Two In A Row!

Welcome to February! I have some FO's and some WIP's.

Lets start with:

Finished Objects

I made a dog bed! I had seen this on Pinterest, I think it was Pinterest. And I had several old sweaters I had gotten from Goodwill with the plan to frog them and reuse the yarn. I decided this one was a good choice because its very "toothy" yarn and should be pretty durable. I neglected to take in progress pictures but its pretty simple. You sew up all the openings, stuff it as you go (I used regular poly fill) and then curl the arms around to make a the raised edge. I turned it over and stitched it all down. If I make another one I'll take in progress pictures. Molly loves it and her and the cat, Rascal, compete for space in it!

I also did some upholstery recovering. I had an older glider rocker that really didn't match my new studio colors. I found this fabric at the Foam and Fabric on Biltmore Ave when they were offering fabric 50% off prior to closing. I made slip covers for the chair back and seat cushions. You can find the tutorial here.

I also covered the tops of a footstool and a rack I use next to the loom.

While I was at Foam and Fabric I purchased a high density foam cushion for my loom bench and made a slip cover for it as well. You can find that tutorial here.

I delivered the Barley Hat and Oats Cowl (neck warmer) along with the Barley Hats for the girls. Here is a picture of my boss and his wife, who was the inspiration for making the hats. I think they may like their stuff.

I also finished my Sowing the Seeds Cowl by Little Yellow Uke. I used the You're a Mean One colorway by Desert Vista Dyeworks. Its a great pattern and I love the finished product. I took the leftover yarn and divided it into two equal balls and knit the Happily Ever After mitts by Susan B. Anderson. These are also a great pattern and knits up very fast. I used the Vanilla Bean Sock technique of S1K1 when coming to the beginning of a color change and then back to stockinette for the rest of the rounds until the next color change. Its very easy, and makes the self striping pattern look amazing. It also adds a little spice while knitting. I took the precaution of testing the color fastness since there is very dark red in this yarn and I'm glad I did. I probably should have waited until I had color catchers before actually washing the cowl and mitts but I washed the leftover yarn, one in just warm water and soak and the other one in warm water, soak and citric acid. There is an obvious difference. Before I have to wash the mitts and cowl again I'll get some color catchers as there was still a slight pink tinge to the water.

I also finished another infinity cowl for my daughter. This one is the Michales Country Loom acrylic yarn in the Shale color. Two more to go! I have put the other two skeins in the car in my car knitting bag so that I can work on them while waiting for the hubby to get off work. I can get several rows done in just the 15 minutes or so I wait.

I just got to move my Kilt Me Now socks from in progress to FINISHED!!!!! I finished them while watching the Super Bowl. They are Michael's luxery CMN blend in the Canyon colorway. I used the Knitmore Girls Vanilla Sock with the Cynthia variation which is K3P1, OMG heel and a 1x1 rib at the cuff. I used Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind Off but every 4 stitches I used a regular bind off for 4 stitches because it seems a little too stretchy. 

Knit/Spin/Weave/Crochet Meter Update:
I have knit 1360 yards as of the end of January!

In Progress

I'm still working on the Custom Fit Featherweight cardigan. I have all the pieces knit and they have been blocked. I have to wait for daytime light and the time to do it to seam them up before picking up the front edging.

I cast on the next infinity cowl for Katie. I have the Cream color and Rich Granite left. I decided to start with the Rich Granite colow. It will become car knitting because I'm bored with the socks! They are started with a chained provisional cast on and cast on 12 stitches. I may twist one of these for a mobius. Either way I finish by grafting them for an invisible seam.

I  have cast on something new. A few months back I ordered some Malabrigo Lace yarn in the Lettuce colorway. This is 100% Baby Merino and is a single. I'm knitting the Citron Shawl by Hilary Smith Callis. This is a lovely pattern and the yarn is spectacular. I am loving knitting it. 

 

I wound a warp a couple of weekends ago for my floor loom. I  purchased a used loom a year ago but have only gotten it in shape to weave in the past couple of months. I have some sort of mystery cones of yarn and I decided to wind a warp for a scarf from this rayon slub yarn. After I got it warped I chained it until I can warp the loom. It is 4 yards and will sley the reed at 24 epi. 

I have a new toy! I have been wanting something 3D printed. There are spinning bobbins being made but not for either of my wheels. The other day I found Turtle Made on Etsy and she makes 3D printed turkish spindles. I have a large turkish wooden spindle and have been eyeing the mini ones. I ordered  a mini spindle in purple. It came really fast and is just adorable! I had some green roving from Twist Fiber Studio and decided to practice making punis using a hand carder and use that for spinning with the mini turkish. It spins like a dream and is so lightweight. I played with it for a  bit and then decided to learn to ply on the fly. So I did a little practice. 

 

I plan to only talk about things I actually work on during the month so every post won't end up being a WIP parade. Thats it for this time. Thanks for reading. See you next time!