finally!



striped cardigan in Phildar Licorne and Plaisance yarns
from Phildar's Evasion catalog Summer 2002
(free pattern here and here, yarn available here)

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This is how the corners of my son's blankie look after almost 3 years of lovin'.

Yikes, I've got to close up those open stitches! While I was waiting yesterday morning, yarn and crochet hook in hand, to see if I could get the blankie all to myself for half an hour, I looked out the window and thought, "heck, if it's gonna be 55 degrees outside in Boston in November, then I'm gonna wear my cardi raye!"

pieces of me

Can you tell that the boys helped take the pictures? I don't think they quite understood what it means to "see mommy" in the display. Kids - you gotta love 'em!

Oh yeah.

I spent an entire evening and part of the next morning sewing in that satin band. Not a simple task, let me tell you! For anyone planning to make this sweater, here's what I did. I folded the band over the edge to see exactly where it should be attached and then basted a line down that column of stitches. This was my guide for the actual sewing to insure that the band would look straight. Then I pinned the band in place along the basting to the inside of the sweater and sewed it on using a slipstich (see here for a photo of the slipstitch technique). After the inside was sewn down, I folded the other half of the band to the front and could sew it down the same way, but without having to pin it in place (so no pin holes on the front!). Then I could tack down the left over bits at the top and bottom and remove the basting thread. And here's the band in all her glory. (Update: You asked for it, you got it - a close up of the hook and eye band. Here's what the hooks look like while I'm wearing the sweater.)

And just because I can't look at this sweater enough, here's another shot.

Oooh la la.

I spent an evening and a half sewing on the collar for the cardi raye and weaving in all the remaining ends. Now she only needs the satin hook & eye band and she's all done.

Can you stand it?!

Hey, May ended and I didn't finish my sew-along project. Anyone else need an extension?? (Stephanie even made two more wrap tops and a ton of other things - man she's fast!)

So no sewing again this week. Well, no machine sewing that is. The cardi raye is, however, is coming together nicely!

Elsewhere in knitalongs I've neglected for the cardi raye, Linda finished her Tricot! It looks gorgeous on her. Yay, Linda! Cat finished a super fun spring fling top. Froggy made my spring fling tank (now a Chicknits Fun Fur Pick!) and Julia finished the back of her Linen Drape sweater. Way to go, knitalongers!

Time again for a clearance sale at my favorite almost-LYS, Wild & Wooly in Lexington. I went with Shannon, who by the way is great person to shop with - she can give you sensible reasons to put something back and then enable you to get something else! The first thing that caught my eye was Classic Elite Spotlight Cotton in tons of beautiful colors. This is the yarn I used to make my holiday island sweater. It's the most fabulously soft cotton. It felt wonderful to work with and is even nicer to wear. I was so pleased to see it on sale! I immediately snatched up a bag of it in salmon.

Shannon got some Spotlight in red along with some red sparkly yarn (she's a sparkle girl). Red seemed to be the color of the day. I also took home a baggie full of incredible red mohair.

I see red. I see red. I see red.

And pink.

After the sale, I popped by the fabric store to pick up the thread I need to sew on the cardi raye hook & eye ribbon band.

What a great day!

Final piece all finished. Now I can sleep. Next, the sewing!

Beginning the neck shaping. Yay!

Up to the pink! My favorite part.

Finished the green section. Two months wait for those few inches. Unbelievable.

Onward, knit!

Look what arrived from the yarn fairy yesterday!

Now I have the yarn I need to finish the cardi raye. Hip, hip, hooray!

Start the clock...

Cardi raye.

Still waiting.

So I knit the collar.

Sigh.

My new sew-as-you-go policy is great for getting my knitting projects finished in a timely fashion, but also means that I feel like I'm seaming all the time. I was hoping to have a little break from seaming until ava and the little giraffe toy were that far along, but then Michelle's gentle suggestion that I seam and weave in ends on the cardi raye while I wait for my yarn got me feeling guilty. Then, I saw that poor Jenn was suffering through the seeming on her cardi raye, and I didn't want her to have to suffer all alone. So here are the back, one sleeve, and one front panel sewn together with the ends all woven in.

And since Jenn showed her seams, here are mine!

Now, I've done just about everything I can do until the yarn comes and I can knit the other front panel. I'm being so good. I so deserve for the yarn to come today.

I've been so sick this week. Got sick on Saturday and I knew I couldn't handle any serious knitting this weekend, so I brought a small stuffed animal project to Knitsmiths on Sunday.

This is all I managed at Knitsmiths and I've done very little since then. I tried a little of the duplicate stitch, but it required more concentration than I could muster with sinus pain and stomach cramps. If I ever feel well enough to continue with this little giraffe guy, he's going to be pretty cute though, I think. I've never done a stuffed animal before, so I've joined the Zoo-Along to give me some inspiration and support. Such fun little projects!

And here's something that'll make you sick. My yarn that I waited so long for to finish the cardi raye doesn't match what I already have. I suppose that's what I get for not ordering enough the first time. So I sent out a desperate message: "be your best friend if you have Plaisance Piscine in my dye lot." And that is why Kimberly is my new best friend! So until I see her at Knitsmiths next Sunday, it's back to the cardi wait-ing game. Not that I could knit right now anyway.

While I was waiting for my yarn from the Netherlands that I need to knit the last piece of the cardi raye, I started sewing the other pieces together. Just a few inches seamed so far, but enough to get me really psyched about finally finishing this sweater!

We recall that in another still-no-yarn moment of weakness, I put the frankensweater aside and started Ava. Although I love the Calmer yarn, I still haven't gotten much further than the armholes on the back. I guess my eyes were bigger than my needles!

And in the meantime, the knitalongs went rolling on. Shannon, Colleen, Kathleen, and Larissa all finished fabulous spring fling projects. There are at least THREE linen drape projects already well underway (Anne's, Becky's, and Amy's). And because my swatch for the Vintage Knits lacy ribbed top did not come out looking anywhere near as good as Anne's or Hope's, I've changed my mind about what pattern I want to make with my linen drape. Now I'm thinking maybe this one?

Thank goodness my yarn is here. Who knows what other trouble I could have gotten myself into!

Hot off the doorstep - my yarn from the Netherlands. Yup, the Breiweb folks and the US Postal Service finally came through. And here's what it was all for - that little green ball in the center.

Phildar Plaisance in Piscine. Not available in stores, anymore - that's right, discontinued, baby! Thankfully Breiweb still had some in stock. And then I had to order a few more things to make the shipping worth it. You understand. And just for fun, I ordered one of the Phildar catalogs from them. In Dutch. I enjoy working my way through German and French patterns, so this should be a real laugh.

I'm in such a good mood now that my yarn has arrived. Here's wishing you all mooie dagen (lovely days) like today!

Four weeks and I'm still waiting on my yarn from the Netherlands to allow me to finish the cardi raye. I've had word that there was a delay so it should be here soon, but still I'm having a hard time waiting. In a fit of impatience, I sized up the tiny bit of green Plaisance yarn that I had left over from the back and decided to try starting the first front panel (it is a cardigan after all) to see if it might just be enough.

What do you know, it was enough! And now I find myself with absolutely no green yarn left and one front panel short of a sweater. Come on, postman, bring me my green yarn!

With the NYC trip and the Easter holiday, it seems like I've been out of the knitalong loop for ages! Here are a few things that I can't miss pointing out...

The spring fling is going strong. Julia has kicked off her own blog with her finished star sweater. Jackie has finished her awesome eyelet skirt from last summer's Knitty. And Melanie has completed her beautiful salsa verde tank. Way to bring the spring, ladies!

Elsewhere in knitalong-land, Loobylou has started up a Tricot-along!

I'm so in! I've got another Tricot in the works myself. How fun to have others to knit along with. And if any of you were thinking about knitting Tricot and would like a larger sized version, stay tuned - I hope to post some (long-overdue) upsized numbers next week.

And Stacy has started up a Rosebud knitalong! Well, actually it's a belly-along for any pattern that celebrates or bares your belly.

While Rosebud wasn't designed as maternity wear (see, I don't look pregnant!), there are several pregnant knitters who are interested in making it to wear over their growing bellies. Such a neat idea and a pleasant surprise! I love the idea of celebrating bellies (covered or uncovered). So for fun, I picked up a small pillow and tried on my Rosebud maternity style. Of course, this is not what I looked like pregnant. I looked more like this, which explains why I didn't get to wear my red maternity top for very long!

The Rosebud maternity try-on gave me an idea for those of you thinking about Rosebud as maternity wear: you might consider doing some short rows on the front edge to make it curved and give yourself more belly coverage. I can try to work out some numbers for you and add them to my Rosebud pattern page if you think that sounds like an interesting idea. You might also do an eyelet row in the middle of the ribbing on the body. Then you could make a crochet chain and thread it through the eyelets for a tie that ties in the back.

But you don't have to be pregnant to join the knitalong or knit Rosebud! I'm not expecting and I love my Rosebud. It's fun, light and swingy and makes me feel light and feminine. I love it so much, I even joined the knitalong to make a tank version for summer. Can I help it if I like my own patterns? (Blush.)

Somehow between catching up on all my daily reads and knitalongers' progress and signing up for more knitalongs than I could ever possibly fit on my knitalong sidebar (hee, hee), I actually managed to get some knitting done. The first cardi raye sleeve is finished.

All caught up yet?

Ooooh, the pink. Love the pink. My favorite part of the cardi raye.

Rowan Calmer. My new favorite yarn. Not that I've really made anything with it yet except a lace cap. Just got this Calmer (in the color Calmer) in exchange for the Linen Drape I posted about a while back. Thanks Lynn!

Knitalongs. Speaking of Linen Drape, I still have some waiting to become this Vintage Knits lacy top. Apparently one knitalong (the Vintage Knits Along) hasn't been enough to get this on my needles. Also in need of some motivation, Eklectika suggested a Linen Drape Along and made this fabulous button. How can I turn that down? Anyone else out there with Linen Drape (it's just been discontinued, so check sale bins and eBay for remaining stocks!), join us. Kickoff is May 1st.

A new project. My travel knitting for the NYC trip TOMORROW! Rowan Summer Tweed. Gonna keep you in suspense about the pattern until I get back. Can you stand it??

The first sleeve of my cardi raye is on the needles. Seems like a lot of us in the litte cardi raye along have been sleeving it recently. Ladies, show us your sleeves: Angela, Kimberly, Jenn. I know the rest of you want to knit this sweater now! (Check out the comments to this post if you need pattern and/or yarn info.)

In other knitalong news, you've got to see Karen's spring fling dresses, Leigh's spring fling top, Eklectika's spring fling fringe top, Julia's spring fling star sweater, Froggy's sweatpants, and Jen's sweatpants!

And did you see that Erica has started a "Kate-along" for a Phildar top? Now you can be Kate or Audrey. Which Hepburn-along are you?

I love knitalongs!

And she saw what she had made, and it was good.

After finishing the blue stripes on my cardi raye without the sparkle shit and starting the purple color that comes next, I got worried that the purple stripes were going to be too dull without the sparkles and that the purple didn't coordinate with the blue or the next color (pink) so well on its own. So I ripped out the plain purple stripes, got out the purple sparkle shit and reknit the purple stripe sequence.

Okay, I absolutely love how the sparkles change the purple into a sort of pink color! Wanna see a close-up? It's really amazing how colors can transform right before your eyes like that. The stripes look much better now.

(Wait for it...)

In the picture. Unfortunately, I still hate that sparkle shit in person. Out it goes. Nope, definitely not a sparkle girl. This time I'm convinced. No foolin'!

Back on track with the cardi raye. I ripped back to the beginning of the blue stripes (and have sparkle threads all over my sofa to prove it!) and first added several more rows of the green color to lengthen the cardi. I was concerned that the cardi would end up being too cropped for my tastes and since I was already ripping.... Then I restarted the stripes sans sparkle shit. Although I miss the variegated color effect, I love that the yarn is all uniform and the fabric is soft and drapey (instead of stiff where the sparkles were). Still, I can hear Chandra, Emma, Jenn and others' wise advice that I should live with the sparkles for a bit and give them a chance to grow on me. I'm not 100% sure that the cardi will stay this way. I suspect that too many stripes in flat colors will make the sweater less striking or throw off the color combination somehow, so you may see me back with sparkles at some point after all, ladies!

Why did I have to start with the back? I couldn't have started with a nice small sleeve. Ooooh, noooo.

So the cardi-raye along is on. Haven't seen Angela's or Kimberly's progress yet, but here's mine for the record.

So I'm knitting along, loving the Phildar Plaisance yarn I substituted for the plain green color at the bottom and then I get to those first blue stripes.

They look good don't they?! Yes, I think so too. You like the sparkles? Yes, I do too. In a picture. I love this sweater in pictures, including the little sparkles in some of the stripes. But man I hate that sparkly yarn in person. It feels crappy to knit, it's throwing off my gauge, and I just don't like how it looks up close. I really don't think I'll like the finished product if I keep going with the sparkle yarn. So, I'll most likely be ripping back to the green and starting the stripes anew, sans what I like to call 'the sparkle shit'. It makes me sad, because I really like the effect it creates. Oh well, I guess I'm not a sparkle girl after all.

Already?! As I mentioned the other day, the weather's been so warm that I can't really imagine getting any use out of my alpaca hat in the near future. In fact, it's been down-right spring-y. As a long-time Bostonian however, I don't believe for a second that it will stay this way, but still, spring here now and it's making me anxious to put away the wool and start making tanks! Which means that it's time to start my spring workout. This consists of pushing two 30 pound twin boys around town in their double-wide stroller, loaded with three bags full of diapers, snacks and toys. Once I'm in form again, I'll be able to do it without groaning on every 2 degree incline! And then I'll be ready for the tanks. I've gotten two workouts already this week! Here's what we did yesterday:

So what does tankgirl have planned for the warm weather?? Well, the Cardi-Raye-along starts mid-March. Then there's this lacy top from Vintage Knits - my entry in Supurlfluous' Vintage Knits-along (Laurin beat me to the punch - I wanted to run a VK-along this spring!). Other definites are Highland Spring from Magknits and another tiny tank. And then maybe a halter, like this one from Hollywood Knits or perhaps a Rebecca top. But wait, there's more: the Knitsmiths are cooking up a summery knit-along and I'll also be working on a couple of secret tanks of my own.

It's shaping up to be a beautiful summer of knitting! What will you be knitting??

The phildar filly is starting to rethink her "summer top" knit-along. The summer's almost over and it seems silly to start something now in such a fine gauge (read - that will take a while to finish) that will only have short sleeves. But although this filly may be fickle, she's not disloyal, so she's hunted down a few other Phildar patterns that might do for the same yarn, different season. What do you think? The cropped rolled vest (very similar in style to the original plan, just more of a vest thing going on), the patterned vest (but with a more reasonable neckline, thank you very much), or this funky cardie (with some added fuzzy front panels, fun!)? Or should I simply stick with the original pattern and wear it layered with other things (that might require losing the rolled edges)?

Don't forget, the Phidar filly is also planning on making a fabby little Phildar cardigan. The oh-so-yummy yarn arrived yesterday. Yee haw, giddy-up! Here's S checking out the new stash.

In the second picture, he's actually saying "wow". The kid has taste!

And there will definitely be another Phildar sweater or two in this filly's future. But I want to start the Phil - um, I mean fall - season off right, so I've got to figure out this knitalong thing first.