Progress

Things are going my way with the Tappan Zee sweater.

I got my math issues under control, thank goodness, and the Mother's Day sweater is coming right along.  I've never been on time with any projects and my mother would tell you that this sweater is long overdue, but since she doesn't know it's coming I think she will be pleasantly surprised.

This whole project started with four skeins of  Elsabeth Lavold silky wool in citron:

 Sadly, I do not like this yarn.  It is not soft, it's textured with silk bits that look like dandruff, and every skein had a knot in it:

I trudged on easily and (after I got past the bit where I had to figure out the math) the pattern is easy to understand and very well written.  Thank goodness.

Now that I'm more than halfway done, the only thing I have to worry about is buttons.  I've been all over the net looking for suitable ones, but so far nothing has caught my fancy.  Outside of M&J Trimming, where else is there to look?  I need an internet suggestion so if anyone out there will direct me, that would be helpful.  Anyone?  I need something to compliment this:

Because of the color of the sweater, I'd like a shank button with a yellow/green something on it.  Unfortunately, I won't have time for button drama and I may end up with wooden buttons which would be organic ... just not necessarily what I'm hoping for.

Hopefully the next time you see this sweater it will be finished and ready for the gift box.

Math

I’ve learned that if you write the numbers in question very large on a piece of clean paper, ask someone for help then speak in a voice louder than you would usually use (in case that person doesn’t know math AND is hard of hearing) and spend 50% of your time NOT listening to what they say, that the cosmos will intervene out of annoyance and give you the right answer.

~Sharon, 2012

OK, so I was knitting along on Tappan Zee when I got to what should be the easy part, the bottom of the sweater, which is all stockinette stitch.  Heck, I can do stockinette stitch with my eyes closed while eating donuts.  I'm on my way to closing the deal, right?

Nope.

At some point in every pattern I've ever worked on, I get to the part that involves math.  For most of the patterns I choose, the designer does the math for me which is the lifestyle to which I have become accustomed. 

But every once in a while I'll fall in love with something that requires a little more work, at which point I have to decide if I want to do the work or flee in horror.  I normally do the latter.

So here's the problem, according to what I've done so far, and I do have the required 327 stitches on my needle, here's what comes next:

LOWER BODY*

Next Row [WS]: K5, P46, BO63 sts purlwise, K until there are 99 stitches on the needle after bound off sts, BO63 sts purlwise, purl to marker, K5. 

Purl until there are 99 stitches on the needle after the bound off stitches (back)

That count does not include the 5 edge stitches, so that means I should have 99 stitches + 5 stitches = 104 stitches.  Just saying.

Thank you, Marcia.

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* as it relates to the size I'm making

Tappan Zee

I've been busy.  Falling in love with patterns all over the place and buying yarn I really don't have money for, but since the mortgage is paid I don't mind giving up food.

My latest obsession is with this cute little pattern called Tappan Zee which is on Knitty's website.  I wanted to make something for my mom that a) wouldn't take a long time to make, b) meets all of her requirements for fit and c) wouldn't bore me to death.

So with a little hunting (and a gift certificate for WEBS), I bought some Elsabeth Lavold silky wool in citron:

It arrived the day before yesterday and as soon as I settled down for the night I started knitting.  The pattern is easy to understand, the directions (so far) are clear, and while I'm not overly thrilled with the color (the other colors available weren't so well suited for Mom either), I decided that this would do.

Here's  how far I got:

Not bad for two days of knitting.  Of course, I'm further along than the photo, but I did mention it's a fairly quick knit.

I thought the yarn would be smooth, silky and soft, but no.  The silk is more like raw silk, so it's wool with silk bits which makes the yarn feel more like cotton than wool.  Hopefully that means this sweater won't just be for Spring.

My deadline is Mother's day and I hope I'm not jinxing myself by saying that out loud.  The yarn for my next sweater is in the bag and ready to go as soon as I finish this one.

So off I go back to the land of wool and needles.