First FO of 2019 / Branches and Buds

Posted by Hirono

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I finished my first project of 2019 — Branches and Buds Pullover! 😍

I must admit — I’ve been knitting for many years now but I only know just a handful of techniques. 😓 I always chose easy patterns that incorporated only the techniques that I was already comfortable with. This should explain why I knit the same pattern over and over again.

I’ve been trying to make conscious efforts to tackle the “scary” knitting lately because I’m tired of being the “adventurous beginner” and want to move into an “intermediate” and even a “rock star” bracket. ✊

The Branches and Buds Pullover was a perfect way to be introduced to colorwork. It gave me a good practice to hold two strands of yarn and knit from them without pulling my hair out.

今年初のセーターが編み上がりました。パターンは「Branches and Buds Pullover（枝とつぼみ）」です。

実は私、編み物歴は長いくせに簡単な編み方しか知らないんです。😱

いつも簡単なパターンを選んでは、それを何枚も色違いで編んで … を繰り返す。だから全然上達もしないし、クローゼットは同じセーターでいっぱいな状態で。気に入ったパターンがあっても、「どうせ私はこんなの編めないし 😢」って勝手に自分で自分の限界を作っちゃってました。

でもそれを変えようと最近は、出来るだけ新しいスキルを試せるパターンを選ぶようにしています。

この「Branches and Buds Pullover（枝とつぼみ）」もデザインが気に入ったのは勿論ですが、カラーワークを編んでみたくて選んだパターンでした。

本当にこのパターンを選んで良かったです。毎日楽しんで編め、完成したセーターもとても着心地良く、早速お気に入りの一枚になってます。😍

I’m satisfied with the pattern but as far as the yarn in concerned … well, I’m not the biggest fan of KnitPicks’ Wool of the Andes. They’re not bad by any mean but they’re also not the best (they pill so much so fast). If I were to knit it again, I may reach for more luxurious yarn like Blue Sky Fibers’ Woolstok.

パターンは満点でしたが、毛糸はと言うと … う〜ん、どうだろう。😅 色はもう大のお気に入りなんですが（「Mist 」を使用）、毛糸自体は「悪くはないけど特別に優れている訳でもない」ってところでしょうか。KnitPicks のWool of the Andes は値段につられて買ってしまったので、次に編む時はお気に入りの Blue Sky Fibers のWoolstock で編みたいです。

Pattern: Branches and Buds Pullover
Designer: Carrie Bostick Hoge
Yarns: KnitPicks Wool of the Andes (used 11 skeins) / Blue Sky Fibers Woolstok
Colorway: Mist / Highland Fleece

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My Make Nine 2019

Posted by Hirono

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I’m not one to make New Year resolutions (it’s too unrealistic to assume that I’ll be able to perform the things I couldn’t or wouldn’t do just a day ago) but I do like planning things for the future so I can have a good roadmap to refer to throughout the year.

I like the idea of Jem Wetson’s Make Nine, where we list nine items that we wish to knit in a year. After looking at my Ravelry queues, libraries and other knitters for inspiration, I came up with my nine.

I probably won’t complete all nine garments here. I’ll be lucky if I can finish four or five. I guess this is more like my knitting “wish list” with projects I would love to (eventually) have in my wardrobe, as opposed to “must haves” where I have to pressure myself to finish in the next 360-some days.

「今年の目標」みたいなのは決めないんですが（←チャレンジ精神ゼロの筋金入りへたれです 😓）、この一年間どんな服を編もうかな〜と考えるのは好きなので、2019年に編みたいパターンを集めてみました。でもこの全てを編むのが目標ではなく、この中から好きなのをゆっくりと編んでいく予定です。年内に４、５枚編めれば万々歳です。

① Branches and Buds Pullover : Carrie Bostick Hoge

Maybe I’m cheating a bit by including this pattern in my Make Nine since I’m almost done knitting it … but hey, why not give myself a head start. 😅 I’ve always wanted to dip my hands in colorwork and I thought this would be the perfect pattern for it. Now that I’ve knit this, I can confidently say that this is an amazing pattern.

もう既に編み終わり状態なので、このセータを2019の Make Nine に入れるか迷いましたが、まあ完成するのは今年だしと … 言う理由で入れちゃいました。😅 初めてのカラーワークにこのパターンを選んでよかったって思えるほど気に入ってます。

② Agatha : Andi Satterlund

I love this cardigan. Its vintage-inspired cropped silhouette reminds me of something you find at one of my favorite online retail shops Modcloth. I’m a bit intimidated by the intricate lace detail but it’s comforting to know that Andi Satterlund’s patterns are always well written and easy to follow.

最近ビンテージのスタイルに興味を持ち始めたので、このカーデガンを編んでみたくなりました。大好きなネットショップ「Modcloth」で売ってそうな一枚 💓。レース柄にちょっと圧倒されていますが、Andi Satterlund のパターンはとてもわかりやすく書かれているので頑張れる気がします。✊

③ Larimar : Isabell Kraemer

This was love at first sight. 😍 This sweater embodies everything I love in a garment — low neckline, fitted waist, and just the ease of it all. It reminds of a pullover I had many years ago (I think it was from Banana Republic) and LOVED. I wore it almost every day until I had to retire it because it was all worn out. I can’t wait to knit it and wear it!

このパターンを見つけた瞬間、ピピっと来ました。正に一目惚れです。😍 ちょっと深めのネックライン、頑張り過ぎないゆったり感、全てがツボです。数年前に大好きで毎日の様に着ていたセーターを思い出させてくれる一枚なので、早く編んで着たいです〜！

④ Winterfell Cardigan : Katrin Schneider

I knew I had to cast this cardigan on the moment I saw it on La Bien Aimee‘s Instragram post. It’s simple and absolutely breathtaking. I haven’t knit one yet and I can already see myself knitting more.

憧れのパリの毛糸ショップ「La Bien Aimee」のインスタで見た時から気になっていたカーデガン。シンプルでエレガントなデザインに魅了されました。まだ編み始めてもいないのに、「違う色で何枚も編んでみたいな〜」なんて考えちゃってます。気が早過ぎですよね。😅

⑤ Zweig : Caitilin Hunter

I know everyone and their mother have knit this pullover but I couldn’t resist adding this to my Top Nine myself. I’m even thinking about omitting the color change and just knit with one color.

もう既に編み物のコミュニティでは大人気の Zweig、私も編みたくて編みたくて。思い切って一色で編んでみようかな、なんても考えてます。

⑥ No Frills Sweater : PetiteKnit

I purchased this pattern a few months ago but held off on casting it on because the pattern assumed that I already know a few techniques that I didn’t. I got discouraged but maybe I can be brave and tackle it this year.

実はこのセーター、去年編み始めようとしたんですがパターンが分かりにくくてやめちゃったんです。😩 でもシンプルな形が素敵なので再チャレンジしてみようかなと思ってます。

⑦ Tegna : Caitlin Hunter

This will be a great addition to my spring / early summer wardrobe.

春と夏に活躍してくれそうな半袖のセータ。ゆったり感が凄く気に入ってます。

⑧ Blaster : Andi Satterlund

I knit this already once but the fit wasn’t right. It somehow came out way too big, even after getting gauge. Maybe I can knit a size smaller this time and do the waist shaping which I omitted last time.

去年これを編んだ時は思いっきり失敗してしまいました。ちゃんとゲージを編んだのにも関わらず、めちゃ大きく編みあがっちゃって 😱。（失敗作はダボダボなセーターが好きな母に貰ってもらいました。）今回は一サイズ小さいのを編んでみようと思います。

⑨ Featherweight Cardigan : Hannah Fettig

I already have … like … umm … four Featherweight cardigans but I just have to have more. I have to admit that the fit of the cardigan is not perfect (it doesn’t stay on my shoulders all that well) but I just love

これもリピートです。Featherweight Cardigan 既に４枚持ってます。😅　得に素晴らしいフィットでもないんですが、簡単にサクサク編める普段着には最適なカーデガンです。

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New Year’s Eve Eve with Maya

Posted by Hirono

My BFF came down from PDX to spend the New Year’s Eve Eve with me and the family. Here’s Maya, with the Pebble Beach Shawl I knit for her. I love knitting but I seldom wear my own creations so it’s nice to have someone who loves and appreciates your hand knits as much as I enjoy knitting them.

We spent short but sweet time doing what we do best together – eat and veg out. We had lunch at Kevin’s friend’s seafood market / restaurant and finished the night with some Japanese BBQ in Little Tokyo. It’s difficult to have someone you love so much live so far away, but that allows us to cherish every moment we have together.

30日に親友のマヤが遊びに来てくれました。一日しか一緒にいれなかったけど、充実した一日を過ごせました。上の写真はプレゼントした「Pebble Beach Shawl」を首に巻いて。特に彼女の住むポートランドは寒いので、喜んでくれました。

お昼には旦那の友達が営むレストランで美味しいシーフードランチ。

夜にはリトル東京にある焼肉屋さんでディナー。食べてばっかりに一日でした。

マヤが大好きな娘。「マヤの隣に座る〜」って駄々をこねられました。

ランキングに参加しています。応援ありがとうございます。

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Branches and Buds Pullover

Posted by Hirono

I hope you had a wonderful holiday. I can’t believe we’re mere days away from welcoming the New Year!

I recently began knitting Branches and Buds Pullover, a beautiful pattern by Carrie Bostick Hoge. It’s a hugely popular design and I’ve had my eyes on it since Sandy from By the Lakeside showed off hers as her Rhinebeck sweater last year.

I’m so in love with the simplicity of the pattern. I’m using KnitPicks’ Wool of the Andes Worsted in the Mist colorway (you can’t beat $2.79 price tag per 50g ball).

I have to go and start the end-of-year cleanup but I just can’t put this sweater down!

クリスマスはどうお過ごしでしたか？

最近購入した毛糸で、人生初のカラーワークのセーターを編み始めました。毛糸は Knit Picks の Wool of the Andes で、色は Mist です。50グラムの毛玉で $2.79 とかなり嬉しい価格です。

パターンは「Branches and Buds Pullover (枝とつぼみ)」、ずっと前から編みたいなと思っていたセーターの一つです。数々の素敵なカラーワークがある中、このすっきりしたデザインに惹かれました。

パターンもシンプルでわかりやすく、さくさく編めています。年内に編み終わりたいと思っていますが、ずっとサボっていた大掃除もあるのでどうなることやら。

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Homecoming : Pebble Beach Shawl

Posted by Hirono

Hello! Guess who’s back in the blogosphere!

I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to return to the blog but after being away from it for an entire year, I realized how much I’ve missed this space!

I have so much to catch up on here. I’ve been knitting pretty prolifically the last several years – knitting at every opportunity I get. It helps that I have a few minutes here and there throughout the day to knit while I wait for my daughter — now five going on six — before pickup, or while waiting for the pasta to cook. It’s amazing how a seemingly innocent chunk of time can eventually add up to a cozy cardigan, a lace hat, or an intricate shawl like this one.

Here’s a shawl I recently knit while waiting for my daughter to come out of her school. It’s Pebble Beach Shawl by Helen Stewart. It’s a beautifully written pattern and so easy to follow. I loved it so much I’ve already knit a few more which I will share later!

I’m not sure how frequently I will be on this platform but I’m SO happy to be back.

こんにちは。

インスタの方に興味が湧いてしまいこのブログを一年も放置した状態になっていましたが、久しぶりに戻ってくる事にしました。

このブログを立ち上げてかれこれ１１年ですが、日本語では初めましてですね。日本の編み物コミュニティーと繋がりたくて日本語でも投稿する事にしました。

ロサンゼルスの郊外に旦那と娘と住んでいます。宜しくお願いします。

この数年は更に編み物にはまり、娘の学校のピックアップの間だったり、パスタのお湯が沸く間だったり、暇さえあれば何かを編んでいました。毎日少し少しでも編み続ければ、いつかは暖かいカーデガンやレース柄の帽子や細かいデザインのショールになるんですよね。「塵も積もれば山となる」って正にこの事なんだと実感しています。

これは最近「隙間時間」に編んだ「ペブルビーチ　ショール」です。とってもわかりやすくシンプルで、病み付きになるパターンです。

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Skylark Stole

Posted by Hirono

Introducing my latest finished project: Skylark Stole from the book, Custom Knits Accessaries, by Wendy Bernard. It was knit with four skeins of Frog Tree Meriboo MW yarn in purple (7511).

My friend T visited me from Portland a few months ago, and brought with her four skeins of lovely, 70% merino wool / 30% bamboo blend from her neighborhood yarn shop called Dublin Bay Knitting Shop for my birthday. The awesomeness was two-fold: I’ve never worked with these soft blends before and I was dying to try; and this wonderful gift came from a non-knitter! How cool is this? Someone who’s never knit got me one of the softest and lovelies yarns I’ve ever owned!

She told me that staff at the shop who recommended this yarn was confident that I would love it. They were absolutely correct about that!

Blocking an intricate lace is such a treat. I love watching the design come to life simply with a pull of the blocking wires. This is when you realize your time and energy spent knitting this garment was totally worth it. (It can also be a major heartbreak, however, when you discover a mistake or two you didn’t notice until now … eek!) By the way, I folded the stole in half to block because I didn’t have enough room to stretch out the entire thing flat.

As for the knitting, I have to confess that I got confused by the pattern at first. Looking back, I’m a bit embarrassed to even admit this since Wendy’s patterns are always, always impeccable, and this one was no exception. I just didn’t read the direction carefully enough. Mea culpa.

My confusion was from the eyelet pattern repeats. I needed to add this 4-sitch eyelet repeat before each, 21-stitch chevron pattern plus one at the end (for a total of four times) and not just at the beginning and the end of each RS row I incorrectly interpreted. Because of this, I had eight wandering stitches that I just could not find a home for! Once I figured it out, knitting this stole was a breeeeeeeze.

The pattern is simple but interesting enough that kept me engaged throughout the entire project. I think placing markers after each pattern is key. I recommend that you utilize those little rings as much as possible. I even put one after two garter stitches at the beginning and end of rows for good measure!

I had to think of an interesting way to photograph the finished stole. I thought about just laying it flat on the floor to showcase the design but I was afraid that my two year old will get to it and rip it out before my eyes (and she will)! So I decided to just hold it against the white wall. I hope you can see the lovely lace pattern from these photos.

Here are other ways that I’ll be enjoying this stole. It’s so versatile, I can wear it as a stole or a scarf. I have a feeling that I’ll get a good use out of this garment all year long!

Slouchy Problems

Posted by Hirono

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I love these slouchy beanies – so much so that I knit three last week – but there are two things I just can’t seem to get right.

First, the slouch. I can’t seem to achieve the perfect droop, without them looking like a Rasta hat. I think my problem here is that I don’t know when to stop and begin the decrease! I’m so determined to knit up the entire skein of yarn that I just keep on going and going, even though I know deep inside that I’ve gone too far. I just hate to have a little bit of yarn left that it either become a waste, or sit in my yarn stash that I’m trying so hard to pare down. This is when my inner cheapo gets the best of me.

Second issue is the decrease. I can’t seem to get the perfect tip, without looking, uum, messy. I’m doing the k2tog (knit 2 together, for the right slant) and ssk (slip, slip, stitch, for the left slant) really carefully and I don’t know what I can do differently to make it look cleaner.

If I don’t improve, I’m going to have to start hiding them with a cutesy pom pom or something, and I don’t want that since I look at these slouchy beanies as something Samuel L. Jackson would sport. They need to look like a bad ass mother f-er.

Anyway, I’ve got more work to do on this one.

Infinity Scarf = Infinite Possibilities

Posted by Hirono

This lace pattern will most likely go down as one of the most frequently knit patterns in my knitting history book. I don’t know how many of these scarves I’ve knit in the last few years but the surprising thing is that I’m never sick of it. It’s simple but interesting enough that it keeps me intrigued even after many repetitions.

I knit up a few more over the last weeks for the holidays (I have another green one, a black one, and a grey one that are not pictured). Some were made into an infinity scarf by binding the ends together, while the other ones (the wider ones) remained a shawl. A few went to my friends who will give them away as Christmas gifts, and the others will be gifted to my own friends.

It’s amazing how many different ways you can wear an infinity scarf and a shawl. I tried a few, but I know there are so many more.

Infinity Scarves:

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Cascade 200 Sport in Lemon (4147)

Cascade 220 Sport in Cerise (7802)

Cascade 220 Sport in Como Blue

Shawls:

Cascade 220 Sport in Cerise (7802)

Cascade 220 Sport in Primevera (8903)

Knots of Love: Groovy Slouch

Posted by Hirono

No, no. It’s not a Rasta hat that’s on Ms. Penguin’s head. It’s a Groovy Slouch from Knots of Love!

I found an organization called Knots of Love while looking for a charity to donate my money and time to this holiday season. This time of year always reminds me how blessed I am, and I feel the need to extend help to those in need. According to the Website, the donated caps are given, at no cost, to “men and women undergoing Chemotherapy, burn victims, brain surgery patients, head trauma patients, and individuals with Alopecia.” It also accepts blankets for babies in NICU. In addition to the monetary contribution, I thought this will be a great opportunity to put my knitting skills to a good use.

The Website has lots of lovely knit and crochet cap patterns we can use. I went ahead and knit up Groovy Slouch from the catalogue of patterns and I love it! It’s a real quick knit and I love its simplicity. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to donate this particular cap because I used a yarn that is not on the approved list, but once I obtain the right yarns, I’ll be knitting this up again.

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This is what the finished cap looks like. I had to get some help from the Penguin to get a good shot of the cap from the side. I used Cascade 220 yarn and it’s super warm and cozy, perfect for those chilly nights.

What Can I say … I’m Addicted

Posted by Hirono

I knit up a bunch of seed-stitch cowls using Blue Sky Worsted Cotton yarns while binge-watching “Scandal” last two weeks. The show makes me want to dress up in smart pant suites and carry Prada bags around town like Olivia Pope, although the only scandal these days around the house is figuring out who drank the last Whole Foods ginger ale in the fridge, or who didn’t fill up Brita. (I’m guilty of both, but please don’t tell my husband.)

Well, one can knit up a whole lot when she’s spending four hours a night after the baby and the husband are asleep watching television. But now that my Scandal fever has subsided (it got pretty stupid after the whole B613 plot line), I regret for being so unproductive and shaving off precious sleep time while indulging in guilty pleasure, but I’m glad I at least have a rainbow of cozy cowls to show for!

I think I become equally obsessed with knitting these cozy neck warmers as I got with watching the show. I just couldn’t put down the knitting needles. They knit incredibly quick just like the show’s plot, and the pattern is timeless like all the chic wardrobe worn by stunning Live, Abby, Quinn and Mellie, my absolute fave. I think Blue Sky Worsted cotton is my favorite yarn at the moment. And I love the fact that you can toss them in a washer because it’s 100% cotton.

Because I didn’t know what to do with all these cowls, I decided to extend them to my friends. I was going to sell them on Etsy but wanted to reach out them first to see if any of them was willing to support my knitting addiction. I’m so happy to report that many contacted me immediately after posting the photo on Facebook and these cowls are ~~almost sold out!~~ (Updated on 12/4/14: All the cowls have been sold! Insert happy dance here!) Yipee! That totally made my day! I get so excited when things I make find a new, loving home. I hope they enjoy the cowls as much as I enjoyed knitting them.

For more information about the cowls, including the pattern, please see here and here.