Blocked

I finished knitting the body and sleeves of my Peony Twist cardigan.  I blocked everything but still have the rest of the collar to knit.  The sleeves need sewn in as well.

Do you block before you assemble?  Or do you wait to block the finished project?  Or both?  It just seemed right to block the body of this before I sewed in the sleeves as it was flat.  Same with the sleeves.

I had enough yarn to finish the sweater so I didn’t need the kindness of strangers to help out this time.

I’m still searching for the right buttons.  I found some on a long forgotten dress my daughter wore in middle school.  The dress is cute but so out of style.  The buttons are a clear glass faceted ball.  Might be too fancy for this top but I’ll have to see how they look with my sweater.

Sorry this is a pictureless post.  Don’t you just hate that!  I had a hair appointment after work yesterday and then had dinner.  By the time I was ready to settle in for the evening, it was too dark to get any decent pictures.  Tonight isn’t looking that good either.  It’s the last night of our Zumba class.  Maybe I’ll have everything finished for a fabulous photo shoot Wednesday evening.

Peony progress

I finished the left front side of my Peony Twist cardi and started the right side.   Only 12 more rows to go before I start on the sleeves.  I pinned the left and back shoulder seam and tried it on.

It fits!  So far.   No pictures today as it was too dark to get anything close colorwise with the thunderstorms rolling through last night. 

The waist shaping is fabulous. I’m so glad I decided to make the adjustments that I did.   The sweater a little shorter than I expected but with a little tweaking when blocking I’m sure I can remedy that.  It’s cotton yarn and I know it can grow, too.

The right side is harder than the left as I have to remember to knit in the buttonholes as I go, which I was doing all along but with the back and left not needing buttonholes it’s something I have to get back in the rhythm of doing.  (Is that ever a run-on sentence!)  But that means there is no added buttonhole band to fiddle with and that, my friends, is a good thing.

I am 99% sure I will have enough yarn.  And if I don’t, another wonderful Ravelry knitter (RHAnya) has offered her yarn if I need it.

I need to start thinking about the buttons…

The kindness of strangers…

Over the weekend I was looking through the yarn stash pages in Ravelry and found a few people who had the same dye lot on the Knit Picks Comfy Worsted I may need.  One kind person will sell me her yarn!  Thank you rwest81.  (This is motivating me to list my stash as well.) 

So I am knitting and knitting and knitting to see if I have enough yarn.

I’m finished with the back and up to the bind-off on the left side shoulder on my Peony Twist cardigan.  I think six stitches were forgotten so I will bind-off like the back shoulder shaping. 

This will leave have two balls of yarn left as well as the partial ball from the left side to knit the right upper side, two sleeves and the collar.

I just might make it.

Dots and stripes tester

I was smitten with this Traveler’s Pocket  designed by Nancy Bush on the cover of Piecework magazine  issue July/August 2004.

My Traveler's Pocket

I made mine out of denim yarn which, unfortunately, is no longer available.  You can tell it’s stretched out and well used.

I wanted something a bit bigger so I reshaped the pattern and added a gusset in the bottom.  It’s also knit in the round however there is no seam to sew on the bottom. There is a seam at the top hem and optional lining.  Finished size is 8 inches by 10 inches.

Dots and stripes

Gusset

Inside

I used leftover cotton yarn but this would look great in fewer colors.  Like blues and greens, reds and oranges or purples or even self-striping yarn and a solid.  This would be a great project to try stranded knitting.

I have one test knitter but would like at least one more to make sure I have all the bugs worked out.  Would you like to test knit this pattern for me?