What Comes First?

I think this is definitely a chicken or egg question!  I finished the sweater last night except for adding button bands and grafting the underarms.  I didn't have buttons yet and I couldn't decide what to do.  Should I go ahead and knit the button band with buttonholes and then find a button that would fit the hole. OR, should I pick out buttons first and adjust the buttonhole size if needed?

I decided to go shopping!  I finally decided on a green button with a little scroll work on it that is also varying shades of green.  This isn't a great picture of the button, I'll try to get a better one when I'm completely finished, but it is an incredibly accurate picture of the yarn color!

So what comes first for you?  The button or the buttonhole?

Almost

Don't you love that time in a project, especially a big project, when you can see the end?

The sleeves have been joined and the yoke is getting close to done, then it's just the button bands.  Here's a little close up of the yoke design, it's a fun pattern even though the whole project is getting a little bulky and heavy on the needles.  Almost finished!

What's more exciting, the thrill of a new finished item to wear or the anticipation of starting something new?

The Adorable Miss Morgan

Last Friday I showed you the sweater I had knit for my niece while my sister was in labor.  I came down with a horrific respiratory virus that same day and was too sick to meet my new niece until Thursday.  I spent a nice afternoon with my sister and spent some time getting acquainted with this little angel!

May I introduce Morgan Catherine, born February 10 at 7:33pm weighing in at 7 lbs, 1 oz and 21" long!

She had just eaten and was wide awake for a bit so I was able to get a few cute pictures of her.

Welcome to the world Morgan!  You've stolen my heart already :-)

Ten on Tuesday

10 Favorite Chocolate Treats

Can you think of a better topic for Valentine's Day than chocolate?  I can't.  I do love chocolate in most anything.  Here are a few of my favorites.....

1. M & M's.  Simple and classic and available almost anywhere

2. Brownies, especially if you add some chocolate chips or sprinkle with M&M's

3. Hot Chocolate, a tasty warm treat to enjoy on a chilly day

4. Lindt Truffles, a decadent treat

5. Hot Fudge sauce

6. Frappe, or if you're a New Englander, a Friendly's Fribble

7. Chocolate Cruller, from Dunkin Donuts. Mmmmmm :-)

8. Death By Chocolate Ice Cream

9. Pudding, I'm kind of partial to the Jello sugar-free 

10. Chocolate Stampede at Longhorn Restaurant.  This is hands down my favorite dessert, and one I hope to enjoy with my sweetie when we get a chance to enjoy a dinner out again, hopefully soon!

What's your favorite Chocolate treat?

While Waiting

Do you remember last week that I mentioned I was working on a secret project that I needed to finish up soon?  This is why.  My sister Jenn is expecting her first baby! It's a little girl and her due date is tomorrow, February 11th.  I got the call this morning that labor has commenced and Jenn and Mitch are at the hospital!!

It's a good thing then that I finished this adorable little sweater last night.  Perfect timing!  Let me tell you about it.  First, let me say that this beautiful pattern is not for knitters who hate finishing.  My goodness, is there a lot of seaming for this sweater!

The sleeves and the body all have a garter lace edging.  The lace is knit separately and then sewn on.  The funky part for me was that you knit to an estimated length and before you bind off you sew the lace to the corresponding piece. Genius in that you can then easily add or subtract length.  Awkward because the piece is still on the needle and the lace changes stitch count from 13 to 16 stitches, so you don't necessarily end with the same number of stitches that you started with.  That made the seaming a little challenging.

The button band and neck edge is finished in a picot edge.  Beautiful, but not quick.

With the fussy nature of this sweater I thought that it needed buttons that have just a little something extra, but not over the top.  I found these sweet flower buttons at my local JoAnn's Fabrics.  I tried simple plain buttons too, but the flower ones I thought were just perfect.

Just enough fussy when it's all tied together but not overpowering.

I didn't do any modifications this time, but if I ever make this sweater again, I think I would knit the lace pieces first and then pick up stitches from that to knit the stockinette parts.  As written, I think I may have actually spent as much time finishing and fussing as I did doing the actual knitting.

Pattern: Jasmine Lace Edge Cardigan by Louisa Harding
Pattern Source: Natural Knits for Babies and Moms
Yarn: Rowan Pure Life Organic Cotton dk
Needles: US size 4 & 5

Hopefully I'll be back later this weekend with good news to share!

Ten on Tuesday

This weeks prompt is Ten Things I Can See From My Favorite Knitting Spot.  After reading some of the posts from people playing this week though I wonder if this should really be "I'll show you mine if you show me yours."  This is a fun topic and I have to say that I am just a little bit jealous of the people who have "Fiber Rooms!"  Some day my boys will all move out and I'l have a room of my own, but for now my favorite knitting spot is in the living room, which is my favorite room in the house.  I have My Chair, (seriously, that's what my family calls it) which is the best seat in the house if I do say so myself :-)

So here are some of the things I can see!

1. TV.  My DH and boys think it should be bigger.
2. Fireplace, and yes it is the type that operates by remote control.  I highly recommend it :-)
3. Entertainment Center.  It contain all my entertainment needs for while I'm knitting. Cable box, radio, satellite radio, DVD player, and CD player.
4. The Big Clock.
5. Basket of UFO's in project bags.
6. Quilted Wall Hanging in the hallway done by my MIL.

7. Trees.  This window faces the street and I strategically planted flowering trees and bushes outside this window.
8. Needlepoint Pieces complete by DH's grandmother along with her Gibson Girl photo circa 1914.
9. Cross Stitch and Counted Thread Work pieces done by me, which is my other crafting obsession.
10. The Lake.  Looking out my French Doors I can see the lake.  Sometimes it's serene, sometimes it's entertaining, but always it's a reminder of how lucky I am to be able to enjoy this, and most importantly with people I love.

Do you have a "Spot?"  Tell me about it.  I'd love to hear what's special about it to you!  If you'd like to play along you can join by visiting here.

Cotty Socks

I finished these socks last week.  I knit them as part of the Cotty KAL in the Irishgirlieknits Group on Ravelry.  I've had this yarn in my stash for a couple years, I think.  It was a Rockin' Sock Club yarn that was paired with a pattern that I just didn't care for, but I really liked the yarn.

I got some crazy pooling on the legs and some striping on the feet.  Why the change you ask?  The pattern calls for 60 stitches, but I get my best fit with STR medium at 56-58 stitches.  So I decreased the foot to 58 stitches for a better fit for me.

I always love the toe of the sock when you can see how all the colors really play well together.

Pattern: Cotty by Irishgirlieknit
Yarn: Socks That Rock mediumweight in River Rocked
Needle: 2.5mm KnitPicks Circular for Magic Loop
Cast On: January 1
Bind Off: January 25
Mods: Decreased foot to 58 stitches

So for my personal Yardage in vs Yardage Out Challenge I'm currently losing.  In January in took in 1600 yards and I knit and destashed 1004 yds.  At the end of January I am up 596 yards.  I better get one of those sweaters finished ASAP before the sock club shipments all arrive! Then I'll really be losing. LOL!

WIP Wednesday

What I love about January is that it's perfectly acceptable to hide and the house and surround yourself with comforting activities without being labeled a hermit.  Every January I set ridiculous goals of what I want to knit for the upcoming year and get the urge to make a sweater!

Since I went to the Plucky Knitter trunk show a couple weekends ago, I decided to go ahead and cast on for my Vodka Gimlet.  I really love this color and the feel of this yarn!  I've been trying to complete a set of increases every couple of days.  It's making for slow progress, but it is progress!

I also have gotten back to my Washington Square sweater.  I have finished the second sleeve and have started the body.  This is my car and hockey knitting right now.  The ribbing on the body is really simple and there's no waist shaping to worry about.  And it's not too big yet so it's not cumbersome to carry around.

I'm also working on the SKA January Mystery Sock, Blathnat, by Irishgirleknits.  Yeah, I'm way behind, but I don't care.  I'm using some Plucky Knitter Primo fingering and my new Signature Needle Arts DPN's and just enjoying the sock as it unfolds, or should I say reveals itself.

I have another little secret project that needs to be finished very soon.  I can't wait to show you that, but it will probably be a couple more weeks before I can reveal it :-)

Happy Wednesday everyone!  The sun is finally out here so I think it's time to take the dogs out to play for a bit before the rest of my day gets crazy!