Too many things on the needles!

It finally feels like fall here in Kentucky, and with the change in the temperatures, I've found myself casting on lots of projects. Since I last posted, I've swatched for and cast on Rafters, made one bad "chain mail" hood/cowl, and completed an acceptable "chain mail" hood/cowl.

I've been making good progress on my husband's Java socks, with just about an inch or so to go before I can do the toe decreases and sew the ends shut. I'm still very happy about the colors - they're gorgeous -and I like how the variations in the colors are distributing themselves around the feet. I can't wait for my husband to have another pair of toasty hand knit socks!

As for the Hanami stole, the progress is a lot slower. Here, I've been plodding along, doing a few rows here, a few there, generally trying to get through a set of beading or two before I set it down. The stole is beginning to look more like the pattern and I like how the beads are giving a little weight to the fabric. I'll be glad to get though this section though, and move on to a zippy stretch of stockinette.

My new sweater project, Rafters, is from the current issue of Twist Collective. I'm using the yarn I bought while I was in Michigan this summer, and I love what I've knit up so far. I had to go down a needle size to achieve the required stitch gauge, and though my row gauge is a little bit off, the designer has kindly written the pattern to specify lengths, rather than numbers of rows, so I should be just fine. I'm probably not going to use this project as commuting or meeting knitting, as the cables will require my close attention, especially since I'm doing the first two charts at the same time.

Lastly, now that it's October, I've been thinking about Halloween, and what I should do for a costume. In years past I've been Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas and Buttercup from The Powerpuff Girls, making both costumes myself. I hadn't really planned on dressing up this year, but since I was invited to a party, I thought it would be fun to have something new. One of my favorite movies of all time is Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and my favorite Python is Michael Palin, so I decided that this year I would dress up as Sir Galahad the Chaste, complete with chain mail, tunic, sword, and shield.

So far I've only gotten the hood/cowl completed, and only after having made a really bad one out of a too-bulky acrylic. I used the Utah Shakespearean Festival pattern that I found on Ravelry. For the first one I followed the pattern closely, knitting it flatas directed, but I used a yarn much too bulky to look like it could be chain mail. It's pretty lame. For the second one, I used a cotton worsted-weight yarn (Bernat Handicrafter Cotton DeLux) generally intended for washcloths, but which I thought might drape a little more like metal than an acrylic or wool would. Using a thinner yarn made such a difference! The fabric is much more open, and if I can add just a hint of metallic color on top of it, it could look a little like tarnished metal. At least from a distance, anyway.


Well, that about catches us up for now. I still have to make myself a tunic, shield and sword in addition to some chain mail sleeves in time for Halloween, but it should be simple knitting and simple sewing, so I'm not all that worried. The shield and sword will take a little more doing, but I have access to lots of cardboard at work, so I just hope to be able to make those without too much trial and error. I'll post as I have more progress. Until next time, Friends.

In Memoriam

I've been thinking about this post for a couple weeks, since my knitting friend, Jan, died. Her death was unexpected, leaving our group stunned and saddened. Jan was kind and generous, with a quietly sardonic wit. She was devoted to her family, especially her niece. What I didn't know, at least until after she died, is that she was comparatively new to knitting. One of things I'll remember most about her was her willingness to untangle other people's yarn. She spent weeks undoing a pile of yarn barf that anyone else probably would have written off. She will be missed.

The day after we all found out about her passing was our usual Thursday night group get together. Jan's sisters sent over her yarn stash, insisting that Jan's friends have some of her yarn. As we were going through it, many of us noticed that there was a lot of Cascade 220 in there, and so we decided that we would make squares for a blanket to give to the niece that Jan loved so much. For myself, I took a skein of Kentucky Blue Fiber Co. Alpaca 2 ply sport weight. I imagine Jan might have chosen it for its rich color, thinking it would become a really luxurious little accessory.

With that in mind, I searched the Ravelry pattern database for projects that called for 200 yards of sport weight yarn. As soon as I saw the pattern for the Elis cowl, I knew it was just the right thing to make from Jan's yarn. It was a super quick knit: it took me about 2 evenings to finish the knitting and I was able to block it the next day. I love it. It has a soft, elegant drape that makes me wish I had something better than a bunch of printed t-shirts to wear with it.

It still feels strange thinking of Jan in the past tense, like she only missed a couple of knit nights, but she'll be at the next one, knowing that she won't, really. But we all feel that way when someone we care about dies.

Until next time, Friends.

Finally, I can talk about it!

Today CookieA's new collection of patterns, CookieA Knitwear Volume 1: Shapes + Form, was released which means that I can finally talk about the samples I knit this summer. I can't say enough about how much fun I had knitting these three accessories and now I want to make some to keep. I also want to make a few of the garments, which are so interesting, I can't stand it.

The first of the sample knits was the Cylinder Cowl, knit from Lorna's Laces Shepherd Wool. The yarn in tandem with the stitch pattern made a fabric with such a beautiful drape and a supple hand that I'm having a hard time describing it. The yarn is listed on Ravelry as aran weight, but it's so lofty that it felt like a light worsted as I knit it up. It was so awesome to knit with! All my friends who got to feel it while I was knitting it remarked on how great it felt. It's definitely worth getting your hands on a skein of this yarn to knit this cowl. The stitch pattern was easily memorized and zipped along quickly. The cables drew the selvedges in quite a bit, but blocking took care of all that. Sadly, I only remembered to take photos of my swatches, so that's all there is here.

The second sample I knit was the Dome Hat, knit from Stonehedge Fiber Mills Shepherd's Worsted. Not long ago I wrote about my trip to the mill; it was inspired by this project. The hat knit up quickly, too, and the yarn had such excellent stitch definition that I was pleased with this project even before I washed and blocked it. I didn't add the buckle that's shown in the e-book, but isn't it just the right finishing touch?

The last of the accessory samples I knit was the Slant Mitts. These, I think, were the fastest of the three to complete. They're mostly ribbed, with a couple of simple lace inserts. Since there weren't any right/left directions to worry about, the second mitt went as quickly as the first. I'm in love with this yarn too. I actually have two skeins of Miss Babs' yarn in my stash, but they're sock yarn that I bought at Sock Summit last year. I really liked working with the Yowza, and I think my favorite thing about this yarn is how rich and saturated the color is. I haven't really ever thought I wanted a pair of fingerless mitts, but now that I've made these, they might come in handy this winter when my basement is all cold and uncomfortable.

As for the garments, I definitely want to make the Rotation Cardigan; I just have to save up for a minute to be able to afford the specified yarn. I also like Slope, which uses the Miss Babs Yowza, but I'm not sure it would look right on my figure. Maybe I can reward myself with this sweater if I meet my weight loss goal by next fall. It's good incentive, right? Lastly, I like the Pivot Pullover, but I'm not sure I'd have the patience for all that stockinette in a laceweight yarn. The interesting construction might make up for it, but I'm not sure.

Well, that's all I have for tonight. Next time, I hope to be able to show some progress pictures of Zori. Until then, Friends!