The pattern is just called "Unisex Irish Pullover." I found the pattern on Ravelry when looking for something aran like to make. The pattern knits up surprisingly fast, I thought the body would take me forever but it was interesting enough to keep me going round and round. I'm making it from Cascade 220 Heathers in I really sharp brown/maroon color with little flecks of green in it. The body is about 2 inches short of the armpits and the sleeve is about 8'' give or take. I converted the pattern to knit in the round. It's a basic raglan shape so it should be easy to attach the sleeves and finish off... should be. The pattern was also written out completely in words so I got some graph paper and charted it out. The pattern is written so that the two cable panels on the side go the same way they aren't mirrored. Looking back I wish I had fixed that but that's just my random picky-ness popping up. Since I didn't finish for the knitting Olympics the project has had to go on hold since there are some projects for my family that I want to finish up before I head back to school on the 11th (very excited to be heading back by the way!)
The first thing I needed to finish were some slipper socks my dad asked me to make for him. The pattern is from The Little Box of Socks and it's called the "Double Basket Socks." It's a very easy knit/purl Patten done in DK weight yarn to make nice thick slipper socks. I was initially pretty unhappy that my dad asked me to knit him socks because during the school year I knit him a pair of fingering weight green socks and when I gave them to him he said "I only wear white cotton athletic socks wool is to scratchy and green doesn't go with any of my clothes." Needless to say I was a bit miffed but I let it go and gave them to Andrew who was a very gracious recipient and who wears them frequently. So, I bought The Little Box of Sock and was looking at it at home when my dad came up and started flipping through the cards. He held up the Double Basket pattern and said "These look comfortable, can you make me these for around the house socks? My feet are always cold and some wool socks would be so nice on the tile and hardwood." I glared at him and of course he had no idea why. When I asked him what color he wanted he didn't even think about it before he said "Well I really like green, how about that?" Dutiful daughter that I am, I didn't punch him. I did make him buy the yarn though and since I was placing an order with knitpicks for his yarn I may have added a few balls for myself to the total... After the socks were knit I sewed on some suede slipper pads to the balls and heels of the feet so he won't fall and crack his head on our slippery floors. I have already seen him wear them around the house so hopefully they will be appreciated.
The next project is a gift for my brother who is starting his freshman year of college this year at Portland State University in Oregon. I found this Pattern on knitty and thought it was cute and quick. They are seven washcloths (think days of the week) 5 say "study" and 2 say "party." The pattern calls for duplicate stitching the letters but I stranded them on so they're a bit more secure. It's pretty easy except that because it's a flat pattern I have to strand on the purl side as well. It confused me at first but I'm much better now. They're a bit wobbly as of right now but after I get them wet and let the fibers relax they should square up. I have three done and am about 1/3 of the way done with another. I need to finish by the 10th which shouldn't be that big of a stretch as it only takes about 3 and 1/2 hours to go from start to finish on each one. These are the three I have finished so far:
Way before the knitting Olympics I started the extremely popular Swallowtail shawl in some beautiful Malabrigo yarn but stopped for the Olympics then for the family knitting so I haven't picked it up in a while. It's took me quite a while to get used to the fine yarn. I didn't think it would be that hard because I'm used to fingering weight yarn for socks and stuff, but the lace yarn just feels so fragile I have to remember that it's OK to handle it. I've only finished 4 of the 15 repeats for the body of the shawl so I've got quite a ways to go. It's very hard to photograph this yarn the color almost never comes out right but it's a beautiful semi-solid golden color that screams fall. I love it:
Another family knitting project (that will probably not get done before I go back to school) is a pair of socks for my mom. At the beginning of the summer my mom said she really wanted to learn how to knit socks so I dug up an old ball of lion brand magic strip yarn and two circular needles and started to show her how to knit toe-up socks. She didn't even get past the toe increases before she decided she didn't like it and asked if I would finish them for her. Here's how far she got, I haven't had a chance to work on them but it's one more WIP.
This is probably my longest running WIP. I started these socks for myself during the school year but have kept putting them on hold to work on other projects. These are the infamous green socks that I've mentioned several times before. I have one sock finished I'm I'm working down the leg of the second one. The yarn is Trekking Pro Natura and the pattern is "garter rib" from the Sensational Knitted Socks book. I couldn't get a good picture of the pattern but for how simple it is it looks very nice.
