Category Archives: Knitting

FO, after an eon!

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After a long hiatus of two years (in which I almost never picked up knitting needles), my knitting mojo is back with a bang. I should thank my soon-to-be-born grandchild for that. You read that right, I did say grandchild. My niece is expecting and is going to pop any day now and I will be elevated to the much coveted grandmom (okay, grandaunt) position.

 

Sweater pattern: Little Coffee Bean Cardigan by Elizabeth Smith
Socks: Rye by tincanknits
Hat: Garter Ear Flap Hat by Purl Soho

My niece wanted a sweater in gender neutral color, so most of my baby colors in my stash were ruled out. After much consideration, I zeroed in on the Knit Picks Shine Worsted in Platinum and Willow.

While the cardigan pattern is written to knit in stripes, I had to modify the socks and hat pattern to follow that. For socks, I changed the color every two rows, but stuck with MC for the heel flap until I joined to knit in round again. For the hat, I knit the ear flaps in MC color and when I knit a plain round, I changed colors every two rows.

I noticed that things move fast when I knit in stripes. Is that true or is my mind playing tricks on me!

 

New Pattern: Arushi

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Arushi (first rays of the sun) is a crescent shaped shawl knit from the bottom up. The pointy edges and the lace portion are worked back and forth and the stockinette crescent shaped is worked using short rows. The lace stitch is charted and written instructions are also provided.

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While the sample is knit in laceweight yarn, this shawl can be knit using light/fingering weight yarn also. Use bigger needles to get the right drape with heavier yarn. The finished size and yardage will vary if heavier yarn is used.

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Arushi by Anjali M.

Arushi is available at 25% off till Sep 30. Use coupon code ArushiForWalkCollection at Ravelry check out.

New Pattern: Purvi

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Purvi translates to “from the east” and is also the name of a popular Hindustani raga in Indian classical music. Purvi is sung during dusk – just when the sun goes down and the breeze from the east brings the temperature down a notch – the time when Purvi shawl can keep your shoulders warm and add to the beauty of the evening.

 

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Purvi is knit from the top down, starting with a garter stitch tab. The body of the shawl features a pretty leaf lace pattern which seamlessly evolves into a bigger leaf pattern. Charts and written instructions are provided for the lace stitch patterns. Adventurous knitters can optionally place beads on the pointy edges.

The sample is knit using Malabrigo Sock in Lettuce colorway. The shawl can be made using lace yarn, but the gauge and finished size will vary.
Purvi is available at a promotional price of $3 until May 10, after which it will be listed at its full price of $5.

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Ravelry Pattern: Purvi
Yarn Suggested: Malabrigo Sock
Needle Size: US #10 6 mm for the body

New Pattern: Felber

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Just in time before the spring arrives, here is another pattern release from my side. Felber is a circular yoke sweater with asymmetric cable on the yoke. The name Felber means bent, twisted to indicate the suppleness and I find it apt for the cables used in this sweater. It is worked top-down in the round, so no pesky seams to stitch up.

I used a new yarn (new to me) Jill Drape Makes Stuff Hudson – Made in USA. The yarn is soft and yummy and oh the colors are so rich and vibrant. I requested for a brown color which will suit a boy’s sweater. Jill picked out this one and I must say, I couldn’t have picked anything better. The yarn is so well plied, the cables just pop.

Felber is available at a promotional price of $3 until Mar 10, after which it will be listed at its full price of $5.

Ravelry Pattern: Felber by Anjali M.
Yarn Suggested: Jill Draper Makes Stuff; Hudson – Made in USA
Needle Size: US #6 4 mm for the body

New Pattern: Warrior Sweater

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Every boy goes through a phase where he admires soldiers and warriors and aspires to be one. My son is in one such phase and naturally, he requested me to make a chest armor for him. I play with yarn, not metal, so I convinced him to settle for a “sweater chest armor”.

The dense, textured body of the sweater protects your little one from cold and wind. Sleeves are plain stockinette and the elbow patch using the same textured stitch adds a bit of style and interest. The sweater is worked from the top down, using raglan sleeves. Body and sleeves are worked in the round. The texture stitch is a easy to memorize and knit. The aran weight yarn makes the sweater cozy and quick to knit.

Warrior Sweater is available at a promotional price of $3 until Feb 10, after which it will be listed at its full price of $5.

Ravelry Pattern: Warrior Sweater by Anjali M.
Yarn Suggested: Cascade Eco+
Needle Size: US #9 5.5 mm for the body

Crochet illiterate

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I have had this project in my to-do queue since ages. It is the popular Inga bag (I know that is not the name of the bag, but I prefer to call it Inga which is easy to type and pronounce) which looks stunning and apparently easy to make. You make a dozen or so granny squares and stitch them up as it says in the pattern. What could be so hard in that, right?

When one of the Ravelry groups announced a Bag KAL, I thought it to be the right time to work on my Inga. I had all the right materials and I started on my very first granny square. After a bazillion attempts and much frogging and recrocheting with a generous amount of cursing, I successfully crocheted my very first granny square.

grannysquare3_medium2It turned out to be too tight (so I was told by a crochet expert, I am sure she knew what she was talking about). For my second granny square, I decided to use a bigger hook. After making the first square, you would think I would have gotten a fair bit of practice and the second would be relatively smoother. Wrong. The second attempt was an utter failure. I had only 11 “sun spokes” the first time around. And the second time miraculously had 13 of them. I needed 12, but always ended up with a number which was definitely not 12. Now, if this was a knitting project, I could have done a k2tog or a kfb to get the right stitch count, but alas crocheting is not same as knitting the last time I checked. I made so many mistakes, I had to cut the yarn at one place because I somehow managed to create a knot while crocheting. I sincerely tried for two whole days and at the end of the second day when I did not have anything looking like a granny square, I finally gave up.

I can tackle complex knitting techniques. Throw at me intarsia, fair isle, purl 3 together through the back loop and I will master it (it might take a while but I will get there), but as soon as you say crochet, my mind closes up. After this incident, I have finally come to the conclusion that my brain doesn’t have the cells required to process crochet. I cannot follow a simple pattern and neither can I read what I have crocheted. So, the verdict is out. I am crochet illiterate.

Random Monday

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1. The Husband’s Sweater Project is chugging along. I have split the body and sleeves and preparing myself for the imminent never-ending,  boring stockinette. No, don’t get me wrong, I love stockinette. It is mindless knitting which makes it perfect for multi-tasking with TV watching, but I shudder when I imagine how long the body needs to be (tall husband is tall).

2. A shawl design I had submitted for a collection didn’t work out. This was a first for me and I was very low. I learnt a lot of lessons from this experience. Good news is they are ready to publish this design outside of the collection, so all is not lost. But I wonder what they think of me. After all, first impression is the best one and I kind of messed it up.

3. I am switching jobs in 2 weeks time. My current job was great for me as a mother and a knitter. My office was 5 minutes away and I would come home for lunch to spend time with N. Short commuting time meant lot of knitting time at home. Alas, this luxury is coming to an end and I may not find any knitting time on weekdays. You must think I am crazy to quit such a great job, but there are other things to consider in a job than just the commuting time.

4. I have made absolutely no progress on the sewing and quilting front. This reminds me I still haven’t blogged about my drawstring bag.

5. You know the kid is a knitter’s kid when he says ‘Y for Yarn’ while playing the alphabets game. And his friends ask him what’s yarn and he goes on to explain what yarn is and what it is used for. Also the fact that he sees the merry-go-round in the play area and suddenly gets an idea that we can use that instead of the swift to wind yarn.

Random Monday

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I am shamelessly stealing the idea (and the title) for this post from Yarn Harlot’s blog. When I don’t have any meaty content to make up an entire blog post, but have some tidbits to share, labeling the post as ‘random’ makes great sense. So, randomly, here is what I have been up to.

1. The first design of the year is off the needles, blocked and ready for test knit. A half-circle shawl with colorwork and it turned out beautiful, if I say so myself. I will be posting a call for test knitters on my group in the next few hours.

2. I took a day off work on Friday (which was a big deal for me, since I don’t take leave unless for a very good reason) to chill off. I made it a sewing day and completed my first sewing FO of the year. I followed the Kristin Link’s Craftsy class and made the Drawstring Bag. It turned out better than I expected. Post on that coming soon.

3. I also started my first quilt. I decided to tackle the herringbone quilt and decided to make my squares not too tiny. I cut out and sewed 6 squares so far. 18 more to go.

4. There are too many ‘firsts’ in this post.

5. I bought myself a new rotary cutter and a self-healing mat from Pony since I wanted to do some serious sewing/quilting. Turns out I am not so good at cutting. My blade cuts at some places and leaves the fabric uncut at some. I am blaming it on my not possessing a quilting ruler. So, that is next on my shopping list. Unfortunately, Pony doesn’t stock it (yet) and I don’t know where to find one in India.

 

2013 in Pictures

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On professional and personal fronts, 2013 was about just average. Had quite a few issues on the work and family side, but there were some positives too. Knitting and reading kept me sane all through the turbulence. Here is the year that went by, in pictures.

I finally had a design published in Petite Purls, a magazine which I admire a lot. It is sad that they are closing down.

I followed it up with a design which I was personally very satisfied with. The cables posed a big challenge and I am happy I managed to overcome it.

My second adult cardigan which I was super stoked about.

I designed my very first shawl and organized my first knit-along and had lots of fun!

Participated in the super popular Gift-Along and all of us, designers and knitters alike, had loads of fun.

Here is hoping that the new year brings its share of ups and downs (more of the former and less of the latter, please). Wishing a very happy, prosperous and crafty new year to you and yours.

Giveaway winner

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We have a winner for the giveaway we held as part of Mindy’s interview. There were 35 comments and the Random Number Generator chose number 13. For once, 13 turned out lucky!

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Which makes Sarah our winner. Congratulations Sarah. Mindy will be contacting you shortly regarding your prize.

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Thanks everybody for playing. Hope to see you around.