Hedgehog Knits

Adventures in knitting from the eastern edge of Canada.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Churning out sweaters

Thank you for the kind comments about Nick's sweater, and for the birthday wishes! Yes, I have the happy coincidence of being born on the first day of spring, although it seems like it is hardly ever accompanied by spring-like weather (it's minus 15 in Ottawa today).

I have been treated to some knitterly gifts. Here are the contents of a package Nick gave me this morning:


The yarn is Hand Maiden Great Big Sea Silk (a blend of Silk, merino, and sea cell) and the fibre is two different slivers of silk/wool blend by Fleece Artist. I just love the bright colours.


I've never spun silk before, so it should be interesting to work with. The book will be a big help on my quest to clear out the stash some more, and it will be great for ideas on what to do with small amounts of my handspun. I don't think I'll be spinning a sweater's worth of yarn on a drop spindle any time soon! My family sent other wonderful things, including gift cards for Michaels and Chapters, which will also go to crafty purposes. I feel so spoiled!

I'm actually on track to finish three different sweaters this week. Imagine! Me, who hasn't finished a sweater in almost a year! The Sitcom Chic cardigan got pulled out of storage a couple of days ago, and lo and behold, I only had the yoke and the bands to knit. I had thought there was much more to go. I finished it up, weaved in the ends, and because the front bands are prone to rolling, decided to give it a good wet blocking and show it who's boss. I tossed it into the sink, and .... gasp! Horror! Could it really be true?


Apparently I have been kicked in the rear by the dye-lot monster (he's the gauge monster's first cousin, don'tcha know?). The yarn is a, um, "budget" worsted cotton/acrylic blend bought at WalMart in Calgary last summer. It's called TLC Cotton Plus. I can't imagine that I didn't check the dye lots when I bought it, as I'm usually pretty picky about that. I didn't keep all the ball bands to check though. Apparently the first ball must have been a bit off - the sweater is knit seamless from the bottom up.

The funny thing is that it is almost dry now, and you really can't see the difference. It only shows when wet. Now I'm torn. I have more than a full ball left, so I could rip out the bottom, re-knit it and graft it on. But could I do that and make the join look seamless? It might be better to just leave it alone. I don't imagine I will ever be wearing the cardigan soaking wet, but I guess the two shades could fade differently over time. I think I'm going to let it finish drying completely, and then take it outside and see if the difference shows in full daylight.

The third sweater at the finish line is the red cardigan. Just a little blocking and seaming to go. My knitting basket is starting to look a little empty.... I'm still deciding what to start next. It's kind of exciting actually. So many possibilities!


Labels: , ,

1 Comments:

Blogger Marianne said...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Kelly!
What a lovely gift from Nick, wow. That's some beautiful Sea Silk and the fibre, definitely so drool worthy as I'm mopping up right now.
The cardi is great and at least if you don't go out in a pouring rain and get soaked....still, it could almost be a design element, at least it's the same all around... ya know?
Have yourself a wonderful day, we're all so glad you're here.
Best wishes.

8:18 a.m.  

Post a Comment

<< Home