Knitting update

In December I found myself on a sheep farm! My friend Chloe's aunt and uncle are living on Dancing Lamb Farm in NY state and we got to tour the farm, meet the sheep, and take home some raw wool. I'm hoping to process the wool like I did the last time I got my hand on some raw wool, but I don't have the resources I did back then (tools to borrow and a spinning class to take at the Craft Center at UC Davis). So we'll see how long the wool stays nice and stinky in its bag, it may be a while.









I'm currently working on another Baby Surprise Jacket, for my new baby cousin, Ezra. I made him this little blanket from Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitting Workshop when he was born in August, but I'm excited to be making another BSJ, and this time creating stripes as I go. I'll post when that's done, hopefully in the next month or so.

Finally, M and I were visiting Jaja in NYC last weekend and I dragged M into The Yarn Company on the Upper West Side. It's a great little store that felt nice and welcoming, and I picked up this cute book. West Knits, Book Two by Stephen West. It has lots of cute patterns that are unique and actually wearable, I can't wait to start the Splitbark mittens or Loxley hat/scarf!

A Wooly First

So here it is, the first article of clothing I ever knit for myself (Raveled). I started this sucker a year ago (!) and every time I hit a snag I would put it down for oh, several months. But honestly, it's probably the easiest article of clothing I could choose to make for my first try, and the largest yarn - Rowan Big Wool (Super Bulky). I love the fit and the color, and it's very warm. But the problem is, when exactly does one wear a wool vest? It's too hot to wear with anything heavy underneath, but it doesn't have sleeves so you can't wear it by itself.

Regardless, this project was incredibly fulfilling because I was sure it was destined for the WIP pile for the rest of eternity. But I persevered, and after my huge Christmas-gift-knitting-frenzy I managed to pick it back up. Strangely, knitting my first two pairs of socks this year gave me the confidence and a few extra skills to push this project through and finish it. Funny how that works sometimes.

Christmas recap: Chain Gang

I've been dying to make these necklaces ever since Jaja sent along a link to this etsy shop a loooooong time ago: Yokoo Scarves and Accessories. The necklaces/scarves on that site are ridiculously expensive, so I found a great pattern on ravelry and just made them myself! The pattern is free from Knitty: Marley's ghost. I changed it up a bit by using much larger yarn and forgoing the felting at the end. I don't think it adds anything to be honest, because it's a much funnier statement when you can see all of the stitches and it's clear that your bling is knitted.





As predicted, they were a huge hit with the three friends who received them (Jaja being one, of course). I might even make one for myself!

Christmas recap: Mom's fancy socks

Now that most of my gifts have been received I can tell you what they were! Here's my second pair of socks, made for my mom using the same pattern as the first, but with a different variation. Raveled here. I used one skein of gorgeous Mountain Colors Bearfoot yarn in Harmony Plum and I still have a large ball left over. I might try to make one more pair with it, with much shorter cuffs.



I made this pair with the "mini-faux cable" ribbing and a textured heel. I love the way the patterns came out; the only problem is that the entire sock is reinforced except for the bottom of the foot, which is the most important part. I told my mom she's not allowed to walk around the house in them because I think they will wear thin too quickly.



I'm so proud!

Sock-tastic

While I was on my computer hiatus I started in on my holiday gift-making. Some of them can't be posted here because of prying eyes, but some have already been given and/or will go to people who don't read my blog.



The first project was my very first pair of socks! I used the pattern "Sock Basics" by Chris de Longpre, from www.KnittingatKNoon.com (Raveled). I bought the pattern and the yarn, Filatura Di Crosa Zara Chine, at a lovely knitting store in South Philly called Loop. It's a gorgeous place with friendly people who helped me find a good "first sock" pattern. They even suggested I use a larger yarn to make the knitting easier. What they didn't mention is that larger yarn = larger sock. So these will be for my Dad. But it was incredibly easy and I'm already almost half way through my second pair of socks (I'll have to post about that after the gifting is over).



I also finished up my Califon Cowl (Raveled) and gifted it to my future mother-in-law for Channukah. It was a sinch and I think I'm going to make another one for someone else for Christmas (secrets are so hard when it comes to crafting for the holidays!).

There's more holiday crafting to come!

Rekindling the Fiber Love

I've been fiber-inspired recently because I found this hilarious podcast, The Knit Wits. It's a husband and wife team who podcast out of Tennessee and have a wonderful repore with one another. They usually end up talking about lots of things other than knitting, like "what's in your wine glass?" and these pirate stories that the husband, Rick, tells (he's in radio/voice-overs and you can tell by his incredible voice).



So dug into my stash and pulled out a beautiful Malabrigo yarn in fall-type colors and started a cowl. I had to unwind the boring one I started a few months ago to start this new one, the Califon Cowl by Lelah Olender.

I also dropped by Rosie's Yarn Cellar and Loop, two great stores here in Philadelphia to bulk up my staff. I got a great deal on some Koigu yarn in a beautiful seashore color (four skeins for $20!).



I also picked up a simple sock pattern and some yarn to knit my very first socks! Wish me luck, I'll need it.





Oh, and of course I'm on Ravelry where you can see the shameful WIP that I started almost a year ago, the Balthazar Vest.

Phila Street Art :: Rittenhouse Square

This is the largest "yarnbombing" I've seen in Philly, but I'm sure there are more.

A Scarf for Jaja

Isn't it pretty? I've discovered the magic that happens when you follow a pattern and use the correct size needles and yarn. You get something that looks a lot like the picture! What a novel idea.

This is the Entrelac Scarf by Allison LoCicero which Jaja and I discovered on the fantastic blog Flint Knits. It's ravelled here. Jaja mentioned it in passing one day, and I stored it away in my brain for later (I love doing that). By the time she got it she no doubt forgot all about it.

This is the most complicated pattern I've ever followed, but once I knit two rows it became really obvious what I was supposed to be doing - knit three triangles, then start another row and pick up from the sides of the previous triangles. I chose not to block it, mostly because I'm lazy and it would show the mistakes, but also because I like the way it puckers - so three dimensional! And I loooooove the Noro colors, I had the hardest time choosing but eventually settled on a colorway that reminds me of a meadow with a deep blue lake in the middle. Lovely.

Happy Birthday Sis!

Lovely Moss Ear Warmer

I bought this gorgeous moss-colored wool at the Davis Farmer's Market back in November 2008 and I've been dying to use it ever since. I only got one skein so I figured it would be a hat or something similar, but I ended up with enough yarn for a hat and an ear warmer (raveled)! (I'm not quite finished with the hat, so I'll post about that when it's done).

The reason I got so much out of it is because I used moss stitch (or seed stitch). I love the way it looks; the natural pattern of the stitch with the beautiful earthy color of the yarn was just what I wanted. And then I threw it all off by lining it with a bright beautiful flannel (!!) fabric by Amy Butler in her new "Love" collection.



Here's a picture of it turned inside out. I had to leave a bit open at the back so it could still be stretched over the head. These pictures make the fabric seem much more orange than it really is.



Here's the fabric in all of its glory - it's called "Paradise Garden" and I think it would be fabulous in a quilt! I got this gorgeous fabric at Spool, a fabric store in Philadelphia where I just started taking sewing classes. The fabrics they sell are totally delightful and it's right next door to a wonderful yarn store!

I'm so happy to have crafting back in my life, I was afraid I was getting too busy for it (the blizzards we've been having here in Philly have also helped me get ahead in my crafting). But now I have several exciting projects in the works, mostly knitting, and these sewing classes are really getting me excited for the spring - A-line skirts, here I come!

Something New

I'm knitting my first piece of real clothing. It's not a scarf, hat, or mittens, but something that you can actually wear on your body! For this new step in my knitting life I chose the Balthazar Vest from Twinkle's Big City Knits by Wenlan Chia, an amazing book I found in the Philadelphia Free Public Library.

I'm knitting it for myself, which is also new because I give away about 90% of the things I knit. I'm cruising along so far, with only one little snag that my friend Leslie helped me work through (I failed to divide the body soon enough and the vest was a wee bit too long.) The yarn is as chunky as they get, so I should finish it pretty soon enough, though it's on hold now because I'm finishing up another mystery project first. I'll let you know how it comes out!

Basketweave for Baby

The baby is here and I finished this blanket just in time. The pattern is NMCRS Basketweave Baby Blanket ver. 2 by Cathy Waldie, ravelled here. I altered it a bit by including different colors, and I don't know if I made it the exact same size as the pattern because I stopped reading the pattern after a few reps.



Here's one of the big brothers showing off the new blanket. The mom, D, absolutely loved it and told me that it's the first hand-made blanket the kids have. I was so proud. This baby is the first girl of the family and her room is almost completely pink so I'm glad the blanket is a bit more androgynous.



I was babysitting the boys the day they brought the baby home and it was so incredible. Emotional and exhausting, but incredible. I guess I've experienced that before, but at the time I was 2.5, so I was better able to understand what was happening this time.

The next project I'm working on is for my lovely friend Nicole who is getting married later this month. Jaja and I are reading a poem at her wedding!! Both of them are secrets and since I know Nicole reads this blog, I will be silent on the subject until the reveal.

Woolens and Woodens

One large skein of gorgeous wool yielded me four wonderful hats. I sent these out to my lovely housemates back in California (and one in St. Louis) for the winter holiday festivus celebration. Matchy match!



I actually ran out of yarn at the very end and the last pompon hat had to be finished with a different lovely yarn in moss green.



I also went out to an art opening last night at Space 1026 (obsessed much?) called New Ancient Structures. That's me, next to the goofball in the blue hat. The wooden sculptures by AJ Fosik were amazing and intricate, using a folk art style and forcing us to confront the animal violence in ourselves. And the colors were pretty.

The Unexpected Beanie

Well, I tried to make the "Robin's Egg Blue Hat" by Rachel Iufer, but mine definitely turned into a beanie rather than a nice tight cap. It kind of hangs. But that's okay, I think I know someone with a head big enough to appreciate this beanie, and an appreciation for buttons . . .



The pattern is very simple, and I love the little flap (though it looks better with a single color yarn than my crazy fall colors, I guess). If you try it, take her advice and come up with a different way to decrease. I also blocked this before sewing the flap together, which added to the slouch-factor.



Why do we do this to our animals? And why does it incapacitate me with giggles every time?

Knitting in a Basket

I've been eye-ing these woven baskets at the farmer's market and various hippy supermarkets in town for about two years now. Last week I finally broke down and bought one because they were selling them at the FM for $20! I'm not totally sure, but I think that's cheaper than I've ever seen them before, so I jumped at it. It might just have been the right time, but I'm pretty pumped about my purchase. Aaa, materialism.



That thing sticking out of the top is the lastest hat I'm making with my amazing yarn. It's just awaiting finishing right now, I'll share the pattern with you when it's done!

The best fall hat EVER

If I do say so myself. I'm pretty pleased with the way this one turned out - I used the same pattern for the wool hats last Christmas but I've learned to tweak the pattern a bit, plus this yarn was well made and NOT knobbly as all get out.



I got the yarn a year ago at the Yolo Wool Mill open house (which is coming up in two weeks!). Unfortunately, I forget who made it and what the blend is, though I do know that it is hand dyed and at least partly if not all merino wool. It's so soft and gorgeous, I just want to rub it on my face all day (is that weird?).



Aaaaaaand, I used those buttons right away! Shocking.



Here's a detail of the pompons - you can really see all of the rich colors in there.



This hat will be perfect for walking around town on blustery fall days like those we've been having lately in Davis. The shadows have been intense.



Yesterday, Sammy and I went for a long walk on just such a blustery day; partly to take the hat for a test drive, and partly because the light and temperature were just the way we like it. What a happy boy.

The Wool Hats are DONE!

My Epic Project is finally finished. I successfully washed, teased, carded, spun, and knit the Suffolk wool and it is now in hat form, ready to wear. I didn't get a chance to document the carding, and I wanted to dye the wool, but you take what you can get sometimes.





I used a pattern for an earflap hat that I found from knitscene magazine online (the link opens up a PDF document). It was relatively simple, and they had a little glossary and illustrations for the harder terms.



They also had a little tutorial for making these adorable pompoms. I cheated a little bit and used some kool-aid dyed yarn that I bought in Arizona two summers ago for the pompoms. They actually smell kind of sweet.



I also fiddled with the pattern a bit and made a chord at the end of each earflap and put the pompoms at the end of the chords. This way you can tie the hat under your chin.



I'm pretty happy with the results, all in all. I do think they look a little bit like old football helmets. But my sister (who is modeling above) claims that all the stores are trying to make their knitwear look knobbly and handmade now, so I guess I'm right in step.

1 large bag of raw Suffolk wool, probably one fleece's worth = enough wool to make four knobbly earflap hats