The Yarn That Would Not Become a Jumper: Volume IV

This is a gripe about a specific project, and probably not interesting to people who aren't me.

Third time around, I finally turned this yarn into a jumper. I had to buy an extra ball of yarn to finish the sleeve, and didn't have enough to do hemming around the neck, but it was finished.

But.

I like jumpers to be slightly oversized, but my efforts at sizing my own clothes that way always come out larger than intended. It's possible I should enlist someone else's help in measuring myself, or at least look in the mirror to see that I'm holding the tape measure in a straight line.

I finished the jumper, and while the body is comfy, the sleeves were too baggy. For aesthetics they were only a bit too big, and I would have left it but for the fact that I wouldn't be able to wear trailing sleeves in a lab, and given the time that I've put into it, it seems silly to only be able to wear it on weekends. And it's a raglan-sleeve jumper (which is lovely and straightforward! Who knew?), which meant undoing the sleeves meant going right back to the start.

What is up with my fingers? The gods themselves, they do not know.

So my evening of rewatching Sherlock while finishing the jumper as it rained outside did not go to plan. I ended up with a bag of yarn, again,  instead of a jumper, and my heart hurt because John thinks that Sherlock is dead, and it was raining. Apparently I'm a masochist, but I was also raised Catholic, so in practise I just do conventionally unpleasant things, and the resulting joy and shame cancel each other out and I feel neutral about the whole thing.

On the positive side, for a generous definition of 'positive', I'm going to Sunshine House in a few weeks, so I can bring that down as my night-time project.

The mobius scarf.

I am going to use the phrase "Mobius scarf" about fifty times in this post so that other people in my position might come across it in their Googling and not make the same mistake I did.

A mobius strip, for those who aren't maths geeks, is "a surface with only one side and only one boundary component."

Pretty cool!  So imagine how excited I was when I discovered I could combine my enthusiuasm for maths with an enthusiasm for knitting in the Mobius scarf!  I made one of these Mobius scarves for a friend, and I like how it turned out, but as I found the start of the pattern a little difficult to work, I had to use another pattern for advice.

As mentioned in an earlier post, my brother's girlfriend is coming over for Christmas, and as she's a scientist I thought she would appreciate a Mobius scarf!  Alas, I couldn't find the tutorial that had helped me out the first time.  I did, however, come across a few sources telling me that to make a Mobius scarf, I should twist to join in the round.  How handy!  Alas again!  The finished product wasn't a Mobius scarf, but had a complete twist in it.  I must have over-twisted it.  No matter, start again.  This time it would be a snuggly feat of maths!

Nope.

I read this (lovely) tutorial yesterday, and something about it seemed strange to me.

"Depending on what you like, you can leave some twists to create a mobius-like effect, or get all the twists out for a more traditional scarf."

"MOBIUS STRIPS DO NOT WORK THAT WAY."

Thank you, Morbo.

So it turns out that "Mobius scarf", in the knitting community, refers to any twisted circle scarf rather than a cosy mathematical quirk.  Good to know!  For my own part, I'm surly and have changed my mind about how much she'd like it (Do microbiologists instantly like maths?  Who knows), so it's going to be a plain ol' circle scarf instead.

... 

Mobius scarf.

FOs: Hoodie and Amy Gloves

I had all four wisdom teeth removed on Friday, and these photos were taken on Monday, which is why it looks like I suddenly gained a lot of weight in my face.  (The swelling on the left side has gone down more than the right, so I'm still a bit swollen and lopsided.  I also have to rinse with warm salt-water every time I eat.  I don't like eating enough to make myself do that too often.  On the upside, I have progressed to eating soup with a soup spoon, rather than a tea-spoon!)

I'm told it's a perfect fit on the recipient.  Not so good on me but very snuggly.

Puffy face.

I dyed my hair purplish post-exams, but it's already starting to fade.  I might get it done properly next time I get my hair cut - my hair is quite dark, so if I do it myself I have to go for something dark enough to show up, and it'd be nice to go for something brighter.  Maybe red!

This is the ribbed border of the hood.  The ribbed pattern is one I hadn't come across before (p1k1 on the purl side, k the knit side).  It's simple, but a little different, and I like it.

I've mentioned the hoodie and it's details in other posts, but I'm a fan of giving credit where it's due!  The pattern is most Skully, but I used Under the Hoodie, both from the first Stitch 'n' Bitch book to work out how to make the hood.  The pocket is the result of my own foostering.  James C. Brett chunky acrylic yarn on 6.5mm needles, yup yup.

I finally finished my Amy gloves!  I didn't have much to do for my first week in the lab, but I did have my own desk, so I spent a lot of free time knitting while I read papers for my mod project proposal.

 I've already chronicled my misfortunes with these gloves, but there was one yet to come after I left off last time.  While read-knitting, I didn't pay proper attention and got most of the way through a second left glove.  It was a better fit than the first one though, so I finished it, frogged the first one and re-knit it as a right glove while watching films with a giant puffy face.

Here is the pattern...

Here is the colour.

The pattern is does it every bother you that your life doesn't make [any] sense?, and the yarn is Debbie Bliss Rialto.  I have a lot left over, though not enough to make a pair for my mum who's very taken with them.

I need to improve at accessorising, if only because I can't wear anything I've made for myself until the weather gets colder.

Grumble.

I finished my left Amy glove for the second time today, but it still has too much wiggle room.  After dropping down two needle sizes, I don't think there's a great deal I can do about it, and I don't think I mind enough to remake it a third time.  In the interest of science, I'll make the right one with a tighter tension, but the way I usually knit feels 'just right' in terms of tension for me, so I don't know that it will make much odds.

I made muffins the other day, from the Moosewood recipe book my brother's girlfriend gave me.  I also added almonds and raspberries, because I am a muffin maverick, which made them pink on the inside.  Fun with food!

Aaand we're back.

I finished exams!  They could have gone better, but could have been a whole lot worse, so I shouldn't complain.  I also broke my one-post-per-fortnight rule, but my laptop broke the day before my last exam and I only got it fixed yesterday, so I think I can be excused.

To reward myself for finishing exams, I made this hat:

Check me out, taking photos outside where there's light instead of in my room where there's not.

I don't have a good photo face.  I've decided to stop trying.

The pattern is Tori by Erin Kate Archer.  The pattern calls for bulky yarn, but I really liked the striping of it and couldn't find any nice variegated bulky yarn.  I used Louisa Harding Grace - so lovely and so soft.  It's worsted weight though, so it didn't come out as slouchy as the original, it's more of a beanie, which I wasn't going for.  I am happy with it though (and I don't usually wear bright colours but I am trying NEW THINGS).  The pattern is lovely and it knits up quickly (I made it while letting my brain melt watching horror films), and I might keep an eye out for suitable bulky yarn to make another more suited to the harsh winter months.

My follow-up indulgence was my Amy Gloves.  I'm using 4-ply yarn (Debbie Bliss Rialto), instead of 3-ply as suggested by the pattern, both because there's a wider selection and I'd imagine it to be snugglier.  I finished the left one the other night, but decided there was just a little too much wiggle room.  I've ripped it out and am reknitting the whole thing on slightly smaller needles (2.75mm), so it should be a better fit.  I'm glad to be redoing it, the lace pattern was just a little wide and sloppy for my tastes as it was.  I find lace on large needles just looks gappy.

Red toenails are Summery for me.

I'm nearly finished my friend's hoodie.  This photo was taken before I'd sewn up the sides.  I didn't think through the pocket properly.  I intended to pick up stitches, but realised that that left me with the yarn on the wrong side, so I pulled a length of yarn to the back to pick up at the front and then kept on knitting at the front.  Then to attach the top I sewed the last row, pulled the live stitches through using a crochet hook and bound them off on the back.  Not ideal, but I'm satisfied with my minor feat of engineering, and it's a lesson in planning ahead for next time.  I also grossly underestimated how much yarn I'd need, and when I went in it was clealy a different dye-lot.  Oops.

In PLAN news, I still want to make myself a hoodie, though I'm now thinking of making something light and summery, maybe in cotton.  I also want to make a big snuggly cardigan because I can't find any I like in shops.  I also want to make a skirt out of fabric I've had for ages now.

I'm starting an internship in the developmental biology lab on Monday.  Exciting!

Ridiculous hats.

More OpWall crafting!

These were both made using this pattern (Ravelry link).

The first was made in response to a request for a mystery item.  It's based on the wonderful Brainmonster hat - the only reason I didn't use the original pattern was because I wanted to use bulky yarn (I used some I had left over from my big snuggly jumper), and the pattern called for worsted, and I didn't feel like fussing with gauge and needles (8mm, I think!)

Dublin has a disappointing lack of big googly eyes!  I improvised with the buttons, but it looks sleepy and confused, instead of cheery that it is eating tasty brains.  Were I to make another one, I think I'd just embroider on eyes.

Hat number two was based on a picture a friend sent me that I forgot to save.  A unicorn is a unicorn, though.

I wasn't sure how to do a mane, so just crocheted two fluffy yarns for a few rows.  It's more of a fluffy mohawk than a mane, but that's good too, sure.

The last is a beret I made myself last Winter because I wanted to make something involving cables, and a slouchy beret.  I am efficient!  (I'm also not usually one for accessories, but last Winter was one for bundling up.)  I made this with Rowan Cocoon yarn, which is lovely and soft and fun to touch, on 8mm needles.

Unfortunately, when I blocked it, it became gigantic (which is why it falls under the category of 'ridiculous', I think it could be quite nice if fixed).

So, dear tiny portion of the internet who stop by: any advice?  I'm considering just leaving it in hot water for a while and then wearing it while it dries.

Also that thing that looks like an infected Monroe piercing is just the result of my bad habit of scratching off my skin, please disregard.