The masses have spoken

Capitulating to popular demand, I give you the pattern for the cabled scarf and matching mittenettes:


Scarf

Yarn: Ram Wools, Inca Silk
Gauge: 22 stitches per 4 inches
Needles: Size 5 circulars or straights or size to obtain gauge (although it's a scarf, so gauge is optional)

Abbreviations:
C8F: Cable 8 front - slip next 4 sts onto a cable needle, hold at front of work, knit next 4 sts off left hand needle, knit sts off cable needle
C8B: Cable 8 back - slip next 4 sts onto a cable needle, hold at back of work, knit next 4 sts off left hand needle, knit sts off cable needle

Cast on 39 sts.
Row 1 (RS): K1P1 19 times. P1.
Row 2 (WS): Same as row 1.
Row 3: P1K1 19 times. K1.
Row 4: Same as row 3.
Row 5: K1P1 twice. P2, K12, P3, K12, P2. P1K1 twice.
Row 6: P1K1 twice. K2, P12, K3, P12, K2. K1P1 twice.
Row 7: P1K1 twice. P2, K4, C8F, P3, K4, C8B, P2. K1P1 twice.
Row 8: K1P1 twice. K2, P12, K3, P12, K2. P1K1 twice.
Rows 9 and 10: Same as rows 5 and 6.
Row 11: P1K1 twice. P2, C8B, K4, P3, C8F, K4, P2. K1P1 twice.
Row 12: Same as row 8.
Repeat rows 5-12 until scarf is desired length or you have run out of yarn. If you run out of yarn, frog last five or six rows.
Starting on a RS row, work 4 rows of double moss stitch as set from border.
Cast off. Weave in ends. Block lightly if desired.

Cable Mittenettes

Yarn: 1 Skein Ram Wools, Inca Silk
Gauge: 22 stitches per 4 inches
Needles: 1 set each of size 4 and size 5 DPNs or size to obtain gauge (on larger needles)

Abbreviations:
C4B: Cable 4 back - slip next2 sts onto cable needle and hold at back of work, knit next 2 sts from left needle, knit sts from cable needle
C4F: Cable 4 front - slip next2 sts onto cable needle and hold at front of work, knit next 2 sts from left needle, knit sts from cable needle
M1: Make 1 - I did this by picking up the bar between two stitches and knitting it through the back loop

Left Mittenette:
On smaller needles, cast on 41 sts. Join, being careful not to twist.
Cuff:
*Round 1: Work K1P1 over first 12 stitches. K12 (set up for cable). Work P1K1 over rest of round (23 sts).
Round 2: Work ribbing over first 12 sts. K2, C4B. Work ribbing over rest of round.
Round 3: Work as for round 1.
Round 4: Work ribbing over first 12 sts. C4F, K2. Work ribbing over rest of round.*
Repeat from * to * 5 times. This gives you 24 rows for the ribbed cuff.
Palm:
Switch to larger needles.
Round 1: K11, P1. Work cable as set. P1, K rest of round (22 sts).
Round 2 (increase round): K3, M1, K1, M1. Work rest of round as set.
Rounds 3 and 4: Knit, except work cable and accompanying purl stitches as set.
Round 5 (increase round): K4, M1, K1, M1. Work rest of round as set.
Continue as set, working an increase round every three rounds. Rounds 8, 11, 14, 17, and 20 will be increase rounds. After last increase rounds, work two more rounds as for rounds 3 and 4. (55 sts)
Round 23: K3. Place next 15 stitches on waste yarn. CO1 across gap, work the rest of the round as set. (41 sts)
Rounds 24, 25, 26: Knit, except work cable and accompanying purl stitches as set.
Switch to smaller needles.
Round 27: Work K1P1 over first 12 stitches. Work cable as set. Work P1K1 over rest of round.
Work 5 more rounds as for round 27. Bind off, using tubular bind-off.
Thumb:
Using smaller needles, pick up 15 stitches from waste yarn and 3 stitches from palm. Work 4 rounds of K1P1 ribbing. Bind off using tubular bind-off.
Finishing: Weave in ends. Block lightly if desired.

Right Mittenette:
Cast on and work cuff as for left mittenette.
Palm:
Switch to larger needles and work first round as for left mittenette.
Round 2 (increase round): K11, P1, work cable as set, P1, K7, M1, K1, M1, K rest of round.
Rounds 3 and 4: Knit, except work cable and accompanying purl stitches as set.
Round 5 (increase round): K11, P1, work cable as set, P1, K8, M1, K1, M1, K rest of round.
Continue as set, working an increase round every three rounds. Rounds 8, 11, 14, 17, and 20 will be increase rounds. After last increase rounds, work two more rounds as for rounds 3 and 4. (55 sts)
Round 23: Work first 26 stitches of round as set. Place next 15 stitches on waste yarn. CO1 across gap, K rest of the round. (41 sts)
Rounds 24, 25, 26: Knit, except work cable and accompanying purl stitches as set.
Switch to smaller needles.
Round 27: Work K1P1 over first 12 stitches. Work cable as set. Work P1K1 over rest of round.
Work 5 more rounds as for round 27. Bind off, using tubular bind-off.
Thumb:
Using smaller needles, pick up 15 stitches from waste yarn and 3 stitches from palm. Work 4 rounds of K1P1 ribbing. Bind off using tubular bind-off.
Finishing: Weave in ends. Block lightly if desired.

Please let me know if you have questions/comments/horrible and life-changing issues on these patterns. These are reconstructed from my scribbles on a sheet of engineering paper, and certainly not immune to error.

P.S. I'm afraid Inca Silk may have been discontinued, since it's not listed on Ram Wools' website. According to Ravelry (my ball bands are long gone, so we're going to go with what Ravelry has to say), it's a DK weight yarn that's 80% alpaca, 20% silk.

Playing Catch-up

I didn't know what to blog about today. My life currently makes for pretty poor blog fodder, and my knitting is either not very interesting or semi-secret. The Monkey sock has been my commuting knitting (I ride a bus and train to work) and my knitting-while-reading object. I started the last repeat today, and tomorrow should see the sock finished.


I did get the extra ball of yarn that I needed for Miss Darcy, but while I was waiting for it, I cast on something else, and that something else has sort of taken over my desk. For the sake, then, of what little sanity I have left, I am not working on Miss Darcy until I have finished the something and reclaimed my desk.


Unfortunately (for the blog) this something is for someone who knows about the blog (I don't think this person reads it regularly, so I'm willing to post this), so this will be the only picture until the recipient has the something in his/her possession.

And I thought that was all I had to blog about today, which really doesn't seem like very much or very interesting. Then I recalled that even though I disappeared from the blog for several months, I didn't completely quit knitting during that time. So there are other things I can talk about!

Remember this scarf that I started ages ago to go with these? Well, I finished it some time in November, I think.


Yarn: Ram Wools Inca Silk
Needles: Size 5, I think
Pattern: My own, possibly to appear here (would you like it?)


I love this scarf. It's narrow, so not so great for wear when you really need a scarf that you can pull over your mouth and nose and still cover your neck with, but it's much better at filling in the V between the lapels of my coat than any other scarf I've ever worn. (The mittenettes are pretty great, too.)

I know that wasn't much, but that wraps up this edition of Catch-up Blogging. Join us in our next episode when we discuss wash cloths, or maybe another scarf! I'll see you next time! (I loved that show!)

Craziness

I feel like I've been going non-stop since my last post. Last I wrote, I was anticipating the movers' arrival to pack up my stuff. Well, they came, they packed, they took, and I slept on the floor for several nights. In the interim, I also got some hands-on experience with car audio components (I had a good time soldering), and saw the Bolshoi Ballet's production of Cinderella (which was even more fun than soldering). Over the weekend, it snowed, rather a lot for Arlington. I was worried that I was going to be in for a completely miserable drive to Pittsburgh (my car really doesn't get on well with wet/snowy/icy/anything other than dry roads). Fortunately, on Monday it was warm, the snow mostly melted, and I was able to load up my car and drive to Pittsburgh without incident. Tuesday, the movers came to unload and unpack my stuff, which was still mostly, but not entirely, in the same number of pieces that it had been in when they packed it. Today was exciting because I started exploring, and made it to the grocery store and back without getting lost. Also, today, the cable guy came and hooked up the internet! Yay for the internet!

On the knitting front, not so much has gotten done. I've hardly knit at all on the Bayerische sock, and I didn't start the second sleeve of the grey Lopi sweater like I'd intended to. I did finish the Cable Mittenettes, though:



Yarn: Ram Wools Inca Silk
Pattern: my own (coming soon)
One of the cool things about these is that the pair took only ball of yarn. This is how much was left when I was done (miscellaneous knitting tools included for scale):

Now that I'm done with the craziness of moving, I should have time to knit again. :) I've got great plans for a lace stole...

Moving

I'm moving to Pittsburgh at the end of the month. On Wednesday, the movers are coming to pack up my apartment. Though I have little to pack, I feel like I have a mountain to go through in figuring out what needs to be thrown away and what I need to keep with me instead of sending with the movers. In general, I hate the process, and until yesterday, the only part of Pittsburgh I was looking forward to was being settled and not having to move for another six months. Yesterday, though, I discovered that Yarnharlot is going to be in Pittsburgh at the end of March. Since I've been trying for well over a year to see Yarnharlot, and been betrayed by the universe on every previous occasion, I'm simply ecstatic that I'll be able to see her in Pittsburgh. Now, I have something to really look forward to.

In other news, the knitting has progress apace. I finished the Argosy washcloth:


The Bayerische sock is coming along, too. I'm rather pleased with the progress, since this has been my metro, lunch-time, and waiting-in-line knitting and has not received any of my evening knitting time. It's beginning to look remarkably sock-like, as opposed to a beautiful, intricate, but misshapen tube. (My apologies for the awkwardness of the photos. It turns out that one's own feet are not much easier to photograph than the back of one's own head.)




My evening knitting time has been spent working on a pair of fingerless mitts. On Tuesday, I found myself tossing the stash, looking for something new, and not too large to work on. I came upon the Ram Wools Inca Silk that I got for Christmas and was caught by the softness of the alpaca and the soft sheen of the silk. I wanted to knit something besides just a scarf (nothing against scarves, but I wanted something a little more complex), and was struck by the thought that it could make a lovely pair of fingerless mitts. The practical application, however, got off to a rough start. Two pages of scribbled math and scribbled charts, three swatches, and four false starts later, I am happy to present the cuff of my cable mittenette.