I mentioned a self-designed bell-sleeved shrug ages ago. This was a project I started to keep myself busy while I was taking the bus to and from a summer job. Which is why I made a bell-sleeved shrug: the stockinette made it easy and mindless, but the design aspect allowed me some interest, besides that I wasn't thrilled with bell-sleeved shrug patterns I had seen online. I used Lion Brand Microspun in black, which is a nice yarn - a little splitty and I've heard it's pilly (haven't encountered that yet) with US2 needles. It was pretty straightforward - about a half-inch of hem at the cuff, bell sleeve decreases to the elbow, three-stitch i-cord borders on the flat part across the back. I knit both sleeves at the same time, starting at the cuff, to be sure I made them the same. I stopped somewhere a little past half done long ago, and picked it up again a few months ago. I finished it, took it to my mom's to block it, and then it disappeared. I discovered it under my bed a few weeks ago, and will likely block it soon.

Invented bell-sleeved shrug, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Bell sleeve detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Bell sleeve hem detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I mentioned a new Blaze-inspired sweater recently. I have dropped again out of ennui (it appears to be the fate of this sweater to be knit in short, impatient bursts). But I bring you pictures!

Blaze-inspired Sweater - body up to armholes, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Blaze-inspired Sweater - sleeve in progress, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

From first seeing Convertible, I liked the design. The idea makes a lot of sense - a wrap that can become a shrug, or a poncho, or... lots of things. And the buttons and buttonholes create a shawl pin of a sort as well. But I didn't want to use lace, mostly because I didn't want to have wind cut through it, and I wanted something practical, above all else (and warm!). I played with a lot of cable patterns and stitch patterns, but nothing grabbed me.

I recently moved to Tokyo for school, and I went looking for yarn for a potential Rogue. I was wandering around a yarn shop here, and I found very few heavy weight yarns. Most of what I found was sport, dk or lighter. And I didn't find much synthetic, if any. I feel like there might be a commentary there on Japanese knitters vs. American knitters. At least, I can say that knitting isn't a fad here the way it is in the states, and you certainly don't see anything like Fun Fur or Speed Stix. I hate Speed Stix. (If you're going to knit, it will take a long time. That's because it's knitting. Speed Stix are copping out. And bringing people to knitting that probably shouldn't be knitting in the first place. Gah.)

I picked up a ball of yarn that seemed promising, among the heavier yarns I saw, which is Diakeito's Dia Tasmanian Merino. It's a lovely yarn, and I subsequently fell in love (and began dreaming about knitting everything with it), but it's sport weight - too light for Rogue. I still intend to knit Rogue someday, but it's on hold until I find the right yarn. But Tasmanian Merino...

I have a big problem with itchy wools, which is basically that I don't wear anything with any itch. I have thought I might, and I have bought things that are itchy. But when I'm getting dressed in the morning, I look at the itchy thing, and I think, "But it's itchy!" and I reach for something softer. This is a big reason why I don't knit with wool very much, and why I'm very picky about my wools. If I'm going to invest the time and energy (and money! Knitting is expensive!!) into knitting something, damn sure I'm going to wear it. A lot. Which is why Tasmanian Merino is a dream. It's 100% merino, and it's just about the softest yarn I've worked with. Well, the yarn I used for Vivian is maybe a little softer, but the point is, Tasmanian Merino is softer than some synthetics and cottons I've used. Also, it knits up really nicely, with a great drape and feel. If Diakeito made the same yarn in a worsted weight, I probably would use their yarn for literally everything.

Anyway, there I was, with a soulmate of a yarn that was unsuitable for Rogue. So I decided to make a Convertible out of it. I used stockinette (to show off the yarn to the best effect) with a four-stitch garter border, and buttonholes every two inches or so. I made it on the big side: twenty inches wide by about fifty-four long. I wanted the sleeves to fall about mid-palm when it's a shrug, and they actually ended up a little longer than that. I'm considering ripping it and making it a little shorter. On the "cuff" ends, I put a few rows of garter, with buttonholes as well. I don't really know what I would use those buttonholes for, but I figure they will probably come in handy. I blocked it, and haven't gone button shopping yet, so it hasn't gotten any wear yet. Also, I probably should have done garter borders bigger than four stitches - even now that it's blocked, it curls at the sides. It was a blur of a project - about a week from cast on to blocking.

Convertible-inspired wrap, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I folded it in half for the picture, mostly because it's so massive. But you get the idea.

Convertible buttonhole detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

This is what the color looks like in person.

Convertible Stockinette detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

And the stockinette. Miles and miles of it...

Inspired by the thrill of discovering Tasmanian Merino, I decided to make Labyrinth with it. I used a red wine colored-burgundy yarn, which my camera doesn't seem up to the task of representing. I used dark charcoal for the contrast color, but I'm not thrilled with the way it looks, so I will probably do the contrast parts in black, and use the charcoal to make Elijah. This project is really racing by - I knit the part in the picture in two days, and I am now about halfway through the hip increases.

Labyrinth in progress, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Labyrinth waist shaping detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Labyrinth neckline detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

As I raved about Tasmanian Merino, I am thrilled at the prospect of having a whole sweater made out of it.

I picked up a couple balls of yarn to play with to knit a toy. Itchiness research. Besides, I figured if it ended up being itchy, I'd still have a stuffie at the end. I recently started watching Invader Zim, and I love Gir, so TChemGrrl's pattern was an obvious choice. I knit his head in an evening or two, and his body was two more evenings. Talk about instant-gratification knitting.

Gir in progress, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Gir intarsia detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Gir antenna detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Gir arm detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Gir leg detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

He has since been stuffed, and I still need to knit his eyes and sew the neck seam. (And the yarn? Too itchy. Although, the blue is a yarn I found here in Tokyo, and it might work out.)

I mentioned a Sahara out of that Gap duster I used to harvest yarn. I haven't sewn the seams at the neckline yet, but I do have pictures.

Gap duster yarn harvest - Sahara, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Sahara waist shaping detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

And finally, I decided to do something with the blue from Gir. I will have most of a ball to play with, and I'm hoping that's enough to make a Shedir. I am now quite a bit farther than in the picture - about a repeat or so of cables past the bottom ribbing, but I haven't taken a picture that recently.

Shedir in progress, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

And... done! We're all caught up!

Well you'd never believe it just by reading this blog,

but I have actually been doing lots of knitting. (Lots!!) I made the Bed Jacket I mentioned before, and when I had the border sewn on, it didn't fit. The two border pieces barely touched, let alone wrapped around me. The way the sizing is done, it jumps from a 34" bust to a 39. I'm a 36, and I didn't want it to be baggy, so I went with the 34. Thinking back, that was a pretty stupid move, since a wrap sweater should be big so it wraps. Sigh. Anyway, it is currently looking for a home - my sister or her friends might want it. I hope they do, because if not, I don't know who it could go to.

I mentioned a Sahara way back a couple years ago, when I was first making the white one. This yarn was harvested from an old Gap duster, and originally intended to make Holly, from MagKnits-that-was, but I got bored with the project and decided to make a Sahara. I found out right about the time I was nearing the armholes that my gauge was too big, so I set it aside and made it in white. I came back to it a few months later in the right gauge, but I was a little overzealous with the waist shaping, and it didn't fit. And then I rescued it just a few weeks ago, re-did the whole waist shaping area, and now all it needs is the seams around the neckline. I'm terrible with photographing my knits, but there will be pictures soon.

There was also a project about a year ago. I like my modified Blaze a lot, and wear it pretty frequently, but I wanted to revisit the pattern and add some more mods. I used Red Heart Soft in this nice teal color, and made it sit lower on my hips and included waist shaping. (I'm not a fan of Red Heart, mostly because I think their Super Saver yarn is crappy, but I think Soft really redeems them. It's acrylic, but it's soft, and knits up really nicely. Plus it comes in great colors.) I stopped somewhere around the armholes, mostly out of ennui, but I also rescued this in the past month or so. I decided to make the sleeves bell out, with that same cable from my first Blaze, and make them full-length to make it a bit more versatile. I got from about the cuff to the elbow on a sleeve before getting tired of it and moving on.

And then, because the Bed Jacket was such a disappointment, I started making Vivian. I am using Berocco Comfort Chunky in a chocolatey brown color, and I am really loving this yarn. It's an acrylic-nylon blend that's just a little splitty (more so if you knit and rip and re-knit) and it feels like a dream, all buttery soft and perfect. Just knitting it makes my hands feel happy. It's a great feeling. So far, I've got the whole thing done, and I'm a couple inches into working the hood. This project has really breezed by, and has totally made up for the sadness that the Bed Jacket didn't work out.

So I buckled down and turned some UFOs into FOs.

Hooray! First was my mom's vest. I had stopped because the way I understood the pattern, the armholes were more like slits, but the pattern (and reality) is that they're more like gaps. When that was clear, I raced through the last of it and blocked it, to my mom's appreciation. Apparently she gets compliments whenever she wears it. I'll coordinate with her soon for some pics.

Then, I finished Butterfly. I had stopped because I was afraid the straps would stretch when on, and didn't know how long to knit them. I ended up knitting them as if they would stretch, and then blocked them stretched. So they're the right length, and they will stay that way.

Unblocked Butterfly, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Pattern Detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Hem Detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Unblocked, Pattern + Beads Detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

This last photo is closest to the actual color.

While I was waiting to figure out what to do with the straps, I began knitting the camisole version of Butterfly. I had bought three skeins of yarn for the dress, afraid of running out, and the dress took a little less than two. One skein of laceweight isn't enough for much, so I decided to make a camisole, which would make a more versatile, casual version of the design. I ended up using that one skein, plus a little bit of the yarn left over from the dress. Perfect.

Butterfly Tank, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I began knitting the camisole on a car trip to San Francisco, where I spent last Christmas with my family. My sister liked the design, so I had her pick a color (I already had the color card for KnitPicks Shadow, which I used for mine) and got to work on hers (she wanted a dress with the same iridescent beads from mine). I raced through hers, and spent a frenzied couple of weeks finishing it (and the trim and straps from my dress and camisole) and then blocking all three. I was up until three one night, but it was great to have them all finished and blocked. There will be blocked pictures (and modeled pictures) someday in the near future.

Finished Butterfly, Unblocked, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Unblocked Pattern Detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Unblocked Hem Detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Yarn Plus Beads, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Like the first Butterfly, the second two were knit in the round, with hem frills done in one long strip. I picked up stitches around the top and did the trim and straps before blocking (I didn't have to block before seaming - no seams - and I wanted to block everything). For my sister's, I left the middle stitches at the top live, and simply put them on the needle when I needed to pick up stitches for the trim. This was to save time and effort, but it also turns out that the cast-off edge pulls at the lace a little, and messes with the top of the garment. So leaving the top stitches live was the best option.

After all of that, I decided to make something different. I have knit birthday presents for myself in the past, but often forgot to, or didn't even realize how the timing was working out in terms of my birthday until I was most of the way through the knitting. This year, the timing's right to have a FO in time for my birthday (April 19) and I have a pattern, and the time! The pattern is from a book I bought about a year ago - Knitting Lingerie Style by Joan McGowan-Michael. It's a great book, and has some lovely designs. It's one of few pattern books I've found that I would knit more than one thing in it (for this book, make that four or five!), which is why I bought it in the first place.

I really bought the book for the Bed Jacket design, though, which I love. So I bought the recommended yarn - Cascade Sierra - in a great chocolate brown color, and cast on about a week ago. I did the body and sleeves last weekend, and have done the front trim over the week. I blocked the body and sleeves over the past couple days, to spread out the finishing and seaming.

I'm making it with a few modifications - so far, the body was knit in the round to the armholes, and the shoulders were done with short rows and a three-needle bind off. The sleeves were knit in the round, up to the split for the sleeve cap. For the trim, I played around with knitting it all in one piece, but ended up knitting the first part, then picking up stitches along the cast on edge for the second piece. When it's finished, I'll use a three needle bind off, rather than having to seam. That was confusing. Anyway, this will make it much simpler and easier - big pluses for me.

Well,

I buckled down and zoomed through several inches on mom's vest. I now have everything from the bottom to the split for the underarms in one fuzzy, variegated rectangle. Like I said before, I've been following a diagram she gave me, measured from an existing vest. But at the armholes, the math goes funny. It's much wider around at the bottom, and then it suddenly loses about ten inches, right where the armholes come in. And armholes aren't normally five inches wide, right? Anyway, progress has stopped until we can re-measure.

Meanwhile, because that knitting energy has to go somewhere, I picked up butterfly again. I was farther along when I stopped than I thought I was, so it really wasn't much work. I finished the body today, and now all I have left is the trim around the top edges and the straps. And blocking, of course. Of course. Pictures soon.

Recently, admiring things on Smitten Kitchen

has turned to making things on Smitten Kitchen. That started on Sunday, when the boy accompanied me to a restaurant supply store, or the only place I could find high gluten flour. I started making bagels that night and had them finished Monday. I was a little anxious about the whole thing, mostly because it was my first experience with yeast and kneading, but the bagels turned out rather well. The skins weren't as tough as I like, though, so I think I'll boil for two minutes if I make them again. Pictures soon.

And last night, I used the last of the high gluten flour to surprise the boy with homemade pizza for dinner. I had to start making dinner three hours early so the dough could rise, though the total work involved was probably a little over an hour. Impractical, but a nice little treat. Plus the boy was thrilled and it was delicious.

Also, I generally don't worry too much about what I eat. I know that's bad, and sometimes I feel guilty about what I'm putting into my body, but really, paying attention to all that stuff would be exhausting. All the same, making my pizza and bagels meant I know there was nothing funny in them. And they tasted so fresh! (Um...duh.)

In case you were wondering, and you probably weren't, I haven't knit much lately. I stopped work on everything but my mom's birthday vest so it wouldn't be terribly late, and then work tapered off on that out of ennui. Perhaps after the cooking fun dies down.

As promised,

I bring you blocked pictures of Print O' the Wave.

Print o' the Wave blocked, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

blocked pattern detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

blocked border detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I had to re-work the graft on the border a few times to make it more seamless. It's a little noticible now, but I think I did pretty well.

the graft, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

After Print O' the Wave, I immediately started work on Butterfly. I really took my time with Butterfly, rather than the mad dash through Print O' the Wave. I originally thought beads would be nice for Butterfly, but I decided that if I didn't find some I liked, the yarn would be pretty without them. I was able to find some cheap clear iridescent beads at Michael's, though, so that decision was easily made.

Rather than try to seam in lace, I decided early to knit it in the round. To that end, I knit both hem frills in one long strip, and grafted them even before picking up stitches for the body, to minimize finishing later. Work went quickly on the body, and I am now working the last few inches before dividing at the underarms. Pictures soon.

My mom's birthday was in mid-October, and she commissioned another birthday vest. We didn't pick out yarn until Saturday, though, so my deadline is really just however fast I can knit it. My mom has an existing vest that she likes and she measured it and gave me a complete diagram, so the designing work is mostly done for me. Butterfly will probably go on hold or mostly on hold until her vest is done. It will be mostly stockinette, very teevee knitting, so I expect it will be a breeze. Pictures of that later too.

I tried to make a tie for Giselle, but I tried to compensate for knitting it too small by over-blocking. Now it's too stretched and too big. I'll block again sometime soon to fix it.

While I waited for my yarn to arrive in the mail,

I improvised a case for my Nintendo DS. This was my first intarsia, and it was easy, even though I didn't make bobbins and my yarns tangled a little. Keeping my tension even was a bit of a problem, but it really flew by.

Triforce DS Case - Front, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Triforce DS Case - Closed, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Triforce DS Case - Open, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

And then the yarn came. I settled on white for Print O' the Wave, and I knit it at top speed, impatient and counting repeats the whole time. It was a breeze, my only real problem was picking up all those tiny stitches for the inner border and I had to redo the graft on the border a couple times to make it a bit more invisible. Blocked pictures later.

Print O the Wave in progress, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Unblocked finished Print O the Wave, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Unblocked pattern detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Unblocked border detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

In other news, the boy sweater and Giselle both got blocked. My mom ended up having to unpin them and dry all the sheets and towels on the bed where they were blocking, and completely re-block because they were so wet. She didn't do it quite like I would have, but I would probably have been fighting with mold otherwise. The boy sweater got some buttons as well, but we haven't managed to take any modeled pictures yet, so the bed/floor will have to do for now.

Finished Boy Sweater!, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I think the buttons are my favorite part. We found some nice wood ones, and they have a great texture and feel.

Boy sweater button detail, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

This was a definite disappointment to discover, but I plan to fix it in the next few days. I think I nipped one of these strands when I was cutting one of the last loose ends after weaving them in.

Boy sweater: oops., originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Here's the inside of the sweater, complete with a spare button sewn onto the seam facing.

Inside of the boy sweater, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

No modeled pictures of Giselle yet, mostly because I haven't made a tie. I'll probably do that within the next few days too.

Progress!

Giselle is finished and I am in the process of weaving in ends now. I am a little worried about it, because it is knit completely in stockinette and the crochet doesn't seem to be stopping it from curling. I'm hoping that gets better with blocking. It's a little too small, mostly because I used needles a size too small rather than go out and buy new ones, and when I tried to compensate by knitting looser, I just made my knitting really uneven. Which will also get better in blocking. I hope.

Somewhere in the middle of knitting the sleeve flares, I realized that they are huge. On, they reach about to my wrist at the lowest point. I guess they didn't look so big in the pictures, but, impractical as they are, I like them. I wanted romantic and dramatic, and that's exactly what I got.

Giselle: hot off the needles, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

And after Giselle, the obvious question is what next? The boy sweater is now officially done. I buckled down and finished those little seams, and now it is waiting for a good blocking and some buttons. I still want to knit Print 'O the Wave, but I got side tracked. I broke down and bought a color card for KnitPicks' Shadow, and the color I liked on the internet looked terrible in person, so I am now trying to settle on a color.

Meanwhile, I had always had my eye on Butterfly, ever since I saw Eunny's. I looked into knitting it a long time ago, but the idea of spending roughly $20 for a magazine that I would only use for one pattern just didn't seem worth it. Well I recently stumbled across a book on Knit Picks that has the same pattern. It's roughly the same financial situation, but there's a chance I might knit other things from the same book. And anyway, if I still want to knit it three years later, it's worth knitting.

4000+ words

Knitting: Finished!, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Goddess: Front, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Goddess: Weird Gapey Armhole, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

Goddess: Back, originally uploaded by rubychan4.

I took pictures. During daylight. Something must be wrong.