weekend update

Finally, after very slow progress, a scarf from Kidsilk Night is finished. Never again. I clenched the needles so tightly the entire time that I was knitting this lovely little cloud that I ended up needing a stick-on magnetic heating pad on each shoulder. However, the recipient is special and I do not begrudge the time or discomfort. Instead I thought of her the entire time that I was knitting and sent many good thoughts her way. Today I will block, but right now it is all puffy:

This morning I cast off a ripple stitch scarf for myself. Still needs to be blocked, but here’s a shot from yesterday, when I was close to finishing:

It is made with alternating strands of a semi-solid, Oasis Yarn Seduction Silk,

and a two-plied sock yarn from Rio De La Plata.

Knitting a scarf with sock yarn takes a little more time than knitting with worsted! My last three scarves have been with very lightweight yarns, all very enjoyable to knit.

I have some Big Kureyon drying - I soaked it yesterday because I plan to knit something with it that does not like to be blocked. That’s right, I am so in love with my first Clapotis that I have to make another one. Every time I wear it I get comments. Casual, but elegant and drapey. It looks great with a denim jacket and still works at the office.

Meanwhile, I will be swatching for a jacket or sweater. I would like to knit one more big winter project before thoughts of spring take over. I think I have knit thirteen scarves this season. Seems like a nice round number.

In the backyard, a sharp-shinned hawk has taken to perching on top of one of the bird feeders every morning. A broad-shouldered hawk and a Northern harrier have also been frequent visitors. I will be trying for some good photos.

If you would, please leave a comment with your favorite podcast. Somehow I wound up with an iPhone. : - )

 

Hole-y Bias Scarf

Hole-y Bias Scarf

I wrote out some detailed instructions for the bias scarf in the previous post. It’s just a setup with increases on each end of the right side rows, a straight section, and a decrease section.

Using some sock yarn, I swatched another version:

It is knit on US 7s. When finished, I plan to wet block it to make it lace-like.

I finished the neon version and sent it off to my sister. I also finished a feather and fan scarf knit in Silk Garden Lite. I plan to give it to my friend Pam on Sunday when we have our quarterly artist’s date.

 

Just call me the Scarf Lady

Somehow I have become the Scarf Lady. My sister requested scarves for her crew, and my daughter requested one - a first for her. My friend Mel’s son is on the list, and a couple of seekrit scarves are in the queue as well.

I double-stranded some Opal solid sock yarn with hand-dyed that my sister unearthed from her basket to make an off-center Feather and Fan scarf. Status - FO. Enough yarn is left to make some fingerless mitts - just right for someone who has a cell phone duct taped to her head.

This scarf is knit on the bias with a row of yarn overs and k2tog’s every 8th row. It is wide for a scarf - ten inches - and can be used as an emergency hat since I know this person leaves the house without one all too often. The colors are a little neon for my taste but the recipient picked the yarn. The repeats are flowing nicely without pooling. I’m more than halfway finished.

Meanwhile, my own projects are languishing, but all of this scarfing will be finished up soon enough. The other recent scarves are over at flickr.

In other news, we are headed to the Birchmere this evening. We will be seeing the Carolina Chocolate Drops and the Austin Lounge Lizards, eating the B-mere’s mediocre food, and most likely meeting up with lots of local music friends.

 

knitting: perfect antidote for a working weekend

On Friday at 5 I found out I would working part of the weekend. It’s all good.
The weather is breezy and not too warm, so I have been taking breaks out on the deck with my knitting. Yesterday evening I finished the back of Rich’s sweater. The stitch pattern is not terribly visible in this photo. The basketweave makes a subtle contrast in the shading of the yarn.

While we were at the beach I fooled around with yarns and gauge on my mom’s shawl. I finally added two plain yarns. Intermittently I am varying the number of rows with each color. It’s a very soft and springy fabric.

The sweater due date is mid-August, and the shawl is early October, but I find myself knitting on both of them when I should probably concentrate on the sweater first. I find myself browsing lace patterns and knitting little swatches. While we were at the beach I made several. Love those Barbara Walker books.

 

beach knitting coming up

We are headed to the beach for a few days. YAY! The beach knitting is ready to go.

My mom requested brown and heavy for a shawl. Much as I want to make her happy, I can’t knit a rug when I was planning to knit lace. My compromise is that I will knit something with a dk-weight, not make too many holes in it, and find something in the brown/tan family that I can look at. An important requirement is easy washability, but I wanted mostly wool. I spent time at Uniquities after mulling over several possibilities. I came home with this:

and also some Lamb’s Pride Superwash. I started swatching with two strands held together. When I liked what I had, I used the ball winder and now I have this very portable little project:

The yarn repeats cover my horizontal rows nicely, the solid yarns match perfectly with the Trekking, and I have a dk weight. Mom’s birthday is not until October so I will have a great headstart on her gift. Bonus, the weather will not be too sticky for knitting outdoors.

This is probably not going to the beach:

I hope to finish up the back today. I started armhole shaping last night. I ripped out the entire back after my last photo because I hated the stockinette that was between the ribbing and the main pattern. I also knit two rows yesterday morning while I was waiting for the coffee to be ready and did not find my pre-caffeine mistake until many rows later. dang.

 

First Lace

When I went to MSW in May, I got a great deal on some half-price Silk Garden Lite. I knew right away that I would try some lace with it. I made a scarf with two repeats of Feather and Fan, with two garter stitches on each side. With the studio all nice and tidy, I finally had a place to block it.

Last night I did a swatch of the same pattern with some sock yarn, and another swatch with some laceweight Morehouse Merino. I’m planning a very simple wrap for my mom’s birthday gift. When I visit her next weekend I would like to have several swatches in different weights so that she can choose what she likes.

Finished socks: Trekking XXL. Almost identical twins.

 

on the needles

When I was at Maryland Sheep and Wool last month I saw some Trekking in tan and light blue. I did not want to wait in line - the booth was crowded with sweaty people, the line was long, and technology was S L O W.

Then last week I was at Uniquities looking for laceweight (shawl for mom) and I saw the yarn again. I had to buy it. I cast on the first sock while we were at Kingstowne. There is not one single repeat in the first sock. I am not sure I found a repeat to start the second one. The socks are destined to be fraternal twins.

In other news, I got a new batch of fresh dye to continue the string experiments. I gave two of the experiments to Pam at her opening on Friday. I figured out a way to scour the skeins more thoroughly.