Day: March 7, 2009

I love this blanket! Brilliantly easy & so cheery! Just what I need though, another blanket to never finish ;o)
sarah london: The Wool Eater Blanket.

Tonight I had the pleasure of shopping at the new yarn shop in town, Loop & Leaf. Celeste the owner is a fantastic gal! The shop is gorgeous. Light, airy, yet warm and inviting. Her selections of yarn is to die for. Seriously, TO DIE FOR! ShibuiKnits, Jamieson, Cherry Tree Hill, Sheep Shop Yarn, Fleece Artist, Hand Maiden, Tilli Tomas and others I am sure I am forgetting. Oh, Mongolian Cashmere. Plus some more.

All I can say is WOW! I can’t believe we now have a third yarn store here in Santa Barbara that has a completely different yarn selection! I was so happy. So very, very happy.

And, as Tracy will point out, she has her yarns grouped by colour. ‘Nuff said. It rocks.

I had to purchase, the christening of a new yarn shop is always a must.

Sheep Shop Yarn Company
Color G124 in Sheep Number Three sport weight yarn

ShibuiKnits Merino Alpaca
Color Pagoda, dark orange

I plan on designing a hat to show off the beauty of the merino alpaca Shibuiknits. It’s an unbelievably beautiful yarn. A piece of art really. The color saturation and variation in shades in the spin & ply of the yarn is deep and rich.
I am very excited to knit with it. I love when a yarn speaks to me!

Off to ball up my 2 new pretties!!!

You Are 96% A Child of the 80s

There’s hardly a moment of the 80s that you missed out on. Was there ever a better decade? As if!

http://www.blogthings.com/areyouachildofthe80squiz/

I have been on a bit of a small item bender lately. No big sweaters being whipped out here! Oh, no! It’s all small things like Pantas, Calorimetry’s, brioche scarves, Zigzag scarves, socks (not fancy ones either, just plain Stockinette kids socks) and the like. I would love to be in a sweater mode but it just doesn’t seem to be happening. I have a feeling that until all the baby items and Christmas gifts are done I won’t be starting, or finishing, any sweaters.

Here are a few little things I finished yesterday.

That is another Panta/Drops pattern using Tatamy Tweed dk on size 6 needles.

Here is a Calorimetry from Knitty using Red Heart Soft Yarn multi

I found this cute button while looking for a specific button in my box and thought it was perfect!

You just can’t beat this yarn for the price. It’s washable, doesn’t lose shape, doesn’t pill terribly, doesn’t felt and is so soft & delicious. The color variation is perfect so you don’t get pooling, spiraling or strange stripey things. It’s truly a multi-color yarn! And how perfect for fall!

It’s a little big for Sadie so this one will be mine but I will have to make her another with less cast on stitches.

I have babies arriving from all areas of my life; life-long friends, church friends, family members. So I better get movin’ on the baby item front.
Here is a beanie started for a friend. Her kids all wear beanies all the time so she will recieve an assortment of colors and sizes for this little guy. I am thinking 6 or so, some knit some crochet, since I am not making a blankie or any other large items. Maybe I will throw in a few bibs or something.

Overall that is where my knitting time is going. No magical, ridiculously fast knits here. Just pluggin’ along.

My Rowan 4 ply Cotton in Opaque arrived today, all the way from the UK. It didn’t take me much time at all to get started working on Joy from Rowan 41.

And here is the start of Joy

I know, I know. I have a lot of projects going on right now. But really, it’s only 3 I am actually working on; the Mystery Stole, the Sahara and now Joy. I got the swatch & all done for the aluminum shaped lace tee but decided that Joy should come first. I have been anxiously awaiting this project and now I can begin!

Okay, I am still having issues posting articles & for some reason a draft wasn’t saved of this one so here I am again, trying to post it all again. Here goes.

Firstly, thank you so much for the prayers & well wishes for George. He was just dehydrated so they hooked up an IV and he was home after just a couple of hours. I will say, he learned his lesson! He’s taken his diet seriously, started to really exercise more actively (2-3 nights of soccer league a week) but for some reason his daily dose of diabetes meds has been the thing he lets slip. And, drinking enough water on weekends. Weekdays, no problem staying hydrated. This bout with dehydration was a mix of a lack of water, meds and eating too much fruit. Yes, fruit is his enemy. Sad, isn’t it? Needless to say, he’s fine now, back at work and we won’t let that happen again. He’s not one to repeat mistakes usually ;o)

On to knitting.

After such a crappy day yesterday I was happily surprised by some gorgeous yarn in the mail (and it has a pattern waiting for it too)

Colourmart 100% silk, Aluminum, DK weight, 150 grams 550 yards

That is the Shaped Lace Tee from Knitting Lingerie Style

Here is my gauge swatch, the bottom half is on 7’s and the top half on 6’s. I like how the gauge on the 6’s looks but he 7’s matches gauge and I will have to wear a cami underneath anyways so I don’t mind it a little drapey.

I haven’t cast on yet but I will soon enough!

I also received my Beadwrangler order of 6/0 beads yesterday for the Sahara sweater neckline, cuffs and hem.

from left to right: Old Ivory Opaque #117, Garnet Lustre Opaque #442, Crystal s/l #120, Red s/l #404, Light Beige Pearl #212

Here they are on the yarn

My favorite is the first on the right, Garnet Lustre Opaque #442. The second on the right, the Light Beige Pearl #212 is my second choice. The picture of the tub is a more accurate color for the beige pearl, farthest on the right.

This sweater is a relatively straightforward knit. I am working down the body just about to start the hip increases. Then the shirt tail hem with beading. I am hoping to just string them & randomly knit them in.

Chart F on the Mystery Stole is next up for today.

I love the Isabella so much I had to find a suitable yarn to substitute for the Rowan 4 ply cotton. Not sure why I wanted a substitute yarn but I did. Actually, I remembered that the Brown Sheep Cotton Fine is the same gauge and I have wanted to try it for ages so there you have it.

Of course, I bought it from my favorite place to get Brown Sheep wools (other than Lambs Pride through K&P), Oregon Trail Yarn & Books.

Oh so pretty, New Age Teal

I started  a new project this evening with some of my new yarn. Tracy & I ordered a whole crapload of Peaches ‘n Creme cotton cones for various things.

 One thing that I need badly is the Mason Dixon Amazing Absorba bathmat. Chocolate brown for my bathroom & charcoal grey for the kids bathroom. One thing I have never understood when ordering from Elmore-pisgah is that they send free sweatshirt inserts, this time a camel~ looky here

You are supposed to cut a regular sweatshirt (not sweater) and sew it in as a panel.
Honestly, who is going to use that? And if you would, please leave a comment & let me know what you would use it for. I am so interested!

I have 4 of the 9 log cabin blocks done. I think I will go as far as I can with the 2 cones or I will make a second mat for the sink if I have enough left on the cones after the first. I am using 2 strands on size 13’s instead of 3 strands on size 15’s. I knew my left hand couldn’t stand up to that kind of strongman knitting. I already have used arthritis cream & have my handy thera-gloves on (inside out cuz the damn seams cut into my skin). I sound like I’m 80, don’t I?? haha And switched from continental to english (or american) style to give my left hand a break. It’s not as fast but less pain so it’s worth the trade off.

Something else I haven’t shown you is the sweater I finished for Knit & Pearl using Manos Del Uruguay cotton.

That was a hard red to get a good picture of.  Overall I am pleased although I will say that yarn is not my favorite to work with. There were multiple knots in each hank. It had a nice hand though and was very soft.

Okay, off to knit until dawn…not really….

 

I just spent way more time reading the new issue of Knitty than I should have. Here are the 2 patterns that WILL be made by me at some point in the not too distant future:

Isabella by Jordana Paige
I love her patterns, she wrote Starsky among other things.

Clessidra socks

Now, that sock pattern reminds me of another sock pattern that I have yet to tell you about. Well I did mention it but never the full story. The lovely, gorgeous Entrelac socks by Eunny Jang in the IK spring ’07. I cast them on the night I got the mag in the mail. I used some sock yarn I had on hand from Over the Rainbow Yarns (linked on the sidebar). Perfect colors, gorgeous pattern, matched gauge- or at least I thought so. Obvi my gauge changed from stockinette to doing entrelac. Because, I got the entire leg up to where I would start the cuff (that is all the way to my knee folks) and decided I should try it on.

Now, before you think ‘ why did she wait so long before trying it on?’, I did try it on after turning the heel and doing two tiers. It fit fine, a tad snug but I have other socks that are much more tight & they are more than functional.

So, I pull it on, oh shit. I pull some more. Not going on. No way, no how. Unfortunately my skinny ankles are not skinny enough apparently, for the lack of leg shaping above the ankles for 6″. I should have increased at about 4″ and then again at 6″. But I didn’t know that. So, I ripped out the entire sock to the heel turn. Yes, 5 full days of knitting only that sock & I ripped it out in less than 5 minutes. My husband kept apologizing to me while watching to make sure I didn’t have a brain aneurism from anger. Anger at myself, Eunny for the perfectly beautiful sock that was almost mine. So here it is, ripped out & waiting to be re-knit.

 (I am not giving it the satisfaction of a great picture)

Honestly I am not sure I will ever be able to bring myself to knit them again. I loved doing it the first time, it wasn’t a chore. I have a feeling the second time is going to be more than a chore. I have plans, ideas for the second time around. My own short row heel pattern, knit them both at once either magic loop or on 2 circs so they can easily be tried on after every set of tiers (not tears, I will say it is a damn good thing I was not pms’ing when it happened or I may have just burned them in the fireplace outside).

Deep breath.

Until now I couldn’t even talk about it without getting angry. But that is life when you knit other peoples patterns.

So after my 2 socks on 2 circs class last night I came home & cast on for a hat that I am going to teach colorwork with at Knit & Pearl.

I am happy with it, it’s simple 2 color fair isle. Teaches the basics. My color choice could have been better but I do like how it turned out. The class is April 19 & 26 at Knit & Pearl.

I have been trying to post since last Friday and had nothing but trouble between blogharbor and IE. It’s a new problem that I have not encountered before and may have found a way around it. I will have to post pictures in separate posts so that I don’t lose all words plus pics. I had 2 GREAT posts too that have now been lost to the www world and will never return. I think we should call the world wide web, world war three. Just a thought.

So I am completely prepared for my first sock class that I am teaching tonight over at Knit & Pearl. I wouldn’t say that makes me ready but I am prepared.

I am still sticking to my list. I have been working on the Jefferson and my cream sweater. I can now knock Sadie’s sweater and the sock class sock off the list. That is joyous! I do love both of the sweaters that I am working on, lots of simple pretty cables to keep me interested without the hassle of charts or patterns to memorize. 2 and 4 row cables, what could be simpler? well, stockinette of course but that I was trying to be rhetorical. nice try, chaun.

I am really trying my hardest to keep from casting on for another Starsky. After Tracy finished hers I am swatched and swatched with one yarn I have but could not match gauge. I gave up and reminded myself that I have “a list” now that needs to be adhered to so I can actually accomplish some things! gosh.

So now I must prepare dinner early so that I can get my kiester out the door on time for my class ~whisper~ I am really trying to get there early to do a bit of shopping in the store before the class starts ~end of whisper~