My Other Obsession... Re-emerged

Let's face it, as much as we try to not let social media take over our lives, it does. I've come to terms with this, and instead of fighting I will embrace social media that is actually interesting and can teach me some new things. Cue Pinterest. I joined pinterest last year after my roommates forced me to and at first didn't have much interest in it.. but that changed quite quickly. I was soon addicted, pinning recipes and wedding ideas during my class lectures instead of studying for finals. Like all other media trends, I soon forgot about pinterest and moved on to focusing on the summer, the new school year, friends, family, etc. But recently I've rediscovered pinterest and my love for it is at full throttle. Lately I've been pinning a lot about weddings (because what girl doesn't love thinking about that day?), different appetizers (because I LOVE to cook), and of course creative knits.

Loaded spicy spinach mushrooms

Brides maid dresses

Pinterest has inspired me to try so many new and interesting techniques for knitting and I can't wait to complete the long list of ideas that keeps growing day by day...

Big Herringbone Pattern

Patons Classic Wool Free Hat Pattern

Heart Heel Socks

What are some of your latest pinterest finds?

DIY: Knitting Labels

Over the past year I've enjoyed making many knitted things for myself as well as friends and family, but whenever I gave anything knitted as a gift something felt missing. I've created these two PDFs for homemade knitted tags. Download the PDF, print, cut them out and voila! Adorable tags with a homey feel. Print on rustic paper for an even more personal touch.
 

Click here



Click here  

This could be dangerous...

Over the weekend I visited my first ever specialty yarn and fabric store, and I have to say.. my wallet is in trouble I'm in love! The store is Stitch Your Art Out and located just outside of State College, PA. I found the store through facebook and finally decided to go check it out. The yarn selection was beautiful, although the store was fairly small, there was such an array of yarn weights and materials... I have a feeling this will be my new shop for knitting projects-- buhbye Walmart and JoAnn! (And buhbye all my money!)

I've started a new cowl (yes-- another cowl) with these two Berroco yarns. I'll post some photos once I get a little further along with it!



Finished Chevron Cowl

Just in time for this windy and sub-zero February is my knitted Chevron cowl! It's knit on a reverse stockinette with two worsted weights knitted together (cream and stone) alternating with a bulky sky blue Lion Brand yarn. Because this is so thick it knitted up really easily, and I especially love how you can see the zig zag pattern on the light blue portions.

Here's a few close-ups...

Right Side...

...Wrong Side

Overall this was a fun knit, the pattern is a 6 row repeat so you'll never get bored-- and alternating colors adds a nice twist! Instead of breaking the yarn when changing colors I just carried the spare yarn up the side of the work which turned out great! The pattern for this cowl can be found here :) I repeated the 6 rows 4 times and then changed colors. Enjoy!

A Quick Knit...

Seeing as the high for this week was 11°F (and about -5°F all week with windchill-- I kid you not!) I put aside my chevron stitch cowl and knitted up a quick, comfy and warm scarf that only took about 4 hours total (I was also speed knitting, determined to have it in time for walking to class the next day). This is a great knit for cold weather because the scarf is very wide, which covers a lot of your neck and face, and the lace allows your skin to still breathe. This also makes a great last minute birthday present-- I made one for a friend over Thanksgiving break and she loves it!

I used a combination of purse lace stitch and garter stitch to knit this beauty up. The purse lace stitch is just P1, *YO, P2Tog; rep from * to last St, P1 (must CO multiples of 2-- I COed 28 stitches).

Thanks Susan for modeling :)

I used dirt cheap  inexpensive Red Brand worsted weight yarn in plum for this scarf. Although Red Brand has gotten a bad rap for being scratchy and uncomfortable I found that pre washing it with shampoo really helps soften it. 

Start out the scarf with garter stitch for 4 rows and then switch to purse lace; add in 4 rows of garter stitch whenever you get bored of knitting purse lace  want to aesthetically enhance the look of your scarf. 

First Project of 2013!

Combining the two yarns...

Now that I've gotten back to school, purchased all my texts books, gone to my first week of class and (reluctantly) started homework, I'm finally ready to start my first project of 2013. Since being back at school it has already snowed/hailed/rained several times and has reminded me that I am in need of another comfy scarf. Because I'm a poor college student  Because I want to try using my stash yarn before buying anything new, I'm gonna to try a combo of three different skeins...  worsted weight in cream, worsted weight in stone, and a chunky powder blue. To off set the weight of the chunky yarn i'm going to knit with the cream and stone together to get a comparable width. Below are some pictures of my beginning work. The stitch I am using is called the "Chevron Stitch" (on reverse stockinette). 

Anddd color change!

 The Chevron stitch creates a nice subtle horizontal zigzag using reverse stockinette that I think looks great on large pieces (scarves, hats, blankets).  Below are the instructions on how to create this same chevron stitch (note: for the color change, I carried the alternate yarn up the right side of the work instead of breaking the yarn).

Chevron Stitch:

Row 1 (RS): K5, *P1, K5; rep from * to end.

Row 2: K1, *P3, K3; rep from * to last 4 stitches, P3, K1.
Row 3: P2, *K1, P2; rep from * to end.
Row 4: P1, *K3, P3; rep from * to last 4 stitches, K3, P1.
Row 5: K2, *P1, K5; rep from * to last 3 stitches, P1, K2.
Row 6: Purl all stitches.

Repeat rows 1-6 for the length of your piece :)

2012 Reflection: Stash and FO's

Past works and current stash... I didn't realize just how much yarn I had accumulated until it was all laid out in front of me (whoops!)...

Looking back on when I taught myself how to knit in July 2012, I think I've come a long way from just regular garter stitch scarves! ~From left to right: basic socks; seed stitch infinity scarf; striped stockinette scarf; Angel Hair ear flap hat; cabled head band; cabled scarf~

Some of my biggest goals for 2013 are to learn how to felt, use the magic loop knitting method, and to complete an entire wardrobe made from knitted items... oh, and to learn a few more unique stitches/patterns. What are some of your knitting resolutions?