A new toy.. for me? Oooh!

I have a new toy.. and boy is it beautiful (and takes beautiful photos):

I couldn't resist the Nikon D40 when I walked into my local Harvey Norman the other day. Plus, it was on sale for a great price at $598 (Aussie dollars of course), making it a great deal! I'm still learning all its functions, but am already happily snapping at all kinds of knitting and non knitting related things. Can't wait to share.

I've also started working on my Global Warming, and its knitting up quite nicely. More comments later, when I can also post some piccies up. Yay!

Rosemary's Swing Jacket

Could it be? A finished object?

After many many months of looking for my knitting mojo, I may have at least found the mojo's legs for the time being and finished a project that actually fits, and that I actually like. Hurrah!


Project Details
Pattern: Rosemary's Swing Jacket, by Cathy Carron. Featured in Interweave Knits Winter 2007. For those on ravelry, the link is here

Yarn: Heirloom Merino Magic in a dark purply/plum colour. The yarn required by the pattern was a 10 ply yarn, which I wasn't able to find enough of in my LYS (they only had 6 balls of the plum colour) so I substituted with a DK weight yarn (and therefore changed the gauge), figuring that since it was a raglan top down, I could modify and alter as I went along. I was right ;)


The Merino Magic was lovely to knit with, but at times I would find bits of straw throughout it which I have never encountered with this particular yarn. It may have just been a spodgy batch, but I thought I'd let you know. Also, the yarn likes to attract things - magic dust, strange splodges, so it might require quite a bit of care in the long term!

Needles: Denise interchangeable circulars size US7s for the main body, and 5.5mm dpns for the sleeves.

Comments and modifications: The pattern is very easy to follow, and as it is a top down raglan, very easy to modify as you go along according to how you want your fit and length. I pretty much followed the pattern, though I did start off with a few less stitches than required as the smallest size listed was still too big for me.

I also ended my sleeves at 3/4, partly because I was afraid I wouldn't have enough yarn for full length, but also because I generally like 3/4 sleeves of swing coats and jackets anyways. I also cast off tight to get a little "bubble sleeve" which I had seen and liked on the Minimalist Cardigan.


I also didn't like the way the jacket hung on the original model, so I decided to make mine "double breasted" so that the hem edge would hang in line both front and back rather than drape. I prefer it that way as I think it looks neater.

And to top it off, I added a little bit of my own personality and put a little bow on the neck edge. I like whimsical and cute, and it definitely helped it become just that.

Did I hear a sale??

I went to my very local (read: country hicktown local) yarn store the other day and found out that they were having 30% off all yarn until the end of month! My heart skipped a beat, but I managed to contain my impulses and decided to head home first and find out what I needed and what I didnt need rather than stashing. 

Today I went back, and purchased 6 skeins of Merino Et Soie (a lovely merino/silk 10 ply) in a dark dusty pink/maroon colour :

and some Panda Pure Wool (240m per skein at $3 ??? who could resist) in a lovely olive colour. Both are earmarked for projects that I will start straight away so will go to good heed.

After my very drawn back spending of 9 skeins of yarn, new yarn needles, some bias binding and some buttons, the total came to $36!! I was shocked at how cheap it was, and suddenly realised that I *needed* to buy more. So I shall return to that little store very very shortly! heehee

On knitting news, I finally blocked and re-sewed the Hexacomb Cardigan, and am waiting to see how the reblocked version goes. Hopefully it'll fit better than that gigantic illfitting product I ended up with. 

Also, I'm 95% done with Rosemary's Swing Jacket. I'm determined to finish it within the next two hours (only a bit of the sleeves to go) as I want to wear it with my little black dress tonight. Fingers crossed. The moss stitch is going slowly, but I'm loving the fabric nonetheless. And it's certainly not as bright as this, but I just couldnt get the lighting right for this one.