FO: Bella's Flip-top Mittens

Pattern: Bella's Mittens by Marielle Henault
Yarn: Berroco Peruvia, just over 1 skein of Chipotle
Needles: US 8

I have had one heck of a head cold for the past week or so and these mittens have been just what I needed. The pattern is great, each row is written out so it requires very little concentration which is not something I have been able to do with my throbbing head. I have a think for moss stitch so I changed the palm to be moss rather than stockinette. I also followed some modifications on Ravelry to make them flip-top. I didn't do the sewn bind-off but rather bound off using a super stretchy bind off in the last issue of Knitty. It worked great and no sewing! I will be sure to use that for the next pair of toe-up socks I make. I also did not rib the bottom of the flip-top, I wanted the moss stitch to be uninterrupted. I added thumb slots by placing 4 inner stitches onto waste yarn and then casting on another 4. After finishing the thumb I knit back and forth over the 4 stitches knitting or purling the last stitch of a row together with one of the bumps from an adjacent stitch inside the thumb so the flap sat on the inside without having to go back and sew it in place. I completely fudges the decreases but I think they look ok. I bought myself a proper iron to go with my sewing machine so I decided to steam block the mittens. In addition to setting the stitches nicely I think the steam actually helped my sinuses so it was a win win situation. I used leftover Berroco Peruvia from my Tilted Duster to make these, it works nicely but I do think a true bulky yarn would be the best for these mittens. I ended up diving back into the stash searching for scraps since these took like a yard more than one skein. I'm sure without the flip-top one skein would be enough. So overall I'm very happy, I think it will be convenient to have these mitts and they are really cute.

I hope soon to be able to concentrate enough on my husband's Christmas gift, I'm almost halfway done the body and I really want him to be able to wear it this winter! Here's a snea peak, I'll write more when my attentions span is back to normal.

FO: Mayer

Pattern: Mayer
Yarn: Berroco Peruvia 8 skeins
Neddles: US8 and 9

Where did November go? It's been crazy around these parts but there has still been knitting. When Mayer came through my inbox it was love at first sight. Once the yarn arrived at Woolworks I was off and pretty much entirely monogamous with this project. It seemed like it took longer than I had anticipated and the brioche stitch bothered my hands a bit but maybe I was just anxious. I love the sweater but it sags and the cuffs are too chunky. If I were to make it again I would knit at a tighter guage and perhaps make it with a higher neckline. I'd also knit smaller cuffs, probably by casting on fewer stitches or not folding them over so they wouldn't be so bulky. That being said it is a very cozy sweater that I have worn several times already. I will likely crochet around the inside of the neckline for more stability, I really hope it doesn't grow too much over time. You can see from the picture it's sagging down near the bottom of my chest. I should have known better. I needed to go back for another skein of yarn and I ended up using almost the entire thing even though my sweater may be a tiny bit shorter. So glad there was yarn left. I have more fun stuff to show, I just need to put down the knitting and blog more often.