Sweater Weather

I love the fact that my mother-in-law taught me to knit. And I know she loves the fact that I even asked her to teach me in the first place.

Last time the Sailor flew through South Africa, she sent this little gem back with him: 

Last time I was in South Africa, I made her a pair of socks. (I know, I know, she could have just made herself a pair of socks and I could have knit the Peanut a sweater. But isn't this much more fun?!)

Today finally felt like Fall... so it's time to break out the hand-knit sweaters.

I don't have the pattern for the one my mother-in-law made. Knowing her, she just made it up as she went along. You can find links to the garter stitch grey sweater here, and the green cardi here. 

Of course, if you're looking to make yourself something for the winter, I highly recommend the Central Park Hoodie. You can find mine here. 

I admit that I love warmer weather. But if it has to get cold, there's nothing better than hand knit sweaters to get you through the weather.

Central Park Hoodie

It's finally cold enough to wear my Central Park Hoodie. I finished it over six months ago -- just as the temperatures hit a scorching 85 degree mark. I had the yarn stashed since last year this time and couldn't wait to tuck into it, but I had multiple other projects going and I hadn't yet decided which sweater I would be making with Kraemer's Perfection worsted.

 

The Sailor suggested I knit a zip cardigan with a hood. The Central Park Hoodie won. I even added these pockets, because really, what's a hoodie without a place to stuff both my hands and my tissues? 

 

It's not often that I finish a project and think: 'let's make that all over again!' Usually by the time I've completed something big like a sweater, or a blanket, I'm pretty much done with that particular pattern. (This is why I was both a successful and terrible seamstress all at once... in high school I wanted to make my friends' fancy dresses in one night. Usually it took several nights, and by the time I got to the hem I was DONE with sewing and wanted to throw the machine out the window. True story.) After big projects, I'm ready for instant gratification. I want to make a dishcloth or even a hat I can complete in one night. 

But as I cast off the sleeves and put the final finishing touches on the pockets, I was already plotting Central Park Hoodie gifts for people. I think I may have found my favorite pattern ever.

Stash Busting with Lawrence

I finally finished Lawrence this week. Lawrence is part of my serious stash-busting plan. When I first learned to knit and crochet a few years ago, I didn't really know what I was getting into. I just knew that I needed to get my hands on yarn. Lots of it. So when a local craft chain offered select colors of Paton's Classic Wool on clearance for only 99 cents a skein, I bought up a whole mess of it.

At the time, I had recently ventured into sock knitting and was whipping up a mess of the wooly beasts for myself and the Sailor. The amount of yarn I had stashed would have made a LOT of socks. And I'm not sure we needed that many in the same color. 

a SMALL sample of the aforementioned stash

I wanted to make a sweater out of it, but I knew my penchant for shrinking pure wool socks, so I figured I needed to make something that wouldn't have to be washed too often. Vests are perfect. You can wear something underneath and somehow, the vest stays cleaner, longer (unless you spill something down the front, which I have been known to do.) Lawrence fit the bill.  

I may have finished this thing sooner, if I had paid more attention to my row count in the car. I got home from the beach and discovered I had seriously messed up about 26 rows back. 

I think it may have happened right about here, as I took this photo. The Sailor gave me a strange look as I snapped the pic. I'm not sure if he looked at me funny because I was taking a photo with my left hand, or because he knows I get a little car sick sometimes if I knit in the car. I had to read a chart with this pattern, so he probably figured I was taking my chances. 

I ripped out the rows of doom, fixed the problem and kept knitting. The only thing is that I wasn't always knitting. Apparently garter stitch done in the round means that you need to knit one row and purl one row (as opposed to stocking stitch in the round, which means you knit every row.) I'm not so sure I would have been so keen to do this pattern if I had known that little gem before starting (note to self: read instructions before proceeding...) I apparently knit a few rows with no purling in between. It wasn't pretty. But I fixed it.

I managed to knit the last few rows just as Sandy approached the east coast. Knitting usually calms my nerves, and it seemed to be more appealing to me at the time than watching the news and waiting for impending disaster.

 

I still have to block the thing and shockingly, I also still have yarn leftover. Maybe I'll make some more socks after all.