Oogyknitter

I really obsessed about working on the Nephew Afghan, to the point where I found myself working what I thought was the third or the fourth to the last border row, only to realize that it looked great if I ended there: I wet blocked the border a bit, and as soon as it's dry I can package it up for mailing - in time for it to arrive before the wedding!  An unexpected bonus!  (The entire afghan goes on for another foot or so on the bottom - I just couldn't fit it all in the pic without swinging from the ceiling!) In the meantime, I made another September Hat, this one with Red Heart Heat Wave : This is acrylic yarn that also is supposed to heat up to 12 degrees when outside (direct sun or not).  For that reason, I made it for Oogyhubby for Xmas - although he already has a wide variety of hats, I also think he likes to have options.  Covering his head is always a priority for him. This yarn is otherwise unremarkable.  It's sort of fat - more than a wor...

All I needed to do was one row of double crochet, each side having a multiple of 10 plus 4 stitches in it.  This is the stitch count needed for the starting row of the border for the Nephew Afghan: I counted, then did the row, then counted again.  Which came up with a different count.  I re-did the row.  This happened a bunch of times.  Cannot count. Then, when I was ready for the first real row of the pattern, disaster struck.  I'd perfectly achieved a multiple of 10 plus 2 stitches.  Not 4.  Does not follow directions. Now I'm back to not being able to count.  If I ever get this first row right, it will be a miracle.  (I don't keep adding a new row and adjusting the count, because it's just as much work to do that as it is to undo and re-do the row in question.)  At least the soak and spin in the washing machine worked out great - softer brown wool, no felting I'm in love with the bead/yarn combo for Airplane, but I'm h...

What I should have done is taken a picture of the miserable cast-on that happened with October Hat.  I hated it so much that I tore it all out (all 5 inches of ribbing!) and started over using the cast-on for May Hat instead.  October's was a version of tubular cast-on, intended to have a large, fold-up brim; May's is a doubled brim but is folded under and knitted into the hat.  I'm about right back where I left off, about to knit the two together and proceed with the fun cable section. The nephew afghan is presently soaking in the washing machine.  For my next feat, I'll attempt to remove most of the water without felting the brown parts. I'm otherwise flitting between some of the smaller projects, with no real progress to report on any at this time.  I hope to make it to some of the beading on Airplane Scarf so I can have that to show to you soon!

OK, here's what's going to happen: The Shifting Hues afghan is going to be for Oogyhubby's cousin's wedding in June.  That will give me more time, they live in warmer climes, and the colors better suit her.  I'm at about 25% (insert usual caveats; I didn't say I wasn't still addicted to working on it!): What about Oogynephew?, you might ask.  Well, turns out I had already made most of an afghan and had tucked it away for an opportune time - and had forgotten all about it until the other day!  It needs a good soak and I think a fancy border; here it is before both of those things: It's a variation on a mitered square theme, with Woolease for the colors and some coned wool of sorts for the brown.  I thought a black and creme border might liven it up a bit, this is what I'm currently thinking about: Here is the link on Ravelry so you can view photo credits and details.  I'm planning for the teal parts to be black, and the white part...

Not sure why, but it didn't really seem like October to me until the leaves started raining down along with a cold wind and actual rain.  It made me think of this U2 song , which seems melancholy but also pretty.  I guess that's Autumn in a nutshell - full of changing light and delicious apples, but with Winter lurking just ahead.  It's been a few days now so I thought an updated pic of Hue was due: Today we're at 17% complete (not counting the border, seaming, and all those ridiculous ends).  I continue to enjoy the garter stitch, punctuated by changing colors and picking up stitches.  Speaking of October - Hat was released yesterday, and it's all fat brim and cables!  (It's also #1 on the "Hot Right Now" list, so these must be catching on, especially as hat season is upon us)  The purple yarn is dying to be this pattern, but it's DK weight, and the pattern is written for worsted weight.  I may just go down a needle size and hope for th...

As I suspected, the deer have been holding out on us - there were a couple grazing out on the lawn early this morning (after a rather frosty start, from the looks of things), and one studying me carefully as I drove up the driveway after going grocery shopping.  As the greenery in the woods continues to thin out, it will become easier to see them wandering around back there - often not too far in. I haven't knit on anything but the Hues since yesterday, and am well into the second column of the first large square - so maybe 8.5% complete, lol.  Rather than show you another boring pic, I thought I'd tell you a little about a couple of the podcasts that I like to listen to (usually while knitting!). Back when podcasting was still new, I listened to a lot of science-related shows.  Most of them have wound down or lost my interest by now, but one I've listened to from nearly its very start is The Skeptics Guide to the Universe .  At its core are brothers - the ringle...

I failed to mention yesterday one additional, and rather significant, advantage to the Hues afghan - it's made with acrylic!!!  Which is perfect for yarn muggles, who don't need to be bothered with special washing instructions!  Bonus!! Also, the yarn is Knit Picks Brava Sport - it's very sqooshy, especially in the garter stitch.  What I've learned in the interim is that this pattern, when additional helpful hints such as slipping specific edge stitches are incorporated, is wicked fun to make.  Just when things start to get dull, it's time to add a new color!  Only two colors are used at any one time, and in the column one color carries along, which significantly reduces the number of ends that will need to be worked in later (although there will still be a bunch!).  Here's where I was as of earlier this afternoon: (The darker colors in the two squares on the left look identical in this pic, but in reality they're discernibly different.) Also - t...

Earlier this week, one of the Oogynephews announced that he is getting married, and very soon.  No shotgun is involved, from what I can tell, and hopefully all will end well rather than in a train wreck.  Although I likely won't have it done in time, I'm going to make this for them: But not in those colors - the kit I have is the Decor colorway, which is has a lot of browns (and this green). There are a lot of advantages to this approach, not the least of which is that I've had this kit in my stash for a verrrrry long time; I seem to recall that I got it on super-sale from Knit Picks.  A lot of folks on Ravelry have already made this pattern, so there are some great suggestions for casting on and picking up (and purling on occasion!).  Aside from one purl stitch every two rows, and a few slipped stitches, this is all garter stitch.  And, although I haven't used them in a long time, I am making use of my lovely bamboo straight needles; they are light as a...

I think the combination of lovely weather and recent FOs has supercharged me to cast on a bunch of new projects.  Not that I don't already have a ton of things in process, but this seems so much more fun!! First off is Airplane Scarf.  Right now I'm planning on beads, according to the pattern - every 13 rows, and I think every 6 stitches or so within those rows.  I'm also going to add each bead as I go (with a crochet hook), versus pre-stringing them all: This is just stockinette stitch in the round, so it will be pretty mindless knitting - the only trick will to be sure the yarn doesn't slip off the slippery needles, but it sticks to itself pretty well so losses are fairly low-risk I think. Next is the beginning of Luckdragon; I'm starting with the "end" of the gradient and will work my way up to the start.  For now it's this lovely, deep, bluey, purple: I'm going to need a cable needle and some concentration for this one, as there a...

I do have some actual progress to report today.  Although it's still drying, here is September Hat, complete and deliberately plumage-free: This stitch pattern was so fun and fast, I was really tempted to cast on another hat - this time, in the purple I had identified for October Hat.  I may still do that, once October Hat has been released - what if it's not a purple kind of hat?  September definitely is!! I also finished the knitting on Brioche: It still needs to be washed, but I don't think any blocking is needed with this pattern/yarn combo.  I used as much of this lovely and hand-dyed yarn as I could: This was another super fun pattern to knit, and the yarn is an absolute joy.  The garter stitch sections are perfect for mindless knitting, and they are so sqooshy.  Once I got accustomed to the 4-row repeat of the two-color brioche, it wasn't much of an issue.  I see some hats that make use of two-color brioche as well as traveling ...

We had a great visit with my parents, in spite of the weather being mostly cool and rainy.  We read, played cards, made a puzzle, ate a lot (and I did a ton of dishes!), and of course I knitted up a storm, including the start of September Hat : This criss-cross stitch is super fun and easy, and  makes for a great effect.  The pattern calls it Slip Stitch Stripe.  Who thinks of these things?? October Hat will be out soon, but I'm in the home stretch for this one so I should be back on track! Waiting for Rain went home with my mom, who really likes anything I make for her. although she especially likes purples and pronounced this one a work of art.  Now I can start Airplane, and continue to work on everything else that is in the queue (and beyond!)!! At one point this happened: Oogyhubby:  Oogy, why are you licking your knitting? Me:  Because I spilled some salsa on it (continues to lick). (Fortunately it was on the wrong side, and wasn'...