WIP Wednesday: Re-Learning Machine Knitting & Balancing Me Makes

This week has been quite busy for me! I had a few vacation days left from work that I had no plans to use before the end of the year PLUS I lost my voice and it still has not come back yet for weeks, so I took some days off so that I could literally not speak at all, lol. I used the time to clean out my horrifying garage and let me tell you - it was a full 2 day event. It's become so bad because I never have multiple entire days that I can just pull everything out and get it done, so even though my body is questioning my life choices, I'm so happy to have it in a better state.

Knitting-wise, I finished my Chuck sweater on Sunday, so I have picked up the Belladonna again. I find I just really don't enjoy the actual knitting of this cardigan only because of the amount of focus the multiple lace patterns that are so similar require. I keep messing up and having to tink back and that's annoying to me. I like to just have something be straight forward and easy to tell where I am - it doesn't have to be "simple" because I love lace and cables and whatnot, but these charts for some reason are just giving me a hard time. Anyway, I haven't really had much time to knit that because of my Christmas knits. 

I tried using my Sentro to make baby hats, but I just don't have the right sized machine to make it work right. I decided to knit a panel instead of a tube on the 48 pin machine and then I would just seam it to the size I needed, but even that kept messing up and I just decided heck with it. I will use the Sentro to knit the bigger kids hats, but I will knit the baby and toddler one by hand. They're so small, it's no big deal, you know? So I cast on my first one Sunday night.

For the scarves, I want to try making one on my Babylock knitting machine. This machine is made for larger yarns like worsted and aran, so I plan to do the same style as the Sentro one I made last week and compare them. If this one comes out better then I will redo the yellow scarf on this machine. I don't mind some imperfections, but the yellow one has a bunch all in the most prominent area when it's worn (of course) and it just bugs me. It's been a really long time since I used the machine though, so I'm having to watch the Meet Your Bond videos by Cheryl Brunette on YouTube to learn how to use the machine again. I'm going to do the scarf 50 stitches across and then seam it up into a tube, which will make my duplicate stitch plans easier too because I can do that before I seam it up. Hopefully this is quick and easy and I can slap these out without so much frustration as I had from the Sentro.

And in sewing, I made 2 mock ups of the New England dress and cut out my official fabric! It's a good thing I toiled this though because I had to add 2.5 inches to the bodice pieces. I know I'm long waisted (it's one of the reasons I wanted to sew my clothes because store bought dresses always hit me way above my waist), but this was a bit excessive even for me. I'm blending from a size 40 at the above the bust to a 42 at the waist and down. I could have even lengthened it by another 1/2" but I forgot when cutting. Hopefully the top still can blouse out a bit. I cut this out of some medium weight black linen and I'm very excited to get sewing on it. I've just been so tired at night after all my manual labor that I haven't quite felt up to the task. I also have quite a few things I want to get made - like a brown skirt of some kind so I can wear it with my recently finished sweaters. Will this happen this month? I'm honestly not sure, but it would be really nice to have more bottoms to meld things together better in my wardrobe.

So that's my craziness this week! This was all while still doing Thanksgiving and making broth and canning it, lol. Never a dull moment around here. What things are you working on this week? 

WIP Wednesday: Christmas Knitting Begins

Man, the holiday has me with a backlog of posts :/ I have been plugging away at various projects, but I just haven't sat down to write about them. Silly, right? I promise after this week, things will become regular again. 

After finishing my Susan Shaw cardigan (which you will see soon), I picked up my Chuck sweater. I've been dutifully knitting just that sweater in the hopes of finishing it with enough time to wear it as a Christmas type sweater even though it's not a Christmas sweater. The color gives it the right vibe. I tried the sweater on after finishing the 2nd cable repeat and it was kind of comically too short. I actually looked at a bunch of other people's projects to see if I had done something wrong because mine was coming up so short, but I just have a long torso. In truth, I have a long yoke - the area between my bust and shoulders is longer than "standard" it seems. It's something I have to correct for frequently, but this left me with a dilemma. I liked the look on other people with the cropped length, but I was going to come up too short or a lot longer than that. In the end, I decided to just go for my natural waist. I did 3 cable repeats and then did 12 rows of ribbing to conserve yarn - adding to the length has now greatly lessened the length of my sleeves. I'm on the neckband now and then I will divide the remaining yarn for the sleeves. Hopefully this one is finished soon!

I've also started cranking out Christmas gifts - literally. This year I'm using my knitting machines to make scarves and hats. I tried with the 48 pin Sentro first knowing I could pull out the big legit knitting machine if that didn't work. I spent Sunday evening cranking.

I kept rolling the scarf up underneath the machine to prevent drag and the donut I got close to the end was pretty comical.

This is my finished first scarf - well the cranking is finished. I'm still on the fence about it. The first half went great, but there are a bunch of tucked stitches and irregularities on the side above the black. I'm trying to decide if this is fine or if I want to rip it out and do it on the Babylock machine.

So I'm now a scarf making machine until Christmas time. I have several items to make as gifts and I'm hoping that this helps me get them all done :) I'm also still mentally working on sewing, but I haven't actually sewed anything this week, lol. Whoops. It's a crazy time, folks. I hope to get back at that after Thanksgiving. Maybe then I won't fall asleep early every night.

Have you started holiday gift making yet? 

Machine Knitting: Buffalo Check Baby Blanket on the 22 pin Sentro Knitting Machine

If you've been involved in the knitting world on YouTube in the last year or so, you've probably seen the Sentro Knitting Machines. They are a circular, plastic, toy-looking knitting machine that is actually used by knitters (adults) for all kinds of projects. I had toyed with getting one or months, but it finally got me, and this project definitely helped me justify the splurge. My sister was having her first baby at the beginning of June, so I used that as the perfect chance to make this up.

I made this entire blanket on my 22 pin Sentro knitting machine in 2 days. Yes, really. I saw several tutorials and patterns making this same idea, but I knew I could figure it out on my own (controversial, I know). This entire blanket is double layered, because all the strips are knit in tubes and then flattened to seam them together. My sister really likes the black and gray baby trend that's been going around, so I decided to make this look like buffalo check. I used I Love This Yarn from Hobby Lobby in Greybead, Black, and White, and I made each square 17 rows, then switched to the next color, then switched back, etc until I had 12 squares per strip. This made my finished blanket 52 x 41 inches, so a good baby blanket size. Was the knitting perfect? Absolutely not, lol. This was my first actual project on the machine, so I learned a few important tips in making this:

• make sure the yarn is free flowing into the machine with no added resistance or you will get tucked stitches and weirdness
• snug your new color yarn after about 3 stitches, then tie it to the previous color after 4 or 5 rows
• don't crank too fast or you will drop stitches
• angle the machine on the edge of the table to the tube can fall freely and not bunch up or get twisted

Let's just say I'm thankful this project is double sided with the same color behind each square. If it didn't have that double layer, you would see ALL kinds of weird holes and spaced out stitches, but the double layer fills in the gaps. 

Seaming this beast took as much time (if not more) than cranking out the pieces. I tried out 2 methods of seaming the strips together- crocheting the edge stitches into each other, and mattress stitch. In the end, I liked the smooth look of the mattress stitch, so that is what I used, but man did that take a long time. Also being a double layer, this was quite warm to seam together in May/June in Florida. Just saying. For seaming, I started from the center of each line and worked outward, trying to make sure the squares lined up to give the plaid look I was going for. I think I mostly succeeded. This project is a major yarn hog though, so be warned. This baby blanket took almost the entire 4 skeins of yarn. Because of this, it's wonderfully squishy, but it is certainly a blanket for colder times.

Since this was a gift for my new nephew, I decided to add one of my tags :) Then hopefully he will know where this came from when he gets older. Part of why I wanted to make this was just to learn the construction, but also to see how sturdy it felt with all that seaming. I'm pleasantly surprised at how together this blanket feels. I was afraid the weight of the other strips would cause them to pull away from each other and create gaps, but if I didn't tell people it was made in strips then I don't think they would ever know.

I let my other new nephew test it out before I sent it to the recipient, and it passed the cozy baby test with flying colors :) 

All in all, I'm really happy with this project. You can't beat the speed, and for baby gifts this will give me a very impressive look without all the time I would usually have to spend (which is why I don't ever knit blankets - I get bored). I am certain I will be making more of these blankets for other new babies in the future, and it really makes my purchase of this little machine feel more justified. I have the most ridiculous yarn stash, so I'm excited about the greater possibilities of using it quicker.

Summary:

Yarn: Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn 2 skeins in Greybeard, 1 skein in Black, 1 skein in White: $14.96

Pattern: My own based off Koala Knits and Calumet Knits You Tube videos

Time: 2 Days

WIP Wednesday: Vintage Knit Check In and Summer Planning

I'm not the greatest at diving into a fingering weight sweater and working on it monogamously until it's done. Fingering weight sweaters tend to be my background knits - the project I always have going that I can grab in between the gift making and other shiny things that take my fancy. Since starting this sweater on March 7th, I've knit a shawl and 2 amigurumi, finished a bolero and a different fingering weight sweater, and crocheted an amigurumi and a tote bag. Not bad, frankly, lol. But I've managed to get all those other projects finished so I've had more time to devote to knitting this up.

I knew when I started this that it would be a background item because it would take a little more brain power than I'm used to. Being a vintage pattern from the 1940s, this doesn't exactly hold your hand, and I'm adjusting the size up for myself since this was only written for a 34-36" bust, which I am not. I figured the back would be the easiest piece to start with, and so far it's looking very nice. I'm about to shape the area above the arm holes. Also I just love this yarn. Knit Picks Stroll never disappoints with me. It's so smooth and soft, I just love it, so I'm very excited to have this as a finished object.

I also managed to make my first ever actual project on the Sentro knitting machine! It's so adorable, seriously, and I will share all the particulars here soon. I just have to weave in the ends before it goes to its recipient on Saturday.

In new ideas (or at least resurrecting of older ideas), I watched a podcast yesterday about plant based fibers for summer, and it really got me thinking about the Cotton et Lin yarn I have in my stash. I picked up several skeins of coordinating colors in the Hobby Lobby clearance this spring figuring I would make a striped cardigan of some kind with them. 

I have 4 colors - 3 skeins of Apple Cider, 2 skeins of Chintz, 1 skein of Fern, and 1 skein of Rouge. I'd rather not use the Apple Cider color simply because I have enough skeins to make a separate project on its own in that color, but I'm trying to decide. These are much more muted tones than I usually go for with knitting, but I am really liking the combo together. I'm trying to make a lacy cardigan so I can get decent wear out of it in Florida. I'm thinking either the Hetty pattern by Andi Satterlund (which I've made before here) or the Liesl cardigan by Ysolda Teague, which I've always wanted to make. 

I had still have the Tierney cardigan by Andi Satterlund in this lovely Bernat Cassino I thrifted several months ago on my mind. This one feels more fall in color than the Cotton et Lin, so who knows. We will see how the mood strikes me.

What are you working on this week? Anything exciting?

WIP Wednesday: Learning New Toys

So, I've been watching a lot of knitting on You Tube lately, and I finally succumbed to the online trend that is the Sentro Knitting Machine. I hemmed and hawed about it for a while - after all I am a knitter and therefor can produce much more detailed items than these little machines ever could. I also have a flat bed knitting machine from the 80s at my disposal. Do I need some "toy" knitting machines? Not really. Especially not for the prices they sell for on Amazon. THEN I found them on Temu.  I'll confess I've been mildly obsessed with Temu lately - They are a Chinese company that ships direct instead of you having to buy things marked up on Amazon. They ship for free, get things to you in about a week, and offer discounts on top of the already lower prices they sell for. All good things in my book. I've been going through a pretty hard time in my personal life, so late one night I bit the bullet and bought myself a few new toys.

I got the 22 pin, 48 pin, and a 4 stitch i-cord machine. I have seen some really cute ideas of things to make with these, so I'm not just jumping in blind and knitting hats for everyone. I'm hoping that this will help me churn out some good gifts in quick fashion as well as help me use up some of my ridiculous yarn stash.

The Sentro machines do come with some yarn that is the right size for you to try out. The bigger machine came with the same size as the smaller machine (maybe a DK weight), but the bigger machine also came with what looks like borderline bulky weight yarn. After cranking out this pink tube in the DK on the bigger machine, I think it does need a thicker yarn. So there is certainly a learning curve to getting things right, but I'm excited to play around with these and see what I can produce. I'm also excited about the idea of my kids getting to make things as well. They are 5 and not quite up to learning to really knit, but if they can turn a crank and make something I know they will be inordinately pleased.

Have you used a Sentro knitting machine? What kinds of things do you make? 

*If you are interested in getting one of these for yourself (and pay much less than you would in the states), click this link to get 30% off and free shipping on Temu. You only get that 30% off once as a new member, so it's a great time to snag a a machine or two for a deal. This is an affiliate link, but I purchased these machines completely with my own money and this post is not sponsored in any way. I just like to share things I think are fun at a good price :)