Aimee

So now, nearly a year later, I'm finally getting around to wearing Aimee.

FO Stands for Failed Operation

My life is apparently one giant stitch 'n botch.

More than a month after the fact, I present my failed Aimee:

I haven't even knit the collar or woven in the last few ends. I tried it on, and it makes my torso look even shorter and chunkier than it normally looks. That's why you're getting the hanger-only shot. Blah.
Pattern: Aimee from Rowan Vintage Style, designed by Kim Hargreaves
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Laceweight
Modifications: Lengthened the body. Eliminated the ribbon thing.
Thoughts: I really wish this fit. Maybe when I lose 10 more pounds. If I had thought about it, I would have done a unified edging thing: the bottom hem is picot, the sleeves have garter stitch, and the neck is reverse St st; I should have just done everything garter stitch, which would have eliminated that pain-in-the-ass hem.

And for Shedir:

Pattern: Shedir for Knitty, designed by Jenna Wilson.
Yarn: Rowan Cashsoft DK in Thunder, 1 ball + some more
Modifications: Knit on US5 DPNs; did 7 pattern repeats and 4 pattern row repeats.
Thoughts: This is a clever pattern, and I like clever patterns. As I mentioned in a previous post, I stupidly used the wrongest yarn that ever wronged for this pattern; my cables are too messy as a result. If I were to do it again, I'd twist the cable stitches for better definition. I guess the biggest thought I'm having now is how I'll never wear this hat, because of the point at the top. One person on Craftster said she made this hat using 7 body repeats, and she didn't say anything about a pointy top, so I figured it would be okay. It's not. This hat actually fits me, unlike Odessa, but the point. Yuck. Between Odessa and Shedir, I spent $19 on yarn for hats that I'll never wear. Maybe sometime I'll frog them and make a 3/4 sleeve OSW or something.

This is so disheartening, to have so many FOs that I'll never wear. Like I said before, I'm really hoping Demi will turn out nice so I'll have motivation to keep on knitting.

Well, Poo

I sewed the sleeves on my Aimee and tried it on. I don't like it on me at all. I just don't like the lace alternating with stockinette on my body. Everything they say about horizontal stripes is true. I still like it on the model, I still like it on all the thin, long-waisted girls I've seen. I need to lose 10 lbs. before I can wear this (and possibly gain another 3" in height). I was going to stay up late tonight to do the collar and finish weaving in ends (not to mention reading 130 pages for class tomorrow), but I'm totally not motivated. This sweater is officially on hiatus.

I honestly fail at knitting. Out of Aimee, Odessa, Cathode, and the Ballet Tee, none of them look good on me. Gauge was only an issue on Odessa. The Ballet Tee, Cathode and Aimee just don't look good on my crummy torso. I'm too short and curvy. I enjoy knitting as a hobby, certainly, but it's depressing when I spend all this money on it and I don't end up with wearable items. I'm going to finish up Demi and see how that looks on me (hopefully the lengthwise cable pattern will elongate my torso). That'll be my final test. If it looks like crap, then I'm through knitting stuff for myself, and I'll stick to only afghans and other non-wearable items until my stash is used up.

I Can Almost Taste It

The 2nd sleeve to my Aimee is blocking. The body and first sleeve have been sewn up, and about half of the total ends have been woven in. I'm going to see if I can get the bottom hem sewn tonight (which, honestly, scares me as much as the set-in sleeves). Tomorrow I'm going to sew the sleeves to the body and knit the collar. If everything goes as planned, Aimee should make its public debut on Thursday.

A Winner Is Me?

I went to the LYS today to get some yarn to finish my Aimee. I was chatting with one of the owners, and she pointed to my laceweight and asked, "And your goal was to finish? A sweater? In 16 days? In this?" I was so close to finishing, too! If I hadn't run out, I'd've finished by Sunday evening at the latest. The lady told me that if I needed anyone to vouch for the fact that I had quite a feat ahead of me, she'd be there.

As one may imagine, I'm kind of burned out on Aimee. I'll start knitting it probably when I get back to school after the weekend. I want to be able to wear my new sweater on (arbitrary decision time) Thursday.

A Loser Is Me

I ran out of yarn, so I can't finish the sleeve or the collar of Aimee. I would have been done, but unfortunately the LYS at school doesn't have the yarn I need. I have to wait until Thursday to get it. I'll have a new sweater for the weekend, though. Pictures when I finish.

Burnout

At this point, I'm just working on the sweater because I'm sick of it and I want to be done. I don't even care about the medals. I'm still plugging away on the first sleeve, even though I've shortened it by 2". I'm really nervous that I'm going to run out of yarn, and I'm fairly sure the LYS doesn't carry this yarn. (The LYS at home does, but I won't be there until Thursday.)

Gah. Back to work.

ETA: I finally finished the sleeve. I'm blocking it while I reward myself with a shower and a nap. I have 1 day, 22 hours, and 14 minutes to finish the second sleeve, sew it all together, and do the collar. At this point, I'm more worried about running out of yarn than being able to finish in time.

Getting There

This is exactly how much sunlight my apartment gets. The front is on the right and the back is on the left.


This picture lets you see how textured it is. The lace parts form little hills. This is after this part has been blocked 4 times. I'm going to steam block it at some point, I think, to see if that helps any.

Finally

As I type this, 65% of the Knitting Olympics have elapsed. I've finally finished the front part of the sweater. I just have the two sleeves, weaving in ends, seaming, and the collar. I guess I should mention that this will be my first time seaming set-in sleeves. And I'm doing it in a lace pattern, no less. Gah.

I'm a little nervous.

Pictures tomorrow.

Project Runway: Chicks with Sticks

I'm way behind. I'm supposed to have the front finished tomorrow, according to my schedule, but I'm not even at the armhole shaping yet.

As I work, I've been watching a lot of TV. I'm getting into Project Runway, which is a very apropos show for this event. As a knitter, it astonishes me that they can complete an entire outfit, from design to runway, in just two or three days. Here I am, not even sure if I can complete a sweater in 17 days.

Gah. I've pulled too many late-nighters already this week. Time for bed.

Ô Mon Aimée

I took a much-needed break from homework today to finish the back. I still need to knit 5.25" on the front in order to stay on schedule, so we'll see how that goes.

Overall, though, I'm feeling pretty good about this project.

ETA: I knit about 4.5" on the front, which, really...not too shabby, considering I barely knit anything yesterday. I'm only .75" behind schedule. Unfortunately, tomorrow I have a full day of schoolwork scheduled (yet another paper, although this one is less despair-inducing). Fortunately, I have a four-day weekend during which I'm going to relax, knit, and see my sweetheart of a dog.

Owie

My progress today is restricted to 3 rows. 3 damn rows. I needed to knit around 4" to stay on schedule, but there's no way that's happening. My back hurts too much to knit. That's just as well, anyway, because I have a paper due at 10:30am which I need to finish.

I'm hoping that taking a break will reduce some of the pain, so I'll be able to knit like a fiend tomorrow. I'll need to do nearly 10" to stay on track. Luckily Tuesdays provide me with a lot of television accompaniment, and not so much in the schoolwork department.

I'm going home on Thursday, and I hope to take a picture of my mom's progress (she's knitting two Baby Einstein Jackets [from Sally Melville's The Knit Stitch] for my cousin's twins).

Now This is Just Getting Gratuitous

Every time I finish a block of knitting, I take a picture.


(The splotches are from where I sprayed it).

I thought this picture was important, though, to show that my underarm sections are not as wing-like as others. In the Craftster KAL, people had been worried that there would be too much fabric, and it would be bunchy. Mine looks normal, except for that waist. I'll have to borrow a corset from work in order to wear it.

I've been blocking (misting and pinning) this thing every single time I put it down. The lace pattern refuses to lay flat, so I'm going to have to beat it into submission. The good part is that the body grows a little bit every time I block it. I'm up to 13.5" from the fold line to the sleeve shaping. Definitely a good thing, although it'll be tricky to make sure the front part grows as much as the back has.

Tomorrow I'll need to knit 4.25" in order to stay on schedule. I also need to write my paper tomorrow. Oops.

I've Got to Admit, It's Getting Better

Getting better all the time.

(It can't get no worse!)



Yesterday I knit more after I posted, and today I knit a bunch (although not before doing some homework--I'm a good girl). I'm up to 15.5" on the back piece, meaning I've got most of my knitting for tomorrow done. I have so much more schoolwork to do tomorrow (a book, a film, and start two papers), so who knows how much time I'll actually have for knitting.

I've been contemplating waking up early to knit. Is that sad?

What have I done

I can't knit an entire sweater on US5s and US7s. Jeez. I knit for 7.5 hours, and I have 5.75" to show for it.

I calculated that I need to finish the back and front in four days each, and each of the sleeves in 3 days. That'll leave 2 days for blocking and seaming, with 1 day in case of emergencies. That means 5.25" per day on the back and front.

That's barely what I did today, and I didn't even have to go to class or do any sort of work.

This is insane. I feel like I've set myself up for failure.


Looks like crap, right? Like nothing.


A little better.

My one saving grace will be the fact that the top quarter of the sweater is knit in the lace pattern. I cover more space with less rows in the lace, meaning I'll get more done.

Already I've hit a couple snags, coming up one stitch short (I fudged that one and I can't even tell). Also, the needle has slipped out of the work a couple times. I hate using metal needles for laceweight, but I didn't want to spend money on new needles.

Odessa & The Plan

band name!



It's almost too small for me to wear. I didn't swatch, since Grumperina said on her blog that the hat stretched. I used needles one size smaller than recommended, but I figured it wouldn't make that much of a difference. I might do this hat again with another pattern repeat or two. The yarn is gorgeous and the buttons are awesome.

I tried to get a picture of me wearing it, but I couldn't get it to work out and I got frustrated and gave up.

Pattern: Odessa from Magknits, designed by Grumperina
Yarn: Rowan Cashsoft DK in Thunder
Needles: US5 DPNs - aluminum

Now for The Plan. Here's what I want to/should do in terms of knitting over the next few months:

1. Finish the DNA scarf I started. This must be finished before the Olympics start.
   
2. Knitting Olympics. Aimée (name Frenchicized courtesy of yours truly). Enough said.
   
3. Demi from Rowan Vintage Style.
   
4. Cashmere lace blouse from Loop-d-Loop. Except not in cashmere, cause I'm cheap. And also I don't deserve nice things. I'm thinking of getting KnitPicks sock yarn so I can dye it myself. That would be cheap. And badass.
   
5. ETA: I also want to finish my Butterfly sometime within the next century.
   

And then sometime I should really finish up my Sesame.

My mom heard about the Knitting Olympics somehow, and wants to make two Baby Einstein Jackets from Sally Melville's The Knit Stitch.

Productivity at the Cost of Productivity

First off, I must comment on my titling skills: I don't have any. I've been on Blogger since December 03, and this is the first blog I've had where I title my entries. My lack of practice is showing. The title of this entry is decent, but "I Been Workin' on the Cathode"? Hideous. Blargh.

I should have spent today reading. I'm taking 2 grad-level lit courses, so you can guess how much reading goes along with those. I've done maybe 1/16th of the stuff I need to finish by Tuesday. Instead, I spent all of my time knitting, and quite honestly I don't feel like reading even now that I've knit for 8 hours in a row.

I began my Olympic training by swatching for Aimee:



My gauge is significantly smaller than the recommended gauge. I can't decide if I'd rather go up some needle sizes, playing that estimate game, or just rework the numbers. I'm leaning toward the latter. Math doesn't scare me, and swatching/blocking/measuring bores me.

While staring lovingly at my Aimee swatch, I noticed something:



The lace pattern forms little Ks. I tried to emphasize it in orange. Apologies for my crappy photo-editing skills.

More work on Cathode.



It adds 15 pounds. This photo doesn't even do justice to the fattening qualities of my sweater. It makes me look heavy. I'm thinking about putting that sleeve back on a stitch holder and putting this sweater away until I
1) lose 15 lbs.
or
2) decide to rip it out and start anew.

Here's something:



Knitty's Pasha. Or, as the 2-year-old Kerry would have called it, Pagaya. I think I like the name Pagaya better. I started this with my dad's cousin's baby in mind, although I don't know how suitable it'll be for a newborn. I don't know why this pattern is categorized as piquant; maybe the short rows? My rule of thumb is if I can do it, it can't be too hard. I use that rule for pretty much everything in life. Lace? Piquant. Short rows? Mellow. Fair Isle? Extraspicy. Recalculating gauge? Mellow. Actually finishing something? Piquant.

I Been Workin' on the Cathode

All the live-long day...

I got fed up with doing the body, so the black part isn't as long as I would like, but I'm hoping blocking will fix that. The only thing I hate more than endless stockinette is endless ribbing. I'm only 1.25" into the ribbing, and I hate it so much already. I'm hoping to get it done this weekend so I can finish the sleeves and the neckline.

I want to start Demi at the beginning of February. I'd be happy to have a sleeve or something done by the time the Knitting Olympics start. I've pretty much decided on Aimee for that.

Bad Idea

The Knitting Olympics. AKA how we fiber dorks have fun. I'm thinking of doing it, because apparently I don't have enough stress in my life. I would do either Aimee from Rowan Vintage Style or the cropped jacket from Vogueknitting Holiday 2005. There's no way I can do Demi in just 2 weeks, otherwise I'd go for it. Hell, maybe I'll go for it anyway. Cause I suck.

The Stash

Araucania Nature Cotton. This is going to become the sweater worn by the Rachel McAdams character in Wedding Crashers (the only palatable thing about that movie, might I add).


Cascade 220. I bought this on a whim because it was on sale. The pink and some of the blue-grey have become a One Skein Wonder, and the rest of the blue-grey and some of the oatmeal have become a soon-to-be-finished felted bag. No plans yet for the rest of it.


Rowan Cashsoft DK. Bought with the intention of making a 3/4 sleeve OSW with some sort of fancy stitch pattern. This yarn is so incredibly soft. The picture is pretty true to the actual color; it's a gorgeous graphite, and very shiny. I'm scared to touch this yarn because it's so incredible. I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy!


Handpaintedyarn.com Laceweight in Cinnabun. I bought this for a Butterfly. The picture on the website had much more pink in it, and I'm still coming to terms with the orange. I have one frill done. This is such a gorgeous pattern; I need to finish it soon. My guilty pleasure is smelling this yarn. It smells weird, but good.


Mystery cotton from Michael's. These were in a clearance bin for $3 each. They had no labels. I liked the colors. I'm thinking about making this into a OSW, alternating the yarn every stitch. I have a love-hate relationship with variegated yarn; it looks so pretty in the skein, but I hate the way it looks knit up. I'm hoping alternating the yarns will break up some of the weird variegated aspects.


Kathmandu Aran. Enough for a Demi. I think the yarn kind of looks like guacamole, one of my favorite foods.


Katia Ingenua. I bought this to make this scarf from the fall 05 Vogue Knitting, but the stupid magazine listed the wrong yardage and so I didn't buy nearly enough. I don't really like mohair, which is why this yarn has been sitting around. I might attempt a shorter, narrower version of this scarf. (I don't want to call it a shawl, because I don't wear shawls. Little old ladies wear shawls. I wear scarfs.)


Takhi Kerry, a 50% wool/50% alpaca blend. For being half alpaca, this yarn is not that soft. This is the conversation that ensued in the LYS:
Me: Mom! A yarn! With my name! My name!
Mom: Ooooh, my favorite color.
Me: My name!
Mom: I think this means you have to get it.
Me: Damn you.
So now I have 2 skeins that I'm not really sure what to do with. I kind of want to resize this hat from the fall 05 Interweave Knits so it's big enough for me. Here is what was written on one website about this yarn: Kerry has a wonderful hand and is a pleasure to work with. Damn right I'm a pleasure to work with.


Manos del Uruguay in Bramble (variegated) and Coffee (solid). This was going to be a felted bag, but I decided I didn't like it and it was frogged. I have no plans for this.


Misti Alpaca Laceweight. This is for Aimee.


More Misti Alpaca Laceweight. This was bought as an alternative for the scarf/shawl posted above, but again, not enough yardage. No project in mind yet.


Handpaintedyarn.com - Paris Night. Not sure of the weight on this one. This was bought to make a cabled cardigan. Now I'm thinking of this one from Vogue Knitting Holiday 05, but with smaller bobbles.

And now for my current WIP: Knitty's/Stefanie Japel's Cathode

Please ignore my face. I'm using Kathmandu Aran (same as that green yarn pictured above). It's very soft on the reverse stockinette side, and somewhat scratchy on the stockinette side. I modified this pattern for gauge, and I plan on adding long sleeves. This picture is actually a few days old, and I'm almost ready to start the lower body ribbing.