k is for knitter

The Temple of Sacred Yarn

2011-06-01T12:33:00.004-04:00

I have more than a few yarns that I've collected over the years that I am terrified to touch. No pattern seems good enough, and my knitting prowess is never strong enough for me to wind up a skein or two of these yarns and cast on.

Case in point: The Fiber Company Terra in Henna colourway.

I fell hard for this yarn. The orangey purply tweediness made up of merino, baby alpaca and silk was too much for me and after a serious blow to the credit card (still on a student budget back then), I brought it home to found my very own Temple of Sacred Yarn.

A quick look through the yarn log tells me that I bought this yarn on or about August 12th.....2006. That's right just shy of 5 years ago!!!

After much sketching, plotting, sifting through pattern books, and patterns on Ravelry without success, I had almost given up the hope that I would ever use this yarn. Finally I went to my LYS and just bought a simple wrap sweater pattern on a whim. I brought it home and started glancing through my yarn shelf until my eyes landed on the Terra and I realized they it was a perfect match.

The sweater is simple enough to show off the beautiful colours of the yarn. The garter stitch neckband and hems provide the perfect amount to texture to add a light rustic touch that really ties into the slightly thick thin character of this one-ply yarn. Also the back and forth knitting (knit row, then purl) ensures that the yarn doesn't bias the knitted fabric. Finally, the seamless top-down construction allows for yarn economy and also means that this sweater might actually get finished eventually since I won't be left with any finishing once the actual knitting has been completed.

So far, so good. Knit on!

Bags and bags and bags of fun

2011-05-20T10:36:00.005-04:00

It all started innocently enough...I figured it would be fun to make a cute bag. There would be no pesky fitting issues, I would learn some new things, and most importantly, I could customize it using my three most favourite fabrics.

I chose some more "utilitarian" fabrics for the outside thinking the bag would be more versatile that way. Then I picked a gorgeous lining fabric to make things a little more interesting.

Now there is one thing you have to understand. My personal work ethic is one where I do things right but I only do them once. I'm a perfectionist with limited time who is surrounded by endless inspiration.

I'll read ever single word in a book (including forwards, dedications, author bios) but I never re-read even my most favourite books. I'll rip my knitting back to nothing as many times as it takes to get it just right but I will never re-knit even the most satisfying pattern.

Nonetheless, I have managed to make four iterations of Amy Butler's Birdie Sling Bag since mid-January.

All with beautiful linings!

More amazing still is the fact that there are plans for a fifth bag currently in the works.

I am really enjoying this pattern. The last step where you magically pull a gorgeous bag from the sewing equivalent of a misshapen, thread covered pile of rubble is so exciting for me that it seems to propel me head-first into the next bag.

I have loved making these bags so much that they have actually motivated me to pick up long lost half-finished sewing projects and shove them either towards or over the finish line. They have also motivated me to carefully construct a completely unreasonable plan for an entirely new spring/summer wardrobe.

I suppose the big question is whether the thrill will wear off before number 5 gets sees the light of day.

My cheerleader, the metric system

2010-02-26T13:24:00.000-05:00

After weeks of furious knitting, I have managed to add a 26 cm or 10 1/4 inches to the beast.

Never did I think I would use the metric system as an emotional crutch, but there you have it. After spending most of my vacation knitting, I only made it through 10 1/4 inches of black stockinette. Much more encouraging to have finished 26 cm.

A few days ago I realized that I had left all of the extra yarn for this project at home. This effectively ground my progress to a halt just before the colour work picked up again on the body, and completely eliminated any lingering romantic notion I may have held of finishing the project before the end of the Olympics. Enter a very understanding significant other and the kind folks at FedEx and one business day later there be yarn.

Thanks to the arrival of the yarn, I've managed to start digging my way through the colour work. I'll post my olympic progress after the end of the closing ceremonies.

Olympics

2010-02-15T12:32:00.003-05:00

Since I am both Canadian and planning to go to Vancouver to watch a few events, it seemed like the perfect time to hop on the bandwagon and cast on for the Yarn Harlot's Knitting Olympics.

I debated between setting a completely unattainable goal and a giving myself a chance by casting on for something a little more realistic. Ultimately, the charm of knitting a Dale sweater designed for Canada during the Canadian winter Olympics proved irresistible and I cast on for Dale of Norway's Le Massif (rav link).

I am 100% certain that I will not get this beast, knit on 3.25mm needles, finished during the Olympics. In the last three days, I've made it through the sweater's hem, also known as the first of 22 balls of yarn.

So far she's a beaut. Wish me luck as I stagger off towards 11" of tiny black stockinette.

With these two sticks

2009-06-22T19:48:00.005-04:00

My mother gave me a gorgeous Bohus sweater kit for Christmas way back in 2007. I've been afraid to touch it ever since so I decided to pick up a small hat kit to see if I was ever going to be ready to tackle the "real thing."

After about two months in the stash, the draw of knitting in the round on teeny tiny needles was too much to resist. I decided to pull it out and begin working on it.

Although this photo is a little out of date, here's what it looks like so far.

And here's a mandatory picture of the wrong side.

I've managed to make it through 55 of the 65 colour work rows for the body of the hat. I think that I should be able to finish the knitting later this week. Then all that will be left is about 80 different ends to weave in. The only downside is that I promised myself I wouldn't pick up another knitting project until I make it through some of my other Summer of Craft goals. Therein lies the real challenge.

As the Wheel Turns

2009-06-14T21:15:00.006-04:00

I spent last weekend at a friend's cottage, working on my summer spinning goal. While there I managed to turn this gorgeous seacell/merino batt I bought last summer

into this

I've spun nearly one full bobbin and still have about half of the fibre left to turn into singles. Once that is finished, it will be time to ply. I'm thinking I'm going to Navajo ply these singles into a worsted weight yarn. I should end up with about 300 yards if all goes well. That would be enough to make a cozy scarf or a nice pair of mitts next winter.

While working away on this, I realized how little green has made its way into my craft projects. I have some green yarn stocked away in the stash but I don't think I've ever knit anything that had green as its main colour. Seems bizarre given my general love of all colours.

Up next, my summer knitting project that is *eep* almost finished!

Summer of Craft

2009-06-11T10:05:00.003-04:00

Whew...it's been a while. Despite my prolonged absence, I haven't fogotten about you. I'm still lurking on all of your blogs.

The past nine months have been a whirlwind. Between travelling, being unemployed and having to get settled at two different offices in the span of two months things have been off-kilter so to speak.

Now with that all behind me, I thought it might be fun to set some summer priorities.

The sheer number of crafty pursuits I have taken on have effectively rendered my limited hobby time completly unproductive as I flit about between this project and that. As a result, I decided to tackle one project from each type of craft to help focus my efforts.

Quilting: Finish the string quilt I started last month

Sewing: Make throw pillows for living room

Weaving: Finish Seacoast Scarf

Spinning: Spin Green Seacell fibre

Knitting: Finish Gothic Pink Window Bohus Hat

Embroidery: Finish stitching the Christmas scene

I will provide detailed introductions to all of these projects over the coming weeks.

If I manage to finish all of these projects before the Labour Day long-weekend, I will reward myself with a couple of gorgeous Bohus kits I've had my eye on the past few months. As incentive to you, dear reader, to heckle me on in my efforts, I will reward you with my first ever contest.

Enjoy your weekend!

Staple it Together: September Edition

2008-09-26T16:17:00.006-04:00

I've been wanting to learn how to quilt for years. After buying the Janome, I decided that it was as good a time as any to finally get started.

While looking at various course offerings I found a Toronto quilting store called The Quilter's Palette that was offering a free Quilt Sampler program. The program offers participants the chance to make 12 different 12" sampler blocks from one of three colourways. Every month you head down to the shop to pick up your kit during the specified week. If you bring along the previous month's completed block you get the next month's kit for free. Perfect!

I love that I have a whole month to fuss with each block, and that I'm not overly invested in the finished product. It takes the pressure off and makes the learning by trial and error process much more fun.

I had some issues during the cutting phase when I ended up running out of white fabric (100% my own fault after some overzealous squaring up of the fabric). As a result, the centre block ended up being a smidge smaller than intended.

My iron was on the fritz so there were also a few setbacks during the pressing (as seen in this photo).

After a few kicks at the metaphorical can, I managed to get everything pieced together into something that looked both like a square and the block that I was supposed to produce.

It's not perfect but I am pretty happy with it as a first attempt at the whole quilting thing. The seams appear to line up pretty well in the centre and the block is only a little bigger than it is supposed to be (I should be able to trim that down when the time comes).

The next block kit will be ready for pick-up in little more than a week. I can't wait!

New Toy

2008-09-24T16:45:00.005-04:00

I spent some time at my grandparents' house in August after my grandfather had his hip replacement surgery. My grandparents own a farm where I spent all of my summers as a child.

Almost every day during those summers was the same. I would get up early in the morning and catch the horses to go for a quick ride. Afternoons were always filled with baking, gardening, crafting and board games. Evenings were reserved for card games in the kitchen.

For the last few years, I've only been able to visit them over the Christmas holidays. It wasn't until I went back last month that I realized how much I loved being there at harvest time. While I was there I couldn't help but fall back into the routine I'd set as a child. I found a reproduced vintage dress pattern and some cheap taffeta and set about making myself a dress (photos to come).

I didn't get the dress finished while I was there but did manage to rediscover my love of sewing. After I got back, my grandmother suggested that I buy myself a sewing machine as a gift for my upcoming birthday and after much debate, I eventually ended up with this.

A Janome 4100QDC. At this point it appears that this machine is the best purchase I've ever made. I've already made two small projects with it with many more in the planning stage (more on those next time).

That said, I'm still knitting. Instead of detracting from my knitting, the sewing has actually kicked it into high gear. Hopefully there will be some Autumn Rose progress worth sharing shortly.

A long time comin'

2008-09-16T17:28:00.006-04:00

It's been a while. I've spent a large amount of time thinking about how I was going to get back into posting regularly on the blog again. Turns out that the easiest way is to simply start posting again.

Big news is that after many months of little to no knitting, I've finally managed to finish the Autumn Rose Sleeves.

Seeing the finished product has made me very glad that I took the time to frog the first sleeve and spit-splice the ends. The overall effect is much more polished and uniform.

I plan to cast on for the body later tonight. Hopefully the longer rows on the body and less frequent colour changes will mean that I will actually get this done before next fall.

I'm looking forward to posting more frequently in the coming months. Thanks for stopping by!

Fly By

2008-05-17T09:24:00.002-04:00

The last few weeks have given new meaning to the phrase "flying by on the seat of your pants".

I've picked up a lace bug and knit these:

Montego Bay in Handmaiden Sea Silk

Swallowtail Shawl from IK.

I've frogged and made progress on Autumn Rose:

I flexed my first-time quilter's muscle to make a baby blanket for a close friend.

Finished the Ice Cream Socks (Cat Bordhi's Cedar Master Pattern)

I've gone to Hawaii to see sand, lava, and sunsets.

Made it back from Las Vegas (sorry no photos of that one).

Finished my original contract at work and received an extension.

Packed my bags for Italy.

*phew*

Catching Up

2008-03-25T14:53:00.004-04:00

Way, way, waaaaay back (nearly a month ago now), I managed to finish the Superbowl Baby Sweater (a.k.a. the Tulip Baby Cardi). After weeks of blog neglect, this darling little number completely fell off the radar. It has only now come to light due to my continued failure at any sort of camera use and a general lull in knitting progress, symptomatic of a potentially finished Lucy Cardi hoping to make its final blog appearance next week.

I bought a kit for this sweater from Lettuce Knit last May. With four good friends expecting over the next five months it seemed like a good time to finally knit it up.

The Dream in Color yarn was wonderful to knit with. The subtle variations in colour create a beautiful overall effect. The yarn grew a little after hitting a sink of warm soapy water, as expected when dealing with superwash. The sleeves look like they may end up being a little long (based on my limited knowledge of infant proportions) but the striping pattern was too beautiful to interrupt.

The marriage of colour and texture is wonderful in this project. The seed stitch used for the edging and between stripes complements the different values in the yarn beautifully. Even the inside is gorgeous.

Although I loved every minute of this project, I am more than a little relieved that the dozens and dozens of ends have finally been woven in. Luckily I still have a few months left over before I have to tackle the matching hat with all the leftovers.

Getaway

2008-03-19T00:54:00.001-04:00

I have to say, there is no knitting like vacation knitting.

Last weekend the significant other and I fled the city in search of a hill or two for some much needed R&R. Being a girl who grew up in Québec amongst some of the finest ski conditions in Eastern-ish Canada, I wasn't expecting much from the Torontonian take on a classic ski resort. It was cliché, it was overpriced, it was gorgeous, and we had a blast.

As a preamble to this little detour on the way to a knitting update, it's been about 6 years since my snowboard has touched snow. Scary, I know.

Turns out that aside from having to overcome the fear of serious injury that has finally managed to permeate my older and wiser brain since my teenage years, a few runs and it's all old hat again. This picture makes me look way more in control than I felt at the time.

While nursing the inevitable delayed onset muscle soreness I managed to make notable progress on my Central Park Hoodie sleeves. Although this is a never-before-posted picture of the first sleeve I finished knitting at the beginning of March, it looks very much like the second sleeve that is now more than halfway through so let's pretend it's that.

I have some serious love for the Oceanwind Knits yarn I'm using for this sweater. The cables are really showing up nicely.

I also managed to finish the first of the ice cream socks from December days past. Sadly, there are also no up-to-date photos of those just yet something to be rectified shortly. I know, I know. Bad knitter!

Why all the dated/missing photos you ask? Well when not knitting, or careening down a vertical incline, I spent much of my time doing this.

Vive les vacances!

Dizzy

2008-03-12T17:18:00.002-04:00

Things have been busy. Too busy. To counteract the disorienting feeling of chasing one's tail for weeks on end, I decided to wake up at 7:00 am one fine Sunday morning and get some spinning done.

These are the first 2 completed skeins of what is lovingly referred to as NBO, short for the "Neverending Blue One." I cling to the eventual hope that one day there may be nearly enough yarn for *gasp* a whole sweater.

I suppose it would help if I found more time to sit at my wheel now and then. Perhaps a challenge for next month.

A more wordy post to come in the not-so-distant future. Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Have you seen the new Knitty?

Sunny Days

2008-02-19T10:27:00.005-05:00

The winter sun is one of my favourite things. It brings the hope of spring as rivulets of melt water forage paths through the winter grime, crisscrossing the sidewalks at every turn. There is something about a sun-filled winter sky that invites us to look up from our cold-fighting winter hunch, press our shoulders down away from our ears, acknowledge our fellow city dweller, and take notice how beautiful our snow covered city really is.

Another gift from the winter sun is wonderful light for FO shots. I managed to finish up Kusha Kusha over the weekend.

This scarf only used up one cone of the Silk Stainless yarn and one and a smidge skeins of the cashmere. It didn't felt quite as much as I had thought it might but I have a deep and passionate love for the resulting fabric. The scarf is so light and airy, weighing only just over an ounce. Thanks to the superfine and supersoft cashmere it's surprisingly warm (warm enough that I'm standing outside in a t-shirt in February).

And next up some long long overdue Tilted Duster photos. Although not apparent in these photos, if I take the time to make a few adjustments this sweater will actually stay completely closed. Something that is a very welcome surprise.

Norah Gaughan's Tilted Duster
Yarn: Berocco Peruvia in Granada
Amount: 7.05 skeins (could have made it with 7)
Size: 36" bust on my 35" bust so one inch of positive ease
Started: August 2007
Finished: January 2008

This sweater was started in August, finished in October and received buttons in January. The Berocco Peruvia yarn I used, as called for in the pattern, is lovely but perhaps not ideal for a sweater such as this. After wearing it twice the sweater has already started to pill significantly on the inside of the rear section.

If I were to knit this pattern again, I would adjust the amseye shaping to eliminate the small amount of bulk you can see in the above photo. Otherwise the pattern is genius. Another home run for the illustrious Norah Gaughan.

One last parting shot in honour of the winter sun.

Happy Tuesday!

Once upon a Super Bowl

2008-02-06T12:56:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday I was talked into attending a Super Bowl party. Knowing that I lack the "enthusiasm for televised sports" gene, I decided to start a new project that would give me my own little dose of the fun. Enter the Tulip Baby Cardigan.

It's perfect. Fast, easy, pretty, lots of colour, and nice yarn. I've had this kit in my stash since last spring. Now that I have more than a few close friends expecting it seems like a great time to knit it up.

Before falling off the metaphorical goal bandwagon, I managed to accomplish some long forgotten spinning.

The yarn is just over 140 yards of worsted 3-ply, made with 2 plies of Superwash merino top (these singles) and one ply of a merino tencel blend. There should be about a sweater's worth of yarn if I ever get finished. I'm not too sure about the colour since it is darker than I had originally anticipated. We'll see what happens after a bit of swatching before I make a firm decision either way.

Lucy is almost finished. I have about 16 more rows and a bit of neckband knitting to do. Then it's on to weaving in the dozens of ends, buying buttons, and grafting the underarm join shut.

I tried it on over the weekend and it seems a bit small. I think that a good blocking will give me a bit more room, especially since the yarn is superwash. Failing that, I suppose I'll have to cut back on the Mini Eggs.

Kusha Kusha also featured prominently this weekend and a fair amount of progress was made. I have just over a hundred more rows of stainless silk left to knit and it will be finished.

Love the way that this is turning out even if the slippery stainless silk rows are a bit of a pain to knit.

A week and some ago Nicole tagged me for the book MEME. Funny thing was that I had grabbed the book I was reading to see what my answer would before I realized that she had tagged me. Thanks Nicole!

The rules are as follows:

Go to the current book you are reading, on page 161, and copy down the 5th sentence:

“I can almost hear it.”

From Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb, otherwise known as my book club book for February.

Thank you for your comments on my last post. They made for a perfect re-entry.

Absentee Blogger Reporting for Duty

2008-01-24T13:14:00.000-05:00

I can't believe that it's been nearly two months since my last post. Hopefully a few of you still stop by here from time to time. December and January have been a total blur. Between working 15 hour days, the holidays, and the constant game of catch-up that seems to be my life at the moment I've had limited time and energy to do much of anything.

Perhaps the most shocking part of being unreasonably busy is that it has sucked almost every creative thought from my brain, leaving me with absolutely no desire to knit.

I have managed to accomplish a few things since the last update. Instead of trying to break everything up into a series of posts I decided it would be easier to just dump everything off the camera into one post so that I can start fresh.

November was a month of rampant startitis.

There was the Flower Basket Shawl (since frogged with plans to make some sort of lace scarf).

The Ice Cream version of a pair of Cat Bordhi's socks knit in some Vesper sock yarn that's been waiting to be called into action.

And, the Endpaper Mitts that were finished over the holidays.

These were knit using some Sweet Georgia sock yarn I had in the stash. I am still amazed by the fact that these only used about half of a 50g skein in each colour. Do you think I could get away with making a pair of Anemoi Mitts with the leftovers?

December was all about partially complete emergency gift knitting.

A Garter Stitch Scarf, made with some Berroco Ultra Alpaca for the significant other's sister.

The Mason-Dixon Washcloth from some really nice cotton for my mom who is always searching for the softest washcloth known to man.

And a pair of Broadripple Socks for my Great Aunt who taught me to knit, still not finished. I'm using some Cascade Fixation that was hand dyed by Laura Chau of Cosmicpluto Knits! love the colours but I'm still not used to knitting with the Fixation. Luckily the recipient understands the pressures of deadline knitting.

January has been a month of resolutions.

With just under a sleeve and a yoke to go, I'm nearly finished the Lucy cardigan I started sometime last year (updated pics to come). I like it but I am ready to be finished now that the end is in sight.

I finally got around to sewing the buttons I bought in October on my Tilted Duster (still no FO photos).

A close-up of the button prettiness. I think it's swell.

Happily, I managed to swatch for the Central Park Hoodie I started thinking about a ways back.

My very first Nancy Bush socks finally jumped on the needles. I love easy-peasy stripey socks. These are such a great knit that I was halfway through the heel flap of the first sock before I acknowledged that they were never going to fit me. They are headed to the frog pond for a do-over in the not-so-distant future.

And I decided to frog the Autumn Rose sleeve I plan to reknit it using a different technique to change colours since all the ends that need weaving are already getting me down.

So what's new with you?

Double Pointed

2007-11-28T13:36:00.000-05:00

The only knitting happening here is being accomplished with DPNs. I am obsessed with small projects that are knit in the round. Every pair of DPNs I own under 3.25 mm have something on the go. I'm guessing that this is the result of the more of less nomadic lifestyle that's been following me and the recent change from fall to winter temperatures.

I never actually summed up my total count for UFOctober. Suffice to say that I didn't reach my goals and that, a month later, I am still working towards finishing up a couple of them.

One of those unfinished stragglers as it were are the lovely Spiralling Coriolis socks. The first one is finished and I'm working on the gusset increases for the second. Judging from my general lack of love for the SSK, I would suspect that these will follow me home for the holidays...

These socks fit well once you finally get them on but mine are quite the struggle to pull on and off. The coriolis band really affects the stretch of the fabric and it requires a lot of maneuvering to pull it on over my heel. If you decide to give these lovelies a try I would suggest trying them on regularly to minimize disappointment.

In keeping with the unbridled startitis that has taken my stash and swift by storm (more on that later). I've already got my next socks from Cat's book picked out. I've even gopher-ed the perfect skein of self-striping yarn from the stash and wound into a tasty tasty yarn cake. The only thing keeping me from casting on is my lack of available sock needles. Although I refuse to facilitate the insanity by buying yet another set of needles, I have considered frogging other socks in progress just to steal the needles. It's crazy, I know.

To compensate, I've cast on for not two but four new projects...none of which are my obligatory gift knitting. To minimize the shock (mine not yours), I'm only introducing two of the new kids today.

First up is Norah Gaughan's, creator of the Sand Dollar Pullover, Spiral Scarf in Noro Silk Garden. This is the first and largest of 12 hexagons that will eventually turn into a finished scarf.

And then there was the knee-jerk reaction to my freezing cold office: Eunny Jang's Endpaper Mitts, knit with Sweet Georgia's amazing Superwash Sock yarn. I love these colours, even if they are similar to the ones Eunny originally chose. The first mitt is finished aside from the tubular bind-off that I have to re-try when I have a few moments in front of my computer.

The last new thing I want to mention today is the newly implemented Trim the Stash initiative here in the knitter household for the coming months. I've decided that I need to cut back on the amount of yarn that follows me home from the LYS. I love every single skein that I own and I'm tired of feeling overwhelmed with beautiful yarn that wants to become beautiful things.

I'm not interested in resolving not to buy anymore yarn for a certain period of time. Yarn and fiber inspire me and digging through the bins at my LYS is part of what I love about the process of bringing a project to life. Since I refuse to give up buying any new yarn I'm hoping to acquire less yarn than I knit up. I've gone through and cataloged all of the yarn in my stash (you can check out most of it on Ravelry if you're interested) and I'm instituting a chequebook system for stash management. Over the next year, I hope to cut the stash down by about 12%. If I knit about four balls of yarn less than I buy every month I shouldn't have any problem reaching that total.

In the interest of accountability, I have posted a current tally of my stash in the sidebar. I'm starting with 411 balls of yarn coming in at a whopping 92,953 yards and 28,977 grams of yarn (a.k.a 63 pounds). I'll update the totals whenever I use or acquire new yarny friends and you can feel free to heckle me when the numbers start getting out of hand.

Spinning content is forthcoming...as soon as I can find my camera, my wheel and some natural light in the same place at the same time.

Slack

2007-11-20T13:01:00.000-05:00

Just a quick post to let you all know that I'm still here. Life has been anything but conducive to blogging these past few weeks. Luckily, my morning commute has left plenty of knitting time.

I have so much to share with you. There's a finished Tilted Duster, about three new projects, a few more that have been picked up and dusted off from the archives, and even some spinning.

Can't wait to tell you more.

Dumb luck and snow

2007-11-07T15:40:00.000-05:00

The humid chill gripping Toronto has finally managed to produce its first few snowflakes today. In an interesting parallel, I have also managed to produce a few snowflakes of my own.

Taadaa! A finished pair of Chrissy Gardiner's Snowflake Socks, from the Fall 2007 issue of Interweave Knits. I'm pretty amazed that these actually fit since I didn't do anything *right*. There were no swatches, no modifications, and no regard for anything that might impact fit.

These have been on the needles since late August but they really didn't require much actual knitting time and the result is warm and cozy enough to get even me into the holiday spirit six weeks early (it may have something to do with those stripy bottoms).

These puppies used just over 1 skein of the sportweight Louet Gems yarn that I had lying around in the main colour and just under one skein of the contrast colour.

Strangely enough, this is the first time that I've used stash yarn for something other than its originally intended purpose and I am very pleased with my cleverness. Better yet is the fact that I seem to have found the perfect project to use up that last little bit of the red yarn.

Don't you love when things just work out like that.

Smiles all around

2007-10-30T19:55:00.000-04:00

First off, thank you for the wonderful comments on my last post. I sometimes find myself getting caught up in the product side of knitting instead of appreciating the process side that I really love. Your comments really helped remind me of that.

Secondly, something wonderful happened.

I finished the Swan Lake Stole (a.k.a Mystery Stole 3).

I love how the feathers photographed in this blocking picture. It's so amazing that the different directions of the stitches cause the yarn to look darker on one half of the feather than on the other.

Cast off last Monday. Blocked last Tuesday. Admired last Wednesday and photographed...well, photographed many days later. The shorter daylight hours and my longer work hours have combined to make it nearly impossible to get a good picture in natural light.

Pink Lemon Twist's Mystery Stole 3: Swan Lake
Yarn: JaggerSpun Zephyr Wool-Silk in Pewter
Amount: 1.2 skeins
Left over: about 504 yards
Size: Long version
Started: July 2007
Finished: October 23, 2007

As predicted, I'm loving the extra repeats of Clue 4 in the long version of the stole. The extra length has made the stole more versatile and has moved the transition point between the stole and the wing to my arm which seems more natural to me.

Finally one out of five goals accomplished for this month. If I'm lucky I might even squeeze out one more tonight or tomorrow.

Colour

2007-10-19T12:33:00.000-04:00

Twelve days from the END of October and still there is nary a FO to be seen. Mystery Stole has eaten up more time than I ever dreamt possible and it is still 50 rows short of the blocking board. To add insult to injury, it looks almost the same as it did a week ago and is thus not blog worthy.

Autumn Rose on the other hand is holding its own with one entire pattern repeat done on the first sleeve. I am in love with the transitions between colours. This picture does not do it justice (can you believe that there are 11 colours in this?!). In person, everything seems to effortlessly fade from one colour to the next.

In other colour news, I took my first ever trip to the dye pot a few weeks back and came out with this.

200 grams of a Merino Tussah blend. Dyed in bright raspberry, twiggy brown-green, and leafy green.

Mmmm...silky. I can't wait to spin this up! It is so soft and shiny and I am very happy with the colours.

I also dyed up 200 grams of this tone-on-tone turquoise merino. It was dyed using three different intensities of turquoise.

I really enjoyed spending an afternoon over the dye pots. After I see how both of these rovings spin up, I will definitely going back to see what else I can come up with.

Hope you all have a great and yarn filled weekend!

Clue 5 of 7

2007-10-12T07:56:00.000-04:00

After knitting for almost a solid week on MS3, I am finally pleased to report that I am very nearly halfway through Clue 5.

Although unblocked lace is pretty nondescript, I am attaching photos.

As mentioned in the last post, I decided to knit the long version of the stole. This will hopefully turn out to be a smart idea in the end but it was a painful two hundred some rows of cat's paw lace.

The goal for this week is to finish Clue 6. This goal is overly ambitious but I feel like it is the only way that I am going to have a hope of making it through my UFOctober list over the next 19 days. Mystery Stole is the priority since I need the needles for my November NaKniSweMo project, Eunny's Tangled Yoke Cardigan from the Fall '07 Interweave magazine (and for those who are keeping count, that will be my third project from this issue).

At least there is a method to my madness.

Wherefore art thou mojo?

2007-10-05T10:57:00.000-04:00

For the last two weeks my knitting has felt unsettled. I pick up a project, knit a few rows, put it down, start a new project, buy some yarn, pick up a second project and repeat.

It is frustrating. The Tilted Duster is five, yes FIVE, rows from being finished. Sew up two seams, slap on some buttons and voila a FO. Still, I can't bring myself to do it. Every morning as I choose my commute knitting for the day I look at it, sigh and pick up something else.

I feel overwhelmed at the number of UFOs in the metaphorical knitting basket. Some days I'm not knitting at all.

In the past week I've done a dozen rows on MS3, started a sock from Cat Bordhi's new book, picked at my first Autumn Rose sleeve, completed two rows on a scarf that I abandoned shortly after casting on last winter, knit a few rows on the second Snowflake Sock and spun an ounce or two of fleece. Looking at it now the list seems long but there is no noticeable progress on any of my projects.

To try and shake the blahs, I've decided that it is time to prioritize and set some goals for October as a way to prove to myself that I'm making some headway on the ol' WIP list. As an added incentive I've decided to join the UFOctober KAL.

So which "monkeys" will I be getting off my back?

1) Mystery Stole 3 - Swan Lake
- After realizing that my gauge was going to yield more of an oversized scarf than an actual stole, I decided to knit the long version. This has set me back roughly one hundred rows. I hope to survive Clue 4 and get this project off the needles.

2) Snowflake Socks
- I've started the second one out of habit but it needs to get done. This month is the one.

3) Tilted Duster
- So little left, I should be able to get this done in the next twenty-some days.

4) Autumn Rose
- This is a long-term project. If I knit nothing else all month, I might be able to finish it. Given the length of this list it is probably more realistic to commit to finishing both sleeves by the end of the month.

5) Spiraling Coriolis Socks
- The first one is past the heel turn, the second is conceptual at this point. I should be able to finish these off in honour of Socktober.

And there you have it, a shove out of a rut. Wish me luck.

(Happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian friends. Hopefully 9 hours on a train will provide me with some updated photos for you next week.)

Knitter Down

2007-09-23T17:26:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the lack of update. Twelve-hour workdays and a 2-day fever don't bode well for knitting and blogging. My knitting is almost exactly where it was a week ago. The Tilted Duster still has about 5 more collar rows, and some seaming to go. My first Autumn Rose sleeve is also still in the works. Despite all that, I thought I'd give you a bit of an update with promises of more to come in the next week.

After boldly jumping head first into Autumn Rose, I got scared. Terrified in fact. My self-doubt took hold and I cast the project aside for a week or two to develop some level of confidence.

I decided to tackle one last stranded warm-up before taking the metaphorical fair-isle plunge. Enter Chrissy Gardiner's Snowflake Socks, also from the new Interweave (I love this issue).

I love how this project is turning out so far. Everything is looking pretty John Dandy. The floats are nice and loose, the yarn was a stash orphan, and the ultimate gratification, they stretch enough to fit over my heel.

So on that optimistic note, I decided to pick up Autumn Rose again. So far I've made it through the first part of the first sleeve. Still a long way to go but it is beautiful and I can't wait to finish the first motif repeat.

My technique is a far cry from being perfect or even being technically correct, but I can live with it for now and I'm already seeing improvements.

Considering the time it has taken to get this far, I expect that this project is one of those long-term type things. The body is going to require some serious project monogamy.

Duster Update

2007-09-12T12:36:00.000-04:00

Today's post was supposed to be an Autumn Rose update. Sadly, there were some yarn dominance issues (I had made the wrong colour dominant) which meant that the pretty went for a little dip in the frog pond. Fret not, we've since made up and there should be some meaningful progress to show you all by the weekend.

In the meantime, I thought I'd show you how nicely the duster has grown. She has sleeves and most of a skirt, and is generally not purple (the photo here is more accurate on the colour front). If all goes as planned I should have it blocking by Saturday!

This sweater is going to be cosy and warm. After all the chilly weather we've been having, I can't wait to wear it this fall!

Now it's back to the shetland for me, I have sleeves to knit.

A gander through the WIP pile

2007-09-10T11:20:00.000-04:00

After a summer of startitis, I've been trying to get back to some projects that have been languishing. First to be moved from the WIP pile to the FO drawer are these:

My first toe-up socks, more commonly known as Ann Budd's On-Your-Toes socks from the Summer Interweave Knits.

Although tricky at first, the eastern cast-on is genius. I used right and left leaning M1s and they look exactly like a regular top-down toe. I'm still a little lukewarm on the short-row heel thing, I think that I'll tackle a reverse heel flap on my next pair.

I decided to split the skein into two balls since the Colinette Jitterbug only has about 290 yards in a skein. Since my scale is not 100% accurate, I decided to try a different technique. I put the yarn on my swift and counted how many times the yarn was looped around the skein. I then tied a piece of scrap yarn onto the swift and counted the number of times it turned as a wound the ball. About halfway I broke the yarn and started the second ball. My counting was a little off but it still worked out well enough.

In the end it wasn't necessary since I didn't even come close to running out of yarn, even with the fairly respectable length cuff I knit.

I love how these socks turned out. They're cozy and comfortable. I'm certainly not a toe-up convert but at least it's a start. Part of my glee may also be caused by the fact that I officially have one less skein of sock yarn in the stash. I've started a bit of a yarn diet. My stash has substantially outgrown its designated home and I decided it was time to trim the fat, or at least reclaim some closet space (hence the sweater fixation).

As for Autumn Rose, I am still working to get gauge. I hope to have a swatch post for you all later this week.

Give

2007-09-05T11:16:00.000-04:00

***Warning: camera happy person post.***

Another FO that, pathetically enough, was finished August 18th! I'm amazed that I haven't gotten around to posting about it until now. This sweater only took me about 2 weeks from cast-on to blocking and cleared up a whopping 800 grams of yarn out of the stash. I forgot how fast worsted yarn flies off the needles after Icarus, MS3 and months worth of socks.

I now present Rosedale United or Rosedale Redux as I call her. Redux because I completely rewrote the pattern down to a 35" bust, I modified the waist shaping, added length on the body, used a different rib stitch and learned the stretchy-est cast-on I've ever come across.

Amy Swenson’s Rosedale United (Fall 2003 Knitty) free pattern available here
Yarn: Noro Kuryeon in colour 207
Amount: 7.75 skeins
Left over: about 25 grams
Size: 36" bust measurement to fit a 35" bust.
Started: July 29, 2007
Finished: August 17, 2007

Since this sweater is knit from the bottom up in the round the cast-off edge ended up at my neck. Right about the time I finished the raglan decreases, I started to realize that the neck opening looked pretty small. Since I have been known to have difficulties fitting my hefty cranium through shirt necks, there was a small amount of panic.

Luckily, I found the stretchiest bind off I've ever seen here and the pending crisis was averted.

Since it's been a comfortable 8 months since my last attempt at any sort of tutorial, I figured I'd share the-bind-off-that-saved-the-day since someone is always looking for a stretchy (but not sloppy bind-off).

Best thing about this technique is that you don't have to worry about making your BO row stitches abnormally loose. It's already perfect, no need to compensate.

As with most bind-off techniques, you begin by knitting the first two stitches in the regular fashion.

Next, insert the left-hand needle as you would to SSK (just the K part not the SS).

Wrap the working yarn counterclockwise around the right-hand needle.

Pull the yarn through the two stitches and then drop the two stitches that have been worked off the left-hand needle.

Knit the next stitch on the left-hand needle and repeat from Step 2 until all of the stitches have been cast-off.

Break the working yarn and pull the tail through the last remaining stitch. Admire your work.

Stretch your work and notice how the bind-off does not restrict the stretch of your fabric at all.

Hopefully that is easy to understand. Thanks to a very productive and amazingly relaxing long weekend, I should have another FO for you later this week.

Not made of stone

2007-08-28T13:59:00.000-04:00

Still no FO photos of Rosedale United. They've been taken but I don't foresee a spare minute to upload them in the next few days. There's also no significant progress to report on the Duster since I have some finishing (cue ominous music) to do before I can work on it again.

So instead....I thought I'd distract you with the fact that I started Autumn Rose. Before you judge, look at this.

How could anyone resist such a beautiful pairing of colours. Alright, I have another confession. I also have the yarn for this.

It's been in the stash for the last 8 months or so. I tentatively considered swatching for Venezia one day. After casting on 3 stitches, I became paralysed with fear. Fear of the fine gauge. Fear of the pattern. And fear of fair-isle. Who was I kidding, I knew nothing about fair-isle. I've only made one measly pair of stranded mittens where the floats were, shall we say, a little snug. Snug enough that a sweater knit with that sort of float would have zero stretch and may even stand up unassisted.

Originally, the plan was that I would knit Eunny's Deep-V Argyle Vest first. The two colours, the larger needles, the lack of sleeves all made it seem like a good warm up project. After being hit by some serious yarn fumes, I ended up here.

I've rationalized ignoring Venezia starting with Autumn Rose by convincing myself that it will be easier than Venezia. It has a huge scoop neck that minimizes the need for fabric that has any sort of give, and it only has 1 steek to cut, instead of the 4 on Venezia. Hopefully you won't tell me otherwise.

Alright, I'm terrified all over again where's that Duster?

More almost sweaters

2007-08-24T09:19:00.000-04:00

I managed to finish Rosedale last weekend but haven't yet managed to get some decent pictures. I'll post a full FO report on that later this weekend. In the meantime, I decided that I wasn't ready to be finished with the (almost) instant gratification that comes from worsted weight yarn. That realization combined with Liz's comment that Autumn Rose would be one of those commitment type projects led to this.

That blob of stockinette is Norah Gaughan's Tilted Duster from the newest Interweave Knits.

I started this puppy last Saturday night, got perfect row and stitch gauge on my first shot and lunged forward from there. Look at it now.

I've managed to make my way through the body and most of both sleeves. Only a collar and skirt to go!

I *heart* 6.00 mm needles.

Blur

2007-08-17T08:04:00.000-04:00

My oh my, where has the time gone?!? And how is it August 17? Am I missing something here...

This week was Stitch n' Pitch. It was a blast! A surprising conclusion given my general avoidance of anything that involves sitting for more than three hours. The other half came along and brought (get this) HIS knitting. I have a couple of photos but they'll have to come off the camera later.

There's also a new sweater. Although this may look like just another Rosedale United, it has undergone significant modifications. I've sized it down from a 38" to a 36", changed the ribbing, went a little free form with the striping and sort of made up my own sleeves. This is basically the only project I've been knitting on the past two weeks. I thought I would have it done by now but as you can see the yoke is not quite up to snuff.

The colourway was a daring choice for me (the above photo is pretty disappointing when it comes to colour accuracy - my camera seems to have a conniption every time it sees red). I'm not generally known as a yellow, orange, green kind of gal and although I'm wavering a little now, I think I'll like the finished sweater.

And Nicole nominated me for a Rockin' Girl Blogger award (started by Roberta Ferguson). So the deal is that you; 1) give her credit, 2) put up the badge and 3) add 5 other rockin' girl bloggers to the list. Thanks Nicole!

Here is my list of nominees.

1) Liz, who always has amazing projects to show off.
2) Linz, who discusses interesting things.
3) Susan, who has a way with words.
4) Sian, who always has a new post to read.
5) Elaine, who just finished a gorgeous Icarus.

In a moment of weakness I bought this kit (scroll down). So what do you think, should I go for it after this current sweater is off the needles or should I cop out and start Norah Gaughan's Tilted Duster from the cover of the new Interweave (also exciting)?

Oh, and I FINALLY fixed the broken link from my last post, now you can go inspect that seam if you wish. Thanks for all your wonderful comments on my sweater.

Let's just say it's been a busy week.

Trust Norah

2007-08-08T19:42:00.000-04:00

Remember this? Well after three months of finishing avoidance and a weekend of actual finishing it now looks like this:

Taadaa...she's done, finished, finito. It's almost like magic, all 8 pieces, 11 seams and 37 woven ends have come together to push my Sand Dollar Pullover firmly into the FO pile.

Looking at the pretty now, it's hard to believe that I ever had doubts about how everything would come together. Suffice to say that I'd just finished reading Knitting in Plain English and in the heavily stylized photo in Knitting Nature the model was slouched on a tree branch. The sleeves were waaay too short for her and her stomach was still showing despite the fact that her skirt was hiked-up high above her waist.

This initial concern wasn't helped by my shoddy gauge swatch. Yeah I swatched, but since I didn't want a mega-low-cut, high-riding sweater with 5" of ease I wasn't too concerned about completely missing gauge (plus gauge swatches lie, right?). I was ready to accept horrible failure and call it a process knit if need be.

Then there were the pieces, so many pieces, none of which were even close to the measurements in the schematics. There was no way that they were all going to fit together and still make a sweater.

I was wrong, Norah Gaughan was right. She's a genius, I will never second guess her ever again! Her pattern makes a gorgeous sweater despite the million ways that it could have all ended with tears.

See how pretty it is? Look at this center medallion! I am smitten with the construction of this sweater, Norah's use of bias makes the whole thing so darn flattering.

I used exactly 4 skeins of Posh Yarn's Victoria in the lagoon colourway. It's a gorgeous cashmere, cotton, silk blend. So soft and it has excellent stitch definition, and a fabulous drape. I knit the smallest size (40" bust), but thanks to the artistic license I took with my gauge it ended up being more like a 34" bust. I started it in September 2006 and finished it today!!

And here's my very first set-in sleeve. I'm pretty proud of my seaming skills on this. I had no idea what I was doing but thanks to Norah and her amazing design it looks flawless.

And lastly what you all really care about, what it looks like when you wear it... ;-) (click to big-ify).

Thoughts

2007-08-05T01:51:00.000-04:00

It has been awhile now hasn't it? I've been constantly torn between knitting and blogging lately. I hate not blogging but have little to say without the knitting. Needless to say I've had to be selective with use of my limited free time. Although there's some "bad blogger" guilt, there's also been lots of knitting and that makes up for everything, right?

First up there's MS3:

I've managed to get through the first half of Clue 4. I love the stole. The design is beautiful, challenging, and interesting. As I pour endless hours of precious knitting time into this project I become less able to sit back and enjoy it as I once did. While considering the rationale behind this sentiment, I realized that boredom and distraction weren't at issue but that I missed engaging with the creative process instrumental to my knitting.

How is MS3 different from following any other pattern? Well, the mystery factor meant that I put all of my faith in Melanie and followed her suggestions. I used the suggested yarn, in one of the two suggested shades, and have refused to even consider any changes to the pattern since they would be decisions based on what I view as inadequate information. That is not to say I'll never finish, but that it is firmly seated on the back burner for the next little while.

I don't regret deciding to sign up since it's taught me that what I love most about knitting is making decisions and seeing how those decisions affect the finished product and make it into something of my very own. I am firmly of the belief that Melanie is a genius disguised as a wonderful, and generous person for both having developed and administered this massive undertaking in such an effective and gracious manner.

To counteract the blasé I am knitting this, completely resizing it and changing parts of the silhouette. It excites me to no end (pictures to come).

If you are looking for some more reading I found this post to be very interesting. It is an excellent reflection on some common perceptions of knitters. The whole issue of when it is socially acceptable to knit in public is something that I've often grappled with. I agree with Linz when she says that often times people look at knitters who are knitting while engaging with their external environment as either rude or inconsiderate. I don't have an answer but really enjoyed tossing it around in my head for a day or two. Hopefully you might as well.

More knitting updates soon!

Icarus!

2007-07-26T23:13:00.000-04:00

Finally, some decent FO photos (except for the background scenery of course). It's been impossible finding time for daytime photos.

Surprisingly enough, I am getting tons of wear out of this shawl (much more than I had originally thought). The silk makes it both lightweight and very warm for the chilly evenings we've been having as of late. As previously mentioned a few dozen times, I'm in love with this shawl. A 100% satisfaction FO.

Project Specs: Icarus
Yarn: Handmaiden Lace Silk in Bronze
Amount: 1 hank
Left over: 125 yards
Needles: 3.25 mm circs
Completed: July 10 2007
Modifications: None

Aside from plotting Icarus photo-ops, I've also been drooling over the Fall 2007 Interweave knits preview, and made some progress on both MS3 and the toe-up sock. Photos of those to come.

Chain reaction

2007-07-19T12:46:00.000-04:00

Here we have...a finished Icarus blocking on the bed (better photos to come this weekend). I bought some blocking wires for the occasion. Although they were a little awkward at first (sticky wet silk and all), they ended up doing a fantastic job of the shawl.

See what I mean. Look at this edging! I'm obsessed. Icarus has definitely exceeded my expectations. I love when that happens. The colour in this picture is more accurate than in the previous one.

And here's what's been keeping me from progressing on MS3 (still only about 2 rows into the third clue). Meet my very first toe-up sock. It's Ann Budd's on-you-toes sock from the summer Interweave. I have no idea what possessed me to start this little guy. I just reached into the stash Friday morning on my way to work, found some Jitterbug and threw the mag into my bag for the commute.

That tricky European cast-on took me more than a few tries, but it was worth in the end. I made a few changes to it, namely I alternated right and left leaning M1s to keep things symmetrical and got rid of the first knit round on the toe since I felt it looked too pointy. Here's where things were Friday evening.

And Saturday afternoon.

Sunday evening.

And lastly, a sad, neglected MS3 just before I finished off the second clue. I've just picked it up again, so hopefully I'll make it through Clue 3 sometime next week. I love the mystery thing but I'm still not sure how I feel about the summer-long project monogamy that comes with it.

I also made my way back to the wheel this weekend, hopefully by the end of next week I'll finally finish the seaside singles I've been working on so I can start plying. Fine spinning is fun but slow...

Eight things

2007-07-15T01:36:00.000-04:00

Wow, I managed to make it through my first week as an paid labourer. Hopefully this having a regular job thing will mean that I can settle into a better routine on the blogging front.

Since Sian has tagged me to list off eight random things about myself, I suppose I'll start with that.

1) I am an only child. That meant that as a youngster, I would play board games with myself. Sounds sad but I had fun with it at the time.

2) I only eat one type of food at a time. This is such an extreme subconscious urge that when eating trail mix or another sort of mixed food, I'll eat all of the raisins first, then all of the sunflower seeds, etc until I make it through my portion. As a child, I would eat plain spaghetti and then plain sauce on the side. Even now, unless I force myself to move around the plate a little, I won't do it.

3) I love getting mail. The love extends to all mail that is addressed to me. Even bills make me smile when I open up the mailbox and find them sitting there.

4) When I have something to do that is hanging over like a text book that needs to be read, I'll physically carry it with me at all times. This is true even if I know that I won't have a chance to open it up. It makes me feel better about avoiding it somehow. Case in point. I brought along a business law text to my first date with the other half (he still teases me).

5) I don't really believe in mementos or keeping things that remind me of the past. I don't attach memories to things and generally see the objects that most people treasure as clutter. I was happy to pass off my baby blanket to a younger cousin when the time came.

6) I have an easier time finding things if my house is a disaster than if everything is neatly put away. I can look at a messy floor and point to the piles that things live in. When everything is in it's rightful and logical place I have no idea where to start looking. Since I try to keep a clean house, this is sometimes a problem.

7) Since I refuse to wear a watch and I am terrible at estimating how long it will take me to get somewhere or do something, I am almost always late. In order to compensate I have set every clock in my house to different times so I never really know what time it is. One is over 30 minutes fast and others are only five. This strategy is also less than perfect since I am still late (I've recently started leaving myself ridiculous amounts of time to do things and that has helped).

8) I love alone time. Although I also love spending time with other people, I get really excited when I know that I get an evening to stay at home alone and just be, ya know?

How did the goals from last weekend pan out? Pretty well in fact. Icarus is finished (FO photos to come when I find someone to take some nice ones) and the mystery stole is comfortably through Clue 2 (I'm ignoring the fact that Clue 3 was posted Friday). I'll post an update on that later this week. I've also started yet another pair of socks. I know there are already two other pairs on the go but I promise these ones are different.

The Promise of a Weekend

2007-07-06T11:32:00.000-04:00

Things have been unbelievably busy these last few weeks. I've been completing my professional responsibility course. This being the last hoop we have to jump through before the law society trusts us in the real world.

I'm away for the weekend again and on Monday, I start working and officially give up my student status for the first time in my life. A little scary, no?

On the knitting front, I've been slowly plugging away at the thousands of projects (or maybe more like 4) currently on the needles with no real progress to show. Icarus still has another 10 rows to go until she's finished. It WILL get done this weekend while at the cottage (don't laugh).

Way back in the day, I got sucked into the Mystery Stole 3 vortex after reading this on Nicole's blog. Since the start date was looming I went out to buy some suitable yarn last week. Don't look at me like that, there was nothing that would work in the stash. I swear.

Zephyr wool/silk in a colour called Pewter. I love that it's neither grey nor white.

Here's what I've managed to finish so far. Hopefully I'll also get caught up over the weekend since I'm only halfway through Clue 1 and Clue 2 was posted this morning.

So far I sort of like not knowing what the finished product will look like exactly. I also love the pressure of having to keep up with the clues. This should force me to get my act together.

Does anyone else have a series of unrealistic goals to be met this weekend? I can't help but feel that weekends are a type of magical time-warp where I will finally get caught up with everything (you can laugh at this one...I'm laughing too.)

Always

2007-06-30T09:57:00.000-04:00

A beautiful sky.

A finished pair of socks.

And a new sock on the go.

Wishing all my Canadian friends a happy long weekend.

New Ground

2007-06-25T21:35:00.002-04:00

Boy do I ever feel out of touch with the blogging world! Things have been very busy this past week and a half. Between family, convocation, the bar admissions course, and a weekend away I haven't had any spare time.

There has been some progress on the fiber front but I warn you it's limited. Up first there is a convocation gift from my grandmother...a washed fleece.

I'm not exactly sure how much this puppy weighs but it seems to be a reasonable size (read: it isn't overwhelmingly large). Also included in the photo are some lovely student handcarders I purchased for the occasion.

Here's what my first carding attempt looks like.

Has anyone done any carding before? If so, do these rolags look like something I might be able to spin at some point? This whole process is a bit of a mystery to me.

I also started swatching for Stephanie Japel's Cable-Down Raglan, featured in the Spring '07 Interweave mag. The yarn is from Oceanwind Knits. I love the way the colour varies from a baby blue to a deep ocean blue.

Before you judge me too harshly for starting something new while neglecting all of the other lovely projects in my knitting basket look at these.

They're progressing, I swear! I still have a bunch of foot left to knit but I have high hopes that these socks will come off the needles later this week with Icarus to follow shortly thereafter.

Pretty

2007-06-15T09:42:00.000-04:00

The family arrived yesterday to attend my convocation (later this afternoon). When my mother showed up, she brought me a parcel that I've been eagerly anticipating. It's the prize Nicole sent me from her Birthday Blog Bash, and can I just say yum, yum, yum!

I am in love with those stitch markers! They are delicate and beautiful. The yarn is KnitPicks sock yarn in a colourway called Cape Cod. It's so smooshy and colours are lovely together, I can't help but bury my face in it every now and then. The other half agrees since he's already decided that the yarn is destined to become "socks he can wear to work". Thank you Nicole, I am touched by your generosity.

In other knitting news, these last few days have also seen the end of Chart 3 on the Icarus front. The calculator says that I'm 77.7% of the way through this beast. The rows are starting to drag a little so it will likely be a few more weeks until this beauty comes off the needles.

On the (neglected) spinning front, the wheel and I have made up after a long hiatus. This is the (almost-full) first of two bobbins of singles. I can't decide if I should ply this bobbin now or spin up the second bobbin of singles first. I'm really excited to see the end result, but am also afraid that I won't be able to keep things consistent if I stop now.

Lucy is also progressing. Part of me is starting to worry that I'll run out of yarn since my row gauge is slightly off. To compensate, I've irrationally starting knitting one of the sleeves to get a better sense of how much yarn those will eat up.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Diamonds

2007-06-12T21:35:00.000-04:00

Boy are these little diamonds ever addictive! The pattern is pretty and very easy to memorize. I'm loving the worsted weight yarn and the lack of YOs. It's nice to have something completely different from Icarus for a little while.

Hopefully I'll make it through the rest of the body later this week so I can get a move on the sleeves. For now, however, I'm off to rekindle a relationship with my neglected wheel.

Weekend Away

2007-06-11T15:00:00.000-04:00

Last Friday I managed to finish Chart 1 of Icarus while being stranded on a runway for a number of hours waiting for the torrential downpour to stop. That's right, all 178 rows of that puppy are but a distant memory. Can you tell that I'm excited?

Once I finally managed to make it back from a whirlwind one-day trip home, it was time to repack my bags and spend a weekend vineyard hopping, knitting and relaxing before starting the Law Society's version of summer school today.

All of this dedicated knitting time ensured that progress on Icarus continued at breakneck speeds. This is what she looks like after you make it through Chart 2.

My sheer glee at having accomplished the knitting equivalent of a few hours on the treadmill, combined with the lovely result had me a little photo happy. I began taking pictures of Chart 2 as it admired the gorgeous weather.

And, as it contemplated the view of the lake and trees of Toronto's downtown.

I also made some progress on Lucy but since Chart 3 is inching along, you'll have to wait until tomorrow for that.

The new Knitty is up and as always, it's well worth the click.

Ravelry

2007-06-07T23:37:00.000-04:00

I just got my invitation to join Ravelry. Although I haven't had too much time to browse the site and start posting stuff, I did do a little poking around. It looks fantastic! What a great way to connect knitters. I'm looking forward to having a bit more time to play with it now that that wretched exam is finished.

Details on Icarus and Lucy tomorrow. Bedtime now, I have an early flight tomorrow morning.

Blobfest

2007-06-06T12:29:00.000-04:00

Surprise, surprise the blob is growing. One (and a bit) more chart done, and another one and (just under) a half repeats to go before I can move on to chart two.

As I'm sure you know, I love, love, love the colours in this yarn. The above colours are not entirely true. In actuality the colour shifts are a little more subtle since the lighter tones are richer than I can capture with the camera.

Every now and then as things start to pool here and there, I start to worry that once everything has been blocked the colours will fight against the lace pattern too much and obscure the elegant details of Miriam's beautiful design. Any thoughts?

Although it's been all Icarus all the time over here for the last week or so, I haven't yet turned into a project monogamist. Meet my Lucy in the Sky Cardigan. I started this beaut waaay back in early March. After some minor gauge issues, I decided that it was best to shove this on the backburner until the exam chaos had passed.

I really haven't touched this project at all since then, and am very much looking forward to something other than lace after I write on Thursday.

And lastly, here's a requisite photo of the pooch who is infatuated with his new toy. It has these octopus-type tails on it that he loves to shake by tossing his head around so that they slap him in the face. It amuses me to no end.

28.2%

2007-06-05T10:44:00.000-04:00

After a long day of knitting I managed to make it through another repeat and a half of chart one. This puts the count at roughly 28.2% of the way through this bad boy according to the shawl progress calculator over at Rose-Kim knits.

The rows are definitely getting longer. The good news is that the pattern has become totally mindless, making it possible to take it everywhere and maximize my daily knitting time. It's shocking how obsessed I've become with getting through the first chart. The thought of having to look at a new part of the pattern is making me giddy with anticipation.

Hopefully today I can either put this down, or learn how to read corporate tax law while counting to 7. T-minus 2 days on the exam front...eep!

k2 tog, yo, k1...

2007-06-04T11:45:00.000-04:00

I managed to make it through the second Chart 1 repeat this weekend despite there not being much time for knitting. There's been some light colour pooling every now and then but I really like the texture that it gives to the piece. I've never knit with pure silk before and am loving the feel of it as it runs through my fingers.

When I first decided to do Project Spectrum, I wasn't sure that I would be able to come up with anything "metallic" for this month's colour triad. The colour, sheen, and drape of this yarn manages to be an aging bronze without becoming the tinny gold metallic I was envisioning for this colour set.

I'm hoping to finish one pattern repeat per day. This might be a tad unrealistic since my final licensing exam is on Thursday. After that, it's just a hop, skip and month of summer school until I can finally make the jump from law student to student-at-law.

Icarus, meet world

2007-06-01T20:36:00.000-04:00

Many weeks ago I became obsessed with some HandMaiden Lace Silk in the Bronze colourway while at the Downtown Knit Collective's Knitter's Frolic here in Toronto. As previously mentioned, I try minimize the small apartment clutter by not buying yarn just because it makes me a little weak in the knees.

The natural coping mechanism that has evolved out of this self-imposed limit has been to create loose justifications for my purchases. Since I had to make something with this yarn (especially since this colourway has been on the radar for the last year or so) I tried to come up with a lace weight pattern that might work well with a variegated yarn.

Enter Icarus, a pattern that I always loved but never thought I'd actually make, not being the shawl type and all (if there is such a thing). In case I still wasn't convinces, there just happened to be a copy of the Summer '06 Interweave mag to my immediate left in which to check the yarn requirements. Suffice to say I caved. But really, can you blame me? Just look at this yarn...

I tried to ignore its silky goodness for about two weeks while I worked to get a few projects off the needles. Eventually I broke and wound it into a ball, just to take the edge off a little.

After a day or so I decided to knit a few rows to see how it would work up. Just an innocent little swatch. Luckily before the whole thing could devolve into a full blown obsession, I took up residence in a nearby library while studying for my bar admissions exams (creating some much needed distance from the whole thing.)

I can hardly put it down since making through the first pattern repeat yesterday. Expect that this lovely will progress quickly.

A few stitches short...

2007-05-31T20:55:00.000-04:00

Success! The cable has been found and the camera is cooperating once again. So here she is, the first of the Central Air socks from one of last year's Rockin' Sock Club kits (eep, and to think I still have two and a half pairs to go, clearly it'll be a while until I get to the new ones).

The fine ladies at Blue Moon sent me the yarn after my July club kit was lost then delayed. They also sent out an extra pattern in their September kit and I decided that the two would work nicely together. Many months later this is the result.

This sock turned into a bit of a knitting black hole just before the end of the leg and at some point during the foot. I knit, and knit, and knit and never gained any length. In the end it seems that I got a little carried away and it ended up being a smidge too big. Not enough that it's worth ripping out, but enough that I'll try and be more cautious with the next one.

I managed to start the second sock but let me tell you, it was tough, requiring much more will power than your average sock. I waited a very precarious three days before picking up the needles again. Perhaps I've contracted a mild case of SSS.

As much as I adore these socks, it's more than likely that they'll move to the back burner while I let Icarus rule my life for the time being. See what I mean about the startitis?

All things pink

2007-05-30T17:30:00.000-04:00

Last Friday I decided to take some much needed time off from studying to attend the Yarn Harlot's Canadian book launch. In the sheer excitement of it all I completely forgot to take any pictures. Luckily, others were in better control of their faculties. The event was amazing! It was so nice to finally hear one of Stephanie's talks after having watched her blog about them these last few years.

While there, I did manage to finish the first of the Central Air socks (despite the clear ineptitude at simultaneously juggling a camera, knitting, and being awestruck by the knitter invasion). The photographic evidence of which is being held hostage by the camera until I can find it's friend, the USB cable. In the meantime, I've decided to distract you with the above. Better known as the fruits of my foray into the April/May Project Spectrum colour triad.

In making this collage, it became clear how pink-heavy things have been over here these past two months. I seem to collect yarn in colour waves. For a few months I'll find myself buying all pink yarns, then I'll move to all green or all blue yarns for a while. Most of the yarns that I've been mentioning lately came from a bit of a pink "slip and fall" I had last summer. It seems that the attraction to different colours at different times often mirrors my moods. It's an interesting way to be able to reflect and immortalize (through yarn) my differing emotional state.

Now that the first of my licencing examinations has passed, there's been a wicked case of startitis that has been spreading through the stash. There are about five active projects on the needles, all of which were started in the last month or so. Socks, tank tops, sweaters, and a burning desire to cast on for about 20 more. I'll introduce you to those once negotiations with the camera get underway.

Random Order

2007-05-23T23:32:00.000-04:00

I have exactly six days before my licensing exams begin. Suffice to say that there are many learning objectives that have yet to be met. As my stress level slowly mounts and my available knitting/spinning time continues to dwindle, I find myself seeking some form of fibery life balance (try explaining that to a non-knitter).

Enter a relatively new niddy noddy and our heroine quickly finds herself measuring, re-skeining and tagging much of the leftover yarn in her stash.

I'm not sure what was more therapeutic: the tactile experience of manipulating the yarn, squishing and sniffing each new hank after it came off the niddy noddy; or the flexing of a metaphoric organizational control muscle with each "changed" bit of yarn as it was systematically classified and labelled.

Although I'm very diligent in all of the "mandatory" areas of my life, I'm not a colour coded sock drawer or labelled spice rack kind of gal. To be perfectly honest, about half the socks in my sock drawer are not even folded into pairs. I love frantically digging around every morning while trying to find two that match. It's refreshing to have some of the more insignificant aspects of my life be a little less regimented. It's almost like my own private social rebellion.

This quirk is what makes my organizational response to stress especially disorienting. I have no idea why a quick cupboard reorganization makes me feel like anything is possible.

On the knitting front, I managed to finish this while spending 8-hours in an under ventilated room listening to people with three years of legal education ask "What is probation?"

Project Specs: Fancy Fisherman's Cap (my own pattern)
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Swirl Chunky in Vera
Amount: 1 hank
Left over: About half
Needles: US 11 Circs

I saw a picture of a similar cap in a fashion magazine way back in October and finally decided to try a little intuitive knitting with some yarn I had marinating in the stash. While cruising around the Internet today I found a free pattern that is very similar to what I did here (it's called "The Republic" on the right-hand side if you scroll down). My version uses fewer stitches around, fewer garter stitch rows and less length before starting the crown decreases (although I didn't actually take any notes - bad habit, I know).

I also managed to find this absolutely perfect button at my LYS. Here's a close-up to capture my enthusiasm.

As per your wonderful feedback on the silk tank, I have decided to go ahead with the v-neck once I get a chance to work through the necessary math. The first sock-in-a-day sock is nearing completion as it patiently waits for a toe (scheduled for tomorrow when I bring it to part 3 of 8 of "When bad air circulation happens to good people" a.k.a. the licensing exam prep course I'm taking).

I can't wait to survive these exams and get back to knitting. I have so many great ideas running around my head that I can't wait to share!

Cold Foot

2007-05-16T16:14:00.000-04:00

Without further ado, here's how much sock knitting a girl can get done in one day while studying, flying, and unpacking.

Enough to make her proud but still leave her with some cold toes.

I'm hoping that I'll be able to get this sock finished before the end of the week so I can get started on its mate. The ultimate goal being to reduce the unwieldy collection of unused sock yarn in the stash (the opposite of what has actually been happening since my last update).

I'm thinking that I might commit to finishing two pairs of socks per month. This works out to one sock per week. It's feasible but a little ambitious considering I keep getting distracted by things like this (a.k.a. my first real attempt at designing anything from scratch).

Ignoring the polar bear pyjama pants, this charming tube is aspiring to become a airy tank top of some description to be used for summer layering (obviously to be worn with actual pants). I've already frogged the armholes about three times and have revised the original fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants design strategy as a result.

The original plan was to do a simple boat neck that would allow the silk to drape a little and add interest to the neck. Looking at this picture though, I'm tempted to plan in a V-neck instead. Any thoughts?

And on an unrelated note, I thought that I'd share some beautiful flowers that my mom sent to congratulate me for finding my first career-type job.

They definitely help brighten the otherwise dreary weather we've been having as of late and remind me that summer's just around the corner.

Ripples n' ribs

2007-05-13T14:54:00.001-04:00

The last week and a bit has once again been a little iffy 'round the edges. Now that school's finished I've attempted to throw myself head-first into studying for the bar admissions exams I have to write in the next couple of weeks. This has meant daily 6-8 hour study sessions and little meaningful knitting time.

The few stolen moments I have managed to find led to this:

Project Specs: Kat Coyle’s Wave Skirt (Spring 2005 IK)
Yarn: Cotton Fleece in various colours (I’ll check if you’re interested)
Amount: 2 MC, and 4 CC skeins
Left over: Almost no MC but heaps of CC
Modifications: None

I've also managed to convince myself that I should join Liz's Sock in a Day Challenge (which you may still be able to sign up for if you email her and ask nicely). My chosen day is today. Here's how far I was when waiting for my luggage at the airport earlier this morning.

Although progress has been made, I think that it's safe to say that I will not finish this sock today. Luckily, the rules mention that I have up to 18 hours to finish the pretty. Here's a close-up of the lacy rib pattern stitch that I'm going to blame for slowing me down.

Wish me luck, or speed!

Sweater, what sweater?

2007-05-01T18:00:00.000-04:00

Things have been very busy these past few days. I finished my last exam Wednesday morning, and have been trying to reconnect with neglected friends and get some knitting done before I had to start studying for the upcoming bar admissions exams.

With the help of my new favourite knitting gadget I managed to finish these while at the DKC's Knitter's Frolic (which was a blast if you ever get the chance to go).

Project Specs: Plain Ol' Socks (my own pattern)
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Lightweight Socks that Rock in Jewel of the Nile
Amount: 1 hank
Left over: 25 yards
Needles: 2.25 mm DPNs
Completed: May 1 2007
Modifications: Twisted rib cuff and eye of partridge heel

And one more pic because it amuses me greatly that the dog, who ignored me all day, wouldn't leave me alone once the camera came out (and somehow ended up in every pic that I took as a result).

Here's what else has been on the needles.

Any guesses? Details next time.

Sock Pirates Ahoy - Spoil(er)s Ahead

2007-04-24T15:24:00.001-04:00

Lookie here what landed on my doorstep this afternoon.

A parcel from Blue Moon, with the latest Rockin' Sock Club shipment. If you're desperate for spoilers click on the picture of the parcel or go here since I can't figure out how put a jump cut in this post (I'll move the photos back over here in a couple of weeks).

The yarn is amazing! Easily the best club kit ever. I can't wait to start working on these tomorrow!

P is for procrastination, plain, and pieces

2007-04-24T11:35:00.000-04:00

What have I been up to the last few days? Well, I haven't been working on the 120-page summary that I need to pass the 100% final I have tomorrow, but I do have a spiffy sock to show.

After having made it through the first sock and a bit, I am still wavering between loving them and being a little meh about them. Despite my ambivalence, I'm enjoying how quickly these are coming along and am more amused than I should be by the way that the yarn is pooling at different points along the way.

I tried to fancy them up a bit by deviating from my usual recipe and adding a 1x1 twisted rib cuff and an eye of partridge heel flap (in case you're wondering why the cuff is biasing). The yarn is Lightweight STR in a colourway called Jewel of the Nile (the above photo being a pretty accurate representation of the colour).

Progress on the Sand Dollar Pullover has been slow. Here's a photo of all of its parts, with the front pieces laid out to illustrate how they're supposed to come together.

Everything has been blocked and the seaming has begun (meaning that of the 11 seams that must be sewn, one has been finished and one has been pinned). I'm still a little worried that things are not going to fit together quite like they're supposed to, despite my careful measuring.

This is a closeup of the seam that has been finished (click to big-ify). Although it looks a little lumpy (nothing a good blocking won't fix), I'm pleased with the result.

Now to make friends with the Canadian Income Tax Act and finish studying for my last law school exam, and possibly my last academic exam ever.

Reckoning

2007-04-20T14:05:00.000-04:00

I don't like to think of myself as a yarn hoarder. A yarn aficionado, yes. One that is appreciative of all things woolly, yes. A hoarder, never!

That is why, during a fit of reorganization I found this to be especially troubling.

That is enough sock yarn to knit 34! pairs of socks. Sadly (or happily depending on how you see these things) this doesn't include the 4 skeins currently winging their way to me. This combined set of factors was enough to convince me it was time to consider picking up these again.

This sock is in its sixth incarnation. It started off as a plain toe-up. It then found life as a top-down jaywalker, which was later ripped to make way for a larger jaywalker. After some serious pooling, it became a sock of my own design. Problems with the design led to a sock with a clock/cable motif down the side and now it's been ripped back to once again become a plain old sock. The picture above is one taken during life #5, the clock phase, and thus is a little outdated.

I'm still not loving the plain sock but I've decided there's no fighting the yarn on this one. It if wants to be a plain sock, then and a plain sock it'll be.

Also, I've finished knitting and blocking all the pieces for the sand dollar pullover. More on that next time.

A sweater is born

2007-04-14T22:26:00.000-04:00

No time to chat, but a few photos of the latest bit of knitted comfort (please excuse the self-portrait charm of these puppies). I present: the oft-resented, now loved new sweater.

Project Specs: Under the Hoodie (Stitch n' Bitch )
Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted Merino in Geranio, Lettuce, and Cuarzo
Amount: 6 hanks of Geranio, 1 of Lettuce, and 1 of Cuarzo
Left over: enough to make about three hats worth (one in each colour)
Needles: US 7 straight and US 9 circ
Size: Small (36") to fit a 36" bust
Started: November 2005
Completed: April 2007
Modifications: I added some length to the body and sleeves. The rest follows the pattern pretty closely.

After a few wears, this sweater has proven to be a cosy (read: warm and distractingly soft) spring chill chaser. I was a little unsure about the colours at first, but now that it's finished I find them cheery and not at all overwhelming as I initially feared (I expect that the amount of excess fuchsia dye that bled from the MC is to blame for that concern). I'll admit that while tackling this project, I also had reservations about Malabrigo's tendency to pill. They remain unfounded since the sweater is holding up much better than expected (perhaps it's the tight gauge).

Time to throw myself back into the isolation cave (a.k.a. my apartment), where I will lead a sheltered and knit-free existence until I survive my first set of exams.

Have I mentioned...

2007-04-09T16:04:00.000-04:00

I despise finishing. It takes the courage of 1,000 strong-willed knitters to force me to tackle any kind of finishing. I've always found this to be an odd personality trait given my general elation with both the finished product and the shorter to-do list.

Exhibit A: The malabrigo sweater

Nothing has better demonstrated my completion aversion than the malabrigo sweater.

The yarn for this project followed me home in November of 2005 as a birthday gift from my mother. I cast on immediately and didn't put it down until I had the whole sweater knit about 6 weeks later. After this initial affair, the whole thing was shoved into a dark corner of the stash for another 8 months (putting us comfortably in the month of August, for those that are keeping track). After a half-hearted attempt at setting the sleeves, it was again forgotten. Spurred on by the cool weather in late October, I struggled through half of the finishing then gave up until just now.

Spurred on by this month's project spectrum colours, I finally locked myself into a distraction-free zone and forced my way through the seaming last night (over a year after completing the knitting). Now there are ends to weave in and I feel my interest waning once again.

Exhibit B: The books

The additional evidence suggests that my aversion to finishing isn't knitting specific. It also taints my legal studies.

I am fortunate enough to be in the final semester of a twenty-year education. One would think that after a particularly gruelling three-year stint in law school, I would be raring to finish my studying and move on with my life. The pristine, above-pictured books suggest otherwise.

For better or for worse, one more week and I'll be through the worst of both.

Send strength.

Mail Call

2007-04-03T10:06:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to post this yarn for the last week and a half or so. It is the latest Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club shipment (there are still twenty spots left if you want to join). The colour is called Monsoon and comes with a really interesting reversible sock pattern.

Here's a better picture of the hank's colours that should give you an idea of how they'll blend together.

This is definitely not a colour that I would have chosen, but it's really starting to grow on me. I love the leafy green and muddy brown tones. It makes me want to grab a pair of rubber boots and go puddle jumping like I did as a child.

I'm hoping that I'll get moving on these socks in the next couple of weeks. It is unlikely since I already have a couple of pairs on the needles and am feeling compelled to finish at least one of those first.

Reflection

2007-04-02T21:58:00.000-04:00

A quick photo essay of my February and March Project Spectrum projects.

Stay tuned for all that is planned for April and May's colours: green, yellow, and pink.

Spin City

2007-03-31T14:36:00.000-04:00

Remember these rovings?

I've finally figured out what I'm going to do with the one of the left-hand side. It is a Lorna's Laces roving in the Seaside colourway. After seeing this waaaay back, I decided that this roving would be perfect stranded together with another merino/silk roving that still needs to be spun.

Here's what I've managed to accomplish so far on this project. Needless to say this is a long-term/post-exams sort of project.

Once this bobbin is full, I plan to Navajo ply it to shorten the colour changes and then get started on a second bobbin of singles.

First

2007-03-30T08:38:00.000-04:00

My very first fair-isle. It's a little bumpy, and doesn't have much give but it's mine and I love it! Here's a photo of the first mitt in progress.

I've been drooling over Eunny's Venezia pullover from the Winter issue of Interweave Knits since she gave us the first sneak peak on her blog.

Seeing as how I still haven't finished a sweater project (details on why to come), have never done stranded colour-work, and start to hyperventilate when a pattern calls for little needles (except socks) it was clear that a warm-up project was in order. These mitts were perfect since they are small (both in size and in yarn investment), require fair-isle, and use Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift (the same yarn called for in Venezia).

Here is the front just short of the halfway mark.

And the finished product, nicely posed with a napping dog (click for larger):

Project Specs: Norwegian Mittens
Yarn: Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift in Nighthawk and Granite

Amount: 1 skein in each colour

Left over: a wee bit of each colour
Needles: US 3 DPNs
Size: To fit a woman's hand
Started: February 2007
Completed: March 2007

The yarn seemed a little scratchy after being knit up but blocking has turned it into a soft and uniform fabric. I didn't make any modifications to the pattern but next time I knit these I will be sure to make the thumb a few rows longer for a better fit.

I've also been working on some spinning that is moving slowly. Details tomorrow

A Hint of Spring

2007-03-26T20:30:00.000-04:00

The weather here was gorgeous today. Everywhere you looked, jackets were undone, hats and mittens were discarded, and winter boots were replaced with summer shoes. In some ways it makes me sad to see winter go and with it the sheepy goodness of warm woolly layers and the beauty of fresh snow. On the other hand the warmer weather means balmy afternoons on patios, summer cottons and silks, and the start of Toronto's best outdoor festivals.

The change in the weather has also inspired me to pick up a project that was cast aside when the cold took over the city back in November. This is the beginning of the Sand Dollar Pullover from Norah Gaughan's amazingly inspiring book, Knitting Nature.

This is my first project from the book, but I have the yarn for at least three others when I finally get around to working on them.

I'm using Posh Yarn's Victoria which is a cotton/silk/cashmere blend in a colour called Lagoon (and is pretty accurate in the photo below). It is a bit splitty but is a dream to work with and blocks beautifully.

So far, I've made it through all of the pieces for the front and back, and am now working to finish the sleeves so I can block all the pieces and start seaming it up. I'm hoping to finish the sleeves in the next couple of weeks so I can get some wear out of this during the summer (if I can bring myself to get the seaming done).

Here's a close-up of the sand dollar part of the sweater. I've had to re-knit it three times so far and I'm still not positive that I'm happy with the way that it has turned out. I do love the way the leaf points meet to form a pentagon in the center. The construction of this garment is really stunning.

In other news, the postman finally brought a long awaited parcel that I can't wait to share with you...next time.

Ooops...

2007-03-24T18:49:00.000-04:00

Six weeks since my last post! It is shocking how quickly time flies. Good news is that although there hasn't been much time for blogging, there has been loads of time for knitting. That means that I should (fingers crossed) be able to start posting on a regular basis again.

First up, I thought I should show you some of the stuff I've been working on for Project Spectrum before April comes along and the colours change on me.

I was inspired by this to make this.

The above photo is taken pre-blocking and this next one was taken post-blocking. It still amazes me how much of a difference a simple dip in the sink makes with most yarns.

Project Specs: Lady Detective Hat (Knit 2 Together) - many mods

Yarn: Malabrigo (100% merino) in the Indigo colourway (double-stranded)

Amount: 1 hank

Needles: US 11 (8.00 mm) Denise needles

Size: To fit a woman's head

Left over: none

Started: January 2007

Completed: February 2007

I made many of the same modifications mentioned here. In addition to those I also eliminated the purl ridge at the end of the crown and shortened the depth of the hat.

Now back to my Sand Dollar Pullover. Details on that next time.

Great Socks

2007-02-10T12:45:00.000-05:00

Finally, another pair of finished socks! Socks always take me months and months to knit since I really only work on them during the commute to school. This particular pair was started back in October.

Project Specs: Basic Sock
Yarn: Posh Yarn's Lucia (30% cashmere/70% merino) in the Cosmopolitan colourway.
Needles: 2.25 mm 30" Aero circs (Magic Loop)
Size: To fit a woman's size seven shoe with a 6 1/4" cuff.
Left over: approx 93 yards
Started: October 2006
Completed: Feb 2 2007

A close-up of the gusset. The colours are truest in this photo. This yarn is amazing! It is so soft and was a breeze to knit. The socks are very warm, cushy and comfortable. I will definitely use this yarn again despite being a little concerned with how well these socks will wear as they have already begun to pill.

Perhaps my favourite thing about these socks is that unintentionally, the toes match up perfectly.Now if I could only finish some schoolwork . . .

Belated FF (sort of)

2007-02-09T09:29:00.000-05:00

One...two...skip a few...I meant to post this last week but I went home and my parents only have dial-up. Good news is that in two weeks there has been much in the way of finishing. Most notable is the shawl for my grandmother. Perfect timing since her birthday is today and this month's Project Spectrum colours are blue, grey, and white. The shawl ended up being comfortably large, making it the perfect chill chaser. Most exciting is the fact that I ended up using all but two yards of the yarn I'd spun.

Here's a photo of (most of) the completed shawl. If you look closely you can see my toes, included for scale. I'm really pleased with the way the striping worked out. I wasn't sure what to expect from the finished yarn since this was my first real spinning project.

Project Specs:
Evelyn A. Clark's Leaf Lace Shawl.
Needles: US 9 Denise
Yarn: 623 yards of my handspun
Started: October 2006
Finished: February 1, 2007

Here's a better photo of the pattern detail after the shawl had been unpinned and worn. I love the tweediness of the yarn. The colours are truer here.

One final look.

Onwards.

Finishing Fridays

2007-01-26T14:06:00.000-05:00

Long time no post. The last few weeks haven't given me much knitting time. I started this blog to motivate me to shrink the stash. I started off with 67 projects, 14 of which were on the needles. The stats at this point are not looking promising. I have 75 projects in total, 13 in progress. Clearly the original plan was flawed. To deal with this and to compensate for my general avoidance of completing finishing work, I am instituting Finishing Fridays. This means that every Friday I have to do some sort of finishing: whether it's sewing buttons, weaving in ends, sewing seams or whatever else needs to get done.

This Friday's accomplishments:

The plying for grandma's shawl is finished. Here's a blurry closeup.

And the finished product (with a standard pair of scissors included for scale):

Many hours of spinning has left me with about 625 yards of two-ply, light worsted yarn. I've started to swatch for the shawl and so far it's knitting up beautifully. The thrill of knitting my handspun has yet to wear off.

I also knitted Calorimetry using the wool/silk I spun up last month. What a great project! A quick day of knitting and I ended up with this:

I love the way the colours in the yarn interacted with this pattern, moving from light on the edges to dark in the middle. Lots of people have posted about the finished product being too big. I opted not to modify the pattern and am very pleased with how it turned out. There is enough fabric to cover most of my head without being unnecessarily large. It is the perfect thing to help me through the cold snap we've been having the last week or so. Here is a closeup of one of the buttons I sewed on today to finish this project up.

Last but not least, I made the felted tote from One Skein. Another quick knit, made from Lamb's Pride Bulky in a colour called Wild Violet (a little darker than in this picture). I finally got around to weaving in the ends and doing the seaming. Next it's into the washer for a quick felt, hopefully I'll get that done when I go home next weekend.

Now it's off to stand in line at the Lululemon warehouse sale.

Marathon

2007-01-10T20:36:00.000-05:00

If nothing else the last few days have been productive on the spinning front. I finished the singles for the shawl.

Now it's time to ply.

Small and Big

2007-01-07T16:34:00.000-05:00

Instant gratification anyone? Feeling a little overwhelmed with the number of projects on the go and general life stress, I decided that finishing a lingering project would help turn things around. A few hours later and I had a funky knitted ring. A great way to use up those little bits of yarn I can't bear to throw out.

I've also been doing some spinning...

Lorna's Laces 10 oz Pencil Roving in Seaside and Tahoe that I picked up here while on summer vacation. Inspired by this, I decided that I wanted to make a handspun shawl for my grandma out of the purply-blue roving. Here's how the first bobbin is going so far. Wish me luck.

I heart the mailman

2006-12-18T16:59:00.000-05:00

The new STR Rockin' Sock Club shipment arrived at my house safe and sound this afternoon (huge relief after the mail theft problems I'd been having). I may or may not have spent the day compulsively checking the KAL for pics of other people's kits, counting the number of days it took past shipments to arrive, and running to the door to stare out of the peephole at the slightest sound.

I am ecstatic about the red skein (click to big-ify). I love, love, love red and have been wondering all along when it would show its yummy primary goodness. As for the Rare Gem, I'm still not convinced, and find myself wavering between loving it and HoHum-ing it. I suppose I won't be able to tell until it becomes socks. Perhaps it will become a pair of these depending on what happens during swatching.

I tried to get a good picture of the finished sock on the pattern but it was not meant to be (if you supersize the photo and squint you can almost see part of it). For those of you who are dying to know, it is a stunning beaded cable-rib pattern by Sivia Harding who designed these. The pattern itself reminds me of a simpler/easier, non-knee sock version, of these in that there is a fancy design at the top, that morphs into a simple cable to the heel, and then becomes pretty heel and front ankle detailing.

The good news is that it's here and I can focus on more urgent matters (like that pesky 100% final tomorrow). For now it's back to studying. I promise more regular postings with actual knitting content after it's done. Methinks a trip to the bead store is in order tomorrow, on the way home from the beastie!

Moebius Caplet

2006-12-13T15:56:00.000-05:00

If nothing else, studying for exams has meant significant progress is made on my knitting. I use knitting to cope with stress, procrastinate, and as bribery for a chapter well learnt. Enter The Handmaiden's gorgeous Moebius Caplet kit. Cat Bordhi's Moebius Cast-On is genius, pure genius. It is also very simple if you just don't try to understand what is happening until you get going and follow the instructions. Exactly.

If you look carefully at the in-progress photo you can see the way that the cable spirals around to create the moebius. This is the second one of these caplets that I've made and both times it has been fun, fast, and interesting. This particular project came home with me from my LYS on Saturday and was finished by Sunday evening! A great last minute Christmas gift if I do say so myself.

Yarn: Handmaiden Grande Godiva (2 skeins) 50% silk/50% wool
Pattern: Moebius Caplet
Needles: Denise US 15 with 40" cable

Cheating decreases

2006-12-12T10:53:00.000-05:00

Feast your eyes on these puppies. Four months of committed sock knitting to produce an exquisite lacey (subtle mesh patterned) anklet. Both yarn and pattern came to me in my July Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club kit.

Yarn: Socks That Rock Lightweight in Peaseblossom (1 skein)
Pattern: Hippy Crunchy
Needles: 2.25mm Clover Takumi DPNs

Perhaps the only reason I ever finished these socks was that I found a way to cheat the K3tog and SSSK decreases about 10 rounds in. To encourage other knitters that feel a little woozy when see they a pattern with muti-stitch decreases, I thought I'd put a quick tutorial together on how to accomplish the aforementioned without breaking a sweat or a dpn. Note that basic information on these two decreases can be found here.

The Majestic SSSK

First you need to slip 3 stitches as if to knit from the left to the right-hand needle, just like you were doing a regular SSK.

Next you SSK the two stitches closest to the tip of your right hand needle as you normally would (if you're really struggling you can just SSK the first stitch, and use the leap-frog technique described below to deal with the other two later.)

Here's the cheating part. Lift or leap-frog the unworked-but-previously-slipped-stitch on the right-hand needle (now the second one from the tip) over the SSK that you just worked.

Et Voila! A lovely, angst-free, and slightly blurry SSSK.

The Regal K3tog

This one follows the same principles as the SSSK but with one extra (easy) step. First you'll knit the first two stitches on the left hand needle together (K2tog) same as always (again if worst comes to worse you can just knit the first stitch and repeat the leap-frogging described below twice for the same effect.)

Now you have your worked decrease on the right-hand needle and your left over stitch on the left-hand needle (see picture).

Here's the extra step part. Slip the worked K2tog decrease purlwise from the right to left-hand needle so that it looks like this.

Then you just lift or leap-frog the remaining stitch to be worked over your decrease.

Now slip the whole thing purlwise back onto to the right-hand needle and you're done another beautiful decrease.

Lesson learned

2006-12-11T10:22:00.000-05:00

A few months ago I was perusing (onlookers might have described it as ravaging) the fiber stock at the yarn behemoth down the street, in desperate search of some Fleece Artist wool/silk roving to try out on my new Lendrum DT. There was only one lonely little braid. Its very bright, high-contrast primary colours were not at all to my taste but I was desperate and I somehow convinced myself that I needed to take it home. My mistake became clear after the yarn buzz wore off. Ashamed of my lack of restraint, I buried the fiber in my stash, never to be seen again. Alone it waited, encased in a plastic prison, while I gave it names like "clown paint" and "circus horror."

Needing some instant gratification, I reluctantly pulled it out and began to draft. Nothing like a quick night of spinning to teach me the error of my ways as the mistake turned into this

and then into this

I am smitten, a woman obsessed. This is quite possibly the most lovely yarn I've ever spun. It's perfect: the colours, the blending, the squishiness, the sheen, everything! It is 105 yards of worsted weight, 2-ply, silky woolly goodness.

New rules to live by: trust your yarny instincts and never judge a roving unspun.

Beginnings

2006-12-10T17:16:00.000-05:00

I have long toyed with the idea of contributing my thoughts to the online knitting community. For many reasons, I never actually followed through with it before now. My status as a hit-or-miss knitter and my closeted lack of project monogamy held me back.

Ultimately, my newfound desire to clog the internet with my musings found its basis in the motivational power of guilt. The guilt coming from a responsibility owed to you, the casual reader, to follow through and get things done.

Like any true blossoming knitter, I am drowning in projects. Every time I walk into my LYS (which is often) I walk out with lofty goals and more yarn. Currently I have a whopping 67 pretties waiting for my love and attention, 14 of which are currently on the needles (I'll introduce you to those later).

It is my hope that the pressure to produce fodder for this charming little side-project will have one important side effect: hold me accountable to the stash. The blog, the perfect why-didn't-I-think-of-this-before blog, will be the solution to my knitterly ways (don't laugh). A solution that will force me to accumulate less yarn and start whittling down The List before I begin to adopt the Yarn Harlot's patented nook and cranny stash storage strategy and stop having room for things like groceries in my kitchen cupboards.

In the belly of the beast: a sampling of the yarn stash. It's both depressing and exciting that all of these gorgeous skeins sit waiting for their turn. We'll save the fiber stash for another day when I can collect the necessary courage.