Kiss My Knits!

* 33 Jayne hats. ‘Nuff said. I’m also packaging up four Jayne knitting kits today, but that’s not knitting, so it doesn’t really count in the list.

* 1 matching Jayne scarf (she picked one of the two patterns on the left and said “surprise me.”) She’s getting #2, because a) I think it’s a little more visually interesting, and b) I use less red on the Jayne hats than any other color, so I’ve got more of that in stock. I figure I’ll do it double-knit instead of in the round. That’s *K1, bring yarn to front and sl1 purlwise, bring yarn to back; repeat from * across. It makes stockinette on both sides. You’re effectively knitting a tube on straight needles. I’ve just got the one set of 10 1/2 addis, and I’d like to be able to continue knitting hats whlie I work on this scarf. The wearer is six feet tall, and she wants it long, so this one may take a while.

* 1 Harry Potter scarf. I hear these take freakin’ forever. I’m glad to do it, but this may be another that gets worked on between projects. It’s in line, I’ll start it when the number comes up. I’ve learned that gift knitting is more likely to get done if I put it in line like it’s a paid order. Which, actually, it is. It’s one of these where I’m cutting them a little deal. 🙂

* 1 purse for my sister-in-law, who loved the one I made for my niece. Extra-bonus-gratification for me because apparently, while it was a gift from mid-year last year, my niece still carries it everywhere. My sister-in-law is paying, although I’m not charging her what I would charge a stranger. She says she wants it just like that one (but I’m assuming without the “Brianna”, but in blue, although I’d still like to make a few modifications to it. I’d rather not knit the same piece twice. I do see the irony, considering I’m knitting hundreds of identical hats. She’s in line with the Jayne hats, so this can wait until her number comes up.

* 1 purse for my kid’s kindergarten teacher. Note that my kid is now in first grade. I… uh… kind of promised to do this last Spring, so I’d like to get it done soon. She picked pink, felted, with a wide strip of novelty yarn on it. I’ve decided that I’ll put purple behind the novelty yarn to give it a little more visual interest, and I think I’ll also put a pocket on the side for cell phone, and maybe one inside for license or credit card. Also, maybe a little purple piping at the edges, and a more square shape. At least I swatched for it already, and I did cast on the other day.

* 1 scarf for my father’s roommate. She likes blue and green, and is looking to add a little flash to her wardrobe. I’m thinking about using some of this hand dyed big loopy mohair that I got off of eBay a while ago. Or possibly re-selling it. It’s very pretty, but I have no clue what I thought I’d do with it when I bought it. Damn you, eBay!

* 1 hat for my father. I have NO CLUE what type to make, and I’m fretting about it. He wears Greek Fisherman Caps so something in that style, but what? I just can’t see him in a toboggan.

* 1 scarf for , who bought me yarn in 2004 and asked me to make her something with it. It’s Trendsetter Charming in purple and olive and Trendsetter Metal in black. Ignore the camoflaugey fuzzy bit. I thought I’d try it with a little mohair for body. It was an utter failure, from a color perspective. Maybe I shouldn’t have picked colorway 606, also known as “swamp.” I guess I can strand them together for a straight garter-stitch scarf, but this person tends to pick more purpley things. But then, she did pick the yarn, so I guess I should just do it and see how it turns out, eh? She also reads this journal. (Hi, !)

* 1 baby thing for a co-worker who, obviously, had a baby. I had already bought yarn, thinking she was going to have a boy. But nooooo, she had to go and have a girl. And a little early, to boot! I totally lost on the baby pool, lemme tell ya. I picked up some more yarn last night, and am now trying to decide whether to make a larger garment, or two smaller ones. Since the baby’s already here, I may even just go with hat. Her other son did seem to appreciate his dinosaur hat. Side view. He apparently immediately started terrorizing the dogs, pretending to be a monster. Oddly enough, this has been the exact same response from everyone who has gotten one of these hats, from toddler to teen. Since Mission Falls 1824 wool is coming back, I think I’m going to rework the hat to use that yarn, since it’s machine washable. Might even make the pattern available, if I get time.

* 1 scarf for . This one’s actually about 2/3 done. I posted last week about my klutziness in spilling milk on her scarf. I mentioned that rinsing it to get the crustiness out had given a hint of what the pattern would look like blocked. Here’s a closeup of it after its rinse. Nice and soft, with a good drape, too. Excellent yardage, to boot. I’d definitely work with South West Trading Company bamboo yarn again. Also, based on a sample I saw at Charlotte Yarn, Southwest Trading Company’s Karaoke, 50% soy, 50% wool, felts fantastically. I want to try that, too.

Holy moly, that’s a hella long bunch of text. I need a way to post thumbnails and do formatting, so it’s not so… droning.

I know I’m leaving projects out, but it’s just not coming to me at the moment. I’m knitting like a fiend to get caught up, though, and so far I’m slightly ahead on the hats. That’ll give me a little leeway to do lengthier projects, like that 6 foot scarf. No rest for the wicked!