AtomicKnits

Summer Flies

This is a shawl I just finished knitting out of some handspun I made a couple of years ago. My friend, Gail, gave me this pattern and it looked like a pretty fun, quick knit.  There are a lot of different stitch patterns that keep it moving and interesting. The half-circle shape and the picot edge are also pretty interesting.

A lot of people I have shown this to have pointed out that they like this knotted openwork section the best. I think, especially with the weight and texture of my handspun, that this section makes it look kind of hippie-ish, and I don't like that. I do think the color I picked was spot on, it makes the shawl look like a sun.  The color is more accurate in the picture below - more orange-y golden.

Summer Flies
Pattern Source: Holly and Ella Knits
Yarn: Merino/Silk Handspun
Needles: US 8

Ice Queen

Yeah, so it's been a little while. I have completed many knitting projects that I have not posted about here. I'll write more about happened later, but here's a project now! This is Ice Queen, and it is a lace cowl with beads. It's very light and fluffy, but very warm at the same time. It's a bit too warm to wear it now, and it is a bit sophisticated for my casual style, but it was a fun project to work on. I couldn't really put it down. My friend Gail picked out the most perfect beads for this project, and I really enjoyed adding the beads as I was knitting. I couldn't wait to get to a beaded row. This cowl is pretty cool, because you can wear it around your neck like above, or...

You can wear it over your head like so. I don't know if I will ever wear it like this, but if I am really cold I might. This IS a fun project and it moved fast, and I definitely recommend it if you like beading and using super nice yarn (if a little slippery). The only part where I was like "omg when is this going to be OVERRRRR!" was right at the end when I was doing the beaded picot cast-off. That lasted forever. The results are stunning, but it did take me about three movies to get through (not in a row). I was happy to finally get to this one. I remember I bought the yarn for it about 4 years ago.

Ice Queen
Pattern Source: Knitty Winter 2007
Yarn: Rowan Kidsilk Haze
Needles: US 7 & US 5

Pomatomus

Here's something. It has been a while, but I have been knitting. It's been taking longer for me to finish projects lately, because I have been focusing a little on many things instead of A LOT on one thing. Anyway, here is a pair of Pomatomus socks. This patterns is one of those really popular ones that I hadn't knit yet.  When I started these I was ready for more of a challenge and a pattern that I had to pay attention to.

I received the yarn I used for these socks in a knitting swap package from hokkapokka. I'm not sure what the fiber is, but I *think* it's mostly or all alpaca.  She dyed it herself in this really nice green color that didn't pool at all when I was knitting it.  I really liked how the color turned out.

I have other projects completed that I need to take pictures of and post. I want to blog more about things in general, but I'm so out of the habit. I also want to give the blog a serious makeover. I have a lot of ideas for that too.  Now that the rainy season is pretty much here, I might have some more motivation to be at the computer while I'm home.

Pomatomus
Pattern Source: Knitty Winter 2005
Yarn: Hand-Dyed Mystery Yarn from hokkapokka
Needles: US 2

Baby Surprise Jacket

Recently, we had a baby shower in my office for one of my co-workers who is going to have a baby with his wife.  I work with him a lot. He's really easy to work with, and does a lot of stuff for me on a daily basis, so I wanted to make something special for the baby. I thought this was a good opportunity to try out the famous Baby Surprise Jacket. I had ordered the pattern from Webs, and they included a step-by-step (row-by-row) version of the pattern, so I wouldn't have to decipher Elizabeth Zimmerman's cryptic instructions.  I really like the the self-patterning yarn knit up. I think the colors are so nice for a baby boy.  I didn't have enough matching buttons for the front, but I think it looks really charming and playful with the mis-matched buttons. I don't know if the baby will ever wear this since he'll be born in the middle of summer, but it was fun to make.

Baby Surprise Jacket
Pattern Source: Spun Out #1-B by Schoolhouse Press
Yarn: Berroco Sox, colorway Lancaster 1427
Needles: US 6

River Rapids

These are the socks I made for Emily for her birthday a few weeks ago. A nice, easy, straightforward sock pattern with really pretty yarn.  This pattern is called River Rapids, and I really love how the yarnovers and decreases really look like a winding river with little rocks.

At first impression, I thought the color repeats in the yarn were much shorter. I was a little surprised when this pooling started happening, but I really like the large color spiral I ended up with.

River Rapids
Pattern Source: River Rapids by Sockbug
Yarn: ShibuiKnits Sock, colorway Mulberry 229
Needles: US 2

Arthur's Dream Socks

These socks have been off the needles for a while, but I didn't want to post them until I gave them to the recipient. I knit these plainest, grayest socks ever for my cousin-in-law, Arthur. I used a basic top down pattern that I'm sure is an old standby for a lot of people, Priscilla's Dream Socks.

I'm not a huge fan of this color, but I do like how it knit up. I didn't pool too badly, and I think this color will look good with jeans.  The only mod I made to this pattern is that I omitted the short row toe with that weird seam along the toes. I did a traditional decrease toe with a grafted seam. Hopefully these will be cozy!

Arthur's Dream Socks
Pattern Source: Priscilla's Dream Socks from Favorite Socks: 25 Timeless Designs from Interweave
Yarn: Plymouth Happy Feet, colorway 18
Needles: US 2

Red Skies At Night

This scarf kind of took forever, but it was definitely worth it.  This is a pretty straightforward lace chart that is worked over and over again until the scarf is the length you want.

My friend Gail gave me and awesome skein of yarn that she received in one of her Woolgirl sock club packages.  It's a hand-dyed semi-solid wool with little bits of sparkly silver.  I thought it would be perfect for this scarf pattern, and it totally was!  The lace chart was pretty tricky to get the hang of. On the beginning end of the scarf, my ladders don't quite line up and some of them are twisted, but I did get the hang of it by the third or forth repeat of the pattern.  I love how the little triangles look like little sailboats.  It's kind of too warm to wear this now, but I think I'll be wearing it a lot come fall.

Pattern Source: Free Ravelry Download
Yarn: Zen Yarn Garden Bling, colorway Ruby Slippers
Needles: US 6

Crusoe Socks

These are my first socks knit with the famous Socks That Rock yarn. People go nuts over this stuff.  I bought myself a few skeins and my first knitting experience with this yarn was a good one.  I really like the yarn base, and the colors are so vibrant.  This particular colorway had such bold changes, so I thought a slip stitch pattern would work well. I really like how they came out!

When the colors started pooling around the ankle, I started to get discouraged, but now I think it's kind of charming. The only thing about the pattern that I found to be misleading is that I think it is sized very small.  The pattern only has you cast on 48 stitches (for the large size!) one a size 1 needle.  If I was a beginner, I would have cast on the 48 and knit until I got around the heel, only to be completely discouraged that I was ending up knitting a sock for a child. This has happened before. Now, experience tells me to cast on 64 stitches right off the bat and I will be fine. And I was!  I also think that this is a good pattern to use if you have a smallish skein of sock yarn - 350 yards or under.

Crusoe Socks
Pattern Source: Knitty, Spring 2003
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Lightweight, colorway Crabby McHappypants
Needles: US 2

The Neverending Baby Set

A couple of months ago, my cousin Emily asked me to knit her a little baby sweater to give to her friend who is due to have a baby in April.  She decided on the Yoda Baby Sweater and said she would pay for the yarn.  I saw a picture of this done in Manos Cotton Stria, and I thought the yarn and the color was perfect, so I went out and bought four skeins.  That was way too much.  This yarn knits up really nice and the semi-solid colorway is awesome, but, blech, it is not nice to knit with. I don't like cotton in general, and the nubblyness of this yarn was just not really that fun to have in my hands.  I really didn't want to have any leftovers of this yarn, so...

...I knit a bunch of accessories to go with the sweater, and used up about 98% of the yarn (I tossed the little leftover ball). I knit a bib with a penguin on it, a hat, and some booties. Every time I finished an accessory I would look at all of the yarn I had leftover and wish it was all gone.  But, I powered through the next accessory, and the next. I have a couple more babies to knit for. I think those will definitely be one skein projects!

The Neverending Baby Set
Pattern Source: Baby Yoda Sweater - Dogs Steal Yarn (Rav), Penguin Bib - Down Cloverlaine, Seamless Baby Booties - Pickin' and Throwin', and I just made up the hat pattern
Yarn: Manos del Uruguay Manos Cotton Stria, colorway 213 Mint
Needles: US 6 for sweater, bib and booties, US 7 for hat

Vertical Striped Fingerless Mitts

My friend Katie recently posted instructions for these sweet fingerless mitts on Ravelry.  As soon as I saw her photos, I really wanted to make them.  I was already knitting the Vortex hat, and I knew I would have one half of each skein of Noro leftover, probably just enough to make these mitts! I thought these mitts would go well with this hat, and I used up the rest of this yarn EXACTLY. That's the best!

Vertical Striped Fingerless Mitts
Pattern Source: Katie's Ravelry Project Page (Ravelry Link)
Yarn: Noro Kureyon, colorway 90
Needles: US 10