(Bad model pose, no makeup!)

What happens though, is that you get up to the ruffles and think to yourself "Hooray, just the ruffles, and I'm done!!'
Just.The.Ruffles.
My God, the ruffles. You have all those stitches for the skirt, then you double them. Then you purl back, then you do another increase row, increasing into every second stitch.

Then you do a picot cast off. Cast on 2, cast off 3. The neverending ruffles. The skirt hem alone took two days to cast off. But it was done. Then I started on the front placket ruffles. I almost wish I'd done plain plackets, but I know it'll all be worth it, if I ever finish.

One down, one to go.

And this week I had a happy realisation. I'd bought myself a new Inoui winter scarf. And totally unintentionally, it matches my Ella!

Meant to be!

A little while back, Kris put a call out on Twitter that she was ordering some Colette patterns and did anyone else want any? Did I ever!

I'd been looking at the patterns on and off for a while, trying to decide which to start with, and this was the perfect opportunity. I got the Crepe pattern, and also the Chantilly. I'd spotted the fabric a few months ago, and bought the last of the bolt, not knowing how much I'd need or what pattern I had in mind, but absolutely loving the print.

As soon as I saw the Crepe pattern, I knew it was meant to be.
It's a wrap style dress, which overlaps and ties in the back.
The fabric for the ties is a Kaffe Fassett shot cotton in Vermillion that I picked up at Calico & Ivy. One benefit to working in a fabric store is that you can pull out bolts of fabric, look at them all day, and not feel like you're holding up the store staff while you take hours to make your decision!

This pattern is a great pattern for all levels of seamstresses. The tie is the only fastening, so there's no mucking around with buttons or zippers. The neckline and armholes are faced, and there's darts in the bodice for fit, but it's not too difficult a project. There are pockets, which I love, but they're easily left off if you think you're not up to it. Each Colette pattern comes with an entire booklet of instructions, which are very comprehensive without being confusing.

And the result is fabulous! I always feel pretty in this dress! I make a point of trying to always something handmade when I'm working at Calico & Ivy, and this dress always receives compliments. We've been stocking the Colette book at Balmain (Although it's temporarily out of stock), and I think my next project will be the Taffy top from the book - maybe in some Liberty Tana Lawn. (Drool!!)

Although as a teaser, I have made my Chantilly dress, too. More details next time!!

The skirt is supposed to be done by Monday, we've had three weeks to do it. I've actually got a little bit further since I took this picture yesterday. I'm finished with the increases, and I'm happy with the size - now I just need to knit six or eight inches until the skirt is the length I'm after.

I'll be on the lounge, in front of the TV!

Who'd have thunk? Apparently not me. Woe, woe, woe is me. Cry me a river.

Anyhow, things are bound to slow up soon, but until then we'll continue on in a slower manner than usual. It helps (or perhaps doesn't) that I tend towards the hyperactive.

Ella is inching along. Last week we started on the skirt. As you can see, I'm a little behind.

I managed abut a whole inch last week. I'm aiming to catch up this week! Speaking of little behinds, mine isn't really. It's two sizes bigger than my bust, so I'm a little worried about how the skirt is going to fit. I'm decided to do the increase rows a little closer together than the pattern says, and try it on as I go. Lets hope that it works, because if I have to rip back, it may take me forever and a day to finish!

I did take a close up picture though. The bodice was blocked before I picked up the stitches for the skirt.

Look at the way the yarn blooms once it's blocked! Gorgeous. So nice and squishy, and beautifully soft.

The only other project that has seen any action is the socks I knit on when I'm on the train. I'm trying to love them.

Two socks, same needles, same pattern, same ball of yarn at the same time. One is pooling.

Like I said, I'm trying to love them. They're not for me, so I don't have to love them, just finish them!

I've enjoyed the pace of this KAL for the past couple of weeks, because it's allowed me to work on other things. Like the little "Starr" jumper.

This was a quick one to work up!
Specs:
Pattern: Starr by Martin Storey from Rowan Miniature Classics
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino in 043, Purple, 2 balls.
Needles: 3mm and 3.25mm
Mods: None.

Knit exactly to the pattern. Pattern called for Rowan Cashsoft DK, but I used Baby Cashmerino, which claims to be a sportweight, but has similar yardage as the cashsoft, similar content, and knit up beautifully at a DK tension.
The pattern called for 3 balls for the smallest size, but I only used two. In saying that though, I was using the scraps from seaming to sew on the buttons. I used every single centimetre of both balls, so I'd probably recommend you get three, just in case.

The star on the front is cute.

All in all, a great, quick baby knit. Repeatable? I can definitely see myself doing it again! Next up?

Maybe back to the Hiccup socks, or poor neglected Camber again.

I apologise, I can't help it. I sing the line and do a little dance, every time I think of it. Ella is moving along nicely, thankyouverymuch!

I failed to blog about it last week, but the sleeves and the bodice are done, blocked and seamed.

Done just in the nick of time, because the next step was up on the blog on Monday night. Cuffs and Ruffles!

Pink yarn comes out to play! Bling! Ruffles! Yay!

I played around with it for a little while. I have just one skein of pink blingy yarn, so there's not enough for all the ruffles, but it needs to be in there somewhere.

So I decided to go with a few rows of the bling, then with the plain yarn for the ruffles.

Love.It.

I went with option B of Nora's suggestions, the picot edge cast off. Slow as molasses, but totally worth it.

So now, the bodice is done, all ready for next Monday's hints and tips.

And I think the armholes are fine!

I'm quite pleased with the fit. There's about two inches left between the bodice fronts to allow for the ruffle, but judging by the way my swatch grew, I expect this will be a little bigger when all is said and done.

I am a little concerned about the size of those armholes, but weeks 3 & 4 are for sleeves, so I'm reserving judgement until the sleeves are done and I can see how it all goes together. We've got two weeks to do the sleeves, and so far I'm on target to finish these by next Monday. As usual, I'm doing both sleeves at the same time.

Including my awesome, high tech counting method that I always use for sleeve shaping.

A post it note, with the increase rows noted, and counted off one at a time. Don't knock it, it works!

TAFE starts this week, so my time may be more restricted than I think. I'm a little nervous about the impact on my time that TAFE will have.

But I had a little quiet time in the shop this week, so I started something new there, too.

Starr by Martin Storey from Rowan Miniature Classics, in Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino.

The pattern calls for Rowan Cashsoft DK, which is a 57% Merino, 33% Microfibre, 10% Cashmere mix, in a 50g ball with 130m per ball. I'm using Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino which is 55% Wool, 33% Microfibre, and 12% Cashmere in a 50g ball, but has only 125m per ball.

Somehow, the sportweight Baby Cashmerino has less yardage than the DK Cashsoft witha similar composition. Colour me confused! For what it's worth, DB Cashmerino DK has only 110m per ball.

Anyway, the Cashmerino Baby is subbing nicely for the Cashsoft DK, the tension is perfect, and the resulting fabric is lovely. And how cute is the sweater?!

As you can see, they haven't grown much. The colour was pooling, so I decreased two stitches in each sock, and now it's moving nicely. There possibly would've been more action on these except for a small problem.

Another broken Knitpicks/Knitpro needle. This has happened a lot to me lately, I don't think I'll be buying them anymore.

And Ella? I've recovered the lost work and started on Week two, which is the armhole shaping and up to the shoulders.

Getting there, with 48 hours or so until next week's "homework" is released. Must knit!

One of those weeks where I had barely enough time to scratch myself left me with very little Ella time. But then David won tickets to the Renaissance exhibition at the National Gallery of Australia on Thursday afternoon for Friday night, so on Friday we went road tripping, and Ella came along.

It's about a three hour drive from our place to Canberra, doable in a day, and it's pretty, but can get a little boring.

Lots of road.

Lots of greenery!

And we stopped by Lake George to look at the Wind Farm and have a knit. Yes, it really is a lake. I've never personally seen it full, but it happens.

And on the way home in the dark, I finished this weeks KAL section. I was feeling very proud of myself, but there'd been a little niggling thought in my head all week. Last night I pulled it out again and looked at it. Tried it around my body, and admitted to myself that the niggling thought was right.

Ella was too big. I fall smack in between two sizes. I'd decided to size up to be on the safe side, but it was just too big, especially seeing as my swatch had grown when I'd blocked it. So I frogged it.

This morning, it looked like this.

Next section starts tomorrow. I'd best get knitting!

Luscious. Divine. Soft. Squishy. Droolworthy to the nth degree. I couldn't wait to get home and wind me up a skein to swatch.

I'm going to talk about my method to swatching. Yours might be different. Until I discovered knitting on the internet about 8 years ago, I never bothered. If the pattern called for 4mm needles, I used 4mm needles.

I also never wore any of my finished garments, because they never turned out quite right. I gave up on knitting garments, and knit a lot of scarves instead. And baby garments. If they're a little big, the baby will grow into them eventually, right? It never really occurred to me that the problem might be my gauge.

Until I tried to knit Emily a cabled cardigan about 9 years ago or so. The pattern called for 8ply (DK) doubled and 7mm needles. I ran out of yarn. Like, really, really short of yarn. From memory, I ended up having to buy about 4 extra balls of yarn. I went back to Spotlight and complained about the pattern, assuming they'd got the amount of yarn wrong. The assistant asked me if I'd checked my tension. I'm sure I looked at her blankly.

Then when I googled knitting all those fateful years ago and learned about knitting blogs, a whole new world opened up for me. Swatching? Blocking? My knitting underwent a metamorphosis.

Also, I learned that I'm a loose knitter. I always need to go down at least one needle size, sometimes more. No wonder my knitting had never turned out right!

So I now swatch for every single garment I knit. Every. Time. Scarves, socks, shawls? Bah, who cares! Garments? Always!

Here's what works for me.

First, I collect together every thing I need.

Yarn, pattern, needles in a few sizes. Usually the size called for (just in case), always a size smaller, and sometimes a size smaller than that.

Because I almost always get the correct tension on a needle one size smaller than recommended, I start swatching on that. In this case, the pattern calls for 5.5mm (US 9) needles, so I started with a 5mm (US 8).
Recommended tension is 18sts and 24 rows over 10cm (4").

My preferred swatch size is 15cm square. I think that a 10cm square is a little risky for measuring purposes. Sometimes my first or last stitch is a little loose and can be misleading, so to allow a little room for error, I like a 15cm square.
Also, I don't like to measure plain stockinette. It rolls, sometimes even after it's been blocked, so it's hard to measure. So I always add a little garter border to make measuring easier.

So in this case, I decided to cast on 33 stitches. 18sts x 1.5 (to make a 15cm square) = 27 stitches in stockinette, plus 3 sts either side for a garter border.

And off I go. First observation is that this yarn is so soft it's amazing. Doesn't feel like your ordinary, run-of-the-mill wool. But my swatch?

At this stage, it looks like it's coming out a little small - 5.5 or 5.75" instead of 6". I could stop now and go up to the recommended needle size, but I decide to finish the swatch and see.

I work 36 rows in stockinette. 24 rows = 10cm (4") in recommended gauge, so 24 x 1.5 = 36 rows. I then finish with a few rows of garter stitch for my border and I remeasure my swatch.

Uh oh. Right?

Wrong. It's a little on the small side, and some knitters would now decide to just use the larger needle. But I've been burned before, and I really want my Ella coat to fit nicely. I don't want it to be too small, but I don't want it to be too big, either.

If I'm putting in enough work to make a coat, I want it to fit right!

So the final step, which is just as vitally important as any other step is to block my swatch. Into a warm bubble bath it goes to soak for a little while, then I roll it up in a facecloth and wring out (gently!) the excess water, before I lay it out for a final measurement check.

I guess that warm bubble bath was just as relaxing as it looked. My swatch has grown. Not a lot, but just the right amount! My stitch tension is perfect. My row tension is a tiny bit short, but that's okay, most of the length is done by measurement instead of row count.

If I'd made a decision early on and gone up a needle size and not blocked my swatch, I'd end up with a coat that's too big for me. One stitch per 10cm can make a big difference! If you have 180 sts, and your tension should be 18 sts = 10cm, your garment would finish up 100cm. But if you're getting 17 sts = 10cm, your garment is going to end up nearly 106cm around. That could make a huge difference int he way your garment fits.

I'll probably throw the swatch into the washing machine on a gentle cycle to see if it felts before I finish the real thing. I don't want to ruin my garment later on!

There are no knitting police! Swatch using whatever method works for you. But I really recommend always doing a swatch.

Specs:
Pattern: Elspeth by Laura Long, available for free from the Rowan website (You'll need to be a member to get the pattern, but it's free to join)
Size: Small
Yarn: The sadly discontinued Calmer in Plum, pattern called for 4 balls, I only used 3.
Needles: 4.5mm
New Techniques for me: Crochet! Rosered came into the shop one day, and showed me how to do the double crochet and the picot edging.
Mods: I changed the crochet edging around the outer edge, but did it the way the pattern said around the sleeves. It worked fine on the sleeves, but when I did it around the bolero edge, it went all wavy. I emailed Rosered and she suggested a few decreases and picots only every third dc instead of every second. It's sitting better now, but I like the look of the sleeves better! I think it that my tension might have played a part too - I always go down a needle size in knitting, maybe I should have done the same with the crochet hook.
I also didn't bother with the picots on the ties, it seemed a little silly to me!

Otherwise, exactly as the pattern says.

And I love it! I really love Calmer, and I'm so glad I managed to stash some away before it's lost forever. I'm usually not a fan of acrylic at all, but this blend is s o soft and squishy, it's a delight to work with, and to wear.

It's been mentioned to me by a couple of people that I should be blogging my sewing exploits as well as my knitting.
I mention it now because the dress I'm wearing with my Elspeth is one of the more recent ones that I've made. Unfortunately, I can't give you pattern information or anything, because it's a mock up of about three different patterns, and some shirring on the back. Shirring is my new sewing love. Easy, easy, easy! I used this tutorial to learn how, and it's great! Shirring just the back of the bodice is good - no need for zips or buttons, helps with a great fit due to the elasticity and is relatively easy to boot!

This isn't a great picture, but it gives you a better view of the bodice. The fabrics is a lovely light weight cotton I got from Calico & Ivy.

In other news, my yarn arrived for my Ella coat!

The colours are perfect - the colour in the picture is a little off, the pick is a gorgeous raspberry pink. The Shepherd's Wool is divine - maybe the softest pure wool I've ever played with. Gorgeous! Now to swatch...

1. Coco Top, 2. Bogus Hat, 3. Shur'tugal Socks, 4. Pompom Tea Cosy, 5. Lace Edged Cardi, 6. Stripey Cardi, 7. Montego Bay, 8. Nutkins, 9. Grapevine, 10. Spanish Dress, 11. Teddy Cardi, 12. Akomeogi Socks, 13. Stripey Little Mitts, 14. Keyhole Scarf #2, 15. Keyhole Scarf #1, 16. Blossom, 17. Easy Top Down Raglan, 18. Floyd, 19. Smoulder, 20. Edie, 21. Fancy Schmancy, 22. Billy Bruce's Cardi, 23. Mouse Comfort, 24. Lily Cardigan, 25. Plum Frost, 26. Lace Edged Baby Hat, 27. Sophie MkIII, 28. Valentine Cardi, 29. Hitchhiker, 30. Baby Kina, 31. KawKawEsque, 32. Elspeth33. Not available34. Not available35. Not available36. Not available

I was very surprised to see my output this year! In 2010, I completed 35 projects, in 2009, 33. Honestly, I thought this year would prove to be far less productive.

But wasn't I wrong?!? 32 finished projects. A tiny bit less than average. Starting two jobs this year after having been out of the workforce for almost a decade apparently didn't have the impact that I thought it would. Of course, one of those jobs being in a very yummy yarn store, where I got to actually knit, helps. And the commute there and back on public transport is also (usually) uninterrupted knitting time!

Nine full sized adult garments! Lots of little projects and shop samples, but I'm good with that. A little bit of everything in that little selection up there. Garments, scarves, socks, a lace sweater. No shawls, but I rarely wear any of the ones I've made in the past anyway. I think this year my knitting took a more functional direction. More garments that I actually wear, scarves for accessorising. Socks, baby gifts, store samples. It's nice to use/wear the things you knit, and I think this year I've managed that.

You may also notice two finished but unblogged projects up there too. Elspeth is all done, I wore it today and Knitabulous took some pictures for me. There'll be a blog post in the next day or two. And the Baby Kina has yet to meet her recipient, so I'm hoping for a future blog post on that too.

2012? Well, I learned in the past couple of weeks that I've been accepted into TAFE for my Library Diploma in 2012. It's a full time, year long course. I'll be doing that online in addition to continuing to work at Calico & Ivy and at the library job I have now. I'd really like to get something more permanent in the library (I'm only a casual right now) and the Diploma is the logical next step. Will I manage all three? We'll find out when it all gets started in February, I guess! Will I manage to knit as well?

I certainly intend to!

Also, the Ella Reinvented Knit A Long starts in mid January, and I'm looking forward to that. Hopefully my yarn will arrive sometime this week and I can begin swatching. Until then, I've pulled the Camber Cardigan out of hibernation and restarted on that. Last time Camber appeared on the blog was way back in March, and it's sat in a bag, ignored, ever since. I got it out and started working on it again, Why was it ignored so long? No idea, the boring black laceweight stockinette was boring. But since picking it back up, I'm almost finished the body. It's true you see, absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Or it makes you forget that the project you were working on had bored you silly!

See you in 2012!