Beached Lady Done!

I finished my February Lady Sweater last week and washed and blocked it this weekend. Overall I'm happy with how it came out, but I think I was a little too generous with the sizing. It feels big on me. On the plus side, my mom came by today and she tried it on. It fits her better than it fits me, and she loved it, so it may become a Christmas gift for her.
Check out these awesome buttons I found at The Elegant Ewe, which is the LYS I use most frequently. They always have a great selection of buttons to choose from.
Here are the details:
Pattern: February Lady Sweater by Pamela Wynne
Yarn: Socks That Rock Heavyweight in Beached
Size: 44 inch
Needle: Addi Turbo Lace size 8
Mods: I did kf&b instead of the eyelet yo's in the yoke. I added 6 extra rows of garter stitch after the "eyelet increase" row. In retrospect it was too many.

I will definitely knit this sweater again but will go down 2 sizes.

I'm getting close!

Last week I mentioned that I was still chugging along on my FLS and close to finishing the body. Well, I am happy to share that I have finished the body and have started on my first sleeve! I'm so happy with how it's coming out. I can't wait to finish it so I can wear it!


Here's a little close up of the stitch pattern. It's also a pretty true representation of the color of the yarn.

So the next question is...... to wind or not to wind.......

I have 40 grams of yarn left from this skein and a sleeve and a half to go. Now that I think about it I'm pretty sure I'll be winding my 4th skein. 40 grams is only a fifth of a skein left. And a sleeve is a fair bit of knitting. But you know how the end sometimes seems to go on and on forever?

I also want to congratulate my friend Irishgirlieknits too. We both belong to the Socks that Rawk group on Ravelry. New this year we've been having a KAL for each quarter choosing an underappreciated sock pattern, or two, and then seeing how many different colorways of Socks that Rock yarn it can be knit in. It's been so much fun to be part of that. For Q3 her sock pattern Cotty was nominated and it ultimately was one of the 2 patterns chosen by popular vote! Way to go Carrie! I'm very excited to knit these up and support her. I may even use yarn I dyed at Sock Camp!

New Stash & Stitch Markers

A few new yarns have found their way into my stash over the last couple of weeks. First up is the Malabrigo Sock Yarn. I love the Malabrigo worsted and have made several hats using it. It's nice and soft and the kids don't complain about it itching. It also has some great stitch definition. So when I heard that Malabrigo was coming out with a sock yarn I was excited. It took forever for some to actually arrive at my LYS, so when I heard that it had finally arrived I scooted right in. I really only needed a new addi turbo needle, but that was the perfect excuse to check out the new yarn. I bought a skein in the colorway Persia. It is as soft as their worsted and it was flying out of the store. I'm looking forward to trying it out.

I also received an order from Woolgirl. I saw these colors on Jen's Blog and I couldn't resist. Both of these skeins are Hazel Knits Artisan Sock. The first color is Weekend Warrior and the second one is Cabbage Rose.

The other fun thing that I've been doing is making these cute little stitch markers. Now I'll admit, I may have what some people might consider "a problem" with stitch markers. I love them. I don't think that you can have too many. And I think you should have them in any size you want. Personally it drives me nuts when I'm knitting away on socks and I come to an area that is marked for whatever reason, and the marker is 6 times larger in diameter than the needle. It's bulky and awkward. So after a quick lesson at sock camp and a couple online tutorials, I decided to try making some myself. It didn't take too long to get the hang of it and frankly it's addicting. Here is a small sample of what I made.

Check back later this week. I've almost finished the body of my February Lady Sweater and I hope to post pics of that soon. I also got my Woolgirl Oz Sock CLub kit last week. Pictures to follow soon!