#I have to knit a sock to see if this yarn will be stretchy enough to work for a sock | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

alittlebitmaybe · 3 years

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tying you to me

For @sugar-and-spice-witcher-bingo

Prompt: crafting

Pairing: Geraskier, implied Geralt/Yen in one line

Rating: T for language

Warnings: None

Summary:

As they lay in bed, Jaskier snuggled and breathing humid against his chest hair, Geralt remembers the pattern from Novigrad. A sweater with stretchy ribbing around the wrists and bottom hemline, a high collar. Intricate cabling criss-crossing up the front, making the fabric thick and sturdy. The scroll is stuffed into one of his saddlebags where he’d put it after purchase when he’d cursed himself for wasting the coin.

Jaskier snuffles closer, his grip tightening around Geralt’s waist as he soaks the added warmth through his skin, and Geralt has an idea.

Or: Geralt doesn't know about the boyfriend sweater curse.

Read more on AO3 or below the cut!

Geralt learned to knit out of necessity. Winters in Kaedwen, especially up in the mountains, are bitter cold, and require not only animal skins but woolen socks, hats, scarves, blankets. They keep a flock of sheep for the very purpose. And before—when there were others, even occasionally a proper staff—it would be part of the normal workings of the castle to have several sets of hands dedicated to knitting up useful garments to keep them from freezing their balls off when the frost came.

There are fewer hands now, but also fewer balls in danger of freezing. Geralt and Vesemir handle the bulk of it, these days—Eskel with fingers too big and clumsy to be much help, Lambert too fidgety and quick to rip out all his progress into a tangled mess of wool in a fit of frustration. In the evenings they sit by the great hall fire in mostly silence and take turns spinning the roving into yarn, winding skeins, chipping away at the endless miles of plain stocking stitch, and seaming panels together. (Sometimes Geralt will embellish the design with cables, or a moss stitch—unconventional patterns he’s started to see in the larger cities, sold by the fancier merchants. He may have paid a few crowns for the scroll describing the pattern for one particular sweater he saw in a shop in Novigrad. He has not mentioned this to Vesemir.)

It may be necessity, but Geralt would choose it even if it wasn’t. These are the things his hands are good for: wielding a sword; harvesting various glands and organs; curling into fists; crushing windpipes; skinning rabbits. Bandaging Ciri’s scrapes. Bringing Yen’s pleasure. Curling around the back of Jaskier’s neck, drawing their lips together. And, when it’s over, when there’s nothing to kill and no one to care for, he can create. He can put it all to the side and count off to himself, knit-purl, knit-purl, knit-purl, knit, knit, knit, around and around, back and forth, and this thing will grow from the rhythm of his fingers, from the steady loop and pull that he’s done thousands of times, taught by some witcher instructor decades ago whose name he no longer recalls. He had bushy eyebrows that waggled as he worked. That’s all the memory that’s left of him.

Anyway, it’s easy to allow the hours to pass until Vesemir excuses himself to bed and the fire burns down and takes the light with it. One such night, just as Geralt is squinting at his work to finish this one last row, the hall door creaks open.

“Geralt,” Jaskier says sleepily, “are you still in here? ‘S late, love.”

Knit, knit, knit. “Mm,” says Geralt. “I’m here. Just finishing up.”

“I’ll wait for you, then.” Jaskier pads in his sockfeet across the stone to the armchair Geralt occupies. He sits himself on the rug with his back against Geralt’s legs, knees pulled up to his chest. “Brr. ‘S chilly, too.”

Geralt drops the needle in his right hand, maintaining tension on the working yarn with his left. He runs his free hand through Jaskier’s bed-mussed hair, brushes against his cold ear, down to the soft skin behind it. “Not wearing a coat.”

“Well I wasn’t heading outside, seemed like a—” He yawns, jaw cracking. “—a lot of trouble just to come downstairs. But I now see my mistake.”

“Always have to wear a coat at night,” Geralt says. “Or be under blankets. Or both.”

“Or acquire a personal witcher furnace, unless he’s down here ‘til gods know what hour making yet more mittens for the princess.”

Geralt looks down at the large rectangle he’s been working on. “Lap blanket,” he says. For Ciri, when she’s studying in the library. It gets drafty in there even with the fire blazing.

“For the library?” says Jaskier, tipping his head back to see Geralt. “Good thinking. She’ll love it.”

Geralt releases him and goes back to his work, but knits at most ten stitches before Jaskier shivers again, his teeth chattering before he gets himself under control. Setting the blanket aside, middle of the row be damned, he concedes, “Let’s go back to bed.”

“No, you’re—you’re not done with—” Jaskier cannot finish his sentence for the yawn that overtakes him. “M’kay. Let’s go.”

Jaskier snuffles closer, his grip tightening around Geralt’s waist as he soaks the added warmth through his skin, and Geralt has an idea.

The next evening, after dinner has been consumed and cleaned up, Vesemir and Geralt move to the fire as usual. Vesemir is working up a new hat for Lambert, who has the shortest hair among them and has one practically pasted to his head all winter long.

Geralt spares a glance to his blanket-in-progress, and then veers toward the wooden chest that stores their yarn stash. He puts aside plain ball after plain ball, until finally he admits defeat and turns to Vesemir and asks, “Do we have any dye?”

“No,” says Vesemir, not looking up. He knits with the yarn looped around the back of his neck to keep the tension, instead of around his fingers. He says it’s easier on his old joints. Geralt thinks it looks preposterous, but it gets the job done. “Not a drop. And that’s never bothered you before.”

“I’m thinking of making a gift,” says Geralt. “I think they’d prefer it to be dyed.”

“Ah, the bard. Yes. I suppose he would.”

“I want him to actually wear it.”

“Indeed.”

“He says coats are too bulky and ponderous, and they dampen his spirits.”

“Foolish boy. He’ll learn.”

“So we have no dye? Of any color?”

“None,” says Vesemir. “Though it may be that there are some old skeins in the back of the cupboard by the linens. I recall that some of our forebears had rather expensive taste, for witchers. Quite wasteful of them. If you ask me.”

Geralt murmurs his thanks, pulls on a cloak, and makes his way through the frozen corridors to the cabinet in the laundry. Along the way he passes the study, and overhears Eskel dominating Jaskier in another round of Gwent.

“Eskel, you dirty cheating bastard, there is no way you just had that card.”

“Where d’you think I kept it, bard?”

“Up your sleeve, behind your ear, under the table, I dunno—”

“Down your pants,” Lambert chimes in, and Geralt hears Ciri giggle. She’s been spending too much time with the witchers now that Yen has departed for the season. Geralt should probably intervene more often.

“—maybe you magicked me with a sign thingy so I wouldn’t notice, but I’m sure you didn’t have it in hand a turn ago, I’ll swear that on—”

“Yes, Lambert, I’ve got Gwent cards lining my codpiece, naturally, even a few stuffed between my—”

Geralt rounds the corner and their voices fade away.

As Vesemir said, there is a small box pushed all the way to the back of the cupboard in amongst the linens. He opens it without much hope, but is surprised to find it full to the brim with yarn of deep reds and blues, all of some soft texture very unlike the itchy wool they’re accustomed to. Sniffing it, he decides it is from some type of goat. He also decides, based on its lack of musty odor, that it is not nearly old enough to have belonged to one of their forebears.

Well, in exchange for the use of the yarn, he’ll allow Vesemir his secret.

He carries the whole lot back to the great hall.

“You found it,” Vesemir remarks, now nearly done with the hat.

“Right where you said,” says Geralt. “You don’t mind if I use it?”

“As much as you like,” he replies disinterestedly, “if you’ll leave me the fuck alone while you do.”

Fair enough.

Geralt selects the red—a deep burgundy that will pair with the blush on Jaskier’s cheeks after a few glasses of wine. He pulls the scroll from his trouser pocket, and begins casting on as the pattern instructs.

When he hears Jaskier’s tread in the hall, he hastily pulls the half-finished lap blanket over his new project.

“Bedtime, Witcher,” says Jaskier, peering over his shoulder. “Didn’t make much progress on that tonight, did you?”

“It’s a big blanket,” Geralt grunts. “Eskel’s been practicing sleight of hand since we were boys. Don’t play him for money.”

“I bloody knew it,” Jaskier exclaims. He wheels around and stomps back out of the hall, suitably distracted. “Eskel! You’ll never believe what Geralt’s just told me!”

The sweater is slow going, since he does have to put real work into the blanket every once in a while to keep Jaskier’s suspicions to heel.

Over the next few weeks, it becomes near an open secret in the keep what Geralt is up to. Lambert catches him cursing late one evening as he is ripping back several rows to fix a cable he’d mistakenly crossed the wrong way.

“Whazzat,” Lambert says, crunching on a mouthful of tree nuts.

“Fuck off,” Geralt says. He squints and carefully tries to secure a dropped loop back on the needle. If it ladders down, he’s done for—there’ll be no fixing it while maintaining the pattern. He’s not nearly good enough for that.

“Looks like you’re fucking it up,” Lambert chews.

“I am. That’s why I told you to fuck off.”

“Thought that’s just how you decided to greet me now. That’s what Vesemir does.” He shoves another fistful of nuts into his mouth, though Geralt isn’t sure he’s swallowed the first.

“It’s not a bad idea.”

He manages to pick up that last loop before disaster strikes, and moves the stitches around on the needles to make sure they all look right. Then he shoves the left-hand stitches all the way up to the tip so he can continue.

Lambert leans down to examine the fabric, then runs his finger down the pattern with his eyebrow raised. “This is some fancy shit, Geralt, you giant poof.”

“It’s not for me,” he says.

Lambert swallows, belches, and says, “My point exactly. ‘S for Jaskier, innit.”

Geralt doesn’t bother answering as he approaches the cable he’d made a mess of the first time around. Lambert claps him on the shoulder with the hand he’s been using as a nut-to-mouth delivery tool, which leaves salt behind on his tunic.

“That’s okay. Your secret’s safe with me.”

“Thanks,” says Geralt wryly.

“Anyway, I’m outta here. This boring bullshit still gives me hives.”

He exits the hall and the door shuts heavily behind him. Geralt finishes recrossing the cable and, turning to check his pattern, finds it covered in greasy fingerprints.

Eskel, on the other hand, sits himself in Vesemir’s usual seat one night and sets to quietly whittling a whistle. After several hours, Geralt holds up the near completed front panel of his sweater and says, “Do you think Jaskier will like this?”

Eskel doesn’t even look at it. “Geralt, you could spit on a log and hand it to him and Jaskier would love it.” His knife stills. “Maybe don’t do that, though.”

To their credit, none of the other witchers say a word—possibly for lack of caring—and Geralt is able to rely on them to keep Jaskier occupied most nights while he finishes the front and back panels and seams them up.

Before he begins work on the sleeves, the pattern warns, the wearer should try on the body to ensure proper fit.

“Well, shit,” he says aloud. He can’t ask Jaskier to try it on and ruin the surprise. He holds it up against himself, trying to judge if they are similar enough size to judge whether it will fit Jaskier. Geralt, certainly, is wider in the chest and shoulders, but as long as he can get it on without stretching it too much he should be able to check the length. And, if it fits Geralt or is loose, it will certainly be too large on Jaskier.

It will have to do.

The next morning he rises early and takes the sack in which he’s been storing his project to Ciri’s bedroom. He knocks softly.

“Ciri?” he calls, mouth close to the door. “Can I use your mirror for a moment?”

“Mnnngh,” he hears. He takes this as an invitation.

The only visible part of her, when he lets himself in, is a tangle of hair escaping from under the pile of furs on the bed. He sets his sack delicately in front of the only full-length mirror in the keep and says, “Morning, Princess.”

“F’ off,” the fur pile groans. “No it’s not.”

“You really have been spending too much time with Lambert,” Geralt comments mildly as he pulls the unfinished sweater out and checks it for damage in transport, though he knows it was safe in the bag and only traveled up some stairs. “He’s a bad influence.”

“I’ve always been like this when rudely awakened at the crack of dawn,” Ciri says, muffled. “Don’t think any of you are special.”

“You cursed at the royal servants?”

“Quite regularly.”

Geralt shrugs the layers off his top half down to his undershirt while she continues to stretch and grumble wordlessly in the warmth of her bed. He pulls the sweater over his head; the neckline snags on his ears but otherwise he should be okay to try to get his arms in. He squeezes his right arm in and up, aiming for the proper hole—

“Geralt,” Ciri says icily, “what, by the gods, is that?”

He turns around, contorted in the confines of the too-tight sweater. She’s sitting up with her hair a wild tangle and her eyes wide in horror. “What’s what?”

“That garment!”

“It’s…a sweater? I’m making it.”

Geralt thinks he may be missing something very important.

“For yourself?”

“…No, for Jaskier. He needs another—”

“Don’t you care about the curse?”

Geralt finishes fitting himself into the sweater and tugs it down over his stomach while Ciri continues to stare at him in expectant horror. Thus no longer trapped, he decides to engage. “The what?”

Ciri slumps forward, briefly puts her face in her hands. “Good gods, Geralt, you really can’t be helped. But I also cannot allow you to give Jaskier a handmade sweater. Despite your…personal challenges”—at this, Geralt tilts his head and opens his mouth to ask exactly what the hell that means, but she barrels on—“I really have become fond of the two of you, so I cannot let you carry on with this foolish nonsense.”

Her voice goes more posh the longer speaks. Geralt thinks she will make a fine queen someday. “Ciri, I—”

“And really,” she continues, “it’s like you’re trying to sabotage a good thing. He does nothing but care for you, and this is how you repay him? Honestly. Melitele’s tits!”

“Melitele’s—? Where did you learn that one?”

“I’m hardly sheltered. And you’re one to talk, caring about my language when you’re about to lose Jaskier for good!”

“For good? Lose Jask—okay, Ciri.” He sits down at the foot of her bed, probably looking downright silly confined to a sleeveless sweater that is at least one size too small for him. He can feel it constricting the rise and fall of his chest and stretching tight in his armpits. “Look, I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. What curse?”

The expression she aims at him is sharper than at least four of the blades in the armory. “The sweater curse, Geralt. If one makes a sweater for a person one is interested in romantically, that person leaves within a fortnight. Everyone knows this.”

“Oh, of course. How stupid of me,” Geralt says.

Ciri raises an eyebrow that says Yes, obviously.

“So you’re telling me that if I finish this sweater and give it to Jaskier, he will suddenly no longer be able to stand the sight of me and will stomp off on down the mountain, even with the good foot of snow and ice blocking the path.”

She sniffs. “Indubitably.”

“Hmm,” says Geralt. “I think I’ll take my chances.” He claps his hands on his knees as he stands and moves back to the mirror to inspect the sizing more closely. The armholes are definitely a bit small—he’ll have to let out the seam to increase the circumference—but the rest, if he tries to overlay Jaskier’s body onto his own, seems like it should be about right.

Ciri leaves the bed with a fur wrapped around her as a cape and comes to his side. “You’re impossible,” she declares, though the royal snootiness is diminished somewhat by her morning breath and tangled hair. Then she reaches out and touches the textured pattern between the cable running up the front. “Though, you know, it is quite beautiful, if horribly misguided.”

He grins indulgently at her. “Thank you, Princess.”

“Have you heard of the sweater curse?”

Vesemir snorts. “Poppycock. Who told you about that old superstition?”

“Just came across it.”

With a long-suffering sigh, Vesemir looks at Geralt over his spectacles. “I hope that it’s not bothering you.”

“No,” says Geralt. “Of course not.”

He has fuck-all in his hand of cards, but he stares down at them like they might contain the secrets of the Continent.

“It’s your turn, Geralt,” Eskel says.

“I know,” he replies, absently rearranging the cards.

“So…you gonna play or pass?” Lambert asks. He digs his hand into the bowl of nuts at his elbow.

“Not sure.”

“Is something on your mind?” Eskel, again.

“No. Well…do either of you believe in the sweater curse?”

They both look at him blankly.

“Nuh uh,” says Lambert with his mouth full.

Geralt says, “Pass.”

He speaks clearly into the xenovox. “Yen? Are you there?”

“Geralt?” comes the reply, as if she were beside him in the room. “Is Ciri all right?”

“We’re all fine. It’s good to hear from you, too.”

“If there’s no trouble, then make it quick.”

Now he hesitates, but he chokes the question out anyway. “Do you know about the sweater curse?”

There is silence.

“Yen?”

“For the love of the gods, Geralt, please don’t bother me with frivolous garbage. I’m much too busy. Is that all?”

“Yes, that’s all,” Geralt says, suitably shamed.

The finished, washed, and blocked sweater rests folded at the bottom of his wardrobe for more than a week before he works up the nerve to bring it down to dinner with him in his knitting sack.

Even with the flaws that Geralt, as the creator, inevitably notices—a few loose stitches three quarters down the back panel, the right sleeve is slightly longer than the left—he has to admit that it turned out well. He could fetch a pretty penny for it in a large city. Silky soft, thick, and vivid burgundy, it would be a stand-out piece among any merchant’s wares even without the detailing that stretches collar to hem and even down the outside of the arms.

Knitting it was a nightmare. He will never do anything like it ever again, so Jaskier had better appreciate this one.

Still, every time he resolves to finally gift it, Ciri’s words echo in the back of his mind. You’re about to lose Jaskier for good.

On the ninth day, he shushes that voice, takes the sack, and marches straight into the hall for dinner. After all, if Yen and Vesemir aren’t worried, then he shouldn’t be either.

Everyone but Jaskier is there already. Eskel looks up from pouring ale into each mug and says, “Hullo, Geralt. What do you have there?” and Lambert says, “Ooh, didja finish it?” and Vesemir digs wordlessly into his mutton.

Ciri’s eyes zero in on the sack.

“Hello,” says Geralt. “Is Jaskier still washing up?”

“Yeah,” says Lambert. “He fell in a pile of snow.”

“Lambert pushed him into a pile of snow,” Eskel amends.

Geralt glares at the accused, setting the sack on the bench at his usual spot.

“He asked for it. Bloody said ‘Lambert, throw me into that snow over there!’ didn’t he?”

“Since you were alone with him at the time, I don’t think I can confirm or deny—”

“Geralt,” Ciri interrupts, “tell me you’re not still planning what you said.”

“I am,” he tells her.

“You were standing not ten feet away.”

“My back was turned—”

“You’re a godsdamned witcher! Or have you gone deaf?”

“Even after what I told you! I thought you were going to think about it!” Ciri pushes back from the table. “I forbid you from giving that to him.”

Geralt snorts. “Or what, Princess? Look, I don’t think Jaskier is planning to leave—”

“Of course he’s not planning to, the curse will make him! Why are you tempting destiny this way?”

“I’m just saying, Lambert, that it wouldn’t be out of your character to shove an unsuspecting bard into a snowbank.”

“Oh, and hustling him at Gwent wasn’t out of your character, so maybe you’re actually the one who shoved him. Thought about that one, Eskel?”

Geralt says, “If he tries to leave, I’ll tie him to the bed until the urge passes.”

She wrinkles her nose in disgust, but then moves past that comment. “At least let me give it to him. I’ll say I brought it from Cintra, or bought it on the way here.”

“And let my hard work go unacknowledged? I don’t think so. And why would you have bought a man’s sweater?”

Among the arguments, no one notices Jaskier enter the hall and come up behind Vesemir, wide eyed. “What did I miss?” he stage whispers.

“Just open your present, bard,” Vesemir mutters, gesturing to the sack at Geralt’s knee.

“Ooh, a present? For little old me?”

He picks up the sack and tests the weight curiously, before opening it and drawing out the most marvelous sweater he has ever seen.

“Jaskier, no!” Ciri cries, and everyone else falls quiet.

“What, why?” he says, looking between Ciri’s stricken face and the furrow between Geralt’s brows. “What is this?”

“It’s for you,” Geralt murmurs. “I made it.”

“You made it?” he repeats dumbly.

“Yes. For you. Because you were…cold.”

“Because I was cold?”

Geralt gently takes it from him and holds it up so he can see the full design. “That night, you came in when I was knitting, and you were cold. I wanted to make you something warm to wear that you would like.”

Jaskier squishes the soft fabric between his thumb and forefinger.

“Do you,” says Geralt, “like it?”

“It’s stunning,” Jaskier breathes. Geralt may as well have hit him over the head with a hammer.

“I cannot believe you, Geralt of Rivia,” Ciri cuts in. “You never listen to anyone. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!” With that, she turns on her heel and leaves the hall.

Geralt grimaces. “Do you, er, have any particular desire to leave me?”

“Leave you? Why would I—Geralt, is this a breakup gift? Is it pity?” He panics, pushing the sweater back into Geralt’s hands. “I don’t want your gorgeous pity breakup sweater, Geralt. I’ve played that game before.”

Geralt steadies him, as ever. “No, it’s—Ciri thinks there’s a curse, or something. And that if I made you a sweater, you would leave.”

“Oh,” says Jaskier. “Well, I assure you I will not. And in that case I do want the sweater.” He shucks off his coat right there at the table and pulls the sweater on over his tunic. “There!” He spreads his hands wide. “How does it look?”

The smile Geralt gives him is answer enough. “Perfect,” he says. “You look perfect.”

“Not bad, bard,” Eskel says.

Lambert shoots him a thumbs up. Vesemir does not appear to be paying attention.

Jaskier leans in and kisses Geralt on the lips. “Thank you very much,” he whispers. “I adore it and promise to thank you more appropriately later tonight. For now, shall I go after Ciri?”

“That may be best,” Geralt says. “I don’t think she likes me much right now.”

“My pleasure. Say,” he says louder, “while I’m gone, don’t let my food get cold.” He opens the door and barely feels the usual chill of the drafty hallways at all. Over his shoulder, he adds, “You can get Lambert to tell you all how he threw me in a snow pile today! It was great fun!”

“I told you—” he hears, but then the door closes behind him.

#my fic #geraskier #the witcher #geralt x jaskier #geraskier fic #someone pls teach me to write drabbles i'm dying

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banaandbean-blog · 7 years

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Its hard to believe I’ve almost been knitting for a year. I started out 2016 by taking a knitting class in January with my oldest daughter and I started my first actual project on February 20th, 2016. I’ve definitely learned a lot since starting my first project. I can now actually read my stitches which is a huge help!!. I can now figure out where I was without having to count rows or stitches. Yay!! Those two things were so tedious when I first started and I’m so very glad I don’t have to do that every time I pick up my project like I did in the beginning. I also can cast on without having to watch a YouTube Video to jog my memory and I can do several different types of stitches although I still sometimes have to check out the YouTube on some of those. Thank goodness for YouTube!! I can also read patterns and have learned quite a bit of the lingo, my stash is growing along with my needle inventory, and I no longer feel uncertain about trying something new.

So here is my thought. Since everyone is doing their last year in review I was thinking maybe I would do a little different take on it. Instead of just talking about what I accomplished, I’m going to list out the projects I took on, what I learned from the project, and whether or not I finished it and my thoughts on the pattern. I hope this will not only be informative for anyone who is just starting out, but will also give some insight to those of you looking for different patterns to try.

Project #1:

Lovely Ruffly Shawl by Rebekah Liddicoat Cast on to February 20th, 2016

Savannah’s shawl

I made this for my youngest daughter to wear in Hawaii. See I had this amazing idea that I was going to knit my youngest daughter and myself a shawl and my oldest would knit herself a shawl and then we would all wear them when my hubby and I renewed our vows in Hawaii in June. Being my first project this took me until May to finish only leaving me 6 weeks to actually finish my shawl. I came close to finishing, but my oldest dropped a stitch and didn’t realize it until her shawl was unraveling, so she basically had to start over and I decided I would not finish mine so she didn’t feel left out. The good news is my youngest wore her’s in Hawaii and absolutely loves it!!

I used US size 7 needles for this with a 32 inch cable. In my knitting class we were taught on straight wood needles so this was my first time using a cable. The needles were wood and I can not for the life of me remember the brand. They were ok to knit with. After trying lots of different needles I’ve decided I much prefer medal needles as the stitches slide easier. My main struggle with this project was moving my stitches on the needles as I am a really tight knitter.

Skills I learned: Cast on, Stretchy Bind Off, KF&B, Blocking

I finished the project May 5, 2016. For the most part I really enjoyed knitting this shawl and I love how it turned out with the ruffly edge. The only part I didn’t like about the project was the rows that were KF&B the entire row (especially that last two rows after having what felt like a million stitches already on the needles, but it was necessary as this is what makes the ruffle) and this pattern had no stitch count which was tough for me being a new knitter. Otherwise the pattern was an easy knit and super easy to follow.

Project #2:

Firefly by Lydia Brown Cast on to March 2016

This project was the shawl I was knitting for myself for my vow renewal. I decided to cast on to it while I was working on my youngest daughters shawl to hopefully make enough progress that I would be able to finish both by June.

I used US size 8 needles for this with a 32 inch cable. This was my first time using medal needles and it was so much better than the wood needles I was using on my daughters shawl, but I hadn’t made the jump to Hiya Hiya Sharps yet so the tip was a little fiddly for picking up the stitches. I used Medelinetosh Merino Light in 293 Sun Rose and absolutely love the feel and color of my shawl.

Skills I learned: K2tog tbl, PM, SM, YO, Aggressibely blocking to exaggerate the diamond shape

I didn’t actually finish this project until September. Once I decided to not finish it in Hawaii I set it aside for a bit and worked on a few other things. I absolutely love the way this shawl turned out and the pattern was amazing. It was really easy to read and memorize and it had a stitch count which made it easy to make sure I had the correct number of stitches for each section. Plus you don’t end up with a ton of stitches to bind off at the end which is really nice considering most shawls aren’t this way. Total stitches at the end were 391.

Project #3:

Pretty Lace Hand Warmers by Purl Soho Cast on May 2016

This is a project I started because my friend and I were going to go to a Hot August Nights event at our local winery and we had to dress up as people from the 40’s. I wanted some lacey knit gloves to go with my dress and I stumbled across this free pattern on Ravelry and thought it would be perfect.

I used US size 5 needles for this with a 32 inch cable. I ordered a pair of addi needles for this. I also used Oh! Loops Twist Knot in The Queen and Her Games colorway. I absolutely loved the color, but the needles were impossible. At one point I was using another pair of needles just to help me get under the stitches. A single row was taking me over an hour and it was so frustrating. Every time I worked on it I wanted to throw it across the room. I eventually bought a pair of hiya hiya sharps and my friend helped me move the project to those needles and then it was a bit better.

Skills I Learned: Knitting with magic loop technique, knitting in the round, SSK, K2tog, M1R, M1L

Does this count as a WIP if I don’t like it??

I never finished this project. I finished one glove with some help from my best friend. The glove fits weird. Its really tight and the cuff rolls down and won’t stay where it should. The pattern in my opinion was probably the worst pattern I’ve ever read. There were so many pictures and pages it was hard to navigate through. It didn’t help that I didn’t see the tiny page numbers until I was almost done, but overall it was not a fun knit for me.

Project #4:

Lydia & Sarah’s Oh! Memories by Lydia Brown Cast on end of May 2016

My First Square

This project I started over memorial day weekend while I was camping before I went to Hawaii with the intention I would work on it during the plane ride and any time I was in the car or had any downtime while I was on vacation. When I started it I was thinking in my mind that my blanket would be big enough by the time fall soccer started to cover myself to keep warm and knit on it during soccer games and practices. This was not quite the case for me. I ended up getting 4 squares done by the time soccer started so it was big enough to keep my knee warm or a small patch of my leg, but I could not figure out how to knit on it and stay warm since it was so small.

I was gifted a pair of US size 1 carbon straight needles for this project and I absolutely love them. They are so light and easy to use and even though they are really long and straight they don’t bother me at all. The only downside I have found to these needles is every once in a while because they are so long, they have managed to poke themselves through the side of my project bag.

Skills I Learned: All the stitches were ones I’ve already done, but I did learn how to pick up stitches to add on a new square and this knit has helped me understand better the meaning of RS and WS.

Knitting on my memories blanket.

I love this knit and am hoping to do a lot more work on it in 2017. It is super easy and relaxing to work on. Even with being super easy I’ve made my fair share of mistakes to learn from. One time I picked it up after setting it down for a month and started knitting the RS on the WS, so that had to be taken back out, and one of my miters is going the wrong way since I started the square wrong. I like that its something that I can make mistakes on and learn and grow and not be stressed out about the mistakes.

Project #5:

Just Another Vanilla Sock by Sarah Stevens Cast on end of July 2016

The toe is so cute!!

This project I started for my hubby. I bought yarn and needles in April to make my hubby a pair of socks and just hadn’t gotten around to it. So on the way to the lake I YouTubed how to cast on to a toe up sock and cast on to his sock and continued to work on it while at the lake that day. I was so excited I got the toe done in one day!! I was going to have his socks done in no time…or not.

I used US Size 1 1/2 and Malibrigo Sock Caribeno (474). I absolutely love this colorway and the yarn feels so soft. My hubby has tried them on at different times to make sure everything was fitting and he is so excited for me to finish.

The heel is done

Skills I learned: CO for toe up sock (I used the Judy’s Magic Cast On), P2tog

I have not finished these yet and to be honest hadn’t even touched them since September. I finally picked it back up last weekend and finished the heel and now am on the leg for the first sock. I am bound and determined I am going to finish both socks in the first quarter of this year. One thing I have realized by knitting these, my hubby has huge feet. I can’t wait to knit a pair of socks for my youngest. They are going to go so quick!!

Project #6

Looking at Her by Lydia Brown Cast on August 28th, 2016

I had the yarn so I started another shawl even though I knew I was going to be participating in a HPKAL.

I cast on to this pattern to by some time until my Harry Potter yarn arrived. I knew I wasn’t going to finish it in 2016, but am hoping to have it finished by the spring so I can wear it. So far I absolutely love how the two colors and knitting up together.

I’m using US size 5 Hiya Hiya Sharp needs and yarn is Cottage Garden by Oh!Loops and Alcaucil by Malabrigo.

Project #7:

Rikke Hat by Sarah Young Cast on September 1, 2016

Mom’s hat is all done!!

I cast on to this hat to make for my mom for Christmas. My good friend had made several of these Rikke Hats and I thought they were super cool looking and thought my mom would just love it.

I used US Size 4 and 7 Hiya Hiya Sharp needles with a 16″ cable with the Oh! Loops Loop to Loop Madam Rolanda Hooch colorway.

Skills I learned: Switching to a different needle size during the project. Switching to magic loop once the stitches were too tight. Closing off the top of a hat.

I really liked this pattern. It was super easy to knit and easy to follow. It did surprise me how long it felt like it took to get through the pattern as it got really repetitive after a while. This being one of the reasons why I didn’t finish it until January 7th. I missed Christmas with this one, but my mom absolutely loves it and I love how the colors pooled to make this beautiful diagonal strip pattern. I will definitely make another one of these hats. I have even purchased yarn to make one for myself and it’s on my to do list for 2017.

Project #8:

Drop Stitch Cowl by Abi Gregorio Cast on the middle of September 2016

Working on a cowl for Savannah.

I started this for my youngest daughter with my first ever Harry Potter yarn purchase for Oh!Loops. I actually bought I think around 12 skeins of yarn from her different Harry Potter updates and I had each of my girls pick a cowl pattern, hat pattern, and glove pattern that I was going to use to knit them items using this beautiful Harry Potter yarn I had purchased. I had also purchased Harry Potter yarn for a pair of socks for my hubby, a hat and shawl for myself, and a hat for my mom. Of all those items I only got this cowl done for Savannah and the hat done for my mom. I am however still planning on knitting the rest and have come to the conclusion that I now have until next winter to get them done. Stress adverted!!

I used US size 15 Hiya Hiya sharp needles and Oh!Loops Bulky in the Tonks colorway. I absolutely love how this knit up and the bulky was amazing to work with with these huge needles.

Skills I learned: dropping YO without working them

It’s all done and I LOVE how squishy it is!!

I finished this item by the beginning of October. Its the first project I’ve ever finished in two weeks. The pattern is super easy and fast and fun to knit and I love how it turned out. I’ve even purchased yarn to make myself one. Although for mine I will add more stitches and make the cowl bigger as I don’t like things tight on my neck. For my daughter this was perfect and she absolutely loves it.

Project #9:

Here’s Looking at You by Lydia Brown Cast on September 28th, 2016

The start of Savannah’s hat to match her cowl

When I cast onto this hat for Savannah to go with her Cowl, the only Christmas knitting I was doing was making a hat for my mom. I cast on and figured I would have this done in a month and she would be able to wear it with her cowl this winter. In my mind I was thinking “she is going to look so cute wearing her hat and matching cowl when we go to Ice Fest in January.” Well unfortunately this did not happen. By the beginning of October I had decided I was going to knit my two sweet nieces hats for Christmas and because I was making them hats I also needed to make my other two sweet nieces and nephew hats too so no one felt left out. Needless to say I did not finish the project in 2016 and its not much farther than it is in the pictures. My goal is to finish this in time for her to wear it for winter in 2017.

For this I am using US size 3 Hiya Hiya sharp needles on a 16″ cable with the Oh! Loops Fashion Knot Tonks colorway. Since the needles are so small, I am thinking I am going to be working on this for a while.

Project #10:

Sous Son Aile by Lydia Brown Cast on October 1, 2016

I cast on to this pattern to participate for the first time in the Harry Potter Kal hosted by Oh!Loops. Lets just say this was a sock-tastrophe. It took me several tries to even cast on to the sock and then I made several mistakes that I had to rip back out and start again. My last mistake being knitting the wrong row in the pattern. That was when I got a bit discouraged and that is where my sock sits. I have every intention of knitting this pattern and starting again, but with the Christmas knitting that happened, I have yet to do it.

I used US size 2 needles with a 32″ cable and Oh! Loops Fashion Knot in the Loyal Companion colorway.

This pattern looks amazing and is easy to follow. I saw in the Kal that lots of people finished it and it looked amazing. I’m not sure what why I was struggling, but like I said it was a sock-tastrophe for me.

Projects #11 & 12:

Be Mine by Lydia Brown Cast on October 16th and November 1st 2016

Zoey’s yarn on the left, Lilly’s Yarn on the right

I originally decided to make two of these hats, one for each of my nieces, as part of the Harry Potter Kal extra curricular activity for October. I felt this was the perfect opportunity to make my nieces something for Christmas. So now instead of just having my mom’s hat to knit for Christmas I had added two more project to knit too. I did come really close to finishing the first hat for the Kal as I finished it on November 5th. Only 5 days late!!

I used US size 8 hiya hiya sharps on a 16″ cable and a natural skein and blue and purple skein for my niece Zoey’s Hat and a natural skein and a pink and black skein for my niece Lilly’s hat.

B3 stitch so pretty, but a killer on my hands

Skills I learned: B3 (bind 3 stitches together. Slip 1 stitch with yarn in back purl wise, knit 1, yarn over, knit 1, pass slipped stitch over last 3 stitches) This was by far probably the hardest stitch I have done so far. I think with DK weight yarn or fingering it wouldn’t be so bad, but trying to do this stitch with bulky yarn was super hard for me. Something I am going to work on.

Zoey’s Hat turned out so cute

Lilly’s hat almost done

I knit the first hat super fast and overall it was a fun knit. The only issue I had was the bulky yarn and the US size 8 needles. After a while my hands were killing me. I did run into a huge catastrophe with Lilly’s hat. I’m literally working on it a couple weeks before Christmas and I can’t find the second skein of the colored yarn I will need to finish it. I looked everywhere!! In the car, in all my project bags, under my bed…everywhere. I could not find the second ball of yarn anywhere!! With time ticking down to Christmas I ripped out everything I had done so far on her hat to use another skein of yarn I had two of in the bulky that were the same colors. The pink was just a bit darker. Needless to say I did not get her hat done before Christmas!! I was feeling pretty bad about it too!! I felt like the worst aunt ever!! How do you explain to a two year old that you just didn’t get her hat finished in time. Fortunately my niece is super sweet and I showed her what I had finished on her hat at Christmas and she is really excited for me to finish it. I only have 5 rows left!! YAY!!

Projects #13, 14 & 15:

Barley by tincanknits Cast on to Mia’s Hat November 21st, Dominic’s November 30th, and Emma’s December 13th, 2016

Yarn for the three hats

I decided to do these three projects in November after I realized that I was giving two of my nieces hats for Christmas and leaving the other two and my nephew out. My friend told me this pattern was a super fast knit so I decided it would be the perfect pattern to use to quickly knit three more hats for Christmas.

Dominic’s hat

Mia’s hat

I did not have US size 6 needles on a 16″ cable like the pattern calls for so I knit the whole hat on my US size 8 Hiya Hiya sharps with a 16″ cable. I used three skeins of yarn from Oh!loops that miss Lydia dyed up for me. The purple was for my niece Mia, the seahawk colors for my nephew Dominic, and the burgundy for my niece Emma.

Emma’s hat

I was able to finish all three of these hats by Christmas!! YAY!!! And everyone love them. The knit was fun, super easy, and really fast. The only thing I would do differently next time is add a few more rows to Emma’s hat. I used the adult size small for her hat and it didn’t quite cover her ears. I also changed Emma’s hat to have a hole in the top so she could wear her messy bun out the top of it. She loved this!!

Looking Back:

Looking back at 2016 and being my first year of knitting I am really happy with how the year went. I leaned a lot of new skills and became a ton more confident in my knitting skills. I cast onto 15 projects and completed 8 of them by the end of the year. I found my preferred needles being the Hiya Hiya Sharps and have collected a ton of different sizes in those needles. One thing I have not found yet is my preferred type of yarn. So far I like everything I have knit with and I feel there are pro’s and cons’s to each type. I am hoping to expand on that this next year. In 2016 all my knits were with fingering, bulky, or worsted. My goal for 2017 will be to find patterns that use some different weights than what I’ve already tried and to expand my knowledge of yarn a bit.

I think my favorite part of knitting is being able to share this wonderful hobby with other fellow knitters and share items I make with those I love in my life. There is no better feeling than finishing a knit and knowing I made the whole thing myself with my own two hands!!

I can’t wait to see what all I can accomplish for 2017!!

2016 in Review Its hard to believe I've almost been knitting for a year. I started out 2016 by taking a knitting class in January with my oldest daughter and I started my first actual project on February 20th, 2016.

#2016 #Knitting #Oh!Loops #Patterns #Projects #Skills

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