Changing Colors

If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter you may have noticed that I’ve been playing around with dyes lately!

It started with a sweater.  A once lovely, cream, 100% merino sweater that my roommate’s now-ex boyfriend washed with blacks.  On this most unfortunate of occasions, the color transferred and the creamy beauty was obscured with random blots of blackish grey that didn’t suit the beautiful sweater one bit.

She passed the sweater on to me as it no longer suited her wardrobe and it fit and felt so good that I didn’t want to get rid of it either.  The sweater languished in my closet, making an appearance on occasion only to be returned to the shadowy depths because a splotchy black-cream sweater didn’t fit into my wardrobe either.  I was working from home when I rediscovered a batch of Jaquard dyes in my studio closet – Bingo!

spa prep

The sweater took a long hot bath with one gorgeous shade of blue and emerged new and exciting and blue and has been in regular rotation (making a starring appearance in Austin last weekend).  Blue is this sweater’s true color, she’s happy to be showing it now.

FO Friday: The Rhinebeck Sweater

It’s about time, right?! The yellow sweater was finally finished, the night before I left for Rhinebeck, ends were woven in during my delayed layover in Dulles and it was “steam blocked” by hanging in the bathroom whilst I showered.

Freshygot the best pictures of it, for sure:

Perfectly fair-themed

Wanna hear the story about how the sweater actually got finished?  Of course you do.

1. The sweater was begunand most of it was knit in a 3-day period leaving me unable to move my wrist and wearing a brace

it all started with a big yellow ball

2. The rest of it was slowly added over the course of a few weeks and sleeves were a topic of concern

The Great Sleeve Debate of 2012

3. When I finally decided to do full length sleeves, I ran out of yarn (as was the concern above)

4. The night before I left for New York I sat and Skyped with my sweater in my lap, unraveling the bottom edging while also knitting this unraveled yarn straight to the sleeve, the two were connected and more yarn unraveled as more sleeve was added

5. After the sleeves were an acceptable length, I had to go back and re-bind-off the bottom border, which required more tinking

6. I still ran out of yarn 7 stitches from the end and decided that in order for my sanity to stay right where it was (which may or may not be questionable in the first place) I would just use the closest matching yellow yarn from my stash for the last inch of bind off.

it is ever-so-slightly neon

7. The sweater was finished. And worn. And it is glorious.

A pattern may be in the works if there’s interest, trust me, it’s warm and cozy and soft and a great addition to my collection.

 

Bittersweet is Always the Best Flavor

When I make chocolate chip cookie dough (it really hardly ever makes it to baked-cookie phase) I always prefer using bittersweet chocolate morsels to milk chocolate but today’s post isn’t about food.  It’s about a different kind of sweet. The kind of sweet that only a shiny silk merino blend can satiate.

That's the kind of sweet I want to sink my teeth into

Tina of Bittersweet Woolery and I have been chatting for a bit about doing a collaboration together.  Her yarn + My Design = awesome lace knitting for you! 

I want to swim in merino silk and shiny

The other day I received two skeins of her Star Dust Lace yarn in the most beautiful, shimmery watery aqua color and I think it will go perfectly into the design we’ve discussed and collaborated on.

Bittersweet Woolery's Star Dust Lace

Have you worked with Bittersweet Woolery’s yarns yet?  I want to see what you’ve made!  And if you haven’t, I really quite highly suggest trying some for yourself, the woman behind the magic is just as sweet as the yarns she creates and she’s a pleasure to work with.  Find her on Ravelry and don’t forget to read her blog!

FO Friday: To Pom or Not To Pom

The hat I let you peak at on Wednesday has been finished and blocked, now the only finishing detail that’s not squared away is whether to add a PomPom to the top of it.

Sorry for the crappy morning picture, the sun isn't quite awake yet...

I vote yes.  My best friend votes no.

What’s your vote?

Mmm wavy warmth and softness

Check out more FO Fridays at Tami’s Blog!

Projects Going MIA

I bet you’re all wondering what happened with that secret lace project I was teasing you with a while back huh?

Well, after I decided that the sample I’d knit was too small, I frogged back a ways then began to reknit it larger.  This didn’t bother me, I’d rather rip back and create something that utilizes the yarn efficiently and will keep me warm this coming winter.  I don’t know if you’ve ever frogged anything that’s been blocked before, but it left me with some of the cutest, most uniform little crimps ever.

Little yarny zippers

Aren’t they darling?

So there I was, happily re-knitting along and one day I came home from work to find this mess:

Sorry for the crappy photo, let just say the entire situation was crappy

The dogs had decided to “unwrap” my frogged package and let me tell you, they’re lucky it was salvageable and they didn’t cause too much damage.

I might be dog-less if they did.

Needless to say, that took a while to figure itself out but the shawlette is back on track and things are coming along swimmingly if a bit slowly what with work and Christmas knitting already underway.  I promise to have more to show you soon, I’m working on the life-work-knitting-having-fun balance and I think it’s starting to work itself pretty well.

How do you balance everything?

WIP Wednesday: KISS

Happy Wednesday everyone!

I was having some difficulties with the Malabrigo lace project that I keep teasing you with and so I put it down for a while (“a while” means for an evening, didn’t even make it 24 hours before I had to pick it up again) to try and let the creative juices flow and magic to happen.

I decided that I was trying to make it too difficult and it wasn’t necessary to whip out complicated patterns and numbers to prove to the knitting and designing world that I’m capable and instead I’ve opted to Keep It Simple Silly (yes, yes, I know how that acronym usually ends, but, I mean, I am Silly Little Lady afterall).

today is the morning after the rain, can you sense that in the photo?

The shawlette/scarf is plugging along whenever I have the time to knit on it some and I gotta say, I am very pleased with this simplicity and awesomeness that is unfolding.  As I’ve mentioned before, this will also need test knitters sometime in the hopefully-near future and if you’re interested in helping me out, drop me a line!

Wanna see more WIPs?  Skip on over to Tami’s blog to read other yarny adventures!

A Scholarly Cardigan

Introducing a new pattern today: A Scholarly Cardigan

Meant to fit loosely around the body, this cardigan is a great finishing layer to add just a bit of warmth on a chilly day or bring together any outfit.

The basketweave pattern flows away from the body creating flattering lines on just about every shape.  With a smooth stockinette pattern on top, the cardigan won’t add unnecessary bulk and provides a clean, smooth texture.

The sleeves can be made in any length to make the sweater more year-round friendly.

Find it on Ravelry, or in my Etsy Shop!

Sizes: S[M,L,XL]

Finished Measurements: to loosely fit bust: 33[38,42,46]

Materials

Size 8 circular needles and dpns

7 (8, 8, 9) Balls Plymouth Suri Merino (55% Suri Alpaca, 45% Extra Fine Merino, 110 yds ea)

Darning Needle

Stitch markers

Scrap yarn

Gauge: 5 sts x 6 rows = 1 inch in stockinette stitch on size 8 needles

Stuff You Should Know How To Do:

K – knit

P – purl

Kfb – knit into the front and back of the next stitch

Pm – place stitch marker

K2tog – knit the next 2 stitches together knitwise

Skp – slip 1 stitch knitwise, k1, pass the slipped stitch over the knit stitch

Slm – slip marker

Thank you to my wonderful testers!  mrsmouse, pkee, knititkim, HairballYarn, and TheKnittyGritty – you all did such a phenomenal job

FO Friday: What’s That Thing She’s Been Working On?

Ok, so let me just say that I finished this Sunday evening and I love it, so keeping it from you all for almost an entire week has been so freakin’ hard.

You know that thing?  That thing I’ve been showing you bits and pieces of since….oh….November?

what *is* that?

Yea, that thing.

Oh that's what it is!

Its done!  And its been released in to the world (or at least into my wardrobe) and I love love LOVE it.  I’ve worn it to class already and have a hard time taking it off, I can’t wait till it warms up just a leetle bit and I can wear it with some cute tshirts or camis underneath!

easy texture, easy shape

I do plan on writing this pattern up and released for sale through my Etsy shop and Ravelry.  I will also need test knitters for it *wink wink* so keep that in mind!

Adds just enough warmth

It was knit top down, raglan sleeves, almost seamless except for that front panel that adds so much to the piece.  Its knit up kind of like a short scarf then sewn onto the sweater.  I’m thinking of adding a couple of different sleeve lengths, whaddya think?

Wanna show off your own FO Fridays?  Join us over on Tami’s blog!

Way Back When…

Remember wwwaaayyy back in November and I shared this post?

From Humble Beginnings

I’m still working on that there project, its slow going, but that’s fine with me because I want it to turn out right.  Its nice to have something to fall back on between Christmas gifts and custom orders, and this yarn is so luxurious and wonderful that its always a treat to work on the project.

Here’s what the beast is growing into:

Mmm basketweave

I was a tad worried about running out of yarn and so I decided to go ahead and get some more.  I ended up deciding to purchase two more balls of the Plymouth Suri Merino rather than just one, and so I will count it as 1 of my 5 Yarn Diet purchases for the next 5 months.

Oh, and speaking of the Yarn Diet, did you see over there ———->

In my side bar I’ve put a little counter so I can show you what I started with and what I currently have.  And yes, the number did jump from 250 to 260 because I found another bag of yarn that I had forgotten to count….don’t judge.  Its a problem.

I’ve overcome the first step, admitting it.

Swatching Turned Into Knitting

Remember that swatching I was telling you about?  I’ve started working on the garment and lets just say that I’m super excited about it

What could it be?

Can you guess what it is?  I’m sure its not all that difficult, but I can’t show you too much right now, as there’s not much to show.  Hopefully this will all change in the near future and I’ll have a completed project to share!

Blue Gray? Gray Blue? Blue Gray.

And I must say, I love this yarn.  The color is changing as I knit it, in the balls it looks like a gray blue, but when I knit it up, the blue is really shining through and making the project into something different!