Project #1 and #2 finished, project #3 in the practice run

I've been meaning to start this journal since I first picked the needles up again two weeks ago, after an 18 year hiatus!

I meant to start it when my first project was almost done, but didn't get round to taking the photos. I still haven't taken any, and I'm one scarf and one ipod mini cozy down.

The scarf is knitted in stockinette, with a purl/knit at the start of each row (k1 p20, p1 k20). It's knitted in Elle Plume 'strawberry parfait (shade 255)'. It could have done with being thinner and longer, but it's oh so soft and I'm sure I'll wear it at some point. It took 2 balls (£2.20ea), and I just knitted until they were done. Too warm to try it out yet though!



The ipod cozie is just in cheap acrylic DK, two shades of pink to match my ipod mini! I adapted it from a pattern for an ipod, which is a good 0.5"-1" bigger in all dimensions. I just did it by guesswork, and from a desire to just get knitting rather than actually work and measurements out. Hence, it's turned out a little big, as it could have done with being snugger. But I love it, and I'm so very proud of managing it with the little pocket and the different yarns and different stitches.

Pattern:
http://chocnvodka.blogware.com/blog/_archives/2005/8/26/1172247.html


I also tried the green cozy here afterwards:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=25972.240

But while I got the pattern right, I screwed up the row counts and did some wrong stuff after, so decided not to finish it. I wasn't that taken with it anyway, to be honest.

I'm now doing some practice for:
http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring05/PATTbranchingout.html

which is my first attempt at lace, and I'm loving it! From what I read, it needs a lot of concentraiont though, which is the biggest thing I have a trouble with doing! I can do all the stitches, but I can't keep track of yself at all! So I'm expecting to go very wrong with it. I'm going to buy some gorgeous Rowan Kidsilk Haze on Monday, and start with that. From what I read though, that's a difficult yarn to knit with, so I might have a look and see what Franklins stocks as an alternative. But I expect I'll just bite the bullet and go with that!

Must make mention of the Stitch and Bitch book, which is my first knitting book and which has been extremely useful, and a good read to boot! Other than that, I've spent a LOT of time scouring the net and reading up.

I'm really getting into this!