Diaboleite on the Needles

What a surprise - we once again are struggling through bad weather. This snow/sleet/ice storm is not as bad as we had earlier this winter season, but it made for interesting morning chores on the farm. It was quite an effort to get up the hill to our alpaca barn as for every step I took up, I slid about a half a step back down!

I am taking a slight break from quilting - until I get the studio straight after a crazy fall/holiday season (I can see two out of the four main tables now) and it is a bit warmer. So knitting is taking the front row for a while.

Depending upon when and where I am knitting, I like to have different projects to work on. Lately I have been working on my Time Turner Shawl using our hand dyed sock yarn in the colorway Diaboleite. We currently have only DK and Bulky in that colorway on our Etsy store, but hope to dye more sock yarn soon.

Cast on Wednesday, January 9, 2019

As of Sunday, January 13, 2019

I have done most of the knitting while watching Wallander but I am now up to the lace part of the pattern, so I will switch it out for my Viajante shawl so I can watch the show and not my knitting. I will probably be knitting Viajante forever as it is 1600 yards of fingering weight yarn and I think I am only about a third of the way through the yarn. 

Knitting Miss Moxie

Our neighboring alpaca farm had a very special alpaca girl that they lost to cancer earlier this year. Adrienne and I were very close to her as we spent the first night of her life helping her owner tube feed her as she had some issues nursing at first.

Adrienne had spun her first fleece and used it to design and knit an amazing double knit pattern Porg that is for sale her Etsy store. She still had a few skeins left and I used them to knit a hat (Bankhead) and a headband (Heartsome) for Miss Moxie's owners. 

A pair of bittersweet Christmas presents.

Day 18 of the of the 31 Day Blog Writing Challenge

Struggling

Again only about an hour working in the studio on sewing - and not even quilting at that. The kitchen curtain was up on deck today as it is going to get cold (and a little snowy) Friday night. Now it only needs a little hand work and then it can be installed!

I finished the headband I was knitting last night and really like the  pattern Heartsome - unfortunately I will be tinking the bind off and doing the one recommended in the pattern.  I used a suspended bind off but it is not quite stretchy enough. I needed to look up how to do Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy bind off, but my Cast On Bind Off book by Leslie Ann Bestor (highly recommended) was a the studio, so I just took a chance that the bind off I normally use would work. It didn't.

I will take pictures of it tomorrow when the light is better. It is getting gifted tomorrow so I better get to it.

I have a feeling I won't get much time in the studio tomorrow either as we are visiting our neighbor alpaca farm and going to the laundromat to do some heavy items that my washer just can't handle.

I need to figure out a better schedule so I can have more time in the studio and I can wrap up some long standing projects and get working on a piece that will be displayed in our local arts council's gallery in February. I know what I want to make and am working out some of the logistical details in paper before I start creating the piece in fabric. 

I think all I want for Christmas is extra time in the studio!

Day 17 of the of the 31 Day Blog Writing Challenge

Still Here and a Little Knitting

We are still fighting the historic snow fall in Western NC. We ventured out today to get a few supplies for us and the animals. Schools are going to be closed again tomorrow and my guild meeting is cancelled so the project I needed to get done by Thursday now has a deadline in January. 

So it is on the back burner and a little knitting has occurred. I have two small Christmas gifts to make for some special people out of some very special hand spun alpaca yarn that Adrienne made.  I have finished the hat using the pattern Bankhead on Ravelry.

I have picked out the pattern for the lady of the pair - a headband called Heartsome also on Ravelry and plan to cast on this evening.

If it all goes well they will be delivered early next week.

Day 11 of the of the 31 Day Blog Writing Challenge

Tale of Two Socks

Two years ago in August I posted a picture of "bad sock" - too big, too pointy of a toe and heel and general not a good sock.

Fast forward to June of this year - we are in temporary housing while waiting to close on our farm house in NC.  All of my quilting supplies are in storage.  Most of my knitting is in storage.  Almost everything is in storage.  But I did keep out the yarn and the restart of "bad sock".

I loved the yarn and now that I am moving back to a colder climate - wool socks will definitely be necessary -so in June I started working on it again.  I tried to work on it where every I could - it even went out on the boat while the guys went fishing.

I got a few rows done - they didn't even get a nibble!

By the middle of June, I was the the cuff on the first sock.

I avoided second sock syndrome - I finished both of these last week.

I am especially pleased at how the stripes match.

Now if we could only get to started on our new adventure - we were supposed to close today but ran in to some issues.  Hopefully they will be resolved this week and the next post will be pictures of our little farm house.

I'm a Quilter not a Knitter . . .

So why do I have eight projects on needles at the moment?

A pair of toe up socks which have been frogged once and are the oldest project in the group as they where started last summer.  I think I prefer to start my socks from the top and after I finished this pair (and I will finish them as I love the yarn) I will start from the top in the future.

The knitters in my family are doing a KAL this year - the green yarn in front.  I have almost finished Adrienne's Anime Amble - the third pattern in the series.  Instead of doing a scarf (not very useful in Charleston) I am doing  the 5 Way Shawl .  Of course that means double the number of stitches and I need to knit a few more rows of every pattern to achieve the proper length - so it takes a little bit of time to do each pattern.

The red scarf is from yarn that was to be a sweater (what was I thinking!) and will be given to heart patient when completed.  It is fairly far along and is a good pattern to do while watching movies - as long as I don't get too involved in the plot.

Three are for gifts - and that is all I will say about them.

The last two are for me - one is Colourwheel Cowl by Susan Ashcroft and the other is Sleeves by Martina Behm.  Sleeves is the newest as it was cast on yesterday - I think I might be developing an addiction.

On the quilting front - remember I am a Quilter - I finished the last of a series of baby quilts for my sister-in-laws mother as well as teaching both at our local shop and guild.

Why You Don't Knit When You are Tired

I have made significant process on my One Ball Gradient Shawlette by Karen Vradelis.

In fact I hope to finish it tonight.  Our weather has been warm (the 80's most of the weekend) and we have a cool front (hard to call it a cold front when we will still be in the 60's) headed our way this week.  I would like one chance to wear this before it is packed away until late fall.

I would have finished it sooner but some how I managed to knit the wrong way in the middle of a row.

So instead of stockinette I ended up with a half of a row of garter stitch! This is why you don't knit when you are tired.

We had a few visitors to the backyard recently - 

You can only see six in the picture - but there were eight in total.  They were doing a great job of trimming behind the fence.  Unfortunately they often trim inside the fence as well - so my gardening is contained in pots, which were moved from under the house to the porch this weekend (a major undertaking).

I am working on several quilting projects - a mystery quilt for my guild, a charity quilt from blocks I won, and several projects for classes - none of which are very photogenic at this point.

A Little Knitting

I am sort of taking a short break from quilting - I have several classes going on at the moment and most of my sewing is related to samples for those classes.  Not the most exciting photos - especially since I use old and mismatch fabric to do my class samples.  Helps to keep me from drowning in the stuff.

I am working on a very easy, quick knitting project using yarn I purchased at the frayed knot (a great little store) in Savannah, Georgia where I spent last weekend with my sisters and daughter.  We had a wonderful time - walking, knitting, eating and visiting the Destination Savannah quilt show where my quilt Bloom was on display.

The yarn I am using is Souk by Cascade Yarns

and the pattern is One Ball Gradient Shawlette by Karen Vradelis.  

It is a very easy pattern - the only change I made was to slip the first stitch purl wise on all odd rows to make a slightly neater edge.

I was working on another small knitting project (Downtown Cowl by Christy Becker)- but it has disappeared into the black hole in my house.  I worked on it Sunday after we returned home - cleared it off the table to serve dinner - and haven't seen it since!  Not for the lack of looking.  

Of course I will finish the shawlette and find the cowl just in time for hot weather to arrive in Charleston!

A Tale of Two Needles and Two Bridesmaid Dresses

So, it's been a while since my last post.  I have been working on many projects - unfortunately some are presents yet to be given and some are experiments and are not ready for prime time.

Along with these soon to be seen projects I was knitting a new pair of socks.  My first use of self-stripping yarn and a single Addi Turbo circular needle in new toe up design.

Epic fail.

I kept trying to convince myself they really did fit but after turning the heel, I had to face facts - these are terrible socks. The pattern has a too pointy toe for my wide feet, the heel is also too pointy and worst of all - they are too big. I did not realize that US size 1 needles actual come in two sizes.  The Addi Turbo size 1 needle is 2.5 mm and the Cover bamboo size 1 double pointed needles (that I have used successfully before) are 2.25 mm.  A difference of .25 mm and yes, gauge does matter. So this sock is history!

BAD SOCK!

I am starting again - with the circular needles for the toe and first few rounds (I did like that part of using the circular needles vs the double pointed) and then I am switching to the bamboo needles (which I like the feel of better).  I am going to use the slip heel basic sock pattern from Socks for the Toe Up by Wendy D. Johnson that I have made before and get my sock Mojo back.

Along with this not so successful knitting project for most of the month of July I was making bridesmaid dresses for my daughter and her friend for a wedding held the first weekend in August.   Multiple layers, lots of gathering, pattern pieces that didn't fit together very well and not one but two dress to make!  They were finished the Thursday before the wedding and the girls looked very pretty.

It has taken a few weeks to get my studio straightened and back to work on my own projects.  Hopefully the hot, humid weather of summer in Charleston is coming to an end and I will be more inspired to work.

Color Affection Continues

I am making progress on my Color Affection - I had wanted to take pictures after I finished the second color but was so excited to see what the third color would look like - I kept knitting and forgot to get the picture!

I am please with the colors and now that my "garden" is back on the porch maybe I will make better progress on this piece.  I also have a pair of socks that I can't wait to start.

Color Affection

After having seen numerous Color Affection shawls created this past year, I finally succumbed to the temptation and started mine this past week.

I had the two grey yarns in my stash.  They were given to my by my sister after one of her many trips to Chile.  The cherry is a skein of Madelinetosh.

I hope I have enough - lately I finish my projects with inches to spare (or worse with inches to short and I have to find a scrap of yarn that will work color and weight wise to finish).

Hitchhiker

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was one of my favorite books as teenager (do not do the math!) and when I saw the scarf on Ravelry I knew I had to make one.

The pattern by Martina Behm was easy to follow and was a quick knit.

I added a bead at every point to add a little sparkle and as everyone knows the answer to the universe is 42 - which is is the number of points my scarf has.  Now if someone could just come up with the question.

From Many Hats - One Bag

For Christmas this year I knit hats for my husbands side of the the family.  Lots and lots of hats.

Of course after knitting all these hats, I still had lots of yarn left over - but not enough to make more hats (thank goodness!)

The yarn, Cascade 220, felts wonderfully so I decided to make a bag based upon a Petite Felted Carrier I found on Ravelry.  I modified it a bit to make it a little bit bigger.  The pattern has 112 stitches and I increased it to 128.

So around and around I knit and when I was finished this was the result before felting:

It was thrown into the washer with some towels and after about 10 minutes it looked like this:

I put a couple of bowls in it to shape it and now I have a new bag.

A very fun and easy project (I knit some of it in the car on a trip to Columbia, SC to see my son play his trumpet - no I was not driving at the time) and as I still have a lot of grey and teal yarn left I will probably be making another sometime soon.

My Most Ambition Knitting Project

My Catkin by Carina Spencer is finally done!

This pattern stretched my knitting skills (several pages of charts, stitches I had never heard of before let alone try to knit, and blocking.)

I saw the pattern on the Yarn Harlot blog in August of 2011, purchased the pattern shortly there after, found the yarn at the Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair in Asheville,NC in October of 2011, worked on it off and on for months, finished all but the blocking and buttons in August of last year and then it sat as I was afraid to block it.

Finally I watched several videos where the knitters just used regular pins (which I have plenty of) and I decided to go for it.  This is Catkin waiting to be blocked

Catkin pinned out - next time I will use a bigger bed.  It grew a lot more than I expected.

The back:

and details:

and all that is left of my Pumpkin Spice yarn: