Saturday, December 21, 2013

FO: Pine Forest Baby Blanket

Hello everyone! 

I have an FO!  The Pine Forest Baby Blanket.  What a nice and easy pattern!  I love it in the Green Label Aran Weight in the colorway Frost.  I'm so glad I made the change of yarn although it was a lot of frogging!

Now, I'm 100% happy with the result!  Yé!

 See my project page on Ravelry.

This one is for a very special little baby :)  We do not know yet if it is going to be a boy or a girl!

Then, I've frogged the Wheat scarf too.  I guess it could be the hormones!  Seriously, I did not like how the ribbed portion sort of distorded the scarf.  It was too mindless - if such a thing is possible!  In the end, it did not "speak" to me :)

So, I'm back to my Puerperium.  I'm knitting the second sleeve now, so it should be finished in a few days.  It's so tiny!

I don't know if I'll post again before Christmas.  If not, I wish you all a very Happy Christmas!  Be safe, rest and have fun!  You all deserve it! xxx

Saturday, November 16, 2013

I could not resist :)

Last weekend, I went again to my favorite LYS to get a fourth skein of Tanis for my Pine Forest Baby Blanket and I could not resist the good looking Madelintosh Tosh Merino DK!

Good thing, it did not even get to my stash. I already started a new a easy project with it: the Wheat scarf!

I'm now alternating between the two projects.  It is difficult to stay committed when you knit two blankets almost in a row. Then, I'm going to alternate with the little Puerperium that I've neglected a little...

Here is how it looks so far.



Have a great weekend everyone!

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Frog, frog, frog...

Well, I thought the color of my Pine Forest Blanket was too dark for a baby blanket but it turns out that the second skein is even darker!  See!


It wasn't exactly a nice surprise...  Still, I continued.  You know, denying the problem.  But I've finally reached a decision.  I will not frog and alternate skeins.  I will frog it completely and it will become different projects.  Why insist on making this blanket in that color if I'm not in love with itT  I already have a few ideas for it: Felipe, Owl Tuque and-or OwletAviatrix Hat, Gramps.  I'll stop, I only have three skeins ;-)

So, Thursday night, I had no choice but to go to the lovely Espace Tricot.  It was once again a very pleasant yarn shopping experience.  All the ladies in that boutique de tricot are so nice.  I forgot to bring the blanket requirements but they went on Ravelry and showed me a varity of possible yarns are could use: soft enough for a baby and superwash, of course.  I opted for this beautiful Green Label Aran Weight by Tanis Fiber Arts.  The colorway is Frost. I so love her yarns!

 
It is also going to become a Pine Forest Blanket.  This is a nice mindless pattern.  I think this color is much better suited for a little baby!  I hope the transition between the skeins will be okay.  We chose them carefully...
 
This is also perfect to lift my spirit this morning because I caught a cold yesterday.  I thought I would be fine and went to work yesterday but it worsened last night and now, I think all I will do this weekend is rest and knit.
 
Have a nice weekend everyone! 

Saturday, September 21, 2013

September WIPs

Hi!  I currently have two projects on the needles.  And both are new!  I went shopping during my vacations at the end of August and went for two very different type of blues.
 
First, I'm knitting the Pine Forest Baby Blanket in Malabrigo Yarn Rios, colorway Azules.  While I was looking for a unisex color, the skeins seemed in a lighter shade to me.  Now it looks a little dark to me for a baby accessory.  I will have to pick a brighter color for the next baby blanket I will knit!  Here is a glance at it.  I have almost knit the first skein.  Two left.  I will have a lot of knitting time tomorrow and next Friday so I bet it will be almost done in no time!
 
 
Second, I'm knitting the very popular Puerperium Cardigan.  This is also a quick little knit!  What you see is the back.  Very bright color.  At first, I sort of regreted buying such a bright color.  Seems like I like to go to the extremes!  Now that the little Cardigan is coming along, I'm really loving it!  The yarn is Julie Asselin Milis, colorway Electric Avenue!  This is a new yarn and the colorways are absolutely amazing.  You should definitely take a look!


Next, I will most likely start another blanket, a Little Oak and maybe a Stockholm Scarf.  I'm also thinking of ways to use up more of my leftovers with small projects! 

Any suggestions for a simple baby blanket (mindless knitting)?

Did you start knitting something new for the fall?

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Friday, September 6, 2013

FO: Baby Chalice Blanket

Last Wednesday, I've given the gift I have been knitting and kept secret on this blog since the end of April.  I finished it one month ahead of time which really happens seldom in my case for baby gifts!  Usually, it is blocking at the last minute, the day before the baby shower.  I'm sure it happened to a few of you ;-)  I must say that my vacations helped and My Sister's Knitter KAL was a great incensitive!

This is a lovely free pattern that many knitters made with a variety of yarns.  In my case, the Illîmani Yarn Baby Llama was a nice discovery!  It is so soft and the natural colorways are beautiful.

I originally bought 4 skeins but in the end I used exactly 3.  I cast on 133 sts compared to 83 in the pattern and made the same number of repeats as instructed (that is 9) and realized it was already a square.  The pattern says the final measurements should be 24 x 32 inches.  In my case, it ended up 37 x 37 inches which is better in my own opinion:

 

After blocking, the stitch pattern is really pretty I think.  I love "leafy" stitch patterns:


The picture I took outside is really the one that shows the color as close as it is:


Finally, the only bad thing about this project is that the yarn is not superwash...  I'm really a bad girl to give such a gift to a friend :(  I will have to learn better...

See my project page on Ravelry.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Saturday, August 31, 2013

FO: Hunca Munca

I never thought I could knit a pair of socks in 3 days, hé hé... ;-)

Here they are, the Hunca Munca baby socks in plain stockinette:


They look so cute to me!  And this used up the 15g (almost exactly!) of the yarn from my own Spring Forward.  I think baby knits are the best to use up leftover yarn!

See my project page on Ravelry.

Sigh... my vacations are almost over... after this long weekend!  Happy knitting to you all!

Thursday, August 29, 2013

FO: Tiny Pants

Hello all!

Yes, vacations are truly awesome to finish projects!  I have two finished projects almost on the same day!  This is good for motivation! I'll post about the other one (the gift!) shortly as it was given last night to the very pregnant mother ;-)

Back to the Tiny Pants, I guess this picture shows it all:


Pattern:  Tiny Pants by Megan Goodacre.
Yarn: City Tweek DK by Knit Picks.
Needles: US 7 - 4.50 mm and US 8 - 5.00 mm.
Color: Orca and Tahitian Pearl  
Start to finish: July 2013 - August 2013.
Modifications: I added the stripes as I saw them on a
project on Ravelry and thought it was super cute!
 
The "jogs" are not really apparent in the end since they are on the side.
 
I used leftover yarn from the Baby Tweed Blanket.  I am really committed to using or giving my leftover yarn!  It is quite amazing what you can do and how amazing it is to re-use past project yarns once you have found the perfect project!  If you'd like, see my Trade or Sell page on Ravelry (I'm anyonecanknit).  Take whatever you would like.  Just send me a message on Ravelry and I will send it your way in exchange for a pattern to cover the mailing charges!  I've kept a few leftovers in my Stash page as I think I know what I will re-use them for!
 
Are you back to school this week?  If so, I wish you a very good school year!

Sunday, August 18, 2013

In the next two weeks...

It's the first time that I take my vacations so late in the summer.  It was tough to wait until now but it has finally arrived!  I hope I can rest a lot and also get some stuff done in the house, see friends, etc.

Of course, I also hope for a lot of knitting!  My gift is going well.  I hope to finish it in the next two weeks and get to show it to you a little while later.

Then, the Tiny Pants are going well too.  They are going to be "with jogs" but that's alright!

The yarn is tweedy and the stripes are cute enough to catch the attention, hopefully ;-)


Then, I think I will cast on 3 new projects!  See what late vacations make to me!  Seriously, I'm going yarn shopping this week at Espace Tricot and Mouliné.  And the next three project will be colorful and I will be able to show my progress!  This is going to make this blog a little bit more interesting!

So, I'm going to go back to my knitting.  I joined my Sister's Knitter KAL and I must not neglect the two current WIPs while I start new projects! 

Oh, and I frogged the Guernsey Triangle.  It was just a few inches and I'm going to use the yarn for a Sunnyside instead!  No worries, this is one of the 3 projects ;-)

This afternoon, I'm visiting good friends - there's going to be a lot of talking and they have a little 6 months old girl who is so cute - actually, she was the little girl I knitted the Maile Sweater for. Nice, nice, nice!

Happy knitting everyone!


Saturday, August 3, 2013

Jogless stripes

Hello!

This is going to be a very short post.  I need advices. 

I'm knitting some Tiny Pants.  So cute ;-)

I have to experiment with methods for jogless stripes in the round.  My stripes are only 2 rows.  I tried one method that consist in knitting the first stitch of the previous row along with the first stitch of the row I start when I knit the second row in the same color.  It does not look good at all.

Any suggestion?  What method do you use?

I hope you are having a great summer so far!  Happy knitting!

Saturday, July 13, 2013

FO: Sproutlette

Hi everyone - if you are still there,

The year started with many posts and then suddently, almost three months passed until today...  A few have asked if I was okay and if I was still knitting.  The answer to both questions is yes.  Many thanks for asking!

It is true though that I have been knitting less lately.  I could say it's because of spring and summer but quite frankly, we did not have much of a spring or summer until late June.  Now that summer has started though, it is very sunny and hot.  Wonderful!

Speaking of wonderful, I finished a project last week and it arrived to destination this week.  I will not spoil the surprise in case some of you read both our blogs and it is so recent that she did not make the announcement yet!

The FO is Sproutlette by Tanis Lavallée.  When I saw this little dress, I was immediately charmed!

 
Needles:  US 3 - 3.25 mm.
Color: 20112
Start to finish: April 2013 - June 2013.
For: Little baby girl.
Notes: I modified the leaves at the bottom and the edge of the sleeves
since I was running out of yarn.  For the edge of the dress, I skipped
rows 18-19 and 22-23.  For the sleeves, I (k1, p1, k1) in the double
yo. With these modifications, I was left with only a few inches of yarn!
 
A few more pictures:


 I thought a lady bug button would make a nice touch for a baby dress!


All in all, the pattern is well written!  I did not enjoy the scalloped eyelet cast off I must say... :(  I guess I still knit too tight for this kind of technique!

Finally, I wish a lot of happiness to this little girl and her family!  A cute little girl like her will bring a lot of joy all around her I'm sure!  And she may be a future knitter as well :-)

Have a great summer everyone - but I hope to be back before it ends!

Monday, April 29, 2013

New sock yarn!

I went to Sherbrooke this weekend to visit one of my best friend.  I studied in Sherbrooke 5 years so it is always good to go back. Lovely weekend!

There is a two years old yarn store that moved to a new location (much easier to find!) and that I did not know about before so I wanted to take a peak...  They are Tricot-Thé Serré.  Charming and the owner is very nice!

I bought a little something: a skein of lovely sock yarn from Julie Asselin.

I will not talk too long (I just wanted to show my new stash acquisition!)  The temperature is finally starting to resemble spring so I plan to do a little bit of work outside today.  It is so nice to be off on a Monday!!!

Have a great week everyone!

Saturday, April 20, 2013

FO: Saroyan

I finished the Saroyan back in March.  It went to an alpaga fiber competion last weekend although it did not win.  If you have any suggestion on what someone must knit with 100% alpaga for the best results, let me know!  I was a little puzzled when looking for the perfect 1-2 skein project.
 
This natural yarn was a pleasure to knit. The Saroyan pattern is beautiful.  It is mostly mindless knitting but the leaves on the side keep it interesting and gives a sense of it growing quite fast!

Here is the final result before blocking.


Although the yarn is 100% alpaga, the leaves are showing pretty well!
 

 I think this is closer to the true color...

 
It feels awesome around the neck!
 

Pattern: Saroyan by Liz Abinante.
Needles: US 9 - 5.5 mm.
Color: No color, 100% natural.
Start to finish: February 2013 - March 2013.
For: Mélanie and Fiber Art Competition in Orangeville.
Notes: No modification.
 
This is a free pattern so there is no reason why you should resist!
 
Have a wonderful weekend!

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Casting on...

Hello!  Yesterday, I casted on two new projects: one is going to be a gift so I will not talk about it and the other one is the Guernsey Triangle by the very talented Jared Flood.  It is the July installment of the Tanis Fiber Arts Year in Color Club 2012

Here is a sneak peak!  I just completed the first chart of the pattern.  It does not look like much so far.  It has an intriguing provisional cast on that I will need to graft at the end to make the edge straight.  It is the first time I will do that.  This is why I'm intrigued.  I verified on Ravelry and it looks like I did it right.

 
The yarn is a dream to knit with!  And yes, we had some fresh snow on Friday.  We really are looking forward to spring!
 

Yesterday, I bought new Knit Picks Sunstruck 16" circular needles.  So far, I really like them, just as much as the Harmony and the nickel needles!  Oh, and a sneak peak of my secret project I guess ;-)


And you, what's on your needles now?

Have a great Sunday!

Sunday, April 7, 2013

FO: Hedgerow Socks

Another pair of socks finished!  And no WIPs! 

I know exactly what I will start next.  It will be a gift so I cannot tell you now what it is...  I'm going to use the 108 grams remaining from this 2009 FO.  I really am planning to knit up as much as possible of my beautiful remaining yarns this year.  I've also started posting them on my Trade or Sale stash tab on Ravelry.  If you are interested, send me a message over there!  I'd be glad to send some of it to a happy home where it will be appreciated!

So here is my latest FO:


Yarn: Blue Label Fingering Weight of Tanis Fiber Arts.
Needles: US 1.5 / 2.5 mm DPNs.
Color: Thrills.
Start to finish: June 2012 - April 2013.
For: Me.
Notes: No modification.

The sock blockers were bought just yesterday at Biscotte & Cie.  This is a nice store on the south shore of Montreal.  They also have an online store.  I did however resist buying new yarn as I already have enough to knit for the rest of the year!  I discovered that they also have very nice buttons!

I wish you a very nice continuation of the weekend and a great week!

Saturday, March 23, 2013

FO: Business Casual

Hello everyone!

Last night, I finished my Business Casual.  The end date of the KAL is March 25th (Monday).  I made it!  It's been a very good KAL organized by Celtic Cast On.  115 knitters were in.  Many knitted more than one pair.  Go to this blog to see a parade of beautiful FOs!  To this day, there are at least 60 pairs completed!

When I started the pattern, I thought it would be a tough pattern.  So many crossed stitches :(  Thankfully, someone on Ravelry posted an alternate method without a cable needle.  So much easier!

Then, I struggled with the first sock.  Started over three times! 

And, I wanted to also knit the Saroyan and the due date was end of March as well!  I don't know why I do it to myself: deadlines :)

Here is my finished pair:

 
Yarn: Tempted Hand Painted Sly Grrl.
Needles: US 2 / 3.0 mm (circular and DPNs).
Color: Dreamy.
Start to finish: February 2013 - March 2013.
For: Me.
Notes: No modification.
 
It is a great pattern!  I really recommend it!  They are very wearable and I think that they are awesome for both men and women.

In the end, I made it. After this post, I will take a few pictures of the Saroyan because I'm handing it in to the lady who produces the beautiful alpaca yarn tonight. More details in a later post!

Have a pleasant weekend!

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Three WIPs?

Here is my weekly update for the Business Casual KAL.  I've re-knitted the first sock completely.  I kept focusing on round 17 joint.  It wasn't good.  Now I feel good... except that I have a cold.  I took yesterday off (I mean a vacation day!) and woke up with a bad sore throat.  So, I knitted all day and finished one sock.  Today, I'm still at home.  My throat and my muscles are still aching.  No runny nose so far.  Just aching and feeling tired...  At least, it's good for my knitting when I'm awake.
 
Look at this!  I have three WIPs!  That means many FOs in late March, early April.  It will not become an habit, trust me but it sure makes for a pretty picture :-)
 
They are: Business Casual, Hedgerow and Saroyan.
 
I still have to graft the toes (and knit the second sock).  It fits perfectly:

And here is my work in parallel.  I have about one third done which isn't bad at all!

I hope you are all feeling better than me.  Have a great week everyone!

Sunday, February 17, 2013

KAL Business Casual - Week 2 progress

My KAL is going well especially considering that I've been tinking almost all day yesterday.  This morning was much more pleasant as I knit the third repeat of the leg and started the heel.  I'm now at the gusset.
 

I've had trouble with round 17 of this pattern.  It's a little fuzzy over there at the end of row 16 and start of row 17 because I worked so much in that area to find out what was "going on".  The yarn is a little fuzzy and the sts are not twisted right.  Still, it's not apparent enough for me to re-do it (believe it or not!)

Have a great Sunday everyone!

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Progress

This will be an extra short post because I want to clean up in the house and then, knit!  Here's my progress after week 1 on the Business Casual KAL!  I love the pattern and I love this technique!

Have a great Sunday!

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Getting ready

As I'm about to write this post, I realize that in fact, I've never done it.  What?  A KAL...

I've been following for quite a while the blog Celtic Cast On.  If you like to read and admire frequent reports on gorgeous FOs, this is the blog to read!

Starting this Monday, Celtic Cast On is hosting a Business Casual KAL.  These socks I've always wanted to knit, so, without any further considerations, I was in.  And I'm ready.

The only thing on my needles right now are the beautiful Hedgerow Socks.  This is the second one:

 
I may add finishing these to the challenge of the KAL. We'll see how things go!
 
And my ball of Tempted Sly Grrl in the Dreamy colorway is all ready to go:

The gauge is done and the needles are ready too!

Check out the prize that you have a chance to win if you finish by March 25th: a skein of Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label Fingering Weight in the Atlantic colorway.  Wouldn't it make another gorgeous pair of socks?

Who's in?

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Annabelle in her Sunnyside Cardigan

Let me introduce you to Annabelle (possibly a future knitter)! 

She's the lovely little girl of my "tricopine" Stéphanie from À la maille suivante.  Go visit Stéphanie's blog for more pictures of Annabelle and her brother.  Stéphanie also has a few knitting patterns featured on her blog!

Isn't Annabelle cute?  Here she is with the little Sunnyside Cardigan I gifted her last September:

I was so excited the day of the baby shower that I forgot my knitting (officially, it was a knitting get together) ;-)  Well, our host gave me a blanket she was working on so that I can knit 1-2 rows!

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend!

Friday, January 25, 2013

What can be better than a Friday night?

What can be better than a Friday night? 

How about winning a pattern and a skein of yarn on a Friday night?

Congratulations Andi

Thank you everyone who left a kind note!  I always enjoy reading your comments!  I hope that your blogs will continue to exist for a very long time!  I love to read them too!

Have a nice weekend everyone! xx

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

FO: Maile Sweater

Yeah, here is my first FO of the year!  I'm very happy with the final result!  It's the Maile Sweater.  This is a free pattern.
 
It is a gift for my good friend Annick who is having a baby girl in February.  We had her baby shower on Sunday.  The sweater was still buttonless but I gave it to her today at work!

 
Needles: US 6 / 4.0 mm (circular and DPNs)
Color: Thrills (Year in Color 2012 - May)
Start to finish: November 2012 - January 2013
For: Annick's baby girl
Notes: I added 2 stitches when I CO each sleeve.  I also used
DPNs for the sleeves to attach them to the body.
 
I have to say that while I knitted it, I didn't know if I would knit it ever again.  First, I had to retry attaching the sleeves to the body since my first attempt with the circular needle only was impossible.  It was getting tighter and tighter.  So I tried again with DPNs as recommended by other knitters on Ravely.  Much better.  Then, it took me a few days to sew the sleeves.  I really kept postponing it!  But it went so fast and so well even though there are increases.  Now, looking back and seeing how pretty it looks after blocking, I think I would knit it again and recommend it!
 
Here is the back.  It looks really pretty I think with the pattern at the bottom and the raglan!
 
 
The buttons were bought at the last minute at Espace Tricot.  I'm very happy with how they look!
 
 
Have a great week everyone! 
 
P.S.  Don't forget to participate to the contest for my blogyversary to win a pattern of your choice and a skein of Sephyra!  It's opened 'til tomorrow night!

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Blogyversary... and a contest to celebrate!

It's been 4 years since I've started my blog!  Time went by so fast!  Oh, I don't post very often, but still, it is fun to update it with FOs and yarn, but mostly to read your comments!  Thank you to all of you who visit!

To celebrate it, I will continue the tradition: gift a pattern (up to $7) on Ravelry (you have to be a member).  Then, I will make an addition (same winner): a skein of yarn from my stash!  Yes, I have a stash!  Not for long, rest assured ;-)

Here is the yarn you can win along with a pattern (you don't have to choose a pattern that goes with it!):


It is Gaïa DK from Sephyra.  It's really pretty and would probably make a great hat or whatever your heart want it to be!

To participate, all you have to do is leave a comment at the end of this post. The question this year is: Do you have a blog and how old is it?  If you don't have a blog, it's ok too ;-)

You have to comment before midnight (EST) Wednesday night, January 23, 2013 to enter in the contest. There will be one random winner (for the pattern and the yarn)! I’ll announce the winner before Saturday, January 26, 2013.

Good luck everyone and thanks again for visiting!

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Happy New Year 2013!

Hi everyone!

Just a quick note to say Happy New Year 2013!  Best wishes to all of you!

I wanted to include of picture of the Maile sweater but Blogger does not allow me :(  I've just re-attached the sleeves after trying to make it only with my circular needle.  I thought the yarn was going to break.  I frogged a little bit and tried it again with dpns.  It was much easier!

Have a great weekend all!

ETA: