FO: Granny socks

Pattern: Improvised/taken from the ball band
Materials: Novita 7 Veljestä
Amount: About 3 skeins
Needles: 4.0 mm (second batch) and 4.5 mm (first batch)

First batch (turquoise and brown)
Started: 5.3.2010
Finished: 5.4.2010

Second batch (pink and gray)
Started: 5.10.2010
Finished: 9.11.2010



When I was younger our grandmother used to make us thick woolen socks every year. They were made according to either the pattern in the ball bands or some inherited simplified pattern



They were always gray and gloomy. But they were warm and the penultimate in functionality. They lasted forever and warmed the feet while skating and skiing and all those wintry hobbies.



They grew small. So I needed a new pair and the hubby needed a new pair and I gave a pair to a friend who needed a pair as well. So I knit some.

FO: Shedir

Pattern: Shedir (Ravelry)
Materials: Novita Luxus Alpaca
Amount: 1 skein (roughly 178 yards)
Needles: 3.5 mm

Started: 24.11.2009
Finished: 30.3.2010



The pattern is fussy, there's a whole lot going on and especially in the beginning it's very easy to lose your place. On the other hand the end result is stunning, there are so many repeats that you learn the pattern by heart and did I mention the end result is a whole lot of beautiful? And impressive. Whenever I whip this out as an example of my knitting, non-knitters are completely in awe and think I'm a knitting god.

The yarn is gorgeous and soft and smooshy as much as such a thin yarn can be.

Looking back, I should've knit the ribbing on smaller needles. That's a given for all hats but I learned it only after I finished the ribbing and that had seemed like such a neverending slog through darkness that I just couldn't.



I don't think I'll ever knit this again, but knowing all that I know now I would still do it the first time. Like I said, the end result is beautiful.

FO: Vine Lace Cardi

Pattern: #77 Vine Lace Top Down Cardigan (Ravelry)
Materials: Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky
Amount: 7.75 skeins (roughly 970 yards)
Needles: 9.0 mm

Started: 8.7.2009
Finished: 16.1.2010



Modifications: Left out the pockets from the bottom and instead continued the lace panels. Also continued the ribbing in the sleeves for longer than instructed.



This turned out a little too big for me. Damn my loose style. If I lose weight, I might well reknit this. Currently it is just small enough that I can wear it just fine. I really loved the pattern and the finished product is incredibly smooshy and comforting. The yarn - not surprisingly - sheds a whole lot while knitting, while wearing and while washing. The cardigan however is so warm that I might be able to just wear this outside even in the dead of winter, which is a wonderful thing.

FO: Panache

Pattern: Pretty Thing (Ravelry)
Materials: Novita Isoveli
Amount: 5.5 skeins (roughly 780 yards)
Needles: 6.0 mm

Started: 16.12.2009
Finished: 7.1.2010



Just before Christmas last year my lovely hubby, Tommi, notified me that we were invited to the 90th birthday party of his grandmother on the 8th of January. Still riding the high of the very pretty thing I told him I'd knit her a shawl for a present since those do always seem to go down well.

I did manage to finish on time, mostly because of the modifications mentioned below. As I remember it, the pattern was great and the whole thing seemed to build up very quickly. This project started for me a real appreciation of shawls and resulted in me having a few different shawls on the needles even right now.

Modifications: In the interest of finishing on time I finished on row 108 instead of 131. I also added yo, k1 instead of the crocheted edging.

FO: Very pretty thing

Pattern: Pretty Thing
Materials: Sandnes Garn Alpakka
Amount: Roughly 1.25 skeins (150 yards)
Needles: 3.0 mm
Finished Dimensions:

Started: 3.12.2009
Finished: 12.12.2009



I'm so way behind on my blogging. Last December (so nearly a year ago) I was going to a stitch 'n' bitch straight from work not having really planned it through ahead of time. Meaning I didn't have any knitting with me and just before leaving work started frantically perusing my Ravelry queue for something small and useful to knit and ended up with this. I think this might easily be the shortest amount of time I've ever taken to knit anything from start to finish.

The pattern is lovely, although it's loveliness sort of gets lost in the fuzziness of the alpaca. The pattern is also very logical and has a wonderful flow to it.

It's very likely I'll make another sometime in the future out of some other yarn.