I’m quite surprised how little of the Zauberball (col. 1966 “Spring Meadow”) it ended up using. The entire shawl only took about 335yds on 3.75mm needles and came out to about 62″ wide by 25″ long. There’s a good quarter of the ball leftover.
If you have a hank of Colinette Jitterbug in your stash that is languishing due to the short yardage, this might be a good project for it. Just a suggestion.
The March Mystery Socks were completed yesterday. I really love this colourway of Zitron Trekking XXL (col. 76), which probably explains why it took me so long to use it. Deliciously grapey – I may have to find more.
“La Vie de Bois” translates to “Life in the Woods”. Lichen, moss… I think it works.
Everything else on the needles/hook remain (mostly) at the same stage as last week.
~~~
My rough week started last Thursday with me somehow spraining the trapezius muscle in my right shoulder (I think I did it while moving our new mattress) and I’ve been in varying amounts of pain ever since. Liberal applications of Vicks Vapo-rub & extra-strength Tylenol seem to have me on the mend now, but it’s still bugging me a little.
Yes, I knit through the pain, keeping my shoulders as still as possible and not making any sudden moves with my head. (Working all those beads into the shawl was a treat, let me tell you. Doing the laundry was quite fun as well. Especially when we ran out of both coffee & Tylenol earlier this week.)
But the toughest part of my week came yesterday evening via phone from my mom.
My maternal grandmother Lucille passed away last night at 7pm.
She had been sick for a long time and went peacefully at her nursing home (I believe) in the company of my uncle Paul – her eldest son. My mom was able to see her on Sunday with my father to say goodbye.
She is survived by her 3 children, 9 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren (2 of which are due within the next few months).
I am the eldest of the nine and have many fond memories of her from the summers of my youth at the cottage on Balsam Lake. I prefer to remember her that way before the illnesses took their heavy toll.
Grandmaman was a devout Catholic her entire life and I pray that she finds peace among the Angels and Saints she so treasured.
I haven’t posted since last year. I felt like hibernating for a bit. I get like that sometimes.
With the first signs of spring starting to show themselves, I figured it was high time I let you guys see what I’ve been up to.
I’ll refrain from the 2010 rundown of projects, because it now scares ME how much comes off my needles in the space of a year and frankly, it’s not a contest.
(Note to self: must go through Rav Projects and add year tags.)
I do a row or two on the afghan when I can, but there’s now a deadline for the shawl. Because you see…
I’M GOING TO BE AN AUNTIE!!!
My sister and BIL are expecting a little boy (to be named Marc Antoine). Evenstar will be used for his Christening and I’ll also be making this set to go with it:
I plan on shortening the sleeves and the ribbon will be white. I have vintage mother of pearl buttons inherited from our grandmother and purchased the 16 balls of pure white SandnesGarn Mandarin Petit fingering wt cotton needed for the set.
I have a few months before my nephew makes his debut, so finishing this set is totally within the “doable” range.
Really.
Hey, with love and a positive attitude anything is possible.
~~~
Finished Objects
I’ve actually completed quite a bit already this year, motivated by my master stash-busting plan – but more on this later.
(As always, click on the project links for more info.)
This mystery shawl is the newest of the Bride of the Wind series from the equally talented Monika Eckert (Wollklabauter).
Monika has also created a lovely stole pattern called Prometheus which she is donating all proceeds from to assist the Japanese relief effort. I urge you to take a look and make with the clicky if you like what you see.
I’m using the 6″ squares from this year’s Crochet Block-A-Month CAL to make a blanket for baby nephew Marc. My design only encorporates the first 6 months of squares as he is due in June and I want to have it done when he arrives.
I made a chart and everything! See – there is method to my madness.
~~~
*OTHER WIPs*
I have two other knitting projects on the go, both well on their way to completion:
It’s “prove your love through vintage intarsia” time again (LOL)
Hubby’s birthday is a week away and I still have a good 3/4 of the second sock to knit. I think I’ll be able to finish it in time.
Cross your fingers.
~~~
Now, to explain my master stash-busting plan (MUAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Ahem.)
Last year, I managed to accomplish the huge goal of uploading my entire yarn stash into Ravelry. (Seriously people, this took *months*)
I still have a few stray balls here and there that aren’t inputted and I haven’t included any of my spinning fiber (I upload that when I finish spinning it.) But it’s essentially done.
It was shocking.
Now, don’t get me wrong – My stash hasn’t reached SABLE level yet, but it’s of a significant enough size where I find myself saying “That’s a crapload of yarn”.
I may have mentioned before that I keep my yarn (mostly) in second hand suitcases. What I’m attempting to do is to get it down to where I can store it all in the pretty antique ones and do away with the ugly ones.
There are a few ways to accomplish this – my choice?
I intend to USE IT UP.
Starting in November of last year, I devised a plan which has since been refined.
I have to earn any new yarn and fiber by using up 10 balls of old stash for every single unit coming in.
The following exemptions apply: Christening set yarn (which hubby paid for and had to be to colour specifications – pure white) and any yarn/fiber gifted to me or won in a contest.
I set up a spreadsheet where I’ve been keeping a record of yarn usage for the past 4.5 months and the plan is working beautifully. As of today, I’m breaking even .
By doing this, I hope to accomplish a measure of simplicity without a feeling of lack and stimulate my creativity by limiting my choices of materials to what I have on hand.
“Use it up, wear it out and when in doubt, do without.”
In addition to my 10:1 ratio, I’m also including the clause that the majority (95%) of new fiber purchases be made from de-stashes, thriftstores or directly from the independent artisans. I want to know where my money is going and feel good about it.
Since my last post there has been a flurry of activity, but not, perhaps, in the way you might think.
Oh yes, there has been the mad rush to finish and wrap gifts, not to mention the last minute grocery shopping. My way just happens to be slightly different from the mainstream.
Over the last 7 years, I’ve made almost all of our holiday gifts (with the exception of a few giftcards sprinkled here and there). Sometimes it was due to financial circumstance, but mostly because I’ve come to realize that I just don’t *get* the retail culture any more.
Oh, don’t get me wrong – I was a champion shopper once upon a time. I used to love shopping for the perfect gifts at Christmas. But what has changed is my viewpoint. I want to know where the items I give have come from, what energy they carry. I want to know that they will be used and appreciated. Most of all, I want to make sure that they bring some value to the recipients’ life instead of simply creating clutter for them.
One way I can do this is to personally make useful (and sometimes whimsical) items for the people in my life. I give of myself, my time, and my skills to express my gratitude to them for being who they are.
A gift from the heart, made by my hands to express: “Be warm. Be happy. Smile. You are valued.”
That said, here are some of the holiday gifts I’ve made this year (most of which have been received already) and all of which were made from yarn that was on hand in my stash (project links given at end of post)…
Hats:
Scarves:
Mittens:
Slippers:
In lieu of gifts this year for the adults in my husband’s family (other than my in-laws), I instead made a bunch of hats for charity:
~~~
The biggest difference, I think, between my “busy” and that of most of North America is that instead of bringing oodles and oodles of new things into the house this time of year, I’ve been clearing stuff out hand over fist.
The de-cluttering bug bit and bit hard. I’ve gone through everything from books to underwear with a razor sharp critical eye, nerves of steel and brutal honesty.
I sorted, re-organized, re-purposed and most of all *purged* anything that doesn’t work for us where we are now and where we want to go in the future.
(This included getting rid of our huge TV – we watch everything online anyway. We gave it to my MIL who needed one in her bedroom. She’s thrilled and the large black hole in my living room is gone – totally win-win )
Poor BadgerDan thought he was married to a woman possessed – but he was thrilled and relieved when he could see the top of his desk again LOL.
Several garbage bags and two epic trips to the local thriftstore (with the assistance of a friend’s truck) later and things feel so much better.
My holiday decorations are all things that we love and will fit into two small plastic stackable toteboxes when we take them all down again.
We can walk into our storage room without thinking something is going to collapse on us and we can FIND whatever we’re looking for quickly and easily.
All the books we’ve kept, we are going to read in the very near future, refer to constantly or are such old friends that we couldn’t bear to be parted from them. They all fit into a standard tall bookshelf.
*THAT* my friends, is a holiday miracle.
Next, I tackled my WIP pile. I ripped out projects that gave me the merest hint of stress or guilt and concentrated on finishing those that I knew I could complete quickly and would make me happy.
Woodland Rustic Shawl - a version of my own Classic Crocheted Shawl pattern worked in a self-striping recycled sweater yarn (what I used to call my “faux Noro” sweater) trimmed in my own handspun natural dark brown Coopworth wool.
It’s warm, more comfortable than a cardigan and looks really good over a shirt and jeans. I luff it.
So what if my scarf wasn’t finished for Yule? (I’m currently on working on the Day 16 chart.) It’s my knitting and I can always wear it on New Year’s. No pressure.
~~~
Holiday plans have been surprisingly simple this year and instead of running around Ontario like headless chickens ping-ponging between family celebrations, we are having a quiet holiday – just BD, myself & the cats.
My parents are flying out to Jamaica on vacation (good on them!), my sister is spending it with her new husband and his family in our nation’s fine capital and my brother will most likely be working the weekend, then going home to a quiet holiday of his own with his girlfriend.
Most of BD’s family is spending Christmas with other relatives and other than a quick get-together with my SIL, her husband & my in-laws tomorrow – we have to be at home as we are on-call at the building for the weekend.
We have a full refrigerator and cupboards, wine & Irish Cream, each other and a stack of movies.
Let’s just put it out there. I haven’t the faintest idea of how to “journal”. I’m not even comfortable with the term. And don’t even get me started on scrapbooking – the point fully escapes me.
I think this is partially why I haven’t written here in so long. There has been a lot going on in these last seven months in my life, the lives of my family & friends and the world at large that I felt that I needed to step back and re-assess things.
Certainly, there has been an assembly line of items coming off my hook, needles, wheel and spindles. This is what has been keeping me sane. It allows me to think and reflect on different situations and my place within them. My inner dialogues are vast in their scope and, for the most part, not shared with others.
I think it’s time for this to change.
There is rich, delicious (gluten-free) cake under all the fluffy frosting I’ve been posting here these last years and it’s high time you guys tasted it.
One crafts their own lives just as they craft a stitch or a garment.
The title I gave this blog so long ago – “Musings on a Crafty Life” – has been mostly lost on me all this time as I was trying to figure out how this all worked.
Not anymore.
I think I’ve finally realized what I want this to be is a reflection of who I am, not just what comes from my hands. There are so many layers of meaning to what I do, why I do them and how they manifest which are deeply personal.
Sharing these layers in writing may not come as quickly or as easily to me as it may for some, but shared they must be lest they be lost.
The written word is a powerful medium, one that seems quite permanent in my mind.
I’ve been a voracious reader for most of my life and I find a lot of comfort in books. They are, depending on subject, a source of accessible knowledge, entertainment and, many times, company in the face of hardship when there is no other place to turn.
Perhaps, even though I may find it difficult, sharing my “braindroppings” from this little corner of the Internet can have positive impact on the world.
This intrepid crafty hermit is going to give it a go.
As promised, this is how the DivaRomana Shrug looks like on me. I’m quite surprised at how comfortable, light and *warm* it is.
(Note: please excuse the hair – it was still wet from the shower.)
~~~
Wednesday was spent working on the (very tricky) leg of my Treetop Kneesocks and wondering what the heck my husband was up to and where.
The first chart section on the leg is now done and I hope the next section goes a bit faster. Bamboo DPNs aren’t the fastest needles to work with, but I chose them so I wouldn’t brutalize the recycled wool.
(Long story short: It turns out that BadgerDan was driving all over the Greater Toronto Area trying to find a Passport office that could renew his passport the same day.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t as lucky as the YarnHarlot’s Joe this time round and he had to miss out on a lucrative 10-day assignment to Tennessee.
Suffice it to say that he was none too pleased when he got home last night.
He has since picked up a few jobs in Toronto for the weekend and had a client pay a large outstanding invoice in full so doesn’t feel too bad about it now.
Believe it or not, I keep this in a basket on top of my TV in the living room and work on it when I’m too tired or stressed out to think. With all the complicated stuff I do, it’s kind of nice to have something mindless to reach for when I need to.
~~~
Thursday was a spinning day:
This is some beautiful custom blended roving from the amazing CJ Kopec called “Sunset” that I picked up a little while ago.
It’s 2/3 Merino, 1/3 Colonial wool and all YUM.
I’m about a third of the way throught the 4oz batch – not bad for a novice spinner, I think.
~~~
The Round 4 specs for Sock Madness 4 were recently released and had me (and most of the other competitors) scrambling through the sock yarn stash in sheer desperation:
US 1/ 2.25mm, US 2/2.75mm – 4 skeins Knit Picks stroll (231 yds/50g)
Do the math – that’s 924yds/200g of sock yarn.
Oh. Em. Gee.
I don’t know about you, but I only get *maybe* 100g of sock yarn at a time. This sucker is also a cabled pattern making me think that I really don’t want to try and stripe them. Buying yarn is out of the question, so what to do????
The only thing I could think of: Raid the Laceweight Stash.
You may remember this yarn:
It’s a whopping 2520 yards/226 grams of 2ply extrafine merino (Lisa Souza Laceweight, “Wild Things”) which when I swatched it doubled…
… actually gave me gauge and is muted enough to pass as a semi-solid.
Halleluah – crisis averted.
~~~
And last, but not least:
Ain’t it the cutest? This little guy is “alynxiathelacemonster” created by the ever-talented Miss Violet who is on a bit of a monster kick at the moment.
Oh, my poor neglected blog – can you tell that I haven’t really been in a writing mood these past months?
Wow, well I’ve finished a metric tonne of stuff since I last posted so let me bring you up to speed. I’ll just go in order of when I last mentioned them for ease of reference.
(Note: All links are to the Ravelry Project Page for each item. I also list particulars on the Flickr pages for those not on Ravelry.)
I ended up doing the trim in darker yarn only (Spinrite Orlon) because (A) I think it looks nice and (B) It allows me to keep my last two balls of Chocolate Kid Merino for another project.
As the Orlon is 100% acrylic, I both wet blocked and ironed the shrug so that it will keep it’s shape. The border I “killed” the heck out of and it seems to have worked.
It’s a little big on me, but not too bad (It’s still drying, so I’ll upload a photo of me in it next time).
It’s done, but not until the day *after* the Olympic Closing ceremonies – I tried, but the border was my downfall.
Not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but as it was my first lace project *ever* that has now finally reached completion after years of neglect, I still feel pretty good about it.
They came off the needles in time for the Canada/Russia Men’s Hockey game and were worn throughout every subsequent Canada hockey game. Lucky charm? I don’t know, but I certainly wasn’t going to risk not wearing them and they seem to have worked .
I alternated between the handpaint and the twist yarns every 2 rows for the body and the toe.
These ones went to BadgerDan, hence the colours. I even managed to get him to model them (okay, not the best photo – Tomi wouldn’t move his fuzzy butt.)
Pattern: Cool Beans by Heatherly Walker (aka YarnYenta)
Yarn: Fleece Artist Basic Merino Socks, Bark; Lady Galt Kroy (4-ply), Dk Brown; Paton’s Kroy (3-ply), Beige & Med Brown
Needles: 2.25mm
Yet again I am reminded that I am not really all that quick at fair isle. These took me a lot longer to finish than I would have ever expected and actually aggravated my wrists into a carpal tunnel flareup (which hasn’t happened in a good long while).
It may have been slow work, but aren’t they fantastic? I love them alot.
Finished 3 days ago amidst a stomach bug and *two* day-long sinus migraines and I somehow ended up working 21 repeats on the leg instead of the required 12/15 rpts.
Fever and a fun lace pattern apparently equals insanity.
And speaking of growing, I started an English Country Garden – a crocheted one that is (which will eventually become a blanket)
This is a CAL that I happened upon on Ravelry (English Country Garden CAL) and thought would be a good use of my itty-bitty balls of sock yarn. There will be are 1-2 flower motifs released each month from March to September and it’s up to you what you do with them.
Jonquils, Begonias & Daisies
~~~
The accursed “Ugly” Flat Feet yarn finally found a pattern it liked:
I figured if it didn’t work, I could always dunk them in the dyepot – but they didn’t turn out too bad.
The pattern is so incredibly pretty (Belle Vitini by Kristi Geraci), I think that it might warrant another pair done in a prettier yarn.
~~~
Remember the Celtic Vest I made a few years back? Well, during the Olympics I decided that it needed to be frogged to make some matching mitts and a hat for my Mmmmalabrigo scarf.
I ended up recovering approximately 130g of Malabrigo Worsted in the “Loro Barranquero” colourway…
First off, I decided that with the new decade, my blog needed a bit of a facelift – you like?
~~~
January started, as in previous years, with my annual New Year’s Day Crochet-a-thon.
This year’s sampler afghan will use all 3 of the CAL patterns – the 12″ Ravelry Square, 12″ Craftster Square and the 6″ Ravelry Square (of which I’m making 2 per month). The plan is to have all the 6” squares in an “Aran” coloured acrylic and the 12” squares out of scrap neutral acrylics (including some darker colours and black, but no white or cream). The final border will be done in Chunky cream acrylic.
January Squares
February Squares
With my plan in place, I’m able to piece together strips every 2 months – yay for forethought! (See 2010 Sampler Afghan project page [Ravelry link] for pattern details)
Here’s what it looks like as of right now:
I also started a Moderne Log Cabin Blanket out of 4 colours of frogged sweater cotton that have been sitting in my stash *forever*
It currently sits at the 2 square point:
~~~
But, as the title of this post suggests, I do have some FOs to show you and I hope they go towards explaining my radio silence during the previous month. In order of completion – here we go…
I only did 2 pattern repeats on the cuff and used a standard heel pattern rather than as written, which, by centering it on the back, accidently off-set the foot lace pattern. You can’t really tell though.
(I had also originally planned to use white yarn for the heel and toe, but chickened out and used dark blue instead.)
Ahh, yes… Let’s just say that my wonderful friends over on Plurk could tell you *all* about the saga of Alynxia and the big blue shawl. Took 2 years to knit the first 3.5 clues … and a *WEEK* to do the last 4.5 clues (+ border edging)
Makes Wings of Horus look like a shawlette – doesn’t it?
Nancy Bush, how I do love thee! Leave it to her to have the perfect pattern to use up some recycled lambswool in grey and red. (This one is from Knitting on the Road)
Made as a gift for YenforYarn, who recieved it earlier this week and thinks it’s wonderful. Glad you like it Lisa
[Just a quick note here: I *did* cast on a pair of Lisa's Manhattan socks in January (see?), but the yarn I used (Lisa Souza Sock!) was just a little too light for the pattern and ended up frogging it. So after all the Olympic hubbub dies down, I'll be casting on again with a slightly heavier yarn.]
I finally found a pattern that those pesky balls of King Cole Luxury Mohair liked!
Can’t say that the pattern didn’t have it’s issues – it was a really sketchy English translation which really made me rely on my knowledge of how a sweater *should* kinda fit together. Many a “hunh?” and “oh they must mean *this*” was muttered throughout.
I completely ran out of yarn as I cast off the second sleeve – so the picked-up collar ended up not being an option. So I added a couple of strategically placed buttons and made it into a rolled edge, wrap around. Wabi Sabi Fini!
I whipped this up yesterday on some 12mm needles to use up the small ball of experimental superbulky barberpole I spun up in January. (Yes! I’ve been spinning! More on that after the Olympics.) The black is some stash Cascade 128.
Attractive – no?
Well, I like it
~~~
Other than the long-term blanket projects, I do have 2 current WIPs that I’m working on, heading into tomorrow’s Opening Ceremonies in Vancouver…
AKA “The Team L&V Fitness Challenge Bootcamp Sock” by Eliza Metz (the incomparable Miss Violet of the Lime & Violet Podcast)
(What is the Team L&V Fitness Challenge you ask? Well, head on over here and Miss V will tell ya all about it .)
This is one of the very rare times I’ve actually intentionally gone out and bought yarn for a specific pair of socks. The yarn is Sandnes Garn SMART (superwash DK wool) in col. 1093 (black/grey variegated).
The pattern calls for sportweight (STR Mediumweight specifically), but I like a slightly thicker yarn when using US3/3.25mm needles. My gauge ended up being bang on and I think it looks pretty darn close to Miss V’s original:
I’ve started the second sock and think it’ll probably be done by the start of the Opening Ceremonies tomorrow night – cross your fingers.
I’m using the same yarn combo as I used for this scarf a few years ago – CPY Kid Merino in Chocolate (col. 4673) and Spinrite Orlon (also called “Chocolate”) held double throughout.
Mmmmm Fudgy.
It’s knit out from a provisional cast on (centre back), then you work in the opposite direction. I’m 20 rows shy of finishing the second side, but if I don’t finish it before tomorrow night, I’m not going to worry about it too much.
~~~
So why all the fuss about the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics? (You know other than they’re the OLYMPICS in MY HOME COUNTRY?)
The official start of the Ravelympics is the beginning of the Opening Ceremonies.
The Yarn Harlot‘s Knitting Olympics, however, begins with the official lighting of the Olympic Torch.
And this is what I’ll be casting on when the torch is lit:
My Maple Leaf Forever Socks, (aka “Regent Man’s Socks No. 2065″ from “Hand Knit Socks by Regent, Vol. No. 20″) will be done in Cable’s & Lace Lizard Toes in “Beltane” (totally Canadian Flag colours!), some vintage Paton’s Scotch 3-ply Fingering wool in White & some leftover Sandnes Garn Lanett in black.
The maple leaf pattern will be intarsia’d in white on the handdyed red/white background. The black will be used for the leaf detail and used to embroider an outline around the white leaf for contrast.
Vintage. Intarsia. Embroidery. Leg knit flat and sewn up.
Challenging? Hell yeah.
[Note: These socks also qualify for the Ravelympics in the following events: Sock Hockey, Nordic Colorwork Combined, and Snowcross.]
~~~
Now there is another mystery KAL that starts tomorrow that I haven’t mentioned and that is the Evenstar Shawl KAL by my incredibly talented friend Susan Pandorf (aka Pandosu). She’s a fellow yarn-obsessed lace junkie who has one of the most creative minds in the business. Not to mention her patterns are like crack.
The Evenstar Shawl is the start of a whole Lord of the Rings series that she came up with one day and it sort of steamrolled…
Over 770 members (from 18 countries) as of today and still growing. Way to go Sue!!!!!
I have my yarn and beads ready to go for when I can find time to start it. (You know, *after* I finish the WIP Shetland – wink, wink, nudge, nudge.)
Yep. 2009 is over as of midnight. Is that loud cheering I hear? I think it might
Suffice it to say that it’s been a tumultuous year for us and practically everyone we know. Thankfully, we have survived and are beginning to see bigger and brighter things coming to fruition for 2010.
But before we ring the old year out, there’s some final things to show you:
~~~
I promised to share this year’s crop of holiday gifts and now that they’ve all been distributed, I can!
(I won’t go into too much detail or else this post will turn into a novel, so click on the links to go to each project’s Ravelry page for additional info)
BadgerDan spoiled me rotten this year with a much needed Royal Ball Winder, a set of Addi Clicks and a replacement foot pedal for my 1950s Singer Sewing Machine.
Among other wonderful gifts, I also received some precious family heirlooms to look after. My Grandmother’s mink stole (circa 1950s), antique drop leaf table (circa 1920s) & my great-grandmother’s tea table (circa 1900s). The furniture looks wonderful in our “parlour”
In other good news, Hubby has finally gotten our Jeep insured and on the road – The Mork & Mindy Mobile Lives!!!! Woohoo!!!!!
(Photo will be added later)
~~~
On Christmas Day, I started a pair of socks from some leftover yarn and completed them yesterday:
Pattern: Burning Rings of Fire Socks by Kirsten Kapur
Yarn: Lang Super Soxx, grey/brown; Sandnes Garn Lanett Superwash, black; Lady Galt Kroy 4-ply, col 118 (brown)
Needles: 2.5mm circs (magic loop)
What a great little pattern! (It’s a free Ravelry Download, btw.) Fits like a dream and works great with handpaints, self striping and stashbusting – I think this one might just become my go-to travel sock pattern.
I wore them all day yesterday – lovelovelovelove!
Being in total stashbuster mode, I also cast on another pair:
Pattern: Niagara Falls by Janel Laidman (from The Eclectic Sole)
Yarn: Lang Super Soxx, col 630.0045 (41.6g); Paton’s Scotch Fingering 3-ply, white (8.3g) (for the heel & toe)
Needles: 2.5mm circs
So far so good
And my last cast on of the year is in support of talented designer and Plurk/Ravelry friend, Lisa Dykstra (aka YenforYarn), who’s just started chemotherapy.
This is one of the free patterns she did for CPY, but she has also done some fantastic work for the WoolGirl Sock Club and has a great sock pattern called Manhatten that I’m planning on casting on for in January.
Grab those needles, choose one of her patterns and send her lots of healing thoughts and good will!
~~~
On the shawl front, I have 12 more rows to go on Wings of Horus which I hope to finish sometime in January. These last rows are taking *forever*! (Did I mention that this shawl is huge?)
Mystic Waters and my Shetland Faroese haven’t been touched in a while, but I’m going to be firm with myself and not cast on another lace shawl until they’re finally off the needles.
So the WIP count going into 2010 is a whopping 2 pairs of socks and 3 shawls. I’m doing pretty well, I think .
~~~
In Yarn/Fibre Pr0n news…
For our wedding anniversary, BD bought me these to make the Mystic Embers Stole:
Well, I made it! Cast off the last gift last night and everything is wrapped and ready to go. So, guilt-free, I can now devote a little time to catching you guys up with the massive amounts of stuff coming off my needles/hook over the last month and a half.
(I’ll share all the holiday gift knitting/crochet insanity with y’all tomorrow.)
~~~
Wow. Where to start?
How about some socks…
BadgerDan’s Vintage Intarsia Socks (aka Regent Hose for Hubby) came out pretty well I think – he just loves them This was his anniversary gift this year.
The Miss Marple Mystery Socks turned out just as awesome as I thought they would be. Star Athena encouraged us to play with ideas for the toe, so I modified the heel chart to make it work for the toes. (For the record, I omitted the lace pattern on the foot due to gauge issues.) What a great pattern – tons of fun! Thanks Star!
These are the Slipstitch Rings Socks I mentioned in the last project post and are knit out of the last of my Fleece Artist “Cosmic Dawn” & the Black Lanett Superwash. I threw in some Acid Green Scheepjes Invicta Extra for good measure.
I literally used up *every* inch of the yarn to finish that pillow off. Couldn’t have planned it better.
This is the completed Mayrose Mystery Hat (aka Woolly Wormhead 2009 Mystery Hat “B”) out of Auracania Atacama Alpaca (try and say *that* ten times fast – I dare ya).
The tam is lovely and warm in the alpaca – fabulous drape. Very few designers will get me to do that much Feather & Fan (*not* my favorite lace pattern) – but I love Ruth’s hats to a fault. The “A” pattern – “Everglade” is queued and I’m still trying to decide on a yarn for it.
Using both wool and acrylic stash yarns that really had no purpose. Certainly not the most colour-coordinated project I’ve ever made, but really, does it matter?
These just crack me up to no end and are very warm and cozy.
Chinese Emperor, Ali Baba or Munchkin? You choose (LOL).
It’s made out of wool from a frogged Icelandic fair isle sweater and the Windy City Scarf pattern from the Stitch n Bitch Handbook. I’ve made a bunch of these over the years and it still rocks.
This is the Fourteen pattern by the talented John Brinegar. So simple, so fab – and FREE!. The yarn I used really doesn’t show how cool the pattern is – go see his original and be inspired!
I also did a bit of crocheted threadwork and made some snowflake ornaments for our building managers and the lady I cat-sit for.
I even put little iridescent beads in the middle – they thought they were great.
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A little bit more Retro Awesomeness is the fact we were given a *pristine* vintage couch in a rather loud print fabric (totally my colours, but seriously early 70s) and a fabulous solid wood dining set including credenza, hutch and *3* leaves! All this from a neighbour who was moving into a retirement facility. I cannot begin to explain how grateful I am to her and hope that the Universe rains many blessings on her.
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This is getting pretty long, so I’ll leave all the yarn pr0n for a later date. In the meantime, have yourselves a wonderful holiday.
How this time of year snuck up on me so fast, I have no idea. I’m still frantically working on gifts and hoping they will be done in time. I’ve barely had time to cook, let alone blog!
I promise that I will do a complete update as soon as all the gifts are done (and boy, will it be a good one!)
In the meantime, from our family to yours, however you choose to celebrate the season – we raise our glasses to you all and bid you Peace, Happiness, Warmth, Light and a Bountiful Table.
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March Squares
April Squares
Jonquils, Begonias & Daisies
January Squares
February Squares
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