#11 North Roe Shawl

I love beach knitting. To some, knitting alpaca by the side of the ocean, in the blazing heat and humidity doesn't sound the least bit appealing. (I think those people are crazy, but I suppose you have to be crazy to know crazy). This year I decided to take a shawl from my Summer Knitting Goals list on vacation. The results of my Vacation, and tons of wonderful quiet knitting time, and a beautiful Holiday present.

Name: Grandma M.'s North Roe
Pattern: North Roe Shawl by Odile Buatois-Brand
Yarn: Plymouth Yarn Baby Alpaca Lace, color 1265, 2 skeins
Needles: KnitPicks Harmony Needles, size 5
Notes: I chose this pattern for a few reasons. 1. I wanted a triangle shawl 2. I wanted an easily memorized pattern that I didn't need to refer to often, as that is difficult on the beach 3. I wanted something that looks harder than it is
I think I was pretty successful!

The pattern is really adjustable. You can make this as big or as small as you want just by knitting more repeats of chart 1 or 2. I knit 4 repeats of chart 1, and two of chart 2, followed by the edging. Oh, and in the interest of full disclosure, I don't think I understood the pattern correctly. The original is in French, and translated into English. I don't think the whole thing is actually translated though. The pattern never actually mentions chart 2. I kind of guessed at what to do by using the picture. If I could read french, I might have discovered some secret directions that made the shawl even more awesome, but I like the current awesomeness level just fine.

This is my first time using the Plymouth Baby Alpaca Lace too. I understand this is a fairly new yarn to the market, so that explains why I didn't see very many projects made with it on Ravelry. It is a very nice lace weight yarn. I'd say it is not as soft as the Misti Alpaca I love so much, but it is similar to the Knit Picks Alpaca Cloud. The color is gorgeous - the FO pictures really don't do it justice. The unblocked picture from yesterday is a much better color representation.
The yarn does soften up after a good washing, and it blocks really well.

My Grandma M. is my paternal Grandma, and her favorite color is green. I love green too, I just can't wear it very successfully. In fact, in this color, I'd look like I might be a zombie. So, I jump at the chance to knit in green for people who wear it. Now, Grandma M shouldn't wear this color, but she does. Who am I to judge an 80+ year old's color palette taste - especially when it fits in with my desire to knit with citrus green?

Overall, another successful Summer Knitting Goals, Lace2K, and Holiday Knitting project! With #11 out of the way, #17 is on the way next!!

Best Laid Plans

I don't know if you noticed, but I never did post while on vacation. I had intentions, I really did. The relaxing just got the best of me, and I never did manage a single post. In fact, I never even took a single picture. Not one. I did, however, knit like a crazy woman.
I had a great time catching up with my extended family, playing in the sand, riding my bike, (and lets not forget) shopping... you know, the basics of a great vacation. We had beautiful weather - it only rained once, and that was at night. The only drawback was the cold water. It is usually cold, but this year it was "JESUS F*CK! I HAVE FROSTBITE AND CAN'T CONTROL MY SWEARING!!!" cold. The lady from the yarn store (more on that in a minute) told me the water was April cold. WTH? I couldn't get past my calves, not matter how much I wanted too. Even DH, who can stand nearly any temperature to go swimming could only bear it for 5 minutes. It was the kind of frigid that knocks the wind out of you.
I did manage to surpass the lazy one day and pedal down to The Knitting Niche. I like to stop in every year and chat. The owner is originally from CT, and always remembers me. Not my name, just that I'm from CT, and my family is from PA. We chatted for a while about costumes and vintage patterns. She showed me an awesome collection of Victorian pattern magazines. (OOoo. jealous) I ended up only buying three skeins of yarn, but a very awesome three skeins they are.

MMMMMMmohair. I don't know what I will make yet, but I'm sure it will be pretty. This stuff is gorgeous. I have used similar mohair yarns before, but this is my first time for this brand - Idena Lux Mohair. We'll see!
The really nice thing about having such a laid back trip is the copious amounts of knitting time. I managed to knit an entire shawl and a half a sock! I didn't even knit the entire time I could have knit. I read some magazines, watched tv, and went for walks!

The shawl is The North Roe Shawl, and it is for my Grandma M. Yep - another holiday gift, and on my Summer Knitting Goals list. I'm blocking it today, so a FO report will be coming tomorrow.

I also started some socks for the other brother. Retro Rib Socks in Trekking made an awesome back-up project for the beach. I'm glad I took a back up project, too. I finished the shawl on Thursday night, and would have been knitting less on Friday. Sure, I went to the yarn store, but I didn't have needles or patterns along. I like to knit form patterns at the beach, not just wing it. Winging it is not relaxing. I don't want to think. I just want to knit. Someone else can do the thinking for me when I'm on Vacation.
I think that's it. I'm trying to get mentally back into work and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It is not easy. My brain is firmly still on vacation.

#12 - The Zetor Scarf

Last night I decided to stay up and just finish those last 4 pattern rows on the Zetor Scarf. I didn't want to take this project on Vacation with me, as I would finish it the first day, and it would just be more stuff to haul around. Therefore, I was finishing it, damn it! I was a little tired today, but it was worth it.

Name: Grandma's Zetor Scarf
Pattern: Zetor Scarf by Jatta Saukko
Yarn: Knit Picks Alpaca Cloud, Iris colorway, a little over 1 ball
Needles: Knit Picks Harmony, size 5
Notes: This was a very simple lace pattern, if you read charts. If you don't, this might be a good excuse to start! Really, it looks more complex than it really is.

The yarn was left over from my Mom's Icarus Shawl, and I liked working with it then, and I like working with it now. No complaints at all from me. It is a hard color to capture in pictures, though...

The pattern is not written by a native English speaker, so I had a bit of a translation "moment" when I started the pattern. Once I read through the whole thing, it was rather apparent what I was supposed to do. My one note would be that the pattern tells you to work chart 2 as many times as you want. To knit it like the one in the picture, work 29 repeats. I did a little math in my head, and figured out that I needed 6 repeats to get a good size shawl. "WTH?" I thought. "29?!" I JUST, and I mean JUST, realized that the author meant 29 repeats of the section between the bold lines, and not 29 repeats of the 16 row chart. Duh. Anyway, I seem to be the only person that didn't understand this right away, since nobody on Ravelry knit the pattern "as written" and has a 60 foot wide scarf.

I am very pleased with this scarf. It is much more intricate looking than it really is, although I did get really bored towards the end. I think my Grandma will like her Christmas present! The bonus - getting to cross #12 off the summer knitting goals list!

#10

Cross #10 off the list, Baby!! I finished the Shoulder Shawl in Cherry Leaf Pattern today, while getting my hair done. Sweet.

Name: Aunt Helen's Cherry Leaf Shawl
Pattern: Shoulder Shawl in Cherry Leaf Pattern, from Victorian Lace Today
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Lace, color2379, 1 ball
Needles: Knit Picks Harmony, size 5
Notes: This pattern calls for a knitted on edging on the sides, and a crocheted edging across the top. Obviously, I did neither. When I cast on for this I saw that I had a good deal less yardage of my chosen yarn, then the pattern called for. I've heard the the patterns in VLT have slightly underestimated yardage, just to add to the problem. SO I thought I'd just omit the edging. Turns out, I used a Little less than one ball, so I could totally have done the edging. Oh well, I like it this way. It is fancy, but yet, still simple.

The pattern itself is uber easy. After the first repeat, you have it down. Since the scarf starts at the point, and works towards the top edge, you get to do three repeats really quickly, learning the pattern fast. The downside, of course, is the last three repeats, or so. Like most triangle shawls, this gets a little tedious.
I love Misti Alpaca, too. after my first shawl with it, I knew I had to knit with it again. I have two balls in three more colors just waiting to be knit up. I equate it to knitting with unicorn fur. What could be more soft and drapey than unicorn fur?

This lovely bit o' wisp is for my Great Aunt Helen's Holiday Gift. She is a knitter, crocheter, and quilter. Who better, and more understanding, of a gift of homemade lace than someone like her? All my life she has given me gifts of handmade things and chocolate (it's generational :))and I look at this as my opportunity to give a little back to her. Now, it doesn't compare to the gorgeous wedding quilt she made me, but I hope it serves as a little reminder, and a hug, from me this winter.
And with that, I get to cross #10 off the Summer Knitting Goals List!!
#12 is next...
Oh, and this is what happened to my hair whilst I was knitting.


It is also the reason I drive to Seymour to get my hair done. SO worth the drive.

Next on the list

1. Make a list
2.Check thing off
3.Bask in glow of accomplishment
There is nothing like drawing a line through an item on a list to make me all glowy and happy. I feel organized, accomplished, and somehow justified. I have visible proof of progress. Sometimes, when I have a crazy busy day at work - the kind that you are bouncing all over and are getting no, one project finished - I make a list. I put everything on it - broken down into the smallest units possible. For example, instead of writing "Do timesheets" I write, "Do DB's timesheet, Do SS's timesheet, Do KV's timesheet...". This way, even if I only get one timesheet done before I have to run off to another meeting, I get to cross something off the list. I also put items on the list like "drink a glass of water" and "eat lunch", because, seriously, I forget sometimes. Most times I make my lists during meetings - it keeps me from getting noticeably bored, I'm multitasking, and I get to cross "sit in stupid meeting" off my list at the end.
In my real life, as a knitter, (smile) I do a form of the list as well. I read through the pattern and make little boxes in the margins that correspond to the amount of times I need to do a certain instruction before moving on. Like, "repeat chart a 10 times" would get ten boxes beside it. Then I can cross out a box each time I finish a repeat. Or, "increase one stitch st each end of row, every 6 rows, 5 times" would get five boxes, and I'd make a slash mark at the end of every row, so when I got to six slashes in the box I knew it was time to increase again.
I have no idea why I do this; why I love to cross things off so much, but I do. I really do. I think it is part organization, and part motivation. (maybe part obsession too) I can say this though, my current project is killing me.

This is the Shoulder Shawl in Cherry Leaf Pattern from VLT. I'm knitting it for my Aunt Helen. (It is totally on my Summer Knitting Goals list. Surprise) It is 15 repeats of the same chart. I have 5 more repeats to go before I do the top edging. I am desperately trying to not make a little post-it of boxes to cross off. It's only 5 more repeats! Certainly, I can do 5 more repeats with out needing to make little x's on a freakin' piece of paper! My list making is seriously being tested. The only thing keeping my resolve is the fact that I get to cross this project off the Christmas and SNG lists after I block it.

I do think I might be knitting faster though - I think because I am desperate to cross something off. An upside, no?

Socktopia, June 2008

"Some man or other must present Wall: and let him have some plaster, or some loam, or some rough-cast about him, to signify wall; and let him hold his fingers thus, and through that cranny shall Pyramus and Thisby whisper." - Bottom, A Midsummer's Night's Dream, Act III
Socktopia this month had the theme "Midsummer's Night's Dream" included among the list. I just had to use it. Midsummer is one of those plays that as a theatre person, you can expect to do upwards of 15 times in your career, and every time you get a little more out of it. It has some inherently complicated moments to deal with - people turning into fairies, bottom turning into a Donkey, and "magic"; but it also has some sweet and funny moments that can't be ignored. One of my favorite parts of the play is the "rehearsal" scene from Act III. The "rude mechanicals" or clowns, are getting ready to rehearse Pyramus and Thisby, and are assigning roles. All of the "play with in a play" cast members are tradesmen - weavers, joiners, smiths - and poor Snug, the joiner, gets cast as "the wall" - a piece of scenery. The last time I did midsummer, the actor playing Snug was one of my favorite people from the cast. He was a joy in real life, and a joy to watch on stage. So these socks are in honor of Mr. Shakespeare and his comic genius, and Mr. JoJo Gonzolas who played the funniest wall I've ever seen.

Name: Snug's Wall Socks
Pattern: Inspired by Barbara Walker's Bricklayer's Lace
Yarn: Plymouth Yarn Happy Feet, color 2
Needles: Knit Picks Classic Circulars, size 0 and 1
Notes: These socks were totally a labor of love. Mostly a labor. I love the finished socks, but dang! They took me forever! The pattern wasn't really hard, but it was the kind you need to pay attention to. No Movie knitting with this one. You'd think you could make a pattern as easy as you want when you design it, but evidently, I didn't realize that when I was knitting. (But they were good beach knitting!)

I typed this pattern up after sock #1 because I was afraid I'd forget what I did when I got to sock #2. I'm glad I did because I did forget parts of it as I was going. I also figured out how to make charts on the computer, so bonus! These seemingly straight forward socks needed three charts. Deceptive socks, these are.

The yarn was chosen because of it's color. It just screamed "bricks" to me. This sock adventure was my first time using Plymouth Happy Feet. I can't speak to the wear ability yet, but I can tell you they are going to fuzz up. As I was knitting them, they were already starting to get fuzzy. I don't mind, but others might. Just mentioning it. I did like the twist and the feel of the yarn. It is soft, and it doesn't split easily. HF is on the thicker side of fingering, but not quite a sport weight yarn. I'm used to working with a slightly thinner yarn, so that took me a little while to get used to.

Over all I am very happy with my Snug's Wall Socks. I ever put a "chink" in the wall for Pyramus and Thisby to whisper through... (Do you see it?)

I'm funny, I know. Anyway, I'm working on revising the pattern for clarity, so if anyone wants to take a test drive of Snug's Wall and tell me if it is written in "knitting english" or "crazy woman", let me know.
Incidentally, these finishing these socks lets me cross off #15 on my Summer Knitting Goals List!! WOOT! And they count towards Lace 2008, as they are, well, lace.

Mystic Waters

It has been a long time coming, but I finally took some shots of the infamous Mystic Waters Shawl. I think this is one of my favorite things I've ever knit.

Pattern: Mystic Waters

Yarn: Ornaghi Filati Merino Oro, color 956

Needles: Knitpicks options size US5

Notes: This bit of pretty took me a long time to knit. I took a HUGE hiatus in the middle of the shawl. Frankly, I farted up a row, tried to fix it with out tinking, and ended up royally loosing my patience. SO, I put it away for about 5 months. Finally, I decided to tink back the two stupid error rows and finish the blasted thing. all in all, it only took another two weeks of on again off again knitting to finish it. I could have been wearing it all winter, but nooooo, I had to get irritated and put it in time out. There is nothing like a formal event to propel you to finish a delicate lace shawl!

The problem with starting it so long ago is that I kinda don't remember too much about the early knitting of the shawl. I kinda remember that the original pattern had an error or two - that were very quickly corrected, and that there was a place that I thought looked weird. The weird spot was part of the design, but it was really hard to see during the knitting progress. the first jog in the center motif happened at a break between charts, so it seemed like the chart was off a stitch.

I spent a whole evening questioning my knitting because of this. Lesson learned: trust the pattern until proven otherwise. I should paint that on the wall beside my knitting chair.

Overall, I am more than pleased with this shawl. I love the geometric nature of the design, it NEVER got boring and repetitious, and you could customize the size. I knit the short version, and it is plenty big. The big version would be way too long for my 5'2" self. Some people are scared off my charted lace, and prefer to knit from written out instruction. I am a very visual person, so I don't really understand that, but I am empathetic to those people. Anyhow, this is not the shawl for you if you are not a chart reader. As you can see, there are no two pattern rows the same in the entire shawl. Let me say that again, louder... "THERE ARE NO TWO PATTERN ROWS THE SAME IN THIS ENTIRE SHAWL" I, personally, love love love this kind of pattern. A good challenge is fun every now and again. I think it goes with out saying, this is not a take a long project, or a SnB project. I did work on it at SnB, but by the time you have 4 pieces of paper taped together, and limited table space, plus talking... you get the picture.

The yarn was very nice too. I love the bluey-purply color. It takes on different tones depending what it is around. The yarn itself was delightful to work with. It is soft and smooth, but with a bit of halo after you wash it up. it blocks beautifully, and really holds its shape. I took the pictures in this post after I wore it for an entire evening, and had it folded up in a suitcase.

I think this piece will get a lot of wear, and I definitely look forward to knitting more of this designers patterns!

Dart and Leaf

I have finished lace projects #12 of 21 total projects for the year (so far). It is yet another circular blanket, but this one might be my favorite, so it is therefore not repetitive.

Name: Dart and Leaf

Pattern: Egeblad by Christine Duchrow

Yarn: Farmhouse Yarns Summer Spun in Tangerine

Needles: Knit Picks Harmony Interchangeable, size 10

Notes: I found this pattern on Ravelry. It is published on the Yarn Over site. I always prefer to knit form charts when possible, as I am a visual/spatial person. Unfortunately, the charts in this pattern had some issues. I managed to sort them out, but I would have been up a creek if I had been a less experienced lace knitter with out written instructions. Notably, row 34, and the last two rows of the chart are messed up. Row 34 has an extra "knit box" - this one is easy to see if you read the written directions and compare. The last two rows of the chart are off by 4 stitches each. Row 84 says to knit 9 according to the chart, and knit 13 on the written instructions. I don't know about you, but to me, these are different numbers. The next row is the same way. The written directions are correct. Just saying.

As for changes, I did do a little. I knit the pattern on larger needles, and with bigger yarn. I also added one extra repeat of the "leafy" section - row 58-68. That extra 10 rows added about 4 inches in width to the blanket. With out the extra rows, it would have been a little small.

The bind off on this one is sweet. I am not much of a crochet person, but I do love a pretty bind off. I do wish I was a little faster with the hook, but I can't complain really.

This blanket is for a friend of mine, who will most likely know it's for her, as she occasionally reads this blog. Oh well, that's how it goes. I'm sure she'll still like it, even if it isn't a surprise. I named it Dart and Leaf after a type of molding. Dart and Leaf is a pretty traditional, but beautiful trim. This blanket, with it's leafy parts and big yo eyelets, reminds me of that molding pattern. http://www.buffaloah.com/a/DCTNRY/l/leaf.html

The recipient is graduating from a school in Massachusetts, specializing in Preservation Carpentry. She is going into a career that is all about preserving architecture and old buildings. Not only does she do things like shore up foundations, but also she carves little pieces of moulding and trim to match old pieces. Frankly, she is part artist, part carpenter. When I saw this doily pattern, I knew she would like it. I knew I wanted to knit her a blanket to take with her when she moves to Maryland, and onto a very cool new career. I wanted her to have a little hug, in a nice cheery color, that would remind her of how proud I am of her achievements. I also wanted it to have some significance to her chosen field. I think I managed it pretty well.

I also look at my gift to my friend as a promise to see each other in the future. When I was in Grad school, she was an undergrad at the same University. She graduated and moved away to do stuff. We hadn't been close, but we had been friendly. I didn't really know where she went. Fast forward 5 years. I get hired at LWT. I researched the organization. I noticed a name on the website that I knew. Was it her? Turns out - same person! I had a built in connection to LWT. Now, as my friend heads off in yet another directions, I have no doubt we will cross paths again. Sometime...

Muffy, Can You Pass the Pate?

"Why certainly, Biff."

In my mind Muffy and Biff live in a very big house and eat mostly gross things, just because they can afford to. Muffy probably wears real pearls and cashmere everyday, and doesn't even know what a washing machine is, let alone if she has one. Maria does all that for her and Biff. Little does Muffy know, Biff and Maria have "a thing" going, but that's ok, because Muffy has been seeing Lowell, Biff's best friend. It all comes out at the dinner party Muffy and Biff are throwing, for the clients of their investment firm, in a loud wine fuelled argument. The country club will talk about this for months!

This Public Service Message is brought to you by the "Pate is Gross (but it makes a good name for a blanket) Council".

Yes my friends, Lace2K project #7 is complete! I am now 7/14 lace projects for the year. The goal is to have the "majority" of your projects contain lace. The next blanket will be the one that puts me over the "majority" line - at least for now!

Name: Pate

Pattern: "Plastic Doily" by Mary Schiffman

Yarn: Farmhouse Summer Spun, unknown colorway - 2 skeins (and a little)

Needles: size 8 Knit Picks Options

Notes: Another fast Circular blanket made form a doily pattern. This one went a little over the two skeins line. I'm glad I had a third, or else this would be a post of swear words. This one came out to 4'8", so I had to do some origami to block it.

It's kind of hard to block lace this way, but since it's a blanket, I think it will be ok. I've been consciously trying to do a bit of stash busting as I knit up these gift projects, and am feeling very smug and successful about it. Maybe all of my worsted weight leftovers will get turned into blankets.

This blanket features a crochet cast off. I'm out of crochet practice. It took a l o n g time. It probably didn't help that I talked all night during SnB, instead of crocheting. In the end, it all came out fine, but I could have had it done in two hours if I hadn't been running my yapper so much.

I have to admit, I got a little bored with Socrates towards the end, but this pattern keeps changing motifs right up to the cast off- never got bored with the sameness. As a matter of fact, I frogged a couple times because I wasn't paying close enough attention. You'd think after the first time you tinked 400 stitches you'd be more careful. HA! I laugh at your careful! I refused to learn my lesson and had to frog 600 (!) stitches near the end when I didn't bother to read my pattern. Evidently reading the pattern is an integral part of successful lace knitting. Who knew?

Overall I think this was a very successful project, given a fun name in honor of the original pattern. At the very least, the blanket is warm, soft, and just the right size for a lap. Nice.