Blackberry Cozy Pattern

Wassap?

Since I last wrote I have started and completed two projects... no three. One was a Blackberry case for my aunt, another was a sample hat, and the third was a baby sweater. Each project took an average of about a day and a half.

My aunt requested a "slim" sleek little knit case for her Blackberry so I whipped this up with some leftover sock yarn:

Here it is modeled on my roughly-the-same-size iPod. Unfortunately I could not get ONE good picture of it. My camera really sucks. I used leftover Malabrigo Sock from my Karira socks-- It used up SO little yardage I could easily make six or seven more cases. It was a simple 2x2 rib with a garter opening. Here's the pattern:

BLACKBERRY COZY

Fits a Blackberry, iPod, slim camera, or most other little handheld devices.

Use a sock or fingering yarn and two size 1-2 circulars (whatever you normally use for socks).
CO 36 sts, split the stitches onto two circulars, and join in the round. Work 6 rows in garter stitch (you must knit one round, then purl one round in order to achieve garter in the round).

Begin k2, p2 ribbing and continue until work measures approximately 4.5", or however long your device is. WARNING: Since this cozy is meant to be very stretchy, the length of the work will not necessarily equal the length of the device-- the cozy will be shorter. Make sure to check the length often against the device in order to ensure a good fit.

When work reaches desired length, separate the stitches so that there are 18 on each needle. Turn the sock inside out (or you can simply bind off from the RS-- both sides are identical up to this point) and work 3-needle bind off.

Button flap: Choose which side of the opening you want to be the back. Pick up 5 stitches in the center of it from the RS. Work garter stitch for 3/4". Buttonhole round: K1, k2tog, yo, k2. Continue in garter stitch until flap measures 1.25". Bind off.

Finishing: Sew button onto cozy beneath buttonhole. Weave in ends. Ta da!

You can finish this in a few hours. And it's a sweet little cozy. I'm thinking of making another one with a button band... I just LOVE putting buttons on things. They give such a finished look to knit pieces.

Anyway... I also made a baby sweater for my friend, due in December:

For some reason the right shoulder is kind of square. This sweater is knit in pieces and seamed. I like working flat but I HATE the thick seams you get when you have to sew it together!! This is Aran weight Muench Family, which is SUPERSOFT and perfect for kid things, but it also makes a bulky seam when sewn together. I hope it doesn't bother the baby... and I hope they put it on the baby. I still have to get some buttons for the neckband placket. But it was a fun little project. Baby stuff is great. So quick and gratifying. My future kids are going to be the most knit-furnished babies on the planet!! I just hope, for their own sake, that they are born in the winter.

Updates 'n' stuff

Been busy WORKING!! UGH!! Hate being an adult!! JK. It's good to be working. But it leaves less time for knitting, sadly. Nevertheless I have managed to do some stuff.

I started a little short-sleeved sweater, which, like most of my knitting, has its own saga. I technically started it September 25th, but had to rip it out after a few inches because I wanted to do it in a small instead of a medium size. I don't know what's wrong with me. I don't know if it's the gauge or just the pattern, but EVERY TIME, I KNIT THINGS THE WRONG SIZE!! Seriously, I get so frustrated. I even checked the gauge! Okay, I knit like four rows, but I thought it would be good enough. Not, apparently, because the sweater started looking pretty wide. But then I realized it was because the pattern called for casting on the number of BUST STITCHES and working straight, with no waist shaping. So of course it was going to be huge.

Too big.

I started again with a small, casting on 246, and started doing some shaping that I had worked out. When I finished with the waist shaping at 202 sts, I tentatively tried it on (dropping a ton of stitches because my needle it too short to accommodate me) and it was . . . well, roomy. I even tried it on over my bust and it was STILL roomy. Like, 202 sts was still too freaking roomy for my bust!!! I mean! Completely Ridiculous! For this to actually be a fitted sweater, I'd have to CAST ON less than 202 sts. SERIOUSLY!!!

What is WRONG with me?

I started increasing for the bust anyway. Right now I've got like 230 sts, about, which I'm going to keep going with. The bust is actually going to be MORE narrow than the hip circumference. Which is so silly. If I was a really fastidious knitter (not), I'd rip it out and redo the whole effing thing, using my own numbers. But I'm not going to. I know it'll still look nice, just not fitted. And not ENORMOUS hopefully, just standard-fitting. I hope. Sigh.

 

 I'm at about 10.5" now. 4.5" to the splitting. Knitknitknitknitknitknitknitknitslipmarkerknitknitknit. 

As I often do when I'm involved in a more serious WIP, I decided to do a quick knit. I made a string market bag! It's great! I started it Saturday night and finished it Sunday, knitting most of it in the car going to and from apple picking with my parents. Check it out.

It was so fast. Only 24 rows total, but the pattern called for a bunch of funky stitches. I used Knit Picks Organic Cotton Sport, so I feel even more crunchy!! Organic, undyed yarn. Lovelove. It's perfect for taking to the store if you're just getting a few things, but where I really envision using it most is in the shuk in Israel where you buy fresh fruit and veggies and all kinds of stuff. It looks small, but BOY does it stretch!!!

                                                

 I packed dozens of apples in it and there was room to spare. I could have fit more. I made the strap a bit long, so stretched out it's a little longer than I would like. However, I'm happy with it.

I'm also considering making a few baby things for some friends back in Israel. I already made the Bailey kids hats-- I still have to make a baby sweater for them, but I also have a few other friends who have/will soon have newborns.So I might have some more things to add to my list!

Behbehs continued

I ended up disliking Leah's hat enough to make a new one. And I decided to make it match Saul's:
I used only Red Heart Soft Yarn, so it isn't as buttery soft as Saulie's hat. But it's super cute.

And then I figured... well, if I'm going to make matching hats for two of the Bailey kids... why not go all the way and make a third for the incoming baby (due at the end of December)?

 

 So I did!

I used "neutral" colors, as neutral as I could find in my Soft Yarn stash, anyway. 

So now we have a whole set of neat little matching hats in kid, toddler, and infant sizes!!

Bear in mind, of course, that the sizes are kind of arbitrary, since I have no available kids, toddlers, or babies to fit them on.

Now I just have to knit a little sweater (in Muench again, super super soft) for the baby, and then I will send them to Israel. I have some family visiting there in November, so I may try to send it with them instead of actually mailing it, because that would be mad expensive. But I can't wait to see a picture of the adorable little kiddies in the hats!!! Knitting for kids is so fun. The projects are adorable, and they are quick knits. Too bad I don't have more kids in my life.

Behbeh Hats

I've knit a couple of hats for the Bailey kiddies-- only two months early! Better than late. I just wanted some fresh projects. I want to start a project a day. I certainly have enough yarn!!

Each hat has had its own saga, its own story.

 I did Leah's hat first, with super bulky cotton Dance yarn. I only had one 70-yard skein, which I figured should be enough to make a hat. This was my first attempt:

 It was a pattern I found on Ravelry. I liked it because of the cute earflaps. But knitting the earflaps without cutting the yarn-- I didn't want to because I had so little of it and because weaving ends on such a bulky, sturdy yarn will not be fun-- was annoying, and the hat turned out long and skinny. Not a great size. So I tried again.

 

This was an improvised design. I impulsively decided to do some cables. It looked okay, but the top was strange and again it was long and thin. Take three.

I continued with the cables theme, but shortened the cables and added a repeat, which resulted in a nice looking hat. But now I don't know if I really like it, because the yarn is, like, not that soft and cuddly. It's super bulky and it has that, you know "cotton"-y feel-- kind of sturdy and rough. I have a skein of old Caron's Simply Soft Quick, a super bulky, super soft sheeny light pink acrylic. That would make a very cozy and warm hat. But I don't know if I want to make another one. I mean, the hat I did make was fairly cute... I just don't know if I love the texture and feel of it.

Saulie's hat. Take one.

My main issue with this hat was the two different yarns. The light turquoise is Muench Family and I love it. It's butter-soft. Feels fantastic against the skin, and totally fun to knit with. But I felt it might be a little too babyish, and I only had 83 yards of that, so I thought it might be a good idea to add another color. So I added a darker teal from the Red Heart Soft Yarn line, which I've used for tons of stuff in the past, and it is pretty soft. Thing is, compared to the Muench, it's downright coarse. Doesn't feel any bit as nice. And I used it for the ribbing, which is the part that will come into direct contact with his skin. :-(. But I do like the stripey look, and the gauge was so perfect that the knitting is super neat and tidy. Which mine usually never is. And it is probably because I never, ever check gauge.

Finally I just decided to continue with it anyway, but when I finished it, it was too long. It fit ME. So I knew it was going to be too big for a four-year-old. So I ripped back, removed a repeat, and finished up again. I am very happy with the result:

Now I'm just wavering on whether or not I want to send Leah the hat. I guess I have a while to decide.

YARN DELIVERY!!!

I am sooo happy today!! I got my KnitPicks order in the mail!!! I ordered it on TUESDAY, and now it's Saturday-- talk about service!!

I am just so thrilled. It's like sending a present to myself. There are 15 skeins total, and one pair of circs. There are seven different kinds of yarns, because I wanted to test out a bunch of different products. KnitPicks is like a discounted designer yarn that is EXTRAORDINARILY cheap compared to other designer yarns and it's not sold in stores, but tons of knitters use it and I wanted to see if I should join their ranks.

So, without further adooooo! Meet my new yarn!

6 balls Knit Picks Palette in Marine Heather.
Fingering Weight.
100% Peruvian wool, 231 yards.

I want to use this yarn to make a really sweet short-sleeved sweater with a great fold-over collar and button placket. The pattern calls for light fingering. This yarn was $2.19/ball!! So I couldn't resist. I mean, the total, for all six balls, was $13.14!!!! You don't even know how good of a deal that is considering how expensive wool can be at yarn stores. It's a very, very pretty color-- a deep blue-green. The yarn, being 100% wool, is a little "hairier" than I'd like, and I imagine it might be a little itchy close to the skin, but as this is the kind of sweater one wears over a shirt, I don't think it'll be a problem. I also got needles to knit the sweater, size 2 24" circulars, which can be hard to find in stores cause they are so small.


1 ball Knit Picks Shine Worsted in Clementine
Worsted Weight
60% Pima Cotton, 40% Modal, 75 yards

No idea what I want to use this particular ball for, but I would definitely order this yarn again for a worsted weight project. It has a LOVELY sheen and it is incredibly soft to the touch. Perfect for baby stuff. I love the Clementine colorway, too. The only thing I don't love is the low yardage. It would take many balls to make a grown-up sweater, that's for sure. But you can't beat the price. $2.49/ball!


1 Ball Swish DK in Sugar Plum
DK Weight
100% Superwash Merino Wool, 123 yards

 This is a very pretty, classic Merino yarn. Might not be the best next-to-skin project, but on the other hand, it probably is pretty comfortable. It's not hairy at all, no long weird fibers-- pretty smooth. I won't know until I knit it up. It feels pretty soft-- not as soft as the Shine, but I could see a lot of uses for it. Plus, I LOVE the Sugar Plum colorway. I could see ordering it for a project. I could definitely see it as a hat for a baby or kid. It would even be nice for a sweater, I think. This yarn has a lot of potential.


1 ball Knit Picks CotLin in Pistachio.
DK weight.
70% Cotton, 30% Linen, 123 yards.

 This is a very nice cotton yarn. Very subtle sheen, soft, light. Would be great in a summer project. I love the minty color. Again, don't know what I'll use it for, but I can see that it will be a very hardy and sturdy yarn that will wash well.


2 balls Knit Picks Simply Cotton Sport in Ginger
Sport weight.
100% Organic Cotton, 164 yards.

This is another nice cotton yarn. It's undyed, natural, which I really like, and the colorway is very interesting. It has very, very subtle variegation. You can barely see it, but it's there. I got two balls because I thought I might want to make some kind of project with it, maybe a baby project. It also comes in Worsted weight, but I generally like finer weights because I find that heavier weights makes for bulky and unattractive garments.


3 skeins Knit Picks Shadow in Summer Blooms Tonal.
Lace weight.
440 yards 100% Merino wool.

 I got three skeins because I had a project in mind, the Featherweight sweater, a nice light cardigan, but if I find another laceweight sweater I may make that instead. I love the idea of a laceweight cardigan, because I'd get a lot more use out of it than a bulky sweater. I've made many sweaters, but I barely wear any of them because they're all so huge and bulky and unflattering. I've never made a sweater in a weight lighter than worsted. Therefore I got the Palette and this, to make lighter weight sweaters. This yarn is beaaauutiful. It's handpainted in deep magenta/pink/red shades. I can see that it'll be really nice knitted up. Again, it's a little hairy, like the Palette, but it would make a very nice, airy sweater.


1 skein Knit Picks Stroll, in Springtime tonal.
Fingering/sock weight.
75% Superwash Merino, 25% nylon, 462 yards.

Now this might be my favorite of the bunch. It's so soft and smooth, just like sock yarn should be, and the color variegation is soo lovely. I love the bright, springy green. (I'm a sucker for handpaints.) It was also the most expensive, $9.99/skein. But that's still a lot less expensive than your typical handpainted skein of sock yarn, which runs usually at least $20/skein. This is a really lovely yarn and I'm looking forward to using it.


YAAAAARRN!!!! HOORAAAY!!

Abort! Abort!!

I was doing a MUCH needed organization and purge of my yarn stash today, and I stumbled onto a few aborted projects from I don't know when. It was disturbing, to say the least. I recovered quite a number of needles and notions when I ripped them out...


I think this is the oldest. It's a pair of gloves that I started making for Sabrina's . . . 23rd . . .? birthday? Two years ago?

It was my first glove and it was a horrible FAIL. I ripped out the second glove and freed the needles for a more useful future purpose. I'm not even going to talk about it... it wasn't good.


I believe I started this little project the end of my senior year, a year or so ago. It was going to be a geometrical skirt made of panels knit in different leftover sock yarn. I only got most of one panel in before I lost interest, I guess. I ripped it out today. Maybe it can be repurposed for a sock or something. Or a few pairs of kids' socks.

This one's kind of embarrassing. Last summer I drew a sketch of a very pretty knit dress. It had a lined, lace skirt in some lightweight yarn, a waistband and a cute little top. I had some vague plans to make it. But I needed skinny yarn, right? So I went to Michael's and bought... crochet thread. Yeek. I held a strand of off-white thread, and sparkly white thread, together, and knit it in lace to get this horrible thing. Obviously I didn't even like it while it was happening because I didn't get too far. Now I know that if I want to knit a beautiful lace skirt, I need beautiful lace yarn and a hell of a lot more patience. I hate lace.

Plarn. I made plastic yarn out of a bunch of plastic grocery bags. I think my vague idea was to make a reusable grocery bag out of old bags. But I got creative, with the cable, and it looked weird. Fail.

And these were all the tools I got back (and didn't even know I had)!

A pair of size 10 straights, a pair of size 2 straights, a pair of circular needles, and two sets of dpns.

I spent all last night on Ravelry, searching for patterns worked with the yarns I have in my stash. It was so fun. I got really excited about using the yarns... but the thing is, I don't have enough of most of them because the only projects I really like are sweaters and garments. I don't wear accessories! I don't even wear my knitted socks!! I'm a sweater girl, what can I say? I'm an incurable sweater knitter. I'm especially excited about my Misti Alpaca pima/silk blend. I LOVE the colorway and all the projects on Ravelry show it to advantage... it's so pretty. I just need like four more skeins, and I can make a sweater. But I need four more skeins. Lol. And I have yarn on the way to make two other sweaters. And I'm going to start working a lot soon (hopefully!!!) so I'll have less time to knit. But more money to buy yarn, mwahaha!

Happy Dance Time

Guys, I got ANOTHER job today!! Barush Hashem!!! Formans Rejoice!!!

I was just cruising the mall with my mom and I stopped in at the Lindt Chocolate to say hi to my old friend, Ron. We worked together at Lindt for many years, in Woodbury, and after that store closed he moved to Roosevelt Field. So I wandered in to say HI. And whaddayaknow!!! They needed people! All their people were leaving!! The overseeing manager happened to be in the store!! Application, interview, wham bam! I'm back at Lindt, baby!!

The fact that I now have TWO jobs and will soon have steady income makes me feel a little less guilty about spending many moneys on Knit Picks products today. I put in my order for sixteen skeins of yarn and I am SO EXCITED!! It shipped today so I should have it soon. I won't put down an exact number, but I spent enough to qualify for free shipping, so. I ordered seven different kinds of yarn, totaling 16 skeins, and a pair of size 2 32" circulars. I ordered six skeins of a fingering weight yarn called Palette, to make this really sweet short-sleeved sweater with this awesome ribbed collar with a button placket. I just discovered it on Ravelry yesterday. I also ordered three skeins of lace for a laceweight sweater I want to make. And some other random stuff just to test out the Knit Picks quality. It's a notoriously cheap source of (reputedly) fairly quality yarn, so I decided I needed to see for myself.

Anyway, problems.

I started the Noro coat the other day. But then I went on Ravelry (I LOVE THAT SITE! How did I live without it?) to look up Noro Iro projects and it turns out someone else had this idea before. A few people actually, made some pretty cute coats. And that's when I realized that I definitely don't have enough yarn. Actually, I realized it when I started knitting and I was halfway through the skein before I had 3" done. And it's a super-bulky yarn. So now I have to rethink things.


This is my Noro Iro. All very beautiful, but what do I do with it?? Seven skeins isn't enough to make a coat. Maybe a blazer? I dunno. I've kind of lost my enthusiasm for it. Maybe it'll just stay in my stash for now... I do want to make some kind of outerwear with it, but I don't feel like buying more of it right now.

Mailed out the sample scarf and Play With Fire socks today. Am working diligently on Aunt Hayley's skirt. I don't even know when I'll see her next, so I don't have a deadline per se, but I'm plodding through. Also working on a pair of Knit Picks socks. I used a German Twisted cast on as recommended, because it said it makes a "stretchy" hem, but-- I must have messed up, because it's really tight and uncomfortable. In fact, I may actually try to undo the cast-on and just bind off the cuff because the sock comes up really high on the knee and it's freaking annoying to tug it over the calf.

In other news, the Law and Order: SVU Season Premiere was tonight and .... WOWZA!! Top notch!! SVU always delivers!! I need to learn how to simultaneously WATCH tv and knit, though. I realized that I never take my eyes off my knitting. Which will probably result in some eyesight issues later on. Problematic, as my eyesight already sucks.