new year, new project

In the New Year's spirit, I finally started to swatch and cast on the behemoth Timberline sweater I talked about here. I decided to use the Briggs and Little Heritage which is such a nice yarn to work with! It's got a similar hand to the originally-called-for Shelter for less than half the price. (And it's a Canadian product, so that's cool) The biggest difference that I've noticed between the two is that the B&L feels more dense while the Shelter is more airy. I let my dad choose the colour and he went with Seafoam which is a really beautiful teal-grey colour after a near catastrophe as his first choice was grape.

Purple.

The man wanted a purple cabled sweater.

He is a bit colourblind, so maybe it doesn't look purple to him, but I refused to knit 2000+ yards in purple. That's a thing I just can't do.

My swatching went well, but it turns out that the B&L Regal (which is closer to a DK weight) may have been a better choice. I couldn't get the Heritage to get to gauge without turning it into some kind of bulletproof fabric, so I'll be knitting the 43" size to get to the 47" finished measurement. Now, this evening I'll definitely get my tubular cast on going and start some sleeves!

What are your new year's knits? (And stay warm everyone! I got a weather alert warning for a snow squall in my area which isn't even a thing I knew existed)

An Ode to Beautiful Fall Knits

It's that time of year where everyone is publishing drool-worthy knitwear patterns. In between anticipating the next Brooklyn Tweed collection, the gorgeous new issue of Pom Pom Quarterly, and all the beautiful self-published beauties coming out, I don't even know what to do with myself. I need more time in the day! (And a bigger yarn budget, but you probably know how that goes)
The biggest fall winner to date has to be the Paper Tiger collection that surfaced a bit over a week ago. I feel like this collection hits all the things that I've been looking for lately. Simple designs, colourwork to keep it a bit interesting, and neutral but exciting palettes.

My first and undying love from this collection has to be Moon Pulls. I mean come on. Garter stitch? Lopi? Cashmere blend for the cuff and collar linings? I can't wait to get knitting on this one! I absolutely love the look of garter stitch in garments, but it's stretchiness is often a recipe for disaster. (I made the famous Garter Yoke Cardigan ages ago and it stretched out to be unwearable. Not that the garter was the only issue, but you know. Such a bummer in any event) Especially with the cuffs being lined, stretching shouldn't be an issue.

Next up, Nikoline the socks. I feel like I'm turning a bit of a corner with socks. I will admit that I hated knitting socks with a passion, but after I finished the ugliest socks of all time, I'm a total convert. Hand knit socks are the best and now I'm on the prowl for great new patterns. I love that the stranded design on the cuff means an extra layer of warmth too. I think these will make great travel knitting over the holidays! I've already ordered some yarn from Knit Picks in similar colours, but if it goes well I'd love to do a grey pair with white contrast.

Finally, Acorn Teeth. I've always loved the idea of smaller mittenettes for the early fall and spring seasons, but I've never found any that get the proportions quite right. I also really like the colours used here. Green and gray? Bring it on.

I really hope I can carve out some time to work on some of these patterns over the next couple months. The Christmas knitting season is upon us, so I'll be back soon with a post of my plans. I'm taking my Christmas holidays a bit early this year, so I have to get cracking! Now I'm back to working on some homework before bringing my new kitten home. This weekend will be pleasantly full of kitten introductions, so cross your fingers for quick friendships and minimal hissing.

What are your favourite fall knits this year?

(All photos used c/o Dianna Walla)

Unintended Absences

Can you believe it’s almost the end of October? I’ve spent the last (almost) 2 months trying to make sense of school and get into my thesis-writing groove. Trying and failing, but it’s a work in progress. October seems to have turned into a month of thinking thoughts about my future and what on earth I’m doing in grad school. As always, though, there are happy things to settle my mind. Without any real knitting progress to show, though I’ve been knitting a ton, here are some good things happening right now:

• Settling into life with the cat Monty Burns. (Seen above flashing his nuts like he just doesn’t care) His favourite way to be held is like a baby and he frequently just passes out with his little tongue sticking out. Even though he’s a bitey little man who doesn't believe in sleep-ins, I still love him to bits.
• Deciding to get another cat! Monty is a high energy little guy and both my roommate and I live lives that require being out of the house for multiple hours a day. I met an amazing lady friend for him this week and I’m hoping that nobody else takes her home from the shelter before Sunday! Accepting my fate as a cat lady is kind of liberating. I grew up in a 2-cat household, and I’ve felt empty being catless for the last 7 years or so. And it’s OK to buy a cat for your cat, right?
• Making myself feel better about not being at Rhinebeck this weekend by curling up under a wool blanket, knitting some socks, drinking pumpkin chai tea and watching Netflix with my guy. I can manufacture fall vibes inside a tiny apartment like nobody’s business. 

I’m spending my fall reading break with James and hopefully I’ll get both knitting and some thesis writing done. I also have an FO that was finished in May to photograph. What are you up to this week? Did you go to Rhinebeck?

-H

Sock-a-long with Kollabora

It's official.. I'm home! Well, sort of home. I've been in Kingston helping my boyfriend set up his apartment and life out here. One massive perk of his apartment is that, much like a lot of Kingston, is quite close to the lake. So for the past 3 days we've made trips down to go swimming! I'm a massive wimp about jumping into water, but I've still managed to cannonball a good few times. Being away from my actual ontario home (WHERE THERE IS A KITTEN NOW) means also being away from my stash. I made a pit stop last week to drop off luggage, pick up some of my clothing, visit with friends and grab a project to work on. Conveniently for me, Sarah started running a KAL with Kollabora that lined up perfectly with my timeline. So, I'm overcoming my hatred for socks and am making a new pair!

I'm using Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light in the colour Mansfield's Garden Party. I bought this yarn awhile back despite my general leaning away from variegated yarns. The colours are just so pretty! Unfortunately, I'm kind of unhappy with the pooling. As you can see in the photos, I've got a weird spiral stripe thing going on, and on the foot part it looks like the pooling is lining up almost perfectly every row. I really love the way the colours are all mixed up in the heel/gusset area, though. Whatever, they're socks. They don't have to win a beauty contest!

I also want to take a minute to talk about how awesome Kollabora is. It's sort of like Ravelry in terms of project sharing, but it covers all kinds of techniques. I'm really enjoying looking through sewing projects lately as I have slightly grand plans of sewing everything. There's a button to my profile in the sidebar too. I'm planning on updating my more recent projects once I actually have stable internet access.

Are you on Kollabora? I'd love to add more awesome crafters to my feed!

Fall Knit List

With just over a week left for me in Italy, it's time for me to seriously get excited about coming home. I’ve had a great time despite my virtually constant grumblings about the heat and humidity. My thesis research has more or less recovered from catastrophe in June and I’m well on track to be finished up with a couple days to spare! (Though, I will probably be in the lab anyways because, well, that’s the only air-conditioned room I know of that doesn’t require me to purchase overpriced drinks) My daydreams are currently being filled with sweet thoughts of temperatures (hopefully well) below 30°C, hot coffee, crisp bike rides and liberal applications of wool in my wardrobe.

My big project this fall is, per my last post, going to be the Timberline sweater for my dad. Given Sarah’s reaction to the (24 page) pattern, which is basically what mine was when I read her post, I need some simple selfish knitting suitable for social occasions, thesis breaks and whose products are as cozy as possible. For now, three patterns have stolen my heart:

1. Larch Cardigan by Amy Christoffers. This has been in my queue forever and I really need to get on it. I love how classic the shape is! I can see myself wearing this for a good couple years. I already have the yarn waiting for me at my fave LYS in Peterborough!
2. Super slouch socks from Emily Foden. I’ve declared my hatred for socks in the past, but I can’t help but give these a chance. I absolutely adore the colour combo she used, with a neutral for the main portion of the sock and bright colours for the heel and toe. I’m planning on using some Tosh Merino Light in Antler for the main colour and Edison bulb for the contrast. They definitely won’t be the sturdiest socks ever, but I think they’ll be decent for around-the-house wear.
3. Forge Toque from Jared Flood. OK, so this isn’t exactly a no-brainer, but I’ve had 2 skeins of Shelter in Wool Socks languishing in my stash for a while and I’m really into red accessories right now. I’ll have to track down some of my interchangeable needle tips to make this one, as most of the shaping happens through changes in needle size.

So, with that, I head back to my pile of bones and daydreams of home. What patterns are you dreaming about for fall?