Kid Merino! - October 01, 2007

Crystal Palace has done it again! They're just coming out with Kid Merino (28% Kid Mohair, 28% Merino Wool, 44% Micro Nylon) - another to-die-for yarn. I'm making Peggy's Shawl (by Jackie E-S, Heart Strings Fiber Arts) with this yarn, and it's going to be like gossamer. I can only imagine how beautiful it will be when it's completed and blocked! This particular color is #432 - Strawberries and Limes.

Silken Ease - September 21, 2007

Last week I completed the scarf I designed with Crystal Palace's new Panda Silk. This is another luscious yarn they have created, this time with bamboo, superwash merino wool, and silk. It is lovely to work with, too! The pattern is an easy lace pattern that makes up quickly. Panda Silk is ideal for this scarf! I can see me making shawls out of this yarn, too. I know someone who is making a pair of socks from it - they must be fabalous on the feet! Soft, but sturdy. Yep! having lots of fun here!!!!!

Satisfying Day - September 01, 2007

Still working on the scarf - have about 18" or so done. Tracie and I met a couple ladies from the knitting guild for lunch at Bob Evans (Tracie was able to eat their vegetable soup - had to remove the beef). Then we went to 3 yarn shops. I was a BAD girl!!!!! But they had some sales and some yarn kept calling my name and telling me what type of sweaters I could design and make. When I got home, DH asked me if I *really* needed more yarn, and I said Yep - for the kind of sweaters I want to make. LOL

Since Tracie did the driving, I was able to knit, knit, knit (one shop is about an hour away).

Panda Silk! - August 31, 2007

Crystal Palace Yarns has done it again! A new "Panda" yarn has been hatched - Panda Silk. It has the durability of bamboo (52%), the stability of superwash Merino wool (43%), and the luxurious softness of silk (5%). A 50-gram ball has approximately 204 yards and can be machine washed (gentle) or handwashed. I'm playing with designing a pattern for a scarf out of this luscious featherweight yarn. If I had the time and the confidence, I'd design a lacy shawl. This yarn is LOVELY!

FO for me! - July 18, 2007

I rarely make anything for me. But July is going to be "my" month. My beautiful daughter, Tracie, had surgery on July 11. The hospital she chose for her surgery is about 2 hours away. I stayed with her, in her room, during her hospital stay, while her hubby, Don, stayed home to take care of all the dogs and to make sure my granddaughter, Jennifer, got to the orthodontist to get her braces on her teeth.

I have a friend, Karen, who is a reference librarian here in my community. Also a knitter and crocheter, she often brings me books she has checked out and lets me ooh and aah over them. One such book is Knitting Sweaters from the Top Down: Fabulous Seamless Patterns to Suit Your Style, by Cathy Carron. I rarely find more than one pattern in a book that catches my interest, but this book has several!

I had some bulky yarn that would be perfect for the sweater called Nest. Not quite enough, so DH and I went shopping for more yarn before I left for my daughter's hospital stay. I started the sweater on the way to the hospital, since Tracie drove down. All during her surgery and the hospital stay, I worked on that sweater. It is a really quick knit and turned out nicely. You can't see all the detail in this picture, so you really need to look at the book. BTW, I have since bought that book - it's definitely a keeper!

Tracie says I won't wear this sweater, that it's too bulky for me. When the weather here turns cold, we'll see if she's right!

Peggy Shawl - July 18, 2007

Some of you know that I started the Peggy Shawl during the Columbus TNNA (end of May, beginning of June). I was using Nature Spun by Brown Sheep, but didn't really like the fabric it was creating. So off to the frog pond! I started it over with Kolibri, an Egyptian cotton by Dale of Norway. Love the fabric!!!

I'm not usually a lace shawl knitter. But as the designer, Jackie E-S of HeartStrings Fiber Arts states on the pattern, the Peggy Shawl is easier than it looks! And it truly is!!!! This shawl has been a definite success story for me; fun to make and a relatively quick knit. I had to order blocking wires from KnitPicks.com so that I could successfully block it. Now it's done. I like it so much I have started another with a thin boucle. The detail/lace won't be as prominent, but it is making up nicely, too.

What is interesting to me is that I rarely make the same pattern twice. Don't know if it's ADD or what. But this is the second of Jackie's patterns that I like enough to repeat. I love her 3-to-2 sweater. I've made two from it and have a third on the needles. And I'm thinking of making a 4th one in ribbon. The premise of this pattern is that you increase 3 sts over 2 rows. It's a bias knit sweater that always gets lots of compliments. Check out Jackie's patterns at your LYS! I think you'll like them as much as I do!

Does anyone recognize this? - July 14, 2007

This shawl pattern was a freebie on the internet several years ago. After a couple computer crashes, I lost the directions. I've tried "googling" but I'm not getting anywhere. I would love to complete this shawl if I can just find the directions. It's done in a sport or DK weight yarn and it uses an 18-row pattern repeat. Please email me if you think you can help me. THANKS!