Hi-ho, Squirrelio!

Hello all! Claire here, joining the "We're still here!" posting line up. And yes, we have been busy in our silence. I started my Levenwick shortly after the new year and am making good headway on that. Then Jess and I both got the beautiful book Coastal Knits and were ooh-ing and aaah-ing over that for quite a while. Finally she pressured me enough (like it was hard!) to get the yarn to start the Rocky Coast cardigan. I ordered myself some nice light grey Shepherd's Wool from Stonehedge Fibers. I admit, it was a front-runner because it's from a mill in Michigan - yay mitten! I think this is the first time I've had 2 sweaters going at once, so it's been a challenge to keep pace on both of them. I also finished a sock, started (trying) to learn Continental knitting, and made an exuberantly pom-pomed hat. It keeps me cheery in this snow-less NYC winter. 

And FINALLY I have put buttons on my Peaks Island Hood. Finishing a piece can be the trickiest part, and  honestly I wasn't sure if I was going to put buttons on this, since I think I blocked it a little too much and the scarf parts were quite long. But I fiddled with the placement some, broke out the embroidery floss and needle, and in 10 minutes I had a truly finished hood! 

Chewie here was kind enough to model for me. Doesn't he look cosy? I think I mentioned in an earlier post that the buttons are some I got for Christmas, from a company called Buttons by Nature. Made of spalted maple, they're the perfect size and give the hood a nice little rustic flair. 

And now on to further projects in the Whimsical Little Knitalong! We've made our way to Nathaniel, the cutest little squirrel pillow you ever did see! So far he is a very fast knit, and has some interesting construction details as well. You start with a garter strip, slipping stitches on the side to be picked up later for the squirrely body. It's a little awkward at first, but with a chunky yarn it goes very quickly! Clever decreases shape the feet and tail parts. I think my gauge is a little small, but I think Lawrence (of Brooklyn) will be just the right size to cuddle with on the couch and watch Shaun the Sheep with me. 

Ripley: Getting Started

Jess here! Since Claire and I finished our Damsons (and Kendra finished her replacement Damson), we've decided to move onto the next project. Kendra and Lindsey are both on the road, so we decided to skip Smith and Wee Mushrooms; don't worry, we'll definitely come back to those projects! Instead, we've fast-forwarded to the collection's first hat, Ripley. This is an excellent stash-busting project, as it only requires about a skein of worsted weight yarn. We're all using this opportunity to clear out some lone skeins in our stash. Ironically, we're all using yarn from the same manufacturer without consulting each other (again)! I'm using Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Verde Esperanza, a fantastic teal shade. I selected this yarn for two reasons: it was readily available in my stash, and this pattern will look great in a single-ply merino wool. Claire and Kendra will both be using Malabrigo Rios, my Merino Worsted's plied cousin.

While Ripley looks like a simple hat, it really has a unique construction. The brim is worked sideways in one of two options: lace or garter stitch (which imitates a rib). From there, you pick up slip stitches and work upward. What's most interesting about the hat is its pleats. These pleats create a permanent scrunched look, perfect for slouchy hats. Here's an incredibly rough diagram that illustrates the construction:

For my hat, I'm knitting the medium size with the garter border. Here is my work in progress:

Here's an extreme close-up of what a single pleat looks like:

I'm hoping to get the hat finished up over the long Independence Day weekend. The pattern does give instructions for varying degrees of slouch, but I'm not sure what I'll go with yet. The advantage of bottom-up hats is that you can try them on as you go, so I'll decide on the fly. We'll see what happens!