I am well into my pretty yellow baby sweater. The sweater is basically worked from the top down, with the first half all worked at once, then the garment is divided on stitch holders: left front, sleeve, back, sleeve, right front. I have just knit each sleeve and now it's time to sew them together. As the ends are curling under, it's time to block.
Having just struggled with blocking my ribbon tank, I ordered a blocking board from Joann.com. It is really great--each inch is blocked off in a grid system, to ensure easy, straight blocking--and I am now letting the baby sweater sit overnight.
I used to be quite apprehensive about blocking and all finishing, but two books have helped me a lot. One is The Knitter's Companion, by Vicki Square. The other is The Knitter's Book of Finishing Techniques, by Nancie Wiseman. I will refer to them both again tomorrow, when I sew those sleeves together. With each finishing project, I get more confident in my abilities.

I am well into my pretty yellow baby sweater. The sweater is basically worked from the top down, with the first half all worked at once, then the garment is divided on stitch holders: left front, sleeve, back, sleeve, right front. I have just knit each sleeve and now it's time to sew them together. As the ends are curling under, it's time to block.
Having just struggled with blocking my ribbon tank, I ordered a blocking board from Joann.com. It is really great--each inch is blocked off in a grid system, to ensure easy, straight blocking--and I am now letting the baby sweater sit overnight.
I used to be quite apprehensive about blocking and all finishing, but two books have helped me a lot. One is The Knitter's Companion, by Vicki Square. The other is The Knitter's Book of Finishing Techniques, by Nancie Wiseman. I will refer to them both again tomorrow, when I sew those sleeves together. With each finishing project, I get more confident in my abilities.

Ribbon Tank is Now a Finished Object!

I finished the Ribbon Tank pictured below. It fits like a glove! The ribbon has a lot of "give" in it and I love the way it feels. After sweating out whether or not I would have enough, I have almost a full ball of the variegated rainbow-colored ribbon left. I've contacted Tess Yarns to see what else I can make with this luscious ribbon.
My next project is a Baby Sweater for the woman who has been cutting my hair for 10 years. She is a knitter now too! I'm using a soft and pretty yellow variegated yarn, Zarella, from Filatura Di Crosa/Tahki Stacy Charles. It's about 50/50, wool and acrylic, so it will hold up to a baby's wear and tear. It's knitted from the top down in one piece so the finishing is minimal.
I am also going to teach a friend to knit! Now I can see how I do with the whole teaching thing...

Ribbon Tank is Now a Finished Object!

I finished the Ribbon Tank pictured below. It fits like a glove! The ribbon has a lot of "give" in it and I love the way it feels. After sweating out whether or not I would have enough, I have almost a full ball of the variegated rainbow-colored ribbon left. I've contacted Tess Yarns to see what else I can make with this luscious ribbon.
My next project is a Baby Sweater for the woman who has been cutting my hair for 10 years. She is a knitter now too! I'm using a soft and pretty yellow variegated yarn, Zarella, from Filatura Di Crosa/Tahki Stacy Charles. It's about 50/50, wool and acrylic, so it will hold up to a baby's wear and tear. It's knitted from the top down in one piece so the finishing is minimal.
I am also going to teach a friend to knit! Now I can see how I do with the whole teaching thing...

Hobby Day

Today was Hobby Day at my son's elementary school. Parents, teachers and older students volunteer to teach the kids (second through fifth grade) various hobbies in the hope that they will turn off their TV's for a week and do different activities instead.
I've taught knitting at Hobby Day for the past 2 years. I've found it quite a challenge to teach young girls (and one boy last year--my son!) in a one-hour period. So this year I tried teaching Spool Knitting instead. I've made some fun projects, such as necklaces, keychains, hair scrunchies, etc. with the spools and variegated yarn. My mom, a knitter extraordinaire, told me that she first learned to knit with a spool.
Today was quite a success! I had seven girls in my first hour and two in the second. The first session was a bit hectic, as I went from girl to girl getting them started and helping them along, but they all seemed to get it and like it. In the second session, with just two girls, they learned quickly and I actually got the chance to sit down and knit with them. It was lovely.
I'd love to pursue the whole area of teaching, but I know it is a challenge. Perhaps something for my next career.

Hobby Day

Today was Hobby Day at my son's elementary school. Parents, teachers and older students volunteer to teach the kids (second through fifth grade) various hobbies in the hope that they will turn off their TV's for a week and do different activities instead.
I've taught knitting at Hobby Day for the past 2 years. I've found it quite a challenge to teach young girls (and one boy last year--my son!) in a one-hour period. So this year I tried teaching Spool Knitting instead. I've made some fun projects, such as necklaces, keychains, hair scrunchies, etc. with the spools and variegated yarn. My mom, a knitter extraordinaire, told me that she first learned to knit with a spool.
Today was quite a success! I had seven girls in my first hour and two in the second. The first session was a bit hectic, as I went from girl to girl getting them started and helping them along, but they all seemed to get it and like it. In the second session, with just two girls, they learned quickly and I actually got the chance to sit down and knit with them. It was lovely.
I'd love to pursue the whole area of teaching, but I know it is a challenge. Perhaps something for my next career.

Ribbon Tank

Today's lesson learned was how to photograph a work-in-progress, then download the image to my computer and then to my blog. Hopefully this too will be a success!
My ribbon tank is made from beautiful Microfiber Ribbon, a wonderful fiber from Tess Yarns in Maine. I purchased the ribbon at Stitches East in Atlantic City back in October and put it aside while I made a number of other projects.
I had a little trouble getting the gauge right so that the tank would fit, but after completing the back, it looks right. I've held it up to several other tanks I've made that fit perfectly, so I think I'm OK.
Now I'm working on the front, and I fear that I may run out of the black ribbon. We'll see...

Ribbon Tank

Today's lesson learned was how to photograph a work-in-progress, then download the image to my computer and then to my blog. Hopefully this too will be a success!
My ribbon tank is made from beautiful Microfiber Ribbon, a wonderful fiber from Tess Yarns in Maine. I purchased the ribbon at Stitches East in Atlantic City back in October and put it aside while I made a number of other projects.
I had a little trouble getting the gauge right so that the tank would fit, but after completing the back, it looks right. I've held it up to several other tanks I've made that fit perfectly, so I think I'm OK.
Now I'm working on the front, and I fear that I may run out of the black ribbon. We'll see...

Trying This Out

I am new to blogging and want to try it out; I've been enjoying reading other knitting blogs, and I may get involved in some of the Knit-Alongs or knitting exchanges where blogs are a must. So this will be slow going at first, but I know I will learn a lot.
I want to mention my favorite knitting Podcast, Cast-On, and will be attempting to publish a cool button that was featured on the Cast-On blog.
That's it for now--there will be more to come in the coming days!

Trying This Out

I am new to blogging and want to try it out; I've been enjoying reading other knitting blogs, and I may get involved in some of the Knit-Alongs or knitting exchanges where blogs are a must. So this will be slow going at first, but I know I will learn a lot.
I want to mention my favorite knitting Podcast, Cast-On, and will be attempting to publish a cool button that was featured on the Cast-On blog.
That's it for now--there will be more to come in the coming days!