Check! Check!

Deadline #5: November 30: Finish Chart D (rows 151-200) - Done.
Deadline #6: December 10: Finish Charts E-F (rows 201-288) - Done.

I’m up to the lace panel bit that is Deadline #7 but unfortunately I had to go back to the first half of the stole and play a little catch-up. My Deadline #1 said to knit rows 238-288 and that’s exactly what I did...which means that the first half of the stole wasn’t completely done. Oops.

I went back and knit the missing part: rows 331-334 and a row of K2, K2tog, K95. The yarn was already broken and of course I didn't leave a long enough tail to knit an additional 500 sts; thankfully I had put aside a mini-ball before casting on for the second half so it all worked out. I'll just have to weave in an extra end.

I’m reading over the directions for the symmetrical stole and am having a bit of trouble understanding how the attaching of the halves will work but I’m sure I’ll figure it out as I go. A *very* quick search doesn’t show anyone sharing my concerns so I’m probably overcomplicating the issue.

Either way, I’m very proud of the fact that I’m about two weeks ahead of schedule!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Quick knitting news before I dash off to NJ for the holiday:

I finished Christmas Surprise #1. More will come on this project after Christmas but if you’re curious and have a Ravelry account, you can look it up there.

I finished MS3 Deadline #4 ["Finish Chart D (rows 151-200)"] and have printed out and numbered Chart E. I can’t believe I’m just 88 rows away from the lace panel!

On November 19, I cast on for Christmas Surprise #2. I’ll work on it in the car today. God knows I’ll probably be spending enough time creeping along and I'm hoping to make fabulous progress on this easy project. Knitting really does make traffic more bearable and I can’t knit lace in the car anyway so I won't be wasting time.

Cherie Amour has been calling my name and I’ll have to answer pretty soon. I bought a cute green shirt that will look nice under Cherie and I’m looking forward to wearing it. The chilly weather isn’t hurting either. ;)

Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!

Movin' right along

I'm moving right along. I used to be a one-project-at-a-time gal, but I’m not anymore. Even though I really do love Mystery Stole 3 / Swan Lake, I’m having such a hard time knitting it! Thankfully the deadlines have kept me going but I’m going to cast on for Christmas Surprise #1 ASAP because time’s running out.

I’ve been doing my lace knitting in front of the tv or while listening to my audiobook (a first for me!) so I’m in good shape as far as the deadlines go. I hit pause to count each WS row to make sure I have 99 sts and so far all has been well. Since CS1 will be a quick, easy knit, figure it won’t take *too* much time away from MS3 and I should be able to finish it all on time.

I bought extra balls of yarn for two past projects and I’m going to Michael’s tomorrow after work to return them. While I’m there, I’ll see if I can buy some yarn to knit both CS1 and CS2. Both are going to be stealth knitting projects as the recipients occasionally read my blog and Christmas Surprise #2 may turn into a birthday present if I run out of time. We’ll see how it goes.

Penny's pullover

Finally, it gets a post!

The Penny Pullover has been “done” for a while but I never really posted about it. I’ve forgotten a lot of the details that I'd usually include in a FO post, but I’ll show off what I can.

Started: September 10, 2007
Finished: September 30?, 2007
Yarn: 1 ½ skeins of Paton's SWS (Soy Wool Stripes - 70% Wool - 30% Soy; 80 g; 110 yds. per skein) in "Natural Garden"
Gauge: 4.5 sts/inch in K3 P3 ribbing
Needles: Circs: Size 6 for neck, Size 7 for transition, and Size 8 for body

My last mention of The Penny Pullover was on September 20 when I said that I needed to make additional modifications. At that point I'd already done away with the little v-neck that's in the pictures below and was trying to figure out if I wanted to come up with some sort of a tie/bow/something-or-other or throw it out and start over. Since I was pretty happy with my modifications up to that point I decided to go with the flow. I made an i-cord collar to prevent the ribbing from stretching all over the place but it was still too wide for Penny’s little neck.

As it got colder out (just after Halloween) and I had difficulty getting her harness over her jacket/coat, I decided to semi-fix the collar. To keep the neck from stretching too out of proportion, I wove a piece of yarn throughout the collar, starting and ending at the top center of the neck. To finish it off, I double-knotted the string and tied a cute little bow. She looks adorable in the sweater and it fits her just fine. I’m going to make her another sweater with a different neck, but the rest of the design is ideal because:

• the ribbing makes for a comfy fit and keeps her (squat, furry, little sweetie that she is) from looking like a sausage
  
• both legs going through one large hole makes for easy on/off
  
• the tapered sides keep the garment out of her way
  
• the design is not bulky so the harness is easy to get on and off.
  

Other than The Penny Pullover, my knitting "news" has been a bit boring. I’ve been working on MS3 almost exclusively and am halfway through deadline #4. Cherie Amour briefly saw the light of day before being put aside with the neckwarmer (which will probably be done sometime in the Spring) and Classy Slip Up Sock #2 (which I would love to knit but simply can't get to with these holiday deadlines. Other than MS3, which is going to my MIL, I have two other projects I'd like to wrap in holiday paper. *sigh*