knit parade: yarn chicken

if a game of chicken is one in which someone dares to you to face your fear factor fears, than it follows that yarn chicken* can be defined as a game in which a knitter isn't exactly sure whether or not she or he has enough yarn to finish a project and forges forward by casting on anyway, yardage (and gauge) requirements be damned.

that's how i've been playing it, anyway. yarn chicken, that is.

for example, i played yarn chicken with my owley flugel sweater for the summer sweater kal and lost.

sweater front

sigh. although the yarn is rather reasonably priced (and so, so worth it the extra shipping and potential customs charges), my yarn budget is stretched to the limit at the moment and i've decided i'm going to fight back the tears be an adult about all of this and just let the sweater hibernate until i can get off the yarn diet. which may be awhile, because life happens.

there's the whole front left side still to do. then i'm supposed to pick up stitches for around the collar and then 8 rows of 1x1 ribbing. i think i'm gonna need 2 more hanks just to be safe.

sweater back

but isn't the sweater going to be so cute and awesome? it really, really is. 

wanna see the inside of my sweater? 

(see what i did there? i distracted you from the visual effects of my clumsy seaming. all i can say is, don't look back. don't. look down, it's even scarier.)

i know. when i shared this seaming predicament with the sskal ravelry group, the reactions i got included sincere sympathy empathy, cold sweats, racing hearts, and pure relief that although their project had some necessary seaming involved, their sweater did not look like it had been gutted from the inside.

after all was seamed and done, a pet fuzzball!

clearly, intarsia is not my strong suit. i tried many messy things seaming this sweater. and while i'm okay with the things i've done inside my sweater, i am not inclined to show anyone my gutsy seaming job. nope, you cannot make me. okay, maybe in exchange for the yarn i still need to finish this sweater. but nothing else can make me.

i digress.

because in the interest of full disclosure, i apparently play yarn chicken all the time. okay, 3 times, including above sweater. 

because in the interest of trying not to buy yarn, i turn to the stash. and i don't gauge swatch. 

because in the interest of living a life that is not motivated by fear, i like to live dangerously.

in the end, what i get out of each yarn chicken experience is another finished accessory or 2 and um,  spawn of the yarn i was trying to use up in the first place. ahem.

in my defense, i didn't buy the shibui stacatto yarn that i only needed 2 feet of, to finish this rae scarf (which i love). my cousin and now converted knitter (yes, i've been recruiting) bought it for me because he is a sweetheart.

i have no defense for buying more madelinetosh dk (lovely plied yarn). it's not even the same yarn as i started knitting these rathrevor gloves with. i originally used madelinetosh merino dk (single ply heaven),  the yarn shop isn't getting any more of it in the victoria gothic colourway. but about 5 feet into finishing a pair of gloves, i caved.

so, to conclude: i suck at yarn chicken and intarsia. but since all 3 knits were meant for me, it matters not. and i still have the yarn that i started with. that is, except for the yarn i need to finish my owl sweater.

good times.

*i did not coin the term yarn chicken. i saw it in a comment on instagram. i can't remember who posted it or for which photo but it was yarn harlot's. lots of people comment when she posts a photo. i have no idea if yarn chicken actually a thing outside my own definition. 

inside

someone called me outdoorsy recently and i almost laughed out loud. if you knew me growing up, "outdoorsy" wouldn't be a word you'd use to describe me.

and while it is true that i am actually outdoorsy - as in, i really do enjoy being outside in all kinds of settings - i really love being home.

and bringing the outside, in - well, it's my favourite, too.

while outside is starting to look a lot like fall, the days are still are hotter than my senses are choosing to believe. 

i want to stay inside. 

i want to eat food that makes me feel lit from within. i want oatmeal in the morning (already happening). i want my oven to pretend it's a bakery and dole out cookies and muffins and breads of all kinds (not quite happening). i want to decorate my house with pumpkins already.

i want to knit full time. 

check out the sweater i'm hoping to finish in time as part of my summer sweater kal shindig. the pattern is called flugel - a classic batwing silhouette that i'm rather smitten with these days. 

and since i can't have a pet owl, i thought i'd have one perch at the sweater's centre, using the chart from a pair of mittens i'd been meaning to make.

the yarn is quince and co. puffin and it's fluffy and meaty and delicious to knit with. so i can pretend there's already a veritable chill in the air.  the yarn is left over from a failed attempt at a sweater for me - which allows me to feel warm and fuzzy because i'm using stash yarn.

now this sweater, belongs to the wife. 

she's doing well, is she not? she's never made a sweater before and she dove right in with an adult-sized garment for her. she's knitting beeline and the using cascade 220 heathers. we're rather in love with the colour - a lichen green with teal and amber highlights.

neither of us know whether or not we're going to make the kal deadline with these sweaters but we're having fun with it anyway. these days, our date nights double as knit nights and i think it's pretty romantic that we're in this together.

and just in case you thought i was kidding about wanting to knit full time, you should know that i celebrated finishing the kids' sweaters by casting on 4 sock projects at the same time. you know, just the right amount of hardcore knitting to while away long car rides and commutes or to accompany late night tv watching and audio book listening.

i want us to have warm feet when the going finally gets cold.  

summer sweater kal progress update - week 1: miracles do happen

we are gearing up for a week long vacation away from home and what will be the babes' first very first camping experience. naturally, the wife and i figured it would be an appropriate time to rearrange our bedroom, play musical chest of drawers,  and overhaul our entire storage system. this means that our bedroom feels a bit airier; the girl's chest of drawers now lives in the hallway with the winter accessories; our chest of drawers now hold the girl's entire wardrobe in their room; the secretary desk that also has a chest of drawers now lives in our room; the linens have been moved to our bedroom closet, and the rest of our collective wardrobe now lives in what once was our linen closet. 

did you get all that? small spaces are fun. 

did i mention the 8 loads of laundry i did over the weekend? oh yes. all that. amid the usual housekeeping and home cooking and parenting and packing.

suffice it to say that with all that activity (necessarily) centred away from the boy and the girl, it's also been feeling like the toddler wars games around here. and i'll leave it at that. because the days. have. been. long. 

but there has been knitting - there has to be knitting. very late night knitting. and today, park knitting. 

ever the optimist, i never go to the park without some knitting. even though i know that at least 80% of the time, i'm pushing 2 swings, negotiating someone's right to be next, surveying for hazards, and practicing the art of keeping one eye on each kid at the same time.

my knitting basket usually sits lonely.

and as i go about the of business carrying out my mothering-at-the-park duties, the knitting basket and i cast furtive and longing glances at each other. then, my hands begin to itch - at which point, i finally give myself a talking to and force myself choose to be present.

but today, a small miracle happened. today i brought the sweaters i've been working on for luvinthemommyhood's summer sweater knit-along. and the babes - they agreed to try them on at. the. park. AND let me photograph them! 

see?!

they are little sweaters for little people so i really am speeding along.

the girl's sweater is called ms. marple and i'm really enjoying the pattern. there's some lace going on and its streamlined sweater construction makes me feel clever. 

as you can see, i can easily just call it a vest and be done with it. but i've got some more yarn and i really should get those needles off the back collar. also, that would defeat the purpose of participating in a sweater kal.

yarn: madelinetosh tosh dk in nutmeg

i really love this colour on her!

now the boy - he asked for a purple sweater. here is my answer: the wonder years cardigan. the pattern is simple, speedy, and straightforward, with a bit of a vintage vibe. 

i really like how this sweater is knitting up in my chosen yarn but i think that were i to knit this again, i would go with plied yarn in something tweedy or heathered. 

yarn: malabrigo worsted

both sweaters were inspired by my friend ava who has knit each of them for her adorable daughter. (thanks ava!)

just the sleeves, neckband, and button bands to go, really. so, i may just squeeze in another sweater or 2 as part of this kal. we'll see. 

oh! and the wife (finally) joined ravelry and is knitting away at her sweater: slowly and surely (see opening paragraphs).  maybe i'll get to show you her sweater progress soon, too. 

anyone else knitting along with us?