Dissertation Blanket

It's done!
Somewhat smaller than expected, the Bazinga Blanket is complete.
It took three months of making myself knit just a few rows while watching video games being played for my amusement.
I don't know why, but I thoroughly disliked this project. Something about the endless rows of garter was so much worse than, say, endless rows of garter on a shawl.

Maybe it's jsut the fact that knitting a blanket is ugh. Yeah, hello hexipuffs? So that's not it either.
Maybe it's the magic trifecta of cheap acrylic yarn, endless garter rows and blanket that did it. Who knows?
Or maybe because I knew the project was big, I thought it would also be cumbersome? No idea.
But it's done. And it's nice. And most importantly, the feline overlord loves it. And in the end, isn't that all that truly matters?

Is that a Green Lantern Lantern?

 This is my tiniest knit ever!
After the crochet disaster of the poor doomed penguin, I wasn't about to try another crochet pattern straight away.
Instead, I adapted a crochet pattern that fellow team mate dulcymh on Ravelry wrote up.
Hey, it's all stitches, right?
So I knitted the Green Lantern lantern.
I mainly followed dulcymh's pattern, but made a few modifications on the fly.

It worked out much better than I expected, and I'm quite pleased with the result.

Look at Sheldon the cat with his fancy new lantern!
He's got accessories of nerddom, all thanks to Nerd Wars and the need for tiny projects.

This was fun.
Of course, now I want to knit more tiny things. Perhaps even develop some sort of skill in it...

Knit with DK yarn on size 2.25mm needles for a *very* tight fabric.

Is it a hat? is it a tea cozy? It's pink!

 So I thought I was knitting a hat.
Out of some pretty, very variegated acrylic yarn.
The knitting was fun and went quickly enough.
Of course, I didn't swatch for gauge. Why would I?
It was going to be a slouchy hat, so it was going to be fine.
but I rushed, and I was kind of done with the project, so I finished it a bit faster than I should have.
The slouchy beret turned into a beanie. And on me, it looked a bit like a kid's hat. not a flattering style.
Not even my usual stand-in model, the feline overlord, was impressed. What to do?
I was seriously considering ripping back and redoing the crown for more slouch, when I noticed my teapot.
I'd been mentally queueing a couple of tea cozies. On a  whim, I dropped the small hat onto the tea pot.
It's perfect!

So while I thought I was knitting a hat for me, turns out I was knitting a cozy for my tea pot.
And we're both very pleased with the result.

Snowboard Babe Purple B'day Hat

 A spin-off of the Baristafarian hat, this purple fuzz concoction is squishy, warm, floppy, and the perfect birthday present for my snowboarding girlfriend. She loved it, and oohed and aaahed appreciatively.
Good knitting gift receiver. Will get more.

This was a fun, fast knit on the bus, and the results couldn't have been better.
I should have taken more photos though. It has a massive pompom that I somehow forgot to photograph!

Convertibility

I love things that can be other things.
Panniers that are bags.
Breakfast cereal as dinner.
Photos that are souvenirs.
A shawl that can be a cardigan, a shrug, a hood and more!
Versatility by Amanda Williams is one of those patterns that was probably a bit too much for me at the time, But I really, really wanted this convertible shrug-shawl-cardiga-thing!

Of course I didn't think to swatch, nor did I use yarn that was probably a good choice here.
In fact, I used a cheap and bulky acrylic that's delightfully soft, but not very easily manipulated by newbie hands like mine.

This pattern taught me lace, bobbles, and cables all at once.
It also taught me that I have no idea how much yarn something takes. I had to buy another ball of yarn. And another.
And then I had about a hand span left in the end.

I really liked the end result. Even if, you know. It didn't actually fit me.
But that's okay! Knitting always fits someone.
in fact, my cat thought it would make a fabulous blanket for her.

Things can always be other things if you let them. And cats love everything for themselves.

Steampunk Ruffle Gloves

Okay, I'm feeling confident in my knitting prowess. Time for something new.
Time for something costumey and fun.
Time for gloves. With ruffles. Can't be too tough, right?
Wrong.
Not only did it take me three attempts to get gauge, I also managed to never think about how much yarn one ball is.
You know that magical state where you believe that however much yarn you have will be enough?
Yeah.
This was very much not helped by the fact that when I went to buy another ball for the second glove, the yarn was different.
Not a little different in colour. I mean completely different in feel and handle. It wasn't the soft, squishy yarn that had me excited in the first place. This yarn was flat and distorted and no fun to work with.
Still, i finished the gloves.
And I have the perfect buttons.

The ruffle is a little too floppy and wants to come down over my arms, but still. These gloves go perfectly with my vintage bike. Perfect for transition weather.

Cat Paw Socks

My second pair of socks! Whee!
I made these ones out of a baby acrylic I had lying around. I thought it would be fun, but I got kind of bored with it straight away. The color is just too flat.
On the other hand, I adore this pattern.
It's cat feet! On my socks! Could there be anything cuter?
As promised, these socks were done from the tow up with a wrap and turn heel. I'm not a huge fan of the heel, mainly because I don't quite understand it, I suspect. It made some holes along the heel, but that's okay. I still love them!

Once again, I didn't do enough ribbing. I was just so keen to cast these off and try them on!
The designer also sells yarn on Etsy, and she contacted me after I'd finished the socks to tell me they looked nice. Awwwww. How sweet of her!
her yarns look delicious, why don't you go check them out for yourself?