Ms. Marigold Finished

After a bit of frogging and re-knitting, Ms. Marigold is finished.

Yarn: Berocco Touche, color Bubblegum #7932, 6 skeins.

Pattern: Zephyr Girls, found here

Bill finds his inner-photographer.

Modifications: When it was all said and done, I pretty much followed the pattern as written. I added the shaping past the armhole at the sides instead of only in the front, and I also added some waist shaping. I sewed down the ruffles on the sides so they didn't just "sit" there. I did seed stitch borders instead of ribbing.

Verdict: Good! It's a cute little summer top, and I wore it out to dinner on Saturday. It's just a tad snug, but I am expecting cotton to stretch a little, so we'll see. I LOVED working with the Touche. It's a cotton/rayon blend and totally soft and a little shiny. Not splitty, just real nice. Softer than Cotton Fleece. I got some in the dark purple to make Rusted Root next.

I decided to fancy it up a little more by adding beads along the neckline. I tried to string them directly onto the Touche yarn, but that wasn't happening easily. So, I bought matching sewing thread and carried it along with the yarn and pulled up a bead when I needed it. They are a little loose, and carrying thread along with yarn is a pain in the you-know (there was an event involving me, scissors, curse words and a tangled mess), but I think it was worth it.

See the beads?

I'm glad this one's done, but funny thing, it really isn't. I re-knit the bottom hem twice and the neckline twice. Got the ruffles on the first try. But, after wearing it on Saturday, I decided it could be a tad longer, so it's on needles right now awaiting an extra inch or so of seed stitch. Then, I swear, it will be finito!

Blogiversary and WIP update

Here is a look at the knitting pile occupying me lately:

Something "Blushy", aka knit and tonic's Something Red. This is attempt #2 at making a pink cardigan with cables to give it a fitted look. It needs to be blocked, but I think it gets at what I was going for. Unfortunately, I ran out of yarn here - with about 1/3 of the sleeve to go. Order for 1 more ball has been made. This should be done next week.

Trellis, from Knitty. I'm not sure yet who this is for. I have 2 pregnant friends and depending on who has what (sex-wise), this may get done speedy or slowly.

My poor mother's lingering sweater. I know she won't wear this 'til fall, but I really need to get my act together and finish it! I've got the back and one sleeve done and just started the front.

Ms. Marigold. Ah, Ms. Marigold. Those who read last week's post might notice that she looks a little shorter. Hmm. Well, I was just about finished the bottom last night and decided to try it on. It was way too big! I ripped back to the armhole and am inserting decreases instead. I tried it on again and am glad to report it fits. Maybe this one will get done next week too.

Last, and yes, least, is the Cable Down Raglan. Why did I cast this on? I don't know. I've wanted to get it going for a while and think it will get good wear on cool nights and early fall. Isn't there enough in my WIP pile as it is, though? What was I thinking? Seriously.

And, this week is my approximate 1 year blogiversary. Thanks to those who read and/or comment. I think the feedback, advice and help we share in this community is just amazing. So, thanks!

Ms. Marigold: Revisited

Last summer I knit Ms. Marigold using elann Sonata. This is what she looked like:

Hi, I'm Ms. Marigold. I'm too short (see Amanda pulling my sides down?) and too tight across the middle.

To make a long story short, I ran out of yarn for this project twice, which means the little ruffle was not very ruffly, and well, that's what I like about the project. In the end it took me 4 balls of Sonata, though I could have easily used 5 to make it longer and rufflier. So the total cost of that project was about $7.92 in yarn + who knows how much in frustration.

What was the fate of Ms. Marigold? Well, she was placed in a bag to be donated and may be in the land of misfit knits for all I know. I figured since I could buy a sandwich combo meal for what she cost to make, it wasn't worth frogging. It felt good to send her away and start over.

I bought some Berroco Touche in a yummy bubblegum color (and bought LOTS of it, no running out of yarn this time!) and have re-started my new, improved Ms. Marigold:

A few changes this time: I cast on for the 36" version and followed instructions to the point where the armholes are formed. At this point, there are no stitch counts. This section was tight on me the first time, so I took a tape measure and measured myself around where the front section would join. I estimated I wanted it to be 30" around, so at 5 sts/in, I needed 150 sts total on the needles after increasing and casting on the center 10 sts.

I had my problems with the pattern, but mainly I thought it was kinda half-a**ed. For $5.50, or whatever it was, I don't necessarily need a schematic, but this pattern was just poorly written, not to mention the underestimate of yardage! Anyway, I know the Zephyr Girls have improved their patterns since, as I purchased a copy of Wicked, which has schematics and stitch counts. Usually I like figuring things out and designing a little when I knit, but I don't want to feel like I have to make up for what a pattern that I purchased lacks.

Now I just have to go round and round til I reach the bottom hem. AND! I bought some fun beads to try decorating the neckline. More on that later.

Ms. Marigold Finished

Ms. Marigold finally finished blocking last night - the rainy weather doesn't really facilitate speeding blocking. Here she is.

The Details:
Pattern: Ms. Marigold, available at zephyrstyle.com
Yarn: Elann Sonata in Ruby, 4 balls with nothing to spare
Verdict: So-so. I like the pattern but it was a frustrating process. Here are my gripes with this one. I thought the pattern lacked some guidance. For instance, I usually double check and keep track of my stitches anyway, but before joining in the round, after doing all those increases, there was no guideline for about how many stitches should be on the needle. I ended up counting and doing the gauge math, realized that I had about 30" of fabric around, even though I was knitting the 34". So, I added on some extra increases before joining in the round.

My other major gripe was that I ran out of yarn. Twice. I used up my 3rd ball before even getting to the bottom border, which I did in seed stitch instead of rib. So, I ordered 1 more from Elann, thinking that would be plenty. Wrong! I finished the bottom (added some increases to allow for my hips) and v-neck border and had only enough yarn to crochet 2 rounds over the ruffle, not 4. In a perfect world, I would like this to be a little longer, I would have knit the 36" size and I would like enough yarn to have rufflier ruffles. I might knit this again with some modifications, but overall I'm pleased with it (I wore it to work today).

Some more shots:

In other knitting news, I scored some Cascade Indulgence on sale ($5.70/ball, regularly $9.50) from Knot Another Hat for the Embellished V Neck from the new VK. And, Stitches East is coming to the Baltimore Convention Center November 2-5. There are supposed to be lots of vendors at the Stitches Market - has anyone ever been to one of these? Sounds like trouble for my wallet!

I ran out

I was moving right along on Ms. Marigold, knitting, knitting, knitting in the round. A little boring, but I felt like I was in the home stretch. I kept looking at the 3rd ball, attached to my needles, getting smaller and smaller. I was worried I was going to run out of yarn.

I was right. I started the edging (in seed stitch instead of the rib specified) and ran out about 3/4" in. Argh! I'm not sure what went wrong. I used 3 balls on elann's Sonata (115 yards each), which is actually more yards than the called for 3 skeins of Knitpicks Elegance. So, I went to elann to get the 1 more ball needed (hoping the dye lot is the same, or at least not too different looking) and ended up tacking on 6 balls of Devon, the 100% Virgin wool that others have been raving about. I think I have a pattern picked out for that one:

Embellished V-Neck from Vogue Knits Fall 2006. I'll need to knit a bigger size to get the correct gauge since the pattern calls for 21 sts/4" and Devon knits up at 25 sts.

I swatched for Arisaig last night and have re-written the pattern for a 34" finished size and to take Liz's modifications into account. I hope to cast on tonight!

I just can't help it

I said that I was going to make some more progress on my 2 existing knitting projects before starting another one. I said that. Well, I don't know what it is, but I just can't help it. I kept picking up the pattern for Ms. Marigold and reading it. I liked that it was divided into sections. None of my other WIPs were written like that. I kept looking at the neat, wound up balls of Sonata in bright red that were begging to be knit. So, I did it. I cast on for Ms. Marigold and completely neglected everything else all week. But, I've made lovely progress.

Done up to the armholes, almost ready to join in the round.

In other news, I found some Jaeger MM 4 ply in a yummy shade of pink (my favorite) to make Arisaig. I am going to at least keep my promise not to cast on anything new for fall until my summer projects are complete. I must stick to it!!! Otherwise, I know I will have unfinished summer items that will sit all winter and then be old news when new spring patterns come out. Discipline!

I swear this will stay wound up....for now....