Seriously! I have been thinking about this thing since the first time I saw it in UO back in July! Since they are charging $54 for a mostly acrylic/nylon blend, I knew that there was no way I would buy it.
Well, while peaking around blogland today, I ran across a link to a group on craftster that has reverse engineered this sweater! Oh, happy day! This project is going to the top of my to-knit list.
Like many, I'm in an ongoing struggle with my stash. On one hand, I hate the fact that it takes up half of my hallway closet. At the same time, I keep coming across yarns that I want for projects that I would like to make. Right now, my stash is right on the verge of being "out of hand." I even went so far as to put myself on a Yarn Diet at the beginning of the year. I was able to go four months without buying new yarn, but it's been downhill from there.
Well, this morning, I pulled my tub-o-yarn out of the closet. I was looking for something that would make a good project to take on the bus with me. I thought a scarf would be perfect. Thankfully, I didn't have to dig too deep. I came across the two skeins of KnitPick's Andean Silk that I had leftover from the Rebecca Wrap that I made back in the spring.
So, my new bus-project is Teva Durham's Leaf Cravat from the Winter 2003 Interweave. I've made one of these before, but it was gifted away as soon as I finished it. This one is going to be all mine!
Since I can't take AB^3 on the bus with me, I needed something to occupy my time this morning. I probably should have thought about this earlier...With about 5 minutes to spare before I had to leave, I decide to take the easy route and grabbed the Froth Scarf gift kit I got when I renewed my Rowan membership. It seamed like the perfect choice a the time, but now I'm starting to wonder.
When I first got the kit in the mail, I was glad that I had gotten black since it goes with everything. Unfortunately, now that I've knit a few pattern repeats, I'm not so sure. Between the color and the yarn's haze, the stitch pattern doesn't show up at all. If I continue, I imagine I will end up with something that looks like a black, mohair scarf that has been infested with moths. So, I'm going to call this one off.
But, what should I do with the 2 skeins of Kidsilk Haze?
Friday morning, I completed the front of Posy. The knitting is officially finished. Now, all I need is the motivation to block the pieces and do the seaming. I usually don't have the energy to pull out the blocking board once I get home from work. But, I'm really looking forward to finishing this project, so I'll have to make an exception.
Once Posy was off the needles, I strolled down to the post office to figure out what had happened to the package I had been expecting. The counterperson was very helpful, but not at all apologetic. She quickly found my package, but said nothing about why my mail carrier had not delivered it to my apartment or left additional notices in the last 2 weeks. In the end, I was just glad that it had not been returned to sender, and my 2 week delay was ended. With new yarn in hand, I headed back to the apartment.
With nothing else planned for the day, I wasted no time casting on for AB^3. To avoid having to pick up 187 stitches to create the lower border, I used a provisional cast on. In the first hour, I think I had completed 5 rows! That's when I knew that this project was going to really test my endurance.
In case you need some proof that I really am a knitter, I thought I would go ahead an post some pictures. Now, remember, that Posy is being knit in black...so these aren't the best quality. But, if you squint a little, you can make out the stitch pattern.
Here's the cast on edge:
It's been over a week and my mail carrier hasn't delivered my package of yarn from jimmy beans! After the labor day weekend, I made sure to tape my package notice to my mailbox instead of just leaving it in the box. The mail carrier took the card the next day, but hasn't followed the request to re-deliver the box and leave it. Argh. And, unfortunately, I haven't had time to go to the post office because it is only open 9am - 5pm...Conveniently, I work from 8am - 5:30pm. I have this Friday off, so hopefully I will be able to pick up my yarn then.
I'm not completely bent out of shape by the missing package because it has given me plently of time to work on Posy. I had a very productive weekend. Friday night, I installed myself on the couch and knit compulsively for a few hours. I was able to sneak some more quality time in on Saturday morning. As of this morning, I have one more pattern repeat before I start the arm shaping. The pattern tells you to work the two sides of the neck separately. I think I'm going to try working them at the same time instead of finishing one half and then going back to do the second.
I tried snapping some pictures of Posy last night, but there just wasn't enough light to see the lace pattern. I'll add this to my to-do list for Friday.
This morning, before leaving for work, I finished the back of Posy. So far, I'm really happy with the way this project is going. The arm and neck shaping were pretty easy to follow...although I still hate seeing any pattern that tells you to "complete to match first side, reversing shapings."
I cast on for the front this morning. It took me a little over a week to complete the back. So, with any luck, I should be able to finish Posy before the end of the month. I plan on starting the Alphabet Block Baby Blanket (aka AB^3) this weekend. The USPS site says that my package was brought to the local post office last Thursday night. But, we got a couple pieces of mail on Friday and nothing Saturday. In theory, I could have started AB^3 last weekend, but my mail carrier decided to take Saturday off.
I have the apartment to myself this weekend. If I'm lucky, I'll get to roam around in my pajamas and knit.
