Tag Archives: White Pine

There are Still WIPs

Posted in DC, Knits, NaBloPoMo, Thoughts, Works in Progress by

Of course, it wouldn’t be me if I weren’t working on something.  Or, more accurately, a lot of somethings.  I do have one big thing that I want to get done in November, which is David’s Guston sweater.  The poor man has been waiting for this for an entire year.  I have one sleeve entirely done and one sleeve mostly done.  I plan to finish the sleeve tomorrow, and cast on the body.  My in-laws are in town, so someone is around to hold the baby while I do these things.  It’s amazing.

I do have a few other projects that I would like to get done, but I’m giving myself permission to, you know, not.  At least on most of them.  Here’s the running list, with their current statuses.

My endless White Pine: Done with the body.  Needs sleeves, a yoke, and a button band.

Margie’s Monster Mobile: Oh lord, this is so cute, but it involves so much i-cord.

A Christmas Citron Grand: Only a select few are getting Christmas gifts this year knitted by me, and this is one of them.  The rows get so long on these things, but it really just needs a big final push to finish up.

Margie’s Baptism Bridgewater: See above note on incredibly long rows.  I love this pattern.  You knit a giant square in garter stitch on the bias, and then add a gorgeous lace edging.  I’m still on the square.  It’s a pretty major undertaking, and a lot of garter.  Hopefully it will end soon.

Those are definitely the big ones.  I also need to block my gorgeous Rock Island so that I can wear it.  And, naturally, I have a few things I want to start.  But I have decided that part of No-Vember for me is going to be a mini-project diet where I actually finish a thing or two before I start something new.  I know.  It hardly even sounds like me.

The baby is finally asleep, and the fraternity formal happening at the bar across the street has FINALLY been broken up by the cops.  The angry dudebros are going home, and I am going to bed.

Where Does the General Keep his Armies?

Posted in Baby, Knits, Thoughts, Works in Progress by

….UP HIS SLEEVIES!

For some reason, as I’ve been knitting two sets of sleeves basically nonstop for a while, that joke became way, way funnier.  That’s probably just the Monday punchy exhaustion talking, but I am making good progress on my White Pine sleeve.  I should be done with the ribbed cuff by the end of the day today, and starting the pattern/sleeve shaping.  Since I will be visiting my mother’s glorious yarn shop this weekend (YAY!) I wanted to have the sweater well on its way so I could select some buttons.  I am thinking plain shell buttons for the White Pine, and maybe some wooden or leather ones for David’s Guston.  I want them to be a little rustic, but not too hunter-gathery, or David won’t like them.

I had an amazing weekend.  On Saturday we went for a barbecue at our friends’ apartment, which overlooks U Street in DC.  It was the Pride festival this weekend, so there were a ton of people out in great costumes, and the weather was gorgeous.  Yesterday, my sister took me to the Red Door for a prenatal massage.  The way that they do it is really clever, for those of you wondering.  Basically, when you have a massive pregnant stomach like I do, they have you snuggle a body pillow on your side, and do the massage that way.  You switch sides partway through.  It was glorious.  I think it was the first time since I got pregnant that my shoulders haven’t hurt.  And, thankfully, the gift card I used still has enough for another one!

We also went to Target, where I bought a bunch of new maternity clothes.  I think since this is my first kid, I grossly underestimated how large I was going to get.  I’m 7 months along, and I am outgrowing most of the stuff that seemed impossibly large six months ago.  I bought two maxi skirts, a few t-shirts, a dress, and a maternity swim suit.  If the weather clears up, I’m planning a nice long bob in the pool after work.

WIP Walk of Shame

Posted in Knits, Works in Progress by

I’m Jillian, and I have a finishing problem.

I thought it would be fun to list all of the knitting projects that I’m currently working on, so you can see how things are progressing from here.  Except it’s a really, really long list.  I seem to have a problem getting things finished.  I love casting on, and those first few honeymoon moments of a project, but then apparently my fickle heart takes me on to another.  Le sigh.  Anyway, here is the list, along with links to either the pattern on Ravelry or my project page.  Hopefully, actual photos will be forthcoming, but I got overwhelmed with my sheer number of objects to be finished.

1.  White Pine Cardigan, pattern by Amy Christoffers

I’m making this one for myself, in some lovely aqua Berroco Ultra Alpaca, in size 38.  The yarn is scrumptious, but I find the pattern’s formatting to be eye-twitch provoking.  All one paragraph, curly font, random italics, etc. etc. etc.  Also, I think the designer wildly overestimated how much yarn I’m going to need.  I’m halfway done the third skein, and I’m halfway done the first sleeve and totally done the body.  I can’t imagine the second sleeve and the yoke are going to eat five more skeins.

So, at the moment, I am working on the twisted rib cuff of the first sleeve.  It’s worked in the round, so it’s nice and compact for work knitting.  I’m hoping to have both sleeves done by the end of next week, but we’ll see how much time I get.

2.  David’s green Guston, pattern by Ann Budd

Many more posts will be devoted to my obsessive love of Brooklyn Tweed patterns, as well as my love of knitting things for David.  I’m making him this gorgeous pullover in dark green Cascade.  Last year he borrowed a sweater belonging to his friend Zack in this same dark green, and he looked so handsome that I told him I would knit him any sweater he wanted, as long as it was dark green.  He picked the Norwegian ski team’s 20 color Fair Isle masterpiece, and I realized asking his opinion was probably a mistake.  I picked Guston.  It’s a really masculine pattern, but still stylish and interesting enough to knit without pulling out my own eyebrows.  David has a 42 inch chest and he’s 6’3″, so it takes a lot of knitting to cover him.

I finished the first sleeve while I was at the DMV last week, and I’m hoping to finish up the second one within the next two days.  I did the sleeves first so that I could block them and make sure that I’m reasonably on gauge, before I cast on hundreds of stitches to knit the body in the round.

3.  Moderne Baby Blanket for Morpheus, pattern by Mason Dixon Knitting

The instant I found out I was pregnant, I demanded that David go with me to the yarn store and buy yarn for a baby blanket.  Since we didn’t know if we were having a girl or a boy, we picked out Berroco Vintage DK in green, orange, and white, and Cascade 220 Sport in gold.  I’m about 3/4 of the way done, and motivating myself to do another mile of stockinette stitch has gotten really, really difficult.  I might have to just start giving myself quotas to make sure it’s done by the time Morpheus actually arrives.

To anyone familiar/looking at the pattern, I’m mostly done with the big 2-color block at the bottom, leaving just the skinnier 2-color block and the border to go.

4.  Voltaire scarf, pattern by Ingrid King

To anyone looking for an easy, truly unisex pattern for a scarf that would look good in pretty much any yarn, this is definitely it.  I’m knitting it out of two balls of Cascade 22o in a soft aqua color, and then I’m probably going to just put it away to be gifted in the future.  At the moment, I am halfway to where I think a scarf should end.  It goes really quickly, and, once you get the hang of the two row repeat, you don’t really have to think about it again.  Love it.  Will probably use this pattern for man scarves for Christmas.

5.  Cable Cable Cable socks, pattern by Colleen Powley

These are going to be a gift for someone fabulous, and so I’m going to keep the specifics a little vague.  These are cabled knee socks that I think would be both warm and chic under boots.  The center cable is a 14 stitch twist, which is a little fiddly.  I had hoped the pattern would be a little more intuitive, but this is definitely sitting at the table with the chart in front of you knitting.  I don’t mind that.

I have finished the cuff of the first one, and I’m partway down the leg.

6.  Ball band dish cloth

I have a quadzillion balls of Knit Picks organic cotton yarn, and a dream to make baby washcloths.  Of course I’m taking forever to finish the first one.  Maybe I will crank the rest of it out tonight, just to get that quick buzz of actually finishing something.  I am really close to being done anyway.

7.  Color Affection, pattern by Veera Valimaki

I started this meaning to participate in a Ravelry knitalong, but then just never really got any momentum going.  I’m making it out of Knit Picks Shadow in gray, pink, and dark navy.  That yarn will probably be the last I ever buy from Knit Picks, because I fell immediate victim to the credit card theft their customers have experienced they are continuing to deny is happening.  Anyway, I just need to get back on the horse, since I know so many people are addicted to this pattern.

So many projects!  And those are just the ones that are getting immediate attention!  There are more, lurking in baskets and bins randomly scattered around the apartment.  I think David would be thrilled if I could actually get some stuff done and, ideally, moved out of the house.