Some wonderful friends of mine had been talking about doing a Hogwarts Express Knit-A-Long. I had received the pattern as a Christmas gift. I’d had yarn and beads picked out for this shawlette for months. Yes, I said beads. Don’t panic.
So I started knitting again for the first time since August 12. I know some knitters start tearing their hair out with miles of garter stitch, but I’m not one of them. It makes me happy and made this the perfect re-entry project.
I threw together a dash of recent experience with a spoonful of my knitting preferences and made a few modifications. I hate yarn overs (well, the holes they create), so I did a M1 increase instead. Because I knew this would “eat” any give to the edge that would have been contributed by the yarn-over, I did the edge very similar to Color Affection. I added a yarn over to the start of each row and dropped it on the way back.
I wound up with an edge loose enough to allow some manipulation in blocking, but snug enough to create the required curl. I win. When it was time to start making the Owls, I got lucky and the precise number of stitches appropriate for the repeat. Yay for no adjustments!
I did the wider border version of the pattern, paired with the less-pointy tips, and did not do the “more ruffles” variation. I used a crochet hook to add the beads for the owl-eyes. It was very simple and I’d do it again when I find another pattern I want that needs beads.
All in all, a successful project on many levels. And it’s cute, too!
Hogwarts Express
Pattern: Hogwarts Express by Susan Ashcroft
Yarn/Color: String Theory Caper Sock in Skerry
Quantity: Less than 1 skein. Started with 119.3 grams, finished with 22.5 grams left.
Needles: US 6/4.0mm Signature Needle Arts 36” circ
Started: 1 January 2013
Finished: 13 January 2013
Mods: No icky yarn overs. Less-pointy tips. Inadvertently did an extra garter ridge worth of border prior to bind-off. Oops.
2 comments:
Very cute! Just the right size to keep off the chill, not so big as to be awkward. I need to get back to my Color Affection--I don't mind the miles and miles of garter stitch, in fact two of my WIPs are HitchHiker and Trillian, but for some reason CA is fighting me. Maybe after its time out it will behave?
That turned out very nice! I'm still trying to get over my shock of seeing you use beads in your knitting, though. ;-)
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