The Polar Bear Grows

Wendy Eider Chunky makes a very nice fur for a stuffed animal.   The yarn is not bad to knit with and has only one flaw......when one knits with it, one cannot see the stitches.

The Body of the Polar Bear

I did find not being able to see the stitches a bit of a problem, but the furry result is oh so worth it.

When I bought this yarn, I picked it up in several colors.   Toys from the Toybox patterns referred to this particular yarn and I wanted to see how it would work out.   Knitting up the rest of what is living in the stash will be a pleasure.

I do question the wisdom of giving a small boy and off-white toy.   A Polar Bear the toy must be though....so the joy Henry will likely get from this is worth the knitting getting grubby.

New Projects......and One Finished....

The Finished Cardigan

Rory's floral cardigan is finished.  I do love Bernat Floral Jacquards and wish that I had more of this and of the rose colorway.   I have a little more of the rose and may be able to eke out a small cardigan from it.   By the time I figure out where I have put it for safety, Rory will have grown out of it.

Part of the challenge of this sweater was to make sure that the patterns worked well across the body of the sweater as parts were stopped and started.  I am fairly pleased with the results though wish the sleeves were a little different.  It

Close up of the front...

would not be possible without doing so much finagling that I would likely toss the sweater rather than deal with it.

The Sweater Wizard pattern was a little odd but I persevered.  Friday night, I attached the buttons and put the sweater through the washer and dryer.   As I have said before, I am never truly happy with a project after I finish it.  This one is nice though.  

I did choose a size that Rory won't be able to wear for a bit.   The In Threes sweater that Jan has made for Jackie's new baby looked so cute that I have just started one for Rory.   I am using a rosy pinky red Plymouth Encore. 

I think I have just the buttons for this.    They came, some time, ago from one of my favorite Etsy shops.  GloriaPatreSpinNKnit not only has really nice buttons, but fabulous stitch markers and some other notions as well.    The buttons I recall are floral and would look really nice against this color.   My button stash is small but not well organized.   I am trying to use those up also.

Owen's Car Button Sweater left in the mail today.   I will say that the sweater went through the

washer and dryer beautifully.    I had some reservations about the yarn before it was laundered.  The yarn did soften up nicely.

This pattern also came from Sweater Wizard.   As I was sewing the sweater together, the sizing seemed very odd to me.  I am hoping the sweater fits Owen and that he gets some wear out of it.

Just to keep things interesting, I have started on a Polar Bear for Henry.  Henry is a little older, so I am using Wendy Eider Chunky for the bear's fur as he is past the gumming stage.   I do have reservations about an off white bear for a small boy but he loves polar bears....how can I NOT make him one?

Sara's throw is coming along.  If I work on it between things, it will be done in plenty of time.  I hope.

Startitis...

Spring must be the time in which a person's thoughts turn to starting new projects.   I have several on the needles now and am not allowing myself to start another one (a polar bear) until at least ONE project is done.

At the moment there are two active sock projects, a throw, and a baby cardigan that is actually going to fit a 2 year old.  

The throw is a good contemplative project to which not much attention has to be paid so it gets picked up and put down depending on how many paths my mind is winding at once.   As it has a June deadline, my mind should be focusing more on the throw....

One of the pairs of socks is a lovely rose color.  It is warm and happy.  The second pair of socks is vibrant and lovely and the colorway sang to me from the computer screen.  I had to have it and begin it as soon as the skein came in the mail.   This pair of socks is my traveling project right now.  The pattern emerging is addictive and one of those that I knit quickly down one more needle as the bus is coming to see what will happen.  This is the same as a mystery novel that is a little predictable but exciting anyway.

One of the other projects is a cardigan for Rory.   I did not find a pattern I wanted to use so I ran swatch numbers through Sweater Wizard.   The finished size will fit Rory when she is 2 rather than now.  I am okay with that as I do not want to rip it out.

The yarn is no longer available and came from the center of the stash.  I have several colorways but really, really wanted to use this colorway as the blues, greens, and oranges looked so cheerful.

The yarn in the skein....

The sweater is coming along nicely.   I chose to do the cardigan top-down to make it easier for the color bands to work out nicely.

This way this yarn is dyed to make little floralish patterns is one of the best uses of math ever.  When I used the rose colorway, I was enchanted.   I bought what I could find as the yarn was already out of production when I first tried it.

This should be an easy project.  It is one, though, for which very careful manipulating of the colorway to start the sleeves and the body is necessary.

Close-up of what the yarn looks like knit to the correct gauge.

 Gauge is always important...but with these yarns it is crucial in order to get the pattern that the yarn is dyed to make.

While the strips will be different widths in the sleeves, the body, and the yoke it should look nice.  I am thinking...pearl buttons?