Yo La Tejo

What? A free moment to blog?

Oh, the many moments over the past week that I've thought about posting...even going so far as to download FO pictures to my computer. But I've been trying to be good, and trying to make that little prospectus progress bar on the right sidebar move, just a bit. And so I've been doing some school writing, and making a little headway here and there, for a few hours every day.

But when it became clear that today would be a wash in terms of writing (meetings scheduled all day, lots of personal stuff to do, like trying to renew my car insurance!), I realized that I would actually get to blog! And then I opened up Blogger, and thought....um. What was I going to write about?

Oh yeah, an FO. No, wait...two FOs!

Child's Placket Sweater and Baby Denim Pants from Last Minute Knitted Gifts



Sweater pattern notes

Size: 0-3 months
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cotton Cashmere, about 3 skeins from stash
Needles: size 4 circulars

Such cuteness! I couldn't get over how cute this sweater was when it was finally done (I bought some little 1/4" yellow buttons and sewed them on after I took these pictures). The ridiculous cuteness almost made up for the grief with the pattern...which has been well documented in other places in the blogosphere. OH, yes, and also on the Purl website. Sheesh, you'd think I would have checked that out first, no? Well, I did look for errata, but Joelle Hoverson, ever so thoughtful, has made the revisions available as a PDF, separate from the other pattern corrections listed on her website. Where did I look, though? I looked at the list of other pattern corrections, and not seeing it there, thought, hum. It must just be ME that's too stupid to understand why the placket is knitting up waaaay to the right side. But then later, after I figured it out, fixed it, and looked back at the website, I saw the link for the Placket sweater.

Anyway, yes, the instructions are confusing for dividing the sweater in the front and casting on extra stitches, so that even with the corrected pattern, I still don't think it makes sense. If you're going to knit this, take heed: The revised pattern tells you to cast on five stitches at the beginning of the round. (I think the uncorrected version says to cast on at the end of the round.) Either way, it's unclear what she means by the beginning or the end of the round since you've stopped in the middle front, X number of stitches away from the raglan sleeve where the round currently begins. If you turn your work to begin purling toward the other end, you might think this is the beginning of the round, and start casting on stitches here. That's what I did, and that's the way to get the placket skewed toward the right.

So once you stop in the middle of the sweater, turn your work. Purl back to the other side, and cable cast on your stitches there. These will become a seed stitch panel, which you will stitch to the front and will sit behind the front panel.

Baby Denim Pants

Size: 0-6 months
Yarn: Rowan Denim
Needles: Size 6 dpns

Pattern notes:

Yes! Finally washed, shrunk, sewn, and threaded. You may remember that I posted these before, half-finished with the crotch unseamed and without its drawstring. They turned out to be perfectly adorable, and they shrank in the wash, as promised. They also rubbed blue dye all over my fingers and bamboo needles, but whatever.

Together, the set looked kinda funny...the legs on the pants are sooo long and the waistband is so high that the outfit looked appropriate for some flamingo baby. But the seat of the pants is roomy on purpose for stuffing diapers in there, so it should look better on.

The recipient is now a month and a week, or thereabouts. I sent the package out today so that the child can wear it for a couple of days before he outgrows it. If the mom gives the OK, I'll send you on over to her blog so you can check out the new kid on the block. Heck, maybe we can even talk her into doing a fashion shoot! Between feeding and changing the new baby, and being mom to her four-year old, and feeding and changing herself, I'm sure she'll have time to humor me. Don't you think?

I don't usually like to toot the birthday horn, but I just have to share that my birthday was last week because I got Knitting Nature from my sweet boyfriend. He asked for a wish list, and I put a load of knitting books on there and also some fiction. He got two books from my list (I got the Hummingbird's Daughter by Luis Urrea as well), as well as a beautiful pearl and gemstone pendant on a silver chain.

Seriously? It's long been my theory that men don't like to buy jewelry for girlfriends (billionares excluded) because they're petrified that she won't like it. True, jewelry is a very personal choice, but that's what makes a gift like that special. In my opinion, just the fact that your guy actually walked into a jewelry store, picked something out, and tried to imagine you wearing is just priceless. In this case, the pendant really is beautiful. Thanks, baby. I love it.

Maybe some of you have had different experiences (i.e., he showered you with loads of glittery jewels, enough to make Croesus green with envy), but I've not been given any jewelry since I was sixteen, when my high school boyfriend brought back a little gold heart on a chain from Hawaii. (And yes, I've been married and divorced since then. And no, the rings did not count...guess who paid for those?)

Not to neglect my other gift givers...I got loads of great presents and loved each and every one of them! And my mom sent me a check to buy myself a birthday present. Knitters, what do you think that'll be? Hee, hee.

I haven't spent the money yet, but have decided that the most appropriate thing to do with the money is to buy yarn for a sweater out of Knitting Nature. It'll be the birthday project! I have my eye on the sweater with the diamond eyelets around the yoke...and it calls for Rowan Calmer. Which would ordinarily be out of the question for me, since it's out of my price range...but with birthday money, it suddenly becomes much more affordable.

Anyway, must run now, but more! posts! to come!

posted by Olga @ 3:33 PM