Finished Project: Josefina Shawl
Project Specs:
Pattern: Cast on one stitch. Increase two stitches every other row with yarn overs. Work in garter stitch until desired size. Bind off loosely and block.
Yarn: Morehouse Farm Variegated Merino Lace (I have no idea what color)
Needles: US 4
Size: 18 1/2″ across the top, 7 1/2″ from top to bottom
This is a gift for a friend’s daughter who has an American Girl doll. Hope she likes it. I still have one more American Girl shawl to make.
I’m So Behind
I’m quite behind on blogging, but not my holiday knitting. I’ve been busy, busy knitting.
Finally, I felted the messenger bag that I made for the store. I was nervous that the slip stitch flap wouldn’t work out. Here it is before felting.
And here it is blocking after felting.
As I feared, the slip stitch felted quite differently than the body. But I stretched it out all I could and it’s blocking right now. It’s hard waiting for it to dry. I really hope that it’s done by the morning. Fortunately the strap seems to be the right length. Twenty-five points for the person that can come up with a good name for my bag pattern. I’m not the most clever. But I imagine there’s something better than “Messenger Bag.”
Other soon-to-be finished projects to post: my raglan sweater, cashmere/cotton scarf, and a kidsilk night scarf. Busy, busy. And of course I still haven’t blogged about Rhinebeck. Probably too late now.
Finished Project-Another River Shawl
Pattern: River by Sharon Miller from Rowan Magazine 38
Yarn: Rowan’s Kidsilk Night color 610
Needles: US 13 and US 10.5 Knitpicks Options
I had a marathon shawl knitting day yesterday and was finally able to finish my second River. To my surprise and delight, this one actually didn’t have any mistakes. I guess practice makes perfect.
Notice my new tiny blocking board. Now I have the luxury of blocking a shawl or scarf all at once rather than in sections. Woo hoo!
Finished Square: #49
Tilted Trellis
After discussing the problem of the bind off row, Johanna and I decided that since the bind off row is to be all knit stitches, we would do Row 5, an extra row, and then bind off on the right side row. Even if it’s an extra row, it should be fine size-wise after blocking.
This square sure went a lot faster than the Midwest Moonlight scarf.
My Blog Links: I’m Stuck
The #1 square in the book is a striped garter stitch pattern that is to be the size template for all of the other squares. Once I finish that square and block the other finished squares, I’ll take some better photos of the squares for the afghan page.
Finished Project: Scotch & Soda
Project Specs:
Pattern: Scotch & Soda: a single-malt scarf with cabled bubbles by AnastasiaKnits-Yarn Cocktails
Yarn: Suri Merino by Plymouth Yarn in color 402
Needles: US 8 rosewood straight needles
Pattern Alterations: Oops, there’s one bubble that is two rows short.
This is a scarf for the store. Once I finished it and noticed that it was getting too long, I realized it probably would have been better knit down a needle size. And with all of the alpaca in the scarf, it has a lot of drape. It was an easy cable pattern to memorize.
Finished Project: River Shawl
Project Specs:
Pattern: River by Sharon Miller from Rowan Magazine 38
Yarn: Rowan’s Kidsilk Night in the Starlight color
Needles: US 13 and US 10.5 Denise needles
Pattern Alterations: I used a knitted cast-on with the larger needle size. And then there was the mistake on the other end with only one row of yarn overs.
My Blog Links: Upcoming Projects, Cast On Lace Method, Matching Lace Bind Off, Emerging Pattern, New Summer Project, Tedious Beads, Finishing Up Projects, River Mistakes and Do-Overs
Wendy seemed to love her shawl. And it was a chilly day in Minnesota, so the shawl turned out to be practical too. Once the shawl was draped over her shoulders, you couldn’t even notice the mistakes. I did redo the donut with skinnier elastic and that worked out better. And there is enough yarn leftover that I could make something for myself sometime. Maybe a sparkly little scarf?
Best of all, Wide Load Ma’am had a little reunion and the shawl got to rock out!
Projects by Category
Click on an image for details. (Newest to Oldest)
Sweaters
Scarves & Wraps
Socks
Hats
Other Accesories
Bags & Cases
Baby
Toys
For the Home
Finished Project-Midwest Moonlight
Project Specs:
Pattern: Midwest Moonlight from Scarf Style
Yarn: Silky Wool by Elsebeth Lavold
Needles: US 6 bamboo straight needles
My Blog Links: Hurray for Super Bowls, International Scarf Exchange
I love the Silky Wool yarn. I hope to use it again, maybe in the Halle Pullover.
I got a thank you note from my scarf pal last week and it sounds like she really likes it. Thank goodness. I’m a little less sad now about it being gone.
Hurray for Super Bowls
I got to spend the day at Webs knitting nearly 4 hours straight at their yearly Super Bowl Sunday event. It was nice to see many familiar faces and to meet and talk to some new people too. While I was there someone mentioned Northampton Wools having a 30% off sale. I’ve been mulling over what to do about the cuffs and hem of the Misti V-neck Pullover and knew Northampton Wools had some Crystal Palace Kid Merino in a color that may work with my sweater. So I made a quick stop on the way home to pick it up and of course noticed some cool rubber ring markers and got those too. Hopefully I’ll stop flicking my stitch markers across the room.
I finished weaving in the ends of my Moonlight Madness scarf and hopefully will block it and mail it sometime this week. I also hope to get the finished potholders sent out this week too.
I’m making a lacey camisole using Plymouth Yarn’s Royal Bamboo for the store. But I’ve already made a mistake that I can’t ignore.
The lace panel is supposed to have two columns of yarn overs on either side with yarn over V’s going up the middle. You’d think I was drinking heavily when knitting this. But honest, I wasn’t. Time to start over.
I was madly knitting the Picovoli today and had to try it on when I got home to see if it was going to fit.
Looking good so far, except for the neck flipping over in the back and front. But I haven’t even tried blocking it yet, so hopefully that will get better.
Oh, and by the way, I really like working at Webs. I worked two days last week and everyone is so nice and helpful. And then there’s all that touching yarn and talking about knitting and helping customers. It’s been fun so far.
This, That and Everything in Between
It’s time to do some catch up blogging. Things have been super busy lately, and that’s not going to change any time soon. So let’s get started.
My friend Amy and I are both starting Grumperina’s Picovoli’s together. Her yarn is pink in the new Valley Yarns Longmeadow and mine will be the purple Joy in Rowan Calmer.
We both struggled with the provisional cast on and the row being twisted when joining in the round. After getting the provisional cast on done correctly, I got 22 rows into mine and realized that the picot edge was really going to flare out. After ripping it all out, I did the inside edge on the picot trim two needle sizes smaller, hopefully reducing the tendency to flare out. Here’s my latest try:
I knitted a set of potholders for my sister-in-law and brother, a very belated Christmas gift. I had a bit of a problem deciding what kind of edge to use. At first I did a crochet edge (top of pict) which seemed really stiff. I was concerned that after felting the edge wouldn’t be flat, but all ruffly. So the next two potholders I used a knit edge (bottom of pict). This edge seemed much more consistent with the rest of the fabric.
I felted them yesterday at Amy’s and they’re drying right now. The crochet edge did indeed felt in a unpleasant funky way. So that makes two potholders as gifts and one in the bin of NEVER DO THIS AGAIN. And yes once again I forgot to take pre-felting measurements so I could figure out the percentage of shrinkage.
My scarf arrived from my secret International Scarf Exchange pal.
Her name is Marion Frazer from Tennessee. Marion met a German designer, Monika Haas, at Stitches East and the pattern is Monika’s design. Monika also made the yarn which is created by individual threads added together starting with the light colors and gradually going to the darker colors. Thanks so much Marion; it’s all quite beautiful.
Last week Ella came home and declared that I needed to make her a wood sprite costume for her Girl Scout play that was happening in two days. This is what I whipped up in less than an hour since that’s all the time I was willing to put into a spur-of-the-moment request. I can’t believe how much sewing I’ve been doing.
I couldn’t resist this new Lexie Barnes knitting bag. But between the Pink Picot Hat and these pink flowers, am I turning into a girly girl? I didn’t even think I liked pink, at least not since I was 14 wearing a pink suit while my brothers sported the Miami Vice look. But when I showed the bag to Liam yesterday and asked him what he thought of it, he said, “It’s handsome. The flowers are handsome. (pauses and strokes the flowers.) I lub you Mom.” Well if it’s a handsome bag, it can’t be too girly girl, right?
And the real reason that I justified buying this bag now was because I have a new part-time job at Webs! You know that I’m excited about this. I start next Thursday and I’m going to try my hardest not to spend it all on yarn. But how could I resist one celebratory knitting bag?
