Doll Sweater Finished

Well, I have not had a chance to post in almost two weeks. Yikes !! In that time much has happened. I finished the doll sweater. I made some modifications so that it would fit a Cabbage Patch Baby Doll. I did make the sleeves come out to the dolls hands so that her arms can bend and it won't tug on the sweater. I am going to try to put together that list I see on other blogs with all my project details so here goes.




Pattern: Preppy Placket Pullover from Knits for Girls & Dolls by Charlene Schurch
Yarn: Lion Brand Micro Spun French Vanilla and Mocha
Needles: Size 8 and Size 5
Modifications: I shortened the sleeves to fit this doll. I also accidentally switched the locations of the buttonhole band and the button band. (oops)
Comments:
1. The directions ask you to knit for a certain number of inches from the cast on edge. I found that this number is not consistent with the finished dimensions listed at the start of the pattern. Therefore, I had to check the fit on the doll and made the size to match the doll. I will do the same when I make the sweater in the girl size.
2. The method used for creating the buttonhole band seems to look sloppy. I have not put on the buttons yet but I will to see if it makes a difference. It may be me but I think that on my girl sweater I'll change the way that its created to get a sharper look.
3. This yarn seemed to have a tendency to split easily. I will have to see how it works out on the larger size.

Current Projects:
I am in the process of crocheting a set of boot socks for my husband and I just wanted to say that I feel these things are HUGE! I constantly try them on him and they are the right size. I guess he has a big foot. I'll take a picture of them on his foot for my next post.

I have also started on the girl sweater and it is going GOOD. I love the needles I am using. I wonder what kind they are. I prefer them even to the bamboo needles. Maybe I'll ask at the SnB meeting. They were free needles from our stranger and I LOVE them. Did I say that already ? I think they may be silvalume or addi ? Maybe they are just plain ordinary needles ?

Personal Stuff:
Both husband and baby are sick. This means more work for me and I am already so tired. Plus it's like waiting for the apocalypse. I know I'll get sick it's just a matter of when. Yuck. I think I'll invest a little time in to the baby sweater. I want about 9 inches from the cast on edge before I start the arm hole.

Pooh clothes

Well, I finally took a picture of Pooh in his shirt. I say shirt because I have not officially added the sleeves as detailed in the pattern. I think I might wait until the weather is a little colder before I put him in long sleeves. I have also placed Pooh in an appropriate location for Monkee. He he.

I am now ready for my next crochet project socks or filet crochet. What to do what to do. The filet crochet uses a chart (my first) Yeah !! Or the socks (my first) yeah ??? I guess I should first finish my doll sweater because I am DYING to start on larger sweater projects for the family but I need to iron out the kinks on this mini sweater before I start. I also crave the idea of working on a cable sweater. Laura's looks awesome and I really want to do one. I should start a list of the things I am dying to do. My problem is that I lack more time.

For instance, I had a sitter for today so I felt guilty not working. So I have to work this afternoon. But, now I wish I had just dropped the baby at the sitters and then stayed home to knit. I think I have some guilt about getting out of the house. I should have just met Meghan at a coffee shop and knitted. That way I can do both, knit and get out of the house. Next Friday perhaps.

Winnie the Pooh Finished

Well, I finally finished my Winnie the Pooh. It took more polyfill then I anticipated. At least three bags worth. I think that if someone else is crocheting Pooh then they need to make sure to email Leisure Arts for assistance. Also, once you have attached the arms and are doing the rounds for the head, the instructions are easy to understand and attaching the muzzle and ears is simple. I do have a problem with the facial features. I think that there should be a better way to describe exactly where the eyebrows go. Poor eyebrows make my Pooh look like an early version of Pooh rather than a commercial version. I equate it to early Mickey Mouse verse current Mickey Mouse image.

I also did the body of his sweater. SUPER easy compared to assembling Pooh. I started his sweater in the wrong gauge. I used the same gauge as the one I used for Pooh which is wrong. I changed to a larger needle and did the gauge swatch which made for a much better looking sweater. I did crochet it loosely though because I was concerned about it fitting. I have not added the sleeves but I like the sweater the way it is now. I'll think about the sleeves.

No new progress on the doll sweater. I am stuck on creating the placket. The directions are not detailed enough for me. I need to pick up 13 stitches but I only have about 9 to actually draw from. I'll have to get on the internet and search for ways to pick up more than one stitch per end row.

Doll Sweater Design

Well, I sewed the shoulders together on my doll sweater and finished one sleeve. However, the sleeve is REALLY long. I followed the pattern exactly and the length of the sleeve is as described in the pattern but it just seems long for a 16" doll. It may be that the body of the sweater is currently smaller than listed in the pattern. I am going to put the neck edging on first and see how that looks. If the sweater is still small I'll put it on my daughter's doll and rip out the sleeve and shrink it down to a better size for her doll. The great thing is that I learned my lesson on checking the length of arms etc. for whoever I am knitting the sweater for. Luckily this is my first sweater on a small scale so I can work out these learning kinks.

Surprise

Well, I finished the front of the doll sweater. I think I might have miscounted the number of sts I had to bind off as part of the neck. We'll see when I add the collar. I need to sew the seams together of the shoulders before starting on the arms. I have never sewed seams together so I am a little nervous about doing it right. Practice makes perfect and that's why I am starting with the doll sweater and working my way up.

The surprise came today when I decided to sit down and attach Pooh's muzzle. I was surprised that it went on very smoothly. It's nice to be able to do some rows that work out so well. I need to put some stuffing in him and then I'll put a few pics of Pooh with his face on the website. I had ordered the Thread crochet book for making a smaller Pooh. I am curious to see how those instructions compare. The book is also by Leisure Arts.

Doll Sweater

I started the doll sweater. I did actually do a gauge swatch. However, my gauge showed that I would actually need bigger needles. In my opinion that would have made the stitches have to large a gap between them. I think a sweater should have tight knit. It might be the yarn I am using, Lion Brand Microspun. It is the recommended yarn but I don't think I'm a fan. I have made no new progress on pooh. He still has no face but hopefully this week I'll add it on. I have two more projects that I need to get working on. They are both crochet projects. One is a pair of boot socks for my husband and the other is a filet crochet gift for my great aunt.

Pooh progress

I have made a lot of progress on Winnie the Pooh this weekend. It might be that the appendages were done first and then I attach them to the body. However, I think that I just put in quite a bit of time on him. I am already to the head and I now need to add on his muzzle. I am not looking forward to it. Every time you add an appendage the directions are confusing and unclear which means two more emails to Leisure Arts for clarification. I need to consolidate all the info they've sent me so I have it for future use.

I am now going to work on my gauge swatch for the set of sweaters I want to knit from the Knits for Girls & Dolls book. I want to have at least one knit and one crochet project going at all times. I am going to work on the Preppy Placket Pullover but it uses buttons. I am not sure if I really want buttons on it. We'll see.

On a personal note we had a date night tonight. We went and saw the movie Serenity. Very cute space movie. I think it was like Starship Troopers. I recommend it as a nice light hearted flick.

It was nice since the baby has had a fever. She has a bad habit of getting high fevers for no apparent reason. She is just not feeling well. Her fever was 102 when we got in but some tylenol and a bath brought it down. She has no congestion and is playful and eats/drinks just not as much as usual. Even though it is an old wive's tale I think it might be teething. She is cutting her canines.

Magic Stripes Scarf

Well, I finished my first scarf two days ago. I made it with 2 skeins of Lion Brand Magic Stripes Fun Fur yarn. I learned from this easy scarf that I don't enjoy working with the fun fur very much. It is super soft though. It was also great to make something that changes color without all the ends that I have to weave in. I am preparing myself for some nice sweaters.

I am still working on my Winnie the Pooh crochet from the Leisure Arts pamphlet. I am surprise by how large it is. So far I am on my second skein of gold yarn for the body. I am also on my 2nd bag of polyfill. Pooh should end up about 18 inches big. I am working the body and it sure does give me a sense of accomplishment to make something like this. However, the instructions are awful. I have had to email Leisure Arts three times already. I would not recommend this pattern to anyone. I have purchased the same animals but in thread crochet so we'll have to see how that goes. See the picture below of Pooh's progess. He has legs and a tummy.