Sigh.

 This was going to be the glorious post where I proclaim EUREKA! It is done.

And then I realized the fucking thing is too short for my huge boobs. So what I’m gonna do is go back to the needles, pick up stitches along the bottom, do some more seed stitch rim until I’m out of yarn (or something) and add a second buttonhole. I hope I can find a button similar to the one I picked out – it’s really pretty, silver and kinda… bohemian.

Ah man, fucking Rose Shrug.

Wow.

So, I have maybe 10 rows of the back piece left of the Rose/Bohemian shrug. Knit the night through, yay! But now my hands, esp my thumbs, hurt, and my right elbow from sitting on a hard plastic surface for hours upon hours. Oh, and my eyes keep drooping shut. So I’ll get some sleep now, and then finish this baby up later: Knitting that bit, sewing the tops together and finding a nice button. (Did I mention I already crocheted around the buttonhole with yarn left over from the long-tail cast on?)

Pffffffffff. I’m beat, but also incredibly proud of myself. But now, bed, before I’m 100% goo.

Rose Shrug – halftime

When I said the Rose Shrug was instant gratification, I didn’t know how instant that gratification would be. I’ve been knitting like a madwoman and I just did the ‘scary row’, i.e. parting the band into right and left flap and back. Already put left flap and back on my giant holder safety pins – starting the right flap now. Omg. I might just… knit the night through or something.

Yarnwhoring and the Rose Shrug

I went to Dortmund yesterday, for the monthly Stricktreff (Cafe Max) and to try the Plaetzsch Garnhandel. Which is basically a big old storage hall crammed full of yarn at really low prices, and I splurged a little. I.e. I bought yarn in advance, and some I have no idea what to do with yet.

This is woodsy-colored cotton sock yarn. I’m curious how it knits up compared with the sock wool I’ve been using. I don’t have a pattern set for it yet – I have a couple on my Ravelry queue, like the Primavera socks (which I sort of want to order Wollmeise Rhabarber yarn for…) or the currently unavailable Kaylee. But I still have time, I want to finish Q before starting another pair of socks. And this time, on my bamboo needles, which premiered on Leo II but have been hanging out in my needle box otherwise. Since it’s supposed to be stretch, maybe I can knit them a size smaller? I’d love that.

I title this the Splurge Yarn, since I have no idea what to make with it. The color jumped at me out of the new arrival box, and when I saw that it was mostly merino, I had to have it. (The fact that it was, like all of these, under €3, helped immensely) I might make a pair of Fetching gloves with them, since I did a pretty awesome pair with Lana Grossa’s Merino 2000, which is a really similar yarn. Or… hmmmm. We’ll see. I’m glad to have it at hand in case the perfect pattern pops up.

And then last but definitely not least, the Luna yarn (3 balls) for my Rose Shrug. Aaaah, the Rose shrug. I’ve done my first left-twist row and it’s already the most bohemian thing I’ve ever knit, but maybe because of that I’m really excited. It’s not just red – there’s black, brown, ochre, green and blue mixed in, and it just looks… well, very bohemian :D I shall pair it with some obscenely big wood jewelry and hippie music.

It’s weird knitting with 8mm needles after so much sock knitting, but it’s so instantly gratifying and the whole thing is just 5 stitches more than my Q socks. (Which, by the way, are progressing much more nicely than anticipated. I had a lot of time yesterday, waiting for and in trains, killing time in Dortmund, and two and a half hours at the Stricktreff) I already have 6cm/2.”, which isn’t bad for a day when my hand hurts and I’m supposed to be studying history (though the edge is so stupendous – seed st – that I studied while knitting. Yay for multitasking!)

Ah, knitting. I can’t wait for my exams to be over so I can knit more.

Oh, and for the 6 balls of yarn I paid €14.65 – I’ve paid that much for 3 balls of Lana Grossa – and the bargain shopper in me rejoices. And then I went back and bought a pair of 8mm circs – for €7 -.- WHY DO NEEDLES HAVE TO BE SO EXPENSIVE??? Well, at least they last you for, oh, a lifetime. (Still expensive *grumble*)

The best (wrist)band in the world!

While waiting for the 2007 ‘Es Wird Eng’ tour of my favorite band Die Ärzte to start, I made a total of four pairs of logo wristbands from scraps, two big sets for myself (I thought I’d lost the first pair) and two smaller sets for friends of mine, in hot pink/rose and blue/green, respectively. They were super simple (obviously), finished in under an hour each, and made great presents. I realize the Es wird Eng design is a little too late – but it would still make a nice memorabilia gift if you embroider the date on the back (like I did with my first pair), or just make two with the DÄ logo. I wish the Jazzfäst tour had a good logo, but sadly, it doesn’t.

YOU NEED

– scraps of worsted weight yarn (I used Lana Grossa Joker) in two contrasting colors

– set of 4 4mm (US 6) DPNs

Gauge: 18sts = 4″/10cm

Size: women’s (men’s)

***

With first color, CO 27(30). Distribute evenly onto 3 DPNs , join (being careful not to twist).

[k2, p1] for 2 rounds.

Continue in Stockinette stitch for 11(13) rounds.

[k2, p1] for 2 rounds.

BO loosely, weave in ends.

With second color, apply the ä design (or design of your choice) opposite of the join with duplicate stitch.

Make another band in the second color, and duplicate stitch either the ä or the ‘Es wird Eng’ logo (or, once again, your choice of design) on the front.

Oh the places you’ll go

I am very bored with the Q sock. Very. But unlike the Cupholder, I can’t just frog it, sadly enough. Gah, frogging the damn green thing was so satisfying :P One less WIP!

To make up for it, I started another Leo Cozy. It irks me the first one didn’t fit, so I’m making another one with the original number of stitches. I don’t know if I have enough red yarn left over to make it exactly like the old one, so I started it with white and I’m probably going to make wider white stripes and thinner red ones. I hope that turns out well… I really liked how the first one came out, color-wise, even if the tip looks kinda weird.

I sort of want to knit a lace shawl. Or those cute underwear. Or that rose shrug, even though I’m sort of doubtful it would fit me. Or… anything, really, that isn’t a Q sock.

Q sock of doom II

I just started the second Q sock. Oh god. This might very well become the slowest sock in history. I’ve only done three rows and I’m already bored with it.

Ngh. But maybe when I get to the pattern it will distract me from my general (sexual) frustration (which the 1×1 rib certainly doesn’t). But that is only a frail hope I’m clinging to. Maybe I should befriend someone who lost a leg.

Sea life and other scary creatures of the depth

I hate sea food. I can stand fish if I don’t have a choice (except not have dinner, and that is just not a choice in my book), but then Sammy freaked out about wanting a Nautiloid toy and who am I to resist a gorgeous lady like that?

So I knit a freaking luxury nautie. I had a skein of each color left after I finished the Sooper Sekkrit project (the khaki, I barely kept a foot, so I can see why they called for twice the amount of yarn) so I knit the coiled shell in khaki Baby Alpaca, and the face in pink cashmere, and stuffed the whole thing with sheep’s wool. The eyes are black merino leftovers. So this is about the cuddliest and most luxurious nautilus of all time, period.

I also knit a small one with off-white sock yarn, it’s only about 2 inches since I BO with 15 sts on the needles. I didn’t knit a face for it either (since that was freaky) but just knit the head, and stuck it into the shell the wrong way before sewing it shut. So now there’s a little dip in the opening. Actually, for my spring/summer deco, I’m thinking about knitting some more of them, and maybe some cone snail shells or something, to put into a wood bowl of sand.

Concerning the Other Scary Creatures Of The Depth, the lacy thong. -.- I was all done last night, except for the crochet picot edge. And then I tried it on and I made it too big D: I CO 88 on each side and it was so huge… and the thing was too short. So I frogged the entire waistband (silent crying) and the back panel and crocheted some stitches between the front and back panel. Sigh. I stopped CO after 30 sts or something last night since I was just too dissatisfied and annoyed. I planned on finishing it tonight but I’m still so annoyed with it. At least the yarn (Lana Grossa Gala, 48% Silk, 24% Rayon, 17% Linen, 11% Polyamide, Color 13 red) is nice enough and there’s gonna be a lot left over. So maybe I’ll knit another thong (different pattern though) with it, or something entirely else. A hairband maybe :D But I already have a red one. But I could make a more elegant one with it, slip stitch pattern or something… we’ll see.

Segment Hairband

Another ridiculously simple hairband I made when I wanted to wear a green sweater but didn’t have a matching hairband.

SEGMENT HAIRBAND

You need:

– scraps of some Bulky weight yarn – I used some Lana Grossa Due I had left over from a hat

– 2 6 mm (US 10) needles

– needle

Gauge: isn’t really important, but mine measures 3 cm / 1 1/4″ across

***

CO8 RS: sl1, p1, k4, p1, k1 WS: sl1, k1, p2, k1, p1Rep 4 times. Then p RS, k WS.

Repeat from * until desired length (I did 8 repeats), bind off. Sew ends together.

Red Mesh Hairband

I love hairbands as a nice solution to spice up my short black hair when I don’t have the time to actually style it. Also, they’re a great stashbuster for all kinds of yarn – I’ve made hairbands from super chunky yarn as well as leftover sock yarn – and this Mesh Hairband is one of the latter category. It’s super simple, easy to remember, and almost instant gratification.

RED MESH HAIRBAND

You’ll need:

– some scraps of sock yarn – I used some red Lana Grossa Meilenweit I had left over from a pair of socks, and I barely noticed anything missing

– two 3.5 mm needles

– needle

Gauge: isn’t really important, since you’ll adjust the band to your head size individually. My hairband is about 5.5 cm (slightly more than 2″) across, stretched wide.

***

CO 14. Starting with a k row, work 2 rows of stockinette stitch.

Row 1 (RS): sl1 Yo, k2tog; rep from to last st, k1

Rows 2 and 4: Purl.

Row 3: sl1 SKP, yo; rep from to last st, k1.

Rep rows 1-4 to desired length (try to wrap it around your head from time to time), 2 rows in Stst, bo. Sew ends together.

Be careful with the length – this is extremely stretchy!