Wallaby Update!

Have to show you my lovely pink Cotton-Ease Wallaby! Isn't she lovely? It's hard to see how nicely the pocket is fused. It's also hard to see that loose spot on the right that I have. I don't know what happened. I had a looser row of stockinette stitch and i tightened it a bit, working across the row with a little crochet hook. It needs a little more surgery to lie nicer. It's minor and can be fixed. I also haven't woven in the ends yet. It's starting to look more like a size 6. Suggestion: Make the body length longer than the pattern states. If you don't, it'll wind up at belt level, kinda short. I think that pullovers should be a little longer. Also, for a child, they can wear it longer. This is going to be slightly over sized for my THREE year old and it's a size 6. She is in the 65th percentile so she's an average sized three year old. (nearly 4..but still.) So, I suggest you watch the pattern and figure out the chest measurement. Her actual is 23" I believe (I will remeasure later) and the six actual completed is 27" unstretched. Be careful with the sizing for both children and adults. As for the sleeves, I chose the gradual method of increasing and I am magic looping them instead of knitting them flat like I did with hubbies. We'll see how I like a seamless sleeve. It's like making a sock, actually, with increases. Hmmn...this is giving me new ideas.

Here's how to do the sleeves this way. You CAN choose to drive yourself and do this:
1. Cast on half the number of sts for sleeve one. Then cast on ALL of the sts for sleeve two.
2. Put the ends of the needles together and attempt to join sleeve 2. I think...all these ends flapping around, a mess..

The easy way.
1. Using smaller needles, cast on all of the sts for sleeve one and do all of the ribbing. COUNTING THE ROWS.
2. When you've completed the ribbing and it's time to use the larger needle, knit half of the sts on the larger needle and then put the rest on a st holder or DPN. I use a DPN, size doesn't matter.
3. Cast on all of the sts for sleeve two and knit all of the ribbing, same number of rows as sleeve one.
4. Knit all of sleeve two onto the larger needle.
5. Knit the sts from the DPN onto the larger needle and there you have it.
6. At this point, you should have the tails both hanging to the left of each sleeve.
7. Mark beg of row to be at the left edge.
8. Now, magic looping, knit half of one sleeve, half of the other, pull needle through and knit half of the other and half of the original. You should be back at the marker and have completed row two of each sleeve.
9. Don't be an idiot like me. Once in awhile, I've knit socks together and it's a pain to fix, particularly if it's lacy.

I will post a better tutorial, with photos as soon as I get my new toy. Yes, yes, I sprang for a few bucks and ordered this camera. Tee hee. It does everything. We will be trying it out next weekend with beautiful posts of lovely scenery and my socks and sleeves. I can't wait for it to come!!! It has macro and sepia and black and white. Cool, hah?

Well, got a BBQ to attend this PM and I am making Florentine Artichoke Dip. Recipe link next time! Actually, I should post some of my favorite recipes. I've been collecting them for awhile, thinking one day of actually attempting to have a cookbook...we'll see. Need new Meal Master Software though, mine is obsolete. Note to self: look into recipe software.

Harry Potter book hasn't arrived yet. I am going to go and sit in my bow window, waiting attentively for the post man. I sure hope it comes today! I ordered it from Amazon and chose free shipping which means that I shouldn't get it right away but I think I will. I did last time. Oh boy! Now I have to read and knit and work and raise two kids and clean...and blog!

"So little time, so much to do! " , said the rabbit. (That would be the one that got Alice into trouble that day she fell in the hole.