FO: Suzzane's Purse

Pattern: Suzzane's Purse by Debbie Tuttle

Yarn: Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted less than one skein of onyx

Needles: Denise US 10.5

I've been promising this awhile so hopefully it isn't too anticlimactic. I used a leftover skein of the Lamb's Pride from my Buttony sweater and the oval pearl beads are from the evil empire (Wal-mart). I really, really like this purse. I cast on 5 extra stitches and did 18 garter stitch rows to upsize it a bit. The only other mod was a 5 stitch Icord for the handle instead of garter stitch rows because I thought it would look better with a cylindrical handle. It fits all of my stuff perfectly and seems really sturdy. I've been using it all week and it will be perfect for the wedding I have to attend on Saturday.

This was not only my first felted item but my first hand felted item. We are pretty new homeowners so we got an energy efficient front loading washer when we moved in. Instead of trying my luck at felting in the washer (I will next time...) I know there was a tutorial on knitty so I decided to hand felt the purse and save some water and energy. This is how the purse looked after the knitting was done:

It then went into a bucket with some hand soap and very hot water and I went at it with my baby plunger. I got some strange looks when buying this tiny plunger, I'm sure the people at Lowes thought I'd be elbow deep in some toilet. The cashier did ask and I think he understood what I was going to do, I wonder if he'll ask the next person if they are going to use that plunger on his or her knitting!

So hand felting took a long time and I made quite the mess in my bathtub. My arms were burning the next day but the result was worth it. I maybe could have felted it a bit more but I like the size it is now.

I'm thinking I will make another in some Berroco Jasper I have sitting in my stash. I've been looking for the perfect use for it and I think this great pattern will show off the stripes beautifully.

Happy Father's Day!

My dad got a kick out of this beer sweater when he found it in the fridge yesterday. I think it is going to live in there to suprise unsuspecting guests like it suprised him :)



Life got in the way this week so I'll show my new felted purse next time, I'm off to BBQ with Dad.

FO: Twinkletoes

Pattern: Twinkletoes by Chloe Sparkle Knitty winter 2006

Needles: Susan Bates
US5 dpn

Yarn: Filaturia Di Crossa Zara

Ok this one is cheating a bit because I knit the first one well over a year ago with yarn I picked up in the Knitting Nook's discount bin. When I ordered yarn for my Swallowtail shawl from Knitpicks I added the suede bottoms and was motivated last weekend to finish the second slipper. I don't really like sewing so it took another week to get the bottoms on. No matter how many times I tried they still came out crooked and I just don't care enough to fix them. The pattern is pretty nice but I'm not thrilled with how mine look or fit, the heel is just too high for me and if I hadn't knit the first one so long ago (and twice) I would have just done a short row heel. I love the yarn so once this heatwave is over I'll probably still wear them. I really want a sweater out of this Zara, it is so so nice and wears very well. I have some Fetching gloves that haven't pilled at all with tons of wear.

I felted something this weekend but it is still drying so I will have all the gory details later in the week.

FO: Anthropologie Inspired Capelet

Pattern: Anthropologie Inspired Capelet by Julia Allen

Needles: Denise US 10.5

Yarn: Plymouth Baby Alpaca Grande 179.3 yards

This was a nice quick knit and I love the finished product. I chose to use a stockinette rather than reverse stockinette but I did keep two stitches in garter stitch at each end after the ribbing at the neckband. I added length too. I blocked this rather aggressively to get a better fit and open up the lacy increases and it seems to have worked well, at least I'm going to keep telling myself it doesn't look too tight. The only thing that is disappointing is that the yarn lost a bit of it's softness and fluffiness with the washing. It still is wonderful and at this gauge has a nice drape but the oh my goodness this is the softest thing ever is gone. I have a little bit of yarn left that I might make a cowl out of and I definitely won't be blocking that. Despite being a bulky alpaca yarn I think this is lightweight enough to be warn on a warm summer evening over a cute top or dress. Now I just need to find the right pin to close it up.