Friday, December 29, 2006

2 Mermaids

I managed to get a photo of the last two Mermaids after they were gifted. I didn't remember to put the clasps on either one (I was waiting until it was tried on so each could decide where to put them) so will be doing it when I visit them. The one on the left is hiding the printing on her shirt.

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Got My mermaid


DH gifted me this Mermaid Colorway 2 Can't wait to start...would like to have it for February Trip to Ireland but sooooooooo many other WIPs..

Ballerina Error

I'm still working on finishing the Ballerina spreadsheet and I was having trouble making my counts work out for the stripe section just before the 2nd sleeve when I figured out why. There's a misleading instruction in the pattern. On page 4, the Ballerina pattern instructions have you to work a stripe section after the 3rd gusset, and then follow instructions on page 2 from the triangles. That section tells you to knit to the last YO before the armhole = 68(71) stitches (depending on size). The numbers are correct, but you aren't knitting to a YO. Just knit the first 68(71) stitches and then place them on a holder. It's hard to visualize unless you have the spreadsheet listing all the YOs and stitch counts and you're mapping out mirrored row numbers. But trust me on this. :)

Friday, December 22, 2006

Hanne on sale!

Hi!

Just wanted to let everyone know that Kangaroo (http://www.kangaroo.uk.com/) is having 15% off until Dec. 31. Great time to buy yourself a Hanne sweater for Christmas!

I've started my Studio short sweater but haven't gotten far enough for a picture yet. Hopefully after Christmas I will have more time to work on it.

Linda

Monday, December 18, 2006

Mermaid #3

This is my 3rd Mermaid. I started it November 26, 2006 and finished December 12, 2006. With a couple of days off because I didn't have the yarn for the stripes in the body. It seems to go faster each time! I hope to have photos of all 3 Mermaids worn at the same time by the end of the weekend!

About those Spreadsheets...

Hi Everyone!

I wanted to let you all know that I'm still alive. I had a hard drive failure on my work laptop in early November, right before I was on travel for several weeks. So, keeping up with my knitting e-mail wasn't a top priority. However, things are mostly back to normal and I'm catching up. I have ~2000 knitting e-mails to sift through and I know I have lots of spreadsheet requests in them. So if you're waiting for something from me, you'll hear from me very soon.

And if you're just learning about the Mermaid and Ballerina spreadsheets, sit tight and let me catch up first.

thanks!

Friday, December 08, 2006

looking for pattern trade

Hi Everyone,
If you are done with your pattern and interested in trading for something different, I am particularly interested in mermaid or ballerina, or maybe one of the other beautiful patterns. I have several lovely patterns I could trade in exchange. Please contact me directly if you are interested at elweyu@hotmail.com Please put Hanne pattern in the subject line so that if my mailer decides it is spam, it will be easy for me to retrieve it.

Thanks, and you are all doing great!

Thursday, December 07, 2006

Math for short rows

I've posted the general math for short row shaping on my blog. If you have any questions, just ask and I'll do my best to answer.

For Mermaid, just turn the shaping 90 degrees, so that you're adding stitches for length and adding rows for width. I won't discuss adding stitches for length here. For Mermaid, there's also the additional complication of the striping pattern. Luckily, that's not hard to work with. Just split up the colour of your short rows to more-or-less hide within the stripes (one stripe ridge, one short row ridge -- put in more short row stripes per stripe if needed).

There's another option that makes the bust dart (or at least part of it) decorative. There is a conveniently placed two-ridge stripe from the top of the gusset (colour C). Take the style of shaping in the hourglass-shaped diagram from my math post, invert it, and embed it all into the blue stripe. Start off with short rows of a stich or three, make your short rows longer and longer until you reach the midpoint, then reverse the shaping to make the other side of the dart. This may not turn out looking as "jacket-like" as some might like, because it'll make a bit of a cone shape to make room for your breast.

Does this make sense to people? Because everyone will need to add different numbers of stitches for length and different numbers of short rows for width, everyone will make slightly different tweaks to the pattern, so I haven't worked out the numbers here. If people ask really nicely, I could do a worked example for my measurements or be bribed with socks or something to tweak the pattern for them.

Saturday, December 02, 2006

Finished Mermaid

I've finally finished off my Mermaid in colourway 1, after the upcoming snow scared me into needing sweaters!

I used the directions as-written, except that I used a provisional cast-on (instead of picking up stitches from an icord) and then made the icord over all live stitches. This sweater certainly suggests curviness well, but doesn't accomodate it as well. If I knit this again, I'm going to eliminate a bunch of the stripes and make colour C gussets facing up as well as down. (To make bust darts, one would make strategically placed diamond-shaped darts. If anyone's curious how to do this, I can post the math.) For more pictures, see Woolly Mammoths.

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Yarn coming for Studio short

Well, I've finally ordered yarn (New England Shetland) from Harrisburg Designs for my Studio short sweater. Originally ordered some Brown Sheep Cotton from JK Needles and it never arrived! I went with a teal blue and a dark green. Sure hope it will look o.k. as I imagine it will take awhile to knit the sweater. Am looking forward to sharing my progress with you all. Guess it will probably take a couple of weeks to get the yarn. Can't wait to get started!

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Can't Wait to Become a Mermaid

Hello,
I have lusted after this sweater for a very long time. I am bound and determined to start my sweater the first of the year. Your sweaters are beautiful and I look forward to posting pics of progress and continuing to be awed by all yours.

Cheryl

Sunday, November 26, 2006

Mermaid #3

I started Mermaid Number 3 today. I hope it will be loved and worn! I'm doing the sleeves first, so hopefully I don't get hit so terribly by the second sleeve syndrome. Anything to fool myself, eh?

I'm still thinking on the collar, as it flattens out instead of staying rolled over. Tacking it down in a few places? Ideas anyone? I don't seem to be the only one with this problem, as several pictures show. I've also wondered about making it wider.

Saturday, November 25, 2006

tinking

boo hoo, I just ripped an entire Diva sleeve because I had misread the pattern. I feel so stupid, the sleeve is probably the most simple part of this project. grmbl.

Progress on Pagode


I have been continuing to (mindlessly) knit on Pagode in colorway #1. I have completed the second front/sleeve, and am getting close to a third-of-the-way done on the back. So far, I think I will have enough yarn of all colors, but am planning to do the pocket linings with whatever is left if the navy blue runs out.

More pictures on my blog, randomthreads.com

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Mermaid #2


This one is DONE! Well, I need to wait until the clasps get here to sew them on, but otherwise, I'm calling it done. Less than a month from start to finish.

Yesterday was NOT a good day for my brain. I realized that I not only will be short of the lighter blue for Kim's sweater, I can't figure out if I have enough natural (cream) for her sweater either! You see, when I purchased the 2 cones of yarn, they were totaled into one lump sum of 23.2 ounces on the sales receipt. I didn't weigh to see how much each one weighed before I started knitting. As far as I know, Brown Sheep Naturespun doesn't come on any size other than 1 pound cones. I do know there was more of the natural than the winter blue. The problem also comes in that I can't get the totals to match what I started with, what I used, and what I have left (this is where it makes my head hurt!)

My scale here at home says the sweater weighs 1.3 pounds, which is about 20.8 ounces. I know I used at the most 4.5 ounces of the dark blue (that one is easy to figure out, 2 complete 1.75 ounce skeins, and a little bit of the next.) That leaves 16.3 ounces left for the light blue and cream. The kicker? I have 11.6 ounces of the coned yarn left. Do you see my problem here? It does not compute. According to that, I would have purchased about 28 ounces originally. I've no clue. Perhaps my scale isn't as accurate as I think? New batteries?

So, how much yarn do I actually NEED for the sweater? How the heck would I know!

Sunday, November 19, 2006

I finally finished

I completed Mermaid last week, and I'm very happy with it! My sleeves turned out a little strange--I may have misread the instructions because they weren't symmetrical. But I was able to hide that in the seaming. Otherwise no big mishaps, it just took me a while to get going on this.

mermaid side

More pictures and notes are on my blog.

Saturday, November 11, 2006

Mermaid Sleeve Variation

Instead of garter stitch with one slipped stitch at the bottom of the sleeves, I decided to make the edge of the sleeves match the bottom of the jacket. Here is what it looks like, I think it is dressier than the one Ms. Falkenberg calls for.

I've also stopped making the 3 stitch slip stitch edge at the top of the jacket and sleeves. Instead, I've been slipping the last stitch on the wrong side with yarn in front. I think slipping a stitch every other row makes a stronger edge for the shoulders.

Friday, November 10, 2006

More Diva

So, the left side is finished.
Maybe I will have to have a short break from Diva, since I have a lot of different projects, that should be done by Christmas.




Monday, November 06, 2006

Mermaid with Curry accents




Here is my first Mermaid. It is #10 with Curry or greenish gold. I used the provisional cast-on and the applied i-cord technique. Amy's spreadsheet was very helpful. This project was three months of enjoyable knitting. I appreciate all of the compliments I received while shopping at the Market during Stitches East on Saturday. There were sample Mermaids at one booth: #6 Greys and Dusty Rose plus #9 Coral, Orange, and Tomato. Tempting...

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Mermaid Pictures

My finished Mermaid. I love it, and have received so many compliments when I wear it.







My next Mermaid! I told you I loved working on this pattern! This one is for my daughter. She wants the sleeves the same color as the gussets, as I did mine. My daughter-in-law wants one too, in the same colors. I think I'll see how much I have left over when done with the first and decide then which color will be A, B or C!

Sunday, October 29, 2006

Pagode underway


After an eight month rest, I've started on my Pagode #1 again, and with a week of dedicated work, have finished the right front. Pagode is a pretty mindless pattern, just miles of garter with a couple of spots where you decrease on the right sides, and then do some sleeve decreases. The thin white line is where I put my to-be pocket stitches on dental floss as a stitch holder until I get to knitting the pocket linings.

More photos on my blog, randomthreads.com.

Diva on her way

I have finished the stripy part, and will now go on with the blue part.

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Mermaid finished! Another Tip.

My Mermaid is finished. I had such a good time, I want to make another immediately! I'll post pictures when I can, we're away from home. I think I need some kind of closure for it, though, whether hook and eye, button or a pin.

A hint for the short rows. On the rows where it says to knit X number of stitches less than the last row, knit to where you turn, then count the correct number of stitches for the next row and place a marker. Next row knit to the marker and turn, moving the marker to the next turning point. It made it a lot easier for me, as I didn't run into surprises as I knit past where I needed to be.

Mary

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Mermaid Body

I've finished with the main part of the body of my Mermaid. Still need to sew it together and do the i-cord finish. It is drying on the floor in the kitchen at the moment. I even washed it with the knitting needle in, holding all of the stitches!


I tried sewing up a shoulder last night, and wasn't happy with the results. I'm going to check the archives for hints. I think Ms. Falkenberg has the slipped stitch edge at the shoulder to make a firmer fabric, but it doesn't seem to lead to easier sewing!

As you can see, I got it sewed up, I used my handy dandy sewing machine. Think it looks pretty good.

After lots of talking with a friend, I've decided to do the sleeves in the C color, with A or B for the center stripe. The center stripe hasn't been decided yet. My main reason is that the A yarn, while it is wonderful after washing, resembles cotton while knitting. It doesn't knit as easily as the wool. I really struggled to get through the last band. Part of it was the "I'm almost done, why am I not FINISHED!" feeling, but part was fighting with the needle and yarn.

Da Capo is Fine, Finally




Da Capo is finished in time for my trip to New York. It is still much too warm to wear it in Tallahassee. I had no trouble with the instructions, but it was a good thing I was forewarned to read them carefully. That being the case, I ripped out less on this project than most.

You can see from the picture that the small sweater with shorter sleeves, knit on #2 needles (instead of #3 as the pattern indicates) is very roomy.

Happy Falkenberging to you all.

Ellen

Diva - finished triangle

I have now finished the 26 green stripes it takes to make size small:

Friday, October 13, 2006

Beginner Mermaid

Greetings from Chicago! I'm finally getting started on the Mermaid kit I purchased at Stitches Midwest this past August.

Although I've been knitting for several years and have been proficient in knitting lace, cables, and socks, I haven't been very successful with colorwork. I know Mermaid doesn't involve any fancy colorwork, but I am getting a bit nervous as I approach the first stripes.

Finding this KAL has already been a big help as I picked up lots of tips from those of you who have already been working away. I started with a provisional cast on instead of the iCord. And, I'm immensely grateful to Amy for creating such a detailed spreadsheet of the instructions. The spreadsheet is making it a breeze to work on Mermaid!

No photos yet, since there isn't really much to show. But I will post my progress here and on my personal blog as my work progresses.

I hope I can finish my Mermaid before the end of winter!

Linda

Monday, October 09, 2006

Almost there...

I've been following along on this knitalong for quite some time now but have yet to post. I just finished up the body of my Mermaid--it took me forever to do the first half but once I got the hang of the pattern (and devoted more time to it!) the second half went much faster.

mermaid body flat
I did a provisional cast on since several people on here recommended it, and I'm glad that I did. Much easier for me to do two icord bind offs than pick up all those stitches!

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Ballerina Middle


Well, school and other adult responsibilities have really hindered my effort to complete this in under one month. I think by Friday I will be to the half way point in any event. After the initial SNAFU with the beginning section, it has been smooth sailing. I think I particularly like this project since the sleeves are knit as I go, so I don't have to suffer through making those at the end. I like this pattern a lot, though I can see that it will want to slip back since it's already so heavy in the back.

Loving the Mermaid Knitting!

I really enjoy knitting the Mermaid! I normally don't like garter stitch, finding it boring after a while. But there are enough things going on here, that I find myself eager to keep going. I hope to be at the middle of the back by the end of Thursday. We'll see if I can do that. This photo is of the progress through last night, I've finished that gusset and am working on the next stripe pattern.

I didn't like dropping the gusset yarn, so I'm carrying it up the hem, fastening it every row that has the sl2wyf. Thanks for that tip! Makes a much cleaner edge.

Ballerina Strips

I am knitting the Ballerina design and anticipating the stripes. When going from one color to the next, have others of you carried the thread or started anew each time? Normally in working with two colors, spools are used to carry the threads of different color. Also, how have you woven the ends of the thread? Again I normally would knit two threads together but not sure that will work with this project. Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

Monday, October 02, 2006

Diva - Ocean/Green

Hi, I am new here and I have just started knitting the Diva. It is made in a yarn called "Tweed 300" from Pulsen Design, which comes in lots of beautiful colours.
Here is what I've made so far:

Hi everyone,

I've just ordered Mermaid #5, thanks (?, LOL) to Mary Hunt. I'm finding it a dangerous thing to take a little break, surf the net and discover so many more beautiful things to knit than life is long. Unlike weaving with looms, having a lot of needles tempts me to have several projects going at once. I'm looking forward to getting the kit and jumping in. What a classic jacket!

Margaret

Friday, September 29, 2006

From the Top

And now she is 2/3 done. Da Capo is progressing nicely; the second sleeve is well into the striped section. Oct. 21 is the deadline; I want to wear it on a trip to New York.

Ellen

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Late Coming to the Knitting


I joined the blog some time ago, but never actually started knitting my Mermaid. For some odd reason, grin, Amy getting the Ballerina spreadsheet ready to go triggered a NEED to start my Mermaid.

The beige yarn is a camel/silk that I was given, I'm using 2 strands at a time. The brown and rust are Brown Sheep Naturespun Sport. I LOVE the way the Naturespun knits up in this pattern, the camel/silk is stiffer and of course there is the need to pick up both strands!

Yesterday, after knitting for 4 hours in the car to go to a doctor appointment, I wasn't sure if the camel is the right color. It is cooler than the other two colors. But, I really don't want to frog this much! Nor do I have another yarn on hand to substitute. So, I think I'll probably knit on, and figure that was a tantrum because of the time in the car. Today, on the 4 hours back (as well as the time waiting in the doctor's office), I've made more progress, and I think I'm pleased with how it looks.

Monday, September 25, 2006

Selling patterns

All,

I get a lot of emails from time to time asking about selling Hanne patterns, copyright issues, etc. I very much appreciate that the majority of you come to me first before posting on the blog. Here are my thoughts on the issue.

Think of the original pattern that comes in your kit as a book. Obviously you can't copy this and distribute to others, but you can make one copy for your own use to mark on, etc. When you are done with the book (or pattern in this case), you can sell it on ebay or in a used book store or whatever. Likewise, you should be able to sell your original pattern when you are done with it.

I do not want this knitalong to become a buying/selling forum, but I also understand that once someone has completed a pattern, they might want to sell it and as we've seen, there are definitely those who are interested in purchasing just the pattern. So, I will allow you to post when you have a pattern for sale or are interested in buying, but you must post your email address so that interested parties can respond to you directly (and also please request this in your post so others don't forget). Other than the initial post, I would appreciate it if the discussion would please occur off the list.

I hope this meets everyone's needs. Please let me know if you have comments or suggestions.

Thanks,
Becky

Sunday, September 24, 2006

Pyramide

Hi !

I came across this BLOG when doing research on my HF-Kit for the PYRAMIDE jumper.
Does anyone have any expierience with PYRAMIDE ... I saw the finished product in Ribe/DK this summer, got the wool & the pattern ... but now I can't make sense of the pattern :

basic problem: I can't recall what the real jumper looked like:
ie the instruction talks about Vorderteil ( frontpiece) and Rückenteil ( back) and Aermel ( sleeves). and the description tells me to start with 408 stiches
....... that would make a lenght of ca 170 cm ...... ?????????????
Any comment/ help welcome

Gruss Eva

Monday, September 18, 2006

Da Capo Days


One sleeve done, the front begun! I continue to be pleased by how cleverly this sweater is constructed. So far, everything has worked according to the instructions (as long as I have followed the instructions!) I have planned a trip to New York for late October and will take da capo to keep me warm in the brisk fall air. In Tallahassee in September, though, I have to turn down the air conditioning just to work on it.

Ellen

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Announcing Ballerina Spreadsheet!

I've charted out a row-by-row spreadsheet for Ballerina, in both sizes. So far, the spreadsheet is done up the decrease section after the last back gusset. It hasn't been fully test knitted, but I'm willing to offer it up to anyone who would like to work with it.

For a copy, send me an e-mail. Tell me which size you need and whether you prefer Excel or PDF. I'll respond with a challenge question based on the pattern to verify that you own it. When you answer that question, I'll send you the spreadsheet.

Happy knitting!

New Falkenberg design

According to this blog there's a new Falkenberg design on the way.

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Da Capo Progress


This is Da Capo sleeve#1. Progress has been slow because I was out of town last week and didn't want to take this project with me (it would break my heart to lose it) but I may be one evening away from the next significant step of attaching the sleeve to the back! I'm not looking forward to the second sleeve, though because this is pretty boring.

Ballerina Spreadsheet

I'm working on one. In collaboration with a couple of Ballerina knitters. I just finished deciphering and charting the first sleeve and am rounding the back. Can I just say, this one is far more tedious than Mermaid. When I get to halfway, I'll make it available.

Just wanted you all to know it was coming. Stay tuned.

Saturday, September 09, 2006

Ballerina Beginning

Greetings from Amman. Here is the beginning of my Ballerina jacket. I received this at the end of May for my birthday, but I wanted to take it to Jordan with me. It was very difficult to resist knitting this after I finished the Mermaid a few months ago. I started this jacket in California. I wanted the first few ridges to be done there. I made great progress waiting at the airport, and was several ridges into it before I realized Hanne was being funny, and put in an extra comment that lead me to knit most of this wrong. On one ridge the instructions are to do short rows, and to turn and YO 2 stitches before the previous YO. The next ridge, which we are supposed to do for a long time, instructs us to repeat the previous row, but "...on each ridge turn 2 sts earlier than on the previous." Thus, I turned 4 stitches before, not two. Turns out she was kidding! Ha! I frogged most of this early this morning, save the first two ridges, and re-knit all day. Not bad progress for a day of frogging/knitting. I know it's been said before, but I'll say it again: for this much money these patterns could be written MUCH better.

Studio Long

Hello everyone. I'm new here. I treated myself to a LaStrada kit when I retired a couple of years ago, but I haven't knit it; I guess I was a bit intimidated. So what on earth made me try on that Studio Long at the LYS trunk show recently? Anyway, it was perfect, so I've ordered it in dark green. One of the shop's super employees, who's making Mermaid, told me about this blog. Already some of the intimidation factor is easing. So while I'm waiting for Studio Long's arrival, I'll catch up here. I'm looking forward to knitting my Hanne Falkenbergs.

Sandra D

Friday, September 01, 2006

Da Capitating Along!



This is the first Da Capo sleeve, which is worked up from the wrist. I am making the shorter-sleeved version because I'm short and look less overwhelmed by my clothes with my wrists showing. The fact that it will take less time to knit is just a bonus!

Ellen

Monday, August 28, 2006

Da Capo al fine

Actually, Da Capo is one-third fine. I bought the kit in Norway, where Hanne Falkenberg kits and knitting yarn generally are the only items for sale that are less expensive than in the States! The shop in Bergen where I bought the kit has made-up samples of almost all of the various designs so I got to try them on to see what would be flattering and appropriate.
BTW, does anyone else find it curious that a pattern that starts at the bottom is named Da Capo?

Ellen

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Ballerina ...begins

Hi, I'm almost done with the first front of my Ballerina and have a question about guage...my swatches on 3.25 and 3.00 mm needles yielded 26.5 and 27 sts over 10cms. I decided to use the 3.25 needles and knit the M/L size (the larger of the 2 in HF's instructions). My guage is now 25.5 sts so I must have loosened up since doing the swatches....I now wear a size 16 jacket, but hope to get back to a size 14 soon.... Question for anyone who's completed this sweater...did you knit to guage? and how was the final fit compared to HF's schematic? I'll continue on the 3.25 needles and hope the jacket fits in the end...Thx!

Sunday, August 20, 2006

New knitalong member

Hello, I am a very new knitalong participant, and a new knitter (actually I'm on my second try at knitting so I have knitted in the past but not for some years after having a stroke so it's like being a first time knitter again!) So why begin with a Hanne Falkenberg project since they are not the easiest of designs..... well I need to be interested enough to keep going and I love her style. I have so far begun Stella, a beret style hat, which itself looks complicated enough and my plan is to make that then progress to the Mermaid and Pygmalian jackets. I have been following all the posts about the Mermaid Has anyone made the Pygmalian jacket, is it knitted Domino style ? Your mermaid jackets all look wonderful, I love seeing the different colours and how the knitters look modelling them. I've begun a blog http://dropped-stitches.blogspot.com/ to record my venture into knitting and hope to post pictures of my work as it develops.

Saturday, August 19, 2006

My Mermaid is finished


I am really happy with it and have enjoyed the knitting very much. Especially because of Amy's spreadsheet, thank you very much for sharing, Amy.

I made size M, the sleeves made without the last 10 stitches and it fits well.
I started with a provisionel cast on
and knitted the I-cord on afterwards.

I have rather a lot of yarn left: A 74 g, B 20 g and C 38 g. At the yarn shop
where I bought the kit, they said that yarn from Pulsen Design Tweed 300 could be used together with the yarn from Falkenberg. So perhaps I could knit something special. Maybe one of you have an idea what to do with what's left??

Sunday, July 23, 2006

Almost done...

Now comes the hardest part, to put the finishing touches on the garment. I'm going to put a couple of buttons and maybe the same crochet edging at the bottom. I'm not sure yet, but the fun part is done.

The yarn I used is finger weight Egyptian Cotton by Blue Heron, hand dyed super soft and it feels great! This project took me 2 weeks, no sleeves and only one color so it went fast. Let me know what you think.



Next project will be a "cotton" Ballerina, same yarn in a different hue.

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

Posting for a member who can't join yet...

Here's a question that Natalie e-mailed me. She'll be joining after Becky gets back from her vacation and approves her. We've had some past discussions about the sizing, but perhaps people who have since finished have some inputs?

---------

I hope large is what I should be making. I'm short, but usually wear large sizes because of my bust and middle. I'm not sure of the bust size stated on the directions. Does this pattern already have built in ease? Meaning it will fit that bust size with enough room to spare for a person that size, or is that the actual finished bust measurement of the actual sweater?

Monday, July 17, 2006

Attention New Members

I will be out of the country from July 18-August 5. Feel free to send your emails requesting to join the knitalong, but I will not be able to send out your blogger invite allowing you to post until I get back. If you haven't heard from me by August 7 or so, send me another email since I know my inbox will be flooded and your message might get lost in junk mail.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

-Becky

Friday, July 14, 2006

Mermaid Spreadsheet Update v0.91

I just wanted to let everyone know what the latest version of the Mermaid spreadsheet was. I updated it last month and sent it out to my list of recipients (I've sent it to 122 people so far!). If you're new to the knitalong or to Mermaid, I've written a row-by-row spreadsheet for the medium size. If you want a copy, e-mail me and I'll respond with a challenge question to verify that you own the pattern. The spreadsheet is available in Excel and PDF formats, please specify which you prefer. I usually respond rather quickly, but have had some delays recently.

Myself, I'm just about finished with the body (after finishing once and noticing a change in gauge and having to rip it back). It's resting right now while I work on some socks and contemplate doing a summer top or two. But someday I'll work those sleeve instructions and test them out too!

Finished!

Custom Frances colorway:



Back with just a little Coral:



One-day sleeve:


I can't say I enjoyed wearing this for pictures today. It's hot! Definitely not the time for a wool jacket.
Finishing this was hard, once I realized I messed up the colors, I really lost steam. Now that it's done, though, I'm thrilled. I even mostly enjoyed making this. I knitted the second sleeve in just over one day. I wanted it done!

Things I learned in this project:
1. I-cord should be knitted with size 7 or 8 needles.
2. Begin knitting the body several ridges into the stripes, and when the body is finished and sewed up, knit the remaining 6 stripes and main color on as the collar to avoid a seam at the back of the neck.
3. No matter how badly you mess this up, you can recover.
4. Skip the slip stitches at the top of the garment (i.e. sleeve caps, collar). I ran this thing through my sewing machine, and was better able to match the ridges along the shoulder than when I tried hand sewing it. Because the slipped stitches were there, I had to have a larger seam allowance. This means I knitted two or three stitches per row for nothing. Ditto for the sleeves. Machine sewing with tiny seam allowances would have been fine with me.
5. I took the advice of others and shortened the sleeves by knitting-on 10 fewer stitches than the directions called for for the small. I'm happy with the length. Just be sure to make note of that on your pattern so that when you do short rows on the second half of the sleeve, you start at the right stitch.

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Progress Report on another version of Mermaid



This is a wonderful knit, I just love the yarn, 100% cotton fingering weight. Actually sock yarn.

I'm looking forward to finishing this one I really like the electric blue.

Monday, July 10, 2006

One-Armed Hanne


One sleeve done. I really hate knitting sleeves. I will admit that in the past with most garments I've knitted the sleeves first so as to avoid this dreaded part. Once I sat down to do this, it actually went pretty quickly. I'd put off beginning a sleeve and knitted 1.7 blankets while the Mermaid languished. You can see in the right of the picture the remaining Rowan Denim that's part of the log cabin blanket I've almost finished. It's been nice to go back and forth between size 2 needles and size 8s!

Saturday, July 08, 2006

Finished a Modified Mermaid



No sleeves, some modifications, made of 100% cotton, delightfully soft and comfy. It turned out well.

Monday, June 26, 2006

Progress post and thanks

Hi, all! I've been following this knitalong for quite a while, and I appreciate everyone posting about the problems they've had. I used a provisional cast-on to avoid being surprised by the "my i-cord is too short" problem later on in the process (especially in blocking!). The directions aren't unclear, but aren't well-written, so I'm avoiding anything irrevocable like cutting yarn until I finish. I found it interesting how the small size is proportionally more shapely than the medium size. As I read the directions, I've noticed that in most places, the small size has as much shaping as the medium, though it's not as large.

Anyway, this isn't a quick knit, but it's a lot easier than I expected, so it's been very relaxing.

Sunday, June 25, 2006

Great News

Look - My Ballerina is blocking and she's almost done.



I am so glad that I did it this way. Now that I have blocked her I can see that I only need a neat little edging on the cuff of about 5 ridges. If I had followed the pattern to the letter and done 13 ridges - it would have been waaaaaay too long. So thank you ladies for your input. I can't wait to get this baby finished and handed over to my Mum - I hope she really likes it, this has been a cathartic knit for me. I started it when I moved to Oman - knitted it whilst I was pregnant - knitted it after I lost my twins at 15 weeks and it has really seen me through my emotional and physical recovery. I means a lot to me and so I hope it means a lot to my Mum and it is something she will wear and think of me.

I'll try to post a picture of my Mum wearing it if I can get her to pose in it for long enough !

Thanks again ladies - you have all been of great help to me.

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Started my Mermaid

I got my kit a couple of weeks ago but had to finish another project. A "Twisted Sister" pattern that looks very suspiciously similar Hanne's DACAPO Actually not really similar but it looks exactly like but what do I know.Either way I love the pattern and have knitted it a couple of times, this one is rayon/cotton/wool mix light weight for the cool summer evenings.

At last I can start my Mermaid, I got it from CucumberPatch and the colors are #2 Spring Green/Disty Green/Green Lovat



First off the colors look totally different in person than on my computer or for that matter the color photograph they sent me in the kit. I happen to like green and I'm not that fussy about shades of green so I'm pleased. The second problem I had was trying to figure out which ball was which green, they are very close. I may be a little slow but just a little tiny label telling me which ball is called Dusty Green vs. Green Lovat or Spring Green would have helped. But I guess I managed to figure it out.

Then the iCord! Shish! First I thought I would knit it on my machine which is the easiest way, nope the gauge was just not right, then I tried my hand held gadget "Embellish Knit" which is great but the gauge was just not right on this one either. Then I bit the bullet and knitted it by hand, the pattern tells me to use a half size larger needle, so I did size 3 1/2 but the gauge was just not right on that one either so far this is the third iCord and picking up 181 sts.

I did a gauge each time on a few rows but that just did not give me the true gauge it looked right 20 or so rows but when I did the 181 sts it puckered. Fourth try was the charmer, I used size 5 dp needles and hand knitted all 181 or so rows of iCord and picked up the 181 sts! At last the right gauge no puckering looks nice and straight.

Then I had to make peace with the "wrong side" front. I guess she had to decide where to make the wrong side up by the neck or down at the bottom. I am now at peace with this it took a bit of getting used to but you really can't tell.

So far so good, the pattern seems a bit easier than the first Hanne Falkenberg project the Ballerina I knit a few months ago. The instructions seem to be a little better or maybe I have experience with her style of pattern writing. I will post the progress.

I can tell I will love this sweater......

So I'm knitting along and the piece is getting bigger and bigger, resting in my lap...you guessed it ... it's HOT....wool ...it's the first day of summer and it is warm. I can't knit a wool sweater in this heat! So I decided to make a cottom version, no stripes just the shape..I call it "the Parrot" because of the colors.

All cotton in this lovely rusty multi color. The gauge is about the same as the Hanne wool but it's cotton and light weight. This is a great knit! I love knitting it especially skipping the stripes. I think I'm only going to make a vest, no sleeves, I'll post pictures as I progress....





Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Hanne Hindenburg?



Well after a two week delay, I've finished the body. The delay came when I ran out of red yarn because I've been knitting with the wrong colors. Jennie was kind enough to point that out to me. However, I very much like the color combination I accidently invented. I'm more a red than a pink person. So, I had to figure out how to get more yarn. I know that this is Shetland yarn, and I know from Ana that HF does not sell extra yarn, so I went to Schoolhouse Press which sells Shetland in the same weight. I ordered two each of several reds, and one was pretty dang close.
I also decided that I don't care for the knitted-into i-cord on one side, so I cut out the beginning, and did an i-cord bind off all around the collar after I sewed it together. I sewed this thing up by hand, and I didn't care for it, so I ran it through my sewing machine, and I'm happy. The ridges match up well. If I were to do this again (which I will for what this pattern cost me!) I would knit the body beginning in the first few color ridges, sew it up, and then knit the entire collar on to avoid the seam on the neck. All in all, save the two weeks I stopped breathing, I've enjoyed this project.