A feather and fan summer

I feel like I have been knitting feather and fan all summer (which I kind of have been doing):

I am really enjoying exploring the possibilities of the pattern.  I will give you more details about the projects later.

I am also over the moon because I have received my very first acceptence for a crochet pattern.  In life I think it really doesn’t get much better than that.

Update

I am not ignoring you. I am just not knitting much I can post about now, but I have several ideas in the percolation through to the materialization phases, which I can’t share yet.

I am also still working on this sweater:

It still looks remarkably like it did when I last took pictures as I have unraveled the waist shaping twice.

I am looking forward to it though, it is wonderfully squidgy.

Getting out of a rut

What with the season changing and the weather getting cold this weekend, I have been in a bit of a rut with my knitting, but I have pulled some yarn out of my stash (ah, the joys of a well stocked stash — you must take the good with the bad you know) and have started whipping up something this week.

I have been thinking about the stitch pattern on this sweater (The Gibson Girl Pullover by Shirley Paden: Knitting Daily link, Ravelry link) since it was published in the summer 2004 Interweave Knits issue:

I showed my sister and said I wanted one, and she said “of course you want one.”

But, as much as I want it, I don’t think I want exactly that one, partly because it is cold outside, so I am running with it:

Here is the bottom of my tunic length, very close fitting, sweater in Mission Falls 1824 wool. I think it will have three-quarter length sleeves, because that’s what I like.

It’s liberating to knit whatever I like.

I kept having to up the needle size to get the lace pattern to work properly, so now the sweater is knitting up in a whiz.

Freeform heaven

I am completely smitten with freeform lace crochet (see this book).

I was hesitant, as I am not really that good at crochet, but I don’t need to know what any of the names of the stitches for this, so I am fine.

(I swear the same stitches have different names in different places, and they don’t all define everything, but don’t listen to me I am just bitter)

The other exciting thing is that I am not sure I could come up with a better combination of yarn and technique than Noro kureyon sock yarn and this, and just look at it:

I am liking this so much; it is much more fun than counting and reading patterns.

I think I may like to stay in this newly discovered crafty country for a while and see where the randomness takes me.

The earthworm transformed

Here is the almost final form for the earthworm scarf:

I like the way the lace weight sections are transparent, and the earthworm yarn from Milkyrobot was an absolute delight to knit. Every inch was interesting.

I made some kind of gauge error. I am not sure precisely where, but the scarf is not the size I calculated for.

I wore it today, and I found that the particular combination of length and weight doesn’t make a particularly wearable scarf because I don’t like the way it looks draped around my neck and it doesn’t stay wrapped.

I tried crocheting the ends together and making a long loop to go around my neck twice, and I think that is the way I will go with.

I was inspired to try to loop idea by Yokoo‘s cowls like this one.

Leaves and waves is complete

One of the best things about a long car ride is time to knit, and driving from Saskatoon to Kansas is very far. I spent at least 6 days in the car and knit almost the whole time — and I finished the Leaves and Waves shawl from Knitty, Fall 2004 by Kat Coyle.

I am so smitten with the shawl now it is done and absolutely over the moon about the fact that the oldest work in progress from my work basket is done.

It took so long because I got bogged down in the stocking stitch section. I don’t think I would ever do another project with quite this combination of yarn, stitch pattern, and size of pattern — I kept dropping stitches, but the dropped stitches were almost invisible in the mohair. Ironically, the lace sections went faster.

I could have knit several sweaters in the time it took me to make this.

All the same it is beautiful now, and it is just sufficiently unusual to really appeal to me. I like traditional lace, but it never looks like I would really like to wear it. This on the over hand is (in my opinion) a perfect combination of traditional stitching and textures with asymmetrical design.

It is also rectangular, and for some reason I find rectangular shawls to be more wearable, and I wear a lot of shawls. I think it is because I treat them like security blankets — just call me Linus.

New pictures for the morse code vest

I have had such a frustrating time photographing this vest. These represent the fourth time we have tried to take good pictures — the last ones were okay, but I think they were too wintery, so here is our latest kick at the can:

The vest is great, but for some reason it hasn’t been easy to photograph well.

If you are interested in buying the pattern, the pattern page is here.

Snowflakes in May

I made these snowflakes some time ago when I was experimenting with crocheting lace, and they are certainly one of the most successful crochet projects I have done so far. Originally I intended to use them as Christmas decorations, but they are so pretty against my orange walls, that I have left them up for a year and a half.

All the patterns came from Glittering Snowflakes in Thread Crochet by Jo Ann Maxwell, published by the American School of Needlework. It doesn’t appear to be readily available, but there are other places with patterns for snowflakes.

They are wonderfully satisfying, and one can be completed in an evening. I would like to make more big ones for real Christmas or at least winter. There is something appealing in thinking of masses of yarn snow falling, which really shouldn’t need any further excuse than season or whim.