Finished Object Friday - Gryffindor Knit Set

Gryffindor,Where dwell the brave at heart!

My fellow knitters, I should have known.  Really I suspected but I was naive to the amount of Gryffindor spirit required to embark on a journey of House Color Coordinates.  I honestly thought if I worked on it a lot it wouldn't take too long.  I started at the beginning of March and just this week finished the entire set of Gryffindor items.  

The Finished Set

I made the scarf, hat and wristlets in stunning Burgundy and Gold for the daughter of my boss.  She was graduating high school and going to college and I initially thought to make the items in her new school colors but she wanted Gryffindor Burgandy and Gold.  I wanted to make these items as a reminder of a new adventure in college and to have a piece of Harry by her as she faces the triumphs and challenges of this new experience.  Needless to say, she is already at college but winter is coming and these are just in time.

As an avid Potter fan, I had always wanted to make a set but I myself identify with Hufflepuff.  I am honest and hard working and just want everyone to get along.  The Hufflepuff colors are black and gold and here in Western PA, those colors mean a different thing entirely (Let's Go Steelers!).  I wanted to make something iconic from the films and so making the Gryffindor Set for someone as deserving as Katherine was a treat.

So here are the different parts of the set,

The Gryffindor Scarf!

The scarf (and subsequent pieces) is modeled after the stripe pattern in the later movies particularly Movies 3 and 4.  I think it has a very adult feel and would work well for a college student.each section has 29 rows of K1P1 ribbing in burgundy followed by an 8 row stripe pattern. There are 14 sets of stripes and 15 burgundy sections which equal 547 rows of knitting.  To go further, each row has 60 stitches, totaling 32,820 stitches.  That all results in over 6 ft of yarn!

This was a beast in fact, knitting the end of it during August was a bit uncomfortable because the hot summer and the warm wool blend.  I got it down that in one knit night on Thursday (round 3 hours) I could get one section complete.

Fringe!

I made the fringe a combination of both the burgundy and the gold because I felt that it really set off the scarf nicely.

The Gryffindor Hat!

I really liked working on this hat (perhaps because it only took 2 weeks).  In the entire set, this was by far the most mindless.  Perhaps it was due to past experience with knitting hats or just the nice round after round of stockinette.  Unlike the scarf where I kept meticulous notes of rows and can then calculate the stitch count, this was more of a wingged effort.

I cast on 128 stitches which was more stitches that it called for to make a large and slouchy hat.  I worked the ribbing for 10 rows and then in stockinette until the body was 6 inches from the cast on edge.  I made the same 8 stitch patter and then did the written decreases after 8 inches from the CO edge.

The result is a lovely but modern version of the beanie from the movies.

The Gryffindor Wristlets!

The pattern was actually mittens but in the age of smart phones and touch screens, this would not be a practical item for our college bound grad.  Instead I modified the pattern and made fingerless wristlets.  I am so please with this pattern that it might be my go to for any fingerless wristlets going forward without the Harry Potter Pattern.

I have to say that when I initially looked at the pattern the thought of dropping off stitches onto scrap yarn and then picking them up again was a bit daunting but I think after socks nothing is unusual anymore.

I did however make a boo boo.  I made the first attempt but placed the increases on the thumb seam instead of the crease between the pointer finger and thumb.  When I went to make the second wristlet, I realized my mistake far to late.  I finished the wristlet and then cast on another one.  These in total took about 4 evenings of work.  Not bad considering the 45 hours needed for the scarf.

I plan on writing up my modifications on the rav page if you are interested in seeing where I deviated.

So there you have it.  My completed set, I am please as punch at the result and my boss (AKA Katherine's Mom) is so pleased with the result.  I am sure she will be too...hopefully I will get a picture!

Check out more Finished Objects at Tami's Amis!

<3 Heather

Now for the Details:

Ravelry Page - Hogwarts Scarf: - Gryffindor
Needles - Size 7/4.5 mm with 24 inch cables
Yarn - 
3.5 Skeins of Plymouth Yarn Encore Worsted in 999 - Burnt Sienna
0.5 Skeins of Plymouth Yarn Encore Worsted in 1014 - Butternut
Duration - 45 hours of Work
Pattern - House Scarves - Year-3-4 from Charmed Knits


Ravelry Page - Hogwarts Beanie - Gryffindor
Needles - Size 5/3.75 mm Double Pointed Needles
Yarn - 
0.88 Skeins of Plymouth Yarn Encore Worsted in 999 - Burnt Sienna
0.05 Skeins of Plymouth Yarn Encore Worsted in 1014 - Butternut
Duration - 45 hours of Work
Pattern - House Hats from Charmed Knits


Ravelry Page - Hogwarts Wristlets - Gryffindor
Needles - Size 5/3.75 mm double pointed needles
Yarn - 
0.62 Skeins of Plymouth Yarn Encore Worsted in 999 - Burnt Sienna
0.05 Skeins of Plymouth Yarn Encore Worsted in 1014 - Butternut
Duration - 45 hours of Work
Pattern - House Mittens from Charmed Knits

WIP Wednesday - Rockets Red Glare!

Happy Fourth of July! I love the Fourth, it reminds me of the picnics at my Great Grandmother's House.  My Aunt would chase me around with Super Soakers and there would a ton of food.  Granted we don't know how to have any sort of gather without a ton of food.  Has anyone ever noticed that the American holidays (July 4th and Thanksgiving) are all about the food?

Anyway this year is very subdued, since the holiday is in the middle of the week.   I am not going home for a picnic this year, instead I was supposed to go to the Pirates game and then stick around the city for the fireworks.  Alas, my plans have been thwarted by a migraine.

So we will see what the rest of the day brings.

As a bit of an update, I had a lovely birthday and it wasn't as bad as I worried about.

Now onto the yarny goodness that is WIP Wednesday!

Diagonal Lace Socks

These have gone to the back burner for the time being. I was working on them for Nerd Wars and the first month ended and I only got one sock done.  

First Sock almost Complete

I am still working on it and hope to finish the pair for the WIP challenge in August.

White Centered Granny Square Blanket
Well these have been a lovely diversion WIP and I had to try out all of the colors this week.  I just wanted to see how everything played together.  I do love these colors.

Don't they all look great!  I am so happy the colors worked out!

I also was able to measure the finished square with the white borders to get estimates for the finished blanket.  Now that I know the blocks are about 5" x 5" I realized that I needed more yarn so I bought more yarn.

Green Lantern Square

I started the next square in my Big Bang Theory/Justice League Series.  I cast on in late June but ripped it out because something didn't work right.  I then recast on in July and now it qualifies for Nerd Wars.  I am so happy with how it is turning out.  Check out how it's turning out!

Taken on Tuesday Morning!

Taken Today!

I should get this done this afternoon.  I am so pleased by how the pattern is working up.  I will share when everything is done.  The Flash is next!

Gryffindor Beanie

This is another one I started but ripped out and can use for Nerd Wars.  This is to go with the Gryffindor Scarf that I am working on.  As soon as the Green Lantern square is done this is next on the list.

So there you have it my WIPs for this week. I think I had a pretty productive week, how about you? For other WIPs check out Tami's Amis and Frontier Dreams

<3 Heather

WIP Wednesday - Method to My Madness

Hello all, it has been a particularly busy week this week but I did manage to cast on some new items and get a good progress on other projects.

Progress Picture for 4/18/2012

The following projects are what has been worked on recently.  Starting with Cabled Square, Gryffindor Scarf, LEGO Blanket, Falling Water, Gryffindor Beret, and White Centered Granny Square Blanket.  (Missing is the Hummingbird Sock)

Really looking at that picture is very intimidating and I wonder what I got myself into.  But I do have a reason for some of my madness :)

The Cabled Square was really just a test knit for cables and I was using Lily's Sugar and Cream Cotton but realized that I loathe knitting in cotton.  Crochet is perfectly fine but I just hate knitting with it.  So I went to my stash and pulled out some Vanna's Choice Lime I had in my scrap box and got to work.  That's when it hit me.  I need to make another 12 inch square to finish my Spring Forward Block Swap from the Vanna's Choice Fan Club on Ravelry, and here I am making a square!  Granted it's only going to come out at 9 inches but I can add a border and get that blanket done!  Oh happy day!  (See there are methods to my madness)

Doesn't look like much now but I think it will look great with the rest of the squares.

I didn't really make much progress on the Falling Water Scarf and the Gryffindor Scarf.  I know that scarf is going to be a labor of love but I wanted some instant gratification for the Gryffindor set I am planning (Scarf, Hat and Wrstlets) so I cast on the beret.  (See another method to my madness)

Sorry the picture is blurry.

I made a lot of progress on the Lego blocks.  I finished off the skein of Turquise and moved onto the Lime Cotton Ease during the Hockey Game on Sunday.  I was so excited to see them all laid out for once.  Don't the colors look nice together!  I just can't wait to add the Maise.  I ordered the remaining yarn I needed so that should keep me motivated to get more blocks done.

It's really coming along.

Last but not least are the White Centered Granny Squares.  I mentioned my big yarn purchase on Friday but these little guys were the start of my test crochet to see if it would work to my liking.  I am really excited to make this blanket as I have never made a colorful blanket for my self.  I think it's time don't you?  (See justification is just another method!)

These are so striking and so soft in Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran

I do realize that all the little bits of time that I put into all of these different items would probably equate to a finished object by now but I like my methods because while I do want to craft everyday, working on the same thing can get a bit boring. (See there in is the main reason for my madness)

Do you like variety while crafting or are you a very linear project kind of crafter?

So are you mad for WIPs?  Check out some more on Tami's Amis and Frontier Dreams

<3 Heather