Knitting again: Knotty cabled chartreuse gloves (in progress)

My cheap and flimsy acrylic gloves have NOT been serving me well this winter, and after getting horribly cold and soggy fingers while sledding with my daughter last week, I decided to take matters into my own hands. This beautifully cabled design is the free Knotty gloves pattern by Laris Designs. The eye-searing chartreuse yarn is Studio Avenue 6 Bellweather Sock in the "Spring" colorway. (See my Ravelry project details if you so choose).

The cables are super pretty, but I will admint I had to rip back and reknit these about three times so far due to lopsided chart-reading mishaps whilst watching the last season of True Blood with my husband late at night. (Clearly, it is all the fault of those vampires, fairies and fairy vampires).

My winter-glove-making timing may seem a bit off, but as I type this it is snowing outside my Brooklyn window. I'm sure I will finish them JUST as soon as they are not actually needed any more this season.

Unusually Unselfish Knitting: Baby Surprise Jacket II

There's nothing like a hot summer day to snuggle your baby in a ... really warm wool jacket. Er.

Anyway, I knit this little garter-stitch cardigan for a friend who had a baby boy last week — she's bringing him over this evening and I can't wait to meet him! I'm hoping it's big enough that he can wear it in the fall.

This is the first time I have EVER made anything more serious than a hat for someone ELSE's baby, but said baby's mom is a knitter herself, so I know she'll appreciate it in the way only a fellow maker-of-garments-that-take-forever-and-ever-to-make can.

The pattern: Elizabeth Zimmerman's famous Baby Surprise Jacket from Knitting Workshop. I knit with a worsted yarn in hopes of achieving a 3-6 month size for this fall/winter.

The yarn: Classic Elite Liberty Wool, a fabulous soft squishy self-striping washable wool, purchased on my birthday trip to the Hub Mills yarn store.

The buttons: High-quality blue buttons from Pacific Trimming (at least, they LOOK really nice and for 75 cents each, they must be high quality, right?)

Time taken: A month (but I was knitting and making lots of other things at the same time).

The exhaustive Ravelry details: Here.

This jacket is known as the surprise jacket because while you are knitting it, it looks like an amorphous blob of yarn nonsense...

And then you do some origami magic and seam up the shoulders, and surprise! It's a jacket. I actually made one for Z three years ago when I wasn't nearly as confident a knitter... and totally left off the buttons and buttonholes. Oops!

Back then I kept getting confused by the cryptic pattern and looking up reviews and notes... this time it was a breeze and a great way to relax on the family camping cabin vacation we took in the Poconos last week:

In sum: pure baby sweater happiness!

In other cardigan current issues, I'm still knitting the fantastic chevroned Delancey cardigan for myself (try-on photos soon)... but I have another urgent unselfish baby sweater to make first, as I'm attending a baby shower in just a month to celebrate the impending arrival of my niece-to-be!

I bought the unisex #4 color kit for the Dream in Color Classy Tulip Sweater in blues and greens from Eat.Sleep.Knit:

Luckily my niece-to-be will reside in Maine, so she'll have an endless need for warm wooly things!

So—what was the last thing YOU made for someone else (and not you or your immediate household?)

Brights and Prints Overload (Me Made May Week 4)

I may be a week behind in getting up these blog posts, I may be tired, my photos may be degenerating and me-made-May posts may be the least commented on of all posts on this blog ... but I am NOT giving up on this challenge. SO THERE.

Day 20: Bright Green and Blue Day

Me-Mades (just one):
1. Jalie 2921 scarf-collar floral poly knit top

Other:
1. Thrifted J. Crew green cotton lawn polka-dot skirt (similarish style here)
2. Wurishofer 711 ridiculously comfortable granny sandals, black leather version

Day 21: A Little Sparkle

Who says sequins aren't daytime/work appropriate?

Me-Mades (just one):
1. Cake Patterns Tiramisu knit dress, adapted into a top

Other:
1. Sequined inset lined gored blue skirt
2. Turquoise necklace made by a dear friend
3. Some old Clarks leather sandals, super comfy (similaresque)

Day 22: A Peplum & a Circle Skirt

Here's my black & white polka dot Hummingbird peplum top again, this time with a big blue circle skirt (not me-made). I typically think of peplum tops as only going with pencil skirts and skinny jeans, but I see a lot of peplums and circle skirts in photos from the 50s, so trying a new silhouette! Think the skirt is maybe a bit long, though...

Me-Mades (two):
1. Hummingbird knit top by Cake Patterns with four-leaf clover peplum in polka dot ITY jersey.
2. TARDIS socks in blue, black and white merino wool (held in hands, near completion).

Other:
1. American Apparel blue circle skirt, awkward midi length — originally bought for TARDIS Halloween costume that never came to fruition
2. red coral necklace bought at Renegade Craft Fair ages ago, can't remember maker
3. The Sak orange leather handbag (the only handbag I own, so I wear it regardless of outfit color.)
4. Wurishofer 711 comfy granny sandals, red leather version

Day 23: Green and Purple Love

This is a bit of a cheat—I was sick most of the day, ended up working from home and didn't get dressed until 5:30 p.m. when I had to get my daughter from preschool. Those are my fabric and yarn drawers behind me—all six of them.

Me-Mades (two):
1. Self-drafted reversible shirred skirt.
2. Striped undies, not visible.

Other:
1. Surplice green and white printed knit top.
2. Turquoise necklace made by a dear friend.
3. Clarks Privo black leather Mary Jane flats scuffed to shreds over past 6 years but still going. (Super similar here).

Day 24: Scarves Upon Scarves

This colorblocked second-hand cardigan is actually really awesome, and in real life without a bad flash photo the flower rosette thingies do NOT look like pasties. Just saying. But I don't know if this silhouette really works for me.

Me-Mades (two):
1. Jalie Scarf-Collar top in red and cream polka dot knit
2. Monkey socks in kettle-dyed merino wool

Other:
1. Second-hand purple colorblocked cardigan from friend who was cleaning out closet
2. Pink silk rib knit lace-edge cami
3. Not Your Daughter's straight-legged black stretch jeans (Marilyn style)
4. Arcopedico Flower black leather Mary Jane cut-out flats

Day 25: TARDIS socks for a journey to the stars

Finished my TARDIS sock disaster just in time for a family outing to the American Museum of Natural History's Hayden Planetarium, where we saw "Journey to the Stars." (Toddler was scared sometimes but overall loved it and can't stop talking about how "stars are big hot balls of fire—don't touch!")

Me-Mades (3):
1. Georgina cardigan by Alexis Winslow in chartreuse hand-dyed Swans Island merino wool
2. Falling-down TARDIS socks.
3. striped underthings (not visible)

Other:
1. Not Your Daughter's straight-legged dark blue stretch jeans (Marilyn style)
2. Arcopedico Flower black leather Mary Jane cut-out flats

SO TIRED. But MUST GO ON!

Who else is still hanging in there for the challenge?

Colorful Shoe Showdown: Which Comfy Yet Cute Flats to Buy?

Sadly, reviewers say these adorable Miz Mooz chartreuse ballet flats smell so bad they cannot be worn.

Readers, can you help me? I have no colorful flat shoes and I'm really struggling to find some good ones. Please help my feet find their own happy comfortable rainbow... Why must I choose between comfort and color?

I realized this while trying to put together outfits for Me Made May. I've got one pair of flats in black, and two in brown, and they're all pretty much falling apart and a bit on the chunky side.

Mostly because I have some pretty strict criteria for shoes. I once broke the same foot twice in one year (the first time while pulling on boots... I lost my balance, fell over onto my foot and CRACK!), and I used to have to wear orthotics every day. Anyway: Here's a typical conversation in a shoe shop:

Mikhaela: Hi, I'm looking for some cute, comfortable well-made sturdy flats with really good arch support that can be walked in for long distances but don't make my size 10/11 feet look like boats.

Helpful salesperson: [searches store up and down, finally emerges with several promising pairs of black and brown shoes] We have these, our customers swear by them!

Mikhaela: Do they come in any other colors?

Helpful salesperson: Nope.

Mikhaela: [sighs deeply, leaves shop empty-handed, buys boring black shoes or buys colorful heels instead].

Most ballet flat styles don't work for me at all—I find the flat inside way more uncomfortable than even a low heel.

Anyway, my mom got me a gift certificate to Amazon for Mother's Day, and I was hoping to punch up my wardrobe with some eye-searing (or at least vaguely colorful) shoes and I am really struggling here. Readers, can you help?

Here are my current top contenders, but I'd also love suggestions if there are some brands of shoes that might fill in this gap. BUT ONLY IF THEY ARE COLORFUL, please. Red, blue, or chartreuse would be especially nice... Vintage-inspired is good, too.:

#1: Arcopedico Flower Flats in green leather.

• Pros: I know they are really, really comfortable... because I own them in black.
• Cons: On the pricey side, hard to say what shade of green they are (on some sites they look chartreuse, hurrah, but above they look puke-colored) and they are rather Frankenstein chunky.

#2: Clarks Aldea Tribe flats in Fuschia (or the Palm in Coral)

• Pros: I trust Clarks to make comfortable shoes that I can wear into the ground over the years. And the flower detail is great.
• Cons: Come on, is that REALLY fuschia? Seems kinda bland from the website image... My eyes aren't bleeding yet. Skeptical of the arch support with such a flat heel.

#3: Miz Mooz Delma ballet flats in a bright shade like aqua or chartreuse.

• Pros: LOVE the color, and I have a pair of Miz Mooz heels that are on the walkable side.
• Cons: May be too flat inside, and some reviewers have returned them complaining of an unbearable odor.

#4: Patagonia Women's Advocate Mary Jane flats in pink

• Pros: Super bright, super cute. AND Patagonia is serious about workers' rights and environmental responsibility.
• Cons: Some reviewers complain of poor support.

#5: Arcopedico Scala Mary Janes in red leather

• Pros: Red! Comfortable? Less chunky than the Flowers?
• Cons: Still kinda boat-like... my feet may float out to sea, and not sure if they're delicate enough to wear with a frilly dress.

#6: Keen Women's Sienna Mary Janes in various colorful fabrics

• Pros: Colorful and presumably comfortable.
• Cons: I know they put that big toe there to protect your feet, but... why couldn't it be a coordinating color with the shoe fabric? It's like a rubber duck is eating your toes.

#7: Ahnu Karma Flats in various not-very-bright colors

• Pros: They look super comfortable and rather cute—I like the crossed straps.
• Cons: The colors are all a bit faded, dark or granola-earthy, not BRIGHT BRIGHT BRIGHT.

Oh, wait! Lookee here... available in citron and orange (and recommended in a blog post on Already Pretty by Kirsten of barkingdogshoes.):

#8: Softwaves Wave Mary Janes in orange or citron. Had never heard of this company, but they seem ergonomically focused (and they make cute bright heels, too).

• Pros: I'm seeing spots they're so bright. The ruching is cute, too! Plus: comfort?
• Cons: Or is it cute (the ruching)?

I know it probably seems like I'm over-agonizing, but I walk EVERYWHERE, I need to chase after my toddler when necessary and I take the wishes of my poor, delicate twice-broken feet very seriously! And I'm on a super-tight budget, so I generally buy only one or two pairs of shoes per year (as my old shoes wear out).

Which would you buy, if you were me? OR do you have the inside track on something better?

Update... and now I just found these two Clarks styles I missed somehow... And you all have some great ideas in the comments for brands I had never even heard of ... My despair has now turned to indecision!

Clarks Poem Journal Flats in red—great reviews, too.

Clarks Artisan Aldea in cobalt bue

Final Update: What I actually bought! So I may later get one or two of the other styles pictured above or in the comments, but what I actually ended up buying was a bit random. I was trying to decide between the different options, when these Tsubo Aftenia fashion sneaker Mary Janes popped up as a suggested item... in red! For just $69:

I happen to have the exact same shoes in brown, and know they are comfortable as all get-out. There was one pair left in red, and it was my size (10) so ... done! For now, anyway. Amazon only has black or brown ones now, but you can still find them on eBay.

**Disclosure: Actions you take from the hyperlinks within this blog post may yield commissions for polkadotoverload.com (and quite likely spent on yarn or fabric).

Sweater Girl Success: Finished Chartreuse Georgina Cardigan!

My spring green Georgina cabled & lace cardigan is finally done, just in time for spring!

My original "Sweater Girl Showdown Sketch":

My original sketch, from... um... a year ago. See my "sweater girl showdown" post for more on each of these patterns. My goal was to make a very fitted, curve-hugging little lacy cardigan with a bit of negative ease—nothing baggy or shapeless like my last cardigan disaster!

The details:

• The pattern: Georgina Cardigan by Alexis Winslow aka Knit Darling. This pattern is beautifully designed and was a dream to knit: lots of easy-to-memorize but fun and different types of lace and cables and shaping to keep my interest, all knit together or picked up (no after-the-fact seaming). However it was NOT an easy knit (I consider myself relatively advanced and I still made a few mistakes and had to pay very close attention), and I wouldn't recommend it as a first-ever sweater pattern, unless you REALLY like a challenge. I made the smallest size, which was 2-3 inches smaller than my actual full bust measurement—just right to create a fitted look!
• The yarn: Swans Island Hand-Dyed Merino Organic Worsted in Spring Green (3.5 skeins). Soft as a cloud, with just enough hand-dyed variegation for interest, but not enough to compete with the beautiful lace or eyelet cables. Swans Island is a super-cool little eco-friendly yarn and blanket company based in Maine, and they have excellent customer service: when I realized I was short a skein for my last sleeve, they immediately offered to call around to all their retail shops to help me locate one in the right dye lot (Purl Soho had one left—phew!).
• The full Ravelry project details. Yes, it took me a year to finish, but whatever. The designer notes it only took her a week and a half—but I knit like a knitting snail (I have to to preserve my wrists from carpal tunnel redux).

It looks cute buttoned:

Or un-buttoned:

And from the lacy little back, too:

And don't you love vintage buttons? I got these "West German Radiant Buttons" at La Casita yarn shop in Brooklyn (one of three yarn shops in walking distance of my apartment... which makes me either spoiled, or just at constant risk of unnecessary yarn adoption):

I finished the sweater while lying in bed recovering from my surgery—all it needed were some ends woven in and the buttons, and... DONE! (No, I haven't blocked it. It fits so well I'm afraid to mess with that. I will at some point). It was the only bright spot in a really rough painful post-surgery week — I'm getting a lot better, but still have some really bad days — and I got lots of compliments on it at work Monday.

And sorry about the goofy "holding the curtain as a backdrop" photos, but I was too weak/ill to go outside last weekend and had to make do in some very low cloudy lighting. BUT WHATEVER. SWEATER LOVE. I think I need to go snuggle with my sweater now...

What's your latest happy make?

TARDIS sock progress + Blue Alpaca Cabled Earflap Hat Redux

Dear Doctor and Clara: I love you. Sincerely, Mikhaela. (P.S. But I still miss Amy and Rory).

I know I said my next knitting project would be colorwork gloves, but then I remembered Doctor Who was coming back tonight and I went for colorwork TARDIS socks instead... More details later when I am farther along. (Two other women in the Brooklyn Burdastyle Sewing Club are knitting them too—they'll probably both finish before I do at my snail's pace.)

The whole stranded aka fair isle colorwork knitting thing isn't quite as hard as I anticipated. The only tricky part for me was just teaching myself to knit English-style with one hand and continental with the other — like jumping up and down and patting your head and stomach and singing at the same time, but doable. The lettering looks a little fuzzy so far so I will touch it up with duplicate stitch as suggested.

And here's the hat I finished while lying in bed after my surgery:

The pattern is 18 Seconds to Sunrise by Tiffany Gallagher and the yarn is Misti Alpaca Chunky Baby Alpaca in Marine.(Full Ravelry details here.) I had already knit this hat before but had to unravel it and add an extra pattern repeat because it was just too tight no matter how I blocked it. This time I added the earflaps and i-cord (aka "idiot cord") tassels and am much happier all round. I feel like without earflaps I either have to knit a hat so big it covers my eyes, or I just constantly tug at the sides to keep my ears warm. I-cord was also new to me and was much simpler than colorwork!

I realize the photos are a bit odd because I am wearing it with a lace camisole tank top thing instead of a coat, but it's nearly 60 degrees in Brooklyn today and I'm still too sick/weak to go out much.

Oh, and little Z wanted her turn to wear both the hat and matching cowl too:

Are you a Doctor Who fan? If so, what do you think of Clara so far? Would you ever do a geeky craft project or are you a bit too sophisticated for that?

P.S. Thank you all so much for your good wishes before and after my surgery! It means a lot to me! I'm still not at 100% (more like 60%) but I am getting better every day and finally was able to return to work.

Chartreuse Cardigan Progress + Blue Ombré Overload Socks!

Rough as it's been around here lately—with no sewing going on to speak of—I've been stealing bits and odds and moments to knit, mostly on my subway commute. And somehow all those moments have finally added up to... most of my chartreuse organic merino Georgina cardigan! (full Ravelry details here).

Here's the back (I'm so into the lace, maybe I should just walk backwards so people can admire it more directly). It looked SO teeny-tiny while I was knitting that many people asked if I was making another toddler sweater... so I'm REALLY glad it actually fits.

Oh, and here's the original sketch for reference, back when I was still dithering over my color choices:

So... the fit is great... the organic hand-dyed merino is soft as a cloud... the design is awesome... BUT... I may not actually have enough yarn left for full sleeves. So—how do you all think this will look with cap sleeves? (There is no budget for an additional skein, though I WILL allow myself to buy proper buttons).

Oh, and if you're wondering why I'm wearing my ombré polka dot dress for these photos, it's because I thought it'd be funny to photograph my ombré dress with my finished blue ombré Waving Lace socks (from yarn grad-dyed by me ages ago):

Though honestly... you'll never actually catch me wearing socks with a dressy dress. I pretty much wear them with pants or SOMETIMES with casual skirts.

They've actually been done for weeks now, but I didn't feel like doing a wool-sock photo shoot in 90-degree heat... here's a sharper look:

I swear the gradation is much more obvious in real life!

Next up in knitting—I think I'll tackle some colorwork. I really need some pretty winter gloves... or there are these cute striped convertible mittens (i.e. the tops flip off to reveal fingerless gloves) from an old issue of Vogue Knitting I know I have lying around somewhere...

How are your fall knitting and sewing plans coming along?

Cardigan Conundrum: Which Color? (NOT Chartreuse Again)

So if you didn't already guess, the winner of my Sweater Girl Showdown: Shrunken Cardigan Edition was Brooklyn-based knit designer Alexis Winslow's lovely Georgina!

Oh, and if you haven't already ogled the pattern on Knit Darling, check out the fancy lace back view:

Source: knitdarling.com via Mikhaela on Pinterest

I've already purchased the pattern on Ravelry, and now I am left with the problem of yarn and color choice. My initial thought was chartreuse, because I am OBSESSED with chartreuse cardigans... I have one in wool, one in silk, and one in cashmere--plus a UFO sewn one in doubleknit--and I probably wear them more than any other sweaters I own, as evidenced in these three garment photos from my pregnant days:

But perhaps I need to branch out a bit, color-wise. I'm leaning towards periwinkle or blue, though I do have a soft spot for bright pink--like chartreuse, it seems to go with everything in my wardrobe! Check it out--I'm wearing pink AND chartreuse in both of these photos from 2007 (the one directly below is by Márta Fodor):

The two non-chartreuse cardigans I wear most often are this old thrifted red wrap cardi shown here in 2006 (when I still took photos in my bathroom with the mirror):

Speaking of ancient bathroom photos--I didn't even crop my laundry bag out of this one! Cashmere chartreuse cardi I still wear all the time, shown with my me-made blue wool tweed skirt:

And here's my trusty thrifted periwinkle cashmere cabled cardigan, which looks way better in real life now (and fits much better now that I'm not pregnant):

OK, enough already. I'm also self-debating over yarns and fibers. I don't know if I want to use a solid color yarn (to better show off the fancy lace and ribbing and eyelets and suchlike) or a subtly variegated semi-solid yarn... most of the yarns I was ogling were semi-solids but really, I think this might do best in a solid.

Anyway, this is the fun part, right? Now I get to go to my local yarn shops and feel up the squishy wooly wares and dither back and forth and... for as long as the toddler will tolerate, anyway.

You might have noticed I'm not even CONSIDERING a neutral color, because I find that I almost never wear the few neutral cardigans I own. That's just me, though--if your favorite sweater is gray or black or brown, I salute you and your yarny neutrality!

>So, fellow sweater girls (and boys?)--what's your go-to cardigan color?

P.S. In the meantime, I'm making socks (Ravelry project details here)! From yarn I dyed myself (ages ago), in a lovely super-bright ombre blue. In the Waving Lace pattern by Evelyn A. Clark from Favorite Socks, which looks super-complex but is really easy to follow/memorize:

P.P.S. Guys, I was ALMOST up to 200 followers... I was at 199... and then I suddenly dropped back to 198! Maybe I offended a die-hard sewist with all this knitting talk? (not that I care!)

P.P.P.S. Happy Easter and/or Passover! (We'll be doing both here).