Akachan no Mofu (赤ちゃん の 毛布 - Baby Blanket)

Well, I took the plunge! :P  I committed to working on multiple projects along side my Tabi No Monogatari v5 & v6 as well as 2015's NaKniSweMo and my Kurisumasu no Bōshi. :)  My "big" at home project was to make a "baby" blanket with the Taiwanese yarn my mom had picked up for me (and had gone a bit overboard) while traveling in Taiwan a while ago.  I had asked her to pick up 400 yards of sock yarn (basically something I could make a pair of socks with) and instead, she (or more likely my Dad) had gone nuts and basically brought home yarn that I couldn't use for a pair of socks! 8S  So, after much thought and deliberation about what I was going to do with all this non-sock yarn in colours like: multi blue-mint green-white, multi purple-blue-pink-white and pink, I decided to turn a good portion of that yarn into an Akachan no Mofu (赤ちゃん の 毛布 = Baby Blanket) as the colours really called for a baby blanket. :P  I found this super cool scarf/wrap pattern that I thought would be awesome as a blanket. :) It's called the Dragon Wrap/Scarf.  On that note, I should let you know that in my family, a "baby" blanket is really more like a twin sized blanket (or bigger - basically, we give something as big as possible that we can squeeze out every square feet or yard; our theory is maximization is key! :P).  We believe that baby blankets should grow with you until it's completely ratted out (and by then, you're usually in high school or older). :P

So ... Here's how it went:
First, I modified the pattern a bit so that it would be "blanket" sized. Here's the "pattern":

1. Cast on 168 sts.
2. Knit five (5) rows of garter stitch.
3. Follow the following repeat rounds in the following colours:
• Round 1: (WS) and all odd numbered rounds : Purl 
• Round 2: *K1, Yo, SSK, K4, K2tog, K3, Yo, K2, Yo, K3, SSK, K4, K2tog, Yo, K1; rep from * 
• Round 4: *K1, Yo, K1, SSK, K2, K2tog, K4, Yo, K2, Yo, K4, SSK, K2, K2tog, K1, Yo, K1; rep from *
• Round 6: * K1, Yo, K2, SSK, K2tog, K5, Yo, K2, Yo, K5, SSK, K2tog, K2, Yo, K1; rep from *
• Round 8: *K1, Yo, K3, SSK, K4, K2tog, Yo, K2, Yo, SSK, K4, K2tog, K3, Yo, K1; rep from *
• Round 10: *K1, Yo, K4, SSK, K2, K2tog, K1, Yo, K2, Yo, K1, SSK, K2, K2tog, K4, Yo, K1; rep from *
• Round 12: *K1, Yo, K5, SSK, K2tog, K2, (Yo, K2) twice, SSK, K2 tog, K5, Yo, K1; rep from * 
• blue 16.75 rows (including casting on and the initial five (5) rows of garter stitch)
• yellow 13.25 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• purple 15.25 rows
• yellow 8.75 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• gray 12 rows
• gray 12 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• pink 13.85 rows
• yellow 11.15 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• blue 16.11 rows
• yellow 7.89 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• purple 16.75 rows
• yellow 7.25 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• pink 14.25 rows
• yellow 9.75 rows
• yellow 12 row
• gray 12 rows
• gray 12 rows
• yellow 12 rows
• yellow 8.50 rows
• purple 16.37 rows
• yellow 11.13 rows
• yellow 13.25 rows
• blue 16.75 rows (including final five (5) rows and bind off) 
4. Knit five (5) rows and bind off.

I started off using my Knitter's Pride Trendz US 8 needles (because I wanted to know how well the plastic needle worked with the acrylic yarn) but, it was very difficult to use as there was a lot of drag and made my hands feel really achy and sore very quickly (mostly the yarn's fault and partly the needles, I think). :(  So, then I switched to my Knitter's Pride Cubics (same sized needles) and it was better but, I think the acrylic yarn itself was hard on my hands because it was still tough and slow going despite changing my needles. :(

Other than that, working the dragon scale pattern is interesting (even though I need to constantly look at the pattern every time I started an even numbered row - I just couldn't seem to remember it).  After knitting nearly the entire pattern with my first ball of blue multi yarn, I realized that there was no way that I would have enough yarn to actually make a blanket out of this.  If I used just what I had it would be a giant dolly blanket or a very itty bitty baby blanket.  So, I began to look through my stash (documented and undocumented stash - the undocumented stash is from when I had bought yarn thinking I was going to learn how to knit and used it as practice knitting yarn and as such decided not to document it as stash) and found some leftover Red Heart light grey yarn that would work well with the colour combinations I had.  But, my grey ball wasn't all that much so, my sweet Hubby took me to Wal-Mart and helped me find another colour (I couldn't find another light grey).  I picked up another Red Heart Super Saver yarn in pale yellow. :)  After completing several pattern repeats, the blanket was turning out very nicely. :) The only thing I worried about was actually having enough yellow and grey yarn to make it all the way through the blanket.  After working the first pattern repeat for the grey yarn, I realized that I had to break down and find another skein of it.  With the number of grey repeats I had to do and the amount of yarn I had left, it became crystal clear that I had to pick up another skein of grey yarn.  So, I managed to find another Red Heart Super Saver skein of light grey at our local Ben Franklin store.  I also ended up picking up another skein of the yellow yarn (after I've gone through about two (2) of the yellow pattern repeats and had used up about half of the first yellow skein, I realized that I needed to get more yellow yarn :'() as well as be fortunate enough to have a yarn fairy (Thank you, D!!) who gifted me another skein of yellow yarn. :P  I actually held out of picking up more of the yellow yarn until I had actually ran out of my original skein to see how far I could get with it before picking up the rest of skeins. :D  (Yup, I was playing yarn chicken and being delusional! :P)  It took me six (6) pattern repeats of the yellow yarn before I picked up the remaining skeins of yellow yarn (Denial is not only a river in Egypt :P lol).

And, because I was adding in colours and wanted to be sure I could actually make this blanket as big as I wanted to, I started doing knitting math - again. 8S  It was partly to check to see if I had enough yarn to make a full sized "baby" blanket but, more importantly, it was really to check if the colours for the pattern would work out (and look fine).  As I was merrily making the blanket and used skein after skein, Hubby asked if I was actually going to use all that yarn and of course, I said: yes! :P  Then, he broke the news to me:  He said that if I used all the yarn using the same repeats I had already established, the blanket would look ... awkward (ok, he used the word: "funny") ... I sat in the river of Denial for an hour before conceding that he was probably right (although I didn't have to like it! :P).  With his help (I dunno why I didn't just ask for his help in the first place since he's always better at math than I will ever be), he helped me figure out what sections I needed to take out and how to finish up the blanket.  So, the blanket ended up being 159 cm L x 92 cm W (60 in L x 36.25 in W) - basically something slightly smaller than a twin sized blanket.  This lucky child will just have to enjoy it until she/he is bigger than I am! ;)  Then she/he can enjoy it as a lap blanket. :P

Lastly, I also discovered that I could only do one (yes, one (1)!) pattern repeat a night before my hands tuckered out. :(  So, after doing the (inital) math, I determined that this "project" would take me at least total of 46 days to finish (presuming that I actually worked on it every single day and was able to complete one whole pattern repeat a day).  It was overwhelming to think how long it would take me to finish this baby blanket!  In the end, I found that at most I could do no more than 4-6 rows (or no more than one (1) full repeat) a day so, it really took me one (1) year, two (2) months and two (2) days (not 46 days) to finish this blanket.  This was mainly because 1) I was too tuckered out more a days than I thought I would be to actually work on it at night and on the weekends, 2) I got all hyped up about NaKniSweMo 2015 (yet another simultaneous project! :P) so in essence, I had temporarily abandoned this project for a little bit :( and 3) there were also other (smaller and quicker) projects that "got in the way" ;).  Essentially, I was only working on this project when we were either at all day events (like picnics, barbecues), at big (aka all/most of the evening) parties, or on the rare weekends when we needed a break from reality. :P  There was a small break in projects near the end of this project in which I just manned up and finished the darn thing!  After all, I needed to finish this project before there was an actual baby being born! :P (And, no, the closest relative/friend I have being close to having a baby is getting married next year so, I'm good to go (now) when the next baby comes; hopefully it's just not two (2) babies - then I'll be in big trouble! ;P (And, yes, I was getting worried about when I was really going to be able to finish this - a baby may well have been on its way if I had let this drag on any longer! :P))

Nevertheless, it's finally done! :)  Here's how the completed "baby" blanket looks:

Here it is!  Done!!! 

And, see! It's just taller than me! :P

While I'm not sure if I want to take another endeavor of making a baby blanket again but, I am glad I had a chance to see if I could handle doing multiple projects as well as working on a H-U-G-E project to boot! :P

So, here's my lessons learned:  

1. No multiple projects for me! I can't handle anything more than two (2) projects at a time and simple projects at that! :P  It took me as long as it did because often times, when I picked up this project again, I had to re-evaluate what I was doing before starting up again.  And, when I stopped this project to work on another one, I had to re-evaluate that project to see where I left off there to begin again.  It really amazes me how people can do multiple projects and be able to remember where they left off.  It actually drove me a little crazy and gave me a bit of anxiety to have so many projects going on at the same time.  I think ultimately, there's were (way) too many projects and unfinished works going on at the same time that really gave me anxiety ... I found that I really like to see a project from birth to completion so, having multiple projects stressed me about actually being able to finish them. :P  While I did manage to finish nearly all of my projects, I definitely won't be taking on more than two (2) projects at a time for future knitting projects! :)
2. With regards to working on a big project like this, it was definitely trying as the shear size of it was hard to manage and lug it around with me (eventually, it needed to be lugged around with me so I could actually finish it).  Additionally, because I couldn't really ever remember the pattern, I had to have a lot of accessories with me (like my cell phone and counter).  So, with that, there were more things to juggle around as well as managing the yarn and the blanket itself (not to mention always making sure I had battery power on my phone so I could actually look at the pattern and work on the blanket!)  If I were to take on another "baby" blanket, I would definitely try it with another yarn and perhaps work it with a different (or easier/less complex) pattern - like a simple knit, purl, or knit & purl (like Moss stitch) pattern.  We'll see ... Once we hear that another baby is coming along, I'll think about it then! :P

My 2016 Yearly Recap

Another year has passed and I'm still knitting strong! :)  Based on the number of blogs I've posted this year, it's been a new record for me.  Here's what I've been up to:
What I've made:

1. A few pairs of socks for Hubby:
• Sock 1
• Sock 2
2. Finished a Kurisumasu no Boshi (Christmas hat) for Hubby.
3. A pair of socks for myself! :)
4. A few thank you gifts for my Mom's friends.
5. A pair of fingerless mitts for my Mom.
6. Finished a pair of hat kits I bought from Canada.
7. A cool cowl and fingerless mitt set for my friend, A.
8. A ski set (hat, scarf and fingerless mitts) for my co-worker, Fran.
9. A (hopefully) warm (nicer) hat for my Giri no Chi Chi (father-in-law).
10. A pair of fingerless mitts for my friend, D.
11. A hat and pair of fingerless mitts set for Hubby.
12. A hat and pair of fingerless mitts set for my Yarn Buddy.
13. Made a pair of fingerless mitts for myself.
14. (Finally) Finished my Akachan no Mofu (赤ちゃん の 毛布 - Baby Blanket) project (ok  well, it'll be finished before the end of the calendar year at the very least! :P).

Other things that also "happened":

1. Went on another yarn crawl in Japan for more stash and some cool accessories (I think this might be a yearly thing if I'm lucky! ;)).
2. Bought more stash, (sweater) stash, more toys, (and) toys, (and) toys, (and) toys, an awesome interchangeable sock needle set, and two (2) travel friendly needle sets.
3. Found some great books (from Savers & at my local library's annual book sale) as well as picked up a pair of the best stitchionaries (so far!)
4. Received an awesome knitting bag from my friend, Y.
5. Discovered some cool how-tos as well as found an easier way to "remember" how to care for one's yarn.
6. Learned that I did have a limit on simply "obtaining" accessories.
7. Finally broke a needle (and here, I thought that would never happen to me! ;'()
8. Went on a great yarn crawl with my fam in Seattle (and of course bought stash and then some! :P).
9. Started to crochet (again).
10. Found a Yarn Buddy (and got an amazing stash from him!)! :D
11. Started blogging about Hubby's foray into crocheting. *yay*
12. Got a-Head! ;D
13. (Tried to) Prime my Yarn Buddy on the intracacies of yarn on I Love Yarn Day-ish.
14. Reviewed my handiwork on all of my tabis to see how I can improve.
15. Tell the people I love (and who've humored me on my knitting adventures) how Thankful I am for them. :) ♡

I'm very impressed with myself this year.  I've accomplished more than I ever thought I would and I hope many of my recipients really enjoy their goodies.   Although I think my goal of shrinking my stash is still a work in progress (especially when I'm being gifted stash! :P).  And while I did accomplish not increasing my sweater stash (sort of), I think next year will definitely be the year of "me" in which my goal will actually be working on all my sweater projects.  I wonder how that will go along ... after all, how many sweaters can one make in a whole year??  We'll see now, won't we? ;)  At the very least, all I can hope for is not to find/create more sweater stash or stash in general! :P

Wish me luck! :)

Giving Thanks

This seems to have been an exceptional year for me and I would like to give Thanks to:
1. My wonderful Aunty and Uncle who are always so thoughtful and very loving.  I really do have the best Aunty and Uncle in the whole wide world. :)  And to show you how lucky I am, they got me this for my b-day this year:

I L-O-V-E stitch markers and now I have L-O-T-S of coiless stitch markers now in an amazing array of colors!! 

2. My brother, Mom and Hubby who always support me in my knitting adventures (including pretending to appreciate my knitted goods (bro), taking me to the yarn shop (bro and Hubby), letting me pick up "accessory" bags "for my purse" (when he really knows they're really more knitting project bags for my purse) (Hubby) and helping with making bags and other sewing related items to hold my projects in (Mom)). :)

3. My Yarn Buddy, B & Yarn Fairy, D! :)  Without my Yarn Buddy and Yarn Fairy, my stash would remain stagnant! ;)

4. My father-in-law and buddies: A, D, B, Fran & I-san (basically, everyone whom I have been able to make something for so far) who let me use them as (live) models to test out various patterns, let me test (& stretch!) my knitting skills, and most importantly use my knitted goods. :)  I hope they are/have enjoyed their hand-knitted goods.  I have already heard from some of them about how glad they were to be able to use the item I made for them (as it kept them warm when they needed it) and that they've gotten compliments about their hand-knitted goods (*wow*!). ♡♡♡

There are so many other things and people that I'm also very thankful for but the above four (4) groups of people are ones that I really wanted to highlight this year because I just wanted to let them know how much I really do love and appreciate them (and I feel that I don't get a chance to say it (enough) to them). ♡♡♡♡♡

Love y'all! ♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Up-date: Tabi No Monogatari and Its Wearability

I thought I'd give y'all an up-date on actually how my tabis actually are wearing. :P

The ones I made for my Hubby (the original Tabi no Monogatari, v2, v5, v6, & v8) are wearing well and (generally) fit well on him.  The yarns used haven't felted and for the most part, they don't sag at all (v5 sags a little - that's what happens when I cheated for the ankle portion. :(  And, v5's top is a little too tight since I had a brain fart and didn't bind off properly. :(  Lesson learned; I did it "correctly" (again) on v6 and that doesn't sag nor is the top too tight. :)).  As for v8, I dunno what happened ... I somehow made the foot portion a bit longer than normal so, it doesn't quite fit as well.  I think I just wasn't paying attention - another lesson learn there as well. :(  He's worn most of them quite a few times and in short, he loves them (and is excited to replace his store bought pairs with my handmade ones - eventually). :)

See, they still look like my original finished product. :)

Upon trying to fix the tight top portion of v5, I found that while it doesn't look like it felted, it did a little bit (just not enough to tell if you're not looking too closely).  I (apparently) did a very good job binding off since I had a very difficult time finding my end and trying to rip it back to redo my bind off. 8S

The ones I made for myself (Tabi no Monogatari v3, v4 & v7) for the most part fit really well.  v3 & v7 really fit well and for a pair of knee highs, it stays up! :)  It also seemed to have washed well and not felted.  

Unfortunately, v4, stays up - for the first 5 minutes or so then s-l-o-w-l-y start sagging down until they're like a pair of 80s socks with all the scrunch. :(  I think the difference between my two (2) pairs is the yarn used; on version 3, it was a wool/polyester mix and on version 4, it was a cotton, bamboo, silk, polyester mix so, I'm thinking that while I had put in enough negative ease for my socks, it just wasn't enough to keep them up.  But, I've finally washed them and they really seemed to have shrunk!

I tried it on again and it does hold up for a little while but once, it "warms" up, the sagging begins - again. :(  

So, off I went to Yarn Story where Kim broke the news to me: I could try adding elastic to it but, there'd be no guarantee that the elastic would work to actually keep to up simply because of the yarn type I had use.  Had I decided to make a pair of short ankle socks, this yarn would have been fine; but, since I made such a long sock, the cotton/bamboo just isn't going to stay up. :(  Ever so hopeful that I could make my Whoville tabis work out, I picked up some elastic to see if I could make it work.

Here's what I did:
I never did get around to figuring out how to work the elastic into my sock. :P (Other projects and priorities "got in the way". :P)  Instead, I tried it out with a pair of skinny jeans and found that these work perfectly with these jeans. :P  So, as long as I wear it with something slimming/tighter around my calf, I won't need to "fix" it. 

And, look at what Hubby found for me:

Yup, these are clear boots (out for the winter here)!  He said that it'd be perfect to show of my handmade socks! :P lol :)  (And, no, I did not buy these shoes!  Seriously, guys?!  My footwear of choice (Birkenstocks are AWESOME!!!) gives me plenty of sock showing opportunities! ;P)

Pastelly Goodness From My Yarn Buddy

My Yarn Buddy recently took a road trip around Oregon and brought home a H-U-G-E load of pastelly goodness:
This is called Jellybean! I'm going to so love my Spring sweater!! ♡♡

This is Color 119 and I'm thinking to would work well with my Jellybean! ;) 

This sock yarn is called: Oregon Coast Sunset.  Ooohhhh ... I can't wait to see how it comes out!♡♡

This sock yarn is called: Pixie Dust.  How cute is that?! ☆☆☆☆☆ (I can totally see how people get sucked into buying a colorway ...c'mon ... who's gonna resist Pixie Dust?!)

Then, my Yarn Buddy knew I wanted to try a wool wash called Soak and he found me this: Yuzu Soak!! **squeal** ♡♡♡

I can't wait to see what this smells like! :D

Then ... he found this and thought it was hilarious:

It IS pretty funny (and really right up my alley)! :P

Then, he thought that maybe I would want more PC ones so he found these:

Isn't he so sweet?! ♡♡♡

I can't wait to dive into my stash!  Thank goodness that I've already planned out 2017 (which will be my year of sweaters) as I can't wait to try this stash out! ♡♡♡

Thank you, B!!!  You really are the bestest Yarn Buddy!! ♡♡♡♡♡♡

Formerly Known As Faux Fair Isle Fingerless Mitts

It was time to make myself a pair of fingerless mitts (now that I made virtually all of my peeps a pair! ;)). :)  With my Drops Fabel yarn (I had purchased way too much and had been thinking about making a pair of fingerless mitts or a hat for myself with the remainder of the yarn), I used my Denise 3.75mm (US 5) needles and casted on 40 sts.  Since this yarn is self-patterning, I decided that a simple 1x1 rib stitch pattern would show off the yarn the best.  Here's what I did:

1. Cast on 40 sts.
2. Started a 1x1 ribbing pattern for 25 rows for the wrist portion & 10 rows for palm (14 cm (5.5 in)). 
3. *K, P* 14 times, K, pick up a st from the st below, P, *P, K* to the end of one side; then K, P 2 times, K, pick up a st from the st below, P, *P, K* to the end.
4. K the knits, P the purls.
5. *K, P* 15 times, pick up a st from the st below, K, *P, K* to the end of one side; then K, P 3 times, pick up a st from the st below, K, *P, K* to the end.
6. K the knits, P the purls.
7. *K, P* 15 times, pick up a st from the st below, K. Place 12 sts (6 sts from each side) on a stitch holder for the thumb portion.  Pick up a st from the st below, P, *K, P* to the end.
8. K the knits, P the purls. 
9. *K, P* 15 times, K, pick up a st from the st below, P on one side.  Then pick up a st from the st below, K, P, *K, P* to the end.
10. K the knits, P the purls.
11. Repeat Row 7 - 10 to add 2 more sts on each side, for a total of 4 additional sts.
12. Continue pattern for the remainder of the fingers for 28 rows (12 cm (4.5 in)).
13. Bind off.
14. Pick up 3 stitches on each side for the thumb plus an additional 6 sts and K/P.
15. Continue pattern.
16. K, P to the 6th st, P/K2tog 4x, K/P to the end.
17. K, P to the 6th st, P/K2tog 2x, K/P to the end.
18. Continue in pattern the remainder of the thumb for 10 rows (4 cm (1.5 in)).
19. Bind off.

終わり (Owari = Done)! :) And here's my mitts look like:

*yay*  Now I have a pair of my very own! :)  Hopefully it won't be so cold this winter that I need my leather gloves and won't be able to use these! :P

Giri no Otouto no Bōshi to Yubi Nashi Tebukuro (義理の弟 の 帽子 と 指なし手袋)

In my last post about my Giri no Chi Chi no Jiaki no Bōshi (義理の父 の 耳介の帽子), I also mentioned that I wanted to make something for my yarn buddy, B (who also happens to be my brother-in-law too). :) When you have an awesome yarn buddy like that, the very least I can do is ensure he has a styling hat and some mitts to keep him warm with some of the yarn he picked up! ;) So, A & Hubby had helped me pick out a pattern: the Jacques Cousteau hat (Hubby liked it so much, he wants one too now! :P).

So, I measured his head (64 cm) and his hands (right = 27.5 cm (slightly longer than Hubby's left hand) and left = 26 cm (his thumb comes up to the 1st digit on Hubby's right hand). Then, I read the pattern twice, doubled up the yarn I decided to use for him (it was a skein of sock weight yarn that he picked up at Mother of Purl) and determined that I needed to cast on 140 sts (the "men's" size) with my Denise 3.75 mm (US 5) needles and 30" cable.  At first, it didn't seem like it was going to be big enough; then I figured out that my cable wasn't long enough for me to determine if the hat was going to be big enough (everything was scrunched up and when I tried to stretch it out, I was worried it would fall off the needles). So, I transferred everything onto my longer 40" cables (much better). And ... when I stretched out the hat, it see incredibly ... B-I-G! :( I tried on Hubby's head and it was really, really big! *yikes* Thankfully, I was going to see B and would have an opportunity to test it on him before I got too far along. Sure enough, it was way too big! :( So, I ripped everything out and recasted on 130 sts. Again, it seemed too small at first but after my 2nd row, it was apparent that it was (again) too big. So, I ripped it out (again) and casted on the women's size: 120 sts and ... it (finally) fit!! *yay*

So, off I went and completed B's hat. And here's what I did:

1. Cast on 120 sts. 
2. K3, P2 for 35 rows (for about 19 cm (7.5 in)) 
3. *Work 26 sts in the rib pattern, then KKS (27th & 28th sts => 27 st), place marker, P2*, repeat * 3 more times.
4. *Work to 2 sts of marker, KKS, P2*, repeat * Continue to decrease in this fashion until 12 sts remain (that's 26 rows).
5. Break yarn and thread it through the remaining sts, pull tight and weave in ends. 

Now it was time for his mitts. Sadly, I didn't have enough sock yarn (can you believe it?!) left so, we decided (together) to pick up a skein of Malabrigo Rios 128 Fresco Y Seco:

Because I wanted it to "match" his hat, I followed the rib pattern (3x2) on his mitts and using my Denise short tips 4.5 mm (US 7) needles, here's how I did it:

1. Cast on 40 sts.
2. K3, P2 for 35 rows (for 17 cm (6.75 in))
3. *K3, P2, pick up a st from the st below, K, K3, P2 to the end of one side; then K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, pick up a st from the st below, K, K3, P2
4. K3, P2, K4, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K4, P2*
5. Continue Rows 3 & 4 until you have added 2 more K sts on each side for a total of 3 additional K sts.
6. K3, P2, pick up a st from the st below, K, K3, P2 to the end of one side; then K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, pick up a st from the st below, K, K3, P2 
7. K3, P2, K3, P1, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P1, K3, P2 
8. K3, P2, K3, pick up a st from the st below, P, P1, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, P2, K3, pick up a st from the stitch below, P, P1, K3, P2.  Step 7 & 8 adds 2 additional P sts.
9. Place 15 sts (8 on one side, 7 on the other side) on a stitch holder for the thumb portion and continue pattern for the remainder of his fingers for 28 rows (11 cm (~4.25 in)).
10. Bind off.
11. Pick up stitches for his thumb plus an additional 4 or 6 sts and continue in pattern, knitting the 4 or 6 additional sts.
12. Continue in pattern and k2tog for the 6th & 7th sts, k, k, k2tog then continue in pattern.
13. Continue in pattern, knit the 6th st, k2tog, k2tog then continue in pattern.
14. Continue in pattern for the remainder of his thumb for 7 rows (4.5 cm (1.5 in)).
15. Bind off.

終わり (Owari = Done)! :) And here's the complete set:

I hope this keeps him nice and toasty on his next trip (or at least it be cold/cool enough for him to use it!). :)

Crochet: He's Evolving!

Well, Hubby has finally used up all the leftover Caron Camo yarn I gave him to "test" out crocheting.  He's finally evolved to using better yarn.  So, I have him my leftover Mystery 100% wool yarn.  And, look what he's done with it:

Now that he's finished with his camera lens cap project, he's ready to start on his next project: To make a camera bag/strap for one of his cameras (that has no lugs (and as such, no way to "strap" it onto him)).  He's been in a quandary about how to make it so, I recommended that we go to our local Barnes and Noble bookstore (well, it's really almost our only bookstore here now) to check out what crochet books they may carry.  He was really hesitant at first but, I told him it would be to simply get ideas and to see the possibilities out there.  Once there, he finally understood what I meant and went crazy over all the crochet stitchonaries.  He finally understood my obsession with knitting stitchonaires.  He said it was like his palate (finally) opened up! ;)  Now, he's on the hunt on which books he should pick up! :P  

Then, last night, we were at Nordstrom with our friend, A and she teasingly said I could make this for her:

Funnily enough, Hubby looked at it and identified that it was crochet and said that if he got good enough one day, he could try to make something like that! :P  It was so cute. :)  The funniest part was that I don't think anyone really understood what he said or meant except me. :P  Poor guy, I'm not sure if the rest of our fam gets that he's getting into his crocheting just as much as I am into my knitting! :P

I think he's really getting into this crocheting business! ;P

The Jacques Cousteau And Man Hands

Now it's Hubby's turn to get a hat and mitt set.  He loved the Jacques Cousteau pattern that I'm making for B (post forthcoming) so much that he wanted one too.  However, he didn't want matching mitts so, I found Man Hands for him instead.

Since I had a break between B's hat and mitts, I figured I'd whip out Hubby's mitts first.  I picked up a skein of Malabrigo Plomo for Hubby (at my fav yarn store, of course) and with my "regular" Denise 4.5 mm (US 7) needles and 19" cables, here what I did:

1. Cast on 40 sts and join in the round.
2. K2, P2 for 21 rows.
3. Then start the Waffle Pattern for four (4) repeats:
• Row 1 & 2: P all sts
• Row 3, 4 & 5: K2, P2
4. For thumb gusset:
• Work in pattern as established for 9 sts, place marker, M1R, place marker and continue in pattern to end.
• Work in pattern as established to the first marker, slip marker (sm), K1, sm and continue in pattern to end.
• Note: Outside of the markers, continue in pattern as established.  Inside of the markers, work as follows:
• *Work to first marker, sm, M1R, K to the next marker, M1L, work to end.
• Work to first marker, sm,K to the next marker, sm, work to end.*
• Repeat * until you have 4 sts between the markers.
• Place first 9 sts on a stitch holder, continue in pattern and place the last  sts on a stitch holder.  You should have another 2 repeats a this juncture.
5. Continue in pattern for the top of the glove until it is about 10 cm (1 in) shorter than required, ending on the 2nd P row (5 repeats).
6. K2, P2 for 7 rows.
7. Bind off in pattern, picking up a stitch from below to ensure a stretchy bind off.
8. Go back to the thumb, pick up the stitches + 2 additional stitches and continue in pattern:
• P.
• P to the last 2 sts, P2tog on each side.
• K2, P2 for 2 rows.
• P to the last 2 sts, P2tog on each side.
• P.
9. K2, P2, K, K2tog (on one side) then P2tog, P, K2, P2 (on the other side)
10. K2, P2 for 2 rows.
11. Bind off in pattern, picking up a stitch below to ensure a stretchy bind off.

Now that I'm done with his mitts, I had to pick up another skein of yarn (with a different dye lot - pray for me! :P) to use with the remainder of the yarn because Hubby changed his mind about the yarn he wanted for his hat! 8S

So, with my Denise short tips 4mm (US 6) & 40" cable, here's Hubby's version of the Jacques Cousteau:

1. Cast on 120 sts. 
2. K3, P2 for 43 rows (for about 15.5 cm (6.12 in)) 
3. *Work 26 sts in the rib pattern, then KKS (27th & 28th sts => 27 st), place marker, P2*, repeat * 3 more times.
4. *Work to 2 sts of marker, KKS, P2*, repeat * Continue to decrease in this fashion until 12 sts remain (that's 27 rows).
5. Break yarn and thread it through the remaining sts, pull tight and weave in ends. 

Ta-da!  Here his hat and fingerless mitt set:

I hope these keep him warm on our next trip! :)

Sorta (Not Really) Surprise Office Mitts

I promised one of my friends that I would knit her something (specifically a wrap (post to be forthcoming).  However, she also mentioned that she could use a pair of fingerless mitts for her office (since it cam be really cold in there).

So, as a sorta (not really) surprise birthday gift, I'm making her a pair of fingerless mitts based on a sample of the pattern of the wrap that she wanted.  Because her wrap has multiple patterns on it, I trolled through my stitchionaries, particularly the ones initially loaned her and found many patterns that I thought she'd like.  Unfortunately, many of those stitch patterns didn't match the number of stitches I needed for her mitts. :(  I finally came across the Box Stitch pattern in my Knitting All Around Stitch Dictionary that would be perfect! ♡

Here's what I did:

1. Casted on 28 sts. and join in the round.
2. K2, P2 for 2 rows.
3. Follow Box Stitch pattern (multiple of 4 sts, 4-rnd repeat) as follows for 9 repeats:
• Rnds 1 & 2: *K2, P2; repeat from * to end.
• Rnds 3 & 4: *P2, K2; repeat from * to end.
4. Split 8 sts for the thumb portion by putting them onto a stitch marker(s) and 20 sts for remainder of fingers. Continue in pattern for the remainder of fingers for 7 repeats.
5. Bind off in pattern.
6. Pick up thumb stitches + 2 extra stitches and continue in pattern for 2 repeats.
7. Bind off in pattern.

終わり (Owari = Done)!

Man!  Fingerless mitts are so quick to do! ;)  She's already looking forward to this and wants it ASAP! :P

I Love Yarn Day 2016

This year, I spent I Love Yarn Day a day earlier.  I took my Yarn Buddy, B to my favorite yarn store to get a crash course on yarn because B is going on a trip soon and is "thinking" about starting a stash (and no, B doesn't know how to knit or crochet yet but is "inspired" by Hubby and me). *yikes!* :P

Important Sidebar Background Information:
B is an impressionable creature.  He thinks it's cool to know how to do a craft.  That's cool. :) But, thinking it's cool doing a craft and actually doing a craft are two different things.  B has lots of hobbies; really more hobbies than he can keep up with! :P

So, to save B from some grief (or at least accumulating some funky stuff), P (my fav yarn shop owner) and I gave him a crash course on yarn yesterday.  

P's idea of yarn is to get the best yarn you can afford (and love) so that when you start knitting/crocheting, it's (aka the yarn) too good to give up on and dump.  

My theory is to start with something inexpensive (like Caron yarn) because what if you don't even like to knit or crochet?  Why commit to something more costly if you're finding that you don't even like the hobby itself?

So, B had some food for thought there - we'll see what he really ends up picking up for himself (or not).

Then we spoke about yarn weight (and that really threw him for a loop)! :P  But, I think he gets that he should be looking for DK or worsted weight yarn (and a relatively lighter colour) to start off with.  He's already talking about making himself a scarf so, that's a good start! :)  With the hat and fingerless mitts I made him, a scarf would be a good way to finish off his knitted set. ;)

Now, the only thing left for him to do is to find a scarf pattern he likes so he knows how much yarn to get! ;)

Good luck, B on your yarn adventure! :)

Crochet: He Did It!

Hubby's been working on his double crochet stitch and experimenting with crocheting in the round.  He finally committed to starting his first project: making a camera cover lens.

Here's how it went:
First, he figured out how to crochet in the round.  But, the center hole was too big! :(

Then, he figured out how to make it smaller and figured out how to make it cylindrical with his double crochet stitch:

But it wasn't ... perfect.  So, he thought: What if he made a triple crochet stitch?  And, voila!  He finished making his camera lens cover:

(Well, almost since now he's gotta learn how to bind off and weave in his ends.;P)

Crochet: The Hook Obsession Continues

It's official!  Hubby has H.A.S. (hook acquisition syndrome)!  He was so intrigued by the Bates and Boye battle that wanted to he pick up these (like yesterday):

Apparently, we had a complete set of Boye hooks (thanks to his mom and Obaachan) so, he wanted a complete set of Susan Bates to see what the commotion was all about.  However, when we received them, we found that they were incredibly sharp (so sharp it felt like if you crocheted with it you would (keep) cutting your yarn!).  With a little on-line researching (yes, he was so intrigued (and impatient) to pick these up that we just bought these on E-bay without really researching or looking into them), we found that the newer Susan Bates are really sharp and junk! :(  He tried to sand it down and dull it a bit but it didn't work:

So, he got these from Etsy (size D, E, F, G & H):

Because the original set we picked up was made in Mexico and were such a disappointment, he made sure this time that these were made in the USA.  They were new-old stock and they're very good in-line hooks; they're smooth and well finished.  The made in Mexico hooks we bought are completely different hooks (and he could see that if these were his first set of hooks how he would never learn how to crochet and that's how terrible they are!)!  He totally recommends getting the Made in the USA hooks and it's worth paying more to get these older hooks than buying the newer (junkier) hooks.  Here's his US made hook in action:

He also found this, a Japanese branded hook, Pentapo (size D) and ordered it along with his USA made hooks:

It was the fact that it was a Japanese hook and that the head was shaped differently that intrigued him enough to pick it up.  Hubby says that its a really good inline hook and he really likes the pointiness of the head on this hook as it makes it easier to push through the stitches.  Here it is in action:

And, to add to his "natural" (wood) collection, he picked up these from our favorite yarn shop:

Two (2) more pairs (each) of Brittany hooks (size D & F) and Bryspun (szie E & G)

To top it off, I found this at our favorite on-line pen retailer, JetPens:

It's to hold his growing collection of hooks and is a perfect homage to one of his favorite hobbies! ;)

He's growing his collection (and now has something to hold it in)! ;P