February Fitted Pullover in March

Finally, I finished my February Fitted Pullover.  I started this back in November for NaKniSweMo, and when I realized that I wouldn't finish in November, I just got really lax with it.  Lax to the point where it sat dormant for a while.  All I had left to do was seam the sleeves to the body, and finish the collar. Sheesh! 

So, I decided to finish it and actually wear it, before it got too hot outside to wear it.  Spring seems to have finally sprung.... at least this past week.  So, I grabbed on to the fear of not being able to wear it, and conquered it.

Here I am, clipping the pieces together, and seaming the sleeves.

Here is the completed sweater that I wore to work on Friday.

The Yarn is Malabrigo Silky Merino in "Amoroso", size 7 needles.

I didn't hesitate to cast on something new once the needle was free.  I went to La Casita on Friday evening with some really great knitting friends of mine.  I casted on yet another Sexy Vesty. We had such a blast.  La Casita has quickly become my favorite yarn shop.

The Beginning of Effie

I got a chance to dig into my Kim Hargreaves Precious magazine on Friday night. 

I was so excited, that I casted on immediately.

This is 1 pattern repeat.

This is about 10 more.

All in all, I have to do about 18 repeats for the edging of the back of the sweater, and repeat the same thing for the front of the sweater.  However, I noticed that I don't really like purling with this yarn, so I will be tweaking the pattern a bit, and making this in the round instead of pieces. So this means that I have to do 18 more pattern repeats, seam it all together, then pick up the stitches on the edge for the body of the sweater.  Wish me luck!

This yarn is very delicate, but once you get the hang of it, your knitting speed goes back to normal as if you were knitting a plied yarn that wasn't so fuzzy.  I am more comfortable with it now, and I am not as scared of the project as I was before.

I went to a Knit+Wine event on Sunday, and was only able to make it through 1 pattern repeat.  It turns out that after the delicious Reisling I had, I was forced to squint to see the stitches. LOL!  As if I didn't know what would happen.  No worries, I had another project with me that was easy knitting.  I didn't have to look at what I was knitting at all!

Wanna Be Startin' Sumthin' .... Gotta Be Startin' Sumthin'

I am preparing to take on what I feel is one of the most challenging endeavors in knitting ever.
Drumroll please...........

Knitting Kidsilk Haze on size 3 needles.

I have fallen in love with Effie from the moment I saw her. She is delicate, romantic, girly, and fluttery.  She is akin to a ballerina in my eyes, or a fairy princess from some disney cartoon that has classical music playing in the background.

The yarn is Rowan Kidsilk Haze in Marmalade, that I bought over 2 years ago when Knit New York had a sale.  They have since closed their doors, and the pattern I had originally bought the yarn for was kicked out the door when Effie arrived.  Effie has kicked Sylvi off the list of my 10 in 2010 projects as well. I am waiting 2 more days for my "Precious" by Kim Hargreaves book to arrive.

Why would I say that this is a challenging knit?  Firstly the yarn is very delicate, and frogging is not a possibility, so I have to really pay serious attention when I knit, and have great lighting, and not have my tastebuds divulge on Lambic Frambroise at La Casita yarn shop.  Secondly, this will be my first fine-gauge sweater, and I have been notorious for having chunky sweaters lay around for months, so this will be a great test at keeping focused. I know that this is surely not an instant gratification project, and I am ok with that. Thirdly, I have never done ruffles before, but they look so cute that I want to give them a try.  I can honestly say that I am very comfortable that this is stockinette, and the only real thing I have to worry about is doing my shaping decreases in the right spot.  I am contemplating knitting in the round, because I hate seaming. However, I have to study the pattern before I go converting things.  I hear that British knitting patterns are written very different than American ones.  But, I have no fear.  One of the coolest knitting buddies I have is from Great Britain.

Without further adieu, here is my newly updated pie chart of 10 in 2010 projects.

Malabrigo Sexy Vesty Complete.

Here is the first Sexy Vesty I started making back in December.  I actually put it on hold to complete the Pink Sexy Vesty for Ravelympics.  Today, during my visit to La Casita, I sat by the bar, had a Lambic Framboise to drink, 2 absolutely delicious Beef Empanadas to eat, and weaved in my ends.

Specs: 2 Skeins of Malabrigo Worsted in "Lettuce" purchased from The Fiber Fix, size 5 needles for the body of the sweater. Size 4 needles for the armhole edging and neckband.
This sweater isn't blocked yet.  Hmmmm... maybe it will stretch a little more. I feel like I am wearing a  corset.  Or maybe I just need to do a few more crunches.  Either way, I still love it.

Here is my Sexy Vesty! 

Green is such a fun color!

This is what I have leftover.  It weighs 9 grams, which is approximately 18.9 yards.  I was afraid that I wouldn't have enough yarn, but it worked out.  Whew!  This sweater fits a bit snug, and if I did it over in Malabrigo I would use a size 6 needle for sure. I used a size 6 for my pink sweater, and that was perfect.

I bought more yarn for more Sexy Vesty clones.  They were on sale today at Michaels for 3.99.  I thought I was getting a deal.  Then, I saw that there were certain colors that were 2.99... like Taupe.  Arrrgghh!!!  Why did I wait to the last day of the sale to go to the store?  Duh!  because I work until 8 PM every day, and can never get to Michaels during the week. So, the 2.99 yarn was gone.  But I know how this works.  How much you wanna bet AC Moore has the same yarn on sale before the month is over?  I am yarnstalking for sure!

I would also like to add that I finally received my SweaterCross Medal for the Pink Sexy Vesty.  Here it is!

Newsflash!!!  I just received a Captain's medal for being the Co-Moderator for the Sit N Knit group.  Woohoo!  This totally makes up for not getting at least 1 medal last Olympics.

I did it! I did it!

Here are my medals.

Here is my lovely Sexy Vesty.

Specs: Sexy Vesty made with Lion Brand Cotton-Ease in Azalea (3 skeins).  Needle sizes 5 and 6.

This is my first completed 10in2010 project for the year.
I want to make another one.  What color should I make the next one?

Ooops.... I forgot to post the picture on my ravelry thread for Sweaterboard Cross.  So, I should be expecting another medal soon.