July 10 Progress Update

It is time for another update. We have been VERY busy knitting all these projects. Here are the latest totals. As normal you will see an update of how many projects we have completed, started, or are still waiting to be started. If a project is still waiting it may have a name next to it. Some may not because a few of them we are going to decide on later. As in previous update posts if the project name is colored pink it is in progress by Brittany and if colored green it is in progress by Em. If the project name is colored and crossed out that means it is completed. We will also have Pattern Entries linked next to each project as we update the blog with our evaluations and input on each pattern.

As of July 10, 2011:
34/60 Projects - Completed
11/60 Projects - Works In Progess
15/60 Projects - Waiting to be Started

Pattern #1 Chain-Link Scarf (Brittany)

Pattern #2 Cable Brim Tam

Pattern #3 Waffle Mittens - Project Entry

Pattern #4 Puppy Mittens

Pattern #5 Tweed Watch Cap - Project Entry

Pattern #6 Tied Rectangle Wrap

Pattern #7 Embroidered Mittens

Pattern #8 Lion Scarf

Pattern #9 Monkey Hat (Em)

Pattern #10 Diagonal Stripes Hat

Pattern #11 Wave Scarf - Project Entry

Pattern #12 Cables & Wraps Scarf

Pattern #13 Ribbed Wristers - In Progress Project Entry

Pattern #14 Zigzag Scarf

Pattern #15 Striped Bobbled Hat (Brittany)

Pattern #16 Ribbed Bonnet (Em)

Pattern #17 Plaid Mittens - Project Entry

Pattern #18 Striped Graduated Scarf

Pattern #19 Twisted Toque

Pattern #20 Textured Triple-Stripe Scarf (both)

Pattern #21 Birdcage Mittens

Pattern #22 Bobbles & Cables Cap - Project Entry

Pattern #23 Smocked Fingerless Mitts - Project Entry

Pattern #24 Mitered Scarf - Project Entry

Pattern #25 Ribbed Keyhole Scarf

Pattern #26 Basketweave Scarf - Project Entry

Pattern #27 Scalloped-Edge Beanie - Project Entry

Pattern #28 Reverse Stockinette Mittens

Pattern #29 Cupcake Hat (Brittany)

Pattern #30 Eyelet Scarf

Pattern #31 Garter-Ridged Hat (Brittany)

Pattern #32 Garter-Stitch Neck Wrap (Brittany)

Pattern #33 Pocket Cap

Pattern #34 Checkered Mittens - Project Entry

Pattern #35 Textured Tam - Project Entry

Pattern #36 Leaf Scarf

Pattern #37 Mock Cable Wristers - In Progress Project Entry Completed Project Entry

Pattern #38 Garter-Ridged Scarf

Pattern #39 Cables & Stripes Mittens - Project Entry

Pattern #40 Tweed Mittens - Project Entry

Pattern #41 Pocket Scarf

Pattern #42 Ribbed Pillbox - Project Entry

Pattern #43 Octopus Mittens (Brittany)

Pattern #44 Tasseled Topper (Em)

Pattern #45 Bunny Mittens - Project Entry

Pattern #46 Leaf-Lace Gauntlets

Pattern #47 Striped & Ruffled Wrap (both)

Pattern #48 Starfish Hat - Project Entry

Pattern #49 Slip-Stitched Hat - Project Entry

Pattern #50 Ruffled Scarf

Pattern #51 Cabled-Cuff Mittens - In Progress Project Entry Completed Project Entry

Pattern #52 Cabled Scarf Hat - In Progress Project Entry Completed Project Entry

Pattern #53 Two-Color Slip-Stitched Hat - Project Entry

Pattern #54 Twisted-Rib Hat (Em)

Pattern #55 Triple-Cable Scarf

Pattern #56 Flip-Top Mittens

Pattern #57 Drop-Stitch Neck Wrap

Pattern #58 Spotted Fair Isle Mittens

Pattern #59 Hugs & Kisses Mittens - In Progress Project Entry Completed Project Entry

Pattern #60 Scandinavian Mittens

Pattern #17 Plaid Mittens

Hey, it is Brittany again. Today I am going to share my Purple Plaid Mittens with all of you. A few years ago, I bought a beautiful purple, black, and white coat from a store in Madison. This coat, pictured below, has received many compliments. I love the unique cut and anyone who knows me, knows I'm a sucker for purple. When I found pattern #17, I knew it would be a perfect pattern for matching mittens.



This pattern was well-written and easy to follow. The only thing you should keep in mind is it is a bit putzy. You have to knit using three colors and then after you knit the entire mitten you have to go back and duplicate stitch in the fourth color. I made the mistake of duplicate stitching in both the accent colors.



One other thing, they wrote this pattern to knit on straight needles. If you haven't noticed, both Em and I dislike ANY pattern that is written for straight needles. It is just as easy to make them in the round, just follow the color pattern and knit every row around.

In the end, I really loved the way these mittens knit up and as you will see they match my coat VERY nicely!



Yarn Information: Cascade 220 - #7808 (Purple), Cascade 220 - #8010 (Natural), Cascade 220 - #8555 (Black), Cascade 220 - #9475 (Cotton Candy)

I am happy with all the pictures I took of this project and it was hard choosing which ones I shared with all of you. I do have more pictures and you can check them out at my Flickr Account.

Have a great day!
Brittany

Pattern #24 Mitered Scarf

Hello everyone, this is Brittany. Today, Em and I enjoyed a wonderful day together. We went yarn shopping, wound yarn, ate bunt cake with strawberries, spent sometime scrapbooking, and then finished our day by knitting with friends. It was a fun packed summer day.



As you can see, the project I am going to write about today is the mitered scarf. This scarf was something I really wanted to make. I know I say that about almost every pattern, but the colors and intricateness of the scarf really spoke to me. This scarf is made in squares and then connected together with triangles. Though I loved the colors used in the book, I chose a few different ones. I liked the way the blue, pink, and green worked together to make this scarf.



Overall, I really enjoyed this pattern. The only complaint I would have is that it is not particularly quick. It is fun to make, but it takes a long time to make all the squares and then put them together. I would not even say that it is a quick knit for a scarf. I have made scarves that take less time than this one. Though it did take a long time to make, I am happy I did it. It turned out beautifully.



One pattern flaw I noticed was in the connecting triangles. Row 13 states that you will continue in the pattern until you have 3 stitches left. I NEVER got down to 3 stitches. No matter how hard I tried it did not happen. I am not sure why I never got to 3 stitches, but it just seemed impossible. Instead when I got down to 7 stitches, I was stuck. The problem was that when you had 11 stitches you sl 1, ssk, k1, s2kp, k1, k2tog, k1. Now to keep with the pattern it would be sl 1, ssk, k-1, s2kp, k-1, k2tog, k1. As we all know you can NOT knit negative numbers. I saw someone else had this problem as well. I experimented with different ways of fixing this problem and this is what I came up with:
sl 1, ssk, s2kp, k1 (4 stitches)
Turn and knit 4 stitches together.

The other thing, that was a slight problem for me, is the fact that I was running out of yarn. I had small amounts of all the colors left at the end, so I attached the middle of the scarf with triangles of all three colors. You can see that in the picture below:



Hope you all enjoyed reading about the project and feel free to share your own ways of fixing the slight error in the triangle connectors.

Yarn Information: Cascade 220 Paints - #9844 (Captain's Bay), Cascade 220 Paints - #9865 (Lucky Clover), Cascade 220 Paints - #9867 (Princess Pink)

As always you can see more pictures of this project as well as other 60 Quick Knits at my Flickr Account.

Brittany