Knitter in the Kitchen

Yarn: Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Worsted, Chocolate 36ns, 1 skein
Pattern: Tuesday Night Cowl (Ravelry link)
Size: Worsted weight version
Needles: US #8
Thoughts: This is a very straightforward pattern and I really like the look of the cables. I also learned how to do a provisional crochet cast on because of this project. I was surprised that I managed to finish the entire cowl with just one skein of Shepherd Worsted — it must be because I knit tight. I definitely recommend this pattern if you are looking for a cowl that looks a little more interesting than plain stockinette.

On Sunday evenings, Hubby and I cook a big batch of food that will last us for four nights. This means that we don’t have any leftovers to bring for lunch, because the leftovers are reserved for dinner. So for years, my lunches have consisted of a sandwich, chips, and sometimes cookies. Not exactly the most nutritious combination, especially given my sandwich and chip selections (such as peanut butter and jelly with Lay’s Classic Potato Chips). And I doubt that cookies could be considered wholesome.

Recently, I decided to start packing better food. I am tired of sandwiches, plus I think eating so much junk is catching up with me. So my new plan is that on weekends, I’ll also cook a second batch of food just for lunches. This was my first week of doing so, and I made Chickpea Potato Curry, Broccoli with Red Pepper Flakes and Toasted Garlic, and rice.

The Chickpea Potato Curry was new to me and was yummy. The prep was minimal, and once the veggies were chopped everything went into one pan for about 30 minutes of simmering. Which is pretty darn easy, and it yielded five lunches for me and two for Hubby. Not bad, right? The broccoli side dish is from the March 2007 issue of Cooking Light and is a standard rotation for us. Really simple and tasty.

I’ve already found several new recipes I want to try for lunches, and once we head into summer, I’ll probably do some salads. What do you usually eat for weekday lunches?

In March 2008, I completed my Central Park Hoodie. It took quite awhile — about six months — and the finishing was extremely daunting to me. Two years after completion, though, I would say that the effort definitely paid off. The CPH is one of my favorite sweaters. I love the color, it is super warm, and the wool feels comfortable against my skin.

There are two things I would change:
(1) The hood. I would wear the CPH more if it didn’t have a hood. I don’t use it at all, and it creates an uncomfortable lump when I wear a coat over it.
(2) The size. I knit the 36″, which is clearly too large. There is excess sweater flapping around in the back.

So I decided to another another CPH this year. Meet the smaller, hoodless version.

I was tempted to knit this sweater in gray or even another shade of brown because I tend to gravitate toward those colors. But I made myself branch out. Even when I finished the project, I was still second-guessing my color choice. I like grass green a lot; I just don’t wear much of it.

From beginning to end, this sweater took me seven weeks. Not a record by any stretch of the imagination, but very good for someone who usually drags these things out! What probably helped is that I didn’t have much of anything else on the needles so I tried to be monogamous. The seaming didn’t feel nearly as brutal this time around. It still took me a few hours, but it went smoothly.

Overall, I really like the style and fit of this hoodless version! We’ll see what I think after another couple of years.

Yarn: Cascade 220 in Color 9430 (Highland Green), a little over 4 skeins
Pattern: from Fall 2006 KnitScene
Size: 32″
Needles: US #7 and #9
Modifications:
: Lengthened the body by half an inch
: Followed normaknits’ guidelines (Rav link) for the hoodless version.
–After seaming the shoulders, use the smaller needles to pick up the same number of stitches you would have picked up for the hood. I picked up the stitches with the wrong side facing me so that the ridge would be on the inside of the sweater.
–The next row is *p2, k2, repeat from * to last two stitches, p2. Continue to knit the 2×2 ribbing as established until you reach the desired length of the collar. I knit for about 3.75″; I think 4″ would be even better. BO all stitches.
–With the right side facing you, pick up stitches for the button band starting from the bottom front and continuing all the way up through the end of the collar. I picked up 126 stitches on each side. I can’t remember now how I came up with that number, but it worked okay for me. You want to pick a number that is a multiple of 4 + 2 so that you can do the same 2×2 ribbing as for the collar. The next row is *p2, k2, repeat from * to last two stitches, p2. I knit the button bands until they reached 2″. BO all stitches. Repeat for second button band.

Back in September, I cut the fabric to make sets of zippered pouches and tissue holders. I wanted to give the sets to my colleagues as Christmas gifts, and I was all pleased with myself because I was starting early. Of course, then I lost interest in sewing for three months and didn’t get around to making them. Three days after Christmas, I was totally in the mood to sew. Go figure. At least I’m early for 2010.