I wish I could say that radio silence meant I was being productive, but it doesn't. I have gotten a ton of stuff from the Knit Picks sale, I've added books to ravelry that I didn't know I hadn't already added (I try to add things as soon as I get them, but I missed a few), and continued to work on the lacy armwarmers (now at the wrist bit on the second and will hopefully wrap them up by Monday).

I like most of what I got from Knit Picks, but I do need to return some of it. I managed to read the yardage wrong on the wool I got so I have two large but not quite enough for a sweater quantities. Since I also don't like the color of one quantity as well, that's going back. The other will likely become a long-sleeved shrug. I love the lace kit I got, I like the sock yarn, and I'm happy with my sweater quantities of cotton (washie if you're curious).

I did finish seaming my first sweater, and the fronts are too small. I haven't figured out if I want to take the fronts out, frog 'em, and reknit in a bigger size, or jury-rig two more knitted pieces, or make really wide buttonbands. I'm leaning towards 1 or 2, with 2 in the lead atm.

But since I have no pictures (camera cable's on walkabout), I give you a pic from some random autumn. This was taken in our front yard, and you got to love the colors. That bright red one is a Japanese maple and it's gorgeous every year.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Between Lord of the Rings Online releasing a new expansion (hit thewownoob.blogspot.com if you're curious to see what I thought) and my continuing illness, there hasn't been much knitting. I've started the second of the lacy armwarmers, and I've also been working on a Chilly Morning Cozycoat from Unofficial Downton Abbey Knits. It's a garter stitch vest, in a pretty red. I'm still on the back, but am close to finishing it (the back).

Red Morning Cozycoat

I also fell down and swiped my credit card at the Knitpicks sale way too many times. A bit over 20 bucks for a sweater's worth of yarn? AWESOME! I also got a lace shawl kit (mmm, Estonian lace, how I love you so), and some back issues of Knitscene (because I really needed to add more books to this project). I've blown my yarn budget for the next year, at least, but I figure I'd pay as much for a store-brought sweater, without the pleasure of making it.

I also won some yarn in the knitterain KAL on ravelry, as well as one of her patterns. I picked Amillë, and am stunned at the clever construction, plus it's pretty. I also want to knit a few more of hers, like Arlington, Biltmore, and Romanesque, she has some lovely patterns. Her ravelry designer's page is here, I encourage you to go and drool. The yarn I won will be coming from Two Tigers Yarn and I've contacted them already. I don't get to buy handdyed yarn all that much (stupid monetary constraints), so I'm really looking forward to it. They have some gorgeous colors (I'm in love with Dutch Oven, but I've already knit a shawl with a very similar color, see below).

Lehe Square Shawl from Knitted Lace of Estonia

That's a sock yarn, and the hot pink is a crochet cast-on so that I could knit on the border. It's a FO, but I don't have any pictures of it finished. I should remedy that. Obviously I need to add that to my knit to do list, along with photographing all my stash, putting it all in ravelry, queueing up all the projects from my books for the Library Project, and learning to take better pictures. Eeep, long list. Guess I should get started!

Happy Thanksgiving all!

Friday cuteness

Slow but steady progression on knitting projects does not make for scintillating blogging or photography. So, in celebration of Friday, have cuteness instead....this is Athena, my eternal puppy. She's a great (and sweet and adorable) dog.

Finished Friday Pretty

So I got no sleep last night, for various reasons. Mostly pain. But I did manage to finish a project, so check out the finished Myrtle Leaf Scarf. 

This is it right off the needles. I debated blocking it because it does have a lovely texture unblocked. Even the wrong side looks cool. The next two pictures are the right and wrong side once I uncurled it.

And here we have shots of it blocking. The glistening is water from my spraying it. I generally block lace by stretching it out and pinning it, then spraying the crap out of it with a mixture of water and a little bit of fancy lavender shampoo (for the nice smell). The lace scallops naturally, which is neat, and the pattern itself is quite easy once you get the hang of it. In fact, the only real challenge is that there are no rest rows. The spines of the leaves are formed by the directional decreases slanting away from each other, which I quite like.

Progress (of sorts)

I'm still in the process of organizing books and magazines. I'm trying to make a master list, which is taking some time, especially since I want to be sure that I can put my hands on all the materials in the list. Stash organization has yet to even start, and that's this week's project (including sticking it all in Raverly, since I've been very bad about that).

I do have some knitting to show, as well as some news. I have ended up turning the socks into bracers/long fingerless gloves. Since the only thing I'm now using from the pattern is the number of stitches to cast on, the purl edge, and a stitch pattern, I've decided that isn't enough for the socks to count as my project from Lace Style. But they are pretty and I'm happy with how they're turning out.

I also started a scarf from the 5th issue of Knitting Traditions. Myrtle Leaf Scarf is a lovely pattern, and I appear to be the first person knitting it (according to Ravelry anyway).  It's much bigger than this now, and really is a nice lace. There is a mistake with the stitch pattern, the 11th row should be k4, * k2tog, k1, yo, k5, yo, k1, k2tog tbl*. They left off the tbl bit. And if you really want to be picky, you could also use the proper leaning decreases on the purl rows too, but I decided not to bother and it still works quite well. It's charted below, if you prefer charts.

This will likely end up as a cowl, because my stitch gauge is nowhere near loose enough for this to be a scarf. Guess that's the problem with knitting a scarf from one long edge to the other. But I figure a extra repeat or two of the lace should make a lovely cowl.

I also figured out what my sweater project for Knit a Sweater in November's going to be, but I haven't started it yet. Since it's knitted in laceweight on size 3s (I may end up larger, but I haven't done gauge swatches yet to see), it'd be incredibly unlikely that I'd finish by the end of November anyway, and my dog destroyed my size 4s, so I need to wait for KP to send me a new set.

Knitted Stuff

While I'm making a list of books, figuring out stash, and generally trying to get organized, I figured I should show off some projects. This is my Midnight Floral Lace Sock in progress from Lace Style. I liked the border pattern so much that I decided it should be the leg and foot pattern as well. It's quite a bit longer now, I'm almost at the heel. The yarn is a Cascade sock yarn, but no clue which one or which color.

These are pictures of my finished Haruni. There's a knit-along right now, and I'd been meaning to knit this. It's done in Malabrigo Rastita and is ridiculously soft. I only did Chart A and then Edging... (you will have an extra stitch next to the border and the center. I just knit them)

Rows 1, 3 & 5 (RS): sl 1, k2, *yo, k3, sk2p, k3, yo, k1,* repeat to last st, k2.

Rows 2, 4 & 6 (WS): sl 1, k2, purl to last 2 sts, k3.

Row 7: sl 1, k2, *yo, k9, yo, k1,* repeat to last st, k2.

Row 8: knit across

BO with lace BO

I really like this modification, I don't think Chart B (as stunning as it is) would have looked as good. This edging blends well and gives it a rustic feel which fits well with the yarn. My mom has already claimed this for herself.

The Library Knitting Project

I've been trying to come up with a good knitting goal for a while. I thought about working my way through a book, but I couldn't decide which one. And then I looked at my ravelry library, and it occurred to me....
I mostly knit from just a few books. I have a ton of pattern books, magazines, and booklets, and I've not knit from them. So, here's the goal... I will knit (and block and finish) one pattern from each pattern book, one from each year of the magazines, one from each of the special issues, and one from a booklet. I get 3 "I have no money for the yarn and have nothing in stash" get-out-of-jail-free cards, and the project size doesn't matter, only that I did one. I can also work on finishing other projects I currently have in hibernation or in progress or in my designing brain, but otherwise it's all book knitting, all the time. Ideally this will increase my knitting skill and confidence. Non-ideally I'll end up with a bunch of cool knitted things. Either way, I figure I win. And it is called... the Library Knitting Project (since I'm knitting from "everything" in my ravelry library)

In the next few days I will sit down and make a book list, including marking off the ones I've already knit from and posting pictures of those projects. But to start....

First, a circular shawl from Wrapped in Lace. The Lacy Diamond Circular Shawl, knitted in hemp laceweight. I just started, so there's not much to see. It's going to be a long-term project, worked on when I feel like it, with no pressure attached.
Second, a pair of socks from Lace Style. Here's the link to my Ravelry project. I just started these tonight.

I have a few projects in my head. I want to knit a sweater for November (which will be part of this project), I have a sweater knitted that I need to finish for it to count, and I want to take the second chart of Haruni and make it into a scarf. I have a finished sock that needs a mate, and a partly finished bracer that needs to have a mate (and the pattern written up). I also need to knit another pair of bracers so I have pictures for the pattern (I knit a pair and gave them to a friend with the agreement that she'd take pictures of them for me. A year later, no pictures, so rather than bug her constantly, I might as well knit another pair in a yarn I can wear). I could also use a few hats, but that will also fit in well with the Library Project, so yay there.

And since that's a ton of words with no pictures, here's some random stuff I've knitted (and I do knit stuff other than stoles and socks, I promise, these were just the first pictures I grabbed).....

The Money Stole (designed and knit by me, pattern forthcoming whenever I get around to it)

An Ostrich Stole I Designed (pattern also maybe forthcoming)

A kickass pair of socks