Sandpiper Knits

Red Scarf Project 2011

2011-12-01T11:56:00.001-05:00

For the second year in a row, I have knit a scarf for the Red Scarf Project of Foster Care to Success. These scarves are packed in care packages and sent to students in college or trade school who have "grown out of" foster care. The packages are sent for Valentines' Day (which explains why all of the scarves are red).

Here are the details about the scarf:

Pattern: The Yarn Harlot's One Row Handspun Scarf Pattern. I use this "pattern" all of the time. It is so easy and creates a great textured, reversible, non-rolling scarf. I love how the colors in overdyed yarn run through fabric knit using this stitch pattern. This scarf is 38 stitches across.

Yarn: I wanted something worsted weight, wool and washable, so I chose Swish tonal from Knitpicks. It is in the Gypsy colorway.

Needles: Size US 7.

I haven't gotten a good picture of this scarf. The lighting in my office isn't doing it justice, and I'm ready to mail it away.

Ongoing Projects

2011-11-15T14:51:00.001-05:00

Rabbit Run Scarf

Even though I haven't posted in a while, I'm still knitting. I have at least two finished objects I need to photograph and post; I'm hoping to do that soon.

In the meantime, I am knitting, but I haven't landed on the next "big thing." I'm working on finishing some projects that I started previously while I wait for inspiration to strike.

One Emmaus Lanyard

The image to the right is a scarf I'm working on. It's 2 x 2 ribbing with alternating two row stripes of a pair of yarns I picked up in Alaska. More details are in this post, but the two yarns are by Rabbit Run, in the water and wildberry colorways. Wildberry looks a lot like water, but includes a cranberry color along with the water colors. Because the two yarns have much in common, the scarf doesn't look striped, but blends very well. It's the project I pick up when I don't have anything else to knit, or when I need a movie knitting project. Eventually, it will get finished.

The next two pictures are of some lanyards I knit to be used by my Emmaus Community for pilgrim's crosses. About 30 or so are required for each walk. The gentleman who used to knit them worked on them all year round, knitting away. He died, so the community has picked up his ministry.

Twelve Lanyards

They are made using Red Heart yarn, Mexicana colorway, with a French (or spool) knitter. Even my husband picked up the needles for this one. We each knit 12 of them. For pattern information, just google Emmaus lanyard. It is simply a 24 inch long i-cord.
I tried knitting one with double pointed needles, but the result was not as neat as with the spool knitter. These were quiet a distraction for a while, taking me away from my other knitting.
Soon, I'll post about this year's Red Scarf Project and the hat I just finished.

Mitered Cross Blanket

2011-08-29T21:55:00.001-04:00

It's finally finished and has been delivered to his dorm room. Meet my Mitered Cross Blanket. It is probably the biggest thing I have ever knit by size. Maybe something I've done has had more stitches, but I'm positive nothing has measured this large.

We moved our son to college a couple of weekends ago, and I packed this blanket in a care package with snacks and supplies, along with a letter, explaining about the blanket.

The details

Yarn: I used all Knitpicks yarn -- Chroma and Wool of the Andes (WotA) .G is a freshman at West Virginia Wesleyan College. The school colors are orange and black; that dictated the colors of the blanket.

Chroma in Smoothie. I used more less than one skein to make 3 squares
WotA in Coal. I used 3 skeins to make 4 squares and to do the edging iCord
WotA in Orange. I used two skeins to make four squares and had almost none left.
WotA in Cobblestone Heather. I used two skeins to make four squares.
WotA in Dove Heather. I think I used 19 skeins as the background color for 15 squares and 6 half squares.

Needles: US Size 6 Knitpicks options needles. I used both the nickel plated and harmony interchangable needles, depending on my mood. For the icord, I used nickle plated dpn.

Pattern: Mitered Cross blanket for Japan by Kay Gardiner of Mason-Dixon Knitting. Here's the Ravelry link, and here is a link to April in Mason-Dixon Knitting. If you scroll down, you'll see Kay's blanket and a link to buy the pattern -- proceeds go to Japanese Earthquake relief. I love that buying the pattern benefits others, and I hope when I told that to my son, it said something to him about serving others and its importance. My son is over six feet tall, so I added two rows of squares to the blanket for a total of 15 squares in six rows. I did the icord in a contrasting color (coal). I liked the look it gave the blanket -- it just seemed right for G. I added a yarn over to the icord repeats -- knit-knit-yarn over-knit through back loop, and then I passed the yarn over over the final knit two together through back loop. Somehow the yarn over covered the stripe. By the way, go buy the pattern -- even if you don't plan to make the blanket. It's a good thing to do.

I stitched a cross (Faith), an anchor (hope) and a heart (love) in the corner.

And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

Size: I thought I was making a 6 foot by 3 foot blanket. It turned out to be 8 feet by 3 feet, 3 inches. I have no idea how it ended up so long, but he'll have lots of room to snuggle in this behemoth.

Final thoughts -- This is a great pattern that is interesting enough to knit for a long time (3 months) but simple enough to not be frustrating. I enjoyed the knitting. It was a great project to carry me through the transition of my son's high school graduation and his summer before college. I was able to knit my love into something warm to leave with him at school -- something that left an important message about caring for others. Something that told him how much he is loved.

He texted his dad a picture of his newly lofted bed today. Check out what's up there -- the blanket. Cool.

Tools for knitting

2011-08-19T13:22:00.003-04:00

What's in your knitting tool bag? I carry a small tool bag in my knitting bag -- I've tried to make sure it has any kind of tool I might need as I knit. I emptied it out and tool a picture of it so that you can see it.
Contents:

Three dpn -- bamboo. I'm not sure what size, but I keep them in there to pick up stitches or serve as a cable needle.
Two crochet hooks -- bamboo. They are part of a set of hooks I have. They are in the bag because I labor under the illusion that I can use them to pick up stitches when I drop them, or when I let them drop to fix mistakes. In reality, I don't find them very helpful, very often.
Blue ink pen -- I read somewhere to keep one in my tool bag, so I do, but it doesn't get much use. It's a Zebra brand pen, though -- I love Zebra pens.
Tape measure -- it's from Lantern Moon, and looks like a lady bug. I had one that looked like a sheep, but our dog ate it (or a large piece of it).
Metal box filled with ephemera. I decorated it with a sheep on the lid, which has since worn off. I keep thinking I'll repaint it, but I've never gotten around to it.
Four small plastic boxes of plastic red and blue stitch markers. I use them sometimes, and I like having them in lots of different sizes. They are so inexpensive, that if I lose one, I don't care. My husband might care, because he is always finding them.
End caps for the Options cables when I remove the needles
Safety pins
Those things you put on the ends of needles so the stitches don't fall off -- what are those called? These are green and small, for sock needles.
Green plastic box with Knitpicks cable connectors and several of the small tools used to tighten the needles to the cables for their Options line. Love those needles!
Blue box with handmade decorative stitch markers -- more about those later. The two plastic boxes, which I really like, came from the Container Store.
Chibi storage tube with needles for weaving in ends. I'm not sure why the point is bent; I guess it helps with the end weaving.
My favorite tool -- a pair of Gingher scissors. Back when I cross stitched instead of knit, I found these at a Cross Stitch store. They were expensive, but I thought they were beautiful (I still do). I didn't buy them, but just mentioned them to Steve. After that, for some gift event, he gave them to me. How's that for a wonderful guy? The scissors are probably older than my kids -- maybe not quite, but close. They are black, with very pointy tips. To this day, I only cut thread with them -- nothing else. Amazingly, they are still sharp, and I still know where they are!

I found the bag itself at the Counting House, a Cross Stitch store at Pawley's Island in South Carolina. It's the cradle of Cross Stitch in the United States, but has since closed. Great store; sad to see it leave. I bought the fish-bead charm that is the zipper pull on the bag at the gift store in the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery in Juneau, Alaska. Odd place to find it, but I liked it.

So, how about stitch markers. Do you make them? I do. I used to make the one with the danglely charms. I used them, but now I like the ones at the top of the picture. They don't dangle, and just seem to behave themselves better. All I do to make them is to split a jump ring, place a small bead at the join, return the ring to its proper position, using a little gorilla glue to hold the bead in place over the join. They work great, and the bead prevents the join in the ring from catching on the yarn.

Project Spectrum and Knitting

2011-08-16T13:21:00.001-04:00

I have been knitting. I've just been knitting on the same thing each time I knit, and I haven't taken the time to take images of it in progress.

The Mitered Cross blanket is finished and is currently blocking. I'll post a complete set of information for it this week, once I take its picture.

I'm also behind with my Project Spectrum posts. The blanket doesn't fit with June's, July's or August's colors. Instead, here's a green picture, taken the other day. When I get some time, I'll try to put together a collage of cruise pictures -- lots of blues.

Speaking of blue, I've changed the blog template. What do you think? I downloaded the template from btemplates.com -- I've never done that before. I've always just used internal blogs from Blogger. This morning, though, I looked at my knitting blog, and just didn't like it! I looked at replacements for the template among the ones offered by blogger, and nothing said "Choose me." Instead, I googled free Blogger templates, and found some recommendations for safe sites to use to download a new template. The ones on btemplates.com are rated by users, which was reassuring. I followed the instructions on the website, and it worked perfectly. I did have to go in and work a little with my gadgets, but it was time those were refreshed, anyway.

Back soon with knitting.

Mitered Crosses

2011-05-31T20:45:00.002-04:00

So what am I working on? I worked my way through one Deep Water sock, finishing it. I started the next one, but got distracted by another project.

I purchased the Mitered Cross pattern from Kay at Mason Dixon knitting. I have been thinking about knitting something for my older son as he begins college. I like the idea that the revenue from the pattern goes to Japan relief, because it says something about service that I want him to know. I like that the pattern is crosses, because it says something about faith that I want him to know. I chose colors that will match his knew college's school colors (orange and black). I like that it is knit by his mom, because that says something about love that I want him to know.

Mitered Crosses

So, my current project is Mitered Crosses. I'm planning on making it longer than in the pattern, because he is a long kid. So far, I have six squares completed. Rather than the Noro called for in the pattern, I'm using Knitpicks Chromo and four colors of Wool of the Andes. The two yarns seem to knit to the same gauge.

I'm just glad I don't have to seem them together. I'm hoping the method Kay uses to form the blanket is better than the one I used for the baby blanket!

Project Spectrum 2011 -- Red

2011-05-31T20:25:00.000-04:00

Just in the nick of time for Project Spectrum - Red.

I took these pictures one afternoon at Stonewall Resort. As I took them, I was thinking about Project Spectrum and how odd it was to see such a red tree on a day in May when everything around me was green. Scarlet maple is beautiful, though.

Works in Progress

2011-04-26T16:29:00.000-04:00

Right now I have two projects on the needles that are still WIP and not UFO.

I started the Koigu Linen Stitch Scarf from Churchmouse Yarns. I'm using two skeins of Koigu Yarn and one of Claudia's Handpainted yarn. All of those yarns are from Yarn Paradise in Asheville and can be seen in this post. The person who was helping me at the yarn store pointed the pattern out for me and helped me pick the colors. I might be about halfway through -- it is knit horizontally.

I have also started another pair of socks. This pair is knit with Knitpicks Stroll Tonal Yarn in Deep Waters. I am using a pattern from Socks That Rock, but, having learned lessons from the Emmaus Rainbow socks, went down in needle size to US size 1 and cast on 72 stitches. The pattern calls for 60, but that didn't seem to be enough. I love the color of the yarn, and I like this fabric much better.

See the mouse in the last picture? She's knitting. I bought her at Yankee Candle. It seemed appropriate to include her in a post that talks about Churchmouse yarns.

Emmaus Rainbow Socks

2011-04-24T16:18:00.001-04:00

Steve was an ALD on an Emmaus walk in March and at the end of March, beginning of April, I served as an LDIT. I knew that I would be serving in the background on Steve's walk (which would mean some sitting time) and that my position of a lay director in training meant that I would be observing the entire three day walk. It sounded like a portable knitting project would be ideal.

I decided on socks, and picked up my recently purchased Knitpicks Felici in Rainbow -- socks were off and running (excuse the pun). I started them the day the men's walk started and finished them the day the women's walk ended (a little more than two weeks).

Rainbow seemed appropriate since it is one of the symbols associated with an Emmaus Walk.

Pattern: The Yarn Harlot's "Good Plain Sock" from her book Knitting Rules (that's a Ravelry link).

Needles: I used double pointed, US size 1.5. I felt the entire time I was knitting that the needles were too large for the yarn and the fabric was too loosely knit. I didn't change. I'll probably regret that, but the socks are very soft.

Yarn: Two skeins of Knitpicks Felici Rainbow. I worked with the yarn so that I started at the same point of each skein in the color changes. The socks are almost identical.

Pickets Baby Blanket

2011-04-22T16:08:00.000-04:00

Yes, it has been a long time since I posted. I have been knitting, but I haven't been knit-blogging. I'll catch up. I think I'll start with the biggest project I've been working on and have just finished.

A young couple at our church was expecting a baby, and I decided to knit a blanket. We knew she was a she, so pink came to mind, but I worried I would get bored too soon to finish it. The mother and I share the Emmaus experience in common, and a rainbow seemed a great way to portray that connection and to remind the family of God's promises. The day after I decided to knit in rainbow colors, I found the Picket baby blanket pattern on Knitpicks. It seemed perfect.

Each stripe is knit separately and then sewn together. The knitting went rather fast -- it makes a great portable project, since it is knit in stripes. I discovered, though, that I hate HATE seaming. It is not portable, and I am not good at it.

Last weekend, I made myself spend several hours finishing it so that I could give it to the family before the (now born) baby girl went to college.

Pattern: Pickets baby blanket from Knitpicks. Knitpicks no longer carries all of the yarn called for in the pattern. I substituted bark for merlot heather, peapod for lemongrass heather, and bought the suggested moss to substitute for pampas heather. The pattern calls for 11 stripes. I ended up with 10 because I just do not like the moss at all.

Needles: US size 5, circular needles from Knitpicks. My row gauge was very much off, but I think this is a pattern problem. I do knit loosely, but each stripe calls for 248 rows to create a stripe (without the points) that is 34 inches long from point to point or about 30 inches not counting the points. That would be a row gauge of 33 rows = 4 inches. That pattern calls for a row gauge of 18 rows = 4 inches. It could be that there are 18 garter stitch ridges per 4 inches. That math comes out about right. I decided I would just knit the 248 rows, which came out at about the right length. It is a blanket, after all.

Yarn: 10 colors of Knitpicks Swish DK including seven heathers: amethyst, marble, garnet, persimmon, grain, tidepool, forest and delft plus two non-heathers -- bark and peapod. One skein of each was plenty.

CJ's baby blanket on a spring day in the park.

French Press Slippers

2011-02-01T21:52:00.000-05:00

Back in July -- yes, I know -- July, I started a pair of French Press slippers. I worked on them for an evening and then put them in a bag, and didn't pick them up again -- until December.

I finished both slippers and straps, felted them, dried them (took a long time to dry), and then left the pieces on the counter. For a month.

This evening I purchased the buttons and sewed the straps onto the shoes. Finally. Finished.

I thought I would count these as a 2010 finished object, but come on. I left the last little, tiny bit of work until February. I think I had better call them 2011.

Yarn: Paton's Classic Wool in a blue / red / purple / brown mix. I bought two skeins, although I didn't use all of the yarn. The feltable wool is absolutely necessary for this project.

Pattern: French Press Slippers by Melynda Bernardi. Once the knitting is finished, the slippers are felted. I wish (kind of) that I knit them a little smaller or felted them a little longer.

Needles: US Size 15

I like them!

The pattern is one you have to trust as you knit it. I wish I had taken a picture prior to felting. They looked like slippers for skinny footed giant.

Blogiversary

2011-01-31T21:29:00.004-05:00

Cake of yarn strips

Six years ago today I started my first blog to talk about knitting. It seemed to be a strange thing to do, but as many people who started blogs at the same time said, I was reading other knitting blogs and decided to try it as well.

It has been a great way to record my knitting projects -- an online knitting journal.

There was a very long break in 2007 and 2008 -- no knitting, no knitting blog. I'm glad to be back at both hobbies -- knitting and knitting blogging.

Picket Baby Blanket strips

The yarn cake is from my current project -- the Pickets Baby Blanket. The blanket is composed of simple garter stripes with pointing instead of flat ends. The yarn is Swish DK superwash from Knitpicks. The pattern is from Knitpicks as well.

I have three or four more stripes to finish, and then a whole lot of sewing to do.

Ugly Thing

2011-01-10T18:04:00.000-05:00

ar·ro·gance noun \ˈer-ə-gən(t)s, ˈa-rə-\ -- an attitude of superiority manifested in an overbearing manner or in presumptuous claims or assumptions (from http://www.m-w.com/)
Might I add another definition to the word? Arrogance is working a lace pattern without the use of lifelines. I didn't even think about using them. I am so used to being able to fix mistakes and move on that I, without thought, assumed I would be able to do that with this project, as well.

A couple of weeks ago I started the Yarn Harlot's Pretty Thing. I used a lovely black yarn that I bought in Myrtle Beach a year or two ago.

Start #1: I started it with double pointed needles, cast on and knitted for seven rows. I finally realized that I had twisted the circle. There is no cure for that mistake; I ripped it out. Sigh.

Start #2: I cast on again. This time I got rid of the double pointed needles - not sharp enough. I switched to Knitpicks Option. I've never really knit a circle with two circular needles. It worked; I was able to do it. I think I might like DPNs better, but this was working. I had made it to row 25 or so, when I noticed an error. I arrogantly decided I could fix it, and let down the column of stitches to pick it up correctly. No way. Not happening. The more I worked, the worse the mistake became. It was compounded by more and more mistakes. I finally threw in the towel and ripped it out again.

If I had used a lifeline, I could have gone back to a known correct point, but I didn't have one.

Will there be a Start #3? Probably, but not until after the project has a long LONG time in Time Out.

New Year, New Skill, New Yarn, New Swift

2011-01-01T20:04:00.003-05:00

Swish DK, Coal

When I first started knitting -- back in 2005, maybe? -- I did it as a new year's resolution. I wanted to try to learn something new. So I did. The next year, I made a resolution to knit a pair of socks, and I did.

This year, I think I want to try to improve (or create) some knitting with color skills -- maybe fair isle? I've purchased two books: Color Knitting the Easy Way (Melissa Leapman) and Mastering Color Knitting (also by Melissa Leapman). I think these will make a good start.

In order to try some practice knitting, I picked up a couple of skeins of Knitpicks Swish DK in Coal and Dove Heather.

Swish DK, Dove Heather

While I was placing a Knitpicks order, I took advantage of a sale on their yarn swift as well as replacing my ball winder. This has made winding yarn incredibly easy, and much faster. Great!

Christmas Gift Scarf

2010-12-30T17:18:00.001-05:00

Malabrigo Scarf for Mom

While we were in Asheville, I picked up three skeins of Malabrigo Twist yarn. I've never knit with this yarn before. Very soft, very cooshy. I liked it.

The colors reminded me of my mom, but the yarn store didn't have three hanks in all the same color -- I bought three different colors and worked out a way to use them all in the scarf.

Yarn: Malabrigo Twist yarn, one hank each in Cookie, Velvet Grape and Liquid Amber. I used all of the Cookie, and almost all of the other two.

Needles: Knitpicks Options (metal) in US size 9 with a 60 inch cable.

Pattern: No pattern, I just made something up. I cast on 300 stitches with color A (Liquid Amber). I knit the scarf in moss stitch (knit purl knit purl, etc, and then on the next row, I knit the purls and purled the knits). At the end of each row, I broke the yarn, leaving enough of a tail for fringe. The patten of colors I used was 2 of color A (Cookie), 1 row of color B (Velvet Grape), 2 rows of color C (Liquid Amber), 1 row of B, 2 rows of A, 1 row of B, 2 rows of C, etc. I hope that makes sense.

Size: I cast on 300 stitches, thinking that would give me a 5 foot long scarf, knit lengthwise. I ended up with a giant 7 foot, six inch scarf (not counting the fringe). Giant, I tell you! I should have cast on fewer stitches. It is six inches wide.

Red Scarf Project

2010-12-28T16:08:00.005-05:00

Red Scarf 2010

I've always been interested in the Red Scarf Project of the Orphan Foundation of America, but I've never remembered about it in time to actually knit a scarf.

This year I did. I bought the yarn at Yarn Paradise in Asheville, and knit the scarf.

Yarn: I used two skeins of Cascase 220 yarn -- one in red, and one in a red/black combination. I alternated them in 2 row stripes. The red in both yarns was the same.

Needles: KnitPicks metal Options, US size 8, on a 24 inch cord.

Pattern: No pattern, really. I cast on 38 stitches and knit a 2 x 2 ribbing.

Size: I didn't measure it, but it was my normal "at least five feet long" scarf, with no fringe.

I sent it to the Foundation on December 14; I hope they'll accept it a day late (the deadline was December 15). Before I mailed it, I said a prayer with it.

Knotty Gloves

2010-12-27T11:45:00.000-05:00

Another Finished Object!

Knotty Glove

Last night, I picked up my Knotty gloves and finished them. The last of the pair (and the first started -- see this post) had been waiting patiently other higher priority projects to be finished. I just had to add two fingers and a thumb, plus weave in all the ends.

Yarn: Socks that Rock, Lightweight, in Spinel. I ordered one hank, and have some left, so it took less than one hank. Love the yarn; love the color. Might need to find some scarf yarn that echoes the teal color.

Needles: 2.5mm double pointed harmony needles from Knitpicks. These were sock needles. I know they sell shorter needles that might be more appropriate for fingers of a glove, but short needles hurt my hands. The longer ones are fine, and I like double pointed needles.

Pattern: Knotty Gloves by Julie Mueller. This is a free downloadable pattern. It is easy to follow; nice pattern. I really like the cabling work on the back of the hand. The only change I made is that I knit the cuff about half the length the pattern calls for. If you are knitting them, keep that in mind when you consider yarn usage. I imagine one hank would still have done it, but I'm not sure.

Skills that are helpful to know for this pattern: Cabling, and if you can do it without a needle, the knitting will go faster. Here's a link that helped me when I first learned to do this -- excellent skill to master.

I wonder if I should have gone down a needle size; I seem to be learning that I knit at a looser gauge that what yarn and patterns normally call for, and of course, I didn't knit a swatch. They are OK in fit, but might have been better a little smaller.

Knitting gloves is great. You just try them on and knit the fingers to a custom length. That's really cool.

My only bummer about these gloves was that as I was finishing the weaving of ends, I noticed what looked like a moth hole in the cuff. Now I"m worried I have moths!

I would also like to know if there is a way to knot gloves without getting holes between the fingers. I go back when I'm finished and sew them together, but why are they there in the first place?

Asheville Stash Building

2010-12-26T17:06:00.001-05:00

Yarn Paradise, Asheville, NC

I've been posting about our trip to Asheville in relationship to the Traveling Scarf, so I thought I would post about the yarn portion of that trip.

We were very leisurely about our visit to Asheville, sleeping as late as we wanted and not keeping any kind of set schedule. It was great!

Before we went into Biltmore Estate, we stopped at a great yarn store called Yarn Paradise. I enjoyed the store. It is located in Biltmore Village. Next time I'm there, I would love to spend some time in just that shopping area. It looked great!

While at the store, I bought lots of yarn. You can match the list with the pictures in the collage. Count the squares starting from the top left corner and counting across. Pictures 1 and 2 are the top row and so on:

I picked up two skeins of Cascade 220 -- 100% wool yarn in red and a red/black combination. I have since used this yarn to knit a Red Scarf for the Red Scarf project. (pictures #7 and #8)

Yarns from Yarn Paradise

I bought three skeins of Malabrigo Twist -- one each of Cookie (#2), Velvet Grapes (#1) and Liquid Amber (#3). I've since used these three skeins for a Christmas present scarf (post coming).
I bought two skeins of Koigu -- one in a mainly blue combination (Koigu 470 - #5) and one in a combination of teals (Koigu 581 - #6).
I also picked up a Claudia Handpaints in Plumicious (#4).

Traveling Scarf

2010-12-04T20:15:00.006-05:00

In November, Steve and I took a trip to Asheville, North Carolina to spend the weekend, visiting Biltmore Estate. We didn't leave until after a board meeting I had in the evening, so we drove in the dark the entire trip south. I knew I would need knitting that I could do in the dark -- a simple scarf was the ticket.

I took Wednesday off from work after we got back and went to see two movies, and then one with the my guys on Friday, and again on Saturday -- the scarf made a great movie knitting project, especially for Harry Potter.

So, meet another finished object -- my traveling scarf. It is knit from yarn purchased in Alaska, knit on a trip to North Carolina (through a total of six states) and then knit on a trip to Harry Potter land.

Yarn: As I said, I purchased the yarn in Scagway, Alaska. It is Raven Frog Fiber Arts Marvelous Merino (superwash yarn). The color is Princess Matsoutoff's Gown -- a nice combination of blue, green and purple. I like how the colors zig zag through the scarf. It was a skein of 550 yards -- I have a nice amount left.

Needles: The final choice was US size 7 needles. I started it with US size 8, and knit about four inches. On the way back from Asheville, I finally gave into the idea that the fabric was too holy and drapey -- I ripped and started again with the US 7 - much better. I also liked the flow of color using the US 7.

Pattern: Once again, it its the Yarn Harlot's One Row Handspun Scarf (Ravelry link) . I cast on 38 stitches and knit about 5 feet.

What I have learned

2010-12-01T20:17:00.005-05:00

I was listening to Cast On (a podcast) on the way home this evening. The conversation the Brenda was having with someone (I can't remember who, now) was about knitting mistakes and how to correct them.

I started listing (in my head) the most useful things I have learned about knitting since I started in 2005. Here is some of my list, in no particular order:

I know how to differentiate between a knit stitch and a purl stitch by the way they lay on the needle. This is immeasurable helpful! (A knit stitch looks like a scarf around a neck; a purl stitch looks like the scarf is on backwards -- isn't that a funny way to remember it?)
I have learned how to drop a stitch and correct a mistake that is a few rows back. I can make cables twist in the opposite direction (changing the direction from the wrong way to the right way). I can pick up a dropped stitch and knit it up the line. I can correct a missing decrease and add in an increase. Corrections such as this, made in a vertical manner, have saved me endless amounts of tinking and ripping.
I have learned to count. Count. Count. Count the rows and make sure the counts are correct. Use markers. Use whatever it takes to make sure the number of stitches on the needles is correct.
I've learned how to read a chart. I love charts.
I've learned if there is a mistake that is bothering me, it will always bother me. It is best to fix it, even if it means starting over, or unknitting many rows.
I've learned if there is something I don't know how to do, that someone on the Internet already knows how to do it, and has posted the information, probably with a video. I just need to look for it.
I've learned how to knit continental style. This awakened my sleeping crochet skills of yarn tensioning -- I knit better continental style, and I knit faster.
I've learned how to knit cables without a cable needed. Tremendously helpful.
There are only two stitches, and very little is too hard. It's all just those two stitches and following directions.
I've learned to remember that knitting is supposed to be fun. If it's not fun, why do it?

Traveling Scarf

2010-11-28T20:45:00.002-05:00

We drove to Asheville last weekend, leaving Ashland after my Emmaus Board meeting. I knew that meant that we would be driving in the dark, so I wanted a simple knitting project that I could knit without seeing it.

I took the Raven Frog yarn I bought in Alaska and started a One Row Yarn Harlot scarf (38 stitches wide).

I knit on the way down and while we were in Asheville using a US size 8 needle. I just didn't like it. I kept trying to talk myself into liking it, but no luck.

On the way back home, I frogged the six inches I had knit, and started over, using a US size 7 needle. Much better.

Currently, the scarf is about 4 feet long. Picture soon -- I really like how the color is dancing through the scarf.

Knotty Gloves

2010-11-26T10:01:00.003-05:00

As I finished the Seasons Shawl, I had a yen to knit gloves. I found a pattern of Ravelry called Knotty Gloves by Julia Mueller -- free pattern for some very attractive gloves. She knit the pair in the pattern using Socks that Rock yarn in a color called Grawk.

I like Socks that Rock yarn, so I opened up the computer and went searching on their website for yarn colors that appealed to me. Have you ever done that? Do you know how long you can look at pictures of yarn on the Socks that Rock website?

Hours later, I placed an order for one hank of Spinel and one of Corbie. Spinel is a shaded solid color -- one color, dark into light and back again. Corbie is part of the Raven clan group of yarn -- black yarn overdyed with other colors (Grawk is also one of those). I used the Spinel to work on the gloves.

I started them on the way to Kansas City as a traveling project. One the flight to the city and then while in town, I finished the hand and one finger of one glove. Knowing that knitting gloves requires snipping the yarn and starting another finger, I put the first glove aside and started on the second one for the flight back -- no scissors required.

So far, the second glove is finished and I have two fingers and a thumb to finish for the first glove. A very strange way to knit gloves!

Image: Glove on the base of the John Wesley statue at WV Wesleyan College (although you can't tell).

Season Shawl Finished!

2010-11-24T09:15:00.007-05:00

I'm behind! I have much to post and haven't been keeping up with it. I have some time this morning (before I keep my date with Mr. Potter), so hopefully, I can write some posts and catch up!

First of all, a Finished Object. A Big Finished Object. Meet my completed and blocked Fall/Winter Seasons Shawl. (That's a Ravelry link.) I purchased the kit to make the shawl from Knitpicks, but once it sold out, that haven't re-offered it (hence, no Knitpicks link). Click this link, and see my blog posts relating to the shawl.

I have knit lace before, but never something this large, so it was a New Experience for me. I liked it!

The shawl is designed to move from the beginning of fall (the green section) through several autumn colors in a leaf lace knitting pattern. The fall season fades to winter as burgundy transitions to blue. The blue section is "snow" followed by midnight blue "snow drifts" and then the final granite "icicles." I liked the concept, and I like the finished project.

I had a few challenges with is. First, I must knit at a gauge that is larger than that of the test knitters at KnitPick. I read many posts on Ravelry about the shawl, and some people were running out of yarn. I ordered extra -- great idea, since as I ran out, I had what I needed.

There are a few errors in the pattern, as noted on the Knitpicks site. Anyone knitting it should go and get the errata page! I also found a difficulty in the row that knits into the triple yarn overs -- it's very near the end of the pattern. There is an extra stitch that is not accounted for in the pattern. I just knit it, but I'm not sure that is the best result -- the point of each icicle is a little off to the side because of the extra stitch. No big deal, but I would rather it be symmetrical.

So, its specifications:

Pattern: KnitPicks Fall/Winter Seasons Shawl (not available at this point from KnitPicks)

Yarn: KnitPicks Shadow lace yarn (held double) as follows (number following color name is the number of hanks of yarn I used):

Forest Heather -- 1
Persimmon Heather - 1
Sunset - 2 (one more than kit)
Vineyard - 1
Nocturne Heather - 3 (one more than kit)
Midnight - 2 (one more than kit)
Basalt - 2 (one more than kit) -- I only needed the second hank for two rows!

Needles: I used KnitPicks Harmony needles, US size 5, and I just kept changing the cord as I needed it to be longer. I bound off with double pointed, US size 9. It didn't need to be double pointed, but it worked just great.

Size: Oh, bigger than the pattern says it will be (which explains the extra yarn). It measures 104 inches across the top. I can't remember the back to point measurement. I like the size. It's large, but great to wrap up in.

Images: I took the shawl with me for a college visit with my son. I knew we would be in places that would make great backgrounds for a photo shoot. The first one -- the official "finished object" photo, is on the campus of West Virginia Wesleyan College. The next one is in our room, and it shows the transitions and stitches to best advantage. The last one is at Stonewall Resort, outside at sunrise. I picked it because it shows the holes (isn't that a strange reason to pick an image?).

One Row Scarf

2010-11-15T22:30:00.004-05:00

Finally! Another finished object. I wanted to knit a scarf that would match my red and black coat. The Knitpicks yarn, Kavanagh, jumped out at me.

Pattern: This is knit using the Yarn Harlot's one row Handspun scarf pattern. It's easily memorized -- it's only one row that is repeated over and over. This is not the first scarf I have knit using this pattern. I always like the outcome. it's reversible and results in a soft, wafflely scarf that has lots of loft, and keeps you warm.

Yarn: I used Shamock, a heavy worsted weight yarn from Knitspicks. The color is called Kavanagh. I used 5 skiens. I still have a couple of more in case I want to add fringe.

Needles: I used size US 9 needles.

Seasons update

2010-10-11T20:21:00.005-04:00

How about an update on the Seasons shawl? I like the colors -- each one more than the last. I could leave behind the green beginning color and the orange one that follows. The two of them together look like peas and carrots.

I've run out oaf yarn a coupe of times --at the end of the sunset section and the noctune section.

I'm enjoying the knitting, but will be grateful to be finished.

Next up -- gloves.

Kilkenny Cable Shawl

2010-09-08T08:59:00.006-04:00

I finally got the Kilkenny cable shawl outside for it's photography session. It has been so hot that I didn't want to touch wool while in the heat.

Pattern: The pattern is from Folk Shawls by Cheryl Oberly. It's a great pattern -- the name is Kilkenny Cable Shawl. It is, as you can see in the image, a rectangular shawl, and it is knit across its length -- from one long edge to the other. In other words, there are many stitches on the long circular needle at once. There are published errors.

Yarn: The shawl is knit in Knitpicks Wool of the Andes, in colorway Blue Ink (which they don't carry anymore). I used 15 skeins of the yarn. I disappointed that Knitpicks no longer carries Blue Ink. It's a great, deep navy, and I'll miss it. The images in this post don't show how dark the blue is -- the sun was too bright to get a good color rendering of the blue. This picture is probably closer to it's deep blue color.

Needles: I knit this using Knitpicks Harmony circular needles, US size 7.

Finished project: After I blocked the shawl, the size was 31 inches by 74 inches. I started the project at the beginning of February and finished it at the end of July, but that's probably not indicative of the amount of time it takes to knit it -- I didn't knit on the shawl continuously; there were periods of non-knitting.

Knitting Update

2010-08-20T21:24:00.003-04:00

The Seasons Shawl is moving along. I have finished the 7th row of the sunset/vineyard section, and I ran out of sunset. Luckily, I had ordered extra, so I'm still moving along. It looks a little crunched right now, but I imagine after blocking, the leaves will pop right out.

I haven't had a chance to take pictures of the cable shawl, but once it gets cool enough so that I'm not sweating with the wool shawl, I capture its bit and bytes.

I'm almost done with the movie scarf -- Kavanagh scarf. I almost finished the fifth skein, and am contemplating fringe with skein six. It has been great movie knitting because I can do it in the dark. Last Friday, just as the movie started, my knitpicks option needle fell apart, dropping all my stitches. I was able to hold it together for a while and knit, but I finally gave up. After an email to Knitpicks, the needles have been replaced. Great customer service.

Sky

2010-08-14T22:24:00.000-04:00

Knitting Seasons

2010-08-01T22:19:00.004-04:00

First, the Kilkenny Cable Shawl is finished! Once I block it, I'll post pictures and all of its finished stats.

I've started a new project -- Knitpicks Fall/Winter Seasons Shawl (that's a Ravelry Link). The picture is of half of the beginning of the shawl. It begins with green and then switches to a green/persimmon combination for one pattern repeat. After that, I'll drop the green and pick up more persimmon. It's knit with two stands of Shadow lace yarn held together.

I'm enjoying watching the leaves appear in the pattern. I haven't knit a lace yarn shawl before, so this is new. I have knit from charts (love charts!) and with the stitches necessary for a lace shawl, so this is kind of a next step.

The Kavanagh one row scarf is still on the needles, as well.

Stash and Shawl Update

2010-07-24T18:09:00.007-04:00

I recently placed an order with Knitpicks. What did I pick up?

A skein of Stroll Tonal in DeepWater. I love the color. It is HOT and BRIGHT outside today, and I think my pictures of rather overexposed -- the colors look lighter than they really are. The Deep Waters is darker than the picture seems. It's a lovely combination of blues and purples.
I have been thinking of a scarf that would match my red and black jacket. Most overdyed yarns I find are not those two color combinations. I found Shamrock at the Knitpicks site. The Kavanagh colorway has a red main color (3 ply) with a fourth ply of black/gray/white. I was going to a couple of movies Friday, and wanted to be able to knit while I watched. The cable shawl is too complicated to knit in the dark, so I took a skein of the Shamrock yarn and needles with me. I cast on (30 stitches) at lunch and knit in the dark -- the whole skein. It wasn't until after the movie that I was able to look at what I had knit. Kind of a cool experiment. It's the Yarn Harlot's One Row Scarf pattern (not really a pattern, but a fun and easy knit that results in a fabric I like a lot. Details of the pattern are at my Missouri River Scarf page. In that one, the colors in the overdyed yarn kind of zigzagged. They are doing that in this scarf, too, which I love.
Knitpicks put out a new pattern called the Seasons Shawl (Ravelry link). I bought it in Fall/Winter. I think it will be my next project after the Kilkenny shawl is finished. The yarn that came with the kit is all Knitpicks Shadow. Below (lighter than they really are), are, from left to right: Basalt, Nocturne Heather, Vineyard, Forest Heather, Sunset, Persimmon Heather and Midnight.

Speaking of the Kilkenny Cable Shawl, it's moving along. I have between 24 and 25 inches finished. It goes to 28 inches. I'm very ready to be finished and to block that baby!

Beach Stash Enhancement

2010-07-18T21:19:00.004-04:00

While at the beach this past week, we went to Island Knits in Murrells Inlet.

There was stash enhancement:

Two skeins of Mille Colori by Lang. The shop owner had a scarf knit on large needles with this yarn; I liked it.
One skein of Plymouth Yarn Happy Feet.

Hot Shawl!

2010-07-06T13:34:00.002-04:00

I'm still working on the Kilkenny cable shawl. I really like the pattern. I like the knitting. I thought when I first started that it would be something that would be difficult because I would need to continually refer to the chart, but not so. It is a four row pattern repeat, and very easy to memorize. Even so, it is still interesting enough to knit without getting bored.

I need to look at the pattern to see how wide it is supposed to be. The rows are very long, because it is knit horizontally -- across the shawl. Right now, it's between 12.5 to 13 inches wide. The cables run across the shawl (rather than long-ways) with narrow panels of "lace" in between -- simple yarn overs with decreases.

My only issue with it is that is is worsted wool, and it is July. We're at the beach. I don't know about holding this on my lap!

I also brought a fingering weight yarn and the pattern for the Yarn Harlot's Pretty Little Thing, in case the shawl gets too hot for me.

Alaska Stash

2010-05-29T16:32:00.006-04:00

We have spent the last week on a cruise to Alaska. It was a wonderful trip! We had three ports of call -- Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway. In Juneau, I stopped at a bead store (Peer Amid Beads -- close to the cruise ship dock). I don't have a picture of the beads I purchased. I'll post those later, but it was a fun store with a friendly shop owner. I asked her about nearby yarn stores, and it just happened that there was one just around the corner, called Skeins. Unfortunately, it was closed. :-(

On to Skagway. I stopped and asked the same question. Yes, there is a yarn store in the downtown area called -- well -- it seems to have three names. The Rushin Tailor (isn't that cute?), QuiltAlaska and Changing Threads. All three are in the same building, and I'm not really sure if they are different stores or not. I went back and took some pictures. Look in the background. Wouldn't that be a wonderful view from the doorway of your shop?

They had beautiful, hand-dyed yarn from two companies (at least) -- Raven Frog Designs and Rabbit Run Designs. I brought three skeins from Rabbit Run: two worsted wool and a 75% wool/25% nylon. The two worsted wool yarns are from the Water colorway and the Wildberry colorway. They match beautifully, so I think I'll knit a scarf that alternates between the two.

I brought a skein of wool that was greens and lavender - called hyacinth. Socks, I think, although it will be a thicker sock yarn. I like that!

The fourth skein is from Raven Frog, and it is a superwash merino. The colorway is Princess Matsoutoff's Gown -- green, royal blue and purple. I bought it because I loved the colors. Another scarf? Maybe the Yarn Harlot's one skein scarf? Who knows? I may just look at it.

If you look at the picture, taken on our cruise ship balcony (what a joy in itself!), all four yarns are there. The one at 12:00 is Water, the one peaking out at 2:00 is Wildberry. The blue/purple/green on is from Raven Frog Designs, and the Hyacinth yarn is pointing to about 8:00.

As for my current project, I am still working on the cabled shawl from Folk Shawls. I like it. It's enjoyable to knit, and the pattern was easily memorized. Just four rows, repeating across the wide width of the yarn. It's dark blue. I can't knit it in dim light, but otherwise, it's pretty simple. Lots of cables. Not boring.

Learning about a camera

2010-03-30T21:07:00.002-04:00

I normally take pictures for this blog (and my other blog) using my Nikon CoolPix, which I love. When Circuit City was going out of business, Steve bought a Canon Rebel XSi for us. It's a digital SLR camera with two lenses. I've used it some, and love it, too, but feel as if I don't know much about its operation. We're planning a trip in May (Alaska!), so I wanted to take some time to become more familiar with it. I bought a couple of books from Amazon, and am working my way through one of them now (The Canon Digial Rebel XSi Companion). The picture above was snapped as I finished a chapter this evening.

Mason Dixon link

2010-03-29T21:22:00.003-04:00

Go take a look at this post on Mason Dixon knitting if you haven't already seen it. Great YouTube video!

Edited later (much later) to add the LINK. (Bleh!)

Next?

2010-03-26T21:10:00.009-04:00

So, now that I'm moving on, what is on the needles?

I was planning to do the Kilkenny cable shawl from Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls, but I wanted to use Knits Picks Wool of the Andes in Blue Ink. The Blue Ink's delivery date kept moving farther and farther into the future. I had almost given up when it finally became available to order.

In the meantime, while I waited, I started a pair of socks with Mountain Colors yarn. I think the needles were too large for the yarn. The sock in progress didn't feel right. My KnitPicks yarn finally arrived, so I sat the socks aside. Between when I stopped knitting them until I moved them out of my knitting bag, three of the needles came out of the stitches. You know I don't like the project when I don't even care about the lose stitches and haven't put them back on the needle yet!

I finally started on the Kilkenny Cable shawl. It's going well. The pattern looks complicated, but it's not. I do it without a chart now -- it was that easy to learn.

Beach Scarf

2010-03-26T20:54:00.006-04:00

Long time, no post. I have been knitting, but have also had some periods of not knitting, so progress has been slow.

I finished a scarf using yarn (and a free pattern) I bought at the beach last year. The scarf is really too short for my taste, and not really a color I like. I bought the yarn thinking I would use it to make a gift, but then changed my mind. I knit in anyway, but I kind of doubt I'll wear it, and the short length means I probably won't give it away.

BUT, it is a finished project.

Pattern: The pattern was free from Island Knits when I bought the yarn. I'm not sure I would actually call it a pattern. It's just a simple stitch repeat. Cast a multiple of 4 + 2 (I did 26). On each row, knit 2, knit one through back loop, pearl 1. Repeat to end of row.

Yarn: Ester Bitran Hand-Dyes Talinay -- it's a beige/pink/blue combination.

Needles: US size 9

The color of the yarn reminded me of sand and seashells, so on Ravelry I called it my beach scarf.

Jaywalker socks -- finished!

2009-12-30T21:08:00.003-05:00

Finally, I've finished the second sock of my Jaywalker socks. I couldn't sleep last night, so I stayed up, watched reruns of FarScape, and knit until I finished it. The project had reached its "let's just get it over with" point, so I was glad to stitch that last Kitchner stitch.

Pattern: Grumperina's Jaywalker sock pattern. The pattern is very well written and easy to follow. I had read in several places that people were finding the original size to be too small, so I went up one size. I probably shouldn't have -- I probably should have knit the original size. The socks seem too large.

Yarn: Socks that Rock, medium weight, Fire on the Mountain colorway. Since I made the larger size, I barely had enough yarn. You can see the leftover yarn in this image. The pattern is written so that as you work the toe, you knit every other row "even" and work two pairs of decreases in the other rows until you have seven stitches on each needle. In the first sock, I took some advice from the Yarn Harlot (I think it was her), and as I got close to the end of the sock, I eliminated the "even" rows. Somewhere I read that this would give a sock toe a more rounded look. For the first sock, I did this at about nine stitches per needle. In the second sock, to save yarn, I did this from about eleven stitches per needle. I can't see any difference between the two socks, so I guess it worked. Even doing that I wouldn't have had enough yarn except that I hadn't cut off the long-tailed cast on. I snipped the extra yarn off and attached it to the other end of the yarn, giving me several more inches.

As of the yarn itself, I really liked it. Nice feel, great sock yarn.

Needles -- Knitpicks Harmony double-ended needles, US size 1, 2.25mm. I mainly knit with four needles in the sock, but as I worked the heel gussets, I used five needles (with a sixth as the extra one).

Color -- I really liked the Fire on the Mountain colorway, especially in the skein. As I knit it, I found it had much less red and much more pick than I had imagined. It was still nice, but it looked different knitted than as a yarn. Not a criticism; just an observation.

Highland Triangle Shawl 2

2009-12-26T10:25:00.008-05:00

I finished the Highland Triangle shawl before Christmas and got it blocked so that it could be a Christmas gift in time for the actual day.

It's a great pattern, well written, but the outer boarder seems to go on FOREVER. I'm sure that's due to the fact that each row gets two stitches longer and longer.

Blocking feels like magic, opening up the lace. I'm always amazed when I unpin it and the points stay pointed and the open areas remain open. Wool is great, even if knitting with it during a commute is like carrying an electric blanket in my lap. :-)

Knitting time was more than three months but less than four.

Here are its vitals:

Pattern: Highland Triangle Shawl (Ravelry Link) from Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls. I didn't make any modifications to the pattern, except for the yarn. I did use a couple of laminated excel spreadsheets to keep track of the row counts.

Yarn: Knitpicks Merino Style in Hollyberry. I think I ordered 11 skeins, which would be a total of 1353 yards (at 123 yards per skein). I must have used 10 of them and a little bit of the 11th; I can only find a partial skein in my stash.

Needles: US size 8, also from Knitpicks. My needles for this project were Harmony Options. I started with a short cable and worked my way up gradually to a 60 inch cable (as each row grew LONGER).

Finished Size: As it was blocking, I measured the triangle -- 98 inches across the long edge and 46 inches from edge to point. Big.

I took the images in the middle of the night, as I was wrapping gifts, and then it went to live with its recipient (my mom), so there are not outside pictures. I gathered some hints for the knitting of this shawl the first time I completed it, and they can be found at this link.

Click on any picture to see it larger.

Highlander Update

2009-12-13T20:49:00.003-05:00

I'm still working on the Highland Triangle Shawl. It's moving along, although it feels slower and slower as each row is knit. Of course, that makes sense, because each row is four stitches longer than the last. To top it off, I count the stitches on the needle after each half-row is finished, to make sure everything is as it should be. The counting slows things down, too.

The pictures in this post don't depict the most recent look of the shawl. I'm actually working on the outer row. In fact, I'm almost done with it and with the shawl! And I'm glad of that. It's a really REALLY big project -- especially since I'm sticking to it until it's done. No breaks to knit something else.

A friend asked to see the pattern to see if she would like to knit it. She looked at it; she showed it to a fellow knitter, and they decided it was a Hard Knit. I don't think it's hard. I do think, because of the lace aspect, it's a knit that requires attention (just like any other lace). Mistakes are visible. It's just knits and pearls, and it doesn't require a real gauge, so wouldn't call it hard.

I've enjoyed it. I'm ready to be finished!

Regress as Progress

2009-10-14T08:40:00.003-04:00

I'm making progress on the Highland Triangle Shawl, but sometimes, much to my chagrin, progress means regress.

This shawl is patterned in three sections -- a middle triangle, an inner edging and an outer edging. I've finished the inner body of the shawl and am working on the inner edging, which is the widest part. Remember, each row has two more stitches than the one which precedes it.

I was knitting along on the inner edging (lace pattern) when I looked down and saw that there was a mistake -- about 7 or 8 inches wide -- which caused that section of the edging to be off. It wasn't the whole edging, but just this section. The mistake was about 3 inches back from the working edge -- 10 or so rows. I tried to drop a stitch and see if I could fix it that way, but it was no good.

RIP.

I had to rip out 10 or 12 rows -- a total of over 2,300 stitches. I'm reknitting it now, but it has been a let down, to make that much progress and then take it out.

I knew that even if I could fix the section forward from when I noticed the mistake, I would always see it -- and would become the only thing I would see about the shawl. My first highland triangle shawl has a one row mistake in the edging on one side of the triangle, and it always ALWAYS jumps out at me.

So, regress, but progress. Mistake is gone. And maybe that is one of the great things about knitting. We can erase the mistakes.

A new project; an old pattern

2009-09-05T21:35:00.005-04:00

I knew that I would do it. I told myself that if I had willpower, I could avoid it, but I didn't even fool myself.

I ordered 11 skeins of Merino Style from Knitpicks (Hollyberry colorway) in order to knit a second Highland Triangle Shawl.

Once I finished Steve's shawl, I picked up my jaywalker socks again, with the hopes of completing the second sock. As I worked on it, I decided on the Highland Triangle, and ordered the yarn. I knew that I would set the sock aside when the new yarn arrived, and even though I tried to convince myself that I could finish one project before starting the next, on the day the yarn arrived, I cast on. Oh, well.

In one photo the very beginnings of the new shawl is laying on my original shawl. Very much a beginning. I have more done now, but a long way to go.

Specifics:
Pattern: Highland Triangle Shawl from Folk Shawls by Cheryl Oberle
Yarn: Knitpicks Merino Style in hollyberry
Needles: US size 8, Knitpicks options (metal)

By the way, I ordered a set of the new acrylic Knitpicks needles. They are interesting, and I have imagine I would like them with the right yarn, but I wanted something "slicker" with this yarn, so I went with the metal. It's kind of useful, having my choice of metal, wood and acrylic.

End of a Web Site

2009-08-21T16:31:00.003-04:00

For a couple of years -- 2005, 2006 -- I used a Geocities site as a companion to the blog. It was a web site with pages devoted to completed projects -- kind of an online knitting journal. It is a little too much to do, and I haven't added anything to it since 2006. I've been using the blog as a journal since then, taking care to have a "finished object" post for each completed project.

That was fine. The web site was still linked to the blog, so references to it still worked. Unfortunately, Geocities is closing down its free sites. I could pay for a site, but I don't want to do that, so I spent the day moving information from the webs site to the blog, updating links, and organizing.

While I was at it, I added tags to older posts. All finished objects can now be accessed from the sidebar -- either in the year they were completed or by the type of project it is.

Bleh. I'm tired!

Goodbye, Sandpiper Knits . com. Hello, organized blog.

Steve's Shawl

2009-08-19T15:52:00.001-04:00

Steve's mother died early last Sunday morning. She has been suffering from Alzheimer's Disease, and on Sunday she just drifted away. We had been expecting this outcome for a few months, so since May, I have been working on a Prayer Shawl for him.

In my head, I saw his shawl as symbolic of the beach -- a place a peace -- because I wanted his shawl to say "peace" to him, and to remind him of quiet walks on the beach, as well as the presence of God in his life.

The shawl is rectangular (about 80 x 27 inches) and is knit on the bias. I started with one stitch and increased each row on one end, knitting front and back on the second to last stitch of the row and the second stitch on the next row. I continued this pattern until the triangle gave me the width I wanted, and then, still doing the increases, I started decreases on the opposite end of the rows -- knitting the third and second stitches to the last in the row together as well as slipping and knitting together the second and third stitches at the beginning of the next row. When it was long enough, I stopped doing the increases and kept decreasing until I was back to one stitch.

Two-thirds of the shawl is blue (Araucania Nature Wool Solids), but isn't solid. There are light and dark values of blue in the yarn, so the blue section looks a little like waves and water. The sand is Patons Classic Wool in Natural Mix. There is a surf line, which is a cream colored wool (two rows). I knit it with US size 11, harmony circle needles from Knitpicks.

Sewn to the sand are seashell charm. There is one in the picture to the left, although it is in shadow and is hard to see. On one corner are three charms -- cross with alpha fish (faith), anchor (hope) and heart (love).

Beach Yarn

2009-07-31T16:11:00.000-04:00

While we were at the beach in July, I went to Island Knits yarn shop in Pawley Island, South Carolina. And, yes, there was some stash enhancement.

The black yarn in the first picture is VERY soft. It is from the Plymouth Yarn Company and is called Buckingham. It is 80% Baby Alpaca and 20% Silk. I found it with her sock yarns, but I think it would also make a really pretty scarf, and in fact she gave me a free lace scarf pattern when I bought the yarn. The color number is 500.

The next yarn is from the Ester Bitran yarn company and is called Talinay. It is a bulky weight wool yarn. She also gave me a scarf pattern with this one. I liked the model she had in the shop, so I'm anxious to crank out this scarf. It is color 220 -- tan, pink, blue and brown. It probably isn't a colorway that I would have chosen for myself, but I imagine it as a gift.

The third yarn is a sock yarn from Araucania Yarns called Itata Multy. It is 70% superwash wool, 15% silk and 15% bamboo. The colorway is 1002, and it is a mix of blue, purple and green. There are 430 yards in the skein.

Updates

2009-06-30T22:43:00.009-04:00

How about some updates?

First: Today is the last day of Project Spectrum -- East. I've had trouble finding things that are yellow. When I was focused on taking pictures, everything was green. I did find a patch of yellow flowers in the Bob Evan's parking lot as I was waiting for my carpool ride to arrive.

Second: Here's another image of my Jaywalker sock. I still haven't started the second sock because...

Third: I've been working on a mystery project which will eventually be revealed. I hope not for a long time, but I imagine eventually.

Wood

2009-05-22T11:38:00.002-04:00

Walking in the park the other day, I took lots of photos. Here are some of them centering around the "wood" aspect of Project Spectrum.

Knitting as Ministry

2009-05-19T21:57:00.005-04:00

My church has an active prayer shawl ministry. Each week five or ten or more shawls are placed on the altar rail during the offering. These shawls go to our local Hospice House, to members of the congregation and beyond to offer comfort and prayers. It's a beautiful, blessed ministry.

I am a knitter. I am not part of this ministry. I thought I would be when it started, a few years ago, but I never jumped in and did it. I've never felt a calling to that ministry, even though I am a knitter, and could certainly knit the shawls. I've posted the photo above in order to show you how prolific and wonderful the ministry it; none of the projects are my work.

I have knitted two prayer shawls in my life. Both of them were for good friends of ours who had lost parents. One of them I just finished, and one was knit in 2006. The friends are husband and wife; the four of us -- well, I don't have words, but this couple is very special to us.

What I have noticed about knitting prayer shawls is that it becomes a compulsion. I knit late into the night, I knit in the car, in the movies, at lunch, at church meetings. I just HAVE to work on it. Knitting for me is usually a relaxing, creative enterprise. Prayer shawl knitting is in no way relaxing. I must do it, and I must finish the shawl as soon as possible. As I work, I find myself setting daily row goals. As I get closer to the end, those goals become larger and larger, and my drive to complete them becomes even stronger. When I finish, there is a wonderful sense of completion and relief. It is as if there is a call to FINISH it, and get it where it needs to be.

I suppose if I were knitting shawls for people I didn't know, I would have that drive about it, but I can't imagine doing this all the time.

All of that said, knitting these two shawls was a worshipful experience. It's not one I would trade for anything. I can't imagine that knitting a generic shawl would have that same kind of spiritual attachment.

I think I'll stick to my regular socks and failed sweaters.

Jeff's Shawl

2009-05-17T23:31:00.003-04:00

I'm still working on the sock, and I'm almost done with the first one, but last Monday, I sat them aside and picked up another project.

A friend of mine's father died early last Friday morning. He had a stroke a week ago Thursday. On Monday I started a prayer shawl for my friend. I wasn't going to do that, but on Saturday morning, as I woke up, an image for the shawl came to mind. I lay in bed and designed the shawl in my head, and how it would visually represent Psalm 23 (an important passage for my friend during this time). I finished the shawl this evening and left it for him at his house.

Yarn: Patons Classic Wool -- black, denim blue, green, light blue, burgandy, tan. One skien of each, except for the denim blue and green (2 each).

Needles: Knitpicks harmony circular needles, 24 inch cable, size US 11 needles.

Pattern: 81 stitches across, stitched in Trinity stitch.

The shawl ended up being much longer than I envisioned it -- 86 inches -- and 24 inches wide. The yarn was OK, although I've worked with softer wool than this.

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures
He leads me beside still waters
He restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name's sake,
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, you are with me
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me, in the presence of my enemies.
You annoint my head with oil
My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord, my whole life long.

Socks much larger

2009-04-25T22:34:00.004-04:00

Project Halted and Project Started

2009-04-23T15:20:00.002-04:00

I've finally thrown in the towel. I knitted and knitted and worked and worked, and kept ignoring the ginormous size of my Daily Sweater. I kept trying to convince myself that it would be OK -- that maybe I would wear it at home on a chilly night, and it would be comfy. Yesterday, as I knit in the car on the way to dinner, working on first sleeve, I gave in to my frustration and held the sweater up for Steve to see. We laughed. It's huge. I measured, and the body of the sweater is 10 inches wider than I planned. I checked my gauge, and it's something like 17 stitches to inch, when it should be 21.

Don't tell me that I should have knit a gauge swatch. I did. I knit it in the round, since the sweater is knit in the round. I knit it with the yarn I'm using and the needles I'm using. I even washed it and remeasured. I actually even knit THREE gauge swatches. I had gauge. Now I don't.

I'm frustrated, but I'm not continuing this frustration. I'm stopping. The sweater is going to the stash box to either wait until I'm willing to rip it out and start again (egh) or just get rid of it. I knit for the joy of it. I am not finding the joy in this huge sweater.

So last night, we wound my Socks that Rock yarn -- Fire on the Mountain colorway. It's pretty! I'm knitting Jaywalker socks. I've gone up a size, and will consider the first few inches to be my gauge swatch. If it works, I'll keep knitting. If not, I'll start again. So far though, it's pretty.

I never knew my sandpiper had such sad eyes. He's thinking about that Daily Sweater!

Magnum Opus

2009-04-06T21:32:00.002-04:00

I was listening to the pod-cast Cast-on the other day. She was talking about having a "magnum opus." What big thing have you done with knitting? Have you taken on a project that is just HUGE? Success or failure doesn't matter. It's just the attempt at something large.

I worry that the idea of a magnum opus is self defeating. Once you've done it, then what?

I think we should live a magnum opus life. We should continue to pick up the next big thing followed by the next big thing.

When I started knitting, I decided that I would really learn it. I wouldn't just be satisfied with being able to knit "squares." (That's always been my joke about crochet -- I can crochet squares, but nothing else.).

As I progressed with the knitting, I learned increasing and decreasing. I moved away from scarves to a sock and then to gloves and then to an actual garmet -- a vest for the Knitting Olympics.

Now I'm working on a sweater. I've never knit a sweater before, but it's the next BIG thing.

Image: Winter for Project Spectrum.

Finished Object -- Missouri River Scarf

2009-03-22T20:29:00.004-04:00

I mentioned before that I was knitting a scarf using a skein of Mountain Colors yarn. I finally found time on a sunny day to photograph it as a finished object.

Pattern: The Yarn Harlot's One Row Handspun scarf. Great "pattern" -- easy to do, and I love the results. It makes a reversible scarf that has some textural interest. It's a free pattern that you can find on Stephanie's blog (at that link). I made one change to the pattern -- I added 3 extra repeats to each row, from the suggested 26 stitches to 38. To add extra width, just add stitches in multiples of 4 (which is explained in the pattern itself).

Yarn: Mountain Colors Weaver's Wool Quarters in Missouri River Blues colorway. I used the entire skein -- 350 yards. I thought I might have enough to add fringe, but I had just enough yarn to make it my usual 5 foot long scarf. It's kind of nice to use all of the yarn with not leftovers. The yarn colors patterned in an interesting way -- see the zigzag of colors in the image? I loved this colorway and this yarn.

Needles: US size 8

Daily Sweater update

2009-03-21T16:54:00.003-04:00

This is the Daily Sweater -- almost through the increasing rows -- five more left. I don't know; will it turn out to be a sweater? One that I might wear?

St Patrick's Day Green

2009-03-17T23:25:00.000-04:00

Project Spectrum IV

2009-03-13T13:20:00.004-04:00

When I was knitting a few years ago, I played around with Project Spectrum in its first incarnation. When I got back to knit blogging and knitting this year, I went to Lolly's blog to see if she were still writing and if Project Spectrum still existed. It does, and in fact is on its fourth time around. Time moves on.

I'll try to find time to post information in the sidebar about the Project, but you can read about it on her blog, as this post. There's also groups at Ravelry and Flickr.

I'm working on that Daily Sweater right now -- it's a garnet color, so I don't really want to stop and pick up something green, but the list of emphases for the month intrigued me -- in short, green/stones/winter/earth. I thought I could work with them via photography. Here's what I have so far:

Click to see images more clearly. 1. Rocks in waterfall at work. 2. Daffodils blooming (through the earth) 3. More rocks 4. Bud of something, but very green. 5. More green, and it reminded me of winter, since it is evergreen. (Collage formed in Picasa, which is a very cool program!)

A Sweater Begins

2009-03-12T20:10:00.002-04:00

First, I should mention that I finished the Missouri River Scarf. It's really pretty, and I'll post finished object images and details soon.

I've taken the plunge and started a sweater. It's the top-down Daily Sweater from the 2nd Mason Dixon book. I finished the swatching, actually washed them! and discovered that I needed to go down a needle size to get gauge. I'm using a US size 6 (size 4 for the neck) with Knitpicks Comfy (cotton and microfiber) yarn in pomegranate.

I'm almost on row 30 of the increase section. I like the charts. Once I figured out when to increase left and right and when to twist left and right (I'm directionally challenged), the knitting is moving right along. I'm worried that the neck is too large, but in the image (in the book) it looks larger than a crew neck. I'm just trusting and moving along. I may regret it.

Angora pelt

2009-03-01T21:48:00.002-05:00

I ran across some yarn at our local yarn store by Elsebeth Lavold -- an angora and wool blend. I bought a few skeins of it, and decided to make it into a scarf.

My son calls it my rabbit pelt scarf -- it's very soft. It's designed with a "key hole" through which the scarf can pass. It's visible in the image, but I wonder if it is clear. The colors -- a black and taupe -- match my coat.

Pattern: From Vogue Scarves Two -- it is a rabbit fur trimmed scarf. I modified it by making it a little more narrow (although it is still wider and shorter than any other scarf I've made.

Yarn: 3 skeins of Elsebeth Lavold angora in black and one in driftwood.

Needles: US size 8

Missouri River Scarf

2009-02-23T22:21:00.002-05:00

I've ordered the yarn for the Daily Sweater. While I'm waiting for it to arrive, I pulled a skein of Mountain Colors Weavers Wool Quarters and started a scarf using the Yarn Harlot's pattern for a One Row scarf.

The pattern is easy. I had forgotten about this yarn until I pulled it out. I love the colors. It's called Missouri River blue.

Unfinished and Almost Started Projects

2009-02-22T07:38:00.005-05:00

Remember this yarn? I posted about it before (just that I had purchased it).

My intention was to knit a striped scarf, like my last one, using this yarn.

I cast on, using Brooklyn Tweed's pattern for a Noro scarf, which I did. I knit about 8 inches. The pattern is fine, and it produces a thick 1x1 ribbed scarf. The edges are particularly well done by slipped both end stitches on the second stripe in the pattern.

But the colors. Ick. Look at that skein. It looks bright a pleasant. I liked it. I still like it. Knitting that pattern with it? With the particular way the yarn is would? Mud. The scarf looked like mud. I disliked it so much that I ripped it apart and rewound the yarn. Unusual for me. I usually just loose interest in something ugly and put it away while I start something else. Not this time. It's gone, and the yarn is back in the stash.

On another front, the swatching for the Daily Sweater is coming along nicely. I did three swatches (can you believe it?) -- one in each color. I started with pomegranate Comfy on a size US7 needles (which is recommended in the pattern. The stitch per inch count was too large. This makes sense, since I think this yarn is thicker than the recommended Calmer. So, down a needle size, to a US6 and swatching with the blackberry. Hit the stitch gauge right on target. Amazing. I've washed the swatches and will remeasure the US6 one again today. And order the yarn. I also knitted a smaller swatch (for color purposes) with the planetarium. In this one I practiced the twisted stitches requires in the pattern.

I like all three colors, but for this project, it will be the pomegranate.

Diamond Scarf

2009-02-16T21:48:00.002-05:00

I mentioned earlier that I finished three projects in January. This scarf is one of them.

I started it in 2007 as a simple project to take on a Youth retreat. It went to Spring Heights -- our Conference retreat center -- two years in a row, so whenever I look at it, I am reminded of quiet times in the cabin. It's a great association to have with a scarf.

The pattern is simple. It's knit on the bias, with alternating blocks of garter and stockinette stitch. It's actually very close to an alpaca scarf I made a few years ago.

Project details:

Pattern: Diamond Scarf from Vogue Knitting Scarves. Easy to follow pattern, although this one is altered from the original. I think in the original pattern, the squares were 12 stitches by 20 rows, and this one is 10 stitches by 16 rows. The only tricky part is that you need to know how to do a knitted cast on, for which I found instructions online.
Yarn: Forest Green Cascade 200. I think I used more than one skien but less than two. It's hard to remember over 2 years.
Needles: I used a US size 7 lattern moon needle. Love the lantern moon needles!

Socks -- Finished!

2009-02-15T21:41:00.005-05:00

Finally! They are finished. Add this pair of socks to my finished objects list.

I've always read about people trying to make their socks identical. Secretly, I've always thought that this was a little bit compulsive, but ...

Look. I did it. The socks are identical twins!

Pattern -- From Knitting Rules by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. I used her Step by Step pattern for socks. it's really well written, and easy to follow. The heal is different from ones I have done before.
Yarn -- ONline's Supersocke 100. There is no color listed on the ball-band,, but it's a lighter blue, a darker blue and stripes of lime green and pink. I used one skein, and I had lots of it left.
Needles -- Five harmony sock needles, size 1 (2.5 mm).

Done but not Finished

2009-02-13T16:13:00.002-05:00

Have you ever been done with a project before you were finished? Of course, you have! I'm ready for the pair of socks to be finished. I've got about three inches of foot left and then the two on the second sock. It won't take long.

My problem is that yarn arrived yesterday in the mail for swatching. I want to try my hand (hands) at a sweater. I've never done one before (although I have done a vest). I want to try the Daily Sweater (Ravelry link) from Outside the Lines (Mason Dixon's second book). I ordered three skeins of Comfy from KnitPicks (one each in blackberry, pomegranate and planetarium) so that I could choose a color and do some swatching to see if I like the yarn. THEN, if I do, and if it works for this project, I'll order enough to make the sweater.

Isn't that sensible?

I'll try to photograph the yarn this evening -- it's darker than the swatches online (which I think is a good thing)

But, I've got these socks to finish first -- I'm determined to finish them before swatching with for the next project. I've enjoyed having finished projects, and I know if I stop knitting the socks now, I won't finish them (until much later). One day or two is all it will take, THEN onto the next thing.

Striped Socks

2009-02-12T14:36:00.004-05:00

How about a work in progress update? I'm currently working on a pair of socks using a self-striping yarn called ONline Supersocke 100 Sport. The pattern is the Yarn Harlot's sock pattern from Knitting Rules.

The pattern is very easy to follow -- no problems at all. I'm using size 1 (2.5mm) needles from Knitpicks. They are the harmony wood needles. I have included the second photo so that you can see the points. I am

REALLY enjoying working with these needles. I bought the whole set -- size 0 through size 3(?). Each set comes with 6 needles instead of 5, which is a nice addition, too.

I also like the second picture. An iPhone and knitting

-- kind of a description of who I am.

Yarn purchases

2009-02-10T22:51:00.003-05:00

How about some talk about stash enhancement? Here are two yarns I recently purchased. The first is a skein of Socks the Rock, mediumweight, in Fire on the Mountain. It will become socks, although I'm not sure what pattern yet.

The second is a skein of Noro Kureyon, in color #187. It's very rainbow-ish. I think it, and the other two skeins of it that I bought, will become another stripped scarf, this time in a 2X2 ribbing pattern.

Outside the Lines

2009-02-09T21:42:00.003-05:00

I read the latest Mason Dixon book over the past few weeks. This one is called Outside the Lines.

It has the same great tone of the first one. I enjoyed it.

Couple of patterns that I might try:

Daily Sweater -- this is a top-down sweater using a cotton/microfiber yarn. The specified yarn is Rowan Calmer (which is $12 per skein). I'm hoping to be able to substitute Knitpicks Comfy, which is the same fiber makeup, but is only about $2.50per skein. I've ordered one skein of each of three colors -- Blackberry, Pomegranate and Planetarium. I thought I would play around with colors and do some swatching before committing to the yarn or the pattern.
There are a pair of cabled socks that look like fun to knit. I have some green sock yarn that I might try with this pattern. For some reason I always think of cables as being green. Why is that?

There are lots of patterns that I won't try, but I enjoyed the whole book. It is wonderfully photographed and written with such a great tone. Really enjoyed it, just like the first one.

Rib and Stripe Scarf

2009-02-08T08:35:00.002-05:00

I have found that a great way to return to knitting when you have the "bug" is to find unfinished projects in your stash and finish them. This is one of those projects. The beginnings of it are in this post -- January 2006. I finished it in January 2009.

The basic information:

Pattern -- From Vogue Knitting's Scarves Two -- the rib and stripe scarf.
Yarn -- Noro Kureyon -- I used three balls. (color? I'll have to look it up because I don't have it here, but the photograph in the post linked above probably shows it better.
Needles -- a set of bamboo US7 needles

Thoughts -- This scarf is knit by starting with two balls of Noro yarn, with its wonderful color changes. By starting with each ball in two different color areas, and then knitting with the balls alternating, two rows each, some very nice striping naturally happens. I was very entertained by watching the colors change, and because its the same yarn colorway, the changes kind of flow through the scarf. Hard to explain, but I like it.

If I did this again, and I plan to (in fact I already have the yarn), I would do a 2x2 ribbing instead of the knit 3, purl 1 ribbing called for in this pattern. This scarf rolls. I knew it would when I was knitting it, but I had blind faith in the pattern. I would (and will) change it for next time.

It's warm. Amazing how warm wool is! And I love wearing something so colorful while the winter is so drab.

Knitting Again

2009-02-06T15:03:00.002-05:00

To say that I haven't been writing on the knitting blog is an understatement. I haven't been knitting. I write daily on my other blot (Sandpiper's Thoughts), but when you're not knitting, there is no real reason to write on a knitting blog.

I picked up a copy of the Yarn Harlot's book, Free Range Knitter, and all of a sudden, I wanted to knit again. So I have been.

By the way, great book. I really enjoyed it!

So, I'll start posting again. So far, I have three finished objects and one sock that are finished, plus plans for more knitting. It's great to be enjoying this hobby again.

While I wasn't knitting, I was working with beads, so that was fun. I've also been enjoying photography. I haven't been without creative outlet, but it just hasn't been knitting.

To celebrate the rebirth of the Knitting blog, I gave it a new look -- new template. I'll fiddle with it over the next few weeks -- more pictures and links.

New Project -- New Needles

2006-08-21T02:48:00.000-04:00

Wow. No entries in a while. There's a reason for that -- no knitting for a while.

I stopped at Knit-n-Hook, my LYS, the other day and picked up a skein of Cherry Tree Hill yarn -- Ariel. It's a cotton blend with a lot of texture. The skein has over 400 yards -- lots of yarn to play with.

She was well stocked with various colors, but the first one which caught my eye was Champlain Sunset -- fushia, blue, gold, lots of nice color combinations.

With the high texture value of this yarn, and the many bright colors, I decided to do a very simple garter stitch scarf. I cast on 375 stiches -- I'm knitting it the "long way." I used US size 9 turbo circular needles, but came to the conclusion that the points weren't sharp enough. I pulled out my Knit Picks needles, put a 30 inch cord on each one with an end cap on the free floating end, and then knitted the work to the sharper needle. I thought I would show you a comparison of the needle tips. I'm enjoying the knit picks needles.

Knit Picks needle on the right -- Addi Turbo on the left.

Watercolor Hat

2006-07-10T19:31:00.000-04:00

I finished the pink baby hat -- same pattern and needles as the purple one. I never did make it to the store for bamboo needles, so I suffered through the aluminum ones. I've started calling it the watercolors hat.

These hats are is my first try at colorwork. It was really kind of fiddly (if that is a word). I do like this pattern, and I love the little swirl of leaves on the top.

I didn't mention that when the purple hat (which I gave the mom with some other lavender clothes) was opened at the shower and passed around, someone turned it inside out to check out the stranding on the colorwork. Never give a knitting gift at a shower where other knitters are invited. (just kidding).

How about a purple flower for purple month?

Knitpicks Options needles

2006-07-03T16:37:00.000-04:00

Temptation began as a catalog. I received the KnitPicks catalog in the mail -- you know the one -- the one announcing that KnitPicks is now carrying their own brand of needles (see them here).

"Hmm. Those look interesting, I thought."

Then I read the review last Thursday from Clara at Knitter's Review. I should label Clara an an enabler, because I pulled out my credit card and ordered a set. Not that I wouldn't have done it anyway, but I might not have done it at right that moment in time.

Why do I think this would be a handy set to have?

The cords look flexible. That's one of my favorite characteristics of Addi Turbos -- no steaming of the cords.
The points look sharp. I don't like dull points.
I like the idea of having every size available to me. I have tons of needles, but I always seem to NOT have the size I need.
I like that I can add to the set as desired (note I did not say as needed).

So my only problem now is the backorder state of the needles. Here's hoping they come soon.

Pink baby hat

2006-07-01T17:03:00.000-04:00

July is purple month. Purple can be a great color, although I don't knit with it very often. When we were at Disney in March, I saw bunches of purple, so here is a sample.

Some purple flowers (pansies?) and a purple castle.

On the knitting front, I have been a BAD knit blogger. I haven't posted since the end of May. But since this is "knitting journal," so to speak, and because I can do what I want, I added posts to June, back-dating them. Today's post, though, is "live."

I'm not working on anything purple, though. I'm making another baby hat, this one for a member of a small group I belong to at church. This hat is for Rachael.

It is also made with the Dreambaby DK yarn, this time in a multicolor yarn with pink/green/blue (202) and a soft pink (119) for the stems and leaves.

Just so you'll know, I hate these needles. I need to pick up some bamboo ones. These keep slipping out of the stitches. This yarn is so SOFT, that it has almost no body and lots of drape. It drapes right off these aluminum needles. And who needs that aggravation? Not me.

Blue Dock

2006-06-30T17:00:00.000-04:00

End of the Blue month. Look at the little blue building way out there. Love the blue sky! This is a dock at Calabash, North Carolina, right outside where we went to eat that night.

Plum Hat

2006-06-23T16:52:00.000-04:00

I finished the plum hat. It is as cute as any hat I have ever made. Actually, I've never made a baby hat before, but this one sure is cute. Look at the top -- don't you love those leaves?

The pictures aren't that great. I finished it late at night, and needed to wrap it, so the color is off and the photos are kind of blurry. But take my word for it -- it's cute.

The yarn photo is a better representation of color, since it was taken outside

Yarn -- Plymouth Yarn Dreambaby DK in purple (112) and green (111). I used more than half of the purple skein, and not much of the green skein.

Needles -- Size six double pointed aluminum.

This hat is for a little baby girl due in July (?) to Niccole and Mark. May the Lord bless her and keep her.

Baby hats and Boat bag

2006-06-14T16:41:00.000-04:00

While at the beach, we went to Pawley's Island, and I went into Island Knits. I really like this store.

While there, I picked up, of course, some yarn. I received a shower invitation, and thought baby hats might be fun to knit.

I bought Dreambaby DK from Plymouth Yarn -- so soft, I can't describe it, and washable. I bought a purple and kelly green (112 and 111) for a plum hat, and a pink/green/blue (202) plus a pink (119). The pattern is by Ann Norling -- fruit cap pattern.

While at the beach, I bought a new bag -- for knitting, of course.

Kind of fits with Blue month, doesn't it?

Blue moon

2006-06-12T16:39:00.000-04:00

Blue moon, anyone? Actually, it wasn't technically a blue moon, but it was a moon at dusk, and my camera kind of turned the whole thing blue.

Can you tell we are at the beach?

Thought it fit in well with this month.

DNA scarf started

2006-06-06T16:31:00.000-04:00

Why do I do this? Why do I start another project when I already have so many on the needles? I've started the DNA scarf -- free pattern here.

The pattern calls for a yarn I've never heard of, and neither had The Stitche Niche, so I went with Plymouth Yarn Encore D.K. in color 256. It's kind of a creamy color. It is also washable, which is probably a good idea in this instance.

I'm making it as a Holiday gift for my boss -- washable will work best, trust me.

The pattern calls for size 4 needles, but since my yarn is probably a little thicker than the one specified, so I'm going with US size 5. Notice that they are Lantern Moon needles -- love them.

Maybe I'll finish it by the Neutral month -- hopefully I'll finish it by December.

Blue bag

2006-06-01T16:24:00.000-04:00

Blue is my favorite color. I don't know what it is about blue that appeals to me, but I love it. Happy to be in the month of Blue.

I have a blue project going -- it's a purse based on the Fibertrends pattern called Fabulous felt totes. I've shown you the yarn before -- here. The color of the yarn is probably best seen in the picture in this post, not the one in the basket.

Both the yarn and the pattern came from The Stitch Niche in Lexington.

End of Green

2006-05-31T16:22:00.000-04:00

End of the Green month -- on to Blue.

Anne Socks

2006-05-29T16:13:00.000-04:00

As one last project for the month of Green, I have a start on a pair of socks. The yarn for these socks is a Schaeffer yarn called Anne -- 60% merino superwash wool, 25% mohair, 15% nylon in a green colorway (maybe like the "greens" on this page? #21?). One skien is 560 yards -- plenty for a pair of socks. I'm using the Yarn Harlot's sock "recipe" in her book Knitting Rules.

In the spirit of trying something new, I thought I would do these socks with two circular needles. To get an acceptable look to the fabric, I had to go to a size 1 for the needles. They are addi turbos -- one is only a 16" needle -- I really find these too short -- they hurt my hand, and make my knitting slow down. I loose my pivot point on the needles.

Anyway, what you see is what you get -- that's all I've done so far.

Mary's Shawl

2006-05-28T08:23:00.000-04:00

Wonder of wonders, another project finished. Two in one month? Unbelievable. This one, however, practically knit itself. A friend of mine lost her mother the week before last. The day I heard the news, I was thinking about her and decided to knit this project -- a prayer shawl -- for her.

Specifications:

Yarn: Praire Silk. I've never used this yarn before, but our LYS had it on hand. It's similar to Lamb's Pride, which I have used before, except this yarn has an added 10% silk, which gives it a very slight sheen. I loved this yarn as I knit with it. It was easy to wind from skein to ball. My husband, who is my swift, especially liked it, as it made his job super easy. It did have some odd, undyed white slubs, which I started to pick out, but then just left in.

I used five colors (since my LYS didn't have enough of any one color to do a solid shawl):

Franc Framboise
Baht Blue
Ruble Red
Guilder Green
Real Royal

Who thinks up these color names? I used two skeins of each, except for Baht Blue (1 skein).

Stitch Pattern: Trinity stitch from the Prayer Shawl site with a slip stitch edge. This is a very simple pattern, but I enjoyed its simplicity as I knit it. I cast on (57 stitches) and bound off with size 15 needles to have a looser edge than the size 11 would provide. It is narrower and longer than I anticipated. I didn't count rows -- I just knit until each skein was gone, which was so VERY simple.

Needles: I used US size 11. I thought these might be a little big, but I liked the lacy look they produced. I finally settle on my Lantern Moon needles -- they were a pleasure with this yarn.

Finishing: The label specifies no blocking with yarn, so I did no blocking. Prior to adding fringe, I gave it a quick cold water (ick -- cold water) bath with shampoo and conditioner and some equally cold rinses. The yarn wrapper specifies adding vinegar to the final rinse, but I was washing it to remove the odd smell our LYS adds to yarn. Adding vinegar seemed counter productive. Since there was no color bleeding, I skipped the vinegar.

Fringe: Berroco suede yarn was used as fringe in the color Calamity Jane. Again, I can't help but ask, but who thinks up these colors names? Why would Calamity Jane be considered purple? What does the name Calamity Jane tell you about the color itself?

Resources: The Prayer Shawl site has many shawl patterns from which to choose, color symbolism explanations, and prayers.

May God's grace be upon this shawl...warming, comforting, enfolding and embracing. May this mantle be a safe haven... a sacred place of security and well-being...sustaining and embracing in good times as well as difficult ones. May the one who receives this shawl be cradled in hope, kept in joy, graced with peace, and wrapped in love.(from the Prayer Shawl site)

Intertwined Cable Scarf

2006-05-14T22:10:00.000-04:00

I finished the Intertwined Cable scarf from the Pattern a Day calendar, March 14-15. It was a gift for my husband. The first scarf I made for him didn't work out so well -- rolling edges -- I hate them. Anyway, this one was an unhidden surprise. I knit it right in front of him -- he even helped me wind the yarn for it, but he didn't know it was for him until I handed it to him, with one of my little Sandpiper Tags.

Specifications:

Yarn: Cascade 220 in a forest green shade. I used more than one skein, but not all of two
Needle size: US 7
Modifications to pattern: None, except that I did find an error in the symbol key. I emailed the publisher about this, and they quickly sent me confirmaiton of my suspisions and a file with the correct key. These corrections can now be found on their error page for the calendar.

I enjoyed this pattern. It was great fun watching the cables emerge! This is a seaman's scarf, which means that it has a neck "section" that is narrower than the rest of the scarf. The neck was done in a ribbing pattern.

Green Month Kickoff

2006-05-07T22:37:00.000-04:00

It's green month for Project Spectrum. How about a couple of green photos? The first is a little odd, but it was so GREEN, I had to take its picture. While we were at Epcot in March, we ate in a Japanese restaurant. This is the avocado that they use in the sushi. So beautifully sliced; so GREEN. I don't even like avocado.

Have you noticed how green it gets as summer arrives. During a walk in our city park this past week, I couldn't help but notice how surrounded by green I was.

Happy Green Month!

Goodbye to Yellow and Orange

2006-04-30T22:20:00.000-04:00

One last picture to finish off the yellow/orange Project Spectrum month. This is the flower of a Poplar tree. On to Green.

April project -- Stitch Markers

2006-04-27T21:52:00.000-04:00

I was really not interested in knitting with yellow or orange yarn, I as I mentioned before, but thought making some stitch markers with these colors sounded interesting. So here is my Yellow/Orange Project Spectrum project. The metal is these markers is gold-tone, except one copper colored bead (still in the yellow / orange theme.

While at the bead store, I also found some really pretty beads in shades of blue, which also became stitch markers. For both of these sets, I used rings that will fit (hopefully) sock needles, a few for regular needles, and one that will go up to a US size 17 -- not sure if I'll ever need that, but there it is.

Scarf progress and new needles

2006-04-22T20:09:00.000-04:00

I'm still working on the cabled seaman's scarf from the 2006 Pattern a Day calendar. Pardon the blurriness of the photo, but the flash just didn't highlight the cables, which is the most interesting part of the scarf. I'm enjoying this scarf, and I am learning the "workings" of cables -- which way they twist, etc. Fun!

We're in Lexington, and I bought a pair of Lantern Moon rosewood needles, size US7. These are the smallest rosewood needles I have. I am constantly worried about snapping them in half. Not very relaxing to knit and worry about your needles. Anyway, I switched the scarf from my US7 addis to these rosewoods. In her new book (Knitting Rules!) the Yarn Harlot mentions that she likes to knit with staight needles because it links her to all the knitters who have come before. Using these wood needles and wool yarn, I can see what she means.

Stitch Markers

2006-04-17T21:48:00.000-04:00

I've been thinking about Project Spectrum -- yellow and orange. I don't have a knitting project planned with these colors -- just not my favorite (I'm all ready for green, though!). Instead I was planning on stitch markers -- I have a weakness for stitch markers.

So I went digging through my bead stash. No yellow. No orange. Told you they weren't my favorites. I did find some dark blue beads, though, so I went with those. Maybe I'll stop at Dandelion Beads in Lexington this weekend and pick up some appropriately colored beads.

Speaking of stitch markers, I joined the Project Spectrum Sheep club -- a different colored sheep stitch marker each month. For more info, click on the button on my sidebar (That's a picture of the sheep -- aren't they cute?).

Knitting Rules!

2006-04-12T11:15:00.000-04:00

I just finished the Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's new book, "Knitting Rules! The Yarn Harlot's Bag of Knitting Tricks."

Again, she does not ever disappoint. Such a great book! I enjoyed every minute of it. I thought about listing some of the great lines from the book, but I don't want to spoil it for you.

It's different from her other books -- this one is not knitting stories, but is instead a book of -- well -- hints. These include a generic sock recipe, a few basic hat patterns, information about supplies and gauge. It make it sound dry, but that's why the Yarn Harlot is selling books, and I am not. Read this one. You'll laugh yourself silly and learn some great hints.

And, look, it's kind of orange, so it came out in the right month. It's the only orange thing I've found so far.

I ordered Mason-Dixon's new book today and pre-ordered Wendy Knit's new book. Waiting for my mail to arrive!

Dandelion

2006-04-05T15:46:00.000-04:00

Knitting progress is such that a new picture of the same scarf isn't going to be that entertaining. The cabled seaman scarf is progressing; I'm almost ready for the ribbing.

Spring is just starting to stick out its nose around here. I'm so desperate for color and for spring that I actually took a picture of a dandelion today. Doesn't it just scream YELLOW? Another one for Project Spectrum.

Fun from Iceland

2006-04-03T15:45:00.000-04:00

We're heading back to red for a moment, because I have something cool to show you. I got a card from Carola of Sheep and No City today (my Project Spectrum Post card partner for March).

First, because I love to look at stamps, take at look at the RED envelope (now, why didn't I think of that?) Cool stamps. I wonder why Iceland has a mouse on a stamp. The roses are beautiful. I think I owe Carola some stamps -- when I took her card to the post office, the post office guy just printed off the postage and stuck it on the envelope -- very unattractive.

And here is a postcard from HafnarfjÃ¶rÃ°ur. Carola told me that near her are several streets named for waves -- different kinds of waves. Isn't that interesting?

Also in the brilliantly red envelope was corrugateded folder -- red, of course, sealed shut with a --wait for it -- red safety pinIngeniousus. Inside the folder were pink pull tabs -- visible in the picture -- and a CD with what Carola calls red music. I'm listening to the CD now -- it's wonderful music, and they are singing in -- I guess -- Icelandic. I'm very much enjoying it.

So, to celebrate the reception of such a great mail surprise, here are some facts for you about Iceland (which I just looked up, because I feel extra uninformed):

Capital = ReykjavÃk -- I did know that.
Area = 103,000 kmÂ² / 39,758 sq mi. (Glaciers: 12,000 kmÂ², lava: 11,000 kmÂ², lakes: 3,000 kmÂ², arable land: 1,100 kmÂ²).
Name = LÃ½Ã°veldiÃ° Ãsland

Project Spectrum -- Yellow

2006-04-02T18:05:00.000-04:00

With all the blue and green knitting going on around here, I probably won't be knitting with yellow. So to contribute to Project Spectrum Yellow/Orange, how about some flowers?

These are from Disney (my trip last month).

I have no idea what kind of tree this is, but I like it, and I am guessing that it might be part of my yellow Postcard. How about some yellow flowers? Beautiful. No orange yet, and no good photos of my daffodils, but those are coming.

Florida -- scarf and color

2006-03-31T17:50:00.000-05:00

First, the cascade 220 in the green found a new project. It's a cabled Seaman's scarf from the Knitting Pattern a Day calendar. I was thinking about what to do with it, liked the idea of cables, and actually thought of the Irish Hiking Scarf, but then this Seaman's scarf appeared in my calendar, and I jumped on it. I like it so far. Here is the project so far, sitting on my pool chair in the Florida sun. The coffee stirrer is not for decoration. I forgot my cable needle, and the coffee stirrer was the best that I can do. I still haven't mastered knitting without a cable needle.

The visit to Florida (Orlando) included a trip to Epcot and The Magical Kingdom. It is winter where I live, and I'm just starting to see color. In Disney World, color is everywhere! So here are some pictures of red and pink to finish off the month for Project Spectrum. I'm sure you'll see more color from Disney in the coming months -- yellow, green, and purple for sure.

First up, pink petunias.

Then geraniums:

We had lunch in a Japanese restaurant in Epcot, and the soup was so pretty in its red bowl.

The evening ended with fireworks -- here's some pink ones. (And click here for a red Disney castle).

Cascade and Quest

2006-03-19T17:24:00.000-05:00

Two new projects are underway (and these are not being knit from stash yarn -- well, maybe a little, but not really).

First, I purchased a beautiful dark green (color 9447) Cascase 220 to make the Knitting Pure and Simple Turtleneck Shell (having more confidence since the Olympics). I did some swatching, and really didn't like the yarn at the gauge specified in the pattern (actually using one needle size smaller -- US7). It just looked too loose for a shell. So I decided to hold off on that pattern and to go for something else.

I also bought some Cascade in color 9449, which is a very nice dark blue. With it, I bought a ball of Trendsetter Charm in color 617, which the Knitting Garden calls Blueberry Fields. I'm going to use these two yarns to make a felted bag, pattern by Fiber Trends. The pattern is called Fabulous Felt Totes.

I'm going to Florida for the weekend of my birthday, and thought the bag, with large bamboo needles, would be a good airplane project.

In the spirit of Project Spectrum, I also bought some pink Berroco Quest and some beads to make a pink scarf. We'll see how that goes. The Quest seems very slippery.

Firenze scarf

2006-03-17T17:09:00.000-05:00

In the spirit of frugality, I've been trying to use some stash yarn in March for some projects. The Jazz scarf was from stash, and so is this one. It was knit using teal softwist from Berroco and Plymouth Firenze in color 438 (details and links in this and this post). I held the two yarns together -- six stitches -- garter stitch using size 17 (US) needles. I still need to wind in the ends, and I'm thinking I'll add softwist fringe with some beads I have that match the yarn color.

I really like the color of this one, especially in person. It looks a little washed out in the picture.

Bitteroot Socks

2006-03-12T16:59:00.000-05:00

How about some finished socks? I first mentioned there in this post. They are knitted with Mountain Colors Bearfoot sock yarn in colorway Bitteroot Rainbow. I thought that was a nice way to begin project spectrum. I really love the yarn. Very soft. These are knit using a Double Eyelet pattern from Mountain Colors and size US 2 double pointed needles.

The only changes I made in the pattern was to knit the cuff a little shorter (by about an inch).

Thoughts? I'm not sure that I like lacy socks. These aren't terribly lacy, but they do have holes made by the eyelet, and I think I would rather not have those. I love the yarn, but wonder how it will wear. All in all, I think I like these socks better, even though the yarn is scratchier.

Sock pair #1 for the 200socks KAL.

Project Spectrum -- Saturday Jazz

2006-03-05T21:27:00.000-05:00

We went to my son's Jazz Festival this Saturday. To have something to do during all of the waiting time, I took a skein of Crystal Palace Squiggle yarn in red, a ball of Berroco Softwist in red and a pair of US size 15 needles. With these, I made the this scarf, which I'm calling Saturday Jazz. One scarf in one day. The "pattern," which isn't really a pattern, was a six stitch garter scarf.

The music was great, and the scarf is "jazzy."

Now let me ask you this -- what kind of knitter finished the second sock of a pair up to mattress stitching the toe closed and then stops? Me. I have the second sock of a pair finished up to the mattress stitch, and I can't seem to find the time to complete it. Argh.

GOLD and 4000 Hits

2006-02-28T20:54:00.000-05:00

How about that gold medal? Isn't that great?

As of this moment, Sandpiper Knits has had 4000 hits from the time I began using StatCounter to count hits. Wow. Welcome.

Olympians Gold

2006-02-26T17:34:00.001-05:00

There is it -- finished. I sewed the buttons on Friday evening, and wore it Saturday morning. If I could change it, I might alter the fit of the shoulders a little -- they are a tad large, but overall, it is wearable.

That's my Knitting Olympics project completed ON TIME (with around 48 hours to spare). It is also the answer to my knitting New Year's Resolution, which was to knit a garment that required gauge calculations.

YIPPEE. Happy dance.

Summary of Project

This project was done in response to the Yarn Harlot's knitting Olympics. Citius, Altius, Fortius. I chose this project as a challenge because my Knitting New Year's resolution was to knit a project with GAUGE.

Pattern source: Mountain Colors Simply Seamless VestNeedles: US size 7; turbo circular needles.

Yarn: Cascase 220, color 4006 -- a purple/burgandy/not really brown color. I bought six skiens. I have one left untouched and I knit a large swatch prior to starting.

Notes: I did not use the yarn stated in the pattern -- Mountain colors wool quarters, doubled. That yarn gave a gauge of 4 stitches / inch on size US 8 needles. My yarn and my knitting produced a gauge of 4.5 stitches per inch on US 7. I could have gone up a needle size, but I liked the fabric at this size. So I altered the pattern to match my gauge. It was supposed to be a challenge, right?

Knitting Dates: February 10 - February 22 (knitting). Finished on February 24 (buttons sewn on).

Vest Knitting is Done!

2006-02-23T09:01:00.000-05:00

Hey! Take a look at the sidebar. Percentage of vest knitted = 100%!!!! Yippee!!!!!!

I don't have a picture, but the knitting is done, the ends are woven into place, the vest has been washed and is currently blocking in our bedroom, pinned to the floor.

I don't have photos because I blocked it at 1:00 in the morning. Who needs sleep?

DONE. Done. Done. Done.

Now I just have to go buy buttons, and sew them on.

And then the moment of truth. The point of all these gauge calculations. Will it fit?

Vest Update

2006-02-22T16:11:00.000-05:00

I'm coming into the final lap on this challenge called the knitting Olympics. The vest is close to a reality. Last night I "seamed" the first shoulder seam as per directions, using a "double bind-off." Have I mentioned how slippery the turbo needles are? They are fine in normal circumstances -- fast when doing regular knit stitch. In this case, though, I was fussing at them. DH is trying to watch the Olympics (or sleep -- can't remember which one), and I'm doing the double bind off -- circular turbos and a third, aluminum needle. When I was close to the end, I stopped and warned the stitches -- in my best "MOM" voice -- to stay on the needle. They promptly, and without regard to my demands, slipped off the needles. Argh.

Anyway, bind off done, and I'm working on the right front of the vest. I've finished almost 30 rows, which is almost 5 inches. The right front is nine inches from the "arm hole" division, so four more inches, and then the final four finished inches, another double bind off, and its done -- except for weaving in a few ends, washing, blocking, sewing on yet to be purchased buttons, and picking off the occasional dog hair.

DH asked what kind of buttons I was going to use. Answer -- I'll put any kind of buttons on this baby as long as they are on by the time the torch is extinguished. Really nice, special, order off the internet buttons can be considered at a later date -- as an alteration to a finished article of clothing. This week she gets what Jo Ann Fabrics has in stock.

The color is so DIFFICULT to photograph. It's multilayered -- not brown, not burgandy, more purple than anything else. I've included this up-close and personal view of the knitting, not because the color is right, but so that you can see the variation in color this yarn has.

And hopefully all uneveness of stitches will be eliminated by blocking (she says, optimistically)