Almost there

Yesterday I checked my pm's on Ravelry to find a great surprise...one of my testers had finished! Yay!!! I know for those of you who write patterns all the time this is probably nothing but I was excited nonetheless. It is a pretty basic pattern but I was worried that what I thought was basic would end up being wonky. I'm glad to know that I'm not as entirely demented as I had previously thought. The testing process has been an interesting first. I have learned a few things. First and foremost, put everything up front for your testers. For example, I gave them the list of techniques they would need to know, I also discussed that I couldn't pay them for their help as this would be a free pattern. One thing I forgot to mention, however was a time frame. I wished that I had done that but since I didn't I thought it better that I not add that in all of a sudden and so I wait. Patience is another thing that I have learned. I think it a great thing that my testers have different abilities because then I get the whole spectrum of problems that may arise. I consider myself a moderately advanced beginner so seeing what other people think and how they interpret my explanations was very helpful. Gauge is another thing I didn't consider too much but now I see that it does make a difference even with an oversized hat. My gauge was apparently really tight because some of the problems with sizing or holes etc. didn't seem to affect my finished project as much as it did to my testers. They have been a great help in my own learning process and I thank them. Kudos to Chra and SLOrnamentals on Ravelry.

Austin unraveled

I have finally figured out what I did for seaming on my project Austin. I know that sounds stupid but I liked the fact that the seaming didn't look like seaming but it wasn't all one piece either. Since figuring this out I can now finish up a pattern and send it off to my lovely testers at Ravelry. And when the testing is complete I can post my first pattern. Yea!

Quick Baby Gift

It is nearing the end of May and I realized that I have a baby gift due in June. So I ran off to Ravelry to find a quick gift for a girl. I thought about trying Blossom which is a wrap dress by Melissa Wastney but for some reason the sizing wasn't coming out right. It seemed very small even though I used bigger yarn and a bigger needle and used the largest size the pattern had. Though I didn't go through the whole pattern, it said it was knit in one piece and I only CO 72 sts for the bottom. I will probably try that pattern again when I have more time to think about the pattern and make the necessary adjustments. As for now, I just wanted to do a mindless project that I could complete easily with the hopes that it would be useful. I decided on a seamless kimono by Jacki Kelly which I got off Ravelry and it turned out to be very simple. I added ruffled sleeves and a ruffled edge on the bottom only because I didn't feel like doing a garter stitch edging. I really need to expand my horizons and get a book on edgings. I had eyed a book at my LCS but I didn't buy it. I hadn't figured on needing it. But now I am changing my tune. The Kimono was easy enough that I just wrote down some notes from the pattern and went to work. I am not so sure about the ruffles, I have never done ruffles before so they might have turned out more "ruffley" than I had intended but overall I guess it is okay. The only problem I had with the pattern was I had one too many eyelet holes for the I cord. I used Bernat Soy Naturals in Celery and Rice. I did two toned because I ran out of yarn and I got them on clearance.

Another FO

FO seems almost vulgar to use but I have completed my Starsky Jr finally. It sat on the back burner for quite some time. This took less than 4 skeins of Bernat softee chunky which was a thicker yarn than the project called for. I didn't do any adjustments to the pattern to compensate. Overall it worked. If I were to do it again I would make the neckline deeper in the back because the collar comes up too close and I have to situate the sweater just right to make it look right. I think my seaming skills could use some help but that's only because the shoulders weren't quite right. I made one mod and that was to not make the sleeves folded up. I made them a bit long so DD would have room to grow. The length was fine. The actual color of the sweater, though you wouldn't know from the pictures, is navy blue...or dark blue as the yarn label says. I have only buttons left to find and sew on to it but other than that it is complete. Hooray! I have a pattern to write up for Austin and then start on my design project for a jacket. I'm really excited about the jacket. I have in mind what I am going to do and I just need to find yarn and then do it. I have not written my own patterns before so this will be interesting. But thanks to the wonderful peeps at Ravelry I will have willing volunteers to test it out to see if my mind is completely wonky. As far a the Starsky Jr project went, it was fairly simple considering the fact that it was only my second sweater to date. It was also my first attempt at blocking and I think it went horribly. I don't think I took the time to really understand the concept of blocking because we were on our way out of town. I think I'll need more practice. But at the very least...it's done.

Almost done...maybe

I have completed all the pieces for my Starsky Jr however I have reached the point that I have to block. For some reason that just doesn't appeal to me and I just want to go ahead and seam the beast then knit the collar. I have read so many articles touting the importance of blocking but it still doesn't click in my head that I can do it. I think that the best time for me to do it undisturbed would be when we take a trip so maybe it'll have to wait until then so that nothing will "disturb" it. On a side note, I saw a scary spider today that was big, black, and furry with a large white dot on its back. Needless to say, I leaned down to look at it and in the back of my mind I was thinking, "there is no way that this spider will jump." I rushed into the house and looked it up on the internet and lo and behold it was a jumping spider! EEEK! Nature never ceases to scare...amaze me!

Update Starsky Jr

Lately I've been starting projects and then not finishing them. I think I have 3 WIP's on the needles and...oh make that 4 on the needles and probably 2-100 projects in my queue. I have just started working on DD's Starsky Jr again. I have finished what would equate to a vest so far and am currently working on the sleeves. I am doing both at the same time so that they are the same length but sometimes I get confused so I wonder if they really will end up the same length or perhaps maybe a row or two off. Here's hoping. This will be my first project that I will have to block and I read on Knitty's website that you shouldn't use heat with acrylic. I thought I'd go cheap and use Bernat softee chunky for the cardi. I guess we'll see if it really turns out cheaper than what I could buy at the store. I think right now I have only used and will probably only use about 4 skeins of yarn for this project. I don't know what possessed me to think that I needed 7 and yet I bought 8. I guess I can make a few other things with the excess yarn...perhaps another sweater. I have contemplated making the ballet top in Loop-D-Loop but I haven't looked at it yet. I think for right now I better stick to the project at hand or else DD will have grown too much or will no longer need the sweater because she has graduated college. Why is it sometimes so hard to finish what we start? I guess it really is the journey and not the destination. Weird...I would have thought otherwise.

FIBER!!! Mmmmm

I've always heard that we all need more fiber in our diets. I just got some but I don't think it's what they meant. I bought some yarn from someone's stash on Ravelry and I forgot to ask if she or anyone smoked. Oops! My bad. Other than that it all worked out great but note to self... ask next time.