chevalier

I've had these mittens in queue for awhile. I had to focus on Christmas knitting before getting back to me. I wanted a pair of mittens, but not plain mittens, something with a little kick. I found the pattern for the Chavalier mittens on Ravelry. I loved the texture and detail of the cables.

At first the pattern gave me a little trouble because I had to follow a chart closely, however once I figured out where the cables were going it became easier. I also learned that when I need to increase a stitch, I do it much better by knitting into the stitch one row below as opposed to doing a tight yarnover, as I still got a small hole.

I love wearing these, the wool is incredibly soft and the fit is spectacular. My only issue is an error I made in crossing a set of cables where I accidentally pulled the purled stitches over the knit ones and didn't notice until much later. It really isn't noticeable to the untrained eye, but irritates me none the less.

I need to talk about this yarn. I bought it while visiting family in Michigan. It's from a historic farm which incorporated fiber mill called Stonehedge Fiber Mill. The yarn is Shepherd's Wool and is spun from incredibly soft merino top. It was a dream to work with and knit up beautifully. I love it so much that I may need to make a sweater from it.

dashing all the way

Well, I finally finished the "Dashing" mittens for Dan. The second one looks much better after I ripped back and knitted tighter.

I also finished the OneSkein scarf for my brother's fiance. This was a super quick project, I started it one evening and finished it the next morning! I used the same Patons Merino "Leaf Green" from my brother's aviator hat and discovered it was the exact same yarn used in the pattern. I generally like to spice it up a bit, however, it looks great and they coordinate.

I've also started a "Tiramisu" baby blanket for my new baby cousin. This seems to be going well, I've worked on it for a couple of days and I'm over half-way finished. I love the stitch pattern in this, it's a simple single crochet but looks gorgeous.

And finally I've restarted my Koolhaas hat. My problem wasn't the "ktbl", but the pattern. I was reading one thing and doing another. So now my hands and brain are on the same page and it's looking good.

more christmas gifs

I have completed a couple more Christmas gifts. First is the garter stitch scarf for my cousin. Using two skeins of Patons SWS it turned out to be approximately 7" wide x 54" long. I think it's a decent length, and it's very soft and comfortable to wear.

Secondly, I've started and completed a half moon shawl for my Grandmother. This is a crochet pattern from the Lion Brand website. It was a quick and easy project, perfect for this time of the year when trying to get gifts out. I used Patons Shetland Chunky Tweeds "Sea Ice" and a size N crochet hook. I may pick up a shawl pin to enclose with it if I find one in my travels.

I almost had Dan's Dashing mittens completed, however I completely lost gauge. I started the mittens when my knitting was really tight and I ended the second one as I was becoming more comfortable and creating looser stitches. Well, the second mitten completely flared out at the end, not matching the first, and not being snug to the hand. So, I ripped back to the cables and I'm attempting to knit the last rows tighter.

Next up on my gifting list is a one skein scarf for my brother's fiance. Hopefully this will be a quick crochet pattern like the shawl.

dan's mitties

So, I've been secretly working on the "Dashing" fingerless mittens as a Christmas gift for my partner. After I already started working on them, he commented on how he wished he had a pair, so I guess I'm on the right track. He also gravitated toward some nice angora yarn at a LYS when he went with me to pick out yarn for my Koolhaas hat. Interestingly, I chose Elsebeth Lavold's Angora in Lime Green prior to that to make the mittens from. I'm so excited to give them to him! I just hope he doesn't find this post or any pictures of them on my computer before hand. He tends to be sneaky around Christmas....