FO: Betty

I've been slightly incommunicado lately. The main reason is that I hopped over to San Francisco for a few days last week. It was a much needed break with the boy, and I honestly didn't want to come back to work. We had a great time, and I'll be sharing pictures with you soon.

In the meantime, I finished my grandmother's shawl this weekend.

This worsted-weight shawl was made using Chrissy Prange's Followill pattern. It was really intuitive and well-written. I appreciated that Chrissy included the symbol legend on each page of charts; it was much easier than flipping back and forth.

I used Valley Yarns Northampton, a 100% Peruvian wool.

I'm really pleased with how it turned out (and please excuse the end that needs to be woven!). My sister was kind enough to take pictures for me yesterday.

She's really good about capturing silly moments like this one! If I haven't mentioned, she's working on her photography as more than just a hobby, and you can check her out here if you're interested.

I made no mods to the shawl, and I used approximately 520 yards of yarn. I'm hoping it will keep my grandmother warm. This is my fifth completed shawl of 2010. 50% of the goal isn't bad, but it's not great, either. Oh well.

Side note: my grandparents are celebrating their 65th wedding anniversary early next year.

In.cred.ible.

Raveled

FO: Technicolor Shawl

My Kool-Aid shawl was finished nearly three weeks ago. After not being completely satisfied with the pictures I took, Houston was hit with nearly two weeks of rain (not entirely uncommon here), but I finally took some additional pictures this week.

As mentioned here, where I was referring to the shawl as "Fruition", the pattern is Waves of Leaves, a free pattern from Malcolm and Marcus. There are only 119 projects on Ravelry, which is surprising to me. The pattern is straightforward and is a great choice for highly variegated yarn.

I used a size 4 circular needle and the full skein of my hand-painted Kool-Aid yarn, approximately 460 yards. When I started the pattern, I inadvertently assumed the \ decrease to be SSK (slip slip Knit), so I continued this decrease in the same manner for the remainder, to keep things uniform. I'm not sure it made much of a difference, but that was my only (accidental) modification.

No, scratch that. I lied. Like an idiot, I kept knitting five rows too long on the third repeat of the main chart. After finishing that row, row 16, I switched to the border lace, and it didn't seem to matter. It's nice when a pattern helps out with my inattention!

Speaking of the lace edging, it's my favorite part.

This is my fourth shawl of 2010. I'm still working on my Swallowtail, #5, but I haven't touched it in over a week.

I'm honestly not sure I will complete the 10 shawls in 2010 challenge, but I'm okay with that. Frankly, there's a ton of patterns in my queue, items I'll actually wear with frequency, and I may take a breather from all of the shawls. We'll see.

Either way , I'm pleased to have this shawl complete, and to have used my beloved hand-painted yarn.

Shawl Progress and a Sewing FO

This weekend, I put in some serious crafting time. My Swallowtail Shawl (shawl #5 of 2010) was in hibernation for months, but resurfaced a few weeks ago. I'm now working my first nupp row (by the way, nupps really are annoying, but I'm hoping they get easier).

I'm further along than this photo shows, but I wanted to get a picture before I lost daylight yesterday.

Additionally, on Saturday I decided to make myself a pincushion to match my sewing room. My current pincushion is heart-shaped (it's pretty ugly and generic) and came from Joann's when I first picked up sewing again. After a couple of crafting hours, here is my result.

I used scraps from the pillows I made Rhonda last month. The Deer Valley line by Joel Dewberry is one of my favorites.

I love the little triangles, which are from a charm square I've had forever. When I first started sewing again, I bought a box of charm squares on eBay, which I never really used, but I've pulled some of my favorites for scrappy use. I like the black contrast stitching as well. I used bamboo stuffing, but next time, I think I'll add some beans or beads to give it a little more weight. I've also read that walnut shells are a good natural additive. It feels sturdy as is, though.

I love it, and I'm hoping to make more.

Progress: Fruition

Shawl progress shots always look a little blobby to me. Unblocked lace scrunches together, so that you can just barely make out the pattern. This is especially true when using a handpainted or highly variegated yarn.

My Fruition shawl (Waves of Leaves pattern) is about halfway done. I'm really enjoying the knitting, as I'm always excited to see the next color. I've got five hanks of undyed worsted yarn in my closet, and I keep seeing a color and thinking, "ooh. That's what color I'll dye the worsted."

It will probably be a while before I do more dyeing, but if you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it. It's messy and fun. Plus, your yarn smells sweet (even two years after dyeing, mine has a faint smell!).

I've been sewing the past few evenings, in preparation for a quick trip Jill and I are taking. I'll have three to five sewing FOs to show you, on the double!

Double FO Post!

On the agenda today, sharing my latest completed projects: the Mariposa Mitts and my Sundara Milkweed Shawl. As I said last week, the first mitt was finished months ago. I immediately cast on for the second, and then, well, I moved on to other knits. It sat unfinished until I picked it up last week and finished in two hours. So silly.

This is the second pair I've made, the first being a gift for my mom in her favorite color.I may keep these for myself. The Mariposa colorway is one of my favorites in the Malabrigo line. The pattern, here on Ravelry, is straight-forward and really lets the variegated Malabrigo shine.

As for the Milkweed Shawl, it took three weeks to knit.

I used Sundara Sock Yarn, a splurge, in the Delphiniums colorway.

I was a little disappointed that I couldn't finish the pattern. I'm not sure of the reason, but the pattern called for 350 yards, which is exactly what I had.

I debated using a second color for the edging, but in the end, I just cast off early, omitting the last six rows.

The pattern, Milkweed Shawl, by Cosmicpluto, is extremely easy to knit.

Many have already said this, but I love the inclusion of a written number to indicate how many knit stitches are in an uninterrupted run.

It makes it so much easier to follow.

This is my third completed shawl of the year. I cast on yesterday for a fourth (the previously discussed Waves of Leaves in my kool-aid yarn).

Lace was something that always intimidated me, so it's gratifying to feel more confident with it.

Raveled here

Upcoming projects

I finished the Milkweed shawl, but it still needs blocking and photos. The Sundara yarn ran out before I was finished knitting, so I cut out the last six rows. I contemplated finding a CC for the last few rows, but I didn't really like any of the stash possibilities, because I felt they took away from the fun blue/purple mix of the Sundara colorway. I'll be sharing that shawl soon.

I'm also finishing up the second Malabrigo Mitt in Mariposa. The matching glove has been sitting half-knit for about six months.
Re.dic.u.lous.

As for the summer top I'd like to knit, the following are some of my favorites (at least, these are the ones I have stashed yarn for):
Buttercup (ravelry link)
Cherry (previously started)
Fresh Mint
Camellia

Additionally, the next shawl I'm planning is the Waves of Leaves shawl.

I'm finally going to use my Kool-Aid yarn. I totally dig this funky colorway, and I think the shawl pattern is perfect for it.

Progress: 3/10

I'm knitting my third shawl of 2010 (for the 10 shawls in 2010 challenge). I haven't mentioned it much here because I'm really not sure that I'll complete the challenge, but it's a fun goal, nonetheless.

The third shawl is Cosmicpluto's Milkweed, and I'm using my lone skein of Sundara Sock. The colorway is Delphiniums, and I dig the purple to blue variegation. I'm loving it so far.

I'm much further than this picture, and I may even finish this weekend.

Once this shawl is complete, I'll be casting on for a summer top, although the specifics are still undetermined.

Happy Friday!

FO: Mother's Day Multnomah

Last fall, I knit this shawl, and immediately wanted to knit another in a semi-solid yarn. I loved the variegated effect, but I knew it would really pop in a semi-solid.

Enter version 2 of Multnomah, a gift for my mom. In Shibui Sock, which is fast becoming one of my favorite yarns, it knit up quickly and is just as lovely as I dreamed. This Mulberry color is right up my mom's alley.

I gave it to her a week early (after scheduling myself rigidly the few days before), so that she could take it on her California trip.

She loved wearing it, and she took pictures of the shawl, draping it carefully in each one, to get the photos "just-so".
She commented that she got some strange looks, and I'm sure most of you can relate. We get some funny looks taking pictures of yarn, FOs, food, etc. But we know what we're doing, so who cares, right?

I used about two skeins of the Shibui. I broke into a third skein, but little cat played with one of the original skeins, so I may have had a little less yardage than I expected. I really need to weigh the shawl to know my exact yardage. I used the recommended size 3 needle, and finished it in just two weeks.

I adore the pattern, and definitely recommend it to lace knitters of any expertise. I learned my lesson from shawls past and bound off very loosely, which allowed me to block more aggressively.

Raveled

I lied + progress check

Remember when I said I was going to wait to cast on for something new? Well, yeah. I should never say things like that. Starting a new project is such an awesome process that I just couldn't resist.

I actually have two projects to show you. One was started before I made such a silly statement, but the other was started just this weekend.

Using Noro for the first time, here's my Noro Stockinette Scarf using Chirimen, a silk/wool/cotton blend. it's so lovely to work with, and I love the color changes. It feels less scratchy than most Noro yarns. I'm just knitting a simple stockinette scarf with a two-stitch garter border.

The exact date of cast on has escaped my mind, but it was sometime in February. The scarf will be as long as two skeins will take me, and I'm already well into the second skein.

This weekend, I cast on for Clothilde, using some stashed Stricken Smitten sock yarn. I've been dying to knit Clothilde, but wasn't sure which yarn to use. This lovely purple shade called out to me as I was headed out of town. My mom saw me knitting this weekend, and she has since claimed this shawl as her own; she adores purple.

I apologize for the lack of posts lately. I got a new job about a month ago, and it's been a difficult, albeit good, transition. I have more responsibilities, and I'm working longer hours, but it was a good move. I've still got some DC pics to share, so I'll work on getting those posted soon.

FO: The Two Sides of Monsieur Valentine

Given my lack of time for blogging as of late, I guess it's not surprising that I never even showed you this piece in progress.

After casting on the day before Valentine's due to a craving for vibrancy, I blocked and photographed this past weekend, only two weeks later.

Feministy created this lovely pattern, Traveling Woman, which is lovely to knit, and a free pattern to boot! As a sideline, I am seriously coveting some of her Femme Fatale Fibers yarn. Lovely!

Back to the subject at hand, the pattern is straightforward, and I can tell my lace skills are improving, as I only had to tink back a row once while knitting this.

Even before blocking, the pattern is visible and appealing. I used less than two skeins of Shibui Sock in Poppy, which I purchased on my Boston trip last fall.

I'm so big on semi-solid yarns like this, and I really love the Shibui Sock base. I purchased another couple of skeins in the Wasabi colorway from Clumsy's Flocks of Yarn.

My grandfather commented to me this weekend that I should make my grandmother one in a shade this bright.

He says a girl needs some color in her life, at any age. I want to keep this one for me, but the next shawl I make for my grandmother will indeed be in a bright shade than the first.

See? Even Olias wants in on this shawl.

Raveled

In case you're wondering the name of the shawl is a Spoon song, one of my favorites!