Brioche stitch vest, coming along.

I finished the right front of Pete's vest last night, soaked the pieces and blocked them out to dry. This is something I designed using brioche stitch, which is a very fluffy rib-type stitch. The fabric is so interesting. Very light and fluffy, yet it uses much more yarn in the same space as regular ribbing, and it is not as firm. I have to decide on the finishing touches, still. Do I want a contrasting color for the trim? Will I knit or crochet the edging? What buttons will I use?

A sharp eye will see that I did not alternate skeins for this project. If it were for anyone outside the family I would have done so, but Pete won't see the color changes at all, so I decided not to worry about it. I was just thrilled I didn't run out of yarn. Speaking of yarn this is 100% superwash merino DK in Midnight Maus, from my friend Helena at the Midnight Sheep. This was a custom dye for which I originally had other plans, but it told me in December that it wanted to be a vest for Peter, so here it is.

I have to finish this and my Emily Shawl so I can move ahead on Sophia's sweater, to make time for the sweater I will be knitting for a winner in this giveaway fund-raiser at Juniper Moon Farm. It's time for some more FOs!

A Friend in Need... UPDATED with lots more Prizes!

A Friend in Need... UPDATED with lots more Prizes!

My dear readers, please follow this link and read about the amazing fund-raiser that Juniper Moon Farm is running to help out Pete's Greens, an organic vegetable CSA from right here in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. Pete's just had a barn fire, and lost nearly all their equipment, and their harvest for this year. I am speechless at Susan Gibb's generosity, and so thrilled to be part of this effort. When I thought about donating money to Pete's Greens I felt so small and unimportant. I thought I could make something to raffle and donate more, but how could I run a raffle? Then I thought of Susan, who has done some amazing things on her blog. And here we are. My donation is a handknit sweater of the winners choice, made with yarn I will purchase from the Juniper Moon shop. But the other prizes are simply amazing. Please consider donating.

Miralda is here

Cast on Jan. 9, blocked Jan 22.
2 skeins Les Femmes Sock in Mae West, from Hyena in Petticoats.
Miralda by Nancy Bush, from Knitted Lace of Estonia
A gift for a friend.

Pretty little (and not so little) things

A top-down raglan for Sophia in lovely colors from Midnight Sheep. Almost ready to separate for the body and sleeves.


Miralda's shawl, knit in sock yarn from HyenainPetticoats in Mae West. Loving this color!

The back of a vest knit in brioche stitch. Knit in DK superwash merino in Midnight Maus, fro m The Midnight Sheep. This one is for Pete.

The beginning of Tishdecke, knit in Ultra lace from Shelridge farms, one of my prizes from an earlier Seasons of Lace.

A crochet hook stand made by my friend Dave, who is the maker of Hitchhiker spinning wheels, from the Merlin Tree. He makes these for me using special little scraps of wood from his shop. They are odd shaped sometimes, but very practical. I love the little black "veins" in this wood.

Emily 2, the top-down version of the Emily Dickinson shawl, knit in AK47 100% silk from the Gossamer Web in tequila sunrise. This yarn is so incredibly gorgeous. I am making this one as a gift for my oldest sister, who is always keeping my daughter supplied with yarn.

been busy.

Camera's out of town, but I'm still here.

Oh yes, my husband took our now eleven-year-old daughter to New York City for a birthday trip, leaving me here at home with the three boys. And so far all is going well. They've been gone since Thursday and we'll go pick them up Friday.

I'm kicking myself for accepting work for this week. I could be spending the evenings knitting and wake well rested in the mornings. Instead I'm spending the evenings and late nights editing and waking up a bit undone. I have a push for a deadline on Wednesday, so late nights it must be. The youngest are still too young to be alone.

But, I am getting a lot of knitting done during the day. I'm working on Miralda's Shawl by Nancy Bush. It's a lovely triangular shawl from her book on Estonian lace knitting. I'm knitting this in sock yarn from HyenainPetticoats, in the most beautiful red ever, and I can't seem to stop working on it.

I am also working on the top-down version of Emily Dickinson. I'm using AK47 silk laceweight from the Gossamer Web in the Tequila Sunrise colorway, and it is incredibly luscious. I have never actually knit with pure silk before, and it is such an incredible pleasure.

I have a circular shawl going, Tischdecke, using Ultra Lace from Shelridge Farms in natural. This is prize yarn from the Seasons of Lace KAL.

Also two sweaters: one vest for Peter in a DK weight from Midnight Sheep, and a raglan in sockweight, also from Midnight Sheep. I can't wait to show photos of all my fun, but alas, the camera is in New York City. We'll meet again Friday, so no photos till next week, I'm afraid. Hopefully they'll be worth it!