Here's my sweater, all finished. I took a cable pattern from a sock I knit recently, changed it a bit, and worked it up in a raglan with a 3/1 rib. I love the color, I loved knitting every stitch. I messed around with the upper body quite a bit as I worked, so it has its flaws, but that's okay with me. I'm going to knit another, hopefully soon, in yarn from the Midnight Sheep. And I'll fix all the flaws in that version. You can click on the images to see more detail. I am very happy with this one. The yarn is Traveller in Abu Dhabi, from the Sanguine Gryphon.

Fiddleheads and other things

Sophia's unblocked first mitten ever.
A scarf, on and off the loom yesterday, in CTH Alpine Lace, 13x72"

Our fiddleheads. You can see the difference gauge makes. My mitts are right on for the large size in the pattern, hers are much smaller than the smallest size. Too small to bother with a lining, thank goodness, since I had agreed to knit those..
Nice puffy blocked mitts with liners inside.
Clearly, I fiddled around with the lining, too.
Prelining.
I love the wrong side of stranded knitting.

Queen Silvia Shawl, finished.

Before blocking:


Blocking:

After blocking:

Another project finished. The cute one is still in the works, but coming along nicely, thank you. He's the divine comedian, if you happen to know my boys' names.

Since finishing this project I have cast on for another version of The Clovers, and a pair of socks in Eidos--Paraphernalia again. A really fun pattern. I'm hoping to get through these projects quickly and get on to my own newer designs again. I also really need to be knitting sweaters for the kids and myself. I have to stop getting into these swaps, fun and motivating as they are. . .

Lilac Leaf Shawl

This is the Lilac Leaf Stole pattern from Knitted Lace of Estonia. I have worked it as a scarf. Not too bad. The yarn is Fino from Alpaca with a twist. Alpaca silk blend. I am relieved with how it turned out, even though I know that to my eyes alpaca always looks yucky when you're knitting it!

Photos at last; some lovely yarns

Crochet hook beading stands, made by Dave Paul at the Merlin Tree.
Cashmere silk laceweight from the Midnight Sheep, in Verdigris (custom dyed).
Alpaca, silk, cashmere laceweight from The Yarn Side, in Sligo. (custom dyed)
Merino Laceweight from The Midnight Sheep, in Sligo's Dream (custom dyed)
Cherry Tree Hill Orenburg lace mill ends, one in a ball, the other stretched out to its full unswiftable length.
Pomatomus socks in Sheepaints silkbamboo , in Weizen
Pomatomus socks in Sanguine Gryphon Kypria, A Fateful Plan
The Norwegian Boatneck sweater, a test knit for Donna Druchanas's Ethnic Knitting Discovery.

I love how the inside mirrors the outside, and I love how the facings hide the steeks. this is going to be one super warm sweater!And the Lamb's Pride Bulky, while really too heavy for me to work with now, is just so soft. My hands are not happy with me for all the bulky weight knitting. Now I am full time on my friend Helena's Queen Silvia Shawl, a pattern from Knitted Lace of Estonia, which I am knitting in that Orenburg Lace shown above. I've completed the first pattern repeat. Only 20 more. Helena is the dyer behind the Midnight Sheep yarns pictured above. Aren't they gorgeous?

Sorry for the lack of links, I'll get there, but I have just accepted another huge work project for this month, so I'm back up to three at a time. I'll try to add them later. In the meantime, look up the Midnight Sheep at etsy.com. You'll see some lovely things there!

A thinking knitting blog

So, I have not been blogging here much for months. Just using the blog as a place to deposit the too many errata in The Clovers pattern (sorry all), and sometimes list knitting projects. Okay. Well I have problems with photos. We do have a digital camera, and sometimes the batteries are not dead, so I take photos. Then they sit in the camera until I remember to ask my husband to uplad them, which sometimes takes days. Eventually I can post photos. And people seem to want photos.

But I'm not going to work to provide them anymore, because it just isn't going to happen. Reality is what it is. I've never been attached to photos in the first place, after all. I'll just get to it when I get to it.

In the meantime, I'll try not to be boring, but I'm going to use this blog as a place to think a bit. Maybe about knitting, maybe about what I'm reading, maybe about the family. I'm just putting this out there to allow myself to come back to the blog. It's been kind of lurking in the back of my mind as something I have to deal with. Either that or delete the thing.

I have worked countless hours over the last several months, and that doesn't look like it's going to change, so I have to do some serious ordering in my family and knitting life.

Okay, recently a terrific thing happened as a result of this blog, which is why I can't just give it up. Someone read my list of Literary Muses over there on the side and had read some of the same authors! I can't say how long I've waited to meet someone besides my brother who had read Eco. I'm just delighted because I can be pretty cynical about the whole "community" metaphor for the Internet, which is after all a network. But it is possible to make human connections via that network. Rare, but possible.

More Photos

Close up of the Laminaria.

Anniversary socks, in Sanguine Gryphon Eidos, Justice.

Fintan, reading his letter from Spiderman.

And wearing the hat that Aunt May (aka Queenmamajen) made for him because he is such a good boy.The Woodsmoke sock, Anne Hanson's pattern, a sample knit for Gwen at The Craft's Meow, to be shown at her booth at the sock summit. So I will be there in spirit at least.
This is her Ice Cream Sundae yarn, in Butterscotch. Yummy!
And the finished Laminaria: