Frogging, Finishing and Starting Fresh

These are my favorite knitting project bags.  

Star Trek and Hobbit are by Stitched by JessaLu and the British Telephone Box is by Zigzag Stitches.

I started in December re-accessing my knitting WIP's as there were many which left me feeling weighed down.  They took up room, filled every project bag I own, and inhibited my starting anything new.  I had heard a quote that went something along these lines "If I can stand to stop knitting on a project, it is probably not something I really truly want."  Sadly, I don't remember where I heard it or the exact wording, but the sentiment is right.  It got me thinking about how we sometimes really do need to let go to make space for something even better.  I, like many of you I'm sure, get wrapped up in the amount of time I've already given that item and feel it's all for naught if I don't finish it.  Well, if you look at it from a different perspective, that item, while not completed, has already brought me excitement in the planning process and casting on, comfort in the actual knitting and possibly it has even given me practice at some new skills.  So, it wasn't a wasted effort, but maybe more of a pastime until the right project comes my way.  You know the type of project I'm talking of, the one you can't put down, that seems to knit itself, or that is just what you needed to complete your wardrobe.

Thus a frogging I went through all my project bags.  A couple of scarves here, a beautiful yet too small mitten there, a brioche poncho, a gorgeous sleeveless top and others met there end to my ripping back the yarn.  But isn't that the lovely thing about knitting though?  That you can reuse the yarn (well unless it's mohair then you might just be stuck throwing it out.)  I do think it's the reason I've stopped stressing as much over my knitting.  When yarn is recoverable to make anew with, unless it's the aforementioned mohair, the "risk" of wasting money is slight and that eases my mind.  The only thing truly gone is your time and as I mentioned previously that's really all in how you look at it. 

Now, looking at the projects I am carrying over into this new year I find they are ones I really do want.  The double knit mittens to match the hat I already finished and wear all the time, 2 sweaters that will add to my wardrobe, a stole which is such a perfect match for it's yarn, a pair of vanilla socks as I always take some with me as my on the go project, a late Christmas gift scarf (it's a bit of a boring knit, but the recipient can sure use it) and lastly a cowl out of the remainder of my handspun yarn.  So yes, there are still quite a number of projects crossing over into the new year.  I am not a monogamous knitter by any means, yet I do hope to get back down to only 3 projects at a time:  socks, sweater, and a neck or home accessory.  Thus, I am hoping to restrain myself from casting on anything new until a few more WIP's have become FO's. 

So, while I have no fresh cast on with which to begin the new year I feel as if I am starting fresh with my freshly sorted WIP's and future plans.  Now, on to re-accessing the yarn stash which is due for a good tossing.  How do you start the new year with regards to knitting?

Simply Playing Podcast Episode 2 - Where Sheep Take Over My Life

Introduction:

Hi this is Ann.  Welcome to episode 2 on my new knitting podcast called Simply Playing.  I'm so glad you could make it!

Playing with Sicks and String (or current knitting projects)

Pattern:  Cozy Coasters by Joelle Hoverson from the book More Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn:  Frog Tree Melange 100% Alpaca Sport Weight Yarn (held double)  (This yarn is discontinued)
Needles:  Knitter's Pride Metal US 9/5.5mm DPNs

Pattern:  Viajante by Martina Behm available as a Ravelry download
Yarn:  Madelinetosh Twist Light 75 % Superwash Merino 25% Nylon 4 ply Fingering Weight in Candlewick colorway
Needles:  Chiaogoo US 3/3.25mm and US 5/3.75mm fixed metal circulars

Show and Tell (or finished objects)

Pattern:  Felted Tote Bag by Yvonne Eyer (not on Ravelry but received as a class handout)
Yarn:  Cascade 220 100% Wool Worsted Weight (held double) in the colorways: Navy, Straw,  Lemon, and Natural
Used:  1 skein each of the Straw, Lemon and Natural and a skein plus some of Navy for a total of 1009 yards/922 meters
Needles:  Clover Bamboo US 11/8mm and US 13/9mm straight and fixed circular needles

Pattern:  Sheep! by Susan B. Anderson available as a Ravelry download
Yarn:  Shetland Oatmeal handspun, Cloudborn Fibers Highland DK in Charcoal and Oatmeal Heather and Madelinetosh Tosh DK in Candlewick
Used:  Fair Isle Sheep 75 yards/68 meters, Textured Sheep 66 yards/60 meters and Loopy Sheep 91 yards/83 meters for a total of 232 yards/212 meters
Needles:  Knitter's Pride Wood US 4/3.5mm DPNs

Forgotten Toys (or languishing works in progress)

Pattern:  Fair Isle Vest by Mary Jane Mucklestone purchased as part of a Craftsy Class
Yarn:  Cloudborn Fibers Highland DK in 9 colorways

• Espresso Heather (dark brown)
• Maize Heather (yellow)
• Oatmeal Heather (natural)
• Burgundy (red)
• Navy
• Sky Blue (very light blue)
• Dolphin Blue (light blue)
• Stormy Skies (medium blue)
• Autumn Heather (orange)     

Needles:  Knitters Pride Wooden US 3/3.25mm and US 5/3.75mm interchangeable circulars
Project Bag:  Stitched by Jessalu Large Wedge in Star Trek 2 Generations Fabric

The Toy Box (or a visit into the stash)

Yarn:  Rimrock 70% CVM Wool 30% Kid Mohair 3 ply Fingering Weight sold through Etsy
Company:  Roubaix Wool Company
Location:  Winterwind Farm in Battle Creek, Minnesota United States

I also mention her amazing Goat Milk Soap

Ooo Shiny!!! (or yarn and pattern distractions)

Yarn:  Ovilab Yarns - handpainted and handspun yarn sold through Etsy's new pattern by platform

Pattern:  Shrug and More by Martina Behm sold as a Ravelry download
Yarn I'd Use:  Quince and Company's Chickadee 100% Wool Sport Weight

In Closing

You can find me on Ravelry and Instagram as SimplyPlaying or
email me at annATsimplyplayingDOTnet

Thanks so much for taking time out of your day to spend with me.  I'll see you again in a couple of weeks.  Until then remember to keep playing!  Bye! Bye!

Distractions - Blanket Knitting

 

The double knit mittens I'm making have my fingers cramping (my needles are very pointy too leaving my finger tip sore from pushing the stitches off - angora yarn can be "sticky") so I started looking about for a distraction.  Well, knitting distraction that is, as there is plenty of housework needing to be done I'm just not of a mind to do it.  But, being productive is important to me, which had me turning to my WIPs hoping for something simple and a bit mindless.  This blanket fit the bill even though it's technically not a WIP, as it was finished and has been in use for some months, but I decided a few weeks back that it was too small at only 45 inches square (it doesn't really wrap around the body enough when cuddling on the couch).  

I began searching for some yarn on Ravelry looking through people's stashes of Lorna's Laces Shepard Worsted and Green Line Worsted, as those were the yarns I used previously, to see what was available in the sell or trade category.  This is a good way to find great yarn at discounted prices.  Although, really this blanket is not an economical project even having purchased all the yarn in this manner.  The afghan was knit using 8 1/2 - 225 yard skeins and now I'm looking to add 6 more - yikes!  Tallying up the cost officially is something I'm not ready to face up to, but in for a penny in for a pound and I might as well end up with a blanket in a size I'll regularly use.  See, I never really thought this project through and I think that's the problem.  It began with a lone skein of worsted weight yarn along with a bad case of "start-itis" (you know when you want to start a casting on a million knitting projects at once?  Oh yeah, it's a disease all right which comes and goes like the common cold, but leaves a devastating wake of partially knit projects behind) and thought "Hmm an afghan knit with only ten stitches - that sounds like fun."

Back to searching for those 6 more skeins of yarn.  I found 2 skeins of a Navy Blue which I loved, and I thought would make at least one ring around but I still needed even more yarn to get the 60 inches square blanket I desired.  As luck would have it I found 4 skeins of the exact same yarn, same colorway (Lorna's Laces Shepard Worsted in Edgewater) that I began with in the blanket's center.  Yay!  It will now look like I planned the colors out instead of buying random yarn as I went along.  The messages were sent, money changed hands and in a manner of days 6 skeins of yarn arrived in the mail  - easy peasey!

The navy ring was completed yesterday and I'm hoping by next week I'll finish the last 2 multicolored rings.  Then the blanket will be complete and the distraction will have passed and maybe, just maybe I'll get back to those mittens. 

Joining in with Linda for Creative Friday and Andrea for Fibre Arts Friday.

Stash Outing and Going Cold Sheep!

Do you have a yarn stash?  Most knitter's do and I am no exception.  The problem with stashes is they tend to get out of hand.  Mine did.  Yes, yes it did.  Perhaps you remember this post where I sold some of my stash off to make amends (so to speak) to my over indulgence?  Those skeins were good ones to sell and I'm glad I did.  They were all impulse purchases bought mostly for colors that I just loved, but don't go with anything I own or look good on me etc. (you get the idea.)  What yarn I saved all have a workable future project in the planning stages. 

So here goes.  My yarn stash in their containers.  It's a lot:  2 full sized Rubbermaid tubs, 1 half sized tub, 2 large baskets and 1 IKEA tub that fits into my IKEA Trofast storage unit.  The amount surprised even me as all these tubs and baskets are spread throughout our house .  I couldn't quite stomach piling all the yarn together so what follows is a series of pictures grouped by projects. 

 

This is my sock yarn stash.  Enough to make 11 pairs of socks.  I average 2-4 a year so that's at least 3 years worth of sock yarn.  Can you tell I like blues? 

 

Here are my two work in progress or WIP socks.  I hate knitting with that blue yarn as it gets so twisty and tangled.  And even though I am so close to finishing I started on the rainbow pair instead.  But, alas second sock syndrome set in and I still have just one sock.   

Dan's younger brother Bill requested warm wool socks for a Christmas present this year and I did knit him a pair using the above yarn.  The pattern took 1 and a half skeins so I purchased another skein to make a pair for Dan who also get very cold in the winter (it's their Philipino blood I think.)  Hopefully I will have no left over yarn this time around.

 

Here is some lovely Madelinetosh DK yarn whose future will be as thick socks for my mother.  I already knit her a hat and cowl in the wine and a cowl in the pink.  There will be enough of the pink left over to knit this hat which I will give to my friend Amy for her charity.  Her charity "Team Yarn" donate hats and shawls for chemotherapy patients at various facilities in and around the Twin Cities Metro Area.  If you would like to donate a hat or yarn to Amy you can find her information here.

 

I am making the same hat as I mention above and it with the rest of this yarn is earmarked for Amy's charity.  It's a lovely soft merino wool from Artyarns.  

Beautiful blues no?  These skeins of Cascade Paints were supposed to be a Wallaby Sweater for my son Sam, but then he made the declaration that he wanted no more hand knits from me.  Children can cut you to the quick sometimes.  Instead of fighting it and spending all the time knitting him something he doesn't want I decided to knit shawls from this, again for Amy's Charity.  I choose this pattern.  The first shawl blocked out beautifully so I am excited to make a second one and use up this yarn!

These many skeins of superwash merino wool are also destined for hats for chemo patients.  It's just so soft, warm and easy care so a no brainer on what to do with them.

 

Next up is a Shetland wool scrappy vest I am knitting for my husband Dan.  Most of the yarn is left over from a vest I made for him this past Christmas (of which I have no photos as of yet.)  The pattern called for steeking the armholes and v neck which will be new to me.  Maybe that's why I've stalled out on this project?

A cabled vest WIP for Dan.  You can find the pattern here.  The merino yarn is limited in amount (I purchased it a long time ago before I knew to save labels) and should be enough to finish, but I am nervous about it so I have yet to find out.  Besides, the cables take me forever.

 

This lot of Jamieson's Shetland yarn is for a lovely Argyle patterned vest, again for Dan.  Here is the pattern.

I have no pattern in mind as of yet for this heathered gray yarn, but there is enough for a man's vest.  Guess who for?  Can you tell he doesn't like sleeves on his sweaters?  

So, with two in progress vests and two planned vests I have enough yarn to cover Dans' birthday and Christmas gifts for the next 2 years.

Now, on to sweaters for me.  This is also Jamieson's Shetland yarn but this time in a DK weight.  I barely started into Elizabeth Zimmerman's Fair Isle Yoked Sweater which I believe I will make into a cardigan.  We'll see when it comes time for steeking how I feel.

 

This orange yarn is gorgeous!  It's Ella Rae Extra Fine Heathers which was being discontinued at WEBS.   I purchased it on a tip from the Yarn Harlot and I'm glad I did.  I'm knitting Cassis by Baby Cocktails which I have knit before, but this time I'm knitting it with long sleeves.  Short sleeves are cute, but don't keep me warm enough in the winter here in Minnesota.

 

Yet another WIP for me.  Can you tell I like to start projects a lot!  This will be the famous Color Affection Shawl knit with fingering weight yarn.  I think it's going to be stunning, but it takes some thinking to remember where I am in the pattern.  I don't always have enough uninterrupted thinking time so here it sits unfinished.

Sorry for this fuzzy photo.  The light was getting pretty dim when I took it late in the late afternoon.  It's Rowan's Felted Tweed and I planned on making this tunic pattern, but I'm unsure now do to the lack of sleeves. 

 

Here is a redo where the Gap Cowl  turns into this scarf.  It's knit on chunky needles so it should be quick, but it's boring to knit. Hence, it sits waiting for a good movie to knit through.

 

Last up for me is a hat and mitten set which is almost done.  the only problem is I don't like the hat (too loose of weave) and I wish that the mittens were lined.  I'm guessing I will start from scratch on this project.  

Any suggestions?

Two small and four large knitting projects just for me.  I knit about 1 - 2 sweaters for myself a year (although some get frogged as I'm picky) so I have at least 2 years of knitting here too.

 

Next up is my mother Jean.  I knit her a sweater for the first time last summer as all of her sweaters decided to up and die at the same time. I knit it out of Jamieson's Shetland as I wanted it to last forever and I'm Scots and have a yarn bias (there I've said it and now you know.)  I am going to try and knit her another Shetland sweater this year using this Elizabeth Zimmerman pattern.

Here is the leftover yarn from the Blathin Sweater I knit her last year and some 100% angora yarn I spun myself.  The idea is to make angora lined mittens as angora is super warm and the Shetland wool is super durable.  I'm going to try and copy the flower pattern from the sweater too so she'll be matchy matchy which she likes a lot (hmm we must be related.)

I knit Dan a buttoned down tweedy professor like vest out of this Knit Picks yarn and here is what was left over.  I plan to knit mom this beret styled hat from it.

All in all one big project and four little projects (don't forget about the Madelinetosh socks) for mom.  I'm guessing this will get me a little bit over a year as she has 3 holidays where I give her gifts (add in Monther's Day to the usual two.) and I just like making little somethings for my mom 

(she gushes and who doesn't love that?)

 

For the house I just have a couple of projects.  This 10 Stitch Afghan by Frankie Brown has been sitting for a while and gets knit on when I'm cold because I can cover my lap with it as I knit.  It's pretty close to the finish line though with only 2 new skeins to go.

 

I think this project is super cute.  I bought the alpaca sport weight yarn a year and a half ago intending to knit these coasters for a friend, but I had trouble with the yarn.  I knit hers from some thick cotton yarn I had on hand instead and completed them easily.  Now that I found this yarn again I don't know what my problem with it even was.  They do take forever being double knit, but are so pleasing when finished!   

I will make 6 coasters and 3 small trivets from this pile.

Now, we get into the un-dyed yarn.  Yes, you heard me right un-dyed yarn.  As if I needed more steps in the knitting process.  My plan was to plant dye the yarn myself to sell in my Etsy shop Simply Playing.  I hoped to take over dyeing the yarn I use for my knitted toys instead of purchasing it from the fabulous Judy of Mamajude.  Well, let's just say there is quite a learning curve to plant dyeing so that probably won't happen.  I might just sell this bunch, but I'm still on the fence.

Here is a large lot of indigo dyed yarn.  I did it myself.  It was fun, intense and sadly still not over as it all the yarn needs to be rinsed more to get the residual indigo out.  I am knitting a felted yoga bag out of the bulky yarn and hope that the felting process will wash out the loose indigo dye so it doesn't mark up my yoga mat like it does to my hands while knitting.  If I can get the yarn to stop turning my hands blue I will probably give some skeins to friends and knit some into chemo hats.  None of the yarn is good enough to sell.  

Learning curve.

 This batch of yarn was dyed with Black Walnuts  (dyeing with them is a breeze) and one skein was dyed with Annatto seeds (which was ok, but I wasn't wild about the results.)  My guess is the worsted browns will become teddy bears for my shop and the sock yarn I might just knit into socks for my mom and me.

Well, that's the end of my stash and WIPs and if you made it this far into this post congratulations to you!  You must like me or be strangely pulled in to see how much fit into those tubs.  What I'm hoping to do next is check in with all you lovely people about once a month to see what if any progress is being made into emptying those bins and baskets.  I will also update you on how many days I have gone going "Cold Sheep".  If you have not heard the expression fear not I didn't know it either until I read it on another blog of a lovely lady who lives across the pond in England.  It's similar to going off drugs/alcohol or whatever your addiction is "Cold Turkey", but this is about not buying yarn, which comes from sheep, which is why we say "Cold Sheep".  My current day total of going Cold Sheep is a mere 36 days, but I'm hoping to stretch it to at least 1 year if not 2 or 3. 

Next up will be my fiber stash because sadly there is more obsession with wool than you can shake a stick at in my life.

Joining in with Tami for WIP Wednesday.

WIP Wednesday - Owl Sweater Part 2

Sorry I missed you all on Monday.  My son Sam had his 6th birthday party with friends and family the day before.  Which apparently sucked all the creative juices from me leaving me with nothing for blogging.  But, fun was had by all and that's the point right?  As you can see by the photos below I didn't listen to my rational self which said "Work on your husband's sweater vest" (a vest that he is so patiently waiting for I might add), but instead I listened to my knitter self which said "Finish the owl sweater - it'll be so quick."  So, I worked on my owl sweater and ran out of yarn with only the collar left to go.  Ack!  I then tried it on thinking of what to do next when I realized it was also too big.  Do I cry now? No (well, maybe a little).  I just frog down to the waist, as the lower torso fits just fine, and switch to a smaller needle size and start again.  Did I say start again?  Deep sigh inserted here.

What went wrong you may ask? Well a very basic thing went wrong.  Something that is so simple to do, but I always hate doing it.  Something you do right at the beginning of a project.  Have you guessed it yet?  Doing a swatch to get my gauge right.  I mean I did do a small swatch on straight needles, even though the pattern clearly states knitting a swatch in the round with circular needles.  What did I find? Yup, I was a a whole stitch off and that can add up to extra inches very quickly. 

 

Will I now go back to Dan's vest you may ask?  Well, to be honest with you all probably not.  I mean I got to see this owl thing through don't I?  

What project are you putting off this week?

WIP Wednesday - Owl Sweater

This poor, poor yarn has been through a lot I tell you.  It started out as a Shalom Cardigan which made me look like a line backer for the MN Vikings football team.  Needless to say it was frogged and rewound.  Next, it became the flattering Raspberry Layers cardigan.  Like I said this one was flattering, but cap sleeves during a Minnesota winter makes for cold arms I found out.  Thus I frogged again and rewound into lots of little balls this time around.

 

 Now this Malabrigo Alpine Pearl bulky weight yarn's destiny is the form fitting owl sweater by Kate Davies.  I have just enough yarn to make my size, just enough.  Of course this makes me worry that I will run out.   This worry is exacerbated by the fact that the construction is from the bottom up making amounts more crucial than a top down pattern where you can always just make the sweater shorter.  I mean you can just not do the neck you know?  My solution will be to knitting the length in the middle of the range of  suggested lengths for the torso portion and to make the sleeves 3/4 length instead of full.  Hopefully these measures will leave me enough to complete this fast moving project.  Seriously, this pattern is quick!  If only I didn't have to finish Dan's vest first I think I could finish this up in a couple of days.  

Using size 11 needles doesn't hurt either.

 

What WIPs do you have laying around your house this week?

WIP Wednesday - Mobius Vest

Have you heard of Elizabeth Zimmermann?  It really is hard not to in the knitting world.  So much so that people just refer to her as EZ.  Well, I am going through an EZ phase where I'm reading all her books and making a few sweaters as well.  Her way of constructing a sweater is fascinating to me and how easily she makes the math work out to customize it just for you.  What I'm showing you today is her Mobius Vest from her book Knitting Around.  It's just two long rectangular pieces of garter stitch knitting (with a bit of short row shaping half way through) made into a vest by twisting the rectangles a 180 degrees and seaming up the sides.  That twist gives you the lapels for the front of this cardigan style vest.  It's really that simple.

Now, this vest isn't going to win any current fashion shows, but it's practical, comfy and warm.  Basically, I just had to knit it because I was curious to see how it would turn out.  The I -cord as you go edging, short row shaping, and "afterthought pockets" kept me interested and the garter stitch knitting made it a perfect sweater to knit while visiting with friends.  All I have left is to tack down the second pocket lining and put in a zipper closure.  Of course this has been sitting in my WIP basket for over a month with only these two little things to complete, but I will finish really I will.

The funny thing is I knit this sweater with 3 strikingly different dye lots of the same color Malabrigo worsted weight yarn.  The story goes like this - I bought 3 skeins on Etsy for cheap to knit this vest, but it looked HORRIBLE on me (really I can't say enough bad things about it, it was that awful) so it was frogged and laid in wait for another project.  Then I couldn't find any other garment to knit with that little yarn (yes I know, hats and scarves abound, but I wanted a vest I tell you.)  I thought I could buy a few more skeins of the same color thinking "I can blend the dye lots so no one will know." Well, they were so different blending would look striped so I knit blocks of color intentionally showing off the difference in hue.  When I was just about done I ran out of yarn and ordered 1 more skein.  Ack!  At that point I thought so what and went with it.  All in all I think it looks alright, but it's destiny will probably be a homeward bound sweater. 

 

I tried showing you a few shots on how it fits, but without photographic help tonight you only get a couple of glimpses.  The upper one shows how the lapel and "cap' sleeve look and the lower one shows how the pieces are twisted inward making a V in the back.  After it's finished and blocked I will post again and you can let me know whether I was successful or not with my different dye lots.

What's on your needles this week?

WIP Wednesday - I-Cord Rug

Do you remember this post on what I do with my yarn scraps?  Well, this project has been on hiatus for a while but now I'm back at it.  My intention is to make a rug out of felted I-cords made from all my scrap wool yarn.  All my super wash wool and cotton yarn scraps go to my son Sam for his creations.  Lately, he's making Popsicle stick "God's Eyes" as well as knitting bean bags. I just hate wasting such beautiful yarn you know?  But back to the rug.  Here are a few photographs of my 29 1/2 yards long I-cord wrapped up into a rug shape before felting.

 

 This is the shape I'm going for only a few feet bigger.  Yes, this will be a long term project.

 

 Here's a close up of all the pretty yarns.  I did a 5 stitch I-cord.

Now, I washed the yarn cord in my washing machine with soap (not detergent) and hot water agitating it for 30 minutes then I let it finish the full cycle. Well, it came out of the washer a tangled felted mess!  Ack!  I sat down and untangled it and noticed it felted rather erratically.  Where it was tightly tangled it did not felt well and where it was loose it felted just right.  Should I cry now?  All that time and effort and it looks a wreck.  I could have thrown it back in the washer again, but instead I decided to braid it hoping to even out the thicknesses and here is the result:

 Sorry for the fuzzy pics it's a very gray day today.  It measures about 15 inches in diameter.

 The braiding also evens out the colors giving them a more muted effect.

 I'm relived now that it isn't a total loss, just a different look.  Hopefully I can find a book at the library on how to sew braided rugs together.  Have any of you done that and if so do you have any tips?  But, in the meantime it's back to I-cord knitting my scraps.  60 more yards of cord should make a decent sized throw rug for besides a bed or in front of the kitchen sink.  I'll keep you posted!

What do you do with your yarn leftovers?

WIP Wednesday - A Vest

Well, I ran out of yarn for my Hobo Bag strap so it has to be put on hold until I get more in the mail from Knit Picks.  Oh well.  After digging through my WIPs I decided it's back to work on the Wall Street Cables Vest I'm knitting for my husband.  It actually was supposed to be a wedding anniversary gift last year, but my fear of cables and making a man's garment in DK weight yarn stopped me.  

 Please excuse the quality of this picture as it's a photo of a Xerox copy from a book.

Meanwhile, Dan's wearing his only vest everyday, (yes, even in the summer as the A/C at his work makes it quite chilly for my tropical blooded hubbie) and he's getting a little bored of it, not to mention it could use a wash.  So, I jumped in and guess what?  The pattern is pretty simple actually, and the cables not a problem.  Yes, the DK weight yarn still means this will take me a while, but I have about 2 months to finish before this year's wedding anniversary.

 

Above is my progress so far and I am pleased with the definition this merino yarn is giving to the cables.  Why was I so afraid of them?  Seems rather silly now. What projects are you working on this WIP Wednesday?

WIP Wednesday - On a Thursday, Again

Well, I have been knitting, knitting, knitting! It's what I do when I'm stressed out and need something to keep my focus. And, with my husband Dan flying off to the Philippines, to help his mother sort out the outstanding amount of paperwork that occurs with a death, for 2 and a half weeks stress has lived in our household.

You would think I would have accomplished a few finished projects with all this knitting, but alas that is not the case. Lately, I have been getting bored easily and have now 6 unfinished projects. Yes, you heard right 6! Here's one that is almost finished; just weaving in ends and blocking left.

It's the ever popular Shalom Sweater on Raverly. The pattern was for a size S, which unfortunately I am not. So, I had to modify number of stitches cast on and used bigger needles as I tend to knit tight and always go up a size or two. I'm still not sure whether I like it or not. The yarn I used was Malabrigo Bulky in their Alpine Pearl colorway. It was truly a joy to work with as it's such soft and silky merino wool. After blocking I'll take some shots of me wearing the sweater and you can tell me what you think.

Here's another work in progress. It's called Kay's Tess D'Urbervilles Shawl also for free on Raverly.

This one is still on the needles as you can see so I don't know about the fit yet, but I am digging the pattern and the look of the yarn I choose - Lorna's Laces Shepard Worsted in their Happy Valley colorway. Again, this is a really SOFT merino wool yarn so knitting with it is a pleasure to be sure.

I'll save the other WIPs for next Wednesday. Maybe I'll have finished something by then...Hmm. What projects are you working on lately?

WIP Wednesday - Yarn Scraps

Hello. Do you too have lots of yarn scraps that you just can't seem to throw away? I do. I roll mine up into little teeny balls and put them in a drawer thinking I might use them, someday. Now, one thing you need to know about me is I LOVE to use up yarn, fabric etc. COMPLETELY. Some people enjoy having a bag of scraps around for future projects, but not me. So having this drawer filled with yarn scraps was driving me crazy. Then I came up with this soon to be brilliant idea of making a rug. I thought I could make a cord using all my little bits of yarn, stitch it into a spiral and then felt it in the washing machine.

Here's my cord coming along nicely. I love the rainbow bits the best.

Here's the cord all spiraled up to look like an oval rug.

Kind of like a crazy quilt only in this case a crazy rug. What do you think? Will it work out or be a flop? My guess is it will be good, but will take me a long time to finish as the felting will shrink the rug down quite a lot. I figure I'll just leave the cord on the needles and add to it as I finish my other projects like the pink sweater, felted clogs for me and my mom, socks, socks and more socks oh the list does go on! What's on your needles, hook, sewing machine today?

WIP Wednesday - On a Thursday

Well, one day late isn't too bad. I was so happy with how Sam's Vest turned out I was just itching to start a sweater for myself. My parameters for this project was I had to use yarn and needles I have on hand. After searching on Raverly I found this wonderful pattern, which fit my limits perfectly, called Cassis Sweater. The yarn I used is Lamb's Pride in a dusty shade of pink and my size eight circulars (I always have to go up one size as I tend to knit tightly.) Here it is in progress below.

It's a top down knit knit on circulars but not in the round as it's a cardigan. Currently, I am just finishing up the collar portion. Looks good yes? Those needles look pretty full of stitches already so I may have to purchase longer ones. Oh, well I did try this time around. What is on your needles lately?