Sprossling

A few winters ago, I was visiting my parents and wandered into the Yarn Underground and was promptly overwhelmed by wool fumes.  My mother picked out some nice yarn, and I told her I would make her a sweater.

When I finally got around to it (that will be on my tombstone), I spent most of winter 2012 working on said sweater.  I actually finished almost all the knitting then, but I had to put it into hibernation while we were moving and my buttons were still in storage.  In April 2013 I pulled it out and finished it just in time for a trip to Cyprus, where my folks were living.

PATTERN: Sprossling by Anne Hanson.  Well-written and clear, as with all of Anne's patterns, although I was not pleased with the waist shaping as written.  My own version can be found on my Ravelry page.  Size 38", no other modifications.

YARN: Palouse Yarn Company Fingering (100% wool, 700yds per113g skein), two skeins in an unnamed colorway.  I think this is the yarn that was renamed "Featherweight" but am not sure.

NEEDLES: US 1.5/2.5mm and US 2.5/3.0mm.  I knit very loosely.

I think it turned out beautifully, don't you?  My mom sure does.  Just look at her dance.

Greek Keys

Apparently I knit not one but two pairs of Knitspot socks in the summer of 2012 (fancy that).  These were a "training" project for the Ravelympics.

Pattern: Woodsmoke Sock by Anne Hanson.  As you can tell from the name, she thought the pattern looked like curls of wood smoke in the dark brown yarn she used to knit the original, but I thought it looked like Greek keys in my Mediterranean blue yarn.
 

Yarn: The Yarn Yard Cairn (80/20 merino/nylon, 437yds/100g skein), in an unknown colorway.  This yarn was a gift from Aspen, and the pictures don't really do justice to its beauty--there were all sorts of little flashes of purple in with the blue.  It was also really enjoyable to knit with.

These ended up as a gift for my cousin Kathy (she graciously hosted us on part of our cross-country odyssey).  Thanks, Kathy!

Ravelympic Glory!

Yeah, yeah, we're supposed to call them the "Ravellenic Games" now, but whatever.  I invite the IOC to send me a cease-and-desist, as it will only drive traffic to my tiny blog.

Anyhoo, I knit these socks for the 2012 Summer Games.  They were chosen cannily as a project suitable for knitting quickly while traveling--we drove across the country three times that summer (I don't recommend it, incidentally).  I was right to do it, they knit up easily in the allotted time and I achieved three medals, which still may be seen on my Ravelry profile.

Pattern: Sign of Four by Anne Hanson.  Easy to knit, easy to memorize, and easy to adapt to toe-up.  I subbed in my favorite toe and heel (which I pretty much always do.)

Yarn: Mountain Colors Bearfoot (60/25/15 wool/mohair/nylon, 400yd/100g skein) in colorway "Moose Creek."  Love this yarn.  It's nice and thick (verging toward sport) and cushy.

I intended to give them to my dad for his birthday that year, but (foolishly) I put them into storage and then moved, so they became a Fathers' Day present for 2013.  When he was living in Cyprus.  A place where no mohair socks are ever needed.  But now he's back in Idaho and wearing them regularly.  So knitworthy, my dad.

Maplewing

Hey, remember my Maplewing?  Yeah, me neither.

I finished it more than two years ago, but life intervened in the way it does, and I didn't get around to blocking it until just the other day.

Want some pictures?  Oh I know you do.

Come here often?

You tease.

And the money shot:

And then off the pins:

 Yarn: Blue Ridge Yarn Silk Shimmer Lace (100% silk, 1000 yd/100g skein), 1.3 skeins, colorway "Dragon's Breath."  I really wish I could capture the colorway properly--it just glows in person.

Pattern: Maplewing, by Anne Hanson.  (Highly recommended.  Well-written and very easy.)

Needles: US 4/3.5mm

Notes: I could have done with a looser cast on (I used a regular knitted cast on), but it blocked out beautifully in the leaf pattern, so . . . eh, whatever.

Finally, a Finished Object

These have been done for MONTHS . . . I just now got around to taking pictures:


Pattern: Bougainvillea, by Anne Hanson.


Yarn: Malabrigo Sock, colorway "Velvet Grapes."



Needles: US 00/1.75mm. (Malabrigo is so soft and I knit so loosely that I usually use a very small needle to prevent wear.)


I am very pleased with these--the pattern is harder to see on camera than in real life, and I love how the little vines twine around everything.



P.S. This makes number five for Year of the Sock. I may not make it to twelve, but I'll definitely get to seven. That's not so bad, right?

Tudor Grace

Blocking shot:


Yarn: Blue Ridge Yarns Bambi (65/35 superwash merino/bamboo)

Pattern: Tudor Grace, by Anne Hanson. Needles: US 3/3.25 mm.

Model: my friend Allison, who graciously agreed to put on the scarf so I could get some good shots.

We got some nice photos that really show off the scarf:

And some not so serious ones . . .

Did you guess?

Did you guess what the teaser was?

If you guessed Anne Hanson's Tudor Grace, you're right!


This lace scarf is one of Anne's Little Nothings series, and I'm loving it. Super-simple pattern (I didn't bother to memorize it, but I think I have anyway) and crystal-clear instructions--as always with Anne.

I'm knitting it in Blue Ridge Yarns Bambi (65/35 superwash merino/bamboo, 400 yds/skein), colorway "Waterfall." The yarn is interesting--the bamboo makes it crunchy (for lack of a better word) and, I think, less floppy than superwash often is. I think it would make really good socks. And how gorgeous is this?


I can't wait to see it blocked.

The really exciting thing about this project is that, come November, I'll be teaching it as a class at my yarn store! My boss Doesn't Do Lace, so she invited me to teach this. *squee*

Ravin' Ravens

Irtfa'a is done!

First, blocking shots and then the reveal below.


This thing is huge. I haven't measured it, but it's definitely larger than my wingspan (which is probably 5'--I have short arms for my height).


Blocking it was quite an undertaking; as you can see in the full shot, I ran out of room on the sheet and had to add an emergency pillowcase. My housemates were very impressed.


And here it is: the main event.


Pattern: Irtfa'a by Anne Hanson, who kicks seventeen kinds of major ass.


Yarn: Posh Yarn Cecilia in "Onyx" (50/50 cashmere/silk, sadly discontinued). This is my favorite shot, which coincidentally mimics Anne's cover photo.


And I think this is my new ravatar.


This was such a huge undertaking, but it was completely worth it. Now I think I'm going to knit something a little smaller.

Olympics Wrap-Up

So the Olympics are over . . . and this is my Irtfa'a:


It's a little further advanced than when I took this picture, but not by a whole lot.

What did I learn from this year's Olympics? My limiting factor isn't skill but time. Nothing in this shawl so far has thrown me--not even the provisional cast-on. Of course, probably a lot of that is Anne's crystal-clear instructions, but still. I'm no slouch!

So next year, the trick is going to be finding something I'll have time to complete in two weeks. Lots of hats, maybe?

Speaking of Anne, I had the opportunity to meet her weekend before last at Eleganza Yarns' Indie Artist Celebration. In addition to Anne's trunk show (which is amaaaazing), the shindig included the work of all sorts of local spinners, dyers, and fiber types. And I may or may not have purchased a few things.

First, a few skeins of Mid Valley Fibers handspun. Linda was so nice (and the prices so incredible) that I had to get some. I'm always drawn to this kind of slubby yarn, even though I never know what to knit with it. I'm thinking a scarf, maybe? (100% wool, a sort of DK weight.)


Then there's this beauty, courtesy of Blue Ridge Yarns--100% silk laceweight in "Dragon's Breath."
This picture doesn't do it near justice, nor do the pictures on their website. (Which is probably a good thing for all of your credit cards.) I confess, I had to call the Irishman for a fiber intervention at this table--I had about four skeins in my hands before I got talked down. If I ever win the lottery, I'm totally cleaning them out.

And the best part of the day, of course, was meeting Anne! Not only is she as funny and gracious in real life as she is on her blog, she knew who I was. *squee* I have such a huge designer crush on Anne, and it was so much fun to meet her and see all her knits in person.

So that was two weekends ago, and I'm still recovering. (As is my credit card, *ahem*.) Now time to go get some more done on the Irishman's socks. Oh yes, you remember the big blue things from last time? They're NOT BIG ENOUGH. So I need to finish unpicking the bind-offs and knit a few more inches onto the cuffs. Curses!