Tuesday 29 May 2012

Punk Camo?

It seems that earflap hats -complete with pompom- are the accessory du jour for completing your Birthday BBQ look in chilly Dunedin flats.

At least, that's what Bean implied when I asked her what gift she wanted to celebrate her natal day.


My photo-taking wasn't up to much by that point, so I humbly apologise to Bean for not capturing her properly in all her moustachioed glory ^.^;

The yarn is a nice, bright acrylic DK yarn I acquired somewhere that will dry very quickly in our short, frigid winter days while still keeping her head warm. (It also happened to contain most of her favourite colours at the time)

The earflaps were knit first and held on spare needles before constructing the main body of the hat to avoid fiddly sewing-up and big seam marks along the top of the earflaps. While this does mean a lot more ends to weave in, I do like the seamless bucket-look of the finished hat.

I added a crocheted an edging around the hat before adding on the earflap ties. The first attempt was done in the same yarn as the rest of the hat, but I didn't like it so RRRRRIP! out it went. What you see in the photo is a lighter pink 4ply that almost matched the lighter parts of the colourway of the acrylic.

Many students at Otago University joke about opening the fridge door during winter and using it to heat the room. Hopefully this birthday gift should keep her a little warmer than her flatmates ;)

We certainly won't be losing her in a crowd any time soon!

Happy crafting!
~Topaz

Sunday 13 May 2012

Socked Out

Let me show you what I've managed to achieve over the last few weeks.



I MADE SOCKS! (Well, one-and-a-half socks ^.^;)



:D

Aren't they pretty? I'm positively exploding with glee over these stripes. That's how Opal's "Florist" yarn, knits up for me. I'm already slobbering over their new Graffiti-inspired line of colourways. 


I'm controlling myself, barely.

Speaking of self-control, I cast on the second one as soon as I finished bashing at the Kitchener Stitch on the first! I feel like such a good girl for doing so, but we all know that it's only a matter of time before Second Sock Syndrome strikes me down. Not this pair, maybe not the next, but one day it will. Self control acts like a finite resource, after all.

Since they're my very first ever pair of socks, I'm feeling extremely proud of myself even though they're not exactly the fanciest footwarming devices on earth. They are destined to be gym socks, so I hope Opal lives up to it's reputation at the NEV Knitting Squad for "wearing like iron"

Time will tell, right? Right now it's time for me to have at that second heel!

Happy crafting!

~Topaz, tangled in sock yarn.