Done! Da Da da da (Fanfare please)

Things I learned from this project:

1. (and most suprising lesson) - When you unravel rib stitching from the bottom (in an effort to shorten a sleeve), it does not act as the right-side up stitches. There are weird twists and what you want to be the "working yarn" goes through the stitches. As a single piece, not as a loop. Thus, it is smartest to do as many knitting books and experts suggest and use a stitch holder or other needle to pick up one leg of each stitch you want to get to.
2. Caffiene does things to me. If I don't have food in my stomach, but I've drank one (or two or three) diet cokes with lime, I get a little jittery. And concentrating is difficult.
3. I have the best boyfriend a knitter can have. Really, you all should be jealous. Last Sunday, he brought me a case (24) of diet coke with lime, two boxes of girl scout cookies and flowers. Today, as I was putting on some finishing touches, he said (at the idea of me not finishing) that "by hook or by crook, I'd do what I could to help you finish!" Hook or by crook! How sweet. And he hasn't complained at all that he's finding alpaca fuzz everywhere. And when he realizes how important it is, he stops using his generic "whatever you think would be best, darling" response when I ask him a knitwear related question. He was very helpful both in deciding the length of the collar and the final button selection.
4. Having a serious project to work on does not decrease my "winter blah" depressed stage. I'm just really glad this sweater was black. Pink would have made me want to jump a cliff.
5. Set in sleeves aren't so bad. Neither is seaming them. And the finished product is so worth the extra effort.
6. When using bobbles on a project, it might be a good idea to make sure that one won't lie where your nipple does.
7. It's important to think ahead so that a cable can continue on it's way without becoming interuppted by an armhole or even close to an armhole.
8. When you knit at a large-ish gauge, you don't need buttonholes.

status report

Thus far, I have eaten an entire box of girl scout cookies, drank 18 diet cokes, tinked an immesurable amount, and knitted about 6 balls of yarn.

I've finished 1 sleeve, the right front, and the back. F ya... I love it. But there is only 60% of the time remaining. EEEK. Two more pieces seems totally do able, but then I get to thinking about the seaming (only my second time seaming and my first time doing set in sleeves), and the button bands, and then the collar. And I keep forgetting about the freaking pockets. So, I'm going to knit like crazy this weekend.

progress

I started right at 2. It was very exciting. And in a particularly sweet gesture, my boyfriend called very soon after to wish me luck. He's so supportive. I love him.
Anyway, here's where I was at 3 pm today.



Then, many hours later (I haven't done a whole lot today) this is what I got:







The bites near the top are the shaping for the armholes. Yea. Armholes. On the first day...

Oh, Procrastination.

That's the problem with knitting. It's productive procrastination. Why read a book that has nothing to do with knitting when one can finish a bag?

Why do laundry when you can catch up on the sleep lost last night while knitting?

Why listen to a boring lecture about libel when you can plan out your knitting olympic challenge?

Why even go to school?

Ah yes. To prepare for a career which will allow for the means to knit.

First sadness, now pain!

(Blocking 2.0 has not been attempted yet. I think I'm saddened by the thought of it not working. Thus, I procrastinate as a defense mechanism.)

So. I've been working on a bag (here and there) for the past few weeks. Last night, I felted it.

Let me take a minute to remind you that I am a college student. I do not have access to a non-laudromat style washing machine. Thus, if I want to felt anything I have to do it the old-fashioned way. In the sink. With hot water. And lots and lots of Dawn.

Let me resume. So, I felted my bag yesterday. 45 minutes later (yea, 45 freaking minutes!) I was done. I had no idea that the process would take so much time. After 15 minutes, my fingers were hurting and my wrist was aching. But I didn't want to have to come back and felt some more later. So I kept at it.

I gave myself blisters! Blisters! On my fingertips! I am officially nuts. My absurd obsession for knitting has finally hurt me. Don't believe me?

See the white skin right near the tip of my fingernail on my middle finger? A popped blister. And the red discoloration on my ring finger? Another blister.

But anyway, I'm pretty happy with how the bag has turned out. I've felted some bags before, but they've never come out the way I wanted. I wanted something deep enought to fit some school books so that I can use it when I go to class. Finally, I got what I wanted. See -

I think it turned out pretty well. I still have some minor finishing to take care of, but I'm incredibly pleased with it. It makes me want to hand felt things more often (I feel like I had more control in the process - the finished product wasn't a suprise). If only I could do it without seriously injuring myself. Hmmm.

Anyway, I was inspired by a Classic Elite pattern that was pictured on the back of a copy of my interweave. Here's a photo. Let me know what you think. I think I came pretty close.


Olympic update: I have everything mostly swatched. I still have to decide on my major cable, but since I'm knitting the back first, I can decide on that later. I think I'm going to take it easy on the amount of knitting I do between here and friday so that my hand cramp (stupid hand felted bag!) can completely go away and not bite me in the ass later.

tears of sadness....

So, I finished my sweater, as one can see from the previous post. I thought I'd be a good knitter and block the thing. You know, even out the stitches, do what I'm supposed to do.

So, last night, I washed my sweater, by hand in one of the very small sinks on my floor. I pressed it between some towels to get as much of the moisture out as possible. It lie, pinned and spread on a blocking board overnight - with a fan moving the air around it. That's what you're supposed to do right?

I've ruined it. Absolutely destroyed it. It has gone from the Mona Lisa to my little sister's 1st grade finger paintings. I want to weep.

It is now gigantic. I'm talking monolific. The same league as the Sears tower.

Tonight, if I have the courage, blocking 2.0 will be attemted.

I'll keep you updated.

I finished my sweater!

It took me only 20 days, but I'm incredibly happy with it. It's really basic but it's just a great sweater to throw on for some warmth. Or if I'm having a kind of day where I want to feel like I'm actually worth something. (on a side note, my mother insists that it looks better on her and she wants to steal it.)