I am 16, going on 17...

*snort* Yeah, right. Couldn't pay me to be that age again! But the sweater, the sweater I'll take!

Finished just in time to wear on the Fourth! I drew the line at blue shorts, though.

I needed something cute and chic and quick after a miserable FAIL at a top-down raglan sweater that had recently come off the needes (which has since been frogged, so don't expect to see that one. ever.). Liesl was the perfect solution! It's one of those magical sweaters that has a universally flattering fit. Don'tcha just love those?

The pattern is quick and simple, a top-down seamless yoke construction with an easy-to-memorize lace pattern that skims your figure with no need for waist shaping. It comes with a boatload of options for sleeves, necklines, and bindoffs as well. I do wish she'd popped in a schematic, but other than that, it was worth every penny.

Only a few mods here:
- Since my stockinette gauge was a helluva lot tighter, I used the 42" stitch counts to achieve something in the range of 32"(ish).
- Knitted with an inch(ish) of negative ease.
- Used a size 13 needle for both the cast-on and bind-off to keep them nice and stretchy with the lace. This worked especially great for the neckline!
- Added short sleeves (cap sleeves + weez = gah! my eyes! my eyes!)

This was my first seamless yoke sweater, and I love the construction! I'm going to start trolling the Rav database for more.

Oh, I should also point out that as noted above, I knitted this with an inch or so of negative ease. The pattern is intended for 0 ease, which is what you should aim for if you're planning to wear it all buttoned up. But it's summer and I'm a shameless hussy, so I really only plan to wear it with that third one buttoned.

Do you have a flag?

Yarn thoughts
My first garment in Cotton Ease and I must say - this yarn is great! It's a 50/50 cotton/acrylic blend, but you'd never guess about the acrylic if it weren't on the label. It's machine washable, very soft and sooooooper comfy. Didn't fade or pill either, plus its cheap and easy to find. Like most cottons, it can be a bit tiring on the hands while you're knitting, but other than that, it's a winner! I'll definitely be making more sweaters with this.

Wrap it up
I liked it on the needles, but on, it was love! I'm going to wear this all summer long. It'll be in every picture. People will think I have nothing else to wear. Then again, I could just knit another one...

Liesl
Pattern: by Ysolda Teague
Yarn: Cotton Ease, 2.5 skeins in Cherry Red
Needles: HiyaHiya Stainless Steel in 9, 24" + gigantor plastic 13 for CO/BO
Mods: Tighter gauge, short sleeves, negative ease

Something weeza this way comes

Do you live in San Fran or nearabouts that vicinity? Well strap down your stashes, 'cause I'm a headin' on up!

Okay, sorry, don't know why I'm channeling cowboy talk there. But I will be heading up to the Bay area at the end of the month to run the San Francisco Half-Marathon! Yes, I'm getting my nocturnal ass up at the butt-crack of dawn (see what I did there?) to run 13.1 miles. Because I'm out of my freakin' mind.

While I'm there, I'd love to meet up with any NorCal knitties! Irishgirlieknits has already promised to take me to the mothership Purlescence. The Half-Marathon is the morning of Sunday, July 26th. If I don't pass out and get rushed to the hospital, perhaps we could go later that afternoon? Or Monday, that would work as well. Let me know if you're free and we'll plan a knitty get together!

I'm not just twisty, I'm on Twist!

Check it out, my Little Birds Hat is featured on the Twist Collective blog! Scroll down to the June 20th entry (it won't let me link to the individual post for some reason), you'll see my hat, as well as other unique takes on TC patterns.

I'm SO going to make that Monkey cushion someday. And that Sylvi blanket? Unreal!

I'm all dark and twisty inside

No, seriously, I am.

I no longer watch the show (bounced it from the Tivo a few episodes into last season, when I realized I couldn't stand any of the characters any more), but how fab is this Seriously? colorway from sKnitches! After I saw Zonda's, I simply had to have it!

The one dilemma I always run into with self-striping yarns, however, is finding something fun and interesting to do with them. After much debating, I settled on the Riverbed Master Pattern from New Pathways, using the following:

- Whirlpool toe
- Chevron-y stitch pattern with purl borders for added stretch
- Plain heel
- Reinforced flap with stitches slipped knit-wise to make them all twisty-like (I forgot to shoot a close-up of that and now they're tucked away in the cedar chest, so you'll have to take my word for it that it looks really cool)
- Twisted rib cuff

The Riverbed architecture seems to be the most popular and I can see why! These hug the foot perfectly, and they're much more fun to knit than a traditional gusset. This was my first time doing a toe-up heel flap as well, and I gotta say, it was totally magical how it all came together! No fussy picking up stitches, either.

I did have to tinker with the formula a bit (emphasis on tink :P) to get the right fit, though. On the first pass, the foot was too long. On the second, the leg was too tight. On the third, I used fewer H (wing) stitches and added some stitches to the instep and the leg. Luckily, this stitch pattern is very easy to mod - you can barely tell where I added the extra stitches!

Overall they fit like a glove, but the foot is still a teeeeeny bit too long (you can see a touch of bagginess at the heel in the second pic). Next time I knit the Riverbed, I'll need to shorten the toe, shorten the heel turn, or start the arch expansion sooner than called for in the book. Also, much as I like that Whirlpool, the point of it tends to sit under my toes, so a different style may be in order.

Yarn thoughts
I love me some sKnitches! This was the same yarn used in my Feather & Sand Socks from last year, with the same feel and results here. Fab color job, soft, no fading, no pilling, and no runoff in the soak. She rocks!

Wrap it up
Is it wrong to say I love these socks a whole lot more than I ever loved the show? The colorway knit up fab, the Riverbed architecture was super fun to knit, and I *almost* got the stripes to match up, too (they're about a row and a half off). They'll be an instant cure whenever I'm in all dark and twisty inside. Seriously!

Dark & Twisty Riverbeds
Pattern: Riverbed Master Pattern from New Pathways
Yarn: sKnitches Syncopation, 1 skein in Seriously?
Needles: HiyaHiya Stainless Steels in Size 1, 32"
Mods: Tinkered with the Riverbed formula, rest was my own pattern

My husband the weirdo

Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes! :) It was a fabulous, relaxing day!

Wanna know how today started? Well, Hubster woke up around 2:30 am, showered, got dressed, made coffee, toasted a bagel, said he was really motivated and was going into the office to get some work done and finish up the payroll. He left just after 3 am.

At 3:15 am, he walked back in the door, said he was really tired and was going back to bed.

He is such a weirdo. But at least he makes me laugh! Once in a while, it's even on purpose. Not this morning, but once in a while. ;)