Pints & Purls Edition 21: The Great Pumpkin Ale

This is the twenty-first in a series of installments that will highlight one of my favorite brews and which knits to go with it!  None of the breweries or yarn companies are compensating me – these are just my opinions on my personal experiences!

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Brew:  The Great Pumpkin Ale

Brewer: McAuslan Brewing

Malts:

Hops: Cascade, Willamette

Flavors:  True to its name, this beer tastes like pumpkin fo’ sho’ but it also tastes like beer, which is convenient because it is marketed as such.  The sweet, creamy pumpkin-y goodness is enhances with some pie-type spices such as ginger, cinnamon and clove which makes this brew perfect to feature today – Thanksgiving in the United States!

Knit Pairings:  This beer would pair well with something rich and fun, not your normal everyday knitting.  Because it emulates fall so well, I recommend taking that notion all the way – burnt orange, rustic browns, deep reds like the colors you see around you.  Perhaps even some squooshy cable motifs in a luxurious yarn for a project just for you and no one else (unless you love them very very much).

Notes:  Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate, and if you don’t, Happy Thursday!

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Let me know what you think!  Suggestions for future beers, more/different information to include, this is a work in progress so I won’t be offended by constructive advice!

WIP Wednesday: I Lied.

Remember last week I showed you that I was going to start on a hat for myself out of that yarn I bought as a gift to me?

I lied, I’m not knitting that anymore.

Instead I’m working on a hat for my fabulous Aunteeeeeeee J out of some equally fabulous Malabrigo Arroyo in a stunning colorway.

I’m knitting my Lacy Slouch pattern again with a few mods.  Because this yarn is a lighter weight than the others, I’ve gone down a few needles sizes to a US 4 (3.5mm) for the brim and casted on 102 stitches.  So far it’s knitting up beautifully and I’m excited to see how the colors play with the texture I’m going to be starting soon.

Linking up with Tami as always!  What are you working on this week?

Doomesday Knits – Quaintrelle Vest

Welcome to the next installment of the Doomsday Knits Blog Tour!

The Quaintrelle Vest came about out of a need for style and a need for utility.  As with most of the Dandy Folk in post-apocalyptica, I don’t want to be left out in the cold sporting something that isn’t both fashionable and functional.

The vest combines stitch patterns, shaping and hidden pockets into a pretty swell ensemble.  This piece is really set apart with the use of fantastic toggle closures – the more unique, the better!

Seriously, how awesome are those toggles?

Reversed stockinette, twisted rib and the honeycomb textures along with the slightly masculine feel really play to the Dandy’s fashionable preferences. Menswear as womenswear as everyoneswear!

Knit from the bottom up and then divided for the fronts and back, the vest is grafted together at the shoulders to provide a seamless finish.   Malabrigo Worsted is the perfect yarn for this design – it knits up quick and squooshy, it comes in an awesome range of colors and it’ll keep you warm in all weather while allowing for some breathability as the temperature changes throughout the day.

Doomsday Knits is currently available for pre-order, so snag your copy!  And if you’re looking for more Doomsday goodness, don’t forget to check out all the other blog tour participants and schedule here.

WIP Wednesday: Starting Something New

So after finishing my sweater last week, I’ve been browsing Ravelry in search of my next project.  I do still plan on making that orange yarn into a cardigan, but after such a big project, I really want to satisfy some needs for instant gratification projects.

The Acadia yarn I picked up at Your Daily Fiber has been wound into a pretty little cake and I plan on making it up into a quick hat for me first.

I’ve decided I’m going to try using the Veneziana pattern.

That seekrit project is coming along also, but I still can’t reveal too much 😉  And for those who asked last time – the yarn is Lisa Souza Sock! Merino in the Mardi Gras colorway, isn’t is purty?

Linking up with Tami as always!  What are you working on this week?

FO Friday: Miranda Pullover

I finished this sweater late Monday night and I’m so glad to have it finished!

I love that little key-hole detail on the neckline, don’t you?

I didn’t try it on right away, fear of it not working on my body type kept me from putting the thing on for 24 hours, can you believe that?  I didn’t want to have put so much energy into this sweater (again, for the 3rd time) and have it not work on me and I was afraid that it’d look better on my mannequin than on my body.

I blocked it Tuesday and wore it work on Wednesday!  I’m so thrilled that this yarn finally worked up into a sweater that I can love and wear and that is so functional but also stylish.

Because the sweater is a little long in the torso (or I’m a little short, but who’s pointing fingers?) I decided to pair it with skinny jeans, boots and a summer dress for it’s first outing and I think it worked really well.  The Malabrigo Worsted is so warm, I layered this sweater with my Mottled Daydream Shawl, Braided Slouch and Knucks to walk to the dogs in 20 degrees and felt perfectly comfortable, no heavy coat needed!  But it also breathes enough that I was able to lose the layers and wear just the sweater, dress and jeans in the office and didn’t get overheated.  For the functional knitter (and that is me), all of these things are very important.

Mods:

• Knitted bottom ribbing to 2″
• Knitted sleeve cuff ribbing to 1″

Yarn:  Malabrigo Worsted in Pale Khaki

Pattern: Miranda by Josee Paquin

Linking up with Tami!  What have you finished lately?  Are you enjoying the knitting weather as much as I am?

Pints & Purls Edition 20: 1900

 

This is the twentieth in a series of installments that will highlight one of my favorite brews and which knits to go with it!  None of the breweries or yarn companies are compensating me – these are just my opinions on my personal experiences!

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Brew:  1900

Brewer: Fort Collins Brewery

Malts: German Melanoiden, Munich

Hops: Willamette

Flavors: Simple, clean beer with a good balance of hops and malts.  Refreshing, not overly floral or creamy this beer would work for just about any scenario!

Knit Pairings:  Because this beer is great for any occasion, it’s also great for any knitting!  I highly recommend pairing this beer with a social knitting project – knit nights, girls nights, boys nights, Wednesday nights – any night!  I don’t drink in the morning, but if you do, this may be a good morning brew too, I hear it pairs well with fruity things.

Notes:  I had to pick a brew from Fort Collins for my first new-life-in-Loveland beer, maybe I can go on a brewery tour sometime, anyone wanna join?  We can scope out the yarn stores too 😉

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Let me know what you think!  Suggestions for future beers, more/different information to include, this is a work in progress so I won’t be offended by constructive advice!

Scoping Out My New LYS’s

This past weekend was my first real weekend living in Northern Colorado and what did I do?  Loaded the dogs into the car and headed to check out some of the local yarn scene. 

First stop was at The Loopy Ewe – hard to find but worth wandering around looking like a doofus continually checking my phone and the directories knowing that “I’m here! I’m right here!  The dot says so!” when really you’re just standing 15 feet below where you should actually be. 

The store certainly did not disappoint.  Windows everywhere let in all kinds of natural light to really show off the yarn selection’s best colors – I’m talking the best brands, the best colors, the most hard to find combinations of the aforementioned and everything else you could imagine.  Along with really nice employees and shoppers (but really, yarn crafters are the nicest folks anyway, yes?). 

Next, I visited Your Daily Fiber whom I’ve mentioned before on the blog and just knew I had to see what their little shop looked like.  I scoured the racks for the laceweight skein of yarn I lost (well, I didn’t *lose* it, per se, but it was bought out from under me! Oh the horror!) and it wasn’t there, but I’m going to keep looking everytime I visit and hopefully I’ll get lucky!  I didn’t come home empty-handed, and lucky for me, I didn’t break the bank either.

I picked up a single skein in the prettiest colorway of the Acadia yarn from The Fibre Company.  I’m thinking a hat for this lonely skein, it’d look great knit up in something that has light cables or lace – not too busy but not plain either.  I’m thinking foliage patterns….we’ll see.

Have you visited any new-to-you yarn stores lately?

Pints & Purls Edition 19: Jubelale

This is the nineteenth in a series of installments that will highlight one of my favorite brews and which knits to go with it!  None of the breweries or yarn companies are compensating me – these are just my opinions on my personal experiences!

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Brew: Jubelale

Brewer: Deschutes Brewery

Malts: Pale, Crystal, Extra Special, Carapils, Roasted Barley

Hops: Nugget, Cascade, Willamette, Styrian, Tettnang, East Kent Goldings

Flavors: This beer is darker but not so dark that you’ll need an empty stomach to drink it.  The spicy, fruity flavors come through in winds and never bog down the taste buds.  Balanced creamy, carmel-y flavors with crisp hops – like sipping a hot, milky beverage while sitting outside watching the snow fall around you.

Knit Pairings: This beer can stand up to a hearty knit and would complement a classic winter piece – aran cabled pullover anyone?  I suggest using at least a worsted weight yarn, a finer gauge would be totally overpowered by this balanced but deep brew.

Notes:  I love the artwork featured on Deschutes’ bottles, don’t you?!

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Let me know what you think!  Suggestions for future beers, more/different information to include, this is a work in progress so I won’t be offended by constructive advice!

WIP Wednesday: Life and a Sweater

Where I am this week versus last week is so different, and not just with the sweater!

Saturday I moved back to Colorado, this time heading a little farther north than my previous home near Denver to the cute little town of Loveland to start the next chapter of my life!  My first few days at my new job have been fantastic, my coworkers are all making me feel welcome and seriously, I get to talk about knitting all day long with people who share my obsession  passion with it.

Because I get to talk about it all day, I’m always very motivated to get to work on my own projects when I get home and the sweater is moving right along!  I’ve finished the pocket and body and started  a sleeve. 

Fixing the cable mis-hap was totally worth it and I think they look so much better now than they did.

I’m still working on the seekrit project so the sweater isn’t quite as far as it could be, but I don’t really mind. 

Linking up with Tami as usual!  What are you working on this week?  Any fun adventures in your life?