Project 38: Traveling Woman

This project was completed in May, 2011.

Traveling Woman is a very popular pattern that's been around a while. The designer re-released the pattern with a host of matching patterns and directions for making the shawl in other sizes and yarn weights. I used the free version to make my own, at long last!





It's a nice little shawlette, and the yarn really makes it. It was also a quick knit, taking me only three days to complete.




Pattern: Traveling Woman by Liz Abinante (the free version; there is also a pay version available)

Yarn: Alina Shea Creations Vines in "dancing in the rain", the club yarn from February 2011.

Needles: US 7 (4.5mm) nickel-plated Knit Picks interchangeables.

Rav Page

Mods: I did 3 repeats of Chart A. it's been a while, so not sure if that's a mod or not....

Project 37: Deathly Hallows Illusion Dishcloth

This project was completed in May, 2011.

This dishcloth was my first try at illusion knitting. Very cool!





Pattern: Deathly Hallows Illusion Cloth by Jenn Bragg

Yarn: Natural color is a Peaches & Creme cone of cotton in Ecru; blue is Lily's Sugar & Cream in cornflower blue. I used 34.4 yards of ecru and 38.4 yards of blue.

Needles: Size 8 (5.0mm) boye aluminum circular needles

Rav Page

Mods: none

Locals, read this! and WIP Wednesday, November 9, 2011

My Tour de Sock....er ... tour.... ends tonight, as Stage 4 is ending in a few hours and this is all I have.



Oh well, I stuck it out as long as I could and that was far longer than I expected! And now I'm a sock knitter!!

But, right now, this sock knitter wants to look at lace.



This is a variant of the very popular pattern Ishbel, where the lace is started first thing instead of having a stockinette triangle. The variant is a free supplement to the actual Ishbel pattern, which needs to be purchased to make the shawl. Also,

Meanwhile, I've finished the first bobbin with half of my purple rain batts I started spinning the other day.



Back in August some areas near where I live were hit very hard by flooding from Hurricane Irene. Here in town we were fine, but some of the lower-lying areas of the city near the river were flooded and the nearby Schoharie Valley had historic flooding, destroying homes, farms, and businesses.

This morning I learned about a not-for-profit corporation called Schoharie Recovery, based right in Schoharie and working to match skills, volunteers, and donations with the people who need help.  This weekend there is a fundraising event for Schoharie Recovery from a local spinning guild in conjunction with the Home for the Holidays weekend.  There's more information over here.

As for me, as soon as I got off the phone with the organizer to say I'll be there Sunday for sure and probably part of Saturday too, I started spinning up this corriedale roving so I can donate it to sell.



Every little bit helps, right? Of course I want to help, but sometimes it's hard to figure out how to help. This time it was easy.  Maybe I can get some holiday shopping done too!

Project 36: Dane Shawl

This project was completed in May, 2011.

Another lovely free pattern on Ravelry! This is called Dane Shawl.





It's supposed to be a shallow triangle, based on traditional Danish heart-shaped shawls.  I blocked mine to more of a triangle and less of a heart shape.



I think every comment about this shawl in person has started with the colors.  It's all in the yarn, Plymouth Zino.  It's a sock yarn, but it's a fingering weight single (just one ply) and it just seemed like it really would work well as a triangular shawl.



Pattern: Dane Shawl by Jane Tanner (free)

Yarn: Plymouth Yarn Zino in color "8", all 436 yards of it

Needles: Size 6 (4.0mm) nickel-plated Knit Picks Options

Rav Page

Mods: I liked the written bind-off but ran out of yarn with about 3 inches to go. So I tinked back a bit and switched to a very loose regular old knit 1, pass old stitch over new stitch, repeat bind-off. I had enough yarn left from that to weave in as the tail, and that was that.

Monday, Monday

I'll  apologize right now for getting that song stuck in your head...

I've been longing for some spinning wheel time since,  oh,  the last time I used it,  and I finally gave in because I couldn't stand waiting anymore.  My wheel is a Kromski Minstrel, a double drive that I've been using primarily as a single drive because I'm a newish spinner and it helps me not lose control.  So my double drive band snapped a while back and I kept tying it back together a little shorter until it kept splitting to the point where I couldn't get it to work on my largest whorl.  So yesterday I got out the hemp I've had kicking around the craft room for ages and made a new drive band. Then, I got to work!





Fiber is a batt called Purple Rain from Old Sheep Studio on Etsy.

WIP Wednesday, November 2, 2011

We're up to Stage 4 of the Tour de Sock, and much to my surprise I'm still in it!! This stage's pattern is Technical.



Now, in case it's not obvious from the picture, I need to get back to work while I have two brain cells to clang together. This one is tricky!!

WIP Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Here's what I've worked on in the past week! Evenstar is the big purple blob (I'm at 61% complete right now, and for full points I need to hit 75% by October 31). The latest Tour de Sock pattern came out today, which is the rainbow and black colorwork sock on top there. And sneaking in just to spice things up, I cast on a Tappan Zee sweater on Sunday for those times when I just need something simple! Like a sweater!! Sigh.

WIP Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Hey, look, a WIP Wednesday! Well, surprise surprise, I've been continuing to work on socks for the Tour de Sock. The first stage was from October 1st to October 9th and I made it - turned them in on the afternoon of the 9th, putting me in 64th place.

See?



Calable by Regina Satta, Stage 1 Tour de Sock.

I'm thrilled to have survived the first Stage, and since my personal goal is accomplished now I can balance the rest of the sock race with my other crafting deadlines.  Which is why I have knit an entire sock and started the second one since the pattern for Stage 2 was released on Monday evening, of course...

Tuesday morning:



This morning:



The end of this stage is the 22nd ACK it's actually the 18th!! with plenty of other things I need to do and Rhinebeck between us. We'll see!

Edit: The Stage 2 sock is Phellogen by Glenna C.

Back again...

How can two months fly by so quickly??

A quick rundown of what I've done since my last post:

- I finished two sweaters in July.
- I can no longer close the fiber drawer. This could be because it is stuffed, or because something fell behind it. Or both. Probably both.
- I spent the first 10 days of August hustling to finish two items for the fair that I'd entered when one was nearly finished and the other not begun. I finished everything..
- It paid off, because I won ribbons on all six categories I entered.
- Including the Grand Champion Wool Product.
- Holy crap.
- I made a sample for Bittersweet Woolery to display in her booth at various fiber fests this fall. It was an extremely rewarding experience as I finally got to meet the dye mistress and help her out too.
- September was kicked off in style with a trip to WEBS.
- It also was the beginning of my third term as Headmistress of the HPKCHC.
- Allergies were bad.
- Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival, however, was good!

(click through for notes)





- ...............
- Sorry, got distracted looking at the fiber....
- Anyway, now it's October and the newest superfunawesome thing is that I'm up late and then up early because my kids are trending to different sleep schedules, which means that right now I need more coffee.
- And I joined the Tour de Sock to force myself to be a sock knitter. The competition benefits Doctors Without Borders, and the competition part is to try to stay in the game as there are deadlines for completing six pairs of socks in October and November.  This will effectively double the amount of handknit socks I've made since I started knitting socks in 2004. So far I should make it to Stage 2, but only if I stop talking and get to work!

Project 35: The Golden Snitch

This project was completed in May 2011.

In the HPKCHC this term, Quidditch was split into four quaffle matches between houses in May and later hallows or horcruxes in June and July.  The first quaffle match was to make a golden snitch.

Near instant geeky gratification!

Pattern: The Golden Snitch by Melissa Mall (free pattern)

Yarn: Stitch Nation Full o' Sheep in honeycomb and Red Heart Super Saver in soft white, roughly 15 yards total.

Needles: Boye crochet hook, size G (4 mm)

Rav page

Mods: None that I can recall!

April Stashdown Report

April was busy - I only finished one project. But I did sell off some stash on Ravelry!

And I got some very pretty stash additions.

Younger Yarn Sexy String in Alice Longbottom 430 yards



Younger Yarn Fiber 100% Punta Wool in Daydream Believer



Younger Yarn Fiber of the Month Club for April 2011 - Superfine merino in "Sidewalk Chalk"



Wollmeise Sockenwolle 80/20 Twin in Pfauenauge (peacock) and Petit Poison No. 5 medium - a "We're Different" grab bag. 1020 yards total



And last but not least, Alina Shea Creations yarn club April 2011 - Yin and Yang base (50merino/50silk) in "A Year Ago".  I only got one skein, but purchased one of the extras she put up for sale in May (so I get to confess about this one twice...) 430 yards



So much yarn, so little time.

Project 34: Lehmus-Huivi

This project was finished in April 2011.

The second leaf shawl component of my Nerd Wars dissertation was the Lehmus-huivi shawl, a pattern that had been translated from the original Finnish.

I'm not sure if this is a pattern modification or a mistake that I corrected, but I kept the three edge stitches on both sides and the band across the top at the bindoff in garter stitch throughout.  I found the chart a little confusing on those points, and garter stitch works!  So that is what I did.  I think it worked.

See?



I gave it sunlight and watered it regularly, and it grew into this!





Pattern: Lehmus-huivi (free pattern available in Finnish and English on the designer's website)

Yarn: Left Coast Yarns Merino/Nylon 80/20 blend in Forbidden Forest, 396 yards of a 400 yard skein



Needles: Size 6 (4.0mm) Knit Picks Options nickle-plated interchangeables

Rav page

Mods: I used fingering weight yarn and larger needles than the pattern indicated for a shawlette. Also, the chart only prints with the Finnish directions, and there is a small error in the chart that is corrected in the English instructions.  If you can get as far as I did in that first swatch, you've got it made.

March Stashdown Report

Yes, yes I am aware that it is currently July.  I'm catching up here as best I can...

Here's what I finished in March!






And the lovely yarn I brought home in March:



This is 440 yards from Kara (dnatheory) who was my upstream swapper for the Staff Swap last term.  She dyed it herself!  Isn't it lovely?



This is Alina Shea Creations Shmerino in Whispers of Spring, the yarn club shipment for March 2011.

And just before month's end, I was given a gift pattern on Ravelry for Cassidy, a cabled sweater in worsted weight.  I wanted to start it for my Spring11 OWL in Herbology, so I needed to find appropriate yarn quickly.  I mentioned in the Stash Knit Down group that I was not finding anything good in the stash and what I was looking for just in case someone had what I needed... and KarinMT (of The Periwinkle Sheep) had just the thing!



Seven skeins of Cascade 220 Superwash, ready to go live at my house.  We met at a grocery store we both frequent and made our swap.

I made some great stuff in March and got some lovely yarn as well, but the best part of March was that it was the first month since I started tracking my yarn yardage in and out in January 2010 that I finally managed to have more yards out than in.  The net decrease was over 1600 yards! I am moving in the right direction!!

WIP Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Behold, the triumphant return of WIP Wednesday!  Here's a quick look at what I've got going today.



A sweater blocking in pieces while I finish the second sleeve! I'm trying to get it finished by this weekend.

Project 32 and 33: More Quidditch Hats!

On the last day of the Winter11 HPKCHC term, I finished up two more charity hats for Quidditch.  This time I pulled out all my wool scraps and worked on making scrappy but fabulous hats.

Errrr.  Well.  They look better in person.

This one used up as many blues and purples as I could coordinate together - lots of my little bits and bobs of dyeing practice over the years:



and this one got pinks and earth tones:



To turn them in on time, I was up late and the camera was not cooperating so we got camera phone pictures. But, I managed to make two impressively not ugly in person hats using up roughly 435 yards of yarn that will warm some heads on the other side of the world.

Project 31: Emily Shawl

This project was finished in March 2011.

I love how this shawl came out.  It's an unusual construction, which is how it became part of my Nerd Wars dissertation last spring.  The yarn is a silky, drapey thing that I only regret I do not have more of. It blocked nicely and looks great as a yarn and pattern match.  I almost - almost! - wish I hadn't given it away!






Pattern: Emily Shawl by Mandy Moore, published in Knitscene Winter/Spring 2010

Yarn: Alina Shea Creations Grassy Feet (65% superwash wool, 35% bamboo) in Summer Fun, the June 2010 yarn club offering



Needles:  Size 7 Knit Picks Options nickle-plated interchangeables

Yardage: 324 yards

Rav page

Mods: none

I enlisted the help of then-three-year-old Spike to photograph the back.  He did it well!



Sigh.  I might have to make another one of these.  In addition to being part of my Nerd Wars dissertation, I turned this project in to the HPKCHC for Charms, March 2011.