Friday, October 9, 2009

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. . .

Thursday, September 10, 2009

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!

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

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!

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

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.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

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:

Sunday, May 3, 2009

The Clovers--errata--help

A note on The Clovers, including errata and some explanation on the Clover stitch:

1. rows on charts 1--4 should all be even numbered, beginning with 2
chart 1: rows 2-80
chart 2: rows 82-98
chart 3: rows 100-122
chart 4: rows: 124-152

Until you reach the edging chart, all pattern rows should be even numbered, all odd rows are uncharted. ETA: You should end with a WS row before beginning the edging chart. Thus the Small size ends with row 123 and the large size with row 153 before proceeding to the edging.

2. In rows 106 and 124, the last stitch in the repeat section should be highlighted. The highlighted stitch should be knit in every repeat but the last, when it should be a ssk. In other words, work the ssk in the last repeat only.

3. In chart 4, the last row, stitch box 2 should be knit 2 tog. Stitch box 38 should be ssk. Box 1 and box 39 should be gray squares: no stitch. The total stitch count at the end of this row should be 303, not 311.

4. Edging chart: row 11, stitch boxes 18 and 19 are incorrect. 18 should be a yarnover, and 19 should be a knit stitch.


Sorry about the errors and I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
Sylvia

Notes /clarifications:


Notes on the edging: Please note that the edging chart shows the edging as it appears from the right side.
That is, the blank squares are knit on the right side, and purled on the wrong side.
The squares with dots are purled on the right side and knit on the wrong side.

Also, when you work the edging, you will no longer be dividing the shawl into four sections. Just work the chart repeat across all the stitches.

ETA: It is easiest to work the edging pattern if you place your stitch markers at the purl column, and not at the beginning of the chart repeat. It's just easier to keep track that way.

Finally, the chart is an attempt to represent the knitting as it will appear in the work. In row 7 there are two yarnovers side by side. In row eight there are five stitches positioned above the two yarnovers. This means that those five stitches are to be worked into the two yarn overs. That is, k1, p1, k1, p1, k1 into the loop made by the 2 yarnovers, and continue across the row.


the stitch count changes in each repeat from row to row. Here is a list of the stitch counts: row number on the left, stitch number on the right:

20 15
19 15
18 17
17 17
16 19
15 19
14 21
13 21
12 23
11 23
10 19
9 19
8 21
7 18
6 16
5 16
4 16
3 16
2 16
1 16



[In each pattern repeat, you increase 2 in row 7, inc. 3 in row 8; dec 2 in row 9, inc 4 in row 11, and then dec. 2 in row 13, 15, 17, and 19.]

Also, here are some notes on the Clover Stitch:

The best way I can describe the first motion of the stitch is that it is exactly like casting on a stitch using the cable cast-on:

instead of putting the right needle between the first and second stitches on the left needle, you put the right needle between the 7th and 8th stitches on the left needle.

You wrap the yarn around the right needle as if to knit, and pull through that "loop" or "stitch," which you then place on the end of the left needle.

Now you knit 2 together in the normal way.

There should be six stitches on the needle that have been "wrapped" by that loop you pulled through and knit together with the first stitch.

Work them as follows: K1, sl1, k2tog, psso, k2.

This results in a 2-stitch decrease, from the 7 original stitches to 5, which is why the "bar" in the chart covers only 5.

The 2-stitch decrease is balanced by the yarn overs on either side of the bar (Don't forget to work a yarnover before doing the "bar" ). So in effect you start with 7 and you end with 7.

I do hope that helps!

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Seasons of Lace Prizeand small knit items


The beautiful blue--it really does seem to flow like a river--the colorway is River Run, also the name of the lovely pattern. The yarn is Almaza, tencel, which I've been interested in trying. The beads are a deep purply blue irridescent and this looks like one fun project. The kit is from Just Our Yarns. Thanks so much to Just Our Yarns, and to the prize maven at the Seasons of Lace. I feel so lucky!

Other things I've been working on: My merino silk cardigan is only one sleeve cap away from done--as far as the knitting goes. Then blocking, seaming, and figuring out exactly how to finish it.

Smaller projects I've made up over the last two weeks include:
toddler socks knit in Jojoland Rhythm/
Entrelac scarf in Jojoland Rhythm.
Crochet cap in Misti Alpaca Handpaint Bulky. Gorgeous yarn, gorgeous cap, but it doesn't look right on me, so I also made:
Lamb's Pride Bulky crochet cap. This one suits me very well. I love the shape and the color is flattering.
I also started a pair of cute pink socks for Sophia, which made Dante wonder when I was finally going to make this. The wooly crown cap, in the adult small size. I don't think I have ever knit a pattern as written twice, not even my own pattern. I left out the bobbles on this one because I'm going to let Dante have fun decorating it. More on that later. I also was too lazy to go upstairs and get some yarn and a crochet hook for a provisional cast on, so there is an unsightly line between the brim and the points. Well it may be unsightly now, but I realized that would happen, and that's what made me think of my decorating idea. So it was my laziness that inspired what is going to be a really cool crown. When he gets to it. Seven-year-olds are busy!